Shamed former FIFA secretary general Jerome Valcke has appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport against a 10-year ban for ethics breaches.

The world body fired the Frenchman in January 2016 over black market World Cup ticket sales and suspect television deals. Valcke is also the target of a Swiss criminal investigation into FIFA's affairs under its former leader Sepp Blatter.

FIFA originally banned Valcke for 12 years but this was reduced to 10 years by a FIFA appeal committee in June last year. His current action at CAS is against the appeal committee.

"Jerome Valcke seeks to have the challenged decision set aside in order for the sanction imposed on him to be lifted definitively," said a CAS statement.

The tribunal said an arbitration panel had not yet been constituted, in an indication that any decision will take several months.

Valcke, who was accused of destroying evidence when under investigation, has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing.

Following the ban, FIFA said last June that it had passed on information to Swiss prosecutors and US authorities about the activities of Blatter and Valcke.

In 2008, Valcke's office transferred $10 million on behalf of South African officials organising the 2010 World Cup to senior FIFA officials in the Caribbean. US prosecutors suspect the money was a bribe in return for voting for South Africa to host the World Cup. 

Former Mexican President Vicente Fox Quesada trolled US President Donald Trump's first joint address to Congress.

Continuing his war on Trump, Quesada said: "Trump condemning hate and evil; then he should start by example and take back his hateful words."

The former leader took to Twitter on Tuesday night to offer his own commentary on Trump's address to the joint session. Without holding back, Quesada said: "What will America look like after @realDonaldTrump? That's up to you, US citizens, WAKE UP TODAY."

In a series of tweets, Quesada also said that rebuilding of the US would come after Trump (leaves office). "Let's hope he doesn't leave a big mess. AMERICA don't let him bully you."

He said: "America is waking up! Stay united, question everything, act bravely. @realDonaldTrump is NOT the nation, the country belong to the people."

He also posted a caricature of Trump, walled in with his "ignorance", "lies", "racism", "fear" saying that was the wall that Mexicans' would pay for. 

The former Mexican head of state has been bitterly opposing Trump's idea of the boundary wall between the two neighbours. He has also labelled it a 'racist monument'.

In January, Quesada even raised questions over Trump's legitimacy. Then also he took to the social media platform to express his anger as he said: "Losing election by more than three million votes and in addition this (the boundary wall). Are you a legitimate President?"

Following a bitter and abusive spat on twitter, Trump had also retorted back with the wall 'just got 10 feet taller'.

Current Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto has also made it clear that Mexico will not fund the wall.

During the deeply divided presidential campaign in the US, Trump's website, in a 664 word plan, stated that Mexico would pay for the wall or the US would block wire transfers to the country. The site had also stated there would be higher visa fees as a cash source.

 It was a partly cloudy Wednesday morning here with the minimum temperature recorded at 18 degrees Celsius, six notches above the season's average, the weather office said.

According to an India Meteorological Department (IMD) official, some drizzle was also "traced" at some locations. The humidity at 8.30 a.m. was recorded at 64 per cent.

"The sky will remain partly cloudy during the day with the possibility of rain, thunderstorm or dust storm," the official said.

The maximum temperature is likely to hover around 31 degrees Celsius, he added.

Tuesday's maximum temperature was recorded at 32.5 degrees Celsius, seven notches above the season's average, and the minimum was 12.5 degrees Celsius, the season's average.

Holders Juventus overcame an early deficit to beat Napoli 3-1 in controversial Coppa Italia semifinal first leg tie on Tuesday night, Paulo Dybala scoring two penalties to keep the Turin based club’s hopes of a ‘triple double’ alive. 

Both sides sent out fairly strong line ups for the epic clash at the Juventus Stadium, with a front three of Paulo Dybala, Mario Mandzukic and Gonzalo Higuain starting for the hosts while the visitors had a very potent attacking trio of Arek Milik, Lorenzo Insigne and Jose Callejon.

And Napoli were the team that controlled the tempo off the game, with their midfield winning the battle in the middle of the pitch but Juve’s reserve keeper Neto was largely untested for the first half-hour. The Brazilian, who starts only in the Coppa Italia with Gianluigi Buffon being preferred in the Serie A and the Champions league, dealt with shots from distance fairly comfortably.

Napoli’s domination eventually paid dividends with a stunning move involving all three forwards. Insigne and Milik played a slightly unorthodox one-two before the former sent in a low cross from the left for Callejon to finish at the far post in the 36th minute.

Mandzukic had a chance to level the game but his shot was superbly saved by Pepe Reina and Stepehen Lichsteiner was unable to finish the resulting rebound.
 
Massimiliano Allegri was a worried man as the sides returned to the dressing room at half time, with his team failing to test Reina in the opening 45 minutes apart from that chance.

It was left to the mercurial Dybala to save the day and the Argentine did just that, winning and then scoring a penalty in the 47th minute to level the tie. Kalidou Koulibay’s outstretched leg had caught the attacker in the box and Dybala cooly sent Reina the wrong way before wheeling away with his trademark ‘mask’ celebration in delight.

Gonzalo Higuain, the most expensive signing in the history of Serie A, then turned the match on its head with a smart volley from an acute angle in the 63rd minute. Reina had come to collect a Juan Cuadrado cross but missed the ball completely and the Argentine striker calmly volleyed home to compound the visitors’ misery.

The key moment in the match came with the second penalty decision, as match referee Paolo Valeri felt that Reina hadn't got the ball when tackling Cuadrado in the box. Replays suggested that the Spanish goalkeeper had got a bit of the ball even as the Colombian winger looked to round him after being set up by Dybala and perhaps that is why the furious Napoli players surrounded the official but to no avail.

For the second time on the night, Dybala stepped up and delivered from the spot, finishing on the left again, deceiving Reina to give Juventus a definitive advantage in the two-legged semifinal and with little over twenty minutes left on the clock, managed to preserve their lead on the night.

A 2-1 result would have left it open for either side, but the third goal puts the Bianconeri in the ascendancy and they will fancy their chances of progressing to the final after the second leg which is scheduled for April 5.

The strategic Jammu-Srinagar national highway will remain closed for the second consecutive day on Wednesday due to landslides, a traffic department official said.

Authorities said massive landslides in Ramban district of Jammu and Kashmir washed away a portion of the road.

Landslide clearance and building of new road in the washed away portion in Mehar area was already started, and was expected to complete by Wednesday afternoon, the official added.

"But keeping the safety of the travellers in view, it has been decided that no movement of traffic will be allowed on the highway," he said.

Meanwhile, officials of the National Highways Authority of India have said that the 9.5 km long Nashri-Chenani tunnel would be thrown open for the traffic in March.

The tunnel would shorten the Jammu-Srinagar journey time by nearly two hours as it by-passes the 38 km of the existing portion of the highway including Batote, Patnitop and Kud.

Refugee and migrant children and women are suffering widespread physical and sexual violence and abuse on perilous journeys from North Africa to Italy, the United Nations said Tuesday, urging action to protect these vulnerable groups from "predators".

"The Central Mediterranean from North Africa to Europe is among the world's deadliest and most dangerous migrant routes for children and women," said Afshan Khan, UNICEF regional director and special coordinator for the Refugee and Migrant Crisis in Europe.

"The route is mostly controlled by smugglers, traffickers and other people seeking to prey upon desperate children and women… We need safe and legal pathways and safeguards to protect migrating children that keep them safe and keep predators at bay." 

Three-quarters of the refugee and migrant children interviewed in a recent UN survey said they had experienced violence, harassment or aggression at the hands of adults during their journey, while almost half of the women and children reported sexual abuse – often repeatedly and in multiple locations.

The survey revealed "appalling" levels of abuse along the migration route, the UN said. 

It was carried out as part of a major report issued on Tuesday by the UN children's charity UNICEF, "A Deadly Journey for Children: The Central Mediterranean Migrant Route".

The report takes an in-depth look at the extreme risks facing refugee and migrant children as they make the perilous journey from sub-Saharan Africa into Libya and across the sea to Italy, the UN said. 

Most children and women surveyed in Libya late 2016 indicated that they had paid smugglers at the beginning of their journey, leaving many in debt and vulnerable to abuse, abduction and trafficking, according to the report.

Women and children also described harsh and overcrowded conditions including lack of nutritious food and adequate shelter in Libyan detention centres – both those of the UN-backed unity government and those run by armed militias.

At the time of the survey, 256,000 migrants were recorded in Libya, including 30,803 women and 23,102 children – a third of whom were unaccompanied. The true figures, however, are believed to be at least three times higher, the UN said.

Last year at least 4,579 people died attempting to cross the Mediterranean from Libya, or 1 in every 40 of those who tried. 

It is estimated that at least 700 of those who perished were children.

"Children should not be forced to put their lives in the hands of smugglers because there are simply no alternatives," said Khan.

He called for "a robust system of safe and legal passage for children on the move, whether refugees or migrants".

A UNICEF six-point plan to safeguard uprooted children includes keeping families together, protecting minors travelling alone, giving children in transit access to education, healthcare and other services.

Snapping two-session losing streak amid positive global cues and better than expected Q3 GDP numbers, Indian equity markets started Wednesday’s trading session in the positive zone. At 9.50 am, the Sensex at the BSE was trading 231 points up at 28,975 and the Nifty at the NSE was trading 61 points higher at 8,940.

In the broader markets, BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices jumped 0.4 per cent and 0.7 per cent respectively.

Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth for the quarter ended December 31, 2016 contracted to 7 per cent, Central Statistics Office (CSO) said on Tuesday.

The third quarter number GDP numbers are an important indicator of how the economy reacted after demonetisation. In the quarter ended December 31, 2015 the GDP growth was 7.2 per cent.

Among the BSE sectoral indices, Realty index jumped the most, up 1.3 per cent, while Oil & Gas index became the top loser, down 0.3 per cent.

On Tuesday, the Sensex had closed 70 points down at 28,743 and the Nifty had closed 17 points lower at 8,880.

Top gainers in the Sensex-30 pack: Axis Bank (up 2.8 per cent), HDFC (up 1.7 per cent), Hero Motocorp (up 1.5 per cent), TCS (up 1.3 per cent) and Sun Pharma (up 1.2 per cent).

Top losers in the Sensex-30 pack: Tata Motors (down 0.7 per cent), Bharti Airtel (down 0.3 per cent), NTPC (down 0.3 per cent), and M&M (down 0.1 per cent)

However, the Rupee was trading 13 paise down at 66.82 against the US Dollar.

US President Donald Trump has signed an executive order aimed at signaling his commitment to historically black colleges and universities, saying that those schools will be "an absolute priority for this White House."

HBCU presidents are hoping Congress will bolster Trump's actions to strengthen the schools with dramatically increased funding in the upcoming federal budget.

They are calling for $25 billion for infrastructure, college readiness, financial aid and other priorities. Under President Barack Obama's administration, historically black colleges and universities received $4 billion over seven years.

"The next step is the budget. You cannot have mission without money," Thurgood Marshall College Fund President Johnny Taylor told reporters on Tuesday outside the White House after the signing ceremony.

Many of the college presidents also went to Capitol Hill on Tuesday to lobby Congress for more funding.

Taylor said the $25 billion is needed to make up for years of underfunding and would cover the country's more than 100 HBCUs.

Several presidents and HBCU advocacy organizations echoed Taylor's sentiments.

"This is a great day for my membership and a great day for America," said Lezli Baskerville, head of the National Association For Equal Opportunity in Education, an umbrella group for public, private and land-grant HBCUs.

GOP lawmakers said there were currently no concrete plans for increased funding. Several of them attended meetings on Tuesday that Sen. Tim Scott, R-S C, and Republican Mark Walker, R-N C, arranged with HBCU presidents, GOP officials and business leaders.

Scott said he and Walker planned to personally push for more money for black colleges, and "hopefully we will be more successful than they have been in the last few years."

Republican Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Texas, a member of the House Budget Committee, was more skeptical.

"There is no substance at this point," she said Monday, adding that she is waiting to see the contents of Trump's executive order, and what Congress does during the budget process.

Trump's order moves the Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities from the Department of Education into the executive office of the White House.

It directs the initiative to work with the private sector to strengthen the fiscal stability of HBCUS, make infrastructure improvements, provide job opportunities for students, work with secondary schools to create a college pipeline and increase access and opportunity for federal grants and contracts.

It does not specify how much federal money the colleges should receive.

The moves are among the actions some college presidents said they would like to see from the new administration. Some of them decided to come to Washington over the objections of students and alumni, saying they can ill afford to play politics while Trump moves quickly to set priorities.

US President Donald Trump has signed an executive order aimed at signaling his commitment to historically black colleges and universities, saying that those schools will be "an absolute priority for this White House."

HBCU presidents are hoping Congress will bolster Trump's actions to strengthen the schools with dramatically increased funding in the upcoming federal budget.

They are calling for $25 billion for infrastructure, college readiness, financial aid and other priorities. Under President Barack Obama's administration, historically black colleges and universities received $4 billion over seven years.

"The next step is the budget. You cannot have mission without money," Thurgood Marshall College Fund President Johnny Taylor told reporters on Tuesday outside the White House after the signing ceremony.

Many of the college presidents also went to Capitol Hill on Tuesday to lobby Congress for more funding.

Taylor said the $25 billion is needed to make up for years of underfunding and would cover the country's more than 100 HBCUs.

Several presidents and HBCU advocacy organizations echoed Taylor's sentiments.

"This is a great day for my membership and a great day for America," said Lezli Baskerville, head of the National Association For Equal Opportunity in Education, an umbrella group for public, private and land-grant HBCUs.

GOP lawmakers said there were currently no concrete plans for increased funding. Several of them attended meetings on Tuesday that Sen. Tim Scott, R-S C, and Republican Mark Walker, R-N C, arranged with HBCU presidents, GOP officials and business leaders.

Scott said he and Walker planned to personally push for more money for black colleges, and "hopefully we will be more successful than they have been in the last few years."

Republican Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Texas, a member of the House Budget Committee, was more skeptical.

"There is no substance at this point," she said Monday, adding that she is waiting to see the contents of Trump's executive order, and what Congress does during the budget process.

Trump's order moves the Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities from the Department of Education into the executive office of the White House.

It directs the initiative to work with the private sector to strengthen the fiscal stability of HBCUS, make infrastructure improvements, provide job opportunities for students, work with secondary schools to create a college pipeline and increase access and opportunity for federal grants and contracts.

It does not specify how much federal money the colleges should receive.

The moves are among the actions some college presidents said they would like to see from the new administration. Some of them decided to come to Washington over the objections of students and alumni, saying they can ill afford to play politics while Trump moves quickly to set priorities.

To truly welcome migrants, host nations must know how many they can integrate, Pope Francis said on Tuesday.

"Each country must know the number of migrants it is capable of receiving," Francis said in an interview with a magazine sponsored by Catholic charity Caritas.

"We cannot welcome people if we are not able to integrate them," he told 'Scarp de tenis' (Sneakers) magazine for homeless people living in Milan.

Integrated migrants take part into the life of the host country and enrich it while respecting its culture and receiving reciprocal respect for their own, the pontiff said.

"Integration is a very difficult task," Francis stated.

He urged Catholics to put themselves in the other person's shoes even if they find this hard, as it is a way of freeing ourselves from egoism.

"In the shoes of the other, we learn to have a great capacity for understanding, for getting to know difficult situations.

"Those arriving in Europe are fleeing war or hunger… they have the right to emigrate and to be welcomed and helped," the pontiff said, claiming that wealthy nations are also blame for their plight.

"In some way, we are guilty, because we exploit their lands but do not make and kind of investment from which they may benefit," Francis said.

To truly welcome migrants, host nations must know how many they can integrate, Pope Francis said on Tuesday.

"Each country must know the number of migrants it is capable of receiving," Francis said in an interview with a magazine sponsored by Catholic charity Caritas.

"We cannot welcome people if we are not able to integrate them," he told 'Scarp de tenis' (Sneakers) magazine for homeless people living in Milan.

Integrated migrants take part into the life of the host country and enrich it while respecting its culture and receiving reciprocal respect for their own, the pontiff said.

"Integration is a very difficult task," Francis stated.

He urged Catholics to put themselves in the other person's shoes even if they find this hard, as it is a way of freeing ourselves from egoism.

"In the shoes of the other, we learn to have a great capacity for understanding, for getting to know difficult situations.

"Those arriving in Europe are fleeing war or hunger… they have the right to emigrate and to be welcomed and helped," the pontiff said, claiming that wealthy nations are also blame for their plight.

"In some way, we are guilty, because we exploit their lands but do not make and kind of investment from which they may benefit," Francis said.

Donald Trump could be the first US President in 130 years who does not have a canine companion in the White House.

According to a report in Independent on Tuesday, most US Presidents have had a least one dog, while many have had several. 

"Obamas had two Portuguese water dogs named Sunny and Bo, President George W Bush had two terriers and a spaniel and President Clinton had a Labrador named Buddy," the report noted.

It was rumoured that Trump might adopt a Goldendoodle, who was being fostered by one of his friends.

But the idea was dropped after the wife of Trump's friend decided to keep Goldendoodle herself.

According to the report, the last US President not to have a dog was William McKinley.

Trump has been using dog-related similes often which led the Daily Dot to write an article last year, claiming: "Donald Trump has no idea what dogs are or what they do."

Donald Trump could be the first US President in 130 years who does not have a canine companion in the White House.

According to a report in Independent on Tuesday, most US Presidents have had a least one dog, while many have had several. 

"Obamas had two Portuguese water dogs named Sunny and Bo, President George W Bush had two terriers and a spaniel and President Clinton had a Labrador named Buddy," the report noted.

It was rumoured that Trump might adopt a Goldendoodle, who was being fostered by one of his friends.

But the idea was dropped after the wife of Trump's friend decided to keep Goldendoodle herself.

According to the report, the last US President not to have a dog was William McKinley.

Trump has been using dog-related similes often which led the Daily Dot to write an article last year, claiming: "Donald Trump has no idea what dogs are or what they do."

For the first time in last 146 years, Chicago is going through a snow-drought winter, with January and February passing without a flake.

According to a report in NBC News on Tuesday, Chicago averages over 40 inches of snow per winter and the city always preps and for months revving up "a fleet" of snow plows and salt trucks to service over "280 snow routes."

During the months it experiences severe cold, Chicago witnessed temperatures hitting spring-like highs, without any signs of snow.

"Forecasts predicted a bad winter so I got the thickest, warmest coat I could find. But honestly I've only used it a few days this winter," a Chicago resident Ella Cole was quoted as saying.

"I'll guess I'll save it for next year," Cole added.

According to the National Weather Service, the last measurable day of snow came on Christmas Day.

"While chances of snowfall decrease after this point. March and even April are far from immune from crippling snow storms," said the National Weather Service on its Facebook page.

For the first time in last 146 years, Chicago is going through a snow-drought winter, with January and February passing without a flake.

According to a report in NBC News on Tuesday, Chicago averages over 40 inches of snow per winter and the city always preps and for months revving up "a fleet" of snow plows and salt trucks to service over "280 snow routes."

During the months it experiences severe cold, Chicago witnessed temperatures hitting spring-like highs, without any signs of snow.

"Forecasts predicted a bad winter so I got the thickest, warmest coat I could find. But honestly I've only used it a few days this winter," a Chicago resident Ella Cole was quoted as saying.

"I'll guess I'll save it for next year," Cole added.

According to the National Weather Service, the last measurable day of snow came on Christmas Day.

"While chances of snowfall decrease after this point. March and even April are far from immune from crippling snow storms," said the National Weather Service on its Facebook page.

 A collection of stunning jewelry, unearthed by two metal detector enthusiasts, was described as the earliest example of Iron Age gold ever discovered in Britain.

The gold items were found just below the ground in an area of moorland on a farm in the English county of Staffordshire, Xinhua news agency reported. 

The two gold-finders, Mark Hambleton and Joe Kania, were left speechless when they unearthed the artifacts on a cold winter's day in December. The 2,500-year-old pieces had been lying just beneath the surface, all within a meter of each other.

Experts at the British Museum believe the gold jewelry, now named the Leekfrith Iron Age Torcs, could date back as far as 400 BC.

Said to be of "huge international importance," the collection consists of a bracelet decorated with Celtic art and three necklaces. It is thought the jewelry originated in either Germany or France.

Julia Farley, curator of British and European Iron Age collections at the British Museum, who assessed the unique collection, said: "The torcs were probably worn by wealthy and powerful women, perhaps people from the continent who had married into the local community."

"Piecing together how these objects came to be carefully buried in a Staffordshire field will give us an invaluable insight into life in Iron Age Britain," she added.

One theory is the gold may have been buried in the ground for safekeeping, or alternatively as an offering to the gods as an act of remembrance after their owner died.

Archaeologists have carried out a study of the immediate site and say there is no evidence of any other pieces on the land.

Staffordshire is best known for its iconic pottery industry, with the area officially known as the Potteries. Little is known about Iron Age settlements in the county.

Philip Atkins, leader of Staffordshire County Council, said: "This amazing find of gold torcs in the north of the county is quite simply magical and we look forward to sharing the secrets and story they hold in the years to come."

An official hearing is to be conducted by a coroner to determine whether the find should be declared as a treasure trove. 

 A collection of stunning jewelry, unearthed by two metal detector enthusiasts, was described as the earliest example of Iron Age gold ever discovered in Britain.

The gold items were found just below the ground in an area of moorland on a farm in the English county of Staffordshire, Xinhua news agency reported. 

The two gold-finders, Mark Hambleton and Joe Kania, were left speechless when they unearthed the artifacts on a cold winter's day in December. The 2,500-year-old pieces had been lying just beneath the surface, all within a meter of each other.

Experts at the British Museum believe the gold jewelry, now named the Leekfrith Iron Age Torcs, could date back as far as 400 BC.

Said to be of "huge international importance," the collection consists of a bracelet decorated with Celtic art and three necklaces. It is thought the jewelry originated in either Germany or France.

Julia Farley, curator of British and European Iron Age collections at the British Museum, who assessed the unique collection, said: "The torcs were probably worn by wealthy and powerful women, perhaps people from the continent who had married into the local community."

"Piecing together how these objects came to be carefully buried in a Staffordshire field will give us an invaluable insight into life in Iron Age Britain," she added.

One theory is the gold may have been buried in the ground for safekeeping, or alternatively as an offering to the gods as an act of remembrance after their owner died.

Archaeologists have carried out a study of the immediate site and say there is no evidence of any other pieces on the land.

Staffordshire is best known for its iconic pottery industry, with the area officially known as the Potteries. Little is known about Iron Age settlements in the county.

Philip Atkins, leader of Staffordshire County Council, said: "This amazing find of gold torcs in the north of the county is quite simply magical and we look forward to sharing the secrets and story they hold in the years to come."

An official hearing is to be conducted by a coroner to determine whether the find should be declared as a treasure trove.