By Saliou Samb
CONAKRY, Feb 15 (Reuters) &#8211; Guinea is tracking down people who potentially came in contact with Ebola patients and will rush out vaccines to the area as soon as it can get them, after three people died of the disease, Health Minister Remy Lamah said on Monday.
Lamah said that unlike during the deadliest known outbreak, which tore through West Africa in 2013-2016, Guinea now had the means to halt the resurgence of the disease.
&#8220;In 2013, it took us months to understand that we were dealing with an Ebola epidemic, while this time, in less than four days, we were able to do analysis and have the results. Our medical teams are trained and seasoned. We have the means to quickly overcome this disease,&#8221; Lamah told Reuters.
The 2013-2016 outbreak killed 11,300 people, mostly in Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia. The second-deadliest known outbreak was declared over last year in the Democratic Republic of Congo, but that country has also recorded new Ebola cases this month, alarming global health officials.
Lamah did not say how many potential contacts health officials were trying to trace. However authorities including in neighbouring Sierra Leone are concerned that the disease could quickly spread in the area where borders are porous.
A spokesman for Sierra Leone&#8217;s health ministry said on Monday workers were on the ground at points of entry, performing surveillance in coordination with the Guinea authorities.
The resurgence started after the funeral of a nurse who was buried in southeast Guinea on Feb. 1. Authorities said seven people who took part in the funeral fell ill and tested positive for Ebola. Three have died, while four others are in isolation.

&#8220;As a priority, we are trying to trace all potential contacts to isolate them. At the same time, we will carry out a vaccination campaign in the locality, as soon as the doses are available,&#8221; Lamah told Reuters.
&#8220;What worries us the most is the dangerousness of the disease given what we experienced five years ago. We do not want to relive such a situation,&#8221; he said.
Lamah said the government had received assurances from the World Health Organization that it will help it get vaccines, as doses stored from the previous outbreak had expired. (Reporting by Saliou Samb, additional reporting by Cooper Inveen Writing by Bate Felix Editing by Peter Graff)
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Guinea tracks potential Ebola contacts, says can overcome new outbreak

By Nick Said
CAPE TOWN, Feb 15 (Reuters) &#8211; South Africa’s director of cricket Graeme Smith has warned the International Cricket Council that smaller member nations must get their fair share of test tours against the so-called &#8216;Big Three&#8217; or face future domination of the Twenty20 leagues.
South Africa are smarting after Australia opted to pull out of a three-test tour in March due to COVID-19 fears even though the hosts said they had invested a considerable amount of money to meet the visitors&#8217; lengthy list of medical safety demands.
It has left financially-stricken Cricket South Africa with a loss of revenue running into the millions of rands, and with no time to find another opponent to fill the void. They have written to the ICC to seek financial redress.
Tours between cricket&#8217;s Big Three &#8211; India, Australia and England &#8211; remain on schedule for 2021.
England and India are set to meet in nine tests this year, while Australia have already played the Indians at home and are also set for an Ashes series with England.
&#8220;The game needs leadership right now that understands the complexities. I don’t think world cricket wants just three nations competing against each other in 10 years’ time. How does that benefit the game?&#8221; Smith told reporters on Monday.
&#8220;That would amplify the (Twenty20) leagues and they will get bigger and bigger, and probably the rest of the member nations will have little or no (international) content.
&#8220;The leadership at the ICC needs to address these issues now, which are being fast-tracked because of COVID. I think they have been caught a little off-guard.&#8221;
Smith’s believes the Future Tours Programme, which sets out the cricket calendar for nations, has become too fluid with countries able to simply opt not to fulfil obligations.
&#8220;FTP will be a hugely challenging thing going forward with potentially eight ICC tournaments in the eight years, an extended IPL (Indian Premier League) and a lot of the calendar dominated by India, England and Australia,&#8221; he said.
&#8220;It makes it challenging for the rest of the member nations, and just amplifies the stress on the likes of us and the other members that are looking for good content.&#8221;
Smith also admitted the relationship between South Africa and Australia has become &#8220;strained&#8221;, and that attempts to reschedule the three-test tour have so far met a dead-end.
&#8220;We are trying to find a way to fit it into the calendar cycle, which for us is important. We have had some initial engagements with Cricket Australia.
&#8220;It hasn’t been positive on trying to find a window, but we are working hard on it.&#8221; (Reporting by Nick Said, editing by Pritha Sarkar)
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Cricket-Cricket-Smith calls for strong leadership from ICC to regulate power of Big Three

* Platinum unlikely to trade at a premium to gold -analyst
* Markets await U.S. Fed FOMC minutes on Wednesday
* Benchmark U.S. yields rose to 11-month high on Friday
* Interactive graphic tracking global spread of coronavirus: https://tmsnrt.rs/3mvcUoa (Add comments, updates prices)
By Nakul Iyer
Feb 15 (Reuters) &#8211; Platinum prices climbed to their highest level in over six years on Monday, buoyed by expectations of a wider supply-demand deficit for the industrial metal on hopes for a swift rebound in the global economy.
Platinum, used in catalytic converters that limit emissions from automobile engine exhaust systems, rose 2.4% to $1,282.55 by 1007 GMT, having touched $1,288.50, its highest since January 2015.
&#8220;Investors have started to realize there&#8217;s upside potential for platinum prices, so its catching up to other precious metals,&#8221; said ABN Amro analyst Georgette Boele, adding the industrial outlook has improved for platinum.
Platinum will likely continue to outperform both palladium and gold, but it is unlikely to revert back to trading at a premium to gold, she added.
Specialist materials firm Johnson Matthey predicted a third consecutive annual deficit for platinum this year.
Analysts also said longstanding supply issues of the metal in top producer South Africa could lend further support to the industrial metal by potentially widening its supply deficit.
Spot gold eased 0.4% to $1,816.40 per ounce, pressured by a jump in U.S. Treasury yields, which topped a near 11-month peak on Friday. Higher yields increase non-yielding bullion&#8217;s opportunity cost.
U.S. gold futures fell 0.3% to $1,818.10.
&#8220;The safe-haven status of gold is not holding as much shine as it once did, while we&#8217;ve a lot of optimism around economic growth,&#8221; said Michael McCarthy, chief market strategist at CMC Markets.
Market participants also await minutes of the U.S. Federal Reserve&#8217;s Federal Open Market Committee meeting at the end of January, due on Wednesday.
&#8220;Gold&#8217;s overall technical position remains fragile, and will come under renewed downward pressure this week, if U.S. yields continue moving higher,&#8221; OANDA senior market analyst Jeffrey Halley said in a note.
Silver rose 0.6% to $27.50 per ounce and palladium rose 0.4% to $2,397.20.
(Reporting by Nakul Iyer and Sumita Layek in Bengaluru Editing by Mark Heinrich)
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PRECIOUS-Platinum surges to six-year high on brighter demand outlook

By Kirthana Pillay
JOHANNESBURG, Feb 15 (Reuters) &#8211; Staff at Hotel Sky in Johannesburg&#8217;s wealthy Sandton district adhere to strict COVID-19 protocols, wearing masks and physically distancing from guests as much as possible; all, that is, except Lexi, Micah and Ariel.
For the three concierges couldn&#8217;t breathe germs on you even if they wanted to: they&#8217;re robots.
Robot hospitality is not new &#8211; Japanese hotels have been deploying them for years and in 2015 Tokyo&#8217;s Henn&#8217;na, or &#8216;Strange&#8217;, hotel became the first to be fully staffed by machines.
Several robot-staffed Tokyo hotels are now using them to serve guests with mild COVID-19 symptoms.
But Hotel Sky, which launched this year, is the first in Africa to use automated attendants, a concept that could cause a stir in a country with one of the world&#8217;s worst jobless rates.
Unemployment is at 30.8%, according to President Cyril Ramaphosa&#8217;s state of the nation address last Thursday.
&#8220;It&#8217;ll never replace people, but it is going to change the space,&#8221; Paul Kelley, Hotel Sky Managing Director, told Reuters.
&#8220;I think that it is the future,&#8221; he said, adding that they planned to launch an offshoot in Cape Town next month.
Lexi, Micah and Ariel deliver room service, provide travel information and can drag up to 300kg of luggage from the marble-floored lobby to the rooms.
If the hotel receives a guest with COVID-19 symptoms, the robots could be deployed instead of people as a precaution.
Otherwise, &#8220;guests can choose whether they want to interact with staff members or make use of the self service, which is all controlled by their phone,&#8221; Herman Brits, the hotel&#8217;s general manager, said.
Steve Pinto, CEO of CTRL Robotics, which supplies the droids, said they could also scan customers&#8217; facial expressions to determine how happy they were.
&#8220;It helps management to understand how customers are experiencing the facilities at the hotel,&#8221; he said, after getting a robot painted in a riotous orange and white pattern to take a selfie.
Reaction to the robots has been mixed. Even highly intelligent robots don&#8217;t always &#8220;get&#8221; what you want.
&#8220;I think the world is moving towards this digital space, but we are not used to it,&#8221; hotel guest Ernest Mulenga said. &#8220;The human touch is still something that is appealing to me.&#8221; (Editing by Tim Cocks and Mike Collett-White)
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Robots at reception: S.African hotel turns to machines to beat pandemic

* Rising oil prices buoy Russia&#8217;s rouble
* Turkish lira at six-month high
* South African shares at new highs
* Markets in China, Hong Kong, Taiwan closed for holiday
By Susan Mathew
Feb 15 (Reuters) &#8211; Russia&#8217;s rouble rose to a one-month high on Monday as oil prices gained, while an index of developing-market stocks scaled record highs on hopes of a stimulus-fuelled global economic recovery.
The rouble rose 0.7% against the dollar as crude prices reached 13-month highs on fears of heightened tensions in the Middle East.
Risk premiums evaporate quickly, so the Middle East tensions should have a short-lived impact on prices, said Hussein Sayed, chief market strategist at FXTM.
But &#8220;the robust recovery in oil prices and industrial metals over the past couple of months is driving the idea of a new commodities supercycle in which prices remain above-trend for many years to come,&#8221; he said, which signals an upbeat outlook for crude exporter Russia&#8217;s currency.
The rouble was set to repeat last April&#8217;s advance and mark its ninth straight session of gains.
On Friday, growing prospects of new European Union sanctions against Russia limited gains in the currency, even though the central bank left interest rates unchanged and hinted at a tighter policy.
Turkey&#8217;s lira touched six-month highs after J.P. Morgan raised its expectations for Turkish economic growth to 4.6% this year, from 3.3% previously. It also increased its 2020 view, based on strong private-sector performance through the coronavirus pandemic.
JPM&#8217;s Turkey bond index has been outperforming most major peers as well as JPM&#8217;s broader EM bonds index since early last year.
The currency has gained about 4% this month &#8211; its fourth straight month in the black, on expectations of tight monetary policy. This week, the central bank is expected to keep its policy rate unchanged at 17%, after raising it by 675 basis points since November under new Governor Naci Agbal.
South Africa&#8217;s rand hit peaks not seen in more than a year, while in central Europe the Polish zloty gained against a stronger euro as some COVID-19 restrictions in the country were eased over the weekend.
An upbeat handover from Asia saw MSCI&#8217;s index of emerging market shares surge to record highs. Energy shares boosted Russia&#8217;s MOEX, while South Africa&#8217;s blue-chips index climbed new highs.
Unprecedented amounts of stimulus since the pandemic began have spurred bets of a global economic recovery, with U.S. President Joe Biden&#8217;s progress in passing a $1.9 trillion aid package further renewing interest in riskier emerging- market assets.
In Ukraine, the International Monetary Fund ended a review of its $5 billion loan program with the country without clearing the next tranche because conditions haven&#8217;t been met. Yields on some short-term bonds declined. For GRAPHIC on emerging market FX performance 2020, see http://tmsnrt.rs/2egbfVh For GRAPHIC on MSCI emerging index performance 2020, see https://tmsnrt.rs/2OusNdX

For TOP NEWS across emerging markets
For CENTRAL EUROPE market report, see
For TURKISH market report, see
For RUSSIAN market report, see
(Reporting by Susan Mathew in Bengaluru; editing by Larry King)
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EMERGING MARKETS-Russian rouble hits one-month peak; EM stocks at record highs

JOHANNESBURG, Feb 15 (Reuters) &#8211; South Africa&#8217;s former president Jacob Zuma did not show up on Monday at an inquiry into corruption during his time in office, despite the country&#8217;s top court ordering him to appear, the judge leading it confirmed.
The inquiry led by Justice Raymond Zondo is probing allegations of high-level graft during his nine years in power. Zuma denies wrongdoing but has not cooperated with the investigation. (Reporting by Alexander Winning Editing by Tim Cocks)
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South Africa’s ex-president Zuma fails to show at corruption inquiry

LONDON, Feb 15 (Reuters) &#8211; Britain&#8217;s new COVID-19 hotel quarantine system for arrivals from 33 &#8220;red list&#8221; countries appears to be working smoothly a few hours after it was introduced, Health Secretary Matt Hancock said on Monday.
The government has introduced a new demand that arrivals from the 33 countries, which include Brazil and South Africa, will have to pay to spend 10 days quarantined in a hotel room in a bid to stop new variants of the coronavirus from entering the country.
&#8220;As of 6.30, when I got my latest update, this is working smoothly, we&#8217;ve been working with the airports and with the border force to make sure everybody knows the process,&#8221; Hancock told Times Radio.
&#8220;It does appear to be going smoothly this morning.&#8221;

(Reporting by Guy Faulconbridge and Kate Holton; editing by James Davey)
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England’s hotel quarantine system working smoothly, Hancock says

SAHPRA SAYS J&amp;J HAS NOT YET SUBMITTED AN APPLICATION FOR EMERGENCY USE AUTHORISATION OF ITS VACCINE IN SOUTH AFRICA
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SAHPRA SAYS J&J HAS NOT YET SUBMITTED AN APPLICATION FOR EMERGENCY USE AUTHORISATION OF ITS VACCINE IN SOUTH AFRICA

* Platinum remains vulnerable to South African supplies &#8211; dealer * Benchmark U.S. yields rose to highest since March on Friday * Interactive graphic tracking global spread of coronavirus: https://tmsnrt.rs/3mvcUoa (Adds comments, details, updates prices) By Sumita Layek Feb 15 (Reuters) &#8211; Platinum prices extended a rally on Monday to scale their highest in more than six years on firmer investor expectations that an economic recovery would boost demand for the auto-catalyst metal and lead to a supply shortfall. Platinum , used by the auto industry to filter emissions from engine exhausts, rose to its highest since January 2015 at $1,283.75 an ounce. The metal was up 2.2% at $1,279.64 by 0320 GMT. &#8220;The economic recovery play, including a recovery in Chinese jewellery demand in 2021, with concerns that South Africa supplies will remain vulnerable to the COVID-19,&#8221; is driving prices, said Nicholas Frappell, global general manager at ABC Bullion. &#8220;Further price targets on the upside extend to $1,330 and $1,577.&#8221; Platinum may see a third consecutive annual deficit in 2021, according to specialist materials firm Johnson Matthey. Prices are also receiving a boost on a push for greener policies by U.S. President Joe Biden and global tightening auto emission rules, analysts said. Operational issues in Anglo American Platinum (Amplats) , one of the world&#8217;s largest platinum producers, that led to supply deficit last year also remain a concern. Spot gold edged up 0.1% to $1,824.52 per ounce as the U.S. dollar eased against rivals. U.S. gold futures were steady at $1,823.80. &#8220;The safe-haven status of gold is not holding as much shine as it once did, while we&#8217;ve a lot of optimism around economic growth,&#8221; said Michael McCarthy, chief market strategist at CMC Markets. Bond markets are indicating that the central bank&#8217;s accommodative stance will diminish this year, and that is negative for gold, McCarthy said. Benchmark U.S. Treasury yields rose to their highest levels since March on Friday, while inflation expectations rose to a six-year high. Higher inflation boosts gold but also lifts yields, which in turn, increases the opportunity cost of holding bullion. Silver gained 0.8% to $27.55 and palladium was unchanged at $2,388.14. (Reporting by Sumita Layek in Bengaluru; Editing by Devika Syamnath and Sherry Jacob-Phillips) 
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PRECIOUS-Economic recovery bets push platinum to over six-year peak

LONDON, Feb 15 (Reuters) &#8211; Passengers arriving in England from Monday from any of 33 &#8220;red list&#8221; countries will have to spend 14 days quarantined in a hotel room under new border restrictions designed to stop new variants of the coronavirus.
The launch of the system, which had already been set out earlier this month, marks the government&#8217;s latest effort to prevent another relapse into crisis after a second wave of a more contagious COVID-19 variant forced the country into a prolonged lockdown at the start of the year.
New cases, deaths and hospitalisations are falling sharply and the rollout of vaccines has reached more than 15 million people, but ministers are still wary that new mutations from overseas might unravel that progress.
&#8220;As this deadly virus evolves, so must our defences,&#8221; health minister Matt Hancock said in a statement. &#8220;The rules coming into force today will bolster the quarantine system and provide another layer of security against new variants at the border.&#8221;
The government has lined up 4,963 hotel rooms that must be booked in advance as part of a &#8216;quarantine package&#8217;. These hotels will have a &#8220;visible security presence&#8221;, the government said. A further 58,000 rooms are on standby.
Countries on the red list include South Africa and Brazil &#8211; both of which have seen variants of the virus that could reduce the efficacy of existing vaccines.
Ministers have been criticised by opponents for being too slow to close the door to new variants, having first announced plans for hotel quarantine in January.
Arrivals from countries not on the red list are required to quarantine at home for 10 days and take two COVID-19 tests.
The tougher quarantine restrictions also carry heavy fines and penalties with potential prison sentences of up to 10 years. (Reporting by William James; editing by Emelia Sithole-Matarise)
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England’s quarantine hotels open in bid to keep COVID variants out

Feb 14 (OPTA) &#8211; Scores from the PGA Tour AT&amp;T Pebble Beach Pro-Am on Sunday -18 Daniel Berger (USA) 67 66 72 65 -16 Maverick McNealy (USA) 68 69 69 66 -15 Patrick Cantlay (USA) 62 73 70 68 Jordan Spieth (USA) 65 67 71 70 -14 Paul Casey (England) 68 67 71 68 Nate Lashley (USA) 65 72 68 69 -13 Jason Day (Australia) 69 69 68 69 Charley Hoffman (USA) 69 72 68 66 Max Homa (USA) 69 70 68 68 Russell Knox (Scotland) 66 70 69 70 Cameron Tringale (USA) 67 72 69 67 -12 Tom Hoge (USA) 67 70 68 71 -11 Kevin Streelman (USA) 69 72 67 69 -10 Cameron Davis (Australia) 74 67 69 68 Tom Lewis (England) 66 69 74 69 -9 Chris Kirk (USA) 69 73 70 67 Troy Merritt (USA) 71 69 71 68 Matthew NeSmith (USA) 74 67 70 68 Chez Reavie (USA) 74 67 71 67 Brian Stuard (USA) 66 71 69 73 -8 Jim Furyk (USA) 71 69 71 69 Doug Ghim (USA) 69 72 71 68 Will Gordon (USA) 66 73 68 73 Cameron Percy (Australia) 67 70 73 70 Vaughn Taylor (USA) 67 73 71 69 -7 Jason Dufner (USA) 68 71 70 72 Ryan Moore (USA) 68 73 70 70 Henrik Norlander (Sweden) 64 70 74 73 Pat Perez (USA) 69 72 72 68 -6 Akshay Bhatia (USA) 64 73 72 73 Scott Brown (USA) 69 70 74 69 Scott Stallings (USA) 69 71 70 72 Tim Wilkinson (New Zealand) 67 74 69 72 -5 Brian Gay (USA) 70 72 69 72 Branden Grace (South Africa) 71 69 73 70 Matt Jones (Australia) 67 72 73 71 Brendan Steele (USA) 69 72 71 71 Michael Thompson (USA) 67 74 71 71 -4 Sam Burns (USA) 72 70 69 73 Brian Harman (USA) 67 74 70 73 Patton Kizzire (USA) 69 70 76 69 Hank Lebioda (USA) 70 70 72 72 Rob Oppenheim (USA) 72 70 72 70 John Senden (Australia) 70 69 72 73 Kyle Stanley (USA) 70 70 73 71 Nick Taylor (Canada) 69 71 72 72 -3 Ryan Armour (USA) 70 73 74 68 Bronson Burgoon (USA) 68 72 75 70 Beau Hossler (USA) 72 70 68 75 -2 Scott Piercy (USA) 69 74 69 74 Ben Taylor (England) 68 72 75 71 Josh Teater (USA) 69 74 70 73 Jhonattan Vegas (Venezuela) 72 71 74 69 Vincent Whaley (USA) 68 71 73 74 -1 Sebastian Cappelen (Denmark) 75 65 73 74 Mark Hubbard (USA) 66 74 73 74 Andrew Putnam (USA) 72 70 76 69 Will Zalatoris (USA) 69 74 75 69 0 Francesco Molinari (Italy) 69 70 76 73 1 Joel Dahmen (USA) 71 71 75 72 Zack Sucher (USA) 72 71 76 70 Peter Uihlein (USA) 69 72 73 75 2 Joseph Bramlett (USA) 73 70 76 71 Sung-hoon Kang (Korea Republic) 73 68 76 73 3 C.T. Pan (China PR) 70 72 74 75 4 Scott Harrington (USA) 72 71 76 73 5 Wes Roach (USA) 71 71 74 77 
(c) Copyright Opta Sports Data 2021. All Rights Reserved
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PGA Tour AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am Scores

Feb 14 (OPTA) &#8211; Scoreboard at close of play of 3rd t20i between Pakistan and South Africa on Sunday at Lahore, Pakistan Pakistan win by 4 wickets South Africa 1st innings Janneman Malan lbw Zahid Mehmood 27 Reeza Hendricks b Mohammad Nawaz 2 JJ Smuts c Babar Azam b Mohammad Nawaz 1 Pite van Biljon b Hassan Ali 16 Heinrich Klaasen c Usman Qadir b Zahid Mehmood 0 David Miller Not Out 85 Andile Phehlukwayo c Asif Ali b Usman Qadir 0 Dwaine Pretorius b Zahid Mehmood 9 Bjorn Fortuin b Hassan Ali 10 Lutho Sipamla Not Out 8 Extras 0b 4lb 0nb 0pen 2w 6 Total (20.0 overs) 164-8 Fall of Wickets : 1-10 Hendricks, 2-24 Smuts, 3-41 van Biljon, 4-46 Klaasen, 5-46 Malan, 6-48 Phehlukwayo, 7-65 Pretorius, 8-106 Fortuin Did Not Bat : Shamsi Bowling Ov Md Rn Wk Econ Ex Shaheen Afridi 4 0 28 0 7.00 Mohammad Nawaz 2 0 13 2 6.50 Faheem Ashraf 3 0 38 0 12.67 1w Hassan Ali 4 0 29 2 7.25 Zahid Mehmood 4 0 40 3 10.00 1w Usman Qadir 3 0 12 1 4.00 &#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;. Pakistan 1st innings Mohammad Rizwan lbw Tabraiz Shamsi 42 Haider Ali b Tabraiz Shamsi 15 Babar Azam b Dwaine Pretorius 44 Hussain Talat b Tabraiz Shamsi 5 Asif Ali c David Miller b Tabraiz Shamsi 7 Faheem Ashraf c David Miller b Bjorn Fortuin 10 Mohammad Nawaz Not Out 18 Hassan Ali Not Out 20 Extras 1b 0lb 1nb 0pen 6w 8 Total (18.4 overs) 169-6 Fall of Wickets : 1-51 Ali, 2-73 Rizwan, 3-84 Talat, 4-112 Azam, 5-117 Ali, 6-137 Ashraf Did Not Bat : Qadir, Mehmood, Afridi Bowling Ov Md Rn Wk Econ Ex Bjorn Fortuin 4 0 30 1 7.50 1w Dwaine Pretorius 3 0 33 1 11.00 1w JJ Smuts 3 0 20 0 6.67 Andile Phehlukwayo 2.4 0 37 0 13.88 2w 1nb Lutho Sipamla 2 0 23 0 11.50 Tabraiz Shamsi 4 0 25 4 6.25 2w &#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;.. Umpire Aleem Dar Umpire Rashid Riaz Video Ahsan Raza Match Referee Muhammad Malik 
(c) Copyright Opta Sports Data 2021. All Rights Reserved
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South Africa in Pakistan 2021 Scoreboard

By Tarek Amara
TUNIS, Feb 14 (Reuters) &#8211; Tunisian police took Ahmed Gam from the shop where he worked, accused him of looting during recent protests, and beat him so badly during his detention last month that he lost a testicle, he said.
Lying in bed in his parents&#8217; home in Bennane, near the coastal city of Monastir, Gam, 21, could not stand without help and cried as he described police beating and burning his genitals.
His account was supported, in part, by a hospital report viewed by Reuters.
Tunisia is widely seen as the sole relative success story of the 2011 &#8220;Arab spring&#8221; revolts for its democratic advances. It holds regular elections and has a press that criticises the state.
But Gam&#8217;s case is one of at least 100 in which, a Tunisian and international rights group says, security forces recently used violent abuse after people engaged in protest and dissent, freedoms won during the revolution 10 years ago.
The protests, which began on Jan. 15, the day after the 10th anniversary of the revolution, have increasingly focused on abusive tactics by police.
The Interior Ministry, which has oversight of the police, said it would not comment on ongoing cases, including Gam&#8217;s, when asked by Reuters. But it denounced allegations against police as &#8220;attacks aimed to undermine the credibility of its structures&#8221; and said it sought a balance between upholding rights and enforcing the law.
&#8220;Some individual mistakes happen but &#8230; we have maintained self restraint despite provocations,&#8221; said Jamel Jarboui, spokesman for the national syndicate of security forces, a police union.
A judge in Monastir is investigating Gam&#8217;s complaint of torture. The family gave the judge the report from Sahloul Hospital in Sousse describing Gam&#8217;s admission on Jan. 30 with &#8220;testicular trauma&#8221; and a decision to remove the testicle.
The document, viewed by Reuters, is stamped by both the hospital and the Monastir Court of First Instance and dated Feb. 4. An official at the hospital, who asked to remain anonymous, confirmed Gam was hospitalised on Jan. 30 and his testicle removed.
The judge could not be reached for comment but the state news agency TAP cited a court spokeswoman as saying he had opened an investigation for torture which caused the loss of an organ after seeing the doctor&#8217;s document and hearing from the plaintiff.
The judge has asked three people to appear before him on Monday in connection with the case, TAP reported.
The recent unrest, which began on the day after the 10th anniversary of the revolution, started as clashes at night between police and youths in poor city districts before spreading to daylight protests.
While the protests initially targeted inequality, they later focused more on anger at police abuses, with demonstrators last week shouting: &#8220;police everywhere, justice nowhere&#8221;.

TORTURE
Gam denies having taken part in the protests as well as the accusations of looting. He said police seized him on Jan. 27 while he was at work and started hitting him in the face as soon as they put him in their vehicle.
They took him to a detention centre in Monastir, tied his feet to the legs of a table &#8220;like a chicken&#8221; and then beat him in the groin with sticks, he said.
&#8220;I told them I would die,&#8221; he said.
They then removed his clothes. &#8220;One of them took a lighter and put it to each testicle,&#8221; he said. The policeman stopped when a colleague told him to, Gam said.
A group of seven police continued to torture him for more than an hour, he said. He was then held for two days without medical treatment.
To end the assault, he said he told police he &#8220;stole everything&#8221;, a confession he told Reuters was untrue.
After two days police took him to hospital in the nearby city of Sousse, his testicle swollen and blackened. Doctors then removed it, he said.
After his operation he was returned to custody and still faces prosecution for looting. However, the judge ordered his release while under investigation because of his medical condition, he said.
Apart from viewing the medical records, Reuters was not able to independently corroborate his account.

ANGER
Monther Charni, head of the Tunisia Organisation Against Torture, said he knew of more than 100 cases of ill treatment in detention. Abuses also included beatings, rape threats, stripping detainees naked and fabricating charges, he said.
Amnesty International North Africa director Amna Guellali also said the organisation had documented eight cases and believed police abuses during the recent unrest to be widespread.
Mohammed Hdaya from Kasserine told Reuters by phone that police accused him of incitement against the security forces in Facebook posts in support of the protests. They arrested him, beat him, removed his clothes and photographed him, Hdaya said. He denies incitement and said the judge rejected the charges but police continued to harass him.
&#8220;Is this a country of law?&#8221; he said.
Hamza Nassri Jeridi, a prominent activist and blogger, told Reuters he was detained on Jan. 17 after being accused of taking part in an illegal protest. He was held for three days in a crowded and dirty cell with no mattress or blanket.
Water was only available from a dirty tap in the cell. Food was served during the day but because he was taken to court each morning and returned at night he was not fed for three days, he said.
As with the case of Gam, the Interior ministry said it would not comment on ongoing cases. Reuters was unable to independently corroborate Jeridi and Hdaya&#8217;s accounts. (Reporting by Tarek Amara; Writing and additional reporting by Angus McDowall; Editing by Giles Elgood)
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Tunisian police abuse allegations cloud democratic gains

By Sonali Paul
MELBOURNE, Feb 14 (Reuters) &#8211; Australia&#8217;s second-most populous state, Victoria, reported two new cases of locally transmitted COVID-19 infection on Sunday, day two of a snap lockdown as authorities scrambled to curb the spread of the highly infectious UK variant of the disease.
The two cases, including a 3-year-old child, were the first two who were not household contacts of a cluster of infected workers at a quarantine hotel at Melbourne airport which had triggered the five-day lockdown, health authorities said. The hotel cluster has now affected 16 people.
While there have only been three new local cases identified following thousands of tests since the lockdown was announced on Friday, Victoria&#8217;s health officials said the tough curbs &#8211; forcing the state&#8217;s six million-plus people to stay home for five days &#8211; were still needed.
&#8220;It is too early to say whether we have been successful, but the signs that show Victorians are doing the right thing,&#8221; Victoria&#8217;s health minister, Martin Foley, told reporters.
All Victorians have to stay home except for essential shopping and work, caregiving and outdoor exercise, as the state races to trace customers of an airport cafe where a worker was infected and contacts of the two new cases.
The latter had attended a social function where one of the hotel workers was present. Others among the 38 at that event are in isolation and being tested.
&#8220;This is a high stakes game, when (there&#8217;s) a virus that has caused devastation across the Northern Hemisphere and many, many other countries in the world and may soon be the predominant variant of concern globally, and we cannot afford to be wrong here,&#8221; Victoria&#8217;s Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton told reporters.
While schools and shops were shut through Wednesday, play went on at the Australian Open tennis, the year&#8217;s first Grand Slam event, but with no fans in the stands. The event runs until Feb. 21.
&#8220;It&#8217;s very strange,&#8221; said women&#8217;s world number one Ash Barty, who normally would have had a home crowd of thousands cheering her on, speaking after winning her match on Saturday.
Health officials and the Australian Open&#8217;s chief said they were not concerned about a tennis player, Michail Pervolarakis, who tested positive in South Africa after returning from a tournament in Australia. He had tested negative before leaving Australia and is believed to have contracted the infection while in transit.
New Zealand meanwhile reported three new local cases in one family on Sunday in the country&#8217;s biggest city, Auckland, the country&#8217;s first local cases since Jan. 24.
Having at one stage been in the rare position of having virtually eliminated the virus domestically, New Zealand is now set to start inoculating its five million people against COVID-19 on Feb. 20.
Australia&#8217;s Health Minister Greg Hunt said flights from New Zealand, with which Australia has a one-way travel bubble, are still being allowed in.
&#8220;We feel at the moment that the risk is very low,&#8221; Hunt told reporters.
Australia is on track to begin its vaccine rollout in late February, he confirmed.

(Reporting by Sonali Paul; Editing by Kenneth Maxwell)
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2021. Click For Restrictions &#8211; https://agency.reuters.com/en/copyright.html
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Australia’s locked down Victoria state reports 2 new local COVID-19 cases

SOUTH AFRICA TO REOPEN 20 LAND BORDERS ON MONDAY TO NORMAL TRAVEL AFTER BORDERS WERE CLOSED TO CONTROL SPREAD OF COVID-19 &#8211; HOME AFFAIRS MINISTRY
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2021. Click For Restrictions &#8211; https://agency.reuters.com/en/copyright.html
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SOUTH AFRICA TO REOPEN 20 LAND BORDERS ON MONDAY TO NORMAL TRAVEL AFTER BORDERS WERE CLOSED TO CONTROL SPREAD OF COVID-19 – HOME AFFAIRS MINISTRY

Feb 13 (OPTA) &#8211; Scoreboard at close of play of 2nd t20i between Pakistan and South Africa on Saturday at Lahore, Pakistan South Africa win by 6 wickets Pakistan 1st innings Mohammad Rizwan c Andile Phehlukwayo b Dwaine Pretorius 51 Babar Azam lbw Dwaine Pretorius 5 Haider Ali c Lutho Sipamla b Andile Phehlukwayo 10 Hussain Talat c Pite van Biljon b Tabraiz Shamsi 3 Iftikhar Ahmed c David Miller b Dwaine Pretorius 20 Khushdil Shah c Heinrich Klaasen b Dwaine Pretorius 15 Faheem Ashraf Not Out 30 Mohammad Nawaz b Dwaine Pretorius 0 Usman Qadir Not Out 4 Extras 0b 3lb 0nb 0pen 3w 6 Total (20.0 overs) 144-7 Fall of Wickets : 1-10 Azam, 2-36 Ali, 3-48 Talat, 4-93 Ahmed, 5-97 Rizwan, 6-126 Shah, 7-126 Nawaz Did Not Bat : Afridi, Rauf Bowling Ov Md Rn Wk Econ Ex JJ Smuts 4 0 20 0 5.00 Dwaine Pretorius 4 0 17 5 4.25 Glenton Stuurman 2 0 28 0 14.00 2w Lutho Sipamla 3 0 29 0 9.67 Andile Phehlukwayo 3 0 31 1 10.33 Tabraiz Shamsi 4 0 16 1 4.00 1w &#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;. South Africa 1st innings Janneman Malan b Shaheen Afridi 4 Reeza Hendricks c Iftikhar Ahmed b Usman Qadir 42 JJ Smuts c Babar Azam b Shaheen Afridi 7 Pite van Biljon c&amp;b Mohammad Nawaz 42 David Miller Not Out 25 Heinrich Klaasen Not Out 17 Extras 0b 0lb 2nb 0pen 6w 8 Total (16.2 overs) 145-4 Fall of Wickets : 1-4 Malan, 2-21 Smuts, 3-98 Hendricks, 4-105 van Biljon Did Not Bat : Phehlukwayo, Pretorius, Stuurman, Sipamla, Shamsi Bowling Ov Md Rn Wk Econ Ex Shaheen Afridi 3 1 18 2 6.00 1nb Haris Rauf 2 0 26 0 13.00 1w Mohammad Nawaz 4 0 27 1 6.75 Faheem Ashraf 2 0 17 0 8.50 Usman Qadir 4 0 43 1 10.75 1w 1nb Iftikhar Ahmed 1.2 0 14 0 10.50 &#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;.. Umpire Asif Yaqoob Umpire Shozab Raza Video Ahsan Raza Match Referee Muhammad Malik 
(c) Copyright Opta Sports Data 2021. All Rights Reserved
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Feb 13 (OPTA) &#8211; Scores from the PGA Tour AT&amp;T Pebble Beach Pro-Am on Friday -12 Jordan Spieth (USA) 65 67 -11 Daniel Berger (USA) 67 66 -10 Henrik Norlander (Sweden) 64 70 -9 Patrick Cantlay (USA) 62 73 Paul Casey (England) 68 67 Tom Lewis (England) 66 69 -8 Russell Knox (Scotland) 66 70 -7 Akshay Bhatia (USA) 64 73 Tom Hoge (USA) 67 70 Nate Lashley (USA) 65 72 Maverick McNealy (USA) 68 69 Cameron Percy (Australia) 67 70 Brian Stuard (USA) 66 71 -6 Jason Day (Australia) 69 69 -5 Scott Brown (USA) 69 70 Jason Dufner (USA) 68 71 Will Gordon (USA) 66 73 Max Homa (USA) 69 70 Matt Jones (Australia) 67 72 Patton Kizzire (USA) 69 70 Francesco Molinari (Italy) 69 70 John Senden (Australia) 70 69 Cameron Tringale (USA) 67 72 Vincent Whaley (USA) 68 71 -4 Bronson Burgoon (USA) 68 72 Sebastian Cappelen (Denmark) 75 65 Jim Furyk (USA) 71 69 Branden Grace (South Africa) 71 69 Mark Hubbard (USA) 66 74 Hank Lebioda (USA) 70 70 Troy Merritt (USA) 71 69 Scott Stallings (USA) 69 71 Kyle Stanley (USA) 70 70 Ben Taylor (England) 68 72 Nick Taylor (Canada) 69 71 Vaughn Taylor (USA) 67 73 -3 Cameron Davis (Australia) 74 67 Doug Ghim (USA) 69 72 Brian Harman (USA) 67 74 Charley Hoffman (USA) 69 72 Sung-hoon Kang (Korea Republic) 73 68 Ryan Moore (USA) 68 73 Matthew NeSmith (USA) 74 67 Pat Perez (USA) 69 72 Chez Reavie (USA) 74 67 Brendan Steele (USA) 69 72 Kevin Streelman (USA) 69 72 Michael Thompson (USA) 67 74 Peter Uihlein (USA) 69 72 Tim Wilkinson (New Zealand) 67 74 -2 Sam Burns (USA) 72 70 Joel Dahmen (USA) 71 71 Brian Gay (USA) 70 72 Beau Hossler (USA) 72 70 Chris Kirk (USA) 69 73 Rob Oppenheim (USA) 72 70 C.T. Pan (China PR) 70 72 Andrew Putnam (USA) 72 70 Wes Roach (USA) 71 71 -1 Ryan Armour (USA) 70 73 Joseph Bramlett (USA) 73 70 Scott Harrington (USA) 72 71 Scott Piercy (USA) 69 74 Zack Sucher (USA) 72 71 Josh Teater (USA) 69 74 Jhonattan Vegas (Venezuela) 72 71 Will Zalatoris (USA) 69 74 0 Mark Anderson (USA) 69 75 Aaron Baddeley (Australia) 70 74 Roberto Castro (USA) 71 73 Austin Cook (USA) 71 73 Fabian Gomez (Argentina) 74 70 Bo Hoag (USA) 71 73 Si Woo Kim (Korea Republic) 68 76 Satoshi Kodaira (Japan) 74 70 Nelson Ledesma (Argentina) 71 73 Adam Long (USA) 72 72 Hunter Mahan (USA) 67 77 Denny McCarthy (USA) 72 72 Ted Potter Jr (USA) 73 71 Seamus Power (Republic of Ireland) 72 72 Patrick Rodgers (USA) 72 72 D.J. Trahan (USA) 69 75 Harold Varner III (USA) 69 75 Jimmy Walker (USA) 73 71 1 Kiradech Aphibarnrat (Thailand) 73 72 Chris Baker (USA) 72 73 Ryan Blaum (USA) 74 71 Ryan Brehm (USA) 73 72 Kevin Chappell (USA) 72 73 Luke Donald (England) 69 76 Brandon Hagy (USA) 67 78 Harry Higgs (USA) 75 70 Michael Kim (USA) 71 74 Kelly Kraft (USA) 73 72 Peter Malnati (USA) 73 72 Davis Riley (USA) 74 71 Rory Sabbatini (South Africa) 70 75 Roger Sloan (Canada) 74 71 Martin Trainer (USA) 72 73 Xinjun Zhang (China PR) 73 72 2 Sangmoon Bae (Korea Republic) 74 72 Rafael Campos (Puerto Rico) 74 72 Tyler Duncan (USA) 72 74 Brice Garnett (USA) 71 75 Bill Haas (USA) 70 76 Chesson Hadley (USA) 68 78 Tom Lehman (USA) 73 73 Tyler Mccumber (USA) 72 74 Sean O&#8217;Hair (USA) 73 73 D.A. Points (USA) 72 74 Kevin Stadler (USA) 71 75 3 K.J. Choi (Korea Republic) 72 75 Rickie Fowler (USA) 72 75 Michael Gellerman (England) 72 75 Rhein Gibson (Australia) 76 71 David Hearn (Canada) 73 74 J.B. Holmes (USA) 71 76 Ben Martin (USA) 75 72 Seung-Yul Noh (Korea Republic) 73 74 Shawn Stefani (USA) 76 71 Johnson Wagner (USA) 77 70 4 Ricky Barnes (USA) 75 73 Dominic Bozzelli (USA) 78 70 Jonathan Byrd (USA) 74 74 Rafa Cabrera Bello (Spain) 73 75 Stewart Cink (USA) 74 74 Andrew Landry (USA) 72 76 Grayson Murray (USA) 73 75 Andy Ogletree (USA) 73 75 Rod Pampling (Australia) 73 75 5 Michael Gligic (Canada) 75 74 James Hahn (USA) 73 76 Jim Herman (USA) 68 81 Min Woo Lee (Australia) 76 73 Keith Mitchell (USA) 74 75 Chase Seiffert (USA) 73 76 Kristoffer Ventura (Norway) 73 76 6 Jim Knous (USA) 76 74 Alex Noren (Sweden) 74 76 Adam Schenk (USA) 75 75 Brandt Snedeker (USA) 74 76 Nick Watney (USA) 74 76 7 David Duval (USA) 77 74 Sam Ryder (USA) 76 75 J.J. Spaun (USA) 75 76 8 Kramer Hickok (USA) 75 77 9 Matthew John Gogel (USA) 77 76 Kevin Hall (USA) 73 80 Bo Van Pelt (USA) 77 76 10 Phil Mickelson (USA) 74 80 11 Greg Chalmers (Australia) 72 83 Kenny Pigman (USA) 79 76 13 John Daly (USA) 80 77 14 Kamaiu Johnson (USA) 81 77 33 Matt Every (USA) 77 
(c) Copyright Opta Sports Data 2021. All Rights Reserved
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