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Hundreds of protesters marched through festive Hong Kong shopping malls on Thursday, aiming to disrupt business in the Asian financial hub for a third day over the Christmas holidays, with riot police deployed in the event of unrest.

RUSSIA-POLITICS/NAVALNY-RELEASE Russian opposition leader Navalny freed after Moscow raid - spokeswoman

MOSCOW, Dec 26 (Reuters) - Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny was freed on Thursday after being briefly detained during a raid on the headquarters of his Anti-Corruption Foundation (FBK) in Moscow, his spokeswoman told Reuters. U.S.

USA-CRIME/AVENATTI Prosecutors claim Avenatti was over $15 mln in debt during alleged Nike extortion

Dec 25 (Reuters) - California attorney Michael Avenatti, known for representing porn actress Stormy Daniels in a lawsuit against U.S. President Donald Trump, was more than $15 million in debt when he allegedly tried to extort as much as $25 million from Nike Inc, U.S. prosecutors claimed. USA-TRUMP/IMPEACHMENT

Republican senator 'disturbed' by McConnell's work with White House on impeachment trial WASHINGTON, Dec 25 (Reuters) - Republican U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski said she was "disturbed" by the Senate leader's approach to working with White House counsel on the impeachment trial of President Donald Trump, saying there should be distance between the two.

BUSINESS GLOBAL-OIL/

Oil hits highest since Sept. on trade hopes, OPEC cut LONDON, Dec 26 (Reuters) - Oil rose further above $67 a barrel to its highest in over three months on Thursday, buoyed by a report showing lower U.S. crude inventories, by hopes of an end to the China-U.S. trade dispute and OPEC-led efforts to constrain supply.

USA-HOLIDAY SHOPPING/MASTERCARD Record online sales give U.S. holiday shopping season a boost -report

U.S. shoppers spent more online during this year's holiday shopping season, a report by Mastercard Inc MA.N showed on Wednesday, with e-commerce sales hitting a record high. ENTERTAINMENT

CHRISTMAS-SEASON/AUSTRALIA-KYLIEMINOGUE Kylie invites politics-weary Brits to 'call on your friends in Australia'

MELBOURNE (Reuters) - Australian popstar Kylie Minogue has invited weary Britons to forget politics and “call on your friends in Australia” in a tourism campaign launched in Britain on Christmas Day. SOLAR-ECLIPSE/

'Ring of fire' eclipse enthrals skywatchers in Middle East, Asia SINGAPORE, Dec 26 (Reuters) - Thousands of skywatchers gathered across parts of the Middle East and Asia on Thursday to glimpse the sun forming a ring of fire around the moon in a rare annular solar eclipse.

SPORTS SOCCER-ENGLAND-LEI-LIV/PREVIEW

Liverpool's Klopp says hectic festive schedule is a 'crime' Liverpool boss Juergen Klopp has described the Premier League's hectic festive schedule as a "crime" against some teams that are forced to play two matches in the space of 48 hours.

SAILING-AUSTRALIA/ Comanche grabs early lead after slow start in Sydney Hobart race

SYDNEY, Dec 26 (Reuters) - InfoTrack was first out of the Sydney Heads but 2017 line honours winner Comanche shrugged off a poor start to grab an early lead in the Sydney Hobart yacht race on Thursday. UPCOMING

ARTS / CULTURE / ENTERTAINMENT JAPAN-UIGHUR/COMIC (PIX) (TV)

Japanese comic depicting the life of a Uighur woman goes viral An online manga created by a Japanese author Tomomi Shimizu depicting the tragic life of a Uighur woman has gone viral in Japan and is being translated into different languages by volunteers. 27 Dec