US

The transfer concludes a lengthy process in which Icann (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers) has been given more of these tasks.

Arizona, Texas, Oklahoma and Nevada have started lawsuits, saying the decision needs Congressional approval.

The handover is scheduled for today.

Icann keeps an eye on the core addressing system of the internet, known as DNS, via a subsidiary called the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority.

DNS translates the names that humans use to navigate the web into the numbers computers use.

Sergei Lavrov said the US had broken its promise to separate the powerful Jabhat Fateh al-Sham (formerly known as al-Nusra Front) and other extremist groups from more moderate rebels.

And he defended the bombardment of Aleppo by Russian and Syrian forces.

Jabhat Fateh al-Sham is linked to al-Qaeda.

Mr Lavrov was speaking to Stephen Sackur on BBC World News TV on the first anniversary of the beginning of the Russian air campaign in Syria.

"They [the US] pledged solemnly to take as a priority an obligation to separate the opposition from Nusra," he said.

In a phone call with Sergei Lavrov, Mr Kerry said the US held Russia responsible for the use of incendiary and bunker bombs against the city.

The US state department said it was making preparations to suspend talks.

Aleppo has come under heavy aerial bombardment since the end of a ceasefire a week ago.

In response to Mr Kerry's phone call, the Russian Deputy Ambassador to the UN, Evgeny Zagaynov, said the "trend" of Russia being blamed for the attacks in Syria must stop.

Dandong Hongxiang is accused of acting on behalf of a North Korean bank that is on a UN sanctions list to stop the spread of weapons of mass destruction.

The sanctions come after North Korea sparked a global outcry this month byconducting its fifth nuclear test.

The engineering company and its bosses are also under investigation by Chinese authorities.

No-one was hurt in Tuesday's attack on the Qayyarah air base near the IS stronghold of Mosul.

Marine Gen Joseph Dunford, chairman of US joint chiefs of staff, said the group's capability to deliver chemical weapons was rudimentary.

But the attack, he added, was a "concerning development".

IS has long been suspected of making and using crude chemical weapons in Iraq and Syria, where it also controls territory.

Gen Dunford told the US Senate armed services committee on Thursday that the rocket had contained a "sulphur-mustard blister agent".

Though the official said the drills are not aimed particularly at North Korea, the announcement comes less than two weeks after North Korea claimed to have successfully tested a nuclear warhead -- its second nuclear test this year and fifth one ever.

The US and South Korea will also simulate what to do in the event of a sudden missile attack.

Also known as "Dr Wa'il", he was minister of information for IS, and oversaw the production of propaganda videos showing executions.

The Pentagon said the strike had taken place near Raqqa on 7 September.

Fayad was a close associate of IS strategist Abu Muhammad al-Adnani, who was killed in an air strike last month.

The news came as Myanmar's de facto leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, arrived in Washington on her first official visit.

Myanmar's access to trade benefits for poorer nations had been suspended in 1989 over human rights abuses.

President Obama said the country should now be allowed to benefit from preferential tariffs as it emerges from decades of military rule.

He confirmed the move in a letter to Congress on Wednesday, adding Myanmar - also known as Burma - to the Generalised System of Preferences, a list which exempts certain countries from high import taxes.

The pact will elevate US aid to Israel from $3.1bn a year currently to $3.8bn, officials say, but the Israelis had to make concessions to secure the money.

The agreement, to be signed on Wednesday, follows 10 months of talks.

It was approved despite frustration within the Obama administration at Israeli settlement building.

The agreement, which replaces a 10-year package set to expire in 2018, "constitutes the single largest pledge of bilateral military assistance in US history", said the state department.

The plan will begin with a "cessation of hostilities" from sunset on Monday. Syrian forces will end combat missions in specified opposition-held areas.

Russia and the US will then establish a joint centre to combat jihadist groups, including so-called Islamic State (IS).

A Syrian opposition coalition has cautiously welcomed the agreement.

"We hope this will be the beginning of the end of the civilians' ordeal," said Bassma Kodmani, a spokeswoman for the High Negotiations Committee.

"We welcome the deal if it is going to be enforced."