- South Korea's Han Kang wins literature Nobel
- Federer lauds retiring Nadal's 'incredible achievements'
- Ikea posts fall in annual sales after lowering prices
- Australia beat China 3-1 to resurrect World Cup campaign
- Stock markets diverge, oil gains after China rebounds
- Nadal defied injury woes in record-breaking career
- Nadal v Djokovic, French Open, 2006: Chapter One in epic rivalry
- World can't 'waste time' trading climate change blame: COP29 hosts
- Pakistan at 23-1 after Brook triple hundred takes England to 823-7
- Zelensky meets Starmer, Rutte on whirlwind tour of Europe
- South Korean same-sex couples make push for marriage equality
- Rafael Nadal calls time on epic tennis career
- Mumbai declares day of mourning for Indian industrialist Ratan Tata
- Philippines confronts China over South China Sea at ASEAN meet
- Kim Sei-young shoots 62 to take two-stroke lead at LPGA Shanghai
- The haircuts that help traumatised Ukrainian soldiers heal
- Sinner crushes Medvedev to set up potential Alcaraz Shanghai semi
- 7-Eleven owner restructures to fight takeover
- England's Harry Brook blasts triple century against Pakistan
- Chinese electric car companies cope with European tariffs
- Zelensky in London for whirlwind tour of Europe ahead of US vote
- Sri Lanka recovering faster than expected: World Bank
- Hong Kong, Shanghai rally as most markets track Wall St record
- Record-breaking Root, Brook both pass 200 as England pile up 658-3
- Football mourns Greek defender George Baldock's shock death at 31
- Uniqlo owner reports record annual earnings
- Hong Kong, Shanghai rally as markets track Wall St record
- Indonesia biomass drive threatens key forests: report
- Home is far away for Madagascar in AFCON qualifying
- Two months on, Donbas soldiers begin to question Kursk offensive
- Rugby Australia to counter-sue in dispute with Melbourne Rebels
- Mumbai mourns Indian industrialist Ratan Tata
- Philippines challenges China over South China Sea at ASEAN meet
- Mets advance on Lindor blast, Dodgers stay alive in MLB playoffs
- Injury-ravaged Krygios aiming to return at Australian Open
- Greek international Baldock, dead at 31: family
- EU talks deportation hubs to stem migration
- Deaths and repression sideline Suu Kyi's party ahead of Myanmar vote
- S. Africa offers a lesson on how not to shut down a coal plant
- China opens $71 bn 'swap facility' to boost markets
- Mets advance on Lindor grand slam, Yankees and Tigers win
- Taiwan President Lai vows to 'resist annexation' of island
- China's solar goes from supremacy to oversupply
- Asian markets track Wall St record as Hong Kong, Shanghai stabilise
- 'Denying my potential': women at Japan's top university call out gender imbalance
- China's central bank says opens up $70.6 bn in liquidity to boost market
- Zelensky on whirlwind tour of Europe ahead of US vote
- Youth facing unprecedented wave of violence, UN envoy warns
- 'A casino in every kitchen': Brazil's online gambling craze
- Nobel chemistry winner sees engineered proteins solving tough problems
Footballer Dani Alves begins Barcelona trial for rape
Brazilian footballer Dani Alves, a former star at Barca and PSG, goes on trial Monday in Barcelona accused of raping a woman in a local nightclub.
Prosecutors are asking for a nine-year prison sentence, followed by 10 years of conditional liberty. They are also asking he pay 150,000 euros ($162,000) in compensation to the woman.
The trial opens at 9 am GMT and is due to wrap up Wednesday.
The 40-year-old former Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain defender has been in jail since his arrest in January 2023 after a woman accused him of raping her in a bathroom of the VIP area of the upscale Sutton nightclub in Barcelona in the early hours of December 31, 2022.
Alves has said they had consensual sex after initially denying knowing the woman during a television interview.
According to the prosecution, Alves -- who was on holiday in Barcelona at the time after playing for Brazil at the World Cup in Qatar -- offered champagne to the young woman and her friend.
Alves then allegedly invited the woman to enter a small enclosure at the nightclub, which she says she did not know was a lavatory.
Once inside the footballer showed a "violent attitude" and forced her to have intercourse despite her resistance, prosecutors say according to the indictment.
"The victim asked him several times to let her go, saying she wanted to leave but the defendant prevented her from doing so," according to the indictment, which describes a "situation of anguish and terror" for the young woman.
The woman, who received medical treatment after leaving the nightclub, is being treated for post-traumatic stress, according to prosecutors.
Alves' legal team lost a battle to keep the trial behind closed doors, though media and the public will not be present when the accuser takes the stand. Her identity has never been revealed.
Alves told Barcelona-based daily La Vanguardia in June that he initially lied about knowing his accuser because he was afraid his wife would leave him if he admitted being with another woman.
Spanish courts have repeatedly rejected requests that Alves be released pending his trial, citing a flight risk to Brazil, which generally does not extradite its citizens.
In Spain, a plea deal remains possible right until the start of the trial, meaning Alves could still admit guilt in exchange for a softer penalty.
The accuser's lawyer in November denied she had reached such an agreement, but admitted "talks" had been held.
Alves won 42 trophies during a highly successful career, including three Champions Leagues with Barcelona and two Copa Americas with Brazil.
The height of his career came when playing for Barcelona between 2008 and 2016, where he won 23 trophies.
Alves, who also played for Juventus in Italy and for Seville, was at the time of his arrest with Mexican club Pumas UNAM, who sacked him soon afterwards.
P.Silva--AMWN