Female football players have been evacuated from Afghanistan on a flight to Doha, the Qatari government said.

"Around 100 footballers & their families including female players are on board," tweeted Lolwah Al Khater, Qatar's assistant foreign minister.

Manchester City forward Ferran Torres has broken a bone in his right foot, the English club said Thursday, potentially ruling him out of Spain's crucial World Cup qualifiers next month.

City said the injury was a "small fracture" and happened while Torres was on international duty. He played for Spain in the Nations League last week, first in the 2-1 win over Italy — when Torres scored twice — and then the 2-1 loss to France in the final on Sunday.

Neymar started the week facing criticism after a poor performance in a World Cup qualifying match and his suggestion that the next tournament in Qatar might be his last.

But the striker helped erase many of those thoughts by providing key elements in all of the Brazil goals in Thursday's 4-1 win against Uruguay.

Nippon Steel Corp. is suing Toyota Motor Corp. over a patent for a technology used in electric motors in a rare case of legal wrangling between Japan's top steelmaker and top automaker over intellectual property.

Tokyo-based Nippon Steel filed the lawsuit Thursday in Tokyo District Court, demanding compensation for damages totaling 20 billion yen ($177 million). Also named in the lawsuit is Baoshan Iron & Steel Co., or Baosteel, a Chinese steelmaker that produces and supplies the steel that allegedly violates the patent.

Shares were mostly higher in Europe and Asia on Friday after technology companies powered the biggest rally on Wall Street since March.

Investors have been encouraged by strong earnings reports, as every S&P 500 company that has reported earnings this week has beaten forecasts.

Hong Kong and mainland authorities have seized about $540,000 worth of smuggled Australian lobsters believed to be bound for the mainland, after China restricted imports of the crustacean amid escalating tensions with Australia.

Hong Kong authorities said at a news conference Friday that its customs and Chinese law enforcement agencies confiscated about 5,300 kilograms (11,650 pounds) of lobsters and arrested 13 people.

Leaders Brazil easily defeated Uruguay 4-1 in Thursday's South American World Cup qualifying match, putting the team in standby mode for its direct spot at Qatar next year. Neymar and Raphinha shone for the Seleção in its home match at Manaus.

Second-place Argentina beat Peru 1-0 a few hours earlier and is also close to clinching a direct qualifying berth. Lionel Messi did not have one of his better days, but the hosts managed to have the best opportunities in the match.

The Turkish lira hit record lows against the dollar Thursday after President Recep Tayyip Erdogan fired senior central bank officials, heightening concerns over the Turkish leader's interference in the bank's activities.

Erdogan dismissed deputy central bank governors Semih Tumen and Ugur Namik Kucuk as well as Abdullah Yavas, a member of the bank's monetary policy committee, according to the Official Gazette. He appointed Taha Cakmak as a deputy governor and Yusuf Tuna as a member of the monetary policy committee.

If all you ask is for a simple thanks in return for not littering, this is the trash can for you.

A bin installed next to a bus stop in Jerusalem this week applauds those who use it. Drop a piece of trash in, and a recording of a child's voice says "Thank you very much!"

A Rome judge halted the trial of four high-ranking members of Egypt's security forces on the day it opened Thursday, saying there was no certainty they had been officially informed that they were charged in the abduction, torture and killing in Cairo of an Italian doctoral student.

Citing the need to guarantee a fair trial, Judge Antonella Capri nullified the decision to prosecute the four and ordered the documentation returned to magistrates who must try again to locate the suspects. Her decision was a blow to prosecutors who have been trying to bring Giulio Regeni's killers to justice for five years.