Malawi's government has dismissed rumours about President Peter Mutharika's health following his extended stay in the United States after attending the UN General Assembly in New York.

"The president is enjoying very robust health and is continuing to carry on his duties" a statement said.
It warned that people speculating on his health will be "brought to book".
Mr Mutharika came into office in May 2014.
He spoke at the UN on 25 September and has been out of Malawi since then.
The government statement, posted on Facebook, and signed by the government spokesperson, said there was no need for people to panic.
It added that the rumours "were baseless, malicious and sickening".
It also reminded "all Malawians that whilst the laws of this country provide for freedom of expression, those rights ought to be exercised responsibly and within the law.
"Spreading false rumours about the health of the president is a criminal offence."
Local activist Gerald Kampanikiza told the privately-owned Nyasa Times newspaper that the government should provide video evidence to disprove the rumours.
"Take a video feed of Mr Mutharika and post [that] rather than his last public appearance photo as you are doing," Mr Kampanikiza is quoted by the newspaper as saying.
Malawians online have been using the hashtag #BringBackMutharika to call for the return of their president.


Dundee United midfielder Paul Paton has been fined £500 after pleading guilty to hitting a former Celtic goalkeeper after a night out in Glasgow last year.

Paton, 28, changed his plea on the first day of evidence and admitted punching Lukasz Zaluska on the head in Byres Road on 20 October 2014.
In his defence Mr Paton's lawyer said he was provoked by abuse and there was no injury to the victim.
A charge that accused him of a further assault on the goalkeeper was dropped.
Mr Paton was previously fined four weeks wages by his club.
The player said he regretted what had happened.
The sheriff said the charge to which Paton pleaded guilty was significantly less serious than the original indictment.
During evidence at Glasgow Sheriff Court, ex-Celtic and Dundee United player Mark Wilson said his former team-mate Mr Zaluska had thought Paton was a Rangers fan.
Mr Wilson told the court Mr Zaluska said he hated all Rangers fans and wanted to kill them.
After Mr Zaluska left Ashton Lane with Mr Wilson and went on to Byres Road, Paton punched the former Celtic goalkeeper on the head, causing him to slide down the side of a taxi.
Paton then walked away from the incident and a short time later Zaluska was found unconscious and bleeding on the ground in Ashton Lane.
Paton, from Paisley had been accused of repeatedly hitting Mr Zaluska and causing injury but the Crown amended the charge.
He admitted punching Mr Zaluska on the head.
Sheriff Andrew Normand fined him £500 and told Paton: "It is clear this is an incident which you regret".
Defence lawyer Billy Lavelle said: "Mr Paton faced substantial provocation from the other gentleman."
He said that it did not justify his client's actions but "perhaps gives a background" and that on that day he "felt he couldn't take any more of the abuse".
The solicitor advocate said: "He has never denied that, the question was whether there was a second incident, which he did not accept."
Paton declined to comment as he left the court.


The performance of the Republic of Ireland's athletes at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics has been overshadowed by allegations of illegal ticket sales involving senior Irish Olympic officials.

The alleged scheme - in which tickets were reportedly being sold for many times their face value - could have netted of 10m reals (Â£2.4m; $3.1m), police say.
The arrest of Olympic Council of Ireland president Pat Hickey made headlines around the world.
The former judo international has denied any wrongdoing in relation to ticket sales, and is due to appear before a judge in Rio on Tuesday.
Here is how events have unfolded:
Friday 5 August:
On the day of the Olympics opening ceremony, Rio police arrest Kevin Mallon, director of THG Sports, a corporate and sports hospitality company based in London.
More than 700 tickets organised in envelopes clearly marked for sale are found in a safe with Mr Mallon, police said.
Wednesday 10 August:
In an email seen by RTE News, Pro 10 Sports Management, the OCI's authorised ticket re-seller in Ireland informs the organisers of the Rio games that:
"At no time did we authorise Mr Mallon to sell any tickets on our behalf nor to the best of our knowledge did he sell any tickets. He merely acted as a collection point for individuals transacting directly with ourselves."
The OCI says it is launching an immediate investigation, adding that it "strictly adheres to the International Olympic Committee regulations around ticket allocation, sale and re-sale".
"We are treating this matter with the utmost seriousness," it says.
Sunday 14 August:
Irish Sports Minister Shane Ross arrives in Rio for a meeting with Pat Hickey.
Mr Ross describes the meeting as "fairly tense, fairly direct and fairly frank", and calls for an independent investigation.
Mr Hickey says the meeting was "excellent".
Monday 15 August:
A Brazilian judge orders the arrest of four THG Sports executives.
Marcus Evans and Martin Studd from the UK, Irishman David Patrick Gilmore and Dutchman Maarten Van Os are not believed to be in Brazil.
Police say they will be pursuing the matter via Interpol.
Wednesday 17 August:
Pat Hickey is dramatically arrested by police at his luxury hotel. His Olympic credentials and passport are seized.
Mr Hickey complains of a heart problem and spends a night in hospital.
Thursday 18 August:
Pat Hickey temporarily stands down from his positions as president of the OCI, president of the European Olympic Committees and member of the executive board of the International Olympic Committee.
The OCI says in a statement that Mr Hickey is stepping aside "until this matter is fully resolved" and would continue to co-operate and assist with all inquiries.
Acting OCI President William O'Brien says the council will "defend ourselves to the hilt".
Mr Hickey is questioned by police, denied bail by a judge and sent to Rio's notorious Bangu 10 prison.
Friday 19 August:
The OCI announces it will commission an independent inquiry into Olympics ticketing.
Saturday 20 August:
Pat Hickey and Kevin Mallon are reported to be sharing a cell in Bangu prison.
Sunday 21 August:
Brazilian police seize the passports, phones and laptops of three senior OCI officials.
RTE and the Irish Times say the officials are OCI Chief Executive Stephen Martin, a former Olympic hockey gold medal winner, OCI Secretary General Dermot Henihan and Kevin Kilty, Ireland's Olympic chef de mission.
No arrests are made and there is nothing to suggest impropriety on the part of the three men, reports say.
In Dublin, the OCI Executive Council appoints a three-person crisis management subcommittee to lead its response to the crisis.


A UK aid worker held hostage after being kidnapped in Afghanistan has been killed during a rescue attempt, the Foreign Office has said.

Linda Norgrove, 36, from Lewis in the Western Isles of Scotland, was employed by US aid group DAI. She was seized with three local staff on 26 September.
Their two-car convoy was ambushed in the eastern province of Kunar.
Ms Norgrove was killed by her captors on Friday during a rescue mission by US forces.
Her colleagues were released unharmed last week.
The Briton is believed to have been taken by her captors from village to village as British, Afghan and other intelligence agencies worked in the remote and mountainous area of Kunar province to locate her.
Both the prime minister and Foreign Secretary William Hague were kept fully informed and British approval was given for a rescue mission to be mounted on Friday night, involving US forces with British officials offering advice.
In a statement, Mr Hague said the aid worker was "killed at the hands of her captors in the course of a rescue attempt".
He said: "Working with our allies we received information about where Linda was being held and we decided that, given the danger she was facing, her best chance of safe release was to act on that information.
"Responsibility for this tragic outcome rests squarely with the hostage takers.
"From the moment they took her, her life was under grave threat. Given who held her, and the danger she was in, we judged that Linda's best chance lay in attempting to rescue her."
Prime Minister David Cameron said: "My thoughts are with Linda's family, who will be devastated by this tragic news. She was doing valuable work for the Afghan people.
"Decisions on operations to free hostages are always difficult. But where a British life is in such danger, and where we and our allies can act, I believe it is right to try. I pay tribute to the courage and skill of all those involved in this effort, and join the foreign secretary in condemning hostage taking."
International Security Assistance Force Commander General David Petraeus said Afghan and coalition security forces did everything in their power to rescue Ms Norgrove.
He said: "Linda was a courageous person with a passion to improve the lives of Afghan people, and sadly she lost her life in their service. Our thoughts and prayers are with her family during this difficult time."
And Alex Salmond, Scotland's first minister, expressed his "deepest condolences" following her "extremely sad and upsetting" death.
"Ms Norgrove was a dedicated aid worker who was doing everything she could to help people in Afghanistan - hopefully that legacy of service in a humanitarian cause can be of some comfort to her loved ones in their time of grief," he said.
Ms Norgrove had been based in Jalalabad where she supervised US-funded reconstruction programmes in the eastern region of Afghanistan.
'Wonderful woman'
DAI president James Boomgard said the loss of a "beloved friend and respected colleague" was "devastating news" and sent his condolences to her family.
In a statement, he said: "We are saddened beyond words by the death of a wonderful woman whose sole purpose in Afghanistan was to do good, to help the Afghan people achieve a measure of prosperity and stability in their everyday lives as they set about rebuilding their country.
"Linda loved Afghanistan and cared deeply for its people, and she was deeply committed to her development mission. She was an inspiration to many of us here at DAI and she will be deeply missed."
A colleague who was working with her in Jalalabad told the BBC Ms Norgrove was a "very kind and hard-working lady".
They said: "You know she didn't need to go for the completion ceremony of that project, but the only reason she wanted to go there was to show her love and commitment to the people of Kunar province.
"Everyone in our office is crying including our Afghan and foreign colleagues. Starting from the boss of the office even to drivers and guards are shocked and crying. No one thinks that she was a colleague, but it looks like she was part of everyone's family and we have lost one of our dearest."
Ms Norgrove, who had travelled extensively, was an experienced aid worker who had been based in a number of countries.
She worked for the United Nations in Afghanistan and Laos and, prior to that, led a conservation and poverty reduction project in Peru.
The BBC's Bilal Sarwary in Kabul said the Dewagal valley, in eastern Kunar province, where she was held, is known for its difficult terrain. It is mountainous and densely forested. The valley is extremely remote.Â
There has never been any government control; it is virtually ruled by militants, tribal elders and powerful clans.
Various armed groups operate in the area, Afghans and foreigners can be targeted by gangs seeking ransom money, but they are sometimes sold on to militant groups.
DAI carries out aid work, often subcontracted by the United States Agency for International Development.
In July, a British private security guard was among four people killed in an attack on DAI offices in Kunduz, northern Afghanistan. Shaun Sexton, 29, from Northumberland, a former member of the Parachute Regiment, was working for the firm's security sub-contractor, Edinburgh International.
A month later, British doctor Karen Woo and nine other aid workers and translators were killed by gunmen, in the north-eastern province of Badakhshan, in what police said was a robbery.
Dr Woo worked for Christian charity the International Assistance Mission, providing eye care in remote villages.


The BBC has been urged to apologise after its Newsnight programme asked whether the Welsh language was a "help or hindrance to the nation".

Welsh Language Minister Alun Davies said the broadcaster had a "cultural problem" in London and a "serious question" needed to be asked.
Campaigners want an independent review to look at all BBC content containing a reference to the Welsh language.
The BBC has been asked to comment.
"They (the BBC) don't understand what the UK is, they don't know what the culture of the UK is and they don't understand Wales," said Mr Davies.
"This problem goes beyond Newsnight, last night's Newsnight reflected the problem. But I believe the BBC's problem goes further regarding the BBC in London's editorial values.
"It's a very serious question for the BBC."
He added: "Can you imagine the programme asking if the first language of any other group or nation was a hindrance?
"The tone was as if the Welsh language had to justify its own existence.
"Newsnight seemed to have no knowledge of the fact that Welsh is the first language of many people in Wales and all those who do speak Welsh also speak English.
"Surely a programme such as Newsnight could have at least found a Welsh speaker to talk about the language, someone with an insight into the language and how it is used everyday.
"Wales, only two hours from London, seems to have been treated like a nation far away about whom Newsnight knows little. Newsnight should apologise and offer viewers the informed, considered look at the Welsh language that they deserve."
Campaigners took to social media to criticise the show's choice of guests on the debate which followed the Welsh Government's decision to scrap the Welsh language commissioner role.
Newsnight introduced their report with the question: "Is the Welsh language a help or hindrance to the nation?"
It had author and columnist Julian Ruck arguing against the amount of money being spent on Welsh language promotion.
Ruth Dawson, Wales editor of an independent news and commentary website The Conversation, gave the opposing point of view.
However critics have pointed out neither guests were Welsh speakers.
Following the report, calls for a review to establish "if there is an issue with regards how the Welsh language is portrayed and to assess what editorial systems are in place to ensure editorial fairness" were made and the petition set up.
About 1,500 people had signed the petition in the first 12 hours.
Huw Marshall, who started the petition, said the Newsnight item was "shocking for a number of reasons" and said the way the language was portrayed by the BBC centrally was "happening on a regular basis."
During the debate, Ms Dawson said: "In an ideal world, everyone would just be left to their own devices and pick up Welsh naturally.
"I had Welsh language education in school but the fact of the matter is I didn't pick up enough of it, my education wasn't good enough. I think there needs to be a bigger push to make sure more people are learning the language and using it every day," said Ms Dawson.
Mr Ruck replied: "You can go to a Welsh medium school, come out of it and you cannot speak Welsh. What's the point in all of the money? It's nonsense.
"S4C is down, Radio Cymru is down, the Census of 2011 is down, all of them are down. All this money they're pumping into the language is not making more people speak Welsh."
In an interview on BBC Radio Cymru's Post Cyntaf programme on Thursday, Richard Wyn Jones, professor of Welsh politics at Cardiff University said the Newsnight item was "insulting".
"I would like to say I'm surprised, but I'm not unfortunately," he said.
"We have become accustomed with this kind of attitude from the media in London."
Carl Morris, from Welsh language campaign group Cymdeithas yr Iaith told BBC Radio Wales: "The kind of conversations we need to be having need to be a lot more subtle and sophisticated about the Welsh Government policy, about broadcasting and whether or not the BBC and big media organisations like Sky are actually serving us in Wales and our needs in Wales."
How Wales is portrayed by the BBC was already a hot topic before Newsnight aired its contentious debate.
In the hours before its broadcast, a panel of industry experts at the Eisteddfod had debated the need to improve the way Wales and the Welsh language is covered by UK-wide television programmes.
But while the focus had been on the positive steps being taken by the BBC to improve its coverage, much of the goodwill seemed to unravel when the Newsnight titles rolled.
The social media reaction has been furious, a petition is fast gathering signatures, and politicians are calling for apologies.
But many questions remain, among them: Why begin with a headline that talked of the "hindrance" of the language? Why cast two guests who do not speak Welsh to debate the merits of the language?
And with the BBC currently operating its largest outside broadcast after Wimbledon and Glastonbury at the Eisteddfod, why did Newsnight not use this platform and its resources to conduct a more considered discussion?


Aberdeen City Council is to have a new leader.

Jenny Laing has replaced Barney Crockett as leader of the Labour group, and hopes to be confirmed as the authority's new leader on Wednesday.
She told BBC Scotland: "I am delighted and privileged that my colleagues have had faith in me. We had a democratic process. Barney has done a great job over the last five years."
Mr Crockett was unavailable for comment.
The new Labour group leader said the decision was taken at their annual general meeting.
She added: "I hope I will be confirmed as the new leader of Aberdeen City Council."
The council has made headlines in recent months.
Last month, claims that Aberdeen City Council's administration broke the rules by including a pro-Better Together letter to council tax payers were thrown out by an independent watchdog.
Bills sent to every council tax payer in Aberdeen included a letter from Mr Crockett.
In March, Mr Crockett insisted Scottish government ministers would not be banned from visiting Aberdeen City Council buildings.
His intervention came after Labour colleague Willie Young sparked controversy with the suggestion.
Last week the authority announced that Angela Scott will become its new chief executive.
She will take up the post in July, replacing Valerie Watts who is leaving to take up an NHS post.


Venezuela's Supreme Court has overturned an amnesty for jailed opposition leaders approved by the opposition-controlled parliament.

About 70 activists opposed to President Nicolas Maduro's socialist government had been due for release under the law approved last month.
But the court declared the amnesty law unconstitutional.
President Maduro had condemned the law as an attempt to destabilise his leadership of the country.
The Supreme Court has consistently backed the Venezuelan government since the opposition triumphed in congressional elections in December.
In a statement, the court said the amnesty law was unconstitutional because it covered offences "that are acts of organised crime, which are not related to crimes of a political nature".
Leopoldo Lopez: Venezuela's maverick opposition leader
Venezuela opposition pushed for Maduro's exit
What changes will the new Congress bring?
The opposition won parliamentary elections largely on a promise to work towards the release of dozens of what it considers political prisoners.
Among the detainees is Leopoldo Lopez, a prominent opposition leader who was sentenced to 13 years and nine months in prison last year for inciting violence during mass protests.
The prosecutor in the case later fled Venezuela and told media abroad that Mr Lopez's conviction had been a political show trial.
Government officials maintain that Mr Lopez is responsible for violence that erupted during protests in which 43 people were killed in 2014.
Other political leaders who were set to be freed include the former Caracas Mayor Antonio Ledezma, who is under house arrest, and the former mayor of San Cristobal, Daniel Ceballos.
Members of the governing PSUV party had said the amnesty was a carte blanche for "murderers".
President Maduro had the choice of signing the law, sending it back to the National Assembly or challenging it before the Supreme Court.
Last week, he told supporters that he had decided to ask the court to invalidate the "criminal" bill.
After the Supreme Court's ruling, he said he would set up a truth commission to deal with jailed opposition activists' cases and that opposition members would be invited to join.
Critics of the government say the top court is stacked with supporters of the president.
Venezuela is deeply divided into those who support the socialist government of Nicolas Maduro and those who oppose it.
In February, the opposition announced it would try to drive President Maduro from power by means of a recall referendum or a constitutional amendment to shorten his term.
The government denounced the plans as an attempted coup.


A rise in US interest rates in December is "a live possibility", Janet Yellen, chair of the Federal Reserve has told a Congressional committee.

The US central bank holds a policy meeting in December, at which it could decide on a long-anticipated increase in interest rates.
US interest rates have been near zero since December 2008.
Ms Yellen has previously said that rates were likely to rise by the end of this year.
Interest rates were not officially on the agenda for this hearing, and it took up only a very small part of the session.
But this is the single issue that has most preoccupied financial markets all year, with China's economic slowdown running a close second at times.
"What the committee has been expecting is that the economy will continue to grow at a pace that is sufficient to generate further improvements in the labour market and to return inflation to our 2% percent target over the medium term," Ms Yellen told the  Financial Services Committee of the House of Representatives.
"If the incoming information supports that expectation then our statement indicates that December would be a live possibility," she added.
She said the Fed believed that the some of the risks, arising from international economic and financial developments had diminished. That was about the economic slowdown in China and other emerging economies.
If rates are raised, she said it would be based on a view that inflation would move up towards the Fed's target of 2%.  She said that view would be justified, another strong hint that a rate rise is very much a possibility.
A meeting of the Fed's policy committee in December is the next and final opportunity for the Fed to do it this year.
The dollar rose following her comments.
Higher interest rates would make some dollar assets more attractive, so the increased prospect of a rise increases demand for the US currency.
Having rates effectively at zero was an exceptional move that reflected the severity of the financial crisis and the wider economic damage it did.
It's worth emphasising that this zero rate was the level the Fed targeted for lending between the banks, called the Federal Funds Rate. It does influence rates throughout the economy, but it doesn't follow that any individual or institution that is not a bank can get a zero-interest loan, though as it happens there have been occasions when the US government has been able to do just that.
At some stage, the Fed is sure to start raising rates and bring its policy back towards normal.
In late September Ms Yellen said: "I anticipate that it will likely be appropriate to raise the target range for the Federal Funds Rate sometime later this year".
There is no definite commitment there, and she has always made it clear the decision would depend on what new data tell her and the rest of the Fed's main committee about the state of the US economy.
And there have been some disappointing figures. Economic growth in the third quarter of the year and job creation in September were both below what was expected. Those figures weighed against a rate rise this year.
So the markets took it very seriously when she made it clear to the Congressional Committee that a December rise is very much still on the cards.


An Australian camper has described how he woke up to find a crocodile had entered his tent and was biting his foot.

Peter Rowsell, 19, was with his family on the banks of Palm Creek in the Northern Territory on Monday when the attack took place, local media said.
Mr Rowsell said something was "shaking" his right foot, describing the animal as "three to four metres" long.
He managed to fight off the crocodile, which slid back into the water.
His injuries were not life threatening.
His sister drove him to the nearest hospital in his hometown of Katherine, which was about two hours away, where he was treated for the bite. He is expected to be released soon.
The mayor of Katherine told reporters there had been crocodile sightings near popular swimming spots recently, and called for a cull.
"We do have to live with crocs because this is their environment as well, but we don't need to live with them dangerously," she was quoted by News.com.au as saying.


Six people have been arrested by police investigating the fatal shooting of a man outside a Greater Manchester pub on 4 October.

Kieran McGrath, 26, managed to drive to the nearby Ashton-under-Lyne police station after being shot outside the Sheldon Arms, but died soon afterwards.
Six people, aged between 18 and 33 have been arrested on suspicion of murder.
A post-mortem examination found Mr McGrath, from Clayton, died from a single gunshot wound to the chest.


Mo Farah was humiliated and sent to the back of the queue by an airline attendant before a flight in the United States, his wife has said.

Tania Farah said the Delta Airlines official "yelled" at the four-time Olympic gold medallist and refused to believe he had a business class ticket.
However, other reports say the Farahs arrived late for first-class boarding.
A Delta Airlines spokesman said it was investigating and "will be working directly with the Farah family".
The incident is alleged to have happened on 22 August as the couple and their four children were returning from the Rio Olympics, where Farah retained his 5,000m and 10,000m titles.
Farah and his family were on the final leg of their journey from Atlanta to their home in Portland, Oregon.
"I just knew she had a problem with him," Tania Farah said in the Sunday Telegraph, referring to the Delta Airlines official.
"This woman basically humiliated him until people came forward and said: 'That's Mo Farah, the Olympic champion'," his wife said.
"She was mortified afterwards, but had basically yelled at him.
"He was the only black person and hadn't done anything to warrant it."
Farah, 33, is aiming to become the first man to win three consecutive Great North Run titles when he races in Newcastle on Sunday.


A string of brutal murders in the US has thrown a national spotlight on MS-13, a street gang that was born in LA but has roots in El Salvador.

The latest was a mass murder on Monday on Long Island, where the bodies of four males, including three teenagers, were found mangled in the woods, according to police.
President Trump tweeted to call the gang "bad". Attorney General Jeff Sessions vowed to "devastate" it. Both blamed Obama-era immigration policy for its rise.
But what is MS-13 and is Obama really to blame?
The gang began in the barrios of Los Angeles in LA during the 1980s, formed by immigrants who had fled El Salvador's long and brutal civil war. Other members came from Honduras, Guatemala and Mexico.
The MS stands for Mara Salvatrucha, said to be a combination of Mara, meaning gang, Salva, for Salvador, and trucha, which translates roughly into street smarts. The 13 represents the position of M in the alphabet.
MS-13 established a reputation for extreme violence and for killing with machetes. It took root in neighbourhoods dominated by Mexican gangs, and later expanded to other parts of the country.
According to the FBI, the gang has spread to 46 states.
In 2012, the US Treasury designated the gang a "transnational criminal organisation". It was the first street gang to receive the dubious honour, placing it alongside much larger international cartels like the Mexican Zetas, Japanese Yakuza and Italian Camorra.
MS-13 has been accused of recruiting poor and at-risk teenagers. Joining is said to require being "jumped in" - subjected to a vicious 13-second beating - and "getting wet" - carrying out a crime, often a murder, for the gang.
Leaving is potentially even more dangerous. Large chest tattoos brand members for life, and some factions are said to murder members who attempt to leave.
A 2008 FBI threat assessment put the size of MS-13 between 6,000 and 10,000 members in the US, making it one of the largest criminal enterprises in the country.
It is now larger outside the country, according to the agency. An anti-gang crackdown in the late 1990s saw hundreds of early members shipped back to Central American countries, where they established offshoots. Estimates put the number of members in Central American countries at at least 60,000.
The gang's annual revenue is about $31.2m (Â£23.4m) according to information from a large-scale Salvadorean police operation obtained by the El Faro newspaper - mainly from from drugs and extortion.
Recent high-profile cases linked to the gang include the murder of two female high-school students who were attacked with a machete and baseball bat as they walked through their neighbourhood in New York last month - a revenge attack over a minor dispute, according to police.
Four alleged MS-13 members were charged with that crime. Another two alleged members were charged at the same time with the murder of a fellow gang member said to have violated gang protocol.
The same month, two alleged members of the gang in Houston, Texas were charged with kidnapping three teenage girls, holding them hostage and raping them before shooting one dead on the side of the road.
Miguel Alvarez-Flores, 22, and Diego Hernandez-Rivera, 18, laughed and waved at the cameras during their court appearance.
MS-13's motto is "kill, rape, control", according to one FBI gang specialist who investigated the group.
Mr Trump and Mr Sessions have pointed the finger at former President Barack Obama over the spread of MS-13, alleging that his open-door immigration policies fuelled its growth.
But the gang formed and flourished in the US long before Mr Obama came to power. MS-13 was identified as a significant threat in the 1990s, and a special FBI taskforce was convened against the gang in 1994.
"The big surge was during Bush-Cheney when the drivers of illegal migration in Central America grew, when various crackdowns on crime filled prisons to bursting point, and when funding for rehabilitation programs declined," Fulton T Armstrong, a research fellow at the Center for Latin American and Latino Studies at American University, told fact-checking website Politifact.
"I have seen no evidence that the Obama administration can be blamed in any way for the existence or activities of the gang in the US," said Ioan Grillo, author of a book on US gang crime.
The Obama administration also prioritised the deportation of gang criminals, including MS-13 members, in an aggressive deportation program.
Politifact rated Mr Trump's claim as false.
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Two men have been arrested in Armagh after more than £400,000 was seized as part of an investigation into illegal drugs supply and money laundering.

The men, aged 30 and 32, were arrested on Wednesday night after police stopped a lorry on the Portadown Road.
A subsequent search of a property in Armagh led detectives to seize four "high-value watches" and other items.
A search of a property in the Sixmilecross area of County Tyrone is also taking place.
Police said the cash - some £215,000 in sterling and 225,000 euros (£194,000) - was uncovered in a holdall, a backpack and a plastic bag in the lorry's cab.


The Hungarian capital Budapest has seen some of the biggest protests since Prime Minister Viktor Orban came to power in 2010.

They were sparked by a new law on higher education, which could see the closure of Central European University - a prestigious institution founded by the Hungarian-born American billionaire George Soros.
Protesters say the law is another step in Mr Orban's plan to transform his country into an "illiberal state" - a partial democracy, as opposed to the "open society" promoted by Mr Soros. The government says the protests are organised from abroad.
"What's happening here is very similar to what's going on in Russia," says protester Annamaria, a middle-aged teacher of disabled children, who went to Heroes' Square last week to protest against increasing Russian influence in Hungary.
"It brings back very unpleasant memories," she reflects with a sad smile, in the warm spring sunshine.
The Budapest protests were initially triggered by the government's crackdown on Central European University (CEU).
Hungarians rally to save university
EU legal threat over Hungary crackdown
The Hungarian move follows Russia's closure of another Soros-backed institution, European University at St Petersburg, which had its licence revoked in March.
The demonstrations, which have drawn tens of thousands, have become a focal point for wider discontent and highlighted Hungary's increasing isolation in the EU.
Russian student Daria Dubovka is more closely affected by the events than most. A graduate of European University at St Petersburg, she arrived at CEU in September.
"As an academic, I know how important it is to find a community that thinks the same way as I do. To me, academia is that community, and I'm worried that the threat to my universities can harm not only my life, but it can also shrink and damage the whole academic network," she said.
Ekaterina Paustyan is studying for a PhD in political science. A graduate of Altai State University in Siberia, she says CEU has changed her life.
"I have an opportunity to take courses with excellent professors here and go to lectures by top scholars such as Francis Fukuyama, Joseph Stiglitz and Sergei Guriev."
The Hungarian government believes CEU has violated Hungarian rules, an accusation the university rejects.
The new law requires universities offering degrees with non-European accreditation, such as CEU, to open campuses outside Hungary. CEU President Michael Ignatieff said such legislation was "punitive and discriminatory".
CEU does not have a US campus. It offers US- and Hungarian-accredited postgraduate degrees, and has 1,440 students - 335 from Hungary and the rest from 107 other countries.
The new law also requires such institutions to sign up to international treaties to govern their operations.
CEU says the changes mean it faces having to close to new enrolments in February 2018.
The government believes that CEU is part of a campaign orchestrated by George Soros to destroy the traditional values of Hungarian society and undermine national sovereignty.
Prime Minister Orban views Mr Soros as an ideological enemy.
Government spokesman Zoltan Kovacs believes Mr Soros's "open society" is a utopia. "His NGOs [non-governmental organisations] behave like governments... they think they have the right to say what's best for the country. But they have no political mandate."
The government has now proposed a new law tightening rules on NGOs. It will require them to register with the authorities if they receive an annual foreign income of at least 7.2m forint (Â£19,240; $24,700).
In those cases, NGOs will also have to put the label "foreign-funded organisation" on their publications.
The rules are once again targeting organisations funded by Mr Soros, who for decades has given away billions of dollars to promote a liberal, "open society" culture.
Critics say it is another striking parallel with Russia, where a 2015 law on "undesirable organisations" led to a ban on Soros foundations. Russian NGOs have to call themselves "foreign agents" if they get any foreign funding.
The Budapest branch of anti-corruption watchdog Transparency International (TI) is one of the NGOs targeted by the new law. Yet the money it gets from Mr Soros' Open Society Foundation accounts for only 7% of its budget, says Jozsef Peter Martin, head of TI's Budapest office.
He says 54% of the organisation's funding comes from the European Commission. Under the new law, this will have to be registered as "an unknown source". So does an EU member state - Hungary - consider EU support for an NGO as suspicious?
"It's a populist government and it's one of the distinctive traits of populists that they always need enemies. For a long time, the EU was such an enemy, which is absurd, because 6% of Hungarian GDP last year came from the EU," Mr Martin said.
Analysts say the protests have taken the Orban government by surprise.
"Most people didn't expect the CEU to become a spark," said Robert Laszlo from a public policy think-tank, Political Capital Institute. "But somehow it turned out to be very relevant to a lot of young people."


Plans to make CCTV mandatory in all slaughterhouses are being considered in Wales.

The Welsh Government said it supported the idea and was looking at "a broad range of views" on the issue.
It comes as Environment Secretary Michael Gove announced proposals on CCTV being required in every slaughterhouse in England in all areas where live animals are present.
RSPCA Cymru has called for the measures to be "brought forward" in Wales.
Under the new plans for England, which aim to ensure high animal welfare standards, vets will also have unrestricted access to footage.
Mr Gove has launched a consultation on the proposals.
The Welsh Government said: "We note with interest the launch of the consultation in England and will continue to keep in regular contact with Defra to see how the consultation progresses.
"We are currently considering all responses to the report of the Safeguarding Animal Welfare at Slaughter Task and Finish Group, set up to consider the implementation of CCTV in Welsh slaughterhouses.
"The cabinet secretary also asked the Wales Animal Health and Welfare Framework Group to look into this specific issue
"We will take into account the findings of the framework group, in addition to a broad range of views from all sides of the debate, before deciding on further action."
It added that the "vast majority" of livestock in Wales was slaughtered in facilities that already have the surveillance.
Claire Lawson, RSPCA assistant director of external relations in Wales, said it welcomed the Welsh Government's support but would "like to see measures brought forward which make this mandatory".
"The Welsh Government could protect animals being slaughtered from possible mistreatment, and slaughterhouse staff from any unfounded allegations, by backing the implementation of mandatory CCTV in abattoirs," Ms Lawson said.
She added that the RSPCA had produced a report in response to the task and finish group report, expressing "significant concerns with their evidence base and conclusions", and was waiting for a reply.


The Conservatives reported over £2.8m in donations in the three months after the EU referendum - the highest amount of the major parties, figures reveal.

A total of almost £6.5m in donations were registered for July to September, Electoral Commission figures show.
The Labour Party reported £2,027,371 in donations, while the Liberal Democrats received £928,888.
Meanwhile, Plaid Cymru reported £11,000, the BNP reported £94,428 and UKIP £42,943.
These figures relate to the period between 1 July and 30 September 2016.
The Electoral Commission said the £6.5m was £8.5m down on the second quarter of 2016 - which involved elections and the UK's EU referendum - but around £363,000 more than the same quarter in 2015.
The seven political parties to report the most donations were:
The Conservative Party received 160 donations, with Michael Davis making the biggest donation at £269,000, followed by Alexander Fraser handing over £260,000.
The party also received £200,000 from the Conservative Draws Society and £165,000 from David Brownlow.
Labour received 91 donations, including £689,362 from the UK's largest trade union UNISON, £429,928 from Unite the Union,  £308,049 from the GMB and £247,923 from the Communications Workers Union.
Transparency
Liberal Democrats received 167 donations, with Graham and Susan Tobbell contributing the most at £125,000 each. Of the Co-operative Party's four donors, £312,800 from the Co-operative Group Ltd was the largest.
Bob Posner, the Electoral Commission's director of political finance and regulation, and legal counsel, said: "This data is hugely important in ensuring that our political finance system is as transparent as possible and it is therefore always disappointing where there is a failure to meet the statutory deadline.
"Where there is no reasonable explanation for such a failure, we will take a robust approach in dealing with this."
In addition to the donations registered, five parties accepted more than £2.3m from public funds - money and assistance to parliamentary opposition parties to assist with costs.
The value of outstanding loans to political parties stood at £4,358,508 on 30 September - a decrease of £191,080 compared to the second quarter of 2016.
Thirteen parties failed to meet the deadline for reporting this quarter.


Wales scrum-half Rhys Webb is "extremely doubtful" for Ospreys' match against Edinburgh on Friday after suffering a head injury in their 21-17 win over Munster.

Webb began to make his case for a Wales recall off the bench in the region's Pro12 triumph in Cork.
But he departed in the final moments after a clash of heads.
"It's disappointing for us but more importantly it's about Rhys," said head coach Steve Tandy.
"I don't think it'll keep him out for too long, but with these head injury assessments you've got to make sure that players are at the forefront of these decisions. [He's] extremely doubtful."
Webb later tweeted: "Thanks for all your messages. I'm fine but due to a short turnaround won't have enough time this week. Don't worry I'm back."
He was making his first regional appearance of the season after suffering a foot injury in Wales's world cup warm-up against Italy.
He missed his country's progress to the tournament's quarter-finals and Scarlets' Gareth Davies has become a try-scoring star in his absence.
Davies scored a crucial try in Wales' World Cup win over England at Twickenham and got another as they beat Scotland in the Six Nations on Saturday.
Webb has hopes of returning to Wales duty during the current tournament.
They host France in Cardiff on Friday, 26 February before a 12 March date with England which coach Warren Gatland believes could be a tournament decider.
Wales' Six Nations campaign ends in Cardiff against Italy on Saturday, 19 March.
Ospreys are likely to be without prop Dmitri Arhip (back injury) but hope to have props Paul James and Aaron Jarvis, and lock/flanker James King, released from the Wales squad.
The three have not featured in Wales's match-day squad for the opening two Six Nations matches.
But wings Jeff Hassler and Eli Walker are likely to be back in the Ospreys squad for the Liberty Stadium encounter against Edinburgh, who lost 22-21 away to the Scarlets.


Police investigating the deaths of four people in Gibraltar, including a man from Liverpool, have identified the victims.

John Joseph Shannon, 31, was found dead, along with his Spanish partner Anarda De La Caridad Perez Friman, 37, and her two children.
They were Amanda Kristoffersen Perez, 4, and six-week-old Eve Shannon Perez, who was Mr Shannon's daughter.
The victims' bodies were found in the Boschetti's Steps area, last Monday.
Royal Gibraltar Police (RGP) said they were not looking for anyone else in connection with their deaths.
Post-mortem examinations are being carried out by Home Office forensic pathologists.
Police were called at about 11:30 local time (10:30 BST) on 30 March, after a member of staff from a letting agency called at the property where the family was staying.
The victims had only been in Gibraltar for a few days.


An author's tale about the bovine star of a chewing gum advert has won the 2016 Commonwealth Short Story Prize.

Parashar Kulkarni's Cow and Company "succeeded in exploring serious issues in a way that can make us laugh", judge Gillian Slovo said.
Kulkarni, an assistant professor in Singapore, is the first Indian author to win the award.
The Â£5,000 prize rewards "the best piece of unpublished short fiction in English" by a Commonwealth writer.
Slovo added that the author had "conjured up a large cast and their way of life... and all in a few thousand words".
Kulkarni was presented with the award at Jamaica's Calabash International Literary Festival on Sunday by Man Booker Prize winner Marlon James.


England won the bronze medal at the Lacrosse World Cup after beating Australia 10-9 in overtime in Surrey.

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The hosts were 9-5 down in the second half but clawed themselves back into contention as Olivia Hompe netted an equaliser with two minutes to play.
Neither side managed a shot in the first period of extra time but Megan Whittle hammered home the golden goal winner to secure bronze in Guildford.
It is England's first World Cup medal since 2005 - Canada play USA for gold.


Independent, Liberal Democrat and Labour councillors have agreed to work together to form a new administration to lead Highland Council.

A minority group of independent councillors ran the local authority before last week's local council elections.
On Tuesday, the SNP group criticised the independents for not negotiating with it.
Independent councillor Margaret Davidson has welcomed the new deal.
She said: "We are pleased to announce that a coalition of independents, Liberal Democrats and Labour councillors have formed an administration to take Highland Council forward for the next five years.
"This is an agreement that provides a sustainable administration for the long term, and represents the widespread opinion across the Highlands."
The proposal for a majority administration of the 41 councillors will be put to a meeting of the full council on 18 May for formal agreement.
Office bearers are to be formally agreed at this meeting, including the appointment of Ms Davidson as leader of the council. She held this post previously.
The results of last week's local elections saw 28 independent candidates elected, followed by the SNP on 22, Conservatives and Liberal Democrats with 10 each, Labour three and Scottish Greens one.
The Conservatives were the first to be elected to Highland Council in 22 years.
Pippa Hadley's win for the Scottish Greens was a first for the local authority, which had no representative from that party previously.
In the Western Isles, councillors will be asked to elect a leader, convener and committee chairmen - no women candidates were elected - at a meeting of Comhairle nan Eilena Siar on Tuesday.
Usually, the comhairle does not formally set up an administration.
The results on the isles saw the election of 23 independent candidates, seven SNP and one Conservative.


Former England and Tottenham footballer Paul Stewart has spoken of being sexually abused as a youth player.

Mr Stewart, who began his professional career with Blackpool and also played for Manchester City and Liverpool, told the Mirror an unnamed coach abused him daily for four years.
It comes after two ex-Crewe players said a club coach abused them as boys.
Eleven people have contacted Cheshire Police since one of the men, Andy Woodward, went public with his story.
Mr Woodward and Steve Walters spoke of being abused at the hands of coach Barry Bennell, who was jailed for nine years in 1998.
Professional Footballers' Association chief Gordon Taylor said he expected the number of players coming forward to rise.
Mr Taylor said: "We're now seeing more and more players come out and having the confidence to come out," he said.
"We're now meeting up with other such players and looking to counsel and advise them with regard to the current situation and the future."
The three players have each waived their right to anonymity as sex abuse victims.
Mr Stewart told the Mirror he was abused up to the age of 15 and said his attacker got away with it by threatening to kill his relatives if he ever mentioned it.
He has blamed the abuse for drink and drug problems later in his career.
In the Mirror, he said: "I have seen a counsellor, but I am resigned to the fact it will always be there and it is how I deal with it. I don't sit around the house crying all the time, but tears are a release at times."
Cheshire Police said Mr Walters was one of the people who had contacted the force since Mr Woodward's story was published.
Det Insp Sarah Hall, from the force's public protection unit, said: "We have now been made aware of a number of people who have come forward wishing to speak to the police.
"At this stage we are in the process of making contact with them, and to date no arrests have been made and no one else is under investigation."
Crewe chairman John Bowler has told BBC sports editor Dan Roan he was "infuriated and very disappointed" over the crimes of Bennell.
Mr Bowler, who was chairman at the time of Bennell's offences, was asked about whether more could have been done. He replied: "When we've done our inquiries and looked at the detail of the various accusations, then I'll be in a position to answer that kind of question."
Mr Woodward told BBC's Victoria Derbyshire programme on Tuesday that he believed his experience was "the tip of the iceberg".
A spokesman for the NSPCC praised the former Sheffield United and Bury defender for coming forward, adding there was "more to be done in the world of sport" to keep children safe.


An 18th Century Chinese vase that was used as a door-stop at a house by a Birmingham family has been sold for £650,000 at auction.

Hansons believe the vase was made during the reign of Emperor Qianlong between 1735 and 1799.
It had been valued at £300,000-£500,000 before the auction in Derby.
The seller inherited the vase from a great aunt who acquired it during her life in Cornwall in the 1920s, it is believed.
Charles Hanson, of Hansons, said earlier: "We've had significant interest across China and Taiwan and Hong Kong. We've had buyers fly in from these regions to view the vase.
"We've had telephones lines booked and it's just quite remarkable."


The number of birds of prey illegally poisoned in Scotland doubled last year, a report has revealed.

Figures from the Partnership for Action Against Wildlife Crime (Paw) Scotland showed six birds were found to have been illegally poisoned.
The numbers remain well below a peak of 30 poisoned birds recorded in 2009.
A map published by Paw Scotland showed the location of all recorded crimes against birds of prey last year.
It has also published maps showing the birds of prey poisoning hotspots over the period from January 2009 until December 2013.
Two of the poisoning cases were discovered in Perthshire, two near Stirling, with one in Angus and the other south of Edinburgh.
In total, there were 15 recorded crimes against birds of prey including shootings, trappings and nest destruction in Scotland last year.
The RSPB said the figures were "very worrying" and showed that birds continued to be persecuted in the Scottish countryside, whether by deliberate or accidental means.
The report was published as police investigated the deaths of 11 birds of prey - seven red kites and four buzzards - in Ross-shire over the last week. Wildlife officers suspect criminal behaviour but the causes of the deaths are yet to be established.
Reacting to the figures, Duncan Orr-Ewing, RSPB head of species and land management, said: "It is very worrying that the number of detected illegal poisoning incidents has shown an increase on the previous year.
"We acknowledge Scottish government efforts to tackle these appalling crimes, which have no place in modern Scotland, and agree that the production of these annual raptor crime maps makes a significant contribution to public awareness of this issue."
The other reported criminal incidents in the report show the deliberate targeting of vulnerable raptor species including hen harriers, red kites, and both golden and sea eagles.


British manufacturers are paying "inflated" sums to secure fast enough internet access, according to EEF, the manufacturers' organisation.

A survey by EEF found that a quarter of small firms and half of medium-sized firms were paying in excess of Â£5,000 a year for their internet access.
EEF claims that residential internet access has been given priority over improving access for business.
It wants the government to "urgently" reverse that trend.
"While the quality of networks isn't currently an issue, companies are paying inflated sums to have proper access and are fearful they will not have competitive access five years down the line," said Lee Hopley, EEF chief economist.
The organisation wants a review of competition for business broadband, with the aim of getting costs to fall over the current parliament.
More than 90% of respondents to the EEF survey said that a high-speed internet connection was "as essential to business as electricity and water".
Without affordable access, Britain could miss out on what the EEF describes as the "fourth industrial revolution".
According to the EEF, two-thirds of manufacturers surveyed planned to invest in equipment and services connected to the internet, including software delivered over the internet and sensors with online connections.
The telecoms regulator Ofcom is currently investigating the provision of broadband in the UK and one option under consideration is splitting up BT, so that broadband infrastructure is managed by an independent company.


Dan Biggar says British and Irish Lions fly-half rivals Owen Farrell and Johnny Sexton deserve to be a "fraction" ahead of him in the race for Test selection.

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The Wales and Ospreys stand-off, who starts against the Highlanders on Tuesday, says he has "a tough ask" to make up ground before the first Test against New Zealand on 24 June.
"It's not nice to be probably the third choice at the minute," said Biggar.
"It's my job to try and force the order [to be] a little bit different."
Biggar has been cleared to return to action having gone through the return to play protocols after he failed a head injury assessment (HIA) when he was injured in the loss to the Blues on Wednesday.
England's Farrell and Ireland's Sexton are the subject of debate over who should start for the Lions, and Biggar described his rivals as "world class".
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Farrell switched to centre and Sexton took over at 10 following Wales centre Jonathan Davies' departure during the Lions' 12-3 win over Crusaders on Saturday.
Davies later failed an HIA.
Biggar, who starts alongside Wales and Ospreys half-back partner Rhys Webb against the Highlanders, said: "I think those two [Sexton and Farrell] probably deserve to be just that fraction ahead at the minute.
"That's being brutally honest.
"But my nature is not to sort of want that to happen. My nature is to sort of really try and close that gap and put some pressure on the two of them.
"And that's the chance that I've got on Tuesday night."
Biggar failed his HIA after leaving the field following a heavy tackle in the tourists' 22-16 loss against the Blues.
"It's a tough ask for me to make up ground," he said.
"I suppose I'm a little bit frustrated at having to come off after 35 minutes on Wednesday when we were going OK.
"So it's just up to me really to try and just do the basics well enough and bring the other guys into play as well outside me [on Tuesday]."
The fixture against the Highlanders in Dunedin (kick off 08:35 BST) is the Lions' fourth of the tour, with matches against Maori All Blacks and Chiefs to follow before the first of three Tests against New Zealand on Saturday, 24 June.


France will deploy 3,000 troops to fight militant Islamists across Africa's vast Sahel region, the defence minister has said.

The region was a "danger zone", with militants regrouping in northern Mali, Jean-Yves Le Drian said.
France was therefore reorganising its forces to "pursue counter-terrorism" across several states, he said.
French forces helped the Malian government recapture the north from al-Qaeda-linked militants last year.
It said at the time it would reduce its troop presence in Mali from around 4,500 to 1,000.
By Paul MellyWest Africa analyst
The scale of the deployment confirms the depth of French concern about the threat that jihadist groups in the Sahara pose to the stability of not only West Africa and the Maghreb but also Europe.
In light of the need for last year's French intervention to reverse the 2012 militant takeover of northern Mali, Paris has been reviewing its overall military presence in West Africa. It has concluded that for the foreseeable future, African states and their militaries are not strong enough to tackle the jihadist threat alone.
African soldiers are being trained by the French. But they lack the satellite and drone surveillance capabilities, the attack helicopters and strike aircraft that France can provide; moreover, France has recent combat experience from its time in Afghanistan.
It would be hugely difficult to completely eradicate the militant groups â€” for whom lawless southern Libya effectively provides a safe haven. But the reinforced French deployment will be able to react quickly in crisis situations and should be able to keep the remaining jihadist bands under pressure, hampering their ability to launch fresh attacks.
In political terms, the French initiative has been welcomed by West African governments â€” who have been seriously worried about the threat posed by militant groups.
The decision to keep thousands of troops in the Sahara-Sahel region is a natural follow-up to last year's Operation Serval in Mali. And in practical terms, in many places the French are expanding or reconfiguring existing operations.
However, the deployment stands in marked contrast to the mood six or seven years ago - when Francois Hollande's predecessor, Nicolas Sarkozy, felt able to plan for a significant reduction in the French military presence in West Africa.
A French soldier has been killed in the north of Mali after an explosive device went off under his vehicle, Mr Le Drian also said on Thursday.
He is the eighth French to be killed since France deployed troops to Mali in January 2013.
"There will be 1,000 soldiers that remain in Mali, and 3,000 in the Sahel-Sahara zone, the danger zone, the zone of all types of smuggling," Mr Le Drian said, in a television interview.
"We will stay as long as necessary. There is no fixed date," he added.
French forces will be based in four regional centres - Mali, Chad, Niger and Burkina Faso - Reuters news agency reports.
Smaller bases from which to launch strikes are being set up, with Ivory Coast as the mission's logistical hub, it adds.
"This area is key to the security of African states," Mr Le Drian said. "But it is also for our own security. We have to prepare for the risks because they are very big and we see that again today with the death [of the soldier]," he said.
West Africa analyst Paul Melly told the BBC that it would be hugely difficult to completely eradicate the militant groups â€” for whom lawless southern Libya effectively provides a safe haven.
But he says the reinforced French deployment will be able to react quickly in crisis situations and should be able to hamper the ability of the remaining jihadist bands to launch fresh attacks.
The United Nations has more than 6,000 troops in Mali to help the weak government that took power in elections in August 2013.


The United Kingdom's historic decision to become the first sovereign country to vote to leave the European Union has reverberated across the world.

Though it's unclear what a British divorce from Europe may look like, the decision may have caused unintended consequences for many Americans. Here's a look at six ways the Brexit may affect the US.
About one in 10 visitors to the UK is American. And the exchange rate for the dollar is better for Americans in the wake of Brexit - it's now worth $1.48, down about 8% from a year ago, and at its lowest level since 1985.
This means Americans going to see Big Ben, Stonehenge or Edinburgh Castle this summer can expect their dollar to go a lot further, at least for now.
Michael Stitt, president of North America for Travelzoo, told the BBC that he advises any American travellers to the UK to check on the exchange rate right before a trip and to consider taking GBP out while the exchange rate is low and the dollar is strong.
UK hotels will almost certainly offer deals and specials, he said, and vacation operators will likely put together some "pretty aggressive" packages for going on holiday to the UK.
On the inverse, British travellers may think twice before booking a trip to the US because it will be more expensive, he said.
Though an attractive exchange rate makes a summer trip to London more affordable now, Brexit could make flying in and out of the UK more expensive in the long term.
The UK currently operates under a single aviation market that allows British airlines the freedom to fly between EU countries and the right to fly within an EU country. The EU also has a similar agreement with the US.
The outcome of last night's vote means the UK may lose its rights to fly in and out those countries if new contracts are not negotiated, according to Andrew Meaney, the head of transport for economic consultancy Oxera.
Ultimately, airlines could struggle to meet the same amount of demands with fewer services in and out of the UK. US airlines could also consider replacing London with a city such as Dublin as an entry point into Europe.
For American bankers living in London, the Brexit signals uncertainty about the capital's status as the world's largest foreign exchange market.
US banks will have to decide on moving thousands of jobs to other major European cities such as Dublin, Frankfurt or Paris depending on whether the UK is able to negotiate new trade deals to retain access to the world's largest single market, the EU.
In a memo to staff on Friday, JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon indicated that though the company planned to maintain a large presence in Britain, it would face significant hurdles.
"In the months ahead, however, we may need to make changes to our European legal entity structure and the location of some roles," Mr Dimon said.
If Scotland should seek another referendum vote to leave the UK in the wake of Brexit, American bankers may find themselves packing their bags for Edinburgh, the second largest financial hub in the UK.
The Brexit has roiled global financial markets, with the US, UK, Europe, Hong Kong, Tokyo and Sydney markets dropping at the opening bell.
Many Americans are exposed to the stock market through their retirement plan, also known as a 401(k) plan.
In fact, about half of America's full-time employees participate in their company's 401(k), according to the Pew Charitable Trusts.
The UK's exit from the EU has already hit current market prices and could potentially trigger a recession. Investments in global stock markets expose Americans to such market turmoil, and could result in one's equity portfolio losing value.
The state of the UK economy is volatile, so American property is looking like a very safe investment right now.
"Any time there is a recession in significant markets such as London, it bodes well for the US," international real estate lawyer and consultant Edward Mermelstein told the BBC.
"Investment will be attracted to a safe haven, and there's no safer location than the US market... the US will be the beneficiary of continued foreign investment due to the uncertainty created by this vote."
Americans looking to buy property should expect prices to rise in the next year - making right now a better time to buy rather than waiting.
But in the meantime, as the Washington Post pointed out, current mortgage rates will continue to be at an all-time low as foreign investors seek US government debt, pulling down interest rates.
The UK film and TV industry will be badly hurt by Brexit, the chairman of the Independent Film and Television Alliance told the Verge..
"The decision to exit the European Union is a major blow to the UK film and TV industry," Michael Ryan told the website. "Producing films and television programs is a very expensive and very risky business and certainty about the rules affecting the business is a must."
HBO series Game of Thrones is largely filmed in Northern Ireland, partly funded by the European Regional Development fund. It has also been filmed in Spain, Croatia, Iceland and Malta. That funding could go away, depending on how UK's EU exit is negotiated.


Five female security staff at Kandahar airport have been killed by unknown gunmen, local officials say.

They were travelling to work at the airport on Saturday morning when two attackers riding a motorcycle opened fire on their minivan, said Samim Akhalwak, a spokesperson for the Kandahar governor.
The five women were killed, as well as their driver.
The women were in charge of searching female travellers at the airport.
Ahmadullah Faizi, the airport's director, said the women had been concerned about their security after receiving death threats from people who disapproved of their career.
No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, but women in Afghanistan are often targeted by the Taliban.
Mr Faizi said an investigation was under way but no arrests had been made.
According to the Afghan attorney general's office, there were more than 3,700 cases of violence against women in the first eight months of 2016, and 5,000 cases in 2015.


Gabon striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang struck a late penalty for Borussia Dortmund on the final day of the season to finish as the Bundesliga's top scorer with 31 goals.

Aubameyang scored twice to help Dortmund beat Werder Bremen 4-3 - his first coming three minutes before the break and his second from the spot in the 89th minute.
It put the 27-year-old one goal ahead of Bayern Munich's Robert Lewandowski who failed to score in the German champions' 4-1 win over Freiburg.
Aubameyang becomes only the second African player to win the golden boot in Germany after Ghana's Tony Yeboah achieved the feat twice whilst playing for Eintracht Frankfurt - in the 1992-93 season and the following year in the 1993-94 campaign.
Borussia Dortmund's victory over Werder Bremen gave them a third place finish in the Bundesliga and secured their automatic spot in the Champions League group stage.


The SNP has won a council seat representing the Glenrothes West and Kinglassie ward in a by-election held after the death of a Labour councillor.

Craig Walker took the seat on Fife Council with 2,539 votes, 896 more than Labour's Alan Seath (1,643).
The Tories polled 202 votes, UKIP 146 and the Lib Dems 61.
In another by-election SNP candidate Sarah King was elected in Armadale, Blackridge, Torphichen and Westfield in West Lothian.
She secured more than 43% of the vote.
Voter turnout was 30.7%.
Turnout in Glenrothes was 32.59%.
Labour councillor Betty Campbell, who had held the Fife Council seat since May 2007, died in January.
In the North East, the SNP also won a by-election in Buckie.


A UK ticket-holder has come forward to claim Friday's £148m Euromillions jackpot, lottery organiser Camelot has confirmed.

Subject to validation, the jackpot winner could receive the money when the banks open on Monday.
No details have been released about the winner, or where the ticket was bought.
The ticket is the second biggest National Lottery win, behind Colin and Chris Weir from Ayrshire, who scooped £161m in July 2011.
The winner will decide whether or not to reveal their identity.
It is not known whether the £148,656,000 prize was won by an individual, or will be shared by a syndicate.
The winning numbers were 11, 17, 21, 48 and 50. The lucky stars were 9 and 10.
A National Lottery spokeswoman said: "We are looking forward to welcoming the ticket-holder into our millionaires club, joining the 2,900 millionaires created by the National Lottery to date".
It is the seventh Euromillions jackpot to be won in the UK so far in 2012.
Mr and Mrs Weir have given large donations to several causes, including £1m to the SNP's Scottish independence campaign, since they landed their fortune.
Speaking last month on the anniversary of their win, they pledged to continue sharing their good luck.
The spokeswoman added after Friday's draw: "To date, our players have raised an amazing £28bn and counting for National Lottery Good Causes."
Another UK millionaire was created in the Millionaire Raffle Selection game, with the winning code JDW 016965.


Belfast City Council has agreed to rethink the design of a permanent memorial to remember babies buried in an unmarked grave in Belfast.

Almost 8,000 babies who died shortly after birth or were stillborn between 1945 and 1996 are buried at the City Cemetery plot.
A piece of art commissioned by Belfast City Council was thought to be unsuitable by their families.
Parents expressed concerns at a public consultation on Tuesday night.
One woman, Agnes Close, told BBC News NI the proposed memorial - a rock, with a Bonsai tree - was "totally unsuitable".
"It had to be explained: The memorial should be self-explanatory," said Ms Close, whose son was buried in the plot having died shortly after his birth in 1973.
"At that time the families didn't have a say - he was just taken away and I didn't see him once he died."
"We've always said people walking past the memorial should know what it is," she said.
"It was an art piece, It wasn't representative of the babies.
"I would like people know this is the resting place of so many babies, so there has to be a baby in it."
The council has now said it will rethink the memorial design and explore other options.
The group of parents was very pleased with the outcome of the meeting, Ms Close told BBC News NI.


Swansea City have appointed former Udinese manager Francesco Guidolin as their new head coach.

The Italian will have the final say on selection while working alongside Alan Curtis - who had been placed in interim charge - until the end of the season.
Swansea, who sacked Garry Monk last month, are 18th in the Premier League.
Guidolin, 60, was at the Liberty Stadium for Monday's game with Watford but a club statement said he would only have a "watching brief".
"At the moment it's not a good situation for the club, but we have a good team," Guidolin told the club's website.
"In Italy, I helped my team finish in a good position in the table, and that's what I hope to achieve here at Swansea.
"At the moment everything is new to me, so I need three or four days to talk to the staff and players. After that, I will have a precise idea of things.
"Alan Curtis is a legend at Swansea, and this is important for me. He knows everything about the club."
Former Chelsea midfielder Gabriele Ambrosetti has joined Swansea's staff as coach following Guidolin's arrival.
The south Wales club placed Curtis in caretaker charge after Monk's departure and then announced on 7 January that the 61-year-old would continue as interim boss until the end of the season.
But after the 4-2 home loss to relegation rivals Sunderland, Curtis said he would be willing to step aside if the club found a new boss before the end of the campaign.
Guidolin has managed several clubs in Italy dating back to the late 1980s, including Palermo and Parma, as well as French league side Monaco.
He took charge of Serie A side Udinese over two spells, first in the late 1990s and then a stint from 2010 to 2014.
Udinese finished third in Serie A under Guidolin in 2012, equalling the club's best season in the Italian top flight.
He also achieved promotions with Parma, Palermo and Vicenza, and led the latter to an unlikely victory in the Coppa Italia in 1997.
Swans chairman Huw Jenkins travelled to South America in December to step up his search for Monk's successor, with Marcelo Bielsa the bookmakers' favourite for the role.
After the appointment of Guidolin, Jenkins said: "His experience and knowledge will be a huge asset to the club.
"He has an excellent record, especially with Udinese over the last few years. He created an Udinese side from a relatively small budget - compared to the rest of the league - that competed with the big teams in Serie A.
"He instilled a belief and motivation to compete and beat the best Italy had to offer. It is similar to what this football club is trying to do in the Premier League."
Swansea host Watford in the Premier League on Monday, before travelling to Everton on Sunday 24 January.
Having been knocked out of the FA Cup by League Two Oxford, Swansea do not have a fixture over the final weekend of January.
They then travel to West Bromwich Albion on Tuesday 2 February before back-to-back home games against Crystal Palace and Southampton.


The Conservatives insist their policy on minimum funding for the Welsh government, subject to an income tax referendum, has not changed.

The party's election manifesto said a funding floor would only be introduced after a referendum was called.
The St David's Day Agreement had said the vote would be an "expectation", and Labour Welsh ministers oppose a referendum before a funding deal.
Labour accused the Tories of trying to hold them "over a barrel".
The manifesto states the Conservatives would "introduce a 'funding floor' to protect Welsh relative funding and provide certainty for the Welsh Government to plan for the future, once it has called a referendum on Income Tax powers in the next Parliament".
But a Welsh Conservative spokeswoman told BBC Wales: "The St David's Day commitment we made to introduce a funding floor for Wales is firm and clear, and work is already underway at the Treasury and the Wales Office to bring this floor forward.
"The funding floor for Wales is not contingent on an income tax referendum. Our UK manifesto makes clear our expectation that the Welsh Assembly will hold a referendum on income tax raising powers early in the next Parliament.
"More detail of our ambitious plan for Wales will be announced in the Conservative Party Welsh Manifesto which will be launched later this week."
On Friday, Chancellor George Osborne told BBC Wales the funding floor would be between £113 and £116 per head for every £100 spent in England, the range recommended by economist Gerry Holtham.
Labour has said it would also introduce a floor to the Welsh government's funding, but has not committed to a figure.
Reacting to the Conservative manifesto, First Minister Carwyn Jones said:  "A vote for the Tories is a vote for a government that would cost Wales up to £300m a year.
"A fair funding settlement is either fair or it isn't - you can't impose conditions or try and hold the government over a barrel."
The Liberal Democrats have said they would commission an independent review of Wales' funding arrangements, with a view to raising the Welsh government's budget.
Plaid Cymru wants to see an extra £1.2bn a year given to the Welsh government, claiming it would bring spending into line with Scottish levels.
UKIP has said it would like to scrap the existing Barnett formula which determines funding for the four UK nations.


Nissan says it is investing £250m in Sunderland to make a small luxury car, creating "hundreds of jobs" in the UK.

"The Sunderland factory is very competitive," said Nissan's chief performance officer Colin Dodge.
The Infiniti model was penned by Nissan's design team in London and engineered at its technical centre in Bedfordshire.
Their brief was to appeal to buyers in Europe, where the marque's sales are weak.
Business Secretary Vince Cable visited the Sunderland plant on Wednesday for the investment announcement.
"Today's news is a strong endorsement of the quality of Britain's car industry, which is creating jobs, taking on apprentices and contributing to building a stronger economy," he said.
"The auto sector is living up to being one of the great success stories of our industrial strategy and a testimony to government and private sector working together in close partnership."
'Pivotal car'
Mr Dodge said it was too early to be specific about how many jobs would be created as a result of the fresh investment.
It was suggested, however, that it could be about 280 directly at the factory, with a further 700 or so created with suppliers.
However, to make space for the Infiniti, a previously announced investment of £127m to build a hatchback, involving some 125 jobs, will now be moved from Sunderland to another Nissan factory in Europe, for instance in Spain or Russia, an Infiniti spokesman said.
The Infiniti investment will be made during the next two years and the new Infiniti will start rolling off the assembly line in 2015, Mr Dodge said.
Nissan said it would produce up to 60,000 Infiniti cars per year.
The new car has not yet been named, beyond an announcement that it will be called something starting with Q followed by a digit and ending with 0, but it will be based on the Ethera concept vehicle that was displayed at the Geneva motor show in 2011.
"It is a pivotal car for Europe," Mr Dodge said.
Infiniti has made little headway since it was first launched in Europe in 2008 with a series of large, thirsty cars with powerful V6 and V8 petrol engines.
"The Infiniti brand has been very American-centric for years," Mr Dodge said, "but the new, smaller model is the size of car for Europe rather than for the US."
Infiniti has set itself an ambitious sales target in Europe of 100,000 cars by 2016, compared with 16,700 cars sold in 2011.
Between a third and half the sales of the new Infiniti are expected to come in Europe, said Mr Dodge.
The car will be the first Infiniti to be offered with a diesel engine, an option seen as crucial to win over European drivers, Mr Dodge said, though he declined to reveal further details about the engine options for the car.
The Ethera concept was a petrol-electric hybrid with a 2.5-litre four-cylinder engine. Nissan is developing engines jointly with Mercedes-owner Daimler, it works closely with alliance partner Renault, and in March this year it unveiled a high performance petrol-electric hybrid model, the Emergenc-e, that will use a three-cylinder petrol engine made by Hethel, Norfolk-based Lotus.
Sunderland was awarded the model thanks to its reputation for efficiency, both in terms of quality and cost as well as ability to deliver, said Mr Dodge, who worked at the plant from 1984 until 2007 before he was promoted and moved to the Nissan headquarters in Japan.
Nissan used to claim that its Sunderland plant, which currently employs more than 6,000 people, was the most efficient car factory in Europe, though these days it tends not to mention this.
"But it is," said Mr Dodge. "We just don't keep chest-beating about it year in, year out."
Nissan said Sunderland is on schedule to become the first car factory in the UK to have produced more than 500,000 cars in one calendar year. "Even during British Leyland times, they didn't do that," said Mr Bolt.
The decision to produce the new Infiniti outside Japan was based on a number of factors.
"Historically, we've made Infiniti in Japan," said Mr Dodge, though in recent years, he explained, the yen has been very strong, thus making it difficult to make money from cars exported from Japan.
In response, the carmaker is shifting production to the UK, the US and China.
It is "heartbreaking" for Nissan's Japanese staff to see production moved out of the country, Mr Dodge said.
"They can make cars as well as anybody," he said, "but they're at a significant disadvantage when compared with rivals selling cars in dollars, euros or pounds."
But the strong yen is not the only reason why Nissan makes ever more cars abroad.
Investment and production in growth markets around the world would probably continue even if the yen was to fall in value, as it is expected to do under the country's next prime minister, Shinzo Abe.
"If you've got a manufacturing base and a supply base set up, it is best to produce and sell in one currency," said Mr Dodge.


Hundreds of tiny mud people created by a disabled activist to highlight austerity in the UK have been ground up and scattered over the sea.

The 650 statues called Figures and made by Bristol-based Liz Crow, represented all the UK's constituencies.
Ms Crow wanted people to think about the effects of continued austerity on people at "the sharp end" ahead of the recent general election.
The artist said saying goodbye to the figures had been "emotional".
Ms Crow planned to take the figures through a life cycle.
It began on the banks of the River Avon at Shirehampton in Bristol where the mud was gathered.
This was then taken to the banks of the River Thames in London where the artist moulded the figures over 11 days and nights while sitting opposite the Houses of Parliament.
The figures were taken on a mobile exhibition tour starting in Trafalgar Square then on to David Cameron's constituency office in Witney, Oxfordshire, and returning to Bristol.
Before making their final journey by boat to be scattered over the sea near Portishead, the figures were taken to a brick makers to be ground up.
"It was really emotional," said Ms Crow.
"I had such a strong sense of what the figures represented."
As the pieces were thrown into the sea, Ms Crow said she was thinking about "what it is to be human and the sort of society we want".
She believes the election result shows society thinks "some people are more significant than others".


Porsche will compete in the all-electric Formula E series from 2019, ending its involvement in the top category of Le Mans sportscar racing.

Porsche's prototype 919 Hybrid won the Le Mans 24 Hours in each of the past three years and also won the 2015 and 2016 World Endurance Championships.
The manufacturer will halt its Le Mans programme at the end of this season, a year before its existing contract ends.
German rival Mercedes has also announced plans join Formula E in 2019.
Michael Steiner, of Porsche's research and development board, said: "Formula E is the ultimate competitive environment for driving forward the development of high performance vehicles in areas such as environmental friendliness, efficiency and sustainability."
Formula E chief executive Alejandro Agag added: "If somebody told me when we started this project five years ago, that we'd be announcing a partnership with a brand like Porsche, I wouldn't have believed it."
Porsche's departure from Le Mans leaves Toyota as the only LMP1 manufacturer in the series, and also calls into question the Japanese company's future involvement.
Audi, like Porsche also part of the Volkswagen Group, announced last year that it was quitting Le Mans and the WEC to shift resources to Formula E.
Other manufacturers already involved in the electric series include BMW, Renault, Jaguar and Citroen.


O Langefni i Lanilltud Fawr, Llangollen i Lanelli, mae 'Llan' i'w gweld ym mhob cwr o Gymru.

Ond pa mor dda ydych chi am 'nabod eich Llannau? Rhowch gynnig ar gwis Cymru Fyw:


The UN is formally taking over peacekeeping operations in the Central African Republic (CAR), where about 25% of the population has fled their homes.

The new force will largely comprise 6,200 troops already there.
There are also 2,000 French troops, who will not be part of the UN force, but human rights groups say a bigger force is urgently needed to end the violence.
CAR has been in turmoil since a mainly Muslim rebel group seized power in the majority Christian country last year.
Rebel leader Michel Djotodia resigned in January under intense diplomatic pressure but the killings have continued.
According to a tally by the AP news agency, more than 5,000 people have been killed this year alone.
Muslims have fled revenge attacks, with the country now largely split into a Muslim north and Christian south.
A "rehatting" ceremony, in which the peacekeepers swap their green African Union helmets for blue UN ones, was due to have started at 15:00 local time (14:00 GMT).
The new mission is to be known as Minusca from its French acronym.
"Our mission can be summed up in a triptych: to protect the population,  back the political process and contribute to the restoration of the authority  of the state," said Minusca chief Gen Babacar Gaye of Senegal.
As well as the 5,000 AU soldiers, some 1,200 troops have arrived in recent weeks from Pakistan and Bangladesh.
The UN Security Council has authorised a force of 12,000 and human rights groups say the extra troops should be deployed without delay.
"The switch from AU to UN peacekeepers must be more than a cosmetic change: the swapping green berets for blue helmets. Instead it must serve as a fresh start for the peacekeeping operation in CAR,'' said Steve Cockburn, Amnesty International's campaigns deputy regional director for West and Central Africa.
"The gap between the number of peacekeepers promised and the number deployed must be urgently filled. Only once the full force is on the ground, undertaking patrols and protecting CAR's civilian population, can the UN properly fulfil its protection mandate."


Vladimir Putin has said Russia is using "far from everything we are capable of" in its military operations in Syria.

"We also have other things as well and will use them if necessary," the Russian president said.
Mr Putin was speaking a day after the UN Security Council endorsed a peace plan for the war-torn nation, including calls for a ceasefire.
The Syrian war, heading into its fifth year, has killed more than 250,000 people and displaced millions more.
The resolution, passed unanimously by the UN Security Council, sets out a timetable for formal talks and a unity government within six months,
However, the resolution makes no mention of the future role of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
Western countries have called for his departure, but Russia and China say he should not be required to leave power as a precondition for peace talks.
Where key countries stand
Russia - a key ally of the Syrian president - has previously blocked resolutions critical of Mr Assad at the UN Security Council and has continued to supply weapons to the Syrian military despite international criticism.
In September Russian forces began launching air strikes against rebels, saying the so-called Islamic State (IS) and "all terrorists" were targets. However, Western-backed groups were reported to have been hit.
The resolution passed at the UN in New York on Friday foresees talks between the Syrian government and opposition in early January.
The plan sets out a timetable for UN-supervised elections within 18 months, and stresses that the Syrian people will decide the future of their country.
The plan also calls for a ceasefire, but there is also disagreement over which armed groups should be designated as terrorists and consequently excluded from any talks or ceasefire.
Actions against groups considered terrorist organisations would not be affected, allowing Russian, French and US air strikes against Islamic State to continue.
The agreement demands that all parties cease attacks against civilians.


The Burmese parliament has announced it will begin electing a new president on 17 March.

The delay comes amid a transition of power from the military-controlled government to the party of former political prisoner Aung San Suu Kyi.
No official reason has been given, but it has fuelled speculation that Ms Suu Kyi is in talks over taking the job.
She is currently barred from the presidency because her two sons have foreign passports.
Ms Suu Kyi's plan appears to be to sidestep the clause that bars her from the presidency by getting her MPs to temporarily suspend it, says the BBC's Jonah Fisher in Myanmar, which is also known as Burma.
She has reportedly been negotiating the issue with military chief General Min Aung Hlaing. The clause can be legally scrapped only through a 75%-plus-one vote in parliament.
The military holds 25% of seats in parliament - all unelected - which means Ms Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD) party cannot scrap the clause on its own.
But the clause can be suspended by a simple majority - although any such move could be challenged as both illegal and unconstitutional, our correspondent says.
Under the constitution, the upper house, lower house and the military will have to select one candidate each for president and for the two vice-presidents.
Given that the NLD has a majority in both houses, it is certain to get the president's post and one of the vice-presidential positions.
A new president does not have to be in place before April, but the process of choosing outgoing President Thein Sein's successor was expected to begin after the new parliament convened a week ago.
The NLD won a landslide victory in the November general elections. But Ms Suu Kyi has been blocked from the presidency by the Constitution's Article 59 (f), which says anyone with a foreign spouse or children cannot hold the executive office.
Ms Suu Kyi's late husband was British, as are her two sons.
In separate but identical broadcasts late on Sunday, Sky Net and Myanmar National Television, both pro-government, said "positive results could come out on the negotiation for the suspension of the constitution Article 59 (f)".
"I think everything will be fine," Kyaw Htwe, a senior member of the NLD, told The Associated Press. "The negotiations will be positive for our leader Aung San Suu Kyi to become president."
But Yan Myo Thein, a political analyst, advised caution.
He said: "It is still too early to confirm that Ms Suu Kyi will be among the presidential candidates. Even the suspension and the constitutional amendment will take time."
Myanmar was ruled with an iron fist by a military junta for 50 years, until the military stood back in 2010 to allow a quasi-civilian government to take over.


A 200-million-year-old reptile is rewriting the rulebooks on how four-legged animals conquered the world.

Newly discovered fossils suggest Drepanosaurus had huge hooked claws to dig insects from bark, much like today's anteaters in the forests of Central and South America.
Scientists say the creature defies the convention on how reptiles evolved and flourished.
Their research is published in the journal Current Biology.
The new fossils, found in a New Mexico quarry, suggest Drepanosaurus was the size of a cat and lived in the trees.
It had a bird-like head on a chameleon-like body, but the most unusual feature was its forearms, said Dr Adam Pritchard, of Yale University, who led the research.
"Drepanosaurus itself has extremely massive arms and forearms - very muscular," he said.
"The index finger is much much larger than any of the other fingers and supports this gigantic claw, which is easily the most massive bone of the entire arm."
The forelimbs of tetrapods are known for their versatility, used to walk, dig, fly or swim.
However, the basic plan of the forelimb has stayed much the same throughout 375 million years of evolution.
"The arm of tetrapod animals almost always follows some very consistent rules," Dr Pritchard said.
The US team made 3D reconstructions of the reptile based on micro-CT (computerised tomography) scans of dozens of bones.
Other fossils that have been unearthed were partly crushed, making interpretation difficult.
"In your forearm, in the forearm of Tyrannosaurus rex, in the forearm of an elephant, you have two bones - the radius and the ulna, which manifest as these elongate, slender, parallel shafts," he explained.
But the Drepanosaurus did not have these parallel bones.
"So all of these consistent patterns that we see across a huge range of tetrapods, regardless of their ecology, regardless of their ancestry, are violated by this animal," Dr Pritchard said.
"On the one hand, it extends the bounds of what we think the arm of tetrapod animals - those four-footed animals in the world - is capable of in terms of its development, in terms of evolution.
"And, it is also remarkable in what it evidences about the ecology, the lifestyle of the animal, in that it seems to have quite independently developed adaptations that we see today in modern groups like anteaters."
Palaeontologist Dr Nicholas Fraser, of National Museums Scotland said the Triassic period was a "melting pot of experimentation".
"The unconventional rules in the Triassic," he said.
"Here is another animal which is completely unconventional in the way it has got this system of bones in the limb to help it dig - those are massive claws too."
Drepanosaurus disappeared at the end of the Triassic and did not lend its form to any future creatures.
"It was only useful in this one particular instance, where you have got a really specialised fossorial animal - a digger," Dr Fraser said.
"But it is the first real departure like this in the basic ground plan that you see ever since the first tetrapods invaded land 365 million years ago."
The researchers say they are continuing to excavate the quarries in New Mexico, with the hope of finding more discoveries.
"There's a lot - especially in terms of the smaller animals in the fossil record - that has remained undiscovered," said Dr Pritchard. "I don't see an end to it."
Follow Helen on Twitter @hbriggs.


A white police officer who fatally shot a 12-year-old black boy in Cleveland, Ohio, in November 2014 has been sacked for lying on his cadet application.

Timothy Loehmann opened fire on Tamir Rice as he played with a pellet gun, sparking widespread protests.
City officials announced Mr Loehmann's sacking and a 10-day suspension for his partner at the scene, Frank Garmback.
The penalties come more than a year after a grand jury declined to indict them in the boy's death.
An investigation found the officers had not violated procedures but also uncovered details which led to Mr Loehmann's dismissal.
Mr Loehmann had been allowed to resign from another police department instead of being sacked for being emotionally unstable.
But he did not disclose the full circumstances when applying to join the the Cleveland police force.
"Patrol Officer Loehmann had been charged with rule violations concerning his application... specifically answers he had provided on his personal history statement," Cleveland's Director of Public Safety, Michael McGrath, said at a press conference.
The other officer, Frank Garmback, was assigned extra tactical training in addition to his suspension.
Tamir Rice had been playing with the pellet gun in a park on 22 November, when a police cruiser pulled up close by.
Rookie patrolman Loehmann jumped out and fired his service weapon twice. Tamir Rice died the next day.
Mr Loehmann was still in his six-month probationary period when the shooting happened. His dismissal is effective immediately, officers said.
In April 2016, the city agreed to pay $6m (Â£4.14m) to the family of Tamir Rice.
The settlement carried no admissions of any wrongdoing.