Rebels

The Rebels, who have yet to win in the competition this season, briefly took an unexpected one point lead early in the second half when George Worth slotted over his penalty from near the halfway line.

But after Uelese was shown the yellow card for kicking the ball away, the Highlanders took control, with a penalty try putting them back in front before tries from Josh Dickson and Jona Nareki effectively clinched the game.

Melbourne playmaker Quade Cooper worked his magic to help the Rebels maintain their unbeaten start to the season.

In a heart-stopping finish, the Highlanders looked for a match winner in the 78th minute as flanker Shannon Frizell tried to plant the ball down over the line, but the Television Match Official (TMO) ruled he had dropped it.

The Rebels set up the victory with four classy tries, all scored by their backs.

Cooper showed off his array of skills to set up two of those as he settled into his new AAMI Park home.

Uelese was ruled out of the Wallabies' June Series on Sunday, with suspicions he had suffered the serious injury, and scans on Monday confirmed the worst-case scenario.

The 21-year-old was on the field for just 10 minutes in the Rebels' win over the Blues in Auckland before falling awkwardly in a tackle on Blues no. 8 Akira Ioane.

Uelese will go under the knife on Thursday, and begin the long rehabilitation process.

Rebels general manager - professional rugby - Nick Ryan, said the news was a blow to the team.

First-five Beauden Barrett, number eight Gareth Evans and inside centre Ngani Laumape also crossed for the Hurricanes, who trailed 19-8 after 30 minutes before running over the top of the tiring home side.

The result takes the Hurricanes to the top of the New Zealand Conference.

The Rebels' only try was scored by lock Matt Philip and flyhalf Jack Debreczeni added four penalties.

The star lock was an integral part of Melbourne's win over the Sunwolves, wreaking havoc at lineout time and playing an understated hand in the Rebels attack.

But he pulled up particularly sore after the match and has since been ruled out of the Australian Conference blockbuster, with Ross Haylett-Petty getting the nod in the second row alongside Matt Philip.

Outside of the forced change, coach Dave Wessels has stuck solid with the starting XV that has claimed convincing wins through the opening fortnight.

Smith had four seasons with the Melbourne franchise after a successful spell with Chiefs, where he won two Super Rugby titles.

The 28-year-old, capped six times by the Wallabies, will now embark on a new challenge with the mighty Hurricanes.

"I'll always be grateful for my time in Australia and I have really enjoyed playing for the Melbourne Rebels, but when the opportunity to play for the Hurricanes came up it was very appealing to me." said Smith, whose parents are from New Zealand and brought him up in Hamilton. 

Up to 1,500 people were expected to leave the Barzeh district in the north-east of the capital on Monday, a monitoring group said.

Most are being transported to the rebel-held northern province of Idlib.

The deal comes two days after powers backing opposing sides in Syria's war created four "de-escalation" zones.

Russia and Iran - allies of President Bashar al-Assad - signed a memorandum with Turkey, a key opposition supporter, calling for:

Apart from sending a powerful message to the Australian Rugby Union, who are weighing up whether to cut the Rebels or Western Force from next year's competition, the 19-17 win in Melbourne has also breathed life into the season.

With a record 10 straight derby wins to their credit, the Brumbies seemed to be cruising to Australian conference honours for the second year in a row.

The home team led by 18 points with 25 minutes remaining, before the visitors from Melbourne ran in two late tries.

RNZI reports the Blues outscored the Australian conference leaders six tries to four, but with only four wins from eight matches the Blues remain at the bottom the New Zealand conference.

Kiir signed the agreement in Juba, South Sudan's capital, in a ceremony witnessed by regional leaders. Kiir said he was signing the document despite having serious reservations. He signed the same agreement endorsed by rebel leader Riek Machar, said Kiir's spokesman Ateny Wek Ateny.