Melbourne into 2013 with hands and feet

MELBOURNE reached out and grabbed 2013 with hands and feet, as fireworks shaped like digits lit up the skyline in the southern capital.

An estimated 550,000 flooded into the CBD to witness the fireworks display, a 10-minute spectacular that flooded the sky with colour, featuring some unique explosions in the shape of human hands and feet.

The city's tallest buildings were used as launch sites, lighting the entire skyline to the delight of crowds gathered at the Docklands, Federation Square and at Treasury and Flagstaff Gardens.

Earlier on New Year's Eve, the city's family-friendly display at Yarra Gardens played host to about 60,000 people as the imposing backdrop of the MCG was showered with silver, gold and red.

Organisers said those gathered were very well behaved.

Robyn Smith, of Gisborne, northwest of Melbourne, said she had brought her two children to the city for the past three years.

"We just love it - it's just such a great party atmosphere," she told AAP.

"I think the fireworks bring out the little kid in everyone."

Irish sisters Emma and Sophie O'Dowd said they couldn't resist the lure of the New Year's lights and sounds, stopping at Yarra Park to see the fireworks on their way to a dance party.

"It's what it's all about. What a beautiful stage you've got here," Sophie, 22, said.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Nearly 90% of Syria dead killed in 2012

NEARLY 90 per cent of those who have died in Syria's 21-month conflict were killed in 2012, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says.

More than 45,000 people have been killed since the conflict broke out in March 2011, but 39,362 of those perished during the past 12 months, the majority civilians, said the Britain-based watchdog.

The civilian toll of 28,113 includes those who have taken up arms against the regime of President Bashar al-Assad, it said.

Government troops suffered heavy losses, with 9482 people killed, while 1040 military defectors also were killed in action. Another 727 people in the 2012 toll were unidentified.

"The death toll of the regime forces is actually higher, but the government keeps these figures under wraps," said Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman.

On the other hand, he said, "the rebels are discreet about their total losses of life in order to keep up morale, while the deaths of foreign fighters are not announced in their home countries".

The increase in the total number of deaths was due to a fierce escalation in the methods of crackdown by the regime, Abdel Rahman said.

"The year 2012 was the bloodiest and most destructive because all kinds of heavy weapons as well as regime warplanes were used in battle," he told AFP by phone.

The uprising began in March 2011 with peaceful protests inspired by the Arab Spring, but steadily morphed into an armed rebellion following a brutal government crackdown on dissent.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Bob Brown joins Sea Shepherd board

FORMER Australian Greens leader Bob Brown has joined the board of anti-whaling group Sea Shepherd.

Dr Brown, who retired from the Greens leadership and the Australian Senate last year, will join Sea Shepherd Australia's board of directors early this year, the organisation announced on its website.

Dr Brown, who is a long-time friend of the Sea Shepherd's public face Paul Watson, said he had long admired the group's activism in trying to prevent Japanese whaling in the Southern Ocean.

"It is an honour to join the Board of Sea Shepherd Australia, whose mission, backed by the majority of Australians, is to protect nearly 1000 whales from the Japanese slaughter fleet this summer," he said.

Mr Watson said he was "immensely proud" to have Dr Brown on board.

"Bob Brown has been a hero of mine for three decades going back to the days of the campaigns to protect the Franklin River," he said.

"What I most admire about Bob is that he is a living example of the three virtues that we need to protect our oceans and our planet - passion, courage, and imagination."

In recent years, the group has been engaged in heated confrontations with the whaling fleet, and were recently ordered by a US Court not to approach the Japanese ships.

The Japanese fleet reportedly left for Antarctica last week.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

US stocks drop as 'cliff' deadline looms

US stocks have opened lower on the last day of the year as Washington politicians appeared still far from a deal hours before the deadline to avoid the fiscal cliff.

Five minutes into trade on Monday the Dow Jones Industrial Average was off 33.18 points, or 0.26 per cent, at 12,904.93.

The broad-market S&P 500 fell 2.42 points, or 0.17 per cent, to 1,400.01.

The tech-rich Nasdaq Composite shed 0.51 points, or 0.02 per cent, at 2,959.80.

After a weekend in which Washington leaders failed to find a last-minute compromise on a fiscal deficit reduction plan, the cliff's mix of steep automatic spending hikes and tax cuts was almost certain to begin taking effect at midnight, pushing the country toward recession.

"Stocks are close to pricing in a lot of this political failure and brinkmanship. If no last-minute deals are cobbled together, this last day of the year will likely bring another round of selling," said Kevin Cook of online broker Zacks.

"But since a new playing field with new incentives exists on the other side of tonight's cliff, the chances to prevent a recession are numerous, manageable, and conceivable."

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

European stocks mixed on last day of year

EUROPEAN stock markets diverged on the last trading day of the year, amid fading hopes of a deal to avert the US "fiscal cliff" of sharp tax hikes and spending cuts.

The London and Paris markets operated for only half a day, resulting in thin trading volumes, while the Frankfurt DAX 30 closed for the year on Friday, with Germany's main index gaining 29 per cent in value during 2012.

Frankfurt soared over the course of 2012 after staging a sustained rally late in the year on eurozone debt progress and fresh stimulus moves by the US Federal Reserve, analysts said.

On Monday, London's benchmark FTSE 100 closed with a daily loss of 0.47 per cent at 5,897.81 points, having risen by 5.84 per cent over the entire year.

The Paris CAC 40 gained 0.58 per cent on Monday to 3,641.07 points, close to its highest point for the year after adding 15.23 per cent in 2012.

Madrid however has lost 4.66 per cent since January, to 8,167.5 points, while Milan has climbed by 7.84 per cent to 16,273.38 points, as Spain and Italy battle with national debt strains.

"Despite signs of economic strength in China ... the mood in the markets is rather subdued - all because of the 'fiscal cliff' impasse across the Pond," said Gekko Global Markets trader Anita Paluch, explaining Monday's trading performance.

In foreign exchange deals, the euro fell to $US1.3194 from $US1.3217 late in New York on Friday. Gold prices rose to $US1,666.80 an ounce on the London Bullion Market from $US1,657.50 Friday.

The single currency has risen by about 2.0 per cent in value against the dollar in 2012.

"Given that this time last year, markets were factoring in a euro bust-up and Greek exiting from the eurozone club by end of 2012, the year actually has seen equities and the euro put on a respectable show," Ishaq Siddiqi, market strategist at ETX Capital trading group, told AFP.

"European corporates aren't doing too bad either - cash-rich in many cases as they hoarded money during the worst of the crisis. This means they will have to put that money to work in 2013, whether it's through share buybacks, mergers and acquisitions or increasing dividends.

"At the same time, valuations are cheap and the increase in risk appetite this year has been favourable for cyclical stocks like banks, miners, autos and industrials. So looking to 2013, we should see a sense of normality return to markets, as 2012 was still a bit of a rollercoaster," Siddiqi added.

But German Chancellor Angela Merkel warned that her country's economy, the continent's biggest, would experience a harder time next year than in 2012 and cautioned too that the eurozone debt crisis was far from over.

In her annual New Year address, Merkel said: "In fact, the economic environment next year will not be easier, but more difficult."

"The crisis is a long way from being beaten."

Although top exporter Germany has managed to hold up to the crisis fairly well, growth has slowed there as well since the beginning of the year.

In Asia meanwhile, stock markets fell in New Year's Eve-shortened trade. However, there was some bright news out of China, where a survey by HSBC showed manufacturing activity hit a 19-month high in December.

And despite Monday's losses, all the region's stock markets ended the year higher, with Bangkok the standout performer, surging almost 36 per cent, while Shanghai was the weakest, adding less than three per cent over the 12 months.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Fireworks light up foreshore at Gold Coast

CARTOON superheroes shone on a high-rise wall as fireworks lit up the beachfront for the New Year's Eve curtain-raiser at Surfers Paradise.

Thousands of revellers took in the 9pm (AEST) show, a precursor to the main event at midnight, which is billed as one of the biggest fireworks displays in Queensland for New Year's celebrations.

Organisers went with a superheroes theme for this year's family party, hoping to encourage children to attend as their favourite superhero and several little Spidermen and Supermen could be seen among the crowd.

Projected images of superheroes such as the Phantom and Batman were displayed on a high-rise building adjacent to the beach as the fireworks display began.

"It's going to be a big year, bring on 2013," Coomera resident Steve Hoffmann, who brought his wife and son to the display, told AAP.

The event was one of several held up and down the Gold Coast while other centres in Queensland also lit up with their family-friendly displays.

The main event at Brisbane's South Bank had to be delayed by 10 minutes due to a helicopter needing the airspace above the Brisbane river to deliver a patient to nearby hospital but after that it was all systems go.

Crowd numbers were reported to be down for the midnight spectacular, with about 65,000 revellers turning up to the riverbank at South Bank to watch laser light shows and fireworks that launch underwater.

"We've been working on a few surprises," Skylighter Fireworks director Max Brunner told Brisbanetimes.com.

"All I can say is that this year will be the biggest display a Brisbane New Year's Eve has ever had."

Public transport was free of charge to revellers in Queensland's southeast until 5.30am (AEST) on New Year's Day.

Cairns also suffered a drop in numbers due to wet weather during the day.

The heavy rain appears to have headed south leaving clear skies at midnight for revellers in Cairns and Townsville, though other centres such as Mackay and Bowen faced a damp start to 2013.

Up to 50,000 people were thought to have attended the Surfers Paradise festivities.

Police praised crowds for their good behaviour and attitude, with no major incidents taking place and just two arrests made at South Bank before midnight.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

'Syria collapse threatens region'

THE UN envoy for the Syria crisis is warning that further deterioration of conditions in the country could send an unbearable stream of refugees into neighbouring countries.

Speaking Saturday after meeting in Moscow with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, peace envoy Lakhdar Braihmi said "if you have a panic in Damascus and if you have 1 million people leaving Damascus in a panic, they can go to only two places - Lebanon and Jordan. Neither Lebanon or Jordan can support without breaking 500,000 refugees."

Mr Brahimi said that "If the only alternative is really hell or a political process, then we have got all of us to work ceaselessly for a political process."

Neither official gave indication of significant progress toward resolving the 21-month-old conflict in which an estimated 40,000 people have died.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Plane on fire after running off runway

A PASSENGER airliner is on fire after running off the runway while landing at Moscow's Vnukovo airport.

There was no immediate confirmed word on whether there were any casualties in the crash of the Tu-204 belonging to Red Wing Airlines.

Russia's state news channel Vesti said the plane was not carrying passengers, and it had only a crew of 12 aboard.

The cause of the accident was not immediately known. Light snow was falling in Moscow at the time.

The Tu-204 is a twin-engine medium-range jest with a capacity of 210 passengers.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Karachi bus explosion kills five

AN EXPLOSION on a bus in Pakistan's largest city Karachi left at least five people dead and wounded 35 others, police said.

It was not immediately clear what had caused the blast in Sadar, a congested shopping area of Karachi, officials said, adding that a bomb disposal team was trying to determine whether it was caused by a bomb or an exploding compressed natural gas cylinder.

"At least five people were killed and 35 others were wounded," said police surgeon Jalil Qadir.

Karachi is in the grip of a long-running wave of militancy, political and sectarian violence.

Pakistan says 35,000 people have been killed as a result of terrorism since the 9/11 attacks and the 2001 US-led invasion of neighbouring Afghanistan.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Iran hangs drug traffickers, rapists

IRAN has hanged an Afghan drug trafficker and four Iranians, three of them convicted of rape, local media reported.

The 27-year-old Afghan from Herat, identified only by his initials MM, was sent to the gallows in the northern city of Damghan after being convicted of selling around two kilos (four pounds) of crack cocaine.

Three Iranian men convicted of rape and another of smuggling heroin and opium, were hanged in the central city of Yazd.

The Islamic republic, where murder, rape, armed robbery, drug trafficking and adultery are punishable by death, has one of the highest annual execution counts in the world, alongside China, Saudi Arabia and the US.

Human rights watchdog Amnesty International has condemned the executions, but Tehran says the death penalty is essential to maintain law and order and that it is enforced only after exhaustive judicial proceedings.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Iran to relocate airport after oil found

IRAN plans to relocate an airport in the southwest of the country after discovering oil deposits under its runway, media reported.

The National Iranian Oil Company "intends to buy Ahvaz airport due to the existence of oil deposits under the airport's tarmac," the state broadcaster's website quoted Mohammad Rasoulinejad, managing director of the Iranian Airports Company, as saying.

"The government has approved the relocation of the airport," mR Rasoulinejad said, adding that the new airport will be built 15 kilometres from the city.

He did not give any details about the oil deposits.

Mr Rasoulinejad said that the airport is among "the country's busiest" with some 30 flights per day, adding that relocating it would also enable its much-needed expansion.

The NIOC did not comment on the government's decision.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Indian president's son in rape demo gaffe

THE Indian president's son has landed himself in hot water with his own family for denigrating women who took part in mass protests over a gang-rape as being middle-aged and caked in makeup.

Abhijit Mukherjee, who is also a member of parliament, came in for widespread condemnation after he said that many of those who have taken part in the nationwide protests were "dented and painted" women rather than students.

"These pretty women, dented and painted ... have no contact with ground reality," Mukherjee told a regional news channel.

The phrase "dented and painted" is used by mechanics who mask the bruised bodywork and rust on second-hand vehicles with liberal coatings of paint.

Among the most vocal critics was his own sister Sharmishtha who described his comments as "a bit of a shocker" and said her father, President Pranab Mukherjee, also disapproved.

"It is definitely something that we as a family definitely don't agree with," she told the NDTV network.

"It's not just one protest, it's accumulated rage over the way women are being treated, raped, molested ... my father is absolutely with me on this."

The main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party said Mukherjee junior's remarks were particularly ill-timed as the 23-year-old victim of the December 16 attack fights for her life in hospital in Singapore.

"I think this is exactly the kind of mindset that the youth is fighting against," said Smriti Irani, head of the BJP's women's wing.

Mukherjee later issued an apology.

"My intention was not to hurt anyone," he told NDTV. "I apologise to all those people whose sentiment got hurt by these sentences and these sentences are withdrawn."

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Iran president sacks cabinet's sole woman

IRANIAN President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has sacked Health Minister Marzieh Vahid Dastjerdi, the sole woman in his cabinet, state television reports.

The minister had proposed price hikes for a number of medicines due to the plunge of the Iranian rial against the US dollar and Western sanctions imposed on the country over its disputed nuclear program.

But Ahmadinejad was opposed to the price rises and dismissed the minister.

Although the sanctions do not directly target medicines, they limit their importation because of restrictions on financial transactions.

Iran produces 97 per cent of the drugs on its market, but their ingredients are imported.

In October, an Iranian official acknowledged the price of locally produced medicines had increased by 15-20 per cent in the past three months, and 20-80 per cent for imported products.

Fatemeh Hashemi, head of the Foundation for Special Diseases, sent a letter to UN chief Ban Ki-moon in August asking him to make a case to the West for easing sanctions that are detrimental to patients.

Tehran is under different rounds of sanctions designed by the United States, European Union and the UN Security Council to pressure it to curb its nuclear program.

Western powers suspect Iran is using the program to develop atomic weapons capability. The Islamic republic denies that and says its nuclear activities are purely peaceful.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

One Pound Fish singer returns to Pakistan

INTERNET sensation One Pound Fish Man has returned to a hero's welcome in Pakistan, vowing to take his signature tune in honour of cut-price produce to France and the United States.

Hundreds showed up at Lahore airport in eastern Pakistan to honour Muhammad Shahid Nazir, who scaled the British music charts with One Pound Fish, which he originally composed to entice shoppers at the east London market where he worked.

The song became a YouTube hit after someone filmed Nazir singing it at the market and Warner Music signed him up for a record deal in the hope of getting the coveted Christmas number one spot in the charts.

Nazir said he spent no time writing the song - it came to him in a flash after his boss urged him to do something to encourage customers to cough up a pound ($A1.55) for a fish.

"This song is gift of God to me, I just sang it on the spot," the father-of-four told reporters at the airport on Thursday.

"The owner of my fish stall asked me to sing to attract the customers and I started singing. On the first day I started slowly and on the second day more loudly."

About 250 people including local politicians met him at the airport, showering him with rose petals and chanting Long live One Pound Fish, while TV networks interrupted coverage of the fifth anniversary of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto's assassination to show his return live.

The song's lyrics are deceptively simple: "Come on ladies, come on ladies, one pound fish. Very very good, one pound fish, very very cheap, one pound fish."

The original video has been viewed more than 6.5 million times on YouTube and the o-fish-al Warner video featuring Nazir shimmying and strutting Bollywood-style in a natty suit has recorded more than eight million hits.

The Christmas number one was not to be, with a single released in tribute to the victims of the Hillsborough football disaster claimed the top spot, but One Pound Fish managed a respectable 29 in the chart.

Nazir, from the small Punjab town of Pattoki, said he was confident of a bright future in the music industry.

"I will go to France in two weeks to release this song and then will go back to London," he said, adding that he also planned to release the track in the United States.

British media reports suggested Nazir was deported from Britain for overstaying or breaching the terms of his visa, but he insisted he had returned to Pakistan simply to apply for a French visa.

And he promised not to abandon the unlikely source of his stardom.

"I will adopt music as a profession now, but I can never forget my fish stall," he said.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

US jobless applications fall to 5-year low

THE average number of people seeking unemployment benefits over the past month fell to the lowest level since March 2008, a sign that the job market is healing.

The Labour Department said that weekly applications dropped 12,000 to a seasonally adjusted 350,000 in the week ended Dec. 22. The four-week average, a less volatile measure, fell to a nearly five-year low of 356,750.

Still, the figures were affected by the Christmas holiday. A department spokesman said many state unemployment offices were closed Monday and Tuesday and unable to compile complete data. Fourteen states provided estimates and the department estimated the numbers for five additional states.

The government might estimate one or two states in a typical week, but 19 state estimates are unusually high.

Weekly applications are a proxy for layoffs. They have mostly fluctuated this year between 360,000 and 390,000. At the same time, employers have added an average of 151,000 jobs a month in the first 11 months of 2012. That's just enough to slowly reduce the unemployment rate.

The recent decline in unemployment benefit applications suggests companies are not yet slashing jobs because of concerns over the "fiscal cliff." That's the name for sharp tax increases and spending cuts that are scheduled to take effect next week unless the Obama administration and Congress can reach a deal before then.

Still, unemployment remains high and companies are reluctant to ramp up hiring. The unemployment rate fell to 7.7 per cent in November from 7.9 per cent in October mostly because many of the unemployed stopped looking for jobs. The government counts people as unemployed only if they are actively searching for work.

Negotiations between US President Barack Obama and House Republican leaders on a package to avoid the fiscal cliff stalemated last week. Mr Obama and congressional lawmakers return to Washington today with just days to go before the deadline.

There are signs the economy is improving. The once-battered housing market is recovering, which should lead to more construction jobs in the coming months. Companies ordered more long-lasting manufactured goods in November, a sign they are investing more in equipment and software. And Americans spent more in November. Consumer spending drives nearly 70 per cent of economic growth.

While a short fall over the cliff won't push the economy into recession, most economists expect some tax increases to take effect next year. That could slow growth.

Consumers are starting to worry about higher taxes. A measure of consumer confidence fell to a five-month low this month, a survey released Friday found. And reports show the holiday shopping season was the weakest since 2008, when the country was in a deep recession.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

India to name and shame rapists

THE Indian government said it will post the photos, names and addresses of convicted rapists on official websites to publicly shame them, in a new measure to combat growing crime against women.

Ratanjit Pratap Narain Singh, India's junior home minister, said the campaign would begin first in New Delhi, where the brutal gang-rape of a student on December 16 by six drunken men has sparked nationwide protests.

"We are planning to start it (the campaign) in Delhi," Mr Singh told reporters, hours after Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said women were being treated unfairly in India.

"Photographs, names and addresses of the rapists will be uploaded on the Delhi Police website (http://www.delhipolice.nic.in)," he said.

"We are very serious about dealing with the problem and taking all possible action as early as possible."

The minister said the government-run National Crime Records Bureau had been told to prepare a directory of convicted rapists and upload their photographs and personal details to its official website (http://ncrb.nic.in) as well.

The announcement came a day after India said it had launched a judicial probe into the attack on the 23-year-old student who was dramatically airlifted to Singapore from a hospital in New Delhi late on Wednesday.

Doctors in Singapore were battling to save her life following the horrific injuries she sustained.

Her drunken attackers, joyriding in a bus, raped the student and then assaulted her with an iron bar. The savage gang rape sparked some of New Delhi's largest mass protests in decades.

India has also promised to toughen laws against rape, which currently carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Bhutto's son launches political career

THE son of Pakistan's slain former prime minister Benazir Bhutto has launched his political career on the anniversary of his mother's death, vowing to continue her fight for democracy.

More than 200,000 people gathered at the Bhutto family mausoleum in Garhi Khuda Bakhsh in the southern province of Sindh on Thursday to pay their respects to Benazir and to hear Bilawal Bhutto Zardari make his first major public speech.

Bhutto, twice elected prime minister, was killed in a gun and suicide attack after an election rally in Rawalpindi, the headquarters of Pakistan's army, on December 27, 2007. No one has ever been convicted of her murder.

In an impassioned speech amid tight security, Bilawal - the third generation of his family to go into politics - promised to continue the fight for the poor and against "anti-democratic forces".

"Bhutto is an emotion, a love," he said.

"Every challenge is soaked in blood, but you will be the loser. How ever many Bhuttos you kill, more Bhuttos will emerge from every house."

The Bhutto family has been a force in Pakistani politics for nearly all of the country's 65-year history.

Benazir's father Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, who founded the Pakistan People's Party (PPP), led the country from 1971 until he was ousted in a military coup in 1977. He was hanged in 1979 after being convicted of authorising the murder of a political opponent.

Security for Oxford-educated Bilawal's speech was tight - surveillance helicopters hovered overhead and police said more than 15,000 officers had been deployed, as well as some 500 government paramilitary forces.

A general election is due in the northern spring and though the 24-year-old will be too young to stand - the lower age limit is 25 - he could act as a figurehead for the campaign.

His father, President Asif Ali Zardari, who came to power in elections held a month after Benazir's murder, is barred from leading the PPP election campaign. He is also hugely unpopular, tainted by years of corruption allegations.

Bilawal, who has been co-chairman of the PPP with his father since Benazir's death, in May accused former military ruler Pervez Musharraf of "murdering" his mother by deliberately sabotaging her security.

A UN report in 2010 also said the murder could have been prevented and accused Musharraf's government of failing to properly protect Bhutto.

The Musharraf regime blamed the assassination on Pakistani Taliban chief Baitullah Mehsud, who denied any involvement and was killed in a US drone attack in August 2009.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

UAE busts Saudi-Emirati 'terror' cell

UAE authorities have announced busting a cell of Saudi and Emirati members plotting "terror" attacks in the two countries and other states.

The suspects "imported material and equipment with the aim of committing terror acts," said an official statement on WAM state news agency. The arrests came after coordination between security authorities in the two Gulf states.

The suspects were described as members of the "deviant group," a term usually used in Saudi Arabia to refer to al-Qaida-linked Islamists.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Man dies when car flips over in WA

AUSTRALIA'S national road toll stands at 17 after a man was killed in single car accident southeast of Exmouth in Western Australia.

Perth Now reports the man died when his car flipped on the North West Coastal Highway at Yannarie, which is about 1200km north of Perth and 200km southeast of Exmouth, about noon (WST) on Wednesday.

It takes to two the number of people killed on the roads in Western Australia since the festive season began.

The national road toll period runs from 0001 December 23, 2012, until 2359 January 3, 2013, local times, in line with the Australia New Zealand Policing Advisory Board.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Toyota ups 2012 sales forecast

JAPAN'S Toyota group has forecast a 22 per cent jump in worldwide sales this year to 9.7 million units, driven by surging demand which may help it regain the top spot in the global auto market.

Those figures could put Toyota ahead of General Motors and Volkswagen as the world's biggest carmaker, a title it held between 2008 and 2010 but lost last year after a slump in sales and production.

Japan's quake-tsunami disaster, floods in Thailand and a strong yen took a heavy toll on the auto giant, whose brands include Lexus, Daihatsu and Hino.

It topped the global carmakers' table in the first half of 2012, accelerating past US-based GM and the German auto giant.

Japan's biggest carmaker said on Wednesday it expects to sell about 9.91 million vehicles in 2013, up two per cent on-year. It was on track to produce 9.94 million vehicles in 2013, nearly unchanged from this year, the company added.

Toyota said domestic sales would jump 35 per cent this year to 2.4 million vehicles, with its overseas annual sales forecast to rise by 18 per cent to 7.3 million units.

The carmaker said last month it was on track to earn Y780 billion ($A8.94 billion) in the fiscal year to March, up from Y760 billion, but said sales would be Y21.3 trillion, trimming an earlier target of Y22 trillion.

A strong yen and turmoil in key European markets weighed, while a territorial dispute with China hurt sales.

The upward boost in earnings expectations was largely due to cost-cutting, including a decrease in labour and research and development expenses, Toyota said.

The carmaker also said it had been aided by robust Asian sales and a pick-up in the North American market.

However, Japan's carmakers have seen a drop in their China revenue stemming from a bitter row between Tokyo and Beijing over a disputed island chain.

Tokyo nationalised the East China Sea islands also claimed by Beijing in mid-September, sparking a diplomatic row that was marked by huge demonstrations across China and a consumer boycott of Japanese exports.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Syria military police chief defects to opposition

SYRIA'S military police chief has announced his defection from President Bashar al-Assad's regime, accusing the army of having turned into "murderous gangs," in a video posted online.

"I, General Abdel Aziz Jassem al-Shallal, commander of Syrian military police, announce that I am defecting from the regime army, to join the people's revolution," the military-clad officer said.

"The army has deviated from its essential mission, which is to protect the country, and it has morphed into murderous, destructive gangs," General Shallal charged in the video circulated by opposition activists.

"The destruction of cities and villages, and the commission of massacres against our people, defenceless civilians, who took to the streets calling for freedom" prompted Shallal to defect, he said.

General Shallal, whose functions are limited to disciplining soldiers, is not a well-known figure.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights cited sources close to General Shallal as saying he was set to retire in January, and its head Rami Abdel Rahman said he has already left Syria, like many other senior military defectors.

According to reports on online platforms, he left Syria for Turkey.

"This man was pushed to the sidelines a long time ago," one Syrian activist said online, adding that General Shallal was "suspected of collaborating with insurgents."

General Shallal "withdrew military police checkpoints from the roads, and he was good to people," another activist wrote online.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Syria deputy FM travels to Moscow

THE Syrian deputy foreign minister, Faisal Muqdad, was headed for Moscow, an airport source in Beirut told AFP, amid reports of a US-Russian initiative for a transition in Syria.

The Syrian deputy foreign minister, Faisal Muqdad, was headed for Moscow, an airport source in Beirut said, amid reports of a US-Russian initiative for a transition in Syria.

"Accompanied by foreign ministry official Ahmed Arnus, Muqdad's Aeroflot flight to Moscow took off from Beirut airport at midnight (2200 GMT)" Tuesday, the airport source said, on condition of anonymity.

French daily Le Figaro has reported that the new initiative would see Syrian President Bashar al-Assad staying in power until 2014 while preventing him from further renewing his mandate.

Mr Muqdad's visit to Moscow comes as UN-Arab League peace envoy Lakhdar Brahimi visits Syria in a bid to persuade the warring parties to negotiate an end to the conflict in which monitors say 45,000 people have been killed.

Mr Brahimi himself is to hold talks in Moscow on Saturday, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov told Russia's ITAR-TASS news agency. The foreign ministry said Mr Brahimi had requested the meeting.

The UN-Arab League envoy met with Assad on Monday and a day later with three opposition groups tolerated by the regime, but diplomats say he has so far made little headway.

On December 6, Mr Brahimi met in Dublin with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to discuss possible solutions to the Syrian crisis.

No details of the Dublin discussion have been released.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Tube strike can't stop London shoppers

STRIKE action has heavily disrupted London's Underground train network, as hundreds of thousands of bargain hunters headed to the shops for the traditional Boxing Day sales.

All 13 of the Tube lines were running a reduced service after just a third of drivers turned up for work in a dispute between the Aslef union and the network operators over payments for working on public holidays.

Howard Collins, London Underground's chief operating officer, said: "This strike action is completely unnecessary.

"Train drivers are paid a salary that reflects some bank holiday working, but the Aslef leadership is demanding to be paid twice for the same work and has rejected our attempts to resolve the matter."

Despite the transport problems, shoppers formed long queues from the early hours of the morning outside London's top department stores including Harrods and Selfridges.

Many of the bargain hunters were Chinese, with Harrods creating a separate queue outside its store in the upmarket district of Knightsbridge for those looking for reductions on designer goods such as Gucci.

Sue West, director of operations at Selfridges, said handbags and menswear were particularly popular items in the sale at its flagship branch on London's main shopping thoroughfare of Oxford Street.

"Of the people queuing to get inside 60 per cent or 70 per cent were men. It's a great day for men's shopping. It's a tradition and people want to experience it," she said.

"Online sales for us have been great but year on year people still want to experience the Boxing Day sales."

British retailers slash prices on the day after Christmas Day, with big-ticket items such as TVs and computers carrying the biggest reductions.

The price comparison site MoneySupermarket.com estimates that shoppers in Britain will spend STG2.9 billion ($4.6 billion) in the sales.

The British Retail Consortium had described high-street spending as "acceptable but not exceptional" during the Christmas period.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Millions of unwanted gifts to go on sale

CHRISTMAS is a time for giving and Boxing Day is a time for giving away, with 14.3 million unwanted presents received around the country this year, says classifieds website Gumtree.

The value of unwanted gifts has soared to $475 million, says Gumtree spokesman Nat Thomas.

"It's so much money that people spend with the best intentions for buying gifts, and unfortunately not all of those gifts find a loving home," he told AAP.

"So we're seeing increasingly people are choosing to sell those gifts rather than hiding them in a cupboard and gathering dust."

In the second year of Gumtree's annual Christmas survey, Mr Thomas said one million more people will head online this year to sell items via classifieds websites.

In 2011, 16.7 million unwanted gifts were received, and Mr Thomas said the decrease could be accounted for by people spending more sensibly.

"Maybe people are getting smarter with what they give - a lot of people are giving gift cards or donating to charity and you're giving a bit of goodwill, which is quite a nice way of doing it," he said.

Mr Thomas noted that 27 per cent of survey respondents were actually hoping to receive gifts they didn't like so they could make money online.

Considering the average unwanted gift was worth about $65, and 18 per cent of people had sold an unwanted item for $100 or more, it was no surprise that more people were heading online this year to convert unwanted gifts to cash, he said.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Six killed as Pakistan Muslim leader hit

GUNMEN have opened fire on a car carrying a senior figure from an extremist Muslim Sunni group in the Pakistani city of Karachi, killing four policemen and two other people, police say.

The target of the attack, Maulana Aurangzeb Farooqi, was hit in the leg by a bullet and needed hospital treatment but his injuries were not life-threatening, police said.

His group, the Ahle Sunnat wa Al-Jamaat, said he had been targeted by a rival minority Shi'ite group.

Karachi, Pakistan's biggest city, is in the grip of a long-running wave of political and sectarian violence involving Sunnis and Shi'ites, who account for around 20 per cent of the 180 million population of Muslim-majority Pakistan.

"At least four policemen, a guard and a driver were killed in firing by unknown gunmen," senior police official Shahid Hayat told AFP.

Karachi police chief Iqbal Mehmood confirmed the attack and casualties and said initial investigations showed the gunmen were on a motorcycle, and the policemen who were killed had been escorting Farooqi.

Witnesses said Farooqi's supporters blocked roads and burnt used tyres to protest against the attack.

Nationwide sectarian violence between Sunnis and Shi'ites is estimated to have killed more than 4000 people since the late 1990s.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Policeman injured in gang-rape protest dies

AN INDIAN policeman injured in clashes during a protest over a gang-rape in New Delhi died overnight, a police spokesman said, as much of the city centre remained sealed off following the violence.

Subash Tomar, a 47-year-old constable deployed at the India Gate monument on Sunday to control the protests, was beaten up by a mob and rushed to hospital by the police.

Eight people have been arrested for the attack and have been charged with murder, New Delhi police spokesman Rajan Bhagat said.

"These men had pelted stones at Tomar and had used a stick to beat the police official," Mr Bhagat said.

Tomar's funeral took place overnight and he was cremated in New Delhi with "full state honours," Mr Bhagat added.

More than 50 policemen were injured in Sunday's violence as officers struggled to quell increasing outrage over sex crimes following the gang-rape of a 23-year-old student.

Tomar's cousin Ajay, who was in the hospital to claim the body, said the constable had joined the police in 1985 and had never spent a single festival with the family.

"My cousin was always out on streets maintaining law and order. The mob attacked him for no reason. They just killed him," said Ajay Tomar.

Much of central Delhi remains sealed off after a wave of violent protests against the student's gang-rape in the capital on December 16 and over a surge in violence against women.

The rape victim's condition deteriorated on Monday night and she "continues to be in the intensive care unit and is having respiratory problems", said M. Mishra, a doctor at Safdarjung Hospital.

In a rare televised address on Monday, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh urged for calm following the weekend clashes in New Delhi and vowed to punish the rapists for their "monstrous" crime.

Meanwhile President Pranab Mukherjee has also appealed to the youth to maintain law and order.

"The anger of the youth should not overcome reason and there is need for practical action," Mr Mukherjee said, according to reports.

Police barricaded roads leading to India Gate, an imposing war memorial in the centre of the city that has become a hub of the protests, mostly by college students. Many metro rail stations in fog-shrouded Delhi were also closed.

"Today is Christmas but we cannot step out of our houses because of the police restrictions," Anita Kumar, a mother of three daughters told Hindi news channel Aaj Tak.

Protests across India over the last week against sex crimes have denounced the police and government, with the largest in New Delhi at the weekend prompting officers to cordon off areas around government buildings.

More than 100 people were injured, including dozens of policemen.

"Protest is important. It shakes the conscience of society, it brings people close to change, it makes them feel part of the change," feminist author Urvashi Butalia wrote in an editorial in the Hindu newspaper.

"Rape is not something that occurs by itself. It is part of the continuing and embedded violence in society that targets women on a daily basis," she added.

A significant section of protesters are demanding death sentences for the accused in the rape case and opposition parties have joined the demonstrations, mostly organised through social media sites such as Twitter and Facebook.

The current maximum penalty for rape is life imprisonment, which is a "very harsh punishment", Law Minister Ashwani Kumar told the NDTV news channel, rejecting calls for executions.

"Some people say it is even more difficult than the death penalty because you suffer a feeling of death every day inside prison."

Traditionally conservative India's rapid economic growth has thrown open new job opportunities for women and increased their financial independence but activists say many men see the trend as a threat to male dominance.

Almost 90 per cent of the 256,329 violent crimes recorded last year were against women, with the number of rapes in the capital rising 17 percent to 661 this year, according to official figures.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

US braces for wild Christmas weather

FORECASTS of blinding snow, sleet and freezing rain threatened to complicate Christmas Day travel around the US Midwest overnight as several Gulf Coast states braced for a chance of twisters, high winds and powerful thunderstorms.

A blizzard watch was posted for parts of Indiana and western Kentucky for storms expected to unfold overnight amid predictions of up to 10 to 18 centimetres of snow in coming hours.

Much of Oklahoma and Arkansas braced under a winter storm warning of an early mix of rain and sleet forecast to eventually turn to snow.

Some mountainous areas of Arkansas' Ozark Mountains could get up to 25 centimetres of snow amid warnings travel could become "very hazardous or impossible" in the northern tier of the state from near whiteout conditions, the National Weather Service said.

After dawn, the Oklahoma Department of Public Safety said bridges, overpasses and highways in several counties were already becoming slick and hazardous. Also, Kathleen O'Shea with Oklahoma Gas and Electric said the utility was tracking the storm system to see where repair crews might be needed among nearly 800,000 customers in Oklahoma and western Arkansas.

Elsewhere, areas of east Texas and Louisiana braced for possible thunderstorms as forecasters eyed a developing storm front expected to spread across the Gulf Coast to the Florida Panhandle, raising the threat of any tornadoes.

Quarter-sized hail reported in western Louisiana was expected to be just the start of a severe weather threat on the Gulf Coast, said meteorologist Mike Efferson at the weather service office in Slidell, Louisiana. He told The Associated Press by phone that Lake Charles, Louisiana, was placed under a tornado warning and a tornado watch was in effect over a wider area of southeast and south-central Louisiana.

Storms expected today along the Gulf Coast could bring strong tornadoes or winds up to 113 km/h, heavy rain, more large hail and dangerous lightning in Louisiana and Mississippi, Mr Efferson said.

"We have a strong upper level system moving through the area," he said, adding the combination of warm moist air colliding with a cold front could also produce damaging straight-line winds on the Gulf Coast. "The real threats are going to be damaging winds and storms."

In Mississippi, Governor Phil Bryant urged residents to be alert.

"Please plan now for how you will receive a severe weather warning, and know where you will go when it is issued. It only takes a few minutes, and it will help everyone have a safe Christmas," Mr Bryant said.

Ten storm systems in the last 50 years have spawned at least one Christmastime tornado with winds of 182 km/h or more in the South, said National Weather Service spokesman Chris Vaccaro.

The most lethal were the storms of Dec. 24-26, 1982, when 29 tornadoes in Oklahoma, Missouri, Arkansas, Tennessee and Mississippi killed three people and injured 32; and those of Dec. 24-25, 1964, when two people were killed and about 30 people injured by 14 tornadoes in seven states.

In Alabama, the director of the Emergency Management Agency, Art Faulkner, said he has briefed both local officials and Gov. Robert Bentley on plans for dealing with a possible outbreak of storms.

No day is good for severe weather, but Mr Faulkner said Christmas adds extra challenges because people are visiting unfamiliar areas and often thinking more of snow than possible twisters.

"We are trying to get the word out through our media partners and through social media that people need to be prepared," Mr Faulkner said

During the night, flog blanketed highways at times in the Southeast, including arteries in Atlanta where motorists slowed as a precaution. Fog advisories were posted from Alabama through the Carolinas into southwestern Virginia.

Several communities in Louisiana went ahead with the annual Christmas Eve lighting more than 100 towering log teepees for annual bonfires to welcome Pere Noel along the Mississippi River between New Orleans and Baton Rouge.

That decision came after fire chiefs and local officials decided to go ahead with the tradition after an afternoon conference call with the National Weather Service.

In California, after a brief reprieve across the northern half of the state on Monday, wet weather was expected to make another appearance on Christmas Day. Flooding and snarled holiday traffic were expected in Southern California.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Spooks spill the beans online

HUNDREDS of ex-spies, and some current spooks, are posting about their work on social networking sites, it has been reported.

A Fairfax Media survey uncovered more than 200 Australian intelligence officers who had disclosed their classified employment on sites including Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.

Many disclosed only the fact they had worked for agencies like the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation or Defence Signals Directorate, but others wrote about specific postings here and abroad, languages spoken, information systems used and liaison with allied agencies.

Fairfax quoted security experts who described the information as "a gift for foreign espionage, especially through social engineering".

Information technology professionals were the most likely to disclose their involvement in classified intelligence work, Fairfax reported.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Nigeria gunmen kill six at Christmas mass

GUNMEN have attacked a church in northern Nigeria during midnight mass on Christmas Eve, killing six people including the pastor, before setting the building ablaze, residents and police say.

"A group of gunmen came into the village at midnight and went straight to the church," said Usman Mansir, a resident of Peri village near Potiskum, the economic capital of Yobe state.

"They opened fire on them, killing the pastor and five worshippers. They then set fire to the church," he added, specifying that a branch of the Evangelical Church of West Africa (ECWA) was targeted.

A senior police official in Yobe confirmed the details to AFP, but declined to be named.

Yobe police chief Sanusi Rufa'i said "this is a security issue" and refused to comment further.

Boko Haram Islamists have carried out several attacks in Yobe, which borders the state of Maiduguri, where the insurgent group is based.

The Islamists are blamed for killing hundreds of people in northern Nigeria since 2009. It was not clear who was behind the latest violence.

While Yobe's population is overwhelmingly Muslim, the commercial hub of Potiskum has a significant Christian minority. Peri is just two kilometres outside the city.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Stolen puppy found by Melbourne police

A 12-WEEK-OLD puppy stolen from a pet shop eight days ago has been recovered and two people arrested.

The white Cavalier-Shih Tzu cross was found in a house at Heidelberg West on Monday night with police arresting a Keilor East man and a Heidelberg woman, both aged in their 20s.

The puppy, nicknamed Precious, will be spending Christmas Eve in the home of a police officer while investigators discuss arrangements for her future care with pet store management.

AAP jxt/ap

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

S&P downgrades Egypt credit rating

RATINGS agency Standard and Poor's has downgraded Egypt's long-term credit rating because of "elevated" tensions over its political crisis, and warned it could be lowered further.

The country's long-term rating was lowered to B- from B because the turmoil has "weakened Egypt's institutional framework, and the increasingly polarised political discourse could diminish the effectiveness of policy-making," the agency said on Monday.

"A further downgrade is possible if a significant worsening of the domestic political situation results in a sharp deterioration of economic indicators such as foreign exchange reserves or the government's deficit," it said.

Egypt's economy, once a vibrant opportunity for investors, was brought low by the early 2011 revolution that ousted Hosni Mubarak, ruler for the previous three decades.

The uncertainty has not improved under President Mohamed Morsi, who came to power in June on the back of support for his Muslim Brotherhood and other Islamists.

Agreement on a $US4.8 billion ($A4.6 billion) loan from the International Monetary Fund was put on hold this month because of the political impasse Morsi has found himself in amid fierce opposition protests.

The IMF money is needed to prevent a collapse of Egypt's currency. The country's central bank foreign reserves have more than halved since Mubarak's overthrow to less than $US15 billion.

"The downgrade reflects our opinion that political and social tensions in Egypt have escalated and are likely to remain at elevated levels over the medium term," Standard and Poor's said.

The political polarisation will likely weaken international consensus on extending credit to Egypt, it said.

"We expect political tensions to remain elevated, with no clear indication that rival factions will be brought to a point at which they can contribute to addressing Egypt's economic, fiscal, and external challenges," the agency said.

The agency's short-term rating for Egypt was maintained at B but with a negative outlook.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Drone kills two al-Qaeda suspects in Yemen

TWO al-Qaeda members, including a Jordanian, have been killed in a suspected US drone strike in Yemen, government and tribal sources say.

"A drone strike targeted a vehicle killing two al-Qaeda members - a Yemeni and a Jordanian" in Manaseh of central Bayda province, around 170 kilometres southeast of Sanaa, a local government official said.

Tribal sources said three other militants were wounded in the attack on Monday.

Al-Qaeda had declared an Islamic emirate in nearby Radaa earlier this year, shortly before being driven out by tribal militiamen.

Tareq al-Dahab, who led the al-Qaeda fighters in the January raid on the town, was shot dead in February.

Dahab was a brother-in-law of slain US-born cleric Anwar al-Awlaqi, who was killed in a suspected US drone strike in September.

US drones have backed Yemeni forces combating militants of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, the group's Yemen branch, considered by Washington to be the most active and deadliest franchise of the global jihadist network.

AQAP took advantage of the weakness of Yemen's central government during an uprising last year against now ousted president Ali Abdullah Saleh, seizing large swathes of territory across the south.

But after a month-long offensive launched in May by Yemeni troops, most militants fled to the more lawless desert regions of the east.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Hundreds of Congo kids in foster homes

SEVERAL hundred children remain separated from their parents a month after fighting over the key eastern Democratic Republic of Congo city of Goma displaced nearly a million people, aid agencies say.

Since the M23 rebels seized Goma on November 20 and withdrew 11 days later, 776 children including 429 girls, aged between six months and 14 years, remain in the care of foster families, the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) said.

The fighting in the mineral-rich region sparked "chaotic exoduses" during which five babies were found as people "scattered in every direction" UNICEF's Jean Metenier told AFP on Monday. "They were the hardest to place."

With the help of photographs circulating through displaced people's camps around Goma, UNICEF has managed to identify about 30 children, he said.

Another 103 children have already rejoined their families - those old enough to give their names and say where their parents lived.

"Finding the families is a challenge because of the ongoing insecurity and because people are still on the move," the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said.

In mid-December an official of the UN refugee agency said about 914,000 people were listed as displaced in Goma's North Kivu region. Tens of thousands of them were thought to be returning home.

UNICEF said 80 per cent of the displaced have been staying with volunteer families.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Fire in Syrian refugee camp kills boy

OFFICIALS say a tent in a Syrian refugee camp in southern Turkey has caught fire, killing a two-year-old boy and injuring four siblings.

A government official said the fire, triggered by an electric heater, engulfed a tent in the Telhamut refugee camp near the town of Ceylapinar late Sunday.

The children were taken to a hospital and one of them died from severe burns. Three of the siblings were in serious condition.

In July, two refugees died in a similar fire at another refugee camp.

More than 145,000 refugees fleeing the violence in Syria have found refuge in 14 camps on the Turkish side of the border.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

China busts child trafficking rings

CHINESE police have rescued 89 children and arrested 355 suspects after busting a series of child trafficking rings, officials say.

Officers from nine regions, including Fujian, Yunnan, Sichuan, Anhui and Guangdong, took part in a joint drive beginning on December 18 against the networks, said Chen Shiqu, director of the anti-trafficking office in the public security ministry.

The children are being cared for in local nursing homes and police are searching for their parents, the official Xinhua news agency reported on Monday.

"We will collect the children's DNA and use it to find their parents within a national DNA database established for anti-trafficking purposes," it quoted Chen as saying.

Trafficking of children is a serious problem in China, blamed in part on the strict "one-child" policy that has put a premium on baby boys.

Wang Xizhang, a high-level law enforcement official in Fujian province, said potentially large profits have fuelled the trade.

A healthy male infant bought for 30,000 yuan ($A4650) in poor provinces such as Yunnan can be sold for 70,000 to 90,000 yuan in the comparatively wealthy provinces of Fujian and Guangdong, Wang was quoted as saying.

Since April 2009, when a ministry crackdown began, police have broken up 11,000 child trafficking rings and rescued 54,000 children, according to Chen.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Peace envoy Brahimi back in Syria

INTERNATIONAL peace envoy Lakhdar Brahimi has arrived in the Syrian capital on a new mission to try to resolve a brutal conflict that has raged for almost two years.

Officials said the UN-Arab League envoy, seen at the Sheraton Hotel in central Damascus on Sunday, travelled overland to Syria from neighbouring Lebanon for a previously unannounced visit.

"The international envoy crossed the Lebanese-Syrian border at about 2pm (2300 AEDT)," one official said, after reports that Brahimi had flown into Beirut International Airport.

Brahimi last visited Syria on October 19, since when fighting has broken out between government forces and rebels on the road to Damascus airport.

During his last visit, which lasted five days, he met with President Bashar al-Assad and other top officials over a temporary ceasefire for the Muslim feast of Eid al-Adha. Despite pledges, the truce did not hold.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Korea says North 'rocket' could reach US

NORTH Korea's recent rocket launch amounted to the test of a ballistic missile capable of carrying a half-tonne payload as far as the US west coast, the South Korean defence ministry says.

North Korea launched its three-stage Unha-3 rocket on December 12, insisting it was a purely scientific mission aimed at putting a polar-orbiting satellite in space.

Sunday's estimate was based on analysis of an oxidiser container - recovered from the rocket's first-stage splashdown site - which stored red fuming nitric acid to fuel the first-stage propellant.

"Based on our analysis and simulation, the missile is capable of flying more than 10,000 kilometres with a warhead of 500-600 kilograms," a defence ministry official told reporters.

The estimated range of 10,000 kilometres covers the whole of Asia, eastern Europe and western Africa as well as Alaska and a large part of the US west coast including San Francisco.

Without any debris from the second and third stages to analyse, the official said it could not be determined if the rocket had re-entry capability - a key element of inter-continental ballistic missile (ICBM) technology.

Most of the world saw the North's rocket launch as a disguised ballistic missile test that violates UN resolutions imposed after Pyongyang conducted nuclear tests in 2006 and 2009.

The success of the launch was seen as a major strategic step forward for the isolated North, although missile experts differed on the level of ballistic capability demonstrated by the rocket.

The debris collected by the South Koreans was made of an alloy of aluminium and magnesium with eight panels welded manually.

"Welding was crude, done manually," the ministry official said, adding that oxidiser containers for storing toxic chemicals are rarely used by countries with advanced space technology.

The South's navy later recovered three more pieces of the rocket - a fuel tank, a combustion chamber and an engine connection rod - from the Yellow Sea and has been analysing them since Friday, Yonhap news agency said.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Archbishop calls for forgiveness

CHRISTMAS a great time to fix feuds and forgive, Anglican Archbishop Peter Jensen says in his final Christmas message.

Dr Jensen, who retires in mid-2013, has called on people to be more just and generous.

"Reconciliation is a big theme for us Aussies," he said.

"Notably we need to be reconciled with each other - not least, (the) more recent immigrant settlers with our indigenous first people.

"Love unites us. Hatred separates us. But justice is in there too - reconciliation depends on justice being done.

"Sometimes we need to make good the fault, to pay back, to apologise, to repair, to mend.

"Sometimes, justice means that we take the hurt on ourselves and simply forgive the other person without demanding recompense."

Dr Jensen also referred to relationship stress during the Christmas period.

"Christmas is a great time to fix up the feuds and quarrels and hatreds which divide us," he said.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Ex-governor, jilted wife eye same seat

This 2006 photo shows Mark Sanford after winning his second term as South Carolina governer. He is joined by his family, from the left, sons Bolton; Landon; his then wife, Jenny; and son Marshal. Picture: AP Source: AP

FORMER South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford, who left public life two years ago after mysteriously disappearing to visit his then-mistress in Argentina, is poised to re-enter the political arena.

Acknowledging reports that he is seriously weighing a congressional bid for the seat he once held, Mr Sanford wrote in an email to The Associated Press: "To answer your question, yes the accounts are accurate." Mr Sanford promised "further conversation on all this" later.

The two-term governor was a rising Republican political star before he vanished from South Carolina for five days in 2009. Reporters were told he was hiking the Appalachian Trail, but he later tearfully acknowledged he was visiting Maria Belen Chapur, which he told everyone at news conference announcing his affair. He later called her his soul mate in an interview and the two were engaged earlier this year.

The opening for Mr Sanford comes after congressman Tim Scott was appointed to fill the remaining two years of Senator Jim DeMint's seat. Senator DeMint announced earlier this month he was resigning.

News that Mr Sanford, 52, may be interested in the seat comes days after his ex-wife, Jenny, appeared to be dipping her toe into the state's political waters.

She was reportedly on Governor Nikki Haley's short list of candidates to fill the seat that went to Mr Scott. Jenny Sanford later said she would think about a run for Mr Scott's seat representing the coastal 1st Congressional District, the seat her ex-husband is now considering.

"I'd be crazy not to look at the race a little bit," she said on Tuesday, before reports about Mark Sanford surfaced.

State Republicans said Scott plans to submit his letter of resignation from the House on January 2, triggering a process of candidate filing and primaries leading up to a special election in May.

Mr Scott, in a taped interview airing on CBS' Face the Nation, said he thinks there may be 25 or 30 candidates running for the seat.

"This is going to be a very active primary," he told Bob Schieffer when asked about Mr Sanford's run.

"The citizens of the 1st District will have an opportunity to have their voice heard through the vote and then two weeks later there will obviously be a runoff because with that many candidates we'll have a lot to say grace over."

Mark Sanford knows the 1st District well. Elected to the seat in 1994 - Jenny Sanford managed his first campaign and was a close adviser for most of his career - he served three terms before voters elected him governor in 2002.

The former governor would bring name recognition and money to the race - two things especially important due to the short campaign season and wide-open field.

Whether voters are ready to welcome Mr Sanford back to politics is another issue.

"It's absolutely absurd. He just has so much baggage. He was such an embarrassment to the state, we don't need that," said Gloria Day, a retired attorney in Charleston.

He avoided impeachment but was censured by the Legislature. He also had to pay more than $US70,000 ($67,000) in ethics fines - still the largest in state history - after AP investigations raised questions about his use of state, private and commercial aircraft.

Others said Mr Sanford's fiscal record is what's important, and Mr Sanford is known as a libertarian-leaning ideologue who railed against spending and bucked Republican Party leaders before anyone even coined the tea party movement.

"Mark Sanford is a reliable fiscal conservative so I, like many conservatives, would be delighted to see him in the race," said Joanne Jones, vice chairman of the Charleston Tea Party, though she noted she'll wait to see the entire field before throwing her support behind a candidate.

Mr Scott will be sworn in January 3 to replace Senator DeMint, who announced his resignation earlier this month to lead The Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank. Mr Scott, who would have to seek election in 2014, will become the state's first black US senator and the first black Republican US senator from the South since Reconstruction.

Candidates for Mr Scott's seat must file by the end of January. Primaries will be held in March, with the general election in May.

State Republican Chairman Chad Connelly said as of Friday, 14 Republicans had expressed interest.

"Governor Sanford getting in would certainly alter the dynamics. That list would go down significantly," he said.

Sanford has $US1.2 million left in his state campaign coffers.

John Dietz of Daniel Island said the affair wouldn't affect his vote.

"He said he found his soul mate, and at one point in my life that's exactly how I felt. I empathised," said Mr Dietz, a retiree who characterises himself as a moderate.

Mr Dietz said he was disappointed that Sanford could not work with his fellow Republicans in the Legislature.

"I did not necessarily agree with a lot of things he did politically," he said. "I'm very much neutral at this point."

Retired Presbyterian minister Dick Giffen of Mount Pleasant said he wouldn't support Mr Sanford, but added that it was unrelated to the affair.

"He wasn't able to bring people together and get action done," Mr Giffen said. "He didn't produce anything. ... I really wasn't impressed with him."
 

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Second-hand exporters mimic charity

CHARITIES are reportedly having millions of dollars diverted away from them by second-hand clothing exporters who are imitating appeals and donation bins.

According to an investigation by Fairfax published on Monday, the exporters launch appeals that imply the goods will either be recycled or go towards charitable causes by using a variety of methods, including a network of bins and pictures of children in Third World countries.

To stay within the law, some even include a declaration in small-print, stating they are a commercial business but others reportedly use collection bags for fake charities.

National Association of Charitable Recycling chief executive Kerryn Caulfield said the losses to charities amounts in "the tens of millions".

"It's taking stock away from charities, it skews the lines of governance, puts doubt in the minds of the community and impacts on the employment opportunities for people with disabilities in these charities," she told Fairfax.

A

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Kenya arrests 61 over tribal violence

KENYAN police have arrested 61 suspects over a brutal attack on a remote village in the southeast involving two rival communities that left 45 people dead including women and children.

Villagers were hacked to death and their homes torched in Friday's attack on Kipao village in the Tana River delta region, an area where deadly tribal violence killed another 100 people earlier this year.

Police said on Saturday they had arrested 56 people, including a policeman, in the wake of the onslaught, which they feared could further inflame tensions between the rival Orma and Pokomo communities in the area.

Another five were arrested in a late-night "security operation", a police officer said on condition of anonymity on Sunday.

Police attributed the killings to a disarmament operation in the area but the violence could also be linked to the election being held next March, the first since Kenya was gripped by deadly inter-ethnic killings after a December 2007 vote.

Police said the dead in Kipao included 16 children, five women and 10 men, along with 14 assailants.

The United States said on Saturday it condemned "in the strongest terms" the renewed violence between the communities in the Tana area, where conflicts have flared intermittently over access to land and water points.

Kenya votes on March 4 in its first election since the disputed 2007 vote, which led to the worst inter-ethnic violence since independence with more than 1100 people killed and hundreds of thousands displaced.

Two of the candidates running for the presidency are Prime Minister Raila Odinga, who lost his bid in the 2007 vote, and Deputy Prime Minister Uhuru Kenyatta, who has been indicted by the International Criminal Court for his alleged role in the violence which shattered Kenya's image as a beacon of regional stability.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Wiggles, Aussie talents woo Carols crowd

THOUSANDS of arms and legs waved and flailed at Sydney's Carols in the Domain, as the original members of The Wiggles celebrated their last carols bonanza.

More than 50,000 people packed into the Domain on Saturday, as the popular annual event ushered in the Christmas cheer with The Ten Tenor's rendition of O Come All Ye Faithful at 8.30pm (AEDT).

But the cheers really kicked off when Australia's most loved children's music group said their final goodbye to the event.

"Three of the members are hanging up their skivvies so tonight is their very last television performance before handing over to new band members," the Carols co-host Natalie Barr said.

"So this is it Australia, the end of an era," Matt White said.

The crowd jumped to their feet, shooting out arms and legs in unison with the original Red, Yellow, Red, Purple and Blue wiggles as they sang and danced to Fruit salad, Hot Potato and Jingle Bells.

"The Wiggles have been performing at Carols in the Domain for 20 years ... and we have always had such a wonderful time," Red Wiggle Murray Cook said, adding that next year will see the three new Wiggles perform.

Earlier in the evening candles began waving as Troy Cassar-Daley sung Have Yourself a Merry Christmas - later coming back with guitar in tow to sing Jingle Bell Rock.

Georgie Parker and Jay Laga'aia teamed up for the Christmas favourite Here Comes Santa Claus and Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer, eliciting a big cheer from the crowd.

Meanwhile The X-Factor favourites The Collective channelled the 1980s, with a rendition of the Wham! classic Last Christmas' prompting some more screams from the audience.

"Slightly popular. The Twittersphere just exploded, The Collective is in town," White quipped.

The X-Factor winner Samantha Jade, backed by a chorus, also wooed the crowd with Away in a Manger.

The cast of the new musical Legally Blonde then turned the stage pink with the modern favourite All I Want For Christmas is You.

Nineteen-year-old tenor - and 2009 Australia's Got Talent winner - Mark Vincent had the revellers in awe with a booming rendition of Jerusalem.

R&B singer-songwriter Jessica Mauboy delivered a tender rendition of Silent Night, before Vincent returned, joining opera singer Ali McGregor to lead the Salvation Army choir with Ode to Joy as fireworks boomed into the Domain sky.

A full-cast finale, joined by a suitably burly, jolly Santa Claus, saw a medley featuring Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree and We Wish You a Merry Christmas close the night in party mode as pyrotechnics blasted above one last time.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

China shows off its new high-speed rail

A display shows the speed aboard a high-speed train in Hebei province south of Beijing. Picture: AFP Source: AFP

CHINA has shown off the final link of the world's longest high-speed rail route set to begin whisking passengers from Beijing to Guangzhou next week in a third of the time currently required.

The much anticipated opening of high-speed passenger service from Beijing to Guangzhou, a distance of 2298 kilometres is scheduled to begin Wednesday, officials said.

Travelling at an average speed of 300 kilometres per hour, the new line will slash the time it takes to travel by rail from the capital to the southern commercial hub from the current 22 hours to just eight.

Authorities took journalists for a ride yesterday on the section of the route linking Beijing's West Station with the city of Zhengzhou 693 kilometres to the south, the route's last link.

Hitting speeds of over 300km/h, the gleaming, tubular train sped past frozen lakes and rivers as well as snow-covered farmland on the journey of approximately two-and-a-half hours each way.

Though moving much faster than the country's conventional rolling stock, the ride on the aerodynamic bullet train was smooth and made little noise other than a low-level hum during most of the trip.

The reclining seats are laid out in rows of three and two separated by an aisle, are upholstered in cloth and can be turned around so rows faced each other.

Toilets on the train are of stainless steel squat variety, with slightly more bathroom space than would usually be found on an airliner, while uniformed women were on hand to serve drinks and snacks during the trip.

"This is the world's longest bullet train track," Zhou Li, a Ministry of Railways official, said, describing the Beijing-Guangzhou route. "It's also one of the most technically advanced tracks in China and the world."

The line will have 35 stops. Besides Zhengzhou, they will include other major cities such as Wuhan and Changsha. Sections linking Zhengzhou and Wuhan and Wuhan and Guangzhou are already in service.

China's high-speed rail network was only established in 2007, but has quickly become the world's largest, with a total of 8358 kilometres of track at the end of 2010.

That is expected to almost double to 16,000 kilometres by 2020.

But the network has been plagued by graft and safety scandals following the rapid expansion. A deadly bullet train collision in July 2011 killed 40 people and sparked a public outcry.

The accident - China's worst rail disaster since 2008 - triggered a flood of criticism of the government and accusations that authorities had compromised safety in its rush to expand.

Authorities say that they have taken steps ahead of the new line's opening to improve maintenance and inspection of infrastructure, including track, rolling stock and emergency response measures.

"The emergency rescue system and all kinds of emergency pre-plans are established to improve emergency response ability," according to a ministry booklet handed out to journalists.

The train will be in service for China's Lunar New Year holiday period, which falls in mid-February, when hundreds of millions of people will travel across the country in the world's largest annual migration.

State media earlier reported that December 26 had been chosen for the start of the passenger service on the Beijing-Guangzhou line to commemorate the birth of Chinese leader Mao Zedong.
 

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Ex-butler pardoned, expelled from Vatican

POPE Benedict XVI has pardoned his former butler Paolo Gabriele, who was sentenced to 18 months in jail for leaking secret papal memos, but banished him from the Vatican.

"This morning the Holy Father Benedict XVI visited Paolo Gabriele in prison in order to confirm his forgiveness and to inform him personally of his acceptance of Mr Gabriele's request for pardon," the Vatican said in a statement.

Gabriele's pardon was a "paternal gesture" for a man "with whom the pope shared a relationship of daily familiarity for many years".

However, the ex-butler "cannot resume his previous occupation or continue to live in Vatican City," it added.

After a 15-minute meeting with Benedict, Gabriele returned home to his wife and three children, Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi said.

Gabriele had spent a total of three and a half months in detention.

A former trusted aide who passed hours of every day in the pontiff's company, Gabriele will now have to move out of his home within the tiny city state's walls.

"The Holy See, trusting in his sincere repentance, wishes to offer him the possibility of returning to a serene family life," the Vatican said.

Gabriele was found guilty in October of leaking sensitive memos to the press as part of a whistle-blowing campaign against what he said was "evil and corruption" in the Vatican.

Documents secretly copied and leaked in a case that has been dubbed "Vatileaks" included allegations by a former governor of the city state of massive fraud within its walls.

During the trial, Vatican police said they had found more than 1000 secret documents, some photocopies but others originals, in Gabriele's home, stolen from the papal palace.

These included letters from cardinals and politicians and papers the pontiff himself had marked "To Be Destroyed".

Gabriele had said he wanted to "help" the pope who, he claimed, had been kept in ignorance of scandals inside the Vatican.

The documents were handed to an Italian journalist, Gianluigi Nuzzi, who published them in a book.

While the disgraced butler was initially given a three-year jail term, the presiding judge reduced the sentence on the grounds of his past service to the Catholic Church and his apology to the pope for betraying him.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Damascus car bomb kills 5

A CAR bomb blast in northeastern Damascus killed five men and wounded dozens of people on Saturday, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

"A car bomb blast in the district of Qaboon killed five men, wounded dozens of other people and caused widespread material damage," said the Britain-based watchdog.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Suicide bomber targets Pakistan meeting

A SUICIDE bomber has blown himself up at a meeting of the political party that rules Pakistan's northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, killing six people and wounding 21, officials say.

There were "reports of injuries to the senior minister of the provincial government, Bashir Bilour," police official Asif Iqbal said.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Don't return to sectarian strife: Iraq PM

IRAQI Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki has called for people to stand together against sectarian strife, warning of a return to the days of bloody conflict when heads were left in the streets.

Maliki called in a speech in Baghdad for Iraqis to "stand together in one rank in facing this strife".

And the Shi'ite premier warned of a return to the worst days of the sectarian conflict that swept Iraq from 2006 to 2008.

"Have you forgotten the day we were collecting bodies from the streets? Have you forgotten the day we were collecting severed heads from the streets?" he asked.

Maliki's remarks came two days after security forces arrested at least nine of Sunni Finance Minister Rafa al-Essawi's guards on terror charges, threatening a new crisis with the minister's secular, Sunni-backed Iraqiya bloc.

After his guards were arrested, Essawi demanded Maliki's resignation, and also called for no-confidence proceedings that failed to remove the premier earlier this year to be reopened.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Islamists, opponents clash in northern Egypt

CLASHES have broken out in northern Egypt between Islamist supporters and opponents of the country's highly contentious draft constitution.

The two sides hurled rocks and stones at each other in the Mediterranean port city of Alexandria, prompting police to fire tear gas to separate them.

The clashes add to the already tense political crisis in Egypt on the eve of the second leg of voting on the draft charter.

The Islamists had called for a massive rally outside the main mosque in the heart of Alexandria. It was not clear who started the fight.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Court overturns Google convictions

AN ITALIAN appeals court has overturned the convictions of three Google executives who had been charged for a video on a Google site that showed a disabled teen being bullied.

Google called the ruling "a total victory."

A lower court in 2010 held the executives criminally responsible for the posting of the video.

The verdict raised concerns that Internet platforms could be forced to police their content and put European privacy concerns in contrast with the freewheeling nature of the Internet.

Google said it removed the video in question within two hours of being notified by authorities.

The appellate ruling throws out the convictions against Google's global privacy counsel Peter Fleischer, its senior vice president and chief legal officer David Drummond and retired chief financial officer George Reyes.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Bollywood star Khan charged with assault

INDIAN police have charged Bollywood star Saif Ali Khan for allegedly assaulting and breaking the nose of a South African businessman at a luxury hotel earlier this year, a report said Friday.

The actor ran into trouble after Iqbal Sharma registered a case with the police in February, complaining that he was pushed and punched in the face by Khan at the Taj Mahal Palace hotel's Wasabi Japanese restaurant in Mumbai.

"Colaba police station filed the charge sheet against Saif in a metropolitan magistrate court on Thursday," Deputy Commissioner of Police Ravindra Shishwe told the Press Trust of India news agency.

Khan and two friends were charged under section 325 of the Indian Penal Code for assault, PTI reported.

Khan, 42, was at the time of the alleged assault dining with friends and actress Kareena Kapoor, whom he married in October.

After the incident, Mr Sharma said he had only asked the staff to get Khan's table to quieten down, which sparked a heated argument and the alleged assault.

Khan however claimed one of his friends was assaulted which led to the fight.

He surrendered to police after the brawl and was released on bail.

Khan is one of Bollywood's biggest actors and the Nawab (Muslim prince) of the former princely state of Pataudi.

His father was famous cricketing legend Mansur Ali Khan, better known as "Tiger Pataudi".

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Turf war fears as biker gangs hit Europe

A WAVE of biker gangs from the US, Canada and Australia arriving in Europe has raised fears of deadly turf battle like the Nordic biker wars of the 1990s, European police agency Europol warned.

Gangs such as the Comancheros and Rebels from Australia, Rock Machine from Canada and the Mongols and Vagos from the US were moving into Europe, said a Europol statement.

The total number of what it called Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs (OMCG) in Europe now ran at more than 700 , it said.

The gangs were seeking out particularly a dangerous hard core of recruits in their bid to seize territory to traffic drugs, weapons and people.

Now they were approaching far-right militants, prison gang members, hooligans and military personnel to exploit their expert knowledge, said Europol.

"Merely establishing a chapter on the 'turf' of another OMCG is interpreted as an act of provocation and is likely to result in violent confrontations and retaliation," the agency said.

The gangs "have a propensity to use extreme forms of violence", including with Kalashnikov assault rifles and grenades.

Modern biker gangs were becoming less associated with the biker lifestyle, with some members having neither a motorbike nor a driving licence, Europol noted.

Biker gangs were also involved in territorial disputes with local organised crime groups and street gangs, it added.

Europol said it had informed national police forces of the risk of clashes "and the possible impact on the general organised crime situation".

Europol said the so-called 'Nordic Biker Wars' of the 1990s were "a compelling example of the capacity for extreme violence resulting from an increased concentration of OMCGs in Europe."

The deadly conflict exploded when the Bandidos gang penetrated Nordic countries and challenged the Hell's Angels for a region that had been under their control for more than a decade.

Bikers used weapons including assault rifles, anti-tank weapons and car bombs against each other, leaving at least 11 bikers dead and dozens wounded.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Delhi bus rapists face life sentences

INDIA'S government, facing swelling protests over the gang-rape of a female student on a bus, vowed to press for life sentences for her six attackers and promised stricter policing.

Home Secretary R.K. Singh also offered state assistance to the 23-year-old victim of the brutal Sunday night attack who was fighting for her life in hospital after suffering enormous injuries to her intestines.

"We will ask for the maximum punishment of life imprisonment and ask the court for the speedy trial of the accused," Mr Singh said amid demands from thousands of angry protesters for the death sentence for the detained suspects.

Six drunken men were joyriding on a bus when they picked up the physiotherapy student and her 28-year-old male companion and took turns raping her. Afterwards, they threw the pair off the speeding vehicle.

Police say the woman was attacked with an iron rod after being raped.

Five people, including the bus driver, have been arrested while a hunt is underway for the remaining suspect, city police commissioner Neeraj Kumar said.

Mr Kumar said police have charged the detained suspects with attempted murder.

"Police teams are close on the heels of the sixth and we will get him soon," Mr Kumar said at a joint news conference with the home secretary.

Mr Kumar promised a slew of measures to "make Delhi safe," promising squads of officers would patrol the city, crack down on vehicles with darkened glasses and zero in on drunken motorists.

"All hooliganism will be swiftly punished," the home secretary added.

Hundreds of people, mostly women, kept a vigil outside the hospital where the woman was being kept on life support after several rounds of surgery.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Two dead in supermarket looting

TWO people died and two more were seriously injured as mobs looted supermarkets in Rosario, Argentina's third largest city, an official said.

Matias Drivet, a city hall official, gave the toll after similar violence shook other cities in Argentina on Thursday.

In Bariloche in the south, officials said looters were apparently venting anger over a blackout that had left much of Neuquen province without power on Wednesday.

People wielding sticks raided a supermarket there called Changomas, owned by the US retail giant Walmart, and stole TV sets, bicycles and electrical appliances, witnesses said.

Another supermarket was also looted.

The central government sent in army troops to restore calm.

Bariloche is a tourist city 1650 kilometres south of Buenos Aires.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Three Palestinians dead from swine flu

THREE Palestinians in the West Bank have died in the past week from the H1N1 influenza strain known as swine flu, the Palestinian health ministry said.

"There were three deaths in the past week, and more than 50 people sickened by the virus," said Assad Ramlawi, the ministry's director general of health care for the West Bank.

He said the deaths occurred in the northern cities of Jenin, Qalqilya and Tulkarem, but played down the significance of the fatalities.

"The situation is not out of the ordinary. This virus spreads at the beginning of winter season," he said, adding that those who had died "had weak immune systems, which is what caused their deaths."

The health ministry said medical staff had been trained to detect and treat the virus.

The virus has affected Israel and the Palestinian territories in the past, killing dozens of people.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Iran 'hangs six drug smugglers, rapist'

IRAN has hanged seven men, six of them for drug trafficking and another for rape, in prison in the central province of Isfahan, Kayhan newspaper reported.

The seven, aged 25 to 45, were executed on Wednesday, the province's public prosecutor, Mohammad Reza Habibi, said in the report.

"One of the smugglers was charged with armed trafficking of more than 300 kilograms of opium," Mr Habibi said.

"The others were in possession of crack and heroin (weighing) between one and 65 kilograms."

The Islamic state, where murder, rape, armed robbery, drug trafficking and adultery are punishable by death, has one of the highest annual number of executions in the world, alongside China, Saudi Arabia and the US.

Amnesty International has condemned the executions, but Tehran says the death penalty is essential to maintain law and order and that is is enforced only after exhaustive judicial proceedings.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

The Queen goes 3D for Christmas

SHE made her acting debut at the London Olympics. Now the Queen is hitting the screen again - in 3D.

Buckingham Palace says the monarch was "ready to embrace something new" for her annual Christmas broadcast in honour of her Diamond Jubilee year - 60 years on the throne.

The 86-year-old monarch has made a prerecorded Christmas broadcast on radio since 1952 and on television since 1957.

She writes the speeches herself, and the broadcasts mark the rare occasions in which the Queen voices her own opinion without government consultation.

The palace said the Queen has watched the broadcast and found it "absolutely lovely."

It airs at 3pm on Christmas Day.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

US weekly unemployment claims rise

THE number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits rose last week by 17,000, reversing four weeks of declines.

The Labor Department reports that a seasonally adjusted 361,000 people sought unemployment aid during the week ended December 15, from a revised 344,000 the week before.

But the less volatile four-week moving average fell 13,750 to 367,750, the lowest since late October, suggesting the job market continues to grow modestly. Applications had surged after superstorm Sandy, then fallen back.

Applications are a proxy for layoffs. The drop of the four-week average suggests companies are cutting fewer jobs, even if they aren't hiring enough to lower the unemployment rate significantly.

The economy has generated an average of 151,000 jobs a month in 2012, not enough to pull the high unemployment down sharply.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

Major US blizzard threatens holiday travel

THE US Midwest's first major snowstorm of the winter caused "life-threatening conditions" and flight delays that could ripple into problems across the country as travelers gear up for the Christmas holiday.

A regional energy company said the storm had cut power to more than 40,000 households and businesses in Iowa, where nearly 30 centimetres of snow had fallen in the capital, Des Moines.

The Weather Channel said around 27 centimetres of snow covered parts of Wisconsin, with around 20 centimetres in Omaha, Nebraska.

The storm dumped more than 0.6 metres snow in parts of the western US, including Washington state and Wyoming.

Chicago's bustling O'Hare International Airport, one of the world's busiest, rated delays at five on a five-point index, hours before the snow was even expected to hit, in mid-afternoon, according to FlightStats.com.

The website reported that flights were being held up an average of just under two hours, and some flights slowed by up to four hours.

Flights through smaller airports in South Dakota and Iowa were cancelled.

The delays and cancellations could affect travel across the country, especially since many passengers need to change planes in Chicago - and even if they do not, their aircraft may have to pass through there.

The national weather service forecast "intense snowfall rates," along with high winds and reduced visibility to start in Chicago by 3pm local time (2100 GMT).

Two major airlines, Delta and United, issued travel alerts allowing passengers to change their tickets without fees for travel through affected areas.

Further south, the weather service warned of a "life-threatening blizzard" that was located over central Missouri Thursday morning and heading into western Illinois by morning.

"This will result in life threatening conditions and nearly impossible travel overnight through today," the bulletin warned.

"Falling trees may also occur to due heavy snow accumulation on trees and high winds."

Many schools across Nebraska and Iowa were closed Thursday or opening late.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More

France recognises brutal rule in Algeria

FRENCH President Francois Hollande acknowledged the "unjust" and "brutal" nature of France's occupation of Algeria for 132 years, but stopped short of apologising for the past as many Algerians have demanded.

On the second day of his state visit to this North African nation, he told the two houses of parliament that "I recognise the suffering the colonial system has inflicted" on the Algerian people.

He specifically recognised the "massacres" by the French during the seven-year war that led to Algerian independence in 1962. The admission was a profound departure from Mr Hollande's predecessors who, if not defending France's tormented past with Algeria, remained silent.

The Socialist president's visit came as Algeria celebrates 50 years of independence from France, during which the two countries' ties have been fraught with tension.

Mr Hollande was traveling to the western city of Tlemcen, the birthplace of Algerian wartime nationalist Messali Hadj.

Mr Hollande said at the start of his visit that he and Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika are opening a "new era" with a strategic partnership among equals.

Large numbers of Algerians, and some political parties, have been seeking an apology from France for inequalities suffered by the population under colonial rule and for brutality during the war. However, Mr Hollande said at a news conference that he would make no apologies.

"History, even when it is tragic, even when it is painful for our two countries, must be told," Mr Hollande told lawmakers on Thursday.

"For 132 years, Algeria was subjected to a profoundly unjust and brutal system" of colonization.

"I recognise here the suffering that colonisation has inflicted on the Algerian people," he added.

Mr Hollande notably listed the sites of three massacres, including one at Setif where seven years ago Bouteflika compared French methods to those used by Nazi Germany and asked France to make a "gesture ... to erase this black stain."

The violence in Setif, 300 kilometres east of Algiers, began on May 8, 1945, apparently during a celebration of the end of World War II.

Demonstrators unfurled Algerian flags, which were banned at the time by the French. As police began confiscating the flags, the crowds turned on the French, killing about two dozen of them.

The uprising spread and the response by French colonial troops grew increasingly harsh in the following weeks, including bombardments of villages by a French war ship. Algerians say some 45,000 people may have died. Figures in France put the number of Algerian dead at about 15,000 to 20,000.

Mr Hollande and Mr Bouteflika agreed to relaunch economic, strategic and cultural relations between the two countries on a new basis among equals. A new start must "be supported by a base," Hollande said, and "this base is truth."

"Nothing is built in secretiveness, forgetting, denial," Hollande said.

A Declaration of Algiers was published late on Wednesday saying that France and Algeria "are determined to open a new chapter in their relations" of "exceptional intensity" and spelling out political, human and economic goals.

France announced a deal for French automaker Renault to build a factory in Algeria with cars destined for all of Africa. The long-negotiated joint venture will be 49 per cent owned by Renault and 51 per cent by two Algerian companies, according to a statement by Renault, the first carmaker to establish production facilities in Algeria. The factory will be located outside Oran, a port city west of Algiers, and eventually expand to an automotive training center.

The accord is one of about 15 agreements being signed during the visit, on topics ranging from culture to defense.

Mr Hollande, who came to the French presidency in May, made an initial break with the French past by officially recognising the deaths of Algerians at a 1961 pro-independence demonstration in Paris at the hands of French police.

He referred to the "bloody repression" and paid homage to the victims of "this tragedy," for which an official death toll has never been issued.

22.24 | 0 komentar | Read More