Man who helped create GI Joe dies

DONALD Levine, the American toy company executive credited with developing the world's first action figure, GI Joe, has died aged 86.

He died of cancer early on Thursday at a hospice on Rhode Island, said his wife, Nan. They were just about to celebrate their 60th wedding anniversary.

Levine shepherded the toy through design and development as toy company Hasbro's head of research and development.

He and his team came up with an 28cm articulated figure with 21 moving parts, and since the company's employees included many military veterans, it was decided to outfit the toy in the uniforms of the Army, Navy, Marines and Air Force, with such accessories as guns, helmets and vehicles.

Levine, who served in the Army in Korea, said he got the idea for the moveable figure as a way to honour veterans.

GI Joe hit the shelves in time for the 1964 Christmas shopping season and soon became a big seller at $US4 apiece.

It remained popular until the late 1960s, as opposition to Vietnam intensified and parents shied away from military-related toys.

Hasbro countered in 1970 by introducing "Adventure Team" GI Joes that played down the military connection.

Into the 1970s, GI Joes featured "lifelike hair" and "kung-fu grip" and were outfitted with scuba gear to save the oceans and explorer's clothing for discovering mummies.

Over the decades, GI Joe has spawned comic books, cartoons, two movies starring Channing Tatum, and a GI Joe Collector's Club and its annual convention - GIJoeCon - held in Dallas in April.

Levine's funeral will be held on Sunday at Temple Beth-El in Providence. He is survived by his wife, three children and four grandchildren.

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Gunmen fire inside El Salvador bus, kill 6

Police in El Salvador say gunmen boarded a bus in a town near the capital killing six people. Source: AAP

POLICE in El Salvador say gunmen boarded a bus in a town near the capital and opened fired on passengers, killing six.

National police director Rigoberto Pleites said another five people were wounded during the Friday bus attack in the town of San Luis Talpa near San Salvador.

Pleites said witnesses told police the assailants were gang members dressed in uniforms similar to those issued to road maintenance workers.

He said investigators haven't confirmed they belonged to a gang.

Police Commissioner Mauricio Ramirez said there have been threats of increased violence in the country in the coming days, but he didn't provide any other details.

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Girl, 13, hit crossing Sydney road

A TEENAGE girl has been placed in a coma after she was hit by a car near Dee Why, on Sydney's northern beaches.

The CareFlight helicopter, police and paramedics rushed to help the unconscious 13-year-old after she was hit while trying to cross Warringah Road at Narraweena on Saturday night.

CareFlight director Ian Badham said helicopter operators wearing night vision goggles had to land at a nearby oval.

The Mona Vale girl was placed in an induced coma and onto a ventilator as she was flown to Royal North Shore Hospital, where she arrived in a critical condition.

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Suspected drug ring busted in Canberra

Police have raided 10 north Canberra properties, uncovering what they say is a major drug syndicate. Source: AAP

A MAJOR drug ring has been busted in the national capital, with a Canberra man set to face court charged with trafficking drugs.

ACT Policing raided several north Canberra properties on Friday afternoon where they seized $200,000 worth of illicit drugs, cars and cash.

They found 728 grams of cocaine, a methylamphetamine-suspected substance, tablets suspected to be ecstasy, and steroids.

Police believe the operation cracked a major drug syndicate operating in the capital.

A 28-year-old man will appear in court on Saturday charged with drug trafficking.

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Vic motorcyclist nabbed 100km/h over limit

A MOTORBIKE rider has been caught travelling at almost 100 km/h over the speed limit in the middle of Melbourne's premiere restaurant strip.

The rider reached a speed of up to 133 km/h in the 40 km/h-zone on Lygon Street, in Carlton.

He was stopped by police about 4.20pm and his motorbike was impounded for 30 days.

The 24-year-old man is facing charges including conduct endangering life, and he must appear in the Melbourne Magistrates Court on August 25.

Victoria Police said it was among the highest speeds ever detected on Lygon Street, which is usually busy with pedestrians and traffic and especially so on a Saturday afternoon.

"I find it abhorrent that someone would endanger other people with such stupid behaviour," Melbourne Highway Patrol Acting Sergeant Michael Ingram said in a statement.

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Pope urges Syria peace on Mideast tour

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AS her character is set to make her first on-screen appearance on Home and Away, new soap starlet Bridgette Sneddon and fiance Steve Peacocke are in no rush to wed.

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Nauru refugees not told of Cambodia: govt

Labor is gravely concerned about the Abbott government's Cambodian asylum seeker resettlement deal. Source: AAP

THE Abbott government is rejecting claims that asylum seekers in Nauru have been told their future could be in Cambodia.

Australia is on the verge of signing a memorandum of understanding with the Southeast Asian nation, which would allow refugees processed on Nauru to resettle there.

A number of family groups at the Nauru detention centre have reportedly been told they will be sent to Cambodia if they're found to be genuine refugees.

But a spokeswoman for Immigration Minister Scott Morrison denied those claims on Wednesday, saying no such message had been given by the Australian government to transferees at Nauru.

"It is likely that transferees may have been made aware of media reporting on these issues," the spokeswoman told AAP.

Refugee groups and the Australian Greens have raised concerns about the resettlement plan, citing Cambodia's human rights record.

Federal Labor is also worried but won't say whether it will seek to block it.

Deputy Opposition Leader Tanya Plibersek says her party is "gravely" concerned about poverty and security in Cambodia, as it seeks more details on the proposal.

Prime Minister Tony Abbott has been accused of applying a double standard to the Cambodia deal, given his party's criticism and blocking of the Malaysia people-swap plan when Labor was in power.

A Nauru government spokesman said asylum seekers had been told that if granted refugee status, they would be temporarily resettled on Nauru for up to five years.

After that, they would be settled in a third country.

"No one has been told that they will immediately be sent to a third country," the spokesman told AAP.

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10-year-olds hurt after minibus rolls

A mini-bus has rolled on its side after colliding with a car in Melbourne, injuring two children. Source: AAP

TWO children have been taken to hospital after a school mini-bus accident in Melbourne.

The mini-bus and a car collided in Northcote on Wednesday morning, an Ambulance Victoria spokesman said.

The mini-bus tipped onto its side and two children, both aged 10, were taken to the Royal Children's Hospital with minor injuries.

The mini-bus, which was on a regular school run to St Paul's College in Kew, was carrying three staff and two students, a statement from the school said.

The school said the children were taken to hospital only as a precaution and were later released.

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Body of Sydney-based hiker found in NZ

A SYDNEY man who watched helplessly as his girlfriend was swept away by a raging stream in New Zealand says he has lost a part of himself after rescuers recovered her body.

Police have not identified the woman but she has been named in Sydney media as Yessica Asmin, from Indonesia, who is an international student at the University of NSW.

Rescuers found her body on Wednesday, two days after she was swept away while hiking on the Milford Track in the South Island.

She had been walking on the track with her boyfriend Sean McNabb, who is from Sydney, and German backpacker Sebastian Keiholz, Fairfax Media reports.

The two men managed to cross the stream but Ms Asmin got caught on a rock in the middle and panicked and fell. She was swept away.

Mr McNabb paid tribute to Ms Asmin on Facebook.

"Thank you all for your love and support," he posted, according to Fairfax.

"Yessica was fond [sic] today deceased. Today I lost a part of me, I'm very lost at this time."

Ms Asmin's family have arrived in New Zealand and are being supported by police.

She was walking the track, when she was overwhelmed by the water in Pompolona Creek and swept into the Clinton River late on Monday.

A search by a helicopter on Tuesday failed to find any sign of her.

The Clinton River normally flowed at a level of 0.25m but was flowing at 1.8m on Wednesday, having been at 2.2m on Tuesday night.

Mr Keiholz activated an emergency locator beacon and ran to the nearest hut.

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Abbott contradicts budget on uni fees

A student union says Tony Abbott behaved cowardly by cancelling a university visit amid protests. Source: AAP

CONFUSION abounds over government plans to deregulate university fees after Prime Minister Tony Abbott contradicted his own budget.

But students who protested in Sydney and Melbourne are certain of one thing: they'll have to pay for the government's decisions and they're not happy.

Two men were arrested in Sydney's protest - one for using a flare and the other for allegedly assaulting a police officer.

Scuffles also broke out in Melbourne on the steps of Parliament House.

Mr Abbott told ABC radio that only students who start studying in 2016 would face potentially higher fees when universities can charge what they like.

"If you start next year, your conditions of study won't change," he said.

But the budget papers clearly state that anyone who enrols after May 14 will face deregulated fees in 2016.

Only those who were already studying on budget day would continue to have their fees capped - and only if they finish their studies by 2020.

Education Minister Christopher Pyne reiterated this in a separate ABC radio interview after Mr Abbott's comments.

A mother asked him whether her daughter, already at university, would have to pay more.

"If that student stays in the course that she's doing, she'll continue under the rules that she started," he said.

"If she changes course, then quite rightly she will face the new measures."

A spokesman for Mr Pyne said the prime minister "may not have been as clear as he could have been".

Universities Australia told AAP it understands there's not been any change to policy.

It wants the government to take more time to look at any unintended consequences of the higher education changes before setting them in law.

Students were enrolling now to start in the second half of 2014 and universities had to be able to tell them what the costs would be from 2016.

"There is no time for universities to be able to cross the Ts and dot the Is to be able to advise students on what those fees might be," chief executive Belinda Robinson said.

National Union of Students president Deanna Taylor wasn't surprised by the confusion at high levels.

"I don't think the government really put a great deal of thought into their policy," she told AAP, saying it appeared to be very ideologically driven.

The union organised a national day of action on Wednesday with thousands of students protesting the changes.

A police risk assessment before the protests forced Mr Abbott and Mr Pyne to cancel plans to visit a Geelong research facility at Deakin University.

Mr Abbott said students were looking for "a big rumble" and an excuse to riot.

Ms Taylor labelled the prime minister cowardly and said students weren't violent rabble-rousers out to cause trouble.

"They're trying to make us sound like spoiled little brats who don't know how good we've got it. They have a very clear agenda," she said.

The two men arrested in Sydney face court on June 3.

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Gonski urges Abbott to rethink school cuts

David Gonski has criticised the government's decision to end the funding system he helped design. Source: AAP

DAVID Gonski has criticised the government's decision to end the funding system he helped design, saying it will be to Australia's detriment and he has urged the government to reconsider.

The Abbott government's first budget indicates that from 2018 the commonwealth contribution to schools funding will increase only by the consumer price index, with relative adjustments for numbers of students.

This means the previous Labor government plans to hugely increase school funding that year to continue the needs-based Gonski model will be abandoned.

"The concept of aspiration ... ends in 2017," Mr Gonski said in his first major speech since the release of his panel's report.

"There needs to be a commitment to a properly funded, needs-based, aspirational system and a failure to do so will be to our detriment."

The decision to index funds on an indicator not linked to education costs will mean that if funding levels aren't right in 2017, the mistakes will be perpetuated and any changes in circumstance rendered irrelevant.

"No doubt this is simple but like a lot that is simple it is not adequate," Mr Gonski said.

While he had lost his "comfortable and comparative anonymity" since his name had entered the lexicon attached to school funding, Mr Gonski didn't regret his involvement in the review.

He was pleased the funding was guaranteed until 2017 and that parts of the needs-based model were being implemented.

His only regret was the panel's decision to suggest governments needed to put an extra $5 billion a year into schools.

The review's finer details were lost as media focused on the big headline figure.

Mr Gonski also used his "postscript speech" at the University of Melbourne to give some insights into the panel's thinking in coming up with its suggested funding system.

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Regulation focus of Iowa global insurance

INSURANCE companies, trade groups and regulators are gathering in Iowa to discuss the industry's major issues.

As the three-day Global Insurance Symposium is set to get underway in Des Moines, plans to regulate firms like banks and impose national or even international oversight are at the fore.

The gathering includes top insurance officials from Germany, India, Japan and the United States. It was organised by Iowa Insurance Commissioner Nick Gerhart, who oversees a division regulating more than 200 insurance companies based in Iowa.

The financial services industry employs 4,200 workers in the state at companies that include ING Life Insurance, Metlife, Nationwide, Principal Financial Group and Prudential.

As insurance increasingly becomes a global business, one of the biggest concerns is an effort to set international standards for insurance regulation.

Most other countries have a centralised government regulatory system, unlike the United States where the insurance industry is largely regulated on a state-by-state basis.

Each state has a commissioner responsible for making sure companies retain sufficient capital to remain financially healthy and are appropriately serving consumers.

Some US and international regulators have advocated for regulations that closely resemble those imposed on banks.

"From our perspective, one-size-fits-all-bank-centric world doesn't work in insurance," Gerhart said.

"Insurance is not banking, so that's what we're working on. That will be a theme repeated over the next day and half."

The Great Recession of 2007-2009 brought new financial regulation for US banks and some of it spilled over into the insurance industry, said Leigh Ann Pusey, the CEO of American Insurance Association, a trade group representing 300 property-casualty insurers.

Congress passed the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act in 2010, which forces banks to comply with strict regulations on reporting, cash reserves and investment guidelines. The law also set up a Federal Insurance Office in the US Department of Treasury.

It is seen as the first step toward federal government regulation of insurance, a worry for many in the industry who say states have safety regulated insurance for more than 140 years.

Critics say the fragmented nature of the state-based regulatory system makes it more expensive and difficult for companies that sell insurance nationally to comply with 50 different regulatory schemes.

They also argue that as the industry gravitates toward a globalised insurance market an overall federal regulatory system makes more sense.

Pusey, who plans to participate in a panel discussion at the Des Moines symposium, said the Financial Stability Board, the international panel established by the G-20 working toward global financial standards, is bank-centered and moving too quickly.

"I think the industry globally, not only here in the United States, is sort of very worried about more bank-centric approach to views of capital," she said.

"There's a pace here that is both unrealistic and dangerous leading to potentially unintended consequences."

Strict bank-style requirements that insurance companies hold certain levels of restricted cash in reserve could reduce the ability of insurers to cover policy and claims obligations and might prompt some to cut back their business, reducing insurance available on the market, she said.

"I think consumers should be paying attention both to making sure they are still protected as they are today and that nothing undermines that system that the US has designed," Pusey said.

Iowa Governor Terry Branstad, like many governors in states with a major insurance presence, is protective of the state-based regulatory system.

"What's important is for the international people to know the tremendous benefit of the state-regulated insurance industry that we have in America compared to the disaster they have in Europe," he says.

Speakers are to include Mike McRaith, director of the Federal Insurance Office; Ben Nelson, the former Nebraska governor and US senator who is now the CEO of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners; Naruki Mori, assistant commissioner for international affairs of the Japan Financial Services Agency; and T.S. Vijayan, chairman of Indian Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority.

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George Harrison's guitar brings $657K

GEORGE Harrison's 1962 Rickenbacker guitar has sold for $US657,000 ($A710,850) at auction.

Harrison purchased the guitar in 1963 at Fenton's Music store in Mount Vernon, Illinois, while visiting his sister.

The Julien's Auctions sale of rock 'n' roll memorabilia was held on Saturday at the Hard Rock Cafe in New York.

Harrison had the guitar refinished from a Fireglo red to black to match John Lennon's Rickenbacker.

Other items in the sale included Lady Gaga's 1990 Red Rolls-Royce Corniche III. It sold for $US125,000.

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One dead, two injured in Vic car crash

A PASSENGER was killed and another man is in a life-threatening condition after a speeding car crashed into a Victorian residential garage.

Three men were out getting food when the driver lost control and hit a pole before smashing into the garage of a Dromana home on Sunday night.

Police say the back-seat passenger who was killed, a 28-year-old Somerville man, was not wearing a seatbelt.

The driver, 31 and the other passenger, 27, were airlifted to The Alfred hospital with head injuries. Ambulance Victoria spokesman Paul Bentley said the two men were trapped in the car for about an hour.

There were reports that one of those men had also died, but police said on Monday that he was in a life-threatening condition.

Police were unable to confirm the identity of this man.

Detective Inspector Bernie Rankin said the car was well above the speed limit in the lead up to the accident.

"The driver for some inexplicable reason is exceeding the speed limit and the consequences have been rather dire," Det Insp Rankin said.

"It is a situation that is totally avoidable."

Drugs and alcohol are not thought to have been a factor but have not yet been ruled out.

No one was inside the house at the time of the crash.

In a separate accident, a driver died after a two-car collision at Pimpinio, near Horsham, on Monday afternoon.

A 42-year-old man died at the scene and the other driver, in his late 60s, suffered minor injuries.

Both drivers were the only occupants of their cars.

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Insulation scheme a 'recipe for disaster'

THE Rudd government's decision to include foil products in its home insulation program was "a recipe for disaster" that could have easily been avoided, an inquiry has heard.

Master Electricians chief executive Malcolm Richards says the product should never have been permitted in the scheme given the dangers posed by electrical cables in the roofs of older homes.

Mr Richards has told a royal commission in Brisbane, which wound up on Monday, that allowing foil to be retrofitted was a "recipe for disaster" that Master Electricians would have advised against had it been consulted.

"If it wasn't funded in the first place, we would have eliminated this as a risk issue," he said.

Two of the four young men killed in the program were using foil insulation.

Mr Richards said the government's failure to consult Master Electricians before the program's July 1, 2009 rollout was a "critical oversight" given the inclusion of foil increased the risk of electrocution.

The association only became aware foil was being used in late August 2009, after members received several calls about power tripping out at homes where the product had been installed.

They were "horrified" to discover metal staples used to secure foil sheeting had been driven into electrical cabling, Mr Richards said.

That October, Master Electricians drafted a warning letter highlighting the dangers of foil to then environment minister Peter Garrett.

But it wasn't sent before Matthew Fuller, 25, became the first installer to die when he put a metal staple through electrical cabling while laying foil insulation in Queensland on October 14 2009.

Two days after Mr Fuller's death, Mr Richards sent the letter urging the government to ban foil immediately.

He received a response from Mr Garrett on November 19 2009, a day after 16-year-old Rueben Barnes became the scheme's second fatality.

Marcus Wilson, 19, was killed installing insulation less than a week later, while Mitchell Sweeney, 22, was the last to die under the program on February 4, 2010.

Mr Richards said it was regrettable Masters Electricians didn't raise its concerns about foil sooner, although he doubted whether it would have done any good.

"From the ensuing events, I deem it highly unlikely we would have been heard or listened to until the events got serious," he said.

Foil was banned from the program on February 9, 2010, five days after Mr Sweeney died installing it.

The scheme was ultimately canned less than two weeks later amid allegations of fraud and unsafe work practices.

A royal commission has been investigating what warnings Labor received about the program and whether the men's deaths could have been avoided.

Former prime minister Kevin Rudd and then environment minister Peter Garrett have both accepted "ultimate responsibility" for the program, but said public servants failed to pass on serious safety warnings.

But bureaucrats have said horrendous deadlines denied them adequate time to consider safety risks.

Commissioner Ian Hanger, QC, has been granted an extension to consider large volumes of evidence, including 77,000 documents.

Mr Hanger now has until August 31 to produce his report.

He may recall witnesses if he intends to make adverse findings against them.

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Guard distressed after shooting bandit

A SECURITY guard who shot dead an armed bandit outside a Gold Coast tavern appears to have acted instinctively, police say.

Police have interviewed the 47-year-old guard but haven't laid charges against him after the fatal incident on Monday morning.

A 46-year-old Upper Coomera man was shot dead after ambushing the security guard about 7.40am on Monday morning.

The guard was delivering cash to the Highland Park Tavern when he was tackled by a man wearing a motorcycle helmet and carrying a 9mm pistol.

Police say the two men struggled and the security guard fired several shots.

The bandit suffered a number of gunshot wounds and was dead by the time officers arrived just before 8am.

The shooting forced the closure of nearby streets, and sent a child-care centre into lockdown.

The security guard suffered minor facial injuries during the struggle. He was the one who asked a passer-by to call the police.

Regional Crime Co-ordinator Detective Superintendent David Hutchinson said it appeared the licensed security guard had reacted instinctively when he was attacked.

"We all must understand that under that sort of situation he would have been acting instinctively and he may not recall exactly himself how things went down," he told reporters on Monday.

"It's certainly a traumatic situation for anyone and he's traumatised by it."

Police haven't said whether the victim fired any shots.

He is yet to be formally identified but police believe they know who he is.

Officers seized a vehicle found in a nearby street and are examining it.

Police are also appealing to witnesses to the shooting to come forward.

The death is expected to be investigated by Queensland's coroner.

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Colombia arrests bus driver after crash

COLOMBIAN authorities have arrested the driver of a bus that crashed and killed 31 children.

The youngsters burned to death on Sunday after the bus caught fire and exploded in the north of the South American country as they returned from church services.

Another 25 people including one adult were seriously burned in the blaze in Fundacion, a town in the department of Magdalena, according to the Red Cross.

"The driver has been arrested, he turned himself in to authorities and we expect him to explain himself at a hearing this morning," a local police spokesman said.

The driver had initially fled the scene, and angry locals went to his home and threw rocks at his windows.

Investigators are looking into a number of potential causes of the crash, which prompted President Manuel Santos to travel to the scene and offer his condolences.

Among the possibilities being explored is that the driver used contraband petrol to refuel the bus and that this may have led to the explosion.

Red Cross official Cesar Uruena said on Sunday the injured - taken to area hospitals - suffered second and third-degree burns, and many were in critical condition.

The children aboard the bus were between the ages of one and eight and returning home after a religious service, Fundacion Mayor Luz Stella Duran told reporters.

Magdalena police said the blast happened around noon and the fire was so intense they had problems determining the number of casualties.

Duran said survivors reported the bus driver had been handling a container with petrol aboard the vehicle. Police initially blamed the fire on a mechanical problem.

Santos travelled to Fundacion after a final re-election campaign rally Sunday in Bogota ahead of the May 25 presidential vote.

"The entire country is in mourning for the death of these children," he said upon arriving in Fundacion, accompanied by his wife.

Santos said the government would pay for all hospital and funeral expenses relating to the accident.

The bus, which was being used by an evangelical church group, caught fire one block away from the church where the children had earlier attended services.

The Red Cross said it was sending four psychologists and two volunteer specialists to help the wounded and the relatives of those killed.

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UK child abuse probe goes to Australia

THE UK's largest ever public inquiry into institutional child abuse is to travel to Australia to interview alleged victims transferred from Northern Ireland.

More than 100 children were removed from church-run residential homes in Northern Ireland, most to Western Australia after the war. An investigation chaired by retired judge Sir Anthony Hart is examining whether they were physically, sexually or emotionally harmed during their journey.

Lawyers and support staff are expected to pay their second visit to the antipodes next month ahead of public hearings in September, Sir Anthony said.

He added: "The inquiry will examine the operation of the child migrant scheme in the context of children from Northern Ireland institutions who were sent to Australia.

"Before that module can start, we have to complete our preparatory work for it and a major part of that involves a second team from the inquiry going from Northern Ireland to Australia to speak to those applicants who were not seen during last year's trip."

The treatment of children, orphaned or taken away from their unmarried mothers, in residential homes run by religious orders of nuns or brothers is a key concern of the investigation being held in Banbridge, Co Down. It is considering cases between 1922, the foundation of Northern Ireland, and 1995.

A panel chaired by Sir Anthony and established by Stormont's power-sharing devolved government has to decide whether children might have been physically or sexually abused or emotionally harmed through humiliation. It may also include simple neglect, not feeding or clothing people properly.

The Nazareth House Children's Home and St Joseph's Home, Termonbacca, were run by the Catholic Sisters of Nazareth nuns in Derry. Those allegedly abused there have been giving evidence since the start of the year. The religious order has already issued a public apology and a senior member is due to give evidence this afternoon.

Sir Anthony said he expected public hearings relating to those institutions to be concluded by early next month.

The inquiry has heard from 70 witnesses and more than 18,000 documents have been placed before it relating to this stage of its work alone. Inquiry staff had to consider a great many more documents than that to decide which were relevant.

A separate Acknowledgement Forum is running for those who do not want to give evidence in public and representatives from that body are also travelling to Australia.

Open oral testimony is due to finish in June 2015, with the inquiry team to report to the Executive by the start of 2016.

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Eastern Ukrainians rap Kiev in talks

Lawmakers and officials from eastern Ukraine have criticised the fledging central government. Source: AAP

LAWMAKERS and officials from eastern Ukraine have poured criticism on the fledging central government, accusing it of ignoring legitimate grievances of the regions which have been overrun by pro-Russia militia.

One eastern leader said last weekend's unofficial referendum in favour of independence "expressed the will of the people".

The criticism came in the second round of European-brokered talks intended to resolve the crisis in Ukraine.

The country's caretaker government came to power in February following the ouster of Kremlin-friendly President Viktor Yanukovych after months of protests in Kiev.

Moscow and many in Ukraine's east have accused the new government of intending to trample the rights of eastern Ukraine's Russian-speakers.

On Saturday, politicians from the east implored the government to believe that - apart from the pro-Russia gunmen - a large sector of the population had lost hope in the interim administration in Kiev.

The second round of talks followed hours after sustained gunfire was heard throughout the night near the eastern city of Slovyansk, the stronghold of pro-Russia fighters, after forces loyal to the Kiev government moved in to protect a television tower.

Separatists in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions held hastily arranged referenda last weekend and declared independence following the vote, which went in favour of sovereignty.

The round-table talks in the eastern city of Kharkiv did not feature any of the insurgents, whom Kiev describes as terrorists.

The insurgents say they are willing to discuss only the withdrawal of Ukrainian troops and the recognition of the independence of the regions.

"The referendum doesn't have any legal consequences," said Valery Holenko, chairman of the Luhansk regional government.

"But it has expressed the will of the people, which cannot be discounted. People genuinely went en masse to the referendum. This was a protest vote."

Holenko said the devolution of powers that the government is offering was no longer enough and that as a first step in appeasing eastern Ukrainians the government has to stop its "anti-terrorist operation" in the east.

Acting Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk, who was often busy with his iPad while some of the eastern lawmakers were making passionate speeches, called on the eastern leaders to resist the armed men and support the government's efforts to devolve powers to the regions.

"You have got in your home, in Luhansk and Donetsk, armed terrorists who are funded by Russians and those who fled Ukraine and want to seize our land," Yatsenyuk told the gathering.

"We're not going talk to robbers and terrorists. They will not be telling the Ukrainian people how to live in our country."

Yatsenyuk urged the eastern leaders to disarm the insurgents, "regain the power and start a political dialogue".

Reacting to calls to make Russian a second official language, Yatsenyuk said the government will support the equal status of Ukrainian and Russia in Russian-speaking regions but sees no need for other legal protection.

Reacting to the fighting overnight near Slovyansk, the Russian Foreign Ministry issued a statement condemning what it described as a sharp escalation of violence in eastern Ukraine, and accused Kiev of using the talks as cover for military operations against its citizens.

As on Wednesday, Saturday's talks included officials, lawmakers, business people and religious leaders from across the country, but no representatives of the separatists from Donetsk and Luhansk.

Oleksandr Bandurka, a Communist party lawmaker and police general from central Ukraine, said that these negotiations make no sense because "we're not talking to those who oppose us. We cannot ignore them".

Ukraine's first president, Leonid Kravchuk, who is chairing the talks, angrily reacted that "no one in the world talks to killers and terrorists. Putin doesn't talk to terrorists".

Russia has pushed for the federalisation of Ukraine, since that would allow Moscow to retain influence over areas in Ukraine dominated by Russian-speakers.

Many in western Ukraine and in the capital favour closer ties to Europe and fear being pulled back into Moscow's orbit.

Attempting to end the talks on a conciliatory note, Yatsenyuk quoted Ukrainian poet Taras Shevchenko and told the leaders from eastern Ukraine: "We are ready to embrace you and hope that you are too."

The next round of talks is expected on Wednesday in the central city of Cherkasy.

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Record floods lead to Bosnia landslides

floods triggering landslides and covering homes, have left hundreds of people homeless in Bosnia. Source: AAP

LANDSLIDES in Bosnia have left hundreds of people homeless, while thousands more have fled homes in neighbouring Croatia and Serbia as Balkan countries battle the worst flooding since modern records began.

Throughout hilly Bosnia, floods are triggering landslides covering roads, homes and whole villages. About 300 landslides have been reported, and stranded villagers often are being rescued by helicopter.

"The situation is catastrophic," Bosnia's refugee minister, Adil Osmanovic, said on Sunday.

Three months' worth of rain fell on the region in a three-day burst, creating the worst floods since rainfall measurements began 120 years ago.

Observed from the air, almost a third of Bosnia chiefly in the northeast resembles a huge muddy lake, with houses, roads and rail lines submerged.

Officials say about a million people - more than a quarter of the country's population - live in the worst-affected areas.

The hillside village of Horozovina, close to the northeastern town of Tuzla, was practically split in two by a landslide that swallowed eight houses. More than 100 others were also under threat.

"I am homeless. I have nothing left, not even a toothpick," said one resident, Mesan Ikanovic.

"I ran out of the house barefoot, carrying children in my arms."

Ikanovic said 10 minutes separated him and his family from likely death. He carried his seven-year-old daughter and four-year-old son to safety.

While water levels are receding in some parts of Bosnia, land flanking the Sava River remains submerged, and water levels there are still rising in many areas. Hundreds of people have been plucked by rescue helicopters from flooded towns and villages.

The mayor of Orasje made a special appeal for help. The town is caught between the Sava on one side and another flooding river, the Bosna, on the other.

More than 10,000 already have been rescued from the town of Bijeljina, in northeast Bosnia. Trucks, buses and private cars were heading north with volunteers and tonnes of aid collected by people in cities outside the disaster zone.

In Sarajevo, volunteers went from door to door collecting whatever people would donate.

The Bosnian Army said it was evacuating people with helicopters and has 1500 troops helping on the ground. But many roads remain closed by floods and hundreds of landslides. Bridges have been washed away and this has left many towns and villages completely depending on air lifts.

Helicopters from the European Union, Slovenia and Croatia also are aiding rescue efforts. They are deployed in areas around five cities in central and northeastern Bosnia where the situation is considered the most dangerous.

In the eastern sections of neighbouring Croatia, two people are missing and hundreds have fled their homes as the Sava River also breached flood barriers there. The overflowing river rolled over villages and farm land in the relatively flat terrain.

In Serbia, more than 20,000 people have been forced from their homes. Officials there feared more flooding later on Sunday as floodwaters travel down the Sava and reach the country.

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WA abuse victims to tell their stories

THE royal commission investigating child sex abuse in institutions will hold private sessions in the Kimberley region of Western Australia on Monday.

Officers from the commission will be in Broome and Kununurra to meet with people interested in sharing their story.

Royal Commission CEO Janette Dines says the visit will provide an important opportunity for people who were sexually abused as children in institutions to disclose their mistreatment.

"We strongly encourage all survivors who wish to share their story in private with a commissioner to make contact with the Royal Commission or a local support service," Ms Dines said.

She said more than 1500 private sessions have been held across Australia to date, including more than 160 in Western Australia.

"We are determined to ensure that regional and Aboriginal communities have a voice in this process, and we are working with local community organisations and support services to encourage survivors of child sexual abuse to tell their story to the Royal Commission."

Commissioners will also revisit the remote Kimberley from June 3 to hold further private sessions with victims.

They will run concurrent with a public hearing in Perth which is examining how a private school handled the case of a teacher who was molesting children for almost a decade.

*If you were sexually abused as a child while in the care of an Australian institution, you can tell your story to the Royal Commission by phoning 1800 099 340 or emailing contact@childabuseroyalcommission.gov.au

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Iran's Zarif says nuclear deal 'possible'

IRANIAN Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said Sunday that clinching a final nuclear deal with world powers is still "possible" despite a tough round of talks this week.

"Agreement is possible. But illusions need to go. Opportunity shouldn't be missed again like in 2005," Zarif said on Twitter, referring to Iran's long-stalled dispute with world powers over its disputed nuclear program.

Iran and six world powers ended a fourth round of nuclear talks in Vienna on Friday with "no tangible progress".

Britain, China, France, Russia, the United States and Germany - known as the P5+1 group - want Iran to radically scale back its nuclear activities, making any dash for an atomic bomb virtually impossible and easily detectable.

The parties want to clinch a deal by July 20, when a November interim deal expires, under which Iran froze certain activities in return for some relief from crippling Western sanctions.

In return for further concessions, the Islamic republic, which denies seeking an atomic weapon, wants the lifting of all United Nations and Western sanctions, which have caused major damage to its economy.

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Greek water referendum 'not sanctioned'

Some Greek mayors say they will hold a referendum on whether to privatise the Thessaloniki Water. Source: AAP

GREECE'S second largest city, and 10 of the other 13 municipalities comprising the Thessaloniki Metropolitan Area, will hold a "referendum" on whether to privatise the Thessaloniki Water Authority (EYATH), despite a government warning that it considers the vote to be illegal.

The first round of elections for municipal and provincial councils takes place on Sunday.

The municipalities and the head of the northern Greek province of Central Macedonia, a member of the ruling conservatives, oppose the sale of the water authority, which the government is committed to, as part of the fiscal reform program agreed upon with Greece's creditors, the European Commission, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund.

Interior Minister Yiannis Michelakis, in a circular, has warned the mayors that they could not set up polling booths inside the regular polling stations to hold their referendum.

A Thessaloniki prosecutor has also warned that using the official election rolls in the "referendum" is a crime punishable with prison.

The official response has angered the mayors, who have vowed to go ahead with the referendum anyway.

"We had informed the government six months ago (of the referendum) and we expected a response sanctioning it .. .the referendum will go ahead, whether they like it or not," Simos Daniilidis, mayor of the Thessaloniki suburb of Neapolis-Sykees and head of the Union of Thessaloniki County Municipalities, said.

Daniilidis added that the mayors will set up polling booths on the footpaths outside polling stations and use resident registers supplied by the municipalities.

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Swiss vote against raising minimum wage

SWISS voters have overwhelmingly rejected a proposal that would have introduced the world's highest minimum wage, early results from a referendum indicate.

About 77 per cent of voters cast ballots on Sunday against the measure that would have set an hourly minimum wage of 22 francs ($A27), Swiss broadcaster SRF projected.

The referendum was launched by left-wing parties and trade unions, which argued that such a salary was necessary for making a decent living in Switzerland, where the cost of living is among the highest in the world.

The government and employers associations had campaigned against the plan, warning that companies would shift operations to neighbouring countries and Switzerland's important tourism sector would suffer.

"This is a great success," said Hans-Ulrich Bigler, director of the Swiss trade association, told SRF.

"This is a clear endorsement by the people for the economy and the system to negotiate the wages between employer and employee."

Voters previously backed employers when they opted against extending annual paid holidays in 2012 and against capping manager salaries in 2013.

However, in another referendum last year, Swiss citizens supported a set of policies to stop what were perceived as excessive executive salaries.

In a separate referendum decision on Sunday, 54 per cent of voters narrowly rejected a government plan to modernise the air force by buying 22 Swedish Gripen jets.

Left-wing parties and groups had launched the referendum to stop the 3.1-billion-franc deal, arguing that the money would be better spent on education.

The gap between supporters and opponents of the Gripen deal narrowed in recent months, after a highjacking incident in February exposed the fact that existing Swiss fighter jets are only operational during office hours.

Conservative politicians had also pointed to the Ukraine crisis to make the point that Switzerland needed to be able to defend itself.

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