Royals freed after critical tweets

KUWAIT has released two members of the Al-Sabah ruling family after holding them for two days allegedly over tweets deemed critical of the government, they said on Twitter Saturday.

Sheikh Abdullah Salem Al-Sabah was released late on Friday, while Sheikh Nawaf Malek Al-Sabah was freed on Saturday afternoon.

"I asked them (police) to refer me to the public prosecution to defend myself from the horrifying accusations, but they insisted that I sign a pledge and they released me," late Friday, Sheikh Abdullah said on Twitter.

Sheikh Nawaf's lawyer Khaled al-Suwaifan said Saturday that his client was released but provided no details.

Sheikh Abdullah said he was questioned by the secret service police on accusations of insulting Emir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad Al-Sabah and instigating against the regime.

He is the grandson of the emir's half-brother, the late Sheikh Abdullah al-Ahmad Al-Sabah.

The two young royals have written tweets sympathetic to the Kuwaiti opposition, which has been organising protests against an amendment to the electoral law seen as a ploy to produce a pro-government parliament in a snap December 1 general election.

More than 150 protesters and 24 police have been injured in demonstrations since October 21 and the opposition plans another rally on Sunday.

Young royal Sheikh Meshaal al-Malek Al-Sabah was detained for a few days in July for expressing political views deemed offensive.

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Iraq cancels $4bn Russia arms deal

BAGHDAD has cancelled a $US4.2 billion ($4.05 billion) weapons package with Russia citing graft concerns, torpedoing a deal that would have made Moscow Iraq's biggest arms supplier after the US.

Cancellation of the deal, which had been announced when Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki led a delegation to Russia last month, is a setback for Moscow's attempts to firm up its slipping foothold in the Middle East and also throws into doubt efforts by Iraq to equip its armed forces.

"The deal was cancelled," Mr Maliki's spokesman Ali Mussawi said.

"When Maliki returned from his trip to Russia, he had some suspicions of corruption, so he decided to review the whole deal... There is an investigation going on, on this."

Mr Mussawi declined to say who specifically was being investigated, or if Iraq would begin new negotiations with Moscow.

He also did not say exactly when the final decision was made to stop the deal.

The Russian embassy in Baghdad was not available for comment.

Had the deal been finalised and implemented, it would have made Russia Baghdad's second-biggest arms supplier, after the United States.

Russian media said the deliveries covered 30 Mi-28 attack helicopters and 42 Pantsir-S1 surface-to-air missile systems.

Discussions were also said to be under way for Iraq's eventual acquisition of a large batch of MiG-29 fighters and helicopters, along with heavy weaponry.

The statement announcing the deals said they were secretly discussed as early as April and revisited again in July and August during visits to Russia by Iraqi delegations that included acting Defence Minister Saadun al-Dulaimi.

The war ripping apart Syria threatens to unseat Moscow's sole unwavering Arab ally, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, and has made it all the more crucial for Russia to forge other regional alliances.

Russia also lost an estimated $US4 billion ($3.86 billion) in outstanding contracts in the NATO-led Libya offensive that toppled Muammar Gaddafi, a one-time friend of the Kremlin, and Moscow has been seeking to find a way to compensate for the loss ever since.

Iraq, meanwhile, has sought to re-equip an army that, while regarded as a capable counter-insurgency force, lacks the ability to defend the country's borders, airspace or maritime territory, according to officials.

The deal with Russia was seen by diplomats in Baghdad as a way for Iraq to avoid becoming too dependent on American military equipment, and to hold more bargaining power in weapons negotiations with Washington, which remains Baghdad's biggest arms supplier by far.

It was also a short-term measure to boost Iraq's air defence capabilities in the years before a cadre of F-16 fighter jets are delivered by the United States.

"It is not a policy to go to Russia," Deputy National Security Adviser Safa Hussein said in an interview last month. "The backbone of our armaments is from the United States, but whenever it is required that we go with another country, we will go."

"The American programs were a little slow," he added. "We can't live with this gap in our defence capabilities for a long time, and the Americans understand this."

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Fears blight 'Malala Day' in schoolgirl's hometown

PAKISTAN marked "Malala Day" on a global day of support for the teenager shot by the Taliban for promoting girls' education, but in her home town security fears meant schoolmates could not honour her in public.

PTaliban hitmen shot Malala Yousafzai on her school bus a month ago in Mingora in Pakistan's northwestern Swat Valley, in a cold-blooded murder attempt for the "crime" of campaigning for girls' rights to go to school.

Miraculously the 15-year-old survived and her courage has won the hearts of millions around the world, prompting the UN to declare Saturday a "global day of action" for her.

People around the world are expected to hold vigils and demonstrations honouring Malala and calling for the 32 million girls worldwide who are denied education to be allowed to go to school.

Demonstrations backing Malala were held in Islamabad, Karachi, the eastern city of Lahore and Muzaffarabad in Pakistan-administered Kashmir and Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf saluted Malala's courage.

But in Mingora, the threat of further Taliban reprisals casts a fearful shadow, with students at Malala's Khushal Public School forced to honour her in private.

"We held a special prayer for Malala today in our school assembly and also lit candles,"  said school principal Mariam Khalid.

"We did not organise any open event because our school and its students still face a security threat."

Though their bid to kill Malala failed, the Taliban have said they will attack any woman who stands against them. Fears are so great that Ms Khalid said even speaking to the media could put students' lives in danger.

Two of Malala's friends were wounded in the attempt on her life and one, 16-year-old Kainaat Riaz, said she was still haunted by memories of the attack.

"I am still terrified. I still get tears in my eyes whenever I think of that incident. I saw Malala in the pool of blood in front of me with my eyes," she said.

Malala rose to prominence with a blog for the BBC charting life in Swat under the Taliban, whose bloody two-year reign of terror supposedly came to an end with an army operation in 2009.

Despite the dangers, some children in Mingora were determined to speak out and pledged to follow Malala's brave example.

"Malala is a good friend of mine. She is brave and has honour and whoever attacked her did a terrible thing," said Asma Khan, 12, a student in Saroosh Academy, close to Malala's school.

"After the attack on her and her injuries, we have now more courage to study and now we will fulfil her mission to spread education everywhere."

Khan's schoolmate Gul Para, 12, added: "Malala is the daughter of the nation and we are proud of her.

"She has stood by us and for our education up to now and now it is time that we should stand by her and complete her mission."

Nearly 100,000 people have signed an online petition calling for Malala to be nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize and on Friday UN special education envoy Gordon Brown handed a separate million-strong petition in support of Malala to Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari.

Islamabad on Friday also announced a UN-backed scheme to give poor families cash incentives to send their children to school in a bid to get three million more youngsters into education.

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Holocaust opera premiere in parliament

AN OPERA focusing on Nazi atrocities against children will premiere next year at an unusual venue - Austria's parliament.

An official involved in the staging says the opera will be performed for the first time at the parliament on Jan. 25, marking International Holocaust Remembrance Day.

Spiegelground. Dead Children Like Scattered Dolls, deals with the killings of hundreds of children considered genetically, intellectually or physically inferior by the Nazis by medical personnel of a Vienna psychiatric ward. It is composed by Peter Androsch.

The official spoke on condition of anonymity because she was not authoriSed to discuss the project ahead of a formal announcement.

Many Austrians were fervent Nazis but the country has made significant progress in dealing with its role in crimes committed under Hitler.

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Stalker kills woman on police tip-off

A MAN who stabbed his ex-girlfriend to death in Japan learned her new married name and where she lived from the police officers who arrested him for stalking her, media reported Friday.

Hideto Kozutsumi was held in Kanagawa prefecture, southwest of Tokyo, last year on charges of stalking and harassing Rie Miyoshi after he repeatedly threatened to kill her in a series of emails following the pair's split.

Kozutsumi could only email because Miyoshi had married another man, taking his name, and moved to a different city.

Police arrested Kozutsumi for the harassment - reading out an arrest warrant that included his former lover's new name and location.

He received a non-custodial sentence and began pursuing her again by email, but without making threats, reports said.

Miyoshi asked the police to re-arrest Kozutsumi, but officers said there was nothing they could do because harassment by email is not a crime in Japan.

Repeatedly sending faxes or harassing by constant telephone calls, however, is an offence, police noted.

Some time later, Kozutsumi sought out Miyoshi and stabbed her to death before hanging himself, reports said.

Broadcaster TBS quoted a police official saying that reading out the arrest warrant was the appropriate procedure but that "in retrospect, measures could have been taken not to disclose her details".
 

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European stocks, euro drop

EUROPEAN stock markets have slid and the euro has dropped against the dollar at the end of a week dominated by rising concern about the economic outlook for the United States and eurozone.

Sentiment took a fresh hit in indebted eurozone member Spain as the country's biggest airline Iberia announced plans to slash 4,500 jobs to keep the company alive.

London's FTSE 100 index of top companies on Friday fell 0.47 per cent to 5,776.11 points in midday deals, Frankfurt's DAX 30 dropped 0.96 per cent to 7,135.58 points and in Paris the CAC 40 lost 0.22 per cent to 3,400.20.

Madrid's IBEX 35 index shed 1.17 per cent to 7,534.60 points.

"European markets are soft over fears for the Greek austerity measures being pushed through and the imminent resolution of the US debt ceiling," said Alastair McCaig, market analyst at IG trading group.

In foreign exchange activity, the euro fell to $US1.2714 from $US1.2748 late in New York on Thursday.

Gold prices rose to $US1,737.22 an ounce from $US1,717 on Thursday as traders sought safety.

Barack Obama's re-election as US president this week has stoked concerns of political gridlock in Washington with a "fiscal cliff" approaching that could tip the country back into recession.

While Obama's victory over Mitt Romney removed uncertainty, traders have now turned their focus to the deep spending cuts and huge tax hikes that will come into force on January 1 if Republicans and Democrats do not reach a deal.

The package is a major threat to the economy after a protracted but possibly reckless compromise was reached last year - with the expectation a less painful plan could be agreed - to raise the country's borrowing cap.

If the automatic measures kick in, the United States' slow recovery from the financial crisis could be reversed and the nation tip back into recession, dealing a blow to the global economy.

"Markets remain nervous and understandably so with the US fiscal cliff looming on the far side on the Atlantic and this side, despite what the ECB president 'super' Mario (Draghi) says, the eurozone crisis continues to rumble on," said Capital Spreads analyst Angus Campbell.

Greek MPs on Wednesday adopted an 18.5 billion-euro ($A22.83 billion) package of cuts and labour reforms as tens of thousands of angry protesters massed outside parliament, some hurling petrol bombs at police firing tear gas.

The package is vital for eurozone member Greece to unlock a 31.5-billion-euro tranche of aid from its troika of international creditors - the European Union, International Monetary Fund and European Central Bank.

On the corporate front, meanwhile, shares in Iberia parent group IAG gained 1.43 per cent to 170.4 pence, as investors bet on a positive outlook for the company that also owns British Airways despite the troubles at its Spanish arm.

Diageo shares rose by 0.57 per cent to 1,799.17 pence after the British alcoholic drinks giant announced a deal for control of Indian whisky maker United Spirits to tap into India's growing number of middle class consumers.

In France, Credit Agricole shares fell by 6.89 per cent to 5.511 euros after the bank reported a big quarterly loss owing to exceptional items.

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Spain meets 2012 bond-selling target

SPAIN has met its 2012 bond sales target in an auction, strengthening the government's hand as it resists seeking an international bailout.

The Spanish Treasury raised 4.76 billion euros ($A5.88 billion) in a sale of three-, five- and 20-year bonds, the central bank reported on Thursday, taking the total value of medium- and long-term bonds sold this year to 86.46 billion euros.

This exceeded the government's target of 85.9 billion euros, the amount it sought to raise in bond issues to finance its operations throughout 2012.

Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy has kept world markets on edge as he ponders whether to trigger a eurozone rescue, in which the European Central Bank (ECB) would buy Spain's bonds to drive down Madrid's financing costs.

On Tuesday Rajoy had all but ruled out seeking a bailout in 2012 but vowed to do so if faced by persistently high borrowing costs.

"If we see that during a long period Spain is financing itself at very high prices then we would have to ask for it," the prime minister said but struck a confident note as the borrowing target was due to be met.

After months of market tension, Spanish borrowing costs had tumbled since the ECB outlined plans in September to buy an unlimited amount of stricken states' bonds if they submit to strict eurozone conditions first.

In Thursday's auction, the yield eased to 3.66 per cent on the three-year bonds from 3.676 per cent in the last comparable sale on September 6, and to 4.68 per cent on the five-year bonds from 4.766 per cent on July 19.

On the 20-year bonds, the yield was 6.328 per cent. In the last sale of bonds with the same 2032 maturity date, the rate was 4.541 per cent. That sale was in October 2010, before the worst of the eurozone debt crisis spread to Spain.

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European stocks rebound before rate calls

EUROPEAN stock markets have rebounded slightly, while the euro has fallen further, before regional monetary policy decisions and after indebted eurozone member Greece approved new austerity measures.

Gains were capped amid concern that the US economy was facing another huge economic crisis as President Barack Obama's re-election raised the spectre of another bitter stand-off in Washington.

London's FTSE 100 index of top companies on Thursday rose 0.23 per cent to 5,805.43 points in late morning deals, Frankfurt's DAX 30 added 0.51 per cent to 7,270.01 points and in Paris the CAC 40 gained 0.41 per cent to 3,423.61.

"European eyes will watch interest-rate decisions at lunchtime from the Bank of England and the ECB," said from IG trader Will Hedden.

"We aren't expecting any changes, but will be closely watching the following press conference ... for more of (ECB President) Mario Draghi's wisdom, after he pointed the spotlight on Germany yesterday as the crisis starts to hit data releases from the backbone of the EU."

In foreign exchange activity, the euro fell to $US1.2745 from $US1.2767 late in New York on Wednesday.

Gold prices dipped to $US1,715 an ounce from $US1,715.25 on Wednesday, when Greek MPs approved huge cutbacks creditors had demanded to unlock aid needed to save the country from bankruptcy.

The bill for budgets cuts amounting to 18.5 billion-euro ($A22.86 billion) won a narrow majority even as thousands of anti-austerity protesters massed around parliament in Athens.

The tough measures to be implemented by 2016, include raising the retirement age to 67, slashing benefits and cutting the minimum wage.

The package is necessary for Greece to unlock a 31.5-billion-euro tranche of aid from its troika of international creditors - the European Union, International Monetary Fund and European Central Bank.

"Despite violent protests marking the austerity vote in Greece, its approval was welcomed by markets," said Gekko Global Markets trader Anita Paluch.

"Shares performance was also strongly supported by robust earnings reports, with (German engineering giant) Siemens lifting the DAX after beating market expectations and announcing plans to raise profit margins.

"As the economic landscape remains fragile, the focus shifts to Spain, which is yet to decide if it is going to ask for an official bailout that would allow the ECB start to buy Spanish debt."

On the corporate front shares in Siemens jumped 3.79 per cent to 81.84 euros, while Commerzbank slid 3.58 per cent to 1.45 euros after Germany's second-biggest bank's return to profit in the third quarter fell short of analyst expectations.

In Paris trading, European aerospace group EADS shed 4.06 per cent to 26.12 euros after the owner of planemaker Airbus reported flat profits for the third quarter.

Britain's second-biggest insurer Aviva climbed 0.26 per cent to 329.37 pence as the company announced a drop in sales and confirmed it was in talks to sell its US business.

All eyes were firmly fixed on Washington after Obama's sweeping win over Republican challenger Mitt Romney in the United States on Tuesday, despite a dragging economy and the stifling unemployment that haunted his first term.

Investors around the world were concerned that a deeply divided congress would not be able to reach an agreement to avoid a so-called fiscal cliff at the end of the year that many say would send the United States back into recession.

The fiscal cliff refers to a combination of deep spending cuts and huge tax hikes due to take effect on January 1.

The package is a major threat to the economy after a protracted but possibly reckless compromise was agreed last year between Democrats and Republicans in order to raise the country's borrowing cap.

If it kicks in, the United States' slow recovery from the financial crisis could be reversed and the economy tip back into recession, which would in turn deal a major blow to the global economy.

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Defiant Assad refuses to leave Syria

SYRIAN President Bashar al-Assad has vowed to "live and die" in Syria, saying in an interview he will never flee his country despite the bloody, 19-month-old uprising against him.

The broadcast comes two days after British Prime Minister David Cameron suggested Assad could be allowed safe passage out of the country if that would guarantee an end to the nation's civil war, which activists estimate has killed more than 36,000 people.

Assad struck a defiant tone in the interview with the English-language Russia Today TV, broadcast on Thursday.

"I am not a puppet, I was not made by the West for me to go to the West or any other country," Assad, 47, said. He spoke in English and excerpts of the interview were posted on the TV station's website with an Arabic voiceover.

Assad also warned against foreign military intervention.

"I don't think the West is headed in this direction, but if it does, nobody can predict the consequences," he told the station. The full interview will be broadcast on Friday, the TV station said.

In the excerpts, the Syrian president is seen casually talking and later walking with RT's reporter outside a house, wearing a grey suit and tie. It was not clear where the interview took place.

The uprising against Assad's regime began as mostly peaceful protests in March last year but quickly morphed into a civil war. The fighting has taken on grim sectarian tones, with the predominantly Sunni rebels fighting government forces.

Assad's regime is dominated by Alawites, an offshoot of Shi'ite Islam.

On Wednesday, Britain called on the US to do more to shape the Syrian opposition into a coherent force, saying the re-election of US President Barack Obama is an opportunity for the world to take stronger action to end the deadlocked civil war.

Russia has remained one of Syria's most loyal and powerful allies, shielding Damascus from strong international action at the UN Security Council.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Moscow would not support any resolution that would threaten the Syrian regime with sanctions, in remarks posted on his ministry's website on Thursday.

He criticised the West for supporting the opposition, saying foreign powers should try to force both sides to stop fighting.

"If their priority is, figuratively speaking, Assad's head, the supporters of such approach must realise that the price for that will be lives of the Syrians, not their own lives," Lavrov said. "Bashar Assad isn't going anywhere and will never leave, no matter what they say. He can't be persuaded to take that step."

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Victims trapped as Ghana mall collapses

A SIX-STOREY shopping mall has collapsed in the Ghanaian capital Accra and an unknown number of victims are feared trapped in the rubble, witnesses and an AFP correspondent say.

"I was very close to the mall because I was going to buy something only for me to see the building coming down," witness Ama Okyere told AFP.

"I had to run for my life. I was so terrified. I believe there are lots of people trapped under this because this is a heavily patronised shoping mall in the area."

The AFP correspondent witnessed two people being brought out of the rubble alive, with rescue workers arriving at the scene.

Officials have not commented so far and the cause of the collapse of the Melcom shopping centre was not immediately clear.

"I was on my way to school and all of a sudden heard a big bang and people shouting, only for me to see that the shopping mall has collapsed," said another witness, John Owusu.

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Drive-by shooting narrowly misses girl

A BULLET fired into a house in Melbourne's north has narrowly missed a young girl who was watching television.

Hume Crime Investigation Unit detectives say the shot fired into the Broadmeadows house passed through the front window, continued on through the television and into another wall, missing the 10-year-old girl by about 50 centimetres.

She was at home with her family in Waranga Crescent when the drive-by shooting occurred about 6.30pm (AEST) on Wednesday.

Investigators would like to hear from anyone who may have seen a white utility in the area at the time.

It was the second drive-by shooting in Melbourne's north this week.

On Monday night, gunshots were fired from a car at a Roxburgh Park house on Thames Way around 11.15pm.

The two people at home at the time were not injured.

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PM rules out meeting with Iran Ahmadinejad

PRIME Minister Julia Gillard has condemned Iran over its threats against Israel, while also reiterating support for tough sanctions aimed curbing the country's nuclear ambitions.

The prime minister arrived in Bali on Wednesday afternoon ahead of a summit of world leaders aimed at promoting democracy.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad will also attend the two-day summit, which starts on Thursday.

But Ms Gillard has ruled out meeting Mr Ahmadinejad to pass on her concerns, saying Australia's position on Iran was well known.

"Clearly I will not be meeting with the president of Iran," she told reporters in Bali.

"We, through our embassy and more generally, make clear our views about the conduct of Iran, particularly their conduct ... in relation to nuclear material.

"We've made very clear our attitude in relation to that conduct. We're engaged in sanctions, as is the world on Iran and we've also made very clear our disgust at the statements made threatening the people of Israel."

The comments come after Ms Gillard reinforced Australia's position that it supports "strong sanctions" against Iran during talks with French President Francois Hollande in Vientiane on Monday.

Ms Gillard told Mr Hollande that Australia had "consistently expressed its strong concerns" about Iran's nuclear program and its failure to abide by its Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty and International Atomic Energy Agency obligations.

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European stocks climb ahead of US polls

EUROPE'S main stock markets have advanced in cautious deals as investors awaited the outcome of the US presidential election and digested news of bumper profits from carmaker BMW.

Markets on Tuesday held on to their gains despite a downbeat survey which showed that private sector business activity across the eurozone shrank at its fastest rate in three-and-a-half years in October.

London's FTSE 100 index of major blue-chip companies won 0.53 per cent to 5,870.32 points in late morning deals, Frankfurt's DAX 30 added 0.70 per cent to 7,377.19 points and in Paris the CAC 40 gained 0.73 per cent to 3,474.10.

In foreign exchange activity, the euro sank to $US1.2764 - the lowest level since September 11 - weighed down by concerns over debt-plagued Greece, and as the dollar attracted safe-haven demand amid US election uncertainty.

The European single currency later stood at $US1.2797, up from $US1.2791 late in New York on Monday. Gold prices rose to $US1,690.57 an ounce on the London Bullion Market from $US1,683.50 Monday.

US polling stations opened on Tuesday, with Democratic incumbent Barack Obama and Republican challenger Mitt Romney neck-and-neck, leaving markets trading in a narrow band as investors held off making any bets until the outcome is known.

"Stock markets are higher in Europe this morning, but there is an element of caution ahead of the presidential election tonight," said analyst Craig Erlam at trading group Alpari UK.

"There is still nothing in it between the two parties, which is only building on the uncertainty we're currently seeing in the markets.

"One thing does look certain now and that is no matter which candidate wins, the parties are going to have to come to some agreement on how to overcome the fiscal cliff."

Warnings are mounting about the dangers of the US fiscal cliff - a mandated sharp cut in government spending and the end to a package of tax breaks expected to suck half a trillion dollars out of the economy next year.

IMF chief Christine Lagarde on Monday urged the United States to "address quickly" the budget mess facing the government, no matter who wins the election.

"Equities are marginally higher this morning as investors follow the US election," said Mike McCudden, head of derivatives at online stockbroker Interactive Investor.

"Regardless of the US election outcome, resolving the 'fiscal cliff' situation will dominate the agenda in the weeks ahead, with the ensuing volatility forcing many investors on to the sidelines."

US polls opened at 6am (2200 AEDT) in battleground states New Hampshire and Virginia, as well as New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine and Vermont.

Back in Europe, investors set aside news of shrinking eurozone private sector business activity to focus on healthy earnings from German luxury carmaker BMW.

The carmaker said its net profit jumped 16 per cent to 1.289 billion euros ($A1.60 billion) in the three months from July to September, while revenues soared 13.7 per cent to 18.817 billion euros.

BMW also stuck to its forecast for record sales and earnings this year.

Asian stock markets closed mixed on Tuesday as investors also awaited the start of this week's Communist Party's 18th congress, which will see a once-in-a-decade leadership transition in China.

Hong Kong slipped 0.28 per cent, Shanghai shed 0.38 per cent and Tokyo softened 0.36 per cent, while Seoul rose 1.05 per cent and Sydney closed 0.24-per cent higher.

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'Police planted weapons on slain miners'

SOUTH African police may have altered the scene and planted weapons after they shot dead 34 striking miners near Lonmin's Marikana mines in August, according to photographic evidence presented at a commission of inquiry into the killings.

Photographs taken by police at night show more weapons by the dead bodies than there were in photographs taken immediately after the violence on August 16.

Thousands of miners had gathered at hills in Marikana about 94 kilometres northwest of Johannesburg where 34 miners were shot dead by police and 78 wounded in the worst state violence since the end of apartheid in 1994.

South Africa is conducting a commission of inquiry to look into the parties responsible for 46 deaths, including two policemen, during nearly six weeks of strikes at the Lonmin Marikana mines.

Video evidence shown on Monday also indicated that some of the slain miners may have been handcuffed.

National police commissioner Riah Phiyega said that the commission has launched an investigation into the discrepancies. She said she was presented with evidence that may have suggested one of the crime scenes had been tampered with nearly two weeks ago.

Human rights lawyer George Bizos said the evidence presented at the inquiry clearly indicates an attempt was made to alter the scene.

"The evidence clearly showed there is at least a strong prima facie case that there has been an attempt to defeat the ends of justice," he said. Bizos, who is representing the Legal Resources Centre and Bench Marks Foundation during the inquiry, called on senior police officers in charge of the scene to present evidence.

Crime scene expert Capt. Apollo Mohlaki, who took the night photographs, was questioned during the inquiry Monday. He admitted his photographs showed more weapons around the bodies than those taken earlier, according to the South Africa Press Association. In one set of photos, a man's mangled dead body lies alone in the daylight, and in a picture taken by electric light after dark, there is a panga (machete) placed under the man's hand.

Mohlaki said he saw the weapon under the man's arm in the photograph he took, but when looking at the day photograph of the same body he said of the weapon: "It is not appearing, I don't see it."

Dali Mpofu, the lawyer for the Lonmin miners, entered a video as evidence that showed miners that seemed to be handcuffed. When asked if he saw if any of the dead miners' hands had been bound, Mohlaki said he had not.

"If I am looking at the video there is a person, handcuffed possibly, but on the day I did not observe that," Mohlaki said.

The representative for the police, Ishmael Semenya, had suggested the week before that the integrity of the crime scene could have been compromised by the presence of paramedics, according to SAPA.

"We will hear evidence that paramedics asked that weapons be removed so they could do their work," said Semenya.

The inquiry began last month and is expected to continue for four months, investigating the roles played by police, miners, unions and Lonmin in the August deaths.

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Choppers fight bushfire near houses

WATER-bombing helicopters joined the battle against bushfires in Brisbane's southwest on Tuesday, dumping thousands of litres of water to douse flames that neared fence lines.

Senior firefighters estimated the fire ripped through 50 acres of bushland bordering Brookside Street at Doolandella, blanketing the suburb in thick haze and the stench of smouldering ash.

Fire crews rushed to the scene shortly after midday Tuesday and were able to contain the blaze by late afternoon, with three crews remaining on site tonight to dampen hotspots.

Inspector Arthur Torrance, from the Mt Gravatt QFRS command, said at the height of the fire there were 10 crews on scene.

Two water-bombing helicopters also flew overhead, dropping water in between refuelling at Archerfield base.

He said wind gusts had fanned the blaze. He praised the quick actions of firefighters in conducting back-burning operations to prevent homes being under threat.

Shai-An Shahidee, 42, watched anxiously with his three-year-old daughter as flames "seven or eight metres high'' raged just five metres from his Fred Pham Ct backyard.

He sprang into action, frantically gathering his family's essential belongings in a suitcase in case they had to flee their new home abruptly.

"I was really, really afraid because I could see the fire from my house,'' Mr Shahidee said.

"I packed all of my papers, my certificates, my passport, basically everything was in my car ready to go.

"I knew I had to do something myself because I have experienced previous loss last year...I was affected by the flood in Goodna, where I lost everything... and I didn't want that to happen again.''

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Swiss team prepares for Arafat exhumation

A SWISS laboratory team has arrived in the West Bank city of Ramallah to prepare for the exhumation of former Palestinian president Yasser Arafat, Palestinian sources said on Monday.

The team, along with French investigators, is expected to participate in Arafat's exhumation on November 26, as part of a new investigation into the circumstances of the late leader's 2004 death.

The delegation from the Institute of Radiation Physics at Switzerland's University of Lausanne arrived on Monday, Palestinian sources said, adding that they met with Palestinian health minister Hani Abdeen and justice minister Ali Mhanna.

The team also held talks with Tawfiq Tirawi, head of the Palestinian commission that investigated Arafat's death, "to discuss next steps" and visited the Ramallah mausoleum that houses Arafat's grave.

Arafat died in a French military hospital near Paris on November 11, 2004 and French experts were unable to say what had killed him, with many Palestinians convinced he was poisoned by Israel.

French prosecutors opened a murder inquiry into his death in August after Al-Jazeera television broadcast an investigation in which Swiss experts said they had found high levels of radioactive polonium on Arafat's personal effects.

Polonium is a highly toxic substance rarely found outside military and scientific circles.

It was used to kill former Russian spy turned Kremlin critic Alexander Litvinenko, who died in 2006 in London shortly after drinking tea laced with the poison.

Last month, Palestinian sources told AFP that French investigators and a team from the Swiss lab would exhume Arafat's body on November 26.

"The Palestinian Authority will provide these teams with every facility in order to determine the circumstances of the death of president Yasser Arafat," the source said.

20.08 | 0 komentar | Read More

G20 action needed, not just planning: Swan

EDS: Not for use before 0001 AEST on Tuesday, November 6.

By Colin Brinsden, AAP Economics Correspondent

CANBERRA, Nov 6 AAP - Treasurer Wayne Swan says the Group of 20 major economies have spent too much time on discussing crisis management and not enough on action to lift growth four years on from the depths of the global financial crisis.

In an address to the G20 Finance Ministers' meeting in Mexico City on Monday, Mr Swan said actions by central banks have helped to stabilise markets and opened the window for governments to undertake decisive reforms to reduce the risk of falling back into crisis.

"But without political action, the markets will slam it closed, as we have all seen too many times before," Mr Swan said, according to a copy of his speech obtained by AAP.

He said it was disappointing that the group was still crisis managing.

"The few of us still here who sat around the G20 in the darkest days of 2008 could not have predicted that more than four years later we would be here still talking about stability mechanisms and further unconventional action by central banks," he said.

"We have spent far too much time in the subsequent four years discussing how to deal with the risks to growth and not enough time taking action to lift growth."

He said whoever won this week's US presidential election must deal urgently with the so-called "fiscal cliff" - the end of tax cuts and the adoption of severe spending cuts at the turn of the year - or risk seeing the US economy plunge back into recession.

He said it was also important that China's new leadership after this week's 18th national congress continued to deliver reforms to shift the Chinese economy towards consumption-led growth.

Mr Swan noted European policymakers were constrained by having to address significant levels of debt over the medium to long term, so they need to develop credible and effective fiscal pathways.

The US and Japan also needed credible long-term fiscal plans to address their very high debt levels, he said.

"To maintain market confidence and to support jobs growth, you need to demonstrate policies are in place which will deal with long-term fiscal pressures," he said.

"You don't need to slash and burn now to deliver sound fiscal outcomes in the medium term. Structural saves start small but grow over time, helping to deliver credible and sustainable fiscal policy."

20.07 | 0 komentar | Read More

Nigeria gunmen burn police station, school

GUNMEN with explosives are said to have attacked a police station, a primary school and two mobile phone towers in a town in Nigeria's restive northeast and set them ablaze.

"We heard that there were some attacks in Fika by suspected Boko Haram terrorists. They attacked two telecommunication masts, a police station and a primary school," Lazarus Eli, military spokesman in Yobe State, said on Sunday.

A resident said he had seen the bodies of two policemen being brought out of the razed police station but Eli said he could not immediately confirm whether there were casualties.

Eli said troops had deployed to the town to contain the violence. Fika is 170 kilometres from Damaturu, the capital of Yobe State and a hotbed of Islamist extremist group Boko Haram.

Residents said the gunmen attacked their targets with explosives at around 4.30am.

"They threw explosives and fired gunshots at their targets, setting them ablaze and fled after the attack," Tanimu Mani told AFP.

"Soldiers who arrived in the town went inside the burnt police station and brought out the bodies of two policemen killed in the attack," he said.

Another resident, Hassan Gaji, a student, said he had heard blasts and gunshots during his early morning prayers.

"They were shooting seriously for about one hour," he said, adding that the town had been taken over by police and soldiers.

Violence linked to the Boko Haram insurgency is believed to have left more than 2800 people dead since 2009, including killings by the security forces.

Nigeria, Africa's most populous nation and largest oil producer, is divided between a mainly Muslim north and predominantly Christian south.

20.08 | 0 komentar | Read More

Newspaper discloses new Cameron texts

A BRITISH lawmaker says he's asked the country's media ethics inquiry to consider newly disclosed text messages sent between Prime Minister David Cameron and Rebekah Brooks, the ex-chief executive of Rupert Murdoch's British newspaper division.

The Mail on Sunday has published two previously undisclosed messages exchanged between the pair, who are friends and neighbours.

Brooks is facing trial on conspiracy charges linked to Britain's phone hacking scandal, which saw Murdoch close down The News of The World tabloid.

In one newly disclosed message, Cameron thanked Brooks in 2009 for allowing him to borrow a horse, joking it was "fast, unpredictable and hard to control but fun".

Opposition lawmaker Chris Bryant has asked a judge-led inquiry scrutinising ties between the press and the powerful to examine the messages.

20.08 | 0 komentar | Read More

UK soldier 'stabbed dead by tourists'

A British soldier has died after being stabbed while on a night out in Cyprus. Source: AFP

A TEENAGE British soldier has been stabbed to death during a night club confrontation with a group of British tourists in the holiday resort of Ayia Napa in Cyprus.

The name of the soldier stationed on the island at Dhekelia garrison has not been released.

Three British tourists were arrested and are expected to appear before a Famagusta district court for remand order tomorrow, police said.

"Today at around 3.30 am while a group of British soldiers from Dhekelia garrison were enjoying themselves at a club in Ayia Napa they had a confrontation with three of their compatriots," said police spokesman George Economou.

"During the confrontation one of the three drew what is believed to be a knife injuring the 19-year-old soldier in the chest," he added.

He was pronounced dead on arrival at Famagusta General Hospital in nearby Paralimni.

Mr Economou said a knife was recovered at the scene of the crime and it will undergo forensic tests.

British Bases spokeswoman Connie Pierce said: "We can confirm there was a stabbing incident in Ayia Napa and as a result there was a death of a soldier from the 2nd Battalion Royal Regiment of Fusiliers."

She said the incident happened in an area - Ayia Napa square - that is out of bounds to British soldiers because of previous incidents there.

Ayia Napa is the island's most popular resort among younger holidaymakers especially British tourists attracted by the buzzing nightlife.

Around 9000 British troops and their dependants are stationed on Cyprus as Britain retained two large strategic sovereign base areas after the island gained independence from colonial rule in 1960.
 

20.08 | 0 komentar | Read More