Minggu, 08 Februari 2009

Iran's Khatami to run for office

Iran's former president Mohammad Khatami has ended months of speculation by announcing that he will run in June's presidential election.

Mr Khatami was president of Iran from 1997-2005 and was succeeded by Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, a conservative.

Mohammad Khatami at a meeting in Tehran, 3 February
Calls had been mounting for Mr Khatami to put forward his name

"I will seriously take part as a candidate for the election," he told a meeting of a pro-reform group.

In January, a close aide to Mr Ahmadinejad said the incumbent would, as expected, stand for re-election.

Mr Khatami, the most liberal president since the revolution, should have a good chance of unseating Mr Ahmadinejad, arguably the most conservative leader in that time, says the BBC's Jon Leyne, in Tehran.

However, he will face tough opposition from hardliners in the clergy and military, our correspondent adds.

Mr Khatami urged a free election, saying the fate of the Islamic Revolution was at stake.

"Is it possible to remain indifferent toward the revolution's fate and shy away from running in the elections?" he asked at a news conference in Tehran.

"I consider this as a right to run in this stage. This candidacy doesn't deprive others and the path is open. What should be stressed is that the elections must be held freely."

'Desire for change'

It should prove an intriguing contest in June, our correspondent says.

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in Tehran, 1 February
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has been a controversial figure

In this 30th anniversary year of the revolution, it will give Iranians a stark choice over the future of the Islamic Republic.

One other obstacle for Mr Khatami, Jon Leyne adds, is that his old supporters were disillusioned by his failure to push through more changes when he was in power.

Therefore, the challenge will be persuading them to go out and vote.

Mohammad Ali Abtahi, a close aide of Mr Khatami, warned that the results of elections in Iran were always of "serious concern" - an apparent reference to vote-rigging.

"But if the voter participation is high, we can easily win the election," he told AFP news agency.

UN hails Iraq election results

The UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, has made a surprise visit to Iraq to congratulate voters there on the outcome of nationwide local elections.

After talks with political leaders in Baghdad, Mr Ban said the vote showed how far Iraq had come.

However, he said there was still a long way to go before Iraqis could claim to have "genuine freedom and security".

UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon
The UN chief said progress had been made but there was further to go

Allies of Prime Minister Nouri Maliki swept to victory in Baghdad and key provinces in last Saturday's poll.

The United Nations played a key role in organising the elections - seen as a test of stability before a general election, due later this year.

The BBC's Jim Muir, in Baghdad, says that like everyone else, the UN is relieved that both the polling day itself and the announcement of the results passed off with virtually no violence at all.

Celebratory mood

Election commission preliminary results announced on Thursday showed Mr Maliki's State of Law coalition had made spectacular gains in southern Shia areas.

Poster of Prime Minister Nouri Maliki in Baghdad, Iraq, on 5/2/09
PM Maliki's coalition won by huge margins in Baghdad and Basra

The coalition won 38% of votes in Baghdad and 37% in Iraq's second city Basra - curbing the previous dominance of rival Shia parties.

Meanwhile, the once-dominant Sunni Arabs regained political power in other parts of the country - having boycotted the 2005 election.

There were fears of violence in the mainly Sunni flashpoint province of al-Anbar, where tribal leaders had threatened to take up arms over the result.

In the event, they came in just half a percentage point behind another Sunni party to which they are allied.

Mr Ban was expected to hold talks with Mr Maliki as well as Iraqi President Jalal Talabani while in Baghdad.

He will "reiterate the UN's commitment to the country", and "above all congratulate the Iraqi people on the success of largely violence-free elections", UN spokesman Said Arikat told the AFP news agency.

The election was an extraordinary achievement in a country that has been wracked by violence for the last nearly six years, our correspondent says.

Healthy and peaceful political competition, and change through the ballot box, have become the name of the game, he adds.

Just over half of Iraqis voted in Saturday's election, lower than some had predicted.

Final results are not expected to be known for weeks.

Gaza activist detained in Egypt

A German-Egyptian activist has been detained north of Cairo during a rally in support of Palestinians in Gaza.

Philip Rizk has been an outspoken activist on Palestinian issues and lived in Gaza for two years.

He previously worked on aid projects with Canon Andrew White, special envoy to the Middle East for the Archbishop of Canterbury.


Map of Egypt

Eyewitnesses said he was bundled into a white van with no licence plates, which then sped off.

The German embassy has been informed of his detention and is trying to locate him.

His family say they have been tipped off that he is now being held by Egyptian secret police at an undisclosed location.

Over the weekend a delegation of lawyers and activists filed charges with the public prosecutor's office, relating to his kidnapping by three state security officers.

Mr Rizk writes a popular blog, "Tabula Gaza", and has just completed a short documentary about non-violent protest against Israeli operations in the Gaza Strip.

It is not known why he would be of special interest, though in past weeks a number of bloggers and activists from the Muslim Brotherhood - who campaigned for the re-opening of the Rafah crossing between Egypt and Gaza - have been formally charged with "forming a criminal group belonging to Hamas".

One of those arrested was Gamal Abdel Salam, who heads the Egyptian Doctors' Syndicate Relief Committee, which organised a number of convoys to the Gaza Strip.

Chancellor warns RBS over bonuses

Chancellor Alistair Darling has told RBS failure should not be rewarded with huge bonuses, but says he cannot rule out pay-outs for some staff.

He told BBC One's Andrew Marr Show that "no figure has been agreed on" but said he had told RBS no-one associated with the losses should be rewarded.

This comes as reports put the potential total bonus figure at up to £1bn for the company's 177,000 staff.

Royal Bank of Scotland's London office
RBS's plans for bosses' bonuses are in the spotlight
The Treasury has ordered an inquiry into bank management generally.

The review will be led by former City regulator Sir David Walker.

A former executive director of the Bank of England and former chairman of the Securities and Investments Board, he is now a senior adviser at Morgan Stanley International.

Sir David's preliminary conclusions are not due until the autumn and final recommendations by the end of the year.

But the timescale fuelled complaints from opposition parties that the government response was too slow.

Shadow chancellor George Osborne said the response was "inadequate" and the review would come "far too late" to do anything about this year's bonuses.

Lib Dem treasury spokesman Vince Cable said: "Instead of dealing decisively with the problem, as President Obama, the Swiss and others have done, the government is clearly playing for time in order to avoid doing anything to upset the bankers."

The independent investigation will also look at the pay and bonuses of top executives in the industry.

"The chancellor feels he has the right to limit bonuses and set conditions on pay at any bank propped up by us, by taxpayers, which broadly includes all British banks, since they've all received exceptional loans and guarantees from taxpayers over the past few months," said BBC business editor Robert Peston.

'Absolute minimum'

The scale of the reported pay-out at RBS has caused an outcry, after the bank had to be taken into 68% public ownership at a cost of £20bn in taxpayer money.

The debate comes as "the public mood against huge bonuses is intensifying", says BBC business correspondent Joe Lynam.

But he said banks were looking to pay a "mere fraction" of last year's bonuses.

RBS has experienced a year of turmoil, and has already flagged up that it will post a huge loss for the past 12 months.

In January RBS said it was heading for a record loss, and expected to report a deficit before write-downs of between £7bn and £8bn for 2008.

"I have spoken to the chief executive of RBS, and made it quite clear - and he agrees - that no-one associated with these huge losses should be allowed to walk away with large cash bonuses," Mr Darling told the BBC programme.

But he added: "Obviously there are contractual problems with some staff. And... if you look at your average teller, they're not terribly well paid, and no-one would quarrel with making sure they are properly rewarded."

He said that in the past a bonus was a reward for hard work or extra effort, but was now seen as a right by bankers.

He insisted that "absolutely no figure has been agreed" with RBS, adding that the bank wanted "to make sure they cut down these payments to the absolute minimum they have to."

"They have to understand that these banks would not be here but for the British taxpayers, therefore they have to show the degree of restraint that people would expect."

'Burst'

Shadow chancellor George Osborne told the Andrew Marr Show: "The party is over for the banks.

"For senior management, cash bonuses at a time like this for people who have been involved in the higher echelons of a bank is simply unacceptable."

Mr Osborne added that there had to be a new economic model, and that "the bankers and indeed the government have to understand you can't just reflate the balloon that burst".

Referring to the Treasury inquiry, he also questioned the need for "yet another review".

Liberal Democrat party leader Nick Clegg told the BBC's Politics Show: "You don't need a review to answer the simple question: should senior bankers receive bonuses? The answer is no."

RBS confirmed it was talking to the government about bonuses but declined to comment on any specific numbers, adding that it had contractual obligations to many executives but was trying to do the right thing at the same time.

The bank has said that any bonuses will be dramatically reduced and there will be "no reward for failure in those bits of its business where the losses were concentrated".

Incentives

Meanwhile, former deputy prime minister John Prescott, who runs an online grassroots banking campaign, said: "We are all [RBS] shareholders now and the shareholders demand you give up the bonus."

One of the key issues that will be examined in the Treasury review is the extent to which financial incentives encourage bankers to take risks.

Mr Darling said that it would be wrong to reward people whose excessive risk-taking brought the banks down.

Angela Knight, chief executive of the British Bankers' Association, said the size of bonuses was likely to come down in future.

"They have seemed very high," she said. "What I will say is that I don't think you'll see those again."

She added: "Looking at very detailed as well as general changes to remuneration structures is something that the banks are already doing."

Last week US President Barack Obama announced a $500,000 (£355,000) limit on executive pay at US firms that needed substantial fresh government aid.

The move follows widespread public anger over the levels of pay on Wall Street, but is not expected to be applied retrospectively.


Russia 'positive' on US approach

Russian Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov has welcomed the US promise to "press the reset button" in their relationship as a "very positive" move.

He met US Vice-President Joe Biden at a security conference in Munich, a day after Mr Biden made the comment in a speech about US foreign policy.

US Vice-President Joe Biden and Russian Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov in Munich
Joe Biden met Sergei Ivanov on the fringes of a security forum

Mr Biden had spoken of a dangerous drift in Russia-Nato relations.

The meeting is the highest-level talks between US and Russia since Barack Obama became US president in January.

"The US administration sent a very strong signal, which was heard, the signal that they are ready to resume US-Russian dialogue, to talk on all issues," Mr Ivanov said.

But he added: "It does not mean that we should agree on each and every issue, that is clear to both parties."

Working together

Mr Biden, in his keynote speech, had said it was time to revisit the many areas where Nato could and should be working with Russia.

Underlining his warning that there would be disagreements, Mr Biden said it was up to the former Soviet territory of Georgia to decide if it wanted to join Nato.

Moscow vehemently opposes any further Nato encroachment on former Soviet areas.

In his speech on Saturday, Mr Biden said: "It's time, to paraphrase President Obama, to press the reset button and to revisit the many areas where we can and should work together."

It would not be possible for the US and Russia to agree on everything "but the United States and Russia can disagree and still work together where our interests coincide and they coincide in many places."

He added that the US would continue with its plans for a missile defence shield in Central Europe.

'Devil in the detail'

In terms of tone at least there is already a real improvement in US-Russian relations, the BBC's Rob Watson reports from the Munich conference.

But Mr Ivanov was quick to warn that it was early days and that the devil, as he put it, would be in the detail.

Some of that detail was already apparent, our correspondent says.

During the conference, Washington made clear its opposition to the idea of a Russian sphere of influence, while Mr Ivanov reiterated Moscow's long-standing objections to issues such as Nato expansion and missile defence.

So, despite the improved mood music there is a sense that Moscow and the new administration in Washington are still very much testing each other out, our correspondent says.

Silver sensation' seeks cold cosmos

Stare into the curve of Herschel's mirror too long and you get a slightly giddy feeling that comes from not being able to judge where its surface really starts.

It is enchanting, spectacular and - at 3.5m in diameter - it will soon become the biggest telescope mirror in space, surpassing that of Hubble.

The great 18th Century astronomer William Herschel would have been astonished by the silver sensation that now bears his name.

The design keeps Herschel's critical detectors in an ultra-cold state

The European Space Agency (Esa) is certainly very proud of its new observatory. It has been working on the venture for more than 20 years.

"The mirror is an enormous piece of hardware," enthused Thomas Passvogel, Esa's programme manager on the Herschel space observatory.

"It's a ceramic mirror; it's the biggest piece ever made from silicon carbide. It's very hard but much, much lighter than glass and the performance is excellent."

This week, the finished observatory will be flown to Europe's Kourou spaceport in South America. There, it will be bolted to an Ariane rocket and hurled into orbit.

It will take up a vantage point a million-and-a-half kilometres from Earth, to open up what scientists expect to be an utterly fascinating new vista on the Universe.

"Very simply, the science pillars of Herschel are to understand better how stars and galaxies form and how they evolve," Göran Pilbratt, Esa's project scientist on Herschel, told BBC News.

Herschel (BBC)
Hubble has viewed some near-infrared wavelengths. Its "successor", James Webb (2013), will seek infrared light also but with an even bigger mirror

Unlike Hubble, which is tuned to see the cosmos in the same light that is visible to our eyes, Herschel will go after much longer wavelength radiation - in the far-infrared and sub-millimetre range.

It will permit Herschel to see past the dust that scatters Hubble's visible wavelengths, and to gaze at really cold places and objects in the Universe - from the birthing clouds of new stars to the icy comets that live far out in the Solar System.

Some of these targets, though, are frigid in the extreme (between five and 50K; or -268 to -223C); and for Herschel to register them requires an even colder state be achieved on the observatory itself.

This involves the use of a cryostat. It is akin to a giant "thermos" bottle. Filled with more than 2,000 litres of liquid helium, its systems will plunge Herschel's science instruments into the deepest of chills.

Critical detectors will be taken to just fractions of a degree above absolute zero (0K; -273C), from where they can make the most of their remarkable design performance.

"Imagine one million, million, millionth of the brightness of a 60W lightbulb - that's what we can detect with one of our detectors," explained Professor Matt Griffin, who leads the international consortium behind SPIRE (Spectral and Photometric Imaging Receiver), one of Herschel's three instruments.

"Turning that around - imagine observing one of our very faint sources; let's say a very distant galaxy. If we were to observe it with SPIRE for a billion years, we would collect enough energy to light that 60W lightbulb for just one-twentieth of a second," the Cardiff University, UK, researcher said.

Herschel's other instruments are HIFI (the Heterodyne Instrument for the Far Infrared) and PACS (Photodetector Array Camera and Spectrometer).

With the entire package, the observatory can investigate a broad range of wavelengths (55-672 microns), including a swathe that has hitherto been missed by orbiting telescopes.

Eagle Nebula at different wavelengths (Nasa/Esa)
The classic "Pillars of Creation", great columns of gas and dust. Viewing the star-forming region at progressively longer wavelengths opens up new features
(A) Visible light: Reflected light from the nebula is seen (0.5µm)
(B) Near-infrared: Nebula suddenly becomes transparent (1-2µm)
(C) Even longer: Possible to see emission from the nebula itself (7µm)
(D) Longer still: Different structures start to become apparent (50µm)

Herschel's interest will be piqued near and far.

Close to home, it will study the mountainous balls of ice, dust and rock (some of them comets) that orbit our Sun beyond Neptune. The nature of these "primitive" objects has an important bearing on the story of how our Solar System came into being.

And beyond our little corner of space, Herschel's vision will allow it to see inside the clouds of gas and dust that give rise to stars in the Milky Way galaxy today, to see the conditions "in the womb". Studying these embryonic events will give astronomers further insights into the Solar System's beginnings 4.5 billion years ago.

Herschel instruments (Esa)
Once the liquid helium boils off, Herschel's instruments will go blind

Another key target for Herschel's investigations will be those galaxies that thrived when the Universe was roughly a half to a fifth of its present age. It is a period in cosmic history when it is thought star formation was at its most prolific.

Herschel will need to look deep into space to make these observations. The data will be used by scientists to test their models of how and when the galaxies formed their stars and how successive generations of those stars produced the abundance of heavy elements (everything heavier than hydrogen and helium) that now exist in the Universe.

Professor Griffin summed up the Esa mission in this way: "Herschel is not about studying mature stars or galaxies; it is really about studying the processes by which they are created.

"We know very little about that and we need to understand it in order to put together a picture of how the Universe we live in today grew from the earliest stages after the Big Bang."

A double deal

Herschel's launch will be doubly significant because it sees Esa loft two major science missions on a single rocket. The other passenger on the Ariane will be the Planck telescope, which will look at even longer wavelength (microwave) radiation.

One reason for the dual launch, says Esa's head of science projects, Jacques Louet, is logistics. Both telescopes have been designed to operate at the so-called Lagrange Point 2, a gravitational "sweet spot" in space where the observatories can stay fixed in the same location relative to the Earth and the Sun.

"The other reason is that we have coupled them industrially," he told BBC News.

"Both spacecraft share the same service module, so there is an economy in building them together. And because you build them together, you have basically the same timing on each mission. So, overall, I think it is a good strategy, but a risky strategy."

At a combined value for Hershel and Planck of approximately 1.7 billion euros, you get an idea of just how risky this strategy is. If the rocket fails, both missions are lost.

One is tempted to say "good luck"; but as Göran Pilbratt points out, when you have put as much effort into these missions as Esa has over the past 20 years, "luck doesn't come into it".


Russia and China 'approval down'

Global attitudes towards Russia and China are worsening, a poll carried out for the BBC World Service suggests.

China's positive ratings fell six points over the year to 39%, while negative views of Russia jumped eight points to 42%, according to the survey.

The survey was taken after President Barack Obama's election, but 43% still felt the US impact was negative.

Beijing Olympics closing ceremony
Hosting the Olympics appears to have done little for China's image
More than 13,000 people in 21 countries were interviewed for the poll, part of an annual survey of world opinion.

t was carried out by international pollster GlobeScan with the Program on International Policy Attitudes (Pipa) at the University of Maryland in the 10 weeks leading up to 1 February.

China and Russia

In last year's poll of the same countries, people leaned more towards saying China and Russia were having a positive influence on the world.

graphic showing changing attitudes to China, the US and Russia
But views of China are now divided, with 40% rating it negatively compared with 39% who view it positively.

"Our poll results suggest that China has much to learn about winning hearts and minds in the world," said GlobeScan chairman Doug Miller.

"It seems that a successful Olympic Games has not been enough to offset other concerns that people have," he added, referring to the summer games hosted by Beijing in August 2008.

The poll also suggests that substantially more people now have a negative view of Russia's influence - 42% negative versus 30% positive - and that was before the recent disruption in Russian gas supplies to Europe.


"As for Russia, the more it acts like the old Soviet Union, the less people outside its borders seem to like it," Mr Miller said.

The World Service poll has been canvassing opinions on the influence of countries since 2005.

Obama's challenge

The US, for the first time since 2005, has surpassed Russia in positive ratings, with an average of 40% compared with 35% last year.

But it is still rated negatively by 43% of those polled, down from 47% in the 2008 poll.

Views of the US have improved in six countries, but attitudes towards it in Russia and China have grown more negative, while most people in Europe show little change.

"Though BBC polls have shown that most people around the world are hopeful that Barack Obama will improve US relations with the world, it is clear that his election alone is not enough to turn the tide," said Steven Kull, director of Pipa.

"People are still looking to see if there are significant changes in US policies."

Germany once again fared best in the poll, with every country viewing it positively and 61% of people rating it favourably, up from 55% last year.

The UK also moved up seven points, with 58% of people rating it as having a positive influence.

As was the case last year, Iran, Israel, Pakistan and North Korea were rated most negatively.

The latest results are based on 13,575 responses in 21 countries around the world. The survey has a margin of error ranging from 2.4% to 4.4% depending upon the country, 19 times out of 20.

Toyota triples year loss forecast

The world's biggest carmaker, Toyota, has widened its predicted loss for 2008 after demand for its cars slumped.

In December, Toyota predicted it would make a full year operating loss of 150bn yen ($1.65bn; £1.13bn).

The Japanese car giant has now tripled that figure and expects to make a 450bn yen operating loss, the first annual loss at the firm in 70 years.

Although it has not suffered as badly as its US rivals, Toyota has still been hit by falling demand in the downturn.

The strengthening yen has also hit its profitability, by depreciating its overseas earnings.

In expanding its loss prediction for the year, Toyota also said it made a loss of 164.7bn yen in the three months from October to December.

Production cut

Toyota has also lowered its forecast for vehicle sales for the whole group for the 2008/09 financial year to 7.32 million from 7.54 million.

Toyota showroom in Tokyo, Japan - 19/12/2008
Toyota has suffered from falling demand in the downturn

It had sold 8.913 million vehicles in the year to the end of March 2008.

In December, Toyota boss Katsuaki Watanabe said the current downturn was of a size that comes only: "once in a hundred years".

Toyota is cutting work to a single shift on 17 production lines lines out of its 75 around the world at different times in January and February.

It is also closing all Japanese factories for a total of 14 days between January and March.

Australia fire toll 'to increase'

Australian officials have warned that the death toll from wildfires that have already killed 108 people in the state of Victoria is likely to rise further.

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said the numbers were "numbing" and warned the nation to prepare for more bad news.

Troops and emergency crews are still battling about 25 fires - two of which are threatening urban areas.

Some towns have been almost completely destroyed by the fires, with arson suspected in some cases.

An area of 3,000 sq km (1,200 sq miles) has been affected.

Firefighters say temperatures have dropped and conditions have improved, allowing them to get some of the blazes under control.

But two fires north-east of Melbourne are still described as major concerns.

One is threatening hamlets near to the town of Beechworth, and the other is the Murrindindi Mill fire, which is moving north-eastwards, threatening the township of Taggerty.

'Mass murder'

Mr Rudd announced an immediate aid package of A$10m ($7m) and said damaged areas would take years to rebuild.

"That's why we have deployed the army, that's why we will be deploying every possible resource," he said.

AUSTRALIAN BUSH FIRES
16 February 1983: 75 dead, 2,300 homes destroyed in "Ash Wednesday" bushfires in Victoria and South Australia
8 January 1969: At least 22 dead, 230 homes lost in rural Victoria
7 February 1967: 62 dead, 1,300 homes destroyed in fires in Hobart, Tasmania
13 January 1939: 71 dead, 700 homes destroyed in "Black Friday" fires in Victoria
February - March 1922: 60 die in Gippsland, eastern Victoria

Officials believe some of the fires might have been started deliberately, an accusation Mr Rudd described as "a level of horror that few of us anticipated".

"There are no words to describe it other than mass murder," he said.

Many residents of fire-ravaged towns are now embroiled in a desperate search for friends and relatives missing since the flames tore through the tiny communities.

Reuters reported that shocked residents wandered the streets of the hamlet of Whittlesea - near the devastated town of Kinglake - some crying, searching for missing relatives.

Whittlesea resident Sam Gents told the agency he had not heard from his wife Tina and three young children since the flames swept through Kinglake.

"The last anyone saw of them, the kids were running in the house, they were blocked in the house," he said.

The authorities have sealed off Kinglake as bodies are still being recovered.

"If they let me up the mountain I know where to go [to try and find them]," Mr Gents said.

'Shock and sadness'

As the fires recede, shocking stories are emerging from survivors in the worst-hit areas.

The Melbourne Age newspaper quoted one woman describing the arrival of a badly burnt man and his daughter seeking shelter on a patch of open ground.

"He had skin hanging off him everywhere and his little girl was burnt, but not as badly as her dad," she said.

"He just came down and he said 'Look, I've lost my wife, I've lost my other kid, I just need you to save [my daughter]'."

Tens of thousands of firefighters have been trying to contain blazes in two other states - New South Wales and South Australia - but the fires there were largely contained or burning away from residential areas.

Australia's head of state, Queen Elizabeth II, has spoken of her "shock and sadness" at the number of deaths, and has praised the extraordinary work of the emergency crews at the scene.

The British and New Zealand governments have both offered to help deal with the fires.

The Australian Red Cross, which has about 400 volunteers working in Victoria, has launched an appeal for donations.

Bush fires are common in Australia, but the current blazes have eclipsed the death toll from what had been the previous worst fire in 1983, when 75 people died on a day that became known as Ash Wednesday.


Burma 'must stop Rohingya abuse'

The US has called on Burma to stop persecuting its Rohingya Muslim minority, who have fled the country in their hundreds of thousands.

On a visit to neighbouring Bangladesh, Assistant Secretary of State Richard Boucher said the Rohingya's treatment was "a matter of concern" to the US.

Hundreds of Rohingya recently fled to Thailand in boats, but were cast adrift by the Thai authorities and many died.

A Rohingya migrant in a police van in Thailand, 31/01
Hundreds of thousands of Rohingya have fled Burma

Burma's military rulers do not recognise the Rohingya as Burmese.

And refugees who have been arriving in Thailand and Indonesia have told how the military authorities there have beaten and abused them.

Many have shown scars on their bodies they claimed were caused by Burmese soldiers whipping them as a warning not to return to Burma.

"The US was aware of the fleeing of Rohingyas from Myanmar [Burma] for persecution and economic reasons," Mr Boucher told a news conference in Dhaka.

"It's a matter of concern and the US wants that Myanmar stops the persecution of Rohingyas."

According to the UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) some 230,000 Rohingya now live in Bangladesh, having fled decades of abuse by Burma's military rulers.

Malaysian twins spared death row

Malaysian identical twin brothers have escaped hanging for drug trafficking as a court failed to decide which brother was the criminal, and cleared both.

A judge in the capital, Kuala Lumpur, said the case was unique and she could not send the wrong person to his death.

In 2003 police arrested one brother found driving drugs to a house. The second twin arrived soon afterwards and was also arrested.


Map

Neither officers nor a DNA test could identify which twin owned the drugs.

Sathis and Sabarish Raj, 27, cried in court when they heard the judge say that the prosecution had failed to prove which twin had been arrested first with a car containing 166kg of cannabis and almost 2kg of raw opium.

According to the New Straits Times, the judge told the court: "I can't be calling the wrong twin to enter his defence. I can't be sending the wrong person to the gallows."

Execution is mandatory for convicted drugs traffickers in Malaysia.

Madagascar protests 'to continue'

A key opposition leader in Madagascar has called for more protests against the president, a day after security forces killed 28 of his supporters.

Andry Rajoelina, who was dismissed last week from his post as mayor of the capital, Antananarivo, spoke as he visited injured supporters in hospital.

He is locked in a power struggle with President Marc Ravalomanana, who he says should step down.

Andry Rajoelina at a rally in Antananarivo, 2 Feb
Andry Rajoelina has tapped into frustration with the government

There have been repeated protests against the firing of the ex-mayor.

Demonstrators had been marching towards President Ravalomanana's compound on Saturday when police opened fire, killing 28 and injuring more than 200.

Earlier, during a rally attended by 20,000 people, the former mayor's supporters had declared him head of a "transition higher authority".

Mr Rajoelina, a 34-year-old former DJ, has successfully tapped into widespread frustration with the government.

"I tell the people that their lives, their blood was lost," he said on Sunday. "(But) we cannot stop. The struggle continues,"

"The people need change," he said. "What is Ravalomanana's answer? Shots."

There was an uneasy calm on the streets of the capital Sunday as heavily armed security forces patrolled, correspondents said.

Prime Minister Charles Rabemananjara announced that a night-time curfew already in force in the capital would be extended for a week, AFP news agency reported.

The sacked mayor accuses President Marc Ravalomanana of misspending public money and being a dictator.

President Ravalomanana, 59 and also a former mayor of Antananarivo, has blamed the opposition leader for the violence and called for a return to calm.

Dozens of people were killed in unrest in January after anti-government protests turned into rioting and looting.

Madagascar, the world's fourth-largest island, has become a destination for tourists as well as foreign companies, searching for oil, gold, cobalt, nickel and uranium.

Nigeria baby poison deaths rise

The death toll from a contaminated baby medicine sold in Nigeria has risen from 34 - recorded in early December - to 84, the health ministry has said.

There have been 111 reported cases of children who have fallen ill after being given teething syrup "My Pikin".

The poisonous syrup was discovered last November when babies began dying of organ failure across the country.


Map of Nigeria

Authorities have called on private pharmacies to turn over stocks of the paracetamol-based syrup to regulators.

The Nigerian-made mixture was found to contain engine coolant.

The National Agency for Food, Drug Administration and Control (Nafdac) shut down the Lagos-based manufacturer and the main supplier of the medicine last year.

Nafdac has also appealed to parents to not treat their children with any type of teething syrup until it can find all the remaining stocks.

The dead children are aged between two and seven, Health Minister Babatunde Osotimehin said.

"Government will leave no stone unturned to find answers to the many questions being asked by Nigerians and also ensure that such unfortunate incidents do not occur again," he said.

The name My Pikin means my baby in Nigerian pidgin.

US diplomat expelled from Ecuador

Ecuador's left-wing president has ordered the expulsion of a senior US diplomat, accusing him of suspending aid to Ecuador's anti-drugs programme.

During his weekly TV address, Rafael Correa said US customs attache Armando Astorga was "insolent and foolish" and had treated Ecuador like a colony.

The US embassy denied that Mr Astorga was responsible for any policy change and said he had already left Ecuador.

Rafael Correa in Quito, file image
Mr Correa enjoys huge popularity in Ecuador

Analysts say Mr Correa has generally enjoyed decent relations with the US.

But he launched a vitriolic attack during his weekly TV programme, accusing Mr Astorga of trying to make some economic aid conditional on Washington being allowed to choose the head of Ecuador's anti-narcotics police.

"Mr Astorga, keep your dirty money, we don't need it. We have dignity in this country," he said.

Mr Correa then told his foreign minister to "give this gentleman 48 hours to pack up his suitcases and get out of the country".

"We're not going to let anyone treat us as if we were a colony here."

US embassy spokeswoman Marta Youth said Mr Astorga had left Ecuador in early January at the end of his assignment.

A state department spokesman said the US ambassador would hold talks with the Ecuador's foreign minister to "check why this announcement was made".

Mr Correa has clashed with Washington over several issues - most notably refusing to renew the lease on airbases used by US forces to mount anti-narcotics missions.

But compared with other left-wing governments in Latin America, the rows between Quito and Washington have been low key.

Bolivia and Venezuela both expelled their US ambassadors late last year, accusing Washington of trying to oust Bolivia's left-wing government.

Washington responded by throwing out envoys from Bolivia and Venezuela.

Brazil river plane crash kills 24

Twenty-four people, including seven children, have died after the plane they were flying in crashed in a river in the Brazilian state of Amazonas.

Four people survived the crash into the River Manacapuru.

The pilots had reportedly contacted air traffic control a short distance from their destination of Manaus to say they were turning back.

But the aircraft, which took off from Coari, then disappeared from radar, apparently during heavy rain.

A local fire service official was quoted by Brazil's TV Globo as saying the pilots had been trying to reach a local airport, but the plane fell short by 500 metres.

A rescue effort to find survivors began immediately, and four people were recovered alive, all of whom are said to be in a good condition.


Map

The dead people were recovered from inside the plane.

The bad weather in the region had hampered the rescue effort in the murky waters.

Authorities are investigating the cause of the accident.

The plane involved in the accident was a twin-engine aircraft built by the Brazilian company Embraer.

Police 'kill many' in Madagascar

At least 23 people have been killed in Madagascar after police opened fire on an opposition demonstration in the island nation's capital, reports say.

Some reports suggest that as many as 30 people may have been killed.

There have been repeated protests against the dismissal of Antananarivo Mayor Andry Rajoelina, who is engaged in a power struggle with the president.

A man tries to run from gun shots near Madagascar President Marc Ravalomanana"s offices in Antananarivo on February 7, 2009
As many as 25 people are feared dead

The sacked mayor accuses President Marc Ravalomanana of misspending public money and being a dictator.

"Up to now, 25 are dead," an unnamed senior police officer at the scene was quoted by Reuters as saying.

The fire brigade said at least 23 people had been killed, AFP news agency said, while local media reported that 30 people were killed.

Demonstrators had been marching towards President Ravalomanana's compound when riot police opened fire.

Earlier, during a rally attended by 20,000 people, the former mayor's supporters had declared him head of a "transition higher authority".

Unarmed protesters

Immediately after the shooting, Mr Rajoelina said on Viva Radio: "The people were not armed, they only had their courage."

It is not clear if he was with the demonstration when the shooting broke out.

There were dozens of injured people at the city's main hospital. Jocelyn Ratolojanahary, whose hand was bandaged, told Reuters.

She said: "The crowd was walking peacefully, then all of a sudden, the military opened fire."

President Ravalomanana reportedly blamed the opposition leader for the violence.

"He (Rajoelina) led people to take the presidential palace by force and didn't know how to control them," Mr Ravalomanana told state television, according to Reuters news agency.

Mr Rajoelina was sacked by the government on Tuesday and replaced as mayor by Guy Randrianarisoa, a local city official.

Mr Rajoelina, who has successfully tapped into widespread frustration with the government, has said he would set up a transitional administration unless the president steps down.

Dozens of people were killed in unrest in January after anti-government protests turned into rioting and looting.

Madagascar, the world's fourth-largest island, has become a destination for tourists as well as foreign companies, searching for oil, gold, cobalt, nickel and uranium.

Somali leader arrives in capital

Somalia's new president, Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, has arrived in Mogadishu for the first time since his election by MPs a week ago.

Crowds lined the route as Sheikh Sharif, viewed as a moderate Islamist, headed to the presidential palace.

Later, mortars were fired at the palace but no casualties were reported.

Somalis line route to greet new president

Hundreds of people turned out to see the new president

Sheikh Sharif aims to form an inclusive government and extend a hand to armed groups still opposed to UN-sponsored efforts to end civil war and turmoil.

Somalia has had no effective central government for nearly 20 years.

Tens of thousands of people have been killed in successive waves of violence over the years.

Consultations

Sheikh Sharif, 44, was elected president on 31 January at a meeting of Somali MPs held in neighbouring Djibouti, replacing President Abdullahi Yusuf who resigned a month earlier after a power struggle.

Somali President Sheik Sharif Sheik Ahmed

He was appointed as part of a UN-brokered plan to try to form a unity government and bring peace to Somalia for the first time since 1991.

The new president arrived back in Somalia from Ethiopia, where he attended an African Union summit.

The former teacher used to lead an armed opposition movement ousted by Ethiopian-led forces in late 2006.

"My trip to Mogadishu is aimed at having consultations with elders, politicians and Islamic resistance groups," he said as he arrived in Mogadishu accompanied by MPs.

He appealed in Addis Ababa for foreign military help to deal with "extremists" against the peace process.

The Islamist al-Shabab militia - which last week seized Baidoa, the seat of the Somali parliament - has been holding protests against the new president.

Israel strikes at Gazan tunnels

The Israeli military fired missiles at four smuggling tunnels and a weapons depot in Gaza late on Friday, it said.

The attacks came after two rockets were fired from Gaza into southern Israel, the military said.

The tunnels link the Gaza strip with Egypt and are used to smuggle goods and weapons into Gaza.

Palestinians inspect a smuggling tunnel which was destroyed by an Israeli strike in the border town of Rafah between Egypt and the southern Gaza Strip on February 7, 2009
The tunnels link Gaza with Egypt

The latest strikes come nearly three weeks after Israel ended a devastating 22-day offensive in Gaza where more than 1,300 Palestinians were killed.

During the fighting, 10 Israeli soldiers and three civilians were killed.

Friday's strikes come just days before Israel's general election on Tuesday.

Swiss to vote on EU worker rights

Swiss voters are going to the polls to decide whether to continue allowing in workers from the European Union.

More controversially for many Swiss, they will also vote on whether to extend that free movement to new EU members Bulgaria and Romania.

Switzerland remains outside the EU - but its political and economic ties to Europe are very close.

Swiss border patrol
If voters say no, borders will be harder to cross for non-Swiss workers

A "no" to free movement could put that relationship at risk. Opinion polls indicate the vote will be close.

Since the Swiss first introduced free movement of labour the number of EU citizens working in Switzerland has risen to over a million.

Business leaders like Rudolf Staempfli say the policy has brought only benefits, despite doubts at the time.

"They suggested we wanted the cheap Polish worker in Switzerland, but the opposite has come true, we took skilled expensive workers," he said. "We do have a subsidiary in Poland, with swiss workers there. "

But that first decision to allow in EU workers was taken during an economic boom - things are different now. Hans Fehr, member of parliament for the right-wing Swiss People's Party, claims extending free movement to Bulgaria and Romania could bring a mass influx of cheap labour.

"Now we are in a recession, very hard - for Swiss businessman it is important to have low-paid workers and that is very dangerous for Swiss workers, maybe they lose their job," he says.

Opinion polls show the vote will be close - but a no vote could carry risks.

Switzerland may not be in the EU, but it needs a good relationship with Brussels - one in every two Swiss francs is earned through trade with the EU, and one in every three Swiss jobs depends on that trade.

Brussels has made it clear the Swiss can't pick and choose EU policies - rejecting free movement could threaten those crucial trade ties.

Plane crashes in Brazilian river

At least 16 people are missing after a small twin-engine plane crashed amid heavy rain in a river in the Brazilian state of Amazonas.

Four people were rescued and several bodies recovered, but it was unclear how many people were on board.

A short distance from their destination of Manaus the pilots were reported to have contacted air traffic control to say they were turning back.


Map

But the aircraft, which took off from Coari, then disappeared from radar.

According to one report the pilots said they had encountered heavy rain.

The plane is said to have made a forced landing on the River Manacapuru in the Amazon region.

A local fire service official was quoted by Brazil's TV Globo as saying the pilots had been trying to reach a local airport, but the plane fell short by 500 metres.

A rescue effort to find survivors began immediately, and four people were recovered alive, all of whom are said to be in a good condition.

According to local reports several bodies have also been found by divers inside the aircraft, and the authorities fear more will be discovered.

The bad weather in the region is said to be hampering the rescue effort.

The plane involved in the accident was a twin-engine aircraft built by the Brazilian company Embraer.