History is very important

Indonesian Destroyer

2009-11-01T11:30:00.000-08:00

Nice ship that really never saw action...

Served in not only the USSR but also Indoanesia where it at times was "poised" to fight western imperlists...

Issue 30. November - December 1998
CRUISER FOR INDONESIA
Alexander Pavlov, historian

On August 5, 1962, the Ordzhonikidze arrived in Surabaya, after which it was transferred to Indonesia in a ceremony and renamed Irian. On January 24, 1963, the cruiser was decommissioned from the Soviet Navy.

In August 17, 1945, the Dutch East Indies were proclaimed an independent state Indonesia. Ahmed Sukarno, who led the armed struggle for his country's independence, became its president. The West Irian province, which remained under Dutch control, came as a stumbling block for Sukarno. The poor and weak country of "three thousand islands" was unable to build armed forces of its own. The world's leading naval powers did not support Indonesia's drive for independence.

The late 1950s saw the beginning of rapprochement, especially in the field of military cooperation, between the USSR and Indonesia, countries different in all respects. For the Soviet Union that was the first experience of this kind. So, fearing a possible negative reaction to Soviet military supplies from Western countries and from the opposition inside Indonesia, the USSR at first sent armaments via Poland. In 1959 four destroyers and two submarines from the Soviet Union's Black Sea and Pacific Fleets came to Surabaya. The reaction of the West was restrained. So in 1960 the USSR decided to supply armaments to Indonesia without taking roundabout routes.

In February 1960, Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev paid a visit to Sukarno. The two signed an agreement on Soviet supplies of ships, planes, helicopters, tanks, and other armaments. The most expensive part of the deal was a cruiser of Project 68-bis. Never before and never since has the Soviet Union or Russia supplied ships of such a displacement to foreign fleets.

The ship that was to be turned over to Indonesia (Object 055) was the Ordzhonikidze light cruiser of the Baltic Fleet. On January 11, 1961, the Soviet government issued a special resolution which instructed Central Design Bureau #17 to begin work on the ship's tropicalization. The large-scale modernization was to make the cruiser operational under the following climatic conditions: air temperature, +40o C; humidity, 95 percent; water temperature, +30o C. However, representatives of the Indonesian Navy, who soon visited the Soviet town of Baltiisk, hinted that they could not afford such a large project. As a result, the modernization was confined to the installation of more powerful diesel generators to power additional, mostly private, ventilators.

The Ordzhonikidze was built in Leningrad. The ship was laid down on October 19, 1949, launched on September 17, 1950, and commissioned on June 30, 1952. The cruiser had sailed a lot, visited Portsmouth, Copenhagen and twice Helsinki, and took part in naval exercises. Understandably, the ship needed medium level repairs. It was decided to do them at the Sevastopol Marine Works.

On February 14, 1961, the Ordzhonikidze came to Sevastopol and on April 5, 1962, it began to run sea trials. By that time the ship's Indonesian crew of naval officers had already been formed and were on board the cruiser. The ship's mechanic, Yatidzhan, later worked his way up to chief of the Indonesian Navy's Technical Department. Most of the sailors, too, later were given high-ranking posts.

On August 5, 1962, the Ordzhonikidze arrived in Surabaya, after which it was transferred to Indonesia in a ceremony and renamed Irian. On January 24, 1963, the cruiser was decommissioned from the Soviet Navy.

Indonesians, who had never had a fleet of their own, learned how to operate the expensive ships and sophisticated equipment by trial and error. In November 1962, a submarine's diesels failed because of a hydraulic impact during surfacing; a destroyer severely damaged its stern; and three out of six boilers on the cruiser broke down. High air temperature and humidity, as well as aggressive outside water had a negative effect on the state of the fleet. In addition, the equipment was not serviced properly.

Nevertheless, the mere presence of such ships in the Indonesian Navy made the Dutch Navy drastically reduce its activity near West Irian, which in the long run led to the liberation of the province.

By 1964 the cruiser had actually lost its operating efficiency, and it was decided to send the Irian to Vladivostok for repairs.

In March 1964, the cruiser came to the Dalzavod Plant. Soviet sailors and repairmen were shocked to see the state of neglect on the ship and the large amount of minor repairs, which are usually carried out by the crew, undone. Nevertheless, the Soviet Union fulfilled all the points of the repair contract. Interestingly, the ship's wardroom had been made into a sort of chapel. In August 1964, the Irian, escorted by a Soviet destroyer, left for Surabaya.

In 1965, Sukarno was replaced at the helm by Suharto. His attitude to the Navy differed from that of Sukarno. The cruiser remained moored at Surabaya, and some time later it was made into a prison for opponents of the new regime.

In 1970, the abandoned Irian was washed onto a sandbank, and its hull soon became filled with water. No one cared to save the cruiser. According to Western sources, in 1972 the flagship of the Indonesian Navy began to be scrapped.

Today, there are no Soviet-made warships in Indonesia. However, the high skills of Indonesian naval officers and sailors and the fact that the Indonesian Navy now includes submarines, frigates and auxiliary ships are largely due to Soviet sailors who helped build the Navy of independent Indonesia in its most difficult years.

Technical Characteristics of Cruiser 68-bis
Displacement, tons 14,290/17,970

Principal dimensions, m 210.1 x 22.1 x 7.8

Power, hp 2 steam turbines, 6 water-tube boilers 110,000

Speed, knots 33.7

Cruising range, miles/knots 5,220/18 or 2,080/32

Endurance, days 30

Artillery
4x3-152mm (overall ammunition 1,980 rounds),
6x2-100mm (3,600 rounds),
16x2-37mm (44,250 rounds),
2x5-533mm torpedo launchers, up to 68 mines

Armor, mm:
main armor belt 100
ends 32
deck 50
deck house 130
primary gun turrets 175
Crew 1,270 (60 officers, 75 warrant officers, 154 petty officers)

Taliban resist Pakistan onslaught

2009-10-18T00:34:00.000-07:00

aliban militants are putting up fierce resistance to the Pakistan army as it attempts to oust them from strongholds in the remote South Waziristan region.

Dozens of casualties have been reported after the first day of the attack - the biggest offensive for six years.

The army has mobilised artillery and troops in the area

Unconfirmed reports say 26 militants and five soldiers have been killed as heavy artillery and air strikes pound Taliban hideouts for a second day.

Thousands of civilians have fled the area for safety.

Up to 20,000 people have entered camps just outside the area, with aid agencies warning that many more could be displaced by fighting.

The military, mobilising from three directions, is controlling entry and exit points in the region.

Reports from the area are sketchy as it is difficult and dangerous for foreign or Pakistani journalists to operate inside South Waziristan.

Soldiers captured a Taliban stronghold at Spinkai Raghzai on Saturday after the militants withdrew to nearby mountains.

"It is a flat area, so whenever they tried to put up resistance, the helicopter gunships fired at them so they decided to flee to the mountains," a senior government official told Reuters news agency.

Troops established a checkpoint en route to Kotkai, the home town of Pakistani Taliban chief Hakimullah Mehsud, AFP reported.

There had been several co-ordinated Taliban attacks in the run-up to the offensive, killing more than 150 people in cities across Pakistan.

FORCES IN WAZIRISTAN

Pakistan army: Two divisions totalling 28,000 soldiers

Frontier Corp: Paramilitary forces from tribal areas likely to support army

Taliban militants: Estimated between 10,000 and 20,000

Uzbek fighters supporting Taliban: Estimates widely vary between 500-5,000

Challenges in Waziristan

Pakistanis reflect on offensive

Security is tight in towns and cities throughout Pakistan in case the Taliban carry out revenge attacks.

Nearly all communications in the region were down after the Taliban destroyed a telecommunications tower at Tiarza, local officials said.

Aerial bombardments in the Makeen area, a stronghold of the Mehsud tribe and a key army target, were also reported by local officials and witnesses.

The ground operation comes after weeks of air and artillery strikes against militant targets in the region, which lies close to the Afghan border.

There is a huge army presence on the road between Tank and Dera Ismail Khan, says the BBC's Islamabad correspondent Shoaib Hasan, near South Waziristan.

The army has been massing troops near the militants' stronghold for months - ever since the governor of Pakistan's North West Frontier Province announced a ground offensive in South Waziristan on 15 June.

Pakistan's government has been under considerable pressure from the US to tackle militancy there.

North and South Waziristan form a lethal militant belt from where insurgents have launched attacks across north-west Pakistan as well as into parts of eastern Afghanistan.

South Waziristan is considered to be the first significant sanctuary for Islamic militants outside Afghanistan since 9/11.

NASA photos show moon strike created plume

2009-10-18T00:30:00.000-07:00

LOS ANGELES – NASA's much-hyped mission to hurl a spacecraft into the moon turned out some worthwhile data after all, scientists said.

New images show a mile-high plume of lunar debris from the Cabeus crater shortly after the space agency's Centaur rocket struck Oct. 9.

"We were blown away by the data returned," Anthony Colaprete, the mission's chief scientist, said in a report Friday from the Ames Research Center in Mountain View, Calif., which managed the launch. "The team is working hard on the analysis, and the data appear to be of very high quality."

In media coverage before the impact, many observers said they were disappointed at the lack of spectacle.

But scientists said the mission was carried out for "a scientific purpose, not to put on a fireworks display for the public," said space consultant Alan Stern, a former NASA associate administrator for science.

By creating the debris cloud, scientists were able to use the $79-million Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite to sample and study the dust. The LCROSS itself crashed into the same crater four minutes after the Centaur's impact, right on schedule, while its companion spacecraft, the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, was flying in lunar orbit 50 miles above the site to gather still more data.

But Michio Kaku, a professor at the City College of New York and host of "Sci Q Sundays" on the Science Channel, said NASA may be jumping the gun in calling the results "a smashing success," acting in response to public criticism of the mission.

"To be a spectacular success, we had to find large quantities of underground ice," Kaku told The Associated Press Saturday. He said scientists still have more work to do to analyze the data for the presence of ice or water.

"They got beautiful pictures of the event, but that's not why we spent $79 million," Kaku said. "Ice on the moon is more valuable than gold."

The crashes created a man-made crater about one-fifth the size of a football field, Brown University geologist and LCROSS scientist Peter Schultz told The AP.

Colaprete said it was too early to say what the plume contained but that several clues, including the temperature of the flash created by the crash, will help scientists find out in coming weeks.

Finding significant amounts of water on the moon would be a major discovery, making eventual colonization easier than it would be if settlers had to transport water from Earth.

Kerry: too soon to send more troops to Afghanistan

2009-10-17T12:57:00.001-07:00

WASHINGTON – With Afghanistan's election crisis deepening, Sen. John Kerry says it would be irresponsible for the U.S. to consider sending additional troops to the region at this time.

In taped remarks, Kerry said it would be misguided to have a troop buildup to achieve a mission of "good governance" when the election is not yet finished.

Kerry, who chairs the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, was in Kabul on Saturday.

His visit came as Afghanistan's president, Hamid Karzai, resisted international pressure to accept fraud rulings that could force him into a runoff with his main challenger, Abdullah Abdullah. Due to harsh weather, a runoff may not happen until next spring.

Kerry spoke on CNN's "State of the Union," which airs Sunday.

Suicide bomber kills 15 at mosque in northern Iraq

2009-10-17T12:56:00.001-07:00

BAGHDAD – A suicide bomber who hid among the Sunni congregation in a northern Iraqi mosque sprayed gunfire at Muslim worshippers Friday and then blew himself up, killing at least 15 people, including the imam leading prayers, officials said.

The brazen attack is the latest against Sunni clerics who have increasingly spoken out against al-Qaida in Iraq since U.S. combat troops withdrew from Iraqi cities at the end of June. The clerics and others fear militants could take advantage of the transition to step up the kind of sectarian attacks that pushed Iraq to the brink of civil war two years ago.

The man who opened fire in the mosque in Tal Afar first shot the imam, Abdul-Satar Hassan, before turning his AK-47 assault rifle on worshippers, witnesses said. He detonated his explosives only after running out of ammunition.

Ninety-five people were wounded in the attack, said Ismail Majeed, a doctor at Tal Afar hospital. Hassan, a member of Iraq's largest Sunni political party, the Iraqi Islamic Party, was among the 15 people killed, he said.

Sahir Jalal, 37, who was sitting on his prayer rug listening to the sermon, said Hassan had just begun speaking when a tall man in the crowd stood up.

"Then he took out a small rifle from under his jacket and started to shoot," he said.

Seconds later, the man shouted "God is Great" and detonated explosives strapped to his body, he said.

Ahmed Daoud, 42, who had arrived late for prayers and was about to unfold his prayer rug when the shooting started, said he tried to take shelter.

"Then I hear a big explosion. All the windows in the mosque shattered and then I lost consciousness," said Daoud, who was struck in the head and chest by flying glass.

Assad Masud al-Taie, 32, who was sitting near the bomber, said he heard the man recite a verse from the Muslim holy book, the Quran, just before he blew himself up.

The attack follows a string of others against Sunni clerics in the country.

Earlier this week, the cleric who leads the biggest Sunni mosque in Baghdad was wounded by a bomb attached to his car. Similar attacks killed a Sunni cleric last week in Saqlawiyah, 45 miles (75 kilometers) northwest of Baghdad, and last month in Mosul, 225 miles (360 kilometers) northwest of Baghdad.

While violence in Iraq has dropped dramatically since the height of the insurgency, the area in and around Mosul is considered one of the last strongholds of the Sunni-backed insurgency and the site of frequent attacks.

Tal Afar, which is primarily populated by the ethnic Turkomen minority, is only about 40 miles (60 kilometers) northwest of Mosul and has gone through cycles of stability and instability for years.

Recent attacks in and around Mosul have mainly targeted ethnic minorities, possibly indicating insurgents are seeking out vulnerable, relatively unprotected targets to maximize casualties as the strapped Iraqi army focuses its efforts on more central areas of the country.

On Aug. 7, a suicide truck bomb flattened a mosque in a northern Mosul suburb, killing at least 44 people and wounding more than 200. On July 9, two suicide bombers wearing explosives belts killed at least 38 people and injured 66 near a judge's house in Tal Afar.

These attacks and a series of suicide bombings targeting the finance and foreign ministries in Baghdad on Aug. 19 that killed about 100 people have sparked criticism of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, who has staked his political fortunes on improving security in the country.

Al-Maliki blasted al-Qaida and insurgent groups Friday during a service marking the end of a mourning period for those killed in the Aug. 19 bombings.

"They want to return to the past with all its pains and injuries," he said.

The prime minister is eager to show that Iraqi forces can handle security in the country as they begin to assume control from U.S. troops.

President Barack Obama has ordered all combat troops to pull out by Aug. 31, 2010, leaving up to 50,000 in advising roles. Under a security agreement between Iraq and the U.S. all American forces are to leave by the end of 2011.

Also Friday, an aide to al-Maliki said a Sunni lawmaker accused of being an insurgent ringleader has been detained in Malaysia.

Mohammed al-Dayni slipped through Iraqi custody several months ago, but was detained in Kuala Lumpur, Yassin Majeed said.

Earlier this year, al-Dayni was charged with ordering a wave of attacks that included a 2007 suicide blast in the parliament cafeteria and mortar strikes on Baghdad's Green Zone.

Al-Dayni tried to flee the country in February on a flight to Jordan, only to have the plane turned back. He slipped through Iraqi custody after arriving in Baghdad and disappeared.

An Iraqi Foreign Ministry official said Friday a letter has been sent to the Malaysian government asking for al-Dayni's extradition to Iraq.

The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to release the information.

Pakistan starts critical offensive against Taliban

2009-10-17T12:55:00.001-07:00

DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan – Pakistani soldiers attacked militant bases in the main al-Qaida and Taliban stronghold along the Afghan border Saturday as the nuclear-armed country launched its most critical offensive yet against insurgents threatening its stability.

Five soldiers and 11 militants were killed as the more than 30,000 troops deployed to the region met stiff resistance in parts of South Waziristan, a possible hide-out of Osama bin Laden and a base for jihadists bent on overthrowing the U.S-backed government, attacking the West and scuttling the U.S. war effort in Afghanistan

The U.S. has pushed Pakistan to mount the offensive, which follows three unsuccessful campaigns since 2001 in the mountainous, remote region by mostly poorly equipped soldiers trained to fight conventional wars, not counterinsurgency operations.

The assault, which has been planned for several months, comes after a surge in militant attacks killed more than 175 people across Pakistan over the past two weeks. The operation is expected to last around two months and is aimed at clearing the region, then holding it, officials said.

Army spokesman Maj. Gen. Athar Abbas said the effort was focused on uprooting the Pakistani Taliban, an umbrella group of militants led by members of the Mehsud tribe blamed for most of the attacks that have battered the country over the last three years.

About 10,000 local militants and about 1,500 foreign fighters, most of them from Central Asia, control roughly 1,275 square miles (3,310 square kilometers) of territory, or about half of South Waziristan.

Intelligence officials said the ground troops Saturday were advancing on two flanks and a northern front of a central part of South Waziristan controlled by the Mehsuds. The areas being surrounded include the insurgent bases of Ladha and Makeen, the officials said on condition of anonymity because they were not allowed to brief the media.

Gunbattles were taking place outside Spinkai Raghzai, Kalkala and Sharwangai areas, the officials said.

As many as 150,000 civilians — possibly more — have left in recent months after the army made clear it was planning an assault. Most are believed to be staying in rented homes or with host families, but there are perhaps as many as 350,000 still in the region. The United Nations has been stockpiling relief supplies in a town near the region, but authorities are not expecting a major refugee crisis like the one that occurred during an offensive this year in the Swat Valley, also in the northwest.

Makeen resident Ajmal Khan said that the people left in his town were terrified but could not leave their homes due to a curfew.

"We heard sounds of planes and helicopters early Saturday. Then we heard blasts," Khan told The Associated Press by telephone. "We are also hearing gunshots and it seems the army is exchanging fire with the Taliban."

Over the last three months, the Pakistani air force has been bombing targets, while the army has said it has sealed off many Taliban supply and escape routes. The military has been trying to secure the support of local tribal armies in the fight.

At least 11 suspected insurgents were killed in the jet bombings, while a roadside bomb hit a security convoy, killing one soldier and wounding three others, two local intelligence officials said. A military statement Saturday evening said four soldiers were killed and 12 wounded in exchanges in the region.

It is nearly impossible to independently verify information from the region, which has little infrastructure or government presence. Foreigners require permission to enter the tribal areas, and few Pakistani journalists from other parts risk traveling there.

Recent opinion polls show widespread public support for military action against the insurgents and there is also broad political backing, a change from a few years ago. But a long and bloody conflict — and more terrorist attacks around the country — could erode that support.

Even if the army retakes the area, the offensive by itself is unlikely to be death blow to the country's entrenched militants, who have formed networks across the country, including with groups once nurtured by the state as proxies against its arch enemy India.

The militants could escape to other parts of Pakistan's semiautonomous tribal belt or cities in its heartland. The areas being targeted by the operation don't directly border Afghanistan, which could limit the impact on U.S., Afghan and NATO troops battling a resurgent Afghan Taliban.

Pakistan waged offensives in the Bajur and Mohmand tribal regions earlier this year that it hailed as successes. But militants are still active in both and there has been little reconstruction.

South Waziristan is also much farther that those two regions from the main northwestern city of Peshawar, meaning keeping the troops supplied will be much harder.

Since the U.S.-led invasion of Afghanistan in 2001, the Pakistan army's three attempts to dislodge Taliban fighters from South Waziristan have ended in truces that left the Taliban in control. This time, the military has said there will be no deals, partly to avoid jeopardizing gains won earlier this year when Pakistani soldiers overpowered the Taliban in Swat.

The army's efforts in South Waziristan got a boost when a U.S. missile strike killed Pakistani Taliban chief Baitullah Mehsud in August. The militants have since named fellow tribesman Hakimullah Mehsud as their leader, and have claimed responsibility for most of the recent attacks, including a 22-hour standoff at the army's headquarters.

Taliban spokesmen could not immediately be reached for comment Saturday. Communications in and around the region appeared jammed, making it difficult to reach local residents or other witnesses.

The U.S. is trying to rush in equipment for the offensive that would help with mobility, night fighting and precision bombing, a U.S. Embassy official told AP in a recent interview, speaking on condition of anonymity because the issue is politically sensitive.

In addition to night-vision devices, the Pakistan military has said it is seeking additional Cobra helicopter gunships, laser-guided munitions and intelligence equipment to monitor cell and satellite telephones.

Army planners are also considering the weather. Snows expected in the coming weeks could block major roads in South Waziristan. At the same time, the winter could work to the army's advantage by driving fighters out of their unheated mountain hide-outs.

Hague fixes Karadzic trial date

2009-10-15T11:46:00.000-07:00

Former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic will go on trial at The Hague on Monday 26 October, the court says.

It is the second time in a week that the trial - originally due to start on 19 October - has been put back.

Radovan Karadzic is defending himself at the tribunal

But Mr Karadzic's attempts to have the start delayed by 10 months have been rejected by the court.

Mr Karadzic is charged with 11 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity, including genocide, dating back to the Bosnian war.

They include charges related to the 1995 massacre of about 8,000 men and boys at Srebrenica.

Mr Karadzic was arrested in Serbia and brought to the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia last year, after more than a decade in hiding.

Immunity rejected

The latest delay to the start date is to allow Mr Karadzic, who is defending himself, time to review new prosecution documents.

The court has called on the prosecution to present an updated indictment - or charge sheet - complete with prosecution notes, by 19 October.

The court has rejected Mr Karadzic's appeal that the case be dropped on the grounds that he was offered immunity from prosecution by former US mediator Richard Holbrooke in 1996 if he left public life.

Mr Holbrooke has repeatedly denied the claim.

The judges ruled on Tuesday: "Even if the alleged agreement were proved, it would not limit the jurisdiction of the tribunal, it would not otherwise be binding on the tribunal and it would not trigger the doctrine of abuse of process."

Italy fury at 'Taliban pay' claim

2009-10-15T11:44:00.000-07:00

Italy has angrily denied a UK newspaper report that it paid Taliban fighters in Afghanistan to keep the peace.

Italy's defence minister said his country was planning to sue the Times newspaper over the claims.

Italy has strongly denied that it pays militants to reduce casualties

French forces took over the area unaware of the policy, leaving them unaware of the risks, the paper says. Ten soldiers were killed within weeks.

In France, opposition socialists demanded the defence minister should answer questions on the claims.

The Times' report, quoting Western military officials, says the policy was operated by Italian secret services in Afghanistan's Sarobi area, east of Kabul.

Warlords as well as Taliban commanders were paid, the paper says, with the amounts running to tens of thousands of dollars.

France took over control of the region in 2008, apparently believing it to be a low-risk area, the paper says, as only one Italian had died in the previous year.

But within a month of the French take-over, 10 soldiers were killed and 21 injured in a mountain ambush.

An unnamed Afghan army officer also told French news agency AFP that Italy had paid the Taliban to avoid casualties.

"We knew that Italian forces were paying the opposition (fighters) in Sarobi so they would not be attacked. We have information on similar agreements made in the western Herat province by Italian soldiers under Nato command there," he said.

"A lot of Nato countries with troops operating in the rural areas of Afghanistan pay the insurgents so not to be attacked."

'Garbage'

But Italy, France and Nato dismissed the claims.

"These are rumours, and it is not the first time we have heard them," said French Admiral Christophe Prazuck.

In Italy, Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's office also rejected the report.

"The Berlusconi government has never authorised or allowed any form of payment of sums of money in favour of members of the insurgent Taliban in Afghanistan, and is not aware of similar initiatives by the previous government," it said in a statement.

Italian Defence Minister Ignazio La Russa described the report as "garbage" and "offensive" and said staff were preparing a lawsuit against the newspaper.

Nato spokesman General Eric Tremblay said he was "not aware" of Italy having paid off Taliban militants.

"If it does go on, it's the Afghan government (that does it) rather than international forces," he told French news agency AFP.

France's Socialist Party opposition said Defence Minister Herve Morin should appear before parliament's defence committee to provide an explanation.

Italy also denied a separate element of the Times' report, which said the US ambassador had submitted a formal complaint after discovering Italians had been buying off insurgents in the far-west Herat province.

A US spokeswoman in Rome said the embassy did not comment "on internal diplomatic conversations that may or may not have occurred".

US banks' profits beat forecasts

2009-10-15T11:27:00.000-07:00

Two major Wall Street banks have reported better-than-expected profits between July and September.

Goldman Sachs' profits for the period were $3.19bn (£1.96bn), a four-fold increase from the same period in 2008.

It has set aside $5.35bn to cover pay and bonuses for the quarter, an average payout of $172,581 per worker.

Citigroup's profits also grew, but the much lower figure of $101m reflected the impact of the recession on its High Street banking operation.

It is highly exposed to consumer loans and has more bad debts than Goldman, which concentrates more on investment banking; trading and helping companies to merge with each other.

In the same period a year earlier, Citigroup had made a loss of $2.82bn. But its latest profit figure was significantly lower than the previous quarter, when it made $4.82bn.

Citigroup is currently 34%-owned by the US government and has written off more than $100bn of assets since the start of the credit crisis.

Shares in both banks fell in early trading because while the results were better than had been expected, they were still not as impressive as JPMorgan Chase the day before, which had sent the Dow Jones above the 10,000 mark.

ANALYSIS

By Michelle Fleury, BBC business reporter, New York

Goldman Sachs is the firm everyone loves to hate. There is a lot of anger towards the firm that took government money during the financial crisis and is now making so much cash.

Capturing the mood, a Rolling Stone magazine article published in June described Goldman as a "great vampire squid wrapped around the face of humanity".

The news that the bank has more set aside for pay and bonuses in nine months than in the whole of last year will only fuel that anger. The compensation pot is on track to hit $23bn.

With bonuses overshadowing performance, the challenge for Goldman is fixing its image.

'Complex business'

Goldman Sachs said that there were signs of "improving conditions and evidence of stabilisation" in the world economy.

The $5.35bn it set aside to cover pay and bonuses during the quarter brings the total for the first nine months of this year to $16.7bn.

"Goldman has always been the biggest bonus payer simply because its people make more money per person than anyone else," Ralph Silva from Tower Group told BBC News.

"The problem here is fundamental, it is a very complex business. There are very few people in the world who have the ability to do this job so the reason they get paid so much is there is just not enough of them."

Trading boost

"Although the world continues to face serious economic challenges, we are seeing improving conditions and evidence of stabilisation, even growth, across a number of sectors," said chairman and chief executive Lloyd C Blankfein.

Citigroup reported another $8bn in credit losses

The bank paid back the emergency loan it had received from the government in July this year.

It has come through the financial crisis relatively well, having been less exposed to the mortgage-related debt that crippled many of its peers.

Its currency, commodity and bond trading fared particularly well in the third quarter.

But revenue from its mergers and acquisitions operations fell sharply from the previous quarter, reflecting the continuing lack of activity.

The was reflected in Goldman's overall profit figure, which at $3.19bn, was lower than the $3.44bn that Goldman made in the previous three months.

'Challenging' environment

The two sets of results followed figures from JP Morgan Chase on Wednesday, which were dramatically better than had been expected.

The second-biggest US bank made a net income of $3.6bn, compared with $527m in the same period of 2008.

Bank of America is due to report its results on Friday while Morgan Stanley results will be out on Wednesday 21 October.

Citigroup reported another $8bn in credit losses for the three-month period and the bank's boss warned conditions would remain difficult.

"While consumer credit trends are improving in international markets, the US consumer credit environment remains challenging," said chief executive Vikram Pandit.

Pakistan rocked by fresh attacks

2009-10-15T11:14:00.000-07:00

A series of attacks on security forces in Pakistan has killed at least 38 people, officials say.

In Lahore, militants attacked offices of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), as well as two police academies. At least 26 people died.

In the northern town of Kohat, 11 were killed in a car bomb attack on police.

Then a bomb in the city of Peshawar in the north-west killed a child. Suicide attacks in Pakistan in the past two weeks have killed more than 250 people.

The Peshawar car bomb went off outside a housing complex for government employees. A number of people were wounded.

US President Barack Obama later signed into law a $7.5bn (£4.6bn) civilian aid package for Pakistan.

Thursday's attacks come ahead of an expected military offensive against the Pakistani Taliban in their South Waziristan stronghold on the Afghan border.

The worst of the violence was in Lahore, Pakistan's second-largest city.

Ten gunmen, some of them teenagers, died in attacks on three police centres in the Punjab province capital.

Seven people - including police and attackers - were killed as several gunmen stormed the FIA building in Lahore.

An FIA building nearby was targeted in a deadly suicide attack in March last year.

At Lahore's Manawan police training academy, three attackers are said to have blown themselves up. Eight other people died.

The same academy was targeted in a deadly attack in March this year.

A third team scaled a wall at a police commando training centre near the airport at Bedian and reportedly began shooting and tossing grenades.

Police say the situation is now under control at all three facilities.

"They were not here to live. They were here to die," Sajjad Bhutta, a senior government official, told AP news agency. "Each time they were injured, they blew themselves up.

"They were well trained to the extent they could jump over the walls and shoot well."

Thursday's attack in Kohat saw a suicide bomber ram his car into the wall of the police station compound, police said, causing part of the building to collapse.

Finger of blame

Interior Minister Rehman Malik said: "The enemy has started a guerrilla war," reports AP.

"The whole nation should be united against these handful of terrorists, and God willing we will defeat them."

The BBC's Aleem Maqbool in Islamabad says that although no group has yet claimed responsibility for the attacks the finger of blame will point towards the Taliban.

Separately, a US drone aircraft fired two missiles at a house in North Waziristan, killing five Taliban militants, Pakistani officials said.

Nuclear-armed Pakistan is under US pressure to flush out militants as President Obama considers sending more troops to neighbouring Afghanistan.

Lahore, the centre of Pakistan's cultural life, was long spared the brunt of unrest, but has seen a string of deadly attacks throughout 2009.

In one of the most notable incidents, in March, gunmen attacked the visiting Sri Lankan cricket team, killing six policemen.

OTHER RECENT MILITANT ATTACKS IN PAKISTAN

12 October - Security convoy attacked in Swat valley, 41 die

10 October - Militants attack Rawalpindi army HQ - 20 killed

9 Oct - At least 50 die in Peshawar suicide blast

5 Oct - Five killed in suicide bomb at UN Islamabad offices

26 Sept - 16 die in suicide car bombs in Peshawar and Bannu

Iran's Khatami to run for office

2009-02-08T19:34:00.000-08:00

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.

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 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

2009-02-08T19:32:00.000-08:00

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".

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.

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

2009-02-08T19:30:00.000-08:00

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.

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

2009-02-08T19:07:00.002-08:00

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.

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

2009-02-08T19:07:00.001-08:00

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.

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

2009-02-08T19:03:00.000-08:00

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

More details

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.

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.

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.

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'

2009-02-08T19:01:00.000-08:00

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.

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.

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

2009-02-08T19:00:00.000-08:00

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 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'

2009-02-08T18:58:00.000-08:00

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

'Pretty certain my house has gone'

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'

2009-02-08T18:57:00.000-08:00

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.

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

2009-02-08T18:56:00.000-08:00

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.

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'

2009-02-08T18:54:00.000-08:00

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 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

2009-02-08T18:53:00.000-08:00

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.

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

2009-02-08T18:49:00.000-08:00

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.

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

2009-02-08T18:46:00.000-08:00

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.

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

2009-02-08T00:37:00.000-08:00

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.

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

2009-02-08T00:36:00.000-08:00

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.

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.

Profile: Somalia's President Ahmed

Somali leader seeks military aid

Somali president faces tough task

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

2009-02-08T00:35:00.000-08:00

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.

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

2009-02-08T00:33:00.000-08:00

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.

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

2009-02-08T00:31:00.000-08:00

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.

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.

Gaza air campaign 'a first stage'

2008-12-30T15:04:00.000-08:00

Israel's air assault on Gaza is "the first in several stages" of operations aimed at ending militant rocket fire, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has said.

As bombing continued for a fourth day, another top official said Israel was ready for "long weeks of action".

Palestinian officials say more than 360 people have been killed since Saturday. Four Israelis have died in rocket fire.

As EU officials met to discuss the crisis, some reports from Israel said it was considering a temporary truce.

Mr Olmert was set to discuss the idea of a 48-hour suspension, suggested by France, with his officials later in the day, the French news agency AFP said.

But Infrastructure Minister Benjamin Ben-Eliezer warned a truce would allow militant group Hamas - which controls Gaza - "to regain strength... and prepare an even stronger attack against Israel".

US President Bush agreed in a telephone conversation with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas that for any ceasefire to be effective it had to respected by Hamas, the White House said.

A BBC reporter says Israeli tanks and troops are massed along Gaza's border.

Correspondents say this could be a prelude to ground operations, but could also be intended to build pressure on Hamas.

European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana called for an immediate ceasefire and the opening of crossings to allow humanitarian aid into Gaza, as EU foreign ministers held talks in Paris to discuss the crisis.

Foreign ministers from the Quartet trying to broker peace in the Middle East - the US, Russia, the UN and the EU - also held a conference call, no details of which were released.

'Defenceless population'

On Tuesday, Israeli jets attacked more targets linked to Hamas, hitting a number of government buildings and security installations.

See detailed map of attacks

At least 10 people were killed and 40 said to have been wounded in the raids.

One air strike killed two sisters, the eldest aged 11, riding in a donkey cart in Beit Hanoun, northern Gaza, Palestinian medical sources said.

Gaza aid boat 'rammed by Israel'

US tacitly backs Israeli offensive

Aid worker diary: Gaza raids

Rocket attacks plague Israeli towns

The UN has called for an investigation into the attacks, which are causing heavy civilian casualties. It says at least 62 of the Palestinians killed so far were women and children.

Richard Falk - the UN special rapporteur for human rights in the Palestinian territories - said the international community must put more pressure on Israel to end its assault.

"Israel is committing a shocking series of atrocities by using modern weaponry against a defenceless population - attacking a population that has been enduring a severe blockade for many months," Mr Falk said in a BBC interview.

But Israeli officials said there was more to come.

The Israeli military "has made preparations for long weeks of action", deputy defence minister Matan Vilnai said.

Mr Olmert's statement that the bombardment was "the first of several stages approved by the security cabinet" was quoted from a briefing he gave to President Shimon Peres on Tuesday.

Separately, Israeli naval vessels confronted pro-Palestinian activists seeking to break the Gaza blockade by boat. The activists said one vessel rammed them; their boat made port in Lebanon with heavy damage on one side.

Rocket fire

The Egyptian-Gaza border was due to be opened to permit more trucks carrying aid to enter the territory, and for wounded Palestinians to be transported to Egyptian hospitals.

Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, under popular pressure to open the crossing fully, said that could not happen while Hamas, rather than the Palestinian Authority, led by its rival Fatah, controlled the border.

Demonstrators in Yemen, angered by Egypt's co-operation with the blockade on Gaza, briefly stormed the country's consulate in Aden, where they burned an Egyptian flag and hoisted a Palestinian one.

There have been angry protests against the Israeli offensive in many other cities across the Arab world and in several European capitals.

Binyamin Netanyahu: 'Terrorists cannot have immunity'

Hamas has pressed on with rocket and mortar assaults, killing three Israeli civilians and a soldier in areas that have not previously suffered such fatalities.

Israeli military officials said rocket attacks landing more than 25 miles (40km) from Gaza put nearly 10% of Israel's population of seven million within range.

Israeli political leaders have been under pressure to act against rocket fire with a general election looming in early February.

Opposition leader Binyamin Netanyahu has backed the offensive, telling the BBC that "Israel is using a fraction of its power to try to target surgically the terrorists".

The strikes began less than a week after the expiry of a six-month-long ceasefire deal with Hamas, which has controlled Gaza since 2007.

Correspondents say short of a full-scale invasion of Gaza, it is unlikely Israel will be able to prevent rocket fire permanently.

Israel dismantled its strategic settlements and military bases in Gaza in 2005 but has kept tight control over access in and out of the narrow coastal strip and its airspace.

GAZA VIOLENCE 27-30 DECEMBER

1. Ashdod: First attack so far north, Sunday. Woman killed in second rocket attack, Tuesday
2. Ashkelon: One man killed, several injured in rocket attack, Monday
3. Sderot: rocket attacks
4. Nevitot: One man killed, several injured in rocket attack, Saturday
5. Civilian family reported killed in attack on Yabna refugee camp, Sunday
6. Israeli warplanes strike tunnels under Gaza/Egypt border, Sunday
7. Three brothers reported killed in attack on Rafah, Sunday
8. Khan Younis: Four members of Islamic Jihad and a child reported killed, Sunday. Security officer killed in air strike on Hamas police station, Tuesday
9. Deir al-Balah: Palestinians injured, houses and buildings destroyed, Sunday
10. Tel al-Hawa - Interior ministry and Islamic University badly damaged, Monday. At least three buildings in ministry compound hit, Tuesday
11. Gaza City port: naval vessels targeted, Sunday
12. Shati refugee camp: Home of Hamas leader Ismail Haniya targeted, Monday
13. Intelligence building attacked, Sunday
14. Jebaliya refugee camp: several people killed in attack on mosque, Sunday 15. Beit Hanoun - two girls killed in air strike, Tuesday
16. Israeli soldier killed at unspecified military base near Nahal Oz border crossing - five other soldiers wounded in same rocket attack, Monday night.

Growing calls for Gaza ceasefire

2008-12-30T15:03:00.000-08:00

Foreign powers stepped up calls for Israel and the militant group Hamas to end hostilities, after four days of violence in and around Gaza.

Both the Quartet of Middle East peace-brokers and EU foreign ministers have called for an immediate ceasefire.

Palestinians say more than 360 people have died in Israeli air strikes since Saturday. Four Israelis have been killed by rockets fired from Gaza.

Israel has warned that it is ready for weeks of action to end the rocket fire.

The calls came as Israel confirmed that a rocket fired from Gaza landed in the town of Beersheba. At 42 km (26 miles) inside Israel, it is the furthest a missile has ever reached.

See detailed map of attacks

In Gaza, Israeli missiles continued to pound buildings and installations linked to Hamas, the militant group that controls Gaza. The Israeli military said it hit more than 30 targets.

The UN says at least 62 civilians have died since Saturday; humanitarian agencies say they are struggling to contend with both the air strikes and a lack of supplies.

"We have nothing in our warehouses," a spokesman for UNWRA, the UN agency in Gaza, told the BBC.

"There is a serious shortage of medical supplies. Hospitals in the Gaza Strip are not equipped at all to handle this huge number of dead and injured people."

Aid access

The statement from the Quartet - which comprises the US, UN, EU and Russia - followed a teleconference involving key representatives.

It called for a ceasefire "that would be fully respected" and for all parties to address "the serious humanitarian and economic needs in Gaza", a UN spokeswoman said.

In pictures: Day four of raids

Taking cover on Sderot front line

Long wait at Rafah crossing

The EU foreign ministers echoed the call following a meeting in the French capital, Paris.

Food, urgent medical aid, fuel and humanitarian workers should be allowed in to Gaza and the injured evacuated, it said.

Diplomatic efforts to achieve a lasting peace deal should be stepped up, it added.

Earlier in the day French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner proposed a 48-hour truce to allow aid in to Gaza; Israel has yet to respond.

But the BBC's correspondent in Paris says the Israeli government has little time for many European governments' positions and the ministers are well aware of their relative impotence.

The US - Israel's strongest ally - has called for a long-term solution beyond any immediate ceasefire. But the White House reiterated that the onus was on Hamas to act first to end the violence.

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said earlier that the air assault on Gaza was "the first in several stages" of operations against Hamas. Another top official said Israel was ready for "long weeks of action".

Israel has massed forces along the boundary with Gaza and has declared the area around it a "closed military zone".

Correspondents say the move could be a prelude to ground operations, but could also be intended to build pressure on Hamas.

The Israeli air strikes strikes began less than a week after the expiry of a six-month-long ceasefire deal with Hamas.

Israel withdrew from Gaza in 2005 but has kept tight control over access in and out of Gaza and its airspace.

GAZA VIOLENCE 27-30 DECEMBER

Renewed protests at Israeli raids

2008-12-30T15:02:00.000-08:00

Protests against the Israeli military action in the Gaza Strip have again been taking place, with rallies in several cities across the region.

For a second day in Jordan, several thousand protesters gathered in Amman and burned Israeli and American flags.

There were similar rallies in Egypt, Syria, Libya and Iraq with many calling for a firm response from their leaders.

One of the largest gatherings was in the Lebanese capital, Beirut, organised by the Hezbollah movement.

Tens of thousands of people poured on to the streets of southern Beirut, many carrying Palestinian, Lebanese and Hezbollah flags and banners supporting the Palestinian people, the Associated Press news agency reported.

The rally was called for by Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, who in a speech on Sunday urged crowds in the Arab and Islamic world to rise up in support of Gaza.

He also urged his fighters in southern Lebanon, who fought a brief war with Israel in 2006, to be on alert in case of Israeli attacks.

In Amman demonstrators, responding to a call by Islamist-led trades unionists, marched to the office of Prime Minister Nader Dahabi and delivered a letter demanding Jordan scrap its 1994 peace treaty with Israel and close its embassy, the AFP news agency reported.

Egyptians staged their largest yet demonstration against Israel's offensive against the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip, with thousands taking to the streets of central Cairo.

The rally was once again organised by the Islamist opposition in Egypt, the Muslim Brotherhood, the group from which Hamas first emerged.

Elsewhere in the Islamic world, there were anti-Israeli protests in Bangladesh and Pakistan.

Israel strikes key Hamas offices

2008-12-30T15:00:00.000-08:00

Israeli air raids have pounded the Gaza Strip for a third day, hitting key sites linked to militant group Hamas.

Gaza's interior ministry and Islamic University were the latest targets.

Hamas says 312 Palestinians have died since Saturday, of which the UN says 57 were civilians. In Israel, a second person was killed by a militant rocket.

Defence Minister Ehud Barak said Israel was not fighting the people of Gaza but was in "a war to the bitter end" with Hamas, which has ruled Gaza since 2007.

Israel has massed forces along the border and has declared the area around the narrow coastal strip a "closed military zone".

GAZA CAMPAIGN DEATHS

312 - Official Gaza toll (source: Hamas)

57 civilians in Gaza (source: UN, hospitals)

2 civilians in Israel (source: Israel police)

Are Israel's war aims achievable?

Israel looks for knockout blow

In pictures: Third day of raids

Correspondents say the move - in addition to the call-up of thousands of reservists - could be a prelude to ground operations, but could also be intended to build pressure on Hamas.

BBC analyst Jonathan Marcus says the 6,500 reservists called up would be insufficient for a knockout blow against Hamas, which would require nothing less than the re-occupation of the Gaza Strip.

Dozens of centres of Hamas strength, including security compounds, government offices and tunnels into Egypt, have been hit since Israel started its massive bombing campaign on Saturday morning.

As dawn broke on Monday, witnesses said a powerful explosion struck the interior ministry.

Earlier, a raid destroyed a science building at the Islamic University in Gaza - a centre of support for the Islamist militant group that controls the narrow coastal strip. Many top Hamas officials graduated from there.

Also hit was a house near the abandoned home of a senior Hamas leader in the southern town of Rafah.

The UN relief agency in Gaza says 57 civilians have been killed by Israeli fire so far, the latest being five girls who died in Jabaliya refugee camp when Israeli forces bombed a mosque near their home.

See detailed map of attacks

Hamas officials say that 312 Palestinians have been killed in all, and more than 1,400 others wounded.

The latest fatality in Israel was reported to be a labourer at a building site in the city of Ashkelon, that was hit by a medium-range Grad missile. Three people were reported seriously wounded.

'Changing realities'

A Palestinian doctor in Gaza told the BBC nearly all the casualties he had seen overnight and on Monday had been civilians.

He said the hospital where he worked had converted ordinary rooms into intensive care units to cope with the number of wounded and that essential medical supplies were running out.

Israelis in nearby towns have faced an escalated militant rocket threat

Grief and fear in Gaza

Aid worker diary: Part two

Rocket attacks plague Israeli towns

A small number of wounded Palestinians have begun passing through the Rafah crossing into Egypt. About 30 were expected to leave for treatment in the course of Monday, border officials said.

The Israeli action has sparked anger across the Arab world.

In the West Bank, a Palestinian reportedly stabbed at least three Israelis in a Jewish settlement before he was shot and arrested.

Protests have been held in countries including Syria, Jordan, Iraq and Lebanon, as well as in a number of European capitals.

At the UN, the Security Council joined international calls for restraint by urging an end to all violence between Israel and Gaza.

The US, Israel's strongest ally on the council, said the onus was on Hamas to stop rocket fire first and commit itself to a truce.

Israel says Palestinian militants have fired more than 110 rockets from the coastal territory since Saturday.

RUN-UP TO GAZA RAIDS

Shaky Egyptian-brokered six-month truce between Hamas and Israel agreed on 19 June

Palestinian rocket fire and Israeli operations in Gaza reduced

Violence resumes on 4 Nov as Israel launches incursion which it says targets Hamas tunnel; Palestinians respond with rocket fire

Hostilities increase; Israel tightens blockade on Gaza

Truce expires on 19 Dec; both sides blame each other for its breakdown; rocket fire increases

Israel launches major air strikes on 27 Dec

The strikes began on Saturday less than a week after the expiry of a six-month-long ceasefire deal with Hamas.

Ehud Barak told a special parliamentary session that Israel was "taking all precautions" to avoid harming Palestinian civilians, but blamed militants for intentionally hiding in the civilian population.

His statement, and that of Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni on Sunday about "changing realities on the ground" in Gaza, have fuelled speculation about a sustained Israeli bombing campaign.

Analysts said Saturday was the single deadliest day in Gaza since Israel's occupation of the territory in 1967, although no independent confirmation is available of the numbers killed.

The violence began days after a six-month truce expired between Israel and Hamas, and as Israel was preparing for a general election in February.

The exiled leader of Hamas, Khaled Meshaal, has called for a new intifada, or uprising, against Israel, while the movement's Gaza leader, Ismail Haniya, called the attack an "ugly massacre".

Attacks over the Gaza-Israel border regularly put the truce under strain with both sides blaming each other for unprovoked violations.

From 1967, Israel's military occupied the Gaza Strip and Jewish settlers built communities within the territory. Israel withdrew in 2005 but has kept tight control over access in and out of Gaza and its airspace.

Mideast papers on Gaza

2008-12-30T14:59:00.000-08:00

Commentators in the West Bank-based Palestinian press are united in dismay at the Israeli operation in Gaza, condemning it as an "ugly massacre".

Some also voice their fury at what they see as the inaction of the region's Arab states and the West's support for Israel, while one commentator fears the operation will only drive more of Gaza's young men into the arms of radical Islamists.

Israeli air strikes have destroyed Hamas targets in Gaza.

In Israel, press commentators are broadly supportive of the army operation, and insist that it is up to Hamas to stop the violence, by ending firing of rockets from Gaza into southern Israel. One writer, however, disagrees, saying that every war is a "crime against humanity".

EDITORIAL IN PALESTINIAN AL-QUDS

As the Arab and international silence continues, the credibility of Europe, the United States and the Arab regimes is collapsing. It is becoming very clear that the Palestinians are required to be a broken people... However, they forget that the many massacres to which our people in the Gaza Strip have been exposed will only increase their steadfastness.

BASIM ABU-SAMMIYA IN AL-HAYAT AL-JADIDAH

The Israeli aggression against the Gaza Strip is an ugly massacre. However, the public protests by the Arab countries are not enough on their own. We have become used to being massacred and to dying under the rubble while hearing statements of condemnation and the commotion of demonstrations. However, after a day or two they disappear only to leave the sounds of shells and missiles.

KHALID AL-HARRUB IN AL-AYYAM

What is happening now is the ideal situation for the recruitment of the angry young men who feel collectively insulted. The picture that the Islamists on the streets are painting is that Israel, supported by the West, is waging a war of extermination against the Palestinian people as powerless Arab regimes watch idly.

SAMIH SHBEIB IN AL-AYYAM

The main objective of the Israeli operation is not to destroy Hamas's rule [in Gaza], because this would entail a land invasion and lengthy occupation of the Gaza Strip. What it wants is to deal Hamas and the resistance a painful and effective blow in the Gaza Strip, in order to weaken the resistance and force it to accept a truce according to Israel's conditions.

EITAN HABER IN YEDIOT AHARONOT

This is a strange, unique war. It has no defined borders. There is no occupation and no victory. It could end in an hour or in a year. The way in which it develops will be dictated to a large extent by the Palestinians: They stop firing, we will also stop firing. They'll continue? Their end will be bitter.

BEN KASPIT IN CENTRE-RIGHT MA'ARIV

The ground operations are due at some point. At some point it will be possible to take control of territory in Gaza and effect great damage. Hamas can halt the whole affair at any given moment if it agrees to renew the truce on acceptable terms. Meanwhile, Hamas is conveying stubbornness.

JONATHAN GEFFEN IN CENTRE-RIGHT MA'ARIV

Just like in the first days of the Second Lebanon War, we are again in euphoria. The media, like then, is full of prattle about the morality of the war. Have we not learned that every war, no matter how justified, is a crime against humanity? Most of the public is united around the only consensus we have ever had: war and bereavement, Holocaust and disasters.

EDITORIAL IN LEFT-OF-CENTRE HA'ARETZ

Re-establishing the ceasefire on better terms and with better supervision is a reasonable goal. Toppling the Hamas regime, or eradicating the last rocket factory where the last Hamas member is making the last Qassam rocket, are not reasonable goals, in part because they are unachievable without a prolonged presence on the ground in Gaza.

ALEX FISHMAN IN CENTRIST YEDIOT AHARONOT

In order to stop the firing [of rockets] there is a need to reach a settlement, and in order to convince Hamas to reach a settlement we are now breaking its bones - in part to ensure that the price it demands is not high. However, we have not yet decided what price we are ready to pay. It is worth our while to decide quickly so that others may not decide for us.

BBC Monitoringselects and translates news from radio, television, press, news agencies and the internet from 150 countries in more than 70 languages. It is based in Caversham, UK, and has several bureaux abroad.

Ghana knife-edge result delayed

2008-12-30T14:54:00.000-08:00

The electoral commissioner of Ghana has delayed the final result of Sunday's presidential run-off until Friday.

Results in the Ashanti and Volta areas have been disputed, and the Tain region, where the poll was delayed, will now vote on Friday.

Hundreds of people have mobbed the electoral commission headquarters

Officials said the contest between the opposition's John Atta Mills and ruling party's Nana Akufo-Addo was so close one result could decide the outcome.

The BBC correspondent in Ghana says the further delay might heighten tensions.

New Patriotic Party (NPP) candidate Mr Akufo-Addo gained the most votes in the first round earlier this month but did not pass the 50% threshold needed for outright victory.

Electoral commission chairman Kwadwo Afari-Gyan said opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) candidate Mr Atta Mills had won 50.13% of the vote, while Mr Akufo-Addo had taken 49.87%.

RUN-OFF RESULTS

John Atta Mills: 4,501,466 votes (50.13%)

Nana Akufo-Addo: 4,478,411 votes (49.87%)

229 out of 230 constituencies

Source: Electoral Commission of Ghana

This means just 23,055 votes divide the two candidates, out of a total cast of some 9m.

"Results are so close that the result of the Tain constituency could affect the eventual winner," Mr Afari-Gyan said.

Warning shots

He said the results covered all 230 constituencies, except Tain in the Brong Ahafo region, which was unable to vote on Sunday because of a problem with voting materials.

According to the Daily Guide newspaper, the ruling party had accused electoral officials in Tain of stealing about 1,820 ballot papers, which they claimed were given to the opposition.

The district has some 53,000 registered voters.

The privately-owned Joy FM radio station reported that during the first round of the vote in Tain earlier this month, 30,000 electors turned out and awarded a narrow victory to Mr Atta Mills.

The commissioner, who has been stuck in behind-closed-doors wrangling with both parties in the capital Accra, said they would also use the delay to audit the disputed results.

The electoral commission headquarters was besieged for much of Tuesday by thousands of NDC supporters demanding their candidate be declared the winner.

Armed police and soldiers backed by water cannon trucks and an armoured personnel carrier kept the protesters behind barricades and at one point fired warning shots.

Ice cream

As tensions rose, party officials handed out ice cream and water to the crowds to calm them down.

RIVALS AT A GLANCE

JOHN ATTA MILLS (left)

Age: 64

Party: National Democratic Congress

Executive posts: Vice-president 1997-2000

Profession: University professor

Hobbies: Hockey, swimming

Family: Married with one child

NANA AKUFO-ADDO (right)

Age: 64

Party: New Patriotic Party

Executive posts: Attorney general 2001-03; foreign affairs minister 2003-07

Profession: Lawyer

Family: Married with five children

Mr Atta Mills had earlier claimed victory, but the NPP said this was premature.

Shops closed early on Tuesday, with businessmen fearing that there could be looting once the result is announced.

The opposition has been disputing results awarded to the governing party from five constituencies in its stronghold of the Ashanti region.

It is understood turnout in one area was recorded at 99% - said by election experts to be unheard of - while there were also complaints dead people, children and foreign nationals had been listed among voters.

The NPP, meanwhile, said there had been widespread intimidation of its election agents in the Volta region and results from these areas would be challenged.

International observers have given the poll a preliminary clean bill of health and urged both candidates to accept the results.

Some 12.5 million people were eligible to vote in the election - the fifth since Ghana's return to democracy in 1992.

President John Kufuor is standing down having served two consecutive terms.

In the two previous elections he defeated Mr Atta Mills.

Mr Atta Mills served as vice-president under former leader Jerry Rawlings.

Monitors hope Ghana's poll can help salvage the tarnished image of constitutional democracy in Africa, after flawed elections in Kenya and Zimbabwe and military coups in Mauritania in August and in Guinea last week.

The stakes have been raised in these elections because Ghana has just found oil, which is expected to start generating revenue in 2010.

UK troops to leave Iraq 'by July'

2008-12-17T09:53:00.000-08:00

Gordon Brown and Iraqi prime minister Nouri Maliki say UK forces will have "completed their tasks" and leave the country by the end of July next year.

The two leaders' joint statement came as they held talks in Baghdad before Mr Brown headed to Basra.

The UK PM praised British forces for making Iraq a "better place".

There are currently about 4,100 UK troops in Basra, southern Iraq. Between 200 to 300 military advisers are likely to remain after combat troops leave.

Mr Brown will make a statement to the House of Commons on UK troop deployment in Iraq on Thursday.

'New era'

The withdrawal announcement comes after at least 18 people were killed and dozens wounded in a twin bomb attack in Baghdad on Wednesday.

BBC diplomatic correspondent Paul Adams said the announcement ended months of speculation.

At a press conference, Mr Brown said: "We have agreed today that the mission will end no later than 31 May next year.

"Our troops will be coming home within the next two months [after that]."

Mr Maliki confirmed that the agreement included a provision for the Iraqi government to request an extension of the British military presence.

However, both leaders indicated it was not expected to be used.

Mr Brown said: "We have made a huge contribution and of course given people an economic stake in the future of Iraq. We leave Iraq a better place."

He added: "I am proud of the contribution British forces have made. They are the pride of Britain and the best in the world."

In their joint statement, the leaders said the role played by the UK combat forces was "drawing to a close".

The partnership between the two countries would "continue to take on new dimensions and will be strengthened through cooperation in all areas", they added.

Timing questioned

The withdrawal of UK troops is expected to start in the spring.

In Basra Mr Brown visited British troops and laid a wreath in memory of the 178 British servicemen and women who have been killed in Iraq since the 2003 invasion.

Gordon Brown paid tribute to servicemen and women who have died

Responding to the announcement, Shadow defence secretary Liam Fox said it showed "renewed confidence" in the Iraqi government's ability to maintain security on its own.

But he questioned the timing of the announcement: "The government's policy hitherto has always been to say that they would be coming out, in the near future, when circumstances allowed on the ground.

"I don't know why the government would have changed their mind and given such a specific commitment to dates.

"I'm sure that it's complete coincidence that it's done on the same day that we've got horrendous unemployment figures."

The Conservatives, the UK's official opposition, have reiterated their calls for a public inquiry into the causes and conduct of the Iraq war.

At prime minister's questions, shadow foreign secretary William Hague said: "The government has delayed for years the establishment of an inquiry and now the learning of lessons that may be relevant to Afghanistan and elsewhere can no longer be delayed."

Harriet Harman, standing in for Mr Brown at PMQs, replied: "We have made clear that while our troops are still in Iraq, which they are, doing their duties, that we will not have a full inquiry on how they went in until after they return.

"We have to respect the fact that our fighting forces are still in Iraq. There is no delay."

Nick Clegg, the leader of the UK's third largest party the Liberal Democrats, said: "After five long years in which the enormity of our forces' courage and sacrifice has been matched only by the enormity of the government's mistake, it is a huge relief that the end is at last in sight.

"There must be a fully independent public inquiry into how this was allowed to happen. The time when Brown has been able to hide behind our troops' ongoing presence in the country is coming to an end.

"The death and injury of hundreds of British troops and hundreds of thousands of Iraqi civilians in this futile war cannot simply be swept under the carpet."

The SNP and Plaid Cymru also called for ministers to set out a timetable for a public inquiry into the war.

Iraq MPs rage over shoe thrower

2008-12-17T09:52:00.000-08:00

There have been scenes of uproar in the Iraqi parliament as MPs discussed whether to free a journalist who threw his shoes at the US president.

The scenes forced the speaker to suspend parliament until Thursday.

They came as two of the journalist's brothers said he had appeared before a judge but not in public.

Mr Zaidi's brothers fear he has been badly beaten

Muntadar al-Zaidi had been expected to attend a court hearing, but officials told his family that the judge had visited him in his prison cell.

His brother Dargham, quoted by the Associated Press, alleged that he must have been severely beaten and officials feared his appearance could trigger public anger.

Another brother, Uday, said Mr Zaidi was being hidden away somewhere inside the heavily fortified Green Zone.

"We waited until 10 in the morning but Muntadar did not show up," he told al-Jazeera TV.

"Upon inquiring as to his whereabouts, we were told that the interrogating judge had gone to see him, something that contradicts the measures followed in all international laws in general."

Debate call

Uday Zaidi urged Iraqis to continue street protests as his brother's whereabouts were still unknown.

Mid East press glee at incident

Bush shoe-ing worst Arab insult

Profile: Shoe-throwing journalist

They spilled over into the Iraqi parliament, where MPs gathered on Wednesday to discuss the withdrawal of all non-US troops from the country by June next year.

A group loyal to radical Shia cleric Moqtada Sadr interrupted the session, AP said, demanding a debate on the fate of Mr Zaidi.

Iraqi officials have denied that he was severely beaten after the incident at a Baghdad news conference, during which he hurled shoes at US President George W Bush.

"This is a goodbye kiss from the Iraqi people, dog," yelled Mr Zaidi as he threw the shoes.

Mr Zaidi has been remanded in custody while the judge investigates the case as part of complicated legal proceedings that could take months before a possible trial.

Thousands of Iraqis have held demonstrations calling for his release in the days since his arrest.

White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said on Tuesday that Mr Bush had no hard feelings about the incident.

Russia 'to give' Lebanon war jets

2008-12-17T09:51:00.000-08:00

Moscow is to give 10 MiG-29 fighter jets to Lebanon free of charge, says Russia's state news agency Interfax.

The head of the Russia's defence cooperation body, Mikhail Dmitriyev, said the consignment was "a form of military and technical assistance".

Russia said the jets would help to ensure stability in the region

"We view the Lebanese army as the main guarantor of this nation's stability, therefore the armed forces of this country must be strengthened," he said.

Delivery of the jets to Lebanon will also be paid for by the Russians.

Mr Dmitriyev said the jets would be fully repaired and upgraded before being delivered.

He added that the two countries were also discussing a possible sale of Russian armour to Beirut, reported Reuters. Hr said this was possible because of Lebanon's recent stability.

Lebanon's military capability is greatly outweighed by Arab neighbour Syria, with which is has a history of sometimes strained relations, and the Jewish state Israel which lies to the south.

Lebanon and Israel have never signed a peace treaty and Israeli fighter jets continually violate Lebanese airspace in what the Israeli military describes as reconnaissance missions, but which are condemned by the United Nations.

Move to impeach Somali president

2008-12-17T09:50:00.000-08:00

Nearly 120 Somali MPs have voted to start impeachment proceedings against President Abdullahi Yusuf, accusing him of being a "stumbling block to peace".

He must now appear before parliament to defend himself. The motion would need a two-thirds majority to succeed.

Abdullahi Yusuf sacked his popular prime minister on Sunday

The move in Baidoa comes a day after the president named a new prime minister in defiance of parliament.

MPs also supported a UN-backed peace deal between the transitional government and Islamist rivals.

But the Islamist al-Shabab insurgent group that controls much of southern Somalia has not signed up to the agreement.

'Propaganda'

President Yusuf told AP news agency from the seat of parliament in Baidoa: "It cannot be true that I'm an obstacle to peace. It is propaganda."

The resolution to impeach him - which alleged he had violated 14 articles of the Western-backed transitional government's constitution - had the support of 117 legislators in the 275-member parliament.

President Yusuf is accused of illegally printing money, nepotism, behaving like a dictator and failing to push the peace process forward after four years as president.

He is also charged with side-lining some of the communities.

Correspondents say this is coded language referring to the increasingly bitter clan rivalries that have deepened under his leadership.

The president's sacking of the prime minister sparked protests

President Yusuf's biggest miscalculation appears to have been a decision to sack Prime Minister Nur Hassan Hussein and his cabinet on Sunday, they say.

Lawmakers soundly rejected President Yusuf's unilateral decision - saying it needed parliament's approval - and voted to keep Mr Nur as prime minister.

President Yusuf and Mr Nur had clashed in recent months over attempts to deal with the Islamist-led armed opposition.

Mr Nur was chairman of Somalia's Red Crescent Society during many years of conflict before being named prime minister.

On Tuesday, Kenya announced it would impose sanctions on Mr Yusuf and his family because it also said he was an obstacle to peace.

The BBC's Mohamed Olad Hassan in the capital, Mogadishu, says it is not clear if the impeachment move will work as Somali lawmakers can be very unreliable in their voting.

'Only option left'

Mustafa Duhulow, an agriculture minister who topped the list of MPs behind the impeachment motion, said a number of lawmakers were in Mogadishu, or even out of the country.

"He's the president. He should be the one who's working very hard to bring the unity to Somalia, reconciliation to Somalia. Now he doesn't want to do that," he told the BBC World Service's Focus on Africa programme.

"The president is the problem of the country. We've tried everything… the only option left for us is to impeach him."

Some analysts fear a power vacuum after the Ethiopians leave

Correspondents say Somalia's government badly needs a unified front if it is to find peace with hardline Islamist insurgents who now control almost all of southern Somalia.

In parliament on Wednesday, MPs also endorsed with a show of hands a reconciliation deal between the more moderate Islamist Alliance for the Re-liberation of Somalia (ARS) and the transitional government, sponsored by the UN in neighbouring Djibouti.

That agreement requires Ethiopian forces - which helped government forces drive Islamist forces from Mogadishu two years ago - to pull out in just over two weeks.

A small African Union peacekeeping force has indicated it may leave with the Ethiopians unless it gets reinforcements.

About one million people have fled their homes - many after fierce fighting in Mogadishu between Islamists and the Ethiopia-backed government forces.

Somalia has not had a functioning national government since 1991 when warlords overthrew the regime of President Mohamed Siad Barre and then turned on each other.

Zimbabwe neighbours' aid campaign

2008-12-17T09:48:00.000-08:00

Southern African countries are launching an urgent campaign to help Zimbabwe fight cholera and overcome its acute food shortage.

The plan was announced by President Kgalema Motlanthe of South Africa after a meeting in Pretoria of the Southern African Development Community (Sadc).

President Motlanthe also said he hoped a unity government would be formed in Zimbabwe in the coming days.

There are fears the rainy season will increase the cases of cholera

But Zimbabwe's opposition said it did not know what he was talking about.

After disputed presidential elections in March and June, President Robert Mugabe's Zanu-PF party and the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) agreed to form a power-sharing government.

But implementation of that deal, reached in September, has been deadlocked over whose supporters would get key ministries.

Meanwhile, 18,000 Zimbabweans have been infected with cholera and nearly 1,000 have died from the disease. Aid agencies warn cases will surge with heavy rains.

President Motlanthe said on Wednesday the Sadc appeal was being launched "for the people of Zimbabwe in order to help them overcome the challenges facing their country".

All 15 members of the regional body were expected to contribute to the aid effort, he added.

Correspondents say the Sadc campaign is firstly an international appeal to mobilise funds and resources for Zimbabwe's people.

It will also seek to address donors' concerns about food distribution being used by Mr Mugabe's government as a political tool.

'Tragedy'

The campaign was launched as Australia added its voice to growing calls for Mr Mugabe to stand down and tightened sanctions against his government.

Canberra added 75 individuals and four firms in Zimbabwe to a blacklist of financial and visa restrictions.

Months of power-sharing talks have not broken the deadlock

Foreign Minister Stephen Smith said the measures were "a clear signal the Australian government holds the brutal Mugabe regime and its closest supporters accountable for the tragedy occurring in Zimbabwe".

African countries like Botswana and Kenya have also urged Mr Mugabe to quit.

But in South Africa's capital, President Motlanthe told journalists he would not join calls for Mr Mugabe to step down.

He said: "The issue of whether President Mugabe should go or not was never been raised by the parties. So, it's really not for us - I mean, I don't know whether the British feel qualified to impose that on the people of Zimbabwe."

President Motlanthe said he hoped a constitutional amendment paving the way for power-sharing - with Mr Mugabe remaining president and MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai becoming prime minster - would become law this week.

"We are hopeful that such an inclusive government will be put in place this week," he said.

'News to us'

But Zimbabwe's opposition said it knew nothing about any such breakthrough.

"We are not aware of any plans to form a government this week. It's certainly news to us because the outstanding issues we have outlined remain," MDC spokesman Nelson Chamisa told Reuters new agency.

The BBC's Jonah Fisher in Pretoria says the prospect of power-sharing still seems remote - in the week when Zimbabwe's government accused Botswana of hosting military training camps for MDC insurgents.

Meanwhile Nigeria's Foreign Minister Ojo Maduekwe told the BBC's HardTalk programme that while Nigeria shared the "moral outrage" about Zimbabwe, the best way to move forward was the power-sharing talks.

Earlier, the UK think tank International Crisis Group suggested that both Mr Mugabe and Mr Tsvangirai should step aside to end the "hopelessly deadlocked" talks.

This could allow a transitional administration to implement political and economic reforms, it said.

But BBC Africa analyst Martin Plaut says it is unlikely either side would take up such an idea.

Kenya agrees to election tribunal

2008-12-17T09:47:00.000-08:00

Kenya's president and prime minister have signed a deal that will pave the way for an election violence tribunal.

They agreed to it within hours of a deadline set out in a report into the deadly clashes that erupted after last December's elections.

The court will seek to try the ringleaders of the violence.

Some 1,500 people died in the clashes that erupted after the elections

Parliament now has 45 days to set it up to begin hearings by March or a sealed list of suspects will be handed over to the International Criminal Court.

The deadline for Wednesday's agreement was set out by a commission of inquiry into the violence, chaired by Justice Phillip Waki, which reported in October.

That commission also handed over a list of suspects, some thought to be prominent politicians, to the mediator of the power-sharing deal, former UN chief Kofi Annan.

On Tuesday, Kenya's electoral commission was dissolved by MPs - a key recommendation of another inquiry into the election.

Some 1,500 people died in the post-election clashes and another 300,000 people fled their homes.

President Mwai Kibaki and Raila Odinga signed a power-sharing deal in February to bring an end to the violence and formed a coalition government.

Opec agrees record oil output cut

2008-12-17T09:46:00.000-08:00

The oil producers' cartel Opec has agreed to make a record cut in output, slashing 2.2 million barrels per day (bpd) from its current supply.

Opec has made two other cuts since September, meaning it has cut a total of 4.2 million bpd in four months.

In a news conference, Opec said that it hoped the record cut would boost prices but that it had no formal price target.

The cut means that the target for production for the 12 member states is now 24.845 million bpd.

Demand risks

The cut is effective from 1 January, but the big question with Opec production cuts is always whether the member states will actually make the cuts they have agreed to.

"Given the still-substantial risks to demand and ongoing scepticism on Opec compliance, it could take some time before prices recover materially above $50 to $55 per barrel," said Gordon Gray from Collins Stewart.

Oil prices fell following the agreement, because weekly US inventories figures provided further evidence that motorists were cutting back on their consumption.

Demand for petrol in the four weeks to 12 December was down 2.7% from the same period last year.

US light, sweet crude for January delivery fell $2.07 to $41.53 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

'Bigger problems'

There was some doubt among analysts about whether the cut would be enough to push prices higher, even if members did comply with it.

"Historically Opec has had to remove around five million barrels from the market in previous slumps, and they're facing bigger problems now than they have done before," said Michael Lewis, head of commodity research at Deutsche Bank.

Oil prices have fallen by more than $100 a barrel from the peak above $147 that they reached in July.

Prices have been falling amid concern about how much less oil will be used by countries experiencing recessions.

Falling consumption means that industrialised nations currently have stockpiles of oil equivalent to 57 days of consumption - supplies that would typically be about 52 days at this time of year.

Zardari rejects Mumbai 'claims'

2008-12-17T09:45:00.001-08:00

Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari has said there is still no firm proof that gunmen who attacked the Indian city of Mumbai came from Pakistan.

US, Indian and British officials all say there is clear evidence suggesting the attacks originated in terrorist training camps inside Pakistan.

But speaking to the BBC, Mr Zardari said there was still no conclusive evidence to substantiate the claim.

However he promised Pakistan would take action if a link was proved.

More than 170 people died in last month's attacks in Mumbai (Bombay), which India blamed on the Lashka-e-Taiba militant group.

Full investigation

Mr Zardari told the BBC's Alan Little in Islamabad that Pakistan was prepared to act if adequate evidence of any Pakistani complicity in the attacks emerged.

LASHKAR-E-TAIBA

Jihadi organisation based in Pakistan

Formed towards the end of the Afghan war against the Soviets

Blamed for hundreds of attacks in the region since 1990

Listed as a "terrorist group" by the US and UK

"If that stage comes, and when it comes, I assure you that our parliament, our democracy, shall take the action properly deemed in our constitution and in our law," he said.

He said that Western intelligence agencies had not offered firm evidence to justify claims that the attacks were orchestrated from Pakistani soil and that he would not jump to conclusions until a full investigation had been conducted.

Mr Zardari said claims that the sole surviving attacker had been identified by his own father as coming from Pakistan had not been proven. The man has been named as Mohammed Ajmal Amir Qasab and is in Indian police custody.

The Pakistani president also said Hafiz Saeed, the leader of the Jamaat-ud-Dawa charity, would remain under house arrest.

Pakistan says that terrorism is a common enemy

"Let me assure you that if there is any investigation to be found pointing towards his involvement in any form of terrorism, he shall be tried for that reason," the president said.

Jamaat-ud-Dawa is accused of being a front for Lashkar-e-Taiba, a charge it denies.

Mr Zardari said that he had asked India to co-operate in an investigation and he would not leap to judgement while that investigation was continuing.

He said that while he was not in denial about Lashkar-e-Taiba's continued activities, ''when you ban an organisation they emerge in some other form''.

Our correspondent says the president's denial will further dismay India, and frustrate Britain and America, which are exerting intense pressure on Pakistan to take action.

'Hiccup'

Meanwhile, Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi has expressed regret after his Indian counterpart said peace moves between the countries were on hold because of the Mumbai attacks.

But Mr Qureshi said relations between the two countries - which both have nuclear arms - would recover.

"This unfortunate incident has been a setback... to the extent that our composite dialogue is at a pause at the moment," Mr Qureshi said.

"But I am confident that we will overcome this hiccup... the future of Pakistan demands good neighbourly relations with India, so it's my responsibility to develop good bilateral relations."

Mr Qureshi said that the two countries had a "common objective, a common challenge and a common enemy" in relation to "terrorism".

Microsoft plans quick fix for IE

2008-12-17T09:42:00.000-08:00

Microsoft is due to issue a patch to fix a security flaw believed to have affected as many as 10,000 websites.

The emergency patch should be available from 1800 GMT on 17 December, Microsoft has said.

The flaw in Microsoft's Internet Explorer browser could allow criminals to take control of people's computers and steal passwords.

Internet Explorer is used by vast majority of world's computer users

Internet Explorer is used by the vast majority of computer users and the flaw could affect all versions of it.

So far the vulnerability has affected only machines running Internet Explorer 7.

"Microsoft teams worldwide have been working around the clock to develop a security update to help protect our customers," the software firm said in a statement.

"Until the update is available, Microsoft strongly encourages customers to follow the Protect Your Computer Guidance at www.microsoft.com/protect, which includes activating the Automatic Update setting in Windows to ensure that they receive the update as soon as it is available," the statement read.

Potential danger

According to Rick Ferguson, a senior security adviser at security firm Trend Micro, the flaw has so far been used to steal gaming passwords but more sensitive data could be at risk until the security update is installed.

MICROSOFT SECURITY ADVICE

Change IE security settings to high (Look under Tools/Internet Options)

Switch to a Windows user account with limited rights to change a PC's settings

With IE7 or 8 on Vista turn on Protected Mode

Ensure your PC is updated

Keep anti-virus and anti-spyware software up to date

"It is inevitable that it will be adapted by criminals. It's just a question of modifying the payload the trojan installs," he said.

It is relatively unusual for Microsoft to issue what it calls an "out-of-band" security bulletin and experts are reading the decision to rush out a patch as evidence of the potential danger of the flaw.

Some experts have suggested that users switch browsers until the flaw is fixed.

Firefox, Opera, Chrome and Apple's Safari system are not vulnerable to this current flaw.

But Graham Cluley, senior consultant with security firm Sophos, said no browser is exempt from problems.

"Firefox has issued patches and Apple has too. Whichever browser you are using you have to keep it up to date," he said.

"People have to be prepared and willing to install security updates. That nagging screen asking if you want to update should not be ignored," he said.

Party launched for 'all S Africa'

2008-12-16T11:47:00.000-08:00

The leader of a new political party in South Africa has said at the movement's formal launch that it will offer a home to all of the country's racial groups.

Former Defence Minister Mosiuoa Lekota said the Congress of the People, or Cope, was the "party of the future".

Cope supporters were in high spirits at the party launch

Correspondents say the party could present real opposition to the African National Congress for the first time.

It is made up largely of ANC defectors, and will challenge the governing party in national elections next year.

Mr Lekota was speaking in Bloemfontein, where he was named as Cope's president.

"The history of South Africa will never be the same again," he said to a cheering crowd of some 4,000 delegates.

"Ours shall be a truly non-racial party that will provide a true home to all South Africans irrespective of race, class or gender."

The ANC has ruled South Africa since the end of white minority rule 14 years ago.

We need to fight joblessness and grow our economy

Cope leader Mosiuoa Lekota

New party to challenge ANC rule

Profile: Mosiuoa Lekota

Send us your comments

South Africa's main opposition party until now, the Democratic Alliance, draws most of its support from white and mixed-race voters.

Cope emerged after Thabo Mbeki resigned as president in September after a power struggle with ANC leader Jacob Zuma.

Many supporters of the new party were unhappy at the way in which Mr Mbeki was forced to step down.

The BBC's Peter Biles reports from Bloemfontein that delegates have been locked in feverish political debates.

They see the launch as a key moment that signals the growth and development of South Africa's young democracy, he says.

Mr Zuma is also in Bloemfontein on Tuesday for a party rally widely seen as an attempt to divert attention from the launch of Cope.

"It is a call to us, as former soldiers of [ANC's now-defunct military wing Umkhonto weSizwe] MK, to participate in today's battles, the battles that are more important, the battles of building a new nation, of developing South Africa," he said.

As it confirmed Mr Lekota as its leader, Cope named the former premier of Gauteng province, Mbhazima Shilowa, as its first deputy president.

The party also unveiled its latest high profile supporter, the anti-apartheid activist and cleric Allan Boesak.

Mr Boesak was given a rapturous welcome by Cope supporters, before telling them that the tide had turned against the ANC.

Mr Lekota, who has ruled out any reconciliation with the ANC, said that expanding the economy would be the linchpin of Cope's electoral campaign.

"We need to fight joblessness and grow our economy," he said.

"Our approach is stability, hard work and growth."

Electoral test

South African analyst William Mervin Gumede told the BBC's Focus on Africa programme that Cope is already starting to change the country's politics.

"Cope has changed the ANC already - the ANC is trying to be more accountable, the ANC is trying to be more consultative and is going to the electorate to explain its decisions - something it hasn't done in the past."

The breakaway party's formation has been marked by a lengthy and problematic search for a name.

The ANC has laid claim to the Congress of the People, since it was the name used for a historic, ANC-sponsored event in 1955.

But the High Court ruled earlier this month that the new party could use the name.

CONTESTED NAMES

1: South African National Congress, challenged by ANC as too similar to its name

2: South African Democratic Congress, already registered by another party

3: Congress of the People, refers to an event when the ANC's Freedom Charter was signed

Cope was already the party's third choice.

Its first choice - South African National Congress - was challenged by the ANC, which said it was too similar to its own name.

Their second choice - South African Democratic Congress - was already registered as a party.

In its first electoral test earlier this month, the ANC dissidents won 10 of 27 wards in the Western Cape - the province where the ANC has always been least popular.

The Cope members had to stand as independent candidates because of the dispute over the party's name.

Our correspondent says the challenge for the new party is to distance itself from Mr Mbeki, and not appear like a group of embittered losers from last year's ANC national conference in Polokwane, where Mr Zuma defeated Mr Mbeki in a leadership contest.

But he also says that Cope, which says it has more than 400,000 members, is in a position to make serious inroads into ANC dominance.

The ANC has around 650,000 paid-up members.

Zimbabwe's air force chief 'shot'

2008-12-16T11:46:00.000-08:00

The commander of Zimbabwe's air force has been wounded in what officials are calling an assassination attempt.

Perence Shiri, 53, a close ally of President Mugabe, seen as one of the most feared military leaders, was shot in the arm and is said to be stable.

The opposition MDC says he was one of the masterminds of violence against its supporters during this year's election.

Its spokesman said the attack was aimed at justifying a military crackdown and eventual declaration of an emergency.

Air Marshal Shiri is the first senior figure to be targeted for many years

The incident comes as pressure grows on Zimbabwe to allow international mediation in its political crisis.

The crisis is compounded by a cholera epidemic which has left hundreds dead.

On Monday, at the UN Security Council's first discussions on Zimbabwe since July, Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon said the world was witnessing a failure of the leadership in Zimbabwe to address the crisis.

After disputed presidential elections in March, President Robert Mugabe's Zanu-PF party and the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) agreed to form a power-sharing government.

But implementation of that agreement, reached in September, has been dogged by disagreements over whose supporters would get key ministries.

'Terror attacks'

Correspondents say this is the first time such a senior government figure has been the target of a violent attack for many years.

PERENCE SHIRI

Accused of masterminding attacks on opposition in 2008

Member of Joint Operations Command - top military body

Accused of leading farm invasions in 2000

Led brutal campaign against "dissidents" in 1980s, which left 20,000 dead

Called himself "Black Jesus" - as he had the power of life or death

Cousin of Robert Mugabe

On sanctions list of US, EU

Age: 53

Key role for security chiefs

Q&A: Zimbabwe crisis

"This is a very, very unusual incident, because Zimbabwe does not have a history of assassinations," the assistant editor of the state-run Herald newspaper, Caesar Zaye, told the BBC World Service's World Today programme.

Air Marshal Shiri was ambushed on Saturday evening while driving to his farm, state media said.

Police said he was accosted by unknown people who shot at his car.

When he heard the gunshots, he got out thinking it was a puncture and was shot. He is now said to be recovering in hospital.

Officials said the incident was one of a series of attacks aimed at destabilising the country.

"The attack on Air Marshal Shiri appears to be a build-up of terror attacks targeting high-profile persons, government officials, government establishments and public transportation systems," the Chronicle newspaper quoted Home Affairs Minister Kembo Mohadi as saying.

There were several bomb blasts around Harare last year which caused little damage. The courts have acquitted several opposition activists accused of staging the attacks.

Mr Zaye said the alleged assassination attempt was "an attempt to bring a security angle into the crisis".

However, other sources suggest the cause was either a feud within the ruling Zanu-PF party or an attempted robbery.

Crackdown fear

On Monday, Zimbabwe's government said it had "compelling evidence" that neighbouring Botswana was hosting military training camps for opposition groups intent on bringing about regime change.

Botswana denied the charges, and said Harare had failed to provide any tangible evidence to back up its allegations.

Air Marshal Shiri, who is also Mr Mugabe's cousin and a loyal supporter since he came to power, sits on the Joint Operations Command which advises the president on military matters.

The opposition Movement for Democratic Change said the JOC was behind the violent attacks on its supporters ahead of June's presidential run-off - allegations the military strongly denied.

Air Marshal Shiri was commander of the Fifth Brigade, blamed for the killing of 20,000 people in Zimbabwe's south-western Matabeleland region during the 1980s.

Pirates seize two ships off Yemen

2008-12-16T11:45:00.001-08:00

Two vessels have been seized by suspected Somali pirates off the coast of Yemen, adding to the dozens of ships hijacked in the area this year.

An Indonesian tugboat contracted to French oil company Total was seized, a Total spokesman said.

It was heading from Yemen to Malaysia when it was attacked.

A Turkish cargo ship, MV Bosphorus Prodigy, owned by Isko Marine Company, was also captured, a US Fifth Fleet spokesman said.

Merchant vessels have been among targets for Somali pirates

The container ship is 330ft (100m) long and carries the flag of Antigua-Barbuda.

The tugboat had mainly Indonesian crew, the Total spokesman said.

The latest seizures came as the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime called for more policing of the seas off Somalia, and for arrested pirates to tried in the country that the arresting officers come from.

The executive director of the office, Antonio Maria Costa, said: "Pirates cannot be keelhauled or forced to walk the plank, nor should they be dumped off the Somali coast.

"They need to be brought to justice."

Explosives found in Paris store

2008-12-16T11:44:00.001-08:00

Five sticks of explosives have been found and made safe in a top Paris department store, French police say.

The Printemps Haussmann store was evacuated and cordoned off, and police directed traffic away from the area.

French news agency AFP received a letter signed by a group calling itself the Afghan Revolutionary Front, warning of "several bombs" placed in the store.

President Nicolas Sarkozy urged caution in reacting to the incident. There was no detonator linked to the explosives.

"All we can do is to be prudent and moderate," Mr Sarkozy said at a news conference in the European Parliament.

"My belief has not changed since 2002 that vigilance in the face of terrorism is the only possible line to take."

The BBC's Hugh Schofield in Paris says the incident is a scary warning to the French people and a reminder that they are not immune to the scourge of terrorism, despite there being no significant attack on French soil for more than 10 years.

Unknown group

Officials said the explosives, planted in washrooms on several floors, were first located by sniffer dogs.

They consisted of old sticks of dynamite held together with a piece of cord, according to an officials quoted by news agency AFP.

"Based on what we know, it was not a device that was set to explode. We are going to carry out an investigation to find the perpetrators," AFP quoted Interior Minister Michele Alliot-Marie as saying at the scene.

The store, on the city's central Boulevard Haussmann, was evacuated as the area was busy with shoppers ahead of Christmas.

One shopper told AFP the evacuation was calm and orderly.

The Afghan Revolutionary Front is a previously unknown group.

"If you do not send someone to intervene before Wednesday December 17, they will explode," said its letter, which was taken by police investigating the explosives.

"Send the message to your president that he must withdraw his troops from our country before the end of February 2009 or else we will take action in your capitalist department stores and this time, without warning."

France has about 2,600 troops serving with Nato in Afghanistan, after reinforcements were sent earlier this year.

In a video broadcast last November, a Taleban military leader, Faruq Akhun Zadeh, warned that "our reaction will be heard in Paris" if the troops were not withdrawn.

Greek protesters seize TV studio

2008-12-16T11:41:00.002-08:00

Protesters in Greece have interrupted a TV news bulletin to call for the continuation of mass protests over the recent killing of a teenager by police.

Ten youths briefly seized a state NET TV studio, holding banners saying "Stop watching, get out onto the streets".

Protesters interrupted footage of a speech of Mr Karamanlis

Separately, youths attacked the riot police headquarters in the capital, Athens, damaging several vehicles.

Some 70 people have been injured during riots across Greece sparked by the shooting of the teenager on 6 December.

It is estimated that 400 people have been detained during the protests.

Youths also clashed with police in the northern city of Thessaloniki

The policeman accused of shooting Alexandros Grigoropoulos, aged 15, has been charged with murder.

The shooting has also generated widespread anti-government sentiment, with many protesters voicing their anger over the government's economic policies.

Conservative Prime Minister Kostas Karamanlis has rejected calls to step down.

He says the country needs a "steady hand" to deal with the economic downturn, "not scenarios about elections and successions".

Nazi-era singer loses libel suit

2008-12-16T11:41:00.001-08:00

A 105-year-old Dutch entertainer has lost his libel lawsuit over claims that he sang for Nazi guards at the Dachau concentration camp during World War II.

Johannes Heesters had been seeking a retraction from German author Volker Kuehn who made the claims.

But a German judge said that although this could no longer be proven, there was enough evidence to suggest that Mr Heesters appeared on stage at the camp.

Heesters is said to have been one of Hitler's favourite performers

Mr Heesters does admit visiting Dachau, and that he performed for Adolf Hitler.

But he insists that he never espoused Nazi politics.

'Dark times'

At a court in Berlin, Judge Michael Mauck ruled on Tuesday that there were "certain indications of a performance" of Mr Heesters in Dachau, southern Germany, in 1941.

But the judge added that now - more than 60 years on - it was "no longer possible to clarify whether a performance took place".

Judge Mauck also said that Volker Kuehn had the right to make his claims.

Mr Kuehn said he was satisfied with the verdict because it showed that in Germany people were encouraged to talk about the dark times of World War II.

Johannes Heesters, born Johan, began his career in Amsterdam in the 1920s and moved to Germany in 1935, where he enjoyed success.

Heesters - believed to be the world's oldest performing singer and actor - was never accused of being a Nazi propagandist, and the Allies allowed him to continue performing after the war.

He was booed off stage in Amsterdam when he previously tried to stage a comeback in the early 1960s.

Since then he has performed in other countries, notably Germany and Austria.

He now lives in Munich, southern Germany.

US rate cut to zero - 0.25% range

2008-12-16T11:39:00.000-08:00

The US Federal Reserve has slashed its key interest rate from 1% to a range of between zero and 0.25% as it battles the country's recession.

The central bank's key rate, the target rate for overnight federal funds, is at its lowest since records began in 1954.

In its statement, the Federal Reserve warned that "the outlook for economic activity has weakened further".

It predicted that rates would stay at the current exceptionally low levels "for some time".

The rate has been cut drastically by the Federal Reserve from the 5.25% where it stood in September 2007.

Earlier in the day, official data confirmed that the threat of inflation is receding, as consumer prices fell a record 1.7% in November.

Israel tourism bus crash kills 24

2008-12-16T11:38:00.000-08:00

A bus carrying Russian visitors has plunged into a ravine in southern Israel, killing at least 24 people, rescue workers say.

More than 50 passengers were on the bus when it came off a desert road and rolled down a steep slope near the Red Sea resort of Eilat.

Several of those hurt were said to be in a serious condition.

The group had only just arrived and were being transported to Eilat from Ovda airport in the Negev desert.

The group had come from the Russian city of St Petersburg. Local media reports said they were travel agents from the city on a trip to survey the Red Sea resort.

Dozens of rescue workers, ambulances and several air force helicopters rushed to the site to evacuate the injured.

In pictures: Israel bus crash

Television footage showed the blue bus on its side at the bottom of the ravine.

Several of the passengers were thrown from the bus as it rolled down the slope, an eyewitness said. Luggage and wreckage lay strewn across the slope.

Some of the casualties were taken to hospital in Eilat, where medical personnel attending a conference were drafted in to help out. Others were flown to the town of Beersheba, a police spokesman said.

Six injured people who were trapped in the bus were rescued, an Israeli military officer said.

"They were saved because they were trapped in their seats," the Associated Press news agency quoted the unidentified officer as saying.

In a statement, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert expressed shock at the "horrific accident".

Russia is sending a team of doctors to Israel to help and President Dmitry Medvedev sent condolences to relatives of the victims, Russian media reported.

'Overtook'

The road where the accident happened links Eilat, a popular holiday destination, with Ovda airport, some 50km (30 miles) away.

The bus broke through a rail and rolled down a ravine, witnesses said.

It crosses mountainous terrain and involves a series of hair-pin bends.

The driver of another bus said that the vehicle overtook him in a no-passing zone and then crashed through a guard rail, the Associated Press news agency reported.

A taxi driver who saw the accident gave a similar account to Israeli public radio.

"The driver of the bus tried to overtake another bus in a hair-pin curve and lost control of his vehicle," he said.

Doctor guilty of car bomb attacks

2008-12-16T11:35:00.000-08:00

An NHS doctor has been convicted of plotting to bring chaos and murder to London and Glasgow Airport by setting off massive car bombs.

A jury at Woolwich Crown Court found Bilal Abdulla guilty of plotting the home-made bomb attacks in 2007.

Another NHS doctor, Mohammed Asha, was cleared of helping Abdulla and a second attacker, Kafeel Ahmed.

Ahmed died following the Glasgow attack on 30 June 2007, a day after he and Abdulla had attacked London's West End.

Prosecutor Jonathan Laidlaw told the jury the men had been intent on "committing murder on an indiscriminate and wholesale scale" in attacks that would occur without warning, spreading panic among the public.

Abdulla will be sentenced on Wednesday. Meanwhile, lawyers for Dr Asha said he had been served with deportation papers - but would fight to remain in the UK and rebuild his medical career.

'Kill and maim'

Home Secretary Jacqui Smith said she was "pleased" with the conviction.

"The attack on Glasgow Airport and the planned bomb in central London sought to kill and maim through attacks of an indiscriminate nature," she said.

"This conviction underlines again the serious and sustained threat we face in the UK from terrorism - which is a threat we must face and deal with together."

The first attack involved two failed car bombs left in London's West End. Then a burning Jeep filled with gas canisters was driven into Glasgow Airport on its busiest day of the year.

In each case, said prosecutors, it was good fortune alone that there had been no loss of innocent life.

Abdulla, an Iraqi who was born in the UK, was one of two bombers along with Kafeel Ahmed. The 29-year-old was arrested near the Jeep at Glasgow Airport terminal building.

Indian-born PhD aeronautical engineering student Ahmed, 28, suffered serious burns and died five weeks later.

Detectives believe the Glasgow attack was a suicide bomb attempt on holidaymakers in the wake of the two botched attacks on London.

Abdulla admitted in court that he was "a terrorist" as defined by English law. He went on to say he believed the British government and Army could equally be accused of terrorism for their actions in Iraq.

But he added he had wanted to frighten people rather than murder them.

At the time of the attacks he was a junior doctor at the Royal Alexandra Hospital in Paisley.

The jury at Woolwich Crown Court found Abdulla guilty of conspiracy to murder and conspiracy to cause explosions. He faces a life sentence but showed no reaction as the jury's verdict was read out.

Investigators said they had been shocked to learn of Abdulla's responsible, health sector background.

One senior detective added: "Just the whole idea of people who take the Hippocratic oath who then go on to wantonly seek to destroy human life in the most horrific way imaginable, that is what I find shocking."

Dr Asha, 28, a neurologist at the University Hospital of North Staffordshire, admitted knowing the two bombers but denied any knowledge of their attacks. He was found not guilty of conspiracy to murder and conspiracy to cause explosions.

He leaned back in his seat, his hands clasped behind his neck in apparent relief as the verdict was read out. Before Dr Asha left the dock the two men embraced and shook hands.

Jim Sturman QC, for Abdulla, said his crimes were motivated by politics, not religion.

"This is not a case where his intention was driven by religious faith but by his frustration with what he saw as an unjust war," he said.

The barrister said his client needed time "to allow the consequences of conviction to sink in".

Speaking after the trial, Crown Prosecution Service lawyer Karen Jones said: "If you are planning to scare people you do not pack cars with petrol, gas and nails.

"If the cars had blown up those nails would not only have killed people but maimed others for life."

Tory MP and security expert Patrick Mercer said it was wrong to call the attacks "amateurish" and said Britain was vulnerable to similar incidents.

"These sort of attacks are relatively easily put together. The materials are relatively easily obtained.

'Highly vulnerable'

"Whilst we have seen highly sophisticated attacks in places like Mumbai in recent weeks, we are still highly vulnerable to the lower end of the lower scale of these sort of attacks being put together without very much central guidance from core al-Qaeda operatives."

Deputy Assistant Commissioner John McDowall, a national counter terrorism co-ordinator at the Metropolitan Police, said he believed the London bombs were to have been the first in a series of similar attacks.

"Abdulla and Kafeel Ahmed had at least two other vehicles and further supplies of gas, petrol and other items for constructing bombs," he said.

"It was more luck than judgement that their repeated attempts to detonate the two car bombs by mobile phone failed."

Strathclyde Police Chief Constable Stephen House said he was "delighted" with the result and grateful for the "solid ties" between the force, community leaders and the area's ethnic minority communities.

Amanda McMillan, managing director of Glasgow Airport, paid tribute to the bravery of airport workers, passengers and the emergency services.

Greece braces for general strike

2008-12-10T00:13:00.000-08:00

Greece is braced for further turmoil after days of violence as unions stage a general strike in protest against the government's economic policies.

The strike is expected to shut down banks and offices and severely disrupt public transport across the country.

Greece has already been shaken by several days of riots

The industrial action was planned weeks ago but follows days of riots sparked by the police shooting of a teenager.

Unions have defied an appeal from PM Costas Karamanlis to cancel a rally planned for central Athens.

"We must all have a united stand against illegal actions, to clearly condemn violence, looting and vandalism," Mr Karamanlis said.

Union demands

The streets of Athens were calmer on Tuesday night after three consecutive days and nights of riots in which shops and offices were set alight and riot police battled groups of stone- and bottle-throwing youths.

However, Greek television reported that a group of about 100 Roma attacked a police station in the impoverished suburb of Zefyri, where they set a lorry on fire and tried unsuccessfully to push it into a station.

In the port city of Patras, 215km (134 miles) west of Athens, a crowd of people, including shop-owners, are said to have turned on rioters and forced them to stop a wave of destruction, says the BBC's Malcolm Brabant in Athens.

Entrepreneurs have been sleeping in their shops to defend them against rioters and looters.

The Athens Traders Association estimates that four days of rioting has caused 1bn euros ($1.3bn, £874m) worth of damage.

Unions called off a major demonstration in Athens but will instead hold a rally outside the Greek parliament at 1100 (0900 GMT).

Workers from the two main umbrella unions - the Greek General Confederation of Workers (GSEE) and the Civil Servants Supreme Administrative Council (ADEDY) are demanding increased social spending in light of the global financial crisis, as well as higher wages and pensions.

They represent about 2.5 million workers - roughly half of the total Greek work force, according to Associated Press news agency.

Greek airlines Olympic and Aegean said they have cancelled a number of flights, ferry links are expected to be cut and train services severely disrupted.

Public transport in a number of cities, including Athens, is expected to be hard hit by the strike.

Teachers, journalists, bank clerks and public sector workers are also due to join the action.

Several 24-hour strikes against the government's economic reform policies have brought the country to a standstill this year.

'Warning shot'

The riots were triggered by the death of 15-year-old Alexandros Grigoropoulos, shot by police in Athens on Saturday, and spread to a number of towns and cities across Greece.

Witnesses say Alexandros was killed by a direct hit from a bullet

Clashes erupted near the suburban Athens cemetery where his funeral was held on Tuesday.

Two police officers have been charged in connection with the teenager's death, but results of a post-mortem to determine the trajectory of the bullet that killed him are not yet known.

The officer who fired says it was a ricochet from a warning shot fired at a group of youths who reportedly threw stones at a police car.

However, witnesses told Greek TV he fired directly at the teenager.

The protesters' frustration has been fuelled by corruption scandals and poor economic prospects for many, our correspondent says.

The opposition Socialist party leader George Papandreou has called on Mr Karamanlis to resign and call elections.

Mr Karamanlis, whose conservative party has a parliamentary majority of just one seat, has called for unity and said rioters would not be shown any leniency.

Pirates 'put down hostage revolt'

2008-12-10T00:10:00.000-08:00

Somali pirates say they have thwarted an apparent revolt by the crew of a hijacked Ukrainian cargo ship, according to reports.

An unnamed pirate told the AFP news agency that sailors of the MV Faina tried to "harm" two of their captors.

The ship is carrying 33 tanks and other weaponry and was seized by pirates two and half months ago.

The MV Faina is currently anchored off the pirate stronghold of Harardhere

A Ukrainian foreign ministry spokesman said they had not received any information of the incident.

"Some crew members on the Ukrainian ship are misbehaving," the pirate said.

"They tried to harm two of our gunmen late Monday. This is unacceptable, they risk serious punitive measures.

"Somalis know how to live and how to die at the same time, but the Ukrainians' attempt to take violent action is misguided."

Surprise attack

He claimed that two of the pirates were taken by surprise when a group of crew members attacked them.

"Maybe some of the crew are frustrated and we are feeling the same but our boys never opted for violence, this was a provocation," he told AFP by telephone.

Another report of the incident, by Russian Ren TV, quoted one of the pirates as saying that the crew responsible would be "seriously punished".

The EU is to place armed guards on vulnerable ships in the Gulf of Aden

Gunmen seized the Kenya-bound MV Faina, carrying 33 tanks, grenade launchers and ammunition, on 24 September.

The ship, which is currently anchored off the pirate stronghold of Harardhere, has a mostly Ukrainian crew of 21.

Pirates had initially demanded a ransom of $20m (£13.5m).

In November, a Kenyan maritime official confirmed that a deal had been struck between the ship's owner and the pirates, and that the two sides were discussing the ship's release.

Details of the agreement have not been revealed.

Meanwhile, the British commander in charge of the EU's anti-piracy mission says the force will station armed guards on vulnerable cargo ships in the Gulf of Aden.

Rear Admiral Phillip Jones says his priority is to ensure safe passage for ships transporting food aid to Somalia.

The EU force - which includes four ships and two maritime reconnaissance aircraft - will take over from Nato ships on Monday.

Rear Adm Jones said the task facing the mission was enormous.

"I'd be the first to admit that a naval force itself cannot eradicate piracy... but we can still make a significant contribution to combating piracy," he said.

The task force - codenamed operation Atalanta and working under a UN mandate - is not allowed to board seized ships or to free crews held hostage.

Zimbabwe MDC adviser 'kidnapped'

2008-12-10T00:09:00.000-08:00

Zimbabwe's opposition MDC says an adviser to party leader Morgan Tsvangirai has been abducted in Harare.

Eyewitnesses say MDC adviser Gandhi Mudzingwa was forced by nine gunmen into a car which then drove to the city centre on Monday afternoon.

It would bring to 18 the number of MDC activists and rights campaigners who have vanished in the past six weeks.

Parts of Zimbabwe are in the grip of a deadly cholera outbreak

Meanwhile, Zimbabwe's president accused the West of plotting an invasion amid a deadly cholera outbreak.

The cholera has spread to Zimbabwe's neighbours and South African Health Minister Barbara Hogan has said the epidemic will probably keep getting worse until a new government is formed in Harare.

President Robert Mugabe's ruling Zanu-PF party and Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) have been deadlocked in power-sharing negotiations since September.

The UN says nearly 600 Zimbabweans are known to have died in the outbreak, but there are fears that the number may be much higher.

On Tuesday, US President George W Bush joined calls from world leaders for President Mugabe to go.

"We urge others from the region to step up and join the growing chorus of voices calling for an end to Mugabe's tyranny," said Mr Bush, who leaves office himself next month.

African countries like Botswana and Kenya have also said Mr Mugabe should quit.

But the 53-member African Union said on Tuesday the only solution to the Zimbabwe crisis was the power-sharing talks.

"Only dialogue between the Zimbabwean parties, supported by the AU and other regional actors, can restore peace and stability to that country," said Salva Rweyemamu, a spokesman for AU chairman and Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete, Reuters news agency reports.

Stranglehold

The MDC says it believes there is a systematic plot to decimate its structures, as well as civil rights groups involved in cataloguing violence and human rights abuses in Zimbabwe.

There are claims civil rights groups are being targeted in Zimbabwe

The BBC's Peter Biles in Johannesburg says there is also growing concern about the fate of Zimbabwe Peace Project director Jestina Mukoko, missing since she was kidnapped from her home last Wednesday.

An urgent court application is being filed, demanding police produce her if she is in custody.

MDC leader Mr Tsvangirai has not been back in the country since he left more than a month ago to attend a summit in Johannesburg - where efforts failed again to end the political impasse in Zimbabwe.

Zimbabwean presidential spokesman George Charamba told the state-owned Herald newspaper that Western countries were planning to bring Zimbabwe before the UN Security Council by claiming the cholera epidemic and food shortages had incapacitated the country's government.

Later Zimbabwe Information Minister Sikhanyiso Ndlovu was quoted by AFP news agency as saying the cholera outbreak was under control, adding: "After squeezing and strangling the country with sanctions and contaminating it with cholera and anthrax, the West is seeking to use the window of opportunity provided by the disaster to justify military intervention."

'Critical'

Mrs Hogan said she believed the cholera situation in South Africa had been contained, although many more Zimbabweans should be expected in the country.

Morgan Tsvangirai agreed to share power with Zanu-PF in September

"We need a government in Zimbabwe and we have to move forward on that issue," she said as she led a team of health experts to assess the cholera outbreak in Limpopo province bordering Zimbabwe, where at least eight people have died from the disease and 650 people are being treated.

"It is critical - just from health alone," she said.

The BBC's Jonah Fisher in the border town of Musina says South Africa's medical services are coping so far with the scores of sick Zimbabweans crossing the border every day looking for treatment.

But there is concern that people are sleeping in the open in conditions where the easily treatable disease could spread, while sanitation is poor at the site where new arrivals are being processed.

A South African man in Musina told the BBC: "They are sleeping here, they bath here, they do everything here, so I mean, the spreading of cholera, the risk is very high."

Meanwhile, a Southern African Development Community team dispatched to Zimbabwe on Monday is continuing to look at the extent of the epidemic.

The UN children's agency Unicef has warned 60,000 cholera cases could emerge in the coming weeks.

Ruling party's man leads in Ghana

2008-12-10T00:08:00.001-08:00

The candidate of Ghana's ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP), Nana Akufo-Addo, is narrowly ahead in the ongoing count from Sunday's presidential election.

He holds a slender lead over opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) contender John Atta Mills.

But with most precincts counted it is not yet clear if either has over the 50% of votes needed to avoid a run-off.

Nana Akufo-Addo has a slender lead in the poll count so far

Our correspondent says results are being disputed, raising the risk of a peaceful poll turning acrimonious.

The NDC has accused the governing party of plotting to rig the election, with the support of the military.

'Mischievous'

But the NPP denied the charges, saying in a statement reported by AFP news agency: "The NDC is not winning and we are not trying to rig this election."

Opposition supporters are confident their candidate will win

The military branded the allegations "totally false, mischievous and calculated to undermine the integrity of the military high command and the unity of the country", reported AFP.

The elections, which attracted a high turnout, "have so far been conducted in an open, transparent and competitive environment", said a team of observers from the European Union on Tuesday.

However, there have been isolated reports of violence.

Two-horse race

Ghanaian electoral officials were attacked by youths and two ballot boxes were seized, minutes after results were declared from some polling stations in the mainly pro-NDC Volta region of eastern Ghana.

If neither of the two leading contenders can make it over a 50% share of the vote, a run-off must be held on 28 December.

There were eight candidates to succeed President John Kufuor - who steps down in January having served the maximum two terms - but the election has been a two-horse race, says the BBC's Will Ross in Accra.

There was a poor showing for third-place candidate Papa Kwesi Nduom, of the Convention People's Party, who had been seen as a possible kingmaker or spoiler.

The electoral commission has until Wednesday afternoon to release the final official results from Ghana's fifth set of elections since embracing multi-party democracy in 1992.

Ghana is also choosing its new parliament. The governing party had a clear majority before this election but that is no longer the case and the two rival parties are neck-and-neck.

Results so far show the centre-right NPP has lost some key seats to its opposition rival, including that of President Kufuor's information minister.

The former British colony was the first African state to gain its independence in 1957, but was plagued by coups until the return to multi-party democracy in 1992.

The nation of 23 million people is the world's second biggest cocoa grower and Africa's number two gold miner.

Iraq withdrawal 'begins in March'

2008-12-10T00:04:00.000-08:00

British forces should begin pulling out of Iraq by next March, a senior defence source has revealed to the BBC.

The UK has been negotiating the legal basis on which its forces can stay when its UN mandate expires at the end of the year.

It still has 4,100 troops in Basra but defence chiefs plan a withdrawal over the next year if Iraqi elections in January pass off peacefully.

A withdrawal could allow resources to be diverted to Afghanistan.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown has indicated that almost all British troops should leave Iraq by the middle of next year, with a few hundred possibly remaining to train Iraqi security forces.

Previously it had been suggested that troops could start leaving in January.

However, the BBC has learned that the process is likely to begin in March - six years after the US-led invasion.

'Significant progress'

A Ministry of Defence spokeswoman said: "Significant progress has been made in Basra, a city which has now been transformed thanks to Iraqi, coalition and British efforts.

Some troops could eventually be redeployed to Afghanistan

"As such, we are now expecting to see a fundamental change of mission in early 2009."

The majority of the British troops are confined to Basra air base.

BBC defence correspondent Caroline Wyatt said the withdrawal "should allow a renewed focus on the multi-national mission in Afghanistan, which is facing a stalemate".

She said it would free up helicopters, intelligence assets and eventually troops for the battle against the Taleban.

The US is planning to boost the strength of its force in Afghanistan in the new year and is hoping its Nato allies follow suit.

Meanwhile, the Iraqi parliament may have to vote on any deal to allow British troops to remain in the country beyond the end of the year. It recently agreed a similar deal which allows American forces to remain until 2011.

India police 'name Mumbai gunmen'

2008-12-09T10:51:00.000-08:00

Indian authorities have released the names or aliases of the nine suspected militants killed during last month's attacks in the city of Mumbai (Bombay).

Photographs of eight of the men were released - the body of the ninth was said to have been too badly burned.

Police said all were from Pakistan. They did not say how this was known but one gunman, named as Azam Amir Qasab, survived and has been interrogated.

Released photos (from left): Bada Abdul Rehaman (Taj Palace); Abdul Rehaman Chota (Oberoi); Ismal Khan (CST station); Babar Imaran (Nariman House)

The attacks began on 26 November and left at least 170 people dead.

India has blamed Pakistani-based militants Lashkar-e-Taiba for the attacks.

Earlier Pakistan said it had arrested two leading militants but that it would not hand them over to India.

Sole survivor

Mumbai's chief police investigator Rakesh Maria showed photographs of the men taken from their bodies or from the ID he said they were carrying.

He said all were aged between 20 and 28. Some of the militants had just one name and had used aliases during training.

TEN NAMED MEN

Nasir, alias Abu Umar (above, Nariman House)

Abu Ali (Taj Palace)

Soheb (Taj Palace)

Fahad Ullah (Oberoi)

Azam Amir Qasab (survived)

Bada Abdul Rehaman (Taj Palace)

Abdul Rehaman Chota (Oberoi)

Ismal Khan (CST station)

Babar Imaran (Nariman House)

Nazir, alias Abu Omer (Taj Palace)

The youngest was identified as 20-year-old Shoaib, alias Soheb, who was said to be from Punjab province.

Three attackers were said to have come from the central Pakistani city of Multan, Mr Maria said.

He said the group leader was a Lashkar "veteran", Ismal Khan, 25, from North West Frontier Province.

The photographs taken from dead bodies are too graphic to show.

Indian investigators have said survivor Azam Amir Qasab was indoctrinated by Lashkar-e-Taiba (Soldiers of the Pure) and trained at a camp run by the group.

Some media reports have suggested that truth serum may be used as part of his interrogation.

Earlier Pakistani Defence Minister Ahmad Mukhtar said Jaish-e-Mohammad founder Masood Azhar and Lashkar-e-Taiba commander Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi had been held.

Mr Lakhvi is the Lashkar commander India suspects of planning the Mumbai attacks.

"Lakhvi was picked up yesterday. Azhar has also been picked up," Mr Mukhtar told India's CNN-IBN channel.

He also repeated Islamabad's request for evidence to be shared with Pakistan.

Raid suggests policy shift

Profile: Lashkar-e-Taiba

Anger at 'blown' arrests

"Both US and India say they have ample proof but why is it hidden from us?" Mr Mukhtar asked.

Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi, meanwhile, repeated that Pakistan would not hand over to India any of its citizens arrested in connection with last month's attack.

He said that about 16 people had been detained for questioning so far in a crackdown against banned Islamist groups like Lashkar-e-Taiba.

Reports say Pakistani police have also ordered the sealing of some offices used by Jamaat-ud-Dawa, the Islamic charity seen as a front for Lashkar-e-Taiba.

Mr Qureshi added: "We do not want to impose war, but we are fully prepared in case war is imposed on us. We are not oblivious to our responsibilities to defend our homeland."

Delhi's list

Meanwhile, Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari said peace talks with India must proceed to "foil the designs of the terrorists".

Karachi citizens give their views on India's Mumbai accusations

"Pakistan is committed to the pursuit, arrest, trial and punishment of anyone involved in these heinous attacks," he wrote in the New York Times on Tuesday.

On Monday, the US praised what it said were "positive steps" after Pakistani forces raided a camp in Pakistani-administered Kashmir used by Lashkar-e-Taiba, which India links to the attacks.

But state department spokesman Sean McCormack also said it was "incumbent upon the Pakistani government to act to prevent any future terrorist attacks, to break up those networks that may be responsible for perpetrating acts of violent extremism".

Delhi has not commented on the operation.

Masood Azhar is one of the most wanted men in India. The group he founded, Jaish-e-Mohammad, is accused along with Lashkar-e-Taiba of taking part in the attack on India's parliament in 2001 which led the two countries to the brink of war.

Mr Azhar is reportedly on a list of people Delhi has demanded Pakistan hand over.

The BBC's Syed Shoaib Hasan in Karachi says Mr Azhar has been in and out of Pakistani custody over the past five years.

Our correspondent says he is no longer considered to be in day-to-day charge of Jaish-e-Mohammad and detaining him will make little difference to militant activity.

The group is thought to behind a string of attacks inside Pakistan as well.

Although the authorities in Pakistan formally banned Lashkar six years ago and curbed its activities, its camps were never closed.

Protests as Athens funeral held

2008-12-09T10:49:00.000-08:00

Fresh clashes have erupted in Athens after the funeral of a teenager whose death has sparked four days of rioting across Greece.

Protesters battled police after the ceremony for Alexandros Grigoropoulos, 15, who was shot on Saturday by police.

Earlier, youths confronted police outside parliament, as violence that has seen buildings torched and dozens injured showed no signs of abating.

Meanwhile, the opposition has called for the government to step down.

Tuesday's protests began early in the day. Schools were shut as thousands of teachers, schoolchildren and parents held a peaceful demonstration to protest against the killing.

See where unrest has spread

They marched towards parliament behind a large banner declaring: "Assassins, the government is the culprit."

Police used tear gas to disperse stone-throwing protesters

The situation escalated as hundreds of young people joined the protest, throwing stones and bottles at lines of riot police, who responded with tear gas.

In the afternoon thousands of mourners gathered for the teenager's funeral in a coastal suburb further south.

The ceremony was calm, but clashes were later reported outside the cemetery.

Police were using tear gas against dozens of youths who were throwing stones and setting fire to rubbish bins, reports said.

Violence was reported elsewhere in the country. In Thessaloniki, police were clashing with groups of young people following a protest march earlier in the day.

Two police officers have been charged in connection with Alexandros Grigoropoulos's death on Saturday, but results of a post-mortem to determine the trajectory of the bullet that killed him are not yet known.

The officer who fired says it was a ricochet from a warning shot but witnesses told Greek TV he fired directly at the teenager.

Lost confidence

Earlier, Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis held talks with President Karolos Papoulias and opposition leaders in an attempt to reach a consensus on what action to take.

Mr Karamanlis, whose conservative party has a parliamentary majority of just one seat, has called for unity and vowed there will be no leniency in dealing with the rioters.

"No one has the right to use this tragic incident as an excuse for acts of violence," he said.

But after meeting Mr Karamanlis, socialist leader George Papandreou said Greeks had lost confidence in the conservative government.

"The only thing this government can offer is to resign and turn to the people for its verdict," said Mr

'Rage'

Interior Minister Prokopis Pavlopoulos said the government would not put up with the violence, and scores of arrests have been made.

But appeals for calm have so far been largely ignored by the mostly young protesters, and plans as to how the violence should be contained remain unclear.

Police appear to be powerless to prevent rioters from attacking symbols of wealth and prestige in Athens, the BBC's Malcolm Brabant reports.

Protesters wielding petrol bombs set fire to banks, shops, hotels, vehicles, rubbish bins and even the city's giant Christmas tree in central Syntagma Square.

"Rage is what I feel for what has happened, rage," said a student taking part in the protests. "This cop who did it must see what it is to kill a kid and to destroy a life."

Violent clashes have been reported in towns and cities across the country, spreading to Rhodes and Crete on Monday. Police stations were attacked in Piraeus and Corfu.

No troops

Mr Karamanlis has blamed "extreme elements" for taking advantage of the situation to engage in vandalism and pledged to compensate damaged businesses.

Observers say a state of emergency may be imposed, giving the authorities special powers to clear the streets.

But there is no question of calling in troops, our correspondent says: Greece has bitter memories of military rule so seeing troops on streets would be beyond the pale.

Greece's ongoing violence has exacerbated public discontent at the country's stunted economic growth and high unemployment levels.

It comes ahead of a general strike planned for Wednesday over welfare reforms and economic policy.

State governor held in US probe

2008-12-09T10:48:00.000-08:00

Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich has been arrested, accused of trying to trade the Senate seat left vacant by US President-elect Barack Obama.

Mr Blagojevich, as governor, has sole authority to select a successor to Mr Obama as junior Illinois senator.

Mr Blagojevich has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing

FBI investigators said telephone intercepts showed he was trying to sell or trade the seat for personal benefit.

There has been no official word from Mr Blagojevich's office, although he has denied previous corruption allegations.

The US Attorney's Office released a 76-page FBI affidavit detailing the charges against Mr Blagojevich, which includes transcripts of his telephone conversations intercepted by court-authorised wiretaps over the last month.

In the conversations, the Democratic governor allegedly discussed offering Mr Obama's senate seat in return for getting a well-paid position at a non-profit organisation or a group affiliated with trades unions, according to the affidavit.

In the transcripts, on 3 November Mr Blagojevich said the seat was "[expletive] valuable thing, you just don't give it away for nothing."

The day after the election, according to the affidavit, Mr Blagojevich was recorded as saying: "I've got this thing and it's [expletive] golden, and uh, uh, I'm just not giving it up for [expletive] nothing."

He also allegedly talked about getting his wife Patti placed on a corporate board.

'For sale'

Mr Blagojevich has also been charged with illegally threatening to block state aid to the company that owns the Chicago Tribune.

Mr Blagojevich allegedly demanded that the company fire members of the newspaper's editorial board in return for financial assistance in the sale of Wrigley Field, a Chicago sports stadium.

The governor's chief of staff, John Harris, has also been arrested.

"The breadth of corruption laid out in these charges is staggering," US Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald said in a statement.

"They allege that Blagojevich put a for sale sign on the naming of a United States senator," he added.

Mr Fitzgerald stressed at a later news conference that there were no allegations in the case against Mr Obama or his transition team.

Mr Fitzgerald has been involved in a number of high-profile prosecutions in recent years.

He led the case against the former vice-presidential chief of staff, Lewis "Scooter" Libby, as well as heading up the investigation into media tycoon Conrad Black.

The prosecutor was also involved in the corruption trial of Mr Blagojevich's predecessor as Illinois governor, George Ryan

White House cool on car bail-out

2008-12-08T22:41:00.000-08:00

The White House has given a cool initial reaction to a plan by Democrats in Congress for a $15bn (£10bn) bail-out of the "Big Three" US car firms.

Aides to President George W Bush said the plan did not give enough assurance that only viable companies would get longer-term government help.

Under the proposal, the government is expected to take non-voting shares in General Motors, Ford and Chrysler.

GM, Ford and Chrysler have warned they risk collapse without state aid

Also expected is the appointment of a "Car Tsar" to oversee the money.

Although the White House did not give its immediate approval to the plan, analysts say an agreement could be signed into law by the end of the week.

'No blank cheque'

The bosses of General Motors (GM), Ford and Chrysler have all appeared before Congress in recent weeks to say that without financial help they risked collapse.

The bosses of Ford, GM and Chrysler went before Congress last week

The firms were asking for $25bn between them, but the federal plan is believed to be only proposing about $15bn.

The White House is said to be concerned that the conditions on the carmakers are not strict enough.

White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said the Bush administration would "continue to work with members on both sides of the aisle to achieve legislation that protects the good faith investment by taxpayers".

Mr Bush said: "I believe that viability means that all aspects of the companies need to be re-examined to make sure that they can survive in the long term.

"These are important companies, but on the other hand, we just don't want to put good money after bad," he said in an interview with ABC news.

Democrat Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said the proposal was "no blank cheque or blank hope".

"If the companies fail to develop a plan that will lead to long-term competitiveness, profitability, if they fail to stick to that plan, the loan can be recalled."

'Lackluster'

GM, Ford and Chrysler have all seen sales fall sharply this year in their home market.

While this decline reflects an industry-wide fall that has also hit European and Japanese carmakers in the US, the "Big Three" have also been criticised for offering too narrow a range of vehicles.

They have been said to be too slow in responding to the growing popularity of smaller, more fuel-efficient vehicles.

GM admitted on Monday that it had "disappointed" American consumers by letting "our quality fall below industry standards and our designs became lackluster".

Greek MPs consider riot response

2008-12-08T22:38:00.000-08:00

The Greek government has held an emergency meeting to consider its response to continued violent rioting across the country.

Rioters clashed with police for a third day on Monday, in protests which erupted after a 15-year-old boy was shot and killed by police on Saturday.

Hundreds of rioters have set fire to vehicles and property in central Athens

A funeral for the boy, Alexandros Grigoropoulos,is being held on Tuesday.

Appeals for calm have so far been largely ignored by the mostly young protesters in Greek towns and cities.

Dozens of people have been injured throughout the country and there are reports of looting in some areas.

Greek Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis has appealed for calm, saying the government was obliged to protect the community.

"The unacceptable and dangerous events that have gone on under the most extreme of emotions cannot and most not be tolerated," he said, and called for a sense of solidarity with the dead boy's family.

Mr Karamanlis is due to meet President Karolos Papoulias on Tuesday morning and will also consult the leader of every opposition party in an attempt to reach a consensus on what action to take.

Police powerless

But the BBC's Malcolm Brabant in the capital Athens said police appeared to be powerless to prevent rioters from attacking symbols of wealth and prestige.

The city's giant Christmas tree in central Syntagma Square was set on fire and windows were smashed on hotels, banks, government buildings and departments stores.

Police used teargas against protesters throwing petrol bombs and setting fire to buildings, vehicles and rubbish bins.

"Rage is what I feel for what has happened, rage," said a student taking part in the protests.

"This cop who did it must see what is to kill a kid and to destroy a life."

Siran Zebaharian, whose shop was damaged, said police arrived too late to protect her business from rioters.

"They were battering the windows with terrible force, attacking passing cars, throwing petrol bombs at parked jeeps," she said.

Violent clashes were also seen across the country, with rioting reported in the central city of Trikala and police stations attacked in Piraeus and Corfu.

Hundreds of students clashed with riot police in Thessaloniki, Greece's second biggest city, where students used university buildings to stockpile petrol bombs.

Photo journalist Vassiliki Polychronopoulou told the BBC that the teenager's death had acted as a spark for protests over a range of frustrations.

"The government they don't seem to be able to control anything at all in terms of economics, in terms of social changes," she said.

"People have lost their faith in everything."

No military

Mr Karamanlis has blamed "extreme elements" for taking advantage of the situation to engage in vandalism.

He has pledged to compensate businesses damaged.

As he left the emergency cabinet meeting, Greece's Interior Minister Prokopis Pavlopoulos said the unrest was "unacceptable" and would not be tolerated, but did not say what the government's plans were to handle the crisis.

Mr Pavlopoulos said police were handling the violence well. he said "not a single life" was in danger and that protecting life was more important than protecting property.

Observers say a state of emergency may be imposed, giving the authorities special powers to clear the streets.

But there is no question of calling in troops. Greece has bitter memories of military rule so seeing troops on streets would be beyond the pale, says our correspondent.

Anger

The authorities fear there could be further unrest when Alexandros Grigoropoulos, the boy whose death initiated the protests, is buried on Tuesday.

Witnesses say Alexandros was killed by a direct hit from a bullet

A post-mortem has been carried out on his body to determine the trajectory of the bullet that killed him. The results are not yet known.

Two police officers have been arrested in connection with the incident.

The officer who fired contends it was a ricochet from a warning shot, but witnesses told Greek TV it was a direct hit.

The boy's family has hired an independent pathologist to ensure there is no cover-up.

On Sunday, the prime minister wrote to the boy's parents: "In these difficult moments please accept my condolences for the unfair loss of your son. Like all Greeks I am deeply saddened."

However, analysts say nothing the politicians or authorities can say or do is likely to reduce the anger that is building.

A similar shooting incident in 1985 led to a lengthy vendetta between the youths and police, with violence continuing for years.

Japan sinks deeper into recession

2008-12-08T22:35:00.000-08:00

Japan has sunk deeper into recession in the three months to September than had been expected, new figures indicate.

The economy, the second largest in the world after the US, shrank by 0.5%, for an annualised rate of 1.8%, significantly greater than expected.

Japanese firms are closing factories and laying off staff in the face of declining demand and a rising yen.

Japan is the world's second-largest economy

Prime Minister Taro Aso has promised public spending to soften the impact of the recession.

There has been an almost constant stream of bad news from Japanese companies over the past few weeks, so it does not come as a great surprise that the recession in Japan is deepening.

What is alarming is how quickly the situation is getting worse.

Gross Domestic Product (GDP), which measures the output of the country's goods and services, dropped an annual rate of 1.8% in the latest quarter - a much steeper decline than even the most pessimistic economists had predicted.

Bankruptcies have been rising among small companies, while big firms such as Sony and Toyota have seen their profits decimated by a slump in sales and a rise in the value of the Japanese yen.

Many people blame the prime minister Taro Aso for allowing the recession to get worse.

Opinion polls suggest only one in five voters still back him.

Mr Aso has promised to increase public spending and help families and small businesses, but some of his plans have been met by scepticism from the public and opposition from within his own political party.

Guantanamo dilemma looms for Obama

2008-12-08T13:07:00.001-08:00

An air of uncertainty hangs over Guantanamo Bay.

In just over a month, a new president will enter the White House promising to close down the detention camp that human rights groups have called the "gulag of our times".

Some 250 inmates remain at the US jail in Guantanamo

But on this, my third, visit to this small strip of land on the island of Cuba that flies the stars and stripes, it seems as nothing much has changed. True, some detainees have been released but around 250 remain. There is no sign that the watch-towers and razor wire fences are about to be torn down. In fact, the opposite - it is business as usual.

I am among around 50 journalists from all over the world who have been flown in by the US military to witness the latest appearance in court of the alleged mastermind of the attacks on 11 September 2001, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed.

Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and his four co-defendants will appear in front of a military judge in a pre-trial, or motions, hearing and, in one sense, it does feel as if the Bush administration is going through the motions.

This is a trials process - called military commissions - that has been condemned in US federal courts and all over the world.

President-elect Barack Obama is just one of many to criticise the trials process, the interrogation techniques used to extract confessions and the treatment of detainees. This trial may never go ahead in its current form.

Yet, in its final few days, the Bush administration appears to have upped the ante.

Face to face

For the first time, the US military has invited the relatives of some of those who were killed in the attacks on 11 September to witness the proceedings. Representatives from five of the families who lost loved ones will be able to sit behind a glass screen in court, just feet away from those accused of committing mass murder.

One can only speculate as to why now. Is this a final chance for the Bush administration to remind the rest of the world about the reason for Guantanamo, the reason for these trials?

It is clear that some of those still grieving are still waiting for justice. More than 100 families applied by lottery for a seat in court. Maureen Santora, who lost her son Christopher in the attacks on New York's Twin Towers, is one of the few who will be able to see the men accused in the flesh. She has said: "I hope they stare us in the face and we stare back."

This hearing will also give Khalid Sheikh Mohammed a chance to question the proceedings. Much to his defence team's consternation, he has chosen to represent himself.

In his first appearance in court six months ago he showed little remorse for the attacks on 9/11. On the contrary, he was happy to be seen as the mastermind.

There are still plenty of questions as to how the Americans extracted any confessions. The CIA has admitted that he was one of the so-called "high value detainees" subjected to waterboarding, or simulated drowning.

On Monday he will only have a chance to question the proceedings of the court, not his treatment. But it is another chance to show his defiance and his hatred of America.

That and and the relatives' anger and grief will only intensify the questions about what happens next and for Barack Obama these will not be easy decisions.

Obama's options

Vijay Padmanabhan was until recently a legal advisor working at the US state department dealing with Guantanamo.

He knows that closing it is easier said than done. He acknowledges that the military commissions have been, in his words, "an abject failure".

Only three trials have been completed. Most have been held up in a legal quagmire. But the alternatives for an Obama administration are hardly appealing.

Transferring dangerous men (and admittedly the Pentagon acknowledges that not all of them are) to the US mainland to be tried in federal courts or by military courts martial would prove highly controversial. The reaction back home is likely to be "not in my back yard".

Returning them to their countries of origin also has a high degree of risk. Many come from states that are unstable or repressive. They could face torture or return to the battlefield.

Vijay Padmanabhan, who now teaches at New York's Cordozo Law School, says there are no quick-fix solutions.

He adds that he will be "shocked" if Guantanamo is closed by this time next year, such are the obstacles facing Barack Obama.

The president-elect along with much of the world may look on the current military commissions process as a travesty of justice, but what can he do to convince those families of the victims of 9/11 that justice will be done?

Israel delays detainee releases

2008-12-08T13:05:00.000-08:00

Israel is to delay the scheduled release of 230 Palestinian prisoners for a week, with each side saying the other caused the hold-up.

Israel's cabinet agreed to the release on Sunday and it was due to take place on Tuesday as Muslims celebrated Eid.

Prisoners are an important and emotive issue for many Palestinians

A Palestinian official blamed legal difficulties on the Israeli side.

But Israeli officials said Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas, who is away for the Haj pilgrimage, requested it so he could receive the detainees in person.

Israel holds about 11,000 Palestinians in custody. It released about 200 in August.

A top Abbas aid, Rafiq Husseini, said the Palestinian leader had not been in contact with Israeli officials about the delay and insisted their explanation was false.

"I can assure you [Mr Abbas] doesn't want to see these people imprisoned for one single day," he said.

Correspondents say the issue of Palestinian detainees in Israel is extremely sensitive for Palestinians in the occupied territories, virtually all of whom have relatives, friends or neighbours who have spent time behind bars.

Mr Abbas has demanded freedom for all the prisoners.

The office of Israeli PM Ehud Olmert said the releases would come from the ranks of Mr Abbas's Fatah faction and other non-Islamist groups, to coincide with the Muslim holiday of Eid, which follows the Haj pilgrimage in Mecca.

Iran shuns US 'carrot-and-stick'

2008-12-08T13:04:00.000-08:00

Iran has told US President-elect Barack Obama to abandon the "failed" US carrot-and-stick approach to solving the atomic row with Tehran.

Mr Obama on Sunday vowed "tough but direct diplomacy", offering Iran economic incentives to end its nuclear programme or face tougher sanctions.

Mr Obama says he will use a "tough but direct diplomacy" with Tehran

But Iran's foreign ministry spokesman Hassan Qashqavi said the policy was "unacceptable".

He urged Mr Obama to adopt an "interactive policy" instead.

"The carrot and stick approach has proven to be useless. It is an unacceptable and virtually failed policy," Mr Qashqavi said. "This needs to change and transform into an interactive policy".

The UN Security Council has repeatedly demanded that Iran freeze its uranium enrichment work, which the US says is part of Iran's drive to develop an atomic weapon, a claim denied by Tehran.

Direct diplomacy

In a televised interview with NBC's Meet the Press on Sunday, Mr Obama said the US should "ratchet up tough but direct diplomacy with Iran".

In terms of carrots, he said, the US could provide economic incentives for a country that "is under enormous strain" with huge inflation and unemployment problems.

He said one of the main "sticks" would be to step up diplomatic efforts with nations like China and Russia that do business with Iran, to consider tightening UN sanctions against the country.

But, he stressed, "we are willing to talk to them (Iran) directly and give them a clear choice and ultimately let them make a determination in terms of whether they want to do this the hard way or the easy way."

Mr Qashqavi said if the new US administration was to repeat calls for Iran to halt enrichment, "our position is that we will not suspend".

He said that Iran would wait to see how Mr Obama acts when he takes office next month.

US F-18 jet crashes in San Diego

2008-12-08T13:02:00.000-08:00

A US military F-18 fighter jet has crashed into a residential area of San Diego, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has said.

The San Diego Fire Department described the scene of the crash as "a heavily-populated area" near the 805 freeway.

The pilot ejected before the crash and there was no ordnance on board

TV footage showed plumes of white smoke rising from several houses. It is not clear if there are any casualties.

The jet crashed as it prepared to land at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar and the pilot had ejected, the FAA said.

The crash occurred two miles (3.2km) from the base, it added.

One local resident, Scott Patterson, said he had seen "two big bangs".

"The smoke came up. We don't know what it was," he told KNX radio.

The F-18 is a supersonic fighter used widely by the US Marine Corps and Navy.

Race tight in Ghana's vote count

2008-12-08T12:53:00.000-08:00

Ghana's two main presidential candidates are running neck-and-neck as votes continue to be counted a day after the country's peaceful elections.

It is a public holiday and people are glued to their radios and television sets as the results trickle in.

A number of ministers have lost their seats in the parliamentary elections.

Poll officials reported a huge voter turnout and monitors hailed the exercise as a shining example of democracy in action for Africa.

Both Ghana's major parties seem confident of victory

President John Kufuor, 70, is stepping down in January after serving the maximum two terms.

Ghana's voters' views

Can Ghana trounce the bad news?

Send us your comments

In pictures: Ghana votes

The main contest is between Mr Kufuor's governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) of former ruler Jerry Rawlings, which was in power until eight years ago.

The leading contenders are ex-Foreign Minister Nana Akufo-Addo and the NDC's John Atta Mills, who is a presidential candidate for the third time. The winner is expected to be named later on Monday.

But the electoral commission has until Wednesday afternoon to release the final official results.

Seven presidential candidates were in the race but the BBC's Will Ross in the capital Accra says that the other candidates failed to attract much support.

He says the winner could get more than 50% of the vote, making any second round run-off later this month unnecessary.

There is little love lost between the two main political parties, our correspondent says.

The governing NPP dominated the outgoing parliament with 128 of the 230 seats.

'Good day for Africa'

Parliamentary results so far show the centre-right party has lost at least half a dozen seats to the NDC, including that of President Kufuor's information minister.

Initial results show that a third contender who was tipped as a potential kingmaker or spoiler has performed poorly, increasing the chance of a first-round win for one of the frontrunners.

Turnout was high for Sunday's vote

Papa Kwesi Nduom, candidate for the Convention People's Party, which ushered in Ghana's independence from Britain half a century ago, had hoped to spring a surprise.

The vote appeared free of the intimidation and violence that have marred other recent African polls, according to local and international observers.

Baroness Valerie Amos, a former British minister who is leading a 23-nation Commonwealth observer mission, said Sunday had been "a good day for Africa".

Our correspondent say this election is important not just for Ghana, but also for the continent, where bloodshed and claims of fraud have dogged polls from Kenya to Zimbabwe and Nigeria.

The fact that the hallmark for a successful election is that it is peaceful is seen by some as a worrying sign of just how low the bar has been set when it comes to judging democracy in Africa, he adds.

Ghana was the first African state to gain its independence in 1957, but was plagued by coups until the return to multi-party democracy in 1992.

It is the world's second biggest cocoa grower and Africa's number two gold miner.

EU split on Congo troop mission

2008-12-08T12:51:00.000-08:00

European foreign ministers are divided over calls to send troops to the war-torn Democratic Republic of Congo.

Belgium urged the deployment of a "bridging" force but other members of the bloc were lukewarm on the idea.

The UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called on the EU on Friday to send in troops until UN reinforcements arrive.

Congo's government agreed to long-standing rebel demand for talks

The Brussels meeting came as the first direct talks between representatives of the Congolese government and CNDP rebels were held in Kenya.

See detailed map of the area

Opening Monday's discussions in Nairobi, former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo said the crisis in eastern Congo was "a scar on Africa".

And Kenyan Foreign Minister Moses Wetangula said before the talks got underway: "Please don't let Africa down. Don't let your country down. Let this be the beginning of the end."

But the BBC's Peter Greste in the Kenyan capital says expectations for the talks are low and wider negotiations involving many of the other armed groups in the region will be needed.

About 20 armed groups were asked to join the meeting, but only representatives of Gen Laurent Nkunda's CNDP faction turned up and the two delegations met behind closed doors.

Until now the government in Kinshasa has treated the CNDP - which stands for National Congress for the Defence of the People - as just another armed rebel group.

Neither DR Congo President Joseph Kabila nor Gen Nkunda is present at the meeting.

But the fact it is taking place at all is a tacit acknowledgement of the CNDP's military dominance in the region, says our correspondent.

The fighting in eastern Congo has sparked a humanitarian crisis

The fighting in eastern Congo has displaced some 250,000 people since August, and the rebels have the North Kivu province capital of Goma surrounded.

At Monday's meeting in Brussels, EU foreign ministers took no decision and asked the European Commission to prepare a response to the UN secretary general.

EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana said ministers would discuss Mr Ban's appeal, but added: "Let me also underline that the situation on the ground is getting slightly better, and politically also."

But non-governmental organisations poured scorn on any suggestion things in eastern DR Congo were improving, saying rape, murder and pillage was still rife in the region.

'Situation is dramatic'

The 27-nation EU has so far been reluctant to commit forces to the Congo to back a 17,000-strong UN force, Monuc, already on the ground.

Belgian Foreign Minister Karel De Gucht said before the discussions: "It will take four to six months before the additional troops for Monuc will arrive and the humanitarian situation is dramatic over there."

Belgium has been the most outspoken European country in appealing for help for DR Congo, its former colony.

FORCES AROUND GOMA

CNDP: Gen Nkunda's Tutsi rebels - 6,000 fighters

FDLR: Rwandan Hutus - 6,000-7,000

Mai Mai: pro-government militia - 3,500

Monuc: UN peacekeepers - 6,000 in North Kivu, including about 1,000 in Goma (17,000 nationwide)

DRC army - 90,000 (nationwide)

Source: UN, military experts

But Germany and Britain are against sending an EU force.

British Foreign Secretary David Miliband said European countries that wanted to send troops should do so through the UN and not by an EU mission.

"The first port of call is to contribute to the UN mission," he said.

Spain and Italy were hesitant to answer a Belgian request to lead a mission.

Dutch Foreign Minister Maxime Verhagen said while his country could not send troops it could help pay for military transport for an EU force.

But Finnish Foreign Minister Alexander Stubb said: "If we don't send them to Congo, where are we going to send them?"

Reacting to the talks, Lotte Leicht, of US-based Human Rights Watch, said: "By any normal standard, this is a crisis, but it seems European leaders believe such daily horrors in eastern Congo are acceptable and require no immediate intervention."

Gen Nkunda says he is protecting his Congolese Tutsi community from attack by leaders of the 1994 Rwanda genocide.

In last year's Nairobi agreement, the FDLR Hutu rebel forces - estimated to number more than 6,000 - were meant to have been disarmed by the end of August.

That deadline was missed and Gen Nkunda's forces resumed fighting.

New EU travel bans for Zimbabwe

2008-12-08T12:50:00.000-08:00

The European Union has added 11 names to its existing list of Zimbabwean officials banned from travelling within its territory.

France, which chairs the 27-nation bloc until the end of this year, announced the punitive measure after a meeting of foreign ministers in Brussels.

The EU imposed a travel ban on Robert Mugabe in 2002

The EU already bans 160 Zimbabweans - including President Robert Mugabe - alleging human rights infringements.

EU ministers also backed a global call for Mr Mugabe to resign.

The names added to the list were not immediately available but they are believed to be mid-level officials.

"For those 11, it's been done," French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner told reporters.

Cholera 'catastrophe'

Zimbabwe's authorities are coming under renewed pressure both from Western and African figures, amid a continuing cholera crisis in the country which has now claimed nearly 600 lives.

Mr Kouchner said EU ministers also called on the World Health Organisation to tackle what he called the "catastrophic" outbreak of cholera, the BBC's Oana Lungescu reports from Brussels.

"The price to be paid by the Zimbabwe people is very much too high," said Mr Kouchner, adding that sanctions should target Mr Mugabe, not the Zimbabwean people.

"Zimbabweans are not responsible... on the contrary, they are suffering - inflation, lack of food, and now cholera."

At least 12,545 cases have been recorded since August and the United Nations is making plans to deal with a possible 60,000 cases in coming weeks.

The EU repeated calls for a power-sharing deal in Zimbabwe and pledged support for the country's recovery once a government showing respect for human rights and the rule of law is in place.

In September Mr Mugabe and Zimbabwe's opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai agreed to share power to tackle the country's economic meltdown.

But the rivals have been unable to agree on the allocation of cabinet posts.

The deadlock followed disputed elections which both men claimed to have won.

'Murderous regime'

"I think the moment has arrived to put all the pressure for Mugabe to step down," EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana said before the ministers assembled.

Zimbabwe's once-respected sanitation system is collapsing

UK Foreign Secretary David Miliband described those affected by the new bans as "middle-ranking members of the regime".

Calling for additional sanctions on Zimbabwe, he said: "The murderous effects of the Mugabe regime are increasingly clear to all with eyes to see.

"For a long time the British government has believed that Mugabe's regime is not simply murderous but also it is a rogue regime - wreaking havoc in the region as well as death and destruction for its own people."

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice last week said it was "well past time" for Mr Mugabe to leave office and several African figures, such as South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu, have also called on him to go.

Reacting to news of the travel bans, Zimbabwean Information Minister Sikhanyiso Ndlovu insisted Mr Mugabe was his country's legitimate, elected leader.

"No foreign leader, regardless of how powerful they are, has the right to call on him to step down on their whim," he told Reuters news agency.

Pakistan 'crackdown on militants'

2008-12-08T12:48:00.000-08:00

Pakistani security forces have swooped on a camp in Pakistani-administered Kashmir used by a militant group that India links to the Mumbai attacks.

The Lashkar-e-Taiba group's operational chief, Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi, who is said by Delhi to have ordered the attacks, was reportedly seized.

Pakistan is under intense pressure to act against militants

Witnesses heard several loud explosions and saw a helicopter and dozens of army personnel at the scene.

The outlawed group is one of the most feared in Indian-administered Kashmir.

Cordoned off

Government and militant-related sources in the capital Islamabad and in the Kashmiri city of Muzaffarabad reported Mr Lakhvi's detention although there has been no official confirmation.

Karachi citizens give their views on India's Mumbai accusations

Up to four other people were also seized during the raid on Sunday.

The BBC's Barbara Plett in Islamabad says that if the reports prove to be true, it is unlikely Mr Lakhvi will be handed over to India and any trial will probably take place in Pakistan.

The government has been under tremendous Indian and American pressure to act on allegations that the Mumbai atrocities were linked to Pakistan, she adds.

In Washington, a White House spokeswoman praised Pakistan for taking action against militants.

"I think there is no doubt that Pakistan has taken some positive steps," the spokeswoman, Dana Perino, said.

"What's critically important now is that we continue to work together - the Indians, the Pakistanis, the United States, and our allies - to prevent follow-on attacks after the attacks in Mumbai."

The camp, at Shawai on the outskirts of Muzaffarabad, is run by the Islamic charity Jamaat-ud-Dawa, widely seen as a front for Lashkar-e-Taiba, which was banned in 2002.

Witnesses say the raid began on Sunday afternoon.

"I don't know details as the entire area was sealed off but I heard two loud blasts in the evening after a military helicopter landed there," local resident Nisar Ali told Reuters news agency.

Local residents said the army had blown up buildings at the camp, which has an office, religious school and a residential area housing about 150 people.

"Lakhvi is among four or five people arrested," a Jamaat-ud-Dawa official told Reuters, on condition of anonymity.

The BBC's Zulfikar Ali, in Muzaffarabad, was unable to reach the camp because of the cordon but did see about 14 army vehicles leaving the area.

Islamabad denies any involvement in the Mumbai attacks, which left at least 170 people dead, but some of the gunmen are said to have had links to Pakistani militants.

Indian investigators have said that the only gunman captured in Mumbai, Azam Amir Qasab, was indoctrinated by Lashkar-e-Taiba (Soldiers of the Pure), and trained at a camp run by the group.

Formal ban

Although the authorities in Pakistan formally banned it six years ago and curbed its activities, analysts say its camps were never closed.

The New York Times, in a report on Monday quoting unidentified US intelligence officials, said that Pakistan's main spy service had allowed the group to train and raise funds in recent years.

The Inter-Services Intelligence, or ISI, had shared intelligence with the group and protected it, the report said, but there was no evidence linking the ISI to the Mumbai attacks.

Last week, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice urged Islamabad to mount a "robust" and "effective" response to the attacks in Mumbai.

The assault will defuse tensions in the short-term, our correspondent Barbara Plett says, but both Washington and Delhi will be looking to see how far the Pakistani action goes.