"Cuban President Fidel Castro said on Friday he will outlast any Bush administration plans to oust him and Cuba's one-party communist state will survive his death," reported the Reuters news agency.
"Pentagon adviser Richard Perle came under fire on Friday for failing to disclose financial ties to Boeing Co, even while championing its bid for a controversial more than US$20bil defence contract," reported the Reuters news agency.
"In his first major setback, California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger failed to win legislative approval for his proposed US$15bil borrowing plan to rescue the state from its debt crisis. Two months after his dramatic election victory, the Republican movie star turned politician faced his first big test as he sought to win over the Democratic-controlled state legislature to his economic recovery plans," reported the AFP news service.
"Bolivia's government said on Friday it released “about 20” Bangladeshis after finding no evidence to support a tip that they were planning to hijack a plane and attack US interests," reported the Reuters news agency.
"The European Union is ready to work with Libya as long as its leader Muammar Gaddafi resolves international disputes in a thorough and fair manner, European Commission President Romano Prodi said on Friday. Tripoli's return to the international stage hit a snag earlier this week when Libyan officials walked out of talks in Paris to compensate families of the victims of the bombing of a French UTA plane in 1989, according to the families' representatives," reported the Reuters news agency.
"Former US first lady Nancy Reagan on Friday came out against a Republican bid to mint an image of her husband Ronald Reagan's head on US coins. Nancy Reagan urged a lawmaker from former president Reagan's Republican party to abandon his proposal to put his likeness on the 10 cent, or dime, coin to replace that of Democratic president Franklin Delano Roosevelt," reported the AFP news service.
"In Houston, a woman who drove over a McDonald's employee, breaking her pelvis and causing her serious internal injuries in a row over a hamburger, has been jailed for 10 years. The 37-year-old was convicted of aggravated assault in connection with the April 23 incident in which she flew into a violent rage when denied mayonnaise on her cheeseburger and ran over the restaurant manager in the restaurant's parking lot. Judge Brock said the case was one of the most absurd he has ever seen," reported the AFP news service.
"US Secretary of Defence Donald Rumsfeld flew into Iraq on an unannounced visit yesterday to review the security and political situation in the country, a day after four Iraqis and an American soldier were killed by a homemade bomb in Baghdad. Meanwhile, US overseer Paul Bremer has insisted that there is no place in the new Iraq for militia forces, knocking down support among the interim Governing Council for setting up such a force," reported the news Agencies.
"Thais buying New Year cards for their troops in Iraq could win a free trip with the military to the country. Winners will represent the Thai public and travel with an armed forces delegation to give moral support to our troops at Lima Camp in Karbala, ministry spokesman Major General Palangkul Klahan said on Friday," reported the Reuters news agency.
"Chile's Supreme Court on Friday suspended a judge who had visited a gay bathhouse. The court suspended Daniel Calvo for four months while it examines his reasons for recusing himself in a paedophilia case and for confirming his homosexual tendencies. The suspension could become permanent," reported the AFP news service.
"Guerrillas killed a U.S. soldier with a roadside bomb in northern Iraq, and a U.S. military commander said insurgent attacks might not abate even if American troops kill or capture Saddam Hussein," reported the AP news agency.
"Saddam Hussein is hiding out west of this capital from where he commands the operations against the US occupation of Iraq, a tribal leader and faithful follower of the ousted president said. An AFP journalist was introduced to the tribal leader by a Baath politician working to set up a new party to support the resistance," reported the AFP news service.
"US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, architect of the war to oust Saddam Hussein, prodded Iraq's governing council on Saturday to speed up its work and said he wanted Iraqi security forces to be deployed quickly," reported the Reuters news agency.
"Dozens of idled information and interior ministry employees demonstrated on Saturday in front of coalition forces headquarters here, demanding back wages. Security officer Ahmad Shaker said he and other employees have not received salaries for two months," reported the dpa news agency.
"US-led forces in Afghanistan mistakenly killed nine children during an air strike on a leader of the banned Taliban regime, the US military said yesterday. Saturday's strike near the town of Ghazni also killed the Taliban leader, who has been blamed for the killing of two workers on a key highway project in the troubled south of the country," reported the Reuters news agency.
"Israel warned yesterday that it would reject any partial truce agreed by Palestinian factions meeting in Cairo, as a senior minister's call for a pullout from most of the occupied territories triggered splits within the coalition government," reported the AFP news service.
"Nobel Peace Prize winner Shirin Ebadi is to cast off her headscarf when she goes to Oslo this week to formally receive her award, with the laureate shrugging off the fact that such a move will only strengthen hardline opposition to her campaign for the rights of women, children and dissidents," reported the AFP news service.
"Saudi Arabia issued the names and photos of its 26 most wanted terrorist suspects and increased protection around Western housing compounds here as the United States upgraded its security warning, restricting its diplomats' movements. The new US warning on Saturday ordered embassy and consulate staff not to leave the heavily guarded diplomatic quarters here and in other cities, except for essential duties," reported the AP news agency.
"Argentine President Nestor Kirchner demanded an apology from Britain on Saturday for the monstrous act of arming its warships with nuclear depth charges during the 1982 Falklands war. Britain admitted for the first time this week that warships in the task force sent to repel Argentine forces that invaded the disputed archipelago were armed with type WE177 nuclear depth charges," reported the Reuters news agency.
"The UN General Assembly was set to approve yesterday a Palestinian-initiated resolution asking the International Court of Justice whether Israel is legally obligated to tear down its separation barrier. Arab nations asked for the emergency session after UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan reported on Nov 28 that building the barrier into the West Bank was causing serious harm to Palestinians. He said Israel had a right to defend its citizens but that duty should not contradict international law," reported the Reuters news agency.
"The US Defence Department is working on new field uniforms for US soldiers in order to make them lighter and more adaptable to changing environmental condition, the American Forces Information Service reported. According to the report, uniforms of the future will have built-in chemical and biological protection, electric wires and fibre optics that soldiers will be able to use on the battlefield. In addition, uniforms of the future will be able to change colour like chameleons. Boots will come with snap-on soles for different terrains," reported the AFP news service.
"Commonwealth policy towards Zimbabwe was in disarray yesterday after renegade President Robert Mugabe declared he was pulling his country out of the club of mostly former British colonies in disgust at its continued suspension," reported the AFP news service.
"A German cannibal on trial for murder said yesterday that he had been searching the Internet for another person to eat when he was arrested for consuming his first allegedly willing victim," reported the news agencies.
"Hats and shoes littered a blood-stained field in this desolate Afghan village a day after a US warplane – targeting a terror suspect – mistakenly killed nine children. Villagers denied US claims that the suspect also was killed in the attack, saying he wasn't even in the village at the time. American officials offered their regrets on Sunday and said they were deeply saddened by the deaths. The United Nations called for an investigation. And the Afghan government urged the US-led coalition hunting Taliban and al-Qaeda fighters to make sure such an accident was never repeated," reported the AP news agency.
"Indonesia said yesterday that an Australian-backed US programme to develop a missile defence shield could trigger an arms race and undermine regional stability. Downer played down concerns at the press conference," reported the AFP news service.
"The world population will be around nine billion by 2300, the United Nations forecast in a report yesterday. But the UN Population Division said a small shift in fertility levels could have an enormous impact on the population of planet Earth, which is now 6.3 billion," reported the AP news agency.
"The UN General Assembly voted on Monday for a Palestinian-initiated resolution asking the International Court of Justice whether Israel was legally obligated to tear down its barrier in the West Bank. The vote was 90 to 8 with 74 abstentions, an unusually high number reflecting doubts about seeking an advisory opinion from the UN court, based in The Hague, Netherlands," reported the Reuters news agency.
"Israeli Ambassador Dan Gillerman laid the blame for the barrier on Palestinian President Yasser Arafat. Let me be perfectly clear. This is the Arafat fence. This is the fence that Arafat built. His terrorism initiated it, and made its construction inevitable. If there were no Arafat, there would be no fence Gillerman said," reported the Reuters news agency.
"The US military has adopted tough new tactics against guerillas in Iraq, arresting relatives of insurgents and destroying houses used to plan attacks against American troops, defence officials said on Monday. But the officials denied the move was modelled on tactics used by Israeli forces in Gaza and the West Bank, despite visits by US military officers to Israel this year to discuss urban combat with Israel Defence Forces (IDF)," reported the news Agencies.
"President George W. Bush and China's Premier Wen Jiabao will try to buff up the new shine on Sino-US relations, as they lock horns on Taiwan, niggling trade spats and North Korea," reported the Reuters news agency.
"Japan's cabinet approved controversial plans to send ground troops to Iraq to provide humanitarian aid, as 41 US soldiers were wounded in a car bomb attack yesterday near the northern city of Mosul. Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi said the controversial plan, which critics have said violates Japan's pacifist constitution, would allow the troops to assist in the reconstruction efforts but not to take part in combat," reported the news Agencies.
"Nearly two-thirds of Israelis are in favour of the creation of a Palestinian state while a majority back the idea of dismantling all settlements in the Gaza Strip, a poll by the Haaretz daily showed yesterday. Sixty-five percent of those surveyed said that they were in favour of the creation of a Palestinian state while 30% were opposed to the idea while the remainder expressed no opinion," reported the AFP news service.
"A Mercedes sedan exploded outside the National Hotel across from Moscow's Red Square yesterday, killing five people, injuring at least nine and sparking fears of a new wave of terrorism in the heart of the Russian capital. The Itar-Tass news agency reported that the explosion had been caused by a female suicide bomber, and that an undetonated explosive had been found on the bomber's body," reported the AP news agency.
"Representative William Janklow said he would quit the House of Representatives hours after he was convicted of manslaughter on Monday for killing a motorcyclist while speeding. South Dakota's only representative was called Wild Bill and bragged about his lead foot. A sentencing hearing was set for Jan 20, the same day his resignation becomes effective," reported the AFP news service.
"A woman who accused California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger of groping her on a movie set sued him and his campaign staff on Monday for smearing her as a convicted felon when she went public with her claims during his gubernatorial campaign," reported the Reuters news agency.
"The flu season is hitting the western United States hard and Colorado is seeing the worst outbreak in the country with authorities on Monday confirming eight children have now died in the state since the season began last month," reported the Reuters news agency.
"US troops launched an airborne assault in southeastern Afghanistan yesterday as part of what the US military calls its biggest-ever operation against the Taliban and their allies. The troops were flown in by helicopter yesterday to the mountains of Khost province close to the Pakistani border, after intelligence reports militants were operating in the area," reported the Reuters news agency.
"The longest economic expansion in U.S. history faltered so much in the summer of 2000 that business output actually contracted for one quarter, the government said Wednesday in releasing a comprehensive revision of the gross domestic product," reported the AP news agency.
"East Timor Foreign Minister Jose Ramos Horta demanded yesterday that Australia halt development of massive natural gas fields in the Timor Sea until a dispute over their ownership is settled. Ramos Horta said Australia should not exploit resources potentially worth billions of dollars before a treaty detailing how they will be distributed is finalised," reported the AFP news service.
"The Pentagon has formally barred companies from countries opposed to the Iraq war from bidding on US$18.6bil worth of reconstruction contracts. A directive from Deputy Defence Secretary Paul Wolfowitz limits bidders on those 26 contracts to firms from the United States, Iraq, their coalition partners and other countries that have sent troops to Iraq. The ruling bars companies from US allies such as France, Germany and Canada from bidding on the contracts because their governments opposed the American-led war that ousted Saddam Hussein's regime," reported the AP news agency.
"Members of Iraq's National Orchestra on Tuesday performed in front of an American audience, including the president, in a concert their director hoped would counter negative images of his battered country. Hisham Sharaf, director of the Iraqi orchestra, said before the concert he was concerned that Americans saw only bad images of Iraq on television and that their concert, using music as an international language of peace would counter that," reported the Reuters news agency.
"Iraq's US-backed Governing Council is to expel the Iranian opposition group Mujahideen-e-Khalq by the end of the month and confiscate its assets, a Council statement said on Tuesday. In a statement, the Mujahideen said its legal status in occupied Iraq was governed by the Geneva Convention and that the Council, whose president is a returning exile from Iran, could not determine its fate," reported the Reuters news agency.
"US President George W. Bush delivered on Tuesday a stunning personal rebuke to Taiwan's President Chen Shui-bian over his plans for a referendum, in the politically charged setting of talks with Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao. Wen had travelled to Washington seeking to extract a firm US condemnation of Chen's plan for a March 20 vote critical of Beijing's military posture," reported the AFP news service.
"Washington is a strong supporter of democratic Taiwan, and is bound by law to offer it the means of self-defence, but insists it has a right to criticise actions which impinge on stability and its own security. Bush recommitted the United States to the one-China policy, and the three joint communiques that are the bedrock of Sino-US relations, then sat back as Wen delivered his own stern warning to Taiwan," reported the AFP news service.
"As human rights activist Shirin Ebadi was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo yesterday, Islamic hardliners back home handed her a warning that she will have to pay for her decision to appear in public overseas without a headscarf and for allegedly shaking the hand of a man in Teheran," reported the AFP news service.
"The US military admitted yesterday that six Afghan children were killed in a bombing raid aimed at extremists, the second assault within a 24-hour period to result in child casualties. The admission follows protests from the United Nations and Afghan President Hamid Karzai over a US operation in the neighbouring province of Ghazni on Saturday that left nine children dead," reported the AFP news service.
"Meanwhile, President Karzai has demanded an explanation for the child deaths at Ghazni and dispatched investigators to the scene. The UN has also urged a swift inquiry into the deaths and wants results to be made public, charging that the blunder adds to a sense of fear and insecurity following similar killings of innocent civilians. It warned that civilian deaths had a negative impact on Afghans," reported the AFP news service.
"The number of states hit hard by the flu has nearly doubled to 24 in the past week, the government said Thursday as it rushed to ship 100,000 doses of the vaccine to combat shortages and head off what could become one of the worst flu seasons in years. At least 23 children have died in the outbreak. Health officials are unsure why the outbreak has hit so early, why it has caused so many problems in the western part of the country, and why it seems to be so lethal in children. As for why the western part of the country is having the most cases, Dr. Kimberley Shoaf, assistant director for the UCLA Center for Public Health and Disasters, said one reason might be that the flu strain changed as it moved West," reported the AP news agency.
"US forces arrested three men suspected of heading Iraqi rebel cells in their homes here in the early hours yesterday and said they seized a cache of weapons big enough to launch 50 guerilla attacks. In the front garden of one of the two houses raided, soldiers dug up a hoard of rifles, grenades and explosives that the commanding officer described as a Fedayeen candy shop," reported the Reuters news agency.
"An explosion went off yesterday at a money changer's shop in a crowded business district in Tel Aviv, killing three people and wounding 12 in what police said may have been an attack by Israeli underworld figures. The attack shook a nation already on edge over daily warnings about planned suicide bombings by Palestinian militants. We're treating it less as a terrorist attack and more as a criminal attack, said Israeli police spokesman Gil Kleiman. It means that instead of looking for Palestinians, we'll be looking for Israelis," reported the AP news agency.
"Israeli leader Ariel Sharon's reported go-it-alone peace plan is a recipe for disaster, Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qorei said in an Israeli newspaper interview published yesterday," reported the Reuters news agency.
"Diarrhoea, malaria and dengue fever will surge and swathes of southern Asia are likely to be hit by malnutrition as a result of global warming, the World Health Organisation (WHO) warned yesterday at the UN's climate-change conference in Milan. Higher temperatures would change rainfall patterns and the length of seasons, and this would have a resounding impact on agriculture and water-borne and insect-borne diseases," reported the AFP news service.
