China Landslide Leaves Dozens Dead

A landslide sweeping through a village in the snow-dusted mountains of southern China has killed 46 people, including many children.

The last three bodies were pulled out of the debris on Saturday morning, after a night of rescue efforts by more than 1,000 workers.

The landslide smashed into the remote village of Gappo, in Zhenxiong County, on Friday morning, leaving 16 homes in complete ruin.

Those buried included 27 adults and 19 children, the official Xinhua news agency said. Two other people have been taken to hospital.

Rescue crews used construction machinery to sift through piles of mud and earth, but efforts were hampered by the unusually cold temperatures that have hit the country.

Soldiers, police and firefighters joined the rescue efforts.

Li Yongju, 50, said she had heard the crash of the landslide while cleaning her yard, and immediately rushed with other villagers to the disaster site with shovels and hoes.

"We pulled out several people, one of whom was breathing weakly. But after a while he died," Xinhua quoted Ms Li as saying.

Rescuers carry the body of a victim after a landslide hit Zhenxiong county

Another resident wept as she recounted hearing the rumble of the landslide and how her relatives had been killed.

"My grandma, brother, uncle and my aunt's family members died," Zhou Benju told the agency.

A preliminary investigation blames saturation from more than 10 days of rain and snow for the disaster, the local county government of Zhenxiong said in a statement posted on its website.

Premier Wen Jiabao travelled to the scene overnight to comfort survivors, many of whom had taken shelter in tents erected on a public square.

Zhenxiong County, in northeast Yunnan, is a mountainous area prone not just to landslides but also earthquakes.

Two quakes in September - one of magnitude 5.7 - left 81 people dead and hundreds injured.

A month later, a neighbouring county was hit by a landslide that left 18 children dead.

As a relatively impoverished area of China, Yunnan's rural houses are often cheaply constructed and easily demolished when natural disasters strike.

Zhenxiong County is best known for tobacco and Pu'er tea production.

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Mali: French Air Strikes Drive Back Militants

Mali's army has driven back Islamist rebels from a strategic central town after France intervened with air strikes to stop militants controlling the country's desert north from advancing.

One French pilot has been killed in the military action and hundreds of French soldiers have been deployed in the West African country.

French President Francois Hollande took action at the request of interim President Dioncounda Traore, who has declared a state of emergency.

Western governments expressed alarm on Thursday after an al Qaeda-linked rebel alliance captured the town of Konna, a gateway towards the capital Bamako 600km (375 miles) south.

The Malian army has said it was attacking the "last pockets of resistance" by insurgents in Konna after they recaptured it with the help of the French.

It said as many as 100 Islamist fighters had been killed in the battle for Konna.

The UN's Sahel envoy Romano Prodi, left, and President Dioncounda Traore

Mr Hollande said the "terrorist groups, drug traffickers and extremists" in northern Mali "show a brutality that threatens us all." He vowed that the operation would last "as long as necessary".

The West African regional bloc ECOWAS has now authorised the immediate deployment of troops to Mali.

The bloc's commission president Kadre Desire Ouedraogo said it made the decision "in light of the urgency of the situation".

For the past nine months, the Islamic militants have controlled a large swathe of northern Mali, a lawless desert region where kidnapping has flourished.

Mr Hollande said the operation was aimed in part at protecting 6,000 French citizens in Mali, including seven who are being held captive.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said Senegal and Nigeria also responded to an appeal from Mali's president for help to counter the militants.

Late last year, the 15 nations in West Africa, including Mali, agreed on a proposal for the military to take back the north, and sought backing from the UN.

The Security Council authorised the intervention but imposed certain conditions, including the training of Mali's military, which has been accused of serious human rights abuses since a military coup last year sent the nation into disarray.

Al Qaeda's affiliate in Africa has been a shadowy presence for years in the forests and deserts of poverty-stricken Mali.

Most Malians adhere to a moderate form of Islam, but in recent months the terrorist group and its allies have taken advantage of political instability, taking territory they use to stock weapons and train forces.

The Islamists have insisted they want to impose Sharia only in northern Mali, though there long have been fears they could push further south.

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Somalia Hostage Raid: French Agent 'Killed'

France has said one of its soldiers and an intelligence agent have been killed in a failed hostage rescue attempt in Somalia.

The agent, who is code-named Denis Allex and was captured by militants in 2009, died in the fighting with Islamists overnight, the French government said.

However, the Al Shabaab militia has said he is still alive.

Another special forces soldier is missing following the fighting, France's defence minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said.

He said 17 Somali Islamists had been killed and that the operation was not linked to a separate military operation in Mali aimed at quashing a push by Islamist fighters.

Al Shabaab has reportedly said Mr Allex remained in their captivity and was being held far from the base where French helicopters attacked in the early hours of Saturday.

The al Qaeda-linked insurgents also said they were holding an injured French soldier.

Both sides described a fierce firefight during the raid on the Horn of Africa country that France said was carried out by the intelligence agency that Mr Allex worked for.

Sky's Middle East Correspondent Sam Kiley said questions remained about whether the raid was planned because France feared repercussions from its operation in Mali.

He said: "It seems a long way away but ideologically - and, according to some intelligence agencies, physically - the Shabaab have been linked into a network of radical Islamist groups (in countries including Mali).

"There may have been some sense among French decision-makers that because they were getting involved in Mali, they ought to trigger this operation."

However, Kiley said it was more likely that France had received local intelligence in Somalia that there was a threat to the hostage.

The French government said: "Faced with the intransigence of the terrorists, who refused to negotiate for three-and-a-half years and who were holding Denis Allex in inhumane conditions, an operation was planned and carried out."

Authorities in Bula Marer, a town about 120km (75 miles) south of Mogadishu, said helicopters attacked at around 2am local time.

France said Mr Allex was kidnapped - along with another agent who later escaped - when he was carrying out an official aid mission with the Somalian government.

France has previously said the two men were in the Somali capital to train local forces.

After his abduction Al Shabaab issued a series of demands, which included an end to French support for the Somali government and the withdrawal of African Union peacekeepers, whose 17,600-strong troops are helping battle the rebels.

A video of Mr Allex pleading with French President Francois Hollande to negotiate his release appeared on a website in October.

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Man Gets Life For Burning Woman Alive In Lift

A handyman who burned a 73-year-old woman to death in a Brooklyn lift has been sentenced to a minimum of 50 years in prison.

Prosecutors said Jerome Isaac, 48, was sentenced for killing Deloris Gillespie inside her Brooklyn apartment building in December 2011.

Isaac had pleaded guilty to first degree murder charges in November, and a plea deal had called for a 50-year sentence.

The attack was captured on a security camera.

Isaac went to the fifth floor and lay in wait for his victim, who was returning home from shopping.

He is said to have first glued shut the locks on Ms Gillespie's apartment and then doused the lift door with accelerant.

As she opened it, Isaac sprayed her in the face, then covered her from head to toe in flammable liquid.

Ms Gillespie crouched down and threw her hands up to her face.

Having cornered the woman in the lift, he then ignited a Molotov cocktail - a wine bottle filled with accelerant with a rag stuffed in its neck.

The CCTV video went white as Ms Gillespie was set on fire using the bottle's wick.

Isaac then threw the bottle inside the lift, after crouching behind the door "as if he was anticipating an explosion", according to one policeman.

Isaac turned himself in the next day.

Police said Isaac attacked Ms Gillespie because he believed she owed him money.

Prosecutors said he told probation officials conducting a mental health evaluation that he acted on orders from the devil.

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Costa Concordia To Be Removed By September

The stricken ship Costa Concordia will be removed from the Italian coast between June and September - later than originally planned, officials have said.

The vessel has been resting on its side off the Tuscan coast since it capsized last year killing 32 people.

Speaking on the eve of the first anniversary of the disaster, officials highlighted the difficulties of the salvage operation, including the huge size of the vessel and environmental concerns.

Franco Gabrielli, the chief of Italy's Social Defence Department, said officials were looking to remove the ship between June and September depending on weather conditions.

Originally, they had hoped to have it removed in the spring.

The Concordia slammed into a reef off the island of Giglio on January 13, 2012 after its captain took it off course in a stunt to bring the ship closer to the island. As it took water in, she ship rolled onto its side.

The salvage efforts will also require 400m euro (£331m) - up from the 300m euro originally estimated.

The Concordia sinking shortly after it struck rocks

Sky's Europe correspondent Robert Nisbet says the delays and overspending are linked to the technical complexities of an unprecedented operation involving a ship the length of 11 football fields and weighing twice as much as the Titanic.

Officials want to remove it as opposed to breaking it up on the site because the waters surrounding Giglio are of particular environmental significance - part of a marine sanctuary and a favourite spot for scuba divers.

The ship's captain, Francesco Schettino, has been accused of multiple manslaughter, causing a shipwreck and leaving the ship before all passengers were evacuated.

Since the tragedy, the Costa Concordia has turned into a macabre tourist attraction, with hundreds of sightseers catching a ferry from Porto Santo Stefano to Giglio so they can look at the ship and take pictures before returning to the mainland.

Francesco Schettino remains under house arrest

Sunday's anniversary commemorations in Giglio include a ceremony to honour rescue teams and a mass held in the island's tiny church, where many of the injured were treated.

A memorial in honour of the 32 dead will also be unveiled.

But the commemorations have been marred by controversy over a letter reportedly sent by ship owner Costa Crociere to survivors, telling them not to bother attending the ceremonies.

The company cited logistical difficulties on the tiny island and the desire for privacy expressed by the families of the victims, according to news reports.

Some 4,200 people between passengers and crews survived the tragedy.

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Batman Cinema Shootings Suspect To Face Trial

A judge has ordered that the man suspected of killing 12 people in a cinema shooting in Aurora, Colorado, should stand trial.

Judge William Sylvester found that prosecutors had established there was "probable cause" to believe James Holmes committed the crimes.

"Therefore the court orders that defendant shall be bound over for trial on all counts," he wrote in a 61-page ruling posted online.

The 25-year-old has been charged with 166 offences following the shooting during a showing of The Dark Knight Rises in July.

Holmes will be formally charged, alhough his lawyers have said he is not ready to enter a plea.

He could face the death penalty if convicted.

A promising neuroscience student, Holmes began to stock up on weapons, ammunition, explosives and combat gear in the spring of last year.

He began to see a university psychiatrist and then dropped out of his course.

The Aurora rampage was one of a number of mass shootings in the US last year, culminating with the killings at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut, which have raised the issue of gun control.

A review ordered by President Barack Obama is due to report back within weeks, but the gun lobby has signalled it will oppose new restrictions.

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Japan Unveils Huge Economic Stimulus Package

Japan Increases Defence Spending

Updated: 10:54am UK, Friday 11 January 2013

By Mark Stone, China Correspondent

Japan has announced plans to increase its defence budget for the first time in a decade as tensions with China continue to increase.

As part of a broad stimulus package announced by Shinzo Abe, Japan's new prime minister, the military budget will be boosted by more than 100bn yen (£695m) from the 4.6trn yen (£30bn) budget in 2012.

A defence ministry spokesman said the funds were needed "to prepare for the changing security environment surrounding Japan".

Tensions between Tokyo and Beijing are at their highest in decades over a small group of islands in the East China Sea.

Both countries claim the five islands and three reefs which are located due west of Okinawa and to the northeast of Taiwan.

American and British diplomatic sources have told Sky News they are very concerned about the tensions.

One source said an accidental clash between the two countries' militaries which are increasingly active in the region could spark conflict.

Known as the Senkaku Islands in Japan and as the Diaoyu Islands by China, the uninhabited outcrops were 'officially' bought by the government of Japan from their private Japanese owner last year.

It was an attempt by the Japanese government to prevent the nationalist and right-wing governor of Tokyo, Shintaro Ishihara, from buying them himself - a move which would have sparked even greater tensions.

However, the government purchase caused huge anger in China with protests at Japanese institutions across the country. An unofficial but widespread boycott of Japanese goods in China hit an already struggling Japanese economy.

The governments of both countries have been accused of stoking nationalism to ramp up tensions and deflect from their own domestic political struggles.

An increased military presence in the East China Sea, a vital international shipping lane, is also causing some concern in the region and beyond.

On Thursday, the Japanese media said Tokyo had scrambled fighter jets in response to a sighting of Chinese 'military' planes near the disputed islands.

The Chinese planes were not within Japanese airspace but were within a Japanese designated 'air defence identification zone'.

It is the second time in two months that Japan has scrambled jets in response to Chinese aerial activity.

In December, Japanese F-15 fighter jets were dispatched from an air base in Okinawa after a light-aircraft belonging to China's Maritime Surveillance Organisation was spotted over the islands.

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Burma Spitfires: UK Team Searches For Planes

By Mark Stone, Asia Correspondent

A British search team is continuing the hunt for a fleet of long-lost World War Two Spitfire planes in Burma.

Photos taken by the group show one of three search sites - an area within the perimeter fence of Yangon International Airport.

The three sites are being excavated by aviation enthusiasts and archaeologists.

As many as 36 planes are believed to have been buried at the airport, which was under British occupation during WWII and called RAF Mingaladon.

According to the search team, who have carried out 17 years of research, as many as 140 of the planes were buried in near pristine condition at various sites by American military engineers at the end of the war.

Historians have said it was common for departing armies to bury equipment that was surplus to their requirements.

With the war over and no orders to return the equipment, decisions were made locally to bury it all.

The search at Yangon, a working airport, is under way

Earlier this week, the team, led by David Cundall, a Lincolnshire farmer, discovered a wooden crate believed to contain one of the planes at a different search site.

Using a special camera, they established that the crate was full of muddy water.

"The images I have seen are not conclusive but it is very encouraging that we have found a wooden crate in the same area where the Americans buried the Spitfires," Mr Cundall said.

"The water is muddy, it's causing problems, we can't see through the water and we will have to pump the water out before we can give more information … "

The agreement to allow the excavation only came last October and was made possible only after reforms by Burma's government. A deal was signed by David Cameron on a visit to the country last year.

The team aims to recover as many as 60 planes in the first phase of excavation work.

Thirty-six of them are thought to be at the site within Yangon Airport, with another 18 at Myitkyina, in the northern Kachin State, and six more in Meikthila, central Burma.

As well as sophisticated equipment, the team has the help of geophysicists from the University of Leeds and a remarkable eyewitness: 91-year-old war veteran Stanley Coombe who says he witnessed the burial of the aircraft.

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Richard Landers: Missing Boy Found 19 Years On

A boy who vanished from his home town almost 20 years ago has been found alive and living under an assumed name 700 miles away.

Richard Wayne Landers was five years old when he was abducted in 1994 by his paternal grandparents from the town of Wolcottville, Indiana, in an apparent custody dispute.

News he was found safe at the age of 24 left his mother, Lisa Hartner, "overjoyed and jumping up-and-down," according to her husband Richard, who added his wife was "the happiest woman on Earth".

Police said it appeared Mr Landers' biological father was absent in his life and his mother had married Mr Hartner a year before he went missing.

Detectives believe the boy's grandparents became upset about a pending court hearing regarding custody and secretly took him away to an unknown destination.

Police worked tirelessly with Mrs Hartner to locate her son and arrest warrants were issued for the grandparents, but no trace was ever found of them.

Then in September 2012, Mr Hartner found the boy's old social security card which police used to establish a man living in Long Prairie, Minnesota, was using the same social security number.

Police checked the man's driving license photograph and discovered he bore a striking resemblance to the missing boy.

Further enquiries revealed the grandparents were living seven miles away under assumed names.

When questioned by police they admitted their true identities and confessed the young man was their grandson.

Investigators have not released the names under which Mr Landers and his grandparents had been living, but they revealed he is now married and due to become a father.

"It's nice to put closure to this case and now the family can begin the process of re-connecting with their loved one," said La Grange County Sheriff Terry Martin.

Indiana State Police Detective Jeff Boyd added: "This is an example of inter-agency co-operation, both here in Indiana and in Minnesota that allowed this almost 19-year case to come to a successful conclusion."

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Dreamliner Safety And Design Review Ordered

America's aviation watchdog has ordered a comprehensive review of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner after a spate of incidents involving the new aircraft model.

The head of Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said he is confident the Boeing 787 is safe, but he remains concerned about recent events, including a fire and a fuel leak earlier this week.

Michael Huerta, the FAA administrator, said that there is nothing in the data the agency has seen to suggest the plane is not safe.

The FAA announced it is undertaking a comprehensive review of the 787 to include "critical systems, including design, manufacture and assembly".

The manufacturer responded to fears of the plane and said: "Boeing is confident in the design and performance of the 787. It is a safe and efficient airplane that brings tremendous value to our customers and an improved flying experience to their passengers.

"The airplane has logged 50,000 hours of flight and there are more than 150 flights occurring daily."

Boston fire crews attend the JAL plane after it filled with smoke

The move by the aviation authority in the US was prompted after a fifth Dreamliner fault this week was reported on Friday morning.

Oil was discovered leaking from the left engine of a Boeing 787 Dreamliner flight operated by All Nippon Airways (ANA).

An ANA spokeswoman said the leak was found after the domestic flight landed safely at Miyazaki airport in southern Japan.

It came on the same day another Japanese 787 suffered a cracked cockpit window while in flight on a domestic route.

ANA said crew noticed a spider web-like crack in a window in front of the pilot's seat about 70 minutes into Friday's flight, which was close to its destination.

The Dreamliner, the world's first carbon-composite airliner, which has a list price of $207m (£128m), has been beset by problems this week.

The plane was designed to use power plants made by General Electric and Britain's Rolls-Royce.

On Wednesday, a domestic flight was halted by ANA because brake parts to the rear left undercarriage needed replacing, a spokesman at Yamaguchi Ube Airport said.

An investigator in the US examines a Boeing 787

A Japan Air Lines (JAL) jet was also grounded at Boston Logan International airport in the US following an engine fuel leak.

About 40 gallons of fuel spilled from the jet that was supposed to be bound for Tokyo.

That event followed the first incident of the week, which also occurred at Boston, on Monday.

Emergency services had been called after another JAL 787 filled with smoke shortly after passengers and crew had disembarked.

Firefighters used infrared cameras to locate the fire in a battery pack in the belly of a different Boeing 787 and extinguished the blaze within 20 minutes.

Sky sources revealed that if the battery fire had occurred during a transocean flight the aircraft may have brought down.

The 787 Dreamliner made its first commercial flight in late 2011, after a series of production delays put deliveries more than three years behind schedule.

By the end of last year, Boeing had sold 848 Dreamliners, and delivered 49. JAL and ANA operate 24 of the planes.

After the Boston events, British carriers including BA, Virgin Atlantic and Thomson Airways reaffirmed their plans to integrate 787s into fleets this year and next.

In India - where state-owned Air India has taken delivery of six Dreamliners and has more on order - a senior official at the aviation regulator said there was concern at the recent spate of 787 glitches.

Meanwhile, an Air India spokesman said the airline's debut Dreamliner flight from India to Paris on Thursday went without a hitch.

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Saudi Arabia Beheads Young Sri Lankan Maid

A young Sri Lankan housemaid has been beheaded in Saudi Arabia for killing a baby who was in her care.

Rizana Nafeek had denied strangling the four-month-old baby in 2005 and the execution came despite global appeals to call it off because she was only 17 at the time.

Rights groups said the death sentence was a violation of international codes governing the rights of minors.

Appeals by the Sri Lankan government were also rejected and Nafeek was executed in the town of Dawadmy, near the capital Riyadh, on Wednesday morning.

A Sri Lankan woman protesting against the death sentence

In a statement the Saudi interior ministry said she had been found guilty of smothering the infant to death after an argument with the child's mother, her employer.

Sri Lanka's President, Mahinda Rajapaksa, had made a series of personal appeals to try to stop the execution and grant a pardon to the maid.

Afterwards, the president said he and his government "deplored" the beheading.

Saudi households are highly dependent on housemaids from African and South Asian countries.

There have been reported cases of domestic abuse in which families mistreat their maids, who have then attacked the children of their employers.

Condemning the execution, Human Rights Watch senior women's rights researcher Nisha Varia said: "Saudi Arabia is one of just three countries that executes people for crimes they committed as children.

"In executing Rizana Nafeek, Saudi authorities demonstrated callous disregard for basic humanity as well as Saudi Arabia's international legal obligations."

Saudi is an absolute monarchy that follows the strict Wahhabi school of Islam and applies Sharia (Islamic) law. Judges base decisions on their own interpretation of Sharia rather than on a written legal code or on precedent.

In a statement Amnesty International said that it appeared Nafeek had had no access to lawyers either during her pre-trial interrogation or at her trial in 2007.

Hers was the second execution in Saudi Arabia this year after a Syrian man was beheaded on Tuesday for drug trafficking.

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India Gang Rape: Men 'Beaten For Confessions'

A lawyer for three of the men charged with murdering and gang-raping a student in Delhi has accused the police of brutality.

Speaking before a hearing at the city's Saket District Court, ML Sharma claimed the men had been beaten while in custody.

He said: "They (the police) have used the third degree to extract the statement that suits the evidence they have collected.

"My clients have been forced to confess to crimes that they did not commit."

A police spokesman refused to comment on the allegations.

Mr Sharma represents three of the five men accused of raping a 23-year-old medical student on a bus in Delhi on December 16.

She died in hospital in Singapore 13 days after the attack, which sparked mass protests across India.

Mr Sharma's clients are expected to plead not guilty to the charges they face.

All five men are due in court later, when the case is expected to be transferred to a fast-track trial court.

If convicted, they could face the death penalty.

A sixth accused, who is 17, will be tried in a separate court for juveniles.

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India: New Gang Rape And Murder 'Covered Up'

The family of a woman who was gang raped and murdered in Noida, in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, claim the police tried to cover up the attack because one of the alleged culprits was wealthy.

The semi-naked and bruised body of the 22-year-old woman called Sanyogita was found on Saturday morning by the roadside.

It comes weeks after a gang rape in Delhi sparked outrage across the world.

Five police officers have been suspended for allegedly failing to investigate the crime and three men have been arrested.

But the victim's family claim they will not see justice because they are Dalits - the Indian caste traditionally regarded as 'untouchable'.

Sanyogita's mother, Sunita, said: "We are lower caste and that is why our voice is never heard. The case against the accused is being watered down because they are rich."

Her father Dharamsingh is of the same opinion.

"The police tried to bury the case in the beginning," he said.

"Even before we arrived they had taken the body and they wanted her cremated."

Their story contrasts sharply with the outcry over the Delhi bus gang rape on December 16.

The attack happened in the capital city to a girl who was a medical student . She could have been the daughter of any of the city's growing cosmopolitan middle class.

Sanyogita, on the other hand, came from a poor family with, it seems, no voice.

In the village she grew up in it is striking that there are no satellite TV trucks or protesters demanding justice.

The truth is that most crimes against women in India happen in the country's small towns and villages and largely go unnoticed and unchallenged.

Rape and molestation is rising across the country and no-one in authority appears to have an answer as to what to do about it.        

In Delhi, the number of women signing up for self-defence classes has doubled in recent weeks.

At one session at a school in the south of the city we meet Vinita, who coincidentally, is writing a Phd on Indian history.

She believes the rise in violence against women will not be combatted until society changes.

She said: "It is not equal with us and because Indian culture places so much emphasis on honour of women, honourable things like staying at home... humiliating them in a sexual way (and) violating their bodies seems to be the best way of telling a woman 'you are not honourable enough anymore, you mind your place'."

The Delhi gang rape has presented India with some uncomfortable truths.

The country likes to cast itself as the economic and cultural powerhouse of South Asia, but the attack has revealed the nation's many fault lines.

India is a society of unequals: rich and poor, men and women.

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Syria: Another Missile Fired, Says Nato

A short-range ballistic missile has been fired again inside Syria, following similar launches last week, a Nato official has said.

"We detected the launch of an unguided, short-range ballistic missile inside Syria yesterday (Wednesday). This follows similar launches on January 2 and 3," the official said, adding: "All missiles were fired from inside Syria and they landed in northern Syria. None hit Turkish territory."

While Nato said it could not provide further details on the type of missiles, it condemned the firing of them. 

"The use of such indiscriminate weapons shows utter disregard for the lives of the Syrian people. It is reckless and we condemn it," the official said.

Children standing in muddied water outside their makeshift home

Fighting is still reported to be continuing, despite increasingly bad weather.

There has been four days of continuous rain, wind, hail and snowfall that weather officials in neighbouring Lebanon and Israel have called the worst winter storm for 20 years.

The terrible conditions have brought further misery to the 600,000 refugees already suffering by having to flee their country because of the war.

Tens of thousands of the refugees living in the Zaatari refugee camp are without shelter after storms destroyed their temporary shelters and turned much of the camp into a muddy swamp. 

A Syrian woman walks through the snow of her refugee camp

Camps in Turkey have been hit by a heavy snowfall.

And, in rebel-held areas of Syria, fuel and food are growing scarce, according to reports.

Residents in mainly rebel-held Aleppo are burning furniture and doors to stay warm, said Michal Przedalicki, an aid worker from the Czech charity People in Need working in northern Syria.

"Unfortunately, I think it is quite likely that people will die from the severe weather conditions. Already people have not been eating enough for several months, and that exposes their bodies to more disease and infection."

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Japan Luck Race Won By Student

A student has beaten more than 4,500 runners in an annual dawn race around the Nishinomiya shrine in central Japan.

Japanese mythology says that the winner of the 230-metre race will be blessed with a year of good luck.

And if that was not reward enough, this year's winner Yuto Doi, 18, was also given a 12-month supply of Ebisu beer, despite Japan's legal drinking age of 20.

The gracious victor Doi was happy to share his luck around.

He said: "I wish my victory brings fortune to people around me so that they all become happy."

Doi added: "My biggest wish now is that all my school mates enter colleges they want to go to."

Although there could only be one winner of the race, the first two runners-up did not leave empty handed.

Second place received a barrel of rice and third place was given a grilled whole sea bream, which are symbols of luck according to Japanese folklore.

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Violent Crime Linked To Levels Of Lead In Air

An increase in violent crime in the 1970s and 80s is down to lead in the environment, research has claimed.

A study in the US which compared the level of crime and the earlier amount of lead in the atmosphere – from petrol, paint and other sources – found they appeared to be directly linked.

Researchers discovered that in cities where the amount of lead in the air went up, the crime rate went up around 20 years later.

When the amount of lead in the atmosphere came down, the number of robberies and attacks started to fall after about 20 years.

The authors of the study believe there could be something in lead that makes children who absorb more of it, more violent when they grow up.

The rate at which crime rose and fell was the same in all the six cities studied, regardless of what measures had been taken to prevent robbery and attacks.

In Britain, violent crime has fallen as lead levels have been dropping

The effect has been put down to changes in the amount of lead in the air from vehicles and industry as well as pollutants in the home like paint and water pipes.

Lead in petrol in the US was phased out from the mid-1970s onwards and in paint from the mid-1960s. Violent crime started to fall in the 1990s and has continued to fall since, despite a recession at the end of the last decade.

Other research has found that areas of US cities where lead levels have stayed high have continued to experience more robberies and attacks than other areas.

In Britain, violent crime has also been dropping since the 1990s. Lead in the atmosphere has been steadily decreasing, too, with one study showing it fell 90% between the mid-1970s and 1992. Since then it has continued to fall.

Professor Howard Mielke, of Tulane University, who studied the effect in New Orleans, said: "There is a very strong association between criminal activity and the environment in different parts of the city.

"The amount of lead in the environment ... was particularly strongly related to both learning problems and then violence.

He told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "We've mapped the city of New Orleans and it's the mapping that has provided us with a tool for going back and looking at different kind of issues in the city.

"The police department is even using the maps as they find them very predictive of where the highest crime rates are being found."

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Bobcat In Garage Mauling Had Rabies

The bobcat that attacked a man and his nephew in their garage had rabies, officials in Massachusetts have confirmed.

"The bobcat has been proven to be rabid," announced Stephen Comtois, Brookfield town board chairman.

He warned local people to be "on high alert for wildlife", according to the Worcester Telegram.

Roger Mundell Jr had described how all he heard on Sunday evening was a hiss before the wild cat pounced on him.

It sank its teeth into his face and its claws in his back.

The bobcat then ran out of the garage in Brookfield and bit Mr Mundell's 15-year-old nephew on the arms and back.

"It only took a split second for him to be on me," Mr Mundell told Boston's WHDH-TV. "I didn't have time to process it."

Mr Mundell and his wife eventually pinned the cat to the ground with a walking stick and shot it dead with a handgun.

His wife was not bitten but she came into contact with the animal's blood.

All three were already being treated for rabies as a precaution, given the bobcat's unusual behaviour.

Health officials said the positive result was expected.

"We were not surprised because the animal was so aggressive," they said.

Bobcats are generally twice the size of an average domestic house cat.

They can grow to more than a metre (40ins) in length and can weigh up to 14kg (30lb).

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Kashmir: Pakistan Troops 'Behead' Indian Soldier

One of the two Indian soldiers killed in a clash along the disputed Kashmir border was beheaded by Pakistani troops who then carried away his head, India's chief military spokesman has claimed.

"We can confirm that one of the Indian soldiers was beheaded by the Pakistani army in Kashmir," J Dahiya said.

"They have taken away the head."

Indian military chiefs said one of their army patrols was attacked byPakistani troops who crossed the so-called Line of Control dividing the region and violated a ceasefire.

Their deaths followed another disputed incident on Sunday, when Pakistan said Indian army troops attacked one of their bases and killed a soldier.

Each sides disputes the others description of events in recent days.

Checkpoints along the disputed Line of Control in Kashmir

However, Dahiya accused the Pakistanis of being "in a state of denial".

"We are absolutely convinced Pakistan army regulars were involved because it was a surgical strike with high-calibre weapons," he said

The countries have fought two full-scale wars over Kashmir, which is claimed by both of them and is divided between them.

A 2003 ceasefire ended the most recent round of fighting, though each side occasionally accuses the other of violating it by using mortars or shooting across the border dividing the Indian and Pakistani sides of Kashmir.

It had been hoped that the relationship between the two countries was improving after new visa rules were announced in December, designed to make cross-border travel easier.

They have also been taking steps to improve cross-border trade.

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Australia Wildfires: Family Clings To Jetty

A terrified family clung to a jetty for more than two hours while wildfires raged around them.

As the flames destroyed her Tasmania home, grandmother Tammy Holmes was forced to tread water with her five young grandchildren in the sea.

Photographs taken by Mrs Holmes' husband Tim, and released on Wednesday, show two-year-old Charlotte, four-year-old Esther, Liam Walker, nine, 11-year-old Matilda and six-year-old Caleb huddled together in the water.

A NASA satellite image of the fires burning in southeastern Australia

The children's mother, Bonnie Walker, had left them with her parents while she attended a funeral.

She said: "We just waited by the phone and received a message to say that mum and dad had evacuated, that they were surrounded by fire, and could we pray. So I braced myself to lose my children and my parents."

The family eventually found a dinghy to escape the fire zone, and dragged it 300 metres to where the air was cleaner.

Mr Holmes said: "We saw tornadoes of fire just coming across towards us and the next thing we knew everything was on fire.

"I had sent Tammy ... with the children to get down to the jetty because there was no other escape, we couldn't get off."

More than 100 bushfires are still raging across southeastern Australia, following a heatwave that saw the region scorched by record temperatures.

About 30 fires in New South Wales are out of control

Cooler weather has now brought some relief - but highs of 50C are forecast for the weekend.

Meteorologists have been forced to readjust their scales to accommodate the unprecedented heat.

After facing one of the highest-risk fire days in its history on Tuesday, residents in hard-hit New South Wales woke to shifting winds that caused temperatures to drop significantly.

While the mercury topped 42C in Sydney on Tuesday, it was forecast to peak at just 25C today, while the Victorian capital Melbourne was down to 20C.

The ratings on many bushfires were downgraded with none now at the "catastrophic" level which signifies fires will be uncontrollable, unpredictable and fast-moving, and evacuation the only safe option.

Bathers at Lake Conjola watch as smoke billows from a bushfire at Deans Gap

But NSW Rural Fire Service commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons warned against complacency, with new fronts breaking out despite the colder weather and a total fire ban still in place.

Speaking from Bookham, a small village in Yass Shire west of Canberra where a fire has so far burnt out 16,000 hectares, he said: "It is far from over when it comes to the threat to New South Wales.

"We need to sustain the vigilance today. We are not out of the woods yet, the risk is very real and there's a long day ahead and a forecast for a return to hot conditions toward the weekend and into next week."

More than 2,000 firefighters worked through the night tackling more than 140 blazes across New South Wales, Australia's most populous state, with 30 of those uncontained.

New South Wales Premier Barry O'Farrell said an estimated 10,000 sheep had perished in the Yass area alone.

The state of Victoria has also been experiencing extreme conditions with four homes destroyed and six people treated for minor burns or smoke inhalation in a bushfire in the farming community of Carngham, which was evacuated.

Prime Minister Julia Gillard said the federal and state governments were working together in the recovery effort and to support victims.

"Firstly, it's all hands on deck fighting the fires, dealing with the emergency, and then we move into the recovery phase," she said.

No deaths have so far been reported.

While it was initially believed as many as 100 people could be missing in the southern island of Tasmania after wildfires razed more than 100 homes over the weekend, police said there was confusion about movements during the crisis.

"We know there have been no significant injuries, which is amazing, and we are encouraged that we haven't found any human remains at this stage," Tasmanian acting police commissioner Scott Tilyard told Sky News.

Wildfires are a fact of life in arid parts of Australia. Some 173 people perished in the 2009 Black Saturday firestorm, the nation's worst natural disaster of modern times.

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New York Ferry Crash: Up To 50 Injured

A commuter ferry has crashed into the dockside in Lower Manhattan in New York, injuring between 30 and 50 people.

The Seastreak Ferry, which provides daily services from Atlantic Highlands in New Jersey struck Pier 11 in the East River not far from Wall Street at about 8.45am ET (1.45pm GMT).

Officials say at least one of the passengers was in a critical condition with head injuries.

The vessel apparently had a hard landing as it was trying to dock. 

"There was a jolt when that occurred, throwing the people forward into their seats and the walls," Seastreak President James Barker told NBC 4 New York.

A corner of the ferry appeared to have been ripped open by the impact

Passenger Ellen Foran said people tumbled on top of each other, hysterical and crying.

"All of a sudden, the boat felt like it smashed into a wall," Richard Correra told WCBS-TV.

"Dozens of passengers got thrown out of their seats, got thrown forward," he said.

"Some were heading downstairs and just flew down the stairs and hit their heads on various poles and walls."

Many were helped off the ferry by emergency workers

Many of the 300 or so passengers were taken off the ferry on backboards for medical evaluation, their heads and necks immobilised.

Television pictures showed more than a dozen people on stretchers spread across the dockside, surrounded by emergency workers and firefighters.

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Afghanistan: Green On Blue Attacks Rising

The central role of the foreign forces deployed in Afghanistan is to train the national army and police to a level so they can maintain order in the country and counter the threat of the Taliban when Nato withdraws by the end of 2014.

Given the scale of the task and the speed with which it has to be completed, many have always doubted it could be achieved to anything but a mediocre level.

The advent and increasing growth of so-called "Green on Blue" attacks, where Afghans turn their weapons on their foreign mentors, is in danger of making even that mediocre goal seem almost impossible.

The bulk of the training and mentoring is carried out by British and American forces based in Helmand and Kandahar.

These are the two most deadly provinces, where the Taliban are strongest and where the production of opium-providing poppies gives them an unstoppable revenue stream.

The latest attack happened in Nar-e Saraj in Helmand Province

The Taliban have claimed responsibility for the latest attack that killed a soldier from 28 Engineer Regiment. That may or may not be true, but they have promised to infiltrate for years and the poppy revenue gives them the ability to pay would-be converts far more than the Afghan government pays its armed forces.

Isaf force commanders have attempted to introduce protocols to protect their people.

On patrol and in remote camps soldiers regularly appoint a colleague, a so-called Guardian Angel, to watch their backs while they work, soldiers always carry loaded weapons, counter-intelligence has been boosted and recruitment procedures have been tightened to better assess who is signing up.

The effect: Relations between Nato personnel and their Afghan colleagues have worsened and the Green on Blue attacks have actually got worse.

Nato commanders and the Afghan government have continued to maintain that these attacks are largely a clash of cultures.

It is claimed Afghan soldiers angered by a perception of Western decadence and lack of respect, or angered at carrying out orders from foreign mentors, "snap" and attack unexpectedly.

Certainly this has happened. I have been on many joint patrols where relations between the two forces have been terrible. But in my experience the British soldiers do almost all the hard work; manually stacking water and food, lighting fires and - oh yes - actually doing all the fighting.

I have witnessed many instances where young British soldiers have slept outside in freezing conditions rather than risk being sexually molested by Afghan soldiers and thereby avoiding an understandable and likely confrontation.

However, there have been some well documented atrocities by American soldiers on civilians and also stories about the desecration of the Koran and the bodies of dead Taliban fighters. Those, and the policy of night raids (now greatly controlled and reduced) on villages that have led to civilian casualties, certainly acted as a recruiting sergeant for the Taliban.

But in reality, having realised they couldn't defeat the Western forces, the Taliban have moulded their war of attrition to suit their strengths. Persuading men to turn against the army, the police and their mentors is certainly part of their plan.

The Taliban know that the war is unpopular in the West. They know that more deaths, when the withdrawal is imminent, seem a pointless waste to much of the population in the coalition countries.

The decision to announce a timetable for the withdrawal, and sticking to it, means the Taliban have no desire to negotiate anything. They can bide their time and undermine the credibility of the whole Afghan project.

When the withdrawal happens the Taliban will strengthen its grip on the south of the country and use its opium revenues to fund a potential civil war with the cities where the government clings to power.

President Karzai travels to the US this week to meet President Obama for talks about future troop levels. He can be certain that the Green on Blue issue will be at the top of the agenda.

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British Soldier Shot Dead In Afghanistan

Green On Blue Attacks Worsening

Updated: 12:19pm UK, Tuesday 08 January 2013

By Stuart Ramsay, Chief Correspondent

The central role of the foreign forces deployed in Afghanistan is to train the national army and police to a level so they can maintain order in the country and counter the threat of the Taliban when Nato withdraws by the end of 2014.

Given the scale of the task and the speed with which it has to be completed, many have always doubted it could be achieved to anything but a mediocre level.

The advent and increasing growth of so-called "Green on Blue" attacks, where Afghans turn their weapons on their foreign mentors, is in danger of making even that mediocre goal seem almost impossible.

The bulk of the training and mentoring is carried out by British and American forces based in Helmand and Kandahar.

These are the two most deadly provinces, where the Taliban are strongest and where the production of opium-providing poppies gives them an unstoppable revenue stream.

The Taliban have claimed responsibility for the latest attack that killed a soldier from 28 Engineer Regiment. That may or may not be true, but they have promised to infiltrate for years and the poppy revenue gives them the ability to pay would-be converts far more than the Afghan government pays its armed forces.

Isaf force commanders have attempted to introduce protocols to protect their people.

On patrol and in remote camps soldiers regularly appoint a colleague, a so-called Guardian Angel, to watch their backs while they work, soldiers always carry loaded weapons, counter-intelligence has been boosted and recruitment procedures have been tightened to better assess who is signing up.

The effect: Relations between Nato personnel and their Afghan colleagues have worsened and the Green on Blue attacks have actually got worse.

Nato commanders and the Afghan government have continued to maintain that these attacks are largely a clash of cultures.

It is claimed Afghan soldiers angered by a perception of Western decadence and lack of respect, or angered at carrying out orders from foreign mentors, "snap" and attack unexpectedly.

Certainly this has happened. I have been on many joint patrols where relations between the two forces have been terrible. But in my experience the British soldiers do almost all the hard work; manually stacking water and food, lighting fires and - oh yes - actually doing all the fighting.

I have witnessed many instances where young British soldiers have slept outside in freezing conditions rather than risk being sexually molested by Afghan soldiers and thereby avoiding an understandable and likely confrontation.

However, there have been some well documented atrocities by American soldiers on civilians and also stories about the desecration of the Koran and the bodies of dead Taliban fighters. Those, and the policy of night raids (now greatly controlled and reduced) on villages that have led to civilian casualties, certainly acted as a recruiting sergeant for the Taliban.

But in reality, having realised they couldn't defeat the Western forces, the Taliban have moulded their war of attrition to suit their strengths. Persuading men to turn against the army, the police and their mentors is certainly part of their plan.

The Taliban know that the war is unpopular in the West. They know that more deaths, when the withdrawal is imminent, seem a pointless waste to much of the population in the coalition countries.

The decision to announce a timetable for the withdrawal, and sticking to it, means the Taliban have no desire to negotiate anything. They can bide their time and undermine the credibility of the whole Afghan project.

When the withdrawal happens the Taliban will strengthen its grip on the south of the country and use its opium revenues to fund a potential civil war with the cities where the government clings to power.

President Karzai travels to the US this week to meet President Obama for talks about future troop levels. He can be certain that the Green on Blue issue will be at the top of the agenda.

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Ivory Poachers Kill Elephant Family In Kenya

A family of 11 elephants has been killed by poachers in Kenya in what officials describe as the biggest single mass shooting of the animals on record in the country.

A gang of about 10 attackers hacked off the elephants' tusks in Tsavo East National Park on Saturday, officials said - the latest sign of a rise of mostly Asian demand for ivory jewellery and ornaments.

"It shows the great lengths these criminal cartels are ready to go to get ivory. It's really tragic," Kenya Wildlife Service spokesman Paul Udo said.

He said it was the worst single incident of its kind recorded in the East African country.

Smuggled elephant tusks recovered from Nairobi airport last year

Elephant poaching in Kenya fell sharply after 1989 when the government banned trade in ivory.

But there has been a rise in the illegal practice in recent years.

Demand for ornamental ivory is rising fast in Asia in tandem with growing Chinese influence and investment in Africa.

The Kenya Wildlife Service said foot, dog and aerial units were hunting the gang.

"The entire family of 11 elephants have been confirmed poached and tusks chopped off. All the carcasses had bullet wounds," the service said in a statement.

In May last year, 359 tusks weighing 1.6 tons impounded in Sri Lanka were found to have come from Kenya's Mombasa port.

Then, last October, police found 214 tusks worth £820,000 hidden in a coffin and fertiliser bags in neighbouring Tanzania.

Smugglers had planned to transport the ivory to Kenya for onward shipment to Asia, police said.

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Australian Bushfires: 'Catastrophic' Conditions

The Australian state of New South Wales is experiencing one of the highest-risk fire days in its history, with temperatures climbing above 40C.

Firefighters are battling over 100 wildfires raging across the southeast of the country, with more than 20 deemed out of control.

Officials have evacuated national parks, warning that blistering temperatures and high winds are causing "catastrophic" fire conditions in some areas.

All state forests and national parks have been closed as a precaution and total fire bans are in place with temperatures expected to reach as high as 45C in some places.

Strong winds are also forecast, which could fan the flames in unpredictable directions.

There are warnings across New South Wales

Thousands of firefighters are on standby across the nation's most populous state of New South Wales.

NSW Rural Fire Service commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons said: "We are shaping up for one of the worst fire danger days on record.

"You don't get conditions worse than this. We are at the catastrophic level and clearly in those areas leaving early is your safest option."

Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard urged people to stay safe as she warned the nation to prepare for possibly its worst day of bushfires.

She told Australian television: "This is a very dangerous day.

The Boomer Bay area was devastated by flames earlier in the week

"We of course are very concerned about these extreme weather conditions in New South Wales. The word catastrophic is being used for very good reason, So it is very important that people keep themselves safe."

One of the worst uncontained fires on Tuesday was around Cooma, about 100km (62 miles) south of the capital city Canberra.

The fire danger in the state of Victoria is also high. The main concern is about a blaze in the southwest, which has already burnt out more than 7,000 hectares of bushland.

No deaths had been reported, although officials in Tasmania were still trying to find around 100 residents who have been missing since a fire tore through the small town of Dunalley, east of the state capital of Hobart, last week, destroying around 90 homes. No bodies were found during preliminary checks of the ruined houses.

Wildfires have scorched 20,000 hectares of forests and farmland across southern Tasmania since Friday.

Bushfires are common during the Australian summer. In February 2009, hundreds of fires across Victoria killed 173 people and destroyed more than 2,000 homes.

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India Gang Rape: Two Men To Plead Not Guilty

Two of the men accused of gang-raping and killing a 23-year-old woman on a moving bus in Delhi will plead not guilty to all charges, their lawyer has said.

Mukesh Singh and Akshay Thakur are among five suspects charged with abduction, rape and murder over the December 16 attack on the medical student.

A sixth accused, who is 17, will be tried in a separate court for juveniles.

M L Sharma, who says he represents Thakur and Singh, the brother of the bus driver involved in the attack, said: "They will plead not guilty to all charges.

"Nothing has been proven yet."

Protesters are calling for the death penalty

Officials at Tihar jail, the maximum security prison where the accused are being held, said Mr Sharma had met the two defendants earlier on Tuesday.

Police earlier told reporters they have identified bloodstains linking the men to the attack, but Mr Sharma said he would challenge police over their handling of evidence.

Mr Sharma refused to give further details.

On Monday, the five accused men faced court for the first time since the attack.

But the hearing had to be closed after noisy protests from lawyers objecting to the suspects being given defence counsels, and a crush of journalists straining to hear proceedings in the tiny room.

The next hearing, which will be held behind closed doors, has been scheduled for January 10 when a magistrate is expected to transfer the case for trial in a special fast-track court.

The case has sparked massive protests across India, where statistics show a woman is raped every 20 minutes, and protesters are calling for all rape suspects to be hanged.

Two of the accused, hiding their identity, at the court appearance

Further protests erupted after a popular Indian spiritual guru said the 23-year-old victim should share blame with her attackers for the December 16 attack.

Asharam, known to his followers as "Bapu", or father, told his devotees the victim was also at fault because she should have begged for mercy.

"This tragedy would not have happened if she had chanted God's name and fallen at the feet of the attackers. The error was not committed by just one side," he said in video footage which has been widely circulated on the internet.

The 71-year-old's remarks drew a chorus of condemnation, including from Ravi Shankar Prasad, spokesman for the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party.

Mr Prasad said: "For him to make the statement in relation to a crime which has shocked the conscience of the country is not only unfortunate but deeply regrettable."

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Costa Concordia: 'Stupid' Tourists Rescued

By Nick Pisa, Sky News Reporter

Coastguards have criticised five German cruise ship passengers who hired an inflatable boat to get a close-up look at the wrecked Costa Concordia liner.

The group, including two children, had to be rescued after their tiny boat was swamped by waves, whipped up by storm force winds. All were suffering from the effects of the cold.

Officials said the party were holidaymakers from the Costa Magica, a cruise liner from the same Costa Cruises fleet as the ill-fated Concordia, which struck rocks last year leaving 32 people dead off the Italian island of Giglio.

The Germans had arrived at Civitavecchia and made their way to Porto Santo Stefano where they hired the boat so they could take a look at the stricken Concordia which is still lying on rocks just outside the entrance to Giglio harbour.

Although they managed to sail the 10 miles from Porto Santo Stefano without any problem, on the return leg the weather suddenly changed and the boat got into difficulties.

But it managed to stay afloat and they were picked up by a coastguard vessel which took them back to the mainland.

The Concordia continues to lie on its side off the Italian coast

Once on dry land, they were given hot drinks and wrapped in thermal blankets and after being given the all-clear by paramedics they were taken back to Civitavecchia where they resumed their cruise ship holiday.

A coastguard spokesman in Porto Santo Stefano said: ''It was a pretty stupid thing to do. They were lucky that it ended as it did - they could have quite easily sank.

"The strong wind created high waves and they were having trouble controlling their inflatable boat. They were all cold and wet but grateful for the fact we were on hand.

"They suffered no lasting effects but we did tell them not to try anything similar in the future.''

Since it crashed into the rocks last year, the Costa Concordia has turned into a macabre tourist attraction with hundreds of sightseers catching a ferry from Porto Santo Stefano to Giglio so they can look at the 300ft ship and take pictures before returning to the mainland.

The ship had just left Civitavecchia and was on a seven-day cruise with more than 4,000 passengers and crew on board when captain Francesco Schettino is said to have altered the course so he could carry out a sail-by salute of Giglio to show off to passengers and islanders.

He is now facing charges of multiple manslaughter as well as abandoning his ship while passengers and crew were still on board and needing to be rescued.

A trial is expected to start later this year and the operation to remove the vessel is not expected to be completed until the summer - 18 months after the disaster.

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Shanghai Market Fire Kills Six People

Six people have been killed after a fire tore through a wholesale market in Shanghai.

The blaze broke out at around 8.30pm on Sunday, but firefighters were unable to control it for several hours.

Rescuers are still searching for casualties inside the gutted market, located in the city's Pudong district.

People injured in the blaze were being treated at Changhai Hospital in Shanghai, many with severe burns.

Among those in hospital was a nine-year-old girl.

The Shanghai agricultural products market is the city's largest wholesale market for farm produce.

An investigation has been launched into the cause of the blaze.

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China Journalists On Strike Over Censorship

By Mark Stone, China Correspondent in Beijing

More than 100 journalists at one of China's most respected newspapers have gone on strike in a rare protest against censorship.

The strike has won huge support on Weibo, the Chinese version of Twitter

The staff at Southern Weekend, based in the southern city of Guangzhou, walked out after a New Year editorial article written by them was altered on the orders of the Communist Party's local propaganda boss.

The workers accuse Tuo Zhen, Guangdong's provincial propaganda chief, of having their words changed into a message of praise for China's Communist Party.

The original article, which was an end-of-year editorial, was titled "China's Dream: the dream of constitutionalism". According to those who saw the original piece, it had argued that "only by realising rule by constitution, effectively checking power, can citizens vocally criticise authority".

However, the article which appeared in the paper was markedly different. There was no mention of political reform within it and it claimed that the people of China are "closer than ever to their dream of renaissance".

The authorities have tried to block any mention of the story

It is understood the staff decided to strike after a disagreement over who controls the newspaper's micro-blogging account. A statement had been issued on the account denying that the editorial had been altered.

Outside the newspaper's offices, protesters held hand-written signs that said "freedom of expression is not a crime" and "Chinese people want freedom".

The journalists' stand has attracted huge support on Weibo, the Chinese version of Twitter, despite attempts by the authorities to block any mention of the story. Sky News staff in Beijing monitoring the Weibo website watched posts which mentioned the story being deleted by the censors as quickly as they appeared.

Among the posts seen by Sky News were some by prominent Chinese journalists in support of their striking colleagues.

Censors delete any mention of the strike on Weibo

Columnist Li Qing compared China's undemocratic rise with the introduction of democracy in neighbouring Burma.

Mr Li wrote: "Imagine when you standing in front of a small country like Burma and speak to him arrogantly: 'I have the tallest building in Asia, do you have it?' He shakes his head; you say: 'I have the aircraft carrier, do you have it?' He shakes again. When you are thinking what to say the next, he suddenly asks: 'I have the newspaper with freedom, do you have it?' Then how undignified you would be?!"

Magazine editor Lin Tianhong posted: "All these years, all of us, our articles were killed, our mouth was forced to shut, we were forced to keep silent. So we started to get used to it, start to confirm ourselves, start to get familiar with the borders and lines between brightness and darkness, start to self-inspect, just like the frogs being cooked in warm water …

Another Chinese paper covered the strike but the article was also censored

"Then we went too far, seem to have forgotten why we entered this business at the first place. Why do we protect our colleagues in Southern Weekly? For me, just one sentence, life is short, how can we forget who we originally are?!"

Predictably, news of the row and the strike is not being covered on any Chinese media outlet. An article about it did appear in the online edition of China Daily, an English language state-run paper, but within an hour it had been removed.

China's TV News and printed press is entirely state-run and controlled by the Communist Party.

A clash on this level between editorial staff and party chiefs is unprecedented. The handling of the case will be a test for the incoming Chinese leadership.

The new Chinese President Xi Jinping, who will take office in March, had promised less censorship within Chinese media.

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India Gang Rape: Five Appear In Delhi Court

An Indian court hearing the case of five men accused of gang-raping and murdering a 23-year-old student was cleared as chaotic scenes forced the hearing to be held behind closed doors.

The suspects were being presented for the first time since the attack which took place on a bus on December 16, sparking protests in India and abroad about violence against women.

But the court was closed after noisy protests from lawyers objecting to the suspects being given defence counsels, and a crush of local and foreign journalists straining to hear proceedings in the tiny room.

"People who have assembled and are present in the court not connected with the case have been asked to wait outside," magistrate Namrita Aggarwal said in a written order to reporters.

"It has become completely impossible for the courtroom proceedings to proceed."

Two of the accused, hiding their identity

The five men, aged 19 to 35 and mostly residents of Delhi slums, were later produced before the magistrate, police officers said outside the courtroom.

After the hearing, which lasted around 45 minutes, the case was referred to a fast-track court.

Earlier, several blue Delhi Police buses believed to be holding the men were seen driving into the Saket court complex in south Delhi.

The accused, who could face the death penalty if convicted, are charged with kidnap, robbery and conspiracy over the attack. A sixth accused, who is 17, is to be tried in a separate court for juveniles.

Though gang rapes are commonplace in India, the case has touched a nerve, leading to three weeks of sweeping introspection on India's attitudes to women, its often insensitive police force and dysfunctional justice system.

Protests have spread across India since the rape and murder of the woman

It normally takes months for the prosecution to assemble such a case, but the legal proceedings are getting under way barely a week after the victim died of her injuries in a Singapore hospital.

She had been out to watch a film with her boyfriend when they were lured onto a bus where the gang are accused of repeatedly raping and violating her with an iron bar, causing horrific internal damage.

The defendants have been named as Ram Singh, Mukesh Singh, Vinay Sharma, Akshay Thakur and Pawan Gupta.

Police pledged "maximum security" during the hearing at the court amid fears for the defendants' safety. A man was arrested last week as he allegedly tried to plant a crude bomb near the home of one of the men.

In the order clearing the court room on Monday, the magistrate said there was "apprehension" about the safety of the accused.

Outlining their case on Saturday, prosecutors said there was DNA evidence to tie the defendants to the crime scene, as well as testimony from the boyfriend who witnessed the assault.

"The blood of the victim tallied with the stains found on the clothes of the accused," said Rajiv Mohan, part of the prosecution team.

There have been widespread calls for the attackers to be hanged, including from the victim's family.

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Teen Held Over US School Explosion Threats

A 17-year-old student has been accused of planning to use homemade explosives to attack his school.

Derek Shrout, who attends Russell County High School in Seale, eastern Alabama, was due to appear in court in Russell County on assault charges.

The teenager was detained last Friday after a teacher found a diary the boy had left in a classroom.

In it, allegedly, he described how he made and intended to use his own improvised explosive devices.   

A search of his home turned up several small tobacco cans and two large cans, all with holes drilled in them and containing pellets.

Other ingredients to complete the small bombs - such as black powder, butane and fuses - were not found, according to the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer.

Russell County Sheriff Heath Taylor told the newspaper that the devices were just "a step or two away from being ready to explode".

Police have said that Derek Shrout calls himself a white supremacist.

They believe he was becoming involved with an organised neo-Nazi group and learned how to make explosives on the internet.

However, the student told police his writings were a work of fiction and he never intended to go through with the attack.

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iPhone Thief Caught In Dating Sting

A New York musician who had his iPhone stolen on New Year's Eve created a fake dating profile and arranged a romantic rendezvous with the thief.

Trombonist Nadav Nirenberg, 27, accidentally left his phone in the back of a taxi while on his way to a gig in Brooklyn. But despite repeatedly calling the phone and leaving messages offering a reward, he heard nothing.

He then discovered the person who had his phone had logged in to his OKCupid dating account and was sending "weird" messages from his profile to girls on the site.

"Not only had he stolen my phone, he was creepy and disturbing," said Mr Nirenberg. "So I created another OKCupid account as 'Jennifer Gonzalez' a ficticious 24-year-old girl who just moved to Brooklyn. Then I chatted him up".

Mr Nirenberg confronted the thief with $20 and a hammer (pic: Glasspiegel)

'U wanna meet?' the thief said in a message posted on the site.

'Yeah I kinda do,' Mr Nirenberg wrote back, suggesting that they meet at 'Jennifer's' place that night.

A few hours later the thief was on his way while Mr Nirenberg armed himself with a hammer and waited.

"Little did he know that on his way up the stairs I would pop out behind him, calmly give him $20 for my phone and tell him the cops were on the way," he said.

"I saw through the peephole that he was a small Indian dude. When he realised what had happened the look of shame on his face was priceless. He must have felt like an idiot. He was all dressed up, he was carrying a bottle of wine and he stank of cologne.

"I had the hammer in case he was insane or huge. I was scared but I never threatened him in any way.

"The $20 was because I wanted to lead with a peace offering instead of a confrontation. I could easily have kept the $20, his wine and probably his wallet, but I wanted it to be over as quickly as possible".

Mr Nirenberg has little sympathy for the thief, whom he believes was the taxi driver in whose cab he left his phone.

"The dude thought that a 24-year-old girl who lives alone would invite a complete stranger over for wine. He also believed 'Jennifer' wouldn't care about the message she received from him: 'Hay the pic u see on my profile it not my pic it my friend pic'.

'Jennifer' got messages from 30 men on OKCupid in the five hours she existed. "My apologies to the girl whose picture I used," said Mr Nirenberg.

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Bashar al Assad's Speech Changes Nothing

He has been seen but barely heard since June last year, but in a highly choreographed speech to an audience of the faithful, Bashar al Assad addressed the nation from an opera house in Damascus.

The raucous crowd regularly interrupted the president's hour-long speech with cries of "We will sacrifice our blood and soul for you Bashar," as he called on Syrians to rise up and defend the nation.

Throughout he blamed foreign powers and al Qaeda jihadist "terrorists" for the country's descent into a conflict that has displaced half a million people and killed 60,000. 

He insisted it was a plot against Syria.

"We are in a state of war, an extended vicious war," he said. "It is more harmful than normal war. We have to defend our country."

The president unveiled an apparent peace initiative; promising a "national charter", a referendum, elections and a new government.

But he made it clear he wouldn't be standing down any time soon and that he would not negotiate with those who have taken up arms against him.

He said any changes would be to assist - not replace - what is existing in Syria.

That means he is not going anywhere until he decides to stand down.

Reaction from inside and outside Syria to the speech was swift and unanimous in its condemnation.

The EU called on Assad to step down, Foreign Secretary William Hague tweeted that the promises of reform would "fool no one", and the opposition coalition in Syria dismissed the speech out of hand.

As he left the stage to huge cheers and clapping, supporters mobbed the president as he moved to shake hands. Security guards eventually led him away.

Whatever the support he had inside Damascus there, it's not reflected nationally.

There are a huge number of people now who obviously want him to leave.

As he said, they are in a midst of a very nasty war, and there is nothing to indicate, especially after this speech, that's going to change at all.

Any hope there might be compromise? He's dashed that.

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Australia Bushfires: Fears For The Missing

Several people are feared dead and hundreds more have been left homeless as bushfires continue to burn in southern Australia.

Specialist rescue teams are moving from home to home searching for the missing in the island state of Tasmania.

Thousands of people have been left stranded and around 100 buildings destroyed across the scorched landscape since Friday.

Fuelled by a record heatwave, the blaze has forced many residents to flee to evacuation centres.

Farmland and businesses have been destroyed, too, with many losing their livelihoods as well as their homes.

Channel 9 correspondent Darren Curtis, in Dunalley, Tasmania, where at least 80 properties have been ravaged by the fires, told Sky News: "A lot of the people that stayed actually said that the fire was so intense when it swept through that it was like being at an international airport and standing behind the jets.

"The roar was so intense - gas bottles were flaring all over the place. In fact, water tanks were actually bubbling and turning to steam.

"People here were right next to the ocean. People were prepared to move, but the fire came down so quickly they actually had to go and lower themselves into the water with their pets and their children, and just have their nose above the water, as the flames swept all around them.

"The fire here was so intense. They were ready for it, but it just moved so quickly.

"Homes cannot be salvaged. The owners say there was so little left inside them they are not even going to bother searching through the debris and look for any treasures that they may be able to find in there.

He added: "The temperatures have dropped a little bit, but the wind still remains high.

"Now that could flare the temperatures up and push the fires out of the bush and into some more of the suburbs around here."

On Saturday, Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard pledged to help all those affected by the fires. "We will be working with them, as will the state government, to support people through," she said.

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Syrian President Assad Gives Live TV Address

Syria's president has blamed Islamic extremists and "outside forces" for orchestrating the conflict in his country in a rare public address to the nation.

The embattled leader, who appeared before cheering crowds at an opera house in the capital Damascus, struck a defiant tone and was frequently interrupted by supporters chanting: "With our soul with our blood we sacrifice ourselves for you O Bashar."

With insurgents fighting their way closer to the seat of his power, President Bashar al Assad spoke about the latest developments and "suffering" in Syria.

He said the conflict was not between the state and opposition, but the "nation and its enemies".

"We are now in a state of war in every sense of the word," he said.

"This war targets Syria using a handful of Syrians and many foreigners. Thus, this is a war to defend the nation."

An opposition fighter during an air strike in Taftanaz, near Idlib

"We meet today and suffering is overwhelming Syrian land. There is no place for joy while security and stability are absent on the streets of our country.

"The nation is for all, and we must all protect it," he said to rapturous applause inside a packed House of Arts and Culture.

"There are those who seek to partition Syria and weaken it. But Syria is stronger ... and will remain sovereign ... and this is what upsets the West."

Mr Assad called for a "full national mobilisation" to fight against the rebels, whom he branded al Qaeda "terrorists" and "murderous criminals".

While outlining proposals for what he described as a peace plan including a new constitution and amnesty, there was no suggestion of him relinquishing his power.

He asserted the government and army would continue military operations against opposition groups.

Mr Assad said change must come through constitutional means and appealed for dialogue once the fighting had ended.

"Regional and international countries must stop funding the armed men to allow those displaced to return to their homes ... right after that our military operations will cease," he said.

"We will not have dialogue with a puppet made by the West."

A protest against the Assad regime in Kafranbel, near Idlib, on Friday

They were his first public comments since he dismissed suggestions that he might go into exile to end the civil war, telling Russian television in November that he would "live and die" in Syria.

According to Sky sources, the internet in Damascus was shut down during his address - at the end of which Mr Assad needed to be ushered away by security officials when he appeared to be mobbed by jubilant supporters.

The hour-long live broadcast came as fighting between Syrian rebels and government forces continued to rage across the country.

Mr Assad's appeals for a reconciliation are likely to be rejected by opposition forces and rebels, who insist he must step down.

British Foreign Secretary William Hague dismissed the calls "empty promises".

Responding to the address, he tweeted: "#AssadSpeech beyond hypocritical. Deaths, violence and oppression engulfing #Syria are his own making, empty promises of reform fool no one."

The European Union called on Mr Assad to step down, while the opposition coalition in Syria rejected the address.

Sky's chief correspondent Stuart Ramsay said: "Whatever the support he had inside Damascus there, it's not reflected nationally.

"There are a huge number of people now who obviously want him to leave. As he said, they are in a midst of a very nasty war, and there is nothing to indicate, especially after this speech, that's going to change at all."

The 21-month uprising against Assad has become a civil war that the United Nations says has killed 60,000 people.

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Gerard Depardieu Receives Russian Passport

The French actor Gerard Depardieu has received his passport after being granted Russian citizenship, saying he was leaving France to avoid proposed tax increases.

"There was a short meeting and Depardieu was handed his passport," Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

Russian television showed the two men embracing and then chatting over dinner.

But the Russian leader did not personally hand over the document when the two met at Putin's residence in the Black Sea resort of Sochi.

Depardieu shows off his new passport

Depardieu showed off the passport after arriving in Saransk, about 300 miles east of the capital Moscow, on Sunday.

The local governor invited him to settle in the provincial town and offered him an apartment of his choice, according to reports on state television.

Depardieu has not said where he will take up residence in Russia, only that he did not want to live in Moscow because it was too big and he would prefer a village.

The actor is opposed to proposed tax increases for French citizens earning more than €1m (£818,000).

President Putin surprised many at his end-of-year news conference in December by saying he was ready to offer the 64-year-old a Russian passport to resolve the row.

The Cyrano de Bergerac and Green Card star has become a frequent face on the Moscow celebrity circuit and is well known after appearing in a number of advertising campaigns.

He worked in the country in 2011 on a film about the eccentric Russian monk Grigory Rasputin.

But French Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault has called Depardieu unpatriotic at a time when the French are being asked to pay higher taxes to reduce a large national debt.

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