■ Vietnam
Bomber gets 21 years
A court in Ho Chi Minh City sentenced a Chinese man to 21 years in jail for attempting to kill his Vietnamese fiancee using a homemade bomb, state-controlled media reported Friday. Xu Han Liang, 43, was convicted of ``murder, property extortion and destruction and illegal use of explosives'' at Thursday's one-day trial, the Thanh Nien newspaper said. Those accused of attempted murder are charged with murder in Vietnam. According to the report, Xu blew up 200 grams of explosives on his fiancee's doorstep in June 2002 following a dispute about money. No one was hurt in the incident, but part of the house was destroyed, it said.
■ South Korea
Security tightened after tape
South Korea boosted security around air and sea ports and its diplomatic missions overseas yesterday, after an audiotape attributed to al-Qaeda urged Muslim youths to attack the US and its allies, including South Korea. South Korea, which has 2,800 troops in Iraq, meanwhile convened its National Security Council to assess the threats. "We've ordered all our diplomatic missions overseas to strengthen security," Foreign Minister Ban Ki-moon was quoted as saying by national news agency Yonhap following yesterday's meeting.
■ Singapore
Low marks for bosses
Employees in Singapore think less of their bosses than workers in other ASEAN countries do, with those in the Philippines tops in rating their employers favorably, a study showed on Friday. While 62 per cent of employees in Singapore think highly of their employers, this is below the 67 per cent norm for global high-performance companies tracked by Chicago-based International Survey Research (ISR) and the lowest level in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). Elsewhere in the region, positive leadership ratings stood at 68 per cent in Indonesia, managing a third-place tie with India, followed by Malaysia with 67 per cent and 63 per cent in Thailand, according to the list published in The Business Times.
■ Japan
Storm's death toll rises to 22
The death toll from a tropical storm that cut a path of destruction across Japan rose to 22 on Friday after search teams found three more victims, including a 70-year-old farmer, police said. Tropical storm Meari caused floods, triggered deadly landslides and forced about 10,000 people to flee their homes. Five people were missing and at least 80 others had been injured. By late Thursday, the tempest -- downgraded from typhoon status -- had moved east out to the Pacific Ocean, the Meteorological Agency said. Three more people were found dead on Friday, adding to the 19 deaths confirmed the day before.
■ Yemen
Judge headed to prison
A Yemeni state security court yesterday sentenced a judge to 10 years in jail after convicting him of supporting a rebellion in the north of the country. Muhammad Ali Luqman, who heads a primary court in the western Haraz district, was found guilty of nine charges ranging from supporting an armed rebellion to foment-ing sectarian strife and instigating against the legitimate authority. Authorities said Luqman supported the slain rebel cleric Hussein Badruddin al-Houthi who led his armed followers to battle govern-ment forces in the northern province of Saada for nearly three months.
■ Netherlands
EU refugee proposal fails
France, Sweden and Belgium shot down a German proposal to set up European Union refugee processing centers in North Africa. EU ministers on Friday debated a proposal by German Interior Minister Otto Schily to address concerns over how the 25-nation bloc can stop the flow of illegal migrants crossing to Europe. Hundreds of people have died trying to make the sea crossing from Africa. Schily urged the EU to take action to deal with what EU Justice and Home Affairs Commissioner Antonio Vitorino called a ``humanitarian crisis.'' About 800 refugees landed on a small island south of Sicily on Thursday and Friday.
■ United States
Photographer Avedon dies
Photographer Richard Avedon, renowned for his portraits of 20th century icons died on Friday at the age of 81, the New Yorker magazine announced. Avedon died in San Antonio, Texas, having suffered a stroke last month while on a photo shoot. Born in New York in 1923, Avedon dropped out of high school and joined the Merchant Marine, where he was put in the photographic section. He later became a department store photographer but within two years had won over fashion magazines. Avedon told an interviewer, "My portraits are much more about me than they are about the people I photograph. I used to think that it was a collaboration ... [But] the photographer has complete control; the issue is a moral one, and it is complicated."
■ Denmark
Mappers seek N Pole link
Seeking to lay claim to the North Pole, researchers are hoping to find evidence that the Danish territory of Greenland may be connected to a huge ridge beneath the floating Arctic ice, the country's science and technology minister said. The northern tip of Greenland is just 800km south of the North Pole. Denmark has joined Canada and Russia in charting the Arctic Ocean's seabed in an effort to claim ownership of the vast expanse -- and whatever riches in oil and gas may lie beneath it. If measurements can prove that Greenland is attached to the ridge, then ``maybe there is a chance that the North Pole could become Danish,'' Cabinet minister Helge Sander said on Friday.
■ Brazil
Nepotism rule bars gay mate
A court on Friday barred the lesbian partner of the outgoing mayor of an Amazon town from trying to succeed her. Eulina Rabelo was forced to quit the mayoral race in Viseu when judges ruled that her relationship with incumbent mayor Astrid Maria Cunha e Silva would violate a constitutional article that prevents executive posts in local government being transferred between family members. The ruling recognized the two as being married, even though Brazil's constitution technically does not allow gay marriage.
■ United States
NY restricts tongue-splitting
Governor George Pataki signed a law prohibiting tongue-splitting, except when it is done by licensed physicians or dentists. The law takes effect next month. "Less than 3,000 people have split tongues," estimated Erik Sprague, 32, a performance artist who appears in sideshows as the Lizardman. "Some people like the look of it, some people find an erotic appeal to it," he said. "If the split goes deep enough, you have full independent control over each side," he said. "The medical community -- they'll put basketball-sized breasts in a woman's chest, but they won't split a tongue."
■ United States
Shuttle flights delayed
The US space agency NASA has put off resumption of space shuttle flights from March until at least May, the agency said Friday. In a statement, the agency said the postponement was forced by the effects of four major hurricanes this year on its flight centers. Hurricanes Charley, Frances, and Jeanne closed down NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida for about nine days and damaged several facilities, and Hurricane Ivan caused shorter closures at several other facilities, said William Readdy, NASA's associate administrator for space operations. "I am proud of our shuttle team for taking good care of our orbiters during this terrible storm season. I am pleased they are taking the time to make a careful assessment of the hurricanes' impact. Their thoroughness will help us make the right decision," he said.
■ United States
Hurricane unearths bomb
An unexploded rocket from World War II, unearthed by Hurricane Jeanne in a residential driveway, was safely detonated by Army munitions experts. The warhead from the 3m-long) "Tiny Tim" rocket was found Tuesday and disposed of Thursday, said Sgt. 1st Class Jake Holland. "This area used to be a preparation and rehearsal ground for the D-Day invasion, so this ammunition was probably used in (U.S. Army) training," he said. The partially exposed bomb was dug up and carried in a sand-filled truck to a disposal site, where it was detonated in an 8-foot-deep (2-meter-deep) hole. "With all the dirt we put around it, you could barely even hear when it exploded," Holland said.
■ United States
31 foreigners arrested
US immigration authorities in Florida have arrested 31 foreigners, including a Briton, accused of crimes ranging from drug trafficking to sex offenses, the US Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) said Friday. The suspects, mostly Latin Americans, were rounded up in a three-day operation in southeastern Florida. The alleged crimes include grand theft, sexual battery, drug trafficking and aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, the ICE Florida field office said in a statement. Of the 31 suspects, 24 are legal permanent residents of the United States and face possible deportation, the statement said. "Having a legal status in this country doesn't give any person the right to victimize our communities," said Michael Rozos, the ICE's Florida field office director.
■ Spain
Columbus riddle probed
Researchers studying DNA from 500-year-old bone slivers said preliminary data suggests Christopher Columbus might be buried in Spain, rather than in a rival tomb in the Dominican Republic. The team insisted it had reached no conclusion and more research was needed, especially tests on the remains in that Caribbean country. But on Friday it said some DNA samples taken from bones that Spain says are the explorer's matched DNA from a body widely believed to be that of his brother Diego. Both were unearthed in Seville over the past two years as part of a pioneering experiment to settle a 100-year-old argument over whether Columbus is buried in Spain or the Dominican Republic. Both boast ornate graves that purport to hold his remains. But DNA degrades over time, and much of the genetic material the Spanish team analyzed is in awful shape.
Republican US lawmakers on Friday criticized US President Joe Biden’s administration after sanctioned Chinese telecoms equipment giant Huawei unveiled a laptop this week powered by an Intel artificial intelligence (AI) chip. The US placed Huawei on a trade restriction list in 2019 for contravening Iran sanctions, part of a broader effort to hobble Beijing’s technological advances. Placement on the list means the company’s suppliers have to seek a special, difficult-to-obtain license before shipping to it. One such license, issued by then-US president Donald Trump’s administration, has allowed Intel to ship central processors to Huawei for use in laptops since 2020. China hardliners
A top Vietnamese property tycoon was on Thursday sentenced to death in one of the biggest corruption cases in history, with an estimated US$27 billion in damages. A panel of three hand-picked jurors and two judges rejected all defense arguments by Truong My Lan, chair of major developer Van Thinh Phat, who was found guilty of swindling cash from Saigon Commercial Bank (SCB) over a decade. “The defendant’s actions ... eroded people’s trust in the leadership of the [Communist] Party and state,” read the verdict at the trial in Ho Chi Minh City. After the five-week trial, 85 others were also sentenced on
‘DELUSIONAL’: Targeting the families of Hamas’ leaders would not push the group to change its position or to give up its demands for Palestinians, Ismail Haniyeh said Israeli aircraft on Wednesday killed three sons of Hamas’ top political leader in the Gaza Strip, striking high-stakes targets at a time when Israel is holding delicate ceasefire negotiations with the militant group. Hamas said four of the leader’s grandchildren were also killed. Ismail Haniyeh’s sons are among the highest-profile figures to be killed in the war so far. Israel said they were Hamas operatives, and Haniyeh accused Israel of acting in “the spirit of revenge and murder.” The deaths threatened to strain the internationally mediated ceasefire talks, which appeared to gain steam in recent days even as the sides remain far
RAMPAGE: A Palestinian man was left dead after dozens of Israeli settlers searching for a missing 14-year-old boy stormed a village in the Israeli-occupied West Bank US President Joe Biden on Friday said he expected Iran to attack Israel “sooner, rather than later” and warned Tehran not to proceed. Asked by reporters about his message to Iran, Biden simply said: “Don’t,” underscoring Washington’s commitment to defend Israel. “We are devoted to the defense of Israel. We will support Israel. We will help defend Israel and Iran will not succeed,” he said. Biden said he would not divulge secure information, but said his expectation was that an attack could come “sooner, rather than later.” Israel braced on Friday for an attack by Iran or its proxies as warnings grew of