■ China
McDonald's clarifies its fats
McDonald's says french fries sold in its Chinese stores contain no trans fat, following revelations that its fries sold elsewhere contain a third more of the substance than previously thought. In a news release from Shanghai, McDonald's said yesterday that it uses only fatty acid-free palm oil to make french fries in China. "The taste of McDonald's is the same all over the world. However, we adjust our ingredients to match the different situations in disparate markets," the company said. McDonald's said results of a new testing method it began using in December showed that the level of trans fat in a portion of large fries is 8g, up from 6g, with total fat increasing to 30g from 25g. It also admitted for the first time that wheat and dairy ingredients are used to flavor its french fries in the US. McDonald's director of global nutrition, Cathy Kapica, said its potato suppliers remove all wheat and dairy proteins, such as gluten. But the flavoring agent in the cooking oil is a derivative of wheat and dairy ingredients, and McDonald's decided to note their presence because of US requirements that potential allergens be disclosed.
■ China
Party members punished
About 115,000 members of the Chinese Communist Party -- almost 2 percent of its total membership -- were punished last year for corruption and other offences, the Xinhua news agency said yesterday. Around 15,000 party members were handed over to judicial authorities for suspected involvement in criminal activities, Xinhua said, citing a report issued on Monday by the party's central disciplinary watchdog. Another 24,000 were expelled from the party between December 2004 and last November, it said.
■ Hong Kong
Zen to be cardinal?
Hong Kong's Roman Catholic leader, Bishop Joseph Zen (陳日君), 74, will likely become a cardinal next month, local news reports said yesterday. Pope Benedict XVI was "eager" that there be a new Chinese cardinal and Zen was the leading candidate, the South China Morning Post said, quoting an unidentified senior Vatican source. Zen, a fierce critic of Beijing, told reporters that he had not received notification of the elevation and dismissed the reports as rumor. The reports were "only newspapers' speculations," the Ming Pao daily quoted Zen as saying.
■ Malaysia
Golf liners stolen
A golf course in Malaysia has a bigger problem than players cheating on their handicaps -- someone stole the aluminum liners from 12 of its holes. The 300g cylindrical liners, imported from the US and costing about 128 ringgit (US$34) each, were apparently stolen to be sold as scrap metal, the Royal Johor Country Club acting manager Majid Manjit Abdullah was quoted as saying by the Star newspaper yesterday. "The thief or thieves must really be desperate," Majid said, adding that this was the first time he had heard of such a theft. "We have since replaced the stolen items with a plastic version," he said.
■ Japan
Mushroom may be harmful
The government has warned that a mushroom believed by folk doctors to fight cancer could actually promote the condition, leading a health-food firm to recall it in a blow to a huge market. Originally from Brazil, the Agaricus mushroom was popularized in the 1990s as companies sold it in processed form. But interim results of tests on rats showed that they suffered more carcinogen activity if they ate granulated food with five to 10 times the normal dose of the mushroom, the health ministry said on Monday. The ministry said it was not yet proven if humans were at risk from the mushrooms, but asked Kirin Well-Foods, a subsidiary of Kirin Brewery, to recall the Agaricus formula voluntarily.
■ Nepal
Foreign corpse to be tested
The remains of a female foreigner found in a park near Kathmandu will be sent abroad for identification, police said yesterday. A badly decomposed corpse was found on Saturday in Nagarjun park, where a German and a French woman went missing in two separate incidents last year. "We are making arrangements for the body to be tested abroad," said Pitambar Adhikari, the officer heading the investigation into the disappearances of the two women. "The corpse appears to be a female foreigner, but we do not know if it is the French or German woman," Adhikari said by telephone. The police officer declined to say where the body was being sent, but said that positive identification would take at least two weeks.
■ Thailand
Court to review petition
The Constitutional Court agreed yesterday to look into accusations that Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra violated conflict of interest laws when his family sold its controlling stake in Asian telecom giant Shin Corp. The court agreed to examine a petition by 28 senators against the prime minister and urging the court to hold a trial to determine if Thaksin was guilty of wrongdoing. "At this stage the court has accepted the petition for consideration," said Paitoon Waraha, spokesman for Constitutional Court. He said the court would decide tomorrow whether or not to hold a trial.
■ Germany
Luck punishes fare dodger
After dodging a cab fare, the last thing a man expected was to be reunited with his victim when he phoned for another taxi, police said on Friday. "The man was too shocked to run off this time," said a spokesman for police in the western city of Bochum. "He took it like a gentleman and admitted the game was up." Police said that following a series of stop-offs in nearby Herne, the 30-year-old Romanian had ditched his driver without paying and then decided to order fresh transportation from a local taxi firm who sent the same man to pick him up. Recognizing the offender, the driver called police, who arrested the man.
■ Iran
Cartoons depict holocaust
An Iranian newspaper's contest for cartoons about the Holocaust, launched in response to a series of caricatures about the Prophet Mohammed, has already drawn at least one entry, the paper said. Hamshahri, one of Iran's top five newspapers, said its contest, launched on Monday, was a test of the Western world's readiness to print cartoons about the Nazi slaughter of 6 million Jews in World War II. It called for cartoons under the title: ``What is the Limit of Western Freedom of Expression?'' Michael Leunig, one of Australia's best-known cartoonists, yesterday denied entering two of his works, saying he was the victim of fraud.
■ Germany
Missile mosque withdrawn
A sculpture depicting a mosque with missiles as minarets was pulled from an art show on Monday after threats were made, the director of Duesseldorf's art academy confirmed. Titled Aggression, the work by a Swiss art student was removed from the show at the request of the artist, said academy director Peter Lynen. He said there had been no pressure from the academy itself to pull the work and that every artist had to be given the freedom to address what he termed "contemporary themes." The design of the mosque with rockets as its minarets was very "low-key," Lynen said. He complained about a "lurid" media report.
■ United States
US set to `isolate' Hamas
US and Israeli officials are discussing ways to isolate and destabilize Hamas if it fails to recognize Israel's right to exist, renounce violence and accept previous Palestinian-Israeli agreements, the New York Times reported. The goal of the campaign would be to ensure that newly elected Hamas officials fail and new elections will be called, the Times said in an article posted on its Web site. To do that, the allies would seek to starve the Palestinian Authority of money and international connections, making life so difficult for Palestinians that they would vote to return a reformed Fatah movement to office, it said.
■ United Kingdom
Man arrested over Iraq
British military officials arrested a man on Monday in connection with accusations that British soldiers savagely kicked, butted and beat Iraqi teenagers at a British military compound in 2004. A spokeswoman for the Ministry of Defense would not identify the man, who has not been charged with a crime, or say whether he was a serving soldier. The accusations stem from a home video, said to have been made by a British officer in Basra, in southern Iraq, which is said to show the attacks.
■ Morales asks Bush for help
President Evo Morales on Monday appealed to his "colleague" US President George W. Bush to order the expulsion from the US of former Bolivian president Gonzalo Sanchez de Lozada wanted at home for trial on human rights charges. Sanchez de Lozada fled to the US in 2003 amid violent street protests that left about 60 people dead after a military crackdown on demonstrators. If extradited, he could face a trial for the civilian deaths. "I am calling on, asking my colleague Bush and his government to do justice together for the people," Morales said after presiding over a memorial ceremony for the victims of a separate street clashes in February 2003 that left more than 32 dead.
■ Venezuela
Hamas would be welcomed
The government said on Monday it will welcome leaders from the Hamas movement "with pleasure" if they visit the country as part of a South American tour following victory in Palestinian elections. Asked if the government will receive the Islamic militant group, Vice President Jose Vicente Rangel told reporters, "Of course we will. What is the problem?" "If they come, with pleasure," Rangel said. "They've just won an election." The US, the EU and the UN have insisted they would not deal with a Hamas-led Palestinian Authority and threatened to withhold hundreds of millions of dollars in aid unless the group recognizes Israel and renounces violence.
■ United States
Elbow mistaken for squirrel
A man was shot and injured when his hunting partner mistook his elbow for a squirrel, authorities said. Michigan State Police said George Arthur Sikkenga, 64, of Muskegon, Michigan was wounded on Sunday morning in Golden Township. Sikkenga was wearing camouflage clothing except for an orange hat, which he had covered with a hood after sitting down behind a tree, the Muskegon Chronicle reported. His clothed elbow was all of him that was visible when his friend, Gregory Scott Wood approached from behind the tree and fired his weapon.
■ United states
The Hulk turns blue
Former bodybuilder and star of the 1970s TV show "The Incredible Hulk" Lou Ferrigno no longer turns into a raging green monster when he sees people breaking the law. But since being sworn in Monday night as a Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department reserve deputy, he has the power to arrest them. "I'm having a blast," Ferrigno said after his swearing-in ceremony. "I want to give back to the community, and I want to work with young kids, help them get off drugs," said Ferrigno, 54. He began training to become a reserve deputy last September after passing a background check.
■ United States
Woman charged over head
A Haitian national who packed a skull in her suitcase on a flight to Florida's Fort Lauderdale airport was charged on Friday with "smuggling a human head." US prosecutors said they also charged Myrlene Severe, who was arrested on Thursday, with failing to declare the head on a customs declaration form and transporting hazardous material. "Severe stated that she had obtained the package from a male in Haiti for use as a part of her voodoo beliefs," the US attorney for the Southern District of Florida said in a statement. "Severe also stated that the purpose of the package was to ward off evil spirits," the US attorney's office added.
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