■ China
Glaciers in peril
Global warming is causing China's highland glaciers, including those covering Mount Everest, to shrink by an amount equivalent to all the water in the Yellow River every year, state media said yesterday. A staggering 7 percent of the country's glaciers vanish annually under the sweltering sun, enough to fill China's second-largest river to the brim,
the Xinhua news agency reported. The human cost could be immense, since 300 million Chinese live in the country's arid west and depend on water from the glaciers for their survival.
■ Bangladesh
Security tight after attack
Security forces were on
high alert yesterday after
a weekend grenade attack
on an opposition rally killed
19 people and wounded hundreds, triggering more violence across Bangladesh. Tens of thousands of people took to the streets over the weekend to protest Saturday's attack, with more rallies planned for yesterday.
The opposition called for nationwide general strikes today and tomorrow. Opposition leader Sheikh Hasina blamed Prime Minister Khaleda Zia's government for the blasts that also left 300 others injured -- including senior opposition members. The government denied involvement and said it would "track down the culprits."
■ Australia
Faux doctor jailed
A 26-year-old man was
jailed for one year yesterday
for posing as a doctor
and treating more than 100 patients even though he had no medical training. Mark Collier pleaded guilty to 60 charges, including unlawful assault on patients, during his trial in Melbourne. The court heard that Collier secured a job at a suburban clinic after meeting its owner in a bar. Over four days he gave injections, counseled patients, removed stitches from the pubic region of a pregnant woman and ordered tests using pathology forms he had stolen from hospitals. Lawyer Peter Cash said his client was an alcoholic who suffered from a borderline personality disorder and a major depressive disorder with psychotic features.
■ Thailand
GM green light slammed
Greenpeace yesterday slammed the Thai government for opening the country up to genetically modified (GM) crops, warning that the move threatened to contaminate existing food products and hurt exports. Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra on Friday decided to allow trade in GM crops and instructed the Cabinet to revoke a previous resolution that effectively banned commercial use of GM crops except for research purposes. One reason Thaksin cited for his reversal was Europe's decision to allow GM foods, but Greenpeace said he misunderstood developments in Europe.
■ Hong Kong
Virtual women hit shops
Locals can now date using their famous passion for mobile phones. Artificial Life, a Hong Kong-based phone technology firm, has created Virtual Girlfriend, a mobile phone-based game that allows players to date a lifelike lady. Just like real women she will work, play, go to the gym and go out with the girls. But she will also have the occasional mood change, cheer up at the sight of flowers and need lots of pampering. "She will do all the things that a real woman will do," said Eberhard Shoneberg, chief executive of Artificial Life. "She will also let you meet her friends, but it will not be about sex -- there will be teasing and the like, but no promise of cybersex," he said.
■ Spain
Immigrants offered amnesty
The Spanish government on Sunday held out the promise of amnesty to illegal immigrants, saying it would offer full legal recognition to many already in the country and stop turning back boats before they reached its shores. The move was welcomed by some as an attempt to end the exploitation of immigrant workers and reduce the number of people who drown trying to enter Spain. But it was attacked by the opposition, who said it was foolhardy to step out of line with the rest of Europe. Consuelo Rumi, the Spanish immigration minister, said foreigners with working contracts would be offered work permits and residency papers as part of the new immigration plan to be launched in September.
■ United Kingdom
No army for prince: Britons
Sections of the UK Ministry of Defense, and many Britons, would oppose the idea of Prince William joining the military, according to a US intelligence report obtained by The Guardian newspaper. The prince, who is second in line to the British throne, has declared he would "wholeheartedly" enjoy a career in the armed forces, the traditional choice of work for the royals. But the US Defense Intelligence Agency reported that many members of the British public believe he should follow his mother, the late Princess Diana, and "devote his life to kinder and gentler humanitarian causes."
■ Kenya
Rampaging elephants killed
Rangers from the Kenya Wildlife Service over the weekend killed four elephants that had strayed from the Aberdare National Park and started destroying crops in villages in central Kenya, police said yesterday. One elephant was captured and the wildlife service is planning to return it to the park, Kiambu district police commandant Atanasio Munyagia said. The elephants were mature as they appeared to weigh well over six tonnes, he said.
■ Germany
Sex is okay, doctors say
After recovering from a heart attack, men need not refrain from sex, contrary to the worry of many males about the potential danger of sexual activity, a German medical magazine reported. The German medical practitioners journal Aerztliche Praxis noted that sexual intercourse is no more strenuous than a fast walk or riding a bicycle at a slow pace. It said that studies indicated that one in four men completely stop their sex activities after a heart attack. In fact, they would only need to do so in the first few weeks afterwards. If in doubt, men should seek the advice of doctors.
■ United Kingdom
Droughts could change diets
International governments may have to persuade people to eat less meat because of increasing demands on water supplies, according to agricultural scientists investigating how the world can best feed itself. They say countries with little water may choose not to grow crops but trade in "virtual water," importing food from countries which have large amounts of water to save their supplies for domestic or high-value uses. "Meat-eaters consume the equivalent of about 5,000 liters of water a day compared to the 1,000 to 2,000 liters used by people on vegetarian diets in developing countries," the International Water Management Institute said in a report.
■ United States
CIA could be overhauled
The chairman of the committee investigating the 9/11 terrorist attacks of 2001 on Sunday unveiled proposals to drastically reform the CIA, the US international intelligence agency, which would effectively mean the dismantling of the organization. Senator Pat Roberts, the committee chairman, revealed on television that he favoured devolving the CIA's three functions to smaller, independent agencies. His proposals are the most extensive reforms of US intelligence agencies' structure yet proposed. "We are not abolishing the CIA," Roberts said in a paper released ahead of the final report. "We are reordering and renaming its three major elements. No one agency, no matter how distinguished its history, is more important than US national security."
■ El Salvador
Terrorists threaten attacks
Suspected Islamic fundamentalists have threatened terrorist attacks on El Salvador if the Central American country does not withdraw from the US-led coalition in Iraq, an online newspaper report said Sunday. La Prensa Grafica said that a group calling itself "Brigade Mohammed Atta-al Qaeda" threatened a bloodbath in its declaration. El Salvador is the only Latin American country that still has troops stationed in Iraq -- about 380 soldiers near Najaf. They are to be relieved by a new units in the coming days that have already arrived in Kuwait. In public remarks, the government has not given much credence to the threats, but has moved to tighten security measures.
■ Colombia
Rebels reject hostage swap
Colombia's left-wing FARC rebels yesterday rejected an offer from President Alvaro Uribe to exchange rebel leaders held by the government with FARC's high-profile hostages, who include politicians, security force officers and US agents. The offer was "unrealistic and not serious," FARC said in a statement published on the Internet. Uribe's offer, considered a reversal of government policy, was made on July 23 with Swiss mediation, but was made public only last week. The rebels said they were interested in an exchange, although they added that attempts by the Colombia military to free the hostages by force would endanger their lives.
■ United States
Five killed in copter crash
A medical helicopter airlifting a baby to a Reno hospital crashed in a remote area of northern Nevada, killing all five people aboard, authorities said. The Access Air helicopter crashed either late Saturday or early Sunday into the upper part of 2,932m Mount Tobin, about 320km northeast of Reno, Humboldt County Undersheriff Brian Jonas said. Jonas said the 11-day-old infant, its mother, the pilot, a nurse and a paramedic were killed. Their names were not released. Authorities said they lost contact with the helicopter about 11:30pm Saturday. The crash was under investigation.
■ United States
Midair collision kills 3
Two small airplanes collided on Sunday while flying off the California coast at El Matador State Beach, killing three people. Authorities for a short time believed there may have been a fourth fatality, but later confirmed that only three people were aboard the planes. One plane was a Thorp T-18 and the other a Citabria 7ECA, both single-engine propeller-driven aircraft.
Former Nicaraguan president Violeta Chamorro, who brought peace to Nicaragua after years of war and was the first woman elected president in the Americas, died on Saturday at the age of 95, her family said. Chamorro, who ruled the poor Central American country from 1990 to 1997, “died in peace, surrounded by the affection and love of her children,” said a statement issued by her four children. As president, Chamorro ended a civil war that had raged for much of the 1980s as US-backed rebels known as the “Contras” fought the leftist Sandinista government. That conflict made Nicaragua one of
BOMBARDMENT: Moscow sent more than 440 drones and 32 missiles, Volodymyr Zelenskiy said, in ‘one of the most terrifying strikes’ on the capital in recent months A nighttime Russian missile and drone bombardment of Ukraine killed at least 15 people and injured 116 while they slept in their homes, local officials said yesterday, with the main barrage centering on the capital, Kyiv. Kyiv City Military Administration head Tymur Tkachenko said 14 people were killed and 99 were injured as explosions echoed across the city for hours during the night. The bombardment demolished a nine-story residential building, destroying dozens of apartments. Emergency workers were at the scene to rescue people from under the rubble. Russia flung more than 440 drones and 32 missiles at Ukraine, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy
COMPETITION: The US and Russia make up about 90 percent of the world stockpile and are adding new versions, while China’s nuclear force is steadily rising, SIPRI said Most of the world’s nuclear-armed states continued to modernize their arsenals last year, setting the stage for a new nuclear arms race, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) said yesterday. Nuclear powers including the US and Russia — which account for about 90 percent of the world’s stockpile — had spent time last year “upgrading existing weapons and adding newer versions,” researchers said. Since the end of the Cold War, old warheads have generally been dismantled quicker than new ones have been deployed, resulting in a decrease in the overall number of warheads. However, SIPRI said that the trend was likely
‘SHORTSIGHTED’: Using aid as leverage is punitive, would not be regarded well among Pacific Island nations and would further open the door for China, an academic said New Zealand has suspended millions of dollars in budget funding to the Cook Islands, it said yesterday, as the relationship between the two constitutionally linked countries continues to deteriorate amid the island group’s deepening ties with China. A spokesperson for New Zealand Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters said in a statement that New Zealand early this month decided to suspend payment of NZ$18.2 million (US$11 million) in core sector support funding for this year and next year as it “relies on a high trust bilateral relationship.” New Zealand and Australia have become increasingly cautious about China’s growing presence in the Pacific
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