6 January 2013 Last updated at 06:54 GMT
Australia's heatwave is devastating its southern island
India and Pakistan in Kashmir border skirmish
Indian and Pakistani troops have exchanged fire across the Line of Control in the disputed Kashmir region.
Pakistan said Indian troops had raided a military post in the Haji Pir sector of Pakistani-administered Kashmir, killing a soldier and injuring another.
An Indian army spokesman said Pakistan had "initiated unprovoked firing" at Indian military posts.
Kashmir is claimed by both nations in its entirety and has been a flashpoint between them for more than 60 years.
Exchanges are not uncommon but rarely result in fatalities.
'Small arms'
The Pakistani military's public relations office said the two sides were still exchanging fire in the area.
It said Indian troops had "physically raided a checkpost named Sawan Patra".
Ex-officer is first in CIA to face prison for a leak
John Kiriakou emailed the name of another operative to a reporter who did not use it
By SCOTT SHANE
WASHINGTON — Looking back, John C. Kiriakou admits he should have known better. But when the F.B.I. called him a year ago and invited him to stop by and “help us with a case,” he did not hesitate.
In his years as a C.I.A. operative, after all, Mr. Kiriakou had worked closely with F.B.I. agents overseas. Just months earlier, he had reported to the bureau a recruiting attempt by someone he believed to be an Asian spy.
“Anything for the F.B.I.,” Mr. Kiriakou replied.
Only an hour into what began as a relaxed chat with the two agents — the younger one who traded Pittsburgh Steelers talk with him and the senior investigator with the droopy eye — did he begin to realize just who was the target of their investigation.Wildfires tear through Tasmania
Australia's heatwave is devastating its southern island
Thousands of people have been evacuated and hundreds of homes destroyed as wildfires continue to tear across Tasmania. Flames devouring trees, scrub and communities, and a heatwave which has pushed the temperature beyond 41C, have turned the island state into a furnace fanned by brisk and unruly northerly winds.
Common sense tells even a visiting Briton that these fires are not to be trifled with. So does history: all who live and visit here are well aware that 173 Australians died in the fires that struck Victoria four years ago. But nothing prepares you for being caught in the jaws of these flames. The fear here has to be experienced to be believed.
On Friday, my husband and I drove with our two-year-old daughter to a tourist precinct of log cabins at the family-friendly resort of Bicheno Bay, two hours north-east of Hobart, the island's capital. By the time we arrived, the weather had soared from that of a mild Tasmanian summer to a stifling 35C.
SYRIA
Assad to make rare speech as rebels edge closer
The isolated president of Syria is to deliver a speech Sunday. Bashar Assad has not spoken publicly for months while the opposition eroded his military and diplomatic position.
Syria's estranged president Bashar Assad is due to deliver a rare speech on Sunday as rebels try to encroach further on the capital Damascus and Turkey's NATO partners begin to install Patriot air defence missiles units along the Turkish border with Syria.
"President Bashar Assad will deliver a speech on Sunday morning on the latest developments in Syria and the region," said Syria's state media. It gave no further details.
Reprisal fears cloud Libya probe into US consulate attack
Libya is pushing forward with its investigation into the deadly September 11 attack on the US consulate in Benghazi, but fear of retaliation by Islamist extremists has proved a hurdle.
Security reports point to the possible involvement of an al Qaeda-linked Islamist group in the attack that killed ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans, a source close to the case told AFP.
"Therefore the case frightens local investigators, especially given the increased pace of assassinations targeting military and police officers in the east of the country," said the source in the criminal investigations department.
The case has now been passed to a judge based in the capital.
"Judge Khaled al-Turki from Tripoli was appointed last week to complete investigations into the case," said a senior justice ministry official.
Robots find Barrier Reef coral at extreme depths, amazing ocean scientists
Living coral found at 125 metres, four times deeper than scuba limit
Robots have found living coral on the Great Barrier Reef at a depth four times greater than most scuba divers can reach and far beyond the depth at which scientists expected to find them.
A team from the Catlin Seaview Survey discovered the reef corals living at 125 metres, the deepest ever found on the reef. Reef corals are in a perilous state around the world, under threat from climate change through warming oceans and acidification of seawater as well as by coastal pollution and unsustainable fishing practices. The remarkable find was made on the outer edge of the Ribbon Reefs off the north of the Barrier. The extreme depth is more than four times the depth of the shallow reef coral habitat (0-30m) which most scuba divers can reach.
Dr Pim Bongaerts from the Global Change Institute at Queensland University, who led the expedition's deep reef team, said: "It's intriguing. When we began our survey, we were amazed to see significant coral at depths of around 60 metres. However, it is truly mind-blowing to see reef coral at more than twice that depth.
No comments:
Post a Comment