Forty whales die in mass stranding

ABOUT 40 whales died in a mass stranding on the west coast of India's remote North Andaman island in the Bay of Bengal, wildlife officials said.

"The short-finned pilot whales were found by fishermen who alerted us and investigations show it was a case of mass stranding," said Ajai Saxena, a wildlife official in Port Blair, capital of the islands.

Ms Saxena said no previous mass stranding had been reported in the Andamans, but that it was a natural phenomenon that occurs when whales get disoriented and are unable to swim back into deep water.

Stranding is also thought to occur when a pod follows a sick or an injured whale into the shallows, experts say.

Emergency teams and local volunteers headed to the beach near Elizabeth Bay on the North Andaman island where the whales were stranded, but they were unable to help.

"The mammals are so heavy, it is impossible to move them back to the waters," Ms Saxena said.

A post-mortem has been conducted on one of adults, which weighed two tonnes.

The Andaman and Nicobar islands are Indian territory, though they are at least 1000 kilometres from the mainland and are closer to the coast of Burma.

23.09 | 0 komentar | Read More

US stocks rise on upbeat data, P&G results

US stocks have scored solid opening gains as weekly unemployment claims and durable goods orders came in better than expected and Procter & Gamble earnings beat forecasts.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 62.62 points, or 0.48 per cent, at 13,139.96 in early Thursday trading.

The broad-based S&P 500 advanced 9.27 points, or 0.66 per cent, to 1,418.02.

The Nasdaq Composite added 18.37 points, or 0.62 per cent, at 3,000.07.

The major indices rebounded from modest losses on Wednesday amid weak corporate earnings, "supported by some data from the US equity and economic fronts. Dow member Procter & Gamble Co reported stronger-than-expected earnings despite a decline in revenues," Charles Schwab & Co analysts said.

P&G shares jumped 2.5 per cent.

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Gillard undermined Rudd: McKew

JULIA Gillard was a disloyal deputy involved in the conspiracy to take down Kevin Rudd as prime minister, says former Labor MP Maxine McKew.

In her new book, Ms McKew says Ms Gillard directly undermined Mr Rudd in the days before she ousted him in a coup, Fairfax reports.

Ms Gillard has always maintained she was loyal to the then prime minister until the day she challenged him.

But Ms McKew writes Ms Gillard showed internal Labor research critical of Mr Rudd to a senior member of the caucus in the days before the challenge.

This unnamed Labor member believed his encounter with Ms Gillard was part of the conspiracy against Mr Rudd, Ms McKew says in the book.

Ms McKew's book, Tales from the Political Trenches, will be published on Monday.

23.09 | 0 komentar | Read More

300 potential Jimmy Savile victims: police

BRITISH police say officers have identified 300 potential victims of the late Jimmy Savile, the disgraced BBC entertainer now believed to be a predatory pedophile.

Commander Peter Spindler said on Thursday officers had identified 300 potential victims so far - including two men.

He told reporters police had spoken to 130 people.

Spindler said although most of the allegations relate to Savile, some also include other people who may still be living.

He says no potential suspects had yet been arrested or questioned.

The BBC has been rocked by allegations that Savile sexually abused underage teenagers over several decades, sometimes on BBC premises.

Some of the alleged victims have accused other entertainers and BBC staff of participating in the abuse.

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Judge OKs release of Romney testimony

A MASSACHUSETTS judge will allow the release of testimony by GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney in the decades-old divorce of Staples founder Tom Stemberg.

Lawyers for The Boston Globe argued that the public has a right to know what's in the testimony.

Attorneys for Messrs Romney, Stemberg and Staples did not object to releasing the documents but had asked for a day to review them, which the judge granted.

The hearing resumed today and the judge said it was OK to release the documents.

Lawyer Gloria Allred, representing Mr Stemberg's ex-wife, also wanted the judge to lift a gag order that prevents Maureen Sullivan Stemberg from discussing the testimony. The judge said the former Mrs. Stemberg needs to file a separate request.

Office supply chain Staples was founded with backing from Mr Romney's firm, Bain Capital.

23.09 | 0 komentar | Read More

Dutch woman arrested with 2000 joints

DUTCH police say they have arrested a woman in the port city of Rotterdam with 2200 cannabis joints and 12 kilograms of soft drugs.

A statement said police went to the address on Thursday looking for another man and noticed a strong smell of cannabis coming from a locked bedroom.

Once inside, they seized the joints and the other drugs, arresting the 37-year-old tenant.

Possession of small quantities of soft drugs is tolerated in the Netherlands.

23.09 | 0 komentar | Read More

Denmark demands EU budget rebate

DANISH Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt has warned she will veto the EU's 2014-2020 budget proposal if Denmark does not receive a one billion kroner ($A169 million) rebate.

"Our key message to the other countries and what we are fighting for, is that we have to have a discount, and that we do not wish to pay other rich countries' rebates," she told the Danish parliamentary committee on European affairs on Thursday.

Denmark currently has no rebate or discount on its contribution to the European Union's budget.

Thorning-Schmidt, a social democrat, made her announcement after British Prime Minister David Cameron last week threatened to use his veto if Brussels increased spending at a time when EU member states are adopting tough austerity measures at the national level.

The 27 EU leaders will hold an extraordinary summit on November 22 and 23 for what are expected to be very tough talks on the budget. European Union President Herman Van Rompuy has called for member states to show willingness to compromise on the budget.

In 2011, Denmark was still pushing for all budget contribution rebates to be abolished, and primarily Britain's, which is the largest and dates back to 1984.

But shortly thereafter Denmark's centre-right government then headed by Lars Loekke Rasmussen reversed its opinion after concluding the rebate system was to be a lasting feature.

"The Danish government changed its opinion, saying in effect: 'We are still against rebates, but as long as there are rebates in the EU system, we think it is reasonable that we get rebates because we resemble other countries in the EU receiving rebates'," a political science professor at the University of Copenhagen, Peter Nedergaard, told AFP.

"If (Denmark is) not receiving rebates, but should have received them, and other countries that resemble Denmark are receiving them, then Denmark ends up paying for other countries' rebates," he concluded.

Britain, Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden and Austria have all negotiated rebates because they felt they were contributing too much to the budget compared with other countries.

23.08 | 0 komentar | Read More

Syrian army to halt operations for holiday

THE Syrian military has agreed to halt military operations from Friday Morning for the Muslim holiday weekend but reserves the right to respond to rebel attacks, the army announced.

"Military operations will cease on Syrian territory as of Friday morning, until Monday the 29th," the army said in a statement read on state television.

"(The military) reserves the right to respond to continuing attacks on civilians and government forces by armed groups."

23.08 | 0 komentar | Read More