NATO concludes Libya mission after seven months

NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen speaks at a news conference after talks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel at the Chancellery in Berlin on October 27, 2011.

NATO ends its military operation in Libya at midnight today, seven months after launching an air and sea campaign that helped bring the overthrow and death of Muammar Gaddafi.

In announcing the decision last week, NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen called it “one of the most successful” operations in the history of the 62-year-old alliance.

Rasmussen will mark the end of the mission by visiting Libya today, where he will meet Libya’s National Transitional Council and members of civil society, the alliance said.

Despite Rasmussen’s depiction of the mission, the NATO intervention caused sharp rifts in the alliance and went on much longer than Western nations had expected or wanted.

UNESCO gives Palestinians full membership

The United Nations’ cultural agency decided today to give the Palestinians full membership of the body, a vote that will boost their bid for recognition as a state at the United Nations.

UNESCO is the first UN agency the Palestinians have joined as a full member since President Mahmoud Abbas applied for full membership of the United Nations on September 23.

The United States, Canada, Germany and Holland voted against Palestinian membership. Brazil, Russia, China, India, South Africa and France voted in favour. Britain and Italy abstained.

Washington is likely to cut funding to UNESCO over the vote.

Propofol infusion dominates Jackson doctor’s trial

A top medical expert offered damaging testimony against Michael Jackson’s former doctor yesterday, calling one defence theory a “crazy scenario” and offering a dramatic look at how the drug that killed the pop star could have been infused into his body.

The testimony of Dr Steven Shafer, an expert on the drug propofol that is seen as the chief cause of the singer’s death, left defendant Dr Conrad Murray looking exasperated as he sat in the courtroom.

Video of Gaddafi killed Saddam Hussein hanging execution and dictators death.

The world's infamous dictators and how they met their violent ends

Cut down in the cross-fire between loyalists and rebels, then flung in a truck and executed in front of a baying mob, Gaddafi’s final moments were as brutal as his crimes.

Covered in blood and dirt, he had pleaded for his life - the answer was a bullet to the temple.

So how does it compare to the grisly deaths of other ruthless dictators such as Benito Mussolini, Adolf Hitler, Nicolae Ceausescu and Rafael Trujillo? The circumstances varied, but the cold and bloody nature of their final seconds did not.

The end: Saddam Hussein was hanged by vengeful countrymen after overseeing a brutal regime - his death signalled by a loud crack of his neck
'Caught like a rat': Saddam Hussein after being tracked down by U.S. forces
The body of Saddam Hussein in an undated image obtained by the Associated Press from an Arab language web site. Seemingly shot on a camera phone, the image appears to show the former Iraqi leader's corpse, with a gaping neck wound

Gaddafi met a merciless and brutal death

In the end Muammar Gaddafi's death was as violent as his life, gunned down without mercy in the crumbling ruins of his home town - wounded and begging for his life while cowering in a drain pipe.

His love of comic-opera uniforms, exotic female bodyguards and Bedouin tents provided a theatrical backdrop for 42 years of bloody repression that, in the end, could not withstand a determined uprising backed by NATO air power.

Chased out of Tripoli by rebel forces, Gaddafi disappeared - some said into the empty desert spaces in the south of his vast country.

In tandem with his eccentricity, Gaddafi had a charisma which initially at least won him support among many ordinary Libyans. His readiness to take on Western powers and Israel, both with rhetoric and action, earned him a certain cachet with some in other Arab states who felt their own leaders were too supine.

While leaders of neighbouring Arab states folded quickly in the face of popular uprisings, Gaddafi put up a bloody fight, taking on NATO as well as local insurgents who quickly seized half the country.



Together: Nurse Galyna was always close by.Gaddafi's female bodyguards seemed to prove that he ran Libya almost on a whim.Eccentric style: Gaddafi was known for his love of over-the-top military-style uniforms, variously seen in different colours and with a vast array of military awards and medals.Synonymous with terrorism: A young Gaddafi, right, is seen in an undated photo with notorious Ugandan leader Idi Amin.Shunned by the West: Links to revolutionaries , such as Cuba's Fidel Castro, made Gaddafi many enemies around the world

Gaddafi Dictator Mad Dog begs for his life after being dragged from a drain. Seconds later he was summarily executed

# Gaddafi tried to flee in a convoy hit by American drone
# Vehicles were also shelled by Nato fighter jets...
# ... before being driven back to his compound in Sirte
# Gaddafi in final attempt to flee before final push by rebels
# 'Found in a hole' wearing military-style clothing, shouting 'Don't shoot'
# Rebel forces executed him in front of a baying mob
# His body was paraded through the streets of the city
# Eldest son Saif shot in leg in Sirte day before - some reports say he is dead
# Other son Mutassim confirmed killed in Sirte
# Barack Obama hails 'momentous day' in history of Libya


Pleading: Muammar Gaddafi begged with his captors for his life after he was found cowering in a storm drain.Paraded: Gaddafi struggled with his captors in video footage taken by rebel fighters after he was captured.Chaotic: Gaddafi was pushed around by rebel fighters, one of whom filmed the incident on a mobile telephone.Fear: Becoming increasingly desperate, Gaddafi asked a rebel fighter 'What did I ever do to you'.Terrified: Moments after he begged for his life Gaddafi was shot dead by rebel fighters.Struggle: Video footage shows Gaddafi being hauled off a rebel fighter truck minutes after his capture.Manhandled: Rebel fighters pictured being taken off a truck shortly after he was detained.Arguing: Gaddafi pictured in chaotic video footage minutes before he was killed

Matador cheats death at festival after bull's horn blinds him in one eye and paralyses half his face

A Spanish matador has been blinded in his left eye and paralysed down that side of his face after he was horrifically gored during a bullfight.

The bull's horn pierced Juan Jose Padilla's jaw and emerged through his left eye socket during the grizzly incident at the northeastern city of Zaragoza's Fiestas Del Pilar event yesterday.

With blood gushing from his head, he was helped out of the ring screaming 'I can't see, I can't see'.

Caught: The bull's horn pierced Juan Jose Padilla's jaw and emerged through his left eye socket during the grizzly incident at the northeastern city of Zaragoza's Fiestas Del Pilar

Topless protesters arrested at Kiev Euro 2012 stadium opening ceremony

Topless women were arrested at the opening ceremony for the Euro 2012 stadium in Kiev after they invaded the pitch as part of a feminist protest.

One woman had to be carried off the pitch by a steward, wearing only a pair of black leggings with two flowers painted over her breasts.

The Ukrainian activists, Femen - who have a history of getting their kit off to promote their causes - believe the tournament will increase sex tourism in their country.






Dressed for impact: A topless Ukrainian feminist is escorted away after her pitch invasion.Final whistle: Stewards carry the blonde protester out of the Olympiyskiy Stadium.Skilful moves: The sex tourism protesters gave stewards at the football stadium the runaround

Obama's secret death warrant on al-Awlaki revealed

President Obama's secret memorandum authorising the killing of Anwar al-Awlaki was only legally valid if he could not be taken alive, it has emerged.

The legal writ, issued by the Justice Department, tackled the issues surrounding the targeted killing of a U.S. citizen by the American government - on the surface an unconstitutional act.



The issuing of the document followed fraught negotiations between administration officials and lawyers at the DOJ.Constitutional? Anwar al-Awlaki - a U.S. born citizen - was killed using secret authorisation from the justice department

Killed: Anwar al-Awlaki, left, and Osama bin Laden have both died following attacks by the U.S.legal? Officials at both the White House and the Justice Department have since refused all requests to answer how fifth amendment rights - guaranteeing a fair trial for all U.S. citizens - were satisfied by the secret memorandum

Police, protesters clash at US capital museum

Protesters march with signs past the White House during an “Occupation of Washington” rally in Washington on October 8, 2011.


Authorities shut down Washington’s popular National Air and Space Museum yesterday afternoon after antiwar protesters tried to enter the building and clashed with guards, a museum spokeswoman said.

One person was arrested during the melee at the Smithsonian museum involving between 150 and 200 protesters and six guards, museum spokeswoman Isabel Lara said.

“There was a lot of shoving going on,” Lara said, adding one of the guards was surrounded and used pepper spray before the demonstrators were moved outside. She said she was not aware of any injuries.

The shoving match broke out in a vestibule between two glass doors at the museum entrance after guards told the protesters they could not enter with signs, Lara said.

Protest organisers said the attempt to enter the museum on the National Mall was part of the Occupy D.C. antiwar demonstrations that began on Thursday on the 10th anniversary of the start of the Afghanistan war.

At least 24 killed and 200 injured as Christians clash with Egyptian military in Cairo

At least 24 have died after fierce clashes erupted between Christians and the Egyptian military in Cairo yesterday.

A further 200 were injured in the rioting, sparked by a protest over a recent attack on a church in the South of the country.

Thousands gathered as the protest spread from outside the state television building along the Nile to nearby Tahrir Square.





Anger: Coptic Christians throw stones at a military vehicle.Victim: A protester is injured during the clashes with the military.Huge numbers: Thousands of Coptic Christians took part in the march.Before the clashes: The demonstrations began peacefully outside the state television station in central Cairo

Libyan Forces Seize Key Locations in Sirte After Intense Battles

Libyan forces from Misrata said they wrested control of key buildings in Muammar Qaddafi's hometown of Sirte from his supporters, after several days of intense street fighting that left scores dead and ...

Pope condemns organised crime in south Italy visit

Pope Benedict leads the Sunday mass during his one day pastoral visit to the Italian southern city of Lamezia Terme October 9, 2011.

Pope Benedict today condemned “ferocious” organised crime groups in the southern Calabria region, where lawlessness, corruption and underdevelopment have resulted in one of Italy’s highest unemployment rates.

The pope, in a homily for tens of thousands of people from all over the region that forms the “toe” of Italy, said the area seemed to be in a constant state of emergency and that he wanted to encourage the people’s efforts to improve their condition.

“This is an area .... where problems exist in acute and destabilising forms, where crime groups that are often ferocious tear at the social fabric, a land that seems to be in a constant state of emergency,” he said.

Calabria is home to the ‘Ndrangheta, considered among the most dangerous and powerful crime syndicates in western Europe.

Deadly Thai floods close factories, threaten Bangkok

Nearly 200 factories, including one run by Japanese car maker Honda Motor Co Ltd , closed in the central Thai province of Ayutthaya because of flooding, which could threaten Bangkok this week, officials said today.

About 261 people have died since late July in flood-related incidents, the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation said. Some 2.3 million people have been affected in the worst flooding to hit parts of Thailand in 50 years, mainly in the centre, north and northeast.

The Rojana estate in Ayutthaya province, run by Rojana Industrial Park Pcl , was flooded after a wall of sandbags failed to hold back water overnight.

Coptic Christian protesters clashed with security forces in Cairo yesterday 24 deaths

Coptic Christian protesters clashed with security forces in Cairo yesterday

Chaos on the interstate as huge dust storm blinds Arizona drivers and causes multiple pile-ups as one driver dies

A blinding dust storm rolled across the Arizona desert Tuesday, causing three pile-ups involving dozens of vehicles on a major interstate. A 70-year-old man was killed and at least 15 other people were injured, authorities said.

The first two crashes occurred just after noon as a dust storm suddenly covered Interstate 10 near Picacho, about midway between Phoenix and Tucson. Those collisions involved 16 vehicles and led to the fatality.

Video showed dust roiling over dozens of cars, tractor-trailers and ambulances pulled over or strewn about the highway. Authorities were unable to transport injured motorists by helicopter because of the heavy dust.

One man was killed and at least 15 other people were injured in the accident, authorities said.Arizona Department of Public Safety officers and other emergency personnel make their way around vehicles involved in a crash on Interstate 10
The pile-ups involved a number of larger vehicles as well as cars
State public safety officers brave the dust storm to help in the massive clear-up operation

Riot-hit Britain plans to put prisoners to work

Britain wants to put more prisoners to work in an attempt to rehabilitate a “growing feral underclass” blamed for riots that swept English cities two months ago, Justice Secretary Ken Clarke said today.

Manchester, hosting the annual conference of the ruling Conservatives, was one of a number of English cities hit by rioting and looting that rippled out from London after police shot and killed a black suspect in August.

Clarke, a veteran viewed as a moderate in the centre-right party, won backing for his plan from a group of business executives led by Richard Branson, chairman of travel and entertainment company Virgin Group.

Libya NTC forces expect to take Sirte in 48 hours

Smoke is seen rising over the city of Sirte on October 4, 2011, during clashes between anti-Gaddafi fighters and Gaddafi forces.

Forces with Libya’s National Transitional Council (NTC) now control more than half of Muammar Gaddafi’s hometown of Sirte and believe they will have the city under their complete control within two days, a local NTC commander told Reuters today.

“More than half of the city is under the control of the rebels,” said the commander, Adel Al-Hasi. “In two days, God willing, Sirte will be free.”

Samsung Seeks Sales Ban on Apple IPhone 4S in France, Italy

Samsung Electronics Co. will seek to ban Apple Inc.'s iPhone 4S in France and Italy on patent- infringement claims, escalating the dispute between the world's two biggest makers of smartphones and ...

Taj Mahal could collapse within five years because wooden foundations are rotting

The Taj Mahal will collapse within five years unless urgent action is taken to shore up its foundations, campaigners have warned.

The 358-year-old marble mausoleum is India’s most famous tourist attraction, bringing four million visitors a year to the northern city of Agra.

But the river crucial to its survival is being blighted by pollution, industry and deforestation.

In danger: The Taj Mahal, near Agra in India. Experts have said it could be in danger of collapsing within five years because its wooden foundations are rotting.Architectural wonder: The 358-year-old tomb is built on mahogany post foundations sunk into wells fed by the nearby Yamuna River. That river has now run dry, and cracks appeared in the walls last year

Hank Williams Jr apologises for Obama-Hitler comment

US President Barack Obama (centre) plays golf on Martha's Vineyard in Massachusetts August 23, 2011. With Obama are Eric Whitaker (left) and Marvin Nicholson (right).


US country music singer Hank Williams Jr. said on Tuesday he was “very sorry” for any offense caused by his remarks on Fox News Channel this week comparing President Barack Obama to Adolf Hitler.

His apology was posted on his website a day after the Disney-owned cable sports channel ESPN pulled Williams’ theme song from its popular “Monday Night Football” broadcast in a rebuke to the country star for his Hitler remark.

Oxford University PhD student mistaken for suicide bomber after going for run in weights vest

# Police ordered Goudarz Karimi to put his hands in the air and drop everything
# He had to remove his 30kg vest while officers checked it for explosives


An Oxford University student told last night how he was mistaken for a suicide bomber as he jogged around the city's streets.

Armed police swamped a road and trained their sights on the Iranian man after reports of a suicide bomber, only to discover he was a jogger wearing an exercise vest.

The suspect was ordered to stop running, put his hands in the air and drop everything in his hands as sub-machine guns were trained on his body.

Shocked: Iranian student Goudarz Karimi said he could not believe the police response even after they realised he was not a suicide bomber

Jodie Marsh credits her bodybuilding career for improving her love life

She stunned fans yesterday when she revealed her new bodybuilding physique.

But now Jodie Marsh has revealed she has her new body to thank for ending her two-year man drought.

The 32-year-old former glamour model insists she feels 'sexier than ever' and says her new career has given her a new lease of life on the man front.

Gaddafi determined to avoid Saddam Hussein’s fate

When Muammar Gaddafi ponders his future from his hideout somewhere in Libya, he will probably recall the fate of another fallen Arab autocrat, Saddam Hussein, pulled bedraggled from a hole in the ground.

With that precedent in mind, Gaddafi will be adamant, say people who know him, about two things: he will not give up the fight against Libya’s new rulers and, if the end comes, he will not allow himself to be captured alive.

“Gaddafi will not stop fighting,” said Fathi Ben Shatwan, who served under the former Libyan leader as minister for energy and industry until five years ago. “He will not stop unless he is stopped.”

Libya’s National Transitional Council (NTC), almost certainly with help from Western intelligence services, has mounted a manhunt to find Gaddafi that is focusing on the Sahara desert near the borders with Niger and Algeria.

Afghan leader signs deal to deepen ties with India

Afghanistan’s President Hamid Karzai (left) shakes hands with India’s Prime Minister Manmohan Singh during a photo opportunity ahead of their meeting at Hyderabad House in New Delhi on October 4, 2011.


Afghan President Hamid Karzai signed a wide-ranging agreement with India on Tuesday to deepen ties between the two countries, including to help train Afghan security forces, in a deal likely to irk Pakistan as tension grows in the region.

India is one of Afghanistan‘s biggest bilateral donors, having pledged about US$2 billion (RM6.38 billion) since the 2001 US led-invasion for projects from the construction of highways to the building of the Afghan parliament.

On a two-day visit to New Delhi, Karzai and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh sealed a strategic partnership that spanned closer political ties to fighting terrorism. It signals a formal tightening of links that may spark Pakistani concerns India is increasingly competing for leverage in Afghanistan.

The agreement is one of several being negotiated by Kabul, including one with the United States, that are part of an Afghan bid for greater security as Nato troops head home.

Amanda Knox's Emotional Journey Home

Apple stumble seen opening door for rivals

Apple CEO Tim Cook speaks in front of an image of an iPhone 4S at Apple headquarters in Cupertino, California October 4, 2011.


Rival smartphone makers are seen having a chance of exploiting a rare letdown by Apple in the launch of its new iPhone 4S model, which failed to wow fans, and grab a bigger share of the most lucrative part of the phone market, analysts said today.

They also noted, however, that Apple has decided to keep older iPhone models and slash their prices, which could help the company expand sales in lower-end and developing markets, where Nokia and Samsung have dominated.