Mali group withdraws ceasefire pledge

Ansar Dine is suspending its pledge to halt hostilities less than a month after agreeing to do so. Source: AAP

AN Islamist group in northern Mali says it is suspending its pledge to halt hostilities less than a month after it agreed to do so.

The group Ansar Dine says negotiations with the Malian government are ultimately aimed at a military intervention to oust the group from the West African country and are not true peace talks.

Still, the group said it remains committed to a dialogue with the Malian government in Bamako even though it is keeping its military options open.

Ansar Dine, which says it seeks autonomy for northern Mali, has been behind public executions, amputations and whippings in the area that it seized last year.

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Govt to support bushfire communities: PM

DISASTER assistance to fire-stricken communities in Tasmania will start flowing in coming days, the federal government has announced.

The support will be available to help recovery in the Sorell and Tasman local government areas in the state's southeast.

The needs of other areas will be closely monitored, Prime Minister Julia Gillard and Minister for Emergency Management Nicola Roxon announced in a joint statement released on Saturday.

The Australian government is working with local authorities to support affected communities, they said.

"This is a tragic time for those who have suffered loss in the devastating Tasmanian bushfires," they said in the statement.

Assistance grants will be made available through the Tasmanian department of health and human services and will be jointly funded by the commonwealth and state government under the Natural Disaster Relief and Recovery Arrangements.

Three fires are threatening communities along the east coast and in central Tasmania, with thousands of people stranded as roads are cut off.

Ms Gillard said there were clear arrangements for how local authorities, state authorities and federal authorities work together.

"Unfortunately ... our world has given us the opportunity to test all of this, time and time again ... so we'll keep working to support communities," she told the Nine Network.

She said the focus at the moment was "still fighting the fires".

Ms Gillard said she would like to visit bushfire-ravaged communities but needed to ensure she would not disrupt any emergency efforts.

"I do like to go and visit communities that have been affected by disasters, but you've got to judge the right time ... and you are not in any way disrupting what are immediate efforts to deal with the emergency."

She said it broke her heart when she saw footage of the damage caused by bushfires.

"I'm obviously from Victoria. We saw that huge loss of life in the Victorian bushfires. The destructive power of fires is just so awesome.

"So whenever you see those pictures, whenever you see that kind of loss, it really does touch a chord in you."

Ms Gillard reminded people the extreme heat was widespread across Australia.

"That means there are risks in more areas than Tasmania.

"The best thing people can do is stay in touch with local authorities" and heed local community warnings, she said.

Information on assistance that is available is at www.disasterassist.gov.au or www.dhhs.tas.gov.au.

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Suu Kyi 'should' help with Kachin

MEDIATORS trying to broker a peace deal between the military and ethnic minority rebels in northern Myanmar have appealed to Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi to help end the bloody conflict.

The military's use of air strikes against the rebels has stoked international concerns about a civil war that has overshadowed widely praised political reforms seen since the end of junta rule in 2011.

"Aung San Suu Kyi also has responsibility to implement ethnic peace," Yup Zaw Hkaung, a local businessman and peace negotiator in the Kachin state capital Myitkyina, told AFP by telephone on Saturday.

"When she came to Kachin State to campaign for votes, she talked about peace. She cannot abandon Kachin," he said, adding that neither the opposition leader nor President Thein Sein had replied to letters asking for help.

Civil war has plagued parts of the country formerly known as Burma since it won independence from Britain in 1948.

Suu Kyi, a former political prisoner turned lawmaker, used her maiden speech to parliament in July last year to call for greater protection of ethnic minority rights.

But the veteran activist has disappointed rights campaigners by not speaking out more vocally in support of another minority group, the Rohingya, in the violence-torn western state of Rakhine.

In northern Kachin, tens of thousands of people have been displaced since June 2011 when a 17-year ceasefire between the government and the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) broke down.

The number of casualties is unknown. The Kachin accuse the government of pushing dialogue only on the basis of a ceasefire and troop withdrawals, neglecting to address longstanding demands for greater political rights.

Myanmar has reached tentative ceasefires with most of the other major ethnic rebel groups, but several rounds of talks with the Kachin have shown little tangible progress.

"The fighting has been escalating," Yup Zaw Hkaung said.

"We are urging dialogue as soon as possible. People are in big trouble."

He said his Peace Creation Group, a mediation team formed with three other local businessmen, wanted to meet Thein Sein face-to-face to discuss the conflict with the former general, whose office said in December 2011 he had ordered an end to military offensives against the rebels.

"As air strikes with jets have been used in the attacks, hatred between the two sides could be growing," Yup Zaw Hkaung said. "We assume that the military is fighting based on the decision of the union government."

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Bali stab victim remains critical

INDONESIAN police are waiting to speak to a West Australian man who was stabbed seven times while defending his Bali villa against armed robbers.

Paul Gill, 42, was in a critical condition on Saturday and not well enough to speak to police.

The attack occurred while Mr Gill's wife, two daughters and visiting friends slept at their home in the early hours of Friday morning.

Badung Police Station Chief Komang Suartana said Mr Gill's injuries were concentrated around his back and neck.

He said Mr Gill's wife had told police two men were responsible for the attack.

Police hoped Mr Gill would help them identify the attackers once he was well enough to speak.

Mr Suartana said the attackers had managed to evade two security guards on a rainy night.

He said burglary was the motive.

"The perpetrators chose the villa because the security is not very strict compared to other tourism destinations.

"The perpetrators are still in Bali and we're tightening the exit gate from Bali."

Bali's Provincial Governor, Made Mangu Pastika, said he was saddened by the incident.

"There's got to be real measures taken to catch the perpetrators. I will talk to (Bali) provincial police to increase security so that such incidents won't happen again that could taint Bali's image."

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Ex-Westpac exec named Genworth CFO

MORTGAGE insurer Genworth Australia has appointed the former boss of St George Bank as its new chief financial officer.

Genworth said in a statement on Friday Paul Fegan would join the company on January 7, 2013.

Mr Fegan became chief executive of St George Bank in November 2007 and stayed in the role until the bank merged with Westpac at the end of 2008, when he resigned.

He currently sits on the board at AMP Ltd and was group managing director of strategy and corporate services at Telstra between February 2011 and January 2012.

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Govt agency oversimplifed gender pay data

A FEDERAL government agency has oversimplified data about graduate pay, resulting in the misrepresentation of gender pay differences, Graduate Careers Australia (GCA) says.

The Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) said the gender pay gap for young university graduates had more than doubled last year, from $2000 to $5000 a year. However, there was in fact no change and the gap remains at three per cent.

GCA policy and strategy adviser Bruce Guthrie said the agency had read data from its annual Australian Graduate Survey in a "overly simplistic" way.

"The researcher in question has missed some vital paragraphs in this fairly short document which would have explained a lot of the stuff we have had to clarify.

"It does happen. It's happened before, it will happen again with various data sets. People get the wrong handle and think the story is simpler than it actually is," Mr Guthrie told AAP.

Mr Guthrie was concerned the misrepresentation could cloud the thinking of school leavers as they make career choices.

He said a factor that contributed to the misrepresentation was that men tended to be over-represented in fields such as engineering.

"In addition, some of the larger wage gaps are observed in fields with relatively low response numbers, for example dentistry and optometry, which could make them unreliable."

The gender equality agency identified a disparity of $14,000, or 15.7 per cent, between female and male dentistry graduates.

"I think it's really unlikely there is any responsible graduate recruiter in Australia who is paying a different salary to males and females," Mr Guthrie said.

"I don't believe that would be the case."

Mr Guthrie said GCA was entirely supportive of the need for workplace equality and the misreading of the information had painted employers as discriminatory.

The GCA figures that were used are based on the responses of new bachelor-degree graduates younger than 25 in their first full-time employment and do not represent the wider Australian workforce.

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Nation braces for wicked weekend heatwave

The Bureau of Meteorology has warned high temperatures will continue "unabated" well into next week. Source: AAP

MUCH of Australia will be on high bushfire alert this weekend as a prolonged heatwave pushes across the country, with record temperatures already experienced in some centres.

A number of bushfires are being fought in South Australia, Victoria and Tasmania. Authorities in those states are urging people to prepare themselves and their properties in case of fire.

Firefighters in Tasmania fear some houses have been lost at the township of Dunnalley near Hobart.

Health bodies are urging people to drink plenty of water and stay out of the heat.

The Bureau of Meteorology's acting regional director in South Australia, John Nairn, says while heatwaves are a normal part of the Australian summer, the current blast is unusual for the large area it is covering.

"More than 70 per cent of the continent is currently experiencing heatwave conditions," he said.

"Severe heatwave conditions across the interior of Australia are set to continue for a while yet."

Among the hottest parts of the country on Friday were Wudinna, on South Australia's Eyre Peninsula, which hit 48.2C. Adelaide reached 45C and Hobart reached a record 41.8C - one degree hotter than the record set in 1976.

Tasmania Fire Service chief officer Mike Brown said conditions at times on Friday reached the catastrophic level developed after the Black Saturday fires in Victoria, with up to 40 fires burning around the state.

"We reached catastrophic fire danger ratings at times during this afternoon," Chief Officer Brown told reporters.

"I don't think we're quite out of the woods yet."

But it is the Dunnalley and Forcett fires, which the 100 fire crews fighting them say they can't contain, that are causing most concern ahead of a mild southerly change due in Hobart around midnight.

On South Australia's Fleurieu Peninsula, three farming properties were under threat on Friday, while fires were also being fought near Currency Creek, on the Yorke Peninsula, in the Clare Valley, and at Truro, north of Adelaide.

Country Fire Service spokesman Mal Watts said while a cooler change was expected to bring temporary relief to coastal areas of the state on Saturday, fire fighters would remain on high alert.

"We are throwing everything that we are able to at incidents as they occur," he said.

"We've got to get through today, then we get a bit of a lull and then we're back into it again next week.

Victoria's Fire Services Commissioner Craig Lapsley said Saturday would be a fire day of significance in northeastern Victoria.

Temperatures across the state have tipped past 40C in many communities with extreme fire danger ratings.

A fire in a pine plantation at Mt Richmond in the state's southwest is a "major concern".

The Country Fire Authority (CFA) issued an emergency warning for the fire, which could affect the Lake Monbeong and Swan Lake camp grounds.

He said the fire had no major settlement in its path. However, farming communities could be threatened, and people considering leaving should head for Portland.

The bureau of meteorology says the scorching heat bearing down across many states will continue "unabated" well into next week.

The National Heart Foundation is advising those with heart disease to take it easy during the next few days, with studies showing an increase in heart attacks and death from extreme heat.

The foundation says people most at risk are those with a chronic disease, such as heart disease, and the elderly, children, people on certain medications and those engaged in strenuous outdoor activity.

Police have also warned that leaving children, elderly people or pets unattended in cars could prove fatal in hot weather.

Surf lifesavers are expecting to have to rescue hundreds of beachgoers this weekend as swimmers escape the heatwave in NSW.

Prime Minister Julia Gillard has called on people to be careful.

"Take care and stay safe as we face extreme heat around our nation. Listen to warnings on the high bushfire risk. JG," she tweeted on Friday.

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Major fires threaten southern Tasmania

TASMANIAN firefighters' worst fears have been realised with catastrophic conditions in the state's south leading to the loss of property, most likely including houses.

Huge plumes of smoke are visible from Hobart as the island capital swelters through its hottest day on record.

Accompanying winds have whipped up blazes that started on Thursday at Forcett, east of the capital, and Lake Repulse northwest of Hobart.

Tasmania Fire Service (TFS) Chief Officer Mike Brown says conditions on Friday have reached the catastrophic level developed after the Black Saturday fires in Victoria.

He says he suspects houses are among properties destroyed around the small community of Dunalley, 56km southeast of Hobart.

There are no reported injuries.

"We reached catastrophic fire danger ratings at times during this afternoon," Chief Officer Brown told reporters.

"I don't think we're quite out of the woods yet.

"The latest reports we've got have been that there's been structural damage and structural losses in the communities around Copping and Dunnalley.

"It will be some time before we can confirm how much damage has been done."

Chief Officer Brown said it was likely some of the damaged structures were houses.

On a day Hobart hit a top temperature of 41.8C - smashing the previous record of 40.8 set in 1976 - up to 40 fires were burning around the state.

The 100 fire crews say they can't contain the two largest fires, which are causing most concern ahead of a mild southerly change due in Hobart around midnight.

The TFS has used its emergency phone warning system to ask residents to leave the affected areas and police say around 80 per cent have chosen to go.

The popular Port Arthur tourist area has been cut off after police closed the Arthur Highway, isolating the Tasman Peninsula.

Earlier, residents in the small communities of Dunalley, Copping, Boomer Bay, Connellys Marsh, Primrose Sands and Carlton River were told to leave and head to refuges set up nearby.

The other major fire, which authorities suspect was started by a campfire, is affecting communities including Broad River, Jones River and Ellendale.

Conditions are now considered worse than 2006/07 when houses were lost on the state's east coast.

Late on Friday afternoon, the TFS upgraded a warning for another fire near Bicheno in that area.

Campers were being evacuated and residents were being encouraged to act on their bushfire plans or leave.

A large grass fire at Epping Forest in the state's north was also causing concern.

The change is unlikely to bring rain but could ignite more fires with lightning strikes, the Bureau of Meteorology said.

"Lighter winds tomorrow and milder temperatures and higher relative humidities will be of help," senior forecaster Malcolm Downing told AAP.

Hobart hit 41.8C at 4.05pm (AEDT) on Friday, its highest temperature since records began being kept in 1883.

Authorities say smoke is likely to be visible for several hours and people affected by it should stay indoors.

The TFS said it was too late to leave the communities of Connellys Marsh or Primrose Sands.

Those at Connellys Marsh were being advised that the nearby beach was a safer option for them.

Carlton River Road was considered impassable and Primrose Sands residents were also being told to head to the nearby beach.

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Obama signs sweeping US defence bill

US President Barack Obama has signed into law a $A605.71 billion defence spending bill. Source: AAP

PRESIDENT Barack Obama has signed into law a $US633 billion ($A605.71 billion) US defence spending bill that funds the war in Afghanistan and boosts security at US missions worldwide.

"I have approved this annual defence authorisation legislation, as I have in previous years, because it authorises essential support for service members and their families, renews vital national security programs, and helps ensure that the United States will continue to have the strongest military in the world," Obama said in a statement early on Thursday after signing the measure.

Obama said he signed the bill despite reservations.

"In a time when all public servants recognise the need to eliminate wasteful or duplicative spending, various sections in the Act limit the Defense Department's ability to direct scarce resources towards the highest priorities for our national security," the president said.

"Even though I support the vast majority of the provisions contained in this Act... I do not agree with them all," he said in his statement, adding that he did not have the constitutional authority to approve piecemeal items within the sprawling bill.

"I am empowered either to sign the bill, or reject it, as a whole," he said.

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Snow in NZ as Australia faces heatwave

AS Australians swelter in a heatwave, it's been snowing in New Zealand's South Island.

For the second summer in a row, snow has fallen in Central Otago in January. But forecasters say the winter woollies will not be needed for long.

Kids were pictured making snowmen, the Gimmerburn range near Ranfurly looked like a winter postcard and travellers near the summit of Lindis Pass abandoned vehicles on Wednesday night.

"There was quite a lot of snow but it's not landing on the town. It's on the hills surrounding," Misha Wilkinson of Misha's Vineyard near Cromwell told AAP.

She said the snow did not damage the vineyard, which was about two weeks behind a normal season due to cooler weather.

She said unseasonably hot temperatures are predicted for a wine and food festival in the Old Cromwell town precinct on Saturday.

A hailstorm was also reported in Oamaru late on Thursday afternoon.

The snow came after heavy rain and gales disrupted travellers on the West Coast of the South Island from Wednesday but the MetService says a ridge of high pressure will bring fine weather on Friday.

"The weekend is likely to be warm just about everywhere," MetService Chief Forecaster Peter Kreft says.

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Mexican troops kill 12 in gun battle

MEXICAN soldiers have killed 12 suspected criminals in a running gun battle across the central state of Zacatecas, officials say.

The clash erupted when the two sides ran into each other in the city of Rio Grande, sparking a pursuit along 50 kilometres that ended in the town of Sombrerete, a state official said on Wednesday on condition of anonymity.

The death toll may be higher. Defense Ministry officials were not immediately available for comment.

Zacatecas has not been spared from the drug violence afflicting Mexico that has left at least 70,000 people dead across the country since 2006, when troops were deployed to battle cartels.

Earlier, the navy said marines had detained 18 people, including 12 minors and a woman holding a baby, on New Year's Eve in the Zacatecas town of La Estacion San Jose.

The marines seized a cache of weapons, including two grenade launchers, and bags of cocaine and marijuana from the group.

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More than 100 dead as cold snap hits India

POLICE say more than 100 people have died of exposure as northern India deals with historically cold temperatures.

Police spokesman Surendra Srivastava said on Thursday at least 114 people have died from the cold in the state of Uttar Pradesh, at least 23 of them in the previous 24 hours.

Srivastava said many of the dead were poor people whose bodies were found on footpaths or in parks.

The weather department said temperatures in the state were 4 to 10 degrees below normal.

Temperatures in New Delhi, which borders Uttar Pradesh, hit a high on Wednesday of 9.8 degrees Celsius, the lowest maximum temperature in the capital since 1969.

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Safety fears see Vic ambos abandon post

SAFETY concerns at an ambulance branch in Melbourne's west have prompted paramedics to abandon the post and work from elsewhere.

Ambulance Employees Australia Victoria general secretary Steve McGhie said 19 paramedics and one clinic transport officer had agreed not to return to the 35-year-old building in Sunshine until their concerns were addressed.

Mr McGhie said the paramedics had decided to work from nearby St Albans. This followed a meeting with WorkSafe on Wednesday over health and safety issues at the site.

About 80 paramedics from across Melbourne attended the meeting in a show of support.

Mr McGhie said an engineer's report 12 months ago found the building should be demolished. There were issues with asbestos and the foundations as well as the rest facilities for paramedics working long shifts.

There were concerns about security, with paramedics confronted by burglars on Boxing Day and cars broken into on several occasions, he said.

Mr McGhie said the issue had been raised with Ambulance Victoria, which had agreed major works were needed but required Victorian government funding.

He said paramedics would agree to return to the building if "fatigue management" and security issues were addressed.

Mr McGhie said any agreement with Ambulance Victoria would have to be passed by the members, which was not likely to happen until Thursday.

An Ambulance Victoria spokeswoman later said a meeting between WorkSafe, health and safety officials, the union and Ambulance Victoria saw everyone agree to further safety and security measures to be put in place in the coming weeks.

This included improved lighting, while higher fences had already been implemented at the site, and paramedics were offered rest accommodation or taxi vouchers.

The spokeswoman said the ban had been lifted and paramedics would continue to work out of the Sunshine branch.

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Bali pool death at private home not club

Bali police are investigating the suspicious death of a Qld woman who was found dead in a pool. Source: AAP

A QUEENSLAND woman found dead in Bali was found at her home, not the beach club where she worked, her employers say.

Indonesian police are investigating the death of 33-year-old Denni North, who was found facedown in a pool on the resort island on December 30.

She had been working as a guest relations consultant at the Cocoon Beach Club and her death is reportedly being treated as suspicious.

The club released a statement on Facebook on Wednesday saying Ms North had been found dead in a swimming pool at her home, not at the club as has been reported.

"We cannot comment on any details of her death but would like to confirm the incident did not occur at Cocoon but at her private residence, we do not believe it to be suspicious but the police are investigating," it said.

Ms North, from Deception Bay north of Brisbane, reportedly frequented the beach club as a customer and was later offered a job there.

The club has offered assistance to her family, the police and the Australian consulate.

"She was a vivacious and beautiful young woman and we are incredibly saddened by her death and send our deepest condolences to her family and many friends," the statement said.

Meanwhile, tributes are flowing to the Facebook page RIP Denni North, created as an online memorial.

"You are an angel that was taken from us to soon .. RIP Beautiful xx," wrote friend Samantha Knight.

Leanne Forbes posted a Youtube link to the Sarah McLachlan hit Angel, while friend Jackie Blake posted a photo of herself and Denni at a costume party.

"Ever the Rock star .... Lost count of the times you made me almost spurt wine from my nose with laughter! God we will miss you and your hilarious story telling funny girl xoxo," Ms Blake wrote.

A recent guest at the club, Veronica Bulline, said she was very sad to hear about the death of the "beautiful and bubbly young girl".

"RIP Denni, you made the Cocoon such a wonderful place to be for all us Australians. My thoughts go out to her family," the post said.

Ms North's father Dennis said he wanted to know what happened to his "bubbly daughter".

"She was always bubbly, alive, and beautiful. She lived for life. I want answers," Mr North told Channel 7's Today Tonight program.

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Photographer dies after taking Bieber shot

A paparazzo has been hit by a car and killed after taking shots of pop star Justin Bieber's Ferrari. Source: AAP

A PAPARAZZO has been fatally struck by a car after taking photos of Justin Bieber's white Ferrari on a Los Angeles street.

LA police Officer James Stoughton says the photographer, who was not identified, died at a hospital shortly after the crash on Tuesday evening.

Stoughton says Bieber was not in the Ferrari at the time.

The sports car was parked on the side of Sepulveda Boulevard near Getty Center Drive after a traffic stop.

The photographer was struck as he walked across the boulevard after taking pictures.

Stoughton says no charges are likely to be filed against the motorist who hit the man.

A call to a spokesperson for the singer was not immediately returned Tuesday night.

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Man drowns at popular Gold Coast beach

A man has died in hospital after being pulled unconscious from surf at a popular Queensland beach. Source: AAP

A MAN has died after being pulled unconscious from heavy surf at a popular Gold Coast beach he was reportedly visiting with his two young children.

The Queensland Department of Community Safety was called to Kirra Beach about 2pm (AEST) on Wednesday after a 33-year-old man was rescued from the surf.

When paramedics arrived rescuers had started CPR on the unconscious man.

The incident was apparently watched live by hundreds of web users on a popular surf cam website.

The man was transported to Tweed Hospital, just over the NSW border, but died shortly after arriving.

A spokesmen for the Northern NSW local health district told AAP: "We can unfortunately confirm a man who was pulled out of the water at Kirra Beach died in hospital."

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Shots fired at woman at bus stop

THREE people have been charged with endangering the life of a woman who escaped unhurt when shots were fired at her as she sat at a bus stop in Adelaide.

Police charged a 34-year-old man from Modbury, a 30-year-old woman and a 15-year-old girl, both from Pooraka, with acts to endanger life after arresting them on Tuesday.

They said the woman was sitting at the stop at suburban Pooraka at about midday (CDT) on Tuesday when a car drove past with up to four people inside.

They allegedly fired two shots in her direction.

The woman was unhurt and police later converged on a nearby house and arrested the three who were interviewed over the incident.

Officers also searched the house and found a .22 calibre rifle.

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Firefighters contain Albury bushfire

MORE than 60 firefighters have controlled a bushfire that was threatening homes in the state's southeast.

NSW Rural Fire Service (NSWRFS) said the bushfire in Yambla Avenue and Forest Hill Avenue at Albury had been brought under control and was no longer threatening homes.

"The fire was threatening homes, but it's now been contained," a NSWRFS spokeswoman told AAP.

She said 68 firefighters and 18 trucks were currently at the scene to ensure the fire did not spread.

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Body found in hunt for Qld teenager

A BODY has been found in bushland on the Sunshine Coast near where a teenager went missing on the weekend.

Queensland police and State Emergency Service volunteers had been searching for 19-year-old Dylan Daure who was last seen at 12.30am (AEST) on Saturday.

Police said a body was found in bushland just off Ballinger Court at Buderim at about 4pm (AEST).

They say the remains are still being identified.

Mr Daure was reportedly last seen at Buderim Tavern early on Saturday morning, sparking a search of bushland in the suburb involving more than 40 SES volunteers.

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Bleak start to 2013 on roads

The national holiday road toll has reached 38 after two drivers died in a head-on collision in NSW. Source: AAP

SEVEN people including an eight-year-old girl have died in traffic accidents in what has been a bleak start to the new year on Australian roads.

The New Year's Day fatalities began in NSW, after a head-on crash on the Pacific Highway on the north coast.

Two cars collided at Bangalow, near Possum Creek Road, at about 2.20am (AEDT) and its drivers, a man and a woman, were killed.

There were no passengers in either car, but the holiday road toll has climbed to 11.

In Western Australia just after midnight a car left the road and hit a tree on the side of the Great Southern Highway east of Perth.

An eight-year-old girl, her two-year-old sister and their 30-year-old mother had to be cut from the vehicle and flown to Perth for treatment.

The eight-year-old died in hospital while her mother is being treated for serious injuries.

The two-year-old sustained minor injuries.

Several hours later a man was killed in a hit-and-run incident as he walked along a suburban street south of Perth.

The man, who is yet to be identified, was struck by a vehicle at about 4.30am (WST) as he walked along Ennis Avenue in Waikiki.

Investigators are calling for witnesses.

In Queensland, two men aged 28 and 19 were killed when the car they were in crashed into the front yard of a house west of Brisbane.

The vehicle ploughed through a fence before coming to rest on its side in the front yard of the house in Glebe Street in the Ipswich suburb of Silkstone at about 4.45am (AEST).

An 18-year-old man who was also in the car and who was taken to hospital with head injuries is in a stable condition.

Earlier, a 41-year-old woman who was asleep on the road was struck and killed by an L-plate motorcycle rider in the Northern Territory.

Police believe the woman was lying on Sturt Terrace in East Side at Alice Springs at about 2.30am (CST) when she was hit.

The 21-year-old L-plater allegedly returned a positive test for alcohol and police say he could face charges.

The deaths on New Year's Day took the national holiday road toll to 43.

* The national road toll period runs from 0001 December 23, 2012, until 2359 January 3, 2013, local times, in line with the Australia New Zealand Policing Advisory Board.

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Body found after canoe tips on NSW river

A BODY has been pulled from the Murrumbidgee River in southwestern NSW following a police search for a man who fell from a canoe.

Police said the body of a 29-year-old man was recovered on the river south of Griffith at about 3pm (AEDT) on Monday but he was yet to be formally identified.

A search by police and emergency services crews was launched on Sunday afternoon following reports a canoe had tipped over and a man had fallen into the river near Darlington Point but had not resurfaced.

The search was suspended at nightfall but resumed at 9am on Monday.

Police say a post mortem examination will be carried out to determine the cause of death and a report will be prepared for the NSW Coroner.

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Myanmar to have first public NY countdown

MYANMAR (Burma) will ring in the new year with its first public countdown and a grand fireworks display in a celebration unprecedented in the former military-ruled country.

It's the latest, and perhaps most colourful, example of the country's emergence from decades of isolation.

Thousands were expected to attend the event at a large field in Yangon (Rangoon) with a backdrop of the famed Shwedagon Pagoda, where the Myanmar public will get its chance to do what much of the world does every December 31.

Singers, celebrities, light shows and other festivities were planned for the public party, which would have been unthinkable under the former military regime that banned public gatherings.

A large digital screen will show a live stream of New Year's Eve countdowns in Switzerland, Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand leading up to a 60-second countdown to 2013 in Myanmar.

Until this year, New Year's Eve was celebrated privately or inside hotels but not with public fireworks and open celebration.

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Car bombing kills two south of Baghdad

TWO people have been killed in a car bombing outside provincial government offices south of Baghdad, the latest in a series of attacks targeting Iraqi officials nationwide.

The blast at 8.30am on Monday local time in the city of Hilla, 95km south of the capital, also wounded 17 people and badly damaged shops and cars, according to police.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack, and there are no details available on the victims.

But Sunni militants such as al-Qaeda's front group in Iraq regularly target officials and security forces in a bid to destabilise the government and push Iraq back towards the brutal communal bloodshed of 2005 to 2008.

Monday's violence came a day after three attacks on government officials north of the capital.

The deputy governor of Kirkuk province and the head of a city council in the province escaped separate assassination attempts, but the unrest still left one senior municipal official dead and eight people wounded.

Violence in Iraq is down from its peak in 2006 and 2007, but attacks still occur almost every day.

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Person killed in head-on crash

A PERSON has died in a head-on collision between two cars on Tasmania's east coast.

Police said one person was killed, while another two were trapped in a vehicle as a result of the crash, which occurred on Gardens Road, The Gardens, near the tourist town of St Helens on Monday.

15.02 | 0 komentar | Read More

US congress seeks last-gasp fiscal deal

AFTER weeks of failed haggling, the fiscal cliffhanger is at hand as US lawmakers convene in a bid to strike a year-end deal that avoids huge tax hikes and possibly spending cuts set to kick in January 1.

With the clock ticking ever closer to the New Year's time bomb, the suddenly alarmed Senate and House of Representatives were holding special sessions 36 hours before the year-end deadline for a plan that would keep America from tumbling off the so-called fiscal cliff.

The stakes in the game of holiday-interrupting brinkmanship are enormous.

Economists agree the $US500 billion ($A484.05 billion) in fiscal pain due to hit when the new year starts would stifle the US economic recovery and send the country back into recession, spelling bad news for the global economy as well.

Aides to both sides' leaders in the Democrat-controlled Senate worked feverishly behind closed doors on Saturday to fashion a deal palatable to Democrats as well as to Republicans, who control the House of Representatives.

The Senate convenes on Sunday at 1.00pm (0500 AEDT Monday) while the lower house goes into session an hour later, with no votes expected before 6.30pm (1030 AEDT Monday).

Both chambers would have little time to debate and then pass a deal that has eluded the White House and congress for weeks.

President Barack Obama, who called congressional leaders to the White House on Friday, will address the crisis once more when he gives an interview on NBC's Sunday morning talk show Meet the Press.

Amid the tense negotiations, Obama pressed legislators to clinch a deal, even if they must reach a compromise that lacks the significant deficit-reduction measures both sides had sought.

The country "just can't afford a politically self-inflicted wound to our economy", he said.

If lawmakers fail, "every American's paycheck will get a lot smaller", he warned. "Congress can prevent it from happening, if they act now."

The president, sensing a mandate from his re-election last month, wants to raise taxes on the rich. Republicans want only to close tax loopholes to raise revenue and demand significant spending cuts in return, notably to federal benefit programs like Social Security.

But if nothing is done by the deadline, all taxpayers will see an increase.

Following the White House talks, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Republican Minority Leader Mitch McConnell are heading efforts to craft a deal.

But any agreement would also have to pass the House, where there is doubt that an Obama-backed deal would win favour with restive conservatives in the Republican caucus.

While each side must for the sake of appearances be seen to be seeking a deal, one way out is to go over the cliff, then fix the problem in the first days of next year.

Under that scenario, Republicans who are philosophically opposed to raising taxes could vote to lower the newly raised rates on almost all Americans without formally hiking taxes.

Lawmakers, while ruing the inability to work out a multi-trillion-dollar grand bargain in time, have said a pared down version dealing mainly with taxes was within reach.

Citing unnamed people briefed on the talks, The Washington Post said one version under consideration would protect nearly 30 million taxpayers from paying the higher, alternative minimum tax rate for the first time and maintain unemployment benefits for two million people.

The plan also would halt a steep cut in Medicare reimbursements for doctors and preserve popular tax breaks for both businesses and individuals, such as those for research and college tuition, the report said.

But the two sides were still at odds over where to set the tax limits on the wealthy - at $250,000 or $400,000 of annual income - and over taxes on inherited estates.

Nor has there been agreement on spending cuts so sought after by Republicans, who say excessive government spending is the main driver of US debt.

Republicans seeking leverage may try to hold Democrats' feet to the fire on the looming issue of the debt ceiling, setting up another battle over the government's borrowing limit, which the US Treasury expects will be maxed out by March.

Obama warned that if an agreement was not reached in time, he would ask the Senate to hold an up-or-down vote on a basic package that protects the middle class from a tax hike, extends unemployment insurance, and "lays the groundwork for future ... deficit reduction".

In a weekly Republican address, Senator Roy Blunt expressed some optimism, saying that "going over the fiscal cliff is avoidable".

But he criticised Democrats for focusing mainly on taxes while setting aside government spending, arguing that such inaction "shouldn't be an option".

15.02 | 0 komentar | Read More

Abalone fisherman drowns off WA coast

A MAN diving for abalone has drowned off the coast off Western Australia, police have confirmed.

The man in his 40s, believed to be of Chinese origin who was living in Perth, was fishing in the waters near Cape Leeuwin in the state's southwest when he got into trouble.

He had been in a group of about 10 people fishing for the delicacy when disaster struck.

St John Ambulance crews attended the scene and attempted to revive the man but were unsuccessful.

The fisherman is the second person within two months to die while attempting to catch abalone in the waters off WA.

In November, a 20-year old was swept out to sea in treacherous conditions while on an abalone hunt north of Perth.

The Malaysian man was caught in a strong rip in Yanchep Lagoon, 55 kilometres north of Perth, and was swept away.

That group was searching for the expensive delicacy on the first day of the heavily restricted recreational fishing season.

The disaster triggered calls for metropolitan abalone fishing spots to be closed in dangerous weather.

However, the ocean conditions in the Lighthouse Bay area where Sunday's incident occurred were not thought to be dangerous.

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Indian gang-rape victim cremated

India has been engulfed by an outpouring of grief as the body of a gang-rape victim arrived home. Source: AAP

THE victim of a gang-rape which triggered an outpouring of grief and anger across India has been cremated at a private ceremony in New Delhi as it emerged she was planning to get married in February.

The unidentified 23-year-old, the focus of nationwide protests since she was brutally attacked on a bus in New Delhi two weeks ago, died on Saturday of her injuries in a Singapore hospital where she had been airlifted for treatment.

She was cremated on Sunday away from the public glare only hours after her body was repatriated.

The funeral pyre was lit after traumatised relatives and friends said their final prayers at a ceremony in southwestern Delhi, according to mourners who revealed she had been due to wed her boyfriend, who was injured in the same attack.

"They had made all the wedding preparations and had planned a wedding party in Delhi" for February, said Meena Rai, a close friend and neighbour.

"I really loved this girl," she said. "She was the brightest of all."

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Sonia Gandhi, the leader of the main ruling Congress Party, were at Delhi airport to console the victim's parents as they arrived home on a chartered plane with their daughter's body at 4.00am (0930 AEDT) on Sunday.

The victim's death has prompted government promises of better protection for women and deep soul-searching in a nation where gang-rapes are a daily occurrence and sexual harassment is routinely dismissed as "Eve-teasing".

Waves of protests have erupted across India since the attack on the night of December 16 when the woman was not only repeatedly raped but also sexually assaulted with an iron bar, leaving her with terrible intestinal injuries.

Thousands took part in late-night candlelit vigils on Saturday after Singh led appeals for calm to prevent a repeat of the sometimes violent protests.

As police said the six accused of murdering the unnamed woman could face the death penalty, there was a widespread determination that the killing would serve as a tipping point for how the nation deals with violence against women.

"We are aware that this is not the first case, nor will it be the last case of gang-rape in India, but it is clear that we will not tolerate sex crimes any more," said Bela Rana, a lawyer who joined a rally in central Delhi.

The city has been dubbed the "rape capital" of India. A report in Sunday's Hindustan Times said more than 20 women had been raped there since December 16.

According to police and prosecutors, the murder victim's ordeal began when six men lured her and her male companion onto a bus that they thought would take them home.

Instead a group of joyriders, who had been drinking heavily, launched a savage attack lasting some 40 minutes that only ended when the victims were thrown off the bus.

The attack has prompted intense debate among Indians who had grown almost inured to an epidemic of violence against women.

Gang-rapes are so common that they rarely get a mention in the newspapers. Victims are often deterred even from reporting them for fear of shaming their families or receiving a brush-off from police.

The Times of India said in an editorial on Sunday that two key questions must be addressed in the aftermath of the incident: "What exactly will the government do now to make the country a safer and better place for all women? And what will all of us do to tackle deeply entrenched prejudice and misogyny in our society?"

The government has already promised to bring in tougher sentences for the most extreme sex crimes and speed up a notoriously slow justice system.

A statement issued by United Nations spokesman Martin Nesirky said UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon "offers his sincerest condolences" to the victim's family and "utterly condemns this brutal crime".

"Violence against women must never be accepted, never excused, never tolerated," the statement said. "Every girl and woman has the right to be respected, valued and protected."

Ban urged the Indian government to take steps to deter such crimes and bring perpetrators to justice, and to "strengthen critical services for rape victims", the statement said.

15.02 | 0 komentar | Read More

19 Shi'ites killed in Pakistan bus blast

A CAR bomb attack on buses carrying Shi'ite Muslim pilgrims to Iran has killed 19 people and wounded 25 in Pakistan's insurgency-hit southwest, officials say.

The remotely-triggered bomb hit a convoy of three buses in Mastung district on Sunday and set one of them ablaze, said Tufail Baluch, a senior government official in the district.

"At least 19 people have been killed and 25 injured. All of them were Shi'ite pilgrims," he told AFP, adding most of those killed were burnt to death.

"The bomb was planted in a car. The condition of some of the injured is critical," Baluch said.

Some 180 Shi'ite pilgrims were on their way to Iran in the buses when the bomb ripped through one of them, said Akbar Hussain Durrani, a senior government official in Quetta, the capital of Baluchistan province.

One bus carrying some 45 pilgrims was badly damaged, he said.

Mastung is some 30 kilometres south of Quetta.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack.

The province has become an increasing flashpoint for sectarian violence between Pakistan's majority Sunni Muslims and minority Shi'ites, who account for around a fifth of the country's 180 million people.

Baluchistan is also rife with Islamist militancy and with a regional insurgency which began in 2004. The insurgents demand political autonomy and a greater share of profits from the region's oil and gas resources.

15.02 | 0 komentar | Read More