Long-awaited Mladic war crimes trial opens in The Hague

Ratko Mladic, who is accused of orchestrating a horrific campaign of ethnic cleansing during the bloody civil war that ripped apart Yugoslavia, went on trial Wednesday at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia in The Hague, Netherlands.

Prosecutors say Mladic's campaign included the massacre of 8,000 Muslims in the Bosnian town of Srebrenica.

The 70-year-old former Bosnian Serb general has been indicted on 11 counts of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity in the 1992-95 war.

On Monday, his lawyers filed a petition to delay his trial by six months, contending the prosecution failed to share evidence in a timely manner and that the presiding Dutch judge was biased because of his role in other trials of Serbs.

But the trial opened as scheduled on Wednesday morning.

Among those in the courtroom were the families of Srebrenica victims.

"Victims have waited nearly two decades to see Ratko Mladic in the dock," Param-Preet Singh, senior counsel in the International Justice Program at Human Rights Watch, said ahead of the trial. "His trial should lay to rest the notion that those accused of atrocity crimes can run out the clock on justice."

2001: Ratko Mladic captured

Mladic's trial begins after a landmark war crimes ruling last month, when another international tribunal found former Liberian President Charles Taylor guilty of aiding and abetting war crimes in neighboring Sierra Leone's notoriously brutal civil war.

"Both trials are evidence of the growing international trend to hold perpetrators of atrocities to account, no matter how senior their position," Human Rights Watch said.

Mladic eluded authorities for nearly 16 years until his capture in May 2011, when police burst into the garden of a small house in northern Serbia.

Europe's highest-ranking war crimes suspect was discovered standing against a wall in a utility room normally used for storing farm equipment, according to a government minister.

Though he was carrying two handguns, he surrendered without a fight. He was extradited for trial in the Netherlands.

But from day one in custody, he has exhibited defiance and appears not to have relinquished his visceral antagonism toward his enemies. He drew a finger across his throat in court, a gesture aimed at some of the 

Srebrenica widows. At other times, he disrupted proceedings by putting on a hat in the courtroom and refusing to enter a plea.

He has sought delays in his trial and said he is in failing health.

In July 1995, Mladic was in command of the Bosnian Serb Army and led his soldiers into the town of Srebrenica. In the days that followed, the soldiers systematically slaughtered nearly 8,000 Muslim men and boys.

Mladic was dubbed the "Butcher of Bosnia."

Bosnia peace negotiator Richard Holbrooke once described Mladic as "one of those lethal combinations that history thrusts up occasionally -- a charismatic murderer."

In the three decades leading up to the violent splintering of Yugoslavia, Mladic rose rapidly through the ranks of the Yugoslav army. In 1991, he served as a front-line commander spearheading Serb forces in a yearlong war with Croatia.

By the time he took to Bosnia's battlefields, he had become a hero to many Serbs, seen as a defender of their dwindling fortunes.

In May 1992, Bosnia's Serbian political leaders picked him to lead the assault on their Muslim enemies who clamored for independence.

Mladic wasted no time galvanizing his heavily armed forces in a siege of Sarajevo, cutting the city off from the outside world. Serb forces pounded the city every day from higher ground positions, trapping Sarajevo's ill-prepared citizens in the valley below. More than 10,000 people, mostly civilians, perished.

Some observers conjured images of Sarajevo in describing Syrian attacks on the besieged city of Homs earlier this year.

As the war ended in the fall of 1995, Mladic went on the run.

Shortly after Mladic was sent to The Hague last year, authorities nabbed former Croatian Serb rebel leader Goran Hadzic. He was the last Yugoslav war crimes suspect at large.

Bosnian Serb wartime leader Radovan Karadzic was arrested in 2008. And Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic was arrested in 2001 but died before his trial could be completed.

Source: CNN News

Iranian president: Israel 'nothing more than a mosquito' to Iran

Ahead of upcoming nuclear talks, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad downplayed the threat Israel poses to Iran, comparing it to an annoying bug.

"Israel is nothing more than a mosquito which cannot see the broad horizon of the Iranian nation," he said Saturday in northeastern Iran's Khorassan province, according to the semi-official Fars news agency.

Ahmadinejad said "regional states" were being duped into buying billions in arms from "arrogant and imperial powers," driven in part by all the talk surrounding a potential war involving Iran and Israel, the state-run Islamic Republic News Agency reported. Such military purchases, he said, are unnecessary because there is no war on the horizon between those two nations.

The Iranian president alluded to "rulers" who sold "their petrol" for $60 billion worth in arms, though he did not mention by name either the purchasing or selling country. Saudi Arabia is in the midst of a 20-year, $60 billion arms deal with the United States, including nearly $30 billion for F-15 fighter jets announced late last year.

Ahmadinejad has long questioned the existence of the Holocaust and, months after taking office in October 2005, he participated in a lengthy protest called "World Without Zionism" and has repeatedly derided Israel.

"With the force of God behind it, we shall soon experience a world without the United States and Zionism," he said then, according to another IRNA report.

On Saturday, while seemingly backing away from the potential for an armed conflict, Ahmadinejad hardly signaled that Iranians should or will embrace Israel.

He predicted Israel could fall if regional powers cut ties -- particularly by refusing to sell oil to Israelis.

Tensions have ramped up in recent years over Iran's controversial nuclear program. Iran claims it is being developed for peaceful means, while Western powers and Israel say they think Iran is evading international inspections and intent on developing nuclear weapons.

This sentiment has led to sweeping sanctions targeting Iran's economy, government and its leaders.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been a particularly harsh, persistent critic of Iran's leadership and nuclear program, with rumors circulating for months that Israel may pre-emptively strike nuclear sites in Iran and possibly set off a regional war.

And Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, last Friday "blasted the U.S. war-mongering rhetoric against Iran," including President Barack Obama's assertion that "all options are on the table." He added war "can be 10 times more harmful to" the United States than Iran, according to a Fars report.

Even with all the back-and-forth, there has been an apparent shift recently in the tone, and manner, of dialogue between the two sides.

EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton described nuclear talks last month in Istanbul, Turkey, between international and Iranian diplomats on nuclear matters as "constructive and useful."

And Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi said last week that he was optimistic that there would be progress in continued talks with the United States, Russia, China, Germany, France and Britain -- the so-called P5+1, Fars reported.

Those parties are set to meet again May 23 in Baghdad.

Before then, discussions in Vienna, Austria, will be held on Monday and Tuesday to address "outstanding issues and remove ambiguities," Iran's envoy to the International Atomic Energy Agency Ali-Asghar Soltanieh said, according to Fars.

Source: CNN News

Afghan peace negotiator Arsala Rahmani shot dead

A senior Afghan peace negotiator has been shot dead in Kabul, officials say.

Arsala Rahmani was a former Taliban minister and a key member of Afghanistan's High Peace Council, which leads Afghan efforts to negotiate a peace deal with the Taliban.

Correspondents say his death is a major blow to President Hamid Karzai as Mr Rahmani was a key figure in reaching out to Taliban commanders.

Last year the chief of the peace council was killed in a suicide attack.

Burhannudin Rabbani was killed by a bomb hidden in the turban of a suicide attacker posing as a Taliban peace envoy last September.

His US-educated son, Salahuddin Rabbani, was appointed to replace him last month.

Single shot

Police say that Mr Rahmani was shot dead on Sunday morning by an unidentified gunman while on his way to work in western Kabul, in what was described as a carefully planned attack.

Gunmen driving a white Toyota Corolla fired a single bullet using a silencer, the BBC's Bilal Sarwary in Kabul reports.

"Mr Rahmani was shot in his heart and died instantly. His nephew, who was also his driver, didn't even realise he had been shot," Kabul police chief Gen Ayub Salangi told the BBC.

There had been threats against his life in the past and questions will be raised as to why he was travelling without an armed bodyguard, our correspondent says.

The Taliban have denied involvement in the killing of Mr Rahmani.

An Isaf statement condemned the killing and paid tribute to Mr Rahmani: "His decision to help make the future brighter for Afghans serves as an inspiration to us all and his contributions will be missed".

Mr Rahmani was one of the first senior Taliban members to join the peace process and his death will be of concern to other Taliban officials considering engaging with the government, a senior presidential aide told our correspondent.

He was a critical figure in President Karzai's plans to reach out to Taliban commanders, although it is unclear how many senior leaders he managed to bring into the fold.

Nevertheless the president frequently consulted him to gain insight into the inner workings and the thinking of the Taliban leadership.

Mr Rahmani was responsible for the committee within the peace council that considers the release of Taliban prisoners from Bagram and other Afghan prisons.

He served as minister of higher education in the Taliban administration that ruled Afghanistan for five years until the US drove them from power in 2001.

But he had been politically active long before the birth of the Taliban movement, holding political office in Afghan administrations during the 1990s.

And he was one of several former Taliban officials removed from a UN blacklist last July as a signal of support for Afghan peace efforts, which meant that a travel ban and assets freeze were lifted.

Afghanistan's 70-member peace council was set up two years ago by President Karzai to open negotiations with insurgents.

The council was credited with reconciling hundreds of Taliban field commanders, but had failed to woo any senior figures away from the insurgency.

Although the Taliban denied sanctioning last year's killing of Mr Rabbani, they view the Western-backed Karzai government as illegitimate.

And in March the militants suspended parallel preliminary peace negotiations with the United States, saying US efforts to involve the Afghan authorities were a key stumbling block. 

Source: BBC News

Groups: Explosion heard near Baath Party office in Syrian city of Aleppo

A powerful explosion rocked Aleppo, Syria's most populous city, late Friday, killing a guard at an office of President Bashar al-Assad's ruling Baath Party, opposition groups reported.

The cause of the blast was not immediately known. Heavy gunfire was heard in its aftermath, the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported.

Earlier, Syrian authorities foiled a suicide bombing in the city, state media said.

The action comes a day after suicide attackers killed dozens in the capital of Damascus, a strike that heightened tensions in a country caught in the grip of a popular uprising.

Authorities "intercepted a stolen booby-trapped minibus" that an attacker tried to detonate in Aleppo's densely populated neighborhood of al-Shaar, the state-run Syrian Arab News Agency reported.

A SANA correspondent quoted a source in Aleppo province as saying that "competent authorities intercepted the terrorist after he hit two policemen, then he blew himself up with an explosive belt, killing himself," the news agency said. The source said that authorities searching the minibus found four tanks with "a big quantity of explosives."

An initial state TV report said the forces killed the bomber before he detonated his vehicle carrying 1,200 kilograms, or 2,645 pounds of explosives.

Damascus and Aleppo have been the scene of a flurry of attacks in recent months. Aleppo, a commercial center and long a bastion of support for al-Assad, had been largely spared in Syria's 14 months of bloody uprising. But recent protests and violence there could signal a significant shift.

Elsewhere Friday, a number of explosions were reported in cities across the country, including four in Daraa and several in Hama, according to the Local Coordination Committees of Syria, an opposition group.

At least 20 people, including the Aleppo security guard, were killed across the country, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

Syria's foreign ministry underscored the urban violence in identical letters to U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and U.N. Security Council President Agshin Mehdiyev, who is the Azerbaijani ambassador to the United Nations.

The letters said that Damascus, Aleppo and other Syrian cities "witnessed several terrorist bombings over the last weeks" that left dozens of innocent people dead, the state-run news agency reported.

The letters said the country is facing "terrorist" assaults spearheaded by groups that get arms and money from entities encouraging the actions.

The letters said the "armed terrorist groups" are violating international envoy Kofi Annan's peace plan and attacked a convoy from the U.N. observer team Wednesday in Daraa province. There were no injuries in that bombing attack. Maj. Gen. Robert Mood, the head of the observer team, was in the convoy.

"Syria will move forward to combat terrorism and defend its people and sovereignty and preserve security and stability in it," the letters said.

Syria blames "terrorists" for the attacks, the term it uses to describe the opposition and rationalize security forces' crackdown. Some analysts said the attacks raise concerns about the presence of jihadist elements in Syria, noting Thursday's Damascus strikes resemble suicide car bombings during the sectarian violence in Iraq in the past decade.

But opposition groups have said the regime is responsible for the violence that erupted after it began a crackdown on peaceful protests in March 2011. That fierce clampdown spurred a grassroots uprising against the regime.

The United Nations estimates that at least 9,000 people have died in the conflict, while opposition groups put the death toll at more than 11,000.

The opposition Syrian National Council said al-Assad's regime staged Thursday's deadly suicide bombings in Damascus "to spur chaos, disrupt the work of the international observers and divert attention away from other crimes being committed by its forces elsewhere."

"In orchestrating such acts," the council said Friday, "the regime seeks to prove its claims of the existence of 'armed terrorist gangs' in the country that are hindering its so-called 'efforts of political reform.' "

More than 55 people were killed and 370 were injured in Thursday's two car bombings near a military intelligence center in the Qazzaz neighborhood of Damascus, the nation's capital. It was the deadliest attack since the uprising against the regime began.

But the council questioned how the bombers could have made it past security to conduct the bombings.

"The security branch is heavily guarded and surrounded with cement barriers at a distance from the exterior fence. It would be reckless to carry out such an attack, because it would in no way impact the security building.

"One of the cars was loaded with a large amount of explosive materials. How is it possible that these explosives made it past hundreds of security checkpoints surrounding the entrance to the capital?"

With the focus on the attacks and their aftermath, "the regime carried out arbitrary arrests across the country, most notable in the Damascus suburb of Damir," the council said.

The latest bombings didn't deter Syrians from taking to the streets in protest across the country Friday, the day opposition groups have been staging nationwide protests.

But the attacks cast doubt on the effectiveness of the U.N.-Arab League initiative to impose a truce and a six-point peace plan, forged by Annan, the former U.N. secretary-general.

Since the cease-fire went into effect on April 12, the LCC reports more than 1,000 people have died. An unarmed U.N. observer mission has been monitoring the adherence to the cease-fire and peace plan.

The mission now has 145 observers and 56 civilian staff deployed in Syria and is carrying out patrols, a U.N. spokesman said Friday. Three hundred observers are expected within weeks.

Annan is weighing an invitation to meet with al-Assad in Syria, his spokesman said as the deadly blasts in Damascus drew widespread condemnation. Syria's foreign minister invited him days ago, and the invitation is not tied to Thursday's attacks, a U.N. source said.

Russia, meanwhile, condemned Thursday's suicide bombings and accused outside nations of instigating violence.

"Some countries are inciting outside forces to interfere into the Syrian situation, which is unacceptable," Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said, according to Chinese state media.

Lavrov, in Beijing for talks with his Chinese counterpart, did not specify the countries.

"Such acts aim to push the country to a new bloody and extremely dangerous wave of violence," he said.

Source: CNN News

2,300 birds found dead along Chilean beaches

Chilean officials are asking fishermen to help save birds caught in nets after thousands of dead fowl appeared along coastal Chile this week.

At least 2,300 dead birds were found along beaches between Cartagena and Playa de Santo Domingo, Chile, said Jose Luis Britos, and environment professor and director of the Museum of Natural History of San Antonio, Chile.

Many of the birds, which come from several species, had broken wings and bruising on the outside of their bodies -- injuries consistent with getting trapped in fishing nets, Britos said.

He said bird deaths from fishing nets occur every year, but never at this level. In a typical year, about 15 to 20 dead birds are found, Britos said.

One hypothesis for the increase this year involves climate. As Chilean weather gets colder this time of year, migrating birds that would normally travel north for warmth are instead lingering to feast on an influx of anchovies and sardines that had fled the coast of Peru in search of cooler waters.

Earlier this week, Peruvian authorities say warm waters off that country's coast are to blame for the deaths of more than 5,000 marine birds.

The Peruvian National Center for the Study of El Nino said that since February, the Peruvian coast has had an abundance of warm water as a result of marine currents throughout the world's oceans. The warm water has altered the marine ecosystem, it said.

The warm water has led fish such as anchovies and other species that live in surface waters to migrate to deeper water toward the south. As a result, pelicans and other birds that feed from the surface of the water died of starvation.

"If these oceanographic conditions persist, it is likely that its impact will spread to other areas of the (Peruvian) coast even during the fall, which could make the numbers increase and affect other marine species," the report stated.

The Peruvian ministry of environment said seafood is still safe to eat, and encouraged everyone to continue to support local fishermen, according to state-run Andina news agency.

Officials in Peru continue to search for the cause of death of almost 900 dolphins since the beginning of the year. The health ministry is awaiting final results from molecular analysis looking for the morbillivirus, which previously has been linked to dolphin deaths.

The Chilean agriculture and livestock ministry and staff from Britos' center have called for a meeting with fishermen for Monday. They are asking fishermen to try to save trapped birds before closing their nets.

Britos said he worries that until Monday, the number of dead birds could rise significantly
Source: CNN News

Final push for Greece government falls to president

Greek President Karolos Papoulias is preparing to hold talks with party leaders in an attempt to create an emergency government.

The move comes after the country's socialists became the third party to fail to form a coalition.

If the president's bid fails, fresh elections will have to be held, probably next month.

Last Sunday, voters backed parties opposed to Greece's bailout deal that requires deep budget cuts.

Greece's political turmoil has raised the possibility that it could default on its debts and be forced out of the eurozone.

The president is expected to try to pressure parties into a government of national salvation - but the BBC's Mark Lowen in Athens says he is unlikely to succeed.

The process could take days.

Evangelos Venizelos, leader of the socialist Pasok party, abandoned efforts to form a new government on Friday and said he would meet the president on Saturday morning.

He had held talks with centre-right New Democracy leader Antonis Samaras, whose party came first in the election, but could not find a third partner to give them a majority in parliament.

"I hope that during the negotiations chaired by Mr Papoulias everyone will be more mature and responsible in their thinking," Mr Venizelos said.

New Democracy also failed to form a coalition earlier in the week, as did the left-wing bloc Syriza, which came second in the election.

Austerity 'denounced'

Syriza firmly rejects the terms of the EU-IMF bailout, which requires tough austerity measures in return for loans worth a total of 240bn euros (£192bn; $310bn).

Its leader, Alexis Tsipras, said on Friday he could not join any coalition that intended to implement the bailout deal.

"The rejection of this plan does not come from Syriza but was given by the Greek people on the night of the election," he said.

"The bailout austerity has already been denounced by the Greek people with its vote, and no government has the right to enforce it."

Analysts say Syriza could be hoping for fresh elections after one opinion poll put them in first position in any new ballot, albeit without an overall majority.

Sunday's election saw a backlash against Pasok and New Democracy, which had formed the outgoing coalition and had agreed the terms of the bailout.

The once-dominant Pasok, which was seen as the architect of austerity, came third with just 41 seats in the 300-seat parliament.

The Greek crisis is continuing to create unease is global financial circles.

The Fitch ratings agency warned that if Greece did leave the euro, it would probably place all 16 remaining euro nations' sovereign ratings on "rating watch negative" - meaning they would be in danger of being downgraded.

"A Greek exit would break a fundamental tenet underpinning the euro - that membership of EMU (Economic and Monetary Union) is irrevocable," Fitch said.

EU monetary affairs chief Olli Rehn said Greece had to abide by its bailout terms.

"Greece systemically lived beyond its means for a decade... It is simply not sustainable and therefore Greece has had to take firm action to restore its economic competitiveness and sustainable public finances," he said.

Source: BBC News

Syria unrest: UN condemns Damascus 'suicide blasts'

The UN Security Council has condemned car bomb attacks that killed at least 55 people and wounded almost 400 in the Syrian capital, Damascus, on Thursday.

The council urged all sides to "immediately and comprehensively" implement the peace plan for Syria.

Syrian officials say "foreign-backed terrorists" carried out a twin suicide car-bomb attack in Damascus.

The bombs exploded near a military intelligence building during the morning rush hour.

The 15-member of the Security Council members "condemned in the strongest terms the terrorist attacks", a statement said.

The council also called on all sides to comply with the six-point peace plan of UN-Arab League envoy Kofi Annan, "in particular to cease all armed violence."

Syria's ambassador to the UN accused Arab and other foreign powers of supplying and supporting armed groups. He urged the UN to take steps to stop such activity.

The Syrian government and rebel forces are supposed to observe a ceasefire monitored by a UN team.

However violence has continued unabated across the country.

Central Damascus is under the firm control of government forces, but the city has been hit by several bombings in recent months, often targeting security buildings or military convoys.

Thursday's attacks was the deadliest in the capital since the start of Syria's uprising 14 months ago.

Military intelligence

The interior ministry said the attackers used two cars "loaded with more than 1,000kg of explosives and driven by suicide bombers".

The explosions damaged the facade of a 10-storey military intelligence building involved in the crackdown on the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad's rule.

C

It is part of a broader military compound of the Palestine Branch, one of the most feared among the more than 20 secret police organisations in the country, correspondents say.

The unit was originally set up in the 1950s to interrogate suspected Israeli spies. But it has evolved into the country's counter-terrorism unit, and is infamous for interrogations and torture, they say.

Large crowds gathered despite the security cordon, shouting slogans and chants in support of President Assad.

The Norwegian head of the UN observer mission in Syria, Maj Gen Robert Mood, visited the site. He said the Syrian people did not deserve this "terrible violence".

The US state department also condemned the attack, saying indiscriminate killing could not be justified. It called on the Syrian government to "fully and immediately implement the Annan plan".

The call was echoed by UK Foreign Secretary William Hague, who said the people of Syria were "suffering as a result of the repression and violence, which must come to an end".

Continue reading the main story

Recent blasts in Damascus

• 5 May: Two blasts cause damage, but no-one is hurt.
• 27 April: An explosion in the centre of Damascus near a mosque kills at least 10 people and wounds 20 others.
• 2 April: A bomb explodes near a police station and hotel in the central Marja district of Damascus, injuring at least four people.
• 17 March: At least 27 people are killed and nearly 100 wounded in two explosions said to be targeting buildings housing the criminal police and aviation intelligence.

Homs shelling

The opposition says the attacks were carried out by the government itself to discredit rebel forces.

Meanwhile, the Syrian army bombarded the city of Homs overnight.

Opposition activists described the bombardment as some of the heaviest shelling in Homs for weeks.

Eleven UN monitors are now stationed there to try to implement a ceasefire.

The observers are in the country as part of the joint UN-Arab League peace plan and began deploying last month.

There are now 105 monitors in the whole country, but their presence has had no effect in quelling the violence. A total of 300 are due to be sent in the coming weeks.

The UN says at least 9,000 people have died since pro-democracy protests began in March 2011.

 

 

Source: BBC News

Philippine police deployed for South China Sea protest

More than 100 police have been deployed near the Chinese Consular Office, said local media, ahead of a demonstration expected to draw hundreds of people.

The two countries have been locked in a stand-off in disputed waters at the Scarborough Shoal since 8 April.

Both sides accuse each other of intruding into territorial waters.

The row began early last month when the Philippines said its naval ship had found eight Chinese fishing vessels at the shoal, which both sides claim.

A number of Chinese and Philippine fishery and coastguard ships remain stationed at the shoal, with both sides refusing to withdraw. 

Tours suspended

Philippine officials said they expected the protest to be peaceful.

Protest organisers say demonstrations are planned at several Chinese diplomatic missions around the world.

In an advisory, the Chinese embassy in Manila advised its citizens to stay off the streets.

Chinese state media also reported on Thursday that most travel agencies had suspended tours to the Philippines.

An official at one agency confirmed the suspension to the BBC, while another said clients were being warned not to travel.

China has also warned the Philippines that it was prepared to respond to ''any escalation'' in the maritime situation.

State media has given the issue widespread coverage in recent days, warning of damage to bilateral ties and vowing not to back down.

A Xinhua news agency commentary published late on Thursday said Chinese people "were enraged by the offensive behaviour of the Philippines" over the issue.

The shoal itself, called Huangyan Island by China, is a series of rocks and reefs more than 100 miles (160km) from the Philippines and 500 miles from China.

China claims sovereignty over a large U-shaped area of the South China Sea, bringing it into dispute with several neighbouring countries. In recent months it has grown more assertive over the issue.

Manila has asked China to settle the issue at the International Tribunal on the Law of the Sea (ITLOS).

 Source: BBC News

Campaigners push for marriage equality worldwide

Cushla wore a white dress for her big day, Tania, braces, a hat and bow-tie. The couple, now wife and wife, tied the knot during a small ceremony led by an unregistered celebrant on a farm west of Sydney, Australia. It had all the hallmarks of a "real" wedding. Except this one wasn't valid, at least under Australian law.

Australia is one of many countries around the world where same-sex couples are not permitted to legally marry. And the law doesn't seem likely to change any time soon.

Prime Minister Julia Gillard, who has long opposed gay marriage, made it clear Thursday that her mind hadn't been nudged by a politically risky move by U.S. President Barack Obama to back same-sex marriages Wednesday night.

"My view hasn't changed and when a bill comes to the parliament later this year, moved by private members, Stephen Jones, one of our Labor members... When that bill comes to the parliament this year I won't vote for it," Gillard told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

Jones is one of two members of parliament who have submitted a private member's bill that calls for the legalization of gay marriage, however neither Gillard nor main opposition leader Tony Abbott support it.

"Obviously at this stage we've still got more work to do," said John Kloprogge, spokesman for campaign group Australian Marriage Equality. "But we are confident that this issue has the support of the majority of Australians and it will eventually be supported by the leaders of our major parties."

Obama's decision to openly endorse same-sex marriage won plaudits from campaigners worldwide who have been pushing for more liberal laws since the first same-sex couples walked down the aisle in the Netherlands in 2001.

Same-sex marriages are now allowed in a number of U.S. states and in countries including Belgium, Canada, Spain, South Africa, Norway, Sweden, Portugal, Iceland and Argentina, according to Australian Marriage Equality.

Wedding bells are close to ringing on same-sex marriages elsewhere: Leading human rights activist Peter Tatchell hailed Obama's move as evidence that support for same-sex marriage was "an unstoppable global trend".

"Gay marriage is all about love," he said. "The love of same-sex couples is just as real, strong and committed as that of married heterosexual men and women. Prohibiting same-sex marriage devalues and denigrates the love of lesbian and gay couples. It signifies our continuing second class legal status."

British Prime Minister David Cameron has said he supports their legalization in the UK, where authorities are currently consulting on the issue, having permitted civil partnerships since 2005.

However the issue's omission this week from the Queen's Speech, which outlines laws to be introduced in the coming months, dismayed campaigners. Ben Summerskill, of gay rights charity Stonewall said he was "disappointed," and pledged "to push both coalition parties to deliver on their promise... by 2015."

After becoming the first country to legalize same-sex unions in 1989, Denmark is close to doing the same for same-sex marriages. And Nepal, a country that only legalized same sex unions in 2008, has appointed a committee to develop laws on same-sex marriages.

However, in many countries LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) campaigners are nowhere near close to reaching for the confetti on gay marriage. Simply being able to live without fear or prejudice is the aim of activists in countries where homosexuality remains taboo or illegal.

According to a report released in May 2011 by the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association, same-sex relations are still criminalized in 76 countries, and in five of those countries the death penalty can be applied.

The countries with the harshest penalties are in Africa and the Middle East.

MPs in Uganda have repeatedly tried to introduce an anti-homosexuality bill which would make homosexual acts a capital offense; prominent gay rights activist David Kato was beaten to death in the country in 2011.

And even in South Africa, where single sex marriage was legalized in 2006, and where the post-apartheid constitution bans prejudice on the grounds of homosexuality, attacks on gays and lesbians -- including instances of so-called "corrective rape" -- still occur.

In other regions too, attitudes have been slow to change. In Indonesia, efforts to frame a Gender Equality Bill were resisted by campaigners who said that gender equality could open up room for legalizing same sex unions, according to Human Rights Watch.

Last month, a court in Malaysia backed police over its ban on a gay rights festival which officials argued could disrupt public order. And in Hong Kong, the sexuality of pop star Anthony Wong made headlines when he confirmed, after years of speculation, that he was gay. It was said to be the first time in nine years that a pop star had come out as homosexual in China's Special Administrative Region.

"Hong Kong doesn't have the gay bashing that a lot of countries have... But at the same time you still have people who are very ignorant," said Reggie Ho, Chairman of the Pink Alliance which is organizing a concert Wong is due to perform at on Saturday, May 12. The concert is part of an event to mark International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia (IDAHOT), which is observed in 60 countries. The official date is May 17, the day in 1990 that the World Health Organization removed homosexuality from its list of mental disorders.

"They gossip about you, or they make suggestions that hurt you very much. So it's that kind of discrimination and the fact that the Hong Kong government has not moved forward at all in terms of legislating against discrimination against sexual minorities," Ho said.

Separately in Australia on Saturday, campaigners will be holding a National Day of Action for Marriage Equality when thousands are expected to march through major cities calling for same-sex marriage.

"A lot of people are getting exasperated that we don't have it yet," said Jessica Payne who is organizing the Brisbane march. "I think it is a matter of time but it's not going to happen without a push."

Cushla said she and Tania weren't willing to sit around and wait "and hope" for same-sex marriage to become legal.

"I didn't want to miss out. I just wanted it to be the way that we wanted it to be, despite the fact that my partner is a woman," she said. "Eventually, when it becomes legal, we'll legally bind it."

Source: CNN News

Greece: Pasok and New Democracy leaders in unity talks

Mr Venizelos is the third leader to try to form a coalition after Sunday's election produced a hung parliament.

The socialist Pasok and centre-right New Democracy parties governed in coalition until last Sunday's election.

Voters angry at austerity measures abandoned them for parties rejecting the terms of an international bailout.

Analysts say Friday's talks are unlikely to succeed. If they fail, the president must ask all political leaders to make one final effort to form a government before calling fresh elections.

Pasok dominated Greek politics for most of the past four decades, but saw its support slashed on Sunday - coming third with just 41 seats in the 300-seat parliament.

Mr Samaras's New Democracy won the most votes, taking 108 seats, but he was unable to woo other party leaders.

Left-wing coalition Syriza was the second biggest party, but its leader Alexis Tsipras also failed to form a government because of his insistence on rejecting austerity measures demanded by the EU and IMF.

Pasok and New Democracy between them have 149 seats, two short of a majority.

'Slim chance'

However, on Thursday Mr Venizelos said he had made progress after meeting the leader of the Democratic Left party, which has 19 seats.

Its leader, Fotis Kouvelis, said he was willing to join a broad-based government that would keep the country in the euro but disengage it from the bailout.

"There is a very slim chance for a coalition if Kouvelis agrees," one socialist party official quoted by Reuters said. "But his party is split right down the middle."

The BBC's Mark Lowen in Athens says Pasok is deeply unpopular - seen as the architects of austerity, and tainted with allegations of corruption.

As the prospect of fresh elections loomed, an opinion poll published late on Thursday put Syriza in first place with nearly 28% of the vote - up from 16.8 - winning 128 seats.

The Marc survey for private Alpha TV put New Democracy in second place with 20.3% and 57 seats, and Pasok third with 12.6% of the vote and 36 seats.

The political deadlock has brought warnings from European leaders that debt-laden Greece could be thrown out of the euro if it does not stick to tough spending cuts and economic reforms.

Athens is due to approve fresh budget cuts worth 14.5bn euros (£11.6bn; $18.8bn) next month, in return for financial help from the EU and IMF worth a total of 240bn euros.

Both Germany and the EU have made clear they expect Athens to honour its commitments.

 Source: BBC News

Mark Rothko work sold for record $86.9m at auction

The 1961 painting went under the hammer at Christie's in New York.

The auction house said the sale's total takings - $388.5m (£240.5m) - exceeded the previous record for a contemporary art auction, set in 2007.

Last week a version of Edvard Munch's The Scream set a new world record after selling at auction for $119.9m (£74m).

Prior to Tuesday's sale, the most paid for a Mark Rothko work at auction was $72.84m (£45m).

Francis Bacon's Triptych held the previous record for a piece of post-war art, having sold for $86.3m (£53.4m) in 2008.

A total of 14 artists recorded new highs for their works on Tuesday, with only three of the 59 lots on offer failing to sell.

Among the new records set include the $36.5m (£22.6m) paid for Yves Klein's FC1, a piece created with water, two models and a blowtorch shortly before the French artist's 1962 death.

Jackson Pollock's Number 28, 1951, one of the artist's seminal drip paintings, fetched $23m (£14.2m), while an untitled 1980 work by Willem de Kooning went for $14.1m (£8.7m).

Another high-profile contemporary art auction takes place on Wednesday, when Roy Lichtenstein's Sleeping Girl goes under the hammer at Sotheby's in New York.

The estimated value for the 1964 "Pop Art" piece has been put between $30m (£18.5m) and $40m (£24.7m).

Source: BBC News

U.N. leader condemns Syrian bomb blast

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon condemned a bomb blast Wednesday near a convoy of U.N. observers that was entering the southern Syrian city of Daraa.

"This attack is unacceptable," Ban told reporters at the United Nations. "Today's incident is an example of what the Syrian people have endured for the past 15 months. It is a testament to the difficulty and the danger of the task entrusted to our U.N. observers and it is a blunt reminder of the risks of violence escalating even further.

"There is no escaping the reality that we see every day: innocent civilians dying, government troops and heavy armor in city streets, growing numbers of arrests and allegations of brutal torture, an alarming surge in the use of IEDs and other explosive devices."

The bomb exploded near the convoy carrying U.N. observers and the head of the monitoring team in southern Syria. There were no casualties among the observers, but the Syrian government said 10 Syrian soldiers were wounded, according to a statement released on behalf of Ban. The observers were heading from Damascus to Daraa under Syrian army escort.

Ban called on government forces "and all elements of the opposition" to stop the violence. "If this opportunity is not seized, I fear that what joint special envoy Kofi Annan has warned about will come to pass: a full-scale civil war with catastrophic effects within Syria and across the region."

Annan is working on behalf of the United Nations and the Arab League to end the fighting.

Ban said it is imperative for the international community to support Annan's efforts.

"This was a graphic example of what the Syrian people are suffering on a daily basis and underlines the imperative for all forms of violence to stop," Maj. Gen. Robert Mood, head of the U.N. Supervision Mission in Syria and chief military observer, said in a written statement.

A "recent increase" in bombings and persistent violence "call into question the commitment of the parties to the cessation of violence and may have a direct impact on the future of the mission," the statement said.

The purpose of the observer mission is to monitor the status of the cease-fire and Annan's six-point peace plan.

Pro-government news agency Addounia TV, which had a crew in the convoy, said the blast damaged cars and a state-run Syrian TV photographer was "lightly injured."

"The explosion directly targeted the guards," Addounia TV said.

Sham News, a network of opposition activists who post information and videos on the Internet, said the blast occurred in the Manshiya neighborhood of Daraa when a military Jeep stormed the city and fired shots resulting in injuries. It said opposition Free Syrian Army forces "targeted the car and exploded" the vehicle.

"We deny that any of the people in the car were members of the international mission," Sham News said.

CNN cannot independently verify reports of violence and deaths within Syria as the government has restricted access by most of the international media.

Despite months of international sanctions, diplomacy and pressure on President Bashar al-Assad's regime, world leaders say an end to the bloodshed may still be far away.

Annan plans to return soon to Damascus to seek adherence to the cease-fire, which was supposed to go into effect April 12. He reiterated that the killing must stop immediately.

"There has been some decrease in the military activities, but there are still serious violations in the cessation of violence that was agreed," Annan told reporters after briefing the U.N. Security Council.

The Local Coordination Committees of Syria, an opposition network, said Wednesday that 1,025 Syrians have been killed since Annan's initiative. The dead include 42 women, 60 children (40 boys, 20 girls), 22 people who died under torture.

The U.N. observer mission comprises 113 personnel from 38 countries, including 70 military observers and 43 civilian staff members and is mandated to have 300 military observers and about 100 additional civilian staffers. It has been operating in Damascus, Homs, Hama, Idlib, Aleppo and Daraa. It is regularly receiving new members and expanding.

"In the next two days, we will cross the 100 mark for military observers in the mission," Mood said.

At least 20 people were killed Wednesday in Syria, the LCC said. The deaths occurred in Homs, Hama, Idlib, Deir Ezzor, Aleppo and the Damascus suburbs.

Susan Rice, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, said the United States maintains its position that al-Assad has lost all legitimacy and must step down. If the violence persists, she said, the Obama administration is ready to look at other means to ratchet up pressure on Damascus, including a renewed discussion in the Security Council.

On Monday, Ban said the Syrian situation has become one of the "most serious and gravest concerns of the international community."

"More than 9,000 people have been killed during the last 14 months. This is totally unacceptable and an intolerable situation," Ban said.

The Syrian ambassador to the United Nations again blamed the violence on armed perpetrators that he claimed were supported and financed by Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and other nations.

"We are still committed toward guaranteeing the maximum success to the mission of Kofi Annan," Bashar Jaafari said at a news conference Tuesday. "But the Syrian government cannot do all the job alone."

He said the international community is hypocritical by not acting against terrorists in Syria as they do against al Qaeda.

Rice said no one could say with certainty that there are no foreign fighters in Syria. But she said that's not the key issue.

"This is substantially a diversion from the main point," Rice said. "The main point is that the government of Syria continues to kill its own people."

Many nations, including Syria's Arab neighbors, have condemned the ongoing violence, which has pitted a minority Alawite-dominated government against a predominantly Sunni uprising.

International leaders have said the Syrian government is targeting dissidents seeking democracy and the ouster of al-Assad, whose family has ruled Syria for 42 years.

The LCC says more than 11,000 people have been killed in 14 months.

Source: CNN News

Pasok's Venizelos in third bid for Greece coalition

The talks follow failed bids by leaders of the centre-right New Democracy and radical left Syriza bloc.

Correspondents warn Pasok is tainted by its association with unpopular austerity cutbacks.

Sunday's elections revealed a country divided over plans to bring it out of its debt crisis.

Financial chaos has sparked huge social unrest in Greece and led to a deep mistrust of the once-dominant parties which backed austerity.

Under the bailout agreement, Athens is due to pass new austerity measures worth 14.5bn euros (£11.6bn; $18.8bn) next month - part of cuts required to qualify for bailouts worth a total of 240bn euros.

'Effort must continue'

After the first two parties failed to find coalition partners, former finance minister Mr Venizelos will now meet President Karolos Papoulias to receive the mandate to try to form a government.

"It was clear that in the current stage of this process we cannot reach a solution but that we must continue this effort," Mr Venizelos said, according to AP news agency.

"So the mandate I will receive tomorrow will have substance and importance."

But Pasok is now deeply unpopular, says the BBC's Mark Lowen in Athens - seen as the architects of austerity, and tainted with allegations of corruption.

It dominated Greek politics for most of the past four decades, but saw its support slashed on Sunday - coming third with just 41 seats, a quarter of its pre-bailout support.

Its attempt to form a government also appears likely to fail, our correspondent says, making fresh elections - and weeks of fresh instability across the eurozone - seem inevitable.

The eurozone's rescue fund on Wednesday decided to withhold 1bn euros of its latest instalment of its bailout to Greece pending a meeting of eurozone finance ministers on Monday.

But the fund said it would disburse 4.2bn euros of the 5.2bn euros due to the country on Thursday.

'Dream' dashed

The fresh coalition bid follows in the wake of a failed attempt by Alexis Tsipras, the leader of Greece's far-left Syriza bloc.

Mr Tsipras said he had failed to reach agreement with mainstream parties because of his insistence on rejecting austerity measures demanded by the EU and IMF as part of a bailout deal.

He made the announcement after failed talks with the Pasok and New Democracy parties, which support the bailout. Talks with the Communist KKE and smaller left-wing Democratic Left also failed.

He told Syriza MPs: "We cannot make true our dream of a left-wing government."

Earlier on Wednesday, New Democracy leader Antonis Samaras rejected Mr Tsipras's demand to tear up the bailout deal.

Mr Samaras told a party meeting that the proposal would "lead to immediate internal collapse and international bankruptcy, with the inevitable exit from Europe".

"[Amending] the loan deal is one thing, it is a completely different thing to unilaterally denounce it. The second option leads to catastrophe that is certain and immediate," he said.

If it rejects the deal with the IMF and EU, Athens will be unable to draw its international loan, meaning it would again face the prospect of bankruptcy and possible exit from the euro, our correspondent says.

Previous Greek governments agreed to make deep cuts to pensions and pay, raise taxes and slash thousands of public sector jobs in return for the bailouts.

Both Germany and the EU have made clear they expect Athens to honour its commitments.

German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle said on Wednesday: "Germany would like to keep Greece in the eurozone, but Greece's fate is now in its own hands."

Source: BBC News

Russian plane wreckage found in Indonesia

The wreckage of a Russian passenger airliner that went missing during a demonstration flight over Indonesia has been located in a mountainous area, a local official said Thursday.

Teams searching for the plane spotted debris from the Sukhoi Superjet 100 at a height of about 5,800 feet (1,800 meters) on the side of Mount Salak, a volcano south of Jakarta, said Daryatmo, head of the National Search and Rescue Agency.

Daryatmo, who like many Indonesians only uses one name, said the Sukhoi logo had been identified amid the wreckage.

No information was immediately available about the passengers who were on board the plane, which disappeared off radar screens on Wednesday.

Rescue workers on the ground have not yet been able to reach the wreckage, but the Search and Rescue Agency is dispatching a helicopter to the site, Daryatmo said.

There were conflicting reports about the number of people on the Sukhoi jet, Russia's newest civilian airliner, when it went down, with different agencies giving headcounts between 37 and 47.

The confusion appeared to stem from uncertainty about whether everybody on the passenger list actually boarded the plane.

The latest number of people on board, provided by the Indonesian Transportation Safety Committee, was 47, all of whom were Indonesian except eight Russian crew members and two other foreign nationals.

The plane was on its second demonstration flight Wednesday when it lost contact with air controllers at Jakarta's Halim Perdanakusuma Airport.

"The first demonstration flight in the morning went smoothly," said Sunaryo. "There were no problems."

On the second flight, the plane began making its descent but vanished from radar screens at 6,200 feet in a mountainous area.

The plane lost contact with air traffic controllers at 2:12 p.m., 21 minutes after taking off, said Marsda Daryatmo, head of the search and rescue agency. Two helicopters were immediately sent out to search for the plane but had to return to their bases due to strong winds and unpredictable weather.

The Sukhoi jet arrived in Jakarta as part of a demonstration tour of six Asian countries. It had been to Myanmar, Pakistan and Kazakhstan, and was due to visit Laos and Vietnam after Indonesia, said the Russian news agency RIA Novosti.

Sukhoi manufactures military aircraft and is known especially for its fighter jets. Its civilian aircraft is narrow-bodied with a dual-class cabin that can transport 100 passengers over regional routes. It flew its maiden flight in 2008.

In March, a Superjet 100 operated by Russia's Aeroflot Airlines was forced to abandon its flight to Astrakhan, Russia, and return to Moscow because of problems with the undercarriage, according to RIA Novosti.

A similar defect in another Aeroflot-operated Superjet 100 plane had to be fixed in Minsk in December.

Russia's state-run United Aircraft Corp. said the defect did not affect passenger safety.

Source: CNN News

Rebels burn Timbuktu tomb listed as U.N. World Heritage site

Elderly men were keeping watch Saturday over Timbuktu's main library after Islamists burned a tomb listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site.

The attacks Friday were blamed on Ansar Dine, a militant group that seeks to impose strict Sharia law.

The ancient city in Mali was captured by at least two separatist Tuareg rebel groups -- one of which is Ansar Dine -- in an anti-government uprising in the northern part of the country that began in January.

The rebels burned the tomb of a Sufi saint where people come to pray, said Sankoum Sissoko, a tour guide familiar with the place. He said the library and other heritage sites remained under threat.

Baba Haidara, a member of the National Assembly, called for UNESCO and the greater international community's help restoring the shrine and freeing the city.

"They attacked the grave, broke the doors and windows and ripped and burned pieces of white clothing that surrounded the tomb of the saint in front of everyone," said Haidara, who is from the central Mali city. "With their attack, the militants touched the heart of Timbuktu. They picked Friday because they know many people visit the shrines on this day."

Sufism is a mystical dimension of Islam, and Islamists believe Sufi shrines are sacrilegious. As such, they have mounted attacks against Sufi sites in several nations.

Sissoko said the attackers were dressed in signature Ansar Dine black robes and turbans. Timbuktu residents, he said, were ready to take up arms against the rebels, who have been linked to al Qaeda.

Religious leader Baba Cheick Sekou said the occupying rebel groups have no respect for Timbuktu's religious and historic importance.

Sekou said he feared for the protection of the prestigious Koranic Sankore University and ancient manuscripts that are kept there, as well as other tombs and mosques of historic significance.

"All Muslims know the tomb is a holy place," he said. "It's not something you attack and destroy. It's anti-Islamic. People in the community are angry."

Haidara described the shrine situation as bad.

Read also: Mali's treasure at risk from uprising

"The young people of Timbuktu have started training to resist the militants, and I fear people will seek revenge," he said.

Timbuktu Mayor Ousmane Halle said the attackers tore down windows and wooden gates at the grave sites and burned them. Tensions were high in the city, he said.

"People are angry, and for a good reason," Halle said.

"So far there's been no response from the central government condemning the attack," he said. "I'm still waiting for them to give a declaration. That's what they would have done if it happened in (Mali's capital city of) Bamako."

To many, Timbuktu conjures a distant and exotic place due its location on the southern edge of the vast Sahara and accounts of great material and scholarly wealth.

Known as the "city of 333 saints" for the Sufi imams, sheiks and scholars buried there, Timbuktu was declared a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1988. UNESCO is a United Nations cultural organization.

See the list of UNESCO World Heritage sites

After the ouster of Moammar Gadhafi, armed Tuaregs who had been fighting in Libya streamed back across the border into Mali. In March, the ongoing Tuareg revolt sparked a military coup against Mali President Amadou Toumani Toure by officers unhappy with the government's handling of the rebellion.

The rebels capitalized on the chaos in Bamako, in southern Mali, and usurped large swaths of territory in the north. UNESCO grew gravely concerned about the protection of heritage sites.

UNESCO chief Irina Bokova has called for all groups to respect and protect the city's history.

"Timbuktu's outstanding earthen architectural wonders that are the great mosques of Djingareyber, Sankore and Sidi Yahia must be safeguarded," she said.

"Along with the sites' 16 cemeteries and mausolea, they are essential to the preservation of the identity of the people of Mali and of our universal heritage."

Islamists destroyed another world heritage site in 2001 when the Taliban used dynamite to blow up two giant 6th century statues of Buddha carved into the cliffs of Bamiyan in central Afghanistan.

In a recent report, Human Rights Watch accused the Tuareg rebels of war crimes, including rape, use of child soldiers, summary executions and pillaging of hospitals, schools, aid agencies and government buildings.

Source: CNN News