Australian PM tours flood disaster zone

Associated press

AFP/POOL/File – Flood waters surround a supermarket in the Queensland town of Emerald. Australia has started forced evacuations …

– Thu Dec 30, 7:51 pm ET

BUNDABERG, Australia (AFP) – Prime Minister Julia Gillard on Friday toured towns hit by one of Australia's worst ever flood disasters, which has displaced thousands of residents and left thousands more homes at risk.

Gillard flew to Bundaberg, which has been cut in two by the post-cyclone inundation, before moving on to Rockhampton, a major regional centre where 4,000 residences are under threat.

Vast swathes of the northeastern farming and coal-mining belt near Brisbane are already submerged as waters continue to rise, with flood peaks expected in the coming days.

Officials have voiced concerns over disease outbreaks and food shortages in 22 towns inundated or isolated by the floods -- in some places the worst on record -- which have also paralysed coal production at several mines.

Gillard was greeted by good news in Bundaberg, where scores of residents are sheltering in evacuation centres, after the nearby river peaked and waters slowly started to recede.

"It's good news that it's going down quicker than anticipated," she said, before heading into a meeting with emergency services.

The prime minister was also expected to visit Emerald, population 11,000, where the muddy tide could deluge some 80 percent of the town. About 1,200 residents have already evacuated, officials said.

Queensland premier Anna Bligh, who has called it the huge state's "toughest hour", said the floods and severed transport links had affected 200,000 people across an area the size of France and Germany combined.

Some areas may remain flooded for another 10 days, with relief and clean-up operations expected to last weeks. Bligh said the disaster's cost may amount to several billion dollars (several billion US).

Australia floods larger than France strand 200,000

Associated Press

AP – A wallaby stands on a large round hay bail trapped by rising flood waters outside the town of Dalby in …

BRISBANE, Australia – Military aircraft dropped supplies to towns cut off by floods in northeastern Australia as the prime minister promised new assistance Friday to the 200,000 people affected by waters covering an area larger than France and Germany combined.

Residents were stocking up on food or evacuating their homes as rising rivers inundated or isolated 22 towns in the state of Queensland.

Prime Minister Julia Gillard toured an evacuation center in the flood-stricken town of Bundaberg on Friday and announced that families whose homes had been flooded or damaged would be eligible for disaster relief payments of $1,000 per adult and $400 per child.

"My concern is for the people in these very difficult times," Gillard said.

A day earlier, she pledged $1 million Australian dollars (about $1 million) in federal aid to match a relief fund already set up by the state government.

Bundaberg resident Sandy Kiddle told Gillard she lost cherished items after floodwaters surged through her house. She said may not be able to return home for a week.

"It was just a sea of water, and I thought the beach would never come to our house," she told Gillard, who gave her a hug.

Officials say half of Queensland's 715,305 square miles (1,852,642 square kilometers) is affected by the relentless flooding, which began last week after days of pounding rain caused swollen rivers to overflow. The flood zone covers an area larger than France and Germany combined and bigger than the state of Texas.

While the rain has stopped, the rivers are still surging to new heights and overflowing into low-lying towns as the water makes its way toward the sea.

The muddy water inundating thousands of homes and businesses has led to a shortage of drinking water and raised fears of mosquito-borne disease.

"This is without a doubt a tragedy on an unprecedented scale," Queensland Premier Anna Bligh told Australian Broadcasting Corp.

Bligh warned that drenched communities could be stuck underwater for more than a week, and cleanup efforts were expected to cost billions of dollars.

The Department of Community Safety said supplies of food and bedding were delivered by road and by military aircraft Friday to the towns of Rockhampton, Emerald, Springsure and Blackwater in central-east Queensland.

Northeastern Australia often sees heavy rains and flooding during the Southern Hemisphere summer, but the scope of the damage from the recent downpours is unusual.

The entire population of two towns has already been forced to evacuate as water swamped their communities, cutting off roads and devastating crops. The next city in the water's path — Rockhampton, near the coast — is bracing for flood levels forecast at 31 feet (9.4 meters) by Monday or Tuesday.

Roads and railway lines were expected to be cut off by Saturday, and the city's airport planned to shut down over the weekend.

"This is a very serious situation," said Rockhampton Mayor Brad Carter, saying that level would affect up to 40 percent of the city. "Police are ordering people in affected areas to leave their homes."

Officials were evacuating residents on Friday, starting with the elderly and those living in low-lying areas.

There were concerns over food supplies in the city, with many stores already sold out of bread, milk and fresh meat, Carter said.

Gary Boyer, regional manager of supermarket chain Woolworths, said the company was sending 43 trucks full of supplies into Rockhampton on Friday.

Thousands of people have been evacuated from their homes this week. In the central Queensland town of Emerald, about 1,000 people were evacuated in the last 24 hours.

The town was facing food shortages, power outages and sewage-contaminated floodwaters, county mayor Peter Maguire said. Three evacuation centers have been set up to help displaced residents.

Vatican sets up watchdog to combat money laundering

30 December 2010 Last updated at 12:34 GMT
The new rules bring the Vatican in line with international regulations

The Vatican has set up a new financial authority to fight money laundering and make its financial operations more transparent.

The Pope has signed into law new rules to bring the Vatican's banking regulations in line with international efforts to combat money laundering and the financing of terrorism.

The move comes ahead of an EU deadline.

It follows accusations the Vatican had been contravening international rules on money laundering.

In September, Rome prosecutors formally put the director of the Vatican Bank, Ettore Gotti Tedeschi, and his deputy under criminal investigation after receiving a tip-off from the Bank of Italy about possible money laundering.

The Italian justice authorities seized 23m euros ($30m; £19m) which the Vatican had deposited at a branch of an Italian commercial bank near Saint Peter's Square, allegedly without properly identifying either the depositor or the recipient.

The Vatican said there had been a misunderstanding and there had been no wrongdoing by their bank or its employees.

Vatican Bank

• Set up by Pope Pius XII in 1942
• Based in Vatican City, has no other branches, operates as offshore institution outside EU rules
• Headed by professional banker overseen by commission of cardinals
• No shareholders, no policy-making functions
• All profits set aside for charitable or religious works

On Thursday, Pope Benedict XVI signed the documents, saying the Vatican wanted to join other countries in cracking down on legal loopholes that have allowed criminals to exploit the financial sector.

The Vatican is acting ahead of a 31 December deadline to create a compliance authority to oversee all its financial operations, which is required by the EU and other international organisations.

The Vatican's centuries-old secrecy over the way it handles its money will no longer be an excuse to avoid its obligations under international and Italian criminal law to combat money-laundering operations by third parties, says the BBC's David Willey in Rome.

Exempt

The Vatican Bank - known officially as the Institute for Works of Religion - has hitherto exempted itself from international banking regulations on the grounds that it is not a real bank in the normal sense of the word, our correspondent says.

It handles accounts for the Pope, his cardinals and religious orders, and has only one branch inside the apostolic palace in Rome.

The new laws are due to come into effect by 1 April, after the new authority is set up and its members chosen, the Vatican said.

It will take some time, however, for the Vatican to be put on the so-called "white list" of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, our correspondent adds. The list identifies countries that have agreed to share tax information and crack down on tax havens.

Source: BBC News (www.bbc.com)

US aid worker Paul Waggoner freed from Haitian prison

Paul Waggoner was arrested after a Haitian man accused him of kidnapping his son from a hospital

A US aid worker has been freed from a prison in Haiti after a judge declined to charge him over claims he kidnapped a baby from a hospital where he worked.

A Haitian man had accused Paul Waggoner of kidnapping his 15-month-old son in February from the Haitian Community Hospital in Petionville.

The aid worker spent 18 days in the notoriously overcrowded National Penitentiary in Port-au-Prince.

The court was shown evidence that the baby in question had died in hospital.

Mr Waggoner received medical treatment on Wednesday, according to the Materials Management Relief Corps, the aid group which Mr Waggoner co-founded after the 12 January earthquake in the country.

Supporters had previously expressed concerns Mr Waggoner could contract cholera or other illnesses in the prison, which has been widely criticised by human rights groups as providing inhumane conditions.

He was imprisoned after being arrested earlier this month.

Extortion claims

Judge Lionel Dimanche freed Mr Waggoner after the aid worker's legal team submitted the infant's death certificate to the judge, lawyer Gary Lisade told the Associated Press news agency.

An affidavit from the American doctor who treated the 15-month-old boy in hospital was also presented to the court.

Mr Waggoner said earlier this month the infant's father had brought his son to the hospital in February and was trying to extort money from him after refusing to believe the boy had died and his body been cremated.

"It went from kidnapping to selling him to selling him into the United States for adoption to a priest saying that he was still alive," the aid worker told the CNN news network upon his release.

A justice official in Haiti said that although Mr Waggoner had been released, the investigation was still ongoing.

Source: BBC World (www.bbc.com)

Sister's Kidney Donation Condition Of Mississippi Parole

by The Associated Press

December 30, 2010

For 16 years, sisters Jamie and Gladys Scott have shared a life behind bars for their part in an $11 armed robbery. To share freedom, they must also share a kidney.

Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour suspended the sisters' life sentences on Wednesday, but 36-year-old Gladys Scott's release is contingent on her giving a kidney to Jamie, her 38-year-old sister, who requires daily dialysis.

The sisters were convicted in 1994 of leading two men into an ambush in central Mississippi the year before. Three teenagers hit each man in the head with a shotgun and took their wallets - making off with only $11, court records said.

Jamie and Gladys Scott were each convicted of two counts of armed robbery and sentenced to two life sentences.

"I think it's a victory," said the sisters' attorney, Chokwe Lumumba. "I talked to Gladys and she's elated about the news. I'm sure Jamie is, too."

Civil rights advocates have for years called for their release, saying the sentences were excessive. Those demands gained traction when Barbour asked the Mississippi Parole Board to take another look at the case.

The Scott sisters are eligible for parole in 2014, but Barbour said prison officials no longer think they are a threat to society and Jamie's medical condition is costing the state a lot of money.

Lumumba said he has no problem with the governor requiring Gladys to offer up her organ because "Gladys actually volunteered that as part of her petition."

Lumumba said it's not clear what caused the kidney failure, but it's likely a combination of different illnesses over the years.

Barbour spokesman Dan Turner told The Associated Press that Jamie Scott was released because she needs the transplant. He said Gladys Scott will be released if she agrees to donate her kidney because of the significant risk and recovery time.

"She wanted to do it," Turner said. "That wasn't something we introduced."

Barbour is a Republican in his second term who has been mentioned as a possible presidential contender in 2012. He said the parole board agreed with the indefinite suspension of their sentences, which is different from a pardon or commutation because it comes with conditions.

An "indefinite suspension of sentence" can be reversed if the conditions are not followed, but those requirements are usually things like meeting with a parole officer.

The Scott sisters have received significant public support from advocacy groups, including the NAACP, which called for their release. Hundreds of people marched through downtown Jackson from the state capital to the governor's mansion in September, chanting in unison that the women should be freed.

Still, their release won't be immediate.

Mississippi Department of Corrections Commissioner Chris Epps said late Wednesday that he had not received the order. He also said the women want to live with relatives in Florida, which requires approval from officials in that state.

In general, that process takes 45 days.

Mississippi NAACP President Derrick Johnson said the Scott sisters' release will be "a great victory for the state of Mississippi for two individuals who received an excessive sentence" and he has no problem with the kidney donation requirement because Gladys Scott volunteered.

"I think it's encouraging that she's willing to share a kidney so her sister can have a better quality life," Johnson said.

National NAACP President and CEO Benjamin Todd Jealous said the suspension of the sentences represents the good that can come with the power of governors.

"It's again proof that when people get engaged, keep the faith, we can win," Jealous said.

Barbour has used his power sparingly to free prisoners over the years, but some of his decisions have created a backlash.

Barbour outraged the family and friends of Jean Elizabeth Gillies, a University of Mississippi student who was raped, sodomized and strangled in 1986, when he granted a suspended sentence for her killer, Douglas Hodgkin.

Ariel Sharon: Former Israeli prime minister moved home

Ariel Sharon, the former Israeli prime minister, has been moved from a hospital to his home.

The 82-year-old has been in a coma since 2006, when he suffered a massive stroke.

Doctors say the hope is that he will eventually be able to remain at his house with a full medical team to care for him.

The medics said the process of moving him permanently to his home - a farm in southern Israel - was a gradual one.

The former prime minister was taken in an ambulance at dawn on Friday from the Sheba Hospital near Tel Aviv to the family's ranch.

"Today, in 2010, the aspiration of any patient, our aspiration in the hospital, is to ensure that any chronic patient, when possible, is with his community, at home," Dr Shlomo Noy, director of rehabilitation at the hospital, told Israel Radio.

"Clearly what's behind this move home is the hope that his situation will get better. But the improvements that we talk about in such situations are not great improvements, not dramatic improvements," he added.

Mr Sharon is expected to be returned to hospital for regular check-ups.

"It's a gradual process, when a hospital discharges a chronic patient to his home," Dr Noy said. "It's a structured process, whereby you check that the support and medical environment in which the patient is to be placed permanently is suitable."

'Political shadow'

On this first, carefully rehearsed, journey from the hospital the former leader was accompanied by the medical team, and all the necessary respiratory machinery to keep him alive.

Ariel Sharon has been in a coma since 2006, when he suffered a massive stroke

Security personnel erected screens at the hospital and the ranch so that he would not be visible when he was taken in and out of the ambulance.

BBC Jerusalem correspondent Wyre Davies says that even though he is in a permanent coma and is likely to never recover, Ariel Sharon still casts a shadow over Israeli politics.

Mr Sharon was admired by many Israelis as a great military leader, but reviled by Palestinians.

He was elected prime minister in 2001, pledging to achieve "security and true peace".

He was a keen promoter of the expansion of the state and initiated the construction of the security barrier around the West Bank.

But despite fierce opposition in Israel, he ordered Jewish settlers to leave Gaza and four settlements in the West Bank.

As defence minister, Mr Sharon masterminded Israel's invasion of Lebanon in 1982. During the invasion, Lebanese Christian militiamen allied to Israel massacred hundreds of Palestinians in two refugee camps under Israeli control.

12 November 2010,

Source BBC News.

Blast rips police facility in Karachi; 15 dead, police say

Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) -- At least 15 people died and more than 100 were injured in a suicide car bomb attack on a police facility in the Pakistani city of Karachi, police said Thursday.

Pakistani Taliban spokesman Azam Tariq told CNN that the Taliban carried out the attack, which police say targeted building that housed a Crime Investigation Department facility.

"We will continue such attacks as long as military operations continue against us," Tariq said. Pakistani security forces have been battling the group in the country's tribal region, which borders Afghanistan.

The blast occurred in a high-security area, near government buildings and major hotels, such as the Pearl Continental and the Sheraton. The U.S. consulate is in the general vicinity but was not considered the target.

U.S. State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said U.S. consulate operations were not affected and officials are not aware of any U.S. casualties.

A Pakistani government official told CNN that about five gunmen on foot cleared the way for the suicide car bomber by firing on security personnel manning a security check post.

The official said that once the vehicle cleared the check post it raced toward the police facility and rammed into the building.

The official, who asked not to be named because he is not authorized to speak to the media, doesn't know the whereabouts of the gunmen.

Local TV showed footage of a three- or four-story building with significant damage and ambulances rushing the injured from the scene.

By Reza Sayah, CNN

November 12, 2010 1:56 a.m. EST

Source: CNN news.

UK inflation rate remains at 3.1%

Rises in the price of bread, cereals and vegetables helped to keep the inflation rate high

UK Consumer Prices Index (CPI) inflation remained unchanged in August at 3.1%, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

It means the rate remains well above the Bank of England's 2% target, and it brings to an end a three-month period during which the rate had been falling.

The unexpectedly high rate was boosted by strong rises in air fares, clothing and food. Fuel prices fell.

Retail Prices Index (RPI) inflation slowed to 4.7%, down from 4.8% in July.

CPI is used for the Bank of England's target. However, RPI - which includes more housing costs - is important for wage negotiations, and is used to calculate certain benefit increases and mortgage payments.

Economists had forecast lower rates of inflation for August, with CPI expected at 2.9% and RPI at 4.6%.

The news could strengthen the position of Andrew Sentance, the member of the Bank's Monetary Policy Committee who broke ranks over the summer to vote in favour of an interest rate increase.

The pound jumped 0.6% against the dollar on the news, to $1.544, as markets priced in the probability that UK interest rates may rise sooner than previously expected.

Food prices:

Air fares, which tend to rise during the summer holiday months, jumped 16% in August - their sharpest rise for the month on record.

Clothing and footwear prices rose at their fastest monthly rate for an August since 2001, although prices remain below their level of a year ago.

The news follows a warning from department store Debenhams, who said on Tuesday that the entire UK clothes retail industry faced higher prices, thanks to the rising cost of cotton and the weak pound.

The warning was echoed comments by retailer Primark on Monday that rising costs may eat into its profit margins over the coming year.

Summer sales discounts happened earlier in the year than usual, meaning that discounting had a relatively smaller impact on the August data than usual.

Food costs continued to rise, with bread, cereals and vegetables leading the way.

Wheat prices hit a 22-month high in August after rising more than 50% since the end of June.

Target missed

More worryingly for economists, the core inflation rate rose to 2.8%, from 2.6% in July.

Core inflation strips out volatile food and energy prices, and is used to gauge the underlying longer-term inflation trend.

The CPI inflation rate has now remained above the Bank of England's target for nine months.

Mervyn King, the Bank's governor, is likely to be disappointed that the rate has remained outside the government's 1%-3% tolerance range for another month.

Last month, he had to write a letter to the chancellor of the exchequer explaining why the rate was still more than one percentage point above its 2% target.

He blamed temporary factors, including the return of VAT in January to 17.5%, past rises in oil prices and higher import prices as a result of the depreciation in the pound since the middle of 2007.

However, he said "there remains a significant probability that I will need to write further open letters to you in the coming months".

VAT is set to rise again, to 20%, in January next year, giving a further boost to headline inflation figures.

Eroding savings:

The continuing high rate of inflation will be bad news for savers.

With interest rates at record lows, the real value of savings is being steadily weakened.

"Inflation is a stealthy enemy that quietly erodes the spending power of a saver's hard-earned nest egg," said Darren Cook of the financial information service Moneyfacts.

He points out that a basic rate taxpayer needs to find an account paying 3.88%, while a higher rate tax payer needs to find an account offering 5.17%, in order to maintain the real value of their savings.

"The average instant access savings rate is still at rock bottom at a rate of only 0.77%," said Mr Cook.

"Only 91 out of a possible 1,020 accounts allow a basic rate tax payer to just break even at 3.88%."

The average savings pot of a basic rate tax payer is in effect being eroded by 2.48% per year.

Source: BBC News.

Rafael Nadal plays down comparisons with Roger Federer

Archive - Nadal wins first Grand Slam at 2005 French Open

Rafael Nadal was quick to play down talk of him overtaking Roger Federer's record haul of 16 Grand Slams after winning his first US Open title.

The Spaniard, 24, beat Novak Djokovic 6-4 5-7 6-4 6-2 in New York to earn his ninth Grand Slam crown and complete his set of winning all four major titles.

Asked about Federer's tally of 16 Slams, he said: "It's very far. For me, it's too far to think about that.

"I think talk about if I am better or worse than Roger is stupid."

Nadal joins Federer, Andre Agassi, Roy Emerson, Rod Laver, Don Budge and Fred Perry in having won all four Grand Slams and also becomes the first man since Laver swept the board in 1969 to win the French Open, Wimbledon and US Open in the same year.

And at five years younger than Federer, the Majorcan has time on his side in the pursuit of more major victories.

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Nadal is the best - Djokovic

"The titles say he's much better than me, so that's true at the moment," stated Nadal. "I think it will be true all my life."

"For me, always Roger was an example, especially because he improved his tennis I think during all his career, and that's a good thing that you can copy, no?"

"So I try to copy this and I know Roger and me are different, much different styles. Being better than Roger - I don't think it's the right moment to talk about that because I don't think that."

Nadal has now won five French Opens, two Wimbledon, one Australian and one US Open, as well as an Olympic gold medal and the Davis Cup.

And he admitted that the one significant title for him still to win is the end-of-year ATP World Tour Finals, played indoors at London's O2 Arena in November.

MEN'S CAREER GRAND SLAMS Fred Perry (GB) 1933-1935 Don Budge (US) 1937-1938 Rod Laver (Aus) 1960-1962 Roy Emerson (Aus) 1961-1964 Andre Agassi (US) 1992-1999 Roger Federer (Swiss) 2003-2009 Rafael Nadal (Spain) 2005-2010

"My goal remains the Tour Finals, it's probably the last big tournament that I didn't win," added Nadal.

"That's true it's the most difficult title for me to win because we play it indoors on a very quick surface, so it's always going to be very difficult if we don't change that."

"But at the same time it's a challenge for me to keep improving to have the chance to play well there and to have the chance to win. So that's what I'm going to try this year."

Djokovic, also the US Open runner-up in 2007, said of Nadal: "He's so mentally strong and dedicated to this sport. He has all the capabilities, everything he needs, in order to be the biggest ever.

"He has the game now for each surface and he has won each major. He has proven to the world that he's the best in this moment, so there is no question about it."

The Serb put on a brave face in the immediate aftermath of his defeat but later conceded: "I cannot hide the disappointment. I'm not going to cry or complain about that. It's just the way it is.

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Federer's record better than mine - Nadal

"Of course I'm feeling bad about my loss. I wanted that trophy and I know I gave my maximum to get it but tomorrow I will wake up as a new man. I will continue on working hard and waiting for the next chance to come."

The 23-year-old said that Nadal was simply too strong in the closing stages as he became the first left-hander to win the US Open since John McEnroe in 1984 and the first Spaniard since Manuel Orantes in 1975.

"I don't think I played a bad match overall," commented Djokovic. "It was very good performance from my side but whenever it was important, he was the one who was playing just too good."

Djokovic, the 2008 Australian Open champion, will move up to number two in the new world rankings, ahead of Roger Federer after defeating the Swiss in a dramatic five-set semi-final.

"I've played the best tennis, certainly in the last seven, eight months, maybe the whole year," he said.

"From Wimbledon up to this point, I feel much more comfortable on the court, more confident and getting this aggressive game back and the game that I need to have in order to stay at the top, a game that has been part of me always.

"It's a good sign. I will continue on working, as I said, and hope that I can keep that performance."

And Djokovic will get the chance to shake off his disappointment this coming weekend as he returns to Serbia for the Davis Cup semi-final against the Czech Republic.

"Davis Cup is very important," he added. "It's one of the crucial matches, semi-finals for the first time, and there is a lot of interest for the match in our country.

"I don't think it's going to affect me too much. I'm physically fit."

Rafael Nadal wins 2010 Wimbledon title

Source: BBC Sports

American hiker released from Iranian prison, lawyer says

By the CNN Wire Staff

September 14, 2010 -- Updated 1336 GMT

Tehran, Iran (CNN) -- Sarah Shourd, one of three American hikers detained for more than a year in Iran, has been released from prison, her lawyer told CNN on Tuesday.

Attorney Massoud Shafii, who is representing the hikers, had said everything was in place for Shourd's release once bail of $500,000 was submitted to the Iranian judiciary.

Tehran Prosecutor General Abbas Jafari Dolatabadi told state-run television that "representatives" of Shourd paid her bail to an Iranian bank in Muscat, Oman, after which a judge ordered her release Tuesday.

"She can leave Iran if she wants to," Dolatabadi said.

A diplomat at the Swiss embassy told Press TV that Shourd would be leaving Iran later Tuesday.

Shourd, 32; Shane Bauer, 28; and Josh Fattal, 28, were detained July 31, 2009, after they allegedly strayed across an unmarked border into Iran while hiking in Iraq's Kurdistan region.

Tehran has accused the three hikers of spying.

As the news of Shourd's release unfolded, a spokeswoman for the families of the hikers, Samantha Topping, said the families had heard nothing officially.

"We don't have any confirmation of Sarah's release. The families are watching news reports," she said.

A judge decided to allow Shourd to be released on bail because of her medical condition, the official Islamic Republic News Agency reported Sunday, citing Tehran Prosecutor General Dolatabadi.

Shourd had a pre-existing gynecological problem, and her family says she now also has a lump in her breast, according to Shafii.

Iranian officials have apparently changed their stance on Shourd's release several times since last week.

Iranian officials had announced Thursday that Shourd would be released on Saturday, at the end of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan. But state media announced Friday that the release had been called off because legal procedures had not yet been resolved.

On Sunday, Dolatabadi announced the country's "readiness for the conditional release of one of the three U.S. citizens arrested for illegally entering the country," state-run Press TV said.

"It's hard to say what's behind the twists and turns of this," U.S. State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley told reporters Monday. "Our focus is on getting the hikers home, as it has been for more than a year."

Gary Sick, a professor at Columbia University and a former National Security Council Iran analyst, said it was not a coincidence that the latest news came just as Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is about to attend the United Nations General Assembly meeting later this month.

"I think President Ahmadinejad really wanted to use this as a way of building up a store of goodwill just before he comes to New York," Sick said. "It didn't work that way, and I think that his plans were really screwed up by that fact that all of these hard-liners in Iran, the conservatives that are supposed to be his friends, are all attacking him left and right."

Dolatabadi said Sunday that authorities had completed investigations on espionage charges against the three Americans over the past several days and the indictments have already been issued by the judge in charge of the case, IRNA reported.

But Crowley said Monday that the United States remains firm in its belief that the hikers are innocent.

"We do not believe that they are guilty of any crime. Iran has had more than enough time to investigate and satisfy its questions about why these three individuals crossed an unmarked border," he said. "We want to see this resolved. We are grateful to the Swiss and other countries that are working these issues on our behalf."

The Swiss have been representing American interests in the case in the absence of formal U.S.-Iran diplomatic relations.

The hikers' families' website, freethehikers.org, said Shourd had been in solitary confinement and had been able to meet for only two 30-minute periods per day with Bauer, who is her fiancé, and Fattal. The two men share a cell.

The site also includes an August 10 letter -- signed by the mothers of all three hikers -- urging Iranian officials to release them.

"Shane, Sarah and Josh are spending their second Ramadan in detention. Today is also Sarah's birthday -- her second in solitary confinement. Sarah has a serious medical condition and we are gravely concerned for her physical and emotional welfare, for which Iran's leaders are responsible," the letter says. "We urgently call on the Iranian authorities to end her isolation and provide her with adequate care."

On Monday, Shafii had said he was waiting for the Swiss Embassy to deposit the bail money, the semi-official Iran Students' News Agency reported.

"During my meeting with the client's family, we agreed to take measures for her release as soon as the money is provided," he said, according to the agency.

CNN's Mary Snow, Reza Sayah and Catherine E. Shoichet contributed to this report.

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Belgium’s seriously sweet tooth

• Tom Hall
• Lonely Planet Author

Most European countries offer the cultural thrill of unusual ways to expand your waistline, but Belgium elevates this often unexpected part of a continental jaunt into an art form. Temptation reaches out and grabs you at every turn. Avoided the crisply-fried potato treats from that fritteur van, served smothered in mayonnasise? Then you deserve a rich, dark Trappist beer or twelve. And should the vast vats of moules (mussels) not make it to your dinner plate then there’s the national dish, waterzooi to be eaten with thick hunks of bread. But chief among Belgian delights is chocolate.

This underrated nation has taken the idea of scoffing a sweet treat and elevated it to an artform.

Here’s where it began. In 1912, Jean Neuhaus had the bright idea of filling delectable chocolate shells with sweet, fondant fillings to create the praline. His wife came up with a decorative box, the ballotin. This invention proved popular. From his shop in Brussels chocolate emporiums spread across Belgium and gained the country an international reputation. Neuhaus has become an internationally famed chocolate brand.

The standard of chocolate served throughout the country is nothing less than thrilling. Chocolateries sell light, dark or white chocolate with every conceivable variation in between. Individual pieces are wrapped, coated or patterned individually and beautifully. As well as the ubiquitous pralines you’ll find sculptures and artistic creations all made solely using the chocolatiers skill. In one shop in Ostend I was unable to resist leaving with a chocolate whale. On cracking it open praline fish spilled out from his belly. If that wasn’t a moment of perfect happiness then I don’t know what is.

As you might expect, there are huge gulfs in quality, variety and cost of chocolate. National chains like Corné Port Royal and Neuhaus offer good quality at reasonable prices, but for the real fun look out for boutique chocolatiers like Planete Chocolat in Brussels and Del Rey in Antwerp. Here you’ll find delectable and individually crafted chocs which make the perfect gift – if you can get them home. No visit to Belgium is complete without a cruise around Bruges. And here is a temple to the cocoa bean, Choco-Story. Yes, a museum dedicated to the world’s finest sweet treat. If you’re not planning on leaving the capital, be a smart shopper and aim for the shops and cafes of Place du Grand Sablon rather than around the Grand Place. Chocolate and prices will be better.

The experience of buying some gives some insight into the level of reverence chocolate is held in. You may be gazing dreamily from outside but the real fun starts when you walk through the door.The atmosphere in any half-decent chocolaterie is one of reverence and dedication. Pralines wait in cool, quiet conditions for you to choose, and the mood in the queue tends to be one of gentle anticipation. The choice can be agonising, but don’t worry: staff are used to such dilemmas and are knowledgeable. Some sampling is permitted if you’re serious about buying. Once you’ve had your selection picked they’ll be lovingly wrapped and presented, and the at-times eye-watering price, determined by weight (the chocolate, not yours) is revealed. Then you’re out the door, wallet lighter but heart fluttering, eyes scanning the horizon for a secluded spot to sit and get stuck into your purchases.

Football World Cup 2010 Groups & Teams

Group stage

Group A	W	D	L	GD	PTS
Mexico	0	1	0	0	1
South Africa	0	1	0	0	1
France	0	1	0	0	1
Uruguay	0	1	0	0	1

Group B	W	D	L	GD	PTS
South Korea	1	0	0	2	3
Argentina	1	0	0	1	3
Nigeria	0	0	1	-1	0
Greece	0	0	1	-2	0

Group C	W	D	L	GD	PTS
Slovenia	1	0	0	1	3
England	0	1	0	0	1
USA	0	1	0	0	1
Algeria	0	0	1	-1	0

Group D	W	D	L	GD	PTS
Ghana	1	0	0	1	3
Australia	0	0	0	0	0
Germany	0	0	0	0	0
Serbia	0	0	1	-1	0

Group E	W	D	L	GD	PTS
Cameroon	0	0	0	0	0
Denmark	0	0	0	0	0
Japan	0	0	0	0	0
Netherlands	0	0	0	0	0

Group F	W	D	L	GD	PTS
Italy	0	0	0	0	0
New Zealand	0	0	0	0	0
Paraguay	0	0	0	0	0
Slovakia	0	0	0	0	0

Group G	W	D	L	GD	PTS
Brazil	0	0	0	0	0
Ivory Coast	0	0	0	0	0
North Korea	0	0	0	0	0
Portugal	0	0	0	0	0

Group H	W	D	L	GD	PTS
Chile	0	0	0	0	0
Honduras	0	0	0	0	0
Spain	0	0	0	0	0
Switzerland	0	0	0	0	0

Knock-out stage

Last 16

KO 1

Winner A v Runner-up B

KO 2

Winner C v Runner-up D

KO 3

Winner D v Runner-up C

KO 4

Winner B v Runner-up A

KO 5

Winner E v Runner-up F

KO 6

Winner G v Runner-up H

KO 7

Winner F v Runner-up E

KO 8

Winner H v Runner-up G

Quarter-finals

QF 1

Winner KO 5 v Winner KO 6

QF 2

Winner KO 1 v Winner KO 2

QF 3

Winner KO 3 v Winner KO 4

QF 4

Winner KO 7 v Winner KO 8

Semi-finals

SF 1

Winner QF 1 v Winner QF 2

SF 2

Winner QF 3 v Winner QF 4

Third-place play-off

Runner-up SF 1 v Runner-up SF 2

World Cup final

Winner SF 1 v Winner SF 2

World Cup 2010 Teams

• Algeria
• Argentina
• Australia
• Brazil
• Cameroon
• Chile
• Denmark
• England
• France
• Germany
• Ghana
• Greece
• Honduras
• Italy
• Ivory Coast
• Japan
• Mexico
• Netherlands
• New Zealand
• Nigeria
• North Korea
• Paraguay
• Portugal
• Serbia
• Slovakia
• Slovenia
• South Africa
• South Korea
• Spain
• Switzerland
• USA
• Uruguay

Gyan penalty clinches Ghana win

(CNN) -- A late penalty by Asamoah Gyan handed Ghana a deserved 1-0 victory against Serbia in their Group D match played in Pretoria.

The Rennes striker emphatically converted from the spot past Vladimir Stojkovic in the 84th minute to the obvious delight of the partisan crowd.

The victory is the first by an African team at this year's World Cup.

Ghana were awarded their penalty after Serbia substitute Zdravko Kuzmanovic needlessly hand-balled a cross which looked to be drifting harmlessly out of the Serbian penalty area.

Amid delirious celebrations of the African supporters in the Loftus Versfeld Stadium, Serbia struggled to find an equalizer and it was Ghana, the four-time African champions, who should have made it 2-0 before the final whistle.

Baghdad blast, gunfire kill 15

(CNN) -- At least 15 people were killed and 45 others wounded in a bombing and gunfire near Iraq's central bank in the capital on Sunday, according to the Interior Ministry.

After the initial blast, clashes broke out between security forces and armed men trying to rob the bank, the official said.

There were conflicting reports about what the blast was, which hit at around 3 p.m. (8 a.m. ET). One Interior Ministry official said at least three roadside bombs exploded outside the bank, while another official said it was a suicide bomber. The spokesman for the Baghdad military command, Maj. Gen. Qassi, al-Moussawi, told state television that it was one roadside bomb.

The casualties figures offered by the Interior Ministry only include civilians and security forces.

The power generator for the bank caught fire and the burning fuel caused a large black plume of smoke seen over the capital, the first Interior Ministry official said.The bank is located in central Baghdad's Rasheed street.

The bombing comes amid political uncertainty, a day before Iraq's parliament is set to convene for it's first session three months after national elections.

Ex-BBC reporter Vugar Khalilov held in Kyrgyzstan

Vugar Khalilov's supporters say he is being denied medical treatment

A British public relations executive who once worked for ousted Kyrgyzstan president Kurmanbek Bakiyev has been arrested and detained in Bishkek.

Former BBC reporter Vugar Khalilov, who moved there in 2009, has been accused of money laundering - which he denies.

The new government has been accused of ignoring Mr Khalilov's human rights and keeping him in solitary confinement since his arrest on 12 April.

Mr Khalilov's supporters have said the charges are politically motivated.

He moved from London to Kyrgyzstan, where he was the head of public relations company Flexi Communications.

Two-month detention

The 41-year-old was held by members of the national security service shortly after meeting David Moran, the UK ambassador to Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.

Prosecutors confirmed his detention on Friday and spokesman Ulan Dykambayev said: "On April 12, the Prosecutor Generals' Office sanctioned the arrest of Vugar Khalilov on charges of legalising and laundering funds obtained in a criminal manner."

He told the AFP news agency that Mr Khalilov will be held for two months while an investigation takes place.

Kurmanbek Bakiyev maintains he is still leader of Kyrgyzstan

Supporters have set up a site on the social networking site Facebook.

Mr Khalilov's lawyer Artyom Ivanov has now met his client following representations in court, according to Mr Khalilov's brother Azer.

He also said his relative was a successful businessman who the new administration had used as a "scapegoat".

He said: "In a country where the president and his allies control most of the economy, it was inevitable that some of his business would be in contact with people close to President Bakiyev."

Health fears

Azer Khalilov said his brother had written 15 letters to UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown and Foreign Secretary David Miliband, but that these letters had not been received by the British consul in Bishkek.

He has since written another letter appealing to Mr Brown, Azer said.

He also added that Azerbaijan-born Mr Khalilov's family had urged him to leave the country during the recent protests - he refused, saying he had no reason to be scared and had done nothing wrong.

The detainee's brother urged the Foreign Office to ensure Mr Khalilov's legal rights were upheld and said the family feared his spinal hernia would get worse because of detention conditions.

"We don't want him to be given practically a life sentence of catching an illness during his confinement even if he is found innocent, which we are confident he will be," he said.

The Foreign Office said it was aware of the arrest and would monitor the case.

A spokeswoman said: "Consular officials have visited the individual in detention and are providing consular assistance."

Overthrown

The charges are believed to relate to a loan that Mr Khalilov took out to start his public relations company.

Mr Bakiyev was overthrown in mass protests on 7 April. More than 80 people were killed when anti-government protests in Bishkek, and other towns turned violent.

Kyrgyzstan's interim leaders said Mr Bakiyev's administration ordered troops to open fire on protesters.

They have said he should stand trial over the unrest in which 85 people died.

Mr Bakiyev maintains he is still president.

Tens of thousands flee ethnic violence in Kyrgyzstan

A third day of fighting in the south of the country has claimed nearly 100 lives, officials say.

Witnesses speak of Kyrgyz men shooting ethnic Uzbeks and setting property alight; a BBC correspondent in the city of Osh has heard heavy gunfire.

On Saturday the interim government gave security forces shoot-to-kill powers.

Kyrgyzstan's interim government has urged Russia to send in troops to help quell the violence, but Moscow says it has no plans to intervene.

A battalion of paratroops would be sent to protect Russian facilities in the country, Interfax news agency reported, quoting a security source.

Both Russia and the United States have military bases in the north of the country.
'Shoot-outs'

Kyrgyzstan's interim government extended a state of emergency to cover the entire southern Jalalabad region, as ethnic clashes spread there from neighbouring Osh.

One resident in Jalalabad said fighting was going on throughout the city.

"At the current moment, there are shoot-outs going on in the streets," he told the AFP news agency by telephone.

"There is a veil of smoke covering the whole city," another resident told AFP. He said buildings on fire included a shopping centre.

Without international assistance there are fears the interim authorities will struggle to contain the conflict, the BBC's Rayhan Demytrie in Osh reports.

She says buildings are ablaze in Osh - television pictures show street after street of burnt-out buildings and black smoke billowing in the air.

President Kurmanbek Bakiyev, who was ousted in April and now lives in Belarus, has denied accusations from the government that he is involved in the unrest in order to derail a 27 June constitutional referendum and elections scheduled for October.

Mr Bakiyev had strong support in southern Kyrgyzstan.

'We need food'

The south of Kyrgyzstan, an ex-Soviet Central Asian state of 5.5 million people, is home to an ethnic Uzbek minority of almost one million.

KYRGYZ-UZBEK TENSIONS

Continue reading the main story

• Kyrgyz make up nearly 70% of the population, Uzbeks account for about 15% and are concentrated in the Ferghana Valley in the south
• Osh, the country's second city, is home to a large ethnic Uzbek community
• There has been tension in the south between the two ethnic groups over land and housing
• In 1990, hundreds were killed in Osh in clashes between Kyrgyz and ethnic Uzbeks

Eyewitness: 'We're hiding' In pictures: Violence in Kyrgyzstan

The violence has prompted tens of thousands of people to head for the nearby border with Uzbekistan.

Uzbek emergency officials said at least 30,000 people had crossed the border from Kyrgyzstan. One official told Russia's RIA Novosti news agency that 75,000 had entered Uzbekistan.

The International Committee of the Red Cross said it had received similar reports.

Ethnic Uzbek eyewitnesses told our correspondent at a border crossing with Uzbekistan that gangs of armed Kyrgyz had been marauding through neighbourhoods, killing residents and burning homes.

One woman pleaded for help: "We need food, we need water, I have got two sons and they are little and I need water and food to survive."

There have also been reports of Kyrgyz casualties.

One Kyrgyz family the BBC spoke to by telephone said an Uzbek boy armed with a gun shot dead three Kyrgyz men who were approaching them.

Pakistan says one of its citizens, a student, has been killed in Osh and it is investigating reports that 15 others have been taken hostage.

More than 1,000 people have been wounded in the violence, the authorities say. Some reports say the casualty figures could be much higher.

It is not clear what sparked the latest unrest.

According to local reports, fighting broke out between rival gangs and developed into gun battles late on Thursday.

In recent weeks, several incidents had prompted fears of inter-ethnic violence between Uzbeks and Kyrgyz.

The clashes are the worst ethnic violence to hit southern Kyrgyzstan since 1990, when several hundred people were killed. Kyrgyzstan was then part of the Soviet Union, which sent in troops to quell the unrest.

Analysis: UK politics may have to get used to horse trading

London, England (CNN) -- How big is big? How open is open?

Conservative leader David Cameron has said his power-sharing offer to the Liberal Democrats following the unresolved UK election is "big, open and comprehensive."

But will it be big enough to tempt them to ally with a traditional political opponent? Will it be open enough to persuade those in both parties who fear that essential principles or interests will be sold out?

Will there be a Conservative/Liberal Democrat deal at all? If not, could a Lib Dem/Labour deal keep Gordon Brown in Downing Street as prime minister?

After knocking the stuffing out of each other for four weeks, Britain's major political parties are now jostling to buy each other a drink. Listen to their public statements and you might believe, if you had spent most of your life in Fairyland, that they are doing so in the "national interest."

Analysis: UK politics may have to get used to horse trading

London, England (CNN) -- How big is big? How open is open?

Conservative leader David Cameron has said his power-sharing offer to the Liberal Democrats following the unresolved UK election is "big, open and comprehensive."

But will it be big enough to tempt them to ally with a traditional political opponent? Will it be open enough to persuade those in both parties who fear that essential principles or interests will be sold out?

Will there be a Conservative/Liberal Democrat deal at all? If not, could a Lib Dem/Labour deal keep Gordon Brown in Downing Street as prime minister?

After knocking the stuffing out of each other for four weeks, Britain's major political parties are now jostling to buy each other a drink. Listen to their public statements and you might believe, if you had spent most of your life in Fairyland, that they are doing so in the "national interest."

UK political rivals meet to resolve election deadlock

London, England (CNN) -- The United Kingdom's Conservative and Liberal Democrats parties met Sunday as leading politicians worked to resolve a national election that failed to yield an outright winner.

Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg, whose party came third after Thursday's vote, held meetings with fellow party members Saturday to discuss a possible deal with either of the two largest parties, Labour and the Conservatives.

Clegg also met with Conservative leader David Cameron and took a call from Labour leader and UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown on Saturday night, local media reported.

"Everyone's trying to be constructive for the good of the country," Clegg said in comments to reporters Sunday ahead of the talks.

Election results

"I'm very keen that the Liberal Democrats should play a constructive role at a time of great economic uncertainty to provide a good government that this country deserves.

William Hague, a former Conservative leader, told the media scrum as he arrived for the talks that the party was "conscious of the need to provide the country with a new stable and legitimate government as soon as possible.

Brown and Cameron both offered to form an alliance with the Liberal Democrats on Friday as they jostled for power after the election, in which the Conservatives gained the most seats in the House of Commons.

Brown, who remains prime minister even though Labour lost its parliamentary majority, said Friday that he would be willing to negotiate with any party leader.

Robin Oakley, political contributor for CNN, explained that at present Brown is essentially in a caretaker position.

"He cannot do anything really until the talks between the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats break down," Oakley said.

During a break in the talks with his own party Saturday, Clegg addressed hundreds of protesters in London who were demonstrating in favor of proportional representation, a system supported by the Liberal Democrats.

Obama and the "R" Word, Will He or Won't He?

The only mystery left in President Obama's "final stage" speech Wednesday on the future of health care is whether he will utter the "R" word.

The "R" word, at least as far as the health care debate is concerned, is reconciliation. Reconciliation is the procedural nom de guerre for the majority party's path around the Senate's 60-vote filibuster.

Senate Democrats would like to hear Obama say reconciliation, if for no other reason than to give the maneuver a presidential imprimatur.

"Yes, yes, yes," a senior Democratic congressional source told Fox when asked if Senate Democrats wanted Obama to invoke the "R" word.

Senate Democrats also believe such declaration from Obama would demystify the process and give them a degree of political cover. How? By allowing them to share with Obama the rationale for muscling health care through the chamber on simple-majority vote -- even though they studiously avoided that approach before Sen. Scott Brown's stunning upset victory in Massachusetts deprived them of their 60-vote majority.

House Democrats don't much care if Obama says the "R" word or not. They know the Senate is going to use reconciliation and, they say, so should anyone paying attention.

"Saying it doesn't make it any more or less real," a senior House Democrat said. "If you don't know the Senate is going to use reconciliation by now, you haven't been paying attention."

In fact, House Democrats are far more worried about what will happen in their chamber. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi still has to corral enough votes to pass the Senate health care bill. If she can't, the reconciliation process stalls before it even starts.

"With reconciliation, things are easier for the Senate Democrats, it's on our side where things are still difficult," the House Democrat said. "I don't think people fully appreciate that."

In fact, there really is no mystery about all this.

Obama will not use the "R" word Wednesday, two White House officials told Fox.

"When in this entire year-long process have we ever benefited from talking about process," one White House official asked rhetorically. "Answer: Never."

The White House knows if Obama says "reconciliation" in Wednesday's speech that will become the headline. This will thrust Obama knee-deep into arcane Senate procedures and rules -- the last place White House officials want Obama to be.

The administration doesn't deny Obama is already in the reconciliation soup by inference -- it's his health care bill, after all. But they still see some distance between him and what's likely to be a contentious Senate tug-of-war over reconciliation.

Instead of talking about reconciliation, Obama will use Wednesday's speech to remind the nation about the stakes involved and about his recent efforts - outlined in a letter to congressional leaders today - to incorporate GOP ideas from last week's health care summit. Obama will also say his new found interest in Republican health care ideas proves he's willing to compromise. If the GOP won't respond in kind, Obama will imply the fault lies with a minority party incapable of deviating from its obstructionist ways.

Democratic National Committee Chairman Tim Kaine said Tuesday if Republicans don't play ball, then the process of reconciliation will be invoked. He also predicted Obama will at least indirectly suggest that's the likely - and possibly only - way forward.

"In accordance with the rules of the Senate, that's a possibility," Kaine said, referring to reconciliation, during an appearance on Fox's Studio B with Sheppard Smith." You'll hear the president talk about that."

As have other Democrats, Kaine portrayed reconciliation as a maneuver to allow the majority to prevail.

"Democrats have a majority for a reason," Kaine said. "The American public wanted them

to have a majority."

Kaine said he believes Republicans will reject Obama's most recent policy overtures.

"When they don't accept the olive branch, that signifies that the time for backing and forthing is done and it's time to vote," Kaine said. "Americans understand that. The American people elected this president to get results. They don't care about the inside baseball."

Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, said process does matter and said Democrats are courting political disaster if they use what he called heavy-handed tactics to pass health reform by circumventing the filibuster.

"I wouldn't want to be a Democrat voting for this bill," Hatch told Fox. "And I don't believe they'll have enough votes to really pass it. However, if they can mutilate the rules in this body and they can utilize the reconciliation rule, they can let eight of their Senators go to vote against it, even though that would be about as phony as you could get. Then they could pass it with 51 votes. It would be one of most disastrous, stupid things you could possibly do."