After early start, worst of flu season may be over


NEW YORK (AP) — The worst of the flu season appears to be over.


The number of states reporting intense or widespread illnesses dropped again last week, and in a few states there was very little flu going around, U.S. health officials said Friday.


The season started earlier than normal, first in the Southeast and then spreading. But now, by some measures, flu activity has been ebbing for at least four weeks in much of the country. Flu and pneumonia deaths also dropped the last two weeks, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported.


"It's likely that the worst of the current flu season is over," CDC spokesman Tom Skinner said.


But flu is hard to predict, he and others stressed, and there have been spikes late in the season in the past.


For now, states like Georgia and New York — where doctor's offices were jammed a few weeks ago — are reporting low flu activity. The hot spots are now the West Coast and the Southwest.


Among the places that have seen a drop: Lehigh Valley Hospital-Cedar Crest in Allentown, Pa., which put up a tent outside its emergency room last month to help deal with the steady stream of patients. There were about 100 patients each day back then. Now it's down to 25 and the hospital may pack up its tent next week, said Terry Burger, director of infection control and prevention for the hospital.


"There's no question that we're seeing a decline," she said.


In early December, CDC officials announced flu season had arrived, a month earlier than usual. They were worried, saying it had been nine years since a winter flu season started like this one. That was 2003-04 — one of the deadliest seasons in the past 35 years, with more than 48,000 deaths.


Like this year, the major flu strain was one that tends to make people sicker, especially the elderly, who are most vulnerable to flu and its complications


But back then, that year's flu vaccine wasn't made to protect against that bug, and fewer people got flu shots. The vaccine is reformulated almost every year, and the CDC has said this year's vaccine is a good match to the types that are circulating. A preliminary CDC study showed it is about 60 percent effective, which is close to the average.


So far, the season has been labeled moderately severe.


Like others, Lehigh Valley's Burger was cautious about making predictions. "I'm not certain we're completely out of the woods," with more wintry weather ahead and people likely to be packed indoors where flu can spread around, she said.


The government does not keep a running tally of flu-related deaths in adults, but has received reports of 59 deaths in children. The most — nine — were in Texas, where flu activity was still high last week. Roughly 100 children die in an average flu season, the CDC says


On average, about 24,000 Americans die each flu season, according to the CDC.


According to the CDC report, the number of states with intense activity is down to 19, from 24 the previous week, and flu is widespread in 38 states, down from 42.


Flu is now minimal in Florida, Kentucky, Maine, Montana, New Hampshire and South Carolina.


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Online:


CDC: http://www.cdc.gov/flu/


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Northeast Shuts Down as Blizzard Batters Millions













A blizzard of possibly historic proportions battered the Northeast Friday into Saturday, and forecasters feared as much as two feet of snow and strong winds could shut down densely populated cities such as New York and Boston, where cars were ordered off the streets.


State officials declared states of emergencies throughout the region, and utilities estimated more than a half-million customers were without power by late Friday night.


Some wondered if the storm could top Boston's all-time single-storm snowfall record of 27.6 inches, set in 2003.


By 9 p.m. Friday, according to the National Weather Service, the storm was spinning off the coast of Long Island, N.Y., and expected to move north-northeastward past New England's coast before its effects tapered off on Saturday afternoon.


"Storm total snowfall accumulations of 1 to 2 feet ... with locally higher amounts are possible across much of the Northeast," the National Weather Service said. "The heaviest snow is forecast to fall across parts of eastern Massachusetts ... Connecticut and Rhode Island where snowfall amounts higher than two feet are possible. In addition to the heavy snowfall ... wind gusts as high as 70 mph are possible ... especially near the coasts."


By 9 p.m. Friday, parts of Connecticut and New York had the highest actual snowfall totals listed by the National Weather Service, with 13 inches measured in Ogdensburg and East Setaukey, N.Y., and Lisbon and North Branford, Conn.


Peak wind gusts included a 71-mph measurement in Buzzards Bay, Mass., the National Weather Service said.


Power outages also were reported across the region. As of 11 p.m. Friday, for instance, approximately 300,000 Massachusetts customers were without power, ABC News station WCVB reported. Utilities also reported approximately 170,000 without power in Rhode Island, 30,000 in Connecticut and nearly 20,000 in New York.


The blizzard conditions came together after a storm from the west joined forces with one from the south to form a nor'easter.










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The storm showed the potential for such ferocity that, before it even hit with full force, Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick declared a state of emergency Friday afternoon and signed an executive order banning vehicular traffic on roads in his state effective at 4 p.m. ET. It was believed that the last time the state enacted such a ban was during the blizzard of 1978. Violating the ban could result in a penalty of up to a year in jail and a $500 fine.


"[It] could definitely be a historic winter storm for the Northeast," said Adrienne Leptich of the National Weather Service in Upton, N.Y. "We're looking at very strong wind and heavy snow and we're also looking for some coastal flooding."


Airlines began shutting down operations Friday afternoon at major airports in the New York area as well as in Boston, Portland, Maine, Providence, R.I., and other Northeastern airports. By early evening Friday, more than 4,300 flights had been cancelled on Friday and Saturday, according to FlightAware. Airlines hoped to resume flights by Saturday afternoon, though normal schedules were not expected until Sunday.


The snow fell heavily Friday afternoon in New York City. Mayor Michael Bloomberg said clearing the roads was his main concern, and the city readied 1,700 snow plows and 250,000 tons of salt to clear the streets.


New York City was expecting up to 14 inches of snow, which started falling early this morning, though the heaviest amounts were expected to fall at night and into Saturday. Wind gusts of 55 mph were expected in New York City.


"Stay off the city streets. Stay out of your cars and stay at home while the worst of the storm is on us," Bloomberg said Friday.


Connecticut Gov. Dannel P. Malloy declared a state of emergency, deploying National Guard troops across the state to assist in rescues and other emergencies. Schools and state courthouses were closed, and all flights after 1:30 p.m. at Bradley Airport, north of Hartford, Conn., were cancelled. The state's largest utility companies planned for the possibility that 30 percent of customers -- more than 400,000 homes and businesses -- would lose power.


Malloy also directed drivers to stay off the state's major highways.


"Please stay off of 95, 91, 84, Merritt Parkway and any other limited-access road in the state," he said Friday evening.


PHOTOS: Northeast Braces for Snowstorm


Boston, Providence, R.I., Hartford, Conn., and other New England cities canceled school today.


"Stay off the streets of our city. Basically, stay home," Boston Mayor Tom Menino warned Thursday.


On Friday, Menino applauded the public's response.


"I'm very pleased with the compliance with the snow emergency," he said. "You drive down some of the roadways, you don't see one car."


Friday evening, Gov. Patrick also applauded the public's cooperation with the statewide vehicle ban, noting the clear roads were helping utility crews get their work done.


"It's been a great, great help and I thank everyone," Patrick said. "I know it's been an imposition."


As of 4:30 p.m. Friday, according to the Department of Defense, 837 National Guard soldiers and airmen under state control had been activated in Connecticut, Massachusetts and New York in anticipation of the storm -- 552 in Massachusetts, 235 in Connecticut and 50 in New York. The extra hands were helping with roadways, transportation, making wellness checks on residents and other emergency services.


Beach erosion and coastal flooding was possible from New Jersey to Long Island, N.Y., and into New England coastal areas. It was feared some waves off the coast could reach more than 20 feet.






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Japan may release data proving Chinese radar incident: media


TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan may release data it says will prove a Chinese naval vessel directed its fire control radar at a Japanese destroyer near disputed islands in the East China Sea, local media reported.


Japan has said a Chinese frigate on January 30 locked its targeting radar on a Japanese destroyer - a step that usually precedes the firing of weapons - but China insists that its vessel used only ordinary surveillance radar.


The incident has added to tensions between the two nations over the disputed islands.


Japan will consider how much normally classified data it can release, the media reports said, citing comments by Japan Defence Minister Itsunori Onodera on local television.


"The government is considering the extent of what can be disclosed," Kyodo news agency quoted Onodera as saying.


China has accused Japan of smearing its name with the accusations, and on Saturday, the official Xinhua news agency continued the war of words.


"By spreading false accusations and posing as a poor victim, Japan had intended to tarnish China's image so as to gain sympathy and support, but a lie does not help," it said in an English language commentary.


"China has been exercising maximum restraint and stayed committed to solving the dispute through dialogue and consultation."


Japan and China have been involved in a series of incidents in recent months in the East China Sea where Chinese and Japanese naval vessels regularly shadow each others movements.


Both countries claim a small clusters of islands, known as Diaoyu in China and Senkaku in Japan, believed to be rich in oil and gas. Controlled by Japan, possession of the uninhabited outcrops and the sea surrounding them would provide China with easier access to the Pacific.


Hopes had been rising for an easing in tensions, including a possible summit between Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Chinese Communist Party chief Xi Jinping. But the radar issue has seen China and Japan engage in a fresh round of invective.


China's Defence Ministry on Thursday said Japan's complaints did not "match the facts". The Chinese ship's radar, it said, had maintained regular alerting and surveillance operations and the ship "did not use fire control radar".


Japan's position against China has hardened since Abe led his conservative party to a landslide election victory in December, promising to beef up the military and stand tough in territorial disputes.


The commander of U.S. forces in the Asia-Pacific said the squabble between Japan and China underlined the need for rules to prevent such incidents turning into serious conflict.


China also has ongoing territorial disputes with other Asian nations including Vietnam and the Philippines over islands in the South China Sea.


(Reporting by Tim Kelly; Additional reporting by Ben Blanchard in BEIJING; Editing by Michael Perry)



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NSP calls for referendum on White Paper






SINGAPORE: The opposition National Solidarity Party (NSP) has called on the government to hold a referendum on the White Paper on Population.

In separate letters sent to President Tony Tan Keng Yam and Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, the Party's Secretary-General, Hazel Poa said the parliamentary debate has now been concluded with the White Paper being endorsed by 77 to 13, with one abstention.

However, she felt that to many, the vote does not reflect the views of Singaporeans because the People's Action Party Members of Parliament clearly voted along party lines.

Ms Poa added that the White Paper will affect Singaporeans - for better or worse - for the next 20 years and beyond, and that all Singaporeans have the right to decide how their future is shaped.

She felt it was only right that they should have a say in it as well.

For this reason, the NSP called on the government to hold a national referendum on the White Paper.

In its letter to Dr Tan, the NSP said it hopes the president will act in the interest of the citizens of Singapore.

NSP asked the government to listen to the people whose lives will be irrevocably changed by the decisions that their elected leaders make on their behalf.

- CNA/xq



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Guru should have been executed much earlier: BJP

NEW DELHI: Questioning the delay in the execution of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru, BJP on Saturday said it should have happened much earlier after the confirmation of the capital punishment by the Supreme Court in 2005.

"The capital punishment awarded to Afzal Guru on Saturday is a part of legal and judicial process which ought to have taken place much earlier. The attack on the Indian Parliament happened in 2001, that is 12 years ago, which was an attack on India.

"Why this sort of delay inspite of overpowering desire of the people of the country that those who are accused of such a heinous offence ought to be given the capital punishment, as affirmed by the highest court of the land. This question would remain important and an answer would have to be found out," BJP chief spokesperson Ravi Shankar Prasad said.

He said the Supreme Court had confirmed capital punishment against Afzal Guru in August 2005 and his review petition rejected in January 2007, but the government delayed the action. He also sought adoption of zero tolerance towards terrorism in the country.

Party vice president Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said Guru was a conspirator in waging war against the nation and responsible for attack on the temple of democracy (Parliament) in India.

"It is a late decision but in national interest. There was a strong anger across the nation due to the delay (in execution). Despite the late action, people in the country have heaved a sigh of relief and this hanging has given a message to the terrorists and the anti-national forces working against the country," the BJP leader said.

His colleague Rajiv Pratap Rudy welcomed the execution saying it was a "much awaited and much wanted decision".

"This action is delayed. But undoubtedly it is a welcome action" so that the world could see that India is committed against terror and the fight against terror, he said.

Prasad said if one of the terrorists with an AK-47 would have entered Parliament, the lives of top leaders of political parties would have been imperiled or many would have been killed. "This was the severity of the terrorist act," he said.

On the delay in Guru's execution, he said, "This question would remain important and an answer would have to be found out."

Prasad said the nation should rededicate itself and take an unflinching resolve of zero tolerance against terrorism. Seeking to silence those raising the issue of human rights on Guru's execution, the BJP leader reminded them of the human rights of all those killed by terrorists and their patrons from across the border.

"Do the families of those innocents killed have human rights or not. Those brave watch and ward staff who secured the Parliament and secured the lives of the leaders of the country that India remained safe, does their family have any human right or not. This question is equally important," he said.

Rudy said the BJP has always been pressing for strong and prompt action against perpetrators of terror.

"Any action against terror like the hanging of Afzal Guru should be immediate. It cannot be delayed. If the highest court of the land upheld the conviction of Afzal Guru in 2007, thereafter there was no reason that any mercy petition should have been delayed for so long.

"Though delayed, we still feel that the hanging of Afzal Guru was a right action. It has been done and the people of this country have been wanting and waiting for it for a long time," he said.

Guru was convicted of conspiracy in the December 2001 attack on Parliament and his death sentence was upheld by the Supreme Court in 2005.

On December 13, 2001, five heavily-armed gunmen stormed the Parliament complex and opened indiscriminate fire, killing nine persons.

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Southern diet, fried foods, may raise stroke risk


Deep-fried foods may be causing trouble in the Deep South. People whose diets are heavy on them and sugary drinks like sweet tea and soda were more likely to suffer a stroke, a new study finds.


It's the first big look at diet and strokes, and researchers say it might help explain why blacks in the Southeast — the nation's "stroke belt" — suffer more of them.


Blacks were five times more likely than whites to have the Southern dietary pattern linked with the highest stroke risk. And blacks and whites who live in the South were more likely to eat this way than people in other parts of the country were. Diet might explain as much as two-thirds of the excess stroke risk seen in blacks versus whites, researchers concluded.


"We're talking about fried foods, french fries, hamburgers, processed meats, hot dogs," bacon, ham, liver, gizzards and sugary drinks, said the study's leader, Suzanne Judd of the University of Alabama in Birmingham.


People who ate about six meals a week featuring these sorts of foods had a 41 percent higher stroke risk than people who ate that way about once a month, researchers found.


In contrast, people whose diets were high in fruits, vegetables, whole grains and fish had a 29 percent lower stroke risk.


"It's a very big difference," Judd said. "The message for people in the middle is there's a graded risk" — the likelihood of suffering a stroke rises in proportion to each Southern meal in a week.


Results were reported Thursday at an American Stroke Association conference in Honolulu.


The federally funded study was launched in 2002 to explore regional variations in stroke risks and reasons for them. More than 20,000 people 45 or older — half of them black — from all 48 mainland states filled out food surveys and were sorted into one of five diet styles:


Southern: Fried foods, processed meats (lunchmeat, jerky), red meat, eggs, sweet drinks and whole milk.


—Convenience: Mexican and Chinese food, pizza, pasta.


—Plant-based: Fruits, vegetables, juice, cereal, fish, poultry, yogurt, nuts and whole-grain bread.


—Sweets: Added fats, breads, chocolate, desserts, sweet breakfast foods.


—Alcohol: Beer, wine, liquor, green leafy vegetables, salad dressings, nuts and seeds, coffee.


"They're not mutually exclusive" — for example, hamburgers fall into both convenience and Southern diets, Judd said. Each person got a score for each diet, depending on how many meals leaned that way.


Over more than five years of follow-up, nearly 500 strokes occurred. Researchers saw clear patterns with the Southern and plant-based diets; the other three didn't seem to affect stroke risk.


There were 138 strokes among the 4,977 who ate the most Southern food, compared to 109 strokes among the 5,156 people eating the least of it.


There were 122 strokes among the 5,076 who ate the most plant-based meals, compared to 135 strokes among the 5,056 people who seldom ate that way.


The trends held up after researchers took into account other factors such as age, income, smoking, education, exercise and total calories consumed.


Fried foods tend to be eaten with lots of salt, which raises blood pressure — a known stroke risk factor, Judd said. And sweet drinks can contribute to diabetes, the disease that celebrity chef Paula Deen — the queen of Southern cuisine — revealed she had a year ago.


The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, drugmaker Amgen Inc. and General Mills Inc. funded the study.


"This study does strongly suggest that food does have an influence and people should be trying to avoid these kinds of fatty foods and high sugar content," said an independent expert, Dr. Brian Silver, a Brown University neurologist and stroke center director at Rhode Island Hospital.


"I don't mean to sound like an ogre. I know when I'm in New Orleans I certainly enjoy the food there. But you don't have to make a regular habit of eating all this stuff."


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Marilynn Marchione can be followed at http://twitter.com/MMarchioneAP


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Door-to-Door Search for Suspected Cop Killer













More than 100 police officers were going door-to-door and searching for new tracks in the snow in the hopes of catching suspected cop killer Christopher Dorner overnight in Big Bear Lake, Calif., before he strikes again as laid out in his chilling online manifesto.


Police held a news conference late Thursday, alerting the residents near Big Bear Lake that Dorner was still on the loose after finding his truck burning around 12:45 p.m. local time.


San Bernardino County Sheriff's spokeswoman Cindy Bachman said the authorities can't say for certain he's not in the area. More than half of the 400 homes in the area have been searched by police, who are traveling in two-man teams. Bachman urged people in the area to not answer the door, unless you know the person or law enforcement in uniform.


After discovering Dorner's burning truck near a Bear Mountain ski resort, police discovered tracks in the snow leading away from the vehicle. The truck has been taken to the San Bernardino County Sheriffs' crime lab.


Read More About Chris Dorner's Allegations Against the LAPD


Bachman would not comment on Dorner's motive for leaving the car or its contents, citing the ongoing investigation. Police are no aware of Dorner having any ties to others in the area.








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She added that the search in the area would continue as long as the weather cooperates. However, a snowstorm was forecast for the area. About three choppers were being used overnight, but weather conditions were deteriorating, according to Bachman.


Dorner, a former Los Angeles police officer and Navy reservist, is suspected of killing one police officer and injured two others Thursday morning in Riverside, Calif. He was also accused of killing two civilians on Sunday. And he allegedly released an angry "manifesto" airing grievances against police and warning of coming violence toward cops.


In the manifesto Dorner published online, he threatened at least 12 people by name, along with their families.
"Your lack of ethics and conspiring to wrong a just individual are over. Suppressing the truth will leave to deadly consequences for you and your family," Dorner wrote in his manifesto.


One passage from the manifesto read, "I will bring unconventional and asymmetrical warfare to those in LAPD uniform whether on or off duty."


"I never had the opportunity to have a family of my own," it read. "I'm terminating yours."


Hours after the extensive manhunt dragged police to Big Bear Lake, CNN's Anderson Cooper said Dorner had sent him a package at his New York office that arrived on Feb. 1, though Cooper said he never knew about the package until Thursday. It contained a DVD of court testimony, with a Post-It note signed by Dorner claiming, "I never lied! Here is my vindication."


PHOTOS: Former LAPD Officer Suspected in Shootings


It also contained a keepsake coin bearing the name of former Los Angeles Police Chief William J. Bratton that came wrapped in duct tape, Cooper said. The duct tape bore the note, "Thanks, but no thanks Will Bratton."


Bratton told Cooper on his program, "Anderson Cooper 360," that he believed he gave Dorner the coin as he was headed overseas for the Navy, Bratton's practice when officers got deployed abroad. Though a picture has surfaced of Bratton, in uniform, and Dorner, in fatigues, shaking hands, Bratton told Cooper he didn't recall Dorner or the meeting.






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Opposition leader's funeral brings day of reckoning for Tunisia


TUNIS (Reuters) - Tunisia's political crisis looked likely to deepen on Friday with strikes and protests planned around the funeral of assassinated opposition politician Chokri Belaid.


Belaid's killing on Wednesday has brought thousands of people onto the streets of the capital Tunis and other cities in violence-marred protests.


Unions have called a general strike for Friday, setting the stage for further confrontation two years on from the pro-democracy revolution that inspired the Arab Spring.


Tunisia is riven by tensions between the dominant Islamists and their secular opponents, and by disillusionment over the lack of social progress since the overthrow of dictator Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali in January 2011.


In response to Belaid's assassination, Prime Minister Hamdi Jebali, an Islamist, said on Wednesday he would dissolve the government, name a non-partisan cabinet of technocrats and hold early elections. But his partners opposed the move and it is yet to be approved by parliament.


No one has claimed responsibility for the killing of Belaid, a lawyer and secular political figure, who was shot by a gunman as he left home for work on Wednesday.


But a crowd set fire to the headquarters of Ennahda, the Islamist party of Prime Minister Jebali, who leads a coalition with two junior secularist parties. Ennahda denies any involvement.


While Belaid had only a modest political following, his criticism of Ennahda policies spoke for many Tunisians who fear religious radicals are bent on snuffing out freedoms won in the first of the revolts that rippled through the Arab world.


"Criminals assassinated Chokri's body, but will not assassinate Chokri's struggle," his widow Besma said on Thursday.


"My sadness ended when I saw thousands flocking to the streets...at that moment I knew that the country is fine and men and women in my country are defending democracy, freedom and life."


All three ruling parties and sections of the opposition rebuffed Jebali's plan to create a small, technocrat government to take over day-to-day matters until elections could be held, demanding they be consulted before any such move.


"In the likely event that there is no agreement, civil unrest will increase, reaching a level that cannot be contained by the police," said Firas Abi Ali of the London-based Exclusive Analysis think-tank.


"If unrest continued for more than two weeks, the army would probably reluctantly step in and back a technocrat government, as well as fresh elections for a new Constituent Assembly."


The economic effect of political uncertainty and street unrest could be serious in a country which has yet to draft a post-revolutionary constitution and which relies heavily on the tourist trade.


The cost of insuring Tunisian government bonds against default rose to its highest level in more than four years on Thursday and ratings agency Fitch said it could further downgrade Tunisia if political instability continues or worsens.


(Writing by Robin Pomeroy; Editing by Angus MacSwan)



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Malaysian state scales back Borneo dam plans






KUCHING, Malaysia: A Malaysian state minister Friday said the government would not push ahead with controversial plans to build 12 dams on Borneo island, after outrage from local tribes and environmentalists.

The proposals sparked fears that the dams would destroy pristine rainforests, endanger wildlife, and displace natives in Sarawak, a Malaysian state crossed by powerful rivers with rich jungle habitats.

"It is not a firm plan to build 12 dams. I don't think we will need that. We will only need four of them," James Masing, Sarawak's state minister of land development, told AFP in an interview.

Masing said the government was backing off in response to widespread criticism. Protests over the years have seen activists and locals staging blockades of roads into dam areas.

"I'm pleased that this type of thing (protests) takes place. Not all that we do is correct, and this shows we need to refine our plans and think again," he said.

The government mooted plans for the dams as part of an industrial development drive to boost the resource-rich state's backward economy.

But the now-complete Bakun mega-dam deep in the interior has been dogged for years by allegations of corruption in construction contracts, the flooding of a huge swathe of rainforest and displacement of thousands of local tribespeople.

Besides Bakun, another dam at Murum is nearing completion and two others are in the planning stages.

The four dams -- at Bakun, Murum, Baleh and Baram -- are already expected to put out nearly 6,000 megawatts of power, six times what Sarawak currently uses, Masing said.

"The protests are becoming more vocal on the ground so (the dam rethink) is a very good development for me," said Peter Kallang, member of a Sarawak tribe and chairman of SAVE Rivers, an NGO that has campaigned against the dams.

However, he said plans for the Baram and Baleh dams should be scrapped as well, noting that the Baram dam would displace about 20,000 people, compared to about 10,000 at Bakun, and destroy irreplaceable forest.

He said SAVE Rivers last month organised a floating protest along the Baram river that cruised down river for three days and was met with support along the way by local tribespeople.

The Swiss-based jungle-protection group Bruno Manser Fund says about 90 percent of Sarawak's rainforests have been damaged as the state government has opened up virgin forest to loggers and palm-oil plantations.

Critics also allege chief minister Taib Mahmud, who has ruled Sarawak since 1981, has enriched himself and his family through corrupt timber and other dealings, and have called the dams white elephants.

Taib has dismissed the corruption allegations.

Critics of Taib accuse the federal government of failing to act against him because his tight control of Sarawak has kept it a vital ruling coalition stronghold.

- AFP



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India developing Agni-VI ballistic missile

BANGALORE: India is developing a long-range nuclear-capable Agni-VI ballistic missile that would carry multiple warheads allowing one weapon system to take out several targets at a time.

"Agni-V is major strategic defence weapon. Now we want to make Agni-VI which would be a force multiplier," DRDO chief V K Saraswat said here on Friday.

Refusing to divulge the range of the new under-development missile, he said the force multiplier capability of the missile would be because of its multiple independently targetable re-entry vehicle (MIRV) capability.

The Agni-5 ballistic missile, which was test-fired in April last year, has a range of upto 5,500 kms and it is believed that the Agni-6 would have a range longer than its predecessor.

"It will have force multiplier capability by the MIRV approach which would enable us to deliver many payloads at the same time using only one missile.

"Work is on in this area and designs have been completed. We are now in the hardware realisation phase," he said.

DRDO officials said once the Agni-6 is developed, it would propel India into the elite club of nations with such a capability including the US and Russia.

The DRDO chief said his organisation was also working towards developing a cruise missile defence programme which would enable the armed forces to defend against low-flying cruise missiles and enemy aircraft.

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New whooping cough strain in US raises questions


NEW YORK (AP) — Researchers have discovered the first U.S. cases of whooping cough caused by a germ that may be resistant to the vaccine.


Health officials are looking into whether cases like the dozen found in Philadelphia might be one reason the nation just had its worst year for whooping cough in six decades. The new bug was previously reported in Japan, France and Finland.


"It's quite intriguing. It's the first time we've seen this here," said Dr. Tom Clark of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.


The U.S. cases are detailed in a brief report from the CDC and other researchers in Thursday's New England Journal of Medicine.


Whooping cough is a highly contagious disease that can strike people of any age but is most dangerous to children. It was once common, but cases in the U.S. dropped after a vaccine was introduced in the 1940s.


An increase in illnesses in recent years has been partially blamed on a version of the vaccine used since the 1990s, which doesn't last as long. Last year, the CDC received reports of 41,880 cases, according to a preliminary count. That included 18 deaths.


The new study suggests that the new whooping cough strain may be why more people have been getting sick. Experts don't think it's more deadly, but the shots may not work as well against it.


In a small, soon-to-be published study, French researchers found the vaccine seemed to lower the risk of severe disease from the new strain in infants. But it didn't prevent illness completely, said Nicole Guiso of the Pasteur Institute, one of the researchers.


The new germ was first identified in France, where more extensive testing is routinely done for whooping cough. The strain now accounts for 14 percent of cases there, Guiso said.


In the United States, doctors usually rely on a rapid test to help make a diagnosis. The extra lab work isn't done often enough to give health officials a good idea how common the new type is here, experts said.


"We definitely need some more information about this before we can draw any conclusions," the CDC's Clark said.


The U.S. cases were found in the past two years in patients at St. Christopher's Hospital for Children in Philadelphia. One of the study's researchers works for a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson, which makes a version of the old whooping cough vaccine that is sold in other countries.


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JournaL: http://www.nejm.org


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Tunisian government dissolved after critic's killing causes fury


TUNIS (Reuters) - Tunisia's ruling Islamists dissolved the government and promised rapid elections in a bid to restore calm after the killing of an opposition leader sparked the biggest street protests since the revolution two years ago.


The prime minister's announcement late on Wednesday that an interim cabinet of technocrats would replace his Islamist-led coalition came at the end of a day which had begun with the gunning down of Chokri Belaid, a left-wing lawyer with a modest political following but who spoke for many who fear religious radicals are stifling freedoms won in the first of the Arab Spring uprisings.


During the day, protesters battled police in the streets of the capital and other cities, including Sidi Bouzid, the birthplace of the Jasmine Revolution that toppled Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali in January 2011.


In Tunis, the crowd set fire to the headquarters of Ennahda, the moderate Islamist party which won the most seats in an legislative election 16 months ago.


Calls for a general strike on Thursday could bring more trouble though Belaid's family said his funeral, another possible flashpoint, might not be held until Friday.


Prime Minister Hamdi Jebali of Ennahda spoke on television on Wednesday evening to declare that weeks of talks among the various political parties on reshaping the government had failed and that he would replace his entire cabinet with non-partisan technocrats until elections could be held as soon as possible.


It followed weeks of deadlock in the three-party coalition. The small, secular Congress for the Republic, whose leader Moncef Marzouki has served as Tunisia's president, threatened to withdraw unless Ennahda replaced some of its ministers.


Wednesday's events, in which the Interior Ministry said one police officer was killed, appeared to have moved Jebali, who will stay on as premier, to take action.


"After the failure of negotiations between parties on a cabinet reshuffle, I have decided to form a small technocrat government," he said.


"The murder of Belaid is a political assassination and the assassination of the Tunisian revolution," he said earlier.


It was not clear whom he might appoint but the move seemed to be widely welcomed and streets were mostly calm after dark.


A leader in the secular Republican Party gave Jebali's move a cautious welcome.


"The prime minister's decision is a response to the opposition's aspirations," Mouldi Fahem told Reuters. "We welcome it principle. We are waiting for details."


Beji Caid Essebsi, leader of the secular party Nida Touns, who was premier after the uprising, told Reuters: "The decision to form a small cabinet is a belated move but an important one."


DIVISIONS


The widespread protests following Belaid's assassination showed the depth of division between Islamists and secular movements fearful that freedoms of expression, cultural liberty and women's rights were under threat just two years after the popular uprising ended decades of Western-backed dictatorship.


"This is a black day in the history of modern Tunisia. Today we say to the Islamists, 'get out', enough is enough," said Souad, a 40-year-old schoolteacher outside the ministry.


"Tunisia will sink in blood if you stay in power."


Ennahda, like its fellow Islamists in Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood, benefited from a solid organization that survived repression by the old regime.


And as in Egypt, the Islamists have faced criticism from secular leaders that they are trying to entrench religious ideas in the new state. A constitution is still due to be agreed before a parliamentary election which had been expected by June.


Belaid, 48, was shot at close range as he left for work by a gunmen who fled on the back of a motorcycle. Within hours, crowds were battling police, hurling rocks amid volleys of tear gas in scenes reminiscent of clashes in Egypt last month.


World powers, increasingly alarmed at the extent of radical Islamist influence and the bitterness of the political stalemate, urged Tunisians to reject violence and see through the move to democracy they began two years ago, when their revolution ended decades of dictatorship and inspired fellow Arabs in Egypt and across North Africa and the Middle East.


As in Egypt, the rise to power of political Islam through the ballot box has prompted a backlash among less organized, more secular political movements in Tunisia. Belaid, who made a name for himself by criticizing Ben Ali, led a party with little electoral support but his vocal opinions had a wide audience.


The day before his death he was publicly lambasting a "climate of systematic violence". He had blamed tolerance shown by Ennahda and its two, smaller secularist allies in the coalition government toward hardline Salafists for allowing the spread of groups hostile to modern culture and liberal ideas.


On Wednesday, thousands demonstrated in cities including Mahdia, Sousse, Monastir and Sidi Bouzid, the cradle of the revolution, where police fired tear gas and warning shots at protesters who set cars and a police station on fire.


While Belaid's nine-party Popular Front bloc has only three seats in the constituent assembly, the opposition jointly agreed to pull its 90 or so members out of the body, which is acting as parliament and writing the new post-revolution charter. Ennahda and its fellow ruling parties have some 120 seats.


Since the uprising, Tunisia's new leaders have faced many protests over economic hardship and political ideas; many have complained that hardline Salafists may hijack the revolution.


Last year, Salafist groups prevented several concerts and plays from taking place in Tunisian cities, saying they violated Islamic principles. Salafists also ransacked the U.S. Embassy in September, during international protests over an Internet video.


The embassy issued a statement condemning Belaid's killing and urging justice for his killers: "There is no justification for this heinous and cowardly act," it said. "Political violence has no place in the democratic transition in Tunisia."


ECONOMIC TROUBLES


Declining trade with the crisis-hit euro zone has left the 11 million Tunisians struggling to achieve the better living standards many had hoped for following Ben Ali's departure.


Its compact size, relatively skilled workforce and close ties with former colonial power France and other European neighbors across the Mediterranean has raised hopes that Tunisia can set an example of economic progress for the region.


Lacking the huge oil and gas resources of North African neighbors Libya and Algeria, Tunisia counts tourism as a major currency earner and further unrest could scare off visitors vital to an industry only just recovering from the revolution.


Jobless graduate Mohamed Bouazizi set himself on fire in December 2010 in the city, 300 km (180 miles) southwest of Tunis, after police confiscated his unlicensed fruit cart, triggering the uprising that forced Ben Ali to flee to Saudi Arabia less than a month later, on January 14, 2011.


President Moncef Marzouki, who last month warned the tension between secularists and Islamists might lead to "civil war", cancelled a visit to Egypt scheduled for Thursday and cut short a trip to France, where he addressed the European Parliament.


"There are political forces inside Tunisia that don't want this transition to succeed," Marzouki said in Strasbourg. "When one has a revolution, the counter revolution immediately sets in because those who lose power - it's not only Ben Ali and his family - are the hundreds of thousands of people with many interests who see themselves threatened by this revolution."


Belaid, who died in hospital, said this week dozens of people close to the government had attacked a Popular Front group meeting in Kef, northern Tunisia, on Sunday. He had been a constant critic of the government, accusing it of being a puppet of the rulers of wealthy Gulf emirate Qatar.


DENIES INVOLVEMENT


Human Rights Watch called his murder "the gravest incident yet in a climate of mounting violence".


Ennahda leader Rached Ghannouchi denied any involvement by his party in the killing.


"Is it possible that the ruling party could carry out this assassination when it would disrupt investment and tourism?" Ghannouchi told Reuters.


He blamed those seeking to derail Tunisia's democratic transition: "Tunisia today is in the biggest political stalemate since the revolution. We should be quiet and not fall into a spiral of violence. We need unity more than ever," he said.


He accused opponents of stirring up sentiment against his party following Belaid's death. "The result is burning and attacking the headquarters of our party in many areas," he said.


Witnesses said crowds had also attacked Ennahda offices in Sousse, Monastir, Mahdia and Sfax.


French President Francois Hollande said he was concerned by the rise of violence in Paris's former dominion, where the government says al Qaeda-linked militants linked to those in neighboring countries have been accumulating weapons with the aim of creating an Islamic state across North Africa.


"This murder deprives Tunisia of one of its most courageous and free voices," Hollande's office said in a statement.


(Additional reporting by John Irish in Paris; Writing by Alison Williams and Alastair Macdonald; Editing by Giles Elgood)



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Philippines' Aquino to visit rebel stronghold






MANILA: Philippine President Benigno Aquino will next week make a historic visit to the stronghold of the country's main Muslim rebel force in an effort to push forward peace talks, his office said on Thursday.

Aquino's trip on Monday to the outskirts of the 12,000-member Moro Islamic Liberation Front's (MILF's) main base in the country's south will be the first peace mission there by a president since the insurgency began in the 1970s.

Aquino and MILF chairman Murad Ebrahim will meet as they witness the launch of a social welfare project for mainly Muslim residents of communities where the rebels exert an influence, Aquino spokesman Ricky Carandang told AFP.

"It's not a formal meeting, but their presence will underscore the commitment and optimism that both sides have that a final resolution to the peace process will be achieved," he said.

"The launch of the social programmes will show concrete benefits of peace."

At the launch, health insurance cards will be distributed to residents, emergency jobs offered to adults and scholarships given to their children, Aquino's office said.

The MILF has been fighting since the 1970s for independence in Mindanao, the southern third of the mainly Catholic Philippines that the country's Muslim minority claim as their ancestral homeland.

An estimated 150,000 people have died in the conflict.

The MILF signed a "framework agreement" with Aquino's government in October last year committing both sides to form a new autonomous entity on Mindanao by 2016, when the president ends his six-year term.

The MILF vowed to give up its quest for an independent homeland in exchange for significant power and wealth-sharing in a new autonomous region.

Negotiators from both sides have been meeting in neighbouring Malaysia to thrash out what they described as contentious items in the plan.

Cabinet secretary Jose Almendras said Monday's event would be held at an MILF-run school that residents say is about half a kilometre (a third of a mile) from the main gate of the rebels' headquarters, Camp Darapanan.

"It's very close to the MILF camp," Almendras said.

MILF spokesman Mike Pasigan welcomed the imminent launch of the social welfare project.

"The programme will further strengthen the collaboration between the government and the MILF as we build on the gains of the peace process," he said in a statement.

-AFP/fl



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Kashmir Valley reels under intense cold, Gulmarg coldest in J&K

SRINAGAR: Kashmir was back in the grip of intense cold as night temperatures across the Valley dipped below the freezing point with Gulmarg being the coldest place in the state at minus 14.2 degrees Celsius.

The mercury in Gulmarg plunged by 1.2 degrees compared to previous night's low of minus 13 degrees Celsius, a met office spokesman said.

He said even Leh and Kargil towns in cold desert region of Ladakh experienced comparatively warmer nights as the twin towns recorded a low of minus 13.6 degrees Celsius and minus 10.6 degrees Celsius respectively.

In Srinagar, the mercury continued its downward spiral to settle at minus 2.2 degrees Celsius compared to yesterday's minus 1.3 degrees Celsius, the spokesman said, adding Pahalgam in south Kashmir witnessed a low of minus 8.4 degrees Celsius.

Qazigund (minus 1.9), Kupwara (minus 2.5) and Kokernag (minus 3.7) also witnessed sub-zero temperatures last night, he added.

Meanwhile, authorities have sounded a high danger avalanche warning for snow-bound areas.

"People residing in snow-bound areas are advised not to venture into steep avalanche prone areas and nearby forests in view of apprehensions of high danger avalanches," an advisory issued by the office of the Divisional Commissioner Kashmir said.

According to the advisory, high danger avalanche warning has been issued for Gulmarg, Chowkibal and Tangdhar sectors while medium danger avalanche warning has been issued for Uri, Nowgam-Keran sector, Machil sector, Bandipora-Gurez sector, Sonamarg, Drass and Kargil sectors.

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Critics seek to delay NYC sugary drinks size limit


NEW YORK (AP) — Opponents are pressing to delay enforcement of the city's novel plan to crack down on supersized, sugary drinks, saying businesses shouldn't have to spend millions of dollars to comply until a court rules on whether the measure is legal.


With the rule set to take effect March 12, beverage industry, restaurant and other business groups have asked a judge to put it on hold at least until there's a ruling on their lawsuit seeking to block it altogether. The measure would bar many eateries from selling high-sugar drinks in cups or containers bigger than 16 ounces.


"It would be a tremendous waste of expense, time, and effort for our members to incur all of the harm and costs associated with the ban if this court decides that the ban is illegal," Chong Sik Le, president of the New York Korean-American Grocers Association, said in court papers filed Friday.


City lawyers are fighting the lawsuit and oppose postponing the restriction, which the city Board of Health approved in September. They said Tuesday they expect to prevail.


"The obesity epidemic kills nearly 6,000 New Yorkers each year. We see no reason to delay the Board of Health's reasonable and legal actions to combat this major, growing problem," Mark Muschenheim, a city attorney, said in a statement.


Another city lawyer, Thomas Merrill, has said officials believe businesses have had enough time to get ready for the new rule. He has noted that the city doesn't plan to seek fines until June.


Mayor Michael Bloomberg and other city officials see the first-of-its-kind limit as a coup for public health. The city's obesity rate is rising, and studies have linked sugary drinks to weight gain, they note.


"This is the biggest step a city has taken to curb obesity," Bloomberg said when the measure passed.


Soda makers and other critics view the rule as an unwarranted intrusion into people's dietary choices and an unfair, uneven burden on business. The restriction won't apply at supermarkets and many convenience stores because the city doesn't regulate them.


While the dispute plays out in court, "the impacted businesses would like some more certainty on when and how they might need to adjust operations," American Beverage Industry spokesman Christopher Gindlesperger said Tuesday.


Those adjustments are expected to cost the association's members about $600,000 in labeling and other expenses for bottles, Vice President Mike Redman said in court papers. Reconfiguring "16-ounce" cups that are actually made slightly bigger, to leave room at the top, is expected to take cup manufacturers three months to a year and cost them anywhere from more than $100,000 to several millions of dollars, Foodservice Packaging Institute President Lynn Dyer said in court documents.


Movie theaters, meanwhile, are concerned because beverages account for more than 20 percent of their overall profits and about 98 percent of soda sales are in containers greater than 16 ounces, according to Robert Sunshine, executive director of the National Association of Theatre Owners of New York State.


___


Follow Jennifer Peltz at http://twitter.com/jennpeltz


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Lance Armstrong Under Criminal Investigation













Federal investigators are in the midst of an active criminal investigation of disgraced former Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong, ABC News has learned.


The revelation comes in stark contrast to statements made by the U.S. Attorney for Southern California, Andre Birotte, who addressed his own criminal inquiry of Armstrong for the first time publicly on Tuesday. Birotte's office spent nearly two years investigating Armstrong for crimes reportedly including drug distribution, fraud and conspiracy -- only to suddenly drop the case on the Friday before the Super Bowl last year.


Sources at the time said that agents had recommended an indictment and could not understand why the case was suddenly dropped.


Today, a high level source told ABC News, "Birotte does not speak for the federal government as a whole."


According to the source, who agreed to speak on the condition that his name and position were not used because of the sensitivity of the matter, "Agents are actively investigating Armstrong for obstruction, witness tampering and intimidation."


An email to an attorney for Armstrong was not immediately returned.


READ MORE: Lance Armstrong May Have Lied to Winfrey: Investigators






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Earlier Tuesday, during a Department of Justice news conference on another matter, Birotte was confronted with the Armstrong question unexpectedly. The following is a transcript of that exchange:


Q: Mr. Birotte, given the confession of Lance Armstrong to all the things --


Birotte: (Off mic.)


Q: -- to all thethings that you, in the end, decided you couldn't bring a case about, can you give us your thoughts on that case now and whether you might take another look at it?


Birotte: We made a decision on that case, I believe, a little over a year ago. Obviously we've been well-aware of the statements that have been made by Mr. Armstrong and other media reports. That has not changed my view at this time. Obviously, we'll consider, we'll continue to look at the situation, but that hasn't changed our view as I stand here today.


The source said that Birotte is not in the loop on the current criminal inquiry, which is being run out of another office.


Armstrong confessed to lying and using performance-enhancing drugs throughout his career in an interview with Oprah Winfrey.


READ MORE: Armstrong Admits to Doping


WATCH: Armstrong's Many Denials Caught on Tape


READ MORE: 10 Scandalous Public Confessions


Investigators are not concerned with the drug use, but Armstrong's behavior in trying to maintain his secret by allegedly threatening and interfering with potential witnesses.


Armstrong is currently serving a lifetime ban in sport handed down by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency. He has been given a Feb. 6 deadline to tell all under oath to investigators or lose his last chance at a possible break on the lifetime ban.


PHOTOS: Olympic Doping Scandals: Past and Present


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Stabbing at Ecuador campaign rally not politically motivated: Correa


QUITO (Reuters) - A knife attack in Ecuador that killed two government supporters was perpetrated by a man under the influence of drugs and alcohol and was not politically motivated, President Rafael Correa said on Tuesday.


The man killed two Correa supporters and injured five more at a campaign rally on Monday, about two weeks before a presidential election that the leftist leader is expected to win comfortably.


"There is no indication that this attack may have been politically motivated. It was a person who was temporarily insane and stabbed the people that he found in his way," Correa said at a press conference in Quito. "This person was under the influence of drugs and alcohol."


A 40-year-old man with a criminal record who had spent time at a drug rehab center was detained shortly after the attack and is in police custody.


Correa said that five people were injured, one more than the number previously given by authorities.


Such incidents are exceedingly rare in Ecuadorean political campaigns despite historically volatile politics in which presidents have been toppled during street protests.


It was the first significant act of violence in a presidential race that officially started on January 4.


In a chilling video broadcast on local TV networks, a man could be seen breaking through a rally of a few hundred Correa sympathizers and attacking them with a large knife. Dozens ran for their lives while some men tried to stop the attacker.


Correa said police at the event were caught off guard. He said the attack lasted less than 20 seconds.


The incident occurred ahead of a campaign rally in Quininde, a town in the western Esmeraldas province. The event was canceled following the attack and Correa suspended his campaign on Tuesday in solidarity with the victims.


Correa, an ally of socialist Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez, is expected to win the February 17 vote. Polls give him between 50 percent and 60 percent of votes, at least 30 percentage points ahead of his nearest rival, Guillermo Lasso, a former banker.


The president is very popular in urban shanty towns and rural areas, where millions have seen their livelihoods improved thanks to record spending in roads, hospitals and schools.


(Writing By Eduardo Garcia; Editing by Stacey Joyce)



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SSC may sell naming rights to facilities in Sports Hub






SINGAPORE: The Singapore Sports Council (SSC), which is developing the Sports Hub, may sell the naming rights to individual facilities within the complex, except for the National Stadium.

However, any sale of naming rights within the Sports Hub is still subject to SSC's consent.

The aim is to strike a balance between preserving the character of Singapore's national icons and allowing sports to benefit from corporate sponsorship.

Acting Minister for Culture, Community and Youth Lawrence Wong said this in Parliament on Wednesday in response to questions from Nominated MP, Assistant Professor Eugene Tan, on the policy on naming rights.

Mr Wong said: "We would certainly be considering naming the facilities which could take the name of our public figures or sports personalities. We are prepared to consider the suggestion and that is provided for within the context of the Sports Hub. Not all of the naming rights have been sold or are part of the agreement with the operator. The government can decide to so name in a different manner."

The Sports Hub is being developed under a 25-year public-private-partnership (PPP) agreement.

A commercial operator will finance, build and operate the entire project in return for a pre-agreed payment and a share of the overall revenue.

Part of the revenue from the operation of the Sports Hub, which would include revenue from the sale of naming rights, may be used to pay for future improvements in facilities, events and shows, as well as to fund community events and support the development of athletes.

On whether a local bank is in discussions with the sports operator on the naming rights, Mr Wong said any interested party can approach the Sports Hub operator and let it know it is interested in a sponsorship deal with naming rights for a particular facility.

He said the Sports Hub operator has been talking to many parties,.

He added that while the media may have speculated about a deal with one local bank, that doesn't mean only one party is interested.

- CNA/fa



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Narendra Modi meets PM, seeks parity in gas pricing

NEW DELHI: Gujarat chief minister NarendraModi met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Wednesday and expressed his unhappiness over the Centre's refusal to provide gas to the state at the same price at which it is given to Mumbai and Delhi.

"It was a very good meeting and we had a long discussion during which several different issues came up. The Prime Minister gave his good wishes for the development of Gujarat and the success of the new government. I gave an assurance that Gujarat will give full support to all measures taken for the welfare of the people," Modi said.

He was talking to reporters after an over hour-long meeting with the Prime Minister at his residence. This was Modi's first meeting with Singh after his victory in the Gujarat assembly elections in December last.

In a memorandum submitted to the Prime Minister, Modi demanded that Gujarat be provided gas at the same rate as places like Delhi and Mumbai.

"A legal battle is on between us and the Government of India. Gujarat is not given gas at the price at which Delhi and Mumbai get it. We had gone to court and won the case. Despite this the order was not implemented for six months and we filed a contempt petition," Modi said.

"Instead of accepting this order, the Government of India went to the Supreme Court to delay the process. I have expressed my unhappiness to the Prime Minister over this," he said.

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Bullying study: It does get better for gay teens


CHICAGO (AP) — It really does get better for gay and bisexual teens when it comes to being bullied, although young gay men have it worse than their lesbian peers, according to the first long-term scientific evidence on how the problem changes over time.


The seven-year study involved more than 4,000 teens in England who were questioned yearly through 2010, until they were 19 and 20 years old. At the start, just over half of the 187 gay, lesbian and bisexual teens said they had been bullied; by 2010 that dropped to 9 percent of gay and bisexual boys and 6 percent of lesbian and bisexual girls.


The researchers said the same results likely would be found in the United States.


In both countries, a "sea change" in cultural acceptance of gays and growing intolerance for bullying occurred during the study years, which partly explains the results, said study co-author Ian Rivers, a psychologist and professor of human development at Brunel University in London.


That includes a government mandate in England that schools work to prevent bullying, and changes in the United States permitting same-sex marriage in several states.


In 2010, syndicated columnist Dan Savage launched the "It Gets Better" video project to encourage bullied gay teens. It was prompted by widely publicized suicides of young gays, and includes videos from politicians and celebrities.


"Bullying tends to decline with age regardless of sexual orientation and gender," and the study confirms that, said co-author Joseph Robinson, a researcher and assistant professor of educational psychology at the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign. "In absolute terms, this would suggest that yes, it gets better."


The study appears online Monday in the journal Pediatrics.


Eliza Byard, executive director of the Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network, said the results mirror surveys by her anti-bullying advocacy group that show bullying is more common in U.S. middle schools than in high schools.


But the researchers said their results show the situation is more nuanced for young gay men.


In the first years of the study, gay boys and girls were almost twice as likely to be bullied as their straight peers. By the last year, bullying dropped overall and was at about the same level for lesbians and straight girls. But the difference between men got worse by ages 19 and 20, with gay young men almost four times more likely than their straight peers to be bullied.


The mixed results for young gay men may reflect the fact that masculine tendencies in girls and women are more culturally acceptable than femininity in boys and men, Robinson said.


Savage, who was not involved in the study, agreed.


"A lot of the disgust that people feel when you bring up homosexuality ... centers around gay male sexuality," Savage said. "There's more of a comfort level" around gay women, he said.


Kendall Johnson, 21, a junior theater major at the University of Illinois, said he was bullied for being gay in high school, mostly when he brought boyfriends to school dances or football games.


"One year at prom, I had a guy tell us that we were disgusting and he didn't want to see us dancing anymore," Johnson said. A football player and the president of the drama club intervened on his behalf, he recalled.


Johnson hasn't been bullied in college, but he said that's partly because he hangs out with the theater crowd and avoids the fraternity scene. Still, he agreed, that it generally gets better for gays as they mature.


"As you grow older, you become more accepting of yourself," Johnson said.


___


Online:


Pediatrics: http://www.pediatrics.org


It Gets Better: http://www.itgetsbetter.org


___


AP Medical Writer Lindsey Tanner can be reached at http://www.twitter.com/LindseyTanner


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Sarai Sierra's 2 Young Boys Don't Know Mom's Dead













The two young sons of slain New York mom Sarai Sierra are under the impression that their father has gone to Turkey to bring their mother home - alive.


Sierra, whose battered body was found near a highway in Istanbul over the weekend, was the mother of two boys aged 9 and 11.


Steven Sierra, who went to Istanbul in search of his wife after she disappeared nearly two weeks ago, told his children that he was going to Turkey to bring their mom home.


"The father will be speaking to them and it's something that's going to be hard and he's going to be talking to them when he comes back," Betsy Jimenez, the mother of Sarai Sierra, said today during a family news conference.


State Representative Michael Grimm said Steven Sierra's biggest concern is telling his children that mom's not coming home.


"It's going to be the hardest thing he's ever going to have to do in his life," said Grimm, who added that the Staten Island family isn't sure when Steven Sierra will be able to bring home his wife's body.


An autopsy was completed Sunday on Sarai Sierra, 33, but results aren't expected for three months. Turkish officials however said she was killed by at least one fatal blow to her head.


A casket holding the Staten Island mother was carried through alleyways lined with spice and food stalls to a church, where the casket remained on Monday.


Turkish police hope DNA samples from 21 people being questioned in the case will be key to finding the perpetrators, the Associated Press reported, according to state run media.








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Body Found in Search for Missing Mother in Turkey Watch Video









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Earlier this week, it was also reported that Turkish police are speaking to a local man who was supposed to meet Sierra the day she disappeared, but he said she never showed.


After an intense search for Sierra that lasted nearly two weeks, her body was found Saturday near the ruins of some ancient city walls and a highway. Sierra was wearing the same outfit she was seen wearing on surveillance footage taken at a food court and on a street the day she vanished, Istanbul Police Chief Huseyin Capkin said.


Sierra's body was taken to a morgue, Capkin said, and was identified by her husband.


It did not appear she had been raped or was involved in any espionage or trafficking, Capkin said.


Betsy Jimenez said Monday that her family has many unanswered questions such as what happened to her daughter after she left her hotel room to go and take photographs of a famous bridge.


"They're still investigating so they might think it might be a robbery, but they're not sure," said Jimenez.


Sierra, who had traveled to Istanbul on Jan. 7 to practice her photography hobby, was last heard from on Jan. 21, the day she was due to board a flight home to New York City.


Dennis Jimenez, Sierra's father, told reporters Monday that he didn't want her to go on the trip.


"I didn't want her to go. But, she wanted to go because this was an opportunity for her to sightsee and pursue her photography hobby because Turkey was a land rich with culture and ancient history and she was fascinated with that," said Jimenez.


While in Istanbul, Sierra would Skype with her family and friends daily, telling them about how amazing the culture was.


Sierra's best friend Maggie Rodriguez told ABC News that she was forced to pull out of the trip at the last minute because she couldn't afford it. That's why Sierra traveled alone.


Her husband, Steven Sierra, and brother, David Jimenez, traveled to Istanbul last Sunday to meet with American and Turkish officials and push the search forward.






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Mexico says gas leak caused deadly Pemex blast


MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - The Mexican government said on Monday that a gas leak caused a blast that killed at least 37 people at the offices of state oil monopoly Pemex in Mexico City, raising fresh questions about the firm's safety record.


Attorney General Jesus Murillo said no trace of explosives was found at the site of the explosion, the latest in a string of disasters to hit the lumbering oil giant.


New President Enrique Pena Nieto is seeking to overhaul Pemex as part of raft of economic reforms aimed at boosting growth in Latin America's No. 2 economy.


"We have been able to determine that the explosion was caused by an accumulation of gas in the basement of the building," Murillo told a news conference in Mexico City. He said the gas was believed to be methane.


Murillo said the gas may have leaked from containers in a storage facility connected to where the explosion took place by a tunnel. Or it could have leaked from an aging pipeline that passed through the building.


Another possibility is that it emanated from sewage in the ground under the building, he said.


Mexico City is built on a dried-out lake bed, and the stench of sewage often hangs over parts of the city downtown.


Murillo said contractors working on supports under the building needed electricity and used an extension cord, which could have caused a spark that ignited the gas.


Thursday afternoon's blast at a building at the Pemex headquarters complex in downtown Mexico City prompted speculation the incident could have been an act of sabotage.


That raised fears that drug war violence that has killed an estimated 70,000 people in the past six years could have entered a new, more sinister phase, and rattled investors.


REFORM OUTLOOK


The explosion next to Pemex's flagship tower block prompted renewed criticism of the oil giant's safety record.


For years a source of national pride, Pemex has proven stubbornly resistant to change. The company has become a touchstone for Mexico's capacity for economic reform since oil output began to fall behind the performance of other major producers.


A symbol of Mexican self-sufficiency since president Lazaro Cardenas expropriated U.S. and British oil companies in 1938 and nationalized the oil industry, Pemex has also become a byword for inefficiency and graft.


Pena Nieto, who took office in December, has made passing an energy reform to boost crude production a priority this year.


Geoffrey Pazzanese, who co-manages Federated Investors' $523 million Federated InterContinental Fund, said an accident would help the government push its energy reform.


"It's probably going to be positive for the reform, it underlines the need for Pemex to invest in its own capital spending," he said before Murillo spoke. "You have a big explosion in a building that's right in the middle of the city.


"Conspiracy theories aside, people are probably outraged about the situation and that tends to spur action," he added.


Mexico is the world's No. 7 oil producer and a top exporter to the United States. But output has slumped from a peak of 3.4 million barrels per day in 2004 to less than 2.6 million bpd now.


While the company had said it improved safety prior to the blast, fires, explosions and other safety breaches are regular occurrences.


Mexico loses hundreds of millions of dollars a year to theft of oil carried out by drug gangs, petty criminals and corrupt workers. The Mexican government relies on oil revenues to fund nearly a third of the federal budget.


The heavy tax burden has limited Pemex's ability to fund new projects and lift crude output. The government has warned that Mexico could become a net oil importer as early as 2018 if major new oil finds cannot be developed.


The company had pinned its long-term hopes of boosting production on the deep waters of the Gulf of Mexico, where the government estimates there are significant oilfields.


The last conservative administration had helped Pemex by drawing more outside investment into mature oilfields via the auction of private contracts.


(With reporting by David Alire Garcia, Krista Hughes, Ana Isabel Martinez and Anahi Rama; Writing by Simon Gardner and Dave Graham; Editing by Xavier Briand)



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China police chief accused of having 192 houses






BEIJING: A Chinese police chief is alleged to have had at least 192 houses and a fake identity card, state media said Tuesday, the latest in a number of similar cases that have sparked outrage online.

Zhao Haibin, a senior police official in Lufeng in the southern province of Guangdong, was reported by a businessman to have accumulated the properties under his name and his company's, the Guangzhou Daily said.

The businessman, Huang Kunyi -- who was involved in a dispute with the officer -- also said Zhao used a fake identity card to record a different name on company documents, the newspaper reported.

Authorities cancelled the false card after Huang's report in 2011, it added.

An official of the Communist Party's discipline department for Lufeng told AFP Tuesday that Zhao -- who is also the vice party secretary of a local county -- had been investigated but the inquiry was over and he retained his public offices.

According to the newspaper, Zhao said the properties were owned by his younger brother, a businessman, and that he was only "managing" them for him.

A separate report said Zhao or the company had 192 properties in the city of Huizhou, also in Guangdong, and others in the cities of Shenzhen and Zhuhai.

The case is the latest of a series of reports involving officials owning multiple houses with different identity cards and residence permits.

Gong Aiai, a vice president of a bank in the northern province of Shaanxi and a delegate to the local legislature, was reported last month to hold more than 20 houses worth nearly one billion yuan (US$160 million), using four different residence permits and three identity cards.

She was detained by police Monday on suspicion of "forging official documents and stamps", the state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

The cases have sparked mounting criticism in Chinese social media over rampant graft and high home prices that are running out of reach of the average citizen.

"(I) finally realised that in China, properties are forever in the hands of a tiny number of people," said a user of China's Twitter-like Sina Weibo.

-AFP/fl



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Bullying study: It does get better for gay teens


CHICAGO (AP) — It really does get better for gay and bisexual teens when it comes to being bullied, although young gay men have it worse than their lesbian peers, according to the first long-term scientific evidence on how the problem changes over time.


The seven-year study involved more than 4,000 teens in England who were questioned yearly through 2010, until they were 19 and 20 years old. At the start, just over half of the 187 gay, lesbian and bisexual teens said they had been bullied; by 2010 that dropped to 9 percent of gay and bisexual boys and 6 percent of lesbian and bisexual girls.


The researchers said the same results likely would be found in the United States.


In both countries, a "sea change" in cultural acceptance of gays and growing intolerance for bullying occurred during the study years, which partly explains the results, said study co-author Ian Rivers, a psychologist and professor of human development at Brunel University in London.


That includes a government mandate in England that schools work to prevent bullying, and changes in the United States permitting same-sex marriage in several states.


In 2010, syndicated columnist Dan Savage launched the "It Gets Better" video project to encourage bullied gay teens. It was prompted by widely publicized suicides of young gays, and includes videos from politicians and celebrities.


"Bullying tends to decline with age regardless of sexual orientation and gender," and the study confirms that, said co-author Joseph Robinson, a researcher and assistant professor of educational psychology at the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign. "In absolute terms, this would suggest that yes, it gets better."


The study appears online Monday in the journal Pediatrics.


Eliza Byard, executive director of the Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network, said the results mirror surveys by her anti-bullying advocacy group that show bullying is more common in U.S. middle schools than in high schools.


But the researchers said their results show the situation is more nuanced for young gay men.


In the first years of the study, gay boys and girls were almost twice as likely to be bullied as their straight peers. By the last year, bullying dropped overall and was at about the same level for lesbians and straight girls. But the difference between men got worse by ages 19 and 20, with gay young men almost four times more likely than their straight peers to be bullied.


The mixed results for young gay men may reflect the fact that masculine tendencies in girls and women are more culturally acceptable than femininity in boys and men, Robinson said.


Savage, who was not involved in the study, agreed.


"A lot of the disgust that people feel when you bring up homosexuality ... centers around gay male sexuality," Savage said. "There's more of a comfort level" around gay women, he said.


Kendall Johnson, 21, a junior theater major at the University of Illinois, said he was bullied for being gay in high school, mostly when he brought boyfriends to school dances or football games.


"One year at prom, I had a guy tell us that we were disgusting and he didn't want to see us dancing anymore," Johnson said. A football player and the president of the drama club intervened on his behalf, he recalled.


Johnson hasn't been bullied in college, but he said that's partly because he hangs out with the theater crowd and avoids the fraternity scene. Still, he agreed, that it generally gets better for gays as they mature.


"As you grow older, you become more accepting of yourself," Johnson said.


___


Online:


Pediatrics: http://www.pediatrics.org


It Gets Better: http://www.itgetsbetter.org


___


AP Medical Writer Lindsey Tanner can be reached at http://www.twitter.com/LindseyTanner


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Ravens Defeat 49ers in Historic, Unusual Super Bowl













The Baltimore Ravens emerged Super Bowl champions after one of the strangest and most incredible Super Bowl games in recent memory.


It's the second championship for the Ravens, who pulled out a 34-31 win over the San Francisco 49ers at the Superdome in New Orleans.


The Super Bowl is the biggest spectacle in American sports, and each year becomes the most watched television event in history. This year, Jennifer Hudson kicked things off with a touching performance of "America the Beautiful" with a choir of students from Sandy Hook Elementary School.


Alicia Keys accompanied herself on the piano for a long, jazzy rendition of the national anthem, before the coin toss which resulted in San Francisco receiving to start the first half.


Although the game looked at one point like it was going to be a completely unexpected blow-out, with the Ravens leading 28-6 at the beginning of the 3rd quarter, the 49ers got some unusual help that turned the showdown into a much more exciting battle.


About a third of the way into the 3rd quarter, right after a record-tying Ravens rushing touchdown, the power went out at the Superdome, knocking the lights and air conditioning out in the indoor stadium. The crowd of more than 71,000 strong, along with a lot of antsy players, coaches, and staff waited for 34 minutes for the power to fully come back on and the game to resume.






Chris Graythen/Getty Images











Super Bowl 2013: Beyonce Rocks the Halftime Show Watch Video









Super Bowl 2013: Alicia Keys Sings 'The Star-Spangled Banner' Watch Video









Super Bowl 2013: Jennifer Hudson, Sandy Hook Students Perform Watch Video





In a statement, the NFL said authorities were "investigating the cause of the power outage," and law enforcement sources told ABC News it was just an issue with the building.


That didn't stop many people on Twitter from jokingly blaming Beyonce, the energetic halftime performer who surprisingly reunited shortly with her former band Destiny's Child, for shutting down the power. After her performance, even her husband Jay-Z got in on it, tweeting "Lights out!!! Any questions??"


VIDEO: Super Bowl 2013: Beyonce Rocks the Halftime Show


The 49ers quickly followed the long delay with a touchdown, getting themselves right back into the game. Then just a few minutes later, they found themselves in the end zone again, and it appeared the power outage had flipped the momentum towards the 49ers.


With a score of 31-29 with more than 7 minutes left in the game, San Francisco looked poised to make the biggest comeback in Super Bowl history, but the team, trying for its 6th title, wasn't able to overcome the Ravens lead.


Baltimore was able to run out the clock, and the game ended with a final score of 34-31. Purple and gold confetti fell as the Ravens rushed onto the field and celebrated -- with some colorful language from quarterback Joe Flacco audible on the live broadcast, who was caught saying, "f***ing awesome" on CBS' cameras.


The game was already historic thanks to the match-up for John and Jim Harbaugh, the first head coach brothers to ever face each other on football's biggest stage. It was also the final game for the future Hall of Fame linebacker Ray Lewis, who is, as of the conclusion of the game retired from football.


This is the fifth season in a row that the Ravens have made it to the playoffs, led by Coach John Harbaugh, and SB XLVII MVP Quarterback Joe Flacco. It's the team's first Lombardi trophy since 2000. Their victor tonight made them the only team left in the NFL to have never lost a Super Bowl in multiple appearances.






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