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106-year-old woman, 30-year-old caretaker, die in apparent suicide pact

SAN FRANCISCO- A 106-year-old widow and her 30-year-old caretaker died in an apparent suicide pact at the home they shared, authorities said. The bodies of Helen Godet and her caretaker of nine years, David Lund, were found Friday along with suicide notes indicating that Lund strangled the woman after she decided she could not take her own life, police said Monday. Lund then swallowed a fatal dose of antifreeze, authorities said. The notes were dated Dec. 27. "She was supposed to drink the poison, but she could not do it," said police Insp. Dennis Maffei. He said she signed a suicide note. "It said that she wanted to kill herself. . . . It was just time," the inspector said. Police and social workers said that Lund, who never had children, and Godet had been inseparable after meeting nine years ago. Lund slept on the sofa in Godet's house.

UNITED NATIONS

HARRY BELAFONTE: "BUSH, THE GREATEST TERRORIST"

United Nations - The United Nations' children's agency said singer Harry Belafonte was speaking as a private citizen, not a UNICEF goodwill ambassador, when he called United States President George W Bush "the greatest terrorist in the world." The 79-year-old Belafonte, famous for his calypso-inspired music, made headlines during a trip to Venezuela when he spoke out against Bush and said millions of Americans support the socialist revolution of Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez. Belafonte was a close collaborator of the Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. and has been a UNICEF goodwill ambassador since 1987. He also has been an outspoken critic of the US embargo of communist Cuba. The US Fund for UNICEF said in a statement that Belafonte made the comments about Bush and Chavez "as a private citizen and was not speaking as a UNICEF ambassador, nor acting in an official capacity on behalf of the organisation."

Photo: Harry Belafonte.

Calls to UNICEF offices: As a goodwill ambassador, UNICEF said, Belafonte has travelled to Senegal, Rwanda and South Africa and has worked diligently to promote the organisation's programmes and the rights of children. He also has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for UNICEF. Belafonte led a delegation of Americans including actor Danny Glover, Princeton University scholar Cornel West and farm worker advocate Dolores Huerta that met Chavez for more than six hours late Saturday. Several members, including Belafonte, attended the president's television and radio broadcast on Sunday. During the broadcast, Belafonte told Chavez, "No matter what the greatest tyrant in the world, the greatest terrorist in the world, George W Bush says, we're here to tell you: Not hundreds, not thousands, but millions of the American people ... support your revolution.". "We respect you, admire you, and we are expressing our full solidarity with the Venezuelan people and your revolution," Belafonte added. The US Fund for UNICEF put out the statement in response to calls to its office and UNICEF headquarters. It urged donors to continue to provide children with life-saving medicine, better nutrition, clean water and sanitation, basic education and emergency relief, noting that its programs are funded entirely by voluntary contributions.

WORLD

Iran defiantly resumes nuclear research

TEHRAN, Iran -- Iran removed U.N. seals on uranium enrichment equipment and resumed nuclear research Tuesday, defying demands it maintain a two-year freeze on its nuclear program and sparking an outcry from the United States and Europe. The International Atomic Energy Agency said Iran plans to enrich uranium as part of its experiments with the nuclear fuel cycle. An IAEA statement issued in Vienna, Austria, said Iran told the agency the scale of its enrichment work would be limited.

U.S. officials denounced Iran's move, calling it a step toward creating material for nuclear bombs. "If the regime in Iran continues on the current course and fails to abide by its international obligations, there is no other choice but to refer the matter to the Security Council," White House press secretary Scott McClellan said.

The U.N. council could impose sanctions on Tehran. Germany's foreign minister raised doubts over the future of European-led negotiations on Iran's nuclear program, questioning whether there remains any basis for more talks. Britain warned that the international community was "running out of patience" with Tehran, and Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said Iran had breached IAEA resolutions. Straw said he planned to meet his French and German counterparts Thursday to discuss whether to refer Iran to the Security Council. "There was no good reason why Iran should have taken this step if its intentions are truly peaceful and it wanted to resolve long-standing international concerns," Straw said. The latest move came as Iran has been taking a more confrontational line with the West, with hard-line President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad recently calling for Israel to be "wiped off the map" and denying the Holocaust. The United States accuses Iran of seeking to develop nuclear weapons, a charge denied by Iran, which contends its program aims only to produce energy. France, Germany and Britain have been leading long-troubled negotiations with Iran aimed at ensuring its program is peaceful. The seals were removed Tuesday from equipment at the nuclear plant at Natanz, the center of Iran's uranium enrichment program. However, Iran stressed it was not resuming enrichment, a key process that can produce either material for a nuclear weapon or fuel for a reactor. Instead, it said it was restarting research activities at the plant. "What we resume is merely in the field of research, not more than that," the deputy head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, Mohammad Saeedi, told a news conference. "Production of nuclear fuel" — which would involve enrichment — "remains suspended," he said. But the IAEA statement said uranium hexafluoride — a gaseous form of uranium — will "be fed into cascades" of centrifuges as part of Iran's activities. That can produce low-level nuclear fuel or weapons-grade material. Iranian nuclear workers removed the seals in the presence of IAEA inspectors, then researchers resumed their work, he said. Saeedi did not specify the equipment that had been unsealed, saying that was "a confidential issue between us and the IAEA." IAEA spokeswoman Melissa Fleming said the agency's 35-nation board of governors would be informed later Tuesday about what the Iranians planned to do with the unsealed equipment. Iran's decision to freeze some nuclear activities was voluntary, so the IAEA had no option but to remove the seals at Iran's request. The move further erodes the suspension of nuclear activities that has been the centerpiece of Iran's negotiations with the West. Tehran agreed to the freeze in October 2003 as a confidence-building measure and to avoid being referred to the council. In August, Iran removed seals at another nuclear plant outside Isfahan and resumed uranium reprocessing — a step before enrichment. That prompted Europe to break off its negotiations temporarily. The talks resumed in December, and a new round was scheduled for later this month.

French President Jacques Chirac warned Iran it would commit a serious mistake if it ignored the international community on its nuclear program. German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Iran was sending "worrying signals" on the nuclear issue. In Vienna, the chief U.S. representative to the IAEA, Gregory L. Schulte, said Iran had shown "its disdain for international concerns and its rejection of international diplomacy." "The regime continues to choose confrontation over cooperation, a choice that deepens the isolation of Iran and harms the interests of the Iranian people. Iran is taking another deliberate step toward enrichment, which creates the material for nuclear bombs," Schulte said. The West has long pushed for Iran to abandon uranium enrichment, which Tehran has refused to do, insisting it has a right to develop the entire nuclear fuel cycle. The Europeans have been pressing a compromise proposal under which Iran's enrichment activities would be conducted in Russia to ensure no material is diverted toward weapons.

The European Union, Japan and Russia all expressed concern. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said his country — a longtime ally of Iran — was working to ensure that Tehran maintains its freeze on enriching uranium until talks can be held between Moscow and Tehran over the proposal to move enrichment to Russia. In September, the IAEA board of governors passed a resolution telling Iran to return to "full and sustained suspension of all enrichment-related activity" until questions had been answered about the scope of its nuclear program. That resolution brought Iran to the verge of Security Council referral. However, IAEA chief Mohamed ElBaradei repeatedly has said his agency's nearly three-year investigation of Iran's nuclear activities has turned up no conclusive evidence of nuclear weapons activities. At the same time, he has also said the IAEA cannot give Iran a clean bill of health and has criticized the country for the delays and providing conflicting information. Iran hid its activities for decades — and turned to the same black market Libya shopped from in assembling basic elements of its now-dismantled nuclear weapons program. At the same time, it separated plutonium and did other work that could be used to develop nuclear arms. -By Ali Al Akbar Dareini.

ARAB WORLD AND ISLAM

Muslim pilgrims throw stones at a pillar representing the devil during the hajj, in Mina, Saudi Arabia, Tuesday. After collecting 49 pebbles, the pilgrims will throw seven of them Tuesday at three symbolic pillars representing Satan. The ritual continues with 21 more stones cast on both Wednesday and Thursday

"Islam's enemies want to empty our religion from its contents and its meaning," said al-Sheik, the Saudi kingdom's top religious authority.

MINA, Saudi Arabia -- Tens of thousands of Muslim pilgrims began hurling pebbles at three huge stone pillars before dawn Tuesday in the symbolic stoning of the devil, one of the final rituals of Islam's hajj which has drawn more than 2.5 million people to the holy city of Mecca. The completion of dawn prayers Tuesday also marked the start of the Eid al-Ahda, the feast of the sacrifice, which recalls Abraham's readiness to sacrifice his son, Ismail - as God tested the biblical patriarch's faith. At the last moment, God substituted a sheep for Ismail. The story is shared by all the great monotheistic religions - Islam, Judaism and Christianity. And as a reminder of Abraham's test, each pilgrim should buy a sheep for slaughter as a blood sacrifice. Saudi authorities have instituted a system whereby pilgrims purchase a coupon costing 390 Saudi riyals, the equivalent of about $120 US. Sheep purchased through the system are slaughtered at special facilities and distributed to the needy. On Monday, the mass of pilgrims made the climactic ascent to Mount Arafat, Islam's most sacred site, to pray for salvation, and Saudi Arabia's top cleric called for Islamic unity in the face of what he called the West's war on Islam. After offering prayers on the mount, tens of thousands of the faithful rushed down the hill to the Muzdalifah, a few kilometres distant, where they collected pebbles to use in the ritual stoning, which stretches over two more days. Under a fatwa, or religious edict, issued two years ago, the stoning now may begin before dawn prayers. The decree was an attempt to ease the terrible crowding at the site of the stoning, the al-Jamarat, where hundreds of pilgrims have died in stampedes over the past quarter century. "Alhamdulillah (Thanks to God), I am done with the first stoning, it was easy and I managed to hit the devil," said Abdul Bassit Amro, who had travelled from the Philippines. Pilgrims from 178 countries were registered at the hajj. "It's better to go now before the crowd get's too big. They've had a lot of problems - stampedes and other horrors. We want to finish early," said Turkish pilgrim Jawat Ahmet. Speaking at a mosque on the plain of Mount Arafat, Sheik Abdul-Aziz al-Sheik, the kingdom's grand mufti, told Muslims Monday they were facing critical challenges, among them accusations of terrorism and human rights abuses and calls for revisions in their school textbooks, many of which make harsh comments about nonbelievers, especially Jews. "Oh, Muslim nation, there is a war against of our creed, against our culture under the pretext of fighting terrorism. We should stand firm and united in protecting our religion," he said. "Islam's enemies want to empty our religion from its contents and its meaning," said al-Sheik, the Saudi kingdom's top religious authority. "But the soldiers of God will be victorious," he said. The faithful called out: "Amen." -By Salah Nawari.

MIDDLE EAST

Senior Islamic Jihad Terrorist Arrested in Kabatiya

Attributed to "security sources"[ Provided by IDF Spokespersons Office]. In a joint ISA, Israel Police and IDF operation earlier today in the town of Kabatiya, south of Jenin, security forces arrested Imad Aldin Shukat Araf Kamil, 22, a wanted Islamic Jihad terrorist and a resident of the town. Kamil was taken for questioning. Forces found an AK-47 assault rifle and matching ammunition clip in a subsequent search of his house. Imad Kamil has been a central figure in the Islamic Jihad terror infrastructure in Kabatiya. In the past months he operated alongside Jihad Awidat and Iyad Abu Roub -- who were among the heads of Islamic Jihad's infrastructure in the town. Recently, following Awidat's death and Abu Roub's arrest, Kamil became one of the key figures in the organization. Kamil was in contact with terrorists in the West Bank and from abroad and received from them funding and directions for the terror activities of the Kabatiya infrastructure. The IDF will continue to act with determination to defend the citizens of the State of Israel.

PNA Condemns Wounding of 2 Lebanese Citizens in an-Na'ima

GAZA, (WAFA - PLO news agency) - Palestinian National Authority (PNA) condemned Tuesday the wounding of two Lebanese citizens in an-Na'ima town in Lebanon. A PNA official spokesman expressed the Palestinian leadership condemnation for the firing occurred Monday when a group of a Palestinian organisation opened fire wounding two Lebanese citizens. He added that the PNA is respecting the Lebanese sovereignty and laws applicable on Palestinians as temporary guests in Lebanon. The spokesman concluded that such heinous acts would harm the Palestinian cause and the brotherly historical relations between the Palestinian and the Lebanese peoples.

EUROPE

HEATED DEBATES IN EUROPE

The French-language debate Tuesday represented the final chance for the leaders to enter the homes of people across the country ahead of the Jan. 23 election. With polls suggesting Duceppe's Bloc Quebecois still held a commanding lead despite losing some support, Harper and Prime Minister Paul Martin are scrapping for the federalist vote and a minority of the province's 75 seats. The Bloc, which would dearly love to get 50 per cent of the popular vote in the election, is trying to fend off rising support for the Tories, whose softer image appears to be winning over more and more Quebecers. Duceppe, Martin and Harper all cast themselves as men of integrity who can be relied on to deliver clean government. With Quebecers still reeling from the impact of the federal sponsorship scandal, the three leaders used the debate to convince them that they care about ethics. Martin's Liberals have been battered in Quebec in recent years, primarily because of the sponsorship scandal, but the prime minister tried to reassure voters he's done everything he could to clean up the party. "It's about putting the country first, ahead of the party, doing what has to be done even when it's tough for the party," Martin said, a reference to his decision to appoint Justice John Gomery to probe the scandal. "Integrity is crucial if a government is to manage the country well, and I can assure you that if I wanted to hide something, I never would have appointed Justice Gomery with the resources that he had." Harper described his party, which is emerging as a serious alternative for federalists in Quebec, as a scandal-free option instead of the Bloc Quebecois and the Liberals. "For the people of Quebec watching us tonight, you have an alternative to a corrupt party and endless opposition," the Conservative leader said as he sang the praises of Tory candidates in the province. "They want to represent you in a new government, a government that will represent you and your families." Duceppe said his party is the only one that can truly call itself beyond reproach. "It seems when the hopes of Quebec are at stake for the Liberals and the Conservatives, the ends justify the means, which is why more than ever, Quebecers want representatives with integrity, representatives whose only loyalties lie with Quebec," the Bloc leader said. "With the Bloc Quebecois, there will be no compromises and no corruption, and that, that's the difference for Quebec." NDP Leader Jack Layton urged voters to say no to Liberal corruption and easy Conservative promises. "Your minister of finance didn't follow the rules on the matter of ministerial responsibility," Layton said about Martin, a reference to the growing income-trust controversy. "It was us, the NDP, that had to ask the RCMP to conduct an investigation," he said. "Mr. Martin, why didn't you do it? Why didn't you do what you should have done?" The debate could be one of the last real opportunities for Martin to claw back the support that has steadily flowed to the Conservatives in the last two weeks. Several recent polls have put the Tories ahead of the pack nationally, including one that had them leading by 12 percentage points. With less than two weeks to go before the election, the Liberals have stepped up their attacks on Harper, portraying him as a man who would sacrifice social values dear to Canadians. They have also tried to paint him as someone whose economic policies would result in a cascade of red ink after several years of healthy budgetary surpluses. To try to get their message across, the Liberals have intensified their ad campaign and taken to bombarding the airwaves with their anti-Tory message. A similarly aggressive approach in the latter stages of the 2004 campaign paid off for the Liberals as they eked out a minority government that survived until last November. But this time around, the Conservatives have mounted a virtually error-free campaign and have benefited from an RCMP criminal investigation into a possible leak of a federal government announcement on income trusts. Like last month's debates, the format for Monday's English-language face off and Tuesday's French contest did not allow for direct confrontation between the candidates. But unlike last time, a moderator handled all the questions and there were no pre-recorded queries from ordinary Canadians. Harper beat Paul Martin by a nose in Monday’s televised English debate in Montreal, according to a post-debate survey of viewers by Ipsos Reid. Almost clear across the board, including in most of the regions, income brackets and age groups, respondents’ opinions of Harper’s performance has risen slightly when compared with the poll taken after the Dec. 16 debate. Harper was judged by 34 percent of respondents to have won the debate with Martin just behind, at 32 percent, while a quarter (26 percent) believed Layton was the victor. The survey of viewer reaction to the televised debate - based on Internet responses from 2,704 English-speaking people in a pre-selected group - was conducted by Ipsos-Reid for CanWest News Service and Global National. It showed the Tories leading nationally among decided voters with 40 percent support, while the Liberals were lagging behind with 32 percent, and the NDP at 24.The results are considered accurate within plus or minus 1.9 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.

ENTERTAINMENT

Matthew Broderick and Nathan Lane Honored in Hollywood

LOS ANGELES- For only the fourth time in Tinseltown, two celebrities were honored simultaneously on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on Monday -- "The Producers" co-stars Matthew Broderick and Nathan Lane. Surrounded by cheering fans, the actors posed for photos as two pink terrazzo stars engraved with their respective names were unveiled on the sidewalk outside the Kodak Theater along Hollywood Boulevard. "I hope you all will curb your dogs when you walk in this area," Broderick, 43, joked as he and Lane, 49, took the podium together to address the crowd. Broderick was accompanied by his wife, "Sex and the City" star Sarah Jessica Parker. Said Lane: "Thank you all for coming today. Obviously, this is a great honor. I'm overwhelmed. I'm more than overwhelmed." Moments earlier, producer-director Mel Brooks, who brought "The Producers" to the stage as a Broadway blockbuster decades after writing and directing the original 1968 film, introduced his co-stars by saying he was "whelmed" by the occasion. "These men have done so much for me privately and personally," Brooks gushed mockingly. "Without them, I'd be living around the corner in a little motel just trying to make ends meet. ... It's almost a pleasure to be here." Broderick and Lane currently share the big screen in the movie version of "The Producers," reprising their stage roles as two theatrical impresarios, Leo Bloom and Max Bialystock, who create Broadway's most unlikely musical hit with "Springtime for Hitler." The two performers also are starring together on Broadway in the sold-out revival of Neil Simon's comedy classic "The Odd Couple." Monday's dual ceremony brought to 2,300 the number of stars enshrined on the 46-year-old Hollywood Walk of Fame. Actress Joanne Woodward received the first Walk of Fame star in 1960. Since then, organizers have held only three other double-star unveilings -- for Sylvester Stallone and Dolly Parton, co-stars of the 1984 film "Rhinestone;" Tyne Daly and Sharon Gless of television's "Cagney & Lacey;" and Cindy Williams and Penny Marshall of TV's "Laverne & Shirley."

Swank separates from husband

Double Oscar-winner Hilary Swank has separated from her husband of more than eight years, actor Chad Lowe, the actress's publicist said today. "Hilary and Chad have decided to separate but they are hopeful they'll be able to get through this tough time," Swank's spokesman Troy Nankin said in a statement. Mr Nankin declined to discuss the reasons for the split. The syndicated celebrity television show Extra said the couple had begun a trial separation "a while ago," but had now agreed to separate permanently. Swank, 31, won last year's best actress Academy Award for her wrenching performance as a female boxer in Clint Eastwood's 2004 drama Million Dollar Baby. She previously won the same award in 2000 for Boys Don't Cry. She has just finished shooting two new movies due for release this year: the horror flick The Reaping, and the true-life murder mystery The Black Dahlia. Lowe, 37, is the brother of screen heartthrob Rob Lowe, and has had roles in more than 30 television films and several motion pictures since making his big-screen debut with a small role in his brother's 1984 film Oxford Blues.

HOT GOSSIPS

Paris Hilton receives death threats

Paris Hilton feared for her life after allegedly receiving death threats last year, a Los Angeles court heard last Tuesday. The threats was linked to her ex-boyfriend: softcore porn producer Joe Francis. Francis gave evidence in Los Angeles Superior Court during a preliminary hearing against suspect Darnell Riley, who stands accused of burglary, robbery, carjacking, kidnapping and attempted-extortion...Read full article

Queen Elizabeth failed to welcome Camilla

London's insiders and the Sun reported that Queen Elizabeth failed to welcome Camilla into her family yesterday — by NOT mentioning Prince Charles’ wedding in her TV speech. The sombre broadcast was a huge contrast to her message after Charles married Princess Diana in 1981 — when she said the ceremony had made it a “special” year. ..Read full article

MONICA CROWLEY AT THE SORBONNE. REALLY!?

American Author and anchor, Monica Crowley.

A new interest in the study of the life of President Richard Nixon is taking place, today, in France, and particularly among the new generation of universities students in Paris. For years, the former American president has been admired and recognized by the elite in Europe, as one of the greatest American presidents of all time. While former President Richard Nixon is still viewed as "Tricky Nick", the Europeans in general, and French in particular, consider Nixon as one of the greatest American politicians and one of the world's brightest political minds. ...Read full article

SIENNA MILLER VOTED THE MOST INSPIRATIONAL CELEBRITY OF 2005

Sienna Miller.

Sienna Miller has been voted the most inspirational celebrity of 2005 in a survey of teenage girls. The actress earned the accolade after a year which saw her cope with betrayal by boyfriend Jude Law, who was caught cheating with his children's nanny. She hid her heartbreak to continue with her stage role in West End play As You Like It. And the 23-year-old Alfie star got her own back on Law by flirting with...Read full article

Elton, Furnish honeymoon in Venice.

Sir Elton John and Canadian filmmaker David Furnish shopped and lunched at Harry's Bar on Saturday, honeymooning in Venice after tying the knot in a civil union ceremony in Britain this week, news reports said. The Venice daily The New Venice and Mestre featured a photo of the couple on the front page of its Saturday editions, saying that the singer and filmmaker had chosen to spend their honeymoon in the romantic canal city where John keeps a home. The couple exchanged vows and diamond wedding band...Read full article

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