Prince William has pulled out of attending the British Military Tournament tonight so he can spend time with wife Kate Middleton, who is recuperating after spending three nights in hospital.
The royal couple had both originally been due to attend tonight’s event but all of Kate Middleton’s forthcoming public engagements were cancelled after she received treatment for severe morning sickness.
It comes after Prince William, 30, joked at an event yesterday evening that morning sickness should be renamed as Kate Middleton suffered it all day and night.
It now appears unlikely that the Duchess will attend the premiere of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey film in the West End on Wednesday, and may not make another public appearance for several weeks.
A St James’s Palace spokesman said: “The Duke of Cambridge will no longer attend the British Military Tournament at Earl’s Court this evening, but will spend Sunday privately with the Duchess instead.
“It is well known that hyperemesis gravidarum often recurs and, until further notice, to allow the Duchess a degree of privacy during her pregnancy, we do not intend to offer regular condition checks or advise of routine developments associated with it.”
Prince William has pulled out of attending the British Military Tournament tonight so he can spend time with wife Kate Middleton, who is recuperating after spending three nights in hospital
The cancellation of Prince William’s attendance at the event, billed as “the largest display of military theatre in the world”, comes after he last night attended a charity event.
He went solo for the first time since the pregnant Duchess of Cambridge, also 30, was discharged from hospital.
The Duke of Cambridge attended a glittering charity tennis gala, the Winter Whites Gala, held in aid of homeless charity Centrepoint, at the Royal Albert Hall in London.
He was due to be accompanied by the Duchess, but she is resting after suffering from hyperemesis gravidarum, an acute – and potentially dangerous – form of morning sickness.
Prince William, who is patron of Centrepoint, was congratulated by many on the news that a baby is on the way.
Mohammed Abu Jamal Ahmed, one of the suspects in the Benghazi attack that killed U.S. Ambassador Christopher Stevens and three other Americans, has been arrested, NBC News is reporting.
Mohammed Abu Jamal Ahmed, who is accused of playing a role in September’s deadly attack against the U.S. Consulate in Libya, was detained in Cairo, according to NBC, which cited two unnamed sources in its report.
In addition to his possible involvement in the Benghazi attack, Mohammed Abu Jamal Ahmed is also accused of illegally trafficking weapons from Libya to Egypt.
Mohammed Abu Jamal Ahmed was freed from an Egyptian prison around the time that former President Muammar Gadhafi was ousted from power.
He is believed to be affiliated with a number of militant groups in Iraq and Afghanistan and the Wall Street Journal reported in October that he was trying to establish a new branch of al-Qaeda.
Mohammed Abu Jamal Ahmed, one of the suspects in the Benghazi attack that killed US Ambassador Christopher Stevens and three other Americans, has been arrested in Cairo
Sources told the Journal that he had already secured financing for the group.
Early intelligence reports suggested that Mohammed Abu Jamal Ahmed had established training camps in Libya for the fighters involved in the September 11 attack that killed four Americans, according to Journal.
The White House and the Pentagon initially said the attack was a spontaneous reaction to anti-Muslim film The Innocence of Muslims directed by an American.
That story later changed, however, as it was revealed that those involved in the attack had militant ties – and that administration officials were aware of those ties when they publicly claimed that the attack was in response to anti-Muslim film.
Republicans in the US House of Representatives are blocking a bill that would prevent a tax increase on the first $250,000 of income earned by all Americans, President Barack Obama said on Saturday.
The Democratic-controlled Senate has approved the measure, but Barack Obama said House Republicans have “put forward an unbalanced plan that actually lowers rates for the wealthiest Americans”.
Barack Obama supports a plan to raise taxes on families earning more than $250,000. In his weekly radio and Internet address, Barack Obama said “the math just doesn’t work” on the GOP plan.
Barack Obama’s comments mark the fourth time since his re-election that he has used the radio address to push for middle-class tax cuts as part of a plan to avert a looming fiscal cliff – and his most sharply partisan tone.
The president said his plan to raise taxes on the wealthiest Americans should come as no surprise to Republicans or anyone else.
“After all, this was a central question in the election. A clear majority of Americans – Democrats, Republicans and independents – agreed with a balanced approach that asks something from everyone, but a little more from those who can most afford it,” Barack Obama said.
His plan is “the only way to put our economy on a sustainable path without asking even more from the middle class”. It also is the only plan he is willing to sign, the president said.
Barack Obama supports a plan to raise taxes on families earning more than $250,000
Barack Obama’s comments came as House Speaker John Boehner said Friday there has been no progress in negotiations to avert the “fiscal cliff”, a combination of automatic tax increases and spending cuts set to take effect in January.
John Boehner said the White House has wasted another week and has failed to respond to a GOP offer to raise tax revenues and cut spending.
Barack Obama and John Boehner spoke privately by phone on Wednesday. John Boehner described the conversation as pleasant, “but just more of the same”.
Barack Obama said in his address that he stands ready to work with Republicans on a plan that spurs economic growth, creates jobs and reduces the national deficit.
He said he wants to find ways to bring down health care costs without hurting seniors and is willing to make more cuts in entitlement programs such as Medicare.
Florida Senator Marco Rubio said in the Republican response on Saturday that tax increases will not solve the nation’s $16 trillion debt. Only economic growth and reform of entitlement programs will help control the debt, Marco Rubio said.
Polling stations have opened in Romania in the country’s parliamentary elections.
Opinion polls suggest a large win for the governing coalition led by Prime Minister Victor Ponta and Senate President Crin Antonescu.
But the result could trigger renewed political instability as Romania negotiates a vital loan agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Victor Ponta and so called centre-right President Traian Basescu have been bitter enemies since Ponta’s government tried to impeach the president last July.
Analysts say that, in the event of Victor Ponta’s Social Liberal Union (USL) winning, the president may ask someone other than Ponta to form a government.
President Traian Basescu has said clearly he will use his powers to appoint a prime minister “in the national interest”.
Given the enmity the president feels towards Victor Ponta and his coalition, it is hard to imagine he has the leader of the Social Liberal Union (USL) in mind.
However, any attempt to appoint someone else may result in a constitutional crisis.
If the USL wins a clear majority, analysts say the president may ask someone other than Victor Ponta from within USL to become prime minister, using the argument that the USL is not a party but a coalition.
Opinion polls in Romania suggest a large win for the governing coalition led by Prime Minister Victor Ponta
If the USL falls short of a majority, Traian Basescu could ask one of his allies in the Right Romania Alliance (ARD) to try to form a coalition.
Opinion polls have put the ARD in second place, but far away vs. USL.
Any prolonged political instability could unnerve markets and threaten a crucial IMF loan agreement.
Romania’s current loan agreement expires in early 2013.
President Traian Basescu barely survived July’s referendum on his impeachment after turnout fell below the 50% needed to validate the vote, even if 7.4 million people were against him.
He said Romanians had “rejected a coup” by staying away from polling stations.
The row between the two men has alarmed Romania’s EU partners and parlayzed political decision-making.
Romania and neighboring Bulgaria joined the EU in 2007, but Brussels has put both countries under special monitoring because of concerns about judicial independence, corruption and political influence in state institutions.
Lady Gaga arrived in St Petersburg on Friday for a performance and was welcomed by a mob of fans at the airport.
Wearing a classic dark suit, dark shades, red lipstick and a bouffant hairdo, Lady Gaga signed autographs and posed for pictures and even blew onlookers a kiss with her gloved hand.
“Just arrived in St. Petersburg Russia,” Lady Gaga tweeted.
“I’m so delighted to see so many monsters at the airport. Take me to the ballet!”
Lady Gaga, 26, is currently on her Born This Way Ball tour.
Lady Gaga arrived in St Petersburg on Friday for a performance and was welcomed by a mob of fans at the airport
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission has announced this week a massive, month-long hunt for Burmese pythons in the state – offering a $1,500 prize to the person who harvests the most snakes.
The Commission’s 2013 Python Challenge kicks off on January 12th as an initiative to inform the public of the dangerous impact of the tens of thousands of snakes that are threatening endangered species in the Everglades national park.
Burmese pythons, native to Southeast Asia, prey upon the endangered Key Largo wood rat and the endangered wood stork in the Everglades. Additionally researchers told CNN that massive numbers of rabbits, foxes, raccoons, opossums and bobcats have disappeared due to the snakes.
To avoid a complete depletion of the wildlife populations, hunters are invited to apply to join the contest.
You must have a valid Florida hunting license and Wildlife Management Area permit to participate, pay a $25 fee and complete an online training course that teaches safety measures for hunting pythons.
The commission is stressing that they are encouraging hunters to use humane measures to execute the snakes. They suggest shooting the snake in the head with a firearm or decapitating it with a machete.
The grand prize of $1,500 will be distributed to the hunter who kills the most pythons. A reward of $1,000 will go to the person who hunts the longest snake. The rules specified that the snake must be harvested but the hunters themselves, road kill will not be eligible.
The contests ends on February 10th and has been marketed as not just a hunt but a time to inform the public of the impact the snake is having on the habitat.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission has announced this week a month-long hunt for Burmese pythons offering a $1,500 prize to the person who harvests the most snakes
Tens of thousands of Burmese pythons are believed to be living in the Everglades, where they thrive in the warm, humid climate.
While many were apparently released by their owners, others may have escaped from pet shops during Hurricane Andrew in 1992 and have been reproducing ever since.
Burmese pythons can grow to be 26 feet long and more than 200 pounds, and they have been known to swallow animals as large as alligators. They and other constrictor snakes kill their prey by coiling around it and suffocating it.
The National Park Service has counted 1,825 Burmese pythons that have been caught in and around Everglades National Park since 2000. Among the largest so far was a 156-pound, 16.4-foot one captured earlier this month.
A study, released in January, in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, reported that medium-size mammals are down dramatically – as much as 99%, in some cases – in areas where pythons and other large, non-native constrictor snakes are known to be lurking.
Scientists fear the pythons could disrupt the food chain and upset the Everglades’ environmental balance in ways difficult to predict.
The FWC will be holding events throughout the hunting fest to raise awareness of the species which are being threatened.
“The FWC is encouraging the public to get involved in helping us remove Burmese pythons from public lands in south Florida,” Kristen Sommers, head of the FWC’s Exotic Species Coordination Section, said in a statement.
“By enlisting both the public and Florida’s python permit holders in a month-long competitive harvesting of Burmese pythons, we hope to motivate more people to find and harvest these large, invasive snakes. The Python Challenge gives people a chance to sign up for a competition to see who can catch the longest or the most pythons.”
“Part of the goal of the Python Challenge is to educate the public to understand why nonnative species like Burmese pythons should never be released into the wild and encourage people to report sightings of exotic species,” she added.
Joggers took to the streets wearing almost nothing as they raced through Boston to raise money for children’s charities at the 13th annual Speedo Santa Run.
Runner braved the brisk winter temperatures in little more than their underwear.
Started 12 years ago amongst five friends in a bar, the run has exploded into a holiday tradition with hundreds of participants raising more than $1 million for children’s charities.
One team of runners raised close to $20,000 alone.
Joggers took to the streets wearing almost nothing as they raced through Boston to raise money for children’s charities at the 13th annual Speedo Santa Run
Friends and family of Kasandra Perkins crowded a Baptist church in just 40 miles outside of Dallas to say their last goodbyes to Jovan Belcher’s girlfriend.
It had only been five days since Kasandra Perkins, 22, was gunned down by her boyfriend Kansas City Chief Jovan Belcher who shot her multiple times before ending his own life.
Despite the horrific circumstances of the pair’s end, at Kasandra Perkins’ funeral service mourners chose to remember her as a joyful person who brought happiness to everyone she met.
Mourners gathered before a white casket decorated with while lilies and pink roses at the St. James Missionary Baptist Church to lay Kasandra Perkins to rest.
“It’s a very tragic circumstance, a tragic situation,” pastor Steve Sweeney said as he offered a prayer for God that both Kasandra Perkins’ and Jovan Belcher’s family would find healing, and that their infant daughter Zoey would have strength.
Friends and family of Kasandra Perkins crowded a Baptist church in just 40 miles outside of Dallas to say their last goodbyes to Jovan Belcher’s girlfriend
Kasandra Perkins’ great-uncle Ted Downing told mourners at the service that the she loved her family and above all her daughter.
“She had a deep, deep understanding about the important things in life,” Downing told mourners.
“She always had no shortage of friends,” he continued.
“And I mean good friends.”
Jovann Belcher’s actions orphaned the couple’s three-month-old daughter, Zoey.
The NFL announced it will support Zoey, giving her $108,000 a year for four years. The amount dip to $48,000 annually when she turns 5, then rise to $52,000 a year until she is 18 or 23, depending on if she goes to college.
University of Chicago has made a startling new discovery regarding accent-based biases and how these preconceptions form at a very early age.
According to a new study by psychology professors Katherine Kinzler and Jasmine DeJesus, children display such biases as early as age five, and it leads them to make associations linking Northern accents with being “smarter” and “in charge” and Southern accents with being “nice”.
The researchers say that the results show that while parental influence has much to do with how young children develop biases against certain accents, it also has a lot to do with what they hear and are exposed to on a day-to-day basis.
Katherine Kinzler and Jasmine DeJesus organized their study by bringing together children from Chicago and a small town in Tennessee. The subjects were then given a picture of a random individual accompanied by a brief audio clip of someone speaking in a either a Northern or Southern accent.
They were asked to choose which one they preferred based on a series of questions.
In one scenario, the children were asked who they thought was “nicer”, “smarter” and “in charge”. In a fascinating twist, the children from Chicago attached the qualities of being “smarter” and “in charge” with the Northern accent, while attaching that of being “nicer” with the Southern accent.
Meanwhile, the children from Tennessee expressed no preference whatsoever based on accent.
Similarly, the children from Chicago said they would rather be friends with people with Northern accents, while the children from Tennessee once again expressed no preference one way or the other.
University of Chicago has made a startling new discovery regarding accent-based biases and how these preconceptions form at a very early age
Interestingly enough, these differences became even more exaggerated as the children grew older. The researchers conducted the same study with 10-year-old children, and in both groups, the children overwhelmingly said that people with Northern accents were “smarter” and “in charge”, while those with Southern accents were “nicer”.
But what was perhaps the most telling discovery about their was discovered when the two researchers asked the children whether they thought the speaker was “American” or “lives around here”.
Here again, the children from Chicago picked the person with the Northern accent as being “American” or that “lives around here”, while the children from Tennessee did not show any preference at either age.
The study’s authors explain that these results show clearly how accent biases are just as much the result of nature as it is of nurture.
They explained these results by saying that because Southern children are more exposed to Northern accents – be it hearing them on television or from the mouths of celebrities – they are used to them and so do not consider them to be foreign.
Meanwhile, children from Chicago don’t have the same opportunity to hear Southern accents. Because the Northern accent is more prevalent where they grow up and in national media, these children are simply not exposed to the Southern accent, leading them to think of it as foreign.
In turn, the Southern children associate Northern accents with prestige simply because nearly all the celebrities and individuals of high standing they hear in the media speak with a Northern accent, creating a self-perpetuating stereotype that firmly entrenches itself into the minds of children by at least the age of nine.
Still, the researchers were unable to prove whether parental influence or cultural norms have a more long-lasting impact on these biases.
Nevertheless, they have managed to show that regardless of where these influences come from, children are extraordinarily susceptible to picking up accent biases starting from a very young age and urge parents to think about these implications when raising their children.
Rare protests have taken place in Vietnam over maritime territorial disputes with neighboring China.
The protests in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi were quickly dispersed by police.
Tensions are high after an incident last month in which Hanoi accused Beijing of cutting the cables of a Vietnamese oil exploration ship.
Vietnam is also unhappy at a map in new Chinese passports that shows disputed areas of the South China Sea as Chinese territory.
Hundreds of people are reported to have taken part in the protests on Sunday morning against what they see as Chinese aggression and expansionism.
But the rallies were quickly stopped by the security police – after just 45 minutes in Ho Chi Minh City and half-an-hour in Hanoi.
Protesters said that Hanoi police had detained more than 20 activists.
It is the first anti-China protest in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam’s largest city, in more than a year.
Rare protests have taken place in Vietnam over maritime territorial disputes with neighboring China
Public demonstrations are extremely rare in Vietnam, where the government makes social and political stability its top priority.
Police have been trying hard to prevent demonstrations, but this time it seems public anger was too great to suppress.
Tensions over maritime claims in the region have been rising.
Vietnam and the Philippines accuse China of growing assertiveness around disputed islands and shoals.
The Vietnam National Oil and Gas Group (PetroVietnam) said Chinese fishing boats had sabotaged one of its oil survey vessels last month in the South China Sea.
Vietnam, the Philippines and Taiwan have also complained to China about the new passport map, saying it is an infringement of their sovereignty.
Vietnam and the Philippines are refusing to stamp the new Chinese passports and are instead issuing visas on separate sheets of paper.
Venezuela’s President Hugo Chavez says he will return to Cuba on Sunday for more cancer surgery.
Hugo Chavez, 58, only returned on Friday from his last course of treatment there.
In a TV address Hugo Chavez said it was “absolutely essential” that he received further treatment, adding that more malignant cells had been found.
The Venezuelan leader has had three cancer operations in Cuba since mid-2011, but few details have been released.
Speaking from the Miraflores presidential palace, Hugo Chavez said that if his health failed and a new election had to be held, his supporters should vote for Vice-President Nicolas Maduro.
Correspondents say it is the first time the president has named a successor.
“Unfortunately, during these exhaustive exams they found some malignant cells in the same area. It is absolutely necessary, absolutely essential, that I have to undergo a new surgical intervention,” Hugo Chavez said.
“With God’s will, like on the previous occasions, we will come out of this victorious.”
Venezuela’s President Hugo Chavez says he will return to Cuba on Sunday for more cancer surgery
During his latest visit to Cuba, Hugo Chavez was said to be receiving “hyperbaric oxygenation” therapy, which can ease ailments caused by radiation treatment.
Hugo Chavez has spent many months receiving surgery and treatment in Cuba since his diagnosis in July 2011.
In May, he declared himself free of cancer.
However, the president has never given much detail about the type of cancer he suffered from, and chose to be treated in Cuba rather than Venezuela, which has led the opposition to call for greater transparency.
Hugo Chavez’s recent visit to Cuba follows his re-election in October for a third term in office.
President Mohamed Morsi has annulled a decree he issued last month that hugely expanded his powers and sparked angry protests in Egypt, officials say.
However, a news conference in Cairo was told that a controversial referendum on a draft constitution would still go ahead as planned on December 15th.
Mohamed Morsi’s critics have accused him of acting like a dictator, but he says he is safeguarding the revolution.
He said the extra powers were needed to force through reforms.
Mohamed Morsi’s decree of November 22nd stripped the judiciary of any right to challenge his decisions and triggered violent protests on the streets of Cairo.
“The constitutional decree is annulled from this moment,” said Selim al-Awa, an Islamist politician acting as a spokesman for a meeting Mohamed Morsi held with political and public figures on Saturday.
But he said the referendum on a new constitution would go ahead because it was not legally possible for the president to postpone it.
The meeting had been boycotted by the main opposition leaders who had earlier called for their supporters to step up their protests. They want both the decree and the referendum cancelled.
President Mohamed Morsi has made a major compromise but it is yet to be seen if it will defuse tension on the streets.
President Mohamed Morsi has annulled a decree he issued last month that hugely expanded his powers and sparked angry protests in Egypt
Although the decree has been annulled, some decisions taken under it still stand.
The general prosecutor, who was dismissed, will not be reinstated, and the retrial of the former regime officials will go ahead.
But President Mohamed Morsi’s sweeping powers have gone.
Earlier, Egypt’s powerful military warned it would not allow Egypt to spiral out of control and called for talks to resolve the conflict.
“Anything other than that [dialogue] will force us into a dark tunnel with disastrous consequences; something that we won’t allow,” it said.
The president’s supporters say the judiciary is made up of reactionary figures from the old regime of strongman Hosni Mubarak.
But his opponents have mounted almost continuous protests since the decree was passed.
They are also furious over the drafting of the new constitution because they see the process as being dominated by Mohamed Morsi’s Islamist allies.
An umbrella opposition group, the National Salvation Group, has demanded Mohamed Morsi rescind his decree and postpone a referendum on the new constitution.
Several people have been killed in the recent spate of anti-government protests, and the presidential palace has come under attack.
The Cairo headquarters of the Muslim Brotherhood, the movement to which Mohamed Morsi belongs, were set on fire.
Benedict Barboza, the grieving husband of nurse Jacintha Saldanha, who died in a suspected suicide near King Edward VII Hospital, has tonight told of his devastation at her death.
Benedict Barboza, a 49-year-old hospital accountant, also known as Ben, posted a tribute to Jacintha Saldanha on his Facebook page.
Jacintha Saldanha, a 46-year-old mother of two, had been manning the hospital switchboard when the Australian hoaxers called and she transferred the call to Kate Middleton’s ward.
The boss of 2Day FM radio station at the centre of the royal hoax call today refused to sack the DJs behind the stunt and painted them as victims.
Benedict Barboza, the grieving husband of nurse Jacintha Saldanha, who died in a suspected suicide near King Edward VII Hospital, has tonight told of his devastation at her death
Rhys Holleran, the chief executive of Southern Cross Austereo, which owns the station, said the presenters were “completely shattered” and had been offered counseling.
2DayFM presenters Mel Greig and Michael Christian were taken off air after it emerged nurse Jacintha Saldanha who took their prank call at Kate Middleton’s hospital had died in a suspected suicide.
The White House has released a photograph showing the moment President Barack Obama learned he had won re-election against his Republican challenger Mitt Romney.
Taking the call perched on a chair at the Fairmont Millennium Park Hotel in Chicago, Barack Obama was apparently wished well by his defeated opponent.
The historic image was captured by the Obama administration’s photographer Pete Souza and was posted onto the official White House Flickr account for all to see.
Body language experts have had a field day with the signs that the just-triumphant president is giving off to the camera.
They claim that by perching on the back of the chair, Barack Obama is implicitly suggesting that he does not expect the telephone call to be a lengthy one.
Interpreting Barack Obama’s standing rather than sitting position, the experts have noted the two candidates frosty relationship and that the president is not sitting down to talk to his rival.
More obviously the president’s fingers are pressed to one of his ears, which may suggest that the room in the hotel is very noisy and that his re-election team have erupted in rapture.
Immediately after the telephone call, Mitt Romney began preparing his concession speech, having admitted beforehand that he did not have one ready expecting to win.
In his concession speech, Mitt Romney said that on the call with the president, he wished Barack Obama well, along with his family and staff.
“This is a time of great challenges for America, and I pray that the president will be successful in guiding our nation,” said Mitt Romney.
The moment President Barack Obama learned he had won re-election against his Republican challenger Mitt Romney
During his acceptance speech, President Barack Obama also referenced his crushed rival, saying he “just spoke with Governor Romney and I congratulated him and Paul Ryan on a hard-fought campaign”.
“We may have battled fiercely, but it’s only because we love this country deeply and we care so strongly about its future,” said Barack Obama.
During his widely praised concession speech the former Massachusetts governor lost the race after nearly 17 months of fighting, including a prolonged primary race against rivals like Newt Gingrich, Michelle Bachmann, Herman Cain and the eventual runner-up Rick Santorum.
The Republican said that he and his vice presidential pick “left everything on the field”.
“At a time like this, we can’t risk partisan bickering and political posturing. Our leaders have to reach across the aisle to do the nation’s work,” Mitt Romney said.
He added: “I believe in America. I believe in the people of America. And I ran for office because I’m concerned about America. This election is over, but our principles endure. I believe that the principles upon which this nation was founded are the only sure guide to a resurgent economy and to renewed greatness.”
In his defeat, Mitt Romney maintained that the only way for the country to succeed is if elected officials give politics a rest.
“We look to Democrats and Republicans in government at all levels to put people before the politics,” Mitt Romney said.
“I believe in America. I believe in the people of America… I ran for office because I’m concerned about America. This election is over, but our principles endure.”
Of Barack Obama, Mitt Romney said: “Ann and I will pray for him as he continues to lead this nation.”
UN climate talks in Doha, Qatar, have closed with a historic shift in principle but few genuine cuts in greenhouse gases.
The summit established for the first time that rich nations should move towards compensating poor nations for losses due to climate change.
Developing nations hailed it as a breakthrough, but condemned the gulf between the science of climate change and political attempts to tackle it.
The deal, agreed by nearly 200 nations, extends to 2020 the Kyoto Protocol.
It is the only legally-binding plan for combating global warming.
The deal covers Europe and Australia, whose share of world greenhouse gas emissions is less than 15%.
But the conference also cleared the way for the Kyoto protocol to be replaced by a new treaty binding all rich and poor nations together by 2015 to tackle climate change.
The final text “encourages” rich nations to mobilize at least $10 billion a year up to 2020, when the new global climate agreement is due to kick in.
There was last-minute drama as the talks were thrown into turmoil by the insistence of Russia, Ukraine and Belarus that they should be allowed extra credit for the emissions cuts they made when their industries collapsed.
After a long delay, the chairman lost patience, re-started the meeting and gavelled through the agenda so fast there was no chance for Russia to object.
A cheer exploded into prolonged applause. Russia bitterly objected at what it said was a clear breach of procedure, but the chairman said he would do no more than reflect the Russian view in the final report.
The big players, the US, EU and China accepted the agreement with varying degrees of reservation. But the representative for the small island states at severe risk from climate change was vociferous.
“We see the package before us as deeply deficient in mitigation (carbon cuts) and finance. It’s likely to lock us on the trajectory to a 3,4,5C rise in global temperatures, even though we agreed to keep the global average temperature rise of 1.5C to ensure survival of all islands,” he said.
“There is no new finance (for adapting to climate change and getting clean energy) – only promises that something might materialize in the future. Those who are obstructive need to talk not about how their people will live, but whether our people will live.”
The island states accepted the agreement because for them it is better than nothing. Other diplomats will point to the immense complexity of the UN process, which is attempting to move away from the old Kyoto Protocol into a new phase binding rich and poor nations together in the task of tackling climate change.
The proposed new Loss and Damage mechanism is held up as an example of the success of the diplomatic process.
UN climate talks in Doha, Qatar, have closed with a historic shift in principle but few genuine cuts in greenhouse gases
Until now rich nations have agreed finance to help developing countries to get clean energy and adapt to climate change, but they have stopped short of accepting responsibility for damage caused by climate change elsewhere.
But in Doha that broad principle was agreed.
“It is a breakthrough,” said Martin Khor of the South Centre – an association of 52 developing nations. “The term Loss and Damage is in the text – this is a huge step in principle. Next comes the fight for cash.
“What helped swing it was [US President Barack] Obama asking Congress for $60bn for the damage caused by [Hurricane] Sandy,” he said.
Saleem ul-Huq, from the think-tank IIED in Bangladesh, told me the text should have been firmer, but he said: “This is a watershed in the talks. There is no turning back from this.”
Nick Mabey, from the UK think-tank E3G, said: “This agreement really opens a can of worms – it might be applied to countries damming transboundary rivers, for instance. It could be very significant in future.”
The US had been adamant that this measure would be blocked, and the EU nearly vetoed it, too.
Todd Stern, the US head of delegation here, was seen for much of the past few days walking in circles near the tea bar on his mobile phone to Washington. He told me: “We don’t like this text, but we can live with it.”
The key to US agreement was the positioning of the Loss and Damage mechanism under an existing process promising to mobilize $100 billion a year for poor nations to adapt to climate change.
Facing tough budget decisions at home over the “fiscal cliff” it was essential for the US to avoid the impression that it was giving away more cash at this time.
The UK Climate Secretary, Ed Davey, told me: “We haven’t agreed to set up a new institution – and there’s no blank cheque. But there is clearly an issue if, say, an island state is lost underwater.”
Ronny Jumea, from the Seychelles, told rich nations earlier that discussion of compensation would not have been needed if they had cut emissions earlier.
“We’re past the mitigation [emissions cuts] and adaptation eras. We’re now right into the era of loss and damage. What’s next after that? Destruction?” he said.
The US has been blamed on finance and on failure to cut its emissions more aggressively.
The EU has also been under fire for failing to raise its promised cuts from 20%, which it is reaching easily, to 30%. (Scientists say it should be 40%.)
The EU has been held back by Poland, which insists on its right to burn its huge reserves of coal.
Warsaw was refusing to sign the extension to the Kyoto climate protocol until it had a reassurance from the EU that it would receive flexible treatment on emissions cuts.
Russia, Belarus and Ukraine then further delayed the endgame of the conference with an argument over so-called “hot air” – the pollution permits they were given to allow their heavy industries to thrive.
Those industries collapsed but Poland and Russia insist that – as they suffered economic pain during the collapse – they should be allowed to use up the pollution permits as their economies grow again.
In effect, they want to be able to increase their emissions as other nations are obliged to cut theirs.
The nature of the Russian objection was unclear, but an EU negotiator told me he believed the Russians were making a point of principle and did not expect further action.
The major task of this two-week conference has been untangling of the diplomatic spaghetti from climate agreements that have grown piecemeal over the past 15 years.
It is widely agreed that a useful house-keeping job was done to help the UN move towards the next phase, which aims at a globally-encompassing agreement.
Preliminary discussions were held on this, and it was quickly evident that making a global agreement fair to all parties will be monumentally difficult.
The talks were chaired by Abdullah bin Hamad al-Attiyah, a former head of the oil cartel Opec.
He was widely criticized for his laid-back style earlier in the week but at the last there was the unlikely spectacle of environmentalists cheering the ruthlessness of the chair in crushing the Russian revolt.
Climate change diplomacy makes strange bedfellows.
For thirty years, The Snowman by Raymond Briggs has become as much a part of Christmas as mince pies for many families in UK.
To mark the 30th anniversary of the film – featuring the iconic Walking In The Air flying sequence – the team behind it have made a sequel, The Snowman And The Snowdog, to be screened on Channel 4 on Christmas Eve.
The Snowman And The Snowdog will be screened on Channel 4 on Christmas Eve
Nurse Jacintha Saldanha died on Friday in an apparent suicide after she transferred a hoax call from Australian DJs who retrieved sensitive information about Kate Middleton while in King Edward WII Hospital.
Jacintha Saldanha, 46, also known as Jess, is thought to have come to the UK from southern India ten years ago and settled in the UK with her partner, 49-year-old hospital accountant Benedict Barboza.
The couple bought their £123,000 three-bedroomed home in 2005 in the Westbury-on-Trym district of Bristol.
After registering as a nurse in 2003 when she initially worked for the North Bristol NHS Trust, which runs Frenchay and Southmead hospitals, it is believed the nurse chose to apply for a job at King Edward VII four years ago and appears to have been living in the nursing accommodation ever since.
Jacintha Saldanha died on Friday in an apparent suicide after she transferred a hoax call from Australian DJs who retrieved sensitive information about Kate Middleton
She has a son called Junal, 16, and daughter, believed to be 14. She stayed in London when she was working before returning to her family on days off.
Jacintha Saldanha is thought to have been from the Mangalore region of India. She is thought to have spent time in the Middle East before moving to Britain.
The hospital said Jacintha Saldanha had not been disciplined over the call.
Silvio Berlusconi has confirmed he will run for prime minister again in 2013.
Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi told reporters in Milan that he was “running to win” – and that his decision came after his People of Freedom party had not found a leader who was as well known as him.
Silvio Berlusconi, 76, said PM Mario Monti’s austerity policies had harmed Italy.
He resigned in November 2011 over Italy’s economic troubles and was convicted of tax fraud in October.
He is appealing against that ruling.
Silvio Berlusconi is also on trial accused of paying for sex with an under-age prostitute, in the so-called “Ruby” case. He denies wrongdoing.
He has already served as Italy’s prime minister for three separate terms and built up what is believed to be a vast personal fortune from his business empire.
Silvio Berlusconi told reporters in Milan that everyone in his party had agreed that the PDL needed a leader “like Berlusconi in 1994” but “there wasn’t one”.
Silvio Berlusconi has confirmed he will run for prime minister again in 2013
“It’s not that we did not look… but one needs time to be imposed as leader,” the former prime minister said, mentioning the PDL secretary general Angelino Alfano.
He said he was entering the race because polls put the centre-right PDL behind the Italian left.
The PDL abstained from confidence votes in parliament on Thursday – which the government won.
Mario Monti replaced Silvio Berlusconi as prime minister just over a year ago, and launched a programme of reforms aimed at pulling Italy out of economic crisis.
Silvio Berlusconi said his party had given “proof of great responsibility and had supported [Mario Monti’s] technocrat government for a year, seeking to correct policies that are not convincing, whilst insisting that austerity in an economy that does not grow is harmful. And harm has been done”.
The former leader said he had not missed the office of prime minister “not even for a minute” and he was returning out of a “sense of responsibility”.
Referring to his confrontation with the Italian judiciary, Silvio Berlusconi said he saw it with “a great sense of fear because we have to do with an omnipotent judiciary”.
Mario Monti is due to hold talks with the Italian president later.
President Giorgio Napolitano has said he wants to avoid a “turbulent” end to Mario Monti’s technocratic government.
Tens of thousands of people have gathered to attend a rally in the Gaza Strip to mark the 25th anniversary of the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas.
Hamas exiled political leader Khaled Meshaal has arrived to address the crowd during his first ever visit to the territory.
Khaled Meshaal’s visit follows a ceasefire that ended days of violence between Israel and Hamas last month.
He is expected to unveil a future strategy for Hamas and talk of reconciliation with its rival, Fatah.
Hamas removed Fatah from Gaza by force in 2007 after winning elections there. Fatah governs parts of the West Bank.
The event is intended to send a message that, after 25 years, Hamas is a force to be reckoned with.
It enjoys support in Gaza and feels it is gaining regional political influence after the Arab uprisings brought new Islamist governments to power, she adds.
Tens of thousands of Gazans have made their way to the rally at the al-Qatiba complex west of Gaza City to hear the speech by Khaled Meshaal.
It is expected to focus on key issues such as the strategy with Israel, the future leadership of Hamas and reconciliation with Fatah.
Tens of thousands of people have gathered to attend a rally in the Gaza Strip to mark the 25th anniversary of the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas
In 2011, Khaled Meshaal and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas – the Fatah leader – endorsed an Egyptian plan to reconcile the rival factions.
But it is unlikely such a rally will hear any signs of moderation in the strategy towards Israel.
The centrepiece of Saturday’s rally in Gaza City is a huge replica of a type of rocket Hamas militants fired at Jerusalem and Tel Aviv in the conflict with Israel last month. It has Made in Gaza written on it.
Some 170 Palestinians and six Israelis were killed in the eight-day engagement and Hamas has presented Saturday’s event as a victory rally.
Ahmed Shaheen, attending the rally with his children, told Reuters: “This is a day of victory. The presence of Khaled Meshaal is a sign of this victory.”
Israel says its operation killed Hamas’s military commander and significantly reduced the militants’ stockpile of rockets.
Israel, the US and the EU consider Hamas a terrorist organization.
In terms of the Hamas leadership, Khaled Meshaal said in January he did not wish to stand again as political chief and the future make-up at the top remains unclear.
Khaled Meshaal entered Gaza from Egypt at the Rafah border crossing on Friday, touching his head to the ground in celebration. The streets of Gaza City were decorated with Palestinian and Hamas flags.
Correspondents say he was clearly aware of the desire among Palestinians for an end to the divisions that have weakened their cause.
Standing in the ruins of a house destroyed in an Israeli air strike, he said: “With God’s will… reconciliation will be achieved. National unity is at hand.”
Apart from a brief visit to the West Bank in 1975, Khaled Meshaal had not visited the Palestinian territories since his family left in 1967.
He survived an Israeli assassination attempt in Jordan in 1997 only after King Hussein demanded an antidote to poison used by Israeli agents.
An Israeli official said that no guarantees for Khaled Meshaal’s safety in Gaza had been requested and none had been given.
A never-before-seen autopsy report has revealed that The Notorious B.I.G. was shot in the “chest, shoulder, leg, forearm and scrotum” on the night of his murder.
According to the document obtained by TMZ, The Notorious B.I.G., whose real name was Christopher Wallace, was shot four times during the drive-by which took place on Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles in 1997.
The hip-hop artist, who was listed on the autopsy as 6ft 1in tall and weighing 395 lbs, had been sitting in the passenger seat of a Chevy Suburban when the shooting occurred.
However, while the rapper was hit four times, three of the shots proved not to be fatal.
Christopher Wallace was first shot in the left forearm, with the bullet traveling down to his wrist, before the second shot struck him in the back – narrowly missing his vital organs before exiting through his left shoulder.
And the third shot entered through Christopher Wallace’s left thigh, before leaving on the other side of his leg. Referring to the third shot, the report reads: “The projectile strikes the left side of the scrotum, causing a very shallow, 3/8 inch linear laceration.”
It was the fourth shot which proved fatal, as it hit Christopher Wallace’s heart, liver, colon and part of his left lung when it entered through his right hip, before settling around his left shoulder.
A never-before-seen autopsy report has revealed that The Notorious BIG was shot in the chest, shoulder, leg, forearm and scrotum
In the years since The Notorious B.I.G.’s murder, a number of theories have emerged, including the suspicion that police officers were involved.
However, former Los Angeles police chief Bernard Parks, who was in charge of the force at the time of the shooting, called claims of a cover-up “absurd”.
Nobody was ever charged in connection with the death, but it was widely blamed on a rap war between the East and West Coast.
Six months before the shooting, West Coast rapper Tupac Shakur was killed by a gunman in Las Vegas in another murder that has never been solved.
Detectives have investigated claims that the two shootings could have been linked.
Raised in Brooklyn, Christopher Wallace started selling drugs at the age of 12 and served nine months in prison before going on to sell more than seven million records.
Barbara Walters has named Honey Boo Boo as one of her Most Fascinating People of 2012.
Barbara Walters, 83, has been spellbound by the antics of the spoiled 7-year-old beauty queen Honey Boo Boo, whose real name is Alana Thompson.
The veteran TV journalist told Us Magazine the reason the TLC show Here Comes Honey Boo Boo is a hit as it exposes the touching bond she has with her mother June Shannon.
She said: “It’s a love story. It’s a very sweet, loving story.
“A lot of people will say, <<For heaven’s sake, this is ridiculous, this is a child at 5 or 6 years old entering beauty contests>>.
“But the relationship between Alana and her mother – that’s the story, the two of them. It’s very touching.”
And Barbara Walters claims beneath the bluster, the show is actually full of demonstrations of old-fashioned family values.
She said: “Honey Boo Boo is not an obnoxious little girl. She’s sweet and loving with her mother and loving with her sisters [Jessica, Lauryn and Anna].
“And now Anna has a new baby, and the baby has [three] thumbs – but so what? It’ll make you smile.”
Barbara Walters has named Honey Boo Boo as one of her Most Fascinating People of 2012
Ben Affleck, One Direction and 50 Shades of Grey writer E.L. James have also been named among the Ten Most Fascinating People of 2012.
The Argo director, British boyband and literary sensation have made the ranks this year for Barbara Walters’ annual television special.
The veteran newswoman revealed Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane and Olympic gymnast Gabby Douglas also made the cut.
Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton makes the list for a second time; and New Jersey Governor Chris Christie will make his debut.
Three others on the list have yet to be announced.
Ben Affleck has had a banner year, now tipped for an Oscar for his critically-acclaimed CIA drama Argo, in which he stars and directs.
One Direction has meanwhile conquered the US music charts after its members Harry Styles, Zayn Malik, Liam Payne, Louis Tomlinson and Niall Horan emerged a public favorite after finishing third on The X Factor UK in 2010, while E.L. James has made similar feats in the literary world with her erotic novel.
The most fascinating person of 2012 will be named during Barbara Walters’ December television special, which typically includes sit-down interviews with those on the list.
Hillary Clinton was previously named in 1993 during her tenure as First Lady of the United States.
Late Apple boss Steve Jobs was number one on the list last year, preceded by shamed former CIA boss General David Patraeus in 2010.
First Lady Michelle Obama was number one in 2009, preceded by President Barack Obama.
Speaking on The View on Monday, Barbara Walters said 2012 list was compiled of people “very much in the news” this year.
She also added there would be “no criminals” on the list.
Barbara Walters Presents: The 10 Most Fascinating People of the Year is scheduled to air December 12th on ABC network.
Artist Gustav Metzger did wonder how his empty mind might appear if made corporeal.
To find out he hooked himself up to an electroencephalograph scanner connected to a robot carving machine, then tried not to think.
The result was a void space in the middle of a block of Portland stone, now on display at London’s Work Gallery. The shape carved out from the lump of rock is pictured below.
The project was the idea of art and technology group London Fieldworks, whose members developed bespoke software to translate Metzger’s brainwaves into 3D shape information.
This data was translated into instructions for a manufacturing robot, which carved out the shapes from the interior of a block of stone to create the curious sculpture.
What thinking about nothing looks like by Gustav Metzger is a void space in the middle of a block of Portland stone, now on display at London’s Work Gallery
The project utilized a relational database comprising of several hundred digital EEG recordings from participants who have donated their brainwaves from the UK, Europe and U.S.
These EEGs were recorded while the participants perceived 3-dimensional depth information within autostereograms and were instrumental in the translation of Gustav Metzger’s EEG into instructions for the manufacturing robot to create the sculpture, London Fieldworks said.
As well as the sculptural representation of Gustav Metzger thinking about nothing, exhibits will include a film of the carving of the stone as well as other documentation of the development and delivery of the work.
The gallery said: “A timely addition and challenge to the present climate of technological evolution and increasing cybernetic augmentation, NULL OBJECT offers an alternative model for a creative, non-invasive interface between body, mind and machine.”
The project was funded by Arts Council England and Computer Arts Society.
A new survey has revealed that approximately 16% of online holiday shopping in the U.S. is conducted from a toilet.
More than 38 million Americans, with men found more likely than women, are accused of the clandestine multitasking according to calculations based on 2,104 online adults surveyed in November.
“Smartphones and tablets have enabled consumers to shop and gift on-the-go in more ways and places than ever before,” said David Stone, co-founder and CEO of CashStar which conducted the survey.
But in addition to toilet shopping, the survey found several other surprising locations.
Nearly 17 million shoppers, or 7%, are said to purchase products off their mobile device while physically standing inside the retailer’s store.
More than 4 million Americans, or 1.6%, were found admitting to making purchases while behind the wheel of a vehicle while also more than 9 million, or 3.7%, said they secretly shopped during business meetings.
A new survey has revealed that approximately 16 percent of online holiday shopping in the US is conducted from a toilet
The grocery store was also found a popular spot for online shopping with more than seven million, or 2.9%, of Americans said to be making dual purchases off their mobile devices.
CashStar’s estimations supplied by Harris Interactive are based on the more than 200 million adults above the age of 18 residing in the U.S. according to the Census Bureau’s 2011 report.
Harris says they specialize in delivering research solutions that help stay ahead of what’s next.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) can reduce symptoms of depression in people who fail to respond to drug treatment, found a new study in the Lancet.
CBT, a type of psychotherapy, was found to benefit nearly half of the 234 patients who received it combined with normal care from their GP.
Up to two-thirds of people with depression do not respond to anti-depressants.
Patients should have access to a range of treatments, the charity Mind said.
CBT is a form of talking psychotherapy to help people with depression change the way they think to improve how they feel and alter their behavior.
The study followed 469 patients with treatment-resistant depression picked from GP practices in Bristol, Exeter and Glasgow over 12 months.
One group of patients continued with their usual care from their GP, which could include anti-depressant medication, while the second group was also treated with CBT.
After six months, researchers found 46% of those who had received CBT reported at least a 50% reduction in their symptoms.
This compared with 22% experiencing the same reduction in the other group.
CBT is a form of talking psychotherapy to help people with depression change the way they think to improve how they feel and alter their behavior
The study concluded CBT was effective in reducing symptoms and improving patients’ quality of life. The improvements had been maintained for a period of 12 months, it added.
The patients who did benefit from cognitive behavioral therapy spent one hour a week with a clinical psychologist learning skills to help change the way they think.
Chris Williams, professor of psychosocial psychiatry at the University of Glasgow, and part of the research team, said: “The research used a CBT intervention alongside treatment with anti-depressants. It confirms how these approaches – the psychological and physical – can complement each other.
“It was also encouraging because we found the approach worked to good effect across a wide range of people of different ages and living in a variety of settings.”
WHAT IS CBT?
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is:
a way of talking about how you think about yourself, the world and other people
how what you do affects your thoughts and feelings
CBT can help you to change how you think (cognitive) and what you do (behavior).
Unlike some other talking treatments, it focuses on the “here and now” instead of the causes of distress or past symptoms.
