'Alien' planet

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'Alien' planet detected circling dying star

By Neil BowdlerScience reporter, BBC News

This artist's impression shows HIP 13044 b, an exoplanet orbiting a star that entered the Milky Way from another galaxy

Continue reading the main story

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Astronomers claim to have discovered the first planet originating from outside our galaxy.

The Jupiter-like planet, they say, is part of a solar system which once belonged to a dwarf galaxy.

This dwarf galaxy was in turn devoured by our own galaxy, the Milky Way, according to a team writing in the academic journal Science.

The star, called HIP 13044, is nearing the end of its life and is 2000 light years from Earth.

The discovery was made using a telescope in Chile.

Cosmic cannibalism

Planet hunters have so far netted nearly 500 so-called "exoplanets" outside our Solar System using various astronomical techniques.

A video shows how the distant solar system may appear

But all of those so far discovered, say the researchers, are indigenous to our own galaxy, the Milky Way.

This find is different, they say, because the planet circles a sun which belongs to a group of stars called the "Helmi stream" which are known to have once belonged to a separate dwarf galaxy.

This galaxy was gobbled up by the Milky Way between six and nine billion years ago in an act of intergalactic cannibalism.

The new planet is thought to have a minimum mass 1.25 times that of Jupiter and circles in close proximity to its parent star, with an orbit lasting just 16.2 days.

The exoplanet was detected by a team using the MPG/ESO 2.2-m telescope in Chile

It sits in the southern constellation of Fornax.

The planet would have been formed in the early era of its solar system, before the world was incorporated into our own galaxy, say the researchers.

"This discovery is very exciting," said Rainer Klement of the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy in Heidelberg, Germany, who targetted the stars in the study.

"For the first time, astronomers have detected a planetary system in a stellar stream of extragalactic origin. This cosmic merger has brought an extragalactic planet within our reach."

Dr Robert Massey of the UK's Royal Astronomical Society said the paper provided the first "hard evidence" of a planet of extragalactic origin.

"There's every reason to believe that planets are really quite widespread throughout the Universe, not just in our own galaxy, the Milky Way, but also in the thousands of millions of others there are," he said, "but this is the first time we've got hard evidence of that."

End Days

The new find might also offer us a glimpse of what the final days of our own Solar System may look like.

HIP 13044 is nearing its end. Having consumed all the hydrogen fuel in its core, it expanded massively into a "red giant" and might have eaten up smaller rocky planets like our own Earth in the process, before contracting.

The new Jupiter-like planet discovered appears to have survived the fireball, for the moment.

"This discovery is particularly intriguing when we consider the distant future of our own planetary system, as the Sun is also expected to become a red giant in about five billion years," said Dr Johny Setiawan, who also works at the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, and who led the study.

"The star is rotating relatively quickly," he said. "One explanation is that HIP 13044 swallowed its inner planets during the red giant phase, which would make the star spin more quickly."

The new planet was discovered using what is called the "radial velocity method" which involves detecting small wobbles in a star caused by a planet as it tugs on its sun.

These wobbles were picked up using a ground-based telescope at the European Southern Observatory's La Silla facility in Chile.

US web traffic rerouted in China

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US web traffic rerouted via China Telecom

The incident has raised fears of cyber attacks

The traffic to some highly sensitive US websites was briefly rerouted via China, the US government has said.

The incident, which happened for 18 minutes last April, is published in a report by the US-China Economic and Security review commission.
It found that China Telecom sent incorrect routing information, but it is not clear whether it was intentional.
It comes amid continuing discussions in the US and the UK about cyber-security.
Among traffic rerouted via China was that destined for the websites of the US Senate, the Office of the Secretary of Defence, Nasa and the Commerce Department, the report said.
"Evidence related to this incident does not clearly indicate whether it was perpetrated intentionally and, if so, to what ends," according to the report.
"However, computer security researchers have noted that the capability could enable severe malicious activities," it added.
The danger of cyber-attacks has been high on global agendas recently.
This week, US Defence Secretary Robert Gates warned that cyber-attacks posed a huge future threat and urged more joined-up efforts between the US military and civilian agencies.
MPs in the UK have also been hearing about the risks of cyber-attacks.
In evidence given to the Science and Technology Committee, experts said that a concerted cyber-attack capable of damaging key infrastructure could currently only be launched by an enemy state.

Stuxnet fears

"The risk of a concerted attack which has fundamental effect on infrastructure would have to be at state level and therefore politically unlikely," said Dr Hayes, a senior fellow at the Microsoft Institute for Advanced Technology in Governments.
But he said the tools were there for either politically-motivated hackers or organised criminals to launch an attack.
"If I see a nuclear weapon, I need plutonium, but cyber-weapons are just a sequence of ones and zeros. We have concerns that Stuxnet could be copied for instance," he said.
"The risk of that is high and could have localised effect on critical infrastructure," he told MPs.
The recent Stuxnet malware, which appeared to be targeted at Iran's nuclear power plant, has caused alarm in governments around the world about a new wave of state-sponsored cyber-attacks.

Dalai Lama

Dr Ross Anderson, from the University of Cambridge, told MPs that Stuxnet was a sophisticated piece of malware.
"We can surmise it was from someone who didn't like the Iranians refining uranium. It took six people five months to write. It appears whoever commissioned it had access to people whose business was writing malware, as well as people clearly expert in industrial control systems.
It was an effort funded to the order of £1m or thereabouts," he said.
Experts have said that Stuxnet's complexity means it could only have been written by a nation state.
Mr Anderson told MPs that he had had personal involvement into state-sponsored malware attacks.
"A couple of years ago, a student of mine helped the Dalai Lama's office clear up malware clearly from the Chinese government," he said.
Despite the threat from enemy states, the biggest risk to UK computer systems remained the prospect of internal system failures as upgrades to the net addressing system began, he said.
"The most likely cause of disruption to the internet comes from software failure associated with the transition to IPV6," he said.
But he warned that the threat of external attacks was likely to get worse over time, as more and more systems became computerised.

Experts needed

Mr Anderson said that government needed to become more "IT-aware".
"Regulators such as Ofgem and Ofcom should have people on their staff who understand IT and the risk we could be sleepwalking into," he said.
He warned that the government needed to do more.
"We have never put enough into combating cyber-crime. The Metropolitan police have difficulty sustaining e-crime units, because they are forever being closed down or merged," he said.
He said that the situation was not helped because the culture of the UK's security body GCHQ was non-collaborative, unlike that of the US's National Security Agency.
"Currently there are two separate communities, the civil community and the defence community. Outside of the defence community there is no source of expertise," he said.
"Bodies like the Information Commissioner's Office and the Metropolitan police don't have their own engineering staff, so are beholden to Cheltenham [the base for GCHQ] for advice."
He was not convinced that GCHQ was the right body to be protecting computer systems.
"It may take a cyber-attack to convince the prime minister that GCHQ is incompetent and things need to be changed," he said.

Germany tightens airport security

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Germany tightens airport security over attacks threat

Extra security measures will remain in place until further notice, the interior minister said

Germany is increasing security at airports and railway stations in light of "concrete indications" of terrorist attacks being planned for the end of November.

Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere said it followed a tip-off from another, unnamed country.
Germany had information on "sustained efforts" by Islamist extremists to carry out attacks, he said.
He said the extra security would remain in place "until further notice".
"There are grounds for concern, but not for hysteria," Mr de Maiziere told a news conference in Berlin.
The federal police force has been ordered to step up checks at airports and train stations, he added.

Yemen connection
Mr de Maiziere said Germany had received a tip-off after two parcel bombs were intercepted en route from Yemen to the United States last month.

One of the bombs was despatched via the German city of Cologne but was intercepted in the UK.

The Yemen plot showed "the adaptability and the persistence of terrorists in pursuing their aims," Mr de Maiziere said, and also underlines "the reliability of some leads".
Germany would not allow international terrorism to constrict its way of life or liberal culture, he said.
Last year, twelve militants vanished from Hamburg, some to resurface in Northern Pakistan where at least one, but not all were killed in an American drone attack.
Some of the new security measures would be clearly visible, Mr de Maiziere said, but others would not.
The BBC's Stephen Evans in Berlin says that a month ago, Germany was dismissive of American warnings of attacks. That feeling has now gone.
Germany, which has nearly 5,000 troops in Afghanistan, has never experienced an attack by Muslim militants.
But officials say the country has a significant Islamist community, and militant links to Germany appear to be growing.
For example, the key operatives who carried out the 9/11 attacks on the US in 2001 were based in Hamburg. In July 2006 militants placed suitcases with homemade bombs on two trains at Cologne station. They failed to detonate.

Sarah Palin could beat Obama in 2012

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Sarah Palin says she could beat President Obama in 2012

Mrs Palin would be the first presidential candidate with her own reality show

Former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin has said she could defeat President Barack Obama in the 2012 election.

Mrs Palin made the declaration in an interview with ABC, one of several recently in which she has said she was weighing a presidential bid.
She told ABC she was "looking at the lay of the land".
The 2008 Republican Vice-Presidential hopeful was a major figure in the mid-term elections and is a favourite of the anti-government Tea Party movement.
Family consultation Mrs Palin, now employed as a Fox News analyst and making speeches across the country, told ABC she was "trying to figure that out, if it's a good thing for the country, for the discourse, for my family, if it's a good thing".
And in an interview with the New York Times published online on Wednesday, Mrs Palin said affirmatively she was considering a presidential run.
"I'm engaged in the internal deliberations candidly, and having that discussion with my family," she said.
Meanwhile, on Sunday Mrs Palin's reality television show Sarah Palin's Alaska debuted on TLC television to mixed reviews.
Other Republicans said to be weighing a race against Mr Obama include former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, 2008 Republican candidate Mitt Romney, and outgoing Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty.

Top Hollywood publicist shot dead

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Hollywood publicist Ronni Chasen shot dead

The front passenger window of Ms Chasen's car was shattered, possibly in the shooting

A prominent Hollywood publicist has been shot dead behind the wheel of her car on a Beverly Hills street.

Early on Tuesday police found Ronni Chasen shot multiple times in the chest in her Mercedes Benz, which had crashed into a lamp post.
Ms Chasen, 64, had just attended the premiere of the Cher movie Burlesque, which she had been promoting, US media reported.
Police said they had identified no suspects or motives in the case.
 

Found alive
"She wasn't a shady character," fellow publicist Howard Bragman told the Associated Press.

Ronni Chasen had attended a film premiere before she was killed

"It's a small community and she was one of the fixtures in it."
Nahid Shekarchian, a longtime resident of the block where Ms Chasen crashed, told the Los Angeles Times that shortly after midnight she heard several gunshots in quick succession, told her daughter-in-law to phone authorities, then went to investigate.
She said she saw the driver bleeding profusely, and the front passenger's side window shattered. The driver was breathing heavily and unresponsive, but still alive. Ms Chasen died in hospital shortly after.

Fetuses in Thailand temple

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Fetuses found in Thailand temple

Police in Thailand have found the remains of more than 300 human fetuses hidden in a Buddhist temple in the capital, Bangkok.

The police say they suspect the fetuses came from illegal abortion clinics.
News reports say a member of the temple staff confessed to being hired by several clinics to dispose of remains.
Abortion is illegal in Thailand, except when the pregnancy affects the mother's health or is the result of rape.
Police chief Sumeth Ruangswasdi said they had been called to investigate a strong smell in the temple, and discovered a total of 348 fetuses in plastic bags, AP reports.
He said he believed that the fetuses must have been collected from abortion clinics and disposed of at different times because they were different colors and conditions.
The corpses were wrapped in plastic bags and newspaper and found in a mortuary storage area.
The police were reported to be questioning the temple's mortician.
Buddhist temples in Thailand not only perform cremation ceremonies, but also store bodies in specially refrigerated areas.

Prince William gives Kate Diana's ring

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Royal wedding: Prince William gives Kate   Diana's ring

Prince William has spoken of his and fiancee Kate Middleton's happiness, as the newly-engaged couple faced the cameras for the first time.

The couple, both 28, will marry next spring or summer after he proposed while on holiday in Kenya in October.
The prince said: "The timing is right now." His brother Harry said he would be gaining a sister.
William gave Kate his mother's engagement ring, saying: "It was right to put the two together."
Speaking as they stood arm-in-arm before photographers, and later as they gave a TV interview, Prince William said giving Kate his mother Diana's distinctive sapphire and diamond engagement ring was "my way of making sure my mother didn't miss out on today and the excitement".
He stressed that no-one was "trying to fill my mother's shoes". Miss Middleton paid tribute to the princess as an "inspirational woman".
She admitted joining the Royal Family was a "daunting prospect" but she added: "Hopefully I'll take it in my stride."

Ring 'in rucksack' 

The Prince would not be drawn on whether he went down on one knee to propose, but, as the couple laughed, Miss Middleton said: "It was very romantic, and it was very personal."
The couple met while they were students at St Andrews University, Fife.
Speaking about their relatively long courtship, William said: "I didn't realise it was a race, otherwise I probably would have been a lot quicker. 

Princess Diana's ring is a sapphire surrounded by diamonds

"The time is right now. We're both very, very happy and I'm very glad that I have done it."
Miss Middleton added: "We have been going out a long time. We had spoken about our future and it just seemed the natural step for both of us."
Prince William told how he carried the ring around in the royal rucksack for about three weeks before he chose the right time to propose.
He said he knew he would be in trouble if he lost it, so he held onto it tightly.
And he revealed he asked Kate's father for her hand in marriage after he asked her.
"I thought if I ask Kate first then he can't really say no," he said.
Prince Harry's spokesman released a statement late on Tuesday after the prince had returned from flying training in Hampshire.
"I am delighted that my brother has popped the question. It means I get a sister, which I have always wanted," the statement read.
The couple will marry in London in 2011 and live in north Wales, where Prince William, second in line the throne, is serving with the RAF.
They said they hoped to have children. Miss Middleton said a close-knit family was important: "I hope we will be able to have a happy family ourselves.
Smiling, Prince William added: "I think we'll take it one step at a time. We'll sort of get over the marriage first and then maybe look at the kids. But obviously we want a family."

Queen's 'delight' 

Earlier, Prince Charles said he was "thrilled, obviously", at the news, joking: "They've been practising long enough."


We have become slightly cynical, perhaps, slightly sceptical. We all lived through the fairytale royal weddings of the 1980s and we know where they ended up.
But I know many people who are actively thinking about where they will place their picnic tables and chair once they have a date. These are occasions that people do delight in, in this country.
I don't think William of all people wants to do a rerun of his parents' ill-fated marriage and for that reason I think the wedding is unlikely to be in St Paul's Cathedral.
The Guards Chapel, which was the setting for the 10th anniversary memorial service for his late mother, I suspect, may be too small, given that we are talking about the marriage of a future king.
That's why inevitably, I suspect, the wedding will be at Westminster Abbey where, of course, his grandmother the Queen married in 1947.

The Queen said she was "absolutely delighted" for them both.

Kate Middleton's parents Michael and Carole echoed those sentiments.
Her father said: "We have got to know William really well, we all think he is wonderful and we are extremely fond of him.
"They make a lovely couple, are great fun to be with and we've had a lot of laughs together. We wish them every happiness for the future."
Prime Minister David Cameron said he had received the news in a call from Buckingham Palace during a cabinet meeting and it was greeted with "a great cheer" and "banging of the table" from fellow ministers.
The royal engagement was announced in a brief statement released by Clarence House.
Prince William and Kate Middleton started out on the same history of art course at St Andrews in 2001, although William later switched to geography. For several years, they shared accommodation with friends.
Miss Middleton, who is six months older than William, was credited with persuading the prince to stay on as he struggled to adjust to university life during his first year.

Prince Charles told reporters he was ''thrilled'' about news of the royal wedding

The couple's relationship was exposed in 2005 when they were photographed together on the Swiss ski slopes of Klosters. They split briefly in 2007.
Miss Middleton is the eldest child of businessman Michael Middleton and former air hostess Carol.
She was raised in a modern five-bedroom detached house in the Berkshire village of Bucklebury and her family, who are self-made millionaires, run a mail order toy and party goods company.
The couple will marry in the year which would have marked the 30th anniversary of Prince William's parents' wedding.

Facebook revamps messaging

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Facebook revamps messaging system

Facebook's current messaging system can only be used within Facebook

Facebook has revamped its messaging system to make it the main way people communicate with friends and family.

Confounding rumours about what Facebook would announce, founder Mark Zuckerberg said the system was "not e-mail".
Instead, he said, it was modelled on instant messaging systems and will route messages to people no matter how they are using Facebook.
"It will handle messages across all the ways you want to communicate," said Mr Zuckerberg.
 

Fast friends

  "This is not an e-mail killer," said Mr Zuckerberg. "It is a messaging system that includes e-mail as part of it."
Mr Zuckerberg said it would bring together four separate messaging types - SMS, Instant Messaging, e-mail and Facebook chat.
While those using it can attach their Facebook name to an @facebook.com e-mail address this was not compulsory, said Mr Zuckerberg.
At a special event called to unveil the revamp, he said the re-design was triggered by the need to do something to cope with the growing number of messages Facebook users were sending every day.
To meet that need, he said, Facebook did not want to simply create an e-mail system because research revealed that e-mail felt too formal and slow for many people, particularly the young. 

Mr Zuckerberg denied the revamped system was a "Gmail killer".

Instead, he said, people expected communication to fit expectations set by their use of Instant Messaging, SMS and Facebook's own chat system.
"We wanted to make this really simple and lightweight," he said.
Instead of forcing people to use separate systems, Facebook messaging will work out the most appropriate way to get a message to a person. It had a sophisticated "policy engine" that knew how Facebook friends preferred to be contacted.
"If we do a good job, some people will say this is the way that the future will work," said Mr Zuckerberg.
He denied that it should be characterised as a "Gmail killer". Instead, he said, it would synch with other products and let messages flow to and fro.
"We want to enable to connect how they want to connect," said Andrew Bosworth, lead engineer on the revamp, "People should be allowed to share however they want to share."
Mr Bosworth said the revamp was the biggest project the company had worked on to date and involved 15 engineers working for more than 15 months.
The product will roll out slowly over the next few months with invites sent out to users to get them trying it.

Shanghai high-rise flats fire

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Shanghai high-rise flats fire leaves dozens dead

A fire has destroyed a high-rise building in Shanghai, killing at least 42 people, state media report.

At least 90 others were injured as the blaze tore through a 28-storey block of flats in the Chinese city, Xinhua said.
The building was being renovated when the fire broke out. Chinese TV showed people clinging to scaffolding surrounding the building as they waited to be rescued from the flames.
Firefighters battled for several hours to bring the blaze under control.


The fire was brought under control after nightfall, and officials said more than 100 people had been rescued.
In Shanghai building regulations are stricter and more rigorously enforced than in other parts of China.
An investigation will need to establish what kind of renovation work was going on when the fire started and why it appears to have spread so quickly through the building.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation, but witnesses say construction materials caught fire and the flames quickly climbed the scaffolding surrounding the building.

More than 80 fire engines were called to battle the fire, officials say.
It took several hours to bring the blaze - which reportedly started in the early hours of Monday afternoon - under control.

Survivors evacuated 

Orange flames could be seen licking the sides of the building, and a thick pall of smoke was visible several miles away as the fire tore through the structure.
Some survivors escaped the inferno by clambering down the scaffolding, while others stumbled over people as they struggled down smoke-filled stairwells.

Survivor Li Xiuyun, 61, said she cut her feet on shattered glass as she fled from her 16th floor flat with her husband, son and granddaughter.

"My son took off his socks and soaked them with water, and we used them to cover our noses," AFP quoted Ms Li as saying.
TV footage showed soot-smudged people stumbling out of the building, and a rescue worker being lowered on to the roof from a helicopter.
Survivors of the fire have been searching hospitals for missing friends and relatives.
One man who lived in the building said: "All of my relatives and friends have been driving to all the different hospitals. As a family member, what can I do in this situation? How can I calm down?
 "I have only one thing to say - I ask the Communist Party to come and help quickly."

Firefighters battled for several hours to bring the blaze under control

Correspondents say many people were trapped in the upper part of the building, and it could be several hours before the full number of people who died is known.
Rescue workers are still combing through the wreckage for survivors.
The building was reportedly home to a number of retired teachers, and municipal officials said it housed 156 families in total.
Shanghai television said survivors had been evacuated to a nearby stadium where rescue officials had set up a command centre.
One of China's commercial hubs, Shanghai has some 20m residents and has seen a frenzy of construction work in recent years.

UK man's wife killed during honeymoon in South Africa

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UK man's wife killed in carjack on S Africa honeymoon

A woman on honeymoon with her British husband has been killed in Cape Town after being abducted by armed men, police in South Africa have said.

Two hijackers ambushed the taxi she and her husband were in on Saturday night, before leaving him behind unharmed. Her body was later found in the car.
The 28-year-old - who is not British - and her husband, 31, have not been named.
Regional tourist authorities said the couple married two weeks ago.
Western Cape police spokesman, Lieutenant Colonel Andre Traut, said the car had been hijacked by two armed men at 11pm local time.
"The suspects drove off with the couple and the man was later dropped off unharmed. The body of the woman... was found in the car in the Lingelethu West area.
"The families are in the process of being informed, and the couple's names are not yet being released."
Lt Col Traut also said the couple had arrived in the country on 12 November for their holiday, and that the hijackers had not been caught.
The Foreign Office in London said that it was aware of the incident and was offering consular assistance "to a British National who was involved and their family".

James Blunt 'stopped World War 3'

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Singer James Blunt 'stopped World War 3'

James Blunt had worldwide hits after leaving the army

Singer James Blunt has told the BBC how he refused an order to attack Russian troops when he was a British soldier in Kosovo.

Blunt said he was willing to risk a court martial by rejecting the order from a US General.
But he was backed by British General Sir Mike Jackson, who told him "I'm not going to have my soldiers be responsible for starting World War 3".
Blunt was ordered to seize an airfield - but the Russians had got there first.
In an interview with BBC Radio 5Live, to be broadcast later on Sunday, he said: "I was given the direct command to overpower the 200 or so Russians who were there.
"I was the lead officer with my troop of men behind us ... The soldiers directly behind me were from the Parachute Regiment, so they're obviously game for the fight.
"The direct command [that] came in from General Wesley Clark was to overpower them. Various words were used that seemed unusual to us. Words such as 'destroy' came down the radio."
 

 'Mad situation'
The confusion surrounding the taking of Pristina airfield in 1999 has been written about in political memoirs, and was widely reported at the time.

But this is the first time Blunt has given an account of his role in the incident.

Blunt, who was at the head of a column of 30,000 NATO troops with his unit, told Pienaar's Politics it was a "mad situation".
He said he had been "party to the conversation" between senior officers in which Gen Clark had ordered the attack.
"We had two hundred Russians lined up pointing their weapons at us aggressively, which was... and you know we'd been told to reach the airfield and take a hold of it.
"And if we had a foothold there then it would make life much easier for the NATO forces in Pristina. So there was a political reason to take hold of this.
"And the practical consequences of that political reason would be then aggression against the Russians."
 

Court martial
Asked if following the order would have risked starting World War 3, Blunt, who was a 25-year-old cavalry officer at the time, replied: "Absolutely. And that's why we were querying our instruction from an American general".

"Fortunately, up on the radio came General Mike Jackson, whose exact words at the time were, 'I'm not going to have my soldiers be responsible for starting World War 3', and told us why don't we sugar off down the road, you know, encircle the airfield instead.

"And after a couple of days the Russians there said 'hang on we have no food and no water. Can we share the airfield with you?'."
If Gen Jackson had not blocked the order from Gen Clark, who as NATO Supreme Commander Europe was his superior officer, Blunt said he would still have declined to follow it, even at the risk of a court martial.
He said: "There are things that you do along the way that you know are right, and those that you absolutely feel are wrong, that I think it's morally important to stand up against, and that sense of moral judgement is drilled into us as soldiers in the British army."
Blunt left the army in 2002 to pursue a career in music, later scoring a worldwide hit with You're Beautiful.

West cannot defeat al-Qaeda

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West cannot defeat al-Qaeda, says UK forces chief

General Sir David Richards took over as Chief of the Defence Staff last month

The West can only contain not defeat militant groups such as al-Qaeda, the head of the UK's armed forces has said.

General Sir David Richards, a former Nato commander in Afghanistan, said Islamist militancy would pose a threat to the UK for at least 30 years.
But he told the Sunday Telegraph newspaper a clear-cut victory over militants was not achievable.
The BBC's Frank Gardner said the comments reflect a "new realism" in UK and US counter-terrorism circles.
Our security correspondent said such an admission five years ago might have been considered outrageous and defeatist.
Gen Richards, 58, took over as chief of the defence staff last month, after a spell as head of the British army.

'Secure lives'
He is due to lay a wreath at the Cenotaph in London later as part of the UK's Remembrance Sunday commemorations.
In his Sunday Telegraph interview, Gen Richards expressed confidence that al-Qaeda could be contained to such an extent that Britons could lead secure lives.

“Start Quote

In conventional war, defeat and victory is very clear cut and is symbolised by troops marching into another nation's capital”

End Quote General Sir David Richards Chief of the Defence Staff

Gen Richards said: "In conventional war, defeat and victory is very clear cut and is symbolised by troops marching into another nation's capital.

"First of all you have to ask: do we need to defeat [Islamist militancy] in the sense of a clear-cut victory?

"I would argue that it is unnecessary and would never be achieved."
Gen Richards added: "But can we contain it to the point that our lives and our children's lives are led securely? I think we can."

He said the best weapon in the battle against al-Qaeda was the use of "upstream prevention" and the promotion of "education and democracy".
He drew similarities between militant Islam's "pernicious ideology" and that of Nazi Germany.

Gen Richards also admitted the Afghan people were beginning to "tire" of Nato's inability to follow through with its promises to the country.
Britain has lost 343 soldiers in Afghanistan since 2001 but Gen Richards said their sacrifice had been worth it.

Security lapse
He said he saw no reason for Britain to intervene militarily in other countries like it had in Iraq and Afghanistan but added: "It would be barmy to say that one day we wouldn't be back in that position."
Gen Richards comments came as the Foreign Office apologised to a group of MPs after a fact-finding trip to Afghanistan and Pakistan had to be called off because of a security lapse.

Next week's visit by members of the Commons defence select committee was cancelled after an unencrypted e-mail was sent out by an embassy official in Kabul, prompting fears that the MPs' safety may have been compromised.

The Foreign Office said it would be trying to rearrange a visit for the MPs.
A Foreign Office spokesman said: "We have offered our apologies for this regrettable lapse in our procedures and have assured the committee that we will do all we can to arrange a successful visit in the future."

Manny Pacquiao beats Antonio Margarito

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Manny Pacquiao beats Antonio Margarito to win WBC title

Pacquiao (right) won every round against Margarito in Dallas

Manny Pacquiao cemented his claim of being the best boxer in the world as he dominated Antonio Margarito to win the WBC light-middleweight title.

The 31-year-old Filipino won every round in an unanimous points victory as his Mexican opponent ended the contest in a bloodied mess in Dallas.


Pacquiao, also a congressman, implored referee Laurence Cole to stop the fight a number of times in the 11th round.


But it went on and Pacquiao secured an eighth belt in an eighth weight class.


One judge scored the fight 120-109 while the other two had it 119-109 and 118-110.


Pacquiao, who had moved up in weight yet again to take on natural welterweight Margarito, said: "I can't believe that I beat someone this big and this strong.


"I told the referee, 'Look at his eyes, look at his cuts'. I did not want to damage him permanently. That's not what boxing is about."


Ringside punch statistics reflected Pacquiao's dominance, showing him landing 474 punches to 229 for Margarito. But it was not just the sheer volume of punches, but the power in which they came at almost every angle.


Pacquiao won round after round, opening a cut on Margarito's cheek and closing his right eye. The punches came quickly, and they came often - four or five-punch combinations that snapped Margarito's head back and stopped him in his tracks.


"We didn't lose a round," said Pacquiao's trainer, Freddie Roach. "I wish they would have stopped the fight."


Although Margarito took a beating all night long at the hands of a faster and seemingly more powerful opponent, he insisted afterwards that quitting was never in his mind.
"There was no way I was gong to quit. I'm a Mexican, we fight until the end," he said.


And despite his dominance, Pacquiao revealed that he was hurt by Margarito in the middle rounds after taking shots to the head and the body.


However, Pacquiao was still able to fire right back with punches of his own that found their mark almost every time.


"Manny is the best fighter in the world," said Margarito's trainer, Robert Garcia. "He is just too fast - very, very quick."

Aung San Suu Kyi freed

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Celebrations as Burma's Aung San Suu Kyi released

BBC News

World leaders and human rights groups have reacted with joy at the release from house arrest of Burma's pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

Ms Suu Kyi walked from her Rangoon house at the end of her sentence on Saturday, having been detained for most of the past two decades.
Her lawyers say no conditions have been placed on her freedom.
Ms Suu Kyi is expected to address her supporters on Sunday and also meet diplomats and members of her NLD party.
But correspondents say it is not yet clear what political role she will be able to play.
Her release comes six days after Burma held its first elections in 20 years - they were won by the military but widely condemned as a sham.
Mr Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD) won the election in 1990 but were never allowed to take power. She has been under house arrest or in prison almost continually ever since.

"Inspiration"

Thousands of Ms Suu Kyi's supporters had gathered outside her home in Rangoon since Friday to await her release.

No official announcement was given but in the late morning on Saturday, her release papers were delivered to her house and she emerged to huge celebrations - the cheers were so loud she was unable to address the crowds for about half an hour.
Ms Suu Kyi told the crowd there was "a time to be quiet and a time to talk", and that she would visit the now-disbanded NLD at their headquarters on Sunday.
US President Barack Obama said Ms Suu Kyi was a "hero" of his while UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said she was an "inspiration".
But both leaders warned that her release should not mask the continued political oppression in Burma

Boycott 

Ms Suu Kyi was first detained in 1989. Her latest period of house arrest was extended by 18 months in August last year, following an incident in which a US man swam across the lake to her home.
Correspondents say it is too early to say whether Ms Suu Kyi's release will have a significant impact on Burma's political scene, and to what extent she will be free to engage in political activity.
Her release comes too late for her to take part in the elections, which were billed by the junta as marking the transition from military to civilian rule but were widely criticised as being neither free nor fair.
The NLD had refused to contest the election, partly because new electoral laws prevented anyone with a criminal record - therefore many of its leaders and members - could not run for office.
Its refusal meant it is no longer legally recognised as a party, and so its most famous democracy campaigner has no official political status and an unclear role.

Pacquiao vs. Margarito: Who will be the Best Man?

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Pacquiao-Margarito Weights: Manny 144.6, Antonio 150, Mixed Reaction for Both

by Scott Christ

Manny Pacquiao and Antonio Margarito meet tomorrow night at Cowboys Stadium.

Manny Pacquiao and Antonio Margarito both met mixed reactions from an excited crowd inside Cowboys Stadium at Friday's weigh-in, and both came in at what appeared to be strong weights.

Margarito, the controversial former welterweight titlist, hit the fight's 150-pound limit on the nose. He and stablemate Brandon Rios both met boos from the crowd in Arlington, but Margarito also had his vocal supporters, who chanted "Margarito" after the initial reaction.

Pacquiao, who has won titles in seven different weight classes and seeks an eighth tomorrow night, came in at 144.6 pounds, which to me seems like a very good weight. Some may worry that he's too light, but remember that Manny weighed in light against Miguel Cotto (144) and Oscar de la Hoya (142), as well. He has said that the "struggles" early in camp came from trying to put on too much weight, which slowed him down. Instead, they've focused on trying to exploit their greatest advantage: speed. We've seen Manny around this weight, and he's been lightning.

Interestingly, Manny also received a very mixed reaction from the crowd all the way through his weigh-in, and like Margarito, was recipient of a chant meant to drown out the booing portion. 

Tomorrow night's atmosphere could be really something in Cowboys Stadium, as clearly both men have their supporters out in force.

Undercard weights: Mike Jones 145.5 versus Jesus Soto Karass 148 ... Guillermo Rigondeaux 121.5 versus Ricardo Cordoba 121 ... Brandon Rios 140 versus Omri Lowther 137.5.

New UN aid plea for Haiti Cholera victims

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Haiti cholera outbreak prompts fresh UN aid plea

BBC News

Fears are growing of a major outbreak in Port-au-Prince

The UN has appealed for nearly $164m (£102m) to fight a cholera outbreak in Haiti which has now claimed 724 lives.

UN spokeswoman Elisabeth Byrs said that unless funds were provided, "all our efforts can be outrun by the epidemic".

She said the disease had so far infected at least 11,125 people in five of Haiti's 10 districts.
Aid agencies are battling to contain cholera in the capital Port-au-Prince, amid fears it will spread through camps housing 1.1m earthquake survivors.
More than 80 people have died in the past 24 hours across the country, according to the health ministry.
 

High fatality rate
Ms Byrs, of the UN's Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), said the funds will be used to bring in more doctors, medicines and water-purification equipment.

"We absolutely need this money as soon as possible," she said.
Stefano Zannini, head of mission for Medecins Sans Frontieres in Haiti, said on Friday that hospitals in Port-au-Prince are overflowing and patients may have to be treated in the streets.
"We are really worried about space," he said.

"If the number of cases continues to increase at the same rate, then we are going to have to adopt some drastic measures. We are going to have to use public spaces and even streets. I can easily see this situation deteriorating to the point where patients are lying in the street, waiting for treatment. At the moment, we just don't have that many options."

The World Health Organization said on Friday it did not expect the epidemic to end soon.
 

"The projections of 200,000 cases over the next six to 12 months shows the amplitude of what could be expected," said spokesman Gregory Hartl.

He said that the current fatality rate of 6.5% was far higher than it should be.
"No-one alive in Haiti has experienced cholera before, so it is a population which is very susceptible to the bacteria," he said. "Once it is in water systems it transmits very easily."

The outbreak began in Haiti's Artibonite River valley in mid-October and at first seemed to have been contained.

But Hurricane Tomas, which struck earlier this month, flooded rivers believed to be contaminated with cholera and submerged refugee communities already struggling to survive.
The disease is spread by contaminated drinking water or food, but is treatable with oral or intravenous rehydration and antibiotics.

Aid agencies say access to clean water is a major problem, and they are struggling to get the message across to Haitians to seek medical help as soon as cholera-like symptoms appear.
Even before the earthquake only 40% of Haitians had safe drinking water.

Haiti's besieged health services have been warned to expect a different scale of disaster if cholera takes hold in the capital, which was devastated by January's earthquake that left more than 250,000 people dead.

"We greatly fear a flare-up in the capital which would be serious given the conditions in the camps," Claude Surena, president of the Haitian Medical Association, told AFP news agency.
 

Aid delayed
Meanwhile, the first portion of US financial aid for reconstruction in Haiti is on its way, more than seven months after it was promised to help the country re-build after the earthquake in January.
The $120m (£74m) - about a tenth of the amount pledged in total by the US - has faced several delays.

Only 37.8% of the money pledged by all countries for 2010-11 has been delivered to the poverty-stricken nation.

Aung San Suu Kyi: Release order from Burma Generals

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Burma generals 'sign Aung San Suu Kyi release order'

BBC News

Aung San Suu Kyi has been in detention in Burma for 15 of the past 21 years

Reports are coming out of Burma saying the military authorities have signed an order authorising the release of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

The Nobel laureate has been detained for 15 of the past 21 years, and her house arrest term expires on Saturday.

There has been increased police activity outside her house in Rangoon, but as yet no official confirmation.

However, Ms Suu Kyi is not expected to accept a conditional release if it excludes her from political activity.
She was originally due to be released last year, but a case involving an American who swam across Inya Lake to her home, claiming he was on a mission to save her, prompted the latest 18-month detention.

'Significant impact' 

The BBC's Alastair Leithead in Bangkok says a number of sources inside Burma have told the BBC that documents authorising Ms Suu Kyi's release have been signed. There has been increased police activity outside her home in University Avenue in Rangoon, Burma's biggest city.

Continue reading the main story

Aung San Suu Kyi

• Born 1945, daughter of Burma's independence hero, General Aung San assassinated in 1947
• 1960: Leaves Burma and is later educated at Oxford University
• 1988: Returns to care for sick mother and is caught up in revolt against then-dictator Ne Win
• 1989: Put under house arrest as Burma junta declares martial law
• 1990: NLD wins election; military disregards result
• 1991: Wins Nobel Peace Prize
• 1995: Released from house arrest, but movements restricted
• 2000: Near continuous period of house arrest begins
• Sept 2007: First public appearance since 2003, greeting protesting Buddhist monks
• November 2010: NLD boycotts first election in 20 years and is disbanded

Continue reading the main story

Her supporters, who have been publicly counting down the days to the end of her current term of house arrest, have been gathering at the headquarters of her political party, the National League for Democracy (NLD), in anticipation of her release.

"There is no law to hold her for another day. Her detention period expires on Saturday and she will be released," her lawyer, Nyan Win, told reporters. "They should release her for the country."
Earlier this week, he said Ms Suu Kyi would "not accept a limited release".
"[It] must be unconditional. As we all know, she never accepted limited freedom in the past," he added.
Nyan Win said she would meet with the NLD's central committee, members of the media and the public once she was freed.
The British ambassador to Burma, Andrew Heyn, has told the BBC that the UK and EU are pressing hard for Ms Suu Kyi's unconditional release, and that her freedom would have a "significant impact".

Boycott
The increasing speculation that the ruling generals may sanction her release follows the country's first elections in 20 years on Sunday.
On Thursday, state media announced that partial results showed that the biggest military-backed party, the Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), had secured a majority in both houses of parliament.

The USDP had won 190 of the 219 seats so far declared in the 330-seat lower House of Representatives, and 95 of 107 seats in the 168-seat upper House of Nationalities, the reports said.
Those elected included the leader of the USDP, Prime Minister Thein Sein, who retired from the military as a general in April to stand.

The junta has said the election marks the transition from military rule to a civilian democracy, but the opposition, many Western governments and human rights groups have said the election was neither free nor fair.

The NLD - which won the last election in 1990 but was never allowed to take power - was ordered to dissolve after refusing to take part.

A quarter of seats in the two new chambers of parliament will be reserved for the military. Any constitutional change will require a majority of more than 75% - meaning that the military will retain a casting vote.

G20 to address currency problem

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G20 agree to address currencies

BBC News

G20 leaders have published their final communique on the summit

Leaders of the G20 group of major economies have agreed to avoid "competitive devaluation" of currencies after a second day of difficult talks in the South Korea capital, Seoul.

Leaders agreed to come up with "indicative guidelines" to tackle trade imbalances afflicting world growth.


Tensions had been high between some delegations over how to correct distortions in currency and trade.
Some fear the conflict may threaten global growth.
The disagreement has primarily been between China and the United States.

“Start Quote

There has been just enough progress on the vexed subject of exchange rates and global imbalances for all sides to declare victory. But the US President has had a tougher ride here than at any previous G20 summit”

End Quote

Stephanie Flanders Economics editor, BBC News

---

US President Barack Obama said there should be no controversy about fixing imbalances "that helped to contribute to the crisis that we just went through".

Earlier a US official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that China was acting to address Washington's concerns about its currency.


"I think that if you look past some of the heat you've seen recently and you look at what's happening in our very important relationship with China, I'm very encouraged by the progress we've seen," the official said.


Meanwhile, the UK, France, Germany, Italy and Spain issued a joint declaration to try to calm bond market jitters over a possible future EU bail-out fund.
As Irish bond yields reached a fresh high, leaders discussed the Irish Republic's debt crisis amid concerns that the European Union will have to step in.


"Any new [bail-out] mechanism would only come into effect after mid-2013 with no impact whatsoever on the current arrangements," finance ministers from the five countries said in the declaration.


UK sources say that officials from the UK, France and Russia had to be called in the early hours of this morning after "fractious" negotiations between China and the US broke down in "acrimony".

Russian 'double agent' named

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Russian 'double agent' named by Moscow newspaper

By Steve Rosenberg BBC News, Moscow

Anna Chapman, one of the 10 spies expelled, made a surprise public appearance in October

A newspaper in Moscow has named the Russian intelligence agent it claims helped America break up a Russian spy ring last summer.

The paper, Kommersant, says a Col Shcherbakov of the Russian foreign intelligence agency had been working for the Americans.

Ten Russian sleeper agents were arrested and sent back home, in the biggest spy swap since the Cold War.

It was the biggest US-Russian spy scandal since the end of the Cold War.

Col Shcherbakov had a senior role in Russia's foreign intelligence agency, Kommersant says; his job: to plant moles in the United States, secret agents deep under cover.

But at some point the colonel changed sides.

Quoting intelligence sources, the newspaper says Col Shcherbakov fled to America in June, just three days before President Dmitry Medvedev's official visit to the US.

A few days after that, once the Russian president was back in the Kremlin, the Russian agents were seized.
 

Promotion 'shunned'
A year before the spy scandal, Col Shcherbakov had reportedly been offered a promotion at work, but had turned it down, to avoid having to take a lie detector test.

Col Shcherbakov's bosses - the newspaper claims - had overlooked the fact the colonel's own daughter had been living in America for years.

Kommersant quotes an unidentified Kremlin official as suggesting that a Russian hit squad was already planning to kill the colonel.

The Kremlin source predicted Shcherbakov would spend the rest of his life fearing retribution.
A spokesman for Russia's foreign intelligence agency refused to comment on the newspaper report.