Afghanistan Suicide Bomber Kills Worshippers

A suicide bomber has attacked a mosque in Afghanistan as people gathered to celebrate the Eid al Adha holiday.

Between 36 and 41 people, including at least five children, died in the attack in the town of Maymana, capital of northern Faryab province.

Top provincial officials, including the governor and the police chief, were inside the building when the bomber set off his explosives outside the packed Eid Gah mosque.

The officials were not hurt, but the dead included police officers, soldiers, intelligence agents and civilians. Dozens were wounded.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility, but suicide bombings are a favourite weapon of Taliban Islamists trying to topple the Western-backed government of President Hamid Karzai.

One eyewitness, Sayed Moqeed, described the bomber as appearing to be in his early teens.

"Suddenly I heard a very big explosion," he said. "Everywhere were pieces of bodies, hands and limbs. The suicide attacker was in police uniform, he looked to be around 14 or 15 years old."

Deputy Governor Abdul Satar Barez said: "The targets of the bomber were all the officials inside the mosque."

It appeared to be the deadliest suicide attack in recent months.

On September 4, 25 civilians were killed and more than 35 wounded in Nanghar province, and on September 1, 12 people were killed and 47 wounded in a suicide attack in Wardak province.

Mr Karzai strongly condemned the attack, saying that those who carried it out were "enemies of Islam and humanity."

The attack came as Mr Karzai was urging Taliban insurgents "to stop killing other Afghans".

In his Eid al Adha message to the nation, Mr Karzai called on the insurgents to "stop the destruction of our mosques, hospitals and schools".

The United Nations says that Taliban attacks account for the vast majority of civilian casualties in the 11-year war. The insurgents routinely deny that they are responsible for attacks on civilians, saying they target only foreign troops or members of the Afghan security forces.

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Syria: Deadly Car Bomb Attack In Capital

At least five people have been killed and 32 wounded in a car bombing in southern Damascus, according to Syrian state television.

The blast in the capital comes on the first day of a ceasefire brokered by UN and Arab League peace envoy Lakhdar Brahimi.

The regime and the main rebel force, the Free Syrian Army, had both agreed to temporarily lay down their arms.

"The explosion of a booby-trapped car outside the Omar bin Khattab mosque in the Daf Shawk district killed and wounded dozens of people," the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

The attack comes hours after three people were reported to have been killed by tank and sniper fire in the Damascus suburb of Harasta, which was apparently targeted in a violation of the temporary truce agreed to mark the four-day Muslim holiday of Eid al Adha.

The Syrian army said it had been responding to attacks by armed rebels that were in violation of the ceasefire.

"Armed terrorist groups attacked military positions, thereby clearly violating the halt to military operations agreed by the army command.

"Our valiant armed forces are responding to these violations and pursuing these groups," the military said in a statement, adding that rebel attacks had taken place against its positions in Deir Ezzor, Daraa, Idlib and in the Damascus region.

The Syrian army had said it would cease military operations from Friday to Monday for the Eid al Adha holiday, but warned it would react if "armed terrorist groups" carry out attacks or reinforce their positions, or if fighters cross into the country.

President Assad pictured at a prayer service on Friday

Rebels in a northern town close to the Turkish border also reported one of their fighters was shot dead by a sniper, and a Reuters journalist in the town heard what sounded like four rounds of tank fire.

In a statement read on state television after the truce deal, the Syrian army said it would still respond to gunfire or roadside bombs and keep rebels from bolstering their positions or getting supplies.

A Free Syrian Army commander also said rebels would retaliate if they were attacked.

On Friday morning, Syrian state television showed President Bashar al Assad attending morning prayers for the start of Eid at a mosque in Damascus.

He was pictured smiling and looking relaxed as he spoke to other worshippers, in his first television appearance for more than a month.

During prayers, Imam Walid Abdel Haq called on Syrians to "stop quarrelling because you are all brothers".

"Do you not see what has been happening for two years in the country, the destruction and death? Stop this," he said.

Protests were reported to have taken place in Raqa in the north east, where security forces fired tear gas, and in the southern Deraa province, where three people were injured as police fired live rounds to disperse demonstrators.

Activists said protests also took place in Damascus and Aleppo.

In the Idlib village of Al Habit protesters chanted against Mr Assad, saying: "Traitor, give up, you have destroyed Syria."

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Berlusconi Sentenced To Four Years In Jail

Former Italian PM Silvio Berlusconi has been sentenced to four years in prison for tax fraud connected to his television channels.

An Italian court delivered the verdict against the ex-leader and 10 others in a six-year-old tax fraud trial.

Lawyers for the 76-year-old, who was also barred from holding political office for five years, said he will lodge an appeal before November 10.

Berlusconi's age, coupled with Italy's lengthy appeals process and statute of limitations, means he is unlikely to go to prison.

If he does, he will only serve one year due to a 2006 amnesty law aimed at reducing prison overcrowding.

The verdict came two days after Berlusconi announced he will not run for premier in upcoming elections.

During the trial, prosecutors alleged the defendants were behind a scheme to purchase the rights to broadcast US movies on Berlusconi's private Mediaset television networks through a series of offshore companies, and had falsely declared the payments to avoid taxes.

Prosecutors further alleged they inflated the price for the TV rights of some 3,000 films as they re-licensed them internally to Berlusconi's networks, pocketing the difference amounting to around €250m (£200m).

Other charges of false accounting and false statements in financial reports were thrown out because the statute of limitations expired.

The court sentenced Berlusconi and his co-defendants to pay €10m (£8m) to Italian tax authorities, a statement said.

The trial began in July 2006, but was put on hold by a now-defunct immunity law that shielded Berlusconi from prosecution while he was premier until it was watered down by the constitutional court.

The trial also faced delays as Berlusconi cited conflicts with his schedule as premier.

Berlusconi has been tried numerous times for his business dealings. He has always denied wrongdoing and alleged that the cases were politically motivated.

In each case to date, he has been cleared or seen the statute of limitations expire. The statute of limitations in this case is set to expire sometime next year.

Berlusconi also is on trial in Milan on charges of paying for sex with a prostitute and trying to cover it up.

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Hurricane Sandy: US Braces After 11 Die In Cuba

Hurricane Sandy has killed 11 people in Cuba and is now expected to batter the east coast of the US – after lashing the Bahamas.

Cuban state media announced that a four-month-old boy, who was crushed when his home collapsed, was among the dead as the east of the island was hit.

It reported nine deaths in the Santiago province in eastern Cuba, and two deaths in the Guantanamo area, bordering the US naval base at Guantanamo Bay. The oldest victim was 84.

Sandy is moving towards the US

Cuban authorities said most of the fatalities occurred when homes fell down, but the cause of some was still being investigated.

A total of 21 people have now died across the Caribbean as a result of the storm.

Hurricane Sandy has now made landfall in the Bahamas and, as it heads towards the US, predictions are mounting that it could bring destruction to the mainland far worse than last year's Hurricane Irene.

A satellite image of Sandy over the Bahamas

As the Category Two storm made its way towards the east coast, disaster experts and meteorologists warned that coastal states from the mid-Atlantic through to New England could be hit with dangerous winds and heavy rains.

Some forecasters even say Sandy could become a multibillion-dollar disaster, though it is still too early to tell if its power and trajectory will bring about that worst-case scenario.

Hurricane Irene struck in August 2011, causing some $4.3bn (£2.7bn) in losses as unexpectedly heavy flooding hit from New Jersey to Vermont.

A power line is brought down in Santiago de Cuba

There are also concerns that Sandy could join with a winter storm already on course to hit New England and New York City next week.

Should the two storms merge, they could form what some are terming – in a nod to the upcoming Halloween holiday – a "Frankenstorm".

Residents try to save a fridge from their house in Santiago de Cuba

"When that occurs there can be a bit of a synergy, sort of a one plus one equals three effect," said Michael Kistler, a product manager at RMS, one of the main firms used by the insurance industry to model potential disaster exposure.

The White House on Thursday urged residents on the east coast to monitor weather reports and to heed any warnings from local officials in the days ahead.

It could possibly bring tropical storm conditions along the south eastern Florida coast, the Upper Keys and Florida Bay by Friday morning.

The storm tore down power lines and trees and damaged homes as it pounded Jamaica – crushing one man to death - before heading for Cuba and the Bahamas.

Deerfield beach in Florida is closed as winds pick up

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Syria: Four-Day Ceasefire Begins For Eid

A ceasefire is under way in Syria after the army and the main rebel force agreed to stop fighting for the four-day Muslim holiday of Eid Al Adha.

The country was calm in the early hours of Friday morning, according to the London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

It was in stark contrast to the previous evening, which saw heavy fighting across the country, focused on Damascus, Aleppo, and the border with Lebanon.

Syrian state television showed President Bashar al Assad attending morning prayers for the start of Eid at a mosque in Damascus.

He was pictured smiling and looking relaxed as he spoke to other worshippers, in his first television appearance for more than a month.

During prayers, Imam Walid Abdel Haq called on Syrians to "stop quarrelling because you are all brothers".

"Do you not see what has been happening for two years in the country, the destruction and death? Stop this," he said.

As the ceasefire began, some anti-regime protests began after morning prayers.

Protests were reported to have taken place in Raqa in the north east, where security forces fired tear gas, and in the southern Deraa province, where three people were injured as police fired live rounds to disperse demonstrators.

Activists said protests also took place in Damascus and Aleppo.

In the Idlib village of Al-Habit protesters chanted against Mr Assad, saying: "Traitor, give up, you have destroyed Syria."

The ceasefire was agreed after the intervention of UN and Arab League peace envoy Lakhdar Brahimi.

Both the regime and the main rebel force, the Free Syrian Army, have agreed temporarily to lay down their arms.

In a statement read on state television after the ceasefire deal, the Syrian army said it would still respond to gunfire or roadside bombs and keep rebels from bolstering their positions or getting supplies.

A Free Syrian Army commander also said rebels would retaliate if they were attacked.

If the ceasefire holds, it would be the first real breakthrough in halting the 19-month conflict that rights groups say has killed more than 35,000 people in Syria.

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British Oil Executive Gunned Down In Brussels

A British oil executive - named by Sky sources as Nicholas Mockford - has been shot dead in Brussels.

The killing took place on October 14 but Belgian investigators have only just revealed information about his death.

Mr Mockford, who worked for ExxonMobil,  was gunned down as he left a restaurant with his wife.

The Foreign Office said: "We can confirm the death of a British national in Brussels on October 14 and we are providing consular assistance."

Police said the businessman was shot three times as he left an Italian restaurant in Neder-Over-Heembeek, a suburb of the Belgian capital.

The couple had just left the Da Marcello restaurant in Brussels

It happened at around 10pm as he walked with his wife Mary from the Da Marcello restaurant on Rue de Beyseghem to their car, which was parked nearby.

Mrs Mockford was violently attacked and struck several times on her face as one of the attackers tried to grab her handbag.

A second attacker opened fire on the 60-year-old oil executive, who later died of his injuries.

He was shot three times, once as he lay on the floor, and his wife Mary was left beaten and covered in blood, cradling her husband and shouting for help. He died on the way to hospital.

Witnesses say they saw the couple walk across the street to their Lexus 4x4 car before shots were fired.

The attack took place in the Neder-Over-Heembeek area of Brussels

It is understood that the two men were carrying motorcycle helmets and they initially fled on foot before taking a ring road on a "two-wheeled vehicle".

Shortly after the events, a white van passed Rue de Beyseghem and came across the victims.

Investigators have been questioning the driver of this vehicle.

The Daily Telegraph said police in Belgium were considering all possible motives for the shooting, including a carjacking, although Mr Mockford's car was not stolen.

The Belgian prosecutor's office said last night that there was a "judicial instruction" from Martine Quintin, the investigating judge, that meant they could give no "explanation" and no detail about the killing, which a spokesman said was "usual in such a serious murder investigation", the newspaper reported.

However, Chief Inspector Wim Van Leifferenge said the killing had been reported by media in the country since it happened.

Mr Van Leifferenge said no-one had been arrested and those responsible were still on the run.

Mr Mockford is understood to have worked for ExxonMobil since the 1970s and was head of marketing for interim technologies for ExxonMobil Chemicals, Europe, promoting new types of greener fuel.

Brought up in Leicestershire, he had moved abroad from Chichester some years ago, living in Belgium and Singapore.

He was married to his Belgian wife for 15 years and has three grown-up children living in Britain from his first marriage, according to the Telegraph.

A family member, who asked not to be named, told the newspaper they thought he had been killed in a professional hit.

The relation said: "We are all confused about what has happened. Nick was a genuinely lovely, clean-cut, mild-mannered, family man."

He added: "He was shot so calmly and so quickly, it smacks horribly of a professional hit, but we can't fathom why. He isn't the type to cave in to blackmail and it just doesn't compute."

A spokesman for ExxonMobil said: "We are shocked by the tragic death of one of our employees on Sunday, October 14 in Brussels.

"Our thoughts are with his family, friends and colleagues and we are supporting them as best we can at this very difficult time."

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Obama 'Bubble' Confident On Home Straight

US President Barack Obama has launched an unprecedented campaign blitz through eight states in 39 hours in his bid to secure a second term in the White House.

Mr Obama is travelling more than 6,000 miles across four time zones in what he has described as a "marathon extravaganza" to encourage voters to the polls.

The President is neck-and-neck with Republican challenger Mitt Romney with 12 days to go until election day.

His trip includes swing states Iowa, Colorado, Nevada, Florida, Ohio and Virginia and he held a conference call with 9,000 undecided voters from aboard the presidential jet Air Force One.

Both campaigns have now unleashed what they call their "ground game" of knocking on doors and calling undecided voters in swing states.

Sky News joined the Obama campaign "bubble" for his sweep across the country and discovered a mood of confidence.

Senior advisors believe he has regained the momentum after a sticky patch after the first televised debate. They say he has a "clear path" towards securing the 270 electoral college votes he needs.

Mr Obama's advisors believe he has regained the momentum

Obama campaign advisor David Plouffe told reporters: "We win the election if it were held today.

"Our view is that in all the battleground states we've contested, every single one of them, we have a credible pathway to 50%."

The campaign believes the key is keeping the pressure on people who voted for Mr Obama in 2008 to come out and do it again.

In Iowa, 3,500 people packed into Mississippi Valley Fairground to stand under autumnal leaves and hear the President.

He told them: "This is where it all began four years ago, on your front porches, in your backyards. This is where the movement for change began. And Iowa, you will once again choose the path ahead.

"We can't afford to go back to what got us into this mess. We've got to stick with policies that are getting out of this mess."

Supporter Heather Khoury said: "I think he's moving us forward, I don't think think that is just his spiel. I think some of the things he promised Congress didn't allow him to do so it shouldn't all be blamed on him."

Randall Dreese said: "I really don't see how the United States as a whole could survive four years of Mitt Romney."

Obama recorded an interview with late night comedy host Jay Leno

In Denver, 16,000 braved the chill to listen to a shirt-sleeved Mr Obama lambast his rival's plans and repeat his now familiar "Romnesia" campaign gag.

Buses were waiting to ferry people to early voting stations nearby. The campaign is now focused on energising its core and looking to find every wavering voter.

Mr Obama, who spent the night aboard Air Force One, also stopped off in Los Angeles to record an interview with late night comedy host Jay Leno.

He mocked controversial tycoon and "birther" Donald Trump, who earlier offered to give $5m to charity if Mr Obama released his college and passport records.

The President joked that their disagreement dates back to when he and Trump were growing up Kenya.

"We had constant run-ins on the soccer field. He wasn't very good and resented it. When we finally moved to America I thought it would be over," he said.

Mr Obama will make detour to his home city of Chicago today to cast his own early vote before completing his trip.

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Hurricane Sandy Hits Cuba After Lashing Jamaica

Hurricane Sandy tore down power lines and trees as it pounded Jamaica, before heading for Cuba and the Bahamas.

The storm had developed from a Category One to Category Two hurricane when it made landfall just west of Santiago de Cuba with maximum sustained winds of 114 mph.

The US National Hurricane Centre (NHC) in Miami said that Sandy was moving north-northeast at 15 mph and was expected to keep its hurricane strength as it moved through the Bahamas.

"It is a big storm and it's going to grow in size after it leaves Cuba," said Michael Brennan, a hurricane forecaster at the NHC.  

Storm clouds gathered over Cuba as Sandy approached

In Jamaica, schools and businesses were closed and authorities moved residents in low-lying, flood-prone areas into shelters amid steady rain and fierce winds.

Residents reported widespread power outages, flooded streets and some severely damaged homes.

One man was crushed to death by stones that fell from a hillside as he tried to get into his house in a rural village near Kingston, according to a police official.

Earlier Wednesday, a woman in Haiti was swept away by a rushing river she was trying to cross.

Widespread flooding was reported across Jamaica

Cruise ships changed their itineraries to avoid the storm, which made landfall five miles east of the capital and airports were closed.

Curfews were imposed on 80 communities in an attempt to prevent the looting which has followed previous storms.

Many people refused to evacuate their homes because they were fearful that their possessions would be stolen.

Officers said suspected looters shot and wounded a police official as he led a group through a volatile section of West Kingston called Craig Town.

In some southern towns on Jamaica, a few crocodiles were caught in rushing floodwaters that carried them out of the mangrove thickets, into housing districts, local residents reported.

One large crocodile reportedly took up temporary residence in a family's front yard in the city of Portmore.

Sandy dumped heavy rain on Jamaica and Cuba

Sandy was expected to dump a total of 6 to 12 inches of rain as it ade its way across parts of Jamaica, Haiti, the Dominican Republic and eastern Cuba.

The 18th named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season was expected to pass to the west of the US naval base at Cuba's Guantanamo Bay, where pretrial hearings were being held for a suspect in the deadly 2000 attack on the destroyer USS Cole off Yemen.

The 15,500 people living on the US base, along with the 166 priosners held there, have been warned to be ready for the storm.

Sandy could possibly bring tropical storm conditions along the southeastern Florida coast, the Upper Keys and Florida Bay by Friday morning.

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Malala Shooting: Police Name Prime Suspect

Police have named the prime suspect in connection with the shooting of Malala Yousafzai, the teenage activist who spoke out against the Taliban.

Detectives are attempting to track down 23-year-old Atta Ullah Khan, a chemistry student from the Swat district where Malala was attacked.

Khan's mother, brother, and fiancee have been arrested, as well as six other men.

The suspect's relatives are not accused of involvement, a senior police official is reported to have said.

Malala is being treated at a hospital in Birmingham

Alam Zeb, the principal at Jahanzeb College where Khan is studying for a physics degree, said Khan had given school officials three or four dates of birth.

He condemned the attack and said he was surprised to hear that a former student may have been involved.

The 15-year-old girl became a symbol of courage after being shot in the head by the Taliban earlier this month for demanding education for girls.

She is now being treated in Britain, at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Birmingham.

The teenager is a high-profile campaigner against the Taliban

The hospital has said she continues to make steady progress and is in a stable condition after she was admitted a week ago following initial treatment in Pakistan.

She had been able to stand with help for the first time in hospital and was "communicating very freely", according to Dr Dave Rosser, medical director of the University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust.

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Mining Firm Sacks 8,500 Striking Workers

The mining firm Gold Fields has fired 8,500 miners amid the bitter disputes crippling the industry in South Africa.

The company, the world's fourth-largest bullion producer, said it had carried out its threat against strikers at its KDC East mine after they failed to meet a new deadline to return to work.

Spokesman Sven Lunsche said negotiations had failed and the company had issued dismissal notices to employees, who have 24 hours to appeal.

"We have now reached a situation where the mine is becoming economically very marginal - we need to resume production as soon as possible to prevent total closure," he told Sky News.

"We have dismissed the miners, but hopefully they will use the appeal process to come back to work."

The move was described as a "last throw of the dice" by the firm, which says the dispute has cost it more than £107m.

Mr Lunsche said Gold Fields would begin hiring new staff shortly, adding: "We need to resume production, and we need workers who are willing to do that."

Its larger KDC West mine has seen around half the usual staff numbers return to work.

The development is the latest twist in a wider dispute that has left the South African mining industry battling its worst industrial unrest for decades.

More than 80,000 miners have gone on strike since August, hitting growth and investor confidence in the continent's biggest economy.

Related stories:

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Obama Aggressive In Final Presidential Debate

Romney Avoids Foreign Policy Blow

Updated: 10:35am UK, Tuesday 23 October 2012

By Dominic Waghorn, US Correspondent

This was always going to be a tough one for Mitt Romney.

The Republican challenger has not distinguished himself on foreign policy. 

And on many foreign issues there is not enough swinging room between him and the President to let him land a punch.

The President probably won on points, but his challenger held his own and made no gaffes. Given his previous form on foreign policy, that's an improvement.

This debate was about foreign policy when the election is not. The economy remains the overriding issue.

It was predictable then that both men would try to bring the debate back to domestic issues.

President Obama was the first, 25 minutes in, stressing that nation building starts at home.

Mr Romney joined in, forcefully making the argument that America will only be respected overseas if it's strong at home. 

Then followed a slew of argument that had nothing to do with foreign policy from healthcare reform to classroom sizes. 

There were cheers in the adjoining "spin room" from journalists when moderator Bob Schieffer tried to return the discussion to foreign affairs even if it was largely in vain.

With the odds stacked against him, Mr Romney was largely avoiding losing.

His most dangerous moment was one of his own creation, a tactical error he could have avoided.

He probably should not have mentioned foreign trips, given how badly his last one went, offending the British, Palestinians and the press travelling with him.

But he brought up the President's visits overseas all the same, accusing him of indulging in an "apology" tour allowing his opponent to come right back at him.

"If you want to talk about trips governor," came back the president. Mr Obama then compared his visit to Israel, which included a tour of the Yad Vashem holocaust museum, to Mitt Romney's which he said was more about attending fundraisers.

Many Americans will not have been watching. This was a big sports night.

In the Tailgaters Sports Bar in Daytona Beach up the coast, most people weren't focused on the debate. The Chicago Bears were playing the Detroit Lions, by coincidence the home town teams of each candidate.

The game was on a much bigger screen than the debate in the bar.

But a few were paying attention to the candidates.

Carl Dephillipe told Sky News the debate had made all the difference to his vote.

"I am a Democrat so I was leaning towards Obama but I hadn't heard anything about his foreign policy till tonight so finally being to sit down tonight to listen to his foreign policy I'll definitely be giving him my vote," he said.

Further down the bar David Daley was also critical of Mr Romney.

"I think he's basically selling the American people a dream. That he's promising a lot of things that he's not going to be able to do," he said. 

For the record, the President's team beat Mr Romney's by 13 to 7.

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Woman 'Set Herself On Fire In Staged KKK Attack'

A woman who told police she had been subjected to a racist attack in which three men set her alight and scrawled KKK on her car was lying, according to US investigators.

"The wounds were self-inflicted," said Kyle Hanrahan, a spokesman for the FBI's Louisiana bureau.

Sharmeka Moffitt, 20, was seriously burned in the fire and remains in a critical condition.

She called police from a park in the town of Winnsboro on Sunday night and told them three men in white hoodies had doused her with a flammable liquid and ignited it.

The letters KKK, for the white supremacist organisation Ku Klux Klan, and a racial slur were scrawled on her car in what appeared to be toothpaste.

According to local media, investigators decided the burns were self-inflicted after finding Ms Moffitt's fingerprints on a cigarette lighter and lighter fluid.

Louisiana's KATC News reported her family had issued a statement saying: "Our family is devastated to learn the circumstances surrounding our daughter's injuries.

"While this was not the resolution we had expected, it is a resolution, and we appreciate the thorough investigation by the local and state police as well as federal agencies.

"We are sincerely sorry for any problems this may have caused and wish to express our appreciation for the outpouring of love, prayers and support we have received from friends, acquaintances, church organisations and government officials."

The FBI was called in to assist local authorities because the apparent attack was initially considered a possible hate crime.

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Obama Aggressive In Final Presidential Debate

Romney Avoids Foreign Policy Blow

Updated: 5:37am UK, Tuesday 23 October 2012

By Dominic Waghorn, US Correspondent

This was always going to be a tough one for Mitt Romney.

The Republican challenger has not distinguished himself on foreign policy. 

And on many foreign issues there is not enough swinging room between him and the President to let him land a punch.

The President probably won on points, but his challenger held his own and made no gaffes. Given his previous form on foreign policy, that's an improvement.

This debate was about foreign policy when the election is not. The economy remains the overriding issue.

It was predictable then that both men would try and bring the debate back to domestic issues.

President Obama was the first, 25 minutes in, stressing that nation building starts at home.

Mr Romney joined in, forcefully making the argument that America will only be respected overseas if it's strong at home. 

Then followed a slew of argument that had nothing to do with foreign policy from healthcare reform to classroom sizes. 

There were cheers in the adjoining "spin room" from journalists when moderator Bob Schieffer tried to return the discussion to foreign affairs even if it was largely in vain.

With the odds stacked against him, Mr Romney was largely avoiding losing.

His most dangerous moment was one of his own creation, a tactical error he could have avoided.

He probably should not have mentioned foreign trips, given how badly his last one went, offending the British, Palestinians and the press travelling with him.

But he brought up the President's visits overseas all the same, accusing him of indulging in an "apology" tour allowing his opponent to come right back at him.

"If you want to talk about trips governor," came back the president. Mr Obama then compared his visit to Israel, which included a tour of the Yad Vashem holocaust museum, to Mitt Romney's which he said was more about attending fundraisers.

Many Americans will not have been watching. This was a big sports night.

In the Tailgaters Sports Bar in Daytona Beach up the coast, most people weren't focused on the debate. The Chicago Bears were playing the Detroit Lions, by coincidence the hometown teams of each candidate.

The game was on a much bigger screen than the debate in the bar.

But a few were paying attention to the candidates.

Carl Dephillipe told Sky News the debate had made all the difference to his vote.

"I am a Democrat so I was leaning towards Obama but I hadn't heard anything about his foreign policy till tonight so finally being to sit down tonight to listen to his foreign policy I'll definitely be giving him my vote," he said.

Further down the bar David Daley was also critical of Mr Romney.

"I think he's basically selling the American people a dream. That he's promising a lot of things that he's not going to be able to do," he said. 

For the record, the President's team beat Mr Romney's by 13 to 7.

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Woman Set On Fire In 'Ku Klux Klan' Attack

A Louisiana woman found with burns over more than half her body says she was set on fire in a racist attack.

The 20-year-old black woman told police that three men also wrote the initials KKK - an apparent reference to the Ku Klux Klan - and a racial slur on her car.

Sharmeka Moffitt said the men doused her in a flammable liquid and set her alight in a park in Winnsboro, a town in Franklin Parish. She had already put out the flames when police found her on Sunday night.

Her family said she was attacked while exercising alone.

Sharmeka's mother, Edna Moffitt, told a news conference she was due to undergo surgery later.

"They want to take the dead skin off and place other skin there if they can," she said.

"I have no idea who did it ... I want them to pay for what they did to her."

Louisiana State Police spokeswoman Lt. Julie Lewis said in her emergency call, Ms Moffitt described her attackers as three men wearing white hoods or hats.

She later told a Winnsboro police officer who responded to the call that the men were wearing white hoodies. She was unable to say what race her attackers were.

The FBI is investigating the alleged attack as a possible hate crime.

Franklin Parish Sheriff Kevin Cobb said: "This is a horrific event for our community.

"It makes everyone uneasy. It is our hope that everyone stands together at this time, and follow the information that is gathered, follow the facts, follow the evidence and hopefully that will lead us to justice in this case."

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Taiwan Nursing Home Fire: 12 Dead

At least 12 people have been killed and 60 wounded in a fire at a nursing home in southern Taiwan.

The fire started in the early hours in a nursing facility housing mainly bed-bound patients in Tainan city.

An earlier official estimate had reported there were 72 injured, but this was revised down in a health department statement.

Firefighters carry one of the patients out of the burning building

A fire official said the blaze could have started in a storage room on the second floor of the five-storey building - part of the public Sinying Hospital.

The cause of all the deaths is believed to be smoke inhalation, while the injured were rushed to a dozen hospitals for treatment.

Television footage showed the burnt-out second floor of the building and bed and wheelchair-bound patients being carried out on to the hospital lawn.

Many of those rescued were seriously ill

Premier Sean Chen expressed his shock at the incident and sent his condolences to the families of the victims.

Tainan mayor Lai Ching-te said the fire was unusually deadly because the hospital was in a relatively remote area and most of the patients were immobile.

Concerns over staffing levels have also been raised as there were only six workers on duty for 70 patients.

An investigation into the cause of the fire has been launched.

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Beirut Protests: Tense Stand-Off In Lebanon

Police in Beirut have fired warning shots and thrown tear gas at hundreds of angry protesters attempting to storm the Prime Minister's office in Beirut.

Clashes erupted during the funeral for top intelligence chief Brigadier General Wissam al Hassan, who was killed in a massive car bombing on Friday.

Forces had earlier set up road blocks and cordoned off Beirut's Martyrs' Square as well as boosting security in the capital.

Wissam al Hassan was killed by a massive car bomb on Friday

Currently, the scene has quietened to a tense stand-off, which some protesters refusing to leave the area.

Mr al Hassan, 47, was a powerful opponent of Syria in Lebanon and headed an investigation over the summer that led to the arrest of former information minister Michel Samaha, a politican who was one of Syria's most loyal allies.

He was among eight people killed in the attack on Friday, which many have blamed on the Syrian regime.

The protesters believe the government is too close to Syria and its ally in Lebanon, the Shiite group Hizbollah.

They are calling for Prime Minister Najib Mikati to quit over Mr al Hassan's assassination.

Even before the bombing, the civil war in neighboring Syria had set off violence in Lebanon and deepened tensions between supporters and opponents of President Bashar Assad's regime.

The attack heightened fears that Lebanon could easily plunge back into cycles of sectarian violence and reprisal that have haunted it for decades.

Dozens of anti-Syrian protesters erected eight tents near the cabinet headquarters in central Beirut, saying they will stay until Prime Minister Najib Mikati's government, which is dominated by the Shiite militant group Hizbollah and its allies, resigns.

Politicians salute Mr al Hassan's coffin during the funeral

Hizbollah is Syria's most powerful ally in Lebanon, which for much of the past 30 years has lived under Syrian military and political domination.

Syria's hold on Lebanon began to slip in 2005, when former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, an opponent of Syria, was assassinated by a truck bomb along Beirut's Mediterranean waterfront.

Syria denied any role, but broad public outrage in Lebanon expressed in massive street protests forced Damascus to withdraw its tens of thousands of troops from the country.

For years after the pullouts, there was a string of attacks on anti-Syrian figures in Lebanon without any trials for those responsible.

Al Hassan will be buried in Martyrs' Square next to the late Hariri.

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Wisconsin Spa Shooting: Suspect Haughton Dead

The suspect in a shooting that left three people dead and four injured at the spa where his wife worked has been found dead at the scene in Wisconsin.

Radcliffe Franklin Haughton, 45, of Brown Deer in Wisconsin, died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Brookfield Police Chief Dan Tushaus said his body was found inside the Azana Day Spa building, despite initial reports that the gunman had fled and a police hunt had been launched.

Authorities confirmed Haughton took a taxi to his wife's workplace on Sunday and opened fire, but did not say if she was among the victims.

Haughton had been placed under a restraining order on Thursday and directed by a judge to surrender his weapons to local authorities in connection with an alleged domestic abuse case involving his wife.

Police Chief Tushaus said he had slashed his wife's car tyres two weeks before the shooting.

Before learning of his son's death, the suspect's father, Radcliffe Haughton Sr, told TMJ4 News: "This is not the way I raised my son ... My son is facing a domestic problem. Things happen, and some people cannot take it."

Later he said: "This is very sad."

The two-storey, 836 square metre Azana spa is across the road from a shopping mall in Brookfield, a middle-to-upper class community west of Milwaukee.

The mall and a number of other nearby buildings were locked down as police searched for Haughton.

Buildings around the spa were closed during the manhunt

Police initially believed there might be an improvised explosive device at the spa, but this was found not to be the case.

David Gosh, of nearby West Allis, told the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel newspaper he was returning from duck hunting with his father and a friend when he saw a woman emerge from the spa, screaming, as she ran into traffic.

"She ran right out into the street and was pounding on cars," he told the newspaper.

He added that moments later, a man with a handgun ran out, apparently chasing her, before going back inside.

Mr Gosh's father, John, said he saw two wounded women taken out of the spa. One appeared to have been shot in the leg and the other in the back, he told the newspaper.

Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker said in a statement: "Senseless acts of violence leave us with heavy hearts and many questions.

"Our state will stand with the victims and their families, and we will provide them with the law enforcement and community support they need to heal in the coming days."

The mass shooting was the second in the US state this year. In August, six people were killed in a rampage at a Sikh temple in another suburb of Milwaukee, Oak Creek. The gunman in that incident killed himself.

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'Al Qaeda Terror Plot' Foiled By Jordan

Jordanian authorities have foiled an al Qaeda plot targeting shopping malls and Western diplomats, according to reports.

Sameeh Maaytah, a spokesman for the Jordanian government, said 11 suspected militants were in police custody.

State news agency Petra said they had been planning a wave of attacks on diplomatic missions, hotels and other key sites.

Mr Maaytah said the men - who are all Jordanian citizens - had brought arms into Jordan from neighbouring Syria to use in the alleged plot.

"The kind of weapons, explosives they were ready to use include mortars and machine guns," he said.

"I say again they hold Jordanian nationality, they went to Syria and came back using the Samr route which crosses the Syrian-Jordanian border."

Authorities said there were several possible targets in the capital Amman

He added that al Qaeda operatives based in Iraq have been assisting the suspects with the manufacture of explosives.

The suspects were arrested over the past few days by Jordanian intelligence agents, he said.

A judicial source told AFP that the case had been referred to the prosecutor of the state security court - a military tribunal.

"They will face two charges: conspiracy to carry out terrorist acts and possession of explosives," said the source who declined to be named. The charges carry the death penalty.

The group scouted possible targets in Amman, experimented with explosives after getting hold of raw materials to make bombs, and had begun selecting possible suicide bomb candidates, Petra said.

Among their alleged plans were attacks on two malls as well as a major attack in the upmarket Abdoun neighbourhood in western Amman.

A security source told Reuters the cell had manufactured explosives "aimed at inflicting the heaviest losses possible".

"The group was able to devise new types of explosives to be used for the first time and planned to add TNT to increase their destructive impact," the source said.

Jordan is a key US ally and is one of the safest countries in the Middle East. However, it has seen al Qaeda-linked violence before.

In 2005, triple suicide bomb attacks at luxury hotels in Amman killed 60 people.

Jordanian authorities have reportedly arrested a number of jihadists in recent months who have crossed into Syria to join the anti-regime armed insurgency there.

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Israel Diverts Activists' Ship Away From Gaza

Israel has stopped a boat carrying pro-Palestinian activists from breaking the naval blockade on Gaza.

Israeli naval commandos boarded the vessel in international waters after the passengers' "unwillingness to co-operate" and they "ignored calls to change course", Israel's military said.

Soldiers went on to the Finnish-flagged Estelle in the Mediterranean Sea, about 30 miles from Gaza, and it was led to the southern Israeli port of Ashdod.

The military said the troops boarded the boat peacefully, and there was no harm to the passengers who were offered food and drinks.

The takeover was quickly denounced as "piracy" by Gaza's Hamas rulers.

The 17 passengers will be transferred to the custody of police and immigration authorities. They include five parliamentarians from Europe and a former politician from Canada.

It was also carrying a shipment of humanitarian aid and 30 doves, which were to be released on arrival in Gaza.

Victoria Strand, a spokeswoman for Ship to Gaza in Sweden, which sent the Estelle, said armed, masked soldiers boarded the boat and cut their communications 30 miles from Gaza.

She said activists on board told her six naval boats surrounded their vessel. "This is a demonstration of ruthlessness," Ms Strand said.

The military said the boarding was carried out only after "numerous calls to the passengers onboard" went unanswered.

The Estelle is the latest in a series of activist-manned boats challenging Israel's blockade on Gaza, which was imposed after the militant group Hamas seized power of the territory in 2007.

The boat left Naples, Italy, on October 7 with passengers from eight countries, carrying items such as cement, basketballs and musical instruments.

An Israeli military statement said: "The boarding was carried out in accordance with international law, with directives of the Israeli government and after all attempts to prevent the vessel from reaching the Gaza Strip were made, both via direct contact and through diplomatic channels, but to no avail."

A Hamas spokesman said: "The occupation's attack on the Estelle and its capture of the activists on board is an act of piracy and a crime against humanity."

In 2010, an Israeli naval raid on a Gaza-bound flotilla killed nine Turkish activists on board.

The incident sparked international condemnation that forced Israel to ease much of its blockade, although it maintains restrictions on key exports and imports of raw materials.

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Confusion Over Gaddafi Ex-Spokesman's Capture

Confusion is growing over the fate of Muammar Gaddafi's former spokesman Moussa Ibrahim, who has been reportedly captured - exactly a year after the death of the Libyan dictator.

Conflicting reports surround his whereabouts after an audio tape has surfaced purportedly made by Ibrahim, insisting he has not been caught and is not in Libya.

The prime minister's office had reported capturing Ibraham, who was the mouthpiece of the Gaddafi regime during last year's war, in the town of Tarhouna, 40 miles south of Tripoli.

"Moussa Ibrahim has been arrested by forces belonging to the Libyan government in the town of Tarhouna and he is being transferred to Tripoli to begin interrogation," the statement said.

Authorities have not provided any evidence of his capture, despite the official statement.

The recording emerged as fierce fighting between pro-government forces and fighters in Bani Walid - a former Gaddafi stronghold - killed at least 26 people and wounded more than 200.

On Saturday, scores of Libyans gathered at the main Martyrs' Square to celebrate the anniversary of Gaddafi's death and news of Ibrahim's capture.

Yossef Abu Abeed said: "This is a happy moment which meets the anniversary of the death and capture of the biggest tyrant in history.

"Because God protected this revolution from the start, today in this anniversary, we have captured the horn who misled a lot of Libyans with the media as a weapon, namely Moussa Ibrahim."

Fluent in English, Ibrahim would hold regular press conferences in the luxury Tripoli hotel where journalists stayed during last year's war.

His whereabouts had been unknown since the fall of Tripoli in August 2011, although there had been past reports of his capture.

Saturday marked one year since Gaddafi's capture and death in his hometown of Sirte, after he was caught hiding in a drain pipe.

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Beirut Bomb Blast: Call For Demo At Funeral

Lebanon's opposition has called for an anti-Syria demonstration at this afternoon's funeral of a security chief killed in a car bombing blamed on the regime in Damascus.

General Wissam al Hassan, a prominent figure opposed to President Bashar al Assad, died in the attack in the capital Beirut which killed a total of eight people on Friday. 

There are fears that the devastating attack threatens to bring Syria's civil war to Lebanon.

Last night, protesters calling for the Lebanese government to resign set up tents in the capital burned tyres and set up roadblocks.

Lebanese troops stood guard at road junctions and official buildings in the capital as the Lebanese cabinet held an emergency meeting to decide on what, if any, action to take.

Prime Minister Najib Mikati later said the blast was linked to the civil war in neighbouring Syria and revealed that he had agreed to stay on as premier at President Michel Sleiman's request because of "national interest".

Brig-Gen al Hassan, 47, headed an investigation over the summer that led to the arrest of former information minister Michel Samaha, one of Mr Assad's most loyal allies in Lebanon.

Politics in Lebanon and Syria are closely connected

Mr Samaha, who is in custody, is accused of plotting a campaign of bombings and assassinations to spread sectarian violence in Lebanon at Syria's behest.

Also indicted in the August sweep was Syrian Brigadier General Ali Mamlouk, one of Mr Assad's highest aides.

Dozens were left wounded in the blast in Beirut's mainly Christian Achrafieh neighbourhood.

Lebanon's fractious politics are closely entwined with Syria's.

The countries share political and sectarian ties and rivalries, often causing events on one side of the border to have a "knock on" effect on the other.

Lebanon's opposition is an anti-Syrian bloc, while the prime minister and much of the government are pro-Syrian.

The civil war in Syria has laid bare Lebanon's sectarian tensions as well.

Many of Lebanon's Sunni Muslims have backed Syria's mainly Sunni rebels, while Shi'ite Muslims have tended to back Mr Assad.

Brig-Gen al Hassan was a Sunni whose stances were widely seen to oppose Syria and Shi'ite Hezbollah, the country's most powerful ally in Lebanon.

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