第二單 就係 ...
Israel to expand security barrier
The Israeli cabinet agrees to extend its controversial fence hours after a militant leader is captured.
Israel to expand security barrier Israel’s Security barrier: 245 km (150-mile) long 3m high 150 km built so far
Israel says it needs the fence to protect it from Palestinian attacks
The Israeli cabinet has approved the next phase of a controversial fence it is building in the West Bank to stop Palestinian suicide bombers.
The new fence will not be immediately connected to the barrier built so far, as a concession to Israel's main ally, the US.
However, sections will be built around several Jewish settlements in the heart of the West Bank.
"Certainly [the fence] has to pass east of Ariel, but in a manner which will not antagonise the population of the territories" ~ Ehud Olmert ~ Deputy Prime Minister
The Israeli cabinet decision comes a day after a United Nations report condemned the barrier as illegal and tantamount to "an unlawful act of annexation".
Earlier, the Israeli army reportedly killed a member of the radical Palestinian group Islamic Jihad and detained another in separate raids in the West Bank.
Palestinian sources said Mazen al-Badawi was killed by Israeli fire in Tulkarm, while Bassam Saadi was captured when a large group of soldiers, supported by two helicopter gunships, swept into a Jenin refugee camp without meeting any resistance.
Separately, Palestinian prime minister-designate Ahmed Qurei has said he will present his new cabinet for parliamentary approval on Sunday or Monday.
Gaps
The next section of the Israeli fence, which will be 45 kilometres (28 miles) long, is being built further east and will be deeper in the West Bank than other sections built so far.
The most contested issue in planning the next segment was whether the barrier would incorporate Ariel, the West Bank's second-largest Jewish settlement with a population of 18,000.
"Certainly it has to pass east of Ariel, but in a manner which will not antagonise the population of the territories and which will be in coordination with the agreements we have with the US Government," Deputy Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said.
The Israeli cabinet has decided to leave gaps in the fence to be patrolled by troops.
The issue will be discussed with the Americans again in the middle of next year, and only then will a decision be taken on whether to close the gaps and make the final connection.
The US is considering withholding loan guarantees to Israel to the value of the cost of any sections of wall the US considers unnecessary.
Palestinians have reacted angrily to the cabinet's decision. They say the decision to build a fence on Palestinian land is theft and will threaten the viability of a future Palestinian state.
About 11,000 Palestinians live in the area between the two barriers and their lives are likely to become more difficult as a result of the fences, says the BBC's Jannat Jalil in Jerusalem.
Senior figure
Bassam Saadi had become the effective leader of Islamic Jihad in the West Bank, after the detention or killing of other senior members of the group last year.
Palestinian views on the barrier
"These children cannot come to my school now they've finished the wall" ~ Terry Boulata, Palestinian teacher
Islamic Jihad has carried out a large number of attacks that have killed hundreds of Israelis in recent years.
Local witnesses said that Mr Saadi was found hiding under a car outside a mosque, by soldiers with sniffer dogs.
Another 14 Palestinians were taken into Israeli custody overnight, after raids near Nablus, Ramallah and Hebron.
Israeli forces also entered Qalqilya early on Wednesday, and imposed a curfew in the town.
World's oldest man dies aged 114
A retired Japanese silkworm breeder believed to have been the world's oldest man has died at the age of 114.
Chuganji drank milk every day and was an optimist
Mr Chuganji graduated from technical school at the start of the 20th century.
He drank milk every day, but did not consume alcohol.
There are an estimated 15,000 people in Japan over the age of 100, most of them women.
Last words
Family members said Mr Chuganji died on Sunday evening in his bed in Ogoori City, about 900 kilometres (560 miles) southwest of Tokyo.
"He said 'Thank you, it was good,' when Kyoko gave him home-made apple juice... and it turned out (to be) his last words" ~ Yukichi Chuganji's nephew
"(He) passed away on Sunday evening... as he was sleeping," his nephew Tadao Haji was quoted as saying by the AFP news agency.
Mr Chuganji - who was recognised by Guinness World Records as the oldest man - lived with his daughter, Kyoko, and her family.
"He said 'Thank you, it was good,' when Kyoko gave him home-made apple juice around 1800 (1100 GMT), and it turned out (to be) his last words," Mr Haji said.
He added that his uncle then had become sick and died by the time a doctor arrived.
Greying nation
Mr Chuganji had been in good health, but had not ventured from his bed very often in recent years.
Kamato Hongo sleeps for two days then stays awake for two days
Born on 23 March 1889, he attributed his own longevity to healthy eating and being an optimist.
"He hates vegetables but loves to eat meat and drink milk," his daughter once said.
She said his favourite meal had been boiled rice mixed with bits of chicken meat.
With Mr Chuganji's death, 108-year-old Kameni Nakamura is now believed to be Japan's oldest man.
However, it remains to be seen if he is also to inherit the mantle of the world's oldest man.
Japan has the world's longest life expectancy - 78 years for men and 80 for women.
But experts say there is a downside in Japan to this otherwise rosy picture of health.
The country is an ageing society with a shrinking workforce, which must support more and more retired people.
Economists are predicting a crisis in the state pension system within a few years, because the benefits being paid out far exceed payments being made into it.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/3147888.stm
Thousands stage Iraq demo
Saturday's march was addressed by leading anti-war activists
Thousands of protesters have gathered for an anti-war rally in London calling for an end to the US and UK occupation of Iraq.
Anti-war protests span globe
February's protests were much better supported
Protests around the world on Saturday called for an end to the US-led occupation of Iraq and Israel's claims on Palestinian territories.
In London, about 10,000 people demonstrated against continuing military involvement in Iraq.
But numbers were well down on the huge demonstrations seen before the war, in February.
Marches also took place in other European countries and in South Korea with protests planned in the US later on Saturday.
Many demonstrators were angry with the coalition's failure to unearth any weapons of mass destruction in Iraq.
'Lies'
"It was all lies," said British protester Peter Mason, 45. "The millions who demonstrated before the war were right."
About 3,000 demonstrators marched through Paris, rallying against US President George W Bush and Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon.
They shouted "Bush, Sharon - Assassins" and accused the leaders of not doing enough to foster peace in the Middle East.
Other demonstrators were angry about the situation in Iraq following the US-led military campaign.
"There is a lot to be done, the whole country needs to be re-built," said Venetia Valin, 52.
"There is no electricity, there is no sanitary system anymore. It's a huge job and it's too expensive for the United States alone."
About 400 people demonstrated outside the Reichstag parliament building in Berlin, Germany.
"Iraq and Afghanistan are all part of a big game. It is all about oil," said Emanuel Bertelsmann, 24, waving an Iraqi flag.
In the Greek capital, Athens, about 3,000 demonstrators confronted riot police outside the American embassy, chanting: "Occupiers out" and "Freedom for Palestine".
The Austrian capital saw about 200 protesters gather in a central square.
And in the South Korean capital, Seoul, more than 2,000 people marched on the city centre to oppose the sending of South Korean troops to Iraq.
US and Russia warn Iran
US President Bush and Russia's President Putin call on Iran to abandon any plans to develop nuclear weapons. Q&A: Iran's nuclear plans ??! http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2747283.stm
Miniaturisation has been key / Ginat Impact Theory / Ion drives accelerate slower than chemical rockets / The Ariane 5 launcher will get the mission under way
Moon mission ready to go
Europe's first solo mission to the Moon has been given the green light to launch on Saturday.
The innovative Smart 1 probe will blast off from Kourou in French Guiana at just after 2300 GMT.
It will ride into space on an Ariane 5 rocket, which will also deploy two communications satellites.
Smart 1 will test a novel type of propulsion system on its mission and map lunar surface features. ...... http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/3136004.stm
Giant Impact Theory
Suggests Mars-sized object crashed into early Earth
Debris thrown into space aggregated into the Moon
Supported by similar composition of Earth and Moon rocks
Force appoints black chief constable
Michael Fuller plans to make tackling drugs a priority
The first black man to be made a chief constable has been appointed to lead Kent Police.
Michael Fuller, 44, a deputy assistant commissioner in the Metropolitan Police, plans to make tackling drug-related crime a priority - and to give the force a more caring and visible image.
玩咩 ~ 又要等下一堂先講埋個Plato佢喎 ...
World's oldest man dies aged 114
Chuganji drank milk every day and was an optimist
Kamato Hongo sleeps for two days then stays awake for two days
US and Russia warn Iran
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