Tourist bus flips in Cuba, injuring 16

Cuban authorities say a serious highway crash involving a bus has left 16 foreign tourists injured. Source: AAP

CUBAN authorities says a serious highway crash involving a bus carrying foreign tourists has left 16 passengers injured, most of them from Europe.

State-run newspaper Cinco de Septiembre says the government-operated vehicle ran off the road and turned over on Thursday evening. The crash occurred on the route between Trinidad and Varadero, two principal tourist destinations.

Nineteen people were on board. The injured were listed as two Britons, two Czechs, four Dutch, one Filipino, one Irish and six Russians.

Three of the tourists were considered to be in serious condition but none was in immediate danger of dying, Cinco de Septiembre said on Friday.

Two underwent surgery and were in intensive care.

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Teens film high speed NSW car chase

A MAN'S son and nephew have used a mobile phone to film him behind the wheel during a high-speed police car chase in southern NSW.

The teenagers were passengers in the car the 36-year-old ACT man was driving when it allegedly hit speeds of 140k/h during the pursuit from Goulburn to Collector.

Police had first tried to stop the car on the Hume Highway following a registration check about 3pm (AEST) on Friday.

A search revealed the registration plates belonged to another vehicle for which the registration had expired.

But police allege the driver sped off the highway into Mazamet Road, did an abrupt u-turn and re-entered the south bound lanes of the Hume Highway.

Road spikes were deployed just south of Goulburn but a second set was needed to finally stop the car on the Federal Highway at Collector.

The driver's 16-year-old son and 18-year-old nephew were filming the incident on a mobile phone, which was seized as evidence by police.

The 36-year-old Banks driver initially resisted arrest.

He was later charged with police pursuit (Skyes Law), exceed speed, unlicensed driving, unregistered vehicle, uninsured vehicle, use unauthorised number plates and possess property stolen outside NSW.

The man was refused bail when he appeared in court on Saturday and will reappear on Monday.

The two teenagers were released while police carry out further investigations into several other offences they believe the car was involved in.

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Navy wants to turn boats around: Abbott

Tony Abbott says that the Australian navy is acting as an "escort service" for people smugglers. Source: AAP

THE Australian navy would prefer to turn asylum seeker vessels around rather than act as an "escort service" for people smugglers, opposition leader Tony Abbott says.

Asylum seeker policy is expected to be high on the agenda on Friday when Prime Minister Kevin Rudd meets with Indonesian president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono in Bogor.

Mr Rudd has repeatedly rejected opposition calls to implement a policy of sending back asylum seeker vessels bound for Australia, citing safety concerns.

However, Mr Abbott says other navies, such as the Sri Lankan and US forces, have a policy of turning boats around, and the Australian navy should do the same.

"What we've got at the moment is an escort service for the people smugglers," Mr Abbott told Fairfax Radio on Friday.

"I think it's an embarrassment to our country because the people smugglers are having a lend of us.

"I suspect the naval personnel would be only too happy to respond to orders that allow this problem to be solved."

Mr Abbott said Mr Rudd's refusal to turn boats around on safety grounds was a "completely self-serving argument".

"The Australian navy has no problem with boarding pirate vessels in the Persian Gulf.

"You'd think that was rather more dangerous than boarding a boat-people vessel," he said.

In a change of tack following months of criticism of Julia Gillard's handling of asylum seeker policy, Mr Abbott appeared to absolve the former prime minister of blame, instead pointing the finger at Mr Rudd's dismantling of the Pacific Solution.

"Julia Gillard did her best to fix it (while) she was prime minister, but she wasn't able to fix the mess that Mr Rudd created."

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Bolivia' threatens to close US embassy

BOLIVIA'S president has threatened to close the US embassy as leftist Latin American leaders joined him in blasting Europe and the United States after his plane was rerouted amid suspicions US fugitive Edward Snowden was aboard.

President Evo Morales, who has suggested the United States pressured European nations to deny him their airspace, warned he would "study, if necessary, closing the US embassy in Bolivia.

"We don't need a US embassy in Bolivia," he said. "My hand would not shake to close the US embassy. We have dignity, sovereignty. Without the United States, we are better politically, democratically."

Morales arrived home late on Wednesday after a long lay over in Vienna, saying his plane was diverted there because it was barred from flying over four European nations, sparking outrage among Latin American leaders.

The Bolivian leader's air odyssey began hours after Morales declared in Moscow he would be willing to consider an asylum application from Snowden, who is seeking sanctuary in several Latin American nations to evade US espionage charges.

In a show of support, Presidents Nicolas Maduro of Venezuela, Cristina Kirchner of Argentina, Rafael Correa of Ecuador, Jose Mujica of Uruguay and Desi Bouterse of Suriname met with Morales in the central city of Cochabamba.

At a rally before the meeting, Maduro claimed that the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) had ordered France, Portugal, Italy and Spain to deny access to Morales's plane on Tuesday.

"A minister of one of these European governments personally told us by telephone that they were going to apologise because they were surprised, and that those who gave the order to aviation authorities in this country ... were the CIA," he said.

After the meeting, the leaders issued a statement calling on the European governments to publicly apologise "in relation to the serious incidents that occurred", but Morales said earlier that apologies were not enough.

Correa said the leaders would "take decisions and show that we won't accept this sort of humiliation against any country of (Latin) America.

"Imagine if this happened to a European head of state, if this had happened to the president of the United States. It probably would have been a casus belli, a case for war," he said. "They think they can attack, crush, destroy international law."

Correa had called for a larger summit gathering leaders of the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR), but the presidents of Brazil, Colombia, Chile and Peru were not present, even though they too condemned the incident.

In an implicit criticism of his absent peers, Correa said: "If what happened doesn't justify a meeting of heads of state of our South America, what justifies one?"

Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos voiced support for Morales, but warned on Twitter against "converting this into a diplomatic crisis between Latin America and the EU (European Union)".

Bolivian officials accused France, Portugal, Italy and Spain of denying entry to Morales's jet late on Tuesday as he flew back home from Russia due to "unfounded rumours" that Snowden was on board.

Morales has also lashed out at the United States, urging Europeans to "free themselves from the US empire".

The US consulate's walls in the city of Santa Cruz were sprayed with red graffiti, one reading "Gringos Obama out", while about 100 protesters burned flags and threw rocks at the French embassy in La Paz late on Wednesday.

Snowden, a former National Security Agency contractor, is in legal limbo in a Moscow airport, trying to escape US justice after leaking details of a vast US phone and internet surveillance program.

The Bolivian government has lodged a complaint with the United Nations and planned another to the UN Human Rights Commission.

Russia joined Latin American leaders in condemning France, Spain and Portugal, while Venezuela's Maduro said his government would review relations with Madrid.

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Chrysler recalls 490,000 cars, SUVs

Chrysler is recalling about 490,000 cars and SUVs worldwide to fix faulty automatic head restraints. Source: AAP

CHRYSLER is recalling about 490,000 cars and sports utility vehicles worldwide to fix a glitch on automatic head restraints.

The US car manufacturer says potentially faulty microcontrollers have been installed in certain vehicles that may prevent head restraints from automatically moving forward during some kinds of rear-impact collisions.

The recall affects 2011-2013 Chrysler Sebring, 200 and Dodge Avenger midsize cars; 2011-2013 Jeep Liberty SUVs and 2011-2012 Dodge Nitro SUVs.

Most of the recalled vehicles - about 442,000 - are in the United States, but the recall also affects 25,000 in Canada, 10,000 in Mexico and 12,000 in other countries.

The car maker says it's also recalling about 69,000 pickup trucks worldwide to update electronic stability control (ESC) software. Again, most are in the US.

Chrysler says it's unaware of any related injuries or accidents from the problems with the head restraints or the ESC warning lamps.

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Egypt army detains ousted president Morsi

Egypt's army has toppled president Mohamed Morsi after a week of bloodshed that killed nearly 50. Source: AAP

EGYPT'S army has detained Islamist president Mohamed Morsi after a week of deadly clashes and mass protests calling for him to go after a year in office.

His defence minister, armed forces chief General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, announced Morsi's overthrow on Wednesday on state television, even as police began rounding up key Morsi aides and leaders of the Muslim Brotherhood.

Warrants have been issued for the arrest of a total of 300 Brotherhood officials, state media reported.

Thousands of protesters camped out on the streets of Cairo for days celebrated wildly at the news of Morsi's downfall, letting off fireworks and sounding car horns.

But at least seven of Morsi's supporters were killed in clashes with security forces in Alexandria and the eastern city of Marsa Matrouh, security officials said.

The official MENA news agency also reported three people killed in the southern province of Minya when pro-Morsi supporters attacked the Islamist's opponents.

Morsi and his senior aides were "under house arrest" in a military facility, a senior Muslim Brotherhood member told AFP.

The ousted president was later taken to the defence ministry, Gehad El-Haddad added. His father, senior Morsi aide Essam El-Haddad, is one of those detained.

Egypt's army is "preventively" holding Morsi, a senior army official said on Thursday.

"He is being held preventively for final preparations," the official added, suggesting Morsi might face formal charges.

Police also began arresting leaders of Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood movement, an interior ministry general told AFP. Saad al-Katatni, head of Morsi's Freedom and Justice Party, was already in custody, he added.

Morsi issued a defiant call for his supporters to defend his elected "legitimacy" in a pre-recorded speech posted online after Sisi's statement.

Thousands of his supporters remained camped out in northern Cairo, but Egyptian television stations stopped broadcasting live feeds of the pro-Morsi rally after the military announced his overthrow.

In his speech, Sisi laid out details of the roadmap for a political transition.

The Islamist-drafted constitution would be frozen and presidential elections held early, he said, without specifying when.

The armed forces, which had deployed troops and armour across the country, would "remain far away from politics", he stressed.

In Cairo, celebrations at the news began immediately.

Tens of thousands of people took to the streets of the capital to celebrate, cheering, whistling, letting off firecrackers and honking car horns for several hours.

"It's a new historical moment. We got rid of Morsi and the Muslim Brotherhood," said one celebrator, Omar Sherif.

In an amateur video posted online, Morsi declared: "I am the elected president of Egypt" and urged people to "defend this legitimacy".

And Morsi's national security adviser Essam al-Haddad, said on Facebook: "For the sake of Egypt and for historical accuracy, let's call what is happening by its real name: military coup."

But the opposition Congress Party of Amr Mussa insisted "this is not a coup".

"Consultations will start from now, for a government and reconciliation," said Mussa, a former Arab League chief, who last year ran against Morsi for the presidency.

Morsi, Egypt's first freely elected president, had come under massive pressure in the run-up to Sunday's anniversary of his maiden year in office.

His opponents accused him of failing the 2011 revolution by concentrating power in the hands of his Muslim Brotherhood.

The embattled 61-year-old had proposed a "consensus government" as a way out of the crisis.

But it failed to satisfy his critics and the army stepped in.

Its commander named the head of the Supreme Constitutional Court, Adly al-Mansour, as interim leader of the Arab world's most populous country.

Mansour, a hitherto little known judge, is expected to be sworn in on Thursday.

Opposition leader Mohamed ElBaradei, former head of the UN nuclear watchdog, sat beside army chief Sisi as he announced on state television that Morsi's rule was over.

So too did the heads of the Coptic Church and Al-Azhar, Sunni Islam's highest seat of learning.

The choreography was designed to show broad civilian support for the military's move against Morsi.

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Bleich has high hopes for Gillard's future

US Ambassador to Australia Jeffrey Bleich has tipped a future on the world stage for Julia Gillard, praising the former prime minister as an "extraordinarily talented and well respected" person.

Mr Bleich could soon be leaving his post as US ambassador with the same Australian prime minister in charge - Kevin Rudd - as when he started his tenure in late 2009.

But he says the US doesn't cast judgment on the Labor leadership dramas, because both Mr Rudd and Ms Gillard had done nothing but bolster ties with his country.

"We have some pretty funny politics in the US too," Mr Bleich told reporters at the US embassy on Wednesday.

"So we don't throw stones at how other nations choose their leaders and the process in which leadership changes hands."

Mr Bleich celebrated what could be his last July 4 celebration in Canberra as ambassador on Wednesday, with his replacement recently nominated by US president Barack Obama.

John Berry, an openly gay diplomat and close friend of the president, must first be confirmed by the US Senate before the appointment is sealed and he sets off for Canberra.

Mr Bleich said Mr Berry was an outstanding candidate for the diplomatic role who also knew "quite a bit" about Australia.

He said he wasn't sure when he'd be replaced or what the future held for him, but he did offer his thoughts on where Ms Gillard might be heading.

"She made a great impression on myself and on President Obama and other leaders in the United States," he said.

"I know she will continue to play an important role in the US-Australia relationship and continue to be a respected figure on the world stage."

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NSA chief gave wrong answer on spying

THE director of America's National Intelligence has apologised for telling congress earlier this year that the National Security Agency (NSA) does not collect data on millions of Americans, a response James Clapper now says was "clearly erroneous".

Clapper apologised in a letter to senate intelligence committee chairwoman Dianne Feinstein. His agency posted the letter on Tuesday on its website.

Leaks by former NSA systems analyst Edward Snowden have revealed the NSA's sweeping data collection of US phone records and some internet traffic every day, though US intelligence officials have said the programs are aimed at targeting foreigners and terrorist suspects mostly overseas.

Clapper was asked during a hearing in March if the NSA gathered "any type of data at all on millions or hundreds of millions of Americans".

At first, Clapper answered definitively: "No."

Pressed by Senator Ron Wyden, Clapper changed his answer. "Not wittingly," he said. "There are cases where they could inadvertently perhaps collect, but not wittingly."

Last month, in an interview with NBC News after revelations about the program, Clapper said: "I responded in what I thought was the most truthful, or least untruthful, manner" - because the program was classified.

In his letter to Feinstein, Clapper wrote that he was thinking about whether the NSA gathered the content of emails, rather than the metadata of the phone records - the record of calls to and from US citizens and the length of those phone calls.

"I realised later Senator Wyden was asking about ... metadata collection, rather than content collection," Clapper wrote. "Thus, my response was clearly erroneous, for which I apologise."

In the letter, Clapper said he could now publicly correct the record, because the existence of the metadata collection program has been declassified since the deluge of leaks from Snowden.

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Iraq attacks kill 41 as unrest surges

The UN released figures showing more than 2,500 people have died in the past three months in Iraq. Source: AAP

MORE than 2,500 people have been killed in Iraq in the past three months.

The UN released the figure on Monday as new attacks left 41 dead, highlighting concerns the country is slipping back into all-out war.

The latest violence comes as the country grapples with months of protests among the Sunni Arab minority, tensions along a swathe of territory in northern Iraq, and a protracted political deadlock that has blocked key legislation.

Analysts say the stalemate and tensions could continue until a general election due next year.

On Monday, a series of attacks in restive areas north of Baghdad left 41 people dead as new figures released by the UN mission in Iraq showed a dramatic surge in violence in recent months.

Most of the victims died when a suicide bomber set off his explosives-rigged vest in the middle of a packed funeral for an Iraqi soldier being held in a husseiniyah, or Sh'iite religious hall.

The UN released new figures on Monday which showed that 761 people were killed - most of them civilians - across the country in June, bringing the overall death toll for the past three months to 2,518.

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Feeney dons Labor cape in Batman

Labor powerbroker Senator David Feeney has won preselection for the lower house seat of Batman. Source: AAP

LABOR powerbroker Senator David Feeney has won preselection for the lower house seat of Batman.

Senator Feeney won an ALP local vote by 383 to 247, defeating Mary-Anne Thomas.

Ms Thomas decided not to contest the second stage of the preselection process.

The Victorian seat - Labor's safest in the country - is being vacated by retiring former minister Martin Ferguson.

Senator Feeney wrote on Twitter: "Proud to be the locals' choice - thank you Batman ALP members. I will fight hard to represent and advocate for you in the federal election."

Senator Feeney is Labor's parliamentary secretary for defence.

Senior cabinet minister Jenny Macklin had called on the Victorian Labor Party to preselect a woman for the seat.

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Boy apologises to widow of joyride victim

A TEENAGE boy who took part in a joyride that killed a man has apologised to the victim's widow in a Sydney court.

"I'm utterly sorry from the bottom of my heart," the boy, who was aged just 13 at the time of the incident, told Lorraine Reid in Glebe Coroners Court on Monday.

"It's totally up to you but I'd like to help you in any way I can.

"I'd do anything for you."

Daryl Reid, 48, a "hardworking family man", was killed at Narellan in western Sydney on October 2, 2010 after some teenage boys stole a car and crashed into him at high speed after running a stop sign.

The boys then fled the scene.

The inquest, before Deputy State Coroner Sharon Freund, is seeking to find out which of the boys was driving the car.

Police believe two to three teenagers were involved in stealing the ute, which they discovered with the keys still inside after attending a nearby house party.

The boy, who the inquest heard was extremely drunk, said he was a passenger in the car with one other boy who was driving.

He said they were "looking for things to steal" when they found the ute and decided they would take it for a spin before torching it.

After the crash, he said "everything went black" before the other boy woke him and told him they had to get out of there.

"I didn't want to go," he said, adding he had injuries to his head and leg.

However, the boys then ran back to the house party, where the boy said he showered and changed his clothes, which were drenched in fuel.

He said he lied to his mother the next morning about his injuries because the truth "would break her".

When he found out Mr Reid had died, he said he felt "sick" but didn't go to the police because he was too worried about getting caught.

The boy was later arrested after police found his phone in the stolen car.

"I just wish the person who was driving the car would take responsibility for it," he said.

The inquest continues.

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Qld inquiry reports on child safety system

QUEENSLAND'S child protection inquiry has recommended pulling back on the mandatory reporting of suspected child abuse.

Commissioner Tim Carmody on Monday handed down a final report aimed at improving protections for the state's most vulnerable children.

He found there were systemic failures in the state's child protection system, and insufficient resources were being spent on early intervention.

But he also found there'd been an unsustainable increase in the number of children in care, with the number doubling since 2004.

The Carmody report makes 121 recommendations to help reduce the number of children in state care and improve frontline child protection services.

It includes recommendations to tackle the over reporting of matters involving children to Child Safety Services.

The commissioner said there should be a review of existing reporting obligations by police, teachers and other professions under the Child Protection Act 1999.

He found reports and notifications of child abuse in Queensland tripled over the past decade, from 33,697 in 2001-02 to 114,503 in 2011-12.

Mr Carmody said there should be a better system to support families and avoid children being put into state care.

He has spent the past year reviewing the system to provide a roadmap for the Newman government to overhaul the system.

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Mt Isa school building burnt to the ground

Board bust-up cripples Manly

What's the Buzz: THE soap opera inside the Manly Sea Eagles boardroom continues after last Thursday night's board meeting had to be abandoned.

Fear for surrogate mums

SURROGACY has become a popular option for those unable to have children on their own but it poses several problems in regards to legitimacy.

Defence cadet probe hits brick wall

A PROBE of ADFA cadets over allegations of forced urine drinking, genital fondling and the hiring of a prostitute hit a brick wall.

Nigella breaks her silence on Twitter

CELEBRITY chef Nigella Lawson has broken her silence for the first time since pictures of her husband grabbing her neck were made public.

Robber though axe was a cake

TOP artist Nigel Milsom was so high on a cocktail of drugs and booze, he thought he was ``buying doughnuts'' when he was actually brandishing an axe during a violent corner store robbery.

11.27 | 0 komentar | Read More

Showdown looms for Egypt's Morsi

EGYPT braced for mass protests on Sunday with President Mohamed Morsi's opponents determined to oust him.

His Islamist supporters vowed to defend his legitimacy to the end, on the anniversary of his turbulent first year in office.

The grassroots movement Tamarod - Arabic for rebellion - is behind the campaign that claims to have collected millions of signatures pushing for Morsi's departure and new elections.

Posters calling on people to join the protests against his rule have sprung up around Cairo, plastered on walls and stuck on car windows along with "June 30" graffiti daubed along streets.

The week leading up to the showdown has already seen eight people killed, including an American, and scores more injured as protesters from both sides took to the streets.

Morsi, a senior Muslim Brotherhood leader, is Egypt's first president elected in a free vote, catapulted to power by the 2011 Arab Spring uprising that ended three decades of dictatorial rule.

His opponents, who have been massing outside the presidential palace and in Cairo's Tahrir Square, accuse Morsi of betraying the revolution by concentrating power in Islamist hands.

In the run-up to the anti-Morsi rallies, thousands of his supporters gathered in Cairo's Nasr City neighbourhood to listen to fiery speeches urging them to defend the president's legitimacy.

Morsi's Freedom and Justice Party, political arm of the Muslim Brotherhood, called for a "general mobilisation" in support of the president who has said he wants to stay the course until the end of his term in June 2016.

But leading opposition figure, Nobel laureate Mohamed ElBaradei, has urged the president "to listen to the people" and step aside.

The army, which led a tumultuous transition after the revolt that ousted dictator Hosni Mubarak, has warned it will intervene if there is major unrest.

Since taking office, Morsi has battled with the judiciary, the media and the police. The economy has taken a tumble, investment has dried up, inflation soared and the vital tourism industry has been battered.

Egyptians have been stocking up on food and withdrawing cash in anticipation of Sunday's rallies and, adding to the tension, fuel shortages have caused very long queues outside petrol stations, bringing some parts of the capital to a standstill.

On Saturday at least eight deputies resigned from the Islamist-dominated Shura Council in support of the people, in a boost for Tamarod which says it now has 22 million signatures on a petition demanding a snap election and Morsi's departure. The figure cannot be verified.

Morsi's camp is determined to defend his legitimacy.

"We will not allow a coup against the president," senior Brotherhood leader Mohamed al-Beltagui told a rally in Cairo.

In a televised speech on Wednesday, Morsi warned the polarisation threatened to "paralyse" Egypt as he tried to placate protesters with promises of constitutional reforms and appeals for dialogue.

Speaking in South Africa, US President Barack Obama voiced concern at developments in Egypt and urged Morsi and his opponents to be more "constructive."

"Everybody has to denounce violence. We would like to see the opposition and President Morsi engage in a more constructive conversation about "how" to more their country forward."

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