Grand Ayatollah Hossein Ali Montazeri, who played a role in the founding of the Islamic Republic, has emerged as the spiritual leader of the opposition. (source: New York Times) – RSS news feeds and Widgets on Feedzilla.com
The Americans hope the militias will encourage an increasingly demoralized Afghan population to take a stake in the war against the Taliban. (source: New York Times) – News widgets and RSS feeds on Feedzilla.com
Mary L. Landrieu of Louisiana and Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas cautioned that their support on what was expected to be a party-line vote on Saturday evening did not guarantee that they would ultimately vote for the bill itself. (source: New York Times) – RSS feeds and Feed widget on Feedzilla.com
COCKERMOUTH, England (Reuters) – Prime Minister Gordon Brown visited flood-hit Cumbria in north west England Saturday to see the damage caused by record rainfall and pay tribute to a policeman who died when a bridge collapsed. (source: tiscali.co.uk) – RSS widgets and RSS feeds on Feedzilla.com
VATICAN CITY (Reuters) – The archbishop of Canterbury and Pope Benedict agreed the need for closer ties between their churches on Saturday, in their first meeting since last month’s surprise Vatican offer to disaffected Anglicans. (source: tiscali.co.uk) – RSS widgets and RSS feeds on Feedzilla.com
The Labour Party has slashed the Conservative Party’s opinion poll lead to six points, giving the government its best showing in almost a year as voter confidence in the economy recovers. (source: tiscali.co.uk) – RSS and News widget on Feedzilla.com
A broad healthcare overhaul was poised to clear its first US Senate hurdle as the last wavering senators said they would vote to begin debate on the legislation, giving Democrats the 60 votes they need (source: FT) – RSS and News widget on Feedzilla.com
Scientists are preparing the world’s largest atom smasher to explore the depths of matter after successfully restarting the $10 billion machine following more than a year of repairs. (source: USATODAY) – News widgets and RSS feeds on Feedzilla.com
GENEVA — Scientists are preparing the world’s largest atom smasher to explore the depths of matter after successfully restarting the $10 billion machine following more than a year of repairs. (source: Seattle Post Intelligencer) – RSS news feeds and Widgets on Feedzilla.com
LONDON — Computer hackers have broken into a server at a well-respected climate change research center in Britain and posted hundreds of private e-mails and documents online – stoking debate over whether some scientists have overstated the case for man-ma… (source: Seattle Post Intelligencer) – News widgets and RSS feeds on Feedzilla.com
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — A spacewalking astronaut put aside the impending birth of his daughter and blazed through his first-ever venture outside the International Space Station on Saturday. (source: Seattle Post Intelligencer) – RSS feeds and Feed widget on Feedzilla.com
The United States Senate is preparing to hold its first vote on a major bill designed to overhaul US healthcare provision.
The vote, which requires 60 out of the 100 Senate votes to pass, will decide whether Democrat leader Harry Reid’s bill can go forward for debate.
The Democrats need the votes of two independents to make up the 60, as the chamber’s 40 Republicans are opposed.
US President Barack Obama has made healthcare reform a domestic priority.
Mr Reid’s proposed $849bn (£508bn) bill would extend coverage to 94% of eligible citizens, he said on Friday.
The legislation, which was outlined in a 2,074-page document, is said by Democratic aides to reduce deficits by $127bn (£76bn) over a decade and by as much as $650bn (£389bn) in the 10 years after that.
But it has been criticised by Republicans as being too expensive. They say they will block it, and debate is expected to be fiery.
Anything less than 60 votes for the initial measure will leave the bill vulnerable to Republican delaying tactics.
The House of Representatives narrowly passed its own version of the reforms earlier this month.
Medicare cuts
Under Mr Reid’s bill, most Americans would have to have health insurance, while private insurers would be banned from refusing to provide insurance because applicants had pre-existing medical conditions.
NEXT STEPSInsurance would be made more affordable with subsidies available to help those in lower income bands, the Democrats say.
People would also be able to take part in new insurance market places and be able to choose to buy government-sold insurance from 2014, a provision intended to help regulate the prices charged by private companies.
Large companies would be required by law to provide coverage to staff. The costs would be covered by government cuts on future Medicare spending.
Republican Senate leader Mitch McConnell said the bill had "been behind closed doors for weeks" and that the forthcoming debate would not be "short", the Associated Press news agency reported.
If the Senate passes its bill, it must then be reconciled with the House of Representatives bill and voted on again before the programme can become law.
Mr Reid’s bill differs to the House bill in that he calls for an increase of a half percentage point in Medicare payroll tax for people with an income of over $200,000 (£119,779) per annum – rising to $250,000 (£149,724) for couples.
There is also a tax on high-value insurance policies that is not contained in the House version of the bill.
If approved, the legislation could lead to the biggest changes in American healthcare in decades.
This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
By Konnie Huq
TV presenter
Uttar Pradesh in northern India has a population of more than 190 million and the world’s highest concentration of polio infection.
This is one of the final frontiers where the war against polio is being fought.
This crippling disease is now endemic in just four countries – India, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Nigeria.
In 1985 Rotary International spearheaded the campaign to eradicate polio and pledged to make sure all the world’s children would be immunised against the disease.
This has meant cases have been cut by a staggering 99% since then.
But there is still 1% to go and so a huge army of volunteers have been mobilised to help and take part in the final push to rid the world of Polio.
I joined 86 British Rotarians on a trip to India to see Rotary’s Thanks for Life/End Polio Now campaign in action as more than 65 million children in two northern Indian states under the age of five were to be targeted for immunisation against polio in just two days.
‘Still endemic’
The campaign was to be focused in Uttar Pradesh (UP) and Bihar – the only two states left in India where the disease is still endemic.
Two million children in the Indian capital, Delhi, were also to be immunised, a process which has to be repeated every few weeks to ensure infallibility.
"One problem with polio is that, although crippling and debilitating, the disease is not life threatening"
I started my two day polio immunisation drive in the capital of Uttar Pradesh, Lucknow, at a particularly significant place – the Islamic Centre.
Until recently, 70% of the cases of polio were found to be affecting this minority community in UP because of unsubstantiated fears that the drops were part of a Western plot to make Muslims infertile in an attempt to control the Islamic population.
One rumour even says that this conspiracy theory was started because the medical supplies boxes had been covered in the word STERILE!
Rotarian Ajay Saxena, member of Rotary International’s India National Polio Plus Committee, was instrumental in getting Muslim leaders together and as a result, the immunisation campaign has been backed by the clerics and the rates of polio among the Muslim community have dropped to 30%.
While sitting down for a cup of tea at the Islamic Centre, with Maulana Khalid Rasheed, general secretary of the Islamic Centre of India, he told me: "The thing is that about five years ago there were a number of misconceptions prevailing in the Muslim community that the polio vaccination was a conspiracy of the foreign powers to make the Muslims infertile or impotent so that the numbers of Muslims in India could not be increased.
"We have been able to tell the Muslim community that the polio immunisation has nothing to do with any type of conspiracy. It is only to bring an end to polio in India.
"And that there is no such thing as a conspiracy as far as this vaccination is concerned and we have been successful in removing that misconception."
Administering vaccine
Soon the time came for me to administer the drops to children myself.
A potentially life-saving experience – just two drops can help stop a child being crippled by polio.
Some 2,700 booths had been situated in and around the streets of Lucknow giving out the vaccine.
The British Rotarians also played their full part in administering drops and helping to get parents out to the booths with their young ones.
At one polio booth I met Saleem – a 17-year-old polio sufferer – not lucky enough to receive the polio drops when he was a child.
Saleem is now an orphan as his parents died six months ago.
He is also homeless, living on the streets, existing hand to mouth.
He believes strongly that the immunisation drops are important.
One problem with polio is that, although crippling and debilitating, the disease is not life threatening. This means that hospitals see it as a low priority and more often than not will not treat it.
Saleem was told when he was younger that he would be treatable and able to walk again, but because of the lack of care on offer, he cannot walk and relies on a pair of old crutches he managed to obtain through a charity.
Disability burden
In a country like India, a disability means that you cannot work to earn money and so have to rely on handouts and begging.
Moreover poor families often can’t cope with the financial and physical burden of a crippled child so are sometimes forced to abandon them.
Since Rotary pledged in 1985 to immunise all the world’s children against polio, it has been working with the World Health Organization, United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention to do just that.
Thanks to the work of Rotary more than two billion children have been immunised against polio worldwide.
"As long as one case of polio remains in the world – no child is safe from this deadly disease"
In India, the government has pledged a further $657m to immunise the country’s children against polio over the next three years.
Joining in the campaign now is Microsoft Founder Bill Gates who through his charity, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, has donated $355m to Rotary to help in the battle to eradicate polio.
The immunisation campaign means no child is missed and that includes going to the slums.
Polio victims are often from poorer backgrounds as infection occurs through contact with the faeces of a polio sufferer.
Naturally insanitary conditions and poor hygiene are big contributors to the disease.
In Delhi, I accompanied health visitors and Rotarians to immunise children in an unbelievably cramped slum where 1,000 people live in low level shacks making a living sifting through rubbish to find anything that could be recyclable.
The stench and squalor was like nothing I have seen, although I have visited numerous shanty town and slum areas before.
These people are living, eating and sleeping on a rubbish tip, in and among decay, debris and flies. Flies everywhere.
Last few miles
For the victims of polio there is some hope here though.
Although public hospitals are reluctant to treat the disease and private hospitals make no money from the poor people affected by the disease, progress is being made in Delhi’s oldest hospital, St Stephen’s, where there is a dedicated polio ward.
Head of the department of orthopaedics, Dr Mathew Varghese, said that improvements in water and sanitation, a key factor, meant the number of child polio cases they were seeing was dropping.
But as long as one case of polio remains in the world – no child is safe from this deadly disease.
There were about 500 new cases a day in India more than 20 years ago – now there are only about 500 a year, so the battle is being won.
So how near is a polio free India and a polio free world
Deepak Kapur, chairman of Rotary’s India National Polioplus Committee told me: "At the beginning of the programme, there was no place in India that was polio free.
"Now, more than 99% of the job has been done but there is still a long way to go because the last few miles are the most difficult.
"And I expect since the virus is hiding in these last bastions, it won’t be long before we actually win.
"Although I am not a soothsayer, I think that in 2011, we should be able to do it."
This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
Using a ride-on mower to cut the grass might save energy but they land thousands of people in hospital every year, experts have warned.
Over five years some 66,000 Americans ended up in emergency departments with injuries caused by lawn tractors, reports the Journal of Safety Research.
While many suffered bruises or sprains, some of the injured suffered broken bones and amputations. Six people died.
Most cases resulted from moving mowers or machines flipping over.
Flying debris
Nearly 100 of the injured were run over by a mower – some were children who had been sitting on the driver’s lap and had fallen off.
Men made up the bulk of casualties, and most were aged 40 or older.
"We regularly see patients coming into A&E with a number of injuries as a result of gardening activities"
John Heyworth, president of the College of Emergency Medicine
Many were hit by objects or flying debris, or sustained injuries while unloading the mower or servicing it.
Best estimates for the UK suggest around 6,500 are hurt every year by lawnmowers, either hand-pushed or ride-ons.
In the past 12 months, 530 people had to be admitted for hospital treatment in England alone.
Former Norwich City football manager Bryan Hamilton needed surgery to save his foot after it became entangled in the blades of his ride-on mower.
His toes were broken and dislocated and tendons and arteries were torn when the blades sliced through the sole of his foot as he tried to jump off the falling mower.
It took two operations by consultant plastic surgeon Elaine Sassoon and her team at Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital for Mr Hamilton to make a recovery.
Play it safe
John Heyworth, president of the College of Emergency Medicine, said people should be cautious when gardening.
"We all need to be careful. The risk of getting injured is low but we are not completely risk free. We regularly see patients coming into A&E with a number of injuries as a result of gardening activities.
"Some have run over their feet with the lawnmower and others have badly cut their fingers on the blades."
The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) said electric mowers and other power tools should always be used with an RCD – residual current device – which would cut off the power quickly in the event of an accident.
And maintenance must never be carried out while the mower is plugged in.
It is also best not to have children around when cutting the grass and to wear strong shoes and trousers rather than shorts and sandals when mowing.
This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
Army bomb experts are inspecting a car which burst into flames after being left near the Northern Ireland Policing Board building, BBC News understands.
The vehicle was crashed through a barrier at Clarendon Dock, Belfast, before being abandoned.
BBC Ireland correspondent Mark Simpson said the Army was checking the boot for explosive devices.
There was no firm evidence at this stage but dissident republicans would come under suspicion, he added.
This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
Angola’s President Jose Eduardo dos Santos has called for a crackdown on government corruption.
The president, who has been in power for 30 years, said his country’s oil wealth had been squandered by irresponsible officials.
Mr dos Santos said members of his MPLA party had been "too timid" in their attitude towards government spending.
Last week Angola was named by Transparency International as one of the world’s most corrupt nations.
Mr dos Santos said the lack of supervision over spending had led to fraud and wasted public funds.
"The thing is to agree to a sort of zero tolerance "
Jose Eduardo dos Santos
Dos Santos – Angola’s silent leaderIn a speech to his party, he said: "Irresponsible people, people of bad faith, have taken advantage of this circumstance to squander resources and to carry out illicit and even damaging and fraudulent acts of management."
He called for further transparency and said good government required a lot more work.
"The thing is to agree to a sort of zero tolerance after the sixth congress," he said.
The party is due to hold a national congress next month.
Angola is Africa’s biggest oil exporter, and investment from China has helped the economy make a remarkable recovery following decades of civil war.
But according to figures from the World Bank, most of the population lives on less than $2 (£1.2) a day.
Human rights groups have urged Mr dos Santos – who is reported to be one of the richest people in the country – to lead by example. He denies any wrong-doing.
This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
Iran will begin large-scale air defense war games Sunday aimed at protecting its nuclear facilities from possible attack, a senior … (source: USATODAY) – RSS feeds and Feed widget on Feedzilla.com
Democrats in the US Senate say they have now secured the votes they need to begin a full debate on healthcare reform. (source: BBC) – RSS and News widget on Feedzilla.com
Prime Minister Gordon Brown visits displaced residents in flood-hit Cumbria, as falling flood waters reveal the extent of the damage. (source: BBC) – RSS widgets and RSS feeds on Feedzilla.com
Shots have been fired at police in County Fermanagh, the BBC has learned.
Officers came under attack in the village of Garrison on Saturday evening and they returned fire.
There were no reports of any injuries. In line with agreed protocol the Police Ombudsman has been informed. Officers remain at the scene.
This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
Stephen Jones scored 17 points to lead Wales to a 33-16 win over Argentina in a rugby international on Saturday. (source: TheAge.com.au) – RSS widgets and RSS feeds on Feedzilla.com
France scored seven tries to overwhelm Samoa 43-5 in a rugby union international on Saturday. (source: TheAge.com.au) – RSS news feeds and Widgets on Feedzilla.com
Thousands of pro- and anti-government protesters took to the streets of Nicaragua’s capital Saturday, protesting and backing President Daniel Ortega’s bid to remain in power. (source: TheAge.com.au) – News widgets and RSS feeds on Feedzilla.com
Rome – Newcomers Parma late Saturday stunned Fiorentina 3-2 on home turf to leapfrog them and move to third place in the Italian Serie A. A brace from international Alberto Gilardino was not enough for the Florence side … (source: Earth Times) – RSS widgets and RSS feeds on Feedzilla.com
Hamas says it has agreed with other Palestinian militant groups in Gaza to stop firing rockets into Israel.
Fathi Hammad, who acts as Hamas interior minister, said the ceasefire aimed to prevent retaliatory attacks by Israel and build stability.
But he said rockets would continue to be fired from the Gaza Strip in the event of any Israeli incursions.
Hamas has observed a ceasefire for months, but other groups have carried out sporadic cross-border attacks.
The rockets usually cause limited damage and few if any casualties.
Operation Cast Lead, the Israeli military offensive in Gaza last December and January, was intended to put a stop to the attacks, some of which have reached up to 46km (28 miles) into Israel.
About 1,300 Palestinians and 10 Israeli soldiers were killed in the three weeks of fighting. Three Israeli citizens also died in rocket attacks during the operation.
Mr Hammad said ending the firing of rockets would bring greater stability to the lives of people in Gaza, enabling them to continue repairing the damage caused by the conflict.
This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
Prime Minister Gordon Brown has met flood victims in Cumbria after England’s wettest day on record swamped homes and swept away bridges.
He paid tribute to Pc Bill Barker, who died in the floods, and praised rescue teams for their "superb response".
Hundreds of people in the affected areas spent a second night away from their homes.
More rain is predicted across much of the UK and there are concerns it will hamper rescue efforts.
There are 22 flood warnings in force across northern England, Scotland and Wales.
The four "severe" warnings are in Cumbria and forecasters predict Saturday will bring 15mm (0.5in) to 40mm (1.6in) of rain and strong winds.
The prime minister met members of the emergency services at Penrith police station before heading to Cockermouth, where he spoke to people who had been evacuated from their homes.
He expressed his sympathy for their predicament and reassured them everything was being done to help them.
At the police station in Penrith, he told the emergency services the "whole country" was proud of them.
"What you’ve done in the last few days is tackle one of the greatest rainfalls we’ve seen in our country and you’ve done it with such superb organisation," he said.
Community ‘not broken’
In Cockermouth, 75 people spent the night in emergency centres. As the waters subsided, the devastation became clear, with the town’s main street littered with mud and debris.
Council workers, police officers, fire crews, paramedics and the RNLI are stationed in car parks as the town begins the clear-up and braces itself for more downpours.
Chief Supt Steve Johnson said the emergency services would carry out a search of 800 premises on Saturday to confirm they are empty or check on the welfare of those who had stayed in their homes.
With 11 bridges in the area still closed because of fast-flowing flood waters, he warned people not to use bridges until they were deemed safe by engineers.
Walkers have also been asked to avoid the fells, as mountain rescue teams continued to assist in the flood operation.
The BBC’s reporter in Cockermouth said a bridge in the middle of the town had been closed after it was deemed "extremely dangerous".
Tony Cunningham, MP for the Workington constituency – which includes Cockermouth – said help was at hand from the government but it may take months for the recovery to be complete.
"There are many broken buildings in Cockermouth, but the people are not broken," he added.
Less intense downpours
The prime minister said Pc Bill Barker, who died after a bridge collapsed, was a "very brave and heroic man".
The 44-year-old was directing motorists off the bridge in Workington when a swollen river caused it to cave in.
Tributes paid to flood death Pc Your stories: Eyewitness accounts Floods: Your pictures
The body of the father-of-four, who would have celebrated his 45th birthday on Saturday, was found on a beach almost 10 miles up the coast at Allonby.
His wife Hazel said her husband was "my best friend, my forever friend and an amazing dad".
Cumbria Constabulary said more than 10,000 people had signed up to a tribute on its Facebook page.
In nearby Cockermouth, where water reached 2.5m (8ft 2in), boats and RAF helicopters rescued more than 200 people after rainfall expected for an entire November fell in one day across west Cumbria.
Forecasters say recovery efforts may be hampered by rain through Saturday but that it is unlikely to cause major problems or get near the record 314.4mm (12.3in) for a 24-hour period recorded at Seathwaite Farm.
The BBC’s Liam Dutton said the rain would not be as intense or as lengthy as the downpours in recent days.
"It will move through and turn drier thereafter," he said.
It was estimated that 1,300 homes across Cumbria were affected by flooding, with several hundred people displaced and more than 1,000 households left without power.
FLOOD ADVICEThe Environment Agency says the severe flood warnings still in place in Cumbria describe conditions posing a threat of "extreme danger to life and property".
As well as the other 13 standard flood warnings, it has issued 32 less serious flood watches across England and Wales.
The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa) has five flood warnings and 14 flood watches in force.
Drivers have been warned of "treacherous" conditions across much of Dumfries and Galloway where fire crews have been called to rescue a number of stranded motorists.
Up to 40 businesses were flooded in Dumfries and about a dozen roads in the surrounding area remain closed.
In north and mid-Wales, roads were closed and train services disrupted, and a brief power cut in Anglesey affected 2,000 homes.
The flooding in Cumbria is the latest in a series of severe flooding events to hit the UK in recent years.
Are you in one of the areas on flood alert What are conditions like where you are Send us your comments and pictures.
Send your pictures to yourpics@bbc.co.uk, text them to 61124 or you have a large file you can upload here.
At no time should you endanger yourself or others, take any unnecessary risks or infringe any laws.
This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
Reid now expects all 60 members of his caucus to vote yes tonight, clearing way for deliberations on reform legislation to begin after Thanksgiving. (source: Washington Post) – RSS feeds and Feed widget on Feedzilla.com
The Roman Catholic Church has appointed a replacement for Bishop Raymond Lahey, of the Diocese of Antigonish, N.S., who is facing child pornography charges. (source: CBC) – RSS widgets and RSS feeds on Feedzilla.com
Sen. Blanche Lincoln says she supports bringing the health care bill to the floor for debate, giving Democrats the 60 votes needed to prevent a GOP filibuster. (source: CNN) – RSS feeds and Feed widget on Feedzilla.com
AROUND 2000 ultra-Orthodox Jews protested at an Israeli plant of giant US chipmaker Intel for the second Saturday in a row, voicing outrage at the factory’s decision to operate on the Sabbath. (source: bignewsnetwork.com) – RSS widgets and RSS feeds on Feedzilla.com
Demonstrators entered their third day of a building takeover at UC Santa Cruz on Saturday in protest of a tuition increase — a futile endeavor, according to a school spokesman. (source: CNN) – RSS widgets and RSS feeds on Feedzilla.com
U.S. Senator John McCain says military exit dates and exit strategies in Afghanistan should not even be discussed until NATO gets the upper hand in its fight against Taliban militants. (source: CBC) – RSS and News widget on Feedzilla.com
RocketNews nominated for a Webby Award 