Late flurry of Victorian bushfires

Victorian firefighters are bracing for a tough day as unfavourable conditions stoke two major fires. Source: AAP

VICTORIA'S firefighters working on two major fires in the state's east have been battling a late flurry of blazes closer to Melbourne.

State control centre spokesman Graeme Baxter said five choppers are battling fire that jumped containment lines in remote terrain at the 80,000-hectare Aberfeldy fire in Gippsland in Victoria's east.

"We have had a spot over of 20 hectares which has blown westward. It is in very steep, difficult terrain," Mr Baxter told AAP.

Closer to Melbourne, a watch and act alert has been issued for a fire at Kerrie, northwest of Melbourne.

Previously a watch and act had also been issued for the Arthurs Creek area, northeast of Melbourne.

Both fires are now under control.

"Late in the day we have had a spate of some other fires happening closer to Melbourne," Mr Baxter said.

"It was a bit of late flurry, which often happens as the air dries out at the end of the day."

Conditions at a second major blaze at Harrietville in alpine country in the northeast had eased, Mr Baxter said.

Flames reached eight metres on Friday as the blaze breached containment lines, with fire breaking the line near Hotham Heights and coming close to chalets.

"Crews were able to mop that up quite quickly," Mr Baxter said.

"The bush in the fire near the chalets has been burned, which means the fuel has been taken away."

A watch and act has been issued for the Hotham Heights and Dinner Plain areas, but all residents are believed to have evacuated earlier.

A watch and act warning is in place for Dargo and Omeo at the southern side of the Harrietville blaze that has so far burned around 15,000 hectares.

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Radar failure at Delhi airport

AN electrician accidentally unplugged the radar system at the Indian capital's airport, forcing air traffic controllers to manually guide in aircraft, media reports say.

Electricians fixing a fault accidentally unplugged the main power source of the radar late on Friday, causing radar screens to go blank, said the Times of India newspaper and other media.

Operations were shifted to manual control to assist the planes in air and for those lined up for a take-off, the media said quoting officials. No incidents were reported.

"Though the standby power took over the system within seconds, it took over 45 minutes to reboot all consoles and restore the operations fully," officials told India's NDTV network.

In 2011, a five-hour electricity blackout at the airport's newly inaugurated terminal affected scores of domestic and international flights.

The Delhi airport is hailed as an example of India's ability to build state-of-the-art infrastructure projects.

AFP w

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Tunisia ruling Islamists call for rally

MEMBERS of Tunisia's main ruling Islamist party are calling for a rally in the capital on Saturday, a day after police clashed with protesters at the funeral of murdered opposition figure Chokri Belaid.

The Ennahda party demonstration was to take place in the centre of Tunis on Habib Bourguiba Avenue, where the latest violence has taken place, the party said in a statement.

The protest would "defend the legitimacy of the national constituent assembly," where the Ennahda-dominated coalition holds a majority, and would "fight against (the political) violence" it said the opposition is using.

Tens of thousands of protesters took to the streets on Friday for the funeral procession of Belaid, who was killed by a lone gunman on Wednesday, and clashes with police led to 132 arrests, said the interior ministry.

The opposition blames Ennahda for the murder of the outspoken government critic, but the ruling party vehemently denies any involvement.

The unrest comes amid tension and division within Ennahda itself, after the recent sacking of the party's leader and as Prime Minister Hamadi Jebali attempts to form a new government of technocrats, which hardliners oppose.

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Unidentified child found wandering alone

POLICE are searching for parents of a young child who was found wandering alone in the streets of Perth's east more than 24 hours ago.

The boy, who is about three-years-old, was found on Belgravia Street in Belmont at about midday on Friday.

He has not been able to provide his name or details of his parents or guardians, and is currently being cared for by the Department for Child Protection (DCP).

Neither the DCP nor police have received any reports of a missing child.

Police have now released a picture of the boy, who has short brown hair, brown eyes and a light olive complexion.

He has limited speech.

Anyone able to identify the boy should contact the Department's Crisis Care Unit on 9223 1111.

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Domestic violence tracking set for WA

SERIOUS domestic violence offenders in Western Australia will almost certainly find themselves being monitored electronically, with both main political parties pushing the plan.

If WA Labor wins the March 9 election, Opposition Leader Mark McGowan says the party will start a $4.5 million electronic monitoring trial of domestic violence offenders who breach restraining orders - a plan he mooted in March last year.

But Corrective Services Minister Murray Cowper said the Liberal-led government had already approved the drafting of legislation to create a new category of a serious, violent offender to enable courts to order them to wear GPS tracking devices.

This would initially target repeat domestic violence offenders, Mr Cowper said, after the Liberals announced their GPS tracking policy last month.

The government had also passed legislation that meant a mandatory one-year jail term for anyone who tampered with the device, he said.

"Will Mr McGowan commit to mandatory sentencing for tampering with a device?" Mr Cowper said.

Mr McGowan said domestic violence was on the rise and victims were not being adequately protected.

He pointed to Saori Jones, who was murdered in front of her two children by her ex-husband Bradley Wayne Jones.

Jones received a five-year prison sentence in 2011, moving WA Labor to introduce a private member's bill, known as Saori's Law, to parliament last year, but it was voted down by the Barnett government.

The bill sought the near-automation of restraining orders in domestic assault cases and would have cleared the way for victims to remain in their homes even if the properties were registered in the offenders' names.

Mr McGowan also took a swipe at Premier Colin Barnett's announcement on Saturday - Chinese New Year's Eve - to promise $2 million to improve Chinatown in Northbridge.

Sticking with one of his key campaign themes of transforming the CBD, Mr Barnett said he wanted to turn the area into a vibrant laneway precinct, building on the Perth City Link project currently under way.

This involves sinking the Fremantle rail line to make the border between the city and the entertainment district more pedestrian-friendly.

Two new street connections would be created, the premier said, including linking the high-end King Street - home of Perth's most expensive retail rentals - to Lake Street, one of Northbridge's most bustling roads.

But Mr McGowan said the announcement confirmed the Premier's priorities were wrong and out-of-touch, and came as the WA government racked up record debt levels.

Instead, Mr McGowan said he was focused on traffic congestion, which the opposition planned to solve with its Metronet rail plan to connect outer suburbs to the city and airport, and easing high costs of living.

The Australian newspaper's Newspoll figures on Friday pointed to a landslide win for the WA Liberals, who lead 57 per cent to 43 per cent on a two-party preferred basis.

But Mr McGowan is romping it in as preferred premier, jumping 11 points to 40 per cent. On the same basis, Mr Barnett has slipped to 44 per cent, down four points.

The poll has a three per cent margin of error.

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Vic deputy premier 'chirpy' in hospital

Victorian Deputy Premier Peter Ryan is in hospital undergoing tests for a possible blood infection. Source: AAP

VICTORIA'S Deputy Premier Peter Ryan is "itching to get back into action" as he undergoes hospital tests to diagnose a possible blood infection, Premier Ted Baillieu says.

Mr Ryan has been absent from state parliament this week as he undergoes tests in hospital for what could be a blood infection.

Premier Ted Baillieu said his deputy remained in good spirits.

"Apart from feeling a bit flat I think he's not too bad," Mr Baillieu told reporters in Melbourne.

"He's just been advised to stay in hospital while they conduct some tests and he's been working from a hospital room but we decided yesterday we'd take the workload off him and give that to some other ministers while he completes those tests.

"But he's still chirpy and positive and itching to get back into action."

It is not known how long Mr Ryan will be absent but his diary has been cleared until Tuesday.

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Woman vandalises famed French painting

FRANCE'S Louvre museum has shut down one of its galleries after a woman vandalised an iconic painting by Delacroix by writing on it with a black marker.

The 28-year-old woman was apprehended by an attendant late on Thursday after scrawling "AE911" on Liberty Leading the People, which was on show in the Louvre's recently-opened satellite branch in the northern former mining town of Lens.

It was not immediately clear what the slogan meant.

Police detained her and on Friday the museum said it was temporarily closing the wing of the museum in which the painting was being displayed.

The Louvre said in a statement that a specialist art restorer was being sent to the site but that it believed the damage was not significant and could be easily repaired.

A prosecutor in the nearby town of Bethune who is handling the case said he had asked for a psychiatric evaluation of the woman who he said appeared to be "unbalanced".

He said her reasons for defacing the painting were not yet clear.

The painting by Delacroix commemorates France's July Revolution of 1830.

It shows a bare-breasted woman personifying Liberty leading the people forward over the bodies of the fallen, holding the French tricolour in one hand and a bayonetted musket in the other.

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Carr confident of arms trade treaty

FOREIGN Minister Bob Carr says he's confident Australia's seat on the UN Security Council will help push through a global arms trade treaty.

Speaking after giving the British High Commission's annual Magna Carta lecture in Sydney, Senator Carr said a push for the arms treaty at the UN would "come to a head next month".

"On the back of our credibility built up over the decades on cluster munitions I think that (an arms trade treaty) will be a discerning note in our contribution," Senator Carr told the audience of around 150 people on Friday night.

The proposed UN treaty would impose new controls on illicit cross-border dealings in weapons such as automatic rifles, rocket-propelled grenades and ammunition.

It is aimed at improving the efficiency of UN sanctions by reducing the flow of conventional weapons to terrorists.

Senator Carr said that since being elected to the Security Council Australia had brought to the role its experience in peacekeeping in the Pacific region, especially in Bougainville and East Timor.

He also said he was also working hard at the UN towards achieving nuclear non-proliferation by using the federal government's "credibility" on the issue.

However, he would not be drawn when asked if the government was failing to comply with the aspirations of the Magna Carta, given its policy on asylum seekers.

"I think that's a question best addressed to our attorney general," Senator Carr said.

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Malaysian duo face Syria terror charges

MALAYSIAN prosecutors have charged a former army captain and a woman with inciting terrorist acts that could have involved violence in Syria.

Yazid Sufaat, who spent seven years in detention without trial before being freed in 2008, and Halimah Hussein face up to 30 years in prison if convicted.

The charge read in a Magistrate's Court said that Yazid "encouraged terrorist activities" at a house in a suburb outside Kuala Lumpur sometime between early August and late October, while Halimah abetted him.

Police arrested Yazid, Halimah and another man on Thursday, saying they were the masterminds of an effort to recruit militants.

It was not clear whether the third suspect would be charged.

Prosecution documents offered scant details except that their actions could have threatened public safety in Syria.

Malaysia's national news agency, Bernama, late on Thursday quoted unidentified sources as saying the suspects tried to recruit young people to be trained for missions that included suicide bombings.

Police officials declined on Friday to comment.

The case was being transferred to a higher court that would determine hearing dates and find out whether Yazid and Halimah intended to plead innocent.

The two were being held in separate prisons while awaiting trial.

Yazid was one of Malaysia's most prominent security detainees in the last decade.

A US-trained biochemist and former captain in Malaysia's army, he was detained without trial in 2001 after being accused of belonging to Jemaah Islamiah, a South-East Asian militant network.

He was released seven years later when officials said he no longer posed a threat.

Malaysia's parliament last year abolished a longstanding law allowing indefinite detention without trial following decades of criticism over human rights concerns.

Yazid was previously arrested when he returned from Afghanistan, where he was suspected of working on a biological and chemical weapons program for militants.

Yazid, now a cafeteria operator, has not spoken publicly about many of the previous accusations against him, but in an interview with news website Malaysiakini last year he said he had met Osama bin Laden before his detention and underwent combat training in Afghanistan.

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Chinese flag-burner jailed in Hong Kong

A PROMINENT Hong Kong political activist has been jailed for nine months for burning both the Chinese and city flags during anti-Beijing protests, court officials say.

Pro-democracy campaigner Koo Sze-yiu was sentenced by a magistrate's court on Thursday on four charges - three of desecrating the national Chinese flag and a fourth of desecrating the Hong Kong flag, a judiciary spokeswoman told AFP.

"When I am released, I will do this again," Koo told the court, according to the South China Morning Post.

Koo said he burnt the national and regional flags because he was unhappy with the regime in mainland China, which he claims killed Chinese dissident Li Wangyang, and over the jailing of Nobel laureate Liu Xiaobo, the SCMP reported.

The charges against Koo, 66, came after he burned a Chinese flag outside the central government's liaison office in June last year, during a protest to commemorate the death of Li.

He was also seen with damaged Chinese and Hong Kong flags at a demonstration against Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying, who is considered by critics as a stooge for Beijing, on January 1 this year.

Hong Kong saw massive anti-Beijing protests last summer with hundreds of thousands taking to the streets when Chinese President Hu Jintao swore Leung into office, amid growing discontent over the influence of the mainland.

Speaking in court Thursday, magistrate David Chum said the flags had to be protected.

"Every country has her national flag... it is the symbol of the country and represents its dignity," he said, according to the SCMP.

Under Hong Kong's National Flag and National Emblem Ordinance, anyone who defaces the flags faces a a jail term of up to three years.

Koo was also part of a crew which landed in August on an island chain, known as the Senkakus in Japanese and Diaoyus in Chinese, which is disputed by China and Japan.

Hong Kong, a semi-autonomous territory with its own political and legal system that guarantees civil liberties not seen on the mainland, including the right to protest, was returned to China by Britain in 1997.

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Hong Kong stocks fall 0.34%

HONG Kong shares have closed 0.34 per cent lower, in line with a regional sell-off and ahead of the release of closely watched Chinese economic data.

The benchmark Hang Seng Index fell 79.93 points to 23,177.00 on turnover of HK$79.04 billion ($A9.93 billion) on Thursday.

Chinese shares closed down 0.66 per cent.

The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index fell 15.95 points to 2,418.53 on turnover of 109.3 billion yuan ($A17.03 billion).

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Document declaring USSR dead 'missing'

FORMER Belarusian leader Stanislav Shushkevich says a historic document that pronounced the death of the USSR is missing from archives.

Shushkevich discovered the disappearance of the original document while working on his memoirs.

Officials with Belarus' government and other ex-Soviet states confirmed on Wednesday that they only have copies.

The document's disappearance reflects the chaos that surrounded the Soviet demise.

On December 8, 1991, Shushkevich hosted Russia's President Boris Yeltsin and Ukraine's President Leonid Kravchuk for secret talks at a government hunting lodge near Viskuli in the Belovezha Forest.

The trio signed a deal declaring that "the USSR has ceased to exist as a subject of international law and geopolitical reality," defeating Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev's attempts to hold the country together and forcing him to resign on Christmas Day.

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Man charged after filming up girls' skirts

A MAN has been caught on CCTV filming up the skirts of women in shopping malls across Sydney.

The 52-year-old man was captured on CCTV at shopping malls on George Street in Sydney and in Liverpool, using his mobile phone to film up the skirts of women.

One of the incidents occurred in August last year, while the other two were captured in January.

Police arrested and charged the Frenchs Forest man with three counts of film person's private parts without consent.

He was released on bail with strict conditions and will face North Sydney Local Court on February 25.

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Burke to reveal Tarkine heritage decision

The environment minister is set to reveal his decision on heritage listing for Tasmania's Tarkine. Source: AAP

ENVIRONMENT Minister Tony Burke is set to reveal his decision on heritage listing for Tasmania's Tarkine.

The federal government has been assessing the heritage value of Tarkine, home to the largest tract of temperate rainforest in the southern hemisphere and the last haven of disease-free Tasmanian devils.

Mr Burke will make an announcement in northern Tasmania on Friday.

Environmentalists want the area protected from mining.

They say it fulfils eight of 10 criteria for becoming a world heritage area - only the second place in the world that would do so - but only five per cent is protected in national parks.

The Tarkine been home to mining for more than a century and 10 new mines, some open-cut, are planned for the area in the next five years, according to the Tarkine National Coalition.

The state government has granted several mining leases, which are still subject to federal approval, and Tasmanian Premier Lara Giddings says only one per cent of the Tarkine will be affected by the proposals.

In 2010, Mr Burke allowed an emergency heritage listing in the area to lapse.

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Firefighting helicopter crashes in Tas

A HELICOPTER pilot has been rescued after his chopper crashed while he was fighting a bushfire in Tasmania.

A Tasmanian police rescue helicopter evacuated the pilot at 5pm (AEDT) after his helicopter crashed while he was fighting the fire near Molesworth in the state's south, police said.

The pilot was flown from the scene and taken to hospital in a stable condition.

The cause of the crash is unknown at this time.

The Tasmanian Fire Service (TFS) says the fire danger in the Molesworth area is very high with a large bushfire burning at Glen Dhu Road.

The fire is impacting the areas of Suhrs Road, Fehlbergs Road, Valley Road and Collins Cap Road to Springdale Road, it says in a statement.

TFS warns it is likely to be too late to leave the area, with residents advised to activate their bushfire survival plan.

Spot fires may threaten homes earlier than the main fire front.

The TFS says there may be embers, smoke and ash falling on Molesworth, Glenlusk and Collinsvale, Myrtle Forest Road, and Old Springdale Road.

TFS said an out-of-control fire on the Huon Highway at Franklin, south of Hobart, has prompted a high fire danger rating for the area.

TFS says the fire may now affect the Huon Highway, Castle Forbes Road and Fleurtys Road to the south of Franklin.

Communities south of Franklin and Castle Forbes Bay may experience embers, smoke and ash falling on them.

A low-moderate fire danger rating has also been made for the Lefroy area, between Bridport and George Town on the north coast, with a large bushfire burning out of control at Shaw Street.

The fire may affect the communities of the Lefroy township and properties southeast of Lefroy are also at risk from smoke and embers, the TFS said.

The 52-year-old Hobart man crashed into a clearing near the bushfire before being rescued.

His helicopter was one of a team of four choppers water-bombing the Molesworth blaze that started on February 6.

Police said the man was airlifted to the Royal Hobart Hospital for assessment and was shaken by the incident but not seriously hurt.

The Air Transport Safety Bureau has been advised of the crash. Investigators will look into the cause of the accident.

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British gay vote sparks new Aussie debate

BRITAIN'S move to legalise gay marriage has sparked fresh calls for Australia to follow suit.

A same-sex marriage bill passed its first hurdle in the British House of Commons by 400 votes to 175. The bill must now pass the House of Lords - the equivalent of the Senate - before becoming law.

The breakthrough on Wednesday quickly reignited the gay marriage debate in Australia.

Australian Greens MP Adam Bandt said Prime Minister Julia Gillard and Opposition Leader Tony Abbott - both of whom oppose gay marriage - risked being on the wrong side of history.

"If Catholic Spain can allow people to marry each other regardless of their gender, if Britain can do it, if the president of the United States of America thinks it is time to change, then Julia Gillard and Tony Abbott should back it as well," Mr Bandt said.

"This is a matter of not if, but when."

Last year both houses of the Australian parliament rejected a same sex marriage bill sponsored by Labor backbenchers. Mr Abbott refused to allow coalition MPs a conscience vote on the bill.

South Australian Environment Minister Ian Hunter, who married his gay partner in Spain last year, said the British vote should send a strong message to Australia's federal leaders.

All the countries we liked to compare ourselves to were adopting gay marriage and Australia was being left behind, he said.

"We are going to start to look like the deep south in terms of this issue," he told AAP.

Australian Marriage Equality national convener Rodney Croome said the majority of Australians would be pleased to see such resounding support for gay marriage from a country like Britain.

"But this will be tinged with embarrassment that Australia is falling further behind and may soon be the only developed, English-speaking country without marriage equality," he said.

Mr Croome predicted many Australian couples would travel to Britain, or even use UK consulates at home, to marry if the British bill became law.

"It is sad that these couples will not have their marriages recognised under the law of the country they live in," he said.

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Anti-doping agency to get more powers

AUSTRALIA'S anti-doping agency is set to gain police-like powers to compel suspect athletes and other people to turn up for questioning and hand over documents on request.

Sports Minister Kate Lundy said a recent review of Cycling Australia conducted by former justice James Woods QC showed there was plenty of work to be done to address the challenges of doping in sport.

Senator Lundy said revelations from international cycling showed that doping could be well organised and systemic and conducted in parallel with a comprehensive testing regime.

"With doping becoming increasingly sophisticated, it is less likely that anti-doping violations will be detected through analytical means alone," she said.

In a second reading speech that was tabled in parliament on Wednesday to introduce the Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority Amendment Bill 2013, Senator Lundy said analytical testing would remain a fundamental and valuable means to address doping.

But the US Anti-Doping Agency was only able to establish a case against Lance Armstrong and the US Postal Service cycling team through non-analytical investigation, collecting sworn testimony and documentary evidence.

Senator Lundy said the Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority (ASADA) currently had no power to require somebody to attend an interview or produce documents and had to rely on their cooperation.

The new bill will give ASADA the power to require someone to attend an interview or produce documents.

The ASADA chief executive will be able to issue disclosure notices requiring a person to comply, with a fine of up to $5100 for people who don't.

Senator Lundy said a key strength of ASADA's investigative capabilities was its relationship with agencies such as Customs and the Therapeutic Goods Administration. That would be strengthened with an amendment to postal legislation to allow information sharing between ASADA and Australia Post.

The legislation also gives the ASADA chief executive the ability to engage directly with sporting bodies on the issue of sanctions for those who commit doping violations.

"The message is clear - with these amendments, athletes and support persons who are involved in doping have a greater chance of being caught. People will have no option but to assist ASADA in undertaking its investigations and intelligence activities," Senator Lundy said.

Debate was adjourned.

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Obama peace agenda urgent on Israel visit

PRESIDENT Barack Obama will bring an "urgent" peacemaking agenda to Israel during his upcoming visit, US Ambassador Dan Shapiro says.

The White House says Obama will visit Israel, the West Bank and Jordan.

Obama's previous term in office saw relations with Netanyahu deteriorate in part over failed talks with the Palestinians but also due to the two leaders' different world views.

The visit will be Obama's first as president. No date has been released for the trip but Israel media suggest Obama will begin his visit on March 20.

Shapiro gave several interviews to Israeli media on Wednesday morning, with the same message.

"We have a very urgent agenda," Shapiro told Army radio. "We have a very complex agenda about Iran, Syria and the need to get Israel and the Palestinians back to the negotiating table, so it's important to begin as fast as possible," he said.

The White House has not released the date of Obama's trip or details about Obama's itinerary, but Israel's Channel 10 reported it had been scheduled for March 20. The visit raises expectations that peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians, which collapsed about four years ago, can be rekindled.

Palestinians refuse to resume the talks unless Israel stops building in the West Bank and east Jerusalem, although the Jewish state has stepped up construction in the territories since the UN recognised a de facto state of Palestine there in November. Israel says all issues, including territorial disputes, must be resolved through negotiations. It has frequently called for talks to be restarted.

Shapiro said that Obama will meet with the Palestinian leadership in the West Bank along with the King of Jordan, who has had a role in peacemaking efforts, during his visit.

"President Obama is not coming with conditions or demands. He is coming to confer with all our partners about problems and challenges we are dealing with in the region," Shapiro told Israel radio.

He said that Obama isn't "seeking a specific result" but wants to confer about ways of "bringing Israel and the Palestinians back to the negotiation table."

Although Obama visited Israel and Jordan while running for president in 2008, he hasn't been back since, drawing intense criticism from some pro-Israel groups who have claimed he is insufficiently supportive of the United States' closest Mideast ally. Other top administration officials, including former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, have visited, and Clinton's replacement, John Kerry, is expected to travel to Israel on his first Mideast trip.

Shapiro said Obama will visit after Israel's new government has been formed.

The announcement of the visit comes at a time of uncertainty for Netanyahu, who left January's election weakened. The emergence of a new centrist party in Israel's election offered hope to those urging the hawkish Netanyahu to make peace with the Palestinians a higher priority.

Shapiro shrugged off questions about relations between Obama and Netanyahu. "The personal chemistry between them is excellent. They know how to work together," he said.

Obama will also discuss Iran's nuclear program, the danger of Syrian chemical weapons reaching militants and other regional issues, Shapiro said.

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'Significant penalties' for Scottish bank

ROYAL Bank of Scotland (RBS) expects to pay "significant penalties" and face other sanctions from British and US financial regulators over its role in the Libor rate-rigging scandal.

Reports said RBS would settle by paying US and British authorities up to STG500 million ($A757.46 million).

"RBS confirms that it is in late-stage settlement discussions with these authorities," the Edinburgh-based bank said in a statement on Wednesday.

"Although the settlements remain to be agreed, RBS expects they will include the payment of significant penalties as well as certain other sanctions."

That would be more than Libor-related fines handed out to British bank Barclays last year but less than the amount slapped on Swiss lender UBS.

Dow Jones Newswires quoted one source as saying that an RBS unit, possibly based in Asia, could also plead guilty to a crime in the United States.

Some attempts to rig the Libor rate-setting process allegedly took place in Asia.

Other reports said the head of the lender's investment banking arm will step down, adding that John Hourican is to give up 4.0 million in past share awards.

RBS shares rallied 1.76 per cent to stand at 343.4 pence in Wednesday morning trade on London's benchmark FTSE 100 index, which was up 0.52 per cent at 6,315.61 points.

Angus Campbell, head of market analysis at Capital Spreads trading group, said the predicted fines were "towards the low end of expectations, so initial response from the market is positive."

Libor, or London Interbank Offered Rate, is a flagship instrument used all over the world, affecting what banks, businesses and individuals pay to borrow money. Euribor is the eurozone equivalent.

Libor is calculated daily, using estimates from banks of their own interbank rates, and affects the pricing of more than $300-trillion of contracts across the world, according to British regulator, the Financial Services Authority.

But the system has been found to be open to abuse, with some traders lying about borrowing costs to boost trading positions or make their bank seem more secure - seriously damaging the reputation of the 'City of London' financial centre.

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New fire threat as G-G visits Tasmania

A BUSHFIRE burning out of control is threatening communities in southern Tasmania amid reports of outbuildings and cars being destroyed.

An emergency alert was in place for a fire in the Derwent Valley northwest of Hobart heading towards the communities of Molesworth, Glenlusk and Collinsvale.

The fire's status was upgraded to the highest level on Wednesday night.

Three hundred hectares had been burned and some outbuildings and cars destroyed on the outskirts of communities, the ABC reported.

A total fire ban had been declared for a second day after temperatures of over 30 degrees and unfavourable winds.

Some residents had been evacuated as a precaution but others were being advised to leave, while several roads had been closed.

The education department said Collinsvale and Molesworth primary schools would be closed on Thursday.

"Today saw bushfires start in both the southern and northern regions which were difficult to control due to the warmer windy weather, and tomorrow will be no different as parts of the state reach temperatures into the 30s," Tasmania Fire Service chief officer Mike Brown said.

The new fire threat came on a day Governor-General Quentin Bryce had visited areas of southern Tasmania ravaged by bushfires last month.

Ms Bryce toured the area around Dunalley where more than 60 buildings were destroyed, meeting the principal of the destroyed primary school due to reopen with temporary facilities next week.

"It's the children starting school that are uppermost in our minds," she told reporters.

"The school is right at the heart of every community.

"Let's remember, this is a long road to recovery.

"We all have to be here whenever we can supporting this community."

Ms Bryce paid tribute to emergency services personnel who fought the fires. She later visited the destroyed property of one firefighter at Murdunna, south of Dunalley.

"It's a story of hope and inspiration and courage, very fine values shining through in very tough times, a reminder of how volatile the most beautiful environment is," she said.

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String of bushfires on Great Eastern Hwy

BUSHFIRES have broken out along the Great Eastern Highway in Western Australia, including one across the highway from the Yongah Hill Immigration Detention Centre at Northam, north-east of Perth.

A spokeswoman for the Department of Fire and Emergency Services (DFES) said firefighters were working on several scrub fires along the highway and also on the corner of Northam's main street, Mitchell Avenue, and Mt Ommanney Rd.

Details were being gathered ahead of the release of alerts, she said.

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Woman critical after workplace accident

A WOMAN has been airlifted to The Alfred hospital after an industrial accident west of Melbourne.

An Ambulance Victoria spokeswoman said the woman became trapped in a machine at a factory at Parwan, near Bacchus Marsh, at around 4pm (AEDT) and suffered significant head and chest injuries.

Paramedics treated her at the scene before she was flown to hospital in a critical condition.

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Video bid to discredit Russia's Medvedev

A SLICK video has mysteriously emerged on the Russian internet where former ambassadors, an ex-general and an ex-prime minister line up to accuse Dmitry Medvedev of betraying Russia's interests while he served as president.

It is unclear who could be behind the anonymous but professionally shot film accusing Medvedev of treason over the NATO-led air campaign in Libya, or if the movie has high-level backing.

But its aim is clear - to damage the public standing of a man who served four years as president and now works as prime minister under his mentor President Vladimir Putin.

The film is the second such bid to tarnish Medvedev's reputation in recent months. An equally mysterious documentary accused him of procrastinating over using force against Georgia in the 2008 war.

The new film accuses Medvedev of betraying Russian interests during the NATO-led military campaign in Libya, citing his decision to abstain from the UN Security Council resolution on Libya that essentially authorised military action in 2011.

That abstention was seen as a landmark moment in Russian foreign policy when Moscow for the first time stopped thwarting Western strategy.

But since Putin returned last year to the Kremlin he previously occupied from 2000-2008, Russia reverted to its previous veto-wielding policy of opposing the West, in particular on Syria.

Evgeny Primakov, a veteran former prime minister and foreign intelligence chief, and several former ambassadors to Libya and officials from Russian arms makers lent their voices to the documentary.

The comments, which appear to be interviews especially made for the film, are interspersed with images of a beaming Medvedev contrasted with children apparently wounded in the Libyan conflict.

"Medvedev deserves to be court-marshalled for his refusal to veto the UN Security Council resolution on Libya," said the voiceover grimly.

The over one-hour-long film claimed Russia might have sustained losses in the amount of $US20 billion ($A19.27 billion) because of Medvedev's policies including his decision to join the Western arms embargo on Muammar Gaddafi's Libya.

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Syria newspaper reacts to oppn talks offer

SYRIAN opposition chief Ahmed Moaz al-Khatib's offer of talks with the regime is significant but "two years late", the pro-regime daily Al-Watan says.

"Despite their importance, the statements of Sheikh Moaz al-Khatib are two years late. During that time, our finest young men have died, suffered wounds or been exiled, while we have lost our electricity and fuel infrastructure, alongside several military positions," Al-Watan said in a long editorial on Tuesday.

"Two years have gone by, in which we have lost a lot because of the opposition's stubbornness and their refusal to negotiate," said the daily.

"So the ball is not in the Syrian state's hands, as Khatib said" on Monday, in an interview with pan-Arab Al-Jazeera television, Al-Watan added.

The editorial was the first indication of official thinking as regards to Khatib's surprise proposal of negotiations as a way out of the conflict that has ravaged Syria for almost two years.

Khatib, who heads the opposition Syrian National Coalition, said he was ready to talk with regime officials if "160,000 detainees" are released and if exiled Syrians are able to renew their passports abroad.

In the past the opposition has demanded Assad step down before talks can begin but analysts say Khatib's change in stance stems from a belief that the population will be bled dry while the West fails to act.

Formed in Doha, Qatar in November last year, the coalition is recognised by scores of states and international organisations as the sole legitimate representative of the Syrian people.

"Khatib's declarations are insufficient. They do not make him an acceptable negotiator at a popular level," said Al-Watan, suggesting the opposition chief was insincere in his offer.

Khatib's statements "are a political manoeuvre, through which he is trying to correct his mistake of supporting the (jihadist) Al-Nusra Front," said Al-Watan.

The editorial said Khatib "should explain the reasons behind his (alleged) support for Al-Nusra Front and for terrorism in general".

Since a revolt erupted against President Bashar al-Assad in March 2011, the regime has described dissidents and rebels alike as "terrorists".

More recently, the regime has described all rebels as members of Al-Nusra Front, which is listed by the United States as a "terrorist" organisation.

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S Korea predicts multiple nuke tests

SOUTH Korean President Lee Myung-Bak believes North Korea could detonate multiple devices when it goes ahead with a nuclear test expected in the coming weeks or days.

In an interview published on Tuesday in the Chosun Ilbo daily, the outgoing president also acknowledged the huge challenge the international community faces in seeking to wean Pyongyang off its nuclear weapons program.

The North has signalled that it will carry out a "higher level" nuclear test very soon, in a defiant response to tightened UN sanctions after its successful long-range rocket launch in December.

Lee said "higher-level" suggested Pyongyang might attempt to detonate several devices.

"North Korea is likely to carry out multiple nuclear tests at two places or more simultaneously" to maximise scientific gains from an event that will be globally condemned, Lee said.

Experts around the world are gearing up to analyse any test for what it might reveal about the current status of the North's weaponisation program.

Of particular interest will be any sign that its scientists have succeeded in developing a warhead that can be fitted onto a missile.

"If the North produces miniaturised weapons that can be used as warheads on missiles, it would really pose a threat," Lee said. "That's why the whole world is watching it so intensively."

Lee has only a few weeks left in office at the end of a five-year term marked by an almost total freeze of contacts between North and South Korea.

In his interview, he suggested that diplomatic efforts would make little headway in bringing about a significant policy shift in Pyongyang.

"I think it is difficult to persuade the North regime to give up the nuclear path," he said.

Some predict the test will come before the Lunar New Year on February 10, while others suggest it will be timed to coincide with the February 16 birthday of late leader Kim Jong-Il, father of current leader Kim Jong-Un.

South Korea and its ally the United States are holding a joint naval exercise off the Korean peninsula as tensions rise - a drill condemned as a "warmongering" exercise by North Korea.

Its official news agency Tuesday threatened a move going "beyond the imagination" of Seoul and Washington in response to the exercise, which it terms a rehearsal for invasion.

"The US is now getting hell-bent on the joint anti-submarine drill targeting the 'north's nuclear facilities'," the agency said in an editorial.

"Now that the hostile acts toward the (North) have gone beyond the limit of universally accepted... norms of the international community, the (North's) option in reaction to it will also go beyond the imagination of the hostile forces," it said.

"There is no other option for the (North) but to fight it out."

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Asylum seekers face Nauru court over riot

A GROUP of Iranian asylum seekers charged with causing tens of thousands of dollars damage to an immigration detention facility in Nauru have had their bail extended.

Fourteen of 15 Iranian men charged over the riot last September made a brief appearance in a Nauru court on Monday.

Their lawyer had to fly to Fiji earlier on Monday due to urgent family business, a statement from the government of Nauru said.

Magistrate Peter Law told them through an interpreter that each would be expected to indicate whether they wanted to plead guilty or not guilty at their next court appearance later this month.

They are charged with rioting and causing an estimated $24,000 damage to the facility on September 30 last year.

At the time, a spokesman for the Department of Immigration said there had been a "minor disturbance" at the temporary regional processing centre at Topside, Nauru.

There was some minor damage to kitchens, tents and lights, but no staff or asylum seekers were injured.

One of the men who did not appear in court was in Australia receiving medical treatment, a spokesman for the asylum seekers told the court.

The identities of all 15 men have been suppressed by court order.

Their case was adjourned until February 18.

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UN court frees Rwanda genocide ministers

A UN appeal court has overturned genocide convictions of two former Rwandan ministers who were jailed for 30 years in 2011, and ordered their immediate release.

Appeal judge Theodor Meron overturned convictions for complicity to commit genocide and incitement to commit genocide against Justin Mugenzi, who was trade minister during the 1994 genocide, and Prosper Mugiraneza, former minister in charge of civil servants.

The lower court had convicted the two on the grounds that they attended a council of ministers meeting that decided the then prefect of Butare, a region in southern Rwanda, was to be dismissed on the grounds that he was preventing the massacres from starting in his region.

The prefect, Jean-Baptiste Habyarimana, was killed after his dismissal and the massacres promptly started in Butare.

The lower court judges had ruled that the presence of Mugenzi and Mugiraneza at that meeting, and at another meeting two days later where interim president Theodore Sindikubwabo urged the population to kill Tutsis, meant that they were guilty of complicity to commit genocide and incitement to commit genocide.

The appeal judges however found that Mugenzi and Mugiraneza did not know that Sindikubwabo was going to make such a speech, and that the dismissal of the prefect could have been decided "for political and administrative reasons" and not necessarily in order to speed up the massacres.

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Motorists set to pay more at the pump

The price of unleaded petrol is expected to rise 2-3 cents per litre over the next fortnight. Source: AAP

MOTORISTS can expect further price rises at the petrol bowser over the next couple of weeks, reflecting rising world oil prices, Commonwealth Securities says.

The Australian Institute of Petroleum in its latest report on Monday said the national unleaded fuel price rose by an average 2.1 cents per litre in the past week to 144 cents.

The average metropolitan price rose by 2.4 cents per litre to 142.6 cents, while the regional price increased by 1.3 cents to 146.7 cents.

CommSec chief economist Craig James expects a further two to three cent price rise over the next fortnight as a result of a wholesale prices rising over three cents a litre to a two-month high.

He said world oil prices are being pushed up due to improving sentiment among investors about the global outlook.

"The bottom line is that motorists will end up paying more to fill up," Mr James said in a client note.

He said while higher petrol prices potentially mean a lift in consumer price inflation, the Reserve Bank would remain comfortable about monetary policy given the absence of other price pressures at present.

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Patel trial jury to be polled for bias

Jurors selected for the trial of Jayant Patel will be quizzed by lawyers to see if they are biased. Source: AAP

IN an Australian first, the jurors in the manslaughter trial of former Bundaberg Hospital doctor Jayant Patel will be polled by lawyers to see if they are biased.

In the Supreme Court in Brisbane on Monday, Justice George Fryberg agreed with an application by defence lawyers to question the 12 jurors and three reserve jurors after they had been selected.

The application was brought under the Jury Act, which includes pre-trial publicity as one of the grounds for quizzing a jury about prior knowledge and possible bias.

Lawyers in the Patel trial have been unable to find any other case in Australia where prospective jurors were questioned about their possible bias against a defendant.

Dr Patel is set to stand trial for the manslaughter of Bundaberg Hospital patient Mervyn Morris, 75, in June 2003.

Mr Morris died three weeks after Dr Patel performed an operation on him.

The trial is listed to start on Wednesday, with jury selection expected to take the usual one to two hours before the questioning begins.

Justice Fryberg, who will publish his reasons for allowing the application at another date, has asked the defence lawyers and prosecution to consider overnight what format the polling might take.

He said at this stage he was inclined to prepare a written questionnaire which the jurors could take to the jury room to complete.

The questions would be answered without discussion, with a bailiff in the room to enforce the rule.

Once the answers were completed lawyers would be able to question any jurors in open court.

Unless there was a request from a juror for an answer to remain private, the answers would be made public.

Prosecutor Peter Davis SC said research had failed to find any other case in Australia where a jury had been polled after being selected.

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Israel arrests 20 Hamas members

ISRAELI forces have arrested 20 members of the Palestinian militant group Hamas.

The Israeli military confirmed the arrests but would not elaborate.

According to several Hamas officials the arrests took place in the early hours of Monday across the territory. One of those arrested was in charge of reconciliation talks between Hamas and its rival, the secular Fatah, according to the Hamas officials.

Palestinians have been deeply divided since Hamas overran Gaza in 2007, ousting forces from the Fatah party, led by the Western-backed Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, in bloody street battles. Abbas has since ruled only in parts of the West Bank, and Hamas has held sway in Gaza.

Multiple attempts to reach a long-elusive reconciliation agreement between the two Palestinian groups have not succeeded so far. And while efforts to end the split have failed, the two sides have tried to make a show of unity since Hamas' fierce battle with Israel in November and Fatah's subsequent recognition bid at the United Nations.

Israel considers Hamas a terrorist organisation because it has carried out scores of deadly attacks, including suicide bombings against Israeli civilians.

Hamas politicians have been subject to arrests by Israel since the group defeated Fatah in the 2006 Palestinian election.

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Syrian TV airs images of Israel airstrike

SYRIAN television has broadcast images of what it said is the aftermath of an Israeli airstrike on a research facility near Damascus earlier this week, showing destroyed vehicles and moderate damage to a building.

Israel has not publicly acknowledged Wednesday's airstrike that US officials said had hit a convoy of anti-aircraft weapons inside Syria bound for the militant Lebanese Hezbollah group.

The Syrian military said the target of Israeli jets was a scientific research centre in the area of Jamraya, northwest of Damascus.

The strike raised tensions between Israel and its neighbour Syria, which is engulfed by a raging civil war.

The first purported images of the targeted site, aired by Al-Ikhbariya TV on Saturday, show the twisted and battered remnants of cars, trucks and military vehicles. A building has broken widows and damaged interiors, but no major structural damage. The caption says, "Consequences of the Israeli aggression on the Jamraya centre."

State TV also ran footage of the damage.

Syria's regime vowed revenge for the airstrike, while the rebels battling President Bashar Assad criticised him for not responding to what they termed Israeli aggression.

According to a US official, the strike targeted trucks containing SA-17 anti-aircraft missiles. The trucks were next to the research centre the Syrians identified, and the strikes hit both the trucks and the facility.

Advanced anti-aircraft missiles like the SA-17 in the hands of Hezbollah could change the strategic equation, which so far has allowed Israel to send warplanes over Lebanon practically unopposed.

The Syrian military denied that the target of the attack was a weapons convoy. It said low-flying Israeli jets crossed into the country over the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights to target the Jamraya centre.

Until Wednesday, Israel has been reluctant to do anything that would seem an intervention into Syrian civil war. The airstrike adds another layer to the complexity of the Syrian conflict that has left the international community at a loss for ways to end bloodshed.

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Spike in shootings frustrates SA top cop

SOUTH Australia's top cop has vented his frustration at the spike on the number of shootings in the state in the past month and the number of firearms finding their way into the hands of criminals.

SA Police Commissioner Gary Burns said the jump in the number of shootings was an "enormous concern".

His comments come after a man was shot dead at a shopping centre in Adelaide's north on Sunday morning and the arrest of five men after a loaded pistol was found in their car in the city overnight.

Mr Burns said the vast majority of the shootings have been targeted attacks linked to either drugs, debts, or domestic related.

"While the public can take some comfort that these crimes are not random, it remains a fact there are too many gun-related crimes occurring," Mr Burns said.

"However, South Australia does not stand alone on this, with most jurisdictions across Australia facing similar issues on gun crimes."

He said criminals are arming themselves through a number of ways - through theft of legitimate firearms, manufacturing and importation.

Last year South Australian police set up a specialised firearms investigation team in an effort to curb organised crime and gun violence.

"However, the battle to remove illegal weapons from our community is constant and difficult, with no one easy measure to solve this complex issue," Mr Burns said.

He said investigations into some recent shootings have been hamstrung by victims refusing to cooperate and reveal information that would assist solving the crime.

"This lack of assistance is frustrating to police and creates unnecessary fear in our community," he said.

He said anyone with information about recent shootings or the whereabouts of illegal firearms should contact Crime Stoppers.

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Attack on Iraqi police HQ slaughters 30

A SUICIDE car bombing followed by an assault by grenade-throwing gunmen on a police headquarters in a disputed city in north Iraq killed 30 people on Sunday.

The vehicle that was detonated in central Kirkuk was painted to appear as though it was a police car, and the militants who sought to seize the compound were dressed as policemen, witnesses said.

The attack shattered a relative calm in recent days in Iraq, which has been grappling with a political crisis pitting Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki against his erstwhile government partners amid weeks of ongoing protests calling for him to resign, less than three months before key provincial elections.

No organisation immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, but Sunni militants including al-Qaeda's front group in Iraq frequently target security forces and government targets in a bid to destabilise the country and push it back towards the sectarian bloodshed that blighted it from 2005 to 2008.

The initial suicide car bomb was set off during morning rush hour, and was quickly followed by three gunmen dressed in police uniforms, armed with hand grenades and suicide vests, bursting through the main gate of the Kirkuk police compound in the direction of the headquarters building.

They threw multiple grenades as they sought to reach the building, but were killed before they could get there, witnesses said.

"I saw a vehicle stop at the checkpoint at the main entrance, and the police started checking it," said Kosrat Hassan Karim, who was nearby when the attack took place.

"Suddenly, a loud explosion happened, it was terrifying."

"I saw many people killed inside their cars - I have never seen such a big explosion in my life."

Brigadier General Natah Mohammed Sabr, the head of Kirkuk city's emergency services department, put the toll at 30 dead and 70 wounded.

In addition to the casualties, the attack caused massive damage to nearby buildings and shops, according to an AFP journalist at the scene.

The massive explosion also killed people in nearby buildings. Mohammed Aziz, who works in an office building adjacent to the police headquarters, said at least two of his colleagues died in the blast.

Police largely cut off traffic in the centre of the city and evacuated offices and businesses in the area. They managed to defuse one of the attackers' suicide vests, but were still working to disarm the other two.

Kirkuk, an ethnically mixed city 240 kilometres north of Baghdad, lies at the heart of a swathe of disputed territory claimed by both the central government and Iraq's autonomous northern Kurdish region.

The unresolved row is persistently cited by diplomats and officials as the biggest threat to Iraq's long-term stability.

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Double fatality in western Victoria

A motorcyclist has died after losing control and hitting two parked cars in Melbourne's east. Source: AAP

A MOTORCYCLIST has died after losing control and hitting two parked cars in Melbourne's east.

Police believe the male rider, 29, was travelling west on Fleetwood Drive when the accident occurred about 2.20am (AEDT) on Sunday.

The Cranbourne North man died at the scene.

Police will prepare a report for the coroner.

The crash takes Victoria's road toll to 18, compared with 31 at this time last year.

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Armed bandits threaten 80yo NSW shopkeeper

AN 80-year-old takeaway store owner and his daughter have been threatened with an axe and a machete during an armed robbery in northern NSW.

Police said the elderly man and his 56-year-old daughter were woken up around 1.45am (AEDT) on Sunday by loud noises at their home on Queen Elizabeth Drive at Coraki.

When they went to investigate the sounds in their adjoining takeaway food shop they were confronted by two masked men.

One of the men was armed with an axe, while the other was wielding a machete, police said.

The bandits threatened the man and woman before demanding cash and cigarettes.

They then forced the pair into the woman's Nissan Tiida car, drove them about three kilometres out of Coraki, and ordered them out of the vehicle.

Police pursued the car a short time later at Casino but the robbers managed to dump the vehicle and escape on foot.

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