Sink hole swallows soldier's grave in UK

WORK is to begin next week on filling a sink hole that has appeared in a British military cemetery, swallowing the grave of a soldier called Private Ryan.

The grave in the Pembroke Dock war cemetery, Wales' only military graveyard, collapsed into a six metre-hole after a prolonged spell of heavy rain caused the limestone layer beneath Pte Ryan's coffin to shift.

Military chiefs are now working to prevent the headstone collapsing into the pit. Five other graves are also thought to be at risk of falling into the cavern.

The soldier, Private Francis Ryan, of the 3rd (Reserve) Battalion, King's (Liverpool Regiment), was born in Longford in Ireland in 1875 and died in 1915, aged 40.

The Ministry of Defence has been unable to trace any living relatives of the deceased serviceman, whose name echoes the title of Tom Hanks' Second World War film.

The MoD says it has no plans to exhume the grave but instead intends to fill the hole to prevent it growing.

"Work to fill the sink hole will begin next week and will be completed by the end of March. The chosen option does not involve exhumation," a spokesman said.

Currently the hole is covered with just a protective metal grille to deter tomb raiders.

The west Wales graveyard will host events to mark the centenary of the outbreak of the First World War in August.

The cemetery is the final resting place for 23 Commonwealth servicemen killed during the First World War and 51 who died during the Second World War.

The affected section has been cordoned off to the public while work to make the graves safe continues.

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Boys, 12 and 14, charged over crime spree

TWO boys, aged 12 and 14, have been charged with intimidation, assault and other offences after a two-day crime spree in a northwestern NSW town which started with a Molotov cocktail being thrown in front of a house.

Police were called to the house in Walgett on Thursday night after the boys allegedly threw the Molotov cocktail, but the pair fled.

The following afternoon police were called again to the home after the two boys allegedly threw rocks at the house and a 19-year-old man, hitting him a number of times and allegedly threatening him with a knife.

Police found the older boy and he allegedly threatened police with a knife and iron bar before running into a nearby home.

Both boys were arrested at the home, where police allegedly found equipment believed to have been used in break ins.

The 14-year-old was charged with possess/use prohibited weapon, custody of knife in public place, stalk/intimidate, intimidate officer, assault and assault officer in execution of duty.

The 12-year-old boy was charged with common assault, stalk/intimidate and possess housebreaking implements.

Both were granted conditional bail to appear at children's court on March 13.

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Man drags boy from Melbourne playground

POLICE are searching for a man who dragged a six-year-old boy from a playground in Melbourne's southeast before letting him go.

The boy was in the playground on Dempster Way in Narre Warren when he was approached by an unknown man about 5pm on Saturday, police say.

"The man grabbed the boy by the arm and dragged him approximately 50 metres towards Melzak Way," police said in a statement.

He let go of the child when another adult approached him and then left the area with a young girl, believed to be known to him, police say.

The man was described as being of Indian sub-continental appearance and was wearing a black shirt, red shorts with a white emblem on the sides and glasses.

The boy wasn't injured and police are treating it as an isolated incident.

Anyone with information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.

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Berkshire Hathaway's 4Q profit up 10%

WARREN Buffett's company says fourth-quarter earnings rose 10 per cent to nearly $US5 billion ($A5.60 billion) as its insurance, rail and energy businesses generated major profit gains.

Berkshire Hathaway's insurance companies, which include Geico and General Reinsurance, reported a $US394 million operating profit for the final quarter of 2013, compared with a $US19 million loss a year earlier.

The Omaha, Nebraska, company also benefited from a surge in pre-tax earnings at its "Powerhouse Five," a group of non-insurance companies that include Burlington Northern Santa Fe railway and electric utility MidAmerican Energy.

Net income rose to $US4.99 billion on revenue of $US47.05 billion from $US4.55 billion on revenue of $US44.72 billion in 2012.

Operating earnings, which exclude investments and derivatives, grew to $US3.78 billion, or $US2,297 per Class A share.

The three analysts surveyed by FactSet expected operating earnings of $US2,495.42 per Class A share.

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Dozens arrested in Spain, UK over fraud

MORE than 100 people have been in Spain, Britain, Serbia and the United States over a massive scam that tricked people into buying millions of pounds of worthless shares, British police say.

Spanish and British officers launched a joint operation against criminal gangs behind the so-called "boiler room" fraud, said the City of London police on Friday.

The arrests were made on Tuesday but can now be disclosed after a Spanish judge lifted a reporting ban.

Eighty-four of the 110 arrests were in the Spanish cities of Madrid, Barcelona and Marbella, 20 were in London, four in Serbia and two in the United States, police said.

The operation closed down 14 boiler rooms in Spain, two in Britain and one in Serbia.

Items including an Aston Martin, Ferrari, Mercedes, BMW, a Mustang car, designer clothes, watches and cash in various denominations were also seized.

City of London Police Commander Steve Head said it was a "landmark" two-year investigation with Spain's Policia Nacional.

"It is our most important investigation ever, targeting people we believe are at the top of an organised crime network that has been facilitating boiler rooms across Europe and which is suspected of being responsible for millions of pounds of investment fraud," said Head.

"Boiler room" fraud - made famous by a 2000 film starring Oscar-winner Ben Affleck - involves investors being duped into buying worthless or non-existent shares.

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Train trips offered for smoky Vic town

VICTORIANS suffering through days of smoke haze drifting into their community from a burning coal mine are being offered free train trips out of town.

The Hazelwood mine in the Latrobe Valley has been burning for nearly three weeks, blanketing Morwell in falling ash and smoke.

Thousands enduring the fumes, however, can now breathe easier with the state government coughing up the cash to cover their train tickets.

Public Transport Minister Terry Mulder says return train tickets to anywhere in Victoria are a goodwill gesture for those wanting to escape the smokey conditions.

"There are plenty of options for Morwell people to take a trip to town for lunch, a movie, or a spot of shopping," he said in a statement.

There are also weekly grants of up to $1250 for families who have decided to leave their homes.

Health authorities upgraded warnings to urge the elderly, children, pregnant woman and those with heart or lung conditions to leave Morwell South, but have not called for a total evacuation of the area.

The fire is expected to keep billowing coal smoke over Morwell for another 10 days.

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Man wakes up in body bag at funeral home

WORKERS at a US funeral home say they found a man alive and kicking when they opened a body bag.

Coroner Dexter Howard calls it a miracle that 78-year-old Walter Williams is alive.

The coroner was called to Williams' home in Mississippi, where family members believed he had died.

Howard says Williams had no pulse and was pronounced dead on Wednesday.

Early on Thursday, workers at Porter and Sons Funeral Home were preparing to embalm Williams when he started to kick in the body bag.

Family members were called and Williams was taken to a hospital. Howard says he believes Williams' pacemaker stopped working, then started again.

Family members say Williams, a farmer, told them he's happy to be alive.

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UK serial killer given whole life term

PSYCHOPATHIC British serial killer Joanna Dennehy has been ordered to serve the rest of her life in prison for murdering three men before randomly selecting and attempting to kill two others.

A judge told Dennehy she was "a cruel, calculating, selfish and manipulative serial killer" as he sentenced the 31-year-old at the Old Bailey.

Dennehy, who laughed and smirked as the judge delivered his sentencing remarks, pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing to the murders of Lukasz Slaboszewski, 31, Kevin Lee, 48, and John Chapman, 56, in and around Peterborough over a 10-day period last March.

Police launched a nationwide hunt to find her after the bodies were discovered in remote ditches in Cambridgeshire but she went on to drive 140 miles to Hereford where she repeatedly stabbed two dog walkers.

Dennehy also admitted two counts of attempted murder and preventing the lawful and decent burial of her murder victims.

Three men were also sentenced for helping in her killing spree.

The killer, who had seemed relaxed throughout the hearing, muttered and smirked as sentence was passed.

Addressing Dennehy, who has been diagnosed with various psychopathic disorders, Mr Justice Spencer said: "Within the space of ten days you murdered three men in cold blood.

"Although you pleaded guilty, you've made it quite clear you have no remorse.

"Only a matter of days later you attempted to kill two more men - victims chosen entirely at random.

"Miraculously they survived.

"You claim to feel remorse for those attacks but I have no hesitation in rejecting that.

"You are a cruel, calculating, selfish and manipulative serial killer."

Later the judge added: "The death and destruction you are responsible for has caused untold distress for the families of those killed and of those who survived."

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Qantas jobs losses to be revealed

QANTAS workers are set to find out how many of them will lose their jobs when Qantas announces a half year loss, even as the federal government is drafting changes to the Qantas Sale Act that would allow it to be majority foreign-owned.

The national carrier warned on Tuesday it would still be making tough decisions to cut $2 billion in costs regardless of assistance.

Qantas, struggling with high debt, is expected to announce a large half year loss on Thursday. It claims the effects of a fare war with rival Virgin Australia and its cost base disadvantage with state-backed foreign rivals, bite into earnings.

The federal government is considering a short-term debt guarantee, as well as repealing the foreign ownership limits, to ease pressure on the iconic airline.

The coalition will need to secure cross-bench support in the Senate to pass changes to the Qantas Sale Act, given that Labor and the Greens oppose any amendments.

The airline's share price has risen by 16 per cent in the last few weeks, prompting a union call for a regulators investigation into who was profiteering out of the speculation.

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Putin orders military tests amid tensions

PRESIDENT Vladimir Putin has ordered massive exercises involving most of its military units in western Russia amid tensions in Ukraine.

Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said in a televised statement made at a meeting of top military brass in Moscow that the exercise is intended to "checks the troops' readiness for action in crisis situations that threaten the nation's military security".

Shoigu said Putin ordered the exercise on Wednesday afternoon. During the first two days, the military will be put on high alert and some will deploy to shooting ranges.

The actual manoeuvres will start on Friday and will last four days. The exercise will involve ships of the Baltic and the Northern Fleets and the air force.

Shoigu's statement didn't contain any reference to Ukraine, where tensions remain high following the toppling of Russia-backed President Viktor Yanukovych.

Russia has questioned the legitimacy of the new Ukrainian authorities and accused them of failing to control radicals who threaten the Russia-speaking population in Ukraine's east and south.

A senior Russian MP on Tuesday told pro-Russia activists in Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula where Russia has a major naval base that Moscow will protect them if their lives are in danger.

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Indonesia wants to be great power: report

AUSTRALIA should prepare for Indonesia trying to assert itself as a great regional power in coming years, but the posturing won't be aimed at its southern neighbour.

A research paper from the Lowy Institute says the country will pursue a more ambitious role on the world stage, but it won't translate into greater diplomatic or military clout in the near term.

Lead author Dave McRae, a visiting fellow at the Australian National University, says even though Indonesia's economic growth has been impressive, it will still lack the resources to flex its muscles.

"As a foreign policy actor, Indonesia is not quite the next big thing," he writes in More Talk Than Walk, to be released on Thursday.

"It will project the image of a great power despite its middle-power abilities."

The report found that Indonesia's military spend in absolute terms is just one-third of Australia's annual budget and slightly less than tiny but wealthy Singapore.

It can't yet dictate an agenda to regional forums like ASEAN, despite being the only Southeast Asian nation in the G20 and the largest by size and population.

Indonesian finance minister Muhammad Chatib Basri told a forum in Canberra recently he was confident his country could remain the second-fastest-growing economy in the Asia region, despite fiscal challenges.

But it's unclear what impact a more assertive Indonesia would have on bilateral ties with Australia, which are on shaky ground after disputes over spying and asylum seekers.

Dr McRae said Indonesia wasn't likely to elevate its relationship with Australia to a top foreign policy priority any time soon because of its larger trading partners and strategic challenges to the north.

"Outside of periodic bilateral spats, Australia can appear invisible in Indonesian foreign policy discussions," he said.

ANU professor of strategic studies Hugh White said the recent diplomatic crisis had been caused in part by Australia's belief that it could dictate the terms of its relationship with Indonesia.

But those days are over, and Australia will have to shift its mindset as Indonesia ultimately emerges as a strong power in the region.

"Indonesia, in order to keep its own interests, is going to have to conduct itself differently in our region," Prof White told a recent forum at ANU.

Dr McRae said the "great uncertainty" in Indonesia's foreign policy would be the 2014 presidential election.

The frontrunner is an enormously popular local leader who is inexperienced on the world stage, while the next most likely candidate is a controversial former Suharto strongman who is banned from travelling to the US.

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EU approves stricter tobacco rules

TOBACCO products in the EU will soon feature less attractive packaging and menthol cigarettes will be on their way out, in a move that mirrors Australia's crackdown on big tobacco.

The bloc's parliament approved new rules on Wednesday aimed at curbing smoking.

"By ensuring that tobacco products look and taste like tobacco products, the new rules will help to reduce the number of people who start smoking in the EU," Tonio Borg, the bloc's health commissioner, said on Tuesday.

He argued that tobacco has a "devastating effect" on health, pointing to estimates that 700,000 Europeans die of tobacco-related diseases every year, that smokers live an average of 14 years less than non-smokers and that they spend more years "in poor health".

In a world-first Australia introduced plain packaging in late 2012 with all cigarettes and tobacco products now sold in drab olive-brown packs.

The UK is set to follow Australia's lead with England likely to introduce plain packs before the 2015 election.

The Scottish government is aiming for a 2014-15 implementation while the Republic of Ireland is already examining legislation.

The new measures in the EU have been controversial and the focus of intense lobbying by the tobacco industry.

Critics argue the reforms will limit consumer choice, fuel the illegal trade in cigarettes, cut government revenues and cause job losses.

The new legislation will require tobacco companies to cover 65 per cent of the front and back of their packages with health warnings, including graphic photos, for instance, of diseases caused by smoking. Countries wishing to introduce plain packaging could do so.

Flavoured tobacco products with high sales volumes will be banned.

"The new measures ... will help to prevent the next generation of smokers from being recruited," said British EU MP Linda McAvan, who shepherded the proposals through the legislature.

"The overwhelming majority of smokers start before their 18th birthday."

The parliament approved the measures in a 514-66 vote, with 58 abstentions.

EU governments are now expected to grant the final approval to the tobacco reforms on March 14. The move should be a formality, since member states already informally agreed to the compromise package with parliament in December.

Countries would then have two years to incorporate the new rules into their national laws.

In 2012, 28 per cent of the EU's 500 million citizens were believed to be smokers. Some 700,000 Europeans are estimated to die of tobacco-related diseases every year.

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Parts of Pistorius trial can be broadcast

PARTS of Oscar Pistorius' murder trial can be broadcast live by three remote-controlled cameras set up in court, a judge has ruled, but the testimony given by the double-amputee Olympian himself can't be shown.

Pistorius' defence lawyers failed in their bid to stop any part of the trial being broadcast as a judge in the North Gauteng High Court on Tuesday ruled mostly in favour of the South African TV and radio applicants.

Judge Dunstan Mlambo's ruling now opens up much of the blockbuster trial to the scrutiny of millions of fascinated followers in South Africa and around the world.

Mlambo granted permission to the South African media houses to install the unmanned television cameras in "unobtrusive" locations at least 72 hours before the trial opens on Monday.

A live audio feed can also be broadcast, while still photographs can be taken in court by two other mounted cameras operated by photographers.

TV footage or photographs however cannot show "extreme" close up images of anyone in the court and witnesses who object can stop their testimony from being broadcast, Mlambo said.

Pistorius' defence lawyers had argued that broadcasting the trial in any way would harm his chances of receiving a fair trial.

Brian Webber, the lawyer representing Pistorius in this hearing, declined to initially comment on the ruling saying he had yet to study it.

Pistorius was charged with murder a year ago over the shooting death of girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp at his upscale house in Pretoria.

He faces a possible sentence of 25 years in prison if he is convicted on the main charge of premeditated murder, which he denies.

Mlambo said his decision on Tuesday was a careful "balancing act" between guaranteeing Pistorius a fair trial and also respecting the freedom of the media.

South Africa's justice system is "still perceived as treating the rich and famous with kid gloves whilst being harsh on the poor and vulnerable," he said.

"Enabling a larger South African society to follow firsthand the criminal proceedings which involve a celebrity so to speak, will go a long way into dispelling these negative and unfounded perceptions about the justice system".

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George Lucas donates $US25m to US school

FILMMAKER George Lucas and his wife Mellody Hobson are donating $US25 million ($A27.7 million) to a prestigious private school on Chicago's South Side.

The University of Chicago said on Tuesday that the grant from The George Lucas Family Foundation will pay for a new arts hall at the university's Laboratory Schools.

The 86,000-square-foot building will open in 2015 and will be named after Gordon Parks, a photographer, musician and social justice advocate.

Hobson is president of Chicago-based Ariel Investments.

She married the Star Wars filmmaker in 2013.

Lucas says in a statement that art can "transform lives and communities" and says he hopes Parks' legacy will inspire future generations.

The Hyde Park school has about 1800 students in nursery school through 12th grade.

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Macy's fourth quarter profit up 11%

MACY'S is reporting an 11 per cent increase in fourth-quarter profit, but its results missed Wall Street expectations as a string of winter storms chilled sales in January.

The department store chain, which operates Macy's and Bloomingdale's, says that it earned $US811 million ($A900 million), or $US2.16 per share, in the three months that ended February 1. That compares with $US730 million, or $US1.83 per share, a year earlier.

Revenue slipped 1.6 per cent to $US9.2 billion.

Analysts were expecting $US2.17 per share on revenue of $US9.28 billion, according to FactSet.

Revenue at stores open at least a year rose 1.4 per cent, below the 2.5 per cent increase that Wall Street analysts expected.

The Cincinnati-based retailer has been a standout among its peers throughout the economic recovery.

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Kiwis rally for rights in Australia

NEW Zealanders will rally together in cities around Australia to protest what they call unjust and discriminative immigration laws.

The rallies on Wednesday, organised by the Iwi n Aus Foundation, will take place in Queensland, South Australia, New South Wales, Western Australia and Victoria.

About 300,000 New Zealanders live across the Tasman on special category visas. This means they pay taxes but don't get access to benefits of permanent residency such as disability care, welfare and social housing.

The restrictions were brought in under a joint agreement between Australia's Liberal government and Helen Clark's Labour government in 2001.

Iwi n Aus, run by a group of mothers, says the discriminative laws are affecting not only their children but their Australian-born grandchildren.

Founder Erina Anderson says Kiwis often cross the Tasman with no concept of how bad it can get for them in Australia.

"If Prime Minister John Key wanted to stop New Zealanders from coming to Australia, there's one simple way thing he could do - tell people what they can expect," she told AAP.

"Nobody would willingly pick up their family and move across if they knew their children weren't going to be afforded equal rights."

She says through her work she sees many New Zealanders suffering from mental illness and extreme financial stress after falling on hard times in Australia.

Many Kiwis can't get permanent residency because their occupations aren't on Australia's wanted-skills list, and therefore also can't get citizenship, she says.

Families in Australia also have children with different rights, depending on when and where they were born.

"How do you say to your children who are going through high school, the ones of you who are citizens or permanent residents can go to university because you can get a student loan, but sorry darling you can't because you were born in Auckland?"

Kiwi mothers and fathers are not entitled to single parent payments, so even if their children are born in Australia, the death of their Aussie spouse or a separation could leave them without the means to support their children.

Her Australian foster kids have been disadvantaged by her New Zealand status, missing out on carers' payments for their special needs, Ms Anderson says.

"If I knew what I know, I would not have come," Ms Anderson said.

"No way would I have brought five kids across the Tasman and many of us feel bad that we have."

But it's not as simple as just packing up and going home, she says.

"Does that mean my sons who are fathers to Australian children, should they leave?"

"Should they abandon their partners to go back to where they came from?"

Earlier this month, Prime Minister Tony Abbott said he expected New Zealanders to be "lifters not leaners".

But Ms Anderson says it's not about Kiwis mooching off unemployment benefits.

"I wouldn't be wasting my time lobbying for the dole, I've got better things to do with my time."

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