China now has the second-largest wine-growing area in the world after Spain, pushing France into third place, according to figures released today by the International Organisation of Vine and Wine (IOVW).
	The figures for 2014 showed China had 799,000 hectares (1.97 million acres) of land devoted to wine growing, compared with 1.02 million hectares for Spain.
	France remained the biggest producer of wine in the world, pumping out 47 million hectolitres last year. It also made the most from selling wine abroad, raking in more than 7.7 billion euros (USD 8.4 billion).
	Meanwhile, the United States is the biggest consumer, quaffing some 31,000 hectolitres -- 13 per cent of the global intake -- followed by France and Italy.
	The biggest importers of wine were Germany, the United Kingdom and the US -- with total global trade valued at 26 billion euros.
	China has rapidly emerged as a major player in viniculture, accounting for 11 percent of the territory given over to vineyards last year, .

China has world's 2nd biggest wine-growing area: trade group

PTI Automatic

Suspected Boko Haram gunmen shot dead 21 people in northeast Nigeria who were trying to return home to recover abandoned food supplies, a local official and a victim's relative said today.
	"The men, 21 of them, were stopped at Bultaram (village) by gunmen we believe are Boko Haram who shot them dead," said Baba Nuhu, an official with the Gujba local government in Yobe state.
	Nuhu and Haruna Malam, the brother of one of the victims, spoke to AFP from Yobe's capital Damaturu, where many Gujba residents have fled to seek refuge from Boko Haram violence.

Suspected Boko Haram gunmen kill 21 in NE Nigeria: official

Taiwan's foreign minister said TOday the government of earthquake-devastated Nepal had rejected its offer of a 20-man rescue team, but denied diplomatic pressures were behind the decision.
	The Taipei-based crew was put on standby Sunday with much of the Nepalese capital in ruins and more than 3,500 confirmed dead, but were told aid was being prioritised from neighbouring countries.
	"The Nepalese told us that it would first accept such aid from neighbouring countries like India and Pakistan, considering the chaotic conditions in Nepal, and to take advantage of the golden window for rescue operations," minister David Lin said at a press conference in Taipei.
	China, which considers Taiwan a renegade province and shares a border with Nepal, has also dispatched a 62-member rescue team to Kathmandu along with a group of medics.
	More than 90 people have been killed in India and China since the quake struck.
	Lin denied local media speculation that politics were a factor in the Nepalese ..

Nepal rejects Taiwan rescue team offer: minister

A coalition of Arab states vowed to coordinate political and military efforts to restore order in Yemen as Saudi-led warplanes today launched new air strikes on Shiite Huthi rebels.
	The raids killed at least 12 Huthi insurgents and allied forces as fighting continued across several provinces, military and local sources said.
	Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahayan, the Abu Dhabi crown prince and armed forces chief of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), said the coalition is now working on military and political fronts to reestablish the legitimate authority in Sanaa.
	The campaign's new phase is based on a "multilayered strategy, including military, as well as politics and development, to reestablish the legitimacy," he said on a visit to his troops in Saudi Arabia taking part in the coalition.
	"We have no other choice but to succeed in the test of Yemen," Sheikh Mohammed said, quoted in UAE daily Al-Ittihad, ahead of another UN Security Council meeting Monday on efforts to halt the ...

Arab coalition vows two-pronged strategy over Yemen

The Jerusalem District Attorney on today charged a Palestinian with deliberately running down two Israeli pedestrians this month, killing a man and seriously injuring a woman, the justice ministry said.
	It said in a statement that 37-year-old Khaled Kutina, a resident of the West Bank village of Anata just outside Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem, was charged with murdering 26-year-old Shalom Yohai Cherki and the attempted murder of 20-year-old Shira Klein.
	He is accused of driving into the couple "with great force" as they stood at an east Jerusalem bus stop on April 15.
	National police chief Yohanan Danino at the time called it a "horrible attack".
	According to the charge sheet, seen by AFP, Kutina had become enraged at delays caused by Israeli checkpoints as he drove his parents from Anata to the family home in the east Jerusalem neighbourhood of Sheikh Jarrah.
	After dropping them off, it said, "the accused began to think of carrying out a murderous, nationalistic revenge attack 

Palestinian charged with Jerusalem car killing

As he watched Nepalese police rescuers finally pull the lifeless body of his 14-year-old daughter from the rubble of their home, Dayaram Mohat collapsed on the floor in grief.
	"She was my everything, she didn't do anything wrong," sobbed Mohat after witnessing the end of an agonising rescue bid involving everything from a mechanical digger to bare hands.
	The Mohat family, who live in Kathmandu's densely-populated Balaju neighbourhood, were at home on Saturday lunchtime when a 7.8-magnitude earthquake ripped through the capital and surrounding towns and villages.
	Mohat himself was away from the house for work but most of the rest of the household managed to flee quickly from the falling masonry.
	Minutes later though they realised Prasamsah was missing along with her aunt Chandrawati Mohat, who had been with her niece in the main living room.
	"It all happened so fast...The house crashed at an angle," said the father.
	"The entire load came on the ground floor. We kept screaming, ...

'She was my everything': Tragic end to Nepal quake rescue

Australia urged Indonesia today to delay the execution of two men for drug offences until a corruption probe into their case is complete, after a report that judges sought tens of thousands of dollars in bribes.
	"Bali Nine" drug traffickers Myuran Sukumaran and Andrew Chan could face the firing squad within days, along with others from Brazil, Nigeria, the Philippines and an Indonesian prisoner.
	Australian media showed photos of crosses prepared by a mortician that will be used to mark their coffins, inscribed with the date 29.04.2015.
	But Foreign Minister Julie Bishop said the death row convicts should not be shot while legal question marks remain over their cases.
	"I should point out that Mr Chan and Mr Sukumaran's lawyers are pursuing action before the Constitutional Court in Indonesia," Bishop told ABC radio.
	"And there's also a separate investigation underway by the Indonesian Judicial Commission into claims of corruption in the original trial, and both of these processes ...

Halt Indonesia drug executions until graft claims probed: Aus

The Islamic State jihadist group said it has stoned two men to death for adultery in the northern Iraqi province of Nineveh, according to a series of photos posted online.
	One man is shown kneeling blindfolded in front of a group of men who hurl large stones at him until he is lying face down on the ground, blood running from his head.
	A second man is then killed in the same way, as a crowd including children looks on.
	It is not known when the stonings took place, and the authenticity of the pictures could not be immediately confirmed.
	The Islamic State group led an offensive last June that overran large areas north and west of Baghdad, sweeping security forces aside.
	IS has carried out a string of atrocities including videotaped beheadings and mass executions, rape and enslavement in areas it controls in Iraq and neighbouring Syria.

IS says two men stoned to death for adultery in Iraq

Nepal, one of Asia's poorest countries, faces a crippling multi-billion dollar post-quake reconstruction bill that will set it back years, just as its economy was looking up after a decade-long civil war.
	Saturday's powerful quake devastated much of the capital Kathmandu and killed more than 3,200 people in Nepal's deadliest disaster for more than 80 years.
	Racked by political instability since a deadly war with Maoist rebels ended in 2006, earthquake-prone Nepal must now cope with the added burden of a massive rebuilding effort that its shattered economy will not be able to afford on its own.
	"The Nepal earthquake has had a devastating impact on the economy of Nepal, which is a very poor nation and has extremely limited capacity to finance relief efforts and reconstruction from their own resources," said Rajiv Biswas, Asia-Pacific chief economist at business research firm IHS.
	"The total long-term cost of reconstruction in Nepal using appropriate building standards for regions ...

Quake also devastates impoverished Nepal's economy

Climbers stranded for two days were plucked today from high altitudes on Mount Everest following a deadly quake-triggered avalanche, as exhausted and emotional mountaineers said they were thankful to be alive.
	Rescue teams in three helicopters were running missions to Camps One and Two on the world's highest peak following Saturday's avalanche that killed 18 people further down the mountain at base camp, officials said.
	The 150-odd stranded climbers, not thought to be seriously injured, were blocked by slabs of ice and snow brought down in the avalanche which damaged their land route back down the mountain.
	"We have deployed three helicopters today to bring climbers down from Camp One and Two to base camp," tourism department chief Tulsi Gautam told AFP. "They are safe but we need to bring them down because part of the route is damaged."
	Helicopters have already rescued scores of climbers and their teams seriously injured at base camp in the avalanche, which sent a cloud of snow ..

Choppers rescue climbers stranded at high altitude on Everest

The UN food agency said today it was preparing a large-scale aid operation to earthquake-ravaged Nepal, with a first plane set to arrive tomorrow.
	"This will be a large, massive operation," Elisabeth Byrs, spokeswoman for the UN's World Food Programme, told AFP.
	Officials say more than 3,500 people are now known to have died, including 3,432 in Nepal -- making it the quake-prone Himalayan nation's deadliest disaster in more than 80 years.
	The United Nations is gearing up to launch an emergency appeal for aid for the region.
	WFP experts arrived in Kathmandu on Sunday to evaluate the needs, and the agency estimates shelter and medical equipment should be the first priority.
	The World Health Organization said Monday it had already distributed medical supplies to cover the health needs of more than 40,000 people for three months in the country.
	But with food also expected to quickly run scarce, the UN agency has "mobilised all of our food stocks in the region," Byrs said.
	WFP is ...

UN preparing 'massive' aid operation in quake-hit Nepal

An Australian drug trafficker married his girlfriend today on the Indonesian prison island where he is set to be executed soon, his brother said, urging the country's president to show compassion to the newlyweds.
	Andrew Chan, 31, married his Indonesian girlfriend Febyanti Herewila in a ceremony on Nusakambangan Island, home to several high-security prisons, his brother Michael said.
	He could be put to death by firing squad as soon as tomorrow, along with seven other foreign drug convicts, after authorities at the weekend gave then formal notice of their executions.
	"We've had a special day today," Michael Chan said as he announced the marriage after returning from a visit to Nusakambangan. "We've celebrated with some family and close friends.
	"Hopefully the president will show some compassion, some mercy, so these two young people can carry on with their lives.
	"It's in the president's hands."
	Chan met his future wife several years ago when Herewila, a pastor, began helping ...

Australian trafficker marries before Indonesia execution

The commander of Iran's powerful Revolutionary Guards accused Saudi Arabia of treachery Monday, saying the bombing of Yemen had put the kingdom in the same camp as arch foe Israel.
	The remarks, by General Mohammad Ali Jafari, are a further sign of deteriorating relations between Tehran and Riyadh, after recent heavy criticism by Iran's supreme leader and other top officials.
	As the Middle East's foremost Sunni and Shiite powers, Saudi Arabia and Iran are increasingly seen as vying for supremacy in the region, which remains beset by conflict and political turmoil.
	Jafari urged Iranian officials to put aside past considerations and speak out against the kingdom, following its air strikes in Yemen.
	"Today, treacherous Saudi Arabia is stepping in the footsteps of Israel and the Zionists. This wasn't the case in the past and right now the Islamic revolution's opponents are becoming clearer," the official IRNA news agency quoted him as saying.
	A Saudi-led coalition of Sunni Arab states 

Iran Guards chief accuses Saudi of 'treachery' in Yemen

Reclamation work in the disputed South China Sea, where China has constructed an airstrip and other structures on coral reefs, threaten to "undermine peace, security and stability" in the region, Southeast Asian leaders warned today.
	Beijing's assertion of sovereignty over almost all the sea -- also claimed in parts by several other Asian nations -- has set off alarm bells with its neighbours and beyond as China stakes its claim with growing boldness.
	A statement to be issued at the close of the one-day summit in Malaysia notes "serious concerns" over land reclamation on reefs whose sovereignty is contested. The work has triggered fears of tightening Chinese control over the seaway.
	"We share the serious concerns expressed by some leaders on the land reclamation being undertaken in the South China Sea, which has eroded trust and confidence and may undermine peace, security and stability," said the statement by summit chair Malaysia, seen by AFP, which did not mention China by ...

ASEAN warns sea reclamation 'may undermine peace'

A week of heavy fighting between security forces and the Islamic State jihadist group in the Ramadi area of Anbar province killed 30 police, a top officer said today.
	"The city of Ramadi witnessed heavy confrontations and fighting last week between security forces" and IS, Anbar police chief Staff Major General Kadhim al-Fahdawi said, putting the toll at 30 police killed and 100 wounded.
	Parts of the capital of Anbar province have been out of government control since early 2014, and IS seized more territory in the Ramadi area this month.
	Major attacks also hit other areas of Anbar last week, including three suicide bombings claimed by IS targeting the Iraqi side of the Trebil border crossing with Jordan on Saturday that officials said killed seven people.
	And 13 soldiers, among them two senior officers, were killed in a bombing and clashes east of Ramadi on Friday, Defence Minister Khalid al-Obeidi said.
	Obeidi yesterday rejected reports that more than 100 soldiers were killed in 

Week of fighting in Iraq's Ramadi kills 30 police: officer

Kazakhstan's President Nursultan Nazarbayev extended his quarter-century rule over the oil-rich, ex-Soviet republic with a crushing 97.7 per cent of ballots in an election where opposition parties did not field a candidate, officials said today.
	Nazarbayev, who has run the huge Central Asian country since before the Soviet breakup in 1991, will start a fifth term. The Central Election Commission claimed a record turnout of 95.22 per cent in yesterday's polls.
	Speaking in the capital Astana shortly after exit polls pointed to nearly total voter support, Nazarbayev said he had a mandate for his plans to make Kazakhstan one of the thirty most developed countries in the world.
	"Without this level of general trust it would be difficult to work on realising such aims. The record high turnout at the vote demonstrated the unity of Kazakhstan's people, their desire to live in a stable state and their support for the program I put forward before them," he said.
	However, Nazarbayev tolerates 

Re-election extends Kazakh president's quarter-century rule

OSCE observers said today they have witnessed the most intense shelling in the flashpoint eastern Ukrainian village of Shyrokyne since fighting began there in mid-February, as well as movement of heavy weapons.
	The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, which is helping to monitor a ceasefire in Ukraine, said that explosions 300 metres (yards) from one of its observation posts forced its personnel to change location.
	"On 26 April, the SMM (special monitoring mission) observed what it assessed to be the most intense shelling in Shyrokyne... Since fighting began in the area in mid-February 2015," the OSCE said in a spot report issued overnight.
	"For the last 12 hours, and on-going at the time of this report, the SMM has observed sporadic to continuous exchanges of fire involving small arms, machine gun, rocket propelled grenade and automatic grenade launcher," the Vienna-based security body said.
	Shyrokyne, near the strategic city of Mariupol, has been the scene of ...

'Intense shelling' in flashpoint Ukraine village: OSCE

South Korea today approved a private fertiliser shipment to North Korea for the first time in five years, flagging a possible easing of strict sanctions imposed on the North for the sinking of a naval vessel.
	The move came days after South Korea and the United States wrapped up their annual joint military exercises which are always accompanied by a rise in cross-border tensions.
	The South's Unification Ministry said it would allow Ace Gyeongnam, a South Korean aid group, to deliver farming materials, including 15 tonnes of fertiliser, for a greenhouse project in the North.
	Seoul halted government aid shipments, including fertiliser, to North Korea after a conservative government took office in Seoul in early 2008.
	Fertiliser shipments by private civilian groups were also banned following the 2010 sinking of a South Korean naval corvette, the Cheonan.
	Despite Pyongyang's heated denials, South Korea insisted the ship was sunk by a North Korean submarine and imposed an effective ...

S Korea allows first fertiliser aid to North for 5 years

North Korea has increased its "material support" for terrorist organisations and should be placed back on America's list of nations that are state sponsors of terrorism, a report released today said.
	The Pyongyang regime, at the time under the command of Kim Jong-il, was taken off the list in 2008 under the presidency of George W Bush, who hoped to engage the reclusive nation in dialogue.
	But according to the new report, written by North Korea expert Joshua Stanton for the Committee for Human Rights in North Korea (HRNK), America's standards for defining a state sponsor of terror are "vague and inconsistent."
	The report, titled "Arsenal of Terror," recommends that the US Congress and State Department clarify the legal standards that define state sponsorship of terrorism and consider re-listing North Korea as a sponsor.
	"Since 2008, North Korea has increased its use of terrorism as an instrument of state policy, and also appears to have increased its material support for designated 

US should put N Korea back on sponsors of terror list: report

Australia today said it was deeply concerned about an Australian-trained doctor who appears in an Islamic State propaganda video which urges other medical professionals to join the jihadists.
	   The slick video, uploaded to YouTube, shows a man who identifies himself as Abu Yusuf explaining that he travelled to the city of Raqa in Syria to use his medical skills to help the IS cause.
	   Australian media widely reported that he was Tareq Kamleh, an Adelaide-trained doctor.
	   "I saw this as part of my jihad for Islam to help the Muslims in the area that I could, which is in the medical field," he said in the video, in a broad Australian accent.
	   "I wish I'd come a lot sooner."
	   More than 100 Australians are believed to be fighting with jihadists in Iraq and Syria and Foreign Minister Julie Bishop said a medical professional joining them was a worrying development.
	   "This is a deep concern," she told ABC radio.
	   "This is clearly another vile attempt by Daesh to try to ...

Australia concern over doctor in IS video

Celebrated defence lawyer Judy Clarke will launch her bid Monday to save 21-year-old convicted killer Dzhokhar Tsarnaev from the death penalty for bombing the Boston Marathon in 2013.
	   Clarke, one of America's best-known death penalty experts, will make an opening statement and present witnesses in the penalty phase of the trial that will see Tsarnaev sentenced to death or life in prison.
	   The April 15, 2013 double bombing killed three people and wounded 264 others in one of the deadliest attacks in the United States since 9/11.
	   Tsarnaev was convicted on all 30 counts this month by the 12-person jury that will now determine his fate: execution or life without parole.
	   The defense will plead extenuating circumstances and do everything to humanise the young Muslim of Chechen origin, who moved with his family from Kyrgyzstan to Dagestan to the United States as a young child.
	   He was scared of and manipulated by his radical, older brother Tamerlan, 26, the true mastermind .

AFP

AFP

Page 2377 - Afp