Storm over Bay of Bengal leaves 140 missing, news agency says

(CNN) -- A rough storm in the Bay of Bengal left 10 boats and the some 140 people aboard them missing, according to Bangladesh's official news agency on Thursday.

Eight other boats capsized over the past two days, though the fishermen and crew on those vessels were rescued by other boaters nearby, the Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha reported.

"We fear the trawlers lost their way due to the rough weather ... we are unaware of their fates but expect the weather to drift them towards the Indian coastlines," Hafizur Rahman, secretary of the Patharghata Trawler Workers Association, told the news agency.

CNN

Russia to reimburse Iran for nixed missile pact

(CNN) -- Russia is preparing to reimburse Iran for canceling a contract for a missile defense system, and China is discussing the sale of a similar missile to the Islamic republic, according to Iranian and Russian news agency reports.

"We are now preparing all the necessary documents," Iran's state-run Press TV reported, citing Russian Technologies chief, Sergei Chemezov. "Talks are under way on how to compensate for Iran's outlay".

Russia blocked weapons sales to Iran last month because of U.N. sanctions against the Islamic republic over its nuclear program, despite Iran's objections. Items blocked from sale include the S-300 surface-to-air missile systems. The order banned export to Iran of armored vehicles, military aircraft, helicopters and ships.

Iran has said repeatedly that its nuclear program is aimed at producing energy for peaceful purposes. It said Russia's refusal to deliver the system is a violation of its contract. International powers say Iran wants to pursue nuclear weaponry.

The Russian state-run RIA Novosti said Russia owes Tehran only the prepayment of $166.8 million for S-300 air defense missile systems, citing Chemezov.

The missile systems that had been destined for Iran have been built, and could possibly be supplied to a third country, Chemezov said, according to RIA-Novosti.

CNN

Two German citizens killed in Hanoi fireworks explosion

(CNN) -- Two of the four people killed in a fireworks explosion in Vietnam were German citizens, the German Foreign Office confirmed Thursday.

The explosion, in the Vietnamese capital of Hanoi, also injured three people Wednesday morning, state media reported.

The blast happened when a shipment of fireworks blew up near My Dinh National Stadium, one of 29 sites in the capital where pyrotechnic displays were planned for Hanoi's 1,000th anniversary, the official Viet Nam News reported.

The explosion was blamed on "carelessness" during the transport of two containers of fireworks, the newspaper said.

CNN

Accused Fort Hood shooter refuses psychiatric evaluation

(CNN) -- The former Army psychiatrist accused of killing 13 people at Fort Hood, Texas, refused to participate in a psychiatric evaluation of himself on Thursday, his lawyer told CNN.

Three military psychiatrists on Thursday showed up at the Texas jail where Maj. Nidal Hasan is incarcerated to conduct a sanity review, but his layer, John Galligan, told CNN that he filled out a form saying he and his client would not cooperate.

The psychiatrists left without conducting the review, said Galligan, who objects to the timing of the review and to the composition of the military's "sanity board".

A Fort Hood spokesman, Tyler Broadway, said that the psychiatric evaluation is ongoing, despite Thursday's developments.

The officer overseeing the criminal case against Hasan is asking for a sanity review for the defendant "without further delay," according to a memo obtained by CNN on Tuesday.

The request came a week before Hasan's Article 32 hearing next Tuesday, a key pre-trial procedure in which the first public testimony is given in the case. Hasan is charged with 13 counts of murder in connection with the November 5 shooting at the Army's largest base, located in central Texas between Dallas and San Antonio.

Galligan, a civilian attorney, has told CNN that he has instructed his client not to talk to anyone connected with the sanity review, and called the sudden push for the examination part of an Army attempt to "distract" him as he prepares for the upcoming hearing.

Col. Morgan Lamb, the officer overseeing the case, had indicated in January that the military would not "meet with, test or examine" Hasan until after the Article 32 hearing.

But in the memo obtained by CNN, Lamb said he reversed his decision after the defense said in court last month that it may introduce that the mental capacity evidence for consideration in the case -- after previously saying it would not raise the issue of mental capacity or competency.

CNN

New Facebook page gives inside look at CNN show

The show team at CNN International's Connect the World might be a bit late to the Facebook, but I guess better late than never.

The primetime show has a brand new Facebook fan page which will give viewers and Facebook addicts an inside look at what goes on behind the scenes at the show.

We'll bring you special video interviews with members of the show team and give you a look at what it's like to put together a program on CNN.

You'll hear from host Becky Anderson on what it is like to interview some of the biggest newsmakers on the planet as well as some of the most interesting celebrities. You might even hear from the celebrities themselves!

We'll also update the page with behind the scenes photos. From time to time you'll even be able to see what it is like being at an interview with people ranging from George Clooney to Pervez Musharraf.

All you have to do is click 'like' on the page which is www.facebook.com/CNNconnect.

It's as simple as that so make sure you connect up with the show on Facebook.

Become a fan now and you won't be disappointed!

CNN

Study shines new light on Sun's role in Earth's climate

London, England (CNN) -- A new study has shed light on the sun's impact on the Earth's climate, confounding current thinking about solar cycles and how they influence temperatures on Earth.

Previously scientists had thought that radiation reaching the Earth rises and falls in line with the Sun's activity, which during the 11-year solar cycle goes though periods of low and high activity.

But research by Imperial College, London and the University of Colorado in the U.S. examining solar radiation levels from 2004 to 2007 -- a period of declining solar activity -- revealed that levels of visible radiation reaching the Earth actually increased during the period.

Using data collected by NASA's SORCE (SOlar Radiation and Climate Experiment) satellite, which launched in 2003, the scientists were able to scrutinize the full solar spectrum -- x-ray, ultraviolet (UV), visible (VR), near-infrared, and total solar radiation -- and compare it to earlier, less comprehensive data.

Joanna Haigh, leader author of the study published in the journal Nature told CNN: "What the data has shown, rather unexpectedly, is that the decline in ultra-violet radiation is much larger than anticipated. But more surprisingly the visible radiation actually increased as solar activity was declining".

CNN

Gay Arab pokes at prejudices in Israel's version of 'The Office'

Tel Aviv, Israel (CNN) -- Put an Israeli Arab, a Jewish settler and a large man with no tact in the same room and you can see the sparks fly. Put it on television and you can call it comedy.

Israel is the latest country to see the "The Office" -- or "HaMisrad" -- on its TV screens. The hit British comedy originally penned by Ricky Gervais and Steve Merchant has spawned spin-off series across the world, including in the U.S. where it starred comedian Steve Carell.

The Hebrew version shares much with the British original like the awkward car-crash moments when personalities collide in an office -- but with one basic difference.

"The Israeli culture is almost opposite [to British culture]," says Uzi Weill, the screenwriter who adapted the UK version for an Israeli audience.

"Where the British would be embarrassed, the Israeli would be embarrassing. The British would be reserved, the Israeli would just say it flat to your face".

The Israeli version deals in a healthy amount of stereotypes -- Arab, settler, Russian, Ethiopian, tired old businessman. But then it starts to challenge what you think you know about that character.

"It does change the inner way you look at things, you are not as set in the way you perceive reality," says Weill.

Jamil Khoury plays Abed, the Israeli Arab who does everything he can to blend into the predominantly Jewish office. He says his character is different to Arab characters usually seen on Israeli television.

CNN

Jihadist website: One of Hamburg terror group killed in drone strike

(CNN) -- A jihadist from Hamburg suspected of being part of an al Qaeda plot against Europe was killed by a drone strike in northwest Pakistan this week, according to a statement Thursday on a Turkish-language jihadist website.

The website said a fighter named Abu Askar al-Almani and three other Jihadists had been "martyred" by the missile strike against a base in Waziristan, where German and Tajik fighters were living. German officials say al-Almani is the nom de guerre of Shahab Dashti, an Iranian-German who left Hamburg, Germany, with 10 other suspected militants in the spring of 2009.

Earlier this week, Pakistani officials told CNN that a drone strike Monday near Mir Ali in North Waziristan killed five German militants. They were alleged to be part of an Al Qaeda plot to target European cities with attacks styled after the one on Mumbai, India, in 2008.

The alleged conspiracy prompted the U.S. State Department to issue a travel advisory Sunday to Americans traveling in Europe.

CNN

French burqa ban clears last legal obstacle

(CNN) -- France's law banning the burqa and other Islamic face coverings in public places is legal, top constitutional authorities in France ruled Thursday, clearing the final hurdle before the ban goes into effect.

The ban passed both houses of the French legislature by overwhelming margins earlier this year, and is scheduled to come into effect in the spring.

The law imposes a fine of 150 euros ($190) and/or a citizenship course as punishment for wearing a face-covering veil. Forcing a woman to wear a niqab or a burqa will be punishable by a year in prison or a 15,000-euro ($19,000) fine, the government said, calling it "a new form of enslavement that the republic cannot accept on its soil".

A panel of French lawmakers recommended a ban last year, and lawmakers unanimously passed a non-binding resolution in May calling the full-face veil contrary to the laws of the nation.

"Given the damage it produces on those rules which allow the life in community, ensure the dignity of the person and equality between sexes, this practice, even if it is voluntary, cannot be tolerated in any public place," the French government said when it sent the measure to parliament in May.

French people back the ban by a margin of more than four to one, the Pew Global Attitudes Project found in a survey earlier this year.

Some 82 percent of people polled approved of a ban, while 17 percent disapproved. That was the widest support the Washington-based think tank found in any of the five countries it surveyed.

Clear majorities also backed burqa bans in Germany, Britain and Spain, while two out of three Americans opposed it, the survey found.

CNN

Rescuers expect to reach Chilean miners by Saturday

Copiapo, Chile (CNN) -- Rescuers in Chile have just another 89 meters (292 feet) left to drill and are expected to break through into the area where 33 miners are trapped by Saturday, Chilean Mines Minister Laurence Golborne said Thursday.

Depending on whether engineers decide to encase the rescue shaft with steel casing, the 33 miners could be extracted from the collapsed San Jose gold and copper mine within two to 10 days after breakthrough, Golborne added.

The miners have been trapped in a chamber since August 5. They are in contact with the outside world through a small bore hole that is being used to send them food, water, supplies and other necessities.

Rescue crews have been drilling three separate, wider holes to send down a rescue capsule that will bring the men to the surface. Those rescue attempts have been labeled Plans A, B and C.

"We're advancing pretty well in Plan B. We restarted the drilling process and are hoping we can get contact more or less this Saturday. Depending [on] if we have to change the drill hammer or not it could be a bit earlier, but we're predicting [the] date for Saturday," Golborne said.

CNN

Liverpool ownership battle heads for London courtroom

(CNN) -- The future of Liverpool Football Club will be decided in London's High Court next week after current owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett mounted a legal challenge to the proposed buyout by New England Sports Ventures (NESV).

Reds chairman Martin Broughton announced the sale to the company which owns the Boston Red Sox on Wednesday, but the American co-owners claimed the £300 million ($476m) offer "dramatically undervalues" the club.

Hicks and Gillett also allege that the sale, which is subject to Premier League approval, is not legally binding because two board members who approved the deal had already been sacked.

But Broughton says the removal of managing director Christian Purslow and commercial director Ian Ayre, and their replacement by Hicks's son Mack and his associate Lori McCutcheon, were not valid moves.

"The key thing is the court case," Broughton told the Liverpool website. "We need to go to the court to get a declaratory judgment, which is for the court to declare that we did act validly in completing the sale agreement, and then the buyers can complete the sale.

"I am confident. I wouldn't have taken the board through that process yesterday if I hadn't been confident".

CNN

National interests creating tension in EU commission

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS – A group of EU commissioners from smaller member states is growing increasingly angry with a number of their larger-state colleagues, perceiving their actions as being driven by national interests rather than the greater European good.

"We have sworn in front of the European Court not to work for our national governments back home and I am taking it seriously," a frustrated commissioner from a smaller EU country said in an off-the-record conversation last week.

"Of course it is much easier when you come from a small member state where national leaders don't really attempt to influence the course of EU history," the commissioner added.

The implication that EU legislation is subject to the whims of powerful national capitals such as Berlin, Paris or Rome is nothing new. But the financial crisis and an enlarged union with greater powers for the Brussels-based institutions are all contributing to growing pressure, say seasoned observers.

"The bigger the EU becomes the more it becomes intergovernmental and the more the commission is regarded as an executive secretariat for the council," says Belgian MEP Derk Jan Eppink, a member of the European Conservatives and Reformists group in parliament.

Author of Life of a European Mandarin – Inside the Commission, Mr Eppink previously worked in the cabinets of former commissioner Frits Bolkestein and subsequently that of Siim Kallas.

"Commissioners from larger member states frequently feel they have to produce the goods for their governments back home, while those from smaller countries realise they don't have the capacity to do this," he said, pointing to former commissioner Gunter Verheugen's willingness to stand up for German industry.

Another official identified issues of public procurement, state aid and EU infringement cases as areas where national lobbying is frequently intense.

"Senior Italian officials within the commission are known for arguing their national case overtly," the contact said. The source added that the practice of defending a member state view is not necessarily "anti-European," as it can prevent blockages further down the EU legislative pipeline.

EUobserver

EU-China summit ends in discord

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - An acrimonious EU-China summit on Wednesday (6 October) ended with a cancelled press conference and a stark warning from China not to increase pressure over its currency valuation.

"I say to Europe's leaders - don't join the chorus pressing [China] to revalue the yuan," Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao told a business forum taking place in the margins of the political summit in Brussels.

"Many of our exporting companies would have to close down, migrant workers would have to return to their villages," Mr Wen added. "If China saw social and economic turbulence, then it would be a disaster for the world".

The unscripted comments came a day after a trio of Europe's top economic officials including Eurogroup president Jean-Claude Juncker called on Beijing to allow the yuan to appreciate, arguing that its undervaluation threatened to derail the eurozone's economic recovery and indirectly hurt Chinese exporters.

Mr Juncker is among those warning that the world must step back from its current trajectory towards a 'currency war' where governments seek to give their exporters an upper hand through currency devaluations.

Already this year, governments from countries including Brazil, Japan, Switzerland, South Korea, Taiwan and Thailand have intervened to weaken their currencies in a bid to remain competitive.

Beijing announced in June that it would break the yuan's currency peg, but since then it has risen just over two percent against the dollar, and has fallen more than nine per cent against the euro.

EUobserver

Brussels proposes temporary trade breaks to help Pakistan

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - EU trade commissioner Karel de Gucht on Thursday (7 October) announced a series of trade concessions to help Pakistan combat the effects of its devastating August floods.

Under the preferential terms, first to be agreed by the WTO and then by member states and the EU parliament, some 75 goods would be freed of import tariffs.

Accounting for 27 percent of Pakistan's exports to the bloc, the bulk of the products are textiles reflecting Pakistan's domestic strengths. Others products that are to be tariff-free for the three year period are industrial ethanol, some footwear and some leather goods.

The measures are expected to boost EU imports from Pakistan by around €100 million a year. They come on top of the €300 million in humanitarian aid already pledged by the EU late summer.

Mr de Gucht called it a "very courageous proposal" that will be of "considerable help" to the Pakistani economy. He added that it was a "fair" outcome with Pakistan having originally indicated it wanted a wider range of products to be tariff-free.

Pakistan is still struggling to fight the effects of the heavy monsoon rains in July and August. The rising waters left around 2000 dead and, according to UN figures, made around 21 million homeless.

Despite it being considered to have been the world's greatest natural disaster, the aid response was relatively slow, a fact seen as aggravated by the remoteness of some of the areas affected as well as the slow build up to the crisis.

The EU's concessions to the country were themselves part of a carefully orchestrated compromise. European textile manufacturers, predominantly based in Italy, Spain and Portugal, argued ahead of Thursday's announcements that the reduced import tariffs for Pakistani textiles would result in large job losses in the European sector.

EUobserver

Brussels puts forward financial sector tax options

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - 'Nothing is certain but death and taxes' goes the saying, with a new proposal from the European Commission designed to get the European financial sector to pay more of the latter.

As cash-strapped governments cast around in search of new funding sources, Thursday's (7 October) non-legislative communication from the commission weighs up the viability and potential revenue gains to be made from a financial transactions tax (FTT) and a financial activities tax (FAT).

"We must make sure that the financial sector is making a contribution to public finances," said the EU's taxation commissioner Algirdas Semeta. "This is especially important due to its receipt of support during the financial crisis".

The financial sector in Europe and elsewhere is currently exempt from paying Value Added Tax (VAT).

In its paper, the commission advocates EU support for the FTT at the global level, but reiterates recent comments made by ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet that a unilateral European attempt to push ahead with the tax would result in firms moving their financial transactions to a different jurisdiction.

Swedish attempts to introduce a similar tax in the 1980s caused a sharp decline in the trading of certain financial products within its borders, with Stockholm now one of the leading EU opponents of the tax. Others argue that the issue of relocation is overblown.

London is also a strong opponent to the tax however, with studies showing the City would bear the brunt of a European FTT due to the huge volume of trades that take place inside the square mile. US opposition is also seen as a major stumbling block to its eventual implementation.

Conversely, France and Germany are vocal supporters of the measure, popular among many voters and NGOs as a means to raise badly needed funds to fight poverty and climate change.

Reacting to the publication, the European Trade Union Confederation said it was deeply disappointed. The plans are "unsatisfactory in that they deflect from the aim of taxing short-termist, highly speculative transactions based on high speed trading that do not serve the needs of the real economy," said general secretary, John Monks.

Commission estimates put the potential revenues from an FTT at between €20-150 billion per year in the EU. This compares with the estimated €25 billion that could be generated from a more conventional five percent financial activities tax, a measure the commission believes could be implemented at European level without running the risk of relocation.

EUobserver