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/ 18 January 2007

AU to debate Somali peacekeeping force

The African Union’s main security forum will hold a special session at its headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on Friday to discuss a proposed peacekeeping force for Somalia, a statement said. The Peace and Security Council meeting will include a debate on a new report into the situation in the volatile Horn of Africa state.

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/ 18 January 2007

‘Sally Spectra’ constantly entertained

Darlene Conley, a veteran stage and television actress who entertained daytime audiences for nearly two decades as the feisty fashion mogul Sally Spectra on The Bold and the Beautiful, has died. She was 72. Conley died on January 7 of stomach cancer at her Los Angeles home surrounded by family and friends.

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/ 18 January 2007

Nadal wake-up call as top names breeze through

Second seed Rafael Nadal got a wake-up call on Thursday but title contenders Maria Sharapova, Kim Clijsters and Martina Hingis were in a class of their own, breezing into the Australian Open third round. Clay court specialist Nadal, drawn to face world number one Roger Federer in this year’s final, was given a marathon workout by 61st ranked German Philipp Kohlschreiber.

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/ 18 January 2007

UN calls on Somalia not to waste chance for peace

The top United Nations envoy to Somalia, making his first visit since a war last month, said on Thursday the Horn of Africa nation now had its best chance to end 16 years of anarchy and bloodshed. Francois Lonseny Fall made a swift visit to Mogadishu two weeks after Ethiopian and Somali government troops swept aside Islamists who had run south Somalia for six months.

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/ 18 January 2007

Severe storms batter north-western Europe

A severe storm front battered the British Isles and Germany on Thursday, causing havoc with shipping and leaving one man dead in England, with forecasters predicting worse weather to come. In the English Channel, French and British helicopters began winching to safety the 26 crew who abandoned a sinking cargo ship off the coast of Cornwall.

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/ 18 January 2007

FF+ accuses Selebi of trying to gag media

Police National Commissioner Jackie Selebi’s decision that the media will only be allowed to direct questions to provincial officials is an attempt to gag the media, the Freedom Front Plus (FF+) said on Thursday. ”It does not only infringe on media freedom but also on the constitutional right to freedom of speech,” said Pieter Groenewald, the party’s spokesperson on safety and security.