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/ 16 January 2006
Thousands of women from all over the continent travelled to celebrate not only the inauguration on Monday of Liberia’s 23rd president, but also, more importantly, to witness the installation of Africa’s first-ever elected female leader, Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, who is expected to announce her Cabinet later this week.
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/ 16 January 2006
A self-confessed German cannibal said at his retrial on Monday that a man found cut into pieces and partially eaten at his house had asked him to kill him. Armin Meiwes told the court in Frankfurt that once he had cut off his victim’s penis, with the man’s consent, Meiwes had hoped he would die of blood loss or throw himself to his death from a window.
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/ 16 January 2006
Three people were injured when police threw stun grenades and fired rubber bullets at protesting Power Town informal settlement residents in the southern Cape on Monday. Mossel Bay municipality spokesperson Harry Hill said the residents were protesting poor service delivery in the area.
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/ 16 January 2006
In a clear sign of China’s growing economic and political clout, a British school has become the first in the country to make Mandarin Chinese a compulsory subject for all pupils. Richard Cairns, headmaster of Brighton College, announced on Monday that the subject would become part of the private, fee-paying school’s core curriculum from September.
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/ 16 January 2006
Egyptian technicians on Monday were to inspect an old French aircraft carrier, heading for an Indian scrapyard, ahead of its planned transit through the Suez canal after a delay caused by controversy over the warship’s asbestos insulation. In a further potential legal snag, India’s Supreme Court on Monday banned the ship from entering Indian waters before February 13.
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/ 16 January 2006
Wimbledon champion Venus Williams crashed out of the Australian Open on Monday, joining ninth seed Elena Dementieva as a first-round flop, as sister Serena narrowly avoided the same fate. It was the former world number one’s worst performance since she exited the French Open at the opening hurdle in 2001.
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/ 16 January 2006
The Retail Motor Industry (RMI) has moved to end what it calls confusion in the fuel sector, saying on Monday it has taken steps to help drivers choose proper fuel for their cars. "An alarming 60% of motorists up until the end of last year had still not made the switch to unleaded," RMI CEO Jeff Osborne said in a statement.
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/ 16 January 2006
A faulty digital television receiver sparked a helicopter rescue mission after sending out a rogue distress signal, Britain’s Royal Air Force (RAF) said on Sunday. The "freeview" box normally allows television viewers access to dozens of digital TV and radio channels via a standard, rooftop aerial.
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/ 16 January 2006
Richard, a 14-year old grey-and-black gorilla, was declared the winner of the Prague zoo’s alternative reality show on Sunday and can look forward to a first prize of 12 melons (<i>melon</i> meaning million in Czech slang), the zoo said. Richard is the dominant male in the group of four gorillas.
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/ 16 January 2006
It may be the Year of the Dog, but in Japan man’s best friend has seen better days with a bitter winter leaving the canine population suffering indoors, veterinarians said on Monday. Dogs have suffered a greater number of cases this winter of cystitis, a bladder inflammation, since the snow has kept them from going for walks.