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/ 21 January 2004

The invaluable botanist

The public image of botanists got a bit of a boost this week, at a conference in Durban, where they demonstrated their significance in fields from agriculture to social development. Those who thought botanists were stuffy academics who squashed flowers, would have had their perceptions re-wired after attending this meeting.

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/ 20 January 2004

Desai could face life in prison

Police in Mumbai on Tuesday said they were investigating ”all the angles” after a prominent South African judge was accused of raping a delegate to the World Social Forum in Mumbai. Activists at the anti-globalisation forum protested on Tuesday against the alleged rape.

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/ 20 January 2004

Israel border tension high after attack

Tensions ran high on Israel’s northern border on Tuesday after the army threatened retaliation for a Hezbollah attack that killed one soldier and wounded another, despite suggestions they might have strayed into Lebanese territory. Defence sources said the army was considering a retaliatory strike deep inside Lebanon.

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/ 20 January 2004

China clams up on bird flu origins

Health authorities in China are refusing to disclose the origins of an avian influenza (bird flu) virus that can be lethal when transmitted to humans, a South African medical official said on Tuesday. The virus could be the source of the flu that is suspected of having caused 13 deaths in Vietnam since the beginning of the year.