Man arrested over double murder

A man has been arrested on suspicion over the double murder of a mother and her daughter in Perth. Source: AAP

A 19-YEAR-OLD man has been arrested on suspicion over the double murder of a mother and her daughter in Perth.

The bodies of Tamara Alexandra Horstman, 26, and her mother Maureen Anne Horstman, 67, were found on Sunday afternoon after Tamara failed to arrive at work.

The parents of one of her friends went to the Warwick address to check on her and alerted police, who arrived about 2.30pm (WST).

Police have not revealed how the women died but it is believed Maureen suffered chest injuries and Tamara suffered head injuries.

Tamara's twin brother, who also found the pair, was questioned by police but was cleared as a suspect on Tuesday morning.

Detectives arrested another man in Mirrabooka on Tuesday and he is assisting police with their investigation.

Tamara's 2008 model Mazda3 sedan, which had been missing, was found in Mirrabooka on Monday after a member of the public heard about the search via the media and alerted police.

Anyone with information about the case is asked to call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.

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Clouds don't dampen New Year fireworks

Spectators have begun descending on Sydney's popular spots for the New Year's Eve fireworks show. Source: AAP

A CLOUDY Sydney sky has come to life with a kaleidoscope of shooting comets and giant wheels of colour as the city's New Year's Eve spectacular kicked off.

For eight minutes Sydney Harbour exploded in red, green, pink, purple, and gold, at 9pm (AEDT) on Tuesday, with the first of three fireworks displays scheduled for the harbour city's New Year's celebrations.

Some pyrotechnics shot to dizzying heights and exploded, while others fell like fiery teardrops. Others shot heavenward and seemed to hang there, before fizzling without a bang.

Cheers were especially loud for a waterfall of pink and gold crackers that fell from the Harbour Bridge, and for a rush of gold pyrotechnics that closed fireworks.

Emesh, 34, came to the 9pm show with his wife and two children.

"It was amazing," the Parramatta resident told AAP.

"The best was the sparkles, all of them mixed up together.

"These are the best fireworks I have ever seen."

Sydney's 9pm pyrotechnics have come to rival the city's midnight spectacular, with many families keen to get in, and out, of the city before the revelry kicks into high gear.

The 9pm show was accompanied by an eclectic soundtrack, including music from artists Mental as Anything, Danny Elfman, Selena Gomez and Avril Lavigne.

Earlier, thousands of onlookers at Mrs Macquarie's chair were treated to an aerobatic show with a stunt plane doing loop-the-loops and mid-air stalls, and hair-raising low flying just metres from the water.

The city's fireworks director, Fortunato Foti, hopes people are surprised by this year's show, which comprises about seven tonnes of fireworks.

Tuesday's three fireworks displays include 11,000 aerial shells and 25,000 shooting comets that will explode from seven barges spread across six kilometres of Sydney Harbour.

For the first time in a decade, 1000 fireworks will also be shot from the top of the Opera House, as well as from the Harbour Bridge and jet skis stationed in the harbour.

Ahead of midnight's 12-minute extravaganza, the city's more than 1.5 million revellers will be treated to a special one-minute cracker show at 10.30pm, based on an absurdist self-portrait by the night's artistic ambassador Reg Mombassa.

"Essentially the idea is that every person perceives the universe in their own heads," the Mambo artist and Mental as Anything rocker told reporters on Tuesday.

"We are going to empty the contents of one such head onto the Sydney sky so hopefully people will be amused by that."

While remaining tight-lipped about the particulars, Lord Mayor Clover Moore said the bridge effect, to be unveiled just after midnight, will be "bigger than ever".

For the first time in a decade more than 1000 fireworks will also be launched off the Opera House's sails.

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Painted night skies kick off New Year

SYDNEY and Melbourne have kicked off the party that starts the world's new year by painting the night sky.

A kaleidoscope of colourful fireworks were launched into the skies of both cities before an estimated two million revellers on Tuesday - a warm-up act to the "big one" at midnight.

At the country's drawcard event in Sydney, party-goers at the iconic harbour foreshore weren't disappointed by the 9pm (AEDT) display.

Over eight minutes, red, green, pink, purple, and gold brightened the grey canvas that was Sydney's cloudy sky.

Cheers were especially loud for a waterfall of pink and gold crackers that fell from the Harbour bridge, and for a rush of gold pyrotechnics that closed the fireworks.

Earlier, thousands of onlookers at Mrs Macquarie's chair were treated to an aerobatic show with a stunt plane doing loop-de-loops and mid air stalls, and some hair-raising low flying just metres from the water.

During the night, some seven tonnes of fireworks were to light up the sky in the form of 11,000 aerial shells and 25,000 shooting comets launched from seven barges spread across six kilometres of Sydney Harbour.

For the first time in a decade, 1000 fireworks will also be shot from the top of the Opera House, as well as from the Harbour Bridge and jet skis stationed in the harbour.

In Victoria, more than 500,000 revellers packed the city centre to catch a glimpse of some of the 7.5 tonnes of fireworks launched from 22 locations, including city rooftops, by a team of 44 pyrotechnists.

On a mild Melbourne night, the mood at the family event was relaxed, with lots of kids, babies, mums and dads stretched on blankets with picnics waiting for the fireworks to begin.

New mum Nicola Sutcliffe said she was enjoying the music, but not the long queues for food ahead of the 9.30pm fireworks.

"This is the first time we have been out with a child for New Year's Eve and it's good that there is something like this event," she said.

Police in both states were out in force on the night at celebration hot spots.

A NSW police media spokesman said the night had gone well so far, with no major incidents reported.

Brisbanites were treated to the state's largest fireworks show yet.

The skies above the river city were lit up at 8.30pm with some of the 30,000 pyrotechnic effects that will be fired from three barges and three city rooftops at 8.30pm and midnight.

In Tasmania, tens of thousands converged on the waterfront and Salamanca, where the state's biggest food festival, Taste, combined with the finish of the Sydney to Hobart yacht race.

Partygoers looking up from their plates were treated to fireworks exploding over the docks at 9.30pm and midnight.

South Australia sang in the new year with live music in Adelaide's Elder Park, where local bands provided the entertainment on top of fireworks.

The new year will prove dangerous for some, with residents in parts of regional SA urged by authorities to leave their homes and seek safety as "catastrophic" fire danger conditions are predicted for January 1.

Western Australia will largely leave its patch of sky alone on the night, with Perth saving up its pyrotechnics display for Australia Day.

There are still a few places to ring in 2014 with a bang, including Rockingham and the Shelley foreshore.

A key draw promises to be the headline act for the Salt on the Beach NYE party at North Fremantle, New York hip-hop trio De La Soul.

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Stradbroke Island fire prompts evacuation

Around 900 campers will be taken off North Stradbroke Island as a large bushfire burns in the area. Source: AAP

AROUND 900 campers on North Stradbroke Island will be evacuated on New Year's Day as a large bushfire burns in the area.

The Department of Community Safety says the campers at Main Beach will be taken off the island, east of Brisbane, between 10.30am and 4pm (AEST) on Wednesday.

Multiple fire crews are battling a large, slow moving vegetation fire on the eastern end of Alfred Martin Way at Blue Lake.

Emergency services say the evacuation is a precaution as they believe the fire could threaten the campground with a change in weather in coming days.

The smoke from the fire is already so thick that drivers on the island are being urged to turn on their headlights during the day.

National Parks and Wildlife and State Emergency Services (SES) volunteers and the Redland City Council will assist with the evacuation.

But they have warned there could be delays as there will be huge strain on barge services to the mainland.

Authorities say holiday makers who are not planning to camp at Main Beach will still be able to visit the island.

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Holiday toll rises to 21

Three more people have died on Australian roads, taking the Christmas holiday road toll to 21. Source: AAP

A HORROR NSW car crash that claimed the life of a young girl and injured five others is one of three fatal smashes that has lifted the Christmas holiday road death toll to 21.

The young girl died at the scene of the single-vehicle crash that occurred about 50 kilometres south of Cessnock on George Downes Drive, Bucketty, shortly before 1pm (AEDT) Monday.

Police said a woman in her 30s, believed to be the driver, and another young girl suffering a serious head injury were airlifted to hospital.

Three other people were treated at the scene for abrasions and minor injuries then airlifted to Westmead Hospital by a second rescue helicopter, NSW Ambulance said.

The young girl's death takes the NSW road toll to seven.

In the second fatal crash on Monday, a Melbourne motorcyclist died after he collided with a car in the city's west.

The Maribyrnong man, aged in his 30s, collided with a Ford Falcon as the sedan turned into Bunbury Street at Footscray late on Saturday night.

He died at the scene.

The Ford driver, a 36-year-old Wyndham Vale man, is assisting police with their inquiries.

The motorcyclist is the third person to die on Victorian roads during the holiday period.

In Perth, a 51-year-old woman who was hit by a car on Christmas Eve died in hospital this evening.

Astrid Hall was struck on Roe Highway in Beckenham, in Perth's south-east, on December 24 and died at Royal Perth Hospital on Sunday as a result of her injuries, police said.

Three people have now died on WA roads over the holiday period.

The national road toll period runs from midnight December 23, 2013 until midnight January 3, 2014, local times, in line with the Australia New Zealand Policing Advisory Board.

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Cyclone impacting WA's north coast

Residents in and near Port Hedland have been told to take shelter as Cyclone Christine intensifies. Source: AAP

A RED alert remains in place for communities from Pardoo to Mardie in the Pilbara as tropical cyclone Christine starts to impact the region.

The Department of Fire and Emergency Services said the alert was current at 6.10pm (WST) for communities including Port Hedland, South Hedland, Whim Creek, Roebourne, Point Samson, Wickham, Karratha and Dampier.

"There is a threat to lives and homes." DFES said in a statement. "You are in danger and need to act immediately."

It urged residents in affected areas to "get ready to move to the strongest, safest part of your house".

"Keep your emergency kit with you. Stay away from doors and windows, and keep them closed. Stay indoors until the all-clear is given by authorities," DFES added.

It said relocation points had been set up at the JD Hardie Centre at Port Hedland, Karratha Leisureplex at Karratha, Civic Centre at Marble Bar, high school gym at Tom Price, and Ashburton Hall at Paraburdoo.

A yellow alert is current for people in or near Marble Bar, Tom Price, Paraburdoo and Pannawonica.

A blue alert has been issued for coastal areas between Wallal and Pardoo, between Mardie and Onslow, the inland area from Marble Bar to Newman, and between the Collier Ranges and Three Rivers.

In its latest update, the Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) said the category-three cyclone was 75kms northwest of Port Hedland and 155kms northeast of Karratha.

It's moving towards the Pilbara coast at 16km/h, the bureau advised.

BoM said the "very destructive inner core" of the system "has begun to impact the coast between Port Hedland and Whim Creek".

It said Port Hedland was currently experiencing destructive wind gusts of up to 130km/h.

The bureau expected Christine to track south southwest, with the system's centre likely to cross the coast close to Whim Creek by about midnight.

BoM warns that winds of more than 200km/h are likely near the centre as the cyclone crosses the coast.

Winds of more than 130km/h are expected in the Karratha and Dampier region later Monday night and are forecast to hit Tom Price at 8am (WST) Tuesday.

BoM says gale-force winds up to 120km/h are currently occurring between Wallal and Roebourne, and should hit Karratha Monday night.

Coastal communities between Pardoo and Wickham including Port Hedland are also being warned about the potential for a for a "very dangerous storm tide tonight".

Heavy rainfall is expected near where the cyclone is tracking, and flood warnings have been issued for the Pilbara.

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NSW workers comp changes for 2014

Controversial changes to workers comp laws are among many new laws to take effect in NSW next year. Source: AAP

INJURED workers and children attending childcare will be among the winners and losers at the start of 2014, as new laws kick in across NSW.

Among the raft of new legislation to come into effect on January 1 are controversial changes to workers compensation introduced by the O'Farrell government to rein in a $4 billion budget blowout.

Up to 20,000 injured workers across the state who need ongoing medical treatment will lose out in 2014 due to the changes, the Law Society of NSW says.

"For example a worker with an amputation injury who has, up until now, been having their artificial limbs replaced by the insurer will now lose this entitlement," President John Dobson said.

Meanwhile kids will no longer be able to enrol into a childcare facility unless their parent or guardian provides an immunisation record.

Parents or guardians reluctant to vaccinate on religious or other grounds or due to medical conditions will also have to produce documentation.

"No longer will it be at the discretion of child care operators to accept or deny children who aren't immunised," Health Minister Jillian Skinner said in a statement.

"By law these operators will be unable to do so and should they do so they can be fined."

People looking to swap the city for the country air will be some of the winners in the new year with a number of grants rolling out.

From Wednesday a move to regional NSW for full-time employment will see eligible people pocket $10,000.

An existing $7000 grant to city homeowners purchasing properties in regional areas will be extended to include long-term renters in metropolitan Sydney, Newcastle and Wollongong who make the country change from January 1.

"This is about attracting much-needed skills to our regions and developing sustainable and more vibrant regional communities," Deputy Premier Andrew Stoner said.

Meanwhile the tax free threshold for land tax will increase from $406,000 to $412,000.

For those into combat sports, such as boxing, cage fighting and Ultimate Fighting, stronger health and safety requirements will come into effect, including that combatants comply with protective clothing or equipment.

The NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal will also commence in 2014.

The tribunal is billed as a one-stop shop for 22 state tribunals, which the government says "will improve their quality, consistency and transparency".

"NCAT enables these services to exist as a network, rather than in isolation, which will improve their quality, consistency and transparency," acting Justice Minister Michael Gallacher said in a statement.

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Perth gets ready for NYE parties

An extra 1000 police officers will be on the streets on New Year's Eve in Perth. Source: AAP

LIVE music, fancy-dress parties and fireworks are on offer in Perth for New Year's Eve, but police are warning revellers to act responsibly.

An extra 1000 police will be on the streets on New Year's Eve, to clamp down on rowdy or anti-social behaviour and drink-drivers.

Assistant Commissioner Gary Dreibergs said with so many people expected in Perth's entertainment precincts, people should look out for their mates and plan their trip home before they go out.

"To put it simply, respect yourself, and respect others," he said.

"All too often we see minor matters escalate into serious incidents because someone who has consumed too much alcohol isn't able to make the right decision to step away from a minor disagreement or other trivial occurrence, such as being bumped by someone else."

Police have also warned people not to hire drivers who are advertising their taxi services online illegally.

Family entertainment in Perth includes fireworks in Mandurah and Rockingham, and a party at Perth Zoo with live music.

On New Year's Day, about 35,000 people are expected to attend the Perth Cup at Ascot Racecourse.

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Cyclone accelerates towards WA coast

A category two cyclone off the Western Australian Kimberley coast is expected to intensify. Source: AAP

A CATEGORY two cyclone off Western Australia's Kimberley coast is picking up speed as it heads towards the Pilbara.

Tropical Cyclone Christine was 295 kilometres off Broome at 5pm (WST) on Sunday and was moving towards the Pilbara coast about 13 kilometres an hour, the Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) said.

Earlier in the day BoM tracked the cyclone at 10km/h.

The bureau says the cyclone is expected to intensify as it moves towards the coast.

It has issued a cyclone warning for coastal areas from Cape Leveque to Mardie, including Broome, Port Hedland and Karratha, and extending inland to Marble Bar.

BoM forecasts the cyclone to bring heavy rainfall and gales of up to 100km/h south of Cape Leveque later on Sunday.

Gales are expected to extend west along the Pilbara coast to Whim Creek late on Sunday or Monday morning as the cyclone approaches.

The bureau said the cyclone could on Monday bring "very destructive" gales and heavy rainfall to Mardie and possibly as far west as Exmouth, with winds possibly reaching 165km/h.

Coastal communities between Pardoo and Mardie have been warned of the potential for a dangerous storm tide late on Monday or early on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, BoM says severe thunderstorms have hit Queensland's southeast around Gympie, Pomona and Amamoor.

The thunderstorms are moving northeast and are forecast to hit the area northwest of Noosa Heads and the region east of Gympie and Lake Cooloola.

Damaging winds and large hailstones are likely, the bureau says.

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Times Square preps for New Year's Eve bash

New York City's Times Square is getting ready for New Year's Eve celebrations on Tuesday night. Source: AAP

NEW York City's Times Square is getting ready for New Year's Eve.

The square will host millions on Tuesday night counting down the last few moments of 2013.

Starting on Saturday, six Citibikes from the city's bike share program were being installed in Times Square and connected to 12-volt deep cycle batteries.

New Yorkers and tourists will generate power by pedalling. That will help illuminate the famed ball that will descend New Year's Eve.

Each bike will generate an average of 75 watts an hour. It takes 50,000 watts to power the ball, which is lit by 30,000 LEDs.

Additionally, a giant paper shredder and a dumpster were installed in Times Square on Saturday to allow visitors to destroy bad memories of 2013.

The annual event is dubbed Good Riddance Day.

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Winds flaming north coast bushfire

AN out-of-control bushfire threatening homes on the state's north coast is being pushed north by strong winds, the Rural Fire Service (RFS) says.

At 9.26pm (AEDT), the RFS said the blaze was burning near the corner of Byron Bay Road and Bundaleer Road in the Lennox Head area.

It is covering about 100 hectares of bush and is expected to impact properties in the area.

The RFS says about 12 properties are now threatened by the fire.

Thirty firefighters are at the scene.

Earlier, the RFS had advised the fire had been burning further south near Byron Bay Road and Tobin Close.

It said the fire would be "uncontrollable, unpredictable and fast-moving".

"Embers will be blown ahead of the fire, creating spot fires that will move quickly and in different directions," the RFS said on its website.

It said spot fires could threaten homes earlier than a main fire front.

RFS spokesman Ben Shepherd told AAP the fire was burning in heathland in the area.

"It burns very quickly and very hot, and will create huge flame heights," he said.

He said the fire was being pushed quickly towards the threatened homes.

"They'll probably come under threat within the hour," he said.

He said conditions were expected to ease later on Sunday night "as the southerly (wind) starts to die".

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Suicide bomber kills 13 in Russia's south

A female suicide bomber set off a blast in a train station in Russia killing at least 13 people. Source: AAP

AT least 13 people have been killed and scores wounded by a suicide bomber at a railway station in southern Russia, officials said.

The National Anti-Terrorist Committee said the explosion on Sunday at the central railway station in the city of Volgograd was set off by a suicide bomber, heightening concerns about terrorism ahead of February's Olympics in the Black Sea resort of Sochi.

Vladimir Markin, a spokesman for the nation's top investigative agency, the Investigative Committee, said at least 13 people died in the blast.

Russia's Health Ministry said about 50 people were injured.

No one immediately claimed responsibility for Sunday's attack, but it came months after Chechen rebel leader Doku Umarov called for attacks against civilian targets in Russia, including the Sochi Games.

Suicide bombings and other attacks linked to Islamic rebels have rocked Russia for years.

In October, a female suicide bomber blew herself up on a city bus in Volgograd, killing six people and injuring about 30.

Officials said the attacker came from the province of Dagestan, which has become the centre of an Islamist insurgency that has spread across the region after two separatist wars in Chechnya.

Russian state television reported that Sunday's explosion occurred at the security gate at the station's entrance.

Footage from a security camera facing the station that was broadcast by Rossiya 24 television showed the moment of explosion: a bright orange flash inside the station behind the main gate followed by plumes of smoke.

The television showed a line-up of ambulances outside the station and motionless bodies placed on the pavement.

The blast closely followed another attack on Friday in Pyatigorsk in the North Caucasus mountains, when a car rigged with explosives blew up on a street in the city, the centre of a federal administrative district intended to stabilise the North Caucasus region.

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China one-child policy change approved

Chinese state media says the National People's Congress has approved to change its one-child policy. Source: AAP

CHINA'S top legislature has sanctioned the ruling Communist Party's decision to allow couples to have a second child if one parent is an only child.

It's the first major easing in three decades of the restrictive national birth planning policy.

Implemented around 1980, China's birth policy has limited most couples to only one child, but has allowed a second child if neither parent has siblings or if the first born to a rural couple is a girl.

The official Xinhua News Agency said the standing committee of the National People's Congress approved a resolution on Saturday to formalise the party decision.

It says the national lawmaking body has delegated the power to provincial people's congresses and their standing committees to implement the new policy.

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Port Hedland evacuates due to cyclone

A cyclone warning has been issued for coastal areas along Western Australia's northern coast. Source: AAP

SHIPS are being moved from a major port in Western Australia ahead of a developing tropical cyclone expected to hit on Saturday night.

The Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) says a tropical low north of WA is expected to develop into a tropical cyclone by Saturday night as it moves southwest.

The low is 340 kilometres north-northwest of Broome, moving at nine kilometres an hour.

The Port Hedland Port Authority began the evacuation of 29 vessels in the inner and outer anchorage areas on Saturday morning.

Another 12 ships in the inner harbour also began evacuating on Saturday.

The port authority said in a statement it anticipated the last vessel would leave the shipping channel by 3am on Sunday.

Gale-force winds and widespread rainfall are expected to hit the Port Hedland area on Sunday.

Winds with gusts of up to 100km/h are forecast to develop through Saturday night on the west Kimberley coast between Cape Leveque and Broome.

BOM advises gales and heavy rainfall may extend to Exmouth and adjacent inland areas on Sunday night and Monday.

If the tropical low system develops as BOM expects, a severe tropical cyclone will likely hit the Pilbara on Monday or Tuesday.

A cyclone warning is in place for coastal areas from Cape Leveque to Whim Creek.

The State Emergency Service is urging residents in or near coastal communities between Dampier Peninsula and Onslow in the Kimberley and Pilbara to prepare emergency kits.

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Death toll in Beirut blast rises to 7

LEBANON'S state news agency says a 19-year-old man wounded in the car bombing in central Beirut has died, raising the death toll in the attack to seven.

The National News Agency says Mohammed Shaar died on Saturday from massive wounds sustained in the Friday blast, which targeted prominent Lebanese politician Mohammed Chatah.

The 62-year-old Chatah, who was a critic of Syria and its Lebanese ally Hezbollah, also was killed in the explosion.

Officials say Chatah is to be buried at noon on Sunday in the towering Mohammed Al-Amin Mosque in downtown Beirut.

The Lebanese government has declared Sunday a day of mourning.

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Refugee group calls for ambassador asylum

Scott Morrison says a request for asylum by Zimbabwe's ambassador will be judged on its merits. Source: AAP

A REFUGEE advocacy group has called for the Australian government to grant asylum to the Zimbabwean ambassador to Australia.

But the Refugee Action Coalition has used ambassador Jacqueline Zwambila's plight to highlight the "government's inconsistencies in dealing with the issue of protection visas".

Ms Zwambila revealed she was asking the Australian government for asylum because she feared for her life if she returned home when her term ends on Tuesday.

She is aligned to Zimbabwe's opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) party.

Refugee Action Coalition spokesman Ian Rintoul said that with Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe's supposed coalition with the MDC at an end, there was no doubt Ms Zwambila was at risk should she be forced to return to that country.

"The Australian government should act quickly," he said in a statement.

However, Mr Rintoul said many asylum seekers were arriving by boat with cases as compelling as Ms Zwambila's.

"But under (Immigration Minister) Scott Morrison's regime there are two rules - one for plane arrivals and another for asylum seekers coming by boat," he said.

"The Zimbabwean ambassador needs protection, and so do all those asylum seekers who arrive by boat."

Ms Zwambila told Fairfax Media on Saturday she knew it meant the end of her term when Mr Mugabe won elections earlier this year.

"Once the elections of 31 July were stolen by the current government - which is illegitimate - I knew that this was the end of the line," she says in a video on the Canberra Times website.

"End of the line for the people of Zimbabwe ... and for people like me, who were appointed by the ex-prime minister, Morgan Tsvangirai."

Mr Morrison said an application for a protection visa would be assessed on merit "and in accordance with the normal rules that apply in these circumstances".

"The government does not provide commentary on individual cases as it can prejudice their case or, worse, place people at risk," he said in a statement.

Mr Mugabe, 89, long considered an international pariah, finished with 61 per cent of the vote at the election, amid claims of intimidation and tampering with electoral rolls.

He called on his opponents to accept defeat or commit suicide, telling the New York Times that "even dogs will not sniff at their flesh if they choose to die that way".

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Holiday road toll rises to 12

The Christmas holiday road toll has risen to 12 following the death of a teenager and a cyclist. Source: AAP

THE Christmas holiday road toll has risen to 12 following the death of a teenage driver and a cyclist.

An 18-year-old woman died on Friday after the ute she was driving rolled near Narrabri in north-west NSW.

Earlier on Friday, a female cyclist was killed in an alleged hit-and-run near Adelaide.

Police allege a 37-year-old woman hit the cyclist at Lower Inman Valley and drove off.

About an hour later, a solo police patrol on the Southern Expressway at Lonsdale spotted two people in a car with front-end damage and a cracked windscreen.

Both occupants were arrested and the female driver was charged with causing death by dangerous driving and leaving the scene of an accident.

A motorist in Queensland died on Friday afternoon after crash involving a truck on the Mount Lindesay Highway.

The deaths took the national holiday road toll to 12.

The national road toll period runs from midnight on December 23, 2013, until midnight on January 3, 2014, local times, in line with the Australia New Zealand Policing Advisory Board.

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Vic transport costs to rise in 2014

The cost of using public transport in Victoria will rise by 2.5 per cent in 2014 under new changes. Source: AAP

VICTORIANS are set to pay more to use public transport and for the first time motorcycles will pay to use the CityLink freeway from New Year's Day.

And as the new year rings in with the sting on hip pockets, motorists can say goodbye to pesky vehicle registration stickers, which will be abolished from January 1.

The labels for light vehicles in Victoria, including passenger cars, will be a thing of the past, with the state government estimating it will save Victorians $19.5 million a year by reducing the red-tape burdens.

The move follows the removal of registration labels in other states.

Upgrades in technology mean police and VicRoads can monitor registrations without the need for the windscreen stickers.

Public transport fares will rise by 2.5 per cent under changes announced recently by the state government.

Two-hour fares will expire after exactly two hours and weekend fares will jump from $3.50 to $6 for a daily zone one and two pass.

Other changes include new charges for motorcyclists, who for the first time will be tolled to use CityLink from January 1.

The road operator will toll them using technology so they will not have to carry an e-TAG.

CityLink is the only toll road in Australia that does not toll motorcycles.

Under its contract with the Victorian government, it was always expected motorcycles would be charged, but they will be tolled half the rate for cars.

The tax grab on poker machines is also set to rise from April.

Taxes on poker machines in bigger venues will be increased by 4.2 per cent, while the minimum player return ratio will be reduced from 87 per cent to 85 per cent.

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Cambodian garment workers block traffic

STRIKING workers making shoes and clothes for Western brands have blocked roads and briefly scuffled with police in Cambodia.

The workers are demanding a two-fold increase in the minimum wage to $A180.

The protests on Friday snarled traffic in and around the capital Phnom Penh.

Human rights activist Om Sam Ath said protesters blocking a highway leading to Sihanoukville throw stones at police, who fired into the air.

He said four workers were injured, but it was unclear how serious the injuries were.

Most of the country's 500 factories have been closed since Thursday, when the manufacturers association urged its members to cease operations, citing the fear of violence.

The garment industry employs more than 500,000 people and is Cambodia's biggest export earner.

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Kabul car bomb kills three

THE US-led coalition in Afghanistan says three service members have been killed when a suicide car bomber attacked their convoy in an eastern district of the capital, Kabul.

The International Security Assistance Force didn't provide details on the identities or nationalities of those killed in the attack on Friday.

Earlier, Kabul police spokesman Hashmat Stanakzai said the attack, which occurred about a kilometre from the Camp Phoenix NATO base, wounded six civilians.

Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid said the insurgent group was behind the attack.

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Nine road deaths dampen festive season

Nine people have died on Australian roads this festive season, including a teen who fell off a ute. Source: AAP

NINE people have died on Australian roads this festive season, including two friends killed in a single-vehicle incident in NSW on Boxing Day.

A man, 31, was thrown from the vehicle and died at the scene of the crash on the NSW Central Coast. A second man, 22, was trapped in the wreckage and died before he could be released.

The crash, which occurred just before 5am (AEDT), left three other men aged 29, 22 and 27 in hospital.

Police said they hoped to speak to the injured men, all from Sydney suburb Auburn.

In Canberra, a motorcyclist died after losing control of his bike late on the evening of Christmas Day.

The 22-year-old hit a traffic island in the inner-north suburb of Lyneham about 11pm on Wednesday.

He died in Canberra Hospital.

In Perth, a 17-year-old boy died after falling off the back of a utility on Christmas evening.

Police say the boy suffered severe head injuries when he fell from the tray of the Nissan ute.

A 24-year-old man in the Northern Territory was killed after losing control of his motorcycle on a dirt road near the Todd River in Alice Springs on Christmas Day.

Two Victorian women killed in a head-on collision two days before Christmas were the first fatalities for the 2013 Christmas period.

A 69-year-old Queensland man died on Christmas Eve when his car hit a tree near Bundaberg.

On Monday night police found a man dead in a sedan spilt in two following a high-speed crash into a tree north of Moree in NSW.

The deaths take the national toll to nine, compared with 16 recorded by Boxing Day in 2012.

The national road toll period runs from midnight on December 23, 2013, until midnight on January 3, 2014, local times, in line with the Australia New Zealand Policing Advisory Board.

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Tourists die in poorly ventilated hotel

TWO Italian tourists have been found dead in their poorly ventilated hotel room in Nepal's capital, Katmandu.

The man and woman were found after the hotel's owners alerted police they were not responding to calls, police official Umesh Raj Joshi said on Thursday.

Police broke the windows, which were taped shut, and found the bodies on the bed.

Joshi said they appeared to be regular visitors to Nepal.

Gas and kerosene heaters are common in Nepal during the winter because of a shortage of electricity.

They are dangerous if used in closed rooms.

Two Chinese tourists died from gas poisoning from a heater in a mountain resort room near Katmandu earlier in December.

About 500,000 tourists visit Nepal a year.

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Man found dead after Brisbane siege

POLICE have discovered the body of a man believed to be a gunman who held a mother and daughter hostage for hours in Brisbane.

A gunman had held the pair at a home on Earnshaw Road at Banyo for more than five hours on Thursday while police tried to negotiate.

The pair were rescued after a police Special Response Team managed to enter the house through an upstairs bathroom window and found them tied up.

As police were still trying to negotiate with the gunman, a drone and a robot were sent to the house, the first time Queensland police have used a drone in an operation.

Inspector David Morganti said officers used a remote camera to identify where the man was.

"Eventually those remote techniques were successful and we were able to identify that he was in what appeared to be a state upstairs where he was not moving," he told reporters.

He said police entered the house and confirmed the man was dead in an upstairs room.

An emergency declaration surrounding the home and neighbouring streets was lifted after police discovered the body at 7.25pm.

Insp Morganti said police were still investigating whether there was a connection between the man and the two females held hostage.

Earlier, police Inspector Sean Cryer told reporters the woman, in her 40s, and the teenage girl rescued from the home were emotionally distraught but did not appear to have major injuries.

Officers had been called to a disturbance at the house just before 11am (AEST) and saw a man with what they believed was a gun and heard two shots.

Neighbours were evacuated and streets cordoned off as police declared an emergency situation at 11.45am (AEST).

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First Greenpeace activist gets exit visa

Russia has dropped charges against 29 activists following their protest at an oil rig in the Arctic. Source: AAP

RUSSIA has started issuing visas to foreign crew members of a Greenpeace protest ship and dropped the criminal case against the last member of the team of 30.

Italy's Christian d'Alessandro was notified by investigators that the case against him had been dropped, Greenpeace said on Thursday.

Earlier, Russia closed the cases of the other 29 crew members of Greenpeace's Arctic Sunrise ship under a Kremlin-backed amnesty.

The 30 were accused of hooliganism following a protest at a Russian oil rig in the Arctic.

Anthony Perrett of Britain was the first crew member to be given an exit visa, and happily showed off the document to journalists outside the offices of the Russian Federal Migration Service.

"He will be able to go home before the New Year!" Greenpeace tweeted.

But Russian officials could not guarantee all the activists would get home before 2014.

"We're not sure how it will turn out," a spokesman told AFP.

"But we are hoping that things will be in favour of the Greenpeace activists."

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Christmas came early for shy girl: cleric

Thousands of worshippers have attended mass while others have flocked to the beach for Christmas. Source: AAP

AUSTRALIANS should strive to make every day Christmas Day for the people around them.

That is the message delivered to a standing-room crowd at St Mary's Cathedral's annual Christmas mass in Sydney.

Thousands of worshippers flocked to the cathedral on Wednesday night for the service, led by Father Brendan Purcell.

He told a story he thought of when asked recently if he had witnessed a miracle.

He spoke about a young girl who was so embarrassed by a skin ailment that she refused to go to school and hid in her room.

He said somehow her sister persuaded her to go to school on the last day of the term, and the principal told her she would progress to the next year, despite missing around three months of school.

"They made that day Christmas for her," Fr Purcell said.

"It's up to us to make every day Christmas Day for the people around us."

Most families in and around Sydney were forced to celebrate Christmas Day inside due to rainy weather.

But it was a different story in northern parts of NSW, Victoria and Queensland, where sweltering heat drove families and santa-hat sporting holiday makers to the beach.

Despite the sizeable crowds, there were few major incidents on the beaches.

"We have had tremendous numbers on the beaches and a lot of volunteers turning up to help," Gold Coast Surf Life Saving duty officer Laurie Cavill said.

"There has been isolated rescues but no major incidents."

Further south ambulance crews were called to Ballina and Byron Bay for a dislocated shoulder and drunk beach goers.

"All in all it's been a good day and volunteer life savers across the state have been been on top of their game. So far nothing bad has occurred," Surf Life Saving NSW spokesperson Matt Miller told AAP.

In Perth, surf life savers also had a "pretty good day" with a spinal injury and dislocated shoulder among the few incidents reported.

Alice Springs mayor Damien Ryan said the aquatic centre was the hot spot for the town on a rainy Christmas.

"In other parts of the world they sing about a white christmas," he told ABC Radio.

"But this morning when I got up and the rain clouds were halfway down the wonderful Macdonnell Ranges. It looked like they were snow capped - it was pretty close for us."

In Melbourne, where temperatures reached 31.8C, Santa dropped by the Royal Children's Hospital to distribute gifts.

Also benefiting from the Christmas spirit were two Victorian families who had their presents stolen overnight.

Their Wodonga neighbours banded together and donated gifts to them.

Further afield, the thoughts of many Australian families were with the 2200 Australian troops deployed overseas.

Despite the end to Australia's mission in Uruzgan province and the return of troops just before Christmas, 500 remain in Afghanistan.

Major General Craig Orme, Commander Joint Task Force in the Middle East, said senior officers would spend Christmas Day visiting troops in the region.

"Christmas on operations is a hard time. The work continues and the absence from family and friends is reinforced," he said in a statement,

"But our personnel deployed across the Middle East Area of Operations will make time to mark the occasion with their deployed family."

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Indonesia cuts Christians' jail sentences

Nearly 8,500 Christian prisoners in Indonesia have been given sentence cuts to mark Christmas. Source: AAP

NEARLY 8,500 Christian prisoners in Indonesia have been given sentence cuts of 15 days to two months to mark Christmas.

"Remissions were given to Christian inmates who have shown good behaviour," Akbar Hadi, a justice ministry spokesman told state news agency Antara on Wednesday.

More than 160 prisoners were eligible for immediate release thanks to sentence cuts, he said.

Indonesia traditionally offers sentence cuts to prisoners to mark religious holidays and Independence Day.

There are more than 150,000 prisoners across the country and overcrowding is a problem in many of the more than 400 prisons.

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US gunman 'had told patients to flee'

Phone recordings reveal chilling details of a man who entered a US urology clinic and began firing. Source: AAP

NEWLY released phone recordings paint a scene of terror inside a US urology clinic where callers hid in bathrooms and exam rooms from a suicidal gunman who killed one doctor and shot another.

Callers including a woman hiding under a desk and another who whispers "he's going to ... kill us", with gunshots audible in the background, can be heard on the tapes, released on Tuesday.

Alan Oliver Frazier, 51, told patients to leave or he would shoot them after he entered the Urology Nevada office in Reno on December 17 and began firing a pistol-grip, 12-gauge shotgun.

The shooter, from northern California, said he was angry because "he had a vasectomy here and they ruined his life", a male witness told a 911 dispatcher from a locked bathroom where he and about 10 others hid.

"He says, 'As long as you're a patient, you can leave. Otherwise I'm going to shoot you,'" the man said.

The bathroom was outside the urology office where the shooting occurred.

Frazier used the shotgun to kill Urology Nevada president Dr Charles Gholdoian, 46. He also critically wounded another doctor, then turned the gun on himself.

A woman hiding under a desk was talking so softly on the emergency recording she could barely be heard.

"I hear gunshots outside my office," the woman said.

"I just heard another one ... He's going to (expletive) kill us."

"Oh, my God ... He's outside my door," she said.

Among the 50 calls police said they received was one from a woman in a locked office, gasping for breath between sentences.

"He's in the middle of the office," she said.

"We think he shot one of our doctors."

Police arrived at the scene within minutes.

They confirmed Frazier had been a patient at the facility who had complained about a botched surgery in 2010.

The unemployed former power plant worker said in a suicide note he planned the attack and his focus was on the physicians, police said.

Detectives are investigating Frazier's involvement in an internet chat room where he reportedly complained about complications from the surgery, city spokeswoman Sharon Spangler said.

She said a neighbour said Frazier told him the day of the shooting that he was leaving and not coming back.

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Flood worries as WA cyclone threat eases

The Bureau of Meteorology has issued a flood-watch warning for the north Kimberley region. Source: AAP

A DAMAGING tropical low is expected to bare down on Western Australia on Christmas night but cyclone fears are declining.

And strong winds are forecast for the Sydney to Hobart yacht race.

The Bureau of Meteorology says a tropical low in the Joseph Bonaparte Gulf, to the north of Wyndham, is expected to cross the Kimberley coast on Wednesday night.

The weather system could bring heavy rainfall, flash flooding and thunderstorms with winds up to 100 km/h.

While the weather bureau says the weather is typical for this time of year, the winds could damage property and make road conditions hazardous.

A flood-watch warning is still in place for the North Kimberley.

The bureau cancelled a earlier cyclone warning for the Mitchell Plateau to the Northern Territory border

The low is no longer expected to become a tropical cyclone.

However, heavy rainfall is still forecast over the north Kimberley for the next few days, with falls up to 125 millimetres forecast from Kalumburu to Kununurra expected in the coming 24 hours.

Further east, strong winds are expected to lash the southern NSW coast during the Sydney to Hobart yacht race, which starts on Thursday.

Gale force winds are forecast for the Illawarra coast on Boxing Day and a strong-wind warning has been issued for the Hunter Coast and Sydney Coastal area.

The weather bureau forecasts 15 to 25 knot winds increasing to 35 knots offshore on Thursday for the Illawarra coast.

The Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race starts from Sydney Harbour on Boxing Day and follows a 628 nautical mile course out into the Tasman Sea.

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Cyclone could develop Christmas Day

A TROPICAL cyclone is expected to form in northern Western Australia on Christmas morning with warnings issued for parts of the state and the Northern Territory.

A blue alert has been issued for people in or near the coastal and inland communities between the WA and Northern Territory border and the Mitchell Plateau.

That includes people in Wyndham, Kalumburu, Troughton Island and surrounding areas.

"Although there is no immediate danger, you need to start preparing for dangerous weather and keep up to date," the Department of Fire and Emergency Services (DFES) warns.

Residents have been warned to secure or remove loose material from around their homes and ensure their emergency kits are complete.

The Northern Territory Emergency Service has also advised people in affected areas to tie things down and seek shelter when conditions deteriorate.

The service warned that driving conditions may be hazardous and urged people to avoid flooded roads and watercourses.

At around 6.30pm (CST) on Tuesday the tropical low was estimated to be about 270km northeast of Kalumburu and 335km north of Wyndham, moving south at 4km/h towards the north Kimberley coast.

The low may develop into a tropical cyclone in the next 12 to 24 hours, the Bureau of Meteorology says.

Gales with gusts to 100km/h may develop on the coast on Wednesday morning.

Heavy rain is also expected over the far north Kimberley region during Wednesday and Thursday.

AAP anr/ldj

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Man dies after car hits tree in Qld

A 69-YEAR-OLD man who died after his car crashed into a tree northwest of Bundaberg has become the first fatality on Queensland roads in the Christmas holiday period.

The crash near Avondale was reported to police at around 12.30pm (AEST) on Tuesday after it was discovered by a member of the public.

Police said initial investigations indicate the vehicle left Baumanns Road and crashed into a tree.

The driver and sole occupant, believed to be a local man, died at the scene.

The national road toll period runs from 0001 December 23, 2013 until 2359 January 3, 2014, local times, in line with the Australia New Zealand Policing Advisory Board.

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Belfast peace talks fail to reach deal

OVERNIGHT talks in Belfast have failed to resolve deep-seated divisions over parades and flags that have triggered widespread rioting in Northern Ireland.

Richard Haass, director of the New York-based Council on Foreign Relations, led the multiparty talks.

The hope was that he could forge a compromise plan by the end of the year on areas of bitter dispute: parades, British and Irish flags and emblems, and remembering the dead from Northern Ireland's four-decade conflict.

Talks ended around 4am on Tuesday without agreement.

Haass insisted the process was "still alive" and said he might return to Belfast before the end of the year.

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Qld crash takes Xmas road toll to 4

A 69-YEAR-OLD man who was killed when his car crashed into a tree northwest of Bundaberg has become the first fatality on Queensland roads in the Christmas holiday period.

His death near Avondale at around 12.30pm (AEST) on Tuesday takes the national road toll for the holiday period to four.

Police said a member of the public reported the crash and the driver and sole occupant, believed to be a local man, died at the scene.

The death follows that of a man in northern NSW who was killed when the car he was in also hit a tree and split in two during a police pursuit.

A second man in the Holden sedan was critically injured in the high speed crash about 4km north of Moree at about 11pm (AEDT) on Monday.

Police said officers were attempting to catch up with the car after it passed a stationary RBT site on the Carnarvon Highway.

The death was the first in NSW for the holiday period and followed the deaths of two women in a two-car collision on the Calder Highway near Ouyen in Victoria's northwest at about 1pm on Monday.

* The national road toll period runs from 0001 December 23, 2013 until 2359 January 3, 2014, local times, in line with the Australia New Zealand Policing Advisory Board.

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Australian journalist accused by Thai navy

A VETERAN Australian journalist is facing up to five years in a Thai jail in what human rights activists claim is an attempt to curtail press freedom.

Alan Morison, editor of news website Phuketwan, has told AAP that he and fellow journalist Chutima Sidasathian were confronted with defamation allegations by Thai police last week.

Mr Morison says the charge came five months after his site published excerpts from a news agency report that alleged Thai authorities were trafficking captured Rohingya asylum seekers from Myanmar (Burma).

"We were shocked and surprised when we were sued by the Royal Thai Navy, especially given that all we did was carry a paragraph from Reuters," Mr Morison told AAP from his home on Phuket on Monday night.

Mr Morison said the pair were also accused of breaching Thailand's Computer Crimes Act and if convicted face maximum jail terms of five and two years or a fine of up to 100,000 baht (AU$3400) or both.

The journalists were originally due to appear in court on Christmas Eve and Mr Morison feared he would await trial behind bars.

The pair have now been told to report back to police on Tuesday.

A spokeswoman for the Department of Foreign Affairs confirmed Canberra was aware of the case.

"Embassy officials in Bangkok are providing consular assistance to an Australian man who has been called to give a statement before police on 24 December," she told AAP.

Human Rights Watch has attacked the legal action, calling it an attempt to stifle reporting.

"The Thai navy's lawsuit is a reckless attempt to curtail journalists reporting on alleged human trafficking by its officers," the group's Asia director Brad Adams said in a statement.

But Mr Morison said he believed the suit may stem from a simple mistranslation of his website's English-language article into Thai.

And the incident won't send him packing.

"I've been here for 10 years," he said.

"Phuket is a paradise for tourists and it's even more of a paradise for journalists."

The Royal Thai Navy could not be reached for comment.

A response has been sought from Reuters.

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Victory smells sweet for this winner

The ring up for auction at graysonline. Picture: graysonline.com Source: Supplied

SOME may have pooh-poohed whether it would ever be sold, but a 'lucky' bidder has snapped up Brisbane's most infamous ring.

A West Australian became the new owner of a 1.53-carat yellow diamond ring on Monday night, after successfully placing a bid of $16,000.

The GraysOnline auction came down to the wire, with last minute bids adding $2000 to the ring's selling price.

The ring, valued at $27,000, was one of two swallowed by David Watts after he allegedly stole the jewels from Crown Family Jewellers at Indooroopilly Shopping Centre in November.

The ring up for auction at graysonline. Picture: greysonline.com

The auctioned ring was returned to the store by police after Watts underwent a colonoscopy earlier this month.

The other ring was accidently thrown out by police while Watts was in custody.

Embarrassment for Queensland police today. Forced to admit they've bungled the stolen diamonds case. Officers were waiting for the alleged robber to pass the rings, but they didn't keep their eyes on where it went

Crown Family Jewellers spokeswoman Francesca Antonaglia-Monteverde said proceeds from the auction for the 1.53-carat yellow diamond would go to the Leukaemia Foundation.

"This is a unique ring," Ms Antonaglia-Monteverde told The Courier-Mail.

"From the mine to the jeweller to the cutters to the designers, down someone's throat."

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Cleveland kidnap hero lands book deal

Charles Ramsey has told WEWS news what was going through his head when Amanda Berry ran into his arms. Courtesy of WEWS

The man who helped rescue three women held captive in a Cleveland house has landed a book deal. Source: AAP

THE man who famously put aside his Big Mac to help rescue three women held captive in a Cleveland house over a decade has signed a contract to publish his memoirs.

Charles Ramsey signed the deal with the Cleveland publisher David Gray & Co on Thursday.

Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus and Michelle Knight and Berry's six-year-old daughter escaped to freedom May 6.

Collaborating as Ramsey's co-author will be freelance writer Randy Nyerges.

The former US Senate staff speechwriter co-wrote Day of the Dawg with former Cleveland Browns defensive back Hanford Dixon.

"What you saw on TV doesn't even begin to tell the story," Ramsey said in the company's announcement of the signing.

Ramsey and Nyerges started work on the book early this month, David Gray said. Ramsey, who had been working as a dishwasher, is devoting full time to the project.

"Charles says outrageous things, but what a story he has," Nyerges said. "America doesn't know yet how truly brilliant this guy is."

The book, which does not yet have a title, will be published next spring.

"He's completely unfiltered," Gray said, according to The (Cleveland) Plain Dealer. "I think that's part of his appeal. He says what he thinks. I am really intrigued by him - as a person, with the story he had to tell, and with his ability to tell it."

Last May Ramsey, 44, heard screaming from Ariel Castro's Seymour Avenue house next door. Ramsey ran over, helped a woman who said she was Amanda Berry escape through the front door, and called 911.

He was hailed as a hero, and his animated TV interviews, offering blunt opinions on race, class and life in the inner city, made him a sensation.

Seeing a white girl in that situation was "a dead giveaway" that she was either homeless or had other problems, he said.

"When a little pretty white girl ran into a black man's arms, something was wrong," he said.

Viking announced last week that it has acquired a planned book by Berry and DeJesus. The book is currently untitled and is scheduled to come out in 2015.

Knight is working on her own memoir, which Weinstein Books plans to publish next spring.

Castro was arrested and eventually sentenced to life in prison. He was found hanged in his cell in September.

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Ex-UK minister jailed for fudging expenses

A FORMER British legislator and Cabinet minister has been sentenced to six months in jail after pleading guilty to making nearly STG13,000 ($A23,950) in bogus expense claims.

Denis MacShane, who served as Europe minister under former Prime Minister Tony Blair, admitted to filing 19 fake receipts for "research and translation" services between January 2005 and January 2008.

The money from those claims was used to fund trips, including one to Paris to judge a literary competition.

MacShane's admission capped several years of scrutiny of his expenses, following the 2009 scandal that found UK lawmakers had billed the public for items such as pornographic movies and an ornamental duck house.

He was sentenced on Monday at London's Old Bailey Court to six months in jail.

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Swedish Christmas goat engulfed in flames

A giant straw goat in Sweden symbolising Christmas spirit has been burnt down for the 27th time. Source: AAP

VANDALS in Sweden have burned down for the 27th time a giant straw goat meant to symbolise Christmas spirit.

The 13-metre high and 3.6-tonne heavy straw goat was engulfed in flames early on Saturday after unidentified assailants attacked it in the Swedish town of Gavle, 150km north of Stockholm.

The straw goat is a centuries-old Scandinavian yule symbol that preceded Santa Claus as the bringer of gifts.

Since 1966, when the tradition of erecting the giant straw goat in the town square was introduced, Vandals have burnt it down 27 times.

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Six horses slaughtered in SA stable

Six miniature show horses have been hacked to death at a stable south of Adelaide. Source: AAP

A $100,000 reward is being offered to catch the "extremely sick" person who slaughtered six miniature show horses in a South Australian stable.

Police describe the animal killings at Clayton Bay, about 70km south of Adelaide, as "bizarre and cruel", with no leads on a suspect.

Three miniature horses in the same stable were not harmed but six others were found dead with their throats cut.

The owner's son, Daniel Spong, told ABC Radio it may have been a targeted attack but he doesn't know why.

"It just would take an extremely sick individual, I think, to carry this out," he said.

"We just can't believe it.

"These horses each have their own characters and personalities, and each of the staff and family have their own personal relationships with the animals." He said the distraught owners were offering a $100,000 reward.

A police spokesman said the horses are believed to have been killed some time between Friday night and Saturday morning.

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Man critical after CBD assault

Two men are in a critical condition, following a night of alcohol-fuelled violence in Brisbane

Police would like to speak to this man in relation to a serious assault in Brisbane's CBD early Sunday morning. Source: Supplied

Police would like to speak to this man in relation to a serious assault in Brisbane's CBD early Sunday morning. Source: Supplied

A MAN has come forward over a bashing in Brisbane CBD overnight, which left another man with critical injuries.

A man voluntarily attended Petrie police station a short time ago and is currently speaking with detectives.

The other man is still in hospital in a critical condition with life threatening injuries.

EARLIER, police relased CCTV images of a man as part of ongoing investigations into the serious assault of a man in Brisbane's CBD.

Police are searching for a man who intervened in a couple's fight, seriously injuring a 38-year-old man in the early hours of Sunday morning.

The couple were arguing on the footpath of Queen Street near the intersection with Wharf Street around 4am when an unidentified man stepped in, seriously injuring the 38-year-old.

Brisbane region detective inspector Ian Park said the partner of the injured Arana Hills man was by his bedside in hospital.

"She's very upset obviously by what's happened," he said.

He said the man today remained in Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital in a critical condition with serious injuries after being resuscitated at the scene.

Insp Park said alcohol may have been a factor.

"I guess it's a fair assumption that at 4 o'clock there is going to be alcohol involved, so we would appeal to people to just be careful with alcohol and look after themselves and each other and not to drink to excessive levels, which is always a deadly cocktail."

There were reports that people performed CPR on the man before paramedics arrived.

Alessandro Vosolo, who is staying on the 44th floor of the building, said the fight sounded violent and lasted less than four minutes.

"Fighting, screaming, arguing like guys getting thrown around, that sort of thing," he said.

One witness said he was on the 20th floor of the hotel and heard the fight.

"A dude got beat up... We heard it but then police rocked up."

Police insp Park said a number of witnesses had already been interviewed but appealed for more people to step forward, particularly the man, understood to be Caucasian and in his 30s, who was involved in the fight.

The injured man was taken to the Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital in a critical condition.

"Initial information suggests that a man and a woman were seen arguing on the footpath of Queen Street near the intersection with Wharf Street when another man intervened just before 4am," police said in a statement.

Police said the two men were then involved in a fight in which a 38-year-old Arana Hills man sustained a serious head injury.

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Detective inspector Ian Park said police were also investigating the assault of a man who got into a fight with a hotel staff member at the Orient about 4.30am.

A 37-year-old man fell down the stairs and suffered serious head injuries when his head hit the concrete pavement.

"I believe the may have been a disagreement between this person and a staff member but as to what actually took place is subject to investigation," Insp Park said.

The man was taken to the Princess Alexandra Hospital where he is in a serious condition.

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In a third incident, a man was allegedly glassed in the face at the Family Nightclub on McLachlan St in the Fortitude Valley about 3am Sunday.

Police said a 19-year-old was struck in the face with a glass, receiving cuts to his cheek area. Police said the man did not have life-threatening injuries.

A spokesman said security staff and patrons stopped the alleged attacker and held him until police arrived.

A 20-year-old Calamvale man has been charged with assault occasioning bodily harm. He is due to appear in the Brisbane Magistrates Court on Monday morning.

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Businessman, Jewish advocate Bronfman dies

EDGAR M Bronfman Sr, the billionaire businessman and long-time president of the World Jewish Congress, which lobbied the Soviets to allow Jews to emigrate and helped spearhead the search for hidden Nazi loot, has died aged 84.

The Canadian-born Bronfman died at his New York home on Saturday surrounded by family, according to the family charity he led, The Samuel Bronfman Foundation.

Bronfman made his fortune with his family's Seagram's liquor empire, taking over as chairman and CEO in 1971 and continuing the work of his father, Samuel. Under Bronfman's leadership, Seagram expanded its offerings and was eventually acquired by French media and telecom group Vivendi Universal in 2000.

But Bronfman's wealth, combined with his role in the World Jewish Congress, an umbrella group of Jewish organisations in some 80 countries that he led for more than a quarter century, allowed him to be a tireless advocate for his fellow Jews.

"He was the first of his kind, a titan of industry that dedicated himself fully to advocating, advancing and encouraging the Jewish people," said Dana Raucher, executive director of The Samuel Bronfman Foundation.

In 1999, President Bill Clinton awarded Bronfman the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian honour. In the citation, Bronfman was heralded for working "to ensure basic rights for Jews around the world."

In a 1986 Associated Press profile, he said his position and money helped him have access to world leaders.

"It's a combination of the two," Bronfman said.

"In the end, it doesn't really matter why that access is available, as long as it is there."

The year before, he had become the first congress president to meet with Soviet officials in Moscow, bringing his case for human rights and taking a little time to promote Seagram's interests. He visited again in 1988, by which time Jewish emigration from the Soviet Union, a key goal of the congress, had begun to rise under the reforming leadership of Mikhail Gorbachev.

During the 1980s and 1990s, the congress also helped lead the effort to gain $US11 billion ($A12.45 billion) in restitution for heirs of Holocaust victims.

Jews in German and Nazi-held countries were stripped of their possessions, their artworks and even the gold fillings from their teeth in the regime's death camps. Much of the gold wound up in Swiss banks, and the institutions came under heavy criticism decades after the war ended for failing to make adequate reparations.

In 1975, the Bronfman family made the news for a far different reason when one of Edgar Bronfman's sons, 21-year-old Samuel 2nd, was abducted in a New York suburb.

The family paid a $2.3 million ransom and Samuel was later found when authorities raided a Brooklyn apartment. The missing money was found under a bed and two men were arrested.

The two were convicted of extortion, but acquitted of kidnapping, in a sensational 1976 trial in which the defence accused Samuel Bronfman of staging his own kidnapping as a hoax intended to cheat his father out of the ransom money. Samuel Bronfman denied the allegation and the prosecution called it "ridiculous".

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Attacks across Iraq leave 15 people dead

A STRING of attacks across Iraq has killed 15 people, including a senior military commander, a colonel and five soldiers who all died during a raid on an al-Qaeda hideout, officials said.

Police officials said army Major General Mohammed al-Karawi, the colonel and the five troops were killed on Saturday when they stormed the booby-trapped hideout in the area of Rutba, in Iraq's volatile Sunni western Anbar province.

Al-Karawi, who commanded the Iraqi army's 7th Division, was leading a search operation hunting for al-Qaeda fighters in the area. Four soldiers were wounded in the operation, the police said.

Also in western Iraq, gunmen in a speeding car opened fire at a police checkpoint in the city of Fallujah earlier on Saturday, killing four policemen.

In the north, near the city of Kirkuk, an army officer and a soldier were killed when two mortar shells struck a military camp, officials said.

And in the town of Latifiyah, 30 kilometres south of Baghdad, a mortar shell hit a group of Shi'ite pilgrims heading to the holy sites in the city of Karbala.

The pilgrims were commemorating Arbaeen, the end of 40 days of mourning following the anniversary of the death of Prophet Mohammed's grandson, Imam Hussein, a revered Shi'ite figure.

Hundreds of thousands of Shi'ite pilgrims make their way every year to Karbala for Arbaeen. Al-Qaeda fighters and other Sunni insurgents frequently target Shi'ites, whom they consider to be infidels. Iraqi security forces also often poorly protect Shi'ite marches and pilgrimages to holy sites.

No one immediately claimed responsibility for any of the attacks.

Medical officials confirmed the casualty figures. All officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to talk to media.

Violence has spiked in Iraq since a deadly crackdown on a Sunni protest camp in a northern town in April. At least 367 people have died in attacks across the country so far this month, according to an Associated Press count.

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Gunman had botched vasectomy: Neighbours

AUTHORITIES in the US are trying to determine whether a Northern California man's anger over complications he suffered from a 2010 surgery prompted him to go on a shooting rampage at a Nevada urologist's office, killing one doctor and critically wounding another before committing suicide.

Reno Police Lieutenant William Rulla said on Friday detectives were working to obtain Alan Oliver Frazier's medical records to learn more about his physical and mental health.

Frazier, 51, made it clear in a suicide note that he had planned the attack and that his "focus was on the physicians at the specific office," Rulla said. Police recovered the note at Frazier's home.

Investigators have declined to specify the kind of surgery he had or say whether the doctors he targeted had anything to do with it.

But a couple who lived across the street from Frazier at Lake Almanor, about 130 miles north of Reno, said the operation he had had was a vasectomy. They also said Frazier frequently posted complaints in an online chat group about the pain he suffered from what he claimed was a botched surgery.

An international expert in men's reproductive health care said that while it's uncommon, some men experience pain more than two years after a vasectomy.

Neighbour Mario Tognotti told The Associated Press on Friday that Frazier told him and his wife that he sought help from doctors for his pain and had approached a lawyer about the situation. Tognotti declined to comment further.

His wife, Jari Tognotti, told the Reno Gazette-Journal in an email Thursday that Frazier encouraged friends to learn more about the kind of painful allergic reactions that men like him sometimes suffered as a result of vasectomies. She said it involved "immune-type reactions while their bodies are trying to absorb the sperm."

Dr Paul Turek, president of the Society of Male Reproduction and Urology, said that while vasectomies remain among the safest forms of permanent contraception, there are potential short- and long-term side effects. He declined to comment on Frazier's case, but noted about 60 to 70 per cent of men who undergo vasectomies develop an allergy to their sperm in the form of "antisperm antibodies."

Turek also said it's rare but possible to experience pain more than two years after a vasectomy.

"Developing over time can be a low-grade discomfort in the scrotum that's basically relieved by reversals because it's due to congestion that causes back pressure," Turek said.

Any sperm allergy appears to be localised to the immune systems on reproductive tracts, he said, and antisperm antibodies have not been shown conclusively to have any significant effect on other organs.

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Khodorkovsky starts life as a free man

Kremlin critic Mikhail Khodorkovsky has arrived in Germany after being freed from a Russian prison. Source: AAP

RUSSIA'S most famous prisoner, Kremlin critic and former oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky, has begun life as a free man in Germany after his surprise pardon by President Vladimir Putin.

Khodorkovsky has been reunited with his son in Berlin, a spokeswoman for the former tycoon said on Saturday.

"The eldest son of Mikhail Borisovich, Pavel, has already seen his dad," a spokeswoman for Khodorkovsky, Olga Pispanen, said on Russian radio Echo of Moscow.

"They are now together in Berlin."

Khodorkovsky's parents, Marina and Boris, were also preparing to fly out to Germany to "finally see and hug him," the spokeswoman added.

Released on Friday after 10 years behind bars, Khodorkovsky is "feeling well" and will give a news conference on Sunday, she said, with the date and place to be confirmed later.

Khodorkovsky's 79-year-old mother, who has cancer, said she was taking sedatives to help her cope with the strong emotions sparked by his release.

"We survived grief but it is also apparently hard to survive joy," Marina Khodorkovskaya said in an interview broadcast on Russian state television on Saturday.

Putin stunned Russia on Thursday by revealing that Khodorkovsky had turned to him for pardon on humanitarian grounds, citing his mother's health.

In a head-spinning succession of events, less than 24 hours later Khodorkovsky was granted pardon, walked out of prison and flew to Germany in a secret operation worked out behind the scenes with Berlin.

Prison officials said Khodorkovsky had requested to fly to Germany, where his mother has undergone treatment before.

Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that Khodorkovsky was not forced into exile and was free to return to Russia.

Former German foreign minister Hans-Dietrich Genscher, who helped negotiate his release, arranged the flight for him on a private jet and picked him up at the airport in Berlin.

From the airport, Khodorkovsky was reportedly taken to Berlin's luxury Adlon Hotel near the Brandenburg Gate from which Genscher was seen leaving on Friday evening.

About 20 cameramen and photographers as well as two TV vans were waiting for a possible glimpse of the former tycoon outside the landmark hotel in sub-zero temperatures on Saturday morning, according to reports.

Khodorkovsky is expected to give a press conference in Berlin on Sunday, when he will outline his future plans.

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US military aircraft hit in South Sudan

TWO US military aircraft responding to the outbreak of violence in South Sudan have been hit by incoming fire, wounding three US service members.

Two officials said the aircraft were heading to Bor, the capital of the state of Jonglei and scene of some of the nation's worst violence over the last week.

One of the wounded service members was reported to be in a critical condition.

Officials said after the aircraft took incoming fire, they turned around and headed to Kampala, Uganda.

From there, the service members flew on to Nairobi, Kenya for medical treatment.

Both officials demanded anonymity to share information not yet made public. Both officials work in East Africa and are in a position to know the information.

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Security scare at NSW parliament house

Police have rushed in and grabbed a man from a car after a stand-off outside NSW Parliament. Source: AAP

A DISGRUNTLED former taxi driver who sparked a two-hour stand-off outside NSW Parliament has been charged.

Abdula Ganiji has been charged with threatening sabotage and possessing an explosive or article to damage property.

He has also been charged with threatening to destroy or damage property, police said.

It comes several hours after Ganiji sparked a lockdown of Macquarie Street in Sydney's CBD when he drove his white Chrysler sedan onto the footpath outside parliament at about 11.40am (AEDT) on Friday.

A large part of the street was quickly cordoned off and MPs and staff in parliament house were warned to keep clear of the front of the building.

For over two hours the 58-year-old from the Wollongong area passed lists of demands from inside the car to plain-clothes police negotiators.

Hundreds of city workers gathered at the police cordon and parliament went into partial lockdown, before the siege ended dramatically just before 2pm (AEDT).

There were loud bangs and flashes as up to a dozen heavily armed tactical officers swarmed the vehicle, smashing the car's windows and firing a canister of gas inside before dragging Ganiji into custody.

Police later said he had made threats of self harm, was known to police and was a regular visitor at parliament.

After he was handcuffed and dragged off for medical checks, police officers and firefighters removed a device from the car before conducting tests on the vehicle.

NSW Police Assistant Commissioner Mark Murdoch told reporters the man had a container of flammable liquid, which AAP understands was petrol, which he was threatening to set alight.

Mr Murdoch praised the quick actions of police.

"When that man attempted to light a cigarette lighter, wind the windows of the car up with what we believe to be a container of flammable liquid in the vehicle, those officers put their lives on the line this afternoon and they resolved the situation in a peaceful manner," he said.

The man was receiving medical attention for minor cuts suffered in the struggle with police, Mr Murdoch said, but compared to the threats he was making those injuries were "very, very minor in the scheme of things".

"The mere fact we're in front of our state parliament, in the middle of Sydney in the middle of the day - certainly that posed a risk," Mr Murdoch said.

"(But) at no time was any member of the community at risk, no one in any building was at risk and importantly no members of parliament were at risk because of this incident.

"We were very comfortable at all times that we had the measure of the fellow."

Mr Murdoch could not confirm reports the man had sought a meeting with Premier Barry O'Farrell, who stayed inside parliament throughout.

"He was making certain demands of the police but we weren't in a position to meet those demands, nor were we ever in a position to entertain them," he said.

"Our whole tactic was to contain and negotiate with the man.

Ganiji last year staged a hunger strike for several days outside parliament about a $200 fine he received 15 years ago.

He had called on Mr O'Farrell to solve a dispute with his employer, Wollongong Radio Cabs.

Ganiji told the Illawarra Mercury newspaper last year he was fined by the company for misusing his taxi radio by clicking the buttons unnecessarily, causing problems on the communications network.

He has been refused bail to appear at Parramatta Bail Court on Saturday.

Police said investigations into the incident were continuing.

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Investigators probe UK theatre collapse

At least 88 people were injured when the ceiling collapsed during a show at London's Apollo Theatre. Source: AAP

INVESTIGATORS are seeking to establish why the ceiling of a packed London theatre collapsed, injuring 76 people and coating terrified audience members with rubble.

A sell-out crowd of around 720 people was in the Apollo Theatre in Soho on Thursday night when ornate masonry and rigging fell about five storeys on to their heads.

Witnesses said they heard creaking noises in the 112-year-old theatre, but thought it was part of the show they were watching, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time.

Then debris and dust filled the air, sending coughing, terrified theatregoers - many of them families enjoying a pre-Christmas treat - fleeing for the exits.

Rescuers commandeered three iconic red London double-decker buses to transport the injured, while the city's normally tourist-thronged "Theatreland" was brought to a stunned halt.

Ambulance staff treated 76 patients, taking 58 to hospital, where seven were described as having serious but not life-threatening injuries.

A surveyor examined the theatre overnight and said the roof was secure, but investigations are now being carried out by the local authority to establish what happened.

The abnormally heavy rain that fell in the hour before the ceiling collapsed shortly after 8.00pm (0700 AEDT Friday) is likely to be one line of inquiry.

"We will not know the cause of the incident until all investigations have been completed but checks are ongoing," said councillor Nickie Aiken of Westminster Council.

"This appears to be an isolated incident, but we will continue to work with theatres throughout the day to ensure that all safety precautions are in place."

All historic theatres are required to undergo rigorous safety checks on their roofs every three years, she added.

Witnesses told of terror inside the Edwardian-era theatre, which has three tiers of balconies, the uppermost of which is said to be the steepest in London.

"A section of the theatre's ceiling collapsed on to the audience who were watching the show. The ceiling took parts of the balconies down with it," senior firefighter Nick Harding told reporters.

"In my time as a fire officer I've never seen an incident like this."

Desmond Thomas, 18, part of a school party watching the show, said they heard noises before the accident.

"Maybe 10 minutes into the performance we heard a tap-tap noise, we thought it was rain," he told AFP.

"There was a crack and then it suddenly seemed to get bigger and suddenly it collapsed. The next thing we knew the whole theatre filled with dust and smoke."

Simon Usborne, a journalist for The Independent newspaper who was watching the show, said there was "chaos".

"Loud bangs, cracks. Thought was part of show then whole interior of theatre filled with curtain of dark grey dust and debris, falling on heads of anyone not sheltered," he tweeted afterwards.

"People emerging soon after bloodied - children crying - family show - people dumbfounded."

No Australians were reported to be injured in the collapse. "Consular staff are in contact with UK authorities, but have not been advised of any Australians affected at this stage," a spokeswoman for the high commission in London said in a statement.

British Prime Minister David Cameron said he was being kept updated on the incident and was "grateful for the fast work of the emergency services in helping the injured".

Some of the injured were treated in triage centres set up in the lobbies of the nearby Gielgud and Queen's theatres.

"In the finest traditions of Theatreland, they very quickly rallied around," said fire brigade spokesman Graham Ellis.

He said that "heavy ornate plaster" had fallen from the roof on to theatregoers in the circle, dress circle and stalls.

Audience member James Kearney, who was given a ticket to the show as a present, told AFP there were "people with blood on their heads in shock" behind them.

Kearney's companion Dee Stephenson said there was so much dust afterwards they had to feel their way out.

"Everybody was in a trance-like state. A lot of people were in absolute shock," Stephenson told AFP. "We were extremely fortunate."

Based on an award-winning novel by Mark Haddon, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time has been running in London since August 2012.

Haddon said on Twitter that the incident was "horrifying" and that he was "hugely relieved that no one died".

The owner of the Apollo, Nimax Theatres, said the ceiling collapse was a "shocking and upsetting incident".

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Jury resume deliberations in Lawson case

THE jury in the trial of two former personal assistants accused of defrauding Nigella Lawson and Charles Saatchi has been sent out to continue its deliberations for a second day.

Jurors were told that neither Francesca Grillo, 35, nor her sister, Elisabetta, 41, was in the dock at Isleworth Crown Court in west London as one remained unwell and was "very anxious".

The Grillos are alleged to have used company credit cards to spend STG685,000 ($A1.27 million) on items, including designer shoes and clothes, for themselves.

The Italian sisters had been employed as PAs by the TV cook and her multi-millionaire art dealer ex-husband, who were divorced earlier this year.

Judge Robin Johnson told the jury on Friday: "You will notice that neither defendant is in the dock. They are in the building.

"One of them is not feeling well, is very anxious and you will appreciate that a criminal trial is a stressful business for many people, no more stressful than for the person on trial, in this case, herself.

"I have said that the defendants can be in another room while court proceedings proceed, with the consent of the barristers."

He stressed that it had no bearing on the jury's deliberations and added: "It's not as if they have not turned up today."

Judge Johnson also gave the jurors the direction on their second day of deliberations, saying at least 10 of them had to agree on each verdict.

The jury of seven men and five women were sent out on Thursday morning after a three-week trial.

The Grillos each deny a single count of committing fraud by using a company credit card for personal gain between January 1, 2008 and December 31 last year.

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Man refused bail for cold-case murder

THREE decades after Sydney nurse Mary Louise Wallace went missing, a 61-year-old man has been charged with her murder and refused bail.

Ms Wallace, 33, went missing from Sydney's north shore in the early hours of September 24, 1983.

On the night she disappeared Ms Wallace had dinner and drinks with nursing colleagues at the Alpine Inn, in Crows Nest.

A 2010 inquest into her death heard she was last seen getting into a car with a man.

Ms Wallace was never seen again, and her body was never found.

Following three decades of investigations, including a 2010 coronial inquest and excavations at Lane Cove National Park, Robert Adams was arrested on Friday at his Gladesville home and refused bail at Parramatta Local Court.

Detective Chief Inspector John Lehmann said the man was known to police and had been the subject of intensive investigation.

"The evidence against him is quite comprehensive, which we'll be putting before the court," Det Chief Insp Lehmann told reporters.

He said police would put physical, forensic and DNA evidence before the court as well as witness statements he labelled "very important to our brief of evidence".

Homicide Squad Detective Superintendent Michael Willing said on Friday that police would continue searching for Ms Wallace's body.

Det Chief Insp Lehmann said Ms Wallace's friends and family were glad to hear an arrest had been made.

"They're very pleased with the result. They know it's just the start of a long court process," he said.

He called the arrest a "credit to the investigators who have put in tireless hours and an enormous amount of effort and dedication to this particular case".

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Troops return from Afghan mission

THE last mission of Corporal Brendon Heape's tour to Afghanistan sounded simple - be home in time for his seven-month-old daughter Mikaela's first Christmas.

"I wasn't meant to, but luckily enough I got the chance," he said at Sydney Airport on Thursday after flying in with fellow troops.

Leaving for a tour just weeks after she was born, with only a quick visit in September, the proud father said he was amazed at how big she'd grown.

"We're so excited to be able to share Mikaela's first Christmas as a full family," happy wife Catherine said.

Cpl Heape was just one of 259 defence personnel who returned from Afghanistan on Thursday following the wrap-up of Australia's combat operations.

At the RAAF Amberley base, west of Brisbane, 55 Royal Australian Air Force personnel arrived home after seven months in Afghanistan.

Among them was Airman Scott Penrose, who cried with joy as he hoisted daughter Ella into his arms. He made it home the day before Ella's seventh birthday.

Ella was in good company in welcoming home a much-missed parent.

"I waited 114 days to hug my daddy," were the words on the back of one nine-month-old baby boy's shirt.

Just over a hundred touched down at Sydney Airport after taking the last flight home before Christmas.

Although this contingent was the last to return from Oruzgan, there are still about 400 Australian troops left in Afghanistan to mentor the Afghan National Army.

At an earlier stop in Darwin, Corporal Shane Imrie said the hard work of Australian forces had started to pay off.

"At our level it's hard to see the bigger picture, but we certainly did a lot of work," he said.

"Going back to the early years you can definitely see a big difference."

"There's a lot more women going to school, and kids, and that's obviously a great thing."

For Corporal Katie Davis, 22, it was easy to put the emotions of being home into words.

"Best thing ever," she said, embracing her younger sister Julie and best friend Natalie Harrison.

She said she went into her nearly nine-month tour with an open mind but was happy to be home as an early gift to her sister.

"Cheap Christmas," quipped Julie.

It was a similarly emotional reunion for Major Jon Lane and his wife Sally Beaumont, separated for 10 months while he worked as a psychiatrist at a hospital in Kandahar.

As he wiped tears from his eyes, Major Lane said he'd missed the Australian landscape the most.

"The green, water and somewhere that doesn't just have dirt and dust and rocks," he said.

But there's still a bit of a way to go until they're back in their hometown of Hobart.

So what's the first thing on the list when he finally gets there?

"Ah, have a beer. It's mental health."

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Four RFS volunteers injured in truck crash

FOUR volunteer firefighters have been taken to hospital after their truck crashed in NSW's Southern Highlands.

The Rural Fire Service (RFS) volunteers were responding to reports of a fire when they crashed into a pole in Moss Vale, police said.

A man sitting in the front passenger seat was thrown from the truck and injured his neck, back, leg and chest.

The driver was trapped inside the truck before being freed with neck, back and abdomen injuries.

Both men have been airlifted to hospital for treatment.

Two men, who were sitting in the rear cabin seats sustained minor head injuries, including cuts and abrasions.

They have also been taken for further treatment.

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South Korean man's body found in grave

Police will dig up a shallow grave in Brisbane as they search for a missing South Korean man. Source: AAP

MIN Tae Kim went to exchange his hard-earned Australian savings for South Korean money for his return home but ended up in a shallow grave on a vacant property in southwest Brisbane.

Police said late on Thursday that they had exhumed the 28-year-old man's body after blood was found around the grave site in Algester.

Two men and a woman are being held and questioned over Mr Kim's disappearance, although no charges have been laid.

Detective Inspector Rod Kemp said Mr Kim had been working hard at a local abattoir to build up his savings before his planned return to South Korea next month.

But he needed to change $15,000 cash into South Korean won and advertised on the Gumtree website in hope of finding a better exchange rate.

Mr Kim left his Cannon Hill share house with his cash to do a deal with an unknown person about 2pm (AEST) on Monday.

It was the last time he was seen alive and Det Insp Kemp said police were looking into "foul play".

Mr Kim's disappearance comes after 22-year-old South Korean woman Eunji Ban was allegedly bashed to death while walking to work in Brisbane's CBD last month.

The Council of International Students Australia president Thomson Ch'ng said the incidents would rock people's confidence in Brisbane being a safe place to study.

"Two incidents within three weeks is not good for Brisbane and Australia," he told AAP.

"The fact is, international students are important bridges between Australia and the international community and whatever happens here (in Australia), the world is watching."

Det Insp Kemp said it would be very unfortunate if Mr Kim became the second South Korean murdered in Brisbane in less than a month.

"If it is and if he has been brutally murdered, it's a shocking thing for us and a concern for us, most certainly," he said.

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