French President Hollande in Mali push

French forces now face the daunting task of building long-term security in Mali, the US says. Source: AAP

PRESIDENT Francois Hollande arrived in Mali to push for African troops to replace French forces who led a lightning advance that drove back radical Islamists from the country's desert north.

The French leader's whirlwind tour came as troops worked to secure Kidal, the last bastion of the radicals who seized control last year after a coup, raising fears that an area larger than France could become a safehaven for al-Qaeda-linked fighters.

Welcoming Hollande on Saturday, thousands of people gathered in the central square of the fabled desert city of Timbuktu, dancing to the beat of drums, a forbidden activity during the extremists' 10-month occupation.

"The women of Timbuktu will thank Francois Hollande forever," said 53-year-old Fanta Diarra Toure.

"We must tell him that he has cut down the tree but still has to tear up its roots," she added.

Hollande was met by French and Malian troops in Timbuktu, whose sandy streets were patrolled by armoured vehicles, after starting his trip in the central garrison town of Sevare, where he joined up with Mali's interim president Dioncounda Traore.

Hollande, whose surprise decision to intervene in Mali three weeks ago has won broad support at home and made him a hero in the former French colony, is due to visit the 700-year-old mud mosque of Djingareyber and the Ahmed Baba library for ancient manuscripts.

Both sites were targeted by the Islamist occupiers, who destroyed two saints' tombs at Djingareyber that they considered heretical and burned some priceless manuscripts at the library before they fled the French-led troops who reclaimed the city Monday.

With the rebels ousted from all major towns but Kidal, France is keen to hand over its military operation to nearly 8,000 African troops slowly being deployed in the country - which the United Nations is considering turning into a formal UN peacekeeping operation.

But there are mounting warnings that Mali will need long-term help and fears that the Islamists will now wage a guerrilla campaign from the sparsely populated desert in the north.

US Defence Secretary Leon Panetta said on Friday that French forces had rolled back the Islamist militants "much faster" than the United States had expected but now faced the daunting task of building long-term security in the region.

"The challenge now is to make sure that you can maintain that security and that you are not overstretched and that, ultimately, as you begin to pull back, that the other African nations are prepared to move in and fill the gap of providing security," Panetta told AFP.

In Kidal, a first contingent of Chadian troops has now entered the town, a Malian security source said Friday, and French soldiers are stationed at the airport, which they captured Wednesday.

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Uzi submachine gun seized during raids

POLICE have seized an Uzi submachine gun and ammunition during a series of raids in Sydney.

Officers from the Firearms and Organised Crime Squad and local police executed a search warrant at a business about 8.30am (AEDT) on Friday at Campbelltown, in the city's southwest.

They seized the 9mm Uzi, a magazine containing approximately 15 rounds, a further 40 rounds of 9mm bullets and a small amount of cannabis.

During a second raid at nearby Minto officers seized a ski boat with trailer, more cannabis and drug paraphernalia.

Police issued a 33-year-old Rebels outlaw motorcycle gang member with a court attendance notice for cannabis possession.

The Uzi will undergo ballistic and forensic examinations while inquiries continue about the ownership of the firearm.

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Death penalty for some India rape cases

INDIA'S cabinet has approved harsher punishments for rapists, including the death penalty, after a brutal gang-rape and murder in New Delhi that sparked national outrage.

A government-appointed panel recommended the changes to ministers after the death of a 23-year-old woman who was savagely raped and attacked in a bus on December 16 and died nearly two weeks later.

The case ignited nationwide demonstrations by protesters demanding better safety for women.

The changes, which must be approved by President Pranab Mukherjee to become law, include doubling the minimum sentence for gang-rape and imposing the death penalty when the victim is killed or left in a vegetative state.

"We have taken swift action and hope these steps will make women feel safer in the country," Law Minister Ashwani Kumar told reporters late on Friday.

"This is a progressive piece of legislation and is consistent with the felt sensitivities of the nation in the aftermath of the outrageous gang-rape," he added.

On Saturday, the gang-rape victim's brother praised the cabinet's decision to make sentences tougher for attackers, calling it a "positive initiative", according to the Press Trust of India news agency.

The changes to the rape laws were expected to be approved by Mukherjee as early as this weekend but must be ratified by parliament or they will lapse.

Under the changes, the minimum sentence for gang-rape, rape of a minor, rape by policemen or a person in authority will be doubled to 20 years from 10 and can be extended to life without parole.

Under the current law, a rapist faces a term of seven to 10 years.

The cabinet has also created a new set of offences such as voyeurism and stalking that will be included in the new law.

Five men are being tried in a special fast-track court in New Delhi on charges of murder, kidnapping and rape in connection with the death of the student, who died from her injuries in a Singapore hospital where she had been sent for further treatment.

A sixth suspect faces trial in a juvenile court.

The physiotherapy student was assaulted on a bus she had boarded with a male companion as they returned home from watching a film in an upmarket shopping mall.

India says it only imposes the death penalty in the "rarest of rare cases".

Three months ago, it hanged the lone surviving gunman from the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks - the country's first execution in eight years.

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Defiant Iran showcases defence advances

IRAN has trumpeted military, space and nuclear advances in a series of announcements coinciding with a new bid by world powers to revive stalled talks with Tehran over its atomic ambitions.

In an unveiling ceremony inside a hangar on Saturday, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad unveiled a futuristic-looking fighter jet he said ranks among the most sophisticated aircraft in the world, media reports said.

Code-named the Qaher (Conqueror) F-313 and shaped similar to stealth bombers, the grey warplane was designed and built domestically, Ahmadinejad told an audience of defence ministry top brass.

It "is among the most advanced fighter jets in the world," he said while insisting the F-313 was "a deterrent" meant to send a "message of peace" - despite its aggressive name.

Defence Minister Ahmad Vahidi was quoted in media as saying the plane boasted a very low radar signature, and that "advanced materials" were used to build it.

The unveiling comes as Iran marks the 34th anniversary of the 1979 revolution, which replaced the US-backed shah with an Islamic regime.

It traditionally uses the anniversary period to showcase military, space and nuclear advances, against a backdrop of international sanctions.

Tehran is locked in a showdown with the UN Security Council over its disputed nuclear activities, including sensitive uranium enrichment which the West suspects is part of a military programme, despite Iranian denials.

The resumption of talks between Iran and world powers aimed at resolving international concerns over its activities have stalled for months.

Iranian pronouncements of achievements have increased in recent years, as Tehran desperately aims to prove the West's embargo on its military, technology and economy have failed to dent its determination.

On January 28, Iran said it sent a monkey into space to an altitude of 120km for a sub-orbital flight, challenging Security Council sanctions against the development of its ballistic programme.

But Iran considers its space programme as strategic and non-negotiable, echoing its stance on its nuclear activities.

The US cautiously reacted to the news, saying it could confirm it. But it said that if true, the launch violated UN resolutions.

On January 23, Iran had informed the UN's International Atomic Energy Agency of intentions to install more modern enrichment equipment at Natanz, one of its main nuclear sites.

Two new Iranian space projects are expected to be announced later on Saturday.

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Blast outside US embassy in Ankara

TWO security guards were killed and several others were wounded on Friday in an explosion outside the US embassy in Ankara that damaged nearby buildings, a police officer says.

Police cordoned off the street in the Cankaya neighbourhood where many other state institutions and embassies are also located.

It was not immediately clear what caused the blast.

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Newborn twin cancer op 'UK first'

A PIONEERING operation to save the life of a tiny twin as she was born with a tumour on her neck the size of an orange is a UK first, doctors have said.

A team in Sheffield said it was a "race against time" to secure an airway for Isabel Roberts as the cancerous growth was so big it was crushing her throat.

Isabel's tumour weighed 0.6lb (0.27 kgs) - a sixth of her 3lb 9oz weight when she was born.

The team found it was pressing down so hard on her airway she would not have been able to breathe if she had been born in the normal way.

"It was definitely the most stressful few minutes of my career," one of the doctors said.

Maureen Roberts first gave birth to Isabel's twin sister Alexandra.

Doctors said this was by caesarean section and did not cause any problems.

But the surgical team from Sheffield Children's Hospital and Sheffield's Jessops maternity hospital were faced with a much more complex situation with Isabel.

They had to free her head from the uterus, allowing her to continue getting oxygen from the umbilical cord as they fitted a tube down her constricted throat to enable her to start breathing normally.

Dr Ayman Eissa, the consultant anaesthetist at Sheffield Children's NHS Foundation Trust who found and secured Isabel's airway during the "exit procedure", said: "As soon as the baby's head was out of the uterus it was a race against time.

"We estimate the placenta will continue to supply oxygen through the cord for up to five minutes, but you can never be sure, it could break off at any time.

"The baby was so small and the tumour so big, it was a very difficult job to secure the airway. The relief when I secured the tube was unimaginable. It was definitely the most stressful few minutes of my career."

The Children's Hospital believes Isabel, who is now 16 weeks old, is the first twin baby to undergo this rare procedure in the UK.

Her tumour was removed 10 days after she was born and specialists believe she has every chance of making a full recovery.

Mrs Roberts, 35, and her husband Simon, 29, from Hoyland, Barnsley, are now back home in Hoyland, near Barnsley, South Yorkshire, with their twin daughters.

The couple have two other daughters - Sarah, 16, and Olivia, 11.

They said they found out Isabel had an abnormal mass at an ultrasound scan 33 weeks into the pregnancy.

Mrs Roberts said: "The few weeks leading up to and after the twins' arrival were a blur, it's crazy to think just how much has happened to my baby. I can remember walking into the operating theatre to have the caesarean and not knowing what was going to have happened when I woke up."

Neil Bateman, the consultant ear, nose and throat surgeon, who removed Isabel's tumour said: "The tumour was sitting right on the trachea and was very close to her major arteries.

"It was tricky to remove, but I managed to get it all.

"When we weighed the tumour it accounted for one sixth of her entire body weight. It is very rare for a baby to develop a tumour of this size in the womb."

Tests showed the tumour was cancerous and Isabel was put on a course of chemotherapy at the Children's Hospital after her birth, which is continuing.

Mr Roberts said: "Isabel looked so much better after Mr Bateman removed the tumour. Her head was not forced back anymore, she looked like a normal baby.

"Then we found out she had cancer, it was unbelievable."

But Dr Anna Jenkins, who is treating Isabel, said she should recover fully.

She said: "It is very rare for a baby to be born with such a large cancerous tumour.

"She is coping well with treatment. The cancer hasn't spread and we are expecting her to make a full recovery."

Mrs Roberts said: "I was really nervous going home for the first time without the support of the nurses, but it was also such a relief and meant Isabel was getting better and we could be a family.

"We only have to go to the hospital every three weeks for chemotherapy at the moment, and she's getting stronger every day."

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Former NYC mayor Ed Koch dies

FORMER New York Mayor Ed Koch, the combative politician who rescued the city from near-financial ruin during three City Hall terms, has died at age 88.

Spokesman George Arzt says Koch died on Friday morning of congestive heart failure.

In City Hall, Koch embodied New York for the rest of the world. He won a national reputation with his feisty style and his trademark question, "How'm I doing?"

During his years as mayor, from 1978 to 1989, his tight fiscal policies pulled the city out of severe financial difficulties.

But homelessness and racial tensions soared and critics charged that City Hall's responses were ineffective.

His mark on the city was set in steel when the Queensboro Bridge, connecting Manhattan to Queens, was renamed in Koch's honour in 2011.

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Aussie DJs won't be charged over hoax call

BRITISH prosecutors said they would not bring charges over a hoax call by two Australian radio DJs to the hospital where Prince William's pregnant wife Catherine was being treated.

The Crown Prosecution Service said on Friday there was no evidence to support a charge of manslaughter, despite the fact that Indian-born Jacintha Saldanha, 46, apparently committed suicide after answering the call.

It added that while there was some evidence of possible offences under data protection laws "no further investigation is required because any potential prosecution would not be in the public interest".

Malcolm McHaffie, Deputy Head of Special Crime at the Crown Prosecution Service, said police had handed them a file in December and asked advice about whether a prosecution should be brought.

He added: "It is not possible to extradite individuals from Australia in respect of the potential offences in question.

"However misguided, the telephone call was intended as a harmless prank."

"The consequences in this case were very sad. We send our sincere condolences to Jacintha Saldanha's family."

Radio hosts Mel Greig and Michael Christian have since been taken off air by the Austereo network following the call, which resulted in details of Catherine's recovery from severe morning sickness being revealed on air.

The pair also received death threats over the call, in which they posed as Queen Elizabeth II, William's father Prince Charles, and one of the queen's corgi dogs.

An inquest heard that Saldanha, a mother of two, was found hanged in staff accommodation at the private King Edward VII's Hospital in central London and there were no suspicious circumstances over her death.

She also had marks on her wrist.

Saldanha left three notes, one of which reportedly criticised colleagues over her treatment at the hospital.

Australia's media watchdog has opened an investigation into the call.

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Bushfire threatens Vic ski infrastructure

AN out-of-control bushfire burning near the Victorian ski fields has prompted resort staff to use snow machines to protect infrastructure.

Authorities issued an emergency warning to residents of Mount Hotham, Hotham Heights and Dinner Plain on Thursday afternoon (AEDT) as a 5000-hectare bushfire that began near Harrietville on January 21 flared close to the towns.

Residents were told it was too late to leave the town, and parts of the Great Alpine Road were closed.

Mt Hotham ski resort management board chief executive Jim Atteridge said embers from the Harrietville fire sparked one spot fire in the village below the Hotham police station and two fires on the ski fields.

Mr Atteridge estimated there were 40 or 50 people in the village, including a full complement of resort administration staff.

A CFA spokeswoman said an additional 120 firefighters were being sent to the area.

Fire crews and resort staff were using snow machines to fight the spot fires, she said.

"We're not expecting properties to be affected, but some ski infrastructure could be damaged," the spokeswoman told AAP on Thursday night.

A staff member at the Dinner Plain Hotel said the bushfire threat had forced most people out of town.

"Summers up here are usually great, but it's a ghost town at the moment," he told AAP.

"These fires have been a bit of a kick in the arse."

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Briton finds valuable, rare 'whale vomit'

A BRITISH man has been offered 50,000 euros ($A65,625) for a strange-smelling rock his dog found on a beach, which may be a rare form of whale vomit used in perfumes, the BBC reports.

Ken Wilman was walking his dog Madge in the coastal town of Morecambe in northwest England when she began "poking at a rather large stone" with a waxy texture and yellowish colour.

At first he left it on the beach but later retrieved the object, which he believes is a piece of ambergris, a substance found in the digestive systems of sperm whales.

Whales sometimes spew up ambergris, which floats on water and has been highly prized for centuries.

It is used in perfume-making for the musky fragrance it acquires as it ages - but newer ambergris is foul-smelling.

"When I picked it up and smelled it I put it back down again and I thought 'urgh'," Wilman told the BBC on Thursday.

"It has a musky smell but the more you smell it the nicer the smell becomes."

He is waiting for tests to confirm his find is ambergris, known as "floating gold", but says he has been offered 50,000 euros for it by a French dealer.

"It's worth so much because of its particular properties," Andrew Kitchener, principal curator of vertebrates at the National Museum of Scotland, told the BBC.

"It's a very important base for perfumes and it's hard to find any artificial substitute for it."

The substance gets a mention in the classic 1851 whaling novel Moby Dick.

Author Herman Melville wrote: "Who would think, then, that such fine ladies and gentlemen should regale themselves with an essence found in the inglorious bowels of a sick whale! Yet so it is."

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