Hugo Chavez's Illness Leaves Power Vacuum

By Lisa Holland, Foreign Affairs Correspondent

It seems almost certain that Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez will not be well enough to attend his own inauguration ceremony next Thursday, sparking a dispute between his supporters and opponents over what should happen next.

Venezuela finds itself in the middle of a power vacuum which Mr Chavez himself attempted to fill by telling people in the event of his death he wanted the Vice President Nicolas Maduro to be his successor.

Mr Chavez has not been seen for three weeks since he made the journey from Venezuela to Cuba for treatment for recurring cancer.

Officials in his government have said he is suffering from complications from the surgery - a "respiratory deficiency" following a severe lung infection.

They have described the 58-year-old's condition as "stable" but beyond that refuse to discuss further details about Mr Chavez's health or indeed what the long-term prognosis for him is.

That is central to Venezuela's current political crisis.

The opposition argues it is written in the country's constitution that if he is not well enough to attend his own inauguration then the country must hold fresh elections within 30 days.

Nicolas Maduro is tipped as a possible successor to Mr Chavez

But Mr Maduro says Mr Chavez can continue in office even if he is unable to take the oath of office next week.

Speaking on Venezuelan television, Mr Maduro said "the constitution allows him to be sworn in by the Supreme Court at a later date".

Mr Chavez's supporters want him to be given time to recover - but they've given no public indication that he is even getting better let alone whether he will make a full recovery or become fit enough to take up his role as President.

There are reports - which his supporters have been quick to dispel - of an internal power struggle within his own camp.

We know who Mr Chavez wants to continue his individual brand of socialism - yet others insist Diosdado Cabello, the current head of the National Assembly, should take over in the short-term.

In October Mr Chavez was elected for a fourth term in office having come to power in 1999.

He is one of the most visible, vocal and controversial leaders in the world - presenting his own weekly TV show and championing his own brand of revolutionary socialist policies.

Mr Chavez was elected for a fourth term in October, serving since 1999

People are divided over the legacy of Mr Chavez. He sought to create a new form of socialism with populist policies aimed at helping the poor with free health care, subsidised food and land reform.

But poverty and unemployment are still widespread in spite of the huge wealth his country enjoys from its vast oil reserves.

Mr Chavez has always denounced the wealthy elite but over time in power his critics say the champion of the poor turned himself into a dictator, changing Venezuela's constitution so he could keep running for office.

He has nationalised much of Venezuela's economy including the oil sector and his supporters say that's helped benefit the poor from oil export revenues.

But Mr Chavez's health and leadership are significant far beyond his country of 29 million people.

For decades he has been a counter to the regional and global power of Washington - a "bad boy" to the US.

A strident critic of America's foreign policy, he has been a thorn in Washington's side and has always been quick to offer shelter and vocal support to the countries America has struggled with.

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India Gang Rape Victim's Friend Speaks Of Attack

The male friend of the Indian gang rape victim has spoken for the first time of how he tried to save her and "begged" her attackers to stop the "cruelty" that "should never be seen".

The 28-year-old software firm employee said getting on to a private bus that night because they could not find a rickshaw to take them home was "the biggest mistake I made".

Speaking in public for the first time, he hit out at the hospital treatment his 23-year-old friend received, the police and at passers-by for failing to help after they were thrown naked from the bus following the two-and-a-half-hour ordeal.

He said that the woman was left naked and bleeding in the street for nearly an hour before a police van arrived to help.

A hearse carrying the body of the 23-year-old rape victim

He said: "What can I say? The cruelty I saw should not be seen ever. I tried to fight against the men but later I begged them again and again to leave her."

The man, who suffered a fractured leg and other injuries in the attack, recounted the savagery of the night of December 16 after he and his friend, who died from her injuries on December 29, had been to see a film in New Delhi.

He told the Hindi-language cable channel Zee News: "I was not very confident about getting into the bus but my friend was running late, so we got into it.

"This was the biggest mistake I made and after that everything went out of control."

He said: "The occupants of the bus, which had tinted windows and curtains, had laid a trap for us. They were probably involved in crimes before also. They beat us up, hit us with an iron rod, snatched our clothes and belongings and threw us off the bus on a deserted stretch.

The medical student's attack has sparked massive protests

"The bus occupants had everything planned. Apart from the driver and the helper, others behaved like they were passengers. We even paid 20 (rupees) as fare. They then started teasing my friend and it led to a brawl. I beat three of them up but then the rest of them brought an iron rod and hit me. Before I fell unconscious, they took my friend away."

"From where we boarded the bus, they moved around for nearly two and a half hours. We were shouting, trying to make people hear us. But they switched off the lights of the bus. We tried to resist them. Even my friend fought with them, she tried to save me. She tried to dial the police control room number 100, but the accused snatched her mobile away," he said.

After that the "driver and the other men raped my friend and hit her in the worst possible ways in the most private parts of her body."

"I cannot tell you what I feel when I think of it. I shiver in pain," he said.

The attackers also violated her with an iron bar, causing the immense internal damage that lead to her death, before throwing them from the bus.

The friend said: "There were a few people who had gathered round but nobody helped. Before the police came I screamed for help but the auto rickshaws, cars and others passing by did not stop."

Police have used water cannons and tear gas to dispel protesters

He said when police arrived: "We kept shouting at the police, 'please give us some clothes' but they were busy deciding which police station our case should be registered at."

"It took an hour and a half for us to be taken to hospital," he added.

The police have arrested six suspects - five men and a juvenile believed to be aged 17 - who were formally charged with murder, rape and kidnapping on Thursday.

The case has sparked massive protests across India, where statistics show a woman is raped every 20 minutes.

Protesters have called for all rape suspects to be hanged and want a better deal for women so the streets are safer and men who rape women are put on trial.

National crime records show that 228,650 of the total 256,329 violent crimes recorded in India last year were against women and rape cases more than doubled between 1990 and 2008.

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India Murder-Rape Suspects Could Face Death

By Alex Rossi, India Correspondent

Five men have been formally charged with the murder, kidnap and gang rape of a medical student in Delhi in India.

The 23-year-old - who has not been named - died at the weekend in a hospital in Singapore where she was being treated for major internal injuries.

If the five men are convicted of murder they could face the death penalty.

A sixth suspect is believed to be under the age of 18.

Indian women hold placards during the Women Dignity march in Delhi

Investigators have ordered bone tests to establish his exact age, as juveniles cannot face murder charges.

The men are in custody at Delhi's Tihar prison.

According to the police the charge sheet is more than 1,000 pages long and it is expected when the trial gets under way that more than 30 witnesses will be called.

The document also contains a statement given by the victim to two different judges while she was being treated in hospital.

Investigators allege that members of the gang were drunk and joyriding in a bus when they picked up the woman and her male companion, who were on their way back from the cinema in South Delhi.

They then beat up the couple with an iron bar before gang-raping the woman.

It is claimed they then threw the pair from the moving bus and tried to run over the victim.

Delhi's Bar Association has stated none of its members will act for the men on "moral grounds", and the accused have no legal representation.

The rape has caused national outrage in India since it happened three weeks ago.

Thousands of protesters have taken to the streets on a daily basis to demand tougher penalties for rapists and fast track courts.

Rape and violence against women is all too common crime in India with the latest figures suggesting that the problem is worst in Delhi.

Last year there were 635 reported cases of rape in the capital but there was only one conviction.

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Google's Eric Schmidt To Visit North Korea

By Mark Stone, Asia Correspondent

The US State Department has expressed its disappointment at the decision by Google's chairman to travel to North Korea.

A spokesperson at a Washington briefing said the department would have no involvement in the visit by Eric Schmidt which is expected to take place in the next month.

"Frankly, we don't think the timing of this is particularly helpful, but they are private citizens and they are making their own decisions," State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said.

"They are travelling in an unofficial capacity they are not going to be accompanied by any US officials. They are not carrying any messages from us," Ms Nuland said.

Mr Schmidt is understood to be travelling to North Korea on a humanitarian mission with the former governor of New Mexico, Bill Richardson, who has been involved in unofficial negotiations with the country since 1994.

The purpose of this visit has not been disclosed. North Korea is seen as the last frontier of the internet leading to speculation that this is a strategic and business-related move for Google.

The few who do have access to a computer in North Korea do not have access to the World Wide Web and instead use a heavily censored North Korean intranet service.

Kim Jong Un has called for an end to confrontation with the South

The office of the former US governor has refused to comment on the trip and a Google spokesperson said that it would not comment on Mr Schmidt's "personal travel".

The US State Department has, in the past, encouraged the use of the internet to spread democracy.

However, this visit is seen as 'unhelpful' because of its timing, coming just weeks after Pyongyang successfully launched a rocket into orbit. The launch was, America claims, a cover for a ballistic missile test.

There is some speculation that Mr Schmidt and Mr Richardson may attempt to negotiate the release of Korean-American, Kenneth Bae.

Mr Bae was arrested by the North Korean authorities in mid-December. According to South Korean media, he was with five other tourists when he was accused of being a spy and detained.

On Monday, the North Korean leader, Kim Jong Un delivered an unprecedented televised address to the nation in which he called for an end to confrontation with the South.

He said the country would undergo a "radical turnaround" becoming an "economic giant". Quite how this would be achieved was not outlined.

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Hillary Clinton Released From Hospital

Hillary Clinton has been discharged from hospital after four days of treatment for a blood clot between her brain and skull.

Mrs Clinton was admitted to a New York hospital on Sunday and treated with blood thinners to dissolve the clot in the vein behind the right ear.

Doctors found the clot during a follow-up exam stemming from a concussion she suffered in early December.

Mrs Clinton's doctors say there was no neurological damage and that she is expected to make a full recovery.

A spokeswoman for Mrs Clinton said the secretary of state had been "quite active" on the phone Wednesday with State Department aides and reviewing paperwork while she continued her recovery.

Mrs Clinton has been off work since her return from her last foreign trip on December 7, although her staff have said she was working from home.

Her lengthy absence from public life had sparked claims from critics that she is trying to avoid testifying in a congressional investigation into a deadly attack on a US mission in Libya.

Earlier this month, the State Department said Mrs Clinton had contracted a bad stomach virus during her five-day stay in Europe. She had to cancel a planned trip to North Africa and Abu Dhabi due to the illness.

A week later, Mrs Clinton's doctors said she had become severely dehydrated due to the effects of the stomach bug and had fainted, suffering a concussion.

They recommended she rest at home and avoid the high-intensity travel she had been accustomed to taking as secretary of state.

Mrs Clinton has flown almost a million miles since taking office four years ago, visited 112 countries and spent some 400 days in a plane.

Her health kept her from giving evidence on December 20 about the attack on the US diplomatic post in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi on September 11.

The assault, in which the US ambassador and three other American officials were killed, sparked a political firestorm in the United States, and Republicans criticised Mrs Clinton's absence from the hearings, calling on her to testify in January.

Mrs Clinton, who is due to step down from her post in early 2013, also stayed away from the White House last week when President Barack Obama nominated her replacement, veteran Senator John Kerry.

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Climber Killed By Lightning On Kilimanjaro

An Irish climber has been killed after being struck by lightning while scaling Africa's highest mountain, Kilimanjaro.

Ian McKeever, 42, died in the freak tragedy as he led a group up the mountain.

It is understood a number of other climbers with him also needed medical attention.

Mr McKeever was a lecturer and broadcaster who regularly mentored hikers, including groups of Irish schoolchildren, climbing to the 5,896m (19,340ft) summit.

He was from Lough Dan in Co Wicklow.

The latest expedition set off to Tanzania from Ireland on December 28 and began their ascent the day before New Year's Eve.

In online updates, Mr McKeever wrote that had been torrential rain but spirits remained high among the hikers.

In his final post he said: "We pray for drier weather tomorrow - the big day. It's the Lava Tower."  The Lava Tower is a landmark on the climb.

It is understood he was killed in a lightning storm.

The adventurer was known for many feats, including scaling Mount Everest.

In 2008, he helped his then 10-year-old godson Sean McSharry become the youngest person in Europe to reach the top of Kilimanjaro.

Mr McKeever is the former holder of the record for completing the seven highest peaks in the world.

Recently he had been attempting, along with his friend and African climbing guide Samuel Kinsonga, to break the record for the fastest ascent of Kilimanjaro as part of an anti-racism charity campaign.

He was the author of two books Give Me Shelter and Give Me Heroes and was working on a third book Give Me 28 Days.

On his Facebook page last night, a statement said: "It is with deep regret, that we, Ian's family, fiancee Anna and friends, advise of his sudden death on Kilimanjaro, today, doing what he loved best."

Tributes referred to him as an inspiration.

The Department of Foreign Affairs confirmed it was helping.

"We are providing consular assistance," a spokesman said.

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Last-Minute Fiscal Deal Faces House Test

House Speaker John Boehner has reportedly presented fellow Republicans two options to overcome the impasse on the Senate-approved bill to avert the so-called fiscal cliff.

Citing a senior House Republican aide, The Wall Street Journal reports that Mr Boehner briefed his party members on the proposals during a closed-door meeting Tuesday afternoon.

The aide said one option included adding a spending cut package to the Senate version of the bill, which was approved with an overwhelming 89-8 vote well after midnight on New Year's Day.

Republicans are said to be conducting a quick count to determine if the amendment to the bill would garner the votes needed to pass it through the House before it is sent back to the Senate for approval.

The second option would be to leave the bill alone and allow the House to vote it up or down as it stands. 

But the fallback option does not appear to bode well for the bill's passing, with some Republican leaders expressing concern over the legislation in its current form.

The number two ranking Republican in the House, Eric Cantor, voiced opposition to the Senate-approved bill earlier Tuesday.

Vice President Joe Biden after a Senate Democratic caucus meeting on Monday

"I do not support the bill. We are looking, though, for the best path forward," Mr Cantor declared following a meeting with his party's rank and file.

The legislation is aimed at averting the looming cliff by stopping most tax hikes and across-the-board spending cuts that had been due to begin with the New Year.

Rejection by the Republican-controlled House would mean that any fiscal deal would have to start all over when a new Congress, with dozens of new members, is seated on Thursday.

The largely tax-focused legislation under discussion on Tuesday was only part of the grand deal President Barack Obama had hoped to make to address the country's chronic deficit spending.

Economists, who had warned that the combination of higher taxes and deep spending cuts taking effect at the start of the year would spin the country back into recession, were warning that even a limited agreement could still dent economic growth.

The deal under consideration Tuesday tackled one of the most sensitive issues - higher taxes.

The measure would be the first significant bipartisan tax increase since 1990. It would prevent taxes from going up on the poor and middle class but would raise rates on households making more than $450,000 (£277,000) a year.

It also would also put off for two months more than $100bn (£62bn) in automatic spending cuts that were set to hit the Pentagon and domestic programmes starting this week.

It would also extend unemployment benefits for the long-term unemployed.

The measure cleared the Democrat-controlled Senate hours after Vice President Joe Biden and Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, veteran negotiators, sealed a deal.

Mr Obama has praised the agreement, saying: "While neither Democrats nor Republicans got everything they wanted, this agreement is the right thing to do for our country and the House should pass it without delay."

Meanwhile, both sides are gearing up for the next legislative showdown over the need to lift the government's statutory borrowing limit of $16.4trn (£10.1trn), which was reached on Monday.

The Treasury will now take extraordinary measures to keep the government afloat for an undisclosed period of time until the ceiling is raised. Republicans are already demanding spending cuts in return.

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Ivory Coast Stadium Stampede Kills 61

More than 60 people, most of them children aged between eight and 15, have died in a New Year's Eve stampede at a stadium in Ivory Coast.

It happened in Abidjan at around 2am local time after crowds gathered to watch a fireworks display.

Officials said 61 people had died and around 50 were injured, although some estimates of the number hurt were much higher.

Rescue co-ordinator Lieutenant Colonel Issa Sako said the number of people trying to get into the Felix Houphouet Boigny Stadium to watch the fireworks had caused the accident.

Abidjan is Ivory Coast's largest city

He said: "In the crush people were walked over and suffocated by the crowd."

One woman, Assetou Toure, said her children had been at the event and she did not know if they had survived.

"My two children came here yesterday. I told them not to come but they didn't listen," she said.

"They came when I was sleeping. What will I do?"

A Reuters correspondent said there were bloodstains and abandoned shoes outside the stadium on Tuesday morning, and rescue workers and government officials were still on the scene.

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Mexican Olympic Silver Medallist Shot In Head

A Mexican race walker who won silver at the 2000 Sydney Olympics has lost his left eye after being shot in the head in a bar, according to reports.

Noe Hernandez, 34, was in a serious but stable condition after being shot at the Queen of Kings nightclub in Mexico state.

Three gunmen burst into the club and opened fire on revellers, killing two people and seriously injuring two more.

Hernandez, who works as sports secretary for the ruling Institutional Revolutionary Party in the state, has undergone three surgeries after he was hit by a 9mm bullet.

Surgeon Carlos Castillo Rangel said: "The surgeries were successful, without any complications.

"We must wait and see his progress in intensive care."

Bars are often raided by drug cartel members in Mexico. More than 60,000 people have died in the country in the last six years as a result of the drug war.

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New Year Knees Up Around The World

Major cities, including Sydney, Shanghai, Dubai and Berlin have marked the start of 2013 with large fireworks displays.

Among the most spectacular celebrations were ones in Sydney, which centred on the harbour bridge, and Dubai, where the world's tallest building, the Burj Khalifa, formed the centrepiece.

Some 1.5 million people are estimated to have turned out to watch the event in the Australian city with more than 100,000 firework patterns, costing £4.2m.

One of the country's most famous singers, Kylie Minogue, was creative ambassador and she picked the colours and the music.

The pop star pressed the button that set off seven tons of fireworks.

Shanghai ushers in the New Year

The Dubai show had three elements - light, water and fire - and projections on a 210-metre long screen.

Moscow had the Kremlin as its backdrop, while Jakarta marked 2013 with a massive four-mile street party.

Sixteen large stages were built along the normally busy, eight-lane motorway which runs through the heart of the Indonesian capital.

There was a fireworks display at the Kremlin in Moscow

There were also celebrations on a grand scale in Hong Kong and Shanghai.

This year's fireworks display, which cost about £1m, was said to be the biggest ever in the southern Chinese city.

Meanwhile, North Korea welcomed 2013 with reportedly the first ever New Year's fireworks display the country has held as Tokyo reverberated to the sound of the city's Watch-Night Bell.

North Korea put on a pyrotechnic display in Pyongyang

The bells were struck 108 times at temples all over Japan to symbolise the beginning of a prosperous New Year.

Burma rang in the New Year with its first public countdown and a fireworks display, a celebration unprecedented in the former military-ruled country.

Around 90,000 people gathered at the countdown venue - a large field in Rangoon - for a chance to do what much of the world does every year at this time.

"This is very exciting and also our first experience in celebrating the New Year at a big countdown gathering. We feel like we are in a different world," said Yu Thawda, a university student who joined the party.

Auckland began the countdown to 2013

The atmosphere of celebration was muted in some places.

Many European nations planned scaled-back festivities and street parties for 2013 which is projected to be a sixth straight year of recession amid Greece's worst economic crisis.

Hotels, clubs and other venues in New Delhi cancelled festivities after the death of a gang rape victim which has led to days of protests and mourning.

The first major city to see in 2013 was Auckland, New Zealand, which had a spectacular fireworks display.

British troops at Camp Bastion in Afghanistan see in the New Year

Crowds packed the city centre to watch the annual event at the city's Sky Tower, which stands more than 1,000ft tall.

The central Pacific Ocean island of Kiritimati (Christmas Island) and the eastern-most island in the island nation of Kiribati were the first to usher in the new year at 1000 GMT.

American Samoa, an unincorporated territory of the US in the southern Pacific Ocean, will be the last place on Earth to herald in the new year on Tuesday at 1100 GMT.

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Chavez Suffers New Setback After Cancer Op

Hugo Chavez has suffered "new complications" following his cancer surgery in Cuba and his condition is "delicate", Venezuela's Vice President Nicolas Maduro has said.

In a televised address from Havana, Mr Maduro said: "We have been informed of new complications that arose as a consequence of the respiratory infection we already knew about.

"President Chavez's condition is still delicate," Mr Maduro added, warning that the unspecified complications "are being treated in a process that is not without its risks".

Mr Maduro, who said he had spoken with Mr Chavez, added that the 58-year-old president was facing a "tough situation".

The vice president said he would stay in Havana in the coming hours "with El Comandante and his family, closely following his condition and its evolution".

"We trust that the global outpouring of love for Chavez will help him heal", said Mr Maduro, with Rosa Virgina Chavez, one of the president's daughters, Science and Technology Minister Jorge Arreaza, and top prosecutor Cilia Flores.

The vice president gave his address alongside Mr Chavez's eldest daughter, Rosa, and son-in-law Jorge Arreaza, as well as Attorney General Cilia Flores.

A supporter of Mr Chavez writes a message for him in Caracas

The Venezuelan leader, who has been the face of the Latin American left for more than a decade, has not been seen or heard from since undergoing his fourth cancer-related surgery on December 11.

Mr Chavez, who has been in power since 1999, won another six-year term in October's presidential election.

He is scheduled to be sworn in on January 10, but his health has raised concerns over the future of his leftist movement and whether he will even be well enough to attend the inauguration.

On Monday, the Venezuelan government said there had been a "slight improvement" in his condition as he recovers from the post-operative respiratory infection.

Officials have never disclosed the type or severity of Mr Chavez's cancer, first diagnosed in June 2011, and he only designated a political successor - Mr Maduro - earlier this month.

The Venezuelan leader had, in fact, asserted before embarking on his arduous re-election campaign earlier this year that he was cancer-free - but he was later forced to admit he had suffered a relapse.

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Hillary Clinton In Hospital With Blood Clot

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has been admitted to hospital after the discovery of a blood clot stemming from an accident earlier this month.

Mrs Clinton, 65, initially fell ill with a stomach bug that led to her fainting and sustaining a concussion. Officials had insisted she was recovering.

But her spokesman Philippe Reines said in a statement: "In the course of a follow-up exam today (Sunday), Secretary Clinton's doctors discovered a blood clot had formed, stemming from the concussion she sustained several weeks ago.

"She is being treated with anti-coagulants and is at New York Presbyterian Hospital so that they can monitor the medication over the next 48 hours.

"Her doctors will continue to assess her condition, including other issues associated with her concussion. They will determine if any further action is required."

Mrs Clinton has been off work since her return from her last foreign trip on December 7, although her staff have said she was working from home.

Her lengthy absence from public life had sparked claims from critics that she is trying to avoid testifying in a congressional investigation into a deadly attack on a US mission in Libya.

Earlier this month, the State Department said Mrs Clinton had contracted a bad stomach virus during her five-day stay in Europe. She had to cancel a planned trip to North Africa and Abu Dhabi due to the illness.

A week later, Mrs Clinton's doctors said she had become severely dehydrated due to the effects of the stomach bug and had fainted, suffering a concussion.

They recommended she rest at home and avoid the high-intensity travel she had been accustomed to taking as secretary of state.

Mr Obama (L) announcing Mr Kerry's (R) nomination as secretary of state

Mrs Clinton has flown almost a million miles since taking office four years ago, visited 112 countries and spent some 400 days in a plane.

Her health kept her from giving evidence on December 20 about the attack on the US diplomatic post in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi on September 11.

The assault, in which the US ambassador and three other American officials were killed, sparked a political firestorm in the United States, and Republicans criticised Mrs Clinton's absence from the hearings, calling on her to testify in January.

Mrs Clinton, who is due to step down from her post in early 2013, also stayed away from the White House last week when President Barack Obama nominated her replacement, veteran Senator John Kerry.

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India Rape Death: Six Charged With Murder

The body of a woman who was gang raped on a bus in New Delhi is flown out of Singapore as police charge six men with her murder.

The men could face the death penalty if convicted, in a case that has triggered protests across India.

The 23-year-old victim was savagely beaten and raped for almost an hour before being thrown out of the moving vehicle.

She was flown to Mount Elizabeth Hospital in Singapore for specialist treatment, but later died from severe organ failure.

Her body was prepared in a funeral parlour in Singapore before being flown back to India from Changi Airport with her parents, who were at her bedside when she was pronounced dead.

The hearse which carried the victim's body to a Singapore funeral parlour

Sky's India Correspondent Alex Rossi said: "The general thinking behind it as far as the prosecution service is concerned is that the way she was treated on that bus, the manner in which she was subjected to such a brutal attack, the fact that she was thrown from the bus whilst it was still moving and was unconscious suggests that they're fairly confident now that there was pre-meditation in the attack."

Her uncle has called for those responsible to be given the "strictest possible sentence".

"This is a very sad day, and a very very sad happening," he said. "My condolences are with my niece's family."

Thousands take part in a candlelight vigil for the victim in New Delhi

Sonia Ghandi, the president of India's National Congress, has promised to fight for change.

She said: "(The death) strengthens our resolve to fight with all our might, and all the powers of our laws and our administration, for the safety and protection of all women of our country, and to ensure swift and fitting punishment for the perpetrators of such brutal acts."

More than 1,000 protesters gathered in New Delhi city centre for a sit-in, demanding political change to protect women from violence.

Thousands more took part in a candlelight vigil

Police had braced for violent protests, but most passed of peacefully

The area is home to the president's palace, the prime minister's office and key defence, foreign affairs and home ministries.

Authorities feared a repeat of demonstrations a week ago, where police fired tear gas and water cannon at activists after violence broke out.

Police spokesman Rajan Bhagat said: "We have booked all six accused under section 302 of the Indian Penal Code.

The horrific crime has sparked an angry debate over women's safety in India

"It is a non-bailable offence which carries the death sentence."

Formal charges are expected to be filed by January 3.

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said he was deeply saddened by the woman's death and described the reaction to the case as "perfectly understandable from a young India and an India that genuinely desires change".

"It would be a true homage to her memory if we are able to channel these emotions and energies into a constructive course of action," he added.

After boarding a bus on December 16, the student was attacked by the men who took turns raping her and assaulted her with an iron bar before they threw her off the moving vehicle.

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Russia Plane Crash: Footage Of Moment Of Impact

Video footage shows the moment a passenger aircraft crashed into a motorway in Russia after it overshot the runway.

The footage, captured from a vehicle on the motorway, shows luggage and other debris flying from the aircraft and hitting other cars on the road as the plane smashed into the ground.

Louds bangs can also be heard as the plane impacted with the ground and the cars were hit by the wreckage.

Four people - the pilot, co-pilot, flight engineer and a flight steward - were killed in the crash and another four seriously injured after the aircraft overshot a runway at Moscow's Vnukovo airport.

The Red Wing Airlines aircraft burst through a perimeter fence on to the motorway at Russia's third busiest airport.

Officials said the Tu-204 plane - travelling from the Czech Republic - was carrying eight crew members and no passengers. It broke into pieces and caught fire after crashing.

The passenger plane was sheared in two

The cockpit of the aircraft was sheared off from the fuselage and a large chunk gashed out near the tail during the impact.

Witnesses told state channel Rossiya-24 they saw a man thrown from the plane as it rammed into the barrier of the motorway and described pulling other people from the wreckage.

The airport was closed after the crash and flights were routed to Moscow's other airports, Sheremetyevo and Domodedovo.

Prior to Saturday's crash, there had been no fatal accidents reported for Tu-204s, which entered commercial service in 1995.

The plane is a twin-engine mid-range jet with a capacity of about 210 passengers.

Investigators said preliminary findings pointed to pilot error as the cause of the crash.

The billionaire owner of Red Wing Airlines, Alexander Lebedev, said the pilot was experienced, with 14,500 hours of flying time.

Vnukovo is Russia's third biggest airport

The state news agency RIA Novosti cited an unidentified official at the Russian Aviation Agency as saying another Tu-204 had gone off the runway at the international airport in Novosibirsk, Siberia, on December 20.

The agency said that incident, in which no one was injured, was due to the failure of the plane's engines to go into reverse upon landing and that its brake system malfunctioned.

Russia and other former Soviet republics have some of the world's worst air traffic safety records - with a total accident rate three times the world average, according to the International Air Transport Association.

In April, 31 people were killed after a passenger jet crashed after takeoff in Siberia.

Another 44 people, including the Lokomotiv Yaroslavl ice hockey team, were killed when their aircraft smashed into a riverbank in September 2011.

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