Obama vows to fix healthcare website

The White House says the bug plagued website for Obamacare scheme will be fixed by end of November. Source: AAP

US President Barack Obama has acknowledged problems with the rollout of a key health website, adding he had people "working overtime" to fix the glitches.

Obama has faced a flood of criticism over this month's sputtering debut of healthcare.gov, through which millions of Americans are expected to buy insurance.

Customers have had trouble signing on, getting accurate cost estimates, and completing enrolment.

"As you may have heard, the site isn't working the way it's supposed to yet," Obama said in his weekly broadcast address on Saturday.

"That's frustrating for all of us who have worked so hard to make sure everyone who needs it gets health care."

Obama said the site had been visited more than 20 million times, and nearly 700,000 people have applied for coverage - proof, he said, of the high demand for "quality, affordable health care choices".

"And that's why, in the coming weeks, we are going to get it working as smoothly as it's supposed to. We've got people working overtime, 24/7, to boost capacity and address these problems, every single day."

Obama's Republican opponents, who have long opposed his health insurance reform, seized on the website's failed launch as a chance to slam the administration.

At a House hearing Thursday, Republicans took turns bashing the administration and demanding accountability for the flawed website debut.

It was "interesting to see Republicans in Congress expressing so much concern that people are having trouble buying health insurance through the new website", said Obama on Saturday.

"Especially considering they've spent the last few years so obsessed with denying those same people access to health insurance that they just shut down the government and threatened default over it."

Obama said he would work with opponents to improve the law - formally known as the Affordable Care Act - but that "it's well past the time for folks to stop rooting for its failure."

Some people "have poked fun at me this week for sounding like an insurance salesman", Obama said. "And that's okay. I'd still be out there championing this law even if the website were perfect."

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End failure mentality, PM tells Tasmania

Prime Minister Tony Abbott says Tasmania has to stop programming itself to fail. Source: AAP

TASMANIA needs to stop programming itself for failure, Prime Minister Tony Abbott has told the ailing island state.

In a clear reference to environmental standards, Mr Abbott has told Liberal members at the party's state conference Tasmania has set the bar too high.

"All too often, particularly here in Tasmania, we have programmed ourselves to fail," the prime minister said on Saturday.

"We have burdened ourselves with unnecessary taxes and regulations.

"We have set standards of perfection which no one can achieve instead of getting on with a reasonable job with a reasonable prospect of success."

Mr Abbott reminded members the state had the country's highest unemployment, lowest wages and lowest life expectancy.

"All that simply has to change," he said.

The prime minister received a standing ovation from around 200 members in a celebratory mood on his first visit to Tasmania since his election in September.

The state delivered massively for the coalition, dumping ALP members from three of its five seats in an 11.3 per cent swing against the government, the biggest of any state.

"It is so good to be here to savour success," Mr Abbott said.

The party looks likely to savour more success in a state election due next March.

Opposition leader Will Hodgman is riding high in the polls after 15 years of Labor government, the last four in coalition with the Greens.

Mr Abbott gave Mr Hodgman, the son of the late former federal minister Michael Hodgman, a ringing endorsement.

"What we need here in Tasmania is new will and new leadership and that's what is sitting right here beside me," the prime minister said.

Mr Hodgman will address the conference on Sunday.

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US citizen drowns off Tasmania

A UNITED States citizen has drowned while diving off Tasmania.

The woman was diving off the Tinderbox Marine Reserve south of Hobart when she was reported missing at about 1.15pm (AEDT) on Saturday.

Her diving companions located her a short time later lying in 12m of water.

Attempts to resuscitate her by her diving companions, police and paramedics were unsuccessful.

She was pronounced dead on arrival at Royal Hobart Hospital.

The diver was a 48-year-old United States citizen who was visiting Tasmania.

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Stuntman-director Hal Needham dies

HAL Needham, a top Hollywood stuntman who turned to directing rousing action films including Smokey and the Bandit and The Cannonball Run, has died aged 82.

His business managers told the Los Angeles Times that Needham died on Friday in Los Angeles.

A former paratrooper, Needham appeared in thousands of TV episodes and hundreds of movies, performing and designing stunts and new equipment to execute them.

Needham jumped from planes, was dragged by horses and wrecked cars - breaking 56 bones in the process.

His best-known directing efforts involved 1970s Burt Reynolds action comedies, including Smokey, Cannonball Run and Stroker Ace. He also directed Arnold Schwarzenegger in The Villain.

In a Twitter posting, Schwarzenegger called Needham an icon.

Needham received an honorary Oscar last year.

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Large shark bites diver's fin off WA

A LARGE shark is believed to have bitten part of a scuba diver's fin off Perth.

The diver said he saw a large dark shape in the water then noticed part of his fin was missing as he returned to his boat.

The man was diving near Little Island off Hillarys Boat Harbour at about 11am (WST) on Saturday.

WA Department of Fisheries Shark Response Unit manager Lisa Clack said the department's senior shark scientist had assessed the fins and was unable to confirm it was a shark bite.

"There are some marks which could have been caused by a shark bite, but other marks we would expect to see from a shark bite are absent," Ms Clack said in a statement.

"We are unable to confirm. While this could have been a shark, other large marine animals, particularly seals and sea-lions, are known to occasionally bite divers' fins."

Ms Clack said fisheries officers attended boat ramps in the area to advise water users that an incident was reported and that they should be extra careful.

Earlier on Saturday a series of tagged white shark detections were recorded along the Perth coast.

The detections occurred at the Swanbourne, Floreat and Scarborough receivers, with the first detection at 3:45am.

A Department of Fisheries spokesman said shark monitors in the area where the man reported the shark attack did not detect a shark, so the likelihood it was the same shark was distant.

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Roadside bombing kills 6 Afghan soldiers

A ROADSIDE bombing has killed six Afghan soldiers in the country's west, a military spokesman says.

Najibullha Najibi said on Friday that the six died when their vehicle struck a roadside bomb in the western Herat province's Adraskan district the previous day. The six were from a unit based at the Shindand military airport, Herat's largest.

Najibi, an Afghan National Army spokesman, says those killed in Thursday's incident included two officers and four soldiers.

In another incident on Thursday, Mhuklis Afghan, a spokesman for the governor of eastern Paktika province, says a tractor hit a road mine in the Jani Khil district, killing one person and wounding four.

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Bronco turned outlaw bikie denied bail

A FORMER Brisbane Bronco turned outlaw motorcycle gang member has been denied bail over drug trafficking charges under harsh new laws designed to stop bikies walking free.

Michael Spence, 25, was one of eight men arrested on Wednesday in a police sting targeting the alleged ice trafficking outfit.

Spence was the sergeant-at-arms of the Hells Angels' Brisbane chapter and alleged debt collector for accused ringleaders and gang members Bruno and Nuno Da Silva.

The trio resigned from the gang nine days before contentious new laws targeting bikies were passed on October 17.

Under one part of the law, criminal gang members who apply for bail must now show cause as to why they should be released.

Spence's lawyer Jeff Hunter argued in the Brisbane Magistrates Court the new laws were passed too late to apply to his client, and that the case against him was weak.

But Chief Magistrate Tim Carmody ruled that the new bail laws did apply to Spence and ordered he be remanded in custody.

Mr Carmody accepted the argument by prosecutors that although Spence had resigned from the Hells Angels he was still in an allegedly criminal organisation by trafficking drugs with the Da Silvas.

He criticised the prosecution's material as "limited", but rejected Spence's lawyer's argument that the police case was too weak to keep the former footballer in prison.

There was enough information to show the prosecution had evidence capable of securing a conviction, the magistrate said.

"Accordingly the applicant has failed to discharge his onus and show cause why bail should be granted," Mr Carmody said.

Spence was remanded in custody until his next court appearance on January 20.

The Da Silva brothers' bail applications have been adjourned until Monday.

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Car image released in Qld gunman hunt

POLICE are searching for a small aqua hatchback in their hunt for tattooed gunman who opened fire at a Sunshine Coast motel.

They have released a picture of an older model Ford Festiva with Queensland number plates and are asking anyone who has seen it to call Crime Stoppers.

The gunman remains on the run after reportedly threatening a 29-year-old woman with a firearm at the Buderim property on Thursday afternoon.

Police say when she ran out the back door of the room, he fired a shot through the front wall.

The gunman is described as Caucasian, in his early 20s, slim and about 180cm tall with short hair.

He was wearing a white t-shirt and dark coloured shorts, and has a tattoo across his back.

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Security giant Serco chief resigns

CHRISTOPHER Hyman, the chief executive of security giant Serco, which is facing an investigation after the British government was overcharged millions of pounds for electronically tagging criminals, has resigned, the company has announced.

Hyman quit as the firm attempted to rebuild its relationship with the government following controversies over its handling of key contracts.

"I have always put the interests of Serco first. At this time, nothing is more important to me than rebuilding the relationship with our UK government customer," Hyman said.

"In recent weeks it has become clear to me that the best way for the company to move forward is for me to step back. I have been fortunate enough to have had the privilege of working at a great company with extremely talented people. I wish everyone at Serco the very best for the future."

The firm faces investigation after the government was overcharged millions of pounds for electronically tagging criminals and there are also allegations of potentially fraudulent behaviour in the management of its STG285 million ($A482.64 million) prison escorting contract.

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Aust publisher battles for Myanmar paper

STAFF members of the Yangon-based "Myanmar Times" newspaper house have appealed to a Myanmar court against a bid by the local partner to liquidate the company, overseen by Australian publisher, Ross Dunkley.

Dunkley, 55, is fighting to stave off legal challenges to his control over the company, that have been launched by the publishing house's partner, Dr Tin Tun Oo, now seeking to have the paper wound up in a bitter dispute over control.

In court reports, seen by AAP, a judge on Thursday accepted an affidavit from Zaw Myint, deputy editor in chief of The Myanmar Times, who acted as a representative of "a vast majority" of the 350 staff members employed by the paper.

The appeal claimed the staff opposed the application to wind up the paper as it occupied a "unique place in the publishing sector", with staff jobs at stake and how "it would be senseless to force it shut".

Tin Tun Oo presently holds a 51 per cent share in the parent company, Myanmar Consolidated Media, with the remaining 49 per cent held by Dunkley and associates, including Australian Mining magnate, Bill Clough.

Dunkley and Clough are also investors in the Cambodian-based Phnom Penh Post.

Dunkley is also facing law suits brought by Tin Tun Oo's wife, Khin Moe Moe, who alleges the Australian assaulted her son-in-law in an altercation at the newspaper's offices in January.

Dunkley dismisses the charge.

In turn Dunkley has filed counter suits against Khin Moe Moe.

In Thursday's hearing Dunkley's barrister, Aung Than Soe, told the court the application over the paper's closure should be dismissed, claiming the case lay outside the boundaries of company law, with inconsistencies in the plaintiff's claims.

Aung Than Soe also said the criminal charges laid against Dunkley by Khin Moe Moe were "personal grudges and not related to the law".

Earlier, the judge had dismissed a temporary injunction by Tin Tun Oo against the Myanmar Times to halt its publication, saying the injunction "had no merit".

Dunkley, in an earlier interview with AAP, had dismissed the bid by Tin Tun Oo, who has claimed a loan of $US100,000 ($A104,180) was outstanding and was threatening to close the paper.

"We are profitable and can pay any debt as and when it arises," he said.

The Myanmar Times, a weekly, began publishing in 2000 with the then backing of the powerful military intelligence chief, Khin Nyunt, with a senior intelligence officer, Thein Swe, appointing his son, Sonny Swe as Dunkley's partner.

But power struggles within the then military government led to Sonny Swe and other family members being jailed.

His shares were then sold to Tin Tun Oo.

The Myanmar Times has so far failed in its bid to be granted a daily newspaper licence despite the country's moves to greater media freedom.

Media analysts say the legal moves against Dunkley are a bid to force him out and allow new owners to take control of the publishing house against a backdrop of the present boom in media outlets in the country.

The judge adjourned the case for the next hearing on November 18.

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WA mosquito warning over Ross River virus

PEOPLE in Western Australia's South West region are being warned to avoid mosquito bites after this season's first detection of Ross River virus in the insects.

People in Western Australia's South West region are being warned to avoid mosquito bites. Source: AAP

PEOPLE in Western Australia's South West region are being warned to avoid mosquito bites after this season's first detection of Ross River virus in the insects.

The Health Department says its mosquito and virus surveillance program has detected the virus at coastal mosquito breeding sites in the region.

Symptoms include painful or swollen joints, sore muscles, skin rashes, fever, fatigue and headaches.

The department says symptoms can last for weeks or months, and the only way to properly diagnose the virus is by having a specific blood test.

Michael Lindsay, the managing scientist of environmental health hazards at the Health Department, says there is no cure for Ross River virus so it is important that people take care to prevent bites.

"Above average rainfall this spring has enabled breeding of mosquitoes in large numbers in many coastal and inland areas of the South West and Wheatbelt", he said.

Dr Lindsay says activity could spread to other regions where mosquito populations had already established after recent rain.

He says local government mosquito management programs had been under way since August in some areas and would continue in regions at risk of the virus, but could not be solely relied upon.

The warning comes as experts from around Australia gather in Mandurah, south of Perth, this week for a mosquito management course.

The course will provide participants with knowledge and skills required to develop and implement mosquito management programs in their own areas.

Topics covered include mosquito biology, mosquito-borne diseases and methods of controlling mosquitoes.

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Aung San Suu Kyi collects rights prize

FREEDOM of thought is yet to become the birthright of every Myanmar citizen, opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi has said as she collected a European Union democracy prize awarded 23 years ago when she was under house arrest.

The Sakharov Prize for freedom of thought, named after Soviet dissident Andrei Sakharov, has been handed out annually by the European Parliament since 1988.

"Freedom of thought is essential to human progress," Suu Kyi said on Tuesday during a ceremony at the legislature's plenary in the French city of Strasbourg.

"Our people are just beginning to learn that freedom of thought is possible."

"We need still to make a lot more progress before we can say we are where Professor Sakharov would have wished us to be ... a place where freedom of thought was the birthright of every single citizen of our country," she added.

Suu Kyi got caught up in Myanmar's 1988 pro-democracy protests when she returned to care for her ailing mother after years of living and studying abroad.

She became a leader of the pro-democracy movement and spent a total of 15 years under house arrest between 1989 and 2010, while the country was ruled by a military junta.

"I made a choice, I made it out of my own free will, this is why I've never thought of it as a hardship or a sacrifice," Suu Kyi told journalists after the European Parliament ceremony.

"It's certainly been worth it, because I think our movement gave our people hope," she added. "Of course hope is not enough, ... but the very fact that we have been able to make our people understand that they can improve their own lives has been worth it."

Today, Suu Kyi is a member of parliament after the 2010 elections brought to power reform-minded President Thein Sein. She has expressed hopes of becoming Myanmar's next president, although this would require constitutional changes ahead of the 2015 elections.

The Nobel laureate is a "great symbol of freedom and democracy," European Parliament President Martin Schulz said before handing Suu Kyi the 1990 Sakharov Prize for freedom of thought.

Suu Kyi is on a two-week tour of Europe that will also include stops in Britain and Italy.

Her main message is about the need for the EU to push more strongly for changes to the Myanmar constitution, which she says is hampering a full democratisation of the country.

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12 Months for bomb hoax bridegroom

A PANICKED English groom who staged a bomb hoax on his wedding day so his bride would not find out he bungled the booking has been jailed in Liverpool for 12 months.

Neil McArdle had forgotten to fill in the forms to marry the "love of his life" Amy Williams, but could not face telling her that the big day "that was all she talked about" was not going to happen.

Instead of saying "we need to talk" the 36-year-old tried to "weasel" out of his predicament, Liverpool Crown Court heard.

As his bride got ready for her wedding he slipped out of their house in Kirkby, Merseyside, went to a phone box, disguised his voice and rang Liverpool Register Office, claiming: "This is not a hoax call. There's a bomb in St George's Hall and it will go off in 45 minutes."

The call, 11 days after the Boston Marathon bombing, provoked "terror" at the office inside the neo-classical edifice of St George's Hall in the centre of Liverpool, which was immediately evacuated and emergency services called.

The would-be bride was left standing outside in her wedding dress with her mother and the rest of the wedding party as the area swarmed with police racing to the scene.

But McArdle's would-be in-laws were already suspicious, the court heard, and a row broke out with Williams's sister telling a "flustered" McArdle: "You probably done the bomb scare yourself."

Police quickly traced the call and the defendant was arrested the same day and admitted to his "embarrassment and shame" that he panicked over bungling the forms and staged the bomb scare.

Williams has stood by the defendant, the court heard, and they are still together.

A tearful McArdle, who pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing to a single charge of communicating false information with intent on April 26, was jailed for 12 months by Judge Norman Wright.

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Midsection of plane recovered in Laos

INVESTIGATORS in Laos say they have retrieved the midsection of a Lao Airlines passenger plane that crashed into the Mekong River a week ago, killing all 49 people on board, including six Australians.

The turboprop plane crashed last Wednesday during a heavy storm as it approached Pakse Airport in southern Laos.

Lao aviation official Yakua Lopangkao said on Tuesday that searchers used a crane to lift the middle of the fuselage from the river but believe the flight recorder is still underwater.

He said the body of another victim was also recovered on Tuesday.

Officials say 44 bodies have been found.

Strong currents and deep, muddy water have hampered the search.

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China defends record at UN rights inquiry

CHINA has defended its human rights record to the UN, insisting it has undertaken sweeping reforms as Tibetan activists say more must be done to hold Beijing to account.

China's special envoy Wu Hailong told the UN Human Rights Council on Tuesday that his country had lived up to a pledge made in 2009 when China was last under scrutiny by the watchdog.

"The Chinese government made a solemn commitment when China undergoes the next review, the world will see a China with a more prosperous economy, improved democracy and the rule of law, a more harmonious society and people living in greater happiness," Wu said.

In 2009, the council had urged China to make more efforts in areas including poverty reduction, judicial reforms and ethnic minority rights.

"Four years have passed, and I want to tell you that the above recommendations either have been implemented or are being carried out, and our commitment has been basically fulfilled," Wu said.

All 193 UN member states are meant to undergo reviews of their rights record every four years.

In the run-up to Tuesday's review, human rights campaigners raised the alarm about the disappearance of Chinese activist Cao Shunli, who had been due to attend the session.

In a statement Monday, the European Union's top diplomat Catherine Ashton had urged Beijing to clarify what had happened to Cao, and to do nothing to hamper the participation of campaigners at the UN Human Rights Council.

Human Rights Watch, meanwhile, said China must demonstrate its commitment by ending a crackdown on human rights activists, including harassment, arbitrary arrest and torture, as well as stop muzzling the media and halt abuses against its Tibetan and Uighur minorities.

About 120 people have set themselves on fire in Tibet and neighbouring areas since 2009, most of them dying.

"China is good about signing human rights treaties but terrible about putting them into practice," said Sophie Richardson, China director at Human Rights Watch.

"The Human Rights Council review provides UN members the occasion to look at whether those commitments are being implemented - or instead violated."

At the review, diplomats from dozens of countries quizzed Wu and members of his delegation about the steps Beijing had taken.

While acknowledging China's efforts, Western delegations in particular urged Beijing to further reduce the number of crimes that carry the death penalty and at least to introduce a moratorium on capital punishment.

Before Tuesday's session, Tibetan activists hammered their message home.

At dawn, four protesters from the groups Students for a Free Tibet and the Tibetan Youth Association in Europe climbed scaffolding on the UN building in Geneva, currently under renovation, before jumping down to the middle of the facade using climbing ropes.

They unfurled a massive banner reading: "China Fails Human Rights, UN stand up for Tibet", and shouted: "Free Tibet!"

UN security acted swiftly to cut down the banner and arrest the protesters, but also to grab journalists' press accreditation and usher them away from the scene.

"The protest went really great," Pema Yoko, deputy director of Students for a Free Tibet, told AFP.

It was important to draw attention to Tibet's plight, she insisted, stressing that "we expect China to blatantly lie about their rights record in Tibet."

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Explosion on Russian bus kills 5

AN explosion on a passenger bus in the southern Russian city of Volgograd has killed at least five people and injured 17, officials say.

Irina Gogolyeva, a spokeswoman for the Emergency Situations Ministry, says the cause of the blast has not yet been determined.

She said 40 people were on the bus when the explosion occurred on Monday afternoon.

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Third Degree burnt on X Factor

AUSTRALIA is still to anoint a reality show band with viewers casting aside Third Degree on The X Factor.

The mixed band, consisting of Kelebek, Jacinta Gulisano and Jordan Rodrigues who all auditioned as solo artists, were put together after super boot camp.

They finished fourth after losing out to Taylor Henderson in a sudden-death Monday night semi-final sing-off and will miss next week's grand final on the Seven Network series.

Henderson joins 14-year-old Jai Waetford and Brisbane's songstress Dami Im in next Sunday's grand final although the decision on who wins will be announced Monday night's live show.

Third Degree's demise underlines the fact that bands on the Australian X Factor are not having the same success as the overseas artists.

Manufactured UK X Factor bands, One Direction, who were third in 2010, and girl band Little Mix, who won the 2011 series, have burned up the charts around the world and have been a phenomenal success.

Redfoo had the chance to put Third Degree through to the final and test if Australia is ready for a manufactured band when he made the casting vote on Monday night's live show.

However, he voted for Henderson which made it a deadlock situation and reverts to the viewer's original votes because he wanted see who the fans wanted most.

"I thought Taylor sang the best in the sing-off and I think he is super talent," Redfoo told AAP.

"But I wanted the people to decide and that's why I voted for him.

"Even though I didn't explain that in my summing up because once you start saying that they know what you are going to say before you actually announce it."

X Factor is Henderson's second crack at a reality show series.

Four years ago as a nervous 16-year-old, Henderson was third on Australia's Got Talent which was then being aired on Seven.

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Qld police interview teen over man's death

Police are questioning a teenage boy over the death of a man in Queensland. Source: AAP

POLICE are questioning a teenage boy over the death of a man in Queensland.

The 42-year-old man died after a fight at a Conondale home on the Sunshine Coast on Sunday night.

Police say a 15-year-old boy is assisting them with their inquiries.

Detectives will continue to search the Appaloosa Street house on Monday.

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DJs boss says quitting was personal

Paul Zahra has cited personal reasons for stepping down as chief executive of David Jones. Source: AAP

PAUL Zahra has cited personal reasons for stepping down as chief executive of high-end department store chain David Jones.

The announcement that he would leave the company was made on Monday after the Australian Securities Exchange had closed.

Mr Zahra will remain at the helm, with the board's support, until a successor is chosen.

His shock resignation comes only three years and four months after Mr Zahra replaced Mark McInnes after a high-profile sexual harassment scandal.

"Whilst much has been achieved and the company is well placed for the future, I believe it's time for a change for me personally," Mr Zahra said in a statement.

David Jones chairman Peter Mason said Mr Zahra would leave the retailer in a solid financial position.

"I thank him for his contribution as CEO," he said.

"I look forward to working with Paul to ensure a smooth transition of his role to his successor."

But Morningstar Equities analyst Tim Montague-Jones said Mr Zahra's resignation will disrupt the business, which only last year began a "future strategic direction plan" to cut costs.

"Unfortunately, I don't think he's been there long enough to actually see any fruits of all his initiatives that have been implemented," he told AAP.

"The business is still struggling. It started to struggle when he arrived and it's still struggling now, but it's more a reflection of the cyclical conditions - the retail market has been suffering since he joined in around 2010."

David Jones made an underlying profit of $101.6 million in the year to the end of July, a slight increase from the previous financial year but a far cry from $170.8 million in fiscal 2010.

Total sales, however, fell by 1.2 per cent as online retailing continued to threaten traditional department stores.

In a statement, David Jones said Mr Zahra came to the top job "facing a range of difficult issues" without mentioning Mr McInnes' resignation three years ago, following a sexual harassment complaint from a 25-year-old female junior publicist.

"He has successfully guided the company through the aftermath of the global financial crisis and a challenging retail environment and led the future strategic direction plan, which is well into implementation," the company said.

Mr Zahra thanked David Jones for giving him the opportunity to lead it after 15 years with the company, including a stint as the general manager of visual merchandising.

"David Jones is an amazing company and a brand I have always been proud to be part of," he said.

"I am sincerely grateful for the opportunities I have had and believe that I have made a valuable contribution."

David Jones shares had risen by two cents to $2.85 ahead of the resignation.

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Gorbachev skips meeting for treatment

FORMER Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev has skipped an annual meeting of Nobel Peace Prize laureates because he is receiving treatment at a German hospital.

Gorbachev's spokesman, Vladimir Polyakov, said on Monday doctors have told the former Soviet leader not to interrupt the treatment. He did not provide details.

Polyakov says "this is not an emergency" and "you should not forget that he is 82".

The 13th annual meeting is being held in Poland to mark 30 years since former Polish President Lech Walesa was awarded the prize for leading Solidarity movement that toppled communism in Poland. The meetings were initiated by Gorbachev in 2000.

Iran's Shirin Ebadi, former South Africa President Frederik de Klerk and the Dalai Lama are among the participants.

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Khloe Kardashian to return to Australia

Khloe Kardashian will reportedly travel to Australia next month to promote the family's new line. Source: AAP

KHLOE Kardashian must be having mixed feelings about returning to Australia in November.

Last time she visited, in 2011, she and her older sister Kim flew into a media storm. They arrived in Australia in the wake of Kim's announcement that she was divorcing her husband Kris Humphries, a mere 72 days after their much-hyped wedding.

Now News Corp Australia is reporting Khloe will return to Australia in November to promote the Kardashian family's fashion empire.

Khloe, 29, has been the subject of recent headlines about the state of her own marriage, to basketballer Lamar Odom.

The trip follows the launch of the Kardashian Kollection's ready-to-wear Spring/Summer line at the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Festival in Sydney in August.

Khloe and Kim, who rose to fame with the TV show Keeping Up With the Kardashians, visited Australia in 2011 to promote their handbag line.

Hundreds of fans, journalists and photographers followed the stars on their two-day visit. The sisters cut short the trip and cancelled their scheduled appearance at the Melbourne Cup Carnival.

Khloe's November visit is likely to be more subdued.

It's unlikely Odom will join his wife in Australia.

The couple are reportedly estranged amid rumours the basketball player is battling addiction to cocaine.

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Woman accused of retirement village thefts

A WOMAN has been accused of carrying out a number of break-ins at a Sydney retirement village.

Police were called to Cardinal Freeman Retirement Village in Ashfield on Saturday after two elderly residents reported their units had been broken into while they were out lunching.

At the time, police said, a strange woman was allegedly seen knocking on doors.

She wasn't seen again until Sunday morning when officers were told the same woman was allegedly seen loitering in the grounds.

Two other residents, aged 86 and 93, reported money had been stolen from their units.

Following a brief struggle, a 29-year-old woman was arrested nearby and later charged with stealing from dwelling, aggravated break and enter, and assaulting police.

She has been refused bail and will appear at Burwood Local Court on Monday.

Police are making further enquiries with the retirement home to see if there are any other victims.

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Sydney airport delays after plane mishap

THERE are flight delays at Sydney Airport after a United Airlines plane had problems during take-off.

The aircraft had "some issues" taking off late Sunday afternoon, forcing it to turn back, a spokeswoman for Sydney airport told AAP.

Fairfax media reports that the Los Angeles-bound 747 blew a tyre as it took off around 3pm (AEDT).

The flight then returned and landed late Sunday afternoon.

There were no reports of any passengers being hurt but the airport is experiencing some delays.

Passengers are being told to contact their individual airlines to confirm their flight details.

The problem has reportedly caught a few people already, with traveller Paul Worsteling tweeting that it took him three-and-a-half hours to get from Sydney to Melbourne on Sunday evening.

Others noted that passengers were taking the delays in their stride.

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Interstate fire crews sent to help NSW

FIREFIGHTERS across Australia are being deployed to aid NSW in its state of emergency.

With deteriorating weather conditions feared to return to the state on Monday, a 120-strong replacement crew will head from Victoria to NSW.

Victoria's fire services commissioner Craig Lapsley says the crew will replace the team they sent last week.

NSW will then let Victoria know if it needs more back up.

"This week in NSW there's a critical couple of days," Mr Lapsley said.

"Tuesday and Wednesday is the real critical fire weather. There could be a chance NSW could ask for more."

South Australia has also chipped in, sending a crew of 51, while Tasmania has sent a team of 20. ACT Rural Fire Service has sent two teams to the Blue Mountains, where several ferocious fires are scorching the countryside.

A team of eight firefighters has also been sent from Queensland, with two more crews on standby.

New Zealand fire crews across the ocean are on the ready if NSW makes a call for help.

Earlier this year, New Zealand fire crews were deployed to help fight bushfires in both Tasmania and Victoria.

In 2009, a team of 109 Kiwi firefighters was sent to tackle massive bushfires in Victoria.

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Chopper brags about four murders

CAREER criminal Mark Chopper Read has confessed murdering four people, including missing Queensland bikie boss Sidney Michael Collins, in the last interview before his own death.

His first kill, he claimed, was as a teenager.

Read made the admissions in the tell-all session screened on Sunday night by 60 minutes but recorded 16 days before he died, aged 58, following a battle with liver cancer.

He claimed responsibility for two cold case murders, those of Collins in 2002 and union heavy Desmond Costello in 1971.

Outlaws Motorcycle Club boss Collins, who has been missing since 2002, was previously shot by Chopper in the stomach.

He said he later killed him when they caught up after one of his life-after-crime stage shows in Casino in northern NSW, and buried him near a football oval.

Chopper said his first murder at age 17 involved shooting Costello outside a Collingwood pub.

He recalled dragging the body of the Melbourne painter and docker with the help of an accomplice to the hotel's keg cellar. Police, though, never uncovered his involvement.

The notorious standover man also disclosed that he got away with killing pedophile and murderer Reginald Isaacs in Pentridge Jail in 1974, with authorities believing Isaacs committed suicide.

Chopper claimed he beat the man repeatedly before hanging him in his cell with his bed sheets.

Read said his third killing was that of Siam Ozerkam, aka "Sammy the Turk", in 1987 outside the Bowjangles nightclub in St Kilda, Melbourne.

He said he told police it was a case of self-defence, and was acquitted, with a jury finding him not-guilty.

Read, who spent 23 years behind bars, previously boasted killing over a dozen people but was never found guilty of murder.

Despite the trail of death, Read told presenter Tara Brown he felt no remorse.

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