16-year-old survives stowaway flight drama

AN FBI agent says a 16-year-old US boy who stowed away in the wheel well of a flight from California to Hawaii has no memory of the trip and is lucky to be alive.

The teen survived the trip halfway across the Pacific Ocean unharmed despite frigid temperatures at 38,000 feet (11,500 metres) and a lack of oxygen.

FBI spokesman Tom Simon in Honolulu said on Sunday night the boy was questioned after being discovered on the tarmac at the Maui airport with no identification.

"Kid's lucky to be alive," Simon said.

Simon said security footage from the San Jose airport verified that the boy hopped a fence to get to Hawaiian Airlines Flight 45 on Sunday morning.

The teen had run away from his family after an argument, Simon said. When the flight landed in Maui, the boy hopped down from the wheel well and started wandering around the airport grounds, he said.

"He was unconscious for the lion's share of the flight," Simon said. The flight lasted about 5 1/2 hours.

Hawaiian Airlines spokeswoman Alison Croyle said airline personnel noticed the boy on the ramp after the flight arrived and immediately notified airport security.

"Our primary concern now is for the well-being of the boy, who is exceptionally lucky to have survived," Croyle said.

Simon said the boy was medically screened and found to be unharmed.

"Doesn't even remember the flight," Simon said. "It's amazing he survived that."

The boy will not be charged and was referred to child protective services, Simon said.

In August, a 13- or 14-year-old boy in Nigeria survived a 35-minute trip in the wheel well of a domestic flight after stowing away. Authorities credited the flight's short duration.

Others stowing away in wheel wells have died, including a 16-year-old killed after stowing away aboard a flight from Charlotte, North Carolina, to Boston in 2010 and a man who fell on to a suburban London street from a flight from Angola in 2012.

19.51 | 0 komentar | Read More

NSW police breath-test 60,000 during blitz

ALMOST 60,000 people have been breath tested by NSW police who have issued more than 2000 traffic fines and charged 58 motorists with drink driving during the Easter road blitz.

They've handed out 910 speeding notices and another 1,500 tickets for other offences since Operation Tortoise began on Friday.

On Sunday afternoon, a 25-year-old man was breath tested after Deniliquin police saw him swerve onto the wrong side of the road.

He allegedly blew 0.261, more than five times the limit, and was charged with high-range drink driving and is due before Finlay Local Court in June.

A 19-year-old woman was on Sunday morning charged after being caught behind the wheel with an alleged blood-alcohol concentration of 0.163.

She also caught the attention of police while driving down the wrong side of a Cronulla road.

In the early hours of Monday morning a man, 24, was allegedly clocked speeding through a 80km/h zone at 140 km/h.

"The driver was issued a traffic infringement notice for exceeding speed by more than 45km/h and his licence was suspended for a period of six months," police said.

Traffic and highway patrol's commander Assistant Commissioner John Hartley said it's disappointing people were drink-driving despite consistent warnings from police.

"If you're going out to have a drink you need to find another way home, driving is simply not an option," he said.

Despite the heavy traffic only two people have died, down from three during Easter last year.

19.51 | 0 komentar | Read More

Royals' quiet day makes news

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will spend a day of rest in Canberra before heading north. Source: AAP

THE Duke and Duchess of Cambridge were supposed to be having a day free of official engagements, spending the day in Canberra but it proved too tempting for the paparazzi.

The royal couple and their baby were photographed unawares in the ground of Government House at Yarralumla, with vision making news broadcasts across the country.

Kate was filmed taking a stroll with her son in the grounds, with the images showing Prince George being carried on his mother's shoulders, pushed in a buggy and on Kate's lap as the pair played together.

William and Kate were also filmed without their knowledge walking hand in hand along the foreshore of Lake Burley Griffin, casually dressed in shirts, jumpers and jeans. At one point, Kate is captured giving an odd little kick.

The pictures taken on a rest day during their tour Down Under may be seen by aides as an intrusion into the couple's privacy.

Although there has been no official word from Kensington Palace, it was tweeted that the palace has requested that the media refrain from intruding on the family's privacy.

On Tuesday, William and Kate will tour Uluru.

The visit will be only their second night away from their son during their 19-day tour of Australia and New Zealand. George, who turns nine months on Tuesday, is expected to remain in Canberra with his nanny.

19.51 | 0 komentar | Read More

More than 400 charges in Operation Unite

MORE than 400 charges have been laid for assaults and drink driving offences in Western Australia during the eighth Operation Unite targeting alcohol-fuelled anti-social behaviour.

Total statistics from Thursday to Sunday night included 433 charges, 165 arrests and 200 summons.

They include 21 assaults, as well as 15 people caught driving under the influence, 43 people in excess of 0.08 per cent, 12 people in excess of 0.05 per cent and two people in excess of 0.02 per cent.

Specialist squads made up of officers from the Liquor Enforcement Unit and the Regional Operations Group joined the operation in WA for the first time.

Police Commissioner Karl O'Callaghan said last week that the excessive consumption of alcohol was still the most significant factor contributing to night-time violence.

Operation Unite is not about restricting people from having a good time, it is about continuing to raise community awareness about the dangers of determined drunkenness and the impact it has on others, he said.

19.51 | 0 komentar | Read More

Mickey Rooney laid to rest in California

Hollywood veteran Mickey Rooney has been laid to rest at a private funeral in California. Source: AAP

MICKEY Rooney has been laid to rest at a private funeral in California.

Family and friends of the Breakfast at Tiffany's star bid farewell to the beloved actor at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery on Saturday, following a memorial service on Friday.

The funeral comes a week after Rooney's conservator and attorney Michael Augustine, and Rooney's estranged wife, Janice Rooney, debated on where to hold the send-off. The two parties eventually settled on the popular site, where other Hollywood legends are buried.

Rooney, 93, died on April 6.

19.51 | 0 komentar | Read More

Queen's portrait by David Bailey released

A PORTRAIT of the Queen by the renowned British photographer David Bailey has been released to mark her 88th birthday.

The photograph of the monarch, smiling, was taken at Buckingham Palace in March and commissioned on behalf of the UK government's GREAT Britain campaign.

The image will be used in activity to support the campaign, which aims to generate jobs and growth through highlighting Britain as a world-class destination for trade, tourism, investment and education.

The Queen is wearing pearls and a dress by Angela Kelly, who has served as personal assistant and senior dresser to her since 2002.

A Buckingham Palace source said: "Bailey's name was suggested by Number 10 and the GREAT campaign and the Queen agreed. The Queen agreed to sit for it in recognition of the work of the GREAT campaign."

Bailey said: "I've always been a huge fan of the Queen. She has very kind eyes with a mischievous glint. I've always liked strong women and she is a very strong woman."

It is hoped that the image will encourage overseas visitors to experience Britain's royal heritage. Britain's monarchy, including royal heritage and property, is one of the biggest drivers of tourism into the UK, generating an estimated STG500 million ($A901.47 million) per year from overseas tourism spend.

The campaign has delivered economic returns worth more than STG500 million to the economy with a further STG600 million to STG800 million of returns forecast for 2013-14.

It is the government's most ambitious international marketing campaign and showcases the best of what Britain has to offer in order to encourage the world to visit, study and do business with the UK.

The initiative was launched by the Prime Minister David Cameron in September 2011 and is a global campaign, deployed by Britain's diplomatic posts in 144 countries around the world.

Bailey, 76, has photographed an extraordinary range of subjects over more than half a century - actors, writers, musicians, filmmakers, designers, models, artists and people encountered on his travels.

The Queen's birthday falls on Monday.

19.50 | 0 komentar | Read More

New intensive care beds for Vic babies

The Victorian government has promised sick babies will have more intensive care beds in Melbourne. Source: AAP

SICK babies will have more intensive care beds in Melbourne, the state government has promised.

Five new neonatal intensive care unit cots will be funded in the May 6 state budget, taking the state's capacity to 100 baby beds.

Health Minister David Davis said $4 million of capital funding would get the cots ready, with a further $5.6 million a year set aside to staff them.

"As well as newborns, this specialist equipment supports babies after surgery, infants requiring long-term ventilation and those suffering from seasonal illnesses such as bronchitis," Mr Davis told reporters on Sunday.

He said the beds were most often used for babies who were born early and had complications from birth.

Mr Davis said Victoria handled the most difficult cases from Tasmania, South Australia and southern New South Wales.

"We do carry a larger-than-our-share load, but we do that willingly," he said.

"We have very capable hospitals."

The new cots will be installed at the Royal Children's Hospital, Monash Medical Centre, the Royal Women's Hospital and Mercy Hospital for Women.

Mr Davis said they would be rolled out once negotiations with Victoria's health services were complete.

Opposition health spokesman Gavin Jennings said the government was playing catch up because it failed to keep up with demand for intensive care treatment for babies.

"We've had situations where our babies have had to be sent interstate because we haven't had enough intensive care beds," he told reporters.

"The last time that that was measured, it was running at about one baby a month being transferred out of Victoria to receive intensive care. Clearly that is not good enough."

19.50 | 0 komentar | Read More

Man arrested over Qld mum's death

Police are investigating the suspicious stabbing death of a woman in far north Queensland. Source: AAP

A MAN has been charged with murder over the death of a mother of two in far north Queensland, police say.

The 27-year-old woman died after being stabbed in a Cairns unit in the early hours of Sunday morning.

A number of people who were at the unit saw the attack, Detective Acting Superintendent Bruno Asnicar said, and a man, 32, who knew the woman, was arrested.

"The witnesses are quite rightfully very upset," Det Supt Asnicar said.

"We will work with them, we'll put them in touch with the right people to speak to, victims of crime assistance and so on and so forth, to try to get them through it."

The woman, who has two children aged two and eight, lived at the unit off and on.

A Lockhart River man has been charged with murder and is due to appear in the Cairns Magistrates Court on Monday.

19.50 | 0 komentar | Read More

Pakistani TV host survives gun attack

Pakistani police say gunmen have shot at famous television talk show host Hamid Mir in Karachi. Source: AAP

UNKNOWN gunmen on motorbikes have opened fire at a prominent Pakistani television anchor on a busy road in the southern port city of Karachi, officials say.

Hamid Mir, who hosts a popular talk show on Pakistan's Geo News channel, was travelling to his office from the airport when his car came under attack, senior police official Peer Muhammad Shah said.

"Four gunmen riding on motorbikes started firing at the car near Karsaz (east of the city) when Mir's car was passing through. He received three bullets in the lower parts of his body," Shah said.

Karachi police chief Shahid Hayat confirmed the incident.

"Hamid Mir has received three bullets but the doctors told me that he is out of danger," Hayat said.

Geo's Islamabad bureau chief Rana Jawad said he had talked briefly to Mir on his mobile phone as he was under attack.

"I spoke to him briefly when he was escaping, he said they have shot him and now they were following him," Jawad said.

"He has been shot thrice, in the pelvic (area), abdomen and thighs," he added.

Mir has long been a critic of the country's powerful intelligence agencies and military for their alleged role in the disappearance of thousands of people in the restive southwestern province of Baluchistan.

Amir Mir, brother of Hamid and also a journalist, accused the country's Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) spy agency of responsibility for the attack, saying the wounded television anchor had felt threatened before the attack.

"He had told me that if anything happens to him, the ISI chief General Zaheer-ul-Islam would be responsible for it," he said.

He blamed a "disgruntled faction of the army and ISI" for attempting to assassinate his brother.

"The ISI chief was not happy with him because he exposed their human rights abuses in Baluchistan, he said.

"The army and its powerful intelligence agency cannot bear criticism from journalists."

He added the army disliked perceived attacks on the military's role in politics.

Pakistan's intelligence agencies have long been accused of harassing and threatening journalists.

Last year Hamid Mir survived an attack in Islamabad when a bomb planted under his car was defused before it could go off.

The journalist, who hosts a long-running talk show on Geo News, had also complained of receiving death threats from the country's intelligence agency.

The army described the accusations as baseless in a statement via the Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR), the media wing of the armed forces, which said it "condemned the incident and demanded an independent enquiry".

The statement added that "raising allegations against ISI or the head of ISI without any basis is highly regrettable and misleading".

Last month Raza Rumi, a prominent television anchor known for his outspoken critical views of the Pakistani Taliban, survived a similar assassination attempt in Lahore.

Rumi's driver died of the injuries he sustained.

Earlier in March, Pakistan announced it would set up a special commission to protect journalists and will include press freedom as part of peace talks with the Pakistani Taliban.

Rights groups have called Pakistan one of the most dangerous countries for journalists.

According to media watchdog Reporters Without Borders, seven reporters lost their lives in Pakistan last year.

19.50 | 0 komentar | Read More

Labor loses 'giant' in Neville Wran

Former long-serving New South Wales Premier Neville Wran, has died aged 87. Source: AAP

AUSTRALIAN Labor has lost a "giant" with the death of Neville Wran, who led NSW as premier for a decade.

Mr Wran, 87, died with his family by his bedside just before 6pm on Sunday at the Lulworth House nursing home in Sydney's eastern suburbs, where he had been in care for the past two years.

He suffered from dementia.

"This is of course a very sad time for us all, but in fact a blessed release for Neville," his wife, Jill Hickson, said in a statement to AAP.

"Dementia is a cruel fate and I have been grieving the loss that comes with it for some years.

"But I hope now, especially in this political climate, people will join me in celebrating the life of a great man, a true political hero."

Federal Opposition Leader Bill Shorten said the Australian Labor Party had lost a giant.

"Few are made as tough, as smart and as honourable as Neville Wran," he said.

"After 1975, the Wranslides helped rebuild Labor in New South Wales and nationally. It was Neville who kept the light on the hill burning bright."

Mr Wran was a decent man of the utmost integrity, he said.

Liberal Mike Baird, who became NSW Premier last week, said he was deeply saddened and described Mr Wran as a towering figure in the NSW Labor Party and in the state during the 1970s and '80s.

Federal Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull said Mr Wran was a dear friend, great business partner and mentor.

"We send our love and condolences to his family especially Jill, his wife, and his children Kim, Glenn, Harriet and Hugo," he said.

"He was a true believer, a doer, a reformer and a builder.

"There was nobody better to have on your side in a crisis than Neville - a remarkable combination of sagacity and solidarity."

Bob Carr, who surpassed Mr Wran's record for the longest continuous service as NSW premier, said Mr Wran set a template for successful Labor leaders, including prime ministers Bob Hawke and Paul Keating.

"He was a master politician," Mr Carr told Sky News.

"He presented a model of stable state government that had a big impact on future Labor governments that followed his."

Barry O'Farrell, who last week stood down as NSW premier, tweeted: "Sad news. Neville Wran helped build NSW including initiating our sister-state relationship with China's Guangdong province in 1979."

Mr Wran led the Labor government in NSW from May 1976 to July 1986, before dramatically announcing his resignation to a shocked Labor conference.

He was a successful lawyer before entering parliament in the Legislative Council in 1970. He moved to the lower house in 1973 before becoming Labor leader.

In 1976, he led Labor to government in a tight election, forming government after a 10-day wait, with the support of an independent.

Mr Wran and his government were involved in damaging scandals.

In 1983, he stepped aside while a royal commission examined allegations he'd tried to influence a magistrate over a misappropriation hearing against rugby league boss Kevin Humphreys. He was cleared.

Prisons minister Rex Jackson was jailed for selling early releases and chief magistrate Murray Farquhar was jailed for perverting the course of justice. Senior police were caught up in corruption scandals.

Mr Wran was fined $25,000 for contempt of court after declaring his belief in the innocence of his old friend Lionel Murphy, the High Court judge facing a charge of attempting to pervert the course of justice.

After politics, Mr Wran had success in the business world, including running a merchant bank with Mr Turnbull.

Mr Wran was married twice, first to Marcia Oliver, whose son he adopted before they had two more children, and then to Ms Hickson, with whom he had two children.

He was put into care as dementia took hold two years ago.

19.50 | 0 komentar | Read More