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VATICAN CITY: Pope Benedict XVI's Christmas Eve Mass at St. Peter's Basilica got off to a tumultuous start Thursday after an apparently deranged woman jumped the barriers and knocked him down on his way to the altar. In his homily, delivered after the incident, Benedict urged the world to "wake up" from selfishness and petty affairs, and find time for God and spiritual matters. The 82-year-old pope was unhurt in the fall, said a Vatican spokesman, the Rev. Ciro Benedettini. The pontiff did appear somewhat shaken and leaned heavily on aides and an armrest as he sat down in his chair. Footage from the Vatican aired on Italy's state TV showed a woman dressed in a red, hooded sweat shirt vaulting over the wooden barriers and rushing toward the pope before being swarmed by bodyguards. Video shot by a witness showed the woman grabbing the pope's vestments as she was taken down, with Benedict seemingly falling on top of her. The commotion happened as the pope's ...

Friday, December 25, 2009 BEIJING: A Beijing court on Friday sentenced leading dissident Liu Xiaobo to 11 years in prison for subversion, prompting the United States to accuse China of persecuting its political opponents. The 53-year-old Liu, a writer who was jailed over the 1989 Tiananmen pro-democracy protests, was tried on Wednesday for "inciting subversion of state power" after co-authoring a bold call for political reform last year. He co-wrote Charter 08, which calls for human rights protection and the reform of China's one-party communist system. It has been signed by more than 10,000 people, according to China Human Rights Defenders, an activist network. One of his lawyers, Ding Xikui, told media he was unsure whether Liu -- who has already been detained for a year -- would appeal. He had faced a maximum prison term of 15 years.

Friday, December 25, 2009 NEW DELHI: At least seven people were killed and 40 others were feared trapped after a bridge collapsed in western India, officials said Friday. The accident happened late Thursday when the bridge under construction over the Chambal river in the state of Rajasthan collapsed, local district administrator T Ravikant told media."Several injured people have been brought to hospital," he said. "We fear 40 people to be trapped below the debris." The army joined in efforts to rescue the trapped labourers and divers and welders were working at the accident site. Kota lies around 250 kilometres (150 miles) from Rajasthan state capital Jaipur.

Friday, December 25, 2009 WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama have offered Christmas wishes to the US, including a special thanks to the military.They urged Americans to help support military families this holiday season.In his weekly radio and Internet address, Obama said, serving as commander in chief, has been his greatest honour as president.He saluted the "selfless spirit" of those who serve and said he has been "humbled, profoundly" by those who made the ultimate sacrifice."So to all our men and women in uniform spending the holidays far from home - whether it's at a base here in the states, a mess hall in Iraq or a remote outpost in Afghanistan - know that you are in our thoughts and our prayers," the president said in a message released two days early because of Christmas. "And this holiday season - and every holiday season - know that we are doing everything in our power to make sure you can succeed in you...

Friday, December 25, 2009 VATICAN CITY: Pope Benedict XVI has especially advised Christian community to avoid selfishness during his speech on the eve of Christmas celebration here in front of a huge mass gathering at midnight on Thursday.82-years-old Pope said selfishness bears in people isolation with one another and obstruct the way of truthfulness.The Christmas celebrations commenced at 10pm – two hours early, keeping in view Pope’s rising age and illness while thousands of christens attended the celebrations.Earlier, at his arrival for Christmas message, a lady knocked him down but Pope remained unharmed while security guards held women under custody.

Friday, December 25, 2009 TEHRAN: Iran is confirming a daughter of al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden is at the Saudi Embassy in Tehran, but says it doesn't know how she entered the country.A Saudi newspaper reported Wednesday that the 17-year-old, Eman, went to the embassy seeking refuge after eluding guards who have held her, her sister and four brothers under house arrest for eight years.Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki said on a TV talk show Thursday that Iran had no idea she was in the country until it heard from the embassy.Mottaki said if authorities are able to confirm her identity she would be free to leave Iran.It has long been believed that Iran has held a number of bin Laden's children since they fled Afghanistan after the 2001 U.S.-led invasion.

Friday, December 25, 2009 WASHINGTON: Mother Nature’s rage has hit Oklahoma hard as a winter storm erupted today causing four deaths and keeping thousands stranded. The National Weather Service issued a blizzard warning through 6 p.m., Roads are expected to be slick and hazardous, heavy wind is expected, authorities have requested people to avoid driving unless and until absolutely necessary.A 50-car pileup is clogging Interstate 40 eastbound near Hudiburg Drive in Midwest City, there have been so many accidents that troopers are not no longer responding to non-injury accidents in the Oklahoma City-area, instead focusing on fatal crashes.Oklahoma City-area airports were closed this afternoon, 16,000 households were without power about 2 p.m. Christmas day is expected to be partly sunny said the weather forecast.Interstate 44 had a crash were a person died and State Highway 51 near Sand Springs had fatal crash that resulted in three deaths.A major winter storm is sweeping across the cen...

Friday, December 25, 2009 TOKYO: Japan's unemployment rate rose to 5.2 percent in November from 5.1 percent in October, worsening for the first time in four months, the government said Friday.

Friday, December 25, 2009 VATICAN CITY: A woman pushing against a barrier caused Pope Benedict XVI to fall on Thursday as he entered St Peter's Basilica to celebrate Christmas mass, the Vatican spokesman said. The woman was "apparently unbalanced," Father Federico Lombardi told media. The 82-year-old pontiff quickly recovered and went on to conduct the mass without assistance, but French Cardinal Roger Etchegaray fell ill in the crush and was given first aid, Lombardi said. In gold and white vestments and mitre, the pope bore a gold cross in a solemn procession to the altar as the mass began two hours early, at 10:00 pm (2100 GMT) instead of the traditional midnight hour due to his advanced age. The decision, a Vatican first, was taken several weeks ago. The German pope's spokesman Federico Lombardi said the change was "no cause for alarm," adding that the pontiff's condition was "absolutely normal" for a man of his age. Lombardi told media the...

Friday, December 25, 2009 LIMA: A passenger bus plunged into a ravine in the high Andes of southern Peru on Thursday, killing at least 40 people and wounding some 10 others, police said.Authorities said more than 50 people were aboard when the bus traveling between Arequipa, Peru's second largest city, and the town of Santo Tomas, near Cusco, veered off the road and tumbled 200 meters (yards) down a mountainside, police captain Juan Suarez said. "There are 40 dead at the moment and I don't have the exact number of wounded, there are about 10," Suarez told media, adding that the crash occurred early Thursday about 1,100 kilometers (680 miles) from the capital Lima. Suarez said the bus left late Wednesday and had been traveling to Santo Tomas, a peasant village in Chumbivilca province, when it crashed. Highway police General Enrique Medrie told reporters that "there were reports of overcrowding of passengers," with a travel crush common on Christmas Eve.Edilbe...