US releases info on surveillance origins 
Washington, December 22
The director of national intelligence declassified more documents that outline how the National Security Agency was first authorised to start collecting bulk phone and Internet records in the hunt for Al-Qaida, after the Justice Department complied with a federal court order to release its previous arguments for keeping the programmes secret.

Post riot, Singapore warns foreign workers of action
Singapore, December 22
Some 200 foreign workers, including Indians, were today issued formal police advisories for alleged involvement in Singapore's worst street violence in 40 years.

Anti-nuclear protest: Protesters clad in protective suits carry barrels of mock nuclear waste during a rally denouncing the Japanese government direction to resume nuclear power plants, in Tokyo on Sunday. AFP

Sri Lanka to investigate mass grave in war zone
Colombo, December 22
Sri Lanka will tomorrow launch a magisterial inquiry into a suspected mass grave found in a former conflict zone where the army battled Tamil Tiger rebels. The suspected mass grave in the northeastern district of Mannar is the first one found after the end of the military campaign against the LTTE four years ago.

Marines’ trial hits new snag: Italian Prez
Rome, December 22
Italian President Giorgio Napolitano has said the trial of two marines in India over the killing of two Indian fishermen has run into new “difficulty” because of upcoming general elections in that country.

75-yr-old Frenchman gets a battery-powered heart
London, December 22
For the first time, an artificial heart that may give patients up to five years of extra life has been successfully implanted in a 75-year-old French man.

Bangkok, December 22
Over 1.10 lakh protesters chanting "Yingluck get out" today paralysed parts of the Thai capital of Bangkok to bring down Premier Yingluck Shinawatra's caretaker government, a day after the main Opposition party declared a boycott of the February 2 snap polls.

Blowing whistles and waving national flags, protesters - mostly women - gathered outside Yingluck's suburban house. But Yingluck was not in the house as she was travelling. The Metropolitan Police Bureau deployed about 1,000 personnel outside Yingluck's house to keen the protesters away.

Yesterday, the main opposition Democrat Party said it will boycott the snap elections called by Yingluck earlier this month in a bid to end weeks of protests. Yingluck, 46, announced a roadmap for national reform yesterday that would go hand in hand with the snap election, requiring all political parties to pledge to honour the reform process after the election.

The Democrat Party appeared unconvinced, calling it a ploy to try and discourage the large numbers of people expected to join anti-government protests in Bangkok today. Yingluck won the last general elections in 2011, but protesters say her brother - the controversial ousted former leader Thaksin Shinawatra - remains in charge.

Protesters have been demanding for the toppling of the Yingluck administration. They want Yingluck to quit and get rid of her brother Thaksin, who was overthrown in a coup in 2006. Thaksin is currently in Dubai on self-imposed exile.

Meanwhile, protest leader Suthep Thaugsuban said he hoped today's rally will put pressure on Yingluck and her government. — PTI

United Nations, December 22
The bravery of 43 Indian peacekeepers stationed at a UN base in South Sudan, which was attacked by about 2,000 rebels this week, prevented more casualties, a top UN official said as she lauded the dedication shown by Indian troops in peacekeeping missions.

Two Indian soldiers Warrant Officers Dharmesh Sangwan and Kumar Pal Singh were killed in the December 19 attack on the UN base in the Jonglei state town of Akobo in South Sudan. A third soldier Indian Battalion Warrant Officer Mondal Shabul was wounded in the chest during the attack and was flown to Malakal where he was reported to be in stable condition.

The UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) held a memorial ceremony in Juba yesterday for the two Indian Battalion peacekeepers killed in the attack.

Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General (SRSG) for South Sudan Hilde Johnson paid tribute to Sangwan and Singh as "brave and courageous soldiers" and extended her condolences to the families and loved ones of the fallen peacekeepers.

"As a mission, we are inspired by the dedication shown by the Indian troops," said Johnson, who laid wreaths on the coffins of the slain peacekeepers during the ceremony which was held at the Mission's compound adjacent to Juba International Airport. "Had it not been for their bravery, the death toll at the (UNMISS base) could have been higher,” Johnson said. — PTI

Washington, December 22
The director of national intelligence declassified more documents that outline how the National Security Agency was first authorised to start collecting bulk phone and Internet records in the hunt for Al-Qaida, after the Justice Department complied with a federal court order to release its previous arguments for keeping the programmes secret.

Director of National Intelligence James Clapper explained in a statement yesterday that President George W Bush first authorised the spying in October 2001, as part of the Terrorist Surveillance Program, just after the September 11 attacks. Bush disclosed the program in 2005.

The Terrorist Surveillance Programme which had to be extended every 30-60 days by presidential order eventually was replaced by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act a law that requires a secret court to OK the collection.

The disclosures are part of the White House's campaign to justify the NSA surveillance, following leaks to the media about the classified programmess by Edward Snowden. President Barack Obama hinted on Friday that he would consider some changes to NSA's bulk collection of Americans' phone records — AP

Singapore, December 22
Some 200 foreign workers, including Indians, were today issued formal police advisories for alleged involvement in Singapore's worst street violence in 40 years.

The move came two days after 56 Indians and a Bangladeshi were deported from Singapore for alleged involvement in the December 8 riot in Little India, a precinct of Indian-origin businesses, eateries and pubs where most South Asian workers take their Sunday break.

The police said those issued advisories had played "a passive and incidental" role during the riot.

The workers started arriving at the Police Cantonment Complex at 10 am to receive police advisories at the Criminal Investigation Department. The foreign workers were accompanied by representatives of the companies they work for.

The workers were reminded they must abide by the laws of Singapore and should they commit any criminal offence, they would face stern action, including the revocation of their work privileges, Channel News Asia reported, citing the advisory.

While a police warning is usually issued "in place of prosecution" and indicates that an offence may have been committed, an advisory is given to those who have not committed offences, and face no further action, The Straits Times quoted Commissioner of Police Ng Joo Hee as saying. — PTI

Colombo, December 22
Sri Lanka will tomorrow launch a magisterial inquiry into a suspected mass grave found in a former conflict zone where the army battled Tamil Tiger rebels. The suspected mass grave in the northeastern district of Mannar is the first one found after the end of the military campaign against the LTTE four years ago.

"A magisterial inquiry will begin tomorrow after the discovery of four more skulls," said Senior Superintendent Ajith Rohana, a police spokesman. On Friday, workers of the National Water Supply and Drainage Board found skeletal remains when they were digging to lay water pipes adjacent to a road in Mannar, Rohana said.

There were six skulls among the remains found on Friday and four more were found today. Rights groups had highlighted the existence of mass graves in the north. — PTI 

London, December 22
For the first time, an artificial heart that may give patients up to five years of extra life has been successfully implanted in a 75-year-old French man.

The artificial heart, designed by French biomedical firm Carmat, is powered by Lithium-ion batteries that can be worn externally.

Implanted into the patient’s body at Georges Pompidou Hospital in Paris, the heart uses a range of “bio-materials” to reduce the likelihood of the body rejecting it, The Telegraph reported.

The device is intended to replace a real heart for five years, unlike previous artificial hearts that were created for temporary use.

Doctors said the patient who received the device, developed by Dutch-based European Aeronautic Defence and Space (EADS) Company, was awake and responding well after the operation.

“We are delighted with the first implant, although it is premature to draw conclusions as a single implant has been performed and we are in the early post-operative phase,” Carmat chief executive Marcello Conviti said.

The heart weighs less than a kilogram, thrice as much as an average healthy human heart, and mimics heart muscle contractions and contains sensors that adapt the blood flow to the patient's moves, the report said.

The heart’s surface that comes in contact with the blood is made of bovine tissue instead of synthetic materials such as plastic, which can cause blood clots. — PTI