India
Cold Claims More Than 30 Lives in India
Cold weather in Northern India has claimed the lives of over 30 people, reported Indian media. Most deaths were among the homeless and elderly people in the province Uttar Pradesh, which borders Nepal. Chief Minister Mayawathi has ordered all primary schools, up to class eight, to be closed down until Jan. 9. Bonfires are organized throughout the province and blankets are being distributed to the poor and homeless. The temperature is expected to stay low over the next few days.
China
China Threatening to Halt Export of Essential Metal
China produces 97 percent of the world’s supply of essential metal, neodymium, used in green technology—but the regime is intending to halt exports, reports the Independent. The metal is a necessary component in wind turbines and low-energy light bulbs. An industry source told the Independent that China could halt export of two metals as of next year, and will only produce enough of the ore in 2012 to satisfy its own demand. Western countries have now started to look for alternatives, such as setting up new mines in other locations of the world. These mines, however, reportedly are 5 to 10 years away from significant production. “There is a threat that in the next 12 to 18 months, there might be some quite severe shortages of these rare earths,” Dr. Ian Higgins, general manager of Less Common Metals was reported as saying by the Independent. “That is certainly going to impact those hi-tech green industries outside China.”
Jordan
Suicide Bomber Killing Seven CIA Agents: ‘Al-Qaeda Double Agent’
The suicide bomber who killed eight CIA agents last week was an al-Qaeda double agent NBC News reported on Monday. Intelligence officials told NBC news that the suicide bomber was 36-year-old Khalil Abu-Mulal al-Balawi, an al-Qaeda sympathizer from Zarqa, Jordan. The report says that it is believed that al-Balawi, after being arrested by Jordanian Intelligence last year, was thought to have been reformed and sent to Afghanistan and Pakistan to infiltrate al-Qaeda. Earlier reports said that the attack was carried out by a rogue member of the Afghan army who was a Taliban sympathizer.
France
Professional Robbery of Armored Van
Armed with explosives and rifles, about a dozen masked robbers took about 4 million euros from an armoured.
Several cars blocked the armored van from Sazias Security, transporting cash for a Banque de France branch in Gemenos, Southern France. The BBC reports this is the second time in three years a van from Sazias has been robbed of millions of euros in the village. Witnesses said the well-organized gang used a rocket launcher and several explosives to gain access to two of four safety boxes. The police intervened and the robbers used their guns to escape. A large scale search has so far found two vehicles, empty and burned.
Kenya
Floods Kill at Least 20
Tens of thousands have been left in need of aid and at least 20 people have been killed in floods in Kenya on Monday, Reuters reported. The floods, caused by heavy rainfalls across Eastern Africa have affected 70,000 people in Kenya. “The rains have caused death, swept homes away and destroyed food crops leaving an estimated 30,000 people in dire need of relief aid,” Abbas Gullet, secretary general of the Kenya Red Cross Society told Reuters. The number of deaths is expected to increase. The rain comes as a relief in some areas which have suffered from drought.
