New Year Knees Up Around The World

Major cities, including Sydney, Shanghai, Dubai and Berlin have marked the start of 2013 with large fireworks displays.

Among the most spectacular celebrations were ones in Sydney, which centred on the harbour bridge, and Dubai, where the world's tallest building, the Burj Khalifa, formed the centrepiece.

Some 1.5 million people are estimated to have turned out to watch the event in the Australian city with more than 100,000 firework patterns, costing £4.2m.

One of the country's most famous singers, Kylie Minogue, was creative ambassador and she picked the colours and the music.

The pop star pressed the button that set off seven tons of fireworks.

Shanghai ushers in the New Year

The Dubai show had three elements - light, water and fire - and projections on a 210-metre long screen.

Moscow had the Kremlin as its backdrop, while Jakarta marked 2013 with a massive four-mile street party.

Sixteen large stages were built along the normally busy, eight-lane motorway which runs through the heart of the Indonesian capital.

There was a fireworks display at the Kremlin in Moscow

Couples kissed in New York's Times Square as ticker tape and fireworks welcomed in 2013 in style.

Thousands packed the iconic square in Manhattan as singers belted out the Frank Sinatra classic New York, New York.

The countdown was the first in decades without television host Dick Clark, who died in April.

North Korea put on a pyrotechnic display in Pyongyang

There were also celebrations on a grand scale in Hong Kong and Shanghai.

This year's fireworks display, which cost about £1m, was said to be the biggest ever in the southern Chinese city.

Meanwhile, North Korea welcomed 2013 with reportedly the first ever New Year's fireworks display the country has held as Tokyo reverberated to the sound of the city's Watch-Night Bell.

The bells were struck 108 times at temples all over Japan to symbolise the beginning of a prosperous New Year.

Auckland began the countdown to 2013

Burma rang in the New Year with its first public countdown and a fireworks display, a celebration unprecedented in the former military-ruled country.

Around 90,000 people gathered at the countdown venue - a large field in Rangoon - for a chance to do what much of the world does every year at this time.

"This is very exciting and also our first experience in celebrating the New Year at a big countdown gathering. We feel like we are in a different world," said Yu Thawda, a university student who joined the party.

The atmosphere of celebration was muted in some places.

British troops at Camp Bastion in Afghanistan see in the New Year

Many European nations planned scaled-back festivities and street parties for 2013 which is projected to be a sixth straight year of recession amid Greece's worst economic crisis.

Hotels, clubs and other venues in New Delhi cancelled festivities after the death of a gang rape victim which has led to days of protests and mourning.

The first major city to see in 2013 was Auckland, New Zealand, which had a spectacular fireworks display.

Crowds packed the city centre to watch the annual event at the city's Sky Tower, which stands more than 1,000ft tall.

The central Pacific Ocean island of Kiritimati (Christmas Island) and the eastern-most island in the island nation of Kiribati were the first to usher in the new year at 1000 GMT.

American Samoa, an unincorporated territory of the US in the southern Pacific Ocean, was the last place on Earth to herald in the new year on Tuesday at 1100 GMT.

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Mexican Olympic Silver Medallist Shot In Head

A Mexican race walker who won silver at the 2000 Sydney Olympics has lost his left eye after being shot in the head in a bar, according to reports.

Noe Hernandez, 34, was in a serious but stable condition after being shot at the Queen of Kings nightclub in Mexico state.

Three gunmen burst into the club and opened fire on revellers, killing two people and seriously injuring two more.

Hernandez, who works as sports secretary for the ruling Institutional Revolutionary Party in the state, has undergone three surgeries after he was hit by a 9mm bullet.

Surgeon Carlos Castillo Rangel said: "The surgeries were successful, without any complications.

"We must wait and see his progress in intensive care."

Bars are often raided by drug cartel members in Mexico. More than 60,000 people have died in the country in the last six years as a result of the drug war.

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Last-Minute Deal Reached On US Fiscal Cliff

The US Senate has approved legislation aimed at averting the so-called fiscal cliff by stopping most tax hikes and across-the-board spending cuts that had been due to begin with the New Year.

The legislation was approved with an overwhelming 89-8 vote, and came well after midnight on New Year's Day.

The House of Representatives must still approve the measure.

President Barack Obama praised the agreement, saying: "While neither Democrats nor Republicans got everything they wanted, this agreement is the right thing to do for our country and the House should pass it without delay."

Without the legislation, economists had warned of a possible new recession and a spike in unemployment.

The White House-backed legislation would prevent middle-class taxes from rising, and raise rates on incomes over $400,000 (£246,000) for individuals and $450,000 (£277,000) for couples.

It also blocks spending cuts for two months, extends unemployment benefits for the long-term jobless, prevents a 27% cut in fees for doctors who treat Medicare patients and prevents a spike in milk prices.

Vice President Joe Biden after a Senate Democratic caucus meeting on Monday

The deal would allow the White House and politicians time to regroup before plunging quickly into a new round of budget brinkmanship.

This is certain to revolve around Republican calls to rein in the cost of the Medicare health programme for the elderly and other government benefit programmes.

Officials also decided at the last minute to use the measure to prevent a $900 pay rise for politicians which had been due to take effect this spring.

Vice President Joe Biden, who negotiated the deal with Republican Senate Majority leader Mitch McConnell, was on Capitol Hill to sell it to Democratic senators.

The tax hikes and spending cuts were due to come into force at midnight. But as global markets are closed on New Year's Day, politicians have time to vote the deal into law.

The White House and Congressional leaders hope to send legislation to Mr Obama within a day or two, meaning consumers should not notice any impact.

Mr Obama had originally campaigned for tax hikes to kick in for those making $250,000 and above, and his acceptance of a higher threshold has already angered liberals, though still represents a political victory.

The president said the deal would extend tax credits for clean energy firms and also unemployment insurance for two million people.

Both sides are already gearing up for the next legislative showdown over the need to lift the government's statutory borrowing limit of $16.4trn (£10.1trn), which was reached on Monday.

The Treasury will now take extraordinary measures to keep the government afloat for an undisclosed period of time until the ceiling is raised. Republicans are already demanding spending cuts in return.

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Newtown Gunman's Body Claimed For Burial

The body of the man who killed 26 people at a Connecticut school has been claimed for burial.

A spokesman for Adam Lanza's family said on Monday that his father Peter Lanza claimed the remains.

He added that there were private arrangements over the weekend, but he would not elaborate.

The 20-year-old gunman shot dead 20 young children and six staff members at the Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14.

He also killed his mother in their Newtown home before going on the rampage.

He finally took his own life at the school.

The coroner ruled his death a suicide, but is awaiting results of toxicology tests before completing the case.

Nancy Lanza and Peter Lanza. Pic: LinkedIn

A private funeral was held earlier this month in New Hampshire for his mother, Nancy Lanza.

It is unclear if the same funeral home would be handling her son's burial.

Peter Lanza - who lives in Stamford and is a tax director at General Electric - had little contact with his son in the past two years.

Adam Lanza also had an older brother Ryan, aged 24. 

Before removal, samples were taken from the killer's body by geneticists who were asked to study his DNA.

The University of Connecticut scientists are looking for abnormalities or mutations in Lanza's genome that could have increased the risk of aggressive or violent behaviour.

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Benghazi Deaths: Report Finds Woeful Security

A Congressional report on the Benghazi attack has been highly critical of the handling of security at the US consulate.

The document, produced by the Senate homeland security committee and released to media ahead of publication, faults the State Department for failing to adequately respond to mounting security threats in the lead-up to the assault.

On September 11, the anniversary of the 2001 attacks by al Qaeda on New York and Washington, heavily-armed militants stormed the US mission in the eastern Libyan city.

Four Americans died in the assault, including US ambassador Chris Stevens.

The report says the facility was woefully under-protected despite a "large amount of evidence" that Benghazi was "increasingly dangerous and unstable," with an attack on Americans becoming "much more likely".

"While this intelligence was effectively shared within the Intelligence Community and with key officials at the Department of State, it did not lead to a commensurate increase in security at Benghazi nor to a decision to close the American mission there, either of which would have been more than justified by the intelligence presented," the report said.

Ahead of publication, Senator Susan Collins, the ranking Republican member, said in a statement: "Terrorists essentially walked right into the Benghazi compound unimpeded and set it ablaze, due to extremely poor security in a threat environment that was 'flashing red' in the words of a high-ranking official."

Republicans have attacked the Obama administration's handling of both security prior to the attack and public statements afterwards.

The Benghazi consulate was completely gutted in the attack

President Barack Obama admitted on Sunday that there was a "huge problem" with security procedures ahead of the deadly assault.

"We're not going to be defensive about it," Mr Obama said in an interview on NBC's Meet the Press.

"We're not going to pretend that this was not a problem. This was a huge problem," he said.

Mr Obama said all of the recommendations of a critical report into the State Department's operation in Benghazi would be implemented, and said US agents were hunting down those responsible for the killings.

President Obama also defended UN ambassador Susan Rice, who was accused by Republican lawmakers of misleading the public when she said the attack was a spontaneous protest against an anti-Muslim film made privately in the United States.

Ms Rice had been considered the front-runner to replace Secretary of State Hillary Clinton as America's top diplomat, but she dropped out of the running after becoming the focus of Republican attacks.

The Congressional report concluded officials in the State Department and the intelligence community were "inconsistent" in blaming the deaths on a terrorist attack.

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Chavez Suffers New Setback After Cancer Op

Hugo Chavez has suffered "new complications" following his cancer surgery in Cuba and his condition is "delicate", Venezuela's Vice President Nicolas Maduro has said.

In a televised address from Havana, Mr Maduro said: "We have been informed of new complications that arose as a consequence of the respiratory infection we already knew about.

"President Chavez's condition is still delicate," Mr Maduro added, warning that the unspecified complications "are being treated in a process that is not without its risks".

Mr Maduro, who said he had spoken with Mr Chavez, added that the 58-year-old president was facing a "tough situation".

The vice president said he would stay in Havana in the coming hours "with El Comandante and his family, closely following his condition and its evolution".

"We trust that the global outpouring of love for Chavez will help him heal", said Mr Maduro, with Rosa Virgina Chavez, one of the president's daughters, Science and Technology Minister Jorge Arreaza, and top prosecutor Cilia Flores.

The vice president gave his address alongside Mr Chavez's eldest daughter, Rosa, and son-in-law Jorge Arreaza, as well as Attorney General Cilia Flores.

A supporter of Mr Chavez writes a message for him in Caracas

The Venezuelan leader, who has been the face of the Latin American left for more than a decade, has not been seen or heard from since undergoing his fourth cancer-related surgery on December 11.

Mr Chavez, who has been in power since 1999, won another six-year term in October's presidential election.

He is scheduled to be sworn in on January 10, but his health has raised concerns over the future of his leftist movement and whether he will even be well enough to attend the inauguration.

On Monday, the Venezuelan government said there had been a "slight improvement" in his condition as he recovers from the post-operative respiratory infection.

Officials have never disclosed the type or severity of Mr Chavez's cancer, first diagnosed in June 2011, and he only designated a political successor - Mr Maduro - earlier this month.

The Venezuelan leader had, in fact, asserted before embarking on his arduous re-election campaign earlier this year that he was cancer-free - but he was later forced to admit he had suffered a relapse.

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Delhi Gang Rape Suspect To Undergo Bone Tests

One of six suspects held over the gang rape and murder of a student in India is to undergo bone tests to determine whether he is old enough to answer for the crime.

Murder convictions carry the death penalty in India. However, only those aged 18 or more can be put on trial.

If the suspect is found to be underage, it is unclear whether he could still be tried for rape, which carries a life sentence.

Protesters light candles around a mannequin representing the rape victim

The six males are jointly accused of raping and killing an unnamed 23-year-old woman on a bus in Delhi on December 16.

The victim was airlifted to Singapore for emergency treatment, but died on Saturday.

She was cremated in Delhi the next day. Her ashes were set to be submerged in the holy river Ganges near her home town in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, in accordance with Hindu customs.

Police have clashed with protesters since the December 16 attack

Indians have been demanding the death penalty for those responsible, holding demonstrations almost every day since the attack.

Protesters and politicians from across the spectrum called for a special session of Parliament to pass new laws to increase punishments for rapists - including possible chemical castration - and to set up fast-track courts to deal with rape cases within 90 days.

Thousands of people have lit candles, held prayer meetings and marched through various cities and towns to express their grief, and to demand stronger protection for women and the death penalty for rape.

Activists are calling for politicians to pass tough new laws

The protests continued on Tuesday, ahead of the first court appearance for the six suspects on Thursday.

Details of the charges run to more than 1,000 pages, according to reports, and some 30 witnesses are named in the prosecution's documents.

On Monday, the Indian army and navy cancelled their New Year's celebrations, as did Sonia Gandhi, the head of the ruling Indian National Congress party.

Several hotels and clubs across the capital also decided not to hold their usual parties.

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Seven Die In Gun Ambush In Northern Pakistan

Gunmen have ambushed and shot dead six female aid workers and a male doctor who were travelling in a van in northern Pakistan.

The group's vehicle was raked with gunfire as they returned home from a children's community centre run by the Pakistani charity Ujala, according to district police officer Abdur Rashid Khan. 

The driver of the vehicle was seriously wounded in the attack.

The ambush occurred on the outskirts of the town of Swabi, in northern Pakistan.

Doctors at the Shah Mansoor Medical Complex in Swabi have confirmed that they received the seven bodies.

The attack occurred on the outskirts of the town of Swabi

Militants in the conservative Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province - where the attack took place - oppose female education and have attacked female students and blown up their schools.

Last month, gunmen killed nine health workers taking part in a national polio vaccination drive in a series of attacks.

Aid workers have frequently been kidnapped or killed in Pakistan, which is struggling to contain a Taliban insurgency and plagued by corruption and violent crime.

No group has claimed responsibility for today's attack.

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Ivory Coast Stadium Stampede Kills 61

Sixty-one people have died and dozens of others have been injured in a New Year's Eve stampede at a stadium in Abidjan in Ivory Coast.

It happened at around 2am local time after crowds gathered to watch a fireworks display.

Officials said 61 people had died and 48 been injured, although some estimates of the number hurt were much higher.

Many of those who were injured are believed to be children.

Abidjan is Ivory Coast's largest city

Rescue co-ordinator Lieutenant Colonel Issa Sako said the number of people trying to get into the Felix Houphouet Boigny Stadium to watch the fireworks had caused the accident.

He said: "In the crush people were walked over and suffocated by the crowd."

One woman, Assetou Toure, said her children had been at the event and she did not know if they had survived.

"My two children came here yesterday. I told them not to come but they didn't listen," she said.

"They came when I was sleeping. What will I do?"

A Reuters correspondent said there were bloodstains and abandoned shoes outside the stadium on Tuesday morning, and rescue workers and government officials were still on the scene.

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Pakistan Bomb Blast: Explosion In Karachi

A bomb planted on a motorbike in a crowded area of Karachi has killed at least two people, according to Sky sources.

More than 30 people were injured in the explosion, which damaged six buses and four motorbikes.

The target of the attack appeared to be buses taking back activists after a joint rally organised by the city's dominant political party, the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM).

Imran Shokat, a spokesman for police in the area, said the motorbike was parked in the congested Aisha Manzil neighbourhood.

The southern port city is home to 18 million people and is the financial capital of Pakistan.

Authorities there have been unable to clamp down on militancy and violent crime.

Between five and 10 people are murdered there every day, but bombings are less common.

More follows...

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