Guinea soldier 'opens fire on military ruler'

Capt Moussa Dadis Camara took power in a bloodless coup last year

Guinea's military leader has been fired on by one of his aides in the capital, Conakry, a government spokesman says.

Officials said Capt Moussa Dadis Camara was slightly injured in the shooting.

Communication Minister Idrissa Cherif said Capt Camara was "doing well". He named aide-de-camp Aboubacar "Toumba" Diakite as being behind the attack.

Mr Cherif said Capt Camara, who took power in a bloodless coup last year, was at a military camp when the shooting occurred.

Reports from the city said gunfire broke out at about 1900 GMT, near a radio station and a base of the presidential guard.

"The president of the republic is still the president of the republic and he is in good health," Mr Cherif was quoted as saying by the Associated Press news agency.

He warned that those behind the attack would face punishment.

It remains unclear whether Lt Diakite has been arrested.

Capt Camara is now reportedly at the junta's headquarters.

Protest crackdown

In the past few months, the ruling junta has faced criticism over its crackdown on an opposition protest, in which activists say 157 people died.

The government has admitted 58 people died at the protest in Conakry in September, but says most were crushed in a stampede.

Activists say the army opened fire on crowds and soldiers took part in gang rapes and murders.

The rally was called amid reports that Capt Camara was planning to stand in presidential elections next year.

The BBC's Mark Doyle, who was recently in Guinea, says tensions have been extremely high there since September.

Capt Camara was at first popular when he seized power because he promised to return the country to civilian rule, our correspondent says.

However, since appearing to renege on that promise Capt Camara has become unpopular with all but his closest allies, he adds.

Arms embargoes and travel restrictions have been imposed against the junta by the European Union and West African alliance Ecowas.

The EU has called for Capt Camara to be tried for crimes against humanity, while the African Union has been urging him to stand down.

Film director Roman Polanski moved from Swiss jail

Polanski is to be placed under house arrest at his Gstaad chalet on Friday

Film director Roman Polanski has been moved from a jail near Zurich to an undisclosed location for "security reasons", Swiss officials say.

Polanski, who has been held since September, is to be placed under house arrest at his Alpine chalet on Friday after being granted bail by a court.

He fled the US in 1978 after pleading guilty to having unlawful sex with an underage girl.

Switzerland is deciding whether to extradite him to the US.

A justice ministry spokesman said Polanski left the jail in Winterthur on Thursday for "security reasons and personal protection", AP news agency reported.

The spokesman said Polanski was still expected to be taken to his chalet in the luxury resort of Gstaad on Friday afternoon.

The 76-year-old film-maker will be fitted with an electronic bracelet that will activate if he attempts to abscond.

The Swiss Federal Criminal Court granted the Oscar-winning director $4.5m (£2.7m) bail, pending proceedings for his possible extradition to the US.

The director of films such as Rosemary's Baby, Chinatown and The Pianist was arrested after travelling to Zurich on 26 September to pick up a lifetime achievement award.

Polanski was accused of raping a 13-year-old girl after plying her with champagne and a sedative during a modelling shoot in 1977.

He was initially indicted on six counts - including rape by use of drugs, child molesting and sodomy - but pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of unlawful sexual intercourse.

Polanski fled the US on the day he was to be sentenced, and has lived in France since then.

Serbia 'progressing' with war crimes tribunal - report

Mr Hadzic and Gen Mladic are believed to be hiding somewhere in Serbia

The UN's chief war crimes prosecutor has said Serbia's co-operation with the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia is "progressing".

However, in his report to the UN, Serge Brammertz said Serbia must continue searching for two fugitives.

They are Bosnian-Serb military leader Ratko Mladic and Goran Hadzic, who is wanted for war crimes in Croatia.

Belgrade hopes the largely positive report will help unblock Serbia's European Union hopes.

These were frozen last year by the Dutch government demanding that the fugitives be caught.

EU bid

The Serbian government has been waiting with baited breath for this latest report, eager for the chief prosecutor to make a favourable assessment of Belgrade's performance.

In the end, Mr Brammertz's conclusions were the most positive to date but he noted that Serbia must pursue its attempts to find the two remaining fugitives, who were indicted for war crimes during the 1990s.

In the report, Mr Brammertz said: "Serbia's co-operation with my office has continued to progress.

"Prosecution requests to access documents and archives are being dealt with more expeditiously and effectively... Serbia must maintain these efforts with the clear objective of apprehending the fugitives."

Crucially, the magic words "full co-operation" were not uttered.

That is the phrase that the Netherlands had demanded in order to unfreeze the Interim Trade Agreement - a precursor to Serbia's longed-for EU membership negotiations.

The Dutch government froze the agreement last year, demanding that Serbia prove its commitment to catching the fugitives.

However, Belgrade - and many in Brussels - believe that Serbia's significant progress in its co-operation with the tribunal may now persuade the Dutch to unblock the agreement as early as next week.

This would pave the way for Serbia's formal application for EU membership by the end of the year.

Responding to the report, the Serbian President Boris Tadic said his government is doing everything in its power to locate the two indictees.

It will now be up to the EU foreign ministers meeting on Monday to decide whether to reward Serbia for progress made or maintain pressure on Belgrade, by keeping the door to the EU firmly locked.

Nato members 'to send more troops to Afghanistan'

The US wants Nato allies to increase their troop numbers

More than 20 countries plan to send more troops to Afghanistan following a US decision to deploy an extra 30,000 there, Nato officials have said.

The news comes as the alliance's foreign ministers gather in Brussels for two days of talks.

They are expected to focus on a request by US President Barack Obama for Nato allies to send some 10,000 more troops.

A Nato spokesman said members were set to pledge more than 5,000, but more army and police trainers were needed.

Several European nations have been reluctant to commit more forces to the eight-year-old conflict.

But Italian Defence Minister Ignazio La Russa told the Corriere della Sera newspaper on Thursday that Rome would send about 1,000 extra troops to Afghanistan. It currently has 3,200 soldiers there.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, speaking after a meeting with Italy's Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, indicated that Russia would also do its part in Afghanistan.

"We are ready to support these efforts, guarantee the transit [of troops], take part in economic projects and train police and the military," he said.

Meanwhile, the German parliament has voted to extend by a year the mandate allowing the government to send troops to Afghanistan, but did not lift the upper limit of soldiers, currently set at 4,500.

'Significant shortfalls'

Speaking on Thursday ahead of the foreign ministers' meeting, Nato spokesman James Appathurai said: "There are well over 20 countries that are indicating or have already indicated that they intend to increase their troops numbers in Afghanistan.

"Based on what we have heard in the last 24 hours... we are beyond the 5,000 figure."

However, he said there were still "significant shortfalls" of army and police trainers.

Meanwhile, Afghan President Hamid Karzai told the Associated Press he was willing to talk to the Taliban leader, Mullah Omar, if the move would bring peace to his country and was backed by the international community.

In what AP said was his first interview since the US "surge" was announced, he said: "We must talk to the Taliban as an Afghan necessity. The fight against terrorism and extremism cannot be won by fighting alone."

The Taliban leader has previously rejected calls by Mr Karzai for negotiations on peace.

'Sceptical public'

The full extent of additional resources coming from Nato allies remains unclear.

Italy, Britain, Georgia, Poland and Slovakia have all pledged more soldiers but other nations such as France, Germany and Denmark are being more cautious.

It is expected that further countries will declare their intentions over the next two days but just how many is still not clear, reports BBC defence and security correspondent Nick Childs from Brussels.

Many Nato governments face publics even more sceptical about the mission than those of the US and Britain.

A senior US official has said this is a process that is going to take days and weeks, our correspondent says.

The 30,000 additional service personnel will take the US military presence in Afghanistan to more than 100,000.

Norwegian and UK man fail in death appeal in DR Congo

Norway has expressed concern the pair were not receiving a fair trial

A Norwegian and a former British soldier sentenced to death for espionage and murder of a taxi driver in DR Congo have lost their appeal.

A military tribunal in Kisangani rejected the plea and ordered them to pay $500m in damages before facing the death sentence.

Joshua French, who holds joint British-Norwegian nationality, and Tjostolv Moland were also accused of spying.

Their only remaining option is to appeal before the military high court.

French, 27, and Moland, 28, were convicted to death by firing squad for murder by a military tribunal on 8 September.

They were also charged with espionage and arms smuggling.

'Miscarriages of justice'

The ruling drew immediate international protests.

Norway condemned the verdict and said it would complain to the government of DR Congo.

"Norway is a fundamental opponent of the death penalty, and I will as soon as possible contact the DR Congo foreign minister to relay this message, " said Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere in a statement.

The human rights group Reprieve claims the two men have suffered a series of miscarriages of justice since their arrest, reported the Press Association news agency.

"Today, in the farce that substitutes for military justice in the DRC, the judge wanted to dispense with translators," said Reprieve director Clive Stafford Smith.

"Apparently Joshua French did not have to understand the process that led to his death sentence," said the director.

"The 'legal process' has so far included torturing Joshua, parading him around town in front of lynch mobs, and forcing him to sign statements under threat of death."

"Witnesses who testified against the pair received $5,000 each in compensation in a country where people earn about $3-4 a day."

Mr Stafford Smith ended with a plea to the British government to "redouble its efforts to end this nightmare."

British roots

French was born in Norway to a British father and Norwegian mother, and lived in Margate, Kent, as a child.

He moved back to Norway when his parents divorced, but returned to the UK aged 20 and served in the British Army.

Along with Moland, he has been detained since May this year after the pair's Congolese driver was found shot dead in the north-east of the country.

Both men deny murdering Abedi Kasongo, 47, maintaining that he was shot and killed when their car was ambushed by gunmen on the road near the city of Kisangani.

Russia and the Vatican establish full diplomatic ties

Pope Benedict and President Medvedev held talks at the Vatican

Russia and the Vatican have agreed to establish full diplomatic relations, the Kremlin has announced.

Until now, Moscow only had an office of representation at the Vatican. The new status means full-fledged embassies will be established in Moscow and Rome.

The announcement comes after President Dmitry Medvedev met Pope Benedict XVI while on a visit to Italy.

The move follows improvements in relations between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Vatican.

Decades of distrust

"President Medvedev told Pope Benedict at today's meeting that he signed a decree concerning the establishment of full diplomatic relations with the Vatican," presidential spokeswoman Natalya Timakova told reporters.

"He asked the foreign ministry to lead discussions to establish the relations and raise the level of representation to apostolic nuncio and embassy," she added.

Since 1990, the two sides have maintained representation below the rank of ambassador.

The political detente follows decades of distrust between the Roman Catholic and Russian Orthodox churches.

The Orthodox Church has long accused the Catholic Church of seeking to convert Russians to Catholicism.

The Vatican says its activities in the country cater largely for traditional Catholic minorities like Poles, Germans and Lithuanians, who have faced discrimination and persecution in the past.

Property disputes between the churches have also put them at odds.

Relations have improved since Metropolitan Kirill took over as the leader of the Orthodox Church after the death of Patriarch Alexiy II in December 2008.

Nations await draw for 2010 World Cup in South Africa

England are among 32 teams eagerly awaiting Friday's star-studded draw for the finals of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

The ceremony, which gets under way at 1700 GMT at Cape Town's International Convention Centre, will be watched by millions of fans around the world.

By the end of the draw, nations will know the identity of their group-stage rivals and the date of every game.

The tournament is set to kick off on 11 June, with the final on 11 July.

But that final, which will take place at Johannesburg's Soccer City stadium, seems a long way off for the teams as they prepare for a ceremony that has drawn the great and the good from the worlds of politics, sport and show business

Inside South Africa's World Cup Final stadium

Revered former South Africa president and Nobel Peace Prize winner Nelson Mandela, one of the architects of the first World Cup to be held in Africa, will address the audience by video message at the age of 91.

On Thursday, Fifa president Sepp Blatter and his executive committee staged a symbolic meeting on Robben Island, the notorious apartheid-era prison fortress in Table Bay off Cape Town, where Mandela was incarcerated for many years.

Jacob Zuma, one of his successors as president, will kick off proceedings alongside Fifa president Sepp Blatter, with former president FW de Klerk and archbishop Desmond Tutu also on hand.

South Africa's Oscar-winning actress Charlize Theron will bring a touch of Hollywood glamour to the draw, alongside England midfielder David Beckham, Ethiopian athletics legend Haile Gebrselassie and Springboks rugby union captain John Smit.

And Makhaya Ntini, the first black cricketer to play for South Africa, and World Cup icons Franz Beckenbauer, Michel Platini, Eusebio and Roger Milla will also be in attendance, with entertainment coming from the likes of the Soweto Gospel Choir and singers Angelique Kidjo and Johnny Clegg.

But one star who will not be allowed to attend the draw is Argentina coach Diego Maradona following an an expletive-filled rant at a news conference earned him a two-month ban from all football activity.

For all the celebrities on show, many eyes will be transfixed on the trophy itself, which arrived in Cape Town on Thursday after a 83,274-mile global journey that took in every African country.

"The trophy is home," said Danny Jordaan, chief executive of the tournament organising committee.

"This is the end of a long dream and the beginning of a new dream. We have been dreaming that one day countries would come here and compete for this trophy on the African continent - and that dream was dismissed.

"Now as we say welcome to this trophy, we announce the death of doubt. There can no longer be any doubt."

England can take a measure of relief from the fact that they were named among the eight seeded teams for the tournament, meaning they will avoid Spain, Brazil, Argentina, Germany, the Netherlands, holders Italy and hosts South Africa in the group stages.

England's World Cup chances - The Expert View

The 32 qualifiers will be assembled into eight groups but there are plenty of dangerous teams like Portugal, currently ranked fifth in the rankings, and France, who are seventh, who have not been seeded.

Portugal have eliminated England in their last two major tournaments, both times through penalty shoot-outs, while France, who controversially qualified in a play-off against the Republic of Ireland following a Thierry Henry handball in the build-up to the decisive goal in a 2-1 aggregate victory, won the tournament in 1998 and were beaten finalists last time in Germany.

The eight seeds will all be in pot one, with the remaining three pots drawn on regional boundaries.

Each seeded nation will face one team in pot two - a side from Asia, north or central America, or Oceania - one from pot three, which has five African and three South American sides, and one from the exclusively European pot four.

A worst-case scenario on Friday would result in Fabio Capello's England side taking on France, Ivory Coast and the United States, while a far easier proposition on paper would have England facing Slovenia, Algeria and New Zealand.

England seeded for World Cup

"I don't worry about that 'group of death'," said Capello. "You have to play against all of the teams at some point, but of course if you play against the best teams it's not so easy to pass the first round."

Despite being seeded as hosts, South Africa are actually the lowest ranked team in the tournament and they are hoping for the rub of the green when the balls are drawn to decide the groups.

"The draw can produce anything," added Jordaan.

"We hope for the luck of the draw. It is important for us as the host nation that our team must progress in the second round and we will keep our fingers crossed."

Friday's draw will be made in a 90-minute television spectacular, which will be shown in the UK on BBC Two.

There is also full commentary on BBC Radio 5 live and live text commentary starts on the BBC Sport website from 1200 GMT.

As with every World Cup since 1998, teams must finish in the top two in their group to qualify for the knockout phase.

Fifa announced on Thursday that the winners of the 2010 tournament will receive £18.6m ($31m) - an increase of 61% on the 2006 finals - with teams knocked out in group stage getting £5.4m ($9m).

Tiger Woods will struggle, believes Bernard Gallacher

Woods may find it difficult to get back on the winning trail

Tiger Woods will struggle to recapture his form when he returns to tournament golf, says three-time Ryder Cup captain and former pro Bernard Gallacher.

Amid allegations of extramarital affairs, American superstar Woods has confessed to letting his family down.

And Gallacher told BBC Radio 5 live: "It's going to take an awfully long time to get over this.

"His performance on the golf course is certainly going to be affected in the short and medium term."

Gallacher added: "He won't be able to practise the game, his focus is going to be affected and his preparation is going to be affected.

"It has been affected already because he had to pull out of the tournament this week."

Woods has been the subject of intense media scrutiny since crashing his car outside his Florida home in the early hours of Friday 27 November.

He was found semi-conscious with facial injuries after reportedly hitting a fire hydrant and tree - finally admitting fault for the accident on Tuesday.

On Wednesday, with tabloid newspapers and magazine making lurid claims about his private life, he issued a dramatic statement.

In it, he said: "I have let my family down and I regret those transgressions with all of my heart. I have not been true to my values and the behaviour my family deserves. I am not without faults and I am far short of perfect."

Meanwhile, Jesper Parnevik has been the first golfer to break ranks over the world number one's actions.

Woods' wife Elin, then aged 21, was working as the Swede's au pair when Parnevik introduced them at the Open at Royal Lytham & St Annes in 2001.

Parnevik told the Golf Channel: "I would be especially sad about it - I really feel sorry for Elin - since me and my wife were at fault for hooking her up with him.

"We probably thought he was a better guy than he is. I would probably need to apologise to her.

"It's a private thing of course but when you are the guy he is, the world's best athlete, you should think more before you do stuff."

Other golfers, including Woods' fellow American Anthony Kim, have been more circumspect about his problems.

Kim, 24, said: "Obviously there are things going on right now that other people are speculating about, but nobody has the facts but Tiger and his family, and that's a personal issue for them."

World number three Steve Stricker admitted: "I think his image is going to take a bit of a shot.

"He's trying to make it as private as he can, and it's hard because everybody is trying to get a piece of information on really what happened.

"I think I'd like to see him come on TV and just pour it out a little bit and show what's happened. I don't know if that will ever happen."

Kim and Stricker are among the 18 players taking part in the Chevron World Challenge, an end-of-year invitational tournament which annually benefits the Woods' charitable foundation.

The world number one has withdrawn from the event in Los Angeles, which he normally hosts, citing injuries sustained in his car accident.

Fulham 1 - 0 CSKA Sofia

Fulham should have added to Gera's goal before coming under late pressure

By David Ornstein

Zoltan Gera's powerful first-half header proved decisive as Fulham kept alive their Europa League hopes with a nervy victory over CSKA Sofia.

Todor Timonov fired against the bar for CSKA before Danny Murphy put a penalty over after Ivan Ivanov's foul on Gera.

The Hungarian nodded Fulham ahead from Bjorn Helge Riise's cross but a number of chances were missed to make it two.

And the hosts were almost punished late on when Damien Duff was forced to clear a Kosta Yanev strike off the line.

Fulham's win, allied to Roma's victory at home to Basle, means Roy Hodgson's men stay third in Group E - a point adrift of Basle and two behind Roma.

The final round of matches on 16 December sees the Cottagers travel to Basle and CSKA host Roma, with the top two teams progressing to the last 32.

Injury, suspension and ineligibility meant Fulham were forced to make six changes from the side which started against Bolton on Saturday.

But there was no sign of unfamiliarity as the hosts got off to a pulsating start, flooding forward in numbers and exhibiting a one-touch pass-and-move approach that CSKA struggled to contain.

With full-backs John Paintsil and Stephen Kelly marauding upfield, and Simon Davies and Gera pushing on to support lone-striker Bobby Zamora, Fulham were not short of attacking options and Murphy ensured a steady supply of pinpoint passes.

After CSKA goalkeeper Zdravko Chavdarov reacted well to deny Zamora and Davies, Timonov rattled the woodwork with a venomous left-footed drive - but an opener for the visitors would have come totally against the run of play.

Fulham, full of craft and cohesion, continued to push for a breakthrough and should have had their reward when Gera's surge into the box was ended by Ivanov's hopeless tackle.

Murphy appeared full of confidence as he stepped up but then blasted his spot-kick horribly high.

But CSKA, seemingly low on confidence despite the backing of a large and highly-vocal section of the crowd, failed to make Fulham pay.

Fulham looked set for a comfortable win before CSKA rallied late on

And, moments after Paintsil saw a fizzing effort well-saved, Riise stood up an inviting cross from the right which Vidanov and Ivanov failed to deal with, allowing Gera to race through and head powerfully past Chavdarov.

Zamora ought to have doubled the lead when he volleyed over and another gilt-edged chance went begging as Davies dragged wide from eight yards out.

CSKA came out for the second half with a spring in their step and it looked as though Fulham might have been made to regret their profligacy.

Spas Delev played Todor Yanchev through on goal, only for Kelly to arrive with a last-ditch challenge, before Delev shinned the ball wide following Yordan Minev's right-wing cross.

Hodgson had replaced Brede Hangeland with Aaron Hughes at half-time and Fulham's new centre-half pairing of Hughes and Chris Smalling struggled to gel.

They lacked protection and, with Fulham's midfield now relinquishing possession all too easily, faced wave after wave of CSKA pressure late on.

The visitors' big chance came on 81 minutes when Yanev drilled in a goal-bound effort from 25-yards, but Duff got down to repel it off the line with his knee.

Fulham were resorting to counter-attack football but goalscoring opportunities were few and far between and fatigue began to set in.

Delev zipped a shot just over but, despite spending the last quarter firmly on the back foot, Fulham held on for a vital victory.

---

Fulham manager Roy Hodgson:
"All credit to CSKA, they had nothing to lose in the last 20 minutes and brought talented players on. When you make changes it makes it difficult for players.

"It was foolish to miss a penalty but there were other missed chances and the game could have been dead and buried.

"I'm very pleased that we showed the strength of character to stand up to that."

CSKA Sofia coach Luboslav Penev on missing the first-half:
"I arrived 15 minutes before half-time and remained in the tunnel until the break. The most important thing is that I arrived during the game and was close to my assistants and my team.

"I was told about the first 30 minutes, they were fast forgotten and we outplayed Fulham in the second half. This is how I would like my team to play always.

"We deserved a goal and at least a point after creating five or six opportunities. Maybe we should have had a penalty too."

Sauber will replace Toyota on 2010 F1 grid

Sauber's newly re-acquired team will be back on the grid next year

Sauber have been awarded the 13th and final slot on the Formula 1 grid next year in place of Toyota, which quit the sport at the end of the 2009 season.

The Swiss team applied for a place following BMW's decision to sell its team back to founder Peter Sauber provided they were given an entry.

The FIA said in a statement on Thursday it had accepted Sauber's application.

Meanwhile, further doubt has been cast on Renault's future following reports the company has decided to quit F1.

The French newspaper L'Equipe has reported that Renault president Carlos Ghosn has ordered his lieutenants to look at ways of stopping being a constructor and selling the team, while remaining as an engine supplier.

Ghosn is understood to have discussed the issue at a meeting of his heads of department on Thursday, and it is expected to feature again at a board meeting next week.

Renault said last month that it would make a decision on its F1 future by the end of the year.

Media reports have also suggested Renault was considering selling to British-based Prodrive.

"We cannot comment on the Renault situation, but it is well known that our intention is to get into F1," a Prodrive spokesman told Reuters news agency.

"We proved our credentials earlier this year when we had a strong business case for an entry, but having had an engine deal with Mercedes-Benz in place we were not willing to sacrifice our competitiveness."

If Renault pulls out, that would reduce the number of teams to 12 once Sauber completes the formalities of signing the Concorde Agreement, the secret document by which the sport is governed and which defines the relationship between the teams, the FIA and the commercial rights holders.

BMW Sauber lost their guaranteed place on the 2010 grid to Lotus because they failed to sign the Concorde Agreement in July.

But Toyota's decision to leave F1 earlier this month has opened up a space on the grid which has been been handed to the Swiss outfit.

Toyota pulled the plug on its F1 team in November after seven years competing in the sport, during which time they took part in 139 races and failed to record a single win.

Their decision to pull out made them the third manufacturer in 11 months to leave the championship, following in the footsteps of Honda and BMW.