Taiwan responds coolly to China's panda offer
January 6, 2006Taiwan's government responded coolly Friday to China's offer of two giant pandas as Beijing went ahead and announced its selection the panda pair for the self-ruled island it considers part of its inseparable territory. China's official Xinhua News Agency quoted State Forestry Administration spokesman Cao Qingyao as saying the two pandas were chosen from 23 candidates after a successful three-month ''trial marriage.''
Sharon undergoes fresh surgery: reports
January 6, 2006Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon was rushed into emergency surgery on Friday to try to stem fresh bleeding in his brain, according to Reuters news agency. Shlomo Mor-Yosef, director of Jerusalem's Hadassah Ein Karem Hospital, where Sharon was in a medically-induced coma and on a respirator, reportedly said a new brain scan had revealed the bleeding and heightened pressure in the 77-year-old leader's brain.
Yao Wenyuan, last surviving member of China's 'Gang of Four,' dies
January 6, 2006Yao Wenyuan, the last surviving member of the so-called Gang of Four, which China holds responsible for the chaotic Cultural Revolution of the late 1960s and early 1970s, has died at age 74, the official Xinhua News Agency said Friday. Yao died of diabetes on Dec. 23, Xinhua reported.