Voting starts in Russian election (BBC)

Polling stations have opened in the Russian capital, Moscow, as the country continues to vote in general elections over 22 hours across 11 time zones.

Eleven parties are competing for places in the lower house, the Duma - though it is not clear how many will win the 7% needed to qualify for seats.

Opposition parties have accused the government of stifling their campaigns and of intimidation.

Independent monitors say their attempts to observe the poll have been hampered.

The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) has abandoned its plans to send a big team of election observers to Russia after accusing the Russian government of imposing unacceptable restrictions and of deliberately delaying the issuing of visas. Russia has denied the claims.

Only a much smaller group of MPs from the OSCE's parliamentary assembly will be in attendance.

MAIN RIVAL PARTIES United Russia Communist Party of Russia Liberal Democratic Party of Russia A Fair Russia (Mothers/Pensioners/Life) Yabloko Union of Right Forces Q&A: Russian election

That means just 400 foreign monitors will cover 95,000 polling stations.

The British ambassador in Moscow, Tony Brenton, told the BBC he said it appeared there had been what he called imbalances and misuses of the administration in this election.

The largest party in the Duma going into the elections is United Russia, and it will be hoping to maintain its dominance against the challenge from the Communist Party, the Liberal Democratic Party, the Yabloko party and others.

Russian President Vladimir Putin is at the top of the United Russia party list - opening the possibility that he could keep a grip on power from parliament even after stepping down as president next year.

Within Russia the media is banned from referring to parties, politicians, policies or opinion polls for the duration of the election.

Far east start

Voting began at 0800 on Sunday (2000 GMT, Saturday) in Russia's far easterly region of Kamchatka, about 6,000km (3,700 miles) east of Moscow.

Sailors in Vladivostok were among the first to vote

Voting is not set to end until 22 hours later, when polls are due to close in the enclave of Kaliningrad, on the Baltic Sea, 11 time zones to the west.

Sailors in the far east port of Vladivostok waited at a polling station to cast their votes on Sunday morning.

"I'll vote for United Russia," Vladimir Babikov, 19, told the AFP news agency.

"They've done a good job, everything is getting better."

In Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Alexei Gutkin, a 42-year-old engineer, voted for the centre-right Union of Right Forces.

"United Russia is like a return to the Communist Party," he said. "I remember that time well."

'Farce'

The run-up to the vote has been marred by increasing allegations that the poll could be rigged.

In pictures: Siberia votes

Opposition rallies have been broken up, parties have complained that their headquarters have been raided, and that state media has been a mouthpiece for the government.

The former chess grandmaster and Kremlin critic Garry Kasparov has dismissed the elections as a "farce". His political grouping is one of several to be barred from contesting the poll.

More than 100 million voters are eligible to cast ballots at 95,000 polling stations across the country, with about 450,000 police officers reportedly on duty to ensure order.

French strike brings travel chaos (bbc)

French commuters face the bleak prospect of limited train servicesFrance is suffering travel chaos after transport unions broadened a strike in protest against President Nicolas Sarkozy's pension reforms.
Train, subway and bus workers joined an open-ended walk-out. Hundreds of kilometres of traffic jams were reported on roads into the capital.
State-run gas and electricity sectors workers are also protesting.
The government and the unions have resumed talks but the transport stoppage could last for several days.
The BBC's Alasdair Sandford in Paris says that with students, teachers, civil servants and even magistrates threatening strike action over separate issues, the fear for the government is that this becomes a general wave of protest against economic hardship.
Contingency plans
Labour Minister Xavier Bertrand warned that Wednesday would be "a hellish day for travellers and perhaps for many days beyond that".
'SPECIAL' PENSIONS
Benefits 1.6m workers, including 1.1m retirees
Applies in 16 sectors, of which rail and utilities employees make up 360,000 people
Account for 6% of total state pension payments
Shortfall costs state 5bn euros (£3.5bn; $6.9bn) a year
Some workers can retire on full pensions aged 50
Awarded to Paris Opera House workers in 1698 by Louis XIV
That view was echoed by Prime Minister Francois Fillon who told parliament: "Millions of French people will be deprived of their fundamental freedom, the freedom of movement and even perhaps to work."
Early on Wednesday, more than 300km (190 miles) of traffic jams were reported on roads heading into Paris, twice the daily average.
Our correspondent says Parisians have been improvising in their battle to get to work - driving in earlier than usual, car sharing or taking to bikes and roller blades.
Rail employees stopped work at 2000 (1900 GMT) on Tuesday. Only 90 of the country's 700 high-speed TGV trains are said to be running. Commuter train services are also severely reduced.
The metro service in Paris is running at 20% capacity, metro operator RATP said. Bus services are also affected.
Eurostar has said the first train services from London's new St Pancras terminal will be unaffected by the industrial action.
Gas and electricity workers joined their striking rail colleagues on Wednesday threatening targeted blackouts, as their pension schemes are also facing reform.
Mandate for change
Mr Sarkozy wants to cut pensions that allow some public employees to retire on a full pension as early as 50 and says he is determined to stay the course, despite the strike threat.
STRIKE SPREADS

RAIL: Seven of eight unions at the state-owned SNCF rail company began an open-ended strike on 13 November
PARIS METRO/BUS: Five of eight unions joined an open-ended strike on 14 November
ENERGY: Seven unions at state-owned EDF and GDF utilities strike on 14 November
PARIS OPERA HOUSE: Four unions representing staff join strike on 14 November. Open-ended strike by La Comedie Francaise, the state theatre
"I will carry out these reforms right to the end. Nothing will put me off my goal," he told the European Parliament during a visit to Strasbourg, reminding everyone that he was elected on a reform mandate.
"The French people approved these reforms. I told them all about it before the elections so that I would be able to do what was necessary afterwards," AFP quoted him as saying.
But a spokesman for the CGT trade union disagreed with Mr Sarkozy's logic.
"If reforms for the French citizen means that they are going to be working more and getting less pension at the end of the deal, I'm not quite sure all the French are agreeing with this approach," Oliver Sekai told the BBC.
Analysts say that Mr Sarkozy's resolve to stand up to France's powerful unions now faces a real test and his reputation rides on his success.
And though he has promised he will stand firm against the strikes, they say, at the same time he will be anxious to avoid the kind of street protests which occurred in 1995 when the French government last tried to reform the pension system.

Top judge attacks Musharraf rule

Pakistan's sacked chief justice has called for the people to "rise up" and restore the constitution.
In a telephone address to lawyers in Islamabad, Iftikhar Chaudhry criticised President Pervez Musharraf, who imposed a state of emergency on Saturday.
He said the constitution had been "ripped to shreds" by Gen Musharraf and added it was now "time for sacrifices".
US President George W Bush has called on Gen Musharraf to end the emergency and restore democratic civilian rule.
The government crackdown against pro-democracy activists continued on Tuesday with reports of dozens more arrests.
Struggle
There have been clashes in Peshawar, and in parts of the Punjab, with several lawyers seriously injured in the city of Gujranwala.
There were reports of further arrests in the cities of Lahore, Quetta and Multan.
I am under arrest now, but soon I will also join you in your struggle
Iftikhar Chaudhry
Crisis tests US policy
West faces new dilemma
But protests did not appear to be on the same scale as those suppressed by the security forces on Monday.
The president, who is also head of the army, has said he declared the state of emergency because of a crisis caused by militant violence and an unruly judiciary.
Mr Chaudhry was sacked and replaced after he and eight other judges refused to endorse the order, declaring it unconstitutional.
Critics have said Gen Musharraf acted to pre-empt a judgment by the Supreme Court on whether his re-election last month was legal.
Mr Chaudhry told around 500 lawyers on Tuesday: "The constitution has been ripped to shreds. The lawyers should convey my message to the people to rise up and restore the constitution.
"This is a time for sacrifices. I am under arrest now, but soon I will also join you in your struggle."
Mr Chaudhry is under house arrest but his comments were broadcast on the internet by a private television channel.
There were reports that as he made the address by phone, the authorities blocked all mobile phone services in Islamabad.
EMERGENCY RESTRICTIONS
Constitutional safeguards on life and liberty curtailed
Police get wide powers of arrest
Suspects can be denied access to lawyers
Freedom of movement restricted
Private TV stations taken off air
New rules curtail media coverage of suicide bombings or militant activity
Chief justice replaced, others made to swear oath of loyalty
Supreme Court banned from rescinding emergency order
People 'anxious and angry'
Balance of power in Pakistan
Media oppose emergency
The lawyers chanted slogans such as "There will be war till the constitution is restored" and "Chaudhry we are ready to die for you".
Mr Chaudhry, who defied attempts by the president to oust him in March and was later reinstated by the Supreme Court, has become a symbol of resistance to Gen Musharraf's rule, say analysts.
The former prime minister, Benazir Bhutto, echoed his calls for the constitution to be restored in a press conference at her Karachi home on Tuesday.
"We want elections to be held on schedule. The government refrain from violence... it is the duty of the government to protect the people," she said.
The Pakistani cabinet is expected to meet later to discuss the parliamentary elections, which are supposed to take place by January.
On Monday, Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz said the vote would go ahead on schedule, but his deputy information minister later told the BBC the elections could be delayed by as much as a year.
International outcry
Lawyers have called for three days of protests and strikes against the suspension of the constitution.
They have boycotted courts and refused to appear before the new judges.
Hundreds of lawyers and political opponents have been detained.
HAVE YOUR SAY
I think Musharraf has about the most difficult job on the planet
David Bradshaw, Ashford, UK
Your views on emergency
Eyewitness: Karachi protest
In pictures: Protests
Pakistan has come under heavy international pressure since Gen Musharraf imposed emergency rule.
Mr Bush urged Gen Musharraf to quit his post as head of the army and hold elections as soon as possible.
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon called for the release of all those detained since the state of emergency was declared.
The UK has also reiterated demands for a return to civilian rule in Pakistan.
The Netherlands became the first country to suspend aid, and the EU said its members were considering "possible further steps".
But Gen Musharraf said confidence in his government would soon return and insisted he still planned to give up his military post, as he had been scheduled to do this month.

The amount of carbon dioxide being absorbed by the world's oceans has reduced, scientists have said.
University of East Anglia researchers gauged CO2 absorption through more than 90,000 measurements from merchant ships equipped with automatic instruments.
Results of their 10-year study in the North Atlantic show CO2 uptake halved between the mid-90s and 2000 to 2005.
Scientists believe global warming might get worse if the oceans soak up less of the greenhouse gas.
Researchers said the findings, published in a paper for the Journal of Geophysical Research, were surprising and worrying because there were grounds for believing that, in time, the ocean might become saturated with our emissions.
'Saturated' ocean
BBC environment analyst Roger Harrabin said: "The researchers don't know if the change is due to climate change or to natural variations.
"But they say it is a tremendous surprise and very worrying because there were grounds for believing that in time the ocean might become 'saturated' with our emissions - unable to soak up any more."
He said that would "leave all our emissions to warm the atmosphere".
Of all the CO2 emitted into the atmosphere, only half of it stays there; the rest goes into carbon sinks.
There are two major natural carbon sinks: the oceans and the land "biosphere". They are equivalent in size, each absorbing a quarter of all CO2 emissions.

Airmen punished for nuclear error (bbc)

The US Air Force has relieved several officers of their commands after a B-52 bomber was mistakenly flown across the US loaded with nuclear-armed missiles.
Three colonels, a lieutenant colonel and 66 other personnel were punished following the incident at Minot Air Force Base, North Dakota, on 29 August.

Maj Gen Richard Newton said ground crews had failed to follow procedures.

The incident has been described as one of the worst known breaches of nuclear weapons procedures in decades.

Six cruise missiles armed with nuclear warheads were mounted on the bomber's wings before it was flown to Louisiana.

The missiles were supposed to have been taken to Barksdale Air Force Base, but the warheads should have been removed beforehand.

'Procedural errors'

Announcing the results of his six-week investigation, Gen Newton said there had been an "erosion of adherence to weapons-handing standards".

They did not follow the formal scheduling processes that would have allowed them to do the proper maintenance and handling of those weapons

Maj Gen Richard Newton
Air Force Deputy Chief of Staff


US embarrassed at blunder

"In the countless times our dedicated airmen have transferred weapons in our nation's arsenal, nothing like this has ever occurred," the Air Force deputy chief of staff for operations said.

Gen Newton said the "unprecedented string of procedural errors" had begun with a failure by airmen to conduct a required inspection of the missiles before they were loaded onto the wing of the B-52 at Minot.

The crew flying the plane were unaware it was carrying nuclear warheads, he said.

Experts have said that if the B-52 had crashed, there would not have been a nuclear explosion. However, there could have been a threat from plutonium leakage from the W80-1 warheads, which have a yield of five to 150 kilotons.



"This was an unacceptable mistake and a clear deviation from our exacting standards," Air Force Secretary Michael Wynne said.

"We hold ourselves accountable to the American people and want to ensure proper corrective action has been taken."

Both Mr Wynne and Gen Newton insisted the case was an isolated incident and that the current procedures for handling nuclear weapons were sound.