Former senior soccer officials arrested on match-fixing, bribery charges
Three high-ranking Chinese soccer officials have been arrested for alleged match-fixing and bribery.
The three were Nan Yong and Yang Yimin, vice chairmen of the Chinese Football Association, and Zhang Jianqiang, former director of the association's referee committee.
They were taken away by police for questioning in January.

One dead, 31 trapped in north China coal mine flood
One miner died and 31 others are trapped after a coal mine under construction was flooded in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.
An initial investigation shows 77 miners were digging tunnels at different depths at the time of the accident and 46 were lifted to the ground.
Rescuers have installed three big pumps and were drilling into the shaft to reach the trapped miners.
Construction of the mine started in 2006. It is designed to produce 1.5 million tons of coal a year.

Chilean Death Toll Rises, Looting and Aftershocks Hamper Rescue Effort
The death toll from Chile's 8.8 magnitude earthquake has risen to 723, and President Michelle Bachelet has now requested aid from the UN.
But looting and aftershocks have been hampering rescue efforts. Many people have also been cut off by crumbled roads, fallen bridges and downed telephone lines.

Headline: Karadzic calls his cause "just and holy"
The trial of former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic has resumed at the Hague after a four-month delay.
Testifying his own defense, Karadzic called his cause "just and holy". He insisted Serbs were responding to aggression by Bosnian Muslims, not initiating the fighting.
Karadzic is being tried for war crimes and genocide during the Bosnian war from 1992 to 1995.

Sarkozy Pledges 3 million in Aid for Europe Storms
French President Nicolas Sarkozy has pledged three million euros in emergency aid, after storms triggered extensive floods in Western Europe over the weekend. At least 62 people have been killed and nearly a dozen others are still missing.
The storm， called Xynthia, flooded ports and destroyed homes, leaving one million households without electricity.
Belgium, Portugal, Spain and parts of Germany were also battered. Among the dead in Germany was a two-year old boy, who drowned after he was blown into a river.

Ten Civillians, Four Nato Soldiers Killed in Afghanistan
Twin car bombs and other multiple attacks have left 10 Afghan civilians and four NATO soldiers dead.
That brings the number of foreign troops killed this year to 105—twice the number that were killed in the same period last year.

China to develop low-carbon economy
China's top economic planning body has confirmed the government will take concrete actions to develop a low-carbon economy after it pledged to substantially reduce carbon intensity at last year's Copenhagen Conference.
The National Development and Reform Commission says the government will launch a series of technological and fiscal support policies to promote the use of non-fossil, renewable energies including wind, solar, biomass, geothermal and nuclear power.
China aims to increase its proportion of primary energy consumption to about 15 percent by 2020 from 9.9 percent at the end of last year.

China's Guangdong reports foot-and-mouth disease outbreak
Over 8,000 pigs have been culled after a foot-and-mouth disease outbreak in south China's Guangdong Province.
A suspected foot-and-mouth outbreak, involving nearly 1500 pigs, was reported in two districts of Guangzhou, the provincial capital.

Two people stand trial for part played in Shanghai building collapse
A corruption trial has taken place in Shanghai for two people connected with a building collapse that killed one worker in the city last June.
No verdict has been issued in the case against the general manager of the building's developer and the 2nd largest shareholder of the company, who are accused of embezzling funds, causing the company to hire unqualified contractors to finish the building.

Medvedev demands Russian Olympic officials to resign
President Dmitry Medvedev on Monday demanded officials in charge of preparing Russian athletes for the Winter Olympic Games to resign after the country posted its worst-ever result in Vancouver.
Russia finished 11th in the final medal standings, taking three gold, five silver and seven bronze medals.
The Winter Olympics closed in Vancouver Sunday, with the United States taking a record 37 medals in total.
The host Canadian team took the most gold, with 14, which is also an Olympic record.

Poland Celebrates 200th Birthday of Chopin
Poland is celebrating the 200th birthday of one of its most famous sons, composer Frederic Chopin, with a week-long marathon of recitals of his music, a commemorative bank note and a new state-of-the-art museum.
Internationally famed pianists including China's Lang Lang are playing to packed concert halls.