WORLD NEWS TODAY

• Report: injuries in train accident in Netherlands

  AP – Tue Dec 8, 5:14 am ET

  AMSTERDAM - Dozens of passengers have been injured in a southern Dutch city after their train slammed into a freight truck that was stuck on a railway crossing, according to local media reports. Full Story »

• AP – Tue Dec 8, 5:09 am ET

  COPENHAGEN - World Meteorological Organization says this decade "very likely" warmest on record. Full Story »

• UN urges restraint after clashes in Nepal

  AFP – Tue Dec 8, 2:09 am ET
  AFP/File

  KATHMANDU (AFP) - The United Nations urged Nepal's government and opposition Maoists to exercise restraint after deadly clashes between police and landless settlers in the west of the country. Full Story »

• Brown pushes EU on deeper emission cuts

  AFP – Mon Dec 7, 7:28 pm ET
  AFP/File

  LONDON (AFP) - Prime Minister Gordon Brown said Tuesday he is urging European countries to commit to deeper cuts in greenhouse gas emissions, amid EU division over the issue, as crunch climate talks continue. Full Story »

• Dan Brown eyes La Scala balconies for inspiration

  AP – Mon Dec 7, 7:11 pm ET

  MILAN - He's already done the Vatican. So don't be surprised if Milan's famed La Scala opera house doesn't turn up in Dan Brown's next thriller. Full Story »

• UN chief asks al-Bashir's help to free hostages

  AP – Mon Dec 7, 6:31 pm ET

  UNITED NATIONS - Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called Sudan's president to seek help in freeing two members of the joint United Nations-African Union peacekeeping mission in Darfur who have been held hostage for more than 100 days, the U.N. said Monday. Full Story »

• Italy: No issues with US over Knox verdict

  AP – Mon Dec 7, 4:03 pm ET
  AP

  ROME - The murder conviction of U.S. student Amanda Knox has not damaged U.S.-Italian relations, despite suggestions the verdict was tainted by anti-American sentiment, a top Italian diplomat said Monday. Full Story »

• Key US lawmaker chides EU over Jerusalem

  AFP – Mon Dec 7, 3:55 pm ET
  AFP/File

  WASHINGTON (AFP) - European Union members should join "responsible nations" in opposing any plan to recognize Arab east Jerusalem as capital of a future Palestinian state, a key US lawmaker said Monday. Full Story »

• John Crofton, TB researcher, dies at 97

  AP – Mon Dec 7, 3:33 pm ET

  LONDON - John Crofton, a researcher renowned for his groundbreaking work on the treatment of the tuberculosis, has died at his home in Scotland. He was 97. Full Story »

• UN urges Iraq to set election date 'as soon as possible'

  AFP – Mon Dec 7, 2:18 pm ET
  AFP/File

  BAGHDAD (AFP) - The United Nations on Monday urged Iraq to announce "as soon as possible" the date for the war-torn country's general election after MPs struck a last-minute deal to get the poll back on track. Full Story »

• North Korea grilled at UN rights council

  AP – Mon Dec 7, 1:50 pm ET
  AFP/KCNA via KNS/File

  GENEVA - North Korea made a rare appearance before a U.N. human rights organization on Monday, facing accusations of widespread abuses such as forced labor, public executions and torture. Full Story »

• NATO allies pledge up to 7,000 troops

  AP – Mon Dec 7, 12:45 pm ET
  AP

  BRUSSELS - NATO allies confirmed pledges on Monday for nearly 7,000 additional troops to serve alongside the 30,000 committed to Afghanistan by President Barack Obama, amid "clear indications" that even more European reinforcements could follow in coming months. Full Story »

• Pope to lead 'midnight' Christmas Mass at 10 p.m.

  AP – Mon Dec 7, 12:43 pm ET

  VATICAN CITY - Pope Benedict XVI will break with tradition this year and celebrate Christmas Eve Mass in St. Peter's Basilica at 10 p.m. instead of midnight, the Vatican said Monday. Full Story »

• Historian finds Red Baron's death certificate

  AP – Mon Dec 7, 12:41 pm ET
  AP

  WARSAW, Poland - A Polish historian says he made a surprising find when poring through World War I archives — the death certificate of Manfred von Richthofen, the German fighter ace known as the "Red Baron." Full Story »

• EU agrees closer ties with Serbia

  AFP – Mon Dec 7, 12:28 pm ET
  AFP

  BRUSSELS (AFP) - EU foreign ministers decided Monday to boost ties with Serbia, bringing an end to an 18-month standoff over Belgrade's lack of cooperation with a UN war crimes court, diplomats said. Full Story »

• Romanian opposition claims fraud in president vote

  AP – Mon Dec 7, 12:10 pm ET
  AP

  BUCHAREST, Romania - Romania's main opposition party claimed Monday that President Traian Basescu narrowly won re-election through a fraudulent vote. Full Story »

• UK rights group accuses Britain on rendition cases

  AP – Mon Dec 7, 12:07 pm ET

  LONDON - A legal rights group said Monday the British government misled parliament about two terrorism suspects who were subjected to rendition. Full Story »

• Georgia to send 900 troops to Afghanistan

  AP – Mon Dec 7, 11:59 am ET

  TBILISI, Georgia - President Mikhail Saakashvili says Georgia will contribute more than 900 troops next year to the U.S.-led coalition forces in Afghanistan.

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WORLD NEWS

• Status of Jerusalem should be negotiated by parties: US

  AFP – Tue Dec 8, 4:46 pm ET
  AFP/File

  WASHINGTON (AFP) - The United States Tuesday noted an EU statement welcoming the idea of Jerusalem becoming the future capital of two states, saying the US view was that the parties should decide that in final status negotiations. Full Story »

• French police recover jewelry stolen from Cartier

  AP – Tue Dec 8, 3:18 pm ET

  PARIS - Police say they have recovered nearly euro800,000 ($1,181,900) in jewels stolen last month in a holdup at a Cartier jewelry store in the southeastern French city of Lyon. Full Story »

• EU deplores Turkey's failure to treat Cyprus properly

  AFP – Tue Dec 8, 3:01 pm ET
  AFP

  BRUSSELS (AFP) - European foreign ministers criticised Turkey on Tuesday for failing to deal normally with Cyprus and opted to keep the brakes on Ankara's attempt to join the European Union. Full Story »

• UK believed Iraqi weapons had been dismantled

  AP – Tue Dec 8, 2:27 pm ET

  LONDON - Britain believed Iraq had dismantled its chemical and biological weapons in the run-up to the 2003 invasion but thought it was possible they could be reassembled, the former head of the country's Joint Intelligence Committee said Tuesday. Full Story »

• Russian fire chief suspended in deadly blaze probe

  AP – Tue Dec 8, 2:06 pm ET
  AP

  MOSCOW - The fire chief of a Russian city where a nightclub blaze killed 119 revelers was suspended along with five subordinates Tuesday and authorities said inspection records for the club appear to have been falsified. Full Story »

• Belarusian opposition activists abducted

  AP – Tue Dec 8, 1:29 pm ET

  MINSK, Belarus - Men appearing to be law enforcement officers have abducted four Belarusian opposition activists in an attempt to scare them away from political activity in the repressive former Soviet republic, a human rights organization said Tuesday. Full Story »

• Lawyers for Guantanamo prisoner to get documents

  AP – Tue Dec 8, 1:05 pm ET

  LONDON - The last British resident imprisoned at Guantanamo won the right Tuesday to see documents his lawyers believe will show that he was tortured. The British government immediately announced an appeal. Full Story »

• Pope keeps Spanish Steps tradition in Rome

  AP – Tue Dec 8, 12:56 pm ET
  AP

  ROME - Pope Benedict XVI on Tuesday lamented what he described as a steady diet of news about evil in the world, saying it hardens hearts, as he prayed at the Spanish Steps in a Christmas season tradition. Full Story »

• Russian court rules against Jehovah's Witnesses

  AP – Tue Dec 8, 12:52 pm ET

  MOSCOW - Russia's highest court on Tuesday upheld a ruling halting the activities of a regional branch of Jehovah's Witnesses and banning dozens of its publications in what the group deplored as an unfair move. Full Story »

• US, Russia face off at World Court over Kosovo

  AP – Tue Dec 8, 11:44 am ET

  THE HAGUE, Netherlands - The United States and Russia faced off over Kosovo at the United Nation's highest court on Tuesday, with the U.S. arguing the world should honor Kosovo's declaration of independence while Russia insisted it was still part of Serbia. Full Story »

• France denies snubbing Britain on EU farm talks

  AFP – Tue Dec 8, 11:32 am ET
  AFP

  PARIS (AFP) - France denied on Tuesday it had snubbed Britain by not inviting its agriculture minister to talks on the future of Europe's farm subsidies, and said it was happy for London to send an "observer" instead. Full Story »

• EU says Jerusalem 'future capital of two states'

  AFP – Tue Dec 8, 11:18 am ET
  AFP

  BRUSSELS (AFP) - EU nations agreed on Tuesday that Jerusalem should be the capital of both Israel and a future Palestinian state, assuaging Israeli anger over earlier mention of east Jerusalem as the Palestinian capital. Full Story »

• EU: Jerusalem should be joint capital

  AP – Tue Dec 8, 11:12 am ET

  BRUSSELS - European Union foreign ministers urged Israel and the Palestinians on Tuesday to make Jerusalem their shared capital, prompting a swift, angry reaction from Israel. Full Story »

• EU urges Israel to share Jerusalem

  Reuters – Tue Dec 8, 10:12 am ET

  BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Union on Tuesday urged Israel to share Jerusalem with the Palestinians as part of a Middle East peace agreement and make the holy city the capital of two states. Full Story »

• Suspect in Nazi trial admits killings

  AP – Tue Dec 8, 9:34 am ET
  AP

  AACHEN, Germany - A former member of the Nazi SS being tried for murder admitted in court Tuesday that he killed three Dutch civilians during World War II, but insisted he was following orders. Full Story »

• Russian official: arms deal with US this month

  AP – Tue Dec 8, 9:29 am ET

  MOSCOW - Russia and the United States expect to strike a new nuclear arms treaty this month, a senior Kremlin aide told Russian news agencies Tuesday. Full Story »

• Turkish court ponders fate of Pro-Kurdish party

  AP – Tue Dec 8, 7:22 am ET

  ANKARA, Turkey - Turkey's highest court began deliberations Tuesday on a case seeking to close down the country's pro-Kurdish party and expel several party members from parliament on charges of ties to Kurdish rebels. Full Story »

• G77 says Danish climate text 'threatens success' of UN talks

  AFP – Tue Dec 8, 4:21 pm ET
  AFP/SCANPIX

  COPENHAGEN (AFP) - A Danish draft proposal for a political agreement "threatens the success" of UN climate talks in Copenhagen, the head of the G77 group of countries said Tuesday at the summit aimed at sealing a historic deal on cutting carbon emissions.

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Australia News

• 

  Australian ex-hostage feared he would die in Somalia

  AFP - Wednesday, December 9

  SYDNEY (AFP) - - Freed hostage Nigel Brennan on Wednesday admitted that he regretted ever visiting Somalia and feared he would never survive his brutal, 15-month ordeal.

• Ex-Aussie hostage says he aimed to help Somalis

  AP - Wednesday, December 9

  SYDNEY - An Australian photojournalist recently released after being held hostage for 15 months in Somalia said Wednesday he was trying to highlight the plight of those less fortunate when he was kidnapped.

• Australia accused of censorship over NKorean art

  AP - Wednesday, December 9

  SYDNEY - Australia was accused of censorship Tuesday for denying visas to North Korean artists whose works are on display in a regional exhibition, but the government says the art comes from Pyongyang's propaganda machine and its creators are not welcome.

• Coroner: Self-help course led to woman's suicide

  AP - Wednesday, December 9

  SYDNEY - An Australian coroner said Tuesday that participation in an intense self-help course led a woman to suffer a psychotic breakdown before she stripped naked and leaped to her death from an office window in front of horrified co-workers.

• 

  Gambler loses case against Australian casino

  AFP - Tuesday, December 8

  MELBOURNE (AFP) - - A compulsive gambler who wagered close to 1.4 billion US dollars during a 16-month betting spree lost his lawsuit against Australia's largest casino Tuesday when a judge ruled he was not exploited.

• 

  Anti-Japan whaling protests: govts urge restraint

  AFP - Monday, December 7

  SYDNEY (AFP) - - Militant protesters opposed to Japanese whaling left for the Southern Ocean Monday as New Zealand, Australia and The Netherlands urged them to avoid violent confrontations.

• 

  Australia opposition leader enjoys poll boost

  AFP - Monday, December 7

  SYDNEY (AFP) - - Australia's conservative opposition relished a small bounce in opinion polls on Monday after dumping its leader for a maverick right-winger during fierce debate over climate change.

• Australia steps up wildfire preparedness

  AP - Monday, December 7

  ADELAIDE, Australia - Australians thought they were prepared for wildfires.

• 

  Australia in $82 bln gas deal with Japan

  AFP - Monday, December 7

  SYDNEY (AFP) - - Australia has welcomed a 90 billion dollar (82 billion US) deal to supply liquefied natural gas (LNG) to a Japanese power company in what is believed to be the country's biggest export sales contract.

• 

  Australian PM warns on climate change

  AFP - Thursday, December 3

  SYDNEY (AFP) - - Australia's Prime Minister Kevin Rudd warned there was no "magic pudding" solution to climate change on Thursday as he lashed out over the defeat of his flagship carbon-trading scheme.

• Australian man charged with assaulting US Marine

  AP - Thursday, December 3

  SYDNEY - An Australian man has been charged in an attack on a U.S. Marine on shore leave that left him in a coma for 10 days, police said Thursday.

• 

  Kangaroos may hold skin cancer cure: study

  AFP - Tuesday, December 1

  SYDNEY (AFP) - - Kangaroos may provide the key to a potential treatment to prevent skin cancer, Australian scientists said on Monday.

• 

  Australia in Afghanistan for long haul: Rudd

  AFP - Tuesday, December 1

  WASHINGTON (AFP) - - Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd pledged here Monday that Australia would stay in Afghanistan "for the long haul" but did not offer more troops to complement an expected US increase.

• 

  Captain Cook: explorer standing the test of time

  AFP - Sunday, November 29

  BONN (AFP) - - On January 11, 1780, the London Gazette reported the death of Captain James Cook, "on the island of O'Why'he ... in an affray with a numerous and tumultuous Body of Natives."

• Obama set to meet with Australian prime minister

  AP - Saturday, November 28

  WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama will meet with the Australian prime minister at the White House on Monday.

• Australian opposition splits over climate bill

  AP - Friday, November 27

  ADELAIDE, Australia - Australia's opposition party has splintered over a contentious bill aimed at curbing greenhouse gas emissions, with top officials resigning over the party leader's support for the legislation.

• 

  Journalists leave Somalia after hostage ordeal

  AFP - Friday, November 27

  MOGADISHU (AFP) - - Two journalists from Canada and Australia flew out of Somalia on Thursday at the end of a 15-month hostage ordeal during which they were tortured and shackled in windowless rooms by their captors.

• 

  Pig farts spark Australia gas scare

  AFP - Friday, November 27

  SYDNEY (AFP) - - A flatulent pig sparked a gas emergency in southern Australia when a farmer mistook its odours for a leaking pipe, according to officials.

• Invading camels to be shot in Australian town

  AP - Friday, November 27

  ALICE SPRINGS, Australia - Australian authorities plan to corral about 6,000 wild camels with helicopters and gun them down after they overran a small Outback town in search of water, trampling fences, smashing tanks and contaminating supplies.

• Invading camels to be shot in Australian town

  AP - Friday, November 27

  ALICE SPRINGS, Australia - Australian authorities plan to corral about 6,000 wild camels with helicopters and gun them down after they overran a small Outback town in search of water, trampling fences, smashing tanks and contaminating supplies.

• 

  Canadian journalist says she was tortured in Somalia

  AFP - Thursday, November 26

  OTTAWA (AFP) - - Canadian journalist Amanda Lindhout, who was freed Wednesday after 15 months in captivity in Somalia, says she was beaten and tortured by her captors, who she called criminals pretending to be freedom fighters.

• 

  Thousands of wild camels besiege Australian town

  AFP - Thursday, November 26

  SYDNEY (AFP) - - Some 6,000 feral camels are running wild in a remote Australian outback community in search of water, smashing infrastructure and invading the airstrip, officials said on Wednesday.

• 

  Venomous Aussie redback spiders invading Japan

  AFP - Wednesday, November 25

  TOKYO (AFP) - - Australia's venomous redback spiders are on the march in Japan, where they are believed to have arrived years ago as stowaways on cargo ships, a wildlife expert warned Wednesday.

• Australian PM urges parliament to approve carbon cuts

  AFP - Wednesday, November 25

  CANBERRA (AFP) - - Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd urged parliament Tuesday to approve legislation aiming to slash carbon pollution by up to 25 percent by 2020 ahead of next month's global talks on climate change.

• 

  'Amazing' Bangladeshi twins out of intensive care

  AFP - Wednesday, November 25

  MELBOURNE (AFP) - - Bangladeshi twins Trishna and Krishna are out of intensive care and seeing each other for the first time as they make an "amazing" recovery from surgery to separate their conjoined heads, doctors said Tuesday.

• Opposition debate Australian carbon reduction laws

  AP - Tuesday, November 24

  CANBERRA, Australia - Australia's government took a key step toward passing legislation to curb greenhouse gas emissions by negotiating a compromise deal with the opposition Liberal Party, and Prime Minister Kevin Rudd urged lawmakers Tuesday to support the bill.

• 

  Cuba, Australia boost ties during FM visit

  AFP - Tuesday, November 24

  HAVANA (AFP) - - Cuba and Australia have decided to strengthen their 20-year relationship, Australian Foreign Affairs Minister Stephen Smith said Monday at the start of a two-day visit to Havana.

• Formerly conjoined twins leave intensive care

  AP - Tuesday, November 24

  SYDNEY - Conjoined Bangladeshi twins who were separated in a marathon surgery last week left intensive care on Monday and were adjusting well, hospital officials said.

• 

  Asylum-seekers riot at Australia detention centre

  AFP - Monday, November 23

  SYDNEY (AFP) - - Australia moved to tighten security at its main immigration centre on Monday after a riot by 150 asylum-seekers, reportedly wielding pool cues, broomsticks and tree branches, left 37 wounded.

• Man slashed by kangaroo while trying to rescue dog

  AP - Monday, November 23

  MELBOURNE, Australia - An Australian man was in stable condition Monday after being slashed across the abdomen and face by a kangaroo that was holding his dog underwater.

• 

  Over 100 icebergs drifting to N.Zealand: official

  AFP - Monday, November 23

  SYDNEY (AFP) - - More than 100, and possibly hundreds, of Antarctic icebergs are floating towards New Zealand in a rare event which has prompted a shipping warning, officials said on Monday.

• Australian blames Scientology for brother's death

  AP - Monday, November 23

  CANBERRA, Australia - A man who blames the Church of Scientology for his brother's suicide added his voice Monday to calls for an Australia Senate inquiry into the religion.

• US sailor cleared of assaulting Sydney prostitute

  AP - Monday, November 23

  SYDNEY - A U.S. Navy serviceman was found not guilty Monday of sexually assaulting a prostitute at a brothel while on shore leave in Australia's biggest city.

• 

  Australia battles wildfires as threat eases: officials

  AFP - Monday, November 23

  RYLSTONE, Australia (AFP) - - Australian firefighters battled to contain scores of blazes in the country's southeast on Monday as a sharp drop in temperatures eased fears for dozens of threatened homes.

• Dozens of asylum seekers injured in detention riot

  AP - Monday, November 23

  CANBERRA, Australia - Sri Lankan and Afghan asylum seekers were separated at an island immigration detention center after a riot left 37 injured, an official said Monday.

• 

  Aussie pilot who landed in shark waters hailed a hero

  AFP - Friday, November 20

  SYDNEY (AFP) - - An Australian pin-up pilot forced to bring an emergency medical flight down in shark-infested waters was Friday hailed a hero for the daring landing from which all aboard escaped unharmed.

• 

  Australia 'disappointed' at Japan whaling mission

  AFP - Friday, November 20

  SYDNEY (AFP) - - Australia said it was "deeply disappointed" after a fleet of Japanese whaling ships set out to kill hundreds of the giant ocean mammals on their annual hunt.

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WORLD TOPIC

• Troop contribution for Afghan surge

  AP – Mon Dec 7, 9:21 am ET

  Unofficial tally of pledges to the NATO-led international force in Afghanistan, made in response to the planned deployment of 30,000 U.S. reinforcements by President Barack Obama. Full Story »

• UN seeking $378M for food, medicine in Zimbabwe

  AP – Mon Dec 7, 9:08 am ET

  HARARE, Zimbabwe - The United Nations is appealing for $378 million for Zimbabwe to buy food and medicines and bolster health, education and sanitation in the economically crippled country. Full Story »

• Greek youths riot in Athens for 2nd day

  AP – Mon Dec 7, 8:59 am ET
  AP

  ATHENS, Greece - Masked youths smashed store windows and hurled rocks and firebombs at riot police who responded with tear gas Monday in a second day of violence during commemorations of last year's fatal police shooting of a teenager. Full Story »

• Brown urges rapid action on climate agreement

  AFP – Mon Dec 7, 6:55 am ET
  AFP

  LONDON (AFP) - Prime Minister Gordon Brown urged Monday world leaders to quickly seal in law any agreement on climate change made during this week's crunch talks in Copenhagen. Full Story »

• Basescu headed for victory in Romania runoff

  AP – Mon Dec 7, 5:37 am ET
  AP

  BUCHAREST, Romania - Incumbent President Traian Basescu was headed for victory in a tight presidential runoff in Romania, election authorities said Monday, in a race Romanians hope will pull the country out of its worst political and economic crisis in 20 years. Full Story »

• UN envoy meets former Sri Lankan child soldiers

  AFP – Mon Dec 7, 1:32 am ET
  AFP/File

  COLOMBO (AFP) - A top United Nations envoy for children held talks with senior Sri Lankan officials on Monday after meeting former child soldiers, an official said. Full Story »

• World's newspapers unite to urge climate change action

  AFP – Sun Dec 6, 5:03 pm ET
  AFP

  LONDON (AFP) - Newspapers in 45 countries will implore Monday world leaders to take decisive action at the Copenhagen climate change talks, warning failure will bring calamity, the London-based Guardian said. Full Story »

• Obama-mania lives on in Europe, but results wanted

  AP – Sun Dec 6, 4:43 pm ET
  AP

  PARIS - Europeans might have reason to feel disappointed with Barack Obama. Full Story »

• UN climate science head hopes for more US action

  AP – Sun Dec 6, 2:34 pm ET

  COPENHAGEN - "There is scope for going above what is going to be legislated," Rajendra Pachauri, chairman of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, told The Associated Press on the eve of the U.N. climate conference in Copenhagen. Full Story »

• U.N. talks on climate "turning point" set to start

  Reuters – Sun Dec 6, 6:56 pm ET
  AFP/File

  COPENHAGEN (Reuters) - U.N. talks billed as a "turning point" in a bid to slow global warming open on Monday seeking to agree curbs on greenhouse gas emissions and raise billions of dollars for the poor in aid and clean technology. Full Story »

• President, challenger both claim victory in Romania vote

  AFP – Sun Dec 6, 4:49 pm ET
  AFP

  BUCHAREST (AFP) - Both candidates in Romania's presidential run-off vote claimed victory on Sunday, although most exit polls put Social-Democrat Mircea Geoana ahead of incumbent Traian Basescu. Full Story »

• Nobel laureates call for gender balance in science

  AP – Sun Dec 6, 12:24 pm ET
  AP

  STOCKHOLM - The two female winners of this year's Nobel Prize in medicine on Sunday urged scientific institutions to change their career structures to help more women reach top positions. Full Story »

• Queen Elizabeth II tells paparazzi to back off

  AP – Sun Dec 6, 11:53 am ET

  LONDON - Britain's Queen Elizabeth II has warned newspapers not to run unauthorized paparazzi photos of the royal family, Buckingham Palace said Sunday. Full Story »

• Half of Britons deny climate change man-made: poll

  AFP – Sun Dec 6, 11:13 am ET
  AFP/File

  LONDON (AFP) - Almost half of Britons do not believe human behaviour is the main cause of global warming, a new poll showed Sunday, a day before world leaders begin crunch climate talks in Copenhagen.

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