Official: S. Korea fires at civilian jet thought to be North military

Two South Korean soldiers fired at a civilian airplane after mistaking it for an aircraft from North Korea, a South Korean military official said Saturday.

No damage was caused by the firing Friday morning, said the official, who requested anonymity in keeping with South Korean military custom.

The two soldiers were stationed off the coast of Gyodong Island, near the North Korean border, when they fired their rifles at an Asiana Airlines flight, the military official said.

The plane was not damaged because it was about 500 meters (547 yards) out of the range of the K-2 rifles used by two soldiers, South Korea's Yonhap news agency said, citing an unidentified military source.

According to the Yonhap report, the plane was carrying about 119 crew and passengers from China, and was making its descent to Incheon International Airport.

Tired of social networking? Logging off Facebook? You're probably not the only one.

Mark Zuckerberg

Tired of social networking? Logging off Facebook? You're probably not the only one.

Fearing for their privacy or perhaps just bored with using the site, 100,000 Britons are said to have deactivated their accounts last month.

And Facebook fatigue seems to be catching. Some 6 million logged off for good in the US too, figures show.

Worldwide, the rate of growth has slowed for a second month in a row and as it aims to reach its goal of one billion active users, Facebook is having to rely on developing countries to boost its numbers.

The figures suggest that there could be a ‘natural limit' for Facebook's saturation.

There is even speculation on blogs that, as is feared for its failing rival MySpace, the website could one day sputter into oblivion. Earlier this year, executives announced that the number of Facebook accounts held in the UK had reached 30 million, accounting for about half the population.

The milestone was an increase of 4 million from last July and represented the highest saturation of any country in Europe.

But times change and last month more than 100,000 in the UK stopped using the website, figures show. In the US user numbers dropped from 155.2 million to 149.4 million throughout May. In Canada there was also a fall of about 1.5 million users, while in Russia and Norway numbers also fell by more than 100,000 users.

It's not all bad news for the site. Worldwide, Face-book is still expanding and has around 600 million users, thanks to strong growth in countries such as Mexico and Brazil. According to Eric Eldon, of the website Inside Facebook, which obtained the figures through analysis of the company's advertising tools, there is a point at which the site can no longer grow, once it has established itself in a country.

Firm may be worth $100b

Social network Facebook is likely to go public in the first quarter of next year with a valuation of over $100 billion (Dh367 billion), the CNBC business news network reported on Monday.

Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg has repeatedly said he is in no hurry to take the social network public but CNBC said the company may be forced to do so by Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) regulations. CNBC said Facebook's decision to conduct an initial public offering could be triggered by an SEC requirement that companies with more than 500 private investors must disclose financial information.

Pak intelligence agencies uncover plot to assassinate Zardari

Pakistani intelligence agencies have uncovered a plot to assassinate President Asif Ali Zardari and arrested several persons, TV news channel reported. 

The agencies conducted raids over the past few weeks in Islamabad and Punjab and arrested up to 42 persons, the reports said. 

GEO News channel quoted its sources as saying that 42 people had been arrested while Express News Channel reported that eight have been arrested. 

The reports said the plotters had planned to target Zardari while he visited the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences, where his father Hakim Ali Zardari was being treated till his recent death. 

There were also reports that the plotters had planned to target Zardari at Nawab Shah in Sindh province. 

There was no official word on the alleged assassination plot. 

Security officials have said in the past that the President faces serious threat to his life from the Taliban and other militant groups. 

Zardari rarely makes public appearances due to security concerns.


 
 

Nadal beats Federer to win record-equalling sixth French Open title

Rafael Nadal won a 10th Grand Slam crown and equalled Bjorn Borg's record of six French Open titles when he defeated Roger Federer 7-5, 7-6 (7/3), 5-7, 6-1 on Sunday in the rivals' latest epic duel. 

French Open 

Top seed Nadal, who was also champion in 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2010, took his overall Paris record to 45 wins against just one defeat and victory also meant he hangs on to his world number one spot. 

It was the 25-year-old Spaniard's 17th win over Federer in 25 meetings and fourth in a Roland Garros final. 

But unlike the pair's 2008 clash, when Federer managed to win just four games in the most one-sided final in 30 years, Nadal was made to work harder for his sixth Paris title. 

He had to come from 2-5 in the opener, saving a set point, and then squandered a 4-2 lead in the third as 29-year-old Federer, the 2009 champion and bidding for a 17th Grand Slam title, threatened to launch a stunning comeback. 

In the end, he was undone by a combination of Nadal's claycourt prowess and his own 56 unforced errors. 

In a final played in heavy, muggy conditions in the French capital, Federer raced to a 3-0 courtesy of two confident service games and a break in the second game on a fourth break point when Nadal netted a simple running forehand. 

The Swiss, playing in his 23rd Grand Slam final, was soon 5-2 ahead wth Nadal's problems compounded by having to call for treatment on a blister on his left heel at the changeover. 

But Nadal regrouped and saved a set point in the seventh game, albeit by the smallest of margins when a Federer drop shot just missed the target. 

The Spaniard went to 3-5 with a thumping backhand crosscourt winner before he retrieved the break in the ninth game with a sweeping, low forehand which the approaching Federer could only volley into the net. 

Nadal held for 5-5 and broke to lead for 6-5 by winning a thrilling eye-to-eye duel at the net with a reflex volley before a rattled Federer netted a simple forehand. 

The Spaniard clinched the set after 62 minutes when he swept a killer forehand crosscourt with Federer hopelessly out of position. 

It was Nadal's fifth game in a row and that soon became seven with a break and hold to lead 2-0 in the second set as Federer wilted. 

Federer had to serve two aces on his way to saving three break points in the fifth game, but then broke to level at 4-4, for once breaching Nadal's impeccable defences. 

But he handed the advantage straight back in the next game, skewering a backhand wide having saved two break points. 

Nadal missed a set point at 5-4 before rain brought a 10-minute halt. He squandered another on the resumption before Federer made him pay to hit back for 5-5. 

The top seed dominated the tie break. A weak approach from Federer allowed Nadal to fire back a backhand pass to carve out four set points and he was two sets to the good thanks to a another searing, forehand crosscourt winner. 

Federer was broken to love to slip 4-2 down in the third set but bravely clung on to nip straight back to trail 3-4. 

He successfully served to stay in the match in the 10th game, broke for 6-5 before having the crowd on their feet by snatching the third set 7-5. 

In a rollercoaster of an occasion, Nadal fought off two break points in the opening game of the fourth set, then broke to love for a 3-1 lead and held for 4-1. 

The fight was suddenly gone from Federer as Nadal clinched a double break for 5-1. 

A netted service return gave Nadal three match points and a sixth title was his when Federer went long with a forehand.
  

 

Girl dies after fall from Ferris wheel - The ride was inspected by the state in March and passed

An 11-year-old girl died Friday after falling from a Ferris wheel while on a class trip to an amusement park in New Jersey, police said.

Abiah Jones fell at Morley Piers Mariner's Landing Pier about 12:30 p.m., according to the Wildwood Police Department.

First responders gave her first aid and took her to Cape Regional Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead about 1:15 p.m., according to police.

The girl was riding one of the park's main attractions, "The Great Wheel." At 156 feet, it's one of the tallest wheels on the East Coast, according to Morley Piers spokeswoman Lindsey Young.

The cause of the girl's fall was unknown and the Wildwood police and the Cape May County Prosecutor's Office continue to investigate.

The Carnival Amusement Inspectors of New Jersey were also on the scene Friday afternoon conducting their own investigation, police said.

It is the first time someone has fallen from the ride since it opened in 1985 and the park has suffered no other guest fatality, Young said.

The ride was inspected by the state in March and passed, Young said.