Toyota to restart Japanese output at reduced capacity
Toyota will restart production at all of its Japanese factories between 18 and 27 April, the company has said.
However, the world's biggest car manufacturer said that production at its domestic factories will resume at a reduced capacity.
Production at all of Toyota's 18 factories had been suspended in the aftermath of the earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan on 11 March.
Toyota shares were up 0.9% after the news.
The company said that factories will be shut down again between 27 April and 9 May for the Japanese 'Golden week' holiday.
Parts shortage
Japanese car manufacturers have been facing a shortage of parts.
That has resulted in manufacturers halting production not only in domestic factories but also reducing their output in other countries.
Toyota has already warned that its North American production may be curbed if the parts shortfall continues.
Earlier this week, Honda motors announced that was halving production at its factory in Swindon in the south of England.
Nissan Motors also said that it would be suspending its UK production for three days at the end of the month due to a shortfall of parts from Japan.
However a company's spokeswoman said Toyota had started to get supplies of most of the affected parts and it will use current inventories to make up for any shortfall for now.
Toyota said it will monitor the parts supply situation before deciding on production plans from 10 May.
S. African Leader: Gadhafi Accepts Cease-Fire Plan
South African President Jacob Zuma, leading a delegation of African leaders to the Libyan capital, says leader Moammar Gadhafi has accepted their roadmap for a cease-fire with anti-government rebels.
African Union officials say the proposal calls for an immediate cease-fire, talks between the rebels and the government, the protection of foreign nationals in Libya and the extension of humanitarian assistance to civilians.
Mr. Zuma said the AU delegation would travel to the rebel-stronghold of Benghazi Monday to present the plan to opposition leaders. The rebels have said they will accept nothing less than an end to Mr. Gadhafi's rule, while Libyan officials say he will not step down.
The South African leader also called on NATO to stop airstrikes on government targets to "give a cease-fire a chance." He and three other African heads of state met with Mr. Gadhafi for several hours Sunday at his compound in Tripoli.
Meanwhile, NATO airstrikes have pushed loyalist forces out of the strategic eastern city of Ajdabiya, reportedly allowing rebels to reestablish control there.
NATO says its airstrikes Sunday destroyed 11 government tanks near Ajdabiya and 14 near the western rebel-held city of Misrata. Lieutenant General Charles Bouchard says the strikes were needed because pro-Gadhafi forces were brutally shelling Libyans.
Libyan rebel spokesman Colonel Hamid Hassy told The Associated Press that heavy shelling from government forces near Ajdabiya largely stopped after the NATO airstrikes.
Medics and reporters say the fighting at Ajdabiya has killed at least 12 people during the past few days.
Mr. Zuma was joined by the presidents of Mauritania, Mali and Congo on his mediation mission as well as a representative from Uganda.
Earlier, The Associated Press reported that pro-Gadhafi forces shot down two rebel helicopters in Brega, an oil town west of Ajdabiya.
Brega has been the scene of intense fighting in recent days with it going from government to rebel control and back again several times since the start of an uprising against Mr. Gadhafi.
Life Sentence for Australian Who Threw Daughter from Bridge
An Australian court sentenced a man to life in prison Monday for killing his four-year-old daughter in front of her two young brothers.
Arthur Freeman, 37, was convicted of murdering his daughter Darcey by throwing her from Melbourne's West Gate bridge on January 29, 2009, during a bitter custody battle with his ex-wife.
Her brothers, aged two and six, watched from the car as Darcey plunged 80 meters into the Yarra River.
Freeman argued that he was mentally impaired when he committed the crime, but Judge Paul Coghlan of the Victoria Supreme Court said Freeman killed his daughter to get revenge on his ex-wife.
Nationalist Leading in Peru Vote
Election officials in Peru say left-wing nationalist Ollanta Humala is leading in the first round of the presidential election with 18 percent of the vote counted.
Officials said Humala has won more than 26 percent of the vote in Sunday's poll.
Election authorities said former World Bank economist Pedro Pablo Kuczynski placed second with 24.5 percent of the vote. Keiko Fujimori, the daughter of imprisoned former president Alberto Fujimori, came in third place with 21.1 percent of the vote counted so far.
Exit polls and first estimates had placed Fujimori second.
Trailing in fourth place was former president Alejandro Toledo.
With no candidate expected to capture a simple majority, the top two vote-getters will vie for the presidency in a June 5 runoff.
Humala prevailed in the first round of the 2006 presidential election only to lose a runoff.
Peru has seen a decade of rapid economic growth, but one-third of its population of nearly 30 million still live in poverty. Much of the campaign has focused on continuing this growth while ensuring the poor also see some of the increased prosperity.
Xinhua: Blogs Accuse Chinese Artist of Plagiarism in 2007
Chinese official media say the Chinese artist, whose recent detention has drawn international criticism, has been accused of plagiarizing the idea for a 2007 exhibit.
Ai Weiwei was detained in Beijing a week ago as he tried to board a flight for Hong Kong, and police later raided his studio outside the Chinese capital. Ai helped design Beijing's famed “Bird's Nest” Olympic stadium, but is also an outspoken critic of the government.
The official Xinhua news agency cited accusations against the renowned artist that were allegedly found online.
One accusation says Ai stole an art professor's idea by flying 1,001 “ordinary” Chinese citizens to Germany as “living exhibits” in a 2007 art show. Xinhua quotes Chinese novelist Wang Shuo as saying in his blog that art professor Ye Luping from Xi'an was the author of the innovation.
Other blogs allegedly accuse Ai of tax evasion, monopolizing art funds and other things. None of the claims have been independently investigated.
China's foreign ministry said Thursday that Ai was charged with “economic crimes,” without other details. The case has sparked international condemnation of China's crackdown on activists critical of the government.
The international community has criticized China for launching a massive crackdown on dissidents and other activists in February, following online calls for anti-government protests in Beijing, Shanghai and other cities. The protests never materialized, in large part because of a heavy pre-emptive police presence in areas designated for the demonstrations.
Late last year, Ai was stopped from boarding a flight to Seoul, shortly after being invited to attend the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony in Norway honoring jailed Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo. Liu is serving an 11-year prison term on charges of subversion.
Egypt's Police Crackdown Kills 2 in Tahrir Square
Medical sources in Egypt say the military's pre-dawn crackdown on demonstrators in Cairo's Tahrir Square has killed two people and left at least 15 wounded.
State television quoted Egypt's Health Ministry Saturday as saying just one person died and 71 others were wounded.
Military police swept into the square, swinging batons and firing shots, at around three in the morning to clear out protesters defying a curfew as they rallied against the country's former and current leadership. Witnesses say police beat the protesters, and blood could be seen on the streets early Saturday.
Egypt's ruling military council released a statement saying police were confronting rioters and trying to enforce the curfew, blaming the violence on outlaws.
By Saturday afternoon, at least 1,000 protesters had returned to the square and appeared to have put down objects in the road to block traffic.
Egyptians have been growing more frustrated with the country's military leaders who have taken control of the country. Demonstrators Friday called for the removal of Field Marshal Mohamed Hussein Tantawi, who heads the military council.
Protesters formed a human wall to protect several army officers who joined Friday's demonstrations against the orders of the armed forces.
The protest was one of the biggest in the Egyptian capital since former President Hosni Mubarak was forced to resign February 11.
Demonstrators have accused the military of protecting Mubarak, who has been living under house arrest at the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh with his family. Protesters want him to be tried for corruption.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP and Reuters.
Blast Reported at Nigerian Polling Station
Reports from Nigeria say an explosion hit a polling station during Saturday's parliamentary elections.
The Associated Press news agency says one of its reporters saw the bodies of 10 victims of the blast in the city of Maiduguri, while the French News Agency, AFP, quoted a police source saying three people had been killed.
The National Emergency Management Agency acknowledged the explosion, but did not confirm any deaths.
On Friday, a bombing killed at least eight people at the Independent National Electoral Commission office in the city of Suleja, near the capital, Abuja.
Nigerians headed to the polls Saturday under tight security following the blast.
Nigeria has twice delayed parliamentary elections. Last week's vote was cancelled because voting materials were not available.
In Borno state Friday, police say gunmen shot and killed four people as they prepared to distribute election materials. Police say one of those killed was an official from the ruling People's Democratic Party.
Nigeria increased security measures ahead of Saturday's vote with the Interior Ministry shutting down the nation's land borders while police sent out additional street patrols and began restricting vehicle traffic. The military also is keeping watch around polling centers.
On Thursday, the electoral commission said ballots were still short in some areas, so polls would be closed in about 15 percent of Nigeria's constituencies. The commission chairman did not say when those constituencies would vote.
Nigeria is scheduled to hold its presidential election on April 16 and state-level elections on April 26.
Syrian Forces Fire on Activists Mourning Friday’s Victims
Witnesses say Syrian security forces opened fire on opposition activists in two towns on Saturday, a day after officials and activists reported 36 people killed during anti-government unrest.
In the southern town of Daraa, witnesses say security forces fired at mourners attending funerals for some of the victims of Friday's unrest.
Daraa has become a flashpoint of opposition protests. Most of Friday's deaths occurred in or near the town.
Earlier Saturday, witnesses in the port city of Latakia said security forces fired live ammunition to disperse hundreds of anti-government protesters.
Activists had called for more protests on Saturday in spite of a new government warning against demonstrations. They urged protesters to take to the streets following funerals for victims of Friday's violence.
Following Friday's bloodshed, the Interior Ministry issued a statement declaring there is “no more room for leniency or tolerance” in enforcing the country's laws and maintaining security.
EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton condemned the violence in Syria. In a statement Saturday, she urged the government to enact “meaningful political reforms.”
President Assad recently announced reform plans that included changing government leadership positions. He also has said authorities are studying whether to lift emergency regulations enacted decades ago that ban unsanctioned public gatherings and limit other forms of public expression.
So far, however, the president's gestures have failed to appease opposition activists calling for a sweeping overhaul of Syrian institutions.
Bombing Plot Foiled In Northern Ireland
Police in the British-ruled province of Northern Ireland say they defused a 225-kilogram van bomb near the Irish border Saturday. Officials say it might have been built by dissident members of the Irish Republican Army.
The bomb was discovered south of the town of Newry under a freeway overpass near the main road connecting Belfast, the capital of Northern Ireland, and Dublin, the capital of the Irish Republic.
Police Chief Superintendent Alasdair Robinson said the bomb could have caused “huge devastation and loss of life.” Jonathan Bell, a member of Northern Ireland's policing board, said it would have been “another example of mass murder.”
Officials believe the stolen van was abandoned where it was because of the presence of a police checkpoint.
Bomb experts alerted to the scene carried out a series of controlled explosions before the device was declared safe. The operation disrupted traffic and forced the closure of the main north-south rail line nearby.
Police say there has been no claim of responsibility.
Saturday's incident comes as police continue to question three suspects in the killing of a Catholic policeman in Northern Ireland.
A booby-trap bomb exploded under Ronan Kerr's car outside his home in Omagh on April 2.
Suicide Bomber Wounds 10 in Afghan Capital
Afghan police say a suspected suicide bomber has attacked an Afghan army bus in the country's capital, wounding 10 people.
Kabul police spokesman Hashmat Stanekzai said the Saturday blast in the eastern part of the city wounded seven soldiers and three civilians. No one was killed.
Authorities say the attacker approached the bus on foot before detonating the explosives believed to be strapped to his body.
No one has claimed responsibility for the attack, but it comes less than a week after a multiple suicide bombing targeted a foreign military base in Kabul. The Taliban claimed responsibility for that attack.