Why African Rhinos Are Facing a Crisis

The body count for African rhinos killed for their horns is approaching crisis proportions, according to the latest figures released by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

To National Geographic reporter Peter Gwin, the dire numbers—a rhinoceros slain every 11 minutes since the beginning of 2013—don't come as a surprise. "The killing will continue as long as criminal gangs know they can expect high profits for selling horns to Asian buyers," said Gwin, who wrote about the violent and illegal trade in rhino horn in the March 2012 issue of the magazine.

The recent surge in poaching has been fueled by a thriving market in Vietnam and China for rhino horn, used as a traditional medicine believed to cure everything from hangovers to cancer. Since 2011, at least 1,700 rhinos, or 7 percent of the total population, have been killed and their horns hacked off, according to the IUCN. More than two-thirds of the casualties occurred in South Africa, home to 73 percent of the world's wild rhinos. In Africa there are currently 5,055 black rhinos, listed as critically endangered by the IUCN, and 20,405 white rhinos. (From our blog: "South African Rhino Poaching Hits New High.")

Trying to snuff out poaching by itself won't work, said Gwin. The South African government is fighting a losing battle on the ground to gangs using helicopters, dart guns, high-powered weapons—and lots of money. (National Geographic pictures: The bloody poaching battle over rhino horn [contains graphic images].)

"Every year they get tougher on poaching, but rhino killings continue to rise astronomically," said Gwin. "Somehow they have to address the demand side in a meaningful way. This means either shutting down the Asian markets for rhino horn, or controversially, finding a way to sustainably harvest rhino horns, control their legal sale, and meet what appears to be a huge demand. Either will be a formidable endeavor."

Hope and Hurdles

The signing in December of a memorandum of understanding between South Africa and Vietnam to deal with rhino poaching and other conservation issues raises hope for some concrete action. Observers say the next step is for the two governments to follow through with tangible crime-stopping efforts such as intelligence sharing and other collaboration. The highest hurdle to stopping criminal trade, though, is cultural, Gwin believes. "In Vietnam and China, a lot of people simply believe that as a traditional cure, rhino horn works." (Related: "Blood Ivory.")

The recent climb in rhino deaths threatens what had been a conservation success story. Since 1995, due to better law enforcement, monitoring, and other actions, the overall rhino numbers have steadily risen. The poaching epidemic, the IUCN warns, could dramatically slow and possibly reverse population gains.

The population growth is also being stymied by South Africa's private game farmers, who breed rhinos for sport hunting and tourism and for many years have helped rebuild rhino numbers. Many of them are getting out of the business due to the high costs of security and other risks associated with the poaching invasions.

Those who still have rhinos on their farms will often pay a veterinarian to cut the horns off—under government supervision—to dissuade poachers, but the process costs more than $2,000 and has to be repeated when the horns grow back every two years. Even then the farmers are stuck with horns that are illegal to sell—and which criminals seek to obtain.

Room for Debate

Rhino killings and the trade in their horns will be a major topic at a high-profile conference, the 16th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), which opens in Bangkok March 3. What won't surprise Gwin is if the issue of sustainably harvesting rhino horns from live animals comes up for discussion.

"It's an idea that seems to be gaining traction among some South African politicians and law enforcement circles," he said, noting that the international conservation community strongly opposes any talk of legalizing the trade of rhino horn, sustainably harvested or not. The bottom line for all parties in the discussion is clear, said Gwin: "The slaughter has to stop if rhinos are to survive."

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Fitch Ratings warns US over budget fighting

WASHINGTON: Ratings agency Fitch warned Washington on Wednesday that continued political fighting over the government budget and deficit-cutting measures could lead to the US losing its AAA grade.

With the government two days away from enacting the harsh "sequester" budget cuts because political parties cannot agree a more moderate compromise, Fitch said that the policy deadlock could lower confidence in the world's largest economy.

It pointed out that after the $85 billion sequester cuts that begin to take effect Friday comes a battle over a six-month budget, which has to be concluded by March 31 or the government could be shut down.

And shortly after that, on May 19, the country will hit its statutory borrowing limit.

"Implementation of the automatic spending cuts -- the sequester -- and a government shutdown would not prompt a negative rating action," Fitch said in a statement.

"But such an outcome would further erode confidence that timely agreement will be reached on additional deficit-reduction measures necessary to secure the 'AAA' rating."

Fitch, like other rating agencies focused mainly on how the US will reduce its massive deficit and debt burdens over the medium term, said that the sequester itself was not bad.

It called the 2011 poison-pill deal between Democrats and Republicans, originally aimed at scaring them into a more moderate deficit-cutting plan, the government's "only substantive agreement on medium-term deficit reduction" so far.

But it acknowledged projections that implementing the sequester's $85 billion in targeted cuts over the next seven months, and $110 billion in reductions for the 2014 fiscal year, would slow economic growth.

"A re-profiling of the spending cuts would support the economic recovery," Fitch said.

"But eliminating the sequester without putting in place equivalent deficit-reduction measures would imply higher deficits and debt than currently projected by Fitch and increase the pressure on the US sovereign ratings."

- AFP/al

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House panel against considering mercy plea of rape-murder convicts

NEW DELHI: Two months after questioning the rationale behind commuting death sentences of five rape-murder convicts to life imprisonment during then President Pratibha Patil's tenure, a Parliamentary committee has now suggested that the mercy petitions should not be by and large considered for such criminals.

Though the Committee is not in favour of completely knocking out the provision of mercy plea for convicts like those on death row, it wants the government to spell out reasons for grant of pardon.

The Parliament Standing Committee on home affairs - which finalized its report on the Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill, 2012 on Tuesday - also recommended the government to expeditiously dispose off any mercy petition.

Besides, the panel has favoured death sentence for rapists in case the victim dies or is left comatose. It has also agreed to replace the word 'rape' with 'sexual assault' - in sync with the Ordinance on criminal law that was promulgated by President Pranab Mukherjee on February 3 - and suggested including all clauses on capital punishment in the new Bill.

Sources in the home ministry said that the government will withdraw the pending Bill and introduce new Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill, 2013, in Parliament next month. The new Bill, replacing the Ordinance, will incorporate these provisions.

Though the matter concerning mercy pleas was not part of the panel's mandate, it is learnt to have suggested in the wake of strong objections raised by a few members over commutation of death sentence of five rapist-murderers to life imprisonment by President Patil between 2010 and 2012.

Members of the Committee - headed by BJP Rajya Sabha member M Venkaiah Naidu - had on December 27, 2012, referred to four cases involving five rapist-murderers while questioning the government's decision.

The cases include that of Uttar Pradesh's Bantu, who was convicted for raping and killing a five-year-old girl. His mercy petition was disposed off in his favour by President Patil last June. Among others whose death sentences were commuted include Moloi Ram and Santosh Yadav of Madhya Pradesh in February 2011, Satish of UP (May, 2012) and Dharmender Singh (June, 2010).

The last such criminal was hanged in the country was West Bengal's Dhananjoy Chatterjee in August, 2004. He was found guilty of raping and killing a 14-year-old girl in 1990.

Under Article 72 of the Constitution, the President's clemency powers can only be exercised under the government's advice. "The President shall have the power to grant pardons, reprieves, respites or remissions of punishment or to suspend, remit or commute the sentence of any person convicted of any offence," the Article says.

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Bring on the Cuts: Some Want the Sequester

Mark Lucas wouldn't mind seeing America's defense budget cut by billions.

"There's quite a bit of waste within the military," Lucas, who serves as Iowa state director for the conservative group Americans for Prosperity (AFP), told ABC News. "Being in there for 10 years, I've seen quite a bit of it."

With the budget sequester set to kick in on Friday, the former Army ranger is among a small chorus of conservatives saying bring on the cuts.

Read more: Bernanke on Sequester Cuts: Too Much, Too Soon

Lucas cited duplicative equipment purchases, military-run golf courses and lavish food on larger bases -- unlike the chow he endured at a combat operations post in Afghanistan with about 120 other soldiers.

"These guys would have very good food, and I'm talking almost like a buffet style, shrimp and steak once a week, ice cream, all this stuff," Lucas said. "They had Burger Kings and Pizza Huts and McDonald's. And I said to myself, 'Do we really need this?'"

Lucas and AFP would like to see the sequester modified, with federal agencies granted more authority to target the cuts and avoid the more dire consequences. But the group wants the cuts to happen.

"We're very supportive of the sequestration cuts but would prefer to see more targeted cuts at the same level," said the group's spokesman, Levi Russell.

As President Obama and his Cabinet members are sounding the sequester alarm bells, AFP's willingness shows that not everyone is running for the hills.

Charles Dharapak/Pool/AP Photo

Speaker Boehner Hopes Senate 'Gets Off Their Ass' Watch Video

Sequester Showdown: Automatic Spending Cuts Loom Watch Video

President Obama Details Consequences of Sequester Cuts Watch Video

Read more: 57 Terrible Consequences of the Sequester

Obama traveled to Norfolk, Va., on Tuesday to speak at a shipyard about cuts and layoffs to defense contractors. In his most recent weekly radio address, he told Americans that the Navy has already kept an aircraft carrier home instead of deploying it to the Persian Gulf. And last week, he spoke before national TV cameras at the White House, warning that first responders would be laid off.

Homeland Security Secretary Jane Napolitano has warned that the sequester will "leave critical infrastructure vulnerable to attacks." Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood has warned that air travel will back up after the Federal Aviation Administration furloughs air traffic controllers. And the heads of 18 other federal agencies told Congress that terrible things will happen unless the sequester is pushed off.

Some Republicans have accused the president of scaremongering to gin up popular support for tax hikes. Obama has warned of calamity and demanded compromise in the next breath, and a few Republicans have rejected this as a false choice.

Read more: Boehner Hopes Senate 'Gets Off Their Ass'

"I don't think the president's focused on trying to find a solution to the sequester," House Speaker John Boehner told reporters at a press conference on Tuesday. "For 16 months, the president's been traveling all over the country holding rallies, instead of sitting down with Senate leaders in order to try to forge an agreement over there in order to move the bill."

After Obama spoke to governors at the this week, Republican Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal told ABC News' Jonathan Karl outside the White House that the president is exaggerating the sequester's consequences.

"He's trying to scare the American people," Jindal said. "He's trying to distort the impact."

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Rental market for private homes may soften: analyst

SINGAPORE: Landlords of private homes may see the rental market softening when higher property taxes kick in next year, as these investors grapple with higher holding costs.

Owning luxury or investment homes will incur higher property taxes starting January 2014.

For private homes not occupied by owners, new marginal property tax rates of 12 to 20 per cent will be levied in addition to the current 10 per cent.

Coupled with the growing number of vacant apartments, industry players say Singapore's rental market is likely to soften.

Colin Tan, research head at Chesterton Suntec International said: "With the taxes especially, on vacant properties, which means you cannot seek relief from the taxman, investors now have to be a bit more cautious in trusting what the agents or sellers are telling them. What the tax does is to increase holding costs for investors.

"Going forward, I see rentals could soften because even at today's statistics - end of last year - there have been 12,000 vacant apartments. Can you imagine under the new tax regime, the landlord will have to start to look for tenants. And that makes a big difference."

The top one per cent of owner-occupied homes, about 12,000 units, will pay more taxes. This is on top of the various stamp duties imposed from the seven rounds of cooling measures.

But experts say Singapore properties remain attractive long-term investments for foreign buyers.

Kelvin Tay, regional chief investment officer at Southern APAC, UBS, said: "The number of foreign buyers as a proportion of total buyers, has actually dropped to 7 percent. If you are talking about the very high-end properties, you are talking about competition from other top global cities like London, San Francisco, New York, and not just Singapore. So you have to compare the real returns from the perspective of all these jurisdictions. Then you got to think about the regulatory regimes, the taxes that are in place."

Edmund Leow, head of tax and wealth management at Baker & McKenzie.Wong & Leow said: "We have to look at income tax, property, capital gain tax, estate duty and all kinds of other taxes. On an overall basis, Singapore is still fairly attractive to other foreigners, most other countries are also introducing similar measures."

- CNA/xq

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Afzal Guru 'justified' Parliament attack in letter written four years ago

SRINAGAR: Parliament attack convict Mohammad Afzal Guru had in a letter, purportedly written by him over four years ago, said that there was no need to be ashamed of the December 13 attack on Parliament, but had stopped short of owning any responsibility for it.

In the letter written to editor of a local Urdu weekly, Guru, who was hanged in Delhi's Tihar jail on February 9, asked Hizbul Mujahideen chief Syed Salahuddin not to be "ashamed of December 13" and stop terming the attack as a "conspiracy".

Editor of the Urdu weekly Shabnum Qayoom said that he had been receiving Guru's letters and articles and is sure that this letter was written by him.

"I used to receive his (Guru's) letters and articles, so this was nothing new. The handwriting is the same as the previous letters and articles. I do not care if people believe it to be authentic or not," he said.

Asked why he did not publish the letter for four years, he said he did not deem it appropriate.

"I believe he was swept by emotions. He was not involved but he thought that as there was no way for escape, why not accept and achieve martyrdom. I did not think it was appropriate to publish the letter that time as it would have been taken as an evidence against him, but now that he is no more, I went ahead with it," he said.

Guru had said in the letter, "I request Salahuddin to not call the attack of December 13 as a conspiracy. It pains my heart. The attacks are related to Kashmir issue. If the attack was a conspiracy, then the whole struggle is a conspiracy. We should not be ashamed of December 13".

He said as long as the Kashmir issue is kept unresolved, India and its rulers will have "temporary peace".

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Sharks Warn Off Predators By Wielding Light Sabers

Diminutive deep-sea sharks illuminate spines on their backs like light sabers to warn potential predators that they could get a sharp mouthful, a new study suggests.

Paradoxically, the sharks seem to produce light both to hide and to be conspicuous—a first in the world of glowing sharks. (See photos of other sea creatures that glow.)

"Three years ago we showed that velvet belly lanternsharks [(Etmopterus spinax)] are using counter-illumination," said lead study author Julien Claes, a biologist from Belgium's Catholic University of Louvain, by email.

In counter-illumination, the lanternsharks, like many deep-sea animals, light up their undersides in order to disguise their silhouette when seen from below. Brighter bellies blend in with the light filtering down from the surface. (Related: "Glowing Pygmy Shark Lights Up to Fade Away.")

Fishing the 2-foot-long (60-centimeter-long) lanternsharks up from Norwegian fjords and placing them in darkened aquarium tanks, the researchers noticed that not only do the sharks' bellies glow, but they also had glowing regions on their backs.

The sharks have two rows of light-emitting cells, called photophores, on either side of a fearsome spine on the front edges of their two dorsal fins.

Study co-author Jérôme Mallefet explained how handling the sharks and encountering their aggressive behavior hinted at the role these radiant spines play.

"Sometimes they flip around and try to hit you with their spines," said Mallefet, also from Belgium's Catholic University of Louvain. "So we thought maybe they are showing their weapon in the dark depths."

To investigate this idea, the authors analyzed the structure of the lanternshark spines and found that they were more translucent than other shark spines.

This allowed the spines to transmit around 10 percent of the light from the glowing photophores, the study said.

For Predators' Eyes Only

Based on the eyesight of various deep-sea animals, the researchers estimated that the sharks' glowing spines were visible from several meters away to predators that include harbor seals (Phoca vitulina), harbor porpoises (Phocoena phocoena), and blackmouth catsharks (Galeus melastomus).

"The spine-associated bioluminescence has all the characteristics to play the right role as a warning sign," said Mallefet.

"It's a magnificent way to say 'hello, here I am, but beware I have spines,'" he added.

But these luminous warning signals wouldn't impede the sharks' pursuit of their favorite prey, Mueller's bristle-mouth fish (Maurolicus muelleri), the study suggested. These fish have poorer vision than the sharks' predators and may only spot the sharks' dorsal illuminations at much closer range.

For now, it remains a mystery how the sharks create and control the lights on their backs. The glowing dorsal fins could respond to the same hormones that control the belly lights, suggested Mallefet, but other factors may also be involved.

"MacGyver" of Bioluminescence

Several other species use bioluminescence as a warning signal, including marine snails (Hinea brasiliana), glowworms (Lampyris noctiluca) and millipedes (Motyxia spp.).

Edith Widder, a marinebiologist from the Ocean Research and Conservation Association who was not involved in the current study, previously discovered a jellyfish whose bioluminescence rubs off on attackers that get too close.

"It's like paint packages in money bags at banks," she explained.

"Any animal that was foolish enough to go after it," she added "gets smeared all over with glowing particles that make it easy prey for its predators."

Widder also points out that glowing deep-sea animals often put their abilities to diverse uses. (Watch: "Why Deep-Sea Creatures Glow.")

"There are many examples of animals using bioluminescence for a whole range of different functions," she said.

Mallefet agrees, joking that these sharks are the "MacGyver of bioluminescence."

"Just give light to this shark species and it will use it in any possible way."

And while Widder doesn't discount the warning signal theory, "another possibility would be that it could be to attract a mate."

Lead author Julien Claes added by email, "I also discovered during my PhD thesis that velvet belly lanternsharks have glowing organs on their sexual parts."

And that, he admits, "makes it very easy, even for a human, to distinguish male and female of this species in the dark!"

The glowing shark study appeared online in the February 21 edition of Scientific Reports.

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'93 WTC Bombing Crushed Lives, Not Memories

Edward Smith remembers vividly the call from the morgue 20 years ago today, that his pregnant wife had died in the World Trade Center bombing hours before she was supposed to start her maternity leave.

"It seems like kind of yesterday sometimes," he told ABC News, "but it seems like a long time ago, too."

Today marks the 20th anniversary of the 1993 WTC bombing, which was overshadowed eight years later by the 9/11 attacks. Six people died and about 1,000 were injured after terrorists detonated a truck bomb in the parking garage of the World Trade Center's North Tower Feb. 26, 1993.

Four of the six killed -- Robert Kirkpatrick, 61, Stephen A. Knapp, 47, William Macko, 57, and Monica Rodriguez Smith, 35 -- were employees of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which owned the buildings. John DiGiovanni, 45, a dental-supply salesman visiting the World Trade Center, and Wilfredo Mercado, 37, a purchasing agent for Windows on the World restaurant, also died.

To commemorate the event, ABC News spoke with several people affected by the bombing -- a widower, a former Port Authority executive director, a plaintiff's attorney and a jury foreman -- to illustrate how the bombing resonates 20 years later.

EDWARD SMITH: Husband of pregnant Monica Rodriguez Smith, who died in the bombing.

Edward and Monica Rodriguez Smith on their wedding day, Aug. 31, 1990.

September 11: World Trade Center Time Lapse Watch Video

Edward Smith, 50, remembers where he was Feb. 26, 1993, when he heard the news.

"I was up in Boston, and I had heard there was a fire at the [World] Trade Center," Smith told ABCNews.com last week. "I turned the TV on, and eventually heard there was an actual bombing, and drove down as quickly as I could."

Smith said he couldn't reach his wife, Monica Rodriguez Smith, a secretary for a mechanical supervisor for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey who worked in the World Trade Center, for "hours and hours."

He said he didn't hear from her or anything about her until he contacted the New York City morgue at 11:30 p.m. that evening.

"Obviously, I was informed that I should come there," Smith said.

He and his wife had been married for a little more than three years, he said, and Feb. 26 was to be Monica's last day of work before she went on maternity leave. They were expecting their first child, a boy, to be named Eddie.

"She had worked at the Port Authority for at least 12 years," Smith said. "And she had just gotten an award for never having a sick day. That was a little thing you remember."

Smith said the World Trade Center was where he met his wife the first time.

"I was a sales guy, selling to the Port Authority, and she was the admin [secretary] for one of the guys," he said. "For the first two years, she wouldn't go out with me.

"She said, 'Do you know how many knuckleheads come in here and ask me out? What makes you different?'" Smith recalled Monica's saying.

It took her two years to go out on a date with him, Smith said.

The couple tied the knot Aug. 31, 1990. Smith said he even bought the house in which he grew up on Long Island to raise their family.

But after the events of Feb. 26, 1993, Smith said, it was hard to stay in New York. Shortly after the bombing, he moved to Arizona and later to California.

"There were too many reminders, it was too much," he said.

Smith now resides in Phoenix, but makes a trip to New York every year for the memorial in February.
This year is no exception.

"It's kind of an interesting feeling," he said of the 20-year anniversary. "It seems like kind of yesterday sometimes, but it seems like a long time ago, too."

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Football: Cahill bemoans Chelsea fixture pile-up

LONDON: Chelsea centre-back Gary Cahill thinks the club's hopes of qualifying for the Champions League are being hindered by what he describes as "ridiculous" fixture congestion.

The European champions lost 2-0 at Manchester City on Sunday to give hope to the teams bidding to pip them to a top-four berth.

Tottenham Hotspur could climb above Chelsea into third place with victory at West Ham United later on Monday, while beleaguered Arsenal are just two points behind Rafael Benitez's side in fifth place.

Sunday's game was Chelsea's 46th this season -- more than Arsenal (41), Tottenham and Manchester City (both 38), and sixth-placed Everton (32).

The Blues' calendar has been swelled by December's trip to Japan for the Club World Cup, while they also remain in contention in both the FA Cup and the Europa League.

It may mean more matches for Chelsea's fans to take in, but Cahill said it is having a harmful impact on the squad.

"Unfortunately, it does take its toll," he told Chelsea TV.

"I think if you look back at the start of the season with the spark and the zip we had -- I think sometimes a little bit of fatigue plays its part.

"We haven't had a clear week for about 29 weeks and you're expecting to go into games feeling 100 percent fresh, trying to push on further in all competitions.

"I think at this stage of the season, it's not an excuse, but fatigue has to play a part. They (Manchester City) had a clear week and we've had a ridiculous amount of games."

There is little respite on Chelsea's horizon, with Wednesday's FA Cup tie at Middlesbrough followed by a league game with West Bromwich Albion and the away leg of their Europa League last-16 tie with Romanians Steaua Bucharest.

"It's something that we have got to deal with," Cahill said.

"We've got the two cups and obviously trying to get the Champions League spot. That's our aim from now until the end of the season. That's our focus. We have to go again. We are still in that position.

"All three are in our own hands so we need to keep going and plug away and make sure we achieve the goals we want to achieve."

Cahill believes the fatigue in the squad was evident in their porous defensive performance at City.

"I had way too much (to do)," he said.

"Normally at a big club, in a game you probably get asked to do three or four important things in a game. (Against City) we probably had 20 or 25.

"Unfortunately, if you keep getting asked the question, ultimately there's going to be a goal."

- AFP/fa

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Chopper scam: CBI names ex-IAF chief SP Tyagi as suspect

NEW DELHI: Armed with documents from Italy, CBI today named former Air Force Chief S P Tyagi in its preliminary enquiry (PE) into allegations of kickbacks in the Rs 3,600 crore VVIP chopper deal, the second former defence services chief to figure in a scam probe.

Besides the former IAF chief, 10 others including his cousins — Julie, Docsa and Sandeep Tyagi have also been named along with four companies in the PE, CBI sources said here.

CBI has registered the PE to probe allegations that some "middlemen have influenced the deal in favour" of the Italian company AgustaWestland for the supply of 12 AW-101 VVIP/VIP helicopters.

It is also learnt that parent company Finmeccanica paid a commission of seven million Euros (about Rs 50 crore) to the middlemen out of which huge sums were transferred to seven Indian nationals through Tunisia and Mauritius, the PE said.

The money was sent in the garb of engineering contracts with two Indian companies — IDS Infotech and Aeromatrix, it said.

This is the second instance when a former services chief figures in a CBI inquiry. Former Admiral Sushil Kumar was named in a CBI case to probe alleged kickbacks in the purchase of Barak missiles in early 2000.

The sources said suspected European middlemen Carlo Gerosa, Christian Michel and Guido Haschkhe, advocate Gautam Khaitan formerly associated with Aeromatrix and its CEO Praveen Bakshi, former Finmeccanica chairman Giuseppe Orsi, former AgustaWestland CEO Bruno Spagnolini have also been named.

Besides Finmeccanica and AgustaWestland, IDS Infotech and Aeromatrix also figure in the PE, they said.

The team of CBI officials, which returned from Italy with some documents from Finmeccanica and public prosecutor, found enough material in them to start its probe in the alleged payoffs of Rs 362 crore in the helicopter deal, they said.

All the suspects named by the CBI in its PE have denied allegations of receiving or giving kickbacks in the deal.

The sources said the they are likely to be called for questioning in connection with the case.

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