Teacher kills off celebrities on Twitter

A man famous for killing celebrities using fake Twitter accounts has announced JK Rowling's death. Source: AAP

FIDEL Castro, Mikhail Gorbachev and Pope Benedict XVI - Italian Tommasso Debenedetti has killed them all in fake tweets aimed at exposing shoddy journalism that have earned him global notoriety.

The latest victim of Debenedetti's unusual hobby is British author JK Rowling, whose death in an accident he announced from a fake Twitter account purporting to belong to fellow writer John Le Carre.

"Death works well on Twitter," Debenedetti, who is in his 40s and says he teaches literature at a school in Rome, told AFP in a phone interview.

Debenedetti said that when he saw his Le Carre account had 2500 followers including journalists from major British, German and US media, "I decided to make John Le Carre say JK Rowling had died."

Debenedetti said the tweet was then retweeted hundreds of times and a Chilean television station even gave the false news as fact.

The literary fake artist says his aim in all of this is to "show that Twitter has become a news agency - the least reliable in the world.

"Unfortunately, journalism works on speed. False news spreads exponentially," he said, pointing out that retweets by journalists lend credibility to rumours even if they are not actually published.

"In the end, everyone forgets what the original source was," said Debenedetti, who in perhaps another sleight of hand insists his first name be spelled "Tommasso" and not the more usual "Tommaso".

Among his many claims to internet infamy, Debenedetti boasts of having forced Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi to deny the pope had died after sending a false tweet purportedly from the Vatican's Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone.

He claims his tweet announcing the death of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad made the price of oil go up and that another one about the demise of last Soviet leader Gorbachev prompted someone to go and update his Wikipedia page with the day of his death.

Debenedetti calls these his "games" and appears unconcerned about any unease they may cause, saying that he comes out and claims the rumour as his own invention within an hour of sending the first tweet.

"I only target leading figures who have all the means at their disposal to respond very quickly. I would never announce the death of a lesser-known writer or my next door neighbour," he said.

"I don't want it to go too far. I'm not a crook."

Journalists "should be more prudent and carry out all the necessary checks, particularly in local media, local radio and internet sites which fall most easily into this trap", he said.

"I just want to show up the fragility of social media, where anyone can be anyone," he said.

Debenedetti also has a more postmodern literary side and he has created false Facebook pages for writers Umberto Eco and Mario Vargas Llosa, quoting them saying improbable things that they never said.

The grandson of a famous Italian literary critic, he has also authored dozens of fake interviews with famous writers which he says he has managed to place in a variety of media as the real thing.

It was Debenedetti's made up interview with Philip Roth that revealed his elaborate ruse after some US journalists asked the famous writer about some comments against US President Barack Obama quoted in some media that he had in fact never made.

Debenedetti does not regret his actions, saying only: "I just wanted to see how far I could take it."

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New alerts for Tasmanian bushfires

THE Tasmanian Fire Service has issued a bushfire emergency warning for a large bushfire burning at the Tasman Highway near the east coast town of Bicheno.

The fire is expected to put the area of Coles Bay Road south of Apsley River as well as Tasman Highway south of Tower Hill at high risk on Saturday afternoon.

Friendly Beaches Road, Courland Bay Road, Tower Hill Fire Trail, Harveys Farm Road, Coles Bay Road are all closed to inward traffic. The Tasman Highway is closed from the Coles Bay turnoff to Bicheno.

Residents are being told to activate their bushfire plans as it is likely to be too late to leave.

Meanwhile, another bushfire is causing concern at Montumana and communities at Speedwell Road, Gilmore Property, Coopers Road are being advised to activate their bushfire plans.

Four major fires are burning out of control and threatening communities along the east coast and central Tasmania, with thousands of people stranded as roads are cut off.

Up to 77 fire crews are fighting the blazes.

Up to 1000 people were reported to have been rescued from beaches by boats overnight but police could not confirm the number.

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NZ shares fall from near five-year high

NEW Zealand shares fell, as a rally that has pushed the NZX 50 Index to near a five-year high, faltered on concern the gains have left some equities fully valued.

Telecom paced the decline and Xero dipped.

The NZX 50 fell 7.328 points, or 0.2 per cent, to 4075.038. Within the index, 18 stocks fell, 20 rose and 12 were unchanged. Turnover was $70.1 million.

Telecom, the biggest phone company on the exchange, fell 1.4 per cent to $2.18. Xero, the cloud-based accounting service that has soared 171 per cent in a year, dropped 1.1 per cent to $7.40.

"Investors need to be a little bit careful - on fundamentals some stocks look fully priced," said Grant Williamson, a director at Hamilton Hindin Greene.

"It will be interesting as we go into February and get earnings season underway to see how those companies are performing."

Those that aren't over-valued include Chorus, the network company spun off from Telecom in 2011, whose shares tumbled last month on the threat of increased control of its prices from the regulator.

Its shares fell 2 per cent to $2.91 on Friday and have dropped 14 per cent in the past month.

Contact Energy, another that Mr Williamson says isn't overpriced, rose 0.8 per cent to $5.32. Potential listing of state-owned power companies this year have seen the stock marked down.

Fletcher Building rose 0.2 per cent to $8.48. The company has sought clearance to sell its CSP Coating galvanised steel unit to Hamilton-based Perry Group as it looks to replace some of its treated metal products with imports.

Skellerup Holdings rose 3.1 per cent to $1.67 and has gained 19 per cent in the past 12 months. Tourism Holdings, the campervan company, jumped 9.2 per cent to 71 cents.

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US capital cops urge gun control

WASHINGTON'S police chief has spoken out in favour of tougher US gun laws with statistics showing the homicide rate in the nation's capital at its lowest in half a century.

Eighty-eight murders were committed in the District of Columbia in the past year, compared with the late 1980s and early 1990s when the annual number routinely surpassed 400 in the midst of a crack cocaine epidemic.

But while Washington has some of the toughest gun laws in the country, guns nonetheless figured in 59 of the homicides in the city last year.

Debate over US gun laws raged last month following the massacre of 20 first-grade students and six teachers at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, by an unhinged teenager using a Bushmaster assault rifle.

Asked about a possible ban over such military-style weapons, Metropolitan Police Department chief Cathy Lanier told reporters on Thursday law enforcement cannot "stop everything from happening," but can reduce risks.

"High capacity magazines and automatic rifles - those are two things we ought to be thinking about in terms of reducing the risk (of homicide) and reducing harm," she said.

The Sandy Hook gunman, Adam Lanza, 20, also killed his mother, who owned the weapon he used to kill the children, before taking his own life in one of the worst mass shootings in US history.

President Barack Obama said at the time America must act to prevent such massacres but reform of gun laws is politically unpalatable given that the right to bear arms is preserved in the US constitution.

Washington, a city of 617,000, long ago shed its reputation as "the murder capital of the world". The drug trade and crime has waned amid an influx of new residents and investment.

But although 2012 was the first year in decades in which murders fell below the 100 mark, anyone in Washington who wants a handgun, rifle or shotgun can easily buy one by taking a short drive into neighbouring Maryland or Virginia.

In the wake of the Sandy Hook killings, opponents of tougher gun laws, led by the National Rifle Association, have launched a counter-campaign to train armed guards for every school in the nation that wants them.

Washington Mayor Vincent Gray said the homicide rate for 2012 represented "a tremendous milestone for public safety". Four deaths resulting from self-defence were excluded from last year's figures.

Generally speaking, homicide has been trending downwards in the US since 2000, after doubling from the early 1960s to the late 1970s, according to a US Justice Department analysis.

New York saw 414 murders last year - nowhere near its 2245 homicides in 1990. But in other cities such as Chicago, where 506 murders were reported in 2012, up 16 per cent on the year, homicide remains stubbornly high.

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Man burned in Sydney house fire

A MAN has been seriously injured in a house fire in Sydney's west.

About 3pm on Thursday, fire and rescue crews were called to Bindaree St, Hebersham, after reports of a large explosion and fire in a house.

A 45-year-old man was located at the scene suffering severe burns to his back, head and legs. He has been taken to hospital.

The single storey brick home was well alight when crews arrived.

They remain at the scene fighting the blaze, which will be investigated.

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Man, grandsons found after bush ordeal

A MAN and his two grandsons have been found after they went missing while bushwalking near Lithgow, west of the Blue Mountains.

A police spokesman confirmed to AAP about 3pm on Thursday the trio had been found.

The spokesman said the 64-year-old man and the children, aged nine and 12, were alive. The state of their health was unknown.

He said the group remained in bushland and would have to be winched to safety.

A search was launched on Wednesday night after the trio failed to return home from a bushwalk.

On Thursday morning, police located the grandfather's white Nissan Navara near the search area.

The man's mobile phone was traced to the Newnes area, which is where police and emergency services concentrated their search.

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Gales disrupt New Zealand flights

STRONG winds have caused problems for flights coming into the New Zealand cities of Wellington and Blenheim.

Air New Zealand spokeswoman Brigitte Ransom said a flight from Gisborne to Wellington had to stop at Palmerston North due to gale-force winds in the capital.

The diversion caused a scheduled Wellington to Palmerston North flight to be cancelled, Ms Ransom said.

Two return flights between Blenheim and Wellington and one return flight between Blenheim and Auckland were also cancelled due to a big blow in the Marlborough town, while one flight from Auckland to Blenheim was diverted to Nelson.

There were also reports of a Jetstar flight from Auckland to Wellington being forced back to Auckland because of the gales.

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Home prices fall, again

Home prices eased 0.4 per cent on average across Australia's capital cities during 2012. Source: AAP

AUSTRALIAN home prices have fallen for the second consecutive year as nervous consumers continue to sit on the sidelines of the housing market.

Home prices eased 0.4 per cent on average across Australia's eight capital cities during 2012, according to the monthly RP Data/Rismark Home Value index released on Wednesday.

Melbourne homeowners fared worst, with prices down 2.9 per cent on average over the year, while Brisbane and Adelaide prices were both down 0.8 per cent.

Darwin had the strongest housing market, with prices up 8.9 per cent, while Sydney prices rose 1.5 per cent and Perth prices climbed 0.8 per cent.

Home prices fell 0.3 per cent across capital cities during December.

RP Data senior research analyst Cameron Kusher said home prices had fallen for two consecutive years and were now 5.7 per cent lower than their historic highs of November 2010.

There was a bright spot in the data, however, with house prices up 1.8 per cent from their lowest point set in May 2012.

But Mr Kusher said recent interest rate cuts had not been enough to spur growth growth in the sector.

"It has become clear that adjustments to official interest rates by the Reserve Bank are not having the same impact on consumers as they have in the past," Mr Kusher said in a statement.

The Reserve Bank of Australia's cash rate, currently at 3.0 per cent, is 1.75 percentage points lower than its level at the start of November 2011.

Over the same period, standard mortgage rates have dropped an average of 1.35 percentage points.

Mr Kusher said that with consumers saving more and spending less, the housing market was likely to remain relatively subdued through 2013, though he did expect prices to rise over the year.

CommSec chief economist Craig James said property investors were still making money, with RP Data figures showing returns from the sector up four per cent over calendar 2012.

"While Aussies are cautious on going into debt, (the) population is still rising while home building has remained weak," Mr James said.

"So rents are still rising and so are investment returns on property."

Sydney remained the most expensive place to buy in 2012, with a median house price of $665,000, while Hobart was the cheapest, with a median house price of $325,000.

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UN hits DR Congo rebels with sanctions

THE UN security council has slapped an arms embargo on M23 rebels and their alleged Rwandan allies, the FDLR, amid a flare-up of violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo's eastern region.

The council committee tasked with monitoring sanctions on the Congo also imposed a travel ban and asset freeze on two key M23 figures: the group's civilian leader Jean-Marie Runiga Lugerero and Lieutenant Colonel Eric Badege, a commander suspected of being responsible for the deaths of women and children.

The decision came just hours before Rwanda was set to join the council as a non-permanent member on Tuesday.

"We believe these designations will directly help advance the goal of a sustainable peace in eastern DRC," US Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice said in a statement.

"We urge the rank and file of both the M23 and the FDLR to defect and demobilise in order to disassociate themselves from the sanctioned groups."

UN experts accuse Congo's neighbours Rwanda and Uganda of backing the M23, an accusation both countries deny.

The security council has already issued targeted sanctions, the latest round at the end of November, against three M23 military leaders - Sultani Makenga, Baudoin Ngaruye and Innocent Kaina - but had yet to sanction the entire group.

Britain's Africa minister Mark Simmonds welcomed the agreement, adding: "We remain committed to finding long-term solutions which will end the cycle of violence in the DRC."

"The dialogue needed to resolve the crisis must ensure that all violence stops, that external support to M23 ends and that there is no impunity for M23 commanders and others who have committed serious human rights abuses, including the FDLR," he added.

Simmonds called for "leadership" from the Congolese government to address the underlying causes of the conflict.

The UN's Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights has accused the M23 of arbitrary executions, forced disappearances, degrading treatment and rape of civilians in and around Goma after taking over the eastern Congo city in November.

But M23 rebels have rejected the claim.

"For years, the FDLR has committed atrocities against civilians and remains a threat to the stability of North and South Kivu," Rice said.

"Today's action against the FDLR is a critical step toward ending impunity and advancing peace."

She warned of "additional action" by the council if necessary "against those who persist in providing external support to M23 or act in violation of the sanctions regime and arms embargo."

Although the council has repeatedly denounced external support to the M23, it has not cited Rwanda or Uganda by name so far.

Congolese military officials allege that the M23 have formed an alliance with the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda in a bid to gain more territory in the region.

The M23 was formed in April by former fighters in the National Congress for the Defence of the People, an ethnic Tutsi rebel group that was integrated into the army under a 2009 peace deal whose terms the mutineers claim were never fully implemented.

The FDLR's members are ethnic Hutus who were soldiers in the Rwandan army before being forced out of the country in the wake of the 1994 genocide, which killed 800,000 people - mostly Tutsis.

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Secret SA Labor papers set for release

THE release of previously secret cabinet documents from when the current South Australian Labor government was first elected in 2002 must be done in a timely fashion, the state opposition says.

Under changes introduced in 2009, confidential papers can now be released after just 10 years rather than 20 years as previously regulated.

At the time, then premier Mike Rann said the shorter period would allow people to see more quickly the decision-making process on key issues.

"I think that's a good thing," Mr Rann said.

But opposition finance spokesman Rob Lucas said previous requests for documents under the new system had taken too long to process.

In some cases the opposition was still waiting for documents that it applied for three years ago, Mr Lucas said.

"Given that the 2002 cabinet documents cover the first 12 months of the incoming minority Labor government, there is likely to be increased interest from media, academics and politicians in the timely release of the cabinet documents," he said on Tuesday.

"Some cynics might also suggest (Premier Jay) Weatherill and his ministers would prefer to see the release of some of these documents delayed until after the March 2014 election."

Among the documents likely to draw strong interest are any related to the agreement between Labor and former independent MP Peter Lewis, who backed the ALP to form a minority government despite previously being a member of the Liberal Party.

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Man missing after canoe tips on NSW river

A MAN remains missing after his canoe tipped over on a river in southwestern NSW.

The man, aged in his late 20s, was paddling on the Murrumbidgee River when the canoe overturned about 2.30pm (AEDT) on Sunday.

He failed to resurface, police say.

Police and emergency services were called to a caravan park at Darlington Point and a search was begun.

It was suspended at nightfall and resumed at first light on Monday involving local police officers, the State Emergency Service and Volunteer Rescue Association.

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UN mission leaves East Timor

THE United Nations has ended its peacekeeping mission in East Timor, leaving the country without any direct security assistance for the first time since a spasm of political and ethnic violence in 2006 almost overwhelmed its shaky, post-independence government.

In recent weeks, the last of a force of 1,600 police and military officers from countries around the world have been leaving the country ahead of the formal end of the deployment on Monday, which is a significant milestone in the country's journey following its independence from Indonesia in 1999.

The United Nations and other foreign development organisations will remain in the country supporting its development for years to come. It has oil and gas-reserves, but these are not creating the employment opportunities needed for a country of 1.2 million, more than 60 per cent of whom are under 18. The education system is not supporting the development of people with the skills needed to change this.

"The Timorese people and its leaders have shown courage and unswerving resolve to overcome great challenges," said Finn Reske-Nielsen, the head of the mission. "As peacekeepers depart, we look forward to a new phase in this relationship focusing on social and economic development."

The United Nations organised the 1999 referendum that resulted in an overwhelming vote for independence but also violence and destruction by withdrawing Indonesian troops and their militia proxies. The world body directly administered the country until 2002, when it formally became a nation.

A UN security mission was established to help the country's barely existing state and security institutions. That mission ended in 2005. But the violence and political turmoil in 2006, which included an assassination attempt on the president by a former rebel, led to a new peacekeeping presence. Much of the UN's work has been focused on training the country's own police and army, and security conditions have now improved.

"It is an emotional moment to say goodbye to them and we are hoping that they can assemble with their families after months and years on their mission in East Timor," East Timor Police deputy commissioner Afonso de Jesus said on Saturday. "Like it or not, the East Timor national police is ready to assume our responsibility."

President Taur Matan Ruak mentioned the end of the UN mission in his New Year's Eve message to the nation, saying the country now enjoyed peace and stability.

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NDIS, education before election: Gillard

PRIME Minister Julia Gillard says her government has two major items to implement in 2013 before going to an election - introducing the National Disability Insurance Scheme and undertaking further major education reforms.

Ms Gillard took time off from her holidays to make an appearance at the Woodford Folk Festival on Sunday.

She says the government would continue to work to keep the economy strong and jobs rolling, but the other two issues were her "two big ambitions for 2013 before we get around to winning that election".

"I want to see us launch the National Disability Insurance Scheme on the first of July," she told the festival crowd.

"Then the other thing I've got a really big focus on is delivering on further education reforms.

"We had a fair old wake up call in international testing (recently). We can make sure our kids can get a world-class education."

She said the government had already made changes to a number of schools that had been struggling.

"What we've got to do now is take it and upscale and give it to every school and make a difference to every school.

"I'm absolutely determined that we're battling through on that."

A federal election is not due to until October next year, where Labor hopes to regain its majority.

Ms Gillard has led a minority government with the support of key independents Tony Windsor and Rob Oakeshott since 2010, but she said the situation had not dented her agenda.

She pointed to a number of achievements including introducing the carbon tax, putting healthcare on a sustainable footing, introducing the Queensland flood levy, education and aged care reforms. But did not mention asylum seeker policy.

"The really big decisions this government's taken would be effectively the same," she said.

"We would have done the same things as a majority government because they are the right thing to do.

She said the introduction of carbon pricing was in some ways made better by the negotiations needed in a minority government.

"It meant we could work across both houses - the house and the Senate - not just put something in the Senate and have it knocked over, which was the history of the Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme, but actually work in a way which the proposition that went to the parliament was going to get carried."

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NSW man charged with stealing guns

A YOUNG man has been charged with the theft of 22 firearms, some of which have not been recovered.

Some time between December 22 and 27, the guns were stolen from a farming property at Hillston, in southwestern NSW.

Following an extensive investigation, a 21-year-old man was charged on Saturday at Griffith police station with a raft of theft and firearms offences.

Police have recovered 17 of the stolen guns and continue to search for the remaining firearms.

The man has been granted strict conditional bail.

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