World in brief

Gunmen kill three near mine protest

Indonesia: Unknown gunmen killed three people near a gold mine in Papua province where thousands of striking workers are demanding higher pay.

The Grasberg mine employs 12,000 workers, 90 per cent of whom walked off the job on September 15 demanding pay rises.

Two workers were shot by police last week who were trying to control a crowd and three were killed by unknown gunmen.

10 AU soldiers killed during attacks

Somalia: The African Union said today that 10 soldiers had been killed and two are still missing after intense fighting with Somali insurgents.

The casualties occurred when AU soldiers took the last neighbourhood held by Somali insurgents in Mogadishu.

But witnesses said that the al-Shabaab militia later displayed more than 60 bodies and spokesman Sheik Ali Mohamud Rage claimed that they had killed 70 AU soldiers.

At least 7 die in latest rebel attacks

Philippines: Muslim rebels killed four soldiers and three police in attacks in Zamboanga Sibugay province just days after 19 soldiers died in clashes with the guerillas.

The violence is severely testing a ceasefire as the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front hold peace talks. Rebels said the attacks were in retaliation for the "indiscriminate shelling" of Muslim villages.

Reconstruction boss to face fraud charge

US: The former president of a US company surrendered on Thursday to face charges of overcharging the government for overseas reconstruction projects in Afghanistan.

Derish Wolff faces one count of conspiracy to defraud the government and five counts of making false statements.

Prosecutors alleged that Mr Wolff led a scheme to overbill the government in connection with hundreds of millions of dollars in overseas construction projects.

Australia goes to bat for 1902 pair

Australia: The government said today that it would tell Britain that two Australian soldiers executed in 1902 for war crimes in South Africa were denied fair trials.

The British government rejected a petition in June to pardon Lieutenants Harry Morant and Peter Handcock.

The attorney general is preparing a submission outlining defects in the court-martial.

Fifth cut off term of killer soldier

US: The army has cut 2.5 years off the 12.5 year prison sentence of a soldier who pleaded guilty to killing a Taliban captive in Afghanistan.

Pfc David Lawrence could be released after about eight years. One assessment of his mental state diagnosed schizophrenia and post-traumatic stress disorder but another found no severe mental illness.