Israel Hits Hamas Targets in Gaza Strip Following Teenagers' Deaths

Flames are seen after a blast on the top floor of the family home of an alleged abductor in the West Bank City of HebronReuters

Israel pounded dozens of targets in the Gaza Strip overnight as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed that military action will not be over until the teenagers' murderers are found.

Following the discovery of the bodies of the three teenagers in the West Bank, the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) has said the Operation Brother's Keeper is far from over.

The IDF said at least 34 suspected Hamas and Islamic jihadist targets were hit.

An IDF statemet said: "Following over 18 rockets which were fired at Israel since Sunday evening, IAF aircraft carried out a precision strike against 34 targets in the Gaza Strip."

"The IDF will continue to act in order to restore the peaceful living to the civilians of the state of Israel. The Hamas terror organisation and its extensions are solely responsible for any terror activities emanating from the Gaza Strip."

The three young men - Eyal Yifrach, 19, Gil-ad Shaar, 16 and Naftali Fraenkel, 16 – who went missing on 12 June were found dead in Halhul, near Hebron.

Reports from Palestine suggest houses in Beit Lahia suffered heavy damage in the Israeli helicopter bombing.

The Israeli attack was said to be in response to the rocket fire from Hamas.

"We want to make clear that if the silence brought by Operation Pillar of Defence [in 2012] is violated and the shooting continues, there are two options: Either Hamas will stop the rocket fire or we will," said Netanyahu.

Expressing "great sorrow" for the teenagers' deaths, he said they were "kidnapped and murdered in cold blood by animals... Hamas is responsible and Hamas will pay".

The Israeli cabinet is also set to hold an emergency meeting at 09:30am local time in the backdrop of the latest events.

Besides, a large contingent of Israeli ground forces has been stationed in the West Bank as the situation escalated.

China Worried as Hong Kong Braces for Mass Pro-Democracy Protest

Organisers of a pro-democracy referendum empty a ballot box in Hong Kong.Reuters

Hong Kong is braced for its largest pro-democracy demonstration in more than a decade as almost 800,000 people voted for democratic reforms in an unofficial referendum.

Organisers of an annual protest march, marking the day the territory returned to China on July 1, 1997, said they expected several hundred thousands of people to take to the streets in opposition to Beijing's influence in choosing Hong Kong leaders.

"We can see that Beijing is eroding the autonomy of Hong Kong, and we want to show we don't fear central government oppression," said Johnson Yeung, convenor of the Civil Human Rights Front, one of the organisers of the march.

The rally comes days after pro-democracy activists who organised an online vote on ways to enhance Hong Kongers' say in the election of the territory's chief executive said that a total of 792,808 residents cast their ballots.

The referendum was slammed by China as "Illegal", while the Hong Kong government said it had no legal value.

Locals were asked to select what they felt was the best democratic method to appoint the chief executive, who is currently picked by an elite pro-Beijing committee.

China has pledged to allow Hong Kongers to vote a new leader from a shortlist of candidates, after current chief executive Leung Chun-ying concludes his term in 2017.

Pro-democracy activists, however, fear only candidates vetted and approved by Beijing will be allowed to run.

They say universal suffrage should be implemented in the city of seven million and opposition candidates should also be allowed to run.

Since the end of British rule, the July 1 march has been an occasion for residents to air complaints over a range of grievances.

Organisers said that this year the general unhappiness over stunted democratic development might result in a record turnout, higher than in 2003 when half a million people demonstrated against proposed anti-subversion laws.

"Hong Kong people are ready for true democracy without any pre-screening, that's the key message," said Edward Chin, leader of a group of banking and finance workers backing the Occupy Central with Love and Peace movement that organised the democracy referendum.

"This is a strong signal to Beijing that Hong Kong people can express their views in a non-violent way."

Democracy calls have caused concern in Beijing.

A central government "White Paper", claiming that Hong Kong's autonomy is subject to Beijing's authorisation and the leader must be patriotic to China, caused a backlash stirring more support for democratic movements.

Communist Party mouthpiece Global Times has warned Hong Kongers to stay away from the demonstration in an editorial.

"Hong Kong's radical opposition forces are trying with all means to build a war chariot and get as many Hong Kong citizens as possible onto this chariot by deception. Its crashing target is the central government and all the people of the country," the paper wrote.

"[Residents should] not board this war chariot."

NFC Meets Beauty: Japanese Deco Nails That Light Up When You Take a Call

Lumi Deco Nails - false nail stickers that light up from NFC radio wavesAFP

Japanese toy company Takara Tomy has come up with an unusual application for Near Field Communications (NFC) – the company has launched a line of deco false nails for women that light up when you take a phone call.

Deco nails, or rather, false nails are a hugely popular fashion accessory in Japan and often come encrusted with gems and even tiny plastic shapes like flowers, hearts, teddy bears – you name it.

Takara TOMY wants to take it one step further with Lumi Deco Nail, a line of pretty nail stickers in different designs.

Lumi Deco Nails - a wide range of nail stickers targeted at young peopleAFP

Measuring just 0.5mm thick, the nails include micro-thin LEDs that light up when NFC radio waves pass near to your nails, be it when making a phone call on your mobile phone or using an NFC-enabled smartphone or tapping your contactless travel card or payment card on a reader.

NFC, which has the support of MasterCard, Visa, Samsung, EE and the GSMA among others, enables smartphones and POS payment terminals to communicate at short range by being tapped together, using NFC tags and other small transmitters to send and receive information.

As the deco nails are designed to work primarily with the radio waves associated with contactless communications, the phones that Takara Tomy recommends for use with the deco nails are all Android phones by Japanese and Korean brands, such as Samsung, HTC, Sony Xperia, NEC, Sharp, Fujitsu and LG.

Now on sale in Japan, a pack of 16 nail stickers, including a nail file, costs 1,200 yen ($12, £6.95).

Gold Prices Hover Near Two-Month High on Geopolitical Tensions

Gold prices set to drop next week.Reuters

Gold prices hovered near a two month high in London on 30 June as geopolitical tensions in Iraq and the Ukraine propped up the precious metal.

Spot Gold was trading at $1,314.99 an ounce at 9:32 BST in London, Bloomberg data showed. Prices struck $1,325.95 an ounce on 24 June, the highest since 15 April, 2014.

Prices have risen some 2.4% in the second-quarter of 2014.

US Gold for delivery in August shed 0.3% to $1,315.70 on the Comex.

Barclays said in a note to clients: "Gold's recent gains are unlikely to last over the longer term.

"If and when geopolitical tensions ease, we continue to expect gold to return to its downward trajectory."

Commerzbank Corporates & Markets said in a note: The [US] CFTC's data on the market positioning of speculative financial investors on the COMEX, published [27 June] showed that net long positions in silver and gold had been hugely expanded in the week to 24 June...Net long positions in gold doubled to almost 100,000 contracts, putting them at their highest level since the end of March.

"This was attributable both to the covering of short positions and to the expansion of long positions. As such, there is much to suggest that the price recovery seen in recent weeks was largely speculatively driven and that correction potential has built up as a result. According to the All India Gems & Jewellery Trade Federation, only 150 [tones] of gold were imported to India in the first half of [2014], following the unusually high figure of 650 [tones] in the same period [of 2013].

"According to the Federation, gold imports in the second half of the year will depend to a major extent on what political decisions are taken. In July, the new federal budget will be approved for the [2014-15] fiscal year, which is likely to have an impact on imports, for it will then be revealed whether the import restrictions for gold are to be reduced or indeed entirely lifted under the new Prime Minister [Narendra] Modi."

India Gold Imports

Gold and silver imports into India plunged 40% to $33.46bn (£19.66bn, €24.50bn) in the financial year 2013-14 in the wake of hard-hitting government restrictions.

Three upward revisions to the import duties on gold in 2013, to a record 10%, and restrictions tying purchases to exports, discouraged gold buying in Asia's third-largest economy in 2013.

While official imports in 2013 reached 750 tonnes, an additional 200 tonnes was believed to have been smuggled to India, according to estimates from the World Gold Council (WGC).

Newborn Baby Found Stabbed to Death in Cape Town

A knife was found protruding from the baby's chestCredit: Flickr/Walt Stoneburner

A newborn baby has been found stabbed to death in a shallow grave in Cape Town, South Africa.

The child had a knife protruding from its chest when it was discovered wrapped inside a black bag and newspapers in Devon Park, Eersterivier.

James Konja and his friend Dennis Marks were searching for firewood when they stumbled upon the corpse.

"We were on our way to cut wood. Then I saw a hole next to a tree stump," Konja told the Daily Voice.

"I asked Dennis, 'what that is [sic]?' then we saw it is a person."

He said he could see the baby's eyes, and a knife had been put through its chest.

"The backside part of the baby was under the ground. I saw the eyes," said Konja. "The hole, it was a grave, but it wasn't covered with sand and it was deep. The knife was through the baby's chest."

Konja called his wife, a 58-year-old retired nurse called Phoebe, to the scene.

"I am no detective, but there was no blood splatter there and the hole looked neat, like a spade was used," said.

"The persons who did this, the mother or the father, must bandiet [go to jail]."

Marks said: "We do not know who the mother is, but if we hear anything, we will contact the police".

Police spokesman Lieutenant-Colonel Andrè Traut said a concealment of birth case has been opened and no arrests has been made.

India's PM Narendra Modi Proposes Satellite Dedicated to South Asia

India's Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV-C23), carrying five satellites, lifts off from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, north of the southern Indian city of ChennaiReuters

As India successfully fired off its Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV)-23 carrying five satellites into space, Prime Minister Narendra Modi proposed a satellite exclusively for the south Asian region.

Modi, who has been keen on strengthening the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (Saarc) since his takeover, said the Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) should develop a dedicated satellite that could be used in disaster management and as a tool to fight poverty.

"You should develop a Saarc satellite. We should dedicate this satellite to our neighbourhood as India's gift ... India is rooted in our age-old ethos of 'Vasudeva Kutumbakam' [Entire world is a family]. Our space science reflects that. We should share the fruit of this with our neighbouring countries," he said, congratulating the scientists behind the launch of the satellites at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in the southern city of Sriharikota.

The 230-tonnne launch vehicle, with a height of 44.4 metres, was carrying payloads of one each from France, Germany, Singapore and two Canadian satellites.

Modi saw the launch of the satellites of developed nations as "global endorsement of India's space capabilities", adding: "This fills every Indian's heart with pride and I can see it reflected in the joy and satisfaction on your faces."

"We are proud that our programme is indigenous. Generations of scientists have worked to make India a self-reliant space power. Technology has a critical role in realising the vision of a Digital India - the power of 1.2 billion connected Indians. Such technology is fundamentally connected with the common man. As a change agent, it can empower and connect, to transform his life."

In the multi-billion dollar space market, India has emerged as a key player putting 35 foreign satellites into orbit so far.

Countries such as the UK, Denmark, Austria, Switzerland, Israel, Italy, Belgium, South Korea, Indonesia, Argentina, The Netherlands, Algeria and Luxembourg have used Indian launch vehicles to put their satellites in space.

Uruguay President Jose Mujica Brands Fifa 'Old Sons of Bitches' Over Luis Suarez Bite [VIDEO]

Uruguayan President Jose Mujica branded Fifa a bunch "a bunch of old sons of bitches"YouTube

Uruguay's president has made an un-statesmanlike attack on Fifa by branding football's governing body "old sons of bitches" for booting Luis Suarez out of the tournament in Brazil.

Jose Mujica insisted Sepp Blatter and his ilk were nothing but "a bunch of old sons of bitches" in a video uploaded to the web.

Mujica - who has a reputation for being unconventional - theatrically covered his mouth after uttering the anti-Fifa slur.

He was reacting to the punishment meted to Suarez for biting Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini on the shoulder during a World Cup group game. The Liverpool striker was subsequently banned for nine international games, barred from all football-related activity for four months and fined 100,000 Swiss Francs (£66,000).

Journalist Sergio Gorzy posted footage of Mujica's outburst online, below, after Mujica told him "publish it".

The ban has been interpreted in Uruguay as a conspiracy amplified by the English-speaking media against Suarez, who has now bitten opponents three times in his professional career.

Mujica stands out among national leaders for shunning wealth and all the trappings of power in Uruguay. He lives a frugal life on a farm with a goat.

Malaysia: Strutting Serama Chicken Wins $10,000 in Poultry Pageant

A serama chicken is strutting on a judge table during a poultry pageantAFP/Getty Images

One of the world's smallest chickens has won $10,000 (£5,873) in a beauty contest for tiny poultry in Malaysia.

The Malaysian Serama Chicken - first discovered in the country in the 1960s – is characterised for its particular upright posture.

The bird, which weighs no more than 500g, has been often exhibited in contests in Malaysia, where the animal is particularly loved.

Mohamad Hatta Yahaya, the owner of the chicken which won the contest in Kampung Pandan, Kuala Mapur, said the bird is his hero.

"There are people who want to buy my bird. But I am not selling it. It is part of my family," Hatta told the Jakarta Post.

Judges scored chickens on posture, feather quality, colour and temperament.

Before the show, the birds are subjected to hours of grooming during which their plumage is embellished with additional feathers, taped to them.

Oils are also applied to make the plumage shine.

Norzamini Tukiban, head of the district chapter of Malaysia's Serama Association, said: "These beautiful tiny birds give you great pleasure to own.

"They are warm and tame and this allows you to hold them, making serama birds adorable household pets."

Bred for royalty

There are an estimated 250,000 serama chickens in Malaysia, according to Ahmad Fauzi Mohamed, president of the Malaysia branch of the World Serama Federation.

The small birds were originally used as pets by the state sultans in the country. The word serama is believed to have originated from "Rama" — a term referring to Thailand's royalty.

The popularity of this breed has also spread to Europe and America, where serama clubs can be found.

Many Malaysians eat the sarama chicken, which is believed to alleviate the symptoms of asthma and also hgave aphrodisiac effects.

The tiny birds are believed to have originated from the mating between Japanese and Malaysian bantams – small chickens.

Fauzi Osman, a breeder from northern Malaysia, said breeding is very difficult and "die-hard enthusiasts like those from Indonesia will get someone to smuggle baby chicks for about $200 each."

Japan's Factory Output Bounces Back

A factory in the Keihin industrial zone in Kawasaki, south of Tokyo.Reuters

Japan's factory output bounced back in May from a decline following 1 April's national sales tax hike, accentuating views the world's third-largest economy will soak up the increase largely unharmed.

Factory output rose 0.5% month-on-month and followed a 2.8% drop in April, government data showed on 30 June. A Reuters poll of economists forecast a 0.9% monthly increase in output

Manufacturers surveyed by the government expect output to fall 0.7% in June but grow 1.5% in July, the data showed.

Market reaction was passive. The benchmark Nikkei 225 share average finished 0.44% higher on 30 June. The index has gained 3.62% for the month as a whole.

The factory output data comes ahead of the release of the Bank of Japan's second-quarter Tankan business sentiment survey, on 1 July.

Standard Chartered said in a note to clients: "...We expect the current diffusion index of large manufacturers to have dropped to 14 in Q2 from 17 in Q1 as the April sales-tax hike temporarily stalled private consumption, hurting business sentiment.

"However, large manufacturers' outlook likely rebounded to 18 from 8 previously. This would support our view that the contraction in business activity after the tax hike was short-lived and that the economy will gradually stabilise in H2."

"The Tankan survey of companies' inflation expectations, which was launched in Q1-2014, will also be closely watched. The results are likely to show a moderate pick-up in inflation expectations given the current uptrend in inflation," the British firm added.

"Output is recovering. But it is still in the stage of adjustments given falling shipments and rising inventory," Takeshi Minami, chief economist at Norinchukin Research Institute in Tokyo told Reuters.

Sales Tax Revision

Japanese consumer prices struck a 23-year high in April, in the wake of the 1 April sales tax hike, a positive development in Tokyo's near two-decade-long battle against deflation.

But higher prices resulted in a bigger-than-expected drop in consumer spending and a higher-than-expected slowdown in factory activity that month, raising concerns about the pace of economic recovery of the Japanese economy.

Manufacturers cut production in April, to prevent piling up inventories, after Japan raised the national sales tax rate from 5% to 8%, the first increase in 17 years, to curb its huge public debt and battle falling prices.

Nigerian Troops Hid in the Bush as Boko Haram Islamists Burnt Down Chibok Churches

Members of a vigilante group of traditional hunters pose for a picture at their camp in MaiduguriReuters file photo

Nigerian troops reportedly hid in the bush as Boko Haram militants stormed the Chibok area, where hundreds of girls were kidnapped, burning down churches and slaughtering dozens of people.

The Nigerian military apparently did not respond to the distress calls made by the locals in the region.

"They [Nigerian soldiers] just went and got a hiding place in the bush," Enoch Mark, a local leader from Chibok, told the AFP.

The Islamist insurgents on Sunday (29 June) had set at least five churches ablaze in yet another surprise attack in Chibok, which has been gripped by Boko Haram fear in the last few months.

As many as 56 people including women and children have been killed in the onslaught although the authorities are yet to ascertain the exact death toll.

Most of the victims were Christians as they were attending morning prayers. The assault was well-coordinated and the extremists were armed with several guns and explosives.

"The attackers killed and burnt houses after attacking worshippers in five churches in Kwada, before moving to Kautikari less than 8 kilometres to Chibok town, killing and burning down people's houses and property. The security operatives were not on ground to defend us. In fact, those who ran into the bush were pursued and killed by the murderers," a resident in the region named Amos Bulus told Vanguard daily.

Local authorities have urged the Nigerian federal government to take more measures to protect the local communities from the deadly Boko Haram outfit.