The grim milestone was announced as a quake-damaged Haitian supermarket collapsed in the capital with several people inside and rescue crews were working to pull them out last night.

"There were looters inside the building," site supervisor Meir Vaknin said. "I was trying to get rid of them and when the building fell,there were some of them inside."

Mr Vaknin estimated five to eight people had been in the supermarket and said at least one was spotted alive inside.

The five-storey building had been popular with well-off Haitians and was the capital's largest supermarket. It was badly damaged in the quake but part of it has remained standing.'

Iran pursues nuclear option, sanctions likely, 10/2.

New international sanctions against Iran seem likely after the country announced it would continue to pursue nuclear energy.

The Wall Street Journal reports, 'Iran began enriching uranium at levels closer to weapons grade on Tuesday, raising fresh threats of sanctions but potentially spurring the U.S. to reopen discussion over a stalled international nuclear deal.

Iranian state media reported the process started Tuesday morning at Iran's pilot enrichment facility in Natanz, under the supervision of inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency. Iran formally notified the United Nations nuclear watchdog of its intentions to begin enrichment in a letter late Monday. The IAEA confirmed it was monitoring the work.

The decision, the latest move by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in defiance of international efforts to curb Tehran's nuclear ambitions, brought new calls by Western officials to pursue economic sanctions on Iran.'

Barack Obama criticized Iran for defying the IAEA and other international organizations.

'"We have bent over backwards to say to the Islamic Republic of Iran that we are willing to have a constructive conversation with them about how they can align themselves with international norms," President Barack Obama said at a White House news conference Tuesday. "The next step is sanctions."'

Palin hints at 2012 campaign, 9/2.

The Wall Street Journal reports conservatives within and outside the Republican Party want Sarah Palin to run in 2012.

Her comments today also suggest she is likely to campaign for the Presidency in 2012.

'WASHINGTON -- Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin on Sunday said she wasn't ruling out running for president in 2012, after a weekend appearance at the National Tea Party Convention underscored the depth of her support from the conservative grassroots movement.

"I think that it would be absurd not to consider" a 2012 run, Ms. Palin, the GOP's 2008 vice presidential nominee, said in an interview on "Fox News Sunday." She said she would jump into the next presidential race if she believed it was "the right thing to do for the country" and for her family.

Ms. Palin criticized President Barack Obama's job performance and predicted that he wouldn't be re-elected unless he adopts a tough line against terrorists. She challenged the administration's decision to try terror suspects in U.S. courts and suggested Attorney General Eric Holder should resign for urging that course of action.'

Gays may be allowed to openly serve, 4/2.

Members of the U.S. high command have openly supported Obama's plan to end a ban on gays in the military.

The Australian writes, 'WASHINGTON: The US military's top officer has ardently backed lifting the ban on gays serving openly in uniform, saying it was "the right thing to do".

In dramatic testimony before a Senate panel yesterday, Admiral Mike Mullen became the first Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff to endorse repealing the ban, providing a powerful boost to President Barack Obama's bid to change the policy.

But no action is likely for at least a year as Admiral Mullen and Defence Secretary Robert Gates unveiled plans to carry out a year-long review looking at the possible effect of ending the ban.

"It is my personal belief that allowing gays and lesbians to serve openly would be the right thing to do," Admiral Mullen said. "No matter how I look at this issue, I cannot escape being troubled by the fact that we have in place a policy which forces young men and women to lie about who they are in order to defend their fellow citizens."'

President Clinton introduced the "don't ask, don't tell" policy in the 1990's.

Obama meeting with the Dalai Lama goes ahead, 3/2.

Barack Obama will meet the Dalai Lama in spite of Chinese pressure.

The Australian reports the decision may further worsen American-Chinese relations after the U.S. promised it would sell Taiwan new military equipment to the tune of several billion dollars.

'BARACK Obama will meet the Dalai Lama, the White House said today, rejecting Chinese pressure to snub him amid escalating disputes between the Pacific powers.

“The president told China leaders during his trip last year that he would meet with the Dalai Lama, and he intends to do so,” White House spokesman Bill Burton said on Air Force One en route to New Hampshire.

“The Dalai Lama is an internationally respected religious and cultural leader, and the president will meet with him in that capacity.”'

Countries hesitate to increase climate change targets, 2/2.

Most of the countries that attended the Copenhagen conference last year did not increase their carbon reduction targets, says the Telegraph.

It reports, 'The climate change deal signed in Copenhagen last year is looking weaker than ever after fewer than half of the countries that took part in negotiations managed to meet the latest deadline to fight global warming.'

Not surprisingly, the UN lamented the unwillingness of countries to embrace bold new targets.

'Yvo de Boer, Executive Secretary of the UN climate change body, said greater ambition is required.

“The commitment to confront climate change at the highest level is beyond doubt," he said.

"These pledges have been formally communicated to the UNFCCC. Greater ambition is required to meet the scale of the challenge.

"But I see these pledges as clear signals of willingness to move negotiations towards a successful conclusion.”'

China fury at USA, 1/2.

'CHINA'S relations with Washington have degenerated into the worst Sino-US crisis of the Obama administration, with Beijing threatening to impose sanctions on American companies involved in new arms sales to Taiwan.

'The Chinese Foreign Ministry said China-US co-operation on regional and international issues would be affected by the issue, causing "severe damage" to China-US relations.

'The row comes after Google's announcement it would quit China in protest against state-condoned or commissioned cyber attacks and censorship, a row that worsened after US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton demanded an explanation from Beijing.

'Jin Canrong of Renmin University in Beijing said the sale of $US6.4 billion ($7.2bn) worth of arms to Taipei would push China to accelerate testing of its anti-missile defence system, and reduce co-operation on the Iran and North Korean nuclear issues, and counter-terrorism'.

More here in today's edition of China Watch.

More climate change fraud, 1/2.

It seems the UN has used yet another fraudulent report to justify immediate climate change action.

The Australian reports, 'A STARTLING report by the UN climate watchdog that global warming might wipe out 40 per cent of the Amazon rainforest was based on an unsubstantiated claim by green campaigners who had no scientific expertise.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change said in its 2007 benchmark report that even a slight change in rainfall could see swaths of the rainforest rapidly replaced by savanna grassland.

The source for its claim was a report from WWF, an environmental pressure group, which was written by two green activists. They had based their "research" on a study published in the science journal Nature, which did not assess rainfall but looked at the impact on the forest of human activity such as logging and burning. WWF said on Saturday it was launching an internal inquiry into the study.

This is the third time in as many weeks that serious doubts have been raised over the IPCC's conclusions on climate change. Two weeks ago, after reports in London's The Sunday Times and The Australian, the panel was forced to retract a warning that climate change was likely to melt the Himalayan glaciers by 2035. That warning was also based on claims in a WWF report.'

This latest episode strengthens the position of climate sceptics who have accused the UN of deliberately faking and misrepresenting the views of scientists.

Obama changes focus for second year, 30/1.

Barack Obama will focus on jobs in his second year as President, possibly at the expense of federal health reform.

The Australian writes Obama has promised new tax cuts for small businesses to encourage new jobs.

'Campaigning yesterday in Tampa, Florida, Mr Obama won repeated applause as he told a town hall meeting that he wanted to boost jobs by giving tax breaks to small businesses that hired unemployed workers.'

Yet, he insisted the campaign for universal healthcare was not over.

'But he recommitted to pressing ahead with the stalled health legislation, regardless of Senate resistance. "We will not stop fighting for a healthcare system that works for the American people, not just for the insurance industry," he said.'

America signals new climate change policy, 29/1.

The US will cut its carbon emissions by 17% by 2020 under a new climate change policy.

The Senate still needs to confirm the policy, but Obama and Democrats are confident it will pass.

The Australian reports, 'THE United States today officially stated a goal to cut carbon emissions by 17 per cent by 2020 off 2005 levels, in a submission to the United Nations as part of last month's Copenhagen meeting.

The United States said it expected to cut emissions blamed for global warming “in the range of 17 per cent” and “anticipated” that Congress would approve legislation to meet the target.

On Wednesday, Climate Change Minister Penny Wong revealed that Australia's target for greenhouse gas emissions cuts by 2020 under the Copenhagen Accord would be an unconditional, minimum of 5 per cent and a possible maximum of 25 per cent.'

Climate change scepticism rises, 28/1.

The climate change debate is still raging despite the efforts of alarmists and the UN.

According to a top British scientist, fear and not rational science is driving the climate debate.

The Australian reports, 'THE impact of global warming has been exaggerated by some scientists and there is an urgent need for more honest disclosure of the uncertainty of predictions about the rate of climate change, according to the British government's chief scientific adviser.

John Beddington said climate scientists should be less hostile to sceptics who questioned man-made global warming. He condemned scientists who refused to publish the data underpinning their reports.

Australia's chief scientist, Penny Sackett, told The Australian last night she shared Professor Beddington's concerns.

Professor Sackett said climate change was a scientific reality but there was a need for absolute openness and rigour in the presentation of evidence, including recognition of which aspects of climate change science were imprecise and required further research.'

The news comes as the Rudd government prepares to reintroduce its ETS bill later this year.

Haiti death toll continues to rise, 25/1.

The earthquake in Haiti has now killed more than 110,000 people.

The Australian writes the death count is still rising despite an influx of foreign aid.

'MORE than 110,000 people have been confirmed as killed in Haiti's devastating earthquake, making it the deadliest on record in the Americas.

The ministry put the toll from the disastrous January 12 quake at 111,499, a major increase from the government's previous estimate of 75,000 people killed.

Calling the damage "catastrophic," it said in a statement that 193,891 people were injured in the 7.0-magnitude quake that hit the Port-au-Prince capital region.

More than 609,600 people were currently living in 500 temporary camps, it said, updating a previous figure of 500,000 homeless.

Haitian officials have expressed fear that the death toll from the country's worst earthquake in over a century may surpass 200,000.'

Supreme Court ends campaign spending restriction, 22/1.

The American Supreme Court has changed its position on political campaign donations.

The Supreme Court ruled that limits and restrictions on corporate and union donations were unconstitutional and against the first amendment.

The Wall Street Journal reports, 'WASHINGTON—A divided Supreme Court struck down decades-old limits on corporate political spending, potentially reshaping the 2010 election landscape by permitting businesses and unions to spend freely on commercials for or against candidates.'

Barack Obama promised he would try to overturn the ruling with legislation, whilst Republicans welcomed the verdict.

'President Barack Obama attacked the ruling and said it gave "a green light to a new stampede of special-interest money in our politics," particularly "big oil, Wall Street banks, health-insurance companies and the other powerful interests" that "drown out the voices of everyday Americans." He pledged to work with lawmakers to craft a "forceful response."

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Kentucky Republican who has long fought campaign-finance regulations, hailed the court for a "monumental decision" toward "restoring the First Amendment rights of [corporations and unions] by ruling that the Constitution protects their right to express themselves about political candidates and issues up until Election Day."'

Democratic fortress falls to Republican challenger, 21/1.

Barack Obama and the Democrats are worried after a little known Republican won the Massachusetts Senate race.

Scott Brown won one of America's most liberal states campaigning against Obama's policies and the status quo.

The Australian reports, 'BARACK Obama's first-term legislative agenda, including an overhaul of US healthcare, has been thrown into turmoil after his Democratic Party surrendered its Senate balance of power with the loss of the blue-ribbon seat held by Ted Kennedy since 1962.

In a huge electoral upset, a little-known Republican Party candidate yesterday claimed the Senate seat in Massachusetts formerly held by the Kennedy clan for more than half a century.

The result, which shook Democrat leaders, cost the party its 60th Senate vote, needed to prevent Republicans blocking legislation in the 100-seat Senate.

Coming just a day before Mr Obama marks the first anniversary of his inauguration as US President, the outcome is potentially disastrous for his political fortunes after the hopes for change associated with his historic victory.'

The result shows public opinion is against incumbents and that no state is now safely Democratic or Republican.

Support for Obama's foreign policy holds, 20/1.

Although his support has fallen slightly, Barack Obama's foreign policy remains popular with most Americans.

The Wall Street Journal reports Obama's foreign policy has been successful because it is less divisive than his economic policies.

'Yet after a year of bruising economic problems and domestic-policy debates, foreign policy actually has emerged as an area of comparative strength for Mr. Obama. By a 50%-to-37% margin, those surveyed in the new Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll give him a positive rating for his handling of foreign policy, higher than his overall job rating and his rating for handling the economy.

Moreover, the 13-point positive differential between the share who approve and the share who disapprove of his handling of foreign policy is the most positive reading in his job appraisal. By contrast, he enjoys just a five-point positive differential on his overall job approval and a six-point negative gap between approval and disapproval on his handling of the economy.'

The findings bode well for Obama as his Presidency enters its second year.

President Obama's first year, 18/1.

'Barack Obama’s first year has been good, but not great—and things are going to get a lot harder'. This is the judgment of The Economist.

'HOW far away it seems, that bitingly cold, crystal-clear morning when almost 2m people filled the Mall from Capitol Hill to the Washington Monument to hear the new president talk of the victory of hope over fear, of unity of purpose over conflict and discord. Recalling the dark days of the war of independence, he pledged, like George Washington, that in the face of common danger Americans under his leadership would come forth to meet it. One year on, how well has he done?

'Not too badly, by our reckoning (see article)....

And in conclusion: 'It is not too late for him to toughen up. Firm talk about the budget in his state-of-the-union message would help. Now that the administration’s priority has shifted from engaging Iran to imposing sanctions, Mr Obama may be able to apply the stick and not the carrot. He is due to see the Dalai Lama. He might even, if he can relearn the virtues of bipartisan dealmaking, bully a climate-change bill through Congress. But this will all be a lot more difficult than anything he did in his first year'.

China rebuffs Google, 15/1.

'CHINA has made it clear that it will ignore an ultimatum from Google to relax internet censorship and reminded all companies that they must strictly abide by state controls of the country's cyberspace.

'The tough tone was set by the Foreign Ministry, taking refuge behind the fig leaf that any controls are against pornography and to protect people from evil influences'.

Graeme Mills comments.

US in Asia to stay, 14/1.

'US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will discuss Kevin Rudd's East Asia community concept on Sunday in her intensifying efforts to bind the US into key Asian regional groupings.

"I don't think there is any doubt, if there was when this administration began, that the United States is back in Asia, but I want to underscore we are back to stay," Mrs Clinton said yesterday in a major policy speech in Honolulu.

'The Obama administration would engage other Asia-Pacific nations on all levels, but Mrs Clinton made it clear that in "the defining regional institutions", the Americans intended to be full and leading participants'.

The 2008 US presidential campaign, 12/1.

We cannot avoid recognition of the amazing kiss'n'tell book about the American presidential campaign of 2008.

'The sheer wattage of the candidates was always going to make 2008 a year to remember, and Heilemann and Halperin knew this early on. Heilemann is the hipper of the two, tall, stubbly and something of a hellraiser in his early years. Halperin is smoother, telegenic and a veteran Time magazine White House correspondent. The pair met during the 1996 presidential campaign and have each covered every race since then. They went into 2008 with high expectations.

'Driving back we had a sense that this was going to be the best campaign of our lives," Heilemann says. "We started working ourselves up into a fever . . . `Who's writing the Primary Colors based on this?' We jumped from that to `this would be a great movie'. By the time we got to the Capitol we realised maybe this was the rare campaign that would justify an account that not just political junkies would read."

Al Qaeda terrorists killed in Yemen, 6/1.

Two Al Qaeda terrorists have been killed in Yemen. The killings come after America announced it was helping the Yemeni government fight Islamic extremism.

The Wall Street Journal reports, 'SAN'A, Yemen -- Government forces killed two alleged al Qaeda militants in a raid on a tribal village Monday, Yemeni officials said, part of a stepped-up offensive after the group's regional chapter claimed responsibility for the attempted bombing of a Detroit-bound jet on Christmas Day.

The capital, San'a, was on high alert Monday as worry mounted over threatened al Qaeda attacks and Yemeni government reprisals against the group.'

Yet terrorism remains a danger in Yemen, and will be difficult to uproot.

'Many tribal leaders, however, are allied with al Qaeda. Some observers say the government attacks could drive more people into al Qaeda's arms, rather than weakening the group.'

Dealing with Islamic terror, 5/1.

It is becoming more and more obvious that we in the West are going to have to summon up the courage to deal drastically with the Armed Islamic Supremism (AIS) and the broad mass of muslims amongst whom the armed activistas hide. Some 'out of the box' thinking will need to be done. We cannot continue having our lives disrupted non-stop by the fantasies and violence of AIS coalitions and plotters. Action needs to be taken ... serious action. Action which actually puts strong and serious pressure on the broad mass of muslims who have any connection with our societies. This pressure must be brought to bear to goad them to turn on the crazies in their midst. Henry, we don't have to take this any more. Here are five 'out of the box' suggestions for consideration.

More from Sir Wellinton Boote here.

UN withdraws staff from Pakistan, 1/1/2010.

The United Nations has withdrawn one-third of its staff from Pakistan because of worsening security and increased terrorist attacks.

The Wall Street Journal writes Pakistan's failure to defeat terrorist groups operating within the country and Afghanistan forced the UN to leave.

'The withdrawal is the latest sign of plummeting international confidence in Pakistan's ability secure its big cities. U.S. diplomats already travel in cars with ordinary license plates – as opposed to the more conspicuous diplomatic plates. Most Western embassies have in the past few years moved out families of diplomats and officials based in Pakistan.

The war against the Taliban is largely restricted to the northwest, and the cities like Islamabad, the capital, and Lahore in the east were until recently only subjected to sporadic terror attacks. But the tempo of attacks on cities has steadily increased over the past 18 months and terror strikes have become a regular occurrence since the Oct. 5 suicide bombing of a U.N. World Food Program office in Islamabad.'

The terrorist threat in Pakistan is particularly severe because the country has nuclear weapons and borders India and China.