Russia suspected in US e-mail cyber attack

WASHINGTON • Russia is the leading suspect in a sophisticated cyber attack on the unclassified e-mail network of the US military's Joint Staff that prompted the Pentagon last month to restrict access to portions of that network, US officials said.

Early reports firmly linked Russia to the attack, said a US official on Thursday. He said it was a targeted e-mail scam that could be traced to Russia.

REUTERS

Abducted French aid worker returns home

PARIS • Frenchwoman Isabelle Prime, freed after nearly six months of captivity in Yemen, arrived in Oman yesterday before returning to Paris to be welcomed by her father.

The 30-year-old, who worked as a consultant on a World Bank-funded project in Yemen, was released late on Thursday, according to a statement by the French presidency.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE

Suspected militants attack hotel in Mali

BAMAKO • Suspected Islamist militants attacked a hotel in central Mali used by United Nations staff yesterday, killing at least three people and exchanging fire with troops near the building, residents and military sources said.

Government forces moved in to dislodge the gunmen, who raided the hotel near the airport in Sevare, around 600km north-east of the capital Bamako. The siege was ongoing by press time.

REUTERS

Twists in Edward Heath child sex abuse case

LONDON • There were fresh twists on Thursday in the child sex abuse allegations against former British prime minister Edward Heath, with two key players denying claims about the late Conservative leader.

Meanwhile two more police forces confirmed they were investigating allegations about Heath.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE

Mammoth remains found in Switzerland

GENEVA • Mammoth remains that could be around 20,000 years old have been discovered at a building site in central Switzerland, a local official said yesterday.

The find was said to be exciting, as it had been 50 years since the last discovery. But only several bones have been excavated so far, not enough to reconstruct a full mammoth.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE