Severe weather to hit northern NSW

A SEVERE weather warning has been issued for much of northern NSW with 90-kilometres-an-hour winds and marble-sized hailstones recorded on the coast.

The Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) issued the warning just after 8pm (AEDT) on Saturday for people living in the Northern Rivers, Northern Tablelands and parts of the North West Slopes and Plains.

The bureau warned that "severe thunderstorms" were forecast to produce large hailstones and heavy rainfall, leading to flash flooding and damaging winds in the area over several hours.

Locations which may be affected include Lismore, Tenterfield, Inverell, Ballina, Casino and Kyogle.

At 8pm, gusts reaching 90km/h were recorded in Woodburn near the Queensland coast with marble-sized hail also lashing the region.

The wild weather was predicted to move northeast towards Ballina before moving out to sea later on Saturday night.

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Seven soldiers killed in the Philippines

SEVEN Philippine soldiers have been killed and eight others wounded in a clash with communist guerrillas waging a decades-old Maoist insurgency.

The army casualties on Saturday were part of a foot patrol that clashed with New People's Army (NPA) rebels in a remote area of Isabela province on the main island of Luzon, Philippine Army spokesman Cirilito Sobejana said.

"They were on security operations, combat operations. We have inserted reinforcements by helicopter and are picking up the casualties," Sobejana told reporters in Manila.

Residents had told the army up to five guerrillas were also killed but no bodies of any rebels were found when the army casualties were evacuated, he said.

Fighting has broken out in two areas of the northern province of Isabela amid efforts by the government to restart stalled talks aimed at ending one of Asia's longest-running rebellions.

Sobejana said the deadly skirmish occurred during the army's patrol at dawn near the mountainous town of San Geronimo.

NPA rebels also clashed on Saturday with another army unit in the adjacent town of San Mariano, but there were no known casualties there, the military spokesman said.

Peace talks between the government and the National Democratic Front, the rebels' front organisation, were due to have resumed in Norway last month.

The rebels called them off after Manila again rejected their long-standing condition that 18 jailed comrades be released before negotiations can resume.

The communists have been waging a rebellion since 1969 and more than 30,000 people have died in the conflict, according to the government.

Both sides announced in February last year, following talks in Norway, that they had set a deadline of June 2012 to sign a final peace deal, but negotiations went nowhere due to the issue of the detained guerrillas.

The military estimates the NPA's current strength at about 4000 fighters nationwide, significantly down from over 26,000 at its peak in the 1980s.

However, the NPA retains support particularly in impoverished rural areas.

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Storms create havoc across Qld

More than 6000 homes and businesses remain without power in Brisbane following a damaging storm. Source: AAP

A FIRE started, powerlines were ripped down, trees were uprooted and roofs collapsed as severe thunderstorms ripped across Queensland and caused mass electricity outages.

About 13,000 homes and business in Brisbane, Ipswich and Somerset were left without power as rain, hail and lightning struck the region at about 11am (AEST) on Saturday.

In Ipswich, a small grass fire was sparked when lightning struck a crane next to the city's hospital just after 10am but the incoming rain extinguished it, a Department of Community Services (DCS) spokeswoman told AAP.

In Ann Street in the CBD, a hotel roof collapsed under the storm while another 72 calls for assistance were made asking for help with leaking roofs and fallen trees,

"It turned day into night," a SES worker said.

"It came quickly and then it left."

By 6.30pm about 300 homes remained without power, with the majority of the outages continuing in the Algester area south of Brisbane.

An Energex spokeswoman said they were unsure as to when power would be returned to the area as the repairs were "complicated".

"We are working through the problems and doing it as quickly as we can," she said.

More than 11,000 lightning strikes were recorded across Queensland's southeast since 10am, with Energex receiving reports of more than 100 powerlines down.

Despite the widespread outages, the situation was not as bad as they have seen, the spokeswoman said.

"In our storm season we can see 20,000 to 30,000 lose power so 13,000 is really reasonable for us," she said.

But she said Energex was looking towards Toowoomba to see if the second forecast storm would wreak more damage.

On Saturday evening the Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) was continuing to send out severe weather warnings for much of the state.

"Very dangerous thunderstorms" were detected at a weather radar near Oakey, west of Brisbane, at about 6.30pm.

The thunderstorms were forecast to move towards the northeast and to hit Haden, Cooyar and the area north of Crows Nest, Blackbutt, Yarraman and the area north of Cooyar.

"Destructive winds, heavy rainfall that may lead to flash flooding and large hailstones are likely," the BoM said.

The BoM said severe thunderstorms were also likely to produce damaging winds over the next few hours in parts of the Northern Goldfields and Upper Flinders, Central Highlands and Coalfields, Central West and Maranoa and Warrego districts.

People in Warwick, the Gold Coast, Toowoomba, Brisbane, Dalby, Coolangatta, Ipswich, the Moreton Bay islands, Kingaroy, Stanthorpe, Caloundra and Taroom were warned just before 8pm (AEST) to brace themselves for wild weather over the following hours.

Along the southeast, the BoM said "very dangerous" storms were detected near Esk and Lake Wivenhoe, with the front moving towards the northeast.

The wild weather was also forecast to hit the D'Aguilar Ranges, Dayboro and Mount Mee north of Brisbane by 9.15pm.

In the hour leading up to 8pm, the BoM recorded 65mm of rainfall at Buaraba, west of Brisbane.

But the BoM said severe thunderstorms were no longer occurring in the Northern Goldfields and Upper Flinders, Central West and Maranoa and Warrego districts.

As the storm continues to lash Queensland, Energex said more than 1000 homes and businesses were without power in the Lockyer Valley area west of Brisbane.

Meanwhile more than 1600 homes had lost power in Brisbane city.

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German police stop man with mobile office

FORGET texting while driving. German police say they nabbed a driver who had wired his Ford station wagon with an entire mobile office.

Saarland state police said Friday the 35-year-old man was pulled over for doing 130 kph (80 mph) in a 100 kph zone while passing a truck Monday.

Built on a wooden frame on his passenger seat they found a laptop on a docking station tilted for easy driver access, a printer, router, wireless internet stick, WLAN antenna, and an inverter to power it all.

A navigation system and cellphone mounted to the windshield completed the array.

Since there was no evidence he used the office while moving, he got away with a 120 euro ($A149.61) speeding ticket and a possible fine for having unsecured items in his car.

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Buddhist monk self-immolates in France

A BRITISH monk died in a Tibetan Buddhist monastery in France after he poured petrol over his clothes and set himself alight, police said Friday.

The 38-year-old Briton, whom police did not name, had been living at Nalanda monastery near the southwestern village of Labastide-Saint-Georges for the past five years.

He carried out the act on Thursday in the garden of the monastery, which is home to 25 monks and 20 lay people and which on its website describes itself as "a unique monastery for Western monks in the Tibetan Geluk tradition".

Police were seeking to establish whether the victim had been depressive or if he might have committed suicide in an act of solidarity with Tibetans in China.

More than 30 people have set themselves on fire in China's Tibetan-inhabited regions since March 2011 in protest at what they say is religious and cultural repression by the Chinese authorities.

Tibetans have long chafed under China's rule over the vast Tibetan plateau, accusing Beijing of curbing religious freedoms and eroding their culture and language.

The tensions have intensified over the past year, but Beijing insists that Tibetans enjoy religious freedom and have benefited from improved living standards brought on by China's economic expansion.

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Royals wave goodbye to New Zealand

Prince Charles (L) and wife Camilla will tour Christchurch on the final day of their tour of NZ. Source: AAP

PRINCE Charles and his wife Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, have waved goodbye to New Zealand and are winging their way back home to Britain.

The royals departed Christchurch Airport late on Friday night, having spent six days in the country on the last leg of their Diamond Jubilee tour representing the Queen.

The final day of the tour was spent in quake-ravaged Christchurch, where the couple checked out work being done to rebuild the city.

There were blue skies overhead as the couple arrived at the 150th Canterbury A&P show for their final public engagement on Friday afternoon.

After presenting the award for supreme animal in show, the prince and duchess wandered around some of the stalls, picking up a bottle of Lone Goat wine along the way.

Camilla also sampled some cheese at the Neudorf Dairy stall, which she said was "delicious".

Earlier, the duchess was taken for a twirl on a makeshift dance floor in the Christchurch central business district by the founder of the student volunteer army, Sam Johnson.

Mr Johnson asked Camilla for a dance at the dance-o-mat, a temporary space created in response to the loss of many dance studios and performance spaces around the city as a result of the quakes.

Not to be overshadowed, Prince Charles swayed on to the mat, followed by Christchurch mayor Bob Parker and his wife, Jo Nicholls Parker.

The youthful army was formed in response to the need for volunteer help in the wake of the February 2011 quake which killed 185 people and destroyed the centre of Christchurch.

The demolition work didn't stop for the visit, with concrete tumbling from one of the nearby buildings carefully being pulled down in the CBD red zone and dust lingered in the air as the royals wandered through Cashel Mall.

Thousands of Cantabrians lined the mall hoping to catch a glimpse of the prince and duchess.

On her visit to the shipping container mall, Camilla picked up some items from one store, Hapa, including a merino scarf, a jumper, and five kiwi toys which she said were for her grandchildren.

Her press secretary tried to pay for the items, but the shop owner refused the money.

The royals had arrived in the city about midday and were welcomed at Christchurch City Council by the mayor, Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Minister Gerry Brownlee and Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority (CERA) chief executive Roger Sutton.

The couple then met privately with 20 people seriously injured in the 2011 quake and their caregivers.

The tour has also included visits to Auckland, Wellington and Feilding.

It was Camilla's first trip to New Zealand, while Prince Charles was last there in 2005.

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S Africa platinum workers report for duty

ANGLO American Platinum Ltd. says miners in South Africa have returned to work, ending a more than eight-week strike that crippled the world's largest platinum producer.

Company spokeswoman Mpumi Sithole said the workers returned on Thursday and would get safety briefings before work began.

During the strike the company fired 12,000 workers then later reinstated them. They reached a deal after Anglo American offered a one-time payment and salary options to the striking workers.

In a statement to investors, the company said its year-end earnings "will decrease by more than 20 per cent" compared with the previous year, partly because of the strike.

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Australia urges calm in Middle East

THE Australian government has urged Israel and Palestine to exercise restraint and step back from the brink of full-scale war.

Israel has launched a major offensive on Hamas in the Gaza Strip, assassinating military commander Ahmed Jabari and striking more than 100 militant targets.

It says it has been forced to act due to mounting rocket attacks on towns in its south.

The offensive has killed at least ten Palestinians and wounded about 100 more. Three Israelis were killed by a rocket attack on the town of Kiryat Malahi on Thursday.

Foreign Minister Bob Carr said he did not want to see the conflict escalate further.

"All we can do is urge both sides to exercise restraint," he told Sky News.

Senator Carr called on Hamas to cease its rocket attacks on Israel's south but also called on Israel to ensure its response was proportionate.

"But rather than attacks and responses, let's set that aside and have mutual restraint and have both sides - Palestinians and Israelis - commit to resuming negotiations to get that two-state solution."

Senator Carr said he hoped the United Nations Security Council could push both sides towards restraint.

Opposition Leader Tony Abbott condemned the rocket attacks on Israel.

"We of course regret the escalation of conflict, but Israel has every right to defend itself against the threat while continuing to take every effort to avoid civilian casualties," he said in a statement.

Mr Abbott's deputy, Julie Bishop, said the extremists behind the attacks on Israel's south were seeking to terrorise and kill Israeli civilians.

"The first step towards resolving this latest conflict is for Hamas and other armed groups to halt the attacks on Israel and to commit to peaceful negotiations," she said.

Australia-born Israeli diplomat and spokesman for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Mark Regev, said Israel's operation was "fundamentally defensive".

"Israel is acting to defend our people, as I believe the Australian government would if Australian citizens were being rocketed by terrorists," he told ABC television.

"We have to deal with this threat and we have to try to neutralise this threat."

He conceded the situation "could get worse before it gets better."

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Accused Sydney killer faces third trial

A SYDNEY jury has been told they must not draw any "adverse inference" from the fact a man accused of killing his gay lover is facing a third trial.

Philip Wan Por Leung, 51, has pleaded not guilty to the manslaughter of 72-year-old Mario Guzzetti, who died at the home they shared at Alexandria, in inner Sydney, on April 7, 2007.

Paramedics found Mr Guzzetti lying on his back at the base of a staircase, with a hysterical Leung cradling a pillow under his partner's head and rocking him from side to side.

The crown alleges the couple argued while Leung was making carrot juice, resulting in Leung striking Mr Guzzetti and applying pressure to his neck area.

In the NSW Supreme Court on Thursday, Justice Derek Price told the jury they had "heard there have been two previous trials".

"Due to matters of law, the accused is standing trial. You must not draw any inference adverse to the accused from that fact," he said.

Earlier, Leung broke down sobbing during evidence being given by Josephine DiFrancesca, a friend of him and Mr Guzzetti.

Ms DiFrancesca was questioned about a phone call she made to Leung on the morning of Mr Guzzetti's death.

"Did you hear Philip crying over the phone?" crown prosecutor Mark Hobart SC asked.

"Yes," she said, adding that she assumed something was wrong and called her husband to go to the house and check on the couple.

She said her husband found Leung holding Mr Guzzetti and told his daughter to call an ambulance.

Fiona Cunney, who lived next door, told the court she heard noises about an hour before paramedics arrived.

She said she heard "crashing sounds", like a shelf with pots and pans falling, and what she believed was Mr Guzzetti "singing opera" for about 10 seconds and then silence.

Leung later started crying "like a baby", Ms Cunney said, but she decided not to call police because she "didn't want to get involved".

Defence barrister Winston Terracini SC questioned her evidence, alleging Ms Cunney did not like Leung and had had prior arguments with him over renovation works.

Friend Raymond Carter said he was called to the police station where Leung was being held but could barely understand him.

He told the court Leung repeatedly screamed, "Mario is not dead," before saying he and Mr Guzzetti had argued while he was making carrot juice.

"Mario kept at me," Leung allegedly said.

Mr Carter, a former boyfriend of Leung's, added that he'd never witnessed any violence between the "loving and caring" couple but had heard of occasional arguments.

He said Leung was "stubborn" and "not a very diplomatic person" but never violent.

"He'd walk away, slam the door and it'd be a day or two before you'd see him," he told the court.

The trial before Justice Price continues.

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Hong Kong shares close 1.20% higher

HONG Kong shares have climbed 1.20 per cent, in line with a regional rebound after recent selling fuelled by concerns over the US fiscal cliff.

The benchmark Hang Seng Index, which had lost more than four per cent in the past four sessions, rose 253.34 points to 21,441.99 on turnover of HK$48.34 billion ($A6.01 billion) on Wednesday.

Dealers were also looking to mainland China as the Communist Party prepares to unveil its top decision-making body on Thursday, with hopes leaders will clarify their plans for the economy.

The index, along with global markets, has fallen over the past week as investors grow nervous about the US fiscal cliff of tax hikes and spending cuts that are due to take effect from January 1.

The package, agreed last year during a spending cap face-off between Democrats and Republicans, will almost certainly tip the economy back into recession if a deal between deeply divided politicians cannot be made.

"It is difficult to understand the confidence that investors have in the ability of US politicians to accomplish in the next few months what they haven't been able to do in the past two years," investment house UBS said.

US politicians are expected to begin negotiations on Friday.

In Hong Kong, aluminium giant Chalco rose 2.8 per cent to HK$3.32, while China's largest two banks ICBC and China Construction Bank, and mainland developer China Resources Land all rallied more than 3.0 per cent.

Chinese shares closed 0.37 per cent higher. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index added 7.53 points to 2,055.42 on turnover of 35.9 billion yuan ($A5.59 billion).

"The market is likely to welcome a Politburo Standing Committee line-up that includes more leaders who favour reform," Changjiang Securities analyst Wu Bangdong told Dow Jones Newswires.

Aluminium producers rose as dealers bet that the falls in prices would be arrested after state media said China may soon start government procurement of the metal.

Chalco jumped 4.65 per cent to 4.95 yuan, Shandong Nanshan Aluminium rose 2.22 per cent to 6.45 yuan and Dongyangguang Aluminum added 0.86 per cent to 8.24 yuan.

Among liquor makers, Xinjiang Yilite Industry gained 3.01 per cent to 13.68 yuan, while Sichuan Swellfun climbed 1.33 per cent to 22.81 yuan.

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Aust could keep some forces in Afghanistan

UNITED States Defence Secretary Leon Panetta says a deployment of Australian special forces to assist in maintaining security in Afghanistan after 2014 is worth considering.

Mr Panetta, who visited the barracks of the Special Air Service Regiment in Perth to meet some of those who had fought in Afghanistan, said Defence Minister Stephen Smith had expressed an interest in an Australian special forces presence in Afghanistan in the post-2014 period.

"I believe that is worth considering," he told the media conference at the conclusion of the annual Australia-US Ministerial (AUSMIN) consultations in Perth.

Under current transition plans, Afghan National Security Forces are progressively taking the lead in security, with that process to be fully completed by the end of 2014.

Australia is now considering what assistance it can provide after that period. Among the possibilities is ongoing help with training and deployment of special forces, subject to a suitable mandate and legal framework.

Mr Panetta said one of the missions in Afghanistan after 2014 would be counter-terrorism and continuing to target al-Qaeda and other groups.

"As we design that post-2014 presence, we want to consider the role not only of Australia but other countries can provide in special forces that I think would be very important in the future security of Afghanistan," he said.

In the communique released at the close of AUSMIN, Australia and the US reiterated the continued commitment to a secure, stable and prosperous Afghanistan that is not a safe haven for international terrorists.

Australia and the US reiterated their commitment to the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) transition strategy and to a post-2014 mission to train, advise and assist the Afghan National Security Forces.

Much pre-AUSMIN discussion centred on alleged US concerns at the level of Australian defence spending but the topic was only mentioned briefly in the media conference after a specific question to Mr Panetta.

He said both the US and Australia were facing budget constrictions which had to be taken into consideration.

"But I remain fully confident that in light of what we are confronting that we have the capability to maintain a strong national defence for both of our countries," he said.

"We will be able to meet the threats that confront us, not only in this part of the world but elsewhere as well."

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Most Afghans optimistic about future: poll

MOST Afghans believe their country is headed in the right direction but still worry about the lack of security resulting from the 11-year war, a public opinion survey by a major international non-profit group says.

The poll by the San Francisco-based Asia Foundation also found that an overwhelming majority of Afghans back the government's efforts to negotiate and reconcile with armed insurgent groups.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai has offered jobs and housing to Taliban fighters who defect and formed a High Peace Council to facilitate negotiations.

Though officials and diplomats say contacts are being made with insurgent leaders, no formal peace talks are currently under way - mostly because the Taliban broke off efforts to start negotiations earlier this year.

"Security continues to be the biggest indicator of both optimism and pessimism for Afghans," Abdullah Ahmadzai, the deputy representative for Afghanistan with the Asia Foundation, said on Wednesday.

Only 30 per cent of respondents in the poll expressed sympathy for the insurgents, while nearly two-thirds said they did not support them.

But when asked why the Taliban continue to fight, the most common reason cited was opposition to the presence of foreign troops in the country.

Other reasons included a desire to gain power, illiteracy, support from Pakistan and corruption.

Despite their opposition to the Taliban, many respondents also said they were afraid of the troops from the US-led NATO coalition and government's security forces.

Nearly three-quarters said they felt fear when meeting international troops, while just under half said they had the same reaction when encountering the Afghan army or police.

NATO has intensified training of the 352,000-strong Afghan police and army to help improve standards and enable them to operate independently after foreign combat troops leave the country at the end of 2014.

The survey, which included 89 questions on a wide range of issues, showed that the vast majority of Afghans see corruption as a major problem in all facets of life and at all levels of governance.

Nearly 80 per cent of respondents said graft was a serious problem across the country, the report said.

The in-person survey of 6,290 Afghans from all 34 provinces, conducted with support from the US Agency for International Development and other foreign agencies, had a margin of error of plus or minus 5.1 per cent.

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Hong Kong shares close 1.13% lower

HONG Kong shares have slid 1.13 per cent, in line with a regional sell-off sparked by growing concerns over Greece's bailout and the approaching US "fiscal cliff".

The benchmark Hang Seng Index on Tuesday fell 241.65 points to 21,188.65 on turnover of HK$52.28 billion ($A6.50 billion).

The losses, which mirrored falls in mainland China, came despite data out of Beijing on Friday and Saturday indicating the slowdown in the world's No.2 economy was coming to an end.

In Europe finance ministers said Greece had made "considerable progress" on meeting conditions for its next tranche of rescue cash, but they would have to meet again on Tuesday next week to decide whether to release it.

Investors are also growing increasingly nervous about the approaching automatic spending cuts and tax rises that threaten to send the US economy back into recession unless a cross-party deal is brokered.

"China's economy is on a recovery (track), though not a V-shape rebound," Steven Leung, director of institutional sales at UOB KayHian, told Dow Jones Newswires, saying he saw value emerging in policy-driven and cyclical stocks.

Out of 49 Hong Kong blue chips, 45 finished in the red - with property giant New World Development, major Chinese oil firm Sinopec and coalminers Shenhua and China Coal registering losses of over 2.0 per cent.

Chinese shares closed down 1.51 per cent. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index fell 31.39 points to 2,047.89 on turnover of 44.6 billion yuan ($A6.84 billion). The index ended at its lowest level since September 26.

"Positive October economic indicators helped ease concerns over the domestic economic outlook but remained insufficient to move the market further north," Shenyin Wanguo Securities analyst Li Xiaoxuan told Dow Jones.

Investors were also awaiting the end this week of the Communist Party's 18th congress that will choose the country's leaders for the next 10 years.

Developers fell after state media quoted a housing official as saying on Monday that the government had no immediate plans to loosen property control measures, which have been in place for more than two years.

China Vanke ended down 2.2 per cent at 8.37 yuan while Gemdale lost 3.9 per cent to 5.25 yuan.

Securities firms also fell on earnings fears. Sinolink Securities fell 6.5 per cent to 14.21 yuan, Haitong Securities lost 3.4 per cent to 8.44 yuan and Citic Securities slid 1.6 per cent to 10.69 yuan.

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Brazil jails Lula's ex-chief of staff

BRAZIL'S supreme court has capped the country's biggest ever political corruption trial by sentencing former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's ex-chief of staff to nearly 11 years in prison for his role in a vote-buying scheme.

Jose Dirceu, who was the chief of staff from 2003-05 and a top leader of the ruling Workers' Party (PT), was found guilty in October of running the operation to bribe MPs during Lula's first term.

On Monday, the court sentenced the 66-year-old lawyer and ex-guerrilla fighter to 10 years and 10 months in prison for corruption and conspiracy, and fined him $US350,000 ($A337,040).

Lula, Brazil's popular president from 2003 through 2010, has steadfastly denied being aware of the vote-buying scheme and was not prosecuted.

"The responsibility of the accused is extremely high," said Justice Joaquim Barbosa, speaking for the court.

"He used his positions of leadership and prominence, both in the Workers' Party and the federal government," to engage in corruption, Barbosa said.

Dirceu -- one of the main defendants in the massive corruption trial that has seen 25 people convicted -- allegedly diverted public funds to pay MPs in the ruling coalition to vote in favour of government initiatives.

The vote-buying scandal nearly cost Lula his re-election in 2006. But the founder and leader of the leftist PT, now 67, was cleared.

Lula handed over power to his protegee and fellow PT member Dilma Rousseff at the end of his second four-year term. He later underwent successful treatment for cancer.

Dirceu, who has not yet been detained, denied all the charges.

The sentence "only aggravates the outrage and ignominy of the whole process," which "openly violated our constitution and the democratic rule of law," Dirceu wrote in a blog post.

Last week, six opposition MPs urged prosecutors to probe Lula over his alleged role in the congressional vote-buying scheme.

Roberto Freire, head of the Socialist People's Party, said he led the call for a probe after the weekly Veja published statements by convicted businessman Marco Valerio linking the popular Lula to the plot.

In late October, Valerio was sentenced to 40 years in prison for corruption, embezzlement, money laundering and other charges. He also was slapped with a $1.4 million fine.

Jose Genoino, who headed the ruling Workers' Party at the time, and party treasurer Delubio Soares have also been convicted.

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Arabs back Syria opposition, battle rages

Gulf nations have recognised a newly formed opposition bloc as the Syrian people's representative. Source: AAP

DEADLY fighting is raging near Damascus and in Syria's northeast, as the Arab League urges more groups to join a newly formed opposition bloc that won swift recognition from the Gulf states.

The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) said its six members recognised the National Coalition as "the Syrian people's legitimate representative", and the Arab League also gave its backing, although it stopped short of granting it full recognition.

The GCC members - Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates - on Monday became the first to recognise the umbrella group.

And foreign ministers of the 22-member Arab League said at talks in Cairo that they recognised the coalition as "the legitimate representative of the Syrian opposition".

They called on "the rest of the opposition to join" the bloc, and urged "regional and international groups to recognise (it) as a legitimate representative of the aspirations of the Syrian people".

The hard-won coalition deal reached on Sunday in Doha, Qatar, calls for the opposition to create a supreme military council to take overall command of rebels fighting to oust President Bashar al-Assad's regime.

The bloc's newly appointed leader, moderate Muslim cleric Ahmed Moaz al-Khatib, said the coalition already had promises of weapons, without specifying from whom.

The United States swiftly declared its backing for the National Coalition following Sunday's deal that brought together a broad spectrum of regime opponents.

"We look forward to supporting the National Coalition as it charts a course towards the end of Assad's bloody rule and the start of the peaceful, just, democratic future that all the people of Syria deserve," said the State Department.

Traditional Damascus ally Moscow gave a cooler response, urging the opposition to drop its refusal to negotiate with the Assad regime.

France said on Tuesday it would support the new opposition bloc, but also fell short of granting it full recognition.

"Now they are united, it's very important ... France will support them," Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said at a meeting of European and Arab foreign ministers at the League's Cairo headquarters.

EU Foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, who addressed the opening session at the League, welcomed the Doha agreement but warned of a spillover of the conflict.

"I want to welcome the work done in Doha to build and bring together the opposition, to be inclusive of the people in Syria to be determined in the offer they make to the people," said Ashton.

"But the tragedy of Syria is a tragedy that affects not just that country but the whole region," she added.

Outgunned rebel fighters have been battling to secure a buffer zone along the border with Turkey for the past few months.

And regime warplanes carried out a new wave of bombing raids on Tuesday on the strategic town of Ras al-Ain, on the northeastern border, a day after deadly air strikes and shelling, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

The Local Coordination Committees activist network said dozens of military vehicles were headed towards Ras al-Ain, while the Observatory reported heavy shelling.

Elsewhere, fierce clashes rocked in the east Damascus suburb of Ghuta and at Daraya to the south after rebel attacks on public buildings and a military checkpoint in the two areas, said the Observatory.

The air strikes in the northwest have sent a new wave of civilians pouring across the frontier to the Turkish side, adding to the 9000 refugees who fled late last week when rebels overran Ras al-Ain.

Violence on Syria's borders with Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey, as well as across the UN-monitored ceasefire line that splits the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, has stoked fears of a spillover of the 20-month conflict.

Israel fired across the ceasefire line for a second day on Monday, scoring direct hits on the source of a mortar round that struck the Israeli-occupied part of the territory.

In other violence on Tuesday, the army shelled rebel positions in the southern province of Daraa, in the central region of Homs, in Idlib in the northwest and in the northern city of Aleppo, said the Observatory.

At least 151 people were killed across Syria on Monday, including 61 civilians, said the Britain-based Observatory.

The watchdog - which relies on a network of activists, lawyers and medics for its information - has given an overall death toll of more than 37,000 since the revolt broke out in March 2011.

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13 killed in strong Burma quake

A POWERFUL earthquake has struck Burma, killing at least 13 people, injuring 40 and sparking panic in the central city of Mandalay.

The shallow 6.8-magnitude quake struck in a rural area 116 kilometres north of Mandalay and was followed by strong aftershocks, the US Geological Survey (USGS) said on Sunday.

Four labourers flung into the Irrawaddy River from a partly-built bridge near the town of Shwebo, north of Mandalay and nearer to the epicentre of the quake, were among those believed to have died, according to a situation report from Save the Children.

The collapse of a monastery in the nearby village of Kyauk Myaung killed two people and one died in Mandalay, it said. A further six were killed in Sint Ku township, including two people who died when a gold mine collapsed.

"People everywhere are very worried that another earthquake might strike," the aid organisation said.

Residents of Mandalay fled shaking buildings in terror, although no major damage was reported there.

"I ran from my bed carrying my daughter out to the street. There were many people in the road. Some were shouting and others felt dizzy," said Mandalay resident San Yu Kyaw.

A government official in the capital Naypyidaw who asked not to be named could only confirm two deaths so far.

Another official from Burma's Relief and Resettlement Department said most of those injured were workers on construction sites, with 15 people taken to Shwebo and Kyauk Myaung hospitals.

"We have sent a team to Shwebo where the earthquake was centred to assist in relief works and providing food to the victims," he said on condition of anonymity.

Save the Children, which has an office in Mandalay, said reports indicated that 25 were injured in the bridge collapse on the Irrawaddy, with 10 taken to hospital.

It said 20 people were thought to have been taken to hospital in Shwebo and a further 10 were being treated in Mandalay.

Construction standards are generally poor in Burma, one of Asia's most impoverished nations.

A large crack stretching from the second to the sixth floor of Mandalay's highest building, the 25-storey Mann Myanmar Plaza, appeared after the quake, a local resident said.

He said people were afraid to enter the structure and it remained closed.

The USGS issued a yellow alert, saying "some casualties and damage are possible" but the impact should be relatively localised.

The quake, which was initially thought to be magnitude 7.0, hit at 7.42 am (1212 AEDT) at a depth of just 10 kilometres.

It was followed by two shallow 5.0-magnitude aftershocks within 20 minutes, according to the USGS.

"The quake was quite strong. I was shopping in the market at the time and I saw women crying in fear when they felt it. We expect more quakes are coming. Everybody is afraid," said 23-year-old Win Win Nwe, a resident in Shwebo.

It comes little more than a week before US President Barack Obama is due in Burma on a historic visit, as the West begins to roll back sanctions to reward dramatic political reforms under President Thein Sein.

The quake was felt in neighbouring Thailand including in Bangkok.

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Syria planes strike near Iraq border

SYRIAN warplanes have launched air strikes on the eastern town of Albu Kamal near the Iraqi border and pounded rebel lines near Damascus and in the northern city of Aleppo.

Early morning fighting, meanwhile, has raged around the northeast town of Ras al-Ain on the border with Turkey, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says.

The surge in violence follows another day of bloodletting across Syria on Saturday which saw 121 people killed, including 11 civilians in Daraya just outside the capital, the site of the worst massacre in Syria's 20-month conflict.

The Britain-based watchdog said in eastern Syria, two civilians were killed in air raids on the town of Albu Kamal on the Iraqi border while several districts of Deir Ezzor city were shelled by tanks.

The watchdog also reported clashes between President Bashar al-Assad's forces and rebels during the night in the town of Harasta on the northeastern outskirts of Damascus.

The Local Co-ordination Committees, a network of opposition activists on the ground, meanwhile, reported heavy shelling overnight by regime forces on rebel areas southwest of the capital and in the town of Yabrud to the north.

In the northern city of Aleppo, where fighting between rebels and government troops has raged since mid-July, mortars rained down on the rebel bastions of Shaar in the east, Sukari in the south and Halab al-Jadida in the west, according to the Observatory.

Residents said fierce clashes erupted in the northwest districts of Zahraa and Liramun, where tanks fired on rebel positions, and in the embattled Old City.

The Observatory reported army shelling on Sunday of the strategic rebel-held town of Maaret al-Numan, the nearby village of Maarshmisha and Idlib city in the northwest province of Idlib.

The army on Saturday retook a stretch of the Damascus-Aleppo highway in Idlib province used to send its reinforcements to main northern battlefields, but has failed to regain control of Maaret al-Numan.

According to Observatory, which relies on a network of activists, lawyers and medics in civilian and military hospitals, fighting also broke out on Sunday south of Ras al-Ain, in Hasakeh province.

The mainly Kurdish province of Hasakeh has seen heavy fighting in the past few days, with 46 combatants killed as the opposition seized Ras al-Ain on Friday.

The Observatory had on Saturday reported that Kurdish residents backed by militia from the Democratic Union Party (PYD) had taken control of three towns near the border with Turkey after convincing pro-government forces to leave.

The PYD has links with Turkey's rebel Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).

The watchdog said the residents had feared the same kind of violence that saw 9,000 Syrians flee to Turkey in 24 hours in the face of the fighting in Ras al-Ain.

Meanwhile, Syrian opposition groups said on Sunday they were close to an agreement on creating a new, united body against the Assad regime.

"At a meeting grouping representatives of different opposition groups and independents, more than 90 per cent of the agreement has been finalised," said Salem al-Muslat, a member of the main opposition bloc, the Syrian National Council (SNC).

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Qld mill worker dies in crushing accident

A 46-YEAR-OLD worker has died in an accident at a Queensland sugar mill.

The man was crushed between two cane bins at the Proserpine Sugar Mill on Sunday morning, receiving severe injuries to his pelvis.

He was taken to Proserpine Hospital by ambulance and treated there by rescue helicopter medical staff, before being airlifted to the Mackay Base Hospital.

He was in a serious condition when he arrived at the hospital and died at 2.30pm (AEST), some two and a half hours after the accident.

A Queensland Police spokesman said because it was an industrial accident, a Workplace Health and Safety investigation would take place.

A report will be prepared for the coroner.

Comment was sought from mill owner Sucrogen.

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