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REUTERS – France and Saudi Arabia have made good progress towards finalising a civilian nuclear energy cooperation agreement and a deal could be signed soon, French Economy Minister Christine Lagarde said on Sunday.0001pt
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It involves cooperation in civil nuclear energy under the best security conditions, Lagarde told reporters in Riyadh.

The talks have made good progress and I hope that our two heads of state will be able to sign an agreement soon, Lagarde said after talks with King Abdullah, Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi, Finance Minister Ibrahim al-Assaf and other officials.

A few months later, the United States said it would help the world top oil exporter to develop peaceful nuclear energy.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who has already signed civilian nuclear deals with Arab oil producers Algeria and Libya, offered Riyadh help last year to develop civilian nuclear energy.

The Gulf Cooperation Council&mdasha loose economic and political alliance of six Arab states including Saudi Arabia&mdash said in 2007 it was studying a joint nuclear energy programme and had been in touch with the U. Russia has also expressed interest in helping Saudi Arabia develop a civilian nuclear energy programme. atomic energy watchdog about cooperating over such a scheme.N.

Christine Lagarde – France – nuclear power – Saudi Arabia

.French police have recaptured a cult leader and convicted child abuser, after he escaped in a helicopter last week from a prison on the French Indian Ocean island Reunion.
Dozens of police clad in bullet-proof vests raided a building Wednesday (local time) in the Moufia neighbourhood of Saint-Denis, less than two kilometres from the prison where Juliano Verbard and two of his jailed followers escaped on a tourist helicopter hijacked by accomplices on April 27.
Five of Verbard’s accomplices, including three who hijacked the helicopter, were captured in the raid which was broadcast live on television.
The official announcement of the recapture of Verbard, 27, came from Paris where the secretary of state for overseas affairs Yves Jego hailed “the remarkable work of the police and gendarmes on the island of Reunion, which allowed the recapture of Julian Verbard”.
His escape triggered a man-hunt involving more than 1,800 police.
Verbard, the leader of a cult called the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary, is serving a 15-year term for raping and sexually assaulting children. .
Despite similar escapes in France, the prison had not installed barriers to prevent helicopters from approaching the buildings and yard

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French prison wardens launched a four-day strike on Monday to protest a lack of resources to manage overcrowded prisons in the country.

Prison unions chose a progressive blockade since they are not allowed to strike. They set up barricades to block the prison main door in a bid to hinder prison transfers and outside visits at more than 190 prisons in the France. .

One of the early blockades was reported at the Fleury-M&eacuterogis prison in northern France, where dozens of wardens clashed with policemen.

According to Louchouarn, working conditions in the prison were partially degraded due to overcrowding. The prison can provide for 2,855 inmates but in reality 3,700 people are currently held there, according to prison director Paul Louchouarn.

Policemen used tear gas following clashes with protesters.

The strike is yet another challenge for French Justice Minister Rachida Dati, who has faced a series of embarrassments in recent weeks.

We&rsquore not here to fight security forces, we&rsquore here to protect our jobs, teary-eyed French union member Marcel Duredon told reporters.

Her successor will have to deal with a new bill on prison reform, which has been on hold for almost one year. Dati is due to step down soon in order to become a candidate for the upcoming European Union elections.

On Monday, protesters shouted out slogans including Rachida sell your robes to pay your prison guards. The bill favours release on parole, and if passed, it would help reduce overcrowding in prisons.

France – prison – strike

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The Chiefs got their fifth consecutive win at the expense of the Lions but they also received a massive wake-up call they might appreciate more in the coming days than they did in Hamilton on Saturday night.

After making wins over the Blues and Reds look ridiculously easy over the last two weeks, the Chiefs made this 36-29 win look like hard work for long periods as errors plagued their attack and particularly their defence.

In the end they had the man charged with filling Sitiveni Sivivatu’s try-scoring jersey to thank as Dwayne Sweeny produced a hat-trick on the left wing to cap off a storming final quarter comeback.

The Lions made no secret of the fact that they were coming to Waikato Stadium to unsettle the free-wheeling Chiefs.

As they get set to sit out a bye next week Ian Foster’s side have had what might prove a timely reality check before they head to South Africa for three matches that will likely define their campaign.

The Chiefs can expect more of the same against the Cheetahs, Bulls and Stormers in the republic because it was a recipe that for a long while looked like it might produce the season’s biggest upset. They achieved that with dubious play at the breakdowns, solid set-piece work, some straight running, an accurate kicking game, plenty of in your face defence and even a bit of biff.

Quickly down 7-nil, then 10-22 at halftime and 10-29 soon after, the Chiefs managed to regain their composure to score 26 unanswered points and snare what had seemed an unlikely victory until those desperate dying stages.

A win’s a win after all and the Chiefs, for all their troubles last night, are right in the thick of the playoffs mix now.

Used to starting with a bang the Chiefs instead finished with a flourish for the same result.

The Chiefs have been down this road before, of course.

And that’s what might makes this shakeup a positive rather than a negative.

The challenge now is to have a breather this week to freshen up, analyse last night’s woes and rediscover the accuracy that made them virtually untouchable until the Lions bared their claws. Last year they won five in a row and then cockily hit the road with a rare semifinal place within their grasp only to lose their final three matches in Perth and South Africa to finish seventh, seven points adrift of the top four.

The Chiefs had a late setback before kickoff when they lost All Blacks lock Kevin O’Neill to an ear infection.

The Chiefs had a late setback before kickoff when they lost All Blacks lock Kevin O’Neill to an ear infection.

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But the Chiefs defence was at sixes and sevens soon after as the Lions attacked down the left with centre Jaque Fourie scrambling over in the corner.

A Stephen Donald penalty settled the Chiefs down and then Dwayne Sweeney worked some individual brilliance to weave through the Lions and then race away for a 40m solo run to the posts.

Things got worse after the break when the Chiefs lost their magic wing Lelia Masaga to injury.

A Pretorious dropped goal added to the Chiefs’ frustrations but they only had themselves to blame when Fourie waltzed through their defences for his second try.

The Lions offside and spoiling tactics finally cost them with No 8 Ernst Joubert sin-binned. Lions replacement Earl Rose picked off a Donald pass and scampered 70m for the intercept try to take the visitors out to a 19-point lead.

And when Masaga’s replacement Jackson Williment squirmed over soon after for his first Super 14 try the prospect of a comeback was suddenly real despite all the earlier problems.

The Chiefs finally put a bit of continuity together to allow Sweeney a close-range try to get them back into the match with 22 minutes left. Donald’s conversion gave them the lead for the first time – and it was 68 minutes in the making.

It was another bench player, hooker Hika Elliot, who obliged as the renewed energy and urgency saw the Chiefs swarm to the Lions’ line and shove the All Black over.

Chiefs 36 (Dwayne Sweeney 3 tries, Jackson Willison, Hika Elliott; Stephen Donald pen, 4 con)

Lions 29 (Jaque Fourie 2, Jano Vermaak, Earl Rose tries; Andre Pretorius 3 con, drop goal).

Chiefs 36 (Dwayne Sweeney 3 tries, Jackson Willison, Hika Elliott; Stephen Donald pen, 4 con)

Lions 29 (Jaque Fourie 2, Jano Vermaak, Earl Rose tries; Andre Pretorius 3 con, drop goal).

Halftime: 10-22.

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AFP – French lawmakers Wednesday started examining a new version of a contested bill that would cut off illegal downloaders from the Internet, in a tough new precedent for efforts to fight film and music piracy.

Backed by the record and film industries but attacked by consumer groups, the bill was rejected this month in a surprise setback for President Nicolas Sarkozy’s government that was blamed on low turnout among majority lawmakers.

The Internet cannot be above the law, said Culture Minister Christine Albanel, who was booed and whistled by the Socialist opposition as she defended the amended text in front of a packed National Assembly.

Supporters hope the bill — which is to be put to a new vote on Tuesday — will wean web users away from pirated films and music, and towards fledgling legal download sites.

Under a three-strikes system, the law would set up a state agency to send illegal file-sharers an email warning, then a letter, and suspend their Internet account for up to a year if they are caught a third time.

Artists and the creative industries are massively on our side, Albanel told opposition lawmakers, who charge that the bill amounts to state surveillance of the web.

Sarkozy, who championed the legislation, has said he would fight for its adoption, calling it the result of an agreement between artists, producers and telecommunications companies.

More than 10,000 French filmmakers and musicians, from Johnny Hallyday to Catherine Deneuve, have signed a petition backing the bill, some 60 of whom met with Sarkozy and first lady Carla Bruni at the Elysee last week.

Consumer groups have attacked the bill on the grounds that users would be cut off before having a chance to challenge the accusation of piracy.

But technology and telecoms groups warn the plans would be a major headache to implement, without generating any new revenue for artists — and would be easy to circumvent via a new generation of streaming sites.

Similar plans in New Zealand were derailed by protests earlier this year, and several European countries including Britain, Germany and Sweden have decided against cut-off measures.

And two members of Sarkozy’s right-wing majority joined the opposition in voting against earlier this month, in protest at a provision saying banned users must continue to pay their Internet bills. .

In the United States, the record industry has enlisted Internet access providers to help root out piracy, with providers sending out warning letters to illegal downloaders, but reports suggest only a handful have been banned