Putin team defiant after

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MOSCOW, Dec 25, (AFP): Vladimir Putin still has the support of a majority of Russians, his spokesman said Sunday after a mass protest challenged the premier's authority two months before he stands in presidential polls. Organisers said 120,000 people attended the rally in central Moscow Saturday where protesters chanted slogans against Prime Minister Putin and called for the annulment of disputed December parliamentary elections won by his party. Police put the numbers at 29,000 but AFP correspondents said the turnout was clearly bigger and more anti-Putin in tone than the first rally two weeks ago which smashed the taboo in Russia against mass opposition protests. "As a politician and a presidential candidate, Putin still has the support of a majority. And we should treat the opinion of a majority with respect," his spokesman Dmitry Peskov told AFP. He added that Putin was "beyond competition" as a candidate in March 4, 2012 presidential polls, where the Russian strongman plans to stand for a third Kremlin term after his four-year stint as prime minister. Peskov acknowledged the protest had taken place and said the demonstrators' position was to be treated with respect. "Those people who came out onto the streets-they are a very important part of society. But they are a minority." The last Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev had late Saturday dramatically called on Putin to quit, just as he had done on December 25, 1991 when the USSR collapsed exactly two decades ago. "This is not an outburst which will die down. This is not about the protests but about the mood," Yevgeny Gontmakher, head of the Centre for Social Policies at the Moscow-based Economics Institute, told AFP. "There is a danger of a revolution. Authorities are making concessions but are not keeping up with the development of the events." Russia's state television took the surprise decision to cover the rally hinting at an easing of a long-held taboo against direct criticism of Putin, who came to power 12 years ago and wants to stay at the helm until 2024. 4 news digest Britain's Prince Philip misses royal Christmas celebrations CAMBRIDGE, Dec 25: Britain's Prince Philip missed the royal Christmas celebrations for the first time as the husband of Queen Elizabeth II spent a second night in hospital following heart surgery. The queen and other royals were set to continue with their traditional programme, including a Christmas morning church service at the Sandringham estate, despite the 90-year-old's absence, Buckingham Palace said. Philip-the longest serving royal consort in British history and an outspoken pillar of the House of Windsor-was airlifted to hospital from Sandringham in eastern England on Friday suffering from chest pains. - AFP Deadly suicide attack on Afghanistan funeral in Takhar At least 20 people have been killed in a suicide attack on a funeral procession in the northern Afghan province of Takhar, officials say.. Police said 30 were hurt in the attack in the provincial capital, Taloqan. Among those killed was local MP Mutalib Beg, a former commander in the Western-backed Northern Alliance - the faction that fought against the Taliban. Takhar is one of the provinces where Nato is handing over security duties to Afghan forces. The BBC's Bilal Sarwary in Kabul says this is the third time a former Northern Alliance commander has been killed in the province. - BBC Daughter of Iran ex-president Rafsanjani on trial TEHRAN, Dec 25: The daughter of Iranian former president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani is standing trial on charges of making anti-regime propaganda, her laywer was quoted as saying Sunday after a closed hearing. "After the court told her about her accusation of propaganda against the regime, she and I gave our defence," Gholam Ali Riahi, who represented Faezeh Hashemi at the hearing Saturday, said according to the newspaper Arman. "In three days' time, we will present the court with a supplementary defence text and then the court will decide," the lawyer said. - AFP North Korea leadership: Kim Jong-un's uncle in TV clue Kim Jong-un's uncle has been pictured standing at the North Korea leader's side in military uniform, suggesting a key position in the hierarchy. Chang Song-taek had been expected to play a major part in smoothing the transfer of power to Kim Jong-un from his father, Kim Jong-il. It is believed to be the first picture of Mr Chang in uniform. He has been more closely associated with the party. North Korea is trying to carry on the world's only Communist family dynasty. Kim Jong-il, who inherited power from his father in 1994, died last weekend. His son Kim Jong-un is a political novice, thought to be in his late 20s. - BBC US man slain in Philippine robbery MANILA, Dec 25: A retired American Marine living in the Philippines was killed during a home invasion on Christmas Eve, police said Sunday. James Thomas Kakara, 61, was bludgeoned to death Saturday while he was alone at his home in Tagaytay, an upscale community near Manila, said provincial police chief Senior Superintendent John Bulalacao. "The victim is an amputee who is a retired US Marine. He was apparently hit on the head and a piece of pipe that was presumably used in the attack was found at the bottom of his swimming pool," Bulalacao told reporters. His wife and other members of the household had been away at the time, the officer added. - AFP Thais evacuated after big wave hits village BANGKOK, Dec 25, (AFP): About one hundred people in southern Thailand were evacuated Sunday when a large wave flooded their coastal village, a local official said. The three-to-four metre high wave inundated a shore on the Gulf of Thailand, causing floods of one metre deep in a village of Chumphon province, according to provincial governor Pinich Charoenpanich. He said officials helped evacuate about a hundred people to a safe place further inland, and were expected to return home when the waters had subsided and the wind dropped. - AFP 38 Haitians found dead in shipwreck off Cuban coast HAVANA, Dec 25: At least 38 Haitian migrants died after a boat in which they were trying to flee their country started taking in water and got stranded at sea, the Cuban government said. The gruesome discovery was made Saturday when the Cuban Coast Guard found the half-sunken boat about 100 meters (110 yards) off Point Maisi on the eastern shore of the communist-ruled island. A statement from the Cuban Civil Defense agency read on state television said the dead included 21 men and 17 women. Another 87 people, including four children and seven women, were rescued and moved to an international migrants' camp at Point Maisi, where they have been given assistance, the statement said. - AFP Another Soyuz rocket launch fails Russia's recent poor launch record has continued with yet another Soyuz rocket failure. This time, a Soyuz-2 vehicle failed to put a communications satellite into orbit after lifting away from the country's Plesetsk spaceport. Debris is said to have re-entered the Earth's atmosphere near the western Siberian town of Tobolsk. In August, a Soyuz failure on a mission to resupply the space station led to a six-week suspension of flights. Friday's rocket was carrying a Meridian-5 satellite, designed to provide communication between ships, planes and coastal stations on the ground, according to RIA Novosti. - BBC