Gilad Shalit, the Israeli soldier that has been held by Hamas since 2006, has arrived at his home in the northern Israeli village of Mitzpe Hila.

He has been reunited with his family after first meeting with Prime Minster Benjamin Netanyahu at an airbase in central Israel.

The Israeli military says a medical examination has found Shalit in good condition.

Shalit says he is "very excited" to be back home.

 

 

CPC seeks to enhance China's cultural soft power

The central committee of the Communist Party of China has wrapped up its four day plenary session.

the central committee has put out a new guideline to improve China's soft power and advocate Chinese culture.

Issues connected to cultural development have been high on the party's priority list since the Reform and Opening Up movement began in the early 1980's.

But this year's plenary session is the first time the CPC has raised the issue to the top of the agenda in some 15-years.

This is also the first time the CPC Central Committee has put out a clear objective toward turning China into a major cultural power on the international stage.

 

 

Thai, Chinese officials inspect Mekong River after attack on Chinese sailors

The Chinese working team has been conducting joint investigations on the attacked ships with the Thai police in northern Thailand's Chiang Rai Province. At least 12 Chinese sailors were killed on the Mekong River earlier this month.

Gao Zhen-ting, Counselor and Consul-General of the Chinese Embassy in Thailand, says the Chinese side is greatly concerned over the investigation of the attack, and hopes to bring the killers to justice soon.

Deputy police chief Prapa-wat says 5 unidentified armed people hijacked the ships, and details of the killing are still sketchy.

He also calls for neighboring countries, namely Myanmar, Laos, Thailand and China to participate in making specific measures to ensure the security on the Mekong River basin.

 

 

NATO reduces strikes in Libya

NATO says most of the population in Sirte and Bani Walid, the last pockets of pro-Muammar Gaddafi resistance in Libya, are no longer under threat.

NATO spokesperson Roland Lavoie says that NATO is now maintaining a more observatory position rather than military strikes.

However, the fighting in Sirte still remains heavy, where pro-Gaddafi forces have launched a new offensive.

Meanwhile, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has made an unannounced visit to Tripoli to meet Libya's new leaders and offer new aid to Libya.

The fresh US aid is expected to include medical care for wounded fighters and additional help in securing weaponry in Libya, which many fear could fall into the hands of extremists.

 

 

Cross-Strait peace should be treasured: SEF chairman

A delegation from Taiwan is now set to arrive later today in Tianjin ahead of the next round of cross-strait negotiations.

Speaking head of the coming round of talks, Taiwan's Straits Exchange Foundation head, Chiang Pin-kung, says that the cross-Strait peace is hard-earned and should be treasured.

Chiang and Chen Yunlin, president of the Chinese mainland's Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits, are set to sit down for their seventh round of talks since the two organizations resumed discussions in June 2008.

The two sides are expected to sign agreements connected to cross-strait nuclear power cooperation, as well as an investment protection deal.

They're also expected to talk about industrial cooperation.

 

 

PKK rebels kill 7 people in southeast Turkey

Seven people are dead in the latest attack by Kurdish rebels in Turkey.

The dead include 5 police officers and a 2-year-old girl.

Militants set off a remote controlled bomb in the restive southeast of Turkey, killing the 7, and sending 4 others to hospital.

This is the latest in a recent escalation of violence by Kurdish rebels in southeastern Turkey.

The ethnic Kurds in southeastern Turkey and northern Iraq have been battling for their own independent homeland over the last 25-years, at a cost of over 40-thousand lives.

 

 

Berlusconi cleared of tax fraud, embezzlement charges

A court in Milan has cleared Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi of tax fraud and embezzlement charges.

Berlusconi was facing the allegation in connection to his private broadcast company Mediaset.

The presiding Judge has ruled there is not sufficient information to convict the prime minister of being directly related to the company's wrongdoings.

The investigation centers on whether the company illegally juggled its books to avoid paying 35 million euros in taxes and fees to the government.

Berlusconi still faces a string of other charges, including bribery, corruption and paying for sex with an underage girl.