No 2012 vintage from Chateau d'Yquem

CHATEAU d'Yquem will not be producing a 2012 vintage after harvest rain prevented the grapes from reaching the levels of concentration required to make the world's most famous sweet wine.

Pierre Lurton, who runs the celebrated estate behind the Sauternes wine for its main shareholder LVMH, said the decision, which will cost the luxury goods group tens of millions of euros, had been taken to maintain Yquem's reputation for excellence.

"We tried our best but unfortunately the weather was not with us this year," Lurton told AFP.

"A brand like Yquem has to be prepared to not make a vintage. For the image of one of the world's great white wines and for Yquem's place in history, it was a reasonable decision not to make a wine this year."

Similar decisions were taken in 1952, 1972 and 1992.

"It is as if there was a curse on us every 20 years," Lurton added with a smile.

Despite advances in technology, the production of sweet wine in the Sauternes area of southwestern France remains hugely vulnerable to the vagaries of weather.

The sweetness of the wine comes from grapes that have been left on the vines long enough to be affected by noble rot, which bolsters sugar levels and imparts the complex notes of fruit, honey and nuts that make Sauternes the benchmark for dessert wines around the world.

For the rot to develop, producers rely on a combination of autumnal morning mists and midday sunshine that occur most but not all years.

"We were cropping some good stuff at the beginning (of the harvest) this year but then we had a lot of rain," Lurton said.

"The quantity was not good and the concentration was not there."

With an average production of 100,000 bottles per year, the decision to cancel output means foregoing about 25 million euros ($A31 million) of sales, but Lurton said it had been cleared by LVMH boss Bernard Arnault.

"He takes a view on the excellence and the durability of great brands," Lurton said.

"We don't reason in terms of turnover, we take a long-term view. We may have lost sales this year but we have maintained Yquem's reputation for excellence.

"There will be many more great vintages in the future that will allow us to make up for this one."

The 2012 Yquem has been the most high-profile victim of adverse weather conditions that played havoc with wine production across much of France this year.

A combination of spring frosts and hail and harvest rain slashed yields in most areas.

Early tasting reports indicate that quality has been maintained in Burgundy, Champagne and the Rhone but 2012 is tipped to be one of the most disappointing red Bordeaux vintages of recent years.

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Italian engineer kidnapped in Syria

AN Italian engineer has been kidnapped in Syria along with two other workers from the steel works in the port city of Latakia, the foreign ministry in Rome says.

"In all such cases, the safety of our countryman is of the utmost priority and it is indispensable to be as discreet as possible," Foreign Minister Giulio Terzi said in a statement, without revealing any further details about the kidnap victims.

The ministry's crisis unit has "activated all available channels" and the Italian's family has been informed, the ministry said.

Italian media named the engineer as Mario Belluomo from Catania in Sicily, who worked at the steel plant in Syria's principal port city. According to the reports, he was kidnapped in nearby Tartus, another port city.

"We are working with the utmost commitment and with the same dedication with which our embassies and consulates give assistance daily to our countrymen in difficulty, including in risky regions and situations," he said.

Terzi said his thoughts went to the kidnapped men and to Giovanni Lo Porto, an Italian taken hostage in Pakistan in January, who has yet to be freed.

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Wave of Iraq attacks kills at least 47

A WAVE of attacks targeting both Iraqi security forces and civilians has killed at least 47 people and wounded at least 110, security and medical officials say.

The attacks, which hit more than a dozen different Iraqi cities and towns on Monday, came on the eve of the first anniversary of the US military withdrawal from Iraq.

Violence in Iraq is down significantly from its peak in 2006 and 2007, but while Iraqi forces have held their own since the US departure, insurgent groups still pose a significant threat, and attacks occur almost daily.

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Doomed French elephants win reprieve

TWO sick middle-aged elephants that French officials wanted to put down have been given a Christmas reprieve after an appeal to President Francois Hollande and an internet campaign to save them.

Baby and Nepal, who both have tuberculosis, had been deemed a threat to other animals at their zoo in the city of Lyon as well as to human visitors since the disease is highly contagious.

But when city authorities ordered them to be put down by December 20, Gilbert Edelstein, the French circus owner who donated them to the Parc de la Tete d'Or zoo, launched a campaign to save the 40-something females.

He even sought the "supreme intervention" of Hollande in a letter to the president, while an internet campaign to save the Asian elephants gathered 11,000 signatories.

The efforts appear to have paid off. On Monday, local authorities issued a ruling suspending the order to put the elephants to sleep with a lethal injection.

It was not immediately clear if that suspension would become permanent.

Edelstein had argued that when he donated the elephants to the zoo, they were perfectly healthy and he said that if they contracted tuberculosis, it was from the other animals.

"I want them to be treated and returned to me," he said on Friday.

Elephants have a lifespan of 60-70 years.

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US names Lebanese ex-minister as terrorist

THE United States has named former Lebanese information minister Michel Samaha a "specially designated global terrorist" for allegedly aiding the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to launch attacks in Lebanon.

Samaha was arrested on August 9 by Lebanese authorities and accused of plotting to assassinate Lebanese leaders and of transporting explosives into Lebanon for such attacks, the US Treasury said in a statement.

"The United States will continue to expose any attempts by the Assad regime to meddle in the affairs of its neighbours and further destabilise the region," said Treasury Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence David Cohen.

"We will continue to work with our international partners to ensure that the sovereignty of Lebanon is respected and upheld."

Samaha, 64, who has both Lebanese and Canadian nationality, was minister of information and tourism in the 1990s.

He was officially listed as a "global terrorist" by the US State Department, and the Treasury slapped economic sanctions on him that freeze any assets he holds under US jurisdiction and forbids Americans from doing business with him.

The Treasury said Samaha "reportedly" received the explosives he is accused of transporting from Ali Mamluk, the head of the Syrian National Security Bureau.

"Information available to the US government indicates that in July 2012 Mamluk was involved in a plot with Samaha to conduct bombing attacks against Lebanese political and religious figures in northern Lebanon, and Mamluk provided money and explosives to Samaha for that purpose," the Treasury said.

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US eyes Google antitrust settlement

US regulators are likely to conclude a lengthy antitrust probe of Google's dominance of internet searches with a voluntary settlement, news reports say.

The Wall Street Journal said Google was likely to agree to a settlement with the Federal Trade Commission that calls for unspecified changes in how it handles search queries, but would stop short of signing a consent decree that could be enforced by a court.

The Washington Post also reported that a settlement was likely this week, saying it would fall well short of what Google's rivals had sought.

Online news site Politico reported that the FTC did not have the votes to bring an enforcement action against Google, but that the settlement would include new practices on the use of "snippets" of user reviews from companies such as Yelp and TripAdvisor, companies which have said Google uses such content without permission.

Politico said Google will also pledge to make it easier for advertisers to buy ad space on its search engine and to move their ad campaigns to competing sites.

The reports said Google may agree to a separate consent decree to limit the use of patents, including those acquired when it bought Motorola Mobility, to curb competition.

These settlements would not necessarily affect a separate review of Google's practices in the European Union, or by several US states, which would be able to bring their own enforcement actions.

Critics point out that Google controls some 70 per cent of the internet search market - and the advertising that goes along with it - and may exert even more power in the mobile sector by controlling the Android operating system used on two-thirds of smartphones.

Google has been accused of "scraping" content from other services like travel and restaurant reviews while keeping consumers on its own sites.

It is also under fire for allegedly promoting its own services - including travel, restaurant reviews and YouTube videos - in its search results.

European Union competition watchdogs began an investigation into Google in 2010 and the FTC opened its own probe into the company's lucrative search and advertising business in June 2011.

A Google spokesperson, asked about the reports, said: "We continue to work co-operatively with the Federal Trade Commission and are happy to answer any questions they may have."

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Nigeria minister links mum's kidnap to oil

NIGERIA'S finance minister says kidnappers who held her mother hostage for five days had demanded her resignation, suggesting the abduction had a political motive.

Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, one of Nigeria's most prominent figures, has been in a highly publicised struggle with fuel importers over payment of subsidies, with government officials delaying payments to allow for verification of claims.

In her first public comments on the kidnapping ordeal, Okonjo-Iweala said her 83-year-old mother, Kamene Okonjo, was held "for five days without food or water". Her release was announced on Friday.

"While she was in their custody, the kidnappers spent much of the time harassing her. They told her that I must get on the radio and television and announce my resignation," Okonjo-Iweala said in a statement on Monday.

"When she asked why, they told her it was because I did not pay 'Oil subsidy money'," the statement said.

The finance minister did not take questions and made no comment as to whether a ransom was paid. The circumstances surrounding her mother's release remain unclear.

A parliamentary probe earlier this year found Nigeria, Africa's top oil producer, lost $US6.8 billion ($A6.5 billion) through the subsidy program between 2009 and 2011. The subsidies are designed to hold petrol prices low.

The probe detailed what has long been suspected in Nigeria, describing a lack of accounting, overpayments, wilful disregard for regulations and outright incompetence in managing the program.

Fuel importers have voiced anger at what they term the government's outstanding payments, while Okonjo-Iweala has been at the forefront of a campaign to ensure all subsidy claims are legitimate.

"President Goodluck Jonathan is determined to do the right thing. We have had a lot of support. We will continue to do the right thing," she said.

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Nation cautioned against Mandela panic

SOUTH Africa's former President Nelson Mandela is "doing very, very well" while undergoing unspecified medical tests at a military hospital, the nation's defense minister said Monday.

The office of the presidency said the anti-apartheid icon was being kept in the hospital for a third day for more tests.

Mandela is revered by South Africans, and by many people around the world, for being a leader of the struggle against racist white rule in South Africa and for preaching reconciliation once he emerged from prison in 1990 after 27 years behind bars. He won South Africa's first all-race elections in 1994 that marked the end of apartheid.

South Africans tensely awaited word Monday on Mandela even as authorities tried to offer reassurances, but gave no details.

Defence Minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula spoke to journalists outside 1 Military Hospital in the capital, Pretoria, after seeing Mandela, 94. She offered the first government confirmation that Mandela, who has received military medical care since 2011, is at that hospital.

"He's doing very, very well," she said. "And it is important to keep him in our prayers and also to be as calm as possible and not cause a state of panic because I think that is not what all of us need."

A statement issued later Monday by the office of President Jacob Zuma said Mandela "had a good night's rest. The doctors will still conduct further tests today. He is in good hands. "

On Saturday, Zuma's office announced Mandela had been admitted to a Pretoria hospital for medical tests and care that was "consistent for his age". Zuma visited Mandela Sunday and found the former leader to be "comfortable and in good care," presidential spokesman Mac Maharaj said in a statement. Maharaj offered no other details about Mandela, nor what medical tests he had undergone since entering the hospital.

In February, Mandela spent a night in a hospital for a minor diagnostic surgery to determine the cause of an abdominal complaint. In January 2011, Mandela was admitted to a Johannesburg hospital for what officials initially described as tests but what turned out to be an acute respiratory infection.

Mandela contracted tuberculosis during his years in prison and had surgery for an enlarged prostate gland in 1985. In 2001, Mandela underwent seven weeks of radiation therapy for prostate cancer, ultimately beating the disease.

After serving one five-year term, the Nobel laureate retired from public life and later settled in his remote village of Qunu, in the Eastern Cape area. He last made a public appearance when his country hosted the 2010 World Cup soccer tournament. He has grown increasingly frail in recent years.

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Springsteen, Lady Gaga join Stones concert

BRUCE Springsteen, Lady Gaga and The Black Keys will join the Rolling Stones for the final concert marking the band's 50th anniversary.

The Stones have played in London and New York on their 50 and Counting tour.

The band will perform on Wednesday at the 12-12-12 concert in New York City to raise money for victims of Superstorm Sandy.

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Egypt braces for rival protests in Cairo

EGYPT was bracing for rival protests to take place in Cairo on Tuesday over a bitterly divisive referendum on a new constitution, prompting President Mohammed Morsi to order the army to help "preserve security".

The duelling demonstrations, organised by Islamists backing Morsi and the largely secular opposition, raised fears of street clashes like ones last week in which seven people were killed and hundreds injured.

Morsi's decree instructing the military to fully co-operate with police "to preserve security and protect vital state institutions for a temporary period, up to the announcement of the results from the referendum" came into force on Monday.

Army officers "all have powers of legal arrest," it says.

The military, which has urged dialogue and warned it "will not allow" the political crisis to deteriorate, has for several days kept tanks and troops deployed around Morsi's presidential palace.

Late on Monday, soldiers merely watched as more than 100 anti-Morsi demonstrators milled around in front of the palace, an AFP correspondent said.

The rights group Amnesty International called Morsi's security decree "a dangerous loophole which may well lead to the military trial of civilians," recalling the 16 months of army rule that followed the ouster of former president Hosni Mubarak last year, until Morsi's election in June 2012.

The opposition, made up of secular, liberal, left wing and Christian groups, has said it will escalate its protests to scupper the referendum.

It views the new constitution largely drawn up by Morsi's Islamist allies, including some who want to see Sharia law implemented one day, as undermining secular traditions, human and gender rights, and the independence of the judiciary.

Morsi has defiantly pushed on with the draft charter, seeing it as necessary to secure democratic reform in the wake of Mubarak's 30-year autocratic rule.

The main opposition group, the National Salvation Front, has called for huge protests in Cairo to reject the constitutional referendum, which is scheduled for Saturday.

"We do not recognise the draft constitution because it does not represent the Egyptian people," National Salvation Front spokesman Sameh Ashour told a news conference.

The Muslim Brotherhood, from which Morsi hails, said Islamist movements would counter the protests with their own big rallies in the capital in support of the referendum.

"We are calling for a demonstration on Tuesday, under the slogan 'Yes to legitimacy'," the Brotherhood's spokesman, Mahmud Ghozlan, told AFP.

Morsi's camp argues it is up to the people to accept or reject the draft constitution.

Cairo schools informed parents they would be closed as a precaution on Tuesday.

A group of senior judges on Monday said pro-Morsi Islamist protesters would have to lift a week-long sit-in outside the constitutional court before they would consider overseeing the referendum.

If the charter is rejected, Morsi has promised to have a new one drawn up by 100 officials chosen directly by the public rather than appointed by the Islamist-dominated parliament.

But analysts said still-strong public support for Morsi and the Brotherhood's proven ability to mobilise at grassroots level would likely help the draft constitution be adopted.

If that happens, warned Eric Trager, analyst at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, it would "set up the country for prolonged instability."

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