World briefs 1/7/06

After second surgery, Sharon's outlook still dire

JERUSALEM -- As the Sabbath descended on the Jewish state, the vigil for Ariel Sharon became increasingly somber. The 77-year-old Israeli leader's family and aides grimly remained at the hospital, and dozens of e-mailed prayers from around the world were stuck into the cracks of the Western Wall, one of Jerusalem's holiest shrines. Some Israelis watched nonstop TV broadcasts, waiting for medical updates. Sharon underwent five hours of emergency brain surgery Friday that doctors said successfully stopped a hemorrhage and relieved swelling inside his skull. Officials said his condition showed "significant improvement" but experts said the prognosis remained dire.

Millions in Africa 'on brink of starvation,' U.N. says

ROME -- Severe drought and war have left an estimated 11 million people in the Horn of Africa "on the brink of starvation," the United Nations said Friday. Some deaths are already being reported in Kenya, the agency said. "Millions of people are on the brink of starvation in the Horn of Africa due to recent severe droughts coupled with the effects of past and ongoing conflicts," the agency said. The food situation in Somalia and eastern Kenya is particularly serious, the Rome-based Food and Agriculture Organization. FAO economist Shukri Ahmed said local newspapers, citing Kenyan medical officials, have reported at least 30 famine-related deaths.

Microsoft shuts down blog for Chinese officials

BEIJING -- Microsoft Corp. has shut down the Internet journal of a Chinese blogger that discussed politically sensitive issues. The action came amid criticism by free-speech activists of foreign technology companies that help the communist government enforce censorship or silence dissent in order to be allowed into China's market. Microsoft's Web log-hosting service shut down the blog at the Chinese government's request, said Brooke Richardson, group product manager with Microsoft's MSN online division at company headquarters in Redmond, Wash. Although Beijing has supported Internet use for education and business, it fiercely polices content. Filters block objectionable foreign Web sites and regulations ban subversive and pornographic content and require service providers to enforce censorship rules.

-- From wire reports

Supporters of former Peruvian leader registered him for upcoming elections

LIMA, Peru -- Ignoring a congressional ban on his holding public office and his fight against extradition from Chile, jailed former President Alberto Fujimori's supporters registered his candidacy Friday for April's elections. Fujimori's daughter Keiko and hundreds of others arrived at the National Election Board to add the former president's name to the list of candidates registered for the race. The board, which has until Monday to decide on his bid to run, was widely expected to turn it down. The registration of his candidacy came hours after the Chilean judge handling Fujimori's extradition case ordered him to remain under arrest, possibly for months, while the case is processed.

-- From wire reports