Korean veteran remembers mate's snoring

Fifteen Australian war veterans who fought in Korea have returned to mark the 60th anniversary. Source: AAP

RETURNING to Korea 60 years after fighting in the war has stirred up unexpected memories for Bill Monaghan.

During the Korean War, Monaghan bunked with fellow fighter pilot Bob Macintosh at the Kimpo Airbase, outside of Seoul.

"The room mate I'm sharing with, we were in Kimpo together, I had forgotten how much he snores," the 84-year-old Canberra great-grandfather told AAP on the phone from Korea on Saturday.

The pair are among 15 Australia war veterans who have travelled to Korea to mark the 60th anniversary of the armistice signing that ended fighting.

Mr Monaghan joined the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) in 1949 and was in active combat during the last three months of the war.

His role was to fly over enemy supply lines and try to stop supplies getting through to the frontline.

"I was a frightened young boy from the country who did not know what he'd gotten himself into," he said.

During his twelfth combat mission, his Gloster Meteor plane was hit by enemy fire which took out his right engine.

Unable to return to base on one engine, Mr Monaghan made an emergency beach landing on the island of Paengyong-do held by United Nations forces, where his engine was replaced.

Mr Monaghan returned to Australia in December 1953, to marry his wife Dot.

"She's only divorced me 14 times," he joked, hastily adding that they've had a wonderful married life and are proud of their son and daughter.

More than 18,000 Australians served in the Korean War, 340 soldiers died, 1200 were wounded and 43 are still listed as missing in action.

The 15 Australian veterans are attending a special ceremony at the Korean War Memorial in Seoul on Saturday, alongside Veterans Affairs Minister Warren Snowdon, and have toured some battle ground sites.

Mr Monaghan said it was sobering to visit the famous land battle site at Kapyong.

"You look at the conditions where the (Australians) fought back an overwhelming force of the Chinese, it's very daunting to consider that ... your hat comes off to them every time you think about it."

While the highlight of the trip has been the companionship of his mates, Mr Monaghan was keen to return to Korea and see first-hand the thriving democracy and economy.

"We look over the border at the north and we say it was well worth the effort," he said.

* Korean War veterans will also mark the anniversary at a service at National Korean War Memorial in Canberra on Saturday.

AAP lpm/nl

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Albo calls for patience on poll date

The Deputy Prime Minister has called for people to be patient about the federal poll date. Source: AAP

DEPUTY Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says no one in the Rudd government has a "rush to the polls mentality" but it will be before or after his league team wins the premiership.

Mr Albanese on Saturday called for patience, as speculation about the federal election date reaches fever pitch.

"No one in the government has had a rush to the polls mentality," he told reporters, flanked by scores of red balloons at a community campaign event for Chinese Australian lawyer Jason Yat-sen Li, Labor's candidate for the Sydney seat of Bennelong.

He said the government would consider calling the election at an appropriate time.

"It will be before or after the Souths win their twenty first premiership," he joked.

Mr Albanese is a South Sydney Rabbitohs supporter.

Opposition leader Tony Abbott urged Prime Minister Kevin Rudd to stop "playing games" and name the date.

"The government of our country is not about showbiz," he told reporters at the Stockman's Hall of Fame at Longreach in western Queensland.

"Electing a national government is not a version of celebrity Big Brother."

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Six dead, 40 wounded in Philippines blast

Six people have been killed and at least 28 injured in a bomb blast in a southern Philippine city. Source: AAP

SIX people are dead and more than 40 wounded in the Philippines after a bomb struck a restaurant filled with doctors after a national convention.

Police say the improvised explosive device went off around midnight Friday local time at a popular restaurant in the southern port city of Cagayan de Oro.

Most of the victims were doctors and pharmaceutical salesmen who had just attended a national convention of lung-disease specialists at a nearby hotel, said the city police chief, Senior Superintendent Graciano Mijares.

"This is one of the busiest areas of Cagayan de Oro.... somebody left a bomb on a chair at the bistro," he told reporters.

He declined to speculate on the motive for the bombing, saying an investigation was under way.

Cagayan de Oro is located on the main southern island of Mindanao, which has been blighted by a decades-old rebellion by elements of the large Muslim minority in the mainly Catholic Asian nation.

Local businessman Noel Arcenas, who owns an electronics shop at the shopping complex where the restaurant is located, said at least 100 people were inside the bistro when the explosion occurred.

"I felt then heard the blast," said Arcenas, who added he was standing about 15 metres away.

"I looked around and saw this ball of white smoke. People were running away bloodied and survivors were dragging at least seven or eight people away from the blast site."

The powerful explosion broke glass panels, upturned tables and chairs, and damaged cars parked up to 30 metres away, reporters at the scene said.

The six dead included two doctors as well as local politician Roldan Lagbas, a member of the provincial executive board of Misamis Oriental province, police said.

Forty-six other people were taken to area hospitals for treatment, said regional military spokesman Lieutenant-Colonel Leo Bongosia.

President Benigno Aquino's government denounced the attack.

"We deplore this act of violence at this meeting of professionals, the Philippine College of Physicians, whose mission in life is to bring about healing," Aquino spokesman Herminio Coloma told reporters in Manila.

Cagayan de Oro mayor Oscar Moreno told ABS-CBN television network at least two of the wounded were in critical condition.

"Doctors have been attending to them and we hope their situation will stabilise soon," Moreno said.

Asked who he thought was responsible for the attack, he said: "It's hard to speculate at this time."

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Sydney teen mum reveals abduction ordeal

A TEENAGE mother has described her terrifying ordeal after her baby son was abducted at knife point in Sydney by her ex-partner.

As the hunt continues for Steven Hume, who forced his way into the Chester Hill home of his ex-girlfriend on Thursday night, the baby's mother said she tried to escape.

Casey Mifsud, 16, told the Seven Network Hume broke into her southwest Sydney home, took out a knife and told her to get in the car with her eight-month old son.

"He told me he was going to kill me ... and my son," said Ms Mifsud, who had cuts to her face.

"Every time he would ask me a question and I would answer it, he would punch me in the head ... smash my head into the car window and then told me that he's really sorry and that he only does it because he loves me."

When Hume stopped for tissues to wipe her bloody face she fled the car with her baby.

Ms Mifsud said she banged on a driver's door begging for help but the driver took off.

This is when the 24-year-old grabbed baby Zhaiden and took off.

Hume's car was found abandoned on Avon Dam Road at Bargo, south of Sydney, on Friday morning after it slammed into a tree.

Ms Mifsud said she thought her child was dead until one of Hume's family members handed him to Campbelltown police station around 5pm (AEST) on Friday.

"It just makes me feel like I failed as a mum," Ms Mifsud said while sobbing heavily.

"He should get jail time for beating a woman."

The baby is currently in the care of the NSW Department of Family and Community Services.

Hume, who has a thin build, brown hair and several tattoos on his arms and chest, was last seen wearing a blue jumper and green track pants.

Police warn he's considered dangerous and should not be approached.

"I ask that members of the public do not approach him, but contact triple zero immediately," Superintendent Dave Eardley, from the Bankstown Local Area Command, said on Saturday.

"I urge Steven Hume to attend the nearest police station and hand himself in, or contact us and commence some dialogue."

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Bashed Sydney man's family seeks witnesses

THE family of a man brutally bashed by a stranger in the Sydney CBD have pleaded for two men caught on camera to turn themselves in.

Matthew Blackmore, 33, was crossing George Street to catch a cab home around midnight last Sunday when an unknown man smashed him in the side of the face, in what police have described as an "vicious, unprovoked" attack.

He was knocked unconscious and fell face first onto the pavement, breaking his nose and striking his head.

The Maroubra banker remained in hospital on Sunday, and his sister Karen Blackmore said he faced a long recovery.

"It's one day at a time," she told reporters.

"He's struggling, to be honest ... he doesn't recall anything, he doesn't know why."

Detectives have now released CCTV footage of two men who are wanted for questioning over the incident.

One man is described as being of Caucasian appearance, with an athletic build and short brown hair.

He was wearing a black jacket, white button-up shirt, dark pants and white shoes.

The second man depicted in the footage also looks Caucasian, has a short stocky build and a shaved head.

He was dressed in a dark jacket, white shirt, black pants and black shoes.

City Central Local Area Command's Stephen Warren said CCTV video showed the two men pulling up in a dark 4WD to the CBD street where Mr Blackmore was bashed.

"The males that we wish to speak to are seen to get out of that vehicle, cross George Street, and moments later the assault on Matthew occurs," he told reporters in Sydney.

He said Mr Blackmore didn't know either man, but urged anyone who did recognise them to come forward.

"Tell us what you know, so that we can bring some comfort to this family and try to arrest the offenders," he said.

Acting Inspector Warren also revealed police have obtained CCTV footage of the assault itself.

Mark Blackmore told reporters it was time for his brother's attacker to come forward.

"It's been a week, you've had time to think about your actions," he said.

He's described his brother as "one of the lucky ones" because he escaped severe brain damage in the incident, but Matthew Blackmore still suffers memory loss, severe headaches and difficulty balancing.

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Nurses to strike at 160 NSW hospitals

Nurses and midwives will strike at more than 160 public hospitals and community health services. Source: AAP

NURSES and midwives at every major hospital in NSW will be walking off the job on Wednesday.

Staff at more than 160 public hospitals and community health services across the state have notified the union about their plans to strike.

They are protesting over what they say is the state government's failure to provide safe nurse staffing levels.

NSW Nurses and Midwives' Association General Secretary Brett Holmes said more branches were expected to join the cause by Wednesday.

"For a few hundred million dollars a year the state government can dramatically improve patient care in our public hospitals," he said in a statement on Sunday.

The union wants one nurse to four patients in all general medical, surgical and acute inpatient mental health wards.

It's also calling for one nurse per three children in general children's wards and one nurse to three patients in emergency departments.

The extra staffing would "save lives and money", Mr Holmes said, adding that the nurse-to-patient ratios needed to be consistent at every hospital in NSW, including those in the country.

A special general meeting will be held at Sydney Olympic Park Sports Centre from 11.30am (AEST) on Wednesday, with a live webcast to 17 regional centres, including Albury, Broken Hill, Kempsey, Tamworth and Wagga Wagga.

During the strike life-preserving services will be maintained in all hospitals and community health services, the union said.

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Rudd's PNG boat deal a fake fix: Abbott

Opposition immigration spokesman Scott Morrison says asylum seekers could still be resettled in Aus. Source: AAP

THE coalition has launched a broad attack on Labor's asylum seeker deal with Papua New Guinea, accusing Kevin Rudd of misleading Australians to win votes ahead of an election.

Opposition Leader Tony Abbott says the central thrust of the deal - that all asylum seekers arriving by boat will be sent to PNG and will not be resettled in Australia - simply is not true.

"It's clear that neither of Mr Rudd's assertions are actually borne out by the document," he told reporters in Melbourne on Sunday.

"Mr Rudd has been misleading to the point of dishonesty."

Mr Abbott, accompanied by his immigration spokesman Scott Morrison, detailed a long list of alleged flaws with the deal, signed on Friday by Mr Rudd and his PNG counterpart Peter O'Neill.

Under the arrangement, people arriving by boat without a visa were to be sent to Australia's Manus Island facility in PNG for assessment and, if found to be refugees, would be settled there.

Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus earlier said it was unlikely PNG's leader would have told the coalition anything different.

"I'm certain that's not what Prime Minister O'Neill said," Mr Dreyfus told Network Ten.

But Mr Abbott said the document wasn't even legally binding, but a scant two pages "held together with blue tac and sticky tape" to last until the election.

"This is simply another fake fix from someone who is the great pretender of Australian politics," he said.

Mr Morrison said it was clear from examining the details that PNG was not bound to the agreement, and that Labor had no plan for children arriving by boat.

PNG would not take an unlimited number of asylum seekers, despite Labor claims to the contrary, and it could be years before Manus Island could handle a surge in arrivals, he added.

He said people who are found not to be refugees would become Australia's problem, and those with communicable diseases, terrorism charges or a criminal background would remain in Australia.

"The devil is always in the detail with Mr Rudd, and Mr Rudd always proves to be the devil in that detail," Mr Morrison said.

Mr Rudd's hardline policy will likely feature at a meeting of Labor MPs meeting in Sydney on Monday, with Cabinet member Mark Butler acknowledging a level of discomfort within the party ranks.

"There would be people within the Labor movement and the Labor party and the broader community who would feel uncomfortable with this," he told Sky News.

It comes as Home Affairs Minister Jason Clare announced that the Australian Federal Police would pay rewards of up to $200,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of people smugglers.

But Foreign Minister Bob Carr said asylum seekers were arriving at the rate of 40,000 to 50,000 a year, and a tough response to stop that rising even further was unavoidable.

"If it continues at this level - the prime minister was very persuaded by this - it could rise further as people smugglers really close in to make a financial killing," he told Sky News.

The coalition has said it would "salvage" what it could from the deal if elected to government, but wouldn't be replaced its foremost policy of turning back asylum boats where it's safe to do so.

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10 rebels and soldiers killed in Colombia

Six guerillas from the FARC rebel group and four Colombian soldiers have been killed in clashes. Source: AAP

SIX guerillas from the leftist FARC rebel group and four Colombian soldiers have been killed in clashes in southwest Colombia.

Military officials say the fighting occurred in the town of El Doncello, in the department of Caqueta, a stronghold of the southern bloc of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia.

Three soldiers were injured and two militants captured.

The latest casualties of Colombia's almost half-century-old insurgency came a day after the rebel group announced it had captured a US-ex soldier but said it was ready to release him as a gesture toward peace talks with the government.

The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, is the country's largest guerrilla group with 8000 fighters.

Talks between the rebels and the government opened last November in Cuba, in the fourth attempt since the 1980s to end the conflict that has left 600,000 dead, more than 3.7 million displaced and 15,000 missing.

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