Chinese baby, rescued from toilet, is released to grandparents

 A newborn baby boy who was found alive inside a toilet pipe in Jinhua, China, has been released from a hospital and taken home by his maternal grandparents, police said.

The child's mother is still being treated at the hospital, but has been cooperating with the investigation, Xiang Jiangsong, a police official, said Thursday.

The police are labeling the case an "accident" at this time, and no charges have been filed against the mother.

Dramatic video of the infant's rescue made global headlines and sparked reactions worldwide.

Unable to pull the infant out, rescuers went to a floor below the toilet and sawed away a section of pipe to gain access from there.

Still unable to extract the infant, rescuers detached the section of pipe with the infant inside and took it to the hospital.

Working together, rescuers and doctors used pliers and gingerly tore away bits of the pipe.

CCTV video showed the exact moment hands in white gloves gingerly pulled away a part of the pipe to reveal the newborn's face.

The infant, a boy referred to as "Baby 59," was drinking formula, doctors said.

Police said firefighters and other rescuers involved visited the baby at the hospital and sent clothes, formula powder and diapers.

The mother's account

The mother of the infant is not being identified, but local police say she is 22.

Police say that, so far, they believe her account of how the baby ended up in the pipe.

"That day she felt stomachaches," said Jiang Song, the vice director of police. "So she went to the toilet. It was actually close to her due date and the baby just slid out."

Police questioned the woman, who told them that she did not intend for the child to fall into the toilet, according to a local TV channel that was posted on the official police Weibo account.

The police said she tried to retrieve the baby with a stick, then decided to flush the toilet to clear away the blood.

Police: Young mother was embarrassed

A police officer in Pujiang County, in which the incident took place, told a journalist working for CNN that the unmarried woman broke up with her boyfriend six months ago. The officer refused to give his full name to the reporter, identifying himself only as Fang.

According to Fang, the young woman was embarrassed to have a child as a single woman and felt nervous, so after the baby fell in the toilet, she called her landlord and told him that she'd heard crying, Fang said.

The landlord saw the baby and called police, the officer said, adding that the woman later begged police not to tell her story to anyone, including her parents, because she didn't want public attention, according to the officer.

The mother's parents have agreed to help the mother take care of the baby, and police have identified a man they believe is the father. The police are conducting blood tests to confirm paternity, the officer told CNN.

Fang said that the mother has legal custody of the child and can decide if she wants help from the baby's father

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'American Idol' to get makeover with exits of Mariah Carey, Nicki Minaj

There won't just be a new winner next season on "American Idol." Most everything about the show may be new.

Weeks after Randy Jackson announced his departure from Fox's long-running music talent show, two of his fellow judges -- Mariah Carey and Nicki Minaj -- followed him out the door Thursday.

That leaves only one "Idol" judge left in crooner Keith Urban -- for now.

News of Carey's departure came out first Thursday, in the form of a tweet posted on her official account that stated she was saying "goodbye 2 idol" (and, simultaneously, announced a new world tour). Players behind "American Idol" -- namely Fox, FremantleMedia and 19 Entertainment -- confirmed her departure in a statement.

 'Idol' judges fight ends in walk-off 'American Idol' contestant admits to lie

"Mariah Carey is a true global icon -- one of the most accomplished artists on the planet -- and we feel extremely fortunate that she was able to bring her wisdom and experience to the 'American Idol' contestants this season," they said. "We know she will remain an inspiration to 'Idol' hopefuls for many seasons to come."

Minaj followed up a short time later with a tweet of her own, making her exit official, also after a lone season.

"Thank you American Idol for a life changing experience! Wouldn't trade it for the world!" the rapper wrote. "Time to focus on the Music!!! Mmmuuuaahhh!!!"

After this tweet, Fox, FreemantleMedia and 19 Entertainment issued another statement saying they "understand and respect her decision" in light of "her extremely busy career."

"Nicki Minaj is a superstar who brought a level of honesty and passion to 'American Idol' and who had a tremendous positive impact on so many contestants this season," they said.

The two performers had been brought on following the exits of judges Jennifer Lopez and Steven Tyler, hoping to bolster the show's ratings.

"Idol" had topped the Nielsen charts as America's most watched program for eight years running. But that streak ended in 2012, and since then the show's producers have made several changes. This season's finale was earlier this month.

Carey and Minaj, though, ended up generating headlines more for their reported tiff than they did for bringing in more viewers.

Both of them join Jackson, who had been the only judge remaining from the program's 2002 debut. Earlier this month, he announced he had voted himself off the show.

"It's been a life-changing opportunity, but I am looking forward to focusing on my company, Dream Merchant 21, and other business ventures," the musician and producer said.

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Bangladeshis did not vote in Malaysia

AKM Atiqur Rahman, who has been touring polling centres throughout the day, told bdnews24.com that he had not come across ‘a single such incident’.

He was in Johor Bahru, near the southern tip of mainland Malaysia, when the polls closed on Sunday.

“I have gone round quite a few centres today and everything appears to be quite in order,” the envoy said."There were no such complaints."

Reports , later dismissed as false, had surfaced that many expatriate Bangladeshi workers in Malaysia had been duped into believing they were indeed being made voters in Malaysia.

The NGO Affairs Bureau’s announcement, citing Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, said that many Bangladeshis working in Malaysia would not only be given citizenship but voting rights in these elections.

However, the Bangladesh envoy Atiqur Rahman clarified that no such announcement had ever been made.

According to a petition filed with the White House of USA , the ruling coalition —Barisan Nasional — “had bribed the official recruitment agency of Bangladesh to allow a huge number of Bangladeshi workers (estimated about 600,000 people) taken to Malaysia for such despicable and non democratic action”.

The petitioners , ‘Kuan-Ping Ang and etc’ , on the White House website’s open petition page have urged the Obama administration for assistance to prevent this supposed vote rigging by phantom voters.

Asked whether the High Commission had initiated any investigation to ascertain whether there is any truth in these allegations, the Bangladeshi envoy said there had been none. “But we may begin something to this effect later.”

Asked about the process of becoming a Malaysian voter, Rahman said, “There are perhaps 100 Bangladeshis or so who might have become citizens and thereafter voters.”

“It (voting rights) is very difficult and restricted,” said the diplomat. He said that there was no way such a huge number of people could actually secure citizenship, let alone a voter ID.

According to another High Commission official , since there were numerous complaints and worries about Bangladeshi workers, this hoax might have been engineered by certain quarters for political advantage.

He said voting rights were almost exclusively restricted to Malaysians and anyone foreigner who went up to a polling booth , even with a fake voter ID, would give himself away. “Any idiot would know that the person was a foreigner and not a Malaysian.”

Requesting anonymity this official told bdnews24.com that there were an estimated 600,000 Bangladeshis living in Malaysia. “That is including the officially registered people as well as illegal and semi-legal workers.”

Familiar to the region, the official said the highest number of workers were from Indonesia and put their number at around 1.5 million. If there are fake voters, it makes more sense to give them the false identity papers. “But here the complaints appear to be directed against Bangladeshis.”

“I tried checking the situation after hearing these rumours but have not been able to spot a single such case.”

He confirmed that the High commission had not taken any steps to probe these rumours. “We cannot do that unless it we are officially asked to.”

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Half day transport strike in Dhaka

A half-day transport strike was in effect in Dhaka on Monday adding to the misery of commuters.

The strike was called protesting the death of a transport worker who died during clashes between the Hifazat-e-Islam and police on Sunday.

Only a few state-owned BRTC buses were seen plying streets. Some ‘staff buses’ of various institutions were also seen.

Office-goers were seen crowding at key bus stops throughout the city. Many were seen walking to respective destinations, bdnews24.com Correspondents reported.

Hundreds headed for offices were seen waiting at Banglamotor, Kawran Bazar, Farmgate and Mohakhali around 8:30am. Many from Kawran Bazar was seen walking to respective offices in Motijheel, Paltan and Gulistan.

The strike will be effective until 12 noon, Dhaka road transport association General Secretary Khandaker Enayetullah told bdnews24.com. After the strike, a Namaj-e-Janaza will be held at Phulbaria for the deceased Siddiqur Rahman.

A procession will be brought out after the Janaza to protest the killing, he added.

On Sunday, up to 15 home-made bombs were exploded near Awami League headquarters at Bangabandhu Avenue around 1:45pm and Hifazat supporters damaged at least 15 vehicles there.

At one point, they tried to attack the Awami League office but were stopped by the ruling party activists.

Police lobbed teargas shells and fired rubber bullets continously to bring the situation under control.

During this time, a bus used by the police was set on fire fire and its helper Siddiqur Rahman, 28, was hit on the face by bullets.

The bus driver Jewel told bdnews24.com that Siddiqur was near the stadium when he was hit. He succumbed while on the way to Dhaka Medical College and Hospital.

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Hifazat sets vehicles on fire

At least 50 vehicles and several buildings were vandalised and torched in Dhaka by supporters of the Hifazat-e Islam during their rally at Motijheel on Sunday.

  

The Hifazat activists, while heading towards the rally, unleashed the mayhem in Paltan, Bijoynagar and the surrounding areas after involving with the law enforcers in clashes at Gulisthan in the noon.

They set fire to the Communist Party of Bangladesh (CPB) headquarters in Mukti Bhaban, House Building Finance Corporation Bhaban and numerous buildings until night in Dhaka. Vehicles parked in front of the building were also torched.

Smokes were billowing out from those building at around 10pm.

Hundreds of shops on pavement were also set ablaze in areas stretching from Fakirapool to Paltan. The fire-fighters were not being able to douse the flames due to the ongoing clashes.

The Hifazat activists also vandalised and torched the shops on the ground floor of Mukti Bhaba, breaking open the gate of the building. They threw brickbats to break the window panes up to the fourth floor.

The flames soon spread from the foothpath to the adjacent buildings.

Six vehicles parked caught fire then.

Fire Service Official Mohammad Mohsin said they could not reach the scene due to fierce clashes.

Fire Service officials told bdnews24.com that at least 10 vehicles were set on fire between the afternoon and evening at Mouchak, Malibagh and Tejgaon in the capital.

He added that two toll plazas on the Babubazar Bridge in Old Dhaka were also set on fire.

Eye-witnesses say Hifazat supporters also set on fire at least 30 government vehicles in front of the Housing Building Finance Corporation in Purana Paltan.

The fire which started in the small shops on the pavement in front of the House Building gradually spread to the ground floor.

At 8:30pm, the fire services personnel were seen trying to tame the flames after police took the area under their control.

A Fire Service official told bdnews24.com that clashes prevented them from reaching those places which were engulfed in fire.

Police constable Piaul Islam, 35 sustained burn injuries after the attackers set the traffic box at East Bijoynagar on fire.

He has been admitted to the Dhaka Medical College and Hospital’s burn unit for treatment.

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