World briefs

Former French President Jacques Chirac has undergone a successful operation to fit a pacemaker and is expected to return home at the weekend, his office said yesterday.

"The procedure, which was a mild one that had been scheduled for several days, went perfectly smoothly," a spokesman said.

Mr Chirac, 75, was hospitalised in 2005 after suffering from a blood vessel problem that affected his vision. He served two terms as president, from 1995 to last year when he was succeeded by Nicolas Sarkozy.

CCTV in exam halls

CCTV cameras could be used in school exam halls in an attempt to prevent cheats using increasingly high-tech devices, examiners said yesterday.

The Examination Officers' Association (EOA) is asking its members whether they want to pilot the CCTV cameras as more invigilators complain about the stress of cheating in schools and colleges with rising numbers of candidates taking mobile phones into the exam room.

The CCTV cameras could also be used to prevent unfounded complaints against invigilators.

CCTV cameras are already used in schools.

Bottom of Socialist party

She had no desire to be just another smiling face in Italian politics. So when porn star Milly D'Abbraccio designed her campaign posters, it was obvious she was going to show off her bottom.

Targeting her male fan base, the veteran of Italy's adult entertainment industry has plastered images of her derriere all around the Eternal City in a bid to win a seat in Rome's city hall. If elected, Ms D'Abbraccio wants to create a red light area called Love City just kilometres away from the Vatican. "It would be something cute, clean - nothing to do with prostitution," said the actress.

Ms D'Abbraccio, in her 40s, hopes to capitalise on increasing disenchantment with Italian politics. She said she was tapping into her popularity as "an act of generosity" to help Italy's socialists, who are fielding her in the municipal race.

"I am the derriere of the Socialist party," she concluded.

Lightning strikes PM's plane

Lightning struck an aircraft carrying Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern from Dublin to Belfast, but no one on board was hurt, an Irish government spokesman said on Thursday.

"The plane was struck by lightning as it was approaching Belfast. Everyone is fine," the spokesman said.

Public broadcaster RTE said eight passengers and four crew were aboard the Gulf Stream jet, which was taking Mr Ahern to Belfast to attend events marking the 10th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement that largely ended sectarian violence in Northern Ireland.

Rare dagger sets record price

A gold encrusted dagger once owned by the Indian emperor who built the Taj Mahal has sold for more than £1.5 million at auction in London - three times its expected price.

The dagger, once part of Shah Jahan's royal collection, was made in the early 17th century, just after the Mughal emperor came to power.

Experts had estimated it would sell for about £500,000 but it fetched £1.7 million at Bonhams auction house this week.

Jahan, who ruled from 1628 to 1658, built the Taj Mahal as a mausoleum for his wife Mumtaz Mahal whose death during the birth of their 14th child devastated the ruler. In his last years, the emperor was imprisoned by his son Aurangzeb and is said to have spent his remaining days gazing at the Taj, located on the outskirts of Agra, from his prison cell in a nearby fort.

Russia fetes dog Laika

Moscow yesterday feted Laika, a plain stray dog which became famous half a century ago as the first living creature from Earth to fly into space.

Russia's official RTR channel showed academics laying flowers at a monument near the city's Military Medicine Institute, depicting the agile, good-natured dog strapped into a dissected Vostok rocket. The monument was unveiled on the eve of Cosmonauts' Day, marking Soviet pilot Yuri Gagarin's April 12, 1961 space flight.

Gagarin's 108-minute mission in orbit was the first manned flight into space but long before Gagarin's flight, it was Laika who successfully blasted off into space in November 1957, proving that a living creature could survive being launched into space and experiencing weightlessness.

Laika, trained for eight months - including in a centrifuge and a pressure chamber - died during her historic flight.