World Briefs

An unfinished portrait of Francis Bacon by Lucian Freud, one of only two he ever painted of his friend and the only one whose whereabouts is known, sold for £5.4 million yesterday, auction house Christie's said.

The 85-year-old Freud's only other picture of his fellow artist Bacon, painted in 1952, was stolen from a show in Berlin in 1988 and has never been seen since in public.

The two men, among the greatest post-war British artists, were firm friends. While Freud, who is regarded as one of the world's greatest living artists, frequently sat for Bacon the latter, who died in 1992, returned the favour for only two portraits.

The unfinished portrait dates from 1956/7 and as with the missing painting it shows Bacon with downcast eyes. The two men sat knee-to-knee for the painting before Bacon left abruptly, it is thought to pursue his lover Peter Lacy in Tangiers, Morocco.

Girl held, killed by ex-boyfriend

A Brazilian teenager has been declared brain dead after being held hostage for four days and then shot by her ex-boyfriend.

Police say Lindemberg Fernandes Alves kidnapped Eloa Cristina Pimentel, 15, and her friend last week and held them in an apartment on the outskirts of Sao Paulo after the end of a two-year relationship.

The police stormed the apartment after hearing gun shots but Ms Pimentel was fatally wounded in the head and groin and her friend, Nayara Rodrigues da Silva, 15, was wounded in the face. Ms Da Silva is still in hospital but out of danger.

Police said Mr Alves, 22, was now in custody.

Ms Da Silva had been freed on Tuesday but returned on Thursday as part of negotiations with Mr Alves.

Fraudsters go for President's account

Fraudsters took money from French President Nicolas Sarkozy's personal account after managing to get hold of his bank details, a newspaper reported yesterday.

Mr Sarkozy complained to police in September after "small amounts" were stolen from his account, the Journal du Dimanche newspaper said while Mr Sarkozy's office confirmed the details.

Thief steals drugs from police station

Australian police have been left embarrassed after a man stole a large quantity of seized drugs from a police station.

More than 2,000 ecstasy pills as well as small amounts of cocaine and amphetamine, with a street value of about A$27,000 (€29,800), were stolen from an exhibit room of the Maroochydore police station in the Queensland.

A 36-year-old tradesman, who was given unsupervised access to the room which contained the drugs, will be charged next week on 10 charges including drug theft.

Nine lashed for disturbing peace

Nine men convicted of disturbing the peace and damaging public property received 74 lashes each in the religious city of Qom, an Iranian newspaper said yesterday.

Judicial officials said the nine men had "disturbed the public peace, had group fights and damaged public property", the newspaper Sarmayeh reported. Each received 74 lashes in Qom, the Islamic Republic's centre of Shi'ite learning.

It said the men had damaged 15 public vehicles and broken windows with sticks and bottles.

Public lashings were common after the 1979 Islamic revolution but had been less frequent in recent years. However, under President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who came to power vowing a return to revolutionary values, authorities have launched a crackdown on crime and the violation of religious codes.

Greece to mark Byron's death

Greece has declared the anniversary of the death of Lord Byron, the British Romantic poet who fought in its 19th century war of independence, as a day of celebration to hail Greek culture.

Byron died of pneumonia fighting Ottoman rule on April 19, 1824, and a Parliament statement said this day would now be marked to keep alive the memory of "a man who believed deeply in democratic values and Hellenism."

Byron was a celebrity during his own lifetime for his Romantic poetry and his support of revolutionary causes. He paid for the refitting of the Greek fleet and refunded part of the ragged revolutionary army after arriving in Greece in 1823.

His support for the Greek cause helped inspire young men from Britain, Italy and the US to join the uprising.

Greece won its war of independence in 1832 following the intervention of the Great powers: Britain, France and Russia.