10 METRO Monday, December 14, 2009 D METROWorld Thailand: The crew of an aircraft carrying tonnes of weapons originating in North Korea have been charged with arms smuggling. The men, four from Kazakhstan and one from Belarus, denied the charges and were refused bail. They will appear in court today. The men were detained and their foreign-registered aircraft impounded after it landed in Bangkok at the weekend with about 35 tonnes of weapons on board. The chartered cargo plane originated in North Koreas capital Pyongyang and requested to land at Bangkoks Don Muang airport to refuel. North Korea has been widely accused of selling weapons to nations in Africa, Asia and Latin America. iTaly: Amanda Knox (pictured) told journalists from her jail cell yesterday that she is scared but hopeful, days after a court in Perugia sentenced her to 26 years in prison for the murder of her British roommate. I am scared because I dont know whats going on, the 22-year-old American said. Knox has been in jail for two years since she was arrested after the slaying of Meredith Kercher in the house the two students shared in the Umbrian university town. I dont understand many things that for me dont always seem very fair, Knox said, but I have to accept them. China: Perky pensioner Pu Jianyou has fathered his first baby at the grand old age of 77. Astonished Pu and his 34-year-old bride Xiuxiu took their son home from hospital after medics gave his father a check-up to see if he was up to the strain of caring for him. The baby cries at night but that doesnt bother me. At my age, Im up every hour to use the loo, so we keep each other company, the septuagenarian explained.Holed up: Guards cover a hole in the prison wall after an attack of 70 armed men freed 31 inmates at the prison Picture: AP SCORES of suspected Islamic mili- tants freed 31 inmates in a night-time attack that sparked a gun battle in which two people were killed. In an area of the volatile southern Philippines. They burst through a con- crete wall then barged into a jail yes- terday. Vice Governor Al Rasheed Sakalahul of Basilan Island said 70 heavily armed men cut through padlocks with boltcutters after using a sledgehammer to destroy the wall at the provincial jail in Isabela city to free several de- tained Muslim guerillas. All these are high-risk prisoners, By jim Gomez Islamic militants free 31 inmates All these are high-risk prisoners Sakalahul said, adding troops, backed by air force helicopters, were closing in on some of the fleeing inmates. Mil- itary checkpoints were set up in Isa- bela, the provincial capital, and nearby townships. No one had been caught by late yesterday, however. The daring assault sparked a brief clash that killed one attacker and a jail guard. The attackers and prisoners fled in several vehicles toward Basilans jungle-covered mountainous heart- land. Of the inmates who escaped, 12 were from the Abu Sayyaf group, which has been linked to al-Qaeda. Holy infants: Children in San Salvador take part in a ceremony to commemorate the Virgin of Guadalupe who, the legend says, appeared to a Mexican peasant in the 16th century. Picture: Reuters index.html2.html3.html4.html5.html6.html7.html8.html9.html10.html11.html12.html13.html14.html15.html16.html17.html18.html19.html20.html21.html22.html23.html