China cracks down on unrest Ahead of Tibetan Holiday

Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping will visit the United States this month.

Tibetan protestors rally near the Chinese embassy in New Delhi on December 7, 2011.

Chengdu, China (CNN) -- Thousands of Chinese security forces have flooded into an ethnically Tibetan area of southwestern China following large protests that led to violent, sometimes deadly, clashes with the police.
(CNN) -- Beijin

g appears determined to contain the volatile situation in an ethnically Tibetan region of southwestern China by sending in thousands of extra security forces.

The move comes against a backdrop of anger and despair over Chinese rule, culminating in a growing number of protests and clashes with police, as well as a string of acts of self-immolation by Tibetans.

What is the dispute about?

The Dalai Lama is the traditional religious and temporal head of Tibetan Buddhists. He was made head of state at age 15 in 1950, the same year that Chinese troops occupied Tibet, enforcing what Beijing says is a centuries-old claim over the region. The Dalai Lama held negotiations with Chinese officials on Tibetan self-rule with little success. In 1959, he fled Tibet for exile in India after a failed uprising against Beijing's rule left an estimated 85,000 people dead.

Over the years, the Dalai Lama has led calls for self-rule in Tibet, saying China has made life "hell on Earth" for Tibetans since the uprising.

Timeline of Tibetan protests

"These 50 years have brought untold suffering and destruction to the land and people of Tibet," he said in 2009 from exile in Dharamsala, India. "Today, the religion, culture, language and identity ... are nearing extinction; in short, the Tibetan people are regarded like criminals deserving to be put to death."

PM Gilani To be Indicted in Contempt Case on Feb 13

PM Gilani to be indicted in contempt case on Feb 13

The Supreme Court has summoned Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani on Feb 13 ruling that he committed contempt of court by not implementing court orders. Charges would be framed against the prime minister during his presence in the court on Feb 13. It was a shock announcement in a long-running case that significantly escalated pressure on the embattled prime minister, threatening to plunge his weak government deeper into crisis and force early elections within months. Head of the seven-judge bench Justice Nasir-ul-Mulk told the court there were grounds to proceed against Gilani over the government's refusal to follow a court order and ask Swiss authorities to re-open corruption cases against President Asif Ali Zardari. Earlier, the Supreme Court asked prime minister's counsel Barrister Aitzaz Ahsan, to complete his arguments as the larger bench of the apex court resumed hearing. Barrister Aitzaz Ahsan told the court that the prime minister acted on the advice of ministry in accordance with rules of business. Justice Nasirul Mulk remarked that on one hand there was advice and on the other hand there were clear court orders. Can the prime minister not reject the advice, Justice Nasir asked. Aitzaz Ahsan replied that he can reject but the safe way was to implement it. He said that contempt case could not be initiated against the prime minister even the advices were wrong. Ahsan said that he wanted to save the court from embarrassment. “Do you want to say court’s respect will be increased by not implementing its orders” Justice Asif Saeed Khosa remarked. Justice Nasirul Mulk remarked that law secretary had told the court that Swiss cases against President Asif Ali Zardari could not be reopened. Aitzaz Ahsan, hugely respected by judges for his role in forcing the government to reinstate independent judges in March 2009, has been presented as the best defence lawyer capable of finding a way of getting Gilani off the hook. But in some staggering exchanges in court, the judges seemed determined to force the prime minister to write to the Swiss authorities, although the Swiss themselves have said there is no case as long as Zardari is head of state. "Suppose we discharge the (contempt) notice and withdraw the proceeding, what will you do? Will you write a letter or not?" Judge Sarmad Jalali asked Ahsan at one point. Ahsan said that first the contempt notice had to be discharged. "If you order writing the letter, it will be carried. But you have to decide on the contempt issue. I seek discharge of the notice on merit and I will not give any commitment on conditional discharge of the notice." Judge Asif Saeed Khosa also enquired why the letter had not been written. "This is the court's order and there is clear direction from the court." Ahsan argued that the cases in Switzerland have been disposed off. The allegations against Zardari were frozen by a Pakistani political amnesty imposed in 2007, which the courts overturned in late 2009.

Football: Egypt Death toll rises

<br/>Al-Masry fans chase Al-Ahly players during riots that erupted after the football match.

Anger flares in Egypt after 79 die in soccer riot

<br/>Egyptian soldiers help a wounded football Al-Ahly fan after he arrived in Cairo on a military plane.

Cairo (For CNN) -- Egyptians began three days of mourning Thursday for the 79 people who perished at a violent soccer riot, as the nation's fledgling parliament erupted in anger over the national tragedy.

The speaker of the parliament ordered an end to a live broadcast of Thursday's parliament session, so heated was the debate. But the order was retracted after angry lawmakers made their objections known.

Copy of 'Mona Lisa'

Museum discovers earliest copy of 'Mona Lisa'

<br/>The Prado Museum in Madrid, Spain, has revealed what is believed to be the earliest copy of Leonardo da Vinci's "Mona Lisa."

<br/>The painting -- discovered during restoration work on this portrait -- is thought to have been painted by a pupil of Leonardo around the same time as the original.

- The earliest known copy of Leonardo da Vinci's "Mona Lisa" -- thought to have been painted at the same time as the original masterpiece -- has been discovered at the Prado Museum in Madrid, Spain.

The work offers art-lovers a tantalizing hint of what the model for the world's most famous painting really looked like.

Conservators found the portrait hidden beneath layers of black overpainting during restoration work on a picture initially thought to have been a later replica of the "Mona Lisa."