China mine survivors detected by infrared cameras in Shandong

 Eight miners trapped for five days after a mine in China caved in have been found alive, state media say. Reports say rescue teams have not yet been able to free the survivors, but have made contact and sent in supplies. The rock fall at the gypsum mine, in the eastern province of Shandong, was so violent that it registered at China's earthquake monitoring centre. Nine miners are still missing. Seven have already been rescued and one is known to have died. Rescuers used infrared cameras to peer into darkness at the wrecked mine. The cameras detected the surviving miners waving their hands. The workers were weak with hunger but otherwise were in good health, state media reported. They told rescuers they were in passages underground that were intact. Ma Congbo, the chairman of Yurong company which owns the mine, drowned himself by jumping into a mine well early on Sunday, China's Xinhua news agency said. His motive was not clear but the Chinese authorities have toughened punishment of employers who are seen as negligent. China has a long history of industrial accidents. The latest incident comes days after a landslide caused by construction waste in southern China left dozens of people missing and presumed dead. The nation's mines have long been the world's deadliest, but safety improvements have reduced deaths in recent years. Last year, 931 people were killed in mine accidents throughout China, significantly fewer than in 2002 when nearly 7,000 miners were killed.

Asian shares higher on strong lead from Wall Street

Asian shares headed higher on Wednesday, getting a strong lead from Wall Street where rising oil prices led to a rebound in the market. The S&P 500 and the Dow Jones indexes both gained over 1% as oil prices rallied overnight to climb by around 3% after Monday's declines. Encouraging economic data such as housing and consumer confidence in the US also boosted investor sentiment. Japan's Nikkei was up 0.6% to 19,097.14 in the year's final trading day. Japanese markets will be closed on Thursday for a public holiday. Rest of Asia In Australia, the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index was up 0.7% to 5,304.20, leading the gains in the region. But commodity shares still weighed on the market with shares of mining giants BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto down 0.9% and 0.4% respectively. Chinese shares were barely unchanged with the Shanghai Composite trading flat at 3,565.77, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index was up 0.1% to 22,016.92. South Korea's Kospi index was higher by 0.1% to 1,967.60 points. Investors ignored data that showed industrial production saw its worst decline in 10 months in November on slumping global demand for exports. Factory output fell a seasonally adjusted 2.1% from a month earlier, according to Statistics Korea.

Conservatives call for Tony Abbott's return to frontbench

Supporters of former Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott have made calls for him to return to a senior government position. It comes after two cabinet ministers stepped down on Tuesday over separate scandals, which means a political reshuffle is likely in 2016. Liberal senator Eric Abetz called for Mr Abbott to make a comeback saying he has "more to offer public life". Abbott was unseated by current Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull in September. "I'm on the record as saying that I believe Tony Abbott has more to offer public life in Australia," Mr Abetz told the Australian Broadcasting Corp (ABC). "I hope that he stays in the Parliament and I hope that there will be a place for him, a prominent place for him, in any future ministry should he decide to stay. Another politician calling for Mr Abbott's return was Nationals Senator John Williams, who told the ABC the move would help "heal the wounds of the past". Cities minister Jamie Briggs resigned yesterday after a female public servant lodged an official complaint about his behaviour in a Hong Kong bar in September. Mr Briggs said that he had failed to live up to the high standards expected of a government minister. Special Minister for State Mal Brough also stepped aside pending the result of a federal police investigation into alleged his role in the illegal procurement of a rival politician's private diary. Deputy Prime Minister Warren Truss, who leads the Nationals, is widely predicted to retire from politics before the next federal election. An announcement on Mr Truss's future would provide the catalyst for Mr Turnbull to reshuffle his frontbench.

Sonny Bill Williams tweets graphic photos of dead children

 Rugby union star Sonny Bill Williams has posted graphic images of dead children on Twitter after a visit to Syrian refugee camps in Lebanon. Williams, who played a starring role in New Zealand's Rugby World Cup win, was in Lebanon as a Unicef ambassador. On Tuesday night he tweeted graphic images of two bodies, adding "What did these children do to deserve this?" The posts sparked controversy with some users praising him for his honesty and others questioning his judgment. "Please use trigger warnings by putting 'TW: dead children' in the tweet next time. It's very triggering as someone who has seen dead bodies like this before growing up," one user wrote. No further details were shared about the location of the photos or the identity of the children. Williams visited refugee camps in Lebanon's Bekaa Valley earlier in December, where he met Syrian children and their families. "This was such an eye-opener … [I was] so ignorant as to what was going on over this way," Williams said in a video. "It's been an amazing few days, it's definitely changed me for the better, and I'll definitely look at things in a different light when I get back. "This summer share a thought for the innocent lives lost every day in war." Williams made international headlines at the Rugby World Cup in October when he gave his winner's medal to a young pitch invader following the All Blacks' 34-17 victory over Australia. The footballer is a huge star in both New Zealand and Australia, where he played professional rugby league for the Canterbury Bulldogs.

Former Newcastle keeper dies aged 47

Former Newcastle United goalkeeper Pavel Srnicek has died at the age of 47, nine days after suffering cardiac arrest in his native Czech Republic. A big favourite with fans during his first spell at St James' Park between 1991 and 1998, Srnicek collapsed while jogging on 20 December. He was taken to a hospital in Ostrava and placed in an induced coma. Srnicek, who also played for Sheffield Wednesday, Portsmouth and West Ham, made 49 appearances for his country. His agent, Steve Wraith, said the final brain scans on Monday had shown "irreversible damage" and the decision "had to be taken" to switch off the life support machine. Wraith added: "Pav passed away on the afternoon of Tuesday, 29 December 2015, with his family by his side."

North Korea says top official Kim Yang-gon killed in car crash

A top aide to the North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has died in a car crash, state news agency KCNA has said. Kim Yang-gon, 73, was a secretary of the ruling Workers' Party and was in charge of ties with South Korea. He was part of a high-level delegation from North Korea that helped ease a stand-off with the South in August, after an exchange of artillery fire. The state news agency called him Kim Jong-un's "closest comrade and a solid revolutionary partner". "Comrade Kim Yang-gon, a Workers' Party secretary and member of the party Central Committee Politbureau... died in a traffic accident at 6:15am, Tuesday, at age 73," KCNA said, without giving details. It added that Kim Jong-un would lead an 80-member state funeral for Mr Kim on Thursday. Tension between North and South Korea increased in August when a border blast injured two South Korean soldiers. Meetings at that time eventually led to the two countries stepping away from a military confrontation.

Missouri floods close Mississippi near St Louis

A five-mile (8km) section of the Mississippi River near St Louis, Missouri, has been closed to vessels as rising water levels caused "hazardous conditions", the US Coast Guard said. Storms and tornadoes have lashed the region in recent days, swelling rivers and causing flash flooding. Missouri Governor Jay Nixon said 13 people in the state had died in the floods. He said the National Guard had been called in to help local authorities. Aerial footage showed water from the Mississippi River engulfing buildings in the evacuated town of West Alton, north of St Louis, on Tuesday. In the town of Union, about 50 miles (80km) west of St Louis, buildings were partly submerged by severe flooding from the Missouri, Meramec and Bourbeuse rivers. Image copyright AP Image caption Volunteers in St Louis try to stop flooding from the River Des Peres, a channel that flows into the Mississippi River Coast Guard spokesman Capt Martin Malloy said the high water levels and fast currents had led them to close the section of the Mississippi near St Louis - a busy route for commercial shipping. River levels are forecast to peak on Thursday and Mr Nixon warned that the situation could get worse before it gets better. He said the National Guard would provide security in evacuated areas and direct traffic away from closed roads.