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Balding Disease Killing Australia's Wombats

A mystery liver disease thought to be caused by introduced weeds is causing hairy-nosed wombats in southern Australia to go bald and die, researchers said Tuesday.

The illness, which causes the wombat to lose some or all of its fur and then starve to death, is tearing through South Australia's native southern hairy-nosed wombats, threatening entire populations.

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Kuwait ex-PM Refuses to Show before Parliament Panel

Kuwait's ex-premier Sheikh Nasser Mohammed al-Ahmed Al-Sabah refused to appear before a parliamentary panel probing alleged graft against him, saying the summons issued to him were illegal.

In a letter, a copy of which was seen by Agence France Presse on Tuesday, Sheikh Nasser said the parliamentary panel had no authority to summon a former premier as it can only question ministers and government employees.

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Foreign Force Strikes Somali Pirate Land Base for First Time

An international naval force struck Somali pirate assets on land for the first time on Tuesday, marking a major escalation in the fight against the scourge of piracy plaguing vital shipping lanes.

A European naval helicopter fired a volley against pirate skiffs stowed away on a beach in Somalia's central Galmudug region in a carefully planned operation, a spokesman for the EU's naval mission told AFP.

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Heat's Bosh out Indefinitely with Abdominal Strain

Miami Heat forward Chris Bosh has been sidelined indefinitely with a strained abdominal muscle and his teammates are not expecting him to return in their ongoing NBA playoff series against Indiana.

The NBA team announced Bosh's status on Monday after the results of an MRI exam were studied.

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Tevez Sparks Controversy with 'RIP Fergie' Banner

Carlos Tevez landed himself in fresh controversy when he was pictured waving a mocked-up tombstone for Sir Alex Ferguson during Manchester City's Premier League title celebrations.

The 28-year-old Argentina striker held up a banner designed to look like a gravestone and bearing the words 'RIP Fergie' as City celebrated their title triumph over Manchester United during an open-top bus parade.

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Afghanistan: Home to 'World's Most Extreme Golf'

"Welcome to the most extreme golf in the world," says the European Union ambassador to Afghanistan, as half-a-dozen heavily armed bodyguards fan out around him and scan the Kabul Golf Club course.

But Vygaudas Usackas is not talking about security threats facing golfers in a war zone -- he's talking about the course.

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Scholes Commits Himself to United for Another Year

Veteran midfielder Paul Scholes signed a one-year contract extension with Manchester United on Monday, manager Sir Alex Ferguson revealed.

The 37-year-old came out of retirement in January and put in some excellent performances to earn himself another year at the only club he has played for and for whom he made his first-team debut in 1993.

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Oklahoma City Thunder Humble Lakers in NBA Game One

Russell Westbrook scored a game-high 27 points and Kevin Durant had 25 points as Oklahoma City embarrassed the Los Angeles Lakers 119-90 in their NBA Western Conference second-round playoff series opener.

"We are a good team, especially at home," Westbrook said. "I just tried to come out aggressively and get some good legs under me."

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Yemen Anti-Qaida Sweep Kills 12 Civilians

At least 24 people were killed in south Yemen on Tuesday, including 12 civilians mistakenly killed in an air raid, sources said, as an army offensive against Al-Qaida militants raged into a fourth straight day.

The civilians died in an air raid on a house in the Al-Qaida stronghold of Jaar, in restive Abyan province, witnesses said.

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Turner Shines as Philadelphia 76ers Level NBA Series

Evan Turner scored the go-ahead layup and drained a couple of key free throws down the stretch as Philadelphia held on for a 82-81 win over Boston to even their Eastern Conference playoff series at 1-1.

Turner drove to the basket, got knocked down but still made the layup as he was falling under the basket to give the upstart Sixers a 76-75 lead 40 seconds left in the fourth.

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