Checkpoint. 2001-11-26

HEADLINES & NEWS
American marines have landed near the Taliban stronghold of Kandahar in southern Afghanistan. They've set up base at the airport just outside the city. The move heralds a possible assault on Kandahar and comes as Northern Alliance forces continue to mop up the last pockets of resistance in the Taliban held northern city of Kunduz. Pentagon officials say the number of marines now near Kandahar is in the low hundreds. The BBC's Daniel Lak is in the Pakistani city of Quetta, just across the border from Kandahar. CUT
Nobody knows how many people have been killed in what's been described as a prison riot in Mazar-i-Sharif in Northern Afghanistan - but it could be hundreds. Most were foreign Taleban fighters who had surrendered to the Northern Alliance.
[illegible] of those who were caught up in the violence was an unnamed US military adviser, whose immediate reaction was caught on camera. CUT A leading figure in the Northern Alliance in Mazar-e-Shariff, Doctor Abdul Wahid Yasser, described what happened. CUT The BBC's Catherine Davis is in Mazar-i-Sharif - She says details of the event are still emerging. CUT
An inquest has begun in Invercargill into the death of a Queenstown woman, Paddy Burton, last March. Mrs Burton was stabbed to death by her schizophrenic son, Mark, the day after he'd been formally discharged from Southland Hospital's mental health unit. He was found not guilty of murdering his mother on the grounds of insanity. Our reporter Maureen Lloyd is at the inquest - and joins us now. LIVE WITH DROP INS
An American company claims to have made a scientific breakthrough which could be used to clone a human being. The firm says it has for the first time used cloning technology to clone a human embryo that can then be used as a source of stem cells. Our Washington correspondent Steve Mort reports. PKGE
Meningococcal disease has peaked this year resulting in 25 deaths - the worst [illegible] the epidemic began more than 10 years ago. So far this year there have been 574 cases of the disease.
There have been more than four thousand cases in total, including 184 deaths. Tauila Percival is a paediatrician at Middlemore Hospital who has been seeing a couple of cases of meningicoccal disease each week for years. I asked her why the disease has been so prevalent this year. PREREC
The plight of African countries has featured highly at an international health meeting being held in Christchurch today.
Officials from 35 countries are at the Commonwealth Health Ministers meeting, discussing better ways of using health resources, within limited budgets. During the first day of the four-day meeting, ministers from African nations complained that there is not enough support for developing countries, in terms of information technology and addressing poverty. Our Health Correspondent Leigh-Anne Wiig is at the meeting in Christchurch and joins us now. LIVE WITH DROP INS
BUSINESS NEWS WITH JOHN DRAPER
5.30 NEWS HEADLINES
SPORT with STEPHEN HEWSON
As US marines arrive near the Taliban stronghold of Kandahar in southern Afghanistan delegates to the U.N. sponsored conference on the future of the country are gathering in Bonn for tomorrow's talks. The participants will tackle the difficult issue of ethnic representation in a future administration. From Bonn, Mike Wooldridge. VOICER
The Maritime Safety Authority says it will investigate whether power cables hit by a yacht on Lake Karapiro yesterday were adequately marked. Five people suffered burns when the mast of their yacht touched high-tension powerlines as they crossed the Waikato hydro lake. Two fourteen year old girls remain in a stable condition in Waikato Hospital after the mishap. Our reporter Andrew McRae went to Lake Karapiro and I asked him how difficult it was to see the overhead wires. PREREC
The national grid operator Transpower owns the cables above Lake Karapiro. Its [illegible], Wayne Eagleson won't comment on how visible the lines are because he hasn't been at the site, but says there is NO legal requirement for wires to be marked. Mr Eagleson says Transpower is co-operating in any way it can with the Maritime Safety Authority's inquiry as well as doing its own investigation. But he says it's too early talk about whether markers will now be put on the cables. PREREC
The trial of an Auckland pastor accused of manslaughter has got underway in the High Court in Auckland. 37 year old Yong Lee, also known as Luke, allegedly performed an exorcism on a woman, who then died. Our reporter, Sally Wenley is at the court and joins me now. LIVE
The regional council, Environment Waikato says it has no intention of writing out two hundred dollar tickets to surfers and wind-surfers caught on its shores not wearing a wetsuit or lifejacket. The Council has introduced a new bylaw that potentially gives it the power to dish out fines to people caught on the water without a proper boyancy aid. Andrew Greenwood reports. PKGE
If you have a spare three million dollars or more and are looking for space and [illegible] spectacular views, you have until the end of week to put in a bid in for one of the country's best known high country stations. Established in the 1880s Coronet Peak station near Queenstown is just over 22 thousand hectares, runs 9000 sheep and is also a good spot for heli-skiing and hiking. It also has it's own ghost town of Macetown - a legacy of the Otago goldrushes. A Queenstown real estate agent, Lachie Ashton says offers close on Friday and there are a handful of people seriously interested although he won't say exactly how many or what the asking price is. Nor surprisingly he thinks it's a fantastic buy. PREREC
Father Christmas has been asked to tone down his approach this year with a recruitment agency telling its santas not to greet children with the traditional HO HO HO for fear it may scare them. The request comes from Westaff, which employs 11 Santas in malls and department stores around the Wellington region. Our very own Santa, Julian Robins, has been getting in on the act. PKGE
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