peopledailynews-Global Information Network

(PDN)Shanghai activated an emergency plan yesterday that calls for heightened monitoring of suspicious flu cases following the recent deaths of two men from a lesser-known strain of bird flu.Under the contingency plan, schools, hospitals and retirement facilities are to be on the alert for fevers, and administrators are to report to health authorities if there are more than five cases of flu in a week.

(PDN)Chinese experts on international relations said on Sunday that President Xi Jinping's first foreign trip as head of state has strengthened relations with China's neighbors, Africa and emerging economies.Xi returned to Beijing on Sunday after state visits to Russia and three African countries between March 22 and 30.

（PDN）US President Barack Obama and Afghan President Hamid Karzai say the US military mission in Afghanistan is expected to shift to a support role later this spring. This is a few months earlier than expected.

(PDN)In an escalation of its civil war, Syria is firing more Scud missiles in a desperate attempt to quash rebel gains, the NATO chief said Friday.

(PDN)17 December 2012 – Given the importance of staff retention for the timely completion of the work of the United Nations tribunal set up in the wake of the Balkan conflicts of the 1990s, the Security Council today adopted a resolution extending the terms of a number of judges so they can finish the cases assigned to them. The resolution on the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) received 14 votes in favour, while Russia abstained.

(PDN-Sandy Tseng,Beijing)A Canadian official said a 29-year-old porn actor accused of videotaping a murder and mailing body parts to the country's top political parties was arrested in Berlin on Monday.The official confirmed Luka Rocco Magnotta was apprehended.The official spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to announce it.