China plans garrison to ‘defend’disputed islands

Beijing will establish a military garrison on a group of disputed islands in the South China Sea, China's defence ministry said Monday, a move likely to provoke further tensions with its neighbours. The troops will operate from Sansha in the Paracel Islands, one of two archipelagos in the South China Sea that are claimed by both China and Vietnam.

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London prostitutes ‘cleaned from the streets’

The London Olympics are not big business for everyone -- sex workers say they are being cleared from the streets around the stadium to make the area more presentable for the Games. While Britain’s limp economy hopes for an Olympic boost, police in Newham, the deprived east London borough that is home to the stadium, have closed some 80 brothels in the 18 months to March, according to a study by a local councillor.

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