Aust's lowest paid the third lowest taxed

AUSTRALIA'S lowest paid workers are also among the lowest taxed, a report says.

A study by chartered accountant UHY Haines Norton found that a single, unmarried Australian whose take-home pay was up to $US25,000 ($A24,141) a year had the third-lowest personal tax rate.

Only Japan and the United Arab Emirates were ahead of Australia in the study, which covered 25 countries including all members of the Group of Eight (G8) nations, as well as the emerging economies of Brazil, Russia, India and China.

UHY tax partner James Tng said the report suggested Australia had found a balance between a progressive and competitive tax system.

"There has been a general easing of the tax rates of low- and middle-income earners over the past decade, beginning with the introduction of the GST in 2000," Mr Tng said in a statement.

"Australia also wasn't forced to raise personal taxes due to the fiscal strength of our economy prior to the global financial crisis where there was little debt and very little in the way of the social security hurdles compared to other European economies."

Australians with take home pay of $US200,000 ($A193,000) were the 14th lowest taxed in the survey.

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Kenya church attack kills policeman

A GRENADE attack on a Kenyan church has left one policeman dead and 14 other people wounded in a town near the Somalia border, where similar deadly attacks took place in July, police say.

Kenya has seen a wave of grenade attacks on cities including the capital Nairobi and the key port of Mombasa since the country sent troops into Somalia in October last year to fight al-Qaeda-linked al-Shabab insurgents.

"We have one fatality," said regional police chief Philip Tuimur after a policeman died of his wounds in the attack on a church at a police camp in the town of Garissa, which lies about 140 kilometres from the Somali border.

Another police source said 14 other people were also wounded in the attack.

"We have mobilised our officers to track down the attackers," Tuimur added, without giving further details.

The grenade "ripped through the roof during prayer session", said a police officer.

The officer said the church was located inside a police camp and most of the wounded were police officers.

In July, at least 18 people were killed in attacks on two churches in the same town.

A child was also killed in a suspected grenade attack on a church in Nairobi in September, triggering reprisal attacks against the Somali community.

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Syrian rebels seize their first oilfield

SYRIAN rebels have seized one of the country's major oilfields in the eastern province of Deir Ezzor, a first for the opposition, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says.

"Rebels in the Jaafar Tayyar Brigade took control of Al-Ward oilfield, east of the town of Mayadin, after a siege that lasted several days," the Britain-based watchdog said.

"This is the first time the rebels have taken control of an oilfield," Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman told AFP by phone.

The fighting on Sunday began at dawn and lasted several hours, said Abdel Rahman, adding that 40 soldiers guarding the infrastructure had either been killed, wounded or taken prisoner.

The rebels, who face the superior firepower of regime forces, also seized a tank, armoured vehicles and ammunition.

Several attacks have targeted the country's oil infrastructure since the uprising against the regime of President Bashar al-Assad broke out in March 2011.

Deir Ezzor province, which borders Iraq, contains the largest energy reserves in the country, and Al-Ward field is one of the most important in the province.

Syria produced some 4000 of barrels of oil a day before the United States and the European Union banned in August and September 2011 the import of Syrian petroleum and petroleum products to put pressure on the Assad regime.

Oil exports fell from 13,500 tonnes in the fourth quarter of 2011 to 7500 tonnes in the first quarter of 2012.

Europe had previously bought 95 per cent of Syrian oil, generating a third of the country's revenue.

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Abbott, PM still on the nose with voters

TONY Abbott will be seeking reassurance from Malcolm Turnbull that he doesn't want his job, after a poll showed overwhelming support for Mr Turnbull to return as leader of the opposition.

The Galaxy Poll published by News Ltd found 60 per cent of voters believed Mr Turnbull would be a better choice as leader than Mr Abbott, who could manage just 29 per cent support.

The news was just as bleak for Prime Minister Julia Gillard, who has to keep Kevin Rudd at bay.

The poll also showed 49 per cent of voters want Mr Rudd leading the Labor Party compared to 34 per cent for Ms Gillard.

However, Labor keeps making inroads in the coalition's lead in the primary and two-party preferred votes, according to the poll of 1003 people that was conducted over the weekend.

The poll found Labor's primary vote firmed four points to 35 per cent since the last poll in June while the coalition's support eased two points to 47 per cent.

On a two-party preferred basis the coalition held a winning lead at 53 per cent to 47 per cent, which would result in the minority government losing 20 or more seats if an election were held now.

Galaxy boss David Briggs said apart from speculation about another leadership challenge, Ms Gillard's other problem was the lack of trust.

Sixty three per cent of voters did not believe her claims she was only recruited on the day Mr Rudd was overthrown as prime minister in 2010.

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Rebels shoot down Syria warplane: locals

SYRIAN rebels have shot down a warplane in the eastern province of Deir Ezzor, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says, citing local witnesses.

"Rebels shot down a warplane that had been carrying out air strikes near the town of Mayadin and crashed near the town of Baqras, according to witnesses, residents and activists," the Britain-based watchdog said on Sunday.

The watchdog, which gathers its information from a nationwide network of activists, lawyers and medics in civilian and military hospitals, said initial reports indicated the pilot had been captured.

Earlier the watchdog reported that rebels seized on Sunday one of the country's major oilfields east of Mayadin, saying it was an unprecedented move in the 19-month conflict.

"Rebels in the Jaafar Tayyar Brigade took control of Al-Ward oilfield, east of the town of Mayadin, after a siege that lasted several days," the Observatory said.

"This is the first time the rebels have taken control of an oilfield," Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman told AFP by phone.

The fighting on Sunday began at dawn and lasted several hours, said Abdel Rahman, adding that 40 soldiers guarding the infrastructure had either been killed, wounded or taken prisoner.

The rebels claimed to have downed several helicopters since the beginning of the revolt against the regime of President Bashar al-Assad, which erupted in March 2011 as a peaceful uprising and steadily militarised in the face of state repression.

But they rarely managed to shoot down warplanes.

The military has increasingly relied on its superior air power to try to reverse rebel gains on the ground.

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Handful of states decide US election

THE White House race has narrowed to a fight over fewer than 10 states, ahead of Tuesday's tight election between President Barack Obama and Mitt Romney.

Obama's strategy, with two days of campaigning to go, is to solidify his last line of defence in the industrial midwest, and to try to pluck away several insurance states from Romney's target list elsewhere.

The Republican challenger trails the president in polls in many of the battleground states but retains a narrow and plausible path to the 270 electoral votes needed to win the presidency.

Romney's camp also argues that Romney may not even be behind, arguing that state polls are based on unrealistic assumptions of the size of the Democratic slice of the electorate and underplay Republican enthusiasm.

Here is the state of play in swing states that will decide whether Obama wins a second term, or Romney recaptures the White House for Republicans.

The number of electoral votes each state has is in brackets.

OBAMA'S LAST LINE OF DEFENSE

If Obama wins Ohio, Wisconsin and Iowa, and avoids any upsets on his turf, he is all but certain to become only the second Democrat to win two White House terms since World War II.

Romney spent months trying to tear the president's midwestern "firewall" but was hampered by an Obama advertising blitz hammering him as a wealthy plutocrat who disdains the middle class.

OHIO (18)

In most recent polls, Obama led Ohio between two and five points, an ominous sign for Romney, as no Republican since the Civil War has lost the state and gone on to win the White House.

Obama touts his bailout of the indebted auto industry in 2009 and Romney's opposition to it, as one-in-eight jobs in the state are linked to the sector.

His team believes that Romney has undermined his hopes in Ohio by running ad an warning that Chrysler will outsource production of its Jeep vehicles to China, a charge the company's CEO has said is false.

Obama leads an average of polls in Ohio by the RealClearPolitics (RCP) website by 2.9 per cent.

WISCONSIN (10)

Wisconsin has been solid Democratic territory for years: the last time a Republican won the state was Ronald Reagan in 1984.

But Republicans, who managed to repel an attempt by Democrats to oust Governor Scott Walker in a recall election this year, have a solid ground game in the state, and Romney's running mate Paul Ryan is a local boy.

The president leads the RCP average by 5.4 per cent.

IOWA (6)

Where it all started for Obama. The president built his grass roots operation in the agricultural heartland state and believes that after carving out an advantage in early voting, he has the edge on Romney.

Obama leads the RCP average in Iowa by 2.5 per cent.

UP FOR GRABS

FLORIDA (29)

The Sunshine State, the largest electoral battleground, is often decisive in presidential elections, but may not be the kingmaker this time. But Obama is competing fiercely there because if he wins, it is all but impossible for Romney to take the White House.

A punishing foreclosure crisis and an unemployment rate higher than the national average have many analysts expecting Florida to swing to Romney.

Obama has led several recent polls however, and if he can get a bumper turnout in Democratic strongholds in the southern part of the state, he could pull off a surprise.

Romney leads the RCP average by 1.4 per cent.

VIRGINIA (13)

Neither side seem to know whether the state will revert to Republicans after Obama became the first Democrat to win there since 1964. Obama needs to maximise turnout among students, and African American voters around the cities of Richmond and Norfolk.

Romney will count on old school conservatives in rural areas of the state and look to cut down on Obama's margins with educated middle class voters in the Washington DC suburbs.

Currently, Romney leads the RCP average by 0.3 per cent.

NORTH CAROLINA (15)

The most likely state to move from Democratic to Republican because Obama won it by only 14,000 votes in 2008. Romney aides are certain their man will win, but the Obama camp has mobilised a massive early voting effort, which it says will keep the president competitive into election day.

Romney is up 3.8 per cent in the RCP scoreboard.

COLORADO (9)

Romney's best chance to grab a western swing state. Obama is relying on women and Hispanic voters to keep him in the game here and currently heads the RCP average by 1.0 per cent.

NEW HAMPSHIRE (4)

The flinty northeastern state with an independent streak knows Romney well after he served as governor of neighbouring Massachusetts.

Obama won this state, in 2008 and leads the RCP average this year by 1.8 per cent.

MAY BE OVER

NEVADA (6)

The Obama campaign says it has a substantial lead after early voting which means Romney needs to win big in election day voting.

Obama has a powerbase among Hispanic voters, and his trip to the bowels of a vast Las Vegas casino hotel to greet culinary workers a few weeks ago looks to have paid off.

Obama leads Nevada by 2.7 per cent in the RCP average.

ROMNEY'S LAST STAND

PENNSYLVANIA (20), MICHIGAN (16), MINNESOTA (10)

Romney will make a late swoop into Pennsylvania on Sunday after ignoring the Keystone state for much of the campaign. Democrats say his move shows desperation and a recognition that he cannot get to 270 electoral votes elsewhere. Obama leads the RCP average by 4.6 percent.

Republicans have also made big advertising buys in Democratic states Minnesota, where Obama is up by five points, according to RCP and in Michigan where Obama leads by 3.5 per cent in the averages.

Obama aide David Axelrod is so confident that he has offered to shave his trademark moustache if Romney wins any of the trio.

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Hollande backs Lebanon over Syria crisis

FRENCH President Francois Hollande on a brief visit to Beirut has pledged to "protect" Lebanon against threats of destabilisation caused by the deadly conflict in neighbouring Syria.

"France will spare no effort to guarantee Lebanon's independence, unity and security," Hollande said at a joint news conference with Lebanese President Michel Sleiman on Sunday.

France is determined "to oppose with all its strength any bid to destabilise", Lebanon, he said.

Sleiman said he reaffirmed to Hollande "Lebanon's commitment to avoid the negative repercussions of the (Syrian) crisis".

After his stop in Beirut, the French leader flew to Saudi Arabia for talks with King Abdullah on Syria and Iran, before attending an Asia-Europe summit in Laos to talk trade at a time of economic crisis.

The visit comes two weeks after Lebanon's opposition called on Prime Minister Najib Mikati, whose cabinet is dominated by powerful Syrian ally Hezbollah, to resign.

The opposition accuses the government of complicity with the regime of embattled Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, which has also been accused of the 2005 assassination of ex-prime minister Rafik Hariri.

Calls for Mikati to quit were spurred by a massive car bombing in central Beirut last month that killed top security official Wissam al-Hassan, in an attack the opposition blamed on Syria and its allies in Lebanon.

Hollande said France was ready to help Lebanon probe the murder of Hassan, and said "there can be no impunity" for the assassination of Hariri and the security official.

The Beirut stop was a last-minute decision by Hollande to express France's solidarity with Lebanon.

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Blindfolded boy to pick Copt pope

A BLINDFOLDED boy will select the new pope for millions of Coptic Christians in Egypt, becoming his mother's pride and joy in the process.

Nearly 2500 eligible voters made up of Coptic public officials, MPs, journalists and local councillors have already pre-selected three candidates to succeed pope Shenuda III, who died in March at the age of 88.

They are Bishop Rafael, 54, a medical doctor and current assistant bishop for central Cairo; Bishop Tawadros of the Nile Delta province of Beheira, 60; and Father Rafael Ava Mina, the oldest of the five original candidates at 70.

Their names will now be written on separate pieces of paper and placed in a box on the altar of St Mark's Cathedral, for God to guide the boy's hand towards the winner - in the beliefs of the Church and the faithful.

The final choice will be left to a boy, aged between five and eight, explained Bishop Pola from Tanta in the Nile Delta, in the first such contest since Shenuda was selected by the same method more than four decades ago, in 1971.

"A lot of families propose the names of children, that's why we lay down precise criteria and ensure the faithfulness of the family and the child to the Church," said the bishop.

Dozens of families have come forward.

"I pray my son George is selected to carry out the will of God," said one mother, Merihan Moros.

The interim head of the Church, Father Pachomius, will choose 12 boys to be invited to the ceremony. Then, he will instruct that one of them be blindfolded.

That boy will choose a piece of paper bearing the name of the 118th Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of All Africa in the Holy See of St Mark the Apostle.

Bishop Pola told reporters that strict measures are taken to ensure there is no foul play: the three pieces of paper are all the same size, tied up the same way and placed in a transparent box.

The entire process is also televised before a large, live congregation.

Some Copts say the procedure should be updated.

"The faithful should vote after having prayed and fasted," according to Gamal Asaad, an intellectual in the community.

The Coptic pope serves as the spiritual leader of the country's Christians, who make up between six and 10 per cent of Egypt's 83-million-strong population.

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Rebels fight Syrian troops over airbase

SYRIAN rebels have launched a major assault on a strategic airbase in the north of the country, trying to disrupt strikes by warplanes and helicopters that pound rebel-held towns.

The assault, reported by activists, comes a day before the start of a key international conference in Qatar at which the United States and its allies aim to reorganise the opposition's political leadership and unite their ranks. The leadership-in-exile has been widely seen as ineffective and out of touch with rebel fighters on the ground.

Rebel forces attacked the Taftanaz airbase early on Saturday morning in fighting with government forces that continued into the afternoon, the anti-regime activist Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

Joining Syrian rebels in the attack were fighters from Jabhat al-Nusra, an al-Qaeda-inspired Islamic militant group made up of foreign jihadis, according to the Observatory. Al-Nusra fighters, who are considered among the most experienced and disciplined among the opposition forces, have led attacks on other airbases in the north in past months.

The Taftanaz base mainly houses military helicopters, near the main highway between the capital Damascus and the northern city of Aleppo, where rebels and the military have been battling for control for months.

Online activist videos claim to show the battle, with rebels firing rockets and mortars, and smoke rising over buildings and an airstrip area. An activist speaking in the video identifies it as an attack by rebels and Jabhat al-Nusra on the base.

The videos appear genuine and are consistent with other Associated Press reporting in the area.

The capturing of the base - and holding on to it - would be a major achievement for the rebels, who often complain they are outgunned by government forces.

Airstrikes have been one of the most effective and feared weapons of the regime in the civil war. Rebels managed to seize control of a pocket of territory around Aleppo, but government warplanes and helicopters continue to blast towns they hold from the air. In the fierce fighting over Aleppo itself, warplanes almost daily swoop in to strafe or bomb rebel-held neighbourhoods.

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NASA to text space station alerts

GALACTIC tourism may still be a daydream for most of us, but for anyone interested in a glimpse of the International Space Station sooner, NASA is ready to help.

The US space agency, celebrating the 12th anniversary of astronauts living and working on the orbiting lab, launched a new service Friday that alerts people when the space station is visible from their backyard.

Those who sign up will get an email or a text message with a few hours warning.

Then, when the moment is right, NASA said, you just go outside and look up - no fancy equipment required.

"It's really remarkable to see the space station fly overhead and to realize humans built an orbital complex that can be spotted from Earth by almost anyone looking up at just the right moment," William Gerstenmaier, NASA's associate administrator for human exploration and operations, said in a statement.

The space station is typically visible right at dawn or dusk, when the moon is the only brighter object visible in the night sky, NASA said.

It looks like a fast moving point of light, similar to Venus.

"Spot the Station" service is available worldwide, the agency said, adding the station's trajectory carries it over more than 90 per cent of the Earth's population.

To sign up, visit spotthestation.nasa.gov.

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