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LONDON (Reuters) –
A campaign warning girls not to stash or carry guns for their boyfriends was launched by London police Wednesday.

The hard-hitting adverts, which are aimed at 15 to 19-year-olds of African and African Caribbean heritage, are designed to combat a worrying growth in the number of young women being arrested and convicted of possessing weapons.

"This year's campaign has been designed to tackle an emerging and concerning trend," said Detective Chief Superintendent Helen Ball, head of Trident, the Metropolitan Police unit that investigates gang shootings.

"Those who store and carry guns for others are partly responsible for the crimes committed with those weapons. The consequences for them, their families and their friends are not worth thinking about."

Police said Trident officers had charged 12 women with possessing a gun so far this year of which seven were teenagers. That compares with 13 charged last year and two the year before.

One recent case saw a 16-year-old girl from southeast London charged with possessing a gun with intent to endanger life and with supplying a firearm after a 9mm Browning self-loading pistol with one round was found in her bedroom.

The four-week campaign, which has the strap line "Hide his gun and you help commit the crime," will run on radio, in cinemas and on billboards.

"Sadly, young women have always been involved in carrying and storing firearms," said Claudia Webbe, chairman of Trident's Independent Advisory Group.

"We are deeply concerned, however, that this involvement seems to be increasing and those who are involved seem to be younger and younger.

"Vulnerable young women are sometimes pressurized into storing or transporting the weapons by men they know, or sometimes willingly do so."

(Reporting by Michael Holden; Editing by Steve Addison)

SINGAPORE (Reuters) –
Beauty queen Miss Singapore World has given up her crown after it emerged that she had stolen credit cards to go on a shopping spree for lingerie. Ris Low had come under public pressure to be stripped of her 2009 title, after local media reported she stole seven credit cards last year while working at a medical clinic, buying goods worth about S$8,000 ($5,662) including gold anklets and phones.

Organizers of the pageant ERM World Marketing said she had resigned Tuesday of her own accord. She will no longer represent Singapore at the Miss World finals to be held in South Africa in December, but her replacement has not yet been decided.

Low had also been criticized for her poor English, mispronouncing "bikini" in a recent video, leading others in multicultural Singapore to spring to her defense and soul-searching on websites about the national character.

"If there was a beauty contest for countries, how do you think Singapore would fare on the world stage? We seem to have the aesthetic qualifications. But with a very ugly personality," said blogger Solofigure09 on the Straits Times newspaper's website.

(Reporting by Neil Chatterjee; Editing by Alex Richardson)

DUBAI (Reuters) –
A Dubai-based company is opening what it says will be the world's largest confectionary store in Dubai as it looks to tap demand from the Gulf Arab region's hunger for candy.

Candylicious, which initially opens in one of the world's largest shopping centers, The Dubai Mall, is also planning a second store in Singapore early next year, Sunaina Gill, director of Retail Is Detail, a Singaporean family business in Dubai told Reuters on Wednesday.

"We are planning 10-15 stores in the Gulf Arab region over the next 3-5 years, with additional stores to open in Dubai and Abu Dhabi in the next 12 months," said Gill.

Dubai, one of seven emirates comprising the United Arab Emirates and the tourism and trade hub of the Middle East, already has the world's tallest skyscraper and one of the longest driverless train systems globally after investing billions of dollars to propel the emirate on to the international map during a six-year oil-fueled boom.

Dubai is an ideal place for the store, said Gill, adding there was a gap and sufficient demand in the market for a confectionary store of this type, especially with 30 million visitors a year expected to visit the Dubai Mall.

Gill said the group, which will sell everything from chocolates, soda and popcorn, was aiming for sales of $10 million annually.

In addition to its sweets, the 10,000 square foot store features a huge 10-meter singing chocolate tree decorated with lollipops.

Customers will not need to necessarily have venture into the store to taste the candy. The store will also employ "Candylicious Junior," a car that will circle the mall.

(Editing by John Irish and Paul Casciato)

KINSHASA (Reuters) –
Congo's army has suspended an officer accused of drinking with the enemy ahead of a militia attack that the United Nations said left six soldiers dead, a top army commander said Tuesday.

Local Mai Mai militia fighters attacked an army camp in the town of Nyamilima, near Democratic Republic of Congo's eastern border with Uganda, early Sunday.

The army's head of operations in North Kivu province said Nyamilima's battalion commander, known as Major Leon, was suspended for negligence in the execution of his functions.

"He was drinking in the camp with the Mai Mai that then came and attacked," Colonel Bobo Kakudji told Reuters.

Congo's U.N. peacekeeping mission, known as MONUC, said eight people died in the fighting, including six soldiers, one Mai Mai, and a civilian. According to the army, one government soldier, a civilian woman, and four Mai Mai were killed.

Government forces are battling Rwandan Hutu rebels the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) in U.N.-backed operations in the eastern border provinces of North and South Kivu.

However, the offensive, launched earlier this year, has led to increased tension among government loyalists and the various rebel factions and militias brought into the army under a peace deal intended to help boost its capacity to take on the FDLR.

The army's previous commander at Nyamilima was transferred earlier this month after hundreds of former rebels deserted and went on a looting spree.

Last week, 20 eastern militia groups suspended their participation in the peace deal, accusing the government of failing to honor pledges to grant them command positions in the army.

(Reporting by Joe Bavier; Editing by Daniel Magnowski)

MILAN (Reuters) –
Italian fashionistas on Wednesday hit back at foreign media reports that their latest creations were for "bimbos" inspired by the sex scandals surrounding Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's private life.

In reviews of Milan's spring/summer 2010 womenswear fashion shows on Monday, the Financial Times and International Herald Tribune had linked the abundance of short and sexy dresses this past week to the 73-year-old prime minister.

Berlusconi has been hit by a spate of scandals surrounding his private life in recent months, including allegations that a businessman paid women to sleep with him. His wife announced in May that she wanted a divorce because of his womanizing.

"I was very surprised .. I did not expect this judgment. I find it without motive, unjustified," Mario Boselli, chairman of Italy's national chamber of fashion, told Reuters.

"I saw at least 50 shows … certainly I did not see that what was written and I believe that this fashion week was dominated by balance and great elegance, certainly nothing vulgar and uselessly provocative."

Italy's fashion capital is known for top names such as Giorgio Armani, Versace, Dolce & Gabbana and Prada, who all held their womenswear shows in the last few days.

As the warm season brings out more of the skin, many designers made sure to show off the flesh with bare backs, one-shouldered outfits and high hemlines — from small dresses and skirts to 1950s-style high-waisted culottes.

The Financial Times wrote that the scandals surrounding Berlusconi's private life had "filtered down into designers' imaginations and from there on to the catwalk."

"There hasn't been this much flesh on display since the first inklings of an economic downturn were felt oh so many seasons ago," reporter Vanessa Friedman wrote.

The International Herald Tribune entitled its review "Blame it on Berlusconi."

"'Viva la Bimbo' would seem to be the rallying cry of this summer 2010 fashion season," Suzy Menkes wrote, making note of the "veline" or scantily clad showgirls on Italian television.

Italian leading daily newspapers were full of the story.

"I don't think Berlusconi influences us," designer Donatella Versace was quoted as saying in Corriere della Sera. "I didn't see anything vulgar on the catwalks in the last few days."

(Additional reporting by Philip Pullella, editing by Paul Casciato)

TOKYO (Reuters) –
Only in Tokyo could you hire a cat out for an hour and stroke it while you have a cappuccino — or better still, while a robot cooks your noodles for you.

Japan has made staggering progress since its capital last hosted the Olympic Games in 1964 when the government unveiled the "Bullet Train" to mark its emergence as an economic power.

The bustling metropolis of 13 million — which is one of four cities vying to host the 2016 Olympics — has become a showcase for technological breakthrough, cutting-edge architecture and the world's finest cuisine.

The world's second largest economy, Japan retains a great deal of its traditional charm, shrines and quaint old shops often to be found tucked beside gleaming new skyscrapers.

Many of the iconic structures built for the 1964 Olympics, such as the elliptical national gymnasium, are still in use and as stunning in appearance as they were 45 years ago.

Modern Tokyo, with its "Blade Runner"-style crackling neon lights and crowded trains and shops, has turned convenience into an art with its automated wizardry.

Vending machines dispense everything from umbrellas to underwear. Japan boasts the highest number of machines per capita in the world and even has them at the top of Mt Fuji.

However, Tokyo's credentials as a tourist destination will come under the spotlight should the city beat Chicago, Madrid and Rio de Janeiro in the race to host the 2016 Games.

Visitors should expect the unexpected — earthquakes and typhoons included. Tokyo's waterside Olympic stadium would be built on giant shock-absorbers to withstand major tremors.

Many stereotypes about Japan are shattered long before travelers have figured out the sensor light switches and bath taps in their hotel room on their first night in Tokyo.

First-timers may be surprised at how cheaply you can dine out compared with European cities, while ordering in English takes only a fraction longer and works nine times out of 10.

SUSHI LUNCH

A sizeable sushi lunch can cost as little as $10, fast-food hamburgers a little more than a dollar and a takeaway kebab from the vans dotting Tokyo's nightspots $5.

Where Tokyo's cleanliness and safety also impress many visitors, the morning commuter crush can fill some with terror and trigger a lasting fear of train travel.

Crammed into rush-hour carriages by railway workers in dainty white gloves, Tokyoites rattle along the city's 19 subway lines to work, faces pressed against steamy windows, or worse.

Many overseas visitors avoid the early morning mayhem in a city offering round-the-clock attractions.

Fashionistas can club until 10 in the morning while many conventional tourists wake up before dawn to visit Tokyo's Tsukiji fish market, the biggest in the world.

Bleary-eyed visitors must remember to watch for speeding forklift trucks and keep their fingers off the tuna — or risk getting booted out with an earful of local invective.

Breakfast in trendy Shibuya, gazing at its famous crowded crossroad and electronic screens, or among the leafy embassy rows of Azabu and Daikanyama are a short cab ride away.

Tokyo has changed almost beyond recognition since becoming Asia's first Olympic host city in 1964.

Customer service is second to none and locals will often go out of their way to walk dazed-looking foreigners to the correct platform at the city's heaving railway stations.

A world leader in fashion, science and hi-tech gadgetry, Japan's capital can still infuriate.

You can shop until you drop at designer boutiques in Aoyama or Ginza, but have trouble using your mobile to phone or text someone in Europe to check on their shoe size.

(Editing by Ken Ferris

To query or comment on this story email sportsfeedback@thomsonreuters.com)

BERLIN (Reuters) –
Guido Westerwelle, who is widely expected to become foreign minister in the next German government, admonished a reporter who asked him a question in English on Monday, saying: "We're in Germany here."

The head of the Free Democrats (FDP), who are poised to enter government in coalition with Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives, was giving his first news conference since Sunday's election when a BBC reporter asked whether he might be willing to respond to a question in English.

"Would you please be so kind, this is a press conference in Germany," Westerwelle replied in German.

Undeterred, the reporter then asked Westerwelle if he could respond in German to a question in English, only to be rebuffed again.

"In Great Britain people are expected to speak English and it is the same in Germany, people are expected to speak German," Westerwelle answered.

Using a translator, the BBC reporter then proceeded to ask a question about how German foreign policy would change with Westerwelle as foreign minister.

Westerwelle dodged the question, before adding: "Just so it's clear, I'm happy to meet you for tea outside the press conference and then we can speak only English. But we're in Germany here."

BWINDI IMPENETRABLE FOREST, Uganda (Reuters) –
Lurking deep in the mist-glazed forests of east Africa, Uganda's mountain gorillas are preparing to 'tweet' for their survival.

With the launch on Saturday of the "Friend a Gorilla" campaign, human fans will soon be able to follow the everyday drama of one of the few remaining 720 mountain gorillas online, far from the red ants, mud and tropical rain of their habitats.

When the friendagorilla.org site goes live, users will be able to access videos, pictures and rangers' blogs through websites like Facebook and Twitter, said Moses Mapesa Wafula, head of the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA).

They will also be able to follow their new friends via satellite tracking.

"By paying one dollar to Friend a Gorilla, everybody contributes to the conservation of this species," Wafula said.

Not everybody can afford the $500 price tag for a real gorilla trek but the fiber-optic tentacles of globalization will make it possible for anyone to watch a mother grooming her children, juvenile males fighting for dominance or even feel the rush of being charged by a 500 pound (225 kg) silverback male.

Tourist receipts represent Uganda's second largest foreign exchange earner.

Organizers say the campaign is the first time social networking has been harnessed for conservation and hope it will generate $100,000 in the first three months and a further $350,000 within the first year.

Drafted in to help publicize the campaign, actor Jason Biggs, star of the American Pie comedies, said gazing into the eyes of a gorilla was like meeting an old friend.

"It was pretty surreal. I felt like when I made eye contact with the gorillas, it was like an out-of-body experience," Biggs told Reuters after a face to face encounter with one of the gorillas at Bwindi. "It was mind-blowing."

With around 370 mountain gorillas, Uganda's Bwindi Impenetrable National Park plays host to roughly half the global population, with the remainder scattered across volcanoes in nearby Rwanda and the war-ravaged Democratic Republic of Congo.

The gorilla's habitat is threatened by illegal logging for charcoal, timber and agriculture and are also poached for bush meat, UWA staff said.

Although the gorillas remain endangered, UWA has registered growth rates of 12 percent and watched the gorilla population double over the last 25 years, according to Wafula.

He said the money raised by the Friend and Gorilla campaign would contribute toward conservation efforts as well as help promote alternative livelihoods for people living in and around the park.

(Editing by Robin Pomeroy)

WASHINGTON (Reuters) –
Top Pentagon officials are calling for an end to the U.S. military's historical ban on allowing women to serve in submarines.

Admiral Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the top U.S. military officer, advocated the policy change in written congressional testimony distributed by his office to reporters on Friday.

"I believe we should continue to broaden opportunities for women. One policy I would like to see changed is the one barring (women's) service aboard submarines," Mullen said.

Navy Secretary Ray Mabus said he was "moving out aggressively on this."

"I am very comfortable addressing integrating women into the submarine force," Admiral Gary Roughead, chief of naval operations, said in a statement.

Women account for about 15 percent of the more than 336,000 members of the U.S. Navy and can serve on its surface ships. But critics have argued that submarines are different, pointing to cramped quarters where some crews share beds in shifts.

Nancy Duff Campbell, an advocate for expanding the role of women in the U.S. armed forces, said it would be easy to resolve problems associated with so-called "hot-bunking."

"They say, 'How could we have the women sleeping in the same area as men?'" said Campbell, co-president of the National Women's Law Center (NWLC).

"But they already separate where the officers sleep from the enlisted, so it's not like it can't be done."

Roughead said the problem of sorting out accommodations on the U.S. fleet of 71 submarines was not insurmountable.

Allowing women on submarines would be another step forward in expanding the role of women in the U.S. military. Last year, a woman was promoted to the rank of four-star general for the first time.

Women are still barred from traditional frontline combat roles in the U.S. military. But female soldiers often run the same risks as men in Iraq and Afghanistan, where bombings and other insurgent attacks can happen almost anywhere and target any U.S. unit.

(Reporting by Phil Stewart; editing by Paul Simao)

NEW YORK (Reuters) –
Dalton Chiscolm is unhappy about Bank of America's customer service — really, really unhappy.

Chiscolm in August sued the largest U.S. bank and its board, demanding that "1,784 billion, trillion dollars" be deposited into his account the next day. He also demanded an additional $200,164,000, court papers show.

Attempts to reach Chiscolm were unsuccessful. A Bank of America spokesman declined to comment.

"Incomprehensible," U.S. District Judge Denny Chin said in a brief order released Thursday in Manhattan federal court.

"He seems to be complaining that he placed a series of calls to the bank in New York and received inconsistent information from a 'Spanish womn,'" the judge wrote. "He apparently alleges that checks have been rejected because of incomplete routing numbers."

Chin has experience with big numbers. He's the judge who sentenced Bernard Madoff to a 150-year prison sentence for what the government called a $65 billion Ponzi scheme.

Bank of America Corp faces real legal problems, including New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo's threat to sue its chief executive and a judge's embarrassing rejection of a settlement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Yet the money Chiscolm wants could dwarf all the bank's other problems.

It's larger than a sextillion dollars, or a 1 followed by 21 zeros. Chiscolm's request is equivalent 1 followed by 22 digits.

The sum also dwarfs the world's 2008 gross domestic product of $60 trillion, as estimated by the World Bank.

"These are the kind of numbers you deal with only on a cosmic scale," said Sylvain Cappell, New York University's Silver Professor at the Courant Institute for Mathematical Sciences. "If he thinks Bank of America has branches on every planet in the cosmos, then it might start to make some sense."

Judge Chin gave Chiscolm until October 23 to better explain the basis for his claims, or else see his complaint dismissed.

(Reporting by Joe Rauch; Editing by Lisa Von Ahn)