Indonesia to build 110,000 houses for tsunami survivors in Aceh

Three workers build a house for Acehnese tsunami survivors in Banda Aceh,capital of the Indonesian province of Aceh Dec. 25, 2005. Because the region hit by tsunami is too big, the massive reconstruction work have not been finished yet while Indonesian government and world responded to the Indian Ocean catastrophe on December 26, 2004 with unprecedented generosity. Indonesian government planed to build 110,000 houses for Acehnese tsunami survivors but would finish 30,000 houses by the end of this year.

46-inch LCD TV goes on sale in China

A worker makes adjustments to a 46-inch LCD TV at an assembly line of the Soyea Technology Co., LTD of the Westlake Electronics Group in east China's Zhejiang Province on Dec 23. Soyea launched its self-developed 46-inch LCD TV, biggest of its kind in China on Dec 24. The TV sales for 26,800 yuan at market.

Christmas at Sydney beach

Two tourists pose for a photo at the Bondi Beach of Sydney, Australia on Dec 25. Thousands of Australians were joined by tourists and holidaymakers in the traditional way of celebrating Christmas Day at the beach. The police have also intensified security measures to ensure a safe Christmas.

Memorials held for tsunami victims, many still in make-shift shelters

An Acehnese woman with a child rest outside their makeshift house built for last year's tsunami survivors in Banda Aceh, capital of the Indonesian province of Aceh Dec. 25, 2005. A year after the tragic earthquake and tsunami in the Indian Ocean, make-shift houses and tents shelter large number of Acehnese tsunami survivors.

Beijing ornamented to greet holiday shopping tides

Photo taken on Dec. 25, 2005 shows castles built with drink cans in Xidan, one of Beijing's commercial areas. The creations, mainly imitations of architectures, are built to attract shoppers during the Christmas and New Year shopping tides.

Shanghai metro accident strands thousands of passengers

Passengers are stranded at a subway station after an accident in Shanghai, December 25, 2005. A train of Line One metro suffered a sudden shutdown, resulting in the stranding of thousands of passengers and promoting the subway management to ininitate emergency mechanism. The traffic resumed 20 minutes later and the cause of the accident is still under investigation. (newsphoto)

700,000 more university graduates to enter job market

A college student makes a phone call at a job fair in Nanjing, east China's Jiangsu province, December 25, 2005. Some 4.1 million university students are expected to finish their college studies and enter the job market in China in 2006, 700,000 more than that of 2005, Xinhua reported.

International Small Commodities Exhibition in Ankara

A Turkish woman chooses Chinese handicrafts at the International Small Commodities Exhibition held in Ankara, capital city of Turkey, on Dec. 24, 2005. The exhibition was held Saturday in Ankara Cultural Center.

Kidnappers threaten to kill Jordanian hostage in Iraq

The video shows the Jordanian hostage, a driver of the Jordanian embassy in Baghdad who was abducted on Dec 20, was sitting on the floor flanked by three armed men. Kidnappers threatened to the hostage unless Jordan releases a female suicide bomber involved in the triple bomb attacks that hit Amman in November, according to a video aired on Saturday by the al-Arabiya satellite channel.