Job markets offer free service for migrant workers

A migrant worker (L) talks to a recruiter at a job fair in Wuhan, capital of central China's Hubei Province, Feb. 8, 2006. Local government will hold 100 free job fairs in February and March in Wuhan, which is the major part of a government-initiated "Spring Breeze" campaign to help migrant workers to find jobs.

Highlights from the 48th annual Grammy Awards

Member of U2 Bono (F) speaks while posing for photo after they won at the 48th annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles February 8, 2006. Their awards included album of the year for 'How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb' and song of the year for 'Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own'.

Ecological museum of Blang ethnic group

Photo taken on Feb. 5, 2006 shows a depositary of Buddhist texts with a history of 1,300 years at the ecological museum of Blang ethnic group in Zhanglangzhai of the Xishuangbanna Daizu Autonomous Prefecture in southwest China's Yunnan Province. The ecological museum of Blang ethnic group covers 180 hectares in the virgin forest within the China-Burma border areas. Many time-honored villages, stupas, Buddhist temples, depositaries of Buddhist texts and other historic relics were preserved in the museum. Furthermore, some 1,020 Blang people in Zhanglangzhai have kept their traditional customs, production means, and religious believe for more than 1,400 years.

US to build 51 warships costing $ 66.3 bln

File photo taken on Jan. 21, 2006 shows US navy's Carney guiding missile destroyer on Atlantic. The US navy was scheduled to build 51 warships costing 66.3 billion US dollars in the next five years, according to an official of US navy on Tuesday.

Renovation of monument to heroes begins

Workers set up an enclosure around the Monument to the People's Heroes at the Tian'anmen Square in Beijing, capital of China, Feb. 8, 2006. The monument is undergoing an extensive renovation that was started on Feb. 8 and is expected to finish in three months.

Egypt wins semis in African Nations Cup

Hassan Ahmed (C) of Egypt controls the ball during the semi-final match against Senegalese player (R) at the African Nations Cup held in Cairo, Egypt, Feb. 7, 2006. Egypt won the match 2-1.

Antarctic expedition team studies ocean life forms

File photo taken on Jan. 19, 2006 shows some bio-samples collected from the Prydz Bay in South Pole. The China's 22nd Antarctic scientific expedition team has finished the investigation on planktons covering an area of more than four million square sea miles in the south Indian Ocean up to present, and got some samples of rare oceanic life forms. It is the most extensive investigation of its kind at this area in Chinese history.

Chechnya barracks blast claims 13 lives

Thirteen soldiers were killed in an explosion Tuesday night apparently caused by domestic gas leakage at their barracks in Chechnya. Investigators and security force officers are seen at the site of the blast in a military barracks in the Chechen town of Kurchaloi Feb. 8. (Xinhua/AFP)

U.S. Congress holds hearings into 2007 budget

U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld gestures during the hearing held by Senate Armed Services Committee in Washington, the United States, Feb. 7, 2006. The hearing was held to discuss proposed defense spending in the 2007 budget. U.S. President George W. Bush sent Congress a 2.77 trillion-dollar budget on Monday for the fiscal year of 2007, which requests 439.3 billion dollars for the Department of Defense, not including the operations spending in Iraq and Afghanistan.

New bird flu outbreak confirmed in Shanxi Province

A health worker disinfects a car at a village in Yijing Township, Yangquan City, north China's Shanxi Province, Feb. 8, 2006. The Ministry of Agriculture confirmed on Feb. 7 a new bird flu outbreak in poultry in Yijing Township, and the state avian flu lab confirmed on the same day that the H5N1 strain of highly pathogenic bird flu was the killer. Local vet departments has so far culled 187,745 poultry within three kilometers from the affected areas after the province activated its emergency reaction program on the outbreak of the disease.

Costa Rica begins manual recount of votes

President Oscar Fonseca of the Supreme Electoral Tribunal shows the ballots in San Jose, capital city of Costa Rica, on Feb. 7, 2006. The Supreme Electoral Council of Costa Rica decided late Monday to hold a manual recount of votes due to a razor-thin margin that separated the two main candidates in the country's presidential election. The final result may come in two weeks.