World Vignettes

Lawson paid 6,000 pounds when he bought the escort for daughter Sarah at Sotheby8217;s in 1995. Its value rocketed following Diana8217;s fatal car crash making it difficult to insure.

Potential buyers apparently included disgraced former heavyweight boxing champ Mike Tyson and several Las Vegas casinos, which wanted to offer it as a prize. Lawson said he did not know which American museum was involved and could not give the agreed price, but insisted he had turned his back on more lucrative offers to keep the car in the public eye.

The car was presented to the Princess two months before she married Prince Charles, heir to the British throne, in 1981 when she was still working as a nursery assistant. One distinctive touch is a silver frog on its bonnet 8212; a copy of Diana8217;s original which she kept when shesold the car.

Royal birthday

LONDON: To the strains of a special march composed by an admirer on a set of saucepans, Britain8217;s beloved Queen Mother Elizabeth has celebrated her 98th birthday with the crowds outside her Clarence House home. Dressed in sunshine yellow and leaning slightly on a cane on Tuesday, the country8217;s longest-living royal beamed and waved as well-wishers sang 8220;happy birthday, your majesty.8221;

Children stood in line to present balloons, bouquets and cards, among them two-year-old Nathaniel Hess of West London, who produced a half-eaten cookie, which the Queen Mother laughingly pretended to eat.

The Queen Mother has remained one of the most popular royals, serenely enduring two world wars, the death of her husband, two hip replacements and a cataract operation.

Squirrel man

KUALA LUMPUR: A Malaysian farmer who climbed up a tree to pluck fruits was shot dead by a hunter who mistook him for a squirrel. Harun Mamat, 47, died after he was shot in the chest by thehunter at a village near northern Kota Baharu town. Police arrested the hunter, who is a member of the civilian armed guard, and seized a shotgun in the incident on Monday.

The 50-year-old hunter told police he was hunting squirrels and mistook Harun for one. Harun had been plucking mangosteens, a small purple fruit with a white pulpy centre that is popular in Malaysia.

Female judges

CAIRO: Amid growing public debate, a leading Egyptian cleric has ruled that there is nothing in Islam8217;s holy book, the Koran, that bans women from becoming judges. However, Sheik Mohammed Sayyed Tantawi also cautioned women against rushing to join the ranks of the judiciary. 8220;The nature of the job does not suit that of a woman,8221; said Tantawi. There are certain jobs that make it necessary for men to carry them out.8221; Tantawi is head of Al-Azhar, the leading Sunni Muslim centre of religious thought.

Tantawi8217;s rulings carry substantial weight in the Muslim world, and his statement could lend legitimacy to campaignsby feminist activists to get women on the bench.

His statements follows months of debate in Egypt over one woman8217;s ten-year battle to be accepted as a candidate for a judgeship.