Uruguay moves to legalise pot

EGypt’s electoral commission has postponed announcing the results of the country’s first democratic presidential elections.

It was expected to confirm a winner yesterday, but said it needed more time to examine appeals from competing candidates.

the delay heightened tensions in an already polarised climate as both Mohammed Morsi, candidate of the Muslim Brotherhood, and rival, Ahmed shafiq, a member of the old regime, claimed victory in the run-off.

the commission said it was investigating nearly 400 allegations of fraud including claims of pre-marked ballot papers, multiple voting and the registration of dead voters. A final announcement is not expected until the weekend at the earliest.

the delay comes just days after Egypt’s ruling generals moved to tighten their grip on power. Last week the supreme council of armed forces re-imposed martial law and dissolved the newly elected parliament which URUGUAy plans to fight crime by selling marijuana to “registered” users.

Under the plan, the government would have monopoly control of the drug, which would only be sold to adults who signed up to the scheme.

Defence minister Eleuterio Fernandez Huidobro said the move would weaken organised crime by making the illegal trade less profitable and preventing users from “graduating” to harder drugs such as cocaine. had been dominated by Muslim Brotherhood Mps. As polls closed on sunday night after two days of voting, the army issued a constitutional decree that curbed the power of the incoming president.

“there is absolutely no justification for the result of the vote to be delayed,” said Brotherhood leader Essam el-Erian.

Another Brotherhood figure speculated that the outcome

“There is no justification for the result to be delayed” Essam el-Erian

had been put off because of an attempt to secure a secret deal.

“there are efforts by intermediate parties who are trying to negotiate a settlement that the democratic forces in Egypt have to accept the dissolution of parliament in order for them to announce the result of the presidential election,” said spokesman Jihad al-Haddad.

the Brotherhood is confident that its candidate, Mr Morsi won the run-off with 52 per cent of the vote. supporters of Mr shafiq have criticised Mr Morsi’s campaign for declaring victory early, saying it is part of a ploy to convince voters the poll was rigged should Mr shafiq be declared the winner instead. Many fear such an outcome would provoke a second revolution with angry voters taking to the streets en masse. A win by Mr Morsi could prompt a confrontation with Egypt’s military.

the continued uncertainty about the presidential election results has increased fears about a military power grab that has been widely described as a coup. the events of the past week have left Egypt in disarray with no president, constitution or elected parliament. the armed forces have taken over legislative powers, as well as control of the budget and have given themselves a key role in overseeing the drafting of Egypt’s new constitution.

said sadeki, a professor of political sociology at the American University of Cairo, said the measures would constrain any future president making him little more leader”.

Egyptians are expected to gather in Cairo’s tahrir square today to protest against the army’s new powers.

the power struggle to succeed president Hosni Mubarak comes as the 84-year-old former leader is said to be in a coma after falling ill in prison where he was serving life for ordering

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duck the crackdown which led to the deaths of protesters last year.

Egyptian state media initially reported he was “clinically dead” after a stroke on tuesday night. A member of the ruling military council later said he had been revived after a cardiac arrest and was on a respirator.

It was reported last night Mubarak had been moved to a military hospital.

American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecolog y.

“We think the world of them. they are her saviours,” said Mrs Gonzalez, 39, sitting alongside her husband Alain, 38, and sevenyear-old son Alain Junior.

Leyna’s condition, a foetal oral teratoma, occurs in around one in 100,000 pregnancies. the tumours grow rapidly, more often than not resulting in fatal bleeding in the baby and miscarriage. the few babies that make it to delivery require an emergency tracheotomy to allow them to breathe, and surgery thereafter.

Mrs Gonzalez was awake for the hour-long operation.