WASHINGTON: Iranian users are having trouble accessing Gmail, Google said yesterday following a newspaper report that Iran's telecoms agency had permanently suspended the Internet giant's email service.

"We have heard from users in Iran that they are having trouble accessing Gmail," Google said in a statement.

"We can confirm a sharp drop in traffic and we have looked at our own networks and found that they are working properly," the Mountain View, California-based company said.

CHENNAI -- Besides politics, Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Abdul Razak has another fervid passion -- Facebook.

Like millions of people around the world, Najib has joined the social networking website to reach out to the masses, more so Malaysians, hoping to clip the political divide between the old and young generations.

Najib speaks fondly of Facebook although he has hardly time to surf, but a team manages and frequently updates his site which, he says, now has about 80,000 fans.

PETALING JAYA: The mysterious death of Sudanese student Nadir Mohd Al-Fatih has generated an outpouring of grief among his peers, both here and overseas.

A Facebook group set up in his memory has seen more than 50 postings by friends who offered their condolences and related their fondest memories of him.

 

PETALING JAYA: The dispute over the usage of the word "allah" has been taken to Facebook, where individuals are using devious ways to instigate the public.

Pat Lu, an administrator of a Facebook group called We Support the Use of the Name Allah by All Malaysians, discovered that her Facebook profile has been duplicated and misused by unscrupulous individuals and she fears it will be used for bad intentions.

WASHINGTON: Facebook said yesterday that it is blocking a website called "Web 2.0 Suicide Machine" that  helps users delete their social network profiles. The number one social network also said it had sent a "cease-and-desist" letter to another website, Seppukoo.com, which also helps you kill off your virtual identity.

MELBOURNE: Several elite schools here are embroiled in a race hate scandal as many of their students join a Facebook group calling for immigrants to get out of Australia, the `"Sunday Herald Sun' newspaper reports.

The group's page, which features a picture of the Australian flag with expletive words written across it, tells non-English speakers "if you wanna speak your crappy language, go back to were (sic) you came from".

The Facebook group is called "Mate speak english, you're in australia now" and has more than 5000 members from across the nation.

MONTREAL: Facebook can be a double-edged sword, a Canadian woman learned when an insurance company cut her health benefits, claiming she was healthy after seeing pictures of her smiling in bikini at the beach.

Nathalie Blanchard, 29, took long-term sick leave from her job at IBM in Bromont, Quebec, more than a year ago for severe depression. She was receiving monthly  benefits from her insurance company, Manulife.

MALAYSIAN football golden boy Amri Yahyah's two goals against Manchester United have earned him the adoration and recognition of fans, even non-football fans.

The latest, a group called "Amri Yahyah for Dato' Seri" was formed on Facebook, and six videos highlighting the newly-crowned Malaysia's football "saviour" have been uploaded on YouTube.

BRITISH diplomats and civil servants will be warned in a new circular this week about the danger of putting details of their family and career on social networking websites.

The issue of disclosing too much information on social networking sites is once again at the forefront with the case of Sir John Sawers, the new head of MI6, Britain's global intelligence-gathering organisation.

Sir John found himself at the centre of a security breach after his wife published family holiday photographs and other personal details on Facebook.

SHAHRIZAT. With practically everyone who matters on Facebook these days, it's not surprising that even serious political overtures are made through the social networking site. According to media reports, the Wanita Umno chief has invited Pas women leaders for talks on Malay unity.

"I shall as soon as possible issue an invitation to the Pas Dewan Muslimat head for us women leaders to meet and discuss the best and most sincere way to ensure that unity among Muslims in this country remains intact ... I hope the Dewan Muslimat head will accept my invitation."