9am Briefing: Last of the trapped Chilean miners is raised to safety

Luis Urzua, the foreman who held them together when they were feared lost, ascended through 2,000 feet of rock, completing a 22 and a half-hour rescue operation that exceeded officials' best expectations every step of the way.

Before a jubilant crowd of 2,000 people, he became the 33rd miner to be rescued.

"We have done what the entire world was waiting for," he told Chilean president Sebastian Pinera immediately after his rescue from the San Jose mine in the Acatama desert.

No-one in recorded history has survived as long trapped underground. For the first 17 days, no one knew whether they were alive.

CONTRACTORS working on the project have written to councillors, accusing trams firm TIE of "aggressive and hostile" tactics ahead of a crucial meeting today.

The letter from Bilfinger Berger and Siemens said: "Bringing trams to Edinburgh is still within reach of the council.

"We are more than willing to continue to engage with you and Tie to help find a sustainable solution for the project and the city. However, a continued hostile approach by Tie is likely to result in further delays and expense for the project, which will ultimately impact on you as guarantor of the project and undermine the viability of bringing trams to Edinburgh."

SINGING sensation Susan Boyle has revealed she was taunted and abused by bullies during her troubled childhood.

The West Lothian star, who shot to fame after stepping onto the Britain's Got Talent stage last year, today told how she was chased by yobs in her home town of Blackburn who stubbed out a cigarette on her back.

However, writing in her new biography, out today, she said that she overcame the bullies with her voice.

She said: "My singing silenced the bullies, but better than that it silenced the demons inside me.

"It gave me a new identity. Instead of being 'That Susan Boyle - do you remember, she was a bit odd at school?' I became 'Susan Boyle - did you know she can really sing?'"

A TIGER who captivated visitors at Edinburgh Zoo for nearly a decade has died at his home at the Highland Wildlife Park.

Amur tiger Yuri had to be put down after suffering failing health caused by kidney problems.

The 17-year-old arrived at the park in Kincraig with his long-time mate Sasha from Edinburgh Zoo in September 2008.

The pair had a litter of three cubs after they arrived at the Highland Wildlife Park, having previously had six cubs together.

Yuri was sent to the city's zoo in 1999 as part of the European Zoo Association's Amur breeding programme.