Just days before Rudolph flies off to draw Santa's sleigh at Christmas, dozens of his reindeer kin received a death sentence Thursday when a Norwegian court ordered they be slaughtered to preserve pasture land.

The country's Supreme Court said in a statement it had ruled "valid" a demand by the state for reindeer herder Jovsset Ante Sara, 25, to reduce his 200-strong herd to 75.

The herder argued that such a reduction would ruin him and that the ruling would breach human rights norms.

But the court upheld the state's claim that the slaughter was necessary to ensure sustainable management of the land.

Sara has vowed to appeal to the European Court of Human Rights.

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Hundreds of fans flocked to a Tokyo zoo Tuesday for the first public viewing of baby panda Xiang Xiang, after winning a lucky lottery ticket that a quarter of a million applied for. Long queues formed outside the zoo as fans - many wearing panda cub hats or gloves - waited patiently for a brief glimpse of Xiang Xiang, whose name is derived from the Chinese character for "fragrance." Su ... read more

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