Aid call from Burma

International agencies are pushing to gain access for a massive aid operation in Burma, where the toll from Saturday's cyclone continues to rise.

State media say 10,000 people died in one town alone, and put the number of dead at 15,000. Hundreds of thousands of people are said to be without clean water and shelter, with some areas still cut-off.

Burma's dictators say they will accept external help, in a move correspondents say reflects the scale of the disaster. The military government has traditionally been suspicious of aid agencies, limiting their activities.

Perhaps this catastrophe is a chance for the dictators the drug dealers of Burma to go for good!