Wife of jailed Nobel laureate in contact

The wife of China's imprisoned pro-democracy activist and Nobel laureate Liu Xiaobo reportedly contacted the outside world briefly via the internet, the first time in four months, an NHK Japanese Broadcasting Corp report said. Liu Xia (pictured) reportedly said she was still under strict observation and she was emotionally at the breaking point due to confinement. People close to her said Liu was suddenly heard speaking on the internet late on Thursday but it was disrupted. Later, using a chat function, Liu said every family member of her husband has been taken hostage.