Nepal celebrates second anniversary of king’s ouster
By Sudeshna Sarkar, IANS,
Kathmandu : A Hindu kingdom till two years ago and ruled by an iron-fisted king who believed he was an incarnation of god, Nepal will celebrate Wednesday the second year of overthrowing the shackles of a feudal regime with sweeping changes that includes a new government to be headed by its former hunted-down guerrillas.
Climate change threatens Arctic animals
By IANS,
Washington : Climate change, which is eroding Arctic shelves, is likely to spell disaster for polar bears and other marine mammals.
The loss of Arctic ice, which serves as a platform for resting and reproduction and provides a refuge from predators, would be particularly severe for species like the hooded seal.
The April special issue of Ecological Applications examines such potential effects and describes possible conservation measures to mitigate them.
The assessment reflects the latest thinking of experts representing multiple scientific disciplines.
Nepalese Maoist leader Hisila Yami coming to India Saturday
By IANS,
New Delhi : In the first visit to India of a senior Maoist leader from Nepal after the elections, Hisila Yami, a politburo member and wife of senior leader Babruram Bhattarai, will be in Patna Saturday to discuss bilateral ties.
Yami is a graduate of the School of Planning and Architecture, New Delhi, and was the president of the All Nepal Women's Association (Revolutionary). She is one of the most high-profile women leaders among the Maoists and was known as Parvatí during long spells that she spent underground when the party was outlawed by the Nepalese government.
British court declares freezing of terrorism assets ‘unlawful’
By DPA,
London : The High Court in London ruled Thursday that the freezing of assets held by terrorism suspects was unlawful in Britain because it "bypassed" parliament.
The court ruled in favour of five men who had challenged the powers imposed in Britain under United Nations (UN) laws.
The men have so far not been charged with terrorism offences and argued that the confiscation of their assets had a "devastating and humiliating impact" on their lives.
China, Bangladesh to step up bilateral economic ties
By DPA,
Dhaka : China and Bangladesh agreed Thursday to step up bilateral economic and trade relations based on decades of close political ties, officials said.
The agreement came after formal talks between visiting China's Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi and senior officials of the interim government, a Bangladeshi foreign ministry spokesman said.
Issues related to recent developments in Tibet and the upcoming Beijing Olympics were also discussed at the official talks between Yang and Bangladesh's Foreign Affairs Adviser Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury.
Bring normalcy before talks, Tibetans tell China
By IANS,
Dharamsala : The Tibetan government-in-exile said Saturday the situation in Tibet needs to be normalised before talks take place between envoys of China and Tibet's spiritual leader the Dalai Lama.
The prime minister of the Tibetan government-in-exile, Samdhong Rinpoche, was responding to China's wish to hold talks with the Dalai Lama or his envoys in the coming days to resolve the situation in Tibet.
"We feel it will require normalcy in the Tibetan areas for the formal resumption of talks. We are committed to take all steps, including informal meetings," said Rinpoche.
Sri Lanka bus blast kills at least 26
By RIA Novosti,
New Delhi : At least 26 people have died following a parcel bomb explosion on a commuter bus during the Friday afternoon rush hour on the outskirts of Sri Lanka's capital, Colombo, and dozens are injured.
Two of passengers died in hospital on Saturday morning from injuries sustained in the explosion, which has been blamed by the Sri Lankan government and military on the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) separatist group.
Four soldiers killed in clash in Philippines
By DPA,
Davao City (Philippines) : Four government troops were killed and three wounded in a clash with communist rebels in southern Philippines, police said Sunday.
The clash occurred Saturday afternoon in the town of Monkayo in Compostela Valley province, 945 km south of Manila.
Superintendent Ronald dela Rosa, provincial police chief, said that government soldiers and militia members were on combat patrol when they encountered a group of rebels.
"Two soldiers and two militiamen were killed in the 30-minute gunbattle," he said.
Smuggling Mexicans into USA Grows
By Prensa Latina,
Mexico : Smuggling Mexicans into the United States increased from 15 percent in 1995 to 50 percent in 2007, as revealed by the CONAPO (National Population's Council).
According to a CONAPO report, illegal people trade has been increasing proportionally in relation to harshened border control by the US side, making that illegal way of migrating unsafer each day.
Using bats to help tropical reforestation
By IANS,
London : German scientists have hit upon a novel yet cost-effective idea to revive reforestation in the tropics - by using bats as seed dispersers.
They have designed bat roosts - replicating large, hollow trunks - to boost seed dispersal of a range of tropical plants.
"So far we have found 10 bat species using the roosts, and several of these are common and important seed dispersers," said Detlev Kelm of the Institute of Zoo and Wildlife Research in Berlin.
All Chinese hostages in Indonesia set free
By Xinhua,
Jakarta : All five Chinese nationals taken hostage by a group of gunmen in Indonesia's Aceh province were released Tuesday after being held since Saturday.
The Jakarta-based Metro TV reported the five Chinese were taken to a local government office in Pining sub-district, Aceh province, on the northern tip of Sumatra island.
Their conditions were not immediately known and local officials were not available for comments.
A group of gunmen abducted seven Chinese workers and an Indonesian citizen in Gayo Lues district, Aceh province, late on Saturday.
EU nations agree to sign pre-membership pact with Serbia
By SPA,
Luxembourg : European Union nations have agreed to sign a pre-membership pact with Serbia, but are not expected to implement it immediately because of objections from the Netherlands and Belgium.
Slovene spokesman Bojan Brezigar, speaking on behalf of the EU, told reporters Tuesday that Serb President Boris Tadic would sign the accord with EU officials later in the day with the 27 foreign ministers.
The pact is supposed to bolster pro-European parties ahead of Serb elections May 11, the Associated Press reported.
Ahmadinejad slams ‘world powers’ for spreading war, terrorism
By P. Karunakharan, IANS,
Colombo : Without naming the US and other western nations, visiting Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad Tuesday charged "some powerful countries" with causing "war, fear and terrors in order to make other nations suffer".
U.S. doctors remove huge tumor from girl’s face
By RIA Novosti,
New York : U.S. surgeons in Miami have removed a massive tumor from the face of a 15-year-old Vietnamese girl in an operation that lasted for 12 hours, national media said on Wednesday.
The sixteen pound tumor, the largest ever recorded, had been growing on Lai Thi Dao's face since she was three and covered the lower part of her face, accounting for one-third of her body weight.
Doctors said the growth had threatened to prevent Dao breathing. "At this point the tumor is growing back into the throat," said Dr. Jesus Gomez before the surgery.
World’s longest sea bridge to open in east China
By NNN-Xinhua,
Jiaxing/Ningbo, China : China will inaugurate the world's longest cross-sea bridge on Thursday as part of its effort to boost economic integration and development in the Yangtze River Delta.
The opening ceremony of the 36-kilometer bridge, which spans Hangzhou Bay near Shanghai, will be held on Thursday afternoon and will open to traffic on a trial basis at midnight.
Five Colombian soldiers killed during anti-rebel operation
By IANS,
Bogota : At least five soldiers have been killed and 10 wounded in a mine explosion during an operation to nab a rebel guerrilla leader in northeast Colombia, a military statement has said.
The explosion occurred Saturday when the government troops, who were searching for a top leader of Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), stepped in a minefield prepared by the rebels in municipality of Tibu on the Venezuelan border, EFE news agency reported Sunday.
Japanese child numbers fall for 27th year to new low
By ANTARA News,
Tokyo : The number of children in Japan has fallen for the 27th straight year to hit a new low, the government said Monday in a sign of the country's rapidly ageing population.
Children aged 14 or younger numbered 17,250,000 as of April 1, down by 130,000 from a year earlier, the internal affairs ministry was quoted by AFP as saying in an annual survey released to coincide with the May 5 Children's Day national holiday.
The figure is the lowest since 1950 when comparable data started.
Putin holds last cabinet meet as president
By RIA Novosti,
Moscow : Outgoing Russian President Vladimir Putin held his last cabinet meeting as head of state Monday, as his eight-year rule entered its final week.
Putin, who has agreed to take up the premier's post May 8, pledged closer cooperation between Kremlin and the Russian government after his 'heir', 42-year-old Dmitry Medvedev, takes over as president May 7.
"I am sure that working cooperation between the Russian presidential administration and the government will be continued and expanded," Putin said.
Obama wins big in North Carolina, Clinton ahead in Indiana
By Ronald Baygents, KUNA,
Washington : Barack Obama soundly defeated Hillary Clinton on Tuesday in the North Carolina primary, while Clinton held a narrow lead in the Indiana primary as the U.S.
Democratic presidential campaign entered its final four weeks with the nomination undecided, but Obama still the favorite.
Greek Communist Supports Cuba
By Prensa Latina,
Havana : Greek solidarity with the Cuban people, despite conservative pressure, was ratified Tuesday in statements published here in "Granma" newspaper by communist leader Aleka Papariga, who is visiting this country.
The general secretary of the Greek Communist Party, third political force in her country, also stated that Cuba has had historic meaning for Greek activists.
Papariga said her compatriots "have continuous fought policies affecting the Cuban people."
Ease Travel Restriction Of Refugees, Says Myanmar Exile Leaders
By D. Arul Rajoo, Bernama,
Bangkok : With over 10,000 people feared dead and millions made homeless by the Cyclone Nargis in Myanmar, neighbouring countries like Thailand and Malaysia have been asked to provide humanitarian support by easing immigration rules to possible refugees, an exile leader said Tuesday.
Soe Aung, the spokesperson of the National Council of the Union of Burma (NCUB) based in Thailand, said he could not rule out the possibility of thousands of people seeking refuge in other countries following the tropical cyclone that struck the military-ruled country.
New Russian president nominates Putin as prime minister
By IRNA,
Moscow : Three hours after taking oath, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev nominated Vladimir Putin as prime minister.
IRNA reporter in Moscow said that the announcement was made by Kremlin spokesman.
European Parliament calls for independent enquiry into events in Tibet
By EuAsiaNews,
Brussels : The President of the European Parliament (EP) , Hans-Gert Poettering, met here Thursday with Mrs Kesang Yangki Takla, Minister of Information and International Relations of the Tibetan government in exile.
Hillary Clinton congratulates Israel on 60th birthday
By DPA,
Washington : Senator Hillary Clinton, who is battling to keep her head above water in the waning days of the Democratic battle for the presidential nomination, has sent her "heartfelt congratulations to the people of Israel" on the occasion of the country's 60th anniversary.
But she warned that the "Jewish state is still not safe".
"In every generation, Israel faces serious challenges to its security and threats to its existence," Clinton said in a statement Thursday.
Rush on Everest as Nepal lifts ban
By Sudeshna Sarkar, IANS,
Kathmandu : More than 40 teams of mountaineers kicking their heels on the lower slopes of the Himalayas in Nepal heaved a sigh of relief Friday as the way to Mt Everest was opened following China's successful attempt to take the Olympic torch to the top.
"We anticipate improved weather conditions from May 16," said Ang Tshering Sherpa, chief of Nepal Mountaineering Association, the body entrusted with promoting mountaineering in Nepal.
"Statistics show that traditionally, the period May 21-27 is the best time to attempt Mt Everest and succeed."
US calls twin expulsion from Russia ‘tit for tat’
By DPA,
Washington/Moscow : The US has dismissed Russia's expulsion of two US military officials as a "tit for tat" move by Moscow after Washington kicked out at least two Russian diplomats in recent months.
US officials said that on two separate occasions - in November 2007 and last month - Russian diplomats were asked to leave the US. At least one of the Russians was expelled for spying, US Secretary of Defence Robert Gates told reporters.
American Institute of Indian Studies gets Taraknath award
By IANS,
New York : The Taraknath Das Foundation has given its annual award for contribution to Indo-US understanding to the Chicago-based American Institute of Indian Studies (AIIS), which works to advance knowledge about India in the US.
Foundation director Leonard A. Gordon presented the award plaque to AIIS president Ralph Nicholas in the presence of a dozen past recipients of the award here Friday.
US military plane flies aid to Myanmar
By DPA,
Bangkok : A US military aircraft left Thailand's U-Tapao Airbase Monday to deliver emergency aid to neighbouring Myanmar in the wake of a cyclone that has left an estimated 100,000 people dead.
The C-130 cargo plane departed the base 120 km south-east of Bangkok loaded with 12,670 kg of water, mosquito nets and bedding.
Serb democrats ahead in polls, fail to get outright majority
By RIA Novosti,
Moscow : Serbia's pro-Western Democrat Party is leading in the country's general elections with 36.7% of the vote, but has failed to get the outright majority it needed, the election commission said on Monday.
With around 34% of ballots counted the democratic alliance will have around 103 seats in the 250-seat parliament, with Tomislav Nikolic's Radical Party expected to get 77 seats garnering 28.6% of the vote.
Tadic proclaimed victory Sunday saying it was a vote "for a European Serbia."
U.S. planeload aid supplies arrive in Yangon for cyclone victims
By Xinhua,
Yangon : A large United States military aircraft with aid supplies landed at the Yangon International Airport Monday afternoon for delivery to cyclone-hit regions through the Myanmar authorities.
It was the first planeload of humanitarian aid supplies by the U.S. which are allowed to enter Yangon for delivery to homeless cyclone survivors nine days after Myanmar's southwestern part and Yangon were devastated by a deadly cyclone storm Nargis on May 2 and 3.
Red cross shipment sinks on Way to myanmar disaster zone
By ANTARA News,
Geneva : The International Federation of the Red Cross (IFRC) said its first aid shipment to cyclone-hit Myanmar sank Sunday after hitting a submerged tree while travelling by river.
The crew and four Myanmar Red Cross workers managed to reach safety but relief supplies intended to help around 1,000 people were lost, Geneva-based IFRC said in a statement.
Efforts were under way to salvage some of the supplies.
Merkel, Medvedev to meet in Germany, Japan within two months
By RIA Novosti,
Yekaterinburg : The leaders of Russia and Germany will hold meetings in Germany and Japan during the next two months, Russia's foreign minister said Wednesday.
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and German Chancellor Angela Merkel will meet during the July 7-9 G8 summit on the Japanese island of Hokkaido.
"Russian-German contacts are expected at the highest level in Germany and at the G8 summit in Japan in the next two months," Sergei Lavrov told journalists. "Mister Steinmeier [Germany's foreign minister] will discuss in Moscow today preparations for these talks."
All ASEAN Foreign Ministers To Attend Meeting On Myanmar
By Zakaria Abdul Wahab, Bernama,
Singapore : All ASEAN foreign ministers have confirmed their participation in the Special ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Meeting to help cyclone-hit Myanmar here this Monday.
Singapore' Ministry of Foreign Affairs said today the ministers would discuss the humanitarian situation in Myanmar and consider how best to assist the country in its relief and recovery efforts.
Meteorologists downgrade cyclone warning off Myanmar
By DPA,
Bangkok : Warnings of a second cyclone heading for Myanmar, which is reeling from the impact of Cyclone Nargis, have been cancelled, meteorologists said Thursday.
"The potential for the development of a significant tropical cyclone within the next 24 hours is downgraded to poor," the US Joint Typhoon Warning Centre in Hawaii said in a forecast issued late Wednesday, saying the centre of the storm had weakened.
Australia Closes Consulate to Fiji
By Prensa Latina,
Canberra : The Australian Consulate to Fiji stopped processing visa applications, after a second death threat on Thursday against High Commissioner James Batley.
According to an ABC Radio Australia report, the intimidatory message arrived in a letter.
After that incident, the processing offices of the diplomatic office closed without reporting when the restrictions would be lifted.
The country-continent mission to Suva said it was interested in holding a meeting with the Fijian Foreign Ministry, because the situation is becoming worrying.
World doesn’t end, Russian doomsday sect members to head home
By RIA Novosti,
Moscow : The members of a doomsday sect who quit on Friday the dugout in central Russia where they had been waiting for the end of the world for around six months are to pack their bags and leave for home with the planet still intact.
"Documents are being prepared by immigration officials to allow those [three] sect members who are from Belarus to return to their homeland," said Alexander Provotorov, the head of the Bekov District in the Penza Region.
Bhutanese unsure of democracy’s outcome, but feel change is good
By Murali Krishnan, IANS,
Thimpu : Having relished their country's isolation for years, not many Bhutanese are sure if the historic poll held in March, which transformed their quaint Himalayan nation from a kingdom to a democracy, is going to make a qualitative change in their lives.
The century-old rule by the hugely popular Wangchuk dynasty ended as the world's newest democracy, nestled spectacularly in the Himalayas between giant neighbours India and China, elected 47 members to the national assembly.
Robot performs world’s first surgery to remove brain tumour
By IANS,
Toronto : Canadian doctors have created history by performing the world's first robotic surgery to remove brain tumour.
In the landmark surgery, neurosurgeons at Calgary's Foothills Medical Centre guided a newly developed robotic system - called NeuroArm - to remove an egg-shaped tumour from the brain of a woman.
Twenty-one-year-old Paige Nickason was discharged from the hospial two days after the nine-hour-long surgery performed Monday.
``I was happy to help by being a part of this historical surgery,'' she said in a statement at the weekend.
Nepali PM for coalition gov’t
By Xinhua,
Kathmandu : Nepali Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala Saturday called for the political parties to work united and to form a coalition government, local newspaper The Rising Nepal reported on Sunday.
Inaugurating Srimati Ganga Devi Chaudhari Cathlabs at Norvic International Hospital in Nepali capital Kathmandu, Prime Minister Koirala said the Constituent Assembly (CA) election results had given a message to the parties that they should work united.
Mud flow buries 200 relief workers in China’s Quake Zone
By SPA,
Beichuan, China : A state news agency said Monday that more than 200 relief workers have been buried by mudslides over the last three days in Sichuan province.
Xinhua News Agency said the workers were buried while repairing damaged roads. It did not give a figure for casualties.
An official of the Sichuan provincial Communications Department confirmed that there had been mudslides causing some deaths but gave no details.
Myanmar agrees to ASEAN-led cyclone aid effort, says Singapore FM
By ANTARA News,
Singapore : Myanmar agreed Monday to let Southeast Asian neighbours send medical teams and coordinate international aid for its cyclone victims, estimating damage from the disaster at over $10 billion.
"The foreign ministers have agreed to establish an ASEAN-led coordinating
mechanism," George Yeo was quoted by Thomson Financial as saying after an emergency meeting with his Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) counterparts, including Myanmar's Nyan Win.
Suspected Basque separatist group head captured in France
By DPA,
Madrid : French police have detained Francisco Javier Lopez Pena, alias Thierry, believed to be the leader of the militant Basque separatist group ETA, Spanish police said overnight.
Lopez Pena and three other suspected ETA members were arrested near Bordeaux, France.
Lopez Pena went underground in 1983. He is believed to have ordered ETA to end its 14-month ceasefire in June 2007, and to be responsible for numerous attacks.
Obama wins Oregon, Hillary Clinton takes Kentucky
By SPA,
Louisville, Kentucky : Barack Obama advanced to the brink of victory in the Democratic presidential race, defeating Hillary Rodham Clinton in the Oregon primary and moving within 70 delegates of the total he needs to claim their hard-fought nomination contest.
Clinton countered with a lopsided win earlier Tuesday in Kentucky.
Obama, who is seeking to become the first black U.S. President, said the night's contests gave him a majority of the delegates elected in all 56 primaries and caucuses combined.
Kenya must stop forcing refugees to go home: rights body
By DPA
Nairobi : The Kenyan government should stop forcing those displaced by violence following last December's disputed election to return home against their will, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said Friday.
"Internally displaced people have the right to return voluntarily, when they feel safe, not when it suits the government," said Georgette Gagnon, Africa director at HRW.
Some 350,000 people fled their homes after the elections, when violent clashes followed opposition leader Raila Odinga's claims that President Mwai Kibaki's Party of National Unity stole the elections from him.
Opposition leader Tsvangirai returns to Zimbabwe
By SPA,
Harare, Zimbabwe : Opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai has returned to Zimbabwe, the Associated Press reported.
Reporters watched Tsvangirai leave the Harare airport Saturday after returning on a flight from South Africa, then speed off in a three-car convoy.
Police at the airport watched, making no attempt to intervene.
Xenophobia could return South Africa to violent past: Mbeki
By DPA,
Johannesburg : South African President Thabo Mbeki has condemned two weeks of xenophobic violence that has claimed over 50 lives, mostly in the Johannesburg area, as an "absolute disgrace" that could plunge the country back into a "past of violent conflict".
"The events of the past two weeks are an absolute disgrace," Mbeki said in his first address to the nation on the crisis, which was carried on national radio and television Sunday.
Russian provincial minister being prosecuted
By RIA Novosti,
Syktyvkar (Russia) : Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) has launched a criminal case against a deputy interior minister in Komi Republic in the northwest accusing him of divulging state secrets.
"We are investigating a case which involves officials from the interior ministry in Komi, including Vasily Lytoyev," investigation department spokesman Nikolai Basmanov said Monday.
Sri Lanka military says blast on train kills 4
By SPA,
Colombo, Sri Lanka : Four people are dead after a bomb exploded on a passenger train near the Sri Lankan capital of Colombo, the Associated Press reported.
A Defense Ministry official says the blast occurred on a packed passenger train during rush hour near a railroad station outside of Colombo.
The blast killed four people and wounded more than a dozen others.
UN says Russian aircraft responsible for shooting down of Georgian drone
By KUNA,
Moscow : A Russian fighter aircraft is responsible for the shooting down of a Georgian spy drone on April 20, the UN monitoring mission in Georgia said on Monday.
Russian Interfax News Agency quoted the UN sources as saying a commission assigned with the probe found out that a Russia Mig-29 or Suhkoi air force plane shot down the Georgian drone in Abkhaz airspace.
Abkhaz authorities declared that seven Goergian spy aircrafts have been downed since March.
Abkhaz Foreign Minister Sergi Shamba cast doubts on the UN report as "non-objective".
8 missing after small ship sunk in Indonesia
By Xinhua,
Jakarta : Eight people on board have gone missing after a small fishing ship sunk in the waters off Brebes town of Central Java province in Indonesia since Monday, rescue team said on Tuesday.
A rescuer from the town Ade Daniraharjo said that searching for those missing was underway on Tuesday.
"Eight people went missing on Monday, we keep searching them," he told Xinhua in a telephone interview.
The rescuer said that the cause of the accident was the ages of the wooden ship, in which the woods have been decomposed.
Myanmar authorities arrest 18 democracy supporters
By DPA,
Yangon : In a move likely to spark new criticisms of the ruling junta, Myanmar security personnel Tuesday arrested 18 supporters of opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi who were protesting her five years of detention, opposition sources confirmed.
The 18 members of the opposition National League for Democracy (NLD), headed by Suu Kyi, were arrested by plainclothes as they marched from their headquarters to Suu Kyi's Yangon home.
They were taken in two trucks vehicles to an unknown destination.
Envoy: U.N. body ready to help Nepal in ongoing peace process
By Xinhua,
Kathmandu : The chief of the United Nations Mission in Nepal (UNMIN) Tuesday said the U.N. body has a further role to play in Nepal as more challenges lie ahead in the ongoing peace process.
Ian Martin said that the U.N. is ready to assist Nepal in challenges such as army integration, return of seized properties and publicizing the situation of the disappeared.
The U.N. envoy said here that challenges like the formation of a consensus government and drafting a new inclusive constitution still exist.
China Expert: Aftershocks May Continue
By Prensa Latina,
Beijing : The seismic aftershocks following May 12 earthquake that devastated the Chinese province of Sichuan are likely to continue for two or three months, said an expert on seismology of the Asian nation Tuesday.
Former deputy director of China Seismological Bureau (CSB) and a seismologist He Yongnian said that an 8.0 magnitude earthquake on the Richter scale will for sure cause many aftershocks to extend for a long time.
British nuclear-powered submarine hits underwater rocks
By DPA,
London : A British nuclear-powered submarine, HMS Superb, hit an underwater rock in the northern Red Sea, ministry of defence said Wednesday.
No crew members were hurt in the incident and the submarine remains watertight, according to a ministry spokesman.
The submarine's sonar equipment was damaged in the incident, which occurred Monday, forcing it to surface.
However, the submarine's nuclear reactor was "completely unaffected," according to the spokesman.
A full investigation was under way to determine the cause of the collision.
Britain to sign treaty to ban cluster bombs: Report
By DPA,
London : The British government is preparing to agree to scrap Britain's entire arsenal of cluster bombs, reports said Wednesday.
Officials were paving the way for the "unexpected and radical step" at a conference in Dublin aimed at an international treaty agreeing a worldwide ban on the bombs, the Guardian newspaper reported.
Cluster bombs are munitions that drop hundreds of tennis-ball sized smaller explosives known as "bomblets," which scatter and detonate across the battlefield.
Merkel urges ‘trailblazing decisions’ at biodiversity conference
By DPA,
Bonn (Germany) : German Chancellor Angela Merkel Wednesday urged a key UN conference on preserving biodiversity to take "trailblazing decisions" to halt global species loss.
"I am convinced that we need a complete change of course in the preservation of species," Merkel told representatives of around 190 countries that have signed the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD).
Merkel pledged that Germany would put up 500 million euros ($785 million) by 2012, the target set to significantly curb species loss.
Money from Tiananmen Square memorial to go to China quake victims
By DPA,
Hong Kong : All money from the annual candlelight vigil in Hong Kong next week marking the 1989 Tiananmen Square massace will go to China's earthquake victims, organisers said Wednesday.
Tens of thousands of people gather in Hong Kong's Victoria Park every June 4 to remember the students killed by Chinese soldiers in the 1989 pro-democracy movement in Beijing.
The event raises around 700,000 Hong Kong dollars ($89,688) and organiser Cheung Man-kwong said this year all money would go to the survivors of the Sichuan earthquake.
First Spelling Bee announced for South Asian children in US
By IANS,
New York : Inspired by the fact that South Asian children routinely win laurels at the national spelling contests in the US, the first-ever annual Spelling Bee exclusively for them has now been announced.
Conceived and organised by Touchdown Media, a major South Asian American advertising agency, the 2008 State Farm South Asian Spelling Bee will start in end June with contests in eight regional centres across the country, culminating in the final on Aug 16 in New Jersey.
China aftershocks set for weeks, months even years
By SPA,
Sydney : China's devastated Sichuan region can expect to be rocked by aftershocks for weeks and months, possibly years, but the power of the aftershocks, one destroyed some 420,000 houses, will gradually diminish, say seismologists, according to Reuters.
Since the May 12, 7.9 quake which killed more than 68,000 people, a series of strong aftershocks have occured along the quake's 250 kms (155 mile) fault line, running southwest to northeast outside of Chengdu.
Australian PM warns public service after cabinet leak
By Xinhua,
Canberra : Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd put public servants on notice on Thursday after an embarrassing leak which showed cabinet ignored the advice of four departments about its FuelWatch scheme.
Rudd's department has launched an investigation into who leaked the document, which is a criminal offense.
Rudd pointed the finger at the public service, saying he was confident none of his ministers was the source of the leak.
4 police wounded in car explosion in breakaway Georgian region
By SPA,
Tbilisi, Georgia : An official says four police officers have been wounded by an explosion in the breakaway Georgian region of South Ossetia, AP reported.
Spokeswoman Irina Gagloyeva of the region's unrecognized government says the Thursday morning blast hit a car that one of the wounded officers had received from a Georgian person.
She alleges the blast was a terrorist attack staged by Georgian security agents.
Also Thursday, a grenade hit a car carrying law enforcement officers in another part of South Ossetia, critically wounding one.
Pope Condemns Exploit of 3rd World
By Prensa Latina,
Vatican City : Pope Benedict XVI condemned on Thursday wealthy countries' exploitation of natural resources in Third World nations.
After welcoming in a joint audience for the new ambassadors to the Vatican of Tanzania, Uganda, Liberia, Chad, Bangladesh, Belarus, Guinea, Sri Lanka, and Nigeria, the Pontiff demanded international equity.
He highlighted that better off countries cannot indiscriminately appropriate what comes from the natural resources of developing countries.
China Quake Survivors Rescued As Rain Threatens Millions
By AFP,
Xiangquan, China : The rescue of 40 half-starved people from a remote village 16 days after China's earthquake provided a rare piece of good news on Thursday as rain threatened more misery for millions of survivors.
A military helicopter plucked the villagers from their quake-shattered mountain homes on Wednesday after some of them had survived on little more than rice and wild herbs, state press reported.
Russia opposes NATO expansion in principle
By RIA Novosti,
Moscow : Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin says his country is in principle against NATO expansion toward its borders.
Putin made the statement in an interview with the French newspaper Le Monde Saturday.
"We are against NATO's enlargement on the whole, in principle," Putin said, commenting on Ukraine and Georgia's drive to join the alliance.
Death toll reaches 52 in heavy snowstorm in Mongolia
By Xinhua,
Ulan Bator : The death toll from a heavy snowstorm that swept across seven provinces in Mongolia since last Monday rose to 52, authorities said Monday.
Fourteen children were among the dead and more than 130 yurts were blown down, said the Mongolian General Authority for Emergency Management (GAEM).
It added that more than 200,000 livestock were frozen to death and another 200,000 went astray in the snowstorm. The snowstorm has also caused damage to power supply and communication systems in the affected areas.
Extradition hearing of Dr Patel delayed in US
By IANS,
New York : The hearing of Dr Jayant Patel's extradition to Australia, where he faces manslaughter charges, has been delayed by three weeks in a US court.
The district court judge ordered the hearing to now take place on July 16 in Portland, Oregon, instead of the original date set for June 26. Dr Patel's lawyer had requested postponement last week on the plea that Queensland police had failed to produce requested documents, nor given a valid reason for the same.
Immigration changes okayed as Canada government survives trust votes
By IANS,
Toronto : The Conservative party-led Canadian government survived a series of trust votes Monday, ending speculation about a snap poll.
At issue were controversial immigration changes that were embedded in a larger budget implementation bill.
Since these changes, if introduced as an independent bill, would have been defeated by the combined opposition, the ruling Conservative party cleverly made them part of the budget-implementation bill whose defeat could have triggered an election.
Chile earmarks $1 bn to control fuel prices
By IANS,
Santiago : Chile has earmarked $1 billion to the country's oil stabilization fund to hold the price line of fuel, EFE news agency reported Tuesday.
Chilean President Michelle Bachelet announced the move during a press meet at La Moneda Palace Monday.
"The measure will allow the prices of gasoline, diesel and kerosene, which currently cost around $5 a gallon, to fall by about 42 cents a gallon," the president said.
"I have decided to take a significant step to protect our country from the fluctuation of fuel prices," Bachelet said.
New Zealand to make 9.5 million NZ dollar food aid contribution
By Xinhua,
Wellington : New Zealand will contribute 9.5 million NZ dollars (7.4 million U.S. dollars) to the international response to the global food crisis, Foreign Minister Winston Peters announced on Wednesday.
The money will be the largest humanitarian contribution since the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, and will be delivered through the government's aid agency NZAID.
"The impact of rising food prices on the world's poorest people cannot be underestimated, and it is important New Zealand does what it can to assist," Peters said in a media statement.
Novel technique to lift fingerprints years after erasure
By IANS,
London : A promising new technique developed by researchers will help 'lift' fingerprints even after all traces have been erased from the suspected surface.
Consequently, decades-old cases could be reopened because the underlying print never disappears.
The technique also works in cases where prints may be left on other metals, the scientists said.
The breakthrough, announced by forensic scientists of Leicester University, can lead to hundreds of cold cases being reopened.
Accurate quake forecast still not possible: Experts
By Xinhua,
Beijing : The earthquake on May 12 in China's southwest took less than two minutes to kill some 70,000 people and injure many more, mostly in Sichuan province.
Shock turned to grief and then to anger as people began to look for someone to blame.
The target of the anger is China Earthquake Administration (CEA). The chief mission of the CEA's Institute of Earthquake Science is to make short and medium term earthquake predictions.
New Zealand indigenous party welcomes Obama’s victory
By DPA,
Wellington : New Zealand's indigenous Maori Party Thursday welcomed Barack Obama winning the Democratic nomination for the US presidency as an inspiration to coloured people around the world.
"One small step for America, one giant leap for people of colour the world over," said member of parliament Hone Harawira. "It's hard to believe, but it's looking likely that a black man will be the next US president.
Only 75 guards for Nepal’s former royal family
By Sudeshna Sarkar, IANS,
Kathmandu : Stripped of his crown and asked to move out of the Narayanhity palace here by next week, Nepal's former king Gyanendra and his family will now have their retinue of palace guards slashed as well.
Nepal's Central Security Council Thursday decided that once the deposed king moves into the summer retreat of his ancestors, the Nagarjuna palace on the outskirts of Kathmandu valley, he would be given 75 guards for protection.
The main members of the family are Gyanendra, former queen Komal and former queen mother Ratna.
Russian police busts 11 hate groups
By RIA Novosti,
Moscow : Russian police has busted 11 groups accused of racial attacks in the capital and St. Petersburg this year, a senior Interior Ministry official said Thursday.
"Eleven criminal youth groups comprising a total of 53 people have been uncovered in Moscow and St. Petersburg and their environs in 2008," General Gennady Ivanov told a news briefing, adding that the majority of the groups' members had been detained.
There were at least 40 incidents of hate attack by these groups on people with "non-Slavic" features, Ivanov said.
EU foreign policy chief meets with Abkhazian leader
By RIA Novosti,
Sukhumi : EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana arrived on Friday in Sukhumi, the capital of the breakaway Georgian republic of Abkhazia, for discussions with the Abkhazian president on the resumption of peace talks with Tbilisi.
Peace talks between Abkhazia and Georgia broke off in July 2006 when Tbilisi sent troops into Abkhazia's Kodori Gorge and established an alternative Abkhaz administration there.
Zimbabwe”s decision to halt NGO activities unconscionable act – UN official
By KUNA,
Geneva : High Commissioner for Human Rights Louise Arbour said Friday that the Zimbabwe government's decision to halt food distribution by some international aid agencies until after the presidential elections was an unconscionable act.
"To deprive people of food because of an election would be an extraordinary perversion of democracy, and a serious breach of international human rights law," said Arbour.
All UN agencies concerned expressed the same worry of Arbour.
Chinese TV covers Hong Kong Tiananmen vigil for first time
By DPA,
Hong Kong : A candlelight vigil held yearly in Hong Kong to mark the anniversary of the 1989 crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrators in Beijing's Tiananmen Square was covered for the first time by Chinese mainland television, albeit indirectly, a news report said Monday.
A report plus six photographs appeared on the website of the government-controlled China Central Television (CCTV) after Wednesday's vigil for the 19th anniversary, the South China Morning Post.
Aftershocks hit China’s ‘quake lakes,’ flood alert increases
By RIA Novosti,
Beijing : Strong aftershocks were recorded around massive 'quake lakes' in the Sichuan province hit by a devastating magnitude-8.0 quake May 12 raising fears of large-scale flooding, Xinhua news agency said Monday.
Quake-triggered landslides and heavy rain have caused around 35 'quake lakes' to form and over 250,000 people have already been moved to higher ground amid fears the lakes were about to burst.
NZ cities rank highly in quality of life
By Xinhua,
Wellington : The New Zealand major cities of Auckland and Wellington were ranked high in a worldwide survey on the quality of life on offer in cities, Radio New Zealand reported on Wednesday.
The New Zealand largest city of Auckland is 5th on the list of 215 cities and the capital of Wellington is 12th.
Zurich of Switzerland tops the list, which was created by the international company Mercer. It ranked cities on political and social environment, public services and transport.
Sri Lanka launches air raid after LTTE attack
By P. Karunakharan, IANS,
Colombo : Sri Lankan jets Wednesday pounded a suspected Tamil Tiger base in the island's north, barely hours after the rebels launched a sea-borne attack on a naval detachment in the north-western island of Mannar leaving killing nine combatants.
The defence ministry said that the air sorties were launched around 7.10 a.m. after observing "intensified activities" by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in the Muhamalai forward defence line (FDL) in Jaffna peninsula.
But the damage caused to the rebels was not immediately known.
Myanmar finally gets 10 helicopters for cyclone relief: WFP
By DPA,
Bangkok : Ten UN helicopters needed to deliver food and other emergency supplies to remote areas in Myanmar's cyclone-devastated Irrawaddy delta were finally delivered Wednesday, a World Food Programme (WFP) official confirmed.
"As of today there are 10 WFP helicopters in Myanmar," said WFP spokesman Paul Risley. "These 10 helicopters will greatly add to our ability to directly target specific villages and communities that we know have not yet received aid up till now."
Official toll in Sudanese air crash hits 30
By DPA,
Khartoum/Nairobi : Thirty people have been confirmed dead and 61 are missing after a plane carrying 203 passengers and 11 crew burst into flames upon landing in Khartoum Tuesday night, latest official figures said Wednesday.
Some 123 people have been confirmed as having survived. However, Sudan's Civil Aviation Authority said it believed many other survivors had gone home straight after the crash and that it was attempting to contact these people.
Earthquake hits Timor Leste
By Xinhua,
Jakarta : An earthquake with magnitude of 5.2 rocked Timor Leste on Thursday, with no report of damage or casualty, Indonesian meteorology agency said here.
The quake struck at 09:09 Jakarta time (0909 GMT) with epicenter at 291 kilometers northeast Dili, the capital of Timor Leste and at 100 kilometers in depth, an official of the agency said.
Timor Leste sits on a vulnerable quake hit zone so call "the Pacific Ring of Fire" where two continental plates meet that cause frequent volcanic movements.
ROK rival parties fail to reach compromise on beef import
By Xinhua,
Seoul : South Korea's rival parties failed to reach compromise over the controversial U.S. beef imports deal Thursday, indicating further paralysis of the new parliament, according to Yonhap news agency.
Thursday's meeting between the liberal opposition United Democratic Party (UDP) and the ruling Grand National Party ended without progress, as the UDP held firm to its continuing boycott of the parliamentary session.
Bush in Paris to meet Sarkozy, address OECD
By KUNA,
Paris : US President George W. Bush is expected late Friday morning in the French capital for a two-day visit to hold talks with President Nicolas Sarkozy on a variety of international issues, including Iran and the situation in the Middle East, diplomatic sources indicated.
On Friday, upon arrival from Rome, Bush is to address the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), which groups over 30 of the worlds most industrialized countries and major energy consumers.
Colombians arrested over plans to kill Ecuadorian President Correa
By DPA,
Quito/Bogota : Ecuadorian police arrested three Colombians and one Ecuadorian citizen in connection with alleged plans to kill Ecuador's leftist President Rafael Correa, Ecuadorian Attorney General Washington Pesantez said Friday.
Initial reports said the Colombians had links to extreme-right paramilitary groups in their own country. However, Colombian authorities said they are drug traffickers with ties to the leftist Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC).
Japan earthquake leaves 3 dead, 10 missing
By Xinhua,
Tokyo : A strong earthquake with a magnitude of 7.2 jolted wide areas in northeastern Japan Saturday morning, killing three people and leaving 10 missing.
More than 100 people were injured in the 8:43 a.m. quake, whose epicenter was about 8 km underground in southern Iwate Prefecture.
Japan Meteorological Agency in the afternoon revised the magnitude of the earthquake up to 7.2 from the original 7.0.
Germany’s first driverless mass-transit train in service
By DPA,
Nuremberg (Germany) : Germany's first driverless mass-transit train line has officially begun service in the southern city of Nuremberg, with a computer in charge of the underground trains.
Driverless trains are already in use in other nations, including Singapore's North East Metro Line (NEL) operating since 2003, but Nuremberg's 600-million-euro ($900-million) system is unique because it mixes human-driven and computer-controlled trains on the same track.
Britain to step up troop levels in Afghanistan: Brown
By DPA,
London : Britain is to send more troops to Afghanistan, increasing its presence in the country to its highest level so far, Prime Minister Gordon Brown said Monday.
Speaking at a joint news conference in London with US President George W. Bush, Brown said security was on its way to being "transformed" in Afghanistan.
He said Britain and the US were working "side by side" both in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Protesters release police hostages in Peru
By IANS,
Lima : Some 50 police officers being held hostage inside a Catholic church in the southern Peruvian city of Moquegua by protesting residents have been released, EFE news reported Wednesday.
The residents, who have been protesting for the last eight days demanding a bigger share of mining revenue, released the police personnel late Tuesday following an appeal by a group of mayors from Moquegua province.
The policemen led by General Alberto Jordan were transferred to the Moquegua airport soon after their release.
Dissidents want EU to keep up pressure on Cuba
By IANS,
Havana : Cuban dissidents have called on the European Union (EU) not to definitively end its diplomatic measures imposed on the island's communist government in 2003, EFE news agency reported Wednesday.
"I'm glued to the radio to see what happens, and intrigued," said Oscar Espinosa Chepe, one of the 75 government opponents whose jailing in Spring 2003 prompted the EU to impose sanctions on the communist country.
Russian rocket blasts off with US satellites
By RIA Novosti,
Moscow : Russia has successfully launched a Cosmos 3M rocket with six US satellites onboard from a space centre in southern Russia, a spokesman for the Russian Strategic Missile Forces said Thursday.
Col. Alexander Vovk said the rocket with Orbcomm satellites blasted off at 10.36 a.m. (0636 GMT) from Kapustin Yar, in the Astrakhan region.
Orbcomm is the world's first commercial global wireless data and messaging system.
The system uses low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellites to provide cost-effective tracking, monitoring and messaging capabilities across the globe.
Zimbabwe opposition leader charged with treason
By DPA,
Johannesburg/Harare : Tendai Biti, an outspoken leader of Zimbabwe's opposition, has been officially charged with treason in a Harare court.
Arrested June 12 at Harare International Airport on arrival from South Africa, Biti was also charged with disseminating false information, slandering the country's president and undermining morale within the armed forces. He was charged after a week in detention.
If found guilty, he faces the death penalty.
UK Seeks India’s Say In Tackling Global Commodity Crisis
By Bernama,
London : The United Kingdom has called for India to be given greater say on the global stage, including at forums like World Bank, I.M.F. and G8, to help tame inflation in the worldwide commodity prices.
"Open and constructive dialogue is essential if the causes of high and volatile prices and their impact are to be tackled," the U.K. Treasury Ministry was quoted by the Press Trust of India (PTI) as saying in a note analysing the trends and drivers in commodity markets that have led to recent increase in commodity prices.
Bodies trapped inside sunken Philippine ferry
By DPA,
Manila : Bodies were found floating inside a capsized ferry in the Philippines Tuesday as rescuers dove into turbulent seas in a desperate search for hundreds of missing in one of the country's worst maritime accidents.
"Most of the bodies were floating inside," Navy spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Edgard Arevalo said. "They were trapped when the ship suddenly tilted and capsized."
The MV Princess of the Stars was carrying 864 passengers and crew members when it sank Saturday off Sibuyan Island, 300 km south of Manila, at the height of a typhoon.
S Korea to set up 5 new embassies for “energy diplomacy”
By Xinhua,
Seoul : South Korea is mulling to open new embassies in five nations rich in natural resources, as part of the efforts to bolster its "energy diplomacy."
South Korean President Lee Myung-bak on Tuesday presided over a cabinet meeting, which approved the Foreign Ministry's plan to setup embassies in Bolivia, Cameroon, Congo, Kyrgyzstan, and Trinidad &Tobago later this year.
South Korea also plans to establish a consulate general in Irkutsk in Russia.
Army Chief: No Misuse Of Helipad At Indonesia-Malaysia Border
By Mohd Nasir Yusoff, Bernama,
Bogor : Indonesia's Army Chief of Staff Gen Agustadi Sasongko Purnomo reaffirmed that there was no misuse of a helipad built close to the Indonesian-Malaysian border area.
"We have monitored the situation and there was no misuse of the helipad," he said after leading a ceremony marking the 62nd anniversary of the Military Police for the Army in Jonggol, Bogor, West Java.
He said the helipad on the border of the two countries could be used by the army of the two countries to control and determine the coordinates of the border.
Seven killed in Guatemala shootout
By IANS,
Guatemala City : At least seven people, including five members of a family, have been shot dead by unidentified gunmen in Guatemala's southern province of Escuintla, Spain's EFE news agency reported.
The shootout took place Monday night in El Llanito village, near the port of San Jose. The victims were travelling in a truck at the time of the incident, the police said Tuesday.
World Peace Forum opens in Indonesia focusing on eliminating violence
By Xinhua,
Jakarta : About 200 leaders in religion, politics and business all over the world including Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono attended the 2nd World Peace Forum opening ceremony here on Tuesday night, to discuss how to achieve global peace.
Nepali PM to offer resignation: spokesperson
By Xinhua,
Kathmandu : Nepali Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala will submit his resignation at the Constituent Assembly (CA) meeting Wednesday with condition that it would be approved only after the appointment of the president.
Nepali Congress spokesperson Arjun Narsingh K.C. told Wednesday's The Rising Nepal daily that "the prime minister will hand over his resignation to the chairman of the CA on Wednesday. But the resignation will be approved only after the appointment of the president."
Ferry Company Should Be Responsible For Capsize, Says Arroyo
By Bernama,
Manila : Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo on Wednesday said the owner of MV Princess of the Stars are accountable for the capsize, which saw 70 people dead and 744 more are still missing.
"We are holding Sulpicio Lines Inc.accountable on how the tragedy occurred, so that the incident would not happen again," Xinhua news agency quoted Arroyo as saying in the online news network INQUIRER.NET, as saying.
Britain scraps bonds for family visitors, Indians to benefit
By IANS,
London/New Delhi : The British government Wednesday scrapped a controversial proposal to introduce financial bonds for people visiting their relatives in Britain, following a strong campaign by the ethnic Indian community in Britain.
The proposal, which was criticised as unnecessary and too harsh, would have hit South Asians hardest as they are the largest ethnic group in Britain with near and extended families still in their countries of origin.
Zimbabwe president says he is ‘open’ to talks
By DPA,
Harare : Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe has said he is "open" to negotiations, but only after Friday's presidential run-off election, according to state media in Zimbabwe.
The state-controlled daily Herald Wednesday quoted Mugabe as saying that he was "open to negotiations with anyone, but the logical process has to be followed to its logical conclusion."
‘Dr Death’ to return to Australia to face charges, patients relieved
By Neena Bhandari, IANS,
Sydney : Justice seems closer home Thursday for the families and loved ones of former patients of India-born American citizen, Dr Jayant Patel, as he decided to forego his fight against extradition from the United States and return to Australia to face charges.
Australian authorities have been hoping to bring Patel to Queensland to face charges for 16 offences, including manslaughter, grievous bodily harm and fraud, relating to his employment as director of surgery at regional Bundaberg Base Hospital between 2003 and 2005.
Russia, EU to discuss human rights, regional conflicts
By RIA Novosti,
Khanty-Mansiisk (Russia) : Russia and the European Union (EU) Friday outlined areas of cooperation, including human rights, energy, and regional conflicts, at a summit in this west Siberian town.
The participants in the two-day summit - Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, Prime Minister Janez Jansa of Slovenia, who currently holds the EU presidency, European Commission president Jose Manuel Barroso and EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana - agreed to start talks on a long-overdue comprehensive cooperation agreement July 4 in Brussels.
US ship carrying aid arrives in North Korea
By SPA,
Seoul, South Korea : A U.S. ship carrying thousands of tons of food aid arrived in North Korea after the impoverished nation agreed to open up to widely expanded
international assistance, the U.N. food agency said Monday.
The U.S. aid was not directly related to the ongoing nuclear talks between Washington and Pyongyang, according to a report of the Associated Press.
World Bank gives go ahead to new climate funds
By DPA,
Washington : The World Bank Tuesday approved the creation of multi-billion-dollar global funds to help poor countries tackle global warming and boost investment in renewable technologies.
The Clean Technology Fund is expected to receive at least $5 billion in pledges and will provide a combination of loans and grants to projects that reduce greenhouse-gas emissions blamed for global warming.
A separate and smaller Climate Investment Fund will conduct pilot projects to help developing countries deal with the likely impacts of climate change around the world.
Surge in oil delivers another blow to US stocks
By DPA,
New York : Wall Street stock indices suffered major losses as oil futures hit a new record during Wednesday trading.
Oil contracts for delivery next month peaked at $143.91 per barrel before closing at $143.74 per barrel.
"As long as oil is going higher every day, it's difficult to say that we will hit a bottom," Jack Ablin, chief investment officer at Harris Private Bank in Chicago, told the Bloomberg financial news agency.
Nepal to Extend UN Mission
By Prensa Latina,
Katmandu : The Nepal interim government agreed to extend the UN mission (UNMIN) period another six months from July 23, but with a reduced staff.
The Nepalese government must present its demand to the UN.
The UN approved to establish UNMIN in this Himalayan state after November 21, 2006 Peace Agreement between the Nepalese government and NEPAL Maoist Communist Party (CPN-M) that put end to 10 years of armed struggle against the monarchy.
UN for Chinese Cooperation in World Issues
By Prensa Latina,
Beijing : UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon said Wednesday that China, as a permanent member of the Security Council, can play an important role in the solution of main problems affecting the world.
Ban is on an official visit in this country, and during a meeting with Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi he said that his purpose is to request increased partnership and participation in the solution of the most serious international issues.
Canadian woman acquires new accent after brain stroke
By Gurmukh Singh, IANS,
Toronto : In a first case of its kind in Canada, a woman has acquired a new accent after suffering a brain stroke.
Fifty-year-old Rosemary Dore of Windsor, 370 km from Toronto, suffered a stroke in the left half of her brain about two years ago, damaging the areas related to production of speech.
After the stroke, according to the July issue of the Canadian Journal of Neurological Sciences, she started speaking with an east coast Canadian accent despite having never lived there.
38 killed in Sri Lanka’s fresh clashes: Military
By IANS,
Colombo : At least 37 Tamil Tiger guerrillas and a soldier were killed while 37 from both sides were wounded when advancing troops and the rebels engaged in fierce clashes Friday in the northern Wanni region, the defence ministry said here Saturday.
It said the troops in the northeastern Weli-Oya region had moved forward and captured a key rebel base, named "Michael Base", along with underground bunkers at Janakapura north of Weli-Oya Friday.
Two fires still raging in N California
By Xinhua,
Los Angeles : Driven overnight by "sundowner" winds that gusted to 50 mph, two major wildfires were still raging in Northern California on Saturday, charring more land and threatening nearby residents, authorities said.
In the city of Goleta, one fire grew to more than 8,300 acres (about 3,361 hectares), but by Saturday morning was 24 percent contained, fire officials said.
The blaze has destroyed four outbuildings and led to the evacuations of at least 2,663 homes. About 850 other homes remain on standby for evacuation, according to fire officials.
Nepali major parties accord over Madhesi issues
By Xinhua,
Kathmandu : Major political parties in Nepali Constituent Assembly (CA) and agitating Madhes-based parties on Sunday reached an agreement to introduce a new supplementary amendment bill to the Interim Constitution.
UN chief urges G8 nations to honor commitments to aid Africa
By Xinhua,
Toyako, Japan : UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moom said here Monday that the Group of Eight (G8) nations should take concrete action to implement their commitments made in2005 to double their aid to Africa by 2010.
Ban made the remarks at a press conference here on the sidelines of the G8 summit, which opened Monday in the northern Japanese resort of Toyako.
Nepal’s Terai leaders optimistic of deal with government
By Xinhua
Kathmandu : United Democratic Madhesi Front (UDMF), an umbrella organization of parties of Nepal's Terai region agitating for autonomy, Thursday expressed optimism of reaching an agreement with the government.
Talking to reporters as they prepared to hold talks with government representatives, leader of Terai Madhes Democratic Party (TMDP) Hridayesh Tripathy said: "We hope not to return empty handed today but bring the package (of agreement) with us."
Bush: Economy Slowing, Need to Focus on Housing, Trade
By SPA
Washington : U.S. President George W. Bush on Thursday was optimistic about the state of the U.S. economy, but said that it is in a definite “slowdown.”
Amidst widespread concern about the health of the U.S. economy and the prospect of a recession, Bush said that the country is not “headed to recession,” but added that “no question, we’re in a slowdown.”
Timor Leste Cheers Cuban President
By Prensa Latina
Dili : Interim President Fernando La Sama De Araujo of Timor Leste sent congratulations Friday to Raul Castro at his election as president of the Cuban State and Minister councils.
In his letter, La Sama de Araujo also said he wished good health to Commander in Chief Fidel Castro.
The acting president expressed the Timor Leste people's recognition "for the contribution of Cuba's collaboration to our country's social development, and reiterate its great importance to us."
Kirpan barred, so Sikh group to skip meeting with Pope
By IANS
New York : A Sikh organisation in the US will skip a scheduled meeting with Pope Benedict XVI in Washington, DC, next month because its representatives have been been asked not to carry kirpans to the event.
The World Sikh Council - America Region (WSC-AR) decided against attending the April 17 inter-religious meeting with the visiting pope because the US Secret Service refused to allow the kirpan, the ceremonial dagger that is one of the five articles of faith for Sikhs.
It’s do or die time for Hillary Clinton
By Arun Kumar, IANS
Washington : Hillary Clinton braced Tuesday for a do or die battle to keep alive her bid to become the first woman US president in the face of surging Democratic rival Barack Obama.
Trailing by over a 100 pledged delegates after 11 straight losses to Obama, the big question surrounding Clinton before Tuesday's crucial nomination contest in Texas, Ohio, Rhode Island and Vermont is how many delegates she needs to win to keep going.
Politician shot ahead of Spanish poll
By DPA
San Sebastian (Spain) : A former Socialist councillor was shot dead Friday in the Basque town of Arrasate two days before Spain's general elections, officials said.
Isaias Carrasco, 42, was shot at least three times in the neck and elsewhere on leaving his house.
The Spanish government had raised terrorism alert in view of a possible attack by the militant Basque separatist group ETA.
The attack occurred on the last day of the electoral campaign, during which ETA has staged two bomb blasts that caused no injuries.
German politics in upheaval on rise of the Left
By DPA
Berlin : The arrival of the Left Party has radically altered the German political landscape and forced Germany's two main parties to seek unusual coalition partners at the state level.
The possibility that the Left could play a decisive role at federal level when elections are held in 18 months even prompted a former president to call for constitutional change to cope with the unexpected situation.
Obama mocks VP talk as race heads to Mississippi
By AFP
Biloxi, Mississippi : Democrat Barack Obama Monday ridiculed talk by his White House rival Hillary Clinton that he could run as her vice presidential nominee, as their next clash loomed in Mississippi.
China to set up five new ‘super ministries’
By Xinhua
Beijing : China will set up five new "super ministries" in the current round of government institutional restructuring, the plan of which will be submitted to the ongoing session of the National People's Congress (NPC) or parliament.
According to the plan, the five new "super ministries" are the ministries of industry and information, human resources and social security, environmental protection, housing and urban-rural construction, and transport.
Greek strikes disrupt flights, leave garbage uncollected
By SPA
Athens : Greece's largest labor union called a three-hour work stoppage Wednesday, disrupting flights and services, while other strikes in their second week left garbage uncollected and caused continued power outages, AP reported.
Striking workers are due to rally at Parliament later Wednesday amid growing union opposition to pension reforms currently being debated by lawmakers at committee level.
UNESCO Ditches Reporters Without Borders
By Prensa Latina
Paris : The United Nations Education, Science and Culture Organization (UNESCO) withdrew its patronage for today´s Online Free Expression Day, sponsored by the French non-government organization Reporters Without Border (RSF).
A UNESCO diplomatic source told Prensa Latina on Wednesday that the UN body had made the decision based on RSF´s "reiterated lack of ethics" and its attempts to discredit a given number of countries.
EU expresses concern over Armenia situation
By KUNA
Brussels : The European Union voiced Wednesday its concern about the situation in Armenia and called on the Armenian authorities to lift the state of emergency.
An EU Presidency statement Wednesday night expressed "particular concern" about reports of continuing arrests and called on Armenian authorities to release citizens detained in connection with their political activities and to refrain from further arrests of opposition leaders.
Armenian authorities arrested two leading opposition figures on Tuesday for alleged participation in violent protests.
UN calls on Serbia to stop interfering in Kosovo
By Xinhua
Pristina : The UN mission in Kosovo (Unmik) has called on Serbia to respect the UN Security Council Resolution 1244 and stop interfering with the local Serbs in Kosovo.
"It (resolution) is still in force, and all parties, including Serbia, should respect it," UN spokesman, Alexander Ivanko, said Wednesday.
He urged Belgrade to cooperate in re-establishing two custom points on Kosovo's northern border. Angry Serbs set them on fire, two days after Kosovo unilaterally declared independence Feb 17.
US, Russia soften tone in missile talks
By DPA
Moscow : Top US and Russian officials promised cooperation Tuesday in day two of talks here over vehemently disputed US plans to deploy a missile defence shield in Europe that Russia views as a threat to its security.
The strategic cooperation and security meeting was the first time US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Defence Secretary Robert Gates had face to face interaction with Russia's president-elect Dmitry Medvedev.
Old fashioned journalism shines on internet, but ad strategy lags
By DPA
San Francisco : An annual study of the changing face of journalism in the internet age found that "old media" content was as popular as ever but said that advertising executives had failed to find new ways to monetize that content.
The report released Monday also found that the scope of news coverage in the US was narrowing - and tended to focus on just a few headline topics.
Rights groups criticize conduct of dissident’s trial
By DPA
Beijing : Human rights organizations Wednesday criticized the trial of well-known Chinese dissident Hu Jia as unfair, saying his attorneys were prevented from properly defending him.
The lawyers had 20 minutes during Tuesday's four-hour trial in Beijing to present their case, were often cut off by court officials and were given just six days' notification of the trial date, China Human Rights Defenders said.
In addition, Hu's relatives and observers were barred from the proceedings, the rights group said.
Global fund sought to fight diseases of ‘bottom billion’
By IANS
New York : Leaders of the G8 countries have been urged to establish a new financing mechanism to combat neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) that afflict the world's poorest - or the bottom billion.
A 'Global Fund to Fight Neglected Tropical Diseases', said Hotez Sabin of George Washington University, would "satisfy an urgent need to support NTD control and elimination".
NTDs such as intestinal worms, schistosomiasis, elephantiasis and river blindness represent the most common infections of the world's poorest.
Mexicans revive their unique heritage
By DPA
Mexico City : With nine square kilometres, it is the largest old city in the Americas: the historic centre of Mexico City has pyramids, cathedrals, cloisters, palaces and homes.
Some 1,500 historically valuable buildings, 80 museums, 200 monuments, 78 squares and gardens. However, the streets and the majority of the buildings have been in decline for many decades.
Since 1970 an estimated 200,000 residents have moved away. By the beginning of 2000, only 132,000 people continued to live amid the ancient ruins.
EU may boycott Olympics over ‘cultural genocide’
By RIA Novosti
Brussels : The European Union may boycott the Beijing Olympics over "cultural genocide" in Tibet, the European Parliament's president has said.
China launched a crackdown earlier this month against anti-Chinese protesters in Tibet.
Two more deaths were reported Tuesday in the Sichuan Province's Ganzi Tibetan Prefecture, as protests continued to spread, according to reports.
NATO fighters accompany Russian bombers near Alaska
By RIA Novosti
Moscow : NATO fighters accompanied Russian Tu-95 Bear strategic bombers on a regular strategic patrol flight on Wednesday, a Russian Air Force spokesman said.
Two Bear bombers and two Il-78 aerial tankers conducted a 16-hour patrol mission on Wednesday over the Arctic and the Pacific Ocean and performed aerial refueling.
"During the flight over neutral waters near Alaska, the Russian planes were accompanied by NATO fighters," Colonel Alexander Drobyshevsky said.
Myanmar military to hand over power after 2010 election
By Xinhua
Nay Pyi Taw (Myanmar) : The Chief of the Myanmar Defence Services General Than Shwe Thursday said the military would be able to hand over power to a civilian government only after the country's general election in 2010.
Than Shwe, chairman of the ruling State Peace and Development Council, made the remarks while addressing a military parade in the new capital of Nay Pyi Taw, to mark the country's 63rd Armed Forces Day.
Sri Lanka: three Tamil parties join hands ahead of Eastern provincial polls
By NNN-PTI
Colombo : Three Tamil parties have formed an alliance ahead of the first Provincial Council elections in two decades in strife-torn eastern Sri Lanka with the aim of installing a Tamil speaking person as the Chief Minister.
The Tamil Democratic National Alliance comprising People's Liberation Organisation of Tamil Eelam (PLOTE), the Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF) and a faction of the Eelam People's Revolutionary Liberation Front (EPRLF) has been formed to ensure "unity of Tamil people" for the May 10 polls, PLOTE leader Dharmalingam Siddharthan said.
Russia agrees to return WWII stained glass panels to Germany
By RIA Novosti
Moscow : The Federation Council, Russia's upper house of parliament, approved on Friday a federal law to return six stained glass windows, seized by Soviet troops during WWII, to a church in Germany.
The document will be signed later by the Russian president.
The chairman of the culture committee, Alexander Dzasokhov, said: "The stained glass windows are unique, and have importance for history, art and science."
The senator added that Germany will cover the costs for transportation, security and authentication of the glass panels.
US stocks fall on retail, bank concerns
By DPA
New York : Major US stock indices were led lower Friday by banks and retailers amidst the worst quarterly slump since 2002.
Concern grew that the already beleaguered credit scene would get tighter because of anticipation of further writedowns.
JC Penney, the third-largest US department-store chain, dropped to a two-month low after it expressed worry that lower consumer spending would hurt its first quarter earnings.
UN Human Rights Council affirms improvement of human rights situation in Sudan
By NNN-SUNA
Geneva : The UN Human Rights Council has unanimously approved an draft resolution on the human rights situation in Sudan, which referred to the improvement in the human rights situation in the country on the light of the positive developments in Darfur.
The resolution was considered objective and came far away from politicization and selectivity.
The draft resolution was sponsored by the African Group through consultation and contacts with the European Group and the backing of Russia, China and Cuba.
Sri Lankan eye banl in Pakistan
By NNN-Govt Portal
Colombo : Sri Lankan eye specialists have announced that an eye bank will be set up in Sialkot, Pakistan to provide free eye treatment including transplanting of corneas.
A.P.S. Abeysuriya, a Sri Lankan eye specialist said at the launching of a free cornea transplanting camp at the Aleem Welfare Hospital on Wednesday (26) that the proposed eye bank would be functional by December 2008 and that Sri Lankans will be donating corneas directly to the facility.
U.S. backs plan for new Kosovo army – paper
By RIA Novosti
Moscow : The United States backs the creation of a new army in Kosovo with NATO's assistance and on the basis of the Kosovo Protection Corps, a Polish daily reported on Monday.
Last week U.S. President George Bush offered Kosovo, which proclaimed its independence in mid-February, assistance in building its own army and providing it with weapons. He authorized on March 19 arms supplies to Kosovo, saying it would "promote world peace."
PCs, cellphones, now hotels: Cuba relaxes rules
By Silvia Ayuso, DPA
Havana : Entering a luxury hotel, checking in and making the most of all the facilities and services it offers - what seems like a normal option in many countries has caused a stir in Cuba.
Since midnight Monday, following prohibition lasting over a decade, Cubans may now lodge in top-notch hotels with no restrictions other than their cost.
They can also rent a car or join tours that were until now only for foreign tourists.
FARC to be blamed if Betancourt dies: Sarkozy
By IANS
Paris : French President Nicolas Sarkozy has said the Left-wing Revolutionary Armed forces of Colombia (FARC) would be held responsible if former presidential candidate Ingrid Betancourt dies in their captivity.
"A decision on your part would suffice to save a woman from death and maintain the hope of all those who remain detained. Make this decision: free Ingrid Betancourt," the French leader said Tuesday in a televised message directed to Manuel "Sureshot" Marulanda, chief of Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), EFE news agency reported Wednesday.
Poland against permanent Russian presence at U.S. missile base
By RIA Novosti
Moscow : Poland will not agree to the permanent presence of Russian military observers at a proposed U.S. missile base on its territory, the foreign minister said on Wednesday.
The idea of allowing Russians to monitor proposed U.S. missile defense bases in Central Europe was one of the proposals put forward by U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Defense Secretary Robert Gates during their talks in Moscow on March 18 with Russia's Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
Russia’s envoy to Britain voices concern over state of relations
By RIA Novosti
London : Russian Ambassador to Britain Yury Fedotov voiced concern on Wednesday over the lack of progress being made to improve relations between London and Moscow.
Bilateral ties have plunged to a post-Cold War low since the murder in London of Russian security service defector Alexander Litvinenko in 2006 and Russia's refusal to extradite London's chief suspect, Andrei Lugovoi.
Russia’s PM to talk economics in Slovakia
By RIA Novosti
Moscow : Russian Premier Viktor Zubkov is set to arrive in Bratislava on Thursday on a two-day official visit for talks on economic cooperation with his Slovakian counterpart Robert Fico and other top-ranking officials.
Trade between Russia and Slovakia reached a record high of $6.5 billion last year, up 20% against 2006.
However, Russian exports, at $5.1 billion, constituted the bulk of bilateral turnover, and both countries are unsatisfied with the imbalance.
Slovenia backs Brazil as permanent member of UNSC
By Xinhua
Brasilia : Slovenia supports Brazil's entry as a permanent member of a reformed UN Security Council, said a joint statement issued by Brazil's Foreign Ministry on Wednesday.
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva met with his Slovenian counterpart Danilo Turk on Wednesday, according to the joint statement.
Russia, Cuba need to rebuild trade links – minister
By RIA Novosti
Havana : Russia and Cuba need to rebuild trade ties that were severed after the fall of the Soviet Union, a Russian minister leading a delegation to Havana told the Prensa Latina news agency on Thursday.
Cuba, which enjoyed major subsidies and military aid from the Soviet Union and was heavily dependent on the markets of Kremlin allies, suffered a major economic downturn after the Soviet Union's breakup in 1991.
130,000 People Take Chinese Language Test Worldwide Last Year
By Bernama
Beijing : About 130,000 people from across the world took the Chinese language test in 2007, China's Xinhua news agency quoted the Chinese National Office for Teaching Chinese as a Foreign Language as saying.
The HSK -- Chinese level test - - had established 66 exam sites in 35 countries and regions, said Xu Lin, director of the office, at a meeting on Sunday.
"We must improve our management and innovate on the Chinese language test to provide more convenient and better service to foreign learners," she said.