09 January 2004 Friday 16 Ziqa'ad 1424 Afghan election in June unlikely: UN KABUL, Jan 8: Afghanistan's first democratic elections are unlikely to take place in June as scheduled because of delays in voter registration, the United Nations said Thursday. ... US exaggerated Iraq threat: foundation WASHINGTON, Jan 8: US President George Bush's administration "systematically" exaggerated the threats presented by Iraq's weapons of mass destruction (WMD), according to a report released on Thursday by an influential Washington think-tank. ... Missile hits US planein Baghdad WASHINGTON, Jan 8: A US Air Force C-5 cargo plane carrying 63 passengers and crew members was apparently hit by a surface-to-air missile on Thursday as it took off from Baghdad international airport ... US is still showing hostility: Khamenei TEHRAN, Jan 8: Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said on Thursday that US humanitarian aid for the victims of last month's massive earthquake had not improved relations, saying Washington continued to show "basic hostility" toward his country. ... Qorei speaks of bi-national state Abu dis, Jan 8: Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qurie said on Thursday Palestinians would seek to forge a single bi-national state with Israel if Israel carried out its threat to absorb chunks of the West Bank. ... Geneva accord won't bring peace to Palestinians Oxford: This year is the 250th anniversary of Jean-Jacques Rousseau's legendary Discourse on the Origins and Foundations of Inequality. In its dedicatory epistle to the Republic of Geneva, Rousseau, citizen of that virtuous city ... Court urged to find 9/11 suspect HAMBURG, Jan 8: Prosecutors urged a German court on Thursday to find a Moroccan man guilty of aiding the September 11 attacks and sentence him to 15 years jail, even though he was released last month in a shock twist to the trial. ... US govt seeks SC ruling on 'combatants' WASHINGTON, Jan 8: US President George Bush's administration said on Wednesday it would ask the Supreme Court to rule whether it can detain Americans from the "war on terror" without charge for an unlimited time. ... Powell sees likelihood of talks on N. Korea WASHINGTON, Jan 8: US Secretary of State Colin Powell on Wednesday said chances for a fresh round of six-way talks on ending North Korea's suspected nuclear weapons program appeared to be improving. ... WHO to study Sars cases in China BEIJING, Jan 8: China reported a new suspected Sars case on Thursday after releasing its only confirmed patient, as a team of World Health Organisation experts headed to the south to find answers. ... JVP calls for Lankan PM's resignation COLOMBO, Jan 8: An opposition leader in Sri Lanka teamed up with the Marxist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna party (JVP) on Thursday to criticize Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe's statement that he would call off the ceasefire ... 3 shot dead in Chittagong Hill Tracts DHAKA, Jan 8:Three activists of the United People's Democratic Front (UPDF), a militant group fighting for "complete autonomy" of the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) region, were gunned down on Thursday in Rangamati district. ... Hubble makes mosaic of 10,000 galaxies ATLANTA, Jan 8: The newest camera on the Hubble Space Telescope has created an unprecedented image of a huge hunk of the sky, including at least 10,000 galaxies, which could help determine how our own Milky Way evolved, astronomers said on Thursday. ... Bush move may change illegal immigrants' fate WASHINGTON: The American dream may soon become reality for millions more people, if US President George W. Bush has it his way. ... Powell won battles, not wars WASHINGTON: Shortly before the holidays, just before he underwent surgery for prostate cancer, US Secretary of State Colin Powell gave a forlorn and illuminating interview to the Washington Post ... Nato celebrates 10 years of 'peace' BRUSSELS: Nato's headquarters in Brussels becomes very full when all of its members and partners gather there. On the second day of summits or the alliance's ministerial meetings ...

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