| 18 February 2004 | Wednesday | 26 Zilhaj 1424 |
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EU favours putting off Afghan polls
KABUL, Feb 17: Afghanistan's first-ever elections set for June should not go ahead if the vote is not as widespread and fair as planned, EU External Relations Commissioner Chris Patten said on Tuesday. ... 
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Snowstorm: good news for Afghanistan
KABUL: A record snowfall last week wreaked havoc on Kabul and other major areas of Afghanistan, but many citizens rejoiced that the thirsty land was quenched, and they would have more water and electricity. ...
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Snail-paced Afghan poll process
KABUL: Preparations for the country's first direct nationwide elections have gotten off to an alarmingly slow start, leading to widespread concern that polls scheduled for late June may have to be seriously delayed. ...
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US threatens to veto IGC-drafted constitution: Shias warn Bremer of crisis
BAGHDAD, Feb 17: The US administrator for Iraq, Paul Bremer, on Tuesday signalled he was willing to use the occupation's veto if the Washington-appointed Interim Governing Council (IGC) drafted a temporary constitution ...
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Iran denies enriching uranium
TEHRAN, Feb 17: Iran's foreign minister denied on Tuesday that the Islamic republic had already enriched uranium to make nuclear fuel, just days after he offered the product for sale on the international market. ...
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Nobel laureate favours boycott
TEHRAN, Feb 17: A campaign by blacklisted reformist candidates to shun Friday's Iranian parliamentary election gained an illustrious endorsement on Tuesday when Nobel laureate Shirin Ebadi said she would not vote. ...
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Reformists question Khamenei's role
TEHRAN, Feb 17: A group of MPs who have resigned over the mass barring of reformists from parliamentary elections openly questioned on Tuesday whether Iran's supreme leader had made their expected ouster from the assembly possible. ...
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Phoolan Devi's 'killer' escapes
NEW DELHI, Feb 17: The main accused in the sensational murder of India's "bandit queen" escaped from a high-security prison in New Delhi on Tuesday with the help of accomplices disguised as police, officials said. ...
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Buddhist monks to contest Lanka elections
COLOMBO, Feb 17: A group of Sri Lanka's influential Buddhist monks said on Tuesday they would field candidates in the April 2 parliamentary elections. ...
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Dutch MPs back expulsion of DPs
THE HAGUE, Feb 17: The Dutch parliament approved plans on Tuesday to expel up to 26,000 failed asylum seekers, a move that would be unprecedented in Europe and that has triggered large protests and threats of hunger strikes. ...
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Pressure on Turkey for Cyprus deal
BRUSSELS, Feb 17: UN envoy Alvaro de Soto said on Tuesday there was no fallback option if Cyprus reunification plans failed and pressure grew on Turkey to keep its own EU membership hopes alive by ensuring the island entered the bloc. ...
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Aga Khan meets Syrian president
DAMASCUS, Feb 17: The Aga Khan on Tuesday concluded a three-day official visit to Syria, during which he had meetings with President Bashar al Assad on development priorities for the country. ...
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Mystery surrounds Russia's missile tests
MOSCOW, Feb 17: Mystery surrounded huge military exercises in Arctic Russia attended by President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday with some navy sources saying a planned missile launch had failed while top brass denied any incident had occurred. ...
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Haiti seeks foreign help to put down rebellion
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Feb 17: The Haitian government appealed on Tuesday for foreign help in the face of an armed revolt that has spread to another city in the poverty-stricken Caribbean nation ...
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Oil cash funded MPs' Iraq campaigns
LONDON: Money illicitly siphoned from the UN oil-for-food programme by Saddam Hussein was used to finance anti-sanctions campaigns run by British politicians, according to documents that have surfaced in Baghdad. ...
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China and Vietnam split by suspicion
BEIJING: A quarter century after they went to war, China and Vietnam have seen ties improve dramatically, although there is no guarantee against future tension in a relationship marked by centuries of suspicion. ...
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