December 2, 2005	Friday	Shawwal 29, 1426

Please Visit our Sponsor (Ads open in separate window)

BD traders seek govt, opposition dialogue: Suicide bombings DHAKA, Dec 1: The top business leaders of Bangladesh on Thursday expressed concern over the recent spate of suicide bombings and insisted that it was time for a dialogue between the...		Passport-for-marriage scam unearthed LOS ANGELES, Dec 1: US authorities have arrested 44 people for allegedly charging Asian immigrants 60,000 dollars to set up elaborate sham marriages aimed at fraudulently winning US residency, officials said on Wednesday....
Afghanistan sitting on ‘HIV time bomb’, say experts KABUL, Dec 1: Afghanistan has recorded only three deaths from AIDS but is sitting on a ticking “time bomb” of HIV with thousands of people injecting drugs, the United Nations and a think tank warned Thursday....		US calls for sanctions against Iran WASHINGTON, Dec 1: The United States, seeking to step up pressure on Iran, suggested on Wednesday that other countries threaten their own economic sanctions if negotiations over Tehran’s nuclear programme collapse....
Foreign fighters influence Afghan situation: general KABUL, Dec 1: The security threat in Afghanistan has changed, notably with an increase in suicide attacks encouraged by the presence of foreign fighters, the head of the French army said during a visit to Kabul this week....		US holding 26 ‘ghost detainees’, says HRW NEW YORK, Dec 1: A leading human rights monitor accused the United States on Wednesday of holding and possibly torturing at least 26 ‘ghost detainees’ in secret overseas locations....
Egyptian police block voters CAIRO, Dec 1: An Egyptian was shot dead by police on Thursday in the latest round of parliamentary polling, which was marred by violent incidents and attempts by security forces to prevent opposition supporters from voting....		Workers in booming UAE struggle to get paid DUBAI: A few streets away from Dubai’s multimillion-dollar skyscrapers, thousands of foreign workers crowd into tiny rooms in concrete apartment buildings, trying to get some rest after hours of back-breaking work in the sun....
BD left pins its hopes on Hasina DHAKA: Leftist parties in the Awami League-led opposition alliance have done a good job by making their bigger partner commit itself to a liberal democratic polity while formulating a ‘common minimum programme’....		Kurds act on controversial drilling deal BAGHDAD: A controversial oil exploration deal between Iraq’s autonomy-minded Kurds and a Norwegian company got under way this week without the approval of the central government here, raising a potentially explosive issue at a time of heightened ethnic and sectarian tensions....
Prosperity a dream for most Afghans KABUL: Almost four years ago an excited Mohammad Reza jumped into a bus to bring him and his family home to Afghanistan from years of exile in Iran after US-led forces toppled the Taliban government....		Key warming ocean current slowing down, say scientists LONDON: The Atlantic Conveyor, a life-giving ocean current that keeps northern Europe warm, is slowing down, scientists said on Wednesday. If the 30 per cent slowdown seen over the past 12...
US, UK don’t have high moral line on Iran issue LONDON: Britain has played a leading role in the negotiations with Iran about its nuclear programme and the risk that it might lead to the development of an atomic bomb, and...		Freedom & stability — Jordan walking on a tightrope LONDON: Jordan’s 9/11 — the Al Qaeda suicide bomb attacks on three Amman hotels on Nov 9 that killed 63 people — is still sending shockwaves across the kingdom....
Opposition chief survives ’copter crash in Spain MADRID, Dec 1: Spanish opposition leader Mariano Rajoy escaped with minor injuries from a dramatic helicopter crash on Thursday. Mr Rajoy, 50, head of the conservative Popular Party, was taken...		US army defends planting of news BAGHDAD, Dec 1: The US military on Thursday defended its policy of feeding articles to the Iraqi press as part of a campaign to counter what it said were lies spread by Al Qaeda militants....
US-Iran contacts to bring stability to ME: envoy DUBAI, Dec 1: The US decision to engage Iran for bringing stability to Iraq is a major development which will have a positive impact on the entire Middle Eastern region, says Ambassador Robin Lyn Raphel....		Syria hints at handing over suspects to UN LONDON, Dec 1: Syria may eventually hand over to the United Nations any of its nationals indicted for the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Al Hariri, Syria’s deputy prime minister said on Thursday....
Fatah fighters storm offices GAZA, Dec 1: Palestinian gunmen burst into a government complex in the Gaza Strip on Thursday to demand that ruling party primaries, suspended because of fraud and violence, be allowed to proceed....		UN calls for ‘exceptional response’ to Aids crisis JOHANNESBURG, Dec 1: The United Nations used World Aids Day on Thursday to call for an ‘exceptional response’ to the global crisis as African patients criticized politicians for failing to tackle a disease that kills millions each year....