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| January 17, 2008 | Thursday | Muharram 07, 1429 |
Bomb attack on bus kills 24 in Sri Lanka
COLOMBO, Jan 16: At least 24 civilians were killed and scores wounded on Wednesday in a suspected Tamil Tiger bomb attack on a crowded bus in southern Sri Lanka coinciding with the end of the island’s ceasefire....
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Vatican seeks support for pope in science row
ROME, Jan 16: The Catholic diocese of Rome called on the city’s faithful on Wednesday to back Pope Benedict XVI against academics who fault the Church leader for positions seen as anti-science....
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British Council suspends operation in Russia
MOSCOW, Jan 16: The British Council suspended operations at its Saint Petersburg office on Wednesday as London condemned the questioning and detention by Russian secret police of employees at the cultural body....
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Civilisation forum calls for end to intolerance
MADRID, Jan 16: A new UN forum wound up Tuesday with initiatives to combat intolerance between different cultures, but the non-participation of the United States came in for criticism from Iran....
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Gates faults Nato allies in Afghanistan
WASHINGTON, Jan 16: US Defence Secretary Robert Gates has publicly criticised some fellow Nato forces in Afghanistan, saying they do not know how to fight a guerilla insurgency....
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Nato chief defends allies
BRUSSELS: Nato Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer defended on Wednesday allied troops fighting a Taliban-led insurgency in south Afghanistan, following criticism from US Defence Secretary Robert Gates....
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Computer can help dogs communicate
BUDAPEST, Jan 16: Hungarian scientists are working on computer software analysing dog barks that could allow people to better recognise dogs’ basic emotions, Hungarian ethologist Csaba Molnar said....
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Bahrain bank freezes Iran business
MANAMA, Jan 16: Bahrain’s largest lender by market value, Ahli United Bank, has suspended business with Iran, complying with US pressure to isolate Tehran over its nuclear activities, two sources familiar with the matter said....
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Canada to buy 17 planes for air force
OTTAWA, Jan 16: Ottawa will buy 17 military transport planes from US aircraft maker Lockheed Martin, media here reported on Wednesday, in a purchase that is part of a broad effort to modernise Canada’s air force....
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ICRC urges Russia to find Chechnya’s missing
MOSCOW, Jan 16: The International Red Cross appealed to Russia on Wednesday to speed up work in discovering the fate of more than 1,000 people who have disappeared in war-torn North Caucasus over the last 20 years....
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Israeli troops kill six Palestinians
GAZA, Jan 16: Israeli forces killed six Palestinians on Wednesday, including three members of a Gaza family in a botched air strike, a day after Palestinians said some of the worst violence in months could harm peace moves....
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Curfew in Iraq till Ashura
BAGHDAD, Jan 16: A curfew will be slapped on Baghdad and 10 Iraqi provinces on Thursday for three days for Ashura, state television reported on Wednesday....
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Romney wins Michigan primary
DETROIT (Michigan), Jan 16: Republican Mitt Romney has revived his flickering White House hopes, powering to a Michigan primary victory as worries about the US economy increasingly define the 2008 election battle....
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Libya hunts for illegal immigrants
TRIPOLI, Jan 16: Libya has begun rounding up and immediately expelling all illegal immigrants in the north African state, the official news agency JANA said on Wednesday....
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23 US groups forge front to stop Indian nuclear deal
WASHINGTON, Jan 16: Twenty-three US groups launched an effort on Tuesday to stop a US deal aimed at providing India with civilian nuclear fuel and technology, saying it would instead beef up New Delhi’s atomic weapons capability....
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Iran halts Afghan expulsion
TEHRAN, Jan 16: Iran said on Wednesday it had temporarily stopped the expulsion of illegal Afghans for “humanitarian reasons” after Kabul called for an immediate halt, the official IRNA news agency reported....
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Police kill two Kenyan protesters
KISUMU (Kenya), Jan 16: Kenyan police fought hundreds of protesters in trouble spots across the country on Wednesday, killing two as the opposition defied a ban on rallies against President Mwai Kibaki’s disputed re-election....
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EU assembly quashes call for scarf ban
STRASBOURG (France), Jan 16: The European Parliament quashed an attempt on Wednesday to call European Union states to ban Muslim girls from wearing headscarves in primary schools across the 27-nation bloc....
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Lankan govt faces world criticism
COLOMBO: With the tattered six year old ceasefire between the Sri Lankan government and the Tamil Tiger rebels officially ending on Wednesday, the Mahinda Rajapakse led UPFA regime is facing a...
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India to leave tough words out of Urdu syllabus
NEW DELHI: India is planning to make the tricky task of learning Urdu easier — by leaving difficult words off the school syllabus, a report said on Wednesday....
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Kabul bans ‘Kite Runner’ for promoting ‘ethnicity’
KABUL: Afghanistan has banned the film, The Kite Runner, because of violent scenes, including one involving the sexual assault of a young boy, which could inflame ethnic tensions, the culture ministry said on Wednesday....
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BD govt ready to hold talks with AL
DHAKA: Bangladesh’s army-backed interim government has offered talks with a leading political party aimed at resolving an impasse over elections meant to restore democracy in the country, leaders and officials said on Wednesday....
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Gandhi’s ashes to rest at sea
NEW DELHI: Some of the final ashes of Mohandas Gandhi, the apostle of non-violence, who helped found modern India, will be scattered in the Arabian sea following intervention by his descendants to prevent a museum displaying them....
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20 sea turtles found dead in Bangladesh
COX’S BAZAR (Bangladesh): Dozens of endangered sea turtles have washed up dead along the southern Bangladesh coast over the last week, conservation officials said on Wednesday....
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Nepal govt renews call for peace talks
KATHMANDU: Nepal’s interim government has made a fresh offer of peace talks to groups fighting for autonomy in the south, saying it was crucial to hold twice-delayed national elections....
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Afghan army to lead military operations in the east
FORWARD OPERATING BASE SHANK (Afghanistan): The Afghan army will take the lead in nearly all military operations in eastern Afghanistan this year, with US troops in a support role, a top American general said on Wednesday....
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Cold weather claims over 100 lives in Afghanistan
KABUL: Cold weather and heavy snow have killed more than 100 people and more than 35,000 head of cattle in the past week across Afghanistan, officials said on Wednesday....
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