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| June 08, 2008 | Sunday | Jamadi-us-Sani 03, 1429 |
Updated round-the-clock, with major updates after 10:00 PST (06:00 GMT)
 Afghan census postponed for two years: U.N. KABUL, June 8 (Reuters): Afghanistan's first population census, due to start this month, has been postponed for two years due to worries about confusion with voter registration and poor security, the United Nations said on Sunday. The last attempt at a census in 1979 was never completed due to the outbreak of conflict which has ravaged the country almost continually ever since. The census is central to a $50-billion five-year development strategy Afghanistan is due to present to international donors at a conference in Paris this week. (Posted @ 23:48 PST)  Eight killed in Afghan ambush: ministry KABUL, June 8 (AFP): Six police officers and two civilians were killed when Taliban rebels ambushed a police convoy on a main road in central Afghanistan on Sunday, the interior ministry said. “The enemy ambushed today one of our police convoys. As a result, six police and two civilians were killed,” interior ministry spokesman Zemarai Bashary told AFP. (Posted @ 23:16 PST) 28 rebels dead in Sri Lanka clashes: military COLOMBO, June 8 (AFP): Sri Lanka's defence ministry said Sunday its forces had killed at least 28 Tamil Tiger rebels in the latest clashes across the north of the island. The fighting on Saturday in Mannar, Vavuniya, Weli Oya and Jaffna areas saw one soldier killed, the ministry said. It also said 25 rebels and 34 soldiers injured. The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) said that they had killed four soldiers in Vavuniya area alone. The rebels did not report on their own losses. (Posted @ 22:52 PST) Fire causes 'catastrophic' damage to Texas governor's mansion AUSTIN, Texas, June 8 (AP): Texas state officials said a fire had caused “catastrophic” damage to the Texas Governor's Mansion in Austin. Governor's spokesman Robert Black says said no one was inside the 150-year-old home when the fire began shortly before 2 a.m. Sunday. He said the cause was not yet known. The mansion was undergoing a $10 million renovation. (Posted @ 22:36 PST) Fighting kills at least 12 in Mogadishu MOGADISHU, June 8 (Reuters): Artillery battles between allied Somali-Ethiopian troops and Islamist insurgents killed at least 12 people on Sunday around Mogadishu's sprawling Bakara Market, residents said. One witness said at least 20 mortar bombs exploded in the heart of Somalia's coastal capital as the rebels attacked advancing Ethiopian forces. “The troops responded by pounding the market with mortar shells ... one blast killed nine people, including two children and four women, in the market.”Another local man said three civilians were killed when a shell detonated near a Bakara bank. (Posted @ 22:04 PST) New Delhi international airport sans air conditioning for 19 hours NEW DELHI, June 8 (AP): The air conditioning went out for 19 hours at New Delhi's crowded international airport over the weekend, forcing travelers to endure large lines in stifling temperatures. The problem occurred because of ongoing renovations to the rundown Indira Gandhi International airport, the Hindustan Times reported Sunday. (Posted @ 21:50 PST) Three killed as a coach overturns in Bahawalpur ISLAMABAD, June 8 (APP): Three passengers were killed and eight injured one of the seriously, when a coach overturned on Yazman road in Bahawalpur. The mishap occured when a speeding coach going from Yazman to Bahawalpur overturned near village-12 BC. Police and rescue workers shifted the injured to hospital. (Posted @ 21:36 PST) District official among seven dead in Afghan violence KABUL, June 8 (AFP): A district deputy governor, three of his guards and a policeman were killed in two Taliban attacks in Afghanistan on Sunday, while two militants died when a bomb exploded prematurely, officials said. The Deputy Chief of Musa Khel district, Mirzajan Nimgar, in Khost province was ambushed while travelling to the provincial capital, Khost governor Arsala Jamal told AFP. The official and three of his bodyguards were killed, he said. Taliban fighters ambushed a police patrol in Uruzgan province early morning, killing one policeman and wounding two others, the provincial police chief said. Two Taliban were killed in Helmand province when a mine they were planting exploded prematurely, the provincial police said. (Posted @ 21:12 PST) Three killed, two injured as mortar bomb explodes in Gujranwala scrap godown GUJRANWALA, June 8 (APP): Three persons were killed while two others sustained serious injuries when a mortar bomb in a scrap godown exploded on Sunday. Police said a scrap dealer Waheed Ahmed was dismantling a mortar shell when it exploded. As a result Waheed, a woman Jia and her son 10-year-old son died on the spot. Two other women were seriously injured in the incident. (Posted @ 20:48 PST) Iraq: US mil says soldier killed by roadside bomb in Baghdad BAGHDAD, June 8 (AP): An American soldier was killed by a roadside bomb in eastern Baghdad, the US military said. A statement from the military said the soldier died late Saturday when a bomb struck the vehicle he was riding in. (Posted @ 20:28 PST) Mustafa Khalil, architect of Egypt-Israeli peace treaty, dies at 88 CAIRO, June 8 (AP): Mustafa Khalil, a former Egyptian prime minister who was an architect of the 1979 Camp David peace treaty between Egypt and Israel, has died. He was 88. Khalil died late Saturday in a Cairo hospital, where he was being treated for an unspecified illness, the Egyptian state news agency, MENA, said. Khalil, then secretary-general of the ruling Arab Socialist Union party, accompanied late president Anwar Sadat on his historic visit to Jerusalem in November 1977 which ended with the 1979 peace deal, the first between an Arab nation and Israel. (Posted @ 20:20 PST) Seven dead in Tokyo stabbing frenzy TOKYO, June 8 (AFP): A man went on a stabbing spree Sunday in a Tokyo neighbourhood, killing at least seven people and leaving around a dozen injured in Japan's deadliest crime in years. The assailant, who later told police he was “tired of living,” drove a truck into a crowd of pedestrians shortly after noon in Tokyo's bustling Akihabara area before jumping out and stabbing strangers while screaming. The assailant attacked 17 people before he was taken into custody. (First Posted @ 11:20 PST Updated @ 19:20 PST) 6.2 magnitude earthquake hits southern Greece ATHENS, June 8 (AP): The US Geological Survey said a strong earthquake with preliminary magnitude 6.2 had struck southwestern Greece. There were no immediate reports of injuries or damage. The quake struck at 1225 GMT Sunday and had an epicenter 199 kilometers west of Athens. (Posted @ 19:14 PST) Egyptian border police arrest 16 African migrants EL-ARISH, June 8 (AP): An Egyptian security official sayid border guards had arrested 16 African migrants who were trying to cross illegally into Israel. The official said the Africans, including four women, were from Ivory Coast, Ghana, Guinea, Eritrea and Ethiopia. They were arrested Sunday in central Sinai about 100 kilometers south of the Rafah crossing at the Egypt-Gaza Strip border. (Posted @ 18:36 PST) US transfers 8 Saddam Hussein regime figures to Iraqi custody BAGHDAD, June 8 (AP): Iraq's deputy justice minister says eight former members of Saddam Hussein's regime have been transferred from U.S. to Iraqi custody. Deputy minister Busho Ibrahim refused to elaborate or give names. But he said more defendants will be transferred to Iraqi custody in the future. (Posted @ 18:20 PST) Al-Qaeda cell busted in western Iraq: mayor RAMADI, June 8 (AFP): Iraqi police on Sunday dismantled an Al-Qaeda cell of would-be suicide bombers in western Iraq and seized 50 explosive belts primed for use, a local mayor said. Sheikh Hikmat Jubair al-Kaud, mayor of Hit town said the arrests were carried out during a raid by special units of the police. (Posted @ 18:02 PST) 185 Tibetan protesters held in Nepal: police KATHMANDU, June 8 (AFP): At least 185 Tibetan protesters were detained Sunday as they prepared to stage a demonstration outside a Chinese embassy building in Nepal's capital, police said. Tibetan activists have been protesting in Kathmandu almost every day since unrest broke out in Tibet in March. (Posted @ 17:38 PST) 6 suspects charged in Pakistan terror plot ISLAMABAD, June 8 (AP): Police said six men had been charged in a terror plot foiled when authorities seized three vehicles carrying more than 1,000 kilograms of explosives near Pakistan's capital. Rana Mohammad Shahid, head of the Crimes Investigation Agency in Rawalpindi, said Sunday the suspects were charged with terrorism and conspiracy. He said they were taken to an anti-terrorism court after being formally arrested on Saturday. (Posted @ 17:25 PST) Cricket: England beat New Zealand by innings and 9 runs NOTTINGHAM, June 8 (AFP): England beat New Zealand by an innings and nine runs to win the third Test at Trent Bridge on the fourth day here Sunday, a victory that saw them take the three-match series 2-0. New Zealand, following-on, were bowled out for 232 in reply to England's first innings 364 before lunch as England won with more than a day to spare. (Posted @ 17:18 PST) Turkish military says PKK target hit in north Iraq ANKARA, June 8 (Reuters): Turkish warplanes struck a Kurdish guerrilla target in northern Iraq on Saturday night, the military said in a statement on its website. The General Staff said the air operation was carried out at 1930 GMT, and did not give details other than its warplanes hit the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) target “effectively”. (Posted @ 17:08 PST) Seven killed in Baghdad attacks BAGHDAD, June 8 (AFP): Seven people were killed in two attacks in the Iraqi capital on Sunday, including a mortar strike on the highly-fortified Green Zone, Iraqi officials said. In the deadliest attack, at least four civilians were killed and 23 others wounded in a bombing outside a police recruitment centre in the Al-Yarmuk district of western Baghdad, interior ministry and hospital officials said. On Saturday, a suicide bomber had ploughed his vehicle into a police car in the same district, killing a policeman and a civilian and wounding six other people. Three people were killed and seven wounded in a mortar attack on the Green Zone, which houses Iraqi government offices and foreign embassies including the US mission. (Posted @ 16:50 PST) Shahbaz Sharif elected Punjab chief minister, asks Musharraf to quit LAHORE, June 8 (AFP): Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz leader Shahbaz Sharif was elected chief minister of Punjab by the members of Punjab Assembly. Mr Shahbaz Sharif speaking in the assembly after his election, repeated his demand that Musharraf resign. “Please have mercy on the people of Pakistan and go home immediately after tendering your resignation,” Shahbaz said. The Punjab Assembly elected Mian Shahbaz Sharif (PP-48) as Leader of the House (Chief Minister) with 265 votes. PM felicitates Shahbaz: The official news agency, APP reported from Islamabad that Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani had extended his warm felicitations and best wishes to Mian Shahbaz Sharif, President PML (N) on his unopposed election as Chief Minister Punjab. (First Posted @ 16:08 PST Updated @ 16:52 PST) Three dead in mortar attack on Baghdad's Green Zone BAGHDAD, June 8 (AFP): Three people were killed in a mortar attack inside Baghdad's highly fortified Green Zone on Sunday, an interior ministry official said. The official said the attack apparently targeted the defence ministry but that the mortar bomb landed at one of the entrances to the Green Zone, which houses Iraqi government offices and foreign embassies including the US mission. (Posted @ 15:38 PST) 37 missing in Ukraine mine blast: official YENAKIYEVO, June 8 (AFP): Thirty-seven people were missing Sunday after an explosion ripped through a coal mine in eastern Ukraine, an emergency official said. “The fate of 37 people who were in the mine when the explosion took place... remains unknown,” said the regional head of the Emergency Situations Ministry. The blast took place at around 0200 GMT, 1,000 meters below the surface of the Karl Marx mine in Yenakiyevo, some 60 kilometres north-east of the regional capital Donetsk, he said. (Posted @ 15:26 PST) Zakat budget amounting to Rs.7.37 billion approved for 2008-09 ISLAMABAD, June 8 (APP): The Central Zakat Council has approved the zakat budget of over Rs. 7.37 billion for financial year 2008-09. The main allocations are: Rs. 2.23 billion for Guzara Allowance, Rs 2.19 billion for educational stipends, Rs. 923 million for health care, Rs. 148 million for marriage grant, Rs. 100 million for natural calamities and Rs. 186 million for Eid grant. Besides, existing grant of 14 hospitals has been enhanced upto 50 per cent of their approved grant. (Posted @ 12:25 PST) US First Lady in Afghanistan for surprise visit KABUL, June 8 (AFP) - US First Lady Laura Bush arrived in Afghanistan on Sunday for a surprise one-day visit during which she was due to meet President Hamid Karzai and other officials. (Posted @ 11:00 PST) Tidal waves wash away another dike, submerge more villages in Pakistan’s Indus delta THATTA, June 8 (PPI): Tidal waves washed away another safety embankment near Ketti Bunder, inundating more villages along the coastal belt of district Thatta on Saturday. The dike damaged in goth Siddique Jatt, allowing seawater to enter houses in goth Bir Jatt, Muhammad Jatt, Muhammad Khan Jatt, Gulbahar, Aachar Malah, Moosa Jatt and adjoining villages. A provincial minister and area MNAs and MPAs inspected the affected areas and ordered authorities to speed up repair of damaged dikes. (Posted @ 10:50 PST) Airplane with 10 people missing in Chile SANTIAGO, Chile, June 8 (AP) - Authorities are searching for a small airplane carrying 10 people that went missing after taking off from Puerto Montt airport, 650 miles south of Santiago, en route to the southern town of La Junta in Aysen region, said Air Force Gen. Hugo Pena. (Posted @ 10:30 PST) S.Korea unveils $10.2 bln package to ease oil burden SEOUL, June 8 (Reuters) - South Korea said on Sunday it would spend 10.5 trillion won ($10.2 billion) over a year to help ease the financial burden on some 14 million people from a surge in oil prices, calling the situation a crisis. Prime Minister Han Seung-soo announced the package accounts for half of the additional cost rising oil prices cost the country of 49 million people annually. (Posted @ 10:25 PST) 10 killed in Iraq violence BAGHDAD, June 8 (AFP) - Two car bombings in the Iraqi capital on Saturday killed at least five people and wounded more than 20, while a group murdered five villagers south of Baghdad, police and hospital officials said. One bomb blew up in a car parked beside a petrol station on a major city thoroughfare, killing three civilians and wounding 15 people, two of them police officers. Just minutes earlier in the western district of Al-Yarmuk a suicide bomber ploughed his vehicle into a police car, officials said. That explosion killed two people, including a policeman, and wounded six civilians, they said. In Delfia village, about 80 kilometres south of Baghdad, an unidentified armed group shot dead five villagers in homes, police said. No details were immediately available. (Posted @ 10:20 PST) Iran protests to UN over Israel attack warning TEHRAN, June 8 (AFP) - Iran protested to the United Nations on Saturday over a warning by an Israeli minister that it faces attack over its contested nuclear programme, the official IRNA news agency reported. The protest came in a letter from Iran's mission at the United Nations to the UN Security Council and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, it said. (Posted @ 10:15 PST) 44 hurt in clashes between police, unemployed in Morocco RABAT, June 8 (AFP) - Violent clashes between unemployed youths and the police left 44 people including 27 police officers injured in the southwestern Moroccan port of Sidi Ifni Saturday, hospital chief Mohamed Chafik, told AFP by telephone. The head of the local section of the Moroccan Human Rights Centre said at a press briefing in Rabat that between one and five people had died in the incident, but the hospital chief denied this. Protesters have picketed the port since May 30 and were refusing to negotiate a settlement. (Posted @ 10:00 PST)
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