Monday, October 13, 2008

15 reported killed in Pak. fighting
ISLAMABAD (AP): Clashes between Taliban militants and pro-government forces killed 15 people overnight in a Pakistani region on the border with Afghanistan, an official and a tribal elder said Monday.
Security forces fired mortar and artillery rounds at militants in the Charmang area of the Bajur region overnight, killing nine insurgents, government official Jamil Khan said.
Analysts fear global financial crisis may hit Bangladesh
Dhaka (PTI): Economists and financial analysts have asked Bangladesh's interim government to prepare itself to face the fallout of global financial crisis as the South Asian country's stock market suffered its worst decline with panic gripping small retail investors.
"We cannot escape the meltdown. What will happen to us is very clear. We cannot live in isolation," Nobel Laureate Muhammad Yunus told a conference fearing a heavy setback on the exports of the readymade garments and remittances as well as job losses of Bangla deshi citizens at home and abroad.
Philippine president faces new impeachment attempt
Manila (AP): Opponents of the Philippine president filed a new impeachment complaint against her on Mondayover alleged corruption, vote-rigging and other crimes, but the government predicted the bid would fail like three previous attempts.
The new complaint consolidates previous and new allegations of corruption and constitutional and human rights violations against President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, said key complainant Jose de Venecia III.
The new allegations include charges of misconduct in a proposed telecommunications deal involving Chinese company ZTE Corp.
N. Korea taken off U.S. ‘terror list’

SINGAPORE: The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) has expressed willingness to “resume disablement” of the nuclear facilities at Yongbyon under a new “package” on “verification.”
In terms of the “package,” the U.S. rescinded its own classification of North Korea as a “state-sponsor of terrorism.” And, in the “agreement” with the U.S. on the removal of the ‘terrorism’ tag, North Korea announced measures designed to help its dialogue-partners “verify” its “nuclear declaration.”

Sunday, October 12, 2008

India will seek two more border trade centres with Myanmar
New Delhi (PTI): India will seek two more border trade centres with Myanmar in the North-eastern states of Manipur and Mizoram but Arunachal Pradesh will be kept out of the proposal owing to security reasons.
The issue will be taken up by Minister of State for Commerce and Power Jairam Ramesh at Mandalay in Myanmar during his two-day visit from Tuesday.
At present, Moreh in Manipur is the only operational trade centre on the border. India will propose two additional such centres -- Avangkhu in Nagaland and Zowkhathar side.
Merkel urges coordinated financial rescue
BERLIN (AP): Coordinated national rescue efforts for the financial markets are needed to restore confidence in the world economy, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said in comments published on Sunday.
``Only an act of the state can bring back the needed trust,'' Merkel told Bild am Sonntag newspaper in an interview Saturday after meeting with French President Nicholas Sarkozy.
N Korea says it will resume nuclear disablement
SEOUL (AP): North Korea said on Sunday it will resume disabling its main nuclear facilities, hours after the United States removed the communist country from a list of states that Washington says sponsor terrorism.
North Korea's Foreign Ministry said it will again allow inspections by the U.S. and the International Atomic Energy Agency at its Yongbyon nuclear complex to verify the disablement process, pledged under a 2007 disarmament-for-aid deal with the U.S. and four other regional powers.