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US missiles hit Pakistan borderlands, killing 18

DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan – Suspected U.S. missiles struck two vehicles in a Taliban stronghold on Pakistan’s side of the border with Afghanistan on Monday, killing 18 alleged militants, Pakistani intelligence officials said.
The attack in the North Waziristan tribal region came in the final days of a year that has witnessed an unprecedented number of [...]

Read More » No commentDecember 28, 2010

Poverty breeds new generation of Filipino rebels

MOUNT DIWATA, Philippines – Too poor to afford school beyond fourth grade in the southern Philippines, 19-year-old Johnny Buyo walked away from home six months ago to join the communist rebellion — one of Asia’s longest-running. He was handed a rusty M16 rifle, which he vowed to keep for life.
The teenager recently gathered with an [...]

Read More » No commentDecember 28, 2010

Mixed Day in ASEAN Markets‏

ASEAN stocks will be in for a mixed day, bad news from China and a slow night in USA trading will be offset by strong prices in the commdities sector.
Best Buys today are Sarawak Oil Palms, Olam, Noble, PTTEP
Singapore Market Higher on Commodity suppliers: The Thomson Reuters/Jefferies CRB Index, which tracks prices of 19 commodities [...]

Read More » No commentDecember 28, 2010

Obama to welcome China’s Hu Jintao January 19

WASHINGTON (AFP) – The United States said Wednesday that it would welcome Chinese President Hu Jintao for a state visit on January 19, as the two sides seek to ease economic spats and tensions on the Korean peninsula.
Hu will be the guest of honor for President Barack Obama’s third state dinner on the night of [...]

Read More » No commentDecember 23, 2010

North Korea response to South’s planned drills muted

SEOUL (Reuters) – North Korea criticized major land and sea military exercises to be staged by the South on Thursday, but stopped short of threatening a retaliatory strike as tension remained high on the divided peninsula.
In a show of military might, South Korea will hold a large land drill in the Pocheon region, between Seoul [...]

Read More » No commentDecember 23, 2010

Vietnam leadership to be chosen at Congress from Jan 11

HANOI (AFP) – Vietnam’s new leadership will be determined at a Communist Party Congress from January 11-19, state radio reported Wednesday, with embattled Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung expected to retain a key post.
Observers say the secretive Congress — attended by 1,400 of Vietnam’s 86 million people — is expected to maintain the country’s course [...]

Read More » No commentDecember 23, 2010

Strong aftershock hits Japanese islands

TOKYO (AFP) – A strong 6.3-magnitude aftershock struck off southern Japan on Thursday, the US Geological Survey said, a day after the region was rocked by a major earthquake.
The latest jolt to hit the region, following Wednesday’s 7.4-magnitude quake, struck at 7:49 am local time (2149 GMT Wednesday), 146 kilometres (91 miles) east of Chichi-shima [...]

Read More » No commentDecember 23, 2010

India ex-minister in telecom row faces police questioning

NEW DELHI (AFP) – The former Indian minister at the heart of potentially one of the biggest corruption cases in the country’s history said he will be questioned by police about the affair this Friday.
Ex-telecom minister A. Raja quit last month over the scandal involving the cut-price sale of second-generation (2G) mobile phone licences that [...]

Read More » No commentDecember 23, 2010

U.S. challenges China wind power aid at WTO

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The United States on Wednesday accused China of illegally subsidizing the production of wind power equipment and asked for talks at the World Trade Organization, the first step in filing a trade case
USTR estimated Chinese manufacturers of wind turbines and related parts and components could have received several hundred million dollars in [...]

Read More » No commentDecember 23, 2010

ICC rejects Salman request for fixing hearing delay

KARACHI (AFP) – Cricket authorities have rejected a plea by Pakistan Test captain Salman Butt to delay a hearing scheduled for next month into a spot-fixing scandal which rocked the sport, the player said Wednesday.
The International Cricket Council’s anti-corruption tribunal made the decision in a teleconference held by code of conduct commissioner Michael Beloff QC, [...]

Read More » No commentDecember 23, 2010