World News

Beirut, Sep 29 (Xinhua) Five Lebanese soldiers were killed and 24 wounded Monday when a car bomb tore through a military bus in the northern part of the country, the al-Manar TV reported.

Cairo, Sep 29 (Xinhua) Nineteen Western tourists and their Egyptian guides, who were kidnapped by gunmen in southern Egypt last week, released them Monday without any ransom being paid, state-run MENA news agency reported.

Tel Aviv, Sep 29 (DPA) Israel will have to withdraw from the occupied territories, including East Jerusalem and the Golan Heights, if it wanted peace with its Arab and Palestinian neighbours, outgoing Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said in remarks published Monday.

Sydney, Sep 29 (IANS) India-born doctor and former Australian Medical Association (AMA) head Mukesh Haikerwal is recovering in hospital after being brutally assaulted and mugged in Melbourne, an attack that has shocked the country's medical authorities.

Dubai, Sep 29 (IANS) Nepal has banned its women from taking up jobs as domestic maids in the Gulf countries and Malaysia.

Sydney, Sep 29 (IANS) The latest figures on the global carbon budget released in Washington and Paris on Monday indicated a four-fold increase in growth rate of carbon dioxide emissions since 2000.

Sydney, Sep 29 (IANS) Nearly 750-550 million years ago, aeons before the advent of dinosaurs, earth survived the severest ice age, alternating with extremes of tropical greenhouse conditions.

Beirut, Sep 29 (DPA) At least six people were killed Monday in a blast targeting a military bus on the outskirts of the northern Lebanese port city of Tripoli, Lebanese security sources said.

Beirut, Sep 29 (DPA) An explosion ripped through a bus carrying Lebanese soldiers in northern Lebanon Monday killing five and wounding 17, Lebanese security sources said.

Khartoum/Cairo, Sep 29 (DPA) The 11 European tourists and eight Egyptian guides who were kidnapped in Egypt 10 days ago are now in Chad following a shootout between the kidnappers and Sudanese military on Sudan's border with Chad, Al-Jazeera news channel has reported.

Kabul, Sep 29 (Xinhua) War-torn Afghanistan has experienced its deadliest year in 2008 since the collapse of the Taliban regime in late 2001. The high rate of unemployment and poverty in the war-wracked country is driving young men to join the Taliban - not so much for the ideology as the handsome monthly stipend they offer.

Baghdad, Sep 28 (Xinhua) Twelve people were killed and 35 wounded Sunday in a massive bus bomb explosion at a busy market in southwestern part of the Iraqi capital, officials said.

Baghdad, Sep 28 (Xinhua) Iraqi air force has acquired reconnaissance aircraft from the US to boost its capabilities to fight insurgents in the war-torn country, defence ministry said in a statement Sunday.

Nairobi/Mogadishu, Sep 28 (DPA) Somali pirates in possession of a Ukrainian ship Sunday demanded $5 million in ransom, after originally asking for $35 million, said Andrew Mwangura, head of East Africa's Seafarer's Assistance Programme.

Tehran, Sep 28 (IANS) Iran strongly criticized Sunday the UN Security Council for adopting the latest resolution on the country and warned it against helping the US implementing its foreign policy, the official IRNA news agency reported.

Sydney, Sep 28 (IANS) As the Indian consumer goes all out to seek new experiences from food and wine, installs an in-home spa and holidays in exotic destinations, modern retail is well on its way to becoming the key driver of the country's economy, says Geoff Hiscock, an Australian author who studies the economies in Asia, especially India.

Tehran, Sep 27 (Xinhua) Iran's top nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili Saturday said the new UN Security Council resolution, aimed at reaffirming the existing sanctions against the country, is not constructive and 'won't help keep global peace and security', Iranian state-run TV reported.

Dubai, Sep 27 (IANS) The Indian embassy in Bahrain has decided to ask the Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs (MOIA) to ensure that employers in the Gulf nation get a consent letter signed by their Indian employees before they hand over their passports.

Damascus, Sep 27 (DPA) At least 17 people were killed and more than a dozen injured when a car bomb exploded in Syrian capital Damascus Saturday, national news agency SANA reported.

Nairobi/Kiev, Sep 26 (DPA) Pirates have seized a Ukrainian cargo ship carrying military tanks off the coast of Somalia, a maritime official said Friday.