2 Iraqi officials accused of aiding Qaeda

Associated Press

BAGHDAD: A university president and a top local official in a restive province north of Baghdad are suspected of giving weapons and government cars to al-Qaida in Iraq insurgents, according to arrest reports obtained Wednesday.

‘N Korea still holds plutonium card: analysts

The Post Monitoring

SEOUL: North Korea's threat to restart its plant that makes arms-grade plutonium is feasible, although the task would be a daunting one, analysts said on Wednesday.

World poverty ‘more widespread’

The Post Monitoring

LONDON: The World Bank has warned that world poverty is much greater than previously thought, reports BBC News. It has revised its previous estimate and now says that 1.4 billion people live in poverty, based on a new poverty line of $1.25 per day.

Lebanon issues arrest warrant for Gaddafi

Agence France Presse

BEIRUT: Lebanon has issued an arrest warrant for Libyan leader Moammer Kadhafi over the disappearance 30 years ago of a senior Shiite Muslim cleric after a visit to Libya, officials said on Wednesday.

Clinton calls for Democratic unity

The Post Monitoring

DENVER: Hillary Clinton delivered a ringing call for Democratic Party unity on Tuesday, promising to work for Barack Obama and challenging her supporters to bury their grudges and rally behind his White House bid.

2 hijackers of Darfur plane surrender

Agence France Presse

TRIPOLI: An airline official says the two hijackers of a jetliner that took off from Sudan's Darfur region and was diverted to southern Libya have surrendered to authorities after a 22-hour standoff.

Malaysian PM faces calls to quit

Agence France Presse

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi faced calls to quit from within his ruling party Wednesday after opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim scored a landslide by-election victory.

Iran can hit Israel with missiles if attacked

The Post Monitoring

TEHRAN: Iran could hit back at Israel with missiles if the Jewish state attacked it and could also rely on allies in the region to strike, the commander of the Islamic Republic's Revolutionary Guards said on Wednesday, reports The Washington Post.

Gustav floods Haiti, kills 11

Associated Press

PORT-AU-PRINCE: Hurricane Gustav triggered flooding and landslides that killed at least 11 people before weakening to a tropical storm, but forecasters said Wednesday it's still a major threat to the Caribbean and the Gulf of Mexico.

Mugabe ‘to form government alone’

The Post Monitoring

HARARE: Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe says he will form a new government despite stalled power-sharing negotiations with the opposition, state media reports, reports BBC News.

20 killed in China chemical plant blasts

Associated Press

BEIJING: The death toll from explosions that ripped through a chemical plant in southwest China rose to 20 on Wednesday, state media said.

Pakistanis make presence felt at Democratic Convention

Associated Press of Pakistan

WASHINGTON: Pakistani Americans, though small in number, have made their presence felt at the Democratic National Convention in Denver, Colorado marking what some say is the beginning of a difficult process of emulating other immigrant groups in gaining a voice in the U.S. political system.

An apple a day keeps cancer away?

Agence France Presse

GENEVA: People are deeply confused about what causes cancer and the most effective means of prevention, with many favouring more fruit rather than cutting down alcohol, a new study said Wednesday.

Thailand issues arrest warrants for protest leaders

Agence France Presse

BANGKOK: Thailand issued arrest warrants Wednesday for protest leaders besieging the main government complex, as authorities scrambled to find a peaceful end to the administration's most serious challenge yet.As riot police moved in, leaders of the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) vowed to stay inside the Government House compound until Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej bows to their demands to step down.

India urged to quit Kashmir

Agencies

BIRMINGHAM: Describing the mass participation in a rally held in front of UN Office in Srinagar as a referendum against India, Tehreek-e-Kashmir UK (TeK) on Wednesday asked India to quit Kashmir and allow Kashmiris to decide their future with free will.

Karadzic to defend war crime charges at The Hague

Agence France Presse

THE HAGUE: Radovan Karadzic goes before a judge at a UN court in The Hague on Friday to plead guilty or not guilty to ordering a host of war crimes including the 1995 Srebrenica massacre.

Rushdie gets apology for defamation

The Post Monitoring

LONDON: Facts were facts and he wouldn't let anyone mess with them in the name of free speech. That was novelist Salman Rushdie's argument when he sued the publishers of an unflattering book about him by a former police officer, Ron Evans.

Priyanka to change skin 12 times

Ana Ivanovic in action during her first round matches of the US Open Tennis