8 militants killed in Afghanistan

Afghan soldiers, backed by NATO-led forces, killed eight militants elsewhere in the conflict-ridden country since Friday morning, a statement released by the Defense Ministry said here Saturday."Soldiers of Afghan National Army (ANA) backed by international forces during operations over the past 24 hours have killed eight anti-government insurgent elsewhere in the country," the statement asserted.Troops during the operation, covered parts of Kapisa, Kandahar and Farah province, also seized a handful of weapons, it said.Without revealing nationalities, the statement also said four foreign fighters were also among the dead militants.Afghan and NATO forces have kept on pressure against Taliban insurgents as the militant group announced on April 30 to start spring offensive against Afghan and...

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Preparation under way for inauguration ceremony of Haiti's President-elect

Policemen fold a Haitian national flag while people build up the stands in the garden of the National Palace for the Saturday's inauguration ceremony of Haiti's President-elect Michel Martelly in Port-au-Prince, capital of Haiti, People build up the stands in the garden of the National Palace for the Saturday's inauguration ceremony of Haiti's President-elect Michel Martelly in Port-au-Prince, capital of Haiti,  People build up the stands in the garden of the National Palace for the Saturday's inauguration ceremony of Haiti's President-elect Michel Martelly in Port-au-Prince, capital of Hai...

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Protests over high prices resume in Maldives

The protests against escalating commodity prices have resumed in Maldives after days of suspension, local media said Saturday.Protestors gathered at the capital Male Friday night in a small scale and the rally which lasted for two and a half hours ended peacefully, local media said.The organizers said the government showed no sincerity in the talks held recently and much more protests would take place if no agreement is reached in the last round of talks to be held on Sunday.Maldives had seen eight consecutive nights of street protests since April 30, which the organizers said were to mark public anger against the economic policy by President Mohamed Nasheed's government.However Ahmed Naseem, the foreign minister described the demonstrations as politically motivated and orchestrated by opposition...

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Japan's Hamaoka nuke plant completely shut down over safety concerns

 Japan's Chubu Electric Power Co. completely shut down the Hamaoka nuclear plant Saturday following a request last week by Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan to suspend the plant in Shizuoka Prefecture for safety concern.The utility, Japan's third biggest, finished work at 10:15 a.m. to stop atomic fission at its last active reactor, the No. 5 unit, of the plant in Omaezaki, about 180 kilometers southwest of Tokyo. The utility began putting control rods into the reactor's core earlier in the day.The No. 4 reactor, the other unit which was operating, was suspended Friday. The Nos. 1 and 2 reactors have already been shut down for decommissioning, while its No. 3 reactor was suspended for regular checkups.Japanese government predicted an 87 percent likelihood of a magnitude-8 earthquake or...

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Solar-powered plane makes 1st int'l flight

Solar Impulse, a solar-powered plane, flies after a nearly 13-hour trip at the Brussels international airport in Brussels, May 13, 2011. The plane made its first international trip from Switzerland, via France and Luxemburg, to Belgium.  Swiss pilot Andre Borschberg (R) poses for a photo with Belgian Crown Prince Philippe (C) and Bertrand Piccard, initiator of the Solar Impulse project, after flying Solar Impulse, a solar-powered plane, for a nearly 13-hour trip at the Brussels international airport in Brussels, May 13, 2011. The plane made its first international trip from Switzerland, via France and Luxemburg, to Belgium.  Swiss pilot Andre Borschberg (L) speaks to Bertrand Piccard, initiator of the Solar Impulse project...

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California closes dozens of state parks due to budget shortfall

California Governor Jerry Brown on Friday announced the closure of up to 70 California state parks due to budget cuts.The parks to be closed comprise a quarter of California's 278 state parks, the governor said in a statement."Closing state parks is not a task that gives anyone joy, but we are experiencing turbulent times that necessitate deep -- almost unthinkable -- cuts to public services. I will work hard in the coming weeks to reach an agreement that will allow us to avoid deeper and more disruptive reductions."The park system will cut services this summer and begin shutting parks in September, with all 70 closings completed by July 2012, said California State Parks Director Ruth Coleman."We regret closing any park," Coleman said in a prepared statement, "but with the proposed budget...

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New Zealand troops leave for Timor Leste peacekeeping mission

A 62-strong New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) contingent left for a six-month deployment to Timor- Leste Saturday.The contingent, made up of personnel from 1st Battalion Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment and supporting units, will support the Australian-led International Stabilization Force (ISF) in Timor-Leste.The improved security situation in Timor-Leste had allowed the International Stabilization Force to evolve from a security and stabilization role to supporting the capacity building of the Falintil-For as de Defesa de Timor-Leste (F-FDTL, the Timor-Leste Defence Force), said a statement from the New Zealand Army.The NZDF has supported various peacekeeping operations in Timor- Leste since 1999, when a referendum was held on independence from Indonesia, sparking violence.The United Nations...

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Asian, Pacific Islander American Month kicks off in Los Angeles

Angelenos marked the Asian and Pacific Islander American (APIA) Month on Friday, with a celebration to honor three APIA leaders."Asian Pacific Islanders are part of the fabric of Los Angeles, so this is our chance to honor them, a way to tell their stories," City Council President Eric Garcetti said.Those honored include Judge Jacqueline Nguyen, nominated to the federal bench by President Barack Obama, making her the first Vietnamese American Article III judge; Aiko Herzig-Yoshinaga, who was interned during World War II and has advocated on social justice issues; and actress, model, and Grammy award winner Tia Carrere."I'm particularly delighted to be included among such beautiful, inspirational and talented women such as my co-honorees," Nguyen said. "Across Los Angeles County, there are...

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4 killed in helicopter crash in western India

Four paramilitary troopers, including the pilot, were killed when the helicopter in which they were traveling crashed in a hilly region in the western Indian state of Rajasthan Friday, said police on Saturday.The crash took place in the state's Sirohi district at 15:00 p. m.. The chopper took off from western state of Gujarat and crashed on way to Jaipur, the capital of Rajasthan.All the four occupants were charred to death after the chopper exploded, said poli...

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China's environmental watchdog to spend 23 mln USD to ensure nuke safety

China's environmental regulator will spend 150 million yuan (about 23.08 million U.S. dollars) on nuclear and radiation safety supervision and control, as well as in offering relevant technical support this year in an effort to ensure nuclear safety.The Ministry of Environmental Protection said in a budgetary report for 2011 on its website that the ministry's total budgetary expenditure is about 1.92 billion yuan this year, of which, 1.12 billion yuan will be used to carry out 61 environmental protection projects.Among the major projects listed, the ministry will use 100 million yuan for tasks including nuclear and radiation safety monitoring, radioactive environment monitoring across the country, and electromagnetic radiation at key facilities, and offering technical support for supervising...

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Profile: European Council President Herman Van Rompuy

European Council President Herman Van Rompuy, the most senior official of the European Union (EU), is scheduled to start a five-day official visit to China on Sunday, his first since taking up the post on Jan. 1, 2010.Born in 1947 in Brussels, the holder of a bachelor's degree in philosophy and a master's degree in applied economics, worked at the Belgian central bank from 1972 to 1975.After entering politics, Van Rompuy served at a variety of posts in the Belgian government, including secretary of state, deputy prime minister and minister of budget, member of the Senate and member of the Chamber of Representatives.From July 2007 to December 2008, he was president of the Chamber of Representatives. From December 2008 to November 2009, he was prime minister of Belgium.In November 2009, he was...

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Mexico criticizes new U.S. anti-immigration law

Mexico Friday criticized the U.S. state of Georgia for approving legislation targeting illegal immigrants."It criminalizes migration and opens spaces for the possible misapplication of the law by local officials," Mexico's foreign ministry said in a statement.It said the U.S. lawmakers and the governor "ignored the numerous contributions of the immigrant communities to the economy and society of that state."Georgia state governor Nathan Deal signed the legislation, known as SB 87, into law on Friday. He said the new rules were meant to save tax dollars and allow local officials to act on migration matters that have not been addressed by the U.S. federal government.The new law allows law enforcement officers to inquire about a suspect's immigration status and imposes penalties on those transporting...

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Beijing sees 9 pct more overseas tourist arrivals in April

Beijing received 488,000 overseas tourists in April, up 9 percent from a year earlier, the municipal bureau of statistics said Saturday.In breakdown, foreign nationals made up 415,000 of the total tourist arrivals, a rise of 9.3 percent from the same period of last year, while tourists from Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan numbered 73,000, up 7.2 percent, it said in a statement.The United States, the Republic of Korea and Japan were the top three sources of the overseas tourists to China.The number of American tourists soared 24.7 percent to 75,000. But the number of tourists from the Republic of Korea and Japan fell 7.4 percent and 26.4 percent to 47,000 and 37,000, respectively.According to the bureau, Beijing received 1.43 million overseas tourists in the first four months of the year, an increase...

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U.S. uses stealth to avoid detection: Pakistan spy chief

Pakistan's intelligence chief informed the in-camera session that the United States had used stealth technology on its helicopters that could not be detected by the radars when they raided a compound and killed Osama bin Laden, officials said Saturday.The in-camera session of the joint sitting of the parliament was summoned on Friday after the army and the intelligence agencies had been under fire for their failure to detect the U.S. army helicopters, which intruded into Pakistan and conducted nearly one hour operation to kill the al-Qaida chief.Osama bin Laden was killed in the May 2 raid along with his son and two couriers in northwest Pakistan's garrison city of Abbotabad.The country's intelligence agencies are also criticized for their failure to know about the presence of the world most...

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Pakistan gov't urged to review terms of engagement with U.S.

Pakistani parliament passed a unanimous resolution early Saturday and called upon the government to review its terms of engagement with the United States, with a view to ensuring that the country's national interests are fully respected and accommodated in pursuit of policies for countering terrorism and achieving reconciliation and peace in Afghanistan.The special session of the parliament was summoned on Friday for one-point agenda to discuss the raid by the U.S. special forces on a compound in northwest Pakistani city of Abbotabad to kill the al-Qaida chief.The parliament passed a 12-point unanimous resolution in the wee hours of Saturday after a long debate and briefings by the head of the intelligence agencies and air chief about the U.S. May 2 action, which has evoked strong resentment...

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China-developed hybrid rice still key to Philippines' rice self-sufficiency program

The report by the Department of Agriculture on May 10 that the country's rice production grew by 4. 10 percent for the first quarter compared to the same period last year has buoyed hopes that the Philippines could finally achieve rice self-sufficiency soon.Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala described the expansion of the rice sector by 15.63 percent to 4.03 million metric tons in the first quarter as "unprecedented.""It was the highest rice volume we have seen since Filipinos started planting rice," Alcala said.Agriculture's expansion, although lower than the target of 4.5 to 5.5 percent, was a turnaround from last year's negative growth and was the fastest first-quarter growth since 2004, as rains boosted corn and rice production, the Department of Agriculture said.Data from the department...

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Less than 1/3 of Australian voters say budget is good for economy: poll

Only 28 percent of voters believe the Australian federal budget for 2011/12 will be good for the economy, a latest poll showed on Saturday.The Galaxy poll, taken in the two days after Tuesday night's budget, showed only 28 percent of voters thought the budget was good for the economy, while just 11 percent of voters believed the budget shows Labor government is reliable economic managers.The negative assessments mark a dramatic shift from last year, when 43 percent of voters rated the 2010/11 budget as good for the economy.The survey published in the Daily Telegraph also showed among Labor voters, only 47 percent believe the 2011 budget is positive.According to Finance Minister Penny Wong, she is not concerned by the figures, because the budget was about getting the economy back into surplus...

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Philippine police tag Abu Sayyaf in abduction of Malaysian trader

Philippine police have tagged Abu Sayyaf militants in the abduction of a Malaysian trader in the restive southern Philippines.Chief Superintendent Bienvenido Latag, head of police in the region, said Saturday that Nasaruddin Bensaidin, 38, is being held by Abu Sayyaf militants in the township of Indanan in Sulu province.There is "an ongoing operation now" to rescue Bensaidin, who was snatched by at least 10 gunmen in Indanan town on May 7, said Latag.Bensaidin, who is engaged in lizard trading business, is a resident of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and had been in Sulu for over a week before the abduction, officials have said.Sulu is a known bailiwick of the Abu Sayyaf group, which has perpetrated a number of high-profile attacks, including kidnapping, bombing and beheading. The Philippine military...

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U.S. views Libyan opposition as legitimate interlocutor

U.S. President Barack Obama's National Security Advisor Tom Donilon stated on Friday that Washington views the Libyan opposition's Interim Transitional National Council (TNC) as a legitimate and credible interlocutor of the Libyan people.Meeting at the White House with Mahmoud Gibril, president of the TNC's Executive Bureau, Donilon reiterated Obama's call for Gaddafi to leave immediately, the White House said in a statement.Donilon and Gibril discussed how the United States and the coalition can provide additional support to the TNC, the statement said.In his first visit to Washington as president of the TNC's Executive Bureau, Gibril will also meet with other senior U.S. government officials and members of Congress, the White House said.White House spokesman Jay Carney said on Friday that...

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Ecuador, Panama agree to strengthen bilateral relations

Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa and visiting Panamanian President Ricardo Martinelly on Friday agreed to strengthen bilateral cooperation on a variety of issues of mutual interest.After a meeting in Quito, the two presidents said in a joint statement that they had agreed on establishing an agenda on bilateral cooperation on issues ranging from the fight against the drugs trade and organized crime, the flow of immigrants, bilateral trade, to regional integration.Martinelly arrived here earlier on Friday for a one-day visit.As part of the new business cooperation, Panama announced prior to Friday's talks that visa restrictions for citizens of Ecuador have been lifted.Ecuadorian authorities said on Friday that amid the expected boom in the flow of tourists from Ecuador to Panama, the state-owned...

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Ecuadorian president swears in 3 ministers

Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa swore in three ministers Friday as part of a cabinet reshuffle.The ceremony was held in the government's Carondelet palace.Jose Serrano, who was formerly Correa's justice minister, became the new interior minister, replacing Alfredo Vera, who resigned earlier this week at the president's request.Johanna Pesantez, who was Correa's chief presidential adviser on judicial issues, became justice minister.Stanley Vera, who was a manager of a consortium of companies under the Ecudos Sugar Group, assumed the post of agriculture minister.The designation of new interior and justice ministers will strengthen public security and help transform the judicial system, Correa said.He also claimed victory in Saturday's referendum, during which Ecuadorians voted on his proposals...

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Yemeni republican guard attacks defected soldiers, 3 killed

Forces of Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh's Republican Guard attacked pro-protest defected military unit stationed at the western edge of the capital Sanaa on Friday, killing three soldiers, including two Republican troopers, a key opposition media outlet reported.Alsahwa-yemen.net said "a brigade of 200 Republican Guards forces launched the attack on a barracks run by defected General Ali Mohsen al-Ahmar midday Friday in an apparent attempt to seize control over it."The attack left one soldier of al-Ahmar and two of the Republican Guards died and several others from both sides injured, alsahwa said, citing local sources as saying.It said the attack took place a few hours after President Saleh delivered his speech before crowds of his supporters in Sanaa, in which he warned that the army...

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Colombia and Venezuela to strengthen its military presence in the border

Colombian government on Friday announced that it will increase its military presence in the border with Venezuela, to counter theguerrilla presence in the region. And Venezuela, German Interior Minister and Minister of JusticeVargas Lleras, said: "We can be sure that all of the cocaineproduced in the region is to be understood across the border, said: "In Tibu in North Santander Province Border towns. Felony, according to official, committed by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) and National Liberation Army(ELN) of the forces. "These guerrillas of not less than 600 people in...

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A subsidiary of China's nuclear power giants to develop new uranium deposits

China Guangdong Nuclear Power Group (China GuangdongNuclear Power Group) uranium subsidiary said it is working on two continents in the large mine. The two mines will be located in Guangdong province in southern China and Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, according to Saturday's China Daily. A move that could add up to 1,000 tons, to the country's nuclear fuel production capacity. "These two mines are expected to begin in 2013, each not exceeding 500 tons of annual production capacity of the operation,"the paper quoted Zhou Zhenxing, uranium resources in the Guangdong Nuclear Power Group Co.,...

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