■ IndiaFive killed in gunbattle
Three men of a special police force and two militants were killed in a night-long gunbattle in Srinagar, the capital of northern Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir, police said yesterday. The militants stormed the Hotel York in the Dal Gate area of the city Saturday night, exploding grenades and firing indiscriminately. Hotel York houses a battalion of the paramilitary Central Reserve Police Force. Several hotels in Kashmir, which once had a thriving tourist trade, are now used as accommodation by security forces stationed in the state to combat militancy. The attack by the militants was followed by a gunbattle that continued into the early hours of yesterday.
■ India
Dalai Lama reps in Beijing
Two envoys of the exiled Tibetan leader, the Dalai Lama, left for China yesterday to continue contacts established with Beijing two years ago after a decade-long break, a spokesman for the Tibetan government said. The envoys -- Lodi Gyaltsen Gyari and Kelsang Gyaltsen -- could also visit some Tibetan areas during the trip, the spokesman said in a press release. "His Holiness the Dalai Lama is pleased that his envoys are making another visit and hopes the process will move forward to bring about substantive negotiations on the Tibetan problem," said Tenzin Geyche Tethong, secretary to the Dalai Lama.
■ Malaysia
More bird flu cases found
Three more villages in Malaysia's north eastern state of Kelantan, located within the 10km radius of the quarantine zone of the last two bird flu outbreaks, have been hit by the deadly H5N1 virus, a report said yesterday. Samples taken from dead poultry from the three villages confirmed that the bird flu virus has spread to these areas, Veterinary Services Department director general Hawari Hussein was quoted as saying by The New Straits Times daily. However, poultry and eggs from other parts of the country are still safe, he added.
■ Australia
Animal smugglers arrested
Airline passengers using specialized body vests have been caught trying to smuggle snakes and rare bird eggs into Australia from Singapore, customs said Sunday. Both incidents occurred at the main airport of the Queensland state capital Brisbane. A search of an Australian man who flew in late Saturday revealed 19 colored pythons inside cigarette packets in a special body vest worn under several layers of clothes. Earlier on Saturday, another Australian man was stopped with 52 exotic bird eggs in another body vest. Both men have been charged with import offences and are due to appear in court in Brisbane today. Such offences can carry penalties of up to 110,000 dollars (US$77,000) in fines plus 10 years in jail.
■ Thailand
Tattoos sought for protection
Soldiers and police in Thailand's troubled southern provinces are seeking a new line of defense against ongoing attacks by suspected Islamic separatists -- tattoos. Security officers are flocking to a Buddhist temple in the Nong Chik district of Pattani province to get tattooed with sacred motifs they believe will protect them, The Bangkok Post daily reported yesterday. Since January, more than 330 people have died in violent attacks in the southern provinces of Pattani, Narathiwat and Yala -- the only Muslim-majority areas in this largely Buddhist country. Many of the victims have been police and other security officers.
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