`ARMED ROBBERS': After Hanoi demanded that Beijing investigate an incident in the Gulf of Tonkin which left nine dead, Chinese officials said that the police were attacked
China has defended its shooting of what it called Vietnamese "robbers" in the Gulf of Tonkin, after Hanoi demanded Beijing punish police who killed nine Vietnamese fishermen in early January.

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RECONSTRUCTION: Paul Wolfowitz said that the US has no intention of staying in the areas hit by the Dec. 26 tsunami any longer than was absolutely necessary
The US was eager to end its military tsunami relief operation as soon as other nations are ready to take over, Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz said yesterday. As relief and cleanup continued, the UN began paying survivors to clear rubble.

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For generations, the people of Poompuhar have spoken of the days when their sleepy fishing town was the capital of a powerful kingdom, and traders came from Rome, Greece and Egypt to deal in pearls and silk.

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Security forces have mounted a search for assailants who used rockets and mortars to attack a key gas field in southwestern Pakistan, threatening to disrupt supplies across the country, officials said yesterday.

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A 3m shark threatened a children's sailing regatta in southern Australia, biting a hole in an inflatable patrol boat that tried to drive it away, event organizers said.

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CONDOLENCES: Hundreds of thousands of faithful went to Mecca for a solemn hajj and offered comfort to Indonesian Muslims affected by the disaster
Pilgrims streaming into Islam's holy city for the annual hajj prayed for the 157,000 people killed in last month's tsunami that devastated southern Asia, and asked God to give survivors the courage to cope.

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GOOD CAUSE: Saying the African nation had put foreign loans to good use, Britain's Treasury chief signed a relief pact that will save the Tanzanian government millions
Britain's Treasury chief Gordon Brown signed a debt relief agreement Friday with Tanzania that he said will save the African country US$74 million over 10 years.

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A Polish parliament panel investigating allegations of high-level bribery broadened its mission this week, demanding the release of communist-era secret files on President Aleksander Kwasniewski and 31 other officials. The motion was brought by a right-wing lawmaker, Roman Giertych, who said his League of Polish Families was "leading a political struggle to cleanse the public life of former agents and collaborators."

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When the mayor of Prague heard rumors of taxi drivers overcharging tourists for rides, he decided to take matters into his own hands.

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`PARALYZED': Venezuela's president is demanding an apology for a Colombian attempt to kidnap a rebel; Colombia says Venezuela was harboring a terrorist
President Hugo Chavez said relations with Colombia would be put on hold until it apologizes for paying bounty hunters to snatch a senior rebel from inside Venezuela, insisting the neighboring country's actions were indefensible.

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OUT OF CONTROL: Federal police and troops raided the country's very dangerous maximum security facility -- it's a haven for drug trafficking, corruption and murder
More than 750 troops and federal police officers along with tanks and helicopters on Friday seized control of the nation's top maximum-security prison, where drug kingpins have managed to carry out executions and conduct business in recent months.

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AMBIVALENT: During the election run-up, anti-Iranian and anti-authority sentiments are almost palpable in this predom-inantly Shiite community
In this largest city of Iraq's Shiite South, nearly everyone plans to vote in the national elections on Jan. 30, and most expect the coalition led by giant Shiite religious parties to win here handsomely.

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The chaos of Iraq is giving rise to a new generation of "professional" terrorists who will eventually replace al-Qaeda as a global threat, according to a CIA thinktank.

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UNPOPULAR: In an attempt to distance himself from the Bush administration, Frank McKenna feels he has some explaining to do
Canada on Friday named a new ambassador to Washington, who was immediately forced to deny he was "cozy" with President George W. Bush's administration.

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■ Indonesia
Bomb threat was a hoax
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