CHALLENGE: The combat highlighted the deteriorating security situation in the region, while military commanders say Waziristan is a prime staging area for rebel infiltration
Dozens of Islamic militants died in clashes with Pakistani troops, the army said, amid reports that government forces have launched an operation to clear out fighters who overran military positions near the Afghan border earlier this week.

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Former Bangladeshi prime minister Khaleda Zia and her two sons were temporarily released from jail yesterday to attend the funeral service of her mother, an official said.

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A fish seller died yesterday after drinking poison and setting himself ablaze during a protest demanding compensation for South Korea's worst oil spill, officials said.

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'VERY SERIOUS': More than 36,000 chickens have been culled so far in the three affected districts in West Bengal, where poverty is rampant
Authorities analysed samples from dead chickens yesterday amid fears a bird flu outbreak may have spread in eastern India as locals resisted a massive cull.

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ENVIRONMENTAL TALK: The British prime minister was looking to secure Chinese backing for a post-Kyoto Protocol pact and offer help in renewable energy investment
British Prime Minister Gordon Brown's visit to China switched to environmental issues yesterday, as he sought to boost cooperation between the two nations on tackling climate change, senior Downing Street officials said.

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A severe achy-joint fever spreading in Asia via mosquitoes could easily reach more countries in the region and potentially take hold in Europe and the US, WHO experts warn.

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UNDAUNTED: Determined to stop the hunt, the group threw butyric acid at the Japanese sea vessel, whose owner condemned the action as the work of 'terrorists'
A militant anti-whaling group said yesterday it attacked a Japanese whaling vessel with "stink bombs," frustrating the hunt, only an hour after two of its activists were freed from the harpoon boat.

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Eight separatist Tamil Tigers were killed in separate gunbattles along the front lines of Sri Lanka's embattled north, the military said yesterday, as violence continued to escalate following the government's withdrawal from a ceasefire.

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Maoist rebel leader turned politician Prachanda said on Friday he would stand for election in key polls set for April that will decide Nepal's political future and formally abolish the monarchy.

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SHADOWY CULT: Attacks in southern Iraqi cities were blamed on gunmen from a cult that hopes an imam from the ninth century will return to bring justice to the Earth
Violence left nearly 50 people dead in two major southern cities when members of a shadowy, messianic cult attacked police and fellow Shiite worshippers -- a year after a similar plot was foiled during Shiite Islam's most important holiday.

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Two French journalists who face a possible death sentence for interviewing Tuareg rebels in the southern Sahara have been released on bail and are expected to leave Niger for Paris during the night, their lawyer said on Friday.

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'EXCESSIVE FORCE': WIth at least 25 people dead in three days of violence, the opposition said it was time to move the struggle to the next phase
Kenyan police remained on high alert yesterday after three days of deadly opposition protests against Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki's re-election, as envoys sought to broker an end to the crisis.

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Two Belgian women tourists were among four people killed, and four more Belgians were wounded, when suspected al-Qaeda gunmen opened fire on them in Yemen on Friday, a local official said.

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EXODUS GROWS: Hours after Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs Nicholas Burns announced his departure, US ambassador William Burns was named to succeed him
US President George W. Bush moved quickly to fill a crucial diplomatic post with responsibility for Iran policy and nominated the US ambassador to Russia for the job immediately after his predecessor's resignation.

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Brazil this week imposed a ban on popular role-playing computer games Counter-Strike and EverQuest, claiming they incited violence and were harmful to consumers' health.

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KIDNAPPING: The Peruvian prime minister testified that on the night of the 'self-coup' in 1992, officers detained him at the home of current President Alan Garcia
Peruvian Prime Minister Jorge del Castillo testified on Friday in the rights abuse trial of former president Alberto Fujimori that Fujimori ordered his kidnapping on the night of a military-supported "self-coup" in April 1992.

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Relatives of hostages held by Colombia's largest rebel group sought assistance on Friday from Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, who helped secure the release of two captives last week.

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Prosecutors on Friday called for a life sentence against US citizen Jose Padilla, claiming the former Chicago gang member convicted of supporting the al-Qaeda network was a violent sociopath.

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