STOCKHOLM: A left-leaning coalition led by Sweden’s opposition Social Democrats seemed headed for victory in the general election yesterday, with an exit poll also showing major gains for the far right. The three-party, Social Democrat-led, red-green coalition was tipped to get 44.8 percent of the vote, according to the poll reported by public broadcaster SVT, while the anti-immigration Sweden Democrats were seen garnering 10.5 percent, nearly double their vote from the last election four years ago. “It looks like a Social Democrat-led government and that of course is a victory,” Social Democrat party secretary Carin Jaemtin said. The ruling centre-right four-party coalition which has presided over the Nordic’s region largest economy for the past eight years was slated to get only 39.7 percent, the exit poll indicated.
Merkel vows to fight anti-Semitism
BERLIN: Germany will do all it can to fight anti-Semitism, Chancellor Angela Merkel said in a speech yesterday, following a surge of abuse against Jews and spreading anti-Israeli sentiment aroused by the Gaza conflict. Merkel made her pledge to thousands at a landmark rally protesting a rise in anti-Semitism that authorities and Jewish leaders blame mainly on Islamist extremists and young immigrants, saying anyone who attacks Jews is attacking all of Germany. “That people in Germany are threatened and abused because of their Jewish appearance or their support for Israel is an outrageous scandal that we won’t accept,” Merkel said. “It’s our national and civic duty to fight anti-Semitism.”
Hurricane threatens Mexico’s Baja
MEXICO CITY: Mexico put the Baja California peninsula on high alert yesterday as Hurricane Odile churned towards the popular Los Cabos tourist resorts with swirling 135-mile-per-hour winds. Odile was a highly dangerous storm likely to trigger deadly flash floods and landslides, officials warned, rating the hurricane category four on the five-point Saffir-Simpson scale, with five being the most destructive.
Nigeria building collapse toll 40
LAGOS: Forty people have now died as a result of a building collapse at the mega church of one of Nigeria’s most famous preachers and televangelists, the country’s main rescue body said yesterday. “It’s now 40 dead,” Ibrahim Farinloye, southwest coordinator of the National Emergency Management Agency, said. Some 124 people were rescued alive from the rubble of the building.
Uganda seizes explosives, suicide vests
KAMPALA: Police in the Ugandan capital Kampala seized “substantial amounts of explosives” and suicide vests in raids on a suspected Al Shabab cell that was planning an imminent attack, a Ugandan official said yesterday. Police arrested 19 people in the operation on Saturday, and Information Minister Rose Namayanja urged the public to “remain vigilant”. Ugandan authorities say they have increased security at hotels and other key sites, including Entebbe International Airport. Agencies
