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China arrests nearly 1,000 doomsday ‘cult’ members 21 Dec 2012 - 01:55 am

BEIJING: China has arrested nearly 1,000 people in a crackdown on a Christian sect that spread doomsday rumours and targeted communist rule, state...

US to open military ties with Myanmar: Official 21 Dec 2012 - 01:54 am

WASHINGTON: The United States is poised to take “nascent steps” to open up military ties with Myanmar as a way of bolstering political...

Group calls for release of activist missing in Laos 21 Dec 2012 - 01:54 am

BANGKOK: Laos should release a prominent rights activist who went missing this month, an international human rights group said yesterday, although authorities there...

Taiwan’s ex-leader, wife get new jail terms 21 Dec 2012 - 01:54 am

TAIPEI: Taiwan’s former president Chen Shui-bian, already serving a long prison term for corruption, was yesterday convicted and sentenced to another 10 years...

Indonesian prosecutors seek 15 years for Briton over drugs 21 Dec 2012 - 01:53 am

DENPASAR: Indonesian prosecutors recommended a 15-year prison term yesterday for a British grandmother accused of trafficking in cocaine on the resort island of...

25 dead, 36 missing in Sri Lanka floods 21 Dec 2012 - 01:52 am

COLOMBO: Flash floods have killed at least 25 people in Sri Lanka and left more than a quarter of a million marooned in...

Tugonon nearly gets Miss Universe crown 21 Dec 2012 - 01:51 am

Miss Philippines Janine Tugonon (left), and Miss USA Olivia Culpo, await the judges’ final decision during the Miss Universe Pageant in Las Vegas....

Birth control bill ready to become law 21 Dec 2012 - 01:51 am

MANILA: The Reproductive Health (RH) bill is now ready for President Benigno Aquino’s signature, possibly before Christmas, after Congress ratified last night the...

Aquino signs $48bn 2013 budget 21 Dec 2012 - 01:51 am

MANILA: President Benigno Aquino signed yesterday the $48bn budget for 2013 that aims to empower people through better social services and pump up...

Philippines orders airlines to enhance customer services 21 Dec 2012 - 01:50 am

MANILA: Philippine authorities ordered airlines yesterday to feed and fully reimburse passengers of delayed or cancelled flights amid rising complaints about budget carriers...

Police donate Christmas fund to typhoon-hit colleagues 21 Dec 2012 - 01:50 am

MANILA: The National Police Commission (Napolcom) donated yesterday its P108,680 ($2,590) Christmas party fund to members of the Philippine National Police who have...

Two suspects in mayor’s killing held 21 Dec 2012 - 01:50 am

LINGAYEN: Police arrested on Tuesday two suspects in the killing of Infanta town Mayor Ruperto Martinez and filed murder charges against them before...

Defence questions CCTV clip of former US marine’s mauling 21 Dec 2012 - 01:49 am

MANILA: Public prosecutors yesterday presented in court a portion of a video clip taken by a closed circuit television security camera (CCTV) allegedly...

Clerics to protest against killing of health workers 21 Dec 2012 - 01:46 am

Pakistani polio vaccination workers shout slogans against the killing of their colleagues during a protest in Multan yesterday. ISLAMABAD: An alliance of Pakistani...

Afghan talks in France bolster hopes for peace process 21 Dec 2012 - 01:46 am

PARIS: Representatives of Afghanistan’s warring factions met here yesterday for two days of landmark talks that diplomats hope will bolster a fledgling peace...

Karzai welcomes British troop pullout 21 Dec 2012 - 01:46 am

KABUL: President Hamid Karzai yesterday welcomed the announcement that Britain will pull thousands of troops out of Afghanistan next year, saying his country...

Move to boost voting by women in Pakistan polls 21 Dec 2012 - 01:45 am

ISLAMABAD: A countrywide coalition of 30 Pakistani civil society organisations, working together to promote electoral and democratic accountability in Pakistan, has recommended that...

Bomb kills seven in Nimroz province 21 Dec 2012 - 01:45 am

HERAT: A roadside bomb targeting a police pickup truck killed two policemen and five civilians in southwestern Afghanistan yesterday, the provincial authorities said....