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India ready to join ASEAN free trade agreement
NEW DELHI, May 22, 2006 (AFP) – India has agreed to cut tariffs on a basket of products to pave way for the implementation of a proposed free trade argreement (FTA) with Southeast Asia, a report said Monday.The agreement between India and the 10-member ASEAN is scheduled to come into effect on January 1, 2007 […]
Traffic congestion: On the road to Seoul or London?
May 22, 2006 (LBO) – Most people trying to move across the city of Colombo in recent days have experienced increased difficulties. A trip that used to take 20 minutes now takes double that time or more, especially around the recently closed upper section of Bauddhaloka Mawatha and the Sri Uttarananda Mawatha. One may ask […]
” threat
May 22, 2006 (AFP) – Sri Lanka was banking on the European Union to tame Tamil Tiger guerrillas as the rebels warned that the killing of their top intelligence operative could force them into a “major war.” Scandinavian truce monitors have said that the February 2002 truce now existed only on paper.The rebel Liberation Tigers […]
Sri Lankan fisherman tells of massacre on navy-held islet
JAFFNA, Sri Lanka, May 22, 2006 (AFP) – An elderly Sri Lankan fisherman described Monday how gunmen shot dead six members of his family on a navy-controlled northern Sri Lankan islet and left him wounded in both legs.The man, 61, lies on a hospital bed at the Jaffna Teaching Hospital with white bandages around both […]
UN condemns attack on aid workers in Sri Lanka
May 22, 2006 (AFP) – A United Nations agency Monday condemned the bombing of international aid agencies in Sri Lanka and said it was appalled by the continuing “despicable attacks”. The UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Sri Lanka said grenade attacks on three non-governmental organisations in the Trincomalee district Sunday injured one international staff […]
Tigers accuse Sri Lanka army of killing top operative
May 22, 2006 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s Tamil Tiger rebels on Monday accused government forces of killing a senior field commander in the island’s restive eastern region at the weekend, a pro-rebel website said.The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) said their chief intelligence operative in the region — identified as Ramanan — was gunned […]
EU pushing Sri Lanka peace to critical stage: rebel political leader
KILINOCHCHI, Sri Lanka, May 22, 2006 (AFP) – The European Union’s “shocking” move towards blacklisting Sri Lanka’s Tamil Tigers will push the peace process to a critical stage, the head of the rebels’ political wing said in an interview with AFP.The EU agreed in principle late Thursday to ban the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam […]
Problems remembering wives’ names? Then you have too many
KUALA LUMPUR, May 21, 2006 (AFP) – A prominent Malaysian cleric has warned Muslims against repeatedly marrying and divorcing for fun after reports of a man who married 30 times and has scores of children and grand-children.Harussani Zakaria, a religious leader in northern Perak state, said in a report over the weekend it was sinful […]
Bangladeshi power minister removed amid protests over shortfall
DHAKA, May 21, 2006 (AFP) – The Bangladeshi prime minister Sunday removed the power minister amid growing protests over massive power shortages across the South Asian nation which faces a federal election by early 2007.Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, who heads a four-party coalition, removed Minister for Power Iqbal Hasan Mahmud and reassigned him as junior […]
‘ names? Then you have too many
KUALA LUMPUR, May 21, 2006 (AFP) – A prominent Malaysian cleric has warned Muslims against repeatedly marrying and divorcing for fun after reports of a man who married 30 times and has scores of children and grand-children.Harussani Zakaria, a religious leader in northern Perak state, said in a report over the weekend it was sinful […]