Karzai to decide 'soon' second Afghan term

KABUL: Afghan President Hamid Karzai said Wednesday he would decide "soon" whether to run for re-election in August, based on his concern for stability in his fragile nation.Karzai, Afghanistan's first democratically elected president, has seen his approval ratings slide over mounting deadly violence from a Taliban-led insurgency and government corruption.Asked at a news conference if he would stand in the August 20 election, Karzai said, "I'll make the right decision very, very soon, indeed.""It's a decision that I'll make in the light of the country's stability and the legitimacy of the electoral process, and future prosperity and peace and stability of Afghanistan," he said.Karzai noted achievements in recent years but said there was still much to be done, perhaps a hint that he wanted more time in the top job."There is a lot that we have in our mind for the future of Afghanistan, to take this country to where we desire to be -- a democratic Afghanistan."The constitution says the poll should be held 30-60 days before the presidential term ends on May 22, but the election commission has pushed voting back to August citing security threats and logistic necessity.Some of Karzai's opponents demand that he keep to the constitution and end his term in May, giving way to a caretaker government.

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India's swine flu death rate is increasing

Friday, August 14, 2009 MUMBAI: A 26-year-old woman died Thursday of H1N1 swine flu in the southern city of Bangalore, raising India's death toll from the virus to 20, authorities said.The death was the first reported in India's information technology capital, the Press Trust of India reported.Meanwhile in Pune, the worst-affected in India, two more victims of the virus died Thursday, raising the death toll in that western city near Mumbai to 12, the report said. The victims were an 11-month-old boy and a 75-year-old old woman.US media reported movie halls, schools and colleges were ordered closed Thursday for three days to a week in Mumbai, the commercial and financial capital of the country, as fear of the pandemic spread.Prajakata Lavangare, a spokeswoman for the government of Maharashtra state of which Mumbai is the capital, said similar orders were issued in Pune, which is also located in the state.The woman who died in Bangalore was identified only as Roopa, a teacher in...

Tennis: Clijsters wins US Open, second time

NEW YORK: Kim Clijsters of Belgium won the US Open on Sunday by defeating Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark 7-5, 6-3 in the final.She is the first mother to win a Grand Slam title since Evonne Goolagong in 1980, the victory coming just five weeks after she returned to the sport following a 27-month retirement. She was the first wildcard, man or woman, to win a US Open title in the history of the tournament.

42 killed in wave of Iraq bombings

BAGHDAD: At least 42 people were killed and nearly 100 wounded in a spate of bomb attacks near the restive northern Iraqi city of Mosul and in the capital Baghdad on Monday, police said. In the deadliest single attack, two booby-trapped lorries exploded before dawn in the village of Khaznah, east of Mosul, leaving 25 people dead and 70 others wounded. Thirty-five houses were destroyed in the village, which is home to members of the tiny Shabak community, a sect of Kurdish origin. In Baghdad, two car bombs went off as day labourers were gathering in the early morning hours looking for jobs.The first bomb exploded at Hay al-Amel, in the west of the capital, killing nine people and injuring 46. The second bomb attack in Shurta Arbaa in the north of the city killed seven people and wounded 35 others.

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