Japan’s largest opposition party chief quits

TOKYO: Democratic Party of Japan President Ichiro Ozawa on Monday expressed his intention to step down as party head to take responsibility for the political funds scandal involving Nishimatsu Construction Co., party sources said.Ozawa reportedly conveyed his intention to DPJ executives, according to the sources.He said he decided to step down because of his strong desire that the DPJ win the next House of Representatives election.Ozawa was to hold a press conference in the evening.Party Secretary General Yukio Hatoyama and Vice President Katsuya Okada are considered strong candidates to succeed Ozawa.Ozawa's state-funded secretary has been indicted over illegal political donations from Nishimatsu, a second-tier construction firm.Though Ozawa has insisted that he did not know the money was donated by Nishimatsu, he is believed to have decided to resign as party head in the face of strong public criticism.As for Ozawa's successor, some are calling for holding a party election, while others prefer choosing his successor through intraparty discussions.After Ozawa took the helm of the DPJ in April 2006, the party won the House of Councillors election in July 2007 by a landslide.Though he explored the possibility of forming a grand coalition with the Liberal Democratic Party in talks with then Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda in November 2007, the attempt failed due to strong opposition within the party.

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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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