Thursday, August 06, 2009 KABUL: An Afghan police chief says a roadside bomb hit a group of people traveling to a wedding in southern Afghanistan and, 21 civilians were killed. The Afghan Ministry of Defense confirmed the Wednesday attack and said at least 20 people were killed. Helmand provincial police chief Assadullah Sherzad says women and children were among the dead in Garmser district, where roadside bombs are frequently used to attack foreign and Afghan forces. Thousands of U.S. Marines and British soldiers are conducting offensives in Helmand, one of the centers of the Taliban insurgency.
Sunday, February 28, 2010 HAVANA: Hundreds of wealthy merchants and cigar aficionados from all parts of the world gathered in Havana this week to bid high stakes for humidors full of premium cigars. Cuba's annual Habanos festival ended on Friday night with an auction of ornate humidors of cedar and mahogany stacked with hand-rolled stogies that raised 800,000 euros ($1.09 million dollars). Habanos S.A. executives this month said cigar sales fell 8 percent to $360 million in 2009, so they have created the Julieta, a smaller, milder version of the Romeo y Julieta cigar, aimed specifically at female smokers. Women now make up only 5 to 10 percent of customers for Habanos. But even with the creation of the Julieta, Garcia said Habanos has only modest hopes for 2010 sales, due largely to a weak economy in Spain, the biggest market for Cuban cigars. The flavor of premium tobacco relies on the soil and climate in which it is grown. The western province of Pinar Del Rio, famous fo...
Comments