Sunday, November 01, 2009 KABUL: Abdullah Abdullah is to announce Sunday whether he will run in next weekend's Afghan presidential election run-off after the incumbent Hamid Karzai snubbed a series of demands laid down by his challenger. Abdullah, a former foreign minister, is due to reveal his decision at a meeting of supporters at around 09:30 am (0500 GMT) amid expectations he will either call a boycott of the November 7 ballot or that he has reached some form of power-sharing agreement with his rival. Following widespread fraud in the August first round, Abdullah had demanded Karzai sack the head of the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) Azizullah Ludin and suspend four ministers who campaigned for the incumbent. Abdullah's camp had set a deadline of Saturday for Karzai to bow to his demands and supporters say that he will not take part in a contest that will not be free and fair.But the demands have so far received short shrift, with the IEC saying Ludin can only be dismissed by the supreme court while Karzai says Abdullah has no right to interfere in ministerial positions. Asked what Abdullah's stance would be if his conditions were not met, a lawmaker involved in his campaign said the candidate would not take part in the run-off.
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...
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