Sunday, October 25, 2009 LONDON: Protesters marched through London on Saturday to demand a British military withdrawal from Afghanistan -- among them a serving soldier facing court martial for refusing a second tour of duty there.Police said "around 5,000" people took part in the demonstration from Hyde Park to Trafalgar Square, while a spokesman for organisers Stop The War Coalition put the figure at 10,000.Among those on the march was Lance Corporal Joe Glenton, 27, a member of the Royal Logistics Corps who has served in Afghanistan before, but now is facing a court martial for refusing to return."It is distressing to disobey orders, but when Britain follows America in continuing to wage war against one of the world's poorest countries I feel I have no choice," he said in a statement issued before the protest.Britain has 9,000 troops in Afghanistan as part of an international coalition following the US-led invasion in 2001. Most are deployed in southern Helmand province, battling Taliban insurgents.So far 222 British personnel have died in the Afghan operation.Ten days ago Prime Minister Gordon Brown announced plans to send an extra 500 troops to Afghanistan, on condition that Kabul show a greater commitment to the effort and that NATO allies step up their contributions.But an opinion poll released Saturday suggested falling public confidence in the mission, with 48 percent saying British troops cannot defeat the Taliban, up from 36 percent in August 2007.
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
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