JERUSALEM: Israel`s Defence Minister Ehud Barak on Sunday approved the purchase of a fleet of US-built F-35 strike fighters in a move set to ramp up the capabilities of the Israeli Air Force.The minister "approved in principle" a recommendation by the military to purchase the F-35 or

NOWSHEHRA: Six million children are suffering from Pakistan`s devastating floods: lost, orphaned or stricken with diarrhoea, they are the most vulnerable victims of the nation`s worst-ever natural disaster.At relief camps in government schools and colleges and in tent villages on the edge

KABUL: The total number of foreign troops killed in the nearly nine years of the Afghan war has topped 2,000, according to the independent icasualties.org website.In all, 2,002 members of international forces have been killed since the US-led invasion in 2001, including 1,226 Americans

BOGOTA: Colombia on Sunday rejected an offer for talks with the country`s most powerful guerrilla group, saying there could never be dialogue with rebels engaged in "terrorism.""Colombia will never talk with terrorists, that is a lesson we have already learned," said Defense Minister

LONDON: President Barack Obama has warned the Turkish prime minister that Ankara`s position on Israel and Iran could lessen its chances of obtaining US weapons, a report said Monday.The Turkish leader, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, wants to buy American drone aircraft to attack separatist Kurdish

WASHINGTON: General David Petraeus has refused to be bound by a July 2011 deadline to begin withdrawing US troops from Afghanistan, reserving the right to seek a delay if conditions are not right.The Afghan war commander said President Barack Obama`s date for the start of a limited US

RAMALLAH: The Palestinians have made further progress towards relaunching direct talks with Israel following a meeting with US officials, a Palestinian spokesman said Sunday."There has been progress up to this point," Palestinian presidential spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeina told AFP late

BANGKOK: The Thai government said Monday it was lifting a state of emergency in three more provinces, but not Bangkok, almost three months after the end of deadly opposition protests in the capital.Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva revoked the decree in Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai and Ubon

SEOUL: South Korea and the United States launched a new round of war games on Monday involving tens of thousands of troops, despite threats of retaliation from North Korea.The 10-day computerised military exercise is one of a series being staged by by the South -- either alone or jointly

SEOUL: North Korea`s military threatened Sunday to launch the "severest punishment" against South Korea for staging massive joint war games with the United States this week.The North`s army and people will "deal a merciless counterblow" to the allies "as it had already resolved and

TAIPEI: Dozens of Tibetans and their Taiwanese supporters protested against China Sunday, accusing Beijing of using an exhibition of "looted" Tibetan artifacts as political propaganda.More than 130 Tibetan cultural relics from monasteries and museums on loan from China have been on

SYDNEY: Australians protested against inaction on climate change on Sunday, converging on major cities to voice their discontent ahead of this week`s national polls.Thousands gathered in Sydney`s business district for the annual "Walk Against Warming" rally and similar events were held in

BAGHDAD: A series of roadside bombs and shootings killed nine people, including two policemen and three worshippers, in and around Baghdad on Sunday, security officials said.Twenty people were also wounded in the violence, the latest in a surge of killings in August and as Muslims observe

KATHMANDU: A group representing Nepal`s indigenous communities brought much of the country to a standstill on Sunday to protest against the parliament`s failure to draft a new national constitution.Shops and offices closed and most vehicles remained off the roads across Nepal, where

SRINAGAR: Thousands of Muslims Sunday held protests against Indian rule in Kashmir after security forces shot dead six protesters in two days and beefed up security for India`s independence day. Indian Kashmir`s summer capital Srinagar and other parts of the Muslim-majority Kashmir

ATHENS: On the heels of a debt crisis that pushed their country close to bankruptcy this year, Greeks are savouring a badly-needed summer breather ahead of a new austerity drive expected next month.Hundreds of thousands, Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou included, have flocked to

METKOVIC:  For centuries the Ladja boat was the only means of transport on Croatia`s Neretva river delta but in modern times it fell into disuse. Now an annual race has breathed new life into the vessel."We are so proud of it. If you look at it, you might think it`s an ugly little

NEW DELHI: India`s prime minister appealed on Sunday for an end to raging street protests in Kashmir and urged outlawed Maoist rebels elsewhere in the country to respond to his appeal for talks. Manmohan Singh`s appeal came a day after two more protesters died in clashes with security

NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh marked India`s independence day Sunday with a warning to Pakistan that a recent resumption of dialogue would go nowhere unless Islamabad cracks down on militancy.   "As far as Pakistan is concerned, we expect from them that they would not let

SYDNEY:  When he was just one year old, Tony`s young parents packed up their scant belongings and moved from Sydney`s world-famous beaches to build their own home on the city`s then-wild outskirts.It was the 1980s and his teenage parents, fresh out of senior school and wildly in love,