TOKYO: Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan said Thursday that Japan would take decisive steps in currency markets "if it`s necessary in the future," a day after intervening to stem the strength of the yen."We are determined not to allow the drastic fluctuation of the yen," Kan told a

GAINESVILLE: Police sent reinforcements Saturday to separate angry activists gathered outside the US church where Korans were to be burned, even though the church`s controversial pastor called off the event. Signs in red letters stating that "Islam is of the Devil" are still posted

Athens: A man threw a shoe at Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou Saturday in protest against the socialist government`s austerity measures. The shoe missed its intended target and the man was arrested along with two accomplices, radio reports said. The incident took place in the

Tehran:  Up to 10 people are feared dead from a gas pipeline blast near Iran`s northeastern city of Mashhad and another 16 sustained burns of various degrees, the Fars news agency reported on Sunday, the day after the accident, reports NDTV."Around nine or 10 people have been reported

Islamabad: A US missile strike Sunday killed four militants in northwest Pakistan`s Waziristan tribal region, officials said.The attack early Sunday hit a village in the Datta Khel area near Miranshah, the capital of North Waziristan tribal district, Geo TV reported. "A US drone fired two

Beijing: Six people were killed and four injured in an explosion triggered by fireworks in north China`s Hebei province, authorities said Sunday. The accident occurred Saturday in a village in Dongwang township of Dingzhou city, Xinhua quoted an official as saying. Preliminary

SRINAGAR: A teenager was killed and several others injured when security forces opened fire Friday on an anti-India protest in Indian Kashmir, police and witnesses said.The killing came a day after the start of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan and took the death toll from two months of

WASHINGTON: Global youth unemployment has hit a record high following the financial crisis and is likely to get worse later this year, the International Labor Organization (ILO) said Thursday. CNBC repots that the report from the ILO says 81 million out of 630 million 15-24 year olds

WASHINGTON: President Barack Obama is to travel to Florida`s Gulf Coast this weekend for a family trip intended to show solidarity with a region struggling in the wake of a massive oil spill. Obama, his wife Michelle, and their two daughters are to leave Washington Saturday for Panama

VANCOUVER: Canadian authorities late Thursday seized control of a cargo ship carrying hundreds of Tamil refugees fleeing Sri Lanka, military officials told Canadian media. Canada Border Services Agency staff and military forces boarded the ship, carrying some 490 passengers, officials

KUALA LUMPUR: A leatherback turtle has made a surprise return to a Malaysian beach after 32 years, a report said Friday, hailed as a "miracle" by conservationists and renewing hopes for the endangered species. The leatherbacks -- the largest of all sea turtles -- were once a star

SUKKUR: The United States has upped its aid to flood-ravaged Pakistan and announced a visit by a political heavyweight to show its commitment to a fractious ally where anti-US feeling runs high. Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari, attempting to fend off anger at his own response to the

YANGON- Myanmar will hold a general election on November 7, its first such poll in two decades, an official in the military-ruled country said Friday. State media confirmed the date for the election, which Western countries fear is a sham aimed at shoring up the junta`s half-century grip

MOSCOW: One policeman was killed and two others wounded in a shootout on Thursday with two natives of Russia`s volatile Northern Caucasus in Moscow, police said. The shootout took place after a police night patrol stopped two men to check their identity as they were milling around a car

ZHOUQU: Fresh heavy rains on Thursday brought more misery to a town in northwest China devastated by mudslides that have already killed more than 1,100, with new floods leaving more people missing. Thousands of soldiers and rescuers at the scene were battling to clean up roads blocked by

ALMATY: At least two people were killed and more than 80 wounded in a prison riot in Kazakhstan that ended when police in the ex-Soviet state stormed the penal colony, Kazakh media reported Thursday. Interior ministry troops stormed the penal colony near the village of Granitny in the

TOKYO: Typhoon Dianmu slammed into northern Japan on Thursday after passing across South Korea and killing five people there, officials said.With winds of up to 80 kilometres (50 miles) per hour, it made landfall in Akita in the north of Honshu island at around 5:00 pm (0800 GMT) after

YANGON: Myanmar is stepping up preparations for its first elections in two decades, designating constituencies for its national and regional parliaments, state media reported Thursday. The military leaders have not yet announced a date for this year`s polls, which Western countries fear

MEXICO CITY: A Mexican journalist kidnapped nearly two weeks ago in central Zacatecas state has been released by his captors and taken to hospital, a Reporters Without Borders spokeswoman told AFP Wednesday.Few details were available about the July 29 kidnapping of Ulises Gonzalez Garcia

WASHINGTON: US Vice President Joe Biden`s official plane flipped a small aircraft while taking off Wednesday in an accident that caused no injuries, the US Air Force said.The official plane, dubbed Air Force Two, was carrying Biden and his wife Jill as it taxied for take-off from West