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Fighting rages as thousands protest in Syria

Thousands of anti-regime protesters poured onto the streets across Syria on Friday despite a massive security forces presence and as troops pounded rebel towns, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported. Full story

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Govt-army ties at all-time low, says Advani

Terming as ‘extremely alarming’ the media report of two Army units moving towards Delhi without notifying the Government in January this year, BJP leader L K Advani on Friday said it shows that the government-Army... Full story

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China steps up pressure to prevent any attack on Iran

A senior Chinese diplomat said on Friday an attack on Iran would invite devastating retaliation that would envelop the region and destabilise the global economic recovery, and added that the international... Full story

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Reflective Chavez weeps at Mass in Venezuela

The Venezuelan president, Hugo Chavez, wept and asked God to spare his life during a pre-Easter Mass on Thursday after returning from his latest session of cancer treatment in Cuba. Very little is known... Full story

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25 Indonesian maids on death row in Saudi Arabia

Twenty-five Indonesian maids are on death row in Saudi Arabia and 22 others have been pardoned and sent home, local media reported on Friday, adding that Jakarta will send a delegation for talks on the issue. Full story

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NATO fuel tanker blaze kills 7 in Afghanistan

Seven people were burnt to death in southern Afghanistan on Friday when a fuel tanker supplying a NATO base crashed and set their vehicle on fire, officials said. The security chief of Panjwayi district... Full story

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Gandhi statue vandalised in Sri Lanka

Statues of Indian independence icon Mahatma Gandhi and Britain’s Robert Baden-Powell have been vandalised in Sri Lanka amid an anti-Indian and anti-Western campaign on the island, police said on Friday. Full story

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Maoists refuse to release Italian hostage

The Maoist group holding an Italian hostage on Friday rejected Odisha government’s offer of freeing prisoners and threatened to take the ‘extreme step’ if its demands were not met within 96 hours even as the... Full story

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Sensitive topics off table as Zardari visits India

President Asif Ali Zardari will on Sunday become the first Pakistani head of state since 2005 to visit arch-rival India when he makes a trip that includes lunch with prime minister Manmohan Singh. Full story

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Russia calls US sentence of Bout ‘baseless and biased’

Moscow on Friday condemned a US court’s sentencing of Russian arms smuggler Viktor Bout as ‘baseless and biased’ and said it would do all it could to ensure his return home. ‘The Russian foreign ministry... Full story

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Thousands rally for Salafist in Egypt vote

Thousands of people rallied in central Cairo on Friday in support of a Salafist candidate who could be ruled out of Egypt’s presidential election because his mother reportedly held US nationality. Full story

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Malawi’s president Mutharika dead

The Malawi president, Bingu wa Mutharika, has died after a heart attack, medical and government sources said on Friday, although few of his countrymen mourned a leader widely seen as an autocrat responsible... Full story

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Gaddafi son attacked, misled: defence lawyer

Pressure is mounting on Libya to hand over Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, son of the late Libyan leader, to the international war crimes court after a defence lawyer said he had been physically attacked and misled over... Full story

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Pope celebrates Good Friday in troubled times

Pope Benedict XVI led the world’s Catholics in marking Good Friday amid a sense of growing concern over rebellion against the Church’s dogmas and the fate of Christians in the Middle East. Full story

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