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Top Asian News at 5:30 a.m. GMT(Associated Press Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) China says 23 dead, 90 trapped in mine explosionBEIJING (AP) _ A gas explosion tore through a coal mine in northern China on Saturday, killing 23 people and trapping another 90 nearly a third of a mile under ground, central government authorities said. More than 390 people at the Xinxing mine in Heilongjiang province managed to escape after the 2:30 a.m. explosion, the State Administration of Work Safety said in a statement. Blast near aid office wounds 1 in NW PakistanPESHAWAR, Pakistan (AP) _ An explosion struck the office of an aid organization in northwestern Pakistan near the Afghan border on Saturday, wounding a security guard, police said. It was the ninth attack in two weeks in and around Peshawar, the largest city in the northwest and the main gateway to the al-Qaida and Taliban-infested frontier region. The area has been increasingly targeted as militants retaliate against an army offensive aimed at routing Taliban militants from a nearby region. Afghan police are weak link in security forceKABUL (AP) _ Underpaid, under-equipped and under-trained, Afghanistan's 93,000-member police force is the weak link in an ambitious security strategy to hand over defense of the country to Afghans so American and other foreign troops can go home. A strong, unified national police force has long eluded Afghanistan, a country torn by occupation and warfare for hundreds of years. But with the West now attempting to help turn the country from a failed state into at least a functioning one, the police will play a crucial role in making cities safe places to live. Indian boy mirrors plight of millions of kidsNEW DELHI (AP) _ Arun Kumar was born to disabled parents, beaten by his grandparents, ran away from home, got a job in a garment factory and had all his savings stolen by the police. He was only 11. 20 years after UN pact, many children still sufferEDITOR'S NOTE _ The United Nations adopted the Convention on the Rights of the Child 20 years ago Friday, yet hundreds of millions of children still suffer from violence, hunger and disease. Associated Press correspondents around the globe interviewed children who illustrate the remaining challenges, along with some victories. ___ Suicide bomber kills 16 in western AfghanistanKABUL (AP) _ A suicide bomber killed 16 people and wounded at least 23 others Friday in a busy city square in western Afghanistan, while near Kabul a powerful former warlord narrowly escaped an assassination attempt, officials said. The attacks came a day after Afghan President Hamid Karzai took the oath of office for a second term amid escalating violence across the country. Karzai said he has put national reconciliation with Taliban insurgents at the top of his agenda. Rebel blast derails train in India, killing 2PATNA, India (AP) _ A passenger train derailed after Maoist rebels blew up a key track in eastern India, killing two people and injuring at least 30 others, a police official said Friday. The rebels bombed the track shortly before the train passed through a sparsely populated area in Jharkhand state Thursday night, said Sindhu Hembram, a deputy inspector general of police. Mob attacks office of an Indian TV news networkMUMBAI, India (AP) _ Members of a Hindu hard-line political party on Friday ransacked the offices of an Indian television news channel in the western Indian city of Mumbai, using iron rods and baseball bats to beat employees and smash furniture. The office of IBN Lokmat, a television channel that broadcasts in the local Marathi language, was targeted by supporters of the Hindu nationalist Shiv Sena political party for being "too critical" of their leader, Bal Thackeray, according to a party press statement. Top SKorean model found hanged in Paris apartmentPARIS (AP) _ A 20-year-old top South Korean model who was a fashion week regular in New York, Milan and Paris has been found hanged in her Paris apartment, a police official said Friday. Daul Kim was found dead Thursday by her boyfriend, who alerted French police, the official said. He declined to be named in accordance with policy. Cambodia confirms takeover of air traffic companyPHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) _ The Cambodian government on Friday confirmed its temporary takeover of management of the country's air traffic control company after one of its Thai employees was arrested last week on a spying charge. The move complicates a diplomatic row between Thailand and Cambodia over Phnom Penh's recent welcome to former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, a fugitive from Thai justice. SKorea: Gunman opens fire on Saipan; 5 deadSEOUL, South Korea (AP) _ A South Korean official says a gunman has opened fire on the island of Saipan, killing four people before fatally shooting himself. The Foreign Ministry official, speaking on condition of anonymity because he wasn't authorized to release the information, says local authorities on the Pacific island confirmed the shooting occurred Friday near a tourist attraction on Saipan. Top Sri Lanka general says his security detail cutCOLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) _ Sri Lanka's outgoing military chief complained that his security detail has been slashed, as speculation continued Friday that he plans to challenge the president in upcoming elections. Gen. Sarath Fonseka, who led the battle to crush Tamil Tiger rebels and end the island's decades-old civil war in May, announced his resignation last week. There have been signs of a growing rift between him and the government of President Mahinda Rajapaksa as rumors swirl about Fonseka's anticipated move into politics. AP NewsBreak: China holds, mistreats US geologistBEIJING (AP) _ Sometime into his long detention by China's feared state security agents, American geologist Xue Feng had something to show U.S. consular officials on their monthly visit. He rolled up his sleeve, revealing the burns where his interrogators pressed lit cigarettes into his arm. Xue also had something to say: He wanted his previously unpublicized detention made public in hopes that the outcry would win his release. China to punish those concealing swine flu infoBEIJING (AP) _ China's health ministry said it will punish officials who underreport cases of swine flu after a doctor famous for exposing the extent of the 2003 SARS epidemic said he believes the true number of swine flu deaths is being covered up. China's official count of swine flu cases is nearly 70,000 reported illnesses and 53 deaths, although even Beijing acknowledges the outbreak is much larger than the numbers show. Nepal mass animal sacrifice festival to go aheadKATMANDU, Nepal (AP) _ A Hindu festival in which hundreds of thousands of animals are expected to be sacrificed will go ahead as scheduled in southern Nepal despite protests, organizers said Friday. The Gadhimai festival, celebrated every five years, is attended by many Hindus from India as well as Nepal. More than 200,000 buffaloes, pigs, goats, chickens and pigeons are expected to be slaughtered this year on Nov. 24 and 25. (c) 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. |