News In Brief

Taliban kills 9 Nato suppliers in Kabul
Afp, Kabul

A Taliban truck bomb and gun attack killed nine people in the Afghan capital Kabul yesterday, destroying the entrance to a Nato supply company's compound in the latest insurgent attack to shake peace efforts.
Four Nepalese, one Briton, one Romanian and three Afghans have been killed in the attack.

India launches navigation satellite
Afp, Bangalore

India launched the first of seven satellites for its domestic satellite navigation network yesterday, its space centre said, in the first step to creating a scaled down version of the US Global Positioning System.
Once fully operational in 2015, the Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS) will provide accurate positioning services for civilian and military users across India and up to 1,500 kilometres beyond its borders.
The remaining six satellites will be launched at every six months over the next 30-36 months, officials said.

Palestinian killed in clash with Israel army
Afp, Dura

A Palestinian teenager was knocked down and killed by an Israeli military jeep during overnight clashes in a town in the southern West Bank, Palestinian police and witnesses said yesterday.
The youth, 19-year-old Moataz Sharawna, died after being hit by the vehicle after several hours of clashes between stone throwers and troops which began at midnight in Dura, which lies just southwest of the city of Hebron, a police spokesman told AFP.
Nine Palestinians so far have been killed by the Israeli army in the West Bank this year.

Deputy of scandal-hit Vatican bank resigns
Afp, Vatican City

The director and deputy director of the Vatican bank have resigned amid a sweeping probe of the scandal-hit institution, the Vatican said on Monday.
Paolo Cipriani and Massimo Tulli handed in their resignations "in the best interest of the institute and the Holy See", the Vatican said in a statement, three days after a senior Catholic cleric who held accounts at the bank was arrested in Italy for alleged corruption.

China floods kill 39
Afp, Beijing

Floods and landslides triggered by torrential rain in China have left at least 39 people dead since the weekend, state media reported yesterday, warning of more downpours to come.
Another 13 people were still missing in nine affected areas, including the southwestern province of Sichuan and Inner Mongolia in the north, the China Daily said, citing the Ministry of Civil Affairs.

N Korean negotiator heads to Russia
Afp, Seoul

A high-ranking North Korean official with long experience in nuclear talks left for Russia yesterday, state media said, as the communist state steps up a diplomatic offensive after months of tension.
First vice foreign minister Kim Kye-Gwan was leading a delegation en route to the Russian capital.