News In Brief

Super Typhoon Usagi nears China
Afp, Hong Kong

Super Typhoon Usagi -- one of the strongest storms of the year -- barrelled towards Hong Kong and southern China yesterday, prompting warnings of fierce winds and torrential rains.
Packing gusts of up to 205 kilometres per hour, the storm is projected to roar between the Philippines and Taiwan before smashing into the southern Chinese coast later in the weekend.
At 0600 GMT yesterday it was centred 1,120 kilometres southeast of Hong Kong, officials in the Chinese territory said.

Chicago gang shooting wounds 13
Afp, Chicago

Thirteen people, including a toddler, were wounded in an overnight gang shooting in Chicago, President Barack Obama's adopted hometown that has been struggling to stem violent crime, police said.
Among the victims was a three-year-old child who was in critical condition after being shot in the ear when gunfire erupted around 10:15pm at a park on Chicago's south side, police said.
No-one was reported killed and no-one had been arrested as of early Friday.

Pak govt steps up AQ Khan's security
Tnn, Islamabad

Pakistan's government has increased security of the father of the country's nuclear programme Abdul Qadeer Khan amid fears of an Abbottabad-type raid which killed al-Qaeda founder Osama bin Laden.
Khan's posh Islamabad's house was already under heavy security but with the recent extraordinary measures, it has almost increased three times. According to media reports, Khan is now accorded protocol almost equal to the Pakistan prime minister when he travels.

Pakistan arrests 58 Indian fishermen
Pti, Karachi

Pakistan's maritime security agency has arrested 58 Indian fishermen after they allegedly strayed into the country's territorial waters.
Nine boats belonging to the Indian fishermen were also confiscated, Pakistani officials said.
Last month, Pakistan had released 337 Indian fishermen, including eight juveniles, in a goodwill gesture. There are still 97 Indian fishermen and three other Indian nationals, including a juvenile, languishing in jails in Karachi.

Pakistan arrests 58 Indian fishermen
Pti, Karachi

 
Pakistan's maritime security agency has arrested 58 Indian fishermen after they allegedly strayed into the country's territorial waters.
Last month, Pakistan had released 337 Indian fishermen, including eight juveniles, in a goodwill gesture. There are still 97 Indian fishermen and three other Indian nationals, including a juvenile, languishing in jails in Karachi.

Militants kill 18 Afghan police cops
Afp, Kunduz

Militants in northeast Afghanistan killed 18 police in an ambush, the interior ministry said yesterday, as the nation's security forces struggle to thwart the Taliban with decreasing assistance from international troops.
The police convoy was caught in a firefight in the remote province of Badakhshan on Wednesday when officers were returning from an anti-insurgent operation.

Russia 'seizes' Greenpeace ship
Bbc Online

Greenpeace says 30 activists, including six Britons, are being held at gunpoint by Russian security officers who stormed the group's ship in the Arctic.
One of the activists told the BBC that about 15 men in balaclavas seized the Arctic Sunrise ship in the Barents Sea.
Greenpeace said its vessel was boarded in international waters and called on Russian President Vladimir Putin to release the crew immediately. The ship is now expected to be taken to the Russian port of Murmansk.