News In Brief

India to launch Mars probe on Nov 5
Tnn, Chennai

India will launch its first interplanetary probe, Mars orbiter spacecraft, at 2:36pm on November 5, when the planets will come to their closest, Isro said yesterday.
The Rs450-crore Mars Orbiter Mission involves a complex set of operations including injection of the spacecraft into an earth orbit, and later, through multiple manoeuvres, hooking it to the Mars orbit, which is more than 400 million km from earth.

Iran urges reforms at United Nations
Afp, Tehran

Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi yesterday called on the United Nations to undertake reforms to reflect the "growing role of developing countries".
"… reforms must reflect the change in global order, particularly the growing role of developing countries, the right of nations to determine their own fates and to allow (nations) to enjoy new technologies," said Araqchi, whose country holds the presidency of the Non-Aligned Movement.

Israel kills militant near Ramallah
Afp, Kufr Nemeh

Israeli troops on Tuesday killed an Islamic Jihad militant said to be behind the 2012 bombing of a Tel Aviv bus, officials said, as the Palestinian movement confirmed his death.
The army confirmed the incident, naming the dead man as Mohammed Assi and describing him as an Islamic Jihad militant responsible for the November 2012 bombing of a Tel Aviv bus that wounded 29 people.

Rival Sudan leaders seek Abyei deal
Afp, Juba

Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir met with his southern counterpart Salva Kiir amid pressure to strike a deal on the disputed Abyei region and other issues left unresolved since South Sudan won independence.
Abyei, a mineral-rich region, was meant to vote on whether to be part of Sudan or South Sudan in January 2011. But a referendum to decide the region's fate has been repeatedly stalled, with residents now saying they will organise their own vote to determine their fate.