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Top Asian News at 4:00 a.m. GMT
(AP Online Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Lawyers plan collective lawsuit over tainted milkBEIJING (AP) _ Lawyers for dozens of families whose children were sickened by tainted milk have decided to launch a class-action lawsuit against a dairy, hoping to pressure Chinese authorities still dithering over compensation. After weeks of discussions, the 15 lawyers decided Thursday to bundle cases involving nearly 100 families into a single lawsuit against state-owned Shijiazhuang Sanlu Group Co., the dairy at the center of China's worst food safety crisis in years.
UN: Clouds of pollution threaten glaciers, healthBEIJING (AP) _ A dirty brown haze sometimes more than a mile thick is darkening skies not only over vast areas of Asia, but also in the Middle East, southern Africa and the Amazon Basin, changing weather patterns and threatening health and food supplies, the U.N. reported. The huge smog-like plumes, caused mainly by the burning of fossil fuels and firewood, are known as "atmospheric brown clouds."
9 killed in attack on US convoy in AfghanistanKABUL, Afghanistan (AP) _ A suicide car bomber attacked a U.S. military convoy passing through a crowded livestock market in eastern Afghanistan, killing at least eight civilians and an American soldier and wounding 74 people, Afghan officials said. The American patrol was hit Thursday in the Bati Kot district of Nangarhar province, said Lt. Cmdr. Walter Matthews, a U.S. military spokesman. The convoy was about 90 miles (140 kilometers) east of Kabul on the main road linking the capital to the Pakistan border at Torkham.
Gunmen kidnap Iranian diplomat in PakistanPESHAWAR, Pakistan (AP) _ Armed men kidnapped an Iranian diplomat in Pakistan's northwest, a day after the slaying of an American aid worker _ heightening fears that Islamic militants are hunting down foreigners. The Iranian and his Pakistani bodyguard were driving over a narrow bridge in Peshawar when two gunmen blocked their way Thursday with a car and opened fire, said Banaras Khan, a police investigator who cited a witness. The attackers fled with the diplomat, and the guard was killed.
Pakistan supply line attacks show US vulnerabilityISLAMABAD, Pakistan (AP) _ The Humvee sped along the dry riverbed, kicking up clouds of dust. But al-Qaida-linked militants _ not American soldiers _ were behind the wheel. The scene was captured by AP Television News shortly after about 60 insurgents in northwestern Pakistan hijacked a convoy of trucks carrying vehicles for U.S. troops in Afghanistan as well as wheat for hungry Afghans.
Qantas asks if laptops caused plane's nose-diveCANBERRA, Australia (AP) _ Air safety investigators are exploring whether interference from a nearby naval transmitter or even a passenger's laptop caused a Qantas jetliner to nose-dive twice over the Australian coast last month, an official said Friday. Initial investigations of the mid-air emergency that left 13 seriously injured indicated the Oct. 7 malfunction was caused by a fault in a computer unit that uses sensors to detect the angle of the plane.
13 more Myanmar dissidents get prison sentencesYANGON, Myanmar (AP) _ Courts in Myanmar sentenced more than a dozen activists to prison in a continued judicial crackdown on the country's pro-democracy movement that has drawn international condemnation. The verdicts Thursday came after the United Nations, the U.S. and Britain denounced long prison terms given to more than 30 democracy activists in military-run Myanmar earlier this week. Some were sentenced at closed-door trials to 65 years in jail.
US: Turkmenistan discouraging exchange studentsALMATY, Kazakhstan (AP) _ Authorities in Turkmenistan are discouraging students from participating in educational exchange programs in the United States, a U.S. Embassy official said Thursday. The U.S. is cultivating closer ties with Turkmenistan, which is rich in natural gas, but has expressed concern about human rights and democracy in the Central Asian nation.
SKorea: NKorea slowing nuke talks to get more aidSEOUL, South Korea (AP) _ North Korea's intransigence over verification of its nuclear program is likely aimed at extracting more aid from the countries seeking to disarm the Stalinist state, South Korea's foreign minister said Thursday. The comments come a day after North Korea vowed not to allow outside inspectors to take samples from its main nuclear complex in Yongbyon _ a key demand of the U.S.
China to ensure grain self-sufficiencyBEIJING (AP) _ China is aiming to produce virtually all the grain it needs for at least the next decade despite a growing population and declining farmland due to urbanization, climate change and other factors. The goal is for China to keep producing more than 95 percent of its grain needs until 2020, said Zhang Xiaoqiang, vice chairman of the National Development and Reform Commission, China's powerful economic planning body.
Turkmenistan asks UN to monitor parliamentary voteASHGABAT, Turkmenistan (AP) _ Turkmenistan wants the United Nations to monitor its parliamentary elections in December. The request is the latest effort by the Central Asian nation to open up to the world after years of reclusiveness.
Taiwan's jailed former president on hunger strikeTAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) _ Jailed former Taiwanese President Chen Shui-bian has begun a hunger strike to protest his arrest and highlight his claim that he is being persecuted by his successors, his lawyer said Thursday. Chen, who is under investigation for alleged graft, was taken to Tucheng jail in suburban Taipei early Wednesday after a marathon court hearing concluded there was enough evidence to hold him for up to four months to prevent him from colluding with alleged co-conspirators.
SKorea urges NKorea to develop industrial zoneSEOUL, South Korea (AP) _ South Korea urged North Korea to not halt the development of a joint industrial zone Thursday, a day after Pyongyang threatened to shut the neighbors' shared border because of escalating tension on the peninsula. South Korea set up the sprawling complex in the North's border city of Kaesong during reconciliation moves in recent years. But its future was thrown into doubt Wednesday when the North's military said it would "restrict and cut off" cross-border routes from Dec. 1.
Japan ruling party backpedals on snap electionsTOKYO (AP) _ Japan's ruling party had high hopes when it chose the outspoken and colorful Taro Aso as prime minister in September. There was even talk of calling snap elections to try to win a larger mandate from voters and end the gridlock that has brought policy-making to a virtual standstill. Now, snap polls seem almost as appealing as self-immolation.
Sri Lanka military: 2 key rebel villages capturedCOLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) _ Sri Lankan soldiers captured two key rebel-held coastal villages Thursday and moved closer to taking the country's entire western coast, the military said. Military spokesman Brig. Udaya Nanayakkara said troops took control of the Valaippadu and Devil's Point areas that were used by the Tamil Tiger rebels' naval wing for launching attacks and smuggling in weapons.
Copyright ? 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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