Maldives poll: Nasheed fails in first round Male: In a repeat of the balloting in September, former President Mohammed Nasheed on Saturday failed to clinch an outright majority in the first round of the presidential re-vote in the Maldives, setting up a run-off with runner-up Abdulla Yameen.
Talks over Iran’s nuke programme hit a snag
Geneva: Iran’s refusal to suspend work on a plutonium-producing reactor and downgrade its stockpile of higher-enriched uranium were standing in the way of an interim agreement to curb Tehran’s nuclear programme in return for easing of sanctions, France’s Foreign Minister said on Saturday.
‘can’t reopen graft cases against Zardari’
Islamabad: The Pakistani Government has informed the Supreme Court that it cannot reopen the multi-million dollar graft cases against former President Asif Ali Zardari in Switzerland because the issue is “hopelessly time-barred”.
Guardian editor to be quizzed on Snowden leaks
london: The editor of the Guardian newspaper will be questioned by British lawmakers over his paper's publication of files leaked by ex-National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden.
Bill Gates lauds India’s feat in polio campaign
New York: Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates has described India’s accomplishment in eradicating polio as the “most impressive global health success” he has ever seen. “India’s success offers a script for winning some of the world’s most difficult battles in every area of human welfare,” he said in the essay adapted from his contribution to ‘Reimagining India: Unlocking the Potential of Asia's Next Superpower'.
US court reserves order in Badal case
Washington: A US court has reserved its decision on whether a Sikh rights group should be given more time to serve summons to Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal in a case accusing him of human rights violations.
3 Chinese in Tanzanian court over ivory haul
Dar es salaam: Three Chinese nationals have been charged in Tanzania for possessing 706 tusks from poached elephants, court officials said on Saturday. Police and wildlife officers have cracked down on suspected poachers amid a surge of killings of elephant and rhino in the east African nation, operating under what was reported to be a shoot-to-kill policy and making sweeping arrests.