US - KENNEDY: Mourners from all walks of life have filed past the coffin of U.S.
Senator Edward Kennedy to pay their respects to the influential
lawmaker and last member of a generation of Kennedy political leaders.
Thousands of people lined up to view the flag-draped coffin at the
library and museum in Boston, Massachusetts of the late senator's
brother, slain President John F. Kennedy.
After public viewing of the closed casket wraps up later Friday, a private memorial service will take place at the library.
Thousands of people lined streets Thursday to catch a glimpse of the
motorcade that brought the coffin of Senator Kennedy to the museum from
his home in Hyannis Port.
AFGHANISTAN: A private lunch meeting between incumbent Afghan President Hamid Karzai
and U.S. envoy Richard Holbrooke is reported to have turned testy when
Holbrooke raised the issue of vote-rigging and fraud.
A U.S. official said the day after the August 20 Afghan election,
Holbrooke urged Mr. Karzai to "respect the election process" whatever
the result, whether or not a runoff was necessary. The official said
Mr. Karzai reacted angrily.
A U.S. state department spokeswoman denied reports that Mr. Karzai had stormed out of the meeting.
KOREAS - REUNIONS: North and South Korea have agreed to hold a new round of reunions for
separated families next month - the first such meetings in nearly two
years.
The two countries reached the agreement on Friday following three days
of talks at the North's Mount Kumgang resort. The two sides say they
have agreed to hold six days of temporary reunions involving a total of
200 families.
The reunions will start on September 26, just before Korea's Chuseok day, one of the year's two most important holidays.
The agreement is the latest sign of easing tensions between the two
sides after more than a year of hostility.
BURMA - CHINA: Chinese authorities say increasing numbers of Burmese civilians are
fleeing into China to escape fighting between Burmese troops and rebels
in northern Burma.
But Yu Chunyan, a spokesman for the Yunnan provincial government, tells
China's Global Times it is difficult to get a real-time estimate of the
number of Burmese crossing the border.
Yu says refugees in the southwestern Yunnan border town of Nansan are being given humanitarian assistance.
Chinese media reports say that over the past three weeks at least
10,000 people have crossed the border into China's southern Yunnan.
BURMA - AUNG SAN SUU KYI: Defense lawyers for Burma's opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi say they will appeal a recent court decision to extend her house arrest by another 18 months. Nyan Win, one of the lawyers, told reporters Thursday the appeal will be filed next week at the Divisional Court in Rangoon. A special court (in Insein prison outside Rangoo) on August 11 declared Aung San Suu Kyi guilty of violating the terms of her earlier detention when she sheltered an unauthorized U.S. visitor in her home. The American, John Yettaw, was sentenced to seven years of hard labor in Burma, but was deported last week after U.S. Senator Jim Webb visited Burma.
THAILAND - ROYALS: A Thai court has sentenced a prominent political activist to a long
prison term for making comments deemed insulting to the country's royal
family.
The court sentenced Daranee Charnchoengsilpakul Friday to 18 years in
prison for violating Thailand's lese majeste laws. She was convicted on
three counts of insulting the monarchy, with each count carrying a
six-year sentence.
Daranee, a staunch supporter of ousted Prime Minister Thaksin
Shinawatra known as "Da Torpedo," has been jailed since last year for
speeches made during pro-Thaksin rallies.
SAUDI - ASSASSNINATION ATTEMPT: Saudi Arabia's state news agency says a Saudi prince involved in the
nation's anti- terrorism effort suffered minor injuries after a suicide
bomber made an attempt on his life.
The Saudi Press Agency reported that Deputy Interior Minister Prince
Muhammad bin Nayef had been receiving people at his home in Jeddah late
Thursday when the bomber got close and detonated his explosives.
The prince had opened his house to visitors as part of the observance of the Muslim Holy month of Ramadan.
The bomber was the only casualty in the attack. Media reports quoted an
official statement which says the attacker was a wanted terrorist.
PAKISTAN: Al-Qaida's second-in-command has accused Pakistan's government of
colluding with the American government in a crusade against Islam.
In a 23-minute video released on jihadist websites Thursday, Ayman
Al-Zawahiri said the U.S. government is using Pakistan's forces to
fight militants to help international forces achieve victory in
Afghanistan.
He attacked Pakistan's government saying it cooperates with the U.S.
and says Pakistan is in a "wretched situation" in which "mercenaries
taking the Crusader's money have become leaders."
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