W O R L D

We are on brink of war: N Korea
Yeonpyeong/Seoul, Nov 26
North Korea warned today that US-South Korean plans for joint military drill have put the peninsula on the brink of war, and appeared to launch its own artillery drills within earshot of an island it showered with a deadly barrage this week.

DAMNING: Anti-North Korean protesters burn the portraits of (North’s) leader Kim Jong Il and his son Kim Jong Un during a protest in Seoul on Friday. 

China’s fresh warning
Beijing warned on Friday against military acts near its coastline ahead of US-South Korean naval exercises.The military moves have unsettled N Korea and China, its only real ally.

Minor gets death penalty the first time
Sendai (Japan), November 26
A 19-year-old male accused of killing two women and seriously wounding a man earlier this year in Miyagi Prefecture has been sentenced to death. This is the first time capital punishment has been given to a minor under the lay judge trial system that began last year.

26/11 accused won’t be spared: Pak
Islamabad, November 26
As India accused it of inaction in the Mumbai attacks case, Pakistan today expressed its commitment to bring to justice those responsible for the 2008 terror strikes, but said that it too wanted progress in the resolution of issues like Kashmir and Siachen.

Not against devolution package for Tamils: SL 
Colombo, November 26
With India seeking a “meaningful” devolution package for the minority Tamils, Sri Lanka today assured it that the issue was not out of its radar as the two neighbours discussed resettlement of thousands of internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the post LTTE-era.

We are on brink of war: N Korea
  *Blames US move to host military drill with S Korea  *S Korea names new defence minister *Anger grows in Seoul over handling of attack

Yeonpyeong/Seoul, Nov 26
North Korea warned today that US-South Korean plans for joint military drill have put the peninsula on the brink of war, and appeared to launch its own artillery drills within earshot of an island it showered with a deadly barrage this week.

disaster: A South Korean marine base housing its K-9 self-propelled guns burns after it was hit by North Korean artillery shells in this November 23 picture.

The fresh artillery blasts came just after the top US commander in South Korea, Gen Walter Sharp, toured the country's Yeonpyeong Island in a show of solidarity with Seoul and to survey damage from Tuesday’s hail of North Korean artillery fire that killed four persons.

“The situation on the Korean peninsula is inching closer to the brink of war due to the reckless plan of those trigger-happy elements to stage again war exercises targeted against the (North),” the North's official KCNA news agency said. Tensions have soared between the Koreas since the North’s strike Tuesday destroyed large parts of this island, killing two civilians as well as two marines in a major escalation of their sporadic skirmishes along the sea border. The heightened animosity between the Koreas is taking place as the North undergoes a delicate transition of power from leader Kim Jong Il to his young, inexperienced son Kim Jong Un, who is in his late 20s and is expected to eventually succeed his ailing father. Meanwhile, South Korea named a career soldier as its new defence minister on Friday amid mounting criticism of the government’s response to Tuesday’s attack by North Korea, its heaviest bombardment since the 1950-53 Korean War. The presidential Blue House appointed Kim Kwan-jin, 61, former chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, to replace Kim Tae-young, who quit yesterday.

distress: People weep after offering their condolences at a memorial altar for two dead Marines at a hospital in south of Seoul. — Reuters

“(We) think nominee Kim, well-respected for professionalism and conviction, is the right person for the post in order to restore trust from people and boost morale in the entire military,” presidential secretary Hong Sang-pyo told a news briefing.

The United States is sending in an aircraft carrier group, led by the nuclear-powered USS George Washington, to the Yellow Sea for the military exercises with South Korea starting on Sunday.

Planned before this week's attack, the four-day manoeuvres are a show of strength which, besides enraging North Korea, have already unsettled China. There’s a growing anger among the people with some members of the government and Opposition lawmakers accused the military of responding too slowly. Hundreds of former South Korean soldiers held a protest rally in the border town of Paju on Friday. — Agencies

Minor gets death penalty the first time

Sendai (Japan), November 26
A 19-year-old male accused of killing two women and seriously wounding a man earlier this year in Miyagi Prefecture has been sentenced to death. This is the first time capital punishment has been given to a minor under the lay judge trial system that began last year.

A panel of three professional and six citizen judges gave the decision at the Sendai District Court in northeastern Japan yesterday. The presiding judge Nobuyuki Suzuki sentenced the defendant, a former demolition worker who was 18 at the time of the crime, to death, finding him guilty of stabbing to death his former girlfriend's 20-year-old older sister, Mika Nambu, and her 18-year-old friend Mikako Omori.

The name of the defendant is being withheld as he is a minor under 20. In the precedent, the top court said capital punishment can be imposed on a minor after taking into consideration the brutality of the crime. — IANS

26/11 accused won’t be spared: Pak

Not against devolution package for Tamils: SL 

Colombo, November 26
With India seeking a “meaningful” devolution package for the minority Tamils, Sri Lanka today assured it that the issue was not out of its radar as the two neighbours discussed resettlement of thousands of internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the post LTTE-era.

“The issue is not out of sight and is not out of the radar,” Sri Lankan Foreign Minister GL Peiris told a joint press conference after the seventh India-Sri Lanka Joint Commission meeting co-chaired by him and External Affairs Minister SM Krishna here, referring to the devolution package.

On the issue of political settlement, Krishna said, “It was our hope that a structured dialogue mechanism to work towards this end will be launched soon”. “The cessation of hostilities in Sri Lanka in May last provides a historic opportunity to address all outstanding issues related to rehabilitation.” — PTI