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Siege of Bangkok airport on, army chief seeks fresh polls
No polls: Thai PM |
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Man jailed for repeatedly raping daughters
Induction of Maoists in army
Practise yoga without chanting mantras: Malaysia PM
Pak group hacks 5 Indian websites
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Siege of Bangkok airport on, army chief seeks fresh polls
Bangkok, November 26 The Suvarnabhumi airport temporarily suspended operations with all flights cancelled after armed protesters stormed the complex last night and briefly occupied the control tower leaving thousands of travellers, including Indians, stranded. Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat, who landed at a military base in northern Thailand after attending the APEC summit in Peru due to the siege of the capital's airport, was yet to react to General Anupong Paochinda's remarks. The army commander also called on protesters to vacate the Suvarnabhumi airport, but the appeal went unheeded. Protest leader Suriyasai Katasila said the People’s Alliance for Democracy, which is running a four-month-old campaign to topple Wongsawat’s government, would maintain its occupation until it could discuss the matter. “We will send him (the premier) a letter to inform that he must dissolve the house and call new elections,” General Paojinda told reporters after a meeting of top government officials, think-tank members, economists and security officials to take stock of the situation. The army chief hastened to add that he was neither trying to stage a “coup” nor “pressuring” the government. “This is not a coup,” he said. “The government still has full authority. These points are the way to solve the problem, which has plunged the country into a deep crisis.” “As army chief, if I launch a coup the problems would be solved once and for all. But there would be a lot of consequences, including the international reaction,” he said. The General said the authorities were concerned over the collapse of law and order in the city and the closure of the airport, which has put passengers to unthinkable trouble. The army has joined forces with the police, navy and air force to prevent clashes between pro and anti-government activists, he was quoted as saying by TNA news agency. The protesters were adamant in their demand for the resignation of the premier. "The solution is not the dissolution of Parliament. If premier Somchai (Wongsawat) resigns then we will talk again about whether we will negotiate,” protest leader Pibhop Dhongchai said. All flights to Bangkok have also been cancelled by major airlines, as the airport remained closed since last night after violent protesters armed with metal rods stormed in, demanding to know the flight schedule of the Prime Minister. Two people were wounded in a blast near the premises. At the airport it was complete chaos as angry foreign travellers, bleary and tired, desperately wanted information how to leave the country. AirAsia, Thai and Malaysian Airlines said they had stopped all flights into the Thai capital, while some incoming ones have been diverted to other airports in the country, including Don Muang, Chiang Mai and Phuket. The PAD has accused the Somchai government of being a puppet of former premier Thaksin Shinawatra who is on the run. Though Thailand has seen coups and protests in the recent past, the current campaign has taken a violent streak with street clashes, grenade attacks and use of guns by anti-government protesters. Eleven government supporters were injured in the firing. Early in the day, eight persons were injured in separate grenade attacks at Don Muang Airport near the main Suvarnabhumi airport and on a main street in Bangkok. — PTI
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Bangkok, November 26 Runways at the Suvarnabhumi airport remained inactive with all flights in and out of Bangkok halted, leaving thousands of passengers, including Indians, stranded in the country. Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat, who returned to the country after attending an APEC summit in Peru, dismissed a demand by army chief General Anupong Paochinda to dissolve parliament and call fresh elections to resolve the crisis. — PTI
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Man jailed for repeatedly raping daughters
London, November 26 The 56-year-old man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, made his daughters pregnant 19 times over a 25-year period of abuse. He was jailed for life at Sheffield Crown Court in northern England and must serve a minimum 19 and a half years. Judge Alan Goldsack ordered him to serve 25 life sentences concurrently. In court last month, the Sheffield man admitted 25 rapes and four indecent assaults. He made his elder daughter pregnant seven times, fathering two surviving children by her. Two other babies died the day they were born. He made his younger daughter pregnant 12 times. She has five surviving children. The case bears similarities to that of Austrian Josef Fritzl, who fathered seven children with his daughter, whom he kept locked in a dungeon for 24 years, before being discovered in April. The court heard how the man terrified his children and locked them up when he was away. The daughters said in a statement through the police: "His detention in prison brings us only the knowledge that he cannot physically touch us again. "The suffering he caused will continue for many years and we must now concentrate our thoughts on finding the strength to rebuild our lives." The man, who refused to attend the hearing, took pleasure in fathering children by his daughters and threatened to beat them if they refused to have sex with him, the court heard.
— AFP
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Hanoi, November 26 During her two-day stay here, Patil will meet President Nguyen Minh Triet, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung and general secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Nong Duc Manh to discuss ways and means to enhance the bilateral ties. The high-level visit is expected to give a fresh momentum to the bilateral relations encompassing political, economic and cultural ties with the important country in the South East Asian region. Patil, who flew here from Ho Chi Minh City, was received warmly by chairman of Vietnam President’s Office Nguyen Van Chiev at the airport. The President would be given a ceremonial welcome tomorrow followed by her talks with the Vietnamese President. — PTI
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It’s Nepal’s internal matter, says Pranab
Bishnu Budhathoki writes from Kathmandu Visiting Indian external affairs minister Pranab Mukherjee on Wednesday dubbed the contentious issue of the integration of the CPN (Maoist) into the Nepal Army as an “internal matter of Nepal". Before wrapping up his three-day visit to Nepal, Mukherjee said while responding to a query about the Indian view on the integration of 19,500 Maoist combatants confined inside the UN-monitored cantonments into the Nepal Army. “What we (India) can suggest is that the peace process, which has been initiated by all political parties, should be implemented through consensus,” he said. Hinting towards the future political course of Nepal, he said, “An ultimate objective will be multi-party democracy, through the process of consensus and draft the new constitution, which will fulfil the aspirations of the people of Nepal.” Expressing best wishes for the successful and timely completion of the process to draft a new constitution, he said, “Every ingredient in that process should be adhered to consensus.” He claimed that the main purpose to visit Nepal was to continue the process of regular high-level exchanges between the two friendly countries, review the progress on bilateral cooperation, meet political leaders and take forward the process of strengthening bilateral relations.
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Practise yoga without chanting mantras: Malaysia PM tells Muslims
Kuala Lumpur, November 26 Abdullah’s remarks come after a ruling by this Muslim-majority country’s National Fatwa Council that yoga was haram (forbidden) as it involved chanting which was against Islamic teachings and that people could deviate from Islamic faith if they performed yoga which has its roots in Hinduism. “I wish to state that a physical regime with no elements of worship can continue, meaning, it is not banned. I believe that Muslims are not easily swayed into polytheism,” Abdullah told national news agency
Bernama. — PTI
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Pak group hacks 5 Indian websites
A Pakistani group has claimed to have hacked five Indian websites in retaliation to an alleged earlier act of hacking.
The group naming itself Pakistan Cyber Army (PCA) hacked the websites -- www.ongcindia.com, www.syscontech.in/, www.iirs.gov.in/, www.ctram.indianrail.gov.in/, and www.kvrtm.org.in/. The PCA alleged that Indian hackers had been playing around with Pakistani communities and defacing its websites for a long time.
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UN human rights award for Benazir Churches find ‘chocolate Jesus’ tasteless 125-yr-old rail company 
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