Tokyo/Washington, Nov 24
Japan and ally the United States sharply criticised China's move to impose new rules on airspace over islands in the East China Sea at the heart of a territorial dispute with Tokyo, warning of an escalation into the "unexpected" if Beijing enforces the rules.

China's government-run Xinhua news agency published coordinates for a newly-established 'East China Sea Air Defense Identification Zone', which covers most of that sea and includes the skies over the disputed islands. Beijing warned it would take "defensive emergency measures" against aircraft that failed to identify themselves properly in the airspace.

Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida said the move was unacceptable. "It could well lead to an unforeseen situation," he told reporters on Sunday. Ties between the Asian powers have been strained for months by the dispute over the islands that are currently under Japanese administrative control.

US Secretary of State John Kerry urged China to exercise caution and restraint, saying freedom of overflight was essential to stability and security in the Pacific. "We urge China not to implement its threat to take action against aircraft that do not identify themselves or obey orders from Beijing," he said in a statement. "We remain steadfastly committed to our allies and partners, and hope to see a more collaborative and less confrontational future in the Pacific."

Xinhua said in a commentary the "air zone could contribute to regional peace and security by curbing the increasing rampancy of Japan's right-wing forces, as well as the continuous and dangerous provocations of Japanese politicians, which even Washington should be vigilant against".

Tokyo lodged a strong protest through the Chinese embassy, calling the action "totally unacceptable" and warning that the overlap of the air defence identification zone could lead to an "unexpected occurrence of accidents in the airspace".

A senior diplomat in China's Tokyo embassy, Han Zhiqiang, dismissed Tokyo's protests, saying in a statement that "Japan has no right to make irresponsible remarks". — Reuters

Bangkok, November 24
At least 1 lakh anti-government protesters demanding the resignation of the Thai Prime Minister flooded the streets here, while pro-government supporters massed in rival rallies in the most serious confrontation in Thailand since the 2010 bloody protests.

Opponents of Yingluck Shinawatra converged on the streets of Bangkok on a call given by the Opposition to topple the government, even as the police feared violence. The protesters alleged Yingluck's government is controlled by her fugitive brother Thaksin Shinawatra, who was forced to quit as the Prime Minister in 2006. He has since lived in exile except for a short visit to Thailand in 2008.

A massive security net was cast over the Thai capital after former opposition Democrat MP Suthep Thaugsuban gave a call to "root out the Thaksin regime". The Ratchdamnoen Avenue, where the Democracy Monument is located, was packed with anti-government demonstrators.

Pro-government supporters, the Red Shirts, also gathered in huge numbers, raising a possibility of clashes between the two groups, the most serious confrontation since the bloody 2010 protests.

Piya Uthayo of the Centre for the Administration of Peace and Order said there may be attempts to spark violence between the two groups of protesters. — PTI

Kabul, November 24
An Afghan grand assembly today endorsed a crucial security agreement allowing some US troops to stay on after 2014, although President Hamid Karzai set conditions for signing the deal.

The 50 groups making up the "loya jirga" gathering of about 2,500 chieftains, tribal elders and politicians gave unanimous backing to the pact at the end of four days of discussions under tight security in Kabul.

The assembly urged Karzai to sign by the end of the year the Bilateral Security Agreement (BSA) governing the presence of the troops after 2014, the date for most NATO combat forces to pull out.

Karzai told the opening of the meeting on Thursday that the deal would not be signed until after April's presidential election -- sparking a strong response from Washington, which wants it sealed by the end of this year. A closing statement agreed by delegates asked him to sign before the end of 2013.

"Given the current situation, and Afghanistan's need... the contents of this agreement as a whole is endorsed by the members of this Loya Jirga," said the statement read by jirga deputy Fazul Karim Imaq.

In his response, Karzai did not explicitly address when the deal would be signed, but he stressed that it would only proceed under certain conditions.

These included US "cooperation" in Afghanistan's efforts to make peace with the Taliban. — AFP

Dhaka, November 24
Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina today renewed her appeal to the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) to join the "all-party" government to oversee the general election, saying she is willing to offer any ministry opposition leader Khaleda Zia wants for her party in the cabinet.

"Send names of your party lawmakers, they will be given portfolios whichever you want... let us join hands to stage a peaceful and credible election," Hasina said in a meeting with Awami League's nomination seekers. She urged Zia to join the polls process as there were doubts if the BNP would join the polls under a government led by Hasina.

Hasina reiterated her call to BNP to join the government three days after she dropped 30 ministers and redistributed portfolios in the newly-constituted "multi or all-party" cabinet in the run-up to the election to be held before January 25 next year under a constitutional deadline.

"Only BNP did not join the all-party cabinet. Therefore, I request the opposition leader to send lawmakers to join the cabinet," Hasina said.

A BNP-led 18-party opposition coalition with fundamentalist Jamaat-e-Islami being its major partner has been spearheading a street campaign demanding formation of a "non-party" neutral government for overseeing the polls. The coalition has called the "all-party cabinet" a farce, saying elections under Hasina would not be "credible".

Meanwhile, Awami League general secretary and local government minister Syed Ashraful Islam held a 45-minute meeting with BNP's secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Isam Alamgir at the residence of an opposition lawmaker, private TV channels and newspapers reported at around midnight.

Though Alamgir denied the reports, a senior BNP leader later confirmed the reported meeting but said it ended without any major headway. — PTI

New York, November 24
A 28-year-old Indian-origin man has been arrested in the US on hate crime charges after he allegedly assaulted a Jewish man as part of so-called "knock-out attacks".

Amrit Marajh of Brooklyn is charged with aggravated harassment as a hate crime, assault as a hate crime and misdemeanour assault, the New York Police Department said.

The arrest came amid investigations by law enforcement officials into increasing incidents of random "knock-out attacks" where young assailants try to knock out unsuspecting victims with a punch.

Police say Marajh assaulted a 24-year-old Jewish man wearing a yarmulke on Friday in Brooklyn after he was talking about the knockout games with three other men. A report in the New York Daily News said Marajh voiced an anti-Semitic statement before attacking his victim.

All four men were taken into police custody shortly after the early morning attack but only Marajh is believed to have participated in the assault. — PTI