Foreign Desk

This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.

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CENTRAL ASIA


SUSPECTED TALIBAN LEADERS ARRESTED


KABUL, Afghanistan – Information from a man caught in a vehicle loaded with explosives led to the arrests of two senior Taliban military commanders, including a former security chief of the hard-line regime’s leader, Mullah Omar, an official said yesterday. Mullah Naqvi and Mullah Qayum were active in the ousted regime’s insurgency and were believed to be responsible for a series of terror attacks in southern Afghanistan, said Abdullah Laghmani, the intelligence chief in Kandahar province. Both men were on “most-wanted” lists, Mr. Laghmani said. During the Taliban’s rule, Mr. Naqvi was in charge of security for Mr. Omar’s home in Kandahar city, and Mr. Qayum served as a military commander in the province, said Mr. Laghmani. It was unclear if either man might have information on the whereabouts of Mr. Omar, who vanished with Osama bin Laden as American-led forces ousted the Taliban government in late 2001. American embassy officials had no comment on the arrests, and there was no word on whether the men might be handed over to American officials for questioning.


– Associated Press


SOUTH ASIA


REBELS COORDINATE BOMBINGS IN INDIA


GAUHATI, India – Suspected separatist insurgents launched a series of coordinated bombings yesterday across India’s northeastern state of Assam, killing two people and wounding at least 44, police said. The six attacks – two were bombs hidden in bicycle bags, three were grenade attacks, and another was a bomb set off outside a railway station – were in Gauhati, the capital of Assam, and other towns in the state. The attacks came a day after two bombs exploded near a crowded Gauhati market, killing two police officers and wounding seven civilians. No one claimed responsibility for yesterday’s attacks, but police suspect some of the dozens of separatist groups that have been fighting Indian security forces in the region for decades. The first bomb, apparently set with a timer, was hidden in a bicycle bag in a crowded market in the town of Morigaon, 50 miles east Gauhati, and injured 25 people, said the inspector general of police, Khagen Sarma. Another bicycle bomb went off later outside a police station in the nearby town of Nagaon, killing two and injuring 15, he said.


– Associated Press


SOUTHERN AFRICA


OPPOSITION DEMANDS FRESH ELECTIONS IN MOZAMBIQUE


Twenty opposition parties united yesterday to demand a rerun of Mozambique’s presidential and parliamentary elections, claiming widespread fraud. The parties, led by the main opposition, Renamo, accused the ruling Frelimo and National Electoral Commission of rigging the December 1-2 vote. “Our Frelimo brothers should know that what they committed is not merely fraud, but serious crime, and this means that democracy is in jeopardy,” Renamo candidate and former rebel leader Afonso Dhlakama said. Leaders of the 20 parties – including all 16 who contested the elections – met in the capital, Maputo, yesterday to draft a memorandum outlining their grievances. They plan to address the letter to the European Union, World Bank, International Monetary Fund, African Union, and Mozambique’s attorney general. Mr. Dhlakama has accused Frelimo of preventing millions from casting ballots by misplacing or manipulating electoral rolls.


– Associated Press


EASTERN EUROPE


UKRAINE’S ORANGE REVOLUTION TAKES TO THE ROAD


Supporters of opposition leader Viktor Yushchenko took the so-called Orange Revolution on the road yesterday, piling into cars and buses for a 10-day odyssey to spread their message beyond the capital, targeting eastern provinces largely hostile to their candidate. With sirens blaring and trademark orange flags unfurled, more than 150 opposition supporters left Kiev, hoping to win over voters in areas where support for Mr. Yushchenko’s opponent, Viktor Yanukovich, has been strong. The two candidates face off in a December 26 rematch following a Supreme Court ruling that annulled a fraud-tainted November 21 runoff in which Mr. Yanukovich claimed victory. “We would like the spirit of civil resistance to reach everyone’s heart,” said a 34-year-old businessman from the western city of Lviv, Vasyl Kuderiavets. “Everyone wants to be free. But not everyone realizes that.” Compelled by Mr. Yushchenko’s appeal to abandon protests and take up the election campaign, artists, musicians, businessmen, and filmmakers set off on a journey many said was necessary because the state-run press had blocked news of their movement from reaching the rest of this former Soviet republic. They plan to show videos of the protests from Kiev’s Independence Square, to organize rallies – and to leave graffiti on every gray wall they find.


– Associated Press


CENTRIST ALLIANCE TO FORM GOVERNMENT


BUCHAREST, Romania – President-elect Traian Basescu opened talks yesterday to form a coalition government with a party formerly allied with his opponent and one representing ethnic Hungarians. Prime Minister Nastase’s Social Democratic Party said it would also seek enough support in Parliament to form a government. Mr. Basescu, the reformist former mayor of Bucharest, defeated Mr. Nastase in the runoff vote Sunday, ending a decade of rule by successors to the country’s former Communist regime. He has pledged to fight corruption, prepare Romania to join the European Union by 2007, and forge closer ties to America and Great Britain to ensure the country’s security. Mr. Basescu is a strong supporter of the American-led war in Iraq and has said he wants Romania’s contingent of 700 troops to remain in the fight. As president, Mr. Basescu has the critical power to appoint a prime minister, but his choice needs parliamentary approval.


– Associated Press


SOUTHEAST ASIA


BUDDHIST TEACHER KILLED IN THAILAND


BANGKOK, Thailand – Suspected Islamic rebels shot and killed a Buddhist high school teacher yesterday, and an upscale hotel closed because of the violence in Muslim-dominated southern Thailand. More than 550 people have died this year in attacks blamed on a revived Islamic separatist movement near the country’s mostly Buddhist border area with Muslim-majority Malaysia. Early yesterday, a gunman on the back of a motorcycle shot and killed 42-year-old teacher Pinyo Wongrukawej in Narathiwat province’s Sungai Padee district while he drove to work with his wife. “We believe that the insurgents were responsible for the shooting,” said police Lieutenant Nethiwut Kingkhaew. Later in the day, the Narathiwat Chamber of Commerce chairman, Panya Hongtrakul, said the Royal Princess Hotel in Narathiwat’s capital will close January 1. It was not immediately clear if or when the hotel will reopen. Another southern hotel closed last month due to lack of business, Mr. Panya said.


– Associated Press


CARIBBEAN


U.N. TROOPS STORM PRO-ARISTIDE STRONGHOLD


PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti – Hundreds of U.N. peacekeeping troops stormed a stronghold of ousted President Aristide’s supporters yesterday, seeking control of areas that have become flashpoints of violence. At least four people were killed. Shootouts broke out between residents and U.N. troops who rolled into Cite Soleil before dawn, said a spokesman for the U.N. peacekeeping mission, Damian Onses-Cardona. At least six people were shot in the slum yesterday, including a 26-year-old woman, a 16-year-old boy, and a 13-year-old boy, all injured during gunfire exchanges between peacekeepers and residents. Violence has plagued Cite Soleil, a gritty slum outside Port-au-Prince, since September, when Aristide loyalists increased protests to demand his return from exile in South Africa. Since Mr. Aristide fled the country February 29 amid a three-week rebellion, Haiti’s American-backed government has struggled to stem violence committed by gangsters, pro-Aristide gangs, anti-Aristide gangs, and former soldiers who led the revolt. The ex-soldiers have grown frustrated with the government, which has yet to formally reinstate the army. As U.N. troops patrolled Cite Soleil yesterday, gunmen tore through a commercial area of the capital, shooting into the air, burning roadside stands, and looting.


– Associated Press

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NEW YORK SUN CONTRIBUTOR

This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.


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