DHAKA: Japan’s nuclear authority plans to conduct radiation contamination surveys at 600,000 points on the seabed off the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant, up from 200 places so far.A report said on Saturday, according to The Straits Times.The Nuclear Regulation Authority is to survey

DHAKA: India’s Hindu nationalist party scrambled on Saturday to win support from the movement’s most senior leader over a decision to appoint controversial politician Narendra Modi as candidate for premier in looming elections.Senior leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP),

DHAKA: British foreign secretary William Hague on Saturday welcomed a US-Russian deal to eliminate Syria’s chemical weapons and said there would be ‘urgent work’ to implement it.‘Have spoken to (US) Secretary (of State John) Kerry. UK welcomes US-Russia agreement on #Syria

DHAKA: A suicide bomber killed at least 21 people at the funeral of a member of Iraq’s Shabak minority in the northern province of Nineveh on Saturday.Iraq’s security and medical sources said, reports The Straits Times.The attack took place in Bartella, some 25km east of Mosul,

DHAKA: UN leader Ban Ki Moon on Saturday welcomed a Russian-US deal on Syria’s chemical weapons and hopes it will lead to efforts to end the ‘appalling suffering’ of Syrians.A spokeswoman said, reports The Straits Times.Ban has the ‘fervent hope’ that the deal reached in Geneva

DHAKA: Syria’s rebel Free Syrian Army chief rejected on Saturday a US-Russian deal to eliminate Syria’s chemical weapons by mid-2014.‘We cannot accept any part of this initiative,’ General Selim Idriss told reporters in Istanbul, according to The Straits Times.He preceded that by

DHAKA: A South Korean court has detained a Chinese luxury cruise liner, stranding more than 2,300 passengers and crew members since late Friday.The Chinese tour operator HNA Cruise said in a statement on Saturday that the court in the port of Jeju acted upon a request of a Chinese company

DHAKA: Japan has launched the first in a new generation of space rockets, hoping the design will make missions more affordable.The Epsilon rocket is about half the size of Japan’s previous generation of space vehicles, and uses artificial intelligence to perform safety checks.Japan’s

DHAKA: Philippine officials say government troops have started to battle their way into coastal villages in the south held by Muslim rebels with scores of hostages to end a six-day standoff that has left 56 people dead.Philippines interior secretary Mar Roxas said on Saturday government

DHAKA: An Egyptian court on Saturday resumed the trial of toppled dictator Hosni Mubarak, who is accused of complicity in the deaths of protesters during the 2011 uprising against his rule.State television broadcast footage of Mubarak appearing in the court in a wheelchair. He was dressed

DHAKA: United States president Barack Obama said on Saturday he was willing to give a chance to diplomacy to help resolve the Syrian crisis, but warned the military option was still on the table.‘We need to see concrete actions to demonstrate that (Syrian president Bashar al-) Assad is

DHAKA: Syria must give inspectors access to all chemical weapons ahead of their complete destruction, US and Russia agree.US state secretary John Kerry outlined a six-point framework under which Syria must hand over a full list of its stockpile within a week.He said the deal could be

DHAKA: United States president Barack Obama’s visit to the Philippines next month will help expand security ties with its longtime Asian ally.The Filipino government said on Saturday, reports The Straits Times.The White House announced on Friday that Obama will make a four-nation Asia

DHAKA: United States First Lady Michelle Obama, known for urging US children to be more active and eat their vegetables, began a new health push this week by touting the benefits of drinking water.But exactly how much water to drink remains murky, and some consumer advocates question

DHAKA: A powerful bomb blast in India’s restive north-east - plagued for decades by separatist violence - has killed nine labourers and injured about 21 other people.The police said on Saturday, reports The Straits Times.The explosion took place late on Friday in a busy area on the

DHAKA: Al-Qaida leader Ayman al-Zawahri has described the army-installed government’s crackdown against the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt as a ‘brutal crime’ and urged Egyptians to resist what he called a campaign against Islam in their country.Security forces have killed hundreds of

DHAKA: A date for the next talks between Iran and six global powers seeking to ensure Tehran does not develop nuclear arms could be set during meetings on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly this month.Iran’s president Hassan Rohani said on Friday, The Jerusalem Post

DHAKA: With the grandiloquence befitting such an occasion, Simon Watt, the British biologist, television personality and "president for life" of the Ugly Animal Preservation Society, made the long-anticipated announcement Thursday night."The votes have been counted and verified," said

DHAKA: US President Barack Obama travels to four Asian nations for three economic summits between Oct. 6-12, the White House announced Friday.The stops are in Indonesia, Brunei, Malaysia and the Philippines.From the White House:"In Indonesia, he will attend the Asia Pacific Economic

DHAKA: Even as they trade barbs publicly -- and even as artillery shells and accusations continue to fly in Syria -- the United States and Russia could take solace Friday in at least one respect: They are still talking.Discussions between the two in Geneva -- centered around Moscow`s