MADRID: Roman Polanski`s political thriller "The Ghost Writer" picked up the critics` award for best picture as the San Sebastian film festival got underway here Friday.Polanski "is an author in every sense" and "every aspect of this prize is his," said British actress Olivia Williams,

UNITED NATIONS:The United Nations on Friday appealed for a record two billion dollars in emergency aid for the millions of victims of Pakistan`s devastating floods.The Pakistan floods are "the worst natural disaster the United Nations has responded to in its 65-year history," UN Secretary

KABUL: Insurgents launched a rocket attack in Kabul on Saturday as Afghanistan went to the polls to elect a new parliament, with security forces on full alert after Taliban threats to derail the vote.The election is the latest step in a US-led process to bring democracy to the

KABUL (AFP) – Afghans braved sporadic rocket and bomb attacks to vote for a new parliament Saturday, with the war-weary nation on full security alert after the Taliban threatened to derail the high-stakes election.At least two people were killed after polling stations opened and UN and

UNITED NATIONS: UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon announced a 40-billion-dollar Wednesday drive to improve the health of women and children, which he said would save millions of lives around the world.Governments, philanthropists and private groups pledged the cash, giving a spectacular

JERUSALEM: A Palestinian was shot dead by an Israeli guard in east Jerusalem on Wednesday during clashes between Israeli settlers and Palestinians, police and witnesses said.Another two Palestinians were wounded as the guard, whose job was "to protect Jewish residents," opened fire

KABUL: President Hamid Karzai Friday called on all Afghans, including Taliban militants, to vote in the country`s parliamentary election at the weekend."We hope that our people in every corner of our country, in every city of our country and every province will go to polling stations and

TOKYO: Japan`s Prime Minister Naoto Kan of the centre-left Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) on Friday announced a sweeping reshuffle of his cabinet. Here is the new ministerial line-up:Post NameFinance Yoshihiko NodaForeign Affairs Seiji Maehara (new)Economy, Trade and Industry Akihiro

COLOMBO: At least 27 people were killed including two Chinese contractors in eastern Sri Lanka on Friday after an accidental blast at an explosives depot at a police station, a military spokesman told AFP.Military spokesman Major General Ubaya Medawala told AFP that police were issuing

Kathmandu: Nepal`s opposition Maoist party Friday announced it was pulling out of the prime ministerial race with chief and former prime minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda withdrawing his candidature from the vote scheduled for Sep 26.The former guerrillas reached the decision after

SEOUL: North and South Korean officials held talks Friday about restarting reunions for families separated by war 60 years ago, as tension on the peninsula showed signs of easing.Tens of thousands of Koreans on both sides have not seen family members since the 1950-53 war divided the

Bogota: Police in the Colombian city of Barranquilla "arrested" a parrot after it helped several alleged drug dealers and thieves get away during a raid, the daily El Heraldo reported.The incident happened Wednesday, when close to 300 police officers arrived to raid a house following

Khartoum: At least 37 people were killed and 26 wounded after a bus collided with another vehicle on a highway in Sudan`s White Nile state, south of Khartoum, authorities said Thursday.After the collision, the bus caught fire and all its passengers were burnt, Xinhua reported.Sudan has

BRUSSELS: French President Nicolas Sarkozy stunned a European summit Thursday, clashing with top officials and tripping up on a claim that Germany was about to copy controversial Roma deportations.Sarkozy angrily rejected suggestions by the European Union`s justice commissioner that drew

KAKUMA: The 75,000 refugees camped under the burning sun on a rocky plain in Kenya`s arid northwest represent a cross-section of east Africa`s various wars and crises.From Somalia, south Sudan, Darfur, Ethiopia and Rwanda, all have made their way to the town of Kakuma -- close to nowhere

SEOUL: A South Korean team crossed the heavily fortified border to North Korea Friday for talks about restarting reunions for separated families, as tension on the peninsula showed signs of easing."It is an urgent task to help separated families reunite with their relatives. We must not

WASHINGTON: The number of people living in poverty in the United States leapt by nearly four million last year to 43.7 million, the highest number since the US Census began collecting data on America`s poor 51 years ago, officials said Thursday.One in seven people lived below the poverty

TOKYO: Japan`s cabinet resigned Friday, paving the way for a reshuffle by Prime Minister Naoto Kan later in the day, ministers told reporters.Justice Minister Keiko Chiba and Administrative Reform Minister Renho confirmed to reporters that they had all handed in their resignations.Kan is

AMMAN: US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on Thursday that the Israeli and Palestinian leaders are committed and serious about making peace, which is "within reach."She was speaking in Amman after talks with Jordanian King Abdullah II as this week`s thorny negotiations continue

WASHINGTON: Afghanistan`s upcoming parliamentary elections will be "better" than the 2009 presidential ballot that was marred by widespread fraud, a senior US official said Thursday."We`ve seen progress" with Afghanistan`s Independent Election Commission (IEC) and Electoral Complaints