News in Brief

Egypt govt resigns

Afp, Cairo
The government of Egyptian Prime Minister Hazem al-Beblawi said yesterday it has resigned, ahead of a presidential poll which will likely bring army chief Abdel Fattah al-Sisi to power.
Sisi, by far the country's most popular political figure, has not yet announced his candidacy for this spring's presidential election, but aides say he has already decided to run and will make the announcement soon.

Iran's Zarif plans India visit to revive ties

Afp, Tehran
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif will travel to India later this week as Tehran seeks to open a "new chapter" in relations with New Delhi, media reported yesterday.
Leading a high-ranking delegation, Zarif will hold talks with top Indian officials to bolster ties during the two-day visit that begins Thursday, the official IRNA news agency said.

Top Qaeda operative killed in Syria

Afp, Beirut
Al-Qaeda's representative in Syria was killed Sunday in a suicide bombing, the rebel Islamic Front announced on its Twitter account.
Abu Khalid al-Suri, who was appointed last year by Al-Qaeda chief Ayman al-Zawahiri as his representative, died in the northern city of Aleppo, said the group.

3rd Thai child dies from protest violence

Afp, Bangkok
A six-year-old girl died early yesterday from wounds sustained during a grenade attack on a busy Bangkok shopping area, hospital officials said, taking the number of children killed in Thai political violence over the weekend to three.
The attacks, which appear to mark an escalation of unrest in nearly four months of political crisis, earned condemnation from UN chief Ban Ki-moon while Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra labelled them "terrorist acts".

Stray Leopard sparks panic in Indian city

Afp, New Delhi
A leopard sparked panic in a north Indian city when it strayed inside a hospital, a cinema and an apartment block while evading captors, an official said yesterday.
Authorities closed schools and colleges in Meerut, 60 kilometres northeast of the Indian capital, after the leopard was discovered prowling the city's streets on Sunday, a senior city official said.