Other world news in brief
Russia's main party boasts big poll wins
MOSCOW - Russia's ruling party cemented its grip on elected posts with big victories in local elections yesterday despite presiding over a deepening economic crisis, but the opposition complained of widespread cheating.
Political analysts said the level of complaints about the campaign and violations of electoral rules made it difficult to draw conclusions from the results of Sunday's elections for town and city councils, mayors and nine regional parliaments.
"The political field has been securely cleansed of any relevant opposition," Moscow Carnegie Centre analyst Maria Lipman said.
- (Reuters)
Zimbabwean activists freed
HARARE - Leading Zimbabwean human rights campaigner Jestina Mukoko and several other activists have been released on bail, her lawyer said yesterday.
The release of all detained activists had been demanded by Zimbabwe's prime minister Morgan Tsvangirai, who joined a powersharing government last month with President Robert Mugabe.
UN secretary general Ban Ki-moon and western countries who hold the key to funding for the reconstruction of Zimbabwe's economy have also called for the release of detainees. - (Reuters)
Chef favoured by Sarkozy wins star
PARIS - Eric Frechon, one of French president Nicolas Sarkozy's favourite chefs, won a coveted third star yesterday in the 2009 Michelin Guide, France's bible for gourmets.
However, the economic crisis loomed large at the unveiling of the Michelin handbook, with restaurateurs and critics warning that the recession might take a bite out of the industry.
The prestigious guide is celebrating its 100th anniversary. - (Reuters)
Oasis banned from China tour
BEIJING - Oasis said yesterday they were bewildered at news that the authorities had banned them from playing in China next month, deeming them "unsuitable".
The band blamed politics rather than rock'n'roll excess, saying officials had revoked their performance licences because they played at a Free Tibet benefit concert over a decade ago.
- (Guardian service)
21 injured as ski lifts plunge
MADRID - Several ski lifts plunged to the ground in the Spanish ski resort of Sierra Nevada yesterday, injuring 21 people, a Spanish government spokeswoman said. The lifts fell after a vibrating cable jerked screws out of one of the lift's pillars at the ski station in Andalusia. -(Reuters)