A roundup of today's other stories in brief.
Mexican court rules in favour of Calderon
MEXICO CITY - Ruling party conservative Felipe Calderon was finally declared Mexico's president-elect yesterday, ending a two-month legal battle over election fraud claims that has plunged the nation into crisis.
Seven judges at Mexico's top electoral court unanimously ruled that the July 2nd vote was not rigged and that pro-business candidate Calderon won by a razor-thin margin of about 234,000 votes out of some 41 million cast.
But left-wing candidate Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador vows not to recognise Calderon as president and protests by leftists are expected to continue, putting Mexico's stability at risk for months to come. - (Reuters)
Series of errors blamed for crashes
CAIRO - An Egyptian government inquiry into the causes of Egypt's deadliest rail accident in four years yesterday blamed a series of human, technical and administrative failures for the crash that killed 58 people last month.
The train crash in the Nile Delta town of Qalyoub on August 21st was the first in a string of Egyptian transport accidents over the past two weeks that have sparked public anger at what critics call a government failure to enforce safety standards. - (Reuters)
Saatchis are not working for Tories
LONDON - The Tories denied yesterday that they had dumped the Saatchi brothers, with whom they have worked since 1979, in favour of a new advertising agency. The brothers, who created the "Labour isn't working" posters - which some say helped Margaret Thatcher into power - have not done any campaign work for the Conservative Party since last year.
The party said the Saatchi brothers were not replaced by the Karmarama agency, who were officially hired last week, as the contract with the brothers had ended. - (PA)
Cameron tour bus hits Indian woman
MUMBAI - British Conservative leader David Cameron's tour of India was marred yesterday by a road accident in which a woman was left seriously injured after being hit by a minibus carrying his aides.
The Tory leader said he was "shocked and saddened" after hearing that the elderly woman was badly hurt in the collision in Mumbai.
The woman, in her mid-60s, was hit by a minibus carrying Tory staff and journalists at about 12.30pm local time. - (Reuters)
Zuma supporters delay his trial
PIETERMARITZBURG - Thousands of noisy supporters chanted for former South African deputy president Jacob Zuma outside a court yesterday as a judge considered arguments on whether to proceed with his graft trial. The ceaseless chanting by supporters of the charismatic Zulu politician at times threatened to drown out lawyers' arguments.
The prosecution requested a delay of the politically charged case until mid-October to give it more time to prepare, while the defence pressed for a speedy trial or dismissal of the charges. Judge Herbert Msimang adjourned the hearing to today. - (Reuters)
'Athletic injury' floors Rumsfeld
WASHINGTON - Defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld underwent successful elective surgery to repair a shoulder injury described as "an old athletic injury" at a military hospital yesterday, the Pentagon said.
Mr Rumsfeld underwent surgery lasting less than two hours. "He's fine. He's recovering," said press secretary Eric Ruff, adding that the procedure had been scheduled and that there had been no complications. Mr Ruff said Mr Rumsfeld might be kept in hospital overnight. - (Reuters)