A round-up of today's other stories in brief
Two killed in Turkish tea garden blast
ISTANBUL - Two people were killed and nine injured yesterday in an explosion at a cafe in southeast Turkey, said the Anatolian news agency.
Turkey was rocked by a series of bomb attacks at the end of August in which three people were killed and dozens wounded. A Kurdish militant group claimed responsibility for those blasts.
A police officer was one of those killed in yesterday's explosion which occurred at around 9pm (1800 GMT) in the Gumus tea garden in the district of Van. - (Reuters)
Scores die in fresh Afghan fighting
ISLAMABAD - As military investigators combed through the crash site of the Nimrod reconnaissance aircraft in western Kandahar yesterday, which killed all 14 British servicemen on board on Saturday, fresh fighting erupted nearby, killing four Canadian soldiers and scores of Taliban.
A large force of foreign and Afghan soldiers supported by artillery and helicopter gunships swept through Panjwayi district, a notorious rebel stronghold, aiming to dislodge hundreds of Taliban fighters from village bases where they have been fortifying their defences for the past month, possibly in preparation for an attack on Kandahar city. - (Guardian service)
Record number reach Canaries
MADRID - A record number of African migrants - 674 in 24 hours - reached the shores of the Spanish Canary Islands at the weekend crammed into eight rickety boats that set sail from Mauritania, officials said.
The number of migrants landing at the Canary Islands has risen steadily this summer. Close to 6,000 arrived in August, compared with 4,751 for the whole of 2005. - (Guardian service)
Chemical spill causes fish kill
MADRID - A coating of toxic chemicals has spread at least two miles along a river in Spain's shellfish centre, Galicia, killing hundreds of fish and cutting off drinking water to an estimated 100,000 people.
The cloudy, turquoise slick was caused by a fire at a chemical plant on Friday, regional officials said. - (Guardian service)
Call for inquiry into Olmert posts
JERUSALEM - Israel's state comptroller yesterday called for a criminal investigation of prime minister Ehud Olmert under suspicions of impropriety regarding past political appointments, Israeli media reported.
The state comptroller recommended that the attorney general order an inquiry into appointments Mr Olmert made when he was industry and trade minister in 2004. - (Reuters)