Paris - French President Nicolas Sarkozy, angered by protest incidents in the past, is now paying visits to local communities with protection provided by hundreds of police and gendarmes, officials confirmed Thursday.

A visit to the Loire valley town of Daumeray with a population of 1,600, took place with 700 police providing security, the gendarme office in Angers said.

Sarkozy visited a farm there, where he made remarks about modernisation taking place in French agriculture.

Berlin  - European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso on Wednesday spoke of concerns that Europe's markets could face further destabilzation.

He made his comments during a meeting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

"We are worried about a further destabilization of the financial markets and economies," Barroso said. He added that further measures were being considered, such as regulations for hedge funds, investment funds and management compensation packages.

Washington  - Leon Panetta pledged that US intelligence assessments will be independent of political influence after he was sworn in Thursday as head of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).

Panetta, a former US congressman, said it was crucial that the CIA provide "honest" reviews of the security threats facing the United States, in an implicit swipe at former president George W Bush's handling of intelligence during his eight years in office.

Baghdad  - A coalition led by Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al- Maliki won a majority of seats in Iraq's Basra province and a near majority in the capital of Baghdad, Iraq's electoral commission announced on Thursday.

In the southern province of Basra, al-Maliki's State of Law coalition won 20 out of the province's 35 seats, Iraqi news agency the Voices of Iraq (VOI) reported.

The province, known for its oil, is an important victory for the Iraqi premier.

Washington  - A key gauge of US economic performance rose higher than expected in January despite the country's ongoing recession, according to a private research group Thursday.

The New York-based Conference Board's index of leading economic indicators was up 0.4 per cent, after climbing a revised 0.2 per cent in December of last year.

The index, which is designed to measure the economy's performance over the coming three to six months, has fallen 1.9 per cent since July.

New Delhi, Feb 19: Former Indian cricket captain Mohammad Azharuddin is all set to join the Congress Party.

The All India Congress Committee (AICC) General Secretary Veerrappa Moily, in an interview to Times Now declared on Thursday that Azharuddin would be given primary membership in the party.

However, they are still to decide the constituency from where he will contest the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections.