Rome- Police in southern Italy have arrested 29 Africans suspected of running a cocaine and heroin ring, officials said Thursday.
Two Italian nationals were also apprehended in overnight raids in the town of Castel Volturno near Naples, local carabinieri commander Carmelo Burgio told Deutsche Presse-Agentur, dpa.
Kabul - A would-be suicide bomber who was trying to target a US military convoy in Kabul was arrested by Afghan security forces, while seven Taliban militants were killed in two separate incidents in the southern region, officials said Thursday.
The would-be bomber was arrested in the Company area, located on western outskirts of Kabul city, on Wednesday as he was trying to target a convoy of US military forces which was passing by the area, the Interior Ministry said in a statement.
Krakow, Poland - NATO defence ministers Thursday were to discuss how to bolster the alliance's mission in Afghanistan amid record civilian casualties and US calls for greater troop numbers in the run-up to the country's presidential elections.
Ahead of the two-day informal meeting in the Polish city of Krakow, US Defence Secretary Robert Gates said his country was committed to defeating the Taliban insurgency through the deployment of an additional 17,000 soldiers, announced on Tuesday by US President Barack Obama.
Moscow - Kyrgyzstan's parliament approved on Thursday a government decision to shut down a US air base on its territory, which has been a crucial for supplying US and NATO troops in Afghanistan.
The decision was overwhelmingly passed with 78 votes for and 1 vote against, Russian news agencies reported.
The United States has 180 days to close the airbase in the Central Asian state, the head of the country's security council, Adukhan Madumarov said earlier.
There has been speculation that Russia had intensified pressure on the former Soviet republic to terminate the lease.
Oslo - The United Nations special envoy to Afghanistan aired disappointment Thursday over the European Union's efforts to train more police officers in Afghanistan and improve Afghanistan's justice system.
"I had hoped the EU would have been more active at an earlier stage," UN envoy Kai Eide said in an interview Thursday with Norwegian broadcaster NRK.
"A year ago they said they would raise the number of police trainers from 200 to 400, but I believe they still have not reached 200," Eide added.
"It is a pity that the Americans have had to carry the main burden for this too," he said.
Islamabad - Afghan President Hamid Karzai's visit to Islamabad scheduled for Thursday was postponed because of bad weather in Kabul, Pakistan's Foreign Affairs Ministry said.
"A new date for the visit will be announced soon," ministry spokesman Abdul Basit said.
Karzai had been scheduled to hold talks with Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani during his visit.
Rome- Police in southern Italy have arrested 29 Africans suspected of running a cocaine and heroin ring, officials said Thursday.
Kabul - A would-be suicide bomber who was trying to target a US military convoy in Kabul was arrested by Afghan security forces, while seven Taliban militants were killed in two separate incidents in the southern region, officials said Thursday.
Krakow, Poland - NATO defence ministers Thursday were to discuss how to bolster the alliance's mission in Afghanistan amid record civilian casualties and US calls for greater troop numbers in the run-up to the country's presidential elections.
Moscow - Kyrgyzstan's parliament approved on Thursday a government decision to shut down a US air base on its territory, which has been a crucial for supplying US and NATO troops in Afghanistan.
Islamabad - Afghan President Hamid Karzai's visit to Islamabad scheduled for Thursday was postponed because of bad weather in Kabul, Pakistan's Foreign Affairs Ministry said.
