Beirut - Fatah al-Islam, an al-Qaeda-linked militant movement, on Monday denied any links with the September 27 bomb attack in the Syrian capital that killed 17 people.

"We deny any involvement in the Damascus blast ... and the allegations which were shown on (Syrian) television," Fatah al-Islam said in a statement faxed to the media in Beirut.

The statement followed allegations by alleged Fatah al-Islam members in a 40-minute television report aired on state-run television in Syria last week.

Prague - The Czech Republic may set a eurozone entry date next year if the country shows it can meet the adoption criteria in the long run, Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek said Monday.

Speaking to reporters after meeting Czech bankers, Topolanek said that the country should focus on catching up with the eurozone rather than on setting the euro target amid the global financial crisis.

"Next year will reveal whether we are meeting the criteria, whether we can meet them in the long term," he said.

Doda (J-K), Nov 10 : Secu

Stockholm - Stockholm-based Carnegie Investment Bank AB lost its operating license Monday and has been taken over by the Swedish National Debt Office.

The Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority (FSA) on Monday said Carnegie during a long period of time had taken "exceptional risks" by giving large loans to a single client.

Carnegie has been under review by the financial watchdog since it recently disclosed a writedown of 1 billion kronor (126 million dollars) over "an individual credit commitment" in its third-quarter report.

Abuja - German President Horst Koehler signed two bilateral economic policy accords with Nigeria on Monday, after calling for a permanent seat for Africa on the United Nations Security Council.

Koehler, continuing his six-day visit to Nigeria, said that in efforts to reform the UN Security Council, there must be a "fair representation of Africa," although he did not specify which country should be considered to hold the seat.

Nagpur, Nov 10 : India sealed their first test series victory over Australia in seven years on Monday after Amit Mishra and Harbhajan Singh spun the hosts to a resounding 172-run win in the fourth and final test.

Speaking to media today in the post match news conference in Nagpur, which hosted the last match batsman Saurav Ganguly said that the performance is more than satisfactory.