Tel Aviv - Prime minister-designate Benjamin Netanyahu moved closer to forming a majority government in the Israeli parliament early Monday, signing a coalition agreement with the ultra-Orthodox Shas party overnight.

Under the agreement Shas will receive four ministries, including housing and construction. Its leader, Eli Yishai, will be interior minister. The party also secured an increase in 1.4 billion Israeli shekels (about 350 million US dollars) in child allowances, a top priority for it because many of its supporters are large religious families with many children.

Imphal, Mar 22 : In order to threaten the political parties to stay away from the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, the cadres of Kangleipak Communist Party-Military Council (KCP-MC) are targeting the Congress leaders in Manipur.

Bishnupur District Congress Committee President Waikhom Maipak Singh was shot at on March 10 night at his residence at Lairenkabi in Bishnupur.

Militants also fired three bullets at the residence of Tilotama Devi, President, Manipur Pradesh Youth Congress Committee at Singjamei Liwa Lambi Road on March 14.

Chennai, Mar 22 : Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Tamil Nadu unit president L. Ganesan on Sunday said that his party would declare the `Ramasetu' a heritage monument, if his party voted to power at the Centre in the general elections.

"BJP will declare the `Ramasetu' a heritage monument, if the party voted to power at the Centre in the general elections," Ganesan said in a statement.

New Delhi, Mar 22 : Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief and Union Railway Minister Lalu Prasad on Sunday said that his party and the Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) would contest all seats in Bihar.

"The RJD and the LJP will contest all seats in Bihar," Prasad said.

Prasad, however, said that he has no rift with the Congress.

"If UPA returns to power it''s good otherwise there will be some other name," he added.

Sydney- Right-wing rabble-rouser Pauline Hanson looked set for a big compensation payout Sunday after an Australian newspaper admitted nude photographs it published purporting to be of her were of another woman.

"I've said all week I'd be the first person in Australia to apologise to Pauline Hanson if it were proven the photographs were not of her," Sunday Telegraph editor Neil Breen said. "We've proven it ourselves so, Pauline, I'm sorry."

Sydney - Yet again, opinion polls got the result of an Australian state election wrong and gamblers got it right.

Queensland Premier Anna Bligh was Sunday celebrating an historic fifth electoral victory for her underdog Labor Party, as the favoured the Liberal National Party was left wondering how the pollsters could get it so wrong.

Centrebet spokesman Neil Evans said the "smartest" money had been on Labor all along and 16 of the 20 biggest wagers had been for the incumbent to win - despite the pundits predicting their removal from power in Saturday's vote.