New York, Apr. 5 : Pakistan has rejected allegations made in a New York Times report that its Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agency was "colluding and supporting" Taliban elements against NATO forces in Afghanistan.

"Not only did it (ISI) eliminate scores of important Al Qaeda and Taliban leaders, but it also apprehended hundreds of their members, including key leaders," the Daily Times quoted Pakistan embassy spokesman Nadeem Kiani, as saying in Washington.

Kabul  - A NATO soldier was killed by a roadside bomb explosion in southern Afghanistan Saturday, while the Afghan and international forces killed 47 suspected Taliban and an Afghan women in separate operations elsewhere in the country, the military said.

In the latest incident, the soldier, who was a member of the NATO- led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) died of wounds he had sustained during a roadside bomb blast in the southern region, ISAF said in a statement.

Kabul, Apr. 4 : Facing strong criticism from the international community over his sanction of a new law that allows men to rape their wives legally, Afghanistan''s President Hamid Karzai has said he would order a review of it and possibly send back to parliament if it was found that women''s rights are being violated.

According to the Daily Express, Karzai said he had ordered the Justice Ministry to review the law and if anything in it contravened the country''s constitution or sharia law "measures will be taken".

Kabul - Afghan President Hamid Karzai defended Saturday a new family law for the country's Shiite minority, saying the concerns expressed by the international community over its anti-women's rights articles were based on poor translation or "misinterpretation."

The new law, which was recently passed by parliament and signed by Karzai, and is meant to legalize the Shiite family law, has sparked outcries among some Afghan women's rights activists and the international community.

Rome - Italian police inspecting a manhole at a railway station in Rome have discovered 24 children from Afghanistan living in makeshift shelter of cardboard and blankets.

Officials believe the children whose ages range from 10 to 15 travelled from Afghanistan unaccompanied by their parents, according to news reports Saturday.

It was not immediately clear when the children arrived in Italy, although it appears they may have spent some time in Turkey after leaving their homeland, officials said.

Washington - Uzbekistan has agreed to allow US non-military supplies to pass through its territory to reach neighbouring Afghanistan, US officials said Friday in a deal that could aid the US military in its fight against a growing insurgency in the region.

Goods covered by the agreement include food, medical supplies and building materials, State Department spokesman Robert Wood said. It follows similar agreements with other countries to the west of Afghanistan, including Russia, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan.