Bajaur Agency, Oct 15: At least 14 Taliban were killed last evening when Pakistani security forces targeted their hideouts in various areas of the strife-torn Bajaur Agency.

The security forces used jet aircraft, helicopter gunships and heavy artillery to destroy Taliban hideouts in Rashkai, Tang Khatta, Tangi, Chinar and Kotki areas of the agency. The forces bombed suspected Taliban hideouts twice in Charmang, Chinar and Kotki, the Daily Times quoted the sources as saying.

The fighting in Bajaur is some of the heaviest since the war on terror started in 2001.

New Delhi - With the global credit crisis leading to the worst slowdown in the Indian real estate market in recent times, agents and developers are hoping the festive season surrounding Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights, will drive away the gloom.

Coming at the end of October, Diwali will prove a crucial period for developers as many Indians consider it to be the start of the Hindu business year and an auspicious time to start new ventures, buy property and expensive consumer goods.

Beijing - As house sales and prices tumble in China amid heightened uncertainty brought by the global financial turmoil, millions of would-be first-time buyers are locked in a standoff with giant, government-backed property developers.

"Developers expect the government to save the market and loosen the control of property loans," said Zhou Fan, chairman of the Zuoyou Real Estate Consultancy, based in the southern city of Guangzhou.

"Consumers expect the government not to take measures and think prices are still too high," Zhou told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa.

Many buyers are waiting for an expected fall in property prices, depriving the developers of the advance cash they need to fund some larger projects.

Bangkok - Having lived and learned from the 1997 crisis, South-East Asia's property markets have so far proved resilient to the US subprime crisis and knock-on financial meltdown but they are far from immune to the global mess.

"No one can get off scot free from what's happening because global liquidity has been reduced and also the feel-good factor has gone," said David Simister, chairman of real estate company CB Richard Ellis Thailand.

"It will certainly create a slowdown and a market where for the next 18 months it's a bad time to be selling something but I don't see a situation where there will be a big slide in prices here," he added.

Tokyo - Asia's stock markets surged Tuesday after the governments of the world's leading industrial nations announced plans to fight the global financial crisis.

Tokyo's stocks rocketed Tuesday with the benchmark Nikkei 225 Stock Average rising 13 per cent in morning trading after Wall Street's overnight surge.

After being closed for a holiday Monday, the Nikkei rose more than 1,000 points to cross the important 9,000 barrier. Other markets in Asia also posted substantial gains.

Kabul - A woman and a child were killed in a rocket attack in eastern Afghanistan, while two Afghan private security guards and five suspected Taliban militants were killed elsewhere in the country, officials said Monday.

The woman, 55, and a 14-year-old boy were killed when a rocket fired allegedly by Taliban fighters hit their house in Khost city Sunday, Khost province police chief General Abdul Qayoum said.

Qayoum said two other children were wounded in the rocket attack that he blamed on Taliban militants.