Yemeni negotiators hashing out a transfer of power that would have longtime President Ali Abdullah Saleh resign within days are stuck on crucial details concerning the fate of his relatives who lead the country's elite counterterrorism units, reports the WSJ.

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Senior BJP leader Venkaiah Naidu courted arrest near the Delhi Assembly on Friday demanding the resignation of Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit and action against Lieutenant-Governor Tejinder Khanna over the Shunglu Committee report that probed alleged irregularities in the conduct of the 2010 Commonwealth Games.

"This Delhi government is corrupt and it is proved in the Shunglu report. We demand resignation from the Chief Minister and action against all those ministers and officials indicted in the report," said Naidu before courting arrest in the presence of his party workers.

Read: Shunglu report indicts Sheila Dixit, Lt Guv

How GE made profits worth $14.2 billion but paid absolutely no taxes. And Hasan Ali Khan does not do their accounts. Read the NYT story.

The first fallout of radiation leakage from Japan's nuclear plants surfaced in China today as authorities found it in "alarmingly high levels" in a merchant ship and on two Japanese travellers coming from Tokyo.

China's quality watchdog said it has detected alarmingly high levels of radiation on two Japanese travellers who arrived in east China's Wuxi City from Tokyo.

The quality control bureau in Fujian province also reported "abnormal" levels of radiation on a Japanese merchant vessel which had arrived in east China's Xiamen port on Monday.

Significantly, one of two Japanese nationals came from Nagano Prefecture, about 350 km from the Fukushima Prefecture, where the radiation leaking Dai-Ichi nuclear power plant is located.

Syria's repressive leadership came under unexpectedly heavy pressure on Thursday as thousands of angry demonstrators massed again in the southern city of Dara'a, demanding democratic reform and protesting the deaths of more than a dozen people shot by security forces in the past week, reports the New York Times.

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Lots of marching happening. Scroll down to read about Yemen's million man march.

When will America get over the fact that their president is in fact, black.

University of Kentucky officials are investigating two incidents in which someone hung signs that called President Barack Obama a racial epithet.

On March 15, a professor noticed one such sign hanging on a door to the UK School of Law. He turned it in to campus police, who are investigating, reports the .

Early Thursday morning, third year law student Ches Clark said he found a sign affixed to a bus shelter which read, "How Do You Spell Nigger? OBAMA." The letters looked to be cut out of a menu, glued to another piece of paper and photocopied.

Rediff.com's Ganesh Nadar speaks to Indian Muslims for their views on the coalition attack on Libya and comes away with an interesting perspective.

Shortly on rediff.com.

Broadway will honour Hollywood icon Elizabeth Taylor by dimming its lights today.

Theatre marquees will go dark at 8 pm today for one minute in memory of the actress, who succumbed to congestive heart failure at age 79 Wednesday.

The Cleopatra star made her first Broadway appearance in the 1981 revival of Lillian Hellman's 'The Little Foxes', for which she was nominated for a best actress Tony.

Scroll down for more stories on the Hollywood legend.

Yemen appeared to be nearing a brink today as protesters staged a "million people" march onto the capital Sanaa after Friday prayers, amid reports that a shaky President Ali Abdullah Saleh was engaged in serious negotiations to time an exit.

Truckloads of anti-Saleh protesters poured into Sanaa, while the supporters of the beleaguered President attempted to stage a counter rally, raising the prospects of a bloody confrontation.

Al-Jazeera quoting witnesses said, that loyalists forces from the Republican guards were out on the streets with tanks and bazokas to prevent anti-government supporters from entering the city.

Replicating the Egyptian million strong rally which proved to be the final nail in former dictator Hosni Mubarak's coffin, the Yemeni protesters carrying huge posters calling for Saleh to quit and labelled their march as "Friday of Departure".

Meanwhile, in Egypt, which has dropped off the news radar after Libya and Japan, the Muslim Brotherhood, the banned Islamic group that is considered as Egypt's main political opposition, is poised to be at the forefront of post-revolutionary Egypt.

The Brotherhood has apparently reached a tacit agreement with the military. According to the New York Times, as the best organized and most extensive opposition movement in Egypt, the Muslim Brotherhood was expected to have an edge in the contest for influence, but what surprises many is its link to a military that vilified it.

"It makes sense if you are the military - you want stability and people off the street. The Brotherhood is one address where you can go to get 100,000 people off the street,' an analyst said.

Australian actor Hugh Jackman arrived yesterday with his wife Deborra-Lee Furness. We spotted them at the Chhatrapati Shivaji International airport. The couple are staying at the Four Seasons hotel in Worli, South Mumbai.

The Wolverine star is in the city to attend the ongoing FICCI-Frames global film convention. Jackman will share the stage with Shah Rukh Khan and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan at FICCI. After the convention, Jackman and his wife will leave for Jaipur, where they will spend a day at theRaj Vilas.

Pictured: Hugh Jackman and his wife Deborra-Lee Furness. Pic by Pradeep Bandekar

Chetan Bhagat: Fact: If u tell a girl this dress makes you look 'slightly' fat, she will never ever wear that dress again.

Who are these women that Chetan Bhagat knows? And why doesn't somebody squash him?

Ahead of the Indo-Pak Home Secretary-level talks, President Asif Ali Zardari today said that dialogue is essential to resolve the problems between the two countries.

"We are hoping to engage India in a new dialogue... and we are hoping that India will respond as the largest democracy of the world to the youngest democracy," Zardari said.

"Dialogue is always the right direction. Whether it starts late or early, small or big, dialogue is always the right direction," he said in an interview to Al-Arabiya news channel.

Twilight star Robert Pattinson has revealed that he is 'incredibly boring' when he is away from the spotlight.

The 24-year-old spends most of his spare time playing on his iPhone.

"I'm incredibly boring. I try to watch films but my concentration span is so short,' he said in an interview.

But then, how can a block of wood be anything but boring?

Pune stud farm owner Hasan Ali Khan today alleged that he was getting threats from Kolkata businessman Kashinath Tapuria, a co-accused in the money laundering case, after he was remanded in judicial custody by a sessions court till April 8.

Outside the court, Khan said he was getting threats from Tapuria, his alleged associate in money laundering activities.

Khan also alleged that he was being framed in the case by Tapuria, who was arrested yesterday by the Enforcement Directorate.

Will you be able to say this with complete honesty?

Yasuhiro Ishii of the Tokyo Fire Department's hyper rescue squad that sprayed water at the troubled nuclear power plant in Fukushima Prefecture said, "I'm relieved I was the one who's had radiation exposure the most in my crew.

Ishii left the site after making sure that all the members escaped from there. Then, he noticed that his radiation detector showed 27 millisieverts per hour, the highest level among all the members.

"I was relieved," Ishii says. "If my level is the highest, that means everybody else is safer than I." "This is the way our team pursues our mission." Before entering into the crucial site, he said to his team

"This will be real tough work. Are you sure you want to do this?" Everyone said "Yes." No one complained. "I'm proud of my team members," Ishii says.

"When it came to cash-for-vote, the PM is directly involved in it and he is the beneficiary. So I said that you can't absolve your responsibility by saying that none of your party members or ministers were involved directly.

"This was not personal attack. I've only targeted him on political issues. When I said move on that did not mean I had condoned all his mistakes."

Read Sushma Swaraj's interview with CNNIBN's withDeputy Editor Sagarika Ghose shortly on rediff.com

Dame Elizabeth Taylor has been buried in a cemetery just outside Los Angeles, a day after her death. Her private funeral was held at the Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, reports bbc.co.uk.

Pop icon Michael Jackson, a friend of Taylor's, is one of a number of stars also buried at the cemetery. Taylor, one of the 20th Century's biggest movie stars, died in Los Angeles on Wednesday of congestive heart failure. She was 79.

Her funeral service started 15 minutes late, at the star's request, her publicist said.

"Miss Taylor had left instructions that it was to begin at least 15 minutes later than publicly scheduled, with the announcement: 'She even wanted to be late for her own funeral'," said a statement from taylor's publicist.

Osama bin Laden back in the news.

After a prolonged lull, the United States CIA has launched a series of covert operations in the rugged Hindu Kush mountains of Pakistan and Afghanistan following strong tip-offs that al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden has been criss-crossing the area in the past few weeks for high-profile meetings in militant redoubts, reports AsiaTimes.com.

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Armed Maoists blasted a state-run school at a village in Bihar's Aurangabad district. Over 50 ultras surrounded the school building and triggered a dynamite blast to blow it up late last night.

Three rooms of the school building were destroyed and a powerful bomb was also recovered from adjoining Yadupur village where the Naxalites had blown up a school building last year. Raids are on in the area to nab the ultras.

Rediff.com's Vicky Nanjappa writes that Karanataka Chief Minister B S Yeddyurapa is in deep trouble. Fifty rebels of the BJP's Karanataka unit led by the Chief Minister's closest friend, K S Eshwarappa are inNew Delhiseeking a change in the leadership.This then, is a serious problem for Yeddyurappa, as he faces the biggest dissent from within his party ever since he came to power.

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The Jats still have no place to sit, except for the railway tracks.

Despite the Punjab and Haryana High Court order directing them not to disrupt movement of trains, activists of All India Jat Aarakshan Sangharsh Samiti continue to squat on various rail tracks in Haryana.

The ongoing three-week-long stir by Jats has badly affected rail traffic in northern India, forcing the Northern Railways to cancel several trains, divert routes of some others.

The Jats have been demanding inclusion of their community in the OBC list so as to avail the benefit of reservation in government jobs and have threatened to cut off New Delhi from the rest of the north India if their demand was not fulfilled by March 28.

Pakistan has started peace talks with the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan, and other militant groups across the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata), in anticipation of early withdrawal of Nato troops from Afghanistan, reports The Express Tribune.

It may be remembered that the TTP has claimed responsibility for the killing of Pak Punjab governor Salman Taseer.

Read more

Here's stating the obvious, but any news about Pakistan WC cricket team, is well, news.

Pakistan's national chief selector Mohsin Khan has said that the remaining World Cup matches are going to be a real challenge and test for Pakistan, which has played quite impressively so far.

Pakistan are set to encounter arch rivals India in the semi-final stage at Mohali on March 30 as the co-hosts beat Australia by five wickets in Thursday''s quarterfinal in Ahmedabad.

Expectations are high in the cricket-crazy region for a mouth-watering Pakistan-India clash for a slot in the World Cup final match to be held at Mumbai on April 2.

"These two matches are going to be a real challenge and test for us. The team needs to do everything to keep the winning momentum going,' Mohsin said.

The latest WikiLeaks disclosure that appeared in Hindu newspaper today with Hasan Suroor's byline regarding Indian diplomacy, makes one shrivel with embarrassment.

An incumbentjoint secretary heading the America division in South Block telephoned the American embassycounsellor in Chanakyapuri to underscore that India had placed itself as a doormat during a UN voting on Guantanamo Bay and some measure of reciprocal US gratitude was in order.

Get the inside story on MK Bhadrakumar's blog

It's a good thing that Myanmar is not nuclear enabled. If Japan can barely contain contamination, the fallout in post-quake Myanamar which can't even feed its people, would have been catastrophic.

Now, Japanese nuclear safety officials said today that they suspect that the reactor core at one unit of the troubled Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant may have breached, raising the possibility of more severe contamination to the environment.

"It is possible that somewhere at the reactor may have been damaged," said Hidehiko Nishiyama, a spokesman for the nuclear safety agency.

But he added that "our data suggest the reactor retains certain containment functions," implying that the damage may have occurred in Unit 3's reactor core but that it was limited.

Remember A Raja's (trust you've heard of the man, by now) aide Sadiq Batch who allegedly committed suicide?

The doctor who did his autopsy had quit saying he wanted to contest the elections.

Now, the Tamil Nadu government has rejected Dr V Dekal's resignation on grounds of shortage of staff and that he did not provide sufficient notice. However, Dekal said that he was only on contract with the Health Department and could, therefore, quit any time.

Batcha, who was under the CBI scanner, was found hanging at his house here on March 16 with his wife claiming that he had committed suicide "unable to cope with the 2G probe."

Pictured: Sadiq Batcha

While on Elizabeth Taylor, the late actress'sWhite Diamonds remains the world's best-selling celebrity fragrance of all time - 20 years after it first launched.

It is estimated that the global sales of the scent, which is manufactured by Elizabeth Arden, reached 61.3 million pounds in 2010.

The Oscar-winning actress, who died on Wednesday at the age of 79, was one of the first stars to launch a signature fragrance with any success.

Follow-up perfumes, which include Diamonds and Emeralds, Diamonds and Rubies and Black Pearls also continue to enjoy retail success, with sales of 76.9 million pounds in 2010.

White Diamonds sold for 200 pounds an ounce when it first launched in 1991.

Btw: Not recommended for those who like light perfumes. White Diamonds isdazzlingly strong. If you like thatsinus-shocker Opium, try this one.

Read: The 1999 article Elizabeth Taylor (you do know she's passed away) wrote for Newsweek. After achieving fame at the age of 12, Taylor wrote for the magazine about school on the MGM lot and her relationships with Rock Hudson and James Dean on the set ofGiant.

Latest on the Myanmar earthquake.

Toll is up to 60 now. Dozens have been injured after a strong earthquake struck Myanmar near its border with Thailand. Some affected areas remained cut off.

Tremors were felt as far away as Bangkok, almost 800 kilometresfrom the epicentre, Hanoi and parts of China during the earthquake yesterday, which the US Geological Survey measured at magnitude 6.8.

A Myanmar official said dozens of people were killed in areas close to the epicentre and more than 240 buildings had collapsed. About 90 people are injured in one area alone. The officials are still trying to reach some more affected areas.

Thai authorities said a 52-year-old woman was killed after a wall in her house collapsed. Terrified residents across the region fled their homes, tall buildings swayed and hospitals and schools were evacuated during the tremors.

Tweets from R RAJAGOPALANexplaining the poll scene in TN

He writes: Tamil Nadu election scene is too lacklustre and docile. dull. No major fireworks all thanks to Election Commission dictums. May pick up soon

EC summons new DGP Tamil Nadu today to Delhi. Review of TN law and order at Nirvachan Sadan at noon. DGP to meet top MHA officials in Delhi

Bureaucrats and Police personnel in Tamil Nadu, are now being terrified by the new dictums of EC. Main focus for TN by EC is on black money

Centre to brief new DGP tamil nadu on the threat perception to the political leaders like Jaya, Karunanidhi and Vijayakant.

With NATO about to take charge on Libya, what happens now? Seven expert analysts weigh in on what the US should do and what it should avoid.

Read at leisure

Saina Nehwal looks absolutely stunning in the Airtel ad. Caught it yesterday. Wonder if it's a new one. Anyway, the lady rocks.

Riding on her Swiss Open triumph, Saina Nehwal has regained the number three place in the latest world ranking.

Saina, who missed a couple of tournaments early in the year because of a nagging ligament injury and then suffered early exits from the Korean Open and the All England Championships, notched up her first title of the season in Switzerland last week.

The 21-year-old now has 69721.2637 points in her kitty and is currently behind Shixian Wang (83506.4) and Yihan Wang (73988.9106) at one and two respectively. The Swiss Open title was her third Grand Prix Gold title win after Chinese Taipei (2008) and the Indian Open (2010).

Lovely voyeuristic moment.

In the film, shot byChannel 4 News, as Britain's deputy PM Nick Clegg and David Cameron walk off the stage, Clegg appears to forget he has a microphone on and says to Cameron: 'If we keep doing this we won't find anything to bloody disagree on in the bloody TV debates.' Report by telegraph.co.uk.

Listen in

Take a bow!

A Gurkha who single-handedly fought off an attack by at least a dozen Taliban insurgents has been awarded Britain's second highest medal for bravery. Acting Sergeant Dipprasad Pun, 31, exhausted all of his ammunition and resorted to using the tripod of his machine gun to repel the militants, reports the bbc.co.uk.

Describing himself as "a very lucky guy", he said he was very proud to be given the Conspicuous Gallantry Cross. Incidentally, his father and grandfather were in the regiment too.

A total of 136 UK servicemen and women are being honoured, four posthumously.

Vicco Turmeric's haldi aur chandan ki ubtan ads may now have more meaning.

It has now been discovered that urmeric could be the basis for cheap explosives detectors, say researchers.

The curcumin molecule is already well-known in medicine for its anti-cancer and anti-oxidant properties.

Now, research presented at the American Physical Society meeting suggests it could replace more complex solutions to spot explosives like TNT.

Read!

Overcoming deep differences among its 28-member nations, the NATO has agreed to take the lead role in enforcing the 'no-fly' zone over Libya as per the mandate of the UN Security Council resolution.

"NATO has now decided to enforce the no-fly zone over Libya. We are taking action as part of the broad international effort to protect the civilians against the attacks by the Gaddafi regime. We will cooperate closely with our partners in the region and we welcome their contributions," said NATO Secretary General, Andres Fogh Rasmussen.

Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) chief Hafiz Muhammad Saeed has alleged that India has been aiding terrorist activities in Pakistan, and that Pakistanis have every right to use the Kashmir door' to throw the book at the neighbouring country.

Speaking on the issue 'Challenges faced by Muslim Ummah and their solutions' at Hameed Nizami Hall in Lahore on Thursday, Saeed said that India was facilitating terrorist activities inside Pakistan and 'we have every right to use Kashmir door to teach India a lesson'.

Calling for India to quit Kashmir as early as possible, he said that any delay would prove harmful for the country.

Saeed, alleged to be the 2008 Mumbai terror attack mastermind, also claimed that the United States pressurised Pakistan and gave India a free hand to erect fences along the Line of Control.

Yeah, right!

The Associated Press reports that the wife of a Chinese activist says a court has sentenced him to 10 years in prison on charges of inciting subversion. Liu Xianbin (this is not the Nobel Peace Prize winner) has written articles online calling for street protests and democratic reforms.

The sentence is considered heavy. The charge carries a maximum of five years' imprisonment but could be longer if courts deem the offense to be particularly grave.

Read: Liu Xiaobo's missing speech

More than 50 people were killed and dozens of buildings destroyed when a strong earthquake struck Myanmar near the Thai border, officials from both countries said today.

Tremors were felt as far away as Bangkok, almost 800 kilometres from the epicentre, Hanoi and parts of China during the earthquake on Thursday, which the US Geological Survey measured at magnitude 6.8.A Myanmar official said dozens of people were killed in two towns close to the epicentre.

Good morning. Top news stories this morning, you ask? What else, but India's magnificent win against Australia and the march to Mohali.Obviously, headlines in every paper. Here's a smattering. And some of the other stories this morning.

Enjoy!

Ind vs Aus: Yuvraj, Sachin, Raina help Men in Blue avenge 2003 humiliation

It was billed as the blockbuster and the quarterfinal, the second of the 2011 Cricket World Cup at the Sardar Patel Stadium at Motera on Thursday lived up to the expectations. Read

Australia tamed, Pakistan next test of nerves for India

On Thursday, it was India's bravehearts Yuvraj Singh, Sachin Tendulkar and Gautam Gambhir who walked away with all the glory. The three hit half-centuries in a nerve-wracking run-chase to power India to a last-four clash against arch-rivals Pakistan on Wednesday. Read

From Motera, he calls Mohali

As the stands exploded with joy in 42,000 voices, countless Indian flags waved in a tri-colour swirl, and torn match tickets floated like confetti, Yuvraj Singh folded his fingers into a tight fist, went down on his knees in the middle of the pitch, and roared. Read

Each one of us wanted India to win: Pak manager

Pakistan manager Intikhab Alam, following the quarterfinal action on TV in Mirpur, had no doubt about his team's semifinal opponent in Mohali on March 30. The man who had once trained the Punjab Ranji team, backed his one-time ward Yuvraj Singh to do it for India. Read

Prithviraj Chavan reviews security arrangements for World Cup final

Maharashtra chief minister Prithviraj Chavan today reviewed the security arrangements being made for the April 2 World Cup final to be played at Wankhede stadium. Read

... and the rest.

'Poaching' gives Salman Khan taxing time again'

Thirteen years after actor Salman Khan was accused of hunting down a blackbuck, the case is back to trouble him again. Read

Equal share for 2 wives in Karunanidhi's Rs 41 crore assets

Tamil Nadu chief minister M Karunanidhi disclosed assets worth Rs 41 crore, collectively between him and his two wives, while filing his nomination papers for the Tiruvarur assembly constituency on Thursday. Read