The late momentum in the election campaign melded into a high turnout on Friday in Iran's presidential election, which is once again exposing the deepening rift between reformists and conservatives.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan today appealed to protesters to evacuate an Istanbul park "by tonight", after promising to suspend the site's redevelopment in a bid to end two weeks of deadly anti-government unrest. 

The British government has warned airlines around the world not to allow Edward Snowden, who leaked information on top-secret U.S. government surveillance programs, to fly to the United Kingdom.

Senior BJP leader Arun Jaitley today sent out a stark message to Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar over a possible JD(U) split with the NDA, saying the state might have to pay a price if the alliance ends. 

Faced with fresh agitation on the issue of Telangana and continued uncertainties over the food security bill, the Congress top brass including Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and party chief Sonia Gandhi deliberated on the way ahead.

Top sources in the party said that the meeting of the Congress core group discussed both the issues at length.

The meeting took place close on the heels of Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde holding discussions with Leader of the Opposition Sushma Swaraj and Samajwadi Party general secretary Ramgopal Yadav over the food bill issue.

Sources in the Janata Dal-United said that at a meeting on Sunday, the decision to end the alliance the Bharatiya Janata Party will be ratified and an announcement will follow the same day.

Read the full story on NDTV

Amid strain in ties, the Bharatiya Janata Party on Friday accused the Janata Dal-United of denying it permission to hold a function of party chief Rajnath Singh in Patna on June 23.

The education department has denied permission to hold a function of BJP president Rajnath Singh in a local school, state party chief Mangal Pandey told reporters after a core committee meet at Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi's residence. He said Singh is scheduled to address BJP workers for which they had sought permission for Miller school ground.

"The same school ground was used by the JD-U for its Adhikar rally in November last year and permission is not given to alliance partner to hold function of its national president," he said and criticised behaviour of the party.

Heavy rains lashed Mumbai today leading to water-logging in several areas and traffic snarls. 

According to Traffline, there was traffic jam on the Western Express Highway from Bandra till Malad. All internal roads in Andheri east are clogged. Babasaheb Ambedkar Road and the Eastern Expressway are jammed all the way from Byculla till Ghatkopar. Motorists are advised to use the newly inaugurated Eastern Freeway Corridor.

JVLR is bad from Jogeshwari till L&T Junction because of severe potholes and bottlenecks near L&T junction. For further traffic updates, call Traffline at 9223111000.

Image: The water-logged road at Hindmata
Photo credit: Sahil Salvi

Delhi Police today opposed the bail plea of Rajasthan Royal's player Ajit Chandila in the IPL spot-fixing scandal saying he was a "key conspirator" in the entire case and was acting at the behest of a syndicate run by gangster Dawood Ibrahim.

In its reply filed before Additional Sessions Judge Ajay Kumar Jain, the Special Cell of Delhi Police said Chandila was directly in contact with bookies and players and had received money to perform as per their directions.

"For accused Ajit Chandila, it is reiterated that this player has emerged as the key conspirator in the entire chain acting on behalf of the syndicate... A huge amount of money has also been recovered at his instance, which was received from various fixers. In view of the centrality of his role, his bail is strongly opposed," the police said.

The number of rapes reported in Delhi jumped 23% in 2012 compared to a nationwide rise of 3%, according to a new report from the National Crime Records Bureau.

The "Crime in India 2012' report said there were 706 cases of rape reported in Delhi last year compared to 572 in 2011. Delhi's total for 2012 was more than all the rapes reported in Mumbai, Kolkata, Bangalore and Chennai combined.

Illustration: Uttam Ghosh  Read more

With the Calcutta High Court upholding the supremacy of the State Election Commission in holding panchayat election, the West Bengal government today said it did not intend to move the apex court to challenge the HC order. "No. We are not moving any court," state panchayat minister Subrata Mukherjee said when asked if the government would contest the order in the higher court. The minister today said that the rural body elections would be held in time.

Shahnawaz Hussain's couplet to Nitish: "Hum dua bhi dete hai,davaa bhi dete hain,hum jise dost banate hain,unhe hum kabhi daga nahi dete hain!, tweets Sonia Singh.

Bihar CM Nitish Kumar said earlier that the JD-U's alliance with the BJP is not good. The situation is not good and the relationship is under duress. "We will have to take a decision. They are wishing me well, but giving me medicines that kill. The situation is tough," he said. 

The family of Congress leader Mahendra Karma, who was killed by Maoists in an attack in Chhattisgarh last month, today said they continue to receive threats from the extremists who asked them to leave their ancestral place and demanded security.

Accompanied by Congress general secretary Digvijay Singh, Karma's wife Devki, son Deepak and three other sons, met Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde and apprised him about the threats the family continues to receive from Naxals. "We want security. The Naxals asked us to leave our ancestral place in Bastar and warned of dire consequences if we do not follow their diktat," Deepak told reporters after meeting the Home Minister.

BJP president Rajnath Singh denied permission to hold rally in Bihar. 

Disgraced India pacer S Sreesanth, out on bail after being arrested in the IPL spot fixing case, today offered 'thulabharam', a ritual, at the famous Sree Poornathrayeesa temple of Lord Vishnu at Tripunithura near Kochi this morning.

'Thulabharam' is an important ritual in temples in Kerala in which devotees sit in a balance and offer coconut, banana, sugar or jaggery equal to their body weight. The suspended Rajasthan Royals player was weighed in 'kadli' plantain. His parents-- Shantakumaran Nair and Savithri Devi and brother-in-law and

Malaylam playback singer Madhu Balakrishnan accompanied him to the temple. The Kerala star, who has claimed innocence, then left for Lord Ayyappa temple at Sabarimala.

A total of 29 Axis Bank accounts, including 12 operated by Mumbai policemen, have been hacked in the last two months and Rs 13 lakh withdrawn through ATMs in Greece, police said in Mumbai today.

Some of the policemen in the city had received SMS messages that cash has been withdrawn from their Axis bank accounts in euro currency, they said.

In order to cross check the fraud perpetrated on them, these policemen immediately visited nearest ATM centres and found to their surprise that indeed cash had been withdrawn from their accounts.

The accounts were hacked during April and May, police said, adding that the Axis Bank had contacted Mumbai police and informed that they had set up a committee to probe the matter.

According to DCP Satyanarayan Choudhari, it was not immediately known as to how much amount had been withdrawn from the bank accounts of those policemen.

However, later, police got information that the cyber fraudsters had withdrawn Rs 13 lakh from these 29 bank accounts which had been hacked.

Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi today indicated changes in the organisational set up of the party in his parliamentary constituency Amethi, where it fared badly in the last Assembly elections.

Gandhi today met party workers of his constituency here and indicated that new people would be given responsibilities in the organisational set up in a month's time, party leaders who met him said.

He said with new faces the party would be given "a new thrust" in the area. In 2012 assembly elections, Congress had managed to win only two of the 10 Assembly seats in the Gandhi bastions of Amethi and Rae Bareli in central Uttar Pradesh.

The Samajwadi Party had won eight of the 10 Assembly seats in the two parliamentary constituencies represented by Rahul Gandhi and his mother Sonia Gandhi.

Expectedly, the Congress distances itself from Jairam Ramesh's remarks that Narendra Modi is an ideological challenge. Yesterday, Ramesh called Narendra Modi as India's "first authentic fascist", and conceded that the BJP leader poses a "challenge" for the Congress party in the coming elections.

"He will certainly impose a challenge on us. He represents not just a managerial challenge. But he also represents an ideological challenge," Ramesh, who has been one of the key Congress strategists, told.  

"Only a united opposition can defeat Congress. Whenever opposition got united, Congress was defeated. Therefore, NDA's unity is a historical necessity. We must do everything to keep NDA united," tweets Sushma Swaraj.

In a stunning comment, oil minister M Veerappa Moily on Friday said petroleum ministers are "threatened" by import lobbies not to take decisions that will cut India's $160 billion oil imports.

Moily, who has been under attack from the CPI leader Gurudas Dasgupta for proposing to hike natural gas prices by 60 per cent, said he has been striving to attract investments in almost stagnant oil and gas exploration which will lead to higher domestic output and lesser reliance on imports.

"I am telling you with all sense of responsibility (that) we are floating in oil and gas in this country. And we don't explore it. We put every obstruction not to do it. There is bureaucratic obstructions and delays.

Finance Minister P Chidambaram today said temporary economic problems cannot be solved by "quick-fixes" and the government will continue to take measures with long-term perspective to deal with them. He further said the government will announce steps by the end of this month or next month to boost investment and growth.

"The temporary problems that we face cannot be solved by quick-fixes, it can only be solved by continuing to take long term measures," Chidambaram told reporters in New Delhi. He said long term measures would bring stability and growth to the economy.

Bihar CM Nitish Kumar says the JD-U's alliance with the BJP is not good. The situation is not good and the relationship is under duress. "We will have to take a decision. They are wishing me well, but giving me medicines that kill. The situation is tough," he said. 

JD-U's formal split with the NDA seems imminent as JD(U) president Sharad Yadav arrives in Patna tomorrow for a crucial meeting with party legislators to discuss the issue, amidst reports that BJP MLAs are being poached by the party to cobble up a majority.

Expressing surprise over the ruling Congress Party unnecessarily dragging Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi''s name in controversies, the Samajwadi Party (SP) on Friday said it is not healthy in politics to play around with a name.

Samajwadi Party leader Naresh Agarwal, who was commenting on Union Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh''s remark that Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi is ''India's first authentic fascist'', said it is not healthy in politics to play around with a name

"I have no idea why the Congress Party is scared of Narendra Modi? It is also not understandable why Congress leaders are dragging Modi''s name in controversy. It is not healthy in politics to play around with a name. Such statements should not be given out so blatantly and the discussion around Modi should be stopped," he said.

Launching a frontal attack on Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Dr M Veerappa Moily on Friday said the former is not a challenge for the ruling Congress Party, but a liability for the BJP.

"Modi is not a challenge for us. In fact, he is a liability for the BJP," he told mediapersons. The Congress Party also rejected claims of being scared of Modi's stature.

"The Congress Party has never considered Narendra Modi as a challenge. Since the time, Modi''s name came up in the campaign committee, the BJP's alliance partner; JD-U is drifting away," said Congress spokesperson Bhakta Charan Das "

The BJP aspires to win the next general elections, how can they when they are fighting with amongst themselves? How can they win the trust of the common man?" he asked.

JD-U's formal split with the NDA seems imminent as JD(U) president Sharad Yadav arrives here tomorrow for a crucial meeting with party legislators to discuss the issue, amidst reports that BJP MLAs are being poached by the party to cobble up a majority.

"Sharad Yadav ji is coming to Patna tomorrow morning," Bihar JD(U) president Bashist Narayan Singh told PTI. Chief Minister Nitish Kumar would also be back here tonight from his Katihar "Sewa Yatra".

The Bihar JD(U) chief said that the timing and venue of the 'discussion' over the situation arising from Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi's appointment as the chairman of the BJP's campaign committee chief for 2014 Lok Sabha polls would be decided later.

Unconfirmed reports have surfaced here that Nitish Kumar's party are making efforts to wean away a section of BJP MLAs to get the required numbers for continuation of the government minus the BJP. The reports were dismissed by both JD(U) and BJP leaders as mere "kite flying".

Millions of voters across Iran are casting their ballots in the country's presidential elections.Although all six candidates are seen as conservatives, one of them, cleric Hassan Rouhani, has been reaching out to the reformists in recent days.The election will decide a successor to outgoing leader Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Read

The issue of denial of visa to Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi was fiercely debated by a key Congressional committee, with an influential Republican party lawmaker questioning the decision of the US government.

On the other hand, rights activists spoke in favor of continuing with the visa ban on Modi arguing that even though he has not been convicted so far, it is a fact that more than 2,500 people died "under his watch" and as such the United States is right in having a high moral ground on this issue. They also noted that the situation would change, if Modi were to be elected as the Prime Minister of India.

We shall miss him. The cheeky smile, the chipmunk eyes, the Spanish Armada beard, the crackpot President who once claimed that a cloud emanated above his head at the UN -- then denied he'd ever said such nonsense -- and then confessed that he had when confronted with tape of his holy utterance. Read

Senior state BJP leaders, at a meeting of its office-bearers at the party headquarters here on Thursday, unanimously gave their nod to withdraw support to the JD(U), saying, "enough is enough."Party's state president Mangal Pandey said the party didn't want to pull the rug from under the JD(U)'s feet immediately unless "bola nahin jayega".

Unable to afford costly treatment for their six-month-old daughter, a daily-wage labourer and his wife strangled her to death and dumped her body in a ditch near their home, Tripura Police said Friday.

Police on Thursday arrested Laba Debnath, 53, the father of the ill-fated child, who confessed that he and his wife killed their baby girl Lina and later dumped her in a ditch near their Teliamura home in west Tripura, 55 km northeast of the state capital.

A police official, quoting the girl's father, said: "The baby had tetanus and also suffered a haemorrhage. Doctors had prescribed medicines that cost Rs.1,500 each day; one injection was priced at Rs 900 per dose." 

Four persons, including a woman drowned, and more than 40 others were missing after a boat capsized in the Ganga River in West Bengal's Malda district on Friday.Officials said a country boat carrying about 60 passengers, mostly daily labourers, capsized after it left Dharampur bank towards a riverine island at 7.30 am.The rescuers, who are mostly locals, have fished out four bodies, including a woman, while eight persons were rescued.Nearly 40 others are still missing.Senior district and police officials are camping on the spot and supervising rescue operations.

Indian-origin dentist Savita Halappanavar, who died after being refused an abortion in Ireland, would have had a higher chance of surviving if she had been offered a termination, experts have said.

A 108-page report on the death of Halappanavar in October concluded that she should have also had her blood poisoning detected much sooner.According to CBS News, experts looking into the case documented what the lead investigator described as a cascade of mistakes overshadowed by officials'' refusal to remove the fetus until its heart stopped beating.

A magisterial probe into reports that brides were subjected to virginity or pregnancy tests at Madhya Pradesh government's mass marriage programme in Betul district last week has found that no such tests were conducted.

No such tests were conducted as per the probe conducted by Assistant Collector Neha Marvaya, an official release said today. As many as 350 women were allegedly put through virginity and pregnancy tests during a mass marriage programme under the 'Mukhyamantri Kanyadan Yojana' at Harad on June 7.

External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid will undertake a two-day visit to Iraq on June 19. India will look to expand relations on issues of common interest. Oil imports from Iraq will also be high on Khurshid's agenda even as New Delhi continues to reduce its dependence on oil from Iran. The visit also takes place a month ahead of the India-US strategic dialogue in New Delhi at the foreign ministers level.

BJP leader Rajiv Pratap Rudy has said that both JD(U) and BJP needed Modi. "It is wrong to say that we have given BJP any ultimatum. That report is wrong. We are definitely concerned over the sequence of events in BJP in last few days," Yadav said, adding that these and other issues would be discussed at a two-day party meeting beginning tomorrow.

Asked about a rapproachment with BJP, he said, "Why not? Options are still not closed." Yadav refused to talk about the possibility of a 'Federal Front' mooted by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.

 "The question does not arise now. NDA still exists. Where has NDA broken up that you are talking of a Third Front," he said.

Bihar deputy chief minister Sushil Modi has called for a meeting of BJP ministers at 3 pm today at his residence in Patna.

The Janata Dal-United leadership in Bihar has asked its MLAs and MLCs to be present in Patna on June 14 and 15 to decide the fate of the alliance with the BJP. As per reports yesterday, Sushil Modi has not been attending office over the past two days. BJP ministers in Bihar have also skipped office. Meanwhile, BJP president Rajnath Singh is expected to visit Patna on 23 June.

Congress leaders meet the Election Commission to seek special arrangements for free and fair Assembly polls in Chhattisgarh. The Congress asks the EC to install GPRS, CCTV at booths in Naxal-hit areas in Chhattisgarh.

Few places in congested Mumbai are as unexpected and uplifting as its racecourse, a 225-acre expanse located near a sweep of coastline in the island city. Built on the swampy flats of Mahalaxmi in 1883, the racecourse hosts a 2,400-meter (2,600-yard) track for the annual races, as well as tony restaurants and South Mumbai's only helipad. But it's the oval of green -- and the inner walking track -- that brings people here every day for a dose of open sky and earth. Now, it's very future is under threat. Read

India will surpass China to become world's most populous nation around 2028, with its population crossing the 1.45 billion mark, according to latest report by the United Nations. The report 'World Population Prospects' says the world's population will hit 7.2 billion next month and is projected to reach 10.9 billion by 2100, with the growth mainly occurring in developing countries, with more than half in Africa.

A woman was brutally assaulted and her daughter burnt alive in public view, and in the presence of the village panchayat, Uttar Pradesh Police said Friday.The incident occurred at Karahkol village of Deoria, 475 km from state capital Lucknow. See

The Group of Ministers (GoM) constituted for the empowerment of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) will finalise its affidavit by June 24 for submission to the Supreme Court.

The third meeting of GoM headed by Finance Minister, P Chidambaram was held here last evening. Talking to reporters after the meeting, Law Minister Kapil Sibal said, the contours of the affidavit and the proposals for the amendments for autonomy of CBI were discussed in the meeting.

He said some gaps are still there in the affidavit, which has to be filled up in the next meeting on June 24. Sibal further said after approval of the cabinet, the affidavit will be filed in the apex court by July 3.

According to reports, the GoM will deliberate on ways to further strengthen CBI's autonomy and safeguard it from any kind of outside interferences. The government''s move came after the Supreme Court had called the CBI "a caged parrot" that "speaks in its master's voice after the investigating agency admitted in an affidavit that Ashwani Kumar, who quit as the Law Minister, and senior officials of the Prime Minister's Office and the coal ministry had made certain changes in the report on the allocation of coal blocks.

CPM leader Sitaram Yechury meets JD-U president Sharad Yadav to discuss the political situation. Viewing Narendra Modi's projection as BJP prime ministerial candidate as inevitable, JD-U will probably withdraw from the NDA tomorrow, which could deal a big blow to the NDA. 

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has announced a sum of Rs 15 lakh for the family of late jawan Ashok Bangali, who was killed in the naxal attack in Chhattisgarh on May 25. The chief minister honoured Sunita, wife of the late jawan, who was posted in the security staff of Chhattisgarh Congress leader Mahendra Karma, who was also killed in the Naxal attack.

Chaupadi is the ritual isolation of menstruating women in Nepal. Each month, women sleep outside their homes in sheds called goths, in stables or in caves. They are deemed impure and treated as untouchable.  Read

If you love Indian mangoes for their sweetness and strong flavors, you don't have to fly into the hot north Indian summer to sample them. Most major varieties of Indian mango are available in many cities in Southeast Asia. Here's what you need to know before you buy. Read

Booking a ticket for a train in India is hopefully about to get easier. The Indian Railways Catering and Tourism Corporation Ltd, Indian railways ticketing service, is gearing up to launch a facility to allow travelers to book their train tickets via cell phones from July 1. Read

The Indian government is patting itself on the back for bringing down gold imports, a cause of the country's wide current account deficit, but much of the reason for the drop actually lies beyond the policymakers' reach. Read

Jharkhand Police has sounded an alert in Giridih and Dhanbad districts following the Maoist attack on the Dhanbad-Patna Intercity Express near Jamui railway station in Bihar yesterday.

Three people including one RPF jawan were killed and six others injured when 100 odd Naxals fired indiscriminately on the train between Bhalui and Kundra railway stations in Jamui district. The RPF has increased the number of personnel to 12 to be deployed in every train passing through Naxal affected areas.

Rupert Murdoch filed for divorce from his wife Wendi Deng in New York State Supreme Court on Thursday, his media company News America confirms. The couple, who were married in 1999, have two daughters together. This will be Murdoch's third marriage to end in divorce, and Deng's second. Read

Want to hear C Rajagopalachari's voice? Tune in to the All India Radio,Chennai, at 7 am this Sunday. AIR will broadcast Rajaji's speech to mark the platinum jubilee of the radio station. Rajaji, an independence activist, politician, writer and statesman was also the last Governor-General of India.

In high drama, two MLAs belonging to the Telangana Rashtra Samiti climbed the Legislature Party building in the Andhra Pradesh Assembly premises and threatened to jump off if Telangana state was not created immediately.

The other MLAs of the party burnt an effigy of "Seemaandhra government" near the legislators' entrance gate in the Assembly premises.

Holding black flags, the two MLAs - K Sammaiah and D Vinay Bhaskar - climbed the terrace of the G+1 building and also demanded that all the Telanagna protagonists arrested by police in connection with the 'Chalo Assembly' programme today be released immediately. Assembly marshals brought the two MLAs down after an hour.

The AP Assembly was, meanwhile, adjourned for the day without transacting any real business as TRS, TDP (Telangana Forum), CPI and BJP legislators disrupted the proceedings on the statehood issue.

JD-U president Sharad Yadav says reports of the party delivering an ultimatum to the BJP over their dislike for Narendra Modi's ascent to a senior role in the party is fiction. However, Bihar CM Nitish Kumar is expected to make a decision -- stay or leave the NDA -- at a rally tomorrow. Yadav said discussion with the BJP were still on. Yesterday, Yadav held a press meet saying senior BJP leaders LK Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi had spoken to him and discussions were still on. 

The Andhra Pradesh capital was today turned into a fortress with 10,O00 policemen from the state and 2000 Central paramilitary force personnel deployed in view of the 'Chalo Assembly' protest called by pro-Telangana parties.

Police have denied permission for the protest and imposed prohibitory orders in the limits of Hyderabad and Cyberabad Police Commissionerates which will be in force till 6 AM on June 15.

A number of roads leading to the Legislative Assembly in central part of the city have either been closed or traffic diverted. Office-goers and others had a tough time in view of the restrictions.

Dark as any other buffalo but distinct because of its blue eyes, a white tuft on its tail and five white patches, one each on its forehead and feet, the Neeli Raavi used to thrive in undivided Punjab. Today, the bulk of its remaining population is in Pakistan while a few lakh survive on the Indian side, all in pockets of the border districts of Ferozepur, Taran Tarn, Gurdaspur, and only a few thousand of them purebreds. Read

A special monitoring cell with the Jharkhand Special Branch is monitoring the movement of important leaders in Naxal-dominated areas in the wake of the Maoist attack on Chhattisgarh Congress leaders last month. "A security committee has reviewed VIP security and provided them with security as per the X, Y, Z categories," Jharkhand Police Chief Rajeev Kumar said. A security monitoring cell was set up in the Special Branch and similar cells have been formed in all the districts with the personnel keeping a watch on the movement of politicians in Naxalism-hit areas, he added.

The sale of Israeli military technology to Pakistan disclosed in British military files has threatened to damage Israel's strategic alliance with India, sources have claimed. Read the report on the Telegraph.

PRINCE William will be Britain's first king to have proven Indian ancestry, DNA analysis has revealed. Read

"Maoists have attacked! They have seized the train. Hide. Save yourself. Hide below the seats, lie on the board, in the passage. Go crawling. Keep heads and bodies below the window. Bullets will hit the windows," someone sounded the general alarm. Others rushed to close the main doors. Read

Developing and emerging economies may not exactly be dazzling in the current overall grim global economic climate of joblessness and sluggish growth. But the region has registered rising employment and narrowing income inequalities, relative to their rich counterparts, since the 2007-08 meltdown, says the International Labour Organisation's World of Work Report 2013. Read

The government's attempt to restore the predominant voice of the political class through the Judicial Appointments Commission is a recipe for disaster. Read

Every historical moment is headlined by a handful of individuals from whom the abuse of power and authority elicits extraordinary acts of courage. In blowing the whistle on the wanton misconduct of governments -- be it lying to citizens, intruding on their private affairs, or colluding with vested interests -- these figures set aside their personal concerns for the greater public good. Read

With his appointment as the BJP's poll panel chief, Narendra Modi is being decisively propelled into national politics. Whether as prime minister or as the leader of opposition in Parliament, Modi will no doubt move from Gujarat politics to national politics.  Read

Following its investigation, backed by similar reports from its allies including Britain and France, the United States has said that the Assad regime in Syria has used chemical weapons on a small scale resulting in death of between 100 to 150 people.

"Following a deliberative review, our intelligence community assesses that the Assad regime has used chemical weapons, including the nerve agent sarin, on a small scale against the opposition multiple times in the last year.

Our intelligence community has high confidence in that assessment given multiple, independent streams of information," Ben Rhodes, the Deputy National Security Advisor to the US President, said yesterday.

"The intelligence community estimates that 100 to 150 people have died from detected chemical weapons attacks in Syria to date; however, casualty data is likely incomplete," he said.

US Secretary of State John Kerry will visit Pakistan this month, marking the first high-level contact between the two countries since the new government led by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif assumed office last week/

This will also be Kerry's first visit to Islamabad since taking office. Shortly before Sharif was sworn in as premier, US Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan James Dobbins visited Pakistan for talks with the civilian and military leadership.

"US Secretary of State John Kerry is expected to arrive in the fourth week of this month. Final dates are being worked out," Foreign Office spokesman Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhry told a weekly news briefing.

NBCNEWS reports: A morning explosion and fire at a Louisiana chemical plant Thursday killed one person and injured more than two dozen others, authorities confirmed.

Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal confirmed that  more than 300 workers were  evacuated after the explosion.

The explosion took place at Williams Chemical Plant in Ascension Parish, Louisiana state police said, and a fire after the explosion was contained and extinguished later in the day.

Picture: Smoke rises in the background at a road block near the Williams Olefins chemical plant, after an explosion and fire there.

Photographer: Jonathan Bachman/Reuters

Read the full story here

Andhra Pradesh Police have made heavy security arrangements in Hyderabad in view of the 'Chalo Assembly' protest tomorrow by deploying about 10,000 police personnel from the state and 20 companies from the central para-military forces.

After refusing permission for the protest, the police have started checking vehicles at entry points to foil the attempts of the protesters to get into the city.

The police have also intensified surveillance following inputs that Maoists might mix up with the protesters.

Scores of pro-Telangana activists, including leaders of different political parties, have already been taken into preventive custody.

Would like food bill preferably passed by Parliament: Cong

Sonia upset with anxious PM's deferment of food ordinance

137 JD-U and BJP leaders join Congress in Bihar

150 Maoists attack train in Bihar; 3 killed, 5 injured

UP minister calls Mayawati 'UGLY'