A round-up of today's other stories in brief
Police foiled al-Qaeda plot to kill Blair
LONDON - British police thwarted an al-Qaeda plot to assassinate Prime Minister Tony Blair during celebrations to mark Queen Elizabeth's 50 years on the throne, according to the former London police chief.
Ex-Metropolitan Police commissioner John Stevens, who was Britain's most senior officer, said officers had learned that al-Qaeda snipers intended to kill Mr Blair and his wife Cherie in front of a major parade through the capital in June 2002. - (Reuters)
Typhoon slams into Chinese city
BEIJING - A typhoon hit a sprawling city in prosperous eastern China yesterday after nearly a million villagers and farmers had been evacuated from flimsy coastal and hillside huts.
Typhoon Khanun, which spared the island of Taiwan on Saturday after forecasts predicted a near-direct hit, made landfall in China's mountainous Zhejiang province, where storms regularly trigger fatal floods and landslides.
The new city of Taizhou, with a population of over five million, took the full brunt, a city government official said, adding that those evacuated by the army had been taken to schools, railway stations, hotels and other solid buildings for protection. - (Reuters)
Ukraine's leader seeks to assure US
KIEV - President Viktor Yushchenko told Washington he would keep Ukraine on a pro-Western reform path as he began planning for a powerful election challenge next year from his charismatic ex-prime minister.
Mr Yushchenko worked yesterday to muster support among key parliamentary players for Yury Yekhanurov, the liberal economist whom he has picked to replace Yulia Tymoshenko as prime minister until parliamentary elections next March.
Mr Yushchenko sacked Ms Tymoshenko on Thursday. - (Reuters)
Swearing-in date for Mubarak
CAIRO - Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak, who last week won Egypt's first multi-candidate presidential election, will be sworn in for his fifth six-year term on September 27th.
Mr Mubarak (77) will take the oath in parliament. He won the election with a landslide of 88.6 per cent, but turnout was low at 23 per cent. - (Reuters)
Schröder wins support of Blair
LONDON - British prime minister Tony Blair today intervened in the German elections with a statement endorsing Social Democratic leader Gerhard Schröder's campaign for re-election as chancellor.
Mr Blair has fallen out with his erstwhile ally in recent years, and speculation was rife that he would welcome a victory for the leader of the right-of-centre Christian Democrats, Angela Merkel.
But in today's statement, released by Mr Schröder's SPD, he hails the chancellor as a "prudent statesman with strong leadership qualities". - (PA)
Jumbo victory for Scottish polo
LAMPANG - Scotland were today crowned world elephant polo champions following a hard-fought tournament in Thailand.
The reigning champions clinched their second King's Cup title after scoring a golden goal in extra time to win 6-5 against local team Mullis Capital. - (PA)
Sikhs urge action over hate crimes
LONDON - Sikh political leaders today called on the British government to do more to combat race-hate crimes against members of their community in the wake of the London bombings. Members of the Sikh Federation (UK) say their people have become an "easy target" for racial abuse since the July 7th terrorist attacks. - (PA)