A round-up of today's other world news in brief
Maliki camp wins in nine Iraqi provinces
BAGHDAD – Iraqi prime minister Nour al-Maliki’s candidates have swept to victory in nine of Iraq’s 14 provinces, consolidating the once-troubled leader’s rule ahead of national polls.
Preliminary results announced yesterday confirmed that Mr Maliki had defied pre-election predictions that he would lose ground to a new guard of Iraqi lawmakers in the wake of four years of bloodshed and instability.
The results also suggest that Mr Maliki has emerged largely unscathed from the George Bush years, despite remaining close to the former US president through much of the occupation. – (Guardian service)
Zimbabwe passes unity deal Bill
HARARE – Zimbabwe’s parliament passed a constitutional Bill yesterday to allow a coalition government of Robert Mugabe and opposition rivals be set up under a deal to end political and economic crisis.
Opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) leader Morgan Tsvangirai agreed last week to join a unity government with Mr Mugabe’s Zanu-PF after months of wrangling over ministerial posts had stalled a powersharing deal signed last year. – (Reuters)
Pakistan suicide bomber kills 24
MULTAN – Around 24 people were killed and more than 50 wounded in a suspected suicide bombing near a Shia mosque in central Pakistan yesterday.
The attack in the city of Dera Ghazi Khan was the latest to rock the country, grappling with a growing wave of violence by militants linked to al-Qaeda and the Taliban in the northwest. – (Reuters)
Turks ‘must leave Cyrpus to join EU’
NICOSIA – Turkey will not be able to join the EU as long as it keeps troops in northern Cyprus, Cypriot president Demetris Christofias said.
In his most categorical statement since assuming Cyprus’s presidency a year ago, Mr Christofias said he did not see Turkey joining the bloc as long as the stalemate on the island’s division dragged on.
Cyprus, which joined the EU in 2004, needs to consent to Turkey joining the bloc.
“It’s not possible for Turkey to be accepted as a member of the union while continuing the occupation of Cyprus. It’s very clear for the members of the European Union and for the Commission,” he said. – (Reuters)
Farc frees last politician held
COLOMBIA – Farc rebels yesterday freed a lawmaker held hostage for almost seven years in jungle camps, in the last of three such handovers this week by Latin America’s oldest insurgency, the Red Cross said.
Sigifredo Lopez, who was kidnapped from a state assembly building in 2002, was the last politician in Farc hands.
The recent releases have raised speculation that weakened rebels want to gain political ground after a year of military defeats.
Mr Lopez’s return could reveal more details about 11 other provincial lawmakers who were captured with him but killed in 2007 in what the government says was accidental crossfire between two guerrilla units. – (Reuters)