A round-up of today's other stories in brief.
Suicide bomb kills 14 in Algerian town
ALGIERS -A suicide bomber killed 14 people when he blew himself up in the Algerian town of Batna yesterday shortly before a scheduled visit by
Algerian president Abdelaziz Bouteflika, residents said.
One of the residents said some of the dead and wounded were among a crowd waiting to see the president arrive in the town, which is about 430km (270 miles) southeast of the capital, Algiers. - (Reuters)
14 Shias killed by US airstrikes
BAGHDAD -US airstrikes on a Shia neighbourhood in Baghdad overnight killed at least 14 people, including one woman, and destroyed 11 houses, Iraqi police and residents said yesterday.
The US military said US special forces called in the strikes after coming under fire from gunmen on rooftops during an operation against Shia militants suspected of killing local police and Sunni Arabs. - (Reuters)
60 Taliban die in Afghan battles
KABUL -Afghan and US-led coalition forces killed more than 60 Taliban in battles in southern Afghanistan, the US military said yesterday.
This takes the guerrilla death toll to more than 200 in a fortnight, the US military said yesterday. - (Reuters)
UN announces ceasefire in DRC
BUKAVU -United Nations mediators announced a ceasefire yesterday between the Democratic Republic of Congo's army and the forces of renegade general Laurent Nkunda, whose advance towards an eastern town forced thousands
of refugees to flee. - (Reuters)