At a glance

Iranian journalists can't speak to hostile' radiosDUBAI: Senior Iranian journalists have been banned from speaking to foreign radio stat...

Iranian journalists can8217;t speak to hostile8217; radios

DUBAI: Senior Iranian journalists have been banned from speaking to foreign radio stations deemed hostile to Iran, the Tehran Times reported on Sunday. It said that a committee of the Majlis, or parliament, last week banned any interview by the managing directors of the print media with 8220;radios which are hostile to Iran.8221; The ban refers mainly to Radio Free europe and Israel8217;s state-run radio station, the newspaper said. Both stations often seek current-events commentary from Iranian journalists on their Farsi-language broadcasts. Criticism of Iran8217;s ruling clerical establishment has grown among intellectuals amid an intensifying power struggle between reformists and hardliners in the government. 8220;The committee said that interviews of the managing directors with such radios are not in the national interests,8221; the English-language newspaper said.

100 dead in Lanka fighting

COLOMBO: More than 100 people were killed in the two-dayintense fighting between security forces and rebel Tamil Tigers to take control of a strategic location in north of Vanni to open up a land route to the Jaffna peninsula. Bodies of 86 terrorists have been recovered so far, military officials said on Monday. The army lost 16 personnel while 33 were wounded in the operation launched early Saturday. Although there was no definite information on how many rebels were injured, an army spokesman said it could be about 200.

Mistaken identity

KUALA LUMPUR: A 29-year-old goatherd who climbed a tree to pluck leaves for his animals, was mistaken for a monkey and shot, a news report said. Hospital authorities said he was in stable condition, according to the national news agency Bernama on Sunday. The accident occurred near Port Dickson, 90 km south of Kuala Lumpur. Police confiscated the shotgun of the 62-year-old farmer who made the near-fatal mistake and released him on a 500 dollar bail, Bernama quoted State police chief Amiruddin Embi as saying. The reportdid not say what the farmer was charged with. The police chief urged farmers to be more careful with their firearms.

China set to test missile

WASHINGTON: China is preparing to test a new mobile intercontinental ballistic missile which the CIA believes was built using stolen US warhead and missile secrets, the Washington Times reported on Monday. US spy satellites saw preparations for a test launch of the DF-31 near Wuzhai in central China, unnamed intelligence officials told the paper. The test launch could happen as soon as next week, but US officials were cautious as a test set for December had been cancelled, the paper said. The missile has a range of 8,000 km and one official told the paper that the missile could carry a 2.5 megatonne warhead. Other officials said the warhead would be less than one-tenth that strong. A megatonne is equivalent to one million tonnes of TNT.

No titles for royal children

LONDON: The daughters of Prince Andrew and his ex-wife, the Duchess of York,formerly Sarah Ferguson, will be asked to renounce their titles of princess when they turn 18, the Sunday Times said, citing another move to slim down and modernise Britain8217;s royal family. Quoting unnamed royal sources, the newspaper said Princess Beatrice, 10, and Princess Eugenie, 9, would instead have the more modest Lady8217; before their names and would also lose their titles of Her Royal Highness. Asked to comment, a Buckingham Palace spokeswoman said she was 8220;not aware of any discussions that have taken place on that. It would be unusual, although it has been done before,8221; she added, speaking on customary condition of anonymity. The royal family, supported by Prime Minister Tony Blair8217;s Labour government, have been examining ways of limiting the number of royals who get state funds and perform royal duties, and also cutting down on grand royal titles for junior family members.

Jackson in hospital

MUNICH: Pop music superstar Michael Jackson was taken to an emergency clinic for unknown reasonsfollowing his sold out concert in Munich on Sunday. A speaker for concert promoter Mama Concerts said early Monday that the reason for Jackson8217;s trip to the hospital was not serious. No injury was reported but it was speculated that the pop star may have been slightly burned by the spectacular pyrotechnics display that was part of his performance. A Munich hospital spokesman would not comment whether Jackson had been received at the facility.