Briefly world

Iran said on Monday the UN nuclear watchdog was suffering a crisis of moral authority and credibility.

Iran lashes out at IAEA,defies West

VIENNA: Iran said on Monday the UN nuclear watchdog was suffering a crisis of moral authority and credibility. In a speech to IAEA member states including the US,Irans nuclear energy chief Ali Akbar Salehi voiced continued defiance over international demands that the Islamic state stop work the West suspects is aimed at making atom bombs. Meanwhile,US Energy Secretary Steven Chu said that the US will continue to pressure Iran to meet its international commitments and come clean about its nuclear programme.

China media warn Japan over sea row

BEIJING: Chinese media on Monday warned Japan it risked intensified reprisals over a sea dispute and claimed that many back military force to settle a long feud over islands between Asias two biggest economies. China should have a set of plans in place to further sanction Japan,fighting a diplomatic battle with Japan of successive retaliation, said an editorial in the Global Times,a popular tabloid that focuses on international news.

23 troops killed in Tajikistan ambush

Dushanbe: Heavily armed Islamic militants ambushed a military convoy in Tajikistan on Sunday,killing at least 23 soldiers and dealing a severe blow to this impoverished nation on Afghanistans poorly secured northern border. The military convoy was attacked near Rasht district,an area about 80 km north of the Afghan border,Defence Ministry spokesman Faridun Makhmadaliyev said on Monday.

Hurricane Igor batters Bermuda,moves north

HAMILTON: Hurricane Igor churned north on Monday on a track expected to take it near Newfoundland in easternmost Canada,after battering Bermuda with heavy winds,waves and rain that caused damage but no casualties. The Canadian Hurricane Center issued a tropical storm watch for the coast of Newfoundland.

Belgian bishops want debate on celibacy

BRUSSELS: Two Belgian bishops openly questioned mandatory celibacy for Roman Catholic priests,rekindling a debate on Monday within the scandal-hit church. The bishop of Hasselt,Patrick Hoogmartens,and his counterpart in Bruges,Jozef De Kesel,said in separate comments that married men should not automatically be excluded from priesthood.