Briefly world

A wave of violence sweeping Kandahar has forced the UN to tell more than 200 of its Afghan employees to stay home,a UN official said on Monday.

Attacks prompt UN warning to 200 Afghan staffers

KANDAHAR: A wave of violence sweeping Kandahar has forced the UN to tell more than 200 of its Afghan employees to stay home,a UN official said on Monday. Several foreign UN employees were temporarily moved to Kabul. The announcement came hours after three bombings shook the city and left two civilians dead. UN spokesman Dan McNorton insisted UN is not pulling out of Kandahar,but he declined to say how many employees would still work in the troubled city. Two of Mondays blasts which occurred within a minute of one another when bombs planted about 30 feet apart exploded in downtown Kandahar were aimed at the passing convoy of Deputy Provincial Police Chief Fazel Ahmad Sherzad.

Late Polish Presidents twin brother to seek top job

WARSAW: Jaroslaw Kaczynski,the twin brother of Polands late President,declared his candidacy on Monday for a presidential election but political analysts said the combative nationalist was unlikely to win. Poles are due to elect a new President on June 20 following the death of Lech Kaczynski along with 95 other people in a plane crash in Russia on April 10. In reality,it wont be him Jaroslaw running,it will be his brother. His campaign team will play on sympathy for his brother, said Krzysztof Bobinski,head of the thinktank Unia amp; Polska Foundation.

Protesters block police in deepening Thai crisis

BANGKOK: Protests in the provinces on Monday,and a grenade attack against a politician,deepened fears of a civil conflict in Thailand after Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva rejected demands by anti-government protesters. King Bhumibhol Adulyadej made a rare appearance on Thai television at a ceremony to install judges,but made no direct comment on the political troubles in his kingdom,urging the judges to be honest and set a good example. Protesters fortified a sprawling encampment in Bangkoks main shopping district and urged supporters to block convoys of police and soldiers from reinforcing the capital.

Bashir declared winner in landmark Sudan polls

KHARTOUM: Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir,who is wanted by the International Criminal Court,was on Monday declared winner of the countrys first multi-party presidential election in over two decades. The winner in the election of the President of the republic is Omar Hassan Ahmed al-Beshir from the National Congress Party, chairman of the National Election Commission Abel Alier told reporters in Khartoum. Bashir won 68 per cent of votes,Alier added.

Kenyan Islamic group cracks down on soccer,films

NAIROBI: A group of Islamic clerics in Kenya said on Monday it was cracking down on public broadcasts of soccer and films as it feared young Kenyan Muslims were shunning Islamic traditions. If we come to a place where movies or watching football goes on we simply take everything and destroy the disc and repay the owners. We have now succeeded in 10 places, said Sheikh Daud Sheikh Mahmud,the groups head. Well not stop until we have destroyed totally all the cinemas showing movies and football in this area, he said from Mandera,where the group is based.