Briefly world

For the first time,the results of the May 6 general election in Britain are to be projected on to the Big Ben.

In first,results to be beamed on Big Ben

London: For the first time,the results of the May 6 general election in Britain are to be projected on to the Big Ben. The number of seats won by the Labour,the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats will be updated over the course of the night as part of an initiative between the BBC and the Parliament. The images will be beamed from the moment the first result is declared until the next morning,the BBC said. The idea is to provide a clear and simple source of information.

Brown says his Labour Party is the underdog

London: Prime Minister Gordon Brown says his Labour Party,which has ruled the country for 13 years,is the underdog in a three-way race for the UK leadership. Labour holds 345 seats in Parliament and the party could still cling to power even if it is handed a humiliating third-place finish in the popular vote Thursday.

Bombs target Christian students in Iraq

BAGHDAD: Two bombs exploded minutes apart Sunday near buses carrying Christian students in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul,killing at least one bystander and injuring around 100 others,a security official said. Sunni Muslim insurgents have frequently targeted members of Iraqs Christian minority,especially in Mosul,which is home to a large Christian community. A shop owner was killed. The injured included students.

Be nice,get protection, Musharraf told Bhutto

LONDON: Former military ruler Pervez Musharraf had warned Benazair Bhutto that if she wanted protection in Pakistan she should be nice to him,a top ex-aide of the assassinated leader has claimed. According to a Sunday Times report,former premier Benazir had called Musharraf,then the President of Pakistan,seeking security. He told her,I warned you not to come back until after the elections, and threatened her,Ill only protect you if youre nice to me, said Husain Haqqani.

Abducted Afghan envoy pleads for life in video

Islamabad: The abductors of Aghanistans ambassador-designate to Pakistan Abdul Khaliq Farahi,who was kidnapped in Peshawar in 2008,on Sunday released a video in which he was shown pleading to authorities to accept demands of his captors. A little-known group,Kateeba Salahuddin Ayubi,issued the video in Waziristan tribal region and claimed responsibility for Farahis kidnapping.