Briefly world

The United States rolled out the red carpet for Afghan President Hamid Karzai on Monday as he started a four-day visit,hoping...

Karzai arrives to US red carpet after rocky ties

WASHINGTON: The United States rolled out the red carpet for Afghan President Hamid Karzai on Monday as he started a four-day visit,hoping to patch up public spats that cast a shadow over joint war efforts. In a sign of the US effort,special envoy for Afghanistan and Pakistan Richard Holbrooke personally greeted him as he landed early on Monday at Andrews Air Force Base. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will welcome Karzai with a dinner at the Blair House,the official guesthouse for state guests across from the White House.

Death toll in Russia mine blasts reaches 31

MEZHDURECHENSK: Rescuers pulled 19 more bodies from the rubble of Russias largest coal mine on Monday,but 59 miners and those who had gone in to save them were still missing deep underground as water flooded into the shafts. The official death toll now stands at 31 following two explosions in the Siberian mine. Many of the dead were rescue workers who had gone into the mine after the first of the weekend blasts. A second,more powerful blast then destroyed the main air shaft,which had a diameter of 5 meters,and a five-storey building over the mine.

US envoy meets with Myanmars Suu Kyi

YANGON: Expressing concerns about the legitimacy of the military-run countrys upcoming elections,a top US official on Monday met Myanmars detained democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi. Kurt Campbell,assistant secretary of state for East Asia,started off his two-day visit by saying Washington was deeply concerned about the political environment the ruling junta has created ahead of Myanmars first election in 20 years. Before meeting with Suu Kyi at a government guesthouse,Campbell spoke with senior leaders of her now-defunct opposition party who urged Washington to convey its concerns by getting tougher with the junta.

Legendary singer Lena Horne dies at 92

NEW YORK: Lena Horne,the enchanting jazz singer and actress who reviled the bigotry that allowed her to entertain white audiences but not socialise with them,slowing her rise to Broadway superstardom,died on Sunday. She was 92. Horne died at New York-Presbyterian Hospital,according to hospital spokeswoman Gloria Chin. Chin would not release any other details. I was unique in that I was a kind of black that white people could accept, she once said. I was their daydream.

Thai protesters refuse to leave,push new demands

BANGKOK: Thai anti-government protesters refused on Monday to end a crippling two-month street demonstration until the government accepted responsibility for a clash with troops in April that killed 25 people. The Red Shirts accepted a timetable for November 14 elections,but set a new condition that Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaugsuban must face criminal charges. The demand doused speculation of an imminent end to protests that have paralysed an upscale commercial district at a cost to retailers of more than 30 million in lost business.