Lastnight World

The Taliban on Saturday denied reports that their representatives met with a UN official to discuss prospects for peace in Afghanistan,calling them futile and baseless rumours....

Afghan Taliban deny meeting with UN

KABUL: The Taliban on Saturday denied reports that their representatives met with a UN official to discuss prospects for peace in Afghanistan,calling them futile and baseless rumours. The UN in Afghanistan has not confirmed the meeting between the Taliban and the world bodys local chief,Norwegian diplomat Kai Eide. But US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said Eide,who is leaving his post within weeks,wanted to get his own conclusion about the mindset of some of the Taliban members.

Designer Anand Jon pleads not guilty

New York: Celebrity fashion designer Anand Jon Alexander has pleaded not guilty to dozens of new charges of sexually assaulting at least nine women and underage girls here between 2002 and 2006 after being jailed for 59 years by a Los Angeles court for similar crimes. The prosecutors also introduced new charges on Friday,stating that two women became physically helpless because of the drugs the accused had given them,and again two of his victims were under-age.

Twitter boss says told of China block

Davos: Twitter co-founder Evan Williams on Saturday said he had been told that his microblogging service has been partially blocked in China but had no confirmation. Thats what Ive been told, he said,adding that he had heard reports on that but that the company did not have direct confirmation. Williams said that China can use a firewall to block access to the service. There are ways for users to get around it,but Im not an expert on that, he said,on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos.

France moves towards full veil ban

Paris: French Prime Minister Francois Fillon has asked Frances top court to help the governmentdraft a law banning the burqa,his office said. The governments move comes three days after a French parliament report called for a ban on the burqa and niqab,saying Muslim women who fully cover their heads and faces pose an unacceptable challenge to French values.

Nepal Maoists warn of peoples revolt

Kathmandu: Nepalese Maoists have threatened of peoples revolt,saying that national regressive forces and foreign powers are conspiring to foil the peace process and constitution drafting process. Alleging they smelt a plot,Maoist strongman Prachanda warned against hurdles being put in the way of peace process as the Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal called for all parties to take a united stand on the Constitution draft.