Following are the top foreign stories at 1745 hours

Following are the top foreign stories at 1745 hours:

FGN21: BANGLA-ZIA

Dhaka: Bangladesh's High Court today granted six-month bail to imprisoned former prime minister Khaleda Zia in a defamation case over her "derogatory remarks" about the 1971 Liberation War and Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the country's first post-independence president and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's father, media reports said.

FGN20: PAK-2NDLD SHARIF

Islamabad: Pakistan's jailed former prime minister Nawaz Sharif today appeared before an accountability court hearing two graft cases against him and his family, but the proceeding was adjourned till Wednesday following disturbance caused by reports of firing outside the court premises, according to a media report.

 

FGN19: BANGLA-COURT-LD WARCRIMES

Dhaka: Five hardline Islamists were sentenced to death today by a special Bangladeshi tribunal for committing crimes against humanity and siding with the Pakistani troops in carrying out a genocide in a village during the Liberation War in 1971.

FGN17: CHINA-COURT-DIVORCE

Beijing: Chinese courts are imposing 'cooling-off' periods to couples seeking legal separation to reconsider their decision in a bid to check the sharp increase of divorce rate in the country. By K J M Varma

FGN16: PAK-3RDLD PARLIAMENT

Islamabad: Pakistan's Prime Minister-in-waiting Imran Khan was among the 329 newly-elected members of the National Assembly who took the oath today, setting the stage for the cricketer-turned-politician to form the next government, only the second democratic transition of power. By Sajjad Hussain

FGN11: PAK-INDIA-LD PRISONERS

Islamabad: Pakistan today released 30 Indian prisoners, including 27 fishermen, from jail as a goodwill gesture ahead of the country's Independence Day tomorrow. By Sajjad Hussain

FGN27: AFGHAN-LD FIGHTING

Kabul: Four days of ferocious fighting between Afghan forces and the Taliban over a key provincial capital has claimed the lives of about 100 Afghan policemen and soldiers and at least 20 civilians, the defence minister said today. (AP)

FGN26: IRAN-US-LD KHAMENEI

Tehran: Iran's supreme leader today said there would be neither war nor negotiations with the United States, and that the country's problems were the result of government mismanagement more than renewed sanctions.