The United Nations mission in Baghdad says at least 1,273 Iraqis were killed in violence in October, a slight increase compared to last month amid the ongoing assault by the extremist Islamic State group.
	The UN report issued today said violence killed 856 civilians and 417 members of Iraq's security forces. It said attacks wounded 2,010 Iraqis.
	The worst-hit city was Baghdad, with 379 civilians killed.
	The UN says the figures do not take into account causalities in Anbar province nor some other militant-held parts of Iraq.
	The October count apparently did not include the victims of the recent mass killings conducted by Islamic State group militants in Anbar province against pro-government Sunni tribesmen.
	The UN has said September's death toll was 1,119 Iraqis killed.

UN: At least 1,273 Iraqis killed in October

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Islamic State group extremists lined up and shot dead at least 50 tribesmen and women in Iraq's Anbar province, officials said today, the latest mass killing committed by the group.
	The shooting happened yesterday in the village of Ras al-Maa, north of the provincial capital of Ramadi, Anbar councilman Faleh al-Issawi said.
	Militants accused men and women of the Al Bu Nimr tribe of retaliating against them after being displaced from their homes when the group seized the Anbar town of Hit last month, al-Issawi said.
	"These killings are taking place almost on a daily basis now in the areas under the control of the Islamic State group and they will continue unless this terrorist group is stopped," al-Issawi told The Associated Press.
	An official in the Anbar governor's office confirmed the death toll. He spoke on condition of anonymity as he is not authorized to brief journalists.
	On Thursday, authorities found the bodies of 48 Sunni tribesmen killed by the Islamic State group in ...

Iraqi officials: IS extremists line up, kill 50

Rebel-held territories in eastern Ukraine prepared today to elect legislators and executives in a vote that has been roundly condemned by the international community but backed by Russia.
	Work at some polling stations in the largest separatist- controlled city of Donetsk was disrupted by a sudden intensification of hostilities.
	Artillery and small weapons fire could be heard in northern districts of the city near the airport, which has been the focus of heavy fighting for weeks.
	Separatist authorities argue that Sunday's votes in the Donetsk Peoples Republic and Luhansk Peoples Republic will lend legitimacy to their aspirations for self-determination.
	"We have put too much at stake on the altar of the victory and through this election we are legitimizing our government and thereby separating from Ukraine even further," said rebel election chief Roman Lyagin.
	Western governments and the United Nations say the vote violates the terms of a cease-fire agreement signed by Russia, ...

Ukraine rebels to hold election, despite criticism

An Afghan official says at least nine members of the country's security forces have been killed in a suicide attack in eastern Logar province.
	Din Mohammad Darwesh, a spokesman for the provincial governor, said today that six police officers and three soldiers were killed by a suicide bomber in an explosives-laden vehicle.
	Darwesh said that the blast wounded about 20 civilians, damaged three houses and destroyed a mosque in the province's Azra district.
	No one has claimed responsibility for the attack. Taliban insurgents have intensified their attacks against both Afghan and NATO security forces across the country as most international security forces prepare to withdraw by the end of the year.

Suicide car bomber kills 9 Afghan police, soldiers

A firefighter has been killed and at least two homes have been destroyed by Australian spring wildfires, officials said today.
	The 38-year-old volunteer firefighter was severely burned Friday while battling a blaze on a farm near the town of Nantawarra in South Australia state, state Country Fire Service chief officer Greg Nettleton said. The fire was later contained.
	At least two homes were razed by wildfires today on the outskirts of the town of Katoomba in the Blue Mountains west of Sydney, in New South Wales state, state Rural Fire Service Inspector Ben Shepherd said.
	The service's deputy commissioner, Bob Rogers, said firefighters had battled to protect homes in Katoomba from flames fanned by winds of 80 kilometres per hour.
	"There'll be a lot of work to clean up this fire in days to come," Rogers told Nine Network television news.
	The winds had dropped off and the danger posed by the fire had decreased, although the blaze remained out of control, Shepherd said, adding that .

Australia wildfires kill firefighter, raze 2 homes

Bloody zombies lumbered alongside superheroes, cowboys shared the road with villains and marchers in hazardous-materials garb evoked the Ebola crisis as the Greenwich Village Halloween Parade made its freewheeling way through downtown Manhattan.
	Creativity was on display and current events were on marchers' minds as a costumed crowd of thousands flowed up Sixth Avenue on a windy Halloween night.
	Dr Jane Testa sported a "hammer out Ebola" costume featuring a hazmat suit, flashing lights, a large version of the virus, made of balloons, and a sign with a biohazard symbol and the message "Quarantine: Ebola outbreak. Deadly force may be used."
	"Don't get too close!" Testa warned, holding a balloon hammer with a red cross. Stressing that her heart goes out to those infected, she said she spent several days making the costume "to raise awareness."
	"And laughter," added her friend Dawn Sickles, who also donned a hazmat suit. As usual, the mood along the parade route was Carnival-esque, ...

Superheroes, hazmat suits in NY Halloween parade

The US Air Force's new commander in the Pacific said today, she's hoping to continue talks with China on avoiding dangerous encounters in the air that have added to regional tensions.
	General Lori Robinson said she anticipates a speaking engagement at China's biggest air show later this month will allow her to renew dialogue on the issue.
	"The dialogue is beginning. I think that's very, very good for the region," Robinson said in a telephone interview from Hawaii.
	Concerns over risky aerial engagements were spotlighted after a Chinese fighter jet came within 9 meters(30 feet) of a US Navy P-8 Poseidon plane over the South China Sea in August.
	That revived memories of a 2001 collision between aircraft from the two countries that killed a Chinese jet fighter pilot and forced a heavily damaged US surveillance plane to land at a Chinese base.
	Tensions were also raised last year after China declared an air-defense identification zone over disputed islands in the East China Sea. The ...

New US general seeks China air safety dialogue

A new UN draft resolution takes aim at Myanmar's aggressive campaign to have its Rohingya Muslims identify as a term they reject, urging "access to full citizenship on an equal basis."
	The European Union-drafted resolution, obtained yesterday by The Associated Press, is one piece of international pressure on the Southeast Asian country to change its campaign, preferably before world leaders including President Barack Obama arrive for a regional summit in less than two weeks.
	Myanmar's 1.3 million Rohingya have been denied citizenship and have almost no rights. Attacks by Buddhist mobs have left hundreds dead and 140,000 trapped in camps. Others are fleeing the country.
	Authorities want to officially categorise the Rohingya as "Bengalis," implying they are illegal migrants from neighbouring Bangladesh. The Rohingya counter that many of their families have been in Myanmar for generations.
	Effectively stateless, they are wanted by neither country and say the Myanmar government's ...

UN resolution urges Myanmar to drop identity plan

Iraqi peshmerga fighters began entering the Syrian border town of Kobani where they were expected to join the battle against Islamist militants besieging the town, activists have said.
	The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights and Kobani-based activist Mustafa Bali last night said 10 vehicles carrying Iraqi peshmerga fighters and their weapons have entered the town. They said the Iraqi Kurdish force entered from an area west of the town near the strategic Tel Shair hill.
	The Observatory and Bali said it was not immediately clear how many peshmerga fighters of the force of 150 have entered Kobani.
	It was not clear why the force did not enter from the main border crossing point between Kobani and Turkey although it is likely because the area is subjected to attacks by the Islamic State group fighters.
	Earlier last night, journalists in the Turkish border town of Suruc saw the peshmerga force leaving the area where they had stayed for days and headed toward Kobani.
	The ..

Peshmerga fighters enter Syrian border

Yemen's Shiite rebels, who are in control of the capital, gave the president 10 days starting from today to form a government, hinting at a takeover attempt if their demands are not met.
	The Shiite group, also known as Houthis, rallied some 30,000 tribal leaders in Sanaa, where they delivered a communique warning President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi that "all revolutionary options are open" if he failed to form a government.
	"Our next meeting will be at the headquarters of the decision making," said Deif Allah Rassam, spokesman of the so-called Popular Tribal Alliance. A second speaker at the rally, Naguib al-Mansouri, called for the formation of a "salvation military council."
	The government formation is part of a UN deal to reach a peaceful settlement to Yemen's political crisis. The deal stated that the president would appoint a new prime minister after consulting with two advisers, one representing the Houthis and a second representing Yemen's disgruntled southern region.
	After ..

Yemen's Shiite rebels give president ultimatum

An Israeli political cartoon depicting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu piloting an airplane heading for New York's Twin Towers has set off a firestorm of criticism and focused new attention on the troubled relationship between Israel and the United States.
	The cartoon had appeared yesterday in Haaretz, Israel's leading liberal newspaper, and elicited strong words both in Israel itself and from Anti-Defamation League head Abraham Foxman.
	Foxman called on Haaretz to apologize for printing a "grossly offensive cartoon." He said it misrepresents "any tensions which may currently exist between the US government and Netanyahu" and "disrespects the memories of thousands of innocent Americans and others who tragically perished on 9/11."
	The cartoon appeared a day after the Atlantic quoted an unidentified administration official who used the word "chickens" to assail Netanyahu for his alleged cowardice and pettiness.
	The official also complained about his settlement policies in the West .

Israel cartoon highlights troubled ties with US

British police have found the bodies of two men after a blaze at a fireworks warehouse that sent plumes of black smoke and explosions into the sky.
	A 53-year-old man was arrested today in connection with the fire, but was later released without charge.
	The Staffordshire Police force says officers and fire officials are investigating the cause of the fire that also sent two people to hospital.
	Fifty firefighters spent several hours tackling the blaze yesterday at the SP Plastics building in Stafford, central England.
	Two men were taken to a local hospital, one with a back injury and another with serious burns.

2 bodies found after UK fireworks warehouse blaze

Colombian authorities say a coal mine collapse has trapped 12 men and they say rescue will be difficult.
	The country's mining and energy ministry says the collapse occurred at about 4 pm yesterday with a sudden burst of water into the mine in the northwestern state of Antioquia.
	It says officials are trying to pump out contaminated air pervading the tunnels.
	The agency says in a statement issued today that a specialized mine rescue team as well as other searchers are working at the scene.
	Antioquia Gov Sergio Fajardo says it is likely to take three days to reach the men in a "very complicated" rescue operation.
	Another mining accident in the same region in June 2010 killed more than 60 miners.

12 men trapped in Colombia coal mine collapse

Brazil has begun screening passengers arriving from the Ebola-affected countries of Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea.
	Health Minister Arthur Chioro says passengers from those countries will have their temperatures taken and asked to answer a questionnaire that will help authorities determine if they have the Ebola virus or not.
	The screening process went into effect today in Sao Paulo's Guarulhos International Airport and will be in place in five other airports by the end of November.
	He said 529 passengers from the three countries arrived so far this year at the Sao Paulo airport, which handles close to 40,000 arriving passengers every day.
	He said no Ebola cases have been confirmed in Brazil.

Brazil screens arrivals from Ebola-affected areas

Sri Lankan authorities warned of more landslides at a tea plantation where a deadly torrent of mud swept away scores of homes this week, but residents said today that there was no room left at the shelters and no alternative housing for them to move to.
	Disaster officials estimate that at least 100 people were killed on Wednesday when monsoon rains unleashed a cascade of muddy earth at the Koslanda plantation in Badulla district, about 140 miles (220 kilometers) east of Colombo. The death toll has yet to be confirmed, and many villagers believe the figure could exceed 200.
	Kannusamy Mahendran, 34, whose home was still standing but in the danger zone, said residents have been warned of mudslides several times since 2002. But he said alternative housing has always been the problem.
	"Officials come here and ask us to leave, but they don't tell us where to go," he said, adding that the families are at grave risk if another landslide barrels down the hills.
	Mahendran said the ...

Shelters fill up after deadly Sri Lanka mudslide

The Dutch prime minister says investigators have recovered an unspecified number of human remains from the site in eastern Ukraine where Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 was shot down.
	Speaking at his weekly press conference in The Hague, Mark Rutte said a team of Dutch, Ukrainian and OSCE rescue workers gained a rare chance today to safely reach the spot where the plane's wreckage is scattered.
	Access to the site has been hampered by ongoing fighting between pro-Russian separatists and Ukrainian forces.
	The plane went down above a rebel-held area on July 17, killing all 298 passengers and crew most of them Dutch. To date, 284 victims have been identified. Rutte said the remains will be flown back to the Netherlands for identification.

Remains recovered from Ukraine plane disaster site

Asset disclosures by members of Thailand's military-dominated post-coup Cabinet reveal they are quite well-off, a trait shared with the civilian politicians they accused of corruption.
	The National Anti-Corruption Commission today released the asset declarations of the 33 Cabinet ministers, 25 of whom are millionaires in dollar terms.
	Allegations of corruption and inappropriately gained wealth have played a major role in the country's fractious politics in the last decade. The current government has made fighting corruption a priority, though its critics believe the policy is being wielded mainly as a weapon against its political rivals, particularly those connected to the elected government it ousted.
	Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, who as army commander led a May coup d'etat, listed USD 3.9 million in assets and USD 20,000 in liabilities. Under the disclosure laws, assets belonging to spouses and children under 21 must be included. He also reported the transfer of USD 14.3 ...

Thai prime minister, an ex-general, is millionaire

President Blaise Compaore stepped down today after 27 years in power following a wave of protests against his rule.
	"I declare that I'm leaving power in order to have a free and transparent election in 90 days," said Compaore in a statement read out on television and radio stations. "For my part, I think I have fulfilled my duty."
	Opposition protesters gathered in a square in the capital burst into cheers when they heard the announcement on hand-held radios.
	Compaore, 63, said he decided to leave power "in light of the severely deteriorated sociopolitical situation and the threat of division in our national army and out of a desire to preserve the peace."
	It is believed that the prime minister will take power, as Compaore referred to the constitution which says that is who should succeed. However the military has played a visible role during this crisis and Burkina Faso's government and parliament were dissolved yesterday.
	For months, an opposition coalition has been urging ...

Burkina Faso leader steps down, vote in 90 days

Russia will resume shipping natural gas to Ukraine after Kiev pays off its first debt installment for past supplies of gas next week, officials said today.
	Alexei Miller, chief of Russia's state-controlled Gazprom natural gas giant, made the statement hours after Russia, Ukraine and the European Union thrashed out a USD 4.6 billion deal that will guarantee Russian gas supplies to Ukraine and further on to the EU.
	The deal eased fears that Europe will end up shivering this winter like it did in 2009, when a spat over Ukraine's gas bill prompted Russia to cut off energy supplies to Europe for nearly two weeks.
	The leaders of Germany, France, Russia and Ukraine hailed the deal in a conference call Friday as an "important step toward ensuring uninterrupted gas transit to Europe," the Kremlin said.
	Moscow had cut off gas supplies to Ukraine in June over unpaid debts, a move that followed the ouster of Ukraine's Russia-friendly leader and the Kremlin's annexation of Crimea in March. ...

Russia: Natural gas will flow after Ukraine pays

Nissan says it's recalling more than 1,800 Infiniti SUVs in the US for an air bag problem that could send shrapnel into the passenger compartment.
	The recall covers some QX56 SUVs from 2013 and the QX80s from 2014. The company says inflators made by Takata Corp. were built with an incorrect outer baffle part. That can cause pressure to build up, and the inflators can rupture if driver's side air bags are deployed.
	Nissan has no reports of injuries from the problem. It was discovered after General Motors recalled 33,000 Cruze compact cars for the same problem in June. The Infiniti recall is part of a larger global recall of 260,000 Nissans announced last week.
	Takata says the recall only affects GM and Nissan vehicles and is separate from another one covering 8 million vehicles in the US In that recall, prolonged exposure to high humidity can cause inflators to malfunction and explode with too much force. Safety advocates say four people have died due to that problem, which affects .

Nissan recalls Infiniti SUVs to fix air bags

Afghanistan's new president invited the Taliban to join in a peace process backed by the international community today, in an unusual direct reference to the insurgents who have stepped up attacks aimed at bringing down his month-old government.
	Speaking at a conference on Afghan peace and reconstruction in Beijing, Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai made no specific proposals and indicated government forces wouldn't back away from the fight. However, his mention of the Taliban by name marked a departure from his usual public references to them as "political opponents."
	"Peace is our highest priority. We invite the political opposition, particularly the Taliban, to join and enter Afghan dialogue, and ask all of our international partners to support an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace process," Ghani Ahmadzai said.
	"We must not and will not permit groups pursuing grand illusions to use our country as the battleground or launching-pad against the international system," he added.
	It wasn't ...

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