First woman bomber dies in Pakistan.

PESHAWAR: A female suicide bomber, apparently aiming to attack a military post, blew herself up yesterday near a Christian school, officials said, in what was believed to be Pakistan's first known case of a suicide attack by a woman. A police officer said the woman was walking near a Christian missionary school and a military checkpoint in the northwestern city of Peshawar when explosives strapped to her body went off, killing her instantly. There were no other casualties. Interior Ministry spokesman said the female bomber tried to approach the military post but was stopped by troops and then blew herself up.

"I think this has been the first suicide bombing by a woman," he told a weekly news conference at the ministry in the capital, Islamabad.

British soldier killed in Afghan blast

LONDON: A British soldier was killed and two others wounded yesterday when their vehicle was hit by an explosion while on patrol in southern Afghanistan. The death brings to 85 the number of British armed forces personnel who have been killed in operations since October 2001. "The soldiers were conducting a tactical patrol to the north of Sangin, Helmand Province, when the vehicle they were travelling in was caught in an explosion," the Defence Ministry said. "Despite the best efforts of the medical team, one of the soldiers sadly died as a result of his wounds. The other two soldiers are currently receiving medical treatment and their injuries are not thought to be life threatening," it added.

US to stay silent on Saudi arms deal 

WASHINGTON: The State Department has agreed to wait until January to announce plans to sell precision-guided bombs to Saudi Arabia, after senior-ranking US legislators said they wanted more time to review the deal. While members were briefed on the deal last month, the official announcement would kick off a 30-day review period during which legislators could move to block it. In a private telephone call, Representative Tom Lantos, Democratic chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, asked Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to wait until next month when members will have more time to review the deal. Congress faces a jam-packed schedule for the next couple of weeks, before departing for a holiday break next month. Rice agreed to wait until Congress returns on January 15. While blocking foreign arms sales is extremely rare by Congress, the Bush administration's plans to sell Saudi Arabia such sophisticated weaponry has raised eyebrows on both sides of the aisle.

Somali president in Kenya hospital

BAIDOA, Somalia: Turmoil struck the Somali government yesterday as a fifth minister resigned in a power-sharing dispute a day after being appointed, and the president was urgently flown to a hospital in Kenya's capital. A security official described President Abdullahi Yusuf, 72, as being in a "serious condition" when he arrived in Nairobi from Somalia. But the government and Yusuf's doctor played down the threat to his health.

China rejects UK spying charges

BEIJING: China's Foreign Ministry yesterday denied a report claiming Chinese agencies were spying on British companies via the Internet. The Times of London reported that Jonathan Evans, who heads Britain's spy agency MI5, sent letters to 300 executives and security chiefs at banks, accountancies and legal firms warning them that "Chinese state organisations" were hacking into their systems through the Internet and stealing confidential information. But Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman denied the report, saying China opposed computer hacking and that it was co-operating with British authorities.

Di driver 'was drinking despite rules'

LONDON: A manager at the Ritz Hotel in Paris said yesterday that he knew the driver for Princess Diana and Dodi Fayed had been drinking before their fatal crash, but he felt he was not in a position to object. Thierry Rocher told the British coroner's inquest that the driver, Henri Paul, was acting director of security at the hotel and had a special relationship with the Fayed family and top management. Had any other employee been seen drinking while working, Rocher said, "reports would have been drafted and that person surely would have been dismissed." Paul's drinking is a key issue in the inquest's examination of the deaths of the princess and her boyfriend of six weeks.

German jailed for racist attack

BERLIN: A court convicted a 23-year-old German man yesterday of a racially motivated attack on a group of Indians in eastern Germany in August and sentenced him to eight months in prison. Before he was found guilty of racial incitement, Frank Dietrich confessed to taking part in the attack on a group of eight Indian men in the town of Muegeln. He apologised to one of the victims. Dietrich is the third of four suspects to be convicted for the Muegeln attack, but the only one so far to sentenced to prison.

Sarkozy's mother opposes marriage

PARIS: The mother of French President Nicolas Sarkozy does not want him to marry again and told a French magazine she has "had enough of brides". Andree Sarkozy, 80, told Point de Vue magazine her son should have no trouble finding a new woman after divorcing his wife Cecilia. "You know, in his post, he can only have the difficulty of choosing. But I hope that no one will get married again. I've had enough of brides," Sarkozy told the magazine. Andree Sarkozy, who accompanied her son on a recent trip to China, said she had got on well with Cecilia but was not close to Cecilia's daughters. "They are distant. Very cold, a bit like their mum," she was quoted as saying by the magazine.

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