Kyodo news summary -2-

---------- U.S. upbeat on N. Korea meeting nuclear deadline

WASHINGTON - The United States remains upbeat North Korea will shut down a nuclear reactor by late next week as promised in last month's landmark nuclear deal, the State Department said Wednesday.

Under the Feb. 13 agreement reached by North and South Korea, the United States, China, Japan and Russia, Pyongyang is supposed to close and seal its Yongbyon nuclear complex in return for aid within 60 days.

---------- Kidnappers again boost ransom for release of hostages

ASUNCION - A group that claims to have kidnapped four people, including two Japanese, in Paraguay has again raised the ransom for their release, to $750,000, investigative sources said Wednesday.

Making contact through a Paraguayan acquaintance of one of the hostages, Hirokazu Ota, the group has also warned that it will further boost the demand if preparation of the money takes time, the sources said.

---------- Bomb attack on mosque in southern Thailand injures 14

BANGKOK - At least 14 people were injured after unidentified assailants threw a small bomb into a mosque in Thailand's southern province of Yala on Thursday morning, local police said.

Yala police said the attack occurred around 5 a.m. in the province's Yaha district as more than 100 Muslims were engaged in morning prayers in the mosque.

---------- Gov't to set up expert panel to study collective self-defense

TOKYO - The Japanese government will set up a panel of experts by the end of this month to research collective self-defense, government sources said Thursday.

Shunji Yanai, a former Japanese ambassador to the United States, will head the panel, according to the sources.