Afghan, NATO forces kill 30 insurgents in assault

KABUL: Afghan and NATO-led forces killed at least 30 insurgents in an air and ground assault in eastern Afghanistan on Saturday, NATO forces said in a statement.

The NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) said more than 250 Afghan security forces and coalition troops battled insurgents in Laghman province, southeast of the capital Kabul, after coming under small-arms fire.

There were no immediate reports of coalition or civilian casualties in the assault, which ISAF said was continuing.

Rising violence and casualties are of deep concern in Washington, where U.S. President Barack Obama is due to conduct a strategy review of the increasingly unpopular war in December.

Afghanistan is under renewed scrutiny after last weekend’s parliamentary election was hit by violence and widespread claims of fraud, the second flawed poll in 13 months

Times Square suspect says he acted alone: official

NEW YORK: A law enforcement official says the man accused of driving a bomb-laden vehicle into Times Square was arrested onboard a flight set to leave a New York airport for Dubai.

The official familiar with the investigation tells a foreign news agency that Faisal Shahzad was taken into custody aboard the flight at Kennedy International Airport.

The official spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the investigation.

The official says investigators still don”t have evidence that Shahzad is connected to the Pakistani Taliban or any foreign terror groups.

The official says, “He”s claimed to have acted alone, but these are things that have to be investigated.”

NYC mayor: Bias will not be tolerated

NEW YORK: Mayor Michael Bloomberg says New York City “will not tolerate any bias” following the arrest of a U.S. citizen from Pakistan in the Times Square car bombing attempt.

Bloomberg said Tuesday that also applies to potential backlash against Muslim New Yorkers.

The mayor said there are “a few bad apples” among any groups. He also cited New York”s long history of accepting cultures from the around the world.

Obama: FBI looking for foreign ties in attack

WASHINGTON: The FBI is investigating the suspect in last weekend”s failed Times Square car bombing for possible ties to terrorist groups, US President Barack Obama said Tuesday.

Speaking hours after a suspect was pulled off a plane about to depart for the Middle East, Obama said “justice will be done”” in the incident.

The president said “hundreds of lives” may have been saved through swift action by ordinary citizens and local, state and federal authorities on Saturday night.

“We know that the aim of those who try to carry out”” attacks like the one last weekend is to force Americans to live in fear, Obama said.

“As Americans and as a nation, we will not be terrorized. We will not cower in fear. We will not be intimidated,”” he vowed.

The president made his comments at the annual meeting of the Business Council.

Earlier, spokesman Robert Gibbs told reporters that Obama had been informed a few minutes after midnight about the arrest of a suspect, Faisal Shahzad.

Cyber Monday 2009 Begins Peak Season In UK

Full Story And Original Content. TrendPK.com Cyber Monday 2009 Begins Peak Season In UK:Cyber Monday, the first Monday after the last weekend of November, marks peak season for online retailers in the UK. This year, Cyber Monday falls on 30 November.

Full Story And Original Content. TrendPK.com Cyber Monday 2009 Begins Peak Season In UK:Cyber Monday, the first Monday after the last weekend of November, marks
peak season for online retailers in the UK. This year, Cyber Monday falls on
30 November. Originally coined in the United States by the National Retail
Federation, Cyber Monday has become a UK shopping phenomenon [...]