Burmese monks stage first protest since uprising
About 100 Buddhist monks took to the streets in central Burma yesterday in the first protests since pro-democracy demonstrations were bloodily suppressed by troops in late September. The monks, in the Buddhist religious centre of Pakokku -which provided the spark for the nationwide uprising that left at least 13 dead-marched peacefully through the town for almost an hour, chanting and praying. They shunned overtly political slogans but two called a dissident radio station to assert that their goals remained the same as those of earlier demonstrators, whose ranks swelled to more than 100,000.
Japan Ends Afghan Naval Mission
Japan’s Defense Ministry ordered home its naval ships from the Indian Ocean today, ending for now a six-year mission in the war in Afghanistan that raised
the nation’s military presence overseas
N Korean nuclear shutdown nears
Work on disabling North Korea's main nuclear complex will begin by early next week, according to US officials. "We would like to start as soon as possible," said Sung Kim, one of a team of experts who travelled to North Korea on Thursday to oversee the process.
