South Korea voting begins

Ruling Party leads opinion polls

S KOREA: Millions of South Koreans went to the polls yesterday in local elections overshadowed by rekindled security concerns about North Korea. The sinking of a South Korean warship in March with the loss of 46 lives cast a long shadow over the nationwide elections for local posts.

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Japan PM quits before election

JAPAN: Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama said on Wednesday he and his powerful party No. 2 would resign after a slide in the polls threatened their party’s chances in an election expected next month.

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Karzai launches Afghan peace bid

AFGHANISTAN: Afghan President Hamid Karzai launches an ambitious peace plan on Wednesday that he hopes will persuade Taliban fighters to put down their weapons at a time foreign forces are flooding in for an offensive.

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