Nato officials in Afghanistan say more than two dozens suspected Taliban militants have been killed in an air strike in the Chapa Dara district in Kunar province. The Taliban also acknowledged the attack. From Kharbul, Aleem Maqbool reports.
Nato has confirmed it launched the air raid in Kunar province in northeastern Afghanistan, saying more than two dozens militants were killed in the attack and saying there were assistances from Afghan security forces. The Taliban, though say they lost 13 fighters, but did acknowledged that others had sustained injuries. There is a different report says they were aware of large number of militants had gathered together before they were attacked. Some locals say they were due to carry out public executions, others that the Taliban were preparing to attack and attempt to take control of the area.
Egyptian state media say President Mohammed Mursi will visit Iran at the end of the month, the first such visit by an Egyptian president for more than 30 years. He will attend the meeting of Non-Aligned Movement when Egypt will hand the bloc's rotating leadership to Iran. The two countries severed relations in 1979 after Egypt's recognition of Israel and the Iranian revolution.
Patrick Ricard, the chairman of the drinks company Pernod Ricard, has died at the age of 67. He turned his father's family business, which invented the popular French anise-flavored drink pastis, into the world's second biggest spirits company. The Ricard business emerged with the Pernod brand in 1975 and it since acquired many other brands.