ISTANBUL: Afghan President Hamid Karzai said he will press for Taliban names to be removed from a UN blacklist, as peace overtures intensified heading into a London conference.

MIRAMSHAH: A suspected US drone has crashed in North Waziristan, sources said Sunday.

TEHRAN: Seven people were killed and another 12 injured on Saturday when a train travelling from the northeastern Iranian city of Mashhad to Tehran derailed, an official told state-run television.

ISLAMABAD – Angry with the Obama administration’s position on arch-rival India, Pakistan’s Army has rejected a US request to launch a new offensive against Taliban in the northern tribal belt.

One attack took place near the presidential palace where Karzai was swearing in cabinet ministers [AFP]

On Thursday, the rumours circulated widely that the Americans had got their man – the leader of Pakistan Taliban had been killed in a drone attack. From Peshawar to Islamabad, officials speculated Hakimullah Mehsud was dead.

Kabul – The United States rules out reconciliation between Taliban leaders and the West-backed Kabul government, a day after the militant group jolted the Afghan capital, reported The New York Times on Tuesday, January 19.