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...failed assassination attempt on Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani in the capital Islamabad highlights insecurity in the nuclear-armed country just three days before a presidential election will name Pervez Musharraf's successor. Pakistan has been rocked by a spate of violence that has seen hundreds die in suicide bombings and explosions over the past month. At the same time, speculation is stirring that Wednesday's seemingly spur-of-the-moment attack on Gilani's convoy may have been retaliation for a U.S.-led attack earlier in the day along the Afghan-Pakistan border. Previous military activity...
...politics into anarchy. Sitting cross-legged on the sheeting, Sondhi Limthongkul, the co-leader of the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD), explains why thousands of protesters have occupied Bangkok's Government House, Thailand's seat of power, for more than a week to call for the resignation of Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej. "It's taken for granted in the West that democracy is the best system," says Sondhi, a media mogul by day. "But all we are getting in Thailand is the same vicious circle of corrupt, power-hungry leaders. This system is not working...
...with the Alliance supplying plenty of free food and drinks - and even veteran rock stars coming to entertain the crowds. But early on Sept. 2, the atmosphere took a sudden turn when a deadly street battle erupted between the PAD and a counter-protest group that supports the embattled Prime Minister. Dozens were injured as mobs attacked each other with whatever weapons were on hand - bamboo sticks, guns, even the odd golf club. At least one protester lost his life in the melee. Later that day, Samak declared a state of emergency, which authorizes the military to assume control...
...decree, though, failed to deter many camped out at Government House, who accuse Samak of acting as a proxy for former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who was deposed in a 2006 military coup and now faces corruption charges. "We are ready to fight," vowed Jantana Klinchan, a sandwich vendor from central Thailand, as she swayed to a folk song calling for political change. "We are not scared to defend ourselves." That kind of brinksmanship may be just what the PAD wants. Its leaders decry the electoral system in Thailand, alleging that vote-buying in poor rural areas largely discredits...
...gunmen fired on the prime minister's motorcade as it drove from the prime minister's residence in Islamabad to pick him up at the airport in nearby Rawalpindi. The prime minister was due back from a visit to Lahore. Two shots hit the driver's window, shattering the bulletproof glass of the black Mercedes but doing no further damage. Acting Interior ministry head Rehman Malik described the incident as "a cowardly act," at a televised press briefing in Karachi. "We will catch whoever has done it," he said. Pakistani Taliban spokesman Muslim Khan claimed responsibility, telling Agence France Press...