4 killed in protest over road block

Srinagar, India

Security forces fired bullets and tear gas Monday trying to stop marches by Kashmir Muslims protesting a road blockade by Hindus, leaving four people dead, including the leader of an alliance of nonviolent separatist groups.

Police later ordered a curfew for most of Indian Kashmir.

Sheik Abdul Aziz, the leader of the All Parties Hurriyat Conference, was fatally shot in Chehel after a crowd pushed aside police barricades and fought with security officers who tried to stop them from walking toward the dividing line with Pakistan's portion of Kashmir to join a protest. Three other people were also killed and several dozen were injured in the violence.

The protests were the latest development in a political crisis that began in June with a dispute over land near a Hindu shrine and has exposed tensions between Muslims and Hindus in India's only Muslim-majority state.

Nouakchott, Mauritania

Coup leaders free prime minister

Mauritania's ousted prime minister defiantly refused to recognize the African country's ruling military junta Monday, after he was freed from house arrest under international pressure.

Prime Minister Yahya Ould Ahmed Waqef told a rally of several thousand people that the country would not accept last week's bloodless coup that forced President Sidi Ould Cheikh Abdallahi from power. Abdallahi remains under arrest.

Speaking just hours after his release, Waqef said the president was in good health and encouraged them to keep pushing to restore the government to power. The rally was a significant show of support for the president, who rose to power last year as Mauritania's first freely elected president in more than two decades.

Manila, Philippines

Rebels fleeing dozens of villages

Muslim rebels said they were pulling back from a dozen occupied southern Philippine villages today after government forces began retaking them amid fierce fighting that has forced nearly 160,000 civilians from their homes.

Interior Secretary Ronaldo Puno blamed Moro Islamic Liberation Front guerrillas for refusing to leave about 15 villages in the predominantly Christian province of North Cotabato and forcing residents to abandon their farms at harvest time.

The government Sunday started pounding rebels after they ignored an ultimatum to withdraw. By Monday, troops regained the control of two villages in clashes that killed at least one soldier and seven guerrillas.

Also

Whales: The humpback whale, nearly hunted into history four decades ago, is now on the "road to recovery" and is no longer considered at high risk of extinction, the International Union for Conservation of Nature said Tuesday. It also said the southern "right" whale was making a comeback.

Mideast: A severe cash shortage gripped the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip on Monday as tens of thousands of people were unable to withdraw money from banks in the poverty-stricken Palestinian territory. Israel promised to transfer more money to Gaza today.

Brazil: The environment minister said Monday he granted a license for an Amazon hydroelectric dam but attached stringent conditions to protect Indian reservations and nature preserves. At least two environmental groups said the accord safeguards neither people nor the environment.

Thailand: The Supreme Court issued arrest warrants for ousted Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra and his wife, who jumped bail Monday and returned to exile in London.

Mexico: A 14-year-old girl and a man were fatally shot Monday when gunmen in an SUV fired at a hardware store in Acapulco, Mexico.

Seattle Times news services