KABUL – Afghan election officials yesterday defended plans  to open more polling centres for next week’s presidential  run-off despite fears not enough is being done to prevent a  repeat of the fraud which marred the first round.
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ISLAMABAD - U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton wound  up a bridge-building visit to Pakistan yesterday leaving a  pointed question ringing in her hosts’ ears: Where are the al  Qaeda leaders operating in your country?
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LONDON - Britain’s opposition Conservatives have a 75  percent chance of winning a parliamentary election next year,  analysts polled by Reuters said.
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PARIS - Former French president Jacques Chirac has been  ordered to stand trial on embezzlement charges dating back to  his time as mayor of Paris, an unprecedented move against a  former French head of state.
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KINSHASA - Armed villagers killed at least 47 policemen  trying to intervene in a feud over fishing rights in northern  Congo, United Nation-sponsored radio reported yesterday, but  the government said the death toll was much lower.