JERUSALEM – Israeli intelligence experts dismissed yesterday  the prospect of lasting diplomatic fallout for Israel or damage  to its Mossad spy agency over the spotlight shone on the  assassination of a Hamas commander in Dubai.

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KABUL – Afghanistan’s Taliban yesterday rejected President  Hamid Karzai’s latest call for peace, despite pressure from a  NATO offensive and the capture of its number 2.

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AMSTERDAM – Dutch troops are likely to leave Afghanistan  this year as planned, Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende said  yesterday, as early polls showed his rivals benefitting from the  government’s collapse over the mission.

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KIEV – Ukrainian President-elect Viktor Yanukovich named  three candidates for the post of premier yesterday and said he  expected a coalition to replace the government of Yulia  Tymoshenko to be formed soon.

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BEVERLY HILLS – The Dalai Lama, the exiled spiritual leader  of Tibet, said the United States and other countries could help  his campaign for a free Tibet by promoting an open society in  China.

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WASHINGTON – Arnold Schwarzenegger, California’s Republican  governor, defended Democratic President Barack Obama’s stimulus  plan yesterday, saying 150,000 new jobs were created in his  state thanks to the legislation.

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LONDON – British Prime Minister Gordon Brown rejected as  baseless and malicious allegations published in a Sunday  newspaper that he had terrified staff by shouting abuse at them  and in some cases had physically intimidated them.

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HARARE – Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe celebrated his  86th birthday yesterday, still in office three decades after  independence, with analysts suggesting he may cling to power for  the rest of his life despite dividing the country during his  long rule.