Vol. 5 Num 115 Fri. September 17, 2004       Advertise with The Daily Star -- Advertising on the Website    Advertising in the Printed E dition-- Home  News Today's Index Front Page Business Political Sports Point-counterpoint Metropolitan National International Culture General Views Editorial Letters to Editor Write to Editor Sections World Others About Us Contact Advertisement Supplements Archives World   Religious Freedom Asia tops US list of major violators Asia dominated a US blacklist of alleged top religious freedom violators including China, North Korea, Myanmar and Vietnam, classified as "countries of particular concern" in the State Department's annual Musharraf should keep his uniform: Pak PM Pakistan's Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz yesterday called for President Pervez Musharraf to stay as head of the army in the "national interest" despite his pledge to step down in December.   US intelligence paints gloomy picture of Iraq US intelligence officials prepared a report for President Bush in late July presenting a gloomy outlook for Iraq, saying that at worst the country might descend into civil war, The New York Times said Hurricane Ivan slams US Gulf Coast 12 people killed Hurricane Ivan slammed ashore early yesterday with winds of 130 mph, packing deadly tornadoes and a powerful punch of waves and rain that threatened to swamp communities from Louisiana to the FloridaPanhandle.   Suspect site in Iran shows its nuke goal: US A senior US official said yesterday that satellite photos of a suspected nuclear site in Iran demonstrated its intention to develop atomic weapons, an allegation Tehran dismissed as "a new lie.   Putin rules out talks with Chechen rebels Russian President Vladimir Putin ruled out yesterday the possibility of negotiating with Chechen rebels following the Beslan school hostage crisis that killed at least 339 people, half of them kids.   3 American bounty hunters jailed for running pvt prison Three Americans have been sentenced to up to 10 years in jail after being found guilty by an Afghan court on charges including torture, running a private prison and illegal detention.   Envoys visit N Korean mysterious blast site Diplomats from eight countries are visiting the site of a blast in North Korea last week, which was at first suspected of being a nuclear test.   Supporters of fox hunting storm British parliament Supporters of fox hunting stormed Britain's parliament and clashed with police in the streets, but failed to stop lawmakers from voting by an overwhelming margin to ban the blood sport.   Kerry trying to make polls a referendum on Bush Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry, trying to recover from a brass-knuckles campaign against his character, is attempting to steer the election to a referendum on President Bush's leadership.   Railway link to Nepal faces Maoist threat The two-month-old rail link to Nepal from Kolkata Port has come under Maoist threat again and Indian Railway officials posted at Raxaul in Bihar are no less threatened.   Darfur rebels still hope for peace Darfur's rebel Sudan Liberation Movement insisted yesterday that African Union-brokered peace talks have not broken down irretrievably, as mediators confirmed that the two rebel groups were still in consultations     Advertisement