London, Feb 5: Military action against Iran would have disastrous consequences, according to a report released today by a coalition of British-based think-tanks, faith groups and others who urged a new diplomatic push to avert conflict. The US and Israel have stepped up their rhetoric against Tehran in recent weeks, prompting speculation they could be preparing for military attacks on the Islamic state. Washington has sent a second aircraft carrier to the Gulf, a move seen as a warning to Iran,.....

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New York, Feb 5: The rise of popularly elected 'democratators' in Venezuela and Russia is an alarming new model for government control of the press, the US-based Committee to Protect Journalists warned. Russian President Vladimir Putin and Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez embody a generation of sophisticated, elected leaders who use laws to control, intimidate and censor the media, said CPJ Executive Director Joel Simon yesterday. He said in November, Chavez accused news broadcasters of attempting to 'divide, weaken and destroy the.....

Sardinata, Colombia, Feb 5: Explosions killed at least 30 workers in a Colombian coal mine in the northeastern province of Norte de Santander and another was feared dead, officials said. Rescue and recovery attempts, hampered by deadly gases remaining in the shafts of the La Preciosa mine after Saturday's blasts, resumed at daybreak yesterday after being suspended Saturday night. Thirty bodies were recovered from the mine near the mountain town of Sardinata while one miner remained underground.....