BANGKOK: Security has been tightened at the homes of the nine Supreme Court Criminal Division for Holders of Political Positions judges who on Friday ordered the confiscation of a predominant portion of the frozen
assets of fugitive ousted premier Thaksin Shinawatra and at sensitive locations in the capital, officials said Saturday.

Police agencies ordered additional security measures for the nine justices, Thai News Agency reported.

BANGKOK:  Fancy getting a Cuban cigar, Swiss watch, Bhutan clothes, 'nasi lemak' and 'teh tarik' under one roof?

These are some of the items available at the Red Cross Bazaar, located on the fifth floor of Siam Paragon Shopping Centre, here, where diplomatic corps from all over the world sell their products for charity purposes organized by Thailand Red Cross.

BANGKOK: Thailand's Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva Saturday urged every section in the society to be confident about the Supreme Court of Thailand.

The PM said he believed the political movement by some political groups has been continuing, Thai News Agency reported. 

His statement was made amid the continued tight security measures in Thailand's capital Bangkok following the historic court ruling.

BANGKOK: Despite numerous reports on the infamous Bangkok gem scams, many unsuspecting Malaysians, lured by the sparkling gem stones or sheer greed, are losing thousands of ringgit to such scams.

In the latest incidents, a family on tour here lost 130,000 baht (RM13,000)while an executive with Malaysia's oil firm, Petronas, spent 88,000 baht (RM8,800) on poor quality gems.

JAKARTA: Six of the member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) would bring their tariff to zero for all merchandises starting on Jan 1, 2010, a statement from the ASEAN Secretariat said
on Monday.

The six countries are Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand, which have been following the liberalization efforts since the introduction of ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA) in 1992, reported China's Xinhua news agency.

INDONESIA briefly issued a tsunami warning on Saturday after a powerful earthquake struck the eastern part of the country, but the meteorology agency later lifted the alert.

Officials were still checking for possible casualties or damage after the quake struck in an area of the Banda sea southeast of the Maluku islands.

The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake struck at 11:40 p.m. (1440 GMT) and measured magnitude 7.0.

Its epicentre was located 232 km (144 miles) northwest of Saumlaki and 366 km southeast of Ambon at a depth of 138.5 km.

HANOI: The chairman of Vietnam’s State-owned mining conglomerate has submitted his resignation to the Prime Minister after auditors criticised him over illegal coal mining, a company official said yesterday.

Doan Van Kien, chairman of Vietnam National Coal and Mineral Industries Group (Vinacomin), submitted his resignation on Wednesday night at a meeting with Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung, said Nguyen Chi Quang, a senior adviser to Doan.

BANGKOK: A deadly typhoon that scythed through Southeast Asia has underscored the area’s vulnerability
to climate change but it may have also finally given regional nations a voice at crucial environment talks.

Delegates from 192 countries are meeting in Bangkok until Oct 9 in a desperate bid to thrash out the draft text of a global warming treaty that world leaders aim to sign in Copenhagen in December.

HOI AN: Typhoon Ketsana left a trail of destruction across Southeast Asia yesterday, killing at least 49 people in Vietnam and Cambodia and churning towards Laos, officials said.

Tens of thousands of people fled their homes to escape flooding caused by Ketsana, which had already killed 246 when it struck the Philippines over the weekend as a weaker tropical storm.

Floodwaters hit swathes of Vietnam, including ancient UN World Heritage sites, and aid workers across the region were trying to evacuate stranded people and get supplies to other survivors.

MANILA: The Philippine military yesterday blamed a notorious extremist group for a roadside bomb that killed two US soldiers in an attack the Pentagon said deliberately targeted the Americans.

“There is a very strong indication,” Philippine regional military commander Major- Gen Benjamin Dolorfino told reporters when asked if the Abu Sayyaf group was behind the attack in the restive southern Philippines.

He said the Abu Sayyaf was resorting to bombs because recent clashes with the Philippine military had cost it major casualties and ammunition supplies.