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At least 10 people were killed in Afghanistan during election to the parliament of the country on Saturday. Taliban unleashed country wide attacks to disrupt a poll that is testing the credibility of the government and security forces. Voters appeared hesitant to go to polling stations after a series of rocket strikes across the country. In the worst attack, police said the Taliban killed one Afghan soldier and six pro-government militiamen in a raid on a security outpost next to a polling station in northern Baghlan province. Glenn Cowan, co-founder of U.S.-based observers Democracy International, said turnout felt "about the same" as 2009, when about 4 million Afghans cast valid votes. "It was about the same pace this time," he said an hour before polls were due to close. The Free and Fair Election Foundation of Afghanistan, an independent watchdog, estimated last year's turnout at around 35 percent. There are 11.4 million eligible voters this time. Signi...

Gold hit a record high on Friday for the third time this week as poor U.S. consumer confidence and market talk of more quantitative easing helped the alternative asset score its biggest weekly gain since May. Spot gold fetched $1,275.50 an ounce at 3:11 p.m. EDT (2011 GMT), compared with $1,272.20 late in New York on Thursday. It has gained more than $100, nearly 9 percent, since the start of August. Covering gold's rally, silver has gained 5 percent this week, double the yellow metal's 2.5 percent increase. Spot silver was up 0.1 percent at $20.74 an ounce from $20.72 in New York on Thursday. The metal received a boost from data showing Thailand raised its gold holdings by a fifth in July through open-market purchases, joining a growing list of Asian nations diversifying into gold amid volatility in other markets. Silver rose to just below $21 an ounce, approaching levels not seen since 1980 as gold's rally triggered further investor speculation that the white metal wo...

People in Afghanistan are voting in crucial parliamentary elections amid threats from the Taliban, who have vowed to disrupt the vote. Besides, observers expressed apprehension of forgery & rigging in the election which to be cause for instability in near future in the war ravaged South Asian country.   The Taliban has already claimed responsibility for kidnapping two parliamentary candidates, 18 poll officials and campaign workers in the run-up to the elections. Hours before the polls opened, central Kabul was hit by a rocket attack. No casualties have been reported. More than 2,500 candidates are vying for 249 seats in the lower house of parliament, or Wolesi Jirga. The poll is seen as a test of credibility for President Hamid Karzai, after fraud marred elections last year. On Friday US special envoy to Afghanistan Richard Holbrooke said the vote was likely to be flawed, but it was significant that it was taking place at all. "We have had experience in our country with...

Rafael Nadal of Spain is crowned as number one with highest 12025.00 points in the latest world tennis ranking published on September16, 2010. Rafa's information in short:  * Pronounced: ra-FAY-el nah-DAHL * Age: 24 (03.06.1986) * Birthplace: Manacor, Mallorca, Spain * Residence: Manacor, Mallorca, Spain * Height: 6'1" (185 cm) * Weight: 188 lbs (85 kg) * Plays: Left-handed * Turned Pro: 2001 * Coach: Toni Nadal * Website: www.rafaelnadal.com Novak Djokovic of Serbia achieved second position keeping Federer behind with 7145.00 points. Djoko is here in short message: * Pronounced: DJO-ko-vich * Age: 23 (22.05.1987) * Birthplace: Belgrade, Serbia * Residence: Monte Carlo, Monaco * Height: 6'2" (188 cm) * Weight: 176 lbs (80 kg) * Plays: Right-handed * Turned Pro: 2003 * Coach: Marian Vajda * Website: www.novak-djokovic.com The greatest Roger Federer of Switzerland stands on 3rd position winning 6735.00 points. His information is her...

World number one Rafael Nadal says it is too early to compare him to Roger Federer despite becoming only the seventh man to win all four grand slam tennis tournaments. Rafael Nadal & Roger Federer in action Nadal, 24, beat Novak Djokovic in the U.S. Open final in New York on Monday to win his ninth grand slam title, moving within seven of Federer's record haul of 16. But asked about comparison's with the Swiss, Nadal told CNN: "I think he is the best -- I am very far from him. It's difficult to say I am like Roger -- I never thought that way. "But I am very happy with what I did. I want to keep playing how I have been playing." Nadal produced some of the best tennis of his career to become the first man since Rod Laver in 1969 to win the French Open, Wimbledon and the U.S. Open in the same year. He only lost one set in the entire tournament -- to Djokovic in the final -- and his serve was only broken on five occasions -- equaling a record set by ...

Washington criticizes  Chinese currency intervention on Wednesday  and  the US administration has filed two new cases against Beijing at the World Trade Organisation in this connection, sources said. The moves are aimed to crank up pressure on Beijing to change what the US says are distortionary and illicit measures to favour its own companies. Tim Murphy, a Republican congressman from Pennsylvania, appeared at a House of Representatives hearing on Wednesday to promote a bill that would allow the US to treat Chinese currency undervaluation as an illegal export subsidy when imposing emergency tariffs. "The American people are calling for Washington to create jobs. Since the administration won't hold China accountable, the Congress must." Separately, the US trade representative (USTR) filed two WTO cases against China, one concerning Chinese restrictions on foreign suppliers processing credit and debit card payments, and another challenging China's own use of emerge...

Microsoft said on Thursday that its new videogame "Halo: Reach" had racked up $200 million in sales on its launch day, boding well for the November debut of the Xbox 360 console maker's new gaming system. "Halo: Reach" is the latest version of the blockbuster "Halo" game series and went on sale this week. The franchise has sold more than 34 million copies in the nine years since its debut, boosting the popularity of Microsoft's Xbox console. "That's more than any game, any movie, any entertainment experience that was launched in 2010," Phil Spencer, vice president of Microsoft Game Studios, told the audience at the Tokyo Game Show about the "Halo: Reach" debut. He added that the "Halo: Reach" launch had also helped lure millions of gamers to Microsoft's online game system Xbox Live. The "Halo" series has grossed nearly $2 billion in sales over its lifetime. The game is made by Bungie and Microsoft...