Karateka dies after match: Happy Alfred Walla, 26, who had been

Karateka dies after match: Happy Alfred Walla, 26, who had been in coma after her match during the National Championships in Surabaya, East Java, on Sunday, was pronounced dead from a brain hemorrhage at the Dr. Soetomo Hospital on Wednesday at 1:00 p.m. Happy, who hailed from West Java, fell unconscious after taking a series of kicks and punches to the head from Andriko of East Nusa Tenggara during their 70kg kumite match. --Antara

Canada withdraws its ambassador to Tehran: Canada said on Wednesday it was withdrawing its ambassador to Tehran and was considering other sanctions after Iranian authorities buried a Canadian journalist who died in custody in Tehran against Ottawa's wishes. Zahra Kazemi, 54, a photojournalist of Iranian descent living in Canada, died on July 10, more than two weeks after she was arrested for taking pictures outside a prison in Tehran. An Iranian government inquiry into her death said she had died of a brain hemorrhage caused by a severe blow to the head. --Reuters

Landslide kills 21 in remote corner of Cameroon: At least 21 people were swept to their deaths by a landslide in a remote corner of Cameroon after nearly a week of continuous rain, a local official in the central African country said on Wednesday. The mudslide destroyed 15 homes, making 100 people homeless. The government had in the past asked the farming population to move from the rich volcanic soils on the slopes of a mountain but the calls were ignored, he added. --Reuters

Sao Tome coup leader says parliament to reconvene: The leader of a coup on Sao Tome and Principe said on Wednesday that army officers had reached a deal for parliament to reconvene and grant amnesty to those behind last week's military takeover. Mediators said the reconvening of parliament represented a major breakthrough in their negotiations with the coup leaders, and might herald the return of ousted President Fradique de Menezes later on Wednesday, or possibly in the next few days. --Reuters

Iran admits holding top al-Qaeda members: Ending weeks of speculation, Iran acknowledged on Wednesday that it was holding senior members of Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda network and said it expected to try, deport or extradite them soon. Intelligence Minister Ali Yunesi gave no names but said top bin Laden aides were among "many" al-Qaeda members detained by Iranian security forces since the 2001 overthrow of the Taliban militia in neighboring Afghanistan. They include the movement's Egyptian- born number three, Saif al-Adel, its Kuwaiti-born spokesman Sulaiman Abu Gaith, and bin Laden's Saudi-born son, Saad. --AFP