<B>KATHMANDU. Truce. </B>Nepal’s Maoist rebels declared a three-month ceasefire from yesterday and political parties forming a new government promised to work with them, dramatically raising hopes of an end to the decade-old conflict.

<B>COLOMBO.</B> Cross border reopened.</B> Sri Lanka ceased bombing Tamil Tiger targets and reopened crossing points to rebel territory, the military said yesterday, but it did not rule out more attacks as the island teetered on the brink of war.

<B>EGYPT. More attacks. </B>Two men blew themselves up in Egypt’s north Sinai on Wednesday in what appeared to be abortive attacks by a mysterious militant group on a multinational peace force and on the Egyptian police.

<B>TEHRAN. Iran will attack the US.</B>Iran vowed on Wednesday to strike at US interests worldwide if it is attacked by the United States, which is keeping military options open in case diplomacy fails to curb Tehran’s nuclear program.

<B>LONDON. Blair suffers blow.</B> British Prime Minister Tony Blair faced the challenge yesterday of restoring his Labour Party’s authority as a government after it was engulfed in scandal and crisis just a week ahead of crucial local elections.

<B>JERUSALEM. Palestinian leader not prosecuted.</B> Israel will not prosecute a Palestinian faction leader detained last month over his group’s assassination of an Israeli cabinet minister in 2001, Israel’s Justice Ministry said on Wednesday, citing lack of evidence.

<B>SINGAPORE. Elections. </B>Singapore’s ruling People’s Action Party (PAP) has been denied a majority by walkover in a general election for the first time in 18 years after opposition parties yesterday fielded candidates for more than half the seats for the May 6 poll.

<B>SEOUL. Hyundai chairman arrested. </B>South Korean prosecutors have requested a warrant to arrest the chairman of Hyundai Motor group, the world’s seventh-biggest auto maker, on charges that Chung Mong-koo engaged in embezzlement and breach of trust.

<B>BEIJING. No sanctions against Iran. </B>China gave no sign it was ready to line up behind Western powers seeking sanctions against Iran yesterday, the day before a key U.N. report on Tehran’s nuclear activities, but analysts said it was unlikely to block their way.

<B>RUSSIA. Merkel and Putin meet - </B>German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Russian President Vladimir Putin meet in the heart of Siberia yesteray to discuss the security of gas supply to Europe and to try to agree on a strategy for dealing with Iran.

<B>INDIA. Pepsi Co India fined for condom “found in bottle”.</B> An Indian court has fined a PepsiCo India 100,000 rupees ($2,200) after a man complained he had found a condom in a cola bottle, a court official said yesterday. PepsiCo India Holdings Ltd., a unit of soft drinks giant PepsiCo Inc., said in a statement it had yet to receive official word of the fine but added that the verdict, delivered on Wednesday, appeared “erroneous” and that it would appeal. Delhi resident Sudesh Sharma said he fell ill after drinking a bottle of Pepsi in which he later found dirt and some solid particles. The condom was found in a second bottle he bought, the court order said. Describing the case as “rare”, the court – at the end of a three-year hearing – fined Pepsi and asked it to pay 20,000 rupees to Sharma for “physical illness and mental shock”.

<B>EUROPE. Floods. </B>Impact of floods in southeast Europe. Floods in central and southeast Europe have forced thousands to flee their homes and ruined tens of thousands of hectares (acres) of farmland. In Romania alone, around 800 people fled their homes over the past 24 hours. Following are details on the state of evacuations, damage to agriculture and infrastructure and the shipping situation in the affected countries.