SAsia Pakistan-controlled Kashmir: With up to 40,000 feared dead and millions homeless as a result of last weekend's earthquake, torrential rainstorms briefly interrupted relief efforts in northeast Pakistan and raised fears that just opened key roads to the affected region could suffer damage from fresh landslides. SAsia Adding new impetus to peace efforts, India prepared to fly 26 tonnes of relief supplies to aid earthquake victims in Pakistan, the first such airlift in decades, adding new impetus to peace efforts. Iraq Thirty people were killed when a suicide car bomb ripped through a crowded market in the volatile Iraqi town of Tal Afar, just four days before a referendum on the new constitution that insurgents have vowed to disrupt. Liberia Liberians began voting for a hoped-for future of prosperity and peace at presidential and legislative elections, turning the page on a legacy of lawlessness and corruption that has plagued the west African country for more than a generation. Germany Germany's future chancellor Angela Merkel turned to the task of building a coalition government capable of bridging its differences to inject new life into the country's ailing economy. Iraq Iraq has issued arrest warrants for two dozen people, including former defence minister Hazem al-Shaalan, over the suspected embezzlement of more than one billion dollars earmarked for weapons purchases, the country's top anti-corruption official said. CAsia US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice kicked off a tour of Central Asia saying Washington was not competing with Moscow for influence in the vital region and describing democracy as the US weapon of choice in efforts to fight terrorism. Indonesia Indonesian police announced their first arrest over this month's suicide bombings in Bali, a day before the island marks the anniversary of devastating 2002 blasts. China China's ruling Communist Party closed its annual plenary session by approving a five-year economic blueprint that aims to change the nation's development model to better address a yawning wealth gap. Afghanistan Taliban fighters ambushed and killed 18 Afghan policemen, including a provincial director, in the biggest attack on Afghanistan's fledgling police force, the government said. Britain Police carrying out pre-dawn raids arrested the suspected kingpins of a pan-European ring believed to have smuggled tens of thousands of people, mainly Turkish Kurds, into Britain in the last few years. Mideast Israel vowed no let-up in its fight against Hamas, arresting scores more activists amid fears the Islamists are seeking to transfer their centre of activities to the West Bank.