Earthquake in Andaman

NEW DELHI: The Andaman Islands were on Sunday rocked by aftershocks of the massive December 26 undersea earthquake that triggered a tsunami in South and Southeast Asia, officials said. The first aftershock was felt at 4.14 am Indian time with the epicentre off the coast of Little Andaman Island and measuring up to 5.3 on the Richter scale, an official of the India Meteorological Department said. The second aftershock was felt at 7.49 am and measured 5.3 on the Richter scale, with its epicentre off the coast of South Andaman Island. — HNS

‘Baby 81’ back in Sri Lanka

COLOMBO: ‘Baby 81’, the 5-month-old infant whose parents fought a court battle to get him back after he miraculously survived the Asian tsunami, has arrived home in Sri Lanka after a two-week tour of the United States, a family spokesman said on Sunday. The baby’s real name is Abilass Jeyarajah. He and his parents, Murugupillai and Jenita, traveled to New York to appear on ABC’s “Good Morning America” TV show on March 2. “They had a very good visit,” said Janiytha Senaviratne, who accompanied the family on the trip. — AP

Thai PM defends cabinet

BANGKOK: Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra on Sunday spoke up for his new cabinet amid a barrage of media criticism that it is staffed with political cronies who are not up to the job. Critics have suggested Thaksin’s selection of his cabinet, which is due to be sworn in on Monday, was motivated more by political payback than making adroit appointments. — AFP

China detains petitioners

BEIJING: China has detained a number of prominent petitioners seeking redress in an attempt to restrict their activities during the ongoing annual session of the parliament, a human rights group said on Sunday. The New York-based Human Rights in China (HRIC) said most of the detainees were Shanghai residents or relatives of dissidents. Some were placed under house arrest after the National People’s Congress session. — AFP

Two US Marines injured

KABUL: Suspected Taliban-linked militants injured two US Marines in an ambush in eastern Afghanistan, the US military said on Sunday. They were wounded on Saturday while conducting security patrols north of Jalalabad, the capital of eastern Nangarhar province, the military said. — AFP

Two Pak soldiers hurt

MIRAN SHAH: Helicopter gunships backed army troops on the ground in an offensive against militants on Sunday in a Pakistani tribal region that left two soldiers injured, officials said. The search operation was launched in Mana, a village about 150 km west of Miran Shah, the main town in the North Waziristan tribal area, an intelligence official in Miran Shah said. The soldiers were injured when a grenade one of them was handling exploded during the operation. They were taken to a military hospital in the area for treatment for their injuries, which weren’t serious, he said. — AP