China's State Council, or the Cabinet, has urged the building of an efficient, safe and regulated distribution system for agricultural products in a bid to lower prices.

The government will work to boost the country's logistics capabilities and better link producers and consumers to cut intermediary costs, according to a statement released after a State Council executive meeting chaired by Premier Wen Jiabao. 

The statement says an information network should be built to monitor production, distribution and consumption of farm produce, while cities should have enough storage for emergency supplies to avoid large price fluctuations.

 

China announces first cuts in gasoline, diesel prices in 16 months 

China reduced retail prices for gasoline and diesel by 300 yuan (47 U.S. dollars) per tonne starting today. 

As a result, the benchmark retail price of gasoline will be cut by 0.22 yuan per liter, while diesel's price will decline 0.26 yuan per liter. 

The decrease marks the first fuel-price reduction over the past 16 months.

 

169 arrested over telephone fraud in cross-border crackdown 

Police on the Chinese mainland, Taiwan and Thailand have arrested 169 suspects in a joint operation to crack down on telephone fraud perpetrated by a gang.

Police in south China's Guangdong Province said more than 200 cases of telecommunications fraud were solved and 17 footholds of the suspected have been shut down since May.

The total value involved in the cases reached 120 million yuan (18.8 million U.S. dollars).

 

NW China pilgrims leave for Mecca 

More than 330 Chinese Muslims boarded a charter flight from northwest Gansu Province yesterday, starting their pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia.

It was the first of the 14 charter flights that will carry over 4,600 Muslims in Gansu and its neighboring Qinghai province to Mecca for their annual hajj pilgrimage.

The Mecca pilgrimage, also known as hajj, is a religious tradition that demands all able-bodied Muslims who can afford to travel to Mecca to make such a trip at least once in their lives.

 

China offers emergency humanitarian aid to Thailand's flood victims 

China says it will provide emergency humanitarian aid to Thailand for relief efforts in flood-ravaged Thai regions.

The Ministry of Commerce says the Chinese emergency humanitarian aid to the Thailand government includes 1 million U.S. dollars in cash remittance and 10 million yuan (1.57 million U.S. dollars) worth of relief materials.

 

Yemeni president says to leave power in coming days: TV 

Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh says he will leave power in the coming days, in a speech aired by the state television. 

In his speech, Saleh did not refer to the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) initiative for power transition, which was mediated in April and was signed by the opposition in May. 

Meanwhile, an official of the ruling party, told Xinhua that President Saleh will leave power only through elections.

 

Protestors gather in London to mark 10 years of Afghan war 

Protestors gathered in the Trafalgar Square to mark 10 years of the war in Afghanistan, while calling on the British government to withdraw troops from the country immediately.

The Stop The War Coalition says up to 5,000 people, including musicians, actors, film-makers and lawmakers at the Anti-war Mass Assembly joined the anti-war activities, and headed along Whitehall towards the Downing Street. 

Opinion polls suggest the majority of Britons want a speedy withdrawal of British troops.

 

China to recheck closure of government liaison offices in Beijing

China is set to begin a strict spot-check campaign to prevent local government liaison offices in Beijing that have been shut down from reopening or relocating.

The move is aimed at consolidating the country's anti-corruption efforts and eliminating local government offices in the capital, many of which have been criticized for allegedly bribing central government officials and wasting public funds, according to a press release from the Government Offices Administration of the State Council. 

It says the administration will strengthen its supervision of the office closures, adding that local governments should establish a self-auditing mechanism to prevent the reopening of the offices.

 

Museum in honor of 1911 Revolution reopens in central China 

A museum that honors the 1911 Revolution, also known as the Xinhai Revolution, has reopened after renovation to commemorate the centenary of the uprising at Wuchang in central Hubei province.

More than 200 items that illustrate the revolution, such as photos, telegraphs, models and and simulative historic scenes, are on display. 

Located near the famous Yellow Crane Tower, the museum was once the headquarters of the revolutionary army. 

The movement's leader, Sun Yat-sen, overturned the ruling Qing Dynasty after the revolution on Oct. 10, 1911 and founded the Republic of China in 1912.