Thailand's anti-government protest leader Suthep Thaugsuban has threatened to sue caretaker premier Yingluck Shinawatra for financial wasting in holding the general election. 

He accused Yingluck's cabinet of wasting some 3.8 billion baht or 118 million U.S. dollars for the election, which he said had failed because of low voter turnout.

Anti-government protesters tried to prevent the delivery of ballots to polling stations by blocking roads. 

Local media say around 12 million out of a total of 49 million eligible voters failed to cast their ballots.

The result of the election will not be announced until the finish of by-elections for advance voting and in blocked polling stations, which are scheduled to be held on Feb. 23.

 

Presidential election campaign starts in Afghanistan

A two-month campaign is underway in Afghanistan for the upcoming presidential election slated for April 5.

Eleven candidates have registered to contest the race to succeed President Hamid Karzai.

Insecurity remains the main challenge for the election.

On Saturday evening, two campaign workers of a presidential candidate were killed in an attack in Herat, a key city in western Afghanistan. 

Last month, the running mate of presidential candidate Abdul Rab Rasoul Sayyaf, survived a suicide bombing in Herat city.

 

Top security commander wounded by roadside bomb in Yemen's Aden

A high-ranking security official in the Yemeni city of Aden has been wounded by a roadside bomb.

A government official says colonel Ali Holees, commander of the special security forces in Aden, was critically injured when an explosive device went off in his convoy near the International Airport.

The military believes the attack was a well-planned plot to assassinate the security commander.

Aden has been rocked by several bombings and shootings targeting police and intelligence officers over the past few months. 

Militants of the Yemen-based al- Qaida offshoot were blamed for a series of assassination attacks, mostly in the country's southern regions.

 

11 killed in Nigeria church attack

At least 11 people have been killed in a fresh attack by gunmen on a church in Nigeria's northeastern state of Adamawa.

The attackers stormed the church during a prayer session and shot indiscriminately at worshippers.

A local official says the pastor of the church and 10 other congregants lost their lives in the attack.

The attack is believed to be the work of Boko Haram, a sect which proves to be the major security threat in Nigeria since 2009.

 

IGAD deploys team of cease-fire monitors in South Sudan

Eastern Africa's regional bloc, the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development or IGAD has dispatched its first team of observers to the conflict-affected South Sudan to monitor the cease-fire. 

The 14-member team is expected to meet with state and non-state stakeholders including local and international organizations in Juba.

The decision to deploy monitors was made after leaders of IGAD member states held a meeting behind closed doors last Friday on the sidelines of the African Union summit in Ethiopia. 

The warring sides in South Sudan have signed a ceasefire deal in Addis Ababa but there have been accusations and counter-accusations on noncompliance to the agreement.

 

Four new H7N9 cases in China

Chinese health authorities have confired another 4 new cases of H7N9 through Sunday.

Among the four new confirmed cases, a 63-year-old man has already died in Shenzhen.

Another man from the city of Zhongshan in Guangdong is in critical condition.

A 75-year-old man from the city of Liuzhou is now the first human case of H7N9 in Guangxi. 

There are well over 100 human H7N9 cases being dealt with here in China so far this year.

Over 20 have died.

 

Expressways reopen after dense fog in E China

40 expressways across eastern China have reopened to traffic after being partially or fully closed because of dense fog.

5 expressways in Heilongjiang remain closed due to the heavy snowfall which has been rolling through the northeast.

The latest stats show almost 1.5-billion trips have been made via the country's road network since Jan 16th, which is the beginning of the so-called "chunyun", the Spring Festival travel rush.

The figures represent a 6.5-percent increase over the same period last year.

 

Most northern and southern scenic spots see surging visitors in China

Official figures are showing tourist attractions in both the northern and southern regions have seen a surge in visitors during the first three days of the Spring Festival holiday.

The National Tourism Administration says Liaoning, with its snow-covered scenes, has entertained some 6.5 million tourists so far.

Tourists sites in the country's warmer southern parts have also seen a significant number of visitors.

Over 3 million have travelled to Yunnan.

Around 12-million have taken a trip through Guangdong.

 

WeChat greetings double on Lunar New Year's Eve

Tencent says its WeChat app has seen its data flow double from last year on Lunar New Year's Eve.

The number messages for the New Year surged to 10 million in the peak minute after the turn of the New Year.

Over the past decade, the Lunar New Year's eve messages have been sent via text messages via the state-owned telecom giants.

The cost of that way stands at 0.1-yuan per message.

That has since come under pressure from WeChat, which is free, aside from the data flow charges.