Armed men kill two policemen in Bayelsa
Armed men, dressed in military uniforms, in the early hours of Sunday invaded Okiki Community in Ogbia Local Government Area of Bayelsa State and shot dead two Policemen after sacking the police station located in the area. The unknown gunmen were reported to have also carted away arms and ammunition. The attack is the second such attack on a police station following similar incident carried out on the Ammassoma Divisional Police Division in the Southern Ijaw Local Government Area of the State with unspecified number of fire arms and examination scripts of candidates in the on-going West African Examination Council (WAEC) taken away. A security source told The Guardian that the armed youths came into the Okiki Community at about 3.30am on Sunday and started shooting sporadically to prevent any form of resistance from the indigenous youths. They were reported to have come into the community through the waterside. Attempts by The Guardian to get the reaction of the State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Julian Opaleke proved difficult as he was said to be very busy. Commander of the Joint Military Task Force in the State, Col. Chris Musa confirmed the incident but said he did not have the full details. He said the Command had sent a request to the State Police Command to furnish it with details in order to assist it in the search for the culprits.

Ekiti holds council elections on July 12
The Ekiti Independent Electoral Commission (SIEC) has fixed July 12, for the local government elections in the state, the Chairman, retired Brig.-Gen. Kayode Oni said on Tuesday while addressing newsmen in Ado-Ekiti. Governor Segun Oni swore in the seven-member Commission two weeks ago. Oni had stated that the guidelines and time table for the election would soon be released to stakeholders. He urged all registered political parties in the state to support the Commission. ''It is a golden opportunity for all of us to partake in the development of Ekiti State. So, let us join hands together to move the state forward,'' he said.

UN shifts emphasis to crisis prevention
The Assistant Secretary-General for Africa in the United Nations (UN), Ambassador Haile Menkerioson on Tuesday said the world body was shifting from crisis resolution to prevention. He made the remark in Abuja during a visit to the ECOWAS commission. "The whole of the UN has been 'fire fighting', but now there is even more attention to prevent rather than resolving crisis,'' he said. He noted that many nations had in the past resisted the UN's attempts to resolve their crisis, suspecting that such move was an interference in their government. He said the cost of conflict resolution was now high with its attendant damages. The UN also warned Tuesday that post-election violence in Zimbabwe was rising to near crisis levels ahead of a planned presidential run-off, with opposition supporters bearing the brunt of attacks. The news came as opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai prepared to return home to contest the election with veteran President Robert Mugabe amid international pressure for a fair ballot. The UN's resident representative in Zimbabwe, Agustino Zacarias, told reporters that most of the violence appeared to be directed against followers of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), but the MDC had also carried out attacks. Earlier, Dr Mohamed Ibn Chambas, the ECOWAS President had commended the ECOWAS-UN collaboration, saying it was a model. He noted that the various peace initiatives by ECOWAS had resulted in stability in the region. Menkerios said the UN would prefer to work directly with governments and regional bodies like ECOWAS in achieving peace and stability in the world, as they were partners in progress. He commended ECOWAS for it's peace and security control mechanism in West Africa and encouraged other regions to do the same.

32 killed as ferry sinks in Bangladesh
No fewer than 32 people are feared killed after a ferry capsized during a storm in northern Bangladesh, officials say. The ferry, carrying 150 passengers, sank in the Ghorautura river, about 180 kilometres from the capital, Dhaka. Reports said about 25 passengers swam ashore but others were feared trapped in the stricken boat. Bangladesh frequently records ferry accidents - typically blamed on unsafe, ageing boats and on overcrowding. Local official Sultan Ahmed told the Associated Press news agency that some 50 people who were on the boat were missing after the incident late on Monday night. He said the death toll could rise as some of the missing bodies are feared to be trapped inside the boat. In February, no fewer than 39 people died after a ferry collided with another vessel in Buriganga river near Dhaka and capsized. A study on ferry safety has said that about 20,000 cargo and passenger vessels operate in Bangladesh, about half of which fail to meet basic safety standards, or take on more than their legal quota of passengers.

Lebanon may use force to halt fighting
Lebanese troops were ready to use force on Tuesday to disarm gunmen and enforce law and order after six days of deadly sectarian gunbattles that have plunged the nation into fear and chaos.U.S. President George W. Bush, on the eve of a trip to the Middle East, warned Iran and Syria that the international community would not allow Lebanon to fall under foreign domination again and vowed to shore up the Lebanese army. The fighting, which has left at least 61 people dead and scores more wounded, is the worst sectarian unrest since the 1975-1990 civil war and has stoked fears the country was headed for another all-out conflict. The army said its troops were prepared to resort to force to bring an end to the violence which has pitted supporters of the Western-backed government against members of the opposition, headed up by the Shiite militia group, Hezbollah. Fierce battles erupted briefly overnight between Sunnis loyal to the government and pro-Hezbollah Alawites in the northern port city of Tripoli, but by early Tuesday, troops were reinforcing their presence in affected areas. Similar violence shook Tripoli on Monday leaving at least one person dead, but no fighting was reported in other areas and in Beirut the situation was calm. Schools have reopened and traffic was slowly returning to normal. Funerals were being held on Tuesday for a number of those killed in Beirut and in weekend battles in the Druze mountains southeast of the capital. Several main highways remained blocked by Hezbollah-led Shiite protests, including the road to the Lebanon's only international airport outside Beirut, which is still shut.