Briefly

UZBEKISTAN

Britain fires outspoken envoy

LONDON — Britain Thursday recalled its ambassador to Uzbekistan after he accused the Central Asian state of supplying the West with bogus intelligence obtained through torture.

Craig Murray said he was removed for speaking out about human rights violations in the authoritarian country that has become a key ally of the United States in its war on terror.

Mr. Murray said his removal showed the politicization of Britain’s supposedly neutral civil service.

INDIA

Province starts talks with Maoist rebels

HYDERABAD — Maoist rebels who have fought for decades to impose communism throughout much of India came to the peace table for the first time yesterday despite the group leader’s promise to keep fighting to give the poor land and power.

Rebel leaders from People’s War Group, surrounded by unarmed bodyguards, raised their fists as they arrived for talks with the government of Andhra Pradesh, one of six states where the group has staged attacks since 1981.

NEPAL

Rebels declare holiday truce

KATMANDU — Nepal’s Maoist rebels, giving in to popular demands, yesterday announced a nine-day truce for the Hindu festival period of Dasain beginning next week.

But analysts said a brief cease-fire was unlikely to lead to peace in the nation where more than 10,000 people have died in the rebellion.

PAKISTAN

Troops deployed to holy sites

KARACHI — Pakistan has deployed thousands of troops to protect mosques during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, police said yesterday. Attacks on religious targets in the country this month left 77 persons dead.

Some 10,000 police and paramilitary troops were put on security duty in the southern port city of Karachi, a hotbed of religious extremism, police said. Security was also increased in urban centers.

Weekly notes…

Some 100 people from Afghanistan and Pakistan recently arrested in Iraq were pilgrims who had been abandoned at the border by their Iranian tour guides, a national guard officer said yesterday. Mahmud Abdelaziz, the commander for the national guard in Munziriya, a town northeast of Baghdad, said 37 children were among those left stranded. … India has refused visas to a number of delegates attending a conference in support of the restoration of democracy in Burma. Analysts say India’s government wants to boost its relationship with Burma’s military.

From wire dispatches and staff reports