Sikh refugee will return to India

Toronto: A paralysed Sikh refugee who has avoided deportation from Canada by taking sanctuary in Sikh temples has said that he was not interested for refugee status and would like to return to India. Laibar Singh entered Canada in 2003 on a false passport. In 2006, he suffered an aneurysm and became a paraplegic.

He has avoided three deportation attempts when supporters blockaded various Gurdwaras where he sought refuge, protesting that he should be allowed to remain in Canada on humanitarian grounds.

-PTI

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Lightning kills 52 cows in Uruguay

Montevideo, Uruguay: Lightning struck only once but 52 cows are dead at an Uruguayan ranch. The newspaper El Pais reports that the cows had pressed against a wire fence during a storm when the lightning bolt struck in the northern state of San Jose.

A photograph released by the San Jose police department shows the black and brown cows lying dead in a long row. Veterinarians at the scene confirmed the cause of the deaths, which happened on Wednesday. The veterinarians told the newspaper that cows often crowd around fences to seek protection during storms. -AP

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'I'm ashamed of Palestine, Israel strife'

Stockholm: Nobel Peace Prize winner Martti Ahtis-aari spoke of his shame that no agreement had been reached in the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians. "I am asha-med, I have to recognise it," the former Finnish President and 2008 Nobel laureate said. "How can you year after year seriously claim that you are trying to find a solution while nothing happens?" he said.

"I hope that the winner of the US presidential election will use the first year of his mandate to reach a settlement of the conflict," he added. -AFP