Iran Prez denies he is ailing

Tehran: Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has denied reports that he was sick, saying he had just caught a cold and a bit tired. "Like anybody else I might catch a cold, get tired sometimes but I am not (seriously) sick," Mr Ahmadinejad said on state television on Sunday night.

There had been reports that Mr Ahmadinejad suffered from low blood pressure and needed medical care. Some reports even speculated that he might not run in next June’s presidential elections due to chronic exhaustion. On Su-nday morning the 52-year-old he received three new ambassadors. —DPA

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Mexican drug lord arrested

Mexico City: The suspected drug lord Eduardo Arellano Feliz was arrested on Sunday in Tijuana on the Mexican border with the US, the Mexican Army said. Arellano, who was using the alias Samuel Bracamontes, was seized after exchanging gunfire in a residential area of Tijuana.

Eduardo Arellano is one of eight siblings in the infamous Arellano Felix family, which runs Mexico’s most powerful drug ring, the Tijuana cartel. Eduardo was said to be one of the bosses after several of his brothers were arrested or killed. —DPA

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Couple held for sex party in Egypt

Cairo: The police has arrested an Egyptian couple for allegedly swapping sex partners with other married couples, security officials said. The two — a civil servant and his teacher wife — allegedly solicited other couples over the Internet and invited them to their home, said the officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to talk to the press.

The couple allegedly held at least three such sex parties, and the Egyptian police are looking for the others who participated, said the officials, who are involved in the investigation. —AP

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Endangered sites listed in guidebook

London: A new guidebook has published a list of 500 endangered sites across the world that are most at risk from developers and climate change. According to a report in Telegraph, the guidebook is titled Frommer’s 500 Places To See Before They Disappear. The book will look at places to visit that feature endangered landscapes, ecosystems, buildings, cultural spots and animal species.

UK sites include the Tower of London and Greenwich Maritime Museum, which are both at risk from rising ocean levels. —ANI

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‘Women shall have right to beat husbands’

Cairo, Oct. 27: Sunni Islam’s highest authority has approved a woman’s right to fight back if her husband uses violence against her, Egypt’s Al-Masry al-Youm newspaper reported on Monday.

The declaration by Sheikh Abdel Hamid al-Atrash, comes after similar rulings by religious leaders in Saudi Arabia and Turkey.

"A wife has the legitimate right to hit her husband in order to defend herself," Sheikh Atrash was quoted as saying. —AFP