Briefly

INDIA

Warrants issued in Mumbai attacks

NEW DELHI | India has issued arrest warrants for five Pakistani citizens, including two army officers, for alleged involvement in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks.

India’s Central Bureau of Investigation says Interpol has notified its members of the warrants. The so-called “red corner notices” follow India’s investigation into the role of American David Coleman Headley, a Chicago man who pleaded guilty in the U.S. in March to helping plan the attacks, including scoping targets.

The Press Trust of India reports that a Pakistani army major is alleged to have been Headley’s handler, arranging funds and training.

India’s home secretary has accused Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence agency of orchestrating the attacks, which killed 166 people. Pakistan has denied the allegations.

PAKISTAN

Bombs kill 8 at Sufi site

KARACHI | Two suspected suicide bombers attacked the most beloved Sufi shrine in Pakistan’s largest city Thursday, killing at least eight people, wounding 65 others and sending a stark reminder of the threat posed by Islamist militants to this U.S.-allied nation.

Angry mobs burned tires and torched buses in the aftermath of the bombings in Karachi.

The explosions at the Abdullah Shah Ghazi shrine in Karachi happened Thursday evening, the busiest time of the week for Sufi shrines across the country. Thousands typically visit the Ghazi shrine on Thursdays to pray, distribute food to the poor and toss rose petals on the grave of the saint.

VIETNAM

Nearly 140 killed in Asian floods

HANOI | Asia’s death toll from vicious rains spiked Thursday to nearly 140 as disaster officials reached previously isolated areas in Vietnam, while the worst flooding in parts of southern China in nearly a half-century killed one person and forced 213,000 villagers to evacuate.

Security forces tried to speed recovery efforts in Indonesia, home to most of the fatalities, with 91 dead, by removing debris from blocked roads and fixing bridges.

In Vietnam, the death toll nearly doubled to 48 after disaster officials were finally able to access areas that had been cut off by high waters. Another 23 people remained missing as villagers started returning to areas where the water was receding.

INDIA

Dengue fever sweeps through Asia

NEW DELHI | Dengue fever, a mosquito-borne disease with no known treatment, is spreading in Asia, with cases in India at a 20-year high as the country hosts the Commonwealth Games.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has warned that 2.5 billion people are at risk from one of the world’s fastest-emerging infections, which has “grown dramatically in recent decades.”

WHO officials say Asia, home to 70 percent of the at-risk population, has seen a rise in dengue mainly because of higher temperatures due to climate change, rising populations and greater international travel.

According to data collected by the U.N. body, the highest number of reported cases in Asia this year to August are in Indonesia (80,065), followed by Thailand (57,948) and Sri Lanka (27,142).

MALAYSIA

Baby dies after monkey snatches it

KUALA LUMPUR | A newborn baby died after being snatched by a monkey from her family’s living room in central Malaysia, an official said Thursday.

The body of the 4-day-old girl was found outside the family’s home in Negri Sembilan state Wednesday, said a Wildlife Department official who spoke on condition of anonymity, citing protocol.

The monkey took the infant to the roof of the single-story house and then dropped her after possibly mistaking her for food, the official said. The girl, who had been left alone in the room, had bite marks on her neck and face.

Wildlife authorities fatally shot the monkey, which remained near the house and might have been attracted by a female pet monkey the family kept in a cage, the official said.

CHINA

Dissident hot bet for Nobel Peace Prize

OSLO, Norway | Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo tops speculation for the Nobel Peace Prize — one betting site has already declared him the winner — though some experts expect a more low-key choice on Friday.

Two women are also hot candidates in this year’s Nobel buzz: Afghan women’s rights activist Sima Samar and Russian human rights activist Svetlana Gannushkina.

The last woman to win the coveted award was Wangari Maathai of Kenya in 2004. Of the 97 peace laureates to date, only 12 have been women.

Mr. Liu, who was sentenced Christmas Day to 11 years in prison for subversion, has received by far the most attention in the annual guessing game for the $1.5 million award.

• From wire dispatches and staff reports