Kuala Lumpur (Agencies) : Declaring "I am not a thief, I am not a terrorist", Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad chided the United States on Tuesday for targeting Muslims under new immigration rules to catch would-be terrorists.

Srinagar,lndia (Reuters): Gunmen killed seven people on a bus in Indian Kashmir on Tuesday and attacked several polling stations as voters shunned the third round of elections in the troubled state's separatist heartland.

Beijing/Hong Kong (Agencies): China marked its 53rd anniversary on Tuesday with a show of confidence ahead of crucial leadership changes, as millions hit the road at the start of a week-long holiday.

The Hague (Agencies): Croatian President Stipe Mesic and Slobodan Milosevic faced each other across a courtroom here on Tuesday and traded accusations of blame over the disintegration of the former Yugoslavia.

Vienna (Agence France-Presse): United Nations experts and Iraqi officials on Tuesday pressed ahead with talks on arms inspections, as Baghdad renewed its rejection of tough new UN terms sought by Washington before the inspectors start work.

Bouake, Ivory coast (Reuters): Franee sent more troops to Ivory Coast on Tuesday and beefed up outposts near rebel lines in its former colony where West African mediators started talks to try to end a 13-day rebellion.

Tokyo (Agence France-Presse): Japan's minister for economic and fiscal policy and head of the Financial Services Agency (FSA) said Tuesday a new taskforce to work out how best to promote banks' disposal of bad loans would consider all options, including nationalization.

Washington (Associated Press): The shutdown of West Coast docks, unless ended quickly, could empty shelves in stores and malls and quickly shutter factory production lines across the United States and in Mexico, economists say.

Tokyo (Agence France-Presse): Business pessimism has declined slightly in Japan but the outlook remains clouded by heavy debts, flagging sales and concerns over the U.S. economy, a key survey showed Tuesday.

Singapore (Dow Jones): Asian stock markets closed mixed Tuesday, with the key index in Tokyo tumbling more than 2 percent on the back of overnight declines on Wall Street.

Moscow (Agence France-Presse): Fifth seed Martina Hingis crashed out of the US$2.24 million WTA Kremlin Cup tournament after suffering a 6-2, 6-2 first round defeat at the hands od local favorite Nadia Petrova on Monday.

Indianapolis (Reuters): Ferrari sporting director Jean Todt has played down the significance of the bizarre finish at the United States Grand Prix on Sunday and insisted that team orders were not implemented.