A new report by the Israeli group Peace Now said Israel has nearly doubled construction in its West Bank settlements this year—violating commitments under the US-backed "road map" peace plan even as it pursued revived talks with the Palestinians. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who met with Israeli and Palestinian officials for a second day in a bid to move negotiations forward, said she had told the Israelis that settlement activity is "not helpful."

The UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) reported that an investigation by its human rights team found that some 90 civilians were killed, including 60 children, during operations carried out by international and Afghan military forces on Aug. 21 in Shindand district in Afghanistan's western Herat province—contradicting claims of the US government.

Jumma man Ladu Moni Chakma was hacked to death Aug. 26 by a group of Bengali settlers at his home in the Sajek area of the Chittagong Hill Tracts, Bangladesh. His wife, Shanti Bala Chakma, who was also attacked, was taken to hospital. Local people believe that Ladu Moni Chakma was targeted because he had given information to members of the recently reformed Chittagong Hill Tracts Commission about settlers stealing land from the indigenous tribes of the area.

India's Border Security Force has launched a new initiative to combat "illegal" infiltration of peasants from Bangladesh into Assam and other northeastern states. The Assam Assembly witnessed noisy scenes last month after the state government announced that Bangladesh and neighboring Indian states were encroaching on the state's land. Assam authorities said nearly 500 acres of land was being encroached on by Bangladesh along the border while 87 hectares of land was illegally occupied by the states of Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, Meghalaya and a small stretch by West Bengal. Scientists warn that low-lying Bangladesh, if inundated by sea-level rise and flooding, could send millions of refugees into neighboring countries. (Daily Green, Aug. 26; Assam Tribune, Aug. 25; Zee News, July 15)

Food riots erupted Aug. 27 in eastern India, where more than 2 million people have been forced from their homes and about 250,000 houses destroyed in the worst flooding in 50 years. One person was killed in Madhepura district when villagers clashed over limited supplies of food at overcrowded relief centres. The Kosi River in Bihar state smashed through mud embankments and changed course last week, inundating hundreds of villages and towns and killing nearly 50. The devastation has strained India's ties with Nepal, since the disaster is apparently due to deforestation and failure to maintain enbankments upstream in Nepalese territory. (Reuters, PTI, Aug. 27; Times of India, Aug. 28)

Indian authorities have deployed 3,000 police at Tata Motors' plant in West Bengal as protesters defied a threat from the company to halt production of the Nano model ultra-compact automobile in the communist-ruled state. About 30,000 local residents have occupied the plant since Aug. 23 to protest the confiscation of farmlands for the project. The Trinamool Congress, leading the protest, is demanding that 162 hectares of land be returned to farmers. Trinamool leader Mamata Banerjee said "if someone tries to blackmail us we will not bow our heads." (Bloomberg, Aug. 27; BBC, Aug. 23)

Hindus and Christians clashed in Barakhama village in Kandhamal district of India's Orissa state Aug. 25 and the ensuing gunbattle resulted in the death of four local residents, including one woman. A curfew has been imposed in much of the district, and paramilitary police have been sent in. Sporadic incidents of arson attacks on churches continue to be reported across the district. An orphanage run by Christian missionaries in Khuntpali village, Bargarh district, was set ablaze on and a woman was burnt alive inside. A paralytic patient was also lynched and burnt. India's bishops have announced a day of prayer and fasting for peace. (CathNews, Aug. 27; IBN, Aug. 25)

In the latest in a series of such incidents in recent weeks, gunfire erupted across the Line of Control dividing Kashmir between India and Pakistan Aug. 26, injuring four Indian border guards. Bala Subramanyam, spokesman for the Indian Border Security Force, told AFP: "It was not clear whether it was Pakistani troops or militants who fired at our positions." The firing across the LoC comes a day after Indian troops shot dead four militants during a battle along the ceasefire line. In a separate attack, militants killed an Indian soldier. (AFP, Aug. 26)