In Brief

* INQUIRY – The British government rejected calls for an inquiry into whether the bombings last Thursday in London could have been prevented, saying it would distract security services from hunting for the attackers.

* SUPPORT – Israel looked to international support for its pullout from the Gaza Strip, requesting a multi-billion dollar aid package from the United States and lobbying for EU backing from its visiting foreign policy chief Javier Solana. * NUCLEAR – North Korea has agreed to give a detailed response to a US-led aid-for-disarmament proposal when it returns to nuclear talks later this month, senior US administration officials said.* QUAKE – US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice urged Southeast Asian nations to press Myanmar’s military rulers to reform as she toured reconstruction in tsunami-hit southern Thailand.* JUSTICE – The trial of Mohammed Bouyeri, a Moroccan Dutch national accused of the murder of Dutch filmmaker Theo van Gogh, opened amid tight security in Amsterdam.* RESIGN – A respected former Philippine leader repeated calls for President Gloria Arroyo to resign over a political scandal, but aides said she was determined to ride out the crisis.* TROOPS – Australia’s cabinet will decide today whether to send more troops to Afghanistan and will review its military deployment in Iraq, as the country faces up to threats it could face terror attacks like those in London.* AGREED – The exiled leadership of the Aceh separatist movement has agreed to a demand by Jakarta that the tsunami-hit province should remain a part of Indonesia, the rebels said in a statement.* FLU – The deadly bird flu virus was found in chickens and fighting cocks in central Thailand, officials said a day before the kingdom was due to declare the disease had been wiped out.* SHUTTLE – NASA started counting down the hours until the launch of the Discovery space shuttle on Wednesday.- Nampa-AFP* NUCLEAR – North Korea has agreed to give a detailed response to a US-led aid-for-disarmament proposal when it returns to nuclear talks later this month, senior US administration officials said.* QUAKE – US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice urged Southeast Asian nations to press Myanmar’s military rulers to reform as she toured reconstruction in tsunami-hit southern Thailand.* JUSTICE – The trial of Mohammed Bouyeri, a Moroccan Dutch national accused of the murder of Dutch filmmaker Theo van Gogh, opened amid tight security in Amsterdam.* RESIGN – A respected former Philippine leader repeated calls for President Gloria Arroyo to resign over a political scandal, but aides said she was determined to ride out the crisis.* TROOPS – Australia’s cabinet will decide today whether to send more troops to Afghanistan and will review its military deployment in Iraq, as the country faces up to threats it could face terror attacks like those in London.* AGREED – The exiled leadership of the Aceh separatist movement has agreed to a demand by Jakarta that the tsunami-hit province should remain a part of Indonesia, the rebels said in a statement.* FLU – The deadly bird flu virus was found in chickens and fighting cocks in central Thailand, officials said a day before the kingdom was due to declare the disease had been wiped out.* SHUTTLE – NASA started counting down the hours until the launch of the Discovery space shuttle on Wednesday.- Nampa-AFP