In Brief

* TV STATION RAIDED – Nigerian security agents have raided a private television station over a documentary opposing an attempt to extend President Olusegun Obasanjo’s tenure, its managers said.

* ISLAMISTS CLAIM POLL VICTORY – Supporters of Islamist candidate Ahmed Abdallah Sambi claimed victory in the coup-plagued Comoros’ weekend presidential elections but rivals cried foul, alleging the polls had been marred by fraud. * DRC PEACEKEEPING – The European Union insisted that it will be ready to provide support to UN peacekeepers in Congo during elections starting in July despite difficulties in mustering the troops needed for an EU military mission.”The EU will …be in a position to make a significant contribution to creating a more stable and secure environment during the election period,” EU foreign and defence ministers said in a statement.* GANDHI BOUNCES BACK – India’s ruling Congress party chief Sonia Gandhi returned triumphantly to parliament after a massive victory in a by-election she herself triggered.* PREVAL SWORN IN – Rene Preval, a 63-year-old agronomist seen as a champion of the poor, was sworn in as president of Haiti, two years after Jean Bertrand Aristide fled the impoverished Caribbean nation.* AFGHAN ATTACKS – Four policemen and 11 suspected Taliban were killed in fighting in volatile southern Afghanistan, while an intelligence officer was gunned down in a separate attack, officials said.* SRI LANKA UNREST – At least 19 people have been killed in fresh violence in Sri Lanka, officials said, as Tamil Tigers vowed a “war” to deploy their navy even though truce monitors say it violates a ceasefire.* VOLCANIC ACTIVITY – Deadly heat clouds tumbled further down the slopes of Indonesia’s Mount Merapi as the volcano’s activity increased ahead of a feared eruption, an official said.- Nampa-AFP-AP* DRC PEACEKEEPING – The European Union insisted that it will be ready to provide support to UN peacekeepers in Congo during elections starting in July despite difficulties in mustering the troops needed for an EU military mission.”The EU will …be in a position to make a significant contribution to creating a more stable and secure environment during the election period,” EU foreign and defence ministers said in a statement.* GANDHI BOUNCES BACK – India’s ruling Congress party chief Sonia Gandhi returned triumphantly to parliament after a massive victory in a by-election she herself triggered.* PREVAL SWORN IN – Rene Preval, a 63-year-old agronomist seen as a champion of the poor, was sworn in as president of Haiti, two years after Jean Bertrand Aristide fled the impoverished Caribbean nation. * AFGHAN ATTACKS – Four policemen and 11 suspected Taliban were killed in fighting in volatile southern Afghanistan, while an intelligence officer was gunned down in a separate attack, officials said.* SRI LANKA UNREST – At least 19 people have been killed in fresh violence in Sri Lanka, officials said, as Tamil Tigers vowed a “war” to deploy their navy even though truce monitors say it violates a ceasefire.* VOLCANIC ACTIVITY – Deadly heat clouds tumbled further down the slopes of Indonesia’s Mount Merapi as the volcano’s activity increased ahead of a feared eruption, an official said.- Nampa-AFP-AP