Turkmenistan ends ban on opera and circus
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Turkmenistan will end its seven-year ban on opera and the circus introduced by the Caspian nation's former eccentric leader, state media reported.
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VITORIA, Spain  - A Basque proposal for virtual  independence from Spain unexpectedly won approval in the  regional parliament on Thursday with votes from Batasuna, a  party banned as the political wing of armed separatists ETA.
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Egypt has abolished the life-threatening practice of female circumcision, its health ministry says.
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Russia abolishes a number of key public holidays including the Soviet holiday marking the Bolshevik revolution of 1917.
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Mongolian Embassy in London  agrees to lift immunity for the son of one of its diplomats
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Multiple construction plans were announced at a meeting of the Cabinet of Ministers of Turkmenistan. A new phase in the implementation of a large-scale construction program in Turkmenistan was announced by President Saparmurat Niyazov.
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ASHGABAT: The Central Asian republic of Turkmenistan said yesterday it had carried out a threat to cut gas supplies to Russia and Ukraine but was ready to turn the pumps back on in return for higher prices.
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The European Union council has officially adopted a proposal to eliminate all quantitative restrictions on the import of textile and clothing from World Trade Organisation countries from 1 January 2005.
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Restrictions on animal movement imposed following the foot-and-mouth outbreak are significantly eased.
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New measures would end direct election of governors in Russia's 89 regions.
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KIEV, December 25 (Itar-Tass) - Ukraineâs Constitution Court has passed a ruling that lifts the December 8 parliamentary ban on voting at home.
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No modern work of literature is more tied to the life and thought of a nation as Turkmenistan's "Rukhnama," a book seen in this reclusive, energy-rich country as combined epic history, divinely inspired moral guide and state policy. The country's new president, Gurbanguli Berdymukhamedov, solemnly kissed the tome upon taking office Wednesday.
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Polling stations were nearly empty Sunday in elections for Turkmenistan's rubber-stamp parliament, forcing officials to carry ballot boxes door-to-door in this nation ruled by a former Soviet Communist boss who has been declared president-for-life.
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Chinaâs Ministry of Agriculture said a recent nationwide crackdown on the use of illegal veterinary drugs improved the quality and safety of seafood production.
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North Ossetians end their  official mourning period following the deadly school siege in Beslan.
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Turkmen President Kurbanguly Berdymukhamedov pardoned more than a thousand prisoners on Thursday -- the first anniversary of his rule in the gas-producing Caspian nation.
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ASHGABAT, Turkmenistan - Turkmenistan's authoritarian leader has scolded national television presenters for wearing too much makeup and told them to look natural.   "Female presenters wear too much whitening powder...