By GRAEME SMITH, Toronto Globe and Mail

The red granite floors of the legendary Oberoi hotel, where so much blood spilled during the terrorist attacks of November 2008, have been replaced with spotless sheets of white marble. The new walls show no sign of the bullets, shrapnel and fire that marred this landmark in Mumbai's financial district.

NEW DELHI, India - Tarun Pall is the model of an eligible bachelor in India. He embodies the qualities desired for an arranged marriage: tall, handsome, foreign-educated, employed as a management consultant by a major company. Like many 30-year-olds in his social group, he has some experience with women. But, crucially for any prospective match, he has never lived with any girlfriend.

Afghanistan's elections are expected to go ahead as scheduled in August, sources say, despite a presidential order that shocked many observers by casting doubt over the timing of the vote.
Hamid Karzai kicked up a political storm over the weekend by instructing the Afghan Independent Election Commission to follow constitutional rules that would require a vote in March or April.

The word "Guantanamo" serves as shorthand among some Afghans for all the reasons they hate foreign troops, but the impending closing of the notorious prison has gotten surprisingly little attention in this country.

The word "Guantanamo" serves as shorthand among some Afghans for all the reasons they hate foreign troops, but the impending closing of the notorious prison has gotten surprisingly little attention in this country.

The coming influx of American troops will allow Canada to focus on protecting the gateways to Kandahar city, a new senior commander says, leaving U.S. forces to disrupt the insurgency in the dangerous outlying districts.

KABUL, Afghanistan -- Daily attacks against civilian targets on riseInsurgents show growing tendency to spread fear by singling out victims for atrocities

KANDAHAR, Afghanistan -- The most famous comedian in Kandahar, Ahmadullah Mujajo, stares at a flickering light bulb. Then he grabs a man by the neck and shakes him furiously, brandishing a shotgun.

KABUL, Afghanistan -- A year before Afghanistan's scheduled elections, watchdogs are already expressing worry about how growing insecurity, government interference, and popular disaffection may distort the results.The country's election commission even raised the possibility this month of delaying the vote if security conditions remain grim.