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Pakistan PM: 'We'll fight our own battles'

WASHINGTON, July 28 (UPI) -- Pakistan will fight its own battles against extremists, Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani told U.S. President George Bush in Washington Monday.

Bush and Gilani met in the Oval Office and then appeared before reporters before heading to lunch.

"We are committed to fight against those extremists and terrorists who are destroying and making the world not safe. And that is -- this is our own war. This is a war which is against Pakistan. And we'll fight for our own cause," Gilani said amid mounting concern over increased Taliban and al-Qaida activity along Pakistan's border with Afghanistan.

"I told the prime minister that the United States is committed to helping the Afghan democracy succeed, which is in Pakistan's interest," Bush said. "He -- after all, the prime minister wants there to be a peaceful country on his border.

"The U.S., I repeat, respects the sovereignty of this democracy. And -- and we also appreciate the prime minister's strong words against the extremists and terrorists who not only would do us harm but have harmed people inside Pakistan."

Democratic U.S. presidential hopeful Barack Obama has expressed support for proposals to chase insurgents into Pakistani territory and to act on "credible" intelligence on militant strongholds.

Al-Qaida chemical expert reported killed

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, July 28 (UPI) -- Four missiles struck a village in Pakistan's South Waziristan tribal area, killing six people, including an al-Qaida chemical expert, Taliban officials said.

The Taliban officials confirmed to the BBC that Midhat Mursi al-Sayid Umar, a 55-year-old Egyptian national, was among those killed in the pre-dawn strike. Umar, who had a $5 million bounty on his head, had previously been wrongly reported to have been killed in a 2006 attack, the British network noted.

Three more people were injured in the incident near the border with Afghanistan, GEO-TV reported.

The missiles, suspected to have been fired by U.S. forces, apparently targeted Maulana Jalil Wazir's madrassa in Zeralita village in Azam Warsak, GEO TV said. Residents reported hearing drones flying overhead, but this had not been confirmed, the BBC said.

48 killed, 249 wounded in Iraq bombings

BAGHDAD, July 28 (UPI) -- Suicide bombers in Kirkuk and Baghdad killed 48 people injured 249 others Monday, officials said.

In Kirkuk, a female suicide bomber and gunmen killed 24 people and injured at least 187 others attending a rally to protest an election law passed by the Iraqi parliament but rejected by the country's presidency council, CNN reported.

During the rally, the bomber detonated the explosive among Kurdish demonstrators and gunmen began firing into the crowd from various positions, police reported. Kurdish officials blamed the violence on Turkmen minority extremists, and demonstrators responded by torching Turkmen-owned buildings, The New York Times said.

Meanwhile in Baghdad, three female suicide bombers killed at least 24 people and wounded 36 others, the Iraqi Interior Ministry said. Most were Shiite pilgrims The bombings in three locations occurred within 30 minutes of each other and targeted Shiite Muslims as they traveled to the Kadhimiya shrine in the north of Baghdad for annual ceremonies, the BBC reported.

The bombers struck as pilgrim convoys passed through the Karrada district.

On Sunday afternoon, seven pilgrims were killed in a town south of Baghdad, CNN reported.

Conyers eyes Gonzales perjury charge

WASHINGTON, July 28 (UPI) -- A top House Democrat said Monday he is considering bringing perjury charges against former U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales.

House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers, D-Mich., made the comment following a Justice Department inspector general's report on the use of politics in hiring at the department. Conyers said he is also considering charges against two other former senior officials.

Conyers, in a joint statement with Rep. Linda Sanchez, D-Calif., said qualified applicants were rejected for key positions in the fight against terrorism for no reason other than political whim.

The chairman said his committee would look into whether Gonzales, former Chief of Staff Kyle Sampson or former department White House liaison Monica Goodling lied last year under oath before the committee, The Hill reported. The inspector general's report said Goodling used politics and ideological positions when considering applicants for U.S. attorney.

Attorney General Michael Mukasey has said he was disturbed by the report, The Hill said.

Asian typhoon kills two people

TAIPEI, Taiwan, July 28 (UPI) -- The Asian typhoon Fung-wong hit Taiwan Monday, killing at least two people and leaving six more injured, authorities said.

The storm caused street flooding, knocked out power to tens of thousands of homes, halted rail and air service, and forced the closure of the island country's stock market, schools and offices, The Independent reported online. Fung-wong, Cantonese for "Phoenix," was headed toward China's Fujian province, the newspaper said.

The fatalities in Taiwan included a 69-year-old man who died when winds blew him off the roof of a shed as he tried to repair it, The China Post reported. The second victim was a 55-year-old woman who drowned after falling into an irrigation ditch with her motorbike, the newspaper said.

President Ma Ying-jeou urged residents to be careful because of the threat of floods and mudslides.

"We must maintain a high level of vigilance," Ma said.

Three people were missing after Fung-wong struck the northern Philippines during the weekend, causing widespread flooding, landslides and power outages, rescue officials said.

In China, authorities said more than 274,000 people had been evacuated by Sunday in Fujian province.

Xinhua reported nearly 52,500 fishing boats also had returned to port.

The storm, which the Central Weather Bureau said packed 88-mph winds when it reached Taiwan, was gusting up to 97 mph as it headed toward the Chinese mainland.