WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama and his national  security advisers are considering expanding the covert U.S. war  in Pakistan far beyond the tribal areas near the border with  Afghanistan, the New York Times reported yesterday.

KABUL – NATO’s secretary-general said yesterday 4,000  more soldiers were needed to secure Afghanistan’s presidential  election in August and to make sure the vote was credible and  fair.

SEOUL – Japan will clear the way for the deployment of  ballistic missile interceptors as it prepares for the  possibility a North Korean rocket could fall toward its  territory, Kyodo news agency reported yesterday.

JOHANNESBURG – South African prosecutors were considering  whether to drop corruption charges against ruling ANC leader  Jacob Zuma after he lodged a legal request, the National  Prosecuting Authority (NPA) said yesterday.

ST POELTEN, Austria – Josef Fritzl reversed his plea and  admitted guilt on all charges yesterday after watching the  daughter he locked up and raped for 24 years describe her ordeal  in 11 hours of video testimony.