By Ruma Paul DHAKA (Reuters) - Bangladesh's Supreme Court on Thursday cleared the way for the execution of an Islamist opposition leader, sparking violent protests by his supporters less than a month before elections are due to be held. Abdul Quader Mollah, found guilty of war crimes committed during the 1971 war of independence from Pakistan, was set to be hanged at Dhaka Central Jail on Wednesday, but his lawyers earned a last-minute reprieve. On Thursday, a panel of five judges, led by Chief Justice Mohammad Mojammel Hossain, rejected a petition that could have led to a review of the death penalty. "There is now no legal bar to hang Mollah.

By Olivia Kumwenda-Mtambo JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - A South African sign language interpreter accused of gesticulating gibberish as world leaders paid tribute to Nelson Mandela defended himself as a "champion" signer on Thursday, but said he suffered a schizophrenic episode during the event. The interpreter, identified as 34-year-old Thamsanqa Jantjie, told Johannesburg's Star newspaper he started hearing voices and hallucinating while on stage, resulting in gestures that made no sense to outraged deaf people around the world. Millions of TV viewers saw Jantjie interpreting for leaders including U.S. President Barack Obama and his South African counterpart, Jacob Zuma, at Tuesday's Mandela memorial. Afterwards South Africa's leading deaf association denounced Jantjie as a fake, saying he was inventing signs.

South Korea's Samsung on Thursday lost its latest claim in a long-running global copyright battle against bitter rival Apple, a surprise blow to the electronics giant in its home market. A court rejected Samsung's claims that some Apple products had infringed on three of its patents covering messaging technology for mobile devices. It's the first time a South Korean court has ruled against Samsung in its battle with Apple. Samsung described Thursday's ruling as "preliminary" and indicated it would continue its battle at home.