Russian president Vladimir Putin resurfaced, smiling and looking his normal self after a 10-day absence from public view that fuelled a wave of rumours about his health.

KYRGYZSTAN’S ousted president Kurmanbek Bakiyev made his first public appearance yesterday since being toppled in a popular uprising, slamming his opponents and refusing to step down.

Top Kyrgyzstan officials today alleged the opposition, which has declared a non-stop anti-government rally in the capital, had planned a coup.