Sultan Azlan Shah lights a flame holder at the end of the Malaysian leg of the Beijing Olympic Torch Relay in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Monday. The next stop for the torch is Jakarta, Indonesia.

the associated press

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ABUJA — Polio cases have nearly doubled this year in the West African nation of Nigeria as officials struggle to fight various natural strains of the virus as well as an outbreak set off by the polio vaccine itself three years ago.

Outbreaks linked to the vaccine, as opposed to the naturally occurring virus, are usually stamped out within months. But Nigeria has a very low immunization rate, partly from its weak health system and also from rumors about the safety of the vaccine.

Last year at this time, Nigeria had 54 reported cases caused by wild polio virus. This year, there were 106 new cases, according to figures released by the World Health Organization last week. The vaccine-sparked outbreak has struck more than 100 children so far, including eight this year.

For every paralyzed child, there are about 1,000 others infected and spreading the highly infectious and sometimes fatal disease, experts say.

NASSAU — Haitians fleeing their impoverished homeland met tragedy when their boat went down off the Bahamas, killing at least 20 people and leaving only three known survivors, including an alleged migrant smuggler, authorities said Monday.

Survivors said the boat was carrying 24 people when it capsized Saturday night, according to U.S. Coast Guard spokesman Luis Diaz in Miami. Just before dawn Sunday, fishermen heard screams.

Volunteers searched for bodies, tying life preservers onto them so they could be recovered by the U.S. Coast Guard, said Chris Lloyd of the Bahamas Air Sea Rescue Association.

"We recovered as many as we could," Lloyd said.

The Haitians appeared to be aiming for U.S. shores. The accident happened fewer than 150 miles from Miami, said Chief Petty Officer Ralph McKinney of the Royal Bahamas Defense Force. The boat had set out from Nassau and was supposed to stop in Bimini en route to Florida, he said.

Two Haitian survivors — a man and a woman — were being treated at a Nassau hospital for dehydration. The third survivor, a Honduran marine mechanic, was taken into police custody as authorities investigate smuggling allegations, McKinney said.

The two Haitian survivors identified the Honduran as the sunken vessel's captain, Lloyd said.

KUALA LUMPUR — The Olympic flame was carried through blistering sun, torrential rain and isolated protests in Malaysia on Monday, completing another segment of its global relay that has become a magnet for demonstrations against China.

A Japanese man, his sister and her 5-year-old son were heckled and roughed up by Chinese nationals when they unfurled a Tibetan flag before the start of the heavily guarded relay in Kuala Lumpur.

Police detained the Japanese but released them without charges after about six hours. The Chinese were not detained.

At one point in the relay, a Western man wearing a T-shirt reading "Beijing Torches Human Rights" rushed forward shouting, "Shame, shame, shame." He was hustled away by police but not arrested. A British woman wearing a "Free Tibet" T-shirt and a foreign Buddhist monk were also detained and later released.

Imran Jaafar, the president of the Olympic Council of Malaysia, was the first of 80 runners, accompanied by policemen and motorcycles.

As the relay progressed, the city was lashed by a torrential downpour. The flame ended at the Petronas Twin Towers.

Its next stop is Jakarta, Indonesia, where a shortened, invitation-only relay is to take place today outside a sports stadium. Members of the public are barred from attending.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called Monday for an immediate presidential election in Lebanon without foreign interference, underlining concerns over the political stalemate that has kept the post empty since a pro-Syria leader's term expired.

Ban also warned that Lebanon will not be a fully sovereign, democratic state until the Islamic militants of Hezbollah are disarmed. He told Syria and Iran they must support efforts to disarm the group, which is their ally.

The secretary-general's six-month report on Lebanon to the Security Council, obtained by The Associated Press, focused on implementation of a 2004 resolution that calls for presidential elections under the constitution and the disbanding of all militias.

The Lebanese parliament is sharply divided between a pro-Western majority led by Prime Minister Fuad Saniora and a bloc led by Hezbollah that is aligned with neighboring Syria, whose army occupied Lebanon for nearly three decades.

JOHANNESBURG — A court on Monday postponed the trial of a former dormitory matron accused of abusing pupils at a school set up by Oprah Winfrey for disadvantaged girls.

Magistrate Thelma Simpson agreed to a request made by Tiny Virginia Makopo's lawyer, who said he needed more time to consult with his client.

The judge said a new trial date, likely in July, would be set during a provisional hearing on Friday.

Prosecutor Etienne Venter voiced frustration with the delay, saying the state was ready for the trial.

Makopo has pleaded not guilty to charges of indecent assault, assault and criminal injury. Police say the alleged abuse against six teenage students and a fellow dormitory matron took place over four months.

Winfrey's $40 million school opened in January 2007 with much fanfare. It is designed to groom girls from disadvantaged backgrounds for leadership roles.

Winfrey, who was a victim of child abuse herself, promised an overhaul of the school and said she had apologized to parents.

TEHRAN — The deputy chief of the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency met with Iranian officials Monday to discuss persistent allegations that the Islamic republic is secretly working to develop nuclear weapons.

Olli Heinonen of the International Atomic Energy Agency planned to focus during two days of meetings on charges that Iran is testing powerful explosives and seeking to design a missile re-entry vehicle, two features that could have use for nuclear weapons.

Iran dismisses as "fabricated" the allegations raised by U.S. intelligence agencies and insists its nuclear program is geared solely toward the production of electricity. Washington and some of its allies contend Tehran is trying to gain a nuclear-arms capability.

SAO PAULO — A Roman Catholic priest who floated off under hundreds of helium party balloons was missing Monday off the southern coast of Brazil.

Rescuers in helicopters and small fishing boats were searching off the coast of Santa Catarina state, where pieces of balloons were found.

The Rev. Adelir Antonio de Carli lifted off from the port city of Paranagua on Sunday afternoon, wearing a helmet, thermal suit and a parachute.

He was reported missing about eight hours later after losing contact with port authority officials, according to the treasurer of his Sao Cristovao parish, Denise Gallas.

Gallas said by telephone that the priest wanted to break a 19-hour record for the most hours flying with balloons, to raise money for a spiritual rest-stop for truckers in Paranagua, Brazil's second-largest port for agricultural products.