14 April 2004 Wednesday 23 Safar 1425 9/11 commission reproaches FBI, criticizes Ashcroft WASHINGTON, April 13: The commission on the Sept 11, 2001, attacks on Tuesday broadly criticized the US Justice Department and the FBI for failing to meet the threat from Al Qaeda and said Attorney General John Ashcroft did not see counter-terrorism as a top priority before it was too late. ... Afghans battle drought, corruption KANDAHAR: Poppy farmer Lal Jan sits among the remains of his destroyed crop and wonders how he will make a living from his parched land, a predicament he shares with thousands of Afghans bearing the brunt of the government's crackdown on narcotic production. ... US builds up force around Najaf BAGHDAD, April 13: The US military has moved "significant" forces to Najaf in preparation for a possible offensive to retake the city from militants and capture or kill their leader, Moqtada Sadr. ... Koizumi's remarks anger captors BAGHDAD, April 13: Guerillas holding three Japanese hostages in Iraq have reneged on a decision to free them after Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi called them "terrorists", a religious figure whose organization had called for the release said on Tuesday. ... Governments urge citizens to quit Iraq: Russian firm begins evacuation PARIS, April 13: France and Russia urged their citizens on Tuesday to leave the country or postpone travelling there following a spate of kidnappings and a resurgence of violence. ... US attitude makes uprising inevitable NEW YORK: US policy makers and commentators have been left reeling by the breadth and speed of Iraq's April rebellion. Particularly crushing have been the absence of any public Iraqi support for the US during these stunning setbacks ... Israel vows to keep main settlements MAALE ADUMIM, April 13: Israel will keep its largest Jewish settlement blocs in the West Bank, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said on Monday before a trip to Washington to secure US approval for a unilateral pullout from Gaza. ... US suspends supply convoys WASHINGTON, April 13: Some convoys ferrying supplies for US troops in Iraq have been suspended until the military can provide better security for them, the Army and its top contractor said on Tuesday. ... Re-emergence of US nuclear industry NEW YORK: Twenty-five years after the United States suffered its worst nuclear accident, the moribund atomic energy industry has begun to show signs of life. ... Qadeer saw three bombs in N. Korea N-plant, says NYT NEW YORK, April 13: Pakistani nuclear scientist Abdul Qadeer Khan has told interrogators he was shown three nuclear devices at a secret underground nuclear plant when he visited North Korea five years ago ... Sikhs don yellow turbans to protest ban AMRITSAR, April 13: Thousands of Indian Sikhs wearing yellow turbans protested here on Tuesday against a French government ban on religious headgear in state schools, a Sikh leader said. ... Muslims grieve as BJP moves on in riot state AHMEDABAD: The house where Ehsan Jaffri, a former member of India's parliament, was burned to death with 38 fellow Muslims is empty and blackened. Doors and windows hang open. ... Plot to kill Israeli president foiled: Hungary's claim BUDAPEST, April 13: Hungarian police on Tuesday claimed foiled an assassination attempt by Arab nationals against visiting Israeli President Moshe Katsav. "The local police have told our delegation (travelling with Katsav) that the president was the target," ... No headway in BD probe into arms haul DHAKA, April 13: A high-power probe body, headed by Bangladesh's home secretary, is yet to make any headway in the investigation into the country's largest ever arms haul in Chittagong on April 2. Besides ...

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