- DAWN - Latest Stories; 08 January, 2005


08 January 2005	Saturday	26 Ziqa'ad 1425

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Sectarian Unrest Kills 11: GILGIT, Jan 08: At least 11 people were killed in Gilgit today as violence erupted after an attack on a minority Shi'ite Muslim leader, official and hospital sources said. The authorities imposed a curfew in Gilgit, the main town and called out the army to quell the violence after enraged Shi'ite Muslims went on a rampage following the attack on their leader Ziauddin Moosavi. Moosavi was traveling in his car to a mosque in the center of Gilgit, when unidentified gunmen opened fire, critically injuring him and his three guards. Two of the guards later died. Jamil Ahmed, home secretary of the Northern Areas, told Reuters that nine people died in the violence that broke out after the attack. He said an angry mob set a house of an official of the forest department on fire, killing him and six others. A senior official of the local health department was also killed in the attack. Witnesses said the angry mobs also set government buildings and cars on fire. "People are very terrified," a resident told Reuters by telephone. No one claimed responsibility for the attack on Moosavi but police suspected it was a sectarian incident. (Reuters) (Posted @ 21:10 PST)

Transport-Strike: People face problems in reaching their work places: KARACHI, Jan 08: People faced problems in reaching their work places in the wake of a strike call given by Transport Ittehad against the increase in fuel prices. A large number of buses, mini-buses and coaches remained off the roads. Transport Ittehad has refused to increase the fares and instead are demanding a cut in fuel prices. They have taken the plea that an increase in the fares will only help pass on the burden on people and it will affect their business. (APP) (Posted @ 12:40 PST)

Large Explosion Hits Western Baghdad - Witnesses: BAGHDAD, Jan 08: A powerful explosion shook western Baghdad today, witnesses said, but police said they had not found the location of the blast and there were no immediate reports of damage or casualties. A Reuters witness in the west of the capital said the loud explosion shook houses in the area. Shortly after he spoke, the blast wave rattled doors and windows in the center of the city. (Reuters) (Posted @ 20:30 PST)

Al Qaeda-linked militant held in Iraq: US - BAGHDAD, Jan 8: U.S.-led multinational forces have detained a key leader in the militant network in Iraq headed by al Qaeda ally Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the U.S. military said today. A statement identified the man as Abdul Aziz Sa'dun Ahmed Hamduni, also known as Abu Ahmed, and said he had assumed command of "terrorist operations" in Mosul. He had served as the deputy of the top Mosul militant leader identified as Abu Talha, the statement said. "Abu Ahmed admitted to receiving money and weapons from Abu Talha as well as coordinating and conducting terrorist attacks in Mosul, the statement said. (Reuters) (Posted @ 12:40 PST)

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Militants Kidnap 3 Senior Iraqi Officials : BAGHDAD, Jan 08: Militants abducted three senior Iraqi officials, beheaded a man who worked for the U.S. military and killed at least four others, officials said today, a day after a U.S. general warned that insurgents may be planning "horrific" attacks ahead of Jan. 30 elections.Meanwhile, Shiite and Sunni religious leaders voiced sharply divergent views on whether the vote should be held at all. But Sheik Mahmoud Al-Somaidie of the Sunnis' Association of Muslim Scholars favored postponing the vote. "We all want elections, but we are seeking fair and free elections," he said in Baghdad. "Those of us who are calling for postponement are seeking that for the benefit of the country. Elections have to be an Iraqi demand, not the demand of the foreign countries." In Baqouba, insurgents broke into the house of a translator working with the U.S. Army and then beheaded him, police said Saturday. An Iraqi policeman was killed by masked gunmen as he left his house in Baghdad's southern Dora neighborhood. A booby-trapped car blew up today at a gas station in Mahaweel, about 35 miles south of Baghdad. One man was killed and several others were injured, police said. In Baghdad's western neighborhood of Khadraa, gunmen shot dead Abboud Khalaf al-Lahibi, deputy secretary-general of the National Front for Iraqi tribes � a group representing several Iraqi tribes, said his aide, Ibrahim al-Farhan. A bodyguard was killed and three other people were wounded in the attack, he said. Also gunmen kidnapped Mohammed Khodr, a representative of the Human Rights Organization in Iraq, in the town of Riyadh, police said. (AP/AFP) (Posted @ 20:45 PST)

Palestinian parliamentary elections to be held July 17: GAZA CITY, Jan 08: Palestinian parliamentary elections will be held in the Gaza Strip and West Bank in July, six months after this weekend's presidential race, acting president Rawhi Fattuh announced today. (AFP) (Posted @ 23:30 PST)

Israeli troops kill Palestinian in Gaza: GAZA, Jan 8: Israeli soldiers killed a Palestinian today in Gaza, medics said, a day before the Palestinians go to polls to elect Yasser Arafat's successor. (Reuters) (Posted @ 12:00 PST)

Ex-Campaign Aide to Sen. Clinton Indicted -Justice: WASHINGTON, Jan 08: Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's former finance director was indicted on charges of causing false campaign finance reports to be filed with the government, the Justice Department said. The indictment against David Rosen was returned by a federal grand jury in Los Angeles and is related to his reporting of funds raised for the New York Democrat's 2000 Senate bid at an Aug. 12, 2000, gala there. That fund-raiser is alleged to have cost more than $1.2 million, paid for with more than $1.1 million of "in-kind" contributions, but Rosen disclosed in reports to the Federal Election Commission that contributions were around $400,000, the Justice Department said. Each of the four counts against Rosen could carry a maximum penalty of up to five years in prison and up to $250,000 in fines, the Justice Department said in a statement. Lawyers for Rosen could not immediately be reached for comment. (Reuters) (Posted @ 21:15 PST)

Seven killed, 55 injured as bus slams into house in Philippines: ZAMBOANGA, Jan 8: Seven commuters were killed and 55 others were injured when a passenger bus slammed into a roadside house in the southern Philippines, police said today. (Reuters) (Posted @ 12:00 PST)

Seven die in fight between Mujahideen, security forces in Kashmir: SRINAGAR, Jan 08: Seven people died in battle between Mujahideen and security forces at a federal tax office in Kashmir that ended today, police officials said. (AFP) (Posted @ 23:30 PST)

ForEx Market Update: KARACHI, Jan 08: The Pakistani Rupee was traded at Rs 60.05 to the US Dollar in the open market. The country's stock exchanges are closed today. (Bureau Report) (Posted @ 10:55 PST)

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