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| July 26, 2005 | Tuesday | Jumadi-us-Sani 18, 1426 |
Updated round-the-clock, with major updates after 10:00 PST (05:00 GMT)
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5.6 quake rumbles through US state of Montana LOS ANGELES, July 26 (AFP) - An earthquake measuring 5.6 on the Richter Scale rumbled through the US state of Montana, seismologists said Tuesday, but the there were no immediate reports of major damage or injuries.The quake hit about 21 kilometers (13 miles) north-northeast of the town of Dillon, which lies in the west of the rugged and sparsely-populated northwestern US state, at 10:08 pm on Monday (0408 GMT Tuesday) according to the US Geological Survey.Beaverhead County Commissioner Mike McGinley told CNN television that damage from the shaker was limited to pictures being knocked off walls and other minor incidents.(Posted @ 23:40 PST)
17 passengers injured NAWABSHAH, July 26 (APP)- Seventeen passengers, including five women, were injured when a speedy van overturned near Nawabshah. All the wounded passengers were rushed to Taluka hospital Daur and Peoples Meical College Hospital where the condition f van driver Rajab Ali Gorchani was stated to be critical.(Posted @ 23:00 PST)
12 killed in rebel-government clashes in Colombia Bogota, Colombia (DPA) - At least eight soldiers and four rebels were killed in heavy fighting between government troops and the leftist Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), the army commander said Tuesday. General Reinaldo Castellanos said seven soldiers were killed and two wounded in clashes late Monday with FARC in Cubarral, in the central province of Meta.(Posted @ 22:55 PST)
No Jordanian plane crash - Israeli rescue service JERUSALEM, July 26 (Reuters) - A Jordanian plane suffered a tyre puncture upon landing at an airport in southern Jordan on Tuesday, an Israeli rescue service said revising an earlier report that the plane had crashed. "This was not a crash. The plane's tyre burst and the ruckus appeared like a crash," a spokesman for ZAKA told Reuters when asked about the incident near Aqaba, on Jordan's border with Israel. Jordian airport officials said it was a cargo plane.(Posted @ 22:45 PST)
Gunmen kill up to 17 in Baghdad bus ambush-police BAGHDAD, July 26 (Reuters) - Gunmen opened fire on a bus carrying employees home from a factory in Abu Ghraib, west of Baghdad, on Tuesday, killing up to 17 people, police and hospital sources said. A source at a Baghdad hospital said it had received the bodies of 17 people killed in the attack. Police sources said 12 people had been killed and nine wounded.(Posted @ 20:40 PST)
Iraq al Qaeda posts video of Algerian diplomats-Web DUBAI, July 26 (Reuters) - Iraq's al Qaeda group posted on Tuesday a video of two kidnapped Algerian diplomats, hours after it vowed to kill them, according to an Internet posting. The video showed two blindfolded men. One of them identified himself as Ali Belaroussi, while the other one said he was Azzedine Belkadi. A statement from Al Qaeda in Iraq accompanying the video said their "confessions" would be posted soon.(Posted @ 20:35 PST)
Twenty-two dead, 120 feared trapped in Indian landslides MUMBAI, July 26 (AFP) - At least 22 people have died and some 120 are feared trapped beneath two separate landslides in India's western state of Maharashtra following flashfloods caused by monsoon rains, police and an official said Tuesday. The landslides occurred in Raighad district, about 170 kilometers (105 miles) south of Mumbai, which was drenched with more than 1,540 millimeters (60 inches) of rain in the past two days, they added. Mumbai, meanwhile, was also waterlogged late Tuesday after being hit by the torrential rains. Water flooded on to railway tracks and halted all suburban train services.The situation worsened as the rains coincided with high tides. Met office Tuesday forecast "very heavy rains" for the next 24 hours(Posted @ 20:20 PST)
US shuttle returns to space for first mission since Columbia disaster CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida, July 26 (AFP) - Discovery blasted off Tuesday for the first US shuttle mission since the Columbia disaster in February, 2003. Thirteen days after calling off a previous attempt to get the shuttle back in orbit because of a fuel gauge problem, Discovery lifted off into clear blue skies at the Kennedy Space Center at 10:39 am (1439 GMT). "It is time for you to return to flight. Godspeed and we will see you in a couple of weeks," said a NASA mission control manager to the crew just before the engines were ignited. It was an emotional moment for the NASA experts and managers who watched horrified as Columbia broke up in flames as it re-entered the Earth's atmosphere on February 29, 2003, killing all seven crew. Discovery jettisoned its ascent motors two minutes after liftoff as planned and then headed into orbit at 4,500 miles (7,200 kilometers) an hour. NASA called it a perfect launch. The shuttle and its seven crew, including a Japanese astronaut Soichi Noguchi, will spend 12 days in space to link up with the International Space Station (ISS).(Posted @ 20:15 PST)
Baglihar: Pak team visits Doda Doda , July 26 (PPI): The six-member Pakistan team Tuesday visited areas in the vicinity of Chenab River in Doda district including Pul Doda, Ramban, Assar, Thathri for assessing the situation to prepare a report and submit it to Swiss engineer Raymond Lafitte appointed by the World Bank on Pakistan’s objection to the dam in violation of Indus Water Treaty .(Posted @ 19:45 PST)
KASHMIR: Gilani calls for complete strike Wednesday Srinagar, July 26 PPI) Veteran Kashmiri leader Syed Ali Gilani has given call for complete strike throughout occupied Kashmir on Wednesday, July 27, against the stepped up Indian human rights abuses. Addressing a press Conference in Srinagar he said Kashmiris will observe shut down strike against the killing of innocent boys in Trehgam and Kupwara, killing of a youth in Kangan and murder of a girl in Dooru, and demanded international probe into the massacre of Kashmiris at the hands of Indian occupation forces. Jammu and Kashmir Employees Joint Action Committee(EJAC) has also given call for a complete strike on Wednesday. Jammu and Kashmir High Court Bar Association has also supported the strike calls.(Posted @ 19:35 PST)
Pakistan Bar Council passes resolution against Hisba Bill ISLAMABAD, Jul 26 (APP): Pakistan Bar Council (PBC) has passed a resolution against the Hisba Bill-2005 as passed by the NWFP Assembly on July 14 terming it a violation of the Constitution of the country. According to a press release Tuesday by the PBC Secretary Muhammad Arshad the meeting held in the library of the High Court Bar Association, Peshawar, also condemned London bombing as a shameful act of terrorism.It also considered amendments in the Legal Practitioners & Bar Councils Act, 1973 as proposed by the Senate of Pakistan.(Posted @ 19:25 PST)
PM awards Rs. 50,000 each to 6 cyclists ISLAMABAD, Jul 26 (APP): Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz Tuesday gave away cash awards of Rs. 50,000 each to the six Pakistani cyclists for their good performance in the tour-de-Pakistan international cycle race earlier this year. Speaking at the awards-distribution ceremony, the Prime Minister also promised a new velodrome at Lahore for promotion of cycling in the country. He also appreciated the efforts of Pakistan Cycling Federation for holding the mega event of 11-stage, 1614-kilometre race which concluded on March 23 with bikers from Pakistan, Germany, Iran, Bangladesh and Afghanistan participating in the event.(Posted @ 19:15 PST)
Named suspected London bombers of Eritrean, Somali origin LONDON, July 26 (APP/AFP) - The two men named by police as suspected London bombers are a naturalised British citizen of Eritrean origin and a Somali national legally resident in Britain, the interior ministry said Tuesday. The pair had been legally resident in the country for more than 10 years, a Home Office spokeswoman said.(Posted @ 19:10 PST)
Pakistan to maintain its credible nuclear deterrence: Kasuri ISLAMABAD, July 26 (APP): Foreign Minister Khurshid M. Kasuri Tuesday said Pakistan's nuclear capability was defensive and the country would continue to maintain credible nuclear deterrence. Talking to a six-member Sri Lankan media delegation at the Foreign Office he said "Pakistan's nuclear programme and strategic assets are secure, under strict and multi-layered custodial controls." Responding to a query about the recent Indo-US defence agreement,he hoped the legislation by the US Congress, to operationalize the Agreements between two countries, would be non-discriminatory.Kasuri expressed satisfaction over the excellent bilateral relations between Pakistan and Sri Lanka and appreciated the efforts of Sri Lanka in strengthening peace and stability in the country. He underlined the importance of the recently signed Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between the two counties and said it would mark the beginning of a new era.(Posted @ 19:05 PST)
NA's standing committee on Railways briefed about Train tragedy LAHORE, July 26 (APP): Chairman Standing Committee on Railways, Sardar Tufail Ahmed Khan has said that he has directed Federal Government Inspector Railways (FGIR) to submit a detailed report of Ghotki train incident identifying causes of the incident and suggesting remedial measures to avert recurrence of such incidents in future. Talking to newsmen after a meeting of the committee he said, "I am of the view and have told FGIR that driver of Karachi Express alone was not responsible for the train tragedy. Station Master Sarhad Railway Station and DS Sukkur were also responsible . I have asked Railway officials that cases be registered against those responsible and they must be arrested. Railways minister Mian Shamim Haider said efforts are underway to improve the system . He said duty time of drivers are being reduced from 8 to 6 hours while their pay scales are also being revised upward from grade 9 to 14.A programme is also being chalked out for better training and refresher courses . Committee members expressed concern over working and control system of Pakistan Railways and said that whole system must be overhauled.(Posted @ 18:58 PST)
India proposes to host Pakistani film festival Islamabad (dpa) - India on Tuesday proposed to host Pakistani film festivals in order to increase cultural ties between the two often inimical neighbours. "We would be very happy to have a Pakistani film festival in India first in New Delhi or other places," said Indian Secretary of Culture Nina Ranjhan, speaking to reporters after the first round of two-day talks with her Pakistani counterpart in Islamabad. "And along with that we could host a Pakistani Punjabi film festival in Patyala in Indian Punjab," Ranjhan said. The two governments banned the screening of each other's movies after the war in 1965 over the disputed Kashmir region. Pakistani official Jalil Abbas however said his government had noplan to lift the ban on Indian films. Ranjhan also said India has agreed to open up all eight Muslem shrines in India for religious tourism and to double the number of Pakistani visitors to these places.(Posted @ 18:42 PST)
Indonesia says Muslims unjustly linked to terrorism JAKARTA, July 26 (Reuters) - President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono of Indonesia said Tuesday Muslims have been mistreated and improperly linked to terrorism but they should face up to such injustice without violence. Addressing country’s leading Muslim clerics he said : "History has taught us that injustices and oppression can push a group of people to conduct violence. This condition can happen to any group in the society, no matter what race, identity and religion they come from." Most Indonesians see the U.S.-led global war on terrorism as directed primarily againstIslam, and the government has been critical of actions by the United States and its allies in Iraq and Afghanistan.(Posted @ 18:30 PST)
British police seize car in hunt for London bombers LONDON, July 26 (AFP) - British police said Tuesday they had seized a car in north London in connection with bombings in the capital last week. "We can confirm that we have seized a vehicle in the East Finchley area in connection with the investigation into the incidents on July 21," a spokeswoman for the city's Metropolitan Police told AFP. "We're not prepared to discuss that further," she said, refusing to say whether anyone had been arrested.(Posted @ 18:20 PST)
Afghan parliament candidate killed in bomb blast KANDAHAR, Afghanistan, July 26 (AFP) - A candidate in Afghanistan's upcoming parliamentary election was killed and his mother wounded in a bomb attack on Tuesday, an official said. Dr Azatullah Khan was travelling with his mother to the Paktika provincial capital of Sharana when their car was hit by a remote-controlled roadside bomb, said Paktika deputy police chief Malik Khan. "This is the work of the Taliban," he said.(Posted @ 18:15 PST)
Ten hurt as Indian police break up angry Kashmiri protests SRINAGAR, July 26 (AFP) - Five policemen and five protestors were hurt Tuesday during demonstrations against the Indian army's fatal shooting of three innocent Kashmiri teenagers, the authorities and witnesses said. Police used tear gas, fired in the air and lashed out with batons against the chanting demonstrators near the village of Bangargund, witnesses said. It was the third straight day of protests through the occupied territory on the call of Kashmiri leaders. Lawyers and government employees' groups backed the call.(Posted @ 18:10 PST)
Afghans protest outside Bagram Air Base after overnight US troop raid KABUL, July 26 (AFP) - Several hundred angry villagers protested Tuesday outside the US military headquarters at Bagram Air Base after American troops arrested eight suspected bomb-makers in overnight raids, US military and local officials said .He said raid on a single compound had netted bomb-making materials and led to the arrest of eight. Northern Bagram district governor Kabir Ahmed earlier said 10 people were arrested and told AFP by phone that "thousands of angry protesters have gathered here in front of the Bagram base main gate" demanding their release.(Posted @ 18:05 PST)
World should 'not give one inch' to terrorism, says combative Blair LONDON, July 26 (AFP) - British Prime Minister Tony Blair made an impassioned plea Tuesday for the world to unite against terrorism and refuse to "give one inch" to their demands. Repeatedly quizzed at a Downing Street press conference about whether the London bombings this month might have been prompted in some way by the Iraq war, Blair rounded angrily on his critics. "I want to make one thing very clear to you. Whatever excuse or justification these people use, I do not believe we should give on inch to them," he said. Not in this country and the way we live our lives here," Blair said. "Not in Iraq, not in Afghanistan, not in our support for two states, Israel and Palestine, not in our support for the alliances we choose, including with America. "Not one inch do we give to these people." "There is no justification for suicide bombing whether in Palestine, Iraq, in London, in Egypt, in Turkey, anywhere, in the United States of America, anywhere. There is no justification for it, period," he said. However, while it is important not to see them as legitimate excuses, Blair noted that the world must make progress on some of the grievances cited by terrorists such as the Middle East conflict. "There are obviously certain things in government and the international community we have to do to try to take away the legitimate causes upon which people prey," Blair said. Issues such as Palestinian statehood are "important", Blair said. "There is a legitimate concern, but that doesn't justify in the slightest way the suicide bombings or terrorism, but there is a concern about that and you have to deal with it," he said.(Posted @ 17:55 PST)
Lincou survives second-round scare in Pakistan open squash KARACHI, July 26 (AFP) - Reigning world champion and world number one Thierry Lincou of France survived a five-game second round match on Tuesday to advance to the quarter-finals of the 85,000-dollar Pakistan open championship. He had to use all his stamina and skills to edge out the last Pakistani hope, Shahid Zaman, 8-11, 11-4, 9-11, 11-8, 11-4 in a thrilling 47-minute encounter.(Posted @ 17:50 PST)
Blair backs tougher detention rules in fight against terror LONDON, July 26 (AFP) - British Prime Minister Tony Blair said Tuesday he supported giving police expanded powers of detention under proposed changes to anti-terrorist laws in the wake of the London bombings. "I think it's perfectly reasonable for us in circumstances of great difficulty to have a greater detention in order that there can be the interrogation of people who are suspected of doing this," he told reporters. "People rightly expect us to take the right measures to increase their security." Blair earlier Tuesday held a summit with opposition party leaders to discuss possible changes to anti-terror, laws including police demands to hold suspects without charge for up to three months. Opposition Conservative party leader Michael Howard said after the meeting all sides of politics must "work together", but warned that he had concerns about the increased detention. "So far as the three-month period of detention which the police have asked for, we see very considerable difficulties in that," he said.(Posted @ 17:45 PST)
Nepal's ex-PM jailed for corruption KATHMANDU, July 26 (AFP) - Nepal's anti-graft commission on Tuesday sentenced former prime minister Sher Bahadur Deuba to two years in prison for corruption over a road contract, officials said. Deuba, who said he would challenge the verdict was arrested in late April on two corruption charges, but cleared in June of one. Enraged by the verdict, supporters of Deuba demonstrated in front of the Royal Commission for Corruption Control's office in Kathmandu, witnesses said. The rally was broken up by riot police, who waded in with batons, injuring at least 12 people, a witness said. Former public works minister Prakash Man Singh was also jailed for two years after being convicted on the same charge.(Posted @ 17:35 PST)
Four Boy Scout leaders electrocuted while pitching tent: report WASHINGTON, July 26 (AFP) - Four Boy Scout leaders were killed at a US Army base in Virginia when a pole of the tent they were pitching for a jamboree came into contact with an overhead power line, The Washington Post reported Tuesday. Another Scout leader and two contract workers were also injured in the mishap . The jamboree is held every four years and draws thousands of Scouts from across the United States and foreign countries.(Posted @ 17:30 PST)
India tests short-range surface-to-air missile BHUBANESWAR, India, July 26 (AFP) India Tuesday successfully test-fired a short-range, surface-to-air missile, Trishul, from a remote range in eastern Orissa state, defence ministry sources said. (Posted @ 14:46 PST)
Myanmar to skip 2006 ASEAN chairmanship VIENTIANE, July 26 (Reuters) Myanmar's military junta will skip its turn as chairman of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) in 2006, the 10-member regional bloc said in a statement on Tuesday. "We agreed that once Myanmar is ready to take its turn to be the ASEAN chair, it can do so," said a joint statement by ASEAN foreign ministers meeting in Vientiane. (Posted @ 13:08 PST)
Villagers in Nepal kill seven communist rebels KATMANDU, Nepal, July 26 (APP/AP) Villagers killed at least seven communist rebels in central Nepal, officials said Tuesday. (Posted @ 12:52 PST)
Up to 50 Taliban killed in Afghan fighting KANDAHAR, Afghanistan, July 26 (Reuters) - U.S. and Afghan forces have killed up to 50 Taliban fighters in attacks in the central province of Uruzgan, the provincial governor said on Tuesday. A major Taliban ammunition depot was destroyed during the fighting late on Monday in Deh Rawud district of Uruzgan and 25 Taliban guerrillas were captured, Uruzgan's governor, Jan Mohammad Khan, said. (Posted @ 12:45 PST)
No Pakistanis involved in Red Sea blasts-Egypt envoy ISLAMABAD, July 26 (Reuters) - The Egyptian ambassador to Pakistan on Tuesday denied reports that Pakistani nationals were involved in the weekend bomb attacks in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh that killed at least 64 people. The ambassador, Hussein Haridy, said six Pakistanis being sought by Egyptian police had nothing to do with the blasts. "We deny categorically any links between Pakistani nationals and Sharm el-Sheikh blasts," Haridy said. (Posted @ 12:10 PST)
US says North Korea sovereign; six-party talks resume BEIJING, July 26 (Reuters) - Six-party talks on North Korea's nuclear programmes opened Tuesday with United States saying it views the regime as a sovereign nation. "We view DPRK sovereignty as a matter of fact. The United States has absolutely no intention to invade or attack the DPRK and we remain prepared to speak with the DPRK bilaterally in the context of these talks," U.S. chief negotiator Christopher Hill said at the opening session. (Posted @ 09:59 PST)
Karachi Stocks down 3.51 points: KARACHI, July 26:At close of trading the KSE-100 index was at 7301.79, down 3.51 points from Monday's close. (Bureau Report) (Updated @ 15:45 PST)
The Pakistani Rupee was traded at Rs 60.5 to the US Dollar KARACHI, July 26: The Pakistani Rupee was traded at Rs 60.5 to the US Dollar in the open market. (Bureau Report) (Updated @ 15:45 PST)
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