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| December 7, 2005 | Wednesday | Ziqa’ad 4, 1426 |
Updated round-the-clock, with major updates after 10:00 PST (05:00 GMT)
Aziz calls for reaffirming commitment to objectives of SAARC ISLAMABAD, Dec 7 (APP): Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz has called for reaffirming commitment to the goals of SAARC for creating a peaceful and prosperous South Asia and improving the standard of life of its people. "Let us commit ourselves again to the principles and objectives of the SAARC Charter and reaffirm our determination to create a partnership for peace, progress and prosperity of South Asia," he said in his message to mark the 20th anniversary of the signing of the SAARC Charter. Aziz added that the SAFTA negotiations were complete and the agreement will enter into force from January 1, 2006.(Posted @ 19:20 PST)
Rights groups say one dead in Egypt vote violence CAIRO, Dec 7 (Reuters) One man was killed in north Egypt on Wednesday during the last stage of parliamentary elections in which voters have clashed with police in several areas, rights groups and the Muslim Brotherhood reported. There was no immediate comment from the Interior Ministry, which has previously denied using live rounds against voters. Three people have been killed in previous voting rounds.(First Posted@13:30 PST Updated@ 18:35 PST)
Tehran shut down amid unprecedented smog alert TEHRAN, Dec 7 (AFP) Residents of the smog-choked Iranian capital were told Wednesday not to go to work or school for two days in an unprecedented government effort to stop Tehran from suffocating. With offices in the urban sprawl of 10 million people effectively shut down through the weekend until Saturday, police were also out in force to prevent motorists from entering a large part of the city without a permit. Officials hope that will help clear a hideous blanket of brown-yellow haze, denser than usual this week due to a total lack of wind. Pollution alerts were becoming increasingly common in the city, with air quality deemed unhealthy for at least 100 days of the year. Complaints of asthma, allergies and respiratory ailments were also on the rise.(Posted @ 18:30 PST)
Two Indian soldiers die in gunbattle SRINAGAR, Occupied Kashmir, Dec 7 (AFP) Two soldiers were killed in a fierce gunbattle with militants in Occupied Kashmir, police said Wednesday. The soldiers died late Tuesday in fighting which erupted as troops raided a suspected militant hideout in the village of Pooniwah in southern Anantnag district, police said. The gunfire in the area has stopped but soldiers were "conducting house-to-house searches to find the militants," the spokesman added.court jails Britons, Indian for possessing guns KABUL, Dec 7 (Reuters) An Afghan court sentenced two Britons and an Indian to two years in jail on Wednesday after convicting them of illegally possessing firearms, but acquitted an American who stood trial with them. The four men were arrested in October in a police raid on a Kabul guest house. The prosecutor had accused them of gun smuggling but all had denied this.(Posted @ 17:25 PST)(Posted @ 18:20 PST)
Afghan court jails Britons, Indian for possessing guns KABUL, Dec 7 (Reuters) An Afghan court sentenced two Britons and an Indian to two years in jail on Wednesday after convicting them of illegally possessing firearms, but acquitted an American who stood trial with them. The four men were arrested in October in a police raid on a Kabul guest house. The prosecutor had accused them of gun smuggling but all had denied this.(Posted @ 17:25 PST)
China mine blast leaves 123 missing BEIJING, Dec 7 (Reuters) At least 123 people were missing after a blast on Wednesday afternoon at a coal mine in northern Hebei province, China's official Xinhua news agency reported. Twenty-seven miners escaped the explosion in Tangshan City, the report added, but no further details were immediately available.(Posted @ 17:25 PST)
Trial resumes in Baghdad without Saddam BAGHDAD, Dec 7 (Reuters) Saddam Hussein was absent when his trial resumed in Baghdad on Wednesday after hours of wrangling over whether the former president would appear. With Saddam's place at the front of the dock empty where he sat this week with seven other defendants, the presiding judge called the first witness. Earlier Saddam Hussein had refused to attend a hearing of his trial in Baghdad on Wednesday and was in talks with his defence lawyers, a source close to the court said.(Posted @ 17:25 PST)
Cricket-Pakistan A 239-9 v England 236-7 in tour match LAHORE, Dec 7 (Reuters) Pakistan 'A' beat England by one wicket in a one-day warm up match at the Bagh-e-Jinnah on Wednesday. Scores: England 236-7 (Paul Collingwood 75 not out, Matthew Prior 72) v Pakistan 239-9 (Bazid Khan 90 not out)(Posted @ 17:08 PST)
Saudi king urges moderation at Muslim summit MECCA, Saudi Arabia, Dec 7 (Reuters) Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah appealed to leaders on Wednesday to unite and tackle extremists who he said have hijacked their religion. Opening a summit of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC) in the holy city of Mecca, Abdullah said the world's one billion Muslims were weak and divided. "It bleeds the heart of a believer to see how this glorious civilisation has fallen from the height of glory to the ravine of frailty, and how its thoughts were hijacked by devilish and criminal gangs that spread havoc on earth," Abdullah said. Abdullah called for greater educational efforts to promote tolerance. "I look forward to the spread of a moderation that embodies the tolerance of Islam," Abdullah said. A 10-year plan presented to the leaders calls for better education, faster economic development, more trade, promoting religious moderation, and strengthening rights of women.(Posted @ 16:12 PST)
Key official in China toxic spill found dead BEIJING, Dec 7 (AFP) The vice mayor and environment chief for China's Jilin city has been found dead, a local official said Wednesday, amid accusations he was involved in last month's cover-up of a huge toxic spill. "The police are investigating. We don't know any more about it," a spokesman said. The accident led to the spillage of 100 tonnes of the carcinogens benzene and nitrobenzene into the Songhua River, one of China's longest waterways and a source of water for millions of people. News of his death came just after the central government warned that anyone involved in covering up the impact of the blast would be severely punished.(Posted @ 16:11 PST)
Blast kills one in Sri Lanka town COLOMBO, Dec 7 (AFP) One man was killed and several wounded Wednesday in an explosion at a crowded bus station in northern Sri Lanka, police said. "The victims are civilians," he said, adding that there was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack.(Posted @ 16:10 PST)
U.S. says 22 Taliban killed in Afghanistan KABUL, Dec 7 (Reuters) Twenty-two Taliban guerrillas have been killed in two clashes with U.S. and local troops in Afghanistan, the U.S. military said on Wednesday. Thirteen militants were killed in an operation at the weekend in the southern province of Kandahar, it said in a statement. Three American, three Afghan and two other soldiers from the U.S.-led foreign force were wounded in the attack aimed at a cell responsible for carrying out attacks with improvised explosive devices, the statement said. It said nine other insurgents were killed on Tuesday in a joint operation in neighbouring Uruzgan province. Six Taliban fighters and a large cache of arms were also captured in the Uruzgan fighting, a provincial official said. (First Posted@14:30 PST Updated@ 16:10 PST)
Militants clash with bandits in Pakistan, 15 dead PESHAWAR, Pakistan, Dec 7 (Reuters) At least 15 people were on a road near Miranshah, the main town of the North Waziristan region, in a clash between militants and bandits, a government official said Wednesday. Ten bandits and five militants were killed in the gunbattle, said the official in Peshawar. The militants later hung up three dead bandits from electricity poles and chanted slogans, a witness said. "The security situation there is fast deteriorating," said the government official, who said the trouble continued on Wednesday.Militants and hundreds of their supporters burned several houses and warned residents not to give shelter to the bandits and their supporters, a resident said. Government forces in the area made no immediate move to intervene, a resident said.(Posted @ 16:02 PST)
Bin Laden still leading war on West-Zawahri video DUBAI, Dec 7 (Reuters) Al Qaeda's deputy leader Ayman al-Zawahri urged militants to attack oil targets in Muslim states and said Osama bin Laden was still leading its battle against the West, a video interview aired on a website said. It was the first apparent confirmation in a year from a top al Qaeda official that bin Laden was still alive. "I call on mujahideen to concentrate their attacks on Muslims' stolen oil, most of the revenues of which go to the enemies of Islam while most of what they leave is seized by the thieves who rule our countries," Zawahri said. In Wednesday's video, Zawahri said reform in the Arab world could only be achieved by removing "corrupt regimes" and installing Islamic rule.(First Posted@10:22 PST Updated@ 16:00 PST)
Japanese space probe may have missed asteroid samples TOKYO, Dec 7 (Reuters) A Japanese space probe that landed on the surface of an asteroid last month may have failed in its mission to collect rock samples that could give clues to the origin of the solar system, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) said on Wednesday. The agency said on Wednesday that Hayabusa had touched down on the asteroid, nearly 300 million km from Earth, but may have failed to shoot a 5 gram metal ball towards the surface to collect into a capsule the debris unleashed as a result of the impact.(Posted @ 15:50 PST)
Cricket-Australia 322-5 New Zealand 320 - result WELLINGTON, Dec 7 (Reuters) Australia beat New Zealand by two runs in a limited-overs one-day international on Wednesday to take an unbeatable 2-0 lead in their three-match Chappell-Hadlee Trophy series. Scores: Australia 322 for five from 50 overs (Andrew Symonds 156, Michael Clarke 82 not out), New Zealand 320 all out from 49.5 overs (Lou Vincent 71, Chris Cairns 60)(Posted @ 15:25 PST)
Eritrea orders Western UN troops out ASMARA, Dec 7 (Reuters) Eritrea has ordered U.N. troops and civilians from Western countries to leave within 10 days, a move that will make the U.N.'s observation of its tense border with Ethiopia impossible, diplomats said on Wednesday. Eritrean Information Minister Ali Abdu and Yemane Ghebremeskel, an advisor to President Isaias Afewerki, declined to comment.(Posted @ 15:30 PST)
U.S. shifts to ban cruelty to detainees abroad KIEV, Dec 7 (Reuters) The United States changed its policy on interrogations of detainees on Wednesday, putting a worldwide ban on U.S. personnel subjecting prisoners to cruelty, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said. She articulated the new approach towards an international torture convention during a trip to Ukraine, in what U.S. officials said was a policy shift that followed pressure from Europe and the U.S. Congress. Rice said U.S. international treaty obligations on the cruel, inhumane and degrading treatment of detainees "extend to U.S. personnel wherever they are, whether they are in the United States or outside of the United States".(Posted @ 15:30 PST)
Son of Saddam’s trial guard kidnapped in Baghdad-police BAGHDAD, Dec 7 (Reuters) Gunmen kidnapped the eight-year-old son of a guard at Saddam Hussein's trial in front of his house in Baghdad, Iraqi police said on Wednesday. It was not immediately clear if the abduction was related to the trial.(Posted @ 15:30 PST)
India successfully tests surface-to-air missile BHUBANESHWAR, India, Dec 7 (AFP) India successfully tested Wednesday a surface-to-air missile for the second time in five days from a coastal range in the east of the country, a defence official said. The domestically developed Akash missile was fired from the Chandipur-on-Sea testing site, 200 kilometres northeast of Orissa state capital Bhubaneswar, the official said. The 700-kilogramme Akash, which means "sky" in Hindi, can track 100 targets simultaneously with onboard radar and deliver a 55-kilogram warhead across 27 kilometres in 50 seconds.(Posted @ 15:05 PST)
Summit of Muslim leaders starts in Mecca MAKKAH, Saudi Arabia, Dec 7 (AFP) - Leaders of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference began a meeting here Wednesday to discuss a strategy for presenting a moderate image of Islam and confront attacks on Islam by "enemies" at home and abroad.(Posted @ 14:50 PST)
Four Pakistani soldiers missing in tribal area near Afghan border WANA, Pakistan, Dec 7 (AFP) - Four Pakistani soldiers have gone missing in a remote tribal area near the border with Afghanistan and two of them may have been kidnapped by insurgents linked to Al-Qaeda, officials said Wednesday. "Four paramilitary soldiers are missing since last evening and two of them were seen being forced into a vehicle," a security official in the main South Waziristan town of Wana said. Authorities had barred the soldiers from leaving their camp as a security measure but the four ventured out to visit a market, he said on condition of anonymity.(Posted @ 14:50 PST)
Pakistan linked to UAE by a new submarine cable Karachi, Dec.07 (PPI): The E-marine, a subsidiary of Etisalat, has completed a new submarine cable connecting the UAE and Pakistan,branching to Oman. This project saw our Cableship Umm Al Anber landing the cable at Fujairah before proceeding to lay the cable till Karachi. A branching unit was included and another cable laid connecting Al Seeb in Oman to the main cable,'' says Omar Jassim Bin Kalban, CEO of e-marine.(Posted @ 14:50 PST)
Pakistani police arrest five suspected bombers LAHORE, Dec 7 (Reuters) - Police have arrested five persons on suspicion of involvement in deadly bomb blasts, a senior official said on Wednesday. The five, arrested on Tuesday, were members of the Baluch Liberation Army (BLA). They "have confessed to involvement in six bomb blasts in Lahore over the last two years," said police investigator Masood Aziz. "The mastermind is a Baluch nationalist ... Abid Bugti," he said. Bugti was still being sought, he said.The five were also linked to a man police say is a Baluch separatist who was arrested in Karachi last month shortly after a car-bomb blast killed three people.(Posted @ 14:15 PST)
UN court sentences Bosnian Croat to 20 years jail AMSTERDAM, Dec 7 (Reuters) - The Hague war crimes tribunal sentenced a former Bosnian Croat soldier who had pleaded guilty to charges including murder, rape and torture of Muslims to 20 years in jail on Wednesday. Miroslav Bralo, also known as Cicko, changed his pleas to guilty earlier this year on eight counts of war crimes and human rights abuses committed during the 1993 Muslim-Croat war in central Bosnia.(Posted @ 14:15 PST)
South Africa beaten by Western Australia in tour opener PERTH, Australia, Dec 7 (AFP) - Western Australia defeated South Africa by an innings and 48 runs in their three-day tour match here Wednesday. Scores: Western Australia first innings 391 for 8 (dec). South Africa first innings 179 and 164 (Prince 49, Pollock 25; Steve Magoffin 3-37, Beau Casson 4-67).(Posted @ 14:00 PST)
Death toll rises to 40 in Iraq police academy bombings BAGHDAD, Dec 7 (AFP) - The death toll from twin suicide bombings at the Baghdad police academy has risen to 40 police officers and recruits, a security source said Wednesday. He said the two suicide bombers, apparently women, blew themselves up amidst police officers and recruits in front of the school's cafeteria at lunchtime. "The suicide bombers were in police uniform but we still don't know if they were police or whether they were disguised as such," said the official on condition of anonymity.(Posted @ 13:00 PST)
Anti-Kurd attacks kill three, including Iraq vote candidate BAGHDAD, Dec 7 (AFP) - Three Iraqis, including a candidate standing in the country's key December 15 election, have been killed in attacks on the offices of the Islamic Union of Kurdistan, party sources said Wednesday. "Mushir Ahmed, a Union leader and candidate in the forthcoming elections was killed" in an assault against the party's office in Dohuk, in northern Iraq, on Tuesday, the faction said. Two other members of the movement were killed in another attack in Zakho, further north on the same day, the Union said. The group also reported multiple attacks on its offices in four other towns in the Dohuk province. Several people were wounded, the statement said. Late Tuesday, medics had said at least 20 people were wounded in the attack in Dohuk, including seven members of the Islamic party, five policemen and two children. The party offices were vandalised and some of them burnt. (Posted @ 10:47 PST)
US Congress threatens to throw out any 'opaque' nuclear deal with India WASHINGTON, Dec 7 (AFP) - The chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee warned Tuesday that Congress would throw out any "opaque" plan by the Bush administration to forge unprecedented civilian nuclear cooperation with India. "While the Bush Administration has, I think, been very clear in discussions with the Indian government about its expectations, let me emphasize that any Indian plan will have to pass muster with the United States Congress," Republican Senator Dick Lugar said."That should not be viewed as a threat, but rather as a political challenge that must be met," he told senior Indian policy makers and business leaders gathered in Washington for a US-India Strategic Dialogue. Lugar said an "opaque or incomprehensible" Indian separation plan would only raise more questions, particularly in the Congress, about India's intentions. Lugar wanted the plan to be "credible, transparent and defensible from a non-proliferation standpoint." In addition, he said, it should be based on safeguards focusing on tracking nuclear material exported to and used in India subject to IAEA safeguards. "The separation plan must ensure, and the safeguards must confirm, that US-India civil nuclear cooperation does not in any way assist India in manufacturing nuclear weapons," he said. "This is consistent with US obligations under the NPT and with US law." (Posted @ 10:30 PST)
South Korean regulators rule against Microsoft SEOUL, Dec 7 (AFP) - South Korean regulators ruled Wednesday that US software giant Microsoft has abused its market dominance and violated fair trade rules, fining the firm 33 billion won (32 million dollars). (Posted @ 10:02 PST)
Attack on Kirkuk hospital to free detainee: three police dead KIRKUK, Iraq, Dec 7 (AFP) - Some 20 armed men early Wednesday attacked the main hospital in Kirkuk, north of Baghdad, killing three policemen and freeing a detained member of a cell planning to assassinate a judge trying Saddam Hussein, police and hospital sources said. According to Captain Salam Abdel Qader, incharge of security at the hospital they freed the detainee after opening fire on the policemen guarding his room. “Three of them were killed and six wounded," the captain added. The prisoner belonged to an Islamist cell linked to Al-Qaeda that had planned this week to murder Raed Juhi, one of the judges trying former president Saddam in Baghdad. The cell was dismantled by police in Kirkuk on Saturday. (Posted @ 10:01 PST)
More than 440,000 Afghans refugees returned in 2005 with UN help ISLAMABAD, Dec 7 (APP): The United Nations has helped more than 440,000 Afghans to return home from Pakistan so far this year, the highest annual number since 2002, the UN refugee agency said. The UNHCR said it would suspend the voluntary repatriation of Afghans from Pakistan from December 20 until March 1, as it does every year during the winter months, which is traditionally a period of very low return, UN news centre reported. However,UNHCR encashment centres, where returnees receive financial assistance once they have returned to Afghanistan, will remain open until 31 December. Since the voluntary scheme began in 2002, UNHCR has assisted 3.5 million out of the more than 4.4 million Afghans who have returned home from the two major host countries, Pakistan and Iran. (Posted @ 09:30 PST)
Karachi Stocks down 27.99 points: KARACHI, Dec 7: At 14:45 PST, At close of trading the KSE-100 index was at 9369.34 , down 27.99 points from Tuesday's close. (Bureau Report) (Posted @ 14:45 PST)
Forex update: KARACHI, Dec 7: The Pakistani Rupee was traded at Rs 60.2 to the US Dollar in the open market. (Bureau Report) (Posted @ 14:45 PST)
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