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| December 23, 2005 | Friday | Ziqa’ad 20, 1426 |
Updated round-the-clock, with major updates after 10:00 PST (05:00 GMT)
NFC Award to be announced along with decision on reservoirs: Musharraf HYDERABAD, Dec 23 (APP) President General Pervez Musharraf declared Friday that the National Finance Commission (NFC) Award would be announced along with the decision on the construction of water reservoirs. He was addressing a press conference at the Circuit House here on Friday after addressing the youths and others at the same venue. Musharraf said previously there was a hurdle in the way of approving the NFC award. "Now I am pleased to announce that the chief ministers of all the four provinces have authorized me to declare the NFC as this would be acceptable to them. They have given this in writing as well," he said. Earlier in an interaction with a gathering of students and young professionals here, Musharraf shrugged off the demonstrations by some parties against the construction of large reservoirs such as Kalabagh dam and said they follow their own self-serving agenda. They do not represent the will of the majority, he added. The President asked the young people to judge for themselves the need for water reservoirs and develop their own understanding on water issues on the basis of logic and facts he presented before them and then negate the misleading point of view.(Posted @ 19:40 PST)
Over 9,000 missing in quake-hit areas: Maj. Gen Farooq ISLAMABAD, Dec. 23 (APP): Federal Relief Commissioner, Maj. Gen. Farooq Ahmed Khan, Friday said that over nine thousand people were still missing in the earthquake hit areas of NWFP and Azad Kashmir. He informed that over 200,000 shelters were provided to the quake victims most of which were over 5000 feet, and now the focus was shifting to areas below 5000 feet. He added that the survey of the lake which resulted due to the landslide near Hatianbala was complete and the fund collection plan would be presented to the Prime Minister on December 27. The Relief Commissioner said that over 746000 tents, 4.9 million blankets and quilts were given to the earthquake victims and the overall compensation to them now stood at over Rs.16 billion.(Posted @ 20:54 PST)
President of UAE arrives Pakistan ISLAMABAD, Dec 23 (APP): The President of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zaid Bin Sultan Al Nahayan Friday reached Pakistan on a brief visit.(Posted @ 23:55 PST)
Senior Bush assures maximum support for rehabilitation and reconstruction ISLAMABAD, Dec 23 (APP): Former US President and UN Special Envoy for Pakistan and Kashmir Earthquake Zone, George Bush senior on Friday assured President Pervez Musharraf during a telephonic conversation the maximum support for rehabilitation and reconstruction of earthquake affected areas. The Senior Bush telephoned President Musharraf and discussed for about twenty minutes with him the situation in earthquake affected areas and the support needed there. President Pervez Musharraf appreciated the efforts of the international community, United Nations and the US administration for their support and assistance for the affectees and their rehabilitation. Mr. Bush said that he would soon visit the affected areas and assess the situation there so that he could garner greater support at the international level.(Posted @ 23:14 PST)
Former lawmaker says Bush sought war powers inside US: report WASHINGTON, Dec 23 (AFP) The US Senate rejected an effort by US President George W. Bush to assert broad war-making powers inside the United States after the September 11 terrorist strikes, a former lawmaker said Friday. The Washington Post opinion piece by the former leader of opposition Democrats in the Senate, Tom Daschle, could undermine a Bush administration defence in a growing controversy over warrantless spying on US citizens. Daschle wrote that the subject of warrantless wiretaps "never came up" while the law was being written, and that US lawmakers twice rejected Bush's efforts to write a significant expansion of presidential power into the law.(Posted @ 21:34 PST)
Thousands of Hamas supporters march against US, EU in Gaza GAZA, Dec 23 (Reuters) Thousands of Hamas supporters marched under pouring rain in Gaza on Friday to protest against U.S. and EU criticism ahead of Palestinian elections. "No to U.S. and European dictation," said one banner.(Posted @ 21:06 PST)
Cricket-Pakistan XI beat India in quake fund-raiser KARACHI, Dec 23 (APP): Former Pakistan captain Aamer Sohail slammed an attacking 78 in Pakistan XI's 24-run victory over an India XI in Earthquake Fund-Raising match at Gujranwala Friday, according to information made available here.The Pakistan team included three former Pakistani captains Aamer Sohail, Salim Malik and Wasim Akram. Pakistan XI 219-7 in 30 overs (Aamer Sohail 78, Salim Malik 45, Shoaib Muhammad 30; V.Raju 3-21, Sunil Joshi 2-36) India 195 all out in 29.5 overs (Amarjeet Kaypee 49, Atul Wasan 40, Robin Singh 20; Wasim Akram 2-15, Shoaib Muhammad 2-29)(Posted @ 20:58 PST)
Construction of new water reservoirs in national interest: PM ISLAMABAD, Dec 23 (APP): Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz Friday said the construction of new reservoirs was in the national interest in order to meet the country's water needs. Talking to the media here at the Prime Minister House, he said the government would take a decision to construct new reservoirs in consultation with all stakeholders. Aziz said a special meeting of the cabinet would be held next week on removing reservations over the issue of water reservoirs.(Posted @ 20:56 PST)
UK strikes deal with Lebanon on terrorism suspects LONDON, Dec 23 (Reuters) Britain signed an agreement with Lebanon on Friday to allow terrorism suspects to be deported there from the UK, the government said. It was signed in Beirut by Lebanese Minister of Justice Charles Rizk and Britain's ambassador there, James Watt. London has already struck similar agreements with Jordan and Libya.(Posted @ 19:52 PST)
Dutch court rules Saddam led genocide campaign against Kurds THE HAGUE, Dec 23 (AFP) A Dutch court on Friday ruled that Saddam Hussein committed genocide against Iraqi Kurds in the 1980s. The ruling marks the first time a court has ruled that the Iraqi dictator committed genocide in Iraq with the 1988 massacre of Kurds in the town of Halabja. The court also sentenced a former chemicals trader, Frans van Anraat, to 15 years in jail for aiding war crimes by selling chemicals to the Iraqi regime of Saddam Hussein. (First Posted @ 19:26 PST Updated @ 19:52 PST)
Troops blow up building in held Kashmir ISLAMABAD, Dec 23 (APP): In occupied Kashmir, Indian troops blew up a building in Sopore town on Friday. It was under their siege since last night following a clash, in which one soldier was killed and a civilian martyred, Kashmir Media Service reported. The military authorities had claimed that Mujahideen had taken shelter in the building. However, no body was recovered from the debris till last reports came in. Indian troops also martyred five more Kashmiri youth, two each at Bandipora and Uri and one at Lolab. Unidentified gunmen also shot dead one person in Handwara.(Posted @ 19:42 PST)
Six Sudanese, including diplomat, abducted in Iraq DUBAI, Dec 23 (Reuters) Six Sudanese, including a diplomat, were kidnapped in Baghdad on Friday after attending Friday prayers, Al Jazeera television reported. It quoted a Sudanese Foreign Ministry spokesman as saying one of the unidentified abductors had called the embassy to claim the kidnapping. The diplomat was the embassy's second secretary, the television added.(Posted @ 19:25 PST)
England underestimated Pakistan: Imran KARACHI, Dec 23 (AFP) Former cricket great Imran Khan said Friday England underestimated Pakistan thereby losing both the Tests and one-day series, while the hosts performed better than expected. Khan said captaincy played a key role in any team's win. "England lost its captain Michael Vaughan at Multan and they could never recover after that," said Khan, referring to Vaughan's knee injury which forced him to sit out the first Test which Pakistan won by 22 runs. Khan said Inzamam not only scored runs but gave confidence to express pacer Shoaib Akhtar. "If Akhtar and Inzamam play all three Tests against India, Pakistan should not have difficulty in beating India," he added. Pakistan team now has a two week rest before they start a warm-up camp from January 7 in Lahore. India arrive on January 6 and play three Tests and five one-day internationals. A final itinerary is due to be announced next week after India's security delegation inspected the venues.(Posted @ 19:22 PST)
Thousands in Iraq demonstrate against election results BAGHDAD, Dec 23 (AFP) Thousands of people took to the streets in Iraq after Friday prayers, calling for the December 15 general election to be invalidated and for the holding of new polls. The demonstrations were called by the National Concord Front, the main Sunni electoral alliance made up of three major parties. They took place in western Baghdad, in Sammara, and in the northern cities of Tikrit and Mosul, correspondents said.(Posted @ 19:00 PST)
Former Palestinian PM quits election race RAMALLAH, West Bank, Dec 23 (Reuters) Former Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qurie has decided to abandon his bid for a seat in parliament less than two weeks after resigning to contest, senior Palestinian officials said on Friday. They said Qurie had sent a letter to President Mahmoud Abbas to say that he wanted the elections postponed and that he opposed a plan to merge two rival lists of candidates from the ruling Fatah movement. Qurie's letter said he wanted to withdraw as a candidate. He was not immediately available for comment.(Posted @ 18:58 PST)
Indian parliament sacks 11 in graft scandal NEW DELHI, Dec 23 (Reuters) The Indian parliament on Friday sacked 11 members caught on film taking cash for putting up questions in parliament, in a scandal that has angered but not surprised the country. The upper house expelled one member and the lower house 10 after parliamentary committees investigating the allegations recommended they go.(Posted @ 17:08 PST)
Italy court issues EU arrest warrant for CIA team MILAN, Dec 23 (Reuters) A Milan court has issued a European arrest warrant for 22 CIA agents suspected of kidnapping an Egyptian cleric from the city in 2003, a judicial source said on Friday. Milan magistrates suspect that a team of 22 CIA agents grabbed Hassan Mustafa Osama Nasr off a Milan street and flew him for interrogation to Egypt, where he was reportedly tortured.(Posted @ 17:06 PST)
Israel approves Gaza strikes to clear rocket zone JERUSALEM, Dec 23 (Reuters) Israel has given a green light for intensified airstrike inside the Gaza Strip to enforce a buffer zone, officials said on Friday. But Palestinian security forces said they had refused an Israeli request to evacuate the area. Defence Minister Shaul Mofaz's office said that, after discussion on Thursday, "he has ordered a restriction of movement in those areas from which the Palestinian terrorist organisations fire rockets into Israel". Another security source made clear that this meant use of air power, not ground operations.(Posted @ 17:04 PST)
Bomb in jeep explodes near Srinagar airport in Kashmir SRINAGAR, Occupied Kashmir, Dec 23 (Reuters) Suspected militants exploded a bomb in a jeep near Srinagar airport in Occupied Kashmir on Friday, police said. "The jeep was totally damaged due to a powerful explosion near a (security) check post outside the airport," a police official said. There were no reports of casualties in the blast and no group claimed responsibility.(Posted @ 16:52 PST)
Pakistan appeal against paceman Shabbir Ahmed ban LAHORE, Pakistan, Dec 23 (AFP) Pakistan has lodged an appeal against the International Cricket Council's (ICC) one-year ban on paceman Shabbir Ahmed, an official said Friday. "We have filed an appeal with the ICC against the ban," Pakistan Cricket Board director of operations Salim Altaf said. Ahmed became the first bowler Monday banned from bowling in international cricket after an assessment by the University of Western Australia confirmed he had been bowling with an illegal action. "We sent Ahmed to Australia for tests in October and a letter from bowling expert Daryl Foster, which we have received on Thursday, showed not all of his deliveries were beyond the allowed limits," Altaf said. Ahmed said he hoped he won justice through his appeal. "I hope to get justice because this whole episode has made me a depression patient," said Ahmed who considered quitting the game after the ICC ban.(Posted @ 16:48 PST)
Aziz reiterates government commitment to help quake affected people ISLAMABAD, Dec 23 (APP): Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz Friday reiterated his government's commitment to provide the best possible assistance to the earthquake affected people and added that Rs. 17 billion have already been distributed among the victims. Talking to newsmen after sending trucks loaded with relief goods from the Ministry of Women Development here, he said the government has provided winterised tents to the people of the affected areas. Aziz said he regretted the decision of the opposition to reject the offer to join the Parliamentary Committee on reconstruction work and said the government would continue its efforts to include the opposition in the committee. He said the reconstruction work would be started soon after the winter season from March first and for this purpose, the government would provide Rs. 150,000 or more to the affected families.(Posted @ 15:35 PST)
Pakistan to sell 10-15 percent of OGDCL via GDRs KARACHI, Dec 23 (Reuters) Pakistan plans to sell between 10 and 15 percent of the Oil and Gas Development Co. Ltd. (OGDCL) through an issue of global depositary receipts (GDR) and a domestic offering, the Privatisation Commission said here Friday. The stake represents between 430 million and 645 million shares in the country's largest listed firm, which has a market capitalisation of around $8.3 billion. The government holds a 95 percent stake in OGDCL, while the remaining five percent is listed on the Karachi Stock Exchange. In a statement issued on Friday, the Privatisation Commission also invited financial advisers for the share offering before a Jan. 31 deadline. "It is expected that the GDR issuance will be jointly led by at least two bookrunners who have demonstrable and proven capability for undertaking, managing and successfully executing such offerings," the statement said.At midday, OGDCL shares were up 2 rupees at 117.50, in a broader market which was up 0.56 percent.(Posted @ 15:23 PST)
Lethal cold threatens Pakistan quake survivors: Oxfam ISLAMABAD, Dec 23 (AFP) Thousands of Pakistan's quake survivors are caught in a desperate struggle for survival in the Himalayan cold and need urgent help, an international aid group said Friday. "The falling temperatures could be lethal," British-based Oxfam director Barbara Stocking told a news conference after a tour of areas ravaged by the October 8 earthquake in Azad Kashmir and north-western province. Stocking called for an enhanced international response to the United Nation appeal for around 550 million dollars, launched in November, which had so far brought in only 40 percent of the needed funds. Children are falling sick in the freezing temperatures suffering from respiratory ailments while heating has been a problem because of the risk of tent fire, Stocking said.She said Oxfam had provided shelter to 127,000 people and improved water and sanitation conditions for some 150,000. "There is so much more that needs to be done urgently. We need to improve conditions in the spontaneous camps and reach those who have stayed further up the mountain," she said. Oxfam urged the international community to honour its pledges and deliver resources to prevent another humanitarian catastrophe. Pakistan has received aid pledges of more than six billion dollars, of which two billion dollars is in the form of grants.(Posted @ 15:20 PST)
Ten Iraqi soldiers killed in checkpoint attack BAGHDAD, Dec 23 (Reuters) Ten Iraqi soldiers were killed and 17 wounded when gunmen stormed a checkpoint in Adhaim, north of Baghdad, on Friday, police said.The attackers, in large numbers, opened fire on the checkpoint with heavy machineguns and rocket-propelled grenades and then turned on reinforcements who arrived to help, police said.(Posted @ 15:15 PST)
At least 12 dead in Sri Lanka navy bus attack COLOMBO, Dec 23 (Reuters) Suspected Tamil Tiger rebels killed at least 12 Sri Lankan sailors in a landmine attack on a naval convoy in northern Sri Lanka on Friday in the worst breach of a 2002 ceasefire so far, the military said. "The exact number of dead we do not know but we have recovered 12 bodies," a navy spokesman said. The attack took place in Mannar district, he said, not far from the site of a clash at sea on Thursday.(Posted @ 15:11 PST)
Washington to withdraw two brigades from Iraq: Rumsfeld FALLUJAH, Iraq, Dec 23 (AFP) - US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld announced here Friday that the United States would withdraw two combat brigades (totaling between 5,000 and 9,000 soldiers) from Iraq by next spring. The United States had already decided to pull out reinforcements sent to Iraq for the period of the December 15 elections, bringing down the total number of troops from 160,000 to 138,000. The withdrawal of two more brigades would bring the number under the level of 138,000 for the first time since April 2004. "President Bush has authorized an adjustment in US combat brigades in Iraq from 17 to 15," Rumsfeld declared.(Posted @ 11:15 PST)
UN calls for intensified efforts to save lives in quake hit area GENEVA, Dec 23 (APP)- On the eve of Christmas and the New Year, the United Nations, in a video conference here in Geneva, reiterated call for intensified efforts to save lives and provide relief in the earthquake hit areas in Pakistan. It was stressed that although relief situation had stabilized, there was still an urgent need to provide more robust winter shelter particularly to the survivors living above 5000 ft. The focus had also shifted to two million people living below snow line, to help survivors in freezing mountains, and to prevent disease. Mr. Vendermoortele, the UN Coordinator in Pakistan, underlined the continuing need of tents, winterization material, and corrugated galvanized iron sheets for building temporary shelters for the homeless. Ms. Yvette Stevens, UN Assistant Emergency Relief Coordinator, said that the funds coming from donors to the flash appeal had improved in November, but there remained a shortfall of 40%. "There are still unmet critical needs in several clusters, particularly in shelter, health, logistics, food, nutrition and sanitation," she said and appealed to “countries that have not made a substantive contribution, to keep us from having to phase down our activities in the middle of the winter when some agencies will run out of their funds," she said. Ambassador Masood Khan reviewed the various stages of relief and rehabilitation activities and said Pakistan had completed negotiations for $ 1.4 billion loans. He said $1.2 billion worth of grants were used directly by donors for early relief activities as well as project financing.(Posted @ 10:20 PST)
U.S. House passes $453.3 billion defense bill WASHINGTON, Dec 23 (Reuters) - The U.S. House of Representatives passed a $453.3 billion defense spending bill on Thursday, including $50 billion for the Iraq and Afghanistan wars and other funding such as for rebuilding after Hurricane Katrina.(Posted @ 10:00 PST)
US lawmakers vote to extend Patriot Act by one month WASHINGTON, Dec 22 (AFP) - The US House of Representatives on Thursday voted to extend by one month anti-terrorism powers only days before the disputed legislation was due to expire.Lawmakers approved the extension a day after their counterparts in the Senate had endorsed a six-month renewal of the Patriot Act. The Senate reconvened late Thursday, and in a quick vote approved the one-month extension. President Bush and his Republican allies in Congress had originally insisted on renewing the Patriot Act without time limits.(Posted @ 9:10 PST)
Forty-two killed in gas explosion in southwest China BEIJING, Dec 23 (AFP) - A gas explosion inside a highway tunnel under construction killed 42 people and injured 11 others in southwest China's Sichuan province, the government said Friday. The exact number of casualties remains unclear, the Xinhua news agency said. Thirty-one bodies were found during an overnight search at the blast site, bringing the confirmed death toll up to 42, Xinhua said, without giving details on how the other victims were discovered. Most of the victims were construction workers, it said.(Posted @ 09:05 PST)
Karachi Stocks up 20.48 points: KARACHI, December 23 :At close of trading the KSE-100 index was at 9491.47, up 20.48 points from Thursday's close. (Bureau Report)
Forex update: KARACHI, December 23: The Pakistani Rupee was traded at Rs 60.05 to the US Dollar in the open market. (Bureau Report) (Updated @ 16:15 PST)
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