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| March 2, 2006 | Thursday | Safar 1, 1427 |
Updated round-the-clock, with major updates after 10:00 PST (05:00 GMT)
Suicide car bomb in Karachi kills five including US diplomat, 46 hurt KARACHI, March 2, 2006 (AFP) A suicide car bomber rammed into a diplomatic vehicle outside the US consulate in Karachi Thursday, killing an American diplomat and four other people, officials said. Bush at a news conference following talks with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in New Delhi said "I have been briefed on the bombings and we have lost at least one US citizen in the bombings, a Foreign Service officer". But he vowed to continue with his visit, saying "terrorists and killers are not going to prevent me from going to Pakistan". A Pakistani security official said on condition of anonymity that a US consulate vehicle "was apparently hit by a suicide car bomber, blowing it into the air". "The car flew through the air and fell on the other side of a seven-foot high wall. One diplomat was killed and two other US diplomats were in it," he said, adding that their Pakistani driver was also killed. The blast ripped through the car park of Marriott Hotel in the city's highest security zone, destroying at least 10 cars, including some from the US mission, and smashing windows. "We are investigating the motives behind the blasts but apparently it coincided with the visit of Bush," said Salahuddin Haider, spokesman for Sindh government. Information minister Sheikh Rashid said the attack was the work of extremists who wanted to create problems in this region. "This attack will not impact the visit of President Bush," he said. Haider said there was only one "powerful" bomb in Thursday's attack and that an exploding petrol tank caused a second, low-intensity blast heard shortly afterwards. A police official said a headless body was found near the damaged wall of the Marriott, adding that the toll could rise. Officials said a paramilitary soldier on security duty was also among the dead and another body was stuck in one of the damaged cars. Hospitals in Karachi said at least 46 people were wounded, including five paramilitary troops and four police. The blast was so powerful that it left a crater three feet deep and 10 feet wide with parts of blazing cars ending up inside the hotel lobby. A number of shops at Sheraton hotel close to the site suffered blast damage and the wall of the Pakistan Navy hospital was also hit. (First Posted 09:05 PST Updated @ 13:10 PST)
Musharraf offers condolences to Bush over US diplomat's death ISLAMABAD, March 2, 2006 (AFP) - Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf Wednesday offered his condolences to US President George W. Bush over the death of an American diplomat in a suicide bombing in Karachi. "We condemn this outrage in the strongest terms. Our authorities are investigating the incident and those responsible will be brought to justice," he wrote in a message to Bush, who is due to arrive in Pakistan late Friday. "The Pakistani nation offers its deepest sorrow and sympathy to the government and people of the United States." In a separate message to the US leader, Pakistani Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz said Wednesday's attack was "aimed not only at the Pakistani nation but also our friendly ties with the United States."(Posted @ 17:24 PST)
Bush prods India and Pakistan to resolve Kashmir dispute NEW DELHI, March 2, 2006 (AFP) President George W. Bush Thursday urged India and Pakistan to settle the Kashmir dispute. "India and Pakistan have an opportunity to work towards lasting peace," Bush said after talks with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. "Prime Minister Singh and President (Pervez) Musharraf have shown themselves to be leaders of courage and vision and I encourage them to continue making progress on all issues including Kashmir," Bush told reporters.In Srinagar, Kashmiri leaders hoped Bush would help resolve the regional dispute. "We certainly believe President Bush can play an important role in resolving the dispute over Kashmir," Yasin Malik, a senior leader said. "Being a close friend of India and Pakistan Bush can certainly use his good offices to end the dispute," he added. Shabir Shah, another senior leader, said he was hopeful. "The time is certainly ripe for solution. After years of hostilities India and Pakistan are holding talks and have taken some positive steps. Now is the time to get serious on the Kashmir issue," said Shah.(Posted @ 14:15 PST)
India, U.S. seal nuclear cooperation deal NEW DELHI, March 2 (Reuters) India and United States said on Thursday they had sealed a civilian nuclear cooperation pact. "We have concluded an historic agreement today on nuclear power," President Bush told a joint news conference with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. "I am looking forward to working with our United States Congress to change decades of law that will enable us to move forward in this important initiative," he said. The nuclear cooperation deal was the centrepiece of the visit and negotiators had worked late into the night on Wednesday to bridge the "last few gaps" between the two sides, officials said. Under the deal, India has agreed to separate its civilian and military nuclear programmes and place the civilian plants under international inspections. In return, the United States is offering nuclear technology and fuel. Earlier Bush paid homage at the memorial of Mahatma Gandhi on the banks of the Yamuna river in the capital. (First Posted @ 12:11 PST Updated@ 13:50 PST)
India, Pakistan got atomic arms 'legitimately' -US NEW YORK, March 2 (Reuters) -The U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton said on Wednesday the way India and Pakistan had obtained nuclear arms was legitimate, in contrast to Iran which he accused of pursuing atomic weapons in violation of its international undertakings. While Iran is seeking to conceal development of nuclear weapons under the guise of a legitimate program to generate nuclear power, Bolton said, India and Pakistan "did it legitimately." His comments came in response to an audience question following a speech to a meeting of the World Jewish Congress. Bolton noted that neither India nor Pakistan had ever signed the NPT, while Iran had done so. "They (India and Pakistan) never pretended that they had given up the pursuit of nuclear weapons. They never tried to tie what they were doing under a cloak of international legitimacy. They did it openly and they did it legitimately," he said.(Posted @ 17:13 PST)
More than 30 killed, 33 injured in Iraq BAGHDAD, March 2, 2006 (AFP) - Rebel attacks across Iraq killed more than 30 people and wounded dozens of others in renewed violence Thursday. At least five people were killed and eight wounded when a car bomb went off in the Shiite-dominated Sadr City district of Baghdad, a security official said. In another attack in Baghdad, four people were killed and 11 wounded, mostly women, when a bomb exploded in a market in the mixed southeastern Jaafaraniya district, an interior ministry official said. In a third incident, a police commando was killed and two wounded in the western Jihad district when a roadside bomb exploded next to their patrol, the official added. Meanwhile, the bodyguard of a Sunni political leader, Adnan al-Doulaimi, died and five others were wounded when their cars came under fire in the west of the capital. Dulaimi had just got off the vehicle when the gunmen attacked. In Khales, north of Baghdad, two Iraqis were killed and one was wounded Thursday in a roadside bomb blast. In Baquba, to the northeast, two more people died, including a policeman, and six were wounded in a series of attacks. Further north, gunmen killed seven Iraqi soldiers and four policemen at a checkpoint early Thursday, a police officer from Tikrit said. Police cars were set ablaze at the checkpoint. In Mosul, four policemen were gunned down as they drove away from a police academy in the centre of the city. In southern Iraq, a Sunni cleric was killed near the port city of Basra.(Posted @ 20:10 PST)
Thousands protest Bush's visit to India, 9 hurt in occupied Kashmir demo NEW DELHI, March 2, 2006 (AFP) - Tens of thousands of angry protestors took to the streets in major centres across India Thursday decrying the visit by US President George W. Bush. Most of the demonstrations and protest marches passed off peacefully but in occupied Kashmir nine people were injured when police waded with batons into protestors on the outskirts of Srinagar, police said. In New Delhi, some 15,000 communist supporters and unionists shouted "Killer Bush, go back!". Over a thousand policemen including paramilitary troopers and armed commandos blocked them from reaching the parliament house . Prakash Karat, chief of the Communist Party of India-Marxist, released balloons bearing the message, "Bush, go back". Inside the parliament, socialist lawmakers forced an adjournment in both chambers of the bicameral house before staging a symbolic sit-in in front of the building. In Mumbai, thousands made their way to a rally in the city centre by foot, in the back of cattle trucks or on the tops of buses. In Kolkata, about 5,000 communist supporters, trade union workers and students held a peaceful protest outside the American information centre. In Hyderabad, about 50 writers, poets and artists beat drums and sang songs against Bush's "globalisation drive". In central India, victims of the deadly Bhopal gas leak joined the protests.(First Posted @ 12:00 PST Updated @ 17:56 PST)
Israeli opposition leader meets Abbas ALLENBY BRIDGE, West Bank, March 2, 2006 (AFP) - Labour party leader and prime ministerial candidate Amir Peretz met Thursday with Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas, saying their encounter showed Israel had not lost hope for peace. Peretz said he had a dream "that one day both sides will talk to each other without using guns. "This meeting is a message that we do not lose hope and that we make a distinction between the war against terrorist organisations and action in favor of peace," he said, less than a month before the Israeli general election.(Posted @ 22:32 PST)
Campbell, 64, named UK Liberal Democrat leader LONDON, March 2 (Reuters) - Menzies Campbell, 64, was named leader of the opposition Liberal Democrats on Thursday following a vote of the party's 72,000 members. The former Olympic athlete became an MP in 1987. He replaces previous leader and fellow Scot Charles Kennedy who was forced to resign in January after admitting an alcohol problem.(Posted @ 20:16 PST)
Rate rise does not mark set upward trend: ECB chief FRANKFURT, March 2, 2006 (AFP) - The quarter-point increase in eurozone interest rates announced by the European Central Bank on Thursday does not signal a series of rate rises in coming months, ECB chief Jean-Claude Trichet said. "We don't already have a plan ex-ante for future rate hikes," Trichet told a news conference here after the ECB increased its benchmark "refi" refinancing rate by a quarter of a percentage point for the second time in three months to 2.50 percent. The bank was ready to take "whatever steps needed to control inflation", the Frenchman added. Even after the latest quarter-point increase in borrowing costs -- the second since December -- interest rates remain historically low and supportive of economic growth, Trichet said.(Posted @ 20:14 PST)
Catholic, Jewish leaders to seek closer ties with Islam VATICAN CITY, March 2, 2006 (AFP) - Roman Catholic and Jewish leaders agreed Thursday they would work together for closer cooperation with Muslims, according to a joint statement released after three days of talks in Rome. Conflict and tensions, including the promotion of ideology through bloodshed, demanded "that we reach out beyond our own bilateral dialogue," they said. "We believe that it is our duty to engage and involve the Muslim world and its leaders in respectful dialogue and cooperation," they said. They also called on world leaders to recognize the potential of religion to resolve conflicts and disputes. "We appeal to world leaders to appreciate the essential potential of the religious dimension to help resolve conflicts and strife and call on them to support inter-religious dialogue to this end." The statement was released here after February 26-28 talks between the Holy See's Commission for religious relations with Jews, led by Cardinal Jorge Mejia, and the Chief Rabbinate of Israel's delegation for relations with the Catholic Church, led by Chief Rabbi Shear Yashuv Cohen.(Posted @ 20:12 PST)
PM to discuss defence, Kashmir issue with Blair Islamabad, March 2 (PPI): Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz will have wide ranging talks with his British counterpart Tony Blair on economic ties, regional and international matters, Kashmir, blasphemous cartoons etc when he arrives in London on March 5 on 3-day official visit. He will also have talks with Foreign Secretary Jack Straw, Chancellor of Exchequer Gordon Brown, Defence Secretary John Reid, and meet Parliamentarians, religious and business leaders, members of Pakistani and Kashmiri communities and media. He will deliver keynote address at the conference on "Asia 2015 Promoting Growth, Ending Poverty", and deliver talk at the prestigious International Institute for Strategic Studies on Pakistan's role in peace, stability and progress in the region. His meeting with Archbishop of Canterbury Dr Rowan D Williams will focus on promoting inter-faith harmony.(Posted @ 19:48 PST)
Swedish ambassador regrets publication of blasphemous cartoons Peshawar March 2, 2006 (PPI) The Swedish Ambassador in Pakistan Madam Ann Wilkins called on the NWFP Senior Minister Sirajul Haq and expressed regrets with the government and the people over the publication of blasphemous caricatures. Swedish Ist Political Secretary Mr. Matthias Otterstedt and Counsellor for Political Affairs in Afghanistan Ms. Diana Janse were also present. The Ambassador told the Senior Minister that though this incident did not belong to her country the Swedish government felt strongly about it. Sirajul Haq said governments of the concerned countries should apologize to Muslim Ummah. He agreed with the ambassador on the need for a global legislation.(Posted @ 19:35 PST)
Congo army soldiers mutiny, ransack U.N. camp -U.N. KINSHASA, March 2 (Reuters) - Congolese army soldiers fighting alongside U.N. peacekeepers against ethnic militiamen have mutinied and ransacked a U.N. camp in the east of the vast country, the United Nations said on Thursday. The mutiny began on Wednesday and forced the suspension of a joint U.N. and Congo government army operation to retake the eastern town of Tchei in Ituri district from an ethnic militia, said Lt-Col Frederic Medard, U.N. military spokesman in the capital, Kinshasa.(Posted @ 18:25 PST)
Libya frees 130 political prisoners - activist LONDON, March 2 (Reuters) - Libyan authorities released on Thursday 130 political prisoners, including 83 members of the Muslim Brotherhood, Libyan activist Ashour Shamis, who is based in London, told Reuters adding that two of them had been sentenced to death and 10 to life imprisonment in a trial in 2001.(First Posted @ 18:06 PST Updated @ 18:22 PST)
One killed, five injured as small van hits mine in Balochistan QUETTA, Pakistan, March 2 (AP) _ A land mine exploded beneath a small van Thursday in Kohlu, a town about 300 kilometers east of Quetta, killing one passenger and wounding five others, said Nasim Lahri, the top government official in the region. Lahri gave no other details.(Posted @ 17:22 PST)
Five die, seven hurt as bus flips near Suhrab Goth KARACHI, March 2 (PPI): Five persons died and seven others were injured in a road mishap near Karachi’s eastern outskirt of Sohrab Goth Thursday morning. Police sources said the accident occurred when the driver lost control and the minibus turned turtle.(Posted @ 17:15 PST)
Afghan crash kills Canadian soldier, injures seven KANDAHAR, Afghanistan, March 2 (Reuters) - A Canadian soldier was killed and seven injured on Thursday when their vehicle overturned on a road leading west from the city of Kandahar. Police said a Canadian jeep hit the back of a car that had slowed down and both vehicles tumbled off the embanked highway. Two of the injured soldiers were in critical condition, a statement said. In neighbouring Helmand province on Wednesday, Taliban guerrillas ambushed an Afghan army convoy, killing one soldier and wounding two in Girishk district, provincial army commander General Rahmatullah Raufi said.(Posted @ 17:04 PST)
Israel again authorises military exports to China JERUSALEM, March 2, 2006 (AFP) - Israel's defence ministry has authorised Israeli companies to resume the export of military hardware to China after months of trade blocked under US pressure, an official said Thursday. The director of the ministry, Yaakov Toren, was quoted as saying in the Israeli press that some export permits were issued "in cooperation with the United States". "Companies will come and see us (at the defence ministry) and we will judge on a case by case basis with or without consultation with the United States," Toren said.(Posted @ 17:02 PST)
Pakistan wants US to match India nuke deal ISLAMABAD, March 2, 2006 (AFP) - Pakistan said on Thursday that it expected the United States to give Islamabad the same kind of civilian nuclear cooperation as it had just extended to India, foreign ministry spokeswoman Tasnim Aslam told AFP. Pakistan needs to generate 8,800 megawatts of electricity through nuclear power in the next 15 to 20 years for its growing economy, she said.(Posted @ 17:00 PST)
Iran determined to acquire nuclear technology: Ahmadinejad KUALA LUMPUR, March 2, 2006 (AFP) - Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Thursday that Tehran is determined to acquire nuclear technology and that it would refuse to negotiate over its "inalienable rights". "Our actions will continue in the context of the (non-proliferation treaty). We believe it is the right of all countries to enjoy nuclear fuel and nuclear technology," he said. "We are ready to negotiate on different things but having said that we are not open to negotiations on our inalienable rights," he said at a press conference after talks over a Russian compromise proposal failed to achieve a breakthrough.(Posted @ 16:34 PST)
China brings Taiwan issue to United Nations BEIJING, March 2, 2006 (AFP) - China has expressed its concerns directly to United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan about Taiwan's scrapping of a unification council with the mainland, state press reported Thursday. China's Ambassador to the UN, Wang Guangya, met with Annan and UN general assembly president Jan Eliasson on Wednesday in New York to brief them on the moves by Taiwan President Chen Shui-bian, Xinhua said. "Chen's move poses a serious threat to the current peaceful situation between the Chinese mainland and Taiwan," Xinhua quoted Wang as saying in the meetings. "The move is an affront to the one-China principle which has been endorsed by the international community." Chen signed documents on Tuesday announcing that the National Unification Council would "cease to exist" and the islands guidelines towards eventual reunification would "cease to apply," prompting an angry response from China.(Posted @ 16:32 PST)
Iraq's Kurds, Sunnis veto Shiite PM BAGHDAD, March 2, 2006 (AFP) - Iraq's bid to set up a national unity government was thrown into turmoil Thursday when Kurdish and Sunni political factions rejected the candidacy of outgoing Shiite prime minister Ibrahim Jaafari to lead the next cabinet. Kurds are part of the outgoing government coalition and control 53 seats in the new parliament. The Sunni alliance -- National Concord Front -- controls 44 parliamentary seats. Mahmud Othman, the Kurd lawmaker, said even former premier Iyad Allawi, who controls 25 seats in the new parliament, has raised objections to Jaafari's candidature. "We have nothing against him (Jaafari) but his performance has been below expectations," said Alaa Maki, parliamentarian and senior leader of Islamic Party, which is part of the National Concord Front alliance.(Posted @ 16:30 PST)
North Korea meets South for military talks SEOUL, March 2, 2006 (AFP) High-level military talks between North and South Korea resumed on Thursday to reduce tension on the Korean peninsula. Tentative agreements were reached on the first day on several points raised by the Seoul delegation, a spokesman for the South Korean side said. "The North agreed to discuss our proposals for a future meeting of South and North Korean defense chiefs, the setting up of a hotline between inter-Korean naval commands, sharing of an international radio frequency at sea and daily communication testing," said the spokesman.(Posted @ 13:35 PST)
Iran announces last minute talks with EU MOSCOW, March 2 (Reuters) Iran on Thursday announced last minute talks with the European Union. Speaking in Moscow after talks with Russian officials on a possible compromise deal, Iran's nuclear negotiator Ali Larijani said Tehran would meet the European Union troika of Britain, Germany and France “by March 6". Larijani added: "Our talks with the EU3 are being held for us to say we are in favour of holding constructive negotiations." A senior Western diplomat confirmed that the European Union powers would hold nuclear talks with Iran before a March 6th meeting of the U.N. nuclear watchdog's governing board.(Posted @ 13:30 PST)
Iran president accuses West of trying to control global oil resources KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) Iran's president on Thursday accused Western powers of trying to control the world's oil resources and creating a climate of fear that he said was forcing countries to stockpile weapons. ``Many of the resources of nations are going to waste in a climate of fear, being pushed toward the use for the production of arms and stockpiling of weapons,'' visiting President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said in a speech to Malaysian and Iranian business leaders.``The main root cause of this is because of the excessive demands of certain ruling powers over certain parts of the world,'' said Ahmadinejad, who arrived here late Wednesday on a three day visit.(Posted @ 11:12 PST)
Bangladesh nabs militant leader for bomb attacks DHAKA, March 2 (Reuters) Security forces on Thursday captured the country's top militant leader, blamed for masterminding a series of bombings last year, a security official said. Shayek Abdur Rahman gave himself up in Sylhet city after a siege of more than 24 hours, and was whisked away to an undisclosed location for interrogation. Rahman led the outlawed Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen. On Wednesday, Rahman's wife, their two sons and two daughters emerged from the house after tear gas shells were fired. They were among nine people detained. A home-made bomb, explosives, a detonator and some publications were recovered from the building after Rahman's surrender, officials said.(Posted @ 10:25 PST)
Karachi Stocks down 92.74 points: KARACHI, Mar 2: At close of trading,the KSE-100 index was at 11381.25 , down 92.74 points. (Bureau Report) (Updated @ 14:30 PST)
Forex update: KARACHI, Mar 2: The Pakistani Rupee was traded at Rs 60.07 to the US Dollar in the open market. (Bureau Report) (Updated @ 14:30 PST)
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