|
|
| May 13, 2006 | Saturday | Rabi-us-Sani 14, 1427 |
Updated round-the-clock, with major updates after 10:00 PST (05:00 GMT)
Somali militia battle enters seventh day, 144 dead MOGADISHU, May 13 (Reuters) - Mortars, machine guns and rockets pounded Mogadishu on Saturday in a seventh day of fiercemilitia fighting that has killed at least 144 people so far and which spread quickly across the ravaged city.At least 11 civilians were killed overnight and into Saturday as gunmen from a powerful alliance of warlords engaged in close-range firefights and artillery duels with militiamen backed by the city's influential Islamic courts. Fighting had originally been limited to the northern shantytown of SiiSii, but spread into the nearby areas of Yaqsid and Karan before erupting on Saturday in neighbourhoods across southern Mogadishu. Analysts view the fighting in the failed Horn of Africa state as a proxy battle between al Qaeda and Washington, which is widely believed to be funding the warlords. (Posted @ 21:30 PST)
Gang attacks on Brazilian police leave 21 dead SAO PAULO, Brazil, May 13 (Reuters) - Overnight gang attacks on Brazilian police in and around Sao Paulo left 21 people dead and 32 wounded on Saturday in the worst outbreak of violence in the greater metropolis in years. "The police will not retreat from these attacks," Saulo de Abreu, the Secretary of Security of Sao Paulo state, told Globo News TV. "They have struck at the spinal cord of our security." (Posted @ 21:28 PST)
12 killed in head-on collision in southern India NEW DELHI, May 13 (AFP) - Twelve people were killed and 33 injured Saturday when a passenger bus collided head-on with a truck in Andhra Pradesh, the Press Trust of India agency reported. Ten people, including the bus driver, were killed on the spot, while two others died in hospital. The bus was taking members of the Telangana Rashtra Samithi, a regional political party campaigning for an additional state to be carved out of Andhra Pradesh, to a political meeting in Hyderabad. (Posted @ 21:24 PST)
Thousands protest against France's new immigration bill PARIS, May 13 (AFP) - Around 11,200 people according to police and 35,000 according to organisers demonstrated on Saturday in Paris against a new immigration bill presented by Interior Minister Nicolas Sarokozy. The bill promotes the idea of "selected immigration" and makes it harder for people without specific qualifications to obtain residence papers for France, and easier for the authorities to deport illegal immigrants. Parliament is to vote on the proposed legislation on Wednesday. (Posted @ 21:23 PST)
D-8 Summit of large Muslim countries skirts Iran's nuclear issue NUSA DUA, Indonesia, May 13(AFP) - A summit of eight large Muslim countries largely skirted a diplomatic nuclear crisis engulfing its member Iran Saturday but agreed members should cooperate to develop atomic energy. Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, who hosted the one-day Developing-8 (D-8) summit, was asked at its conclusion whether international reaction to Iran's nuclear ambitions was about anti-Islamism. "We did not discuss specifically on Iran, so there is no statement formally or informally to connect the Iranian nuclear issue with Islamophobia," he told a press briefing. "We strictly looked at it as a problem of communication and cooperation between Iran and IAEA," he said. A declaration from the D-8 did not mention Iran's nuclear issue but instead affirmed members commitment "to develop alternative and renewable energy resources, among others biofuel, biomass, hydro, solar, wind and the use of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes." The forum focuses on commercial and economic cooperation among member states, including in the areas of science, industry and investment. In keeping with its focus on trade, in the wide-ranging declaration the group said it gave "full support" to the speedy accession of Iran to the WTO. It also called on WTO members to "accelerate the application and accession process of all developing countries based on non-discriminatory principles." (Posted @ 20:09 PST)
Iran's president says Bush letter was not about nuclear issue NUSA DUA, Indonesia, May 13 (AFP) - Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Saturday that a letter sent to his US counterpart was not supposed to be about Iran’s nuclear program but was instead meant to start "a new political literature". US President George W. Bush said after receiving the 18-page letter that it failed to respond to international concern about Tehran's nuclear program. "The letter I sent to President Bush has nothing to do with the nuclear program of the Islamic Republic of Iran and the relations between Iran and the US," Ahmadinejad told a press briefing at the conclusion of a summit of Muslim nations on the Indonesian island of Bali. "This letter was meant to open a new horizon for politicians in the world and to lay down the foundation for a new political literature ... based on justice, human dignity and peace."(Posted @ 19:15 PST)
Kyrgyzstan says 13 killed in raid by Islamists BISHKEK, May 13 (Reuters) - Kyrgyzstan's security forces said on Saturday “international terrorists" had launched a raid on its border that left 13 people dead. The armed group from Kyrgyzstan ransacked two Tajik border posts, killing five border guards, hijacking a car and seizing weapons,an interior ministry spokesman said. Kyrgyz special forces later surrounded them inside Kyrgyzstan, killing four and capturing one. Four servicemen were killed in the clash.(Posted @ 19:05 PST)
Son of top Iraqi judge killed in Baghdad BAGHDAD, May 13 (AP) _ Gunmen killed the son of Iraq's top judge along with two of his bodyguards and dumped their bodies in Baghdad, officials said Saturday. Police found the bodies of Ahmed Midhat al-Mahmoud, 22, a lawyer, and two of his bodyguards in Azamiyah district. Judge Midhat al-Mahmoud who had survived a Dec. 4 suicide bomb attack heads the Supreme Judicial Council, a judicial supervisory body which among other things swears in all judges and parliament.(Posted @ 17:10 PST)
Maoists kill four in central Indian state RAIPUR, India, May 13 (Reuters) - About 300 Maoists attacked a refugee camp in the restive central Indian state of Chhattisgarh on Saturday and shot dead four people and wounded five others, a senior minister said. Those killed were members of Special Police Officers (SPOs), a rank given by the state government to surrendered Maoists to fight their former colleagues, the state's home minister, Ramvichar Netam, told Reuters. It was not immediately known if the wounded included SPOs. Maoists dominate nearly half of Chhattisgarh's 16 districts.(Posted @ 16:22 PST)
Drive-by shootings kill 5 Iraqis, U.S. soldier dies in bombing BAGHDAD, May 13 (AP) _ Five Iraqis were killed in drive-by shootings on Saturday, including a tribal sheik, while a U.S. Army soldier died in a roadside bomb attack, officials said. The bodies of three Iraqis who had been kidnapped and tortured were also found in Baghdad, police said. In Mosul on Saturday, insurgents riding in a taxi shot and killed Idrees Shihatha, a local tribal sheik, as he drove his car, said police Brig. Abdul-Hamid al-Jibouri. In another part of Mosul, a drive-by shooting killed four Iraqis and wounded one who were driving to the city from another part of Iraq, said al-Jibouri.(First Posted @ 12:50 PST Updated @ 16:12 PST)
50,000 attend funeral of Pakistani student who died in German jail SAROKI, Pakistan, May 13 (AP) _ Chanting ``God is great!'' and ``We are slaves of Prophet Muhammad!'' more than 50,000 people attended the funeral of the Pakistani student who died in German police custody after being accused of planning to attack a newspaper which published blasphemous cartoons. On Saturday, a government helicopter carried Cheema's body to Saroki, about 150 kilometers northwest of Lahore, after his coffin arrived from Germany. More than 50,000 people attended Cheema's funeral and dispersed peacefully, said Fayyaz Bhutta, the district mayor. On Friday, Cheema's sister, Kishwar Zuhair, dismissed the German claim that Cheema had committed suicide. (Updated @ 16:00 PST)
4 Turkish soldiers, 1 Kurdish guerrilla killed ANKARA, Turkey, May 13 (AP) _ Kurdish guerillas killed four Turkish soldiers in an overnight clash near the Iraqi border. A Kurdish guerrilla was also killed in the clash occurred on Mt. Kupeli in southeastern Sirnak province, the governor's office in Sirnak announced. (Posted @ 15:50 PST)
15 feared dead in Indonesian sand-mining accident JAKARTA, May 13 (AFP) - Fifteen Indonesian sand miners were believed buried and feared dead Saturday when the hills where they were working collapsed in West Java province, police said. Rescuers saved three miners but were looking for the 15 others believed still buried in an area which is quite large and rather unstable, officials said. (Posted @ 15:45 PST)
Iran insists European offer must recognise enrichment right TEHRAN, May 13, (AFP) - Iran on Saturday warned that new European incentives to find a deal over its atomic programme would only be of interest if the offer recognised the country's right to uranium enrichment. "Any incentive that does not include Iran's right to nuclear technology and the ways to secure it will not have any attraction for the Iranian people and government," the IRNA agency quoted Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki as telling reporters in Indonesia. He also warned the Europeans "not to make the same mistake" they did last August when they came up with a list of incentives that also asked Iran to give up uranium enrichment. (Posted @ 15:40 PST)
Nepal’s rebel chief wants talks with PM Koirala KATHMANDU, May 13 (Reuters) Nepal's Maoist chief Prachanda sought direct talks on Saturday with Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala to end the decade-old revolt but demanded release of all Maoist prisoners before the dialogue. He also said in a statement that a special assembly should be elected that should turn Nepal into a "secular state". There was no immediate comment from Koirala or his government. (Posted @ 12:51 PST)
Grenade attack kills two, injures 41 in occupied Kashmir JAMMU, occupied Kashmir (AP) A grenade attack on a political rally in the town of Doda, occupied Kashmir, Saturday killed two people and wounded 41 others, police and doctors said. The rally was organized by the Bharatiya Janata Party, a police officer said. (First Posted @ 12:50 PST Updated @ 19:10 PST)
Bush moves to quell firestorm over phone records collection WASHINGTON, May 13, 2006 (AFP) US President George W. Bush on Saturday moved to quell a firestorm over his government's secret collection of telephone records of tens of millions of private citizens, insisting they were all needed to "target Al-Qaeda". In his weekly radio address, Bush said "It is important for Americans to understand that our activities strictly target Al-Qaeda and its known affiliates". But he gave no answer to questions raised on Capitol Hill as to why a program with a purported narrow target would need such a massive database. Bush said the intelligence activities he had authorized were "lawful" and members of Congress from both sides of the aisle had been adequately briefed. (Posted @ 11:43 PST)
Storm kills 10, hurts dozens in Bangladesh DHAKA, May 13 (Reuters) At least 10 Bangladeshis were killed and dozens of others injured in lightning strikes during a violent rainstorm, weather officials said on Saturday. The deaths were reported from outside Dhaka, in Gopalganj, Patuakhali and Jessore towns, and were mostly caused by lightning during the 80 kph (50 mph) storm. Strong winds flattened many homes, damaged crops and uprooted trees and electric poles, local officials said. (Posted @ 11:42 PST)
Summit of eight Muslim countries opens with calls for unity NUSA DUA, May 13, 2006 (AFP) A summit of eight large Muslim countries opened on Saturday on Indonesia's resort island of Bali with calls by Indonesian and Iranian leaders for unity and greater cooperation. Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono urged the members of the Developing 8 (D-8) to address the global oil crisis by working together to develop alternative energy sources, intensify cooperation to combat pandemics and promote dialogue among civilisations. Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, handing over the grouping's chairmanship to Yudhoyono, urged D-8 member states to work together for the welfare of the Islamic world and the entire world community. (Posted @ 10:40 PST)
Philippine typhoon kills six, thousands stranded MANILA, May 13 (Reuters) Typhoon "Chanchu" whipped through the north-western Philippines on Saturday, after killing six people in stormy seas and leaving more than 10,000 people stranded as air and ferry services were suspended. Some power suppliers were expected to resume services in Bicol on Saturday, after automatically shutting down during the peak of the storm on Friday. (Posted @ 09:33 PST)
Two Koreas agree on landmark rail links: report SEOUL, May 13, 2006 (AFP) North and South Korea have agreed to carry out landmark trial runs later this month on two railway lines linking the countries, reports said Saturday. Under the agreement, struck at talks in North Korea's Kaesong City, two cross-border railway lines will be linked up and tested for the first time since the division of the Korean peninsula in 1948, KBS TV said. About 100 North Koreans including engineers, government officials and journalists will be aboard the train on the Seoul-Shinuiju line in the west. The other line in the east will be tested by South Koreans of the same number, KBS said. (Posted @ 09:32 PST)
Afghan driver, doctor in UNICEF car killed in rocket attack KABUL, May 13, 2006 (AFP) An Afghan driver and a doctor in a UNICEF car were killed in a rocket attack in western Afghanistan, police said Saturday, as the UN children's organisation confirmed the attack but not the fatalities. UNICEF said it however "feared the worst" for a UN driver and an Afghan from a medical NGO after the attack Friday in which a UNICEF project manager was seriously injured. (Posted @ 09:15 PST)
Founder: Quaid-i-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah
Editor: Tahir Mirza
The DAWN Group of Newspapers
Haroon House, Dr. Ziauddin Ahmed Road, Karachi 74200, Pakistan.
Phone:+92 (21) 111-444-777 Fax: +92 (21) 569-3995
webmaster@dawn.com
Make sure to reload these pages so you're viewing the current version.
|
|
|
Contributions |