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| June 16, 2006 | Friday | Jumadi-ul-Awwal 19, 1427 |
Updated round-the-clock, with major updates after 10:00 PST (05:00 GMT)
Body of kidnapped Pakistani journalist Hayatullah found ISLAMABAD, June 16, 2006 (AFP) Pakistani authorities on Friday found the body of a local journalist who went missing while investigating the killing of a senior Al-Qaeda operative in a tribal region six months ago, officials said. The body of Hayatullah Khan, 35, who worked for a local newspaper and European Press photo Agency, was found dumped outside the town of Mir Ali in North Waziristan tribal district, a local official said. "We have found the body of Hayatullah Khan and he was shot in the back. His hands and feet were tied up with a chain," the official said, adding that the dead body appeared to be a day old. Khan was abducted on December 5 a few days after he challenged the Pakistani military's version of the circumstances surrounding the death of Egyptian Al-Qaeda commander Hamza Rabia in the same region. The Pakistan army had said Rabia was killed with four other people in an accidental munitions explosion but Khan reported that Rabia was killed in a US air strike. He also took photographs of debris which showed that they came from an American missile.(Posted @ 20:02 PST)
U.S.-led coalition kills 40 insurgents in eastern Afghanistan MUSA QALA, Afghanistan (AP) Air-strikes and ground troops killed at least 40 militants during combat operations in support of a massive anti-Taliban campaign across southern Afghanistan, military officials said Friday. The insurgents were killed during a two-day push that ended Thursday in a remote part of Paktika province, said a coalition spokesman. One coalition member was wounded, he said, declining to release his nationality. An enemy fighter wounded during the gunbattle was also captured. On Friday, Afghan authorities arrested 12 Taliban fighters in the Qarabagh district of Ghazni province, an Afghan official said. A coalition convoy was also ambushed in nearby Zabul province but no casualties were reported, he said. (First Posted @ 16:55 PST Updated @ 22:34 PST)
President Musharraf arrives in Almaty to attend CICA summit ALMATY (Kazakhstan) June 16 (APP): President General Pervez Musharraf was accorded warm welcome when he arrived here on Friday to attend the second summit of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA). The President, who arrived here from Shanghai after attending the SCO summit, was received by Deputy Minister of Defence of Kazakhstan, General Zhanafaev and other high officials. The summit in Almaty will be attended by a number of leaders from the 17 CICA member countries, which includes Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, China, Egypt, India, Israel, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Palestine, Russia, Tajikistan, Thailand and Turkey.(Posted @ 20:10 PST)
EU rapporteur says Spain's Balearic islands used in CIA flights MADRID, June 16, 2006 (AFP) An EU rapporteur Friday made new accusations of Spain's involvement in the secret transfer of terrorist suspects by the United States, naming the Balearic islands as "an important transit base". "Palma, Majorca, was, in particular, clearly a very important transit base. We know that at least several planes that stopped there have been used on other occasions for 'extraordinary renditions' to countries like Afghanistan and Egypt," said Italian parliamentarian Giovanni Claudio Fava in an interview with El Mundo newspaper. Fava said that out of 1,080 European movements of planes allegedly chartered by the CIA between 2001 and the end of 2005, 125 went through 10 Spanish airports, mainly Majorca and Tenerife in the Canary Islands, although the Spanish government had only recognised 27 of them.(Posted @ 20:08 PST)
Lara, Dravid and Murali to star in Pakistan quake relief match LONDON, June 16, 2006 (AFP) Brian Lara, Rahul Dravid and Muttiah Muralitharan are among the big names that have committed to playing for an International XI in a fund-raiser for victims of the Pakistan earthquake, organisers said Friday. The star-packed side will take on Pakistan at the Oval on July 10 in a Twenty20 match with all proceeds to go to those who have suffered as a result of the quake which struck northern Pakistan last October. The match is being hosted by English county Surrey. Approximately 10,000 tickets have already been sold for the match. List of confirmed players for International XI: Rahul Dravid (captain), Mahendra Singh Dhoni (wicket-keeper), Brian Lara, Muttiah Muralitharan, Makhaya Ntini, Azhar Mahmood, Chris Cairns, Andrew Hall, Darren Gough, Mohammed Akram(Posted @ 20:06 PST)
Gunmen kill head of religious group in Iraq's Basra BAGHDAD, June 16 (Reuters) Gunmen killed the local head of a religious group in Basra on Friday, the group and state television said. Unknown gunmen shot dead Yusif al-Hassan, a senior member of the Muslim Scholars Association, near the mosque where he led prayers, colleagues said.(Posted @ 20:04 PST)
Two killed, several wounded in occupied Kashmir violence JAMMU, occupied Kashmir (AP) Unknown men slit the throat of a man, and slashed off the noses, ears and tongues of two other men in the remote mountain village of Dugra, some 140 kilometres north of Jammu, police said Friday. The incident occurred Wednesday night, police said, but the report was delayed because of the village's extreme remoteness. Elsewhere in the region, a civilian was killed and five others, including three policemen, were wounded Friday when unknown gunmen fired at a police patrol near a mosque in Bandipur town, north of Srinagar. A policeman and a civilian were wounded in another attack in Srinagar’s Batamaloo area. No group claimed responsibility for the attacks.(Posted @ 19:30 PST)
Mob kills teacher, beats cleric for alleged blasphemy in Pakistan MULTAN, Pakistan, June 16, 2006 (AFP) A mob beat a teacher to death when he tried to help a cleric in a row over the alleged desecration of the holy Quran, a local police chief said Friday. The prayer leader was attacked by more than 1,000 people at Hasilpur town in central Punjab province after claims that he burned pages from an old copy of the holy book near a drain, an official said. "A retired school teacher came in and tried to save the cleric but he was also severely beaten by the mob and later died in hospital," he said. Both victims belonged to the Jamaat-ud-Dawa party, he added. A crowd later also attacked a police vehicle and broke its windscreen when it tried to rescue the two men. Security has been beefed up in the area and police have registered a case against the cleric under the country's blasphemy law and a separate case against unknown people for murdering the school teacher.(Posted @ 19:26 PST)
Iran’s Ahmadinejad says considering nuclear package SHANGHAI, June 16 (Reuters) Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad acknowledged Friday that the offer from the permanent members of the U.N. Security Council, along with Germany, was a "step forward". "My colleagues are carefully considering the package of proposals offered by the six countries to the Islamic Republic of Iran and in due time they will give the response," he told a news conference in Shanghai. On Friday, Chinese President Hu Jintao urged Ahmadinejad to "positively respond" to the package, Xinhua news agency reported. Hu also said: "China understands Iran's concerns on its right to peacefully use nuclear power". "Basically, we are not seeking to develop nuclear weapons," Ahmadinejad said. He also said he was not worried about a possible Israeli military strike against his country. "The Islamic Republic of Iran has developed the capability to defend itself." Asked about the genocide of Jews during World War Two, he maintained that the Holocaust was an open question needing "independent and impartial" assessment. (First Posted @ 10:30 PST Updated @ 17:50 PST)
Floods in South Asia hit 1.5 million people, kill 17 GUWAHATI, India, June 16 (Reuters) Floods and landslides caused by heavy monsoon rains have left more than 1.5 million people in northeast India and neighbouring Bangladesh marooned or homeless, and killed at least 17, officials said on Friday. Officials on the Indian side said 12 people had been killed so far and almost half-a-million affected by the floods, with scores of villages in the state of Assam inundated by overflowing rivers, forcing residents to higher grounds. In Bangladesh, about 10,000 people had been made homeless and a million others were marooned as floods spread in four north-eastern districts over the last five days, officials said. Five people were killed when boats sank or houses collapsed, they added. The flood situation was likely to deteriorate as there was more rain in the region and across the border in India, Bangladesh's Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre said.(Posted @ 16:40 PST)
EU approves 100 million euro Palestinian aid via new mechanism BRUSSELS, June 16, 2006 (AFP) EU leaders have endorsed an estimated 100 million euro (126 million dollar) aid package to the Palestinians, to be paid via a new funding mechanism to start operating by next month, a spokeswoman said Friday. The European Commission spokeswoman said the aid package was divided into three parts, including an element focused on the health sector, extending a current programme through the World Bank. The other two parts were an emergency contribution for essential utilities, including fuel, and a "social safety net" to come into effect later which would involve paying money directly into accounts of individuals based on their needs.(Posted @ 16:34 PST)
Norwegian police evict Afghan hunger strikers OSLO, June 16, 2006 (AFP) Norwegian police said Thursday they had evicted at dawn 120 Afghan hunger strikers from the grounds of Oslo Cathedral, where the group had been protesting for three weeks against plans for their imminent deportation. Police said the eviction had been calm and no arrests had been made. The hunger strike began on May 26 with 20 Afghan asylum seekers. Since then their number has swelled to 120. About 6,000 Afghans live in Norway. Police said they would begin the deportations of Afghans who have had their asylum applications rejected within two weeks.(Posted @ 16:32 PST)
Sri Lanka launches second day of strikes on Tigers KILINOCHCHI, Sri Lanka, June 16 (Reuters) Sri Lankan jets launched a new wave of air strikes around the Tamil Tiger rebel headquarters on Friday in retaliation for an attack on a bus which killed 64 civilians the previous day. Jets dropped some six bombs in Kilinochchi area. "We are still assessing the situation and our response," head of the rebel peace secretariat, S. Puleedevan said, adding that "it looks as though the government is ready for war."(Posted @ 16:30 PST)
New China case suggests H5N1 now more infectious HONG KONG, June 16 (Reuters) China's latest human bird flu infection is worrying as it indicates that the H5N1 virus may have mutated and become as infectious in warm months as it is in cooler ones, Hong Kong's health minister said on Friday. The H5N1 virus thrives in lower temperatures and is more infectious in the cooler months between October and March in the northern hemisphere. (Posted @ 15:30 PST)
Bomber defies Baghdad crackdown, kills 10 in mosque BAGHDAD, June 16 (Reuters) A suicide bomber killed at least 10 people and wounded another 25 inside a Shi'ite mosque in Baghdad on Friday, police said. The blast at the Buratha mosque in northern Baghdad took place as worshippers were gathering for Friday noon prayers. There were no further details immediately available. In another incident, mortar rounds slammed into a neighbourhood on the northern outskirts of Baghdad on Friday, killing at least three people and wounding 16, police said. (Posted @ 15:30 PST)
Australia warns of potential attack in Pakistan SYDNEY, June 16, 2006 (AFP) Australia Friday warned of a potential terrorist act in the Pakistani city of Peshawar, saying Western interests could be attacked. In a travel advisory issued by the Department for Foreign Affairs and Trade, the government urged Australians to reconsider any travel to Pakistan due to the "very high threat of terrorist attack." The government continued to receive reports that "terrorists are planning attacks against a range of targets, including places frequented by foreigners," it said. (Posted @ 14:47 PST)
Gunmen kill Pakistani women aid workers, daughters PARACHINAR, Pakistan, June 16 (Reuters) Gunmen shot dead two Pakistani women aid workers and two daughters of one of the women on Friday in a remote area near the Afghan border, a government official said. The two woman ran a community centre that taught village women vocational skills in the Orakzai tribal area. "There has been opposition to NGOs in the area," said a district government official. The gunmen fired through a window of the community centre, killing the two women and the two girls, the official added. (Posted @ 14:46 PST)
Pakistan, China reaffirm to strengthen their strategic partnership SHANGHAI, June 16 (APP): President General Pervez Musharraf and his Chinese counterpart Hu Jintao held an hour-long meeting here Friday and reaffirmed resolve to strengthen the existing partnership in its all dimensions, particularly in the economic sector. Expressing satisfaction over the pace of progress of their bilateral cooperation in the economic sector, they hoped that the negotiations between the two countries on the free trade agreement would be completed soon. President Hu Jintao said his country agreed to work together to develop Pakistan as energy corridor through the Gwadar seaport. The Chinese President offered to enhance his country's support for undertaking reconstruction work in the areas that were hit by the devastating earthquake last year. Chinese Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing, said: "It was a very successful and productive meeting to further enhance understanding and cooperation on wide-ranging issues of bilateral interests." (Posted @ 13:15 PST)
Musharraf terms his visit to China as highly productive SHANGHAI, June 16 (APP): President General Pervez Musharraf termed his visit to China as highly successful and productive, and said it would help to further strengthen their strategic partnership in all fields of common interest. Talking to APP at the end of his three-day stay in Shanghai, President Musharraf said he held substantive talks with President Hu Jintao that also covered matters relating to the two countries on-going cooperation, especially in the trade and energy sectors. The President has since left for Kazakhzstan to attend the second meeting of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA) in Almaty on Saturday. (Posted @ 13:06 PST)
Palestinians fire five rockets towards Israel JERUSALEM, June 16 (APP/AFP) - Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip fired five rockets towards southern Israel overnight but they did not cause any casualties or damage, an army spokeswoman said on Friday. (Posted @ 12:58 PST)
Gazprom ready to join Iran-Pakistan-India pipeline: Putin SHANGHAI, June 16 (AFP) - Russia's Gazprom is ready to participate in plans to build a natural gas pipeline from Iran to India via Pakistan, President Vladimir Putin said Friday. "We think this is completely realisable ... Iran wants it, Pakistan wants it, India wants it. Gazprom is ready to help," Putin told reporters after a meeting here of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation at which he met his Iranian counterpart President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Putin also said Moscow hoped to create a joint venture with Tehran on exploiting natural gas reserves in Russia and Iran. (Posted @ 12:25 PST)
Hamas govt says it wants ceasefire with Israel GAZA, June 16 (Reuters) - The Hamas government wants a ceasefire with Israel and is willing to ask Palestinian militants to stop firing rockets from Gaza into the Jewish state, a spokesman said Thursday. But Ghazi Hamad said Israel had to first stop military activity in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. "I spoke today with the prime minister and he said we definitely want quiet everywhere. We are interested in a ceasefire everywhere," Hamad, speaking in Hebrew, said in an interview on Israel Radio. (Posted @ 11:35 PST)
Bush signs $94.5 bln war, hurricane funding bill WASHINGTON, June 15 (Reuters) - U.S. President George W. Bush on Thursday signed into law a $94.5 billion compromise emergency bill to fund the Iraq and Afghanistan wars and to rebuild after last year's hurricanes along the U.S. Gulf Coast. Bush signed the bill that was easily passed by the Senate earlier on Thursday, two days after it had cleared the House of Representatives. Under the law, $65.8 billion will be rushed to the Pentagon so it can continue fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan through September. (Posted @ 11:15 PST)
U.S. military says key terror leader captured in raid in Karbala BAGHDAD, June 16 (AP) _ A key terror leader linked to the deaths of at least six coalition soldiers was captured in Karbala, the U.S. military said Friday. Iraqi soldiers, assisted by coalition advisers, conducted an early morning ground assault raid on Thursday and captured ``a high-ranking terrorist network commander without firing a shot.'' The suspect was identified by the military as Sheik Aqeel who ``commands a Karbala terrorist network and is wanted for assassinating Iraqi citizens and planning and ordering attacks against Iraqi and coalition forces,'' the military said in a statement. (Posted @ 11:10 PST)
Rocket barrage hits Pakistan military post near Afghan border, wounds 1 soldier MIRAN SHAH, Pakistan, June 16 (AP) _ Suspected pro-Taliban militants directed a rocket barrage at a military post in Mir Ali, near North Waziristan's main town of Miran Shah, wounding one soldier and damaging two vehicles, officials said Friday. No one claimed responsibility for the attack late Thursday, and security forces were hunting for the assailants, a security official said. ``The miscreants fired 10 rockets, but only one or two hit the military post,'' the official said on condition of anonymity. (Posted @ 11:05 PST)
Putin takes swipe at US policy in Central Asia SHANGHAI, June 16 (AFP) - Russian President Vladimir Putin took a swipe early Friday at the US military presence in Central Asia, while defending Shanghai Cooperation Organisation that some critics have seen as a rival to NATO. Referring to Washington's loss of a military base that Uzbekistan ordered closed last year, Putin likened the US approach in the region to that of a "bull in a china shop", saying the closure was not at all surprising. "We call on everyone to be very careful and allow each country to develop in a natural way," the Russian leader told journalists at an informal gathering after the SCO summit (Posted @ 09:55 PST)
At least one killed as blast rips through Moscow apartments MOSCOW, June 16 (AFP) - A powerful blast rocked an apartment house in western Moscow, collapsing its third and fourth storeys and killing at least one person, the ITAR-TASS news agency reported early Friday quoting the city's rescue services. Two other people were found seriously injured in the rubble, officials said. The blast was apparently due to a gas leak, law enforcement officials said. (Posted @ 09:55 PST)
Strong quake rocks Indonesia's Sulawesi JAKARTA, June 16 (AFP) - An earthquake measuring 5.7 on the Richter scale rocked Indonesia's Sulawesi island on Friday but there were no reports of casualties or damage, meteorologists said. (Posted @ 09:41 PST)
Seven more bombs hit Thai south NARATHIWAT, Thailand, June 16 (AFP) - At least seven more bombs hit the Thai south early Friday, a day after a wave of explosions ripped through the insurgency-plagued and mainly Muslim region, police said. In the worst attack, explosives hidden under a government pick-up truck went off in a crowded market in Ka Bang, Yala province, wounding the deputy district chief driving the car, his wife and three police officers. In Friday's other six bombings, small improvised devices hidden in garbage bins and restrooms hit railway stations and other targets in the Yala and Narathiwat provinces but injured no-one, police said. Police raised the number of Thursday's attacks against police posts and cars, government offices, tea shops and other businesses to 65 -- with 26 each in Pattani and Narathiwat and 13 in Yala. Separatist violence has simmered in the south since Thailand annexed an independent ethnic Malay sultanate there a century ago. Insurgencies errupted in the 1970s and again in early 2004, claiming more than 1,300 lives since. (Posted @ 09:41 PST)
Karachi Stocks up 429.65 points: KARACHI, June 16: At the close of trading the KSE-100 index was at 9607.11, up 429.65 points. (Bureau Report) (Updated @ 16:20 PST)
Forex update: KARACHI, June 16: The Pakistani Rupee was traded at Rs 60.47 to the US Dollar in the open market. (Bureau Report) (Updated @ 16:20 PST)
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