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| July 15, 2006 | Saturday | Jumadi-ul-Sani 18, 1427 |
Updated round-the-clock, with major updates after 10:00 PST (05:00 GMT)
Mobs rampage in Karachi after slain cleric’s funeral
KARACHI, July 15 (Agencies) Mobs set an American food outlet, a bank, two petrol pumps and scores of vehicles on fire in Karachi on Saturday after funeral prayers were held for a leading cleric killed in a suicide bombing a day earlier. Around 8,000 mourners attended the funeral prayers for Allama Hassan Turabi, and his young nephew at Mehfile Shah Khurasan at Numaish in Karachi. Most of the crowd dispersed peacefully after the ceremony, but a gang of youths damaged shops and torched a Pizza Hut restaurant, two state-owned gas stations and several vehicles on a busy commercial area in Gulshan-e-Iqbal and other parts of the city immediately after. "Fourteen people were trapped inside (Pizza Hut).
But we rescued them. Luckily, nobody was injured," police said. Turabi's son denounced the violence. ``My father always advocated for peace and sectarian harmony, and those people who torched cars and shops have no links to my father's party,'' Murtaza Turabi told reporters. He said his father's assassination was a ``conspiracy to pitch Shiites and Sunnis against each other,'' and he demanded punishment for those behind the suicide attack. There were no immediate reports of injuries or casualties. More than 5,000 policemen were on the streets as well as paramilitary rangers, many outside mosques and other sensitive places to control the situation, a senior police official said. (First Posted @ 17:08 PST Updated @ 22:54 PST)
Police name Lashkar-i-Jhangvi as prime suspect KARACHI, July 15, 2006 (AFP) A senior police investigator said Saturday that a banned extremist group, Lashkar-i-Jhangvi, was the main suspect in the fatal suicide attack on Allama Hassan Turabi. "Lashkar-i-Jhangvi is the prime suspect in this case as some earlier intelligence reports had also indicated that the outfit was planning attacks in Karachi," police said. Investigators were hopeful of being able to identify the bomber, whose face remained intact after the blast. Officials from the government's National Database Registration Authority (NADRA) had taken photographs of the bomber's face, police added. (Posted @ 19:10 PST)
India undecided over next round of peace talks with Pakistan NEW DELHI, July 15, 2006 (AFP) India indicated Saturday that peace talks with Pakistan expected to be held next week would be delayed in the wake of train blasts in Mumbai that killed at least 181 commuters. "We will take a decision on this at an appropriate time," Indian foreign secretary Shyam Saran said of the talks which were tentatively slated for coming Thursday. "Whether we like it or not, this (attack) becomes a question mark over the (peace) process. As a result of these terrible terrorist incidents, it is becoming difficult to take this process forward," Saran told reporters. Saran added that India was "very much committed to pursuing a policy of peace and friendship with Pakistan." Saran also said India will press leaders of the Group of Eight nations meeting in St. Petersburg for greater cooperation in fighting terrorism in South Asia. Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh heads to St. Petersburg on Sunday. (First Posted @ 19:14 PST Updated @ 21:12 PST)
Cricket-Yousuf hits unbeaten 185 for Pakistan LONDON, July 15 (Reuters) Pakistani batsman Mohammed Yousuf struck his 17th test century on Saturday with an unbeaten 185 on the third day of the first test against England at Lord's. At the close, Pakistan were 409 for seven wickets in reply to England's 528 for nine declared. Captain Inzamam-ul-Haq scored 69, Abdul Razzaq collected 22 and wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal struck 58 before becoming Kevin Pietersen's first test victim. For match details click here. (Posted @ 23:04 PST)
G8 summit opens SAINT PETERSBURG, July 15, 2006 (AFP) Leaders of the world's major powers opened their G8 summit here Saturday with an informal dinner, ahead of formal talks dominated by the raging Middle East unrest, Russian officials said. The leaders of Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia and the United States and their partners met for dinner at the Konstantin Palace just outside the former Tsarist capital. (Posted @ 22:18 PST)
Saudi king holds talks with Iran's top security official JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia, July 15, 2006 (AFP) Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah held talks Saturday with Iran's top national security official Ali Larijani, expected to focus on the conflict in Lebanon and the Palestinian territories. Larijani delivered a letter from Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinejad to King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz, the SPA official news agency said, without disclosing its content. (Posted @ 22:16 PST)
Turkish PM fumes at West over Mideast crisis ANKARA, July 15, 2006 (AFP) Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan charged Saturday that Western powers were "keeping mum" over mounting bloodshed in the Middle East, warning that they would "pay the bill" soon, Anatolia news agency reported. "Bombs are exploding, innocent people are being killed, infrastructures are being destroyed... The powerful continue to crush the weak, but unfortunately those who hold the power in the world are keeping mum," Erdogan said in Artvin city. "Those who back global peace (only) with words will sooner or later pay the bill by facing global terrorism... This is what is provoking terrorism," he was quoted as saying. (Posted @ 22:14 PST)
Muslim Conference wins majority in Azad Kashmir elections: CEC MUZAFFARABAD, Azad Kashmir, July 15 (AP) The ruling party in Azad Kashmir won enough seats in legislative elections to put it in a strong position to form the next government, an official said Saturday. The Muslim Conference won 20 of 41 contested constituencies in the July 11 polls, said Chief Election Commissioner Mohammed Naseem Sheikh as he released the official results. Independent candidates won six seats, while the remaining went to the political parties of two former prime ministers, Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif, and three other small groups, Sheikh said. Election officials withheld the result of the contest for one seat after complaints of ballot rigging. A fresh vote will be held at a date yet to be set. No other details were immediately available. The newly elected lawmakers will vote July 22 to fill eight other seats, five of them reserved for women, in the 49-member Kashmir legislature. Twenty-five seats are required to form a government, and Muslim Conference President Sardar Attique said his party was ready. Lawmakers will elect a new prime minister on July 24. (Posted @ 21:10 PST)
Musharraf calls for increased productivity in agriculture, industrial sectors RAWALPINDI, July 15 (APP): President General Pervez Musharraf Saturday said the growth target of seven per cent set for the current fiscal year was achievable through yield intensification in agriculture and higher productivity in the industrial sector. Presiding over a high level meeting to review the overall economic scenario of the country, Musharraf emphasised the need for a comprehensive strategy during the current fiscal year to achieve higher targets in various sectors of the economy. Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz also attended the meeting. Musharraf called for adopting "corrective measures" wherever needed and targeted government intervention, where required on the basis of exception rather than a matter of routine. Aziz said the State Bank of Pakistan will extend support to any sector of the economy requiring intervention on short term basis and said it will provide temporary relief to the textile sector to enhance its competitiveness. He also said monthly review meetings would be held to evaluate the achievement of targets and to take timely measure if required. (Posted @ 21:06 PST)
PM asks PIA to take measures for facing challenges of oil price-hike ISLAMABAD, July 15 (APP): Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz Saturday said PIA needs to take both short and long term measures to deal with the challenges posed by the unprecedented hike in oil prices in the international market. He said this while chairing a high level meeting to review the performance of the national flag-carrier. Recalling the recent air crash near Multan, Aziz said it resulted in a colossal loss of precious lives and that while the inquiry into the crash was proceeding, other aircrafts have been inducted into its service to meet the travel requirements of people. (Posted @ 20:42 PST)
Two killed in occupied Kashmir SRINAGAR, occupied Kashmir, July 15 (AP) One person was killed in a grenade attack, and security forces shot dead an alleged militant, in two separate incidents in occupied Kashmir on Saturday, officials said. In the first incident, unknown persons hurled a grenade at a security post in Ganderbal town, 20 kilometres northeast of Srinagar, which missed its target and exploded on the road, wounding three pedestrians, police said. One of them later died in the hospital. In the second incident, police ambushed two or three militants in Bhan village, 65 kilometres south of Srinagar, triggering a gunfight in which one of the militants was killed, said police. (Posted @ 20:22 PST)
Nearly 60 rebels killed in Afghanistan clashes: military KANDAHAR, Afghanistan, July 15, 2006 (AFP) Afghan and coalition forces said Saturday they had killed nearly 60 rebels in clashes in southern Afghanistan over the past two days. The government and US-led coalition said meanwhile they were investigating media reports of mounting civilian casualties. More than 30 "enemy extremists" were killed in an operation in Uruzgan province on Thursday, the US-led coalition said in a statement. Another 10 were killed Saturday in an early morning air assault in Helmand province, where another eight rebels were killed in the province’s Sangin district on Friday. Four others were killed Friday in Zabul province in a gunfight, the ministry said in a statement. In the same province on Saturday, an Afghan civilian was killed and a civilian driver wounded when rebels attacked a convoy of trucks supplying US forces, police said. In the subsequent fighting, two Taliban were killed and one was captured, police added. And in Uruzgan province troops on Friday killed two foreign nationals who had been wearing burqas alleging them to be "extremist suicide bombers disguised as women." Another five militants carrying guns and rocket-propelled grenades were captured in Uruzgan on Friday, the defence ministry said. Twelve other militants were captured during sweeps elsewhere in the country, the ministry said. (First Posted @ 12:20 PST Updated @ 20:12 PST)
Indian investigators continue hunt for Mumbai bombers MUMBAI, July 15, 2006 (AFP) Indian police rounded up 250 people Saturday as part of a huge intelligence trawl but named no suspects for the Mumbai train attacks that killed 181 and injured nearly 900. The latest swoop was centred on an area populated by illegal Bangladeshi immigrants but only 11 were held for further questioning, police told reporters. One Mumbai railway station was cleared Saturday after an anonymous caller warned a bomb had been planted but police branded it a hoax after a search. (Posted @ 20:10 PST)
Foreign governments make evacuation plans from Lebanon PARIS, July 15, 2006 (AFP) Foreign government were drawing up contingency plans Saturday to evacuate their nationals from Lebanon as Israel kept up its air-strikes in the country. France, Italy and Sweden followed Britain's lead on Friday in preparing a voluntary evacuation of their citizens, mainly by land to Syria or by ferry to the Mediterranean island of Cyrpus. The US State Department also said it was working on a plan with the Pentagon to transport Americans to Cyprus, where they can board commercial aircraft for onward travel. Air travel from Beirut is impossible as the international airport has been shut down since Thursday after Israeli air strikes gouged large craters in the runways. (Posted @ 18:44 PST)
Eighteen civilians burnt alive in Israeli air blitz on Lebanon BEIRUT, July 15, 2006 (AFP) Eighteen people, including nine children, were burnt alive Saturday when a helicopter gunship hit a convoy of families fleeing Israel's offensive on Lebanon. Another seven people were killed in other raids against bridges and petrol stations in eastern and southern Lebanon, including a strike that blocked the main border crossing into Syria, bring the toll in Lebanon to at least 87. Israel also destroyed the headquarters of Hezbollah’s chief Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut's suburbs, Lebanon's official news agency said. US President George W. Bush, in Russia for the Group of Eight summit, said he was "troubled" by the loss of innocent lives but that it was up to Hezbollah to stop its attacks. (First Posted @ 09:55 PST; Updated @ 18:40 PST)
Arabs convene emergency meeting on Mideast violence CAIRO, July 15 (Reuters) Arab foreign ministers held an emergency meeting in Cairo on Saturday to discuss ways to end Israeli attacks on Lebanon and the Palestinian territories. Ministers from the 22-member Arab League met in a closed session in Egypt's capital. The league was considering a Lebanese proposal to condemn the Israeli attacks. "The general situation can be summed up as a clear targeting of every one of our countries and Arab regional security," Lebanese Foreign Minister Fawzi Salloukh told the session. "It is a complete retreat in the peace process, if not the complete failure of this process," he added. Bahrain and Jordan called for "an immediate halt to armed confrontations" in a joint statement after talks between the two countries' leaders in Manama, the official Bahrain News Agency. (First Posted @ 13:40 PST Updated @ 18:06 PST)
Israel kills two Palestinians, targets ministry GAZA, July 15 (Reuters) Israel killed two Palestinians and targeted the Palestinian economy ministry in Gaza on Saturday. An airstrike killed a Hamas activist at his home and wounded eight others, including a baby and a child, Palestinian medics said. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Saturday urged Israel to free female and underage Palestinians held in Israeli prisons in exchange for the release of its captured soldiers. "(Israel) needs to understand that the only solution, frankly, is releasing prisoners," Abbas told reporters in the West Bank city of Ramallah. Abbas said indirect contacts with Israel over such a deal would continue. (First Posted @ 10:25 PST Updated @ 18:04 PST)
No U.S.-Russia deal on Russian WTO entry bid ST PETERSBURG, Russia, July 15 (Reuters) Russia and the United States failed on Saturday to strike a bilateral deal allowing Russia to join the World Trade Organisation but agreed to set a deadline to wrap up talks within three months. Negotiators who have been discussing Russia's 13-year-old WTO bid virtually non-stop since Wednesday were unable to achieve a final breakthrough on a key "deliverable" ahead of the Group of Eight summit in St Petersburg. "There is more work to be done," President George W. Bush told journalists after meeting summit host Vladimir Putin. "It's a complex process," Putin told a joint news conference with Bush. "We will continue to talk while standing up for our interests." (Posted @ 17:58 PST)
Israel accuses Iran of supplying Hizbollah with missiles JERUSALEM, July 15 (Reuters) Israel said on Saturday that Hizbollah had fired an Iranian-made guided missile at one of its naval ships off Beirut and not hit it with an explosives-laden drone as previously claimed. The strike caused substantial damage to the vessel and left four sailors missing in action. The body of one of the four was recovered on Saturday, Israel said. (Posted @ 17:56 PST)
Gunmen abduct 50 people, Iraqi Olympic chief BAGHDAD, July 15 (Reuters) Gunmen wearing camouflage uniforms abducted the head of Iraq's national Olympic committee and 50 other people including bodyguards and committee staff as they met in Baghdad on Saturday, police sources said. Police said the body of one of the guards was found dumped in a street in Karrada in central Baghdad shortly afterwards. (Posted @ 17:52 PST)
Shuttle Discovery leaves space station HOUSTON, July 15 (Reuters) Shuttle Discovery departed from the International Space Station on Saturday to end a nine-day visit that included three spacewalks and a repair critical to resuming construction of the half-finished space outpost. After astronauts closed the hatch linking the two spacecraft, Discovery gently undocked from the $100 billion station and moved slowly away in the first steps of the shuttle's planned return to Earth on Monday. (Posted @ 17:32 PST)
600 supporters of Nawab Bugti surrender arms in Balochistan QUETTA, Pakistan, July 15 (AP) Over 600 alleged supporters of a tribal elder blamed for attacking gas fields and security forces in Balochistan surrendered to local authorities on Saturday, officials said. The men had carried out attacks on the orders of Nawab Akbar Bugti, and ``we have granted them amnesty,'' said a top government official in the region. He said Bugti's top commander, Khan Mohammed Masoori, was among those who surrendered at a public ceremony in Dera Bugti town. A spokesman for the provincial government confirmed the men had surrendered. A spokesman for the tribal elder, Agha Shahid Bugti, refused to comment. (Posted @ 15:50 PST)
Pakistan has 10,000 reasons to promote peace and stability in Afghanistan: Kasuri WASHINGTON, July 15 (APP)- Rejecting contention that Pakistan has not done enough as absolutely wrong, Foreign Minister Khurshid Kasuri has said that his country has "10,000 reasons" to promote peace and stability in neighbouring Afghanistan. In an interview with 'The Washington Times', Kasuri said there was "no basis" for charges by top Afghan officials that Islamabad had encouraged or tolerated insurgent violence on its side of the border. He said that 600 Pakistani troops have been killed in operations against Taliban and al Qaeda strongholds, and that his country suffered economically, militarily and politically from instability in Afghanistan. "We have 10,000 reasons to want to see a peaceful, secure Afghanistan, and not a single reason to wish for a weak government in our neighbour," he stated. Kasuri said that U.S.-Pakistan relations are strong and that Ms. Rice and other top U.S. officials have "a very good understanding of what Pakistan's record really is." He said his talks with U.S. Secretaryof State on Monday focussed far more on India-Pakistan issues than on the border with Afghanistan. He said an unstable Afghanistan is bad for Pakistan for several reasons: It would scare off foreign investment, exacerbate the problem of illegal poppy production and drug trafficking, choke off lucrative pipeline and trade routes to Central Asia, and leave about 3 million Afghan refugees still on Pakistani territory. "Certainly the Taliban would be hostile to us, unless basic human nature has somehow changed," he stated. (Posted @ 13:30 PST)
REPORTS: Malaysia targets 100,000 expatriates with 'second home' program KUALA LUMPUR, July 15 (AP) _ Malaysia hopes to persuade 100,000 expatriates to set up second homes in the country by the end of next year, New Straits Times newspaper quoted Tourism Minister Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor as saying. The ``Malaysia My Second Home'' program has attracted 8,574 people from Britain, Australia, the United States and across Asia since its launch in 1992.A participant must have 300,000 ringgit (US$81,800; euro64,600) to deposit in a Malaysian bank, up to 250,000 ringgit of which can be spent on housing, education or medical treatments. Successful applicants in the program are issued a renewable 10-year social visit pass. ``Many Pakistanis and Iranians are keen to come to Malaysia to attend academic programs,'' Tengku Adnan was quoted as saying by the national news agency Bernama. ``We need to promote Malaysia as their second home.'' Malaysia is set to earn some 35 billion ringgit (US$9.5 billion; euro7.5 billion) in foreign exchange if the 100,000 expatriates target is met, he said. (Posted @ 12:30 PST)
U.S., Russia agree to fight nuclear terrorism ST. PETERSBURG, Russia, July 15 (AP) _ U.S. President George W. Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed Saturday on a global initiative to combat nuclear terrorism, saying the greatest threat facing the world is the threat of attack by nuclear, chemical or biological weapons. The accord was to be announced at a joint news conference by the two leaders before the opening of a summit of world leaders. (Posted @ 12:25 PST)
Dozen rockets hit northern Israel: military JERUSALEM, July 15 (AFP) - Guerrillas in Lebanon fired a dozen rockets into northern Israel at dawn Saturday, in the third straight day of a rocket blitz, an Israeli military source said. Rockets struck several towns, including the coastal resort of Nahariya, but caused no casualties or damage, the source said. (Posted @ 12:00 PST)
Fighting intensifies between Sri Lankan troops, Tamil rebels, killing at least 16 COLOMBO, July 15 (AP) _ Fighting between government troops and Tamil Tiger rebels killed at least 16 people, the Red Cross and rebels said Saturday. Of 13 government soldiers reported missing, as many as 12 may have died in the clashes in a rebel-held village in eastern Batticaloa district on Friday, military spokesman Brig. Prasad Samarasinghe said Saturday. He said another four soldiers were wounded. A spokesman for the ICRC said``we have been told that there are 12 bodies of Sri Lankan soldiers and we are getting ready to receive them'' from the Tamil Tigers. The pro-rebel Web site TamilNet reported Friday that four rebel fighters were also killed. (Posted @ 10:10 PST)
Juventus, Lazio and Fiorentina relegated to Italian second division ROME, July 15 (AFP) - Juventus, Lazio and Fiorentina were relegated to the Italian second division on Friday as punishment for being implicated in the country's match-fixing scandal, but AC Milan were handed a Serie A reprieve. The teams will have three days to appeal before a federal court of arbitration and a final decision will be given by July 24. (Posted @ 10:00 PST)
UN Security Council offers no action on Lebanon call for ceasefire UNITED NATIONS, July 15 (AFP) - A UN Security Council debate on Lebanon ended Friday with no action on Beirut's demand for an end to Israeli air strikes, as the United States blamed the crisis squarely on Iran and Syria. The debate highlighted divisions in the Council, with US Ambassador John Bolton standing alone in refusing to even caution restraint from Israel over its military offensives in both Lebanon and Gaza. (Posted @ 09:45 PST)
Four Israeli sailors missing, foreign ship hit off Beirut JERUSALEM, July 15 (AFP) - Four Israeli servicemen were missing after Hezbollah attacked an Israeli warship off the Lebanese coast, a military spokeswoman said early Saturday. A foreign civilian vessel, believed to be Egyptian, was also hit and set ablaze during the attack, she added. The Israeli navy vessel caught fire after being hit by a rocket. The stricken ship was pulled to the port of Haifa by another boat, and four crewmen remain unaccounted for, the spokeswoman said. Earlier, citing the Israeli military, the website of the Haaretz newspaper said an explosives-laden drone, apparently launched by Hezbollah, hit the warship off the coast of Beirut, causing serious damage to its steering. The spokeswoman did not say whether there were any casualties aboard the foreign vessel which was also struck. The crewmembers of the boat, which was set ablaze, were picked up by another vessel which came to its aid. (Posted @ 09:35 PST)
Non-Aligned Movement condems Israeli force in Gaza KUALA LUMPUR, July 15, 2006 (AFP) - The Non-Aligned Movement Saturday condemned as "disproportionate" Israel's military offensive in Gaza and called for the revival of the stalled Middle East roadmap peace plan.The chair of the 116-nation grouping, Malaysia's Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, said Israel's use of force and its detention of Palestinian officials was undoing the peace process. "We condemn Israel's use of disproportionate force in Gaza, which has caused needless deaths and destruction," said Abdullah in a message to the annual Group of Eight summit in Russia, which starts later Saturday. "We would urge the G8, several of whose members are also members of the international quartet and the UN Security Council, to make serious efforts to resuscitate the 'road-map'," said Abdullah. "This still represents the best hope for progress towards a final settlement of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict," he said. (Posted @ 09:30 PST)
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