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| September 20, 2006 | Wednesday | Sha'aban 26, 1427 |
Updated round-the-clock, with major updates after 10:00 PST (05:00 GMT)
Peace deal not with Taliban: Musharraf NEW YORK, Sept 20 (APP): President General Pervez Musharraf on Wednesday said Pakistan's recent peace agreement in the tribal region was not with the Taliban but with influential local tribal elders in North Waziristan, aimed at isolating the Taliban. He told a gathering of world leaders at the Clinton Global Initiative that "the military action against the Taliban and al-Qaeda continues and Pakistan has not withdrawn a single soldier from the tribal region". Explaining the strategy, Musahrraf said : "We have to tackle Taliban, we have to tackle Talibanization, and we have to go for a multi-pronged approach of military action against the militants and also wean away the population from getting on their side." He pointed out "we need to take the influential tribal elders on our side, join them in the civil administration, reinvigorate them with force and have the military to back them up." Musharraf also said the command and echelon of the Taliban were in southern Afghanistan. "The Taliban were locals of Afghanistan and not Pakistanis," he emphasized. Musharraf asked the world to understand the environment correctly and then form a strategy to deal with the menace of terrorism in the long-term perspective.(Posted @ 23:40 PST)
Three gunned down in South Waziristan WANA, Pakistan, Sept 20 (AFP) Unknown assailants opened fire on the car of a junior administration official, killing three people in South Waziristan’s Wana town, officials said. Two people in the car died almost instantly while the official, Gul Zada, who received head injuries, died in hospital, the official said. No group claimed the attack.(Posted @ 22:05 PST)
Troops in Afghanistan can't end terror: Karzai UNITED NATIONS, Sept 20 (Reuters) Foreign troops in Afghanistan will not be able to end attacks by Taliban militants unless steps are also taken to "destroy terrorist sanctuaries" outside the country, President Hamid Karzai said on Wednesday. Karzai told the U.N. General Assembly that outsiders, whom he did not identify, were behind the new upsurge of violence. "Military action in Afghanistan alone, therefore, will not deliver our shared goal of eliminating terrorism," he told the U.N. General Assembly. Karzai said the fight against terror was linked to faltering attempts to eradicate the narcotics trade. He blamed booming poppy production on weak security for Afghan counter-narcotics agents and the lack of credible programs to persuade Afghan farmers to grow other crops.(Posted @ 21:45 PST)
Israel seizes million dollars in bank raids across West Bank NABLUS, West Bank, Sept 20 (Agencies) Israeli troops raided Jordanian-owned al-Ahli Bank in the West Bank town of Nablus and several money-changing agencies in the occupied territory, local residents said Wednesday. The bank manager said troops blew open the front door and entered the premises. They were unable to open the safe and did not take anything of substance, although they caused damage to the bank's interior, he said. Local residents said troops confiscated more than one million dollars and computers belonging to money changers in Nablus, Tulkarm, Ramallah and Jenin.(Posted @ 12:25 PST)
25 dead, hundreds missing in South Asian storm KHEJURI, India, Sept 20 (AFP) At least 25 people were killed as a violent storm made landfall Wednesday in India and Bangladesh after whipping up high seas in the Bay of Bengal where several hundred fishermen were missing. The storm bore down on the Sunderbans, a vast expanse of mangrove forests in eastern India and southern Bangladesh, after sending trawlers scattering for shelter overnight on Tuesday. Twenty people were killed, 300 injured and more than 100 fishing trawlers were missing or out of radio contact, an official from the state capital Kolkata said. (First Posted @ 17:30 PST Updated @ 21:40 PST)
Bangladesh, India fail to resolve border river disputes DHAKA, Sept 20 (AFP) Ministers from India and Bangladesh Wednesday failed to resolve disputes over three major rivers running along their countries' borders at a meeting in Dhaka. "Nothing has been resolved. We will need some more time," Bangladesh's water resources minister Hafizuddin Ahmed said, after talks with his Indian counterpart Saif-uddin Soz ended inconclusively. "Difficulties are there. But we have decided to move forward and discuss the issues in the meeting of Joint Rivers Commission very soon," Soz said.(Posted @ 21:35 PST)
Three US soldiers die in Iraq BAGHDAD, Sept 20 (AFP) The US military on Wednesday announced the deaths of three soldiers in Iraq. One soldier was killed by small-arms fire in north-eastern Baghdad, while another died in a non-combat incident around dawn Wednesday. Another soldier died Tuesday when his vehicle was hit by a roadside bomb northwest of Baghdad. (First Posted @ 17:40 PST Updated @ 21:30 PST)
Nearly 6,600 civilians killed in Iraq in two months: UN BAGHDAD, Sept 20 (AFP) At least 6,599 civilians were killed across war-torn Iraq in the months of July and August, the United Nations said Wednesday. In July at least 3,590 people were killed and in August 3,009 died in bloody attacks on civilians, according to the UN human rights report.(Posted @ 21:30 PST)
Pakistan, Eritrea to start direct flights ISLAMABAD, Sept 20 (AFP) Pakistan and Eritrea on Wednesday agreed to start direct flights between the two countries, officials said. Under the agreement the airlines of the two countries would operate four weekly flights to each other's country, a Pakistan defence ministry statement said. The Eritrean side is allowed to operate their services to Karachi and Lahore while Pakistan International Airlines would fly to the Eritrean cities of Asmara and Massawa, it said. "This is the first ever agreement signed by Eritrea with an Asian country," it said, adding that it would help promote and expand bilateral ties in trade, economy, culture and the aviation industry. It did not give the date when the flight operations will start.(Posted @ 21:25 PST)
Chavez calls Bush 'devil', 'liar' and 'tyrant' in UN speech UNITED NATIONS, Sept 20 (AFP) Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez called US President George W. Bush "the devil", "a liar" and a "tyrant" in a scathing attack before the UN General Assembly on Wednesday. "Yesterday the devil came here and this place still smells of sulphur," Chavez said, referring to Bush's speech at the assembly on Tuesday. "He came here talking as if he were the owner of the world." Chavez renewed calls for drastic reform of the United Nations to reduce the US influence. In a warmly applauded speech in which he quoted at different times left-wing US intellectual Noam Chomsky, Greek philosopher Aristotle and film director Alfred Hitchcock, Chavez said US "imperialism” was "a threat to the survival of the human race." Bush promoted "a false democracy of the elite" and a "democracy of bombs", he declared.(Posted @ 21:20 PST)
Female health worker dies from bomb injuries in Pakistan PESHAWAR, Pakistan, Sept 20 (AFP) A woman health worker died in hospital Wednesday, a day after a roadside bomb blast in Bajaur tribal area wounded her and three other people, officials said. The health worker belonging to the National Commission for Human Development, 22-year-old Wasiya Bibi, succumbed to head injuries Wednesday morning at a hospital in Peshawar, the commission's spokesman said. Another injured female health worker, Rafia Bibi, who is not related to Wasiya, was discharged from hospital after medical treatment, an official said. No group has so far claimed responsibility for the attack.(Posted @ 20:15 PST)
Gunmen rob four Pakistani women lawmakers in Karachi KARACHI, Sept 20 (Reuters) Four Pakistani women lawmakers were held up at gunpoint on one of the busiest streets in Karachi on Tuesday night. Gunmen robbed the women of their cell phones, cash and jewellery after forcing their car to stop. The victims were all members of the Sindh provincial assembly and belonged to the ruling Mutthaida Qaumi Movement (MQM), a senior police official said.(Posted @ 20:15 PST)
Hizb-ul-Mujahideen floats conditional truce for Ramadan ISLAMABAD, Sept 20 (Reuters) A militant group fighting Indian rule in occupied Kashmir said on Wednesday a ceasefire was possible in the disputed region during the holy month of Ramadan. A spokesman for Hizb-ul-Mujahideen said India should accept Kashmir as a disputed territory, stop human rights violations, release prisoners unconditionally and redeploy troops to positions held before the insurgency began in 1989. "If these conditions are met then a ceasefire can be considered, then there is a possibility for a ceasefire during Ramadan and even later," he said. However, he said a final decision on any offer would have to come from the United Jihad Council, which is expected to meet later this week.(Posted @ 18:45 PST)
Rs.120 billion to be spent on water supply, sanitation projects: PM Aziz ISLAMABAD, Sept 20 (APP): Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz Tuesday said the government has started various programmes to address sanitation problems in the cities, towns and rural areas and has allocated Rs.120 billion for implementing water supply and sanitation projects during 2005-10. Addressing the inaugural session of the two-day Second South Asian Conference on Sanitation (SACOSAN-2) here at a local hotel, Aziz said the government's strategy was focused on promoting public-private partnerships in order to improve the standard of life of people, particularly of those living in rural areas. He said about 600 children die every day from diarrhoea due to inadequate hygiene and sanitation and about one million people, mostly children, suffer from intestinal diseases and nutritional deficiencies. He said there was a need for the governments of South Asia, civil society and people to adopt new ways of thinking, adopt fresh approaches and try innovative concepts to ensure adequate availability of safe drinking water, improve sanitation conditions, prevent water pollution and make optional use of scarce water resources.(Posted @ 18:30 PST)
Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz announces Ramzan package ISLAMABAD, Sep 20 (APP): Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz Tuesday at the Prime Minister House announced a Ramzan package to provide essential daily use items on reduced rates to consumers. Aziz said essential items such as ghee, edible oils, flour, rice, pulses, dates, pickle, ketchup, milk, spices and many other items would be available to consumers from the Utility Stores throughout the country at reduced prices during the holy month of Ramzan. He said the government for this purpose would give a subsidy of Rs.650. Aziz said the reduced prices would be applicable starting from September 22. He said the price of ghee would be reduced by Rs.6 per kg, flour at Rs.11 per kg instead of Rs.13, while there will be ten per cent reduction on the prices of rice, baisen, pulses, (white gram and Red Lobia), squashes, syrups, dates, pickle, ketchup, milk, spices and a five percent reduction would be given on tea on the existing USC prices.(Posted @ 18:20 PST)
Hockey-Pakistan coach sees conditioning as key to improvement KARACHI, Sept 20 (Reuters) Pakistan hockey coach Shahnaz Sheikh believes Asian teams must improve their physical conditioning to compete against the leading European sides and Australia at major tournaments. "Asian players lack the physical strength to play back-to-back games and match the European and Australian players, who make their skills secondary," Sheikh said. Sheikh said he would make some changes to the team for the December Asian Games event in Doha. "Some of the players will retire and we need to bring in some youngsters and build up a good combination," he added.(Posted @ 17:50 PST)
Cricket-Hair set for Champions Trophy return: reports SYDNEY, Sept 20 (AFP) Controversial umpire Darrell Hair is set to make a return to international cricket at the Champions Trophy next month, reports said Wednesday. The 53-year-old revealed to Australian media that "Yes, I am down to umpire in the Champions Trophy and I expect to fulfil that appointment…I'm not sure what matches I'll be doing but ... I'm looking forward to it." The head of the International Cricket Council (ICC), Malcolm Speed, declined to be drawn into the controversy and described Hair's participation in the Champions' Trophy as mere speculation. "As far as I know the panel of umpires has not been announced yet," he said in Beijing. The Pakistan Cricket Board said it would not comment before Inzamam’s ICC hearing scheduled for September 27 and 28.(Posted @ 17:45 PST)
32 dead in Kazakh mine blast ALMATY, Sept 20 (AFP) Thirty-two people died in an explosion and fire Wednesday at a coalmine in Kazakhstan, an official at the emergency situations ministry said. The Interfax news agency said the blast had been caused by a build-up of methane gas about 500 metres below ground in the coalmine. Rescue work was continuing but was being hampered by a further gas leak in the area, the agency said. Several hundred other miners had managed to escape.(Posted @ 17:45 PST)
International troops kill up to 16 Taliban in Afghan battles KABUL, Sept 20 (AFP) NATO and US-led soldiers clashed with insurgents in southern and south-eastern Afghanistan, killing up to 16 of the fighters with air power and gun fire, officials said Wednesday. A battle broke out in Garmser district of Helmand province on Tuesday when rebels opened fire on International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) troops who then retaliated, the force said in a statement. "…Three insurgent vehicles were destroyed with up to 10 insurgents killed. There were no ISAF casualties," it said. Earlier Tuesday US-led troops came under mortar and small arms fire from insurgents in southeastern Paktika province, the US-led coalition said in a separate statement. Return fire "resulted in the killing of six extremists," it said.(Posted @ 17:45 PST)
Palestinian killed by Israeli fire in northern Gaza GAZA CITY, Sept 20 (AFP) A Palestinian was killed Wednesday by Israeli army fire in the northern Gaza Strip, security officials said.(Posted @ 17:38 PST)
Six killed in occupied Kashmir violence SRINAGAR, occupied Kashmir, Sept 20 (AFP) Indian troops shot dead six militants during three gunbattles in revolt-hit occupied Kashmir while unknown gunmen killed a woman, police and army officers said Wednesday. Three militants were shot in the mountains of the southern Doda district late Tuesday, a police spokesman said. Three more were shot dead in two separate gunbattles Wednesday in Doda and northern Baramulla districts, the army said. However, residents said one of those killed was a civilian. Police also said unknown gunmen shot dead a woman in Doda late Tuesday after barging into her house. "The motive for her killing was not known," the spokesman said.(Posted @ 16:30 PST)
Hamas PM rejects Mideast quartet conditions for aid GAZA CITY, Sept 20 (AFP) Palestinian prime minister Ismail Haniya on Wednesday rejected three conditions imposed by the so-called Middle East quartet for resuming direct financial aid to the Palestinian administration.(Posted @ 15:00 PST)
Saddam ordered from court as defence walks out BAGHDAD, Sept 20 (AFP) The new chief judge, Mohammed al-Oriebi al-Khalifah, in the genocide trial of Saddam Hussein ordered the former Iraqi leader out of court during a stormy hearing Wednesday which also saw the defence team walk out complaining of government interference. Khalifah ordered Saddam removed from the court inside Baghdad's high-security Green Zone when he complained about his appointment to head the trial over the Anfal campaign against the Kurds in the late 1980s. The defence team also walked out in protest.(Posted @ 14:30 PST)
UN troop numbers reach 5,000 in Lebanon NAQURA, Lebanon, Sept 20 (AFP) The number of UN peacekeepers in southern Lebanon has risen to 5,000, a UN spokesman said Wednesday.(Posted @ 14:25 PST)
Lebanon pullout by weekend JERUSALEM, Sept 20 (Reuters) Israel intends to complete a troop withdrawal from Lebanon by the weekend, Defence Minister Amir Peretz said Wednesday. "We hope there won't be any mishaps in coordinating with the Lebanese army and the international forces, and that everything will go according to the planned timetable," Peretz said.(Posted @ 14:15 PST)
Thailand's Thaksin charters plane to London BANGKOK, Sept 20 (Reuters) Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, ousted in a bloodless military coup, has chartered a Russian plane to fly him and his entourage from New York to London, a Thai reporter accompanying him said Wednesday. The reporter said other details of his flight schedule were not known. Coup leader General Sonthi Boonyaratglin told reporters Thaksin would be welcome to return to Thailand.(Posted @ 14:05 PST)
Pope says anti-Islam quotes not his own views VATICAN CITY, Sept 20 (Reuters) Pope Benedict said Wednesday that his use of medieval quotes critical of Islam in a speech in Germany last week, that infuriated Muslims worldwide, did not reflect his own convictions and were misunderstood.(Posted @ 14:00 PST)
One soldier killed in Sri Lanka’s north COLOMBO, Sept 20 (AP) One Sri Lankan soldier was killed in an attack by Tamil Tiger rebels at troops at Chavakachcheri in northern Jaffna peninsula Tuesday night, the military said Wednesday. Insurgent casualties were not known. There was no immediate comment from the rebels.(Posted @ 12:58 PST)
Pakistan calls for political stability in Thailand ISLAMABAD, Sept 20 (AP) Pakistan on Wednesday called for political stability in Thailand. Pakistan's Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Tasnim Aslam said that Islamabad was ``watching the situation (in Thailand) with concern.'' ``We hope there will be calm and avoidance of violence,'' Aslam said. ``Pakistan traditionally enjoyed good relations with Thailand. We want to see political stability in Thailand,'' she added.(Posted @ 12:55 PST)
Opposition supporters blockade Bangladesh capital DHAKA, Sept 20 (AFP) Thousands of opposition supporters blockaded the Bangladesh capital Wednesday as part of a growing campaign to force electoral reforms before the next general election, police and officials said. The rail and road blockade was called by a 14-party opposition alliance led by the Awami League party. Activists staged protests on main routes out of Dhaka cutting transport links with the south and west of the country, police said. Around 500 protesters also blocked the main railway station at Tongi, 40 kilometres north of Dhaka, halting train services, Bangladesh Railway spokesman said.(Posted @ 12:50 PST)
Dozens injured, detained in second night of violence in Budapest BUDAPEST, Sept 20 (AFP) Fifty-seven people, including 24 policemen, were injured and around 100 detained as protesters demanding the prime minister's resignation clashed with police in the Hungarian capital for a second night, officials said.(Posted @ 12:00 PST)
Israeli air strike targets building in Gaza GAZA, Sept 20 (Reuters) Israel carried out an air strike on a house which it said was used as a facility to store weapons in Rafah(Gaza Strip) early Wednesday causing no casualties, the Israeli military and Palestinian witnesses said.(Posted @ 10:55 PST)
Thai army chief says military control temporary BANGKOK, Sept 20 (Reuters) Thai army chief Sonthi Boonyaratglin promised Wednesday to return power to the people after the armed forces ousted Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra in a coup. "The council has no intention to run the country by ourselves and will return power under the constitutional monarchy to the people as soon as possible," said Sonthi, who spoke on national television flanked by four other leaders of the Political Reform Council that seized power Tuesday.(Posted @ 10:48 PST)
Panda bites man, man bites panda back at Beijing zoo BEIJING, Sept 20 (AP) A drunken Chinese migrant worker who was bitten by a panda at the Beijing Zoo when he jumped into an enclosure to hug it, retaliated by chomping down on the animal's back, state media said Wednesday. Zhang Xinyan, from Henan province felt a sudden urge to touch the panda with his hand, and jumped into the enclosure, reports said. The panda, who was asleep, was startled and bit Zhang in the right leg, it said. Zhang got angry and kicked the panda, who then bit his other leg. A tussle ensued. ``I bit the fellow in the back,'' Zhang was quoted saying. ``Its skin was quite thick.'' Other tourists yelled for a zookeeper, who soon got the panda under control by spraying it with water. Zhang was hospitalized.(Posted @ 10:40 PST)
Palestinians fire two rockets at Israeli town JERUSALEM, Sept 20 (AP) Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip fired two rockets at an Israeli town Wednesday, wounding two people, including a 15-year-old boy, rescue services and the army said. One of the rockets landed in the greenhouses of the Erez communal farm that borders the Gaza Strip, they said, adding that the teenager was moderately injured by shrapnel and a second Israeli was lightly wounded.(Posted @ 10:32 PST)
Two bombs kill 17 in northern Iraq TIKRIT, Sept 20 (AFP) At least 17 people were killed and 11 more wounded in two bombings, including a suicide car bomb attack, in the town of Al-Shurqat, 100 kilometres north of Tikrit, police said Wednesday. Insurgents first attacked a centre of oil protection security forces in the town and "as people gathered around the blast site, another roadside bomb exploded."(Posted @ 10:18 PST)
Israeli soldiers providing Kurds with military training: BBC LONDON, Sept 20 (AFP) - Former Israeli commandos have been training Kurdish security forces in northern Iraq, the BBC reported Tuesday, showing videos of the alleged training camps. According to the broadcaster, over 2004 and 2005, the ex-commandos were giving training to Kurdish soldiers and left Iraq in 2005 when told by the Kurds that their location was compromised. Israel apparently provided the training, along with quad bikes, communications equipment and security fencing through security companies. The training covered airport security, the use of long rifles and pistols, shooting from behind doors and barricades, and how to identify a terrorist in a crowd, the broadcaster reported.(Posted @ 10:15 PST)
Iranian President takes floor at UN UNITED NATIONS, Sept 20 (AFP) Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad launched a scathing attack Tuesday on the United States and Britain, accusing them before the UN General Assembly of using the United Nations to dominate international affairs and prevent his country from having nuclear power.(Posted @ 10:06 PST)
Israel and Quartet should accept Hamas: ICG Head LONDON, Sept 20 (AFP) Israel and the Mideast Quartet - the United States, Russia, the European Union and the United Nations - should accept Hamas as the democratically elected leadership of Palestine as the first step to any further peace process, Gareth Evans, the president of the International Crisis Group, said writing in The Financial Times on Wednesday. A comprehensive Arab-Israeli peace settlement would "have to begin with acceptance of the leadership chosen by the Palestinians (Hamas) as a legitimate partner by Israel and the Quartet."Hamas cannot be elimated by denial and has earned the democratic right to a place in government," he said.(Posted @ 10:02 PST)
Army detains Thai deputy PM BANGKOK, Sept 20 (AFP) Deposed Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra's deputy and most trusted aide Chidchai Vanasathidya has been detained at the army headquarters following an overnight coup, army officials told AFP on Wednesday. The secretary to the prime minister's office and Thaksin's brother-in-law Somchai Wongsawat, permanent secretary at the Justice Ministry, were also detained, officials said.(Posted @ 09:48 PST)
Veteran Yemen president faces electoral test SANAA, Sept 20 (AFP) Veteran Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh faces his first real electoral test after 28 years in power as the Middle East's poorest country goes to the polls today(Wednesday). Nearly 90,000 troops and police were deployed at the 5,620 polling stations throughout the country when polling began at 8 am (0500 GMT).(Posted @ 09:55 PST)
Major powers, still disagree on sanctions, back more talks with Iran NEW YORK, Sept 20 (AFP) The six major powers confronting Iran over its suspect nuclear program gave their unanimous backing Tuesday to continued negotiations with Tehran in light of persistent differences over how and when to impose sanctions against the Islamic republic, officials said. US Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns said the six powers, the five permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany, were unified in their determination to halt Iran's uranium enrichment activities, which they fear are a cover for developing nuclear weapons.(Posted @ 09:20 PST)
Karachi Stocks up 123.84 points: KARACHI, Sept 20: At the close of trading the KSE-100 index was at 10032.69, up 123.84 points. (Bureau Report) (Updated @ 14:20 PST)
Forex update: KARACHI, Sept 20: The Pakistani Rupee was traded at Rs 60.87 to the US Dollar in the open market. (Bureau Report) (Updated @ 14:20 PST)
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