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| July 19, 2007 | Thursday | Rajab 03, 1428 |
Updated round-the-clock, with major updates after 10:00 PST (05:00 GMT)
Bomb blast kills 15 in Kohat mosque: police PESHAWAR, Pakistan, July 19, (AFP) - An apparent suicide bomb attack Thursday killed at least 15 people and wounded 19 more at a mosque in a garrison town in northwest Pakistan, a police official said. “15 people were killed and at least 19 others were injured in the blast in a mosque,” a local police official told AFP in the town of Kohat, revising an earlier death toll. “It appears to be a suicide blast,” the official said. (Posted @ 22:42 PST)
Suicide attacks in north and south Pakistan kill 36 people, 54 wounded KARACHI, Pakistan, July 19 (AP) - Suicide bombers hit a convoy of Chinese workers in southern Pakistan and a police academy in the north, killing 36 people and injuring more than 54 as violence swept further across the country. The convoy was passing through the main bazaar in Hub, a town in Baluchistan province, some 30 km northwest of the port city of Karachi, when a moving car blew up next to a police vehicle, officials said. Hub police chief Ghulam Mohammed Thaib said 29 people were killed, including seven police. About 30 other people were wounded, some critically. Maj. Gen. Saleem Nawaz, a commander of Pakistan's paramilitary Frontier Constabulary, said it was fortunate the Chinese workers weren't hurt by the car bomb. “It was laden with very heavy explosives, but due to our spacing and our security measures, Allah has been very kind,” he said. The police “sacrificed their lives and the Chinese friends were absolutely safe,” General Nawaz told Dawn News television. Some officials suggested the bomb was remote-controlled, but Thaib and Nawaz, whose men were also guarding the minibus carrying some 10 Chinese technicians and engineers, said it was a suicide attack. Television pictures showed how the blast ripped off the front of several roadside shops. Several damaged cars and buses lay rammed into one another among a tangle of bricks and clothing. The Chinese targeted Thursday worked at a lead extraction plant in Dudhar in Baluchistan and were temporarily leaving the area for Karachi because of security concerns, police said. In the northwest, a suicide car bomber detonated his explosives when guards prevented him from entering the parade ground of the police academy in Hangu, 70 kilometers southwest of Peshawar. The bomber killed six bystanders and one policeman, and another 24 people were injured, academy chief Attaullah Wazir said. The attacker also died when the car was torn apart by the explosion. (First Posted @ 09:55 PST Updated @ 16:46 PST)
SC to wind up hearing on CJ Iftikhar’s petition on Friday ISLAMABAD, July 19 (APP)- After 43-day proceedings, the 13-member full court of the Supreme Court is due to conclude hearing on chief justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry's petition on Friday. On Thursday, Ch. Aitzaz Ahsan, the petitioner's counsel, using his right of reply, said the reference was filed in “unholy haste” and even without application of mind to formation of opinion. He had not finished his arguments when the court adjourned the hearing till 9.30 a.m. on Friday. At the outset, the court posed a number of questions related to applicability of Article 209. Aitzaz Ahsan was asked by the bench to come up with replies to the questions during the course of his submissions. Justice Chaudhry Ijaz Ahmed asked the counsel what would be the consequences if his viewpoint that Article 209 was not applicable to chief justice was accepted, as in that case there would be no forum for accountability of the CJP. Justice Ramday, referring to Aitzaz Ahsan's argument that SJC composition could not be completed without chief justice, said it would mean that if chief justice was absent or could not sit in SJC for some other reason then there would be no forum to hold chief justice to account. The bench observed that in its judgement it would take into account all aspects, also keeping in mind that the verdict would be important for future generations. Justice Ramday said: “We, including you (Aitzaz Ahan), all agree that chief justice is accountable. If there would be no forum (for CJ accountability) it would mean that he is not accountable.” Aitzaz Ahsan, in his arguments, contended that the president cannot pass any order for removal of a judge without receiving an adverse report from the SJC against the judge. He also said that when SJC has no powers to pass final order then it has no jurisdiction to pass an interim order to restrain a judge from performing judicial functions. In reply to a query from Justice Mohammad Nawaz Abbasi, the counsel said there is no difference between chief justice and a judge as far as judicial powers are concerned. The counsel claimed that the appointment of acting chief justice on March 9 was contrary to the provisions of the Constitution. He also said that Presidential Order 27 of 1970 under which CJ IFtikhar was sent on forced leave was redundant and therefore the action under it was is ultra-vires of the Constitution. Barrister Zafarullah Khan, counsel of petitioner Watan Party, requested the bench to allow him time to speak on the identical petition, but the court disagreed and asked him to submit his arguments in writing if he so desired. (Posted @ 17:40 PST)
Hub blast killed 26, injured 20 : IG Police QUETTA, July 19 (APP): Twenty-six people including seven policemen were killed and more than twenty other persons were injured after a bomb, planted on the road passing through main Bazaar of Hub town, exploded Thursday morning, Inspector General Balochistan Police, Tariq Masood Khoso, said. The bomb was blown up with remote control and hit the police van escorting the coaster of the Chinese engineers who all escaped unhurt, he said. However, seven cops and 19 passersby, including children, were killed besides leaving over 20 others injured. He said security has been further beefed up across the province following the attack. (Posted @ 18:04 PST)
Hub blast injured in Karachi hospital KARACHI, July 19 (APP)-The 29 persons injured of the blast at a bus stop in Hub Thursday morning have been brought to Civil Hospital Karachi and include a 12- year- old girl Noorma. The other injured included men aged between 15 and 50. They were waiting to board the bus when the bomb blast occurred. Doctors said the victims were seriously injured and most of them had to be provided with surgical interventionst. (Posted @ 17:08 PST)
Hub bomb blast: Four injured die in hospital KARACHI, July 19 (PPI): Forty injured of Hub bomb blast including a cop were shifted two major city hospitals - Civil Hospital Karachi and Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre - and four of them succumbed to their injuries later Thursday. (Posted @ 20:58 PST)
President urges nation to stand united against extremists ISLAMABAD, July 19 (APP): President General Pervez Musharraf Thursday urged the nation to stand united against the extremists and vowed to defeat the handful of elements who were a threat to the country. “The challenge needs to be faced with courage, but one person alone cannot do it. I cannot do it alone, neither the police, nor the army can do it alone, unless the people of the country support it,” he told a gathering of thousands of students from all over Punjab here at the Convention Centre. The event was to award Rs 20,000 cash to 3000 students who have completed training from Vocational Training Institutes of Punjab, to help them start work in their respective trades under Pakistan Bait-ul-Mal's Rehabilitation Scheme. (Posted @ 17:14 PST)
SC directs handover of bodies of mother of Maulana Abdul Aziz, his son, two cousins to their relatives ISLAMABAD, July 19 (APP): The Supreme Court on Thursday directed Deputy Commissioner Islamabad to hand over the bodies of mother of Maulana Abdul Aziz, his son Hasaan, and two cousins, Qari Atta Mohammad and Mufti Inam ur Rehman, to their relatives for burial in the ancestral graveyard. The two member bench comprising Justice Mohammad Nawaz Abbasi and Justice Faqir Mohammad Khokhar also directed the Deputy Commissioner to release on parole Maulana Abdul Aziz, his wife Ume Hasaan and two daughters, Tayeba Dua and Asma Dua to participate in their Namaz-e-Janaza. Deputy Attorney General Tariq Khokhar informed the court that no further detainee had been released after the release of 26 on Wednesday. The court expressed dissatisfaction over police report and warned them against forging FIRs and not taking the matter seriously. Taufiq Asif advocate, member legal aid committee, informed the court that 20 more people have been added to the list of missing persons, increasing the total number to 33. The court directed Deputy Commissioner to sort out the matter with members of the legal aid committee. Parents and relatives of a number of persons who were either dead, missing or detained also appeared before the court and appealed for relief. Deputy Commissioner informed the court that DNA tests of 50 parents had been conducted and when the reports were available grievances of most of the people would be removed. He said those facing minor offence would be released very soon after verification. The court adjourned the hearing till Monday morning. (Posted @ 21:08 PST)
Pak-China multifaceted relationship; cooperation in various fields growing: PM ISLAMABAD, July 19 (APP) - Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz terming Pak-China relationship as strong, rich and broad-based said Thursday the bilateral cooperation between the two countries in every area was growing. “Sino-Pakistan cooperation in every area is growing. It is a multifaceted relationship. It is very strong, rich, broad relationship,” Chinese Xinhua News Agency quoted Prime Minister Aziz as saying in an interview. (Posted @ 00:04 PST)
BBC suspends staff over phone-ins row LONDON, July 19 (AFP) - The BBC has suspended several members of staff over a competition-rigging scandal, it said Thursday, as police revealed they could investigate the controversy. The broadcaster admitted faking the winners of phone-ins and interactive competitions on six shows including charity appeals “Comic Relief”, “Sports Relief” and “Children In Need”, as well as youngsters' favourite “Blue Peter”. It suspended all such competitions Wednesday amid an embarrassing fallout but announced Thursday it had gone a step further.“We can confirm that a small number of staff have been asked to step aside from their duties whilst we review issues surrounding the incidents referred to yesterday,” it said in a statement. It is understood that those suspended are either executive producers or more senior figures. Meanwhile, the head of London's Metropolitan Police, Sir Ian Blair, said he was holding a meeting Thursday to discuss the matter, adding: “If we are requested to investigate it, we will.” (Posted @ 22:34 PST)
Seven Iraqi policemen killed south of Baghdad BAGHDAD, July 19 (AFP) - Insurgents seized and then killed a group of seven Iraqi policemen south of Baghdad near the town of Iskandiriyah, Iraqi police and the US military said Thursday. The police team headed by Lt- Col Salman Munshid was ambushed late Wednesday. (Posted @ 21:44 PST)
Iraq: 6 US soldiers killed; 23 bodies found Baghdad, July 19(Reuters) - A U.S. soldier was killed by small arms fire south of Baghdad on Thursday, the military said, announcing a total of six. Earlier, a roadside bomb killed four U.S. soldiers and an Iraqi interpreter in east Baghdad on Wednesday and a soldier was killed south of the capital on Tuesday. Meanwhile, two U.S. soldiers were charged with murdering an Iraqi last month near the northern city of Kirkuk, the military said. Police found 15 bodies dumped around the capital on Wednesday, and another eight bodies including two women found dumped in the city of Mosul. They were shot. (Posted @ 19:56 PST)
PIA to replace Boeing 737-300 fleet Karachi, July 19 (PPI): PIA would replace its aging Boeing 737-300 aircraft fleet with new ones by year 2009, said the Chairman of national flag carrier Zaffar A Khan. After detailed evaluation Boeing 737-800 and Airbus A320 have been short listed. Final decision in this regard is expected shortly, he told a news conference Thursday. In the next phase, other aging aircraft like A310, B747 are also planned to be replaced as per approved strategic plan 2008-2012. In addition, PIA also plans to acquire additional ATRs, he added. In order to improve overall product offering, PIA is endeavouring to reduce and maintain its average fleet age to below ten years. (Posted @ 19:36 PST)
Rice presses for action on Kosovo independence LISBON, July 19 (Reuters) - Kosovo will get its independence from Serbia “one way or another” despite Russia's objections at the United Nations, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice told reporters travelling with her to Lisbon for a meeting of the quartet of Middle East mediators Asked whether the United States was prepared to move on Kosovo's path to independence outside of the United Nations, Rice said: “We are committed to an independent Kosovo and we will get there one way or another.” Serb Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic disagreed. “Imposing independence of Kosovo to Serbia outside the Security council is a guarantee to destabilize the Western Balkans,” he told reporters. (Posted @ 19:04 PST)
Russia expels four British diplomats MOSCOW, July 19 (Reuters) - Russia said Thursday it would expel four British diplomats, stop issuing visas to British officials, and cease cooperation with London in the war on terror, retaliating for Britain's decision to send home four Russian envoys. The row was prompted by Russia's refusal to extradite a murder suspect to face trial in London “Four British embassy staff in Moscow are now persona non grata and they should leave the territory of the Russian Federation within 10 days,” Foreign Ministry chief spokesman Mikhail Kamynin told reporters He did not identify the diplomats. (Posted @ 19:00 PST)
Indian coastal forces kill Pakistani fisherman, arrest nine KARACHI, July.19 (APP): Indian coastal forces killed one Pakistani fisherman and arrested nine others alongwith their boat near Sir Creek on Wednesday night, spokesman of Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum (PFF) Sami Memon said Thursday. He identified the deceased as Ali Ahmed s/o Soomar Katiyar of village Atharki in Thatta district. He said Ali Ahmed was aboard Al-Haq when Indian coastal forces in four high-speed boats opened fire on two Pakistani boats in an open sea terriory. The captain of Al-Haq managed to scape while another boat Al-Ramzan was apprehended by Indian forces, he added. The Indians arrested nine fishermen of Al-Ramzan, he added. (Posted @ 17:24 PST)
Relief, rescue operation in flood affected areas RAWALPINDI, July 19 (PPI): Army troops are carrying out rescue and relief operations in Moenjodaro, Warah, Kamber, Shahdadkot, Larkaran, Mirpur Khas, Sanghar, Dadu, Mehr and Faridabad in Sindh and Turbat, khuzdar, Gwadar, Sibi and Jacobabad in Balochistan. Army Engineers are working on Jumani Bridge as well as for the repair and restoration of roads in Brija, Shahdadkot, Panjgur, and Dera Murad Jamali and other areas while Army Aviation helicopters have flown 861 sorties and rescued about 50,000 people from flood hit areas of Balochistan and Sindh. Todate, 117 sorties of C-130 aircraft have also been flown from Chaklala and Karachi to flood hit areas of Balochistan and Sindh, and 45,000 tents, 2000 tons of rations, 22563 water bottles, 2177 cartons of medicines, 60,000 blankets and 545 mattresses have been distributed among the flood affectees. (Posted @ 18:14 PST)
Pakistan's Habib Bank denies Pearl allegations KARACHI, July 19 (Reuters) Pakistan's Habib Bank Ltd. denied Thursday allegations by the widow of slain Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl that it transferred funds on behalf of charities supporting “terrorist organisations”. Mariane Pearl filed a lawsuit at the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York on Wednesday against al Qaeda, other radical groups and Habib Bank Ltd. over the 2002 abduction, torture and murder of her husband. “This is totally wrong. I strongly deny that,” said Zafar Aziz Osmani, Senior Executive Vice President at the bank, told Reuters. “As an institution, we have never been involved in supporting any terrorist organisation.” (Posted @ 14:00 PST)
Indian Premier's roadmap not acceptable: Rehmani ISLAMABAD, July 19 (APP): The Convener of All Parties Hurriyet Conference (Ali Gilani) AJK chapter, Mohammad Farooq Rehamni, has said that the people of Kashmir will not accept any road map of conflict resolution which deprives them the right of self- determination. Reacting to Indian Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh's statement the other day. Rehmani in a statement Thursday said: “The ideas of Indian Prime Minister are not practicable as India looks at the problem from a narrow domestic angle, which has no rationale.” (Posted @ 18:10 PST)
Iran's Ahmadinejad in Syria for talks with Assad DAMASCUS, July 19 (APP/AFP) - Iranian President Mamoud Ahmadinejad flew in to Damascus on Thursday for talks with Syrian counterpart Bashar al-Assad. “The ties between Iran and Syria are very comprehensive and sustainable,” Ahmadinejad said before leaving Tehran. (Posted @ 17:12 PST)
Lebanese army shells militants trapped in camp NAHR AL-BARED, Lebanon, July 19 (Reuters) The Lebanese army shelled militants cornered in small parts of a Palestinian refugee camp Thursday and security sources said two more soldiers died in the two-month-old battle. They said one soldier was killed Wednesday and the body of another was pulled from rubble in Nahr al-Bared camp, raising the army toll to 111 dead since fighting began on May 20. The Lebanese army has pushed slowly into the camp, fighting close-quarter battles with Fatah al-Islam after bombarding its positions with artillery and tank fire to force the group to surrender. (Posted @ 14:50 PST)
More than 50 people killed in Sudanese flooding KHARTOUM, July 19 (Reuters) More than 50 people were killed and at least 20 injured in Sudan's worst floods in living memory which have partially or completely destroyed 18,000 homes, the head of civil defence said Thursday. Hamadallah Adam Ali told Reuters major roads to some parts of the country had been flooded and police helicopters and government planes were flying in emergency aid and tents to affected areas in Sudan's east, southeast and around Khartoum. (Posted @ 14:10 PST)
Hekmatyar ends insurgency KABUL, July 19 (Reuters) Gulbuddin Hekmatyar has declared a ceasefire against the government, a statement signed by Hekmatyar said. The statement, aired by a private television and circulated in Kabul, said: “Members of Hezb-i-Islami have stopped and refrained from brother killing and from the destruction of the country and assumed political activity,” the statement said. (Posted @ 14:00 PST)
Six killed in Ukraine bus crash due to brake failure MOSCOW, July 19 (Reuters) Six people were killed and 46 were wounded when a bus travelling in the Crimea region of Ukraine overturned late Wednesday, officials said. The injured included 11 children, the Emergencies Ministry in Kiev told Reuters Thursday. The accident occurred near the village of Izobilnoye on the highway linking Simferopol to Yalta. (Posted @ 14:00 PST)
Bus accident in southern Hungary kills seven, injures 16 BUDAPEST, Hungary, July 19 (AP) A Czech-tagged tourist bus carrying 32 Romanian tourist and two drivers collided with a truck and crashed onto train tracks in southern Hungary early Thursday, killing seven people and injuring 16, a police official said. The bus collided with a trailer truck carrying passenger cars after the driver lost control and darted through a gated area. The bus finally stopped on the train tracks. A police spokeswoman for the southern county of Csongrad said the bus likely rolled onto tracks at an excessive speed but did not overturn. (Posted @ 11:25 PST)
Suicide blast kills one outside Afghan police station MAZAR-I-SHARIF, Afghanistan, July 19 (Reuters) A suicide bomber blew himself up outside a police station in northeastern Afghanistan’s Faizabad town Thursday, killing one civilian and wounding 11, police said. The bomber detonated the explosives attached to his body during the morning rush hour outside the main police station of Faizabad, capital of Badakhshan province. The casualties were all civilians, said provincial police chief General Noor Aqa. (Posted @ 10:40 PST)
Two Germans, five Afghans abducted in Afghanistan KABUL, July 19 (AFP) Taliban insurgents kidnapped two German nationals and their five Afghan colleagues in southern Afghanistan’s Wardak province’s Band-e-Sultan area Wednesday, an official told AFP Thursday. (Posted @ 10:10 PST)
Building collapse in India kills 29, injures 16 MUMBAI, July 19 (AFP) At least 29 people were killed and 30 others were feared still trapped 12 hours after a building partially collapsed in Mumbai, officials said Thursday. Sixteen people were also injured in the accident late Wednesday, said a Mumbai civic administration official. (First Posted @ 09:20 PST Updated @ 23:48 PST)
US troop levels in Iraq unsustainable after mid-2008: Powell WASHINGTON, July 19 (AFP) Former US secretary of state and top US general Colin Powell said Wednesday that the current level of US troops in Iraq cannot be maintained beyond mid-2008. Powell also called on Washington to find a way to talk with the Palestinian group Hamas. “This is a tremendous burden on our troops and on our families,” Powell said of the ongoing troop presence in Iraq, in an interview with National Public Radio. He said the US Army and Marine Corps were stretched to their limit in Iraq since they had not been increased in size despite the greater responsibilities demanded of them. “It is not sustainable for our troops just to stay over there for an indefinite period at 180,000 person-strength unless there is improvement in the conditions that generate what I consider to be a civil war,” Powell said. He also urged the administration of Bush to stop shunning Hamas as a political player in the Middle East. “I think you'd have to find some way to talk to Hamas ... they are not going to go away,” adding that Hamas has considerable support from the Palestinian people. (Posted @ 08:50 PST)
Karachi Stocks down 465.16 points: KARACHI, July 19: At close of trading, the KSE-100 index was at 13194.68, down 465.16 points. (Bureau Report) (Updated @ 14:15 PST)
Forex update: KARACHI, July 19: The Pakistani Rupee was traded at Rs 60.95 to the US Dollar in the open market. (Bureau Report) (Updated @ 14:15 PST)
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