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| August 06, 2007 | Monday | Rajab 21, 1428 |
Updated round-the-clock, with major updates after 10:00 PST (05:00 GMT)
365,000 people hit by Sudan floods: UN KHARTOUM, Aug 6, (APP/AFP) - Some 365,000 people have been hit by a month of flooding in Sudan, and the situation will only worsen as the rains continue, the United Nations humanitarian relief agency said on Monday. “Well over 30,000 houses were fully destroyed. At least 365,000 people have already been directly affected, including a reported 64 dead and 335 injured,” the UN's Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said in a statement. (Posted @ 23:48 PST)
Three injured in explosion PESHAWAR, Aug 6 (APP) - Three person sustained minor injuries when a low intensity explosive device planted in a deserted market went off near Wakhopul bridge on Kohat road on Monday. (Posted @ 23:16 PST)
Six miners missing as tunnel collapses after earthquake LOS ANGELES, Aug 6, (AFP) - Six workers were missing after a tunnel collapsed at a coal mine in a remote part of the western state of Utah following a nearby earthquake, police said Monday. An official from Emery County sheriff's office told AFP six men were unaccounted for following the accident at the Genwal Mine in Huntington Canyon, around 120 miles southeast of Salt Lake City. (Posted @ 22:30 PST)
Musharraf opens Rs 3.5 bn Northern Bypass KARACHI, Aug 6 (APP): President Pervez Musharraf Monday inaugurated the 56- Kms Northern Bypass project completed at a cost of Rs 3.5 billion and said it would not only help ease the traffic problem in Karachi but also provide a boost to the already growing economy. Speaking on the occasion he said the economy is growing satisfactorily and this fact is reflective in public sector development projects costing Rs 520 billion. He said he would not allow destabilisation in the country. “Democracy will continue to move forward and elections are to take place, but there should not be destabilisation and I would not allow it”, the President declared. General Pervez Musharraf reiterated that forthcoming elections would be fair and transparent and whosoever attempts to create destability will have to come across him first. He said Karachi has a unique position for its being the gateway of Pakistan and a link of Pakistan with the rest of the world and, therefore, it is most essential that the city has an effective communication network. He also said that peace and harmony in Karachi is essential for economic growth of Pakistan and south to north traffic management. (Posted @ 21:44 PST)
Taliban not a threat to Afghan government - Karzai CAMP DAVID, Md., Aug 6 Reuters) - The Taliban is a danger to children, aid workers and other innocent people, but is a “defeated” force that is not a threat to the government of Afghanistan, Afghan President Hamid Karzai said on Monday. “They're not causing any threat to the government of Afghanistan. They're not causing any threat to the institutions of Afghanistan or to the buildup of the institutions of Afghanistan,” Karzai said at a news conference after two days of meetings with U.S. President George W. Bush at the Camp David retreat in the Maryland mountains. (Posted @ 21:10 PST)
Iraq attacks kill 48, over 80 wounded MOSUL, Iraq, Aug 6 (AFP) - A suicide bomber sped into a village in northern Iraq on Monday and blew up a truck packed with explosives, unleashing a massive blast that killed 30 people, injured at least 50, and pulverised homes. The bomber detonated his deadly charge after driving across farmland to Al-Quba, the mayor of nearby Tal Afar, Major General Najim Abdallah, said. “It was filled with a huge amount of explosives. Twenty houses were destroyed, 10 of them entirely wiped out,” he said. Violence further south killed another 18 people, including nine who were killed when a roadside bomb ripped through a bus stop in Baghdad’s Diyala Bridge neighbourhood. Another three people were killed when a booby-trap exploded in a minibus in eastern part of the capital. In the Sunni Arab heartland, also north of the capital, mortar rounds crashed through private homes, killing six civilians and wounding another 17 in the town of Dhuluiyah. Meanwhile, the US military said two air strikes killed eight presumed fighters in raids against Iraqi affiliates of Al-Qaeda, with another three killed by ground troops in the Sunni heartland north of Baghdad. (First Posted @ 16:35 PST Updated @ 20:50 PST)
Five US soldiers killed in Iraq BAGHDAD, Aug 6 (AFP) - Five American soldiers have died in Iraq, four of whom were killed on Monday in Baquba in the troubled province of Diyala, the US military announced. “Four US soldiers were killed today in Baquba. There were also 12 soldiers injured,” a military spokesman told AFP. Another American soldier was killed and two others were wounded in an eastern part of the capital on Sunday. (Posted @ 20:14 PST)
Boat sinks in India's flooded Bihar state SAMASTIPUR, India, Aug 6 (AFP) - A boat carrying up to 100 people capsized in the rain-swollen Ganges Monday in Bihar state , and most of the passengers were feared drowned.“So far only one body has been found, 11 people swam to safety,” Shravan Kumar, local administrator of Samastipur district, 150 kilometres north of state capital Patna,said. “The remaining people seem to have been carried away by the very strong currents,” he said. (Posted @ 20:10 PST)
Musharraf briefed about industrialisation KARACHI, Aug 6 (APP): President General Pervez Musharraf Monday emphasised the need for acceleration of the process of industrialisation as it contributes towards poverty alleviation and reduction in unemployment. During a briefing by the Federal Minister for Industries and Production, Jehangir Khan Tarin, he pointed out that for industrialisation, the acquisition of land has remained a problem which should be resolved in an effective manner. He emphasised that in the process of industrialisation, the private sector should be involved for provision of the required infrastructure. He referred to his meeting with the then Premier of Malaysia, Dr. Mahathir Mohammad, who informed him that in Malaysia land is given free to those who want to establish industry . (Posted @ 20:04 PST)
ANP to participate in Pak-Afghan Peace Jirga PESHAWAR, August 6 (APP): Central President of Awami National Party (ANP), Asfandyar Wali Khan will lead a six-member high level delegation of party to attend Pak-Afghan Peace Jirga to be held in Kabul (Afghanistan) on August 9 and 10 next. Delegation members are: Haji Ghulam Ahmad Bilour, Muhammad Afzal Khan Lala, MNA Shabuddin Khan, Dr. Inayatullah and Jillani Khan. (Posted @ 20:00 PST)
Javed Hashmi attends NA session after release, demands fair general election ISLAMABAD, Aug 6 (APP): Acting President of Pakistan Muslim League (N) Makhdoom Javed Hashmi was back in the National Assembly on Monday after nearly four years in jail, following his release last week on bail on the orders of the Supreme Court .He reached the parliament house in a procession and later talking to newsmen said he would soon leave for London to meet Mian Nawaz Sharif for detailed consultations . He said return of Nawaz Sharif and Benazir Bhutto was essential for holding free, fair and transparent general election. (Posted @ 19:52 PST)
Iran, US experts discuss Iraq security BAGHDAD, Aug 6 (AFP) - Iranian, Iraqi and US experts on Monday held the first meeting of a joint security committee looking to ease the insurgency in Iraq that has put arch-foes Washington and Tehran at loggerheads. The Iraqi government hosted the session, which lasted around four hours. “We could call the talks frank and serious, and focused as agreed on security problems in Iraq,” US embassy spokesman Philip Reeker told AFP.I raqi Deputy Foreign Minister Labid Abawi called the talks “positive and good,” All sides were keen to continue contacts, but Abawi mentioned no dates. (Posted @ 19:38 PST)
Three deminers found shot dead in Afghanistan KANDAHAR, Aug 6 (AFP) - The bullet-riddled bodies of three Afghan mine clearers who disappeared at the weekend were found in a village in Panjwayi district, a stronghold of Taliban insurgents blamed for a string of abductions and murders. (Posted @ 19:32 PST)
SC adjourns hearing of missing persons case for August 20 ISLAMABAD, Aug 6 (APP): A two-member bench of the Supreme Court comprising Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry and Justice M.Javed Buttar Monday adjourned the hearing of missing persons case for August 20 while accepting Attorney General Malik Qayyum’s request for grant of more time for the resolution of the issue after discussing the matter with the family members of the missing persons as well as their counsels.The bench heard the case of missing persons one by one and directed the Deputy Attorney General to provide details concerning the petitions filed by Human Rights Commission of Pakistan and others. (Posted @ 18:04 PST)
Musharraf addresses PML parliamentarians KARACHI, Aug 6 (APP): The country has made unprecedented progress during the last eight years, President General Pervez Musharraf said Monday while addressing the PML parliamentarians in Karachi. Briefing newsmen after the meeting , spokesman Maj. Gen. (Retd) Rashid Qureshi, said the President emphasised that the government needs support of the masses as well as the political parties in the struggle against terrorism, extremism and violence. The President informed parliamentarians that last year there was a direct foreign investment in the country to the tune of dollars 6.7 billion and pointed out that terrorism and extremism affect investment climate. Sindh Chief minister Dr. Arbab Ghulam Rahim speaking on the occasion said PML would continue to support President Musharraf and his policies. (Posted @ 17:52 PST)
Pakistan warns of serious impact on relationship with US ISLAMABAD, Aug 6 (APP): Pakistan on Monday warned of serious impact on its relationship with the United States if any transgression was made in the parameters of their long-term strategic partnership. “Any transgression of the accepted parameters, would be unacceptable and would damage the interests between the two countries,” Foreign Office spokesperson Tasnim Aslam said at the weekly Press briefing. She was responding to a question about the comments made by US Under Secretary of State Nicholas Burns where he stated that his country would not hesitate in striking suspected al-Qaeda hideouts in Pakistan's tribal areas. Ms Aslam termed it “mere echo” of similar statements by other US officials that have been demanding Pakistan to “do more”, while ignoring efforts made by Pakistan in eliminating terrorists, which she added was in Pakistan's national interest. She said Pakistan was dealing with challenges in its neighbourhood with extreme care and expected that its friends should not complicate the task which was difficult. “Placement of conditionalities is in no way conducive to the healthy relationship” and would “cast shadow on Pak-US cooperation”, she said. (Posted @ 17:36 PST)
Exports of meat, milk from all Britain banned - EU BRUSSELS, Aug 6(Reuters) - Exports of fresh meat, live animals and milk products will be banned from all of mainland Britain for the time being, following its recent outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease, the European Commission said on Monday. (Posted @ 17:00 PST)
Afghan, NATO operation kills 22 militants KANDAHAR, Afghanistan, Aug 6 (AFP) -An operation launched by Afghan and NATO troops in Zabul left 22 militants dead, a provincial official said Monday. The operation was launched late Sunday after a tip-off that the men planned to block the highway between Kandahar city and Kabul, 460 kilometres (286 miles) away, spokesman Alikhail said. It ended early today. The Taliban bodies are still in the battlefield, he said. (Posted @ 16:48 PST)
Iraq attacks kill 43, injure 75 MOSUL, Iraq, Aug 6 (AFP) Bombs and mortar attacks killed 43 people in Iraq on Monday, including 28 civilians who were killed and 50 others injured when a suicide bomber blew up a truck packed with explosives in Al-Quba. In Baghdad, a roadside bomb killed nine Iraqis, ripping through an unofficial bus stop in Diyala Bridge neighbourhood. The eight wounded were brought to hospitals with mainly burns injuries. In the town of Dhuluiyah north of the capital, mortar rounds crashed through private homes, killing six civilians and wounding another 17. Meanwhile, US forces said they killed 11 rebels and arrested 10 suspects on Monday in operations around the Tigris River Valley, the northern belt of Baghdad. An air strike also killed seven presumed fighters after US ground forces came under heavy gunfire in a raid against an Al-Qaeda in Iraq emir responsible for attacks in Salaheddin province, where Dhuluiyah is located, the military said. (Posted @ 16:35 PST)
US air strikes kill eight in Iraq BAGHDAD, Aug 6 (AFP) Two air strikes killed eight presumed rebels during US ground operations north of Baghdad on Monday, the US military said. The first raid was called in east of Balad, in Salaheddin province, after American troops came under heavy fire while targeting a so-called Al-Qaeda in Iraq emir. Seven armed terrorists were killed during the air engagement. Another air strike near the town of Khaylaniyah, northeast of Baghdad, killed a gunman spotted moving towards a nearby canal. Ground troops killed another three rebels and arrested 11 people in Monday's raids around the northern belt of Baghdad and Salaheddin province, a known hotbed of Sunni extremists. (Posted @ 16:25 PST)
Abbas-Olmert meet in Jericho JERICHO, West Bank, Aug 6 (AFP) Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert met on Monday in a bid to bridge gaping differences. Abbas's senior aide Nabil Amr said Monday “Abbas will ask Olmert to release more Palestinian prisoners, to facilitate lives of Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza, to lift roadblocks and stop settlements.” He is also likely to push the Israelis again to hand control over West Bank cities to the Palestinian Authority to boost him in his standoff with Hamas. Israel has said that it would not make such a move until Palestinian security forces crack down on militants. (Posted @ 16:10 PST)
Suicide truck bomb kills 28 in northern Iraq BAGHDAD, Aug 6 (AP) A suicide bomber slammed his truck into a densely populated residential area in the northern Iraqi city of Tal Afar, 420 kilometres northwest of Baghdad Monday, killing at least 28 people, police said. At least 40 others were wounded in the attack, said Brig. Gen. Rahim al-Jibouri, commander of Tal Afar police. The attacker drove a dump truck filled with explosives and covered with a layer of gravel, Brig. Najim Abdullah. Within an hour of the attack, authorities imposed a complete curfew on the city, he said. (First Posted @ 11:00 PST, Updated @ 14:50 PST)
Two Koreas exchange fire across border SEOUL, Aug 6 (AFP) North and South Korean soldiers exchanged fire Monday across their heavily fortified border in the first such incident for a year, the South's defence ministry said. The North started the shootout by firing machine gun rounds, it said. “In response, South Korean soldiers fired 10 warning shots from a machine gun. There were no casualties from the shooting,” a ministry spokesman said. Monday's shooting took place at about 1:30 pm near Inje, 165 kilometres northeast of Seoul. (Posted @ 14:30 PST)
Suspected militants kill 'gang leader' in Peshawar PESHAWAR, Pakistan, Aug 6 (AFP) Suspected militants Monday shot dead an alleged leader of a gang after he ignored warnings to stop criminal activities in a Pakistani tribal area, officials said. Ameer Sayed was driving his car when he was ambushed by armed men on motorcycles in Darra Adam Khel, a town in a semi-tribal area bordering Peshawar, a local official told AFP. The unidentified attackers fled after shooting him dead, the official said, requesting anonymity. Residents said Sayed, 45, had been warned by militants that he would be killed if he did not stop activities that allegedly included car jacking, drug smuggling and kidnapping for ransom. (Posted @ 14:20 PST)
Two students killed as tornado hits Myanmar school YANGON, Aug 6 (AFP) Two children were killed and two others were injured when a tornado destroyed a school building over the weekend in Myanmar's Ayeyawady River delta, the New Light of Myanmar newspaper said Monday. The building collapsed when the tornado struck Saturday morning in Labutta township, about 170 kilometres southwest of Yangon. A total of about 60 houses, school buildings and offices were also damaged by the tornado, the paper said. (Posted @ 10:50 PST)
Thirteen suspected Taliban killed in clash with Afghan, foreign troops KANDAHAR, Afghanistan, Aug 6 (AP) Afghan and foreign troops thwarted a Taliban ambush at a checkpoint in southern Afghanistan and killed 13 suspected militants, a local official said Monday. Troops battled the militants for over two hours Sunday in Zabul's Shahjoy district after they tried to attack the checkpoint on the main road linking Kabul to Kandahar, said Ali Kheil, the spokesman for Zabul's governor. (Posted @ 11:00 PST)
Suicide truck bomb kills 25 in northern Iraq BAGHDAD, Aug 6 (AP) A suicide bomber slammed his truck into a densely populated residential area in the northern Iraqi city of Tal Afar Monday, killing at least 25 people and wounding at least 22 others, police said. The attack occurred in a crowded neighbourhood of the city, which lies about 420 kilometres northwest of Baghdad. The attacker drove a dump truck filled with explosives and covered with a thin layer of construction materials, Brig. Gen. Rahim al-Jibouri, commander of Tal Afar police, said. Within an hour of the attack, authorities imposed a complete curfew on the city, al-Jibouri said. (Posted @ 11:00 PST)
Nine killed in Baghdad minibus queue BAGHDAD, Aug 6 (AFP) A roadside bomb killed nine Iraqis and injured eight others Monday, ripping through a bus stop in Baghdad, security and medical officials said. The device, hidden on the side of the road, blew up after a minibus stopped to collect waiting passengers in the Diyala Bridge neighbourhood in the southern suburbs of the capital, security officials said. Shrapnel ripped though the area as Iraqis got on and off the minibus at around 7:30 am and others stood waiting for a different line. (Posted @ 10:50 PST)
France's Sarkozy pauses to talk politics on US holiday WOLFEBORO, New Hampshire, Aug 6 (AFP) French President Nicolas Sarkozy broke from his vacation in this leafy lakeside town to deflect criticism about his allegedly lavish US summer break and a controversial arms deal with Libya. Sarkozy emerged in front of Wolfeboro's town hall to fend off accusations of a link between a major arms deal struck by European aerospace giant EADS with Libya, and an affair involving foreign medics jailed there. “It was totally transparent,” Sarkozy said of the deal. “EADS has been discussing them, with full authorizations, for 18 months.” ”What do they criticize me for? Getting contracts? Creating jobs for French workers?” (Posted @ 09:50 PST)
Iraqi police say 60 bodies found in Baquba BAGHDAD, Aug 6 (Reuters) Iraqi police said Sunday they had found 60 decomposed bodies dumped in thick grass in Baquba, north of Baghdad. (Posted @ 09:50 PST)
Three dead, one in serious condition after being lined up and shot in the head NEWARK, New Jersey, Aug 6 (AP) Three teenagers died and another was injured after they were lined up against a wall in a school parking lot and shot in the head, authorities said Sunday. A woman and two men were killed, said the prosecutor's office spokesman. He said three of them had student identification from Delaware State University. (Posted @ 09:50 PST)
Lebanon opposition wins key by-election BEIRUT, Aug 6 (AFP) The candidate backed by opposition leader Michel Aoun officially won a key by-election in Lebanon’s Metn region, northeast of Beirut, defeating the government camp, Interior Minister Hassan Sabeh said Monday. Camille Khoury beat by a narrow margin former president Amin Gemayel, a prominent leader of the ruling majority, he said. (Posted @ 09:30 PST)
US, Afghan presidents to discuss Taliban CAMP DAVID, Maryland, Aug 6 (AFP) Afghan President Hamid Karzai Sunday began talks with President George W. Bush on the deteriorating security situation in his country after raising eyebrows by describing Iran as more friend than foe. The drug trade, economic development and the fate of 21 South Korean hostages held by the Taliban were also likely to be high on the agenda for the two days of discussions at the Camp David presidential retreat. (Posted @ 09:15 PST)
Nine workers still trapped in flooded China rail tunnel BEIJING, Aug 6 (AFP) Nine workers remained trapped Monday in a flooded railway tunnel in central China, after three others were rescued late Sunday, Xinhua news agency reported. Rescue workers had pumped out a large quantity of water, but silt and mud were still clogging parts of the tunnel in Hubei province where the remaining workers were trapped, Xinhua quoted a local official as saying. The accident occurred early Sunday at the Yesanguan rail tunnel, trapping 52 workers who were building the new structure. (Posted @ 08:55 PST)
Floods kill six in Vietnam coffee area HANOI, Aug 6 (Reuters) Six people died, 14 were missing and thousands needed urgent evacuation from floods in Vietnam's Central Highlands coffee belt, the government said Monday. A storm, centred 100 km east of Danang city early Monday, had already dumped rains of up to 400 mm in the coffee-growing region since Wednesday, triggering flash floods, it said. Two people were killed and 14 were missing after flash floods swept them away in the highland province of Daklak, while about 3,000 people were evacuated to higher ground as several small dams broke. Four people died in the neighbouring province of Lam Dong where about 500 people were displaced by floods. (Posted @ 08:50 PST)
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