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| September 08, 2007 | Saturday | Sha'aban 25, 1428 |
Updated round-the-clock, with major updates after 10:00 PST (05:00 GMT)
Pakistan's exiled former PM Sharif says he will return to Pakistan LONDON, Sept 10 (AP) – Pakistan's exiled former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif said Saturday he would return home Monday despite a request from Saudi Arabia to abandon his planned trip. ''I will go back to Pakistan on Sept. 10 with my brother because my country needs me,'' he told a news conference in London, hours after a Saudi envoy urged him to respect a 2000 agreement under which he had agreed to leave Pakistan for 10 years. (Posted @ 20:25 PST)
Saudi prince, Lebanese VIP urge Sharif to scrap Pakistan return ISLAMABAD, Sept 8(AFP): A Saudi Arabian prince and an influential Lebanese politician on Saturday urged former prime minister Nawaz Sharif to scrap plans to return to the country next week. Saad Hariri, son of former Lebanese prime minister Rafiq Hariri, and Saudi intelligence chief Prince Miqrian bin Abdul Aziz said Sharif must honour the deal that sent him into exile seven years ago. Prince Miqran read a statement before the state media after a meeting with President Musharraf in Islamabad on Saturday. “Nawaz Sharif must honour his commitment,” Hariri told reporters after a meeting with President Pervez Musharraf. (First posted @ 14:40 PST Posted @ 15:52 PST)
Car bomb injures 12 in northwest Pakistan PESHAWAR, Pakistan, Sept 8 (AFP) - A car bomb exploded in a parking area at a busy market in Peshawar city Saturday, injuring a dozen people, police said. The explosion in the congested Saddar Bazaar in the capital of North West Frontier Province, also damaged several vehicles, local police officer Ijaz Khan said. (Posted @ 12:00 PST)
Cricket: England beat India by three wickets LONDON, Sept 8, 2007 (AFP) - England beat India by seven wickets to win the seventh one-day international at Lord's here Saturday and complete a 4-3 series win. England, chasing a modest 188 for victory. (Posted @ 23:00 PST)
Car bomber kills 15 in Baghdad Shiite bastion BAGHDAD, Sept 8, 2007 (AFP) - At least 15 people were killed when a suicide bomber detonated his explosives-laden car against a small eatery inside a Shiite bastion in Baghdad after his attack on a police station was foiled. The latest assault came as the commander of US-led forces in Iraq, General David Petraeus, said the ongoing troop “surge” in Iraq had made progress on the security front but was not backed by political gains. (First Posted @ 20:00 PST; Updated @ 22:00 PST)
Britain to withdraw 250 troops from Iraq within four weeks LONDON, Sept 8(AFP): Some 250 British soldiers will be withdrawn from Iraq over the next four weeks as part of a plan to reduce troop levels by 500 to 5,000, the defence ministry said on Saturday. (Posted @ 19:20 PST)
Islamists cry foul in Moroccan elections RABAT, Sept 8(AFP): Morocco's main opposition Islamist party accused rivals of electoral fraud on Saturday after early results indicated they failed to achieve a breakthrough in legislative elections. “We think we will get 52 seats in total, which is disappointing. Money from our rivals was changing hands all over the place,” the Justice and Development Party (PJD)'s number two Lahcen Daoudi said. (Posted @ 19:00 PST)
Taliban unrest shuts nearly 400 schools in Afghanistan KABUL, Sept 8(AFP): Nearly 400 schools in Afghanistan will remain closed when the school year starts next week because of violence linked to the Taliban-led insurgency, education officials said on Saturday. All the affected schools -- among the 8,500 in Afghanistan -- are in the south, where the violence is worst, they told AFP. (Posted @ 18:35 PST)
Syrian paper says US silence over Israeli overflight encourages Jewish state DAMASCUS, Sept 8(AP): A Syrian newspaper on Saturday accused the U.S. of encouraging Israel's violation of Syrian airspace by remaining silent on the issue. “This new Israeli hostile operation was carried out in coordination between Washington and Tel Aviv,” the Tishrin newspaper said in a front-page editorial. U.S. silence can only be interpreted as an “overt and scandalous encouragement of Israel,” it said. Damascus has said Israeli jets broke the sound barrier flying over northern Syria on Thursday, then “dropped munitions” on deserted areas. (Posted @ 18:10 PST)
Landslides in northeastern India kill 7, injure 4 CALCUTTA, Sept 8(AP): A series of landslides triggered by heavy rains killed at least seven people in northeastern India and injured four others, officials said on Saturday. The landslides occurred on Friday in Darjeeling district of West Bengal state. Heavy rains have lashed the area since Thursday morning. (Posted @ 18:05 PST)
33 killed in northern Nigeria road collision LAGOS, Sept 8(AP): Two buses filled with passengers collided and burst into flames on a road in northern Nigeria, killing 33 people, state-owned radio said on Saturday. Radio Nigeria said the crash on Friday afternoon occurred on the Gusau-Sokoto road _ some 700 kilometers (435 miles) northwest of the country's capital, Abuja _ when one of the buses crashed into the other while avoiding a stray animal. All occupants of both vehicles were killed, the report said. (Posted @ 18:05 PST)
Al-Qaeda-linked Kabul suicide network busted: police KABUL, Sept 8(AFP): Afghan police said on Saturday they had busted an Al-Qaeda-linked “terrorist network” organising suicide bombings in Kabul, which has suffered a rash of attacks in the past weeks. The network included six militants, some of whom are foreigners, who were arrested this week in Logar Province, the counter-terrorism police chief told reporters. (Posted @ 16:17 PST)
Palestinian teenager killed by Israeli army GAZA CITY, Sept 8(AP): A 16-year-old Palestinianboy was killed by Israeli army fire near the Gaza-Israel border on Saturday, a Palestinian health official said. (Posted @ 15:38 PST)
US troops launch assault in Iraqi oil city BAGHDAD, Sept 8(AFP): More than 400 US and Iraqi troops launched an air and ground assault in the northern oil city of Kirkuk to flush out Sunni insurgents, the US military said on Saturday. The mission is part of Operation Lightning Hammer II and was launched on Thursday. (Posted @ 14:12 PST)
Bomb in Iraqi market kills five NAJAF, Sept 8(Reuters): A roadside bomb exploded in a market in the holy town of Kufa on Saturday, killing five people and wounding eight, police said. The local hospital said three people were killed and four wounded. (Posted @ 14:30 PST)
US troops launch assault in Iraqi oil city BAGHDAD, Sept 8(AFP): More than 400 US and Iraqi troops launched an air and ground assault in the northern oil city of Kirkuk to flush out Sunni insurgents, the US military said on Saturday. The mission is part of Operation Lightning Hammer II and was launched on Thursday. (Posted @ 14:12 PST)
Suicide bomb kills 28 in Algeria DELLYS, Algeria, Sept 8(AFP): At least 28 people were killed and 60 injured in a car bomb attack on Saturday a barracks in Dellys, 70 kilometres east of Algiers. The town is on the east coast of Algeria. , At least 15 of the dead were members of the naval coastguard, local security sources said. The force of the explosion flattened most of the prefabricated buildings that make up the barracks. (First Posted @ 14:10 PST; Updated @ 18:26 PST)
Injuries, arrests as thousands protest against Bush in Sydney SYDNEY, Sept 8(AFP): Two policemen were injured and nine protesters arrested as thousands marched in Sydney against visiting US President George W. Bush Saturday, although police fears of a full-scale riot proved unfounded. Police officers, many in riot gear, lined the streets for the protest, which remained peaceful aside from isolated scuffles at the rear of a column of more than 5,000 people marching from Town Hall to the city's Hyde Park. (Posted @ 14:05 PST)
Israeli army nabs top Hamas commander in southern Gaza GAZA CITY, Sept 8 (AFP) - Israeli special forces captured late Friday Mohawah al-Qadi, a senior member of Hamas's armed wing and a commander in its paramilitary Executive Force, in the town of Rafah in southern Gaza. Hamas's armed wing, the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, said in a statement. (Posted @ 14:00 PST)
Pacific Rim leaders adopt global warming statement SYDNEY, Australia, Sept 8 (AP) - Pacific Rim leaders agreed Saturday that the world needs to “slow, stop and then reverse” greenhouse gas emissions, and adopted goals on reducing energy intensity and reforestation as part of the effort. Australian Prime Minister John Howard, as host of the APEC summit, announced the Sydney Declaration. “The world needs to slow, stop and then reverse the growth of global greenhouse gas emissions,” said the statement issued by APEC's 21 leaders. APEC members agreed to reduce “energy intensity” _ the amount of energy needed to produce a unit of economic growth _ 25 percent by 2030. The declaration also calls for increasing forest cover in the region by at least 20 million hectares (50 million acres) by 2020. The statement recognizes “common but differentiated responsibilities” in combating climate change. The phrase means richer nations will have to bear more of the financial and other costs in cutting the carbon emissions that contribute to global warming. APEC's 21 members, which include major polluters the United States, China, Russia and Japan, together account for 60 percent of global energy demand and pump out about the same share of greenhouse gasses into the atmosphere. (Posted @ 12:25 PST)
Truck crash toll in India reaches 85 JODHPUR, India, Sept 8 (AFP) – The death toll in the ill-fated truck that plunged into a ravine in Rajasthan state late Friday night has reached 85, officials said adding that another 60 were injured, many seriously. Some 200 pilgrims were crowded on the truck travelling to a religious fair when the accident occurred.“ “Eighty-five bodies have been recovered.” police said Saturday adding they were trying to confirm the whereabouts of some 50 remaining passengers. The truck driver lost control on a sharp bend in a mountainous region and smashed through a protective roadside wall, plunging into the 80-foot deep gorge, police said. (Posted @ 12:15 PST)
21 killed in fresh Sri Lanka violence COLOMBO, Sept 8 (AFP) - At least 21 people were killed in fresh violence in Sri Lanka's embattled northern and eastern regions, military officials said Saturday. Three soldiers and five Tamil Tiger rebels were killed in a gun battle in the northern Vavuniya region late Friday, the officials said. Two more rebels were killed in a similar exchange further north in the Jaffna peninsula on the same day. Three civilians were killed in a mine blast in the eastern town of Eravur on Friday while two more civilians were gunned down by unidentified attackers in the northeast, officials said. (First Posted @ 12:03 PST; Updated @ 17:58 PST)
Thousands protest at APEC; minor scuffles but mostly peaceful SYDNEY, Australia, Sept AP - Thousands of protesters held a colourful and mostly peaceful march and rally Saturday near a summit of Pacific Rim leaders, demonstrating against visiting U.S. President George W. Bush, the Iraq war and about a host of other causes. Police said two officers were injured and five people were arrested during the demonstration. Protesters waved banners emblazoned with union logos and slogans against Bush and Australian Prime Minister John Howard. “Justice, Not Destruction” read one placard; and another: “End the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.” (Posted @ 09:53 PST)
Tennis- US Open: Henin, Kuznetsova set up final contest NEW YORK, Sept Reuters - Top seed Justine Henin of Belgium battled past two-times champion Venus Williams 7-6 6-4 in a see-saw slugfest on Friday to line up a U.S. Open final against Russian Svetlana Kuznetsova. Fourth seed Kuznetsova, who won the Open in 2004, overcame some early nerves to beat compatriot Anna Chakvetadze 3-6 6-1 6-1 in her semi-final on a hot, breezy day at Flushing Meadows. The men's semi-finals will be played on Saturday before the women's final with triple champion Roger Federer gunning to reach his 10th straight grand slam final when he takes on gritty Russian Nikolay Davydenko, the fourth seed. The other semi-final has third-seeded Serb Novak Djokovic against Spaniard David Ferrer, the 15th seed, who beat French Open champion Rafael Nadal on the way to his first appearance in the last four of a grand slam. In the men's doubles, Swede Simon Aspelin and Austrian Julian Knowle won their first grand slam title by defeating Czechs Lukas Dlouhy and Pavel Vizner 7-5 6-4. (Posted @ 09:45 PST)
Bin Laden urges escalation in Iraq war WASHINGTON, Sept (AFP) - Osama bin Laden on Friday urged his followers to step up the battle to end the Iraq war in his first video appearance since 2004, according to a transcript released by a US-based monitoring service. Bin Laden says in the video that there were two solutions for stopping the war. The first solution, Bin Laden says, “is to continue to escalate the killing and fighting against you. The second was to overturn the US political system. (Posted @ 09:43 PST)
US, Japan, Australia hold security talks SYDNEY, Sept 8 (AFP) - The leaders of the United States, Japan and Australia held landmark three-way security talks Saturday that took in China's growing regional influence as well as India and North Korea. President George W. Bush and Australian and Japanese Prime Ministers John Howard and Shinzo Abe met in Sydney over breakfast ahead of an Asia-Pacific summit. The three previously insisted their first talks were not aimed at isolating regional superpower China and, in an indication of their sensitivities toward Beijing, agreed Saturday not to reveal details of their discussions. “As far as China is concerned, the three leaders shared the same recognition that it's important to have a positive engagement with China,” Japanese foreign ministry spokesman Mitsuo Sakaba said. (Posted @ 9:30 PST)
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