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| October 06, 2007 | Saturday | Ramazan 22, 1428 |
Updated round-the-clock, with major updates after 10:00 PST (05:00 GMT)
Musharraf sweeps vote, victory hangs on court ISLAMABAD, Oct 6 (Reuters) Pakistani military ruler Pervez Musharraf swept most votes (384 out of 702) in a presidential election Saturday but he has to wait for the Supreme Court to confirm the legality of his bid before being declared the winner. His landslide in an election largely boycotted by the opposition was widely expected. Members of the two-chamber parliament and four provincial assemblies voted for president. In the two houses of parliament (Senate and the National Assembly), Musharraf won 252 of 257 votes cast. His closest rival, Wajihuddin Ahmed, got two votes, while three votes were declared invalid, Chief Election Commissioner Qazi Mohammad Farooq told the National Assembly. Three other contesting candidates, Senate chairman Mohammadmian Soomro, Musharraf’s covering candidate; PPP’s Makhdoom Ameen Fahim and his covering candidate Faryal Talpur did not earn any vote. Musharraf had also won most votes cast in all four provincial assemblies (Punjab 253, Sindh 104, NWFP 31 and Balochistan 33), officials said, and ended up with a total of 384 electoral college votes out of 702, according to a Reuters tally. “This result shows the people want continuity of policy,” Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz told reporters in parliament. Coinciding with the vote, lawyers behind a campaign against Musharraf led anti-government protests in the four provincial capitals - Karachi, Lahore, Peshawar and Quetta. Police fired tear gas shells to disperse lawyers pelting rocks at the North West Frontier Province assembly in Peshawar, where protesters also torched an armoured police vehicle. But opposition’s call for a protest strike by and large went without public support. (First Posted @ 10:24 PST, Updated @ 18:05 PST)
PPP abstains, APDM boycotts presidential poll ISLAMABAD, Oct 6 (PPI) Benazir Bhutto’s Pakistan People's Party (PPP) on Saturday abstained from presidential polls while the All Parties Democratic Movement (APDM) boycotted the whole process of election by terming it unconstitutional, undemocratic and unethical. Speaking on the floor of the House, Leader of Opposition in the Senate, Mian Raza Rabbani said General Pervez Musharraf's election from the present assemblies in uniform and without uniform was unconstitutional, undemocratic and unethical. He said PPP was consistent in its stand that the present assemblies cannot elect the President for the next term as they are due to complete their term within the next couple of weeks. He, therefore, said his party had decided not to take part in the voting process. Prof. Khurshid Ahmed of MMA said that APDM considers the re-election of General Pervez Musharraf from these assemblies as the clear violation of the Constitution and has therefore decided to boycott the presidential election process. Senator Abdul Rahim Mandokhail of the Phatoonkhwa Milli Awami Party and Senator Mehtab Abbassi expressed similar views. (First Posted @ 10:38 PST, Updated @ 16:45 PST)
Lawyers clash with police in Peshawar PESHAWAR, Oct 6(AFP): Police clashed with protesting lawyers in the city on Saturday as lawmakers began voting in the presidential election, witnesses said. Some 300 lawyers burned an effigy of President General Pervez Musharraf and chanted “Go, Musharraf, go!” near the NWFP parliament in the city. Witnesses said protesters tried to set fire to a police armoured vehicle and threw stones. Police then used batons to disperse the lawyers. Security was high across the country as MPs voted in Islamabad and the provincial capitals. (Posted @ 11:02 PST)
One soldier killed, 19 wounded in attacks in North Waziristan MIRANSHAH, Pakistan, Oct 6 (AFP) One Pakistani soldier was killed and 19 were wounded in attacks by militants Saturday in Pakistan’s North Waziristan tribal region, officials said. A convoy of security forces travelling through the region was hit first by roadside bombs and then came under rocket attack near the district's main town Miranshah, a local official said. Gunship helicopters later targeted suspected militant hideouts in the area, the official, requesting anonymity, said. (Posted @ 15:25 PST)
JUI legislatures move no confidence motion against Speaker NWFP Assembly PESHAWAR, Oct 6 (APP): Legislatures of JUI (F) in NWFP Assembly Saturday moved no-confidence motion against Speaker of the Provincial Assembly, Bakht Jehan Khan, who belongs to the Jamaat-i-Islami. The motion signed by 10 members held the Speaker responsible for failure in dissolution of NWFP assembly before the presidential elections as planned by APDM leadership. (Posted @ 17:35 PST)
Presidential poll: Four opposition legislators cast vote ISLAMABAD, Oct 06 (PPI) Three legislators of the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal (MMA) Saturday cast their votes by violating the decision of the All Parties Democratic Movement (APDM) not to participate in the presidential election process. They were Jamiatul Ulama-i-Islam's (S) MNA Hakeem Qari Gul Rehman and MNA Maulana Khalil-ur-Rehman besides Senator Hafiz Rashid Ahmed. MNA Shahabuddin Khan of ANP who recently joined the ruling PML also cast his vote. (Posted @ 16:55 PST)
Baghdad governor escapes attack on his convoy BAGHDAD, Oct 6 (AP) - The Baghdad governor escaped unharmed Saturday when his convoy came under attack by insurgents in the Sadiyah neighbourhood, southwest of the capital. An AP cameraman who was in the governor's convoy videotaped the gunbattle while the governor's guard force exchanged fire with the attackers for several minutes. No one in the convoy was known to have been wounded. (Posted @ 21:06 PST)
Two dead, 17 injured as Typhoon Krosa lashes Taiwan TAIPEI, Oct 6 (AFP) -Two men were killed, two missing and at least 17 others were injured as Typhoon Krosa pounded Taiwan with powerful winds and torrential rain Saturday, rescuers said. Most domestic trains, ferries and flights were cancelled, and about 186 international flights were also suspended and four postponed. (Posted @ 21:00 PST)
US cautiously congratulates Pakistan after vote WASHINGTON, Oct 6 (AFP) -The United States on Saturday gave a cautious congratulations to Pakistan, but withheld comment on reports that military ruler Pervez Musharraf registered a sweeping presidential election win. “Pakistan is an important partner and ally to the United States and we congratulate them for today's election,” White House spokesman Scott Stanzel said, refusing to comment on the winner until an official declaration is made. “We look forward to the electoral commission's announcement and to working with all of Pakistan's leaders on important bilateral, regional and counterterrorism issues,” he said.The State Department gave a similarly cautious response to the chief election commissioner's report that Musharraf won 252 of 257 votes cast in the national assembly and senate. “We are waiting for a declaration from the Pakistan Supreme Court. We will not have a comment until that declaration is made,” a State Department spokeswoman said. (Posted @ 20:55 PST)
Five Afghans killed at road construction site KANDAHAR, Oct 6 (AFP) - Taliban militants stormed a road construction site in Shah Wali Kot area of Kandahar province Saturday, killing at least five guards and road workers with another 10 missing, police said. One survivor said eight guards were killed and eight cars and trucks torched. (Posted @ 19:20 PST)
10 militants, 3 Indian soldiers killed in occupied Kashmir SRINAGAR, occupied Kashmir, Oct 6 (AP) - Indian troops killed at least 10 suspected militants in separate clashes, the army said Saturday. Three Indian soldiers were also killed. Three militants and a soldier were killed in a clash late Friday in Tangdhar region, about 120 kilometers north of Srinagar. Before dawn Saturday troops intercepted a second and larger group in the same region. The soldiers ordered them to surrender but the militants opened fire, with the ensuing daylong gunbattle killing six militants and two soldiers. Another militant was killed later Saturday in neighbouring Baramulla area. There was no independent confirmation of the reported clashes, nor word of them from the dozen or so guerrilla groups fighting Indian rule in occupied Kashmir. More than 68,000 people, mostly civilians, have died since the insurgency began. (Posted @ 18:30 PST)
Cricket: Pakistan speedster Akhtar to join Indian league LAHORE, Oct 6 (AFP) - Pakistani paceman Shoaib Akhtar is set to play for a recognised Indian league next year, saying he has sought permission from Pakistan's cricket authorities. “I have been approached by the Indian Premier League (IPL) and I have applied for permission from the Pakistan Cricket Board to sign the contract,” Akhtar told AFP on Saturday. “I always liked the Indian crowd and have always loved to play in India. Hopefully I will be in the Pakistan team for next month's tour there and will also play in the league,” he added. (Posted @ 17:40 PST)
Several injured in firing incident in Karachi KARACHI, Oct 6 (APP) Several persons were injured when angry mob pelted stones on passing vehicles and fired shots in the air in Nazimabad area Saturday morning, police said. A middle-aged man received bullet injury while half a dozen others were hurt due to stone throwing at about 11.30 a.m., a police official at Nazimabad Police Station confirmed. He said that police dispersed the crowd and also detained a couple of them. Some private television channels attributed the incident to the strike call given by the opposition on the occasion of the presidential poll but police did not confirm it. (Posted @ 17:25 PST)
APHC’s Protest Day call in occupied Kashmir SRINAGAR, occupied Kashmir, Oct 6 (PPI) Describing the situation in occupied Jammu and Kashmir as “extremely worrisome”, All Parties Hurriyat Conference said it would observe Juma-tul-wida as “Kashmir Day” to focus attention on the issue. “The situation in the state is extremely worrisome. A lasting and durable solution to Kashmir issue as per the wishes and aspirations of people only will ensure peace in the region,” APHC Chairman, Mirwaiz Umer Farooq said. Human rights violations are on the rise while “bloodbaths and killings have assumed alarming proportions,” he said. (Posted @ 17:00 PST)
Two drug smugglers killed, over a ton of opium seized in Iran TEHRAN, Oct 6(AP): Two drug smugglers and a police officer were killed in shootouts outside a northeastern Iranian town that borders Afghanistan, state television reported on Saturday. Police arrested two others and seized more than 1,300kgs of opium in the Bagh Rashid mountains outside of Taibad, the TV reported. (Posted @ 14:09 PST)
Iran road crash kills 17, injures 21 TEHRAN, Oct 6(Reuters): A truck and a passenger bus collided in Tehran province on Saturday killing 17 people and injuring 21, the official IRNA news agency reported. The two vehicles crashed northeast of the capital, IRNA quoted an official from Tehran's emergency centre, as saying. Three of the injured were in critical condition. (Posted @ 13:54 PST)
Kabul suicide attack kills coalition soldier, five Afghans KABUL, Oct 6(AFP): A suicide car bomb struck a US-led coalition convoy near Kabul airport on Saturday, killing one soldier and five Afghans, officials said. The blast set several vehicles aflame. One coalition soldier was klled,” a spokesman for the force told AFP. He could not release the nationality of the soldier, nor say how many troops were hurt. An Afghan security official told AFP earlier that three foreign soldiers were killed. Afghan television showed pictures of a body in US military uniform lying on the ground. An AFP reporter at the scene saw a US soldier being treated. An interior ministry spokesman said five Afghan civilians were killed and five wounded. The explosion, caused by a bomb-filled mini-van, targeted two armoured vehicles. (First Posted @ 10:04 PST Updated @ 13:51 PST)
Japan to stop naval refueling mission: Nikkei TOKYO, Oct 6(Reuters): Japan's government will inform U.S. and British forces that it will withdraw its naval support of U.S.-led military operations in Afghanistan on Nov. 1, the Nikkei business daily said on Saturday. Tokyo will alert its coalition partners as early as Monday, it said. The ruling Liberal Democratic Party wants to pass a new law to allow the naval mission, which provides fuel for coalition forces in the Indian Ocean, to resume after the mission's Nov.1 expiry date. But the opposition Democratic party and its smaller allies are determined to vote the plan down in the upper house. They have refused to discuss the plan before the expiry date, the Nikkei said. (Posted @ 12:18 PST)
Two Muslims shot dead in south Thailand YALA, Oct 6(AFP): Two Muslims have been shot dead by suspected rebels in separate attacks in south Thailand, police said on Saturday. A 77-year-old woman was killed Saturday by militants in her house. In nearby Narathiwat province, a 35-year-old man was gunned down late Friday in a drive-by shooting. (Posted @ 10:48 PST)
Five rebels killed, four soldiers wounded in Sri Lanka clashes COLOMBO, Oct 6(AP): Five Tamil rebels including a regional leader were killed in clashes with government troops across Sri Lanka's volatile north, the military said on Saturday. Two rebels were killed in fighting in Periyathampanai, Vilathikulam and Navatkulam villages in Vavuniya district, while four government soldiers were wounded, an official said. Three guerrillas were killed in a clash near northeastern Welioya village, he said. (Posted @ 09:52 PST)
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