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| October 09, 2007 | Tuesday | Ramazan 26, 1428 |
Updated round-the-clock, with major updates after 10:00 PST (05:00 GMT)
Four days of battles between militants, Pakistani troops leave up to 250 dead MIRAN SHAH, Pakistan, Oct 9 (AP) Four days of fierce fighting between militants and security forces near the Afghan border have killed as many as 250 people, the army said Tuesday. Airstrikes hit Epi village bazaar in North Waziristan tribal region Tuesday afternoon, and more than 50 militants and civilians were killed and scores more were wounded, said resident Noor Hassan. ''The bombing destroyed many shops and homes,'' Hassan said. ''We are leaving.'' Twelve huge explosions rocked the village and bombs also hit the nearby village of Hader Khel, he said. Army spokesman Major General Waheed Arshad said that military aircraft struck ''one or two places'' near the town of Mir Ali and there were reports that about 50 militants were killed. Also Tuesday, a roadside bomb killed two soldiers, the army said. Epi lies about four kilometres from Mir Ali. Fighting broke out in North Waziristan Saturday after roadside bomb hit a truckload of paramilitary troops, sparking clashes. The bodies of dozens of soldiers have been recovered from deserted areas of the region, fleeing residents said. Before Tuesday's airstrikes, the army had reported that battles have killed 150 fighters and 45 soldiers since Saturday. About 12-15 troops are missing. Another 50 militants and 20 soldiers had been wounded. Security forces have rejected a cease-fire proposed by the militants and will ''continue punitive action till complete peace is restored'' in the area, an army statement said. (FirstPosted @ 10:28 PST, Updated@ 19:00 PST)
Pakistani families flee North Waziristan battle zone MIRANSHAH, Pakistan, Oct 9 (Reuters) Thousands of families began fleeing Mir Ali, a town in Pakistan’s North Waziristan tribal region, after three days of fierce clashes between militants and security forces killed nearly 200 people, witnesses said Tuesday. Around 150 militants and 45 soldiers were killed in fighting around Mir Ali. Families streamed out of the town of 50,000 people and outlying villages, making their way on foot, in tractor trailers and cars. “Eighty to ninety percent of families of Mir Ali have gone. Just one or two people are staying behind in each house to guard their belongings,” Sher Khan, a resident, told Reuters. “The main bazaar of Mir Ali is sealed by the army. All shops are closed. We have nothing to eat. That's why I have sent my family to Bannu,” he said, referring to a town in the North West Frontier Province at the tribal region’s gateway. The latest clashes erupted after militants ambushed a military convoy near Mir Ali late Saturday. Casualties mounted as the army struck back and pounded militants with helicopter gunships and fighter jets. The jets destroyed most houses around Essori, a village near Mir Ali where most of the fighting was concentrated.(Posted @ 17:30 PST)
Pakistani court dismisses Benazir's plea for pre-emptive bail, lawyer says KARACHI, Pakistan, Oct 9 (AP) A Pakistani court Tuesday dismissed former Premier Benazir Bhutto's request to grant her a pre-emptive bail against any arrest ahead of her planned return to Pakistan from exile next week, her lawyer said. A government lawyer ruled out the possibility of Benazir's arrest because President Musharraf signed an amnesty last week dropping corruption charges against her and others, lawyer Farooq Naik said. Her Pakistan Peoples Party had petitioned the Sindh High Court to issue her a ''bail before arrest'' to pre-empt any possible arrest on her arrival, Naik said. ''The court has settled the issue after the government lawyer assured it that there is no plan of her arrest on her arrival,'' Naik told The Associated Press. ''Under the ordinance all the court cases ceased to exist and thus there is no point for the government to arrest her,'' Naik quoted the state lawyer as saying in the court.(Posted @ 16:15 PST)
12 killed, 50 injured as train hits bus in Pakistan’s Muridke SHEIKHUPURA,Pakistan Oct 9 (APP) Twelve persons were killed and 50 others injured when a Lahore bound non-stop train hit a bus at a railway level crossing at Muridke, some 25 kilometres off here, Tuesday. According to police, the accident took place on Narowal road where non-stop train coming from Rawalpindi rammed into the bus.(Posted @ 19:05 PST)
50 militants killed in new Pakistan airstrikes ISLAMABAD, Oct 9 (AFP) Pakistani jets pounded militant hideouts in the tribal area of North Waziristan for a third day Tuesday, killing around 50 militants and injuring a similar number, security officials told AFP. “Reports from the area indicate that the strike was successful and around 50 militants are killed and there are an equal number injured,” said a security official based in Peshawar. The army confirmed that it had launched air strikes near Mir Ali, the second biggest town in North Waziristan, but said it did not have more details. Around 150 militants and 45 soldiers have died since Sunday, it said earlier.(Posted @ 17:25 PST)
Benazir to be given full security on return: Interior Ministry ISLAMABAD, Oct 9 (AP) The Interior Ministry said Tuesday it would provide protection for Benazir Bhutto after her return. ''When she comes to Pakistan we would provide full security to her,'' ministry spokesman Javed Iqbal Cheema told reporters in a weekly news briefing when asked about reports that the government will import bulletproof cars for Benazir's use. Her party says she faces threats from extremists, though Cheema said he was not aware of any specific threats.(Posted @ 19:00 PST)
Supreme Court bench to hear Musharraf election case expanded ISLAMABAD, Oct 9 (AFP) A Pakistan Supreme Court bench headed by Justice Javed Iqbal that will rule on the legality of President General Pervez Musharraf's participation in the presidential election was expanded Tuesday, officials said. The number of judges to hear challenges from October 17 on the corresponding election was expanded to 11. “Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry has enlarged the ten-member bench by adding one more judge,” the court's spokesman Arshad Munir told AFP. The court decided last week that Musharraf could stand in Saturday's election which he won in a landslide. But the court ordered that the result cannot be validated and declared official until it resolves the legal challenges. The challenges were lodged by former Supreme Court judge Wajihuddin Ahmad and the vice chairman of Benazir Bhutto's party, Makhdoom Ameen Fahim. Meanwhile, officials said the court will also hear a challenge against the deportation of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif the same day. “The chief justice has constituted a seven-member bench which will hear that appeal,” Munir said, adding that Chaudhry will lead the bench. The petition was filed by officials from Sharif's party after Musharraf expelled the ex-premier hours after his return from exile in September.(Posted @ 16:40 PST)
Al-Qaeda trying to get weapons of mass destruction: US WASHINGTON, Oct 9 (AFP) Osama bin Laden's Al-Qaeda network is still trying to acquire weapons of mass destruction including nuclear and biological arms, a new White House report on homeland security said Tuesday. “We also must never lose sight of Al-Qaeda's persistent desire for weapons of mass destruction, as the group continues to try to acquire and use chemical, biological, radiological, or nuclear material,” the report said.(Posted @ 20:00 PST)
CJCSC, VCOAS call on President Musharraf ISLAMABAD, Oct 9 (APP) Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee General Tariq Majeed and Vice Chief of Army Staff General Ashfaq Pervez Kiyani separately paid courtesy call on President General Musharraf here Tuesday. The President congratulated them on assuming charge of their new responsibilities and expressed the hope that under their able leadership the operational and professional capabilities of the Armed Force of Pakistan will be further enhanced.(Posted @ 19:45 PST)
NWFP CM Akram Khan Durrani pledges to keep MMA intact PESHAWAR, Oct 9 (APP) NWFP Chief Minister Akram Khan Durrani said Tuesday that despite the tough attitude of Jamaat-i-Islami, he would continue to work for keeping the religious alliance (MMA) intact. Talking to reporters here, the Chief Minister said he was betrayed by the Jamaat-i-Islami and ANP over the resignation issue but even then he would work day and night to protect the MMA from division. He said after 24 hours, he would no more be the chief minister and expressed the confidence that the Governor would sign the dissolution summary. In reply to a question, he said the decision to advise the Governor for dissolution of the assembly was taken in line with the directives of the APDM. He said he would continue to respect and honour decisions of his central leadership in future as well. Answering a question, he criticized the national reconciliation ordinance and said return of former premier Benazir Bhutto to Pakistan through an understanding was not good for her political career.(Posted @ 19:10 PST)
Bombings and shootings kill 33 in Iraq TIKRIT, Iraq, Oct 9 (AFP) Bombings and shootings in central Iraq and Baghdad, including twin suicide truck bomb attacks, killed at least 33 Iraqis Tuesday, officials said. At dawn two suicide bombers blew up fuel-laden trucks against the homes of an Iraqi police chief and a tribal leader in simultaneous bombings in Baiji city in central Salaheddin province, police said. The attacks just minutes and about a kilometre apart killed 19 people and wounded at least 50 people, police commander Ali al-Bijwari told AFP. In Baghdad at least 12 people were killed and more than 60 wounded in four bomb blasts, including one which ripped through crowds in a central square, Iraqi officials said. In northern Mosul city, the deputy commander of Nineveh police, Brigadier General Abdul Aal Thannoun Mubarak was killed when unidentified gunmen attacked his convoy, police said. Another policeman was killed in a car bomb attack on a police patrol in Mosul, that also wounded two other officers. Among the dead in Tuesday's twin suicide bomb attacks were four women and three children, police official Bijwari said. The first bomb exploded at the home of police chief Nifous, killing at least seven people, including his uncle and two nephews. Minutes later, a second suicide truck bomber crashed his explosives-packed truck into the house of Atallah, who escaped the attack. (FirstPosted@ 9:54 PST, Updated@ 18:15 PST)
German, Frenchman share 2007 Nobel Prize in physics for work on magnetic resistance STOCKHOLM, Sweden, Oct 9 (AP) France's Albert Fert and German Peter Gruenberg won the 2007 Nobel Prize in physics Tuesday for a discovery that has shrunk the size of hard drives found in computers, iPods and other digital devices. In its citation, the academy said the discovery can also be considered ''one of the first real applications of the promising field of nanotechnology.” ''Applications of this phenomenon have revolutionized techniques for retrieving data from hard disks,'' the prize citation said. ''The discovery also plays a major role in various magnetic sensors as well as for the development of a new generation of electronics.'' Fert, 69, is the scientific director of the Mixed Unit for Physics at CNRS/Thales, while Gruenberg, 68, is a professor at the Institute of Solid State Research in western Germany. The pair will split the 10 million Swedish kronor (US$1.5 million; euro1.1 million) prize.(Posted @ 17:25 PST)
IAEA in Tehran for talks over Iran's atomic work TEHRAN, Oct 9 (Reuters) A team led by the U.N. nuclear watchdog's second-in-command held talks in Tehran Tuesday with Iranian officials to try to clear up questions about the country's disputed atomic programme. State television said the talks began between Olli Heinonen,IAEA deputy director-general, and Iran's deputy nuclear negotiator, Javad Vaeedi. IRNA news agency said the IAEA team, which arrived early Tuesday, would stay two or three days. Talks would cover P-1 and P-2 centrifuges, IRNA reported. “The process is on track,” a senior Vienna diplomat familiar with IAEA-Iran contacts said.(Posted @ 17:15 PST)
Bomb explodes in Spanish city of Bilbao, injuring at least one MADRID, Spain, Oct 9 (AP) A bomb exploded under a car in the Basque city of Bilbao Tuesday, injuring at least one person, Basque regional police said. The bomb went off under the car of a body guard, who was injured, a police official said requesting anonymity.(Posted @ 16:55 PST)
Cricket- Umpire Hair drops case against ICC LONDON, Oct 9 (Reuters) Australian umpire Darrell Hair dropped his racial discrimination case against the International Cricket Council, the ICC confirmed Tuesday. Hair filed a lawsuit against the ICC after being dropped from the elite umpires list over his handling of the fourth Test between England and Pakistan at The Oval last August.(Posted @ 16:50 PST)
Bomb explodes in CD and video shop in Peshawar, ninteen wounded PESHAWAR, Pakistan, Oct 9 (Agencies) A bomb ripped through a CD and video shop in northwestern Pakistan city of Peshawar Tuesday, wounding at least ninteen people, police said. It was not immediately clear who planted the bomb. Local police chief Riaz Khan said the injured were being transported to hospitals.(Posted @ 16:50 PST)
Three killed, five injured by collapsed building in Cairo CAIRO, Egypt, Oct 9 (AP) An old building condemned by authorities collapsed in Cairo Tuesday, killing three of its residents and injuring five others, police said. Residents of the four-story building in Boulaq Abouel Ela neighbourhood had been ordered to evacuate the building before its collapse, said the police official, requesting anonymity.(Posted @ 16:15 PST)
Explosion at arms factory in Italy kills one, injures 6 ROME, Oct 9(AP): An explosion on Tuesday rocked a weapons factory near Rome, killing one person and injuring 14, police said. The ANSA news agency said the factory, in Colleferro, 60 kilometers southeast of Rome, was British, though carabinieri paramilitary police said they could not confirm that. A carabinieri official said one person was killed by the blast and 14 injured, including one seriously. (First Posted @ 14:17 PST Updated @ 15:11 PST)
Darfur rebels say four killed in attack KHARTOUM, Oct 9(AFP): The only Darfur rebel group to have signed a peace deal with Khartoum said on Tuesday four of its fighters were killed repelling an attack on a town by government forces. A Sudan Liberation Movement spokesman said four SLM fighters were killed and an unknown number of fighters and civilians wounded. He accused Khartoum of the attack. (Posted @ 14:52 PST)
Court dismisses Benazir’s plea for pre-emptive bail: lawyer KARACHI, Oct 9(AP): A i court on Tuesday dismissed former Premier Benazir Bhutto's request to grant her a pre-emptive bail against any arrest ahead of her planned return home from exile next week, her lawyer said. A government lawyer ruled out the possibility of Bhutto's arrest because President General Pervez Musharraf signed an amnesty last week dropping corruption charges against her and others, lawyer Farooq Naik said. (Posted @ 14:42 PST)
Seven bodies found in Washington plane crash wreckage YAKIMA, Washington, Oct 9(AP): Seven bodies were recovered from the wreckage of a plane that crashed in the Cascade Mountains, and authorities said the other three people aboard were also believed dead. Searchers who found the wreckage were able to verify by serial number that it was the plane carrying nine skydivers and a pilot that went missing a day earlier, said a spokeswoman. (Posted @ 14:28 PST)
South Africa 357 all out v Pakistan in Second Test LAHORE, Oct 9(Reuters): South Africa were bowled out for 357 runs in 125.1 overs before tea on day two of the second test against Pakistan at Gaddafi stadium on Tuesday.Scores: South Africa 357 all out (A.Prince 63, J.Kallis 59; Danish Kaneria 4-114, Umar Gul 3-103) v Pakistan. (Posted @ 14:08 PST)
One killed in farmers, communists clash in West Bengal KOLKUTTA, Oct 9(AP): One person was killed and four others wounded in a gunbattle as farmers clashed with government supporters for a third day in West Bengal state, police said. The violence started on Sunday afternoon in Nandigram, where farmers have fiercely resisted efforts by authorities to force land sales at cheap rates so that an industrial zone can be set up. (Posted @ 14:07 PST)
14 Taliban dead in Afghan battles HERAT, Oct 9(AFP): About 100 Taliban stormed a remote police post, sparking lengthy exchanges which left 10 militants and a policeman dead, while four rebels died elsewhere, officials said on Tuesday. After 11 hours of fighting overnight in Farah province, the attackers left three bodies taking the rest with them, the provincial police operations chief told AFP. Ten Taliban and a policeman were killed, and 10 Taliban wounded in the battle,” the police said. In another incident, four Taliban were killed when NATO's International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) ambushed them in the eastern province of Paktika.) (Posted @ 14:07 PST)
Russian special forces kill two in Dagestan MAKHACHKALA, Russia, Oct 9(Reuters): Russian special forces on Monday killed two rebels and arrested another during a house siege in Makhachkala, capital of the south Russian republic of Dagestan, the interior ministry said on Tuesday. (Posted @ 14:07 PST)
Sri Lanka kills six Tamil Tiger rebels COLOMBO, Oct 9 Sri Lankan soldiers killed six Tamil Tiger rebels, the military said on Tuesday. On Monday, government forces and LTTE rebels clashed in the northern districts of Jaffna and Vavuniya and the northwestern district of Mannar. “The army killed six terrorists in Monday's confrontations,” said a military spokesman. “The army killed two terrorists in Jaffna and another four in Manar. One soldier was also killed in the Vavuniya confrontation.” (Posted @ 14:20 PST)
Israeli police begin questioning PM Olmert over corruption suspicions JERUSALEM, Oct 9(AP): Israeli police arrived at the official residence of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert on Tuesday to question him in connection with the privatisation of Israel's second-largest bank, one of two cases in which he is being investigated on suspicion of corruption. It was not known how long the questioning would last. (Posted @ 13:01PST)
India-China army exercises delayed NEW DELHI, Oct 9, 2007 (AFP) - The first ever joint India-China army exercise, scheduled for November, has been delayed because the giant Asian rivals cannot decide on a date or venue, an Indian official said on Tuesday. A Chinese team was expected in New Delhi last month to finalise the details of the exercise but called off its visit, said the government official who declined to be named. The November exercise was to be an anti-terror drill involving about 150 troops of both sides and aimed at increasing the “confidence levels” between the two countries. (Posted @ 12:26 PST)
Six die, 12 missing as Bangladesh boats capsize in storm DHAKA, Oct 9(AFP): Six people were dead and 12 missing on Tuesday after two boats capsized in Bangladesh during a storm, an official said. The boats carrying around 40 people sank in the Meghna river in the central district of Narsingdhi on Monday. “Six dead bodies, including four children, have been found so far and 12 people are missing,” said the district administrator. (Posted @ 12:15 PST)
Four Muslims shot dead in south Thailand YALA, Oct 9(AFP): Suspected separatist rebels shot dead four Muslims including a young boy in Thailand's insurgency-torn southern provinces, police said Tuesday. A 36-year-old volunteer security officer was killed in a drive-by shooting in Yala. Police said an eight-year-old boy playing near the scene was accidentally killed in the attack, and his nine-year-old friend badly wounded. A 43-year-old man was shot dead late Monday and his three-year-old daughter seriously injured. In nearby Narathiwat province, a 39-year-old security volunteer was killed. (Posted @ 11:20 PST)
IAEA chief starts India visit MUMBAI, Oct 9(AFP): UN atomic energy chief Mohammed ElBaradei began a three-day visit to India Tuesday. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) head landed in the western commercial hub of Mumbai late Monday amid a spike in tensions between the ruling Congress party and its Communist allies. (Posted @ 11:06 PST)
Philippine troops clash with militants, kill one on southern island MANILA, Oct 9(AP): Philippine troops searching for militants clashed with Al-Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf guerrillas in a southern town, killing one rebel, the military said on Tuesday. Soldiers in Jolo island's Talipao town, backed by the air force, opened fire on a group of 40-50 rebels on Monday. One rebel was killed but there were no casualties among government troops, said the commander of the Joint Task Force Comet. (Posted @ 10:40 PST)
10 killed in Samarra car bombing; 2 US soldiers killed Baghdad, Oct 9 (Reuters) - A suicide car bomber killed 10 civilians and wounded eight people, including three policemen, in an attack late Monday on a police station near the city of Samarra, 100 km north of Baghdad, police said. Meanwhile, a U.S. Marine died in combat operations in Anbar province, the U.S. military said adding that another U.S. soldier died from wounds suffered in combat operations on Friday near Baiji. (Posted @ 10:21 PST)
Georgia opposition leader released on bail TBILISI, Oct 9(AP): A Georgian opposition leader was released from detention on bail, hours after he withdrew his claim that President Mikhail Saakashvili plotted a businessman's murder, Georgian television reported on Tuesday. Early morning news bulletins showed former defence minister Irakly Okruashvili being released from custody and entering his home in Tbilisi. (Posted @ 10:20 PST)
Five militants killed in airstrike near Pakistan border KABUL, Oct 9(AP): A NATO airstrike on militants planting a roadside bomb in eastern Afghanistan left five suspected insurgents dead, officials said Tuesday. The strike happened as the group was spotted digging on the road and laying a roadside bomb in Bermel district, in Paktika province late Sunday, said a U.S.-led coalition spokesman. Authorities retrieved the bodies, which were later handed over to village elders from Bermel, said the provincial police chief.(Posted @ 10:19 PST)
Vietnam's death toll from Typhoon Lekima rises to 77 HANOI, Oct 9(AP): Rescuers in Vietnam recovered the bodies of 11 more people killed by floods and landslides triggered by Typhoon Lekima, as authorities on Tuesday tried to reach remote areas which have been isolated for nearly a week. The discovery of the bodies pushed the death toll across Vietnam to 77, officials said. (Posted @ 09:55 PST)
Maldives detains 50 radicals for last month’s blast COLOMBO, Oct 9(AFP): Authorities in the Maldives investigating a bomb attack arrested at least 50 people following violent clashes with Islamic radicals, the government said on Tuesday. Security forces and police overpowered “70 masked men wearing red helmets, armed with wooden planks, spears, swords, bricks, iron rods and catapults ”outside a prayer centre on one island, a government statement said. The island, 90 kilometres from the capital island, Male, was surrounded following reports that suspects involved in last month's bomb attack in Male were hiding there, the statement added. (Posted @ 09:34 PST)
Japan extends sanctions on North Korea TOKYO, Oct 9(Reuters): Japan extended sanctions against North Korea on Tuesday, saying it needed to keep pressure on the reclusive communist state to resolve a feud over Japanese nationals abducted decades ago. The Japanese cabinet endorsed the extention for six months from Sunday. The sanctions ban North Korean imports and bar North Koreans ships from calling at Japanese ports. (Posted @ 08:47 PST)
Karachi Stocks up 117.57, points: KARACHI, Oct 09:At the close of trading the KSE-100 index was at 14484.56, up 117.57, points. (Bureau Report) (Updated @ 13:00 PST)
Forex update: KARACHI, Oct 09:The Pakistani Rupee was traded at Rs 60.6, to the US Dollar in the open market. (Bureau Report) (Updated @ 13:00 PST)
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