|
| November 15, 2007 | Thursday | Ziqa’ad 04, 1428 |
Updated round-the-clock, with major updates after 10:00 PST (05:00 GMT)
|
Satellite Parameters for DAWN NEWS Satellite: Intelsat 10, Band -C Downlink Frequency: 4126.05 Mhz Symbol rate: 3255 Kbps FEC: 3/4 Polarization: Horizontal |
|
Benazir for Pakistan unity government to replace Musharraf ISLAMABAD, Nov 15 (AP) Benazir Bhutto said Thursday she hopes to form a government of national unity to replace President Pervez Musharraf ahead of elections, and is contacting other opposition parties to get them on board. ''I am talking to the other opposition parties to find out whether they are in a position to come together,'' she told The Associated Press in a telephone interview from Lahore where she is under house arrest. ''We need to see whether we can come up with an interim government of national consensus to whom power can be handed.'' Benazir left open the question of whether she, or someone else, would lead such a government, saying it was a subject that would have to be worked out in negotiations. But she said a consensus must be reached that would ensure an orderly transition should Musharraf agree to step down. Benazir made the comments shortly after a visit to the surrounded Lahore residence from Bryan Hunt, the U.S. consul general. She said Washington is concerned about a power vacuum in Pakistan, and wanted to know if she would still consider working with Musharraf. ''He came to find out whether I could work with General Musharraf, and I told him that it was very difficult to work with someone who instead of taking us toward democracy took us back toward military dictatorship,'' she said, adding, ''I think Musharraf's time is over.'' Benazir said she tried to allay Washington's concern about what would happen to this nuclear-armed nation if Musharraf were forced out, saying she shared the Americans' misgivings and felt that a strategy for an orderly transition was a must.The Americans ''worry about what would happen if there was not a smooth transition, and they worry about what would happen if Musharraf left and there would be a vacuum. So that is a concern, and a valid concern,'' she said. ''I share that thought too. In fact, once General Musharraf agrees to go, we need to have an exit strategy. I think an exit strategy is very important.'' Benazir confirmed she had been in contact with Nawaz Sharif about working together, but had not yet broached the subject of a unity government with him. She said she was due to speak to him again later Thursday.(Posted @ 19:00 PST)
Pakistani troops strike back at militants, kill 53 PESHAWAR, Pakistan, Nov 15 (AFP) - Pakistani troops have launched a counter-offensive against militants in Swat valley in northwestern Pakistan, pushing them back into forests and mountains, officials and witnesses reported Thursday. The fighting has left at least 53 militants dead in two days, according to army accounts. Chief military spokesman Maj-Gen Waheed Arshad said troops Thursday killed 12 militants while clearing trenches and checkposts from a road. Another eight were killed when security forces launched an attack, he said adding that their mortar positions had been destroyed. On Wednesday, 33 insurgents were reported killed when the military pounded their positions with helicopter gunships and artillery. Two soldiers and two civilians died in the unrest, officials said, and a militant leader said three more fighters died overnight. Witnesses said that in Shangla district, militants had disappeared off the streets and moved out. “Militants have fled from streets to forests and their mountain hideouts after the military offensive,” a security official told AFP. Residents reported ongoing firing at militant bunkers in a number of Swat valley villages as well as intermittent shooting in Shangla. Troops also attacked areas surrounding the Imam Dheri headquarters of cleric Maulana Fazlullah(Posted @ 20:15 PST First Posted @ 18:30 PST)
Musharraf taps senate chief for caretaker PM: aide ISLAMABAD, Nov 15 (AFP) - Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf decided Thursday to appoint senate chairman Mohammedmian Soomro as caretaker prime minister to oversee general elections, a senior presidential aide told AFP. “Mohammedmian Soomro will take the oath as caretaker prime minister tomorrow,” he added. Railways Minister Sheikh Rashid had earlier said “Soomro is the front-runner and he is likely to be the caretaker prime minister.”(Posted @ 21:30 PST)
Three shot dead in Karachi protests KARACHI, Nov 15 (AFP) - Two boys and a protester were killed Thursday when gunfire erupted in the slum neighbourhood of Lyari in Karachi during rallies by supporters of former premier Benazir Bhutto, police and party officials said. “There was a demonstration against the house arrest of Benazir Bhutto. Somebody among the demonstrators opened fire and two boys aged around 11 or 12 were killed,” Karachi police official Fayyaz Khan told AFP. Tension gripped the area after the shooting and further gunfire broke out, witnesses said. People pelted vehicles with stones and burned tyres to block roads. A Bhutto party activist was shot dead by police in the later clashes, party spokesman Ijaz Durrani said. Police were not immediately available for comment.(Posted @ 21:15 PST)
US diplomat meets Benazir Bhutto LAHORE, Pakistan, Nov 15 (AFP): A US diplomat in Pakistan called on President Musharraf to end emergency rule and resign as army chief after meeting Benazir Bhutto for two hours of talks. Consul-general Brian Hunt crossed barbed wire barricades to speak with Benazir at Senator Latif Khosa’s residence in Lahore where she is under house arrest. Hunt said the meeting was part of regular contacts with opposition leaders in Pakistan amid concern about the political crisis triggered by Musharraf's state of emergency. “Emergency (rule) should be lifted and restrictions on the media also withdrawn,” he told reporters after meeting Benazir. “It is very important Pakistan moves towards full democracy and President General Pervez Musharraf resigns as chief of army staff, takes steps to ensure normal working of the opposition, and holds general elections in time.” ”The people of Pakistan should get information through the electronic media and all political workers and human rights activists should be released,” Hunt added. (Posted @ 14:45 PST)
Imran Khan sent to Kot Lakhpat jail on terror charges LAHORE, Nov 15 (AFP): Pakistan cricket legend Imran Khan was moved overnight to Kot Lakhpat jail, Lahore's biggest prison early Thursday after being charged under anti-terror laws, officials said. Lahore police chief Malik Mohammad Iqbal told AFP Imran Khan was charged late Wednesday and moved overnight to Kot Lakhpat jail. (Posted @ 10:55 PST)
US says not worried about Pakistan nuclear weapons WASHINGTON, Nov 14 (Reuters): The Pentagon said Wednesday it was not worried about the security of Pakistan's nuclear weapons amid the political crisis there, rolling back from comments made by a senior U.S. general who called the issue a “primary concern.” “At this point, we have no concerns,” said Pentagon press secretary Geoff Morrell. “We believe that they are under appropriate control.” Last week, Lt. General Carter Ham, director of operations for the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, said the military was concerned about the security of Pakistan's nuclear arsenal after President Pervez Musharraf imposed emergency rule. U.S. defence and military officials have since backpedaled, saying the weapons are controlled by Pakistan's military and the military is a responsible steward of the arsenal. (Posted @ 09:35 PST)
Pakistani students protest against Imran Khan’s arrest LAHORE, Pakistan, Nov 15 (AFP): About 3,000 students rallied at Lahore’s Punjab University Thursday, a day after Imran Khan was seized there by Islami Jamiat Talaba (IJT) activists and turned over to police Wednesday. The flag-waving protesters chanted “We love you Imran Khan” and shouted slogans against the IJT - the student wing of the Jamaat-i-Islami party. “Our protest is against the high handedness of IJT and the police. We have gathered to express solidarity with Imran Khan, he is our national hero,” demonstrator Sarida Asghar told AFP. Dozens of police stood guard outside the campus but did not intervene. (Posted @ 14:25 PST)
Two paramilitary soldiers killed in North Waziristan MIRAMSHAH, Pakistan, Nov 15 (AFP): Two Pakistani paramilitary soldiers were killed and four others injured in separate roadside bomb blasts Thursday in Pakistan’s North Waziristan tribal area, officials said. The first crudely made bomb, near Saidgi village killed one trooper and injured another, a security official told AFP. The second bomb, planted on a roadside in Bakakhel village, exploded as a military convoy passed, killing a soldier and injuring three others, the official said. (Posted @ 14:05 PST)
Pakistan lifts ban on BBC, CNN, Dawn News and Aaj ISLAMABAD, Nov 15 (AFP): International news channels BBC and CNN and two local television channels Dawn News and Aaj returned to Pakistani screens Thursday after authorities relaxed a ban imposed under a state of emergency. President Musharraf's government took the channels off cable as part of strict curbs on the media. “Aaj, Dawn News, BBC and CNN have been allowed on cable,” a spokesman for the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority told AFP. (Posted @ 13:50 PST)
Benazir, Nawaz agree on anti-Musharraf alliance: PML-N ISLAMABAD, Nov 15 (AFP): Former prime ministers Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif have agreed to join forces against President Pervez Musharraf, said a top PML-N official Thursday. Raja Zafar-ul Haq, Chairman Pakistan Muslim League-N said, “she has assured she will continue the struggle against General Musharraf until he resigns from both offices. They will launch a joint struggle,” he told AFP. (Posted @ 11:35PST)
IJT suspends 17 workers for manhandling Imran LAHORE, Pakistan, November 15-(PPI): Islami Jamiat Talba, the student wing of Jamaat-i-Islami, has suspended basic membership of its 17 workers, allegedly involved in manhandling of Imran Khan, the chief of Tahreek-i- Insaf at the Punjab University campus on Wednesday.(Posted @ 21:50 PST)
Georgian lawmakers vote to lift emergency rule TBILISI, Nov 15 (AFP) -Georgian lawmakers voted Thursday to lift a state of emergency imposed after violent clashes last week, as Moscow dismissed claims of Russian interference as “fantasies” worthy of a James Bond novel.(Posted @ 20:55 PST)
Cyclone smashes into Bangladesh coast DHAKA, Nov 15 (AFP) - A fierce cyclone packing extreme winds and tidal waves smashed into Bangladesh's southwestern coast Thursday, wiping out homes and uprooting trees. “The cyclone has battered Bangladeshi coastal areas. The velocity of the wind in that area is 220 to 240 kilometres. There is a violent storm,” a top official said adding that rivers in the Sunderbans area were also swelling fast as the storm moved north in the direction of the capital Dhaka. An official in Barisal, 120 kilometres south of Dhaka, spoke of severe destruction.“Many trees have been uprooted and houses and schools blown away. There are no reports of deaths so far.” Mostofa Kamal, a district relief and rehabilitation officer, told AFP by telephone.(Posted @ 20:55 PST)
Pakistan: 20-inch gas pipeline blown near Sui QUETTA, Nov 15 (PPI): Engineers have started repair of 20 inch diameter gas pipeline near Sui. and hope it would be operational sometime Thursday night. It was damaged by militants on Wednesday night.(Posted @ 19:50 PST)
Two dead, five injured in Israeli attack in northern Gaza GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip, Nov 15 (AP) The Israeli army opened fire Thursday on a car carrying militants in northern Gaza’s Beit Hanoun town, killing two and injuring five other people, militants and a health official said. The attack came after gunmen from the Al Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades militants fired rockets toward towns in southern Israel. The group identified the dead as its own.The military said ground forces struck a rocket squad about to fire at Israeli towns. Al Aqsa said it fired 10 rockets Thursday by midday. Israeli aircraft later struck an electricity transformer, causing no casualties.(Posted @ 19:10 PST)
Blast kills 1, injures 2 in Pakistan’s Bannu district Peshawar, Pakistan, Nov 15(Reuters) A roadside blast near a military convoy killed a paramilitary soldier and wounded two in the Bannu district of NWFP, a security official said Thursday.(Posted @ 18:50 PST)
Air Marshal Shahid Lateef appointed Vice Chief of Air Staff ISLAMABAD, Nov 15 (APP) The Government of Pakistan has appointed Air Marshal Shahid Lateef as Vice Chief of the Air Staff. Meanwhile, Air Vice Marshal Rao Qamar Suleman has been promoted to the rank of Air Marshal.(Posted @ 18:00 PST)
Pakistan SC adjourns till Friday hearing of petitions against emergency ISLAMABAD, Nov 15 (APP)- A 10-member full court of the Supreme Court Thursday adjourned the hearing of petitions against the imposition of emergency till Friday. The petitions have been filed by Tikka Iqbal Muhammad Khan and Watan Party.(Posted @ 17:55 PST)
SC suspends convictions in ex-CJ Iftikhar manhandling case ISLAMABAD, Nov 15 (APP): A 10-member bench of the Supreme Court, headed by Chief Justice Abdul Hameed Dogar, while hearing appeals of seven police and administration officials in the case manhandling of former chief justice Iftikhar Muhammd Chaudhry, suspended the convictions till a final decision of the court. The bench earlier admitted the intra-court appeals for hearing and made it clear that the convictions would have no adverse effect on the services of all the seven officers till the final decision of the court.(Posted @ 17:55 PST)
Musharraf says will quit army before Dec 1: attorney general ISLAMABAD, Nov 15 (AFP) President Musharraf has said that he will quit as army chief before December 1, attorney general Malik Mohammad Qayyum told a news conference Thursday. “The president has said he will give up his uniform before December 1,” Qayyum said. He said Pakistan's incoming caretaker government would take an oath Friday morning after the current parliament dissolves at one minute before midnight.(Posted @ 17:40 PST)
PM Aziz makes farewell call on President Musharraf ISLAMABAD, Nov 15 (APP): Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz held a farewell meeting with President General Pervez Musharraf at Aiwan-i-Sadr Thursday. The President lauded the contribution of Shaukat Aziz in the fast track socio-economic development of the country through far reaching economic reforms which yielded enormous socio-economic benefits and improved the quality of people’s lives. The President underlined that working relations between their offices were excellent and smooth and said greater coordination helped in formulation and implementation of policies in an effective manner. Aziz thanked President Musharraf for the consistent support and guidance he provided to the government. (Posted @ 14:00 PST)
Afghan battle over English school kills five KHOST, Afghanistan, Nov 15 (AFP) - Taliban insurgents shot dead an Afghan man for running an English school in Paktia province , triggering a shootout that left two militants and two policemen dead, a government official said Thursday. (Posted @ 16:50 PST)
Abbas tells Israel Palestinians want real peace; urges Palestinians to oust Hamas from Gaza RAMALLAH, West Bank, Nov 15 (AFP): Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas said Thursday that the Palestinians are determined to reach a real peace with Israel. “I address the Israeli people and government directly and say that we are determined to agree a real peace with them in the interests of both our future generations,” he said in a speech in Ramallah marking the 19th anniversary of the symbolic declaration of a Palestinian state. Abbas called on his compatriots in the Gaza Strip to topple the Hamas movement that seized power there in June from Fatah. “We must get rid of this clique that took control of the Gaza Strip by force and which is exploiting the suffering and tragedies of our people,” he said. (Posted @ 15:25 PST)
Suicide car bomb kills six, wounds 21 in Iraq’s Kirkuk BAGHDAD, Nov 15 (AP): A suicide bomber rammed his car into a police patrol Thursday in northern Iraq, killing six people and wounding more than 20, police said. The explosion happened around 8 a.m. in Kirkuk, 290 kilometres north of Baghdad, said police Brig. Sarhad Qadir. The chief of the police emergency unit, Brigadier General Khatab Aref Abdallah, who is spearheading the fight against Al-Qaeda in Kirkuk province, was among those injured, Qadir said. (First Posted @ 11:25 PST, Updated @ 15:05 PST)
Eleven Chinese die in lift plunge SHANGHAI, Nov 15 (AFP): Eleven workers were killed and six others injured when an elevator crashed at a construction site for a 34-storey building in southeast China, the government reported Thursday. The victims in the Wuxi city accident, all migrant workers, were taking the lift down for their lunch break Wednesday when it plunged to the ground, the State Administration of Work Safety said on its website. The administration said 16 workers were in the elevator when it crashed. (Posted @ 15:55 PST)
19 rebels, one soldier killed in northern Sri Lanka COLOMBO, Nov 15 (AP): Soldiers overran six Tamil Tiger rebel bunkers and attacked them in at least four other places in northern Sri Lanka, in violence that killed 19 guerrillas and one soldier, the military said Thursday. Army troops infiltrated a rebel-held area in northern Jaffna peninsula and killed four insurgents Thursday morning, a defence official said, requesting anonymity. On Wednesday, soldiers pushed into rebel-held territory in northern Vavuniya district and destroyed the bunkers, killing eight rebels, official said. Twenty-four rebels were wounded in the battle. Elsewhere in Vavuniya and Jaffna Wednesday, seven rebels and a soldier died in several clashes and a mine blast. Five soldiers were wounded, the official said. (First Posted @ 09:55 PST, Updated @ 14:55 PST)
British MPs make rare visit to Iran TEHRAN, Nov 15 (AFP): A group of eight British MPs from the foreign affairs committee of the House of Commons arrived in Iran Monday for a four-day visit for talks with top officials including Iran’s top nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili, diplomats said Thursday. Led by committee chairman Mike Gapes, they also met Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, parliament speaker Gholam Ali Hadad Adel and judiciary advisor on international affairs Mohammad Javad Larijani. “They are conducting research for use in a forthcoming report on global security, of which Iran will be a part,” a British embassy spokesman said. The last such visit by the committee was in October 2003. (Posted @ 13:10 PST)
US soldier killed by explosion in Diyala province BAGHDAD, Nov 15 (AP): A U.S. soldier was killed by an explosion in Diyala province northeast of Baghdad, the military said Thursday. Four American soldiers were also wounded in the blast, which took place Wednesday, the military said in a statement. (Posted @ 12:35 PST)
U.S. military says 25 insurgents killed in Iraq BAGHDAD, Nov 15 (Reuters): U.S. forces backed by aircraft killed 25 suspected insurgents in operations targeting Al-Qaeda near Baghdad, the U.S. military said Thursday. In a statement, the military said the suspected insurgents were killed during operations late Tuesday and early Wednesday west of Tarmiya. It said 21 suspects were detained. (Posted @ 10:50 PST)
US House defies Bush with Iraq funding vote WASHINGTON, Nov 15 (AFP): The Democratic-led House of Representatives defied a White House veto threat Wednesday and inserted timelines for an immediate troop withdrawal in a $50 billion Iraq war funding bill. The House voted 218 to 203 to pass the emergency war budget, calling for a pullback of most combat troops to start within 30 days, with a goal of completion by December 15, 2008. The vote, the latest drama in a prolonged showdown between Bush and Democrats over the war, was however, largely symbolic, as the bill is considered dead on arrival in the Senate. (Posted @ 09:50 PST)
British soldier killed in Afghan bomb blast LONDON, Nov 15 (AFP): A British soldier was killed Wednesday by an explosion in Helmand province, the defence ministry said. “An interpreter was also injured and is currently receiving treatment at the field hospital at Camp Bastion.” The spokeswoman said a joint Afghan National Army and NATO-led International Security Assistance Force patrol was caught in the explosion. (Posted @ 09:30 PST)
Pakistan players refuse to testify at Woolmer's inquest KINGSTON, Nov 15 (AFP): Jamaica's Deputy Commissioner of Police Mark Shields said Wednesday four members of the Pakistan cricket team had declined to testify at the inquest into the death of former coach Bob Woolmer. He told coroner Patrick Murphy former captain Inzamam ul-Haq, medium-pacer Rana Naved-ul-Hasan, assistant manager Asad Mustafa and former media manager Pervez Mir had refused to travel to Jamaica for the inquest, which began on October 16 to give testimony. Shields told the coroner that the Pakistanis said they were unable to make it. (Posted @ 09:20 PST)
24 Indian illegal immigrants found in a van in France REIMS, France, Nov 15 (AFP): French police who stopped a van at a checkpoint in Reims found 24 illegal immigrants from India including two children in the back, a spokesman said Wednesday. The migrants were originally from the Indian Punjab, police say. The group was arrested and transferred to a detention centre in Lille. (Posted @ 09:05 PST)
Karachi Stocks down 204.31, points: KARACHI, Nov 15: At close of trading, the KSE-100 index was at 13110.95 , down 204.31, points. (Bureau Report) (Updated @ 14:20 PST)
Forex update: KARACHI, Nov 15: The Pakistani Rupee was traded at Rs 61.28, to the US Dollar in the open market. (Bureau Report) (Updated @ 12:00 PST)
Founder: Quaid-i-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah
Editor: Abbas Nasir
The DAWN Group of Newspapers
Haroon House, Dr. Ziauddin Ahmed Road, Karachi 74200, Pakistan.
Phone:+92 (21) 111-444-777 Fax: +92 (21) 569-3995
webmaster@dawn.com
Make sure to reload these pages so you're viewing the current version.
|
|
|
Contributions |