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| December 12, 2007 | Wednesday | Zilhaj 1, 1428 |
Updated round-the-clock, with major updates after 10:00 PST (05:00 GMT)
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Satellite Parameters for DAWN NEWS Satellite: Intelsat 10, Band -C Downlink Frequency: 4126.05 Mhz Symbol rate: 3255 Ks/s FEC: 3/4 Polarization: Horizontal 
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Six soldiers, 15 rebels killed in North Waziristan clash ISLAMABAD, Dec 12 (Reuters): Pro-Taliban militants killed six Pakistani soldiers on Wednesday in an attack on a military convoy in the northwest, and 15 insurgents were killed in retaliation, a military spokesman said. Another 20 soldiers were wounded when the militants ambushed the convoy as it travelled through North Waziristan region on the Afghan border, military spokesman, Major-General Waheed Arshad told Reuters. (First Posted 12:55 PST, Updated @ 17:55 PST)
Cabinet approves $2bn electricity project in Azad Kashmir ISLAMABAD, Dec 12 (AFP): Pakistan's cabinet Wednesday approved construction of a two billion dollar electricity project in Azad Kashmir, the government said. The “strategically important” Neelum-Jhelum power project, which envisages the diversion of Neelum river waters in Pakistani Kashmir would be built in eight years by a Chinese company, a government statement said. Caretaker Prime Minister Mohammedmian Soomro said the project would secure Pakistan's rights over the waters under an accord with India that was brokered by the World Bank. (Posted @ 20:40 PST)
Two policemen shot dead near Quetta QUETTA, Dec 12 (AFP): Gunmen riding on a motorbike shot dead two policemen in Balochistan on Wednesday, police said. They were killed in a drive-by shooting on the outskirts of Quetta, a senior police officer said. The attack came hours after dozens of youths chanting slogans against the British government staged a protest rally in Quetta demanding the release of two Baloch nationals Faiz Baluch and Hyrbyair Marri facing trial in London, witnesses said. Some 70 teenagers carrying banners and portraits of the detained men chanted slogans against the Pakistani and British governments outside the press club. (Posted @ 20:40 PST)
MQM fields 353 candidates for NA, PA constituencies ISLAMABAD, Dec 12 (APP): The Muttahida Quami Movement (MQM) has fielded 127 candidates for the national and 226 for the provincial assemblies seats across the country for the January 8 polls. The party sources told APP that fifty eight candidates were given party tickets for National Assembly seats in Sindh, 49 candidates including four women on special seats in Punjab, 12 candidates in NWFP and six candidates were awarded tickets in Balochistan. (Posted @ 20:05 PST)
Mild intensity earthquake felt in Mansehra, Balakot PESHAWAR, Dec 12 (PPI): An earthquake of mild intensity measuring 4.3 on international Richter scale was felt in Mansehra and Balakot in Hazara Region at 1217 PST on Wednesday afternoon. According to Seismological centre Peshawar, its epicenter lay about 200 kilometers North East of Peshawar in Hazara region. (Posted @ 17:40 PST)
Tens of thousands march in Athens ATHENS, Dec 12 (AP): Tens of thousands of demonstrators jammed central Athens and the northern city of Thessaloniki on Wednesday as a general strike to protest government plans to reform the country's debt-ridden pension system brought Greece to a standstill.(Posted @ 21:05 PST)
Rare December tropical storm swirls over Caribbean MIAMI, Dec 12 (AFP): A rare December tropical storm, named Olga, swirled over the Caribbean Wednesday, almost two weeks after the Atlantic hurricane season officially ended. Parts of Haiti and the Dominican Republic, which share the island of Hispaniola, the Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos islands were under tropical storm warnings. Forecasters said the weather system was weakening. Maximum sustained winds were recorded at 70 kilometers per hour. (Posted @ 20:25 PST)
Moldova expels two Romanian diplomats CHISINAU, Moldova, Dec 12 (Reuters): Ex-Soviet Moldova, embroiled in a row with neighbouring Romania over borders and national identity, said on Wednesday it was expelling two Romanian diplomats. Moldova's Foreign Ministry said the diplomats had been engaged in “activities incompatible with their status”. It said they had 24 hours to leave the country. (Posted @ 20:20 PST)
Midwifery school attacked with grenade in Khuzdar KHUZDAR, Dec 12 (PPI): A midwifery school was attacked Wednesday with a hand grenade. The school is used these days to train and prepare presiding officers to conduct general election to be held on January 8. The school was vacant when the attack occured. The explosion shattered the windowpanes and there were cracks in the walls. Girl students at the adjacent Nursing School were frightened by the explosion. (Posted @ 20:05 PST)
India says to have missile defence system in three years NEW DELHI, Dec 12 (Reuters): The first tests of India's home-grown anti-ballistic missile system have been successful and the country expects it to be ready for military use in three years, its top missile scientist said on Wednesday. The announcement came days after defence scientists said they had conducted a successful second test of an interceptor missile that destroyed a supersonic missile at an altitude of 15 km on the country's east coast. (Posted @ 20:05 PST)
10 Bangladesh students sentenced to jail in absentia DHAKA, Dec 12 (AFP): Ten Rajshahi University students were sentenced Wednesday to three years in jail in absentia for torching a car belonging to Bangladesh's military intelligence agency during August protests against emergency rule. The students were also found guilty of violating emergency laws by holding protests and creating law and order problems in the university. The students, from are in hiding and cannot be traced, said a police official. (Posted @ 19:40 PST)
Russia suspends British Council regional offices MOSCOW, Dec 12 (Reuters): Russia ordered the British Council on Wednesday to halt work at its regional offices from next month. Russia's Foreign Ministry said the British Council, which promotes British culture abroad, had breached rules on consulate activities and failed to register regional offices. The ministry said work to resolve the council's legal status had been halted after Britain expelled four Russian diplomats. “The unfriendly actions undertaken by the British side in July of this year towards Russia, accompanied by the introduction of a whole series of discriminatory measures, derailed our efforts to prepare this document,” it said. The ministry said in a statement the suspension would take effect from Jan 1. (Posted @ 19:40 PST)
British army to hand over Basra to Iraq on Dec. 16 BASRA, Dec 12 (AFP): The British military will transfer security control of the southern province of Basra to Iraqi forces on Sunday, Iraq's government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh told reporters on Wednesday. “The handover of Basra will take place on December 16,” Dabbagh said. The British military also confirmed the date of the handover. “We confirm that the provincial handover of Basra will take place on December 16,” a military spokeswoman told AFP. (Posted @ 19:35 PST)
Taliban fighters can win role in Afghanistan's future: UK PM LONDON, Dec 12 (AP): British Prime Minister Gordon Brown said Wednesday former Taliban fighters in Afghanistan can win a role in the country's future if they renounce violence. Brown told lawmakers Britain would support efforts by Afghan President Hamid Karzai to bring former insurgents into mainstream politics. He said Britain would not hold direct talks with ex-Taliban fighters, but support the attempts by Karzai's officials to widen Afghanistan's political sphere. (Posted @ 19:10 PST)
Egypt refuses to sign UN nuclear watchdog protocols CAIRO, Dec 12 (AP): Egypt has refused to sign additional measures allowing for more stringent inspections of its nuclear programme, especially since Israel has not even signed the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, the Egyptian Foreign Ministry said according to newspapers Wednesday. Deputy Foreign Ministry Ramzy Ezzedine Ramzy reiterated Egypt's stance that it had no intention of signing the Additional Protocol of the International Atomic Energy Association giving greater access to information and inspections. (Posted @ 19:05 PST)
Bulgarian government to propose one-year extension of mission in Iraq SOFIA, Dec 12 (AP): The government will propose extending Bulgaria's mission of 120 non-combat troops to Iraq until 2009, its press office said Wednesday. The government's proposal, which will be submitted to parliament and needs parliamentary approval, will extend the mission of Bulgaria's 120 servicemen and 35 support staff in Iraq by another year after the current deadline expires on March 31, 2008. (Posted @ 18:05 PST)
10 Tamil Tigers killed in Sri Lanka COLOMBO, Dec 12 (Reuters): Sri Lankan troops killed 10 Tamil Tigers in fighting near a 'border' that separates government and rebel-held terrain in northern Sri Lanka, the military said Wednesday. The fighting took place as Japanese special peace envoy Yasushi Akashi visited army-held Jaffna to attend a conference to promote multi religious cooperation for peace in Sri Lanka. “There were two incidents today in Jaffna, troops killed five terrorists,” said a military spokesman, adding no army personnel were hurt. The military said troops also killed five rebels late on Tuesday in Vavuniya. Four soldiers were wounded in the fighting. (First Posted @ 09:20 Updated @ 17:40 PST)
Sri Lanka's government suffers fresh blow COLOMBO, Dec 12 (AFP): Sri Lanka's rainbow coalition suffered a fresh blow Wednesday with the island's main Muslim party walking out and further trimming the government's slim majority ahead of a crucial vote in parliament. Four members of the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC), including a cabinet minister, crossed the floor in protest at the government's handling of the economy and its failure to resolve the long-running war with Tamil Tiger rebels. The government during the last count in November had a 16-member majority in the 225-seat parliament. (Posted @ 17:15 PST)
World off track on education for all children DAKAR, Dec 12 (AP): Close to one billion people will never receive a formal education because governments around the world are not living up to pledges to provide free primary schooling for all by 2015, aid groups said Wednesday. The world's richest nations are failing to live up to pledges to help the poorest and the goals remain elusive, according to the Global Campaign for Education (GCE), a grouping of thousands of teachers' unions and civil society groups including Save the Children and Oxfam. (Posted @ 17:10 PST)
Israel, Palestinians resume peace talks after seven-year lull JERUSALEM, Dec 12 (AP): Israeli and Palestinian negotiators on Wednesday began the first peace talks in nearly seven years, hoping to end six decades of conflict. The teams got together in Jerusalem at midday, said an Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman. The talks were expected to continue for several hours. (Posted @ 17:00 PST)
India working on doubling nuclear strike range: official NEW DELHI, Dec 12 (AFP): India announced Wednesday it was working on a new ballistic missile capable of hitting targets 6,000 kilometres away, which would more than double its current nuclear strike range. “Agni-IV is still in the design stage, and so we cannot give a date for the trials to begin,” said V. K. Sarswat, the head of India's strategic missile programme. When asked to confirm if the missile will have a range of 6,000 kilometres, he replied: “It will be that much.” (Posted @ 16:45 PST)
Third test drawn, Pakistan (537) and 162-7 BANGALORE, Dec 12 (Reuters): Pakistan were 162 for seven in their second innings against India when bad light forced an early close and a draw on the final day of the third and final test on Wednesday. India won the series 1-0. Brief scores: India 626 (Y. Singh 169, S. Ganguly 239, I. Pathan 102, Arafat 5-161) & 284-6 dec. (Ganguly 91) Pakistan 137 (Misbah-ul-Haq 133 not out, I. Sharma 5-118) & 162-7 (A. Kumble 5-60). (First Posted @ 11:35 PST, Updated @ 16:40 PST)
Fire kills 21 in China apartment block BEIJING, Dec 12 (Reuters): A fire in a ground-floor flower shop in east China Wednesday spread to a dance hall and an apartment block above, killing 21 people, media said. Most of the victims were elderly people doing their morning exercise. Hundreds of residents were trapped when the fire broke out in the 28-storey building in downtown Wenzhou in the coastal province of Zhejiang, the China News Service said. (First Posted @ 12:15 PST, Updated @ 16:00 PST)
Thailand to toughen currency rules BANGKOK, Dec 12 (AFP): Thailand's finance ministry said Wednesday it would toughen foreign currency rules in a bid to prevent money laundering. Under new regulations, Thais and foreigners can bring in and out up to 20,000 dollars in cash per person, the finance ministry said. Currently, the maximum amount of cash individuals are allowed to bring in and out of Thailand is 50,000 dollars. (Posted @ 15:55 PST)
Car bomb kills Lebanese army chief contender BEIRUT, Dec 12 (Reuters): A car bomb killed a Lebanese general in Beirut Wednesday, removing a leading contender to take over as army chief from General Michel Suleiman when he becomes president. Brigadier General Francois al-Hajj, head of army operations, and several bodyguards were killed in the early morning blast that hit his car in Baabda, a military statement said. (Posted @ 15:30 PST)
Triple car bombing kills 40 in southern Iraq BASRA, Dec 12 (Reuters): Forty people were killed and more than 125 wounded when three car bombs exploded in quick succession in the southern Iraqi city of Amara on Wednesday, police said. One police official said 40 people had been killed in Amara. A health official said 39 were killed and more than 125 wounded. The bombs exploded along a main street in Amara, the capital of Maysan province. (First Posted @ 13:40 PST, Updated @ 15:25 PST)
UN court jails Sarajevo siege general for 33 years THE HAGUE, Dec 12 (AFP): The UN war crimes court on Wednesday convicted Bosnian Serb general Dragomir Milosevic of terrorising the people of Sarajevo during the siege of the Bosnian capital, and jailed him for 33 years. The judges ruled that troops under Milosevic's command shelled Sarajevo and directed sniper fire against civilians, spreading terror among the inhabitants as they queued for bread, went to market or were simply walking with their children. “There was no safe place in Sarajevo,” Judge Patrick Robinson of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) said. (Posted @ 15:25 PST)
More than 50 Taliban dead in clashes KABUL, Dec 12 (AFP): Afghanistan's defence ministry said Wednesday more than 50 Taliban were killed in two days of “intense clashes” near the southern town of Musa Qala, which was captured from the militants this week. The fighting in southern Helmand province's Sangin district which neighbours Musa Qala erupted after the Taliban were forced out of the town Sunday, the ministry said in a statement. (Posted @ 12:45 PST)
Thai protesters shut down parliament BANGKOK, Dec 12 (AFP): Hundreds of protesters forced Thailand's army-installed parliament to suspend its meetings Wednesday after the activists stormed into the chamber's halls. About 1,500 union advocates, students and political activists surrounded the parliament building, claiming the military-appointed lawmakers had no mandate to pass legislation, a witness said. About 100 of them slipped past security and stormed into the parliament's meeting rooms, prompting lawmakers to suspend deliberations. “We want the National Legislative Assembly to close this session and stop violating the people's rights. Most of the laws adopted by this assembly violate the people's rights and give more power to government officials,” said former senator Jon Ungphakorn, who led the protest. (Posted @ 12:05 PST)
15 Thai troops hurt in roadside bomb attack PATTANI, Thailand, Dec 12 (AFP): At least 15 Thai soldiers were wounded Wednesday, four of them critically, when a roadside bomb exploded near their bus in southern Thailand, police said. The bomb exploded around 10:00 am as a convoy with four busloads of soldiers drove through Pattani province. “The bomb hit the third bus, which was carrying some 50 troops from northeastern Khon Kean province as reinforcements,” Major General Kirin In-kaeo, the police provincial commander, told AFP. (Posted @ 12:05 PST)
26,000 Malaysians evacuated as floods worsen in eastern states KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, Dec 12 (AP): Some 26,000 people have fled their homes after heavy rains and overflowing rivers flooded towns and villages in eastern Malaysia, authorities said Wednesday. The floods have claimed at least 10 lives since last week in four Malaysian states, according to relief coordination centres in four Malaysian states. (Posted @ 12:00 PST)
Strong quake hits Indonesia, no damage JAKARTA, Dec 12 (AFP): A 5.8-magnitude earthquake struck off Indonesia's Sumatra island Wednesday, but there was no immediate word of damage, a meteorologist said. The earthquake, which hit at 10:43 am, occurred at sea about 280 kilometres southwest of the city of Bengkulu, at a depth of 30 kilometres, according to a statement from Indonesia's Meteorological and Geophysics Agency. (Posted @ 10:30 PST)
Six students shot at school bus stop in Las Vegas LOS ANGELES, Dec 12 (AFP): Six teenagers were wounded by gunfire Tuesday in a shooting at a school bus stop in Las Vegas, Nevada, local police said. The shooting took place near a high school in northeastern Las Vegas, and the victims were between 16 and 17 years old, police spokesman Marc Joseph told reporters. He added that police had already detained some of those suspected of involvement in the shooting. (Posted @ 09:00 PST)
Peru court sentences Fujimori to six years in jail LIMA, Dec 12 (AFP): A Peruvian court here Tuesday sentenced former president Alberto Fujimori to six years in prison for abusing his powers by ordering an illegal search in the dying days of his 1990-2000 rule. The punishment was handed down in a case heard separately from a trial against Fujimori, 69, that opened Monday for alleged human rights violations. (Posted @ 08:55 PST)
Karachi Stocks down 76.51, points: KARACHI, Dec 12: At the close of trading, the KSE-100 index was at 14556.13, down 76.51, points. (Bureau Report) (Updated @ 14:20 PST)
Forex update: KARACHI, Dec 12: The Pakistani Rupee was traded at Rs 61.35, to the US Dollar in the open market. (Bureau Report) (Updated @ 14:20 PST)
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