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| April 21, 2008 | Monday | Rabi-us-Sani 14, 1429 |
Updated round-the-clock, with major updates after 10:00 PST (05:00 GMT)
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 Oil prices shoot to record $117.81 a barrel LONDON, April 21 (AFP): Oil prices shot to a record $117.81 on the New York contract Monday as traders seized on unrest in key producer Nigeria, the weak US currency and OPEC's refusal to increase production. At the same time, London's Brent North Sea crude for June delivery hit a record $114.86. (Posted @ 18:48 PST)  Pakistan launches longest-range nuclear-capable missile during exercise ISLAMABAD, April 21 (AP): Pakistan launched a missile capable of carrying a nuclear warhead anywhere in India Monday and said the test's success showed it was ready for wartime use. The firing of the Hatf VI missile, also known as the Shaheen II, was the first during a field exercise, Pakistan's military said. ''It validated the operational readiness of a strategic missile group equipped with the Shaheen II missile,'' it said in a statement. The military says the missile has a range of 2,000 kilometres, the longest of several missiles in Pakistan's nuclear-capable arsenal. That is enough to hit targets anywhere in India, as well as in Iran, Afghanistan and Central Asia. Navy Chief Adm. Mohammad Afzal Tahir congratulated those responsible for the exercise on the ''successful launch and the accuracy of the missile at the target,'' the statement said. Tahir said Pakistan could be proud of the ''reliability of its nuclear deterrence'' and it would further enhance its nuclear capability. Pakistan became a declared nuclear power in 1998 by conducting nuclear tests in response to those carried out by India. Both countries routinely test missiles. (First Posted @ 11:45 PST, Updated @ 12:30 PST) Abducted Pakistani U.N. workers released JAMRUD, Pakistan, April 21 (Reuters): Gunmen in Pakistan’s Khyber tribal region released two U.N. workers Monday after security forces attacked the kidnapping gang, officials said. The two workers for the U.N. World Food Programme and a guard were abducted earlier on Monday as they were travelling through the Khyber region, towards the Afghan border. “The abducted men have been recovered,” said a U.N. official who requested anonymity. “They're said to be fine, there's been no harm to them.” The two U.N. workers were Pakistani. A guard travelling with them was also seized. A government official in the region said the kidnappers had freed the three because of an assault by the security forces in which a paramilitary soldier was killed and three were wounded. It was not clear who the kidnappers were but security forces were hunting for them, the official said. (First Posted @ 14:15 PST, Updated @ 16:05 PST)  Pakistan expects Commonwealth readmission next month: FM Shah Mehmood Qureshi ISLAMABAD, April 21(AFP) Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi said Monday that he expected the Commonwealth to readmit Pakistan next month, as Britain gave its firm backing for the move. The 53-nation group of former British colonies suspended Pakistan's membership for the second time in November after President Musharraf declared a state of emergency. “There is a CMAG (Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group) meeting... on 12th of May and I am expecting a very positive outcome,” Qureshi told a joint news conference with his British counterpart, David Miliband. Qureshi said he briefed Miliband about the recent visit of the Malaysian foreign minister, who is also the acting chair at CMAG, when the matter of Commonwealth membership came up during talks. Miliband said he supported Pakistan's re-entry into the organisation. “I want Britain to be a leading voice calling for Pakistan's re-entry into the Commonwealth's family,” he said. (Posted @ 17:40 PST) Balochistan CM Raisani orders withdrawal of all cases against Akhtar Mengal QUETTA, Pakistan, April 21 (PPI) Balochistan Chief Minister Nawab Mohammad Aslam Raisani ordered withdrawal of all cases against BNP President and former provincial chief minister Sardar Akhtar Mengal at a high level meeting here Monday. Raisani reviewed all cases against Akthar Mengal and decided to withdraw all cases immediately. Cases will also be withdrawn against political workers and a leader of Jiye Sindh Qaumi Mahaz Safdar Sirki. He said the Sindh government would be contacted immediately for withdrawal of cases against Akthar Mengal and his colleagues and soon there would be a headway. (Posted @ 18:14 PST) Ten injured in Pakistan road mishap KASHMORE, Pakistan, April 21 (APP) Ten passengers were injured when a speeding coach overturned at the Tangwani link road near Kashmore on Monday. (Posted @ 17:32 PST) Pakistan coalition could restore judges this month: PML(N) ISLAMABAD, April 21 (AFP): Pakistan's new government may reinstate judges deposed by President Musharraf by the end of this month, Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) said Monday. The comment came as Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari met fellow coalition leader and former premier Nawaz Sharif to discuss their restoration. “The coalition leaders are to finalise a draft resolution to implement the Bhurban declaration in true letter and spirit,” Siddiqul Farooq, a spokesman for PML(N) told AFP when asked about Monday's meeting. He did not disclose when the resolution would be presented to parliament but added: “The judges will be hopefully restored before April 30.” (Posted @ 15:55 PST) Supreme Court strikes down bachelor's degree requirement for lawmakers ISLAMABAD, April 21 (AP): Pakistan's Supreme Court on Monday struck down a law requiring candidates for Parliament to have bachelor's degrees, clearing the way for Asif Zardari, the widower of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto to run for a seat and possibly prime minister. The ruling was another sign of the dwindling influence of President Pervez Musharraf, who introduced the requirement in 2002. Supreme Court Chief Justice Abdul Hameed Dogar said the provision was “declared to be void” after a seven-judge panel heard arguments that it discriminated against a large portion of the Pakistani population. (Posted @ 21:04 PST) British Foreign Secretary David Miliband meets Musharraf ISLAMABAD, April 21 (AP): Britain's Foreign Secretary David Miliband met with President Musharraf Monday. They discussed the war on terror and other issues during their meeting in Islamabad, Foreign Ministry spokesman Mohammad Sadiq said. Miliband, on a two-day visit to Pakistan, then went to see Prime Minister Yusaf Raza Gilani. (Posted @ 14:40 PST) Missile hits headquarters of Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council BAGHDAD, April 21 (Reuters): A missile struck the central Baghdad headquarters of the Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council on Monday, said an official for the party, which is the main rival of cleric Moqtada al-Sadr for control of Shi'ite areas. The official, whose party is the biggest Shi'ite group in the government of Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, later said that no-one was reported hurt. (Posted @ 23:24 PST) 80 Indian troops commit suicide since Jan. 2007 ISLAMABAD, April 21 (APP): In occupied Kashmir, an Indian trooper of Central Reserve Police Force committed suicide by shooting himself with his service rifle in Reasi district on Monday. The trooper had shot and critically injured his company commander and his colleague before committing suicide near Vaishno Devi shrine, taking the death toll of such killings amongst the troops to 80 since January 2007, KMS reported. (Posted @ 22:48 PST) Hamas says accepts Palestinian statehood DAMASCUS, April 21 (AP): Hamas accepts the establishment of a Palestinian state on land occupied by Israel in the 1967 Middle East war but would not recognise the Jewish state, Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal said on Monday. Commenting on efforts by former U.S. President Jimmy Carter to persuade Hamas to back peace talks between Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Israel, Meshaal said his group would “respect Palestinian national will even if it was against our convictions”. (Posted @ 21:45 PST) Afghan army kills 7 militants in south KABUL, April 21 (Reuters): Afghan soldiers killed seven militants in Haji Amin village in Garmser district on Helmand River, when they were killed by Afghan National Army troops backed by air support from international forces, the ministry said. (Posted @ 19:38 PST) 20 migrants found dead in waters off Bahamas NASSAU, April 21 (AP): The bodies of 20 migrants have been recovered from the sea near the Bahamas after their boat apparently capsized, the U.S. Coast Guard said Monday as it searched for survivors. The bodies of 19 Haitians and one Honduran were recovered and three survivors -- two Haitians and one Honduran -- have been found, said a Coast Guard spokesman in Miami. (Posted @ 19:34 PST) Iraq: 15 killed as US forces 'take out' militiamen BAGHDAD, April 21 (AFP): US forces will “take out” anyone carrying weapons or firing rockets in Iraq, the military warned on Monday, while reporting that another 15 people had been killed in air strikes and firefights in east Baghdad. Those killed in a fresh bout of fighting in Baghdad bastions included what US military spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Steven Stover called “criminals” setting up rocket rails, carrying rocket propelled grenades (RPGs) or attacking US patrols with small arms fire. (Posted @ 19:30 PST) 
Nine clerics found dead at Mogadishu mosque MOGADISHU, April 21 (AFP): The bodies of nine Islamic clerics were found in and around a mosque in the Somali capital Monday, with residents saying they were shot by Ethiopian forces during weekend clashes with freedom fighters. Six of the corpses lay inside the Al-Hidaya Mosque in northern Mogadishu and three outside. Their discovery brought the death toll from two days of clashes to 56. (Posted @ 19:04 PST) Nepal's Maoists win half the directly elected seats for Constituent Assembly, King denies exile KATHMANDU, April 21 (AP): Nepal's former communist insurgents won half the directly elected seats in an assembly that will write a new constitution. Formally known as the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist), the former rebels have won 120 of the 240 directly elected seats, chief election commissioner Bhojraj Pokhrel said. Meanwhile, Nepal's King Gyanendra denied news reports that he will leave the country ruled for centuries by his ancestors and go into exile, his office said Monday. Nepal's main political parties already have decided the monarchy will soon be abolished. (First Posted @ 10:40 PST Updated @ 18:32 PST) Ethiopia severs ties with Qatar ADDIS ABABA, April 21 (AFP): The Ethiopian government on Monday announced it was severing diplomatic relations with Qatar, accusing the Gulf Arab state of destabilising the Horn of Africa region. In a statement, the Ethiopian government cited Qatar's “strong ties with Eritrea” as well as “direct and indirect assistance to what it calls terrorist organisations in Somalia” as some of the reasons for breaking ties. (Posted @ 18:28 PST) Japanese tanker attacked off Yemen: officials TOKYO, April 21 (AFP): A major Japanese oil tanker was damaged Monday in a chase by heavily armed pirates off the coasts of Somalia and Yemen but no one was injured, officials and crew members said. The attack came a day after a Spanish tuna fishing boat carrying a crew of 26 was seized by pirates in waters off Somalia. The area is plagued by insecurity and considered to be among the most dangerous waterways for shipping in the world. (Posted @ 17:36 PST) 
Security, governance biggest Afghan problems: Javier Solana KABUL, April 21 (Reuters) Poor security and lack of good governance are the biggest challenges facing Afghanistan, European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana said Monday. A major donors' conference on Afghanistan planned in France for June will focus on the issues of security and governance, Solana said. He said he discussed the two issues with President Hamid Karzai. “When we talk about challenges, we have to talk about difficulties that prevent everything that is done ... one is security and that is important ... for the development of the country,” Solana told a joint news conference with Karzai. “The second thing is governance. The ownership of the process belongs to the country ... but together with ownership comes accountability, comes responsibility and comes good governance.” (Posted @ 17:34 PST) Roadside bomb hits convoy in Basra, causes casualties BAGHDAD, April 21 (AP): A roadside bomb hit a U.S. military convoy in Basra Monday, causing casualties, the U.S. military said. The military gave no further details. (Posted @ 17:00 PST) 120 protesting Tibetans detained in Nepal KATHMANDU, April 21 (AFP): At least 120 pro-Tibet protesters were detained Monday after authorities used bamboo batons to break up a rally outside a UN office in Nepal's capital, police said. “We have picked up around 120 Tibetans from the protest. They will be released in the evening,” a police officer told AFP. (Posted @ 16:55 PST) Female suicide bomber kills three in Baquba BAQUBA, Iraq, April 21 (AFP): A female suicide bomber blew herself up near the office of a group fighting Al-Qaeda in Baquba Monday, killing three of its members, police and a doctor said. The bomber detonated her explosives-filled vest in the central Al-Mafraq neighbourhood of the city, north of Baghdad, a police officer said. A Baquba hospital doctor said three members of an anti-Qaeda group were killed and four other people wounded in the attack. (Posted @ 15:40 PST)
One soldier killed, five wounded in Thai south NARATHIWAT, Thailand, April 21 (AFP): One soldier was killed and five wounded in a bomb and shooting attack late Sunday by insurgents in southern Thailand, police said Monday. The rebels detonated a five-kilogramme roadside bomb targeting a group of soldiers in a pick-up truck in Narathiwat province, police said. Militants then opened fire, hitting six soldiers before fleeing the scene. One soldier later died in hospital. (Posted @ 14:00 PST) US warplanes bomb Iraq's Sadr City BAGHDAD, April 21 (AFP): US warplanes dropped bombs overnight in the east Baghdad district of Sadr City where Shiite militiamen are battling security forces, residents said Monday, as the American military reported another five people killed in the township. Residents said low flying jets dropped bombs in sectors 22 and 24 of Sadr City around midnight Sunday. About two hours later helicopters fired missiles at four targets in Sadr City. The US military said four people were killed Sunday afternoon in Sadr City by Hellfire missiles fired from drones when they were readying to fire off rockets. It said another gunman was killed and two wounded when they attacked a military observation post in Sadr City and US troops returned fire. (Posted @ 13:35 PST) Carter says Hamas would conditionally accept peace JERUSALEM, April 21 (Reuters): Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter said on Monday Hamas leaders told him they would accept a peace agreement negotiated by their rival, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, if Palestinians approved the deal in a vote. “They said they would accept a Palestinian state on the 1967 borders if approved by Palestinians ... even though Hamas might disagree with some terms of the agreement,” Carter said in a speech, after talks in Syria and Egypt with Hamas leaders. “It means that Hamas will not undermine Abbas's efforts to negotiate an agreement and Hamas will accept an agreement if the Palestinians support it in a free vote,” he said. (Posted @ 13:15 PST) 11 Taliban fighters killed in Afghan clashes, airstrikes KABUL, Afghanistan, April 21 (AP) - A series of clashes and airstrikes Sunday in Garmser district of Helmand province killed 11 Taliban militants, the Defense Ministry said Monday. Four other militants were killed Sunday after they ambushed an Afghan army patrol in Kandahar province, the ministry said in a statement. Separately, a roadside bomb hit an Afghan army patrol in Zabul province, wounding five soldiers, the ministry said. (Posted @ 13:10 PST) UAE signs nuclear cooperation deal with US MANAMA, April 21 (AFP) - The United Arab Emirates promised to set “a good example” for the Middle East on developing civilian nuclear energy as it signed a cooperation agreement on Monday with the United States. “We really want to be a good example for the region,” Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed al-Nahayan told US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice during a signing ceremony ahead of a broader Arab-US meeting in Bahrain. “I know that you will be,” Rice replied. “The UAE is a very responsible partner.” The United States and Bahrain signed a similar atomic energy cooperation MoU in Washington last month. Details of the UAE-US agreement were expected shortly. (Posted @ 13:05 PST) Olympic torch embarks on Malaysia leg amid tight security KUALA LUMPUR, April 21 (AFP): The Olympic torch began its journey through Kuala Lumpur Monday as part of the Malaysian leg of the Beijing Games relay, witnesses said. The torch left Merdeka or Independence Square after a brief ceremony at 2:21p.m. It will be carried by 80 torchbearers before arriving at the iconic Petronas Twin Towers four hours later. (Posted @ 12:20 PST) Bus plunges into gorge in occupied Kashmir, 14 killed JAMMU, occupied Kashmir, April 21 (Reuters) - A bus veered off a mountainous road in occupied Kashmir on Monday and crashed into a gorge, killing at least 14 people and injuring 27 others, police said. About 45 people were travelling on the bus to Srinagar when the driver lost control near Banihal, about 180 km east of Jammu, police said. (Posted @ 11:40 PST) Cricket: Australia to tour Pakistan in 2009 and 2010 SYDNEY, April 21 (AFP) - Australia will visit Pakistan twice -- in April-May 2009 and again in 2010-- in the next two years to replace a March-April tour that was axed over security concerns, Cricket Australia and the Pakistan Cricket Board said Monday. The PCB has also confirmed it will go ahead with its tour to Australia in 2009-10 for three Tests, five one-day internationals and a Twenty20 international. The 2009 tour of Pakistan will consist of five one-day internationals and a Twenty20 international following the Australian team's commitments in South Africa. Australia will then return to Pakistan in August-September 2010 to play three Test matches, with final dates and venues to be agreed depending on each nation's Future Tours Program (FTP) obligations with the International Cricket Council. “Today's announcement demonstrates Cricket Australia's commitment to fulfilling its obligations under the Future Tours Program and also to Pakistan cricket,” CA Chairman Creagh O'Connor said in the statement. “We're pleased to have reached agreement to travel to Pakistan to complete the postponed matches and to play in them in Australia as agreed under the FTP.” (Posted @ 09:20 PST) Sri Lanka says 33 killed in fresh fighting COLOMBO, April 21 (AFP) - Sri Lanka's military said Monday it had smashed at least 10 Tamil Tiger bunker positions in an offensive in the far north of the island that left 28 rebels and five government soldiers dead. The fighting occurred Sunday on the Jaffna peninsula, the government-held northern tip of the island, as well as elsewhere in the north along frontlines with the LTTE, a defence official said. p(Posted @ 11:40 PST) Gaza militant killed by Israeli fire JERUSALEM, April 21 (AFP) - A Palestinian militant from the Hamas movement was killed in an exchange of fire with Israeli troops in the Gaza Strip early on Monday, an emergency services official said. Gaza militants also fired three improvised rockets at southern Israel, the army said. (Posted @ 11:35 PST) Three dead, 40 missing as tropical storm hits China BEIJING, April 21 (AFP) - Three people have been confirmed dead and 40 are missing after Typhoon Neoguri slammed into southern China at the weekend, state media reported Monday. Meanwhile, rescue teams were scouring the seas off the south coast of China in search of 40 missing seamen, 18 Chinese and 22 Vietnamese, the paper said. (Posted @ 10:50 PST) Taliban says killed Dutch soldiers over blasphemous film LONDON, April 21 (Reuters)- The Taliban said a deadly attack on Dutch soldiers in Afghanistan was in retaliation for the blasphemous film made by the Dutch parliamentarian, a U.S. terrorism monitoring service said on Sunday. The son of the new chief of the Dutch military and another Dutch soldier serving with NATO-led forces were killed when their vehicle hit a roadside bomb in Afghanistan on Friday. The attack was one of “a sequence of missions taking revenge for the insulting film”, the Taliban said in a message in Arabic on its website. (Posted @ 09:45 PST)
Efforts under way for Israel-Syria talks -Assad DAMASCUS, April 21 (Reuters) - Mediators are working to relaunch peace talks between Syria and Israel, President Bashar al-Assad said Sunday. “There are efforts being made in this direction and they are not new. The Israeli side knows full well what Syria would or would not accept,” Assad was quoted as telling a meeting of the ruling Baath Party's command. Negotiations between the two countries collapsed in 2000 over the scope of a proposed Israeli withdrawal from the Golan Heights, seized by Israel in 1967. Syria wants Israel to commit to a full withdrawal from the Golan Heights and prefers the United States to oversee the talks, while Israel wants Syria's ties with Lebanon's Hezbollah and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas to be on the agenda. (Posted @ 09:40 PST) Ruling party candidate concedes defeat in Paraguay vote ASUNCION, April 21 (AFP) - Ruling Colorado Party candidate Blanca Ovelar conceded defeat Sunday to leftist former bishop Fernando Lugo in the country's presidential election. “We acknowledge with dignity that the results for the presidential badge are at this point irreversible,” Ovelar, 51, told reporters after the Electoral Tribunal put Lugo ahead by 40-31 percent, with 75 percent of the vote counted. (Posted @ 09:25 PST) Karachi Stocks down 21.55 points: KARACHI, April 21: At close of trading, the KSE-100 index was at 15654.79, down 21.55 points. (Bureau Report) (Updated @ 14:17 PST) Forex update: KARACHI, April 21: The Pakistani Rupee was traded at Rs 64.6 to the US Dollar in the open market. (Bureau Report) (Updated @ 14:17 PST)
Founder: Quaid-i-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah
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