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| April 24, 2008 | Thursday | Rabi-us-Sani 17, 1429 |
Updated round-the-clock, with major updates after 10:00 PST (05:00 GMT)
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 Pakistan protests to NATO, Afghan forces over soldier death ISLAMABAD, April 24 (AFP): Pakistan's foreign ministry said Thursday it had lodged a strong protest with NATO and Afghan forces after a chaotic border battle spilled into Pakistani territory, leaving a soldier dead. “We have lodged a strong protest with the Afghan and ISAF side and told them in clear terms that such incidents must not be repeated,” foreign ministry spokesman Mohammad Sadiq told reporters at a weekly briefing. “We emphasised that military action on Pakistan side is the exclusive responsibility of Pakistani forces.”Sadiq said the protest was lodged today at a “higher level. ”Up to 10 militants were reported killed in the gunfight, the Pakistani military said. (Posted @ 17:20 PST)   FO says Ahmedinejad to visit Pakistan ISLAMABAD, April 24 (AFP): Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad will make a brief visit to Pakistan next week to meet the country's new government, the foreign ministry said Thursday. Ahmadinejad will fly in to Pakistan Monday for a few hours as part of a whistlestop tour of South Asian nations, which will also include India and Sri Lanka. “It is a brief visit, essentially it is a stopover for a few hours,” foreign ministry spokesman Mohammad Sadiq told reporters at a weekly briefing. “Essentially he will be meeting the Pakistan leadership and discussing matters of bilateral interests, bilateral relations including political relations and economic relations,” he added. (Posted @ 16:30 PST) India, Pakistan renew talks on gas pipelines ISLAMABAD, April 24 (Reuters) The Indian oil minister Murli Deora was in Pakistan Thursday for talks on two major cross-border gas pipelines. Deora has first focused on a project to build a gas pipeline from Turkmenistan, running through Afghanistan and Pakistan to India. Officials from all four countries were involved in the talks that began Wednesday. Deora and Pakistani officials will turn their attention Friday to an on-off scheme to construct a gas pipeline from Iran, through Pakistan to India. “We are interested in both the projects as we need gas,” Deora told Reuters late Wednesday. Negotiations are more advanced for a multi-billion dollar deal to pipe Iranian gas to India via Pakistan, although pricing is one of the critical issues still to be resolved. “Pakistan and India will hold discussions on Friday on transit fees and transportation tariff,” said an Indian official, who did not rule out chances of a “breakthrough” on past sticking points. (Posted @ 13:55 PST) India takes Pakistan TV channels off air in occupied Kashmir SRINAGAR, occupied Kashmir, April 24 (Reuters): Indian authorities have blocked cable TV operators from broadcasting four Pakistani television channels in occupied Kashmir, a move several Kashmiri leaders described as “cultural aggression” by New Delhi. “After receiving orders from the administration, we immediately blocked all four (PTV, ARY, Aaj and Geo TV) channels,” Irfan Ahmad, a leading cable TV operator said in Srinagar. Officials said the cable operators did not have the necessary government clearance to broadcast the channels. “It is another indication of naked aggression by Indian authorities,” read a statement from Kashmiri independence leader Syed Ali Shah Gilani. Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, chairman All Parties Hurriyat Conference, termed the ban on Pakistani TV channels as “cultural aggression” by Indian authorities. (Posted @ 16:10 PST) Pakistan considers mercy plea for Indian “spy” ISLAMABAD, April 24 (Reuters): Pakistan said on Thursday it was actively considering an Indian plea for clemency for an Indian man condemned to death for spying and carrying out bomb blasts in Pakistan. “The issue is under active consideration,” Pakistan's Foreign Office spokesman Mohammad Sadiq told a weekly news conference. “We have received a request from the Indian government ... and a decision will be taken in due course,” he added. His comments came as Singh's family were visiting Pakistan to meet him in a prison in Lahore. Singh was sentenced to death in 1991 for spying and carrying out four bomb blasts that killed 14 people. (Posted @ 19:24 PST) Syria confirms Israeli peace offer, suggests no direct negotiations for now BEIRUT, Lebanon, April 24 (AP): Syrian President Bashar Assad confirmed in remarks published Thursday Turkish mediation between Syria and Israel but suggested there would be no direct negotiations with the Jewish state until a new U.S. administration takes office. Assad's comments in Qatar's Al-Watan newspaper provided the first details of Turkish mediation, which Damascus says has yielded an Israeli offer for withdrawal from the Golan Heights in return for a peace treaty with Syria. He said Turkey began its mediation in April last year and that there would be no secret talks with Israel. The preliminary stages of talks, he said, would be held with Turkey as a go-between. “Maybe with the coming United States administration we can talk about direct negotiations,” he told Al-Watan, which only published excerpts of the interview. He said the United States was the only party qualified to sponsor any direct Syrian-Israeli negotiations. (Posted @ 23:02 PST) Polish embassy in Iraq hit by rocket, injuring one WARSAW, April 24 (AP): Polish Foreign Minister Radek Sikorski said a rocket has hit the country's embassy in Baghdad. One embassy worker was lightly wounded in the attack. Sikorski said one mortar or rocket round hit the roof of the building housing the embassy's security staff. The living quarters are next to the embassy's main building in the Iraqi capital's Green Zone. He says Thursday's attack will not affect Poland's mission in Iraq. “The terrorists who committed this sort of attack will not achieve their goals,” he said. “Our schedule for ending our mission in Iraq will not change.” Poland plans to withdraw some 900 of its troops from Iraq by October end. (Posted @ 20:34 PST) 'Untouchable' woman dies after Indian medics refuse treatment LUCKNOW, India, April 24 (AFP): An “untouchable” woman who gave birth outside an Indian hospital because doctors would not treat her died Thursday, a day after her baby, officials admitted. The newborn boy of Maya Devi, 28, died Wednesday due to lack of medical help minutes after being born outside the maternity wing of Kanpur Medical College in northern Uttar Pradesh state. Devi was only put in intensive care after giving birth but died of a heart attack early Thursday. Several doctors, including the hospital's chief medical superintendent, refused to touch her or provide medical care as she delivered her baby, the Press Trust of India reported. Devi was a Dalit, or “untouchable”, a group at the bottom of the caste social ladder long ostracised and forced into menial professions despite laws banning discrimination. Many high-class Hindus fear coming into contact with them. (Posted @ 20:10 PST) Spanish police arrest escaped Moroccan drug baron MADRID, April 24 (AP): Spanish police said they had captured a Moroccan citizen who escaped from a prison where he had been serving a sentence for drug-related offences. Police say the fugitive, identified only as Mohamed T.A., has been arrested in Ceuta, a Spanish enclave located on Africa's northern Mediterranean coast. A police statement issued Thursday says Mohamed T.A. is considered one of the world's major hashish traffickers and had been in jail in northwestern Morocco serving an eight-year sentence when he escaped. (Posted @ 20:00 PST) 
British teachers hold first national strike for 20 years LONDON, April 24 (Reuters): More than 8,000 schools were forced to close on Thursday as teachers staged their first national strike in 20 years in a dispute over pay. College lecturers and civil servants also walked out in separate but co-ordinated stoppages. Up to 200,000 members of the National Union of Teachers (NUT) were taking part in the one-day action in protest at a three-year pay deal announced in January. (Posted @ 18:54 PST) Japan celebrates centenary of migration to Brazil TOKYO, April 24 (AFP): Japan on Thursday celebrated 100 years of emigration to Brazil, the foreign country with the world's largest population of ethnic Japanese. The occasion was marked with a ceremony in Tokyo, which was attended by Emperor Akihito, Empress Michiko and their son Crown Prince Naruhito as well as premier Yasuo Fukuda and a representative of Brazil's president. Nearly 800 Japanese set sail on the “Kasato Maru” from Kobe in search of better living conditions and arrived at Santos Port in June 1908. Brazil is now home to more than 1.2 million people of Japanese descent. (Posted @ 18:26 PST) Three killed in Baghdad supermarket bombing BAGHDAD, April 24 (AFP): A bomb blast in a supermarket in western Baghdad’s Al-Mansur neighbourhood Thursday killed at least three people and wounded 15 others, security and medical officials told AFP. The wounded included a woman, two children and three Iraqi soldiers, medics said. (Posted @ 16:15 PST) Two killed in East Timor gang violence DILI, April 24 (Reuters): Two members of East Timor's rival martial arts gangs were killed Thursday, police said. One of the victims was decapitated in a revenge attack that followed the killing of a rival gang member in the eastern district of Baucau, said local police detective chief Rogerio Gueterres. “We are searching for 10 perpetrators who have been identified,” Gueterres said. (Posted @ 15:45 PST)
British foreign secretary visits Iraq; five die in Sadr City clashes BAGHDAD, April 24 (AP): Britain's foreign secretary held talks Thursday with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki as at least five people were reported killed in the ongoing fighting between Shiite militiamen and Iraqi and U.S.-led forces. The British Embassy confirmed that Foreign Secretary David Miliband had arrived on a previously unannounced visit but refused to release any other information due to security concerns. In the latest clashes, five people died and 28 were wounded early Thursday in Baghdad's Sadr City district, a police officer said, requesting anonymity. (Posted @ 15:30 PST) Three killed in Pakistan traffic accident ISLAMABAD, April 24 (APP): Three persons were killed and three others injured in a traffic mishap on Jamshoro road near Hyderabad(Pakistan) Thursday when three vehicles collided due to overtaking and over-speeding, private television channels reported. (Posted @ 15:10 PST) Fire in Egyptian clothing factory injures 20 ISMAILIA, Egypt, April 24 (Reuters): A fire broke out in a clothing factory in the Egyptian town of Ismailia, 120 kms northeast of Cairo, Thursday, injuring 20 workers and causing damage estimated at about $20 million, security and medical sources said. The fire broke out in a fabric storage room and spread to the rest of the factory. The cause of the fire is still unknown. (Posted @ 14:40 PST) Two US soldiers killed in vehicle accident in Iraq BAGHDAD, April 24 (AP): Two American soldiers died in a non-combat related accident north of Baghdad Wednesday, the U.S. military said Thursday. The two died when their vehicle rolled onto its side in Salahuddin province. Another soldier and an interpreter were injured. (Posted @ 13:35 PST) Two Indian weddings hit by accidents, 43 feared dead JAIPUR, India, April 24 (AP:) Two Indian wedding celebrations were marred by death when separate accidents left 43 people feared dead, police said Thursday. In western India, 24 members of an extended family were killed when the vehicle they were travelling in collided with a truck early Thursday about 130 kilometres northwest of Jodhpur, city police Superintendent Sanjeev Kumar Narjari said. In Pune, a boat ferrying people to a wedding across a lake capsized and sank late Wednesday, killing 10 people and leaving nine more missing and feared dead, police officer Prakash Sonar said Thursday. Nine other people managed to swim to safety. (First Posted @ 09:30 PST, Updated @ 13:25 PST) US military says one soldier killed, another injured in Kuwait road accident KUWAIT CITY, April 24 (AP): One American soldier was killed and another injured in a road accident in Kuwait, the U.S. military said. A military statement said the soldiers were in a ''single vehicle accident'' on a highway Wednesday. The cause of the accident is under investigation. (Posted @ 13:15 PST) Turkish army strikes PKK group in northern Iraq ANKARA, April 24 (Reuters): Turkish warplanes fired on a group of Kurdish rebels in northern Iraq Wednesday as they tried to cross into Turkey, the army said in a statement Thursday. The statement came a day after a military source said at least four Turkish military jets bombed Kurdish separatist targets inside northern Iraq. “A group of armed PKK/KONGRA-GEL terror organisation members, who were trying to cross into Turkey from northern Iraq's Hakurk region, were spotted and neutralised by fire from aircraft of the Air Forces,” the statement said. Ankara blames the separatist group for the deaths of 40,000 since 1984, when the group took up arms to carve out an ethnic homeland in southeast Turkey. (Posted @ 13:10 PST) Militants kill 'US spy' in Pakistani tribal area MIRANSHAH, Pakistan, April 24 (AFP): Militants shot dead a shopkeeper in a Pakistani tribal region, accusing him of spying for US forces across the border in Afghanistan, an official said Thursday. The bullet-riddled body of the tribesman, who ran a grocery store in a town near the Afghan border, was dumped in Miranshah. “This man has met his fate because he was spying for the American and Afghan forces and giving them help,” a note left on the body said. “Whoever helps American forces will meet the same fate.” The victim, who was in his 20s, was picked up at a bus stop last week just outside Miranshah, residents said. (Posted @ 13:05 PST) Olympic relay completed without interruption in Australia CANBERRA, Australia, April 24 (AP) - Runners carried the Olympic torch unimpeded through Australia's capital Thursday cheered by thousands waving Chinese flags. People carrying Chinese flags and sometimes chanting “One China!” strongly outnumbered those carrying Tibetan flags or placards criticizing Beijing's human rights record. Along the route, eager supporters waving Chinese banners tried to keep up with the relay. The torch now is to head to Nagano, Japan, and then South Korea before finally reaching China for a multi-location tour. (First Posted @ 09:50, Updated @ 12:05 PST) Maoist leader vows swift exit for Nepal king KATHMANDU, April 24 (AFP) - Nepal's Maoist leader Prachanda vowed Thursday that the king will be quickly removed from power after the ultra-leftists secured a surprise win in landmark polls. “The first meeting of the constituent assembly will definitely end the monarchy and there will not be any conmpromise on this,” the former rebel leader told journalists after meeting foreign ambassadors and UN officials. (Posted @ 11:40 PST) Tariq Aziz, six others to stand trial for Saddam era atrocities BAGHDAD, April 24 (AP) - The fourth trial of top figures from Saddam Hussein's regime will begin next week when former deputy prime minister Tariq Aziz and six others face charges in the execution of dozens of merchants in 1992. Court spokesman Munir Hadad said the trial begins Tuesday and will deal with the execution of 42 Iraqi merchants accused by Saddam's government of being behind a sharp increase in food prices when the country was under strict U.N. sanctions. In addition to Aziz, Hadad said the defendants will include Saddam's half brother Watban Ibrahim al-Hassan and former Central Bank Gov. Issam Mula Hawish. A third trial is under way for officials accused of crushing a Shiite uprising that followed the 1991 Gulf War. (Posted @ 10:55 PST) Five workers killed in Thailand's Muslim south PATTANI, Thailand, April 24 (Reuters) - Suspected militants in Thailand's south killed five Buddhist construction workers and wounded another in a roadside ambush on Thursday, police said. The attackers fired on a pick-up truck carrying the workers to a school construction site in Pattani province. Pattani is one of three Muslim majority provinces annexed by predominately Buddhist Thailand a century ago. (Posted @ 10:20 PST) 
Saddam's number 2 captured in Iraq? DUBAI, April 24 (AFP) - A man suspected to be Izzat Ibrahim al-Duri, who tops the Iraqi government's list of most-wanted fugitives, has been captured in Iraq, Al-Arabiya television reported Wednesday. Al-Arabiya said the man was caught in Hamrin between the provinces of Salaheddin and Kirkuk and DNA tests are being conducted to confirm his identity. Abu Mohammed, described as Duri's representative in Syria, told Al-Arabiya the report is fabricated. Duri is free and secure and “leading the resistance and jihad in Iraq,” Abu Mohammad said by telephone. Duri was number six and the king of clubs on a 55 most-wanted “deck of cards” distributed by the Pentagon at the outset of the US-led invasion of Iraq in March 2003. (Posted @ 10:10 PST) Libya compares Gaza to 'concentration camps' UNITED NATIONS, April 24 (AFP) - France on Wednesday led a walkout of Western envoys from a UN Security Council debate on the Middle East after Libya compared the situation in the besieged Gaza Strip to Nazi “concentration camps,” diplomats said. France's UN Ambassador Jean-Maurice Ripert took off his earpiece and walked out, followed by his Western colleagues, after his Libyan counterpart Giadalla Ettalhi made the remarks as the 15-member Council tried to agree on a compromise statement to highlighted the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza. (Posted @ 10:05 PST) Israeli air strikes on Gaza leaves one dead, several injured GAZA, April 24 (AFP) - Israeli warplanes carried out two air strikes on the Gaza Strip on Wednesday evening, killing one Palestinian and wounding three, Palestinian doctors and witnesses said. One Palestinian was killed and three wounded in a raid near the northern Gaza town of Beit Hanun, but a second attack near Khan Yunis caused no injuries. (Posted @ 10:00 PST) Syrian diplomat denies North Korea gave Syria nuclear help UNITED NATIONS, April 24 (AFP) - Syria's UN Ambassador Bashar Jaafari Wednesday rejected US allegations that his country had received nuclear assistance from North Korea. In Washington, a US official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the United States had concluded that the help came both before and after a Syrian nuclear reactor being built in secret with North Korean help was destroyed. The official did not specify who had destroyed the facility, but Israel carried out an airstrike inside Syrian territory in September in a move widely reported to have targeted a nuclear site. (Posted @ 09:55 PST)
Karachi Stocks down 167.61 points: KARACHI, April 24: At close of trading, the KSE-100 index was at 15302.53, down 167.61 points. (Bureau Report) (Updated @ 14:17 PST) Forex update: KARACHI, April 24: The Pakistani Rupee was traded at Rs 65.3 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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