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| May 03, 2008 | Saturday | Rabi-us-Sani 26, 1429 |
Updated round-the-clock, with major updates after 10:00 PST (05:00 GMT)
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 Japanese FM holds talks with Musharraf, Gilani ISLAMABAD, May 3 (PPI): Japanese Foreign Minister Masahiko Komura held separate meetings with President Pervez Musharraf and Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani in Islamabad on Saturday and exchanged views on a wide range of subjects and matters of mutual interest. Talking to the Japanese foreign minister, premier Gilani said his government is evolving a new multi-pronged strategy to effectively confront the twin menace of terrorism and extremism which drives its strength from socio-economic disparity and un-resolved political disputes. He said the new policy would include political dialogue, socio-economic development and security measures. He categorically stated that talks would only be held with those elements who believe in peace, lay down their arms and abhor terrorism. Komura said Japan as the chairman of G-8 group would apprise the member countries of the challenges being faced by Pakistan and ask them to extend assistance for the economic stability of Pakistan. Komura said that the world community should join hands in the struggle to contain the menace of extremism and terrorism through unified action. He also promised Japanese support for the uplift of under developed areas of the region and in Pakistan’s social sector development programme, particularly education, health and infrastructure development. (Posted @ 18:05 PST)  Pakistan’s new Foreign Secretary speaks ISLAMABAD, May 3 (PPI): Foreign Secretary Salman Bashir Saturday urged the country’s missions abroad to concentrate more on 'economic diplomacy' in developing country-to-country relationship. Salman Bashir, until recently envoy to China, who assumed his new responsibilities on Saturday, said that Pakistan, being a developing country has to work more aggressively on deepening its economic ties with the friendly countries. ''The present government has already set up a Task Force to suggest ways and means of strengthening 'economic diplomacy', aimed at making the foreign policy different from the past where the foreign policy focused on the geo-political factors,” he said.(Posted @ 17:25 PST)  Pakistan and Japan sign agreement for soft loan of Rs.29 bln ISLAMABAD, May 3 (APP): Japan will provide a soft loan of $478 million (Rs. 29 billion) to Pakistan for various projects including Punjab Transmission Lines and Grid Stations Project (Phase I), Punjab Irrigation System Improvement Project, Rural Road Construction Project (Phase II), (Sindh), and the East-West Road Improvement Project (N70)(Phase I). The agreement was singed in Islamabad Saturday.(First Posted @ 18:50 PST Updated @ 19:20 PST) Nawaz Sharif undecided about contesting by-election ISLAMABAD, May 3 (APP) Former prime minister Nawaz Shairf is still undecided about contesting in the upcoming by-elections, PML-N spokesman Siddiqul Farooq said Saturday. Chairing the parliamentary party meeting in Lahore Friday Nawaz Sharif announced that his brother Shahbaz Sharif would participate in the forthcoming by-elections for Punjab assembly, the spokesman said, adding that Nawaz himself had not made up his mind on the issue. The last date for filing nomination papers for the by-elections is May 6. (Posted @ 18:22 PST) Pakistan’s Saleh creates history with 147 break in Asian Snooker DUBAI, May 03 (APP): Pakistan's Saleh Mohammad made history in Asian Snooker by becoming the first cueist to make a break of 147 in the continental competition. He got it against Nguyen Nhat Thanh of Vietnam in third frame amid thunderous applause on Saturday. (Posted @ 18:44 PST) About 5,000 rally in Karachi against blasphemous Dutch film KARACHI, May 3 (AP): About 5,000 members of a religious group rallied Saturday in Karachi to condemn a blasphemous film made by Dutch lawmaker Geert Wilder. The demonstrators also chanted slogans against the Danish government for the republication in Danish newspapers of blasphemous cartoons. (Posted @ 15:55 PST) Nawaz Sharif leaves for London LAHORE, Pakistan, May 3 (PPI) Former premier Nawaz Sharif and his family members Saturday left for London where his wife Kulsoom is to undergo surgery on May 6. (Posted @ 18:36 PST) ADB to get 11.3 billion dollars to tackle poverty, food crisis MADRID, May 3 (AFP): Donors have pledged 11.3 billion dollars to the Asian Development Bank by 2012 to help it tackle poverty and the food crisis. The amount is a 60 percent increase over the 7.0 billion dollars donated to the bank's Asian Development Fund in the previous four-year period, it said in a statement issued late Friday on the eve of its annual meeting in Madrid. Established in 1966, the ADB is owned by 67 members, including 48 from the region. Pakistan was the largest recipient of ADB aid last year followed by Vietnam, India, China and Indonesia. (Posted @ 16:25 PST) PML-Q’s stand after examining resolution on judges: Pervaiz Elahi ISLAMABAD, May 3 (APP): Legal experts of opposition Pakistan Muslim League (PML-Q) would decide the party's future line of action on judiciary issue after examining the draft of the ruling coalition resolution on May 12, said leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi Saturday. A lot of things remain unclear; so it is difficult to comment on it at this stage, he said in a TV interview. He alleged that his party workers were being victimised in almost every district by registering false cases against them. (Posted @ 20:00 PST) Family of abducted Pakistani ambassador issue 'fervent' appeal for his release ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, May 3 (AP) - The family of Pakistan's ambassador to Afghanistan appealed Saturday to his kidnappers to free him and expressed frustration at the government's failure to secure his release three months after he vanished on a border highway. Tariq Azizuddin, his driver and his bodyguard disappeared Feb. 11 as they drove from Peshawar toward the Afghan border. On a video aired April 19 on an Arab satellite channel, Azizuddin said Taliban militants had kidnapped them. In a statement issued Saturday, the envoy's family said that while “some contact” had been established with Azizuddin a month after his abduction, there was no sign he would be released soon. They didn't elaborate on the contact, but they said they had learned that his health was deteriorating due to his confinement in “subhuman conditions.” (Posted @ 19:42 PST) Cyclone batters Myanmar, casualties feared YANGON, May 3 (Reuters) - A tropical cyclone slammed into Myanmar's main city of Yangon on Saturday, ripping off roofs, felling trees and raising fears of major casualties. Land, mobile and satellite phone connections were down and the military authorities were forced to close the airport. Cyclone Nargis, packing winds of up to 120 mph, started to lash the former capital on Friday evening. There were no immediate reports of deaths, but meteorological officials in Myanmar said the cyclone could trigger a storm surge of up to 12 feet in coastal areas. State-run MRTV and Yangon City Radio were off the air, as were the normally shaky Internet services. Buses and trains were not operating either. (First Posted @ 11:15 PST Updated @ 20:52 PST) 150 PKK rebels killed: Turkish army ANKARA, May 3 (Reuters) - The Turkish army killed more than 150 Kurdish PKK rebels in northern Iraq in air strikes carried out on Thursday and Friday, the Turkish General Staff said in a statement on its website on Saturday. It said it destroyed all the targeted PKK posts in Qandil area in the operation. Senior PKK members might be among the killed, it added. (Posted @ 20:42 PST) Olympic torch back in mainland China SANYA, China, May 3 (AFP) - The Olympic torch returned to the Chinese mainland from Macau Saturday and will start its first relay here Sunday, the Chinese state-run Xinhua news agency said. (First Posted @ 13:25 PST Updated @ 20:40 PST) Yemeni police clashes with rebels cost another 10 lives SANAA, May 3 (AFP) - Ten people were killed in clashes between the army and rebels of Yemen's Shiite minority on Saturday in the north of the country, tribal sources said. The clashes broke out at Munbah in the northwestern province of Saada, the sources said. One soldier was killed, along with three rebel fighters and six tribesmen who have been supporting the army. (First Posted @ 12:45 PST Updated @ 20:38 PST) 11 U.S. diplomats leave Belarus amid escalating diplomatic spat MINSK, Belarus, May 3 (AP) - Eleven U.S. diplomats left Belarus on Saturday after being declared persona non grata amid escalating diplomatic tensions between Washington and the ex-Soviet nation, embassy officials said. The U.S. ambassador left in March after Belarus pulled its ambassador from Washington. The U.S. State Department has warned Belarus it may order the Belarusian embassy in Washington and the country's consulate in New York closed, and shut down the U.S. Embassy in Minsk. Washington is one of the fiercest critics of Belarus' President Alexander Lukashenko and is pressuring Belarus to release political prisoners or face punitive sanctions. (Posted @ 19:48 PST) Rebels, troops clash in Chechnya; nine government forces killed ROSTOV-ON-DON, Russia, May 3 (AP) - A group of about 25 suspected militants fought with government forces late Friday in Chechnya's southern district of Urus-Martan, killing one police officer and a soldier and injuring another, an official said on condition of anonymity . At least four militants were wounded, he said. However, the rebel-linked Web site Kavkaz Center claimed that at least nine law enforcement officers were killed in a gunfight that lasted for four hours. (Posted @ 19:12 PST) 3 killed in Azad Kashmir accident ISLAMABAD, May 3 (APP): Three persons were killed and two seriously injured when a motorbike collided with a car in Mirpur city of Azad Kashmir. Police said the accident pccured when a motorbike met a head-on collision with a car at sector 4B of main road leading to industrial area. (Posted @ 19:02 PST) UN says Buddha statue remains safe after explosion nearby KABUL, Afghanistan, May 3 (AP) - A controlled explosion of old ordnance found near remains of the famed Bamiyan Buddha statues has not caused further damage to the 1,500-year old ruins, the United Nations said Saturday. The blast carried out Thursday by NATO-led troops near the smaller of two towering Buddha statues _ destroyed by the Taliban seven years ago _ had prompted an angry reaction from Najibullah Harar, chief of information and culture for Bamiyan, who said the explosion had caused cracks in what is left of the 34.5-meter (113-foot) -high ancient structure. But Brendan J. Cassar, chief of UNESCO's cultural program in Afghanistan, which includes conservation of the World Heritage Site at Bamiyan, said that a monitoring mechanism inside the niche where the statues once stood showed no change in pre-existing cracks. “I'm informed by authorities in Kabul there was no visible damage,” Cassar said. (Posted @ 18:55 PST) 14 killed, 25 injured in Baghdad’s Sadr City clashes Baghdad, May 3 (Reuters) - U.S. forces and the Iraqi army killed 14 militants in separate incidents on Friday in eastern Baghdad, the U.S. military said. Hospital officials in Sadr City said 14 bodies had been brought in overnight after fighting between U.S. forces and militiamen. They said 25 people had been wounded. Meanwhile, a U.S. soldier died from wounds sustained when a roadside bomb struck his vehicle during a combat patrol in eastern Baghdad on Friday, the U.S. military said. Separately, a rocket hit an apartment block, killing two people and wounding seven others in Baghdad's central Salihiya district, while a roadside bomb killed a civilian and wounded eight other people, including six traffic policemen, when it exploded near a traffic patrol in Jamiaa district, western Baghdad, police said. A roadside bomb also struck an Iraqi army patrol, killing two Iraqi soldiers and wounding four others on the outskirts of Tikrit, while another roadside bomb wounded three policemen when it struck their patrol in central Kirkuk. Three bodies were also found in different districts of Baghdad on Friday, police said. (Posted @ 16:55 PST) AfDB adds $1 bln in loans for Africa food crisis TUNIS, May 3 (Reuters): The African Development Bank (AfDB), the only multilateral development body specifically devoted to Africa, will add $1 billion to its portfolio of agricultural loans to help address the food crisis in African countries, the bank said on Saturday. The addition of the $1 billion in funding would raise the bank's portfolio of agricultural loans to $4.8 billion, Bank President Donald Kaberuka said in a statement. (Posted @ 16:35 PST) Austrian is first woman to conquer 11 summits over 8,000m VIENNA, May 3 (AFP): Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner of Austria has become the first woman to conquer 11 peaks over 8,000 metres without breathing apparatus, media reported Saturday. She accomplished the feat on Thursday when she scaled Dhaulagiri, the world's seventh highest mountain peak, in Nepal, despite winds at 60 kilometres per hour. Nives Meroi of Italy became the first woman to notch up 10 peaks over 8,000 metres in May last year when she conquered Everest. Edurna Pasaban of Spain also scaled Dhaulagiri on Thursday, to take her tally to 10 summits. (Posted @ 16:20 PST) U.S. air strike hits Baghdad hospital; 20 injured BAGHDAD, May 3 (AFP): A hospital in Baghdad’s Sadr City was damaged in a US air strike Saturday, wounding around 20 people, including women and children, medics and witnesses said. The strike damaged more than a dozen ambulances belonging to the hospital, one of the three main medical facilities in the district. (Posted @ 16:10 PST) Israeli soldiers kill Palestinian at checkpoint HEBRON, West Bank, May 3 (Reuters) Israeli soldiers Saturday shot dead a Palestinian man who arrived at an army checkpoint south of the West Bank city of Hebron, Palestinian officials and medics said. (Posted @ 13:20 PST) Bush seeks $70 billion for Iraq, Afghan war ST LOUIS, May 3 (AFP): US President George W. Bush on Friday formally asked lawmakers for 70 billion dollars to fund the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan into early next year, when his successor takes over. The budgetary measure includes a request for $770 million in new aid to cope with food shortages and soaring prices that have left many hungry and fueled angry protests around the world. The request came as Bush's previous $108 billion request for the wars has languished in the US Congress. (Posted @ 12:25 PST) British soldier killed in Afghanistan LONDON, May 3 (Reuters): A British soldier died and four others were wounded in a mine blast in the southern Afghan province of Helmand, the Ministry of Defence said on Saturday. The Household Cavalry Regiment soldier was on patrol in Nowzad area of northern Helmand on Friday when the vehicle he was travelling in hit a mine. He was evacuated to hospital but pronounced dead on arrival. Three other Household Cavalry Regiment soldiers as well as an Afghan national were injured in the blast. (First Posted @ 10:50 PST; Updated @ 12:20 PST) US religious rights panel wants Vietnam, Pakistan blacklisted WASHINGTON, May 3 (AFP): A US religious freedom watchdog on Friday asked the State Department to include Vietnam, Pakistan and Turkmenistan in its global blacklist of religious freedom violators, and maintained Indonesia on a watchlist. In its recommendation to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, the US Commission on International Religious Freedom also wanted Myanmar, China and North Korea to be kept in the department's “country of particular concern” blacklist together with Iran, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Eritrea and Uzbekistan. The independent commission also maintained Afghanistan and Bangladesh in its watchlist together with Belarus, Cuba, Egypt and Nigeria. (Posted @ 12:05 PST) West wants Iran to suspend enrichment during talks: Russia MOSCOW, May 3 (AFP): World powers concerned about Iran's nuclear programme want Tehran to suspend uranium enrichment during a negotiation period, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov was quoted as saying Saturday. “Our first conditions are the freezing, suspension of uranium enrichment. The approach of the six (powers) is that Iran should suspend enrichment only for the period in which talks continue,” Lavrov told Interfax and ITAR-TASS news agencies. (Posted @ 11:45 PST) Gunbattles, roadside bomb blast kill 11 Tamil rebels, three soldiers in Sri Lanka COLOMBO, May 3 (AP): Scattered gunbattles and a roadside bomb blast in Sri Lanka's embattled north killed 11 Tamil Tiger rebels and three government soldiers, the military said Saturday. Sporadic fighting in northern Mannar district killed 10 rebels and two soldiers on Friday. Fifteen insurgents and four troops were also wounded, said a defense ministry official, speaking on condition of anonymity because of government regulations. Tamil guerrillas triggered a bomb targeting an army truck in northeastern Welioya region Friday night, killing one soldier. The rebel spokesman was not immediately available for comment Saturday. (Posted @ 10:50 PST) 13 tourists burnt to death in Bolivia car accident LA PAZ, May 3 (AFP): Thirteen tourists -- five Japanese, five Israelis and three Bolivians -- died in southern Bolivia when the two jeeps they were traveling in collided and burst into flames, police said Friday. The accident occurred Thursday in a salt desert in Bolivia popular with foreign visitors. The two vehicles, carrying a total of 14 people, hit each other head on, a policeman told AFP. (Posted @ 09:00 PST) Blast of tornados kills eight in Arkansas LITTLE ROCK, Arkansas, May 3 (AFP): At least 19 tornados ripped across four US states Friday leaving eight dead in Arkansas including a teenage girl and flattening homes and businesses, local officials and media said. Some 28 homes were completely destroyed and 10 damaged when the tornados struck the south-central state. They were the third wave of tornadoes to hit Arkansas this year. (First Posted @ 09:00 PST, Updated @ 10:15 PST)
Founder: Quaid-i-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah
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