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| July 10, 2008 | Thursday | Rajab 6, 1429 |
Updated round-the-clock, with major updates after 10:00 PST (05:00 GMT)
India PM to seek vote of confidence NEW DELHI, July 10 (Reuters) India's Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will seek a confidence vote in his government after his left allies withdrew their support to protest a nuclear deal with the United States, his office said on Thursday. The date will be likely announced on Friday. “The prime minister met the president and sought a trust vote and the date will likely be decided tomorrow,” a spokesman for the prime minister said. Singh's four-year-old government has secured the backing of the key regional Samajwadi Party, but it is still unclear if the ruling coalition has enough votes for a parliamentary majority. A defeat for the government in a no-confidence vote would trigger an early election, probably destroying chances of the nuclear pact going ahead and sparking political uncertainty just as the country struggles with record inflation and rising interest rates. (Posted @ 21:05 PST)
No agreement but Afridi tribes submit written undertaking for maintaining peace in Bara PESHAWAR, July 10 (APP): The political administration of Khyber has not inked any agreement with the militants but the Afridi tribes of Bara tehsil have submitted a written undertaking to the Political Administrator (Political Agent) regarding maintenance of peace and good behavior in the area. A Press release of the Media Cell FATA Secretariat on Thursday clarified that the Jirga of Afridi tribes of Bara tehsil that met APA Bara at Khyber House, Peshawar on July 9 (Wednesday) had submitted a written undertaking to the Political Administrator regarding maintenance of peace and good behavior in the area. A section of the Press erroneously put it as an “agreement” between the Political Administration and the tribes, which is not correct, it further clarified and added that it needs to be clarified that the Afridi tribes submitted an undertaking, which was signed by all the members of the Jirga. It made public the salient features of the undertaking submitted by the Afridi Tribes of Basra Tehsil on July 09, 2008 to the Political Administration Khyber Agency. (Posted @ 21:00 PST)
ISI hand in Kabul blast cannot be ruled out: Indian Army chief New Delhi, July 10 (PPI): The involvement of Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) cannot be ruled out in “well planned and pre-meditated” terror attack on Indian embassy in Kabul that claimed 54 lives, Indian Army chief General Deepak Kapoor said Thursday. “The attack was well-planned and premeditated. ISI elements could be involved in the attack. But I do not want to deny or confirm it,” Kapoor told reporters. (Posted @ 20:25 PST)
Pakistan police arrest militant leader, 3 associates from northwest ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, July 10 (AP) Rehman Malik , head of Pakistan's Interior Ministry, Thursday said police have arrested a senior militant commander and his three associates in the troubled northwest. The commander, known as Rafiuddin, and his associates were captured Wednesday in Hangu town, he said. Supporters tried to free the four men by surrounding the Hangu police station, but the military sent troops to help and the insurgents “dispersed on seeing the army,” Rehman Malik said. He said Rafiuddin was based in South Waziristan tribal region but did not specify which militant group the arrested men belonged to. (Posted @ 20:15 PST)
Lawyers' rally in Islamabad shows animosity toward Zardari ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, July 10 (AP) Pakistani lawyers on Thursday fiercely denounced the leader of the main ruling party for delaying the restoration of judges sacked by President Pervez Musharraf. About 150 lawyers and political activists gathered outside the Supreme Court building in Islamabad, chanted “Go, Zardari, go!” and demanded that Zardari bring the judges back immediately. “Do not play with lawyers' emotions ... do not test our patience,” said Hamid Khan, a key figure in the lawyers' movement, from atop a truck parked outside the gleaming white building. In Lahore on Thursday, where a similar protest was held, lawyers' movement leader Aitzaz Ahsan said plans were in hand to have lawyers stage two-hour sit-ins once a week in their respective areas to keep up the pressure on the government. (Posted @ 19:45 PST)
Afghan forces kill Taliban ”governor” MAZAR-I-SHARIF, Afghanistan, July 10 (Reuters) Afghan security forces killed a Taliban member Abdul Hamid Akhundzada who the insurgents had recently appointed “governor” of the northwestern province of Faryab, police said on Thursday. Akhundzada was killed in a raid by security forces after a tip-off late on Wednesday, said provincial police chief General Khalilullah Andarabi. Another insurgent and a child were also killed, he said. Akhundzada had recently returned to Afghanistan from Pakistan where the militants have sanctuaries along the border. (Posted @ 19:25 PST)
New weapon a worry for US troops in Iraq: report WASHINGTON, July 10 (AFP): The widening use of rocket-propelled bombs in Iraq is posing a deadly new challenge to occupying US troops, The Washington Post reported Thursday. The bombs, dubbed improvised rocket-assisted munitions (IRAMs), “are propane tanks packed with hundreds of pounds of explosives and powered by 107mm rockets. They are often fired by remote control from the backs of trucks, sometimes in close succession,” the Post reported. Their use has left at least 21 people dead this year and marks a “broadening (of) the array of weapons used against US troops,” the report said. (Posted @ 18:30 PST)
Indian troops fire at Pakistani post in Kashmir: military ISLAMABAD, July 10 (AFP) Indian forces fired on Pakistani troops deployed at a forward post along the de-facto border dividing Kashmir between the two countries, a senior military official said. Pakistani troops fired back in retaliation but there was no immediate report of casualties in the exchange of fire. The incident occurred at Battal in Rawalakot sector on the Line of Control which separates the Indian and Pakistani parts of the Himalayan territory, chief Pakistani military spokesman Major General Athar Abbas told AFP. “Indians fired two mortars and small arms on a Pakistani check post at 2pm (0800 GMT),” Abbas said. Pakistani soldiers retaliated with mortars and small arms, adding that a protest was communicated through a hot line across the border, he said. “Pakistan is demanding an immediate meeting at the level of Directors General Military Operations,” he said. The incident was a rare violation of a ceasefire which Pakistan and India agreed to hold in November 2003 along the Line of Control before they launched peace talks in January 2004. (Posted @ 18:30 PST)
Pakistan FM rejects foreign troops on its soil UNITED NATIONS, July 10 (AP) - Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi asserted Wednesday that his nation will permit only Pakistani troops to operate within its borders, rejecting a standing U.S. offer of military assistance also intended to help Afghanistan. The statement during U.N. Security Council session on Afghanistan's future said: “The new democratic government in Pakistan cannot but be sensitive to the sentiments of our people.” Afghan Foreign Minister Rangin Dadfar Spanta said the counter-terrorism efforts, if they are to succeed in reducing the escalating violence, must now be joined by greater efforts to eliminate “root causes” of narcotics, corruption and poverty. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's special envoy to Afghanistan, Kai Eide, told the council Afghanistan was experiencing “an unprecedented level of insurgent and terrorist activities.” “Afghanistan should not used as a geopolitical battleground and we call on Afghanistan's neighbors not to arm or finance insurgents or allow them to operate from their territories,” U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad said. Iran's U.N. Ambassador Mohammad Khazaee also called neighboring Afghanistan's security a “high” priority for Iran. (Posted @ 18:10 PST)
Turkish PM makes first visit to Iraq BAGHDAD, July 10 (AFP) Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan made his first visit to Iraq on Thursday aiming to help with security and reconstruction efforts and discuss the thorny cross-border issue of Kurdish rebels. He is accompanied by four ministers including Foreign Minister Ali Babacan and Energy Minister Hilmi Guler. (Posted @ 17:50 PST)
Suicide car bomber kills two in Baghdad BAGHDAD, July 10 (AFP) A suicide bomber rammed his explosives-filled car against an Iraqi army patrol in Baghdad on Thursday, killing two people and wounding four, security officials told AFP. The attack took place in western Baghdad's Sunni district of Mansur, they added. (Posted @ 17:45 PST)
Malaysia's PM says to step down in 2010 KUALA LUMPUR, July 10 (AFP) Malaysia's Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said Thursday he would step down in June 2010 and hand over to his deputy Najib Razak. (Posted @ 17:45 PST)
No proof of foreign hand in Indian embassy bombing: Gates WASHINGTON, July 10 (APP): US Defence Secretary Robert Gates has said he has no evidence that foreign hand was involved in this week's bombing on Indian embassy in Kabul. “I haven't seen any evidence or proof that foreign agents were involved,” Gates told a news conference. (Posted @ 17:35 PST)
Indian govt seeks allies ahead of confidence vote NEW DELHI, July 10 (APP/AFP) India's embattled coalition government was Thursday in talks with other parties in a bid to ensure it can win a confidence vote sparked by a withdrawal of support from left-wingers, officials said. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was to call on President Pratibha Patil later Thursday to fix a date for the confidence vote, a government spokesman said, as Congress party leaders lobbied smaller parties and independent lawmakers to cobble together the numbers. At present, Congress and its allies have 225 assured seats in the 545-member lower house but it is way short of a simple majority after 59 left-wing lawmakers withdrew support. Last week, the regional socialist Samajwadi Party with 39 MPs promised to vote with the government but news reports say some within the group could rebel and side with the opposition. “What we are trying to do is to get more than the 272 required to win the confidence vote,” said a senior Congress minister, who wished to remain unnamed. Recalling that a previous government had collapsed due to a single vote in 1999, he said: “We are not taking any chances. We are are in touch with some parties in the opposition camp who have stated that they are not opposed to the (nuclear) deal.” (Posted @ 17:25 PST)
PAF aircraft crashes, pilots eject safely ISLAMABAD, July 10 (APP): A T-37 aircraft of Pakistan Air Force on a routine training mission crashed approximately 55 km north of Risalpur near Sakha kot in Punjab province. According to a PAF press release the crash apparently occurred due to technical malfunction. Both the pilots ejected safely and no loss of civilian life or property occurred on the ground. (Posted @ 17:15 PST)
Seven killed, 12 injured in Kurram landmine blasts PESHAWAR, July 10 (APP): At least seven persons have been killed and twelve critically injured in three separate bomb explosions in different parts of Lower Kurram on Thursday. According to Assistant Political Agent Lower Kurram, the first bomb went off in Arwali area in which three persons were killed and seven injured when a vegetable-laden vehicle hit a roadside landmine. In another incident a tractor trolley struck a mine in Kach area, killing four persons and critically wounding five other, he added. Separately, one person was critically injured after stepping on mine while working in his field in Mengak area. The injured, including children, were immediately shifted to different hospitals of the agency. Following the bomb blasts security was put on high alert in Parachinar, Sadda and other parts of Kurram Agency. (First Posted @ 11:05 PST, Updated @ 17:05 PST)
Pakistan seeks UAE's cooperation in energy, airline industry DUBAI, July 10 (APP): Pakistan has Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani sought assistance in overcoming the country’s ongoing energy crisis and for the development of its airline industry in a meeting with UAE's Vice President and Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammad bin Rashid Al-Maktoum here last night. He also asked him for cooperation in various fields of infrastructure development, including the functioning of Gwadar Port. Sheikh Al-Maktoum assured all-out support to Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and said the UAE would encourage its private sector to make further investments in Pakistan in various fields, particularly the energy and real estate sectors. (Posted @ 16:55 PST)
Iran fires more missiles in war games TEHRAN, July 10 (AFP): Iran's military test-fired more missiles in the Gulf on Thursday, state television reported, on the third day of ongoing war games. “On the third day of Great Prophet manouevres in the Persian Gulf the most significant events were the firing of shore-to-sea, suface-to-surface and sea-to-air missiles,” it said. It said the war games also included the firing of the Hoot (Whale) torpedo that Iran unveiled in April 2006 which it described then as a super-fast weapon capable of hitting enemy submarines. The report said the war games included warships from the naval section of the elite Revolutionary Guards. State television also that late Wednesday more “longer and medium range missiles were fired” in night-time exercises, without giving further details (First Posted @ 15:15 PST, Updated @ 15:50 PST)
Thai government in disarray as foreign minister resigns BANGKOK, July 10 (AFP): Thai Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej's five-month-old government suffered a fresh blow Thursday after Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama resigned, becoming the third top official in the ruling People Power Party (PPP) forced out of office in less than 48 hours due to the government's legal troubles. His resignation followed the Constitutional Court ruling Tuesday that Noppadon and the entire cabinet had violated the charter by failing to seek parliamentary approval for a deal with Cambodia over a disputed temple on the border. The verdict has sparked public calls for the entire cabinet to resign, and the opposition Democrat Party said it was considering an impeachment motion to force them from office. (Posted @ 15:30 PST)
Iran test-fires more missiles TEHRAN, July 10 (AFP): Iran conducted a second round of missile tests in as many days on Thursday as it continued its war games. State television said the weapons fired in the Gulf by the naval section of the elite Revolutionary Guards included shore-to-sea, surface-to-surface and sea-to-air missiles. It said the Hoot (Whale) torpedo, unveiled by Iran in April 2006 and described then as a super-fast weapon capable of hitting enemy submarines, was also tested. (Posted @ 15:15 PST)
3 Taliban militants killed in Afghanistan KABUL, July 10 (AP): A group of villagers in Faryab province, Afghanistan killed two Taliban militants and chased 10 others away, a provincial governor said Thursday. The incident occurred after militants tried to abduct aid workers building a well in Qayar district on Wednesday. One the killed militants is reported to be the Taliban-appointed shadow governor for the province. Separately, the NATO-led force said its troops in central Logar province have killed a suspected Taliban militant believed to have been involved in planning suicide bombings. (Posted @ 14:50 PST)
Uzbekistan arms depot blast kills 3 TASHKENT, July 10 (Reuters); A series of explosions at a Soviet-era arms depot in southern Uzbekistan killed at least three people and smashed windows in buildings several miles away, media and witnesses said on Thursday. The blast, caused by a fire, occurred late on Wednesday in the town of Kagan, near Bukhara, and there are reports of a high number of casualties in local hospitals. (First Posted @ 12:10 PST, Updated @ 14:35 PST)
Israeli troops kill Gaza man in first truce fatality GAZA CITY, July 10 (AFP): Israeli troops shot and killed a Palestinian along the border in the southern Gaza Strip on Thursday, the first fatality since a fragile truce went into effect three weeks ago. (Posted @ 12:15 PST, Updated @ 14:25 PST)
We will defend allies from Iran: Condoleezza Rice TBILISI, July 10 (Reuters): The United States wants to send a message to Iran that it will defend its allies from possible attack, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Thursday. “We are also sending a message to Iran that we will defend American interests and... the interests of our allies,” she told a news conference after a meeting with Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili. “We take very, very strongly our obligation to help our allies defend themselves and no one should be confused about that,” she said. (Posted @ 13:20 PST)
Five injured in landmine blast in Turkey DIYARBAKIR, Turkey, July 10 (AFP): Five members of the security forces were injured Thursday in southeastern Turkey when their vehicle hit a landmine believed to have been planted by separatist Kurdish rebels, a local security source said. The incident near the town of Semdinli, in Hakkari province on the border with Iraq and Iran, injured four soldiers and a “village guard”, a government-armed Kurdish militia supporting the army against the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), said the source, requesting anonymity. (Posted @ 12:55 PST)
Six dead in Leicestershire crash LONDON, July 10 (Reuters): Six people were killed after a serious crash involving a car and a lorry near Melton Mowbray in Leicestershire, police said Thursday. Officers said the accident occurred about a mile south of the town on the A607 road shortly before 2 a.m. Six young people in a Ford Mondeo car were killed while the 48-year-old lorry driver was arrested in connection with the incident. (Posted @ 12:50 PST)
More foreign fighters moving into Pakistan's tribal areas: NYT WASHINGTON, July 10 (AFP): There has been an increase in foreign fighters travelling to Pakistan to join up with Al-Qaeda-linked militants in the country's tribal areas, the New York Times reported, quoting US intelligence officials, Thursday. US intelligence and military sources told the newspaper that dozens or more Uzbeks, North Africans and Arabs from Gulf states have moved into Pakistan in recent months, shoring up the Al-Qaeda forces which are backing the Taliban insurgency in neighboring Afghanistan. A US military spokesman in Baghdad told the Times that there has been a corresponding drop in the number of foreign fighters entering Iraq, now less than 40 a month compared to up to 110 a month one year ago. “The flow may reflect a change that is making Pakistan, not Iraq, the preferred destination for some Sunni extremists from the Middle East, North Africa and Central Asia who are seeking to take up arms against the west,” the Times wrote, citing the officials. General David McKiernan, the new NATO commander in Afghanistan, said the situation in Pakistan's northwestern border areas, where Al-Qaeda and other militants are based, has worsened. “The porous border has allowed insurgent militant groups a greater freedom of movement across that border, as well as a greater freedom to resupply, to allow leadership to sustain stronger sanctuaries, and to provide fighters across that border,” McKiernan told the Times. A US defence official told the Times that the flow of foreign fighters into Pakistan has increased “from a trickle to a steady stream,” especially after Pakistan's government cut back tribal area operations in March and launched talks with local leaders in hopes of halting militant activities. (Posted @ 12:30 PST)
Israeli troops kill Palestinian on Gaza border GAZA, July 10 (Reuters): Israeli troops killed a Palestinian who crossed into Israel from the Gaza Strip Thursday, an Israeli army spokesman said. (Posted @ 12:15 PST)
Uzbek arms depot blast, casualties reported MOSCOW, July 10 (Reuters): An explosion at an arms depot in Uzbekistan on Thursday caused an unknown number of casualties, a source at the Russian Defence Ministry was quoted as saying by the Interfax news agency. The explosion occurred in the Bukhara region of western Uzbekistan. “There are casualties,” said the unnamed source at the ministry. Uzbek officials could not be reached for comment. (Posted @ 12:10 PST)
Policeman killed in occupied Kashmir grenade attack SRINAGAR, occupied Kashmir, July 10 (AFP): A policeman was killed and another seriously hurt in a hand grenade attack by suspected militants in occupied Kashmir, police said Thursday. The attack on a police patrol took place late Wednesday in Handwara town, about 80 kilometers north of Srinagar, a police spokesman said. It came hours after Indian troops shot dead two suspected militants in a neighbouring area, the spokesman said. (Posted @ 11:25 PST)
Pro-Taliban militants end police station siege in Pakistan’s Hangu PESHAWAR, Pakistan, July 10 (AFP): Pro-Taliban militants ended their siege of a police station in northwest Pakistan when troops arrived early Thursday, police said. Police said they requested reinforcements after around 200 militants surrounded a police station in the Hangu district of North West Frontier Province late Wednesday to demand the release of seven militants. “The Taliban ended the siege of the police station around 3:00 a.m. when troops started arriving,” local police station chief Jehangir Khan told AFP. Authorities imposed a curfew in the area and troops were patrolling the streets, residents said. (Posted @ 11:10 PST)
Landmine blasts kill six in Pakistan’s Kurram tribal region PESHAWAR, Pakistan, July 10 (AFP): At least six people were killed and nine others injured Thursday in three separate landmine blasts in Pakistan’s Kurram tribal region, an official said. Three people were killed and six others injured when a pick-up carrying vegetables struck a roadside landmine in Arawali village, local official Attaur Rehman told reporters. Separately, a tractor pulling a trolley hit a landmine in Marokhel village, killing three people and injuring two others, he said. In another incident in Magnek village, a man lost his leg when he passed over a landmine, Khan said. Nobody claimed the responsibility for the landmine blasts. (Posted @ 11:05 PST)
200 detained in Peru strike, regional office set ablaze LIMA, July 10 (AFP): Peruvian authorities arrested 200 people and protesters set fire to a regional government office on Wednesday during a 24-hour national strike against President Alan Garcia's economic policies. Thousands of protesters marched across the country, with some scuffles with police, in a strike organized by the left-leaning CGTP workers' union. Protesters ransacked and set fire to the headquarters of the regional government of Madre de Dios, an Amazon region in Peru's southeast, and attacked its staff, officials said. Demonstrators also tried to block roads in several parts of southern Peru. “At least 200 people were detained nationally for trying to conduct illegal acts,” Interior Minister Luis Alva Castro said. (Posted @ 10:20 PST)
Four killed in Lebanon gunbattles TRIPOLI, Lebanon, July 10 (AFP): Four people were killed and 58 wounded in street battles between rival camps armed with rockets, sniper rifles and grenades in the north Lebanese city of Tripoli on Wednesday. Panicked residents were fleeing the scene of the fighting which first erupted late on Tuesday in two districts of northeastern Tripoli, while several roads were blocked and local shops and schools were closed, an AFP correspondent said. A security official said four people were killed and another 58 were wounded in the violence. The dead included two brothers killed by snipers, a Palestinian nurse and a resident of the Jabal Mohsen quarter. (Posted @ 10:15 PST)
Afghanistan, Pakistan exchange complaints at UN UNITED NATIONS, July 10 (Reuters): Afghanistan and Pakistan urged each other at a U.N. Security Council meeting Wednesday to cooperate more in fighting terrorism, both complaining the violence in their own country was fueled by the situation in the other. Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi called for confidence-building steps, including not allowing their respective territories to be used against each other and avoiding “provocative statements.” “Clearly, we need to do more to overcome suspicion and distrust,” Qureshi told the Security Council. Afghan Foreign Minister Rangeen Dadfar Spanta welcomed recent elections in Pakistan that he said showed the people “have said no to terrorism.” He said a main factor contributing to a deterioration of Afghan security was a de facto truce in tribal areas beyond the border, a clear reference to Pakistan. “Terrorist sanctuaries and an elaborate system of financing, recruiting, arming and systematic training of suicide bombers are at work outside our borders to keep the terrorist threat alive,” Spanta said. Qureshi said political dialogue was vital to restoring peace to the frontier region and countering extremism. “We are negotiating with tribal leaders and other influentials in these regions; not with the terrorists, nor with those who do not eschew violence,” he said. He said Pakistan had lost more soldiers than any other country in the fight against Al Qaeda and had taken steps to prevent cross-border infiltration by militants. “The security environment on our side deteriorated sharply as a result of our role in the counter-terrorist campaign,” he said. “In 2007, Al Qaeda and some Taliban-linked groups turned on Pakistan and its security forces.” He said Pakistan was willing to cooperate more but its partners could also do more, by expanding military deployment on the Afghan side of the border, sharing real time intelligence and more closely monitoring legal border traffic. He also called for “caution in the use of artillery and aerial attacks, to avoid accidents or territorial violations.” (Posted @ 10:00 PST)
US Senate passes electronic spying bill WASHINGTON, July 10 (AFP): The US Senate on Wednesday passed a bill expanding legal authority for electronic wiretaps by spy agencies. The measure includes retroactive immunity for telecommunications firms which aided warrantless government surveillance operations following the September 11 attacks in 2001 - a key demand of the White House. Senators voted 69 to 28 to pass the measure, and defeated several attempts to water down the immunity for telecoms firms. Bush said the measure would help US intelligence agencies “learn who the terrorists are talking to, what they're saying, and what they're planning.” ”This legislation is critical to America's safety. It is long overdue,” the president said, in the White House Rose Garden, as he arrived home from the G8 summit in Japan. (Posted @ 09:25 PST )
Darfur militia ambush kills seven peacekeepers KHARTOUM, July 10 (Reuters): Darfur militiamen ambushed and killed seven members of a joint U.N.-African Union (UNAMID) peacekeeping mission and wounded 22 others, the United Nations said Wednesday. The UNAMID soldiers and police were ambushed on a routine patrol by about 40 vehicles full of armed militia in North Darfur on Tuesday, UNAMID spokeswoman in Sudan Shereen Zorba told Reuters. (Posted @ 09:05 PST )
14 migrants die off southern Spain MADRID, July 10 (AFP): Fourteen migrants, including nine small children, died on board a boat that was heading for southern Spain from north Africa, Spanish national radio said Thursday, quoting survivors. It said a police maritime patrol intercepted the boat during the night off the province of Almeria with 35 survivors on board. The survivors reported that 14 others had died during the voyage, nine of them children between 12 months and four years, the radio said. The Europa Press news agency said 15 people had died, including one woman whose body was found on the boat. It said the survivors were in a poor state of health when they arrived on shore. (Posted @ 09:00 PST )
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