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| August 19, 2008 | Tuesday | Sha'aban 16, 1429 |
Updated round-the-clock, with major updates after 10:00 PST (05:00 GMT)
Pakistan reaffirms political, diplomatic, moral support to Kashmir cause ISLAMABAD, Aug 19 (PPI): Pakistan has reaffirmed its political, diplomatic and moral support to Kashmir cause and stressed the need to associate the Kashmiri people in the peace process. This was stated by Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi while talking to an All Parties Hurriyet Conference delegation here Tuesday. The delegation led by Ghulam Nabi Fai, Executive Director, Kashmir American Council, Washington included Syed Yusuf Naseem, Ghulam Safi, Rafiq Dar and Nazir Quraishi. The Kashmiri leaders spoke of their concern on recent unrest and violence and use of force in Indian occupied Kashmir. Fateha was offered for APHC leader Shaheed Shaikh Abdul Aziz and other Kashmiris martyred in recent protests and violence in occupied Kashmir. (Posted @ 23:06 PST)
Iraq to sign $1.2 bn oil service deal with China BAGHDAD, Aug 19 (Reuters): Iraq will soon sign its first big international oil deal since the fall of Saddam Hussein, a $1.2 billion oil service contract with China, oil minister Hussain al-Shahristani said Tuesday. The deal covers a small field producing just 90,000 barrels per day and replaces an earlier deal signed under Saddam. The terms described by Shahristani give a clue to the tough line Baghdad is likely to take in deals with other foreign firms. It replaces a production sharing agreement that would have given a Chinese firm a long-term stake in profits from the Adhab oilfield with a services contract in which the Chinese receive fees for work, but Baghdad keeps the future profits. (Posted @ 22:25 PST)
Jail for Briton who recruited jihadists online LONDON, Aug 19 (AFP): A Briton who recruited Islamist extremists online to stage holy war worldwide, including Britain's youngest terrorism convict, was jailed for 12 years on Tuesday. Aabid Khan, 23, built up a computer “encyclopaedia” of extremist material including a file on Britain's royal family, London's Blackfriars Crown Court heard during the trial. Khan, a former fast food restaurant worker from Bradford, was jailed after being convicted on three counts of possessing articles for a purpose connected with terrorism. His cousin and “right-hand man” Sultan Muhammad, also 23, was jailed for 10 years for posessing similar material. On Monday the court convicted the two men as well as Hammaad Munshi, who was 16 at the time of his arrest. Munshi will be sentenced next month. (Posted @ 21:34 PST)
Five die as bus overturns near Mirpur Mathelo Mirpur Mathelo, Aug 19 (PPI): Five persons died and 16 others suffered serious injuries when a rashly driven bus carrying passengers to the shrine of Lal Shahbaz Qalander overturned near Umer Dho Bypass on Tuesday. Three of the injured are said to be in serious condition. (Posted @ 21:18 PST)
11 missing after Grand Canyon flood: report PHOENIX, Arizona, Aug 19 (AFP): Eleven hikers remained unaccounted for after flash flooding that deluged a remote Grand Canyon village on an Indian reservation, local media reported Tuesday. A spokesman for the Bureau of Indian Affairs told the Arizona Republic newspaper that the 11 hikers could have been swept downstream or could have already left the region. ”At least 250 campers and residents were reportedly evacuated from the Native American tribal town of Supai and the surrounding wilderness. The evacuees are being housed in a Red Cross shelter set up in the town of Peach Springs. (Posted @ 20:44 PST)
Cracks in Pakistan coalition day after Musharraf quits ISLAMABAD, Aug 19 (Reuters): Leaders of Pakistan's coalition government were deadlocked over the judiciary on Tuesday, a day after President Pervez Musharraf resigned. Coalition leaders, who campaigned against Musharraf, met for several hours to set about tackling pressing economic and security problems and discuss a new president but got bogged down over the fate of judges Musharraf purged last year. Former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, who heads PML-N, the second biggest party in the coalition, is insisting the judges be restored to office. But the PPP, the party leading the coalition, has wavered, partly because the deposed chief justice might take up challenges to an amnesty from graft charges granted party leaders last year, analysts say. The leaders of ANP and JUI-F, two small parties in the four-party alliance played down the failure to reach agreement and said they had been given three days to resolve the problem between the big parties. “We have been assigned to reach a consensus on the situation within the next 72 hours and play our role in finding a final solution,” Fazal-ur-Rehman, leader of JUI-F, told reporters. He declined to elaborate on the disagreement. Analysts have said opposition to Musharraf bonded the old rivals and his departure could see them drift apart. (First Posted @ 10:10 PST Updated @ 20:14 PST)
Cricket: ICC satisfied with Champions Trophy safety and security LONDON, Aug 19 (Reuters): Safety and security arrangements for the Champions Trophy in Pakistan are satisfactory, ICC chief executive Haroon Lorgat said. “As far as the ICC is concerned the safety and security is satisfactory,” the head of the cricket's world governing body told a news conference at Lord's on Tuesday. Asked if next month's event could be moved to Sri lanka, which is the ICC's alternate venue, Lorgat told Reuters: “I think the time has passed”. (Posted @ 20:00 PST)
One dead, 6 injured in car bomb attack in Turkey: TV ISTANBUL, Aug 19 (Reuters): A vehicle exploded in the southern Turkish province of Mersin on Tuesday, killing a suicide bomber and injuring six police officers, broadcaster CNN Turk reported. The cause of the blast was not clear and no further details were immediately available. (Posted @ 19:40 PST)
Protests called off for 3 days in Indian occupied Kashmir SRINAGAR, Indian occupied Kashmir, Aug 19 (AP): After weeks of massive separatist protests in Indian occupied Kashmir virtually shut down the region, Muslim leaders called Tuesday for three days of calm, allowing schools and businesses to reopen. Huge crowds thronged to markets to buy food and cooking gas after two months of sustained protests in Srinagar, the biggest city in Indian occupied Kashmir. Masarat Aalam, a prominent leader, said the public needed a break to sustain the intensity of the protests, and the leaders needed time to map out future action. The unrest had crippled life in the city, with most schools and businesses complying with protest leaders' call for them to close. He said another strike and a large protest were planned for Friday. The recent unrest, which has left at least 34 people dead, has reinvigorated the region's decades-long freedom struggle. The protests represent the biggest challenge to Indian occupation of Kashmir. (Posted @ 19:02 PST)
Former Turkish prime minister pardoned ANKARA, Aug 19 (AP): Turkey's president has pardoned a former pro-Islamic prime minister who has been serving a prison sentence for corruption at home due to health reasons. Tuesday's statement from President Abdullah Gul's office says the prison term of Necmettin Erbakan has been lifted due to “constant illness.” Erbakan, a longtime leader of the country's Islamic political movement, began serving a 28-month sentence at home on May 26. He was convicted of falsifying party records and hiding millions of euros in cash reserves ordered seized after his Welfare Party was shut down in 1997. (Posted @ 18:55 PST)
Yemen detains 9 people for converting SAN'A, Aug 19 (AP): A Yemeni security official said police are cracking down on Muslims who have converted to Christianity. The official says at least nine people were detained in recent months. Separately, the official said police also arrested six Iranians in Yemen who are followers of the Baha'i faith for allegedly belonging to a rebel group. (Posted @ 18:50 PST)
Kashmir needs freedom from India: Arundhati Roy ISLAMABAD, Aug 19 (APP) Prominent Indian human rights activist and author Arundhati Roy said recent protests in the occupied territory have made it clear that the people of Kashmir want freedom from India. Roy in an interview said those who have followed people's movements and who have been in rallies could not dispute what people want, KMS reported. She said the Kashmiri people do not need anyone to represent them. They represent themselves. (Posted @ 18:20 PST)
Russia starts to withdraw from Georgia GORI, Georgia, Aug 19 (Reuters/AFP): Russian troops, tanks and armoured vehicles on Tuesday started to withdraw from the Georgian town of Goriid. Four Russian armoured vehicles and several battle tanks and trucks set off in the direction of South Ossetia, a Reuters reporter said. Russia says Georgian forces not returning to bases MOSCOW: Georgian military forces are not returning to their permanent bases as required under the terms of a ceasefire agreement, a top Russian general said here Tuesday. “Despite the fact that Mr (Mikheil) Saakshvili has signed the six-point plan and agreed to withdraw Georgian forces to their permantent bases, this condition has not been fulfilled,” General Anatoly Nogovitsyn said at a briefing.Russia detains 21 Georgian soldiers in Poti TBILISI: The Russian military on Tuesday detained 21 Georgian soldiers in Georgia's port city of Poti, the Georgian Interior Ministry said. “The Russians have detained 21 Georgian soldiers who were guarding the port of Poti,” a ministry spokesman told AFP. (Posted @ 18:04 PST)
Zambia President Mwanawasa dies in France LUSAKA, Aug 19 (Reuters): Zambian President Levy Mwanawasa has died in a French hospital on Tuesday after suffering a stroke in July, Vice President Rupiah Banda said. “Fellow countrymen, with deep sorrow and grief, I would like to inform the people of Zambia that our president Dr Levy Patrick Mwanawasa died this morning at 0830 GMT,” Banda said on state television. (Posted @ 17:52 PST)
Afghan President Karzai says he will run for office again KABUL, Aug 19 (AP): Afghan President Hamid Karzai says he would like to run for re-election next year. Karzai tells The Associated Press in an exclusive interview that he has a job to complete and that “in that sense, yes, I would like to run.” Karzai has hinted in the past that he plans to run for the presidency in 2009, but his Tuesday announcement to AP is the first time he has stated so outright. (Posted @ 17:40 PST)
200 Tibetan protesters arrested in Nepal KATHMANDU, Aug 19 (AFP) More than 200 Tibetan exiles were arrested in Nepal's capital Tuesday as they tried to protest outside a Chinese embassy building, police said. Six buses of Tibetan exiles arrived close to the Chinese trade and visa building in Kathmandu. “Fifty-eight women and 145 men were arrested for trying to protest in a restricted zone,” police said. The protesters failed to break through a police blockade on the road leading to the embassy building and were quickly bundled into waiting police vans. The protesters were due to be released without charge later in the day, police said. (Posted @ 17:28 PST)
Floods in eastern China kill six BEIJING, Aug 19 (AFP) Torrential rains and flooding in eastern China killed six people and destroyed more than 1,200 homes, Xinhua news agency reported Tuesday. (Posted @ 17:12 PST)
4.0 earthquake jolts Pakistan’s Mansehra PESHAWAR, Pakistan, Aug 19 (APP): An 4.0 magnitude earthquake jolted Mansehra on Tuesday. According to the preliminary analysis of Meteorological Station Peshawar, the quake originated at 0315 PST and its epicenter was about 200 kilometers northeast of Peshawar in Hazara Division. (Posted @ 17:00 PST)
Baloch rebels kill five Pakistani govt officials: police QUETTA, Aug 19 (AFP): Suspected separatist insurgents shot dead five Pakistani government officials nearly two weeks after they were abducted in Balochistan province, police said Tuesday. “The officials were all shot dead. Their bodies were found dumped in a mountainous area” in the town of Chatthar in Baluchistan, local police officer Qasim Seelachi said. Armed men whisked away the victims on August 7. Officials received no ransom demand and police failed to track down the kidnappers, he said. A separatist rebel group, the Balochistan Republican Army, claimed the killings hours after the bodies were recovered. “We killed them because they were government officials,” BRA spokesman Sarbaz Baloch said in telephone calls to local media. (Posted @ 17:00 PST)
Cricket- Asif's B sample test positive; may face ban KARACHI, Aug 19 (AFP): Pakistani fast bowler Mohammad Asif's 'B' sample has tested positive for a banned substance, leaving him facing a two-year ban, his lawyer said Tuesday. (Posted @ 16:40 PST)
Indonesia hopes Pakistan can 'heal itself' JAKARTA, Aug 19 (AFP): The resignation of President Pervez Musharraf is a chance for Pakistan to overcome its leadership crisis and focus on problems like the economy and Islamic extremism, Indonesia said Tuesday. “We see this leadership crisis of the last few years and we view the resignation of Musharraf as part of the crisis,” Foreign Minister Hassan Wirajuda told reporters a day after Musharraf stepped down. “We hope that Pakistan will be able to heal itself, restore peace in the country and reinstate economic growth to the previous seven percent, because their challenges are not small.” (Posted @ 16:40 PST)
10 French NATO troops killed in Afghanistan PARIS, Aug 19 (AFP): Ten French NATO troops were killed Monday and Tuesday in battles following a Taliban insurgent ambush near Kabul, a French presidency source said. Military officials in Kabul said the fierce clashes started with an attack Monday on an International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) patrol in Sarobi district, about 50 kilometres east of the capital. (Posted @ 16:00 PST)
Fresh fighting in Sri Lanka kills 22, mostly rebels COLOMBO, Aug 19 (Reuters): The latest fighting between the Sri Lankan government and Tamil Tiger rebels in the island's far north killed 22 people Monday, the military said Tuesday. The government said its forces killed 21 rebels and lost one soldier, during an extended campaign to flush the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) out of their northern strongholds. The LTTE had no immediate comment. (Posted @ 15:55 PST)
Algeria bomb attack kills 43, wounds 38 ALGIERS, Aug 19 (Reuters): A bomb attack east of Algiers on Tuesday killed 43 people and wounded 38, an Algerian Interior Ministry statement said. The statement, carried by the official APS news agency, said the attack targeted a paramilitary gendarmerie training school at Issers 55 km east of the Algerian capital. (Posted @ 15:45 PST)
Ruling alliance MNAs demand trial of Musharraf; Opposition calls for burying the past ISLAMABAD, Aug 18 (APP): Legislators from the Treasury Benches on Tuesday demanded for trial of the former president Musharraf as National Assembly continued debate on his resignation while opposition MNAs said the country should move forward by burying the past. Initiating the debate for the day, Sahibzada Fazal Karim said history was created on August 18 when the country got rid of a dictator. He demanded that Pervez Musharraf should be tried under Article 6 of the Constitution. He was of the opinion that during Musharraf’s tenure the country’s economy suffered badly. He further said Musharraf destroyed all institutions in the country and did not even spare the superior judiciary. He called for the abolishment of Article 58-2 (b) from the Constitution. Jamshed Dasti said during Musharraf’s tenure the country's image deteriorated. He called for the trail of Pervez Musharraf under Article 6 of the Constitution and asked the companions of the former president to repent for their support of illegal steps taken by him during his rule. (Posted @ 15:45 PST)
Pakistan coalition meets on Musharraf successor ISLAMABAD, Aug 19 (AFP): Leaders of Pakistan's ruling coalition met Tuesday to discuss a replacement for former president Musharraf and begin tackling both rising militancy and a spiralling economic crisis. “The leaders will discuss the post-Musharraf resignation issues, including the election to the presidency,” said Pakistan People Party’s spokesman Farhatullah Babar. Local television channels showed Nawaz Sharif meeting with Asif Ali Zardari and son Bilawal Bhutto Zardari in Islamabad. “The election of a new president must take place within 30 days of the post being vacated,” election commission spokesman Kanwar Dilshad told AFP. Officials said the coalition is considering a candidate from one of Pakistan's smaller provinces, including Mehmud Khan Achakzai from Balochistan province, and Aftab Shaban Mirani from Sindh province. Meanwhile Sharif said he would push the coalition to reinstate judges sacked by Musharraf during a state of emergency in November. “I think the judges should be restored either today or tomorrow,” Sharif told reporters before leaving to meet Zardari. “It is an issue as important as Musharraf's resignation.” Law minister Farooq Naik said the judges' issue “is likely to be resolved today.” Officials from both the ruling coalition and the security services said Musharraf would travel to close ally Saudi Arabia in coming days to perform Umrah. A senior coalition official told AFP that Musharraf would then head for London or Turkey. (First Posted @ 10:10 PST, Updated @ 15:20 PST)
23 dead in Pakistan hospital suicide blast PESHAWAR, Pakistan, Aug 19 (AFP): A suicide bomber blew himself up Tuesday at a hospital in the northwestern Dera Ismail Khan town, killing at least 23 people, police said. The explosion happened as people gathered to protest over the death of a man in a suspected sectarian attack in the town, said provincial police chief Malik Naveed Khan. “There are 23 confirmed dead and up to 20 wounded. We have found the legs of the suspected suicide bomber,” Khan told a private television channel. Provincial police spokesman Riaz Ahmed said the dead included civilians from the crowd of protesters and policemen who went to the hospital to provide security. (First Posted @ 14:35 PST, Updated @ 15:10 PST)
Turkey calls for unity in Pakistan after Musharraf quits ANKARA, Aug 19 (AFP): Turkey said Tuesday it hoped Pakistan would maintain unity and stability after the resignation of Pervez Musharraf as president and offered to help its close ally in bolstering democracy. “Turkey... candidly desires that, at this juncture, the understanding of national unity and social reconciliation prevails in Pakistan,” the foreign ministry said in a statement. “Turkey... will invariably stand by this country - with which it enjoys a special relationship - in her efforts to strengthen her democracy and consolidate her stability,” it added. (Posted @ 15:05 PST)
Five soldiers, 13 militants killed in Pakistan clashes KHAR, Pakistan, Aug 19 (AFP): Five soldiers and 13 suspected militants were killed in fierce clashes in Pakistan’s Bajaur tribal region, an official said Tuesday. The fighting erupted when dozens of militants attacked a paramilitary post in Nawagai, 25 kilometers west of Khar, Bajaur’s main town. “Around 13 militants are confirmed dead in the clashes which continued for several hours,” local administration official Mohammad Jameel told AFP, adding that five soldiers lost their lives defending the checkpost. Army helicopter gunships later pounded the area, targeting militant hideouts, he said. The official said helicopters had destroyed the house of Pakistan's Taliban movement’s main spokesman, Maulvi Omar, but the compound was empty and no one was killed. (First Posted @ 12:40 PST, Updated @ 14:55 PST)
Saudi denies plane in Pakistan to take Musharraf RIYADH, Aug 19 (AFP): Saudi Arabia has denied it has a plane waiting to take former president Pervez Musharraf to the kingdom, a press report said Tuesday, amid speculation Riyadh could offer him asylum. The Saudi ambassador to Pakistan, Ali Awad Esseiri, said media reports that that there was a Saudi plane in Islamabad ready to transport Musharraf were “baseless claims” and “media lies”, the Okaz newspaper reported. “Saudi Arabia has been and continues to look out for the security, stability and sovereignty of Pakistan and will not interfere in its internal affairs,” he was quoted as saying. (Posted @ 14:51 PST)
Iraqi soldiers storm Diyala governor's office, killing one BAQUBA, Iraq, Aug 19 (AFP): Iraqi soldiers stormed the offices of the governor of Diyala province before dawn Tuesday, killing his secretary and firing on local police, the governor told AFP. The incident sparked clashes between the soldiers and local security forces which governor Raad Rasheed Mulla Jawad said had caused casualties. “During the night, Iraqi forces from Baghdad burst into the provincial council building…they disarmed the guards and killed my secretary Abbas al-Timini,” Jawad said, adding the soldiers arrested Hussein al-Zubaidi, head of the provincial council's security committee. (Posted @ 14:45 PST)
Musharraf will not leave the country: Tariq Azeem ISLAMABAD, Aug 19 (APP): PML-Q leader Tariq Azeem told BBC Radio Tuesday former President Musharraf will not leave the country and if someone files cases against him, he will face the charges. He said Musharraf was advised by the PML-Q to face the allegations leveled against him by the ruling coalition in the impeachment draft. Musharraf however did not take the advise and tendered his resignation before tabling of the charge sheet in the assembly. (Posted @ 14:40 PST)
Twenty dead in blast at Pakistani hospital PESHAWAR, Pakistan, Aug 19 (Reuters): A bomb went off in the compound of a hospital in northwest Pakistan’s Dera Ismail Khan town Tuesday killing 20 people, a senior government official said. “We don't know whether it was a suicide attack but the bomb went off in the compound. I have initial reports of 20 dead,” said Syed Mohsin Shah, a senior city government official. Supporters of a Shi'ite Muslim leader were protesting outside the hospital when the bomb went off. The leader was shot dead earlier Tuesday and his body taken to the hospital. (Posted @ 14:35 PST)
General Kayani in Kabul KABUL, Aug 19 (AP): Army chief Gen. Ashfaq Parvez Kayani rushed to Kabul Tuesday for meetings, Afghan officials said. Kayani was to meet with Afghan Defence Minister Gen. Rahim Wardak, and he spoke with President Hamid Karzai over the phone in Kabul Tuesday, three officials told The Associated Press. Even Afghanistan's top leadership did not know that Kayani planned to visit, officials said. Top aides inside the presidential palace and the Defence Ministry said they were unaware Kayani was in Kabul even after he arrived. Kayani was also likely to meet with the commander of NATO forces in Afghanistan, Gen. David McKiernan, though NATO officials would not immediately confirm that. The visit comes only 24 hours after former president Musharraf announced his resignation. (Posted @ 14:10 PST)
Afghan interpreter killed as blast hits NATO troops KANDAHAR, Afghanistan, Aug 19 (AFP): A bomb struck NATO soldiers in Afghanistan on Tuesday, with initial reports saying an interpreter was killed and troops had suffered casualties, an Afghan official and the force said. The Taliban movement said its men had carried out the bombing which was caused by a roadside land mine. NATO's International Security Assistance Force confirmed the blast in Kandahar province's Panjwayi district. Panjwayi police chief Mohammad Isa said: “An Afghan interpreter has been killed and a soldier and a 12-year-old boy have been wounded.” (Posted @ 14:00 PST)
Pakistan coalition to meet on new president ISLAMABAD, Aug 19 (AFP): Leaders of Pakistan's ruling coalition were to meet later Tuesday to discuss a replacement for President Musharraf and the fate of dozens of deposed judges, a party spokesman said. “The leaders will discuss the post-Musharraf resignation issues, including the election to the presidency, the reinstatement of judges and the political situation,” Pakistan People Party spokesman Farhatullah Babar told AFP. The meeting will take place at the Islamabad residence of Asif Ali Zardari, Babar said. The likely choice is a consensus candidate from one of the smaller provinces of Sindh or Balochistan while one from the NWFP cannot also be ruled out. “The election of a new president must take place within 30 days of the post being vacated,” election commission spokesman Kanwar Dilshad told AFP. Separately, law minister Farooq Naik said the coalition was likely to decide the future of judges sacked by Musharraf under a state of emergency in November. “The issue of judges is likely to be resolved today,” Naik said. Information Minister Sherry Rehman however said that the meeting was unlikely to reach any final conclusions. “Important political issues will be discussed by coalition partners. I cannot say final decisions will be announced today. No decision will be taken in haste,” she told reporters. Pervez Musharraf’s immediate future plans remained uncertain Tuesday after his resignation. Officials from both the ruling coalition and the security services said that in the wake of his resignation Musharraf would travel to close ally Saudi Arabia in coming days to perform Umra. A senior coalition official told AFP that Musharraf would then head for London or Turkey, but his aides insisted he would return after his religious duties in the Gulf kingdom. (First Posted @ 10:10 PST, Updated @ 13:55 PST)
18 miners dead in China accident BEIJING, Aug 19 (AFP): Eighteen miners died after a gas explosion ripped through a coal mine in northeast China, the State Administration of Work Safety said Tuesday. The accident happened Monday at Baijiagou Coal Mine in Faku county, Liaoning province, the safety agency said in a statement. It said 81 miners were in the mine at the time of the blast, with 56 escaping unhurt and seven still missing. (Posted @ 13:40 PST)
63 percent rejoice over Musharraf's resignation: Gallup ISLAMABAD, Aug 19 (APP): The Gallup survey (Pakistan) Tuesday revealed 63 per cent people rejoice over President Musharraf's resignation, while only 15 per cent regret it. “20 per cent were ambivalent saying they were neither happy nor unhappy”, the survey added. According to the survey, soon after Pervez Musharraf announced his resignation Monday the poll was carried out by Gallup Pakistan (Pakistan Institute of Public Opinion), the Pakistani affiliate of Gallup International. The sample size was approximately 560 men and women statistically chosen from major urban areas of the country comprising a cross-section of all ages, socio-economic and linguistic groups. Seventy per cent dispute Musharraf's claim to have resigned with the motive of Pakistan first. Sixty-four per cent Pakistanis also reject his claims of economic accomplishments and good governance during his tenure. Majority of Pakistanis attribute current economic crisis and inflation to bad policies of the Musharraf regime. Fifty-five per cent Pakistanis expect conditions in the country would improve with Musharraf's resignation, 19 per cent take a pessimistic view and said conditions will worsen; 19 per cent expect no change. Sixty-five per cent support holding a proper trial for Musharraf while 26 per cent are in favor of the “forgive and forget” option. On the issue of reinstating deposed judges, 85 per cent want Iftikhar Chaudhry and other judges to be reinstated immediately, six per cent oppose, while nine per cent advise not to take up the issue right now. (Posted @ 13:30 PST)
12 killed in militant ambush in Algeria ALGIERS, Aug 19 (AFP): Eleven members of Algeria's security forces and a civilian were killed in an ambush by armed militant groups in the east of the country Sunday, Algerian newspapers reported Tuesday. The attack also left about a dozen people wounded, the newspapers Quotidien d'Oran and Liberte said. Four militants were also killed in the attack. (Posted @ 13:10 PST)
Twenty militants killed in Bajaur PESHAWAR, Pakistan, Aug 19 (Reuters): At least 20 militants were killed in a clash with security forces in Pakistan’s Bajaur tribal region, a government official said Tuesday. The fighting erupted about 25 km east of Khar, the main town of the region, on Monday evening after militants attacked several security checkposts there. “The exchange of fire lasted for about nine hours and we have reports that at least 20 militants were killed,” Mohammad Jameel, a senior government official in Bajaur, told Reuters. (Posted @ 12:40 PST)
HRW urges Pakistan govt to hold Musharraf accountable ISLAMABAD, Aug 19 (AFP): Human Rights Watch Tuesday urged Pakistan's government to undo the “unlawful acts” of former President Musharraf and hold him accountable for his “crimes.” “Musharraf's brazen disrespect for human rights and the rule of law for nearly a decade finally caught up with him,” said Ali Dayan Hasan, senior South Asia researcher at the international rights group. “By undoing Musharraf's unlawful acts and holding him to account for his crimes, the Pakistani government would advance human rights and national security in the country,” he said. The rights group said Pakistan's democratic government now needed to assume full responsibility for rolling back measures Musharraf unlawfully imposed, such as changes to the constitution and the dismissal of senior judges last year. The rights group also expressed concern that the government should be held to account for the hundreds of individuals who “disappeared” under Musharraf's rule. (Posted @ 12:30 PST)
Obama, McCain see Musharraf exit as opportunity for stability, focus on urgent issues WASHINGTON, Aug 19 (APP): U.S. presidential candidates John McCain and Barack Obama Monday welcomed Pervez Musharraf's exit from the Pakistani political scene as an opportunity for the country to move towards stability and renewed focus on urgent challenges confronting the South Asian anti-terrorism ally. The resignation of President Pervez Musharraf is a step toward moving Pakistan onto a more stable political footing, Republican White House hopeful John McCain said in a statement. He emphasized the importance of Washington working with the democratically elected government to overcome common challenges. In his reaction Democratic contender Barack Obama expressed the hope that all of Pakistan's friends will now seize the opportunity created by Musharraf's exit to focus on the urgent issues of today: confronting the threat of extremist violence, dealing with food and energy shortages, and helping the Pakistani people build a stable, secure, democratic future. He said President Musharraf has made the right decision to step down, adding it is in the interests of his country and the Pakistani people to end the political crisis that created a deadlock. (Posted @ 11:15 PST)
One dead, 60 hurt in coach crash in England LONDON, Aug 19 (AP) - One person died and more than 60 people were injured when a coach crashed through a bridge Monday in the village of Alton, 150 miles north east of London, and landed upside-down in a garden below. Police say the coach crashed after it came down a steep hill on a narrow road. (Posted @ 11:00 PST)
Nukes unlikely to be affected by Musharraf resignation ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, Aug 19 (AP)- Pervez Musharraf's departure from the presidency is unlikely to have any impact on how Pakistan's nuclear weapons are controlled. Experts say a 10-member committee, and not just the president, makes decisions on how to use them and only a complete meltdown in governance _ still a distant prospect in Pakistan _ could put the atomic bomb in the hands of extremists. “Pakistan's nuclear assets are not one man's property,” said Maria Sultan, a defense analyst and director at the London-based South Asian Strategic Stability Institute. “Any (political) transition in Pakistan will have no effect on Pakistan's nuclear assets because it has a very strong custodial control.” The committee, known as the National Command and Control Authority, is served by a military-dominated organization with thousands of security forces and intelligence agents whose personnel are closely screened. The nuclear facilities are tightly guarded. “The reality is that Pakistan's government exists on different levels. One of the levels it exists and works at is in the control of its nuclear weapons,” said Patrick Cronin, director of the Institute for National Strategic Studies at the National Defense University in Washington. “Where it does not work is in providing effective services, jobs, education and health that people need.” “Pakistan's nuclear arsenal is in the hands of the army and the army is not changing hands, so whatever the situation was before is largely what it will continue to be,” said Teresita Schaffer, director of the South Asia Program at the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies. (Posted @ 10:50 PST)
Militants try to storm US base in Afghanistan KABUL, Afghanistan, Aug 19 (AP) - Militants wearing suicide vests tried to storm Camp Salerno in Khost city, a main U.S. base in eastern Afghanistan, late on Monday evening, Arsallah Jamal, the governor of Khost province, said Tuesday. They were pushed away, and coalition troops were using airstrikes to attack the assailants. He said Afghan troops are reporting militants blowing themselves up before capture. A U.S. military spokesman confirmed the attack and said there are no American casualties. (Posted @ 10:40 PST)
43 dead in three days as Mexico violence escalates CIUDAD JUAREZ, Mexico, Aug 19 (AFP) - At least 43 people died in violent attacks in the last three days in the northern Mexico state of Chihuahua, the scene of ongoing drug gang turf wars, police said Monday. Thirteen persons were killed in separate attacks on Monday, following nine killed overnight Sunday and 21 others the previous night, including 14 in a massacre at a family gathering in the western Chihuahua town of Creel. Violence has escalated throughout the country since President Felipe Calderon launched a military crackdown on drug trafficking. (Posted @ 10:30 PST)
Killer storm Fay blasts over Florida Keys MIAMI, Aug 19 (AFP) - Florida battened down Monday as Tropical Storm Fay packed on more power as it struck the Florida Keys, after claiming 40 lives or more in the Caribbean.The driving sustained winds of nearly 95 kilometers per hour, could intensify to hurricane strength as it slowly pushes toward southwestern Florida coastline. A state of emergency was in place in Florida in anticipation of Fay's landfall. The worst hit so far have been Dominican Republic and Haiti where a truck carrying around 60 passengers plunged into a swollen river. Four people were killed in the Dominican Republic due to the heavy rains, with thousands evacuated, media said. One woman also reportedly died in Jamaica after her vehicle overturned in flood waters. (Posted @ 10:15 PST)
Pakistan look for Musharraf successor ISLAMABAD, Aug 19 (AFP) – Former president Pervez Musharraf’s immediate future plans remained uncertain on Tuesday after his resignation, as the country's fractious ruling coalition prepared to pick a replacement for the key US ally. Officials from both the ruling coalition and the security services said that in the wake of his resignation Musharraf would travel to close ally Saudi Arabia in coming days to perform Umra. A senior coalition official told AFP that Musharraf would then head for London or Turkey, but his aides insisted he would return after his religious duties in the Gulf kingdom. The party of Nawaz Sharif, who was ousted by Musharraf in 1999, , has remained quiet. Meanwhile the coalition, which defeated Musharraf's allies in elections in February, was Tuesday set to resume discussions on the next president and on the restoration of senior judges sacked under the ex-General's emergency rule in November. The likely choice is a consensus candidate from he smaller provinces of Sindh or Bluchistan while one from the NWFP cannot also be ruled out.. The issue of the judges, but has failed to do so. The next couple of days are stated to be critical. (Posted @ 10:10 PST)
Oil prices fall further on demand worries SINGAPORE, Aug 19 (AFP) -World oil prices fell further on Tuesday, dragged down by worries that weaker US oil demand could spread to Europe and Japan, analysts said. New York's main contract, light sweet crude for September delivery, dropped 48 cents to 112.39 dollars a barrel. That came on top of a 90-cent drop in New York trade Monday, when the price closed at 112.87 dollars at the end of floor trading. Brent North Sea crude for October delivery fell 58 cents to 111.36 dollars after settling 61 cents lower at 111.94 dollars a barrel on Monday in London. (Posted @ 09:50 PST)
Founder: Quaid-i-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah
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