|
| September 22, 2008 | Monday | Ramazan 21, 1429 |
Updated round-the-clock, with major updates after 10:00 PST (06:00 GMT)
 US to boost efforts after Pakistan hotel blast Monday, 22 Sep, WASHINGTON: The United States will seek to redouble efforts with ally Pakistan to fight extremism in south Asia, a State Department official said on Monday after an Islamabad hotel attack killed at least 60 people. ‘If you look at what happened on Saturday, this is an example of why we, the Pakistanis, the Afghans, need to work and redouble our efforts to counter extremism in this region,’ State Department spokesman Robert Wood said. ‘We'll continue to work with the Pakistanis on trying to deal with the Taliban and Al-Qaeda threat, not only in the tribal areas, but over in Afghanistan,’ he told reporters. (Posted @ 23:24 PST)  IAEA turns up heat on Iran Monday, 22 Sep, VIENNA: The UN atomic watchdog pressed Iran Monday to disprove allegations of past nuclear weapons work, saying Tehran should not be concerned about divulging sensitive information because it’s confidential. Iran cannot simply dismiss all the charges as ‘fabricated,’ the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Mohamed ElBaradei, told a meeting of the body's 35-member board. Tehran must ‘clarify the extent to which the documentation is factually correct and where, as it asserts, such information may have been fabricated or relates to non-nuclear purposes,’ ElBaradei said on the first day of a week-long board meeting. Neither could Iran hide behind the argument that in order to respond to the accusations, it would have to divulge information pertinent to its national security, the IAEA chief said. The nuclear watchdog was not seeking to ‘pry’ into Iran's conventional or missile-related military activities, he said. (Posted @ 23:02 PST) Troops uncover tunnels and bunkers in Bajaur Monday, 22 Sep, KHAR, Pakistan: Security forces have unearthed tunnels and bunkers several meters long in the strongholds of the militants in the Bajaur tribal region where six militants were killed and eight others wounded on Monday, a senior official said. Muhammad Jamil, assistant political agent told journalists that ground forces had started movement towards Lowi Sam, some 14 kilometers northwest of Khar. He said that troops backed by artillery and tanks were slowly advancing towards Lowi Sam, because the militants were well entrenched and had planted improvised explosive devices. The official said that forces had detected several meters of tunnels and bunkers in Tang Khatta, Rashakai, Kausar and Khazana areas of the Khar tehsil. Many tunnels, bunkers and houses used by militants were destroyed, he added. (Posted @ 22:36 PST) PPP and PML-N to ‘redefine the terms of engagement’ Monday, 22 Sep, LAHORE: The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) have agreed to ‘redefine the terms of engagement’ in Punjab as the latter is not prepared to quit the provincial coalition in spite of its senior partner’s unwillingness to accommodate it in the government any longer. ‘A four-member committee has been constituted to reconsider the terms of engagement in the province in view of the split between the two parties at the centre,’ provincial law minister Rana Sanaullah Khan told Dawn on Monday. The committee comprising the PMLN’s Rana Sanaullah Khan and Sirdar Zulfikar Ali Khosa and the PPP’s Raja Riaz Ahmed and Tanvir Ashraf Kaira will hold its maiden meeting on Tuesday (today). The committee was formed after a meeting between the PPP’s senior minister in Punjab Raja Riaz Ahmed and chief minister Mian Shahbaz Sharif earlier in the day. ‘I called on the chief minister to convey the message of President Asif Ali Zardari, who is also the co-chairman of the PPP, to him,’ Raja Riaz told media after his first meeting with Mian Shahbaz weeks after the split between the two parties at the centre. (Posted @ 22:18 PST) Marriott denies govt dinner planned on bombing day Monday, 22 Sep, ISLAMABAD: The management of the Marriott Hotel on Monday denied an official statement that top Pakistani leaders were due to have dinner at the hotel but cancelled before a devastating suicide bombing. Interior ministry chief Rehman Malik earlier told reporters that Pakistan's president and prime minister were to have had dinner at the Marriott on Saturday, when it was bombed, but the venue was changed at the last minute. 'There was no reservation from the government side,' Jamil Khawar, spokesman for hotel owner Sadruddin Hashwani, told AFP. 'I have checked from the management and the hotel administration, no booking had been made for an official dinner on that day,' he said. A suicide bomber rammed a truck packed with over half a tonne of explosives into the outer security gates of the luxury hotel Saturday night, killing at least 60 people and wounding more than 260. (Posted @ 22:16 PST) Mine yields one of world's largest diamonds Monday, 22 Sep, LONDON: Miners in the southern African kingdom of Lesotho have found one of the world's largest diamonds, a near-flawless white gem weighing nearly 500 carats, mining group Gem Diamonds said on Sunday. The diamond was discovered in the Letseng Mine on September 8, the company said in a statement. It has been analyzed by experts in Antwerp and found to weigh 478 carats, with very few inclusions and of outstanding color and clarity. ‘It has the potential to yield one of the largest flawless D color round polished diamonds in history,’ the company said. Letseng is one of the most productive mines in history -- four of the world's 20 largest rough diamonds have been found at the mine, including the three largest found this century. (Posted @ 22:05 PST) Suspected suicide attack kills four in Swat Monday, 22 Sep, PESHAWAR: At least four people were killed Monday in a suspected suicide attack on a security check post in northwest Pakistan, a security official said. A suspected militant rammed his explosives-laden car into a small roadside check post in Madyan town in the troubled Swat valley, the official said. ‘It was a car bomb blast,’ said the official, who declined to be named. Four people were killed and several were injured in the blast, while the bomber was blown to pieces, he said. (Posted @ 21:44 PST) Leadership troika out of capital Monday, 22 Sep, ISLAMABAD: It may not be by design and be mere coincident that the entire top government leadership including the troika – President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani and the Chief of Army Staff Gen. Ashfaq Parvaiz Kayani are away from the federal capital. While President Zardari has already proceeded to New York to represent Pakistan at the UN General Assembly accompanied by, among others, minister for information Sherry Rahman, while Prime Minister Gilani has departed from the capital on Sunday to Lahore. Chairman Senate Muhammadmian Soomro has already taken over as acting president as the speaker National Assembly has also proceeded to go abroad.Earlier, on Saturday, the troika, the cabinet, the COAS and other important figures of the government were together at an Iftar-dinner thrown in their honour by speaker Dr. Fehmida Mirza. This get together, sources said, was seen as a precautionary exercise to avoid a total collapse of the set up in case of a disaster. (Posted @ 21:38 PST) 'Fedayeen of Islam' claim bombing Marriott Hotel Monday, 22 Sep, DUBAI: A shadowy group calling itself 'Fedayeen of Islam' has claimed responsibility for the deadly bombing of Islamabad's Marriott Hotel in a telephone call to al Arabiya television, the channel said on Monday. The Dubai-based station's correspondent in Islamabad said he received a text message on his mobile phone showing a telephone number, which he called and then heard a recording in which the group admitted launching Saturday's attack. The speaker on the recording, who identified himself as Ahmad Shah Abdali, spoke in English 'with a South Asian accent,' he said. A suicide bomber rammed a truck packed with more than half a tonne of explosives into the security gates of the luxury hotel, killing at least 60 people and wounding more than 260 in a massive fireball. (Posted @ 21:28 PST) Zardari vows to fight terrorists Monday, 22 Sep, NEW YORK: President Asif Ali Zardari declared Monday Pakistan will stand shoulder to shoulder with the world and 'fight the terrorists.' However, he reiterated that Pakistan will not allow 'hot pursuit' of terrorists inside Pakistan by the US forces. 'I want the world to understand that this is a signal from the terrorists. They are challenging this democracy of Pakistan. They are challenging the people of Pakistan,' Zardari said in an interview with NBC news 'Today' morning show. This was President Zardari's first interview with an American TV network since the September 20 bombing of Marriott Hotel in Islamabad. 'We will catch the terrorists, give us the information we will do the job,' said Zardari, when asked whether Pakistan would allow US forces to enter Pakistan in hot pursuit of suspected terrorists. (Posted @ 21:08 PST) End of an era on Wall Street Monday, 22 Sep, WASHINGTON: It was the end of an era on Wall Street as the Federal Reserve granted permission for the last two major investment banks — Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley — to become bank holding companies in order to stay in business. The Fed announced late Sunday evening that it had approved the request, which will allow Goldman and Morgan Stanley to create commercial banks that can take deposits, bolstering the resources of both institutions. The change is the latest seismic shift on Wall Street as the financial system tries to cope with mounting problems that began more than a year ago with the subprime mortgage crisis. (Posted @ 20:54 PST) India, Pakistan agree to Kashmir border trade route Monday, 22 Sep, NEW DELHI: India and Pakistan agreed on arrangements to open a border route for bilateral trade in occupied Kashmir, a joint panel said on Monday. ‘We have finalised the arrangement, the trade list and the modalities,’ Aizaz Ahmed Chaudhary, a senior foreign ministry official leading the Pakistan delegation, said in New Delhi. ‘We will go back to our respective governments, it is for them to decide,’ he said after talks with Indian officials. On Monday, the joint panel said they were happy to open the Srinagar-Muzaffarabad highway to trade, but did not spell out details. (Posted @ 20:46 PST) Glitch shuts 'Big Bang' collider for two months Monday, 22 Sep, GENEVA: A technical glitch has forced scientists to shut down the huge particle-smashing machine built to simulate the conditions of the ‘Big Bang’ for at least two months, they said on Saturday. The European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) said there had been a major helium leak on Friday into the tunnel housing the biggest and most complex machine ever made. Just 10 days ago, scientists had celebrated the successful start of the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) under the Swiss-French border, hoping it would revamp modern physics and unlock secrets about the universe and its origins. In order to fix the problem, the machine will have to be warmed up from its operating temperature of minus 271.3 degrees Celsius (minus 456.3 degrees Fahrenheit), spokesman James Gillies said. (Posted @ 20:40 PST) NWFP on its way to revive Gen Zia’s local bodies Monday, 22 Sep, PESHAWAR: The Frontier government finalized a draft-legislation for drastic amendments in the Local Government Ordinance (LGO-2001), virtually reviving the local bodies system of 1979, introduced by late military dictator Gen Zia-ul-Haq. A draft of the proposed NWFP Local Government Act, 2008 was presented before the provincial cabinet in its recent meeting, while it will be shared with the federal government on Sept 28 at a meeting convened by Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani for amending the local bodies system, an official told Dawn. The proposed legislation, a copy of which is available to Dawn, was aimed at clipping the authority and powers, as guaranteed in LGO-2001, of the local governance institutions that was likely to attract criticism and cause uproar by the elected public representatives in days to come. (Posted @ 20:14 PST) Gwadar waiting for second shipment Monday, 22 Sep, Balochistan has requested the federal government to import wheat through the Gwadar Port, which is yet to become commercially operational. The Trading Corporation of Pakistan (TCP) is being persuaded by the federal government to import wheat through the port. If TCP imports wheat through Gwadar, it would be the second shipment at the new port this year. TCP however does not consider it economical to import wheat via Gwadar where handling and transportation charges cost more than compared to Port Qasim and Karachi Port. (Posted @ 20:02 PST) UN chief urges rich countries to double aid to Africa Monday, 22 Sep, UNITED NATIONS: UN chief Ban Ki-moon, speaking at a summit meeting on Africa's development here Monday, appealed to rich countries to honor their 2005 pledge to more than double their aid to the continent. ‘I appeal to all donors to implement the 2005 Gleneagles summit to more than double aid to Africa,’ he told the meeting amid concern that Africa is lagging behind the rest of the world in efforts to meet key poverty reduction goals by 2015. At their 2005 summit in the Scottish town of Gleneagles, G8 countries — the United States, Japan, Germany, France, Britain, Italy, Canada and Russia — pledged to boost their aid to Africa with an extra 25 billion dollars by 2010. (Posted @ 19:58 PST) Pakistan ranks 62nd in global IT competitiveness Monday, 22 Sep, KARACHI: Pakistan ranks 62 in the world in the 2008 IT industry competitiveness index falling two places from its 2007 ranking of 60 in the index. Most neighbouring South Asian countries were ranked more favourably, said the findings of a new study issued by the Economist Intelligence Unit and sponsored by the Business Software Alliance (BSA). The study, now in its second year, assesses and compares the information technology (IT) industry environments of 66 countries to determine the extent to which they enable IT sector competitiveness. Although the top 20 economies remain the same from one year ago, nine countries moved up and 11 went down in the rankings. (Posted @ 19:55 PST) Pakistan reports growth in non-textile exports Monday, 22 Sep, ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s non-textile products export soared by 57.2 per cent to $1.73 billion during the first two months (July-August) of the fiscal year 2008-09 against $1.1 billion over the last year mainly due to a substantial increase in export of edible products. Led by high growth in export of food commodities, the trend shows that the new fiscal year started with an impressive growth in export of traditional products, like rice, sports goods, leather products, footwear, surgical and engineering goods despite the fact that the input cost of such products witnessed a substantial increase during the period under review. Statistics released here by Federal Bureau of Statistics revealed that however, textile and clothing exports dipped by 4.21 per cent to $1.759 billion as against $1.836 billion in the same months last year. (Posted @ 19:48 PST) Officers up for perjury in 'honour killing' case Monday, 22 Sep, QUETTA: A division bench of Balochistan high court has issued a show notice to district police officer (DPO) Nasirabad and station house officer (SHO) Babakot for making false statements before the court in a suo-motu notice pertaining to the killing of women in Nasirabad. The bench comprised of Chief Justice Amanullah Khan Yasinzai and Justice Akhtar Zaman Malghani on Monday directed the DPO Ghulam Haider Baloch and SHO Manzoor to appear in the next hearing and clarify for making misleading statements in the court. The court had on July 16 taken suo-motu notice regarding the killing of women in the Nasirabad area on July 13 and on a previous hearing on September 1 the court had granted time to Nazir Kurd DPO Jaffarabad and Malik Zahoor Ahmed Shahwani vice chairperson of Balochistan chapter of Human Rights Commission of Pakistan to submit report on the incident of July 13. The hearing has been adjourned till October 20. (Posted @ 19:36 PST) West Indies players reluctant to tour Pakistan Monday, 22 Sep, KINGSTON: If West Indies’ scheduled two-Test cricket tour of Pakistan proceeds, WICB will send a young squad, says chief executive Donald Peters. Peters said senior players were reluctant to tour due to the recent violence and terrorist attacks troubling Pakistan. ‘The response coming from West Indies Players’ Association WIPA President is that players are not willing to go,’ Peters told Caribbean Media Corporation. ‘However, West Indies Cricket Board is taking a new approach to things now and we did our own poll of players and we found that majority of younger players would go, senior players chose not to.’ (Posted @ 19:32 PST) Bramdagh Bugti calls for armed Baloch struggle Monday, 22 Sep, QUETTA: Baloch Republican Party chief Nawabzada Bramdagh Bugti Monday said no talks will be held with the government and that the Baloch people can get their rights through armed struggle. In a telephonic address to a public meeting under the party auspices at Railway ground Dera Murad Jamali, he said the time of dialogues and reconciliation has passed, adding that negotiation with rulers for the resolution of the Balochistan issue would be a futile exercise. Bramdagh Bugti asserted that Nawab Akbar Bugti sacrificed his life in the hills fighting the attacking troops and maintained that the followers of the late leader should pursue the path chosen by Nawab Bugti to achieve the Baloch people's rights. (Posted @ 19:28 PST) Cash row threatens to stump Stanford match Monday, 22 Sep, ST JOHN’S: The world’s richest cricket match the 20-million dollar Stanford Super Series clash here on November 1, may be abandoned without a ball being bowled because of a commercial row. The Stanford organisers and Digicel, the multi-million dollar sponsors of the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB), are locked in a row over commercial rights at the match being played at the Stanford Cricket Ground. Digicel believes its five-year deal with the WICB includes the match, which features the Stanford Superstars taking on Kevin Pietersen’s England, as it is officially backed by the board; the Stanford organisers claim as the Superstars are not an official side it is outside any existing sponsorship deal. (Posted @ 19:20 PST) Rains kill 200 across India in 3 days Monday, 22 Sep, BHUBNESHWAR: Helicopters and speed boats tried to reach nearly 570,000 stranded villagers Monday as the death toll due to heavy monsoon rains and flooding across India reached 200 in the past three days. Most of the casualties were reported from India's most populous northern state of Uttar Pradesh, where at least 100 people were killed by drowning, house collapses and electrocution over the weekend in Sitapur, Lakhimpur Kheri and Pilibhit districts, state police spokesman Surender Srivastav said Monday. At least 17 people died mostly in house collapses, since Friday in eastern Orissa state with incessant monsoon rains causing the Mahanadi river to breach its banks at several places, causing the worst monsoon flooding in the state in 26 years, said Ajit Kumar Tripathi, the chief secretary. Another 32 people died in the northern hilly state of Himachal Pradesh over the weekend, mostly buried by mudslides triggered by heavy rains, The Hindu newspaper said. (Posted @ 19:05 PST) Cotton crop target missed Monday, 22 Sep, THE good news is that both farmers and officials are reporting a better cotton crop than that of last year despite a wide spread pest attack in some areas in Punjab and shortages of urea fertiliser and insecticides. The bad news is that we are going to miss the cotton production target of 14.11 million bales (155kg each) for the year 2008-09, for the fourth year in a row, in spite of a better plant population and growth of greater number of bolls. (Posted @ 18:54 PST) How to resolve the Baglihar crisis Monday, 22 Sep, THE Indian violation of the filling criteria of the Baglihar Dam, which is part of the Indus Basin Water Treaty, has proved it to be an undependable partner even in treaties backed by international guarantees. It is not for the first time that India has stopped Chenab water to fill its newly-built dam. It did the same in August, and almost got away with it. Pakistan protested, and it only partially restored supplies. This time, it did not even bother to do that after formal protest and kept filling the dam, damaging Pakistan’s rice crop on 2.6 million acre. (Posted @ 18:48 PST) Mass exodus to mar census in restive areas Monday, 22 Sep, PESHAWAR: The large scale displacement from the militancy-hit areas of the North West Frontier Province (NWFP) and adjacent tribal region is likely to affect delimitation process for the coming general census scheduled to be started by the year’s end, sources say. According to sources the Population Census Organisation, which has planned to hold census across the country by the end of December this year, postponed delimitation in South Waziristan tribal region due to prevailing lawlessness. It is worth mentioning that general elections in NA-42 had not been held in the Mehsud tribe dominated areas of South Waziristan owing to military operation. (Posted @ 18:32 PST) Kidnappers seize group of foreign tourists in Egypt Monday, 22 Sep, CAIRO: Kidnappers in Egypt have seized 15 hostages including German, Italian and Romanian tourists near the Sudanese border and talks are under way over ransom demands, Egyptian officials said on Monday. The kidnapping was the first of foreign tourists in Egypt in living memory, although Islamic militants have hit the country's tourist industry in recent decades through bomb and shooting attacks that have killed hundreds. (Posted @ 18:14 PST) PPP reluctant to reopen Karsaz blasts probe Monday, 22 Sep, KARACHI: While the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) is enjoying absolute power at the centre as well as in Sindh, its leadership seems to be uninterested in setting up another inquiry tribunal to investigate the October 18, 2007 Karsaz blasts, which targeted slain PPP chairperson Benazir Bhutto’s homecoming rally. After ending her self-imposed exile, Ms Bhutto, who was killed in a gun and bomb attack in Rawalpindi on December 27 last year, had landed at the Karachi airport on October 18, where she was received by a large number of her party workers and supporters. However, when her homecoming procession reached the Karsaz area, two suicide bombers blew themselves up, killing more than 150 people. Ms Bhutto had survived the attack. (Posted @ 18:00 PST) Bollywood wins 'Hari Puttar' case Monday, 22 Sep, NEW DELHI: A New Delhi court on Monday dismissed a lawsuit by Hollywood studio Warner Bros against the makers of Bollywood film ‘Hari Puttar’ over its title, lawyers for both sides said. Warner Bros, which owns the rights to the blockbuster ‘Harry Potter’ movies, argued the Indian film sounded too similar to the name of their young wizard hero. ‘The case has been dismissed. The court said that Warner Bros had known the title of the film since 2005 and had delayed bringing the case to court until the last moment,’ lawyer Pratibha Singh told AFP. (Posted @ 17:48 PST) At least 29 civilians killed in Mogadishu Monday, 22 Sep, MOGADISHU: At least 29 civilians were killed and more than 60 wounded in a fresh round of mortar exchanges in central Mogadishu, one of the deadliest series of incidents in months, residents told AFP Monday. The latest bloodshed in the Somali capital came hours after the country's transitional federal government and the main political opposition closed a new round of talks in Djibouti. In the first set of exchanges overnight, the insurgents attacked the bases of the African Union's Ugandan troops in the K4 and Jazeera areas at around midnight, drawing retaliatory fire from the peacekeepers. Ugandan peacekeepers fired back, but during the exchange, said witnesses, some stray mortars hit residences in nearby neighbourhoods, killing 10 civilians. (Posted @ 17:44 PST) Taliban kidnap more than 150 Afghan workers Monday, 22 Sep, HERAT: Suspected Taliban militants have kidnapped more than 150 civilian labourers who were travelling in three buses in southwestern Afghanistan, Afghan authorities said Monday. They were captured on Sunday in the southwestern province of Farah, they said. ‘About 156 workers who were travelling in three buses were captured by Taliban and are still being held by them,’ an army colonel in Farah province, Farooq Na'emi, told AFP. ‘They were working for a construction company which is contracted to build facilities for the ANA (Afghan National Army),’ he said. (Posted @ 17:22 PST) Marriott bombing pressures markets, rupee Monday, 22 Sep, KARACHI: The weekend suicide bomb attack in Islamabad knocked the rupee to a record low on Monday and analysts said they expect Pakistani markets to remain under pressure due to acute concerns over security and the economy. Dealers said tension between Pakistan and its largest donor, the United States, over US military action against militants on Pakistani territory added to concerns. Dealers said the rupee traded as low as 78.55 rupees to the dollar and closed at 78.21/28. It ended at 78.15/25 on Saturday. (Posted @ 17:20 PST) Czech ambassador died helping victims Monday, 22 Sep, PRAGUE: The Czech ambassador to Pakistan died while trying to help wounded victims of the suicide attack at the Marriott Hotel in Islamabad escape the inferno, a Czech newspaper reported on Monday. Ambassador Ivo Zdarek, a 47-year-old father of two, could have fled the hotel just after the bombing, but he rushed back in to help pull people to safety, the daily Hospodarske Noviny said, citing an eyewitness. ‘He lost his life while he was inside the hotel trying to take the wounded out of the flames,’ Pakistani journalist Hamid Mir told the newspaper. (Posted @ 17:15 PST) Four Russian Navy ships head to Venezuela exercises Monday, 22 Sep, MOSCOW: The Interfax news agency says four Russian Navy ships have set off for exercises in Venezuela. Russian Navy spokesman Igor Dygalo is quoted as saying that the nuclear-powered heavy missile cruiser Peter the Great cruiser accompanied by other ships sailed from Severomorsk Monday. The anti-submarine destroyer Admiral Chabanenko with two support ships left their base near Murmansk for the 15,000 mile passage to Venezuela. He said the ships will call at Venezuelan ports and take part in join manoeuvres with Venezuela. (Posted @ 17:14 PST) British Airways stops Pakistan flights Monday, 22 Sep, ISLAMABAD: British Airways has suspended all its flights to Pakistan because of security fears after the Islamabad blast, an airline spokesman said on Monday. ‘Our people at headquarters are reviewing the security situation,’ said airline spokesman Sohail Rehman. In a sign of growing international unease about deteriorating security in nuclear-armed Pakistan, British Airways said it had suspended its six flights a week to the country. The bombing has also raised fresh calls for Pakistan’s government to rethink its alliance with the United States and military operations against Islamist militants, which many Pakistanis blame for inciting violence. (Posted @ 17:06 PST) Spike in kidnapping cases in Ramazan Monday, 22 Sep, KARACHI: As Ramazan enters its last 10 days, data shows that the early days of the holy month have witnessed a sharp rise in the crime graph across the city, with an unprecedented jump in kidnap-for-ransom cases which, the law enforcers believe, have been taking place everyday for the last few weeks. Data compiled by the Citizens-Police Liaison Committee (CPLC) and background interviews conducted with senior police officials suggest that the most worrying trend to have emerged over the past few weeks is that of ‘snap kidnapping,’ in which a few armed men choose their target at random and take him or her at gunpoint around the city, making the victim arrange ransom money by calling his or her immediate family or friends. (Posted @ 17:06 PST) Nearly 100 Filipinos held by pirates Monday, 22 Sep, MANILA: The number of Filipino seamen being held by pirates around the Horn of Africa has risen to nearly 100 after the hijacking of a Greek merchant vessel, the Philippines government said on Monday. The Greek vessel, which was flying the Bahamas flag, was seized 250 nautical miles off Somalia on Sunday, with 19 crew on board, 17 of them Filipinos. 'The latest hijacking takes the number of Filipino seamen being held captive around the Horn of Africa to 97,' foreign affairs department spokesman Claro Cristobal told local radio. (Posted @ 16:50 PST) Six months are enough Monday, 22 Sep, Six months is long enough for any government to settle down and start the process of governing. After this period, every new government must stop blaming its predecessor for all the ills that afflict the country and show that it is in control and has a plan and a purpose to put its mark on different sectors in the country. The responsibility placed on a new government inheriting numerous structural problems and weaknesses in key sectors is greater as are the expectations. This is further accentuated when a government is brought in after yet another round of prolonged military rule, and hence, has far more to prove. Under such transitions, it is not just that one particular government’s future is at stake, but also that it carries the burden of having to prove that a democracy offers far better possibilities and solutions than does a military dictatorship. Clearly, the responsibility on the shoulders of the Zardari-Gilani government is far heavier than on many democratic governments of the recent past. (Posted @ 16:15 PST) Venue change saved leaders from blast: Rehman Malik Monday, 22 Sep, ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's president and prime minister were to have had dinner at the Islamabad Marriott hotel when it was bombed but the venue was changed at the last minute, the interior ministry said on Monday. ‘The national assembly speaker had arranged a dinner for the entire leadership, for the president, prime minister and armed services chiefs at the Marriott that day,’ interior ministry chief Rehman Malik told reporters. ‘The president and the prime minister changed the venue to the prime minister's house. The function was not held at the Marriott, thus the whole leadership was saved,’ Malik added. The hotel was instead hosting its regular meal for the breaking of the Ramadan fast at the time of the explosion. (Posted @ 15:45 PST) Pakistan, India trade fire at LOC Monday, 22 Sep, MUZAFFARABAD: Pakistani and Indian troops exchanged fire across the de facto border dividing the disputed Kashmir region on Monday, wounding a Pakistani woman, police and security officials said. The exchange was the latest in a spate of recent small clashes along the Line of Control after a period of calm since a ceasefire in late 2003 and a peace process between was launched in 2004. ‘It was a brief exchange. Maybe a few rounds but unfortunately, a woman received a bullet in her leg,’ a security official, who asked not to be identified, said of the exchange in the Madarpur sector in the south of Kashmir. (Posted @ 15:42 PST) Afghan consul kidnapped after gunmen open fire Monday, 22 Sep, PESHAWAR: The Afghan Consul General in Peshawar was abducted by gunmen from an upscale residential area here on Monday afternoon while his driver was killed, a senior police official confirmed. Abdul Khaliq Farahi was leaving his residence in Hayatabad, when armed men, intercepted his car, killed his driver and snatched him away. “Mr. Farahi has been abducted by unknown gunmen and we have launched the search”, Inspector General of Police, Malik Muhammad Naveed told Dawn. The sprawling walled residential Hayatabad adjoins Khyber tribal region that has recently seen an uptik in militant activity. (Posted @ 15:28 PST) DNA test to identify three bodies Monday, 22 Sep, ISLAMABAD: Three unidentified charred bodies are still lying at Pakistan Institute of Medical Science (PIMS) and the hospital administration is conducting DNA test for their identity. PIMS spokesman Dr. Wasim Khwaja said that officials of Danish and Egyptian embassies have contacted the hospital administration to trace out their missing persons. He said that these bodies were burnt badly and only DNA test can prove their identity. Thirty three victims of Marriot bomb blast are still admitted to the PIMS and five were in critical condition. He said that total 107 injured were brought to the hospital including two Americans, two British, 18 Saudis and six German nationals and all were discharged after initial treatment. A total of 38 dead bodies were brought to PIMS. (Posted @ 15:10 PST) 67 more die in Sri Lanka fighting: military Monday, 22 Sep, COLOMBO: Heavy fighting across Sri Lanka's north has left at least 59 rebels and eight soldiers dead, the defence ministry said Monday. The ministry said the latest fighting saw fierce battles along several front lines, with government troops and fighter jets appearing to step up their effort to capture the Tamil Tiger stronghold of Kilinochchi. The clashes left 31 guerrillas and 28 soldiers wounded, the ministry said. Official figures cannot be independently verified. President Mahinda Rajapakse's government is pushing to dismantle the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam's (LTTE) stronghold in the north, after wresting back the east in July 2007. (Posted @ 15:10 PST) Investigators hunt al Qaeda cell after blast Monday, 22 Sep, ISLAMABAD: Pakistani investigators on Monday scrambled to track down an Islamabad-based al Qaeda cell believed to have carried out the devastating bombing of the Marriott Hotel, security officials said. Investigators said they believed the attackers constructed the massive 600-kg truck bomb at a safe house in the capital, since all lorries entering the heavily-guarded city are searched at checkpoints. ‘Our focus at the moment is to track down the network in Islamabad which must have facilitated the movement and construction of the bomb,’ a senior official involved in the investigation told AFP. (Posted @ 15:10 PST) SBP asked to review decision to print Rs5 note Monday, 22 Sep, LAHORE: The State Bank of Pakistan has been asked to review its decision to print Rs5 currency notes as already a stock of 300 million coins of same denomination is enough to meet the requirement of at least next nine years. The suggestion has been part of a National Accountability Bureau’s preventive study of the Pakistan Mint regarding the latter’s operational/production losses. NAB Chairman Naveed Ahsen had formed a seven-member committee headed by its bureau’s Punjab chief Major Shahnawaz Badar. According to the report, the SPB had a stock of over 300 million coins of Rs5 which was sufficient to meet its requirement for next nine years. Besides this, a surplus stock of 212 tons of nickel worth over Rs300 million, was lying in the Pakistan Mint since 2005 should be utilised for further manufacturing of Rs5 and Rs10 coins. (Posted @ 14:48 PST) Hope between wrestling and war on terrorism Monday, 22 Sep, Wrestlers may appear to have little to do with India’s strategy to fight terror attacks, but a closer scrutiny of history reveals a fairly close link. On the face of it, we claim to be involved in a global alliance against terror. The fact is that India’s problems with what it calls terrorism are largely rooted in more than a hundred years of communal mistrust between Hindus and Muslims. The global war on terrorism is just seven years old. The current Indian strategy can be best understood by grasping a variant of competitive communalism that has grown between the country’s two main political parties, the Congress and the BJP. Last week, cornered by a spurt in deadly blasts carried out by suspected Muslim extremists, for example, a Congress party leader diverted the issue by claiming that there was neither support within his party for convicted Kashmiri Afzal Guru nor opposition to his hanging. To an average mind linking the two issues would look absurd. For the Congress the clubbing together reflects desperation, motivated perhaps by an urge to keep up with the main opposition BJP that has built its election campaign over the demand for Guru to be executed without further delay for involvement in the 2001 attack on India’s parliament. (Posted @ 14:10 PST) Pakistani troops twice repel US choppers: officials Monday, 22 Sep, MIRAMSHAH: Pakistani troops twice opened fire to repel two US helicopter gunships which violated Pakistani airspace in a tribal region bordering Afghanistan, officials said on Monday. The incidents happened about half an hour apart on Sunday evening near Lwara Mundi village in the North Waziristan district, where Pakistani forces have been battling Taliban and al-Qaeda militants, they said. ‘Pakistani forces fired at two US gunships which violated Pakistan’s airspace and forced them to return to Afghanistan,’ a local security official told AFP. ‘The helicopters flew back after our troops fired shots at them.’ (Posted @ 13:02 PST) Qadirpur field privatisation prompts agitation SUKKUR: Apprehensive of massive layoffs, hundreds of employees assembled in front of the gates of Qadirpur gas field with a pledge to resist the government’s privatisation plan. The protesters, led by labour leaders Ilmuddin and Agha Shahid, gathered in front of the main gate of Qadirpur gas field carrying banners and placards inscribed with slogans against the bid. (Posted @ 13:02 PST) Pakistani forces fire at intruding US choppers: officials MIRAMSHAH: Pakistani security forces opened fire at two US helicopter gunships which violated Pakistani airspace in a rugged tribal region bordering Afghanistan, local officials said on Monday. The incident happened near Lwara Mundi village in the North Waziristan district, where Pakistani forces have been battling Taliban and Al-Qaeda militants, they said. (Posted @ 13:02 PST) Shattered by the blast ISLAMABAD: Muhammed Zulfikar was trying to get a cigarette from a friend in a cafeteria at Islamabad's Marriott Hotel when the building shook and something struck his head. The sound of the blast was heard miles (kilometers) away, but the 26-year-old restaurant server can't recall a single decibel. Like several others, he thought it was an earthquake, but it was one of Pakistan's worst terrorist attacks. (Posted @ 12:58 PST) Two arrested in connection with Marriott attack GUJRANWALA: Two suspected terrorists were arrested in a Gujranwala raid late on Sunday night. According to Dawn News, the two men were apprehended in connection with the Marriott suicide attack that left at least 60 dead and 250 injured. It was reported that one of the men was the Imam Qari of a local mosque, while the other allegedly belonged to al-Qaeda and was also involved in the assassination bid on former president Pervez Musharraf’s life. (Posted @ 11:46 PST) Isb blast is retaliation for tribal upheaval LAHORE: Former army chief, Gen Mirza Aslam Beg has stated that Northwestern tribesmen may be responsible for Saturday's deadly attack on the Marriott Hotel in Islamabad, which left more than 50 dead and hundreds injured. In his opinion, the attack was in retaliation to the daily military strikes in FATA by the Pakistan military. (Posted @ 11:26 PST) Beg sees Isb blast as retaliation for tribal upheaval LAHORE: Former army chief, Gen Mirza Aslam Beg has stated that Northwestern tribesmen may be responsible for Saturday's deadly attack on the Marriott Hotel in Islamabad, which left more than 50 dead and hundreds injured. In his opinion, the attack was in retaliation to the daily military strikes in FATA by the Pakistan military. (Posted @ 11:26 PST) Czech Ambassador, two U.S marines killed in blast ISLAMABAD: The Czech Ambassador to Pakistan Ivo Zdarek and two U.S marines were among the 53 people killed in the suicide bomb attack on the Marriott Hotel on Saturday night in Islamabad while a Danish diplomat is still missing after the incident. “We are concentrating right now on finding the Dane who has been missing since yesterday,” Klavs Holm, ambassador for public diplomacy at the Danish foreign ministry, told AFP. (Posted @ 09:53 PST) RDX and TNT used in Marriott attack ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister’s Adviser on Interior Affairs Rehman Malik has said that Saturday’s blast in Islamabad that claimed 53 lives had links with Waziristan. A video tape, recorded by a security TV camera of the Marriott Hotel, which was shown at a press conference on Sunday, raised questions about security arrangements made to avert a terrorist attack in the capital’s high security areas. (Posted @ 09:50 PST) Zardari orders inquiry into PTV 'mess' ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari on Sunday ordered an inquiry into the ‘mess’ created by the state-run Pakistan Television (PTV) during his mid-night address to the nation in the aftermath of the devastating suicide attack outside Marriott Hotel that claimed 53 lives and injured over 250 people. The President, before leaving for the US to attend the UN General Assembly session, has tasked the Minister of Information to initiate an inquiry into the incident, Dawn has learnt. (Posted @ 08:12 PST) President departs on critical diplomatic mission ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari has left the country and is en route to the United States to represent Pakistan in the 63rd annual session of the UN General Assembly in New York on September 25. Mr. Zardari is being accompanied by Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi, Information Minister Sherry Rehmman and several top foreign office officials. (Posted @ 08:12 PST) US reclaims Ryder Cup from Europe LOUISVILLE: The Ryder Cup is coming back to America. Led by a brash kid from LA, a country boy from Florida's Panhandle and two native sons, the United States beat Europe on Sunday to win golf's greatest team prize for the first time since the 'Miracle at Brookline' in 1999. Anthony Kim, Boo Weekley and Kentuckians Kenny Perry and J.B. Holmes provided crucial wins for the Americans, who clinched it when Europe's Miguel Angel Jimenez conceded a short par putt to Jim Furyk at the 17th hole to assure the home team of 14 1/2 points at Valhalla. (Posted @ 05:18 PST) Foreign banks can use US rescue plan: Paulson WASHINGTON: U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said Sunday that foreign banks will be able to unload bad financial assets under a $700 billion U.S. proposal aimed at restoring order during a devastating financial crisis. 'Yes, and they should. Because ... if a financial institution has business operations in the United States, hires people in the United States, if they are clogged with illiquid assets, they have the same impact on the American people as any other institution,' Paulson said. (Posted @ 01:22 PST) Mbeki to address nation after agreeing to resign CAPE TOWN: South African President Thabo Mbeki will on Sunday make a rare public address, a day after agreeing to calls by the governing African National Congress for him to stand down in the interests of party unity. Mbeki said on Saturday he will step down 'as soon as all constitutional requirements have been fulfilled' after calls by the ANC national executive committee's for him to go. (Posted @ 12:34 PST) Karachi Stocks down 0.38 points: KARACHI, Sep 22: At close of trading, the KSE-100 index was at 9200.22, down 0.38 points. (Bureau Report) (Updated @ 13:30 PST) Forex update: KARACHI, Sep 22: The Pakistani Rupee was traded at Rs 78.3 to the US Dollar in the open market. (Bureau Report) (Updated @ 13:30 PST)
Founder: Quaid-i-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah The DAWN Media Group |
| | About Us | Advertising info | Subscription | Feedback | Contributions | Privacy Policy | Help | Contact us | |