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| October 08, 2008 | Wednesday | Shawwal 8, 1429 |
Updated round-the-clock, with major updates after 10:00 PST (05:00 GMT)
Chief selector quits over player row with PCB Wednesday, 08 Oct, ISLAMABAD: Salahuddin Ahmed quit as Pakistan's chief cricket selector on Wednesday after claiming a player change was made to the country's squad for a Twenty20 tournament without his knowledge. Ahmed said he and fellow selectors Shafqat Rana and Saleem Jaffar had picked spinner Saeed Ajmal in the 15-player squad for the four-day event starting Friday, but rookie opening batsman Shoaib Khan was instead included. 'I left for Karachi immediately after finalizing the team but when the Pakistan Cricket Board announced the team in Lahore, Shoaib Khan was named in the squad,' Ahmed said. 'Nobody in the cricket board had the courtesy to ask me or the other two selectors before replacing a player and I felt insulted. (Posted @ 23:30 PST)
US, India to sign nuclear deal Friday Wednesday, 08 Oct, WASHINGTON: India's external affairs minister Pranab Mukherjee will sign a landmark civilian nuclear pact on Friday with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, her spokesman said in Washington on Wednesday. ‘On Friday at 2000 GMT the secretary will sign with the Indian foreign minister, Foreign Minister Mukherjee, the India Civil Nuclear Agreement,’ State Department spokesman Sean McCormack told reporters. ‘This follows on the president's signature today of implementing legislation in the United States,’ he added. President George W. Bush was to sign legislation on Wednesday to sign the nuclear deal, in a lavish ceremony meant to highlight how the pact helps to usher in a new era in relations, reported AFP. (Posted @ 23:00 PST)
Pakistan parliament briefed on militant threat Wednesday, 08 Oct, ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's parliament met Wednesday amid massive security for an unprecedented intelligence briefing on the threat posed to the country from al Qaeda and Taliban militants, officials said. Helicopters circled central Islamabad and thousands of troops and police stood guard at checkpoints around the city. President Asif Ali Zardari and other lawmakers heard military and spy chiefs outline the gravity of the fight against extremists in northwestern Pakistan and the tribal belt bordering Afghanistan and the progress so far. General Ahmed Shuja Pasha, named last week to take over as head of Pakistan's powerful Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agency, led the briefing. (Posted @ 22:40 PST)
Pakistani worker abducted in Somalia released Wednesday, 08 Oct, MOGADISHU: Security forces on Wednesday freed a Pakistani national working for a Canadian oil firm in Somalia's breakaway region of Puntland, hours after gunmen had kidnapped him, officials told AFP. The gunmen had snatched the man in an area called Daror, in the northern Somali region of Puntland, the latest in a string of kidnappings targeting foreigners in the lawless Horn of Africa country. ‘The security men in the exploration in the exploration field attacked the kidnappers somewhere about 70 kilometres (40 miles) from the place where the abduction took place,’ Puntland Mining Minister Hassan Alore said. (Posted @ 22:12 PST)
Four die in attack on Turkey police bus Wednesday, 08 Oct, DIYARBAKIR: Three police trainees and a civilian were killed and 22 other people were wounded in an attack on a police bus in southeast Turkey on Wednesday, police said. Unidentified assailants armed with guns and explosives attacked the vehicle on a busy street on the outskirts of the city of Diyarbakir. At least 11 of the wounded were trainee police officers and the others were civilians, police said. The attack came shortly before parliament in Ankara was scheduled to approve a government request to extend a mandate to launch military operations against Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) rebels based in northern Iraq. (Posted @ 21:46 PST)
Consensus takes form on forests and climate change Wednesday, 08 Oct, BARCELONA: An elusive consensus on the best way to reduce forest carbon emissions took shape Wednesday with the release of a joint statement by forestry companies, green organisations and indigenous peoples. All these groups have clashed in the past, sometimes violently, on how to exploit the resources of tropical forests, which provide a livelihood for more than a billion of the world's poorest people — or whether to exploit them at all. The Forest Dialogue Initiative on Forests and Climate Change is the first initiative to produce a common platform endorsed by all the actors with a stake in rainforests in Amazonia, central Africa, and Asia, especially Indonesia. It was unveiled at the World Conservation Congress in Barcelona. (Posted @ 20:50 PST)
In bleak forecast, IMF sees major global downturn Wednesday, 08 Oct, WASHINGTON: In its bleakest forecast in years, the International Monetary Fund said on Wednesday the world economy was set for a major downturn with the United States and Europe either in or on the brink of recession. The IMF said a still-developing financial upheaval — the most violent since the 1930s — would exact a heavy economic toll as markets wrestle with a crisis of confidence and global credit is choked off. The IMF's assessment was written before a globally coordinated interest-rate cut of half a percentage point on Wednesday by the US Federal Reserve, European Central Bank, Bank of England, Switzerland, Canada and Sweden. China also cut its key rate 27 basis points and its reserve requirements for banks by half a percentage point. (Posted @ 20:15 PST)
Pakistan troops kill 12 militants in tribal area Wednesday, 08 Oct, KHAR, Pakistan: At least 12 al-Qaeda linked militants, two of them foreigners, were killed when Pakistani helicopter gunships shelled rebel hideouts in a tribal region near the Afghan border, officials said. The casualties occurred on Wednesday in the Bajaur region, where Pakistani troops launched a major offensive against Islamic militants in August. ‘Helicopter gunships pounded positions of militants in Badan area, killing 12 rebels including two foreigners,’ local administration official Mohammad Jamil Khan told AFP. He did not disclose the nationality of the two foreigners. Foreigner is a term used by Pakistan authorities for Al-Qaeda militants. (Posted @ 19:54 PST)
Bomb scares in Thatta, Makli Wednesday, 08 Oct, THATTA: Reports regarding the presence of bombs in the twin towns Thatta and Makli created havoc in local population and resulted in the death of a patient here on Wednesday. Official information was reportedly received through the police control room in Karachi about presence of bombs at the historical Shah Jahan Mosque, UNESCO world heritage site in Thatta, and the civil hospital at Makli News about a bomb planted at civil hospital Makli created panic and the hue and cry resulted in death of an ICU patient, Mohammad Mallah. Upon receipt of the information heavy contingent of police cordoned off Shah Jahan Mosque for several hours. Reports said bomb disposal squad officials, who were on their way to Keti Bundar to give clearance to a scheduled chief minister Sindh’s meeting, arrived and after thorough scanning of the mosque, cleared the premises. (Posted @ 19:00 PST)
Danish soldier injured in Afghanistan blast Wednesday, 08 Oct, COPENHAGEN: A Danish soldier was lightly injured Wednesday in an explosion in the south of Afghanistan, according to a statement from Denmark's Army Operational Command (HOK). The soldier from the Danish Royal Guard regiment was “lightly injured by a bomb or a mine which exploded when his armoured vehicle travelled north to Gereshk” in Helmand province, the statement said. A helicopter took him to the field hospital at Camp Bastion in Helmand, where the Danish military has a base, for medical tests. Danish soldiers declared the area safe after the explosion went off, HOK said. Denmark currently has some 700 troops in Afghanistan, most of whom are stationed in the southwestern Helmand province under British command. (Posted @ 18:50 PST)
Asif to appear before India doping tribunal Wednesday, 08 Oct, KARACHI: Fast bowler Mohammad Asif will fly to Mumbai early on Thursday to appear before an Indian tribunal in a bid to clear his name of doping allegations that have stalled his career, his lawyer said. The 25-year-old tested positive for the banned steroid nandrolone during the Indian Premier League (IPL) competition held between April and June this year and has since been suspended from all forms of cricket. “Asif and I are flying to Mumbai early Thursday and will appear before the three-member IPL tribunal. We hope to fight this case out to our best abilities,” Asif's lawyer, Shahid Karim, told AFP on Wednesday. Michael Graham, a sports medicine expert, will also fly to Mumbai to back Asif's case, he said. (Posted @ 18:34 PST)
West Indies call off tour to Pakistan Wednesday, 08 Oct, LAHORE: The Pakistan Cricket Board's efforts to arrange a home series have been dealt a blow as West Indies have opted not to tour next month because of security concerns. Senior players had already expressed concerns about visiting Pakistan and the decision comes a week after the West Indies women's team called off the Pakistan leg of their Asian tour. Donald Peters, the chief executive of the West Indies board, said negotiations are on to reschedule the tour. 'We are in talks with the PCB at present with the hope of getting the tour deferred to another date, but at this time we are not going to tour the country,” Peters told Caribbean Media Corporation Sport. (Posted @ 17:50 PST)
Gates asks allies to send troops to Afghanistan Wednesday, 08 Oct, OHRID, Macedonia: Defense Secretary Robert Gates urged Eastern European leaders on Wednesday to shift their military efforts from Iraq to Afghanistan, where their forces are more urgently needed. Speaking at a meeting here of the Southeast European Defense Ministerial, Gates said that as the security situation in Iraq continues to improve, countries should considered filling the ‘urgent need’ for trainers in Afghanistan. ‘Your assistance will not only help Afghanistan better protect and care for its citizens, it will also reinforce your important role in insuring peace and stability around the globe,’ Gates said during a press conference with the Macedonian minister of defense. (Posted @ 17:42 PST)
Eleven dead in Egypt building collapse Wednesday, 08 Oct, CAIRO: At least 11 people were killed in the Egyptian port city of Alexandria before dawn on Wednesday when a four-storey apartment block collapsed as families slept, a security official told AFP. Eleven bodies were pulled from the rubble of the building where 35 people lived, and 10 people were injured, the official said. The building collapsed at around 1:00 am when most residents were sleeping, the official said, adding there might be up to 15 more people still under the rubble. The recovered bodies included a woman locked in an embrace with her baby, the official MENA news agency reported. (Posted @ 17:38 PST)
Iraq mobilises team to protect journalists Wednesday, 08 Oct, BAGHDAD: Iraqi authorities have unveiled a new hotline to protect journalists, but reporters in the world's most dangerous country still fear for their lives. Police say they have thwarted two attempts to assassinate journalists in two weeks since setting up the hotline with a journalists' rights group. One of the intended victims was Saad Qusay, a correspondent for the US-funded Arabic-language TV channel al-Hurra in the southern city of Basra. The Interior Ministry says it captured a militia member who had threatened to kill him. (Posted @ 16:40 PST)
Pakistani worker kidnapped in Somalia Wednesday, 08 Oct, BOSASSO: Kidnappers in north Somalia have seized a Pakistani working for a Canadian oil company in the latest such attack on foreigners in the Horn of Africa nation, a regional official said on Wednesday. Like hijackings at sea, kidnappings of foreigners onshore have become increasingly common this year in Somalia, including in the northern region of Puntland, which has escaped the worst of a two-year insurgency in the south. ‘A Pakistani man working for African Oil Corp. was kidnapped by two of his bodyguards between Daroor and Ufayn, about 80 km to the south of Bosasso,’ Hassan Osman Alore, mineral minister for Puntland, told Reuters. (Posted @ 16:16 PST)
Protein in jellyfish: basis of Nobel Wednesday, 08 Oct, STOCKHOLM: Two Americans scientists and a Japanese researcher won the 2008 Nobel prize for chemistry for their discovery of a green fluorescent protein (GFP), that ‘has become one of the most important tools used in contemporary bioscience’, the prize committee said on Wednesday. The prestigious 10 million Swedish crown ($1.4 million) prize recognised Osamu Shimomura of Japan and Americans Martin Chalfie and Roger Tsien for their discovery of the brightly glowing protein GFP. The protein appears strong greenunder ultraviolet and blue light.It was first observed in the jellyfish Aequorea victoria in 1962. ‘This year's Nobel Prize in Chemistry rewards the initial discovery of GFP and a series of important developments which have led to its use as a tagging tool in bioscience,’ the Nobel Committee for Chemistry at the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences said in a statement. (Posted @ 16:12 PST)
Woman suicide bomber strikes outside Iraq court BAGHDAD: A woman suicide bomber blew herself up outside a courthouse north of the Iraqi capital on Wednesday, killing six security personnel and three civilians, officials and witnesses said. Two Iraqi army majors were among five soldiers killed while a policeman also died in the attack in Baquba, capital of the restive province of Diyala, a security official said. (Posted @ 15:46 PST)
State bank intervenes as rupee plunges KARACHI: Pakistan's central bank said Wednesday it was intervening in the money market after the rupee plunged to a record low against the dollar amid a worsening global financial crisis. The State Bank of Pakistan said it was injecting capital as the rupee traded at an all-time low of 80.5 rupees to the dollar in the foreign exchange market. It eventually closed at 79.5 rupees. (Posted @ 15:40 PST)
North Korea developing nuclear warhead: Seoul SEOUL: North Korea is working to develop a nuclear warhead for a long-range missile, South Korea's top military officer said Wednesday, a day after the communist state tested its short-range weaponry. ‘I understand that North Korea is working to develop a small nuclear warhead which can be loaded into a missile,’ Kim Tae-Young, chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, was quoted by Yonhap news agency as telling legislators. (Posted @ 15:12 PST)
Earthquake in 2005 caused $5 billion losses: Gilani ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani on Wednesday stressed the need for addressing risks posed by natural and human induced disasters including terrorism, in order to ensure continuity of economic growth in the country. ‘We must realize the fact that disasters threaten sustained economic growth of the society and the country,’ the Prime Minister said while addressing at the opening ceremony of first National Disaster Risk Management Conference at PM Secretariat. (Posted @ 15:04 PST)
Troops on Thai streets after deadly protests BANGKOK: Soldiers and police patrolled Bangkok's streets Wednesday in an effort to maintain calm a day after chaotic and bloody protests rocked the Thai capital, leaving two people dead and hundreds injured. Dressed in khaki anti-riot gear, small groups of unarmed personnel from the army, navy and air force were deployed near key government buildings including parliament -- the focus of Tuesday's violence between police and protesters. (Posted @ 14:18 PST)
Britain unveils 50 billion bank rescue package LONDON: Britain will inject up to 50 billion pounds ($87.2 billion) of government money into the country's banks as part of a multibillion pound package to shore up the financial system. After frantic overnight talks that followed dramatic falls in the share prices of some of Britain's biggest banks, Finance Minister Alistair Darling rushed out measures on Wednesday he said would help boost lending and restore confidence. (Posted @ 13:31 PST)
Share dealers left in limbo as economy sinks KARACHI: While Pakistan's economy tanks and its rupee strikes record lows, share dealers on the Karachi Stock Exchange have been reduced to watching television, playing video games and thinking about new careers. Trading has dried up since the KSE board imposed an artificial floor on the 100-share benchmark index in August to stop a collapse in share prices that could have sent some investment firms to the wall. (Posted @ 13:17 PST)
Pakistani lawmakers meet Dr Aafia in Texas NEW YORK/WASHINGTON: The head of a visiting delegation of Pakistani senators has called for the immediate release of Dr Aafia Siddiqui from US detention after a long meeting on Tuesday with her in a Texas facility where she is undergoing psychological evaluation. Mushahid Hussain Sayed, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, told APP the four-member delegation had a two and a half hour meeting with Dr Siddiqui, the US-educated Pakistani neuroscientist, at the Federal Medical Centre (FMC) at Carswell in Fort Worth, Texas. (Posted @ 13:14 PST)
Shoaib in, Yousuf out of Canada T20 squad LAHORE: Controversial paceman Shoaib Akhtar was included in a 15-man Pakistan squad for this week’s Twenty20 tournament in Canada but star batsman Mohammad Yousuf was left out, selectors said on Tuesday. The selection of the 33-year-old Akhtar came after the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) softened its stance on a demand for payment of a seven million rupees (90,000 dollars) fine. (Posted 12:33 PST)
Scraping the fuselage 'I saw the angel in the marble and carved until I set him free,' said Michelangelo. Alas, the $700bn rescue package put together by the Republican administration lacks the imagination of Michelangelo and, one fears that no angels will be set free for a long time to come. It is the kind of government intervention that is not needed. In an attempt to socialise losses, the current US administration has effectively trampled on Adam Smith’s invisible hand. (Posted @ 11:37 PST)
Rupee weakens to 79.5 against dollar KARACHI: The Pakistani rupee weakened to a record low of 79.50 to the dollar in early trade on Wednesday as demands to meet import payments continued to erode the currency’s value, with the economy facing multiple problems. The new low was one percent weaker than the previous low of 78.69 struck on Tuesday, and the currency has lost 22.5 percent so far this year. (Posted @ 10:59 PST)
Afghan village raid killed more than 30 civilians: NYT WASHINGTON: An inquiry by the US military has concluded that US air strikes on an Afghan village in August killed more than 30 civilians, far more than US commanders have acknowledged, The New York Times said on Tuesday. The August 22 air strike on Azizabad village outraged Afghans and opened up a rift between the coalition forces on the one hand and the Afghan government and the United Nations on the other, which both said more than 90 civilians were killed. (Posted @ 10:29 PST)
US seeks peace with ‘reconcilable’ Taliban: Gates WASHINGTON: The United States wants peace with ‘reconcilable’ insurgents in Afghanistan, says US Defence Secretary Robert Gates while commenting on a new peace move. 'The idea is, how do you convince some of these people to stop killing Americans and our allies and above all Afghans and become a part of the future of the state of Afghanistan?,' said Mr Gates while explaining the US goal in supporting the peace move that led to a meeting between the representatives of the Taliban and Afghan government in Makkah last month. (Posted @ 10:27 PST)
Plane crashes in Nepal, 18 killed KATHMANDU: A small passenger plane crashed on landing Wednesday morning in Nepal's Everest region, killing 18 people believed to be mostly German tourists, Nepalese officials said. 'A Yeti Airlines plane has crashed at Lukla airport while it was landing,' said airport official Mohan Adhikari. (Posted @ 09:49 PST)
Markets hit new lows as crisis deepens TOKYO: Asian stocks were pummelled again on Wednesday as fears grew that policymakers may be powerless to stop the worst global financial crisis since the Great Depression. US and European authorities launched fresh initiatives on Tuesday to try to ease a global credit crunch, but the moves failed to boost market confidence as Wall Street and other stock markets sank to new lows. (Posted @ 09:30 PST)
US presidential candidates clash on Pakistan policy NASHVILLE: White House hopefuls John McCain and Barack Obama clashed Tuesday once again on combating terrorism on the Afghan-Pakistan border in their second of three presidential debates. Democrat Obama, replying to a question from an audience member, said: ‘If we have Osama bin Laden in our sights and the Pakistani government is unable or unwilling to take them out, then I think that we have to act and we will take them out.’ (Posted @ 09:01 PST)
Obama, McCain battle over taxes, economy in debate ASHVILLE: Republican John McCain and Democrat Barack Obama battled over taxes and the best way to help struggling middle-class workers on Tuesday during a sometimes tense presidential debate that highlighted a wide gap in their economic approaches. With US financial institutions reeling under what Obama called the worst crisis since the Great Depression, the presidential rivals in the Nov. 4 election differed frequently with only rare flashes of the open rancour that has marked their recent rhetoric on the campaign trail. (Posted @ 07:50 PST)
McCain linked to group in Iran-Contra affair WASHINGTON: Republican presidential candidate John McCain's ties to the US chapter of a group linked to 1980s Central American ultra-right-wing death squads are under new scrutiny after his campaign criticized Barack Obama for associating with a former 1960s-era radical. McCain served on the advisory board to the US Council for World Freedom, which aided rebels trying to overthrow the leftist government of Nicaragua. That landed the group in the middle of the 1980s Iran-Contra affair that rocked President Ronald Reagan's presidency and put the group in legal trouble with the US tax agency, which revoked the charitable organization's tax exemption. (Posted @ 06:46 PST)
Three years and many unfulfilled promises ISLAMABAD: Three year on, a devastating earthquake rattled parts of Azad Kashmir and NWFP, life is still a nightmare for the survivors, with almost quarter of a million families yet to get full subsidy for reconstruction of their destroyed houses. The missing targets, unfulfilled commitments, procedural flaws, dilapidated infrastructure and rising inflationary pressure is adding to the woes of the quake survivors, many of whom had no other option but to migrate. (Posted @ 05:11 PST)
Judge orders release of Chinese Muslims into US WASHINGTON: A federal judge ordered the Bush administration Tuesday to free immediately 17 Chinese Muslims from Guantanamo Bay into the United States, a dramatic ruling that could set the course for releasing dozens of other prisoners from the US naval facility in Cuba. The Bush administration criticized the decision as a threat to national security and quickly moved to block the decision in federal appeals court. ‘Today's ruling presents serious national security and separation of powers concerns and raises unprecedented legal issues,’ said Justice Department spokesman Brian Roehrkasse. (Posted @ 04:52 PST)
McCain aims to stop Obama momentum in debate NASHVILLE: Republican John McCain hopes to halt Democrat Barack Obama's momentum and gain new life in the White House race with a strong performance on Tuesday when the presidential rivals meet in their second debate. With four weeks until the Nov. 4 election, the debate offers McCain one of his last chances to recast a presidential race that has been shifting toward Obama in the last few weeks. (Posted @ 04:42 PST)
Protests against Qadirpur oil and gas field sale LARKANA: The labourer leaders of different trade organization spoke with one voice opposing the privatization of Qadirpur oil and gas field, terming it anti-labour policy. Speaking at a gathering of different trade organizations, Zulfikar Sangi central chairman of Pakistan Telecom Employees union (CBA), Manzoor Ahmed Aheer central general secretary of Watandost Mazdoor employees’ federation (CBA) and others on Tuesday said that it was unwise to privatize the organization which earned Rs8 billion daily. (Posted @ 04:17 PST)
Alleged corruption in utility sector NAWABSHAH: Some 42 engineers of Sindh Irrigation & Power department have appealed to the President, Prime Minister and other concerned to take notice of the deputations of non technical officers on the key posts of the department as well as posting of junior officers on senior post depriving them of promotions. In an appeal sent, some 42 engineers of Sindh Irrigation & Power department including Mohammed Soomar Chanio, Sardar Ali Shah, Waqar Ahmed Qadri, Ikramullah Qureshi, Haji Khan Jamali, Naila Rahim, Preetam Das, Zaheer Ahmed Memon, Farida Memon, Iqbal Ahmed Palijo and others said that the most junior officers of the department were posted on senior posts negating the rights of eligible officers. (Posted @ 03:15 PST)
Mass exodus from South Waziristan TANK: Continuous movement of the spy planes and fear of military operations have triggered mass exoduses from the Mehsud areas of the South Waziristan tribal region. Displaced families have been seen moving towards the adjacent districts and other parts of the country. Rents of houses have shot up manifold in Tank and Dera Ismail Khan after the arrival of the displaced people. Residents said that displaced people carrying their belongings were arriving in the two adjacent districts and looking for accommodation. Many displaced families were proceeding to Hyderabad and Karachi. (Posted @ 02:59 PST)
Lehman CEO takes responsiblity for downfall WASHINGTON: Richard Fuld, the disgraced head of Lehman Brothers, said he took full responsibility for his actions ahead of the downfall of the 158-year investment bank, but said US regulators knew exactly what the firm's liquidity was and how it was pricing its distressed assets in the months before its collapse. Despite his acceptance of his role before the collapse, US lawmakers expressed outrage to Fuld about Lehman on Monday, saying that Fuld, board members, regulators and Congress all shared blame for its downfall. (Posted @ 02:38 PST)
Govt to increase scrutiny of intelligence agencies ISLAMABAD: The government will try to have a consensus in joint sitting of the parliament that all intelligence and security agencies of the country should work under some system of accountability, sources in the government told Dawn on Tuesday. They said all security and intelligence agencies are likely to be under immense criticism in in-camera sitting of the Parliament to be held on Wednesday. The joint sitting of the parliament would be attended by Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani, Senators, MNAs and officials of security and intelligence. They will be briefed by heads of intelligence agencies about the law and order situation, war on terror and situation in tribal areas of the country. (Posted @ 01:39 PST)
Iran denies report US plane forced to land TEHRAN: A senior Iranian official denied on Tuesday a local news agency report that a U.S. military plane had violated the country's airspace and was forced to land, saying both the aircraft and the people on board were Hungarian. The Pentagon also denied the report by Iran's semi-official Fars News agency, which came at a time of tension over Tehran's disputed nuclear programme, and said all American planes were accounted for. The oil market spiked briefly after the Fars report. (Posted @ 01:35 PST)
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Editor: Abbas Nasir
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