12 killed in Cambodian traffic accident: police

PHNOM PENH  ( 2008-04-02 10:39:56 ) : 

Twelve people have been killed and 11 others seriously injured in one of Cambodia's worst-ever traffic accidents, police said on Wednesday.
The crash occurred Tuesday when a mini-van packed full of travellers collided with a truck as it tried to turn across a highway in eastern Cambodia, district police chief Heng Vuthy said.
"It is a tragedy caused by driver negligence," he told AFP.
Traffic accident fatalities have more than doubled in the past five years, becoming Cambodia's second biggest killer behind HIV/AIDS and resulting in mounting costs for the government.
Better roads and more vehicles are contributing heavily to this bloody toll, but bad driving is the main cause behind most accidents, police say.

China warns Japan, Europe not to support Dalai Lama

BEIJING  ( 2008-04-01 20:37:00 ) : 

China said on Tuesday it opposed foreign nations providing support to what it said was the Dalai Lama's attempts to split Tibet from China, reacting to reports that he may go to Japan and Europe.
"We oppose his split’s activities. We oppose any officials of foreign countries providing support for the split’s activities by the Dalai Lama," foreign ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu told reporters.
Jiang made the remark when asked to comment on plans by the Dalai Lama to make a stopover in Japan next week on his way to the United States.
The Dalai Lama is a frequent visitor to Japan, where he enjoys a wide public following. But unlike many of their Western counterparts, Japanese leaders have almost always refused to meet the Nobel peace laureate.
French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner also said on Tuesday the European Union's 27 foreign ministers would invite the Dalai Lama for talks in Brussels.
"As the Dalai Lama does not ask for a boycott (of the Olympic Games in Beijing) nor Tibet's independence it is time to go back (to dialogue)," Kouchner said.
When asked to comment on this, Jiang referred to her previous statement.
The Dalai Lama has repeatedly denied he wants independence for Tibet, or is trying to orchestrate independence. He has said he wants greater autonomy for Tibet under Chinese rule, but also an end to repression there.

China takes foreign diplomats to Lhasa

BEIJING  ( 2008-03-28 09:58:01 ) : 

A group of Beijing-based foreign diplomats were scheduled to leave for Tibet's riot-hit capital Lhasa on Friday for a two-day trip organised by the Chinese government, embassy officials said.
Diplomats from a number of countries including the United States, Britain, France, Australia and Italy were to participate in the trip, which came on the heels of another government-arranged tour for foreign journalists.
"I suppose the objective of the Chinese foreign ministry is to basically answer the international calls including from the Australian government to have diplomatic access to Tibet," said Janaline Oh, an Australian embassy official.
She said embassies in Beijing were only informed about the planned trip on Thursday, while an Italian embassy spokeswoman said the representatives were expected back on Saturday night.
One diplomat said that the embassies had been allowed to send one official each, although there was no official comment on the trip from Beijing and it was not clear how many countries were going or had been invited.
In Washington, State Department spokesman Sean McCormack welcomed the move, but said it was not enough.
"We see this as a step in the right direction, but it's not a substitute for the ability of our diplomats, as well as others, to travel not only to Lhasa, but into the surrounding area specifically," he told reporters.
China took a foreign media delegation to Lhasa on Wednesday for a three-day trip following international pressure to allow independent reporting from the Tibetan capital after it was sealed off due to the unrest.
AFP and some other major news organisations were not invited.
Two weeks of deadly demonstrations against China's rule of Tibet have put China under international pressure as it prepares to host the Olympics in August.
China has insisted its response to the protests, the biggest challenge to its rule of Tibet in decades, has been restrained and that it has brought the situation under control.

Plane with Comoran rebel leader lands in Reunion

 

SAINT DENIS  ( 2008-03-28 11:15:53 ) : 

The rebel leader of the Comoros island of Anjouan, Mohamed Bacar, arrived in Reunion on Friday to an uncertain future, two days after his ouster by Comoran and African Union forces.
He was flown in on a French military C-160 Transall plane from Mayotte, another French possession in the Indian Ocean, where Bacar asked for asylum after being driven off Anjouan on Wednesday.
Twenty-three Anjouan soldiers accompanied him on the flight to Reunion.
French officials had declared on Thursday that, upon his arrival in Reunion, Bacar would be placed under investigation for landing illegally on Mayotte in possession of weapons.
At the same time, they were weighing whether to grant his asylum request.
In the Comoros capital of Moroni, security forces on Thursday used tear gas to disperse 1,000 people trying to march on the French embassy demanding that Bacar be sent back to face trial on charges of torturing opponents.
Groups of youths made renewed attempts to reach the embassy and were again fought back by police, while Comoran Defence Minister Mohamed Bacar Dossar demanded that France to hand the French-trained officer over.
"We understand the disappointment of our Comoran brothers, we will do everything we can to ensure that Bacar and his accomplices are brought back and sent to court in the Comoros," Dossar said.
A Frenchman who heads a primary school in Moroni was attacked by a mob as he headed to work, a French diplomat told AFP. He was not seriously wounded.
Anjouan exiles also staged angry protests in Mayotte on Thursday in which cars were burned and houses damaged, witnesses said.
Bacar defied months of warnings to end his self-proclaimed presidency of Anjouan -- the third largest island in the Comoros archipelago -- before he was finally ousted on Tuesday by the invasion force.
The Comoran Human Rights Foundation called on France to extradite the ousted rebel leader immediately.
The group urged France "to prove its solidarity with Comoros and the Comoran people by extraditing him without delay and avoiding bothersome administrative and diplomatic procedures."
Yves Jego, the French secretary of state for overseas territories, said France was studying Bacar's request for political asylum and an answer would be given "as fast as possible, I hope".
In parallel to the asylum request, "Mr Bacar will be the subject of appropriate judicial procedures," foreign ministry spokeswoman Pascale Andreani told journalists in Paris.
French security forces guarded the main Pamandzi airport on Mayotte where Bacar was taken Thursday and closed off the road linking it to the main police station where several angry Anjouan exiles had gathered.
Demonstrators hurled stones at cars belonging to French nationals and two were injured, witnesses said. Exiles said they were outraged at the protection given to Bacar, who faces accusations of torturing his opponents.
Mayotte is in the same chain of islands as the Comoros, but opted to remain French when the Comoros became independent in 1975. Bacar, and 23 of soldiers and associates, arrived there on Wednesday and sought refuge with a brother.
Bacar "entered Mayotte illegally where he was immediately apprehended and disarmed by the French authorities," Andreani said in Paris.
France backed the invasion by 1,400 Comoran and African Union troops and loaned the AU force the ships used to take them to Anjouan at dawn, but it has no extradition agreement with the Comoros.
The Comoran and African Union forces battled die-hard supporters of Bacar on Wednesday as the central government vowed to set up an interim administration on Anjouan this week.
At least 11 civilians were wounded in the operation, hospital sources said.
Comoran Vice President Ikililou Dhoinine is running an interim administration on Anjouan ahead of a new transitional government expected by the weekend. New elections have been slated for May.

Zimbabwe security forces on full alert ahead of polls

HARARE  ( 2008-03-28 15:31:03 ) : 

Zimbabwe's army and police were placed on full alert on Friday on the eve of the country's general election as security chiefs vowed to thwart any Kenya-style violence in the poll's aftermath.
"The defence and security forces of Zimbabwe are on full alert from now onwards covering the election period and beyond," said Augustine Chihuri, commissioner general of the police, in a statement read on behalf of the country's security chiefs on Friday.
Chihuri said anyone who harboured "evil" intentions should be aware that "the defence and security forces are up to task in thwarting all threats to national security."
His comments came at a news conference attended by all security chiefs, including the head of the army, prison service and intelligence services.
"We discourage acts that could lead to anarchy," they said.
"Also those who have been breathing fire about the Kenyan-style violence should be warned that violence is a poor substitute for intelligence and that it is a monster that can devour its creator, as it is blind and not selective in nature," he said.
The warning came as the opposition and witnesses said security forces had started deploying water cannons and tanks in some parts of the capital.
President Robert Mugabe, facing his fiercest battles since sweeping to power 28 years ago, this week issued a stark warning to his challengers that he would not tolerate post-election violence.
In power since independence in 1980, Mugabe has been taken on in the race in the joint parliamentary and presidential polls by long-time opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai and his finance minister Simba Makoni.

Dalai Lama appeals for talks with Beijing

NEW DELHI: The Dalai Lama appealed to China Friday to enter into "meaningful dialogue" over the crisis in Tibet, asserting he did not want to undermine the Beijing Olympics and was not seeking independence.
In an open letter to his "Chinese brothers and sisters," the exiled spiritual leader said he was a "simple monk" trying to preserve "the Tibetan people's distinctive culture, language and identity."
He warned, however, that Chinese "state media's portrayal of the recent events in Tibet, using deceit and distorted images, could sow the seeds of racial tension with unpredictable long-term consequences."
"Even at this juncture I have expressed my willingness to the Chinese authorities to work together to bring about peace and stability," he said in the statement, carried by his exiled administration's website Tibet.net.
"I have appealed to the leadership of the PRC (People's Republic of China) to clearly understand my position and work to resolve these problems. I urge the Chinese leadership to exercise wisdom and to initiate a meaningful dialogue with the Tibetan people," the message said.

Arab leaders gather for low-turnout summit in Damascus

DAMASCUS: Almost half of Arab leaders are boycotting a weekend summit hosted by Syria, an Arab League official said on Friday, as US allies snub Damascus over the political crisis in Lebanon.
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad will host the leaders of Algeria, Comoros, Kuwait, Libya, Mauritania, the Palestinian Authority, Qatar, Sudan, Tunisia, the United Arab Emirates and Yemen, the official said.
With US allies Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Jordan sending only low-level delegations, only 12 leaders from the 22-member body will attend the two-day summit which opens on Saturday.
The leaders of Iraq, Morocco and Oman will also be absent, while Lebanon is boycotting the event.
As leaders began gathering in Damascus on Friday, Assad greeted the first arrival Comoran President Ahmed Abdallah Sambi, followed by Iraqi Vice President Adel Abdel Mahdi.
Damascus airport has been closed to all commercial flights until Sunday for the leaders' arrivals.
On Thursday, Syria's press hailed the summit a success due to the absence of US influence, a reference to the boycott by the heads of state from several regional US-friendly heavyweights.

Eight killed in Indian temple stampede

 

BHOPAL  ( 2008-03-27 10:33:25 ) : 

At least eight people were trampled to death and 10 seriously injured in a stampede at a Hindu temple in central India, officials said.
The stampede happened late on Wednesday, when thousands of villagers were making their way to a temple during an annual fair in remote Karila village, about 260 km (160 miles) from Bhopal, the capital of Madhya Pradesh state.
"It was simply an accident as people who attempted to enter the temple by climbing over a railing fell," Geeta Mishra, a senior government official, said on Thursday.
Authorities sealed the temple gates and were investigating the stampede.
In rural India, insufficient security to control crowds often causes stampedes and deaths.
In 2005, about 265 pilgrims were killed at a stampede near a temple in the western state of Maharashtra.

Bush, Hu press North Korea over nuclear arms declaration

 

WASHINGTON  ( 2008-03-27 11:13:44 ) : 

US President George W. Bush and his Chinese counterpart Hu Jintao pressed North Korea on Wednesday to come clean over its nuclear arms program, as South Korea warned that time and patience were wearing out on Pyongyang.
In a day of intensive diplomacy, the White House said Bush telephoned Hu to help get North Korea to make a full declaration of its nuclear arms program, while Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice met with her South Korean counterpart to keep up the heat on the Stalinist state.
"The two presidents pledged to continue to work closely with the other six-party partners in urging North Korea to deliver a complete and correct declaration of all its nuclear weapons programs, and nuclear proliferation activities and to complete the agreed disablement," a statement said.
"Bush expressed appreciation to President Hu for the important role China has played within" the six-party talks, which it chairs and are aimed at ending North Korea's nuclear weapons drive, added the statement. North Korea has refused to make a "complete and correct" declaration of its nuclear weapons program and alleged proliferation activities as part of an aid-for-disarmament deal agreed to by the six parties -- the United States, China, the two Koreas, Japan and Russia.
"It's time to bring this to a conclusion," Bush's National Security Advisor Stephen Hadley said of the ongoing effort by the parties to get North Korea to come forward with a full declaration. "This has been going on for a while."
The declaration was supposed to havtion to Syria.
"It was time, I think, for the president to signal to Hu Jintao that it's time for all of the parties of the six-party talks, including China, to re-engage with North Korea," Hadley told reporters.
Rice said Pyongyang's reluctance to provide the declaration was holding up the six-party talks, which had to lay the groundwork for North Korea to dismantle its nuclear arsenal -- the final phase of its denuclearization effort which Washington wants concluded before Bush retires in January 2009.
"It is really time now for there to be movement on the declaration so that with that declaration we have, we can move forward on the next phase," Rice told reporters after talks with South Korean foreign minister with Yu Myung-Hwan.
Yu said, "I think time and patience is running out.
"I hope North Korea will submit the declaration as soon as possible so as not to lose good timing," he said.
Rice said the declaration and any associated documents should show the full range of the North Korean nuclear programs and activities "so that there can be an effort to verify and to deal with anything that has happened concerning North Korean programs and proliferation and the like.
"We've been concerned about North Korean proliferation for quite a long time. The six-party framework should be able to deal with this problem or these problems so that we can stay on course to the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula," she said.

Govt to unveil policies soon’

ISLAMABAD: The new government will soon unveil its programme to deal with serious problems confronting the country including fight against scourge of extremism and terrorism, Interior Ministry Spokesman Brig (retd) Javed Iqbal Cheema said here Tuesday.

The situation is fast returning to normal in Swat, he said, adding after the policy guidelines by the Prime Minister the Interior Ministry will then spell out its action plan for maintaining law and order to curb the menace of terrorism.

He said the security forces seized three illegal FM radio stations in Swat last week for broadcasting messages of militants. In addition twelve suspects were arrested and a large quantity of illegal small arms, ammunition, audio cassettes and provocative literature was recovered and confiscated during the week, he told weekly media briefing.

To a question he said the Ministry is negotiating with the government of China for purchase of explosive detectors and scanners to avoid suicide attacks.

These equipment would be installed at entry and exits points of main cities, border and other security zones.

He said the last eight days witnessed momentous national events including inaugural session of National Assembly, Eid-e-Milad un Nabi (peace be upon him), Pakistan Day and Good Friday festivities of the Christian community.

The law enforcement machinery remained on high alert and no incident of disruption or violence by anti-state elements was reported from any part of the country despite strong indication of terrorists attacks, he added.

To a question about probe by UN investigation team into Benazir assassination, Cheema said "it will be government's discretion."

China tries to isolate Dalai Lama, speaks out against France trip

 

BEIJING  ( 2008-03-26 15:01:04 ) : 

China stepped up pressure to isolate the Dalai Lama on Wednesday, opposing talks between the Tibetan spiritual leader and French officials during his proposed trip to France in August.
China's foreign ministry said it was firmly against meetings between the Dalai Lama, whom it blames for recent deadly unrest in Tibet, and officials from any other country.
"The Chinese government resolutely opposes official contact of any kind between any country and the Dalai Lama," said foreign ministry spokesman Qin Gang.
"China resolutely opposes the Dalai Lama going to any other countries in any capacity to promote his separatism from China."
Qin was responding to a question about the Dalai Lama's proposed trip to France in August and possible meetings with French officials, including President Nicolas Sarkozy.
China has already this week denounced US House speaker Nancy Pelosi for meeting with the Dalai Lama, and last week spoke out against a plan by British Prime Minister Gordon Brown to meet him in May.
A Tibetan spokesman said on Tuesday that the Dalai Lama would visit France in August. Beijing is playing host to the Olympic Games from August 8 to 24.
French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner, in an interview published Wednesday, recommended that Sarkozy meet with the Dalai Lama during the trip.
France's junior minister for human rights, Rama Yade, said she intended to meet with the Tibetan Buddhist leader.
China has branded the Dalai Lama a separatist and said he masterminded this month's unrest in the Himalayan region which has left at least 140 dead, according to Tibetan exile groups. China has put the toll at 20.
Kouchner said the ordinary people of Tibet had a different view of the Dalai Lama than the Chinese government.
"For the people he is a religious leader, a guide to the Tibetan people. I think one should meet with him ... but it is not me who decides," Kouchner told the daily Le Parisien.
Sarkozy has spoken out against the crackdown in Tibet and said on Tuesday a boycott of the Beijing Olympics opening ceremony was possible.
The Dalai Lama, who won the 1989 Nobel Peace Prize, has repeatedly denied Chinese charges that he has orchestrated the recent unrest and that he wants independence for his homeland.
He has said only wants greater autonomy under Chinese rule for Tibet, and for an end to the repression there.
The Dalai Lama fled Tibet in 1959 following a failed uprising against Chinese rule, which officially began eight years earlier.

FUTURE FLIGHT

Kaine Defends Va. Tech Settlement Efforts

RICHMOND, March 25 -- Gov. Timothy M. Kaine (D) today defended efforts to reach a settlement with families of the victims of last year's Virginia Tech massacre, saying the state and families need "to move forward together."

Speaking on his monthly call in show on WTOP radio, Kaine said he and Attorney General Robert F. McDonnell (R) are seeking a settlement that is "creative, fair and justifiable."

"We are going to continue to have a dialogue to see if we can move forward together, rather than being pitted against each other," Kaine said.

After weeks of closed door talks between attorneys for the state and the families, state officials are offering $100,000 to the 32 families of those killed providing they give up their right to sue. Those injured could also receive up to $100,000, depending on the severity of their injuries.

Under the proposed offer, the state would not admit liability but would justify the payments as a way to avoid a series of lawsuits.

As part of the deal, the state would create a fund to help pay for the medical expenses of some of the more than two dozen students and faculty members injured in the shooting, state officials familiar with the offer said.

The families would also be eligible to receive money from a separate multimillion dollar fund that would offer aid to victims or family members suffering from hardship or post-traumatic stress, an official familiar with the settlement said today.

The state would make contributions to charitable organizations or colleges on behalf of the victims.

Virginia also would cover the families' legal expenses, which could approach $1 million, the officials and family members said. More than two dozen of the family members are being represented by the Washington law firm of Bode & Grenier, which declined to comment.

Several family members cautioned today that negotiations are ongoing and the offer could change. In interviews last night with the Associated Press and the Virginian Pilot, some family members said the state's offer did not go far enough.

The families were initially told they had until March 31 to accept the offer. But some family members said today the state is extending that deadline to give them more time to consider their options.

Kaine declined to talk about the specifics of the offer, but described the recent discussions as "productive."

"I give everyone credit for sitting down and being willing to have an honest dialogue," Kaine said.

Zimbabwe police to crush premature election celebrations

HARARE  ( 2008-03-25 19:57:47 ) : 

Zimbabwe's police vowed on Tuesday to crush any premature victory celebrations ahead of the official release of results from this weekend's general elections.
"Let me at the onset indicate that we will not brook any situations of chaos or conduct likely to cause a breach of peace, pandemonium, commotion, tumult or disturbance of peace," assistant police commissioner Faustino Mazango told a news conference in the capital Harare.
"We will not countenance any mischievous claims by anyone winning an election just because they have led in one part of the constituency whether it is council, parliamentary, senatorial and presidential election.
"We urge politicians not to excite members of the public when they have a lead at one time or the other in any part of the constituency."
Mazango urged people to rejoice only after announcement of official results but warned against provocative celebrations.
"We are more than prepared to deal a deadly blow to any such repugnant forces," Mazango said.
"These are not mere threats, but words of advice to our brothers and sisters and indeed everyone, lest people fail to understand and appreciate our actions to situations of anarchy."
Last month, police commissioner-general Augustine Chihuri warned that his force was prepared to use firearms to stamp out violence during or after joint presidential and legislative elections this month.
The police have also banned the carrying of weapons such as knives, catapults, axes and clubs in the run-up to the polls, and for two weeks afterwards.

Afghan army dismisses new Taliban 'operation'

KABUL  ( 2008-03-25 20:07:27 ) : 

The Afghan defence ministry said on Tuesday its security forces were stronger than ever this year and dismissed a Taliban threat to expand its operations countrywide starting this spring.
The US-funded Afghan army in particular was in a "very, very good position" compared with a year ago, it said, describing the Taliban as fragile.
A Taliban representative called media with a statement said to be from one of the insurgent movement's most senior members, Mullah Bradar, to announce Operation Ebrat, which means "lesson" in Pashtu.
"This will be a new type of operation to expand operations countrywide and surround the enemy wherever they are and encounter them," according to the statement read to an AFP reporter over the telephone.
It said the Taliban's war would continue until international troops left Afghanistan and President Hamid Karzai's administration collapsed.
The defence ministry said the announcement was part "of a psychological campaign and not a reality which could implemented on the ground."
"The national army has significantly improved in terms of capability, capacity and skills compared to the beginning of last year," it said, referring to the start of the Afghan year on March 20.
"New and modern equipment has been given to the national army. The air force has been revived and activated."
Afghan National Army (ANA) Commando battalions have been formed and engineering battalions are working across the country, it said, adding that international forces are providing security.
The Taliban had meanwhile lost its leading figures, it said, claiming there were also disputes in the group's ranks.

Malian soldiers held by Tuareg rebels in Niger: source

BAMAKO  ( 2008-03-25 18:10:57 ) : 

Malian soldiers taken hostage last week by local Tuareg rebels have been moved across the border to Niger where they are being kept by another Tuareg group, a western military source said Tuesday.
"The Malian soldiers, some of whom are wounded, have been sent to be guarded by the Nigerien MNJ rebels," the source said in Bamako, referring to the Movement of Niger People for Justice.
About 20 hostages have been taken to Niger where they are being held by Tuaregs loyal to rebel leader Ibrahim Ag Bahanga, she added.
They count among some 29 wounded Malian troops who were abducted in northern Mali on Friday, following clashes between the army and the rebels in the mountainous Tinzaouatene region.
Four other soldiers were taken prisoner the day before in the area which is considered Ag Bahanga's stronghold.
The Malian government has since reinforced troops in the restive region.
Ag Bahanga's group, "supported by other Tuareg bands from countries neighboring Mali, attacked military supply convoys and planted mines," Mali's Foreign Minister Moctar Ouane said.
A nomadic people who have roamed the southern Sahara for centuries, Tuaregs have staged uprisings over the years both in Mali and Niger claiming autonomy for their traditional homeland.
But Ag Bahanga has refused to go along with the peace deal agreed by the majority of former rebels from the Tuareg tribes, and the Malian government believes his group is cooperating with Niger-based militants to launch attacks.
In Niger, Tuareg rebels want a share in the country's revenue from uranium.

Russia, Egypt to seal nuclear power deal in Mubarak visit

 

NOVO-OGARYOVO  ( 2008-03-25 18:02:34 ) : 

Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak met Tuesday with Russian leaders to close a deal allowing Moscow to join a tender for Egypt's first civilian nuclear power station.
The agreement, which has taken years to draw up, opens the way for Russia to bid for a 1.5-1.8 billion dollars (970 - 1.16 billion euros) reactor project on Egypt's Mediterranean coast.
The nuclear cooperation accord was to be signed by Russia's Rosatom nuclear energy agency chief, Sergei Kiriyenko, and Egypt's energy minister, Hassan Younis.
Mubarak said that after "difficult" negotiations the deal was ready, Interfax news agency reported.
Meeting with Mubarak at Novo-Ogaryovo outside Moscow, President Vladimir Putin praised Egypt as "one of the leaders of the Islamic and the Arab world" and said Russian-Egyptian relations were of "strategic importance."
Putin's incoming successor Dmitry Medvedev, who takes over the Kremlin in May, told Mubarak that he expected a "productive partnership" in the nuclear sphere, ITAR-TASS news agency reported.
Russia -- which is close to completing Iran's controversial first nuclear facility in Bushehr, and also recently signed a contract for a reactor in Bulgaria -- is keen to reestablish a commercial and diplomatic presence in the Middle East.
The region was a stronghold of Soviet influence before the end of the Cold War and subsequent surge of US dominance.
Today, nuclear technology and conventional weapons sales are again giving Moscow a foot in the door, and Mubarak was expected also to discuss possible arms deals on Tuesday.
Even if ties are a long way from the days when Middle Eastern elites routinely studied and trained in the Soviet Union, throngs of sun-seeking Russians are making their own mark by flooding to Egypt's coastal resorts in growing numbers.
In an interview with state-owned Rossiiskaya Gazeta daily, Mubarak voiced "full satisfaction with the level of international political consultations between Cairo and Moscow."
"However, since friends must always be open with each other, I must say that I am not as happy with the volume of Russian investment into Egypt's economy," Mubarak added.
"The chief issue on the agenda is the signing of an accord on Russian-Egyptian cooperation in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy," the
Kommersant daily wrote. The paper added that its sources hinted that "Moscow gave some ground to Cairo and now expects an answer."
The daily added: "Moscow particularly hopes that Cairo will return to buying Russian arms."
The Nezavisimaya daily echoed that theme in its headline: "Cairo is interested in Russian nuclear technologies and (conventional) weapons."

The Qur'an (Quran, Koran) is the Holy Book of Islam and the religion's most sacred writing.  The word itself means "recitation."  It is a series of "revelations" that Muhammad claimed to have received from Allah at various (often highly convenient) times in his life and then dictated to scribes. 

The book is divided into 114 Suras (chapters) that contain ayat (verses).  The Suras are not arranged chronologically, but rather by size, with the larger ones appearing first. 

The Qur'an was compiled in the years and decades following Muhammad's death from snatches of writings on papyrus leaves, wood carvings, animal bones and especially the memory of his companions, who were beginning to die off.  There is generous redundancy within the text as well as contradictions - which are said to be resolved through "abrogation," whereby later verses have authority over earlier ones when there is an apparent dispute between them.

Although the words in the Qur'an are believed by Muslims to be those of Allah, and not Muhammad, there are several places in the narration where this simply doesn't make sense.  In some cases, Muslim scribes mended the problem by inserting the word "say" in front of certain text to make it appear as if Allah is commanding Muhammad to speak in the first person.  In other cases, their clean-up work was not quite as thorough (such as the famous 27:91, in which the word "say" is not in the original Arabic).

The words of the Qur'an are said to be the literal, eternal words of Allah himself, relevant to all people at all times (it is unclear why personal directives such as 33:53 were included).  It Qur'an is not a book of history (although there is some badly garbled Biblical narration scattered about).  The verses that issue rules and edicts are generally open-ended.  Very few are bound by historical context within the actual text.

In fact, the Qur'an is almost incomprehensible in and of itself.  Directives, topics, diatribes and incomplete accounts of Old Testament and mythological characters seem to appear from out of nowhere and then disappear just as quickly with very little stream-of-thought consistency.  Themes are disjointed and shifting, something that would not be expected of a perfect book of instruction.

External sources, such as the Hadith (narrations of Muhammad's words and deeds) are essential for understanding not just the context of what is being said, but often the very meaning of critical passages.  Even so, interpretations are often arbitrary and, since there is no longer a central authority in Islam, various Muslim factions often claim confidence in remarkably different applications of the religion and its "true meaning."

Older versions of the Qur'an would be helpful in the study of certain words (since vowels are often left out of transcriptions) but unfortunately ancient texts are usually either destroyed or hidden from public view by authorities, since they differ somewhat from modern versions - and thus throw into question the Qur'an's internal claim to be the invariable word of God.

The Suras of the Qur'an can be grouped into two distinct periods in Muhammad's life.  There is the earlier "Meccan" period, when Muhammad had little to say about violence or "fighting in Allah's way."  Then there are the "Medinan" Suras and later, in which the commands to violent Jihad and intolerance increase corresponding to Muhammad's military strength.  The bloody 9th Sura (the Verse of the Sword) is one of the very last to be handed down by the prophet of Islam, and it came at a time when the Muslims had already achieved power over their neighbors, forcing into exile those who would not convert.

Every 12th verse of the Qur'an speaks of either earthly or divine punishment against unbelievers.  Other religions are said to be "cursed by Allah."  The more tolerant verses (though popular with contemporary apologists) are less numerous than the later, more violent ones - which are believed to abrogate those that precede them.

Grammatical, theological and scientific errors abound within the Qur'an, but they are "explained away" through elaborate and complicated theories that may seem absurd to the more objective, but serve to reinforce the faith of those who will believe that the book is perfect in every way regardless of what it contains (to say otherwise is to incur a death sentence).

The exaggerative praise that accompanies the Qur'an (a book that literally tells Muslim men to keep women as sex slaves) makes Christian fundamentalist claims about the Bible "containing God's word" seem rather tame by comparison.  Syllables of the Qur'an continue to be committed to memory with a level of fanaticism that has not diminished over the generations.

Allah apparently spoke in the obscure Quraish dialect, which few Arabs at the time understood all that well (and even fewer still today).  This is significant because Muslim apologists often use this point advantageously, particularly with regard to the passages of the Qur'an that are contrary to modern sensibilities.  Often the apologist will cynically insist that such verses have a different meaning in the "original Arabic" (even if this alternate meaning seems to have eluded thirteen centuries worth of Arabic-Islamic scholars).

The most honest English-language versions of the Qur'an are probably the earlier ones (Yusuf Ali, Pickthal and Shakir).  More recent translations are usually tainted by the personal preferences of the interpreter, which is very often dictated by the palatability of contemporary Western tastes. 

A quick test for determining whether a version of the Qur'an is true or "PC" is to turn to verse 4:34 and check whether the word "beat" or "scourge" is used in the instruction to discipline belligerent wives.  If it is there, then the copy is probably closer to the original Arabic than the more recent "whitewashed" versions.

If you are serious about acquiring a Qur'an, however, then also check to be sure that verses 4:24, 23:6, 33:50 and 70:30 all stay faithful to the Arabic by using the word 'captive,' 'slave,' or 'those whom thy right hand possesses' in reference to the women authorized by Allah for a man's sexual use.  Contemporary translators are notorious for ignoring the original Arabic and pretending that Muhammad is speaking only of wives, when, in fact, he is speaking of two distinct groups: wives and non-wives.

The Qur'an distributed by CAIR, Muhammad Asad's "The Message of the Qur'an," is a 20th century Westernized translation that is designed to manipulate the naive reader into preferred conclusions by changing the wording of unflattering verse and offering mitigating commentary to convince readers that they are not seeing what they are really seeing. 

We recommend the highly readable non-Muslim translation from CSPI (or the abridged version), but balancing it with occasional references to the MSA website, which contains the Pickthall, Shakir and Yusuf Ali Muslim translations.

Bilawal Bhutto Zardari

Pak counters US report; nukes safe

ISLAMABAD: Foreign Ministry Wednesday rejected a US intelligence report that "vulnerabilities exist" in the military's control of its nuclear weapons. The report in its annual threat assessment said the situation in the country had "not seriously threatened the military's control of the nuclear arsenal, but vulnerabilities exist."

Foreign ministry spokesman Mohammed Sadiq said there should be no concern. "Pakistan's nuclear assets are safe. There should be no cause for concern over hypothetical scenarios which have zero probability," he told a weekly briefing.

He also rejected criticisms in the Western media of Pakistan's record in tackling militancy. "What Pakistan has done to counter the challenge of al-Qaeda and terrorism is well known. We do not need to repeat that. Pakistan has given more sacrifices than any other country in this war," he said.

Answering a question on the Iran-Pakistan-India (IPI) gas pipeline project, the spokesman said the negotiations on the project were under way. He said there were reports that Indian minister will visit Iran but later it was rescheduled and now Pakistan is also waiting fresh date for the visit.

Regarding reduction in the bus or train service between Pakistan and India, the spokesman said a meeting between the officials of the two countries will be held on February 13 and 14 only to merge non-commercial routes, adding that there is no plan to reduce the bus service.

Answering a question about any observer from Israel, the spokesman said, as Pakistan has no diplomatic relations with Israel, therefore, there is no possibility to receive any observer from that country.

To a query about denying visa to members of International Republican Institute (IRI), the spokesman clarified that visa of some of the officials working in Pakistan was going to expire but after the elections, therefore, there is no question of denying visa to any member of the IRI.

The spokesman said as Pakistan's membership to Commonwealth is suspended, therefore, there is no question of any observer from Commonwealth.

To a question, he said the government has issued visas to over 500 observers from different countries to observe the election being held on February 18 and not a single visa to any observer has been refused.

"About 500 foreign observers from different countries including USA and EU requested visa, for the forthcoming general elections and their requests have been processed and issued visas," said Muhammad Sadiq.

The spokesman giving details of the foreign observers said European Union has increased the number of its observers from 70 to 110 while Democracy International of USA has also been sending 35 observers while four observers are from OIC.

NGO

Egypt
A study has indicated that water quality in the River Nile improved considerably in the months of October and November 2007, giving rise to hopes that drinking water quality for many of Egypt's 80 million people may improve. The quality of Nile water in its main course and in the Rosetta (Rashid) and Damietta (Dimyat) branches showed a 16 percent improvement over the average during the excess discharge period, according to a recent study by Egypt's Nile Research Institute (NRI) which is part of NWRC, the National Water Research Center. (IRIN)
Iran
Permanent members of the U.N. Security Council - as well as Germany - have agreed on the contents of a new draft resolution of fresh sanctions against Iran. The announcement was made by the German foreign minister after talks in Berlin with his counterparts from the U.S., France, the U.K., Russia and China. The U.S. and its European allies want a third set of sanctions over Iran's refusal to suspend uranium enrichment. Iran insists its nuclear program is for energy, not military purposes. (BBC)
Iraq
Up to 25 million land mines, or almost one for every Iraqi, remain buried in thousands of minefields across Iraq and are hampering development of rich oil deposits, officials said on Jan. 23. Iraqi government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh said the mines were spread across about 4,000 minefields left across Iraq after the 1980-88 Iran-Iraq War, the first Gulf War in 1991 and the 2003 U.S.-led invasion to topple Saddam Hussein. Iraqi Environment Minister Nermeen Othman said she had been appointed by the government to lead efforts to clear Iraq of land mines. (Reuters)
Kuwait
Kuwait's only female cabinet minister, Nouria Sbeih, has survived a no-confidence vote in parliament. The education minister was accused of ignoring a sex segregation law at universities and presiding over a drop in educational standards. She denied the allegations and won the confidence vote by 27 to 19. Sbeih has been criticized by conservative and Islamist MPs for refusing to wear a headscarf when she was sworn into the cabinet. Women won the right to vote and run for office in Kuwait in 2005. (BBC)
Palestinian Authority
Tens of thousands of Palestinians have surged into Egypt from the Gaza Strip after masked militants destroyed parts of the border wall. Gazans rushed to buy food, fuel and other supplies that have become scarce because of an Israeli blockade - aimed at stopping rocket attacks from Gaza. Egyptian police took no action to stop people crossing. Egypt's President Hosni Mubarak says he allowed Gazans in to buy food, but Israel urged Egypt to restore security. Meanwhile, U.N. and Palestinian officials in Gaza have said some 760,000 liters of industrial fuel for Gaza's power plant were imported from Israel on Jan. 22, and another 200,000 were delivered on Jan. 23. (BBC)
Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia plans to start its first sovereign wealth fund with about USD 6 billion, channeling surplus crude-oil revenue into investments in foreign companies. "The Ministry of Finance is looking into a new fund," Muhammad al-Jasser, vice governor of the Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency, said in an interview at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. "It will probably mostly invest in equities." Fueled by record oil prices and rising currency reserves, sovereign funds have ballooned to USD 3.2 trillion in assets. (Bloomberg)
Syria
Syria's economic growth will probably accelerate to at least 6.5 percent this year, driven by infrastructure projects and foreign direct investment, the country's deputy prime minister said. Expansion will quicken from 6.2 percent last year, Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs Abdallah Dardari said in a telephone interview. Foreign direct investment in Syria will increase as much as 4.3 percent to USD 2.4 billion this year as oil-rich Arab nations put money into real estate, banking and tourism, ignoring U.S. sanctions, Dardari sai

Security alert in H-Kashmir ahead of Indian Republic Day

 

NEW DELHI: A massive security alert has been sounded in held Kashmir ahead of Indian Republic Day celebrations.
Additional security forces deployed across the state, especially around vital installations to thwart any possible militant attacks.
The main function of Republic Day would be held at Bakshi Stadium where additional contingents of security forces have been deployed.

Security alert in H-Kashmir ahead of Indian Republic Day

 

NEW DELHI: A massive security alert has been sounded in held Kashmir ahead of Indian Republic Day celebrations.
Additional security forces deployed across the state, especially around vital installations to thwart any possible militant attacks.
The main function of Republic Day would be held at Bakshi Stadium where additional contingents of security forces have been deployed.

Iran, Syria must end interference in Lebanon: Bush

 

SHARM EL-SHEIKH: US Presidnet, George Bush, has said Syria and Iran must end their "interference" in Lebanese politics, as he ended his Middle East tour.
"It's important to encourage the holding of immediate and unconditional presidential elections according to the Lebanese constitution," Bush said on Wednesday in Egypt's Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh.
"And to make it clear to Syria, Iran and their allies they must end their interference and efforts to undermine the process," he said.
Bush arrived in Egypt from Saudi Arabia on Wednesday, and headed straight into talks with Hosni Mubarak, the Egyptian president, on a three-hour visit.
In a press conference, Bush said Iraq's government "isn't perfect" but "progress" was being made on political reconciliation.
He called for Arab leaders to get behind Fouad Siniora, Lebanon's prime minister, and said that "nations in the neighbourhood" were willing to help Israelis and Palestinians reach a peace deal.
Mubarak endorsed US hopes for an Israeli-Palestinian peace plan concluding before the end of 2008, and said he will work hand-in-hand with the US and other nations.
Bush urged greater political openness in Egypt, but did not directly criticise the Egyptian government for what the US has previously noted as a lack of political freedoms.
"I'm absolutely confident that people in the Middle East are working on building a society based on justice," Bush said.

Strained ties haunt Bush visit to Egypt

 

CAIRO, Egypt - Egypt was meant to be a test case for President Bush's push for greater democracy in the Middle East. But stalled reforms and bitterness over the jailing of hundreds of dissidents are haunting his visit here Wednesday.

Activists say the U.S. democracy push has taken a back seat to politics. They blame Washington for easing its pressure on Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak to win his support on key regional issues such as Iraq and the Israeli-Arab peace process.

At the same time, the Egyptian government has bristled over what it considers American interference, and ties between the longtime allies have cooled.

 

In a speech on democracy Sunday, Bush made no mention of Egypt except for what was widely seen as an implicit criticism of the country's crackdown on political opponents.

"You cannot build trust when you hold an election where opposition candidates find themselves harassed or in prison," Bush said in the United Arab Emirates. "And you cannot stand up a modern and confident nation when you do not allow people to voice their legitimate criticisms."

Across the Gulf, ruling families have shown little sign of easing their monopoly on power, and Bush was left to praise the few small reforms that have taken place. He pointed to municipal elections in Saudi Arabia, as well as votes in Bahrain, Kuwait and the UAE.

The speech reflected what appears to be warmer U.S. ties with Arab Gulf nations than with Egypt. Notably, Bush spent two days in Saudi Arabia this week, but will stop in Egypt for only several hours to meet Mubarak in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheik.

Kenya opposition poised for mass protests

 

The opposition was boosted Tuesday by the election of their candidate for parliament speaker, but Odinga's supporters promised to continue protesting until President Mwai Kibaki and his government acknowledge that his re-election was flawed.

Though braced for violence, Nairobi was mostly calm Wednesday with no sign of large crowds gathering by midday, though police fired tear gas and live rounds to quickly disperse a hundred young men in the Kibera slum.

Hurled tear gas
In the coastal city of Mombasa, police hurled tear gas and used batons to beat back several groups of protesters several-hundred strong on the outskirts of the city. In the western town of Kisumu, about 1,000 rowdy young men were on the streets carrying a coffin with Kibaki's name on it. Protesters there threw rocks at security forces and one bloodied demonstrator was wounded, though it was not clear how.

The western city of Eldoret was also quiet, though protesters there erected several makeshift roadblocks on the outskirts of town. On one, a dead dog was draped over a pile of rocks with a sign that said "Kibaki Death."

"We are going to keep up the pressure from every legal angle and through all peaceful means until the government agrees to acknowledge that the election results were false and that a solution must found to the political crisis," Odinga spokesman Salim Lone told The Associated Press.

"The rallies will show the government that the people of Kenya will not allow the theft of the election to stand."

Foreign and local election observers have said the vote count in the Dec. 27 presidential election was deeply flawed. And although the electoral chief pronounced Kibaki the victor, he later said he had been pressured to release the results and did not know who won.

Kenya's image marred
The postelection violence, in which more than 600 people have been killed and a quarter of a million displaced, has marred Kenya's image as a stable democratic oasis in a war-ravaged region and damaged its tourist-dependent economy. It has also aggravated long-simmering ethnic tensions and tribal conflicts over land ownership.

On Tuesday, lawmakers chose Kenneth Marende, a 52-year-old lawyer and opposition supporter, to be the new speaker of the National Assembly in a narrow 105-101 vote over a Kibaki loyalist.

The election marked the first parliament session since the controversial Dec. 27 vote. It also brought Kibaki and Odinga into the same room for the first time since then, but the two rivals studiously ignored each other.

Marende's victory buoyed the opposition. While the speaker cannot directly block Kibaki's legislative agenda, he can slow it with his rulings and allow motions against the president's policies to be debated.

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Kenyan neighbors, divided by tribe

Former U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan had been expected in the capital Tuesday night on a mediation mission, but the visit was postponed for several days after he fell ill with flu, his Geneva office said.

In an interview published Wednesday in the Kenyan Daily Nation newspaper, U.S. Ambassador Michael Ranneberger said it was not possible to say who won last month's vote because it was "not transparent." According to official results, Kibaki beat Odinga by 230,000 votes out of around 10 million ballots cast.

"But our analysis that the vote was extremely close highlights the need for political accommodation between two sides," Ranneberger said.

NAIROBI, Kenya - Police fired tear gas to disperse protesters in several Kenyan cities Wednesday at the start of three days of opposition rallies that threatened to plunge the nation's streets back into postelection violence.

Opposition leader Raila Odinga, whose supporters believe he was robbed of the presidency through vote rigging in last month's election, called the rallies in 42 locations nationwide, despite a government ban.

Similar rallies earlier this month degenerated into violence in the capital and other cities, with security forces beating back mobs of angry youths with water cannons, tear gas and live bullets, as homes in the capital's slums burned.

Japan working on central Tokyo missile shield: official

TOKYO: Japan on Tuesday carried out studies to deploy a missile defence shield in central Tokyo, officials said Tuesday, amid concern that the capital is at risk from North Korea.
The defence ministry conducted investigations on Monday and Tuesday into two locations for US-developed Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3) surface-to-air interceptors, a defence spokesman said.
Two PAC-3 units were installed in suburban Tokyo last March, as Japan's relations remained tense with nuclear-armed North Korea.
"We took surveys of buildings, which would be obstacles for the PAC-3, and conducted technical tests on communications," the spokesman said.

One reported dead in Beirut blast

BEIRUT: At least one person was reported killed and 10 others injured in a car blast on a seafront road in a northern suburb of Beirut on Tuesday.
"There was a blast inside a car between the Dawra and Qarantina area and we have reports of injuries," a security official, who did not want to be named said while talking to a French news agency.
Local television said one person was killed in the blast along a seafront road, and television pictures showed smoke billowing into the skies over the capital. The cause was not immediately known.
Lebanon has been rocked by a string of bombings, most of which have targeted prominent anti-Syrian politicians.

Indian PM proposes nuclear energy cooperation with China

BEIJING: With a controversial nuclear deal with the United States now in limbo, India held out the possibility Tuesday of civilian nuclear cooperation with China.
Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, on the last day of a visit to China, said the world's two most populous nations who have a decades long history of mistrust should work together to develop their nuclear energy programmes.
"India seeks international cooperation in the field of civilian nuclear energy, including with China," Singh said, noting such cooperation could help the two countries meet their skyrocketing energy needs.
"The rapid growth of India and China will lead to expanding demand for energy. We have no choice but to widen our options for energy availability and develop viable strategies for energy security," he said in a speech at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.
He did not go into further details.

Rice arrives in Baghdad for talks with Iraqi leaders

BAGHDAD: U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has arrived in Baghdad for talks with Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.
Rice flew from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, where she was accompanying President George W. Bush on his Middle East tour. Her trip was announced in the Saudi capital as Bush was holding talks with Saudi officials.
"President Bush and Secretary Rice decided this would be a good opportunity for the secretary to go to Baghdad to meet with Iraqi officials to build on progress made and to encourage additional political reconciliation and legislative action,'' National Security Council spokesman Gordon Johndroe said.
He said Rice, who began talks with al-Maliki in his office, would return to Riyadh Tuesday night.

Fire at Iraq oil refinery injures four

BASRA: A blast at an oil refinery in the Iraqi city of Basra triggered a fire which injured four people on Tuesday, an oil ministry official said, but production was not affected.
The ministry blamed an overflying coalition forces helicopter for igniting gas particles in the air and causing the blast in the southern port city, but the US military denied the claim.
Talking to a French news agency, Spokesman Assim Jihad said that the explosion occurred at a gas production unit at the refinery in Basra, the second biggest city in Iraq whose port handles 80 percent of all the country's oil exports.
The blast sparked a fire which was brought under control within two hours by emergency services at the refinery and civil defence units, Jihad said, adding that four people suffered slight burn injuries.
Oil Minister Hussein Shahristani has blamed an overflying coalition forces helicopter for the explosion, according to Jihad. But US military spokesman Patrick Evans denied the claim by saying, "Our initial reporting indicates that there was a small fire, which has been contained."
"The cause of the fire is currently under investigation, but I can say that the fire was definitely not caused by a coalition overflight."
The ministry has frequently raised the dangers of helicopters overflying oil facilities in the oil-rich Basra region, where many flammable gas particles are in the air, Jihad said.

Syria should use its influence to end Lebanon crisis: Saudi Arab

 

RIYADH: Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal has urged Syria to convince its Lebanon allies to accept the Arab initiative aimed at settling the presidential crisis.
Al-Faisal, talking to reporters in Riyadh, also expressed the belief that success of the Arab initiative is "still possible."
"Syria is required to convince those who listen to its word in Lebanon of the solution that it had endorsed."
He said "hope persists" that the various factions in Lebanon would approve implementation of the Arab initiative.
"Syria should invest its influence in Lebanon to convince those who listen to its word of the solution adopted by the Arab League."
"Syria is required to invest this influence in the interest of Lebanon's independence and sovereignty."

Bush urges OPEC to increase oil output-In Saudi Arabia, president says high prices could cause U.S. slowdown

 

“It’s not going to matter to me one way or another,” Bush said. If the Iranians hit a U.S. ship, “there are going to be serious consequences,” he said.

U.S. officials claim Iranian speedboats swarmed three Navy warships in the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway that is the only entry and exit to the Persian Gulf. They said U.S. Navy commanders were considering firing warning shots, before the retreat of the five Iranian speedboats, which the Pentagon said were operated by the elite Revolutionary Guards.

Iran has denied that its boats threatened the U.S. vessels, saying the incident was a normal occurrence, and accused Washington of fabricating video and audio it released. Iran’s government has released its own video, which appeared to be shot from a small boat bobbing at least 100 yards from the American warships.

Pain of rising oil prices
The president spoke to reporters before meeting late Tuesday with Saudi King Abdullah, whose country holds the world’s largest supply of oil. Bush said U.S. consumers are feeling the pain of rising oil prices, which topped $100 a barrel this month.

“When consumers have less purchasing power, it could cause the economy to slow down,” Bush said. “I hope OPEC nations put more supply on the market,” he added. “It would be helpful.”

At the same time, he noted that the higher prices are guided by supply and demand, and that there is little excess capacity in the marketplace.

The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries next meets Feb. 1 in Vienna, Austria, to consider increasing output. OPEC oil accounts for about 40 percent of the world’s needs, and OPEC ministers often follow the lead of the Saudis when discussing whether to increase production to take the pressure off rising prices. The Saudis’ views carry great weight because Saudi Arabia is responsible for almost one-third of the cartel’s total output.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, traveling with Bush in the Mideast, slipped away from the Saudi capital at 6:40 a.m. Tuesday for an unscheduled visit to Baghdad for talks with Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. Bush said he had been encouraged by signs of progress in Baghdad and decided that she could “help push the momentum by her very presence.”

She congratulated the prime minister, Nouri al-Maliki, on the passage of legislation reinstating former Saddam Hussein loyalists to government jobs and pushing for progress on other benchmark laws. At a Baghdad news conference, she said political progress has moved along “quite remarkably,” citing a new law that allows thousands of former members of Saddam Hussein’s Baath party to reclaim government jobs or pensions.

Rice added that the Iraqi parliament’s approval of that U.S.-sought law Saturday was a first step and showed that last year’s increase of U.S. troops in the country was paying dividends.

Bush said he would not go to Iraq while traveling in the region. There had been widespread speculation he would make a visit.

Focus on Israeli-Palestinian peace process
One of the primary objectives of trip is to build support for the Israeli-Palestinian peace process. He said that Abdullah asked him why he was optimistic about securing an agreement before his White House term ends in January 2009.

“Part of my mission was to make clear why talks failed in the past. There wasn’t participation by the neighbors,” Bush said, referring to Arab countries that have kept an arm’s length from the negotiations.

Bush said he was convinced that the Arab leaders want to see the creation of a Palestinian state in a peace agreement with Israel. “They definitely want it to happen,” he said, “and they questioned the seriousness of the United States to remain involved in what has been a long and frustrating process.”

“They want to see a deal done,” he said. “The issue frustrates them.”

Bush spoke to the group of reporters while sitting in a chair under a gold and crystal chandelier in an ornate room of the kingdom’s guest palace. Bush said he has faced persistent questions during his trip about a new U.S. intelligence estimate that said Iran had abandoned its nuclear weapons program in 2003. That conclusion contradicted Bush’s claim that Iran was pursuing nuclear weapons and raised questions in the Mideast about U.S. intentions toward Iran.

The president said he made clear that the new finding was a judgment by independent intelligence agencies and that “all options are on the table for dealing with Iran.” At the same time, he said he has told leaders he wants a diplomatic solution.

Tensions flared anew with the confrontation last week in the Gulf. Bush said it would be up to the captains of the American ships to determine if their vessels are in jeopardy from Iranian boats.

“These are judgment calls and there are clear rules of engagement,” he said. Still, he told the Iranians: “They better be careful. If they hit one of our ships there are going to be serious consequences.”

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia - President Bush urged OPEC nations on Tuesday to put more oil on the world market and warned that soaring prices could cause an economic slowdown in the United States.

“High energy prices can damage consuming economies,” the president told a small group of reporters traveling with him in the Mideast.

In a stern warning to Iran days after a Jan. 6 confrontation with U.S. warships in the Persian Gulf, Bush put Tehran on notice that it needs to be careful. The president said it would not matter to him whether an attack against an American vessel resulted from an order by the government in Iran or a rash decision by an Iranian boat captain.

Attack seen as setback for the U.N. in Darfur-Incident points to peacekeepers' lack of resources, critics say

UNITED NATIONS - A U.N.-African Union peacekeeping force faced the first major challenge to its authority in Darfur, Sudan, this week, enduring more than 10 minutes of hostile fire from Sudanese forces without responding with a single shot.

The assault Tuesday evening against a clearly marked supply convoy of more than 20 trucks and armored personnel vehicles left a Sudanese driver critically wounded and prompted a formal protest from U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon. It also gave the U.N.-backed force a humiliating defeat during the critical first weeks of its mission in Darfur.

The United Nations' chief peacekeeping official, Jean-Marie Guehenno, vowed to "repel" future attacks against U.N. and African Union personnel. But other U.N. officials said the force's Nigerian commander, Gen. Martin Luther Agwai, lacks the firepower to respond forcefully to a larger and better-equipped Sudanese military.

The incident marked a setback to U.S.-backed efforts to end nearly five years of violence in Darfur through the deployment of more than 26,000 peacekeepers, mostly Africans. The mission replaced 7,000 African Union peacekeepers who had largely retreated to their barracks amid armed attacks.

So far the new force has about 9,000 peacekeepers, most of whom are African Union troops who simply replaced their green berets with blue U.N. berets.

The United States, the United Nations and other key powers had reason to believe an attack such as Tuesday's was coming. In September, an armed group assaulted an African Union base, killing 10 soldiers near the town of Haskanita. Since then, U.N. leaders have warned of the risk of failure from entering the Darfur conflict without adequate resources to repel an attack. But requests for vital equipment -- including 24 transport and attack helicopters -- have gone unanswered.

"If in this particular situation we had helicopters capable of flying at night and quickly reinforcing a convoy under attack, of course we would have been in a completely different situation," Guehenno said. "We would have been in a position to deter."

Sudan imposes hurdles
Sudan, meanwhile, has imposed technical hurdles for the mission, including the recent rejection of a unit of Nordic engineers, according to U.N. officials. The Sudanese authorities continue to haggle over the force's right to wear the U.N. blue helmets, recruit non-African troops and travel in Darfur without government approval.

Zalmay Khalilzad, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, has accused the Sudanese government of "dragging its feet" in an attempt to ensure that the U.N.-backed force remains incapable of protecting civilians in Darfur.

But Khalilzad also conceded that inadequately equipping the force has placed the credibility of the United Nations and its political patrons, including the United States, at stake. "We need to take stock of this and consider steps that incentivize the government of Sudan to cooperate," he said.

Former Algerian diplomat Lakhdar Brahimi conducted a major review of U.N. peacekeeping in 2000, in which he concluded that peacekeepers should not enter war zones without consent from key belligerents or without a political settlement that the United Nations could implement. Where the United Nations does serve, he added, it must equip its troops to respond to armed "spoilers."

Those lessons have yielded some success in Sierra Leone, Liberia, Congo and Haiti, where the United Nations recovered from setbacks by engaging in offensive military operations to put down challenges from rebels and armed gangs.

Ill-prepared force faces live battle zone
But in Darfur, an ill-prepared peacekeeping force has entered a live battle zone involving combatants from the Sudanese army, neighboring Chad and a major Darfurian rebel group. Guehenno said: "There is a combination of factors that may lead to the greatest risk to the United Nations since the 1990s. We have a war ongoing, maybe low intensity, but a war ongoing, especially in West Darfur."

Sudan's U.N. ambassador, Abdalmahmood Abdalhaleem Mohamad, initially denied that Sudan played a role in the attack, saying it was carried out by the Chadian government and local Darfurian rebels. "There is a big lie here," he said. "We have no relationship at all whatever with that attack."

But U.N. officials said a Sudanese commander has admitted that his force fired on the U.N. convoy. Sudan's Defense Ministry acknowledged Thursday that its troops carried out the attack, but it said the U.N.-backed force shared responsibility for the "mistake" because it had failed to alert Sudanese authorities that it was traveling in the area. The United Nations maintains that it provided adequate notice.

India and China pledge to strengthen trade, military ties

BEIJING: China and India pledged Monday to strengthen trade and military links and seek a solution to a border row, as India's prime minister sought to cement a rapid improvement in ties with a landmark visit.
The friendly atmosphere was tempered, however, by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's call for China to make concessions to reduce a growing two-way trade imbalance.
The Indian leader said he and his host Premier Wen Jiabao signed a broad agreement to push an often testy relationship to a new level of cooperation.
The pact lifts the target for bilateral trade -- which soared to 38.7 billion dollars last year -- to 60 billion dollars by 2010, and pledges a renewed effort to solve a Himalayan border dispute.
It also commits the two sides to another joint military exercise this year, following their first-ever exercise late last year, and to pursue a possible regional trade agreement, said Singh, who arrived on Sunday.
Singh called the document "an important milestone in the evolution of our relations." "The profound changes taking place in the world today present both our countries with a historic opportunity to work together towards a 21st century that is conducive to peace and development," he told reporters.
"It reflects not only our common perceptions but also our desire to purposefully cooperate in the future."

Norwegian FM arrives today

ISLAMABAD: Norwegian Foreign Minister Janos Guhrstore is arriving in Islamabad today (Sunday) on a two-day official visit and will leave for Afghanistan on Monday.

The Foreign Office spokesman while confirming the visit said that the visiting dignitary would be meeting caretaker Prime Minister Muhammadmian Soomro and Foreign Minister Inamul Haq but there is no confirmed report about his meeting with the president.

“Yes, it is an official visit and bilateral discussions as well as economic and political cooperation will be discussed. There is a sizeable number of Pakistanis in Norway,” the spokesman said.

The Norwegian foreign minister, who has a very tight schedule, will be taking time out to meet PPP leaders and offer his and his government’s condolences on the tragic assassination of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto.

Janos Guhrstore was in Pakistan last year also. But what most Pakistanis remember is the visit of Norwegian Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg to the earthquake-affected areas of Azad Kashmir. Images are still fresh in the minds of the Kashmiris as the shoeless prime minister sat down on the floor, with children who had survived and attempted to strike up conversations with them.