|
|
Bin Laden has kidney DUBAI, Feb 6: Suspected Islamic terrorist Osama Bin Laden, who is on a US most-wanted list, has brought a doctor to Afghanistan to treat him for serious kidney problems, a London-based Arabic newspaper said today. ......more Pak books an attraction NEW DELHI, Feb 6: NEW DELHI, Feb 6: A new book with a separate chapter on the Kargil conflict is among hundreds of collections from Pakistan being here. ....more American experts differ NEW DELHI, Feb 6: Should commandos have immobilised the hijacked Indian.....more Egyptian Islamicist pursues BAMBERG, Feb 6: Some consider him to be the most famous scholar in the Arab....more |
|
Sri Lanka pushes ahead COLOMBO, Feb 6: Sri Lanka’s ruling People’s Alliance hopes this week to move.....more Woman accused of WASHINGTON, Feb 6: NRI dentist Alpna Patel, acquitted of first degree murder of....more How deep is your LONDON, Feb 6: A couple of Welsh Buddhists plunged to new depths yesterday to get.....more Echoes from bollywood
thrill Israelis in romance JERUSALEM, Feb 6: Two years after it hit the box office in India, Hindi blockbuster ‘Dil To Pagal....more |
 |
Bin Laden has kidney problems, says Arab paper DUBAI, Feb 6: Suspected Islamic terrorist Osama Bin Laden, who is on a US most-wanted list, has brought a doctor to Afghanistan to treat him for serious kidney problems, a London-based Arabic newspaper said today. Al-Hayat, quoting informed Afghan sources, said the Saudi dissident was suffering from acute kidney pain that needed treatment which he could not receive in afghanistan. Bin Laden has curtailed his activities because of the illness, it said. Afghanistan’s ruling Taliban has vowed to resist US pressure to hand over the suspect, despite UN air traffic and financial sanctions imposed because of its refusal. Laden, a billionaire stripped of his Saudi nationality, is wanted in the US for allegedly masterminding the August 7, 1998 twin bombings of US Embassies in East Africa that killed 224 people. Taliban, which controls most of Afghanistan, has rejected the allegations against Bin Laden, saying the United States had failed to provide any proof he was involved in terrorism. They insist, however, that Laden is living under restrictions with no access to communications and cannot launch any activities against a foreign country from Afghan soil. (AFP) |
|
Pak books an attraction at world book fair NEW DELHI, Feb 6: A new book with a separate chapter on the Kargil conflict is among hundreds of collections from Pakistan being displayed at the ongoing world book fair here. There are hard times ahead for Pakistan and it must be hoped that the Army, firm in its discipline, can maintain its place as regards the Constitution... Are but a few lines from the chapter on Kargil in a history of the Pakistani Army -wars and insurrections’. The book, penned by Brian Cloughley, and many others, including reprint collections on Kashmir originally published in 1820s, collections on Islam, Mohammed Ali Jinnah and rich art and culture of Pakistan are on exhibit during the nine-day extravaganza at Pragati Maidan in the two stalls set up by Islamabad-based Oxford University Press and Indus Publications of Karachi. Unlike in India, not many books have been written on Kargil in Pakistan, says Safder Mehdi of Indus Publications lauding the publishing industry in India. He said on the contrary Pakistani publishing industry is mainly dependent on academic and history books. A publisher and printer of 105 books, 78-year old Mehdi points towards his stall and says among the reprint volumes on Kashmir he has brought two books written and published in 1822 - Kashmir- its territories and geography’ and Gazettiers of Gilgit, Ladakh and Hunza’. (PTI) |
|
American experts differ on idea
of immobilisation NEW DELHI, Feb 6: Should commandos have immobilised the hijacked Indian Airlines aircraft during its halt at Amritsar Airport? no, says an American aviation security expert stressing such a move could have backfired. Sabotage tends to backfire even when experts try it, according to a preview of aviation industry’s new safeguards during a hijacking published by New York Times. Citing an example, the preview, carried in the backdrop of the December 24 hijacking of Indian Airlines Flight IC-814, mentions that in 1972, US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agents, seeking to keep a Southern Airways hijacked plane on the ground in Orlando, shot six of its tyres. The action served only to annoy the terrorists, who demanded that the plane take off anyway. Rubber was flying all over the plane, getting stuck in the engine and really endangering the lives of the passengers and crew, the newspaper quotes Stephen Luckey, head of the security committee of Airline Pilots Association. The plane survived the takeoff, as well as a subsequent landing, on a runway covered in foam in Cuba, the perview said. Luckey also ruled out an urge among passengers to subdue the hijackers and praised captain D Sharan’s role during the eight day ordeal saying: The pilot of the Indian Airlines plane that was hijacked had to dissuade several passengers from mounting a counter-attack against the hijackers. A wise decision, as many such attempts have ended tragically. On a Christmas Day flight in 1986 from Baghdad to Amman, a securityman tried to disarm a hijacker who was brandishing a hand grenade. In the struggle, the grenade went off, killing 62 of the 107 people aboard, the preview said. The Sunday magazine of the newspaper outlines the following guide to live through a hijack situation: __What should passengers do - whether you’re the pilot or an edgy 93-year-old with a heart condition, the trick is to wait out the hijackers, says David Learmount, Safety Editor for a London-based aerospace weekly and a former Royal Air Force pilot. Negotiate with them, cooperate with them, do what you’re told. Eventually, if they’re not the chuck-a-hostage-out-the-window-every-10-minute type, they will get tired and give in, he says. __ Is there such a thing as being too cooperative - yes. The so-called Stockholm syndrome, in which hostages develop sympathy and affection for their captors, is a real risk. During the Indian Airlines hijacking, passengers got chummy with one hijacker, telling jokes, singing songs and exchanging gifts, the perview said. It is easy to feel sorry for these guys, says Marsha Roberts, a Northwest flight attendent who was on the job when Glenn K Tripp, then 17, hijacked a plane in Seattle in 1980. This boy was telling us how bad his life had been, how nothing had ever gone right for him, Roberts says. Nevertheless, such sympathy is dangerous to express, the preview says and quotes luckey saying before you know it, you are aiding and abetting. And if it comes down to it, these guys will kill you anyway. __Does the pilot have special obligations? - one might expect that the pilot’s responsibility is to stay with the plane and its passengers, to look after their well-being, the perview said and added but it is just the opposite. The official word is anyone should get off if they can, especially the people who can fly the plane, says Ernest Anderson Jr, a retired American airlines pilot. It says there is one simple reason for this counterinitiative advice: If there is no one to fly it, it is not going anywhere. Pilots, however, don’t generally follow it. __How likely is all this to transpire? - despite the recent rise in terrorism around the world, hijacking has not come back into vogue, the perview said. Admitting that heydays of hijacking were late 60’s and early 70’s, when air travel had become widely popular but strict safety measures had not, it says back then there were nearly 100 hijacking incidents a year worldwide. In 1998, the last year for which figures are available, there were just nine attempts, it said adding the drop is mostly due to the fact that security technology has far outstripped the capabilities of most terrorists. In some top international airports, portable cat scan machines are now used to search luggage for plastic explosives another new gadget, which may be incorporated into metal detectors, would check all passengers for trace particle contamination- the residue of bombs and explosives. Of course, there is a downside to all this, as airports get safer, terrorists move on to less fortified targets, the perview said. It is much easier to take over a building than a plane, Luckey admits. (PTI) |
|
Egyptian Islamicist pursues Muslim-Christian dialogue BAMBERG, Feb 6: Some consider him to be the most famous scholar in the Arab world, while Islamic fundamentalists regard him more as a heretic. But Islamic scholar Nasr Hamid Abu Zaid says he is not afraid of the death threats which he is again and again confronted with. "Fear is, at least, not the right word," says the 56-year-old, who now is a guest scholar for the second time at Bamberg University. "Since I have been living in europe, there have been no worrisome incidents." "But you cannot completely rule out the possibility of an attack," he admits. At the moment Zaid is busy presenting his autobiography now appearing in German, "Ein Leben Mit Dem Islam" (a life with Islam) in which he describes how the Muslim faith has determined his existence from the earliest childhood and how it was that religious differences led to his being driven from his home country. He makes it clear he does not wish to return home as long as he is not allowed to teach without disruption. Zaid, who lives in exile in the Netherlands, is above all famous for his scientific theses. His case stirred worldwide attention when an Egyptian Court in 1995 forcibly ended his marriage with his wife Ibtihal. The reason for that decision: A Muslim woman may not, under Islamic law, be married to a man whose books prove he is a heretic. Zaid presents the opinion that the Koran must be regarded both in an historic as well as in a modern context. This runs counter to the position of many Sunni fundamentalists who to this day insist on a literal interpretation of the 7th-century text. Amid death threats and fear that the court-ordered divorce would be carried out, Zaid and his wife went to live in the Dutch town of Leiden, where the professor is able to carry on his scholarly work without being disturbed. His wife, however, has not been as lucky. Whereas previously she had a chair at Cairo University, today she must work as a free-lance scholar. "It is naturally easier for an Egyptian Islamic scholar to find a job in Europe than it is for an Egyptian literature academic," Zaid notes. Now he is teaching a course in the Winter semester at Bamberg University at the invitation of the faculty of "anthropological fundamentals and developments in christianity and Islam". In seminars, he and doctoral candidates discuss the issue of "inter-religious dialogue", in which Zaid naturally explains his interpretation of the Koran which has caused such a stir in the Islamic world. Abu Zaid says he is glad to come often to Germany: "I am here almost every month. Even before I went into exile I had contact with scholars in this country." But he admits to homesickness, as he writes at the end of his autobiography: "My village has become a paradise which has gone lost. It wasn’t one, but since it has been lost, it has become a paradise." (DPA) |
|
Sri Lanka pushes ahead on latest peace initiative COLOMBO, Feb 6: Sri Lanka’s ruling People’s Alliance hopes this week to move a step closer to ending the long-running ethnic war with Tamil Tiger rebels. Constitutional reforms to devolve more power to regional councils will be discussed with minority Tamil parties as a prelude to what the Government hopes will be a consensus on a deal to be put to Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). The LTTE rebels have been fighting for a separate homeland in the North and East of the country since 1983. More than 55,000 people have been killed in the fighting. State media said on Sunday Tamil political parties had been called for talks by a special committee on the draft Constitution headed by president Chandrika Kumaratunga. The President has said that she would hold talks with the opposition United National Party (UNP), which did an about-face last month and promised to back the constitutional reforms, for a consensus before taking it to the LTTE. "The UNP is expected to come on Board on February 14", the island newspaper quoted Justice and Constitutional Minister Gamini Peiris as saying. Peiris said the Government planned to present the rebels with a package agreed to by all parties, including Tamil parties, to enhance the prospects of implementation. Earlier the UNP had said it would not support the reforms, putting the Government in a fix as it lacks a two-thirds majority in Parliament. Last week Kumaratunga said in an address to mark the country’s 52nd independence anniversary that she believed the country was finally on track to end the ethnic war. Norway has said it is trying to broker peace between the Sri Lankan Government and the LTTE, and local media said on todday that Norwegian Foreign Minister Knut Vollebaek was expected in Colombo later this month to discuss the agenda for talks. Mr Kumaratunga’s Government initiated talks with the rebels after winning power in 1994, but negotiations broke down after the ltte accused her of not being serious and sank two Naval boats in the Eastern trincomalee harbour. Since then the fighting has escalated. (REUTERS) |
|
Woman accused of murdering husband may be retried WASHINGTON, Feb 6: NRI dentist Alpna Patel, acquitted of first degree murder of her husband in Baltimore in US, may now be retried after the lone male juror in a jury otherwise dominated by women switched his vote in favour of a second degree murder charge against her. The Baltimore Sun quoted Assistant State Attorney William D McCollum as saying that he would decide this week whether to retry patel on second degree murder charges and manslaughter. Alpna Patel is accused of murdering her husband Viresh Patel, a resident doctor in Baltimore. I am not taking a verdict unless I am sure of unanimity and that the (male) juror was not coerced, McCollum said. The jury, however, unanimously acquited Alpna Patel of first degree murder charges. During the hearing yesterday, Circuit Judge John C Themelis, declared a mistrial after he noticed Juror No 4, the only man in a 12-member jury, wavering for nearly a minute after the jury declared Patel not guilty of both first and second degree murder, the paper said. When each juror was asked about his verdict, the male juror slumped in his chair and asked whether he could talk to the judge. When themelis asked him whether he held alpna guilty or not guilty, he pronounced not guilty after a minute’s hesitation. Themelis then ordered the jury, which had already deliberated for two weeks, back into talks to reach a consensus, after which it changed the verdict to not guilty of first degree murder and a weapons charge but said it was deadlocked on manslaughter and second degree murder. During the final 15-minutes of deliberations, the crowded courtroom could hear female jurors scream at the male juror, who had switched his vote on the second degree murder charge. Patel said her husband tried to kill her when she threatened to leave him after alleged maltreatment by her in-laws. She said she awoke to find her husband holding a knife over her throat but she pushed back. He must have been killed by his own knife, she said. Defense Attorney Edward Smith said he was disturbed by the turn of events might appeal. He said he expected that prosecutors will retry patel on second-degree murder and manslaughter. Alpna refused to comment. Her father-in-law said he had mixed feelings about the mistrial. I had lost faith in the justice system but today I think it is strong. (PTI) |
|
How deep is your love-Welsh Buddhists marry in mine LONDON, Feb 6: A couple of Welsh Buddhists plunged to new depths yesterday to get married in a coal mine. Thirty guests were serenaded by a Welsh male voice choir before donning hard hats for their trip down a mineshaft in South Wales. They all carried gas masks and torches. "We actually thought it was very romantic to be deep in the country that you feel so much part of," said bridegroom Mark Lee, hoping that love would flourish in a coal climate. His fiancee, Christina Golledge, took the precaution of choosing a machine-washable, burgundy-coloured wedding dress and decided against attaching a veil to her miner’s helmet. The couple, both practising Buddhists, staged their wedding reception in a local pub where they stayed to watch the Wales-France rugby international on television. They are remaining above ground for a honeymoon in Thailand. (REUTERS) |
|
Echoes from bollywood thrill Israelis in romance with India JERUSALEM, Feb 6: Two years after it hit the box office in India, Hindi blockbuster ‘Dil To Pagal Hai’ is making many a heart crazy in Israel with the movie running to full houses for the fifth successive week in Tel Aviv, signalling opening up of the Indian film market here. The soundtrack of Yash Chopra’s musical love story, which has already been screened in Jerusalem and set for release in Haifa next, seems to captured people’s imagination here much before the celluloid version thrilled Israelis — young and old — in the throes of a late-blooming romance with India. The theme song of the film seems to blare out of every other window here every now and then. Subtitled in Hebrew, the big colourful posters of Halev Mistagya (Hebrew translation for ‘crazy heart’) with faces of main protagonists Sharukh Khan, Madhuri Dixit and Karishma Kapoor are seen plastered all over in the streets of Tel Aviv. When the film’s music was blaring from every shop in India in 1997, Israeli TV Star Tamir Kimchi was rambling through the subcontinent shooting for his tv series cosmic optimism in which he tried to examine what the Indian experience does to young Israelis, of late flocking to India in thousands after serving their mandatory army term. Tremendously attracted towards the ‘Dil To Pagal Hai’ song, Kimchi decided to use the theme song for his own TV series. While serial and its sound track were an unprecedented hit, Kimchi changed his name to Rafik following an ‘overwhelming’ experience at Rajneesh’s Ashram in Pune. From there, the song trickled onto the playlist of ‘Galgalatz,’ an Army radio station with a keen ear for new melodies. The tune did not escape the sharp eyes of advertisers here too. While food company ‘Telma’ has incorporated the ‘Dil To Pagal Hai’ theme into its new commercial, ‘Tnuva’ has already launched a new brand of cheese called ‘Yoga.’ National airline ‘El Al’ has also exploited the new infatuation with India in its ad campaign, pledging a tranquil passage to India. And of course there is a boom in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and other towns of stores offering clothes, food and everything that is from India and the far East. Israelis are in the throes of a late-blooming romance with India evidenced by the proliferation of Indian music, films, clothing and now also books, says Amir-Ben David, Deputy Editor in an English Daily who has visited India. Further proof of this socio-cultural phenomenon can be found in two new books recently published by two Israeli women about their spiritual journey to India, Amir said. I can see a good market for Hindi films in India as more and more Israelis are getting attracted towards the country, its culture, people, religion, hopes and fears and dreams, says Shai Shimson, a distributor of DTPH in Israel. Shai, born to a Jewish family of Indian origin, has a video collection of some 5,000 Indian films and has screened a few films on celluloid in recent years in localities housing 40,000 Jews of Indian origin. But this is for the first time after 70s that a film has been sub-titled in hebrew for Israeli audience, he says, adding he is planning to subtitle ‘Agnishakshi,’ ‘Ham To Dil De Chuke Sanam’ and ‘Kuch Kuch Hota Hai.’ (PTI) |
|
|
