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US intelligence WASHINGTON, Nov 10: US intelligence analysts estimate the wealth of international militant Osama Bin Laden at up to 250 million dollars from.......more Defence
supplies WASHINGTON, Nov 10: Defence supplies held up under various pre-and-post 1998 US nuclear non-proliferation laws may now be released ......more Clinton
resigns from WASHINGTON, Nov 10: Former United States President Bill Clinton, facing the possibility of being barred from practicing ......more PM
to visit UK after a LONDON, Nov 10: The growing Indo-British bilateral relations is expected to get a fillip when Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee arrives here for a day’s ....more |
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US to boycott UN meeting UNITED NATIONS, Nov 10: The United States will stay away from a UN conference opening tomorrow to promote a global ban on nuclear weapons .......more "Jaish
sets up radio NEW DELHI, Nov 10: Terrorist outfits Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) and Tehrik-e-Nifaz-e-Shariat-e-Muhammadi (TNSM) have set up at least three........more British
journalists QUETTA, Nov 10: A journalist and a photographer working for a British newspaper have been thrown of Pakistan for trying to book a flight in the ....more WASHINGTON, Nov 10: Home Minister L K Advani has been invited to visit Washington to discuss counter-terrorism .......more |
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US intelligence sees Bin Laden wealth $ 250 mn WASHINGTON, Nov 10: US intelligence analysts estimate the wealth of international militant Osama Bin Laden at up to 250 million dollars from his inheritance and various businesses, a US intelligence official has said. "In terms of what we think he is worth, it is between 200 (million) and 250 million dollars," the official told Reuters yesterday. "Much of it is through inheritance and a lot of it has been around from the different businesses he’s got," the intelligence official said. Washington says Bin Laden is a prime suspect in the September. 11 attacks on the United States and the 1998 bombings of two US Embassies in Africa. US authorities say Bin Laden leads Al Qaeda, a loose network of extremists, and has run training camps for militants who share his antipathy toward the United States, Israel and moderate Islamic Governments. He is said to have contributed money to the Chechen rebellion against Russia, and to leaders in Somalia and Sudan. The extent of Bin Laden’s wealth remains in dispute, with a former Saudi intelligence chief earlier this week estimating the finances of the world’s most wanted man at up to 50 million dollars. "My estimates when I served as head of general intelligence were no more than 40 (million) to 50 million dollars. This is the maximum figure in my estimate," Prince Turki Al-Faisal told the London-based Middle East Broadcasting Centre in a rare interview, aired on Wednesday. Bin Laden was widely reported to have inherited 300 million dollars as his share in his prominent family’s construction firm in Saudi Arabia. Prince Turki said Bin Laden’s funds were probably hidden in secret bank accounts or under a different name. (REUTERS) |
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Defence supplies held up may now be released: Jaswant WASHINGTON, Nov 10: Defence supplies held up under various pre-and-post 1998 US nuclear non-proliferation laws may now be released as a result of the first face-to-face talks between Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee and President George W Bush, External Affairs Minister Jaswant Singh said today. He expected this to happen at the defence policy group in December. The way is also now clear, Singh said, for supply of additional defence items "which we believe are needed for defence preparedness of the armed forces of the country". He cited terrorism, Afghanistan and military and defence cooperation as three main components of the joint statement issued at the end of the first summit between the two leaders. On Vajpayee’s US visit, Singh said "I will say without any hesitation it has been a total success." The issue of Pakistan’s cross-border`terrorism, the External Affairs Minister said, has been adequately addressed in the joint statement which refers to all manifestations of terrorism. Asked whether "the US acknowledges the right of India to hit back or make retaliatory strikes" to counter Pakistani cross-border terrorism, he said: "Please understand this is not a right or a dispensation or grant from anybody. "If India exercises restraint, it is a restraint out of self-will. Nobody need grant India the right to retaliate because it is an inherent right of a sovereign country in the exercise of its sovereign will. It is not a hand-out or dispensation." India’s fight against terrorism, Singh pointed out, did not begin on September 11, 2001 (when terrorists struck in New York and Washington). Its resolution did not depend on crutches, he said, adding India’s fight against terrorism is one based on values. In fighting terrorism, India makes no distinction between acceptable terrorism and unacceptable terrorism, Singh said. If after terrorist activities from Afghanistan are closed down but Pakistan continues to pursue the path of terrorism, that is Islamabad’s determination, he said. "That is for Pakistan to decide and India will certainly respond adequately and in proper fashion should that situation ever come about." (PTI) |
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Clinton resigns from US High Court bar WASHINGTON, Nov 10: Former United States President Bill Clinton, facing the possibility of being barred from practicing law before the US Supreme Court because of the Monica Lewinsky scandal, has resigned instead, his lawyer said today. "Former President Clinton hereby respectfully requests to resign from the bar of this court," his lawyer, David Kendall, said yesterday in a two-page letter to the High Court’s clerk. Kendall did not elaborate on why Clinton decided to resign. Clinton’s resignation from the Supreme Court bar will have little practical impact. Clinton has not practiced before the Supreme Court and was not expected to argue any cases in the future. On October. One, the Supreme Court suspended Clinton from practicing before the court and gave him 40 days to show why he should not be disbarred. On January. 19, the day before leaving office, Clinton admitted giving false, evasive statements about his relationship with Lewinsky, the former White House intern. As part of a deal with the independent counsel, Clinton accepted a five-year suspension of his license to practice law in Arkansas and a 25,000 dollar fine. The Arkansas suspension triggered the High Court case entitled, "in the matter of discipline of Bill Clinton." Kendall had said in October that Clinton would fight disbarment. In the letter filed Kendall said Clinton had been a member in "good standing" of the Arkansas bar for more than 25 years and had never had public or private professional discipline imposed by any bar. He said Clinton cooperated fully with the Arkansas supreme court committee on professional conduct, furnishing all requested information in a timely manner. Kendall said Clinton’s conduct did not relate to a criminal conviction or to the practice of law. It occurred as a private party in a civil proceeding, he said. The suspension stemmed from Clinton’s answers in response to questions about his relationship with Lewinsky during questioning by lawyers for Paula Jones, who had filed a sexual harassment suit against Clinton. Kendall said Clinton agreed to the suspension and fine "to avoid the burden of litigation for all parties, to achieve an expeditious and definite resolution and in acknowledgment that his actions merited censure." Kendall cited statistics showing that only four of the 570 disciplinary cases considered by the committee in Arkansas from 1985 to 2000 were similar to Clinton’s. In those four cases, the committee issued a reprimand or letter of caution, but did not impose suspension or disbarment, Kendall said. (REUTERS) |
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PM to visit UK after a gap of seven years LONDON, Nov 10: The growing Indo-British bilateral relations is expected to get a fillip when Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee arrives here for a day’s "official working visit" on Monday, with discussions focussing on further coordination in tackling international terrorism and the Afghan situation. Vajpayee will be first Indian Prime Minister to visit the UK in seven years. The last visit was by then Prime Minister Narasimha Rao in March 1994. Vajpayee’s visit Britain also comes within 72 hours of a brief stop-over by Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf. The discussions between Vajpayee and Prime Minister Tony Blair do not have a structured agenda, but is expected to focus on international terrorism, besides reviewing bilateral issues. In fact, "there is no wish list from the Indian side," a highly placed source pointed out. Vajpayee, who will fly in here from New York on the final leg of his three-nation tour - after Russia and the US - will have a luncheon meeting with blair. The Prime Minister will attend a reception at which about 600 invitees including Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott, former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, opposition leader Ian Duncan Smith, chief of the Liberal Democrats Charles Kennedy, Chairman of Labour Friends of India Barry Gardinar, actress of the film ‘Lagaan’. Between the two events, Home Secretary David Blunkett will call on Vajpayee and apprise him of the measures taken by British Government in curbing the activities of terrorist groups on British soil. Among others slated to meet the Prime Minister is Britain’s Secretary for International Development Clare Short. Britain has banned a large number of terrorist organisations including Pakistan-based Harkat-ul-Mujahideen, Lashkar-e-Toiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed, all active in Kashmir, Babbar Khalsa and International Sikh Youth Federation involved in terrorist acts in Punjab and the LTTE. Assets of several others linked to Osama Bin Laden and his Al-Qaeda network have been seized. Britain is expected to introduce fresh legislations in this connection in Parliament in the next 10 days. The bilateral annual trade turnover has crossed five billion pounds with britain remaining the largest investor in India. (PTI) |
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US to boycott UN meeting on nuclear test ban UNITED NATIONS, Nov 10: The United States will stay away from a UN conference opening tomorrow to promote a global ban on nuclear weapons tests, a senior State Department official said. "We will not attend the conference," said the official, who asked not to be named yesterday. He did not elaborate on the reasons. The aim of the conference is to review progress toward ratification of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT), which would ban all nuclear blasts, whether in the atmosphere, in space or underground. The Pentagon, hoping to hasten the treaty’s death, has been pressing the administration for months to sit out the meeting, which initially was scheduled for late September but postponed after the Sept. 11 suicide airliner attacks on New York and Washington. The CTBT has not yet entered into force because it has not garnered the necessary ratifications. It expands on a 1963 treaty barring tests in the atmosphere and a 1974 treaty setting limits on underground explosions. The George W Bush administration worries that without testing, it cannot ensure the safety and reliability of US nuclear arms. Critics say simulated testing conducted via computers and other technology is sufficient. US officials insist Bush remains deeply concerned about nuclear proliferation and expects to continue abiding by a testing moratorium put in place by his father in 1992. But critics say a boycott of the UN conference will be a powerful message to allies strongly backing the CTBT that Washington wanted to go it alone on nuclear arms control. "This will not be the last word. But it’s a sad commentary on the Bush administration’s approach to post-September 11 weapons-of-mass-destruction challenges," said Daryl Kimball, Executive Director of the Washington-based Arms Control Association. "Just as we cannot fight global terror alone, we cannot alone fight the proliferation of nuclear, chemical and biological weapons," he told Reuters. Some 79 other nations have signed up to deliver speeches at the three-day CTBT event, but organizers said earlier on Friday they had not yet heard from Washington. The United States was for years a strong backer of the CTBT, which was 40 years in the making. The pact was approved by the 189-nation UN General Assembly and opened for signature five years ago. Under unusual approval procedures, the treaty cannot enter into force until it is signed and ratified by 44 states —including the United States — deemed nuclear arms-capable. To date, 31 of those 44 countries including avowed nuclear powers France, Russia and Britain have signed and ratified the pact. So 13 more must ratify before it can take hold. In that group, India, Pakistan and North Korea have neither signed nor ratified the treaty while the United States, China and eight others have signed but not ratified. Former President Bill Clinton was the first world leader to sign the accord, in 1996. But the Senate refused to ratify it in the partisan-charged run-up to the 2000 election. Jayantha Dhanapala, the top UN disarmament official, said nuclear rivals India and Pakistan have said they will sign the pact but still have not done so. No signings or ratifications are expected to be announced during the UN conference, he said. The meeting is to end in adoption of a declaration expected to call on nations that have not yet signed or ratified to do so as soon as possible. (REUTERS) |
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"Jaish sets up radio stations along Pak-Afghan border" NEW DELHI, Nov 10: Terrorist outfits Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) and Tehrik-e-Nifaz-e-Shariat-e-Muhammadi (TNSM) have set up at least three FM radio stations in the Bajaur area of North West Frontier Province of Pakistan, bordering Afghanistan, to campaign for funds and volunteers to fight alongside Taliban. "The first batch of 1500 TNSM volunteers crossed over to Afghanistan on November one following permission by Maulvi Kabir Ahmed, the Taliban Governor of Nangarhar province and Deputy Chairman of Taliban Council of Ministers," `The Friday Times’ reported. "Officially no Pakistani is allowed to cross the border. But practically any attempt to stop armed activists from doing so would only lead to a showdown," it said. The report said the border crossing goes on from top of the Ghakhi hill "where Taliban and Pakistani flags keep fluttering most of the time" and added that "thousands" who cross over are greeted by Afghan tribesmen and the Taliban. "Tnsm and Jaish supporters have also set small fm stations - at least three of them - in the (Bajaur) area to campaign for funds and also urge the people to join the `Jehad’," it said, adding these stations were also used to air tnsm leaders’ address to pro-Taliban rallies last week. Bajaur, which has some 70,000 inhabitants, is the second biggest agency in Pakistan’s tribal areas. The Bajaur agency is an out-of-bounds area for foreigners and even Pakistani eletronic media journalists. Besides having a number of Afghan refugee settlements, it is also home to many Afghan leaders. (PTI) |
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British journalists thrown out of Pak QUETTA, Nov 10: A journalist and a photographer working for a British newspaper have been thrown of Pakistan for trying to book a flight in the name of ‘O B Laden’, police said today. Sunday Telegraph Reporter Christina Lamb and Photographer Justin Sutcliffe were escorted from their rooms at the Serena Hotel in Quetta in the early hours yesterday, hotel staff said. "We arrested her along with a photographer and expelled them as they were persona non grata," he said. Lamb said in an interview this week with a local newspaper that she had meant no harm when attempting to book the flight from quetta to Islamabad at a Pakistan international airlines office in this southwesten city . The travel agent informed the authorities. (AFP) |
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WASHINGTON, Nov 10: Home Minister L K Advani has been invited to visit Washington to discuss counter-terrorism cooperation, including an agreement on a joint cyber terrorism initiative, with United States officials as part of ‘expanded’ India-US cooperation. According to a fact sheet on US-India cooperation released by the State Department following Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee’s talks with President George W Bush yesterday, the defence policy group of the two countries will meet in New Delhi in December, when the agreement for joint submarine rescue will be reinstated. The department said in a release that the US was also prepared to approve a minimum of 800,000 dollars in peacekeeping assistance, while anti-terrorism and interdiction assistance will be enhanced. It said Mr Bush and Mr Vajpayee discussed afghanistan and acknowledged an active role for India in consultations on the political and economic future of that country, and added that State Department coordinators Richard Haass and J Dobbins will visit Delhi to discuss measures. In addition, State Department Under Secretary Paula Dobriansky will visit Delhi in January for discussions on global issues. Further cementing US-India ties will be enhanced consultations on US missile defence plans. The two countries will also establish a "new strategic framework dialogue." The US also intends to expand cooperation on export controls and promote high technology commerce between the two countries. On the nuclear front, the two countries will resume the three safety-related projects of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), involving technical information exchanges on emergency procedures. Other areas of expanded cooperation will be scientific and civilian fields such as weather, migration, and communications. Hailing the economic dialogue between the US and India as broad-based, the department said there would be public and private sector interaction and cooperation in the areas of trade, finance, commerce, energy and the environment. (UNI) |
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