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Bush says would LONDON, Nov 17: The United States would wage war again, and alone if necessary, to ensure the long-term safety of the world, President George ....more Qaeda
says it behind LONDON, Nov 17: London-based Arab language newspaper Al-Quds Al-Arabi has said that Al-Qaeda had claimed responsibility ...more French UN worker in Afghanistan shot dead KABUL, Nov 17: A 29-year-old French woman working for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) was ......more 7
troops, 2 Maoists KATHMANDU, Nov 17: At least seven security personnel and two Maoists were killed in separate encounters over the .......more |
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Vandross, 50 cent lead American music awards LOS ANGELES, Nov 17: R B Singer Luther Vandross, who suffered a life-threatening stroke in April just as he was mounting a major comeback,....more Gulf-Kerala ferry service remains non-starter DUBAI, Nov 17: A lack of infrastructure at the Kochi port is the reason for the Gulf-Kerala ferry service to remain a ....more Yemen
frees 92 SANAA, Nov 17: Yemen’s President ordered the release of 92 Muslim militants, including some 38 arrested on suspicion of links to Osama bin....more Coffins of 18 Italian war dead arrive in Rome ROME, Nov 17: The coffins of 18 Italian victims of a suicide bomb attack in the Iraqi city of Nasiriyah arrived in Rome on, ....more |
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Bush says would wage war again to make world safe LONDON, Nov 17: The United States would wage war again, and alone if necessary, to ensure the long-term safety of the world, President George W Bush said in an interview published today. Bush told Britain’s leading tabloid newspaper, the Sun, on the eve of a state visit that he felt compelled to act following the September 11, 2001 attacks in New York and Washington. "I was at ground zero after the attacks," he said. "I remember this haze and the smells and the death and destruction. I’ll always remember that. "I made up my mind right then. We were at war and we were going to win the war. And I still feel that determination today." The paper quoted Bush as saying US forces and their coalition allies had ended the tyranny of Saddam Hussein in Iraq, smashed the grip of Osama bin Laden’s Al-Qaeda network in Afghanistan and forced the United Nations to stop turning its back on terror. The mass-selling Sun newspaper, best known for its semi-naked page three girls, is owned by tycoon rupert Murdoch’s news corp, the most influential media empire in Britain. Bush’s choice to grant it an interview raised eyebrows among American journalists, who questioned its suitability for a President who has publicly embraced evangelical protestantism. "After coming to office with a vow to restore dignity to the White House, the President... Granted an exclusive interview to a British tabloid that features daily photographs of nude women," the Washington Post said in an article on its web site. The post said the President had gone "down market" and pointed out that he had not given an exclusive interview to many of the US national newspapers this year. Bush, unpopular in Britain following the US-led war on Iraq, arrives tomorrow for a visit that includes meetings with Queen Elizabeth and British Prime Minister Tony Blair, his closest wartime ally. In another interview with a British newspaper, influential Pentagon Adviser Richard Perle echoed Bush’s comments, saying the possibility of future conflicts could not be ruled out. "Of course he (Bush) is going to stick with that principle, because it is fundamental to fighting and winning the war against terror," Perle, one of the architects of the US invasion of Iraq, told the daily Telegraph. "So, does this entail a risk we will find ourselves in conflict... With other Governments? sure, it does." While in Britain, Bush will stay at the Queen’s London residence, Buckingham palace, visit Blair’s northern English constituency and talk to relatives of British soldiers killed in Iraq. Thousands plan to demonstrate against Bush, whose decision to invade Iraq was opposed by a majority of Britons, even though it was backed by the Government. In a Yougov poll for London’s Sunday Times newspaper Bush was branded a threat to world peace by 60 per cent of those questioned, while 37 per cent said Bush was "stupid". Blair’s ratings have plunged since the Iraq war and the failure to find Weapons of Mass Destruction — the Government’s main justification for launching the military campaign — but Bush said the decision to go to war should not be judged on short-term results. "I set big goals," he said. "I know what we’re doing is going to have a positive effect on this world." (AGENCIES) |
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Qaeda says it behind Turkey blasts - newspaper LONDON, Nov 17: London-based Arab language newspaper Al-Quds Al-Arabi has said that Al-Qaeda had claimed responsibility for the bombings of two Istanbul synagogues which killed at least 23 people and vowed further attacks. The statement, a copy of which was sent to Reuters, also vowed that Osama bin Laden’s militant network was planning car bombings against the United States and its allies Britain, Italy, Australia and Japan. "We had promised that a present for Al- Quds was coming, God willing, and here is the first strike of this present," said the statement, signed by an Al-Qaeda division called brigades of the martyr Abu Hafz Al-Masri and sent to the newspaper by E-mail. The same Al-Qaeda division claimed responsibility for the attack on the UN headquarters in Baghdad in August, which killed 23 people. Like the Turkey bombings, the Baghdad assault involved a vehicle loaded with explosives. "The brigades of the martyr Abu Hafz Al-Masri...Detected agents of the Israeli intelligence, Mossad, and after the presence of five agents of this mechanism in two synagogues in the middle of the Turkish city Istanbul was confirmed, the Mujahideen (holy fighters) carried out their deadly strike. "The remaining operations are coming, God willing, and by God, Jews around the world will regret that their ancestors even thought about occupying the land of Muslims," it said yesterday. The statement added: "We tell the criminal Bush and his Arab and western tails — especially Britain, Italy, Australia and Japan — that cars of death will not stop at Baghdad, Riyadh, Istanbul, Nassiriya, Jakarta, etc, until you see them with your own eyes in the middle of the capital of this era’s tyrant, America." It was not possible to verify the authenticity of the statement. Al-Quds Al-Arabi, which has in the past carried Al-Qaeda statements, said it was similar in style to Al-Qaeda. Suicide bombers driving two vans loaded with explosives carried out the attacks on two Istanbul synagogues on Saturday. Turkish media said each vehicle was packed with 400 Kg of explosives and two corpses were found with wires attached to them suggesting they might be suicide bombers. The blasts killed Jews attending Sabbath prayers and Muslim passers-by. Turkey and Israel blamed what they called international terrorists, possibly Al-Qaeda. The E-mail warned US President George W Bush of deadlier attacks if Washington did not submit to its conditions, including releasing Al-Qaeda prisoners, stopping its "war on Islam" and "purifying" Muslim land from Jews and Americans. The statement mentioned a deadly attack on a housing compound in the Saudi Arabian capital Riyadh last Sunday but did not directly claim responsibility for it, saying people should not cry over Jews, Christians and "Arab traitors" killed. "The Riyadh compound was bursting with Arab translators working for US intelligence," it said. "It’s banned under Islamic law to mix with infidels in their homes and work until they stop their crusade against Islam and Muslims," it added. Earlier this month, a London-based Arab magazine, Al-Majalla, said Al-Qaeda had claimed responsibility in an E-mail for the Riyadh bombing that killed at least 18 people. On Saturday, a purported Al-Qaeda statement carried on an Islamist web site denied it was behind the bombings, saying it would not target innocent Muslims, only Jews and Christians. It was not possible to verify either one’s authenticity. On August 25, brigades of Abu Hafz Al-Masri posted a statement on the internet in the name of Al-Qaeda claiming responsibility for the UN headquarters bombing in Baghdad. In that message it said it "would carry out such a lethal and surprising attack that the enemy will not know where, when and how we will strike". It was not clear if the name of the group issuing the claim was a reference to Mohammed Atef, also known as Abu Hafs. The Egyptian militant was a close associate of Bin Laden and was reported killed in US military strikes on Afghanistan in December 2001 during the US-led campaign to oust the Taliban. Al-Qaeda is suspected of the September 11, 2001 attacks on US cities and last May’s triple suicide bombings in Riyadh. (AGENCIES) |
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French UN worker in Afghanistan shot dead KABUL, Nov 17: A 29-year-old French woman working for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) was shot dead in the Afghan town of Ghazni when two men on a motorcycle opened fire on her vehicle with a pistol. Bettina Goislard’s death yesterday was the first among UN international staff in Afghanistan since the fall of the Taliban to US-led forces two years ago. Local authorities in the town to the southwest of the capital Kabul have arrested two gunmen and said they believed the killers were rebels from the ousted Taliban regime which has staged a comeback in parts of the country in recent months. "Two unknown gunmen on motorbikes opened fire on the car of the UNHCR which fatally wounded the international staffer of the UNHCR...At midday today," UN spokesman David Singh said. Goislard had been in Ghazni since June 2002, after also working for the UNHCR in Rwanda and Guinea. She was pronounced dead on arrival at a local hospital. Local driver Abdul Salam Sadid was shot in the arm but is in stable condition, while field assistant Ali Mohammad ducked away from the firing and was unhurt. UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan condemned the attack as "outrageous and contemptible". "The Secretary-General was distressed and angered to learn of the cold-blooded killing of Ms Bettana Goislard...And the wounding of a national staff member," a UN statement said. The UNHCR’s chief of mission in Afghanistan, Filippo Grandi, said workers were "deeply shocked and greatly angered by the senseless murder of Bettina, who was an exemplary young colleague always actively seeking ways to help people in need". President Hamid Karzai issued a statement in which he expressed "shock" at the killing, calling it "an act of enmity by terrorists against the Afghan people". Foreign Minister Dr Abdullah said the killers belonged to the "Taliban-Al-Qaeda network" who "found refuge among their mentors along our eastern and southern borders", a reference to suspicion in Kabul that militants are launching attacks from Pakistan. A western aid worker said the incident underlined the need for 5,500 peacekeepers in the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) to expand operations beyond Kabul. Afghanistan is building up for Presidential elections scheduled for June 2004, but much of the country remains off-limits for aid workers concerned about a resurgent Taliban and local turf battles. More than 350 people, including many rebels, have been killed in Afghan violence since early August, the worst bloodshed since the Taliban fled Kabul on November 13, 2001. In March, suspected Taliban rebels executed an E L Salvadorean employee of the international committee of the Red Cross in the southern province of Kandahar, the former stronghold of the hardline militia. There are currently 813 international staff working with UNAMA (UN Assistance Mission to Afghanistan). Taliban officials have given a series of warnings that they would not spare foreign aid workers and Afghans working for them in their Jihad, or holy war, against foreigners in the country. The UNHCR said it had suspended all operations in Ghazni province. "In the rest of Afghanistan, UNHCR staff is on stand-by, pending decisions on future measures," it said. The shooting came less than a week after a car bomb went off outside UN buildings in Kandahar, wounding three people and causing damage to property. (AGENCIES) |
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7 troops, 2 Maoists killed in Nepal KATHMANDU, Nov 17: At least seven security personnel and two Maoists were killed in separate encounters over the weekend in Nepal, where troops foiled an attempt by the rebels to blow up a bridge, official sources said today. A Maoist commander also surrendered to security forces during the period. Three security personnel were killed in Bisharbhora area of Dhanusha district in an ambush set up by the Maoists yesterday, Government-run ‘The Rising Nepal’ said adding two civilians were also injured in the incident. A group of Maoists shot also dead two policemen near Bishal hotel in Lahan, the district headquarter of Siraha district on Sunday. In a separate incident, the rebels shot dead two policemen while they were checking a passenger bus at the Majuwa junction in Gorkha district. The rebels, who were also travelling by the same bus, suddenly came out of the vehicle and started firing at the policemen indiscriminately. They also looted three .303 riffles from the policemen after killing them. In Chitawan district, a group of Maoists shot and seriously injured a sub-Inspector. Two women militants attacked an army patrol with socket bombs forcing the troops to retaliate, the reports said adding the two were killed in the subsequent encounter. Security forces recovered five bombs, weighing five Kg each, under a bridge near Biratnagar in Morang district, foiling a plan to blow up the bridge. (PTI) |
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Vandross, 50 cent lead American music awards LOS ANGELES, Nov 17: R B Singer Luther Vandross, who suffered a life-threatening stroke in April just as he was mounting a major comeback, was among the major winners at the American music awards yesterday, with his elderly mother tearfully accepting his two trophies on his behalf. Vandross and Rapper 50 cent were the only double-winners during the three-hour televised event. Several other veterans, including anglo-American hitmakers fleetwood MAC, R B Singers the Isley brothers and country act Alabama, were also honored by the members of the public who decide the awards. Husband-and-wife country singers Tim Mcgraw and faith hill ensured domestic bliss at home, winning the favorite artist trophies in their genre, respectively the sixth and fifth wins of their careers. Vandross won both categories for which he was nominated —favorite male artist and album in the soul/rhythm and blues category. The album "dance with my father," which he recorded just before he was stricken, debuted at no 1 on the US pop charts and has sold more than 1.3 million copies. "I am so very sorry that luther cannot be here tonight in person, but I’m here to represent him," Mary Vandross told the star-studded crowd at the shrine auditorium. Besides Vandross and 50 cent, who did not attend the event, 12 other acts received two nominations each: R B singers Ashanti, Beyonce Knowles, Missy Elliott and R Kelly pop stars Celine Dion and Justin Timberlake country acts Toby Keith, Mcgraw and Shania Twain Jamaican Reggae star Sean Paul Jazz singer Norah Jones and Rocker Kid Rock. Of those, Ashanti, Knowles, Kelly, Twain, Paul and Jones went home empty-handed. 50 cent won for favorite artist and album in the rap/hip-hop category, beating his mentor, eminem, in the former race. Fleetwood MAC, another absentee winner, accepted its prize for favorite pop/rock band via satellite from Hamburg, and later performed a pre-recorded tune. "We’re really in the best place creatively that we’ve ever been ... So we’re very excited about the future," said Frontman Lindsey Buckingham. The Isley brothers were named favorite soul/R B band, while Alabama cemented its position as the most honored act in the event’s history by winning its 23rd trophy, for favorite country band. Justin Timberlake also accepted his prize, for favorite pop/rock album via satellite, from the German city of Cologne. Missy Elliott was initially declared an absentee when her name was announced for favorite female rap/hip-hop artist, but she later turned up claiming that her limousine had been stolen from her hotel. This marks the second American music awards in 2003. The event has traditionally been held in January, but amid declining ratings and competition from a plethora of other awards shows, the organisers decided to switch it to November. Nominees for the American music awards are determined by retail sales and radio airplay data. Winners are determined by a national sampling of 20,000 members of the public. (AGENCIES) |
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Gulf-Kerala ferry service remains non-starter DUBAI, Nov 17: A lack of infrastructure at the Kochi port is the reason for the Gulf-Kerala ferry service to remain a non-starter, according to a shipping expert. The shuttle service, which would have been a boon to thousands of low-income expatriates, who are forced to pay high airfares, was one of the highlights of the global investor meet in Kochi early this year. The State Government had signed Memorandums of Understanding with three Gulf-based companies to set up the ferry service by the end of this year. The Kerala Shipping and Inland Navigation Corporation (KSINC) is still on the look out for a suitable ship, but nothing much has happened despite promises by M M Hassan, minister in charge of the department of Non-Resident Keralite Affairs (NORKA), that the project is still on. Shipping Consultant C K Menon of Doha,s Behzad group of companies, who had submitted a proposal to the Kerala Government, told the peninsula yesterday that the service cannot be started as Kochi does not have the basic facility to complete customs formalities for a minimum of 800 passengers. In his view, a shuttle service with two ships of a capacity for 800 passengers each is viable if the vessels ply the Doha-Dubai-Kochi route. (UNI) |
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Yemen frees 92 reformed Muslim militants SANAA, Nov 17: Yemen’s President ordered the release of 92 Muslim militants, including some 38 arrested on suspicion of links to Osama bin Laden’s Al-Qaeda group, after they vowed to shun extremism and violence. The state news agency saba said President Ali Abdullah Saleh’s decision yesterday was aimed at providing the "reformed" militants with "a chance to be good citizens and help build the country". The Arab state, trying to shed an image as a militant hotbed, has launched a drive with the help of Muslim clerics to re-educate militants, mainly prisoners held for planning attacks on western and Yemeni targets. Yemen, Bin Laden’s ancestral home, has been an active recruiting ground for militants sympathetic to the Saudi-born fugitive, but the Government has waged a campaign to root out extremism in support of Washington’s war on terror. Saba said the clerics told Saleh the 92 had vowed to shun violence and extremism, refrain from actions which harm security and stability inside and outside Yemen, respect non-Muslims and not to harm embassies and "interests of friendly states". Sanaa has previously released other prisoners under the "re-education" drive. It was not clear how many remain in prison. In addition to being blamed for the September 11 attacks in 2001, Al-Qaeda is blamed for the 2000 bombing of the US warship cole and a French supertanker last year in Yemeni waters. (AGENCIES) |
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Coffins of 18 Italian war dead arrive in Rome ROME, Nov 17: The coffins of 18 Italian victims of a suicide bomb attack in the Iraqi city of Nasiriyah arrived in Rome on Saturday. The remains of the 16 soldiers and two civilians were given full military honours on their arrival at Rome’s ciampino airport from Iraq on a military aircraft. Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi and leading politicians, military officials and relatives were present. Twenty-eight people including nine Iraqi civilians were killed Wednesday when suicide bombers drove a truck full of explosives into the Italian base. The body of the 19th victim was still in Kuwait Saturday. On Friday, 16 Italians injured in the attack arrived in Rome. The dead will lie in state today at a monument in Rome. A state funeral will be held at Saint Paul’s Cathedral tomorrow. The Government has declared tomorrow a day of national mourning. (DPA) |
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China cyber dissident may be released soon-family BEIJING, Nov 17: A 23-year-old "cyber dissident" detained last year for criticising the Chinese Government may be released soon, family members said today. Four officials from the Beijing public security bureau visited Liu Di’s home last week to convey the news, her grandmother, Liu Heng, said. Liu Di, a former psychology major at Beijing normal university who wrote under the screen name "stainless steel mouse", has become a high-profile symbol for democracy and free speech in China since her detention in November 2002. Liu’s case comes during a heightened crackdown on internet content, from politics to pornography, as the Government struggles to gain control over a new and unwieldy medium. "I am hopeful she will be released, but it’s not definite," Liu Heng, 81, told by telephone. "They could still lengthen her detention if they find additional evidence." She said police had not given a date for the release, but a Hong Kong-based human rights group said Liu could be released by the end of November, before Premier Wen Jiabao Flies to the United States for a state visit. Liu wrote political satires about the ruling Communist Party and posted messages in internet chatrooms calling for the release of online dissidents. Liu was never formally charged and has been jailed at Beijing’s qincheng prison for political detainees. The Hong Kong-based information centre for human rights and democracy said in early November prosecutors had rejected police recommendations to indict Liu on broad charges of subversion due to lack of evidence. In addition to jailing dissidents, China has created a special internet police force, blocked some foreign news sites and shut down domestic sites posting politically incorrect fare. (AGENCIES) Tiger mauls China worker to death near great wall BEIJING, Nov 17: A tiger mauled a Chinese man to death when he tried to take a short cut through a wildlife park near the great wall, the Beijing Youth daily reported today. Rangers at the Beijing Badaling Wildlife Safari park, near the wall’s most popular tourist spot, rushed to the tigers’ grazing area on Tuesday on hearing desperate cries of "save me save me", the newspaper said. But by the time they arrived the man’s neck was gnawed and his bloodied body showed no signs of life, the paper said. (AGENCIES) Unprecedented security in UK for Bush visit LONDON, Nov 17: Armed police turned the British capital into "fortress London" today amid heightened fears of a guerrilla attack on the eve of a visit by US President George W Bush. The White House, wary of an Al-Qaeda strike, has insisted on tight precautions. Traditional events such as a horse-drawn carriage ride with Queen Elizabeth will not be included in the programme. Weekend suicide bombings against two synagogues in Istanbul that killed 23 people served as a reminder, if any were needed, that militants could strike at any time without warning. An Arabic newspaper said a unit of the Al-Qaeda network had claimed responsibility for the bombings and planned more attacks against the United States and its allies Britain, Italy, Australia and Japan. Britain had already moved to a higher state of alert after warnings of a possible Al-Qaeda attack received days ago. Roads in London were blocked and drivers stopped and searched as police tightened a security ring around the capital. Security was also heightened at the nation’s ports and airports. "The security is unprecedented because one, the level of terrorism threat and two, the nature of the President’s visit," London Police Chief John Stevens said. Tens of thousands plan to demonstrate against Bush, whose decision to invade Iraq was opposed by a majority of Britons, though backed by staunch US ally Prime Minister Tony Blair. British troops play a major role in occupying southern Iraq. Police snipers will line the President’s route on rooftops and all the capital’s rapid response armed units are on full alert ahead of tomorrow’s arrival. British police do not routinely carry firearms. Police have cancelled all leave and are putting 5,000 officers on duty in the capital’s biggest security operation. Bush is staying at Queen Elizabeth’s London residence, Buckingham palace, and demonstrators are determined to make their mark on a man who concedes he travels in a "bubble". "I think the main thing for us is to get as many people on the streets as possible," said protester guy Taylor from the "globalised resistance" group. "We want to stop London, we want to make things unignorable, we want George Bush to feel our presence, and that means making it difficult for his cavalcade to get round London, making it difficult for him to feel like a free man here." Charles Kennedy, leader of the opposition liberal democrats, told BBC radio: "We should use the opportunity to leave the President in no doubt as to the extent of public concern, not just in our own country but in Europe generally, about the way in which events tragically have unfolded." A Yougov poll ahead of the trip showed just what poor regard bush is held in by Britons. He was branded a threat to world peace by 60 percent, while 37 percent said he was "stupid". Demonstrators say they want to stage a peaceful protest at Bush’s war policy but the authorities, faced with the twin threat of a possible suicide attack and gridlock on the streets, are taking no chances. A study released last week also said London was at greater risk of a terror attack than any other major city in the United States or western Europe. The control risks group business consultancy said Blair’s support for the US-led war in Iraq as well as Britain’s large Muslim population meant there was a serious possibility of a suicide bombing. (AGENCIES) Strong quake strikes Aleutian islands STRASBOURG, Nov 17: An earthquake measuring 7.5 on the open-ended richter scale struck the Aleutian islands early today, the geological observatory in Strasbourg announced. The temblor was registered at 0642 GMT today (6:42 yesterday evening local time) and was the biggest earthquake since 2000 to strike the sparsely inhabited islands which are part of Alaska, and situated between Alaska and Siberia. There were no reports of damages or casualties. (DPA) |
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