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| Russia wants faster aid for ‘rotting’ nuclear subs BERLIN, May 16: Russia faces grave environmental and terrorist threats unless donors accelerate a slow trickle of interna.......more 33 dead in
Amazon RIO DE JANEIRO, May 16: All 33 people died aboard an airplane that crashed outside a provincial capital in the...more Israeli
court lifts JERUSALEM, May 16: Israel’s Supreme Court today lifted its temporary ban on the demolition of Palestinian homes in a......more US soldier
killed KABUL, May 16: One American soldier was killed in Afghanistan and two were slightly wounded after their convoy was....more |
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Earthquake rattles Taiwan, no reports of damage TAIPEI, May 16: An offshore earthquake measuring 6.0 on the richter scale rattled eastern Taiwan today, but there were no......more Malaysia
sends hundreds KUALA LUMPUR, May 16: At least 1,600 Malaysian soldiers have been stationed along the border with Thailand’s....more Shrek
2'’ premieres CANNES, May 16: The animated movie "Shrek 2" opened yesterday to laughter and applause at the Cannes film festival......more Tens of
thousands TEL AVIV, May 16: More than 100,000 Israelis attended a rally yesterday night in central Tel Aviv to call for unilateral.......more |
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Russia wants faster aid for ‘rotting’ nuclear subs BERLIN, May 16: Russia faces grave environmental and terrorist threats unless donors accelerate a slow trickle of international aid for dismantling its rusting nuclear submarines, a senior official said. Deputy Atomic Energy Minister Sergei Antipov said Russia would raise its concerns next month at a meeting of the group of eight (G8) leading nations in the United States. He said Moscow was very worried at the slow rate of funding, despite a much-trumpeted G8 initiative at a 2002 summit in Canada to spend 20 billion over 10 years to secure stockpiles of nuclear, chemical and biological materials. "The longer a submarine remains without being scrapped and without the nuclear fuel being removed... The more danger for the environment, the greater the risk of these materials falling into the hands of terrorists or other groups for malicious purposes," Antipov said in an interview. "Any of the submarines — and we have 96 waiting to be scrapped — could sink. Any of them could rust through or break up. Anything could happen," he told in Berlin, where he attended a 14-nation meeting on the issue last week. The submarines are decommissioned vessels of the former Soviet fleet, some of which "have been rotting at their piers for several decades", Antipov told Parliament last November. Dismantling them involves removing the highly radioactive reactor compartment, hermetically sealing it to prevent leakage, and eventually transferring it to be stored for decades at a special site which Russia is building, with German help, in the northern region of Murmansk. Antipov said Moscow was concerned about some talk among G8 members of extending the 20 billion programme to cover more countries, diluting the funds available in Russia itself. "It’s reasonable to ask the question: If we can’t help just one country effectively, is there any point in extending efforts to others? The lion’s share of all the dangers, as far as nuclear materials are concerned, is situated in Russia. "We (also) have a huge problem with stocks of chemical weapons, on which this money is also to be spent. If the money isn’t spent here but in Iraq or Nigeria or Ukraine, then solving the security problems in Russia will be put back." Antipov said a large proportion of the promised aid money was being spent ineffectively by donors in their own countries on "various experts, trips and discussions". "It’s a well known problem, it always arises with international aid. We understand they can’t help spending some of this money at home because this work has to be organised. But the question is what proportion — 10, 20 or 60 percent? "Ten to 20 should probably be the upper limit but there are actual facts today to show our partners are spending up to 60 percent at home," he said. As a result, only about 100 million had been spent directly in Russia in the first two years of the 10-year, 20 billion plan, he said — about half on the submarine programme and the rest on securing stocks of chemical weapons. The United States is due to host the next G8 summit next month. The group also includes Canada, Japan, Germany, Britain, France, Italy and Russia. (AGENCIES) |
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33 dead in Amazon passenger plane crash RIO DE JANEIRO, May 16: All 33 people died aboard an airplane that crashed outside a provincial capital in the Amazon, search crews announced late after finding the wreckage. The plane from Rico Linhas Aereas, a major regional airline in northern Brazil, crashed about 20 minutes before its scheduled arrival on late Friday in Manaus, capital of Brazil’s amazonas state. The crash site remained undiscovered until yesterday, when teams of soldiers and firefighters found the wreckage about 16 kilometres from Manaus in an inaccessible region of heavy jungle. The rescue team was forced to Abseil down from helicopters to get to the site where they recovered the bodies of 30 passengers and three crew members as well as the plane’s black box recorder. Brazil’s Civilian Air Authorities are now investigating the cause of the crash. "None of us has any idea why the crash happened," a spokesman from the airline said. All on board were apparently brazilians, including a federal judge and a high-ranking police official. The aircraft was a turboprop-powered Brasilia m120. It took off friday afternoon from Sao Paulo De Olivenca near the Colombian border. Brazil’s Civilian Aviation Authority said Saturday that it was taking over investigations into the cause of the disaster. Weather conditions at the time of the crash were described as "ideal". Another Rico Linhas Aereas plane went down almost two years ago in the state of acre, killing 23 of the 31 people on board. (DPA) |
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Israeli court lifts ban on Gaza home demolitions JERUSALEM, May 16: Israel’s Supreme Court today lifted its temporary ban on the demolition of Palestinian homes in a Gaza refugee camp where the army plans to widen a flashpoint corridor it controls along the Egyptian border. The three-member panel, rejecting an extension of a stay sought by a Palestinian rights group, said the army could carry out such demolitions for security reasons. Seven soldiers were killed in and near the corridor, in Rafah camp, this week. Israeli political sources had said dozens or even hundreds of Palestinian homes in Rafah, on the edge of the "Philadelphi" buffer zone, would be razed to widen the corridor and give soldiers more protection from attack by militants. The court, which had issued its temporary injunction on Saturday, gave the army permission to demolish houses in the camp "according to operational needs" or if the military determined that soldiers’ lives were in danger. A lawyer for the petitioners voiced hope the court’s decision could ultimately limit the scope of destruction. "We are sure that the army will think very carefully about destroying houses in the future. This is a clear decision that there are certain conditions in which houses can be demolished," Attorney Yunes Tamim told reporters. But Colonel Shuki Rinsky, Deputy Commander of the Gaza brigade, told reporters outside the court: "If there will continue to be a danger to soldiers, we will continue to destroy houses without giving prior warning." Rinsky said such a policy would be in adherence to the court’s decision. (AGENCIES) |
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US soldier killed in Afghan ambush, two wounded KABUL, May 16: One American soldier was killed in Afghanistan and two were slightly wounded after their convoy was attacked near Girishk, in the southern province of Helmand, the US military said today. A brief statement said the attack took place late yesterday, and the two wounded soldiers had already returned to duty. One suspect has been detained. The attack appeared to be the same as a clash reported by Afghan officials in an area around 80 km (50 miles) north of Girishk. Helmand Intelligence Chief Haji Dad Mohammad Khan told that three suspected Taliban militants had been arrested after attacking US forces in the area, and that up to 500 Afghan troops were involved in search operations. (AGENCIES) |
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Earthquake rattles Taiwan, no reports of damage TAIPEI, May 16: An offshore earthquake measuring 6.0 on the richter scale rattled eastern Taiwan today, but there were no immediate reports of casualties or damage, officials said. The epicentre of the quake, which struck at 2.04 pm. (0604 gmt), was 64 km (38 miles) east of taitung on the eastern coast, at a depth of 13 km (eight miles), the central weather bureau said in a statement. There were no reports of tidal waves. Earthquakes occur frequently in Taiwan, which lies on a seismically active stretch of the Pacific basin. One of Taiwan’s worst-recorded quakes occurred in September 1999. Measuring 7.6 on the richter scale, it killed more than 2,400 people and destroyed or damaged 50,000 buildings. (AGENCIES) |
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Malaysia sends
hundreds of soldiers to guard KUALA LUMPUR, May 16: At least 1,600 Malaysian soldiers have been stationed along the border with Thailand’s restive south to prevent violence from spilling over, news reports said today. Four military battalions are currently guarding the border "to check the activities of elements who could threaten the security of both countries", said Malaysian Army Chief General Azumi Mohamed. Malaysia was also building two new surveillance outposts to beef up security, Azumi was quoted as saying by the national news agency Bernama. Azumi noted that Malaysia and Thailand share strong military ties. He pledged that officials from both sides would "meet regularly for the exchange of information and intelligence." Malaysia has expressed security concerns in recent weeks after a spate of deadly attacks by suspected Islamic militants on police and security personnel in southern Thai provinces. Officials have warned that the militants might try to cross the border into peninsular Malaysia’s northern states to seek refuge. (DPA) |
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Shrek 2'’ premieres at Cannes film festival CANNES, May 16: The animated movie "Shrek 2" opened yesterday to laughter and applause at the Cannes film festival with many of the stars who provide voices in the movie in attendance. Voice stars Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy, Cameron Diaz, Antonio Banderas and Rupert Everett were present for the premiere of the movie from the dreamworks animation studio. "Shrek 2" is one of two animated movies in competition for the coveted golden palm prize. Also in competition will be Michael Moore’s controversial film "fahrenheit 911" which will be shown at Cannes on tomorrow. The movie lambasts President George W Bush’s handling of the September 11,2001, terror attacks and exposes alleged ties between the Bush and Saudi Arabia, including the family of terror mastermind Osama bin Laden. This year’s jury President is Quentin Tarantino whose own movie "Kill Bill Volume 2" will be shown Sunday with the star of the film, Uma Thurman, in attendance. Cannes observers this year say they have seen a return of the Americans who travelled in noticeably smaller numbers in the two years after the September 11 attacks. (DPA) |
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Tens of thousands of Israelis
call for TEL AVIV, May 16: More than 100,000 Israelis attended a rally yesterday night in central Tel Aviv to call for unilateral withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, police estimated. The rally began with a minute of silence for the 13 Israeli soldiers killed during heavy fighting during the last week in Gaza. The protesters carried blue and white balloons and signs declaring, "the majority decides: leave Gaza, start talking" and "evacuating settlements is choosing life". Leading left-wing politicians, including opposition leader Shimon Peres, addressed the massive crowd gathered on Rabin Square, a site named for assassinated Israeli Premier Yitzhak Rabin who signed the 1993 interim oslo peace agreements with the Palestinians. "This is a rally which expresses the will of five million Israelis against 60,000 likud voters," Peres told the demonstrators. "You are the majority of the people. We will say goodbye to Gaza and to a million and a quarter Palestinians." "We say yes to evacuating Gaza, including the Philadelphi axis" he shouted. Perez was referring to a buffer zone in the southern Gaza Strip along the border with Egypt, over which Israeli premier Ariel Sharon has said he intends to keep control even if his plan to pull out of the Gaza Strip goes ahead. Opinion polls over the weekend indicated that a large majority of Israelis - at least 71 per cent - supports a pullout from Gaza, but members of Sharon’s ruling Likud party rejected the Premier’s unilateral withdrawal plan in an internal referendum two weeks ago, casting doubt over the future of the proposal. (DPA) |
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| India, China plan reciprocal lines of
credit to boost exports BEIJING, May 16: For the first time, the Exim banks of India and China are discussing exchange of reciprocal lines of credit which would further stimulate the booming trade between the two countries, official sources said here. "The Exim banks of the two countries have had an initial exchange of views on exchange of reciprocal lines of credit to finance project exports in each other’s country," chairman and managing director of export-import bank of India, T C Venkat Subramanian told PTI here. China had extended a credit line of USD 100 million last year for financing export of Chinese capital goods to India. Following this, the Exim bank of India was designated as the nodal agency in India to discuss the matter further. "The Exim bank of India, with the approval of the Government of India, has also proposed a reciprocal credit line," Subramanian said, adding the two sides will hold further consultations to finalise the arrangement. He said the Chinese side was studying the Indian proposal since the Chinese Exim bank was not engaged in financing imports unlike the Exim bank of India which does both — financing exports and well as imports. Similarly, he said the two sides should explore the possibility to promote trade finance and bilateral letter of credit confirmation facility which will be useful to boost trade from the current seven billion to 20 billion "within a short period." (PTI) Chances of Pak being re-admitted
to C’wealth LONDON, May 16: Chances of Pakistan being readmitted into Commonwealth next week seems to have waned with Islamabad’s recent decision to deport Shahbaz Sharif, a top Pakistani opposition leader, on his return home, and President Pervez Musharraf’s reluctance to step down as Army Chief, Commonwealth sources said today. Though Britain is pressing member-countries to bring Pakistan back into the Commonwealth-fold, several African nations including Nigeria, Tanzania and Lesotho, seemed to be strongly opposed to the move, the sources said. The nine-member Commonwealth ministerial action group will meet here on Friday and Saturday to decide whether to readmit Islamabad. According to sources, the African nations believe Musharraf should not be allowed to continue in his second role as Army Chief. Pakistan was suspended from the 53-nation Commonwealth in 1999 after Musharraf seized power in a bloodless coup. Officially Britain, which will not take part in the meeting, is backing Pakistan because Musharraf has implemented judicial and democratic reforms. The African nations, however, argue that Pakistan is being rewarded for its cooperation in the war on terror and have accused the Commonwealth of double standards. Several african diplomats are angry that Zimbabwe - which ostensibly has a more democratic Parliamentary system than Pakistan - was not readmitted last year. This decision prompted Robert Mugabe, Zimbabwe’s President, to pull out. (PTI) Powell opposes Israel’s razing of Palestinian homes EAD SEA COAST, JORDAN, May 16: Secretary of State Colin Powell said today the United States opposed Israel’s demolition of Palestinian homes in a Gaza refugee camp and called for an end to the current cycle of violence. "We know that Israel has a right for self-defence but the kind of action they are taking in Rafah with the destruction of Palestinian homes, we oppose," Powell told a news conference in Jordan. "The United States is anxious to do everything it can to stop this cycle of strike and counter strike which has resulted in the loss of so many lives in the last week," he said. Israel’s Supreme Court on Sunday lifted its temporary ban on the demolition of homes in Rafah where the army plans to widen a flashpoint corridor it controls along the Egyptian border. Israeli political sources say dozens or even hundreds of Palestinian homes in Rafah, on the edge of the "Philadelphi" buffer zone, would be razed to widen the corridor and give soldiers more protection from attack by militants. Palestinian militants killed 13 Israeli troops in the Gaza Strip this week, dealing the army its heaviest casualties since 2002. Twenty-nine Palestinians, militants and civilians, were killed during fierce fighting. (AGENCIES) Australia’s wagering group tab rejects Tabcorp bid MELBOURNE, May 16: Wagering Group Tab Ltd said on Sunday it has decided to reject a a 2.07 billion ( 1.45 billion) takeover bid from Australia’s largest gaming company, Tabcorp Holdings Ltd. "The board’s view is that the tabcorp offer is inadequate and does not recognise the material improvements in tab’s businesses in the past six months," Tab said in a statement. Tab, which hired an independent expert to assess Tabcorp’s bid, said the expert had valued 100 percent of Tab’s ordinary shares on a stand-alone basis at between a 4.84 and a 5.09 a share. That is above Tabcorp’s bid, currently valuing Tab at a 4.58 a share. Tab’s shares closed on Friday at a 4.58. Tabcorp shares ended at a 12.90 on Friday. Tab had been the subject of a hotly contested takeover battle between Unitab Ltd and Tabcorp since October. But last month Tabcorp was the only bidder left after it struck a deal with Unitab to carve up Tab’s assets, subject to Tabcorp’s bid succeeding. (AGENCIES) |
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