Mother of abducted UN official appeals for public help

QUETTA: The mother of an American UN official kidnapped nearly three weeks ago here has urged the public to help secure his release, in an audiotaped message released Saturday by the UN.

John Solecki, head of the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) office in Quetta, was abducted at gunpoint on February 2 while traveling to work. His driver was killed in the ambush.

"My name is Rose Solecki. The UNHCR worker who went missing in Quetta, John
Solecki, is my son. I am appealing to the people of Balochistan for whatever support they can provide to secure my son's safety and freedom," the 83-year old woman said.

"My husband and I spent a wonderful time, meeting his friends in Balochistan," she said on the tape, which was given to a foreign news agency by a local UNHCR official, Baloch Babar, who confirmed that the tape was genuine.

The shadowy Balochistan Liberation United Front (BLUF), which claims to be holding Solecki, has demanded the release of 141 female Baloch detainees they say are in security forces’ custody. The group has also demanded information about 6,000 men "missing" in operations to put down an insurgency in restive Balochistan province, of which Quetta is the capital.

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India's swine flu death rate is increasing

Friday, August 14, 2009 MUMBAI: A 26-year-old woman died Thursday of H1N1 swine flu in the southern city of Bangalore, raising India's death toll from the virus to 20, authorities said.The death was the first reported in India's information technology capital, the Press Trust of India reported.Meanwhile in Pune, the worst-affected in India, two more victims of the virus died Thursday, raising the death toll in that western city near Mumbai to 12, the report said. The victims were an 11-month-old boy and a 75-year-old old woman.US media reported movie halls, schools and colleges were ordered closed Thursday for three days to a week in Mumbai, the commercial and financial capital of the country, as fear of the pandemic spread.Prajakata Lavangare, a spokeswoman for the government of Maharashtra state of which Mumbai is the capital, said similar orders were issued in Pune, which is also located in the state.The woman who died in Bangalore was identified only as Roopa, a teacher in...

Tennis: Clijsters wins US Open, second time

NEW YORK: Kim Clijsters of Belgium won the US Open on Sunday by defeating Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark 7-5, 6-3 in the final.She is the first mother to win a Grand Slam title since Evonne Goolagong in 1980, the victory coming just five weeks after she returned to the sport following a 27-month retirement. She was the first wildcard, man or woman, to win a US Open title in the history of the tournament.

42 killed in wave of Iraq bombings

BAGHDAD: At least 42 people were killed and nearly 100 wounded in a spate of bomb attacks near the restive northern Iraqi city of Mosul and in the capital Baghdad on Monday, police said. In the deadliest single attack, two booby-trapped lorries exploded before dawn in the village of Khaznah, east of Mosul, leaving 25 people dead and 70 others wounded. Thirty-five houses were destroyed in the village, which is home to members of the tiny Shabak community, a sect of Kurdish origin. In Baghdad, two car bombs went off as day labourers were gathering in the early morning hours looking for jobs.The first bomb exploded at Hay al-Amel, in the west of the capital, killing nine people and injuring 46. The second bomb attack in Shurta Arbaa in the north of the city killed seven people and wounded 35 others.

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