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Tuesday, August 04, 2009 KABUL: Amid intense public criticism for not providing enough equipment for troops fighting in Afghanistan, the UK is sending aircraft to the war-torn country that fails to assist the troops. Pilots say the fleet of six Merlins helicopters --due to go to Helmand in December-- are not properly equipped to take part in combat missions against Taliban because they are not armour-plated. The helicopters to be used to move troops and kit around the restive province lack Kevlar armour, The Daily Telegraph revealed Tuesday. The Merlins --which are successful at negating the threat from surface-to-air missiles-- are vulnerable to bullets and rocket attacks while landing. Pilots believe that the lack of protection will endanger the lives of passengers and crew. "We are going to send aircraft out to Afghanistan that are lacking in the required protection. It will be the same as driving a Land Rover along a road full of mines", a Merlin fleet source told the Bri...

August 04, 2009 CAIRO: Osama bin-Laden's deputy said in a video message released Monday that the al-Qaida leader's offers of a truce with the U.S. and Europe remained on the table, though he ridiculed President Barack Obama as "the new face of the same old crimes."In a video posted on an Islamic militant Web site, al-Qaida's No. 2 leader, Ayman al-Zawahri, scorned the American president over the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and the U.S. approach to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.Nonetheless, al-Zawahri said "fair" truces offered by bin-Laden were still valid.In 2004, bin-laden offered a truce to European countries that do not attack Muslims. Two years later, he offered the American people a "long-term truce" without specifying the conditions, though in that same audio recording he also warned that his fighters were preparing new attacks in the United States."These offers were dealt with impolitely but are still valid, and the offer is fa...

Tuesday, August 04, 2009 GENEVA: At least 46 journalists have died while reporting the news in 21 countries this year, with Somalia and Mexico the most dangerous places for media, according to the International News Safety Institute (INSI).But the Brussels-based body, which tracks killings and deaths of journalists and their aides around the world, said the once-high casualty rate in Iraq was dwindling rapidly with the relative decline in violence in the country.Up to the end of July, six Somali reporters for local and foreign news organisations had been killed, while two journalists taken hostage in 2008 remained in captivity 11 months later, INSI said."But the situation in Mexico is causing grave concern with at least three deaths confirmed and three more under investigation," said the organisation, which is backed by major media and professional bodies around the globe.Three journalists had each died in Pakistan, Iraq and Philippines, it said. INSI noted a key media body i...

Tuesday, August 04, 2009 KANDAHAR: Suicide and rocket attacks killed five people and wounded more than 20 others across Afghanistan on Tuesday, fanning security fears just over two weeks before elections. A provincial governor survived an assassination attempt just 10 kilometres (six miles) outside the Afghan capital Kabul and eight rockets slammed into the city, wounding a child and adult, authorities said. In the southern province of Zabul, a suicide attacker walked up to an intelligence agency vehicle in a busy bazaar and blew himself up, killing one of the agency's staff and four civilian passers-by, police said. There was no immediate claim of responsibility but the attack was similar to scores carried out by the Taliban, which routinely bombs security services in a bloody insurgency that reached record levels this year. Sixteen civilians, including three children, two agency staffers and a policeman were wounded, deputy provincial police chief Ghulam Jailani Khan said. Zabul ...

Tuesday, August 04, 2009 MUMBAI: They were once a feared presence on set, keeping an eye on their daughters to protect them from roving eyes or hands. But the days of Bollywood heroines being chaperoned by their mothers are numbered."Mummy-ji", as everyone from the director downwards always called her, is becoming a thing of the past, as actresses in India's popular Hindi-language film industry prefer to forge and manage their careers alone."I think the prime reason is because our industry has become more corporate and sleazy people have disappeared," said Celina Jaitley, the daughter of an Indian army colonel, whose first break was in the 2003 hit film "Janasheen"."Heroines are more confident to decide their lives on their own, unlike in the past," the 29-year-old former Miss India added.Bollywood has changed almost beyond recognition in recent years, not least in that it is now considered a profession worthy of girls from respectable famili...

, Tuesday, August 04, 2009 JOHANNESBURG: Health officials say that a college student has become the first South African to die from swine flu.The 22-year-old male student from the University of Stellenbosch, near Cape Town, died July 28 after being sick for a week.Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi said that the H1N1 virus was confirmed as the cause of death Monday.The student went to the campus clinic with flu symptoms but was later admitted to a private hospital. He was treated for pneumonia but did not recover.There have been more than 500 swine flu cases reported in South Africa since mid-June. Some schools in Johannesburg have temporarily closed after pupils tested positive for swine flu.

Tuesday, August 04, 2009 KABUL: Eight rockets struck the Afghan capital Tuesday, including one that landed near the US embassy, wounding a man and a child, the government said.The Taliban claimed responsibility for the dawn attacks, saying its fighters targeted Afghan soldiers and the Kabul international airport. Eight rockets landed in various parts of the city, at least one of them in the US embassy's neighbourhood and others near the airport and in the east, the interior ministry said. One child was wounded from shattered glass and a man was also hurt, but it was unclear how, ministry spokesman Zemarai Bashary told foreign news agency. A ninth rocket was discovered and defused, he said.

, Tuesday, August 04, 2009 NEW DELHI: India reported its first death due to H1N1 flu infection, with a 14-year-old-girl from Pune succumbing to the deadly influenza virus. The girl, a student of class IX from St Anne’s High School first showed symptoms of H1N1 infection sore throat, running nose and headache on July 21. But a critical delay in being tested for H1N1 infection and being administered Tamiflu, because she was admitted in a private hospital instead of the stipulated government isolation ward meant for both suspected and confirmed H1N1 patients, may have been the cause of her death. Union health minister Ghulam Nabi Azad told media “Had Tamiflu been administered in the beginning, the girl could have been saved. I advise people to go to government hospitals and get checked for H1N1 even if they have mild symptoms.’’

Tuesday, August 04, 2009 WASHINGTON: Since Mr Obama took office, the rate of threats against the president has increased 400 per cent from the 3,000 a year or so under President George W. Bush, according to Ronald Kessler, author of In the President's Secret Service.Some threats to Mr Obama, whose Secret Service codename is Renegade, have been publicised, including an alleged plot by white supremacists in Tennessee late last year to rob a gun store, shoot 88 black people, decapitate another 14 and then assassinate the first black president in American history.

, Tuesday, August 04, 2009 NEW YORK: The United Nations Working Group on the use of mercenaries expressed concern about the increasing involvement of private military and security companies in Iraq and Afghanistan, including their work protecting mining companies and the effect this has on local communities. “The group expressed concerns on the effects of the increasing phenomenon of the recruitment of nationals from countries in many regions by subsidiaries of transnational private military and security companies with legal personality in another country, and providing services in countries experiencing violent conflict,” it said in a press release. “It expressed concern also on the phenomenon of conflicts involving private companies that provide security to installations and facilities of extractive industries and the effects on local communities and the enjoyment of land rights and a clean environment.”

Tuesday, August 04, 2009 PYONGYANG: Former US president Bill Clinton arrived in North Korea on Tuesday, state media reported from Pyongyang, on an apparent mission to secure the release of two jailed US journalists.Clinton and his party were greeted at Pyongyang's Sunan airport by Yang Hyong Sop, vice-president of the presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly (parliament), and by vice-foreign minister Kim Kye-Gwan, the Korean news agency said.

, Tuesday, August 04, 2009 WASHINGTON: The US military said it wants to speed up production plans for an enormous "bunker buster" bomb, amid international concern over underground nuclear sites in Iran and North Korea. The Pentagon has asked Congress for extra money to ensure the massive ordinance penetrator (MOP) would be ready by July 2010, spokesman Bryan Whitman told reporters. "The department has asked for reprogramming of about 68 million dollars to start production for some of these in 2009," Whitman said. "This will help it accelerate some if it's approved." The weapon, weighing in at 30,000 pounds (13,600 kilograms) and carrying 5,300 pounds (2,400 kilograms) of explosives, would be delivered by the radar-evading B-2 Stealth bomber.

Tuesday, August 04, 2009 KATHMANDU: The single largest opposition party in Nepali Constituent Assembly (CA), Unified Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) (UCPN-M issued an ultimatum to the government to meet their demands within three days or pave the way for the formation of a national government under its leadership. In the Standing Committee meeting of the UCPN-M held at its party office in capital Kathmandu, UCPN-M chairman and former prime minister, Prahanda announced a series of protest program if its demands were not addressed.

Tuesday, August 04, 2009 LONDON: The House of Commons has awarded large pay rises to its most senior officials, some of whom oversaw the MPs’ expenses scandal. Accounts released show that the Clerk to the House, Malcolm Jack, received a pay rise of about 11 per cent, taking his salary from £175,000 to £195,000 – more than that received by the Prime Minister. Andrew Walker, who ran the Fees Office, which administered the expenses, received a rise of about 8 per cent, taking his salary into the £125,000-£130,000 band. Joan Miller, the head of information technology, was awarded the biggest rise, from £95,000 to £110,000 – up 15 per cent. A senior pay panel reportedly approved the pay rises as others in the public sector see their annual salary rises restricted to about 2 per cent. It is unclear whether the rises were agreed under the Commons speaker Michael Martin, who stepped down after the expenses row, or more recently.

Tuesday, August 04, 2009 LONDON: The House of Commons has awarded large pay rises to its most senior officials, some of whom oversaw the MPs’ expenses scandal. Accounts released show that the Clerk to the House, Malcolm Jack, received a pay rise of about 11 per cent, taking his salary from £175,000 to £195,000 – more than that received by the Prime Minister. Andrew Walker, who ran the Fees Office, which administered the expenses, received a rise of about 8 per cent, taking his salary into the £125,000-£130,000 band. Joan Miller, the head of information technology, was awarded the biggest rise, from £95,000 to £110,000 – up 15 per cent. A senior pay panel reportedly approved the pay rises as others in the public sector see their annual salary rises restricted to about 2 per cent. It is unclear whether the rises were agreed under the Commons speaker Michael Martin, who stepped down after the expenses row, or more recently.

Tuesday, August 04, 2009 WASHINGTON: US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called Monday on Iran to ensure the safe return of three missing Americans thought to have been detained by Tehran after straying across the Iraq border.Iranian state television reported Saturday that the Americans had been arrested after "infiltrating" from Iraq, but Clinton said the US government was still to receive official confirmation from Tehran."Obviously, we are concerned. We want this matter brought to a resolution as soon as possible. And we call on the Iranian government to help us determine the whereabouts of the three missing Americans and return them as quickly as possible," Clinton told journalists.Switzerland, which in the absence of US-Iranian diplomatic relations represents American interests in Iran, had been asked to help track them down, she added.State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley told reporters that despite the lack of official confirmation there was no reason to ...

Tuesday, August 04, 2009 MELBOURNE: Australian police launched a major anti-terrorism operation on Monday, detaining several people they said were suspected of plotting an attack in the country.About 400 officers from state and national security services took part in at least 19 pre-dawn raids on properties in the southern city of Melbourne, Victoria state police said in a statement. Police said members of a Melbourne-based group had “been undertaking planning to carry out a terrorist attack in Australia.'' The group was allegedly linked to hostilities in Somalia, the police statement said without giving further details. The Australian newspaper reported the detainees were Islamist extremists who had planned to launch a suicide attack on an Australian Army base. The men were allegedly planning to use automatic weapons to kill as many soldiers as possible before killing themselves, the newspaper reported. Police refused to confirm the report or release any further details, but s...

Tuesday, August 04, 2009 BRUSSELS: NATO will stay in Afghanistan "for as long as it takes," the military alliance's new leader said in Brussels, Belgium, Monday."We will support the Afghan people for as long as it takes -- let me repeat that, for as long as it takes," said Anders Fogh Rasmussen, the former Danish prime minister who became secretary general on August 1.He said success in the country was NATO's top priority, "to help prevent Afghanistan from becoming again the Grand Central Station of international terrorism.""Anyone who believes in basic human rights, including women's rights, should support this mission," he said.But he said the country must take "lead responsibility" for its own security over the course of his five-year term.NATO's International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan has taken a battering in recent months, suffering record casualties as it tries to dislodge Taliban fighters from area...

Tuesday, August 04, 2009 LOS ANGELES: A Los Angeles judge named Michael Jackson's mother as permanent guardian of the star's children Monday, ignoring a surprise late bid by the singer's dermatologist to have a say in their upbringing. Lawyers for Katherine Jackson, 79, and the King of Pop's ex-wife Debbie Rowe had last week agreed details of custody arrangements concerning children Prince Michael, 12, Paris, 11 and Prince Michael II, 7. But what was expected to be a straightforward hearing to approve the agreement on Monday took a bizarre turn when an attorney for Jackson's skin doctor Arnold Klein appeared at the hearing. Lawyer Mark Vincent Kaplan said Klein wanted to "have a voice" in issues concerning the children's "education, healthcare and welfare." Asked repeatedly by Judge Mitchell Beckloff to state what Klein's interest was, Kaplan said it was due to his client's "longstanding relationship with the children and longsta...

Tuesday, August 04, 2009 WASHINGTON: Kuwaiti Emir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmed al-Sabah told US President Barack Obama on Monday that Arab states will act on their peace initiative only once Israel "implements and fulfills its obligations." "I affirmed to President Obama that we are interested in bringing about peace in the Middle East. It is in our interest that peace be brought about," the emir said through a translator as he met with Obama at the White House. The visiting leader noted pan-Arab support for the initiative presented by Saudi Arabia in 2002 and stressed, "We will implement this peace initiative when Israel implements and fulfills its obligations." The Arab peace initiative offers Israel full normalization of ties in return for its withdrawal from occupied Arab land and the creation of a Palestinian state. It also calls for "a just solution to the problem of Palestinian refugees to be agreed upon in accordance with the UN General Assembly Reso...

Tuesday, August 04, 2009 MEXICO CITY: A 6.9-magnitude earthquake struck Monday off the coast of Mexico near Santa Isabel in Baja California, experts from the US Geological Survey said.USGS said the quake struck at 11:00 am (1800 GMT) and was preceded about five minutes earlier by one registering a 5.8 magnitude. There appeared to be no imminent threat of tidal waves from the quakes, USGS said, although individual governments were advised to make their own decisions on whether to issue a tsunami warning. "Earthquakes of this size sometimes generate local tsunamis that can be destructive along coasts located within a few hundred kilometers of the earthquake epicenter," it added."Authorities in the region of the epicenter should be aware of this possibility and take appropriate action."

BUDAPEST: Three Formula One Teams, led by the Williams team, have denied Ferrari it's request to allow retired former World Champion Michael Schumacher time to test drive a 2009 race car in preparation for his return to F1 racing.The Ferrari team had written a letter to the other Formula One teams, asking for an exception to the 2009 rule, which prohibits all in-season testing. Schumacher, who has been retired since 2006, is seeking one day of test driving in the 2009 Ferrari F-60. Michael will be the replacement driver for the injured Felipe Massa in the European Grand Prix in Valencia August 23.Five of the FOTA teams, McLaren Mercedes, Renault, Toyota, BMW Sauber and Brawn GP, had agreed to allow the Ferrari team the exception to the testing ban, considering the special circumstances surrounding the accident and injuries to Felipe Massa, which after all is the reason for Schumacher's return.But the Williams team, along with Red Bull and Toro Rosso, have blocked the Schumache...

Monday, August 03, 2009::SEVILLE, Spain: Aston Villa overcame Italian giants Juventus to win the Peace Cup on penalties on Sunday after both sides had failed to score at the end of extra time. The Italians, who beat Real Madrid 2-1 in Friday's semi-final, put Martin O'Neill's up-and-coming team under intense pressure in a fast-paced game, played in the southern Spanish city of Seville, in which both sides failed to convert a host of chances. In the end, Carlos Cuellar scored for Villa while Nicola Legrottaglie missed the last spot-kick to give the English Premier League side a 4-3 win on penalties. Villa keeper Brad Guzan stopped a lame shot from Italian legend Alessandro del Piero and also saved from Vincenzo Iaquinta while Steve Sidwell and Chris Herd failed to score their penalties for Villa. The Premier League side were without England striker Emile Heskey who was suspended after picking up a red card in the 2-1 semi-final win over Porto. Juve, who finished runners-up ...