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Israeli troops kill 5
Palestinians Afghan minister assassinated Window on Pakistan LTTE frees 35 child
soldiers Al-Zawahiri didn’t visit Australia, says
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2 US soldiers killed Anti-war protesters hold marches across USA
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Israeli troops kill 5 Palestinians Gaza, March 21 They said a senior member of the Islamic militant Hamas group and his mother were among the five killed in the predawn raid on Abassan village. No further details were immediately available on the other three. Medics said at least 10 other Palestinians were wounded in the raid. An army spokeswoman confirmed that one Palestinian was killed in a raid in the Gaza Strip. She said troops had mounted a predawn operation to arrest a Hamas militant on the outskirts of Khan Younis refugee camp. The Palestinian fled into nearby Abassan village, and troops gave chase. “When he ignored orders to stop, he was shot, and blew up. He may have been wearing a bomb belt,” she said. In Abassan, troops exchanged fire with militants, witnesses said. The army spokeswoman said there were no Israeli casualties. —
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Afghan minister assassinated
Kabul, March 21 The assailants shot Sadiq, son of Herat’s powerful Governor Ismail Khan, in his car in Afghanistan’s main western city, presidential spokesman Khaleeq Ahmed said. Heavy gunbattles broke out after the killing, with the police saying fighters loyal to Khan were battling soldiers of the senior local military commander, Zaher Naib
Zada.— AP
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Window on Pakistan US Defence Secretary Collin Powell’s declaration to grant “non-ally” status to Pakistan as part of NATO has raised some scepticism in the Pakistani media. While there is happiness that vis-a-vis India this would mean that the old best pal relations since the days of CENTO and SEATO are back, it comes at a very heavy price. Pakistan has to fight its own people in the North-Western Frontier Province and pay a heavy price. Also, American interests are now not confined to Pakistan as a frontline state but are more deeply dug in India where it has more economic and political stakes. Writing on the hot subject, Dawn wrote, “According to Powell, ‘non-NATO ally’ status will enable Pakistan and the USA to have opportunities for greater participation in economic, political and military-to-military activities”. In fact, to quote the Secretary, “there’s no limit to what we can do together”. The traditional alliance with the USA has not been without a cost. Pakistan suffered isolation among the non-aligned states and was alienated from the communist bloc.” Dawn also opined, “Situated in South Asia at the meeting place of Central Asia, South-West Asia and the Gulf, Pakistan can make a positive contribution to the peace and stability of the region in which America has vital economic and geopolitical interests.” Adding, “Pakistan should be sought out as a friend and partner by virtue of its strength as a vibrant economy and as a politically dynamic, forward-looking society rather than for its location or military value alone.” Daily Times looked at the whole issue not from a Pakistani prospective but as part of the strategic alliance worldwide and the gains which much accrue. It wrote, “The important thing here is to see whether Pakistan’s relations with the USA fulfil the country’s interests. Let’s take some specific issues. Is Al-Qaida and its local patrons a threat to Pakistan or not? We need to be clear on this score. If Al-Qaida is a threat, which is what the entire international community thinks it is, then the policy to go after it is correct. Should Pakistan have gone against the international consensus on Afghanistan and the Taliban? Was Pakistan in step with the rest of the world on its Kashmir policy that revolved around support for militant groups? It is no use to quibble on the basis of the moral rightness of Pakistan’s cause because the issue is linked to realpolitik.” Daily Times’ argument was: “The United States wants to have good relations with Pakistan because its previous policy of cutting off this country hurt its interests. That is a good development. Powell’s statements, while in Islamabad, reflect this US understanding. But this does not mean the USA would court Pakistan at the cost of its relations with India. It would try to strike a balance. Pakistan, for its part, will have its own multi-layered relations with the USA. For instance, it will be sensitive to US concerns on non-proliferation but will not cap or roll back its nuclear and missile programmes.” The Nation was more worried as it thought, “As time passes, an impression is getting formed that Islamabad has got itself entrapped, at the US prodding, into what may become a quagmire in the tribal areas.” What use would be the new status with NATO. “The government believes a high value target, presumably Osama bin Laden’s second-in-command Aiman al Zawahri is holed up in the area. While Pakistani officials seemed to be jubilant over the prospects of arresting or eliminating him the signals emanating from Washington indicate that even if the Al-Qaida leader is hauled up, pressure will continue to be exerted on Pakistan to do more. There are two major dangers Pakistan could face if the army continues operations in the tribal areas. The warning by a senior NWFP minister that the action might lead to a guerrilla war inside the tribal areas must not be taken lightly. So far more Pakistanis have been killed in South Waziristan than foreigners.” |
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LTTE frees 35 child soldiers Colombo, March 21 The child soldiers between the ages of 12 and 18 were handed over to the custody of the UNICEF in the north-eastern port district of Trincomalee. “The UNICEF will begin work immediately to reunite the children with their families and reintegrate them back into their communities,” the UNICEF said in a statement. However, UNICEF spokesman Geoffrey Keele said they were concerned that the Tigers continued with the practice of underage recruitment. “Since the LTTE and the government signed the Action Plan for Children Affected by War on June 16, 2003, the LTTE has continued to recruit more children into its ranks each month in all eight districts of the North and East than the number that they released,” Keele said. “This is simply unacceptable and all recruitment must cease now if the children of this country are to have a better future and the LTTE is to live up to its commitments under the action plan.” Last month, the Tigers freed 33 underage combatants in three batches. But the UNICEF said it had the names of 1,301 children, some as young as 10 years old, still in Tiger ranks at the end of last year. The Tigers have not admitted recruiting children, but said there were youngsters volunteering to carry out the LTTE political and administrative work as they were unable to make a living elsewhere in the impoverished region. —
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Al-Zawahiri didn’t visit Australia, says minister Sydney, March 21 Al-Zawahiri, now the quarry in a massive manhunt on the Afghanistan-Pakistan border, is reported to have visited Australia, New Zealand, the Philippines and Indonesia in the mid-1990s on an Al-Qaida recruitment drive. Downer said neither the spy agency ASIO nor the Australian Federal Police had any information on Al-Zawahiri’s alleged visit. ‘’We have no information on it,’’ he told Australia’s ABC television. ‘’So I must say I think it’s highly unlikely that the claim has any credibility.’’ A Pakistani journalist and Bin Laden biographer, Hamid Mir, had claimed that Al-Zawahiri visited the region in the 1990s to extend Al-Qaida’s global terrorist network. —
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2 US soldiers killed Baghdad, March 21 “Two soldiers were lost in action in the vicinity of Fallujah in a rocket attack,” the official told reporters. Seven other soldiers were injured in the incident last night, he said. Added to an official Pentagon tally, the latest deaths raise to 280 the number of US soldiers killed in action since US President George W. Bush declared major hostilities in Iraq over on May 1. —
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Anti-war protesters hold marches across USA New York, March 21 Chanting anti-war slogans, protesters held mostly peaceful demonstrations in New York and around 250 other cities in the country yesterday and said they were protesting the Bush administration’s policies not only in Iraq but also in Haiti and the Middle East. In New York, demonstrators marched in the mid town under the watchful eye of the police, surveillance cameras and at least one police helicopter. However, four persons were arrested for disorderly behaviour. Officials estimated that the demonstrators numbered around 30,000 but organisers insisted their strength at 1,00,000. However, it was much smaller that one organised against war in Iraq 13 months ago. —
PTI |
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Israeli troops killed three Palestinian militants and two bystanders in a Gaza Strip raid that sparked clashes with gunmen, witnesses and medics said.
