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Victims of 9/11 remembered in silence
Israel okays last Gaza pullout
Indian doctors work overtime for Katrina-hit
Al-Qaida plotted to kill Blair
Koirala breaks rib
in scuffle with police
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Pak anti-graft court orders Zardari's arrest
Iran 'won't' suspend nukes
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Victims of 9/11 remembered in silence
New York, September 11 President George W. Bush observed the hushed tribute on the lawn of the White House at 8.46 am (6.16 IST) — the time the first hijacked plane smashed into the World Trade Center. At Ground Zero in New York, the focus of today’s commemorative events, friends and relatives of the victims, together with dignitaries, emergency workers and community leaders, also bowed their heads in remembrance. “Again, we are a city that meets in sadness,” said New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg. “We come here to remember the names of those we lost four years ago. The greatest honour we can do them is to remember them, not just as they were in death, but as they were in life,” Mr Bloomberg said. After the minute’s silence, brothers and sisters of the victims began reading the 2,749 names of those who died in the trade center’s twin towers. Ceremonies were also held at the Pentagon for the 184 persons who died in the attack there, and in the field in Pennsylvania where a fourth airliner carrying 44 persons crashed after passengers staged a rebellion against the hijackers. Meanwhile, mourners worldwide marked the anniversary today with memorials and calls for peace. In Italy, Pope Benedict XVI marked the anniversary by calling for a global renunciation of hatred and for men and women to build a world of justice and peace. “Today, 11 September, we remember the victims of terrorist violence throughout the world,” Pope Benedict said today from the papal summer palace at Castel Gandolfo, south of Rome. “May God inspire men and women of goodwill everywhere to renounce hatred and to build a world of justice, solidarity and peace.” In Germany, a memorial service was held for the victims of September 11 and Hurricane Katrina in Berlin’s Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church, a landmark left only partly restored after suffering bomb damage in World War II - as a reminder of the evils of war. US Ambassador William Timken was attending the inter-faith service. Some 50,000 persons took to the streets in the southern Russian city of Volgograd to mark the anniversary, forming a 40-km human chain, news reports said. Marchers chanted “We choose peace!” and “No to terrorism,” Russia’s Interfax and RIA Novosto news agencies said.
— AFP, AP |
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Israel okays last Gaza pullout
Jerusalem, September 11 A cabinet communique said ministers also approved removing forces from Gaza's flashpoint southern border with Egypt, where Egyptian troops are deployed. After the authorisation by a unanimous cabinet vote, the army was expected to begin completion of its pullout within hours of deciding the fate of 25 synagogues. The army pullout follows Israel's removal of 9,000 Jewish settlers from Gaza and a corner of the West Bank, in its first evacuation of settlements from the land that Palestinians seek for a state, which was captured by Israel in the 1967 War. Meanwhile, Israel cancelled a ‘Gaza handover ceremony’ planned today by its forces, citing a Palestinian boycott of the event. Palestinian leaders would not attend the handover event in protest over a lack of agreement on key isues related to the withdrawal, including control over Gaza’s border crossing with Egypt. Washington : Embattled Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon on Sunday, demanded a Palestinian crackdown on radical organisations such as Hamas as a condition for further progress in the Middle East peace process. But Palestinian leader Mr Mahmud Abbas said his people were "not ready for a civil war." The two leaders made comments in parallel interviews with 'The Washington Post' as the Israeli army prepared to begin its pullout from the Gaza Strip. While underscoring the importance of the Gaza withdrawal, Mr Sharon said it would be premature to take further steps to implement a "roadmap" for peace in the Middle East- a 2002 international plan that called for a series of confidence building measures and the eventual creation of a Palestinian state. "To enter the roadmap, there should be a full cessation of terror, hostilities and incitement," Mr Sharon said. "The Palestinian Authority should dismantle the terrorist organisations, collect their weapons and implement serious reforms in security. Once they take these steps, we will be able to start negotiations along the road map plan,"he said. But Mr Mahmud Abbas said the Palestinian Authority was not prepared to take on Hamas, or other militant Palestinian groups that are particularly strong in Gaza. "We are preparing ourselves and rebuilding our apparatuses," he said. "When we are strong enough, we will say one law for everybody. We are not going to confront Hamas because we aren't ready for a civil war."
— Reuters, AFP |
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Indian doctors work overtime for Katrina-hit
Houston, September 11 Ever since the weary, sick and desperate evacuees were shifted to Houston from New Orleans for refuge last week, various doctors, nurses and para-medics from different specialities like general practice, internal medicine, family medicine, OB/Gyn, opthomology, paediatrics and psychiatry are working overtime to heal their wounds and bring a smile on their faces. The Indian Doctors Association (IDA) of Houston made it possible by working with the Harris County Medical Society (HCMS) — the largest society out of the 119 medical societies in Texas. “Amazingly within few hours, doctors from various specialities poured their heart and time out to help our community. Some even cancelled their schedules just to help the needy,” said Mr Rakesh Mangal, president of the IDA. “Many Indian doctors were ready to come to Houston fromas far as from California, Pittsburg and New York to be a part of this noble cause,” he said.
— PTI |
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Al-Qaida plotted to kill Blair
London, September 11 Ex-metropolitan Police Commissioner John Stevens, who was Britain's most senior officer, said officers had learned that Al-Qaida snipers intended to kill Blair and his wife Cherie, in front of a major parade through the Capital in June 2002. In extracts of his new autobiography serialised in today's, News of the World newspaper, Stevens, who retired in January, said the plot was foiled after a huge covert operation was carried out to protect the
Blairs. ''I felt acutely nervous as the procession approached,'' Stevens said. ''I was constantly scanning faces in the crowd looking for signs of trouble, he said.
— Reuters |
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Koirala breaks rib
in scuffle with police
Kathmandu, September 11 The police fired tear gas shells and used batons to disperse protestors during the agitation. Mr Koirala, President of the Nepali Congress, briefly fell unconscious during the tussle with the police trying to arrest him. He was detained and taken to a hospital by the police. Mr Koirala was later released. Earlier on Thursday, Indian Ambassador to Nepal Shiv Shanker Mukherjee visited Koirala's to enquire about his health.
— PTI |
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Pak anti-graft court orders Zardari's arrest
Islamabad, September 11 Zardari, who is currently recovering in a US hospital after undergoing angioplasty, is charged with several cases of corruption while awarding
government contracts in the 80s, when his wife was in power. His lawyers said they filed an application seeking his exemption from the court as he had gone abroad for medical treatment, but the court rejected
it. The court had last week cancelled Zardari's bail in view of his continued absence, ignoring pleas of his lawyer that his client was undergoing treatment in the US. The warrant came as President Pervez Musharraf described Bhutto's Pakistan Peoples' Party, of which Zardari is a leading figure, as an important part in Pakistan politics.
— PTI |
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Iran 'won't' suspend nukes
Tehran, September 11 "There is no legal basis to send the dossier to the Security Council. This would be a political move. We do not see a serious sign that this will happen," Mr Mottaki said at his first press conference.
— AFP |
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The United States paused for a moment of silence today, as the country recalled the horror of the September 11 terrorist attacks four years ago that claimed nearly 3,000 lives, even as mourners worldwide marked the day.
