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Syria strike possible by Wednesday: France
Special to the tribune |
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Iran can't access oil money: US
Osama killing: Pak doc’s conviction wrong, says US
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Syria strike possible by Wednesday: France
Paris/Cairo, August 30 "France wants firm and proportionate action against the Damascus regime," he said in an interview to Le Monde daily today. The French parliament is due to meet on Wednesday for an emergency Syria session. Hollande said the British parliament's rebuff would not influence the course of action Paris would take. "Each country is free to choose whether to take part in such an operation or not. That holds true for Britain and France," he said. The French leader, who had vowed to "punish" President Bashar al-Assad's regime for an alleged chemical weapons attack on August 21, said, "There was a body of indicators pointing to the responsibility of the Damascus regime." The US also said it was seeking an "international coalition" for military strikes on Syria over alleged chemical attacks, even as it faced the prospect of unilateral action after the UK rejected involvement in a shock Parliament vote. A UK government motion calling for a strong humanitarian response which may have included military strikes was rejected by 272 votes to 285 late last night after seven hours of impassioned debate in the House of Commons. Cameron, who has been aligned with President Obama in advocating a tough response, indicated after the vote that he would abide by the outcome. The outcome raises serious questions for Obama, who has not yet made a decision on the way forward in Syria but had indicated his administration would need international support for any strike. After failing to win support for an anti-Assad resolution before the UN Security Council, US officials were looking to allies like Britain and France to build a coalition for action in Syria. The White House said after the vote that it would continue to assess its options on Syria. "The US will continue to consult with the UK government, one of our closest allies and friends. President Obama's decision-making will be guided by what is in the best interests of the US," said National Security Council spokesperson Caitlin Hayden. — Agencies
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Bhuttos among those who regret pressure on Syria
Shyam Bhatia In London Some surviving members of the Bhutto family in Pakistan, along with the governments of Russia and China, are among those who regret the pressure on the Assad regime in Damascus which is under pressure from the US and its allies following allegations that it sanctioned the use of chemical weapons. The late President Hafiz Al Assad of Syria, father of current Syrian President Bashar Al Assad, was a personal friend of the late Zulfikar Ali Bhutto who served as both the President and the Prime Minister of Pakistan between 1971 and 1977. On Bhutto's orders, Pakistani military experts helped train the Syrian army and even maintained a Pakistani army contingent in Damascus for several years. When Bhutto was overthrown in a military coup in 1977 and hanged in 1979, his wife and daughter, Benazir Bhutto, were placed under house arrest. But his two sons, Murtaza and his younger brother Shahnawaz, managed to flee across the border to Afghanistan. From there, they found their way to Nice in France. After Shahnawaz died in mysterious circumstances in Nice in 1985, Murtaza looked for a safer refuge and took up President Assad's offer of hospitality in Damascus where he was treated as a state guest. At the time he was eight years older than Assad's older son and chosen successor, Bassel, who later died in a car accident, and 11 years older than the current President, Bashar. It was also in Damascus that Murtaza met and courted Ghinva, his second (Lebanese) wife, and became a familiar figure in the city's luxury hotels. Locals still remember him for his distinctive pistol packed red waistcoat, his fondness for Black Label Scotch and playing pool in one particular hotel's bar. Murtaza returned to Pakistan in 1993 when his sister, Benazir, was serving her second term as the Prime Minister. Tension between the siblings was high because Murtaza believed that he, not his sister, should be the Prime Minister. He was shot dead in controversial circumstances in September 1996. The Benazir's government lost power in 1996 and Benazir herself was assassinated in Rawalpindi in 2007. Benazir's widower and political successor, President Asif Zardari, paid a state visit to Damascus in 2010 when relations between the two countries were revived and strengthened. The bond
* Hafiz Al Assad, former President of Syria and father of current Syrian President Bashar Al Assad, was a friend of late Zulfikar Ali Bhutto who served as both the President and the Prime Minister of Pakistan between 1971 and 1977 *
On Bhutto's orders, Pakistani military experts helped train the Syrian army and even maintained a Pakistani army contingent in Damascus for several years *
Since then, the Bhuttos have good relations with the Assads |
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Iran can't access oil money: US
Washington, August 30 The estimates are the latest indication that new sanctions imposed in February are deepening Iran's economic distress and making it increasingly difficult to access billions of dollars in vital oil revenues. The US government estimates about $1.5 billion of crude oil revenues is piling up in restricted foreign accounts every month now. Crude revenues overall averaged about $3.4 billion monthly in the first half of year, according to the assessment. — AP |
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Osama killing: Pak doc’s conviction wrong, says US
Washington August 30 State Department Deputy Spokesperson Marie Harf said, "We continue to believe that the prosecution and conviction of Dr Afridi sends exactly the wrong message about the importance of this shared interest," Harf told reporters. — PTI |
Plea to bar Zardari from leaving Pakistan Pakistan bans mobile phone packages Morsi supporters hold rally in Egypt Suicide attack kills eight in Afghanistan US envoy to leave for North Korea |
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