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Friday,
March 7, 2003, Chandigarh, India  
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USA asks two UN-based Iraqi diplomats to leave Washington, March 6 Warplanes of a US-British coalition patrolling the skies over southern Iraq today struck two air defence facilities in response to hostile fire, the US military announced.
Pope sends emissary to avert war US academicians take to media-bashing Khalid met Osama last month: Pak officials |
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Pak army gets Hatf-IV missile Bush urges Pak to reduce tension
with India
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USA asks two UN-based Iraqi diplomats to leave United Nations, March 6 The two Iraqis, identified as Nazih Abdul Latif Rahman and Yehia Naeem Suaoud, were designated as attaches but were not accredited to the United Nations. The two attaches were “engaged in activities outside the scope of their official functions. The federal law enforcement authorities deemed their activities to be harmful to our national security,” the US State Department said. Rahman and Suaoud, who received the expulsion orders on Tuesday evening, were asked to leave the USA within 72 hours. Iraqi Ambassador to the UN Mohammed Aldouri said the two expelled men were working as security guards. He denied that the two attaches indulged in activities in contradiction of their activities, asserting they spent all their time inside the mission and had no time to indulge in other activities. US officials also said that Washington had asked some 60 governments to expel around 300 Iraqi intelligence personnel, asserting that they were threat to the American personnel working outside the country. Diplomats say the USA had made a similar demand from other countries prior to the 1991 Gulf war.
PTI |
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Iraq war from March 17: paper London, March 6 The newspaper, quoting unnamed Westminster sources, said British officers based in Kuwait had been told to expect an invasion on that date, preceded by a massive “short and sharp” air blitz on Iraq from March 13.
Reuters |
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Iraq destroys six missiles
Baghdad, March 6 |
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Iraqi air defence facilities bombed Washington, March 6 The fighter jets unleashed their precision-guided weapons at a mobile surface-to-air missile system and an anti-aircraft artillery site located approximately 385 km west of Baghdad, according to the Central Command. The command did not say whether the bombs had reached their targets. “The coalition executed today’s strike after Iraqi forces moved the highly mobile SAM system below the 33rd parallel into the southern no-fly zone where it was a threat to coalition aircraft supporting Operation Southern Watch, and after Iraqi forces fired anti-aircraft artillery at coalition aircraft,” the command said in a statement.
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Pope sends emissary to avert war Washington, March 6 The exchange came in Mr Bush’s closed-door meeting with Cardinal Pio Laghi, a former Vatican ambassador to the USA and Bush family friend. It coincided with Ash Wednesday, which marks the start of Lent, the 40-day period of Christian penance and spiritual renewal leading up to Easter. Mr Bush told the Roman Catholic envoy in a 40-minute meeting that “if it comes to the use of force, he believes it will make the world better,” said the White House spokesman, Mr Ari Fleischer, who attended the meeting. “Removing the threat to the region will lead to a better, more peaceful world in which innocent Iraqis will have a better life.” Mr Laghi came bearing the Pope’s message: a war would be a “defeat for humanity” and would be neither morally nor legally justified.
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US academicians take to media-bashing More than 24 journalism school deans and professors, independent editors, journalists and authors have come down heavily on American media coverage of Iraq disarmament and war preparations for failing to protest and contest aggressively government control of access to information. In an open letter sent on Tuesday to major media editors and publishers, they said: “The media should never confuse patriotism to obeisance and a rubber-stamp mentality.” Among the shortcomings in the media coverage, the letter cited the “horse race syndrome” and highlighting tactics over political analysis, failure to maintain an arms-length relationship with the government, failure to question the official story and failure to present a diversity of viewpoints. “Endlessly, repeated news features with titles like ‘Showdown with Saddam Hussein’ present a grave matter as though it were a high-stakes sports contest... There is a duty to seek out and quote the many experts who express scepticism about claims by the state, rather than simply to rely on the same pundits repeatedly,” the letter said. |
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Khalid met Osama last month: Pak officials Islamabad, March 6 Following Mohammad’s arrest and his interrogation, Pakistani officials claimed that he had provided them with most solid proof that Bin Laden was alive. “There is no doubt that he is alive and well. We have evidence to show that he is alive,” the officials were quoted as saying by a media report here. The officials said they came to the conclusion that Bin Laden was alive, after indications that Muhammad met him last month. They, however, did not reveal whether the meeting took place in or outside Pakistan. Media reports earlier said Bin Laden was believed to be hiding in tribal areas located between Pak-Afghan border. However, Pakistani officials said they believed that Bin Laden had certainly moved to a new hideout after Mohammad’s arrest. “We believe that he has changed his hideout and moved away. He keeps shifting. He surely knows that Khalid Muhammad has been captured and will avoid moving to places he knew about”, they said. It was Mohammad’s arrest that led to the information that some of Bin Laden’s wives and children lived in Iran, the officials said. Mohammad along with his unidentified Arab associate has been handed over to the USA.
PTI |
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Pak army gets Hatf-IV missile Islamabad, March 6 |
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Bush urges Pak to reduce tension with India Washington, March 6 During the five-minute call, Mr Bush told General Musharraf of the “need to continue to reduce tension along the Line of Control and the need to avoid violence,” said Sean McCormack, White House National Security Council spokesman, yesterday. It was the second conversation between Mr Bush and General Musharraf this week.
Reuters |
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11 Palestinians killed in raid
Jerusalem, March 6 Two Israeli soldiers were injured in the operation. The military offensive came hours after a suicide bomber killed 15 persons and wounded over 50 in a bus in the port city of Haifa. Earlier, the new political security Cabinet, gathered after the Haifa blast, approved a defence establishment request to carry out more operations against the terror structure in the territories, Israel Radio reported.
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