 |
|
|
22 Taliban men die in air raid by NATO troops
Pak refuses land route facility to India
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
CIA ex-chief Gates to replace Rumsfeld
Lift embargo against Cuba, UN tells USA
UN chief welcomes Nepal peace deal
Kanishka probe to be delayed
France tests
N-missile
|
|
22 Taliban men die in air raid by NATO troops
South Kandahar, Afghanistan, November 9 They said cluster bombs were dropped in the attack on the district, scene of a major NATO offensive in September in which hundreds of Taliban were killed. A NATO official in Kabul said 20 insurgents were killed in yesterday's raid, but had no further details. District police chief Ghulam Rasool said 22 rebels died. The Taliban said only two guerrillas were killed in the air strike, which they said followed an ambush of NATO vehicles in the province, the birthplace of the radical Islamist movement whose government US-led troops overthrew in 2001. Afghanistan this year is going through its bloodiest phase of violence since the Taliban's ouster. More than 3,100 persons, about a third of them civilians, have been killed in the Taliban-led insurgency and operations by foreign forces this year. Rasool said six more Taliban were killed in an encounter with the police close to Zari today, while several Taliban and the police died during a clash yesterday in Zabul province, adjacent to Kandahar. NATO assumed full security responsibility of Afghanistan from the US-led coalition in September, the biggest military operation in the alliance's history. — Reuters
|
|
Pak refuses land route facility to India
Islamabad, November 9 The Nation reported today that New Delhi had sought permission from Islamabad to use the land route of Wagah border to import sheep from Afghanistan, which costs less. However, India was informed to use the Quetta-Karachi route for this purpose, the paper quoted Commerce Ministry sources as saying. India says the Quetta-Karachi route is more feasible for importing sheep from Afghanistan, they added. Pakistan is likely to cash on its strategic location by providing transit facility to neighbouring countries for passage of their goods consequently earning millions of dollars as transit fee. The decision has been taken after receiving a number of requests from the neighbouring countries to provide them the facility. The policy is under review and one of the donor agencies is also supporting this project. Currently, Pakistan is providing transit facility to Afghanistan under the Afghan Transit Trade Agreement (ATTA) but Islamabad blames the agreement for smuggling of goods into Pakistan. India is constantly demanding that Pakistan allow its goods to reach Afghanistan and CARs markets via land route. As the economies of the CARs are on the rise they also need to have good trade links with the South Asian countries.
— UNI
|
|
CIA ex-chief Gates to replace Rumsfeld
Washington, November 9 US President George W Bush himself announced the change at a news conference after acknowledging that the administration’s handling of the Iraq war played a major role in giving the Democrats control over the House of Representatives in the election. Bush conceded that the Iraqi policy was “not working well enough, fast enough” and it was time for a new perspective." After lots of consultation with Rumsfeld, we agre. “Bob Gates will bring a fresh perspective and good managerial abilities,” he said. Gates, who was Director of the CIA under Bush’s father George H W Bush from 1991 to 93, is a member of the bipartisan group which is considering alternative strategies for Iraq. Democrat representative Nancy Pelosi of California, who is likely to become the Leader of the House, welcomed Rumsfeld’s resignation and said “I think it will give us a fresh start. — PTI
|
|
Lift embargo against Cuba, UN tells USA
United Nations, November 9 possible after defeating an Australian amendment asking Havana to free political prisoners and respect human rights. But the USA, as in the previous years, is expected to ignore the call given in a resolution adopted yesterday by 183 votes to four with one abstention. Israel, Marshall Islands and Palau joined the USA in voting against the resolution while Micronesia abstained. During debate on the resolution, several members, including India, criticised the extra-territorial aspects of the American legislations which targets foreign companies and foreign subsidiaries of American companies doing business with Cuba. — PTI
|
|
UN chief welcomes Nepal peace deal
United Nations, November 9 "The Secretary General heartily welcomes the agreement reached between the seven-party alliance and the Communist Party of Nepal," spokesman Stephane Dujarric said in a statement yesterday. "This agreement offers the people of Nepal a historic opportunity to end the armed conflict in their country, and to build sustainable peace within an inclusive and democratic state," he added. Annan said the United Nations planned to respond quickly to calls to assist in key areas of the peace process in the Himalayan kingdom but urged both sides to "maintain the momentum of the peace process by fully carrying out the commitments they have made." The Maoists rebels declared an end to a decade of armed struggle and renounced violence following the deal with the impoverished nation's ruling parties. The parties and the rebels struck the deal early yesterday after marathon 16-hour talks to end the revolt that has claimed over 12,500 lives since 1996.
— AFP
|
|
Toronto, November 9 Commission counsel Mark Freiman said they will have to postpone until February the testimony of many key witnesses who were scheduled to begin appearing at hearings this month. The process of looking into 21-year-paper trail received a setback when electronic versions of documents that had been censored for national-security reasons and were ready for release were accidentally erased by Justice Department officials. "There has been quite a serious glitch in the uploading of documents and that has resulted in the IT equivalent of 'the dog ate my homework,'" Freiman said early this week. The Justice Department insists that the inquiry staff use its system for managing the relevant government documents due to security reasons. — PTI
|
|
|
| HOME PAGE | |
Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir |
Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs |
Nation | Opinions | | Business | Sports | World | Mailbag | Chandigarh | Ludhiana | Delhi | | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | Suggestion | E-mail | |
