Washington, February 1
Iran is supplying Iraqi insurgents with weapons technology used to kill American troops, a senior US diplomat said, sending another warning to Iran against interfering in Iraq.

“We have picked up individuals who we believe are giving very sophisticated explosive technology to Shia insurgent groups who then use that technology to target and kill American soldiers,” Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns said yesterday.

“It’s a very serious situation. And the message from the United States is, Iran should cease and desist.” The United States has been tracking Iranian involvement in in Iraqi insurgent attacks for about two years and has found increasing evidence that Iran has given assistance to Shi’ite in Southern Iraq, Burns said in an interview with NPR taped for broadcast on Thursday.

“They have attacked British soldiers near Basra and they’ve now begun to mount those operations throughout the country - at least in the Baghdad region as well,” Burns said.

Washington officials have charged that Iran is providing Shias with high-grade explosives capable of tearing through the armor on military vehicles.

The Bush administration has repeatedly warned Iran against fuelling violence in Iraq and US forces have detained a number of Iranian officials in raids over the past month.

“We warned Iran privately on a number of occasions over the last year and a half and the Iranians, of course, did not appear to listen to that, so now we’ve begun to detain those Iranian officials,” Burns said in the interview.

“We think it’s absolutely within our rights to do so under Article 51 of the UN charter, which is self-defense.” Washington accuses Tehran of undermining efforts to stabilise Iraq and of pursuing nuclear weapons.

Iran’s ambassador to Iraq, Hassan Kazemi Qomi, told The New York Times this week that Tehran was stepping up its military and economic ties with Baghdad. He also ridiculed evidence the US military said it has which proves Iranian involvement in planning attacks on American and Iraqi forces.

US President George W Bush has stressed he is seeking a diplomatic solution to the dispute over Iran’s nuclear programme, but has vowed to respond firmly if Tehran escalates its military action in Iraq, reviving speculation about a possible US attack on Iran.

Two US aircraft carriers have been stationed in the Gulf as a warning to 
Iran. — Reuters 

Islamabad, February 1
The US administration today explicitly stated that it would oppose provisions in the new Congressional legislation which seek to restrict military assistance to Pakistan.

The administration’s announcement comes a day after Pakistan described the proposed legislation, which is yet to be taken up by the US Senate, as unbalanced.

In a strongly-worded statement, the US Embassy in Pakistan stated that “the US Administration opposes provisions in the bill that will restrict assistance to Pakistan based on a certification requirement that the Pakistani government is making all possible efforts to combat the Taliban in areas bordering Afghanistan”.

The bill, passed by the House of Representatives, addresses a wide range of issues relating to the recommendations of the 9/11 Commission and calls for stopping US military assistance to Pakistan if Islamabad fails to halt the Taliban’s resurgence in its territory.

The proposed legislation also urges the US President to certify that Islamabad is making efforts to prevent the Taliban from operating in areas under its sovereign control, including the cities of Quetta and Chaman, before releasing any funds or approving licenses for enhancing its military capability.

The statement affirms the Administration’s support to the underlying intent of the bill, but at the same time, it has serious concerns with several of the bills provisions and does not support them in its current form.

“The United States and Pakistan are not only allies in the war on terror, but partners engaged in building a broad, long-term strategic relationship,” the statement stressed, eulogising Islamabad’s commitment to cooperate with US counter-terrorism efforts.

It says that any conditionality would be counterproductive to one of the important goals in the bill, fostering a closer relationship with Pakistan. — UNI 

Cancun (Mexico), February 1
He is called “Super Tonio,” and at a whopping birth weight of 6.6 kg, the “little” fellow is causing a sensation in this Mexican resort city.

Cancun residents have crowded the nursery ward’s window to see Antonio Vasconcelos, who was born early Monday by Caesarean section at Jesus Kumate Rodriguez hospital. The baby drinks 5 ounces of milk every three hours, and measures 55 cm in length.

“We haven’t found any abnormality in the child, there are some signs of high blood sugar, and a slight blood infection, but that is being controlled so that the child can get on with his normal life in a few more days,” Narciso Perez Bravo, the hospital’s director, said yesterday.

In Brazil, a baby born in January 2005 in the city of Salvador weighed 7.6 kg at birth. According to the Guinness World Records, the heaviest baby born to a healthy mother was a boy weighing 10.2 kg, born in Aversa, Italy, in September 1955.

Antonio’s mother, Teresa Alejandra Cruz and father, Luis Vasconcelos said they were proud of the boy, and noted that Cruz had given birth to a baby girl seven years ago who weighed 5.2 kg.

“It’s good, because now with this one, we’ll have a pair of big babies,” said Vasconcelos. — AP

London, February 1
The British police questioned Prime Minister Tony Blair for a second time in their probe into political party funding, Blair’s spokesman said today.

The spokesman said the Premier was questioned as a witness last Friday at his Downing Street office. He was first questioned in December.

The police is investigating whether Labour and other parties promised Lordships — state honours that come with seats in the unelected Upper House of Parliament — in return for loans.

“Last Friday, the Prime Minister was briefly interviewed by the police as a witness,” the spokesman told reporters.

Blair’s spokesman said the meeting with detectives had been kept confidential until now at the request of the police.

The spokesman said Mr Blair was not under caution during the interview which lasted under an hour. He declined to disclose any details of the meeting. — Reuters

Beijing, February 1
A smart hen who can do calculations and kiss is the toast of Shenyang, capital of northeast China’s Liaoning Province.

Guai Guai, who is six months old, is attracting hoards of locals who wanted to see her performing the tricks.

“What is 8 plus 2?” asks a woman surnamed Li, the hen’s owner, pointing at numbers on a piece of paperboard. Guai Guai pecked the number 10 as the answer.

“What is 9 minus 4?” and Guai Guai pecks the number 5.

Every time the hen made the right answer, Li gave her a treat French fries, ‘China Daily’ reported.

Guai Guai can also recognise the names of some fruit, cars and animals.

Her most amazing feat is kissing her owner. When Li extends her lips toward the hen, Guai Guai will give her owner a slight peck on the lips.

“I regard the hen as my own daughter,” said Li.

Li bought the hen from a local market and found her quite smart days later.

Once when Li happened to drop a coin on the ground, the hen picked it up right away and gave it back to her owner. From then on, Li began to train the hen.

After being trained for only five days, Guai Guai learned the English letters A, B, C and D.

Now she has three classes every day and, Li said, loves learning.

Li also has two dogs, but the hen is her favourite.

“It seems that Guai Guai knows I love her most, so she always teases the two little dogs at home,” Li said. “She is the queen at home.” Li said the hen has brought great joy to Li’s family and her neighbours. — PTI 

Washington, February 1
The Bush administration is proposing to nearly double the cost of becoming an US citizen and drastically raise the cost of becoming a legal permanent resident.

Citizenship and Immigration Services, a division of the Department of Homeland Security, announced today it wants to raise the application fee for citizenship from $330 to $595 and the fee for becoming a legal permanent resident from $180 to $1,370.

Applicants now pay a $70 fingerprinting fee, and the agency wants to raise that to $80. Fees also are paid for things such as work permits, replacing lost green cards and petitions to adopt orphans from other countries. The proposed fee increases would not be final until after a public comment period.

Large fee increases would be heavily felt in the Asian community, where two-thirds of the population in the US is foreign-born, said Traci Hong, director of the immigration programme for the Asian American Justice Centre. — AP