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Zero-tolerance for those defying orders
Lawyers call for strike on Monday
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Curbs on media to continue
Reactions
‘A tool to delay poll’
Sharif urges Musharraf to quit
Musharraf’s move may affect US aid to Pak
USA to review aid to Pak
US, UK call for return to democracy
Rice calls for early elections
SAFMA condemns clampdown on media
11 held for plot to kill Fiji PM
73 legal ways to enter UK
UN envoy meets junta go-between
Liberation struggle will continue: LTTE chief
Rogue Indian surgeon to fight extradition
Militants free 211 Pakistani troops Chad frees seven detained Europeans Pilot who bombed Hiroshima dies
Japanese opposition leader quits
“Taj Mahal” sold in US; gets just one-tenth of the price
4 LTTE rebels, 1 soldier killed in Sri Lanka
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Zero-tolerance for those defying orders
Karachi, November 4 “We are going to have a zero-tolerance policy towards miscreants trying to defy the emergency orders and create a law and order situation,” Azhar Ali Farooqi told PTI as the security forces continued to round up Opposition leaders, lawyers and others opposed to the imposition of emergency. Pakistani authorities have already arrested Javed Hashmi the top leader of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif’s PML-N party and cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan since last night besides scores of other activists. Security sources told PTI that there would be a “zero-tolerance” policy regarding Islamic militants. Farooqi said there would be no leniency shown to anyone trying to disturb the law and order situation. “If necessary force will be used to contain miscreants,”
he said. Karachi, Pakistan’s commercial hub, has largely remained aloof to strike calls from opposition parties and lawyers and continues to be the stronghold of the Mutthaida Qaumi Movement, the Urdu-speaking dominated party. The patrolling by police and paramilitary rangers was increased in Karachi today although the people largely appeared unconcerned with the political unrest in the country. Opposition parties have also called a strike in the southwestern province of Balochistan tomorrow. Tariq Mehmood, a leading anti-Musharraf lawyer, told a TV channel before being arrested that many lawyers had been detained.
— PTI
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Lawyers call for strike on Monday
Islamabad, November 4 “We will launch our struggle tomorrow and lawyers will hold rallies throughout the country,” Hamid Ali Khan, a former president of the Supreme Court Bar Association, told IANS here today. He said the lawyers had also decided to boycott the courts. Khan said no lawyer would appear in courts of the judges who had taken oath under the provisional constitution order issued by Musharraf on Saturday. More than 70 judges of the Supreme Court and the four high courts have refused allegiance to Musharraf and did not take oath. Some leading human rights activists also announced to join the lawyers’ movement terming the imposition of emergency as against the fundamental rights and without any reason. Reports said the police raided the main office of the Human Right Commission of Pakistan in Lahore and arrested more than 30 persons when they were holding a meeting to draw future plans to protest the emergency. Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal chief and Jamaat Islami head Qazi Hussain Ahmed also called for a nationwide protest against Musharraf. “People will now come out in the streets and will throw out the military dictator,” he said.
— IANS
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‘Chaudhry’s phone call led to emergency’
Islamabad, November 4 A government official, when asked about the reasons behind the move, said that Justice Iftikhar reportedly informed one of his friends on telephone that the Supreme Court was going to hand down verdict against Musharraf, which was tapped by the secret agencies. The agencies intercepted a call from former CJ's phone few days ago in which he even disclosed the number of judges favouring and opposing this decision, and this forced the top policymakers to devise the emergency plan, the official said. The official, working closely with one of the presidential aides, further said that the government took extra time in execution of this plan so as to make
it safer. "They have been holding clandestine meetings for the last few nights, which cost them almost an extra day than the estimated time to execute the emergency plan," the official disclosed. "Iftikhar Chaudhry told his friend that eight judges gave their opinion against Musharraf, while three others were in his favour," the official said adding that this information was substantial for secret agencies to take the extreme action of emergency imposition. Meanwhile, it was learnt that former premier Benazir Bhutto recommended the name of Justice Abdul Hamid Dogar for the new Chief Justice of Pakistan, The Nation reported.
— ANI
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This is martial law: Bhutto
Karachi, November 4 Bhutto also warned that the controversial move would feed militants and give them "a new lease of life." "Gen Musharraf has given supporters and sympathisers in the regime of the militants a new lease of life. He has extended their tenure," Bhutto told reporters at her Bilawal house. The emergency was imposed not with the stability of the country in mind, she said, adding "Emergency rule is no solution we need to move forward. I am confident the nation will resist this undemocratic step." "The militants need the dictatorship," she said, adding "They feed off each other." She said what Musharraf had done was not declaration of emergency but martial law because he has kept the constitution in abeyance and that he has imposed it as Chief of Army Staff and not as a civilian President. In a point-by-point rebuttal of Musharraf's televised address in which he sought to justify emergency, she said, "I agree with him that we are facing a political crisis, but believe the problem is dictatorship. I don't believe the solution is dictatorship", she said. "I agree with the diagnosis but I don't agree with the cure," the Pakistan People's Party leader said. Bhutto said she would be willing to meet Musharraf if he wanted but would tell him to lift the emergency and restore the constitution which is now in abeyance. She also called on the international community to pressurise Musharraf into removing the emergency law.
— PTI
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Curbs on media to continue
Private TV channels in the country will remain off air till the conclusion of negotiations with owners. Negotiations are on to reach an agreement on a "code of conduct" to be followed by TV channels in view of the imposition of emergency in the country, information minister Mohammad Ali Durrani said here today.
The newly imposed curbs on print media will also stay but the government will also hold talks with representatives of the All-Pakistan News Papers Society (APNS) to ensure the implementation of the code. All private TV channels have been off air since Saturday afternoon shortly before Musharraf clamped down emergency, suspending the Constitution and holding in abeyance fundamental rights, including the freedom of press. Durrani hoped these parleys will be concluded in a couple of days. The minister was responding to questions at a news conference addressed by Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz today. Aziz referred a question to the minister in which he was asked about the clamp down on TV channels and draconian press laws imposed late Saturday night after the promulgation of emergency. Aziz, however, said while the government remained committed to press freedom, the new measures were necessitated to achieve the objectives for which the emergency has been imposed. He said the country faced extraordinary situation and the government expected the press to conduct itself responsibly and let the government overcome the present situation. Aziz had earlier denied speculations of imposition of emergency in a meeting with an APNS delegation on Friday night. He said the government was not contemplating imposition of martial law or emergency and had termed these reports as mere speculations. Informed sources said the government is meeting owners of private channel owners individually and will be pressurising them to submit to the controversial code as a precondition for opening the channel. The organisation of the TV broadcasters is holding an emergency session on Monday to consider the new situation and chalk out a coordinated joint future strategy. In his address to the nation at about midnight, Musharraf criticised elements and anchors in the electronic media for fanning extremism, glamourising and glorifying terrorists and their acts. Musharraf on Saturday promulgated two separate ordinances to impose curbs on print and electronic media that provide heavy penalties and even jail terms. Non-compliance to the new curbs is subject to the discontinuation of newspaper publication for up to 30 days, and in case of television channels up to three years of jail and Rs 10 million fine or both for the broadcast media licensee or its representative and their equipment and premises will be forfeited.
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Reactions
London, November 4 Expressing grave concern over the developments in Pakistan, Commonwealth secretary-general Don McKinnon said imposition of emergency in the country was a step in the wrong direction. “The suspension of the country’s constitution days before the Supreme Court was due to pass judgment on Pervez Musharraf’s re-election as President is a matter of deep concern to the Commonwealth. It is a step in the wrong direction and a serious setback to democracy,” he said. McKinnon said the challenges facing Pakistan at present were widely acknowledged, but suspending constitutional rule and taking arbitrary action against the judiciary were not the answer. “It is essential that the Constitution and the rule of law be restored and the judiciary respected. The Commonwealth also expects that the election due to be held in January 2008 will not be postponed and that Musharraf will abide by his undertaking to relinquish his military office before taking oath as the President for a second term,” he said. McKinnon said he would consult with the chairman of the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group about the latest developments in the country. Pakistan will also be on the agenda of the three-day Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting in Uganda which begins from November 23. — PTI
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New Delhi, November 4 It is clear that a long absence of democratic political process in Pakistan has made it easy for the external elements to thrive, the NGO said in a release here. Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf is using this situation, which is of his own creation, as a pretext to justify his decision. The people of Pakistan have in the recent past have demonstrated very loudly and clearly their preference for a democratically elected government. Musharraf is trying to subvert this popular will which is evident from his sacking of Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammed Chaudhry, deporting former Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on his return to the country, flouting judicial orders and tempering with the Constitution to have a longer run as the President of the country, the release added. Musharraf does not represent the popular will of Pakistan and violence cannot be fought by those who themselves have assumed power through violent and illegal means, it said, adding that emergency is only a tool for Musharraf to delay the impending elections to which the people of Pakistan are looking forward as an opportunity to give themselves a democratic governance. The signatory to the release includes Prabhash Joshi (journalist), Uma Chakraborty, Jamal Kidwai, Khursheed Anwar, Rajendra Yadav (editor of Hans), Ashok Vajpai (poet), Ram Puniyani, Apoorvanand, Manoj Mishra, Kavita Srivastava and Satya Shivraman. — UNI
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Sharif urges Musharraf to quit London, November 4 “I’m talking to my hosts in Saudi Arabia (about returning). The people of Pakistan expect me to come back and play my role and lead the country out of this mess,” he said. Commenting on the US decision to review financial aid to Pakistan following Musharraf’s action, Sharif said, “Just saying that we will review the aid is not enough. I think the western countries, especially the United States of America, must condemn this in the strongest terms and must urge Musharraf to reverse all that he’s done yesterday.” — Reuters
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Musharraf’s move may affect US aid to Pak
New York, November 4 William J Fallon, senior US commander in the Middle East, had warned Musharraf and his top general, a day earlier, that such an action would put the US aid at risk, a media report said today. But, after the declaration of emergency, the report said, there was no immediate action by the Bush administration to accompany the tough talk, as officials monitored the developments in Pakistan. Musharraf’s move has put the White House in ‘wait and watch’ mode with limited options as it saw its carefully laid out plan fall apart, the New York Times reported. The White House was hopeful that the state of emergency will be short-lived and Musharraf will fulfil his promise to abandon his post as Army Chief and hold elections by January 15, an analytical report on the developments in Pakistan said. Since 2001, the US has given Pakistan more than $ 10 billion in aid, mostly to the military. Now, if the state of emergency drags on, the Times said, the Bush administration would face a difficult decision of whether to cut off the aid and risk undermining Pakistan’s efforts to pursue terrorists -- a move which the White House believes could endanger the security of the US. Teresita Schaffer, an expert on Pakistan at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, was quoted as saying that Musharraf’s action is ‘a big embarrassment’ for the administration. But she said there was not much the
US could do. — PTI
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Jerusalem, November 4 Rice, who was speaking to reporters in Jerusalem, also urged Musharraf to call elections and reiterated US displeasure at emergency rule, which she advised against in two phone calls with Pakistan’s President on October 31. “Obviously we are going to have to review the situation with aid, in part because we have to see what may be triggered by certain statutes,” Rice said. “I am disappointed at his decision. I think the decision sets Pakistan back in terms of the considerable progress it had made along the road to democratic change,” she said. Asked whether she regretted that the USA had put so much faith in Musharraf as a leader, Rice responded: “The USA has never put all of its chips on Musharraf.” Pakistan has received about $10 billion aid since 2001, with much of that in counter-terrorism assistance. Sen Joe Biden of Delaware, a Democratic presidential candidate and chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, described the situation in Pakistan as “a real mess” and agreed that the USA aid should be under review. “I’m not sure how much good that military aid we’re giving him to fight the extremists is doing us anyway,” Biden said on CBS News’ “Face the Nation.” “From the brief briefing I got last night (from White House officials), I don’t know that they have any notion of what they’re going to do right now,” he said. — Reuters
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US, UK call for return to democracy
Washington, November 4 "The United States is deeply disturbed by reports that Pakistani President (Pervez) Musharraf has taken extra-constitutional actions and has imposed a state of emergency," State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said in a statement last night. "A state of emergency would be a sharp setback for Pakistani democracy and takes Pakistan off the path toward civilian rule," he said. White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe said "This action is very disappointing." Musharraf needs to stand by "his pledges to have free and fair elections in January and step down as Chief of Army Staff before retaking the presidential oath of office," he said in a statement. In London, British foreign secretary David Miliband expressed grave concern over declaration of emergency saying the country's future depended on ensuring the rule of law. "I am gravely concerned by the measures adopted today, which will take Pakistan further from these goals," he said in a statement.
— PTI
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Rice calls for early elections
Jerusalem, November 4 Rice, on a visit to Israel and the Palestinian territories, said the USA had made it clear to its close ally Pakistan's leaders before emergency rule was announced that such a move would not be supported by it. ''It is in the best interests of Pakistan and its people to make a prompt return to the constitutional course, for there to be an affirmation that elections will be held for a new parliament and for all parties to act with restraint in what is obviously a very difficult situation,'' said Rice. The USA has been pushing hard for Pakistan to go ahead with elections, which were due in January. Pakistan is a close US ally but Rice said she had not yet spoken to Musharraf since he had declared emergency. In August, when Musharraf was considering emergency rule, Rice made two urgent phone calls and urged him not to adopt such measures.
— Reuters
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SAFMA condemns clampdown on media
New Delhi, November 4 As part of clampdown on the media, SAFMA secretary general Imtiaz Alam was detained by security forces in Lahore where he was attending a meeting on human rights. Alam, Editor, Current Affairs with The News daily, was subsequently released and is safe. “Journalists in Pakistan are used to working under such pressure and will emerge out with tenacity,” said Vinod Sharma, secretary general, SAFMA’s India chapter.
— PTI
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11 held for plot to kill Fiji PM
Suva (Fiji), November 4 The 11 were in custody at the central police station in the capital, Suva, said Fiji’s police commissioner, Capt Esala Teleni. “We have rounded up individuals in the alleged plot in the assassination of the Prime Minister and others,” he told reporters. Teleni said the alleged plotters included prominent members of political parties who want to “bring about instability and conduct insurgent activities in Fiji.” “The plot is said to be well-planned, rehearsed and possibly numerous training (sessions) have been conducted by individuals. The real threat of the use of arms and explosives was imminent,” he said. Bainimarama led a bloodless coup last December that ousted then Prime Minister Laisenia Qarasem, and then appointed himself interim Prime Minister. Fijian authorities said they expected to make further arrests over the next few days as investigations continued. Officials did not confirm whether any of those arrested had been charged in relation to the alleged plot. Businessman Ballu Khan, a New Zealand passport holder, was among the first to be detained. Local news reports said he was beaten by police after being taken into custody, but Teleni declined to comment on the allegations.
— AP
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73 legal ways to enter UK
London, November 4 Some schemes, such as those for music students and riding school pupils, allow migrants to combine studying with part-time work, 'The Daily Telegraph' reported here today. Among the 73 are special programmes for diplomats' household servants; sportsmen and entertainers; and employees of the Jewish Agency. Students who need to rewrite examinations or write up a thesis are specially provided for. According to official statistics, among 713,000 foreigners who came to work in Britain last year, the leading nationalities were Indians (49,000), Slovakians (29,000), Pakistanis (25,000) and Australians (24,000). A Home Office spokesman admitted that the system was 'quite complex'. "The separate schemes are due to be replaced by 2009 with a single 'points-based system', which would make the controls efficient, easier to understand, and stronger. "Under the 'points-based system', all applicants will be allocated to one of only five tiers: highly-skilled individuals; skilled workers; low-skilled workers to fill temporary labour shortages; students; and short-term workers allowed in for 'non-economic' reasons. In fact, the publication of the list followed a bruising week for the ruling Labour Party, in which a minister had to apologise for getting his figures wrong and town hall chiefs complained they're struggling to cope with the influx. It may be mentioned that Peter Hain, the Work and Pensions Secretary, was forced to admit last week that the number of foreign workers in Britain had risen over the past decade by 1.1 million, not 800,000 as he had earlier told MPs.
— PTI
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UN envoy meets junta go-between
Yangon, November 4 An Information Ministry official said Gambari, who flew to the junta's new capital, Naypyidaw, shortly after landing in Yangon yesterday, met retired General Aung Kyi. The official declined to give any details of the meeting with Aung Kyi, a significant figure in the military government who met Suu Kyi for 75 minutes last week. There has been no sign of any willingness by the junta to deviate from its own 'seven-step path to democracy', which, so far, has resulted only in the outlines of a constitution that would enshrine military power. The junta greeted Gambari with state-sponsored rallies calling for 'respect' from the UN following its decision not to renew the visa of its country chief, Charles Petrie, who did not go to Nyapyidaw with Gambari. Petrie was there on Friday for a dressing down for issuing a statement linking Myanmar's dire economic straits to September protests that triggered a crackdown in which official media say 10 persons were killed. Diplomats say many more probably died. On departure, Petrie was given a letter saying the government would not renew his credentials, due to expire soon, to the country, Asia's rice bowl on independence in 1948 and now one of the region's poorest. However, Gambari had stressed on arrival for his second visit since the monk-led protests were crushed and thousands of people arrested that UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon stood behind Petrie. "Gambari conveyed the Secretary-General's support for the Country Team and the Resident Coordinator and the important work they continue to do to improve the socio-economic and humanitarian situation," the UN office in Yangon said in a statement. Singapore, the current chairman of the Association of South East Asian Nations, of which Myanmar is a member, said it was disappointed by the move against Petrie. The USA also condemned Petrie's apparent expulsion. It was not clear how long Gambari would stay in Myanmar and whom he would be allowed to meet by the military, which has ruled the country since 1962. Nor was there any word on whether he was making progress in persuading the generals to talk seriously about reform with Suu Kyi, who has been in detention for 12 of the last 18 years. "No UN officials accompanied Gambari so we are completely in the dark," a Yangon-based UN official told Reuters today. But the UN statement yesterday said he expected to meet "as many interlocutors as possible" and would "stay in Myanmar as long as necessary to accomplish his mission." However, a spokesman for Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD), the main opposition party, said he had not been contacted by Myanmar Foreign Ministry officials, who set Gambari's schedule and did not know whether NLD leaders could meet him.
— Reuters
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30-yr-old murder case
Kathmandu, November 4 Ever since the Supreme Court sent him a missive, indicating his fate would be sealed on Sunday, Sobhraj, yesteryear's "serpent", serving life imprisonment, had been living for the day, wavering between hope and alarm. However, his yearning to see an end to his nearly five-year-old court battle, one way or the other, was not destined to be fulfilled either with the announcement of the final verdict being put off due to one of the judges being out of town. Sobhraj, once a dominant name in the underworld of several countries, wanted for forgeries and thefts targeting foreign tourists, became convicted for murder for the first time in Nepal. In 2003, Nepal police traced him to a casino in Kathmandu and arrested him for the murder of an American backpacker, Connie Jo Bronzich, in 1975. One year later, a district court judge sentenced him to life imprisonment and the following year, an appellate court rejected Sobhraj's appeal against the decision. The undeterred Sobhraj started a fresh battle in Nepal's Supreme Court and after a long delay, the final verdict was scheduled today. Though his "not guilty" plea was turned down twice, Sobhraj was optimistic about today's sentence since the two judges hearing his case-Anup Kumar Sharma and Top Bahadur Magar-are among the most senior justices in Nepal with a reputation for fair play. However, with Justice Sharma being out of Kathmandu on an official visit, Sobhrah would now have to wait for a fresh date. The conviction brought Sobhraj in limelight after his leading a low-profile life in France, where he had been deported from India. The same intense media glare was anticipated today. Unlike in 2004, this time Sobhraj had decided not to go to court for the verdict, in a bid to avoid the glare. Two of his friends flew down to Kathmandu from India to provide him moral support. Sobhraj claims he never came to Nepal before 2003 and had no involvement in Bronzich's death. Nepal police made a dogged attempt to keep him behind bars. First, he was charged with coming to Nepal on a fake passport. Though the court acquitted him, the police arrested him from the court premises immediately afterwards and charged him with a double murder. Besides Bronzich, they also held him responsible for the murder of her companion, Canadian Laurent Armand Carriere, who was killed in the same way. However, the Carriere murder could not stick as first police could not find the old case file and then, it was found that due to a technical reason, the 1975 case could not be re-opened. Sobhraj says he was convicted on the basis of biased media reports. His lawyers, who include the top legal eagles of Nepal, say his reputation caused his undoing. If he is freed and walks out of Kathmandu's central jail, Sobhraj says the first thing he will do is call up his nine-year-old daughter in France. If he is convicted, Sobhraj says he will not lose heart. He would take his case to the International Court of Justice.
— IANS
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Liberation struggle will continue: LTTE chief
Colombo, November 4 “The struggle of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) was moving on like a lengthy river of blaze,” he said in a statement following Thamilselvan’s killing in the raid by the Sri Lankan Air Force on a gathering of high-profile rebel leaders in northern Kilinochchi on Friday. “In this new form, Thamilselvan has set alight in our heavy hearts a deep yearning for the goal (of freedom). He has nourished that yearning. Strengthened by his nourishment, we will continue to travel on our path towards the goal with renewed determination,” Prabhakaran added. The Tiger supremo said, “we do not see the Buddhist universal love. Sri Lanka did not open its heart and send a peace message. On the contrary, it is sending war-vultures that are dropping giant bombs. It has cruelly killed our peace dove.” He said, “despite the repeated and continuous calls from the international community to find a peaceful resolution to Tamil national question, we have not seen any goodwill from Sri Lanka.”
— PTI
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Rogue Indian surgeon to fight extradition
Sydney, November 4 Officials believe Dr Patel, who lives in Oregon, US, could be arrested before Christmas once final paperwork for the extradition of the fugitive medic was completed. The extradition proceedings have begun. “He is going to fight the extradition. He does not want to go to Australia because he does not think he will get a fair trial. He thinks the system there is biased and they have already made up their mind,” Dr Vijay Mehta, chief of vascular and thoracic surgery at Texan Hospital and a friend of Dr Patel was quoted by the Sydney Morning Herald as saying. If Patel is arrested and fights extradition, he could be housed in a US jail until the American courts deal with his case. Dr Patel, who had worked as director of surgery, at Bundaberg Base Hospital in southeast Queensland from 2003, fled to the US in April 2005 after being linked to the deaths of 17 former patients. The extradition request is understood to relate to 16 charges, including manslaughter and grievous bodily harm.
— UNI
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Militants free 211 Pakistani troops Wana, November 4 The Pakistani militants handed over the soldiers to tribal elders in South Waziristan, a mountainous Taliban and al Qaida stronghold where they were captured on August 30 after their supply convoy was trapped by a landslide. “The soldiers have returned to their camp in South Waziristan,” Maj-Gen Waheed Arshad said. A cleric, Maulana Miraj-ud-din, head of the group of tribal elders that negotiated with the militants, told Reuters the troops were handed over to authorities in Wana, the main town in South Waziristan. Fighters led by Pakistani Taliban commander Baitullah Mehsud had demanded the release of some captured comrades and the withdrawal of troops from their tribal lands in exchange for the soldiers’ freedom. — Reuters
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Chad frees seven detained Europeans N’djamena (Chad), November 4 Three French journalists and four flight attendants from Spain were freed this afternoon, said their lawyer, Jean-Bernard Padare. “They are free. It’s over. It’s the end,” he said. The Europeans, among them nine French citizens, were arrested on October 25 when a charity calling itself Zoe’s Ark was stopped from flying the children from eastern Chad to Europe, where the group said it intended to place them with host families. Chad’s leader, Idriss Deby, met Sarkozy on the tarmac as the French President descended the steps of his official jet. The Elysee palace in Paris said in a statement that Sarkozy was to meet Deby in the capital, N’Djamena, to discuss “the situation of our compatriots and the other European citizens being prosecuted” on kidnapping charges. Zoe’s Ark maintains its intentions were purely humanitarian and that it had conducted investigations over several weeks to determine the children it was taking were orphans. — AP
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Pilot who bombed Hiroshima dies Columbus, November 4 Tibbets died at his Columbus home after a two month decline in his health, stemming from a variety of health problems, said Gerry Newhouse, a longtime friend. Tibbets had requested no funeral and no headstone, fearing it would provide his detractors with a place to protest, Newhouse said. “It’s an end of an era,” said Newhouse, who served as Tibbets’ manager for a decade. “A lot of those guys are gone now.” Tibbets’ historic mission in the plane Enola Gay, named for his mother, marked the beginning of the end of World War II. It was the first time man had used nuclear weaponry against his fellow man. It was the morning of August 6, 1945, when the plane and its crew of 14 dropped the five-ton “Little Boy” bomb over Hiroshima. The blast killed 70,000 to 1,00,000 people and injured countless others. “I knew when I got the assignment it was going to be an emotional thing,” Tibbets told a newspaper on August 6, 2005, the 60th anniversary of the bomb. “We had feelings, but we had to put them in the background. We knew it was going to kill people right and left. But my one driving interest was to do the best job I could so that we could end the killing as quickly as possible.” — AP
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Japanese opposition leader quits
Tokyo, November 4 Democratic Party President Ichiro Ozawa's planned resignation added further turmoil to Japanese politics during a major standoff between the government and opposition. Days earlier, his party blocked government efforts to extend a naval mission in support of US-led operations in Afghanistan. Ozawa said he was resigning to take responsibility for causing tumult within the party for failing to swiftly reject a power-sharing proposal from Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda on Friday. "I caused political confusion over Prime Minister Fukuda's coalition proposal," Ozawa told a news conference.
— AP
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“Taj Mahal” sold in US; gets just one-tenth of the price
New York, November 4 The building is known as ‘Taj Mahal’ or mausoleum among the locals of the city. A mausoleum is a building constructed as a monument enclosing the burial chamber of a
deceased. — PTI
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4 LTTE rebels, 1 soldier killed in Sri Lanka
Colombo, November 4 The gunbattle erupted around 6 am when Tiger rebels attacked the defence line. Four LTTE bunkers were also destroyed in the confrontation, the army said. — PTI
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