Amid looming uncertainty, Nepal’s ruling seven-party alliance (SPA) expedited campaign for April 10 Constituent Assembly elections, organising the first joint mass meeting in Kathmandu on Monday.

Addressing the mass assembly held at the Open Theatre at Ratnapark this afternoon, top brass leaders of the SPA, including Maoist chairman Prachanda, tried to persuade party workers, supporters and common people gathered there vowing that they would make the election a success at any cost.

They also dubbed that the joint assembly was a “commitment assembly” to demonstrate Nepali people and international community at large that they are serious and want to hold the election within the stipulated time frame by maintaining their unity to uphold the national agenda for lasting peace, vibrant democracy and people’s sovereignty in the country.

Nepali Congress senior leader Sher Bahadur Deuba, UML general secretary Madhav Kumar Nepal, Maoist chairman Prachanda, along with top leaders of the SPA, addressed their joint electoral campaign.

They said the regressive elements, royalists and some international power centres, those who did not want to see change in Nepal, were hatching conspiracy against the April 10 poll.

“The collective efforts of the political parties and people from different walks of life and regions must stand united to make the election a success and transform Nepal a federal democratic republic through the historic opportunity of CA poll,” said Prachanda.

Communist Party of Nepal (United Marxist and Leninist) general secretary Madhav Kumar Nepal said a truly inclusive democracy could be established only by uprooting feudalism, and for that there was no alternative to go to the elections in a collective manner.

He also urged all parties to vow to religiously adhere to all past pacts and understanding reached among them and not to resort to any blame game that could thwart the elections.

Although it was supposed that Nepali Congress president and Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala would attend the mass meeting, he could not make it due to his health condition.

Yesterday, doctors have advised the ailing octogenarian leader to take complete rest for a few days.

Meanwhile, at least five persons sustained injuries when an unidentified group detonated a bomb at Bhotahity, about hundred meters northwest from the Open Theatre, the assembly venue.

According to the police, a bomb went off inside a minibus at around 3:35 pm immediately after the SPA leaders left the venue concluding the joint election assembly.

Washington, January 14
Setting a firm time frame for the first time for a pullout of troops from Iraq, Democrat presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton has said that her government will withdraw American soldiers from the embattled nation within 60 days if she comes to power.

“I have said that as soon as I become President, I will ask the joint chiefs, secretary of defence, my security advisers to give me a plan to begin withdrawing our troops within 60 days”, she said on ‘Meet The Press’ programme.

Slamming President George W Bush’s administration for not “planning” for the troop-withdrawal, the New York Senator said: “Starting on day one of my presidency, we will begin that planning. We will begin to withdraw our troops within 60 days.

“I think we can take out one to two brigades a month. At the same time, I will put increasing pressure on the Iraqi government. I will engage in a full diplomatic effort to work with the countries in the region and others who have an interest in the stability of Iraq”, she said.

“As of January 20, 2009”, she said, “We will begin to bring our troops out of Iraq. Therefore, I certainly believe it’s in the interests of the Iraqi government and the people of Iraq that a lot of this reconciliation that I’ve been calling for going back four or five years start and actually get implemented now.” — PTI

Karachi, January 14
At least 10 persons, including two children, were killed and 45 others were injured in a bomb blast at an industrial area in this southern Pakistani port city today, police and rescue workers said.

The blast occurred at the busy Gul Ahmed roundabout in the Landhi Industrial Area in Qaidabad at about 8.30 pm.

Many of the victims were workers of nearby factories. The police said the bomb was hidden in a motorcycle parked in the area.

The commercial area was packed with people at the time of the blast, which was heard from a kilometre away. The explosion ripped through mobile kiosks selling vegetables and fruits.

A large crowd gathered in the area after the blast, causing a traffic jam that hampered ambulances from reaching the site of the explosion.

Police and paramilitary Pakistan Rangers rushed to the spot and used batons to disperse the crowd.

The bodies were taken to Jinnah Hospital. Rescue workers said several of the injured were in a critical condition.

Musharraf was chairing a meeting at the Governor House when he was informed about the explosion.

He directed officials to take immediate steps to provide the best treatment to the injured. — PTI

US Senator John Kerry has said Benazir Bhutto had told him shortly before she was assassinated that President Pervez Musharraf had denied her private security.

According to a report from Washington, speaking at American International College in Springfield, Kerry offered no details, but said he contacted the state department after the October 18 bombing in Karachi to try to arrange American protection for her.

State department spokesman Edgar Vasquez told Kerry that state officials had communicated their concerns about Benazir’s security to her, people within her party and the government.

Meanwhile, Pakistan Television (PTV) has refuted as baseless the claim by Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) leader Babar Awan that it had a video clip of the December 27 assassination of Benazir, in which the assassins were seen running away from the crime scene.

A PTV spokesman said all ‘important’ video clips of the event recorded by the channel had been aired. All videos of the event had been shared with the interior ministry, he said.

In a related development, the departure of three members of the Scotland Yard team for home was delayed on Monday due to technical reasons. Two other experts will stay in Pakistan for some more days.

Scotland Yard forensic experts revisited the crime scene for the fourth time on Sunday. The experts re-enacted the crime scene by parking a land cruiser in the same position where the slain leader came under attack. They also took photographs and measured the scene from different angles.

They also re-examined surrounding buildings and focused on the spot where the incident took place. Later they visited Rawalpindi General Hospital amid tight security where they re-examined instruments used to treat the slain leader. Fresh statements of doctors, who had spared no effort to save Bhutto’s life, were also taken.

Pakistan’s new army chief General Ashfaq Pervez Kiyani has directed all the army officers to stay away from the politics and strictly observe rules and constitution.

In his directive that came as a pleasant surprise to political and legal circles long accustomed to insidious army intervention in politics, further asked army officers to refrain from meeting politicians without prior permission from the Chief of Army Staff (COAS).

A reliable source said Gen Kiyani’s order implicitly includes President Musharraf as well who now holds a political office. According to defence sources, the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), in a letter written to the officers, said the role of the armed forces had already been defined in country’s laws and Constitution.

The letter is a clear message to the army that it must detach itself from politics to restore a badly damaged image.

Gen Kiyani’s letter further said there was no role of the army in the country’s politics. And advised the officers that they should not indulge in any profit-making venture other than their salary and perks as per their ranks.

He stressed that soldiers should focus only on their professional responsibilities. The prime role of the armed forces is to carry out their professional duties and they must not involve themselves in political affairs of the country, the COAS said.

He said no officer should call any politician to the General Head Quater (GHQ), warning that anyone who violated the directive would had to face the music. He advised the army men to avoid any direct or indirect interaction with political leaders.

It is also believed that the all the communication equipment meant to be used by army chief has been shifted from the army House to Gen Kiyani’s present residence that he occupies since he was named chief of ISI about three years ago.

Islamabad, January 14
Pakistani security forces killed 23 tribal militants but lost seven of their own men in fighting after the tribesmen ambushed a paramilitary troop convoy in northwest Pakistan, an army officer said.

Residents in Mohmand, a tribal area bordering Afghanistan, said the army had opened up with artillery and helicopter gunships after the early morning attack on the convoy.

“The fighting broke out when militants attacked a paramilitary convoy,” said the officer, who requested anonymity. The convoy was heading to Mohmand’s main town of Ghalanai when it came under fire.

There have been few reports of clashes in Mohmand previously, but militancy has been spreading through northwest Pakistan since mid-2007, after commandos stormed Islamabad’s Red Mosque to crush a Taliban-style movement that had sprung up in the capital.

Mohmand adjoins Bajaur, another border tribal region, which is known to be a hotbed of support for groups allied to Al-Qaida. The tribal region consists of seven semi-autonomous areas.

Further west in South Waziristan, one of the most restive regions on the border, a council meeting of the Wazir tribe decided today to assemble a force of 600 tribesmen tomorrow to fight foreign militants and anyone harbouring them. — Reuters

Beverly Hills, January 14
The tragic romance “Atonement” was named best drama at a Golden Globes event that was deflated from star-studded revelry to dry, news conference-style awards announcement because of the Hollywood writers strike.

The bloody “Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street” was chosen as best musical or comedy. Its star, Johnny Depp, won for best actor in a musical or comedy for the title role.

“Atonement,” which led Globe contenders with seven nominations, stars Keira Knightley and James McAvoy. Britain’s Daniel-Australian Cate Blanchett won the first award of the night, taking the supporting actress Globe for the Bob Dylan tale “I’m Not There.”

France’s Marion Cotillard won for best actress in a musical or comedy for her remarkable personification of singer Edith Piaf in “La Vie En Rose.” — AP