W O R L D

Pak court indicts Lakhvi, 6 others
Islamabad, October 10 
A Pakistani anti-terror court today formally indicted seven suspects, including Lashkar-e- Toiba commander Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi, arrested for alleged involvement in the Mumbai terror attacks and adjourned the case for a week.

Obama to give Nobel money to charity
Washington, October 10
United States President Barack Obama has decided to donate his $1.4 million Nobel Peace prize money to charities. However, no decision has been made which charities or charity would get the prize money which the President would receive from the Nobel Committee at a function later this year.

Zardari, Kayani discuss concerns over US aid bill
President Asif Ali Zardari and army chief Gen Ashfaq Pervez Kayani held a meeting at the Presidency on Saturday to dilute tension over army’s strong reaction to the security-related conditionality embedded in the Kerry-Lugar aid bill.

China’s Premier Wen Jiabao speaks at the leaders’ summit at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Saturday. — Reuters

2 Afghan cops averted greater damage
Kabul, October 10
Had it not been for the alertness of two Afghan policemen, the damage caused by the suicide bomber who struck at the Indian embassy here on Thursday could have been much worse. Constables Alam Khan and Mohammad Usman of the Afghan national police died in the blast but not before preventing the vehicle carrying over 100 kg of explosives from gaining access to the gate of the Indian embassy, the official sources said.

US honour to Dalai Lama irks China
Beijing, October 10
China accused the US of meddling in its domestic affairs after American lawmakers recognised the Dalai Lama with an award for his efforts to improve human rights.The US Congress presented the award, which was in honour of the late US human rights activist Tom Lantos, to the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader on Tuesday.

Shilpa’s curry chain faces lawsuit 
London, October 10
Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty’s Indian restaurant group in the UK is facing a lawsuit of £6 million from its former boss, who claims he was forced out of the group to make way for her.

Pak court indicts Lakhvi, 6 others

Islamabad, October 10 
A Pakistani anti-terror court today formally indicted seven suspects, including Lashkar-e- Toiba commander Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi, arrested for alleged involvement in the Mumbai terror attacks and adjourned the case for a week.

Judge Baqir Ali Rana, conducting the trial behind closed doors at Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi, formally charged the suspects after hearing arguments by prosecution and defence lawyers, sources said.

There was no official word on the proceedings due to a gag order issued by the court though. The judge scheduled the next hearing for October 17.

However, Khwaja Sultan, one of the four defence lawyers, raised objections about the manner in which the suspects were indicted. Sultan told reporters that none of the lawyers were present in court at the time of the indictment.

Sultan said today’s hearing was held at the same time that a group of terrorists attacked the Pakistan army’s headquarters in Rawalpindi. He quoted the judge as saying that since the situation outside the court was uncertain, those who wanted to leave the premises could do so.

The lawyers left the court after completing their arguments and learnt later that their clients had been indicted, Sultan said. He said he would raise the matter with the authorities. 

Earlier, during the hearing that lasted about three hours, lawyers representing suspects told the court that the evidence against their clients was insufficient to indict them.

However, the prosecution said it had enough evidence against the suspects, including five members of the LeT, sources said.

Interior Minister Rehman Malik too told a news channel that the charges had been framed against the suspects.

The seven suspects - Lakhvi, communications expert Zarar Shah, Abu al-Qama, Hamad Amin Sadiq, Shahid Jamil Riaz, Jamil Ahmed and Younas Anjum - have been booked under the Anti-Terrorism Act. — PTI

Obama to give Nobel money to charity

Washington, October 10
United States President Barack Obama has decided to donate his $1.4 million Nobel Peace prize money to charities. However, no decision has been made which charities or charity would get the prize money which the President would receive from the Nobel Committee at a function later this year.

White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said Obama would himself travel to Oslo to receive the award.

Obama, who was himself surprised by this announcement, said the Nobel Peace award to him represented hopes of millions and millions throughout the world and was not just the achievements of one person.

It represents the life and the world that they want to live in -- whether that's a world without nuclear weapons, a world without the spread of weapons of mass destruction, a world with peace in the Middle East and a world that addresses climate change, he said.

“One of the reasons highlighted by the committee is that through engagement, through a renewal of American leadership and we can help lead the world to do many of the things that the President has outlined,” Gibbs said.

“I think America having that place in the world that can lead us to do the types of things that the President has outlined on weapons of mass destruction, on nuclear non-proliferation, and on issues of peace and climate change, are aspirations held by many,” he said. — PTI

Zardari, Kayani discuss concerns over US aid bill
Afzal Khan writes from Islamabad

President Asif Ali Zardari and army chief Gen Ashfaq Pervez Kayani held a meeting at the Presidency on Saturday to dilute tension over army’s strong reaction to the security-related conditionality embedded in the Kerry-Lugar aid bill.

In an unprecedented move, the top brass of the army at a meeting chaired by General Kayani on Wednesday publicly voiced their “serious concern” over some clauses of the bill impacting national security. Observers interpreted it as a rebuff to President Zardari whose aides are describing the passage of the bill as his singular diplomatic achievement.

President Zardari has since held a flurry of meetings with senior aides and party leaders to discuss the implications of army’s public denunciation of the bill that has again triggered speculations about the fate of his government. Prime Minister Gilani was missing at Friday night’s meeting that ended late at midnight. Both Zardari and Gilani held one-on-one meeting on Saturday an hour before General Kayani accompanied by ISI chief Lt Gen Shuja Pasha arrived at the Presidency.

Foreign Minister Shah Mehmud Qureshi who was recalled by Gilani from Washington visit in the wake of countrywide uproar over the Kerry-Lugar bill also attended the meeting and explained the implications of the conditions attached to it.

There was no official word about the outcome of the meeting but media reports said the top civil and military leadership decided to take up their reservations with the Obama administration.

2 Afghan cops averted greater damage

Kabul, October 10
Had it not been for the alertness of two Afghan policemen, the damage caused by the suicide bomber who struck at the Indian embassy here on Thursday could have been much worse.

Constables Alam Khan and Mohammad Usman of the Afghan national police died in the blast but not before preventing the vehicle carrying over 100 kg of explosives from gaining access to the gate of the Indian embassy, the official sources said.

Khan and Usman apparently got alerted when they spotted a vehicle moving near the embassy in suspicious manner during their routine patrolling, they said.

They stopped the vehicle at the barricade and did not allow it to pass, prompting the suicide bomber to detonate the explosives there itself, they said.

The sources said the quantity of explosives used in the attack was more than that was used in July 2008 blast.

During that attack, about 100 kg of RDX had been used, killing 60 persons, including four Indians, and injuring over 100 others.

In Thursday's attack, 17 persons were killed and over 80 injured.

Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao, who came here yesterday to take stock of the situation, hailed the bravery and courage of the two policemen. — PTI

US honour to Dalai Lama irks China

Beijing, October 10
China accused the US of meddling in its domestic affairs after American lawmakers recognised the Dalai Lama with an award for his efforts to improve human rights.

The US Congress presented the award, which was in honour of the late US human rights activist Tom Lantos, to the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader on Tuesday.

China reviles the Dalai Lama and has pressured foreign governments not to meet with the Nobel Peace Prize laureate.

"We urge some members of the US Congress to respect the history and the facts, recognise the true face of Dalai Lama, stop using the Tibet issue to interfere in China's internal affairs," Foreign Ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu said in a statement posted on the ministry's website yesterday. — AP 

Shilpa’s curry chain faces lawsuit