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Twin blasts kill 132 in Baghdad
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Bush set to become ‘motivational’ speaker
Islamabad dismisses India’s call on N-assets UN asks Myanmar to release political prisoners
Lahore Terror Attack Iran, Pak to cooperate on security matters India favours global anti-terror campaign US billionaire on trial
for funding LTTE Taliban claim shooting down army chopper Pak ex-minister ‘opposed’ N-tests
Got $6 mn? Own the ‘Taj
UN nuke inspectors arrive in Iran
PM refuses to join issue with Raja on spectrum allocation
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Twin blasts kill 132 in Baghdad
Baghdad, October 25 Violence has fallen in Iraq since US-backed tribal sheikhs helped wrest control from Al-Qaeda militants and Washington sent extra troops but attacks are still common in a nation trying to rebuild from conflict, sanctions and strife. The two blasts shook buildings and smoke billowed from the area near the Tigris river. The first targeted the Justice Ministry and the second, minutes later, was aimed at the nearby provincial government building, police said. A government spokesman said he was in a hotel when the bombs went off and he and others around him were showered in glass. He said he suspected Al-Qaeda or remnants of Saddam Hussein's former government were behind the attacks. "The initial analysis shows that it bears the fingerprints of Al-Qaeda and the Baathists," the spokesman, who was at the al-Mansour hotel at the time, said. The hotel houses the Chinese embassy and several foreign media organisations. None reported serious injuries. The street near the provincial government building was flooded with water and firefighters pulled charred and mangled bodies off the streets. Burnt-out cars were piled up nearby. Relief workers on cranes searched the shattered facade of the Justice Ministry and pulled out corpses wrapped in blankets. "I don't know how I'm still alive. The explosion destroyed everything. Nothing is still in its place," shop owner Hamid Saadi told Reuters by telephone from near the Justice Ministry. Meanwhile, US military officials say attacks like these are aimed at reigniting the sectarian conflict that gripped the nation after the 2003 US-led invasion that deposed Saddam, or at undermining confidence in Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki before a parliamentary poll next year. Maliki is expected to run on improved security conditions throughout the nation. Baghdad Security Spokesman Major General Qassim al-Moussawi declined to speculate on who was behind the attack. Sunday's blasts hit two months after bombings on August 19 targeting the foreign and finance ministries that killed almost 100 persons and wounded hundreds more.
— Reuters
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Hillary to visit Pak to strengthen ties The US secretary of state Hillary Clinton is arriving here on October 28 on what a senior administration official described as her “most important visit since assuming office.” “She is bringing a message of friendship and support to a country under tremendous pressure,” Richard Holbrooke, special envoy for the region told Washington-based Pakistani newsmen. “I think this is one of the most important trips she has made since she became Secretary of State and I think the whole world will be watching,” he added. The visit is taking place at a time when Pakistan is striving to overcome multiple energy, economic and terrorism challenges, Holbrooke said. Hillary is due to meet top civil and military leadership, including some leading opposition figures in a bid to refurbish US image which got a sharp dip in the wake of passage of Kerry-Lugar committing $1.5 billion annual economic aid to Pakistan. Though it is intended to establish deeper long-term relationship with a democratic Pakistan, the bill contained some stringent conditions which were termed by overwhelming majority of Pakistanis, including the military establishment as being too intrusive and impinging on country’s sovereignty. She has dismissed such perceptions and acknowledged that the US has not promptly dispelled them even though there is no basis for such impression. “Clinton will focus on the real needs of the Pakistani people during her upcoming vitally important visit to Pakistan and talks with the country’s leadership,” Holbrooke said. He said the US leader has been to the country previously and has many friends in Pakistan. “And I want to stress that she comes to Pakistan as a friend, not with conditions but with support for the democratically elected government and the people of Pakistan,” Holbrooke remarked. The visit will signify President Barack Obama’s support for the key South Asian ally, which is considered critical to US anti-terrorism efforts in the region. “She is going to be speaking about the needs of the people of Pakistan and the ways the people of the United States can help the people of Pakistan. This is a people-to-people trip. It’s an expression of the support of President Obama and his administration,” opined Holbrooke. Pakistani officials said they expect the US secretary to announce a major initiative on energy partnership.
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Bush set to become ‘motivational’ speaker London, October 25 The Republican leader, who left office with the US embroiled in two wars, the worst economic recession in generations and with his approval rating a toxic 22 per cent, will appear tomorrow with success stories in an “introduction to the George W Bush legacy project”. The appearance of Bush as the headline speaker on the popular 'Get Motivated' seminar on “How to master the art of effective leadership” has produced guffaws, The Times newspaper reported. “Only the best of the best appears on our stage!” declares the Get Motivated website. Tomorrow's event will be a “motivational mega-show that packs more inspirational firepower than a stick of dynamite!” Bush's spokesman David Sherzer said the former President will share his thoughts on decision-making and managing complex organisations. “It's a great opportunity for him to talk to a group of risk-takers and entrepreneurs,” Sherzer said. “This is a neat venue. It's close to home so he's really looking forward to it,” he was quoted as saying by the 'London daily'. The Forth Worth event, in Bush's home state of Texas, will also feature Colin Powell, the former Secretary of State, Rudy Giuliani, the former New York Mayor, and Rick Belluzzo, a former Microsoft executive. Yet, Bush will probably have the last laugh: he is being paid $1,00,000 for each appearance. — PTI
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Islamabad dismisses India’s call on N-assets
Islamabad, October 25 Following a suicide attack outside the Pakistan Aeronautical Complex at Kamra - considered a base for some of the country's strategic weapons - Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao had said that India hoped the Pakistan government would "continue to take steps to effectively secure their nuclear assets". Responding to a question on Rao's comments, Foreign Office spokesman Abdul Basit said, "Such remarks are evidently self-serving and integral to India's efforts to seek unilateral advantage at the cost of regional strategic stability by its feverish militarisation and working on dangerous military doctrines. "Instead of finger pointing, India should accept our proposal for promoting a regional strategic restraint regime and work with Pakistan to promote strategic stability in South Asia," he said.
— PTI
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UN asks Myanmar to release political prisoners
United Nations, October 25 “There is a pattern of widespread and systematic violations...the prevailing impunity allows for the continuation of these violations,” Quintana said. “I urged the government to take prompt measures to establish accountability and responsibility with regard to those systematic and widespread violations,” he added. He urged the government to ensure that the elections in 2010 are fair and transparent. “The freedom of speech and movement should be guaranteed and all the prisoners of conscience should be released before those elections,” he said.
— PTI
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Lahore Terror Attack Lahore, October 25 The militant was arrested late last night from a house he had rented in the Lahore cantonment. The officials said the man was involved in a terrorist raid on a police training centre in the suburb of Manawan, one of three security facilities targeted by militants on October 15. “We have seized 30 'jehadi' CDs, banned literature, 100 mobile phone SIMs and cell phones from the house where he was staying with his wife and two children,” a senior police official said. The police official said the militant had earlier rented a house near the police training school in Manawan and then shifted to another place. “The CDs seized from him show how terrorists are trained, their escape during raids and how to attack potential targets. The man had given some SIMs to other people, which were found to be active,” he said. The militant, whose identity was concealed for security reasons, has disclosed important information about his network, the officials said. About 20 security personnel and civilians were killed in the three attacks, while 10 terrorists were either gunned down by security forces or blew themselves up. The government has said the banned groups Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, the Jaish-e-Muhammad and the Sapah-e-Sahaba have joined hands with the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan to carry out terrorist attacks in Punjab, the country's most populous province.
— PTI
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Iran, Pak to cooperate on security matters
Tehran, October 25 Iranian Interior Minister Mostafa Mohammad Najjar said on Saturday Iran and Pakistan have reached “significant agreements” on various security issues. The two countries have agreed to boost border security, exchange information on security matters, and increase cooperation in the campaigns against drugs and human trafficking, he said in Islamabad on Saturday. The minister held separate meetings with Pakistani Interior Minister Rehman Malik and Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Director Ahmad Shuja Pasha on Friday. Najjar also met with Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani on Saturday. Najjar said the Pakistani Interior Minister had promised to cooperate with Iran in the efforts to crack down on the Jundullah terrorist group which Iran says is based in Pakistan. “Iran and Pakistan can begin a new golden era of strategic cooperation by rooting out the Jundullah terrorist group,” Najjar said. Najjar had travelled to Pakistan to discuss the two countries' response to the October 18 terrorist attack in Iran's southeastern province of Sistan-Baluchestan in which at least 42 persons were killed. Jundullah claimed responsibility for the attack.
— IANS
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India favours global anti-terror campaign
Washington, October 25 “You cannot have a fight against international terrorism which is compartmentalised. The snakes that bite us wherever come from the same pit,” Indian Ambassador to the United Nations Hardeep Singh Puri said. “You cannot do Faustian deals with terrorist groups, so I think you need a comprehensive international movement against the terrorists, and I hope that all of us who are involved in this will carry this fight through until the end so that all of us are victors in this,” Puri argued. Pakistani Ambassador to the UN Abdullah Hussain Haroon along with Afghan Ambassador to the world body Zahir Tanin were present on the occasion.
— PTI
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US billionaire on trial
for funding LTTE
New York, October 25 However, Rajaratnam’s lawyer Jim Walden has dismissed the charges as “flatly untrue and libellous”. “We are confident that the court will dismiss these baseless charges. Rajaratnam has the sympathy for all victims of violence in Sri Lanka and has a long history of helping Sri Lankans of all ethnic groups through substantial charitable donations over many years,” he said in a statement. Rajaratnam is the founder of US hedge fund firm Galleon Group. The lawsuit alleged that from 2000 to 2007, Rajaratnam gave more than $5 million to a US-based charity, called the Tamil Rehabilitation Organisation. It was blacklisted by the US in 2007 for raising money for the Tamil Tigers. Rajaratnam, one of richest men in America, was last week charged in a $20 million hedge fund insider trading case. He is the richest Sri Lankan with an estimated net worth of $1.3 billion. Rajaratnam is a major investor in the Lankan stock market and has large stakes in blue-chip companies.
— PTI
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Taliban claim shooting down army chopper
Islamabad, October 25 Maulvi Faqir Mohammad, Deputy Chief of the banned Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, said during a broadcast on his illegal FM radio station late last night that militants had shot down the Mi-17 transport helicopter, which crashed in Nawagai area of the semi-autonomous Bajaur region yesterday. Six persons, including two army pilots, had died in the crash, the Daily Times newspaper reported. The initial reports had said four security personnel were killed. The helicopter, which was returning after dropping fuel and rations at a remote military post, crashed due to “hostile fire,” CNN reported. It quoted an intelligence source and a local political official as saying that the helicopter was “brought down by hostile fire.” Faqir Mohammad, who reportedly had a narrow escape during a US drone strike in Bajaur Agency yesterday, however, claimed that 30 security personnel were killed when the helicopter crashed. His claim could not be independently verified. A journalist in Bajaur said on phone that the Taliban leader had asked people to take up guns against the Pakistan army or leave the area. The reports said Faqir Mohammad left a militant hideout barely 10 minutes before it was struck by the US drone yesterday. Twentyfive militants, including the Taliban leader's son-in-law and nephew, were killed in the attack. The officials have said the local Taliban 'shura' or council was meeting in the hideout when it was hit by two missiles. Faqir Mohammad admitted some of his “important men” were killed in the drone strike in Damadola area. He said the Taliban were prepared to “render more sacrifices in future.” Faqir Mohammad's nephew Umar Hayat, who died in the attack, was a prominent Taliban commander in Bajaur. Pakistani troops have been fighting the Taliban in Bajaur over the past two years and recently launched an offensive in Mamoond area, a stronghold of the militants. Bajaur Agency, located near Afghanistan's Kunar province, is considered one of the main strongholds of the Taliban in the tribal belt. Local residents say the Taliban and Arab fighters regularly cross the border in Bajaur to launch attacks on the US and NATO forces in Afghanistan.
— PTI
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Pak ex-minister ‘opposed’ N-tests Pakistan former Finance Minister Sartaj Aziz had opposed conducting tit-for-tat nuclear tests (by Pakistan) in 1998 while the then Prime Minister, Nawaz Sharif, was indecisive and confused, a new book by a senior army official has revealed. “Sartaj Aziz was among a few politicians who opposed the idea of responding with N-tests,” Brig Naeem Ahmad Salik (retd), former director of arms control and disarmament at the Strategic Plans Division, has said in his book ‘The genesis of South Asian nuclear deterrence: Pakistan’s perspective’. According to him, the decision to conduct nuclear tests to restore the strategic imbalance in South Asia was taken by the political leadership and supported by the military leadership. “There were some dissenting voices within the cabinet, the most prominent among them being the Finance Minister, Sartaj Aziz, who was obviously concerned about damaging repercussions on national economy, while Foreign Minister Gohar Ayub Khan and the foreign policy establishment were the most vocal proponents of testing.” However, Aziz, when asked for comment, said he had emphasised that even a substantial package of economic and conventional military assistance package from the US would not address the country’s long-term security concerns. He said he had stressed the need for seeking a security umbrella in addition to an economic package but the US was not prepared to provide a security umbrella. “There was no option left for Pakistan but to go for nuclear tests.” Strobe Talbott, US deputy secretary of state at that time, who led a mission to Islamabad soon after the Indian tests, gathered an impression from his interactions with Foreign Minister Gohar Ayub Khan and army chief Gen Jehangir Karamat that Pakistan would go for tests. According to Talbott, “Nawaz Sharif seemed nearly paralysed with exhaustion, anguish and fear. Left to his own judgment, he would not test.” Gen Karamat’s account of events, however, is very different. According to him, Sharif had called him from Almaty and asked him to start preparing for the tests. He suggested that the PM should return before a decision could be taken.
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Washington, October 25 The "Villa Taj" in Burr Ridge in the US state of Illinois, which has been dubbed by its owner as his Taj Mahal, is about to be auctioned off with a starting bid of USD 6.265 million on November 4, The Chicago Sun-Times reported. The 30,000 square-foot property featuring distinctive Indian, Spanish, Egyptian and Moroccan styles is also being marketed to potential buyers in India, Europe and Middle East. It took five years and an estimated USD 18 million to build the structure, which is located at the busy intersection of County Line and Plainfield roads in Burr Ridge. According to the real estate broker and auctioneer Mike Berland, the home briefly was listed on the market for USD 25 million but got no takers. Berland said the home owners — dentist Husam Aldairi and his wife Rawaa Atta-Aldairi — decided to sell the property as the woman thought she could not stand the Chicago winters anymore and the couple moved to Florida. As far as special features of the property are concerned, it includes 15,000 sq ft of exterior terraces, 160 tonne of Jerusalem limestone, a 20-car garage and nine fireplaces. It has six master bedroom suites, one clocking in at 2,400 square feet, and marble stairs leading to a mammoth Jacuzzi tub. “It's not going to appeal to everybody, but for a person who likes this kind of thing, they're just going to be wowed by it,” Berland said. — PTI
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UN nuke inspectors arrive in Iran Tehran, October 25 The plant is being constructed inside a mountain near the holy city of Qom south of Tehran. The inspectors were due to visit the site today, two days after Tehran postponed its response to a UN deal on supplying the Islamic republic with nuclear fuel. — AFP
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PM refuses to join issue with Raja on spectrum allocation
Hua Hin (Thailand), October 25 Asked for his comment on Raja’s reported remark that he had done the allocation at the instance of the PM, Manmohan Singh laughed and then said "I don’t want to comment on cabinet ministers or what happens in the cabinet or what happens between me and the ministers in public. It is not proper for me to join issue with a cabinet colleague in public.” Asked if a cabinet reshuffle could be in the offing in view of the charges against Raja, the PM said "cabinet changes or reshuffles are not discussed in public. It would be very inappropriate for me to answer that question, more so on the foreign soil." His comments came amid reports that the Congress party was unhappy with Raja, a DMK member, for dragging the PM’s name in the controversy. The Communications Minister, whose office in New Delhi was raided by the CBI on Thursday, denied any wrongdoing and rejected the CPM’s demand for his resignation.
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In the bloodiest attack in the Iraqi capital for months, twin car bombs targeting two government buildings killed at least 132 persons and wounded over 500 in Baghdad on Sunday, police and health officials said.
