W O R L D

Hundreds feared dead in Haiti earthquake
Port-au-Prince/Washington, January 13
Hundreds of people were feared dead today in Haiti after a major earthquake hit the impoverished Caribbean nation. The 7.0 magnitude quake is thought to be the worst in two centuries. The capital Port-au-Prince, home to more than 1.2 million people, was hard hit.

Afghan soil being used for terror attacks in Pak: ISI
Afghan soil is being used for terrorist activities in Pakistan, chief of Pakistan’s premier secret agency, the Inter Service Intelligence (ISI), has said adding that peace cannot be established in Pakistan unless infiltration from Afghan border is stopped. Briefing Parliamentary Committee on National Security, ISI Director-General Lt Gen Ahmad Shuja Pasha said the drug mafia in Afghanistan is supporting terrorists who are creating unrest within Pakistan.

NRI victims of UK freeze identified
London, January 13
As Britain continues to grapple with freezing weather, two brothers of Indian origin who fell through ice in a lake and froze to death in Leicestershire have been identified as Dinesh and Kishore Dattani. The Indian community in Leicester is in a state of shock after the two men died in hospital after being unconscious at the Watermead Country Park last Friday.

Hundreds feared dead in Haiti earthquake

Port-au-Prince/Washington, January 13
Hundreds of people were feared dead today in Haiti after a major earthquake hit the impoverished Caribbean nation. The 7.0 magnitude quake is thought to be the worst in two centuries. The capital Port-au-Prince, home to more than 1.2 million people, was hard hit.

But, with the city in darkness, the death toll and extent of damage were difficult to determine. Many survivors were believed to be still stuck in rubble.

“It is impossible to say how many deaths there have been, but the damage is tremendous,” the Haiti Press Network (HPN) reported.

Among the buildings destroyed in earthquake are the UN headquarters on the island, the presidential palace and numerous government buildings and hotels housing western tourists. One hospital collapsed in the Petion Ville residential neighbourhood on the outskirts of Port-au-Prince.

Haiti is the poorest country in the western hemisphere, making rescue efforts even more difficult due to the poor existing infrastructure.

Telephone networks had reportedly collapsed, with fires in the capital Port-au-Prince, probably from collapsed gas pipes.

The quake struck at 4.53 p.m. (2153 GMT Tuesday), some 15 km southwest of the city, at a depth of 10 km. Two aftershocks registering 5.9 and 5.5 on the Richter scale followed within the hour, with more temblors later.

After the initial quake, witnesses described a white, ghostly cloud that filled Port-au-Prince streets, a sign of the scale of devastation from collapsed concrete buildings. The dust lingered in the air until darkness fell soon after.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called it a “catastrophic earthquake”. US relief teams being assembled in Virginia and California would work closely with the US Agency for International Development, State Department spokesman Philip Crowley said.

France today announced that it was immediately sending two planes, humanitarian aid and around 60 rescue workers.

Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva ordered that as much aid as possible be sent and spoke of fears over the situation of both the Haitian people and the over 1,000 Brazilians who are active in the troubled nation as part of a UN mission.

The Philippines, meanwhile, expressed concern for the welfare of Filipino civilians and peacekeepers in Haiti. The department of foreign affairs said diplomatic missions have so far failed to contact any of the 626 Filipinos in Haiti.

Britain and Germany also promised assistance today. London said a team of experts would travel to Haiti to assess the extent of humanitarian needs. Berlin said it would provide 1 million euros ($1.4 million) in aid to the victims and provide swift assistance in setting up a crisis unit.

Haitian President Rene Preval and his wife were unharmed, Raymond Alcide Joseph, Haitian ambassador to the US, told CNN. But the presidential palace and commerce ministry were damaged. — DPA

UN Haiti headquarter collapses

New York: The headquarter of the UN mission in Haiti has collapsed in a massive earthquake, an official said. Under Secretary General for Peacekeeping Operations, Alain Le Roy, in a briefing said: “As far as we know, the main building that was the headquarters building called the Hotel Christopher has collapsed”. “Some of our troops are surrounding the building and trying to rescue the people from the main headquarters”.

The collapsed building housed the headquarters of the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti He said there was no word on Hédi Annabi, current special representative of the Secretary-General for Haiti. — IANS

Afghan soil being used for terror attacks in Pak: ISI
Afzal Khan writes from Islamabad

Afghan soil is being used for terrorist activities in Pakistan, chief of Pakistan’s premier secret agency, the Inter Service Intelligence (ISI), has said adding that peace cannot be established in Pakistan unless infiltration from Afghan border is stopped. Briefing Parliamentary Committee on National Security, ISI Director-General Lt Gen Ahmad Shuja Pasha said the drug mafia in Afghanistan is supporting terrorists who are creating unrest within Pakistan.

Several committee members thought that the Pak-Afghan border should be fenced and movement across the border should be strictly monitored.

The members also called for the need to enhance security along the Pak-Afghan border.

The committee also discussed US President Obama’s new Afghan policy’s implications and possible backlash on Pakistan’s sovereignty.

The Parliamentary Committee assembled under chairmanship of Senator Raza Rabbani at Parliament House here and discussed various issues of prime national importance, especially over the Afghan policy with reference to upcoming international conference in London later this month.

Briefing a group of journalists after the meeting, Senator Rabbani said the DG ISI briefed them on important issues and gave overview of the present situation, however, the Senator declined to share details of the briefing due to classified nature of the information.

“Well, we studied repercussions of Barack Obama’s Afghan policy and the members were given preview of the current circumstances. We discussed that what backlash can be on Pakistan’s national security?” said Rabbani.

Rabbani further said like ISI earlier Foreign Office (FO) had also briefed the committee on national security matters in wake of changing geo-political paradigms. The committee would analyse the Obama policy and provide the FO with recommendations for representing Pakistan’s stance at London Conference effectively. “We look forward to finalise the recommendations by tomorrow afternoon. And those inputs will be prepared in light of FO and ISI briefings, besides proposals submitted by the parliamentarians will also be incorporated,” he maintained.

He said the committee expressed its serious concern over discretionary laws against Pakistani-origin people at various international airports and observed that the revised regulations were total violation of International Human Rights Declaration. We demand the government to take up the issue at various international forums through the diplomatic channels, the committee chairman said.

He also expressed his regret over increasing drone attacks in Pakistani territories despite cry of the Parliamentary Committee and continuous condemnations by the nation.

NRI victims of UK freeze identified

London, January 13
As Britain continues to grapple with freezing weather, two brothers of Indian origin who fell through ice in a lake and froze to death in Leicestershire have been identified as Dinesh and Kishore Dattani. The Indian community in Leicester is in a state of shock after the two men died in hospital after being unconscious at the Watermead Country Park last Friday.

A third brother, who also fell into the freezing cold water more than 30 metres from the lakeside, was also treated for hypothermia, but survived. Narandas Adatia, a local resident who has been supporting the family, said it was the second tragedy to hit them in the past few weeks, following the death of the brothers' mother. He told the media: "It is really shocking news to the whole community and we are all very sad. They are just such tragic deaths.".

The two men, believed to be in their 40s and 50s, were with two other brothers when they visited the park. The third brother survived after two members of the public crawled out on to the ice to save him before emergency services arrived at the scene. A fourth brother managed to stay on the ice. — PTI

China plans world’s highest airport in Tibet

Lhasa, January 13
China plans to construct the world's highest airport in Tibet, officials said yesterday. The new airport would be built at an altitude of 4,436 metres, Xinhua news agency reported. Xu Bo, director of the Tibetan Branch of the China Civil Aviation Administration, said the airport planned to be built at Nagqu prefecture would be 102 metres higher than the Bamda Airport in Tibet's Qamdo prefecture, which has been the world's highest airport since its completion in 1994. Xu Jian, director of the Nagqu Committee of Development and Reform, said construction of the airport had been included in Tibet's development plan. The committee was working on site selection for the airport.

"The airport construction is planned for 2011 with a construction period of three years. It is expected to cost yuan 1.8 billion ($263 million) and cover an area of 233 to 266 hectares," he was quoted as saying. He said the airport would be the sixth in Tibet.

An official said all of Tibet's six prefectures would have an airport on its completion. — IANS