W O R L D

Europe opens skies partially
Volcano now emitting less ash, more lava, says Iceland
London, April 20
European airports slowly started to return to life today after five days cut off from the world due to a huge ash cloud, but some airspace stayed closed after reports of a new plume from Iceland may be on its way.

New ash cloud on way?

FINALLY, IN THE AIR: One of the planes takes off after flights were resumed at the Belfast city airport on Tuesday. — Reuters

Pak court reserves order on Kasab, Ansari
Islamabad/Lahore, April 20
A Pakistani court hearing the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack case has reserved its decision on a petition filed by authorities to challenge an anti-terrorism court’s order rejecting a plea to declare Ajmal Kasab and Fahim Ansari as fugitives.

Sikh factions clash in Toronto gurdwara
Toronto, April 20
In another major incident of violence in a Canadian gurdwara, two Sikh factions fought with weapons at the Guru Nanak Sikh Centre on the city suburb of Brampton. Machetes, knives and hammers were freely used.

Europe opens skies partially
Volcano now emitting less ash, more lava, says Iceland

London, April 20
European airports slowly started to return to life today after five days cut off from the world due to a huge ash cloud, but some airspace stayed closed after reports of a new plume from Iceland may be on its way.

Flights from India resume New Delhi: Air France and Lufthansa on Tuesday operated flights from India to Paris and Munich after a six-day disruption caused by the volcanic ash, but services to other European destinations remained suspended. The British authorities have ruled out opening of Heathrow and Gatwick airports. There was no word from the authorities in Brussels and Frankfurt for resumption of flights to the two cities.  Air France and Lufthansa became the first airlines to resume services to Europe from India today. — PTI

Italy, Switzerland and France reopened their airports early on Tuesday though many flights remained cancelled, and in Italy only a handful took off in the morning, mainly domestic flights. Hungary, Slovenia and Moldova also resumed flights.

But Britain’s National Air Traffic Service, which controls UK airspace, said much of Britain’s airspace would remain closed to flights below 20,000 feet (6,000 metres).

The European Union, which announced on Monday that its members had reached a deal to reduce the size of the no-fly zone acknowledged that the progress was slow. “We know there are still a lot of problems for passengers on the ground,” spokeswoman for the executive European Commission Helen Kearns told a briefing.

“We are faced with an unprecedented crisis. The disruption will continue over the week.” Germany said it would maintain its no-fly zone, with exceptions. Finland and parts of Sweden and Norway were also closed.

But some airlines were taking advantage of the exceptions to fly. Flag carrier Lufthansa, for example, was flying on sight, which does not require air traffic control approval, to destinations like Seoul, New York and Lagos.

“We are operating about 200 flights today. That is the bulk of our long-haul flights, and domestic and European routes are significantly expanded today,” said spokeswoman Claudia Lange.

Under Monday’s EU agreement, which followed enormous pressure from airlines losing an estimated $250 million a day, flights may be permitted in areas with a lower concentration of ash, subject to local assessments and scientific advice.

But exactly how national authorities would split European airspace into areas where aircraft could fly or not was not clear, and many countries were adopting a cautious approach.

Poland, which had reopened four airports on Monday, closed them again on Tuesday, as well as shutting the northern part of its airspace to transit flights. A handful of flights took off from Scottish airports after the restrictions were eased. — Reuters

New ash cloud on way?

Britain’s NATS said in an overnight statement that the volcano eruption was strengthening and a new ash cloud was spreading south and east towards Britain. “This demonstrates the dynamic and rapidly changing conditions in which we are working,” it said.

The meteorological office in Iceland said although the volcano was still erupting steadily under the Eyjafjallajokull glacier about 120 km (75 miles) southeast of the capital Reykjavik, it was actually emitting less ash and more lava than previously, creating a lower cloud. The office’s Gudrun Nina Peterson said the ash heading toward Britain had probably been spewed out before conditions changed.

“If there has been ash detected over England today or during the night that is going to be from about 24 hours earlier. This is not an instant thing,” she said.

Experts disagree over how to measure the ash and who should decide it is safe to fly. A British Airways jet lost power in all four engines after flying through an ash cloud above the Indian Ocean in 1982.

Several airlines were conducting test flights on Tuesday to gather details and data. European planemaker Airbus said it took advantage of scheduled test flights to check for the impact of ash on Monday and found nothing abnormal.

South Korea’s Incheon International Airport, the world’s fourth-busiest cargo handler in 2008, suffered 3,216 tonnes of lost shipments to Europe from April 16-19, the country’s customs agency said. — Reuters

Pak court reserves order on Kasab, Ansari

Islamabad/Lahore, April 20
A Pakistani court hearing the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack case has reserved its decision on a petition filed by authorities to challenge an anti-terrorism court’s order rejecting a plea to declare Ajmal Kasab and Fahim Ansari as fugitives.

A Rawalpindi-based bench of the Lahore High Court comprising Justices Rauf Ahmed Sheikh and Hasan Raza Pasha reserved its decision yesterday after hearing arguments by the counsel for the Federal Investigation Agency, which had filed the petition on April 10.

It could not immediately be ascertained when the High Court bench would decide on the admissibility of the petition.

The Special Investigation Group of the FIA, which probed Pakistani links to the 2008 Mumbai attacks, had challenged the anti-terrorism court’s decision not to declare Kasab and Ansari as “proclaimed offenders” or fugitives.

Sources said the FIA wants Kasab and Ansari to be declared fugitives so that Kasab’s confessional statement can be used against the seven Pakistani suspects being tried by the anti-terrorism court for allegedly planning and facilitating the Mumbai attacks.

These seven suspects are Lashker-e-Taiba commander Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi, Zarar Shah, Hamad Amin Sadiq, Abu al-Qama, Shahid Jamil Riaz, Younas Anjum and Jamil Ahmed.

A separate bench of the Lahore High Court had ruled earlier that Kasab’s statement could not be used as evidence in a Pakistani court. — PTI

Sikh factions clash in Toronto gurdwara

Toronto, April 20
In another major incident of violence in a Canadian gurdwara, two Sikh factions fought with weapons at the Guru Nanak Sikh Centre on the city suburb of Brampton. Machetes, knives and hammers were freely used.

More than 10 persons were injured, four of them seriously, in the clash in the shrine premises late on Sunday. The fight started when the group controlling the gurdwara management stopped another faction - which previously controlled the management - from holding its general meeting inside the shrine.

Initially, the police didn't intervene despite warnings about the possibility of violence. Later, they arrested three persons and charged them with assault and possession of dangerous weapons. After the incident, police spokesperson Samantha Nulle said: "We will not tolerate violent behaviour. It's against the law and anybody who refuses to comply with the law will be charged and be dealt with appropriately."

This is the second major incident of Sikh violence in the Toronto area. Three weeks ago, prominent Sikh lawyer Manjit Singh Mangat was stabbed with kirpans at another gurdwara in the same city suburb.

The lawyer was stabbed for inviting ex-communicated former Akal Takht jathedar Darshan Singh Ragi for a lecture. Toronto-based Ragi, who was the jathedar of the Akal Takht at the height of militancy in Punjab, was ex-communicated in December by the Sikh clergy in Amritsar for his views on the scripture called Dasam Granth.

Sunday's incident comes just a day after a pro-Khalistan Vaisakhi parade in the Vancouver suburb of Surrey where pro-Khalistan slogan and flags were raised, and Sikh 'martyrs' eulogised. These incidents have happened within weeks of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh cautioning his Canadian counterpart about the increasing activities of Khalistani elements here. — IANS