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37 killed in anti-govt protests in Syria
Libyan tanks roll on even as air strikes continue
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Yemen’s elite guards clash with protesters
3 workers at Japan N-plant exposed to high radiation
‘Davis Deal’
Terrorist plotting World Cup attack nabbed: Pak
Two major quakes jolt Myanmar,
Thailand; 2 dead
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37 killed in anti-govt protests in Syria
Daraa, March 24 Security forces opened fire on hundreds of youths at the northern entrance to Daraa on Wednesday, according to witnesses, in a dramatic escalation of nearly a week of protests in which at least 44 civilians have been killed since Friday. Around 20,000 persons marched on Thursday in the funerals for nine of those killed, chanting freedom slogans and denying official accounts that infiltrators and “armed gangs” were behind the killings and violence in Daraa. “Traitors do not kill their own people ... God, Syria, Freedom. The blood of martyrs is not spilt in waste!” they chanted. As soldiers armed with AK-47s roamed the streets, residents emptied shops of staples and basic goods and said they feared the government of President Bashar al-Assad was intent on crushing the revolt by force. Assad, a close ally of Iran, key player in neighbouring Lebanon and supporter of militant groups opposed to Israel, has dismissed rising demands for reform in Syria, a country of 20 million people run by the Baath Party since a 1963 coup. A government statement said “outside parties” were spreading lies about the situation in Daraa, which is near the Jordanian border. It blamed “armed gangs” for the violence. Some people recalled the 1982 massacre in Hama, when Assad's father Hafez al-Assad sent troops to the conservative religious city to crush the armed wing of the Muslim Brotherhood. Human rights groups say at least 20,000 persons died. “If the rest of Syria does not erupt on Friday, we will be facing annihilation,” said one resident, referring to Friday prayers, the only time citizens are allowed to gather en masse without government permission. — Reuters
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Libyan tanks roll on even as air strikes continue
Tripoli/Washington, March 24 Heavy shelling by forces loyal to Muammar Gaddafi was reported in the rebel-held Misurata and fierce fighting with opponents in strategic Ajdabiya. Residents fled the towns to escape shelling and gunfire. Rebels claimed that several houses were on fire after the shelling. Gaddafi's forces also resorted to sniper firing to dislodge the rebels. Even as coalition commanders claimed that Gaddafi's air force had been completely destroyed, a Libyan plane flying in breach of the UN “no-fly” zone was destroyed by French warplanes. In the first incident of its kind since the enforcement of the “no fly” zone began on March 19, French military spokesman Col Thierry Burkhard was quoted as saying by BBC that the small trainer aircraft was attacked just as it landed in Misurata. BBC quoted witnesses as saying that in Misurata, Libya's third-largest city, that tanks had withdrawn from their positions in the wake of air attacks by western forces but had later rolled back to resumed shelling. Eight explosions rocked Tripoli. An explosion was also reported at a military base in the Tajura region, east of the capital, BBC said. Libyan state television said western planes had struck in Tripoli and in Jafar, southwest of the capital, according to the Al Jazeera. The Gaddafi regime has accused the coalition forces of killing civilians, a charge refuted by the western nations. Eighteen charred bodies were shown to a group of journalists, who were taken to a hospital early today and the government claimed they were of military personnel and civilians killed in the air strikes. The US and allied forces shifted focus on hitting Libyan ground forces, targeting tanks and artillery. The shift to attack the ground forces came after coalition commanders claimed that Gaddafi's air force had been completely destroyed and that the US and NATO warplanes had total sway of the Libyan sky. The massive strikes on Gaddafi's ground forces, including his big Armada of tanks, mobile rocket launchers, heavy guns and short range battle missiles, mark the second phase of operation 'Odysses Dawn', British Air Vice Marshal Greg Bagwell said. Gaddafi's airforce "no longer exists a fighting force," Bagwell said as a flotilla of NATO warships patrolled Libya's coast to enforce an arms embargo against Gaddafi. — PTI
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Yemen’s elite guards clash with protesters
Dubai, March 24 The clashes between Presidential guards and the army units who have backed opposition groups and protesters asking Saleh to quit took place in the eastern Hadramout provincial town Mukalla today, Al Jazeera channel said. Abdul Ghani al-Iryani, a political analyst, warned that that there was growing risk of “civil war” due to such clashes. “With the military divided, the risk of confrontation and escalation is just too great. Right now it's at a very low level, and it won't start an all-out battle, but the risk is still there,” he was quoted as saying by Arab channel.
— PTI
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3 workers at Japan N-plant exposed to high radiation
Tokyo/Fukushima, March 24 Australia, Singapore, Hong Kong, Philippines, Canada and Russia placed restrictions on imports of Japanese food after the US slapped a ban on dairy products and vegetables produced on farms contaminated by radiation leaks from the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant.
— PTI
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‘Davis Deal’
Islamabad, March 24 Pakistani authorities have agreed not to declare these US officials “persona non grata” if they voluntarily leave the country within a stipulated time, The Express Tribune quoted unnamed sources as saying. Islamabad was almost ready to summarily expel these persons who have various levels of diplomatic immunity as most of them were issued Pakistani visas without getting prior no-objection certificates in line with standard operating procedures, the daily reported. Davis, a 36-year-old former Special Forces soldier, was arrested in Lahore in January after he shot and killed two armed men. He was recently pardoned and freed by a court under a “blood money” deal whereby over $2 million were paid to the families of the dead men. According to standard operating procedures, all embassy and consulate staff working under different diplomatic covers like contractors, consultants, technicians and administrative staff are required to be vetted by relevant officials before visas are issued to them. Pakistani officials, while handing over a list to the US, had demanded that the American officials should be immediately recalled.
— PTI
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Terrorist plotting World Cup attack nabbed: Pak
Islamabad, March 24 Malik, who did not identify the nationality or the affiliation of the alleged terrorist, made the revelation at a joint briefing with Interpol chief Ronald Noble here, saying the International Police Organisation had helped to uncover the plot. New Delhi had been informed of the plot, the Pakistan Interior Minister said, as he also claimed that the Taliban had spread its tentacles to India. Malik said there were reports that the Taliban had started their activities in India and that he had warned the neighbouring country's government of this menace. He said there was a “serious attempt” at carrying out a terrorist attack during the ongoing cricket tournament and that a terrorist was arrested. He claimed that the arrested man had no connection with Pakistan and information about the incident was being shared with India. — PTI
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Two major quakes jolt Myanmar, Thailand; 2 dead Yangon, March 24 Tremors spread as far away as Bangkok, almost 800 km south of the epicentre, Hanoi and Myanmar's capital Naypyidaw. The quake was initially put at 7.0-magnitude by the US Geological Survey (USGS), before being revised to 6.8. A powerful aftershock was later measured at magnitude 5.4 by the USGS. The epicentre was close to the borders with Thailand and Laos and was just 10 km deep. The quake struck 90 km north of Chiang Rai in Thailand and 235 km north-north-east of Chiang Mai, Thailand's second city and a popular tourist destination. — AFP
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Tokyo/Fukushima, March 24
