The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

Iran condemns American to die for spying
TENSIONS RISE Vienna diplomats say Iran has started uranium enrichment in bunker

Tehran/Vienna, January 9
Iran announced today it had sentenced a dual US-Iranian citizen to death as a spy, and diplomats said it had switched on a uranium enrichment plant deep inside a mountain, actions certain to infuriate the West.

The moves come at a time when new US sanctions are causing real economic pain, Iran has spooked oil markets with threats to international shipping, and an election in two months is widening political divisions at home.

The United States denies Arizona-born 28-year-old Amir Mirza Hekmati is a spy, and has demanded his immediate release. Iran has aired a televised confession, denounced by Washington, in which Hekmati said he worked for a New York-based video game company designing games to manipulate public opinion in the Middle East on behalf of US intelligence.

“Amir Mirza Hekmati was sentenced to death ... for cooperating with the hostile country America and spying for the CIA (Central Intelligence Agency),” ISNA news agency quoted judiciary spokesman Gholamhossein Mohseni-Ejei as saying.

“The court found him Corrupt on the Earth and Mohareb (one who wages war on God). Hekmati can appeal to the Supreme Court.”

Separately, two diplomats in Vienna, where the UN nuclear watchdog is based, said Iran had finally carried out a long-planned step to begin enrichment of uranium at a site deep under a mountain near the Shi’ite Muslim holy city of Qom.

Uranium enrichment in the Fordow bunker is probably the single most controversial part of Iran’s nuclear programme, which Tehran says is peaceful but the West says is aimed at building an atomic bomb.

The long-simmering nuclear dispute has come to a boil in recent weeks, with the West imposing new sanctions that are having a real impact on Iran’s economy, and Tehran responding with threats to international shipping that rattled oil markets.

After years of Western sanctions that had little effect, US President Barack Obama signed a new measure into law on New Year’s Eve that, if fully implemented, would prevent most countries from buying Iranian oil.

The European Union, which still buys about a fifth of Iran’s oil, is poised to announce an embargo at the end of this month, and other countries may have to cut purchases of Iranian crude to receive waivers from the U.S. sanctions. Buyers are demanding deep discounts to trade with Tehran, cutting the revenue that it needs to feed its 74 million people.

Iran has remained defiant. In a televised speech on Monday, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said: “Sanctions imposed on Iran by our enemies will not have any impact on our nation.”

Iran disclosed to the International Atomic Energy Agency in 2009 that it was building the nuclear facility beneath a mountain at Fordow, but only after learning that it had been detected by Western intelligence.

Tehran says it intends to enrich uranium to 20 per cent purity with centrifuges there. The West says uranium that pure is not necessary for power plants and is a step towards a bomb. “All of Iran’s enrichment activity is in violation of (United Nations) Security Council resolutions and any expansion of its capacity at Fordow just compounds those violations,” said a Western diplomat in Vienna.

Locating the enrichment facility inside a mountain makes it harder for Israel or the United States to destroy it. Both countries say a military option remains on the table. — Reuters

Gilani’s quip aggravates civil-military tensions
Says replies to panel probing ‘memogate’ by Kayani, Pasha illegal
Afzal Khan in Islamabad

Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani’s statement that the army and ISI chiefs had filed unauthorised and illegal responses to notices of Judicial Commission on memo scam has given fresh twist to escalating civil-military tensions.

Gilani’s sudden declaration midway through the commission’s probe has triggered speculations in the capital that the government might again be contemplating a disciplinary action against Gen Ashfaq Kayani and ISI chief Shuja Pasha.

Last month Gilani had upped the ante by a startling statement that the military was acting as a state within state and insisted that all institutions were subordinate to him as chief executive. It sparked rumours that Kayani and Pasha might be sacked. However, a few days later Gilani issued an odd clarification that he was referring to the defence secretary and not Pasha or Kayani. He further denied that the two strongmen were being sacked.

Affidavits submitted by Kayani and Pasha to the Supreme Court and the judicial commission have been in conflict with the government stance. While they insisted that the memo was a reality, an attack on national security and an attempt to undermined soldiers’ morale, the government branded the memo as fake and a worthless piece of paper. Both Kayani and Pasha have demanded a comprehensive investigation.

Legal experts have contested Gilani’s claim that Kayani and Pasha violated constitution by directly sending their replies to court notices. It contrasts his earlier statement after a long session with Kayani last month that both officers had followed normal rules of business while responding to court notices.

Prominent lawyer Marghub Nasim pointed out that the court had issued notices directly to Kayani and Pasha who exercised their right to respond in their personal capacity to the court.

Haqqani denies memo link

Husain Haqqani salutes to media as he arrives to appear before a judicial panel in Islamabad on Monday. — AP/PTI

Pakistan's former envoy to the US Husain Haqqani on Monday dismissed allegations that he was involved in drafting and delivering a controversial memo to Washington to seek help to avoid a military coup in the country.

Haqqani, who appeared before a judicial commission investigating the memo scandal, said he had been "falsely accused" by Pakistani American businessman Mansoor Ijaz of being the person who communicated the contents of the memo to US Admiral Mike Mullen, then the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff.

Haqqani was forced to resign last year after Ijaz made public an alleged memo that had sought US help to prevent a possible military takeover in Pakistan after the killing of Osama bin Laden. Ijaz has claimed that he drafted and delivered the memo to the former US military chief on the instructions of Haqqani. — PTI

	Malaysia’s Anwar freed of sodomy charge Kuala Lumpur, January 9 In a stunning climax to a two-year old trial, a Malaysian court today acquitted opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim of sodomy charges, and the admittedly surprised former deputy premier immediately set his sights on pushing out the long-serving ruling coalition. High Court Judge Justice Mohamad Zabidin Mohd Diah took just three minutes to deliver his most-awaited judgment to a packed court house finding him not guilty of sodomising 26-year-old Mohd Saiful Bukhari, his former aide. A relieved 64-year-old opposition leader announced outside the court room that he intended to visit India and Turkey soon. Anwar said his surprise acquittal could be linked to government fears that a guilty ruling would have left Prime Minister Najib Razak’s image tarnished abroad. The verdict, which is likely to give a boost to opposition alliance ahead of General Election, were followed by three small explosions outside the court where a tight security arrangement was in place. But the police blamed it on firecrackers. A government statement said the judgment highlighted the free nature of the judiciary in the nation. Delivering the judgment, the judge said there were no corroborating evidence to support Saiful’s testimony, citing unreliable DNA evidence. “The court cannot be 100 per cent certain that DNA was not contaminated,” he said. Anwar’s supporters shouted “Allahu Akbar,” or “God is great” after the judge finished reading the verdict. Anwar immediately hugged his children who were crying over the verdict. He also shook hands with the prosecutors. “Thank God justice has prevailed,” said Anwar. — PTI
	Charity money lands Bruni in trouble London, January 9 French First Lady Carla Bruni has reportedly landed into a major controversy in the wake of allegations that she handed out AIDS charity money to one of her closest friends and to a foundation she runs. The money was paid by the Geneva-based Global Fund to fight AIDS for a campaign called Born HIV-free, which aims to raise awareness of transmission of HIV from mothers to their children. Bruni is an ambassador for the fund. But, French political magazine ‘Marianne’ claimed that Bruni gave Euros 2.7 million from the Global Fund to companies belonging to her friend Julien Civange, a 43-year-old music entrepreneur. And it’s alleged that the money which actually went towards fighting AIDS was minimal. Though Bruni admitted the money was paid to Civange to promote her work, but denied it came from public funds, the British media reported. The French magazine also claims that the First Lady’s Fondation Carla Bruni-Sarkozy also got some money from the Global Fund. However, a statement by the Global Fund dubs Marianne’s report as “untruthful and misleading”. It said that “all the contracts for its campaign complied with their stringent rules and procedures and the Born HIV-Free campaign underwent an independent and external review which confirmed all funds used appropriately”. — PTI
	Krishna in Israel; focus on trade, security Jerusalem, January 9 External Affairs Minister SM Krishna today arrived here on a two-day visit to Israel, the first by an Indian Foreign Minister in over a decade that comes amidst political turmoil in the Middle East. Krishna drove down from Jordan via the Allenby Bridge border post and was received by Indian envoy to Israel Navtej Sarna and officials of the Israeli Foreign Ministry here. Krishna, who is on a visit to the Middle East, had met his Jordanian counterpart Nasser Judeh yesterday. The minister’s visit to Jordan came close on the heels of Amman playing host to Israeli and Palestinian negotiators on January 3, the first in more than a year. The visit by Krishna is being seen as a means to understand the recent developments in the region. India looks at Jordan as a key nation in the region which is trying to revive the Middle East peace process, sources said, adding the country was also important for India’s food security. Jordan is one of the crucial providers of fertiliser inputs like rock phosphate, phosphoric acid and potash. Sources said various issues, including the Arab Spring, were discussed during the meeting between Krishna and Judeh. Krishna was apprised of the situation in the region and the minister commended the Jordanian effort on the peace initiative between Israel and Palestinian Authority. Krishna is understood to have told his Jordanian counterpart that there is no problem that dialogue cannot solve issues and also reaffirmed India’s stand on Palestine. On the bilateral front, Jordan wished for a further cooperation at business-to-business level and expressed keenness to have a joint venture with India on supplying fertilisers. Jordan also expressed interest in providing visa on arrival facility for Indians and pitched for an increase in bilateral trade. Meanwhile, during his visit here, Krishna is expected to meet Israeli President Shimon Peres and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, besides holding talks with Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman. Cooperation in defence, security, agriculture and science and technology are expected to figure prominently in the discussions amid India’s keenness to widen the scope of partnership in the field of defence, the sources said. They said from a buyer-seller relationship, both sides are looking at expanding their relations. Anti-terror cooperation is also expected to figure in the discussions, against the backdrop of growth in this aspect of the relationship since the Mumbai 2008 attacks in which six Israeli nationals were killed. Krishna is scheduled to meet President Peres later in the evening. As per his schedule, Krishna will first visit the Holocaust Memorial and take a tour of the Indian Hospice in Jerusalem. Ambassador Sarna will also be hosting a reception for Krishna in Tel Aviv. Krishna’s visit to Israel assumes significance because the last such trip took place in July 2000 when the then External Affairs Minister Jaswant Singh travelled here. — PTI
	US expels Venezuelan diplomat Washington, January 9 In a move that will further strain US-Venezuela ties, the State Department has ordered a Venezuelan diplomat in Miami to leave the country by tomorrow for allegedly discussing an Iranian plot to launch cyber attacks on the US. The Venezuelan embassy in Washington was notified on Friday that Livia Acosta Noguera, the consul general in Miami, had been declared persona non grata and had until Tuesday to leave the country, State Department spokesman William Ostick said. "In accordance with Article 23 of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, the department declared Ms Livia Acosta Noguera, Venezuelan consul general to Miami, to be persona non grata. As such, she must depart the United States by January 10," he said. Last month a news report had said that Acosta had taken part in discussions about possible cyber attacks against the United States while she was stationed in the Venezuelan Embassy in Mexico. — PTI
	NATO warships free Iranian, Indian vessels Brussels, January 9 NATO warships have freed Iranian and Indian vessels held by Somali pirates off the Horn of Africa, rescuing five Iranian, nine Pakistani and 20 Indian crew members, NATO said today. The NATO operation came days after the US navy saved 13 Iranian fishermen who were held hostage by pirates for weeks in the Arabian Sea, a rescue welcomed by Tehran amid heightened tensions with Washington. On Saturday, a Danish warship freed five Iranians and nine Pakistanis off the Somali coast after intercepting an Iranian dhow used by pirates as a mothership from which to launch attacks, the alliance said in a statement. The pirates tried to escape to the Somali coast but stopped when Danish navy snipers fired warning shots. A search team, backed by a helicopter, then found the 14 crew members and 25 suspected pirates. The crew members were not injured and "were given access to phone calls so they could give their relatives the good news of their release," a NATO statement said. The dhow was then able to continue its original voyage. The suspects have been detained aboard HDMS Absalon pending an investigation to decided if they can be prosecuted and a decision will be made "in the next few days," the statement said. The other rescue took place on Friday, when a US warship, the USS Carney, intercepted the Indian-flagged dhow Al-Qashmi off the southwestern coast of Oman. The 20 Indian crew members were freed and the nine pirates put on a fast boat carried by the dhow and given sufficient fuel, provisions and water to return to Somalia. — AFP