W O R L D

Four pilots killed in Pak trainer aircraft collision This is the second crash of a PAF aircraft in a week Two trainer aircraft of the Pakistan Air Force collided mid-air and crashed into a thickly populated area in the country's northwest on Thursday, killing four pilots and injuring at least five persons on the ground, officials and witnesses said. Air Force personnel examine the wreckage of a light Mushshak plane after it crashed in the Rashkai area in Pakistan on Thursday. — AFP

Cut off every cent of aid to Pak: US lawmakers 
Washington, May 17
Prominent American lawmakers have asked the Obama administration to cut off every cent of its aid to Pakistan terming the country a "black hole" where the US has already "sunk" a whopping $24 billion since 2004.

7 killed in Afghanistan suicide attack
Kabul, May 17
Seven persons were killed and 12 others injured in a suicide attack on the governor's compound in Afghanistan's western Farah province today, the police said. "Six policemen and one civilian were killed and 12 others were wounded, including nine civilians and three policemen," regional police spokesman Abdul Raouf Ahmadi said.

Iran won’t give up nuke rights: Jalili
Tehran, May 17
Iran rejects Western pressures over its nuclear activities and will never give up its rights, Tehran's chief nuclear negotiator said today ahead of crunch talks with world powers in Baghdad next week.

Fonsenka to be freed this week
The ground is being set for the release for Sri Lanka’s jailed former Army Commander Sarath Fonseka within the next few days. Tiran Alles, an Opposition MP from the Democratic National Alliance, who is negotiating Fonseka’s release, told reporters on Wednesday that a few details have to be worked out before Fonseka is granted a presidential pardon.

We all ride on a Yellow Duckmarine

n A Chinese junk, Venetian gondolas and a boat rowed by Olympic champions will be part of the 1,000-vessel flotilla on London's River Thames as part of a pageant to celebrate Queen Elizabeth's diamond jubilee next month, organisers said. n The queen will also be accompanied by a host of musicians playing Bollywood songs to James Bond theme tunes when up to a million spectators gather along the Thames on June 3.

Queen Elizabeth II rides on a ‘Yellow Duckmarine’ boat in Liverpool, England, on Thursday. — AFP

Coffee drinkers likelier to live longer?
Washington, May 17
Drinking coffee might help you live longer, a new study has suggested. Results of the study show that death rates over a 13-year period among men and women who drank coffee decreased with a greater number of cups per day, up to six.

Kissinger was warned of another Indo-Pak war in mid-70s
Washington, May 17
The pro-Pakistan tilt of US administration continued well into mid-70s, with then Secretary of State Henry Kissinger expressing concern over Russia's arms sale to New Delhi warning this could trigger another Indian attack on Pakistan.

 

 

Four pilots killed in Pak trainer aircraft collision
This is the second crash of a PAF aircraft in a week
Afzal Khan in Islamabad

Two trainer aircraft of the Pakistan Air Force collided mid-air and crashed into a thickly populated area in the country's northwest on Thursday, killing four pilots and injuring at least five persons on the ground, officials and witnesses said.

Residents of the Rashkai area in Nowshera district said the aircraft collided before plunging into two houses.

The walls and roofs of the houses collapsed and debris from the aircraft lay strewn over a large area.

Police officials and witnesses said all four pilots in the two propeller-driven aircraft were killed instantly.

Two children and a woman were among the injured, said residents of Rashkai, a town located 50 km from Peshawar, the capital of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province.

The accident occurred close to the Pakistan Air Force Academy at Risalpur shortly after 10 am.

A PAF spokesman confirmed the incident and said an inquiry had been ordered to ascertain the cause of the accident.

The aircraft burst into flames after hitting the ground. According to initial reports, both planes were both planes were the Mushshak, a basic training aircraft used by PAF.

Local residents took the injured to a nearby hospital. A large number of people gathered at the site and helped pull the injured out of the damaged houses. Army troops and air force teams later cordoned off the area.

This was the second crash of a PAF aircraft in a week. On May 11, a Mirage fighter jet crashed near Karachi.

The PAF operates a fleet of French-made Mirage III and Mirage 5 aircraft procured between 1968 and 2000 and Chinese-built variations of the F-7.

Seven Mirage jets have crashed since the aircraft were inducted into the PAF.

Pakistan has been phasing out the older Mirage jets and replacing them with the JF-17 Thunder that was jointly developed with China.

(With PTI inputs)

Cut off every cent of aid to Pak: US lawmakers 

Washington, May 17
Prominent American lawmakers have asked the Obama administration to cut off every cent of its aid to Pakistan terming the country a "black hole" where the US has already "sunk" a whopping $24 billion since 2004.

"In Pakistan, billions of aid has been given to the Pakistanis since then - billions of aid - while they, at the same time, have terrorised their neighbours and repressed their own people; those own people like the Balochs, who are now fighting and struggling for their freedom there," Congressman Dana Rohrabacher said at a Congressional hearing.

"We should cut Pakistan off of every cent because it's being used for evil purposes, and it's even been used to kill Americans. It's time we face reality, admit our mistakes, and cut our losses and quit supporting failed policies and corrupt dictators," Rohrabacher said during the hearing at the Middle East and South Asia Sub-committee of the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

During the hearing, senior Congressman Gary Ackerman accused Pakistan of sponsoring and providing shelter to terrorists.

"Pakistan is like a black hole for American aid. Our tax dollars go in, our diplomats go in (sometimes), our aid professionals go in (sometimes), our hopes go in, our prayers go in. Nothing good comes out," said Ackerman.

"Since FY 2004, we have sunk $24 billion in foreign assistance to Pakistan. It is hard to fathom how so much money can buy so little. Waste at this scale requires not only an oblivious body politic and Congress, but a large cadre of government professionals and a horde of contractors," he said.

"Pakistan continues to shelter, directly support and sponsor terrorists. Officially acknowledging this indisputable fact might be grossly impolitic; but that doesn't make it less true. American standing in Pakistani public opinion is terrible and getting worse," he said. — PTI 

7 killed in Afghanistan suicide attack

Kabul, May 17
Seven persons were killed and 12 others injured in a suicide attack on the governor's compound in Afghanistan's western Farah province today, the police said. "Six policemen and one civilian were killed and 12 others were wounded, including nine civilians and three policemen," regional police spokesman Abdul Raouf Ahmadi said.

The four attackers also died, he said. Two of the attackers detonated their suicide vests and the other two were shot dead by the police, said Interior Ministry spokesman Sediq Sediqqi.

In a similar attack on the governor's office in the Paktika province a week ago, four persons were killed and five wounded by a group of six suicide bombers wearing police uniforms. — AFP

Iran won’t give up nuke rights: Jalili

Tehran, May 17
Iran rejects Western pressures over its nuclear activities and will never give up its rights, Tehran's chief nuclear negotiator said today ahead of crunch talks with world powers in Baghdad next week.

"If we participate in the negotiations... it is because of our resistance (to Western powers). Thanks to our resistance, we have defended the rights of the Iranian people," Saeed Jalili said in a speech broadcast on local television.

"The Iranian people will never give up even an iota of their rights," Jalili added, in reference to the Islamic republic's nuclear drive which the West suspects is masking a weapons programme. Tehran vehemently denies the charge.

"I advise Western officials against making calculated mistakes. In Baghdad, we can negotiate for cooperation on the basis of respect for Iran's undeniable rights. —AFP

Fonsenka to be freed this week
Chandani Kirinde in Colombo

The ground is being set for the release for Sri Lanka’s jailed former Army Commander Sarath Fonseka within the next few days. Tiran Alles, an Opposition MP from the Democratic National Alliance, who is negotiating Fonseka’s release, told reporters on Wednesday that a few details have to be worked out before Fonseka is granted a presidential pardon.

“He will be released within the next two to three days,” Alles told reporters outside the private hospital in Colombo where Fonseka is undergoing medical treatment under heavy guard. Fonseka has been convicted of several offences, including being involved in financial irregularities while serving in the army, but he has denied all charges and said these are politically motivated.

The former Army Commander is largely credited with the May 2009 defeat of the Tamil Tigers and his release is likely to coincide with the third-year celebrations on May 19.

Coffee drinkers likelier to live longer?

Washington, May 17
Drinking coffee might help you live longer, a new study has suggested. Results of the study show that death rates over a 13-year period among men and women who drank coffee decreased with a greater number of cups per day, up to six.

The trend was seen for deaths from any cause, and from specific causes such as heart disease, respiratory disease, stroke and diabetes.

This relationship was not seen for those who died of cancer.

The study showed an association, not a direct cause-effect relationship, between coffee and mortality rates. It was emphasised the greatest benefits may be from black coffee — cream, sugar and additives may be detrimental. — ANI

Kissinger was warned of another Indo-Pak war in mid-70s

Washington, May 17
The pro-Pakistan tilt of US administration continued well into mid-70s, with then Secretary of State Henry Kissinger expressing concern over Russia's arms sale to New Delhi warning this could trigger another Indian attack on Pakistan.

The continued Pakistani slant in then US administration has come to light after the State Department de-classified diplomatic conversations between US and Russian leadership of those years. At a meeting in Vienna in 1975 with his Russian counterpart Andrei Gromyko, Kissinger raised doubts over arm supplies by Moscow to New Delhi. — PTI