W O R L D

1971 war crimes
Bangladesh jails Islamic party leader for life
Dhaka, February 5
A top leader of Bangladesh’s fundamentalist Jamaat-e-Islami was today sentenced to life by a special tribunal here for “crime against humanity” committed during the 1971 independence war against Pakistan, sparking riots that claimed at least one life. “He (Abdul Kader Mollah) will serve life term,” said chairman of the three-member International Crimes Tribunal Justice Obaidul Hassan. Mollah is the assistant secretary general of the right-wing Jamaat-e-Islami (JI).

Abdul Kader Mollah at the central jail in Dhaka on Tuesday. — AFP

island dispute Japan protests Chinese ship’s action

Beijing, February 5 The China-Japan tensions over the contested islands in the East China Sea re-surfaced after a brief lull as Beijing dismissed Tokyo’s protests over the continued patrolling of the territory by its vessels, one of which aimed a weapon-targeting radar at a Japanese navy ship. Japanese Defence Minister Itsunori Onodera speaks to reporters at the Defence Ministry in Tokyo on Tuesday. — AFP

CIA used ISI’s detention centres in Pak during war on terror: Study
New York, February 5
Pakistani spy agency ISI’s detention facilities in Karachi and elsewhere were used as an initial detention and interrogation point by the CIA during America’s war on Al-Qaida which was supported by over 50 countries following 9/11 attacks, a new report has claimed.

Seoul: N Korea may stage multiple N-tests
Seoul, February 5
South Korean President Lee Myung-Bak believes North Korea could detonate multiple devices when it goes ahead with a nuclear test expected in the coming weeks or even days.

Royal recall: Michael Ibsen, (L) a descendant of England’s King Richard-III, with a plastic facial model made from the recently discovered skull of the king, at a press conference in London, on Tuesday. Richard-III’s face was revealed for the first time in more than 500 years following a reconstruction of his skeleton found underneath a car park. — AFP

Snow maidens: Thai dancers perform in front of a sculpture of Thailand’s Wat Bendamabophit temple at the annual snow festival in Japan on Tuesday. Some 2 million people are expected to visit the week-long festival which has over 200 snow sculptures. — AFP

1971 war crimes
Bangladesh jails Islamic party leader for life

Dhaka, February 5
A top leader of Bangladesh’s fundamentalist Jamaat-e-Islami was today sentenced to life by a special tribunal here for “crime against humanity” committed during the 1971 independence war against Pakistan, sparking riots that claimed at least one life. “He (Abdul Kader Mollah) will serve life term,” said chairman of the three-member International Crimes Tribunal Justice Obaidul Hassan.

Mollah is the assistant secretary general of the right-wing Jamaat-e-Islami (JI).

The judgment said five of the six charges brought against the 65-year-old were proved during the trial.

Earlier, Mollah was brought before the court under heavy security vigil. Soon after the verdict, Jamaat supporters clashed with the police in parts of the capital, leaving at least one dead and several people injured.

A man was killed in a gunfight between police and pro-hartal activists in Chittagong city during the Jamaat- enforced day-long hartal.

This was the second such judgment by the tribunal in less than three weeks after it awarded death penalty to fugitive Abul Kalam Azad, an anchor of Islamic programmes in a private TV channel and expelled JI leader, on January 17.

Mollah was arrested on July 13, 2010, along with fellow party leader Muhammad Qamaruzzaman in front of the Supreme Court premises on charges of crimes against humanity in 1971.

The tribunal indicted him on May 28, 2012 on six specific charges for actively participating, facilitating, aiding and substantially contributing to the attack directed upon the unarmed civilians, “causing commission of the horrific” genocides, murders and rapes.

Attorney-General Mahbube Alam in an instant reaction to media said the verdict “upset us as we expected the capital punishment for the crimes he committed”. — PTI

island dispute
Japan protests Chinese ship’s action

Beijing, February 5
The China-Japan tensions over the contested islands in the East China Sea re-surfaced after a brief lull as Beijing dismissed Tokyo’s protests over the continued patrolling of the territory by its vessels, one of which aimed a weapon-targeting radar at a Japanese navy ship.

Chinese Ambassador to Japan, Cheng Yonghua rejected Japan’s protest over the continued patrol of Chinese marine surveillance ships in waters off the islands called Diaoyu by China and Senkakus by Japan.

Cheng had conveyed the message to Japanese Deputy Foreign Minister Akitaka Saiki in Tokyo yesterday when he was summoned to receive the Japanese demarche protesting the Chinese ships patrol of the islands.

Cheng said the Chinese vessels are conducting regular patrols in Chinese territorial waters, and requested Japan not to interfere with this, state run CCTV reported today.

After a brief lull, China sent two of its ships to the islands this week. Earlier, both countries scrambled fighter jets to intercept surveillance planes.

The patrols were halted in recent weeks following diplomatic efforts by both the countries to re-establish serious dialogue to bring down the tension.

The diplomatic moves followed after new government headed by hard-liner Sinzhou Abe took power in Tokyo.

Meanwhile, Japanese officials said a Chinese patrol vessel has locked its weapon-targeting radar on a Japanese ship, which could result in “missteps” leading to conflict.

Japanese Defence Minister Itsunori Onodera said the incident happened on January 30 near islands claimed by both nations in the East China Sea. — PTI

CIA used ISI’s detention centres in Pak during war on terror: Study

New York, February 5
Pakistani spy agency ISI’s detention facilities in Karachi and elsewhere were used as an initial detention and interrogation point by the CIA during America’s war on Al-Qaida which was supported by over 50 countries following 9/11 attacks, a new report has claimed.

The report authored by Amrit Singh, daughter of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, says over 50 countries assisted the US in its war against Al-Qaida including by hosting CIA prisons on their territories and detaining, interrogating and “torturing” terror suspects.

It said detention facilities in Pakistan in which detainees were held at the behest of the CIA include the ISI detention facility in Karachi, which was allegedly used as an initial detention and interrogation point before detainees were transferred to other prisons.

Although controlled by the ISI, detainees at the facility claim to have been interviewed by both US and British intelligence officials.

The report ‘Globalising Torture — CIA Secret Detention and Extraordinary Rendition’ released today by rights advocacy group Open Society Justice Initiative details the involvement of 54 nations in the American campaign against Al-Qaida and identifies 136 persons who had been held or transferred by the CIA, describing when and where they were held.

Amrit Singh said she had found evidence that prisoners were held in countries like Thailand, Romania, Poland and Lithuania while Denmark facilitated CIA air operations.

The report provides the number of known victims of secret detention and extraordinary rendition operations, in which suspects were transferred from one country to another without any legal process. — PTI

Seoul: N Korea may stage multiple N-tests

Seoul, February 5
South Korean President Lee Myung-Bak believes North Korea could detonate multiple devices when it goes ahead with a nuclear test expected in the coming weeks or even days.

In an interview published today in the Chosun Ilbo daily, the outgoing President also acknowledged the huge challenge the international community faces in seeking to wean Pyongyang off its nuclear weapons programme.

The North has signalled that it will carry out a “higher level” nuclear test very soon, in a defiant response to UN sanctions imposed after its successful long-range rocket launch in December.

Lee said “higher-level” suggested Pyongyang might attempt to detonate several devices.

“North Korea is likely to carry out multiple nuclear tests at two places or more simultaneously” in order to maximise scientific gains from an event that will be globally condemned, Lee said.

Experts around the world are gearing up to analyse any test for what it might reveal about the current status of the North’s weaponisation programme.

Of particular interest will be any sign that its scientists have succeeded in developing a warhead that can be fitted onto a missile. — AFP