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15 killed in Kenya on poll day Musharraf will be held on return: Prosecutor |
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Pope’s election: Cardinals begin
pre-conclave talks in Vatican US toddler survives 3-storey fall, lands on feet China’s new leadership rules out political reforms HIV cured in baby for first time: Scientists 42 Syrian soldiers killed in Iraq
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15 killed in Kenya on poll day Nairobi/Mombasa, March 4 There were two separate attacks which senior police officers blamed on a separatist movement - which, if confirmed, would suggest different motives to those that caused the post-2007 vote ethnic killings and could limit their impact. Officials and candidates have made impassioned appeals to avoid a repeat of the tribal rampages that erupted five years ago when disputes over the poll result fuelled clashes between tribal loyalists of rival candidates. More than 1,200 persons were killed, shattering Kenya's reputation as one of Africa's most stable democracies and bringing its economy to a standstill. As in 2007, the race has come down to a high-stakes duel between two candidates, this time between Deputy Prime Minister Uhuru Kenyatta and Prime Minister Raila Odinga, the loser in 2007 to outgoing President Mwai Kibaki. Both contenders will depend heavily on votes from tribal loyalists. The United States and Western donors are worried about the stability of a nation that is an ally in the fight against militant Islam in the region but are also fretting what to do if the victor is Kenyatta, who faces charges by the International Criminal Court of orchestrating violence five years ago. Provisional results could emerge hours after polls close at 5 pm (1400 GMT), although the election commission has seven days to announce the official outcome. Polls suggest the election could go to a run-off, provisionally set for April. "If elected, we will be able to discharge our duties," said Kenyatta's running mate, William Ruto who also faces charges of crimes against humanity. "We shall cooperate with the court with a final intention of clearing our names." One of the attacks on Monday took place outside Mombasa and another in Kilifi about 50 km (80 miles) to the north. Senior police officers blamed them on a separatist movement, the Mombasa Republican Council (MRC), which wanted the national vote scrapped and a referendum on secession instead. — Reuters
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Musharraf will be held on return: Prosecutor Islamabad, March 4 Chaudhry Zulfiqar Ali, a special prosecutor for the Federal Investigation Agency, said Musharraf would be arrested irrespective of whether he returned to Pakistan before or after the formation of a caretaker government to oversee the next general election. Musharraf had announced last week that he intends to return to Pakistan a week after the installation of the interim administration to lead his party in the polls. The Pakistan Peoples Party-led government will complete its term on March 16 and the caretaker set-up is expected to be formed the same day. Ali told the media that the anti-terrorism court had issued perpetual warrants for Musharraf and he could not evade the Criminal Procedure Code, which demanded his immediate arrest. The court issued the warrants and declared Musharraf a "proclaimed offender" or fugitive after he refused to cooperate with investigators probing the assassination of former premier Benazir Bhutto. Prosecutors have accused Musharraf of failing to provide adequate security to Bhutto when she returned to Pakistan from self-exile in 2007. As a fugitive, Musharraf will not be entitled to any relief unless he surrenders to a court of competent jurisdiction. Musharraf will be treated in accordance with relevant sections of the Anti-Terrorism Act of 1997 and produced in the anti-terrorism court after his arrest, Ali said. Musharraf would be able to avoid arrest if he obtains protective or transitory bail from any High Court, Ali said. — PTI
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Pope’s election: Cardinals begin pre-conclave talks in Vatican Vatican City, March 4 The Vatican meetings will set the date for the start of the conclave this month and help identify candidates among the cardinals to be the next leader of the world's 1.2 billion Catholics. "We're going to take as much time as we need to think about what sort of Pope the Church needs now," French cardinal Andre Vingt-Trois told reporters as he arrived for today's meetings. A total of 115 "cardinal electors" — cardinals aged under 80 — are expected at the conclave after Britain's Keith O'Brien opted out and an Indonesian cardinal said he was too sick to attend. O'Brien had already recused himself from the conclave and resigned as head of the Scottish church after allegations of misconduct surfaced. "My sexual conduct has fallen below the standards expected of me as a priest, archbishop and cardinal," he said in a statement yesterday. — AFP
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US toddler survives 3-storey fall, lands on feet Washington, March 4 Dylan Hayes fell out the window of his Aurora apartment while his mother Jessica Hayes was washing carpets. Jessica had moved her couch to the wall when Dylan climbed on it to talk through the windows to the downstairs neighbours, CBS Denver affiliate 'KCNC' reported. Dylan fell out of the third story window, did two somersaults in the air, and landed on the rock below on his feet. The screen he broke through suffered more damage than he did. The boy was hospitalised for 20 hours, wearing a neck brace as a precaution. However, he was released with barely a scratch. "I fall ... really, really far," Dylan said. The toddler's mother said she hopes the scary event serves as a warning for parents with young children.— PTI
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China’s new leadership rules out political reforms Beijing, March 4 As the 3,000-strong rubber stamp legislature, the National People's Congress (NPC) is set to meet tomorrow to complete the power transfer to a new generation of leaders, NPC spokesperson Fu Ying said China's political model was a proven success and there is no need to change it. She made it clear that the reform and opening up would continue on the economic front but not in the political arena. China will not copy other countries' models in its drive for political reforms, Fu told a media conference outlining the new government's policies. A team of new leaders headed by Xi Jinping would take over the reins of power this week from the retiring administration headed by President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao. "Whether we copy other models, the answer is no. China has already found a road appropriate for the country and is making headway. Therefore, we have no reason not to go along this road," Fu said. — PTI
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HIV cured in baby for first time: Scientists Washington, March 4 The finding was announced at the 2013 Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections in Atlanta. Dr Deborah Persaud, lead researcher and a virologist at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, presented the findings at the Conference. The results of the findings could possibly lead to a cure for children infected with HIV. The unidentified girl from Mississippi was born HIV-positive to a mother who received no prenatal care and was not diagnosed as HIV-positive herself until just before delivery. "We didn't have the opportunity to treat the mom during the pregnancy as we would like to be able do to prevent transmission to the baby," said Dr Hannah Gay. Gay, a pediatric HIV specialist at the University of Mississippi Medical Center, was quoted by CNN as saying that the timing of intervention in this case, before the baby was diagnosed HIV-positive, may deserve "more emphasis than the particular drugs or number of drugs used." "We are hoping that future studies will show that very early institution of effective therapy will result in this same outcome consistently," she said. "This is a proof of concept that HIV can be potentially curable in infants," she said. In 2007, Timothy Ray Brown became the first person in the world believed to have recovered from HIV. His infection was eradicated through an elaborate treatment for leukaemia that involved the destruction of his immune system and a stem cell transplant from a donor with a rare genetic mutation that resists HIV infection. In contrast, the case of the Mississippi baby involved a cocktail of widely available drugs already used to treat HIV infection in infants. It suggests the treatment wiped out HIV before it could form hideouts in the body. These so-called reservoirs of dormant cells usually rapidly re-infect anyone who stops medication, Persaud said. Dr Katherine Luzuriaga, an immunologist at the University of Massachusetts who worked closely with Gay, called the developments fascinating, including the fact that the toddler was found to have no virus in her blood even after her mother stopped giving her treatment for eight to 10 months.— PTI
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42 Syrian soldiers killed in Iraq Fallujah, March 4 The soldiers crossed into Iraq from the Yaarubiyeh border crossing, the scene of heavy fighting on Saturday between rebels and troops loyal to President Bashar al-Assad, said Lieutenant Colonel Mohammed Khalaf al-Dulaimi of the border protection forces. The soldiers were first transported by Iraqi authorities from Nineveh province to Baghdad, and they were on their way back to be handed over to Syrian authorities on the border with Anbar province in western Iraq when the attack took place, Dulaimi said. Armed men attacked the convoy from two sides with mortar rounds, automatic weapons and mines, killing 42 Syrian soldiers and seven Iraqis. Eight Syrians and four Iraqis were wounded, and three vehicles in the convoy destroyed, he said. — AFP
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British Queen discharged from hospital Record 259 nominees for 2013 Nobel Peace Prize North Korea approves 28 hairstyles N Ireland police seizes van with mortars |
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Just hours before the start of voting and with long queues across the east African country, at least nine security officers in Kenya's restive coastal region were hacked to death. Six attackers were also killed, regional police chief Aggrey Adoli said. The total toll had earlier been put at 17.
A "functional cure" is when the presence of the virus is so small, life-long treatment is not necessary and standard clinical tests cannot detect the virus in the blood.
