The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

14 car bombs rock Baghdad; 54 killed

Baghdad, September 30
Car bombs today killed at least 54 persons in mostly Shi'ite Muslim areas of Baghdad as suspected Sunni Muslim militants pursued a campaign to plunge Iraq back into sectarian strife.

Altogether 14 bombs shook Baghdad, the deadliest of them in Sadr City, where a white car blew up near where men had gathered to seek work, killing seven persons, including two soldiers.

“The driver said he would move it soon, but the car exploded a few minutes later,” said Abu Mohammed, a worker at the scene. Footage from the scene showed the remains of a car torn in two surrounded by damaged taxis and bits of metal melted in the heat of the blast.

It was not clear who was behind the bombings, but hardline Sunni Muslim militants who view Shi'ites as non-believers have been intensifying their insurgency this year. Iraq’s delicate sectarian balance has been strained by the civil war in neighbouring Syria, where mainly Sunni rebels are fighting to overthrow a leader backed by Shi’ite Iran. Both Sunnis and Shi’ites have crossed into Syria from Iraq to fight on opposite sides of the conflict.

Al Qaida’s Iraqi and Syrian branches merged earlier this year to form the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, which has claimed responsibility for attacks on both sides of the border. Shi’ites, security personnel, government employees and government-backed Sunni "Sahwa" militia members are prime targets for Al Qaida and other Sunni insurgents.

On Sunday, a suicide bomber blew himself up at a Shi'ite funeral in a mosque in the town of Mussayab, 60 km south of Baghdad, killing at least 40 persons.

More than 6,000 persons have been killed in violence so far this year, according to the monitoring group Iraq Body Count. The Interior Ministry put the death toll from Monday’s attacks at eight. Iraqi authorities frequently understate casualties from sectarian violence. — Reuters

Attacks in 9 dists

14 car bombs ripped through Baghdad’s nine districts in apparently coordinated attacks
It was not clear who was behind them, but hardline Sunni Muslim militants who view Shi'ites as non-believers have been intensifying their insurgency this year
More than 6,000 persons have been killed and 12,000 others injured in violence so far this year

Hillary’s next Prez bid to be better than 2008: Bill

New York, September 30
Hillary Clinton’s next presidential bid “will be better” than her last, former US President Bill Clinton has said, all but confirming that his wife will run for the White House in 2016.

Bill Clinton, in an interview aired yesterday, said if Hillary launches another bid for the presidency in 2016, she will be a more able competitor than she was in 2008, when she was defeated for the Democratic Party nomination by Barack Obama.

“The next one will be better,” the former president was quoted as saying by ABC News.

“It will be different, whether she’s in it or not. They’re all different. And the main thing is you must learn the lessons of your mistakes and your failures without becoming a general who fights the last war, because every new encounter will be shaped by different forces,” Bill Clinton said.

“You’ve got to have a plan for the future that relates to the future that relates to the people,” Bill Clinton said about the lessons learnt from Hillary’s previous bid.

“This is not about the candidates as much as it’s about having a plan for the future,” he said. — PTI

Manmohan-Sharif meeting a minor miracle: Pak media

The fact that Pakistan and India decided to continue with talks at a time when hawks on both sides are more vociferous than ever should still be seen as a net positive.— The News International, Pakistani newspaper

Islamabad, September 30
Pakistani media today termed the first meeting between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Nawaz Sharif as a "minor miracle" and noted that the dialogue held amidst a tense atmosphere yielded "words" but "no action".

The much-anticipated meeting between the two Prime Ministers took place on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York yesterday.

The News International in its editorial said the prelude to the meeting could not have been more disastrous, and that the meeting itself took place is a "minor miracle" as both sides called it useful and constructive.

The Dawn newspaper said the meeting with the "lowest expectations" was perhaps a small victory for both the nations, while the Daily Times said the intent shown by both the neighbours to continue the process of dialogue and peace negotiations was encouraging.

The Dawn editorial headlined "Words, no action", praised Singh for holding talks despite "pressure domestically".

The News said Prime Minister Singh has "devoted much of his speech" at the United Nations General Assembly to the question of Pakistan and terrorism, calling "us an 'epicentre of terrorism' and refusing to negotiate over the status of Kashmir."

"The tense atmosphere quickly turned farcical when it was claimed that Nawaz Sharif had compared Manmohan Singh to a 'village woman' in an off-the-record meeting with journalists, although other attendees denied he said any such thing," it said.

The editorial also brought in BJP leader Narendra Modi's comments at a rally in New Delhi and said External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid "poured further fuel to the fire by blaming the Pakistan military and the ISI for not obeying PM Nawaz and for militancy in Kashmir."

Given this backdrop, that the meeting itself took place is a minor miracle, as both sides called it useful and constructive, the editorial said.

By all accounts, the meeting was successful in its very limited aim of kick-starting diplomacy even though no outstanding issues were going to be solved in just one meeting, the editorial said.— PTI

Meeting was productive, says Pak PM

Islamabad, September 30
Terming his first meeting with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh as "productive", Pakistani Premier Nawaz Sharif today said dialogue between the two countries is the only way forward in normalising ties.

"Dialogue is the only way forward in normalising situation between the two neighbourly countries," Nawaz Sharif said on his arrival at the Heathrow airport in London on his return from the US after attending the UN General Assembly.

Sharif termed his meeting with Singh as "productive and said all important issues, including Kashmir and Sir Creek, were discussed, state-run Radio Pakistan reported. — PTI

Bugti murder case
Musharraf ordered to appear in court

Islamabad, September 30
A Pakistani anti-terrorism court today issued warrants for former military ruler Pervez Musharraf to appear before it in connection with the Nawab Akbar Bugti murder case.

During the hearing of the case in Quetta, former Interior Minister Aftab Sherpao and former provincial Home Minister Mir Shoaib Nowsherwani appeared in the court, while officials of the Crime Branch presented a report relating to the non-availability of Musharraf.

The court then ordered for the production of Musharraf and also issued directives for the jail officials concerned in this regard.

Later, the court adjourned the hearing until October 22 and the hearing of bail petitions of Aftab Sherpao and Shoaib Nowsherwani was also put off until then.

Musharraf’s lawyers have said he faces security risks and hence the case should be moved out from Quetta.

Meanwhile, the All Pakistan Muslim League (APML) of Musharraf protested against the continued detention of the former military dictator terming it “a part of an elaborate political conspiracy contrary to justice and the rule of law.”

In a statement, Musharraf’s political advisor Chaudry Sarfraz Anjum Kahlon stated that the former president “was being punished for protecting the unity and integrity of Pakistan against violent actors." — PTI

US Senate rejects House budget Bill; shutdown looms

Washington, September 30
A conservative challenge to President Barack Obama's landmark health care law pushed the federal government today to the brink of the first partial shutdown in 17 years.

As expected, the Democratic-led Senate rejected a measure passed by the Republican-led House to work a delay of the health plan into a temporary spending bill needed to keep the government running.

The 54-46 Senate vote came less than 10 hours before a midnight deadline to approve the funding legislation. It is now up to the House to accept a bill that doesn't delay the health initiative - which it has refused to do - or find an alternative acceptable to the Senate.

If it fails to do either of those options, the government faces closures that would force 800,000 federal workers off the job without pay and rattle the shaky US economic recovery.

"We're at the brink," said Senator Barbara Mikulski, a Democrat, as House Republican leaders calculated their next move.

Some critical services would continue during a shutdown, such as patrolling the borders and controlling air traffic.

The State Department would continue processing foreign applications for visas, and embassies and consulates overseas would continue to provide services to American citizens.

Despite no signs of a compromise, Obama insisted he is "not at all resigned to a shutdown" and he expected to speak to congressional leaders throughout the day to address the impasse. The president has vowed not to allow Republicans to use the spending bill to derail his most important domestic policy achievement. — PTI

Imran says let Taliban open office in Pak; comes under fire
Afzal Khan in Islamabad

Pakistan Tehree-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khan has come under criticism from politicians and analysts for his unabashed stance on talks with the Taliban and allowing them to open an office in Pakistan despite a series of terrorist attacks in Peshawar.

In a statement issued by the PPP, the former president publicly denounced Imran Khan’s position. “The wages of appeasing the militants by asking for setting up their offices in the country are more than obvious and it is time that the nation and the state rise to give a befitting reply to them. Dithering and procrastination on our part will only further embolden the militants,” Zardari said. He termed the latest blast in Peshawar that killed 49 persons as “most barbaric and inhuman”. PTI leader Asad Umar said it wasnot official view of the party.

Task forces formed to maintain peace

Islamabad: Facing criticism following a series of attacks in Peshawar, the Khyber Pakhtunkhawa government has devised a counter-terror strategy to ward off threats to the city. Provincial Secretary Interior Akthar Ali Shah said two special task forces would be set up to maintain peace and counter militant threats in the city.

Oz detains 18 Indian asylum seekers

Melbourne, September 30
Australian authorities have detained 18 Indian asylum seekers, who are likely to be sent back to India in line with newly elected Prime Minister Tony Abbott’s policy to combat people smuggling.

The Indians were among 128 asylum seekers, travelling in three boats, intercepted last week and sent for offshore processing, the Australian Associated Press reported today. "The first vessel was found on Tuesday carrying 18 people from India, who are being interviewed in Darwin," Operation Sovereign Borders Acting Commander Air Marshall Mark Binskin was quoted as saying.

"The group is expected to be returned to India," he said. Authorities today intercepted a vessel carrying 80 asylum seekers, amid Abbott's visit to Indonesia that is likely to be dominated by talks on immigration issues.

Abbott's visit comes three days after a boat packed with asylum seekers and bound for Australia sunk in Indonesian waters, killing 29 and leaving dozens more missing. — PTI