Pakistan: Hindu families evicted for drinking water from mosque
Iran woman escapes stoning death for adulteryHurriyat leader arrested, Cong says call back Army
49 killed in suicide attack in Pak tribal belt
176 kgs of explosives found at LeT hideout in Kashmir
Pakistani jets pound Taliban hideouts; 23 militants killed
75 Dead In Iraq On Last 2 Days Of Shia Holiday
Malaysian Islamic courts appoint first women judges
Indonesian Islamists open front against Christians
A constitutional vote in Kenya could end Muslim courts
NASA: Mission to Mecca?
Bangladesh outlaws fatwas
“Some incidents in Kashmir instigated”
Pakistan bomb attack kills six, wounds 90
Bin Laden’s cook pleads guilty at Guantanamo
Islamic Terror Caused by Small Minority of Muslims? Facts Prove Opposite
342 incidents of violence against women in KP, FATA: report
Dhaka University teacher arrested for terror links
U.S. Muslim Group Wants Islamic Domination
Bangladesh: War crimes tribunal lawyers given bodyguards
As wedding season is on, Saudis struggle to cope with tradition
First Sufi festival in New York from July 20
Islamabad sees Taliban as a threat to its security: Haqqani
‘Inequality thrives in Riyadh’s embassy world’
Egypt unveils 4,300-year-old tombs
Israel says Hezbollah storing weapons inside villages
Hezbollah denounces sacking of CNN Mideast editor
Equality would re-engage the UK's Muslim students
Salman Hossain! Canadian Muslim extremist on the run
Number of Pak leaders with fake degrees growing
Pakistani terror suspect linked to New York plot held in UK
Obama says Israel unlikely to surprise US with Iran attack
J&K turmoil: BJP blames state govt for losing control
Terror alert sounded in Delhi and Mumbai
Hindutva terror will give Pak a handle, says Congress
Kashmir by and large remains calm
Pakistan for uninterrupted engagement with India
Iran for investment protection pact
Turkey Gears Up For Judiciary Reform Test
Israel Offers Palestinians Settlement Talks
$3 Bn US Equipment To Fight Taliban Bomb
Delhi wants Army out of Srinagar early, Omar plans all-party meet
UN will not reopen Benazir assassination probe
Mattis named overall US commander of Iraq, Afghan wars
Pakistan pins hope on FMs’ meeting
Wen wants boost in trade with Pakistan
Ten killed in Sindh tribal fighting
Terror war strategy needs to be changed: ISI chief
Scepticism in India over claim of Pakistan hand in Kashmir
Former US envoy calls for Afghanistan’s partition
Hekmatyar’s men supplying Taliban intelligence to Nato: officials
Gang of website hackers busted
Terror war policies to be translated into national interest, says ISI Chief
Malik dismisses blames against ISI
Iraq, Afghan, Pakistan fighters have moved to Somalia: Kenya
Government actions threatening democracy: Nawaz
Afghan corruption doubled since 2006
Turkey faces referendum test
Norway bomb arrests linked to US, British plots
Obama still sees hope for Mideast peace
Al-Qaeda: poor Yemeni town cursed by its name
Hindus undertake pilgrimage despite violence in India-controlled Kashmir
Where is stoning legal, and how is it done?
Sukuk Auction Failures Send Indonesia Overseas: Islamic Finance
Muslim tourism to Australia set to rise
Pushto Press Promoting peace
Compiled by New Age Islam Bureau
Photo: Sakine Mohammedie Ashtiani of Iran
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Pakistan: Hindu families evicted for drinking water from mosque
09 Jul, 2010
By Rabia Ali
As many as 60 Hindu men, women and children were forced into abandoning their homes in Memon Goth and taking refuge in a cattle pen all because of a boy from their community who drank water from a cooler placed outside a mosque, police officials and community members told The News.
These hapless people ran away from the wrath of some of the influential tribesmen of the area who got so enraged by the incident, which took place last week, that they beat up the members of the Hindu community and forced them into evicting their quarters.
“All hell broke loose when my son, Dinesh, who looked after chickens in a farm, drank water from a cooler outside a mosque. Upon seeing him do that, the people of the area started beating him up.
“Later, around 150 tribesmen attacked us, injuring seven of our people — Samo, Mohan, Hero, Chanu, Sadu, Heera, and Guddi — who were taken to the Jinnah Hospital,” said Meerumal, a resident of the area.
One of the injured, Heera, while showing this correspondent his wounds, said that another 400 families of the area, located in the vicinity of Malir, were also being threatened to leave the area.
“Our people are even scared of going out of their houses. We are also putting up with living in the filthy pen because we cannot go home for fear of being killed,” he said.
The SHO of the Memon Goth police station, commenting on the issue, said, “A trivial incident led to riots between the people of the area. Since both the communities happened to be illiterate, the matter just flared up.”
However, he dismissed the claims of lack of security to the Hindu community in the area and said that they could go back to their homes anytime they wanted to.
Meanwhile, Minister for Minority Affairs Dr Mohan Lal assured the Hindu community of full government protection.
“I have directed the DPO and the SHO to ensure that these people go back to their houses safely,” he said.
The minister said that the culprits would be dealt with severely.
Abdul Hai, of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, said that these people, who belonged to the Bheels caste, had been living in the area for several years.
“They are former bonded laborers. Now they earn a meager sum of Rs4,000 to Rs5,000 monthly as watchmen at the farms. Some of them also work for the tribesmen.
“The government must help them in moving back to their homes in order to instill confidence in other families and prevent them from packing their bags too,” he said.
http://www.thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=249623
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Iran woman escapes stoning death for adultery
09 Jul. 10
The authorities in Iran have announced that a woman convicted of adultery will not be stoned to death.
But it is not clear whether they have lifted the death sentence against Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani, who has been in prison in Tabriz since 2006.
The 43-year-old had already been punished with flogging for an "illicit relationship" outside marriage when another court tried her for adultery.
There has been an international campaign to prevent her being stoned.
UK Foreign Secretary William Hague said stoning was a "medieval punishment" and that its continued use showed Iran's disregard for human rights.
"If the punishment is carried out, it will disgust and appal the watching world," he told a news conference in London on Thursday.
Under Iran's strict interpretation of Islamic law, sex before marriage is punishable by 100 lashes, but married offenders are sentenced to death by stoning. The stones used must be large enough to cause the condemned pain, but not sufficient to kill immediately.
Ms Ashtiani's lawyer and human rights activists had warned that her execution was imminent, after appeals for clemency were rejected.
In May 2006, a criminal court in East Azerbaijan province found Ms Ashtiani guilty of having had an "illicit relationship" with two men following the death of her husband. She was given 99 lashes.
But that September, during the trial of a man accused of murdering her husband, another court reopened an adultery case based on events that allegedly took place before her husband died.
Despite retracting a confession the she said she had been forced to make under duress, Ms Ashtiani was found guilty.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/world/middle_east/10565103.stm
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Hurriyat leader arrested, Cong says call back Army
09 Jul. 10
Shabir Ahmad Wani, a middle rung leader of Jammu and Kashmir's hardline Hurriyat group, has been arrested here for allegedly instigating violence in the Valley, police said Friday.
Wani was arrested late Thursday based on intercepts of a phone conversation between him and another person identified as Ghulam Ahmad Dar, a police official said.
"The middle rung Hurriyat leader was arrested after his phone conversation with Ghulam Ahmad Dar during which Wani had told his friend that 10-15 people should be martyred during protests with security forces," he said.
Wani and Dar had been discussing a violent protest in central Badgam district, he added.
The arrest followed disclosures by Home ministry sources in New Delhi that "some violence in Kashmir was instigated".
Wani's family has, however, been maintaining that he is innocent.
Many parts of the Valley have been under an indefinite curfew, enforced with the Army's assistance, following violent protests that led to three deaths in firing by the security forces Tuesday.
CNN-IBN has accessed the intercepts of those conversations between the hardline leaders. Listen in.
Ghulam Ahmed Dar: Procession of nearly 20,000 people had started from Magam and was going towards Budgam.
Shabir Ahmed Wani: You guys enjoy payments sitting at home and do nothing.
Ghulam Ahmed Dar: The management of crowd becomes difficult later. It gets difficult to manage the mob later. At least 15 people should be martyred today.
The Congress has now gone in for damage control over the Kashmir issue. After facing flak for having pressed the panic button and sent the Army, the Congress is quickly distancing itself saying it was the Chief Minister's decision. The Army is on standby in the city and may conduct another flag march on Friday.
Meanwhile, the first batch of additional CRPF jawans is in fact reaching Srinagar on Friday. But the Congress is now saying the Army should be called back as soon as possible.
The Congress and the Centre is insisting that Chief Minister Omar Abdullah should reach out to the people and the Opposition parties. Hence there is an urgent need for an all-party meeting in the state.
A Congress delegation will visit Srinagar and other areas in the Valley to ascertain facts.
Suspected Lashkar-e-Taiba militants have carried out three separate attacks on security forces in Sopore in North Kashmir, leaving two policemen injured.
The attacks are taking place even as the state government's pulling out all stops to ensure strict enforcement of curfew.
The first incident took place at midnight when three militants hurled grenades at a police convoy. This was followed by heavy firing. The second incident took place an hour later. And the third attack was on the road to Baramulla, when terrorists fired upon police vehicles.
(With inputs from Agencies)
http://ibnlive.in.com/news/hurriyat-leader-arrested-cong-says-call-back-army/126291-3.html?from=tn
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49 killed in suicide attack in Pak tribal belt
09 Jul. 10
ISLAMABAD/PESHAWAR: At least 49 people were killed and over 70 injured when a motorcycle-borne suicide bomber targeted a government office in a crowded market in Pakistan's restive tribal belt today, the latest in a wave of terror attacks that have rocked the country.
The attacker detonated his explosives outside the office of the assistant political agent at Yakaghund village in Mohmand Agency. Hundreds of people were present outside the office and in the nearby market, witnesses said.
Political Agent Amjad Ali Khan, the region's top government official, told reporters that 49 people were killed and 73 others injured in the attack.
Four persons succumbed to their injuries at the state-run Lady Reading Hospital in Peshawar, said Abdul Hamid Afridi, the chief executive of the hospital.
Another 66 injured people were being treated at the hospital and eight of them are in a serious condition, Afridi said.
Women, children and personnel of the Khasadar militia were among the dead and injured.
A prison, some other government offices and dozens of shops were damaged by the powerful explosion.
Several buildings, including three restaurants, collapsed and officials said some people could still be buried under the debris.
Security forces cordoned off the area around the site of the blast as rescue workers began clearing the rubble and removing the bodies and the injured.
Ambulances and heavy machinery were sent to Yakaghund from Peshawar to help the rescue operations.
Ishaq Khan, a security guard at the office that was targeted, said the suicide bomber had come to the market on a motorcycle.
The attacker did not stop when security personnel asked him to. "Then he suddenly fell and there was a powerful blast," Khan said.
Times of India
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176 kgs of explosives found at LeT hideout in Kashmir
09 Jul. 10
JAMMU: Security forces on Friday recovered a huge dump of explosives weighing 176 kgs from a Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) hideout unearthed in Kishtwar district of Jammu and Kashmir.
This is the biggest cache of explosives recovered in the state this year, an army officer said.
Acting on a tip-off, troops of 11 Rashtriya Rifles and Special Task Force launched a search operation in Chatroo in Kishtwar district and busted the LeT hideout, he said.
The troops recovered 176 kgs of explosives from there, which included 75 kgs of explosive material packed in two bags, six IEDs weighing 15 kgs each (90 kgs of explosives), 75 gelatin sticks, 23 grenades, 12 bore rifles and various other materials, the officer said.
Times of India
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Pakistani jets pound Taliban hideouts; 23 militants killed
09 Jul. 10
PESHAWAR: Pakistani fighter jets today pounded militant hideouts in the volatile Orakzai tribal region in the country's northwest, killing 23 Taliban fighters and injuring over 20 others, officials said.
The jets bombarded the militant positions during two air strikes.
Officials said the jets struck targets in Dalai, Kandai and Zorando Kalay areas of Orakzai Agency, which borders Afghanistan.
Seven hideouts located in strongholds of the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan were destroyed in the shelling.
The death toll could not be independently confirmed as journalists have no access to the conflict zone.
Times of India
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75 Dead In Iraq on Last 2 Days Of Shia Holiday
Jul 09th, 2010
July 8: At least 15 people were killed on Thursday by bombs targeting the hundreds of thousands of pilgrims who defied violence to take part in the final day of a Shia religious holiday, officials said. The deaths came one day after nearly 60 people were killed in attacks in and around the Iraqi capital, most of them by a suicide bomber who targeted pilgrims heading to a mosque in northern Baghdad to mark the anniversary of the death of a revered Shia figure.
While violence in Iraq has plummeted since the height of the insurgency a few years ago, the attacks targeting devout Shia who walk from across Iraq to take part in the holy occasion underscore the tentative nature of the security gains and the persistent attempts by insurgents to once again foment sectarian divisions. The attacks come as Iraq is struggling to seat a government a little over four months after the March 7 election failed to bring about a clear winner to lead the country. As opposing political blocs jockey to form a ruling coalition, the ongoing political uncertainty has raised questions about whether insurgents will try to destabilise the country just as American troops are reducing their numbers to 50,000 by the end of August.
Full report at:
http://www.asianage.com/international/75-dead-iraq-last-2-days-shia-holiday-988
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Malaysian Islamic courts appoint first women judges
Jul 8, 2010
KUALA LUMPUR: The appointment of the first two women judges to Malaysia's Islamic courts was hailed Thursday as a move to address the gender imbalance in the country's religious judiciary.
Premier Najib Razak announced the appointments, made by the king in May, as an example of the government's commitment to transforming the Sharia judiciary.
"The appointments were made to enhance justice in cases involving families and women's rights and to meet current needs," Najib was quoted as saying by state news agency Bernama last week.
Islamic courts run in parallel with civil courts in this Malay Muslim-majority country but women say they face much discrimination in Islamic divorce proceedings, inheritance and child custody cases.
Full report at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/rest-of-world/Malaysian-Islamic-courts-appoint-first-women-judges/articleshow/6143097.cms
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Indonesian Islamists open front against Christians
By NINIEK KARMINI
BEKASI, Indonesia — Days after rumors spread across this industrial city that Christians were conducting a mass baptism, hard-line Islamic leaders called for local mosques to create a youth guard to act as moral police and put a quick stop to forced conversions.
They started training early Saturday morning, around 100 young men turning out in a field in Bekasi wearing martial arts uniforms. Leaders stressed that there was no plan to arm them, but they do not shy away from saying they'll act essentially as thugs.
"We're doing this because we want to strike fear in the hearts of Christians who behave in such a way," said Murhali Barda, who heads the local chapter of the Islamic Defenders Front, which pushes for the implementation of Islamic-based laws in Bekasi and other parts of the archipelagic nation. "If they refuse to stop what they're doing, we're ready to fight."
Although this secular country, with more Muslims than any other in the world, has a long history of religious tolerance, a small extremist fringe — of which the front is the vanguard — has become more vocal in recent years as it tries to root out everything it considers blasphemous.
Full report at:
Copyright © 2010 The Associated Press.
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A constitutional vote in Kenya could end Muslim courts
9 JULY, 2010
Topics in this story: christians , election , muslims , nettleton , referendum , vom
Kenya (MNN) ? Some are calling it "Islamophobia." Some believe it's a prudent move as radical Islam is on the march. Whatever the case, Kenyans will be going to the polls August 4 for a constitutional referendum that could affect Muslims around the country.
Currently there are 17 Islamic Courts in Kenya that administer sharia, or Islamic law, in civil matters for Kenya's Muslim minority. They've been acknowledged by Kenya's constitution for years.
However, Director of Media Development for Voice of the Martyrs Todd Nettleton says Christians there are asking important questions. "Do we want Muslims to have a separate court system in our country? Is that a good thing? Does that promote radicalism? Does it promote peace? The people of Kenya are really looking hard at this issue as they approach this referendum on August the 4th."
While the courts only apply to civil matters like marriage, divorce, and other similar cases, Nettleton says many in the country are concerned it will expand with Islam's growth, especially when they see what's happened in Somalia. "They see the anarchy that has grown up there around the issues of sharia law as Islamic radicals have taken control of that country. They say, 'We don't want to go there. Is this Islamic court system a step in that direction? And if it is, we don't want to go in that direction.'"
http://www.mnnonline.org/article/14457
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NASA: Mission to Mecca?
09 Jul. 10
The latest flap in the blogosphere is about NASA administrator Charles Bolden Jr.’s observation, in an interview with Al Jazeera, that President Obama wants his agency to conduct more outreach with what Bolden called “dominantly Muslim nations.”
“He wanted me to find a way to reach out to the Muslim world and engage much more with dominantly Muslim nations to help them feel good about their historic contribution to science, math and engineering,” Bolden said.
“Fatuousness,” Charles Krauthammer grumbled.
“The space program is being transformed into a tool of Obama foreign policy, which views American national greatness as an anachronism,” Elliott Abrams objected.
Others complained that Bolden had said that Muslim outreach was perhaps his “foremost” purpose, ahead even of space exploration itself.
In a written statement, the White House pointed out that Bolden was just talking about engaging “the world's best scientists and engineers as we work together to push the boundaries of exploration. Meeting that mandate requires NASA to partner with countries around the world like Russia and Japan, as well as collaboration with Israel and with many Muslim-majority countries. The space race began as a global competition, but, today, it is a global collaboration."
Full report at: http://voices.washingtonpost.com/postpartisan/2010/07/nasa_mission_to_mecca.html
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Bangladesh outlaws fatwas
09 Jul. 10
The Bangladesh High Court has outlawed punishments handed down by religious edict, or fatwa, after a series of cases of Muslim women being beaten and caned, a state lawyer said Friday.
The court ruling came late Thursday on public interest litigations by human rights groups who highlighted examples of women being publicly whipped for adultery, having a child out of wedlock or even talking to people of other faiths.
In some cases, rape victims were flogged for being a "participant" to their assault. The ruling provides jail terms for clerics or any members of village courts who order such punishments by invoking Islamic sharia law.
The same bench on 24 May ordered the government to explain why extrajudicial punishment in the name of fatwa and Islamic Sharia law would not be declared illegal and inhuman.
Full report at: http://www.english.rfi.fr/asia-pacific/20100709-bangladesh-outlaws-fatwas
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“Some incidents in Kashmir instigated”
09 Jul. 10
NEW DELHI: Even as the Army is on standby in trouble-torn Srinagar and adjoining areas in the Kashmir Valley, indications are emerging that some incidents of violence there was “planned and instigated.”
Top sources in the Home Ministry said on Thursday that security officials were looking at a number of intercepted conversations between different individuals and extremist elements that point to deliberate attempts at instigating violence and clashes.
Intercepts
The sources pointed out that intercepts showed that hardline separatists had even discussed the possibility of killing at least 15 people in a procession in Budgam district on the outskirts of Srinagar on Wednesday. Intercepts also showed that extremist and hardline elements in the Valley got rebuke for not being able to engineer large-scale violence and deaths in south Kashmir.
Full report at: http://www.hindu.com/2010/07/09/stories/2010070957621200.htm
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Pakistan bomb attack kills six, wounds 90
9 July 2010
A suspected suicide attack outside a local government office killed six people and wounded around 90 others in a busy market in Pakistan’s lawless tribal area on Friday, officials said.
Local administration official Maqsood Ahmed said the blast took place in Yakaghund town in Mohmand, one of seven districts that make up Pakistan’s tribal belt that Washington has branded a global headquarters of Al-Qaeda.
“The initial report is that it was a suicide attack. The bomber came on a motorbike. We are investigating,” Ahmed told by telephone.
“We have six dead bodies and around 90 wounded,” he added.
Doctors at two local hospitals confirmed that six people had died.
http://www.khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticle09.asp?xfile=data/international/2010/July/international_July306.xml§ion=international
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Bin Laden’s cook pleads guilty at Guantanamo
9 July 2010
A Sudanese prisoner accused of guarding Osama bin Laden and helping him escape US forces in Afghanistan pleaded guilty at Guantanamo on Wednesday, giving the Obama administration its first conviction in the controversial war crimes court.
Ibrahim al Qosi pleaded guilty to conspiring with al-Qaeda and providing material support for terrorism, court spokesman Joe DellaVedova said.
Qosi, who ran the kitchen and provided supplies at Bin Laden’s Star of Jihad copound in Jalalabad, Afghanistan, has been held at Guanta-namo for more than eight years.
His sentence could range from no additional time to life imprisonment, DellaVedova said by phone from the US naval base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. A panel of US military officers will assemble at Guantanamo to hear evidence and deliberate his sentence on August 9.
The terms of his plea agreement were not disclosed but it was expected to contain some limit on his sentence. Qosi, 50, is only the fourth captive convicted in the controversial military tribunals since the Guantanamo detention camp was opened to hold terrorism suspects in January 2002.
http://www.newagebd.com/2010/jul/09/inat.html
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Islamic Terror Caused by Small Minority of Muslims? Facts Prove Opposite
from Rev. Sam Sewell
09 JULY 2010 03:14
Think Islamic problems caused by a small minority of Muslims?
Read the facts, and think again!
As sure as I know that there will be anotherfr terrorist attack on the United States I know the day is coming when Muslims, or for that matter Arabs in general, are going to be hated on sight. I remember after 9/11 some nutcase in California killed a turban-wearing Sikh from India, because he thought he was an Arab.
There was an incident in Dallas immediately after Nine-Eleven. Another nutcase armed himself and drove around in his pickup on a killing spree. One victim was an Indian mini-grocer who'd lived there, legally and peacefully, for about 30 years. As I recall, this nut also killed a Pakistani shopkeeper, similarly situated and injured a Mexican. And as I recall, several such incidents occurred nationwide.
However, refusing to criticize, indeed vehemently condemn anything Islamic is pretty irrational, and will be costly if it doesn't change. If a billion Moslems suddenly rose up in outrage against Usama Bin Lladin, Zawahiri, Nasrallah, Ahab Inajam and the rest of those deranged maniacs, the liberal-socialists and the rest of the world would join them, and we'd have a chance at eliminating this scourge.
Full report at: http://www.rightsidenews.com/2010070910938/editorial/islamic-terror-caused-by-small-minority-of-muslims-facts-prove-opposite.html
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342 incidents of violence against women in KP, FATA: report
09 Jul. 10
PESHAWAR: As many as 342 incidents of violence against women were reported in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) from January to June this year.
Out of these incidents, the highest number of cases occurred in Peshawar, the provincial capital, followed by Mardan, Nowshera, Swabi, Kohat, Mansehra, Malakand, Charsadda and Dera Ismail Khan, said a report released by Aurat Foundation (AF), a non-government organisation.
According to the AF report, 257 cases were registered while 43 remained unregistered and there was no information on the first information report (FIR) in the remaining 42 cases.
The biannual report revealed there were 37 kidnapping cases, 161 murder, 54 domestic violence, 30 suicide, 11 honour killing, 4 rape/gang rape, one acid throwing, one sexual harassment and 43 miscellaneous cases of violence against women.
Full report at: http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2010\07\09\story_9-7-2010_pg7_29
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Dhaka University teacher arrested
09 Jul. 10
Detectives Thursday arrested Dhaka University teacher Professor Gulam Mawla on charge of his involvement with banned Islamic outfit Hizb-ut-Tahrir Bangladesh.
A team of Detective Branch picked up Mawla of the Department of Management on way to his Dhanmondi residence.
A DB officer said he was shown arrested in a case filed with Uttara police station earlier.
Mawla was known as think tank of the banned Hizb-ut-Tahrir.
http://www.newagebd.com/2010/jul/09/front.html
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U.S. Muslim Group Wants Islamic Domination
09 Jul. 10
For most Americans, July is a time to celebrate their country's freedom and independence. But one radical Islamist group will do the opposite this month at a conference on U.S. soil.
In fact, Hzib-ut Tahrir believes in the abolishment of the U.S. Constitution in favor of Islamic sharia law.
http://blogs.cbn.com/stakelbeckonterror/archive/2010/07/08/u.s.-muslim-group-wants-islamic-domination.aspx
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Bangladesh: War crimes tribunal lawyers given bodyguards
09 Jul. 10
The government on Thursday decided to provide a gunman to each member of the prosecution panel, involved in the war crimes trials, in response to their demand for protection.
The decision was taken at an inter-ministry meeting chaired by law minister Shafique Ahmed at the secretariat in the face of security concerns across the country after the arrests of the three top leaders of the Jamaat-e-Islami.
The Jamaat’s leaders, now being grilled in police custody, had reportedly collaborated with the Pakistani occupation forces and committed crimes against humanity in the country’s War of Independence in 1971.
‘We have decided to provide the required logistics to the investigation agency and the prosecution panel of the International Crimes Tribunals so that they can work properly. The lawyers on the panel will be given gunmen for their protection,’ Shafique told reporters at his office after the meeting with members of the prosecution team and the investigation agency.
Full report at: http://www.newagebd.com/2010/jul/09/nat.html
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As wedding season is on, Saudis struggle to cope with tradition
By DIANA AL-JASSEM
Jul 9, 2010
JEDDAH: As the wedding season approaches, many Saudi families find themselves forced to subsidize their relatives and friends for receptions and other occasions.
It is part of tradition for Saudi families to gift large amounts of money to relatives making preparations for weddings. They fear ignoring this responsibility would tarnish family reputation.
The amount of money given usually depends on the family’s relationship with the person getting married, but can range from SR500 to SR20,000.
It is no surprise that families find themselves in deep financial trouble if they had to attend four weddings in one year. Some are forced to cancel their vacation plans or cut down on simple luxuries just to save enough money.
Many Saudi families, even the poor ones, interviewed said they often give away large amounts of money for such occasions.
Full report at: http://arabnews.com/saudiarabia/article81433.ece
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First Sufi festival in New York from July 20
09 Jul, 2010
NEW YORK: Folk artistes from the four provinces of Pakistan will be part of an ensemble at the First New York Sufi Festival and will have their first public performance at New York’s Union Square Park.
The 50-member Sufi group headed by the Pakistani legend Abida Parveen will include Akhtar Channel Zehri from Balochistan, the Soung Faqirs from Sindh and Zeb & Haniya with their contemporary interpretation of Sufi music drawing from their Pakhtun heritage.
The Sufi festival is being held in the aftermath of Times Square attempted terrorist attack which has undermined Pakistan-American relations.
It is an effort to present the softer side of Pakistan and to repair country’s tarnished image.
The highlight of the festival will be a free, public performance with several ensembles at Union Square Park on July 20. Associated partners, the Asia Society and Rubin Museum, will host events of their own. An “unplugged” concert by younger performers will also be held at the Rubin Museum as part of their Spiral Music Series on July 21.
Full report at: http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/the-newspaper/national/first-sufi-festival-in-new-york-970
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Islamabad sees Taliban as a threat to its security: Haqqani
July 09, 2010
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Ambassador to the United States, Husain Haqqani said alongside military solutions there has to be a socio-economic and a political dimension to the challenges and threats posed by Taliban.
“We also believe, there is no purely military solution to the problem, that there also has to be a socio-economic and a political dimension to the problem,” Haqqani told correspondent Charles Recknagel in an interview during his visit to the RFE/RL in Prague.
He said there is no point in killing a few people and then those people being replaced by new recruits. “We have to make sure that the ability of the Taliban, in Afghanistan or Pakistan, to be able to continue to recruit people diminishes,” he added. When asked how does Pakistan regard - Afghan Taliban,
Pakistani Taliban and Punjabi Taliban, and the challenges they pose for the country, he said the government, led by President Asif Ali Zardari, has consistently maintained that we consider all Taliban, whether their sphere of operations is Afghanistan or Pakistan, and other militant groups that are affiliated with or associated with the Taliban, a threat to our own security as well as to the security of our region and the world.
Full report at: http://www.thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=249776
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‘Inequality thrives in Riyadh’s embassy world’
By GHAZANFAR ALI KHAN
Jul 9, 2010
RIYADH: Women are grossly underrepresented among the diplomatic community in Riyadh, according to a senior woman diplomat in the Saudi Arabian capital.
Ulla-Maija Nevalainen, the deputy chief of mission at Finland’s embassy and the first European woman to serve as a diplomat in Saudi Arabia, also claimed there were only five women diplomats in the Kingdom, including two that had not yet started their respective posts.
“The female representation in the city’s diplomatic world is quite low despite the fact that I don’t feel any problem in dealing with Saudis as a woman,” said Nevalainen, who was speaking at a farewell reception hosted in her honor by Finnish Ambassador Martti Isoaro at his residence on Wednesday night.
Full report at: http://arabnews.com/saudiarabia/article81407.ece
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Egypt unveils 4,300-year-old tombs
By MAGGIE MICHAEL
Jul9, 2010
SAQQARA, Egypt: Egyptian archaeologists on Thursday unveiled a newly-unearthed double tomb with vivid wall paintings in the ancient necropolis of Saqqara near Cairo, saying it could be the start for uncovering a vast cemetery in the area.
The tomb includes two false doors with colorful paintings depicting the two people buried there, a father and a son who served as heads of the royal scribes, said Abdel-Hakim Karar, a top archaeologist at Saqqara.
"The colors of the false door are fresh as if it was painted yesterday," Karar told reporters.
Humidity had destroyed the sarcophagus of the father, Shendwas, while the tomb of the son, Khonsu, was robbed in antiquity, he said.
Full report at: http://arabnews.com/lifestyle/article81324.ece
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Israel says Hezbollah storing weapons inside villages
By MATTI FRIEDMAN
Jul 8, 2010
JERUSALEM: Israel's military released maps and aerial photographs Wednesday showing what it described as a network of Hezbollah weapons depots and command centers inside villages in south Lebanon, near the Israeli border.
The Israeli material included detailed maps and 3-D simulations showing individual buildings that the military identified as rocket storehouses. Some were shown to be located close to schools and hospitals.
The rare publication of what seemed to be detailed intelligence material appeared aimed at demonstrating Israel's reach and preparing public opinion for possible strikes inside villages and the attendant civilian casualties if a future round of fighting erupts.
Full report at: http://arabnews.com/middleeast/article80963.ece
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Hezbollah denounces sacking of CNN Mideast editor
9 July 2010
Hezbollah denounced CNN on Thursday for forcing out senior Middle East editor Octavia Nasr after she sent a Twitter message praising the late Shia cleric Mohammed Hussein Fadlallah.
Hezbollah spokesman Ibrahim Moussawi denounced the “intellectual terrorism represented by the firing of journalist Octavia Nasr of CNN after she expressed sadness” at the death of Fadlallah.
“This measure reveals the double standard in the West regarding matters in the region and unmasks the United States, which pretends to protect freedom of speech,” he added in a statement.
Nasr said in a “tweet” over the weekend that she was “Sad to hear of the passing of Sayyed Mohammed Hussein Fadlallah ... One of Hezbollah’s giants I respect a lot.”
Full report at: http://www.khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticle08.asp?xfile=data/middleeast/2010/July/middleeast_July142.xml§ion=middleeast
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Equality would re-engage the UK's Muslim students
By Tehmina Kazi
July 07, 2010
At a 2008 conference for Britain’s National Union of Teachers, a resolution was passed declaring that state schools should have the flexibility and adaptability to accommodate the faith-based needs of parents and children. Unfortunately, such measures often cause reactionary backlash from fringe groups and racist individuals who see this move almost as a usurping of their national identity.
Though the majority of people in the United Kingdom rightly condemn the over-zealous nationalism that spills into racism toward ethnic minorities, simply ignoring these negative attitudes will only exacerbate certain individuals’ lack of tolerance. Instead, we have a responsibility to ensure such problems do not get worse.
Full report at: http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=1&categ_id=5&article_id=116794#ixzz0
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Salman Hossain! Canadian Muslim extremist on the run
08 JULY 2010
WRITTEN BY WILLIAM BELLE
I pick up this morning's National Post and read the front page article about the OPP being set to charge a Muslim extremist.
Over the past three years, Salman Hossain has openly called for terrorist attacks in Canada, cheered the killing of Canadian troops in Afghanistan and urged fellow Muslims to "exterminate" Canada's Jewish population.
What? This is Canada. We don't do such things; we don't say such things; we don't even think such things. What the heck?
I've never heard of this guy so I sit down at my computer and do a search on the name. I find all sorts of entries from media outlets but I also turn up entries written by this gentleman himself.
He apparently posts on a web site, which according to one source was taken down, but I discover it's up.
Full report at: http://www.oyetimes.com/views/columns/4394-salman-hossain-canadian-muslim-extremist-on-the-run
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Number of Pak leaders with fake degrees growing
Omer Farooq Khan
Jul 8, 2010
ISLAMABAD: Other than some worst headlines of bombings in mosques and markets, targeted killings and battles with the militants, Pakistani media these days is replete with the news of parliamentarians holding fake university degrees.
The count of politicians having fake degrees is growing, as every few days, the election commission comes up with new names of politicians whose degrees are declared fake. The country’s apex court has ordered the election commission to verify the degrees of all 1,100 federal and provincial parliamentarians after at least 15 were found to have cheated.
The authorities have already challenged 160 politicians over their degrees, which appear to be fakes, and sent another 850 to universities in Pakistan for verification. The degree law, introduced by the former military ruler General Pervez Musharraf in 2002, no longer exists. The degree requirement was scrapped in April 2008, but all the current legislators participated in the February 2008 elections, when the same law was intact.
Full report at: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/pakistan/Number-of-Pak-leaders-with-fake-degrees-growing/articleshow/6143568.cms
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Pakistani terror suspect linked to New York plot held in UK
Jul 8, 2010
LONDON: A Pakistani terror suspect, who was given permission to stay in the UK on the ground that he might face torture in his homeland, has been arrested on a US warrant for his alleged role in an al-Qaida bombing plot against the New York subway and Manchester.
24-year-old Abid Naseer, who has been described by a judge as "a serious threat to national security", was arrested in the North East yesterday and brought to London to appear in court.
He is believed to have been living under a control order after being detained last year in connection with an alleged bomb plot in Manchester. Naseer was earlier not charged with any offence and successfully resisted deportation because of fears of ill-treatment by Pakistan's ISI.
Full report at: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/uk/Pakistani-terror-suspect-linked-to-New-York-plot-held-in-UK/articleshow/6143897.cms
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Obama says Israel unlikely to surprise US with Iran attack
Jul 9, 2010
JERUSALEM: US President Barack Obama said in an Israeli TV interview broadcast on Thursday it is highly unlikely the Jewish State would surprise Washington with an attack on Iran's nuclear facilities.
"It is unacceptable for Iran to possess nuclear weapons and we are going to do everything we can to prevent that happening," Obama said in an interview taped on Wednesday.
"Neither of us try to surprise each other," he said, when asked if he was concerned Israel would surprise the US with an attack on Iran's nuclear facilities.
Israel, which has the Middle East's sole if undeclared nuclear arsenal, regards Iran as its principal threat after repeated predictions by the Islamic republic's hardline President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of the Jewish state's demise.
Full report at: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/middle-east/Obama-says-Israel-unlikely-to-surprise-US-with-Iran-attack/articleshow/6145158.cms
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J&K turmoil: BJP blames state govt for losing control
Jul 9, 2010
NEW DELHI: Opposition BJP on Thursday accused National Conference and PDP of indulging in "competitive communalism" in Kashmir and also blamed the Omar Abdullah government for losing control over the administration.
"The explosive situation in Kashmir Valley, which has been deteriorating day by day, has reached the level witnessed during the Hazratbal controversy in 1963-64 when military had to play a role. The tense situation is the result of the politics of competitive communalism by both PDP and NC," BJP spokesperson Prakash Javdekar said. He claimed that the Central government had not taken any "timely action" and was supporting NC and PDP encouraging separatists, which was being "exploited to the hilt by their bosses in Pakistan".
"We demand that the Centre call an all-party meeting to have threadbare discussions on the situation in Kashmir and take all parties into confidence regarding its intentions in the Valley," he added.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India/JK-turmoil-BJP-blames-state-govt-for-losing-control/articleshow/6145292.cms
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Terror alert sounded in Delhi and Mumbai
Mateen Hafeez
Jul 9, 2010
MUMBAI: In a fresh terror input, intelligence agencies have alerted the state Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) and various security agencies about the possible penetration of 31 operatives of Bangladesh-based outfits — Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami (HuJI) and Jamaat-e-Islami (JEI) — into India for carrying out terror strikes.
The one-page alert, marked "secret", contains specific information about 31 HuJI terrorists who are ready to infiltrate into India. "The members of HuJI are planning to come to India through the Bangladesh border. They will reach Kolkata in small groups. A person called Yusuf Saloni, a resident of Munshidanga (there is an area in Kolkata that is called Munshibazar), will receive them and make arrangements for their accommodation in different lodges," the alert reads. The security agencies are tracking Saloni who is suspected to be linked to several banned outfits.
Full report at: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India/Terror-alert-sounded-in-Delhi-and-Mumbai/articleshow/6145242.cms
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Hindutva terror will give Pak a handle, says Congress
Jul 9, 2010
NEW DELHI: Congress on Thursday said involvement of several Hindutva outfits in terror acts was bad publicity for India in its attempt to mobilize international opinion against Pakistan's failure to contain Taliban factions and terrorist groups like LeT.
The party pointed out that with investigating agencies drawing level with some functionaries of Hindutva organizations for blasts, it would now give Pakistan a handle to hurl similar accusations at India.
"With the emergence of evidence that in a number of blasts, from Malegaon to Ajmer to Mecca Masjid, Hindu fundamentalist groups are involved, it weakens our case against terror internationally," spokesman Manish Tiwari said.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Hindutva-terror-will-give-Pak-a-handle-says-Congress/articleshow/6145228.cms
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Kashmir by and large remains calm
Shujaat Bukhari
SRINAGAR: Life in Srinagar and other parts of the Kashmir Valley continued to remain out of gear as curfew was extended to other towns on Thursday. Even as the Army staged flag marches, protests against killings of civilians continued in some parts, but by and large the situation remained calm, tinged with unease.
Srinagar wore a deserted look for the third day as strict curfew restrictions were in place with CRPF and police manning the streets. Even ambulances and essential services were not allowed and the movement of journalists was banned; consequently, no newspaper hit the stands. On Wednesday, the city reverberated with nocturnal protests with people taking to the streets in some areas and using mosque loudspeakers to chant pro-freedom slogans. Natipora, Batmaloo and Aloochi Bagh saw sloganeering throughout the night. At this, civil authorities asked the Army to stage a few more flag marches in Srinagar.
http://www.hindu.com/2010/07/09/stories/2010070963360100.htm
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Pakistan for uninterrupted engagement with India
Anita Joshua
ISLAMABAD: A week ahead of the India-Pakistan Foreign Ministers' meeting here, the Foreign Office on Thursday said it would like the bilateral engagement which began in Thimphu to be an “uninterruptible” process.
Responding to a question on Islamabad's expectations from the ministerial meeting, Foreign Office spokesman Abdul Basit said Pakistan was approaching it with a positive mindset and “our expectations are that as a result of this meeting our countries engage in a sustained manner and in a process that is uninterruptible.”
This has been Pakistan's refrain for a while now and Indian Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao had indicated in her “joint press stakeout” with Pakistani counterpart Salman Bashir on June 24 that the two sides could discuss a mechanism for insulating the process of engagement from flashpoints such as the Mumbai terror attack.
Looking forward
Full report at: http://www.hindu.com/2010/07/09/stories/2010070962251000.htm
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Iran for investment protection pact
09 Jul. 10
NEW DELHI: Iran has once again broached the possibility of signing a Bilateral Investment Protection Agreement (BIPA) with India, which could increase bilateral trade to $30 billions.
The 16th India-Iran Joint Commission meeting, which began here on Thursday, also touched on beginning a trilateral dialogue with Afghanistan on trade routes.
“I will talk to Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee to explore the possibility of initialling a bilateral investment protection treaty. My mission is to use the capacity of the Joint Commission to remove all barriers in two-way trade and facilitate the flow of investments,” Iranian Minister for Economic Affairs and Finance Seyed Shamseddin Hosseini said before the commencement of the meeting.
Addressing traders and businessmen from the two countries at a function organised by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), Dr. Hosseini said Iran would meet India's growing oil requirements. He invited Indian companies to invest in his country's energy sector. He also held out a commitment to Indian companies to facilitate their entry in Central Asia and the Caucasus.
Full report at: http://www.hindu.com/2010/07/09/stories/2010070965191000.htm
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Turkey Gears Up For Judiciary Reform Test
Jul 09th, 2010
July 8: Turkey’s Islamist-rooted government geared up on Thursday for a September referendum on reforms to curb the judiciary’s powers, after a top court scrapped a only fraction of the disputed package. The constitutional court rejected late on Wednesday a request by the secularist Opposition to cancel the entire package, annulling only three provisions in what observers described as a “surgical” intervention.
The amendments have widened a rift between the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) and its secularist opponents who argue that the party, the moderate offshoot of a banned Islamist movement, is seeking an authoritarian grip on power. The court ruling represents a “mid-way formula” and “a solution that will not fan further tensions” in Turkey, the liberal Radikal daily wrote.
“The possibility of early elections has been discarded... The danger of political chaos has been eliminated,” the popular Aksam said. The AKP had been widely expected to call snap polls if key elements in the package had been cancelled.
http://www.asianage.com/international/turkey-gears-judiciary-reform-test-991
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Israel Offers Palestinians Settlement Talks
Jul 09th, 2010
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday he was prepared to discuss “right away” the future of Jewish settlements if Palestinians entered direct peace talks with Israel.
Asked on CNN’s Larry King Live if he would extend beyond September a 10-month moratorium on housing starts in settlements in the occupied West Bank, Mr Netanyahu said it was time for the Palestinians to drop preconditions for face-to-face talks. “Let’s just get into the talks and one of the things we’ll discuss right away is this issue of settlements and that’s what I propose doing,” he said.
Mr Netanyahu was interviewed a day after a fence-mending meeting with President Barack Obama at the White House, where the Israeli leader repeated a call for a restart of peace negotiations with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.
Full report at: http://www.asianage.com/international/israel-offers-palestinians-settlement-talks-989
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$3 Bn US Equipment To Fight Taliban Bomb
Jul 09th, 2010 | AFP
The United States is set to deliver three $3 billion worth of equipment aimed at countering Taliban-made crude bombs used in the Afghan war, a US official said on Thursday. Improvised explosive devices, or IEDs, have become the main weapon used against international and Afghan forces fighting to end an insurgency increasingly seen as bogged down in favour of the Taliban.
The equipment was “at least doubling” current counter-IED capacity as forces did not have all they needed to take on an escalating threat, said Ashton Carter, US undersecretary of defence for acquisition, technology and logistics.
Full report at: http://www.asianage.com/international/3-bn-us-equipment-fight-taliban-bomb-976
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Delhi wants Army out of Srinagar early, Omar plans all-party meet
Muzamil Jaleel
Fri Jul 09 2010
New Delhi/ Srinagar : With the Centre keen to withdraw Army columns from Srinagar — for the second day, troops staged a flag march today in parts of the city — as early as possible, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah plans to convene an all-party meeting on Monday to discuss the turmoil in the Valley and seek support and suggestions for a way out of the crisis.
The meeting, sources said, was being lined up for 3 pm, July 12 in Srinagar.
The PDP, the main Opposition party, is yet to react to the all-party move by Abdullah. The PDP has been very critical of the government’s handling of the situation, blaming the CM for the mess.
Full report at: http://www.indianexpress.com/story-print/644264/
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UN will not reopen Benazir assassination probe
July 09, 2010
The United Nations has rejected reopening of the independent probe into the assassination of former Pakistan premier Benazir Bhutto as the the work is "complete", but UN chief Ban ki-Moon will respond to objections raised by Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi. "We're working on the reply," Farhan
Haq, Associate Spokesperson for the UN secretary general, told reporters, in response to a question about Ban's reaction to the letter written by Qureshi.
Haq, however, pointed out that Moon was of the view that "the work of the Commission is complete."
Bhutto was killed on December 27, 2007 when a suicide bomber exploded himself close to her car in Rawalpindi while campaigning for the Pakistan People's Party (PPP) in parliamentary and provincial elections.
Full report at: http://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/europe/UN-will-not-reopen-Benazir-assassination-probe/Article1-569585.aspx
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Mattis named overall US commander of Iraq, Afghan wars
July 09, 2010
General James Mattis was named on Thursday as the new head of US Central Command, or CENTCOM, which has overall control of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Mattis, whose appointment must be confirmed by the Senate, replaces General David Petraeus, who took over direct command of the faltering Afghan
conflict after his predecessor was fired for giving a damaging magazine interview.
"The post General Mattis is taking is a critical one at a critical time," US Defense Secretary Robert Gates named told reporters on Thursday in announcing his recommendation to President Barack Obama.
Mattis, said Gates, is one of the US military's "outstanding combat leaders and strategic thinkers" and he praised the four-star Marine general for his insights into modern-day warfare, notably "how the armed forces must be shaped and postured for the future."
Full report at: http://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/americas/Mattis-named-overall-US-commander-of-Iraq-Afghan-wars/Article1-569582.aspx
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Pakistan pins hope on FMs’ meeting
09 Jul, 2010
ISLAMABAD: The Foreign Office said on Thursday it expected the meeting between the foreign ministers of Pakistan and India next week to lead to a sustained engagement, but did not indicate if there were any prospects of return to full-scale peace talks in near future.
“Our expectations are that as a result of this meeting our countries get engaged in a sustained manner,” Foreign Office spokesman Abdul Basit said at a briefing.
Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi and his Indian counterpart S.M. Krishna are scheduled to meet in Islamabad on July 15 to further the talks process initiated after a meeting between the prime ministers of two countries in Thimphu, Bhutan, in April on the sidelines of the Saarc summit.
The foreign secretaries of the two countries met in Islamabad on June 24 to set the agenda for the ministerial meeting. They exchanged several proposals for building trust, but it was clear that New Delhi and Islamabad would take long to overcome the mistrust that deepened after the Mumbai terror strikes.
Full report at: http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/the-newspaper/front-page/pakistan-pins-hope-on-fms-meeting-970
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Wen wants boost in trade with Pakistan
09 Jul, 2010
BEIJING: The Chinese prime minister said on Thursday his government attached importance to its trade ties with Pakistan, which not only benefited people of the two countries but also had a strategic significance.
Wen Jiabao said during a meeting with President Asif Ali Zardari that Islamabad and Beijing should boost exchanges of personnel, information and technology between their private sectors and take steps for an optimum utilisation of the free trade area.
Mr Wen said China was keen to make the 60th anniversary of the establishment of bilateral relations a memorable one.
Full report at: http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/the-newspaper/front-page/16-wen-wants-boost-in-trade-with-pakistan-970-hs-06
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Ten killed in Sindh tribal fighting
By Rahmatullah Soomro
09 Jul, 2010
SHIKARPUR: Ten people were killed in an armed clash between Magsi and Qambrani tribes in the jurisdiction of Golodaro police station on Thursday evening.
According to sources, the gunbattle followed a brawl over irrigation of paddy crops near Kuddan village.
The sources said the Qambrani tribe lost seven men while the Magsi tribe lost three.
Sanaullah Abbasi, a senior police official, told Dawn five bodies had been recovered.
A big police contingent stormed the village late in the evening and brought the situation under control.
http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/the-newspaper/front-page/16-10-killed-in-tribal-fighting-970-hs-05
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Terror war strategy needs to be changed: ISI chief
09 Jul, 2010
ISLAMABAD: Director General of Inter-Services Intelligence Lt-Gen Shuja Pasha has supported a suggestion made by the Parliamentary Committee on National Security about changing the national security policy in the light of the situation in the region.
The ISI chief briefed the 18-member committee on Thursday on the overall security situation with reference to reports of external interferences creating political instability in the country.
The committee headed Senator Raza Rabbani was also briefed by the defence secretary on the military operation and law and order situation.
According to sources, Gen Pasha said that some foreign forces were creating disturbances in various parts of the country, adding that the ISI was keeping an eye on their activities.
He was of the opinion that Pakistan should consider making changes in its strategy because of changes in US policy about dealing with terrorists in Afghanistan and the Afghan government’s focus on finding an indigenous solution to the problem.
Full report at: http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/the-newspaper/front-page/16-terror-war-strategy-needs-to-be-changed-isi-chief-970-hs-05
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Scepticism in India over claim of Pakistan hand in Kashmir
By Cyril Almeida
09 Jul, 2010
NEW DELHI, July 8: As the latest spell of violence in Indian-administered Kashmir enters a second month and shows no sign of abating, the Indian government’s claim that the violence is being orchestrated by Pakistan and separatist elements in Kashmir is increasingly being met with scepticism inside India.
Countering the state-driven narrative is a tale of anger, hopelessness and frustration among a generation of Valley Muslim teenagers and young men and women barely in their 20s, a post-1990 generation that has been raised amidst the violence of the first Kashmir ‘intifida’, has few economic prospects and that does not identify with any of the political parties in Kashmir.
The idea of a poorly organised, youth-driven, apolitical struggle rooted in the bleak possibilities life has to offer for a certain segment of the Muslim population in Indian-administered Kashmir is at sharp variance with the claims of Indian officials that Pakistan or Pakistani-sponsored militants may be behind the latest round of violence.
Full report at: http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/the-newspaper/front-page/scepticism-in-india-over-claim-of-pakistan-hand-in-kashmir-970
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Former US envoy calls for Afghanistan’s partition
By Anwar Iqbal
09 Jul, 2010
WASHINGTON: A ‘de facto partition’ of Afghanistan is the best policy option available to the United States and its allies, argues a former US diplomat.
Robert D. Blackwill, a former US ambassador to India, warns that the Obama administration’s counter-insurgency strategy in Afghanistan “seems headed for failure” and the best option for Washington is to partition Afghanistan.
Mr Blackwill, who also served as deputy national security adviser for strategic planning and presidential envoy to Iraq, had advised the George W. Bush administration on Afghanistan as well.
“The US polity should stop talking about timelines and exit strategies and accept that the Taliban will inevitably control most of its historic stronghold in the Pashtun south,” he says,
“But Washington could ensure that north and west Afghanistan do not succumb to jihadi extremism, using US air power and special forces along with the Afghan army and like-minded nations.”
Full report at: http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/the-newspaper/front-page/16-former-us-envoy-calls-for-afghanistans-partition-970-hs-07
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Hekmatyar’s men supplying Taliban intelligence to Nato: officials
09 Jul, 2010
KABUL, July 8: A militant Afghan group is supplying intelligence on the Taliban to government and foreign troops leading to the capture or death of several commanders in the north, senior officials have said.
In what could signal a split within the militants, Hezb-i-Islami fighters have been tipping off US and Afghan forces over the past few months, revealing locations of key Taliban figures in Baghlan and Kunduz provinces, said General Murad Ali Murad, commander of Afghan troops in the north.
“We get intelligence on the Taliban’s whereabouts and movements, especially their commanders, from members of Hezb-i-Islami,” Gen Murad told Reuters in a telephone interview.
Full report at: http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/the-newspaper/front-page/hekmatyars-men-supplying-taliban-intelligence-to-nato-officials-970
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Gang of website hackers busted
09 Jul, 2010
ISLAMABAD, July 8: Authorities said on Thursday they had traced a gang of hackers and arrested five suspects involved in defacing thousands of domestic and international websites and in online fraud.
The “internationally-known hackers” have been picked up in an operation spanning the country over the past few weeks, Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) senior officer Mian Idrees said.
“We have unearthed notorious hackers’ group ‘Pakbugs’ and arrested five members of this group,” he said.
Authorities seized computers and other equipment involved in various cyber crimes, he said.
The FIA said in a statement the group was involved in hacking or defacing thousands of websites belonging to government, non-government and international organisations.—AFP
http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/the-newspaper/national/gang-of-website-hackers-busted-970
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Terror war policies to be translated into national interest, says ISI Chief
Ambreen Nadeem Jnajua
ISLAMABAD—Chief of the country’s premier spy agency the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Lt General Ahmad Shuja Pasha said that the policies on war on terror must be translated into supreme national interest while the security Forces of the country and the ISI would defeat the terror and the terrorists from the country. The ISI boss made these remarks while briefing the participants of the Parliamentary Committee on National Security, here yesterday.
The meeting of the committee was chaired by Chairman Committee Raza Rabbani was briefed by ISI Chief on regional situation with special focus on Afghanistan. In this regard, sources say that the ISI boss in his briefing told the committee that foreign elements were involved in increasing terror related incidents in the country.
Full report at: http://dailymailnews.com/0710/09/FrontPage/index.php?id=1
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Malik dismisses blames against ISI
By Shakeel Ahmed
ISLAMABAD—Interior Minister Rehman Malik has said that country’s premier Intelligence agency the ISI has played an important role in war against terrorism and we reject all allegations against it.
Talking to media men here on Thursday Rehman Malik said that during Pak-US strategic dialogue talks were held on all issues which Pakistan today is confronting.
The matter of Dr Aafia Siddiqui also was discussed and we have decided that now we wont fight this case legally but politically and we have told the US about our decision.
Full report at: http://dailymailnews.com/0710/09/FrontPage/index.php?id=5
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Iraq, Afghan, Pakistan fighters have moved to Somalia: Kenya
09 Jul. 10
NAIROBI: Veteran insurgents from Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan have relocated to the chaotic country of Somalia in large enough numbers to spark worry inside the international community, Kenya’s foreign minister said on Thursday.
Calling the situation in Somalia “very, very dire,” Moses M Wetangula said the terrorists have relocated to Kenya’s northern neighbour because of the safe haven offered by a country with no functioning government. “There have been Afghans, there have been Pakistanis, there have been certain Middle Eastern nationalities, quite a number.
Full report at: http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2010\07\09\story_9-7-2010_pg7_3
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Government actions threatening democracy: Nawaz
09 Jul, 2010
LAHORE: Pakistan Muslim League-N Quaid Nawaz Sharif reiterated on Thursday that the government steps were “threatening democracy”, adding that the govt should not try to take on the role of the Supreme Court.
Speaking to journalists before his departure for London at the Lahore Airport, the PML-N chief criticised the ruling party for the steps. “The government’s measures are threatening democracy,” he said. Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif was also present on the occasion.
The government must follow the court’s directions, he said adding that the courts were being made controversial by the conspirators. He said the judiciary was reinstated with the power of the people and public representatives should respect the courts. “The government has the mandate of the people, which it should respect, and therefore it should respect the judiciary,” Nawaz added.
Full report at: http://www.thenews.com.pk/top_story_detail.asp?Id=29929
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Afghan corruption doubled since 2006
09 Jul, 2010
KABUL: Corruption in Afghanistan has doubled in three years since 2006, despite pledges by the government to clean up graft in one of the world’s poorest countries, according to a survey released on Thursday.
Afghans paid one billion dollars in bribes in 2009, twice the value of those paid in 2006, according to Integrity Watch Afghanistan (IWA), a non-profit corruption watchdog.
In a poll of 6,500 Afghan adults, one in seven said they had experienced bribery, with more than a quarter of households saying they had paid a bribe to receive a public service.
It said corruption had become so entrenched that it threatened the multi-billion-dollar efforts of the international community to help end nearly nine years of current conflict, and rebuild Afghanistan after 30 years of war.
Full report at: http://www.thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=249729
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Turkey faces referendum test
09 Jul, 2010
ANKARA: Turkey’s Islamist-rooted government geared up on Thursday for a September referendum on reforms to curb the judiciary’s powers, after a top court scrapped a only fraction of the disputed package.
The Constitutional Court rejected late Wednesday a request by the secularist opposition to cancel the entire package, annuling only three provisions in what observers described as a “surgical” intervention.
The amendments have widened a rift between the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) and its secularist opponents who argue that the party, the moderate offshoot of a banned Islamist movement, is seeking an authoritarian grip on power. The court ruling represents a “mid-way formula” and “a solution that will not fan further tensions” in Turkey, the liberal Radikal daily wrote.
Full report at: http://www.thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=249732
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Norway bomb arrests linked to US, British plots
Jul 9, 2010
OSLO: Three suspected Al-Qaeda members were arrested Thursday in a Norwegian bomb plot linked to the same terrorist planners behind thwarted schemes to blow up New York's subway and a British shopping mall.
The alleged Norwegian plot, underscoring changing Al-Qaeda tactics in the decade since the 9/11 attacks, was said to involve powerful peroxide bombs similar to ones aimed for detonation in New York and Manchester, England.
All three plans were organized by Saleh Al-Somali, Al-Qaeda's former chief of external operations, who had been in charge of plotting attacks worldwide, Norwegian and US officials believe. Al-Somali was killed in a CIA drone airstrike last year, but officials say the three plots had already been set in motion by the time of his death.
Thursday's arrests suggested how decentralized and nimble Al-Qaeda has become since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks in the United States. The terror group has recently focused on smaller-level attacks that don't require the intricate planning that it took to hijack airplanes and fly them into buildings in New York and Washington.
Full report at: http://arabnews.com/world/article81158.ece
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Obama still sees hope for Mideast peace
Jul 9, 2010
WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama says there is hope for peace between Israel and the Palestinians, but that does not mean that he is “blindly optimistic.”
The comments came as his administration and a crucial Arab ally stepped up appeals for the two sides to return to direct negotiations.
In an interview taped Wednesday for Israeli television, Obama said Israel is right to be skeptical about the peace process. But he noted that many people thought the founding of Israel was impossible, so the Jewish state's very existence should be “a great source of hope.”
Full report at: http://arabnews.com/middleeast/article81347.ece
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Al-Qaeda: poor Yemeni town cursed by its name (AFP)
9 July 2010
Surrounded by mountains and weighed down by poverty, a Yemeni town bears the dubious honour of carrying the same name as Al-Qaeda.
The residents of Al-Qaeda, 220 kilometres (135 miles) northwest of the capital Sanaa, say the name has brought shame on the town.
Al-Qaeda (Arabic for ‘the base’) was once a commercial hub where custom duties on trade between north and south Yemen were collected decades ago, according to older residents.
“The name of the town of Al-Qaeda has nothing to do with the organisation headed by (Osama) bin Laden,” Colonel Abdullah al-Shaddadi, the local security chief, said.
But the inhabitants have been faced with “suspicion” because of the name ever since the rise of the jihadist group led by bin Laden, whose ancestral homeland is Yemen, Shaddadi said.
Full report at:
http://www.khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticle08.asp?xfile=data/middleeast/2010/July/middleeast_July137.xml§ion=middleeast
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Hindus undertake pilgrimage despite violence in India-controlled Kashmir
By Peerzada Arshad Hamid
SRINAGAR, India-controlled Kashmir, July 8 (Xinhua) -- Thousands of Hindu pilgrims have been undertaking the journey along steep mountainous ridges of the Himalayas for days to reach the holy Amarnath cave in India-controlled Kashmir, despite violent protests and curfew in the Muslim-majority areas of the region.
The strict restrictions were imposed in the region to contain violent protest demonstrations following the killing of civilians in police and paramilitary action. Fifteen civilians were killed since June 11 in several towns of the region.
Authorities Wednesday called in Indian army to help maintain law and order in the Srinagar city, the summer capital of India- controlled Kashmir.
Full report at:
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/indepth/2010-07/08/c_13390529.htm
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Where is stoning legal, and how is it done?
09 Jul. 10
The imminent execution of an Iranian woman by stoning has turned a spotlight on an ancient — and controversial — method of capital punishment that is still used in some parts of the world today.
In the Muslim world, stoning is a relatively rare means of punishing those who commit adultery (zina al-mohsena) under Islamic Law. It is considered a form of community justice and has its fair share of critics both among human rights groups and Islamic clerics.
Those sentenced to stoning, or “lapidation” as it is also called, are buried in a hole and covered with soil (men up to their waists; women to a line above their breasts), according to Article 102 of the Islamic Penal Code. A selected group then executes the alleged adulterers using rocks and sticks. Those able to escape the hole during stoning can be freed, according to Islamic law, a feat that is much more difficult for women than for men because so much more of their body is covered during lapidation.
Full report at:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/38146472/ns/world_news/
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Sukuk Auction Failures Send Indonesia Overseas: Islamic Finance
July 09, 2010
By Khalid Qayum and Soraya Permatasari
(Bloomberg) -- The failures of 10 rupiah sukuk auctions this year are prompting Indonesia’s finance ministry to revive demand for its Islamic debt by tapping international investors and possibly changing its sales practices.
The world’s most-populous Muslim nation raised 4.9 trillion rupiah ($540 million) from notes that comply with Islam’s ban on interest in 2010, down 40 percent from a year earlier, according to the finance ministry’s Debt Management Office. The next auction on July 13 is seeking 1 trillion rupiah. Malaysia, the biggest market, has generated 15 billion ringgit ($4.7 billion) from five sukuk sales, government data show.
Full report at:
http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-07-09/sukuk-auction-failures-send-indonesia-overseas-islamic-finance.html
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Muslim tourism to Australia set to rise
09 Jul. 10
Muslim tourists to Australia are expected to rise over the next four years.
Australian tourist numbers from the Middle East are expected to increase by 13 per cent by 2014, Indian tourists are also predicted to increase by 11 per cent and Indonesian by 9 per cent.
In response to the growing tourism numbers Muslim prayer rooms and halal food options may become more common at Australian tourist attractions and hotels.
At the Tourism Furtures conference in Brisbane, Expedia’s managing director Daniel Lynn said that tourism operators would increasingly have to adapt their menus and provide other offerings to cater to the new markets.
Full report at:
http://www.visabureau.com/australia/news/08-07-2010/muslim-tourism-to-australia-set-to-rise.aspx
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Pushto Press Promoting peace
09 Jul, 2010
THE 10-day long urs at the shrine of Syed Kasteer Gul alias Kaka Sahib concluded peacefully. It is a much visited shrine … located … some 20km away from Nowshera and has been attracting believers since centuries. It is the only shrine that the followers of Mangal Bagh could not reach…. More than 8,000 people participated in the urs that shows how deeply the people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa associate themselves with these saints, who always preached love and humanity. Even the terrorist attacks at Data Darbar could not deter people from participating in the urs.
Full report at:
http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/the-newspaper/editorial/other-voices-pushto-press-promoting-peace00-970
7:36 AM
Sultan Shahin
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