| Islamic World News | |
| 03 Jun 2011, NewAgeIslam.Com |
| Pakistan: 63 die in border clash with militants | ||
15 dead as Syrian troops renew Rastan assault Nine killed in series of explosions in western Iraq Syrian forces shell central town; death toll now 72 Mossad ex-chief urges Israel to accept Saudi peace plan for Mideast Shoura of Jeddah, Saudi Arab ready to discuss women driving if requested US likens LeT to al Qaeda US, Pakistan form an anti-terror squad Haqqani group shifting base fearing raid in N Waziristan?: US Report Pak won't take dictation from anyone on Waziristan ops: Pak PM Gilani Dawn media group chief blasts ISI over journo's death Muslims backward due to discrimination, historical events: Muslim leaders Raking in moolah at Khwaja Garib Nawaz, Ajmer, India Images of killed children stoke protests in Syria Pakistani Christian and vacant seat of Martyr Shahbaz Bhatti in National Assembly NATO: former bin Laden associate captured Russia to send mediator to Benghazi and Tripoli: report Ex-Israeli spymaster takes swipe at Netanyahu Step motherly Treatment with Urdu Newspapers Must be Done Away With Tahawwur Rana knew Major Iqbal from army days: Wife Headley concealing info about ISI role in 26/11 plot Pakistan vital for success in war against terrorism: US Merkel flight: Germany sees red as Iran blames pilot Ex-Osama aide nabbed in Afghanistan Yemen: PM hints at evacuation of Indians Hurriyat revokes suspension of Ittehadul Muslimeen Civil Society to stage protest for security cover to Gujarat cop Headley contradicting himself on ISI Rana was declared deserter,couldnt return to Pak as visa was denied: Wife Gurdwara attacked in Oz, Sikhs appeal for security Haqqanis, most resilient Taliban group Saudi aids allies against Iran, Arab revolts Gilani's olive branch to militants Onus is on ISI , says media Girls sweep Bihar madrassa board results: India Urdu binds Hindu girls with Bihar ‘ madarsas’: India 26/11 Chicago trial drawing to a close Pak won't let anyone dictate terms: PM Mumbai terror trial in Chicago winding down FBI men confirm ISI’s role in 26/ 11 CIA to train Indian cops on anti- terrorism Russia warns over 'regime change' in Syria Thousands flee fighting in Yemen capital NATO raids rock Tripoli, UN denounces war crimes Benghazi blast shows risk of post-Qaddafi unrest Turkish PM provokes separatism, says Bahçeli BDP criticizes Turkish PM for 'terrorist' remarks Yemen fighting intensifies, US envoy in talks Series of NATO strikes target Tripoli US, Pakistan agree to go after top terrorists Pakistan blames NATO for insurgent attacks from Afghanistan US military to be reduced in Pakistan: Mullen Abbottabad commission runs into trouble US expects sharp cut to Pakistan training mission Compiled by New Age Islam News Bureau Photo: Pakistani army troops patrol in Jhanda, in Pakistan's Mohmand tribal region along the Afghan border | ||
Afghanistan -Pak border clash enters 2nd day; 27 cops dead--------
Pakistan: 63 die in border clash with militants
June 03, 2011
PESHAWAR: Fighting between militants who crossed into Pakistan from Afghanistan and attacked a Pakistani checkpoint killed 25 troops, three civilians and 35 insurgents, police said on Thursday, in some of the deadliest clashes in recent months.
The fighting, which began Wednesday and continued into Thursday, came as a top Pakistani general said the military plans to stage an operation against militants in a tribal region that juts deep inside Afghanistan, but denied media reports of an upcoming offensive in North Waziristan, the tribal area where the US has been pushing for action.
Pakistan's northwest border with Afghanistan has for years been a stomping ground for Islamist extremists, some of whom focus on attacks against Western forces across the border, some who attack the Pakistani state and others who plot terrorism against the West.
Pakistan has taken action against militants in the northwest, but they have proved to be resilient.
The clashes erupted Wednesday in Shaltalo town in Upper Dir district. Upper Dir lies just outside the tribal belt, but it too has witnessed al-Qaida and Taliban militant activity and been the focus of military offensives.
Police said some 200 militants crossed over into Pakistan from Afghanistan, and went after a checkpoint manned by police and paramilitary troops.
Regional police chief Ghulam Mohammed said 25 security troops and three civilians died, while 35 militants were killed. He said many of the attackers had fled back to Afghanistan as the fighting wound down on Thursday.
Mohammed said the situation was now under control, and funerals were being arranged.
On Wednesday, army Lt. Gen. Asif Yasin Malik, who oversees military operations in the tribal areas and other parts of the northwest, said the Kurram tribal area would be the next target of an offensive after local leaders there requested it.
Malik said operations would be launched there with the government's backing, but declined to give any more operational details.
Kurram has seen sectarian violence between Shiite and Sunni Muslims for years, but is also home to militants with other aims. According to some accounts, the Haqqani network, a faction of the Afghan Taliban, was shifting fighters there from North Waziristan tribal region.
The Haqqani network is considered one of the biggest threats to US forces in Afghanistan, partly because its fighters can retreat across the border to North Waziristan, where they have bases and have been left alone by the Pakistani army.
The US has pushed the Pakistani military go after the Haqqanis and other factions in North Waziristan. The pressure has increased since the American raid that killed Osama bin Laden in a garrison city in Pakistan's northwest and deeply embarrassed the army.
But officials here have resisted, saying their troops are stretched on other fronts, and that their priority is eliminating insurgents who attack Pakistan, which the Haqqanis have not done.
Malik said Wednesday that that position has not changed, and dismissed recent "media hype" about an imminent offensive in North Waziristan.
"There is no change in North Waziristan in past months and weeks," Malik said. "We will undertake an operation when we want to, when it's in the national interest."
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/pakistan/Pakistan-63-die-in-border-clash-with-militants/articleshow/8692159.cms
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Afghanistan -Pak border clash enters 2nd day; 27 cops dead
June 03, 2011
Islamabad : Islamist militants who flowed out of Afghanistan fought a second day of fierce battles with Pakistani security forces Thursday in one of the deadliest clashes on the Pakistan side of the frontier in months. Authorities said 63 people were dead.
The militant attack marked a reversal of the US narrative about the poorly defined and porous border. Typically, militant cross-frontier movements originate in Pakistan, leaving the United States and NATO to gripe at Islamabad over its failure to stop the infiltration.
The new battles found Pakistan the aggrieved party, lending credence to Pakistani army commanders’ complaints that NATO was failing to crackdown on militants sheltering on the Afghan side.
The fight started when about 200 militants crossed into Pakistan on Wednesday. By nightfall, 27 policemen, 35 attackers and 3 civilians had died in fighting, according to regional police chief Ghulam Mohammed.
Beyond emphasising the difficulties of fighting an enemy that pays no attention to borders, the battle pointed to possible trouble for both the US and Pakistan, when Washington begins withdrawing troops later this year.
Pakistan is already complaining NATO doesn’t have enough troops along the Afghan side of the border.
In the past, NATO and Pakistani forces staged coordinated “hammer and anvil” operations on the border, but relations between Washington and Islamabad hit a particularly rough patch, especially since the unilateral American raid that killed Osama bin Laden.
Even so, NATO officials say border cooperation has not suffered as a result of the chill in ties.
Pakistan’s northwestern border with Afghanistan is home to thousands of local and international al-Qaeda and Taliban militants. In broad alliance, they focus attacks on international and Afghan forces across the border, the Pakistani state or spend time plotting and training for international terrorist attacks.
Under heavy American pressure, Pakistan’s army has moved forcefully into parts of the mountainous and sparsely populated region over the last four years. It previously had little or no presence, but the militants have proved resilient.
http://www.indianexpress.com/story-print/798791/
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15 dead as Syrian troops renew Rastan assault
June 03, 2011
BEIRUT: Syrian troops pounded a central town with artillery and gunfire Thursday, renewing attacks in an area that has been largely cut off from outside contact for six days.
At least 15 people died, bringing the total killed there to 72, activists said.Members of Syria’s fragmented opposition meeting in Turkey Thursday called on President Bashar Assad to step down and vowed to work together to lobby world leaders for a U.N. Security Council decision calling for his trial.
Mohammad Abdullah, an exiled Syrian journalist, said that the meeting’s closing statement urged Assad to hand power to his vice president and hold free parliamentary and presidential elections within a year.
The conference also elected a 31-member council to coordinate support for the protests in Syria, lobby world leaders and document state violations during the uprising. What started as street demonstrations calling for reforms evolved into demands for Assad’s ouster in the face of the violent crackdown, especially in Syria’s south and center, where the challenge to his family’s 40-year-rule is seen as strongest.
Activists say more than 1,100 people have died in the crackdown and 10,000 have been detained. But it hasn’t slowed the protests.
A resident of Rastan, a protest stronghold in central Syria, said the town’s electricity was cut. He said troops bombed the water supply as well as a mosque and the sports complex.
“We have become refugees in our own country,” said the man reached by telephone who said he fled his home in the town center to escape arrest and was sleeping in the woods.
“My family and sisters are still there, and I don’t know how they are doing,” he said, speaking on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals.
He said army units entered some neighborhoods and were making arrests.
Assad’s government has shown no signs of relenting and got a strong signal of support Thursday from Russia, a close ally.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov issued a warning to protesters, saying that overthrowing Assad’s regime by force will have “catastrophic consequences.”
In Washington, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton appeared to have Russia, China and some Arab countries in mind as she said nations slow to denounce the Syrian crackdown should get on what she called “the right side of history.”
The Syrian government freed hundreds of political prisoners Wednesday in an amnesty and the president set up a committee for national dialogue, but the concessions, unimaginable only months ago, have already been rejected by the protesters as too little, too late.
“The one who needs the amnesty is the killer,” said Molham Aldrobi, a representative of Syria’s outlawed Muslim Brotherhood who attended the conference in Antalya, Turkey.
The Local Coordination Committees, which help organize and document Syria’s protests, said a 4-year-old girl was among the most recent deaths in the town of Rastan, where a total of 58 have been killed in the past three days. The nearby towns of Talbiseh and Teir Maaleh, which like Rastan have seen persistent protests, have also come under attack.
There were no reports of protests Thursday in Homs but the Syrian opposition called for nationwide demonstrations Friday to commemorate the nearly 30 children killed in the uprising.
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Middle-East/2011/Jun-03/15-dead-as-Syrian-troops-renew-Rastan-assault.ashx#axzz1OCjoWsnE
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Nine killed in series of explosions in western Iraq
June 03, 2011
BAGHDAD: A series of bombings ripped through the capital of Iraq’s western Anbar province Thursday night, killing nine people, Iraqi officials said.
The blasts in what was the heartland of the al Qaeda-led insurgency are a reminder of the danger still facing Iraq, as it prepares for the departure of the remaining US troops by the end of this year.
A police officer and hospital official said at least 25 people were also injured in the explosions.
The bomb explosions appeared coordinated to maximise deaths. A police official said two roadside bombs went off near the market, and then a parked car bomb exploded when police arrived on the scene. Then another parked car bomb exploded near the hospital where the injured were taken, the official said.
Insurgents often stagger their blasts in order to kill or wound rescuers and security officials who arrive on the scene to help those injured in the first explosion.
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak to reporters.
”The four explosions took place between eight and 8:30 p.m., and most of the people at this time were at home and the casualties might have been higher if the explosions took place earlier,” said Jasim al-Halbusi, head of the Anbar Provincial Council.
Ramadi is 70 miles west of Baghdad. At one time the city was a battleground between American forces and Sunni extremists, many of whom were from places like Yemen, Libya and Syria. Eventually the Iraqis from Anbar turned on them and aligned themselves with the American forces, in what turned out to be a turning point in the war.
Since then, al Qaeda in Iraq has targeted people in Anbar province, both civilians and security forces, in retribution and because they see them as allying with the Shia-led government.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for Thursday’s bombings, but the coordinated nature of the blasts suggests tactics used by al Qaeda-linked militants operating in Iraq.
Also Thursday, a leading Human Rights organisation accused Iraq’s central government and regional Kurdish leaders of beating and illegally detaining protesters to try to stop demonstrations calling for reforms.
A statement from the New York-based Human Rights Watch called on Iraqi authorities to release detained protesters or formally charge those suspected of breaking the law.
”Iraq needs to make sure that security forces and pro-government gangs stop targeting protest organisers, activists, and journalists,” said Joe Stork, deputy Middle East director at Human Rights Watch.
In one incident, HRW cited a May 28 security raid on the offices of a public interest organisation in central Baghdad, where 13 activists were handcuffed, blindfolded and hauled away. Four activists were released without charges later, and nine remain in custody.
In the semiautonomous Kurdish region in Iraq’s north, a protest organiser had his noise broken after eight armed and masked men grabbed him from the street, the statement said.
While demonstrations across the Arab world have focused on regime change, most of the protests in Iraq have been pushing for improved services, jobs and an end to corruption.
http://www.dawn.com/2011/06/03/nine-killed-in-series-of-explosions-in-western-iraq.html
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Syrian forces shell central town; death toll now 72
June 03, 2011
BEIRUT: Syrian government troops pounded a central town with artillery and gunfire Thursday, renewing attacks in a restive area that has been largely cut off from outside contact for six days. At least 15 people died, bringing the total killed there to 72 since the onslaught began, activists said.
What started as street demonstrations calling for reforms evolved into demands for President Bashar Assad’s ouster in the face of the violent crackdown, especially in Syria’s south and center, where the challenge to his family’s 40-year-rule is seen as strongest. The crackdown hasn’t slowed the protests, which take place nearly daily and swell into the thousands each Friday, but it has prevented opposition leaders inside the country from organizing.
Instead, a movement consisting mostly of Syrian exiles was forced to meet in Turkey on Thursday, trying to find a unified voice and coherent response to the violence.
The Syrian government on Wednesday freed hundreds of political prisoners in an amnesty and the president set up a committee for national dialogue in an effort to end the 10-week uprising, but concessions have been coupled with deadly attacks on the towns seen as the greatest threat to his power. Electricity and telephone lines were cut Saturday in Rastan and some nearby towns, and the government attacks have been unrelenting ever since, activists say.
Full report at:
http://arabnews.com/middleeast/article447299.ece
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Mossad ex-chief urges Israel to accept Saudi peace plan for Mideast
June 03, 2011
JERUSALEM: Israel’s recently retired spymaster said the Israeli government should accept a Saudi proposal for Mideast peace.
Former Mossad chief Meir Dagan proposed adopting the Saudi peace proposal during a panel discussion Wednesday at Tel Aviv University as he assailed Israeli leaders for having “failed to put forth a vision.”
"Israel must present an initiative to the Palestinians,” or else Israel will find itself “backed into a corner,” said Dagan, who stepped down in January.
The Saudi peace proposal, first submitted in 2002, would trade full diplomatic normalization from all Arab countries for a pullback to the boundaries Israel held before capturing the West Bank, east Jerusalem, the Gaza Strip and Golan Heights in the 1967 Mideast war.
It calls for the creation of a Palestinian state in the West Bank, east Jerusalem and Gaza and a “just solution” to the problem of Palestinian refugees who lost their homes in the war over Israel’s 1948 creation.
Full report at:
http://arabnews.com/middleeast/article447275.ece
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Shoura of Jeddah, Saudi Arab ready to discuss women driving if requested
June 03, 2011
JEDDAH: Speaker of the Shoura Council Abdullah Al-Asheikh said on Thursday the council was ready to discuss the issue of women driving if it was asked to.
“The issue has not so far been tabled with the council for discussion,” he said, adding that not every issue in the public domain was discussed by the council.
Explaining the mechanism of tabling issues for discussion at the council, Al-Asheikh said a motion must either come from the government, at least one member of the council or when the council itself expressed a desire to deliberate a certain issue, reported local Arabic daily Al-Jazirah.
Full report at:
http://arabnews.com/saudiarabia/article447421.ece
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US likens LeT to al Qaeda
June 03, 2011
WASHINGTON: The US homeland security chief has likened the Pakistan-based militant group Lashkar-e-Taiba to al Qaeda and says it could pose a threat to America.
Janet Napolitano was speaking Thursday following security cooperation talks last week with India.
India has accused Lashkar of mounting the 2008 terrorist attacks in Mumbai that killed 166 people.
Napolitano described Lashkar as ”al Qaeda-like in strength and organization.”
She said Lashkar certainly threatened India and ”could be construed as a threat to the United States.” She declined to disclose US intelligence on the group.
Napolitano said the US supported India-Pakistan peace talks to promote regional stability.
http://www.dawn.com/2011/06/03/us-likens-let-to-al-qaida.html
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US, Pakistan form an anti-terror squad
June 03, 2011
WASHINGTON: The US and Pakistan are building a joint intelligence team to go after top terrorist suspects inside Pakistan, US and Pakistani officials said, a fledgling step to restoring trust blown on both sides by the killing of Osama bin Laden by US forces during a secret raid last month.
The move comes after Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton presented the Pakistanis with the US list of most-wanted terrorism targets, US and Pakistani officials said Wednesday.
The investigative team will be made up mainly of intelligence officers from both nations, according to two US and one Pakistani official. It would draw in part on any intelligence emerging from the CIA's analysis of computer and written files gathered by the Navy SEALs who raided bin Laden's hideout in Abbottabad, as well as Pakistani intelligence gleaned from interrogations of those who frequented or lived near the bin Laden compound, the officials said.
Full report at:
http://www.statesman.com.pk/topnews/topnews133.htm
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Haqqani group shifting base fearing raid in N Waziristan?: US Report
June 03, 2011
WASHINGTON: Apparently anticipating an impending Pakistan army offensive on its stronghold of north Waziristan, the dreaded Haqqani network has been preparing an alternative safe haven in the Khurram agency, a US report said.
"The Haqqani Network has been preparing an alternative safe haven for itself in Kurram agency to the north, in the event of a Pakistani operation in North Waziristan," the American Enterprise Institute said in a report.
The security think tank said the possible Pakistani military strike would be "fraught with complications, and likely unsatisfying to those who expect such operations to have a significant impact on the war in Afghanistan." The think-tank said the Haqqani network and few other militant groups would not be the target "this time too" of the Pakistani army. "Expectations of the outcomes of the Pakistani operations need to be tempered. Any operations conducted in North Waziristan will likely not be comprehensive," the report said.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/middle-east/Haqqani-group-shifting-base-fearing-raid-in-N-Waziristan/articleshow/8705358.cms
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Pak won't take dictation from anyone on Waziristan ops: Pak PM Gilani
June 03, 2011
Islamabad : Pakistan government will "think whether there is any need" for a military operation in North Waziristan and not take dictation from anyone on launching a campaign against militants in the tribal region, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani has said.
The government will take action wherever and whenever its writ is challenged, Gilani said last night during an appearance on "Prime Minister Online", a monthly TV show in which the Premier interacts with callers from across the country.
Asked about reports that a military operation is imminent in North Waziristan tribal agency, he said: "We will think whether there is any need for it. We will not interfere in the matter unnecessarily."
Full report at:
http://www.indianexpress.com/story-print/798484/
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Dawn media group chief blasts ISI over journo's death
June 03, 2011
Islamabad : Reacting sharply to ISI's denial of involvement in the murder of journalist Syed Saleem Shahzad, a leading Pakistani newspaper publisher has claimed the reporter had received death threats from the spy agency on at least three occasions.
Hameed Haroon, President of the All Pakistan Newspapers Society, said in a statement that Shahzad had confided to him and several others that "he had received death threats from various officers of the ISI on at least three occasions in the past five years".
The government and intelligence agencies should take the investigation into Shahzad's murder "seriously and examine his last testimony closely", Haroon, who is also chief of the Dawn media group, said.
He said that "nobody, not even the ISI, should be above the law".
Following allegations from journalists' organisations and rights groups that the ISI was linked to the abduction of Shahzad on Sunday, an unnamed officer of the spy agency yesterday denied his organisation was in any way linked to the kidnapping or killing of the reporter.
Full report at:
http://www.indianexpress.com/story-print/798470/
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Muslims backward due to discrimination, historical events: Muslim leaders
June 03, 2011
Mumtaz alam falahi,
Patna: Challenges before the Muslim community in India today are many thanks to some historical events on one hand and discrimination by political parties and successive governments in Independent India on the other. Solution lies not in wailing but in education and political empowerment. These were the views of various Muslim leaders who had gathered here from major North Indian states.
More than 50 known faces of the Muslim community from social, political and educational field were invited at the “National Seminar on Challenges Before Minorities” organized by ETV group of regional and language news channels. Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and his deputy and BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi also attended the seminar.
Highlighting the apathetic attitude of the BJP-JDU alliance government of Bihar towards the Muslim community in the state, Maulana Wali Rahmani, Sajjada Nashin of Khanqah Munger, quoting official data said that central funds for minority welfare schemes are not being used properly here.
Full report at:
http://twocircles.net/2011jun02/muslims_backward_due_discrimination_historical_events_muslim_leaders.html
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Raking in moolah at Khwaja Garib Nawaz, Ajmer, India
June 03, 2011
Offerings run into crores of rupees during Urs,reports Kshitiz Gaur
Starting Saturday,the 13th century shrine will explode to the sounds of Sufi music as lakhs of devotees push into the dargah of Khawaja Moinuddin Chisti in Ajmer.But thats not the only reason the eight-day Urs is Ajmers sweetest season.
This is the week that the Garib Nawaz is far from garib.The pilgrims who travel from as far as Bangladesh,Pakistan and the Gulf arrive barefoot but with fat wallets.Though the Anjuman Committee consisting of Khadims or priests which runs the dargah,says offerings total up to Rs 5 crore per annum,insiders claim that the figure is five times higher Rs 25 crore.And its all exempted from tax.
Full report at:
http://lite.epaper.timesofindia.com/getpage.aspx?pageid=16&pagesize=&edid=&edlabel=CAP&mydateHid=03-06-2011&pubname=&edname=&publabel=TOI
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Images of killed children stoke protests in Syria
June 03, 2011
BEIRUT: The images grow no less shocking with time — a gaping wound on a tiny skull, the hair matted with blood; a gunshot that pierced the skin of a small torso and went straight toward the kidney; and finally, the broken neck and severed penis of a 13-yearold boy, his mangled body contorted on a plastic sheet.
The images of children activists say were killed in a government crackdown on protests are circulating widely among Syrians on YouTube and Al-Jazeera , Facebook and opposition websites. And they are stoking even more fury against a regime the opposition says has lost all legitimacy.
Full report at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/middle-east/Images-of-killed-children-stoke-protests-in-Syria/articleshow/8705126.cms
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Pakistani Christian and vacant seat of Martyr Shahbaz Bhatti in National Assembly
June 03, 2011
Islamabad: May 30, 2011. (PCP) The Election Commission of Pakistan have fixed June 26, 2011, for next date of hearing on petition filed by Michael Javed
for notification of succession on seat vacated in National Assembly of Pakistan after assassination of Shahbaz Bhatti, a Christian heading Federal Ministry for Minority affairs.
Shahbaz Bhatti, Federal Minister for Minorities and selected by ruling Pakistan Peoples Party on reserved minorities seats in National Assembly was gunned down by militants in capital city Islamabad on March 2, 2011.
There are 10 reserved seats for minorities in National Assembly of Pakistan which were distributed among religious minorities as: 4 seats for Christians, 4 seats for Hindus, 1 seat for Ahmadi Muslims and 1 seat from Sikh, Parsi and others: The reserved seats were legalized under 8th Amendment in Constitution of Pakistan in 1985, when House was of 235 seats.
Full report at:
http://www.pakistanchristianpost.com/viewnews.php?newsid=1736
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NATO: former bin Laden associate captured
June 03, 2011
NATO said Thursday it captured a senior al-Qaida operative and former Osama bin Laden associate in northern Afghanistan.
NATO said they arrested a man based in Pakistan who was a former associate of bin Laden, who was killed in a U.S. raid in Pakistan on May 2. NATO also said the captured man may have been with the al-Qaida leader in 2001.
NATO did not release the detainee's name or other details, except to say he was captured Wednesday during an operation in Nahri Shahi in northern Balkh province.
NATO said he is one of several senior al-Qaida and Taliban insurgents captured in the province since February. It said a total of 35 people associated with al-Qaida and the Taliban have been captured in Balkh during that period.
Full report at:
https://mail.google.com/mail/?shva=1#inbox
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Russia to send mediator to Benghazi and Tripoli: report
June 03, 2011
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said Moscow will be sending an envoy to Benghazi and Tripoli to mediate in the Libyan conflict, Italian news agency ANSA reported on Thursday, quoting diplomats.
Medvedev was speaking at a meeting with US Vice President Joseph Biden and Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi in Rome, the report said.
The Kremlin chief last week said that Russia would be sending its senior Africa envoy Mikhail Margelov "imminently"to the rebel bastion of Benghazi.
http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/2/9/13514/World/International/Russia-to-send-mediator-to-Benghazi-and-Tripoli-re.aspx
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Ex-Israeli spymaster takes swipe at Netanyahu
June 03, 2011
JERUSALEM: The newly retired head of Israel's fabled Mossad spy agency has turned his sights toward Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, repeatedly criticizing the Israeli leader's approach to Iran and the Palestinians.
After earning a reputation as a fearless operator against Israel's enemies, now Meir Dagan is showing public concern over how Israel's government deals with them.
Dagan's statements, rare for a man known for discretion and secrecy during a three-decade career in the intelligence service, have startled many Israelis.
In a speech at Tel Aviv University on Wednesday, Dagan issued a stern warning against attacking Iran, saying a strike would risk unleashing a region-wide war and only encourage Tehran to push forward with a nuclear program that is widely believed to be aimed at developing weapons.
Iran denies that.
Full report at:
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Middle-East/2011/Jun-03/Ex-Israeli-spymaster-takes-swipe-at-Netanyahu.ashx#axzz1OCjoWsnE
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Step motherly Treatment with Urdu Newspapers Must be Done Away With
June 03, 2011
New Delhi: Former Rejya Sabha Member and President of All India Urdu Editors Conference, Mr. M. Afzal said, “Urdu Newspapers should get equal advertisements and facilities with those of others. Urdu Newspapers are not getting the treatment they deserve. It is the need of the hour to get it more organized and powerful so that its voice is listened in the galleries of power,” while addressing the meeting of the conference. All other members were also of the same view.
Describing the utility of UNI Urdu Service Mr Afzal said, till 20 years ago there was no such arrangement from where all Urdu Newspapers could have got the same news but thanks to UNI we are getting this service since 1992. The newspapers are also taking full advantage of it. But, these days UNI is passing through difficult financial problems. We should talk to the government in this regards otherwise Urdu newspapers may have to face lots of problems.
Former Member of Rajya Sabha and Editor of Urdu weekly “Nai Duniya”, Mr. Shahid Siddiqui while addressing the conference said, “There is a necessity of forming a professional organization of the Conference which can talk to the PM Manmohan Singh and let him know about the financial difficulties of UNI and the Conference. It should also be brought to his notice that UNI and Urdu Newspapers play an important role in promoting communal harmony and brotherhood.”
Chandrabhan Khyal, Chairman of National Urdu Council said, “It does not pay just to accuse someone; rather Urdu newspapers should get themselves united and forget their differences for the sake of the development of Urdu language. We need to again organize Urdu newspapers and work for their progress and development.” He further said, we should demand the government to allot special grant for UNI, which is the lifeline of Urdu newspapers.
Suhail Anjum and Ahamd Jawed highlighted the necessity of upgrading the standard of Urdu newspapers.
Octogenarian Urdu journalist Ahmad Mustufa Rahi also attended the Conference with Khaleeque Anjum, Azeem Akhtar, Khalid Siddiqui, Ashraf ul Hasan Naqvi along others.
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Tahawwur Rana knew Major Iqbal from army days: Wife
June 03, 2011
CHICAGO: The mysterious Major Iqbal, whose name has cropped up most frequently in the Tahawwur Rana trial, was known to the Canadian-Pakistani doctor and his family long before Rana came into contact with David Headley, the man who recceed Mumbai for Lashkar-e-Taiba ahead of the 26/11 attacks.
This was revealed in an exclusive interview to TOI by Samraz Rana, the wife of the former Pakistani army doctor who migrated to Canada in 1997 and is being tried as a co-accused in the Mumbai terror plot.
Wearing a Pakistani-style salwar-kameez, her head covered by a dupatta, she tried to depict her husband as a family man who had been duped by David Coleman Headley and used in the preparations for the attacks that killed 166 people.
Remarking on telephone numbers that were displayed in court earlier as evidence by the prosecution, she said, "He (Headley) used every connection we had and twisted it". Two entries in her list of 159 contacts were of interest to the prosecution ^ one being Dave and the other, Balajee.
Full report at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/us/Tahawwur-Rana-knew-Major-Iqbal-from-army-days-Wife/articleshow/8701987.cms
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Headley concealing info about ISI role in 26/11 plot
June 03, 2011
NEW DELHI: American Lashkar terrorist David Coleman Headley who has been forthcoming with the details of the 26/11 plot, appears to have concealed information on the involvement of the ISI brass in the conspiracy to attack Mumbai.
When Headley last week told the Chicago court that only low-level ISI officials were complicit in the plan to attack Mumbai, he went back on his earlier statement regarding the involvement of the world's most notorious spy agency in the gruesome attack on civilians. Headley had earlier told his FBI handlers that Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi, Lashkar commander and one of the 26/11 masterminds, had briefed the then ISI chief, Nadim Taj, about the preparations for the terror attack.
Full report at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Headley-concealing-info-about-ISI-role-in-26/11-plot/articleshow/8702797.cms
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Pakistan vital for success in war against terrorism: US
June 03, 2011
WASHINGTON: Pakistan shares a "complicated" relationship with the US but remains vital for America's success in the war against terrorism, the White House said.
"I think we have made clear that our cooperative relationship with Pakistan is important. It's been complicated, obviously, but it is vital to our successful effort against terrorism and terrorists," White House press secretary Jay Carney told reporters.
"The cooperation we've received from Pakistan in the past has led to a variety of successes in our effort against terrorists. We look forward to continuing that cooperative relationship," he said.
Carney said there was no secret to the fact that this was a complicated relationship and at times a "difficult" one.
"But it is an important relationship and one we're committed to because the cooperation between the United States and Pakistan, between our governments, our militaries, our security services, our intelligence services, is so vital to America's national security interests," Carney added.
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Merkel flight: Germany sees red as Iran blames pilot
June 03, 2011
BERLIN: Berlin on Wednesday dismissed Iranian allegations that an error by a German pilot led to Tehran briefly closing its airspace to Chancellor Angela Merkel's plane, sparking a diplomatic row.
Merkel was en route to India when Iranian authorities refused her overflight rights, forcing her plane to circle for two hours over Turkey before receiving permission to cross into Iran.
The incident led the German government to summon the Iranian ambassador and a defence ministry spokesman insisted that Berlin had "correctly followed" international procedures to the letter.
Full report at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/europe/Merkel-flight-Germany-sees-red-as-Iran-blames-pilot/articleshow/8688961.cms
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Ex-Osama aide nabbed in Afghanistan
June 03, 2011
KABUL: Nato said on Thursday it captured a senior al-Qaida facilitator and former Osama bin Laden associate in northern Afghanistan.
Nato said the facilitator was based in Pakistan and was a former associate of bin Laden, who was killed in a US raid in Pakistan on May 2. Nato said the man may have been with the al-Qaida leader in 2001.
Nato did not release the detainee's name and or other details except to say he was captured Wednesday during an operation in Nahri Shahi, in northern Balkh province.
Nato said the man is one of several senior al-Qaida and Taliban insurgents captured in the province since February. It said a total of 35 people associated with al-Qaida and the Taliban have been captured in Balkh during that period.
Also in the north, the German Army said that six of its soldiers were wounded in a bomb attack in the province of Baghlan.
A spokesman for the Bundeswehr Operations Command in Potsdam, Germany said the attack on the German soldiers took place Thursday morning about 22 miles (35 kilometers) south of the city of Kunduz.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/middle-east/Ex-Osama-aide-nabbed-in-Afghanistan/articleshow/8705320.cms
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Yemen: PM hints at evacuation of Indians
June 03, 2011
New Delhi: A week after the Ministry of External Affairs advised Indian nationals living in Yemen to exit the country through whatever commercial means available, Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh today hinted at official evacuation from the violence-hit Arab country.
Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh has reportedly said that the situation in the Arab country is worrisome and that there's a need to evacuate Indian citizens from there.
The situation is worsening in Yemen as violent clashes between anti-government protesters and security forces are spreading. In capital Sanaa 41 people were reportedly killed last night in such clashes. The protestors demand end of the 33-year rule of President Ali Abdullah Saleh.
On 27th May, India’s Ministry of External Affairs had issued an advisory to Indian nationals in Yemen. “Keeping in view the evolving situation and the increase in violent incidents in Yemen, all Indian nationals living in the country are advised to exit the country through whatever commercial means available,” the advisory read.
They were also advised that till they exit they should not venture out except under absolutely unavoidable circumstances. “The Embassy of India and our Ambassador in Yemen will continue to function in Sana’a and can be contacted for any assistance by Indian nationals till such time they are able to exit the country.
http://twocircles.net/2011jun02/yemen_pm_hints_evacuation_indians.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Twocirclesnet-IndianMuslim+%28TwoCircles.net+-+Indian+Muslim+News%29
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Hurriyat revokes suspension of Ittehadul Muslimeen
June 03, 2011
Srinagar : The nearly two-month-long suspension of the Moulvi Abbas Ansari-led Ittehadul Muslimeen from the moderate Hurriyat Conference in Kashmir was Wednesday revoked by the conglomerate, a press statement issued here said.
The statement said a meeting of the executive committee of the moderate Hurriyat Conference chaired by Mirwaiz Umer Farooq decided to revoke the suspension decision of its senior executive member and prominent Shia leader Ansari.
"The decision followed a report submitted by a two-member committee of the conglomerate which recommended the revocation of the suspension. The committee included former chairman Abdul Gani Bhat and Agha Hassan," the statement said.
The Ittehadul Muslimeen was suspended by the moderate Hurriyat group April 21 after its chairman Ansari met with the three-member panel of central interlocutors at his downtown residence in summer capital Srinagar.
The moderate group while suspending Ittehadul Muslimeen had also issued a show case notice to Ansari.
http://twocircles.net/2011jun02/hurriyat_revokes_suspension_ittehadul_muslimeen.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Twocirclesnet-IndianMuslim+%28TwoCircles.net+-+Indian+Muslim+News%29
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Civil Society to stage protest for security cover to Gujarat cop
June 03, 2011
Ahmedabad: Over two dozens NGOs and human rights organizations from across the state will be staging a demonstration here on June 4 to seek adequate security cover for IPS official Sanjiv Bhatt. The threat perception to Bhatt and his family has increased after he recently submitted an affidavit in the Supreme Court against Chief Minister Narendra Modi as well as senior BJP politicians and senior bureaucrats of the state.
The affidavit was filed pertaining to the investigations being conducted by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) on a complaint by Zakia Jafri, widow of former Congress MP Ehsan Jafri, against Modi, senior BJP politicians and bureaucrats.
In his affidavit in the apex court in April this year, Bhatt had stated that Modi had asked the police officials to allow Hindu rioters to vent out their anger against Muslims after burning down of S-6 coach of the Sabarmati Express train at Godhra on February 27, 2002.
Bhatt has claimed that he was working at that time in the state intelligence department and had attended the meeting at the Modi’s residence in the night of February 27, 2002.
The IPS official demanded security for himself and his family as he felt that Sangh Parivar outfits would be angry over his depositions in the affidavits. An assessment conducted by the Ahmedabad city police recommended `Y’ grade security to Bhatt and his family owing to the serious nature of the threat but the state government provided only an armed constable to Bhatt.
Retired Director General of Police R B Sreekumar, in a letter, to Special Investigation Team (SIT), Supreme Court of India, National Human rights Commission and the state Director General of Police (DGP), has said that “a security cover for Bhatt is needed immediately as the threat emanates from the activists of the Sangh Parivar and over-zealous fans of Narendra Modi who are nurturing ill-will and hatred against Bhatt for revealing information adversely affecting Modi’s image.”
Sreekumar argued that by virtue of submitting an affidavit, Bhatt had become a witness and must be provided security as per Supreme Court directions in Gujarat riot cases. He also reminded that how former minister Haren Pandya, who had revealed similar information before the Citizens Tribunal headed by Justice Krishna Iyer, was assassinated under suspicious circumstances.
http://twocircles.net/2011jun02/civil_society_stage_protest_security_cover_gujarat_cop.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Twocirclesnet-IndianMuslim+%28TwoCircles.net+-+Indian+Muslim+News%29
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Headley contradicting himself on ISI
June 03, 2011
New Delhi: American Lashkar terrorist David Coleman Headley who has been forthcoming with the details of the 26/11 plot,appears to have concealed information on the involvement of the ISI brass in the conspiracy to attack Mumbai.
When Headley last week told the Chicago court that only low-level ISI officials were complicit in the plan to attack Mumbai,he went back on his earlier statement regarding the involvement of the worlds most notorious spy agency in the gruesome attack on civilians.Headley had earlier told his FBI handlers that Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi,Lashkar commander and one of the 26/11 masterminds,had briefed the then ISI chief,Nadim Taj,about the preparations for the terror attack.
According to sources in the government here,Headley said that it was Lakhvi who told him about his meeting with Taj in August 2008.
Full report at:
http://lite.epaper.timesofindia.com/getpage.aspx?pageid=13&pagesize=&edid=&edlabel=CAP&mydateHid=03-06-2011&pubname=&edname=&publabel=TOI
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Rana was declared deserter,couldnt return to Pak as visa was denied: Wife
June 03, 2011
Chicago: Remarking on telephone numbers that were displayed in court earlier as evidence by the prosecution,Samraz Rana,wife of Tahawwur Rana said, He (Headley) used every connection we had and twisted it.Two entries in her list of 159 contacts were of interest to the prosecution one being Headley and the other,Balajee.
In a parade of evidence,in the form of emails,telephone intercepts,transcripts of recorded conversation,the prosecution established that the Balajee mentioned was actually Major Iqbal,whose name has cropped up in the trial ad nauseum.
In a stunning revelation,Samraz Rana,speaking in a mix of English and Urdu,explained that Balajee was known to her husband perhaps even before he became a Lashkar or an ISI operative.
Full report at:
http://lite.epaper.timesofindia.com/getpage.aspx?pageid=13&pagesize=&edid=&edlabel=CAP&mydateHid=03-06-2011&pubname=&edname=&publabel=TOI
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Gurdwara attacked in Oz, Sikhs appeal for security
June 03, 2011
A gurdwara in the Australian state of Victoria has been vandalised in what is believed to be a "racial" attack, sparking fears among the minority community which has appealed for greater security for the Sikhs. Sikhs in Shepparton in northern Victoria have appealed to those who vandalised their gurd
wara to leave them alone.
"Why they're doing it we don't know and we think there's a bit of racism - I'm not sure but (there) could be," a local Sikh Kuldeep Singh was quoted as saying by ABC News today.
Security has been stepped up around the gurdwara after recent vandalism attacks, including eggs being thrown at the building and a car smashing a fence around the structure, the report said.
Full report at:
http://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/world/Gurdwara-attacked-in-Oz-Sikhs-appeal-for-security/Article1-704897.aspx
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Haqqanis, most resilient Taliban group
June 03, 2011
Joshua Partlow
The United States knows where to find the most feared insurgent family in the Afghanistan war. Troops can point to the downtown Khost mansion owned by its patriarch, Jalaluddin Haqqani; the million-dollar blue-tile mosque he built for the city's residents; and his base of operations 20 kilometre awa
y in Pakistan. They are aware of his trucking and warehouse businesses, his sons who command about 3,000 fighters, and their sophisticated training camps that conduct courses in withstanding interrogation and firing rockets across borders.
Defeating the Haqqanis is another matter. "Haqqani is the most resilient enemy network out there," said Col. Christopher Toner, commander of the US military brigade in Afghan province.
Full report at:
http://www.hindustantimes.com/News-Feed/afghanistan/Haqqanis-most-resilient-Taliban-group/Article1-704250.aspx
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Saudi aids allies against Iran, Arab revolts
June 03, 2011
Top oil exporter Saudi Arabia is using its political clout and financial power to draw regional allies into a united front against perceived threats from Iran and popular discontent with Arab autocrats. Saudi rulers, alarmed by shifts in US policy in response to the toppling of long-time ally Egypt
ian President Hosni Mubarak and protests roiling Bahrain, Oman and Yemen in the kingdom's own Gulf backyard, are vigorously pushing back.
"Saudi Arabia is using its excess budget wealth to silence the revolutions or shape their outcomes," said London-based Saudi researcher and author Madawi al-Rasheed.
Riyadh has pledged $4 billion in aid to Egypt, throwing a lifeline to new rulers struggling with the economic impact of the anti-Mubarak unrest. It was also instrumental in a $20 billion handout to Bahrain and Oman for job-creating projects. Saudi Arabia shares US fears that Iran wants nuclear arms.
http://www.hindustantimes.com/Saudi-aids-allies-against-Iran-Arab-revolts/H1-Article1-704988.aspx
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Gilani's olive branch to militants
June 03, 2011
Anita Joshua
ISLAMABAD: Amid reports in both the U.S. and local media of a possible operation in North Waziristan against terrorist havens, Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani on Wednesday night said the government was ready to hold dialogue with “militants'' provided they decommissioned and surrendered their weapons before the political agents of the tribal agencies adjoining Afghanistan.
Mr. Gilani's olive branch to terrorists came even as Taliban insurgents from Afghanistan were engaged in a pitched gun-battle with security forces in the Upper Dir area of Khyber-Pukhtoonkhwa along the Durand Line that left 28 people — including five civilians — dead by Thursday morning. Over 40 insurgents were also killed in the operation that continued well into Thursday.
Full report at:
http://www.hindu.com/2011/06/03/stories/2011060364351900.htm
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Onus is on ISI , says media
June 03, 2011
Anita Joshua
ISLAMABAD: The media fraternity in Pakistan maintained pressure on the government on Thursday to investigate the murder of their colleague, Syed Saleem Shahzad, arguing that the onus of proving innocence was on the intelligence agencies widely held responsible for his disappearance and death.
Reacting sharply to an ISI claim that these allegations were baseless, Hameed Haroon, publisher of Pakistan's leading English daily The Dawn, said Shahzad had sent identical emails to three people on October 18, 2010, fearing for his life after a meeting with ISI officials about a report he had filed. Human Rights Watch representative in Pakistan Ali Dayan Hasan was the first to disclose the existence of such an email a day after Shahzad went missing.
Full report at:
http://www.hindu.com/2011/06/03/stories/2011060364361900.htm
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Girls sweep Bihar madrassa board results
June 03, 2011
Patna: Girls have created history by securing top ranks in Class 10 examination conducted by the Bihar Madrassa Education Board, officials here said.
Nasra Khatoon, of Dakhi village of Madhubani district, has secured the first rank in Class 10 (Fauquania) level examination and Umme Eman of Baunsi village of the same district has bagged the second rank, a board official aid after the results were declared on Wednesday.
Maulana Ajaj Ahmad, chairman of the Madrassa Education Board of Bihar, said here that these girls have made a new beginning.
Full report at:
http://www.hindu.com/2011/06/03/stories/2011060359020200.htm
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Urdu binds Hindu girls with Bihar ‘ madarsas’
June 03, 2011
Giridhar Jha in Patna
NON- MUSLIM girls, mostly Hindus, are taking to madarsa education in Bihar these days. Many of them have done exceedingly well in the Urdu- medium examinations this year.
Thirty students in the Fauqania ( equivalent to matriculation) and sixteen students in the Maulvi ( intermediate), who have topped the examinations, belong to non- Muslim communities.
Mohd Mustafa Hussain Mansuri, secretary of the Bihar State Madarsa Examination Board ( BSMEB), said that non- Muslim candidates had performed very well in the Fauqania and Maulvi examinations the results of which were declared on Wednesday.
Among the non- Muslim students, Sanjay Kumar has secured the top position in the Maulvi examination having secured 893 out of the total of 1000 marks while amongst the girls Anjali Raj topped with 805 marks. It is the girls who have bagged the maximum number of top positions. Among the 12 non- Muslim students who secured high marks, ten are girls from Hindu families.
Full report at:
http://epaper.mailtoday.in/epaperhome.aspx?issue=362011
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26/11 Chicago trial drawing to a close
June 03, 2011
The verdict in the trial of Tahawwur Hussain Rana, co-accused in the Mumbai terror attacks with David Coleman Headley, is likely to come as early as on June 8 as the Chicago businessman is unlikely to testify at his own trial.
Attorney Patrick Blegen said Tahawwur Rana's defence team was still making a final decision, but that it was unlikely Rana would take the stand.
The case proceeded quickly after Headley, a Pakistani-American, wrapped up his testimony after five days of questioning by Prosecution and Defence lawyers in the trial of his childhood friend and another 26/11 co-accused Rana in a Chicago court and the verdict is likely to come on June 8.
Prosecutors called seven witnesses today, including five FBI agents who verified email and phone communication between Rana, Headley, and "Major Iqbal," believed to be an ISI officer.
Full report at:
http://www.dailypioneer.com/342934/26/11-Chicago-trial-drawing-to-a-close.html
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Pak won't let anyone dictate terms: PM
June 03, 2011
The Pakistan Government will "think whether there is any need" for a military operation in North Waziristan and not take dictation from anyone on launching a campaign against militants in the tribal region, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani has said.
The Government will take action wherever and whenever its writ is challenged, Gilani said on Wednesday night during an appearance on "Prime Minister Online", a monthly TV show in which the Premier interacts with callers from across the country.
Asked about reports that a military operation is imminent in North Waziristan tribal agency, he said, "We will think whether there is any need for it. We will not interfere in the matter unnecessarily."
Full report at:
http://www.dailypioneer.com/342998/Pak-wont-let-anyone-dictate-terms-PM.html
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Mumbai terror trial in Chicago winding down
June 03, 2011
The verdict in the trial of Tahawwur Hussain Rana, co-accused in the Mumbai terror attacks with David Coleman Headley, is likely to come as early as on June 8 as the Chicago businessman is unlikely to testify at his own trial.
Attorney Patrick Blegen said Tahawwur Rana's defence team was still making a final decision, but it was unlikely Rana would take the stand.
The case proceeded quickly after Headley, a Pakistani-American, wrapped up his testimony after five days of questioning by prosecution and defence lawyers in the trial of his childhood friend and another 26/11 co-accused Rana in a Chicago court and the verdict is likely to come on June 8.
Prosecutors called seven witnesses on Thursday, including five FBI agents who verified email and phone communication between Rana, Headley, and "Major Iqbal," believed to be an ISI officer. Rana was communicating through e-mails with Major Iqbal of ISI, it was noted in court.
http://www.dailypioneer.com/342993/Mumbai-terror-trial-in-Chicago-winding-down.html
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FBI men confirm ISI’s role in 26/ 11
June 03, 2011
THE FBI has testified before a court in Chicago that Major Iqbal, believed to be an ISI officer, had asked Pakistan- born Canadian Tahawwur Hussain Rana about the progress made on the Mumbai terror plot.
This is just another pointer to the involvement of Pakistan’s intelligence agency in the attacks.
Full report at:
http://epaper.mailtoday.in/epaperhome.aspx?issue=362011
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CIA to train Indian cops on anti- terrorism
June 03, 2011
Aman Sharma
THIS September, top police officials will be trained by CIA agents on the methods of conducting surveillance of terror suspects.
This is the first time such a course is being undertaken in the nation.
The US, on a request by India, has agreed to send its CIA agents following the US- India Homeland Security dialogue on May 27.
On May 30, the home ministry asked all states and central armed forces to send in their nominations of officers within 30 days.
The workshop is designed for 20 law enforcement officers and the US says the officers selected for the course will hold their posts for two years.
However, officials from the Intelligence Bureau, Research and Analysis Wing and Military Intelligence cannot be included, because of the US policy of not training spies of another country. The home ministry is now waiting for a clearance from the ministry of external affairs ( MHA).
Full report at:
http://epaper.mailtoday.in/epaperhome.aspx?issue=362011
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Russia warns over 'regime change' in Syria
June 03, 2011
Russia yesterday warned Syria's opposition to President Bashar al-Assad against destabilising the country and told the West not to provoke the situation for the sake of "regime change".
Syrian opposition groups were meeting in Turkey to discuss plans to support the revolt against Assad's regime, dismissing his calls for dialogue as a belated move.
But Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, called on the Syrian opposition to demonstrate a more "responsible" behaviour.
"The international community should see this picture in its entirety and not allow to provoke the situation for the sake of regime change," he was quoted as saying.
http://www.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=188407
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Thousands flee fighting in Yemen capital
June 03, 2011
Dissident tribesmen fought loyalist troops in the Yemeni capital for a third straight day yesterday leaving bodies on the streets and sending thousands of residents fleeing.
More than 60 people have now been confirmed killed in the fighting since a fragile truce between the forces of powerful tribal leader Sheikh Sadiq al-Ahmar and embattled President Ali Abdullah Saleh collapsed on Tuesday.
But medics said they had no word yet on casualties from yesterday's fighting as ambulance crews were unable to access the Al-Hasaba neighbourhood of north Sanaa where Ahmar has his base.
Full report at:
http://www.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=188449
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NATO raids rock Tripoli, UN denounces war crimes
June 03, 2011
NATO air raids shook Tripoli Thursday as the U.N. denounced crimes against humanity and war crimes during fighting between Moammar Gadhafi's forces and rebels seeking to topple the Libyan strongman.
Libya's rebel leadership meanwhile welcomed the defection of former oil minister Shukri Ghanem and urged other regime officials to follow suit.
A series of six blasts at around 12:35 am (2235 GMT Wednesday) were followed by several more a few minutes later in the Libyan capital, the target of intensive NATO air raids in the past few weeks, an AFP correspondent reported.
Full report at:
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=nato-raids-rock-tripoli-un-denounces-war-crimes-2011-06-02
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Benghazi blast shows risk of post-Qaddafi unrest
June 03, 2011
RABAT: An explosion in opposition-held Benghazi may be a harbinger of the kind of unrest Libya could face in the event of Muammar Qaddafi’s ousting as die-hard loyalists seek to stifle revolutionary rule at birth.
The blast on Wednesday damaged a hotel used by fighters and foreigners in Benghazi, wounding one person, and opposition authorities said they believed the explosion might be linked to Qaddafi agents still operating in the east.
Abdel Hafiz Ghoga, vice chairman of the opposition National Transitional Council, said the explosion outside Tibesti hotel was believed to have been caused by a hand grenade thrown in a “desperate attempt” by Qaddafi loyalists to sow terror.
More such attacks are likely if Qaddafi is toppled, analysts say, because the abundance of weaponry in a time of war would make them relatively easy for Qaddafi hard-liners to stage.
Tunisia’s revolution was followed by repeated disturbances blamed on supporters of ousted Tunisia ruler Zine El-Abidine Ben Ali. Iraq is another example of the chaos.
Analysts say two factors will be important in minimizing the likelihood of unrest: the speed with which security forces seen as legitimate are deployed to keep order, and the degree to which the new rulers are prepared to offer reconciliation to those who held positions of responsibility under Qaddafi.
Full report at:
http://arabnews.com/middleeast/article447375.ece
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Turkish PM provokes separatism, says Bahçeli
June 03, 2011
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is bothered by the fact that the country’s main opposition has an Alevi chief, nationalist opposition leader Devlet Bahçeli said Thursday.
“The country isn’t progressing well and is at a delicate fork in the road. There are signs of sibling quarrels. They are provoking separatism on an ethnic foundation. They are discriminating on belief,” said Nationalist Movement Party, or MHP, leader Bahçeli at his election rally in Erzurum.
“Our Alevi brother is the leader of a party,” said Bahçeli, referring to Republican People’s Party, or CHP, leader Kemal Kiliçdaroglu, “and Mr. Erdogan is bothered by this, and questions how it happened. [Erdogan] is not headed in a favorable direction.”
Speaking to a crowd of 5,000, Bahçeli claimed that the ruling Justice and Development Party, or AKP, was dragging the country toward disaster and internal chaos.
Full report at:
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=pm-provokes-seperatism-says-bahceli-2011-06-02
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BDP criticizes Turkish PM for 'terrorist' remarks
June 03, 2011
The local head of the pro-Kurdish Peace and Democracy Party, or BDP, in Diyarbakir has criticized the prime minister for referring to the party as a “terror organization” during an election rally in the province on Wednesday.
“The AKP [Justice and Development Party] has been targeting the nationalist votes more than the MHP [Nationalist Movement Party],” Ali Aydin, the provincial head of the BDP, told reporters in Diyarbakir on Thursday.
“Yesterday, the prime minister declared our party a terrorist organization. What kind of a prime minister is that? Would any sane prime minister say that?” he said.
Serafettin Elçi, an independent parliamentary candidate in Diyarbakir supported by the pro-Kurdish party, said Kurds of all political views had come together for the elections and added that “the enemies are afraid of this alliance.”
“All Kurds are together now, and I call out to the village guards,” he said. “You are the children of Kurds, come join us.”
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=elci-kurt-dusmanlari-kurt-ittifakindan-korkuyor-2011-06-02
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Yemen fighting intensifies, US envoy in talks
June 03, 2011
SANAA: Forces loyal to President Ali Abdullah Saleh battled with tribal fighters in Yemen’s capital on Thursday in overnight clashes that killed dozens as a US envoy flew around the region to try and stop a civil war.
Ferocious fighting in the streets of Sanaa which grew out of protests against Saleh’s rule since January has killed at least 135 people in the past 10 days calling into question the future of the troubled state.
Saleh has reneged on deals by regional leaders to secure a peaceful end to his nearly 33 years in power. US President Barack Obama’s top counter-terrorism adviser arrived on Wednesday in the region to reinforce the drive to oust him.
Global powers are worried that Yemen, home to a wing of militant group Al-Qaeda known as AQAP and bordering the world’s biggest oil exporter Saudi Arabia, could become a failed state raising risks for world oil supplies.
Full report at:
http://arabnews.com/middleeast/article447136.ece
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Series of NATO strikes target Tripoli
June 03, 2011
TRIPOLI, Libya: NATO blasted Tripoli with a series of air strikes early Thursday, sending shuddering booms through the city.
Ambulances, sirens blaring, could be heard racing through the Libyan capital after the rattling blasts. A NATO statement said the attacks hit military vehicle and ammunition depots, a surface-to-air missile launcher and a fire control radar.
Libyan government officials refused repeated requests for information.
The air strikes rained down just hours after NATO and its partners said it would extend the Libyan mission for 90 more days in support of a rebel insurgency. The opposition that is trying to oust Qaddafi, who has ruled Libya for more than 40 years. The rebels have taken control of much of eastern Libya, “This decision sends a clear message to the Qaddafi regime: We are determined to continue our operation to protect the people of Libya,” said NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen.
Full report at:
http://arabnews.com/middleeast/article447270.ece
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Romney to run for US President
June 03, 2011
FORMER Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney formally declared his bid for the 2012 US Presidential elections on Thursday, while delivering a scathing attack on Barack Obama’s stewardship of the US economy.
Romney, who lost out to Senator John McCain for the 2008 Republican nomination, has promised to cap federal spending at 20 per cent or less of GDP as he attacked Obama for pursuing European- style answers to the US’s economic problems.
In 2008, after vowing to cut taxes, be tough on illegal immigration and criticising gay marriage during his campaign, Romney was forced to deny claims that he was ditching previously held liberal positions.
http://epaper.mailtoday.in/epaperhome.aspx?issue=362011
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Japan PM survives no-confidence vote
June 03, 2011
TOKYO: Japan's Prime Minister Naoto Kan survived a no-confidence vote on Thursday after pledging to step down once the country is on the road to recovery from the March 11 quake and nuclear disaster.
The promise to hand over power to a younger generation mollified internal party rebels who had threatened to bring down Kan, the country's fifth premier in as many years, days before his first anniversary in the job.
The motion brought by the opposition conservative Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and its allies was defeated by a 293-152 margin after most lawmakers of the centre-left ruling party fell into line behind Kan.
Kan, 64, in a last-minute appeal to his fractured Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ), urged its lawmakers to stick together until he makes significant progress in rebuilding from Japan's worst post-war emergency.
Full report at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/rest-of-world/Japan-PM-survives-no-confidence-vote/articleshow/8696991.cms
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McCain warns Myanmar risks Arab-style uprising
June 03, 2011
YANGON: US Senator John McCain warned on Friday that Myanmar could face a Middle East-style revolution if the new army-backed government fails to implement democratic reform and improve human rights.
"The winds of change are now blowing, and they will not be confined to the Arab world," the senior Republican told reporters at the end of a three-day visit to the military-dominated nation.
"Governments that shun evolutionary reforms now will eventually face revolutionary change later."
Full report at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/rest-of-world/McCain-warns-Myanmar-risks-Arab-style-uprising/articleshow/8707586.cms
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After threats,slain scribe wanted to shift abroad
June 03, 2011
Islamabad: Journalist Syed Saleem Shahzad,slain two days after he filed a report alleging the possible infiltration of the Pakistan navy by al-Qaida,had spoken to close friends about relocating abroad with his family after receiving several threats in recent months.
The topic of shifting abroad figured in Shahzads recent conversations with a small group of close friends whom he regularly spoke to,a journalist who was close to the slain reporter said.Shahzad also spoke on several occasions of threats he was receiving,apparently from intelligence agencies,in his conversations with his friends,said the journalist who did not want to be named.PTI
http://lite.epaper.timesofindia.com/getpage.aspx?pageid=24&pagesize=&edid=&edlabel=CAP&mydateHid=03-06-2011&pubname=&edname=&publabel=TOI
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17 killed in Mogadishu fighting
June 03, 2011
At least 17 people were killed and many others injured in fierce battles between Somali government forces and Islamist insurgents Thursday over control of the key position in Mogadishu city, Xinhua quoted medical sources as saying. The government forces are being backed by African Union peacekeepers
"Seventeen people died many of them civilians while 46 others were injured by shrapnel and bullets in areas far from where the fighting was taking place," Ali Muse, head of the local emergency service, told Xinhua.
The casualties were civilians, hit by stray shells and bullets in areas outside the battle fronts in the south of Somali capital, medical sources said.
Following fierce battles with Islamist rebels, forces of the Somali government backed by African Union Mission for Somalia (AMISOM) took over key positions around the northwestern part of the main Mogadishu market.
The strategic market is seen as an important hideout for the insurgents and a source of revenue to fund their attacks against the internationally recognised Somali government and the UN-back AU peacekeeping mission supporting it.
http://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/africa/17-killed-in-Mogadishu-fighting/Article1-705077.aspx
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U.S. not trying to hold China down: Gates
June 03, 2011
Narayan Lakshman
Washington: Taking forward the United States' conciliatory approach towards China, possibly in anticipation of a major fighter aircraft sale to Taiwan later this year, U.S. Defence Secretary Robert Gates said that his country was “not trying to hold China down.”
Speaking to media on the eve of the Shangri-La talks between the U.S. and East Asian nations, Mr. Gates said China had been a “great power for thousands of years.” He added that China “is a global power and will be a global power.” The Secretary's comments came in the wake of recent moves between the U.S. and China, to bring greater rapprochement to a bilateral relationship that hit a frosty low last year. Following U.S. President Barack Obama's announcement of a major weapons sale to Taiwan in January 2010, Beijing severed all military ties with Washington.
Full report at:
http://www.hindu.com/2011/06/03/stories/2011060364431900.htm
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Shakeel accuses media of targeting Muslims
June 03, 2011
Patna: Jharkhand Congress party spokesman Shakeel Ahmed on Thursday charged the media with building “an atmosphere of mistrust” by linking terror incidents with Muslims. “This should not happen,” he said addressing a seminar here. “If any terrorist-related incident occurs, the media links it with Muslims. Though even the authorities are not aware of the facts, the media starts pronouncing people guilty,” he said. Members of Parliament Maulana Mehmood Madani and Monazir Hasan also spoke . - PTI
http://www.hindu.com/2011/06/03/stories/2011060360300300.htm
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Syria troops renew attack on central town; 15 dead
June 03, 2011
Activists say Syrian Government troops are pounding a central town with artillery and gunfire, killing at least 15 people.
The Local Coordination Committees, which help organise and document the country's protests, said the deaths occurred in the town of Rastan on Thursday. With the latest deaths, at least 58 people have been killed in the town in the past three days.
The army has been conducting military operations in Rastan and nearby towns in the central province of Homs since Saturday.
Since mid-March, when protests swept Syria inspired by uprisings across the Arab world, the regime has killed more than 1,100 people, according to human rights groups. There were no reports of protests Thursday in Rastan.
http://www.dailypioneer.com/342995/Syria-troops-renew-attack-on-central-town;-15-dead.html
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17 die in Mogadishu clashes
June 03, 2011
Clashes pitting Somali government forces and their African Union allies against Islamist rebels for control of Mogadishu’s main market left at least 17 civilians dead on Thursday, officials said.
Many of the victims died when stray artillery fire hit a bus station where people were waiting.
‘At least seventeen civilian dead have been counted so far and nine of them were killed after artillery fire struck a bus station near Arafat hospital,’ Ali Muse, head of the Mogadishu ambulance service, said.
http://newagebd.com/newspaper1/international/20971.html
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Nearly 100 civilians killed in Abyei, official says
June 03, 2011
JUBA/KHARTOUM: Nearly 100 civilians have been killed in Sudan’s disputed Abyei region since the northern military seized it on May 21, an Abyei official said on Thursday, citing a preliminary count.
South Sudan is scheduled to break off into its own country on July 9, and the status of the fertile, oil-producing territory has remained one of the most contentious issues in the countdown to independence.
Violence in Abyei over the last two weeks has raised fears that the north and south could return to war, which could destabilize much of the region by sending refugees back across borders and creating a failed state in the south.
Sudan’s President Omar Hassan Al-Bashir said in a speech on Thursday that what happened in Abyei was an “important message” for southern leaders, who he said provoked the fighting.
Full report at:
http://arabnews.com/middleeast/article447350.ece
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US, Pakistan agree to go after top terrorists
June 03, 2011
WASHINGTON: The US and Pakistan are trying to bandage their relationship by forging a new joint intelligence team to go after top terrorism suspects, officials say.
The move comes after Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton presented the Pakistanis with the US list of most-wanted terrorism targets, US and Pakistani officials said. The list includes some groups the Pakistanis have been reluctant to attack, US officials said.
It’s one of a host of confidence-building measures meant to restore trust blown on both sides after US forces tracked down and killed Al-Qaeda mastermind Osama Bin Laden during a secret raid in Pakistan last month.
Full report at:
http://arabnews.com/world/article447292.ece
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Pakistan blames NATO for insurgent attacks from Afghanistan
June 03, 2011
ISLAMABAD: Islamist militants who flowed out of Afghanistan fought a second day of fierce battles with Pakistani security forces Thursday in one of the deadliest clashes on the Pakistan side of the frontier in months. Authorities said 63 people were dead.
Signaling a deepening of the rift with the United States and voicing Islamabad’s anger over the attacks, the government issued a statement late Thursday voicing Pakistan’s “strong concern” about the attack.
Full report at:
http://arabnews.com/world/article447351.ece
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US military to be reduced in Pakistan: Mullen
June 03, 2011
WASHINGTON: Pakistan is going to reduce sharply the number of US military trainers allowed in the country, the top US military officer said on Thursday, acknowledging strains in the uneasy alliance a month after the killing of Osama bin Laden.
Admiral Mike Mullen, outgoing chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, declined to offer figures on Pakistani plans to cut the military mission but said the number of US trainers was "not going to zero."
Full report at:
http://www.thenews.jang.com.pk/NewsDetail.aspx?ID=16477
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Abbottabad commission runs into trouble
June 03, 2011
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's new commission into how Osama bin Laden lived in the country undetected for so long ran into trouble Thursday as one appointee refused to take part and the political opposition criticised it.
Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani announced Tuesday that an independent commission would investigate the circumstances of the Al-Qaeda chief's presence in Abbottabad, where he was shot dead by US Navy SEALs in a covert operation.
The revelation that the world's most-wanted man lived in a garrison city just a stone's throw from a top military academy raised questions about complicity or incompetence within the Pakistani security services.
Full report at:
http://www.thenews.jang.com.pk/NewsDetail.aspx?ID=16470
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US expects sharp cut to Pakistan training mission
June 03, 2011
WASHINGTON: Pakistan is going to reduce sharply the number of US military trainers allowed in the country, the top US military officer said on Thursday, acknowledging strains in the uneasy alliance a month after the killing of Osama bin Laden.
Admiral Mike Mullen, outgoing chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, declined to offer figures on Pakistani plans to cut the military mission but said the number of US trainers was “not going to zero.”
Full report at:
http://www.dawn.com/2011/06/03/us-expects-sharp-cut-to-pakistan-training-mission.html
URL: http://www.newageislam.com/NewAgeIslamIslamicWorldNews_1.aspx?ArticleID=4768
10:49 PM
Moderate Islamist here
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