Egypt celebrates, as Mubarak quits

Egypt celebrates, as Mubarak quits

Feb 11, 2011

CAIRO: Hosni Mubarak stepped down as Egypt's president on Friday, handing over to the army and ending three decades of autocratic rule, bowing to escalating pressure from the military and protesters demanding that he go.

Vice-President Omar Suleiman said a military council would run the affairs of the Arab world's most populous nation. A free and fair presidential election has been promised for September.

Meanwhile, Egypt's defence minister Mohamed Hussein Tantawi is the head of the Higher Military Council that took control of Egypt after Hosni Mubarak resigned his post as president, a military source said.

A speaker made the announcement in Cairo's Tahrir Square where hundreds of thousands broke down in tears, celebrated and hugged each other chanting: "The people have brought down the regime." Others shouted: "Allahu Akbar (God is great).

The 82-year-old Mubarak's downfall after 18 days of unprecedented mass protests was a momentous victory for people power and was sure to rock autocrats throughout the Arab world and beyond.

Egypt's powerful military gave guarantees earlier on Friday that promised democratic reforms would be carried out but angry protesters intensified an uprising against Mubarak, marching on the presidential palace and the state television tower.

It was an effort by the army to defuse the revolt but, in disregarding protesters' key demand for Mubarak's ouster now, it failed to calm the turmoil that has disrupted the economy and rattled the entire Middle East.

The military's intervention was not enough. The tumult over Mubarak's refusal to resign had tested the loyalties of the armed forces, which had to choose whether to protect their supreme commander or ditch him.

The sharpening confrontation had raised fear of uncontrolled violence in the most populous Arab nation, a key US ally in an oil-rich region where the chance of chaos spreading to other long stable but repressive states troubles the West.

Washington has called for a prompt democratic transition to restore stability in Egypt, a rare Arab state no longer hostile to Israel, guardian of the Suez Canal linking Europe and Asia and a major force against militant Islam in the region.

The army statement noted that Mubarak had handed powers to govern the country of 80 million people to his deputy the previous day -- perhaps signalling that this should satisfy demonstrators, reformists and opposition figures.

"This is not our demand," one protester said, after relaying the contents of the army statement to the crowd in Cairo's central Tahrir Square. "We have one demand, that Mubarak step down." He has said he will stay until September elections.

The Muslim Brotherhood, an Islamist opposition group, urged protesters to keep up mass nationwide street protests, describing Mubarak's concessions as a trick to stay in power.

REFORMS TOO LITTLE TOO LATE

Hundreds of thousands of protesters rallied across Egypt, including in the industrial city of Suez, earlier the scene of some of the fiercest violence in the crisis, and the second city of Alexandria, as well as in Tanta and other Nile Delta centres.

The army also said it "confirms the lifting of the state of emergency as soon as the current circumstances end", a pledge that would remove a law imposed after Mubarak became president following Anwar Sadat's assassination in 1981 and that protesters say has long been used to stifle dissent.

It further promised to guarantee free and fair elections and other concessions made by Mubarak to protesters that would have been unthinkable before Jan. 25, when the revolt began.

But none of this was enough for many hundreds of thousands of mistrustful protesters who rallied in cities across the Arab world's most populous and influential country on Friday, fed up with high unemployment, a corrupt elite and police repression.

Since the fall of Tunisia's long-time leader Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali, which triggered protests around the region, Egyptians have been demonstrating in huge numbers against rising prices, poverty, unemployment and their authoritarian regime.

EMERGENCY LAWS

World powers had increasingly pressured Mubarak to organise an orderly transition of power since the protests erupted on Jan. 28 setting off an earthquake that has shaken Egypt sending shock waves around the Middle East.

Mubarak, 82, was thrust into office when Islamists gunned down his predecessor Anwar Sadat at a military parade in 1981.

The burly former air force commander has proved a far more durable leader than anyone imagined at the time, governing under emergency laws protesters say were used to crush dissent.

The president has long promoted peace abroad and more recently backed economic reforms at home led by his cabinet under Prime Minister Ahmed Nazif. But he always kept a tight lid on political opposition.

Mubarak resisted any significant political change even under pressure from the United States, which has poured billions of dollars of military and other aid into Egypt since it became the first Arab state to make peace with Israel, signing a treaty in 1979.

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2011/02/2011211164636605699.html

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Earlier report: Egyptian Army Backs President but Urges End to Emergency

By ANTHONY SHADID, DAVID D. KIRKPATRICK and ALAN COWELL

CAIRO — As tens of thousands of chanting protesters thronged Tahrir Square on the 18th day of Egypt’s uprising, the powerful armed forces scrambled on Friday to offer assurances and concessions in an effort to head off clashes with protesters angered by President Hosni Mubarak’s refusal to step down.

But it was not clear whether the military’s position would satisfy demonstrators who have previously cast the military as an ally and who want Mr. Mubarak to leave immediately — a demand the military did not come near to endorsing in a statement on Friday after a meeting of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces.

In a statement read out on state television, the military appeared to support Mr. Mubarak’s proposal, laid out in a speech on Thursday night, to remain in power until elections are held, delegate some unspecified authority to Vice President Omar Suleiman and oversee constitutional change.

At the same time, in an effort to meet some of the protesters’ demands, the military said it would guarantee the lifting of Egypt’s emergency law once the current protests were over and would defend “the lawful demands of the people.” The law was imposed after the assassination of President Anwar Sadat in 1981 — which enabled Mr. Mubarak, then the vice president, to take power. Protesters say it has been used to suppress opposition.

The military’s statement was labeled CommuniquéNo. 2 following an announcement on Thursday offering “affirmation and support for the legitimate demands of the people.”

On Friday, the military also promised that the “honorable people who have rejected corruption” and who have demanded reform would not be “pursued.” Many demonstrators fear that if they call off their protests they will face arrest and punishment.

Full report at:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/12/world/middleeast/12egypt.html?_r=1&hp=&pagewanted=print

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US tells Pakistan to release Davis or its envoy would be kicked out: Report

Feb 11, 2011

ISLAMABAD: The US has threatened Pakistan that its envoy will be "kicked out" if it fails to release the American official arrested for gunning down two men in Lahore by Friday, according to a media report.

National security advisor Tom Donilon told Pakistani envoy Hussain Haqqani that the Obama administration will "kick him out of the US", close consulates in Pakistan and cancel President Asif Ali Zardari's upcoming visit to Washington if US official Raymond Davis is not released by Friday, ABC News channel quoted two unnamed Pakistani officials as saying.

Donilon reportedly conveyed the warning to Haqqani on Monday evening.

The "outlines of the threat" were also confirmed to ABC News by a senior US official who was not authorized to speak on the record.

White House spokesperson Tommy Vietor declined comment.

Haqqani denied the development via Twitter, saying in a message that no "US official, incl the NSA, has conveyed any personal threats 2 me or spoken of extreme measures".

Davis, 36, was on Friday sent to jail for 14 days by a court in Lahore even as city police chief Aslam Tareen said he had been charged with murder as there was no proof to back his claim that he had acted in self-defence when he shot and killed the two men on January 27.

Davis has claimed that he opened fire after the two armed men followed his car and tried to rob him.

Video emerged this week of Davis showing his state department credentials to Pakistani police officers during an interrogation and saying, "I'm a consultant".

Davis is in Pakistan on a diplomatic passport and the US has demanded his immediate release on the grounds that he enjoys diplomatic immunity.

The stand-off between Washington and Islamabad has taken the tense relationship between the two countries to a new low.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/pakistan/US-tells-Pakistan-to-release-Davis-or-its-envoy-would-be-kicked-out-Report-/articleshow/7475170.cms#ixzz1DeKgGUwg

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31 Pak soldiers killed in ‘schoolboy’ suicide attack

Feb 11 2011

Peshawar : In one of the deadliest strikes on the Pakistan Army, a schoolboy suicide bomber sneaked into a heavily guarded Pakistani Army training centre in the country’s northwest on Thursday and blew himself up in the midst of a parade, killing 31 soldiers and leaving 40 more wounded.

?It was a suicide attack by a 12-year-old bomber in school uniform,” top police officer Abdullah Khan said on the early morning attack on the Army’s elite Punjab Regimental Centre at Mardan, 60 kms from Peshawar.

Thirty-one Army personnel were killed and 40 others injured, most of them critically, in the powerful blast at 8.15 am. An army spokesman confirmed the incident.

The responsibility for the hit was claimed by Tehreek-e-Taliban, who threatened to carry out even “bigger strike” to avenge US drone strike and military operation in the region.

The hit on the Punjab Regimental Centre was one of the worst strikes on the Pakistan Army, deeply involved for the last two years in operations in the restive Khyber-Pakhtunkhawa province bordering Afghanistan, to flush out Taliban militants.

Khan said that the schoolboy managed to sneak into the sprawling heavily-guarded compound carrying a lethal payload apparently in his school bag and triggered the explosion as the troops were readying for the daily parade.

Television quoted witnesses as saying that the blast was so powerful that it blew soldiers away from the ground. The bomber was able to sneak into the centre as he was wearing the uniform of a school located opposite the Army facility.

Superintendent of Police Sirajul Hasan said that the boy was carrying 9 kilograms of explosives and his legs and other body parts had been found, but there were conflicting reports about the bomber’s identity.

While police and military officials said the strike was carried out by a schoolboy, the Taliban claimed it was the handiwork of a soldier, who had turned over.

But there were conflicting reports about the bomber's identity. While police and military officials said the strike was carried out by a schoolboy, the Taliban claimed that it was the handiwork of a soldier, who had turned over.

It was not immediately clear how the bomber got into the heavily guarded centre undetected. An attack on the same facility in 2006 had killed 35 soldiers.

http://www.indianexpress.com/story-print/748594/

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Al Arabiya TV says Mubarak, family leave Cairo

Feb 11, 2011

CAIRO: Al Arabiya television reported on Friday that President Hosni Mubarak and his family had left Cairo to an unknown destination from a military airbase in the suburbs. It did not give a source.

A senior military source contacted by Reuters declined to comment on the report. Al Arabiya had initially reported "news" that Mubarak and his family had left Egypt.

It did not give a source for the series of reports on the movement of the president and his family. It said the report that Mubarak had gone to Sharm el-Sheikh was "unconfirmed".

The news comes as protesters moved overnight to the Ittihadiya presidential palace in the Cairo suburb of Heliopolis for the first time since protests started in Jan. 25.

The protesters gathered up against a barbed wire cordon around the palace, about 50 metres (yards) from the palace walls at its closest point.

Tanks and soldiers of the elite Republican Guard, responsible for the president's security, surrounded the palace, a Reuters witness said.

"The Republican Guard are protecting the presidential palaces," an armed forces source told Reuters.

A senior military source contacted by Reuters declined to comment on the report that Mubarak had left Cairo. Al Arabiya had initially reported Mubarak and his family had left Egypt.

The president often spends time in Sharm el-Sheikh, a popular tourist destination on the Red Sea, and receives guests there.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/middle-east/Al-Arabiya-TV-says-Mubarak-family-leave-Cairo/articleshow/7476611.cms#ixzz1Df59KQpC

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SM Qureshi dropped as Pakistan's foreign minister

Omer Farooq Khan

Feb 11, 2011

ISLAMABAD: Makhdoom Shah Mehmood Qureshi, who served as Pakistan's foreign minister since 2008 could not make his way into the new cabinet that was sworn in on Friday.

Qureshi has been excluded from the federal cabinet at a time when Islamabad and New Delhi announced resuming the bilateral dialogue that had fallen victim to the 2008 Mumbai attack. The decision appears to be a major setback for the government as President Asif Ali Zardari is set to visit the United States and Qureshi himself was scheduled to travel to Washington to attend the tripartite meeting with the US and Afghan foreign ministers.

According to sources, Qureshi was offered a ministry of food, agriculture and livestock in the new cabinet but he refused to accept it. State television had earlier reported that Shah Mehmood Qureshi would take oath in the new cabinet but he was not among those who were administered oath by President Asif Ali Zardari.

A new minister in the cabinet told TOI that chair was placed for Qureshi in the hall where the oath taking ceremony took place but it was removed after he refused to attend the event.

The ruling Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) was under tremendous pressure from the opposition party PML-N and the International Monetary Fund to cut the size of ministers, to reduce the burden on national exchequer. A reduction in the size of the cabinet was also required under the 18th amendment to the constitution, which stipulates it should be no larger than 11 percent of parliament, which would be a maximum of 49 members. On Wednesday, the 60-plus cabinet gave its resignation to Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani in pursuance of the last week decision by the central executive committee (CEC) of the ruling PPP to cut down the size of the cabinet.

Other prominent faces that were holding important portfolios in the previous cabinet but not part of the new one include former information minister Qamar uz Zaman Qaira and minister for water and power Raja Parvez Ashraf. A group of 22 ministers, most of them former members of the cabinet, took oath in the new cabinet. Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani and other dignitaries were also present during the oath taking ceremony at the Presidency. Rehman Malik, Babar Awan, Abdul Hafeez Shaikh, Chaudhary Ahmed Mukhtar, Ghulam Ahmed Bilour, Mian Manzoor Watto, Makhdoom Amin Fahim, Firdos Ashiq Awan, Arbab Alamgir, Khursheed Shah and Makhdoom Shahbuddin were the ministers retained from the old cabinet. Hina Rabbai Khar took the oath of State Minister.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/pakistan/SM-Qureshi-dropped-as-Pakistans-foreign-minister/articleshow/7476440.cms#ixzz1Df5I3V9m

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Blasts in four sites across Pakistan damage rail tracks

Feb11, 2011

Train services on both up and down tracks in all affected cities were suspended immediately after the explosions. –Photo by APP (file photo)

KARACHI: Suspected militants blew up railway tracks at four sites in Pakistan’s southern province of Sindh early Friday, disrupting train services, officials said.

Two people were injured when two small bombs damaged the tracks near the Baloch Colony bridge area in Karachi, DawnNews reported. However, no casualties were reported in the explosions in Hyderabad, Nawabshah and Mehrabpur districts.

The explosions appeared to be coordinated attacks, police and railway officials said.

“Two low-intensity bombs planted on both the up and down railway tracks went off outside Karachi early morning, causing damage to the tracks,” senior police officer Chaudhry Asad told AFP.

Train services were suspended and repair work had begun, he said.

About 30 minutes later two more blasts damaged railway tracks near near the Hussainabad area in Hyderabad, Pakistan Railways official Aftab Memon said.

Two additional blasts on tracks were reported from Nawabshah, between the Nawaz Dahri and Sarhari Railway stations and another two in the Sindh area of Mehrabpur, he said.

“All these blasts were similar in nature, causing damage to the track,” he said.

Home ministry official Sharfuddin Memon blamed militants for the attacks, AFP reports.

“These attacks are linked to the situation in northwest Pakistan and the aim was to target communications networks and create panic among the people,” he said.

Pakistan suffers near-daily attacks blamed on Taliban and al Qaeda-linked militants, who are most active in the lawless tribal belt of northwest Pakistan on the border with Afghanistan.

A teenage suicide bomber killed up to 31 Pakistani army recruits at a parade ground on Thursday, an attack the Taliban said was revenge for US drone strikes and local military offensives.

However, attacks by the extremists on infrastructure such as railways are relatively rare.

http://www.dawn.com/2011/02/11/twin-blasts-near-railway-track-in-karachi.html

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Tempers run high in Deoband on Vastanvi

11 Feb 2011

Tempers are rising in Darul Uloom Deoband and factionalism wars are turning ugly as the date for the all-important meeting of Majlis-e-Shoora draws near. The meeting, scheduled to be held on February 23, is expected to decide the fate of Darul Uloom Deoband vice-chancellor, Maulana Ghulam Mohammad Vastanvi who has been facing fire for his statements on Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi.

Scuffles were reported from the campus of the Islamic seminary on Wednesday evening and journalists present on the campus were also roughed up. Vastanvi’s arch rival Maulana Arshad Madni had suspended a Shoora member, Maulana Badruddin Ajmal, from Jamiat-ul-Ulema-e-Hind (JUH) for his alleged proximity with Vastanvi. Maulana Madni is the national president of JUH and was also in the race for the rector’s post.

A meeting convened by the Madni faction led to ugly scenes when some supporters fired several rounds in the air to silence their opponents. Though no one was hurt, police have registered cross FIRs in the matter and investigations are on. According to eye witnesses, the situation turned uneasy when one of the speakers termed Vastanvi as a RSS agent and some people in the audience criticise the move to malign one who was not present to defend himself. “Madani’s supporters turned violent and began firing in the air,” said the eye-witness adding that this was the first time that hostilities had become so pronounced. Meanwhile, senior officials said that though they were aware of tempers running high on the Deoband campus, they were adopting a cautious approach.

“This is a religious institution and we do not want to be seen becoming a party on any issue. However, we will be beefing up security for the meeting on February 23 and also keep a close vigil on the trouble-shooters,” said a senior district official.

http://www.asianage.com/india/tempers-run-high-deoband-vastanvi-843

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Ajmal ouster may hit Jamiat Assam base

Feb 11, 2011 - MANOJ ANAND

Assam chief minister Tarun Gogoi on Thursday denied his role in ouster of Assam Jamiat Ulama-e Hind president Badruddin Ajmal.

Clarifying that allegation levelled by the Assam United Democratic Front that the Congress is behind the ouster of Mr Ajmal from the Jamiat was totally baseless and politically motivated, Mr Gogoi told reporters that they have cordial relationship with all the Muslim organisations.

Describing it an internal matter of Jamiat, chief minister however admitted that it would certainly have impact over the minority politics of the state.

Meanwhile, ouster of Mr Ajmal who is also the member of Lok Sabha, from Jamiat Ulama-e Hind has not gone down well in Assam. If minority leaders of the state are to be believed, appointment of a die-hard Congress men and former Congress MLA Abdul Jalil Raghibi as head of ad-hoc committee of Assam Jamiat in place of Mr Ajmal may have serious repercussion in the state.

Mr Ajmal who floated AUDF is known for changing the course of minority politics in Assam by motivating intellectuals and educated class of Muslim leaders to join politics.

Perfume baron turn politician Mr Ajmal not only stood for the rights of minority but also broken the tradition of Muslims rallying behind the Congress party. Newly-appointed president of the Jamiat Mr Abdul Jalil Raghibi is among those who formed United Minority Front (UMF) in 1985 and won assembly election in 1986 but later he along with other 11 UMF MLAs merged to Congress before 1991 Assembly election.

Mr Ajmal was also under the pressure but rejected the proposal of Assam chief minister Tarun Gogoi either merger of AUDF as it did with United Minority Front (UMF) in nineties or at least a pre-poll alliance with AUDF.

Insiders said that ouster of Mr Ajmal from Assam Jamiat may erode its stronghold on Muslims in Assam as there is every possibility of show off strength between Maulana Syed Arshad Madni, president of a fraction of Jamiat Ulama-e Hind and Mr Ajmal who is preparing to announce their strategy soon.

http://www.asianage.com/india/ajmal-ouster-may-hit-jamiat-assam-base-840

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Pak begins construction of fourth N-reactor: US report

February 11, 2011

S Rajagopalan

Despite a host of existential problems, Pakistan has begun the construction of its fourth nuclear reactor as part of its push to expand its nuclear arsenal.

The Washington-based Institute for Science and International Security (ISIS) released on Wednesday recently-obtained commercial satellite imagery that shows “what appears to be a fourth reactor under construction at Pakistan’s Khushab nuclear site”.

“The image shows the building relatively early in its construction, but the footprint for the building is similarly sized to that of the second and third Khushab reactors,” ISIS said, noting: “Pakistan is determined to produce considerably more plutonium for nuclear weapons.”

“The arrangement of other buildings relative to the building footprint is also consistent with the arrangement of buildings next to the third reactor as seen when it was under construction. A new construction staging and storage area can be seen south of the new construction. The new construction is located several hundred meters south of second and third Khushab reactor compound,” said ISIS, which obtained the images from DigitalGlobe on January 15.

Indications of the new construction activity come barely 10 days after the Washington Post cited estimates by top specialists to the effect that Pakistan has doubled its nuclear arsensal over the past four years, edging past India with a stockpile of about 110 warheads.

Full report at:

http://www.dailypioneer.com/316975/Pak-begins-construction-of-fourth-N-reactor-US-report.html

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Obama Tested on Whether to Break With Mubarak

By MARK LANDLER and MARK MAZZETTI

WASHINGTON — President Hosni Mubarak’s refusal to step down on Thursday, after a day of rumors galvanized the crowds in Cairo, confronts the Obama administration with a stark choice: break decisively with Mr. Mubarak or stick to its call for an “orderly transition” that may no longer be tenable.

On a day of dashed hopes in Egypt, the administration’s attempts to balance the democratic aspirations of the protesters against a fear of contributing to broader instability in the Middle East collided head-on with Mr. Mubarak’s defiant refusal to relinquish his office.

To some extent, Mr. Mubarak opened the door for President Obama to appeal even more directly to the protesters, some of whom have felt betrayed by the administration’s cautious approach, saying it placed strategic interests ahead of democratic values. In his speech, Mr. Mubarak said he would not brook foreign interference, suggesting that he was digging in his heels after days of prodding by the United States for “immediate, irreversible” change.

Mr. Obama’s remarks earlier in the day, in which he celebrated the hopes of a “young generation” of Egyptians, were broadcast in Cairo, drawing cheers from the protesters.

“The administration has to put everything on the line now,” said Thomas Malinowski, the Washington director of Human Rights Watch, who has been among several outside experts advising the White House on Egypt in recent days. “Whatever cards they have, this is the time to play them.”

In its first reaction, the administration offered few overt signs of a change in policy. While criticizing the move as insufficient, it made no direct call for Mr. Mubarak’s resignation. But in a statement, the White House called on his government to explain “in clear and unambiguous language” how a transition of power would take place.

Full report at:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/11/world/middleeast/11diplomacy.html?ref=global-home&pagewanted=print

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Hopes Dashed, Protesters’ Anger Spills Over

By KAREEM FAHIM and THANASSIS CAMBANIS

CAIRO — Hours before the president’s speech, through dark, downtown streets, groups of young men and women stepped over the rocks of recent battles and walked toward the lights in Tahrir Square.

They wore their country’s colors on headbands, lanyards and T-shirts and arrived to a celebration already begun. Popcorn was sold, dates were passed around and a voice of the uprising, the singer Abdel Halim Hafez, floated from a loudspeaker.

Two men scaled lampposts, risking death to hang a martyr’s picture.

Other men hammered at a wooden roof, a semipermanent addition to a tent city. Lashed to light posts were loudspeakers, so that the crowds could hear the news. Surrounded by the architecture of their struggle, the protesters waited for their reward.

Dozens of men from Sinai, who had camped in the square for two weeks, smiled as they talked about finally going back home. Another man, with a cast on his arm from the battle of the stones, said he would finally tell his wife where he had disappeared to on Jan. 28, when he ran into a protest and never looked back.

“I cannot believe this day has already come,” said Amr Gala, an accountant, about 8 p.m. “I cannot believe that the president will step down.” Everyone shared his relief, and no one was worried about what came next.

Full report at:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/11/world/middleeast/11tahrir.html?ref=global-home&pagewanted=print

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Julian Assange has four 'love children': Book

Feb 11, 2011

BOSTON: Embattled WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, fighting an extradition case over sexual misconduct, has at least "four love children" with mistresses across the world, according to leaked excerpts of a tell-all book by a WikiLeaks defector.

Former WikiLeaks spokesman Daniel Domscheit-Berg, who left the organisation amid tensions with Assange, has revealed in his forthcoming book that the 39-year old Assange used to "boast" about how many children he has fathered across the world.

"Often I sat in large groups and listened to Julian boast about how many children he had fathered in various parts of the world. He seemed to enjoy the idea of lots and lots of Julians, one on every continent.

"Whether he took care of any of these alleged children, or whether they existed at all, was another question," Domscheit-Berg writes in his book, an excerpt of which was leaked to gossip website Gawker.

Last month, Domscheit-Berg launched a rival site OpenLeaks.

"From his bombastic OKCupid profile to his creepy love letters to a 19-year-old girl, Wikileaks founder Julian Assange's has some strange romantic proclivities. Strangest of all is his apparent obsession with littering the world with offspring," the report in Gawker said.

According to leaked police documents on Assange's ongoing rape and sexual molestation case, WikiLeaks volunteer and Swedish journalist Donald Bostrom has told investigators in Sweden that Assange had "at least" four children.

Gawker said this was a number "independently confirmed" to it by a former WikiLeaks volunteer and a former friend of Assange.

The youngest little Assange is a mere six months old, according to the former friend. The oldest, and the only one of Assange's offspring previously reported, is 20-year-old Daniel Assange who lives in Melbourne, Australia.

Assange fathered him in his teens with his then-girlfriend. Daniel however has not seen his father since 2007.

Gawker said ages of the other two children are unknown but both are in Australia. It is not known who the mothers of these children are.

"The fixation on seeding the world with mini-leakers springs from a sense of inborn superiority," Gawker quotes a source as saying.

"He (Assange) feels obliged to spread his genes. In other words, he thinks he is so good that the world needs more of his kids."

Assange is currently fighting extradition in London. The WikiLeaks founder is wanted by Sweden, which is investigating charges of sexual-assault allegations against him.

He is accused of sexual misconduct by two women he met during a visit to Stockholm last year. He denies any wrongdoing.

The US government has also been trying to prosecute Assange for espionage after his whistle-blower website released thousands of secret documents on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan as well as a flood of state department cables. No specific charges against him have been framed.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/europe/Julian-Assange-has-four-love-children-Book-/articleshow/7474727.cms#ixzz1DeO6VvzR

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Egypt protesters mass for demonstrations, vow to drive Mubarak out

Feb 11, 2011

CAIRO: Protesters enraged by Hosni Mubarak's latest refusal to step down streamed into Cairo's central square Friday and took positions outside key symbols of the hated regime, promising to expand their push to drive the Egyptian president out.

The standoff posed a major test for the military as protesters stepped up calls for the army to intervene against Mubarak, a former air force commander and one of its own. The military's Supreme Council held an ``important'' meeting Friday morning, which was chaired by Defense Minister Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi, the state news agency reported.

``The council will issue important statement to the people after the meeting,'' MENA said.

Mubarak gave most of his powers to his vice president but refused to resign or leave the country late Thursday, hours after the military made moves that had all the markings of a coup.

``We are waiting for a strong reaction from the army to Mubarak's speech,'' said Mohammed Mustapha, a protest spokesman. He said ``huge numbers'' of protesters were expected Friday.

Organizers said protesters were already camped outside the presidential palace and buildings housing the Cabinet, parliament and state TV. They planned rallies at six separate protest locations, in addition to Tahrir Square, the center of the mass rallies that began on Jan. 25.

``We are going to camp everywhere to put more pressure on the regime,'' said Abdel-Rahman Samir, an organizer.

Several hundred thousand people had packed into Tahrir Square on Thursday, ecstatic with expectation that Mubarak would announce his resignation. Instead, they watched in shocked silence as he spoke, holding their foreheads in anger and disbelief. Some broke into tears. Others waved their shoes in the air in contempt. After the speech, they broke into chants of ``Leave, leave, leave.''

Around 2,000 protesters then marched on the state television headquarters several blocks away from Tahrir, guarded by the military with barbed wire and tanks. ``They are the liars,'' the crowd shouted, pointing at the building, chanting, ``We won't leave, they will leave.''

Full report at:

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/middle-east/Egypt-protesters-mass-for-demonstrations-vow-to-drive-Mubarak-out/articleshow/7474943.cms#ixzz1DeOFLhLu

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Al-Qaida committed to acquiring weapons of mass destruction: US

Feb 11, 2011

WASHINGTON: Pakistan-based al-Qaida's senior leadership remained committed to acquiring weapons of mass destruction including nuclear weapons, a top Obama administration official said.

In his testimony before the House permanent select committee on intelligence, Michael Leiter, director of National Counter-terrorism Center said, "We assess that al-Qaida's senior leadership in Pakistan remains committed to obtaining all types of weapons of mass destruction."

"But thanks to some outstanding and effective offensive action against al-Qaida senior leadership in Pakistan, we also assess that their ability to do so is greatly diminished since 9/11," Leiter said in response to a question from Congressman Mike Rogers, chairman of the committee.

"So you would rate their intention as high to try to secure that?" Rogers asked. "Yes" answered Leiter.

"I think the intent remains high, in particular in Pakistan and in Yemen," Leiter said.

Expressing concern over the current situation in Pakistan, Congressman Ben Chandler said, "Pakistan is one of the most dangerous places on the planet.

"You have got a state in Pakistan which has enormous volatility and nuclear weapons. What can you tell us about the security of the nuclear weapons under the control of the state of Pakistan? Are we in decent shape there? And what needs to be done to make sure that those weapons are secure?" he said.

Full report at:

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/us/Al-Qaida-committed-to-acquiring-weapons-of-mass-destruction-US-/articleshow/7474203.cms#ixzz1DePxNbi1

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Egypt PM to appoint deputy from 'wise men' council

Feb 11, 2011

CAIRO: Egypt's vice-president told the prime minister on Friday to appoint a deputy premier from a council of "wise men" who have been in talks with the government to find a way out of the country's crisis.

The state news agency said Vice President Omar Suleiman had asked Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq to appoint a deputy prime minister who would take responsibility for "a national dialogue" with opposition forces and independent figures.

Suleiman held the first session of the dialogue on Sunday. The "wise men" council includes prominent businessmen, such as tycoon Naguib Sawiris, lawyers and academics.

A date for a second session has yet to be set. Protesters who are challenging President Hosni Mubarak's rule have condemned the dialogue as an attempt to fool people into thinking the government is serious about political reform.

They say the reforms Mubarak has said he will implement fall well short of their demands for deep political reform.

One opposition group, the leftist Tagammu Party, said on Thursday it would no longer take part, saying the government was not responding to the people's demands.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/middle-east/Egypt-PM-to-appoint-deputy-from-wise-men-council-/articleshow/7475378.cms#ixzz1DeQ7N5z3

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Suleiman is 'de facto head of state': Egyptian envoy to US

Feb 11 2011,

Washington: President Hosni Mubarak is now "de jure head of the state" as he has transferred all his powers to his Vice President Omar Suleiman who is now the "de facto head of state", Egyptian Ambassador to the US has said.

"President Mubarak has transferred the powers of the presidency to his vice president, who now undertakes all authorities as president. So we can say that the President is a de jure president, and the Vice President is the de facto president," Egyptian Ambassador here Sameh Shoukry told CNN.

"The President (Mubarak) did say, indicate very clearly, that he was transferring all his presidential authority to the vice president. He had done so after he had referred to the parliament the constitutional amendments upon which the political reform would proceed," he said.

Full report at:

http://www.indianexpress.com/story-print/748804/

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Mubarak had told US not to topple Saddam: WikiLeaks

Feb 11, 2011

London: Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak had advised the former US vice-president Dick Cheney not to dethrone Saddam Hussein, according to leaked US cables.

Mubarak warned that by ignoring his advice and invading Iraq the Americans had increased the threat posed by Iran, The Telegraph reported WikiLeaks as stating, adding that he had stated this during a breakfast meet with US Congressmen at the presidential palace in Cairo in December, 2008.

He told one of the delegates, Sen Byron Dorgan, that the US needed to 'listen to its friends' in the region.

"When George Bush Senior was president, 'he listened to my advice. But his son does not'," he said, according to a US cable sent on January 14, 2009.

"Mubarak said that when President Bush Sr had called and asked what Mubarak thought about invading Iraq to get to rid of Saddam Hussein during the first Gulf war, Mubarak had told him not to because 'you won't be able to get out and you will drown in Iraq'.

The Egyptian president said that he tried to convey the same message to the current administration, only to be ignored.

Full report at:

http://www.asianage.com/international/mubarak-had-told-us-not-topple-saddam-wikileaks-924

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US piles pressure on Mubarak to hasten democracy

Feb 11, 2011

 Washington: As Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak stubbornly clung to power sparking more protests, US President Barack Obama mounted pressure on the embattled regime asking 'to move swiftly to explain the changes'.

Asserting that Mubarak has not convinced the Egyptian people that his handover of powers 'is immediate, meaningful or sufficient', he asked the Cairo regime 'to spell out in clear and unambiguous language' the process that will lead to democracy.

"The Egyptian people have been told that there was a transition of authority, but it is not yet clear that this transition is immediate, meaningful or sufficient," Obama said in a statement hours after Mubarak went on Egyptiam national TV to say he would reject international calls to resign.

Instead, Mubarak said he would hand over some powers to his vice president Omar Suleiman prompting demonstrators to take to the streets of Egypt's major cities to demand an end to Mubarak's 30-year rule, CNN reported from Cairo.

"Too many Egyptians remain unconvinced that the government is serious about a genuine transition to democracy, and it is the responsibility of the government to speak clearly to the Egyptian people and the world," Obama said.

Full report at:

http://www.asianage.com/international/us-piles-pressure-mubarak-hasten-democracy-923

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Egypt protests swell despite govt threats

Feb 11, 2011

Tens of thousands of Egyptian workers walked out on Thursday in mass nationwide strikes to demand wage increases and show support for the widening revolt against President Hosni Mubarak’s regime. Strikes swept private and public sector workplaces in cities across the country, unions said, as the Opposition defied stark warnings from Mr Mubarak’s lieutenants that they could face a military crackdown.

In Cairo, some 3,000 health workers marched to join the anti-regime crowds that have blockaded parliament and occupied central Cairo’s “liberated” Tahrir Square, epicentre of the defiant popular revolt. A security official confirmed union reports that thousands of employees in the public sector were staging strikes in the Mediterranean city of Alexandria, the canal city of Suez and cities on the north coast and on the Red Sea. “There is definitely an escalation since the protests began,” Kamal Abbas from the CTUWS union told AFP. Union leaders said the protests were both to demand wage hikes and show support for the campaign to oust Mr Mubarak.

Full report at:

http://www.asianage.com/international/egypt-protests-swell-despite-govt-threats-819

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Pak court sends US official to jail on remand

Feb 11, 2011

 Lahore, Pakistan: A Pakistani court on Friday sent the US official Raymond Davis to jail on a 14-day judicial remand, after police wrapped up a double murder investigation into the shootings of two men, the prosecution said.

"He has been remanded in judicial custody for 14 days. The next hearing will be on February 25," Punjab government prosecutor Abdul Samad told reporters.

"He is being sent to central jail Kot Lakhpat," said police official Suhail Sukhera in reference to the high-security prison in the eastern city of Lahore, where the US official confessed to shooting two men in self-defence last month.

http://www.asianage.com/international/pak-court-sends-us-official-jail-remand-930

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Pak agrees to resume dialogue on all issues

February 11, 2011

India and Pakistan on Thursday agreed to resume the dialogue process on all issues. Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi would visit New Delhi in July preceding which the foreign secretaries of the two countries would meet.

The announcement here and in Islamabad, simultaneously, came after talks between Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao and her Pakistan counterpart Salman Bashir in Thimpu earlier this week.

Terming the decision for resuming talks as very pragmatic and maintaining terrorism and counter-terrorism is of core concern for India, Rao said keeping this process in "abeyance" for far too long has not given returns for either of the two countries.

Rao said that she was cautiously optimistic about this step and that the two countries cannot afford to "turn their backs" to each other.

The External Affairs Ministry said that the two sides have agreed to resume dialogue on all issues following the spirit of the Thimphu meeting between the two Prime Ministers and that the Foreign Minister of Pakistan would visit India by July 2011 to review progress in the dialogue process with his counterpart (to be preceded by a meeting of the two Foreign Secretaries).

There would also be meetings at the level of respective Secretaries on counter-terrorism (including progress on Mumbai trial); humanitarian issues; peace and security, including confidence building measures (CBMs), Jammu & Kashmir, promotion of friendly exchanges, Siachen, economic issues, Wullar Barrage/Tulbul Navigation Project, and Sir Creek (at the level of Additional Secretaries/Surveyors General). The dates of the meetings would be fixed through diplomatic channels.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his Pakistan counterpart Yusuf Raza Gilani had met in Thimpu on the sidelines of SAARC summit last year and decided to resolve all outstanding issues through dialogue. The dialogue process was stalled in the wake of terror attacks in Mumbai in 2008.

As regards the schedule of Secretary level meetings, the Ministry said dates would be fixed through diplomatic channels. Sources also indicated that the process of talks would begin shortly as Qureshi's visit was only a few months away.

http://www.dailypioneer.com/316913/Pak-agrees-to-resume-dialogue-on-all-issues.html

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Exhibition targets Christianity, Islam

Fri Feb 11 2011

Mandla : An exhibition put up at the venue of Ma Narmada Samajik Suraksha Kumbha leaves no doubt about the moving force behind the event. Rows of provocative banners against Islam and Christianity, along with those eulogising Hinduism icons, are on display at a huge pandal on way to the main venue. The material on display runs down both the religions as barbaric with relevant quotes.

http://www.indianexpress.com/story-print/748779/

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CBMs on table in run-up to Qureshi's visit

Sachin Parashar

Feb 11, 2011

NEW DELHI: India on Thursday announced that it will resume dialogue with Pakistan on all issues. "We now have to accept Pakistan's insistence that we cannot decide ourselves what should be the agenda for talks by putting terrorism upfront and not putting Kashmir up there. Secondly, we have succumbed to Pakistan's tactics of projecting Qureshi's visit to India as a grand diplomatic gesture as is normally done by the US for visits by its president," former foreign secretary Kanwal Sibal said.

Foreign secretary Nirupama Rao said on Tuesday, after talks with her counterpart Salman Bashir in Thimphu, that the two sides had decided to do things step by step and carry out dialogue between officials in the run-up to Qureshi's visit.

According the press statement issued by the MEA on Thursday, the two countries have agreed that prior to Qureshi's visits, meetings "at the level of respective secretaries will be convened on counterterrorism, humanitarian issues, peace and security including CBMs, J&K, promotion of friendly exchanges, Siachen, economic issues, Wullar Barrage/Tulbul Navigation Project and Sir Creek (at the level of additional secretaries/surveyors general)". Dates of the meetings will be fixed through diplomatic channels.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/CBMs-on-table-in-run-up-to-Qureshis-visit/articleshow/7472986.cms#ixzz1DcdZ6wkH

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SP plays Muslim card, hauls up Cong, BSP in resolution

Feb 11 2011

Questioning the pro-Muslim credentials of the Congress-led UPA government, the Samajwadi Party has asked it to explain its failure to come to the rescue of Muslim youths booked in Mecca Masjid and the Malegaon blast cases, for which Abhinav Bharat has been blamed now.

The party raised the issue in its political and economic resolution, presented at its three-day state conference which began in Gorakhpur on Thursday. The resolution will be taken up for discussion and passed on Friday.

The resolution said though AICC general secretary Digvijay Singh, who is also in charge of UP, had been constantly targeting the RSS for promoting terrorist activity, there has been no action against the organisation so far.

“The police arrested innocent Muslim youths and forced them to confess their involvement in blast cases,” the resolution read. “Why were the cases against them not withdrawn after the involvement of Abhinav Bharat was revealed?”

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/sp-plays-muslim-card-hauls-up-cong-bsp-in-resolution/748706/

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Investigate conspiracy to kill our leaders: RSS to PM

Feb 11 2011,

By arun kottur

Discomfited by the subject of “Hindu terror”, especially ever since the name of its senior and influential leader Indresh Kumar cropped up in the confession of Swami Aseemanand, one of the key accused in the terror network suspected to be responsible for the blasts in Ajmer, Malegaon, Mecca Masjid and the Samjhauta Express, the RSS has written a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

When contacted, RSS national executive member Ram Madhav confirmed that the letter has been delivered to the PMO today.

Sources said the letter, written in the name of general secretary Bhaiyyaji Joshi, has asked for an independent investigation or inquiry into the “political conspiracy” to “destabilise the RSS” and “kill leaders like Mohan Bhagwat and Indresh Kumar”.

Citing the Malegaon chargesheet, the four-page letter alleges a “political objective” behind what it describes as the Maharashtra ATS’s attempts to suppress evidence of the involvement of Srikant Purohit and Dayanand Pandey — both accused of plotting the Malegaon blasts, and both presently under arrest — in a plot to kill RSS leaders and create fissures in the organisation.

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/investigate-conspiracy-to-kill-our-leaders-rss-to-pm/748772/

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US efforts to resolve Kashmir issue not gone anywhere: CIA

Feb 11 2011

Washington: Efforts to reach out between India and Pakistan on the issue of Kashmir by the Unite States has not gone "anywhere", CIA Director Leon Panetta has said.

"There have been efforts to try to reach out between Pakistan and India, but as far as I know, they haven't gotten anywhere," Panetta said at a Congressional hearing on 'Worldwide Threats' by the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence.

A resolution of this long pending dispute between the two neighbours would help a great deal in terms of security of Pakistan, he said.

Top US intelligence officials including the FBI Director Robert Muller and James Clapper, Director of National Intelligence, testified before the hearing chaired by Congressman Mime Rogers.

Panetta was responding to a question from Congressman Peter King on whether there has been any change in the dynamics on the ground on the issue of Kashmir between India and Pakistan.

Full report at:

http://www.indianexpress.com/story-print/748799/

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Saudi students warned against returning to Egypt

Feb 11, 2011

CAIRO: Cultural attaché of Saudi Embassy in Cairo Muhammad Al-Aqeel said Saudi students in Egypt who returned home following disturbances in that country should not travel back to their universities until they are notified by his office.

In a statement to Saudi Press Agency on Thursday, Al-Aqeel said the date for the students’ return has been postponed in order to guarantee the safety of all Saudi students in Egypt. He added that the Egypt’s minister of higher education has extended the middle of the year vacation for one more week and the second term will commence on Feb. 19.

He said the attache’s office would notify all Saudi students and interns the time when they should return to their classes.

http://arabnews.com/saudiarabia/article255875.ece

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Saudi-Bangladesh ties to reach new heights, says envoy

By MD RASOOLDEEN

Feb 11, 2011

RIYADH: The new Bangladesh ambassador to Saudi Arabia — who took office recently — foresees enhanced bilateral relations between the Kingdom and Bangladesh in coming years.

“Saudi Arabia remains close to our hearts since the two countries are bound by social, religious and cultural ties from time immemorial,” said Ambassador Mohammed Shahidul Islam.

He added that he has plans to take existing bilateral relations to new heights by implementing new areas of cooperation that would include high level visits between the two countries.

Last month, the Bangladeshi minister of commerce, Mohammad Farouk Khan, visited Riyadh and signed an agreement with the Kingdom on the avoidance of double taxation that would further boost bilateral trade between the countries. “We have also finalized the draft treaty on the promotion and protection of investment which would be signed at a convenient day suitable to both parties,” he said.

The Kingdom’s current exports are valued at $472 million, while its imports from Bangladesh remain at $123.4 million.

Economic and commercial ties between Bangladesh and Saudi Arabia date back more than 1,000 years. Bilateral cooperation between the two countries has been growing steadily in depth and dimension ever since.

Full report at:

http://arabnews.com/saudiarabia/article255895.ece

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Afghan bomber kills northern district chief

Feb 10, 2011

KABUL, Afghanistan: Officials in Afghanistan’s northern Kunduz province say a suicide bomber blew himself up inside a district chief’s office, killing him and two other people.

Provincial government spokesman Mabobullah Sayedi says the bomber was able to enter the Chahar Darah chief’s office on Thursday by pretending to be looking for work.

The spokesman says the blast killed district chief Abdul Wahid Omarkhail along with a bodyguard and a village elder who was visiting at the time.

Sayedi and the district chief of police Gulam Mohyuddin say five others were also wounded in the blast.

Although the focus of the US-led war is in southern and eastern Afghanistan, insurgents have been working to expand their influence in the north.

http://arabnews.com/world/article255609.ece

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Muslim sect in Nigeria demands troop withdrawal

Feb 9, 2011

MAIDUGURI, Nigeria: A radical Muslim sect responsible for killings across northeastern Nigeria demanded Monday that troops withdraw from the troubled region and that the government rebuild destroyed mosques.

A spokesman for the sect, known locally as Boko Haram, issued the demand after the group recently claimed responsibility for killing seven people, including the dominant gubernatorial candidate in Borno state.

The spokesman, who identified himself as Abu Suleiman, told the BBC’s Hausa language service that the sect would not stop its attacks until the government met the conditions.

“People’s security of lives and property are in the hands of almighty God,” the man said in a radio interview. “The soldiers deployed to Borno state and some neighboring states may not bring an end to the serial attacks and killings in Maiduguri.” Authorities thought they destroyed Boko Haram in 2009 after Nigeria’s military crushed its mosque into concrete shards, and its leader was arrested and died in police custody. But now, a year later, Maiduguri and surrounding villages again live in fear of the group. Western diplomats also worry that the sect is catching the attention of Al-Qaeda’s North Africa branch.

Full report at:

http://arabnews.com/world/article253563.ece

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Indonesia says will act against brutal attacks on religious sect

Feb 8, 2011

JAKARTA: Indonesian authorities said on Monday they were investigating a brutal mob attack that killed three followers of a religious sect after footage of the frenzied beatings was repeatedly shown on local TV stations and social media sites.

Sunday's attack was the latest against members of the half-a-million strong Ahmadi movement, which considers itself Islamic but is regarded as heretic by mainstream Muslims.

The attacks could heighten risk concerns for foreign investors counting on improved religious tolerance in southeast Asia's largest economy and the world's most populous Muslim nation.

Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono called for action against those responsible.

"I want the law enforcers to be professional and firm in preventing violence and to take action against the perpetrators," he said.

Around 1,500 people attacked the house of an Ahmadi follower in Pandeglang, near the capital, Jakarta, torching buildings and vehicles, local media reported.

The Ahmadis believe Mohammad was not Islam's final prophet and say Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, who founded the sect in India in the 19th century, was a successor and messiah.

Video of Sunday's incident posted on Youtube by an Indonesian staffer of Human Rights Watch shows two men apparently being beaten to death by a mob shouting "Allahu Akbar", or God is greatest. (http://bit.ly/h1dy)

Full report at:

http://arabnews.com/world/article253857.ece

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900 Afghan militants join reintegration program

Feb 9, 2011

KABUL, Afghanistan: Despite Taleban threats against their lives, nearly 900 militants have quit the fight and enrolled in an Afghan government program that works to lure insurgents off the battlefield.

Maj. Gen. Phil Jones, director of the reintegration efforts at NATO headquarters in Kabul, said Monday that at least 45 other insurgent groups across the nation have expressed interest in the program.

The program attracts fighters with promises of jobs, literacy training and development aid for their villages.

But it faces challenges.

He says the Taleban have retaliated against insurgents switching sides in northern Afghanistan. He says some local Afghan leaders remain unclear about the details of the program and others question whether the safety of ex-combatants can be guaranteed.

http://arabnews.com/world/article253561.ece

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ElBaradei warns Egypt will ‘explode’

Feb11, 2011

WASHINGTON: Egypt’s leading dissident Mohamed ElBaradei warned Thursday that his country was about to “explode” and urged the army to take the side of the people after President Hosni Mubarak refused to step down.

Tens of thousands of Egyptians protested in the heart of Cairo late Thursday, hoping to hear Mubarak say he will step down but instead learning that he had delegated presidential power to Vice President Omar Suleiman.

They vowed to launch their most spectacular protest yet in the Egyptian capital on Friday to demand the immediate departure of Mubarak who delegated his powers to Suleiman but stopped short of resigning.

Calling Mubarak’s speech an “act of deception” on a grand scale, ElBaradei told CNN that protesters are “so angry” because they expected Mubarak to cede power to a government of national unity that would lead Egypt to democracy.

“There is no way the Egyptian people right now are ready to accept either Mubarak or his vice president,” ElBaradei told the US television network. “And my fear right now is this will start violence.”

He called on “the army, to come to save the country … from … going down the drain,” after having written earlier on the Twitter website that “Egypt will explode. Army must save the country now.”

Full report at:

http://www.dawn.com/2011/02/11/elbaradei-warns-egypt-will-%E2%80%98explode%E2%80%99.html

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US intel chief says terror still top threat to US

Feb11, 2011

WASHINGTON: The US National Intelligence Director, James Clapper, said on Thursday that terrorism was the top national security threat facing the country, and job No 1 for the intelligence agencies. In remarks to a House committee, US intelligence head said al Qaeda’s core in Pakistan and its offshoots continue to be damaged by US counter-terrorism efforts. Clapper said intelligence cooperation averted potentially deadly attacks over the past year, like the package bombs sent on two US-bound cargo planes. But he said al Qaeda’s offshoots in Yemen and Somalia would probably grow stronger. He said the intelligence committee also focused on the protests in Egypt, and the unrest across the Arab world, fending off criticism that American intelligence officials had missed signs of looming turmoil there. ap

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2011\02\11\story_11-2-2011_pg7_11

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Nawaz behind conspiracy against Moonis: Shujaat

February 11, 2011

LAHORE: PML-Q President Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain has said that Moonis Elahi is being unlawfully implicated in a fabricated case by the FIA and an unjustified media trial has been orchestrated against him.

The PML-Q leader said that , in fact, Moonisí name was never in the FIR and those who had accused him in the case had, under oath, categorically denied his direct or indirect involvement in the deal.

Chauhry Shujaat Hussain said Nawaz Sharif was behind the conspiracy and the FIA was taking directions from Jati Umra instead of Islamabad, adding that the Sharif family should remember that they should do as much injustice as they could also endure themselves.

The PML-Q president was addressing an emergent press conference at his residence here on Thursday. He alleged the master conspirator behind the nefarious scheme was the selfish, divisionist and revengeful Nawaz Sharif himself who was being aided by elements under his obligation.

He said the Sharifs had forgotten the various occasions when they were provided relief by his family. “We even went to the extent of helping out a manager of one of their sugar mills, named Ikram,” he said. “But the Sharif family was bent upon proving the old saying that Fear those on whom you show mercy.”

Full report at:

http://www.thenews.com.pk/NewsDetail.aspx?ID=10959

URL:  https://newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/egypt-celebrates,-mubarak-quits/d/4107