Police Arrest Prophet, Accomplice for Possession of Human Parts in Nigeria
New Age Islam News Bureau
21 Feb 2013
Africa
• Police Arrest Prophet, Accomplice for Possession of Human Parts in Nigeria
• Witnesses accuse Malian soldiers of torture and murder
• Qaddafi had ‘massive’ plan to destabilize Saudi Arabia: report
• Gunmen kill seven at mosque in Kenya border town
• At least two wounded in car bombing near French army camp in Mali
• Mali: Timbuktu Reclaims Its Treasures
• Nigeria: Senate Prescribes Death Penalty for Terrorists
India
• Serial Blasts Rock Hyderabad, 15 Feared Dead
• Pakistan and Saudi Arabia Spread Terrorism: Shia Cleric of Lucknow
• Shia cleric appeals to PM for granting long term visa to Pakistani Shias
• Maulana murder: clashes erupt in S 24-Pgs, 46 held
• India’s largest Muslim ghetto in Gujarat gets first corporation school
• Pakistan is like India's younger brother: Mulayam Singh Yadav
• Turkey-Pak ties pose hurdle to India's entry to NSG club
• Ishrat Jahan fake encounter: CBI arrests Gujarat police officer
• Pakistan should desist from acts contributing to trust deficit: President
• Protests in Kargil over Pak killings
• Poor response punctures Hurriyat's strike call
• Charge sheet against 12 youths for plot to kill saffron leaders
Pakistan
• 2,500 Hazara families of Balochistan offered asylum by Australia
• 29 militants killed in air strikes in Pakistan
• Pakistan gets new law to spy on phones, emails
• 1 killed, 10 wounded in blast in northwest Pakistan
• Saudi Arabia beheads Pakistani for drug trafficking
• PPP activist among five killed in separate acts of violence
• Baloch journalists urged not to put their lives at stake
• 'Sharif feared army would get him for Kargil truce'
• Fight against terrorism to continue undeterred: P M
• Blasphemy case registered against Sherry Rehman: report
• Pakistan may become a failed state if current circumstances persist: Shahbaz
• Ansar Burney Trust announces aid to Pak prisoner in India
Arab World
• Egyptian Court Overturns Ban On Police Beards
• Anger in Morocco after young mechanic is forced to kiss official’s feet
• Damascus car bomb kills at least 31
• Syrian activists: 18 killed by airstrike in south
• ‘Private’ Protection: Bombproof underwear on show at UAE expo
• Baghdad court hands down second death sentence to Saudi
• Jail term cut for Quran memorisers
• Qatar gives $100 m in humanitarian aid to Syria
• Bahrain says Iran’s Revolutionary Guard behind ‘terror’ cell
• Egypt's Brotherhood still operates secretively
• Lebanese Ex-Minister and Syrian Official Accused of Death Plot
• Syrian Rebels Threaten to Fire on Lebanon's Hezbollah
• Syrian Opposition Says Assad Cannot Be Part of Deal
• Hezbollah Member Denies Preparing Cyprus Attack
South Asia
• Afghan Civilians Bear Brunt of Death, Injury as US War Continues
• Sri Lanka Muslims try to defuse Halal meat row
• Nasheed still in mission, court scraps hearing
• Taliban Vow to Keep Targeting Afghan Officials
• Bangladesh aims to toughen forgery laws
• Sri Lanka’s journey to a foreboding future, racial hatred against the peaceful Muslim minority
Mideast Asia
• Rights group slams arrest of Palestinian cartoonist
• Police arrest south Yemen separatist leaders
• Palestinian Protesters Clash with Israeli Troops
• Two killed in south Yemen clashes: Southern separatists
Europe
• Three British Muslims found guilty of bomb plot
• First free Islamic school to come up in Blackburn
• French Special Forces in Cameroon helping hostage probe
• Russia, Arab League push for Syria talks
• Group warns against hasty return of Mali displaced
• Bulgarian Revelations Explode Hezbollah Bombing "Hypothesis"
Southeast Asia
• Gunmen kill 5 soldiers, 2 civilians in Indonesia
• Man charged with aiding incitement of Syria unrest
North America
• Senator says 4,700 killed in US drone strikes
• NATO may hold mid-2013 summit to mark Afghan handover
Compiled by New Age Islam News Bureau
Photo: Damascus car bomb kills at least 31
URL:
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Africa
Police Arrest Prophet, Accomplice for Possession of Human Parts in Nigeria
BY CHIEMELIE EZEOBI
18 FEBRUARY 2013
The Lagos State Police Command at the weekend, arrested two suspects, a prophet, Dare Akinrosoye, with the Star Glory Church located in Egbe area of the state and his accomplice, Kunle Olaide, for being in possession of fresh human parts.
Some of the fresh human parts concealed in the bag were five fingers, human heart, liver, kidney, intestines, two pairs of slippers as well as blood filled in two Ragolis water bottles.
According to reports, although one of the suspects got away, the prophet's accomplice, Olaide was arrested by policemen attached to Ikotun Division, who were on patrol on Saturday morning.
On sighting Olaide, who was with a Ghana-must-go bag, the suspicion of the officers was aroused and when they requested to see the contents of the bag, one of the suspects, who was with Olaide fled.
When the bag was finally opened after much resistance, fresh human parts including blood filled in two Ragolis water bottle, were discovered to the astonishment of the policemen.
Also discovered and tied in a separate polythene bag were five fingers, human heart, liver, kidney and intestines, all concealed inside a plastic filled with water as well as the victim's pair of slippers.
However, during interrogation, Olaide claimed the bag was not his but given to him by his friend, who bolted away for safe keeping.
THISDAY, however, gathered from police sources that Olaide and his fleeing partner had slept in a church the previous night and were going home the next morning when they were accosted by the police.
Based on his preliminary confession, police swung into action and arrested the prophet of the church. Both suspects are currently under custody at the State Criminal Investigations Department (SCID), Panti, Yaba for further investigation.
When contacted, the state Deputy Police Public Relations Officer, ASP Chukwuma Ozoani, confirmed the arrests, adding that investigations are ongoing.
He said, "Olaide was arrested and based in his confession, the prophet was picked up because his church served as where the human parts were stored.
"The case has been transferred to SCID, Panti, where further investigation will unveil the victim.
Meanwhile, the fresh human parts were taken to Isolo General Hospital for preservation."
http://allafrica.com/stories/201302181098.html
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Witnesses accuse Malian soldiers of torture and murder
21 February 2013
In northern Mali, the country’s army frequently turns to torture and murder against people suspected of backing armed Islamist groups, according to doctors, Malian and French troops and an AFP journalist.
The scale of the phenomenon is difficult to assess. Are such rights abuses the outcome of a deliberate counter-insurgency strategy in desert territory where people are more favorable to the Islamists than in the south, or is torture the work of a few hotheads?
Colonel Saliou Maiga heads the paramilitary police in Gao, 1,200 kilometers northeast of the capital Bamako. He has recorded several cases of torture and believes that “soldiers, if they are not controlled by their officers, can do what they like.”
Some of these troops, often badly led, resort to alcohol and even to drugs. And while the Islamists have committed many atrocities - including amputations and stoning to death - in the name of strict Sharia law, these soldiers appear to have equally little respect for human life.
Several soldiers fired on unarmed people who were close to a clash with a small group of Islamists on February 10 in the center of Gao, one of the three main towns in the north, an AFP journalist saw.
The Malian and French military consider that civilian casualties that day, who included at least three dead and 15 wounded, were mainly victims of Mali’s ramshackle army, which is due to receive military training in coming months by a European Union mission of 500 troops.
Allegations of abuses by the army have increased since the beginning of French military intervention in the divided country on January 11, according to the media and non-governmental organizations such as Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International and the International Federation for Human Rights, as well as representatives of Mali's Arab and Tuareg communities.
Tuaregs and Arabs are sometimes known as “pale skins” by the majority black population. Their most prejudiced foes describe them as “all terrorists” and carry out, in some places, indiscriminate ethnic reprisals.
‘They treat their prisoners like dogs’
NGOs report “serious abuses,” including murders, in and around the western town of Biono, and a “series of summary executions” near the central towns of Mopti and Sevare, where there have also been reports of “sexual violence against women.” Witnesses also report similar actions near conflict zones.
An AFP journalist saw four “pale skins” in Gao and Timbuktu, 900 kilometers northeast of Bamako, who bore marks of torture, such as cigarette burns, traces of electric shock treatment and the use of acid, broken bones, bruises, bullet wounds and signs of strangulation, as well as sexual abuse.
In one town, which cannot be named at the request of the victims, who also asked for anonymity, one man said that after he was beaten up and burned with cigarettes, soldiers poured acid down his nostrils.
“It’s perhaps because I am Tamashek (Tuareg), I don’t see any other reason,” he told AFP.
“I know that he is not an Islamist,” said his doctor, who added that the victim was gravely ill because “the acid will lead to a shrinking of the esophagus, perhaps cancer.”
Elsewhere, a young pale-skinned woman lay on her sickbed with broken bones and several bullets in her body. She told AFP that soldiers had assaulted her. Her doctor said she had also been raped.
In Timbuktu, journalists of the US news agency Associated Press said that they had found two Arabs buried in the sand, close to the town. The family of one of the victims said he had been arrested by Malian soldiers two weeks earlier.
Since then, Malian troops several times went to see the AP correspondents, according to a French military source and a journalist. These sources said the soldiers made no physical threats, but used strong psychological pressure. The news agency has declined to comment.
In Gao and Timbuktu, several French soldiers expressed disgust at what they had seen done by their Malian counterparts. “They treat their prisoners like dogs,” one said.
“The hierarchy (of the French army) seemed to be worried, but decisions will be taken in Paris,” said another.
The spokesman for the French military operation in Bamako, Lieutenant-Colonel Emmanuel Dosseur, declined to comment on the matter.
http://english.alarabiya.net/articles/2013/02/21/267490.html
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Qaddafi had ‘massive’ plan to destabilize Saudi Arabia: report
21 February 2013
The slain Libyan strongman, Muammar Qaddafi, sought to recruit armed militants to carry out terrorist attacks in Saudi Arabia, according to leaked files published Wednesday by the London-based Asharq al-Awsat newspaper.
Fighters, including al-Qaeda mercenaries, were actively sought out in countries including Somalia, Yemen and Iraq, by the then-Libyan leader.
One of the documents published by the paper appeared to divide the armed gangs into three main groups. Separate groups were to infiltrate the kingdom from the northeast, the northwest and the south respectively. According to the document attacks were to be carried out against the capital Riyadh and the cities of Jeddah Najran, Jazan and Aseer.
The ‘southern group,’ according to the file, consisted of 6,000 “prepared” armed men, there were alleged plans to boost the number to 13,000 with the help of local Yemeni tribes.
The file said Yemeni tribesmen had expressed readiness to cooperate with Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula to execute Qaddafi’s plan of attack in Saudi Arabia.
One file singled out an unidentified Libyan party which would transport armed gunmen from Somalia to Yemen and help them cross into the kingdom.
Qaddafi’s main challenge was the sheer cost of the operation. According to the documents, one group demanded $6 million from Qaddafi, another $18 million. The Iraqi group of militants allegedly demanded $7 million. A mercenary group that consisted of Yemeni tribesmen and Qaeda members reportedly demanded $7 million.
The price of training Somali militants was estimated at $10 million and the expected cost of arming every 1,000 militants was at least $7.5 million.
The aim was to supply militant groups with various weapons including RPGs, hand guns, wireless explosives and communication devices, according to the released documents.
Libyan intelligence agents were said to be in charge of surveillance activities inside Saudi Arabia. Their mandate was to identify targets and collect information on the Saudi security forces.
There was a certain disregard for the kingdom, evident in documents found in Qaddafi’s office.
“We do not want subversive acts that do not lead to a result and only awaken the currently dopey enemy,” read one intelligence file found in his Tripoli office.
http://english.alarabiya.net/articles/2013/02/21/267460.html
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Gunmen kill seven at mosque in Kenya border town
Feb 21, 2013
NAIROBI: Gunmen stormed a Kenyan mosque near the border with Somalia today killing seven people including women, police and a local official said.
The attack occurred in Malleley near the border town of Liboi when "heavily armed men stormed a mosque and shot at people indiscriminately," a police officer in the town of Garissa said.
"Five men and two women have been killed in the attack, while two others have been injured," Garissa county commissioner Maalim Mohammed told AFP.
"The two women had responded to the screams from the mosque when they were shot," he said, adding there were about ten attackers.
Gunmen have launched a string of attacks along Kenya's restive border with Somalia in recent months, although churches have been a more common target.
The attacks are regularly blamed on Somalia's Shebab insurgents or their sympathisers, who vowed revenge after Kenya invaded southern Somalia in late 2011 to attack the Islamists' bases there.
In December, a blast near a mosque in the Kenyan capital Nairobi killed five people.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/rest-of-world/Gunmen-kill-seven-at-mosque-in-Kenya-border-town/articleshow/18609601.cms
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At least two wounded in car bombing near French army camp in Mali
21 February 2013
BAMAKO: At least two civilians were wounded on Thursday in an apparent car bombing near a military camp housing French and Chadian troops in restive northern Mali, local officials and security sources told AFP.
The vehicle “exploded around 500 metres (yards) from the camp occupied by the French and the Chadians,” a local official said, with a security source confirming the information.
“Two civilians were wounded, they are at the hospital. No one has yet approached the vehicle to see if the driver was still alive.”An official in the Kidal governor’s office said that the vehicle exploded “less than a kilometre from the camp housing the Chadians and the French”.
He added that the driver was probably a “kamikaze” who was “targeting the camp”, but “he blew up his black car in a courtyard. There was a loud noise.”
Full report at:
http://dawn.com/2013/02/21/at-least-two-wounded-in-car-bombing-near-french-army-camp-in-mali/
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Mali: Timbuktu Reclaims Its Treasures
BY A. D. MCKENZIE
20 FEBRUARY 2013
Paris — Despite uncertainty and the ongoing conflict, Mali will work to rebuild and safeguard its cultural heritage, says the West African country's minister of culture Bruno Maïga.
Maïga was in Paris this week to attend a "day of solidarity with Mali" organised by the United Nations cultural agency UNESCO at its headquarters here. The events brought together cultural experts, government officials, artists and academics to assess the damage done to Mali's world heritage sites and ancient manuscripts, and to map out a plan of action.
Full report at:
http://allafrica.com/stories/201302201207.html?viewall=1
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Nigeria: Senate Prescribes Death Penalty for Terrorists
BY EDEGBE ODEMWINGIE
21 FEBRUARY 2013
The Nigerian Senate yesterday unanimously prescribed death penalty for any person engaged in acts of terrorism in the country.
Also, persons or corporate bodies who knowingly in or outside Nigeria directly or indirectly willingly assists, facilitates, organises or directs the activities of persons or organisations engaged in "act of terrorism" is liable on conviction to maximum of life imprisonment.
The penalties were contained in a report of the Conference Committee on a Bill for an Act to amend the Terrorism (prevention) Act, 2011 and for other related matter, considered and adopted by the Senate at Wednesday's plenary.
Full report at:
http://allafrica.com/stories/201302210343.html
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India
Serial Blasts Rock Hyderabad, 15 Feared Dead
February 21, 2013
A series of blasts reported near a bus stand in Dilsukh Nagar of Hyderabad today resulting in causalities. Reports say at least 15 people are dead.
The blast occurred near a theatre in Dilsukhnagar, a busy commercial area in the city.
Eye witnesses said they heard two loud explosions.
The cause of the explosions was not immediately known. Police are yet to confirm casualties.
Ambulances and police vehicles rushed to the area. Injured have been rushed to a nearby hospital.
http://www.hindustantimes.com/India-news/Hyderabad/Two-powerful-explosions-in-crowded-area-in-Hyderabad-7-feared-dead-several-injured/Article1-1015253.aspx
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Pakistan and Saudi Arabia spread terrorism: Shia cleric of Lucknow
New Age Islam News Desk
February 21, 2013-02-21
Lucknow: Reacting to the statement of the Sunni scholar Abdul Wali Farouquee two days ago that some religious scholars and organisations of Lucknow have links with Pakistan and Iran and get funds from there, Shia cleric and General Secretary of Imamiya Educational Trust, Maulana Syed Ali Hussaini Qumi said that those who themselves spread terrorism want to covere their faces by blaming Iran and Pakistan whereas the fact is that Iran was the only country which has always opposed and condmned terrorism. It is Saudia Arabia which has never criticised or condemned terrorism because Saudi Arabia and Pakistan were the centre of terrorism. Maulama Qumi also said that a public meeting would be held on March 10 at Shia P G College Victoria where the real terrorists would be exposed.
The statement was made in a joint meeting of the Shia organisations of Lucknow at the office of Imamiya Educational Trust in Lucknow which was attended by the leaders of Shia Ulema-e-Hind, All India Shia Personal Law Board, Shia Hussaini Foundation, Rizvi Mission Educational Trust, Shia Democratic Alliance, All India Muslim Congress Shia Front. The meeting passed a resolution demanding strict punishment for the terrorists by the government.
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Shia cleric of Lucknow appeals to PM for granting long term Indian visa to Pakistani Shias
New Age Islam News Bureau
February 21, 2013
Lucknow: The President of All Shia Personal Law Board, Maulana Mirza Muhammad Athar has appealed to the government of India to issue long term visas to the Pakistani Shia who have been facing persecution and ethnic cleansing at the hands of sectarian forces and terrorists of Pakistan in line with the long term visas to Hindus of India so that they could live here peacefully so long as situation does not improve in Pakistan. He made this request in a letter written to the Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh apprising him of the worsening sectarian situation in Lucknow. He informed Dr Sing of the January 16 firing on Shia mourners in Lucknow in which two persons were killed. He also said that the operation was carried out in Pakistan style because when the funeral procession of the deceased was taken out on January 17, bombs and stones were hurled at it. This speaks of the nature and people behind the attack, he said.
Maulana Athar said that he had written a similar letter earlier as well but he did not get any response to that. However, he expressed his hope that the Prime Minister will take appropriate steps to help the hapless Shia community of Pakistan.
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Maulana murder: clashes erupt in S 24-Pgs, 46 held
February 21, 2013
Forty-six people were arrested till Wednesday evening following clashes that broke out in Canning, around 40 kilometres south of Kolkata, and adjoining areas of South 24 Parganas district in West Bengal.
Reports suggest that more than 200 houses were burnt down in the violence, following the recovery of a cleric's dead body.
Maulana Ruhul Kuddus, a resident of Dhoakata in Ghutiari Sharif, and Maulana Abdul Wahab, a resident of Maujpur in Joynagar, were reportedly attacked in Naliakhali late on Monday night while returning from a religious congregation in Jamtala haat in Kultali.
Full report at:
http://www.hindustantimes.com/India-news/kolkata/Maulana-murder-clashes-erupt-in-S-24-Pgs-46-held/Article1-1014906.aspx
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India’s largest Muslim ghetto in Gujarat gets first corporation school
February 21, 2013
Drinking water eludes Juhapura even six years after it was brought under the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation, but India’s largest Muslim ghetto in the suburbs of the Gujarat capital is about to get its first corporation school.
The announcement was made on February 17 in the 2013-14 corporation budget. The building of the primary school is to come up in Sankalitnagar and it will be functional within a year, said AMC school board chairman Jagdish Bhavsar.
Full report at:
http://www.hindustantimes.com/India-news/ahmedabad/India-s-largest-Muslim-ghetto-gets-first-corporation-school/Article1-1014613.aspx
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Pakistan is like India's younger brother: Mulayam Singh Yadav
Feb 21 2013
Moradabad : Pakistan is like India's younger brother and if relations between the two neighbours improve,they will be super powers, SP supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav has said.
"Pakistan is like our younger brother. If we stand by each other, we will be super powers and no one can challenge us,"Yadav said while addressing convocation ceremony of a private university here yesterday.
Full report at:
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/pakistan-is-like-indias-younger-brother-mulayam-singh-yadav/1077588/
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Turkey-Pak ties pose hurdle to India's entry to NSG club
Feb 21, 2013
NEW DELHI: Turkey's special relationship with Pakistan is coming in the way of better ties with India.
In its quest for membership to the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), India has come up against a Turkish obstacle: Ankara says it wants a "clarification" or assurance on non-proliferation. In addition, Turkey is pushing the case for Pakistan to enhance its engagement with the global nuclear body. India's displeasure has led to a sharp decrease in high-level interaction between the two countries.
Full report at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Turkey-Pak-ties-pose-hurdle-to-Indias-entry-to-NSG-club/articleshow/18602108.cms
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Ishrat Jahan fake encounter: CBI arrests Gujarat police officer
Feb 21, 2013
NEW DELHI: The CBI has arrested Gujarat Police officer G L Singhal in connection with the alleged fake encounter of 19-year old student Ishrat Jahan by a team of Ahmedabad crime branch officers in 2004.
Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) sources here said Singhal, an inducted IPS officer, who was then Assistant Commissioner of Police Crime Branch, was arrested by the agency in Ahmedabad and searches are going on at his residential and official premises.
Full report at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Ishrat-Jahan-fake-encounter-CBI-arrests-Gujarat-police-officer/articleshow/18608262.cms
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Pakistan should desist from acts contributing to trust deficit: President
Feb 21, 2013
NEW DELHI: Against the backdrop of the beheading of an Indian soldier on the LoC, President Pranab Mukherjee said Pakistan should desist from acts that contribute to "trust deficit".
In his address to the joint sitting of Parliament on Thursday, he said, "With Pakistan, we have made progress towards normalisation of relations, strengthening mechanism for bilateral trade and facilitating greater people-to-people contact".
Full report at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Pakistan-should-desist-from-acts-contributing-to-trust-deficit-President/articleshow/18606897.cms
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Protests in Kargil over Pak killings
Feb 21, 2013
JAMMU: Hundreds of people in Jammu & Kashmir's Shia-dominated Kargil town took to the streets to protest killing of Hazara community members in Pakistan's northwestern city of Quetta.
Reports said the protesters gathered outside the town's Jamia Masjid and marched to Kargil's Main Bazar area.
Hujjatul Islam Wal Muslameen's Sheikh Mohammad Muhaqiq asked Pakistan authorities to stop the killings immediately and ban terrorist groups targeting Shias.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Protests-in-Kargil-over-Pak-killings/articleshow/18602613.cms
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Poor response punctures Hurriyat's strike call
Feb 21, 2013
SRINAGAR: The two-day general strike call given by the Hurriyat Conference faction led by Syed Ali Shah Geelani to demand the return of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru's mortal remains failed to find favour with Kashmiris on Day One. The response was in line with the lukewarm protests till now over Afzal's hanging in Delhi's Tihar Jail on February 9.
Full report at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Poor-response-punctures-Hurriyats-strike-call/articleshow/18602550.cms
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Charge sheet against 12 youths for plot to kill saffron leaders
Feb 21 2013
Bangalore, New Delhi: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) Wednesday filed charge sheet under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act against 12 youths alleged to have LeT links in the Gulf and Pakistan. They include a doctor, a DRDO scientist and a journalist. They were arrested by the Bangalore Police from the city and Hubli in August-September 2012.
In the charge sheet, the NIA, which took over the case two months ago, said the youths were engaged in a plot to kill prominent right-wing leaders in Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra.
Full report at:
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/chargesheet-against-12-youths-for-plot-to-kill-saffron-leaders/1077224/
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Pakistan
2,500 Hazara families of Balochistan offered asylum by Australia
21 February 2013
ISLAMABAD: The Australian government has offered asylum to over 2,500 Hazara families of Balochistan and urged the United Nations refugee agency in Pakistan to facilitate migration of the community facing sectarian violence, Australian embassy sources said.
Jim O’Callaghan, assistant secretary of the humanitarian branch of the Department of Immigration and Citizenship Australia, had held a meeting with UNHCR officials last week and discussed the asylum offer with them, First Secretary Australian High Commission Sherief Andrawos told Dawn on Wednesday.
Full report at:
http://dawn.com/2013/02/21/2500-hazara-families-offered-asylum/
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29 militants killed in air strikes in Pakistan
Feb 21, 2013
ISLAMABAD: Air strikes by combat jets have killed 29 militants and destroyed several hideouts in Pakistan's lawless tribal belt, security officials said.
The air strikes yesterday targeted militant positions in Orakzai and Khyber tribal regions.
In Orakzai Agency, raids were carried out at Arghanju, Saparsok and Tanboh.
Nine militants were killed and several others were injured, security officials were quoted as saying by TV news channels.
Full report at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/pakistan/29-militants-killed-in-air-strikes-in-Pakistan/articleshow/18608788.cms
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Pakistan gets new law to spy on phones, emails
Feb 21 2013
Islamabad : President Asif Ali Zardari today signed into law a controversial bill that will give Pakistan's intelligence agencies sweeping powers to conduct surveillance and collect electronic data by tapping phones and eavesdropping on emails.
The "Investigation For Fair Trial Bill 2013" was signed by Zardari during a ceremony at the presidency, an official spokesman said.The bill was passed by the National Assembly or lower house of parliament on December 20 and by the Senate or upper house on February 1.
"According to the stated aims and objectives of the bill, it provides for investigation for collection of evidence by means of modern techniques and devices to prevent and effectively deal with scheduled offences and to regulate the powers of the law enforcement and intelligence agencies," an official statement said.
Full report at:
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/pakistan-gets-new-law-to-spy-on-phones-emails/1077468/
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1 killed, 10 wounded in blast in northwest Pakistan
Feb 21, 2013
ISLAMABAD: One person was killed and 10 others were injured today when a bomb went off in a crowded market in Peshawar city of northwest Pakistan, officials said.
The explosion occurred at around noon in a mobile phone market at Hashtnagri in Peshawar, the capital of the restive Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province.
Police and rescue service officials said one person was killed. Officials at a nearby hospital said they had received 10 injured people.
Full report at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/pakistan/1-killed-10-wounded-in-blast-in-northwest-Pakistan/articleshow/18607391.cms
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Saudi Arabia beheads Pakistani for drug trafficking
21 February 2013
In 2012, the kingdom executed 76 people, according to an AFP tally based on official figures. The US-based Human Rights Watch put the number at 69. — File photo
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia on Wednesday beheaded by the sword a Pakistani man convicted of drug trafficking, the interior ministry said.
Full report at:
http://dawn.com/2013/02/20/saudi-beheads-pakistani-for-drug-trafficking/
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PPP activist among five killed in separate acts of violence
21 February 2013
KARACHI: Five people, including an activist of Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), were killed in ongoing wave of violence in the metropolis on Wednesday.
A PPP activist was found dead near Old Sabzi Mandi within the precincts of PIB Colony police station.
According to police, the deceased was later identified as
23-year-old Bilal, son of Hameed. The officer said that unidentified culprits first kidnapped the victim and after torturing him, penetrated a bullet in his body. They threw the body at the said place and fled.
Full report at:
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2013\02\21\story_21-2-2013_pg12_13
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Baloch journalists urged not to put their lives at stake
February 21, 2013
QUETTA: Media persons and members of civil society have expressed their deep concern over the security of journalists in Balochistan who, due to the lack of training, are putting their lives at stake to gather news.
“Journalists should not become breaking news in the run for breaking news,” journalist Shehzada Zulfiqar said at a workshop held to highlight the importance of responsible reporting in violence-hit areas.
Full report at:
http://tribune.com.pk/story/510502/baloch-journalists-urged-not-to-put-their-lives-at-stake/
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'Sharif feared army would get him for Kargil truce'
Feb 21, 2013
ISLAMABAD: Even as Nawaz Sharif struck a deal with the US President Bill Clinton in July 1999, to end the Kargil conflict with India, the then prime minister believed that the powerful Pakistani army would "get" him for brokering a truce.
Full report at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/pakistan/Sharif-feared-army-would-get-him-for-Kargil-truce/articleshow/18603178.cms
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Fight against terrorism to continue undeterred: Raja Pervez Ashraf
Feb 20 2013
Islamabad : Amidst nationwide anger and outrage over brazen terror attacks against Shias, Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf today said the fight against terrorism would continue "undeterred till its logical end".
Addressing a weekly meeting of his cabinet, Ashraf expressed sorrow at the bomb attack in Quetta targeting Hazara Shias that killed 89 people on Saturday.
Full report at:
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/fight-against-terrorism-to-continue-undeterred-raja-pervez-ashraf/1077084/
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Blasphemy case registered against Sherry Rehman: report
21 February 2013
KARACHI: Multan police has registered a blasphemy case against Sherry Rehman, Pakistan’s Ambassador to the United States, a report published in the BBCUrdu said.
The case was registered on a complaint made by Faheem Gill, a citizen of Multan.
In his complaint, Gill has alleged that Rehman had committed blasphemy while speaking during a program aired on a private television channel on Nov 30, 2010.
Full report at:
http://dawn.com/2013/02/21/blasphemy-case-registered-against-sherry-rehman-report/
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Pakistan may become a failed state if current circumstances persist: Shahbaz
21 February 2013
LAHORE: Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif on Thursday said widespread killings of innocent citizens had brought democracy and the existing set-up into question, adding that if the current circumstances persisted, Pakistan may turn into “a failed state”, DawnNews reported.
Full report at:
http://dawn.com/2013/02/21/pakistan-may-become-a-failed-state-if-current-circumstances-persist-shahbaz/
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Ansar Burney Trust announces aid to Pak prisoner in India
21 February 2013
KARACHI: The Ansar Burney Trust International has announced financial help to a Pakistani prisoner in Indian custody till his release and repatriation to Pakistan as the administration of Kanpur city in India has stopped his food, medicines and other necessaries of life. Vice Chairman Ansar Burney Trust Fahad Burney said in a statement that stuck in India for 13 long years, Idrees Alam had been unable to meet his wife and four children in Pakistan as unfortunately Pakistan and India both refused to verify his citizenship.
Full report at:
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2013\02\21\story_21-2-2013_pg12_7
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Arab World
Egyptian Court Overturns Ban On Police Beards
21 February 2013
An Egyptian court ruled on Wednesday that policemen may grow beards, ending a decades-old convention barring them from making what is often seen here as a display of Islamic piety.
Dozens of police officers were suspended from work in February for breaking the de facto ban on beards introduced under deposed President Hosni Mubarak. They had protested outside the Interior Ministry, calling on Islamist President Mohamed Mursi - who is bearded himself - to secure their reinstatement.
Full report at:
http://english.alarabiya.net/articles/2013/02/21/267482.html
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Anger in Morocco after young mechanic is forced to kiss official’s feet
21 February 2013
The story of a young Moroccan mechanic who was forced to kiss the feet of a court official in exchange for forgiveness has led to growing public discontent across the country.
The man, Hisham Himmi, often referred to in the Moroccan press as Hisham the mechanic, was reportedly detained for refusing to immediately paint the car of the deputy prosecutor in the central town of Midelt.
Full report at:
http://english.alarabiya.net/articles/2013/02/21/267534.html
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Damascus car bomb kills at least 31
February 21, 2013
A powerful car bomb exploded near the offices of Syria's ruling Baath party in central Damascus on Thursday, killing at least 31 people, wounding dozens and shattering buildings, media and a watchdog said.
The mid-morning blast, which rocked the city centre and sent thick smoke scudding across the skyline, came as Syria's opposition was meeting in Cairo to discuss proposals by its leader to hold conditional talks with Syria's regime.
Full report at:
http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/afp/damascus-car-bomb-kills-at-least-31/573121
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Syrian activists: 18 killed by airstrike in south
Feb 21, 2013
DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — An opposition group says 18 people have been killed kill in a government airstrike on a rebel field hospital in the southern city of Daraa, where Syria's uprising began nearly two years ago.
The Britain-based activist group the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said those killed Thursday include eight rebel fighters, three medics, one woman and one young girl.
http://news.yahoo.com/syrian-activists-18-killed-airstrike-south-131842714.html
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‘Private’ Protection: Bombproof underwear on show at UAE expo
20 February 2013
Soldiers and military personnel needn’t worry about groin area protection, as a special form of bombproof underwear; designed to shield their “private parts” has gone on sale at the Middle East’s largest arms fair held in Abu Dhabi this week.
The product, currently on show at the International Defence Exhibition and Conference (IDEX), is being marketed towards diplomatic staff and military personnel, who wish to protect their vitals against possible attacks, reported a UAE local newspaper, 7days, on Wednesday.
Full report at:
http://english.alarabiya.net/articles/2013/02/20/267316.html
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Baghdad court hands down second death sentence to Saudi
February 21, 2013
RIYADH — A criminal court in Baghdad sentenced Shadi Al-Sadhi, a Saudi prisoner, to death for a second time, a local newspaper reported.
He was accused of illegally crossing into Iraq from Syria and joining the "Islamic Army".
In a statement, the Iraqi High Judicial Council said Al-Sadhi was captured by the American forces in Baghdad and had confessed to illegally entering the country.
The head of the committee of Saudis detained in Iraq, Thamer Al-Blaihed said that this is the second death sentence handed to Al-Sadhi.
Full report at:
http://www.saudigazette.com.sa/index.cfm?method=home.regcon&contentid=20130221154014
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Jail term cut for Quran memorisers
Ahmed Shaaban / 21 February 2013
DUBAI — The Dubai International Holy Quran Award (DIHQA) on Wednesday honoured three inmates who memorised the complete Holy Quran on the 11th anniversary of the Inmate Quran Programme.
Ibrahim Bu Melha, Chairman of the Award, and adviser to the Ruler of Dubai for Cultural and Humanitarian Affairs, said the programme, since its launch in 2002, has helped commute the jail terms of hundreds of inmates.
Full report at:
http://www.khaleejtimes.com/nation/inside.asp?xfile=/data/nationgeneral/2013/February/nationgeneral_February382.xml§ion=nationgeneral
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Qatar gives $100 m in humanitarian aid to Syria
21 February 2013
Qatar has given $100 million in aid to Syrians stricken by their country’s civil war, Qatar’s state news agency said on Thursday.
Four million people inside Syria need food, shelter and other aid, and more than 700,000 are estimated to have fled to countries nearby, the United Nations says. About 70,000 people have been killed during the two-year-old conflict, it says.
Full report at:
http://www.khaleejtimes.com/kt-article-display-
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Bahrain says Iran’s Revolutionary Guard behind ‘terror’ cell
20 February 2013
Bahrain has accused Iran’s Revolutionary Guard of setting up a militant cell to assassinate public figures in the Gulf Arab kingdom and attack its airport and government buildings.
Bahraini authorities said on Sunday they had arrested eight Bahrainis in the group, with links to Iran, Iraq and Lebanon.
Full report at:
http://english.alarabiya.net/articles/2013/02/20/267358.html
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Egypt's Brotherhood still operates secretively
By HAMZA HENDAWI
Associated Press
Feb 21, 2013
CAIRO (AP) - Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi speaks publicly of firsthand knowledge of a meeting where opponents allegedly plotted against him.
A few months earlier, the most powerful man in his Muslim Brotherhood group, Khairat el-Shater, says he has access to recordings of former military rulers and electoral officials engineering his disqualification from last year's presidential race.
Full report at:
http://www.myfoxphoenix.com/story/21293163/egypts-brotherhood-still-operates-secretively
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Lebanese Ex-Minister and Syrian Official Accused of Death Plot
By ANNE BARNARD
21 February 2013
BEIRUT, Lebanon — A Lebanese military court investigative judge on Wednesday charged a former government information minister and a high-ranking accomplice in the Syrian military of a conspiracy to kill Lebanese political and religious leaders and foment sectarian strife, recommending the death penalty for both.
The announcement about the defendants, Michel Samaha, the former minister, and Brig. Gen. Ali Mamlouk, a senior security official, came amid increased sectarian tensions in Lebanon that are directly tied to the nearly two-year-old conflict in neighboring Syria, which occupied Lebanon for nearly three decades until 2005 and still deeply polarizes Lebanese politics.
Full report at:
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/21/world/middleeast/former-lebanon-minister-and-
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Syrian Rebels Threaten to Fire on Lebanon's Hezbollah
February 21, 2013
A commander of the rebel Free Syrian Army warned on Wednesday that his forces would target Lebanon's Hezbollah unless the powerful militant group stops shelling territory held by the insurgents.
The ultimatum, which expires on Thursday, came after the outgunned rebel fighters shot down a regime warplane following a deadly air strike that killed 20 people in a Damascus province town.
Full report at:
http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/international/syrian-rebels-threaten-to-fire-on-lebanons-hezbollah/572968
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Syrian Opposition Says Assad Cannot Be Part of Deal
February 21, 2013
CAIRO (Reuters) - The opposition Syrian National Coalition is willing to negotiate a peace deal under U.S. and Russian auspices to end the country's civil war but President Bashar al-Assad cannot be a party to any settlement, a communiqué drafted for an opposition meeting says.
The meeting of the 70-member Western, Arab and Turkish-backed coalition is taking place before Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moualem is due for talks in Moscow, one of Assad's last foreign allies, and as U.N. mediator Lakhdar Brahimi renews efforts for a deal.
Full report at:
http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2013/02/21/world/middleeast/21reuters-syria-crisis-
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Hezbollah Member Denies Preparing Cyprus Attack
February 21, 2013
LIMASSOL, Cyprus (AP) — A man on trial for allegedly plotting attacks on Israelis in Cyprus says his Hezbollah handler in Lebanon did tell him to record the arrival times of an Israeli flight, but he is denying being part of a group preparing any attack.
Hossam Taleb Yaacoub, a 24-year-old Swedish-Lebanese citizen, told a Limassol court Thursday that he traveled to Cyprus on business to buy local juice but also to collect information sought by a man he knew as Ayman.
Full report at:
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2013/02/21/world/europe/ap-eu-cyprus-
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South Asia
Afghan Civilians Bear Brunt of Death, Injury as US War Continues
UN report shows that as war drags on, the most vulnerable suffer the most
- Jon Queally, staff writer
21 February 2013
In a war that the US refuses to end in Afghanistan, the civilian population of that country continues to suffer the most with the UN reporting 2,754 civilian deaths and 4,805 civilian injuries in the country last year.
Though the report released by the United Nations Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) says the casualty rates were down from 2011, it was cautious to note that the level of ongoing death and injury was nothing to celebrate.
Full report at:
http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2013/02/19
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Sri Lanka Muslims try to defuse Halal meat row
February 21, 2013
COLOMBO — Islamic clerics in Sri Lanka tried to calm religious tensions Thursday by telling stores to sell Halal meat only to Muslims, after protests by hardliners from the nation's Buddhist majority.
Food manufacturers have long labelled all their products "Halal" for convenience, meaning until now non-Muslims have not had any choice in the matter.
Some Buddhists argue they should not be forced to consume food that is prepared according to Islamic religious rites. They say the Halal certificate represents the "undue influence" of Muslims and is an "affront" to non-Muslims.
Full report at:
http://www.saudigazette.com.sa/index.cfm?method=home.regcon&contentid=20130221154095
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Nasheed still in mission, court scraps hearing
Feb 21, 2013
MALE: Amidst continuing stand-off between the government and the former Maldivian President Mohamed Nasheed, who remained holed up in the Indian mission here for the eighth day, a high-level team of the Indian foreign office arrived here on Wednesday to resolve the crisis.
Full report at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/south-asia/Nasheed-still-in-mission-court-scraps-hearing/articleshow/18603227.cms
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Taliban Vow to Keep Targeting Afghan Officials
February 21, 2013
KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — The Taliban vowed Thursday to target government employees and other Afghan civilians they consider linked to the U.S.-led coalition despite a warning from the United Nations that such killings may violate international law.
Zabiullah Mujahid rejected an annual report issued by the U.N. Mission in Afghanistan that accused the Taliban of targeting civilians and blamed the insurgency for the overwhelming majority of deaths in its war against President Hamid Karzai's government and the foreign military coalition.
Full report at:
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2013/02/21/world/asia/ap-as-
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Bangladesh aims to toughen forgery laws
February 21, 2013
With more than 5,000 fake currency cases pending in Bangladeshi courts and jeopardising the nation's financial health, the central bank has raised the stakes for professional forgers—and their accomplices.
Under a draft law soon to be submitted to Parliament, life imprisonment is the new cost of the forgery business, both for those who make fake currency, either local or foreign, and those who are holding it in bulk amounts.
Full report at:
http://khabarsouthasia.com/en_GB/articles/apwi/articles/features/2013/02/21/feature-02
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Sri Lanka’s journey to a foreboding future, racial hatred against the peaceful Muslim minority
February 20, 2013
Tariq A. Al-Maeena
At a time when the Sri Lankan government should have seized the bull by the horns and ensured ethnic harmony, the opposite is seen as unfolding with very little interference from the government.
Today, there are verified charges against that form of complacency by a government not willing to act against a rising terrorist force in the form of an extremist Sinhalese Buddhist group that calls itself the Bodu Bala Sena, or the Buddhist strength force. It has in recent times focused its target of racial hatred against the peaceful Muslim minority of the island.
Full report at:
http://www.saudigazette.com.sa/index.cfm?method=home.regcon&contentid=20130220153909
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Mideast Asia
Rights group slams arrest of Palestinian cartoonist
February 21, 2013
RAMALLAH, Palestinian Territories — Media rights group Reporters Without Borders on Thursday condemned the arrest of a Palestinian newspaper cartoonist and called on Israel to reveal the accusations against him.
"Reporters Without Borders condemns Palestinian cartoonist Mohamed Sabaaneh's arbitrary arrest by Israeli authorities," the Paris-based group said in a statement.
It said the Israeli authorities arrested Sabaaneh, 33, at the Allenby Bridge crossing from Jordan into the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
Full report at:
http://www.saudigazette.com.sa/index.cfm?method=home.regcon&contentid=20130221154109
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Police arrest south Yemen separatist leaders
21 February 2013
ADEN: Police arrested two separatist leaders in south Yemen, ahead of planned rival rallies to mark the first anniversary of ex-president Ali Abdullah Saleh’s ouster, a security official and activists said on Wednesday.
Qassem Askar, a leader of the hardline faction of the separatist Southern Movement, was arrested early in the morning in the southern port city Aden, activist Yasser al-Yafie told AFP. “He was taken to an unknown location.”
Full report at:
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2013\02\21\story_21-2-2013_pg7_25
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Palestinian Protesters Clash With Israeli Troops
February 21, 2013
RAMALLAH, West Bank (AP) — Hundreds of Palestinian protesters are squaring off against Israeli security forces in the West Bank at a demonstration in solidarity with Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.
Some 2,000 people gathered at the Beitunia military checkpoint on Thursday, hoping to march to a nearby military prison. When the military prevented them from proceeding, protesters began throwing stones and burning tires. Israeli soldiers are responding with rubber-coated bullets and tear gas to disperse the crowd.
Full report at:
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2013/02/21/world/middleeast/ap-ml-israel-
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Two killed in south Yemen clashes: Southern separatists
Two people were killed in Yemen following clashes between police and protesters
21 Feb 2013
Two south Yemen separatists were killed on Thursday during clashes in Aden between police and members of the Southern Movement, a member of the group told AFP.
The police fired on protesters from the movement, thousands of whom had gathered in the southern port city to demand independence on the first anniversary of ex-president Ali Abdullah Saleh's ouster, Fathi Ben Lazraq said.
Full report at:
http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/2/8/65269/World/Region/Two-killed-in-south-Yemen-clashes-Southern-separat.aspx
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Europe
Three British Muslims found guilty of bomb plot
February 21, 2013
LONDON — Three British Muslim men were found guilty on Thursday of planning a string of bombings that prosecutors said could have been deadlier than the July 7, 2005 attacks on London's transport network.
Irfan Naseer, 31, Irfan Khalid, 27, and Ashik Ali, 27, were convicted of being "central figures" in an Islamist extremist plot to set off eight rucksack bombs and possibly other timed devices in crowded areas.
Full report at:
http://www.saudigazette.com.sa/index.cfm?method=home.regcon&contentid=20130221154108
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First free Islamic school to come up in Blackburn
February 21, 2013
London: Muslims in the north-western British city of Blackburn are awaiting the approval of plans to build the first free Islamic school in the country to serve both Muslim and non-Muslim students, Lancashire Telegraph newspaper reported.
“The planning application has been submitted following months of detailed design work on what has proven a very challenging but equally rewarding project,” Principal Jacquie Petriaho told the newspaper.
Full report at:
http://www.ummid.com/news/2013/February/20.02.2013/free_islamic_school.htm
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French special forces in Cameroon helping hostage probe
Feb 20, 2013
YAOUNDE: French special forces have arrived in northern Cameroon to help locate a French family who were kidnapped on Tuesday and moved to Nigeria, a local governor said on Wednesday.
The abduction of three adults and four children highlights the risk to French nationals and interests in Africa since Paris sent forces to Mali to oust Islamist rebels.
"French special forces came in yesterday from N'Djamena to help with the investigation. They left yesterday and came back today," Augustine Fonka Awa, governor of Cameroon's Far North Region, told Reuters by telephone.
Full report at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/rest-of-world/French-special-forces-in-Cameroon-helping-hostage-probe/articleshow/18598181.cms
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Russia, Arab League push for Syria talks
VLADIMIR RADYUHIN
21 February 2013
Russia and the Arab League have called for dialogue between the government and the opposition in Syria and agreed to push the warring sides to do so.
End to violence
A joint Russia-Arab League statement adopted here stressed “the need for an early end to violence and the start of dialogue between the government and the opposition on the basis of the June 30, 2012 Geneva communique”, said Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
Mr. Lavrov met on Wednesday Arab League Secretary-General Nabil ElArabi, and the Foreign Ministers of Egypt, Iraq and Lebanon at the first meeting of the Russian-Arab League forum. Full report at:
http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/russia-arab-league-push-for-syria-talks/article4435908.ece
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Group warns against hasty return of Mali displaced
21 February 2013
GENEVA: Malians displaced by the militant takeover of northern Mali last year and planning to return to their homes in the wake of France's military intervention still face sharp threats and challenges, a watchdog warned yesterday.
The Geneva-based Internal Displacement Monitoring Center (IDMC) said that a survey on the ground showed that an overwhelming majority of Malians who fled the conflict zone aimed to go home soon. But the risk, said the IDMC, is that they could be forced to hit the road again even though a French-led offensive has rolled back armed fighters.
Full report at:
http://www.arabnews.com/group-warns-against-hasty-return-mali-displaced
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Bulgarian Revelations Explode Hezbollah Bombing "Hypothesis"
19 February 2013
By Gareth Porter, Inter Press Service
Washington - When European Union foreign ministers discuss a proposal to designate Hezbollah as a terrorist organisation, Bulgaria's Foreign Minister Nikolay Mladenov will present his government's case for linking two suspects in the Jul. 18, 2012 bombing of an Israeli tourist bus to Hezbollah.
But European ministers who demand hard evidence of Hezbollah involvement are not likely to find it in the Bulgarian report on the investigation, which has produced no more than an "assumption" or "hypothesis" of Hezbollah complicity.
Full report at:
http://truth-out.org/news/item/14641-bulgarian-revelations-explode-hezbollah-bombing-hypothesis
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Southeast Asia
Gunmen kill 5 soldiers, 2 civilians in Indonesia
21 February 2013
Unidentified gunmen shot and killed seven people on Thursday in two separate attacks against the Indonesian Army in the restive easternmost province of Papua, a military spokesman said.
Rear Adm. Iskandar Sitompul said assailants armed with guns and machetes ambushed an Army vehicle, killing three sergeants, one private and two civilians.
Earlier in the day, another attack on an Army post in the same area killed an Army private and wounded a lieutenant, Mr. Sitompul said.
Full report at:
http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/gunmen-kill-5-soldiers-2-civilians-in-indonesia/article4438504.ece
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Man charged with aiding incitement of Syria unrest
February 21, 2013
KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 21 — The cafeteria worker arrested with former Internal Security Act (ISA) detainee, Yazid Sufaat, was charged at the Ampang Magistrate Court here today with abetting Yazid in promoting acts of terrorism with the intention of threatening the public in strife-torn Syria.
Full report at:
http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/man-charged-with-aiding-incitement-of-syria-unrest/
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North America
Senator says 4,700 killed in US drone strikes
February 21, 2013
A US senator has said an estimated 4,700 people, including some civilians, have been killed in the contentious bombing raids of America's secretive drone war, local media reported on Wednesday.
It was the first time a lawmaker or any government representative had referred to a total number of fatalities in the drone strikes, which have been condemned by rights groups as extrajudicial assassinations.
The toll from hundreds of drone-launched missile strikes against suspected al Qaeda militants in Pakistan, Yemen and elsewhere has remained a mystery, as US officials refuse to publicly discuss any details of the covert campaign.
Full report at:
http://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/northamerica/Senator-says-4-700-killed-in-US-drone-strikes/Article1-1014726.aspx
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NATO may hold mid-2013 summit to mark Afghan handover
February 21, 2013
BRUSSELS: The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) which leads the International Security Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan is considering holding a summit in mid-2013 to mark a milestone in the handover of security responsibilities in Afghanistan to local forces, alliance Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said on Wednesday.
Nato-led forces are expected to cede the lead role for security in Afghanistan this spring to Afghan soldiers, 12 years after the United States invaded Afghanistan to oust the Taliban government harboring Osama bin Laden, the al Qaeda leader who masterminded the September 11 attacks on US cities.
Full report at:
http://tribune.com.pk/story/510413/nato-may-hold-mid-2013-summit-to-mark-afghan-handover/
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URL: https://newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/police-arrest-prophet,-accomplice-possession/d/10511