Religious scholar, son killed in Karachi
Heavy machinegun fire rocks Libyan capital Tripoli
Roadside bomb kills 12 civilians in Afghanistan
Omar Abdullah bats for grant of passports to kin of militants in J&K
Won’t allow Bhatti killing to be used against Islam: Fazl
No state authority in Libyan city of Benghazi
Al-Qaida routing money to India via Europe
Egypt appoints post-Mubarak interior minister: MENA
Iran contacting Arab opposition movements: Clinton
Pak Punjabis want manmade borders to be razed like Berlin wall
Kingdom bans demonstrations
Oman protests expand to country’s oil region
China paper blasts Mideast protest movements
Members of Yemen president's party quit amid unrest
Dengue danger lurks in Jeddah
Turkish FM says it’s time to make more serious decisions about Turkey’s EU bid
Turkish Airlines makes maiden flight to Los Angeles
Number of people evacuated from Libya reaches 22,600
Turkey has a crucial regional leadership, Pahor says
236-meter-high Istanbul Sapphire opens
Turkish ship waits in Tripoli Port with 1,075 passengers on board
Iraqi Kurd leader moots possibility of early polls
NATO will not invade Libya
Egypt PM Ahmed Shafiq resigns
Thousands of Croatians stage anti-government protest
Turkish president says Egypt’s military officials are aware of Egyptian nation’s expectations
JEDDAH: Corruption unearthed in granting of land meant for the poor
'60 percent of liver transplants done in China not successful’
Indonesia’s new housemaid recruitment rules irk Saudis
NSHR looking into complaints over Saudi citizenship issue
Al-Nawras Square may be renamed
UN: Fearful migrant workers on the move in Libya
Qaboos fires 3 ministers
Human Rights Watch blasts journalists' arrests in Turkey
Insurgency in Russia’s Caucasus a growing threat
Court gives police 2 more weeks to arrest Musharraf
Kingdom shows commitment to oil market stability
Stealing chicken leg lands man in prison
Soon, a school to teach Islamic investments
‘Slumdog Millionaire' child star Rubina's home gutted
UK minister says Arab unrest can double crude prices
ANP’s Amin Khattak dies of heart attack
Compiled by New Age Islam News Bureau
URL: http://www.newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/religious-scholar,-son-killed-in-karachi/d/4238
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Religious scholar, son killed in Karachi
Mar 6, 2011
KARACHI: Unknown gunmen assassinated a leader of Ahle Sunnat Wal Jamaat and his son on Saturday night.
According to police, Maulana Ahmed Madni, founder of Jamia Mehmoodia in Bufferzone, was killed when armed men open fire on his car in the area of North Karachi.
Panic spread in adjacent areas after airing of news of the killing and people closed their businesses in Nagan Chorangi, North Karachi and other areas.
http://www.dawn.com/2011/03/05/religious-scholar-son-killed-in-karachi.html
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Heavy machinegun fire rocks Libyan capital Tripoli
Mar 6, 2011
TRIPOLI: Heavy automatic weapons fire erupted in the Libyan capital Tripoli on Sunday, the first such outbreak in Muammar Qaddafi’s main stronghold in a two-week-old insurrection against his 41-year-old rule.
It was unclear who was doing the shooting, which started just before daybreak, or what had caused it. Machine gun volleys, some of them heavy calibre, reverberated around central Tripoli along with ambulance sirens, pro-Qaddafi chants, and a cacophony of car horns as vehicles sped through the vicinity.
Government spokesman Mussa Ibrahim denied any fighting was under way in the capital, saying the gunfire was to mark the army’s recapture of several cities from rebel forces.
“These are celebrations because government forces have taken control of all areas to Benghazi and are in the process of taking control of Benghazi,” Ibrahim said, referring to Libya’s rebel-controlled second largest city situated in the far east.
A rebel spokesman in eastern Libya said, however, that insurgents were still advancing on the central coastal city of Sirte, Qaddafi’s hometown which lies hundreds of miles (kilometers) to the west of the rebel stronghold of Benghazi.
“We have moved on to the offensive and we are near Sirte now,” Col. Lamine Abdelwahabin of Benghazi’s rebel military committee told Reuters there.
State television also said government forces had retaken the important coastal cities of Zawiyah and Misrata, to the immediate west and east of Tripoli. A resident in Misrata said the city was still in rebel hands.
As of Saturday night, Libyan rebels had dug into positions in Zawiyah after withstanding two armored assaults by government forces. It was not possible to reach anyone in the town early on Sunday morning.
Salem Ghazy, a Tripoli businessman, was part of a group of men, some of them security forces and others civilians, who were firing into the air from automatic weapons in Tripoli and brandishing posters of Qaddafi.
“Libya is united. We will fight these forces that are trying to ruin the country. These forces are backed by outside powers,” he said.
A resident near the central Green Square said: “They are shooting in celebration. It’s because they said the towns where the rebels have been fighting have been liberated.”
Ibrahim denied there was any fighting in Tripoli. “Everything is safe. Tripoli is 100 percent under control,” he said, while adding: “I would like to advise not to go there for your safety.”
Rebel commander Abdelwahabin said most people in Tripoli opposed Qaddafi. “All Libyans are unanimous about overthrowing Qaddafi, even in Tripoli, but they are unable to move there as all the security forces are dressed in civilian clothing, mixing with anyone trying to protest,” he said.
Western flashpoint
A tense calm settled over the western town of Zawiyah after nightfall on Saturday, with rifle-toting insurgents on rooftops and manning checkpoints on streets leading into the center.
The rebels said they were bracing for another tank and artillery attack by government forces on Sunday.
Deputy Foreign Minister Khaled Kaim had told reporters late on Saturday that Zawiyah was “quiet and peaceful. “We hope by tomorrow morning life will be back to normal.”
A doctor in Zawiyah, some 50 km (30 miles) west of Tripoli, said at least 30 people, mostly civilians, were killed during fighting on Saturday that wrecked the town center, raising to at least 60 the death toll from two days of battles.
Almost 600 km (400 miles) to the east along Libya’s Mediterranean coast, insurgents said they took the town of Bin Jawad on Saturday, on the heels of seizing the oil port of Ras Lanuf, and were thrusting westwards toward Sirte.
Exultant after asserting control over much of the east of the vast oil-exporting North African state in a revolt against the flamboyant autocrat Qaddafi, some rebels said an assault on Sirte was imminent.
“If (rebels) can expand down into the Gulf of Sirte ... they’ve got a very good shot at independence at the least — or maybe even overturning him at the most,” said Peter Zeihan, analyst with the US -based Stratfor intelligence newsletter.
But others were wary of the limitations of an undisciplined rebel force made up of soldiers who have bolted from Qaddafi’s ranks and volunteers who have more enthusiasm than experience.
Gaddafi redoubt
Where many eastern towns have fallen with scant resistance, Sirte is unlikely to be a pushover. It has long received hefty subsidies from Qaddafi, who liked to host Arab and other international conferences in the coastal city.
Sirte also hosts a major air base and significant military forces loyal to Qaddafi and the Sirte basin is home to a large part of Libya’s oil reserves.
Britain’s Sunday Times reported that rebels had seized a British SAS special forces unit of up to eight soldiers escorting a junior diplomat in eastern Libya on a secret diplomatic mission to make contact with opposition leaders.
The SAS intervention apparently angered opposition figures who fear Qaddafi could use any evidence of Western military intervention to sway patriotic support away from the uprising, according to the London paper. The report could not immediately be confirmed.
In a French newspaper interview, Qaddafi said he was embroiled in a fight against Islamist terrorism and expressed dismay at the absence of support from abroad.
“I am surprised that nobody understands that this is a fight against terrorism,” Qaddafi told le Journal du Dimanche.
“Our security services cooperate. We have helped you a lot these past few years. So why is it that when we are in a fight against terrorism here in Libya no one helps us in return?“
Western leaders have denounced what they call Qaddafi’s brutal response to the uprising, and the International Criminal Court said he and his inner circle face investigation for alleged targeting of civilians by his security forces.
But the opposition, while assembling an inspired fighting force, has failed to produce a convincingly clear leadership, a weakness Qaddafi hopes to exploit as the struggle continues.
The International Energy Agency said the revolt had blocked about 60 percent of Libya’s 1.6 million bpd (barrels per day) oil output. The drop, due largely to the flight of thousands of foreign oil workers, will batter the economy and have already jacked up crude prices abroad.
http://arabnews.com/middleeast/article303479.ece
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Roadside bomb kills 12 civilians in Afghanistan
Mar 6, 2011
KHOST: Twelve civilians were killed by a roadside bomb in an increasingly volatile area of southeastern Afghanistan on Sunday, a provincial governor said.
Two women and five children were among those killed in the blast, which took place in Waza Khwa district of Paktika province, the province’s governor, Mohebullah Sameem, said.
“The people were coming from Pakistan when their car was hit by a roadside bomb,” Sameem said.
http://www.dawn.com/2011/03/06/roadside-bomb-kills-12-civilians-in-afghanistan.html
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Omar Abdullah bats for grant of passports to kin of militants in J&K
Mar 6, 2011
JAMMU: Batting for grant of passports to the kin of militants in Jammu and Kashmir, chief minister Omar Abdullah has said that when separatist leaders like Syed Ali Shah Geelani and Mirwaiz Umar Farooq are allowed to go abroad then why not the relatives of militants.
"When separatist leaders like Syed Ali Shah Geelani and Mirwaiz Umar Farooq can get passport to visit outside the country, why not the kin of militants," Omar told the Legislative Council while winding up a debate on the motion of thanks on the governor's address last evening.
"I have told CID officials to facilitate grant of the passports to the kin of militants," Omar said, adding, "I am categorical on the issue that nobody should suffer for the actions of others."
"I have asked the CID department not to punish any for the misdeeds done by their relatives," he said.
On revocation of AFSPA and Disturbed Areas Act (DAA), the Chief Minister said that he has constituted two Committees to look into the subject.
"I am in favour of removing those areas from the ambit of DAA where the situation has improved and there is no requirement of AFSPA. If situation remains peaceful the Government will remove many areas out of DAA list this year," he said.
Omar further said 40 bunkers have been removed from Srinagar besides reducing the number of two battalions of CRPF.
"We are also working for reducing the number of Army personnel from the civil areas," he said, adding that if the militancy remained under control, there will be withdrawal of DAA and AFSPA from various parts of state this year.
On the issue of arrests of youths, Omar Abdullah said that the main opposition party has made it a trait to make false statements both in the House and outside.
"During the summer unrest, 4,064 persons had been arrested for stone pelting and other law and order disturbing actions. Of these, 3,900 have been released and they are free doing their business," he said.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Omar-Abdullah-bats-for-grant-of-passports-to-kin-of-militants-in-JK/articleshow/7640124.cms
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Won’t allow Bhatti killing to be used against Islam: Fazl
Mar 6, 2011
ISLAMABAD: Amir Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Maulana Fazl-ur-Rehman Saturday vowed not to let Shahbaz Bhatti’s killing to be used against Islam and for the destruction of Islamic institutions, Geo News reported.
Talking to media men after a meeting with Jamat-e-Islami Amir Syed Munawar Hassan here, Mualana Fazl-ur-Rehman said the publishing of cartoons and desecration of the Holy Qur’an are a test for our patience. “The West must not demand a one-sided display of patience from us,” he added.
He termed his meeting JI Chief as one for goodwill and not for forming an electoral bloc.
“I have already condemned the killing of Shahbaz Bhatti in the Parliament but it seems as if an international lobby is using such incidents to gain a leverage on religious parties,” the JUI Chief asserted.
http://www.thenews.com.pk/NewsDetail.aspx?ID=12134
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No state authority in Libyan city of Benghazi
Mar 6, 2011
BENGHAZI - The state has totally lost its authority and daily life is carried out under the supervision of opposition forces and civilians in the Libyan city of Benghazi.
According to the impressions of the AA reporter in Libya, civil servants left Benghazi and the National Council took over control of the public buildings in the country’s second biggest city after the recent clashes.
Communication services in the city are conducted by opposition forces, while entry into the city is controlled by opponents that hold tanks and heavy weapons in their hands, and general public order is maintained by armed civilians, AA reporter said.
Hospitals are still open, however, education at schools has been halted in Benghazi where young Libyans are getting military training at an old military post in order to fight in the clashes near Benghazi and capital Tripoli, AA correspondent added.
Residents of the city do not have any problems regarding foodstuff, water or fuel, as donations of volunteers are distributed under the National Council’s coordination, it was reported.
Anti-Gaddafi demonstrations continue both in daylight and in evening hours in Benghazi, while citizens refrain from wandering around the streets at night time due to the lack of authority in the city, AA reporter also noted.
http://www.turkishpress.com/news.asp?id=364620
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Al-Qaida routing money to India via Europe
Mar 6, 2011
NEW DELHI: European countries are being used as hot destinations by terror group al-Qaida to route money to India, according to a report by Peruvian Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU).
The report said the FIU had found at least one case of such suspicious transaction by al-Qaida every month and shared them with the US investigators.
"The FIU also reports tracking cases similar to that of an OFAC-designated (US Office of Foreign Assets Control) of al-Qaida element moving money from Europe through Lima and on to India," the report leaked by WikiLeaks, a non-profit media organisation dedicated to bringing important information to the public, quoting FIU head Enrique Saldivar disclosed.
"Asked if this al-Qaida case was the first of its kind or they had seen similar cases before, Saldivar told NASOff that they see about one case a month," the cable said.
The FIU receives and analyses STRs, may request additional information relevant to cases or operations related to money laundering or terrorist financing, provides financial intelligence reports (FIR) to the Public Prosecutor's Office, participates and/or requests joint investigations, and coordinates with foreign FIUs and entities.
"Of the 7,710 suspicious activity reports examined by FIU analysts in 2009, 781 resulted in financial intelligence reports sent to the public ministry for further processing and investigation.
"Based on these 781 intelligence reports, the FIU concludes more than 3 billion dollars moved illegally through Peru's financial sector in 2009," it said.
"83 per cent of this amount, according to the FIU, is related to drug trafficking. The other 17 per cent is reportedly related to fiscal fraud, corruption and illegal gun dealing. Currently, 308 of these intelligence reports are at various stages of investigation and prosecution in the legal system - as compared to four cases in 2008," the cables read.
According to Saldivar, anti-money laundering efforts in Peru are hindered by several factors.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Al-Qaida-routing-money-to-India-via-Europe/articleshow/7638412.cms
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Egypt appoints post-Mubarak interior minister: MENA
Mar 6, 2011
CAIRO: Egypt on Sunday named General Mansour el-Essawy as its new interior minister in a further sign that ousted President Hosni Mubarak’s old guard were being removed from the cabinet.
Pro-democracy activists have demanded a purge of a cabinet where the key portfolios of defence, justice, interior and foreign affairs have been run by appointees of Mubarak, who was swept from power by mass protests on Feb. 11.
The state news agency MENA quoted Essawy as saying his priorities included reinforcing security across Egypt. Security in the Arab world’s most populous nation has been lax since the country’s police forces melted away from the streets on Jan. 28.
Many Egyptian policemen remain reluctant to return to duty, fearing attacks by citizens still angry over clashes between demonstrators and security forces during the uprising that led to the deaths of over 300 people.
The interior ministry is now studying a plan to restructure the security apparatus to shore up its credibility.
Full report at:
http://www.dawn.com/2011/03/06/egypt-appoints-post-mubarak-interior-minister-mena.html
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Iran contacting Arab opposition movements: Clinton
Mar 6, 2011
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Wednesday that Iran is directly or indirectly communicating with opposition groups in Egypt, Bahrain and Yemen in a bid to shape events there.
It was the first time that Clinton detailed alleged efforts by Iran to meddle in the three-month wave of Arab revolts that has toppled presidents in Tunisia and Egypt, convulsed Libya and shaken Yemen, Bahrain and Oman.
"They are doing everything they can to influence the outcomes in these places," Clinton told the Senate Appropriations Committee.
"They are using Hezbollah... to communicate with counterparts... in (the Palestinian movement) Hamas who then in turn communicate with counterparts in Egypt," the chief US diplomat said.
"We know that they are reaching out to the opposition in Bahrain. We know that the Iranians are very much involved in the opposition movements in Yemen," she said.
"So either directly or through proxies, they are constantly trying to influence events. They have a very active diplomatic foreign policy outreach," she added.
In a bid to counteract the Iranian moves, she said, the United States is making diplomatic and other contacts of its own with opposition groups across the Middle East and North Africa.
Full report at:
http://www.turkishpress.com/news.asp?id=364561
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Pak Punjabis want manmade borders to be razed like Berlin wall
Neel Kamal
Mar 6, 2011
BARNALA: The theatre, many say, is the best medium to know or converse with people professing diverse cultures. Living up to this dictum are theatre groups from Pakistan Punjab, presently touring the state, promoting peace through creativity.
"The plays being performed by the group focuses on common and inseparable bonds, including dwelling upon Gadhar activities undertaken by Punjabis in early 1910s. Accordingly, activists of theatre groups Punjab Lok Sujag and Lok Rahs staged plays at Ludhiana, seeking to find common threads and revive traditional bonds," said Shafiq Butt, theatre director and leader of the group.
"Torn apart by the partition in 1947, the literary bonds between the two Punjabs are waiting to be revived Undeterred by many an effort failing to bear fruit, the Pak theatre groups are making efforts to cement the ties between at least the willing sections," said Shafiq and Nirmal Jaura, host of the Pak group here.
"We are the biggest sufferers due to snapping of all ties, following the traumatic events leading to partition. We now want to make some headway so that at least the coming generations can cast away the hatred from their minds," said Sobia Zaidi, an activist in her early 20s. "Politicians from both sides must be having their own agenda and may not be serious about reviving people-to-people contacts. As theatre activists, we are always striving to see that manmade border is demolished, a la the Berlin Wall," said theatre activist Qaisar Abbas.
She might not be having much exposure on theatre, but Saima Butt echoes similar sentiments in between taking care of kids, who are happier here than in Sahiwal.
Eminent theatre personality Atamjit Singh, apart from blaming the governments for not allowing contacts between residents of the two Punjabs, also found fault with people for not making enough efforts to see that governments are forced to revive people-to-people contact.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Pak-Punjabis-want-manmade-borders-to-be-razed-like-Berlin-wall/articleshow/7637739.cms
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Kingdom bans demonstrations
By P.K. ABDUL GHAFOUR
Mar 6, 2011
JEDDAH: Saudi Arabia announced on Saturday that it would not allow any demonstrations or sit-in protests in the country that are aimed at undermining the Kingdom’s security and stability.
“Laws and regulations in the Kingdom totally prohibit all kinds of demonstrations, marches and sit-in protests as well as calling for them as they go against the principles of Shariah and Saudi customs and traditions,” the Interior Ministry said in a statement. The ministry said such demonstrations not only breach the Kingdom’s law and order but also encroach on the rights of others.
“They will also lead to spreading chaos and confusion in the country, causing bloodshed, breaching honor, pillaging wealth and destroying public and private properties,” the statement said.
The ministry said it had observed that some people wanted to circumvent the country’s rules and regulations to achieve their illegal objectives. It also referred to a statement issued two years ago banning all kinds of demonstrations.
Full report at:
http://arabnews.com/saudiarabia/article302393.ece
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Oman protests expand to country’s oil region
By SAEED EL-NAHDY
Mar 5, 2011
MUSCAT, Oman: Government officials say protests demanding economic reforms by Oman’s ruler have reached a key oil region in this Arabian Peninsula country.
The officials say workers staged a sit-in Saturday at a main oil field in Haima, about 300 miles (500 kilometers) southwest of the capital Muscat, demanding more state investments in the area.
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the media.
Demonstrations flared last week in tightly ruled Oman by protesters seeking jobs and a greater political voice. One demonstrator was killed.
Oman’s ruler, Sultan Qaboos bin Said, ordered 50,000 new civil service jobs.
But the measure failed to halt sit-ins in Muscat and the northern industrial city of Sohar, where the unrest began.
http://arabnews.com/middleeast/article301762.ece
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China paper blasts Mideast protest movements
By CHRISTOPHER BODEEN
Mar 5, 2011
BEIJING: A Chinese Communist Party-run newspaper on Saturday attacked anti-government protest movements in the Middle East and dismissed the possibility of something similar happening in China.
Such movements have brought nothing but chaos and misery to their countries’ citizens and are engineered by a small number of people using the Internet to organize illegal meetings, the Beijing Daily, published by the city’s party committee, said in a front-page editorial.
“The vast majority of the people are strongly dissatisfied (with the protests), so the performance by the minority becomes a self-delusional ruckus,” the newspaper said.
The editorial appeared amid anonymous calls posted on the Internet for Middle East-inspired protests in dozens of Chinese cities the past two Sunday afternoons.
While drawing few outright demonstrators, the appeals have deeply unnerved authorities constantly on guard for any sign of challenges to Communist rule. Police and security agents shooed away onlookers and assaulted and detained journalists who turned up at the designated protest sites in Beijing and Shanghai.
Foreign reporters have been repeatedly warned to stay away from the sites this weekend and threatened with unspecified consequences if they disobey.
Full report at:
http://arabnews.com/world/article301593.ece
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Members of Yemen president's party quit amid unrest
By AHMED AL-HAJ
Mar 5, 2011
SANAA: Increasing pressure on Yemen's embattled president, several members of his ruling Congress Party resigned Saturday as tens of thousands again took to the streets to demand his ouster and Britain warned its citizens against all travel to the impoverished Arab nation.
President Ali Abdullah Saleh, a key US ally in fighting a potent Al-Qaeda offshoot in his country, was refusing to budge and rejected a proposal from a coalition of opposition groups to end the political standoff by agreeing to step down by year's end.
The region-wide unrest hit Yemen just around the time President Hosni Mubarak was stepping down in Egypt in early February. Yemenis, the poorest people in the Arab world, had similar complaints over government corruption, poverty and a lack of political freedom.
Saleh, who has held on to power for 32 years despite numerous threats to his rule, has failed to quell the anti-government outpouring with a pledge not to run for re-election in 2013. He also promised not to install his son as a successor, as many suspected he was intent to do.
Nevertheless, in a sign that he still feels he has room to maneuver, Saleh on Saturday rejected his opponents' suggestion that he quit sooner.
A press statement from the president's office said the opposition's "five-point plan is vague and ambiguous" and that the president reiterated his pledge not to run again when his current term expires in 2013.
Full report at:
http://arabnews.com/middleeast/article302400.ece
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Dengue danger lurks in Jeddah
By MARIAM NIHAL
Mar 6, 2011
JEDDAH: Thirty three cases of dengue fever have been reported in the last three weeks in Jeddah, according to Health Affairs Director Dr. Sami Badawood, adding that more infections were likely in the coming weeks as the cool season comes to an end.
Over a month after the Jan. 26 floods, local residents are combating fears of a malaria epidemic with the alarming rate of mosquitoes that have infested the city as a result of standing water. Jeddah’s winter months are characterized by lower temperatures and precipitation which cause seasonal increases in disease-spreading mosquitoes. The floods of Jan. 26 also helped to increase the amount of standing water in the city.
Residents have complained about the lack of preventative measures to combat mosquitoes, which lay their eggs in standing water such as puddles, spills from water and sewage trucks and in open cisterns or improvised water-storage containers inside or near homes. Potable water that has been tainted with sewage during the floods can also cause amoebic dysentery, which is potentially fatal to the young, the elderly and the infirm whose immune systems are compromised.
Health officials in the city had called on residents to take safety measures against dengue fever and infections and there has been a large turn up of people at hospitals and clinics to get vaccinated.
Shumaila Al-Mansour, an Indian who lives in the city’s Sahafa Street, used to stroll across the community park with her family and neighbors in the evenings. Now she refrains due to the stench of decayed waste and rotten sewage on the roads infested by mosquitoes and stays indoors.
Full report at:
http://arabnews.com/saudiarabia/article302435.ece
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Turkish FM says it’s time to make more serious decisions about Turkey’s EU bid
Mar 6, 2011
Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said Friday that it was time for Turkey to make more decisions about country’s bid to join the 27-nation bloc.
"Time has come to take more serious steps and make more serious decisions about Turkey’s EU process. We expect EU to make a more comprehensive assessment," Davutoglu told a press conference following his talks in Brussels.
Earlier in the day, Davutoglu, as the Chairman of the Committee of Ministers of Council of Europe, had meetings with CoE Secretary-General Thorbjorn Jagland and EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton at the meeting of "CoE-EU High-Level Dialogue." He also had a separate meeting with Ashton, EU Commissioner for Enlargement Stefan Fule and Commissioner for home Affairs Cecilia Malmstrom.
Davutoglu urged EU to speed up efforts for opening of negotiation chapters, saying, "we cannot walk this way wondering during every rotating EU presidency if a new chapter will be opened. We started on our journey to see the end of the road, not to go round in circles."
On visa-free travel of Turkish nationals to EU countries, Davutoglu said that he shared his disappointment with EU officials.
Full report at:
http://www.turkishpress.com/news.asp?id=364627
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Turkish Airlines makes maiden flight to Los Angeles
Mar 6, 2011
Turkey’s national air carrier, the Turkish Airlines, made Thursday its first direct flight to Los Angeles, the company’s fourth destination in the United States.
A gala night was held at the Paramount Studios to mark THY’s maiden flight, featuring NBA star Kobe Bryant as well as other celebrities.
Turkish pop star Kenan Dogulu and Turkish DJ and composer Mercan Dede took to the stage at the gala.
The Istanbul-based airlines is one of the fastest growing and prosperous carriers in the world. THY, a Star Alliance member, carries approximately 25 million passengers a year.
THY posted 389 million Euro of profit in 2009, becoming one of the top companies, following Air China and Ryan Air, in the world that recorded the highest profit in 2009.
http://www.turkishpress.com/news.asp?id=364624
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Number of people evacuated from Libya reaches 22,600
Mar 6, 2011
Turkey’s disaster management directorate announced on Friday the number of people evacuated from Libya as 22,600.
Turkey’s Disaster & Emergency Situation Management Directorate said Turkey had brought 21,592 people by ships and planes so far and 2,985 of them were foreigners.
"A ferryboat has set sail from Tripoli to Istanbul and it is carrying 1,068 people including 896 foreigners," the directorate said.
The directorate said the number of people evacuated from Libya had thus reached 22,660.
Moreover, the directorate said 812 Syrians that departed Libya by a Syrian ship were expected to arrive at Turkey’s Marmaris port this evening.
"Turkish and Syrian executives will welcome the Syrian citizens, whose food, health and other needs will be met in this Aegean town," the directorate said.
The directorate also said Syrian citizens would be taken to Cilvegozu border crossing in the southern province of Hatay by buses provided by the Turkish government.
According to unconfirmed reports, around 1,000 people have been killed in Libya during protests against Muammar al-Qadhafi’s 42-year reign.
http://www.turkishpress.com/news.asp?id=364619
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Turkey has a crucial regional leadership, Pahor says
Mar 6, 2011
Prime Minister of Slovenia Borut Pahor said Thursday that Turkey had a crucial regional leadership.
Speaking at a joint press conference with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Pahor said that the European Union (EU) had to take into consideration Turkey’s regional leadership.
As Slovenia, we will continue to support Turkey’s membership negotiations, Pahor underlined.
"Prime Minister Erdogan is one of the best leaders I know in the world. I say this not only as a diplomatic courtesy but as reflections of my sincere thoughts," Pahor said.
Pahor said that there were no political problems between Turkey and Slovenia, adding that the two countries shared excellent friendship based on mutual trust.
Turkey-EU relations should be strengthened further. The Strategic Partnership Document we signed with Prime Minister Erdogan is important for both bilateral ties and for the EU, Pahor said.
Full report at:
http://www.turkishpress.com/news.asp?id=364582
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236-meter-high Istanbul Sapphire opens
Mar 6, 2011
Europe’s tallest building, 236-meter-high Istanbul Sapphire opened on Friday.
Turkey’s Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Istanbul Sapphire, with its environmentally-friendly design, vertical gardens, recreational areas and technological features, had raised standards.
"I believe Istanbul Sapphire will help promotion of Istanbul’s beauties to Turkish and foreign visitors, thanks to its panaromic terrace," Erdogan said during the inauguration ceremony.
Constructed by the Kiler Group, Istanbul Sapphire is at 368 meters above sea level and 236 meters above ground.
Tallest building of Istanbul’s Levent main business district and second tallest building in Istanbul and Turkey (after the Diamond of Istanbul located in the nearby Maslak business district), Istanbul Sapphire is Turkey’s first ecological skyscraper.
Full report at:
http://www.turkishpress.com/news.asp?id=364622
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Turkish ship waits in Tripoli Port with 1,075 passengers on board
Mar 6, 2011
A Turkish ship has been waiting in Libya’s Tripoli Port for two days with 1,075 Egyptian passengers on board because of bad weather conditions.
The ship, which set sail from Istanbul 11 days ago, will take Egyptian nationals to their country.
Weather conditions are expected to improve in two days. In that case, the ship will be able to arrive in Egypt’s Alexandria Port in four days.
There are also 39 crew members, a doctor and a nurse on board the ship.
Meanwhile, two passengers of the ship were taken to hospital. One of them is suffering from rupture of appendix while the other have cardiac problems.
Turkey has so far evacuated 21,505 people, including 2,982 foreign nationals, from Libya, since the beginning of the protests against Muammar Gaddafi’s 42-year reign two weeks ago.
http://www.turkishpress.com/news.asp?id=364616
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Iraqi Kurd leader moots possibility of early polls
Mar 6, 2011
Iraqi Kurdish leader Massud Barzani raised the possibility on Thursday of early elections in the autonomous region after a spate of protests there.
His remarks are the first sign that Kurdish authorities have been willing to meet the demands of demonstrators since rallies in the region’s second biggest city of Sulaimaniyah last month left three people dead.
"I ask the parliament to consult political parties to study the possibility of early elections, because the people should decide and give their opinion and judgment," he said on television.
"I also call for the acceleration of the process for provincial elections to be held in Kurdistan," Barzani added. He was referring to provincial polls that were held across Iraq in January 2009 but not in the Kurdish region, comprised of three provinces in the country’s north and the disputed province of Kirkuk.
Elections for the region’s parliament and presidency were last held in July 2009, with Barzani’s Kurdistan Democratic Party and Iraqi President Jalal Talabani’s Patriotic Union of Kurdistan taking the lion’s share of seats.
Barzani, re-elected president in 2009, and his party have controlled the region, in concert with the PUK, for decades.
While Kurdistan is widely considered to be safer and more stable than the rest of Iraq, thousands of protesters took to the streets of Sulaimaniyah last month complaining about the stranglehold the two parties have, as well as corruption.
Those demonstrations were part of nationwide protests throughout much of February. On February 25, billed as a "Day of Rage", rallies took place in 17 different cities.
Iraqi authorities have attempted to head off the protests by cutting politicians’ pay and ramping up food assistance to the poor. Until Barzani’s remarks, however, Kurdish politicians had not made any tangible moves to placate the demonstrators.
http://www.turkishpress.com/news.asp?id=364584
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NATO will not invade Libya
Mar 6, 2011
NATO has no intention of intervening in Libya but is planning for "all eventualities", alliance chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen said Thursday.
Rasmussen said at a press conference that NATO officials "take note" of a request from the Libya opposition for foreign nations to launch airstrikes against mercenaries hired by Moamer Kadhafi.
However he added: "I would like to stress that NATO does not have any intention to intervene but as a defence alliance and security organisation we do prudent planning for all eventualities."
http://www.turkishpress.com/news.asp?id=364566
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Egypt PM Ahmed Shafiq resigns
Mar 6, 2011
Egypt’s ruling military council has accepted the resignation of Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq, the council said in a statement Thursday.
He will be replaced by Essam Sharaf, a former minister, added the council, which has been in charge of the country since president Hosni Mubarak resigned on February 11 after nationwide protests.
"The Supreme Council of Military Forces announces that it has accepted the resignation of Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq," the statement said, without elaborating on the reasons for the move.
http://www.turkishpress.com/news.asp?id=364565
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Thousands of Croatians stage anti-government protest
Mar 6, 2011
Several thousand anti-government protestors, mostly young people, marched through the Croatian capital on Wednesday calling on conservative Prime Minister Jadranka Kosor to step down.
It was another in a series of anti-government protests, organised on Facebook, since late February with demonstrators accusing the government of corruption and mismanaging the economy.
The protestors initially marched through downtown Zagreb without incident, four days after violent clashes between demonstrators and police left dozens injured.
However, late Wednesday the protestors burned a flag of the European Union, which Croatia aspires to join, and a flag of the main opposition Social Democrats, commercial Nova television reported. They also tore up a flag of the ruling Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ).
"We will finish what we have started. ... The corrupt government will have to face reality," the main organiser Ivan Pernar, 25, told the protestors who initially gathered at Zagreb’s central Cvjetni Trg square.
As during previous protests, the demonstrators tried to march towards the government seat where protests are banned, with hundreds of others joining them on their way, but riot police blocked them.
Full report at:
http://www.turkishpress.com/news.asp?id=364563
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Turkish president says Egypt’s military officials are aware of Egyptian nation’s expectations
Mar 6, 2011
The Turkish president said on Thursday that Egypt’s top military officials were aware of the Egyptian nation’s desires and expectations, moreover, they were willing to fulfill their responsibilities to bring such expectations to life as soon as possible.
Turkish President Abdullah Gul met with Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi, the head of the Egyptian Armed Forces Supreme Council, in Cairo.
Speaking to reporters after the gathering, Gul said that Egypt was going through a major transformation process and Egyptian nation was the pioneering force behind the reforms in the country.
Pointing to Egyptian military supreme council’s assuming duty after the recent revolution in Egypt, Gul said he believed the army would complete the transition process in a successful way.
Commenting on his meeting with Tantawi, Gul noted that he had shared with the commander his opinion on the latest developments during the gathering.
"We believe this process should be completed in a way that will meet all the expectations of Egyptian people. Egypt should proceed to a democratic, parliamentary and constitutional system, and in the end, the Egyptian state should rise in a strong way again," he said.
"I have closely seen that Mr. Tantawi and his friends have perceived Egyptian nation’s desires and expectations and they expressed that they would fulfill their responsibilities on such issue as soon as possible," Gul said.
"I have also understood during my talks that these officials desire to experience the honor of realizing democracy together with the people of Egypt," the president added.
http://www.turkishpress.com/news.asp?id=364572
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JEDDAH: Corruption unearthed in granting of land meant for the poor
By MUHAMMAD AL-SULAMI
Mar 6, 2011
JEDDAH: An investigation committee has recently unearthed gross corruption in the granting of land that was meant for the poor in the governorate of Badr, which is located within the Madinah Province.
The committee, which was set up by the provincial governorate of Madinah, discovered that a number of plots that had been earmarked for the government’s land grant program had gone to municipal officials and their relatives.
The investigators also discovered an eight-year-old list of eligible candidates for land which contained 1,767 names and had been prepared in 2003. There was also another list of 800 other people who were selected for land grants in previous years. All of these people had applied for government lands between 1997 and 2002.
According to the investigation committee, municipality officials deprived applicants of land and failed to hold proper draws. Instead, they published a notification saying, “The chairman of the Badr municipality urges interested applicants for plots to contact the land grant committee to participate in a draw which will be held during normal working hours.” The notice did not mention the day when the draw was to be held.
Full report at:
http://arabnews.com/saudiarabia/article302457.ece
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'60 percent of liver transplants done in China not successful’
Mar 6, 2011
RIYADH: There is an alarming increase in the number of failed liver transplants involving Saudis in China, said a leading Saudi expert in liver transplants, Al-Riyadh newspaper reported.
“More than 60 percent of such liver transplants in China involving Saudis have ended in failure,” said Dr. Muhammad Al-Subayyil, head of liver transplants at King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center in Riyadh.
Al-Subayyil made the comments while addressing a conference on the subject organized by King Faisal University students at the King Faisal Charity Foundation in Riyadh on Thursday.
Al-Subayyil said the failures were mainly because of unsuitable organs. “In most cases, the liver that is transplanted has been removed from the donor’s body after his or her heart stops functioning. This produces a direct impact on the liver,” he added.
Referring to the Organ Transplant Program at King Faisal Specialist Hospital, Dr. Al-Subayyil said that about 300 liver transplants have been conducted at the hospital since the launch of the program in 1994.
“One-third of these transplants were conducted after organs were received from live donors. The number of liver transplants at the hospital has considerably increased over the past few years. We are expected to carry out as many as 70 transplants this year alone,” he said.
Al-Subayyil also said that the proposed King Abdullah Center for Tumors and Liver Diseases is expected to be operational within the coming three years. “The center will be a major boost to treat and prevent liver diseases in the Kingdom,” he said, adding that some 5-10 percent of Saudis suffer from various liver diseases.
Identifying liver diseases as a major national problem, Al-Subayyil said the main challenge lies in a lack of donors. “About 10 percent of patients who died in the Kingdom last month were those waiting for liver transplants,” he said.
Farouq Al-Zouman, the first Saudi to climb Mt. Everest, also attended the conference. Al-Zouman delivered a lecture on the development of human resources and self esteem.
http://arabnews.com/saudiarabia/article302465.ece
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Indonesia’s new housemaid recruitment rules irk Saudis
By GHAZANFAR ALI KHAN & SARAH ABDULLAH
Mar 6, 2011
RIYADH: In a move to ensure more protection for housemaids in the Kingdom, the Indonesian government has imposed tighter restrictions on the recruitment of women workers.
“Even today, Jakarta continues to send domestic helpers to Saudi Arabia, but the number has drastically gone down,” said Wishnu Krisnamurthi, a spokesman for the Indonesian Embassy.
Krisnamurthi said several new measures to define the relation between the employer and the maid have been announced. The measures require employers to provide details like the workload in their homes and the number of family members including their photographs, copies of identity cards and police certificates. A sponsor or employer seeking a maid or a driver must earn a minimum salary of SR6,000 or SR8,000 a month respectively.
“The new requirements are to help us protect our workers and also convince Indonesian workers back home wishing to work here that they are safe. They are afraid due to the latest cases of abuse they have seen reported,” a source at the Indonesian Consulate in Jeddah told Arab News.
Nonetheless, many Saudis have said the requirements are outrageous and impossible to fulfill.
Full report at:
http://arabnews.com/saudiarabia/article302471.ece
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NSHR looking into complaints over Saudi citizenship issue
By BADEA ABUL NAJA
Mar 6, 2011
MAKKAH: The National Society for Human Rights (NSHR) is currently studying the issues pertaining to Saudi citizenship.
A recent report of the NSHR addressed the topic. There are four categories of people who do not have citizenship in Saudi Arabia who some argue have legitimate reasons to claim such citizenship: those born in the Kingdom to foreigners; those born to Saudi mothers and foreign fathers; those who have spent most of their lives legally in the country; and those who have been granted citizenship and then had it arbitrarily revoked on the claim that proper procedure was not followed. In the last category, the NSHR claims it has received complaints from people who claim they had their citizenship revoked after being arrested and tortured.
A major problem encountered by those who don’t have citizenship is that their children are not eligible for public education, tuition-free university education, public health care or other social benefits awarded to citizens.
Full report at:
http://arabnews.com/saudiarabia/article302462.ece
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Al-Nawras Square may be renamed
By MD HUMAIDAN
Mar 6, 2011
JEDDAH: The Municipal Council of Jeddah has approved a proposal to rename Al-Nawras Square on the Corniche to Fatima Al-Saab Square in memory of the 17-year-old Jeddawi who drowned nearby in July 2009.
The proposal was made by Councilman Tareq Fadaq, who is also a member of the Shoura Council.
Relatives of the deceased blamed the municipality for the death because the young girl had fallen into an area where drainage pipes are situated close to a beach people frequent, even though she was last seen in an area where entering the water is prohibited.
The outflow of the pipes are believed to have swept her body away from where she was last seen calling for help. It took 12 days to find her body. The council member said the council had earlier approved a proposal to search for an appropriate street or square to name after the late Culture and Information Minister Muhammad Abdul Yamani.
“Streets and squares in any city should be named after personalities related to that city,” Fadaq told Arab News. “It is because they served the city and their names should not be allowed to fade into oblivion.”
There is a special committee to name or rename streets and squares in Jeddah. The street names are selected generally from the names of the Companions of the Prophet (peace be upon him), ancient Islamic personalities, eminent scholars, writers and personalities of international or domestic level.
Proposal for a new name or renaming has to be approved by the city mayor before submitting it for the approval of the Minister of the Municipal and Rural Affairs.
Abdul Ilah Banaja heads the present 12-member Street Naming Committee in Jeddah. Its members are drawn from historians, writers and experts in other fields.
King Abdulaziz University also helps in finding appropriate names.
http://arabnews.com/saudiarabia/article302469.ece
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UN: Fearful migrant workers on the move in Libya
By JOHN HEILPRIN AND KARIN LAUB
Mar 6, 2011
RAS AJDIR, Tunisia: Thousands of migrant workers were on the move in Libya on Saturday, trying to flee the fighting between rebels and forces loyal to Muammar Qaddafi’s regime, UN refugee agency and immigration officials said.
Most of the thousands of foreign workers in Libya’s rebel-held port of Benghazi were evacuated, the officials said, and about 10,000 others inside Libya were heading for a border crossing at Salloum, Egypt.
About 5,000 migrants including women and children were stranded at Salloum, huddled in empty buildings and in need of food, water and sanitation. Most were Bangladeshi and Africans desperate to get home, and tensions were growing among them, the International Organization for Migration said.
More broadly, the geographic spread of stranded migrants is much greater than previously thought, the organization said. Vietnamese, Nepalese and Bangladeshi migrant workers have been found in Malta, Greece, Cyprus, Turkey, Algeria and Sudan.
At the Libya-Tunisia border, thousands spent the night in a 20,000-capacity tent camp, awaiting evacuation. Some of those coming from Libya in the past two days said they had attempted the journey before but were held back by heavy fighting along the way.
There has been a marked drop in the number of migrant workers coming across the border, from a peak of 20,000 several days ago to between 1,400 and 1,800, the UN said.
On Saturday, only 500 had crossed into Tunisia by midday, said a UN official at the border.
People fleeing for Tunisia said they had to pass through dozens of checkpoints on the way from Tripoli to the border. All said they had been robbed by Qaddafi’s security forces.
UN officials are trying to obtain updated satellite images to see whether large groups of migrant workers are waiting on the Libyan border, said Gilbert Greenhall, a spokesman for a UN disaster aid agency.
Full report at:
http://arabnews.com/middleeast/article302472.ece
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Qaboos fires 3 ministers
Mar 5, 2011
MUSCAT: Sultan Qaboos bin Said ordered the second top-level shakeup in a week Saturday replacing three top government ministers.
Observers see the move as an attempt to quell more than a week of widening demonstrations calling for jobs and political reforms that in the latest burst spread to a key oil region.
Gen. Sultan bin Mohammed Al-Naamani was appointed minister of the palace office, which controls the country’s security, and Khalid bin Hilal Al-Busaidy becomes the new minister of the diwan of the royal court, Oman’s state news agency said citing royal decrees.
The sultan also replaced another minister who deals with internal matters within the ruling structure. The decree replaced Gen. Ali bin Majid and Ali bin Hamoud.
About 200 protesters gathered in the capital Muscat on Saturday at the headquarters of the Shoura Council, a quasi-parliamentary advisory body, for a seventh consecutive day, while some 150 government supporters waved Omani flags from their cars.
There were smaller protests in Salalah, the eastern coastal town of Sur where Oman’s liquefied natural gas export facilities are based, and Sohar where medical sources said six people were killed in clashes with security forces on Sunday. Oman’s health minister, however, said only one person died.
Full report at:
http://arabnews.com/middleeast/article302395.ece
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Human Rights Watch blasts journalists' arrests in Turkey
Mar 5, 2011
ANKARA: Recent arrests of journalists in Turkey will have a “chilling effect” on free speech, Human Rights Watch said on Saturday, and urged the European Union candidate nation to demonstrate commitment to press freedom.
Authorities say the arrests were part of an investigation into an alleged plot to overthrow Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan's AK Party government. But critics say the case is being used to hound them, and the EU and the United States have expressed concern about press freedoms and democracy in Turkey.
"In the absence of evidence that the police have credible reason to think Ahmet Sik and Nedim Sener are responsible for wrongdoing, their arrests are a disturbing development," said Emma Sinclair-Webb, Turkey researcher at Human Rights Watch.
"It raises concerns that what is now under investigation is critical reporting rather than coup plots."
Ten journalists and writers, including Sik and Sener, were arrested on Thursday after police raided their homes at dawn. Three other journalists were arrested two weeks ago.
All of them are known to be critical of the government.
The case comes at a sensitive time.
Erdogan's AK Party is tipped to easily win a third consecutive term in parliamentary elections in June.
Full report at:
http://arabnews.com/middleeast/article302336.ece
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Insurgency in Russia’s Caucasus a growing threat
Mar 6, 2011
MAKHACHKALA, Russia: A police officer stopped at a traffic light in Dagestan’s capital is gunned down from an adjacent car. A driver blows himself up at a checkpoint.
The mayor has survived 15 assassination attempts.
Attacks on authorities take place almost daily in Dagestan, the largest and most violent of Russia’s mostly Muslim provinces in the North Caucasus, a breeding ground for terror spreading all the way to Moscow.
The separatist movement that began more than 15 years ago as a battle for Chechnya’s independence has mutated into a violent quest for an Islamic state in a region stretching some 650 kilometers (400 miles) east to west from the oil-rich Caspian Sea to Sochi, venue of the 2014 Winter Olympics.
That’s hardly likely to happen, but it ensures that the Caucasus will continue to be post-communist Russia’s festering wound.
The pattern is familiar: Poverty, a 50-percent unemployment rate and a government perceived as corrupt and abusive drive the discontented into the arms of Islamic militants, police crack down hard, innocents suffer and the separatists gain more recruits.
“There is a colossal gap between authorities and society in Dagestan,” Alexei Malashenko, an expert on the Caucasus with the Carnegie Endowment’s Moscow office, said in an interview. “People feel increasingly frustrated and the Islamists are becoming increasingly popular.” The North Caucasus includes six semiautonomous republics, and the Islamic insurgency seems to have a way of jumping from one republic to another.
No sooner did Moscow’s long war against Chechen rebels achieve a fragile peace than Ingushetia became a rebel staging ground. Government subsidies and better administration relieved the pressure in Ingushetia, so now the focus is on Dagestan.
Full report at:
http://arabnews.com/world/article302402.ece
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Court gives police 2 more weeks to arrest Musharraf
Mar 6, 2011
ISLAMABAD: An Anti-Terrorism Court in Rawalpindi on Saturday gave police two more weeks to arrest exiled former President Gen. Pervez Musharraf in the murder case of ex-Premier Benazir Bhutto.
A non-bailable warrant of the arrest for Musharraf was issued on Feb. 12 and reissued a week later. The court issued the warrant for the third time after police had requested the court for an extension to execute the order.
Police requested the court for a month more time to implement the court order but the judge gave only two weeks, Malik Mohammad Rafique, one of the defense lawyers, told AFP.
Musharraf, living in London, has been declared an offender by the same court twice before this. He is thought to be a key witness and an enabler of the plot to kill Benazir.
The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), meanwhile, has submitted a formal request with Interpol to secure the extradition of Musharraf from the UK. Earlier, the government had said that it would get Musharraf extradited for his alleged connection to the assassination of Benazir Bhutto.
Arab News has learned from well-placed diplomatic sources that the British government has refused to extradite Musharraf.
Musharraf is alleged to have been part of a ‘broad conspiracy’ to have his political rival killed before elections, though the exact nature of the charges against him is not clear.
In another development, Rawalpindi’s District and Sessions Court Saturday began hearing in a criminal case against federal Minister for Law and Parliamentary Affairs Babar Awan, who has been charged with dacoity and extortion.
Full report at:
http://arabnews.com/world/article302244.ece
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Kingdom shows commitment to oil market stability
Mar 6, 2011
The fear premium is creeping up. The ongoing unrest is beginning to hurt. Crude markets are reacting to turmoil in Libya, a significant player on the energy scene. Libya has been producing roughly 1.6 million bpd, amounting to just below two percent of global output. With a world obsessed with diversifying energy resources that is still significant.
The loss is definitely replaceable. Markets have the tenacity to plug this supply gap, yet the contagion fear seems adding to market pressures.
What is the exact quantum of loss?
Earlier last week, Shokri Ghanem, the head of Libya’s state-owned oil company said the country’s output has fallen to 700,000-750,000 bpd as most foreign oil workers have taken flight.
The IEA said Wednesday that between 850,000 and one million barrels a day of Libyan crude is currently shut. However, some other estimates put it even higher. Turmoil in Libya has cut oil output by 75 percent, or 1.2 million barrels per day, Italian oil major ENI said. Spain’s Repsol-YPF oil company announced Tuesday it had suspended operations in Libya only to find out a day later that the oil fields it operates with other firms were still producing 160,000 barrels of crude daily. Still, that was less than half of the 360,000 barrels produced before the crisis began.
Hardest hit by the sudden oil shortage are European refiners that receive 85 percent of Libya’s exports, turning the country’s highly valued crude into diesel and jet fuel. The biggest buyers are Italy, France, Germany and Spain — and Spain is so concerned, that in a desperate bid to cut fuel consumption, it announced reducing the highway speed limits in March.
Full report at:
http://arabnews.com/economy/article302385.ece
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Stealing chicken leg lands man in prison
Mar 6, 2011
JEDDAH: Let this be a warning to restaurant customers across Saudi Arabia: A court in Jeddah sentenced a man to 14 months in prison and 80 lashes for serving himself up a chicken leg while the owner of the small eatery was looking the other way, Al-Madinah daily reported on Saturday.
But some workers at the restaurant noticed the man’s illegal lifting of a drumstick and called the police. Now he’s serving time at Jeddah’s Briman prison where he’s probably being served chicken in his khabsa and paying for it with his freedom.
http://arabnews.com/lifestyle/offbeat/article302288.ece
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Soon, a school to teach Islamic investments
Mar 6, 2011
MUMBAI: An academy will soon be set up to educate Muslims about investments in various financial sectors, including stock exchange, capital market and banking in accordance to the principals of Sharia ( Islamic law).
Pragmatic Wealth Management Pvt. Ltd, a Mumbai Central-basedfirm which gives guidance on how to manage wealth according to Islamic laws is coming up with an academy where educated youth will be encouraged to seek employment and do business in the financial sector where participation of Muslims at present is shockingly low.
"Our experts and faculty will educate youth on the Sharia-compliant companies where investment can be done. We are in the process of finalizing the feasibility of such a project," said Imtiaz Merchant, managing director of Pragmatic Wealth Management. "The need for trained professionals on Islamic finance is dire because globally, it is becoming an acceptable mode of investment. And there are enough opportunities for individuals trained in Islamic finance and banking," said Dr M Y Khan, chairman, Pragmatic Wealth Management, and a visiting professor to several reputed organizations, including International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Full report at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/Soon-a-school-to-teach-Islamic-investments/articleshow/7637165.cms
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‘Slumdog Millionaire' child star Rubina's home gutted
Mar 6, 2011
MUMBAI: Rubina Ali, the child artist who played the role of young Latika in the Oscar-winning film ‘Slumdog Millionaire', spent a sleepless night on Friday at the Bandra railway station after a massive fire gutted down her house and many other shanties in front of her eyes in Gharibnagar.
“I saw the entire area up in flames. We ran away with only a few things that my parents could manage picking up,” she told The Hindu here on Saturday.
“I lost everything in that fire. The awards that I had won for the film, the newspaper clippings, some expensive dresses that I had worn during the Oscar ceremony, my school uniform, books — everything is gone,” she said.
Elaborating on the turn of events, she said, “I was watching TV with my family yesterday [Friday] night when we came to know about the fire. My mother picked up a few things and we ran away to Bandra station,” she said.
“We could manage pulling out the TV and some clothes,” Rubina's father Rafiq Asgar Ali Qureshi said.
“I initially thought people were joking when they told me about the fire. I was sitting on the stairs of the skywalk. When I myself saw the flames, I came home running to inform my family,” he said.
Full report at:
http://www.hindu.com/2011/03/06/stories/2011030653161200.htm
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Gunship helicopters attack militant hideouts in Kurram
Mar 6, 2011
KURRAM: Pakistani helicopter gunships attacked militant hideouts in the northwestern tribal region of Kurram on Sunday, killing six militants, security officials in the region said.
Two militant hideouts and a vehicle were also destroyed when the gunship helicopters shelled the area.
Officials stated that a number of militants were also injured during the attack.
http://www.dawn.com/2011/03/06/gunship-helicopters-attack-militant-hideouts-in-kurram.html
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Intense machinegun fire breaks out in Tripoli
Mar 6, 2011
TRIPOLI: Intense and sustained machinegun fire broke out in the Libyan capital Tripoli before dawn on Sunday, Reuters witnesses said.
Automatic weapon rounds, some of it heavy calibre, echoed around central Tripoli along with pro-Gaddafi chants and whistling and a cacophony of car horns as vehicles sped through the vicinity.
A government spokesman denied any fighting was under way in Tripoli. “I assure you, I assure you, I assure you, I assure you, there is no fighting going on in Tripoli,” said Mussa Ibrahim, a government spokesman.
“Everything is safe. Tripoli is 100 percent under control. What you are hearing is celebratory fireworks. People are in the streets, dancing in the square.” He added, however: “I would like to advise not to go there for your safety.”
Tripoli is the main stronghold of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi as he faces a two-week-old rebellion posing the biggest challenge ever to his 41-year-old autocratic rule in the oil-exporting North African state.
http://www.dawn.com/2011/03/06/intense-machinegun-fire-breaks-out-in-tripoli.html
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UK minister says Arab unrest can double crude prices
Mar 6, 2011
LONDON: The price of a barrel of crude could double if the unrest in the Arab world deteriorates, oil trader turned British international development minister Alan Duncan warned Saturday.
Duncan, who has 30 years' business experience in the Gulf, told that the price of a barrel of crude could top $200 (140 euros), well above the record high of $147 reached in July 2008.
If extremists used the instability in the Arab world to bomb oil tankers, pipelines or Saudi reserves, prices could even hit $250 a barrel, Duncan said.
Analysts fear such highs could trigger another recession in Britain.
"I've been saying in government for two months... $200 is on the cards if this goes wrong, if anyone is reckless and foments unrest. All I'm predicting is danger," said Duncan. "It could be very serious. If crude oil doubles, you're going to have a very serious spike (in petrol prices). Try living without it for a week."
The British government is under pressure over the price at the pumps, with 63 percent of the cost going to the exchequer.
Full report at:
http://www.thenews.com.pk/NewsDetail.aspx?ID=12098
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ANP’s Amin Khattak dies of heart attack
Mar 6, 2011
KARACHI: The senior leader of Awami National Party (ANP) Sindh, Amin Khattak, passed away at a local hospital on Sunday after suffering heart attack.
"Amin Khattak was taken to Liaquat National Hospital at around 1 p.m. after he complained of chest pain," said a spokesman of ANP, Qadir Khan on Sunday.
He said that the chest pain turned to be a heart attack to the 60-year-old politician.
He said the ANP has announced a three-day mourning and added that no final decision has yet been taken for his burial as relatives said that they were waiting for the arrival of his brothers.
http://www.thenews.com.pk/NewsDetail.aspx?ID=12162
URL: http://www.newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/religious-scholar,-son-killed-in-karachi/d/4238