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Officials in Tehran have freed five British yachtsmen who had illegally entered Iran’s territorial waters, Iranian media reported.
The five Briton, released on Wednesday, were detained on Nov 25 in southern Persian Gulf waters by Iran’s Revolution Guards Corps, a statement released by the IRGC said.
The IRGC interrogated the detainees and it became clear that they had inadvertently strayed into the Iranian waters.
UK Foreign Secretary David Miliband had earlier acknowledged that there legal justifications for the detention and dismissed speculations the issue was tied to Iran’s nuclear stand-off with the West.
He said the five were travelling from Bahrain to the United Arab Emirates to take part at a sporting event.
Miliband held talks with Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki late on Tuesday and called for formal consular access to the men and their speedy release.
Iranian officials insist they were arrested kilometers away from the route they had claimed, near the Iranian island of Siri.
The long-delayed nuclear power plant in Bushehr has been tested successfully, a senior Iranian nuclear official said Tuesday. Continue reading
TEHRAN: Iran said on Tuesday it intended to take unspecified legal action over an IAEA rebuke of its nuclear activities and would provide Iranians with enough gasoline in order to trump any further UN sanctions.
The IAEA board angered Iran last week when it censured it for covertly building a second uranium enrichment plant near the holy city of Qom, in addition to its main IAEA-monitored one at Natanz, and calling for a halt to construction.
Tehran said on Sunday it would build 10 more uranium enrichment sites in retaliation for the vote by the 35-nation board of the UN nuclear watchdog, which had rare Russian and Chinese backing.
‘(Foreign Minister Manouchehr) Mottaki will declare the Islamic Republic’s appreciation or opposition to the (position of) members of the governing body in separate letters,’ Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast said at a news conference reported in official news agency IRNA.
He said Iran would complain to the countries that supported the resolution but that it would not cause a change in Iran’s relations with Russia and China, often seen as allies.
‘We will confront the resolution legally,’ he said, according to student agency ISNA, without giving more details.
The United States and its allies fear Iran’s nuclear energy programme could allow the Islamic Republic to develop nuclear weapons, thought Tehran says it has no such intention.
Iran has resisted a deal with Western powers that would see its low-enriched uranium sent abroad for processing into uranium for making fuel.
Though Russia has said it was ‘seriously concerned’ at the announcement of 10 planned new sites, it said this week it still planned to start up Iran’s first nuclear power station in March.
‘I don’t think Russia will face any problem. That’s what’s agreed upon,’ Mehmanparast said, reiterating that ‘all our nuclear activities will be under IAEA supervision.’
Western countries are threatening more UN sanctions on Iran which could targets its imports of gasoline. Though one of the world’s biggest producers, Iran does not have refining capacity to meet current domestic demand.
Iran says it will expand its own production and plans to cut costly subsidies in a bid to reduce public consumption.
‘Our plan is still being pursued, we must be on our own and provide our fuel ourselves,’ Mehmanparast said.
PARIS: A protester who presented himself as an Iraqi journalist in exile hurled a shoe Tuesday at the colleague who one year ago found fame hurling his own footwear at then US president George W. Bush.
Television reporter Muntazer al-Zaidi was in Paris to promote his campaign for the ‘victims of the US occupation in Iraq’ when a fellow Iraqi critic turned the tables on him, shouting: ‘Here’s another shoe for you.’
The thickset man with an Iraqi accent made a brief speech in Arabic during the question and answer session, defending US policy and accusing Zaidi of ‘working for dictatorship in Iraq,’ before throwing his shoe.
The missile was thrown hard at Zaidi’s head, but he managed to dodge it and it bounced harmlessly off a curtain erected behind the speakers by the event’s hosts, the Foreign Press Welcome Centre in Paris.
Zaidi’s brother grappled with and slapped the man, whom witnesses later described as an asylum-seeker they know only as ‘Khayat,’ before venue staff and bystanders separated them and the aggressor was hustled away.
‘When I used this method, it was against the occupation. I did not use it against a compatriot,’ Zaidi complained. ‘I always knew the occupier and his lackeys would stop at nothing to get to me.’
Following the commotion, the news conference continued with Zaidi taking questions about his famous assault on Bush on December 14 last year, which was shown around the world and made him a hero in the Arab world.
Zaidi, a journalist for Iraq’s Al-Baghdadia television, threw his shoes at Bush during the US leader’s final visit to Iraq, protesting the six-year-old occupation with a cry of: ‘This is the farewell kiss you dog.’
He was seized on the spot by Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki’s bodyguards and alleges he was tortured for three days: beaten with iron bars and chairs, tied up with cables and subjected to a mock drowning.
The 30-year-old member of Iraq’s Shia majority was jailed for nine months and was flown out of Iraq by his employers shortly after he was freed.
At his appearance in Paris, organised by the Arab Press Club, he said he is staying in Geneva for medical treatment for broken teeth, stomach complaints, fractures and torn back ligaments that he suffered.
After his treatment, he said, he would like to return to Iraq to found a charity to support those he called the ‘victims of the US occupation’ of his country, in particular the widows and orphans left by American attacks.
Zaidi’s shock action was rebroadcast repeatedly around the world and made him an instant hero among Iraqis and others who felt that Arab honour had been violated by the US occupation of Iraq.
Introducing his guest at the packed Paris press conference, the president of the local Arab Press Club, Kamal Tarabay, said Zaidi’s ‘audacious gesture’ made him a ‘hero of the resistance against the occupier.’
Some of those present applauded him, but several Arab reporters complained that while his protest was legitimate for an activist, a journalist should have behaved more professionally.
Zaidi was unrepentant, insisting that given the opportunity he would do the same again to Bush’s successor, US President Barack Obama ‘whatever the colour of his skin, his origin or his religion.’
Asked about the huge sums and even offers of marriage made by admirers during his jail term, Zaidi said he had asked his family to refuse all gifts ‘until I find a way that they can be passed on to the people of Iraq
KHYBER: Security forces arrested nine militants, destroyed six houses and three explosive-laden vehicles during an operation in Bara Tehsil of Khyber Agency, on Wednesday.
According to security sources, the operation against militants in Bara Tehsil has been going on for the last nine days.
A curfew has also been imposed in the area.
Sources also said that at least 65 militants have been killed and 96 arrested during the last nine days of this operation.
WEST POINT: US President Barack Obama ordered an additional 30,000 US troops into Afghanistan on Tuesday night, but balanced the buildup with a pledge to impatient Americans to begin withdrawing US forces in 18 months.
Obama unveiled his plans in a long-anticipated, high-profile speech broadcast from the US Military Academy at West Point, New York, in what could become a defining moment of his presidency and a political gamble that may weigh heavily on his chances for a second White House term.
The president said his new policy was designed to ‘bring this war to a successful conclusion.’
The troop buildup will begin almost immediately —the first Marines will be in place by Christmas —and will cost $30 billion for the first year alone.
‘We must deny al-Qaida a safe haven,’ Obama said in articulating US military goals for a war that has dragged on for eight years.
‘We must reverse the Taliban’s momentum. … And we must strengthen the capacity of Afghanistan’s security forces and government.’
The speech represents the beginning of a campaign to restore support for the war effort among an American public grown increasingly pessimistic about success —and among some fellow Democrats in Congress wary of or even opposed to spending billions more dollars and putting tens of thousands more US soldiers and Marines in harm’s way.
‘It is from here that we were attacked on 9/11, and it is from here that new attacks are being plotted as I speak,’ Obama said.
A new survey by the Gallup organisation, released Tuesday, showed only 35 per cent of Americans now approve of Obama’s handling of the war; 55 per cent disapprove.
The escalation —to be completed by next summer —is designed to reverse significant Taliban advances since Obama took office 10 months ago and to fast-track the training of Afghan soldiers and police toward the goal of hastening an eventual US pullout.
‘After 18 months, out troops will begin to come home,’ he said flatly.
The size and speed of the troop increase will put a heavy strain on the military, which still maintains a force of more than 100,000 in Iraq and already has 68,000 in Afghanistan.
‘The 30,000 additional troops that I am announcing tonight will deploy in the first part of 2010 the fastest pace possible so that they can target the insurgency and secure key population centers,’ Obama said.
The increased troops, Obama said, ‘will increase our ability to train competent Afghan security forces, and to partner with them so that more Afghans can get into the fight. And they will help create the conditions for the United States to transfer responsibility to the Afghans.’
Nato diplomats said Obama was asking alliance partners in Europe to add 5,000 to 10,000 troops to the separate international force in Afghanistan. Indications were the allies would agree to a number somewhere in that range.
The war has even less support in Europe than in the United States, and the Nato allies and other countries have about 40,000 troops on the ground.
Obama also leaned heavily on Nato allies and other countries to join in escalating the fight.
‘We must come together to end this war successfully,’ the president said. ‘For what’s at stake is not simply a test of Nato’s credibility. What’s at stake is the security of our allies, and the common security of the world.’
Obama’s nationally broadcast speech ends three months of exacting deliberations that won praise from supporters and criticism from opponents. Former Vice President Dick Cheney said Obama was ‘dithering’ in making a decision on commanding Gen. Stanley McChrystal’s September request for 40,000 new troops —10,000 more than Obama now plans to send.
Obama underscored his commitment to stabilizing Afghanistan and scouring corruption out of the government of President Hamid Karzai. Obama vowed to prevent Afghanistan from again becoming a safe haven for al-Qaida boss Osama bin Laden and his terrorist organisation.
Obama rejected critics’ arguments that the Afghanistan war was doomed like the long American war in Vietnam was, saying any comparison ‘depends upon a false reading of history.’
He said that unlike Vietnam, the US has been joined by a coalition of 43 nations in Afghanistan and is not facing a broad-based popular insurgency.
The president argued that the most important difference with Vietnam is that ‘the American people were viciously attacked from Afghanistan, and remain a target’ for al-Qaida extremists.
Most of the new forces will be combat troops. There will be about 5,000 dedicated trainers in the 30,000 troops, showing the emphasis on preparing Afghans to take over their own security.
And the president is making clear to his generals that all troops, even if designated as combat, must consider themselves trainers
November was the least bloody month in Iraq since the 2003 US-led occupation, official figures showed Tuesday.
According to AFP, official data compiled by the ministries of defense, interior and health indicated that a total of 122 people died last month, comprising 88 civilians, 22 policemen and 12 troops.
The figures are markedly lower compared to October, when violence killed a total of 410 people across Iraq. “We are delighted with the decrease in the number of victims of terrorism but we will only be happy when we eliminate all threats,” Ali Mussawi, an advisor to Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, told AFP.
In addition to those who died in attacks in November, 332 civilians were hurt along with 56 policemen and 44 soldiers. The previous lowest monthly death toll was in May, when 155 people were killed, including 124 civilians.
Iran describes the Swiss referendum banning the construction of minarets in the country an “Islamophobic act” and a blow to the religious freedom declared in the West.
“We consider such acts as inappropriate … a move that is against the western claims of democracy and religious freedom,” Foreign Ministry Spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast said on Tuesday.
Speaking at his weekly press briefing in Tehran, Mehmanparast said “surprisingly some of the actions of the West have Islamophobic roots.”
A clear majority of 57.5 percent of the Swiss population and 22 out of 26 cantons (provinces) on Sunday voted in favor of the ban on the construction of minarets — a distinct architectural feature of Islamic mosques from which Muslims are called to prayer.
The country’s largest party, the nationalist Swiss People’s Party (SVP) and the Federal Democratic Union joined forces to convince people that the minaret posed a threat to Switzerland’s future.
In their campaign posters, allowed under freedom of speech despite their Islamophobic depiction, the Swiss flag is seen covered with missile-like minarets next to a menacing figure of a woman cloaked in a black burqa.
Switzerland is home to some 400,000 Muslims and only four minarets.
The government acceded to the vote, saying, “The Federal Council (government) respects this decision. Consequently the construction of new minarets in Switzerland is no longer permitted.”
Amnesty International said last week that “the ban on the construction of minarets would breach Switzerland’s obligations to uphold freedom of religion.”
“A change in the constitution which would provide for the blanket ban on the construction of minarets must be soundly rejected. Such a move is important as it will reinforce the equality of rights for all people living in Switzerland,” said Europe and Central Asia Programme Director at Amnesty International, Nicola Duckworth.
The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) has arrested five British nationals for trespassing Iran’s territorial waters in the Persian Gulf, a senior IRGC commander announced on Tuesday.
“Confrontation with alien forces and arresting them is a responsibility of the IRGC,” IRGC Navy Commander Alireza Tangsiri told FNA in the port city of Bandar Abbas in southern Iran.
Noting that the incident has not yet been relayed to the media, the commander stressed that more details on the issue will be released soon.
Meantime, Britain announced that Iranian authorities had seized five British sailors after their racing yacht strayed into Iranian territorial waters.
The group was sailing a 60-foot Volvo racing yacht from Bahrain to Dubai last Wednesday when they were “stopped by Iranian naval vessels,” the British Foreign Office said in a statement. “The yacht was on its way from Bahrain to Dubai and may have strayed inadvertently into Iranian waters. The five crew members are still in Iran.”
Later on Tuesday, Britain said that there was no discussions underway with Iran after the Islamic Republic detained the five Britons.
“There is certainly no confrontation or argument. As far as we are aware these people are being well treated, which is right, and what we would expect from a country like Iran,” Foreign Secretary David Miliband told BBC Radio 4.
“We understand that the Iranian government is investigating the incident, which is perfectly reasonable, and then we would look forward to it being promptly sorted out.”
Saudi police in Madinah, West of Saudi, released on Tuesday a Shia physician after 24 hour detention as a result to disputes with religious police at the Baqi’ cemetery.
Sources informed Rasid that religious police at the Baqi’ cemetery detained three Shia citizens: Dr. Musa Al-Zahir, Hussain Abdulatif and Abbas Al-Janoobi, all of which are Qatif residents.
All three detainees are from Awamia and they were in a visit to Madinah after returning from Hajj.
Al-Abdulatif and Al-Janoobi were released shortly after their arrest whereas Dr. Al-Zahir was only released after bail.
Shia pilgrims from the heavily Shia Eastern Province visiting Madina are often clash with Sunni religious police at the Baqi’ cemetery over doctrinal differences concerning the rituals surrounding commemoration of the dead.
| Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah announced on Monday the Resistance party’s new political document that was approved during the party’s General Conference that lasted for months. Sayyed Nasrallah held a press conference through a giant screen at al-Jinan hall on the airport road to declare the new political document. The press conference was attended by prominent Lebanese, Arab and international journalists as well as some Hezbollah leaders and various political figures. His eminence started the conference by noting that Hezbollah new political document aims to define the political vision of the party and includes its visions, stances, and aspirations. “This political document also comes as a result of the responsibility of sacrifice that we have experienced,” his eminence added. “At an exceptional time filled with transformations, it is no longer possible to address these changes without noting the special position our resistance has reached. We will address these transformations through two paths: the first is the Resistance one that resorts to the military and political victories as well as the expansion of the Resistance while the second focuses on the path of the US-Israeli mastery and hegemony which is witnessing military defeats that showed a failure in administering the developments.” “What strengthens the international hegemony system crisis are the actual collapses in the financial markets and the entry of the US economy in a situation of failure. Therefore, it’s possible to say that we are amid historical transformations that signal the retreat of the US role as a predominant power and the demise of the Zionist entity.” “The resistance movements are at the heart of international transformations and emerge as a strategic factor after performing a central role in producing those transformations in our region,” Sayyed Nasrallah read out, adding that the Resistance in Lebanon was the first to fight occupation and perceived since the beginning that it will reach victory at the end. “Through its long path and its depicted victories, the Resistance’s project has grown from a liberation power to a balance and confrontation one to a defense and deterrence one in addition to its political and internal role as an influencing basis in building the just and capable state. The Resistance in Lebanon has evolved from a Lebanese national value to an Arab and Islamic value and has become today an international value that’s taught all over the world.” “Hezbollah does not underestimate the size of current challenges and threats or the severity of the confrontation path. However, Hezbollah has now clearer choices and more trust in its people. In this context, Hezbollah defines the main headlines that constitutes a political and intellectual framework of its vision and stances towards the challenges,” Hezbollah Secretary General read out, concluding the manifesto’s introduction. CHAPTER ONE – DOMINATION AND HEGEMONY “Following the World War II, the United States became the center of polarity in the world, taking advantage of accomplishments on several levels of knowledge, including education, science and technology that are supported by an economic system that only views the world as markets that have to abide by the American own view. The most dangerous thing in their hegemony is that they consider that they own the world and therefore, the Western expanding strategy turned to be an international one without limits,” Hezbollah new manifesto says, according to Sayyed Nasrallah. “Lebanon is our homeland and the homeland of our fathers, ancestors. It’s also the homeland of our children, grandchildren, and the coming generations. It is the country to which we have given our most precious sacrifices for its sovereignty and pride, dignity and liberation,” Sayyed Nasrallah read out from the political document introduction on Lebanon. “Israel represents an eternal threat to Lebanon – the State and the entity – and a real danger to the country in terms of its historical ambitions in land and water especially that Lebanon is considered to be a model of coexistence in a unique formula that contradicts with the idea of the racist state which expresses itself in the Zionist entity. Furthermore, Lebanon’s presence at the borders of occupied Palestine obliged it to bear national and pan-Arab responsibilities.” “The main problem in the Lebanese political system, which prevents its reform, development and constant updating is political sectarianism,” Hezbollah manifesto clearly states. “One of the tragic consequences of the emergence of the Zionist entity on the land of Palestine and the displacement of its inhabitants is the problem of Palestinian refugees who moved to Lebanon to live temporarily in its land as guests to their fellow Lebanese until returning to their homes from where they were expelled.” “Lebanon is committed to the just and fair Arab causes, at the top of which comes the Palestinian cause as well as the conflict with the Israeli enemy. Even more, there is a definite need for concerted efforts to overcome the conflicts that run through the Arab ranks.” “The Arab and Islamic world is facing challenges that shouldn’t be undermined. Indeed, the sectarian fabricated conflicts, especially between Sunnis and Shiites, are threatening the cohesiveness of our societies. Therefore, and instead of being a source of wealth, the sectarian diversities seem to be exploited as factors of division and incitement. The situation resulting from this bad use seems to be the result of the intersection of Western deliberate policies, the US in particular.” “Hezbollah considers that the unilateral hegemony in the world overthrows the international balance and stability as well as the international peace and security. The unlimited US support for Israeli and its cover for the Israeli occupation of Arab lands annexed to the American domination of international institutions and the American meddling in various states’ affairs and adoption of the principle of circulating wars puts the American administration in the position of the aggressor and holds it responsible in producing chaos in the international political system.” “The history of the Arab-Israeli conflict proves that armed struggle and military resistance is the best way of ending the occupation. The method of negotiations has proven that the Zionist entity becomes more boastful and more belligerent, and that it has no intention of reaching an accord. The resistance has managed to achieve a huge victory over the Zionist entity, provide the homeland with protection, and liberation of the remainder of its land. This function is a lasting necessity before Israel’s expansionist threats and ambitions as well as the lack of a strong government in Lebanon. The ongoing Israeli threat forces the resistance to continue to boost its capacity … in order to fulfill its role in liberating occupied territory.”
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Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad vowed while standing next to President Hugo Chavez that Iran and Venezuelawould “stand together until the end” in the face of US “imperialism.”
Ending a tour of Latin American allies, Ahmadinejad praised his “brave brother” Chavez, saying: “Today the people of Venezuela and Iran, friends and brothers in the trench warfare against imperialism, are resisting.
“We’ll stand together until the end,” he yelled, raising Chavez’s hand in front of the television cameras and shouting in Spanish: “Viva Venezuela! Viva Chavez!”
Before arriving in Caracas late Tuesday Ahmadinejad was in Bolivia, where he and President Evo Morales, another close Chavez ally, hailed their own alliance against “imperialism,” meaning the United States.
The Iranian leader’s three-day regional tour has been seen as a clear affront to Washington, a fact illustrated by an unusual letter sent by US President Barack Obama.
After Ahmadinejad’s first stop in Brazil, it emerged that Obama had sent a letter to the regional power urging it to be more critical of theIslamic republic and its suspect nuclear activities.
The letter, written to Brazilian leader Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on the eve of Ahmadinejad’s visit, outlined Washington’s foreign policy goals and opposition to Iran’s nuclear program.
After receiving the letter on Sunday, Lula went ahead Monday and recognized Iran’s right to develop nuclear energy, although he urged Tehran to seek a peaceful settlement in talks with Western powers.
US State Department spokesman Ian Kelly confirmed Obama’s letter on Wednesday and also urged Venezuela to join world powers in expressing concern over Iran’s pursuit of a “nuclear weapons capability, its support of terrorism, and its human rights record.”
Chavez, long a thorn in the side of Washington, has publicly backed Iran’s right to a peaceful nuclear program and supported the Iranian leader’s disputed re-election in June that led to days of violent protests in Tehran.
He said he had made a “lightning” visit to Cuba on Tuesday, where he met for seven hours with ailing former president Fidel Castro, who told him to deliver a big “hug” to Ahmadinejad on his return to Caracas.
“Fidel told me: ‘tell Ahmadinejad that reaching Venezuela is like reaching Cuba, because it’s the same homeland. So I’m also welcoming you to Cuba, brother,'” Chavez said.
But Ahmadinejad was also greeted with anger from the Jewish community and the Venezuelan opposition, which held protests.
“Venezuela’s democrats repudiate the visit of the undesirable Iranian dictator Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to Venezuela,” the Table of Unity opposition group said, describing Ahmadinejad’s alliance with Chavez as “dangerous.”
A statement from Venezuela’s Jewish community called Ahmadinejad an “ominous character” who could produce “greater misery for mankind.”
Ahmadinejad’s arrival in Venezuela came as Germany said there was “broad support” for a resolution at a meeting this week of the UN’s atomic watchdog condemning Iran for concealing a second uranium enrichment plant.
Tehran and six world powers known as the P5+1 — Britain, China, France, Russia, the United States, and Germany — have been at loggerheads for weeks, failing to reach a nuclear fuel deal aimed at allaying Western concerns.
Iran denies it is seeking to produce an atomic bomb under cover of its civilian nuclear energy program.
On the economic front, Venezuela and Iran, both members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), launched joint projects, including a binational bank, housing programs and bicycle, car and tractor assemblies.
Chavez and Ahmadinejad signed a dozen cooperation agreements in housing, farming, tourism and energy sectors and announced the opening soon of a direct, Caracas-Teheran air flight by Iran’s Mahan Air — “to bring us closer still,” Chavez said.
“I’m looking forward to visiting you in Tehran next year to continue promoting our already historic brotherhood,” Chavez told his guest.
“I’ll be waiting for you in Tehran,” said Ahmadinejad
| ran threatens to reduce cooperation with the Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency if the agency’s board of governors passes a resolution condemning Tehran for not informing the UN body earlier that it is building a second nuclear enrichment plant. | |
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According to the IAEA rules enrichment facilities need not be disclosed until six months “before it is infused with gas” and operations begin.
Iran had said the new facility near the holy city of Qom won”t be operational for 18 months so Iran has not violated any IAEA requirements.
Tehran’s cooperation with the agency “would be reduced to the minimum we are legally obliged,” Ali Asghar Soltanieh, Iran’s envoy to the IAEA, told German daily Sueddeutsche Zeitung on Thursday.
Diplomats from the 5+1 group (five permanent members of the UN Security Council and Germany) have drafted a resolution that plan to present it to the IAEA board today for approval.
Soltanieh said a vote on against Iran would “damage the currently constructive atmosphere” and “have long-term consequences.”
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Yemen’s Houthi fighters say they have targeted two Saudi tanks attempting to cross into the country’s north, where the Shia forces are based.
The fighters said on Thursday the Saudi military continued to attack positions within the Yemeni borders, saying the Saudi forces had fired more than 500 rockets on several cities in the northern Sa’adah province.
The heavy attacks mark a step-up in the joint Saudi-Yemeni offensive aimed at wiping out the Houthis, who took arms in a bid to put an end to what they call the Sunni-dominated central government’s discrimination and repression against the country’s Shia minority.
Hundreds of people, many of them civilians, have been killed and tens of thousands have been displaced since the Yemeni government’s latest offensive against the Houthis was launched in August.
The Saudi military forces joined the Yemeni army following cross-border tensions with the Yemeni fighters and engaged in bombarding the Houthi positions.
Houthis have repeatedly accused the neighboring Arab kingdom of using forbidden weaponry to strike the fighters — not on the Saudi soil as Riyadh claims but in villages deep inside the Yemeni territory — and killing civilians.
They also accuse Riyadh of employing al-Qaeda militants and Sunni extremists to help quell the Shia movement.
Saudi Arabia is hosting near three million Muslims from across the globe who are spending days and nights in prayer and devotion on the hajj pilgrimage.
The city of Mecca is at the heart of what is a life-altering experience for most of the pilgrims. Men and women perform the pilgrimage in the same way.
The pilgrims begin their journey by walking around the Kabaa, an ancient structure at the heart of the city’s Grand Mosque.
Dressed in white robes to symbolize purity, the pilgrims complete the first ritual of the Hajj by circling the sacred Kaaba seven times.
The 9th day of Dhul-Hijjah (the month of hajj) is called the Day of Arafat.
Pilgrims make their way to Mina, five kilometers east of Mecca for a ritual of prayer and reflection. They also throw stones at pillars that symbolize the devil.
The Muslim pilgrims then travel from Mina to Mount Arafat. The pilgrims spend the night praying in the Arafat Desert.
The tenth day of Dhul-Hijjah is Eid Al-Adha, the Feast of Sacrifice. Muslims then slaughter a sheep, goat, or camel to show their gratitude for Allah’s generosity and blessing and distribute the meat among the poor.
The Hajj is a core concept of Islam, gathering Muslims annually from all over the world.
Yemen said on Wednesday it has ordered the closure of the Iranian hospital and clinic in Sanaa due to what it said was Iran’s support of the facilities and lack of transparency in their accounts.
Both facilities are run by the Iranian Red Crescent.
“The interior ministry has decided to close the Iranian clinic and hospital because of lack of transparency of their accounts and… Iranian financial support to these two institutions,” said a ministry statement.
Yemeni security forces had on October 13 sealed off the hospital when staff were suspected of aiding needy and diseased Shias.
The hospital, a five-storey building which is staffed by 120 employees including eight Iranians, has been operating in the Yemeni capital for four years, while the clinic has existed for 15 years.
The decision to close them came as a demonstration was set to be staged on Wednesday outside the Iranian embassy to protest against “foreign interference,” state media said.
Yemen’s government accuses Iran of supporting the Shia Zaidi in in the country’s north. Tehran denies the false claim.
| President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad arrived in Venezuela on Wednesday on the third leg of his tour of South America. | |
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Ahmadinejad arrived from Bolivia, where he held talks with President Evo Morales.
He was set to sign business and industrial accords with President Hugo Chavez as cooperation between the two countries has grown in recent years.
Iran has established a good relationship with the new wave of left-leaning rulers in Latin America, which the Unite States regarded as its backyard for centuries.
“We have a solid foundation, a solid base that we have created over this decade in our relationship, and it shows how false are the attacks of the world empire,” BBC quoted Venezuelan Foreign Minister Nicolas Maduro as saying on Wednesday.
The two presidents were expected to sign 270 agreements on cooperation in agriculture, industry, technology, energy and a number of other areas during Ahmadinejad”s stay in Venezuela.
The Iranian president began his South American tour in Brazil, where President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva criticized attempts to isolate Iran over its nuclear program.
Ahmadinejad’s meeting with Lula received worldwide media coverage. In an interview with Brazilian state television, the Iranian president said Tehran and Brasilia can extend their cooperation by building nuclear power plants together.
Bolivia proud of its ties with Iran: Morales
In La Paz on Tuesday, President Ahmadinejad and Bolivian President Evo Morales called for the expansion of ties between the two countries.
“Free nations and governments should stand together to foil the plots hatched by imperialists,” Ahmadinejad said after holding talks with Morales in the Bolivian capital, Press TV reported.
“Although there is a great geographical distance between Tehran and La Paz, Iran and Bolivia have similar approaches,” IRNA quoted the Iranian president as saying.
Morales stated that Iran is a great and developed country and called for the expansion of relations between the two countries.
“Bolivia is proud of its ties with the Islamic Republic of Iran in various spheres,” Morales said.
The two presidents signed a joint statement in which they voiced their determination to boost the level of their bilateral ties.
The two countries also signed two memoranda of understanding, according to which Iran will build a dialysis center in Bolivia and will assist the Latin American country in mining research to improve the extraction of its reserves of lithium, a key mineral used in rechargeable batteries for cell phones, laptops, and electric cars.
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The season of Hajj is the time of a spiritual rebirth and the dawn of monotheism across horizons over the world. Its rituals flow like a limpid river, offering chances to pilgrims to wash away the filth of sins or negligence and to eventually restore the sheen of their God-like innate disposition.
The shedding of the attire of snobbery and privilege in the Hajj rendezvous and the subsequent wearing of the uniform garment of Ihram altogether symbolize a unanimous Islamic Ummah and decree a symbolic call of unity and empathy to Muslims worldwide.
The Hajj calls “Your God is One God, so to Him surrender. And give good tidings unto the humble” (The Hajj: 34) on the one hand and “the Holy Mosque that We have appointed equal unto men, alike him who cleaves to it and the tent-dweller” (The Hajj: 25) on the other and in doing so, the Ka’aba embodies a call in unison for Islamic fraternity besides its call of monotheism.
The Muslims who have converged onto the holy place from the four corners of the world with an ardent desire for circumambulating around the Ka’aba or visiting the shrine of the Noblest Messenger, may the peace of Allah be upon him and his progeny, are expected to cherish the opportunity in consolidating their mutual brotherly bonds as it would heal many woes of the Islamic Ummah.
Nowadays, we clearly see that the hands of the ill-wishers of the world of Islam are busy more than the past driving wedges among Muslims, thus the Islamic Ummah is in need of integrity and unanimity more than ever before.
Today, the bloodstained claws of enemies are busy unleashing tragic scenes here and there across the Islamic lands; Palestine languishes under the wicked grip of Zionists and suffers a widening tribulation. The Al-Aqsa Mosque faces a grave threat; innocent people of Gaza, having already been subjected to an unprecedented genocide and still endure the harshest conditions; Afghanistan, under the boots of the occupiers, witnesses a new suffering on a daily basis; in Iraq instability has robbed people of their calm and their peace of mind; in Yemen fratricide has struck the Islamic Ummah with a fresh grief.
Muslims worldwide should rather stop and think how and where these blind seditions, wars, blasts, assassination bids and massacres which have gripped Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan have been planned. Why was it that before the American-led Western troops arrived in this region in a peremptory and possessory manner, the regional nations had never been subjected to such a long list of sufferings?
The occupiers, on the one hand, brand any popular resistance movements in Palestine, Lebanon or any other place as terroristic, and on the other hand, are organizing or masterminding a violent sectarian terrorism among the regional nations.
The Middle East and the North African region was once colonized and humiliated for more than a century by the Western governments of Britain and France and subsequently by America; their natural reserves were plundered, their free spirit was trodden upon and their nations were taken hostage by the greed of the aggressive aliens.
Yet, after an Islamic awakening coupled with a popular resistance movements made it impossible for them to proceed and following a re- emergence of the issue of martyrdom and ascension to God and on the path of God , as an exceptional factor in the scene of Islamic jihad, the aggressors, having been pushed to a defensive position, resorted to duplicitous methods after replacing their old approach with a new type of colonialism.
Nonetheless, the multi-faced demon of colonialism has now fielded all its capacities to bring Islam to its knees, from military might, an iron fist and flagrant occupation to an evil chain of propagandas and a myriad of lie-spreading and rumor-mongering media centers, from the organization of networks to ruthlessly carry out assassination and homicide to promotion of promiscuity and the proliferation of narcotics targeting the morale and the morality of the youth, and, finally, from a thoroughgoing diplomatic assail on any hub of resistance to the provocation of sectarian snobbery, prejudice and enmity among brothers.
If affection, trust and empathy take the place of the enemy-desired mistrust and animosity among Muslim nations or Islamic sects, the conspiracy of the ill-wishers would be defeated for the most part and their sinister plots in seeking a growing dominance over the Islamic Ummah would be foiled.
The Hajj is one of those precious opportunities for this sublime goal.
Muslims will only be able to withstand the multi-faced demon and overcome it through cooperation with one another and reliance on their common foundations which are encapsulated in the Holy Koran and the practice of the Messenger. Islamic Iran, following the lessons of our great Imam Khomeini, has epitomized this fruitful resistance. The enemies have faced defeat in Islamic Iran.
Thirty years of plotting, conspiring and ill feeling, from staging a coup and imposing an eight-year war, to imposition sanctions and the freezing of assets, from the unleashing of psychological warfare and media confrontation to making efforts to hinder scientific growth and the acquisition of modern sciences including nuclear expertise by the Iranian nation, and even blatant provocations and interventions during the recent glorious and meaningful elections, all turned into scenes of setbacks, passiveness and confusion on the part of the enemy, re-evoking a verse in the Iranian mind: “Surely the guile of Satan is ever feeble” (The Women: 76).
In all other areas of the world too, where people have countered the arrogant powers through a faith-inspired resistance, the faithful achieved victory while the tyrants ended up in scandal and retreat. The shining victory of the Lebanese in the 33-day war and the prideful and victorious jihad of the Gazans during the past three years stand as living evidence in this regard.
I emphatically recommend the fortunate pilgrims in general and especially the scholars and orators of the Islamic countries who have attended the Hajj gathering, as well as the leaders of Friday prayers in the noble sanctuaries, to recognize their your immediate duty, to expose the conspiracy of the enemies of Islam in the eyes of your audience, and to call the people to affection and unity, they should strictly avoid anything which may provoke a sense of mistrust among Muslims, and vent all cries at the arrogant and the enemies of the Islamic Ummah and the masterminds of all seditions headed by the Zionists and Americans, and in doing so, help materialize the practice of renouncing the infidels in word and in deed.
I humbly pray to God, the Most High, to confer His succor and blessing on me and to you all.
Wassalam-o Alaikum
Sayyed Ali Husseini Khamenei
PESHAWAR: A roadside bomb packed with steel pellets exploded in Pakistan’s violence-plagued northwestern city of Peshawar on Thursday, wounding two policemen and an 11-year-old girl, officials said.
The remote-controlled device was planted near a power pylon in a congested area and targeted a police station chief, police official Hayatullah Khan said.
‘The official, Riazul Islam, accompanied by his police guard, was driving to his office in his private car when the bomb went off,’ Khan said.
An 11-year-old girl, the official and his guard were wounded, Khan said. Witnesses said the car was damaged and its wind shield smashed.
Doctor Zafar Iqbal of Peshawar’s main Lady Reading Hospital confirmed the casualties but said they were out of danger.
‘The bomb, wrapped in a packet, carried about two kilogrammes (four pounds) of explosives and was fitted with steel pellets to inflict maximum injuries,’bomb squad official Tanvir Ahmed told AFP.
Militant bomb attacks have surged in Peshawar as Pakistan troops operate against the Taliban in the surrounding tribal belt, including a major air and ground offensive designed to flush out their stronghold in South Waziristan.
The sprawling city of 2.5 million people lies on the edge of Pakistan’s lawless tribal belt, which US officials call the most dangerous place on Earth and where Al-Qaeda militants are plotting against the West.
Around 30,000 Pakistani troops have been fighting for nearly seven weeks in Taliban strongholds in the hostile terrain near the border with Afghanistan, where 100,000 Nato and US troops are fighting a deadly insurgency.
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ISLAMABAD: A Pakistani court on Wednesday charged seven suspects in connection with the Mumbai attacks that killed 166 people one year ago, a defence lawyer said.
The men were indicted at an anti-terrorism court in a high security prison in the city of Rawalpindi on the eve of the first anniversary of India’s worst militant attacks, which dramatically soured relations with rival Pakistan.
All seven pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Among the seven, who were arrested by Pakistan over the November 26-29 siege on India’s financial capital, are alleged mastermind Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi and alleged key Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) operative Zarar Shah.
‘All seven of them have been indicted, including Lakhvi. The accused pleaded not guilty as the evidence does not support the charges,’ lawyer Shahbaz Rajput told AFP by telephone.
‘They have been indicted under the anti-terrorism act and the Pakistani penal code,’ said Rajput, without elaborating.
Wednesday’s indictments come a week after India handed Pakistan more information about the attacks, which New Delhi blamed Pakistani ‘official agencies’ for abetting – charges that Islamabad flatly denies.
Court proceedings have taken place behind closed doors with journalists barred from the hearings and defence lawyers leaking only small details.
‘We will defend them. The next hearing is December 5,’ said Rajput.
New Delhi has been pressuring Islamabad to speed up a probe of Pakistani militants blamed for the 60-hour siege that saw 10 heavily armed gunmen target luxury hotels, Mumbai’s main railway station, a restaurant and a Jewish centre.
According to news agency Press Trust of India, the latest information handed to Pakistan included statements of key witnesses, including a magistrate and FBI officials, from the trial of the lone gunman to survive the attacks.
The gunman, Mohammed Ajmal Kasab, has confessed to his involvement in the attacks in a dramatic announcement to a court in Mumbai.
| TEHRAN, Nov, 25
— A total of 140 patients have lost their lives due to swine flu since it emerged in Iran on June 22, director of the Flu Prevention Program of the Health Ministry said here on Wednesday. |
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“Swine flu has claimed the lives of 40 Iranians over the past seven days, bringing the country’s total death rate to 140,” Mahmoud Soroush said.
“A total of 3,672 individuals have been so far infected with the H1N1 virus across the country,” he noted.
444 new cases of the disease have been reported over the past seven days, bringing the country’s total number of H1N1 infected cases to 3,672.
There was a decrease in the number of those diagnosed with the disease over the past week compared to the week before the past week.
A total of 444 people have been diagnosed with the disease during the past week, while the number was 466 patients for the week before the last week.
Iran’s first swine flu case was a 16-year-old Iranian-American boy, who tested positive for the disease on June 22, upon his arrival in Tehran.
The H1N1 virus has now become the dominant influenza virus around the globe, with high levels and an increase of activity in many regions, since the disease burst onto the scene in Mexico in April, the World Health Organization said recently.
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Israel’s military Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi has declared that Israel’s armed forces will have a zero-tolerance policy for insubordinate soldiers.
“We have no tolerance for this type of insubordination, no matter which side of the political spectrum the soldiers are on,” Haaretz quoted Ashkenazi as saying on Monday.
The IOF chief made his comments after several combat soldiers from various units within the Kfir Brigade announced they would not evacuate unauthorized West Bank outposts.
“It is possible that during your service the army will need you for several of our missions, and those who will make the difference are the soldiers on the front line,” said the IOF chief
On Saturday, Israel’s War Minister Ehud Barak had voiced his own pledge to crack down on soldiers who refuse to carry out orders, saying that Israel will not hesitate to crush such a phenomenon.
“A country that wishes to live must end refusal by the right and left with an iron fist,” Barak said.
Earlier this month, the Israeli Army’s chief rabbi had called on military students to “show no mercy” when they fight a war or they will be “damned.”
Malnutrition and the risk of a cholera outbreak are threatening lives at Yemen’s main camp for people fleeing fighting in the north, a U.N. official warned on Monday.
Malnutrition and the risk of a cholera outbreak are threatening lives at Yemen’s main camp for people fleeing fighting in the north, a U.N. official warned on Monday.
Clashes between Yemeni troops and Houthis in the northern Saada province have driven 175,000 people from their homes, according to the United Nations.
More than 10,000 are staying in al-Mazraq camp in neighbouring Hajjah province and twice as many people have settled outside the camp, Thomas Davin, a regional chief for the United Nations’ children’s fund UNICEF, told Reuters.
The majority of the displaced are children and women because men tend to stay behind to protect their homes and to fight, he said.
“Malnutrition is the greatest concern about displaced children,” Davin said.
Severe acute malnutrition — a life-threatening condition — is much more common among children who have fled Saada province than in Yemen in general, which already has very high levels of child malnutrition.
UNICEF is also worried about a possible outbreak of cholera because poor hygiene and overcrowding create perfect conditions for the potentially deadly disease, Davin said.
Few of the displaced are used to washing regularly because water is scarce in Yemen and few use toilets, preferring to leave waste in the open.
“Hygiene is terrible, really, really terrible,” Davin said.
In some cases, parents have given foods meant for treating malnourished children to their animals, which they view as part of the family and take with them when they flee.
“People say ‘if we lose the sheep it’s not the child that dies, it’s the whole family’,” Davin said.
“A number of these people who are making it out are saying that it’s generally at least their second or their third displacement because this is the fifth time that war has broken out in the province since 2004,” he added. “Each time of course they spent more money and more of whatever resources they had going around.”
A new camp in Yemen for the displaced is due to open over the next few weeks and will be able to host between 10,000 and 12,000 displaced, Davin said.
“There is a plan for another camp to be built just next to this one (al-Mazraq), which is in the process of being built,” he said, adding it will be managed by the Emirati Red Cross.
He said the new camp might be expanded to accommodate more people if needed.
Because of the fighting in Saada province and insecurity in neighbouring areas, aid agencies are managing to reach regularly only a third of the 175,000 displaced people, Davin said.
In addition, aid funds are insufficient.
In September the United Nations called for $23.75 million to help Yemen’s displaced. So far it has raised only half that.
UNICEF, which has raised $3.2 million as part of that appeal, is in discussions with the European Union for another 600,000 euros ($900,000), Davin said.
Tehran, Nov 25, – Air forces of the Army and the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps jointly launched the third phase of a nationwide aerial war game code-named “Defenders of Velayat-2” on Wednesday.
The war game speaker Brigadier General Ali Moqise said the Iranian forces have conducted several tactics including discovery and reconnaissance operations in the second phase of the maneuver.
The war game started on Sunday in western part of the country and will be wrapped up on Thursday.
The maneuver has three phases including preparation of military units, reconnaissance flights and dog fights.
The war game aims to display Iran’s deterrent military power in aerial combats.
The aim of the war game is to coordinate and enhance combat readiness of the Iranian Air Force, IRGC and the Basij (volunteer) forces.
The war games are being conducted in Bushehr, Fars, Yazd, Isfahan, Markazi and Gazvin provinces as well as in the northern and western parts of the country.
Addressing a gathering on “sustainable development and civil defense” on Wednesday, he said the most urging threat Iran was facing was the hegemonic attitudes and behaviors of the US.
Referring to the history of US hostile actions against Iran in the past three decades, he also stressed that the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution always stopped some people who were somehow influenced by America.
Outlining the US hostile strategies against Iran, the speaker also noted that the US, though quite aware of the all criminal acts it has undertaken against Iran, refrained from extending apologies to the Iranian nation for its wrongdoings.
He said the Americans sometimes utter seemingly friendly remarks about ties with Iran to Iranian officials while they always hide the dagger they are carrying behind themselves.
Larijani further termed as a big mistake the assumption that the Americans would change their tone during the Obama administration, arguing that the problem with the US was basically not its tone but its strategies.
According to the speaker, both in post-election events and in talks related to Iran’s nuclear program the Americans thought that they could affect the situation but then realized that it was a hollow dream.
Ready for Talks
Iran wants concrete guarantees about receiving nuclear fuel for its research reactor in Tehran, a senior national security official said Tuesday.
Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council Saeed Jalili made the call in a talk with the press on the sidelines of a police and security meeting in Tehran, IRNA reported.
If the necessary guarantees are not provided, Iran will resort to other options, he said without elaboration.
He added that “Providing nuclear fuel for the Tehran research reactor is not a political issue and has nothing to do with Iran’s talks with the Group 5+1”.
According to the top nuclear negotiator provision of nuclear fuel “is simply a commercial matter and not even a technical or legal issue…”
Talking Proposals
On the resumption of nuclear talks with the G5+1, Jalili said, “Tehran is ready to talk about its proposed package” presented to the western states last month in Vienna. Iran is willing to continue the talks only “over the subjects discussed in its proposed package.”
Referring to the talks between the two sides in Geneva, he said, “The talks were scheduled to be pursued over the issues discussed in Tehran’s proposed package.”
“They (G5+1), apparently, had some discussions among themselves and are not ready now.
Whenever they are ready to continue the talks on Iran’s proposals (then) we will welcome negotiations about the common concerns mentioned in the package.”
Exchange in Iran
The head of Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, Ali Akbar Salehi told IRNA that Tehran is ready to send its low-enriched uranium abroad provided there is simultaneous exchange on its own soil of the nuclear fuel processed by big powers.
He said such a move will ensure that Tehran will receive the fuel required for its research reactor.
“The guarantee sought by the Islamic republic is to have simultaneous exchange of fuel in Iran,” Salehi said.
“We will not accept any imposed conditions nor accept treatment as an exceptional case…”
Foreign ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast said Tehran is ready to ship its 3.5 percent low enriched uranium (LEU) but would want a simultaneous exchange on its soil with the 20 percent refined uranium from abroad.
Mechanism
“Iran is not opposed to sending uranium abroad, but is considering how to do that,” he told newsmen.
Tehran wants a “100 percent guarantee” that it would receive the fuel required for its research reactor and “one of the guarantees is a simultaneous exchange of fuel inside the country.”
The UN atomic agency brokered a deal last month under which Iran would send 1,200 kilograms of LEU, or 70 percent of its total stock to Russia and then France for conversion into fuel required for the internationally-supervised Tehran reactor.
Iran has rejected that deal amid stiff opposition from senior officials who oppose sending the LEU in one shipment. They fear the West might renege on its side of the bargain.
Iran has said it accepts the essential elements of the proposal but has demanded modifications to the offer.
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WASHINGTON: US prosecutors on Tuesday accused 10 people of having supported the Shia militant group Hezbollah with weapons, fake passports, counterfeit money, stolen laptops and game consoles.
It was the second set of such charges to be brought in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in as many days.
Four of the men were indicted on Tuesday, three from Lebanon and a fourth, Moussa Ali Hamdan, from New York, on charges of ‘conspiring to provide material support to Hezbollah.’ They faced 15 to 30 years in prison.
Another six were charged with related crimes. Forged in the early 1980s in response to Israel’s invasion of Lebanon, Hezbollah has long been labeled a terrorist organization by the United States and Israel, although it is also a major political party in Lebanon.
According to the indictment, Hassan Hodroj and Dib Hani Harb of Beirut sought to export to the Port of Latakia in Syria about 1,200 Colt M-4 machine guns in June at a price of some 1,800 dollars a piece with the help of a contact who was in fact an undercover federal agent.
With the help of Hamdan and fellow Lebanese Hasan Antar Karaki, Harb is also accused of having sought to support Hezbollah using proceeds from the sale of fraudulent passports, stolen money and about 9,200 dollars in counterfeit US currency hidden inside a photo album.
Harb told the undercover agent that the genuine stolen money came from a string of robberies led by Hezbollah supporters and later smuggled into Lebanon to raise funds for the group.
He also claimed that ‘Iran manufactured high-quality counterfeit US currency for the benefit of Hezbollah,’ the indictment said.
Hamdan and three others, two Americans and a Venezuelan, were charged with having spearheaded the trafficking of over 1,500 cellphones, nearly 150 laptop computers, 400 Sony PlayStation 2 systems and three cars starting around late 2007.
The goods, which the undercover agent presented as stolen and sold to the defendants for a total of over 153,000 dollars in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, were transported to New Jersey, New York, Benin, Lebanon and Margarita Island, Venezuela.
Hamdan, Hamze el-Najjar and Alaa Allia Ahmed Mohamed of Brooklyn, New York, Moustafa Habib Kassem of Staten Island, New York, Maodo Kane of the Bronx, New York and Michael Katz of Plainsboro, New Jersey were charged with having purchased several thousands dollars worth of purportedly counterfeit goods.
Among the merchandise were over 5,500 pairs of Nike shoes and 334 Mitchell & Ness sports jerseys.
‘Today, through the well-coordinated effort of all involved agencies, a blow has been struck to Hezbollah’s efforts to fund its terrorism activities,’ said Special Agent-in-Charge Janice Fedarcyk of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Philadelphia division.
Assistant Attorney General for National Security David Kris noted that ‘the allegations contained in this complaint demonstrate how terrorist organizations rely on a variety of underlying criminal activities to fund and arm themselves.’
Five Lebanese nationals were charged on Monday for engaging in similar trafficking activities, including dual Slovakia and Lebanon resident Dani Nemr Tarraf, who allegedly sought to ship anti-aircraft Stinger missiles and about 10,000 Colt-M4 machine guns to Syria and other ports.
WASHINGTON: About 200 Kashmiris protested outside the White House on Tuesday, while US President Barack Obama and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh addressed a joint news conference inside the building.
The rally at the Lafayette Park, which faces the White House, started at noon and ended at 3 pm.
The participants urged Mr Obama to resolve the Kashmir dispute, reminding him that it could trigger a nuclear conflict in one of the world’s most populous regions if left unresolved.
They also chanted slogans that called for a plebiscite in the Indian occupied Kashmir valley and demanded the implementation of UN resolutions on Kashmir.
The Kashmiri American Council, which organised the rally, distributed leaflets that reminded Mr Obama that on Sept 25, 2008, he had pledged to ‘continue supporting the ongoing Indian Pakistani efforts to resolve the Kashmir problem in order to address the political roots of the arms race between India and Pakistan’.
On Oct 23, 2008, Mr Obama had said he would be ‘working with Pakistan and India to try to resolve the Kashmir crisis in a serious way’. He noted that ‘Kashmir in particular is an interesting situation where there is obviously a potential for diplomatically’ resolving this issue.
The council also reminded the US president that Kashmir was recognised by the United Nations as a disputed territory.
TEHRAN: Iranian authorities have arrested seven alleged members of the Sunni militant group Jundallah and will put them on trial, a judiciary official said on Wednesday.
‘The charges against these seven people are that they are mohareb (fighters against God) and belong to the terrorist group of Abdulmalek Rigi,’ Ebrahim Hamidi, head of the Sistan-Baluchestan province judiciary, told Fars news agency.
Rigi heads the Jundallah (Soldiers of God) group which is engaged in an insurgency against Tehran’s Shiite rule in southeastern Sistan-Baluchestan province bordering Pakistan and Afghanistan.
‘The files of these defendants… with their indictments have been sent to the court. Their trial will soon be held and the court of first instance will issue its verdict,’ Hamidi said.
Iran has regularly accused Jundallah of launching attacks in Sistan-Baluchestan province.
It also accuses the intelligence services of Pakistan, the United States and Britain of providing aid to the group so it can launch attacks inside Iran.
Jundallah claimed an October 18 suicide bombing in the province which killed more than 40 people, including 15 members of Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guards.
Iran said those responsible for the bombing were based in Pakistan and also demanded that Islamabad hand Rigi over.
Islamabad has strongly denied it helps Jundallah or that Rigi operates from Pakistani soil.
LONDON: Iran has detained scores of students in an apparent bid to prevent new opposition protests during annual Student Day events next month, a Western-based human rights group said.
Iranian police, seeking to avoid any repeat of the huge demonstrations that erupted after a disputed election in June, have warned opposition supporters against using the December 7 Student Day commemorations to hold more rallies.
The pro-reform opposition says the June 12 presidential poll was rigged to secure President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s re-election. The authorities reject vote fraud allegations.
The International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran, based in the West, said scores of students in Iran had been detained and prosecuted in recent days, as authorities ‘apparently seek to stifle protests expected’ on December 7.
The group’s spokesman, Hadi Ghaemi, said in a statement published late on Tuesday: ‘In order to silence the student movement, a wholesale crackdown on Iranian students is underway, which not only violates their rights, but also disrupts their studies and the lives of their families.’
Reformist websites in Iran have also reported on detentions of students in recent weeks, saying some have also been suspended from their studies.
‘Getting closer to Student Day, pressure on students has increased to prevent them from holding gatherings on that day. Around 60 leading students have so far been arrested,’ the pro-reform Norooz website said.
Iran regularly dismisses accusations of human rights violations and accuses its Western foes of double standards and of violating people’s rights in their own countries.
Unable to stage their own demonstrations, reformers have sought to hijack official protests and have urged supporters to turn out on December 7.
Police clashed with supporters of Mirhossein Mousavi, who came second to Ahmadinejad in the June vote, on November 4 when an official rally marking the 30th anniversary of the storming of the US embassy turned violent.
On Sunday police prevented a mourning ceremony for the killing in 1998 of the heads of the illegal but tolerated Iran Nation Party from turning into an opposition rally.
Thousands have been arrested since the election for fomenting protests, which the authorities have portrayed as part of a foreign-backed bid to undermine the Islamic Republic’s clerical establishment.
Most of have been freed, but Iran’s judiciary last week said 81 people have so far been sentenced to jail terms of up to 15 years in connection with post-election unrest. Five people have been sentenced to death.
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For the sixth consecutive year, the Business and Economics Committee (BEC) of the Muslim Council of Britain will be drawing together a high-powered delegation of leading professionals, thought leaders and community representatives to the World Islamic Economic Forum (the WIEF) to be held next year in Malaysia, it was announced Tuesday The WIEF is an annual conference that acts as an international business platform where the business sectors of the Muslim world meet.
With attendance from government leaders, entrepreneurs, policy makers and academics, the WIEF also acts as a forum where policy proposals on economic development can be formulated.
Around the main programme of the WIEF, the BEC has organised a series of workshops on Islamic finance and thought leadership with local institutions, to share delegation’s experiences and technical expertise. The BEC is also preparing a publication entitled “Nurturing the Future” that will feature the latest thinking in Islamic finance and thought leadership.
“The MCB organises the largest non-OIC delegation to the WIEF and we look forward to building on our successes at previous conferences with our delegation to Malaysia in 2010,” noted Sir Iqbal Sacranie, leader of the MCB delegation and member of the International Advisory Panel of the WIEF Foundation.
Dr. Muhammad Abdul Bari, MCB Secretary General, stated “The MCB exists to serve the common good. Initiatives such as the delegation to the WIEF demonstrate how the wide array of talent in the British Muslim community can benefit all citizens by expanding business opportunities for the UK with Muslim majority countries.”
More than 1500 delegates are expected to attend the 6th edition of the forum.
System of training and education in Shia seminary schools will be reviewed during a scientific meeting to be held on November 26 in Hojjatiyye School in Iran/ holy Qom.
The meeting will open at 8:30 am local time with presence of Hojjat-ol-Islam A’rafi, head of Al-Mostafa International University.
It is organized with the aim of investigating the training and education system of the seminaries from the day of their establishment up until now.
Research deputy of the school will also deliver a speech as the secretariat of the meeting.
Selected articles regarding the theme of the meeting will also be presented.
WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama on Tuesday re-emphasised Pakistan’s key position in the American strategy for South Asia, telling a joint news conference with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh that Islamabad had an enormously important role in the security of that region.
His statement, in response to a question about US military assistance to Pakistan, was a calculated departure from the tributes he had paid to India earlier.
In remarks delivered before the news conference, Mr Obama described India as ‘indispensable’ for his visions for the future of the world, ‘a leader in Asia and around the world,’ and a ‘nuclear power’ with which the United States would like to work ‘in preventing the spread of the world’s most deadly weapons, securing loose nuclear materials from terrorists, and pursuing our shared vision of a world without nuclear weapons.’
While Mr Obama continued this eulogy in the press conference as well, he paused to stress Pakistan’s importance in the South Asian region when an Indian journalist spoke about the perception that US military aid to Pakistan was misused against India.
‘Obviously, Pakistan has an enormously important role in the security of the region,’ said Mr Obama, adding that Islamabad could fulfil this role ‘by making sure that the extremist organisations that often operate out of its territories are dealt with effectively.’
While acknowledging that Pakistan faced the problem of terrorism, Mr Obama said he also had ‘seen some progress’ in Islamabad’s efforts to fight the militancy.
‘The work that the Pakistan military is doing in the Swat Valley and in South Waziristan all indicates the degree to which they are beginning to recognise that extremism, even if initially directed to the outside, can ultimately also have an adverse impact on their security internally,’ he said.
‘So my hope is that over time what we’re going to see is further clarity and further cooperation between all the parties and all peoples of goodwill in the region to eradicate terrorist activity, to eradicate the kind of violent extremism that we’ve seen.’
Such cooperation, he said, would benefit the peoples of Pakistan and India, and the world community as well.
Mr Obama conceded that in the past the US-Pakistan relationship was ‘single-mindedly focussed just on military assistance’ and that the United States didn’t think more broadly about how to encourage and develop the kinds of civil society in Pakistan that would make a difference in the lives of people day-to-day.
His administration, Mr Obama added, had tried to change this approach by re-focussing its attention on helping the Pakistani people.
Showing more diplomatic skill than some of his senior diplomats, President Obama also nudged India and Pakistan to resume their dialogue without appearing intrusive.
‘One of the things I admire most about Prime Minister Singh is that I think at his core he is a man of peace,’ said Mr Obama before stressing the need for a peaceful resolution of India-Pakistan disputes.
‘Obviously, there are historic conflicts between India and Pakistan. It is not the place of the United States to try to, from the outside, resolve all those conflicts,’ he said.
KARBALA, Iraq – Two bombs within minutes of each other exploded at a restaurant early Wednesday in Iraq’s shrine city of Karbala ahead of Arafa day and Eid al-Adha holiday to make insecurity, wounding at least 26 Shia, police and medical officials said.
The first bomb targeted diners inside the restaurant in the heart of the city, located 110 kilometres (69 miles) south of the capital Baghdad, around 9:00 am (0600 GMT), causing several injuries, police said.
They say a suicide bomber on a motorcycle then drove toward the crowd and detonated his explosives.
The officials spoke Wednesday on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media.
However, a second bomb minutes later, after an ambulance and medics had arrived to help the wounded, caused most of the casualties.
A senior health official for Karbala province said that at least 26 people had been wounded in the attacks.
The four-day holiday of Eid al-Adha begins in Iraq on Saturday.
Around 2.5 million or more Muslims from all over the world have headed to Saudi Arabia. Under heightened monitoring by some 20,000 medical staff and more than 100,000 security personnel, the world’s largest annual Islamic pilgrimage Hajj is taking place from November 25 to 29 in western Saudi Arabia in the holy cities of Mecca and Medina.
A Saudi man, wearing a mask for protection against swine flu, walks past Turkish and Iranian Muslim pilgrims at Jeddah airport upon their arrival in the Saudi Red Sea port city for the annual pilgrimage to nearby Mecca.
Iran needs to receive concrete guarantees for supplying nuclear fuel for its research reactor in Tehran, a senior national security official said on Tuesday.
Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council Saeed Jalili made the remarks while speaking on the sidelines of a police and security gathering in the Iranian capital.
If necessary guarantees were not given to Iran, the country would have other options,” Jalili said, noting that if some (countries) failed to timely provide necessary fuel for Iran’s research reactor based on Iran’s will, then “this will add to the Iranians’ distrust in them.”
“Providing nuclear fuel for Tehran’s research reactor is not a political issue and has nothing to do with Iran’s talks with the group 5+1 member states,” said the official.
He noted that providing the fuel “is only a business matter and not even a technical or legal issue.”
As for Iran’s position on resumption of nuclear talks with the group 5+1 member states, Jalili said, “Tehran is ready to talk about its proposed package” presented to the Western states during last month’s talks in Vienna, Austria.
Jalili said that Tehran was willing to continue its talks with Western states only “over the subjects discussed in its proposed package.”
Referring to the latest talks between the two sides in Geneva, Jalili said, “The talks were scheduled to be followed up over the issues discussed in Tehran’s proposed package.”
“They (G5+1) have, apparently, faced some discussions among themselves and are not ready now,” Jalili said, adding, “Whenever they are ready to continue talks on Iran’s package of proposals, then we will welcome talking about the common concerns discussed in the package.”
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran headed for Bolivia on Tuesday from Brazil on the third leg of his tour to African and Latin American states.
The Iranian president visited Brazil on the second leg of his five-nation tour which had already taken him to Gambia.
He is also to visit Venezuela and Senegal after his visit to Bolivia.
While in Brasilia, the Iranian president met his Brazilian counterpart Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva as well as a number of Iranian diplomats and nationals residing in the biggest Latin American state.
He also attended a televised interview with Brazil’s state television.
President Ahmadinejad started his five-nation tour since Sunday by a day-long visit to the African state of Gambia.
A long-awaited public inquiry into Britain’s role in the Iraq war held its first hearing Tuesday, six and a half years after Tony Blair controversially led the country in backing the US-led conflict. Inquiry chairman John Chilcot, a former civil servant, said he would not shy away from criticizing the decision-making that led Britain to join the 2003 invasion despite strong opposition at home and abroad.
“What we are committed to, and what I believe the British general public can expect from us, is a guarantee to be thorough, to be impartial, to be objective and fair,” he said in opening remarks. “As I have said before, we are not a court of law nor are we an inquest nor indeed a statutory inquiry; and our processes will reflect that difference,” he added. “No-one is on trial here. We cannot determine guilt or innocence. Only a court can do that. But I make a commitment here that once we get to our final report, we will not shy away from making criticisms… where they are warranted.”
One-time top officials from the foreign and defense ministries will outline Britain’s policy towards Baghdad in the early 2000s as a five-member committee begins investigating what lessons can be learned from the US-led war. An appearance by former Prime Minister Blair, who took Britain into the conflict, is likely to be the highlight of the inquiry, although he and other Labor government figures are not due to give evidence until next year.
Two top Iranian officials said on Tuesday Tehran does not oppose sending its low-enriched uranium abroad as long there is a simultaneous exchange inside the country of nuclear fuel processed by world powers. Foreign ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast and nuclear negotiator Ali Bagheri said simultaneous exchange inside Iran of its 3.5 percent low-enriched uranium with 20 percent pure uranium processed abroad would act as the guarantee required by Tehran.
“Iran is not opposed to sending uranium abroad, but is considering how to do that,” Mehmanparast told a news conference. He said Tehran wanted a “100 percent guarantee” that it would receive the fuel required for its research reactor and “one of the guarantees is a simultaneous exchange of fuel inside the country.”
Mehmanparast underscored that, saying Iran wanted such a guarantee because “the countries we are dealing with do not have good records in our public opinion.” “They have not lived up to their expectations and it has kind of created mistrust.”
Bagheri too said the simultaneous exchange of uranium would be the best guarantee to resolve the current impasse. “They (world powers) said that our 1,200 kilograms of 3.5 percent enriched uranium should be transported for further enrichment to 20 percent level by Russia and then to be converted into fuel by France for the Tehran reactor,” said Bagheri who is also the deputy secretary of Iran’s powerful Supreme National Security Council.
“Iran has no problem in transporting its 3.5 percent LEU, but needs a 100 percent guarantee it will get the fuel for the Tehran reactor and one of the guarantees is the simultaneous exchange of fuel inside Iranian territory,” he told hardline newspaper, Kayhan.
For his part, chief nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalali stressed that the Islamic republic wanted “concrete guarantees it would get the fuel for the Tehran reactor.” “If there is no concrete guarantee, we have other options,” he told state-owned Arabic language Al-Alam television, indicating Iran that could enrich its LEU to 20 percent or buy it abroad.
On Sunday, Lebanese celebrated their annual Independence Day…
A grand military parade was held to mark the 66th anniversary of the country’s independence. Six Hawker Hunter jets took part in the parade, performing low-level acrobatics. Columns of soldiers and officers, military tanks, armored personnel carriers and missile launchers have paraded through Shafiq Wazzan Ave. Then, President Michel Sleiman, Speaker Nabih Berri and Prime Minister Saad Hariri took part in the nearly two-hour festivities.
This is, in brief, how Lebanon officially celebrated the 66th Independence Day: the President, the Speaker and the Prime Minister standing, smiling and receiving “congratulations.”
Sixty-six years have passed on the Independence… Yet, nothing has changed and the same “slogans” are heard every year, raising lots of “question marks” about the “true independence.”
Sixty-six years of ‘independence’ have passed, and Lebanese seem to be always awaiting the non-achieved ‘true independence’…
Indeed, what independence is that when a part of the Lebanese territory is still under occupation? What independence is the independence that doesn’t prevent occupation and even more doesn’t put an end to the Israeli continuous threats? How do Lebanese celebrate ‘independence’ when they pledge to ‘liberate’ their occupied territories by all possible means at the time some Lebanese are still ‘seeking’ to prevent the ‘legitimization’ of the principle of Resistance?
How do Lebanese celebrate 66 years of ‘independence’ while acknowledging their ‘failure’ in administering their own affairs? How do they celebrate independence at the time they admit they’re unable to resolve any internal crisis without the world’s interference? Did they forget how they lived without a Head of State for months just because they were ‘divided’? Did they forget how they failed to organize “dialogue” and waited for French, Qatari, Saudi and Syrian initiatives to resolve their internal crises?
What independence is that when external powers are insisting on interfering and meddling in every Lebanese detail? What independence is that when the external powers are “promising” to intensify visits to Lebanon during the few coming months? What independence is that when Lebanese are acknowledging they still need international initiative to solve a Lebanese government and still betting on external reconciliations to produce a policy statement?
These are legitimate questions that should be raised on the Independence Day in Lebanon, especially that when annexed to other days of Resistance, Liberation and Victory…
But one question remains obligatory… When would True Independence happen?
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Monday that the threat of a U.S. or Israeli military strike against Iran was no longer an issue because “they don’t have the courage” to attack Iran.
“The age of military attacks is over, now we’ve reached the time for dialogue and understanding. Weapons and threats are a thing of the past,” the Iranian president said at a joint press conference with Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, closing his one-day visit.
Iran’s leader got a welcoming bear hug from the Brazilian president, who urged Western nations to drop threats of punishment over the Iranian nuclear program and instead negotiate a fair solution.
Fielding a question on whether he feared an attack from Israel or the U.S., Ahmadinejad said a military strike was no longer a possibility.
That’s clear “even for mentally challenged people,” he said with a smile, AFP reported.
Besides, he added, “those you mention [Israel and the U.S.] don’t have the courage to attack Iran. They’re not even thinking about it.”
The Iranian and Brazilian presidents didn’t say whether they discussed Iranian military exercises that started Sunday, adding to Mideast tensions and driving oil prices higher as an Iranian air force commander boasted Iran could deter any military strike by Israel.
Ahmadinejad didn’t utter the word Israel during his comments, but said Iran wants a Middle East with “prosperity, progress and security for all nations.” In the past, he has called for the destruction of Israel, which has voiced concern about Iran’s push in Latin America.
Silva, who also called for diplomacy to push for peace in the Middle East and ease tensions between Iran, the U.S. and other nations, again defended Iran’s right to have a peaceful nuclear program.
Commenting after talking privately for three hours Monday with President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad — the first Iranian leader to visit Brazil since pro-U.S. Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi came in 1965 — Silva also said Iran should negotiate with the West to find a “just and balanced” solution to concerns over its nuclear program.
Ahmadinejad made no promises and defiantly said Iran would try to improve its uranium-enrichment technology if it can’t buy enriched uranium abroad.
“If the people ask us to produce ourselves, we should do it, and the opportunity we tried to create for the other side will be lost,” said Ahmadinejad, who has repeatedly denied allegations by Washington and its European allies that Iran is trying to build atomic weapons. Iran insists its program is aimed only at generating electricity with nuclear reactors.
Last week, Iran said it would not send its enriched uranium for further processing in other nations, effectively rejecting a proposal by U.N. officials to allay worries the Iranians are developing atomic weapons. The fuel rods that would have been produced abroad under the plan can power reactors, but cannot be readily turned into weapons-grade material.
Ahmadinejad’s visit with Silva was condemned by U.S. Rep. Eliot Engel, a New York Democrat who is chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere. He said Silva made a “serious error” in meeting with the Iranian leader.
The session was significant because Silva is a center-leftist viewed by Washington as a counterweight to more strident leftists in South America, such as the leaders of Bolivia and Venezuela who have been firm supporters of Iran.
Ahmadinejad planned to head to Bolivia on Tuesday. In addition to having a private lunch with Bolivian President Evo Morales, he was scheduled to inaugurate a hospital and, via video conference, open two milk-processing plants that Iran donated to the poor country.
Iran has also donated equipment for a state-run TV station, sold Bolivia 700 tractors made in Venezuela and provided financing for two state-run cement plants. In addition, Iran approved a $280 million low-interest loan for Bolivia that Morales can use as he sees fit, Iran’s diplomatic representative, Masoud Edrisi, told The Associated Press in July.
Commenting on the fate of three American hikers detained in Iran, Ahmadinejad said it is up to the judicial system to determine whether they will be released or punished, although he said he hoped any punishment would not be severe.
The Americans were detained after they crossed an unmarked border into Iran while hiking in northern Iraq in July. The U.S. says the three were innocent tourists on an adventure hike and accidentally crossed into Iran.
“We are not happy with them making this big mistake. They are now in the hands of our judiciary,” Ahmadinejad told reporters. “A judge will decide about their situation. We hope the sanction will not be too heavy.”
Relatives of the hikers appealed to Iranian authorities to show compassion.
“We don’t understand why this case remains unresolved with no sign of progress,” said the statement from the families of Josh Fattal, Shane Bauer and Sarah Shourd. “We very much hope the authorities will show compassion, as the president said, and release our loved ones. It’s been too long.”
Dear All
The Government of Pakistan has announced National Internship Program funded by Asian Development Bank for the Unemployed student of Pakistan. So far very low number of applications have been received i.e. 527 with in Pakistan. The target is to have 10,000 application at least to utilize this fund OTHERWISE This FUND WILL BE LESS UTILIZED & WILL BE REVERSED BACK TO THE DONOR.
You are requested to inform your friends, colleagues, family members, neighbors who are eligible to the internship criteria. Below is the extract of the Advertisement Published in Dawn with extended on 13 November 2009 page # 13.
If you have done masters or completed 16 years education and you are 25 or less than 25 years of age Yet Unemployed. You have chance to join Prime Minister National Internship Program and get Rs.10,000 per month for 01 year.
Eligibility Criteria
1. Masters in any segment OR 16 years of education
2. Age Less then or upto 25 Years.
3. Yet Unemployed
Submit your application to along with your documents to following addresses
Islamabad
Ministry of Youth Affairs
Prime Minister secretariat
Islamabad.
www.nip.gov. pk
Balochistan
O&M/NIP cell,
Block 03, First Floor,
Room # 5
S&GAD at Civil Secretariat
Quetta – Balochistan
http://www.balochistan. gov.pk
OR send to respective DCO of your respective district
OR drop your CV online visit website http://www.nip.gov. pk
THE LAST DATE FOR SUBMISSION OF APPLICATION IS 20 NOVEMBER This E-mail is confidential. It may also be legally privileged. If you are not the addressee you may not copy, forward, disclose or use any part of it. If you have received this message in error, please delete it and all copies from your system and notify the sender immediately by return E-mail. Internet communications cannot be guaranteed to be timely, secure, error or virus-free. MCB Bank does not accept liability for any errors or omissions.
GAZA CITY: Three Palestinians were wounded early on Tuesday as Israel carried out three air strikes on Hamas-run Gaza in response to rocket fire from the enclave, witnesses, medics and the army said.
Two of the raids struck smuggling tunnels on the border between Gaza and Egypt and one hit east of Gaza City, witnesses and medics said. The three wounded were caught in the tunnels’ strikes, medics said.
An army spokesman said the air strikes were carried out in response to two rockets that were fired from the territory late on Monday, without causing injuries or damage.
He said the strike near Gaza City targeted a ‘weapons manufacturing facility.’
It marked the latest violence along Gaza’s border, which has been mostly quiet since a war that Israel launched on Hamas in Gaza on December 27 in response to rocket fire ended with mutual ceasefires on January 18.
The ceasefires have largely held despite violations by both sides.
Since Israel and Egypt sealed Gaza off to all but basic goods following Hamas’s seizure of the territory in June 2007, a vast trade in goods through hundreds of tunnels has developed along the border.
More than 130 Palestinians have died in cave-ins or been killed by Israeli operations targeting the network since the Hamas takeover of Gaza, medics say.
JNN News 
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