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November 10, 2007

Saturday

Shawwal 28, 1428

Updated round-the-clock, with major updates after 10:00 PST (05:00 GMT)

Cricket: NZ struggle to avert defeat against S. Africa JOHANNESBURG, Nov 10 (AFP) - New Zealand, set 531 to win, were 57 for three at stumps on the third day of the first Test against South Africa here Saturday: Scores: South Africa, first innings, 226; New Zealand, first innings, 118; South Africa, second innings 422 for three dec; New Zealand second innings 57 for three. (Posted @ 22:28 PST)

Pakistan to expel three British daily reporters ISLAMABAD, Nov 10 (AFP) - Pakistan's government on Saturday ordered three journalists for Britain's Daily Telegraph newspaper to leave the country because of its “foul and abusive language” against its leadership. They have been told to leave within 72 hours, deputy information minister Tariq Azeem said. “They used foul and abusive language against Pakistan and its leadership in an editorial published on November 9,” he said. Contacted in London, the paper said it was not immediately able to comment. “We are urgently looking into it,” British High Commission spokeswoman Laura Davies said in Islamabad. (Posted @ 21:18 PST)

Shamim inaugurates five bridges destroyed in earthquake ISLAMABAD, Nov 10 (APP):Pakistan Minister for Communication, Shamim Siddiqui Saturday Sunday performed the opening ceremony of five bridges on Muzaffarabad - Chakhoti road in Azad Kashmir, which were destroyed in the devastating earthquake. These bridges have been built by the Japanese engineers in just fifteen months. (Posted @ 21:06 PST)

Iftikhar Chauhdry still the chief jJustice:Benazir ISLAMABAD, Nov 10 (APP/AFP): Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry is still the Chief Justice of Pakistan and he has been put under illegal detention after unconstitutional suspension, Pakistan Peoples Party Chairperson Benazir Bhutto claimed on Saturday. Addressing party workers outside the residence of former Chief Justice , she said “PPP understands that Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry is the Chief Justice and he was suspended after imposing emergency that is an unconstitutional step.” “I came here to meet justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry but the administration has not allowed me to see him,” Benazir said. Police placed two trucks on the road to block Benazir Bhutto’s path. “It is no crime to see him”, she said over the megaphone to policemen guarding the house of justice Chaudhry. (Posted @ 21:04 PST)

Chief Justice chairs National Judicial (Policymaking) Committee meeting ISLAMABAD, Nov 10 PPI: The Chief Justice of Pakistan, Justice Abdul Hameed Dogar, Saturday chaired a meeting of National Judicial (Policymaking) Committee which resolved to make efforts on priority basis to resolve problems faced by litigant public, particularly those faced in production of under-trial prisoners before courts at remand and trial stage. It was noted that in recent past many new districts had been created, but adequate provision for construction of jails and transport had not been made. In some cities, jails had been constructed far away from courts premises. Consequently, police authorities have often not been able to produce prisoners at proper time. It asked federal, provincial governments to initiate construction of jails near court premises in all districts, tehsils to ensure production of prisoners on fixed date and time. The meeting decided video conferencing system for courts in every district, and tehsil. Through this system, an accused is not required to be produced before court and concerned judicial officer may interact with the accused as well as police officials in judicial lockups and pass orders on applications for remand. This system is successfully working in some cities of Punjab province. (Posted @ 20:22 PST)

Mausoleum of Yasser Arafat unveiled in Ramallah RAMALLAH, West Bank, Nov 10 (AP) Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas unveiled a $1.75 million mausoleum for Yasser Arafat on Saturday, in a pomp-filled ceremony that helped him draw on the continued popularity of his iconic predecessor as he headed into peace talks with Israel. The mausoleum, made of glass and beige Jerusalem stone, is surrounded on three sides by water, and a piece of rail track is entombed underneath Arafat's grave. The water and piece of track are meant to symbolize the temporary nature of the grave, officials said, with Palestinians planning to rebury their leader one day in Jerusalem, their hoped-for capital. (Posted @ 20:02 PST)

3 Germans killed in plane’s emergency landing in Australia DARWIN, Australia, Nov 10 (AP) - A light aircraft crashed while trying to make an emergency landing on a highway in Australia's remote Outback on Saturday, killing all three Germans on board, police and witnesses said. (Posted @ 19:58 PST)

Pakistan expels 3 British newspaper reporters PAKISTAN, Islamabad, Nov 10 (AP) - Three reporters from Britain's Daily Telegraph newspaper have been ordered to leave Pakistan in the next 72 hours for using abusive and foul language against the country and its leadership, Deputy Information Minister Tariq Azim said Saturday. He said the three _ Isambard Wilkinson, Collin Freeman and Daniel Macelroy _ were ordered out of Pakistan for a story Friday, which authorities found offensive. Wilkinson said he could not comment and referred phone calls to the newspaper's London headquarters. (Posted @ 19:48 PST)

U.S. writer Norman Mailer dies aged 84 WASHINGTON, Nov 10 (Reuters) - Norman Mailer, the pugnacious two-times Pulitzer Prize winner who was a dominating presence on the U.S. literary scene across seven decades, died on Saturday of kidney failure, his family said. Mailer, 84, had undergone lung surgery in October. (Posted @ 19:38 PST)

Iran, Pakistan finalise gas pipeline contract TEHRAN, Nov 10 (AFP) - Iran and Pakistan have finalised a contract for a multi-billion-dollar gas export deal scheduled to be signed within a month, the Iranian oil ministry's news service Shana reported on Saturday. “The content of the Peace Pipeline contract has been finalised and all the points prepared by the two sides' legal experts have been re-read and agreed by the two sides,” Iran's deputy minister in charge of the project, Hojatollah Ghanimifard, was quoted as saying. “The remaining points which are technical issues... must be studied within a month to make the contract ready for the simultaneous signing by the heads of the two countries,” Ghanimifard said. “The conditions of a contract with India will be exactly the same as with Pakistan. If the Indians are not too late, based on the current market conditions, the price terms will not change,” Ghanimifard said. The project is slated to be commissioned by the end of 2013. (First Posted @ 14:45 PST Updated @ 19:36 PST)

Decision on emergency, in best interest of country: Musharraf RAWALPINDI, Nov 10 (APP): President General Pervez Musharraf Saturday said proclamation of emergency was taken in the best interest of the country to ensure effective governance, maintain impetus to root out terrorism and to ensure stable political transition. Chairing the 103rd Corps Commanders Conference he said it will be ensured that no effort was spared to eradicate extremism and militancy from the country. “All necessary steps shall be taken to hold free and fair elections as early as possible,” a press release from the Inter Services Public Relations quoted the President as saying. Participants were also given a comprehensive briefing on the prevalent security environment, around the country with a special focus on Swat and the Tribal Areas. He said Army was performing a very critical and important task as part of its national effort in combating extremism and terrorism. “It is imperative that we succeed, for the future and prosperity of our country,” the President said. (Posted @ 19:22 PST)

Pak-Afghan border closed, reopenes against reactivation of BMS CHAMAN, Pakistan, Nov 10 (APP)- Afghan border security forces sealed border with Pakistan at Chaman against reactivation of Biometric System, FC spokesman Major Irfan told APP Saturday. The border remained closed for more than five hours and was reopened after FC Col. Masood held negotiations with Afghan officials. The Biometric System is meant to check illegal movement from Chaman border. “More than 10,000 border passes have been issued to traders and people who frequently cross the border”, a NADRA system engineer working on BMS told APP. (Posted @ 19:18 PST)

4 killed, 3 injured in traffc mishaps in Pakistan’s Jhang town JHANG, Pakistan, Nov 10-(PPI): Four persons were killed and three injured in bus-truck collision on Jhang-Multan Road near Badhuana Saturday morning. (Posted @ 17:46 PST)

At least 32 die in gun battle near Iraq's Samarra BAGHDAD, Nov 10 (Reuters) - At least 32 people were killed in clashes between al Qaeda gunmen and a rival insurgent group in the villages al-Julam and Benat al-Hassan near the city of Samarra, a police source and villagers said on Saturday. Gun battles between al Qaeda and the Islamic Army, a Sunni Arab nationalist group, broke out late on Friday and ended early on Saturday with 17 al Qaeda fighters killed besides 15 Islamic Army fighters and villagers. Another 18 al Qaeda fighters, some of them wounded, were captured. (Posted @ 17:32 PST)

Benazir denied meeting with sacked chief justice ISLAMABAD, Nov 10 (AFP) - Pakistan's former premier Benazir Bhutto went to the house of the nation's ousted chief justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry in a high-profile show of support Saturday and demanded to see him, witnesses said. Police placed two trucks on the road to block her path. “It is no crime to see him,” she said over a megaphone to policemen guarding the house of justice Chaudhry . “He is still the real chief justice of Pakistan, ” she said. ( First Posted @ 16:28 PST Updated @ 17:22 PST)

Fighting rages in occupied Kashmir as hotel siege enters third day SRINAGAR, occupied Kashmir, Nov 10 (AFP) - Fierce fighting continued for a third straight day Saturday between troops and two militants holed up in a four-storey hotel in Sopore since late Thursday, seeking refuge. Police immediately ringed the hotel and evacuated civilians inside. “We have entered the building,” a police official said, adding six policemen had been wounded in the fighting. (Posted @ 17:14 PST)

Lebanon postpones presidential vote to Nov 21 BEIRUT, Nov 10 (AFP) - The Lebanese parliament has postponed until November 21 the election of the country's next president, the parliament's secretariat announced Saturday. (Posted @ 17:08 PST)

Pakistan police bar Benazir visit to deposed judge ISLAMABAD, Nov 10 (Reuters) - Pakistani police blocked opposition leader Benazir Bhutto on Saturday from visiting the country's deposed chief justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry at his home, where he has been confined since emergency rule was imposed a week ago, witnesses said. Benazir tried to approach justice Chaudhry's home, but police parked two trucks on the road to block her path. (Posted @ 16:32 PST)

Four Muslims shot dead in Thai south NARATHIWAT, Thailand, Nov 10 (AFP) - Suspected separatists shot dead four Muslims in different incidents in restive southern Thailand overnight, police said Saturday. (Posted @ 16:28 PST)

Seven killed in Iraq attacks BAGHDAD, Nov 10 (AFP) - At least seven people were killed on Saturday in Iraq, a day after a suicide bombing claimed the lives of four tribal leaders fighting Al-Qaeda, security officials said Four civilians were killed when a roadside bomb struck their bus in the city of Mosul. Another six people, including a woman and her daughter, were wounded. Two people were killed and seven injured in a roadside bomb attack in Baghdad, while a street vendor walking on a road in the city of Baquba was shot dead by unknown gunmen, security officials said. The early morning bombing in Baghdad was aimed at police but instead hit a minibus, an official said. (Posted @ 16:24 PST)

24 killed in Sri Lanka fighting COLOMBO, Nov 10 (Reuters): Sri Lankan troops killed 23 Tamil Tiger rebels in clashes in the north of the island, while a soldier was also killed in the fighting, a military spokesman said on Saturday. The clashes, in the northern district of Vavuniya and northwestern district of Mannar on Friday, were the latest engagements in a a renewed civil war between government forces and Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) fighters. (First Posted @ 10:25 PST Updated @ 15:40 (Posted @ 16:00 PST))

Benazir addresses jounalists’ protest ISLAMABAD, Nov 10 (AFP): Former premier Benazir Bhutto addressed a protest by journalists against emergency rule, an AFP reporter said. “I have come here to express solidarity with you. I condemn these curbs. We believe in freedom of expression. My fight is also for this,” she said. “The war against dictatorship will continue, we are for freedom, we are with the media.” Benazir told the crowd using a microphone. Her appearance at the rally in central Islamabad was a surprise, pulling up in her bulletproof car before getting out to address around 200 media workers. Bhutto also reaffirmed her pledge to lead a protest march on Tuesday from Lahore to Islamabad. (Posted @ 15:50 PST)

Iran, Pakistan finalise gas exports contract TEHRAN, Nov 10 (AFP): Iran and Pakistan have finalised a contract for a multi-billion-dollar gas export deal scheduled to be signed within a month, the Iranian oil ministry's news service Shana reported Saturday. “The content of the Peace Pipeline contract has been finalised and the points prepared by the two sides' legal experts re-read and agreed by the two sides,” Iran's deputy minister in charge of the project, Hojatollah Ganimifard, said. “The remaining points which are technical issues ... must be studied within a month to make the contract ready for signing by the heads of the two countries,” he said. (Posted @ 14:45 PST)

Stagehands' strike darkens most of Broadway NEW YORK, Nov 10 (Reuters): A strike by Broadway stagehands will shutter the majority of Broadway shows starting Saturday, theater owners and producers said. “Due to a strike by Local One ... there will be no performances today at many Broadway theaters,” the League of American Theaters and Producers said early on Saturday on its Web site, www.livebroadway.com. (Posted @ 14:00 PST)

Three killed, 10 wounded in Iraq violence BAGHDAD, Nov 10 (Reuters): At least five people were killed and more than 25 wounded till 0800 GMT on Saturday in violence across Iraq. In Baghdad, a roadside bomb killed one person and wounded 10 in Baladiyat district. Three people were wounded by a roadside bomb near a fuel station in Bab al-Sharji in central Baghdad, police said. Gunmen killed one person in a drive by-shooting on a road in western Baghdad, police said. In Baquba gunmen killed a young man. (Posted @ 13:45 PST)

6 US, 3 Afghan soldiers killed, 8 wounded in Afghanistan KABUL, Novv 10 (AP): Six U.S. troops and three Afghan soldiers died when insurgents ambushed their foot patrol in eastern Afghanistan, one of the deadliest attacks on American forces this year, officials said Saturday. The troops were returning from a meeting with village elders on Friday afternoon in Nuristan province when militants attacked them, said a military spokesman. Eight more Americans and 11 Afghans were wounded. The 14 total U.S. casualties was the highest number of killed and wounded in fighting in Afghanistan this year. (First Posted @ 11:55 PST, Updated @ 13:00 PST)

Four anti –Al-Qaeda tribal leaders killed in Iraq BAQUBA, Nov 10 (AFP): A suicide bomber exploded his vest inside a house in central Iraq, killing four tribal leaders spearheading the fight against Al-Qaeda in Diyala province, police and the US military said Saturday. The attack took place Friday evening in the home of Sheikh Taha al-Obeidi in the village of Dojemah, near the town of Khalis about 50 kilometres north of Baghdad. In Baghdad, a roadside bomb exploded near a minibus early Saturday in Baladiyat, east of Sadr City in eastern Baghdad, killing at least two people, police said. The bomb was likely aimed at a passing police patrol, an officer said. Seven other people were wounded in the blast. (First Posted @ 11:05 PST, Updated @ 12:30 PST)

Six NATO, three Afghan troops killed in Afghanistan KABUL, Nov 10 (AFP): Six NATO-led soldiers and three Afghan troops were killed in heavy fighting in eastern Afghanistan, NATO's International Security Assistance Force announced Saturday. Another eight ISAF soldiers and 11 Afghan troops were wounded in the fighting on Friday, which erupted after the forces were ambushed, ISAF said in a statement. (Posted @ 11:55 PST)

Bhutto leaves home for first time since house arrest ISLAMABAD, Nov 10 (AFP): Former prime minister Benazir Bhutto left home Saturday for the first time since authorities lifted her house arrest, a party official at her residence said. She was due to hold meetings with her party, civil society members and foreign diplomats. “She has left for the Pakistan People's Party secretariat in Islamabad,” the official said. (First Posted @ 11:20 PST, Updated @ 11:35 PST)

Malaysian police fire tear gas, water cannon on protesters KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 10 (AP): Malaysian police fired tear gas and water cannon to disperse hundreds of activists at an opposition-backed rally Saturday demanding electoral reforms. The demonstrators were stopped by a police cordon near a mosque in central Kuala Lumpur as they tried to march to the public Merdeka (Independence) Square, where they planned to hold their rally. (Posted @ 11:25 PST)

Bhutto leaves home for first time since house arrest ISLAMABAD, Nov 10 (AFP): Former Pakistan premier Benazir Bhutto left home Saturday for the first time since authorities lifted her house arrest, a party official at her residence said. (Posted @ 11:20 PST)

Iraqi tribal leader fighting Qaeda killed TIKRIT, Nov 10 (AFP): A bomb explosion inside the home of a tribal leader spearheading the fight against Al-Qaeda in Diyala province killed the leader and two other people, the US military said on Saturday. The attack took place Friday evening in Sheik Fayez Lafta's home in Khalis village near Baquba, about 50 kilometres north of Baghdad, a military statement said. (Posted @ 11:05 PST)

More than 150 cholera cases in Vietnam HANOI, Nov 10 (Reuters): A cholera outbreak in northern Vietnam has affected more than 150 people, the first such spate of cases in three years, state-run newspapers reported on Saturday. The ruling Communist Party's daily Nhan Dan (People) quoted Health Minister Nguyen Quoc Trieu as saying 1,378 people have suffered acute diarrhoea, 159 of whom tested positive for cholera bacteria. (Posted @ 10:55 PST)

Emergency to end in a month, says official ISLAMABAD, Nov 10 (AP): Pakistan will lift the state of emergency within one month, a senior government official said Saturday, amid sharp U.S. criticism of President General Pervez Musharraf's step back from democracy. The government's top lawyer Attorney General Malik Mohammed Qayyum told The Associated Press in a brief telephone interview the state of emergency would be short-lived. “The state of emergency will end within one month,” he said but provided no further details and would not say when a formal announcement might come. (Posted @ 10:50 PST)

UN chief visits Antarctica to see global warming effects CHILEAN PRESIDENTE EDUARDO FREI BASE, Antarctica, Nov 10, (AP): U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon visited the Antarctica on Friday to see firsthand the impact of climate change and the melting of glaciers. Ban flew from Chile's southernmost city of Punta Arenas to that country's station on the Antarctica, Chilean Air Force President Eduardo Frei base, accompanied by officials and scientists. From there, he took a 45-minute flight over the region, seeing several glaciers. (Posted @ 10:30 PST)

17 rebels, soldier killed in Sri Lanka battles COLOMBO, Nov 10 (AP): A series of battles between soldiers and Tamil rebels in northern Sri Lanka left 17 guerrillas and one soldier dead, the military said Saturday. Army troops attacked two rebel bunkers along the front line in northern Vavuniya district Friday morning, killing six guerrillas, said a military spokesman. In the neighboring Mannar district, five rebels died in artillery strikes, he said. Separate gunbattles in Vavuniya killed six rebels and one soldier on Friday. (Posted @ 10:25 PST)

6-year-old boy killed in police sweep near Chechnya CHEMULGA, Russia, Nov 10 (AP): Russian security forces shot and killed a 6-year-old boy Friday while conducting a sweep for suspected rebels in a volatile region neighboring Chechnya, the victim's family said. (Posted @ 10:15 PST)

Canada for tough CW stand on Pakistan OTTAWA, Nov 10 (AFP): Canada on Friday called on the Commonwealth to press member Pakistan to fix a date for lifting the state of emergency. The 53-nation group of mostly former British colonies is to meet on the situation in Pakistan on Monday at its headquarters in London, and could decide to suspend Islamabad from the organisation once again. “Canada is pressing for a strong Commonwealth response that sets clear deadlines for the end of the state of emergency and for the restoration of democratic processes and principles,” said Canadian Foreign Minister Maxime Bernier in a statement.

Bolton urges full US support for Musharraf: UNITED NATIONS: Former US envoy to the UN, John Bolton, on Friday questioned the need for elections in Pakistan and urged full support for General Pervez Musharraf as the “best hope” for keeping the country's nuclear weapons secure. Bolton told reporters here. “I think the answer is to support Musharraf.” He suggested US President George Bush's administration has “contributed to some of the (current) instability (in Pakistan) by implying less than robust support of Musharraf.”

US lawmakers’ bill backs UN membership for Taiwan WASHINGTON, Nov 10 (AFP): Nineteen US lawmakers introduced a bill in the House of Representatives backing UN membership for Taiwan, a move that could anger China. It was introduced on Thursday at the House Foreign Affairs Committee by 18 Republican legislators and one Democrat. The move was led by New Jersey Republican Representative Scott Garrett. (Posted @ 09:30 PST)

Shooter of George Wallace freed after 35 years WASHINGTON, Nov 10 (Reuters): The man who shot and paralysed Alabama Governor George Wallace in 1972 was released from prison on Friday, officials said. Arthur Bremer shot Wallace and three others as the governor campaigned in Maryland for the Democratic presidential nomination. Bremer served 35 years but was released 17 years early from a Maryland prison because of good behavior. Prison officials gave no further details, saying they were shielding his privacy to help him readjust to today's world. (Posted @ 09:20 PST)

Bush, Merkel hold talks on Iran, Afghanistan CRAWFORD, Texas, Nov 10 (AFP): US President George W. Bush welcomed German Chancellor Angela Merkel to his Texas ranch Friday for two-day talks on issues like Iran and Afghanistan. Bush said he hoped for constructive talks as well as a chance to relax. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was to be on hand Saturday to discuss the Middle East peace process, as well as efforts to stabilise Afghanistan, Kosovo's future, pressure on Myanmar, and Lebanon's political crisis. Ahead of the talks, US officials downplayed fissures between the allies on the US hard line toward Iran and Germany's restrictions on its troops in Afghanistan. (Posted @ 09:05 PST)

700 political prisoners in Myanmar detention: Amnesty LONDON, Nov 10 (AFP): Myanmar's military rulers are keeping 700 political prisoners in detention, Amnesty International said Friday as it demanded their release. The London-based human rights group said 91 of the prisoners were detained in the generals' bloody crackdown on pro-democracy protests in September. (Posted @ 09:00 PST)

Indonesia confirms 91st bird flu death JAKARTA, Nov 10 (AFP): Indonesia reported Saturday that a 31-year-old man from Sumatra island who died last week has been confirmed as being infected with bird flu, raising the toll in the nation to 91. The death toll from the H5N1 virus has been steadily rising in Indonesia where the virus is endemic across 31 of its 33 provinces. The latest casualty was the second this month. (Posted @ 09:00 PST)

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