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Monday, March 23, 2009

First footage of the moment when the only surviving terrorist was captured by members of the public

Mumbai attack trial begins

Ajmal Kasab was one of the gunmen who launced a savage assault on Mumbai - AP photo.
Ajmal Kasab was one of the gunmen who launced a savage assault on Mumbai - AP photo.

MUMBAI Sometimes breaking into laughter, the man accused of being the lone surviving gunman in last year's Mumbai attacks told an Indian court on Monday that he was from Pakistan and wanted legal assistance, officials said.The trial of Mohammed Ajmal Kasab, whom police formally charged in February with 'waging war' against India, began on Monday via a video link with his prison in Mumbai. Gunmen killed 166 people in a three-day rampage in the city last November. A bearded Kasab smiled and looked composed when the judge asked him whether he had received a copy of the charges and if he wanted an attorney, a government lawyer said. 'I don't have a lawyer,' special public prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam quoted him as telling the judge. 'He was smiling throughout and said that he was from Faridkot in Pakistan,' Nikam said. 'He started laughing when the judge asked him if he understood everything in the charge sheet.' Police say Kasab, who faces a maximum sentence of death by hanging, was injured in a shootout. Pictures of the young man, wearing sneakers and carrying an automatic rifle and backpack, were published around the world after the attacks. Kasab has since been held in jail, with Indian lawyers refusing to defend him. 'He had earlier requested legal assistance from Pakistan. We need some more time to appoint a lawyer to defend him,'Nikam told the judge. The case will be heard again on March 30. Authorities have cited security fears as behind the decision to not produce Kasab in person for the hearings till a special bomb-proof concrete cage inside a Mumbai jail is ready. Police and jail officers have said Kasab, who on Monday was wearing a black T-shirt and blue jeans, has been cooperating. 'He has confessed that he is from Pakistan and has also asked the court for legal assistance,' Rakesh Maria, the chief investigator in the case, told Reuters. Two Indians – Fahim Ansari and Sabauddin – accused of being members of the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba militant group and of scouting Mumbai landmarks before the attacks also appeared in court by video conference. 'They have both requested for lawyers and the court will take a decision,' Nikam added. India has charged 38 people, including Kasab and the two Indians, in connection with the case. Most of the accused reside in Pakistan, the Indian government says. The charge sheet, which runs to some 11,000 pages, contains accounts of more than 2,200 witnesses as well as other evidence provided by the US Federal Bureau of Investigation, which helped Indian police with the probe.

World's cheapest car goes on sale in India

Indian carmaker Tata Motors is launching its eagerly awaited Nano model, with which it hopes to revive flagging sales. The no-frills vehicle will retail at 1,500 euros in the domestic market, but won't reach Europe until next year at the earliest.Tata Motors on Monday launches the world's cheapest car, the Nano, hoping to revolutionise travel for millions of Indians and buck a slump in auto sales caused by the global economic crisis. The car is slated to cost just 100,000 rupees (2,000 dollars) for the no-frills model that has a two-cylinder engine, four-speed manual transmission and a top speed of 105 kilometres (65 miles) per hour. It has no air conditioning, electric windows or power steering, but deluxe versions will be available. Company boss Ratan Tata, who is to unveil the car at a glitzy show in India's financial hub Mumbai, hopes the Nano will get India's middle-class urban population off motorcycles and into safer cars. "I observed families riding on two-wheelers, the father driving the scooter, his young kid standing in front of him, his wife seated behind him holding a little baby," Tata said when displaying the prototype last year. "It led me to wonder whether one could conceive of a safe, affordable, all-weather form of transport for such a family." Demand is expected to outstrip supply with production limited to just 30,000 to 50,000 cars in the first year because of limited production capacity -- a fraction of the original target of 250,000, auto analysts said.

Alaska's Mount Redoubt Erupts Overnight

Alaska's Mt. Redoubt volcano erupted several times late Sunday and early Monday, sending an ash plume nearly 12 miles into the air, the Alaska Volcano Observatory. The Anchorage Daily News reported that a fifth eruption took place at about 4:30 a.m. Alaska Daylight Time (AKDT), or 8:30 a.m. EDT. The National Weather Service detected ash from the fifth eruption at 60,000 feet, far higher than most commercial jetliners fly. Fine gray dust was falling Monday morning on small communities north of Anchorage, though the state's largest city itself was spared. "It's coming down," Rita Jackson, 56, said early Monday morning at a 24-hour grocery store in Willow, about 50 miles north of Anchorage. She slid her fingers across the hood of her car, through a dusting of ash. 

At least 25 killed in suicide attack on Kurdish funeral, scores injured

At least 25 people have been killed and more than 50 injured in a suicide bombing on a funeral in north-eastern Iraq's volatile Diyala province, police said, adding that the toll would most likely rise.At least 25 people were killed and 50 wounded in a suicide bomb attack as a Kurdish family was receiving condolences northeast of the Iraqi capital on Monday, local officials said. The attack took place in Jalawla, 130 kilometres (80 miles) from Baghdad. Jalawla, in the dangerous province of Diyala, is home to a mixed population of Shiite Kurds and Sunni Arabs, many of them close to al Qaeda. Mohammed Osman, a local official in Khanaqin to the north of Jalawla, said the bombing happened as a local family was receiving condolences.

China to Continue Buying U.S. Debt, Official Says

BEIJING China will continue buying U.S. government debt while paying close attention to possible fluctuations in the value of those assets, a vice governor of Beijing's central bank said Monday. Investing in U.S. Treasury bills is "an important component part of China's foreign currency reserve investments," People's Bank of China Vice Governor Hu Xiaolian said at a news conference on Monday. "So as an important component we are naturally relatively concerned with the safety and profitability of U.S. government bonds," Hu said -- a statement apparently aimed at concerns that rising debt to fund Washington's stimulus package could spur inflation and weaken the dollar. China is Washington's biggest foreign creditor, holding an estimated $1 trillion in U.S. government debt. A weaker dollar would erode the value of those assets. Hu's comments follow remarks earlier this month from Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao that he was "a little bit worried" about China's holdings of U.S. government debt. Wen called on the U.S. to honor its commitments, remain credit-worthy, and ensure the safety of Chinese assets. China's investments are likely to be a major topic of discussion when Chinese President Hu Jintao meets with President Barack Obama on the sidelines of an April 2 summit in London of the Group of 20 major economies called to discuss remedies for the global financial crisis.

Senior Fatah official killed in blast

An explosion in southern Lebanon killed Fatah official Medhat Kamal and three other people as they drove near the Mieh Mieh refugee camp.A top Palestinian official and three of his bodyguards were killed in a bomb attack on Tuesday at Mieh Mieh refugee camp near the city of Sidon in southern Lebanon, officials and the army said. An army spokesman told AFP that the official, Kamal Medhat, was at the entrance of the camp in a two-vehicle convoy when a roadside bomb exploded killing him and three of his bodyguards. "The bomb was apparently hidden in a little shed on the side of the road and was detonated as Medhat's convoy drove by," he said. The force of the blast tore through the Mercedes in which Medhat was travelling and threw the car into a nearby field, witnesses said. Munir Maqdah, in charge of security at Lebanon's 12 refugee camps, said Mehdat and several bodyguards died in the blast."Kamal Medhat was killed along with ... his bodyguards when a roadside bomb exploded as his vehicle drove by, near the entrance to the camp and an army checkpoint," Maqdah said. Maqdah had earlier said that four bodyguards were killed. Medhat, in his 50s, was the deputy representative of the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) in Lebanon. He was also a former intelligence chief for the mainstream Fatah movement in Lebanon.

At least one dead in bombing at Islamabad police station

At least three people were wounded and one killed when a suspected suicide bomber detonated his device at an Islamabad police station. The explosion occurred at a building used by a police intelligence bomb-disposal units, an official said.A suicide bomber blew himself up outside a special police branch office, killing a guard and wounding up to three other people in Pakistan's capital late Monday, officials said.The bomber detonated his explosives at the entrance to the building, used by police intelligence and bomb disposal units, close to the Sitara market in the centre of Islamabad, officials said."One guard was killed and two or three wounded. The suicide bomber was killed," interior ministry chief Rehman Malik.An AFP photographer said he saw one dead body at the scene and pieces of flesh that appeared to be those of a suicide bomber.Police cordoned off the scene and paramilitary Ranger troops were called in to protect the area, witnesses said."It is a terrorist attack, planned by terrorists. It was targeted against police," said Malik.Police official Mohammad Ilyas told AFP that three wounded people had been evacuated to hospital.Pakistan, a key US ally, has been hit by around 200 suicide and bomb attacks that have killed more than 1,600 people since government forces fought radical gunmen holed up in a mosque in Islamabad in July 2007.

Best Pakistani Patriotic Songs on 23rd March

Harris bowls SA to victory

South Africa completed victory over Australia by an innings and 20 runs in the third and final Test at Newlands, despite an entertaining maiden Test century from Mitchell Johnson.Johnson hammered 123 not out but it was in a losing cause, as Australia were bowled out for 422, shortly before the scheduled close on the fourth day. Australia had already clinched a series victory by winning the first two Tests. "Obviously, any time you lose it really hurts, but this has been really poor," Ponting said after Australia were condemned to their first innings defeat since India beat them in Calcutta in 1998. "The first two Tests were as good as we have played, while the first two days here were as bad as we have ever played. "It shows if you're not quite there in terms of your best then results are not going to go your way."

Pakistan needs $40bn for infrastructure development: ADB

The Asian Development Bank headquarters in Manila, Philippines. - File photo.
ADB advises encouragement of private sector participation 
in infrastructure development due to limited public resources.

RAWALPINDI Pakistan’s physical infrastructure is inadequate in comparison with world standards and has been identified as one of the critical reasons holding back more rapid economic growth in the country.An assessment report on the private sector carried out by the Asian Development Bank stated that the infrastructure sector in the country consists of power, telecommunications, roads, ports, railways, air transport, urban infrastructure, information technology cyber parks, and industrial estates. The public sector has been the main provider of basic infrastructure in Pakistan. However, given the major unmet needs and limited fiscal space, the government’s capacity to address the infrastructure deficit is severely constrained. To augment limited public resources for infrastructure, private sector participation in infrastructure development has to be encouraged by creating the necessary enabling environment for increased private sector involvement. While Pakistan holds up generally well on infrastructure sector performance compared to other South Asian and low income countries, it is clearly way below the averages for the OECD countries. Pakistan’s electricity and power infrastructure has already come under major strain, and there is a danger that the infrastructure sector in its totality will become a major bottleneck for continued growth and development unless a well designed long-term strategy to enhance infrastructure investment and expand private sector participation in infrastructure development is evolved and implemented.

Users can now call an email message back

An ‘Undo Send’ feature introduced in Google’s email programme holds a message for five seconds before sending it.
An ‘Undo Send’ feature introduced in Google’s email programme holds a message for five seconds before sending it.

WASHINGTON Just about everybody has sent an email, noticed a mistake as they hit the ‘send’ button and wanted to call it back. Google’s Gmail now gives users a brief window to do just that.An ‘Undo Send’ feature introduced in Google’s email programme holds a message for five seconds before sending it. Gmail’s sent mail confirmation message now includes an ‘Undo’ link. Clicking on ‘Undo’ will return a message to its draft form. The feature does not, however, allow a user to recall a message that’s already been sent. ‘It just holds your message for five seconds so you have a chance to hit the panic button,’ Google said in a post on Thursday on the official Gmail blog announcing the new feature.

Pakistan hands over DNA profiles

Interpol, the international police agency, says Pakistan has provided DNA profiles of suspected "terrorists" to assist with the investigation into last year's attacks in the Indian city of Mumbai.The France-based agency said on Sunday that the information, which was received the previous day, would allow it to gauge "the full international dimension" of the November attacks which killed more than 170 people. India has blamed Lashkar-e-Taiba, a Pakistan-based group, for the co-ordinated series of attacks by 10 armed men at a number of locations across the city. The only suspected attacker captured alive, Mohammed Ajmal Kasab, has told investigators that the assault was planned in neighbouring Pakistan and carried out by Pakistanis, Indian officials say. He is due to appear in court on Monday for the opening of his trial. Police in Pakistan have detained a number of people in connection with the attacks and banned a group suspected of having links to Lashkar-e-Taiba.

Report: Iran Dismisses U.S. Outreach as a 'Slogan'

The Islamic republic ready to reciprocate if Obama changed the American attitude towards his country: Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. — Reuters
The Islamic republic ready to reciprocate if Obama changed the American attitude towards his country: Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

President Obama intends to press ahead with efforts to open a dialogue with Iran despite an apparent setback yesterday when Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the country’s supreme religious leader, dismissed U.S. overtures as a “slogan” offering no real change.Obama and his aides had already been considering a direct approach to Khamenei as a possible follow-up to the president's unprecedented video address to the Iranian people, released on Friday.Khamenei’s initial response was not encouraging, but U.S. officials and European diplomats noted that the Iranian leader did not rule out a future breakthrough. A familiar chant of “Death to America” echoed around a religious shrine in the northeastern city of Mashhad as Khamenei complained that Obama had “insulted the Islamic republic of Iran from the first day." He added: “If you are right that change has come, where is that change? Make it clear for us what has changed.” His remarks came as a nuclear powered U.S. submarine — the USS Hartford — collided at sea with an amphibious vessel, the USS New Orleans, off the Straits of Hormuz. Fifteen sailors were injured, but the submarine’s atomic propulsion system was undamaged. The Iranian leader's comments followed a striking attempt by Obama to break the deadlock with the country. The president marked the beginning of the Persian new year with conciliatory remarks intended to establish a new commitment to diplomacy after years of bellicose exchanges between Tehran and the administration of former President George W. Bush. In the video — subtitled in Farsi — Obama pledged to pursue “constructive ties." The president noted that the process would “not be advanced by threats," and referred to Iran as an “Islamic republic," signalling his readiness to deal with the current religious leadership.

Sharif and Gilani in call for reconciliation

Pakistani PM Yousuf Gilani and opposition leader Nawaz Sharif have called for reconciliation to end Pakistan's political crisis. The announcement came after their first meeting since the supreme court disqualified Sharif from contesting elections.Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and opposition leader Nawaz Sharif called for reconciliation to end Pakistan's political crisis but stopped short Sunday of announcing concrete agreements. The thaw in their icy ties came after their first meeting since the supreme court disqualified Sharif from contesting elections, sparking a showdown that pushed the nuclear-armed nation to the brink of chaos. They met as the government reinstated top judge Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, two years after he was sacked under emergency rule, in a significant climbdown bowing to demands from Sharif who whipped up mass protests. "I came to meet Mr. Nawaz Sharif with an olive branch from the government, with a message from President Asif Ali Zardari that the situation demands greater reconciliation because Pakistan faces great challenges," Gilani said.The premier travelled to Sharif's country estate Raiwind in Punjab, the country's most important province which controls 60 percent of the seats in parliament and where Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N) is dominant."We want reconciliation. Nawaz Sharif has responded positively and I thank him," Gilani told a joint news conference with the PML-N chairman.The government and Sharif have been at loggerheads ever since the PML-N walked out of the national unity coalition last August over Zardari's refusal to reinstate Chaudhry and enact other key reforms.

U.S. Billionaire Buys Ticket to Return to Space

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. Recession or no, billionaire Charles Simonyi couldn't pass up another shot at space, even if it meant shelling out $35 million more.Besides, it may one of the last times the Russian government allows tourists to hitch a ride to the international space station."It's now or never," said Simonyi, who has now spent $60 million for a couple of space vacations. The first was $25 million. A computer genius who helped build Microsoft, Simonyi will become the world's first two-time space tourist when he leaves Earth behind Thursday. He'll be accompanied by two professional astronauts — a Russian and American — who will be going up for a six-month stint at the space station.

Under-fire Socgen bosses give up stock options

Four Société Générale executives, including chief executive Daniel Bouton, who had been awarded thousands of stock options each, have agreed to give them up entirely after intense government pressure.op executives at Societe Generale have handed back thousands of stock options after French President Nicolas Sarkozy warned the perks were "unacceptable" given the state aid enjoyed by the bank, an internal letter showed Sunday. Four Societe Generale bosses including chief executive Daniel Bouton, who last week received tens of thousands of stock options each, agreed Friday not to exercise them in the face of angry criticism from the French government. Faced with continued attacks, they announced in a letter to staff at the bank, seen by AFP, they would give them up entirely. "To cut short the controversy, we have decided to renounce these stock options and have informed the board of adminstrators," read the letter, to be mailed out on Monday. Speaking a day after a million people took to the streets to demand a state boost to low wages, Sarkozy warned Friday it was "unacceptable" for executives of firms bailed out with state aid to receive bonuses and stock options. The president made it clear he was referring to Societe Generale, which has received state loans worth 1.7 billion euros (2.3 billion dollars) to help it through the financial crisis. "Obviously, some people are having trouble understanding what we are saying. Wherever there are layoffs, wherever there is state aid, bonuses and stocks options are unacceptable," Sarkozy said.

Al-Bashir urged to drop Qatar trip

Influential Islamic scholars have advised Omar al-Bashir, Sudan's president, not to travel to an Arab League summit in Qatar after the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued a warrant for his arrest.The scholars from the Sudan Ulema Authority issued a  fatwa, or Islamic legal ruling, on Saturday saying it was "impermissible for you [al-Bashir] to travel for this mission, which others can do in your place". Al-Bashir, who has been accused of seven counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Darfur, was scheduled to travel to the Gulf nation on March 30 for a summit set to focus on the situation in the western region. The government is not bound by rulings from the Ulema Authority, but the body of scholars is widely respected in Sudan. "The enemies would like to see us split and thrown to the four winds, and if you are harmed, then the whole nation would be affected," the scholars said in the fatwa. "From a sharia [Islamic law] standpoint, you must not travel abroad."