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Tuesday, January 3, 2012

New year US gift to Pakistan


In a move dubbed by the media as “a new year gift to Pakistan”, US President Barack Obama has signed into law a bill that could suspend a large chunk of the $1.1 billion military aid to the country. The suspension is part of a massive $662 billion defence spending bill which President Obama signed on Saturday evening despite having “serious reservations” about some of its provisions. “The fact that I support this bill as a whole does not mean I agree with everything in it,” Mr Obama said in a statement issued by his office. “Provisions in this bill could interfere with my constitutional foreign affairs powers.” Mr Obama said he signed the bill chiefly because it authorises funding for the defence of the United States and its interests abroad and for vital national security programmes. “As Chief Executive and Commander-in-Chief, (I) will oppose any attempt to extend or expand them in the future, and will seek the repeal of any provisions that undermine the policies and values that have guided my administration throughout my time in office,” he said. But there seems to be a bilateral consensus in the US Congress over the provision that seeks to suspend up to $850 million from the Pakistan Counter-Insurgency Fund. The fund, however, can be released if Secretaries of State and Defence report to Congress that Islamabad is making progress in the war on terror and is cooperating with the US in curtailing the use of improvised explosive devices in Afghanistan. IEDs are manufactured from fertilisers produced in Pakistan and smuggled to Afghanistan and are one of the major factors responsible for the death of American troops in that country. In his comments on the bill, President Obama also cited limits on transferring detainees from the US base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and requirements he notify Congress before sharing some defence missile information with Russia as problematic. The bill, approved by Congress last week after its language was revised, also slaps new sanctions on Iran aimed at reducing its oil revenues but gives the US president powers to waive penalties as required. This provision could also affect Islamabad’s effort to build the Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline as it places new restrictions on dealing with Iran’s central bank. The US wants Pakistan to explore alternative routes, such as building a pipeline from Turkmenistan, to meet its gas needs. Pakistan fears that the situation in Afghanistan does not allow an early construction of this pipeline while its needs are urgent as its own gas reserves have been shrinking fast, leading to widespread gas shortages affecting its industry and daily life.

New York mosque firebombed in ‘hate crime’ spree


New York s mayor expressed outrage Monday after the arson attack that police said they were investigating as a hate crime. The Imam Al-Khoei Foundation building in the borough of Queens suffered damage to the front door from a Molotov cocktail thrown late Sunday, police said. Two similar attacks occurred in the same neighborhood, including one in a convenience store run by Muslims. The foundation, which describes itself as the biggest international Shia Muslim organization, said on its website that two firebombs were "hurled at the main entrance" but that thankfully "no major damage no injury was caused by the blast." The statement said the foundation "reiterates its resolve to continue to serve the community and to strive to bring love where there is hatred, light where there is darkness and enlightenment where there is ignorance." In a statement Monday, Mayor Michael Bloomberg said the three Molotov cocktail attacks "stand in stark contrast to the New York City of today that we ve built together." "Personnel from the NYPD s Hate Crimes Unit and the 103rd Precinct s Detective Squad are moving at full steam to investigate and also determine if there are any connections to incidents outside New York City," Bloomberg said. Shortly before the mosque incident and in the same part of New York, a general store known here as a bodega was struck with a similar device, consisting of a still-undetermined inflammable liquid in a glass Starbucks cafe bottle, a police spokesman said. A source close to the investigation, who asked not to be identified, said that "the employees are Muslim." The firebomb struck the counter area. A third incident, occurring just one hour after the mosque attack, saw the same Starbucks bottle and accelerant weapon thrown at a private home used by a Hindu priest for ceremonies, police said. Nothing outside the house indicates its dual use as a temple, police said. A fourth, more destructive attack on the same evening caused a major fire at a nearby private home, although there was no proof of links between this and the other incidents. "There were no injuries, but there was extensive damage," a police spokesman said. The source with the investigation said that in this case arson was suspected, but there was no indication of the same firebombs being used. The inhabitants, who were lucky to escape unharmed, were Christian and had no connection to the mosque or to the bodega, the source said. Bloomberg has been a staunch defender of the city s Muslim immigrant population, notably in the furor over plans to build an Islamic center and mosque two blocks from the former location of the Twin Towers, which were destroyed in the September 11, 2001 Al-Qaeda attacks. However, Muslim community leaders say their civil rights have been marginalized since 9/11, especially as a result of intrusive police surveillance.