World

Iran discounts possibility of Israeli strike

sneha — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 20:23:01 +0530

Iran on Monday said it did not see possibility of an Israeli attack on its nuclear facility, the country's English language international news channel Press TV said.

"We think that regional and international developments and the complicated situation faced by Israel itself will not allow that country to launch military strikes against another country," Foreign ministry spokesman Hassan Qashqavi told the weekly press conference in Tehran.

He called Tel Aviv's threat of going to war over Iran's controversial nuclear programme psychological and media warfare.

The Israel Air Force has recently claimed that it is ready to execute any order to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons.

Israel, the US and their Western allies have accused Iran of secretly developing nuclear weapons, but Iran insists that its nuclear programme is only for peaceful purposes.

Iraq pullout in 16 months, says Obama

sneha — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 20:22:31 +0530

US president-elect Barack Obama reiterated on Monday that all American combat troops would be withdrawn from Iraq in 16 months, even while residual forces could remain longer.

"At the same time, I will listen to my commanders on the ground," Obama maintained at a press conference here at which he introduced his national security team. Hillary Clinton, who has been named the new Secretary of State, stood to Obama's left.

Obama said the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) agreed to between the US and Iraq had made the 16-month timeline possible.

"Our number one priority is to ensure our troops remain safe in the transition period," Obama pointed out.

He also announced the Defence Secretary Robert Gates would continue in the job in the new administration that takes office on January 20.

Climate change summit opens with call for global solidarity

sneha — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 19:36:51 +0530

Lech Walesa started the Solidarity movement in this country 25 years ago.

Monday, at the inauguration of the annual UN summit on climate change, Poland's Prime Minister Donald Tusk called for a new global solidarity to combat the menace.

As nearly 11,000 delegates from 186 countries, NGOs and the media gathered for the December 1-12 summit of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), leaders from around the world emphasised that the ongoing financial meltdown should not take money away from developing countries to help them move to a greener development path as well as adapt to the effects of climate change that are here already.

Poland's Environment Minister Maciej Nowicki, the newly elected president of the UN conference of parties who will guide negotiations to a new global treaty on climate change by December 2009, underlined the need for industrialised countries to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. He also called for much money to help developing countries adapt to climate change and reduce their own GHG emissions, and development and transfer of technology for the purpose.

But Nowicki was obviously aware of the reluctance of industrialised countries to put money on the table in an atmosphere of economic doom and gloom, as he talked of his intention to convene a special group of ministers from around the world to cut through negotiations bottlenecks, a full 10 days before such a group would start functioning.

"Do not let particular interests change the ultimate goal," Nowicki warned the delegates gathered at the main convention hall of the Poznan International Fair complex. "We have to change the development path taken by humanity."

The head of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), Rajendra Kumar Pachauri, underlined why the change was essential. With climate change occurring at the current rate, the number of people living in river basins such as the Ganga and under threat of displacement would go up from 1.4 billion worldwide in 1995 to 4.3 billion in 2050 - about half of humanity.

Benchmark report

Pachauri lamented that parts of the 2007 benchmark report of the IPCC "had not yet received adequate attention". He rued the fact that GHG emissions from industrialised countries had risen 70 percent from 1970 to 1994 despite all the warnings by scientists.

"We have to cut back on global GHG emissions by 2015," Pachauri told the government representatives assembled for the opening session. "Please listen to the voice of science and reflect on it. Action is a must."

UNFCCC Executive Secretary Yvo de Boer said as time for finalising a global treaty was running out, "we must move from 'we must' to 'we have'."

Developing countries, under the umbrella of the grouping called G77 and China (though it actually has 132 member countries) also pleaded at the opening session for faster action for a new global treaty, pointing out that action in 2008 for this treaty had been too slow.

Greenpeace India member K Srinivas pointed out to IANS that large developing countries such as India and China already had their national action plans to combat climate change in place, but needed technology transfers and financial flows.

Apart from industrialised countries trying to evade their responsibilities by pushing India, China, Brazil and South Africa to commit to capping their GHG emissions, technology transfers and financing are the likely sticking points over the next 12 days as the world grapples with an ever-smaller time window to combat climate change.

Climate change, mainly due to increase in GHG concentrations in the atmosphere, is already affecting farm output, leading to more frequent and more severe droughts, floods and storms and raising the sea level worldwide, but mainly in developing countries, with India at the forefront of those affected.

The increase in GHG concentrations since the start of the industrial age is mainly due to increase in fossil fuel use for energy generation and transport, partly due to more intensive agriculture and partly due to deforestation.

Saudi tanker to be freed without ransom

sneha — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 18:49:31 +0530

Somali President Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed said in an interview published on Monday that a Saudi oil tanker seized by Somali pirates will be freed soon without a ransom.

"It is not true that the hijackers have demanded a ransom of millions of dollars to release it," he told the Saudi newspaper Okaz.

"We are confident that efforts made by tribal leaders and government officials will result soon in releasing the ship without any ransom," he added, as the vessel remained anchored off the coast of Somalia.

Pirates who seized the Sirius Star on November 15 had given the owners of the giant oil carrier on Sunday to pay a ransom of $25 million.

The capture of the super tanker, carrying two million barrels of oil, sent shockwaves through the shipping world and prompted some companies to re-route via the Cape of Good Hope.

Hundreds of sailors captured in numerous piracy attacks are currently being held hostage on the Somali coast, with the largest number coming from Asian countries like the Philippines.

Somalia has been plagued by relentless fighting involving a myriad of clans, Islamist groups, as well as Ethiopian troops and Somali government forces.

Bombs kill more than 30 in Baghdad, Mosul

sneha — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 18:42:05 +0530

A series of bombs struck US and Iraqi security forces in Baghdad and the northern city of Mosul on Monday, killing at least 32 people and wounding dozens more, Iraqi officials said.

The bloody attacks were a grim reminder of the dangers facing Iraqis as they try to take over their own security. The Iraqi parliament last week approved a security pact with the United States that would let the Americans stay in Iraq for three more years to help maintain stability.

At least 16 people were killed and 46 wounded in a nearly simultaneous double bombing near a police academy in eastern Baghdad.

A suicide attacker detonated his explosives vest packed with ball bearings at the entrance to the academy, then a car bomb exploded about 150 yards away, apparently aimed at those responding to the initial blast, the US military said.

The blasts occurred within minutes of each other on Palestine Street, according to police and witnesses.

Bloodied police uniforms and a military boot left by victims were scattered with the crumpled metal hulk of the car bomb on the charred street in the aftermath of the bombing, according to Associated Press Television News footage.

The attacker apparently was a teenage boy whose head was taken to a local hospital, a police officer said. An AP photographer saw the head and confirmed it appeared to be a teenage boy.

Those killed included five policemen and 11 recruits, while the wounded included 11 policemen and 35 recruits, according to police and hospital officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to release the information.

Death toll

The US military initially said the death toll appeared to be about 20 but later said reports indicated six people were killed and 20 wounded.

In Mosul, a suicide car bomber detonated his explosives as a joint US-Iraqi convoy drove by in a crowded commercial area, a police officer said. The officer also declined to be identified for the same reason.

At least 15 people — most civilians — were killed and 30 wounded in that attack, the officer said. An official at the morgue where the bodies were taken confirmed the death toll.

The US military said initial reports show eight Iraqi civilians were killed in Monday's attack. It says two US soldiers and 30 Iraqis were wounded.

Conflicting casualty tolls are common in the chaotic aftermath of bombings in Iraq.

Earlier on Monday, a senior Defense Ministry official was wounded in a roadside bomb attack that killed one of his bodyguards, Iraqi military spokesman Maj Gen Qassim al-Moussawi said.

The blast occurred in the Sulaikh neighborhood, a mainly Sunni area in northern Baghdad.

The wounded official, Maj Gen Mudhir al-Mola, is in charge of affairs related to the Sunni guards known as the Sons of Iraq who have joined forces with US troops against al Qaida in Iraq, according to al-Moussawi.

The move is considered a key factor in the overall decline in Iraq violence.

The Shiite-led government assumed responsibility for the Sunnis in Baghdad this fall.

Britain to sign pullout pact with Iraq soon: Report

sneha — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 16:56:10 +0530

Britain will soon sign a comprehensive pact with Iran similar to the pullout and framework agreements signed between Baghdad and Washington, official al-Sabah newspaper reported on Monday.

"The British government is negotiating with its Iraqi counterpart to conclude an agreement similar to the US and Iraqi one," the daily quoted British foreign office spokesman John Wilkes as saying.

"Baghdad and London will finalize the talks over the pact in the next few days," Wilkes said.

The agreement should be completed before the current United Nations mandate for troops expires by the end of this year.

He said the pact would not require to be passed by the British parliament, because it would be between the Iraqi and British governments.

He refused to say how many British troops will remain in the country and refrained from setting a timeline for the troops withdrawal.

"There would be a limited number of British troops to stay in southern Iraq as long as the Iraqi government deems it necessary," he said.

The British troops mission would be training the Iraqi Army 14th Division stationed in Basra and the country's navy, he added.

Britain has some 4,000 troops in Iraq, the majority of them being based outside Iraq's second largest city of Basra, some 550 km south of Baghdad.

In July, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown said he wanted to cut the number of Britain's troops but ruled out a timetable for their withdrawal.

Late November, Iraq signed a key security agreement with US which will authorise US military presence in the country for another three years.

Pak army to stop operation against local militants

sneha — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 15:10:28 +0530

In the wake of the Mumbai terror attacks, Pakistan Army chief has informed the country's leadership that if tensions with India mount further, the military has to move troops from its restive tribal areas to the eastern borders, ending the war against local militants.

Army chief Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani told President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani if India escalates tensions, then Pakistan has to move its troops from the tribal areas to the eastern borders and it would not be possible to continue the war against terrorism, reports said.

Kayani met Zardari and Gilani twice on Saturday and informed them about the operational preparedness of Pakistan's armed forces to meet any eventuality.

Meanwhile, militant groups in Pakistan's lawless tribal areas contacted the government following an increase in tensions with India and offered a truce if the army stops its operations against them.

As a sign that the ceasefire offer may be accepted, the Pakistan Army has declared to the media that "some notorious militant commanders, including Baitullah Mehsud and (Maulana) Fazlullah, (are) 'patriotic' Pakistanis", the pro-establishment The News daily reported on Monday.

Mehsud, blamed by former President Pervez Musharraf's regime for the assassination of former premier Benazir Bhutto, and Fazlullah have been fighting the army for the past four years.

Aftermath

The "aftermath of the Mumbai carnage has suddenly turned terrorists into patriots", the daily said.

"We have no big issues with the militants in (the tribal areas). We have only some misunderstandings with Baitullah Mehsud and Fazlullah. These misunderstandings could be removed through dialogue," a top security official told Pakistani journalists on Saturday.

The report said, "Indian allegations against Pakistan have suddenly forced the military establishment in Pakistan to finally accept that they are not fighting an American war inside the Pakistani territory."

Munir Orakzai, the leader of a grouping of 12 parliamentarians from the tribal belt, said, "I see a bright ray of peace in the tribal areas and if we come out of the American pressure, I can guarantee that there will be peace in the tribal areas in a few days and we will be ready to fight against India on the eastern border along with the Pakistan Army."

A top government official told the daily that "some late night telephone calls made from Washington and London helped to cool down the temperature in New Delhi and Islamabad."

Despite the assurances by President Zardari on sending a director of the Inter-Services Intelligence to India for helping probe the Mumbai attacks, it has been decided by the government that no ISI official will visit India in the next one week, the report said.

Some federal ministers openly criticised Prime Minister Gilani for "giving an assurance to India that the ISI chief will go to New Delhi" as he made the decision without consulting his cabinet colleagues.

The cabinet advised Gilani that no ISI official should be sent to India in the near future.

The cabinet also agreed that "Pakistan will not come under any Indian pressure but efforts will be made to decrease tensions without annoying the public opinion".

Kenya urges UN to tackle food crisis, Nigerian piracy

sneha — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 15:07:20 +0530

Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki has asked the United Nations to mobilise resources to tackle global problems, including high food prices and rampant piracy along the coast of Somalia.

A statement from the presidential press service said Kibaki called on the UN to help in coordinating efforts to stabilise global food prices and ensure an efficient movement of food from surplus to deficit nations.

The international community must also address the instability in financial markets, high-energy costs and resultant high food prices through concerted efforts, Kibaki said during a meeting with UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon in Doha, Qatar.

The call came as food prices in Kenya threaten to reach crisis proportions.

Kibaki and the UN chief expressed concern at the deteriorating security situation in Somalia.

The Kenyan president asked the UN to support a regional meeting scheduled in Nairobi on December 9 to discuss piracy, noting that the problem has greatly destabilized the movement of vessels carrying essential supplies to ports along the Indian Ocean.

China pledges to fight AIDS discrimination

megha — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 15:03:12 +0530

Chinese health authorities and the UN AIDS agency pledged to fight discrimination against people with the disease in China with the unveiling today of a massive red ribbon, the symbol of AIDS awareness, at the Olympic Bird's Nest stadium in Beijing.

Organisers said the fear of being stigmatised at work or in their communities is discouraging many people at risk of HIV infection from being tested. HIV is the virus that causes AIDS.

After years of denying that AIDS was a problem, Chinese leaders have shifted gears in recent years, confronting the disease more openly and promising anonymous testing, free treatment for the poor and a ban on discrimination against people with the virus.

State television today showed Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao visiting a village hit particularly hard by AIDS in eastern China's Anhui province.

Wen, who makes such annual visits to mark World AIDS Day, observed on Dec 1, held hands with children orphaned by AIDS and spoke to patients in beds.

The topic, however, still remains very sensitive and authorities regularly crack down on activists and patients seeking more support and rights.

"About half of all Chinese would not want to share a meal with a person with HIV/AIDS, and a quarter would not want to shake hands," said Dr Bernhard Schwartlander, country coordinator of UNAIDS in China.

"People will not come forward to be tested. They won't benefit from treatment. They won't talk to their partners and colleagues about HIV/AIDS, putting themselves and others potentially at risk for HIV."

New hope in AIDS-ravaged Africa

megha — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 14:45:28 +0530

In a sign of hope on a continent ravaged by AIDS, a South African fertility clinic has started a service allowing couples infected with the virus to have a healthy baby.

The Cape Fertility Clinic is the first in Africa to open a laboratory for HIV-positive patients, enabling them to conceive and give birth to HIV-negative babies by using procedures such as in-vitro fertilization.

"HIV is no longer seen as a death sentence but a chronic disease," says Klaus Wiswedel, one of the clinic's directors. "And people with chronic diseases are entitled to have fertility treatment. We can safely deliver an HIV negative child and, with the right treatment, the parent can live a long life."

About five or six couples, with either one or both partners carrying the AIDS virus, visit the clinic every month. It is only for the favoured few with enough money to pay for fertility treatment and is a drop in the ocean compared to the huge numbers of infected people.

But it is a small symbol that, after years of despair, Africa is making progress in protecting unborn child from AIDS - and in prolonging the life of the parents.

About 2 million people are receiving lifesaving antiretroviral medicines in Africa, which bears the brunt of the AIDS epidemic, up from 100,000 in 2003.

This has been accompanied by a dramatic increase in the number of pregnant women receiving drugs to stop them from passing the HIV virus to their children.

According to a UN report on "Children and AIDS" published for World AIDS Day, the number of pregnant women getting therapy in low and middle income countries has tripled in the past three years.

Muslims worldover rue sullied image

megha — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 14:29:52 +0530

Smoke and flames billow out from The Taj Mahal hotel in Mumbai. Photo Courtesy: AFP.

Muslims worldover rue sullied image

Mon-Dec 01, 2008

Ramallah / Associated Press

Muslims from the Middle East to Britain and Austria condemned the Mumbai shooting rampage by suspected Islamic militants as senseless terrorism, but also found themselves on the defensive once again about bloodshed linked to their religion.

Intellectuals and community leaders called for greater efforts to combat religious fanaticism.

Indian police said on Sunday that the only surviving gunman told them he belongs to the Pakistani militant group Lashkar-e-Taiba.

The group is seen as a creation of Pakistani intelligence to help fight India in the disputed Kashmir region. Another group, Jaish-e-Mohammed, has also operated in Kashmir. Both are reported to be linked to al Qaida.

Ten gunmen attacked 10 targets in the three-day assault including a Jewish community center and luxury hotels in India's commercial hub. More than 170 people were killed.

Many Muslims said they are worried such carnage is besmirching their religion.

"The occupation of the synagogue and killing people in hotels tarnishes the Muslim faith," said Kazim al-Muqdadi, a political science lecturer at Baghdad University. "Anyone who slaughters people and screams `Allahu Akbar' (God is Great) is sick and ignorant."

In Britain, home to nearly two million Muslims, a spokesman for the Muslim Council of Britain, Inayat Bunglawala, said that "a handful of terrorists like this bring the entire faith into disrepute."

A previously unknown Muslim group, Deccan Mujahideen, claimed responsibility for the attacks. The name suggests origins in India.

Pakistan has denied involvement and demanding that India provide proof. In Pakistan, Jamaat-ud Dawa, an Islamist group believed to have ties to Lashkar-e-Taiba, denounced the killing of civilians. In Islamic extremist Web forums, some praised the Mumbai attacks, including the targeting of Jews.

A man identified as Sheik Youssef al-Ayeri said the killings are in line with Islam.

"It's all right for Muslims to set the infidels' castles on fire, drown them with water .... and take some of them as prisoners, whether young or old, women or men, because it is one of many ways to beat them," he wrote in the al-Fallujah forum.

In the Gaza Strip, the territory's Islamic militant Hamas rulers declined comment. Hamas has carried out scores of suicide attacks in Israel, killing hundreds of civilians in recent years. However, Hamas has said it does not want to get involved in conflicts elsewhere.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad referred to the attacks as terrorism, but added that the violence is rooted in "unjust policies" aimed at destabilizing the region. He did not elaborate.

India is seen by many in the Arab and Muslim world as a Western ally. For example, Israel has become an important arms supplier to India, angering Muslim Pakistan.

Saudi Arabia said in a statement carried earlier this week by the Saudi Press Agency that it "strongly condemns and denounces this criminal act." An editorial on Friday in Saudi's English-language Arab News said that "no civilized person ... can be anything but revolted and sickened by the terrorist attacks in Mumbai."

However, Jonathan Fighel, an Israeli counterterrorism expert, said Saudi organizations have been funneling money to Muslim militants in Kashmir.

"This demonstrates exactly the double game and, I would say, the hypocrisy of the Saudi regime," said Fighel of the Israel-based International Institute for Counter-Terrorism.

Throughout the Muslim world, the attacks set off soul-searching.

"I think that Muslims should raise their voice against such actions. They should forge a coalition to fight such phenomena, because it harms them and damages their image," said Ali Abdel Muhsen, 22, a Muslim engineering student in the West Bank city of Nablus.

Muslims and Arabs must confront the violence "that is taking place in our name and in the name of our (Islamic) tenets," wrote Khaled al-Jenfawi, a columnist for Kuwait's Al-Seyassah daily.

"Unfortunately, we have yet to see a distinguished popular condemnation in the traditional Arab or Muslim communities that strongly rejects what is happening in the name of Islam or Arab nationalism," wrote al-Jenfawi.

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Libyan ship with Gaza supplies ordered back

megha — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 14:16:08 +0530

Israel's navy ordered a Libyan ship heading to Gaza with 3,000 tons of humanitarian aid to turn around on Monday, ending the most high-profile effort yet to break a blockade of the Hamas-ruled territory.

The "Al Marwa" was approaching the Gaza coast when it was stopped by an Israeli navy vessel, said Gaza lawmaker Jamal Khoudary, who was in contact with the crew.

The Israeli navy crew ordered the Libyan ship via radio contact to turn back, said Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor. He said the navy vessel did not use force. It was not immediately clear where the Libyan ship was headed.

Gaza's borders have been largely sealed by Israel and Egypt since the Islamic militant Hamas group seized control by force in June 2007.

At times, restrictions were eased to allow the movement of medical patients, Muslim pilgrims, humanitarian supplies and a trickle of commercial goods. However, Israel re-imposed a tight closure on November 5, to force Hamas to halt rocket fire on Israeli border communities. The closure has led to shortages of many basic goods.

Since the summer, international activists have organized three trips from Cyprus to Gaza on smaller vessels. Israel did not intercept the activists' boats, which carried some medicine and other supplies.

The Libyan ship was loaded with 3,000 tons of food, powdered milk and blankets. Though the Libyan government hasn't commented, Khoudary said the delivery was organized by the Libyan Foreign Ministry.

The international community, including Arab countries, have not recognized the Hamas government. Nonetheless, there has been growing concern over the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Gaza.

Last week, Arab foreign ministers said in a joint statement in Cairo that their governments would send food and medicine to Gaza. They did not say specifically whether they would deliver the aid by sea or by land.

The foreign ministers said they would coordinate with Egypt to ensure the supplies enter Gaza, suggesting they would take the land route, rather than confronting Israelis at sea. Egypt and Gaza share a border.

On Monday morning, spectators, journalists and dozens of porters assembled in Gaza City's small port, awaiting the arrival of the Libyan ship. Five flatbed trucks pulled up, ready to load the cargo.

Khoudary said he was in touch with the Libyan vessel until about 6:30 am, when he lost contact. He said he reached the crew again 45 minutes later and was informed that Israel had blocked the passage.

"The civilian boat carrying only humanitarian supplies and food was turned away by an Israeli warship," Khoudary said.

Russia building missiles to counter US?

megha — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 13:01:06 +0530

Russia is developing missiles designed to avoid being hit by space-based missile defence systems that could be deployed by the United States, a top Russian general was quoted as saying on Monday.

"Development is now under way on the combat outfitting of missiles whose flight falls outside the range of space-based missile defence systems," Nikolai Solovtsov, the commander of Russia's missile forces, told Interfax News Agency.

Solovtsov called the project a countermeasure to what he described as US plans to deploy weapons in space, according to Interfax.

"Judging by an analysis of US work in new weapons development and creation, they truly see space as a potential sphere for armed conflict and in connection with this are not withdrawing from plans to place weapons in space," he said.

He also said Russia was "perfecting the structure and makeup" of its missile forces in response to a planned US land-based missile shield, a controversial project that has provoked furious reactions from Moscow.

Solvtsov said the steps would include deployment of RS-24 intercontinental missiles, designed to overcome systems such as the US missile shield.

In recent months Moscow has sharply criticised Washington's plans to put an anti-missile radar facility in the Czech Republic and interceptor missiles in Poland, despite US assurances that the system is not directed against Russia.

Russia has also reacted warily to US moves that it has seen as contributing to the militarisation of outer space under the hawkish administration of President George W Bush.

In February, when the US military was planning to shoot down a rogue US spy satellite, Russia's defence ministry said the plans looked like a veiled weapons test and an "attempt to move the arms race into space."

That month Russia and China proposed a new treaty banning the use of weapons in space, but the idea was rejected by the White House.

Curtain set to raise on marathon climate talks

megha — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 12:56:34 +0530

Representatives from almost every country on the planet are set to start 12 days of tough talks in Poland on Monday, aimed at getting the ball rolling for a new global climate change pact.

The forum of the 192-member UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in Poznan, Poland comes halfway along a two-year process launched by the international community in Bali a year ago.

The aim is to forge a new global treaty in Copenhagen in December 2009 that will be the most ambitious and complex environmental deal ever seen.

The stakes are high, with scientists warning that failure to take action on a worldwide basis will inflict irreparable damage to the planet's climate system.

It means humans have to find ways of producing power, feeding and equipping themselves and travelling that produce fewer greenhouse emissions.

These gases act like a blanket in atmosphere to make the Earth habitable, but in excess they will heat up the planet's surface too much, wreaking changes to the climate system that could be cataclysmic for many millions of people.

"I honestly think that what happens between Poznan and Copenhagen on climate change will affect the world that we leave behind us more than anything that we do," Yvo de Boer, UNFCCC executive secretary, said on the eve of the talks.

But agreeing is a Herculean task.

Rich countries hold most of the world's wealth and consume most of its resources, but are pushing for concessions from China and India, which are becoming major polluters in their own right.

Developing countries, meanwhile, want the West to help pay for them to grow their economies in a sustainable manner and stump up cash to shore up the defences of poor countries most vulnerable to climate change.

Delegates in Poland will be examining an 82-page document containing a range of differing and complex proposals for long-term cooperative action.

By the end of the talks on December 12, it is hoped that this will have been condensed into a workable blueprint for negotiations culminating in a deal in Copenhagen.

One spur for optimism is that the United States, one of the world's biggest polluter per capita, will next month have a new leader - one whose "yes we can" mentality can work for international climate negotations, it is hoped.

George W Bush mauled the UNFCCC's Kyoto Treaty on binding emissions cuts for rich countries when he abandoned it in 2001, but under Barack Obama, his policies would be scrapped.

Obama has set a goal of reducing US emissions to 1990 levels by 2020 and by 80 percent by 2050, using a cap-and-trade system and a 10-year programme worth 150 billion dollars in renewable energy.

De Boer said on the eve of the talks that although Obama would not be present in Poznan, his "eyes and ears" will be. A congressional delegation will include Senator John Kerry, chairing the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

But Obama is also taking office in the teeth of what many fear will turn out to be the worst recession for generations, and the efforts needed to tackle this will take up much of his energy, not to mention large amounts of cash.

This is a problem shared by other leaders too, not least in the 27-nation European Union where increased strains on finances risk pushing climate change way down the agenda.

Just when the Poznan talks reach a climax, EU leaders will meet in Brussels to try to resolve objections by Poland and Italy about the cost of reaching the bloc's climate targets.

Suicide attack kills ten in Pakistan

megha — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 12:55:00 +0530

At least ten people were killed and many injured on Monday in a suicide attack targeting a check post in Pakistan's troubled northwestern Swat valley, where security forces are battling local Taliban militants.

Nine civilians and a security personnel were among the dead, TV channels reported. A majority of the injured are civilians.

Two vehicles were destroyed in the attack, the latest in a deadly wave of suicide bombings that has claimed hundreds of lives across Pakistan.

The country has witnessed a series of suicide attacks since the military conducted an operation against militants holed-up in the Lal Masjid in Islamabad in July last year.

Former premier Benazir Bhutto was killed by a suicide bomber in December last year while a suicide car bomb attack on the Marriott Hotel in the capital in September killed nearly 60 people, including the Czech envoy.

Anthrax poses threat in cholera-hit Zimbabwe

megha — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 11:36:51 +0530

An anthrax outbreak has killed three people and threatens to wipe out livestock in northern Zimbabwe, compounding the nation's struggle against cholera which has killed hundreds, a charity said on Monday.

Two children and one adult in the Zambezi Valley have died of the disease, which also threatens to kill 60,000 livestock in the region, Save the Children, a British non-government group, said in a statement.

Anthrax is a highly contagious infection that usually only afflicts livestock, but can be transmitted to humans who handle or eat infected animals.

Rachel Pounds, Save the Children's country director in Zimbabwe, said devastating food shortages were leading families to eat meat even from animals they know have died of anthrax.

"Many families in the Zambezi Valley are so hungry that they are taking meat from the carcasses of their dead animals, even if they know it's diseased, and are feeding it to their children," she said.

"If the animal has been poisoned by anthrax, those children could die," she added, calling the outbreak the biggest in Zimbabwe in nearly three decades.

Authorities have imposed quarantines to prevent the disease from spreading, but Pounds said that Zimbabwe's economic collapse left the country with few means to enforce them.

Zimbabwe is battling a nationwide cholera epidemic that has killed 425 people since late August and infected more than 11,000, according to government statistics.

Zimbabwe has been reduced to abject poverty after a decade of economic crisis and President Robert Mugabe's heavy-handed response to a political challenge from the opposition Movement for Democratic Change.

Chavez launches bid for re-election

megha — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 09:45:47 +0530

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has announced he was seeking a constitutional amendment to allow himself to seek re-election again, saying he hoped to lead the OPEC nation until 2021.

Chavez said on Sunday that he was directing his ruling United Socialist party (PSUV) to seek a "constitutional amendment and re-election of the president of the republic" saying he was "ready (to govern) through 2021."

"I give the PSUV and the Venezuelan people my authorisation to begin the debate and take the steps necessary to obtain that constitutional amendment and re-election of the president ... and I am sure that we will get it now," Chavez said at the swearing-in of Caracas' Libertador district's mayor Jorge Rodriguez.

"I am ready, and if I am healthy, God willing, I will be with you until 2019, until 2021," added the 54-year-old Chavez, seeking to propel the oil-rich but poverty-plagued country's institutional socialism to over two decades long.

On November 24 - almost a year after losing a vote on extending his powers - Chavez had said "It's the people's right (to vote on the issue). We'll see if the people use this right, and if all the country approves it or not if there is a referendum."

In December 2007, a referendum that sought to declare Venezuela a socialist state and allow unlimited re-election did not prevail, dealt Chavez his first major defeat at the ballot box.

N Korea imposes curbs at S Korean border

megha — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 09:30:32 +0530

North Korea on Monday began imposing restrictions on crossings at its border with South Korea in protest at what it terms Seoul's hostile policy, military officials said.

The western crossing at Dorasan failed to open at its normal time of 8:00 am (0430 IST). "We expect it to open about 9:00 am, one hour later than usual," South Korean Captain Lee Chang-Hyun told reporters.

The communist state has suspended a cross-border railway and a day tour programme, sharply reduced the number of daily border crossings and ordered home hundreds of South Korean workers at joint projects in the North.

It says it is protesting a confrontational policy by Seoul's conservative government.

Nigerian army takes over riot city of Jos

megha — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 09:26:56 +0530

The Nigerian army took over the stricken city of Jos on Sunday to enforce calm after two days of Muslim-Christian clashes that left hundreds dead.

"The situation this morning is gradually returning to normal. There has not been any cases this morning of any destruction or violence," Brigadier Emeka Onwamaegbu told AFP.

Residents reported troops patrolling the streets and calm returning to the city.

Offering the first official toll, Plateau State's information minister Nuhu Gagara said about 200 people died during fighting on Friday and Saturday between the rival communities over the results of a local election in the Plateau State capital.

Other sources have given a toll twice the official figure. "This figure is just preliminary, as a search and rescue committee has been inaugurated by the government to go around the city and recover dead bodies," Gagara told reporters.

He did not give a figure for the injured. Police arrested 500 people on Saturday alone, carrying "all sorts of lethal weapons," Gargara said.

A Plateau State government spokesman was quoted in newspapers as saying that 1,500 youths had been arrested over the two days in connection with the violence.

Jos was under tight police and army surveillance on Sunday, military spokesman Onwamaegbu said, while declining to say how many troops had been deployed in the city.

"There's been no reports of violence this morning, the army has taken over the capital but the only fear is what might happen at the outskirts of the town," Muslim cleric Adamu Tsoho told AFP.

Fears of violence as protesters reinforce Bangkok siege

megha — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 09:19:54 +0530

Triggering fears of confrontation with the police, hundreds of anti-government protesters in Thailand on Monday reinforced the siege of Bangkok's two airports, which have struggled to cope with more than 100,000 stranded travelers, including Indians.

Hundreds of anti-government protesters on Monday abandoned their sit-in at the Prime Minister's office to reinforce the siege of Bangkok's Suwaranabhumi international airport and the Don Muang domestic airport.

People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) leader Chamlong Srimuang called on protesters, who have layed seize to the prime minister's compound since August 6 to "move to the airports to support our people there."

The takeover of the Suwaranabhumi and Don Muang airports by activists of PAD has stranded at least 100,000 tourists and strangled Thailand's economy.

Meanwhile, PAD, which wants Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat to step down, allowed at least 50 empty planes to leave the Suvarnabhumi airport to pick up tourists from other places in the country.

The alliance has vowed not to give in until Somchai resigns, accusing him of being a puppet of ousted Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. Thaksin, who is Somchai's brother-in-law, was deposed in a 2006 military coup and has fled the country to escape graft charges.

Demonstration by thousands of red-clad government supporters in Bangkok today seemed to have added to the continuing political turmoil. The situation is reaching a boiling point with thousands of pro-government activists also converging in the capital to counter rival protesters.

Explosions targetting PAD activists on Sunday injured at least 51 people.

The ruling

Meanwhile, a constitutional court will rule on Tuesday on whether three parties in the ruling coalition, including premier Somchai's People's Power Party, committed electoral fraud. If found guilty, the parties would be dissolved immediately, and executive members including Somchai would be barred from politics for five years.

Despite the declaration of a state of emergency at both sites by the embattled Prime Minister, police have failed to act against the protesters amid fears of violence.

Thailand's government has alleged that the protesters are trying to spark anarchy so the military could take control of the administration.

Staying out of the crisis has been highly respected 80-year-old King Bhumibol Adulyadej, who as a constitutional monarch plays no open role in politics.

Thailand is losing almost $80 million a day because of the airport shut down as tour operators and visitors have had to cancel their holidays and also the failure of cargo flights carrying manufactured goods and perishables to take off.

"The situation has gone from bad to worse, signaling that it (the government) is incompetent at ensuring peace and order," the Thai Chamber of Commerce said in a statement.

The stand off in Bangkok has put in danger the holding of the ASEAN summit in January. Thailand may seek the postponement of the regional summit.

Calls mount for international action in Congo

megha — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 09:08:27 +0530

International pressure mounted on Sunday for Europe to send an emergency security force to halt strife in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo as thousands more fled fighting between rebels and government forces.

Belgium's foreign minister said UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon favours a special European force until full UN peacekeeping reinforcements can be found. A French minister visiting the conflict zone called for international action to counter which she called "catastrophic" conditions for refugees.

An estimated 250,000 people have been displaced since new fighting between renegade Tutsi general Laurent Nkunda and government forces erupted in August. This has worsened over the past six weeks with the main eastern city of Goma now surrounded by rebels.

Fighting around another town, Masisi, has sent another 6,000 people into the centre of the town over the past two days, UN Mission in DR Congo (MONUC) spokesman Lieutenant-Colonel Jean-Paul Dietrich said.

Nkunda's forces have fought pro-government militia and Rwandan Hutu militia around Masisi in recent days. Dietrich said UN forces had sent reinforcements to the town and started extra helicopter and ground patrols in the region.

Belgian Foreign Minister Karel De Gucht said the UN secretary general had asked Belgium to take part in an emergency European force for DR Congo.

Because the extra 3,000 peacekeepers approved by the UN Security Council will take time to deploy, "the United Nations hopes that a European military force could come and fill in the gap during this period," De Gucht told Belgian television.

He said the force could stay for up to six months but that Belgian wanted three or four other countries to take part.

Boosting forces

The minister's spokesman Bart Ouvry told AFP that Ban had talked about an interim European force during De Gucht's discussions with him this week in New York.

The question is expected to be raised at NATO ministerial talks in Brussels this week as well as at an Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) meeting in Helsinki.

The DR Congo government said it was "open" to the idea. But Nkunda's rebels described the diplomatic development as an "unpleasant surprise.

"We thought the United Nations were looking for a peaceful resolution to the crisis," spokesman Bertran Bisimwa added, referring to talks at the weekend between UN special envoy Olusegun Obasanjo and President Joseph Kabila and Nkunda.

Belgium, the former colonial power, and France last month proposed sending troops to Nord-Kivu province to support MONUC, which is currently the biggest UN force in the world with 17,000 troops.

Other European states, including Germany, are not in favour of military support - preferring to back humanitarian organisations and political mediation.

France's Humanitarian Affairs Minister Rama Yada said during a visit to Goma on Sunday that DR Congo was in a new "catastrophic" crisis. "I don't know what else it will take to make the international community act," she said.

Leaders from Africa's Great Lakes region will meet in Kenya on December 11 to discuss the crisis, the group's Tanzanian presidency said. Ex-Tanzanian president Benjamin Mkapa has been travelling with Obasanjo, the former Nigerian president, during his peace initiative.

The Congolese army said on Sunday that it will host military chiefs from other countries in the region in Kinshasa this week for discussions.

Angola, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, Congo-Brazzaville, Sao Tome and Principe and Chad would all be represented, a spokesman said.

Obama announces Clinton, Gates for Cabinet

megha — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 07:52:41 +0530

President-elect Barack Obama announced on Monday that Robert Gates would remain as defense secretary, making President Bush's Pentagon chief his own as he seeks to wind down the US role in Iraq. Obama picked former campaign rival Hillary Rodham Clinton as secretary of state.

At a news conference, Obama also was introducing retired Marine Gen James Jones as White House national security adviser, former Justice Department official Eric Holder as attorney general and Arizona Gov Janet Napolitano as secretary of homeland security.

The announcements rounded out the top tier of the team that will advise the incoming chief executive on foreign and national security issues in an era marked by wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and terrorism around the globe.

"The time has come for a new beginning, a new dawn of American leadership to overcome the challenges of the 21st century," Obama said as his Cabinet picks stood behind him on a flag-draped stage.

"We will strengthen our capacity to defeat our enemies and support our friends. We will renew old alliances and forge new and enduring partnerships."

Obama's appointees

Obama said his appointees "share my pragmatism about the use of power, and my sense of purpose about America's role as a leader in the world."

Gates' presence in Chicago made him a visible symbol of the transition in power from the Bush administration to one headed by Obama.

The president-elect, reprising a campaign vow, said he would give the military a new mission as soon as he takes office: "responsibly ending the war in Iraq through a successful transition to Iraqi control." He did not mention his oft-repeated pledge to withdraw most US combat troops within 16 months.

Clinton, Holder and Napolitano all require confirmation by the Senate.

Jones, as a White House official, does not. Nor does Gates, already confirmed to the post.

He also appointed campaign foreign policy aide Susan Rice as his ambassador to the United Nations. Obama said he would make her a member of the Cabinet, an increase in stature from the Bush era.

Obama's announcements marked a shift in emphasis, after a spate of appointments last week for his economic team.

He now has selected half the members of his Cabinet, and is doing so at an unusually quick pace during his transition as he seeks to fulfill his goal of being able to "hit the ground running" when he takes the oath of office on January 20.

First introduction

Obama introduced Clinton first, saying of his former presidential rival, "She possesses an extraordinary intelligence and toughness, and a remarkable work ethic.... She is an American of tremendous stature who will have my complete confidence, who knows many of the world's leaders, who will command respect in every capital, and who will clearly have the ability to advance our interests around the world."

Clinton will give up her seat as a senator from New York to join the Obama Cabinet. Her appointment was preceded by lengthy negotiations involving her husband, the former president, whose international business connections posed potential conflicts of interests.

The former president also agreed to disclose the donors to the foundation that built his library, as well as contributors to his international foundation.

She said to Obama, in a brief turn at the lectern, "I am proud to join you...and may God bless you and our great country."

Sen Clinton had scarcely finished speaking when her husband issued a written statement. "She is the right person for the job of helping to restore America's image abroad, end the war in Iraq, advance peace and increase our security, by building a future for our children with more partners and fewer adversaries, one of shared responsibilities and opportunities," he said.

Gates said he was "mindful that we are engaged in two wars and face other serious challenges at home and around the world."

I must do my duty as they do theirs," he said of the men and women in uniform in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere. "How could I do otherwise?"

He said he was "honored to serve President-elect Obama."

Gates' appointment fulfilled a campaign promise by Obama, the naming of a Republican to his Cabinet.

Holder vowed to revitalize a Justice Department staggered by scandal during the Bush administration, both over the dismissal of federal prosecutors and the administration's program of wiretapping as part of its war against terrorists.

Napolitano, like Clinton, must resign her current job. As a border state governor, she has experience with immigration issues, one of the pressing concerns that will confront the new administration.

Dual experience

Obama said Jones, his national security adviser, "will bring to the job the dual experience of serving in uniform and as a diplomat. He has commanded a platoon in battle, served as supreme allied commander in a time of war and worked on behalf of peace in the Middle East."

The event was unlike those of last week, when Obama was the only one to speak. This time, he called on each of his appointees to make remarks, beginning with Clinton.

Vice President-elect Joe Biden said each member of the team shares the goals and the principles of the new administration that "strength and wisdom must go hand in hand," and that America's security "is not a partisan issue."

Obama has settled on additional members of his Cabinet, although they have not yet been announced.

Among them are former Senate Democratic leader Tom Daschle to be his secretary of health and human services and New Mexico Gov Bill Richardson to be commerce secretary.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, asked about Clinton at a news conference in London, said on Monday, "I think that she will bring enormous energy and intellect and skill to the position."

"Most important, I know her to be somebody who has what you need most in this job, which is a deep love for the United States of America," Rice said. She added, "As to advice, I'll give her that advice privately, and then she won't — and you won't — hear from me again."

The decisions mean Obama has half of the 15-member Cabinet assembled less than a month after the election, including the most prominent positions at State, Justice, Treasury and Defense. With the world grappling with war, recession and terrorist threats that erupted this week during coordinated attacks in India, Obama was moving swiftly to try to bring reassurance and continuity in the federal government when he takes over in less than two months.

Clinton's nomination is the latest chapter in what began as a bitter rivalry for the Democratic presidential nomination. To make it possible for his wife to become secretary of state, party officials said, former President Bill Clinton agreed to:

- Disclose the names of every contributor to his foundation since its inception in 1997 and all contributors going forward.

- Refuse donations from foreign governments to the Clinton Global Initiative, his annual charitable conference.

- Cease holding CGI meetings overseas.

- Volunteer to step away from day-to-day management of the foundation while his wife is secretary of state.

- Submit his speaking schedule to review by the State Department and White House counsel.

- Submit any new sources of income to a similar ethical review.

"It's a big step," said Sen Richard G Lugar of Indiana, the top Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, who said he plans to vote to confirm Clinton.

Lugar said there would still be "legitimate questions" raised about the former president's extensive international involvement. "I don't know how, given all of our ethics standards now, anyone quite measures up to this who has such cosmic ties, but ... hopefully, this team of rivals will work," Lugar said.

Somali pirates agree deal for Ukrainian ship release

sitansu — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 22:26:24 +0530

Pirates guarding an arms-laden Ukrainian ship said on Sunday that it would be released within days, but the fate of a Saudi oil carrier was unclear hours from a $25-million ransom demand's expiry.

Sugule Ali, spokesman for the pirates who hijacked the MV Faina in September with its cargo of battle tanks and weapons, said it was "a matter of technicality and time" before the vessel was freed.

"I can't tell you what the ransom is, but what can I say is that agreement has finally been reached," Ali told AFP from the ship.

"Within four days, we must leave and we are preparing for the safe landing of our members," he said.

"We have no doubt this problem will be resolved and I hope the owners will honour the last remaining points," the spokesperson added.

The MV Faina was hijacked on September 25 on its way to Kenya, ferrying 33 Soviet-type battle tanks, anti-air systems, rocket launchers and ammunition.

The ship has a crew of 17 Ukrainians, three Russians and one Latvian.

"Our members are very tired and the crew are also very tired. We all want this matter to be resolved. We were very lenient during the discussions because the community in the area was putting pressure on us to release the ship, especially the elders," Ali explained.

The US military has overflown the hijacked vessel several times to take pictures of the crew lined up on the bridge and verify that all were in good health.

"We were not interested in money only, but we were also trying to safeguard the lives of the crew and property on the ship," said Mohamed Ali, another member of the group that seized the vessel.

Global oil market oversupplied: Iran

sitansu — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 19:53:45 +0530

The global oil market is oversupplied by two million barrels per day (bpd), Iran's oil minister said Tehran on Sunday.

"Market assessments indicate that the market has around two million barrels per day of oversupply," Gholam Hossein Nozari was quoted by Iran's Press TV as saying.

The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) announced in Cairo on Saturday that it would maintain the current crude oil output until December meeting in Algeria.

OPEC president Chakib Khelil, who is also Algeria's energy and mines minister, made the remarks after a consultative ministerial meeting of the group to discuss ways to shore up the oil prices.

The ministers agreed to take any additional action to balance supply and demand and achieve market stability, Khelil said, adding that the oil cartel was concerned about the continued deterioration of the world economy and its impact on oil demand.

In recent months, the oil prices have dropped sharply. On Friday, it stood at around $54 per barrel, declining by some 60 percent from over $147 per barrel in mid-July.

OPEC had cut its oil output by 1.5 million bpd in October and is to discuss further cut at the upcoming ministerial meeting in the western Algerian town of Oran. Iran has also proposed another cut in oil output by around one million bpd.

Iran proposes joint nuclear plants with Gulf

sitansu — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 19:48:02 +0530

Iran on Sunday proposed developing nuclear power plants jointly with neighbouring Arab states in the Gulf, amid international pressure on Tehran to halt its sensitive atomic work.

"I suggest that countries in the region put on their agenda the creation of a consortium to build and develop light-water nuclear plants," said Gholam Reza Aghazadeh, the head of Iran's atomic energy organisation.

"Iran is ready to present a comprehensive proposal if the Persian Gulf countries agree to it in principal," he told an energy conference in Tehran.

However, he did not give any specifics about the proposal, or its feasibility.

Iran has long defied UN demands to halt uranium enrichment and it is under sanctions targetting individuals and institutions involved in its nuclear programme.

The light-water reactor market is dominated by Western countries and Russia, which is currently building Iran's first nuclear power plant in the southern city of Bushehr on the Gulf.

However, completion of the plant has been repeatedly delayed.

Officials say Iran's first home-built nuclear plant using domestic technology is at the basic design stage and is scheduled to come on line in around nine years.

The Islamic republic is also building a 40-megawatt heavy water research reactor in Arak, in central Iran.

Uranium enrichment lies at the centre of fears about Iran's nuclear programme as the process can be used to make the fissile core of an atom bomb.