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| March 31, 2008 | Monday | Rabi-ul-Awwal 22, 1429 |
Updated round-the-clock, with major updates after 10:00 PST (05:00 GMT)
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 Pakistan’s 24-member cabinet sworn in ISLAMABAD, Mar 31 (APP): President Pervez Musharraf administered oath to the 24-member cabinet of premier Yusuf Raza Gilani at a ceremony at Aiwan-i-Sadr on Monday. Those who took oath as ministers are: Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan (Communications with additional charge of Food, Agriculture and Livestock), Shahid Khaqan Abbasi (Commerce), Tehmina Daultana (Culture), Chaudhry Ahmed Mukhtar (Defence), Rana Tanveer Hussain (Defence Production), Ahsan Iqbal (Eduction, additional charge Minorities), Hameed Ullah Jan Afridi (Environment), Muhammad Ishaq Dar (Finance, Revenue, Economic Affairs and Statistics), Makhdoom Shah Mehmood Qureshi (Foreign Affairs), Rehmat Ullah Kakar (Housing and Works), Sherry Rehman (Information and Broadcasting), Qamar Zaman Kaira (Kashmir Affairs and Northern Areas), Syed Khursheed Ahmed Shah (Labour, Manpower and Overseas Pakistanis), Farooq H. Naik (Law and Justice), Haji Ghulam Ahmad Bilour (Local Government and Rural Development), Nazar Mohammad Gondal (Narcotics Control), Khawaja Mohammad Asif (Petroleum and Natural Resources, additional charge Sports), Humayun Aziz Kurd (Population Welfare), Syed Naveed Qamar (Ports and Shipping, additional charge Privatization and Investment), Syed Mehtab Ahmed Khan (Railways), Nawabzada Khawaja Mohammad Khan Hoti (Social Welfare, Special Education), Najmuddin Khan (States and Frontier Regions), Raja Pervaiz Ashraf (Water and Power), Khawaja Saad Rafique (Youth Affairs, Science and Technology). Associated Press adds: ''Thank you and congratulations,'' President Musharraf said and applauded briefly after the ministers, some of whom were jailed after he seized power in a 1999 military coup, followed him in repeating the oath of allegiance. Three of them wore black armbands. ''That was in protest because an unconstitutional president was sitting up there and our ministers had to take oath under him,'' said Siddiqul Farooq, a spokesman for the party of Nawaz Sharif, who was toppled as prime minister in 1999. Musharraf had earlier sworn in Yusuf Raza Gilani of Benazir’s PPP as prime minister last Tuesday. The incoming four-party coalition of PPP, PML-N, ANP and JUI-F needed another week to finalize its initial Cabinet line-up and was expected to add dozens more ministers in the coming weeks. Shah Mehmood Qureshi, the new foreign minister, is the suave, soft-spoken scion of a landowning family from the Punjab city of Multan who had been on the shortlist for prime minister. A graduate of Cambridge University in law and politics, Qureshi will be the well-groomed face of Pakistan in the world. ''I expect the international community to support democracy in Pakistan,'' Qureshi told reporters after the swearing-in. ''I am sure that the world community has accepted this change wholeheartedly.'' (First Posted @ 14:25 PST Updated @ 18:04 PST)  Pakistan’s new cabinet holds first meeting ISLAMABAD, Mar 31 (APP): The federal Cabinet in its first meeting on Monday decided to constitute two cabinet committees headed by the Minister for Law & Justice to formulate recommendations on the issue of restoration of the superior court judges, and the repeal, amendments, improvement of FCR, information Minister Sherry Rehman told newsmen after the cabinet meeting. The Cabinet also directed necessary amendments in the labour laws to ensure implementation of the decision of Rupees 6000/-pm minimum wage for workers; endorsed the support price of wheat fixed at Rs. 625 per 40kg and emphasized that no artificial shortage of wheat and Atta shall be allowed to be created by any vested interest. (Posted @ 23:38 PST)  NWFP Chief Minister to take oath on Tuesday PESHAWAR, Pakistan, March 31 (APP): Ameer Haider Khan Hoti, a joint ANP-PPP candidate, would be formally declared elected unopposed as the Chief Minister of NWFP when the provincial assembly meets on Tuesday, as no other nomination for the coveted office was filed on Monday. Governor NWFP Owais Ahmed Ghani will administer the oath at 4 p.m. Tuesday, official sources said. (Posted @ 19:56 PST) PML-N took oath for restoration of judiciary: Ch. Nisar ISLAMABAD, Mar 31 (APP): Nine ministers belonging to Pakistan Muslim League - Nawaz Monday took oath of office from President Pervez Musharraf wearing black arm bands. PML-N’s Ch. Nisar Ali Khan told APP after the swearing-in ceremony that they “took oath of office to achieve the larger objective of restoration of judiciary.” He said their ally PPP was of the view that PML-N should be part of the cabinet in the first phase. About future working relationship, Ch Nisar said “we will work on legal, constitution and democratic path and anyone who agrees will have no difficulty in working with us.” Defence Minister Ahmed Mukhtar said his priority would be to strengthen country's defence, while keeping in view the economic constraints. Ahsan Iqbal, Minister of Education, said he opted for the portfolio as he believed that the country seriously lagged behind in this area. (Posted @ 20:30 PST) State Bank of Pakistan cuts economic growth forecast to 6-6.5 percent KARACHI, March 31 (AP): The State Bank of Pakistan has cut its forecast for the country's economic growth this fiscal year to 6.0-6.5 percent. The bank said Monday it was revising its forecast for the year ending June 30 in the light of ''domestic turbulence and external shocks.'' The bank predicted growth of 7.2 percent at the start of the fiscal year. The bank forecast in its most recent quarterly report that this year's inflation rate would be between 8 percent and 9 percent. A new government now taking office in Pakistan is scrambling to protect its fast-growing economy from rising prices and widening budget and trade deficits. (Posted @ 15:50 PST) Pakistan believes in peaceful co-existence in the region: PM Gilani ISLAMABAD, March 31 (APP): Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani Monday said Pakistan is a peace loving country and believes in peaceful co-existence with credible minimum deterrence. “Pakistan's defence doctrine is based on maintaining credible minimum deterrence to safeguard sovereignty and territorial integrity of the country and to ensure peace and stability in the region,” the Prime Minister said while talking to Chief of the Air Staff Air Chief Marshal Tanveer Mehmood Ahmad at PM House. Gilani said that Pakistan Air Force (PAF) has always played an important role in the defence of the country, in addition to rendering support to civil administration in relief and rehabilitation efforts during natural calamities. He said to defend the aerial frontiers of the country, the government would continue to focus on improving indigenous capabilities besides entering into more joint ventures with other countries. The Air Chief apprised the Prime Minister about various initiatives taken by the PAF to optimize its effectiveness and efficiency. (Posted @ 15:15 PST) Several Killed, 10 injured in Karachi roads mishap KARACHI, March 31, (PPI): At least ten people were injured and several deaths were feared as a speeding passenger coach plunged into Malir River at Korangi Crossing Monday night, ambulance sources said. Private Tv channels reported that hospital had received 6 bodies besides about a dozen injured, some seriously. (Posted @ 23:02 PST) Deposed top judge Iftikhar Chaudhry in Quetta QUETTA, Pakistan, March 31 (AFP): Pakistan's deposed chief justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry got a huge welcome as he visited his hometown Monday. Iftikhar Chaudhry travelled to Quetta to address lawyers exactly a week after the country's new government freed him and nine other judges from house arrest. Thousands of lawyers and activists waved flags and portraits of Iftikhar Chaudhry as he arrived at the airport amid tight security. As Chaudhry came out of the terminal building the crowd showered him with rose petals and burst into chants of “Go Musharraf, go”, an AFP reporter said. Pick-up trucks full of armed police guarded Iftikhar Chaudhry as his convoy drove into the city centre. Guards using metal detectors swept the area around the airport for explosive devices. (First Posted @ 14:40 PST, Updated @ 15:20 PST) Kashmiris urge Amnesty to probe unmarked graves SRINAGAR, occupied Kashmir, March 31 (AFP) - Kashmiris Monday urged Amnesty International to discover the identities of bodies in nearly 1,000 unmarked graves found in the revolt-hit region. The Association of Parents of Disappeared People (APDP) says around 8,000 people have vanished during the nearly two-decade-old insurgency against New Delhi's rule, while claiming Friday it had discovered close to 1,000 “nameless graves” in 18 villages in the district of Uri. “It is a matter of grave concern for us. We want to know who are buried in these graves,” said Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, Chairman of the All-Parties Hurriyet Conference. “We urge Amnesty International and other rights groups to identify the people buried in these graves,” he said. Similar demands have been made by Syed Ali Gilani, Shabbir Shah and a cross section of the Kashmiri people. Indian security officials however claim that “those who have been buried in these villages were killed in well established encounters over the past two decades”, but are unwilling to allow independent investigation by any international agency. (Posted @ 17:20 PST) Roadside bomb wounds two policemen in northwestern Pakistan PESHAWAR, Pakistan, March 31 (AP): A roadside bomb exploded near a police vehicle in northwestern Pakistan’s Swat Valley Monday and wounded two officers, district police chief Akhtar Ali Shah said. No one has claimed responsibility for the attack. (Posted @ 14:25 PST) 
Third NATO soldier killed in Afghanistan KABUL, March 31 (AFP) -A NATO soldier was killed and two others injured Monday in combat in Afghanistan, ISAF said, one day after two British troops died in an explosion. ISAF did not give the nationalities of the latest casualties. On Sunday two British Marines were killed in Helmand when an explosion blew up their vehicle while they were on a routine patrol. (Posted @ 20:22 PST) At least 461 killed in Iraq clashes: AFP tally BAGHDAD, March 31 (AFP) - At least 461 people were killed in week-long clashes between Shiite militants and security forces in Iraq, according to an AFP tally based on reports by security officials. Fighting erupted on Tuesday when Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki ordered security forces to crack down on strongholds of Shiite militiamen, mostly those loyal to radical cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, in Basra. Street battles later spread to other Shiite areas across Iraq, with the most fighting clashes in Basra and Baghdad. More than 1,100 people were wounded in Basra and Baghdad. Clashes were also reported in Karbala and in Nasiriyah with local medics reporting at least 36 killed. Police in the central city of Kut said around 50 people had been killed there since Tuesday. Eight people were also killed in Babel province south of the capital, Iraqi and US officials said. The clashes eased off late on Sunday after Sadr ordered his fighters to withdraw from the streets. (Posted @ 20:18 PST) Abbas and Olmert to meet on April 7 AMMAN, March 31 (AFP) - Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas said on Monday he will meet Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert on April 7 for their first face-to-face talks in seven weeks. “My meeting with the prime minister will be held soon, I believe it will be on April 7,” Abbas told a joint news conference in Amman with US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. “I am confident that we will reach a comprehensive peace agreement in 2008 because we are working hard with Israel, the United States and other parties to reach this deal,” Abbas said. “We want by the end of 2008 to reach this agreement, which will help establish a Palestinian state.” Asked to comment on an invitation from Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal to Abbas to visit the Islamist-run Gaza Strip, the Palestinian president said “there is no answer.” And Rice replied: “The president has already responded.” She later left Amman and was expected to join US President George W. Bush in Ukraine. (Posted @ 20:02 PST) Suspected militant killed, another injured during shootout TANK, Pakistan, March 31 (APP): A suspected militant was killed and another sustained critical injuries during an exchange of fire with the law enforcing agencies at Tank city’s Luqman Shaheed check-post in northwestern Pakistan on Monday. Police said the two suspects were asked to stop but tried to run away and started firing. In the exchange of gunfire, accused Afsar Khan was killed and another sustained injuries and was arrested. (Posted @ 19:44 PST) Chief of Naval Staff leaves for China ISLAMABAD, March 31 (APP): Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Mohammad Afzal Tahir left Monday on an official visit to China during which he will be the chief guest at the launching of 1st F-22P Frigate PNS Zulfiqar, besides other engagements. (Posted @ 19:14 PST) Sri Lanka offers nearly US$100,000 to would-be rebel suicide bombers who change their minds COLOMBO, March 31 (AP) The Sri Lankan government is offering would-be rebel suicide bombers nearly US$100,000 and a new life abroad to surrender themselves to authorities, the government said Monday. The offers has been made in red and yellow posters pasted on walls around Colombo. ''Sri Lanka needs your life, your youth. Why are you throwing this away…,'' read the posters, which show a photograph of the severed head of a bomber. (Posted @ 18:46 PST) Two cops, two suspects killed in Karachi firing KARACHI, March 31 (APP): Two police constables were killed in Model Colony late Sunday night while two suspects were killed in Orangi Town in the wee hours of Monday morning, police said.Two cops were on routine patroling on their motocycle in Model Colony when they spotted a suspicious car and signalled it to stop. However, the unknown car occupants opened fire killing the two constables on the spot. In another incident, a police patrol in Pakistan Bazar area of Orangi Town, spotted a suspicious taxi with three occupants. They ordered the taxi to stop which, however, tried to sped off. The police party gave a chase but came under fire from the suspects. Police returned the fire killing two of the occupants while the third one was arrested. (Posted @ 16:00 PST) Cricket- Imtiaz Patel out of the running for ICC job DUBAI, March 31 (AFP): The International Cricket Council (ICC) announced on Monday that South African businessman Imtiaz Patel has ruled himself out of becoming the organisation's next chief. Patel indicated his decision in a telephone conversation with ICC President-Elect David Morgan on Sunday, cricket's governing body said in a statement. Current ICC Chief Executive Officer Malcolm Speed steps down from the role in July. (Posted @ 15:45 PST) 
President Hu launches Olympic torch relay BEIJING, March 31 (AFP): Chinese President Hu Jintao officially launched the Olympic torch relay in a ceremony at Beijing's Tiananmen Square on Monday after the flame arrived from Greece. The torch relay begins its international leg Tuesday, when it travels to Almaty, the capital of Kazakhstan. After its journey which takes in 19 countries around the world, it will return to China for a three-month tour. The relay will be the longest ever, lasting 130 days and covering 137,000 kilometres. (Posted @ 09:25 PST) Bangladesh jails sons of two party leaders DHAKA, March 31 (Reuters) - The son of a former Bangladesh finance minister was sentenced to 13 years in jail on Monday for acquiring wealth illegally while another politician's son was handed 17 years for illegal possession of firearms. “The courts found Naser Rahman and Akhtar Hamid guilty of amassing wealth illegally and keeping arms respectively and sentenced them to different jail terms,” Zulfiquar Ali, a lawyer in the prosecution office said. Naser Rahman, who is himself a former lawmaker, is the son of ex-finance minister Saifur Rahman while Khandakar Akhtar Hamid is the son of senior lawmaker Khandakar Delwar Hossain. Saifur and Delwar both belong to the Bangladesh Nationalist Party headed by detained former prime minister Begum Khaleda Zia who is herself facing corruption charges.The court also ordered confiscation of Naser's properties worth 17.9 million taka ($261,000). (Posted @ 17:42 PST) Kashmir solution vital for peace in South Asia: Farooq Abdullah Jammu, occupied Kashmir, March 31 (PPI): Pro-India former Chief Minister of occupied Kashmir, Dr Farooq Abdullah has said that resolution of Kashmir dispute was imperative for peace and stability in south Asia. Addressing a meeting in Rajouri, he maintained that relations between Pakistan and India would not improve until the solution of the dispute and hoped that the newly elected Prime Minister of Pakistan, Syed Yousaf Raza Gilani would make personnel efforts to speed up the dialogue process between Pakistan and India and ensure the inclusion of Kashmiris in it, KMS reported.. (Posted @ 17:05 PST) Mirwaiz urges India to shun intransigence on Kashmir Srinagar, occupied Kashmir, March 31 (PPI):The Chairman of All Parties Hurriyet Conference, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, has urged India to adopt a realistic approach with regard to the resolution of the Kashmir dispute. In a statement in Srinagar he welcomed the statement of the Prime Minister of Pakistan on Kashmir and said it reflected a pragmatic approach on the part of Pakistan and asked India to reciprocate in a positive manner so that a just and durable solution of the dispute could be brought abou, Kashmir Media Service reported. Lingering the dispute has the potential of triggering a nuclear war in the region, he warned. (Posted @ 17:00 PST)
One killed, 17 injured in wagon-tractor collision in Pakistan ARIFWALA, Pakistan, March 31 (APP): A minor girl was killed and 17 other wagon passengers including eight children, aged two to eight years, received injuries late Sunday night when it collided with a tractor on Arifwala-Bahawalnagar road in Punjab province. (Posted @ 16:50 PST) UAE vice-president starts China visit BEIJING, March 31 (APP): UAE Vice-president and Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum who is also the ruler of Dubai arrived in Beijing Monday for a four-day official visit to China during which he will inter-alia meet Chinese President Hu Jintao and Vice-president Xi Jinping and hold talks with Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao. (Posted @ 16:45 PST) 500 new buildings emerging in West Bank settlements JERUSALEM, March 31 (APP/AFP): Some 500 buildings that will provide thousands of new housing units are emerging in Jewish settlements in the West Bank despite the relaunch of peace talks, a settlement watchdog said Monday. Construction is under way in 101 settlements, with construction recently started on 275 buildings and almost completed on 220, Peace Now said in a report. An internationally drafted Middle East peace blueprint, revived at a peace conference in the United States in November, calls on Israel to freeze settlement construction. “Not a single project was frozen,” Peace Now said. Over the past two months, Defence Minister Ehud Barak has given green signal for at least 1,710 new housing units in the West Bank, 750 of them in annexed Arab east Jerusalem. Settlers have also erected at least 184 mobile homes in West Bank settlements without Israeli government approval, Peace Now said. Construction is also under way in 58 wildcat settlement outposts established without government approval, it added. (Posted @ 16:25 PST) Rockets hit five people in Baghdad Green Zone BAGHDAD, March 31 (AFP): A volley of rockets smashed into Baghdad's fortified Green Zone Monday hitting at least five people, including an Iraqi army major and two US soldiers, a witness told AFP. The rockets struck near a checkpoint in the complex, which is the seat of the Iraqi government and home to most foreign embassies. There was no immediate confirmation of the attack from the US embassy. (Posted @ 13:10 PST) 54 more flights canceled at Heathrow's problem-plagued new Terminal 5 LONDON, March 31 (AP): British Airways canceled 54 more short-haul flights at Heathrow Airport's problem-plagued new Terminal 5 on Monday. Almost 300 flights have been scrapped and some 15,000 bags have been separated from their owners since the state-of-the-art terminal opened last Thursday. Airport operators have said the problems were triggered by glitches with the terminal's high-tech baggage-handling system. The chaos has been a major embarrassment for BA and airport operator BAA PLC. (Posted @ 12:45 PST) US claims air strikes, assaults in Baghdad kill 41 'criminals' BAGHDAD, March 31 (AFP): US air strikes and military assaults have killed 41 “criminals” in Baghdad, including 25 who died when an alleged mortar team was bombed, the American military announced on Monday. The killings occurred on Sunday in eastern and northeastern Baghdad where US and Iraqi forces have been battling the Mahdi Army militia since Tuesday. The deaths push the toll from six days of fighting in Baghdad, Basra and several other areas to more than 320, at least 140 of them in Baghdad. (Posted @ 11:25 PST) Two US troops killed in Iraq BAGHDAD, March 31 (AFP): Roadside bomb attacks killed two US troops in separate incidents in Iraq, the US military announced Monday. A soldier died of wounds sustained when his vehicle was hit on Sunday by a bomb in northern Baghdad, a military statement said without giving the exact location. A marine was killed, meanwhile, when his vehicle was attacked with an improvised explosive device in western Anbar province on Saturday, a separate statement said. The latest deaths bring US military's losses in Iraq since the March 2003 invasion to 4,010, according to an AFP tally. (Posted @ 10:25 PST) 42 killed in Sri Lanka clashes: military COLOMBO, March 31 (AFP): Clashes over the weekend between Sri Lankan troops and Tamil Tiger rebels left at least 39 separatists and three soldiers dead, the defence ministry said Monday. Government troops shot dead the rebels in the north during two days of fighting that ended Sunday, the ministry said, adding 15 soldiers were injured. There was no immediate comment from the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). (Posted @ 10:05 PST) Hamas chief invites Abbas for talks, says Israeli soldier alive LONDON, March 31 (AFP): Hamas chief Khaled Meshaal invited Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas to Gaza for unconditional talks on the two factions' divisions, in a television interview Monday. He also told British broadcaster Sky News that Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, captured by Palestinian militants in June 2006, is alive and being treated well. The talks aim is “get back our Palestinian union and find the reasons for our problems and solve the security problem,” he added. (Posted @ 09:40 PST) Small plane crashes south of London killing 5 LONDON, March 31 (AP): A small plane crashed into a residential area south of London on Sunday, killing five people and completely destroying a house, police and rescue officials said. Fire and police officials said they had found no survivors. Officials said the plane was carrying two pilots and three passengers. The private plane crashed into a house in Farnborough, Kent, south of London, officials said. The neighborhood, Broadwater Gardens, lies near Biggin Hill Airport, about 20 kilometers from central London. (Posted @ 09:15 PST) Karachi Stocks down 142.33 points: KARACHI, March 31: At close of trading, the KSE-100 index was at 15125.89, down 142.33 points. (Bureau Report) (Updated @ 14:20 PST) Forex update: KARACHI, March 31: The Pakistani Rupee was traded at Rs 63.25 to the US Dollar in the open market. (Bureau Report) (Updated @ 14:20 PST)
Founder: Quaid-i-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah
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