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A three-year-old girl remains in a critical conditionafter a suspected arson attack that killed her

mother and four siblings. Maheen Shakoor was

said to be critical but stable in the specialistburns unit at Broomeld Hospital, Chelmsford,

Essex, where she

Girl still critical afterHarlow house re

Dr Shakoor with his ve children - Maheen, three, is by his side

Father Inconsolable After House Fire DeathsInquest to open into Harlow Pakistani family re deaths

As Western opposition made it impossible for Muslim statesto obtain a global ban on blasphemy, including anti-Islamicvideos and cartoons that have touched off deadly riots,the Islamic worlds top diplomat pointed out that Pakistanprovided a negative example of the blasphemy laws.Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, secretary general of the Organisation of IslamicCooperation (OIC), said his 57-nation body would not try again for UnitedNations support to ban insults to religion, but appealed for states to apply

hate-speech laws concerning Islam.

Wests free speech standbars blasphemy ban: OIC

Doctors in Birmingham treatingMalala Yousafzai, the Pakistanischoolgirl who was shot in thehead by Taliban gunmen, areplanning the reconstructiveoperations to treat her horricinjuries. Dr Dave Rosser, thehospitals medical director,explained experienced surgeonsare going over the proceduresMalala will need as part of herprolonged care on the roadto physical and psychologicalrecovery. Its obvious that Malalawill need reconstructive surgery,and we have international expertsin that eld, so its beginning toplan for reconstructive surgery,

he said.Dr Rosser said there had beena security incident overnight inwhich people falsely claiming tobe Malalas family were detainedby police, but West MidlandsPolice later claried no arrestswere made and the two visitorswere well-wishers.After the Pakistani Taliban shother along with Malala Yousufzai,Kainat Ahmad couldnt sleepfor two days. After the PakistaniTaliban shot her along withMalala Yousufzai, Kainat Ahmadcouldnt sleep for two days.By now, millions around the

Girl shot with Malala: Memory of attack still in my head

Malala reconstructive

surgery Operations planned

Continued on page 2 >>

Continued on page 12 >>Continued on page 6 >>


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Actress Angelina Jolie, in an articlepublished on an international news

website, appreciated the effortsof 14-year-old Pakistani activistMalala Yousufzai who was shot bythe Taliban for promoting womenseducation.

Jolie appealed to internationalorganisations to collect funds for

the rights of Pakistani women andchildren.Actress Angelina Jolie has written

an essay sharing how she informedher children about Pakistani child

activist Malala Yousafzai, who wasshot early this month. The 14-year-old girl, Pakistans rst National

Peace Award winner, was shot andseriously injured by unidentied

gunmen in the countrys KhyberPakhtunkhwa province Oct 9.In the essay written in Daily Beast,

the actress wrote: I felt compelledto share Malalas story with mychildren. It was difcult for themto comprehend a world where men

would try to kill a child whose only

crime was the desire that she andothers like her be allowed to go to

school.The UNHCRs special envoy saidthat the terrible event marked the

beginning of a necessary revolutionin girls education, adding that, sheconsidered Malala to be a suitablecandidate to receive the NobelCommittees award.

UN ambassador Jolie hopes Malalawill be in contention for a NobelPeace Prize.As the Nobel Committee meets todetermine the winner of the Nobel

Peace Prize, I imagine brave Malalawill be given serious consideration,said the Hollywood star.

Mean while Pakistan Government onTuesday announced Sitara-e-Shujaatfor Malala Yousafzai, The civil awardfor bravery has been conferred on thechild activist for publicly speakingout against the Talibans tyrannicalstance on education for women.

world know how 14-year-oldMalala and her classmates were

attacked in their school van inthe Swat Valley, a bastion oftraditional Muslim practices in

Pakistan.Lesser-known Kainat can,and she shared her story in anexclusive interview.Speaking from her hospital roomin Mingora, the 16-year-olddescribed her startled reactionand lingering fears over theattack.Kainat, who was shot in the upperright arm, displayed a thoughtfuldemeanor as she chatted withCNN journalistsI want to tell all the girls tocontinue their mission to get aneducation, Kainat said Tuesday.The 10th-grader toughed out the

ordeal. She said she has no regrets

about defying a group that wantsto stop girls from learning.God willing, I will continue my

education, she said.Kainat appreciated attentionfrom hospital visitors -- from

reporters to government ofcials-- and was gratied to emphasizethe need for girls education.I cant believe whats happened,but I am happy everyone is h ereto see me, she said.She can remember just a snippetof the attack. She said she wastalking to her friend about anUrdu-language exam when amale approached.He asked, Who is Malala?When someone told him, hestarted ring. Sir, because of this,Malala suddenly fell, she said.Kainat, who fainted during theattack, couldnt describe the

shooter.

I didnt see anything, she said.I just heard the gunshots. Idont know what happened. I justpassed out.She woke up in an emergencyroom. It has since dawned on herthat the incident has gone viral,with people across the worldviewing deant female Pakistanistudents like her and Malala asheroic.So far, the terror hasnt worn offas she recovers from her wound.I want to tell you that when Ithink about what happened, itsstill in my head and sometimesits terrifying, she said. Theattackers shot a third girl, whoalso survived.Kainats remarks focus on Malalaand her classmates. She hopesother girls stay ambitious intheir studies. And she wants

Malala to recover.She was good friends witheveryone, Kainat said. I hopeMalala gets better as soon aspossible and comes back to hercountry and joins us at schoolagain.Shazia Ramzan who is one ofMalalas friends who were alsoinjured in the attack told inanother interview earlier thatthe assailants were covering theirfaces and opened re gettingidentied Malala.Shazia said that no securotywas provided to Malala in Swatand nor there is any securityarrangement for the otherstudents. If the students are notprovided security parents wouldbe scared to send their duaghtersto school, she added.Shazia prayed for Malalas life.

NEWS2 South Asia Tribune I Thursday 18 October 2012

PublisherSalah Bu Khamas (UAE)Sabha Khan (UK)

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UN ambassador Joliehopes Malala will be incontention for a Nobel.

Angelina Jolie was compelled to share Malalas story with her kids

Still trying to understand, my children asked, Why didthose men think they needed to kill Malala? I answered,

because education is a powerful thing, she added.

Malala reconstructive surgery Operations plannedContinued from page 1 >>

Kainat Riaz Ahmed and Shazia RamazanThe inside of the van where Malala Yousafzai, Kainat Riaz and Shazia Ramazan were shot.


3/32

NEWSSouth Asia Tribune I Thursday 18 October 2012 3

Barack Obama secured thecomeback he desperately neededin the second presidential debateagainst Mitt Romney, nishing thenight on top after a series of erceclashes in which the two made noattempt to hide the extent of theirpersonal hostility.At one point in the 90-minutedebate, watched by tens of millionsof Americans, the two squared off,only a few feet apart, talking overone another, jabbing ngers at oneanother and accusing each other oflying.Obama needed a big performance

after his dismal failure in the rstpresidential debate in Denver. That3 October debate was dominated byRomney and started the presidentspoll slide, leaving the two in a deadheat less than three weeks fromelection day.Obama will have lifted Democraticmorale and may have done enoughto slow or even arrest thecrisis.It will be several days before therst reliable polls appear but asnap poll by CNN awarded thedebate 46% to Obama and 39% toRomney, while CBS put it as 37%Obama to 30% Romney.

The two men clashed in the seconddebate at Hofstra University,Long Island over tax, energy,womens rights, immigration andLibya. Obama was much sharperand more energetic than in theiropening debate two weeks ago,A red-up President BarackObama has persistently attackedRepublican challenger MittRomney in a critical debate,offering a striking contrast fromhis listless performance two weeksago that appeared to damage hisre-election prospects.Mr Obama blasted Mr Romneyseconomic plans as damaging to

the middle class and accused himof ip-opping on issues such asenergy and gun control.He appeared angry - a rare emotionto see in the famously cool MrObama - when Mr Romney, a formerMassachusetts governor, criticisedhis response to the deadly attackthat killed the US ambassador toLibya and three other Americans atthe US Consulate in Benghazi lastmonth.He pointedly told Mr Romneythat any suggestion that hisadministration would play politicsor mislead when weve lost fourof our own, governor, is offensive.

Thats not what we do.

PRESIDENT Barack Obama put hisre-election bid back on rm footinglast night with a strong debateperformance that is likely to thrillhis Democratic supporters andearn him a second look from thefew voters who remain undecided.

With the November 6 electionthree weeks away, Obamas secondof three debates with Republicanrival Mitt Romney representedone of the nal chances to make animpression with voters.Obama made the most of it witha focused, aggressive effort. Itwas a sharp departure from his

listless rst debate two weeksago, when Romneys dominantperformance ignited a resurgenceby the Republican that left therace virtually even heading intoyesterdays match-up.Game on - hes back, CarletonCollege political science professorSteven Schier said of the president.Obama made sure to work in all ofthe attack lines he had neglected inthe October 3 debate.He hammered Romney for thewealthy Republicans low personalincome tax rate and Romneys now-infamous dismissal of 47pc ofthe electorate, as seen in a secretly

recorded video of the formerMassachusetts governor.Obama also crisply outlined theaccomplishments of his rst term inofce - from saving the car industryto killing Osama bin Laden - andframed his answer on a questionabout womens rights in movinglypersonal terms.Romney had his moments aswell, especially when describingpromises Obama had made andnot kept.Romney avoided the type of routthat Obama suffered in the October3 debate, but the night belonged tothe president, analysts said.

Id say its a clear win for

Obama, said Boston Universitycommunications professor TobeBerkovitz. Certainly it would bedifcult for anyone to say Romneywon this debate.Flash polls taken after the debatepointed to an Obama win.

Meanwhile, Obamas odds for re-election on the Intrade predictionmarket climbed 1.6pcage points, to63.6pc.Debates have rarely affectedthe outcome of US presidentialelections, but this year may provean exception.Romney silenced critics in his own

party and reversed a month ofmissteps with a strong performancein the rst debate. A week later hehad wiped out Obamas lead inopinion polls.That bounce for Romney hasslipped in recent days, accordingto Reuters/Ipsos tracking polls.Obama led Romney by 3 percentagepoints in the daily Reuters/Ipsospoll yesterday.This will give the president a bitof a bounce and a little bit of anedge, but its going to be quite closeright down to the wire, said NotreDame University political science

professor Michael Desch.The nal presidential debate,scheduled for Monday in BocaRaton, Florida, probably willmatter less.Some 10pc of voters have casttheir ballots already, according toReuters/Ipsos polling data, andthat gure will climb sharply asboth campaigns kick their get-out-the-vote operations into gear andurge supporters to take advantageof state laws that allow earlyvoting.Foreign policy, the topic of nextweeks debate, takes a distant back

seat to economic concerns for mostvoters.It was a foreign policy discussionthat led to Romneys mostuncomfortable moment last night,as he bungled what could havebeen an opportunity to plantdoubts in voters minds aboutObamas handling of the attacks ondiplomatic facilities in Libya lastmonth.Romney had hoped to use theincident to erode Obamas nationalsecurity credentials. Instead, hebattled with the moderator, CNNsCandy Crowley, over whetherhe was accurately characterising

Obamas remarks about whetherthe incident was a terror attack.The exchange left Romney aidesfuming at Crowley, while Obamawas able to avoid the question ofwhether his administration hadprotected the facility adequately.Obama also danced around otherquestions that could have trippedhim up.He turned a question about guncontrol - an unpopular issue forvoters in many battleground states- into an opportunity to point outRomneys shifting positions on theissue.

Obama responded to a questionabout petrol prices by noting thatthey had been low when he tookofce only because of the recessionthat he inherited.Its conceivable that GovernorRomney could bring down gasprices, because with his policieswed be back in that same mess,he said, drawing laughter from thecrowd.Aside from his blown opportunityon Libya, Romney did not do poorly.He reminded viewers that Obamahad failed to fulll promises to cutthe decit in half and introduce

immigration-reform legislation,and warned that too many peopleare still out of work.If you elect President Obama youknow what youre going to get, hesaid. Youre going to get a repeatof the last four years.Romneys performance probablydid not hurt his chances of winningthe White House, analysts said.But Obama probably boosted hisodds by turning in the focused,aggressive performance that hissupporters had hoped to see in therst debate.Theyre thinking, Were backin the ball game, said Robert

Lehrman, a former speech writerfor Democratic vice president AlGore who now teaches at AmericanUniversity.It wasnt that Romney got worse -Obama got a lot better.Polls showed voters judged Obamathe winner. A CNN survey gavehim the edge by 46 percent to 39percent, while CBS had Obamathe winner by 37 percent to 30percent.The nal debate, slated to focusentirely on foreign policy, will beheld on Monday night.

Obama regains the initiative towin second presidential debate

President more condent and combative, with Mitt Romney

committing a series of gaffes over Benghazi attack and women


4/32

4 South Asia Tribune I Thursday 18 October 2012NEWS

EDITORIAL

Islamic bloc abandons plansfor global blasphemy law at UNThe Secretary General of the Organisationof Islamic Co-operation has revealedthat it has abandoned plans to introduce

a global blasphemy law through theUnited Nations.The Organisation of Islamic Conference(OIC) completed 40 years of its existence

last week. It was set up in Rabat, Moroccoon September 25, 1969, in reaction toan arson attack on Al-Aqsa Mosque on

August 21, 1969, in Al-Quds, carried outby an Israeli.The meeting was the rst unied

expression of the Muslim Ummah of itsdetermination to safeguard its interests,speak with one voice and ensure the

progress and well being of the Muslimsin the world. t took an organised shapein March 1970, setting up a secretariat

in Jeddah and appointing a secretary-general as its head. Two years later, acharter was adopted demonstrating thatthe OIC`s purpose was to strengthen

solidarity and cooperation amongIslamic states in all elds.OIC members represent 22 per cent of

the world population, have 2 per centof the world`s GDP, 1.3 per cent of theworld trade and only 1.5 per cent of the

investments. Twenty ve per cent ofOIC population does not have access tomedical facilities or safe drinking water.

Half of the population lives below thepoverty line classied as the most poor.No Muslim country is in the top list ofthe Human Development Index or in

any other global economic indicators.This depressing picture of the Islamiccountries is not limited to the economic

and social spheres, in the realm ofeducation and technology the facts are

equally disappointing.The OIC member countries possess 70per cent of the world`s energy resourcesand 40 per cent of available raw material

but their GDP is only 5 per cent of theworld GDP. Muslim countries miserablylag behind in education and technology.They produce only 500 PhDs each year

as compared to 3,000 in India and 5,000in the United Kingdom. None of theireducational or research institutions or

centres of excellence nd place in the top100 in the world.The OIC has failed to respond

meaningfully to any of the crises ordemonstrate any unity of thought andaction apart from issuing high-sounding

declarations at the end of each summit.

Nothing was done to contain the crisesor avert the tragedies. The OIC remained

merely a silent spectator.The Muslim world has abjectly failed tograsp the demands and requirementsof the 21st century. The absolute need

to introduce and embrace moderntechnology has not dawned on itsleaders, reecting their distressing

intellectual poverty.Western opposition has made itimpossible for Muslim states to obtain

a ban on blasphemy, including anti-Islamic videos and cartoons that havetouched off deadly riots, the Islamic

worlds top diplomat said. We could notconvince them, said the Turkish headof the 57-member group which had tried

from 1998 until 2011 to get a UnitedNations-backed ban on blasphemy. TheEuropean countries dont vote with us,

the United States doesnt vote with us.Ihsanoglu told a conference in Istanbulat the weekend that the OIC had failedto win a ban at the United Nations and

would not revive its long diplomaticcampaign for one. Asked about recentmedia reports that the OIC wanted to

resume the campaign for a blasphemyban, he said: I never said this and Iknow this will never happen. Ihsanoglu

said Western states had a strangeunderstanding of free speech if it couldbe abused to hurt and insult others.

Responding at the United Nations lastmonth to the Muslim protests againstthe video, President Barack Obamacondemned the lm but staunchly

defended free speech. The strongestweapon against hateful speech is notrepression, it is more speech - the voices

of tolerance that rally against bigotryand blasphemy, he said. But whileeditorialists and religious leaders have

renewed calls for a worldwide blasphemyban, few national leaders have actuallyended their rhetorical reactions with

that demand.One who did at the United Nations lastmonth was President Asif Ali Zardari of

Pakistan, whose own national blasphemylaw has come under increasing criticism athome and abroad as open to widespreadabuse against minority Christians.

Ihsanoglu, speaking at the conference ona panel with Pakistani opposition leaderImran Khan, encouraged countries with

blasphemy laws to apply against insultsto Islam, and then quickly added: not

particularly the one in Pakistan.Beginning in 1980, a slew of clauseswas added to the chapter of religiousoffences in the Pakistan Penal Code.

A large majority of Pakistani peoplesupport the idea that blasphemersshould be punished, but there is little

understanding of what the religiousscripture says as opposed to how themodern-day law is codied. The lawscarry the death sentence for anyone who

insults Islam and critics say they havebeen used to persecute minority faiths.

The law empowers extremists within

the society. They invoke it to enamesectarian sentiment, raise an angrymob, determine what can be said, and

thus leverage their own political power.

Blasphemy laws are often justied asnecessary for social harmony, but they

do the opposite.Pakistans blasphemy laws areincompatible with its aspiration ofbeing a modern, democratic, Muslim

state respected by the internationalcommunity. Amending the blasphemylaws has been on the agenda of nearly

all the popular secular parties. Butnone of them has made much progress- principally because of the sensitivities

over the issue, but also because no majorparty wants to antagonise the religiousparties which have on numerous

occasions proved capable of bringinglarge numbers of protesters on to thestreets.

British government says human rights of GaryMcKinnon would be at risk if he was sent for trialin the US.The UK has blocked the extradition of a Britishcomputer hacker to the United States, ending hisdecade-long campaign to avoid trial there overallegations he broke into sensitive military andNASA computer networks.Theresa May, Britains interior minister, toldthe House of Commons on Tuesday that she hadrefused the US request to send Gary McKinnon, 46,to face charges over his actions between 2001 and2002.McKinnon, who has been ghting extraditionsince 2002, admits accessing US governmentcomputers but says he was hunting for evidence ofextraterrestrial life.May told parliamentarians there was no doubtMcKinnon, who suffers from Aspergers syndromeand depressive illness, was seriously ill andthe extradition warrant against him should be

withdrawn.She said it was now for the Director of PublicProsecutions, Keir Starmer, to decide whether heshould face trial in the UK.May said: Since I came into ofce, the sole issueon which I have been required to make a decision is

whether Mr McKinnons extradition to the UnitedStates would breach his human rights.Mr McKinnon is accused of serious crimes. Butthere is also no doubt that he is seriously ill.He has Aspergers syndrome, and suffers fromdepressive illness. The legal question before me isnow whether the extent of that illness is sufcientto preclude extradition.I have concluded that Mr McKinnons extradition

would give rise to such a high risk of him endinghis life that a decision to extradite would beincompatible with Mr McKinnons human rights,she concluded.

Al Jazeeras Laurence Lee, reporting from Londonsaid: McKinnon was looking for evidence for yingsaucers when he hacked the US websites, he saidhe had no intention of terrorist activities, the UK

government had pledged they would ght plans forany extradition to the USA for McKinnon.Intimidation and coercionDocotrs said there were concerns over McKinnonsmental health and a risk he could attempt to commitsuicide if extradited.The previous plans to send McKinnon to the UShad been publicly criticised by politicians acrossthe British political spectrum, including PrimeMinister David Cameron and his coalition deputyNick Clegg.

McKinnon was originally arrested in 2002 andagain in 2005, before an extradition order wasmade in July 2006.US authorities have described the hackers actionsas the biggest military computer hack of all time.They insisted his hacking was intentional andcalculated to inuence and affect the US government

by intimidation and coercion.US ofcials said his actions caused $800,000 worthof damage to military computer systems.The family of Babar Ahmad, who was extraditedto the US alongside radical cleric Abu Hamzaearlier this month, welcomed the decision but saidquestions had to be asked.The family said: Why within the space of two

weeks, a British citizen with Aspergers accused ofcomputer related activity is not extradited, while two

other British citizens, one with Aspergers, engagedin computer related activity are extradited.A clear demonstration of double standards.

UK hackers extraditionto US blocked

Switzerland holds $753min frozen Mubarak assetsSwiss authorities are cooperating with judicialauthorities in Tunisia and Egypt to speedrestoration of the funds, belonging to HosniMubarak, Assad, Gadha, and others.Switzerland has blocked nearly one billion Swiss

francs ($1.07 billion) in stolen assets linked todictators in four countries at the centre of the Arabspring Egypt, Libya, Syria and Tunisia, the Swissforeign ministry said on Tuesday.Swiss authorities are cooperating with judicialauthorities in Tunisia and Egypt to speed restorationof the funds, but it is expected to take years, said

Valentin Zellweger, head of the international lawdepartment at the Swiss foreign ministry.Today a total of one billion francs is blocked in theframework of Arab spring, he told a news briengin Geneva, giving the latest gures for funds frozensince early 2011.The bulk of the assets, nearly 700 million francs,are tied to former President Hosni Mubarak andhis entourage, he said.Swiss foreign minister Didier Burkhalter held talks

in Cairo on Sunday with his Egyptian counterpart

Mohamed Kamal Amr on judicial cooperation torestore the embezzled funds, he said.Some 60 million francs linked to ousted Tunisianpresident Ben Ali has also been seized, Zellwegersaid. In line with UN Security Council sanctions,100 million francs linked to the late Libyan leaderMoammar Gadha and 100 million francs linkedto Syrian President Bashar Assad and associatesare blocked.Switzerland has worked hard in recent years toimprove its image as a haven for ill-gotten gains,seizing the assets of deposed dictators and agreeingin 2009 to soften strict bank secrecy to help othercountries catch tax cheats.In the past, the affair that was resolved mostquickly was Abacha and it took 5 years, Zellwegersaid, referring to assets linked to the late Nigerian

dictator Sani Abacha.

Switzerland blocking over $1 billion in assetsbelonging to leaders of Arab Spring states


5/32

The Minister Louis Farrakhan has

become known for his often-cryptic

warnings about the calamity that he

believes Allah will inict upon America.

On Sunday, in a speech he delivered at

Bojangles Coliseum in Charlotte, North

Carolina, the ery faith leader issued

yet another warning to the audience of

6,000, telling them that every plaguethat is written in the Quran is going to

come to pass in America.

From advice for President Barack

Obama to words of encouragement

for Muslims and the Islamic world,

Farrakhan was lled with advice and

proclamations delivered with his

version of love and kindness and,

at moments, with rage. At one point,

while discussing what he claims will

befall America, Farrakhan could

barely contain himself, as he was so

impassioned that he slammed his hand

numerous times on the podium in front

of him.

All of the punishments that are written

in the Quran never came to pass in thetime of Prophet Muhammadnever

but every plague every plague that is

written in the Koran is going to come

to pass in America under the modern

Pharaoh, in the modern Rome, in the

modern Babylon, in the modern Sodom

and Gomorrah take it or let it alone,

he proclaimed.

These statements come on the heels

of other similar sentiments that thepreacher has spewed. In July, he told a

separate audience in Chicago, Illinois,

that America is crumbling as a result

of the nations purportedly imperial

ways and mistreatment of mankind.

So you read about the fall of the

Roman Empire, the fall of the Persian

Empire, the fall of Ancient Egypt, the

fall of Ancient Babylon and youre living

now in the fall of the United States of

America and Europe and their imperial

designs on the masses of the people of

the earth, he proclaimed.

In May, he issued a more detailed

warning, including Allahs purported

plan to bring down American

skyscrapers:I am warning you: Take it or let it

alone. He will take down cities and

when I look at the skyscrapers in some

of these major metropolis. Hes not

going to take the big ones down rst.

Hes going to show you his power. In themeantime, one calamity after another

until you submit, America, and know

that judgement is here. You can escape

it but you gotta do right by this people.

And if you dont do right by them, you

cant do right by the people outside of

America, if you wont do right for those

who havebuilt your country.

In his latest address on Sunday,

aside from warning about Americas

demise, Farrakhan also lectured

the Islamic world about the need to

reform. Interestingly, he seemed to

allude that he and the Nation ofIslam will lead the reformation of

the East from the West. On a softer

note, he highlighted the importance

of educating women and he spoke out

against honor killings.

We challenge Muslims in America

rise up and educate your people. Know

that youre in an environment that

is lawless, he said, clearly speaking,

again, about America. And if your

daughter slips, be merciful. Bring her

home. The dishonor is you kill ing her.

The more bizarre comments during

Farrakhans most recent addressoccurred toward the beginning, when

he accused the Republican Party of

having a deep racial undercurrent. He

also said that prominent conservatives

have worked diligently against Obama.

Ever since he has been elected, the

Republican right with Rush Limbaugh,

Breitbart, Fox Newstheir whole idea

has been to get this man out of the

White House and nullify any policy

or position that he might come up

with that might bring success to his

presidency and that might possibly give

him a second term, he said. It started

like an undercurrent, but now it is so

overtly hateful and racist in nature that

it is polarizing America on the basis ofrace.

This latter commentary is ironic,

considering that many would claim

that Farrakhan is one of the most

racial-divisive gures in the U.S.

Farrakhans Fiery New Warning to the U.S.:Every Plague That Is Written in the Quran

Is Going to Come to Pass in America

NEWS 5South Asia Tribune I Thursday 18 October 2012

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Israel Prime Minister Benjamin

Netanyahu told European Union

ambassadors on Tuesday that Israel

will do its best to make sure that the

Syrian regimes chemical weapons

wont fall into the hands of terrorists.

He warned, however, that the Jewish

state will consider taking military

action if such a threat arises.

According to Israel today report Israel

has been forced to consider injecting

itself into Syrias ongoing civil war in

order to prevent the countrys chemical

weapon stockpile from falling into the

wrong hands, Prime Minister Benjamin

Netanyahu revealed on Tuesday.

Netanyahu told European ambassadors

that having Syrian weapons of mass

destruction (WMDs) reach groups like

Hizballah, Hamas or even some of the

Muslim Brotherhood-dominated rebel

groups is unacceptable to the Jewish

state.

Israel will do everything it takes toensure Syrias chemical weapons do

not fall into the hands of terrorist

organizations, and if such a situation

arises, then Israel will weigh a military

option, said Netanyahu.

EU foreign ministers on Monday

imposed new sanctions on Syria and

were considering fresh measures

against Iran, hours after discussing

the two countries with Russias top

diplomat.

Moscow has drawn the EUs ire by

joining forces with Beijing in the UN

Security Council to block international

action against the Syrian regime.

Tensions were further fuelled recently

by an EU antitrust...

Israel to act if threatenedby Syrias chemical armsIsrael forced to consider military

action in Syria: Israel today report


6/32


Oscar-winning director KathrynBigelows Osama Bin Ladenlm, Zero Dark Thirty, hasbeen delayed for release untilDecember 2012, until after theUS Presidential election.Hollywood studios fear three newlms depicting the mission to killOsama bin Laden could incite terrorattacks. It follows violent protestsover the crudely-made videoInnocence of Muslims. At least one

studio has asked an Islamic cleric tovet their lm. And senior executivesat another have held brieng sessions

with Department of State ofcialsin Washington. One movie-makersaid: We are even asking if we darerelease anything on this subject.The movie sparked controversy due

to its release in the run up to theNovember election, with Republicansfearing that the movie would give

President Obama a political boost ashe bids for a second term.Speaking to BBC Radio 4, John Horn

from the LA Times said that someon the right of US politics also hadconcerns over the access lm makers

were granted to secret les.Horn said: Initially the lm wasscheduled to open in October, right

before the Presidential election, andthere was outrage on two different

fronts, one for the access that thelm makers were granted and two byRepublicans who felt that this wouldkind of glorify the Presidents raid onOsama Bin Laden.However Horn added that the delay

was likely to be due to the movie

not being ready in time, saying:The release has been postponed toDecember, I think less so becauseof the election but because the lmmakers werent ready in time.Bigelows 2008 movie The HurtLocker, set during the Iraq War,garnered critical praise and won aBest Picture Oscar. Her new lm

will show the events of the raid thatkilled Bin Laden in his Pakistanicompound in 2011.Zero Dark Thirty is due to hit UKscreens in January. Code NameGeronimo is out next month inBrazil and a lm based on the bookof a Navy Seal on the raid is being

considered by Steven Spielberg.

Osama Bin Laden Film Delayed Over ElectionFears or could incite terror attacks?

was transferred after the attack onher home in Harlow.Her father, Dr Abdul Shakoor, wasthe only other survivor. He sufferedfrom smoke inhalation and shock. Dr

Abdul Shakoor fought in appallingconditions to save his wife and fourchildren who died in a blaze in Essexearly yesterday that might have been

started by an arsonist plaguing thearea, police said.

A spokesman for Princess AlexandraHospital, where Dr Shakoor worked,said he had also been transferred toBroomeld Hospital.He added: Dr Shakoor wanted to becloser to his only surviving daughter

who is still in a critical condition.Dr Shakoor thanked staff for thekindness and support that they haveshowed him.Consultant Dr Purnami Da Silva,

who worked with Dr Shakoor in theendocrinology department, said: Imet him yesterday and as you wouldexpect he is inconsolable.

Its a very difcult time for a fatherwhose family has been taken away.His wife Sabah Usmani, sonsSohaib, 11, and Rayan, six, and 12-

year-old daughter Hira, died intheir end-of-terrace house in BarnMead, Harlow, in the early hours ofMonday. A third son, Muneeb, nine,later died at the Princess Alexandrahospital, where Dr Shakoor workedand was also being treated untillate last night. Police have not said

which of the children he was able to

bring outside.According to neighbours, Dr Shakoorhad to be physically restrained fromgoing back inside the property andpolice have said he fought hard tosave his family.

Police, who have started a

painstaking forensic examinationof the house, are now investigatingwhether the family were not theintended targets of the attackers.But they stressed it was an

isolated incident and there wasno evidence that a serial arsonistwas involved. There had been noprevious problems with racism inthe area.Dr Shakoor, who reportedly leftfrom a rst-oor window as ames

engulfed the house, is said to be insevere shock.Witness reports suggest betweenone and four people were in thearea at the time of the re. Such

sightings will form key lines ofinquiry, police said.A silver Ford Focus was foundburning a short distance from thehouse when re crews arrived atthe address.The vehicle was not connected

to the family but that re is alsobeing treated as arson.Among the ower tributes at thehouse, one message read: RIPlittle angels and your special

mummy xxx.Lesley Lynn, headteacher atAbbotsweld Primary Schoolwhere Sohaib, Rayan and Muneebstudied, said everybody had beenleft distraught by the horribletragedy.She said: They were intelligentand sociable with a good sense ofhumour, good at sports and muchloved by everyone.The Harlow Islamic Centre hasdescribed the family as much-liked and respected.Detective Superintendent RobVinson, who is leading theinvestigation, said the localcommunity could hold the answerto who was behind the attack.He said: Nobody expects such acatastrophic incident in their ownneighbourhood.Originally from Karachi, Pakistan,the couple had lived in SaudiArabia, where the children wereborn, for more than a decadebefore moving to the UK.Parvez Hamid, 43, and SaaAnwar, 38, said they had knownthe couple since they moved toHarlow and some of their childrenattended the nearby AbbotsweldPrimary School together.Mrs Anwar said: They were awonderful family. Their childrenwere best friends with our own.Neighbours raised the alarm afterbeing woken in the early hours. Itis thought some form of fuel mayhave been used to start the re.

Girl still critical after Harlow house re

An inquest is due to open thisafternoon into the deaths of a motherand four of her children in a Harlow

house re, believed to be arson.The inquest follows a post-mortemexamination into the deaths of SabahUsmani (44), and sons Sohaib (11),Muneeb (9), and Rayyan(6)anddaughter Hira(12) Shakoor.Father Dr Abdul Shakoor anddaughter Maheen (3) remain in

serious condition in hospital.An Essex Police spokesman saidthat preliminary results of the post-

mortems, will be released followingthe inquest, to open in Chelmsfordthis afternoon.

Yesterday police quelled rumourscirculating in the town that the res

were caused by arsonists targetingcars in the town.

Although lines of inquiry included

looking at previous incidents of arsoninvolving cars in the area, a policespokesman said, recent statistics

do not show that a spate has takenplace.A council in Essex is to open a bookof condolence so residents can paytheir respects to a family who died ina suspicious house re on Monday.Harlow Council will open the book atthe Civic Centre on Thursday.

Inquest to open into HarlowPakistani family re deaths

Continued from page 1 >>


7/32


The Organisation of Islamic Co-operation, a 57-member bloc ofcountries, has often proposeda UN resolution criminalisingthe defamation of religion.Turkish Prime Minister, RecepTayyip Erdogan, has said hewill raise the topic in New York

next week.Indonesias president Susilo

Bambang Yudhoyono is alsopledged to push for such aglobal law.Similar domestic blasphemylaws exist in large Muslimstates such as Indonesia, Iranand Pakistan.In the UK, Muslim leaders

have called on the governmentto look at religious hatred laws,

and suggested introducinga blasphemy law tailored toBritain.On Sunday 7,000 Muslimsdemonstrated outside the USEmbassy in London, organisedby the Muslim Action Forum,which was set up specically

to respond to the lm andsubsequent events.

Muslims Call For Blasphemy Law In UK And UN ToPrevent Repeat Of Anti-Mohammed YouTube Film

Thousands of Muslims have helda demonstration outside Googleheadquarters in London to protestYouTubes refusal to remove a hatefuland offensive US lm against ProphetMohammad (PBUH).The 10,000-strong rally organizedby Muslim Action Forum was heldto force Google to remove thesacrilegious movie from YouTubevideo-sharing website.Our next protest will be at the ofces ofGoogle and YouTube across the world.We are looking to ban this lm, organizer

Masoud Alam said.This is not freedom of expression,

there is a limit for that. This insult of theProphet will not be allowed, he added.

The Muslim Action Forum said up to10,000 people, including 800 imamsfrom mosques across Britain, joinedthe demo, which closed off one side of abusy road through Victoria on Sundayafternoon, but police put the number atabout 3,000.Muslim Action Forum, which wascreated in response to the release of theinsulting lm, says in its manifesto that itunreservedly condemns the preposterouslm vilifying Islam and desecrating thesanctity of the Holy Prophet Mohammad(PBUH) and calls for a Campaign forGlobal Civility in response to the video.The protesters outside Googleheadquarters carried placards readingCampaign for Global Civility and Dontthey teach manners in Google in linewith the groups manifesto.The rally that was the third of its kind in amonth comes ahead of a planned millions-strong march againt the sacrilegious lmin Hyde Park, central London, in thecoming weeks.The Metropolitan Police said there wereno arrests at the protest.

Thousands of Muslims protest US-lm in London UK


8/32

DAVID Cameron and Alex Salmondhave signed a historic deal to ensureScots make a decisive and respectedcall on whether to create a country

independent from the rest of theUnited Kingdom in two years time.

Seventeen months after the SNPslandslide victory in the 2011 Holyrood

elections, the First Minister andPrime Minister yesterday put theirnames to an agreement to ensureScots make an irrevocable vote onthe countrys future in the autumnof 2014.Both London and Edinburgh are nowcommitted to respecting whicheverdecision the voters take, even if eitherside wins by a wafer-thin majority.The agreement declared thereferendum will now deliver a resultthat everyone will respect. It alsocommitted both UK and Scottishgovernments to work together

constructively in the light of theoutcome, whatever it is, in the bestinterests of the people of Scotlandand of the rest of the UnitedKingdom.Mr Salmond said the deal paves the

way for the most important decisionour country of Scotland has made inseveral hundred years.Mr Cameron said: This is the right

decision for Scotland, but its alsoright for the United Kingdom that

there is going to be one, simple,straightforward question about

whether Scotland wants to stay inthe United Kingdom or separateitself, and that referendum has to beheld before the end of 2014.He added: I always wanted to showrespect to the people of Scotland they voted for a party that wanted tohave a referendum, Ive made thatreferendum possible and made surethat it is decisive, it is legal and it isfair.The end of the agreement declares:The two governments arecommitted to continue to worktogether constructively in the light

of the outcome, whatever it is, inthe best interests of the people ofScotland and of the rest of the UnitedKingdom.Mr Salmond said this was mostsignicant, showing the two

governments would, in the eventof a Yes, work in the delivery ofindependence.Scotland would raise around two

thirds of all the money it spends,under proposals due to be unveiled

by the Scottish Liberal Democrats.The plan is contained in the partys

blueprint for home rule which hasbeen obtained by BBC Scotland.The Lib Dems hope other parties

will adopt the proposals if voters

reject independence in the 2014referendum.It proposes, however, that the Actof Union between England and

Scotland should be scrapped.The radical plans are among 56

recommendations made by acommission chaired by former party

leader Sir Menzies Campbell.The commissions report is due to bereleased on Wednesday.

A leaked copy suggests allowing the

Scottish Parliament to collect almostall income tax, capital gains tax,inheritance tax and air passengerduty - but not VAT, alcohol or excise

duties.It also proposes the UK adopting afederal system, which would create

a series of regional and nationalparliaments and assemblies acrossthe United Kingdom, with a federalgovernment retaining powers overforeign affairs, defence, currency,

welfare and pensions.The report acknowledges thatdifferent parts of the UK may wishto move at different speeds towardsfederalism, adding: The move tohome rule status for Scotland, in

which it enjoys a federal relationshipwith the rest of the United Kingdom,is a rst stage that can proceed ahead

of the rest.In his introduction to the report, Sir

Menzies said it was his rm beliefthat the proposals were in the bestinterests of every part of the UK - not

just Scotland.

Scottish independence: An historicday as referendum deal is signed


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Saudi Arabia has announcedthat the Islamic hajj pilgrimage,which attracts aroun d 3 millio nMuslims worldwide each year,will begin o n Thursda y, Oct. 25 .The kingdoms High Court, comprisedof religious scholars who serve as

judges, announced Tuesday that Eidal-Adha celebrations coinciding withthe pilgrimage will start on Oct. 26.

Hajj is among the ve pillars of Islam

and is required of all able-bodied

Muslims at least once in their lifetime.Already some 1.4 million people from160 countries have arrived in theholy city of Mecca in Saudi Arabiafor hajj, which according to Islamtraces the steps of prophets such asMuhammad (PBUH), Abraham andIshmael.Hajj is a spiritual experience aimedat fostering closeness to God, the

cleansing of sins and a sense of unity

and equality among Muslims.

Hajj pilgrimage to startOct. 25: Saudi Arabia


9/32


Chief of banned Tehreek-i-Taliban

Pakistan (TTP) Hakimullah Mehsudhas issued special directions to hissubordinate terrorists located indifferent cities of Pakistan to targetnational and international mediaorganisations, BBC Urdu reported.

A responsible ofcial of the interiorministry told BBC Urdu on conditionof anonymity that intelligenceagencies have intercepted thetelephonic conversation ofHakeemullah Mehsud with one ofhis sub-ordinate Nadeem Abbasalias Intiqami in which Mehsud

was directing Abbas to attack mediaorganisations.Mehsud directed his subordinate

to target the ofces of media

organisations in Karachi, Lahore,Rawalpindi, Islamabad and in othercities of the country especially thosemedia organisations and mediapersonalities who were denouncing

TTP after attack on child activist

Malala Yousufzai.Interior Ministry has issued ordersto beef up the security near theofces of media organisations inthe country after tracing Mehsuds

call, the ofcial informed.

Malala, a National Peace Award

winner and young Pakistani rightsactivist, along with three otherschoolmates sustained bulletinjuries when some unknownassailants opened re on theirschool van in Mingora early in theday.TTP had accepted the responsibilityof the attack on Malala Yousufzai onOct 9 and justied the attack withtheir interpretation of the Sharia(Islamic law).Interior Ministry has also issueddirections to the religious scholars,

who had publicly denounced theTaliban, to be cautious, the ofcialinformed.

The government has issued

directions to the authorities to

deploy additional police troopsin the areas where media ofcesare located and help of FrontierConstabulary (FC) could also besought if needed, the interiorministry ofcial added.Moreover, the ofcial said that ChiefCommissioner Islamabad and chiefsecretaries of the four provinceshave been directed to hold meetings

with media owners and addresstheir security concerns.Earlier today, a spokesman for theSwat Taliban has threatened to killMalalas father Ziauddin Yousufzaiafter a failed attempt to assassinatehis daughter, said a report by

Reuters.

Taliban to target media organisations on Malala coverage

Taliban insurgents said on Tuesdaythat the Pakistani schoolgirl itsgunmen shot in the head deservedto die because she had spoken out

against the group and praised USPresident Barack Obama.Malala Yousafzai, 14, was own toBritain on Monday, where doctorssaid she has every chance of makinga good recovery.The attack on Malala, who had beenadvocating education for girls, drew

widespread condemnation.Authorities have said they havemade several arrests in connection

with the case but have given nodetails.Pakistans Taliban described

Yousufzai as a spy of the West.For this espionage, indels gaveher awards and rewards. And Islam

orders killing of those who arespying for enemies, the group saidin a statement.She used to propagate againstmujahideen (holy warriors) todefame (the) Taliban. The HolyQuran says that people propagatingagainst Islam and Islamic forces

would be killed.We targeted her because she wouldspeak against the Taliban whilesitting with shameless strangers

and idealized the biggest enemy ofIslam, Barack Obama.

Yousufzai, a cheerful schoolgirlwho had wanted to become a

doctor before agreeing to herfathers wishes that she strive to bea politician, has become a potentsymbol of resistance against theTalibans efforts to deprive girls ofan education.We did not attack her for raising

voice for education. We targetedher for opposing mujahideen andtheir war, said the Taliban.Shariah (Islamic law) says thateven a child can be killed if he ispropagating against Islam.Pakistan Government hasannounced that Sitara-e-Shujaat

will be awarded to 14-year-oldMalala Yousafzai who was shot by

the Taliban for speaking againstthem, report.Pakistani Minister Rehman Malik

was in Swat where he visited Malalasschool and announced the awardfor her. He also visited the othertwo girls injured in the incidentand awarded them money. He alsopromised them compensation.The minister, speaking at the school,said that Malala was a symbol of

bravery.

Sitara-e-Shujaat for Malala

Taliban says its attackon Malala justied

Pakistan has arranged with theUAE for a specially equipped airambulance which was used totransfer Malala to the BirminghamUK. In order to provide continuityof care, an army intensive carespecialist was accompanied Malalaon her ight.

In a statement, the Pakistaniarmy said: The panel of doctorsrecommended that Malala beshifted abroad to a UK centre

which has the capability to provideintegrated care to children whohave sustained severe injury. Allexpenses including transportationof Malala by specially equipped airambulance and treatment abroad

will be borne by the governmentof Pakistan.The attack has succeeded inuniting Pakistan in a wave ofcondemnation. Authorities haveoffered a reward of 70,000 forthe capture of the gunmen.Dr Dave Rosser, medical directorat Queen Elizabeth Hospital, saidsome of his colleagues were out

in Pakistan when Malala was shotand was one of the reasons thehospital got involved.The hospital is the receiving centre

for British military casualties sohas a range of specialist staff andfacilities.Saying that it was likely Malala

would be treated for monthsrather than weeks, Dr Rosseradded: We do unfortunately

have very extensive experience ofdealing with thissort of traumatic bullet relatedinjury...our experience with battlecasualties, and you can deal withher as a battle casualty from aphysiological point of view, isthat patients need lots of differentspecialities.Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan(TTP), the militant group that hassaid it shot her, has threatenedto attempt to kill her again if sherecovers.Two people have been questioned

by police after they turned up ata hospital wanting to see Malala

Yousafzai, West Midlands policedescribed the visitors who turnedup at the hospital as well-wishers.

A spokeswoman said: They werestopped in a public area of thehospital and questioned by police,

who recorded their details andadvised the pair that they wouldnot be allowed to see her. Noarrests were made and at no point

was there any threat to Malala.

Malala to the Birmingham Hospital


10/32

NEWS South Asia Tribune I Thursday 18 October 201210

Mrs May shook hands with NasirButt when she greeted him privatelyat the Home Ofce unaware thathe was on the run from his nativePakistan the Sun reported .Butt, 48, was waved throughWestminster security without ANYvetting or checks.Ofcials launched a probe lastnight and admitted a veryunhappy Mrs May had demandedanswers about this cock-up.Butt managed to slip into the heartof government with two ofcialPakistani delegates who were on aprearranged private visit.

He was NOT on the approvedvisitor list, was ushered throughWestminster security with NO

checks and did NOT undergothe rigorous vetting faced byanyone meeting a senior Cabinetminister.

Butt who ed Pakistan in1996 after being named over themurder of two brothers joinedMrs May for photos. He beamed as she was presented

with a shawl by Shahbaz Sharif,

Chief Minister of Punjab anda senior gure in the PakistanMuslim League.Zubair Gull, President of thePMLs UK arm, was the otherguest. They discussed educationand Mrs Mays planned trip toPakistan.Butt, granted asylum after comingto the UK on a visitor visa, runs adry cleaners and furniture store inGreenford, Middlesex.A Home Ofce spokesman saidlast night: We were not told inadvance that this individual waspart of the delegation and he was

not invited by the Home Secretary.We are investigatingfurther.A Sun source close to theprobe said: There are a lotof red faces. Theresa May hitthe roof when she was told.This is a serious cock-up.Father-of-two Butt is saidto have been condemned todeath by a Rawalpindi courtin his absence.He said he was ofciallydeclared a fugitive becausehe was wrongly suspectedof killing the men inrevenge for the murder of

his brother.Butt, who says he is seniorvice president of the PML

in the UK, said: I need to go toPakistan to clear myself.

Killer in the Home Ofce : The SunMan accused of double murder gets to Theresa May

A DOUBLE-MURDER suspect was allowed to meet HomeSecretary Theresa May in a shocking security shambles.

Five Royal Marines are charged with murderin relation to an incident in Afghanistan in2011, the Ministry of Defence said.Seven marines were arrested on Thursday,and the MoD said Royal Military Police

(RMP) had arrested two more marines onsuspicion of murder, one on Friday and theother yesterday, taking the total number ofarrests to nine.Four have since been released without charge,pending further inquiries.

A statement from the MoD said: The RMPhas referred the cases of the remaining veRoyal Marines to the independent ServiceProsecuting Authority (SPA).Following direction from the SPA thesemarines have now been charged with murderand they remain in custody pending courtproceedings.The soldiers were arrested in connection

with an incident which occurred while theywere based in Helmand last year.

The incident has been described as an

engagement with an insurgent, with nocivilians involved.

Rules of engagementThe rules of engagement, largely derived fromthe Geneva Convention, dictate under what

circumstances British troops are allowed to

open re, whether that is to prevent an attackby the enemy or in direct contact.The arrests are thought to be the rst timeUK servicemen have been held on suspicionof such charges during the conict in

Afghanistan.

A Territorial Army soldier was investigated

by military ofcials after shooting dead asuspected Taliban bomber in the Nahr-e-Saraj area of central Helmand in the summerof 2010.Senior ofcers believed the man may have

been an innocent farmer. But after an 18-

month inquiry no charges were broughtagainst Fusilier Duane Knott, who said hehad no regrets over his action.Defence Secretary Philip Hammond said he

was determined that the rules of engagementwere followed in Afghanistan.He told the BBCs Andrew Marr Show:Everybody serving in theatre knows therules of engagement, they carry cards in theiruniforms with the rules on them in case theyshould need to remind themselves.I cant comment on the specics of thiscase.We are very determined that rules ofengagement will be followed, that anyabuse will be dealt with through the normalprocesses of service justice and that is

happening now.

Five British Royal Marines charged with murder

Nasir Mehmood Butt Senior Vice President Pakistan Muslim League UK

Fugitive ... Nasir Butt with Suns Stephen Moyes


11/32

11NEWSSouth Asia Tribune I Thursday 18 October 2012

THE Vatican has distanced itself from a row overMuslims in Europe triggered by the showing at asynod of a video that claims Europe as we know itwill cease to exist.Cardinal Peter Turkson, the president of theVaticans council for justice and peace - and seenas a possible future pope - played the video in adiscussion period on Saturday during a synodattended by 262 bishops from across the world.Titled Muslim Demographics, and viewed morethan 13 million times on YouTube since its releasein 2009, the seven-minute video claims Muslimimmigration and higher birth rates mean Francewill become an Islamic republic within 39 years.

But many of the statistics used have been shown tobe false or unproven, including a claim that FrenchMuslim families have 8.1 children on average, andthat 25 per cent of Belgians are Muslims - thetrue gure is 6 per cent. A German governmentofcial is falsely quoted as saying Germany will bea Muslim state by 2050.Yesterday a Vatican spokesman, Father FedericoLombardi, sought to distance the Holy See fromthe video, saying: This video does not express theview of the synod or the Vatican. Turkson has saidhe is sorry if the video was wrongly interpretedsince he did not intend it to be anti-Muslim, merelya comment on the nihilism in Western society.Bishops who watched the video were reportedlyshocked by its content. I think it would be fairto say that several in the room questioned the

veracity of the facts followed by Who can this be

attributed to? and Who actually wanted this lmto be shown? said Father Thomas Rosica duringa press brieng.Vatican radio was more critical, calling the videofearmongering, adding: Why one of the curial

cardinals chose to show this piece of anti-Islamicpropaganda is quite unclear.Pope Benedict has stressed the importance ofdefending Europes Christian identity, but hehas also promoted dialogue with Muslims, mostrecently during his visit to Lebanon last month.Last week he read out a greeting in Arabic for therst time during his weekly general audience.Cardinal Turkson, who is from Ghana, has saidpreviously that theological dialogue with Muslimsis impossible. Known for his strong views, thecardinal proposed the creation of a global bankafter the global economic crisis began in 2008.One bishop at the synod asked about the video wasless critical, telling the US weekly National CatholicReporter: At least it got us talking about somethingmore important than what order conrmation and

rst communion ought to be in.

Holy See rebukes anti-Islam video

The pace of price rises in the UK slowed inSeptember, pushing the ination rate down toits lowest level for nearly three years.The Consumer Prices Index (CPI) measure ofination stood at 2.2%, down from 2.5% in

August.UK ination fell to its lowest in almost three

years in September, easing the pressure oncash-strapped consumers. But there was asting in the tail for people on benets, as last

months ination numbers will be used to setpayouts.The Ofce for National Statistics (ONS) said

consumer price ination eased to 2.2% inSeptember, the lowest since November 2009.That compares with a rate of 2.5% in Augustand is in line with economists forecasts.Ination as measured by the retail prices index(RPI), which includes some housing and tax

costs, dropped from 2.9% to 2.6%.The pound fell to a one-month low versus the

euro after data showed U.K. ination slowedto the least in almost three years last month,

boosting speculation the Bank of Englandwill add more stimulus to the economy.Septembers consumer price reading wasthe lowest since November 2009, the Ofcefor National Statistics said in London andmatched the median forecast of 37 economistsin a Bloomberg News survey.Tuesdays data will provide George Osborne

with a rare piece of good news, as next yearsbenets bill could come in lower than forecastas a result. The Ofce for Budget Responsibili ty,

whose forecasts are used by the Treasury,

expected Septembers CPI [consumer pricesindex] to be 2.6%. Under that estimate, the

benet bill for next year stood at 183bn.

UK ination rate slows to2.2% in September, ONS says

Speculation the Bank of England will add more stimulus to the economy.

The Senate witnessed stormyscenes when Faisal Raza Abidi ofthe Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP)Thursday sought refuge of hiscolleagues, after law enforcementagencies started a probe into hiscontroversial conduct against theSupreme Court.Speaking on a point of orderSenator Zahid Khan of the AwamiNational Party (ANP) came downhard on the judiciary, saying it hadruled that criticism on judges inthe media was not allowed, whilethere was no respect for membersof parliament. Judges, he said,were making all out efforts to keeptheir own prestige intact, addingthat parliamentarians were beingtormented for speaking the truth.

If they [judges] dont want usto comment, they should banthe media from covering theproceedings of the courts...it isour job to comment after seeingtickers on TV screens, he said.Interior Minister Rehman Malikrejected Abidis allegations thatFIA was torturing him, sayingthat an inquiry had been launchedagainst him on the directives ofthe Supreme Court followinghis interviews on various TVchannels.He [Abidi] is an honorablecolleague and nobody tortureshim. The inquiry is being doneby FIA after the registrar of theSupreme Court wrote a letter toFIA on behalf of the Chief Justice

of Pakistan, he said. This wasnot enough to satisfy the enragedsenator, who accused judges of theapex court of imposing a judicialmartial law. About a text message

allegedly circulated by the senatoragainst the family of the ChiefJustice of the Supreme Court, hesaid he had nothing to do with theSMS.The rebrand PPP senator, FaisalRaza Abidi, thundered: Accusingapex courts judges is legal...Weshould not remain silent over the

Islamabad High Courts (IHC)verdict...they dont allow anyoneto say anything against them. Aremembers of parliament inferior tothese judges? he questioned. He saidthat he was ready to prove allegationshe had levelled against Chief Justice

Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhary.He demanded the chair to givehim an opportunity on Mondayor Tuesday so that he could sharethe proof against the judiciary with

the house. Criticising the chiefjustice for his sons involvement inalleged corruption, Abidi impliedthat he believed the JusticeChaudhary himself was involvedin the corruption.The judge who took suo motuaction on two bottles of whiskyand that too under pressure of a

heavyweight cleric was incapableof dispensation of justice, he said.The personality of the CJP isnot of the sort who could deliverjustice, he alleged. Declaring hiscontroversial press conferencesagainst the apex court legal, he

alleged that it was Chief JusticeIftikhar Muhammad Chaudhary,who, in a meeting of the SupremeJudicial Council in 2005, haddeclared that allegations could be

levelled against the judges.Senior PPP leaders, includingInterior Minister RehmanMalik were not supportive oftheir protesting colleague. Thisprompted Abidi to stand up fromhis seat and sit on the oor in frontof the chairman Senate in protest.

At one stage, the senator even

threatened to shoot himself publiclyon November 10 if his voice wasnot heard by senators. Ill shootmyself in the head for which you

will be responsible or give me anopportunity so that I could shareproof against judges, he said.

Faisal Raza Abidi stirs a storm in SenateReady to prove allegations he had levelled against Chief Justice


12/32


We could not convince them, saidthe Turkish head of the 57-memberorganisation which had tried from1998 until 2011 to get a UnitedNations-backed ban on blasphemy.The European countries dont vote

with us, the United States doesntvote with us.Western countries see the

publication of such images andmaterials as a matter of freespeech.The posting of an amateurish US-made video portraying the ProphetMohammad (pbuh) as a foolish

womaniser and the publication ofcaricatures of him in France lastmonth led to violent protests andrenewed calls from the Muslim

world for a global law againstblasphemy.The protests claimed some twodozen lives.Ihsanoglu told a conference inIstanbul at the weekend that theOIC had failed to win a ban at the

United Nations and would not

revive its long diplomatic campaignfor one.

Asked about recent media reportsthat the OIC wanted to resume thecampaign for a blasphemy ban, hesaid: I never said this and I knowthis will never happen.The OIC respects freedom ofexpression but sees anti-Islam

videos and cartoons as an abuse of

this freedom that Western countriesshould sanction through their own

blasphemy or hate crime laws, hesaid.

Long diplomatic struggleIhsanoglus statement claried theOIC stand at a time when Muslimreligious leaders have steppedup demands for an international

blasphemy law and politicians haveaccused Western states of spreadinganti-Muslim hatred under theprotection of their free-speech laws.Starting in 1998, the 57-nationOIC won majorities in UN rights

bodies and at the UN General

Assembly every year for non-

binding resolutions on combatingdefamation of religions that

Western states opposed as potentialthreats to free speech.But support for these texts steadilyfell to just over 50 per cent by 2010,

because of strong Western andgrowing Latin American opposition,and the OIC opted for a weakerresolution against intolerance

towards all religions last year.That more general resolution,drawn up with the United Statesand the European Union, passedunanimously.The long dispute highlighteddiffering views of free speech in

Western and Muslim countries.Ihsanoglu said Western states hada strange understanding of freespeech if it could be abused to hurtand insult others.Responding at the UnitedNations last month to the Muslimprotests against the US-made

video Innocence of Muslimsparodying Prophet Mohammad

(pbuh), President Barack Obama

condemned the lm but staunchlydefended free speech.The strongest weapon againsthateful speech is not repression,it is more speech the voices oftolerance that rally against bigotryand blasphemy, he said.Explaining his decision not topursue a world ban, Ihsanoglu saidthe 1966 International Covenant on

Civil and Political Rights and a non-binding 2011 UN General Assemblyresolution against religiousintolerance provided a sufcient

basis for UN member states to takelegal action.We have enough law and we needto implement these laws, he said.

Pakistans negative exampleMuslim politicians have stepped uptheir denunciations of Western freespeech policies following the videoand cartoons lampooning ProphetMohammad (pbuh). Muslimsconsider any criticism of him ashighly offensive and beyond free

speech protection.

We cannot accept insults to Islamunder the guise of freedom ofthought, Turkish Prime MinisterTayyip Erdogan told the Istanbulconference.We Muslims want the same respectshown to Jewish culture, which wesupport, Turkish Foreign Minister

Ahmet Davutoglu said.But while editorialists and religious

leaders have renewed calls for aworldwide blasphemy ban, fewnational leaders have actually endedtheir rhetorical reactions with thatdemand.One who did at the United Nationslast month was President Asif AliZardari of Pakistan, whose ownnational blasphemy law has comeunder increasing criticism at homeand abroad as open to widespreadabuse against minority Christians.Ihsanoglu, speaking at the conferenceon a panel with Pakistani politicalleader Imran Khan, encouragedcountries with blasphemy laws toapply against insults to Islam, and

then quickly added: not particularly

Wests free speech stand bars blasphemy ban: OIC

He said :That this House expresses its concern at the

involvement of a very senior ofcer in the

Metropolitan Police Counter-Terrorism branch

SO15 in an apparent dirty tricks operation against

the hon. Member for Bradford West; notes that

the ofcer, Az Khan, entered the hon. Members

London home without his knowledge or consent,

the hon. Member never having met or heard of

him, and he slept in the hon. Members home;

further notes that Az Khan sent emails to an

individual in the hon. Members ofcewho acted

as his agent; further notes he co-ordinated this

operation from his police email account and from

at least two other fake email accounts, duping,

amongst others, the Guardian newspaper as to his

true identity; further notes that he operated under

an alias against the hon. Member on Facebook and

elsewhere, all the while concealing that he was

a senior serving police ofcer at Scotland Yard;

and asks the Home Secretary to make an urgent

statement to Parliament on these matters.

Galloway demands HomeSecretary investigationBRADFORD West MP George Galloway called

on Home Secretary Theresa May to investigate

a dirty tricks campaign involving a senior

Metropolitan police counter-terrorism ofcer and

a member of his staff.

A very senior ofcer in SO15 has been feeding

disinformation aimed at damaging me to a

national newspaper and to others, aided by a

member of staff in Bradford who has now been

suspended, Galloway said. This involved him

using the Met email as well as creating at least

two false email addresses to spread the deceit. I

have incontrovertible evidence. He either did this

a freelance or it was sanctioned by his superiors.

I have today asked the Home Secretary Theresa

May to act on this and I have also written to the

Met police commissioner Bernard Hogan-Howe

and to the Speaker of the House of Commons.

The letter to Theresa May is below withthe names redacted.

Dear Home Secretary,

I am writing to you to ask you to investigate thebehaviour of a senior member of the Metropolitanpolices counter-terrorism squad SO15 who, Ibelieve, has been carrying out a campaign ofvilication a dirty tricks operation - against me inmy constituency using police facilities and resources.I would also like to know whether this unwarranted

intrusion was sanctioned by the Commissioner orother senior SO15 ofcers.The ofcers name is xxxxx. It is my understandingthat his role is to investigate and report on radicalMuslim groups. But perhaps you can clarify hisremit precisely?My rst contact with xxxxx came on the day of aburglary at my home in Streatham in June. He wasintroduced to me by my then parliamentary assistantxxxxx. It is my understanding that the two had had,and were having, a relationship. She brought himto the house as a security adviser who could giveadvice on how to make the house more secure afterthe local ofcers investigating the break-in had left.However, within hours of that I learned that he andxxxxx had been sleeping in my house, and withoutpermission, while I was abroad. This came outbecause he had to tell the ofcers investigating theburglary that his ngerprints would be found in thehouse. I asked the local ofcers informally to reporton this to his bosses. I heard no more and neitherhave I heard any more about the burglary. I should,of course, have dismissed xxxxx but foolishly I gaveher a second chance.I have now discovered that she has been leakingand distorting information from within my ofceand handing it on to xxxxx who, apart from usinghis Met police email address, has set up at l east twoothers to pump out false information to nationalnewspapers.For instance, on October 1 from his address([email protected]) he sent an email to her([email protected]) which included this: I think

there was an election fraud. I found out the printerof the election voting cards is a member of respect.the postman for the postal votes was also a member

of respect party. And nally there was a rush of newvoters with the name of Ali. There were 450 votersapparently all staying at the midland. And nallythe gypsies came in to support GG via the Westeldsite.Now apart from this being utter tosh you willrecall my majority was more than 10,000 andthere has, to my knowledge, been no enquiry intovoting irregularities in the by-election it is ablatant attempt to set a pernicious lie running inan attempt to blacken me in my constituency andin parliament.Again, on October 3, he emailed her from his Metaddress with an extensive email on tactics sheshould employ and which defamed several membersof staff and volunteers. I can supply a copy of bothof these emails.Going on from that he, with the encouragement ofhis accomplice, my employee, set up at least twofalse email accounts so that they could pass onrumour, disinformation and downright lies to theGuardian reporter Helen Pidd. I presume she wasunaware that Nabeel Raja was xxxxx and that hewas in a conspiracy with xxxxx.I have now suspended xxxxx pending dismiss al.I think you will agree that the behaviour of this seniorofcer in carrying out this dirty tricks campaigngoes well beyond his role in counter-terrorism andis a direct attack on not just me but on democracy. Iwill be writing separately to the Metropolitan policecommissioner and to the Speaker but as xxxxx isultimately responsible to you (and parliament) Iwould ask you to look into this and let me know the

result of your investigation.Yours sincerely,George Galloway MP

George Galloway Submitted a motionon against senior police ofcer Az KhanIn his early day motion George Galloway MP said about the

CONDUCT OF AFIZ KHAN, A SENIOR METROPOLITAN POLICE

OFFICER IN THE COUNTER-TERRORISM BRANCH S015

Continued from page 1 >>


13/32

NEWS 13Saarc international I Thursday 18 October 2012

Tuesday, 13th November, 2012Cultural Activities Centre (C.A.C),International Islamic University Malaysia

Asias economic powers ,including major oil exportersand importers, opened their rstsummit of the Asia Cooperation

Dialogue (ACD) Tuesday, aimedat promoting cooperation anddialogue in a range of issuesincluding food security, energy,nancing and technology.

The two-day summit of the 32-member ACD is also expectedto focus on ways to reinvigorateand sustain regional cooperationto protect the member nationsagainst the festering globaleconomic crisis, organizerssaid.

Initiated by Thailand in2002, the ACD summit broughttogether leaders, foreignministers and senior ofcials

from Asias major economies --South Korea, China, Japan andIndia -- as well as leading oil

producers such as Saudi Arabia,Kuwait and the United ArabEmirates and Qatar, in addition

to Iran and Russia.Iranian President Mahmoud

Ahmadin ejad, Sri LankanPresident Mahinda Rajapaksaand Thai Prime MinisterYingluck Shinawatra wereamong leaders attending.

The Sri Lankan delegation tothe Summit included MinistersSusil Premjayanth, and ProfessorG.L.Peiris, Parliamentarians

Sajin Vas Gunawardene andA.H.M.A zwer, and Presiden tsSecretary Lalith Weeratunge.

A whole decade has passedon our annual consultation anddialogues, during which, ourgenuine desire to cooperate anddevelop our joint action wasembodied in order to promoteour dialogue into a mechanismbenecial to our peoples

prosperity and welfare, KuwaitsDeputy Premier Sheikh SabahKhaled Al-Sabah told reporters.

Our Asian continent is the

largest and most populated,Al-Sabah said, urging the ACDmembers to reinvigoratejoint efforts toward s morecoordination and consultation.

Thai Foreign MinisterSurapong Tovichakchaikul said,amid the global economic crisis,Asian nations shou ld maintain astable and peaceful environmentto foster better relations withinthe region.

Since the 2008 global crisis,economic growth around theglobe has been fragile amid thedeepening debt crisis in Europe,a weakening growth in the U.S.

and a cooling Chinese economy.Such uncertainties have forcedAsian countries to join han ds inghting against the impacts ofthe global economic malaise.

Last week, the InternationalMonetary Fund cut its 2012global economic growth forecastto 3.3 percent from its Julyoutlook of 3.5 percent.

Asian powers open rst summitof the Asia Cooperation Dialogue

Roaming services between the twocountries have been banned since 2004after Indian security agencies raised

concerns around misuse by anti-socialelements.The two Governments are in talks toremove all hurdles to enable operators tooffer roaming services according to senior

functionaries in the Ministry of Commerce.The Department of Telecom is backing theproposal but the Home Ministry is yet to

give clearance on the Indian side.Roaming services between the twocountries have been banned since 2004after Indian security agencies raisedconcerns around misuse by anti-socialelements. While terrorism was one of thebiggest issues, Indian agencies also raisedcricket betting as another reason to banroaming.

Monitoring agenciesBut now technology allows securityagencies to better monitor mobile users.Monitoring agencies will be able to trackspecic users if the need arises better if theuser is on a mobile network, said RajanMathews, Director General, CellularOperators Association of India.

Home Ministry has put in place stringent

monitoring laws in place wherein alltelecom operators are required to givetrafc details of specic users on a real

time basis. The security agencies aremonitoring about 10,000 phones and1,000 emails at any given point of time.Mathews, however, added that the movewill not have any signicant revenue

implications for operators. Roaming isanyway used by a small percentage of thetotal subscriber base and then there are

not too many people travelling betweenIndia and Pakistan to make a signicantaddition to the operators revenues, hesaid.Subscriber infoIf roaming is allowed, the two countrieswill have to put in place a mechanism toshare subscriber information for securitypurposes.For example, Indian security agencies

have repeatedly curbed services in Jammuand Kashmir and the North East wheneverthere is trouble. They can do so becausethe services in J&K are being controlledby Indian operators. The concern is that ifroaming services are permitted, Pakistanielements can sneak mobile connections

into Indian territory.

India, Pakistan in talks forallowing mobile roaming


14/32


It seems the universe has just gota little bit richer following thediscovery of a new planet whichscientists say is made largely out

of diamonds.The rocky planet called 55Cancri e orbits a sun-like star inthe constellation of Cancer andis twice the size of Earth.Time is said to move at hyper-speed on this gem-like planetso one year lasts just 18 hourscompared to Earths 365 days.Despite being 40 light yearsaway from earth, in dark skies55 Cancri es host star is clearlyvisible to the naked eye.Researchers believe the planetssurface is covered primarily incarbon in the form of graphiteand diamond rather than water

and granite like our planet.Marek Kukula, PublicAstronomer at the RoyalObservatory Greenwich toldChannel 4 News, Its a lovelyimage - diamonds in the sky- but theres not likely to be a

space mission to the mine thediamonds any time soon becauseit would probably take 10,000years to get there.Buried deep downThe planet is intensely hot,2,000 degrees Centigrade and

the diamonds are likely to beburied deep down. Wed end upspending all the diamonds onEarth in order to get there so its

not a way to get rich quick.In general mining in space isbeing talked about more andmore and is moving away frombeing something science-ctionto something that is moreserious. Asteroids are thought tohave precious metals and theyare relatively close to us in oursolar system.Although they are moving, ifwe could chase and catch one itis not far-fetched to think in thenext couple of decades this maybe tested.The study was led by researchersat Yale University who estimate

that at least one third of the 55Cancri es mass - the equivalentof about three earth masses -could be diamond.

Its the rst time astronomershave identied a diamond planetaround a sun-like star andspecied its chemical make-up.David Spergel, an astronomer atPrinceton University, said it wasrelatively simple to work out thebasic structure and history of astar once you know its mass andage.He said: Planets are muchmore complex. This diamond-rich super-Earth is likely justone example of the rich sets ofdiscoveries that await us as webegin to explore planets aroundnearby stars.

Like Diamonds? 55 Cancri Super-Earth Could Be A Girls Best Friend

A new planet thats a real diamond

The European Union is awarded theNobel Peace Prize for its role in creating acontinent of peace. But in the midst of the

worst economic crisis since the end of thewar, is the timing ironic?The European Union won the Nobel PeacePrize for its long-term role in uniting the

continent, the Norwegian Nobel committeesaid on Friday.The award will be seen as a morale boostfor the bloc as it struggles to resolve itsdebt crisis amid social unrest and revolt insouthern Europe.The committee praised the 27-nation EU forrebuilding after world war two and for its rolein spreading stability to former communistcountries after the 1989 fall of the Berlin Wall.The EU received the award for six decades ofcontributions to the advancement of peaceand reconciliation, democracy and humanrights in Europe, said the Nobel committeechairman Thorbjoern Jagland.The stabilising part played by the EuropeanUnion has helped to transform a once torn

Europe from a continent of war to a continentof peace.Deeply touchedThe president of the European parliament,Martin Schulz, said he was deeply touchedand honoured that the EU has won.Reconciliation is what the EU is about. Itcan serve as an inspiration, said Mr Schulzin a statement. The EU is a unique projectthat replaced war with peace, hate withsolidarity.It is a moment when a lot of people on thestreet are turning their backs on the EU,seeing it as the source of their problems,rather than the solution. Philip Whyte,Centre for European ReformThe EU was a surprise recipient of the

award, which is usually given to individuals

or groups working towards reconciliation.Favourite to win was Gene Sharp, the leadingpolitical theorist on non-violent revolution,

who inuenced the Arab Spring uprisings.The prize, worth $1.2m, will be presented inOslo on 10 December. The Nobel committeesaid it was up to the EU to decide which

country would receive the prize on behalf ofthe EU, and deliver the winners lecture. The

fact that Norway declined EU membershiptwice, and has since thrived, was notmentioned by the committee.History of reconciliationThe EU rose from the ashes of world wartwo, born of the conviction that closereconomic ties would ensure that war couldnever again be waged between century-oldenemies France and Germany. The idea

became more dened when, in 1950, French

foreign minister Robert Schuman proposed

that the two countries pool their coal andsteel resources in a new organisation - along

with founding members Belgium, Italy,Luxembourg and the Netherlands - thatother European countries could also join.The 1960s saw a period of economic growthfor the EU, and Denmark, Ireland and the UK

joined in 1973. A few years later Portugal andSpain became members after the collapse of

right wing dictatorships.The EU is now made up of 500 million peoplein 27 nations, with other nations lining upto join. The Nobel committee pointed tothe admission of Croatia next year and thepossibility of Serbias membership, as factorsthat helped strengthen reconciliation in theBalkans region.Ironic timingHowever in recent years the EU has been

ridden with social unrest and diplomatic

tension, following the debt crisis of theeurozone, particularly in Greece. Greekprotesters recently donned swastikas whenGerman Chancellor Angela Merkel visitedthe country this week, blaming Merkel forthe worsening economic situation in thecountry, while there has also been a rise in

extremism in the country and anger againstimmigrants.Philip Whyte, senior research fellow at theCentre for European Reform, said the timingof the award could be seen as ironic.Many EU countries have committed toausterity measures and stringent loanagreements, which they have very littlepower to resist and the terms of theeurozone bailout agreements could be seenas undermining democracy in southernEurope, Mr Whyte said.It is a moment when a lot of people on thestreet are turning their backs on the EU,seeing it as the source of their problems,rather than the solution, he told Channel 4News.

Reminder of alternativeThe statement released by the Nobelcommittee acknowledged the graveeconomic difc

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