Deadly bombing at Pakistan rally
September 3, 2010
At least 22 people have been killed in a large suicide blast in the southwestern Pakistani city of Quetta, police said. The bomber struck a rally of about 2,000 people who had gathered on Friday in support of a separate homeland for Palestinians. Four journalists were among those killed, and another 40 people were injured in the attack. A gunfight ensued, adding to the casualty figure. Source: Agencies Email Article Print Article Share Article Send Feedback Featured on Al Jazeera A history of talks and violence A timeline of the key moments in Israeli-Palestinian relations. Unveiling Fear & Prejudice Embracing the Cordoba Mosque Initiative could create a more…
Gaza militants vow new Israel attacks after peace talks
September 3, 2010
Militants in Gaza have vowed to step up attacks against Israel, following the first direct talks between Israeli and Palestinian…
Asylum seekers tortured upon return
September 3, 2010
By Karlis Salna 6:46 PM Friday Sep 3, 2010 Share Email Print Three asylum seekers forcibly removed to Sri Lanka in 2009 are believed to have been tortured and jailed following an attempt to return to Australia, says Amnesty International. The human rights group said today it held grave fears for the men who now risk further torture and abuse from guards and prisoners. The development comes amid warnings from the coalition that Australia faces a surge in asylum seeker traffic following a deal between Labor and the Australian Greens. Authorities on Friday morning intercepted asylum seeker boat carrying 59 passengers and two crew in waters north of Christmas Island – the seventh arrival since…
Manila begins hostage crisis probe
September 3, 2010
Authorities in the Philippines have begun a three-day inquiry into a botched hostage rescue operation in which eight Hong Kong tourists were killed in the capital, Manila. Leila de Lima, the Philippine justice secretary who is heading the probe, launched the proceedings on Friday, summoning Rico Puno, the country’s undersecretary of the department of interior. Puno, the highest ranking official being asked to testify so far, admitted to several mistakes that led to the tourists’ deaths during the 11-hour hostage standoff on August 23. He told the inquiry panel that he had not been prepared for the situation, which began when sacked Philippine policeman Rolando…
Hurricane Earl weakens as it nears US
September 2, 2010
HURRICANE Earl weakened today to a Category Two storm as it approached the US east coast but continued to wreck havoc on coastal communities as tourists fled potentially affected areas and events, including a Ke$ha concert, were cancelled. Rainbands moved on to the coast of North Carolina as Earl continued to move northward today at about 18 miles per hour (30kph), according to the National Hurricane Center (NHC). As of 8pm EDT the center of Earl was located about 160 miles (260km) south-southeast of Cape Hatteras. It was expected to pass near the Outer Banks barrier islands later later that night and approach southeastern New England Friday night local time….
Dozens killed in Mexico shootout
September 2, 2010
At least 25 people have been killed in clashes between soldiers and suspected drug gang members near the northern Mexican city of Monterrey, local media have reported. The soldiers stormed a training camp allegedly set up by the gang members in a northern border region which has seen an escalation of violence in recent months, including the massacre of 72 migrants last week. Thursday’s shootout occurred in the town of General Tervino, in Nuevo Leon state, the online edition of the El Universal daily reported on Thursday. It was unclear if there were military victims among 25 killed, a Defence Ministry spokesman told the paper. Officials blame a spate of…
Karzai slams Nato civilian killings
September 2, 2010
Afghan President Hamid Karzai has condemned an air strike by Nato-led forces which he said killed 10 election campaign workers, although US officials maintained it was aimed at an Islamist leader. Nato said its airstrike on a car in northern Takhar province’s normally quiet Rustaq district killed or wounded as many as 12 insurgents on Thursday, including a Taliban commander and a local head of an allied insurgent group, the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, responsible for attacks in Kabul and elsewhere. However Karzai said the airstrike had killed 10 campaigners working for a candidate in Afghanistan’s September 18 parliamentary elections. “The rationale for the airstrike still needs to be…
Hamas taking hard line over peace negotiations
September 2, 2010
Attacks on settlers will continue unless the rulers of Gaza can be accommodated, writes MICHAEL JANSEN� BY RESPONDING with violence to the resumption of Fatah-Israeli negotiations, Hamas, ruler of Gaza, is demonstrating that there can be no peace between the Palestinians and Israel unless Hamas is involved. Hamas’s military wing has so far staged two drive-by shootings in the West Bank, killing four settlers near the contested city of Hebron and wounding two near the Fatah-dominated Palestinian Authority’s administrative centre of Ramallah. Mahmoud Zahar, a leading Hamas figure in Gaza, said attacks and targeting of settlers would continue in the West Bank. The fact…
Pakistan gets IMF relief, tightens security
September 2, 2010
LAHORE, Pakistan (Reuters) – The International Monetary Fund will give Pakistan $450 million in emergency flood aid, providing some relief for a government overwhelmed by the disaster and facing renewed militant violence. Flood victims left without receiving aid for three days reach for food handouts donated by a group calling themselves Muslim brothers in Pakistan’s Muzaffargarh district of Punjab province September 2, 2010. (REUTERS/Damir Sagolj) IMF Managing Director Dominique Strauss-Kahn said in Washington on Thursday that the funds would be dispersed in “coming weeks”. Strauss-Kahn said discussions with a delegation led by Pakistan’s Finance Minister Abdul Hafeez…
Offshore Oil Platform in the Gulf of Mexico Explodes
September 2, 2010
NEW ORLEANS — An offshore oil rig exploded in the Gulf of Mexico on Thursday morning, injuring one worker, the United States Coast Guard said. The rig was located just west of where another rig leased by BP blew up and sank this spring, killing 11 people and touching off an environmental calamity. All 13 members of the work crew on board on Thursday were accounted for, the Coast Guard said. News reports said there was smoke rising from the platform, but it was unclear whether the rig was actively burning or in danger of foundering, or whether the explosion had set off any underground oil leaks. Several helicopters, airplanes and boats were speeding to the scene of the explosion, south…
