NEw SARS-likE viRUS EMERGES iN MidEASt - Kuwait Times

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By Abdellatif Sharaa 

DUBAI: In US-funded ads running on 

Pakistani TV, subtitled clips show 

President Barack Obama extolling 

America’s traditions of religious freedom. 

For many watching, though, the message 

misses the mark in efforts to calm 

the Islamic outrage over a film denigrating 

Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). 

America’s free speech laws and values of 

openness are not in question, but rather 

there is confusion and anger over how 

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2012 THULQADA 9, 1433 AH www.kuwaittimes.net 

in the 

news 

Brahimi sees no quick 

end to war in Syria 

UNITED NATIONS: UN-Arab League envoy Lakhdar 

Brahimi said yesterday he sees no immediate prospect 

for an end to the Syrian civil war. “There is no prospect for 

today or tomorrow to move forward,” Brahimi told 

reporters after briefing the UN Security Council on his 

recent talks with Syria’s President Bashar Al-Assad. 

Brahimi said he had told Assad and others in Syria that 

there had to be “change” but acknowledged that for the 

moment there was a “stalemate” and he had no full peace 

plan to offer. “There is no disagreement anywhere that 

the situation in Syria is extremely bad and getting worse, 

that it is a threat to the region and a threat to peace and 

security in the world,” Brahimi said. The envoy, who took 

over from Kofi Annan as international envoy on Sept 1, 

also appealed to the divided 15-nation Security Council 

for united backing for his efforts. “If I do not represent the 

entire council then I am nothing,” Brahimi said. 

iPhone 5 

sales top 

5 million in 

first weekend 

Mystery illness kills Saudi • Qatari man critically ill in UK 

Iran tests home-built 

anti-aircraft system 

TEHRAN: Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said it test fired 

yesterday medium-range surface-to-air missiles 

designed to knock attacking aircraft out of the sky at a 

range of 50 km. The test of the new defence system, 

called Ra’ad (Thunder), was successful, according to a 

statement published on the Guards’ official Sepahnews 

website. The Taer-2 missiles used in the Ra’ad system 

are domestically made and “more advanced” than the 

Russian-made Buk family of anti-air missiles, the Fars 

news agency reported. Examples of the missile were 

displayed at a military parade in Tehran on Friday. An 

Iranian Revolutionary Guards commander, Brig Gen 

Amir Ali Hajizadeh, said at the military parade that: “The 

system has been manufactured with the aim of confronting 

(hostile) US aircraft. The Ra’ad air defence system 

is the first completely indigenous system of the 

Sepah (Revolutionary Guards).” 

‘Homeland’ 

ousts retro 

‘Mad Men’ 

at Emmys 

38 

KUWAIT: Opposition supporters and MPs stage a protest opposite the National Assembly yesterday. (Inset) MP Waleed Al- 

Tabtabaei is seen at the rally. — Photos by Yasser Al-Zayyat 

398 unescorted Nigerian 

women held in Jeddah 

SOKOTO, Nigeria: Nigerian officials said 398 Muslim 

women pilgrims traveling to Makkah were temporarily 

held at a Saudi Arabian airport for traveling without 

male relatives. A spokesman for Nigeria’s National Haj 

Commission said Saudi authorities held the Nigerian 

women between Thursday and yesterday at King 

Abdulaziz Airport in Jeddah. Spokesman Uba Mana 

said the women were allowed to proceed with their pilgrimage 

yesterday following diplomatic intervention. 

He said Saudi authorities held them for not traveling 

with a male relative due to a “communication gap”. He 

said an agreement between the countries exempts 

Nigerian women from requiring a male relative to 

escort them during the haj pilgrimage, which costs 

about $4,000 per person. All able-bodied Muslims who 

can afford it are expected to perform haj at least once 

in their lives. 

Real labour 

to 2-0 win at 

lowly Rayo 

Vallecano 

20 

New SARS-like virus 

emerges in Mideast 

Kuwait braces for key verdict 

KUWAIT: Opposition activists and lawmakers yesterday 

gathered in Irada Square opposite the National Assembly 

on the eve of a decisive verdict by the constitutional 

court on the validity of the electoral law. MP Waleed Al- 

Tabatabaei said protesters will march to the Palace of 

Justice after spending the night in the square. MP Falah 

Al-Sawwagh said 20 MPs had visited HH the Amir and 

informed him about rampant corruption in the state in 

detail, “but nothing took place”. “We said the same in the 

diwaniyas and did not get any result,” he charged. 

Sawwagh said corruption is rife in Kuwait, and 

COLOMBO: Sri Lankan Muslims hold placards as they shout slogans during a 

protest against an American-produced anti-Islam film outside the US embassy 

yesterday. — AP 

Free speech ‘red lines’ 

feed Muslim film rage 

lamented that the 2012 Assembly won by the opposition 

was annulled after the (2009) “Assembly of bribes” was 

dissolved and the government was ousted. “We put the 

priorities of the Kuwaiti people on top of our priorities 

but the Assembly was annulled. We tried in this 

Assembly to table legislations that serve people, but now 

they are trying to change the constituencies although 

this should be done by the next National Assembly following 

clean and fair elections based on the current law,” 

he demanded. 

MP Khalid Al-Tahous labeled the government as weak, 

adding that “the government does not represent us”. He 

said the constitutional court is a political court and elec- 

they are applied. A powerful theme binding 

the protests from Indonesia to Africa 

is the perception that the US codes of 

free speech are somehow weighted 

against Islam - permitting the Internet 

video that insults the faith but placing 

clear limits on hot button issues such as 

hate speech, workplace discrimination 

and even what is acceptable on primetime 

network TV. 

Continued on Page 13 

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LONDON: The World Health Organisation issued a global 

alert yesterday for a new SARS-like respiratory virus 

which left a man from Qatar critically ill in a London hospital 

and killed at least one more in Saudi Arabia. The 49year-old 

Qatari was admitted to an intensive care unit in 

Doha on September 7 suffering from acute respiratory 

infection and kidney failure before being transferred to 

Britain by air ambulance on Sept 11, the WHO said. A 

Saudi Arabian national died earlier this year from a virtually 

identical virus, the WHO said, while Saudi medical 

authorities said they were investigating other possible 

cases of the disease. 

The WHO confirmed the illness was in the coronavirus 

family but was not SARS, or Severe Acute Respiratory 

Syndrome, which swept out of China in 2003, killing 

more than 800 people worldwide. “This is a new virus,” 

WHO spokesman Gregory Hartl told AFP. “We haven’t 

heard of any more new cases. We don’t have an appreciation 

of how widespread the virus is,” Hartl said. “This is 

one reason why we’re trying to get more information. 

We don’t know how it’s transmitted.” The WHO said the 

Qatari first fell ill on Sept 3 after visiting Saudi Arabia. 

Britain’s Health Protection Agency confirmed the 

presence of the new coronavirus and then found that it 

was a 99.5 percent match with a virus obtained from the 

lung tissue of a 60-year-old Saudi man who died earlier 

this year. Coronaviruses are causes of the common cold 

but can also include more severe illnesses including 

SARS. 

In Riyadh, the health ministry revealed that a total of 

three people, including the Qatari man, had been diagnosed 

with the virus after spending time in Saudi Arabia, 

according to state media. The other two later died. The 

ministry said it would continue to “follow developments” 

linked to the disease “in coordination with international 

health organisations,” adding that “these are rare cases 

and the situation is reassuring”. 


Ahmadinejad blasts Israel 

Israel has ‘no roots’ in Mideast, will be ‘eliminated’ 

Obama ignores Israel 

‘noise’ on Iran nukes 

UN slams Israeli rights abuses 

WASHINGTON/GENEVA: US President 

Barack Obama likened Israeli pressure 

on him to draw a line in the sand over 

Iran’s nuclear ambitions as noise he tries 

to ignore, according to remarks aired 

Sunday. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin 

Netanyahu recently urged the United 

JEDDAH: Security forces yesterday 

detained dozens of men who had staged 

a protest near a prison in central Saudi 

Arabia to press for the release of relatives, 

demonstrators and a rights activist 

said. The arrests were made after police 

had confined the protesters, who included 

women and small children, to a desert 

area outside the prison where they were 

kept without food or water for nearly a 

tions will be conducted according to the five constituencies 

and four votes per person despite those who agree and 

those who do not. Tahous also revealed details of investigations 

by the 2012 Assembly in the multimillion-dinar foreign 

transfers scandal. He said we summoned the secretary 

of the prime minister’s diwan who said “(former PM) Sheikh 

Nasser told us to transfer sums to our embassies in Geneva, 

London and New York. My role is to obey the sheikh’s 

instructions”. Tahous said the government wasted around 

KD 2 billion in support of corruption and the corrupt in the 

form of KD 1.2 billion in subsidized diesel, KD 800 million in 

the Shell contract, KD 456 million in transfers and KD 55 million 

in deposits to bribe-taking MPs. 

States to establish what he called a “red 

line” regarding Tehran’s nuclear program 

beyond which the United States 

would be compelled to act. Iran insists 

its uranium-enrichment activities are 

for civilian energy-producing 


Dozens held after 

Saudi jail protest 

day, protesters and activists said. It was a 

rare demonstration in the world’s biggest 

oil exporter, where protests are banned. 

Saudi Arabia, which has been a target 

for Al-Qaeda attacks, say the protesters’ 

relatives are all being held on security 

grounds. But activists say some are also 

held for purely political activity and have 

never been charged. An Interior Ministry 


NEW YORK: Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad 

gestures as he attends the high level meeting on 

rule of law in the United Nations General Assembly 

at the UN headquarters yesterday. — AP 

NEW YORK: Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad 

yesterday disregarded a UN warning to avoid incendiary 

rhetoric and declared ahead of the annual General 

Assembly session that Israel has no roots in the Middle 

East and would be “eliminated”. In remarks to reporters 

in New York, he also said he does not take seriously the 

threat that Israel could launch a military strike against 

Iran’s nuclear facilities, denied sending arms into Syria, 

and called economic conditions in his sanctions-hit 

country “not as bad as they are portrayed”. 


France to take Qatari 

cash for troubled ‘burbs 

PARIS: France’s Socialist government will let gas-rich 

Qatar invest millions of euros to foster business creation 

in depressed suburbs, a move critics say is an 

admission of defeat and grants far too much influence 

to the Gulf state. President Francois Hollande’s government, 

under pressure to create jobs in suburbs 

where unemployment sometimes exceeds 40 percent, 

plans to unblock the funds thanks to a compromise 

it hopes will soothe concerns from critics. A 

source close to Industry Minister Arnaud Montebourg 

said the plan was for the government and French 

companies to match or exceed Qatar’s investment of 

€50 million ($65 million), for a total of at least €100 

million. Far-right leader Marine Le Pen said Qatar - a 

tiny state with sharia law - was only investing in immigrant-heavy 

suburbs to spread Islamic ideas among 

Muslim youths.

By Nawara Fattahova 

KUWAIT: Besides the regular problems in 

business with customers and products, small 

businesses owners are facing obstacles with 

the bureaucracy in Ministries and state 

authorities. They also complain about different 

problems that delay their work and 

demand more resources. 

One of the most annoying and difficult 

obstacles are the limited number of employees 

for work, as set by the Ministry of Social 

Affairs and Labor. “I wonder how the Ministry 

issued such a regulation? They definitely have 

no idea about the nature of our work and 

needs. They only allowed me to have five 

workers and I need at least seven to finish my 

work on time, especially after my business has 

grown and I receive more cars daily,” Salah, a 

29-year old partner of a car wash station in 

Shuweikh, told the Kuwait times. 

The Ministry has also set other conditions 

for employing staff. “To limit expats coming 

to Kuwait, the Ministry is forcing us to hire 

those employees already working in the local 

market, unless they are university graduates. 

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Now, all the workers know this information so 

they have demanded increases in their 

salaries. So, if before they were receiving KD 

80, they are now getting 120, which became 

the standard in our business. And if I need to 

bring in other workers, I have to attract them 

with even higher salaries, which becomes 

expensive for my business. Besides, there is 

no office in Kuwait to search in providing 

workers for me,” he pointed out. 

“With respect to all nationalities, you know 

that the qualification and level of the Bengali 

or Indian worker is not on the level of the 

Filipino. And for KD 150 I can bring a professional 

technician from the Philippines, which 

most suits my needs and business, as I’m providing 

a high standard of services,” explained 

Salah. According to Salah, there is no equity in 

applying rules. “The small businesses owners 

are oppressed, since they don’t have wasta. 

The law is not applied to the big companies, 

who can bring any number of employees they 

need. Also, the number of employees was set 

randomly by the Ministry. For instance, the 

car wash on my right side has 10 employees 

while the one on my left side has a limit of 

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2 LOCAL 

five, although we all are in the same business 

field,” he added. 

“There are even many more problems with 

other authorities and we are facing bureaucracy 

in paper work at the municipality, the 

Ministry of Commerce, the Public Authority 

for Industry, Civil Information and many other 

offices. If I could go back, I would not choose 

to operate this business,” concluded Salah. 

Mohammed Al-Naki is a Kuwaiti businessman 

who is also suffering from the problems 

of hiring manpower. He decided to find a way 

to benefit from solar and wind energy as a 

hobby. He fixed wind energy fans at his house 

in Salwa, and this attracted people who are 

passing from the Mesila bridge on Fahaheel 

Road. The shortage of manpower is the 

biggest obstacle facing Al-Naqi’s business. 

“I suffer from the public bureaucracy and 

some unfair rules. I understand that the government 

has issued strict rules for importing 

manpower, as there are people trading with 

laborers and human trafficking. On the other 

hand it is unjustified as I need to bring in 

technicians from outside and they don’t allow 

me to do so,” he added. 

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2012 

Small businesses face host of problems 

Bureaucracy tops the list 

Man held for armed robbery attempt 

KUWAIT: The Kuwaiti drug trader 

pictured after his arrest. 

By Hanan Al Saadoun 

KUWAIT: The operations department and 

patrolling officers at Ahmadi governorate set up 

check points and closed areas in the governorate as 

they attempted to apprehend a suspect involved in 

a failed armed robbery. 

Governorate security said that suspect was 

arrested after he tried to flee from a checkpoint. 

Officials further said the suspect has been previously 

arrested for stealing, and after searching his car 

police found a gun with six bullets. Other items 

found by police included a gun bag with two bullets 

inside it, two screwdrivers used for breaking 

into and stealing cars, three gold rings, 11 mobiles, 

clothes, perfumes, various electronic equipment, as 

well as several knives. The witness who reported 

the theft was later able to identify the suspect, who 

was sent to concerned authorities along with the 

materials found with him. Ahmadi security officials 

stressed that their campaign shall continue until 

they have arrested all outlaws. 

Drug trader 

Drugs enforcement officers arrested a Kuwaiti 

man on charges of having 1.250 kilograms of 

hashish, along with other drugs. Earlier information 

was received about the suspect’s selling drugs as 

KUWAIT: The items confiscated from the armed 

robber yesterday. 

well as using them, and based on this information, 

permission was received to arrest the suspect in his 

apartment. Officials said they found hashish in different 

sizes and some pills, as well as a small quantity 

of “Shabu” drugs and paraphernalia for using 

drugs. The Kuwaiti man confessed to possessing 

the drugs for his own use and for selling. He was 

sent, along with the confiscated drugs, to the concerned 

authorities. 

By Ben Garcia 

KUWAIT: A cleaning company’s 

employee, who was working at a 

hospital and had not been properly 

vaccinated by her employer, was 

terminated after the company’s 

malpractice was revealed to the 

Ministry of Health. 

The cleaning company, which 

has been blacklisted as an employer 

by the Philippine government, 

provides workers to hospitals, and 

fired Filipina Lizel Masucol Bores, 

who accidentally pricked her finger 

with a used needle while performing 

her duties at a private hospital 

in Kuwait. Following the incident, 

Lizel was forced to leave Kuwait on 

Friday evening after what she 

termed as an “illegal termination,” 

and expressing her apprehension 

for her personal health. The company, 

which had initially given an 

appointment to this reporter, later 

refused to give a statement at their 

headquarters in Subhan yesterday. 

In a written response submitted 

to the Embassy of the Philippines, 

the company said that the employee 

had been dismissed for violating 

company rules. 

However, before her departure, 

Lizel visited the Philippine Embassy 

and signed an affidavit stating her 

grievances against her employer 

and the circumstances surrounding 

her wrongful termination. 

Workers and cleaners operating 

in hospitals are required by the 

Ministry of Health to be vaccinated 

against any form of disease, as they 

are dealing with sick patients every 

day. Doctors, nurses, administrative 

staff and other workers, including 

porters and cleaners are also 

required to be completely vaccinated 

for fighting Hepatitis, TB, 

and HIV. They are also given several 

shots of anti-flu vaccines, 

sources from the Ministry of Health 

told Kuwait Times. 

“I told the doctor at the Mubarak 

Hospital that I had only been vaccinated 

with two Hepatitis shots. The 

doctor then told me that I should 

have been given a complete set of 

vaccinations, which are mandatory 

for hospital workers,” Lizel told The 

Kuwait Times. This, she says, was 

the primary reason for her termina- 

KUWAIT: A number of high school teachers staged a sit in outside the Ministry of 

Education’s building yesterday, in protest against a decision to separate teachers 

from their children in the same school. The teachers complained that the 

decision affected them and their children negatively, and also questioned their 

integrity. Assistant Undersecretary for Public Education Mohammad Al-Kandari 

released a statement reasserting that the decision is final. 

— Photo by Fouad Al-Shaik 

INFO, planning secretariat 

general join WEF sponsors 

KUWAIT: The Ministry of 

Information and the Supreme 

Planning Councilís Secretariat 

General have joined the sponsors 

of the GCC Women Economic 

Forum (WEF), which will be held 

today and is entitled, ‘GCC Women 

and Investment Opportunities.’ 

The event has been organized 

under the aegis of Sheikhah Ayeda 

Salem Al-Ali Al-Sabah. 

The General Manager of the 

Leaders Group and the Head of 

the Organizing Committee, 

Nabila Al-Anjeri thanked the 

Minister of Information Sheikh Abdullah 

Mohammed Abdullah Al- 

Mubarak Al-Sabah, his Undersecretary 

Sheikh Salman Sabah Al-Salem Al-Humoud 

and the Supreme Planning Council represented 

by Minister of State for Planning 

and Development Dr. Rola Dashti. ‘Those 

two sponsors are a symbol of the government’s 

support for the forum, which will 

establish Kuwait’s reputation as a leading 

GCC country in PR, women rights and as 

far as GCC’s investment and economic 

activities are concerned,’ she said. Al-Anjeri 

also thanked the other sponsors that 

included the INTREPRENEUR magazine, 

GOOD HEALTH magazine, published by 

Sheikh Mohammed 

Filipina worker 

wrongfully terminated 

tion. “My employer immediately terminated 

my contract. I will leave 

Kuwait with a heavy heart because I 

still haven’t repaid the loan I took for 

paying the placement fee to a 

recruitment company in Philippines,” 

she said, before boarding the plane 

to the Philippines on Friday. 

Another employee working in 

the same company confirmed to 

this reporter that all his co-workers 

including himself were yet to be 

fully vaccinated. 

Lizel arrived in Kuwait on 

November 3, 2011. She paid KD350 

as a placement fee that enabled 

her to get a job in Kuwait. She hasn’t 

repaid the loan yet. “I got 

pricked on August 23. I went to the 

hospital on August 26. Hepatitis 

and HIV tests will be conducted 

after three months, which will be 

on November 26, since the incubation 

period for these diseases is up 

to three months,” Lizel stated. She 

argued that the company had fired 

her to avoid taking any responsibility 

for the incident. She said, “They 

terminated my contract immediately.” 

However, Lizel’s reunion with 

her family back home only after 10 

months will not be a happy affair. “I 

don’t want to go home now, 

because I need to repay the loan 

first. Besides, what if I actually contracted 

a disease from the used 

needle? I was scheduled to be back 

at the hospital for Hepatitis and 

HIV testing, but how can I undergo 

those checks when they have 

already terminated my contract,” 

Lizel told the Kuwait Times. Besides 

illegal dismissal from work, Lizel 

cited other instances of the company 

violating its contracts. “We were 

made to work 16 hours a day without 

payment of overtime and our 

accommodation was really poor. 

We had signed contracts to work 

for KD120 a month but we were 

actually only paid KD80. We are 

also asked by our supervisors to 

work 16 hours, which amounts to 

an additional eight hours, which 

remain unpaid; sometimes we 

received only KD2.6 as fee for the 

extra eight-hour duty,” she said. 

The Philippine Labor Attache in 

Kuwait David Des Dicang, confirmed 

Lizel’s complaints and 

Nabila Al-Anjeri 

Sheikhah Entisar Salem Al-Ali Al-Sabah, the 

UNIDO, CBK, the Kuwait Fund for Arab 

Economic Development, the Kuwait 

Financial Center, the Gatehouse Bank, KPC, 

KSPDC and KAC. 

Various GCC and foreign delegations 

participating in the forum have already 

started arriving for the inauguration slated 

for 9:00 a.m. this morning at the Al- 

Thuraya Hall in Kuwait’s J.W. Marriott 

Hotel. 

Al-Anjeri also thanked all GCC and 

Kuwaiti media sponsors for the forum, 

including the Al-Watan, the Al-Qabas, the 

Annahar and the Al-Anbaa newspapers. 

promised to assist her further from 

Kuwait. “We already wrote a letter 

to her company and have informed 

them about Lizel’s complaints. 

According to her she was illegally 

terminated because she reported 

the vaccination matter to the 

Ministry of Health. 

The company responded and 

informed us that Lizel was terminated 

because of her many 

employment violations, which they 

have included in the response. 

Lizel has denied these violations,” 

Dicang said. He added that the 

company had already been suspended 

since January 1, 2012. “We 

at POLO have written a letter to the 

POEA, asking them to investigate 

the company and the recruitment 

agency, because we have received 

repeated complaints from workers. 

We receive complaints from 

Filipinos employed with this company 

almost every month,” he said. 

They were already suspended from 

our list of legitimate companies 

and they cannot be allowed to 

employ Filipino workers at all. The 

company owner had told us that 

they need Filipino workers and that 

they could lose their contracts if 

they were unable to provide additional 

workers. 

We told them, the company 

should only follow what is stated in 

the contracts. We’ve got many 

complaints from the workers, who 

also pointed out that many of the 

provisions in the new contacts are 

not implemented.” Dicang said, 

elaborating that, for example, the 

monthly salary should be above KD 

120, but the workers were only getting 

paid KD80. They should work 

ideally be working only eight 

hours, but were made to work for 

16 hours without overtime pay,” he 

said. “The company has refuted 

these complaints,” he said and 

questioned their stance by saying, 

“If these complaints are untrue, 

why are so many people complaining? 

The recruitment agency from 

the Philippines has also lost our 

confidence and if they violate rules 

again, they will risk suspension too. 

Also, if they have charged more 

money than required, we will ask 

them to refund that money,” 

Dicang noted.

Warba Bank kicks 

off tour of 

malls, universities 

KUWAIT: Warba Bank, the most recently opened 

Islamic bank in Kuwait, yesterday launched a nationwide 

tour of malls and universities in Kuwait. From 

Sept 24 to 29, a Warba Bank booth will be located at 

the 360 Mall, offering people an opportunity to learn 

more about the bank’s products and services. The 

booth will then move onto four other locations in 

Kuwait - The Avenues, Marina Mall, Kuwait University 

and Al Kout Mall before finishing in early January 2013. 

Current and potential customers visiting the booths 

can learn more about the bank’s services, including its 

recently-launched ‘La T7aty’ campaign for salary 

accounts, which offers new customers instant valuable 

gifts, in addition to one or two chances to win a brand 

new Mini Cooper. 

The booth also offers information on Warba Bank’s 

‘Murabaha’ service, which meets the financing needs 

of customers with entire flexibility via basic monthly 

installments. The new Sharia compliant service allows 

customers to purchase goods and pay in easy installments 

within a period that starts from six months up 

to 15 years. The service includes house finance, construction 

and renovation, as well as consumer products 

such as boats and marine equipment, furniture, 

electronic appliances and cars, as well as other goods, 

and is available with competitive profit rates. 

Customers can also learn more about Warba Bank’s 

nine banking cards, including the standard debit card, 

Lamar Card for ladies, Shabab Warba Card, Safwa Card 

for the affluent, and Tala Card for children, as well as its 

three types of credit cards: Classic, Gold and Platinum. 

Furthermore, the booth offers information on the 

bank’s exclusive ‘My Box’ service from Posta Plus, 

which provides two local delivery addresses in the US 

and UK for all online purchases and regular mails. 

Commenting on the booths, Adnan Salman Al 

Salem, Chief Retail Banking Officer of Warba Bank, 

said, “Warba Bank is committed to get closer to its customers 

and providing them with the highest levels of 

service and delivery. This tour of malls and universities 

is in line with our expansion strategy and will help us 

to communicate with the largest number of customers 

possible.” Customers can learn more about Warba 

Bank’s multiple services by visiting its branches, 

booths, or by calling 182-5555. 

Warba Bank, an Islamic bank established by virtue 

of Amiri Decree, was officially registered in the Central 

Bank of Kuwait’s list of Islamic banks on April 5, 2010. 

The State of Kuwait, represented by Kuwait Investment 

Authority (KIA), owns 24% shares of the bank while the 

remaining 76% of shares, fully subscribed by the government, 

have been equally allocated to all Kuwaiti 

nationals. Warba Bank offers a range of customized 

Sharia-compliant services and solutions through its 

three divisions of Retail, Investment and Corporate 

Banking. Branching out in four strategic locations, 

Warba Bank has over 150 employees. 

By Sajeev K Peter 

KUWAIT: The Indian Embassy, Kuwait 

has officially sought the intervention of 

the Kuwait authorities in order to ensure 

the welfare and safety of more than 

1,000 Indian domestic workers who were 

arrested in a flash police raid on Sept 19 

in Kuwait, said Vidhu P Nair, Charge de’ 

Affaires here yesterday. 

“We hope that all those arrested 

Indian workers with valid residency will 

be released soon,” he said, addressing a 

press conference at the embassy while 

briefing journalists on the action the 

Indian Embassy has taken following the 

arrest. According to local media reports, 

around 2,136 people were rounded up 

during the raid mostly in Bneid Al-Gar 

area on Sept 19, of whom majority are 

Indian nationals, especially from 

Rajasthan. The arrest of a large number 

of Indians has caused concern among 

the members of the Indian community, 

especially people from the state of 

Rajasthan. Though arrested included 

other nationalities also, some press 

reports suggested that the raid specifically 

targeted the Indians who form the 

largest expatriate community in Kuwait. 

They also reported that the arrest highlighted 

the flaws in the sponsor system 

being followed in Kuwait. 

Nair however declined to comment 

on the report, saying that the arrested 

3 LOCAL 

workers might have been working in the 

private sector while holding domestic 

residencies. “The Kuwaiti authorities did 

not provide us with any information 

before or after the raid. But our consular 

officers visited the deportation and 

detention centers and personally verified 

that the workers detained are treated 

well.” “There are around 650 workers 

being detained in these centers. They are 

safe and there are no complaints or any 

cases of harassment. Also no worker has 

been deported so far,” Nair said. 

He said it is premature to provide any 

number at the moment as the workers 

are held in 40 police stations in addition 

to the deportation and detention centers. 

He informed that he will hold talks 


Arrested workers ‘safe, 

secure’: Indian embassy 

Laborers with ‘valid residency’ being released 

KUWAIT: Around a 1000 persons, who were among the 

2,136 arrested in Bneid Al-Gar last week during a crackdown 

against immigration law violators have been 

released from custody after the police found that they 

were living legally in Kuwait and had committed no violations, 

a local daily reported yesterday. The release of 

these innocent expats has given rise to speculations that 

the operation planned by the Ministry of Interior was in 

fact a random procedure, which lacked organization and 

advance planning. 

Al-Qabas’ reporters met with several Bnaid Al-Gar residents, 

who indicated that the police had set them free 

after their sponsors provided documents proving their 

legal status, and complained against the arrests, which 

were carried out without first properly checking the victims’ 

identification. 

KUWAIT: Indian Embassy Charge de’ Affaires Vidhu P Nair (right), flanked by First 

Secretary (Information) Vinodkumar, addresses a press conference at the Indian 

Embassy yesterday. — Photo by Yasser Al-Zayyat 

Laal Sotar, an Indian national in his forties, said that 

he was arrested despite having a valid residency, 

because the police never bothered to check his status 

properly. He was released a day later, after his Kuwaiti 

sponsor personally arrived at the police station and provided 

a copy of his residency documents. Another person 

identified in police reports as ‘Dali’ explained that he 

was detained and kept in an overcrowded cell, which 

only had one bathroom, before he was freed by his sponsor. 

He added that many workers with legitimate documents 

were still in custody and waiting for their sponsors 

to arrive, even though they hadn’t committed any criminal 

offence. 

Meanwhile, Ramin, an Indian national said that he had 

to spend 48 hours in jail without being told the reason 

behind his arrest. He added that he was released only 

with the Interior Minister on the matter 

soon. “The embassy is also in close contact 

with the External Affairs Ministry 

back in India and the Rajasthan state 

government,” he informed. 

Giving a detailed description on the 

action the embassy has taken, he said 

the consular officials visited Qadsiya, 

Rumaithiya and Daiya police stations on 

Sept 20 and met with 65 workers 

detained there. The officials collected 

available data about the detainees such 

as their names, sponsor names, telephone 

numbers, passport numbers etc. 

Around 100 workers were released from 

these stations, he informed. 

Similarly, they visited Salwa, Bayan, 

and Jabriya police stations yesterday. 

According to him, all the 17 workers from 

Jabriya police station, 16 out of 17 from 

Salwa police station and 16 from Bayan 

police station were released. Similarly, 16 

workers from Rumaithiya police station, 

10 from Khaitan and 61 from Daiya were 

also released. 

The Kuwaiti authorities were also calling 

in sponsors and asking them to take 

the workers back. 

Nair said that the embassy is evolving 

a new attestation mechanism for screening 

newly-recruited domestic laborers 

from India. “However, the process will 

take a long way which will help eliminate 

the maltreatment of domestic workers,” 

he explained. 

Scores of Bneid Al-Gar workers detained without ID checks 

after his sponsor came to the police station bearing his 

identification papers. “I woke up in panic following a 

police raid in my building,” Ramin told Al-Qabas, adding 

that the police took him into custody without checking 

any of his IDs. 

Similar stories of arrests being made without making 

proper checks were narrated by several other Bneid Al- 

Gar residents, who considered themselves lucky for 

being released before the weekend. “Officers refused to 

release my brother, despite our providing documents 

that established his newly issued residency, and we were 

told to come back on Sunday,” Komar, a Bnaid Al-Gar resident 

stated in the newspaper report. Even though, his 

brother’s sponsor had also rushed to the police station 

after learning of his arrest, it was too late and his release 

could not be secured before the weekend.

G iven 

kuwait digest 

An Egyptian 

experience 

By Waleed Al-Rujaib 

During a recent visit to Cairo, I had a conversation 

with a friend which saw me expressing frustration 

from the extreme traffic problem at the 

Egyptian capital. The conversation dragged on as I 

expressed disappointment about how the Egypt that I 

know have changed so much, with cities filled with 

complex road networks and consumer lifestyle that 

adds to the suffering of the working class, while lacking 

libraries containing books of knowledge. 

I was comparing between Egypt today and Egypt 

during the time I lived there as a college student nearly 

40 years ago. After discussing the cultural and social 

changes in our countries, my friend suggested that I 

deliver a seminar to talk about Kuwait whose name is 

synonymous with culture and democracy in the Arab 

region. 

I was given the opportunity during the seminar to 

talk about the history of Kuwait’s economy, society 

and culture. I explained the difference between 

Kuwait today and during the sixties and the seventies 

of the past century, mentioning the social and cultural 

changes that affected daily behavior and values. I 

noticed that the majority of people attending the 

seminar were professionals or educated people, and I 

was shocked to realize that some of them still believe 

that Kuwait is an invented entity and historically is 

part of Iraq. I attempted to correct this misconception 

by asking for a proof to support this theory - which 

none was able to provide - while giving names of 

books with high cultural and historical credibility to 

back up my point. 

My attention was also caught by someone who 

used the term “democracy of Bedouins” during his 

speech. To be honest I wasn’t sure if he was trying to 

undermine Kuwait’s democratic experience with that 

term, or it was made with good intention. Meanwhile, 

another person argued that stating that demands for 

parliamentary work started in Kuwait since 1921 are 

exaggerated. 

The seminar also addressed the Arab Spring; on 

which one man in attendance argued that the revolutions 

are created by America in order to allow Islamists 

to reach power. And while admitting that martyrs 

have fallen during the January 25 Revolution, he 

insisted that the situation is different in Syria where he 

said that the revolution “aims to remove the resisting 

regime of Bashar Al-Asad by the hands of armed 

Jihadist groups”. I know this is only one man’s opinion, 

but I couldn’t help but feel disappointed that it would 

come from someone who claims to be educated. 

Midway through the seminar, a group of people 

came inside who according to the seminar’s supervisor 

are unionists that arrived late because they were 

taking part in a demonstration to demand rights that 

they believe President Mohammad Morsi’s administration 

is attempting to obliterate. I noticed that their 

comments were more mature and reflected more 

political awareness compared to opinions expressed 

by the educated attendees. They even praised 

Kuwait’s unionist work, and expressed high deal of 

knowledge about what’s going on in Kuwait, Syria as 

well as Egypt. Furthermore, they showed great level of 

enthusiasm while expressing faith that their revolution 

against the Muslim Brotherhoods’ rule will be victorious. 

This experience proved to me once again that 

workers are more aware, more eager and more optimistic 

than some educated people who still live in 

obscurity and despair. It also made me understand 

that these educated people never took part in the 

Tahrir Square demonstrations as part of the Egyptian 

revolution. — Al-Rai 

kuwait digest 

Protecting 

communities’ 

identities 

By Dr. Mohammad Al-Moqatei 

the increasingly deliberate actions practiced 

by certain individuals and parties around the 

world to provoke Muslims by insulting Islam and 

the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), I believe that the best 

way to face this is through the international legal system. 

Arab and Muslim governments are today required to act 

on top international forums, especially with the United 

Nations, in order to come up with an international treaty 

that protects identities of communities and religious 

beliefs and develop a treaty that classifies religious 

insults as an international crime for which violators can 

be brought to trial in local and international tribunals. 

Iconoclasm is a crime punishable by international law, 

even if it happens during times of war. I believe that protecting 

religious beliefs and identities of communities 

isn’t less important than protecting religious symbols. 

Some countries have laws that criminalize anti-Semitism 

or offending ruling figures. A recent example of that happened 

when the United Kingdom took efforts to stop 

publishing revealing pictures of Princess Kate Middleton, 

prompting several countries, including France, to issue 

orders against publishing them. In my opinion, protecting 

religious beliefs and cultural identities of societies is 

more important than that. 

That’s why I believe an international agreement to 

protect the religious and cultural identity of countries 

and communities is important. It would provide international 

protection that prevents violent reactions that otherwise 

happen as a result of a lack of criteria to stop 

offensive actions against religious beliefs. The treaty 

would further help take legal actions in a civilized manner 

that would prove to be effective in deterring insults 

so that no excuse will be left to justify people responding 

violently. 

Turkey and Egypt did the right thing by taking legal 

actions against the people who offended the Prophet 

Muhammad (PBUH). This is, indeed, the safest way to deal 

with this issue.—Al-Rai 

4 LOCAL 

Worst totalitarian regime 

W hat 

did transpire out of the regional changes in 

most of the Arab countries that we witnessed 

over the past year and a half, and have these 

legitimate uprisings resulted in chaos and instability? 

Maybe the most important result is the uncovering of 

the American-Persian (Iranian) partnership to divide the 

spoils, and reward the land of Persia (Iran) and present 

it with the price which includes Iraq, Bahrain, Syria, and 

Lebanon in exchange for Iran continuing its spreading 

of sectarian strife in the Arabian Gulf and Middle East. 

Iran, which America handed Iraq over to at the end 

of 2011, is protecting the most dangerous mission in 

the way of liberating Iraq and spreading sectarian 

chaos, stealing its natural resources, killing its scientists, 

and changing many of the moral, social, intellectual, 

and cultural characters of Arab societies by taking 

advantage of poverty, backwardness and discrimination. 

It also changed the traditional stability of the Arab 

Maghrib (North African) countries into major trouble 

where sectarian strife is playing an increasing role day 

after day. 

Persia, with all the factors of danger and animosity in 

it, must be brought back to size, not just having its nails 

clipped. Our battle as Arabs with Persians is a battle of 

existence and identity and freedom of generations, not 

just a battle of borders, because Persia, which was overwhelmed 

with the feelings of victory when it isolated 

Iraq, then destroyed it, developed an appetite for 

expansionism and the wish to control, and always wave 

its military nuclear project to support its extortion 

capabilities, both locally and internationally. So, is it 

enough to only clip Iran’s nails and will the true rescue 

of our nation from its catastrophes that were caused by 

the Persian danger and influence be fulfilled that way? 

The rescue of the Arab nation from Iranian arrogance 

will not be achieved, and the fiercest and most 

dangerous Iranian attack on Arabs will only be stopped 

by removing Persia’s claws and its cronies in the Arab 

and Gulf countries and the enemy Trojan horses that 

are waiting for the Iranian orders to jump all over us in 

non-stop operations as long as Iran remains able to 

cause deep wounds with its claws. So how will we 

remove the Persian claws to guarantee its inability to 

kuwait digest 

By Abdallah Al-Hadlaq 

hurt the Arab nation for many centuries, and maybe 

forever? The decisive and frank answer is that victory 

should start in Iraq by kicking Persia out, and that can 

be achieved by the Arab Iraqi resistance and its Sunni 

Kurds in Iraq’s Kurdistan, and then we move to the other 

choice, which is the destruction of one or more of 

Iran’s centers outside Iraq in Lebanon, Syria, 

Afghanistan, Gaza, West Bank, Bahrain, Qateef and others. 

If the Persian presence in Iraq is dealt a severe blow 

that weakens the morale of its traitors, and coincides 

with targeting its military and political centers outside 

Iraq, then Persia will not be able to fight two major battles 

at the same time, and in both cases the spearhead 

will be the Iraqi resistance with all its Arab, Kurd, 

Assyrian and Kaldonian factions. 

Launching an all-out war on the Persian influence 

centers in Iraq, Bahrain, Qateef, Lebanon, Syria, Gaza 

and Yemen is the goal of the Arab National liberation 

movements, and their basic mission is to abort the 

Persian plan that is trying to uproot the Arab identity of 

Iraq and other Arab countries, especially now that 

Persia announced that the Emirati islands are forever 

Persian, Bahrain a Persian province and that the Arabian 

Gulf is also Persian! And that Persia is in control of the 

Arabian Gulf region. 

In the latest report by the International Atomic 

Energy Agency (August 30, 2011) it was proven that 

the activities of Persia to enrich uranium did not stop 

but, rather, was accelerated in the Fordo and Parsheen 

facilities and that the quantity of enriched uranium 

increased from 145kg to 255kg, an increase of more 

than 75%, and diplomatic efforts that took place in 

April 2012 failed due to Iran’s continued stubbornness. 

Efforts by the council of the IAEA on December 9, 2012 

also failed because of Iran’s stubbornness and they 

must again bring Iran before the Security Council. 

Whoever calls for including Persia in the talks to 

solve the Syrian problem is mistaken because Iran is 

part of the problem, not the solution, and because the 

fascist Zuradishti ruling regime in Tehran is the worst 

totalitarian regime in the world and supports the 

criminal Bashar Al-Asad in his annihilation of the 

Syrian people. 

Creating crises for political mileage 

D ear 

Sirs, Kuwait as a country still has to figure out the 

basic tenets of politics, which is evident in the way 

our national political arena has been functioning, 

which is probably one of the worst in the world. The lack of 

understanding that is rampant in our political work has 

resulted in many crisis and disasters, until we established a 

monopoly on them. Contrary to our sorry state of affairs, 

our neighboring countries, who are living under similar circumstances, 

but do not share 

our political beliefs have progressed 

way ahead of us, leaving 

behind a gap of at least four 

decades. This has happened 

despite the fact that till a few 

years back, these countries were 

lagging behind Kuwait. Do you 

feel that things have changed in 

our country? May be you are 

wrong? 

My dear, democracy is also 

about harboring a deep belief in 

opinions, but more importantly 

another person’s opinions. 

Another person’s opinion could 

be wrong but possibly right as 

well, and your opinion could be 

right, but possibly wrong too. 

Democracy is not about your 

personal opinions always being 

right and never wrong and considering 

others’ opinions always wrong and never right. 

Real democracy is also a state, where even though your 

opinion might differ from someone else’s you are still willing 

to pay the price for following that other person’s opinion, 

even if it means sacrificing your life. 

Politics, my dear, is the art of making the impossible 

possible. But Kuwaiti politics has unfortunately transformed 

into something where politics mainly involves formulating 

political policies that either allow you to forgive 

and forget or are based on hatred and doubt, or defaming 

your opponents, even though they might be right and 

sometimes even if you are wrong. 

In the right kind of politics, 

there are no permanent enemies 

or friends. But in our case, 

our lawmakers are constantly 

bearing out their permanent 

enmities in public and on the 

way making new enemies. 

While in advanced countries, 

politics has been able to replace 

street-level discourses with 

advanced and parliamentary 

dialogue, the exact opposite has 

happened in Kuwait. 

kuwait digest 

By Sami Al Nisf 

Politics is a normally like a game which delights the 

audience because of its unpredictability. But in Kuwait, this 

game is already fixed in advance, and is run from beyond 

the playgrounds, is pre-planned in such a way that audience 

or rather the Kuwaiti public are made to cry and are 

deserted in a way, which makes us a laughing stock in the 

eyes of our neighbors. As a result of our politicians practicing 

this particular brand of politics, we are always in the 

midst of some crisis or the oth- 

er, which is more often than not 

created to gain political 

mileage. Politicians feel proud 

to make every dramatic declaration 

they can about ending 

the crisis, which in turn creates 

a new one. But who decided 

that politics cannot be practiced 

without creating a crisis 

rather than solving it? 

In the right kind of politics, 

there are no permanent enemies 

or friends. But in our case, 

our lawmakers are constantly 

bearing out their permanent 

enmities in public and on the 

way making new enemies. 

While in advanced countries, 

politics has been able to 

replace street-level discourses 

with advanced and parliamentary 

dialogue, the exact opposite has happened in Kuwait. 

We discuss something as serious as amending the constitution 

with the frivolity of a street dialogue and legislate our 

laws without giving them due consideration. So please 

explain to me as to which political dictionary has helped 

you in developing your deductive powers. 

Note: How can a man who cuts his nose or gouges his 

eyes out to make his wife angry be considered wise? At the 

same time, where is the wisdom in threatening to rally on 

streets and spreading confusion against a matter that does 

not hurt the country or pose any threat to the common 

man? —Al-Anbaa 


Controversial 

Thoughts 

“I 

Addressing 

unemployment 

H uman 

in my view 

By Alia Al-Hazeimi 

love you when you bow in your mosque, kneel in 

your temple, pray in your church. For you and I are 

sons of one religion, and it is the spirit.” Khalil 

Gibran. 

It took me two hours of thinking after reading this 

quote, thoughts regarding God, religion and current 

events that are shaping the world we live in today. I 

found these elements are quite challenging, although 

they seem as our motives for doing goodness and 

spreading kindness in the world. Unfortunately the 

opposite is happening more often, many of these elements 

are being shaped into other “forms” or to be more 

specific, tools. 

Throughout centuries, religion and politics walked 

hand- in- hand and seemed to be inseparable, although 

there were many attempts to prove otherwise. But these 

attempts were caught between a rock and a hard place. 

In simple English, the definition of “religion” is ‘a set of 

beliefs concerning the cause, nature, and purpose of the 

universe, especially when considered as the creation of a 

superhuman agency or agencies, usually involving devotional 

and ritual observances, and often containing a 

moral code governing the conduct of human affairs.’ 

And politics is ‘The activities associated with the governance 

of a country or area and the total complex of 

relations between people living in society’. 

If we blind fold these two terms, we would probably 

think they are both the same, they both aim to govern 

human affairs. The question that keeps crossing my mind 

is “was religion really a constitution? Therefore religious 

scriptures are politics?” and if it is yes then genocides and 

waging wars in the name of God is man-made? 

Let’s forget about ancient history and take the crusades 

and on wards as examples. Weren’t all these campaigns 

made under the banner of “God Wills It?” How 

many recent wars and carnages were made against people 

due to differences of beliefs? Yet at the end of the day 

all these events are documented and observed by political 

entities! 

Religion has a sanctified holy nature that is not “supposed” 

to be manipulated for achieving personal gains 

and most importantly should not be used to justify acts 

of violence. No religion in this world allows bloodshed 

and promotes war, and even if there is, it is what is 

known as acts of “retaliation”. However, is it really retaliation 

when all these conflicts are taking place in countries 

and parts of the world that know so little about anyone’s 

else religion. 

Is it a lack of knowledge that led to “retaliation-like” 

conflicts? Or could it be that high authorities internationally 

did not take the time to understand other religions 

and show mutual respect? Isn’t respect the most basic 

code after believing in God in all religions? 

Have we forgotten that “Peace” is a common ground 

for all religions and that we’re here to do good? Aren’t we 

obliged to respect each other’s religions without any kind 

of racism and hate? Aren’t we supposed to suppress all 

forms of aggression? After all, we are all human. 

Don’t you agree? 

kuwait digest 

By Riyadh Al-Adasani 

development is crucial for a nation’s development 

and advancement. Governments were 

put in place for the people, not the other way 

around. The government’s role is to take care of its citizens 

and to improve services. Our government, however, 

lacks vision and a workable plan for the future. It has certainly 

failed to give importance to developing the country’s 

most precious wealth, which are its human 

resources. 

Where is the government’s plan to tackle unemployment? 

The number of unemployed citizens in Kuwait has 

reached nearly 20,000 and continues to increase annually. 

In the meantime, the national labor law, which directs 

that 60 percent of staff members at banks and major 

companies must be Kuwaitis, has not been effectively 

enforced. The government should’ve forced these firms 

to abide by the law before offering them with a multibillion 

stimulus package during the financial crisis. 

The government must have a clear vision that focuses 

on supporting its young citizens and building their 

future, because they make up 50 percent of our population 

today, and are the country’s future. Currently, there’s 

huge demand for state jobs, which is threatening the 

state’s budget and is expected to boost inflation, since 

Kuwait’s economy is completely dependent on oil prices. 

This situation has left Kuwaiti youth facing a dark future, 

who have to sometimes wait for as long as two years 

before finding a job, while expatriates - with all due 

respect - have a job waiting for them even before they 

have left their home country. 

Being close to young citizens, I can see how they suffer 

on account of the government’s policies, especially 

those of the Kuwait Municipality, the Ministry of 

Commerce and the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor. 

Their hopes for starting their own businesses fade away 

as a result of the government’s own crippling demands. 

Even the ‘e-government’ project is a mere slogan and far 

removed from the ground reality. 

In order to address the unemployment problem, the 

government must improve the private sector in order to 

provide job opportunities for Kuwaitis. It should also 

enforce early retirement and create new jobs. The government 

must also allow young citizens to own industrial 

land and start businesses in the economic, handicraft, 

commercial and other fields. There’s no reason why the 

government cannot expand the current industrial land 

usage, because nearly 93 percent of Kuwait’s land area 

remains unutilized. 

Land monopolies tend to kill the ambitions of young 

citizens and they need the government’s support for 

their projects and for ensuring that all their work-related 

procedures are facilitated. This essential support will help 

young citizens on the one hand and benefit the state on 

the other. —- Al-Qabas

Ziad Bou Jaber, Director of Sales Marina Hotel and Rana Nagi, Account Manager, ASDAA brought a 

cake to the Kuwait Times on the occasion of the newspaper’s anniversary. 

Flowers sent by Waleed Kanafani, President of the 

International Advertising Association, Kuwait 

Chapter to Kuwait Times’ on the occasion of the 

newspaper’s 51st anniversary. Flowers were also 

received from Kanafani in his capacity of General 

Manager of MEC. 

local 

Yousef Khalid Al-Marzouq, Editor-in-Chief of Al- 

Anbaa newspaper sent flowers to the Kuwait 

Times on the occasion of the newspaper’s 51st 

anniversary. 

Flowers sent by Nadine Al-Alami, Country 

Manager ASDAA in Kuwait on occasion of Kuwait 

Times’ 51st anniversary. 


Kuwait Times celebrates 51st Anniversary 

Khadija Meftah, PR Executive at Movenpick Al-Bida’a Hotel (center) and 

Moustafa Sallam, Sales Manager Movenpick Hotel & Resort Al-Bida’a 

brought a cake on the occasion of Kuwait Times’ 51st anniversary. Adnan 

Saad, Marketing Director, Kuwait Times (right) received the gift on behalf of 

the Kuwait Times. 

Rana Mneimenh, Director of Sales and Marketing Swiss-Bel Kuwait Plaza 

Hotel (right) and Katrina Jarlos PR and banquet executive at Swiss-Bel 

Kuwait Plaza Hotel are seen with Saad after gifting a cake to the newspaper. 

Marketing and PR Executive at Movenpick Free Zone wished Kuwait Times a Happy Birthday with a cake. 

Saif Mohammed, General Manager Safir Hotel and Residences and Ahmed 

Al Saqer Marketing and Communications Executive wished Kuwait Times a 

Happy Birthday with a cake.—Photos by Joseph Shagra 

Fares Hamed Al Majed, Director of Government Sales at the Sheraton Hotel 

has presented Kuwait Times with a cake.

LOCAL 

KUWAIT: Inauguration of the Kuwait International Property Show in Mishref yesterday. —Photos by Fouad Al-Shaikh 

KUWAIT: The Kuwait International Property 

Show was inaugurated yesterday in Mishref, 

under the patronage of the Ministry of 

Commerce and Industry and was attended 

by the Ministry’s Undersecretary Abdul-Aziz 

Al-Khaldi. The event, which has been jointly 

organized by the Top Expo Group and the 

Kuwait International Fair company, will fea- 

ture participation from 40 local and foreign 

companies as well as display around 100 

projects from 15 different countries. 

After first describing the exhibition as, 

“one of the most notable fairs” held annually 

in Kuwait, Al-Kandari indicated while speaking 

to reporters that the Ministry, “directly 

supervises real estate exhibitions to make 

sure that visitors’ rights are protected.” 

Asked about the Ministry’s efforts to regulate 

real estate prices, the official noted that 

this subject was affected primarily by supply 

and demand, but indicated that the 

Ministry plans to set up a team featuring 

representatives from different state departments 

for streamlining the real estate mar- 

ket of Kuwait. 

Meanwhile, Top Expo’s Chairman of the 

Board, Sheikh Malik Badr Al-Salman Al- 

Sabah recognized the exhibitions as, “one of 

the most highly awaited events in the year 

for Kuwaitis, given the lack of real estate 

fairs held in the country as well as the 

increasing demand for real estate products, 


Team to be set up for regulating Kuwait’s property market: Official 

KISR boosting cooperation with 

IAEA on renewable energy 

VIENNA: The Kuwait Institute for Scientific 

Research (KISR) is keen on boosting cooperation 

with the International Atomic Energy 

Agency (IAEA) on peaceful uses of nuclear 

technology, said the KISR director general yesterday. 

Dr Naji Al-Mutairi was speaking 

Sunday night, upon conclusion of the 56th 

annual session of the IAEA General 

Conference here. The KISR delegation had 

attended meetings of the signatories of the 

agreement of Arab States in Asia for Research, 

Development, and Training related to Nuclear 

Science and Technology (ARASIA). 

Dr Al-Mutairi said the discussions covered 

the ARASIA 2013-2014 agenda, priority projects 

for the 12-member states such as projects 

related to water and food security, as well 

as overall cooperation between ARASIA team 

and the IAEA Department of Technical 

Cooperation. 

“Technical cooperation programs are the 

bases on which national capacities could be 

built and which guarantee transfer and development 

of peaceful-purpose nuclear technology 

to enable achievement of development 

goals. “KISR cooperation with the Asia and 

Pacific technical cooperation team resulted in 

execution of several projects approved for 

periods up to 2013. The IAEA meanwhile 

appreciates KISR contributions which benefited 

experts from Kuwait and the region and its 

participation in organizing workshops and 

training courses in Kuwait.” 

The KISR chairman pointed out there was 

agreement on the need to sustain cooperation, 

and Al-Mutairi stressed the institute was 

ready to provide all that is needed for technical 

cooperation projects. The department, he 

pointed out, praised the five projects executed 

in Kuwait this year at a cost of euro 1 mil- 

Vienna hosts annual conference 

lion, and reviewed ideas for projects which 

could be executed in 2014-2015, seven in 

total. The meeting discussed mechanisms to 

plan such projects as of next year. 

The KISR delegation and IAEA representatives 

also discussed research strategy in the 

field of peaceful nuclear technology and the 

need to consider the national requirements 

for construction of a nuclear research reactor. 

With focus on improving national capabilities 

in concerned bodies through proper 

training and orientation programs, KISR also 

expressed readiness to cooperate with state 

bodies in the areas of detection of radioactive 

matter and accidents, smuggling of 

radio-active matter, and detection technology 

and equipment available today. 

Giving more detail, Dr Al-Mutairi said that 

the officials discussed the project to equip 

Kuwait’s eight border ports with radio-active 

matter detectors, and that the IAEA noted the 

importance of the project and expressed 

readiness to provide whatever technical support 

needed. In addition, an expert from the 

IAEA is to visit the country in November to 

help plan a program to track and trace radioactive 

matter of doubtful or unknown origin 

in cooperation with the concerned Ministry of 

Health team. 

Al-Mutairi added IAEA nuclear security 

experts were also invited for a visit in the first 

quarter of next year with the purpose of revising 

and giving an assessment of the State of 

Kuwait’s nuclear security plan and of planning 

a program for the next three years. 

He said the KISR delegation also met with 

officials of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test- 

Ban Treaty Organization, also based in Vienna, 

and discussed technical issues relating to the 

organization’s detection station in Kuwait, one 

of 80 around the world. The organization 

praised the readings and the efforts at the station 

which is crucial to the proper function of 

the international network for detecting 

nuclear testing activity even at high-seas. 

The KISR chairman noted the delegation 

held bilateral meetings on the sidelines of the 

IAEA sessions. He said he met with Tunisian 

Minister of Higher Education and Scientific 

Research Moncef Ben Salem and discussed 

bolstering cooperation between the research 

bodies in the two countries. The discussions 

were mainly on nuclear research and reactors 

and on Tunisia’s renewable energy agency 

and how the expertise could be of use to KISR. 

“This last point is of great interest in view 

of KISR’s long-term strategies and considerable 

budget allotted to this field, particularly 

where solar and wind power are concerned,” 

the official stressed. 

There was also a meeting with the 

Jordanian delegation, and talks held - in the 

presence of the Kuwaiti Ambassador to 

Austria and representative to international 

organizations based in Vienna Mohammad Al- 

Sallal - with head of the Jordanian Atomic 

Energy Commission Khalid Touqan on boosting 

scientific cooperation. 

The Kuwaiti delegation to the 56th annual 

session of the IAEA General Conference was 

headed by Ambassador Mohammad Al-Sallal. 

Along with Dr Naji Al-Mutairi, the delegation 

included the national liaison officer to the 

IAEA Dr Nader Al-Awadhi, Dr Anwar Al-Yahya 

and Advisor Tala Al-Fassam of the Foreign 

Ministry International Organizations 

Department, Health Ministry representative 

Samir Yagoub, Advisor Fawzi Al-Farh, and 

embassy officials accredited to international 

organizations in Vienna. — KUNA 

Forum for modernizing Muslim 

university education kicks off 

KUWAIT: The regional forum for modernizing university education 

to match labor market requirements and activating 

Islamic Universities Business Network kicked off here yesterday. 

“Kuwait is paying great attention to the development of 

education and scientific research as they are the main pillars 

for development and progress of nations and societies as well 

as civilization creation,” Kuwait University President Abdullatif 

Al-Bader said in the opening the speech of the forum. 

The two-day forum is hosted by Kuwait University and 

organized by Federation of Universities of the Islamic World 

(FUIW) and the Islamic Educational, Scientific, Cultural 

Organization (IESCO). “Unfortunately, the Muslim world’s contribution 

to technology and scientific research is meager 

despite all the economic, human and scientific potential it 

has,” Al-Bader lamented, stressing that this imbalance must be 

addressed soon. 

For his part, Secretary General of the Kuwaiti National 

Commission for Education, Science and Cultural Organization 

Abdullatif Baijan hailed the forum for tackling a highly important 

topic for the Muslim World. “The forum aims to modernize 

university education in Muslim countries to match the contemporary 

requirements of the labor market and more contribute 

to the advancement, economic development of 

Muslim societies,” he said. 

“It seeks to benefit from the world experiences to develop 

university education and research.” He also underlined the 

need for activating the ambitious project of the Islamic 

Universities Business Network. The Islamic Universities 

Business Network was launched during the 5th session of the 

General Conference of the Federation of the Universities of 

the Islamic World (FUIW) held in Baku, Republic of Azerbaijan, 

on 12-14 May, 2011. The Network aims to promote the commercialization 

of technology and on developing innovationbased 

businesses. It will offer training programs and help better 

communicate science from university and research institutes 

to interested parties in the public and private sector. 

Meanwhile, Director of the General Secretariat of the 

Federation of the Universities of the Islamic World Dr. Gharib 

Zahir Ismail underscored that the forum comes out of the 

deep belief in the importance of science for the future of the 

Muslim world. He pointed out that the forum will discuss the 

latest and best educational methods and techniques to better 

equip university graduates with the required qualifications 

and skills. “The forum will review a number of the best practiced 

examples of world universities in this regard,” Ismail said. 

The forum will also discuss ways of linking universities, 

research institutions, civil society organizations and employers 

to identify the required skills on the market and train students 

on them and help provide job opportunities for graduates. 

Ismail thanked the University of Kuwait for their efforts 

to host this important forum. — KUNA 

KUWAIT: The Commercial Bank of Kuwait sponsored a ‘Back to School’ festival 

recently at the 360 Mall. The bank took the opportunity to introduce to people 

in attendance services including ‘My First Account’ available for children up to 

the age of 14. 

both local and foreign.” 

Al-Sabah further commented in his 

speech at the fair’s inauguration that “this 

year’s exhibition offers a selection of new 

real estate opportunities available in safe 

and stable markets, which will be in line 

with the interests of investors in Kuwait and 

other Gulf states.” 

KUWAIT: Patrol officers blocked traffic on the Sixth Ring Road towards Al- 

Miseelah yesterday following an accident involving a heavy-duty vehicle that 

lost balance and overturned. No injuries were reported. 

—Photos by Fouad Al-Shaikh 

Human trafficker in 

police custody 

KUWAIT: Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh detectives 

have freed 11 women held hostage by a 

male suspect, who has admitted to human 

trafficking. The operation was launched 

after the police received information that 

the kidnapped women were imprisoned 

inside an apartment in the area by a human 

trafficker. The Asian women told officers 

that they had been taken hostage after 

being kidnapped by taxi drivers. The 

human trafficker, also an Asian, was taken 

in custody and is currently being interrogated 

and asked to identify his accomplices 

before he is charged for his crime. 

Prisoner escapes 

A police officer was detained, while 

another was released on bail, after a suspect 

in their custody managed to escape. 

The two officers had been assigned to take 

an Asian woman to a court in Al-Riga’ie, 

where she was undergoing a trial on 

charges including forging passports and 

allowing fugitives to escape from Kuwait 

on the basis of forged passports. The 

woman disappeared mysteriously after she 

requested to go to the bathroom. The two 

officers were referred to the Public 

Prosecutor after reporting the incident, and 

have been charged with negligence, which 

led to the suspect’s escape. 

Man disappears 

Jahra police are looking for a man 

accused of sexually assaulting his daughter. 

Officers at Jahra police station were 

approached by an 18-year-old girl, who 

was accompanied by her mother and 

brother, to report that she had been subjected 

to repeated assault by her father at 

their house in the area. The victim reportedly 

decided to inform her mother, who 

resides at another house following a 

divorce from the accused, after her father 

repeatedly attacked her. The girl was taken 

to the forensic department and a search is 

KUWAIT: An environmental organization 

has demanded stricter state supervision of 

the activities of international organizations 

working in Kuwait, on the basis of knowledge 

of “suspicious deals” having taken 

place between the United Nations 

Development Program’s (UNDP) office and 

the Kuwait National Petroleum Company. 

“The authenticity of the UNDP office in 

Kuwait has been questioned earlier as well, 

because of their history of aligning themselves 

with and receiving money from oil 

firms, which are guilty of being the largest 

polluters and violators of children’s environmental 

rights in Kuwait,” a statement issued 

by the Green Line NGO stated yesterday. 

The NGO further accused the UNDP of violating 

international standards, “which state 

that UN organizations must never be a part 

of deals with bodies suspected of being 

involved in illicit activities in that country.” 

The Green Line also announced the 

launch of a public awareness campaign, 

aimed at raising the demand for “closing 

the offices of international organizations 

that provide nothing to the Kuwaiti society,” 

as well demanding, “an assessment of the 

on for her father, who is still missing. 

Teens in custody 

The Jabriya police have arrested three 

teenagers, who allegedly stormed an apartment 

and robbed it at knifepoint. 

Investigations were initiated after the 

Filipino resident of the flat reported that 

three youngsters had entered his apartment 

and assaulted him physically, before 

stealing two cell phones, a laptop, KD500 

and 300 Saudi Riyals in cash. Based on the 

descriptions provided by the victim, police 

detectives have identified the suspects as 

three Lebanese nationals aged between 16 

years and 19 years, and placed them under 

arrest. They were taken to the concerned 

authorities for being charged after confessing 

to their crime. 

Twitter hacker 

An MP filed a complaint at the Al- 

Dhahar police station recently, requesting 

an investigation into the identity of hackers, 

who breached the security of two of his 

personal accounts on Twitter. The MP 

resorted to police action after the second 

account that he had created following the 

first one getting hacked, also met with a 

similar fate. Investigations are ongoing. 

‘Unmarried’ couple 

An Asian couple is likely to be charged 

after failing to provide a marriage contract 

following the woman delivering a baby at 

the Mubarak Hospital. Medical staff had 

called the police when the mother failed to 

provide a document proving she was married, 

while the man who hospitalized her 

and claimed to be her husband failed to do 

the same as well. The two were taken to the 

nearest police station, and later put in 

detention, pending an investigation into 

their illegal affair. 

— Al-Anbaa, Al-Rai, Al-Watan 

Green Line demands closure of 

UNDP office after KNPC deal 

performance and transparency in dealings” 

of the said offices. The group further argued 

that these offices have “remained open in 

Kuwait, despite the lack of political reasoning 

behind their being here and especially 

after the fall of the former Iraqi regime.” 

The NGO also claimed that allowing 

these offices to remain functional in the 

country would result in huge financial 

waste that will have to be borne by the 

state budget. “The UNDP had prior knowledge 

before they entered this deal, that 

they were getting into business with an 

organization that lacks environmental 

integrity and has had a long history of environmental 

violations,” the statement noted, 

adding that Green Line “had even alerted 

the UNDP earlier that the integrity of their 

work in Kuwait will be damaged, should 

they receive any money from oil companies 

that contribute to increasing pollution levels 

in the country.” The Green Line pointed 

out that it holds the belief that none of the 

UNDP activities have had an actual positive 

effect on Kuwait, and demanded that the 

government ends any representation for 

the UN firm in the country.


Britain, France, Germany call for new Iran sanctions 

Page 10 

Syrian children killed 

ahead of UN briefing 

CISTERNINO: The wreckage of a truck lies on the tracks in Cisternino, southern Italy, yesterday. Italian state railway officials say a high-speed train slammed into the truck at a railroad crossing, killing the train’s engineer and 

injuring four passengers. A railway spokesman, Marco Mancini, says the truck got stuck on the tracks and that the driver then abandoned the vehicle, making it to safety just before the Frecciargento (Silverarrow) train from 

Rome ran into it. — AP 

14 sentenced to death for Sinai attacks 

ISMAILIA: An Egyptian court yesterday 

sentenced 14 Islamists to 

death for attacks on security forces 

in the Sinai Peninsula, showing 

Egypt’s determination to put down 

militancy in a region critical to relations 

with neighbouring Israel. 

The Jewish state has voiced concern 

about security in Sinai, where 

at least four cross-border attacks 

have taken place since President 

Hosni Mubarak was toppled in 

February 2011. The Islamist president, 

Mohamed Mursi, has made 

the issue a priority since he was 

elected in June. 

Sixteen Egyptian border guards 

were killed in August, and hundreds 

of police and troops with 

tanks, armoured vehicles and helicopters 

have been sent to raid militant 

hideouts and seize weapons in 

an operation coordinated with 

Egypt govt will not tolerate attacks on army, police 

Israel. The court in Ismailia sentenced 

14 members of the 

Tawheed wal Jihad group to hang 

for killing three police officers, an 

army officer and a civilian in attacks 

on a police station and a bank in 

the town of Arish in June and July 

last year. 

Eight were tried in absentia, 

court sources said. Four other militants 

were sentenced to life imprisonment. 

“This court decision is a 

milestone. It gives a strong message 

to the militant groups that the 

state, President Mohamed Mursi’s 

government, will not tolerate 

attacks on the Egyptian armed 

forces and police,” said Nageh 

Ibrahim, an expert on Islamists who 

is himself a former militant. 

The verdicts prompted cries 

from the accused. “Mursi is an infidel 

and those who follow him are 

infidels,” shouted one. Others cried 

“God is Greatest” as they listened to 

the judge from inside their metal 

cage in court. The men all had 

beards and traditional white robes 

and some held Qurans. The prosecutor 

said that Tawheed wal Jihad 

(“Monotheism and Holy War”) 

propagated a hardline Islamist view 

that allowed adherents to declare 

the head of state an infidel and to 

wage war on the government. 

The same group was accused of 

carrying out a series of bomb 

attacks in 2004 and 2005 against 

tourist resorts in South Sinai, in 

which 34 people died. 

Grand Mufti Ali Gomaa, Egypt’s 

highest Islamic legal official, sanctioned 

the death penalty before it 

was pronounced. 

“The accused wanted to spread 

corruption in the earth,” he said. 

“They went out armed with deadly 

weapons, machine guns and explosives 

to target security forces ... all 

in the name of Islam. They therefore 

deserve the death sentence.” 

Ibrahim, who was jailed during 

the 1990s but later became one of 

the leading Islamists to call for an 

end to violence against the state, 

said the verdicts would deter other 

militants from attacking Israel. 

“Mursi’s government is adamant 

about stemming any attacks across 

the border because this will give 

Israel an incentive to reoccupy 

Sinai. Now is the time for development, 

not war,” Ibrahim said. 

The US-brokered 1979 peace 

treaty between Egypt and Israel 

sets strict limits on military 

deployment in the Sinai, which is 

designated a demilitarised buffer 

zone. — Reuters 

Cameron backs minister over ‘pleb’ swipe at police 

LONDON: Britain’s David 

Cameron backed a senior 

minister accused of ranting 

at policemen in public and 

calling them “plebs”, an oldfashioned 

insult laden with 

snobbery that has undermined 

his party’s attempts 

to shake off its privileged 

image. The tirade outside 

the prime minister’s 

Downing Street office by 

Andrew Mitchell has embarrassed 

a Conservative party 

that is trailing in the polls 

and struggling to shore up 

its support at a time of 

recession, tax increases and 

spending cuts. While 

reports that Mitchell called 

the officers “morons” were 

embarrassing, more damaging 

was the report that he 

used the word “pleb”, a term 

that is rarely used by a middle 

or working class person 

but is soaked in upper class 

condescension.—Reuters 

Page 8

international 

Rafsanjani’s son detained on return from exile 

DUBAI: The son of Iran’s former President 

Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, a founder of 

the Islamic Republic, was detained yesterday 

after returning from exile, accused of 

inciting post-election unrest in 2009. 

Mehdi Hashemi Rafsanjani arrived in 

Tehran late on Sunday having spent three 

years in Britain following the widespread 

protests at the re-election of President 

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. 

The 43-year-old presented himself at 

court to hear the charges and face ques- 

tioning. His lawyer was not allowed to be 

present, the Iranian Students’ News 

Agency reported. 

Rafsanjani was then transferred to 

Tehran’s Evin prison after the court issued 

a temporary detention order, news agencies 

reported. 

Analysts say Mehdi’s return could indicate 

a deal has been agreed with authorities 

to resolve the charges, and may signal 

a revival in the political fortunes of his 

father, a grandee of Iranian politics whose 

JERUSALEM: Former Israeli prime minister Ehud Olmert speaks to the 

press following a sentence hearing in his corruption case at Jerusalem’s 

District Court yesterday. A Jerusalem court handed Olmert a $19,000 fine 

and a suspended jail sentence for graft, meaning he will serve no jail 

time, Israeli media reported. — AFP 

Israeli ex-PM spared 

jail in corruption case 

JERUSALEM: An Israeli court spared former 

prime minister Ehud Olmert a prison term for 

breach of trust yesterday, opening the door 

to a political comeback if he should want 

one. Dogged by corruption scandals as he 

tried to forge a peace deal with the 

Palestinians, Olmert resigned in 2008. 

Though found guilty in July for approving 

projects that involved one of his long-time 

friends while in a previous cabinet post, he 

was acquitted of more serious bribery 

charges. 

Jerusalem District Court handed Olmert a 

suspended one-year jail sentence and a 

75,300-shekel ($19,225) fine. 

The three-judge panel also decided 

against defining the crime as one of “moral 

turpitude” - a label that, along with significant 

time behind bars, might have prevented 

the 66-year-old centrist politician from 

returning to public office. 

“I leave court today walking tall,” Olmert 

told reporters, without elaborating on his 

plans. After his conviction, Olmert, who 

described himself as guilty of a “procedural 

irregularity” rather than corruption, said he 

had no intention of re-entering politics. 

The party he once led, Kadima, now heads 

the opposition to Prime Minister Benjamin 

Netanyahu’s rightist Likud. The next election 

is due in October 2013, though it could be 

brought forward over delays in passing the 

national budget. 

Olmert is still fighting a separate bribery 

case over his role, as Jerusalem mayor from 

1993 to 2003, in a controversial housing project. 

He has denied all wrongdoing in that 

case. 

“This is not over,” deputy Israeli state prosecutor 

Eli Abravanel said after Monday’s sentencing. 

Olmert voluntarily forfeited his government 

benefits as ex-premier after his conviction, 

which carried a maximum penalty of 

three years’ imprisonment. 

That gesture helped to soften his sentence, 

said the Jerusalem court, adding that 

it had also noted “the great contribution 

made by the defendant to the country”. 

The court’s rejection in July of key accusations 

that effectively brought down a sitting 

prime minister, who was suffering prostate 

cancer at the time, raised questions in Israel 

about whether prosecutors had been 

overzealous. 

But many Israelis soured on Olmert over 

the costly and inconclusive 2006 war against 

the Hezbollah militia in Lebanon. An opinion 

poll conducted immediately after July’s court 

verdict found 70 percent opposed to Olmert 

re-entering politics, with only 22 percent in 

favour.—Reuters 

star has waned since the election. 

Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, a close aide 

to the late revolutionary leader Ayatollah 

Ruhollah Khomeini, has held most of the 

Iran’s top political positions, including 

parliament speaker, armed forces commander 

and president from 1989 to 1997. 

But the pragmatic conservative’s power 

has waned since he expressed sympathy 

for opposition demonstrators after 

the 2009 vote that triggered the deepest 

political crisis and worst unrest in Iran 

since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. 

However, as oil and banking sanctions 

bite, some are saying Rafsanjani could 

make a surprise comeback bid for the 

presidency at an election scheduled for 

June 2013. In a sign of his return to 

favour, Rafsanjani was photographed 

walking alongside Supreme Leader 

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei at a Non-Aligned 

Movement summit in Tehran last month, 

and sat next to U.N. Secretary-General 

Ban Ki-moon. 


But the wealthy Rafsanjani family 

remains under pressure. On Saturday, 

Mehdi’s sister Faezeh, a former lawmaker 

and a women’s rights activist, began a sixmonth 

jail sentence for “spreading antistate 

propaganda”. 

Faezeh was detained briefly in 2009 

after addressing supporters of 

Ahmadinejad’s main election rival, 

Mirhossein Mousavi, who himself has 

been under unofficial house arrest since 

February 2011.— Reuters 

Syrian children killed 

ahead of UN briefing 

‘There are still people buried under the rubble’ 

DAMASCUS: Regime forces pounded rebels 

claiming to control most of Syria yesterday 

ahead of a UN Security Council briefing by 

peace envoy Lakhdar Brahimi on his talks with 

President Bashar al-Assad. 

Ahead of the annual UN General Assembly 

starting today, the UN and Arab League envoy 

is set to brief the UN Security Council behind 

closed doors on his talks in Damascus. Brahimi 

discussed Syria with UN chief Ban Ki-moon on 

Saturday and both agreed that the 18-month 

crisis was “a steadily increasing threat to regional 

peace and stability,” a statement said. 

Yesterday’s briefing comes a day after at 

least 82 people were killed in violence nationwide 

in Syria-among them 40 civilians-according 

to figures supplied by Britain-based watchdog 

the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. 

Three children from one family were among 

five people killed in a strike by regime warplanes 

yesterday on the northern city of 

Aleppo, the country’s commercial hub that has 

been a focus for fighting since mid-July. 

“Three children from the same family were 

killed when their building collapsed in Maadi 

district, which is located in the Old City of 

Aleppo, 600 metres (yards) from the citadel,” 

the Observatory’s Rami Abdel Rahman told AFP. 

“There are still people buried under the rubble.” 

Battles raged overnight in Aleppo’s western 

districts of Jamiliyeh, Bustan al-Qasr, 

Furqan and in Zabdiyeh, while the army shelled 

rebel positions in Marjeh, Tariq al-Bab and 

Zabdiyeh, the Observatory said. 

In Damascus, pre-dawn battles erupted in 

the eastern neighbourhood of Qaboon, said 

the watchdog, while northwest of the city, a 

large explosion rocked Qudsaya suburb after 

midnight. 

The northeast suburb of Douma and farmland 

between Douma and nearby Harasta were 

also shelled overnight. On Sunday, regime aircraft 

hammered rebel strongholds as rebels 

said they now control most of Syria and have 

moved their command centre from Turkey to 

“liberated areas” inside the country. The air 

attacks focused on Homs province, Deir Ezzor 

in the east and areas of Damascus. 

In Aleppo, rebels destroyed two fighter 

planes on the ground in Orm, a rebel commander 

told AFP. Residents in the village of 

Bianoun, north of Aleppo, told AFP that aircraft 

also hit a rebel house where a meeting was 

under way, destroying it and killing everyone 

inside. The report could not be independently 

verified. 

Colonel Ahmad Abdul Wahab of the Free 

Israeli defense chief proposes WB pullout 

JERUSALEM: Israel’s defense 

minister called for a unilateral 

pullout from much of the West 

Bank in published comments 

yesterday, saying Israel must 

take “practical steps” if peace 

efforts with the Palestinians 

remain stalled. 

The comments by Defense 

Minister Ehud Barak appeared to 

put him at odds with Prime 

Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, 

who has resisted making any 

major concessions to the 

Palestinians in the absence of 

peace talks. Negotiations have 

been deadlocked for nearly four 

years. Netanyahu’s office 

declined comment. 

Barak’s proposal is unlikely to 

be implemented, at least in the 

near term. Netanyahu’s coalition 

is dominated by hardliners who 

would be reluctant to embrace 

the plan. But Netanyahu is widely 

expected to call early elections 

in the coming weeks, and 

Barak may be trying to attract 

centrist voters to his party 

ahead of an upcoming campaign. 

Speaking to the Israel Hayom 

newspaper, Barak called for 

uprooting dozens of Jewish settlements 

in the West Bank, but 

said Israel would keep major settlement 

“blocs.” 

These blocs, home to 80 to 90 

percent of the settler population, 

are mostly located near the 

frontiers with Israel proper, 

though one of them, Ariel, is 

located deep inside the West 

Bank. Barak also said Israel 

would need to maintain a military 

presence along the West 

Bank’s border with Jordan. 

The remaining settlers would 

be given financial incentives to 

leave, or be allowed to remain in 

their homes under Palestinian 

control for a five-year “trial period,” 

Barak said. 

“It’s better to reach an agreement 

with the Palestinians, but 

if that doesn’t happen, we must 

take practical steps to start a 

separation,” he said. “It will help 

us not only in dealing with the 

Palestinians, but also with other 

countries in the region, with the 

Europeans, and with the 

American administration - and 

of course (will help) us.” 

The proposal falls far short of 

Palestinian demands for all of 

the West Bank, along with adjacent 

east Jerusalem and the 

Gaza Strip, for a future inde- 

pendent state. Israel captured 

the areas in the 1967 Mideast 

war, though it withdrew unilaterally 

from Gaza in 2005. 

Sabri Sedam, an aide to 

Palestinian President Mahmoud 

Abbas, rejected Barak’s proposal. 

He said continued Israeli control 

of the settlement blocs and east 

Jerusalem would make the 

establishment of a Palestinian 

state impossible. 

“The major settlement blocs 

separate the West Bank and confiscates 

east Jerusalem,” Sedam 

said. “These settlement blocs are 

not isolated populations. They 

are connected communities, 

passing through the Palestinian 

JERUSALEM: In this Monday, Jan. 17 2011 file photo, Israeli 

Defense Minister Ehud Barak attends a press conference in 

the Knesset, Israel’s parliament, in Jerusalem. Barak calls for 

a broad unilateral withdrawal from the West Bank if peace 

talks remain stalled, saying “practical steps” are needed to 

breathe life into the diplomatic process. — AP 

land, which kills any geographical 

contiguity for a Palestinian 

state.” 

The 12 million people who 

live in Israel plus the Palestinian 

areas are roughly equally divided 

between Arabs and Jews, and 

the Arab birthrate is generally 

higher. In Israel proper, Jews 

make up about three-quarters of 

the population. 

But when the Palestinian 

areas are included, Jews could 

soon find themselves a minority 

in Israel-controlled areas. 

Dovish Israelis have cited this 

demographic argument for 

years as a key reason to pull out 

of the West Bank. Even 

Netanyahu has raised concerns 

about the demographic issue. 

“We have not been a year or 

two in Judea and Samaria, but 

45 years,” Barak said, using the 

biblical terms for the West Bank. 

“The time has come to make 

decisions based not only on ideology 

and gut feelings, but from 

a cold reading of reality.” 

But unilateral moves are 

extremely controversial in Israel. 

Israel pulled out of the Gaza 

Strip in 2005, citing demographics. 

Within two years, Hamas 

militants overran the territory, 

using it to fire thousands of 

rockets into Israel. Israeli hardliners 

fear the same thing could 

happen in the West Bank. Peace 

talks have been stalled since late 

2008, in large part because of 

the Jewish settlements. 

The Palestinians refuse to 

negotiate while Israel continues 

to build new homes for settlers 

on occupied territory. 

Netanyahu has refused to halt 

settlement construction, saying 

all disagreements must be 

resolved in negotiations. —AP 

Syrian Army said the regime’s aerial superiority 

was the only thing preventing the FSA from 

seizing the capital. 

“We control most of the country. In most 

regions, the soldiers are prisoners of their barracks. 

They go out very little and we can move 

freely everywhere, except Damascus,” Abdul 

Wahab told AFP. 

On Saturday, the FSA said the next step 

would be to “liberate” Damascus. Nearly 80 percent 

of towns and villages along the Turkish 

border are outside the control of the authorities 

in Damascus, according to the Observatory. 

In the capital, 20 government-tolerated opposition 

parties met on Sunday to discuss a solution 

to the crisis in the presence of the ambassadors 

of Russia and Iran, staunch allies of 

Assad’s government. 

Raja al-Nasser of the National Coordination 

Committee for Democratic Change called at the 

meeting for an end to the “barbaric bombing” 

to move toward a political process that would 

“put an end to the current regime.” 

According to the Observatory, at least 

29,000 people have been killed since the revolt 

against Assad’s rule erupted last year. The 

United Nations puts the toll at more than 

20,000. 

Because of international divisions over the 

18-month-old conflict, the UN is holding no formal 

meeting on Syria at this week’s General 

Assembly. 

But US President Barack Obama and Western 

leaders are expected to call for action in their 

speeches. Obama is one of the first speakers on 

Tuesday after Ban formally opens the annual 

gathering of world leaders. 

Diplomatic wounds over Syria are not close 

to healing, however. Neither Russia nor China, 

which have three times vetoed Security Council 

resolutions on Syria, will be represented by a 

senior leader in New York. 

Assad is expected to send his foreign minister, 

Walid Muallem. “Everyone will be thinking 

about Syria, talking about Syria, but there will 

be no decision and no major progress,” said one 

senior UN diplomat, speaking on condition of 

anonymity. — AFP 

IDLIB: In this Sunday, March 11, 2012 file photo, a man carries a boy who was 

severely wounded during heavy fighting between Syrian rebels and Syrian Army 

forces in Idlib, north Syria. A new report by the British charity Save the Children 

documents atrocities in Syria’s 18-month-old civil war that have left thousands of 

children dead and many more traumatized. —AP 

Libya orders ‘illegitimate’ 

militias to disband 

BENGHAZI: The Libyan army on Sunday said 

it raided several militia outposts operating 

outside government control in the capital, 

Tripoli, while in the east, the militia suspected 

in the Sept. 11 attack on the US Consulate said 

it had disbanded on orders of the country’s 

president. 

President Mohammed el-Megaref said late 

Saturday all of the country’s militias must 

come under government authority or disband, 

a move that appeared aimed at harnessing 

popular anger against the powerful armed 

groups following the attack that killed the US 

ambassador. 

The assault on the US mission in Benghazi, 

which left Ambassador Chris Stevens and 

three other Americans dead, has sparked an 

angry backlash among many Libyans against 

the myriad of armed factions that continue to 

run rampant across the nation nearly a year 

after the end of the country’s civil war. 

On Friday, residents of Benghazi - the cradle 

of the Libyan revolution last year that toppled 

dictator Moammar Gaddafi - staged a mass 

demonstration against the militias before 

storming the compounds of several armed 

groups in the city in an unprecedented protest 

to demand the militias dissolve. 

The government has taken advantage of 

the popular sentiment to move quickly. In a 

statement published by the official LANA 

news agency, the military asked all armed 

groups using the army’s camps, outposts and 

barracks in Tripoli, and other cities to hand 

them over. It warned that it will resort to 

force if the groups refuse. 

On Sunday, security forces raided a number 

of sites in the capital, including a military outpost 

on the main airport road, which were 

being used as bases by disparate militias since 

Gadhafi was driven from the capital around a 

year ago, according to military spokesman Ali 

al-Shakhli. 

Tripoli resident Abdel-Salam Sikayer said he 

believes the government is able to make this 

push now because, thanks to the country’s first 

free election in decades that took place in July, 

the public generally trusts it. 

“There was no trust before the election of 

the National Congress that is backed by the 

legitimacy of the people and which chose the 

country’s leader. There is a feeling that the 

national army will really be built,” he said. 

The government faces a number of obstacles, 

though. It needs the most powerful militias 

on its side to help disband the rest. It also 

relies on militias for protection of vital institutions 

and has used them to secure the borders, 

airports, hospitals and even July’s election. 

Some of the militias have taken steps over the 

past several weeks to consolidate and work as 

contracted government security forces that 

are paid monthly salaries. In the western city of 

Misrata, for example, resident Walid Khashif 

said dozens of militias held a meeting recently 

and decided to work under the government’s 

authority. He said the militias also handed over 

three main prisons in the city to the Ministry of 

Justice to run. 

Since Gadhafi’s capture and killing, the 

government has brought some militias nominally 

under the authority of the military or 

Interior Ministry, but even those retain separate 

commanders and often are only superficially 

subordinate to the state. El-Megaref 

told reporters late Saturday that militias operating 

outside state authority will be dissolved, 

and that the military and police will take control 

over their barracks. 

But it remains unclear if the government 

has the will - and the firepower - to force the 

most powerful militias to recognize its authority. 

Backers of the ousted regime continue to 

hold sway in some parts of the country, particularly 

the western city of Bani Walid and parts 

of the deep south. Gaddafi loyalists near the 

southern town of Barek al-Shati clashed with a 

pro-government militia for several days, killing 

nearly 20, and abducted 30 militiamen working 

with the authorities from a bus this week, 

according to Essam al-Katous, a senior security 

official. Over the past 11 months, a series of 

interim leaders has struggled to bring order to 

a country that was eviscerated during the 

eccentric dictator’s 42-year rule, with security 

forces and the military intentionally kept weak 

and government institutions hollowed of 

authority. Powerful militias like Ansar al- 

Shariah in eastern Libya say there is no clear 

system in place for how the head of the joints 

chief of staff decides which militias are legitimate 

and which are not. — AP

LIMA: Mexican President-elect Franciso Pena Nieto (2-L), his wife 

Angelica Rivera (L), Peruvian President Ollanta Humala (2-R) and 

Peruvian First Lady Nadine Heredia (R) pose at the Government Palace in 

Lima yesterday. Pena Nieto in on a one-day visit to Peru. — AFP 

Six youth offenders caught 

after knocking out guard 

SEATTLE: The teenage boys apparently 

planned their escape from the juvenile 

detention center in Washington state. 

Some had packed bags with them, and one 

boy even stuffed his bed to make it look 

like he was there, authorities said. 

On Saturday night, when they were supposed 

to be locked in their rooms at Echo 

Glen Children’s Center in Snoqualmie, 

about 25 miles east of Seattle, six inmates 

knocked a staff member unconscious, 

locked her in a room and fled, authorities 

said. 

They were captured a few hours later 

after a helicopter crew using thermal-imaging 

equipment spotted them in nearby 

woods early Sunday, according to the King 

County Sheriff’s Office. 

“They basically attacked the staff member, 

knocked her out, took her keys and 

fled,” Sgt. Cindi West said. The teens left the 

woman unconscious and locked in a room 

at the facility, she said. All of the inmates 

should have been locked in their rooms by 

11 p.m., but they somehow managed to 

get out, said David Griffith, who directs 

institution programs for the state Juvenile 

Rehabilitation Administration. 

“The kids were supposed to be locked in 

their rooms. It may have been a procedural 

error, or the youth hid out and she (the staff 

member) didn’t know where they were,” 

Griffith said. “It’s very scary ... We’ll investigate 

what went wrong, absolutely,” he 

added, noting that the agency will address 

procedural changes if necessary. 

He said the staff member was treated 

and is at home. The teens were in a maximum-security 

unit of the juvenile correction 

facility, which currently houses about 

165 youth offenders in 10 separate living 

units. The units include a small kitchen, living 

room and classroom. 

“We’re not sure how it was initiated. It 

might have been a single person, or a concerted 

effort,” Griffith said. “The kids who 

assaulted the staff member opened the 

doors for all kids living in the unit, so there 

was a potential for the entire unit to 

escape.” 

Six fled. Seven decided to stay and they 

notified security, Griffith said. The King 

County Sheriff’s office said it received word 

of the escape at about 11:30 p.m. Saturday. 

The unarmed staff member was alone in 

the unit, which is typical after lockdown, 

Griffith said. 

She apparently wasn’t able to push a 

panic button or call security for help, he 

said. Witnesses told detectives that the staff 

member was beaten with a chunk of ice 

frozen in a water bottle, the Seattle Times 

reported. 

“It definitely appears this was planned. 

The detective on the scene said when they 

found the boys they had their packed bags 

with them,” West told the Times. Griffith 

added: “They had some planning because 

they had one bed that was stuff. One kid 

put stuff in his bed to make it look like he 

was there.” 

The six males, three 14-year-olds and 

three 15-year-olds, were serving time for 

offenses including assault, possession of 

firearms and burglary, West said. 

Law officers on the ground with search 

dogs and in the air combed the area on the 

outskirts of Snoqualmie before a helicopter 

crew spotted them in woods near the 

center, according to West. All were captured 

by 2 am Sunday. 

“The biggest reason they were apprehended 

so quickly was the helicopter,” she 

said. “Without that we would have been 

looking for needles in a haystack. It allowed 

us to apprehend them before they got into 

the neighborhood.” 

Echo Glen Children’s Center is a medium 

and maximum security facility for offenders 

serving time mostly for felony crimes. The 

facility is not fenced, but is bordered by 

natural wetlands. It provides treatment 

services for younger male offenders and is 

the main institution for female juvenile 

offenders, according to its website. 

Once the teens were spotted by the helicopter, 

they split up into three groups and 

ran in different directions, West said. 

Deputies in the helicopter were able to 

direct deputies on the ground, including K- 

9 units, to where the teens were running or 

hiding. 

One was bitten by a police dog while 

trying to escape and was taken to a hospital 

for treatment, West said. The others 

were arrested without incident and booked 

on charges of assault, unlawful imprisonment 

and escape, she said. “There was no 

indication that this was coming up,” Griffith 

said. — AP 

Togo ruling family 

faces increasingly 

determined opposition 

LOME: The leader of a stick-wielding mob, a 

small axe dangling from a rope around his 

neck, made no secret of why they had come: 

to stop a protest organised by opposition and 

civil society groups. But he insisted their 

actions did not involve politics, saying the 

mob wanted to protect the elderly people in 

the neighbourhood. If police fired tear gas at 

the protest-as they often do-it may harm residents, 

he said. 

“What we are doing has nothing to do with 

politics,” he said not long before the mob 

pulled a motorcycle rider off his bike for 

unclear reasons and repeatedly hit him. “It is 

just social.” Police stood by and watched as 

they roamed the street, and protest organisers 

canceled the demonstration, accusing the 

mob of being a ruling party militia. 

The September 15 incident seemed to be 

another chapter in a cat-and-mouse game 

ahead of parliamentary elections in this small 

west African nation run by the same family for 

more than four decades. 

The elections are due in October, but they 

are widely expected to be delayed. 

While change has swept other parts of the 

world over the past couple of years, Togo, an 

impoverished and largely agricultural nation 

under French rule before independence in 

1960, can sometimes feel like a throwback to 

another era. Lingering suspicions over an 

alleged coup bid in 2009 have added to tensions, 

with the president’s half-brother sentenced 

to 20 years in prison and 32 others to a 

range of jail terms over the incident last year. 

Opposition and civil society groups have been 

organising protests that the government 

seeks to prevent, usually with police firing tear 

gas. It recently banned demonstrations in 

commercial areas of the capital Lome. 

Clashes have occasionally broken out 

between protesters and security forces. The 

Let’s Save Togo coalition has been calling the 

protests over a range of demands, most 

notably the departure of President Faure 

Gnassingbe, who was installed in power by 

the army after his father’s death in 2005 and 

who won elections a few months later and 

again in 2010. Women even called for a sex 

strike at one point in support of the coalition. 

More protests are planned for Tuesday, 

Wednesday and Thursday which may be 

volatile since they are to be held in an area of 

Lome where marches are banned. 

“We are done holding elections just to 

please others-to please and help a fraudulent 

regime and to please the West. It’s over,” said 

Jean-Pierre Fabre, leader of the opposition 

National Alliance for Change who demands 

sweeping electoral reforms. 

Fabre finished second to Gnassingbe in 

2010 elections and disputes the results. 

Gnassingbe’s supporters describe a more 

complex situation, saying the government is 

taking real steps toward change, but that it 

will have to come gradually in a country 

where the military wields major power. 

Ethnic tensions also come into play, with 

the Kabye ethnic group from the country’s 

north viewed as having dominated politics 

and the security forces. 

The president, whose father was a general 

who ruled for 38 years, has signaled intentions 

to move toward reforms, and observers have 

noted that 2010 presidential elections were a 

significant improvement over the 2005 polls, 

which were marred by deadly violence. 

Gilbert Bawara, minister of territorial administration, 

has sought to portray the opposition 

as simply power hungry with no real plan to 

run the country. He accused them of being fixated 

on Gnassingbe yielding power. “And then 

what?” Bawara said, suggesting that the opposition 

may not be able to control the army if it 

came to power now. “What will happen next?” 

He defended the government’s decision to 

ban demonstrations in commercial areas, saying 

such marches posed a threat to public 

order and prevented merchants from operating 

their businesses.— AFP 

international 

WASHINGTON: Republican Mitt Romney hits the 

campaign trail hard this week to try to inject some 

fresh momentum into his flagging presidential bid 

as polls show his path to the White House narrowing. 

The vote is six weeks from Tuesday and the former 

Massachusetts governor trails President Barack 

Obama both in national polls and, more importantly, 

in eight of the nine crucial swing states that will 

decide the election. 

Efforts to claw back some ground on the incumbent 

since Obama received a significant boost from 

the Democratic Party Convention at the beginning 

of the month have fallen into disarray due to a 

series of campaign missteps. 

After rushing to judgment over Obama’s 

response to the anti-Islamic film that spawned 

protests in the Muslim world, Romney was embarrassed 

by a secretly-recorded video in which he 

wrote off almost half the electorate as “victims” 

who were dependent on government handouts. 

“The Romney campaign has to get turned 

around,” respected conservative columnist Peggy 

Noonan wrote on Friday. “This week I called it 

incompetent, but only because I was being polite. I 

really meant ‘rolling calamity.’” 

A Romney reset effort began in earnest even 

before a campaign event on Sunday evening in 

Colorado as he flew from Los Angeles to Denver, 

Colorado. Romney said that his poll numbers had 

declined in swing states because Obama’s campaign 

is lying about his record, including on issues 

such as the automobile industry bailout, abortion 

and taxes. 

“He’s trying to fool people into thinking that I 

think things I don’t,” Romney said, talking to 

reporters on his plane. “And that ends I think during 

the debates.” Meanwhile, running mate Paul 

Ryan kicks off a “Romney Plan For A Stronger 

Middle Class” tour on Monday across Rust-belt 

Ohio, where an average of the latest polling shows 

Obama ahead by more than four percentage 

points. Under the US system, each state is awarded 

a certain number of electoral college votes and on 

election night a candidate needs to reach the magic 

270 figure to emerge victorious. The swing states 

with the largest number of electoral college votes 

up for grabs are Florida (29), North Carolina (15), 

Ohio (18) and Virginia (13). Polling of nine swing 

states shows Romney leading only in North 

Carolina and trailing by more than four percent in 

both Ohio and Virginia. Florida is closer, with 

Obama credited with a razor-thin lead of around 

one percent. 

“These are the dominoes that have to fall for 

each of the campaigns, and the trouble is, based 

on the polling at least, eight of the nine dominoes 

are at least slightly tilted in Obama’s direction,” said 

expert Charles Franklin. “Romney needs to tilt 

some of them back in his direction and he needs to 

do that fairly soon,” said Franklin, a politics professor 

at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and cofounder 

of Pollster.com. 

The Romney campaign remains defiant and 

insists their man is still effectively tied with an 

incumbent who has a large Achilles heel: the economy. 

“Given everything we’ve gone through, everybody 

wants to count this guy out,” Neil Newhouse, 

Romney’s campaign pollster, told the Washington 


Romney seeks momentum 

in campaign swing 

9 swing states show Romney leading in N Carolina 

Post. “And yet the poll numbers don’t do that. The 

poll numbers put him right in the middle of this.” 

The candidate himself seemed confident about 

his prospects in an interview with broadcaster CBS 

aired late Sunday. Asked if he could win the 

upcoming elections, Romney replied: “I’m going to 

win this thing.” 

A week from Tuesday, Romney will face off 

against Obama in the first of three televised presidential 

debates that collectively represent his final 

big opportunity to turn things around. 

On election day, November 6, there is always 

the question of which side has had the better 

“ground game,” getting voters to the polls and 

ensuring their candidate is not defeated by low 

turnout. Franklin said he wasn’t ready to call the 

race for Obama. “This is sort of like knowing a halftime 

score in an American football game. It tells 

you something about the outcome but it’s not the 

final score,” he told AFP— AFP 

DENVER: US Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney speaks to the 

press as Ohio Senator Rob Portman (R) looks on aboard his campaign plane 

while in flight en route to Denver yesterday. — AFP

INTERNATIONAL 

Forest fire forces 2,000 to evacuate in Spain 

VALENCIA: Firefighters battled a forest fire 

whipped up by strong winds in the Spanish region 

of Valencia yesterday, forcing the evacuation of 

about 2,000 people, officials said. The blaze broke 

out Sunday afternoon and spread quickly, threatening 

villages about 50 kilometres (30 miles) inland 

of the eastern city Valencia, which lies on the 

Mediterranean coast. 

About 2,000 people have been evacuated from 

villages in the area since it broke out Sunday afternoon 

and several roads were cut off, Valencia officials 

said. Some 500 firefighters on the ground, 

backed by 27 aircraft, were attempting to get the fire 

under control, they said. 

“We are trying to protect areas of housing,” said 

senior Valencia region government policymaker 

Turkey clips military’s 

wings in landmark verdict 

Court jails more than 300 officers 

ISTANBUL: The jailing of hundreds of Turkish army 

officers including top generals accused of plotting 

to topple Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan underscored 

how far he has come in gaining control of 

the country’s once all-powerful military. 

But Erdogan, 10 years in power, must grapple 

with suspicions among critics and even some sympathisers 

that he is using this and other coup investigations 

to silence opposition as he sets about 

taming a militant secularist establishment. Far from 

flinching, he may seek more power in a revamped 

presidency. The verdict against 325 officers at the 

end of the 21-month trial on Friday would have 

been unthinkable a decade ago, when generals 

regularly intervened in policy-making as selfappointed 

guardians of Turkish secularism. 

Judges in the case, dubbed Sledgehammer, 

handed down prison sentences ranging from six to 

20 years against the officers for plotting to wreck 

Erdogan’s rule almost 10 years ago, soon after his 

Islamist-rooted party swept to power with the 

biggest share of the vote in decades. 

Hilmi Ozkok, who was head of the armed forces 

at the time, rejected accusations the court’s decision 

was driven by revenge. 

“The ruling will serve as a deterrent and has a 

lesson for everyone ... in understanding how much 

Turkey and the rest of the world has changed,” 

Ozkok told Milliyet newspaper on Sunday. 

Turks reading such words from the mouth of the 

former armed forces chief will gain a measure of 

the scale of change since Erdogan’s AK party was 

first elected in 2002. The generals then made no 

secret of their disdain for a man who had served a 

brief prison sentence for relgious incitement and 

had backed a short-lived Islamist government they 

eased from power in 1997 When AK was elected for 

a second term in 2007 with an even larger margin 

of victory, an emboldened Erdogan launched a 

series of investigations into officers, lawyers, politicians, 

journalists and others that exposed several 

alleged conspiracies against the government. 

The plots consisted of plans to foment unrest 

and pave the way for an army takeover. 

Sledgehammer, a war game scenario played out at 

a barracks in Istanbul in March 2003, included plans 

to bomb historic mosques in Istanbul and trigger 

conflict with Greece. For many, it was all to easy to 

believe. Turkey’s military, NATO’s second biggest, 

staged three outright coups between 1960 and 

1980 and pressured a fourth government, the first 

Islamist-led, from power in 1997. 

ANKARA: Turkey’s Chief of Staff Gen. Necdet Ozel, left, and his Somalian counterpart Gen. 

Abdikadir Sheikh Ali Dini inspect guard of honour at the Turkish army headquarters in 

Ankara, Turkey, yesterday. — AP 

Under Erdogan, a devout Muslim, curbs on religion 

have been relaxed. Women are allowed to 

more freely wear the Islamic headscarf, alcohol is 

heavily taxed, and students at religious high 

schools are able to more easily attend university. 

Journalists complain of pressure to write 

favourable stories about the government, and a 

number of writers are among those arrested under 

another plot investigation, “Ergenekon”. “This 

(Sledgehammer) case is an important step towards 

ending the army’s political role but it’s not enough 

to stop it completely,” said Sahin Alpay, professor of 

political science at Bahcesehir University and a 

columnist for Zaman, seen as close to the government. 

“Now we need a new constitution and laws that 

place the army under civilian supervision and 

reform military schools to reflect the values of a liberal 

democracy,” he said. A new constitution is now 

under consideration to replace a restrictive code 

Sudan, S Sudan leaders meet 

for deal on conflict issues 

ADDIS ABABA: The presidents of Sudan and South 

Sudan met for a second day yesterday as pressure 

mounts to settle long-running bitter disputes that 

have brought the rivals to the brink of renewed conflict. 

Former civil war foes President Omar al-Bashir 

of Sudan and his Southern counterpart Salva Kiir are 

facing the looming threat of UN Security Council 

sanctions unless they reach a deal, after they missed 

a Saturday deadline. 

The protracted talks under African Union mediation 

began in the Ethiopian capital several months 

before South Sudan split in July 2011 from what was 

Africa’s biggest nation, following an independence 

vote after decades of war. 

The leaders met Monday for talks hosted by 

Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn in 

the presidential palace, alongside AU chief mediator 

and former South African president Thabo Mbeki. 

“The presidents met, now they are discussing 

issues,” including contested border areas and oil, 

said top South Sudanese official Deng Alor, as the 

leaders broke mid-morning for discusions with their 

own teams. 

Face-to-face meetings expected to resume later 

yesterday, Alor added. The pair kick-started the talks 

with a two-hour meeting late Sunday, following 

marathon efforts by rival delegations to close gaps 

on a raft of issues left unresolved when the South 

became independent last year. 

Little information has filtered out about progress 

of the meeting, but both leaders have been seen 

smiling and chatting in each other’s company. 

“There is still optimism some form of a deal can be 

settled,” said a Western diplomat. 

Key issues include the ownership of contested 

regions along their frontier especially the flashpoint 

Abyei region-and the setting up of a demilitarised 

border zone after bloody clashes. 

The buffer zone would also potentially cut support 

for rebel forces in Sudan’s Southern Kordofan 

and Blue Nile regions that Khartoum accuses Juba 

of backing. The UN set a deadline for a deal after 

brutal border clashes broke out in March, when 

Southern troops and tanks briefly wrested the valuable 

Heglig oil field from Khartoum’s control, and 

Sudan launched bombing raids in response. 

UN leader Ban Ki-moon has called on the leaders 

to tackle their remaining differences, “so that their 

summit concludes with a success that marks an end 

to the era of conflict”. 

For once, the mood in the long-running talks 

appeared largely positive, with both Khartoum and 

Juba apparently keen to end conflict and a stalemate 

over stalled oil production that is crippling 

both their economies. 

While the two leaders have met several times in 

recent months, delegates said there was a real sense 

some form of a deal was possible. 

A comprehensive deal-as opposed to another 

stepping-stone agreement-would have to include 

settlement on Abyei, a Lebanon-sized border area 

claimed by both sides and currently controlled by 

Ethiopian peacekeepers. 

But amidst the diplomatic optimism, there 

seemed little chance of a breakthrough to solve the 

growing humanitarian crises in Sudan’s civil war 

states of Southern Kordofan and Blue Nile. 

However, it was hoped the summit would settle 

the details of last month’s deal to fix the oil export 

fees that landlocked South Sudan will pay to ship 

crude through Khartoum’s pipelines to the Red Sea. 

At independence, Juba took two-thirds of the 

region’s oil, but processing and export facilities 

remained in Sudan. In January, the South shut off 

oil production after accusing Sudan of stealing 

its oil. — AFP 

Serafin Castellano. “Right now our biggest enemy is 

the weather, a lot of wind,” he told COPE radio. 

Dramatic images in the Spanish media showed 

flames lighting up the night sky and illuminating 

clouds of smoke that billowed along hillsides just 

behind houses. 

Enrique Silvestre, mayor of one of the evacuated 

villages, Chulilla, said the situation was “very diffi- 

inherited from the military after a 1980 coup. 

Turkey may well emerge from the debate with a 

presidential republic and a powerful president in 

Erdogan. Alpay acknowledged there were questions 

about the case with so many defendants on 

trial at once, the judges’ refusal to allow in some 

defence evidence and the lengthy sentences. 

A key issue at appeal is likely to be the defence’s 

inability to submit legal expert testimony that computer 

documents submitted as evidence appeared 

fake. Defence lawyers said they would appeal the 

verdict this week to Turkey’s upper court and, if 

necessary, eventually apply to the European Court 

of Human Rights. 

Generals Cetin Dogan and Halil Ibrahim Firtina 

and retired admiral Ozden Ornek, who were considered 

Sledgehammer’s ringleaders were given life 

terms, reduced to 20 years because the coup plot 

had failed. Critics of the government have said the 

trial was a purge of the government’s opponents in 

the army’s ranks. 

“This isn’t really a legal case,” said Pinar Dogan, 

Cetin Dogan’s daughter and a lecturer at Harvard 

University. “It’s a wider operation with powerful 

forces behind it ... and we see those with firm secularist 

beliefs are the ones targeted.” She said her 

mother Nilgul Dogan, 60, faces three years in prison 

in a separate case for planting a rose bush near the 

courthouse to protest against the trial. 

Others said the case failed to go far enough. 

Gultan Kisanak, co-chairwoman of parliament’s 

pro-Kurdish Peace and Democracy Party, said the 

indictment did not include crimes she says were 

committed in a 28-year long war with the Kurdistan 

Workers Party (PKK) that has killed more than 

40,000 people. 

“Military tutelage, a tradition of coups, contraguerrilla 

activities, extrajudicial killings and other 

dark events are all part of our recent political history,” 

she said. “While we need a process to confront 

and reconcile our past, the government instead 

opted to settle its own scores.” Sledgehammer is 

one of a series of trials that has raised questions 

about whether the government is using the courts 

to silence political opponents. 

Others include the “Ergenekon” case, which 

involves a web of alleged plots against Turkey’s 

government, and the “KCK” trials which accuse 

thousands of Kurdish journalists, academics, 

lawyers and others of belonging to the PKK, viewed 

as a terrorist group by the United States and Europe 

for its campaign of violence for greater autonomy 

in southeastern Turkey. 

The court ruling also has the potential to undermine 

morale in the military as it battles the PKK in 

the heaviest fighting in more than a decade and 

faces a growing challenge maintaining security 

along its southern border with war-torn Syria. 

A hundred or so people gathered near Taksim 

Square in central Istanbul to protest the verdict. 

“This case was an effort to silence those who 

defend the secular republic,” said Hanife Kopuz, 55, 

clutching a cloth banner of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, 

who founded the modern Turkish republic from the 

ruins of the Ottoman Empire. 

“This may be a turning point, reducing support 

for the government. They can’t stay in power 

forever but I fear what they will leave in their 

wake,” she said. — Reuters 

SUSSEX: An undated handout picture released 

by Sussex Police yesterday shows missing 

British teenager Megan Stammers. — AFP 

Police hunt teen 

who fled 

with teacher 

LONDON: British police were liaising with French 

colleagues yesterday in an effort to track down a 

missing 15-year-old girl said to have fled across the 

Channel with a married teacher twice her age. 

Megan Stammers, 15, was last seen on Friday 

and “is believed to be in France with Jeremy Forrest 

from Ringmer, East Sussex”, according to a statement 

from Sussex Police. Several British newspapers 

cited police sources as saying that Forrest, 30, was 

her maths teacher at Bishop Bell Church of England 

School in Eastbourne, southeast England. 

Forrest, who plays in a rock band under the stage 

name Jeremy Ayre and is married to a 31-year-old 

woman, had hinted at a “moral dilemma” in a blog 

four months ago. Police have appealed to him and 

Megan to make contact after CCTV footage showed 

them in a Ford Fiesta car boarding a ferry from 

Dover to the French port of Calais on Friday. They are 

thought to have remained in France.—AFP 

MINSK: Not a single opposition politician 

won a seat in Belarus’ parliament in a weekend 

vote that has been condemned by international 

observers and looks set to deepen 

the former Soviet nation’s diplomatic isolation. 

Critics also said the 74.3 percent turnout 

reported by the Central Elections Commission 

chairman yesterday was way too high and 

indicated widespread fraud. The main opposition 

parties, which were ignored by state-run 

media, boycotted the election to protest the 

detention of political prisoners and ample 

opportunities for election fraud. 

The vote filled the parliament with representatives 

of three parties that have backed 

the policy agenda of President Alexander 

Lukashenko. “This election was not competitive 

from the start,” said Matteo Mecacci, 

leader of the observer mission of the 

Organization for Security and Cooperation in 

Europe. “A free election depends on people 

being free to speak, organize and run for 

office, and we didn’t see that in this campaign.” 

Belarus’ parliament has long been considered 

a rubber-stamp body for Lukashenko’s 

policies. He has ruled the former Soviet 

nation since 1994 and Western observers 

have criticized all recent elections in Belarus 

as undemocratic. 

Local independent observers estimated 

the overall turnout as being almost 19 percent 

lower than the official 74.3 percent figure. 

“Belarus gets ever closer to the worst 

standards of Soviet elections,” said Valentin 

Stefanovich, coordinator of the Rights 

Activists for Free Elections group. 

At least 20 independent election 

observers were detained, according to rights 

activists. Political analyst Leonid Zaiko said 

the way the elections were held highlighted 

Lukashenko’s desire to prepare for another 

beckoning economic crisis. “He plans to control 

the situation with an iron fist. He has no 


cult”. “The wind is not helping at all and the night 

was terrible,” the mayor told Cadena SER radio. 

Spain is at particularly high risk of fires this summer 

after suffering its driest winter in 70 years. 

Flames destroyed more than 184,000 hectares 

(454,000 acres) of land between January 1 and 

September 16, the largest amount in a decade, 

according to agriculture ministry figures. — AFP 

MINSK: The Head of the OSCE/ODIHR Election Observation Mission, Antonio 

Milososki (R) speaks, while the Head of the OSCE PA delegation, Matteo Mecacci (L), 

looks on during their press conference in Minsk, yesterday. Western observers 

slammed the weekend election in Belarus as neither competitive nor free, after 

results showed every seat in parliament was won by factions loyal to authoritarian 

President Alexander Lukashenko. — AFP 

Belarus elects entirely 

pro-govt parliament 

UNITED NATIONS: Britain, France and 

Germany have officially called for new 

European Union sanctions against Iran 

over its nuclear program, diplomats said. 

The foreign ministers of the three countries 

wrote to EU foreign policy chief Catherine 

Ashton last week calling for tougher measures 

as the showdown with Tehran 

becomes more tense, a European diplomat 

told AFP Sunday on condition of anonymity. 

The EU is working on more sanctions as 

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad seeks 

to counter the pressure on his country at 

this week’s UN General Assembly in New 

York. Ahmadinejad met UN leader Ban Kimoon 

on Sunday as the EU foreign policy 

chief held talks on Iran and other topics 

with US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in 

New York. 

Details of the new EU measures are still 

being worked on but foreign ministers 

from the 27-nation bloc will discuss the 

move at a meeting in Brussels on October 

15. The United States and its European 

allies say that Iran is working toward a 

nuclear bomb. Iran says its research is for 

peaceful energy purposes. There has been 

mounting speculation in recent months 

that Israel is planning a military strike on 

Iran’s bunkered nuclear facilities. 

The United States, Britain and France 

warned at the UN Security Council last 

week that time is running out for a negotiated 

solution with Iran. 

“It is necessary that we sharpen the 

sanctions,” said a second western official, 

confirming the request by foreign ministers 

William Hague of Britain, Laurent 

Fabius of France and Guido Westerwelle of 

Germany. “We think there is still time for a 

political solution, a diplomatic solution, 

time for any opposition, not on the street and 

certainly not in parliament,” Zaiko said. 

Lukashenko’s landslide win in the 2010 

presidential election triggered a mass street 

protest against election fraud that was brutally 

suppressed. Some of the 700 people arrested 

at that protest are still in jail, including 

presidential candidate Nikolai Statkevich. 

Opposition politicians have cautioned 

supporters to refrain from holding protest rallies 

this time. The opposition had hoped to 

use this election to build support, but 33 of 

35 candidates from the United Civil Party 

were barred from television, while the stateowned 

press refused to publish their election 

programs. 

The United Civil Party and another leading 

opposition party, the Belarusian Popular 

Front, pulled their candidates off the ballot 

and urged voters not to show up at the polls 

a week before the election. 

The United States and the European Union 

have imposed economic and travel sanctions 

on the Belarusian government over its crackdown 

on opposition groups and independent 

news media. 

“The aim of giving President Lukashenko’s 

regime the appearance of democratic legitimacy 

has clearly failed,” German Foreign 

Minister Guido Westerwelle said in a statement. 

“In view of the glaring irregularities in 

these elections, it is clearly visible for everyone 

what Belarus is today: the last dictatorship 

in the heart of Europe.” 

Westerwelle said Germany and its 

European partners would step up their efforts 

to push for the release of political prisoners 

and isolate Lukashenko and his regime. EU 

foreign ministers are due to hold talks in 

Brussels next month on political freedoms in 

Belarus. They are expected to consider possible 

revisions to sanctions against the country 

aimed at more specifically targeting those in 

the leadership deemed responsible for the 

political crackdown. — AP 

Britain, France, Germany 

call for new Iran sanctions 

and this is what we are working for. But we 

cannot accept nuclear weapons in the 

hands of Iran,” said the official, also speaking 

on condition of anonymity. 

Ashton is to chair a meeting in New 

York on Thursday of the six nations-the EU 

three, plus the United States, Russia and 

China-who have been seeking to negotiate 

a solution with Iran. 

The international community has pursued 

a dual track of pressure through sanctions 

while seeking to negotiate. But the 

US and European nations say Iran is refusing 

to talk. 

UN chief Ban “urged Iran to take the 

measures necessary to build international 

confidence in the exclusively peaceful 

nature of its nuclear program,” said a UN 

spokeswoman, Vannina Maestracci. 

Ban and Ahmadinejad also discussed 

the war in Syria and the protests in the 

Muslim world against a US-made film that 

mocks Islam. 

The showdown with Iran is one of the 

key topics at the UN assembly where 

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu 

is also scheduled to speak. Ahmadinejad, 

who will address world leaders on 

Wednesday, is probably making his last 

appearance at the UN assembly where he 

has become a controversial figure. Western 

nations regularly walk out of his speeches 

in protest at his anti-Israeli comments. 

Meanwhile, US President Barack Obama 

compared Israel’s insistence on tougher 

approach to Iran to noise he tries to ignore, 

according to remarks aired Sunday. Obama 

told CBS’s “60 Minutes” program that he 

understood and agreed with Israeli Prime 

Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s insistence 

that Iran not be allowed to obtain nuclear 

weapons.—AFP

WASHINGTON: The United States on Sunday condemned 

a Pakistani government minister’s offer of a 

bounty to kill the maker of an anti-Islam film that has 

triggered violent protests around the Muslim world. 

As demonstrators held more rallies against the filmthis 

time in Hong Kong, Turkey, Greece, Saudi Arabia, 

Iran and Bangladesh-even Pakistan’s government distanced 

itself from the comments by its Railways 

Minister, Ghulam Ahmed Bilour. 

On Saturday, Bilour offered a $100,000 “prize” for 

killing the filmmaker of “Innocence of Muslims”-an 

amateurish film made in the United States-and invited 

the Taleban and Al-Qaeda to take part in the “noble 

deed.” The State Department weighed in Sunday, with 

an official recalling that US President Barack Obama 

and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton “have both said 

the video at the core of this is offensive, disgusting, 

and reprehensible. The official added: “But that is no 

justification for violence and it is important for responsible 

leaders to stand up and speak out against vio- 

INTERNATIONAL 

US slams Pakistani minister’s filmmaker bounty 

GUWAHATI: Indian Army personnel rescue villagers at the flood-affected area in 

Dholla village, Tinsukia district, some 575 kms from Guwahati, the capital city of the 

northeastern state of Assam yesterday. The flood situation in Assam is grim with 

over 800,000 people affected in at least 15 of the 27 districts in the state, officials 

said Sunday. — AFP 

Million displaced 

by floods in India 

GUWAHATI: Floods have forced more than 

one million people to flee their homes in 

northeastern India, where authorities have 

called a health alert, officials said yesterday. 

“So far 18 of 27 districts of Assam have 

been hit by floods with more than one million 

displaced and 11 people drowned in 

separate incidents in the past week,” the 

Disaster Management agency said in a 

statement. 

Rescue officials said about 2,000 villages 

had been hit by overflowing waters from 

the rain-swollen Brahmaputra River. 

Himanta Biswa Sarmah, the health minister 

of Assam state, told AFP that a “maximum 

health alert” has been sounded in the 

devastated zone. Other officials said the 

affected people had been evacuated to 

temporary shelters on higher embankments 

and to schools and colleges unaffected 

by the second round of floods since 

July in Assam, which borders Bangladesh. 

Nearly 130 people were killed and six 

million displaced by the floodwaters in 

Assam two months ago, which came during 

India’s June-September monsoon. 

“We have dispatched doctors and paramedics 

to ensure that there is no outbreak 

of disease,” Sarmah said in Guwahati, 

Assam’s largest city. The Press Trust of India 

said almost the entire core area of 420 

square kilometres (162 square miles) of 

Kaziranga National Park in Assam was also 

flooded. The wildlife park is home to the 

world’s single largest population of onehorned 

rhinos. A 2012 census in Kaziranga 

counted 2,290 of the rhinos, out of a global 

population of 3,300. The species declined 

to near extinction in the early 1900s and is 

listed as “vulnerable” by the International 

Union for Conservation of Nature. 

Kaziranga has fought a sustained battle 

against rhino poachers, who kill the animals 

for their horns, which fetch huge 

prices in some Asian countries where they 

are deemed to be an aphrodisiac. 

Meanwhile, a stampede at a religious 

celebration killed at least nine people, 

eight of them women, in eastern India yesterday, 

a district official said. 

“Eight women and a man died during 

the stampede,” Rahul Purwa, deputy commissioner 

of Deoghar district, in Jharkhand 

state, told AFP. 

The victims were among thousands of 

Hindu devotees who had gathered to take 

part in celebrations to mark the anniversary 

of the birth of Saint Thakur Anukul 

Chand. 

The stampede broke out while hundreds 

of devotees were gathered in a congested 

hall for early morning prayers, said 

Purwa. “I was informed by local police officials 

that the incident was the result of 

rumours spread by some devotees. The district 

administration is conducting a probe,” 

he added. The injured were being treated 

in nearby hospitals. 

Stampedes often break out at religious 

events in India where policing and crowd 

control are often inadequate. The last 

major stampede was in January 2011 in the 

southern state of Kerala when more than 

100 people died as panic spread among 

worshippers crossing mountainous terrain 

in the dark to visit a shrine. 

On Sunday, three people were killed and 

over two dozen injured in Mathura near 

New Delhi where a large congregation had 

gathered on the occasion of the Radha 

Ashtami festival, the Press Trust of India 

news agency reported. — AFP 

Pakistan ‘blasphemy’ 

girl’s case sent 

to juvenile court 

ISLAMABAD: A judge yesterday 

ordered police to refer the case of a 

Pakistani Christian girl accused of blasphemy 

to a juvenile court, following a 

medical report that said she was 14. 

Rimsha Masih spent three weeks on 

remand in an adult jail after she was 

arrested on August 16 for allegedly 

burning pages from the Quran in a 

case that prompted worldwide condemnation. 

Police on Saturday told the court 

the girl was not guilty and a cleric 

who allegedly framed her should face 

trial instead. “We have received the 

medical report which says she is aged 

14. The investigation report of her 

case must be submitted in a juvenile 

court,” Judge Raja Jawad Abbas said 

yesterday. 

Rao Abdur Rahim, the lawyer for 

Rimsha’s neighbour Hammad Malik, 

who originally accused her, objected to 

the medical report, but Abbas told him 

he should apply to the juvenile court 

when it takes up the case. 

The judge later adjourned the case 

till October 1, summoning local imam 

Hafiz Mohammed Khalid Chishti, who 

was arrested for allegedly adding 

pages from the Quran to a bag of 

burnt papers, to the next hearing. 

Rimsha, who is currently free on 

bail, was also asked to appear following 

an accusation from Rahim that she 

had absconded to Norway. An official 

medical report has classified her as 

“uneducated” and aged 14, but with a 

mental age younger than her years. 

Others have said she is as young as 11 

and suffers from Down’s Syndrome. 

Rimsha and her family, who have 

been in fear for their lives since the 

blasphemy allegations, were moved to 

an undisclosed location after her 

release on bail on September 8. — AFP 

lence.” “Therefore we find Mr. Bilour’s announcement is 

inflammatory and inappropriate,” the official said in a 

statement. In Pakistan, Prime Minister Raja Pervez 

Ashraf rejected the bounty offer. “This is not government 

policy. We completely dissociate (ourselves) from 

this,” a spokesman for the prime minister’s office told 

AFP. Fresh rallies were held across Pakistan Sunday to 

condemn the film after violent nationwide protests 

Friday left 21 people dead when police used tear gas 

and live rounds to fight back protesters. 

More than 50 people have died in protests and 

attacks around the world linked to the low-budget 

film, which mocks Islam and the Prophet Mohammed 

(PBUH), since the first demonstrations on September 

11. Four US officials, including the ambassador to 

Libya, were killed in the Libyan city of Benghazi. 

The publication on Wednesday of cartoons mocking 

the Prophet Mohammed (PBUH) in French satirical 

magazine Charlie Hebdo has further stoked anger. In 

France, an 18-year-old man who used Facebook to 

KATHMANDU: Rescuers scaled down a search 

yesterday for two French climbers and a 

Canadian missing in a Nepal avalanche which 

killed at least nine people attempting to scale 

one of the world’s highest peaks. 

Police said they had halted a helicopter rescue 

mission as hopes faded for the trio, part of 

a group hit by a wall of snow in their tents 

near the peak of the 8,156-metre (26,759-foot) 

Manaslu in the early hours of Sunday. 

“We have now stopped helicopter rescue 

operations. Two French and a Canadian 

mountaineer are still missing. Sherpa guides 

are in the mountains searching for them,” district 

police chief Basanta Bahadur Kunwar told 

AFP. Nepal’s tourism board had earlier put the 

missing figure at seven, but police said four of 

those were among 13 already rescued on 

Sunday. Among those reported missing was a 

doctor from the French-speaking Canadian 

province of Quebec, cardiologist Dominique 

Ouimet, the man’s sister said. “The tents seem 

to have disappeared because the avalanche 

came by,” Isabelle Ouimet told Radio Canada, 

adding that her brother was at camp three 

when the avalanche struck. Kunwar said five 

mountaineers had been airlifted from among 

the survivors at Manaslu base camp Sunday 

and were being treated in Kathmandu. “The 

other eight mountaineers who are at the base 

camp have not sustained any injuries. They 

have said they will either walk down or will 

make an attempt to reach the peak again and 

have told officials that they should not be rescued.” 

Eight of the dead have been identified, 

Nepal tourism board spokesman Sarad 

Pradhan told AFP, adding that four were 

French, one a Nepali mountain guide, one a 

Spaniard, one German and one Italian. 

France’s foreign ministry yesterday confirmed 

that four French climbers were dead 

and two missing after an avalanche in Nepal. 

“According to a preliminary toll, four 

French citizens are dead at this stage,” the 

minister in charge of French citizens abroad, 

Helene Conway-Mouret, said in a statement. 

“The search continues for two of our citizens.” 

The statement said three other French citizens 

had been taken by helicopter to a hospital 

in Kathmandu after the avalanche. 

Harrowing accounts of the avalanche 

began to emerge from survivors being treated 

in Kathmandu. “We were sleeping in our 

tent after having dinner, when all of a sudden 

we heard the noise of other climbers screaming. 

Within moments, we were hit by the avalanche,” 

Andreas Reiter, 26, from Germany, 

was quoted as telling the Himalayan Times 

from his hospital bed in the capital. 

threaten the magazine’s editors was charged Sunday 

with terrorism-related activity, a judicial source said. 

Police arrested the teenager in the southern city of 

Toulon on Wednesday after he was reported by a person 

close to him who was concerned over his radicalism. 

Police found several knives at his residence and 

said the man had threatened to go after those in 

charge of the weekly. Meanwhile, an influential US lawmaker 

cast doubt over whether there was even an 

anti-American protest going on when the American 

ambassador to Libya was killed in an attack on the 

consulate in Benghazi. 

The Obama administration initially said it believed 

extremists had not really planned the attack in Libya 

but rather had simply used a spontaneous protest over 

the anti-Islamic trailer as cover to mix in with the 

crowd and attack with weapons that included rocketpropelled 

grenades. The White House for the first time 

Thursday described the assault as a “terrorist attack” 

and said it could have links to Al-Qaeda. But a 

“I witnessed one of the team members die.” 

SNGM vice-president Christian Trommsdorff 

described the French victims as three mountain 

guides from the Chamonix area in the 

Alps and their clients, who were part of two 

expeditions. The avalanche happened at 

around 7,400 metres and carried away part of 

camp number three at 6,800 metres, 

Trommsdorff told AFP. 

Manaslu, the eighth-highest mountain in 

the world, is considered one of the most dangerous, 

with scores of deaths in recent years 

and just a few hundred successful ascents. 

Laxmi Dhakal, head of the home ministry’s 

disaster response division, confirmed the avalanche 

had hit camp three and said it had created 

“a flood of snow”. 

Nepal is home to eight of the world’s 14 

peaks over 8,000 metres, including the world’s 

highest, Mount Everest, and attracts thousands 

of mountaineers every year. 

Most come in the spring, when Himalayan 

conditions are at their best, but there is also a 

short climbing season in late September and 

October after the monsoon rains end. 


Republican lawmaker cast doubt Sunday over whether 

the protests even happened. 

“I have seen no information that shows that there 

was a protest going on as you have seen around any 

other embassy at the time,” Mike Rogers, chairman of 

the House intelligence committee, told CNN’s “State of 

the Union” program. 

“The notion about the film... I think the administration 

was ill-advised to push down that road,” he added. 

Rogers said he believed it was a revenge attack timed 

to coincide with the 11th anniversary of 9/11 but that 

it wasn’t clear if the militants had known Stevens was 

there or just got lucky. 

“This had to be a pre-planned event. We know it 

was an act of terrorism. I think the administration has 

come to the conclusion it’s an act of terrorism now,” he 

said. The State Department is under rising scrutiny 

about what appears to be inadequate security for 

Stevens and the consulate in Benghazi before the 

attack. — AFP 

Hopes fade for 

missing climbers 

Paris confirms four French dead in Nepal avalanche 

SYDNEY: Australian homicide detectives yesterday 

took over an investigation into the disappearance 

of a young Irish woman in 

Melbourne after her handbag was found in a 

nearby street. Jill Meagher, who works for the 

Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), 

was last seen at about 1:30 am on Saturday 

when she left friends at a bar to walk the short 

distance home. She never made it. 

“We take on these cases of a suspicious 

nature where a person goes missing when 

there’s a possibility that they may have been 

met with foul play,” Detective Inspector John 

Potter said. “We don’t know that at this point 

and we always hope that we can find her safe 

and well, but at this stage she hasn’t responded 

to any of the media reports over the weekend, 

she hasn’t contacted her husband, and 

he’s (not) been able to contact her (on) her 

mobile phone.” The 29-year-old’s handbag was 

found yesterday morning in a lane in 

Brunswick, the inner-city Melbourne suburb in 

which she lives, about 700 metres from where 

she was last seen. Meagher’s husband Thomas 

Meagher said he tried calling his wife, who 

works in administration at Melbourne local 

radio, repeatedly from 2:00 am to 6:00 am on 

the morning she disappeared, and began 

searching the streets for her at 4:00 am. 

“I’m just trying to push on,” he said. “I just 

hope somebody saw something or she will just 

walk through the door.” The ABC described 

KATHMANDU: Unidentified Italian survivors of Sunday’s avalanche at Mount Manaslu arrive in 

Kathmandu, Nepal, after being flown from the mountain, yesterday. Rescue helicopters flew 

over the high slopes of the northern Nepal peak again yesterday to search for climbers lost in 

the avalanche that killed at least nine mountaineers and injured others. Many of the climbers 

were French, German and Italian. — AP 

Meagher as “a highly valued and much loved 

member of the local radio team”. 

“Our thoughts are with Jill’s family and 

friends during this very difficult time,” the 

broadcaster said in a statement. One of her 

ABC colleagues Tom Wright told the Herald 

Manaslu is nicknamed “Killer Mountain” by 

locals because a series of snowslides have 

claimed the lives of scores of mountaineers 

since it was first conquered in 1956. The latest 

deaths mean at least 62 people have died, 

according to an AFP tally. It saw its worst disaster 

when a South Korean expedition was 

buried by snow while attempting to climb the 

northeast face in 1972. The 15 dead included 

10 Sherpas and the Korean expedition leader. 

Those who attempt the summit are experienced 

climbers who will tackle other 

Himalayan peaks as well, said Dawa Steven 

Sherpa, two-time summiteer of Everest from 

Kathmandu. “People who normally climb up 

Manaslu have bigger peaks in mind, or they 

are people who are attempting to climb all 

the 8,000m peaks,” he told AFP. 

“Very few people climb Manaslu for the 

sake of just climbing Manaslu.” Nepal’s worstever 

climbing disaster happened in 1995 

when a huge avalanche struck the camp of a 

Japanese trekking group in the Mount Everest 

region, killing 42 people including 13 

Japanese. — AFP 

Australian homicide squad 

leads hunt for Irish woman 

Sun newspaper he had offered to walk 

Meagher home, but she insisted on going 

alone. “I said, ‘can I walk you home?’, because 

it’s late at night, and she said: ‘No, no I live 

around here, I know it really well, don’t worry’,” 

he said. — AFP 

MELBOURNE: An undated handout photo received yesterday, shows Jill Meagher who works 

for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Australian homicide detectives took over an 

investigation into the disappearance of a young Irish woman in Melbourne after her handbag 

was found in a nearby street. — AFP

YANGON: Myanmar’s President Thein 

Sein is set to head to the United States 

yesterday for a landmark visit that 

coincides with a triumphal American 

tour by opposition leader Aung San 

Suu Kyi. Thein Sein will attend the 

United Nations General Assembly and 

is expected to outline plans for the 

future of his fast-changing nation during 

his first trip to the US since taking 

power last year and ushering in a period 

of rapid reform. 

“The trip will open a new chapter 

with the international community,” 

Zaw Htay, an official in the Presidential 

Office told AFP of a trip that marks the 

latest step in dramatically thawing 

relations with the US, which has started 

rolling back sanctions against the 

former pariah. 

“He is expected to explain the 

reform process of the country including 

what the government has done 

and what it is going to do,” said Zaw 

Htay, adding that Thein Sein was set to 

meet Secretary of State Hillary Clinton 

as well as other senior US, European 

and UN officials. 

Thein Sein, a former junta general 

who last week freed dozens of political 

prisoners, will have to share the limelight 

with Suu Kyi, received with 

acclaim during her first trip to the US 

since she began her struggle for 

democracy more than two decades 

ago. The Nobel laureate has already 

been awarded the Congressional Gold 

Medal, the top honour bestowed by 

the legislature, and has met President 

Barack Obama at the White House 

since arriving in the country last week. 

But while US officials have taken 

pains to stress that Thein Sein 

deserves credit for Myanmar’s breathless 

pace of change after nearly half a 

century of junta rule, there are no official 

plans for him to meet Obama. 

The United States last week lifted 

sanctions on the Myanmar president 

and lower house parliament speaker 

Shwe Mann, removing them from the 

US Treasury’s list of “Specially 

INTERNATIONAL 

Myanmar president embarks on landmark US visit 

SEOUL: An Anti-Japan protester bleeds from his head as he is injured during a 

rally criticizing the Japanese government’s recent claim over the disputed islets 

called Dokdo in South Korea and Takeshima in Japan, and demanding an official 

apology and compensation for South Korean wartime sex slaves from the 

Japanese government, in front of the Japanese Embassy in Seoul, South Korea, 

yesterday. — AP 

China ex-police chief 

gets 15 years’ jail 

CHENGDU: Chinese ex-police chief Wang 

Lijun, who exposed a scandal that shocked 

the ruling Communist Party, was sentenced 

to 15 years in prison yesterday for defection 

and other crimes. 

Wang, the right-hand man of top politician 

Bo Xilai, fled to the US consulate in 

Chengdu in February, sparking a crisis that 

saw Bo sacked and his wife found guilty of 

murder ahead of a generational transfer of 

power. 

His conviction and sentence are the latest 

move by the authorities to try to deal 

with the fall-out from the scandal ahead of 

the once-in-a-decade leadership transition 

at a Communist Party congress expected 

next month. 

The former police chief of the sprawling 

metropolis of Chongqing, where Bo was 

the top Party official, Wang was tried for 

defection, bribery, abuse of power and 

bending the law for selfish ends, admitting 

all the charges. 

Analysts told AFP that it remained 

unclear whether the authorities would put 

Bo-once a contender to join the elite 

Politburo Standing Committee and one of 

the country’s best-known politicians-on 

criminal trial. 

Bo is being investigated by the Party for 

“serious” violations of discipline and has 

not been seen for months. In a statement, 

the Intermediate People’s Court in the 

southwestern city of Chengdu found Wang 

guilty on each count, adding that the circumstances 

of the bending-the-law 

offence were “very serious”. 

But it said that he was shown leniency 

because he had reported the role of Bo’s 

wife Gu Kailai in the murder of British businessman 

Neil Heywood. He “actively 

helped with the re-investigation”, which 

“played an important role in the breaking 

of the case by police authorities”, it said. 

The court sentenced Wang to nine years 

for bribery, seven for bending the law, and 

two each for abuse of power and defection, 

but reduced the combined term to a total 

of 15 years, in accordance with Chinese law. 

Wang said he would not appeal, the court 

added. It was the final step in the downfall 

of a man once China’s best-known crime 

fighter, with thousands of people arrested 

after Bo brought him in to lead an his antimafia 

campaign in Chongqing-which was 

also criticised for human rights abuses. 

An ethnic Mongolian and martial arts 

expert, Wang’s steely, unsmiling gaze and 

thin glasses gave him the face of an incorruptible 

“supercop”, and his body carried 20 

scars from bullet and other wounds. 

Wang, 52, had a taste for drama, on 

occasion firing a single shot into the air 

when confronting criminals, or staging 

high-profile arrests in front of the cameras. 

But relations between him and his patron 

turned sour early this year, months after 

Heywood, a close associate of Bo’s family, 

was found dead in a Chongqing hotel 

room. State media said that Wang initially 

agreed to help cover up the murder, but 

later confronted his boss about Gu’s role in 

the poisoning, and was slapped in the face. 

Days afterwards he fled to the consulate, 

where he sought asylum from US authorities, 

according to an extensive trial report 

by the official Xinhua news agency. 

But after 33 hours inside the building he 

left of his own accord and was taken to 

Beijing by security officials. 

He was not seen again in public until his 

trial last week, when Xinhua quoted him as 

saying: “I acknowledge and confess the 

guilt accused by the prosecuting body and 

show my repentance.” 

Gu was last month handed a suspended 

death sentence-usually commuted to life in 

prison-for Heywood’s killing. The Xinhua 

account of Wang’s trial did not identify Bo 

by name but suggested he knew his wife 

was suspected of Heywood’s murder but 

did nothing, leaving him open to possible 

prosecution and imprisonment for sheltering 

a criminal.—AFP 

CHENGDU: This frame grab taken from Chinese television CCTV yesterday shows 

former police chief Wang Lijun (C) listening to the court in Chengdu, in southwest 

China’s Sichuan province. Chinese ex-police chief Wang Lijun, who exposed 

a scandal that shocked the ruling Communist Party, was sentenced to 15 years in 

prison yesterday for defection and other crimes. — AFP 

Designated Nationals”. 

The pair were put on the list in 

2007, when Thein Sein was prime minister 

and Shwe Mann was joint chief of 

staff of the armed forces, as America 

raised pressure on the ruling junta. 

Pavin Chachavalpongpun, of the 

Centre for Southeast Asian Studies at 

Kyoto University, said the fact that 

Thein Sein had been allowed to enter 

the US “is already significant”. “You can 

see the flexibility of US policy towards 

Myanmar, and I think this is the road 

which will lead towards the total abolition 

of sanctions in the future,” he told 

AFP. He said Suu Kyi, who has undergone 

a transformation from political 

prisoner to politician in just two years, 

would have spoken to “praise” Thein 

Sein in her own meeting with the US 

president. Pavin added that the 

Myanmar leader would not have a 

choice but to go to America regardless 

of the reception “because there is a lot 

at stake”, particularly removing 

remaining sanctions. Sweeping 

TOKYO: Chinese ships plied the 

waters of a disputed island chain 

yesterday, Japan’s coastguard said, 

as a fleet of Taiwanese fishing boats 

set sail for the area, vowing to stake 

Taipei’s claim. The flotilla, set to 

arrive today, will further complicate 

an already precarious confrontation 

between Tokyo and Beijing, in 

which Japan’s prime minister has 

warned China’s behaviour could 

damage its own economy. 

The warning came after China 

dealt a diplomatic snub to Japan by 

postponing long-planned events 

marking the 40th anniversary of 

ties, as relations between Asia’s two 

biggest economies plumb depths 

not seen for decades. 

Japan’s coastguard said yesterday 

that two maritime surveillance 

ships had spent seven hours in sovereign 

waters off Uotsurijima, the 

largest island in the Japaneseadministered 

Senkaku chain, which 

China claims as the Diaoyus. 

Two fisheries patrol boats briefly 

entered the 12-nautical-mile territorial 

waters around the island chain, 

the coastguard said. 

The ships are not naval vessels; 

maritime surveillance comes under 

the State Oceanic Bureau, which is 

part of the Ministry of Land and 

Resources. Their roles include law 

enforcement in Chinese waters. 

Fisheries patrol boats are under 

the aegis of China’s Agriculture 

Ministry, and are responsible for 

policing fishing and marine 

resources. 

The coastguard said nine other 

vessels were in the area, some in 

contiguous waters, an area under 

international law that extends up to 

12 nautical miles outside a territory. 

Osamu Fujimura, Japan’s top government 

spokesman and chief cabinet 

secretary, said Japan has 

“protested strongly” through diplomatic 

channels over the intrusion. 

Further roiling already turbulent 

waters was the expected arrival 

Tuesday of up to 78 fishing boats, 

which left Taiwan bound for the 

changes in Myanmar under the new 

quasi-civilian regime have seen Suu 

Kyi elected to parliament and included 

tentative ceasefires with several of the 

country’s major armed ethnic minority 

groups. The international community 

has responded by dismantling tough 

sanctions against the impoverished 

country and in July Washington gave 

the green light for US investment 

there. Suu Kyi has used the visit to 

back the removal of sanctions on 

Myanmar and underline the remarkable 

new direction the country has 

taken. “There has been change, not yet 

all the changes necessary to make sure 

we are going to be a genuinely democratic 

society, but there have been 

changes,” she said on Saturday in a 

speech at Queens College in New York. 

The agenda of Suu Kyi’s unprecedented 

US tour includes nearly 100 

events across the country all but rules 

out a chance of her crossing paths 

with Thein Sein. The 67-year-old will 

head on September 25 to Fort Wayne, 

islands accompanied by Taiwanese 

coastguard. 

“Diaoyutai has been our traditional 

fishing ground for centuries. 

We pledge to use our lives to protect 

it, or we’d disgrace our ancestors,” 

Chen Chun-sheng, the head 

of Taiwan’s Suao Fishermen’s 

Association said on the weekend. 

It was not clear if they would 

attempt a repeat of the August 

landing by pro-Beijing activists that 

ramped up tensions between China 

and Japan. The situation deteriorated 

on September 11, when Tokyo 

announced it had completed a deal 

to buy three of the uninhabited 

rocks from their private owner. 

Commentators say the nationalisation 

was intended to prevent 

their purchase by the hawkish governor 

of Tokyo, who said he wanted 

to develop them. 

But Beijing reacted angrily and 

unleashed a firestorm of protest, 

which also saw sometimes violent 

rallies rocking several cities, with 

Japanese businesses suffering vandalism 

and arson at the hands of 

rioters. On Sunday, Chinese state 

media announced Beijing was 

“postponing” celebrations to mark 

the 40th anniversary of the normalisation 

of diplomatic ties. 

Celebrations have been held every 

decade and never before been 

shelved. The Japanese government 

yesterday described the cancellation 

as “regrettable”, with a 

spokesman saying the two sides 

should not let “an individual event 

affect ties”. 

The two countries have wrangled 

since the 1970s about the 

islands, which lie on important 

shipping lanes and are believed to 

harbour mineral resources. 

But the latest dust-up, which 

comes as China is in the process of a 

delicate leadership transition and as 

Japan’s political scene has become 

increasingly unstable, shows no 

signs of dying down. 

On Saturday around 800 


Thein Sein 

Indiana, to meet the sizable Burmese 

community that has resettled in the 

Midwestern city. Her other stops 

include Louisville, Kentucky as well as 

San Francisco and Los Angeles. — AFP 

China ships in Japan 

waters off isles 

MANILA: Muslim rebels waging a 

decades-long insurgency in the southern 

Philippines in which more than 150,000 

people have died are aiming to sign a 

roadmap for peace this year, their chief 

negotiator said. 

The planned accord would outline 

steps to be taken to achieve a final peace 

pact between the the 12,000-strong Moro 

Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and the 

government before President Benigno 

Aquino steps down in 2016. 

“We can see the light at the end of the 

tunnel and believe we are 85 percent sure 

it will be signed by the end of the year,” 

MILF chief negotiator Mohagher Iqbal 

told AFP on Sunday, referring to the 

roadmap both sides have been working 

on. 

He said a crucial moment would come 

during the next round of peace talks in 

the Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur, 

which he expected would be held from 

October 2 to 5. “This meeting is really the 

peak time to hammer out some of the 

outstanding issues and come out with an 

agreement.” 

The government is also aiming to sign 

the roadmap this year, according to its 

chief negotiator, Marvic Leonen. 

“We are looking at this framework 

agreement as the over-arching architecture 

of the peace process,” Leonen said. 

“In this agreement, the entire roadmap of 

Flotilla, set to arrive today 

SENKAKU: Japan Coast Guard vessels, right, and rear, sail along with Chinese surveillance ship 

Haijian No. 66, left, near disputed islands called Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China, in the East 

China Sea, yesterday. — AP 

the peace process can be discerned.” Both 

sides said there was a strong spirit of 

cooperation following months of intense 

negotiations, however they conceded 

many of the tough issues that derailed 

previous peace efforts had still not been 

agreed upon. 

“There (is) still some hard bargaining 

ahead,” Iqbal said. There are roughly four 

million Muslims in the southern 

Philippine region of Mindanao, an area 

they see as their ancestral homeland dating 

back to Islamic sultanates established 

before Spanish Christians arrived in the 

1500s. 

The MILF and other Muslim rebel 

groups have been fighting for independence 

or autonomy in Mindanao since the 

early 1970s. The rebellion has claimed 

more than 150,000 lives, most in the 

1970s when all-out war raged, and left 

large parts of mineral-rich Mindanao in 

deep poverty. 

The MILF is the biggest and most 

important rebel group left, after the Moro 

National Liberation Front signed a peace 

pact with the government in 1996. 

Since opening peace talks with the 

government in 2003, the MILF has said it 

is willing to accept autonomy rather than 

independence. Leonen said the planned 

new roadmap would outline a new 

autonomous region in parts of Mindanao 

and spell out broad plans for a power- 

Japanese demonstrators waved 

national flags as they marched 

through downtown Tokyo, 

denouncing Beijing as a “brute 

state” and “fascist” in the first massrally 

in Japan since the dispute 

began. Tokyo said Monday it would 

send its top foreign affairs bureaucrat 

to China for a two-day visit, as 

Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda 

heads to New York amid hopes senior 

ministers might meet on the 

sidelines of the UN General 

Assembly this week. 

In an interview with the Wall 

Street Journal, Noda warned China’s 

intemperance could damage its 

economy and its effects may be felt 

further afield. He said Japanese 

companies were now facing a form 

of economic harassment in China. 

“Recent delays in customs and visa 

issuance are of concern,” he said. 

“Damaging our ties over such 

things would be bad for not just the 

two countries’ economies, but for 

the global economy.” — AFP 

Philippine Muslim rebels aim for peace plan 

sharing deal there with the MILF. 

The MILF came close to a peace deal 

with the government, under the previous 

administration led by then-president 

Gloria Arroyo in 2008, that would have 

given them control over 700 townships 

and villages. 

But, amid furious protests from leading 

Christian politicians in the south, as well 

as the influential Catholic Church, the 

Supreme Court ruled that deal as unconstitutional. 

Two MILF commanders reacted to the 

court order by leading attacks on mainly 

Christian villages in Mindanao, with the 

unrest killing 400 people and displacing 

about 750,000 others. 

Leonen said the government had been 

consulting with officials in the south as 

well as congressional leaders in Manila to 

ensure their support for the planned new 

deal and avoid a repeat of 2008. 

“We should be able to tell the MILF we 

will defend it tooth and nail and we are 

prepared for the trajectory of the peace 

agreement,” Leonon said. 

Among the toughest issues still to be 

resolved are the extent of the MILF’s power 

in the autonomy and the exact terms of 

wealth sharing. Mindanao is home to vast 

untapped reserves of gold, copper and 

other minerals, as well being one of the 

country’s most important farming 

regions. — AFP

Obama ignores Israel ‘noise’ on Iran nukes 

Continued from Page 1 

purposes, but the West fears it is for building nuclear 

weapons. Israel is seen as pushing a much more hardline 

approach that would include military action, while 

Washington instead prefers to let diplomacy and sanctions 

dissuade Iran from building the bomb. 

Obama, interviewed for Sunday’s edition of “60 

Minutes” on broadcaster CBS, said he understands and 

agrees with Netanyahu’s insistence that Iran not be 

allowed to obtain nuclear weapons as this would threaten 

both countries, the world in general, and kick off an 

arms race. But Obama added: “When it comes to our 

national security decisions - any pressure that I feel is simply 

to do what’s right for the American people. And I am 

going to block out - any noise that’s out there.” 

Tensions have been running high between the United 

States and Israeli leader, and they will not hold a face-toface 

meeting this week at the UN General Assembly in 

New York. The White House has cited scheduling problems. 

Obama’s contender for the presidency, Republican 

Mitt Romney, said this was no way to treat an ally. The 

decision not to meet with Netanyahu, he said, also in an 

interview with “60 Minutes”, “is a mistake and sends a 

message throughout the Middle East that somehow we 

distance ourselves from our friends and I think the exact 

opposite approach is what’s necessary.” 

Romney campaign spokeswoman Andrea Saul argued 

that Obama’s reference to Israel as “one of our closest 

allies in the region” was unacceptable. “This is just the latest 

evidence of his chronic disregard for the security of 

our closest ally in the Middle East,” she said. “Romney 

strongly believes that Israel is our most important ally in 

the Middle East and ...as president, Governor Romney will 

restore and protect the close alliance between our nation 

and the state of Israel.” 

Separately, a UN report published yesterday said Israel 


spokesman said those accused of “terrorism-related” 

crimes were undergoing fair judicial process. “As for the 

gathering of a limited number of relatives of the 

detained people at a prison, they have been stopped 

according to legal procedures and will be dealt with if 

they are found in violation of the laws,” the spokesman 

said. 

Activists said police with shields and batons persuaded 

the protesters at the prison to go home, telling them 

their message had been heard and their demands 

would be looked into.“When we left the ‘Emergency 

Forces’ followed our cars. They chased us and stopped 

us to detain the men,” said Reema Al-Juraish, an activist 

whose husband, a nurse, is in the prison. “I saw them 

grab five and when I tried to intervene they pushed me 

and hit me with a baton.” She said up to 60 men were 

arrested and taken to an unknown location. “The kingdom 

is celebrating national day even as our husbands 

are being held without charges and without trial,” 

Juraish told AFP by telephone. She said her husband 

“has been detained for more than nine years without 

charge,” adding that she has not seen him in “eight 

months”. 

Another protester who asked not to be named said 

her brother was sentenced to three years in prison and 

“has served his sentence but remains in jail”. Her other 

brother, who was also detained by authorities, “died in 

custody due to lack of care”, she said, adding that both 

her brothers were arrested for their “religious beliefs”. 

Rights activists told AFP that most of the detainees in 

question were “political prisoners with radical religious 

beliefs”. More than 100 people, including women and 

children, had staged a two-day protest in the desert 

around Tarfiya prison in the Qassim province but were 

Free speech ‘red lines’ feed Muslim film... 


Beyond the rage, bloodshed and death threats - 

churning now for two weeks is a quandary for American 

policymakers that will linger long after the latest mayhem 

fades: How to explain the US embrace of free 

expression to an Islamic world that increasingly sees 

only double standards? Although there are many 

nuances - including strict US laws when hate speech 

crossed the line into threats or intimidation - they are 

mostly lost in the current outrage that included a 

peaceful march in Nigeria yesterday and Iran threatening 

to boycott the 2013 Academy Awards after the 

country’s first Oscar-winning film this year. 

With each protest, many clerics and Islamist hardliners 

hammer home the narrow view that America is 

more concerned with political correctness or safeguarding 

children from sexual content than the religious sensibilities 

of Muslims. In Gaza, preacher Sheikh Hisham 

Akram said tolerance is the goal, but the “red line” is 

crossed with “anyone who insults our religion.” Iran’s 

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad - now in New York 

for the UN’s annual General Assembly - denounced last 

week the “deception” of US laws protecting rights while 

allowing the clip from the film “Innocence of Muslims”. 

“In some extent, it’s not an issue of condemning 

America’s freedom of speech. It’s become an issue, in 

the eyes of many Muslims, over where the lines are and 

why they are not protecting the feelings of Muslims,” 

said John Voll, associate director of the Center for 

Muslim-Christian Understanding at Georgetown 

University in Washington. It also turns the $70,000 US 

ad initiative in Pakistan - one of the hotbeds of the 

protests - into a major challenge to gain any ground. 

Besides Obama, the spots include Secretary of State 

Hillary Rodham Clinton repeating that US authorities 

had no connection to the video. 

It’s part of wider US strategies to use social media 

and other forums to reach out to moderates in the 

Islamic world - including what the State Department 

has described as a “virtual embassy” for Iranian web 

surfers. But the fallout from the film has so far drowned 

out appeals for calmer dialogue in places such as 

Pakistan, where at least 23 people have died in unrest 

linked to the film. “The fact that (the Obama administration) 

is trying to step up to the plate and trying to 

engage where the debate is really happening should be 

commended,” said Daniel Markey, a senior fellow in 

South Asian affairs at the Council on Foreign Relations. 

“But what credibility do they have to deliver this message? 

That’s a different story. ... It’s unlikely to make the 

sale on the Pakistani street.” 

At the UN, a separate effort is being spearheaded by 

Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, secretary-general of the 

Organization of Islamic Cooperation. He said the film 

will be at the top of the agenda of a meeting of the 57- 

must do more to halt a string of serious violations of 

Palestinian human rights documented by a 2009 factfinding 

mission. There is a “need to more earnestly pursue 

accountability for the serious violations of human 

rights and international humanitarian law that were documented 

by the fact-finding mission,” Deputy High 

Commissioner for Human Rights Kyung-wha Kang told 

the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva. Speaking on 

behalf of UN rights chief Navi Pillay, she presented a 

report on progress made in implementing recommendations 

in the UN Goldstone report, which detailed violations 

of international rights and humanitarian laws in 

connection with the 2008/09 Gaza conflict. 

“It has been nearly three years since this council 

endorsed the fact-finding mission’s recommendations. 

Yet, not one person has been indicted for any of the incidents 

documented,” she said. “Respecting human rights 

and international humanitarian law obligations means 

that perpetrators of violations are brought to justice.” 

Penalties must also correspond to the crimes, she said, 

decrying the case of an Israeli soldier sentenced last 

month to just 45 days in prison for killing two unarmed 

Palestinian women waving a white flag during the Gaza 

conflict. 

Israel’s Operation Cast Lead offensive in Gaza claimed 

the lives of some 1,400 Palestinians -more than half of 

them civilians - and 13 Israelis, including three civilians 

and 10 soldiers. Yesterday’s report by UN chief Ban Kimoon 

also highlighted border closures and restrictions 

on Gaza, and obstacles to movement in the West Bank, 

exacerbating a deep economic crisis in the Palestinian 

territories. It also spoke out against the detention of 

4,500 Palestinians in Israeli jails, noting that 250 were also 

being held in so-called administrative detention, without 

trial. The report also criticised Palestinian armed groups 

for firing rockets at Israel, and Palestinian authorities for 

among other things arbitrary arrests. — Agencies 

Dozens held after Saudi jail protest 

surrounded by police. They said they had been kept 

without food or water for almost a full day. Police set up 

checkpoints on the two roads leading to the area and 

deployed patrols in the desert around it, they said. 

The kingdom, which has almost no elected bodies, 

avoided the kind of unrest that toppled leaders across 

the Arab world last year after it introduced generous 

social spending packages and issued a religious edict 

banning public demonstrations. King Abdullah has 

pushed through some economic and social reforms, 

including cautious moves to improve the position of 

women and religious minorities, but he has left the 

political system untouched. 

The world’s top oil exporter is an important ally of 

Western countries in battling Al-Qaeda, which carried 

out a campaign of attacks in the kingdom from 2003-06. 

Last year the Interior Ministry said it had put on trial 

5,080 of nearly 5,700 people it had detained on security 

grounds. In April, a court in Riyadh sentenced rights 

campaigner Mohammed Al-Bajadi to four years in 

prison after he was accused of forming a human rights 

association, tarnishing Saudi Arabia’s reputation, questioning 

the independence of the judiciary, and owning 

illegal books, activists said. He had been held for a year 

without charges after voicing support for prisoners’ 

families. 

In a separate gathering yesterday, dozens of protesters 

rallied in front of the government-linked Saudi 

Human Rights Commission also calling for the release of 

jailed relatives. “There are some prisoners who have 

been tortured, some who have completed their sentences, 

others who have not been charged and even 

some who have been found innocent but are still 

imprisoned. We will stay here until we are heard,” said 

one protester who declined to be named. Saudi Arabia 

denies torturing prisoners. — Agencies 

member group on the sidelines of the General 

Assembly. Among the proposals is a call to impose an 

international law against promoting religious hatred. 

Such appeals could get widespread support, but are 

nearly certain to collide with Western free speech codes 

and be rendered difficult to enforce in the borderless 

world of the web. 

Already, many moderate Muslim scholars and leaders 

have urged the UN or other international bodies to step 

in to help define possible global standards on religious 

expression. Paul Bhatti, an adviser to the Pakistani prime 

minister, told a multi-faith crowd of Muslims, Christians 

and others outside the country’s parliament Sunday 

that international laws should be imposed to limit the 

most hateful fringes of Western free speech. But just a 

day earlier, a Pakistan government minister offered a 

$100,000 bounty for the death of the filmmaker. 

The two responses - one appealing for a higher law 

and the other taking justice into his own hands - frame 

another divide pried wider by the latest chaos: How 

much leeway can Muslim countries allow for expressions 

of anger against their faith? While many Muslims 

believe American protections for open expression were 

abused by the film, there are also moderate voices in 

the Islamic world questioning whether the defense of 

their religion is warped by death threats and violence 

that has left dozens dead, including the US ambassador 

to Libya. “This is the flip side to the criticism against 

American free speech,” Voll said. “This is another major 

learning opportunity inside Muslim societies to look at 

themselves and interactions with the world. We have 

been here before.” 

But the latest upheavals appear to resonate even 

deeper because of the widening reach of the web and 

social media, which also have played a central role in 

the Arab Spring uprisings that have opened new political 

space for hardline Islamists. “Sadly, the voices of reason 

and logic in this part of the world are few,” said 

Ebtehal Al-Khateeb, a Kuwait University professor and 

human rights activist. “Even those who strongly oppose 

the violence prefer not to speak.” 

Kuwait is a particularly instructive proving ground in 

the struggle to clarify an Islamic version of free speech. 

After Islamist-led opposition groups gained control of 

parliament in February, they tried to push through 

measures that included the death penalty for blasphemy 

against Islam. Kuwait’s Western-leaning rulers signaled 

they would reject the move and later suspended 

the parliament over election law technicalities. “The 

truth is that as amateurish movie production is, it still 

falls in the category of freedom of speech,” Khateeb 

said. “If you say that to people here, they will read your 

response as: ‘You accept this. You are a blasphemer.’ 

They still don’t understand that they don’t have to 

accept it. They can oppose it, but in a civil manner that 

is more constructive.” — AP 

NEWS 

Ahmadinejad blasts Israel 


Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has hinted 

Israel could strike Iran’s nuclear sites and has criticized 

US President Barack Obama’s position that sanctions 

and diplomacy should be given more time to stop 

Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons. Iran denies that it 

is seeking nuclear arms and says its atomic work is 

peaceful, aimed at generating electricity. 

“Fundamentally we do not take seriously the threats of 

the Zionists. ... We have all the defensive means at our 

disposal and we are ready to defend ourselves,” 

Ahmadinejad said. He is in New York to attend the UN 

General Assembly. His speech is scheduled for tomorrow. 

On Sunday, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon met 

with Ahmadinejad and warned him of the dangers of 

incendiary rhetoric in the Middle East. Ahmadinejad 

did not heed the warning. Ahmadinejad alluded to his 

previous rejection of Israel’s right to exist. “Iran has 

been around for the last seven, 10 thousand years. They 

(the Israelis) have been occupying those territories for 

the last 60 to 70 years, with the support and force of 

the Westerners. They have no roots there in history,” he 

said, speaking to reporters through an interpreter. The 

modern state of Israel was founded in 1948. 

“We do believe that they have found themselves at a 

dead end and they are seeking new adventures in 

order to escape this dead end. Iran will not be damaged 

with foreign bombs,” Ahmadinejad said, referring 

to Israel. “We don’t even count them as any part of any 

equation for Iran. During a historical phase, they represent 

minimal disturbances that come into the picture 

and are then eliminated,” Ahmadinejad added. In 2005, 

Ahmadinejad called Israel a “tumor” and echoed the 

words of the former Iranian Supreme Leader, Ayatollah 

Ruhollah Khomeini, by saying that Israel should be 

wiped off the map. Amir Ali Hajizadeh, a brigadier general 

in Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, was 


The announcement comes ahead of next month’s 

annual haj pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia’s holy city of 

Makkah which will attract nearly three million believers, 

although the WHO said it did not recommend any travel 

restrictions. Saudi officials said the pilgrimage next 

month could provide more opportunities for the virus to 

spread. They advised pilgrims to keep their hands clean 

and wear masks in crowded places. 

In Britain, the HPA, an organisation set up by the government 

to manage infectious diseases, meanwhile, 

stressed no-one else in Britain, including those who had 

come into contact with the man, were reporting symptoms. 

The HPA said the new virus was “different from any 

that have previously been identified in humans”. It said 

there were encouraging signs that it was not as infectious 

as SARS as there had been no evidence of illness in 

people who had been in contact with the Qatari or the 

Saudi, including in health workers. “Based on what we 


quoted on Sunday as saying that Iran could launch a 

pre-emptive strike on Israel if it was sure the Jewish 

state was preparing to attack it. 

Ahmadinejad said the nuclear issue was one ultimately 

between the United States and Iran, and must 

be resolved with negotiations. He added, “The nuclear 

issue is not a problem. But the approach of the United 

States on Iran is important. We are ready for dialogue, 

for a fundamental resolution of the problems, but 

under conditions that are based on fairness and mutual 

respect.” “We are not expecting a 33-year-old problem 

between the United States and Iran to be resolved in a 

speedy fashion. But there is no other way besides dialogue,” 

Ahmadinejad said. US President Barack Obama 

will underscore his commitment to preventing Iran 

from acquiring a nuclear weapon and address Muslim 

unrest related to an anti-Islamic video in his speech to 

General Assembly today, the White House said. 

Ahmadinejad also addressed a high-level meeting 

on the rule of law at the United Nations yesterday, saying 

states should not yield to international law as 

imposed “by bullying countries”. In the past, 

Ahmadinejad has used his UN speeches to defend 

Iran’s nuclear program and to attack Israel, the United 

States and Europe. He has questioned the Holocaust 

and cast doubt on whether 19 hijackers were really 

responsible for the Sept 11 attacks on the United States 

in 2001. Western envoys typically walk out of 

Ahmadinejad’s speeches in protest. 

Ahmadinejad said yesterday that Iran - under UN, 

U.S. and European Union sanctions over its nuclear program 

- is used to economic restrictions and is not 

severely affected by them. “The conditions in Iran are 

not as bad as they are portrayed by some,” 

Ahmadinejad said, adding that his country can survive 

without oil revenues. Ahmadinejad added that Iran’s 

economy is in much better shape than that of the EU, 

which he said was “on the verge of disintegration and 

collapse”. — Reuters 

New SARS-like virus emerges in Mideast 

know about other coronaviruses, many of these contacts 

will already have passed the period when they could 

have caught the virus from the infected person,” it said. 

John Watson, head of the respiratory diseases at the 

HPA, said: “Immediate steps have been taken to ensure 

that people who have been in contact with the UK case 

have not been infected, and there is no evidence to suggest 

they have.” Peter Openshaw, director of the Centre 

for Respiratory Infection at Imperial College London, 

urged caution, saying any evidence of human-to-human 

transmission causing severe disease “would be very worrying”. 

But fellow expert John Oxford, professor at the 

University of London, said he was “somewhat relaxed” 

because he believed the illness was more likely to 

behave “like a nasty infection rather than join the ‘exception’ 

group like SARS”. “This new virus does not to me 

appear to be in the same ‘big bang’ group,” he added. “I 

am very pleased that it does not!” 

SARS, which mainly affected Asia, was recognised at 

the end of Feb 2003. — Agencies

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Issues 

Pakistan protests 

agenda dictated 

by hardliners 

P akistan’s 

By Sami Zubeiri 

handling of protests against an anti-Islam 

film was a risky attempt to cash in on religious sentiment, 

analysts say, and could fan the flames of 

extremism in the troubled nation. As anger raged across 

the Muslim world at the US-made “Innocence of Muslims”, 

the coalition government led by the Pakistan People’s 

Party (PPP) declared Friday a public holiday and encouraged 

people to protest peacefully. But what was officially a 

“day of love for the prophet” ended in bloodshed and looting, 

with 21 people killed and more than 200 injured as 

angry demonstrators clashed with police, smashing up 

shops, cinemas and fast food outlets in major cities. 

Compounding the problems for Pakistan’s leaders, on 

Saturday Railways Minister Ghulam Ahmed Bilour offered 

$100,000 of his own money to anyone who killed the filmmaker, 

urging the Taleban and Al-Qaeda to join the hunt 

to accomplish what he called the “noble deed”. 

More than 50 people have died around the world in 

violence linked to the low-budget movie, which mocks 

Islam and Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), since the first 

demonstrations erupted on September 11. But if the 

Pakistan government’s intention in calling a public holiday 

was to take the sting out of the demonstrations on its own 

doorstep, the policy failed. There had been dozens of rallies 

against the film, some of which had led to clashes, but 

nothing on the scale of Friday’s violence. 

While the number of protesters was relatively small - 

around 45,000 out of a population of 180 million - many 

carried the banners of extremist groups, and as often happens 

in Pakistan, their voices drowned out the forces of 

moderation. Pakistan is locked in a struggle against militant 

Islamism on its own soil but its “war on terror” alliance 

with Washington is unpopular and the government is keen 

to avoid accusations from opposition parties and hardliners 

that it is too cosy with Western powers. 

Najam Sethi, editor-in-chief of the Daily Times, an 

English-language newspaper, said the day of protest was a 

calculated move that backfired. “It was a gamble. They 

hoped and thought that the demonstrations would be 

peaceful,” he told AFP. “And even when they saw this could 

turn violent, they did not do anything, or much, because 

they’re afraid, as they are already accused of being soft on 

the West.” 

Author and analyst Hasan Askari said the events 

showed the elected government had allowed a small but 

vocal minority from the religious right to dictate the agenda. 

“As usual the government played on the wicket of religious 

elements and lost to them,” he told AFP. “By declaring 

Friday as a holiday it did not keep the initiative with it. The 

initiative went in the hands of the religious elements.” 

Pakistan’s government on Sunday distanced itself from 

Bilour’s bounty offer but political analyst Rasul Bakhsh Rais 

said it was further evidence of politicians’ willingness to try 

to capitalise on religious sentiment. “The statement shows 

the so-called secular and moderate politicians are using 

Islam for domestic politics,” Rais said of the reward offer. 

Bilour’s Awami National Party (ANP) is under pressure from 

hardline religious groups in the deeply conservative northwestern 

province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, where it holds 

power and where anti-Western feeling runs deep. 

The bounty was in part an attempt to outflank the religious 

right, Askari said - to show that the nominally secular 

ANP can be as hardline as anyone. But efforts by mainstream 

parties to win support from religious conservatives 

- to ride the tiger of extremism - are both unlikely to succeed 

and fraught with risk, warned Rais. “It is typical of the 

mindset of the leaders to play to the gallery,” he said. “It will 

encourage religious fanaticism and in the long term it may 

harm peace and stability at home. Such elements need to 

be condemned.” 

Askari said that while Bilour’s offer of a bounty was 

embarrassing to the government internationally, particularly 

with President Asif Ali Zardari due to address the UN 

General Assembly today, it was also indicative of a stratum 

of opinion within the coalition. “These things show that 

hardline thinking is there in the government circles also,” 

he told AFP. “There is a common phenomenon of pointscoring 

in Pakistan politics and Bilour wanted to show that 

‘we are not lagging behind any other group’.” A general 

election is due in the next few months and with anti-US 

sentiment running higher than ever in Pakistan, the government 

thought it could seize the moment to boost its 

popularity, said Sethi of the Daily Times. “Everything, 

including this attitude, is also linked to the upcoming elections”. 

— AFP 

All articles appearing on these pages 

are the personal opinion of the writers. 

Kuwait Times takes no responsibility 

for views expressed therein. Kuwait 

Times invites readers to voice their 

opinions. Please send submissions via 

email to: opinion@kuwaittimes.net or 

via snail mail to PO Box 1301 Safat, 

Kuwait. The editor reserves the right 

to edit any submission as necessary. 

14 opinion 


Japan, China military conflict seen unlikely 

By Linda Sieg 

H awkish 

Chinese commentators 

have urged Beijing to prepare for 

military conflict with Japan as tensions 

mount over disputed islands in the 

East China Sea, but most experts say 

chances the Asian rivals will decide to go 

to war are slim. A bigger risk is the possibility 

that an unintended maritime clash 

results in deaths and boosts pressure for 

retaliation, but even then Tokyo and 

Beijing are expected to seek to manage 

the row before it becomes a full-blown 

military confrontation. “That’s the real 

risk - a maritime incident leading to a 

loss of life. If a Japanese or Chinese were 

killed, there would be a huge outpouring 

of nationalist sentiment,” said Linda 

Jakobson, director of the East Asia 

Program at the Lowy Institute for 

International Policy in Sydney. “But I still 

cannot seriously imagine it would lead 

to an attack on the other country. I do 

think rational minds would prevail,” she 

said, adding economic retaliation was 

more likely. 

A feud over the lonely islets in the East 

China Sea flared this month after Japan’s 

government bought three of the islands 

from a private owner, triggering violent 

protests in China and threatening business 

between Asia’s two biggest 

economies. Adding to the tensions, 

China sent more than 10 government 

patrol vessels to waters near the islands, 

known as the Diaoyu in China and the 

Senkaku in Japan, while Japan beefed up 

its Coast Guard patrols. Chinese media 

said 1,000 fishing boats have set sail for 

the area, although none has been sighted 

close by. 

Despite the diplomatic standoff and 

rising nationalist sentiment in China 

especially, experts agree neither Beijing 

nor Tokyo would intentionally escalate to 

a military confrontation what is already 

the worst crisis in bilateral ties in 

decades. “The chances of a military conflict 

are very, very slim because neither 

side wants to go down that path,” said 

former People’s Liberation Army officer, 

Xu Guangyu, now a senior consultant at 

a government-run think tank in Beijing. 

Pressure from the United States, 

which repeated last week that the disputed 

isles were covered by a 1960 treaty 

obliging Washington to come to Japan’s 

aid if it were attacked, is also working to 

restrain both sides, security experts said. 

“I very seriously do not think any of the 

involved parties - Japan, China and 

including the United States because of 

its defence treaty (with Japan) - want to 

see a military conflict over this dispute,” 

said the Lowy Institute’s Jakobson. “They 

don’t want to risk it, they don’t seek it 

and they do not intend to let it happen.” 

Still, the possibility of a clash at sea 

remains. While the presence of the 

Chinese surveillance ships - none of 

which is a naval vessel - and Japan Coast 

Guard ships in the area might appear to 

set the stage for trouble, military experts 

said each side would try to steer clear of 

the other. “The bad news is that China 

sent ships to the area. The good news is 

that they are official ships controlled by 

the government,” said Narushige 

Michishita at the National Graduate 

Institute for Policy Studies in Tokyo. “This 

is good news because they are not likely 

to engage in aggressive action because 

that would really exacerbate the situation 

and turn it into a major crisis,” said 

Michishita. The Chinese ships, he said, 

had another mission besides asserting 

China’s claims to the islands and nearby 

waters. “My guess is that some (Chinese) 

official patrol boats are there to watch 

out for fishing boats ... to stop them from 

making problems,” Michishita said. 

Military specialists say the Chinese 

patrol vessels are well disciplined as are 

the Japan Coast Guard ships, while the 

two sides have grown accustomed to 

communicating. “Both sides are ready, 

but both sides are very well under control,” 

said a former senior Japanese military 

official. What worries observers most 

is the risk that a boat carrying Chinese 

fishermen slips through or activists try to 

land, sparking clashes with Japan’s Coast 

Guard that result in deaths - news of 

which would spread like wildfire on the 

Internet. In 1996, a Hong Kong activist 

drowned in the nearby waters. 

Diplomatic and economic relations 

By David Morgan 

E ven 

before his running mate was booed by a lobbying 

group for older Americans on Friday, Republican presidential 

nominee Mitt Romney was losing support 

among such voters, whose backing is crucial to his hopes of 

winning the Nov 6 election. New polling by Reuters/Ipsos 

indicates that during the past two weeks - since just after 

the Democratic National Convention - support for Romney 

among Americans age 60 and older has crumbled, from a 

20-point lead over Democratic President Barack Obama to 

less than 4 points. Romney’s double-digit advantages 

among older voters on the issues of healthcare and 

Medicare - the nation’s health insurance program for those 

over 65 and the disabled - also have evaporated, and Obama 

has begun to build an advantage in both areas. 

Voting preferences among seniors could change in the 

final six weeks of the campaign, but the polling suggests 

that a series of recent episodes favoring Obama and the 

Democrats could be chipping away at Romney’s support 

among older Americans. Romney’s selection of Wisconsin 

congressman Paul Ryan as his vice presidential running 

mate put the federal budget and Medicare at center stage in 

the campaign. But the debate over spending and entitlement 

programs that Romney seemed to be seeking has not 

unfolded the way Republicans wanted. 

At the Democratic convention in Charlotte, North 

Carolina, on Sept 5, former President Bill Clinton gave a 

folksy but blistering critique of Ryan’s plan to revamp 

Medicare, warning that it could leave seniors unprotected 

from escalating healthcare costs. Meanwhile, Democrats’ 

efforts to portray Romney as a wealthy former private equity 

executive with little sympathy for the less fortunate got a 

boost last week, from Romney himself. On a secretly recorded 

video released by the liberal magazine Mother Jones, 

Romney was shown telling supporters at a $50,000-a-person 

fundraiser that 47 percent of Americans would never vote 

for him because they do not pay federal income taxes, feel 

they are “victims,” and depend on government benefits. 

Democrats accused Romney of dismissing a range of 

Americans, including elderly people who depend on government 

programs such as Medicare and Social Security. 

Romney’s campaign rejected that, but the recent polls suggest 

that such claims may be resonating with Americans 

aged 60 and older, who for months had been the only age 

group to consistently support Romney over Obama. 

Analysts say that if Romney cannot reverse the trend among 

older voters, he won’t win on Nov 6. “If Romney loses seniors, 

he loses this election, period,” said Jonathan 

Oberlander, a health policy specialist at the University of 

North Carolina. “A bad showing nationally (among older voters) 

does not bode well for Florida and other states with big 

senior populations.” 

Ryan’s plan for Medicare would limit the program’s costs 

by converting it from a provider of popular benefits to a system 

that would give future beneficiaries a financial stipend 

to help pay for private insurance or traditional Medicare. 

Obama and fellow Democrats say Ryan’s approach, which 

chilled sharply in 2010 after Japan arrested 

a Chinese trawler captain whose boat 

collided with a Japan Coast Guard vessel. 

This time, tensions are already high and 

China is contending with a tricky oncein-a-decade 

leadership change while 

Japan’s ruling party faces a probable 

drubbing in an election expected in 

months. 

“Two rational governments of major 

countries would not intentionally decide 

to enter into a major war with each other 

over a few uninhabited rocks,” said 

Denny Roy, an Asia security expert at the 

East-West Center in Hawaii. “But unfortunately, 

you can arrive at war in ways other 

than that - through unintended escalation, 

in which both countries start out 

at a much lower level, but each of them 

think that they must respond to per- 

ceived provocation by the other side, 

both very strongly pushed into it by 

domestic pressure. That seems to be 

where we are now and it is difficult to see 

how countries can get out of that negative 

spiral.” 

Others, however, were more confident 

that an unplanned clash could be kept 

from escalating into military conflict. 

“That’s not really a major possibility, 

because there are still broad channels of 

communication between the two sides, 

and they would help prevent that happening. 

Both sides could still talk to each 

other,” said former senior PLA officer Xu. 

“Even before anything happened, you 

would also have the U.N Secretary 

General and others stepping in to ensure 

that the situation does not get out of 

control.” — Reuters 

For Romney, troubling 

signs among older voters 

largely has been embraced by Republicans including 

Romney, would further expose seniors to rising healthcare 

costs and hasten Medicare’s financial instability. 

Republicans argue that their plan would preserve Medicare 

for future generations. Medicare serves nearly 50 million 

retired and disabled Americans, and polls show stiff public 

resistance to the Ryan plan, with older voters opposing it by 

a 2-to-1 ratio. Until now, however, there have been few tangible 

signs that opposition to Ryan’s plan would translate 

into a preference for president. 

Pollsters say Obama’s recent rise in popularity among older 

Americans could signal that Democrats are winning the 

advertising battle over Medicare. That would be something 

of a turnaround for Democrats. For much of the past two 

years, Republicans have helped to sway public opinion 

against Obama’s signature legislative achievement, his overhaul 

of the healthcare system, by casting it as a government 

overreach that will kill jobs by raising costs for employers. 

Republicans also said Obama would cut $716 billion from 

Medicare, an allegation rejected by Democrats and independent 

analysts. Even so, the Republican claims of 

Medicare cuts drew large numbers of seniors to the polls in 

the 2010 elections, when Republicans won control of the US 

House of Representatives. 

AARP, a grass-roots lobbying group with 37 million members 

aged 50 and up, backed Obama’s healthcare plan 

against Republican critics. So it wasn’t too surprising last 

week when Ryan, speaking at an AARP convention in New 

Orleans, faced a tough audience. Less than five minutes into 

Ryan’s speech, there were boos and cries of “No!” as he laid 

out the Republican message on Medicare and vowed to 

repeal “Obamacare”. But the data from Reuters/Ipsos polling 

- along with similar results from survey data of older voters 

by the Pew Research Center - indicate that the crowd’s 

response in New Orleans could symbolize more than just 

one large group’s discomfort with the Romney-Ryan ticket. 

A Pew poll, conducted Sept 12-16 and released last week, 

showed Romney with only a 47 to 46 percent lead among 

registered voters aged 65-plus. He also trailed Obama by 7 

points among people aged 45 to 64 - a huge potential voting 

bloc that analysts say is increasingly concerned about 

retirement security. To illustrate the challenge that Romney 

could face in November, analysts note that Republican John 

McCain won 53 percent of the vote among those 65 and older 

in 2008, and lost to Obama with 46 percent of the overall 

vote. “This is certainly a bit of a game changer,” Ipsos pollster 

Julia Clark said of the increasing support for Obama among 

older Americans. “Older individuals vote. They’re the ones 

who turn up on Election Day, for sure.” 

Romney and Ryan are likely to need a clear victory 

among older voters to win the election, given Obama’s 

advantages among other important voting groups such as 

women, minorities and young adults, analysts said. “For 

Romney to win the election, he has to have the majority of 

the vote from people over 50,” said Robert Blendon, a political 

analyst at the Harvard School of Public Health. “If they 

share voters over 50, Romney’s really going to take a loss 

here.” — Reuters

Milan coach suspended 

ROME: AC Milan coach Massimiliano Allegri has been suspended for one match after 

protesting to match officials during his side’s 2-1 defeat at Udinese, league officials 

announced yesterday. 

A brief statement said Allegri was punished for protesting to the match referee as 

the teams were going down the tunnel after full-time in 

Sunday’s match in Udine, which was Milan’s 

third defeat in four games. 

It means the 45-year-old, who has been 

under immense pressure during Milan’s 

catastrophic start to the season, will be 

banned from the touchline for 

Cagliari’s visit to the San Siro tomorrow. 

Allegri has so far been given the 

backing of club bosses, including 

owner and president Silvio 

Berlusconi, but it remains to be seen 

how they will react if Milan slip to a 

fourth defeat. 

Milan finished runners-up last season, 

a year after Allegri led them to the 

title in his first season in charge. 

However, with three defeats in four games, it is 

the Rossoneri’s worst start to a campaign since 

the 1940-41 season. —AFP 

NEW YORK: Oakland Athletics’ Cliff Pennington hits a go-ahead sixth-inning 

RBI-single to drive in Josh Donaldson in a 5-4 victory over the New York 

Yankees. —AP 

Athletics halt Yankees 

7-game winning streak 

NEW YORK: Cliff Pennington hit a go-ahead 

single in the sixth inning after a key error by 

backup shortstop Eduardo Nunez and the 

Oakland Athletics bounced back to avoid a 

sweep, edging New York 5-4 Sunday and 

stopping the Yankees’ seven-game winning 

streak. 

A day after their stunning 14-inning loss, 

the A’s held on to at least maintain their 21/2game 

lead for the second AL wild-card spot 

over the Angels, who played later. 

The Yankees kept their one-game lead in 

the AL East because Baltimore lost in Boston. 

Despite the defeat, the Yankees have to like 

their chances to win the division - their final 10 

games are against three teams with records 

below .500. 

Red Sox 2, Orioles 1 

In Boston, Cody Ross doubled in the goahead 

run in the eighth inning, Andrew Bailey 

escaped a bases-loaded jam in the ninth and 

the Red Sox ended Baltimore’s six-game winning 

streak. 

The Orioles began the day one game 

behind the first-place New York Yankees in 

the AL East and two games ahead of Oakland 

for the top wild-card spot in the league. 

Boston stopped its four-game losing streak 

after Dustin Pedroia led off the eighth with a 

double against Luis Ayala (5-5) and Ross followed 

with his tiebreaking hit. 

A double by Jim Thome helped Baltimore 

load the bases with one out in the ninth. But 

Bailey got Manny Machado on a forceout at 

home and struck out pinch-hitter Ryan 

Flaherty to finish it. 

Angels 4, White Sox 1 

In Anaheim, Jered Weaver kept the Angels 

within striking distance in the AL wild-card 

chase, posting his league-leading 19th victory 

with a decision over the struggling White Sox. 

The White Sox lost their fifth in a row and 

led Detroit by a half-game in the AL Central. 

The Tigers lost the opener of their day-night 

doubleheader against Minnesota. 

Albert Pujols reached the 100-RBI mark for 

the 11th time in 12 big league seasons with a 

two-run double as the Angels remained 21/2 

games behind Oakland for the second wildcard 

spot. 

Kendrys Morales hit a two-run homer that 

helped the Angels complete a three-game 

sweep. Weaver (19-4) established a career 

high for wins. 

Twins 2, Tigers 1 

In Detroit, Jamey Carroll hit an RBI single in 

the 10th inning and the Twins beat Detroit, 

winning both games of a doubleheader to 

prevent the Tigers from at least tying the 

Chicago White Sox atop the AL Central. 

Chicago still has a one-game lead in the division 

despite extending its losing streak to five 

with a 4-1 loss earlier in the day against the 

Los Angeles Angels. 

Detroit closer Jose Valverde (3-4) allowed 

pinch-hitter Denard Span to lead off the extra 

inning with a single and gave up a one-out, 

fall-behind single to Carroll. Jared Burton (2-1) 

got the win and Glen Perkins pitched a perfect 

10th for his 14th save in 17 chances. 

Indians 15, Royals 4 

In Kansas City, Carlos Santana hit two 

homers and drove in five runs as the Indians 

routed Kansas City in their highest-scoring 

game of the season. 

Santana connected for a two-run shot in 

the sixth inning off Jake Odorizzi, who lost in 

his major league debut. Santana added his 

team-leading 18th homer, a three-run drive 

during a seven-run ninth. 

The loss officially eliminated the Royals 

from playoff contention and assured them of 

another losing record. Kansas City has not 

made the postseason since winning the 

1985 World Series, the longest active playoff 

drought in the majors. 

Rays 3, Blue Jays 0 

In St, Petersburg, BJ Upton hit his eighth 

home run in 14 games and Jeremy 

Hellickson won for the first time in more 

than a month to help the Rays beat the Blue 

Jays. 

It was the fifth straight win for the Rays, 

who remained 31/2 games behind the 

Oakland Athletics in the race for the AL’s second 

wild-card spot. 

Hellickson (9-10) pitched 5 2-3 innings, 

giving up five hits and two walks while striking 

out six. The right-hander has given up 

only 16 runs in his last eight starts, but has 

won only two of them. Sunday marked his 

first win since Aug. 20. 

Fernando Rodney pitched the ninth for 

his 44th save. Upton’s 26th home run came 

in the first inning off Chad Jenkins, who was 

making his first major league start. 

Rangers 3, Mariners 2 

In Seattle, Ryan Dempster allowed two 

runs and six hits over six-plus innings and 

Mike Napoli and Geovany Soto homered to 

lead the Rangers over the Mariners and preserve 

a four-game lead over the Oakland A’s 

in the AL West. 

With Oakland’s 5-4 win over the New 

York Yankees earlier Sunday, the Rangers 

were looking to avoid a sweep by the scuffling 

Mariners in order to keep their distance 

over the Athletics with a pivotal four-game 

series against them beginning in Texas on 

Monday. 

Solo homers by Eric Thames and Brendan 

Ryan off Dempster (12-7) in the seventh 

inning were the only blemishes to a strong 

outing. Dempster went 6 2-3 innings allowing 

one walk while striking out eight. Joe 

Nathan earned his 35th save. 

The Rangers were again without Josh 

Hamilton, who has missed the last five 

sports 

Indian Olympic body calls 

for elections on Nov 25 

NEW DELHI: The Indian Olympic Association has bowed to pressure from 

the International Olympic Committee and scheduled elections for Nov. 25. 

The IOA made the announcement Monday, a day ahead of a deadline 

set by IOC for the Indian body to call elections and resolve the confusion 

surrounding the status of Suresh Kalmadi. Kalmadi spent nine months in jail 

over corruption charges relating to the 2010 Commonwealth Games. He 

stepped away from the day-to-day running of the IOA but has not relinquished 

the presidency. 

Acting president Vijay Kumar Malhotra told reporters yesterday the IOA 

“did not want to be in conflict” with the IOC. He said the body would also 

ensure that sports bodies governing Olympic disciplines would form the 

majority of the electorate. “The IOC had asked us to furnish information on 

two issues - the date of elections and to ensure a voting right majority of 

national sports federations whose disciplines are included in the Olympic 

Games. The executive board has announced the date for elections and a 

meeting on Oct. 18 will work out details of the electoral process,” Malhotra 

said. Malhotra did not clear up the national body’s stance on the IOC decision 

to send an observer to the elections. 

“The IOC had sought information on these two issues only. The observer 

issue was not among those on which the IOC had directed us to respond. 

We’ve already asked the IOC why we are being singled out because 

observers are not sent to other countries,” Malhotra said.—AP 

CHICAGO: Kyle Lohse and the shorthanded 

St. Louis Cardinals won for the 

sixth time in seven games, holding their 

lead in the NL wild-card race with a 6-3 

win Sunday over the Chicago Cubs. 

Minus All-Stars Yadier Molina and 

Carlos Beltran from the starting lineup, 

the Cardinals stayed 21/2 games ahead of 

Milwaukee for the second wild-card spot. 

Lohse (16-3) made his team-leading 

32nd start, giving up three runs and five 

hits in six innings. Jason Motte earned his 

sixth save in the Cardinals’ last seven 

games, and now has 40 saves this season. 

Molina did not play for the defending 

World Series champions because of lower 

back spasms, having hurt himself while 

getting out of the way of a pitch Saturday. 

The catcher was feeling better, manager 

Mike Matheny said, still had some discomfort. 

Cubs starter Justin Germano (2-9) 

worked 5 2-3 innings, giving up four 

earned runs and 10 hits. 

Brewers 6, Nationals 2 

In Washington, Jonathan Lucroy had a 

pair of RBI singles and Milwaukee beat 

Washington to keep the Brewers in the 

playoff chase. 

Rickie Weeks had three hits while 

Aramis Ramirez had two doubles for 

Milwaukee, which twice benefitted from 

Washington outfielders losing fly balls in 

the sun. The Brewers are 21/2 games 

behind St. Louis for the final NL wild-card 

berth. 

Washington (92-60) leads the NL East 

by 41/2 games over Atlanta, a 2-1 winner 

over Philadelphia Sunday. The Nationals 

magic number to clinch the division 

remains at six. 

Reliever Brandon Kintzler (3-0) pitched 

a scoreless sixth inning for the win. John 

Axford recorded the final out with two 

runners on for his 33rd save. Losing pitcher 

Ryan Mattheus (5-3) allowed three 

earned runs on four hits. 

Braves 2, Phillies 1 

In Philadelphia, Tim Hudson tossed 

two-hit ball over 7 1-3 innings to help the 

Braves move to the brink of a playoff spot 

with a win over the Phillies. 

Hudson (16-6) struck out four and 

allowed one unearned run to send the 

Braves back to Atlanta with a shot at winning 

an NL wild-card berth. 

A year after a historic September collapse, 

the Braves are again close to a postseason 

spot. They can clinch during a sixgame 

homestand that opens today. 

The Braves were up 81/2 games 

through Sept. 5 last year, but went 9-18 

down the stretch and were overtaken by 

St. Louis on the final day of the season. 

This season, the Braves can almost work 

the final week on setting their playoff rota- 


Hodgson laments Terry’s exit 

LONDON: England manager Roy Hodgson said yesterday that he had “reluctantly” 

accepted John Terry’s decision to call time on his international career, as the centreback 

contested a Football Association racism charge. 

Chelsea captain Terry effectively accused the FA of forcing his hand in quitting 

England duty after the governing body pressed on with charges that he racially 

abused Queens Park Rangers’ Anton Ferdinand in October. 

Terry, who has always denied using a racist slur against his opponent, was found 

not guilty in a criminal case relating to the incident in a London court in July. 

Despite the controversy, Hodgson picked Terry 

in his squad for the European Championship in 

June and wanted to have the 31-year-old 

involved in England’s bid to qualify for the 

2014 World Cup in Brazil. “I’d like to thank 

John Terry for his commitment to the England 

team since I became manager,” said Hodgson. 

“I am of course disappointed to lose a player of 

John’s international experience and 

exceptional ability. 

“I have enjoyed a good relationship 

with John during my time as England manager 

and I reluctantly accept his decision. I 

can also confirm that he had the courtesy 

to call me prior to the announcement 

of his retirement from the 

England team. —AP 

Cardinals thrash Cubs 

American League 

Eastern Division 

W L PCT GB 

NY Yankees 88 64 .579 - 

Baltimore 87 65 .572 1 

Tampa Bay 83 70 .542 5.5 

Boston 69 85 .448 20 

Toronto 66 85 .437 21.5 

Central Division 

Chicago White Sox 81 71 .533 - 

Detroit 80 72 .526 1 

Kansas City 70 82 .461 11 

Minnesota 64 89 .418 17.5 

Cleveland 63 90 .412 18.5 

Western Division 

Texas 90 62 .592 - 

Oakland 86 66 .566 4 

LA Angels 84 69 .549 6.5 

Seattle 72 81 .471 18.5 

MLB results/standings 

tion. David Ross hit a solo homer for the 

Braves. 

Pirates 8, Astros 1 

In Houston, AJ Burnett allowed one run 

in eight innings for his 16th win, and Josh 

Harrison tied a career high with four hits to 

jumpstart Pittsburgh’s offense in a win 

over Houston. 

The win snapped a five-game skid for 

the Pirates, who at 75-77 are in danger of 

posting their 20th straight losing season, 

which would extend their major North 

American professional sports record. 

They have won just three times in the 

past 16 games to make their chances of 

securing the second NL wild-card slim. 

Burnett (16-8), who allowed four hits 

and struck out a season-high 11, won for 

the first time since Aug. 16 to become the 

first Pittsburgh pitcher to win more than 15 

games since 1991. He had started six 

games with four losses between victories. 

Mets 3, Marlins 2 

In New York, Ruben Tejada singled 

home the winning run with two outs in the 

ninth inning to give the Mets a victory over 

Miami. Scott Hairston led off the inning 

with a single, took second on a passed ball 

by Rob Brantly, and was safe at third when 

pinch-hitter Jordany Valdespin beat the 

throw on what would have been an inningending 

double play. Instead, pinch-hitter 

Fred Lewis was intentionally walked after 

Valdespin was allowed to take second. 

Tejada lined a pitch from right-hander 

Oakland 5, NY Yankees 4; Minnesota 10, Detroit 4; NY Mets 3, Miami 2; Boston 2, Baltimore 1; 

Milwaukee 6, Washington 2; Atlanta 2, Philadelphia 1; Tampa Bay 3, Toronto 0; Pittsburgh 8, 

Houston 1; Cleveland 15, Kansas City 4; St. Louis 6, Chicago Cubs 3; Arizona 10, Colorado 7; LA 

Angels 4, Chicago White Sox 1; San Diego 6, San Francisco 4; Texas 3, Seattle 2; Minnesota 2, Detroit 

1 (10 innings); LA Dodgers 5, Cincinnati 3. 

Ryan Webb (4-3) into shallow left field and 

sprinted toward first with his finger in the 

air as the rest of the Mets poured out of the 

dugout. David Wright hit a two-run homer 

in the first and Bobby Parnell (5-4) pitched 

the top of the ninth for the win. 

D’backs 10, Rockies 7 

In Denver, Aaron Hill hit a tiebreaking 

three-run homer in the eighth inning and 

the Arizona Diamondbacks beat Colorado, 

the Rockies’ season-high ninth straight 

loss. Arizona remained 41/2 games behind 

St. Louis for the second NL wild-card spot. 

Wil Nieves had four hits and Hill had three 

for the Diamondbacks, who have won 

three straight and six of seven. Wilin 

Rosario had three hits for the fourth game 

in a row and DJ LeMahieu also had three 

hits for the Rockies. 

CHICAGO: Cubs catcher Welington Castillo reaches for the ball as St. Louis Cardinals’ 

Yadier Molina (4) twists to get out of the way of the pitch during the ninth inning of a 

baseball game. —AP 

National League 

Eastern Division 

Washington 92 60 .605 - 

Atlanta 88 65 .575 4.5 

Philadelphia 77 76 .503 15.5 

NY Mets 69 83 .454 23 

Miami 66 87 .431 26.5 

Central Division 

Cincinnati 92 61 .601 - 

St. Louis 82 71 .536 10 

Milwaukee 79 73 .520 12.5 

Pittsburgh 75 77 .493 16.5 

Chicago Cubs 59 94 .386 33 

Houston 50 103 .327 42 

Western Division 

San Francisco 89 64 .582 - 

LA Dodgers 79 74 .516 10 

Arizona 77 75 .507 11.5 

San Diego 73 80 .477 16 

Colorado 58 94 .382 30.5 

Padres 6, Giants 4 

In San Francisco, Yonder Alonso’s two-run 

single in the seventh inning snapped a tie 

and helped the Padres beat the Giants. Mark 

Kotsay hit a home run and Yasmani Grandal 

also drove in a run for the Padres, who had 

lost four of their previous five games. Everth 

Cabrera had four hits, walked and stole three 

bases in five plate appearances. Xavier Nady, 

who had two hits, Eli Whiteside, Emmanuel 

Burriss and Buster Posey each drove in runs 

for the Giants, who rested their regulars a 

day after clinching the NL West Division title. 

Eric Stults (7-3) worked six-plus innings, 

allowing three runs on seven hits, to win his 

sixth in seven decisions. He struck out four 

and walked one. Clay Hensley (4-4) took the 

loss after giving up Alonso’s hit. 

Dodgers 5, Reds 3 

In Cincinnati, Adrian Gonzalez hit a pair of 

solo homers off Homer Bailey on Sunday 

night, powering the Dodgers to a victory 

over the Reds that let them keep pace in the 

wild card race. The Dodgers remained three 

games behind St. Louis and a half-game 

behind Milwaukee for the final NL playoff 

spot. All three won on Sunday. 

The Dodgers have dropped 11 of their 

last 17 games. They’re off Monday before 

starting a three-game series in San Diego. 

The Dodgers finish the season with six 

games at home - three against Colorado, 

three against NL West-champion San 

Francisco. Bailey (12-10) allowed five hits in 6 

2-3 innings, including the two homers by 

Gonzalez, who has five in his career off the 

right-hander. 

Shawn Tolleson (3-1) got the victory with 

one perfect inning in relief. Brandon League 

pitched the ninth for his fifth save in as many 

chances with LA. —AP

UNCASVILLE: Connecticut’s Kelsey Griffin (center) beats Atlanta’s 

Catherine Kraayeveld (left) and Aneika Henry (13) to a rebound in the 

second half of WNBA Eastern Conference action.—AP 

Sun shines over Dream 

UNCASVILLE: Kara Lawson had 21 points, 

eight rebounds, and set the franchise record 

for 3-pointers in a season as the Connecticut 

Sun finished the regular season with a 92-72 

win over the Atlanta Dream on Sunday. 

Lawson has made 74 3-pointers this season, 

topping Katie Douglas’ mark of 73 set in 2006. 

Tina Charles had 17 points and nine 

rebounds for the Sun (25-9). She also finished 

with a WNBA-best 345 rebounds and a 10.5 

average. Mistie Mims had nine points and five 

steals, and Kalana Greene scored 12 for 

Connecticut, Lindsay Harding scored 16 

points, and Erika de Souza had 13 points and 

eight rebounds for Atlanta (19-15). Angel 

McCoughtry added 12 points and secured the 

league’s scoring title with an average of 21.4. 

Fever 91, Shock 58 

At Indianapolis, Erin Phillips matched a 

career high with 21 points, and Indiana beat 

Tulsa in the regular-season finale. 

Tamika Catchings added 20 points and 10 

rebounds for the Fever. Catchings posted her 

82 career double-double, breaking a secondplace 

tie in WNBA history with Yolanda 

Griffith. The Fever (22-12) matched their franchise 

record for wins in a season. Indiana had 

lost three straight before beating Washington 

on Friday. Ivory Latta led the Shock (9-25) 

with 16 points. Scholanda Dorrell scored 14, 

Amber Holt had 10, and Glory Johnson added 

eight points and 11 rebounds for Tulsa. 

The Fever won easily despite playing without 

three starters. Katie Douglas sat out with 

an illness, and guards Briann January and 

guard Shavonte Zellous missed the game due 

to concussion-like symptoms. Jessica 

Davenport scored 18 points, and Karima 

Christmas added a season-high 10 for 

Indiana. 

Silver Stars 99, Lynx 84 

At San Antonio, Danielle Adams scored 28 

points, and San Antonio finished the regular 

season with a win over Minnesota. 

Tangela Smith added 15 points, Danielle 

Robinson had 14, and Shameka Christon 

scored 13 for playoff-bound San Antonio (21- 

13). Seimone Augustus had 18 points, Monica 

Wright 16 and Lindsay Whalen 14 for defending 

champion Minnesota (27-7). The Lynx, 

who have the league’s best record, missed an 

opportunity to match the best regular-season 

record in WNBA history. The Silver Stars set a 

season high for points in a game despite playing 

without Becky Hammon and Sophia 

Young, who rested before the playoffs. 

Minnesota will face Seattle in the first round 

of the postseason. 

Storm 71, Mercury 57 

At Phoenix, Sue Bird had 13 points, five 

rebounds and four assists to help Seattle beat 

Phoenix. Seeded fourth in the West, Seattle 

(16-18) played its regulars most of the game 

before its playoff series with defending champion 

Minnesota that begins Friday. The Storm 

have reached the postseason a WNBA-record 

nine consecutive seasons. 

With their seventh straight loss, the lastplace 

Mercury (7-27) recorded their worst 

season in franchise history, surpassing an 8- 

26 mark in 2003. They missed the playoffs for 

the first time since 2008. DeWanna Bonner 

had 13 points to lead Phoenix. 

Camille Little had 14 points and eight 

rebounds, and Shekinna Sticklen added 10 

points for the Storm, who finished the regular 

season with three straight victories. 

Candice Dupree, in her third game after 

knee surgery, had 10 points and three 

rebounds in 21 minutes. Krystal Thomas, cut 

by Seattle and Phoenix but signed by the 

Mercury five days into the regular season, had 

a career-best 18 rebounds. It was her franchise-record 

fifth straight game of 10 or more 

rebounds—AP 

Streetfighter Vettel takes 

title showdown to Alonso 

SINGAPORE: Sebastian Vettel displayed all 

the guts and determination of a world champion 

to haul himself back into the Formula 

One title race with a Singapore victory that 

sets up a mouth-watering finale to the season. 

Vettel kept his focus to win a “killer” race 

that ran for a full two hours on a balmy 

Sunday night, enabling the German to cut 

championship leader Fernando Alonso’s 

advantage to 29 points with six rounds 

remaining as he seeks a hat-trick of crowns. 

To say the title showdown has come down 

to a duel between Vettel’s Red Bull and 

Alonso’s Ferrari could be premature given the 

topsy-turvy nature of this season but while 

both men have bemoaned a lack of pace, 

they make up for it in consistency. 

Alonso has spent all season claiming his 

car is not competitive, yet he has forged 

SINGAPORE: Red Bull Formula One 

driver Sebastian Vettel of Germany 

stands on his car as he celebrates his 

win at the Singapore Formula One 

Grand Prix in this file photo. —AP 

ahead by picking up big points from average 

positions on the grid, a feat he repeated in 

Singapore by finishing third after starting 

fifth. “On track, we manage to make the most 

of what we have, making few or no mistakes, 

thanks to great work from the team,” Alonso 

told reporters after chasing home Vettel and 

McLaren’s Jenson Button. “For that alone we 

deserve to be where we are in the classification. 

Today, we pulled out an advantage over 

three of our four main competitors, which is 

positive.” Vettel cut a forlorn figure after an 

erratic race in Monza two weeks ago ended 

prematurely with an alternator failure, leaving 

many observers to doubt whether the 

German had the desire or the vehicle to 

mount a serious title challenge. His demeanor 

had changed by Sunday after a polished drive 

backed up his domination in practice as both 

he and Alonso benefited from another failure 

for Lewis Hamilton, who has offset three wins 

with three retirements in the last eight races. 

All season long, McLaren’s rivals have 

claimed the British car was the most competitive 

yet Hamilton’s challenge took a body 

blow on Sunday when he surrendered the 

lead on the 23rd lap with a gearbox failure 

and is now 52 points behind Alonso. 

“A tremendous result for Sebastian and 

the team to win in Singapore. It’s a timely win 

for both championships,” Red Bull team principal 

Christian Horner said. 

“It was unfortunate for Lewis to retire from 

the lead, we know how that feels and it’s never 

a good feeling. “Nonetheless, Sebastian 

had tremendous pace all weekend and it’s a 

shame in some respects, as I’m sure they’d 

have had a great race over the remainder of 

the grand prix.” 

Kimi Raikkonen also lost ground in 

Singapore as his Lotus proved unresponsive 

on the tight street circuit with his sixth-place 

finish dropping him 45 points off the pace as 

he still searches for a first victory in his comeback 

season. 

The teams now head to Suzuka for the 

Japanese Grand Prix on Oct. 7 and while the 

circuit is a sweeping tribute to near-perfect 

track design, the title contenders have only 

one thing on their minds - to finish in the 

points. “(The championship situation) looks 

better than before,” Vettel said after collecting 

his 23rd career victory. “Fernando finished 

third and it’s 10 points better than before. 

There are a lot of races left, and it’s difficult to 

predict what is going to happen but we have 

to make sure we finish the races. 

“The pace is there and even if we are not 

quick enough to win - we have to make sure 

we do that. It is a tough championship so far 

but we are still in it.” 

Ferrari team principal Stefano Domenicali 

expects the team to make incremental 

improvements to the car over the final races 

of the season but ruled out making drastic 

changes. “There are six grands prix to go to 

the end of the season and clearly, we need to 

make a step forward in terms of performance, 

because we cannot rely purely on the misfortune 

of others,” he said. “Where we need to 

improve a lot is on circuits that require maximum 

aerodynamic downforce. Having said 

that, we mustn’t over-react as it’s better to 

bring a few updates that work rather than 

bringing in too many.”—Reuters 

sports 

NEW YORK: There’s always something to sell 

in boxing, some angle to make you pay. The 

latest from Manny Pacquiao is he’s willing to 

do everything but pick up Floyd 

Mayweather Jr. and drive him to the arena to 

make the megafight boxing has been waiting 

way too long for. Pacquiao says Mr. 

Money can have more money, and get top 

billing. He can watch him take his steroid 

tests, and even choose the food at the prefight 

press conference if he wants. “He can 

even wear my trunks if it gets him in the ring 

with me,” Pacquiao said. 

“I want to fight Floyd Mayweather next.” 

Unfortunately for boxing fans, Pacquiao is 

not fighting Mayweather next. He’s meeting 

Juan Manuel Marquez for the fourth time, a 

fight so unattractive that he needs to talk 

about Mayweather to get anyone to pay 

attention to it. That’s not entirely Pacman’s 

fault. Actually, most of it is Mayweather’s 

fault for refusing to step up for the fight that 

would likely define his career. 

His nonsensical rants about steroids and 

patriotism whenever Pacquiao’s name is 

brought up are just that. His strange reluctance 

to prove his boast that he is the best 

fighter in the world brings into doubt just 

how legitimate that boast is. 

Still, he remains the biggest draw in boxing, 

something he proves every fight with 

his big pay-per-view numbers. The mere 

mention of his name sells tickets, though it’s 

anyone’s guess when he will fight again 

after serving more than two months in jail 

this summer. 

It’s been nearly four years since Pacquiao 

gave Oscar De La Hoya such a beating that 

he sent him into retirement, a fight that 

started the buzz about a Pacquiao- 

Mayweather match. It seemed sure to happen, 

and it seemed sure to be the richest 

fight ever, with both boxers pocketing at 

least $40 million. My guess now is 

Mayweather and Pacquiao will never meet 

in the ring, even now when Pacquiao is 

offering to take 45 percent of the purse to 

55 percent for Mayweather. I’ve felt that way 

for some time, and the feeling was reinforced 

when Mayweather went apoplectic 

when I dared to ask him before his fight 

against Miguel Cotto in May why he wasn’t 

fighting Pacquiao instead. 

That doesn’t mean Pacquiao can’t use his 

erstwhile rival to sell some tickets of his 

own. And that’s all he’s really doing by calling 

out Mayweather now when he’s got 

another fighter in front of him. I’ve been 

ringside for all three of Pacquiao’s fights 

with Marquez, and they’ve all been good, 

close fights that could have gone either way. 

Their styles guarantee a competitive fight, 

and if you liked the first 36 rounds you’ll 

probably dig the credit card out to pay for 

another 12. 

But do I want to see them fight for a 

fourth time on Dec. 8? Not particularly. But 

that is the fight promoter Bob Arum gave us 

when he told Timothy Bradley he wasn’t a 

big enough attraction for a second fight 

with Pacquiao, even though he won the first 

in a highly controversial decision. 

Arum believes that Hispanic fight fans 

will help Pacquiao-Marquez IV do more than 

the 850,000 pay-per-views for Bradley in 

June. There’s a sense, though, that Pacquiao 

is fading, even though he appeared to dominate 

Bradley before backing off in the final 

rounds of their fight. He has been fighting 

professionally now for 17 years, and the difficulty 

he had getting motivated for his last 

two fights is a sure sign that he’s inching 

closer to the end of his lucrative career. 

Beating Marquez for a third time in four 

fights won’t prove anything other than 

Pacquiao can still earn a big payday. Losing 

to him will mean two defeats in a row for 

Pacman, and almost certainly scuttle any 


Timing off in Pacquiao 

offer to Mayweather 

LAS VEGAS: WBO welterweight champion boxer Manny Pacquiao, of the 

Philippines, waves as fireworks explode behind him during a boxing presentation 

in Mexico City, Friday, Sept. 21. Pacquiao and his Mexican challenger 

Juan Manuel Marquez are promoting their fourth fight, scheduled for Dec. 8, 

2012.—AP 

chance of a Mayweather fight. 

Mayweather has been uncharacteristically 

quiet since his release from jail in Las 

Vegas, where he was serving a sentence on a 

domestic abuse charge. He hasn’t revealed 

what his plans are, though it’s clear he won’t 

be fighting the rest of the year. 

Assuming Pacquiao beats Marquez - and 

that’s a big assumption - the earliest the two 

could meet would be in the spring, most 

likely the first week of May. 

That’s also the last legitimate date for a 

Pacquiao-Mayweather fight to mean anything, 

and if it passes, a chance to make boxing 

history will pass along with it. 

Pacquiao’s offer to take less money does 

put the onus of making the fight squarely on 

Mayweather. He’s running out of excuses not 

to fight Pacquiao, and both his legacy and 

reputation will suffer if he doesn’t. 

Any serious talk about a possible fight, 

though, will have to wait until Pacquiao 

fights Marquez. Until then any offer 

Pacquiao makes is nothing more than a sales 

job for Dec. 8.—AP 

NEW HAMPSHIRE: Denny Hamlin (11) competes against Jimmie Johnson during the final restart in the NASCAR Sprint 

Cup Series auto race.—AP 

Hamlin wins at New Hampshire 

LOUDON: Denny Hamlin 

stepped out of his car, pointed 

into the air and took a mighty 

swing of an invisible baseball bat. 

Like Babe Ruth did before him (or 

so the legend goes), Hamlin had 

called his shot. The top winner in 

NASCAR’s regular season earned 

his series-leading fifth victory of 

the year Sunday, backing up a 

tweet of “We will win” with a mistake-free 

and dominating run at 

New Hampshire Motor Speedway 

in the second event of the Chase 

for the Sprint Cup. 

“You don’t want to sound too 

cocky, but I knew what we were 

capable of,” said Hamlin, who was 

32nd in qualifying after his crew 

put the wrong pressure in his 

tires. “I know we made a couple 

of big mistakes, but I said we 

were fast enough to make it up 

and we did.” 

It was the 100th career victory 

for team owner Joe Gibbs, who 

also won three Super Bowls as 

the coach of the Washington 

Redskins. And it came with a little 

teamwork, too, when Kyle Busch 

slowed down to help suck some 

debris off the front of Hamlin’s 

car and propel him to victory. 

“As fast as he was, he could 

have gone to the back of any car 

and pulled that off,” said Jimmie 

Johnson, who finished second 

and took over the Chase lead. “I 

kind of thought he would be the 

guy to beat and he certainly was. 

We are second-best.” 

Johnson will head into Dover, 

Del., one of his top tracks, one 

point ahead of Chicago winner 

Brad Keselowski, who was sixth 

Sunday. Jeff Gordon, who was 

the last man to qualify for the 

Chase, was third. “We had a great 

race car,” said Johnson, a fivetime 

NASCAR season champion, 

“just not an amazing car like the 

No. 11 did here today.” 

Hamlin improved to third in 

the Chase, seven points behind 

Johnson, despite a tumultuous 

week that began with him running 

out of gas in Chicago and 

continued when his crew used 

race pressure instead of qualifying 

pressure in his tires on Friday. 

Hamlin also had problems with 

his crew here in July, when confusion 

during a tire change 

dropped him into traffic and left 

him scurrying to get back to the 

front of the field. 

But he was confident enough 

on this track, where now he has 

five top five finishes in his last 

seven races, that he told a group 

of US National Guardsmen during 

a publicity trip to New 

Hampshire earlier this month 

that would be back to share a 

few beers in victory lane. And 

despite finishing 16th in Chicago, 

Hamlin tweeted: “This is week 1 

of 10. We will win next week.” 

Hamlin had the fastest car in 

both practices, but the mistake in 

qualifying had him starting near 

the back of the field. Hamlin said 

he came to the track on Sunday 

with the goal of getting into the 

top 10 by the 100th lap. He did 

better than that, taking the lead 

on the 94th lap and holding it for 

193 laps in all. 

“He was the class of the field 

from the time we unloaded,” said 

Clint Bowyer, who finished fourth 

and is tied for fifth in the Chase. “I 

don’t know what they figured 

out, but they figured it out in a 

big way.” 

Hamlin, who won in New 

Hampshire in 2007, led for 150 

laps here in July before a miscommunication 

with crew chief 

Darian Grubb over whether to 

change two tires or four cost him 

a chance at another win. Then, in 

the Chase opener in Chicago last 

week, he finished 16th after his 

crew failed to fill up his tank on 

the final pit stop. 

But Hamlin remained confident, 

in person and on Twitter, 

and Gibbs said that spilled over 

to a crew that was frustrated over 

its own mistakes. 

“That meant a lot to his team. 

And I think the way you handle 

things like that, being the guy 

that’s wheeling the car, I think is a 

big deal,” Gibbs said, commending 

Grubb as well. “Those guys 

are going to remember the way 

they were treated and I think 

they would die for them both.” 

The biggest threat for Hamlin 

on Sunday was a plastic bag that 

was sucked onto the front of his 

car, blocking part of the air 

intake, with about one-third of 

the race to go. Busch, who had 

blown a cylinder and is not a part 

of the Chase, slowed down to 

allow his teammate to come up 

behind him. The turbulence 

between the cars blew the debris 

off, and Hamlin was back on his 

way. 

“No matter how fast your car is 

in practice, it’s no guarantee for 

the race. And so I was a little 

nervous about that and how the 

conditions were going to 

change,” Hamlin said. “But Darian 

obviously gave me a lightning 

fast car today. For me, my job was 

relatively easy: Just make sure 

that I didn’t make any enemies 

on the way to the front.”—AP

ATLANTA: Brandt Snedeker poses with the trophies after winning the Tour 

Championship and FedEx Cup. —AP 

Snedeker wins Tour 

Championship 

ATLANTA: Brandt Snedeker held off a late 

charge by fellow American Ryan Moore to 

win the season-ending Tour Championship 

by three shots on Sunday, along with 

FedExCup honors and the eye-popping $10 

million bonus. 

Tied for the lead overnight with Britain’s 

Justin Rose in the PGA Tour’s final playoff 

event, Snedeker birdied three of the last 

six holes to clinch his fourth title on the 

U.S. circuit and his second of the year. 

Snedeker, one of five players who came 

into this week knowing that victory would 

automatically secure him the playoff 

crown, signed off with a two-under-par 68 

on a sun-splashed day at East Lake Golf 

Club for a 10-under total of 270. 

After chipping in from the front of the 

green at the 17th for his fifth birdie of the 

day, the 31-year-old could afford the luxury 

of a bogey at the tricky par-three 18th 

where his tee shot sailed long into a 

grandstand. “This has been an unbelievable 

week,” Snedeker smiled after being 

presented with the two trophies. “The golf 

course is in great shape and obviously I 

liked it. At the end of the day, I had complete 

confidence of what I was doing out 

here.” 

Englishman Rose, playing with 

Snedeker in the final pairing on a difficult 

day for scoring in breezy conditions, finished 

alone in second after closing with a 

71. Moore, who had surged into a tie for 

the lead with three holes to play, bogeyed 

16, 17 and the last for a 70 to tie for third at 

six under with Britain’s Luke Donald (67). 

World number one Rory McIlroy and 

second-ranked Tiger Woods, who like 

Snedeker had victory in their sights to 

complete the FedExCup ‘double’, both finished 

poorly. 

Northern Irishman McIlroy, winner of 

the two previous playoff events, hit only 

two of 14 fairways on the way to a 74 and 

a share of 10th place. 

“I’m a little disappointed to be honest,” 

said the 23-year-old Northern Irishman 

who had been seeking a fifth PGA Tour victory 

this year and his fourth in just five 

starts. “I didn’t play the way I wanted to, 

especially today. I only hit two fairways, 

ATLANTA: Tour Championship winner 

Brandt Snedeker and runner-up Justin 

Rose were among a host of players who 

delivered sparkling form in the final 

event of the PGA Tour’s regular season 

ahead of next week’s Ryder Cup. 

With the triumphant Snedeker leading 

the way, nine members of the 12man 

American team finished in the top 

15 at East Lake Golf Club and Englishman 

Rose was one of three European players 

to follow suit. 

The entire US Ryder Cup team competed 

in the elite field of 30 at the Tour 

Championship while just five of the 

players who will represent Europe next 

week at Medinah Country Club outside 

Chicago took part. 

“It’s been a real good ebb-and-flow 

between the American team and 

European team,” Rose told reporters 

after firing a one-over-par 71 in Sunday’s 

final round to finish three shots behind 

Snedeker. 

“Obviously with Snedeker winning, 

the needle might be swinging in favor 

of the Americans. But I think it’s set up 

for a great week in Chicago. Two great 

teams, all in the top 40 in the world, 

something like that. “It’s probably as 

strong as it’s ever been between the 

two teams. All 12 of their guys played 

this week, and only five of ours did. We’ll 

see how that plays out.” 

Northern Irish world number one 

Rory McIlroy, who tied for 10th at the 

Tour Championship where he had been 

bidding for a third successive victory in 

the PGA Tour’s playoffs, was equally 

thrilled by the recent form of his peers. 

and you can’t do that around this place.” 

Woods, who has twice landed 

FedExCup honours, closed with an erratic 

72 to finish joint eighth at two under. “I 

fought very hard just to shoot what I shot 

on the last couple of days,” said Woods. “I 

shot under par (overall), but, obviously, 

not enough. 

“My short game was really dialled in 

this week. I chipped and putted really well. 

I need to hit the ball a little better than I hit 

it certainly this weekend.” 

Snedeker’s double triumph capped a 

storming late season run that began 

with his tie for third at the British Open 

in July where he opened with scores of 

66 and 64. 

He finished second and sixth in the first 

two playoff events to earn himself a wildcard 

selection for next week’s Ryder Cup, 

and underlined his likely value to the U.S. 

team with a stunning display of putting at 

East Lake. 

With a massive pay-day looming large 

in the final round, Snedeker moved into 

the outright lead at nine under when he 

rolled in a nine-footer to birdie the parfour 

third. 

Though he emulated Woods and 

McIlroy by double-bogeying the daunting 

par-three sixth, after hitting his tee shot 

into water, he remained a stroke in front at 

seven under. 

Snedeker, widely regarded as one of 

the best putters in the game, drained a 40foot 

birdie putt at the eighth before parring 

the ninth to reach the turn two shots 

clear. 

He did well to save par at the 10th, 

coolly sinking an 11-footer, before Rose 

and Moore moved within a stroke of the 

lead with birdies at the par-three 11th. 

However Snedeker sank another bomb, 

this time an 18-footer, to birdie the 13th 

and regain a two-shot cushion, prompting 

a vigorous fist pump in celebration. 

Though Moore briefly caught him in a 

two-way tie at the top with birdies at 14 

and 15, Snedeker pulled ahead for good 

with a two-putt birdie at the par-five 

15th. —Reuters 

Ryder Cup form flows 

early at East Lake 

“You look at how the Ryder Cup players 

have played over the past few 

weeks, and they’ve been at the top of 

the leaderboards. They’ve been winning, 

they’ve been contending, it’s 

great,” the 23-year-old smiled. 

“I just hope that we’re all still as fresh 

for next week. It’s been a long run. I 

think everyone’s going to take the day 

off tomorrow, the ones that have played 

here, chill out and just get ready for the 

Ryder Cup because it’s a long week. 

“Not just with the golf and how much 

golf you have to play, but all the commitments 

you have outside of that. It’s a 

draining week, and you’ve got to really 

conserve your energy.” 

Snedeker is one of four rookies on 

the US team that will host holders 

Europe at Medinah next week and he is 

expecting a fiery baptism in the emotional 

pressure cooker of the biennial 

team competition. 

“I’m not under any illusion of being 

calm next week,” the American said after 

winning his fourth title on the PGA Tour. 

“I know it’s going to be a very pressurepacked 

week. 

“But I am going to use today as a 

huge thing to fall back on next week. I 

played against the best in the world this 

week for 72 holes and I beat them. 

“Nothing’s going to happen next 

week that’s going to change that fact, 

so I’m going to use it as confidence. I’m 

playing the best golf of my career. And I 

look forward to getting up there next 

week and playing some even better 

golf.” The 39th Ryder Cup will start on 

Friday. —Reuters 

17 SPORTS 

TOKYO: Former world number one Caroline 

Wozniacki squeezed through to the second 

round of the Pan Pacific Open, just one day 

after ending a 13-month title drought in 

South Korea. 

The Dane made hard work of beating Serb 

qualifier Bojana Jovanovski 6-0 3-6 6-4 in a 

match halted for an hour in the third set by 

lightning flashes and torrential rain. 

Nine of the world’s top 10 women are competing 

in Tokyo this week at the $2.16 million 

event, with the leading eight seeds receiving 

byes into the second round. 

Wozniacki, who captured the Korea Open 

on Sunday, powered through a first set played 

in a warm breeze before fatigue hit her in the 

second. 

The heavens broke at 3-3 in the decider 

and Wozniacki, down 15-30, eventually 

dropped her serve after waiting for the roof to 

be closed and the waterlogged court to be 

mopped dry. 

Normal service was quickly resumed, however, 

as the 10th seed took the next three 

games to wrap up victory in two hours 17 

minutes after forcing Jovanovski into a wild 

backhand. 

“I was very lucky the rain came at 3-3 in the 

third,” Wozniacki told reporters. “I was feeling 

tired and it gave me a little time to relax and 

get my body back together.” 

Serb Ana Ivanovic, another former world 

number one who is seeded 11th this week, 

progressed by beating Andrea Hlavackova 6-3 

2-0 when the Czech retired with a thigh injury. 

Ivanovic, who reached the US Open quarter-finals 

earlier this month, said she still had 

the game to challenge for grand slam titles. 

“That’s the only reason I’m still here,” 

Ivanovic told Reuters. “I already achieved two 

of my biggest dreams in winning a grand slam 

and being number one in the world. 

“But I believe I can still be at the top level 

and winning grand slams,” added the Serb 

who topped the rankings after winning the 

2008 French Open. 

Ninth seed Marion Bartoli of France bundled 

out Japan’s Kimiko Date-Krumm 6-1 6-4 - 

just four days before the local favourite’s 42nd 

birthday. 

Wildcard Date-Krumm, who won the title 

in 1995, kicked an advertising board and left 

the court fuming at a boisterous fan, glaring 

back at the seats as she went to shake hands 

with Bartoli. “I was told there was a drunk fan,” 

said the Japanese who shouted angrily in the 

direction of the spectator after netting a forehand 

while threatening a late fightback. 

“You’re focusing so hard and it’s extremely 

disappointing when people who are supposed 

to be supporting you are drunk and 

shouting when you hit the ball.” 

Italy’s former French Open champion 

Francesca Schiavone squeezed past Yaroslava 

Shvedova of Kazakhstan 4-6 7-6 6-4 to set up 


Rain break rescues 

Wozniacki in Tokyo 

PRATTVILLE: Stacy Lewis displays the trophy after winning the Navistar 

LPGA Classic golf tournament. —AP 

Stacy bags Navistar Classic 

PRATTVILLE: Stacy Lewis is starting to feel right 

at home in Alabama, savoring everything from 

the Bermuda grass to the comfort of the familiar 

low-budget hotel where the staffers greet her by 

name. 

Lewis won the Navistar LPGA Classic on 

Sunday for her third LPGA Tour victory in five 

months and second in the state, closing with a 

3-under 69 to beat defending champion Lexi 

Thompson by two strokes. Lewis parred the final 

two holes after a 12-foot birdie putt on No. 16 

gave her the final cushion, and Thompson shot a 

66 on The Senator course at the Robert Trent 

Jones Golf Trail’s Capitol Hill complex. 

“Lexi was within one when we got to the 

16th green and that’s the only time all day I actually 

knew what was going on,” Lewis said. 

“Making birdie there on 16 was huge to just kind 

of give me that cushion.” Lewis won in Mobile in 

late April, edging Thompson by a stroke in that 

tournament. The former Arkansas star also won 

the Shoprite LPGA Classic in June. 

The 17-year-old Thompson rebounded from 

a third-round 74. She won the event last year at 

16 to become the youngest champion in LPGA 

Tour history, a mark broken last month by 15year-old 

amateur Lydia Ko in the Canadian 

Women’s Open. 

Lewis finished at 18 under, one shot shy of 

the tournament record set by Australia’s 

Katherine Hull in 2010. Lewis reclaimed the No. 2 

spot in the world rankings and earned $195,000 

- but still stayed at a $75-a-night hotel in 

Prattville like usual. 

Now, she and Yani Tseng are tied for the tour 

lead in victories this year when Lewis has 

claimed three of her four victories. She also won 

the Kraft Nabisco Championship last year. 

Lewis, who earned 30 points, leads Jiyai Shin 

by 56 points in the player of the year race. Shin 

skipped the Navistar after winning the last two 

events. Lewis is trying to become the first 

American player of the year since Beth Daniel in 

1994. “It’s unbelievable,” Lewis said. “Winning 

never gets easier. It might have looked easy out 

there but it was hard. Every shot was stressful 

and on this golf course with one swing you can 

make a double pretty easy. I had some adrena- 

a second-round match with Australian 

Samantha Stosur. 

Russia’s Nadia Petrova overpowered Peng 

Shuai 6-1 6-4, ousting one of three Chinese 

taking part despite their country’s fierce polit- 

TOKYO: Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark returns a shot to Bojana Jovanovski of Serbia 

during their first round match of the Japan Pan Pacific Open tennis tournament. —AP 

line going at the end.” Her previous best at the 

Navistar was a tie for sixth last year, but she still 

likes competing in this state. 

“I don’t know what it is. I don’t know if it’s the 

Bermuda grass,” Lewis said. “It’s kind of what I 

grew up on in Texas. I love playing these kind of 

courses where you just have to hit good shots. If 

you don’t hit good shots you’re not rewarded. I 

like that. It’s hard, and you can make birdies but 

you have to hit the shots.” Lewis had a three-putt 

for bogey on No. 2, but birdied No. 5 and made a 

15-footer for another on the ninth hole. 

“That was kind of the key putt for me,” she 

said. Thompson made quite a run with birdies 

on holes 10-12. She set up fairly short putts on 

all three, making a 6-footer, a 1-footer and a 10footer. 

Thompson missed birdie putts on three 

of the final four holes, making one on No. 17 to 

close to within a stroke. Then she saw Lewis 

move to two strokes ahead when Thompson 

was on the final hole before enduring another 

near-miss with a chance to turn up the pressure 

on the leader. 

“I just got some weird putts that broke differently 

than I thought,” Thompson said. “Just total 

misreads. That happens. You get a few goofy 

putts but I was happy with the shots I hit into 

those holes.” Both players are starting to feel 

Alabama is sweet home these days. Thompson 

kept up her daily ritual with breakfast at the 

Waffle House - skipping the high-carbohydrate 

specialty - and handled the coin toss at a high 

school football game. She high-fived two kids 

after her birdie on No. 17 gave her new life but 

once again couldn’t overtake Lewis in Alabama. 

“She’s played amazing this year,” Thompson 

said. “Everybody knows how great a player she 

is. Once I saw her go into the lead into today, I 

knew I would have to put up a good round.” 

Thompson opened with a career-best 63, 

tying the tournament record. She came out with 

a mind-set to erase thoughts of the rough 

Saturday. “Pretty much just forget totally about 

(Saturday) and come into today blank-minded 

and just free swing,” she said of her approach. “I 

have nothing to lose, just go for birdies. I 

bogeyed the first hole and I just went for it from 

there.” —AP 

ical row with Japan over disputed islands. 

Zheng Jie beat American Vania King 6-3 6-4 

while last year’s French Open champion Li Na 

opens her campaign against Russian 

Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova today. —Reuters 

Adam talks of 

‘Great Buzz’ in 

Wallaby camp 

JOHANNESBURG: Quade Cooper’s belief there is “a toxic 

environment” in the camp will not distract Australia ahead of 

Saturday’s Rugby Championship test against South Africa, 

said utility back Adam Ashley-Cooper. 

Flyhalf Cooper, who is missing from the squad because of 

knee trouble, made his outspoken comments at the weekend 

but his team mate responded on Monday by saying 

there was a convivial mood in the dressing room. 

“This won’t be a distraction for us,” Ashley-Cooper told a 

news conference in Johannesburg. “There’s a great buzz in 

the squad and we’re excited to be here. 

“We’ve had two good wins in this competition and we 

feel we’re building as a group.” Cooper had launched a 

Twitter outburst against Robbie Deans, venting his frustration 

at the tactics of the coach of the Wallabies and also at 

the Australian Rugby Union. The 24-year-old flyhalf, who 

needs a knee operation and could miss the tour of Europe in 

November and December, then continued his tirade in an 

interview with the Australian Associated Press. “There are a 

lot of people who are afraid to say what they feel so they just 

go along with it and nothing is going to change,” Cooper 

told the news agency. “That’s why I feel so strongly. I don’t 

want to be involved in the toxic environment and that’s how 

it is at the moment.” 

Cooper’s original Twitter comments had infuriated Jim 

Carmichael, chief executive at his club side the Queensland 

Reds. Carmichael said he would meet the player and warn 

him about his outburst. “I’m fed up,” the Reds boss told the 

local Courier Mail newspaper. “Quade is making silly comments 

that do damage to our code.” 

Cooper’s tirade against Deans came after the coach had 

criticised an error-prone display by the New Zealand-born 

playmaker following his return from previous knee surgery. 

The flyhalf also 

announced that he 

would like to join All 

Black Sonny Williams in 

the National Rugby 

League. While Australia 

have won their last two 

tests against South Africa 

and Argentina, Deans is 

still under pressure at 

home because of his 

record of two wins in 16 

matches against the All 

Adam Ashley-Cooper 

Blacks. South Africa 

coach Heyneke Meyer is 

also feeling the heat with 

his team having picked up just one victory in four Rugby 

Championship matches. 

“The Springboks are facing similar challenges to us with a 

lot of injuries and having to give opportunities to younger 

players,” Ashley-Cooper said yesterday. 

“They are coming off two disappointing losses so they’ll 

be pretty motivated and we expect it to be really tough to 

win in Pretoria on Saturday.” Ashley-Cooper, 28, a veteran of 

71 tests, said Loftus Versfeld would not be a place for the 

faint hearted. 

“Playing there is always pretty tough, you’re usually up 

against quality opposition and a hostile crowd that they feed 

off,” he added. “Plus the altitude and the pace of the game 

there means it’s always a challenge. A win is something 

we’ve never achieved before in Pretoria ... so there’s a lot of 

motivation for us.” Australia are to name their team on 

Thursday while South Africa will unveil their lineup 24 hours 

earlier. —Reuters

BALTIMORE: New England Patriots running back Stevan Ridley (center) attempts to rush past Baltimore 

Ravens cornerback Lardarius Webb (left) and linebacker Dannell Ellerbe in the first half of an NFL football 

game. — AP 

BALTIMORE: Justin Tucker kicked a 27-yard field 

goal as time expired, giving the Baltimore Ravens 

a 31-30 victory over the New England Patriots on 

Sunday night in a rematch of the AFC championship 

game. 

When the teams met in January, the Patriots 

squeezed out a three-point win at home to 

advance to the Super Bowl. The stakes weren’t 

nearly as high in this one, yet the game was eerily 

similar. In the previous meeting, Billy Cundiff 

missed a 32-yard field goal in the closing seconds. 

In the encore, Tucker - who took the job away 

from Cundiff in training camp - drove his kick 

inside the right upright. The game-winning kick 

followed a pass interference call against Devin 

McCourty on Jacoby Jones. Torrey Smith, who 

was playing less than 24 hours after the death of 

his 19-year-old brother, had six catches for 127 

yards and two touchdowns for the Ravens. 

Baltimore (2-1) won its 12th straight at home 

behind Joe Flacco, who went 28 for 39 for 382 

yards and three touchdowns. Tom Brady completed 

28 of 41 passes for 335 yards and a score for 

the Patriots (1-2). 

Titans 44, Lions 41 

In Nashville, Rob Bironas kicked a 26-yard field 

goal in overtime, and the Titans stopped backup 

quarterback Shaun Hill on fourth-and-1 at the 

Tennessee 7 to pull out a win over Detroit. 

The Titans (1-2) blew a 20-9 halftime lead in a 

crazy game featuring big plays, scoring swings 

and some suspect officiating. Detroit scored 18 

straight points, then Tennessee answered with 21 

points before the Lions scored the final 14 of regulation. 

Detroit recovered an onside kick and got 

an assist from officials who did not review a possible 

turnover. In overtime, Bironas’ third field 

goal put Tennessee ahead to stay. 

The Lions (1-2) lost their second straight when 

coach Jim Schwartz decided not to let Jason 

Hanson attempt to connect on a fifth field goal. 

Hill, in for injured Matthew Stafford , was stopped 

by defensive tackles Jurrell Casey and Sen’Derrick 

Marks on his sneak, and Tennessee escaped with 

its first win of the season. 

Chiefs 27, Saints 24 

In New Orleans, Ryan Succop kicked six field 

goals, one to force overtime in the final seconds 

and another from 31 yards to lift Kansas City to its 

first win and keep New Orleans winless. 

Succop’s 43-yard field goal with 3 seconds left 

completed a methodical comeback by Kansas 

City (1-2) after the Saints (0-3) had cashed in on a 

pair of Chiefs turnovers to go ahead 24-6 in the 

third quarter. 

Kansas City needed only one touchdown to 

win, a 91-yard run by Jamaal Charles, who finished 

with 233 yards rushing and 55 yards receiving. 

The Chiefs also got a safety in the fourth 

quarter on Justin Houston’s third sack of the 

game. Drew Brees passed for 240 yards and three 

touchdowns, but missed all six of his passes 

through the fourth quarter and overtime. 

Vikings 24, 49ers 13 

In Minneapolis, Christian Ponder threw two 

touchdown passes to tight end Kyle Rudolph and 

ran for another score to help the Vikings hand the 

49ers their first defeat. 

After a dominant start to their NFC North tour 

by decisively beating playoff teams Green Bay 

and Detroit, the 49ers (2-1) were beaten in every 

way by a team least likely to do so. 

The Vikings (2-1) began the game boldly with 

a fourth-and-goal touchdown pass by Ponder to 

Rudolph. They finished strong by forcing three 

turnovers and two punts by the 49ers in the 

fourth quarter. 

Playing against his former team in the regular 

season for the first time, Randy Moss had three 

catches for 27 yards. Alex Smith’s franchise-record 

interception-free streak ended at 249 straight 

passes. 

Falcons 27, Chargers 3 

In San Diego, Matt Ryan threw touchdown 

passes to three different receivers and safety 

Thomas DeCoud had two interceptions and a 

fumble recovery for unbeaten Atlanta. 

Ryan completed 30 of 40 passes for 275 yards, 

with his first interception of the season, and a 

passer rating of 107.8 for the Falcons (3-0), who 

improved to 6-0 all-time in San Diego. DeCoud’s 

three takeaways, plus William Moore’s fourthquarter 

fumble recovery, extended the Falcons‘ 

NFL-high turnover differential to plus-10. San 

Diego (2-1) was the third straight AFC West team 

to lose to Atlanta. Ryan Mathews made his season 

debut for San Diego and looked good until fumbling 

inside the Falcons’ 5-yard line on a hit by 

Sean Witherspoon, with DeCoud recovering. 

Texans 31, Broncos 25 

In Denver, Matt Schaub outplayed Peyton 

Manning, throwing four touchdown passes 

against a confused Denver defense. 

Schaub finished 17 for 30 for 290 yards to help 

Houston move to 3-0 for the first time in franchise 

history. Six days after throwing three interceptions 

in the first quarter of a loss to Atlanta, 

Manning didn’t throw any against the Texans. But 

just as happened last week, the Broncos fell 

behind by 20 and lost by six. Manning did get the 

ball with 20 seconds left this time but didn’t get 

the Broncos close to the end zone. 

Raiders 34, Steelers 31 

In Oakland, Sebastian Janikowski kicked a 43yard 

field goal on the last play as Oakland scored 

the final 13 points after wide receiver Darrius 

Heyward-Bey was knocked out and hospitalized 

by a scary hit. 

The game turned somber early in the fourth 

quarter when Heyward-Bey was knocked unconscious 

by a helmet-to-helmet hit in the end zone 

by Steelers safety Ryan Mundy. The hit was not 

called a penalty by the replacement officials. 

Heyward-Bey was taken to the hospital with a 

neck injury. 

Carson Palmer then threw his third touchdown 

pass for Oakland (1-2) and Janikowski 

kicked two field goals to beat the Steelers (1-2) 

and give coach Dennis Allen his first win. 

Cardinals 27, Eagles 6 

In Glendale, Kevin Kolb threw for 222 yards 

and two touchdowns and James Sanders 

returned one of Michael Vick’s two fumbles 93 

yards for a touchdown, and Arizona is off to its 

best start in 38 years. Arizona (3-0) sacked Vick 

five times in winning its seventh straight home 

game, the second-longest streak in franchise history. 

Philadelphia (2-1) became the first NFL team 

to open a season with two one-point wins. The 

Eagles didn’t give themselves a chance to rally for 

another victory, picked apart by the quarterback 

SPORTS 

they cast away and hounded by Arizona’s attacking 

defense. 

Jets 23, Dolphins 20 

In Miami, Nick Folk received a reprieve when 

his blocked field-goal attempt was negated by a 

timeout, and his second try was a successful 33yarder 

with 6:04 left in overtime. 

Mark Sanchez hit Santonio Holmes for a 38yard 

gain to set up the kick. Two plays later, Folk’s 

try was blocked, but officials whistled the play 

dead as the ball was snapped because the 

Dolphins had called timeout. Folk then made the 

winner. On the previous possession, the Dolphins’ 

Dan Carpenter was wide left on a 48-yard fieldgoal 

attempt that would have given them the vic- 

tory. New York improved to 2-1, and Miami 

dropped to 1-2. The Jets’ Darrelle Revis and 

Miami’s Reggie Bush left the game with left knee 

injuries. 

Jaguars 22, Colts 17 

In Indianapolis, Blaine Gabbert connected 

with Cecil Shorts III on an 80-yard touchdown 

pass with 45 seconds left to lift Jacksonville to its 

first win of the season. 

Maurice Jones-Drew ran for 177 yard, but 

Jacksonville (2-1) needed Gabbert’s big play. The 

Colts (1-2) had taken the lead 17-16 after Andrew 

Luck drove them 48 yards in five plays to set up 

Adam Vinatieri’s 37-yard field goal with 56 seconds 

left. 


DENVER: Houston Texans tight end Owen Daniels (81) dives over the goal line for a touchdown as he is 

hit by Denver Broncos strong safety Chris Harris (25) and outside linebacker Von Miller (58) in the third 

quarter of an NFL football game. — AP 

Ravens soar over Patriots 

COLOMBO: Ireland’s batsman Niall O’Brien plays a shot as West Indies’ wicket keeper 

Denesh Ramdin watches during an ICC Twenty20 Cricket World Cup match. — AP 

LANDOVER: Cincinnati Bengals defensive end Carlos Dunlap sacks Washington Redskins quarterback 

Robert Griffin III and forces a fumble during the first half of an NFL football game.—AP 

American Football Conference 

AFC East 

W L T OTL PF PA PCT 

NY Jets 2 1 0 0 81 75 .667 

Buffalo 2 1 0 0 87 79 .667 

New England1 2 0 0 82 64 .333 

Miami 1 2 0 1 65 66 .333 

AFC North 

Baltimore 2 1 0 0 98 67 .667 

Cincinnati 2 1 0 0 85 102 .667 

Pittsburgh 1 2 0 0 77 75 .333 

Cleveland 0 3 0 0 57 75 0 

AFC South 

Houston 3 0 0 0 88 42 1.000 

Jacksonville 1 2 0 1 52 70 .333 

Tennessee 1 2 0 0 67 113 .333 

Indianapolis 1 2 0 0 61 83 .333 

AFC West 

San Diego 2 1 0 0 63 51 .667 

Oakland 1 2 0 0 61 88 .333 

Denver 1 2 0 0 77 77 .333 

Kansas City 1 2 0 0 68 99 .333 

NFL results/standings 

Dallas 16, Tampa Bay 10; Chicago 23, St. Louis 6; Minnesota 24, San Francisco 13; Tennessee 

44, Detroit 41 (OT); Cincinnati 38, Washington 31; Kansas City 27, New Orleans 24 (OT); NY 

Jets 23, Miami 20 (OT); Buffalo 24, Cleveland 14; Jacksonville 22, Indianapolis 17; Arizona 27, 

Philadelphia 6; Atlanta 27, San Diego 3; Houston 31, Denver 25; Oakland 34, Pittsburgh 31; 

Baltimore 31, New England 30. 

National Football Conference 

NFC East 

Dallas 2 1 0 0 47 54 .667 

Philadelphia 2 1 0 0 47 66 .667 

NY Giants 2 1 0 0 94 65 .667 

Washington 1 2 0 0 99 101 .333 

NFC North 

Chicago 2 1 0 0 74 50 .667 

Minnesota 2 1 0 0 70 59 .667 

Green Bay 1 1 0 0 45 40 .500 

Detroit 1 2 0 1 87 94 .333 

NFC South 

Atlanta 3 0 0 0 94 48 1.000 

Tampa Bay 1 2 0 0 60 67 .333 

Carolina 1 2 0 0 52 79 .333 

New Orleans 0 3 0 1 83 102 0 

NFC West 

Arizona 3 0 0 0 67 40 1.000 

San Francisco 2 1 0 0 70 65 .667 

Seattle 1 1 0 0 43 27 .500 

St. Louis 1 2 0 0 60 78 .333 

COLOMBO: The West Indies qualified for the Super Eights stage of the World 

Twenty20 after their Group B match against Ireland was abandoned due to 

rain yesterday. 

Ireland made 129-6 in their 19 overs before heavy rain at the Premadasa 

stadium prevented the West Indies from starting their innings. 

Both teams gained one point each, but the West Indies joined Group B 

winners Australia in the next round due to a superior net run-rate over the 

Irish. The West Indies will be placed alongside defending champions 

England, New Zealand and hosts Sri Lanka in group one of the Super Eights 

which starts on Thursday. The other half has Australia, South Africa, India and 

either Pakistan or Bangladesh, with the top two teams from each group 

advancing to the semi-finals. The match, watched by barely 1,000 fans, was 

reduced to 19 overs per side after an hour’s interruption midway through 

Ireland’s innings due to rain. Chris Gayle turned star performer with the ball 

with two wickets as the Ireland innings failed to gain any momentum after 

the West Indies won the toss and elected to field. 

Niall O’Brien made 25 and Gary Wilson scored 21, before both batsmen 

fell to Gayle’s off-spin. Irish captain William Porterfield was dismissed off the 

first ball of the match for the second time in a row, bowled by Fidel Edwards. 

He had also fallen to Australian Shane Watson’s first delivery in Ireland’s previous 

match last week.The West Indies, who had lost to Australia in a rainaffected 

match, endured another wet outing as rain lashed the ground during 

the innings break. — AFP 

But on the next snap, Shorts got behind Colts 

safety Sergio Brown and Gabbert hit him in stride. 

Shorts sprinted free, diving into the end zone for 

the score. Indianapolis had a chance to win it at 

the end, but Luck’s pass into the end zone was 

broken up by Aaron Ross. 

Cowboys 16, Buccaneers 10 

In Arlington , DeMarco Murray had an 11-yard 

touchdown run, Dan Bailey kicked three field 

goals and Dallas won its home opener. 

A week after the Buccaneers’ big push against 

the Giants in their victory formation, Tampa Bay 

used a pair of timeouts in the final 40 seconds 

after a failed onside kick attempt. 

The Cowboys (2-1) scored twice in the first half 

when starting in Tampa Bay territory after 

turnovers. They overcame three turnovers by 

Romo - two on plays reversed by replay - with a 

defense that held Tampa Bay to 166 total yards. 

Romo’s interception on the game’s fourth play 

set up Tampa Bay (1-2) for Josh Freeman’s 1-yard 

TD to Luke Stocker. The Cowboys drew even on 

Murray’s run after Sean Lee’s interception. Bailey 

had kicks of 32, 26 and 22 yards. 

Bengals 38, Redskins 31 

In Landover, Andy Dalton completed 19 of 27 

passes for 328 yards and three touchdowns for 

Cincinnati. The Bengals blew a 24-7 first-half lead, 

but two touchdown passes by Dalton in the 

fourth quarter made the difference. 

A 6-yard throw to tight end Jermaine Gresham 

broke a 24-24 tie, then Dalton hit Andrew 

Hawkins for a 59-yard score to give the Bengals a 

two-touchdown cushion with 7:08 left to play. 

Robert Griffin III’s 2-yard run cut the lead to 

seven points with 3:35 remaining, but he threw 

incomplete on a third-and-50 on the game’s last 

play. Cincinnati’s A.J. Green caught nine passes 

for a career-high 183 yards. The Bengals 

improved to 2-1. The Redskins fell to 1-2. 

Bears 23, Rams 6 

In Chicago, major Wright returned an interception 

45 yards for a touchdown and Chicago’s 

defense had six sacks on Sam Bradford and held 

St. Louis to 160 total yards. That was enough on a 

day when Jay Cutler struggled, and the Bears (2- 

1) came away with the win after an ugly loss to 

Green Bay the previous week. The Rams fell to 1- 

2. The Bears had just kicked a field goal to extend 

their lead to 13-6 in the fourth quarter when 

Wright came up with his big return. He caught 

the ball at the 45 and ran untouched to the end 

zone, making it a 14-point game and finally giving 

the Bears some breathing room. 

Bills 24, Browns 

In Cleveland, Ryan Fitzpatrick threw three 

touchdown passes and Buffalo overcame the loss 

of running back C.J. Spiller in snapping an eightgame 

road losing streak. 

Fitzpatrick finished 22 of 35 for 208 yards as 

the Bills (2-1) turned to their passing game after 

Spiller, the NFL’s leading rusher, was lost in the 

first quarter with a shoulder injury. 

The Bills hadn’t won outside Buffalo since the 

2011 season opener at Kansas City. Before he got 

hurt, Spiller scored on a 32-yard screen pass from 

Fitzpatrick, who also threw a 9-yard TD to T.J. 

Graham in the first quarter and hooked up with 

Stevie Johnson from 9 yards in the fourth for a 

24-14 lead. The Browns are 0-3. —AP 

West Indies enter next 

round in World T20 

SCOREBOARD 

COLOMBO: Scoreboard of the World Twenty20 Group B match 

between Ireland and the West Indies at the Premadasa stadium 

yesterday. 

Ireland: 

W. Porterfield b Edwards 0 

P. Stirling c Gayle b Sammy 19 

E. Joyce b Narine 17 

N. O’Brien b Gayle 25 

G. Wilson c Ramdin b Gayle 21 

K. O’Brien b Rampaul 13 

T. Johnston not out 15 

N. Jones not out 14 

Extras: (lb2, w2, nb1) 5 

Total (for six wickets, 19 overs) 129 

Fall of wickets: 1-0 (Porterfield), 2-33 (Joyce), 3-37 (Stirling), 4-70 

(Wilson), 5-96 (N. O’Brien), 6-107 (K. O’Brien). 

Bowling: Edwards 3-0-23-1, Rampaul 4-0-20-1, Sammy 3-0-23-1, 

Narine 4-0-21-1 (nb1), Russell 2-0-19-0 (w1), Gayle 3-0-21-2 (w1)

LONDON: England would be keen to 

stage the semi-finals and final of Euro 

2020 if UEFA president Michel Platini’s 

plan to hold the tournament across 

Europe became a reality, English FA 

chairman David Bernstein said yesterday. 

Platini’s idea of having matches in 

12 or 13 European countries with the 

final stages in one venue will be discussed 

by UEFA’s executive board in 

December with a decision made early 

next year. 

Bernstein told a media briefing at 

Wembley: “Clearly Wembley is incredibly 

highly thought of by UEFA and it is 

something we will probably push for. 

“UEFA want to hold the semi-finals 

and the final on the same ground, or 

in the same city and I think we would 

be on their shortlist - but there would 

be some strong competition.” 

Turkey have expressed their wish to 

stage what will be a 24-team tournament 

in 2020, but their bid will be 

dropped if Istanbul is awarded the 

Olympic Games in the same year. 

Scotland, Wales and Ireland have also 

declared their interest in staging the 

finals. 

Platini was in London last week and 

discussed his idea of staging the finals 

across the continent with the FA, who 

would be keen to stage what would 

effectively be a “finals week”. 

Platini was so impressed with 

Wembley’s staging of the 2011 

Champions League final between 

19 SPORTS 

England keen to stage 2020 Euro finals 

BUENOS AIRES: River Plate’s Leonardo Ponzio (left) and Racing Club’s Luciano 

Vietto struggle for the ball during an Argentina’s league soccer match.—AP 

Lanus topple Boca Juniors 

BUENOS AIRES: A blunder by goalkeeper 

Oscar Ustari paved the way for Boca 

Juniors’ 2-0 defeat at Lanus that allowed 

Newell’s Old Boys to overtake them as 

Argentine championship leaders on 

Sunday. 

It was a fine result for Lanus coach 

Guillermo Barros Schelotto, a Boca idol in 

his days as a winger who masterminded 

the victory against his old club. 

“I didn’t enjoy it fully like I would beating 

another team,” the former Columbus 

Crew forward told reporters. “We were 

always in control, we deserved to win.” 

Ustari spilt a high ball into his penalty 

area, defender Rolando Schiavi’s 

attempted clearance hit the bar and 

striker Mario Regueiro put Lanus ahead 

after half an hour. 

Despite Uruguayan Regueiro’s red 

card in the 81st minute for a second 

booking, Lanus increased their lead in 

the 86th through Diego Valeri in a counter-attack. 

Former Paraguay World Cup 

coach Gerardo Martino’s unbeaten 

Newell’s team, who won 2-1 at Colon, 

lead the Inicial championship standings 

with 18 points from eight matches. Velez 

Sarsfield, who won 2-1 at San Lorenzo on 

Saturday, have 17 points and Boca 16. 

Big guns River Plate, Independiente 

and San Lorenzo are struggling in the 

lowers reaches of the standings, desperate 

for points early in the season to stave 

off the threat of relegation. 

River lost 1-0 at home to Racing Club 

and are one from bottom of the relegation 

points averages with Independiente, 

who were held 1-1 at home by All Boys 

on Saturday, below them. 

Fans are demanding a change of 

coach at River where they see the inexperienced 

Matias Almeyda struggling to 

build a solid team and chanted at the 

end of Sunday’s defeat for the return of 

the highly successful Ramon Diaz. 

Independiente, having handed the 

reins to Americo Gallego at the end of 

last month, have gone 15 matches without 

a league win. 

San Lorenzo’s coach Ricardo Caruso 

Lombardi, who normally finds something 

to complain to the referee about, 

tried to put a lid on his frustrations after 

a second successive defeat, saying: “I 

look like Snow White I’m so calm, but 

inside I’m a volcano. 

“At big clubs, time is shorter (but) 

while I feel good with the players, I’ll carry 

on. They support me.” —Reuters 

Toluca defeat Atlante 1-0 

MEXICO CITY: Luis Tejada scored in the 

84th minute as Toluca beat Atlante 1-0 

Sunday to take the lead in Mexico’s 

Apertura football tournament after nine 

rounds of matches. 

The victory improved Toluca to 20 

points, ahead of second-placed Tijuana 

on goal difference, after Tijuana drew 1-1 

against Atlas on Saturday. In third, four 

points behind, is Monterrey, which won 

3-2 against Queretaro. 

In other results, Chivas drew 0-0 with 

Pumas, Cruz Azul held America 1-1, 

Puebla drew 1-1 with Leon, Santos 

Laguna and Jaguares drew 0-0 with San 

Luis defeated Pachuca 1-0 and Morelia 

and Tigres drew 1-1. Panamanian Tejada 

scored with a right foot finish from inside 

the area for Toluca when it seemed the 

game was heading for a scoreless draw. 

Colombian Duvier Riascos got the 

equalizer in the 75th minute for Tijuana 

with a simple finish, after Chilean Hector 

Mancilla had weaved through the 

Tijuana defense and finished to give 

Atlas the lead in the 30th minute. Mexico 

international Angel Reyna got the winner 

for Monterrey eight minutes from 

the final whistle. 

Queretaro took the lead in the 15th 

minute when Carlos Bueno scored and 

held it until Nery Cardozo headed in the 

equalizer in the 50th. 

Abraham Carreno then put Monterrey 

ahead in the 69th, but Diego Guastavino 

pulled Queretaro level two minutes later 

before Reyna’s winner. 

Luis Perez hit the post from the penalty 

spot for Chivas in the third minute of 

second half injury time and Emanuel Villa 

spawned a good chance for Pumas minutes 

before. 

In Saturday’s Mexico City derby, 

America’s Christian Benitez latched onto 

a long pass to open the scoring in the 

18th, before Javier Aquino responded 

three minutes after halftime for Cruz 

Azul. 

Leon’s goal came via a header from 

Sebastian Maz in the 28th. Argentine 

Matias Abelairas brought the scores level 

in the 67th. 

Current champions Santos Laguna 

couldn’t score against Jaguares, but had 

the better chances. San Luis got its second 

win of season, with Jaime Correa 

getting the only goal of the game in the 

38th against Pachuca. 

Lucas Lobos scored from the penalty 

spot top to put Tigres in front after 66 

minutes on Friday, before Miguel Sabah 

equalized for Morelia in the 72nd.—AP 

Manchester United and Barcelona that 

UEFA awarded the 2013 final to 

Wembley as well, which coincides with 

the FA’s 150th anniversary celebrations. 

Bernstein continued: “One of the 

major factors is whether Turkey get 

the Olympic Games or not. If Turkey 

do not get the Olympic Games then I 

think they are in a pretty good position 

to stage the Euros. 

“If we believed there was a real 

opportunity of having the tournament 

here of course we would look at it. “Of 

course there would be an intent, the 

public want it and we’d want it and it 

would be wonderful to have it here. 

“If Michel Platini’s current views 

prevail and it becomes a pan- 

Preview 

MILAN: The San Siro has become 

a burden for AC Milan and Inter 

Milan with neither side managing 

a win at the stadium in eight 

attempts between them this season, 

piling pressure on both their 

managers. Tomorrow, it will be 

troubled Milan’s turn to try to 

break the jinx when they face 

Cagliari in a midweek Serie A 

match. Milan have failed to score 

in three attempts at the San Siro 

this season, losing 1-0 to 

Sampdoria and Atalanta in Serie 

A, and drawing 0-0 with 

Anderlecht in the Champions 

League. Rivals Inter have lost to 

AS Roma and Siena in the league 

at home and Hadjuk Split in the 

Europa League where they have 

also drawn with Vaslui and Rubin 

Kazan. Another defeat for Milan 

tomorrow will keep the heat on 

coach Massimiliano Allegri, 

whose side have taken only three 

points from four Serie A games. 

“We need to break the San Siro 

taboo tomorrow. The fans, who 

have been exceptional so far, 

need to stay close to the team 

tomorrow as well,” Allegri told 

reporters after Sunday’s 2-1 

defeat at Udinese. Allegri has 

been left to pick up the pieces 

after Milan dismantled their team 

in the close season by selling the 

likes of Zlatan Ibrahimovic and 

Thiago Silva to try to balance the 

books. 

They are also plagued by 

injuries but Allegri, who led Milan 

to the 2011 title, has remained 

remarkably unruffled in the face 

of mounting pressure and some 

ragged performances by his side. 

European competition, then the focus 

needs to be on the semi-finals and 

final.” 

After England’s unsuccessful bid to 

FIFA in 2010 to stage the 2018 World 

Cup finals, Bernstein said the FA would 

not want to get into any kind of bidding 

war to stage the tournament. 

“We would not want to be involved 

in a World Cup-style bidding process,” 

he remarked. “We do not want to 

spend a lot of money on something 

that fell flat.” But, he said, he could see 

the attraction of Platini’s idea 

although there were two ways of looking 

at it. 

“What you would lose is the individuality 

and the national flavor that you 

get from, (Euro 2012 co-hosts) Poland 

“At the moment I think it’s just 

Juventus who are doing really 

impressive things as it was logical 

to expect,” said Allegri. “The other 

teams are not going at 120 

kilometres an hour and there’s 

time to get back the positions 

that we’ve lost now. I was and I 

am calm.” 

Rookie Andrea Stramaccioni’s 

Inter, who have a 100 percent 

away record in all competitions 

and have yet to concede a goal 

on their travels, visit Chievo in 

another of Wednesday’s matches 

(1845). “We’re united. We’re 

behind this coach who’s trying to 

do the best he can, and so are 

we,” said midfielder Esteban 

Cambiasso after Sunday’s 2-0 

home defeat by Siena. 

“The season is long and we 

hope that our luck will turn. 

We’re sorry to have lost at home, 


and Ukraine or anywhere else. 

“On the other hand, it is very 

European-democratic across a wide 

range of countries.” Apart from July 

and August’s London Olympics and 

the Paralympics which followed, 

England last hosted a major soccer 

tournament when they staged the first 

16-team Euros in 1996. 

In a sense Platini’s idea takes the 

Euros back to how they were staged 

from the first finals in 1960 through to 

1976 when a continental-wide qualifying 

competition ended with four 

teams playing the two-semi-finals, a 

playoff and a final in the same country. 

That format was dropped when the 

tournament was expanded to eight 

teams in 1980.—Reuters 

Milan’s turn to face San Siro jinx 

Preview 

BERLIN: Borussia Dortmund aims to bounce 

back from its first Bundesliga loss in just 

over a year when the defending champion 

visits high-flying Eintracht Frankfurt today. 

Dortmund’s 31-game unbeaten streak 

came to a halt on Saturday with Hamburg’s 

first win, and Juergen Klopp’s side already 

finds itself five points behind pacesetting 

Bayern Munich. 

“The season has only begun. Last season 

we were eight points behind Bayern and we 

still won the German championship,” 

Dortmund midfielder Ivan Perisic told the 

Bundesliga website. “So I’m not worried 

about it.” Frankfurt, in contrast, set a 

Bundesliga record by becoming the first 

promoted side to win its opening four 

games. 

“I’d be disappointed if we don’t finish 

German champions now,” Frankfurt coach 

Armin Veh joked after the third win. Bayern 

- enjoying its best ever start to the league - 

hosts misfiring Wolfsburg. “We can’t deny 

it’s a good start but a good start is only of 

any use if you keep marching on,” said 

Bayern sporting director Matthias Sammer 

after his side’s seventh consecutive win 

across all competitions. 

Also Tuesday, Schalke hosts Mainz and 

Fortuna Duesseldorf visits Greuther Fuerth. 

Tomorrow, Borussia Moenchengladbach 

hosts Hamburg, Hoffenheim visits Stuttgart, 

Hannover welcomes Nuremberg, Freiburg 

hosts Werder Bremen and Bayer Leverkusen 

visits Augsburg. 

“It’s not nice to be reacquainted with 

how losing feels,” Dortmund captain 

Sebastian Kehl said after the 3-2 defeat. “It 

has to be said that we really only have ourselves 

to blame.” Dortmund was just five 

games shy of Hamburg’s record of 36 

games unbeaten set in January, 1983. 

“Such a thing is incidental, although the 

record would have been nice of course,” 

Perisic said. “Maybe in a couple of weeks 

we’ll get angry about the record because 

we could have managed it with a draw (in 

Hamburg).” 

Defensive lapses were to blame for the 

AC Milan’s Urby Emanuelson, of the Netherlands (left) in action in this file photo. 

Kehl in this file photo. —AP 

loss, though coach Juergen Klopp said his 

team played badly in “the beginning, the 

middle and the end.” 

“If we learn the right lessons from 

Hamburg it should be our last defeat for a 

while,” said Klopp, whose side began last 

season with three defeats from six games. 

Klopp said Sunday that he never had a 

team that played its best football in the first 

five games and that “our real capability will 

always come to light over the course of a 

season.” 

The outspoken 45-year-old coach is yet 

to find his ideal lineup behind striker Robert 

Lewandowski, with Perisic, Mario Goetze 

and offseason signing Marco Reus all 

switching positions during Saturday’s loss, 

when the middle became too crowded. 

“Mario, Marco and Ivan didn’t allow the 

space they needed to play their game,” 

Klopp said. Dortmund ended the game with 

because we can’t manage to satisfy 

our fans, but we’re sure the 

wins will come.” 

Titleholders Juventus, the 

only team to have won their first 

four games, take their perfect 

record to Fiorentina for the only 

match late yesterday. Tomorrow 

Napoli, second with 10 points, 

host Lazio, who have nine after a 

shock home defeat by Genoa on 

Sunday. —Reuters 

Dortmund aims to bounce 

back against Frankfurt 

GERMANY: Leverkusen’s goalkeeper Bernd Leno jumps over Dortmund’s Sebastian 

Goetze playing alongside substitutes Julian 

Schieber and Jakub Blaszczykowski behind 

Lewandowski. 

Now questions are being asked about 

how Reus - a Ä17.1 million ($22.2 million) 

purchase - fits in a midfield still adapting to 

the departure of Shinji Kagawa for 

Manchester United. 

“Our game is different to (Reus’ previous 

club) Moenchengladbach’s,” said Dortmund 

sporting director Michael Zorc. “He simply 

needs time to get used to it.” 

Jupp Heynckes has no such problems at 

Bayern, where the 67-year-old coach has 

been rotating his squad with the summer’s 

new arrivals all contributing. 

“You have to compensate for the energysapping 

program by rotating the squad,” 

Heynckes said. “Every player has to forget 

his ego and drop to the bench sometimes. 

I’ll organize it so it works.”—AP

Stacy bags 

17 

Navistar Classic 


Ravens soar 

over 

18 

Patriots 

Rain break rescues Wozniacki in Tokyo Page 17 

SPAIN: Real Madrid’s Karim Benzema from France (right) vies for the ball with Rayo Vallecano’s Javi Fuego, during a Spanish La Liga soccer match.—AP 

Real back on track with Rayo win 

MADRID: Real Madrid kept Barcelona in their 

sights as an early goal from Karim Benzema put 

them on their way to a 2-0 win over Rayo 

Vallecano — but they remain eight points 

behind the Catalan side, who are yet to drop a 

point this season. 

Benzema struck after 13 minutes and 

Cristiano Ronaldo added a second mid-way 

through the second half as Jose Mourinho’s side 

came out on top in the match suspended on 

Sunday due to floodlight failure caused by sabotage. 

In injury time Jose Casado was dismissed for 

the home side after receiving his second yellow 

card. The green light was finally given to play 

the game yesterday at Rayo’s Estadio de Vallecas 

ground in what was a tough battle for Madrid 

against city rivals Rayo with the pressure on 

after Barcelona beat Granada 2-0 on Saturday, 

their fifth win in succession, while Madrid had 

only one. 

Sergio Ramos returned to the side after 

being dropped for Madrid’s Champions League 

victory over Manchester City last week, while 

Michael Essien was also given the nod over 

Sami Khedira to partner Xabi Alonso in front of 

the defence in a more offensive formation than 

against the Premiership side as Luka Modric 

returned. 

Rayo coach Paco Jemez has shown an 

admirable commitment to attacking football 

and they faced the champions with two 

wingers in Jose Carlos and Lass Bangoura, who 

had full licence to go forward. Apart from a dangerous 

header from Pepe, saved by keeper 

Ruben Martinez, Rayo took the game to Madrid, 

who were reduced to committing a series of 

fouls and Essien was yellow carded for a handball. 

However, Madrid conjured up an excellent 

goal on the counter-attack which spanned the 

length of the pitch and was finished off by 

Benzema who knocked the ball in from close 

range from a Angel Di Maria cross on the left. 

The danger was clear for Rayo, who kept 

faith with their game strategy and Madrid were 

able to pick them off at the back with Benzema 

sent clear but he was crowded out before he 

could get a shot off, while Di Maria and Ronaldo 

went close with efforts from the edge of the 

area. At the other end Madrid showed their susceptibility 

from crosses as keeper Iker Casillas 

was forced into a sharp save to block a Andrija 

Delibasic header and Alonso blocked a follow 

up shot from Casado with his chest. 

Madrid were not comfortable at the back 

and Alvaro Arbeloa gifted the ball to Lass at the 

start of the second half but he failed to control 

with just Casillas to beat. 

In an open game Essien and Ronaldo shot 

narrowly wide as did Jose Carlos for Rayo before 

Ronaldo’s penalty decided the game after 70 

minutes. It was the Portuguese’s cross that was 

handled by centre-half Jordi Amat and Ronaldo 

took the spot-kick, sending the keeper the 

wrong way. 

Minutes later Ronaldo could have extended 

Madrid’s advantage but he hit the post from a 

Gonzalo Higuain pass with the goal gaping. 

In the second minute of injury time frustration 

got the better of Casado. who left his foot 

in as he challenged Mesut Ozil and was given 

his second yellow card. 

Meanwhile, Rayo Vallecano said yesterday 

they were the victim of “football terrorism” after 

vandals cut the cables to stadium lights and 

forced a match with Real Madrid to be postponed. 

The derby clash at Estadio de Vallecas in 

Marseille win to record 

best start in fifty years 

PARIS: Olympique Marseille became 

the first Ligue 1 club in more than fifty 

years to win their first six league 

games when they beat Evian Thonon 

Gaillard 1-0 on Sunday. 

Morgan Amalfitano headed home 

in the 33rd minute to lift Marseille to 

18 points, four ahead of secondplaced 

Olympique Lyon who drew 1-1 

at Lille thanks to a late Lisandro Lopez 

equaliser. Lille, who won the title in 

2011, are 12th on seven points having 

won only one of their opening six 

league games. Marseille are the first 

team to win their six first league 

games since Monaco completed the 

feat at the start of the 1960-61 season. 

Monaco went on to be crowned 

champions at the end of that campaign. 

Three days after a tightly-contested 

Europa League draw at Turkish side 

Fenerbahce, Marseille were visibly 

tired and struggled to create chances 

against 17th place Evian. 

“It was a tough game, we paid for 

the effort we put it on Thursday,” captain 

Steve Mandanda told French 

channel beIN SPORT. “We won with 

our heads and our hearts. We have 

been showing a lot of solidarity since 

the season started. But there is still a 

long way to go in the league.” 

Marseille went ahead with their 

first clear-cut chance, when 

Amalfitano headed home a neat 

Mathieu Valbuena free-kick. The midifielder 

then missed the chance to 

double the lead when he sent another 

header narrowly wide three minutes 

later. The hosts were made to work 

hard after the break as Evian laid siege 

to Mandanda’s goal but an impressive 

rearguard display from defender 

Nicolas Nkoulou helped keep the visitors 

at bay. 

France’s reserve goalkeeper did 

well to save a powerful Jonathan 

Mensah header with nine minutes 

remaining to maintain Marseille’s perfect 

start to the campaign. 

Lyon are now four points adrift at 

the top of the table after drawing with 

Lille who were hoping to bounce back 

after their shock 3-1 home loss to 

Belarus’s BATE Borisov in their 

Champions League opener tomorrow. 

Frontman Nolan Roux put Lille in 

front in the seventh minute when he 

poked the ball in from close range 

after Ryan Mendes had miscued a 

Mathieu Debuchy pass. Lille dominated 

but lacked the cutting edge to 

double their lead. Lyon’s keeper Remy 

Vercoutre saved a Mendes shot on the 

stroke of halftime and superbly parried 

Dimitri Payet’s neat back-heel on 

57 minutes. 

Lisandro eventually levelled for 

Lyon with ten minutes to play with a 

stunning goal from 25 metres to frustrate 

Lille, who also wasted a one-goal 

lead in their last league game at bottom 

club Troyes. Girondins Bordeaux 

drew for the fourth consecutive time 

in Ligue 1 after a stoppage-time goal 

from substitute Chahir Belghazouani 

secured Ajaccio a point in a 2-2 draw. 

Belghazouani chested the ball 

down to strike the last-gasp equaliser 

past goalkeeper Cedric Carrasso. 

Bordeaux, who have not lost a league 

game since early April, are sixth on 10 

points from six games. Ajaccio climb 

up to 13th on six points. 

Laborious Bordeaux did not create 

a single chance in the first half, three 

days after thrashing Club Bruges 4-0 

in their Europa League group stage 

opener. 

Centre back Henrique and forward 

Yoan Gouffran both headed home 

after the break to put hosts Bordeaux 

in front, but Ajaccio twice recovered 

thanks to Ricardo Faty and 

Belghazouani.—Reuters 

Madrid was scrapped on Sunday evening after 

the blackout, leaving fans stranded outside, and 

the clubs agreed to try again at 7:45 pm (1745 

GMT). 

“We suffered sabotage, an attack. We are facing 

a new kind of terrorism, football terrorism,” 

Rayo Vallecano chairman Raul Martin Presa told 

a news conference. “We have never seen anything 

like this at a club.” Rayo Vallecano, displaying 

photographs of the severed cables to journalists. 

“The 57 cables leading to the lights of one of 

the stands were cut and the 12 fuse boxes they 

come from were interfered with,” Rayo 

Vallecano managing director Luis Yanez said. 

Police confirmed that the act was deliberate, 

the central government representative for the 

Madrid region, Cristina Cifuentes, told ABC 

Punto radio. 

“Forensic police made a first inspection on 

Sunday evening... and they returned this morning,” 

she said. “It has apparently been confirmed 

that there was sabotage.” Police were trying to 

lift fingerprints from the scene and checking 

security cameras in case the culprits were 

filmed, she said.—AFP 

FRANCE: Marseille’s French forward Andre-Pierre Gignac 

(left) challenges Evian’s French forward Kevin Berigaud for 

the ball during their League One soccer match.—AP 

Spanish League results/standings 

Rayo Vallecano 0 Real Madrid 2 (Benzema 13, Cristiano Ronaldo 70pen); 

Deportivo la Coruna v Sevilla - late kickoff. 

Spanish league table after yeserday’s early match (played, won, 

drawn, lost, goals for, goals against, points): 

Barcelona 5 5 0 0 14 3 15 

Real Mallorca 5 3 2 0 7 3 11 

Malaga 5 3 2 0 6 2 11 

Atletico Madrid 4 3 1 0 11 5 10 

Real Betis 4 3 0 1 8 5 9 

Sevilla 4 2 2 0 4 2 8 

Real Madrid 5 2 1 2 7 4 7 

Rayo Vallecano 5 2 1 2 6 7 7 

Levante 5 2 1 2 7 9 7 

Deportivo 4 1 3 0 7 5 6 

Celta Vigo 5 2 0 3 6 6 6 

Real Zaragoza 5 2 0 3 5 6 6 

Valladolid 5 2 0 3 4 5 6 

Real Sociedad 5 2 0 3 6 9 6 

Valencia 5 1 2 2 6 8 5 

Athletic Bilbao 5 1 2 2 8 12 5 

Getafe 5 1 1 3 6 10 4 

Grenada 5 0 2 3 2 8 2 

Espanyol 5 0 1 4 7 11 1 

Osasuna 5 0 1 4 3 10 1 

Preview 

Signs of recovery emerge 

in Liverpool’s poor start 

LONDON: In their pomp, Liverpool won League Cups for fun 

but after suffering their worst start to a league campaign in 

101 years, tomorrow’s third round clash at West Bromwich 

Albion takes on extra significance. Should Liverpool lose, it 

would add to the pressure already building on new manager 

Brendan Rodgers after defeat by Manchester United left 

his team third from bottom in the Premier League and casting 

envious glances at high-flying neighbours Everton. 

Sunday’s 2-1 loss was Liverpool’s third defeat in their 

opening five games, with draws against Manchester City 

and Sunderland providing them with their only points of the 

fledgling campaign. It would be wrong, however, to suggest 

that an autumnal gloom was encircling the club in the way it 

did when former boss Roy Hodgson suffered a similarly 

inglorious start to his short-lived Liverpool reign in the 

2010/11 campaign. That period coincided with a bitter ownership 

struggle and the threat of administration and perhaps 

annihilation hanging over the club. 

Now, Liverpool fans who fought to get rid of previous 

owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett and booed Hodgson’s 

every defeat are able to see green shoots of recovery in 

Rodgers’ new-look side. Despite scoring only four times in 

the league, Rodgers’ Liverpool have been pleasing on the 

eye. The Northern Irishman, who arrived from Swansea in 

June, describes his philosophy as “death by football” and his 

commitment to the relentless retention of possession fits in 

neatly with the long-held traditions of the club. While style 

over substance counts for little as far as the cold currency of 

Premier League points is concerned, the manner of 

Liverpool’s defeat by bitter rivals United gave cause for optimism 

to their suffering fans. “If we keep playing like that 

and showing that amount of effort and determination, then 

it will only be a matter of time (before we get our first win),” 

captain Steven Gerrard told Sky Sports. —Reuters


German business mood worst since mid-2009 

Gold retreats from 6-1/2 

month high as dollar firms 

Dreamliner brings jolt 

of excitement to flying 

Page 22 

New Audi S models 

arrive in Middle East 

NEW YORK: Greg Packer, 49, celebrates as he enters the Fifth Avenue Apple store for the release of the iPhone 5, Friday, Sept 21, 2012. — AP 

Apple sells more than 5m iPhone 5 

NEW YORK: Apple Inc sold out of its latest 

smartphone, with more than 5 million iPhone 

5s sold in the three days since it hit stores, 

the company said yesterday. While sales were 

solid, analysts were concerned that Apple 

was unable to produce the new phone fast 

enough to meet demand. The early total for 

the iPhone 5 topped sales of the iPhone 4S, 

which sold more than 4 million units in its 

first weekend after Apple introduced it in 

October 2011. 

Expectations for new Apple products are 

so high that Wall Street appeared not to be 

Foxconn factory in China shaken by violence 

wowed by the latest numbers. Investors sent 

shares of the stock down 1.4 percent at 

$690.14 in mid-morning trade. “It appears 

investors were disappointed with the slowdown 

in growth in the first weekend,” said 

BTIG analyst Walter Piecyk. Apple said while 

the majority of iPhone 5 pre-orders have been 

shipped to customers, many were scheduled 

to go out in October. 

The world’s most valuable technology 

company is being closely watched for any 

supplier problems that may slow down the 

smartphone production. “We believe that 

sales could have potentially been much higher 

if not for supply constraints,” William Power, 

an analyst with Baird Equity Research, wrote 

in a note. He forecast Apple selling 8 million 

to 10 million units in the fiscal fourth quarter 

ending in September. 

One of Apple’s key suppliers for screens, 

Sharp Corp , is struggling with high costs 

and scrambling to raise funds to pay debt. 

Taiwan’s Foxconn Technology Group, which 

assembles iPhones, closed a plant in China 

yesterday after about 2,000 workers were 

involved in a brawl in a company dormitory. 

Clinton summit highlights business practices 

NEW YORK: Former President Bill 

Clinton on Sunday challenged Wal- 

Mart to open a store in Libya and 

help create jobs in the world’s most 

troubled areas. “If the new president 

of Libya asked you to open a store in 

Tripoli, would you consider it?” 

Clinton asked Wal-Mart CEO Mike 

Duke at the opening session of the 

Clinton Global Initiative. The annual 

forum brings together leaders in politics, 

business and philanthropy for 

three days of brainstorming about 

the most pressing global problems. 

Duke was on a Clinton-mediated 

panel with UN Secretary-General Ban 

Ki-moon, Queen Rania of Jordan and 

World Bank President Jim Yong Kim. 

The Wal-Mart executive - jokingly 

calling the corporate giant a “small 

company from Arkansas,” Clinton’s 

home state - said the company 

already operates in high-risk areas 

including parts of sub-Saharan 

Africa. But Wal-Mart has no presence 

in Tripoli, the Libyan capital Clinton 

named as a possible location. 

Newly elected Libyan President 

Mohammed el-Megarif is listed 

among about 1,000 forum participants, 

as is Egyptian President 

Mohammed Morsi, a leader of the 

Islamist Muslim Brotherhood. Libya 

faces more domestic upheaval after 

the killings of US Ambassador 

Christopher Stevens and three other 

Americans in the Libyan city of 

Benghazi earlier this month. 

More than 50 current or former 

heads of state are lined up for this 

year’s high-power gathering. On 

Sunday, the audience in the ballroom 

of the Sheraton New York Hotel 

included the former president’s 

daughter, Chelsea Clinton. Secretary 

of State Hillary Rodham Clinton was 

to speak yesterday. President Barack 

Obama and Republican presidential 

candidate Mitt Romney will speak 

today. 

The theme of the 2012 meeting is 

“Designing for Impact.” Its stated purpose 

is to consider how the Clinton 

Global Initiative community “can utilize 

our abundance of global capacity 

to invent better tools, build more 

effective interventions, and work creatively 

and collaboratively to design 

a future worth pursuing.” 

The UN secretary-general said the 

“top priority” is sustainable development 

- especially for basic needs 

such as energy, food and water in 

poor parts of the world. “I’m going to 

sound an alarm to all the leaders,” he 

said. “We are living in an era of insecurity, 

injustice, inequality and intolerance, 

and what should we do?” He 

called on powerful businesses like 

Wal-Mart to not only act for profit 

but also “for humanity.” 

The World Bank head noted, however, 

that even effective efforts such 

as delivering HIV-fighting drugs to 

impoverished countries with high 

infection rates cannot succeed 

unless ways are found to expand 

help to large numbers of people. 

“How do you go from promising initiatives 

to taking things to scale?” 

Kim asked. One solution is to knock 

down the average cost of a year’s HIV 

NEW YORK: (Left to right) Michael T Duke, President and CEO of Wal- 

Mart, Her Majesty Queen Rania Al-Abdullah of the Hashemite 

Kingdom of Jordan, Ban Ki-Moon, Secretary-General of the United 

Nations, Jim Yong Kim, President of the World Bank Group and former 

US President Bill Clinton are seen during the session “Designing for 

Impact” at the Clinton Global Initiative September 23, 2012 New York 

City. — AFP 

treatment so it’s more accessible in 

low-income societies. In four African 

countries - Ethiopia, Malawi, Rwanda 

and Zambia - the cost averages 

about $200, compared with $682 in 

South Africa, according to research 

by the Clinton Health Access 

Initiative. 

Since Clinton created the Global 

Initiative in 2005, members have 

made 2,100 “commitments” seeking 

to improve the lives of people in 

more than 180 countries. On Sunday, 

Clinton highlighted a Procter & 

Gamble-sponsored project aiming to 

provide 2 billion liters of clean drinking 

water every year to save the life 

of one child per hour in the developing 

world. But he said the long-term 

prospects for struggling societies 

rest on educating workers and helping 

them land jobs, or run their own 

businesses, “and at least maximize 

chances that they’ll have something 

to look forward to when they get up 

in the morning.” —AP 

It was not clear how long the shutdown 

would last. 

Additionally, Apple is facing stiff competition 

from smartphones that run on Google 

Inc’s Android software, which has become the 

most-used mobile operating system in the 

world. Apple’s key supplier as well as rival, 

Samsung Electronics Co Ltd, has taken the 

lead in smartphone sales. The iPhone 5 has 

been one of Apple’s most aggressive international 

rollouts to date. The phone will be available 

31 countries on Sept. 28 and in more 

than 100 countries by the end of the year. 

Page 23 

Page 23 

DUBAI: Saudi Arabia’s bourse made its 

largest one-day drop in 11 weeks yesterday 

as slumping oil prices and jittery global 

markets spurred nervy investors to cut 

risk. Most other Gulf markets also fell as 

sentiment in the world’s top oil exporting 

region faltered. Saudi’s index dropped 1 

percent to a six-week low in its largest 

one-day loss since July 9 as the heavyweight 

petrochemical and banking sectors 

headed declines. Saudi Basic Industries 

Corp (SABIC), the world’s largest chemicals 

producer, shed 1.6 percent. Samba 

Financial Group and Al-Rajhi Bank fell 2 

and 0.7 percent respectively. 

“Today’s sell-off is in line with what’s 

happening in US markets - you’ve (also) 

seen oil prices come off and some of this 

selling is in reaction to that,” said Asim 

Bukhtiar, head of research at Riyad Capital. 

“Sentiment is weak on petrochemical 

stocks for Q3. Banks are expected to do 

well but there will be some moderation in 

lending in H2. Some of that started to 

show in provisioning in Q2.” 

Saudi earnings season will start in early 

October and some analysts expect petrochemical 

sector profits to decline by about 

30 percent, hit by weak global demand. 

Oil was trading at $91.31 a barrel at 1304 

GMT, down 7.8 percent since Sept. 14’s 

four-month high, with the latest drop 

attributed to a firm dollar and worries 

about weak economic growth in key consumer 

nations. 

In the UAE, Dubai’s measure slipped 0.3 

percent, down for a third session since 

Wednesday’s 20-week peak. Courier 

Aramex fell 2 percent, telecom operator 

Page 26 

“Expectations for Apple are always white 

hot,” said Colin Gillis, a research analyst with 

BGC. “It’s not just enough for them to break 

records but to smash them.” Apple signaled 

last week that pre-orders outstripped initial 

supply and that many phones would not be 

available until October. The iPhone is Apple’s 

highest-margin product and accounts for 

half of its annual revenues. On Friday, fans 

lined up at stores in cities around the world 

to get their hands on the new phone, which 

is thinner and lighter and has a bigger 

screen. — Reuters 

Saudi heads Gulf drop as 

slumping oil prices weigh 

du shed 1.4 percent and builder Arabtec 

lost 1.5 percent. Abu Dhabi’s index also 

dipped, closing 0.3 percent lower. 

Elsewhere, Qatar’s bourse ended little 

moved and Oman’s measure lost 0.6 percent. 

Recent economic initiatives in 

Europe and United States helped UAE and 

Qatar stocks to rally last week, but 

investors have since booked some of these 

gains as global growth concerns resurfaced. 

These worries also weighed on 

European shares as investors refocused 

attention from central bank stimulus 

schemes to weak economic fundamentals 

and the euro zone’s yet-to-be-resolved 

debt crisis. 

Bucking the Gulf trend, Kuwait’s bourse 

rose 0.6 percent to a three-month high, 

extending gains since the government 

said it would double the portion of state 

revenue it puts into a rainy day fund. The 

move is thought to be aimed at investing 

state money more efficiently. The index 

slumped to an eight-year low in mid- 

August as political infighting weighed on 

the economy, but it is now up 4.4 percent 

from this trough. “People are optimistic 

about the steps the government has been 

taking to boost the economy,” said Safaa 

Zbib, head of research at Kuwait and 

Middle East Financial Investment Co. 

“There are serious plans to help the economy 

and it will impact the stock market 

positively, but we are waiting because 

these are for the long-term.” Most of the 

large-caps rallied in heavy trade. National 

Bank of Kuwait rose 2.1 percent, while 

telecom operator Zain and Kuwait Finance 

House each jumped 4.2 percent. —Reuters

EXCHANGE RATES 

Commercial Bank of Kuwait 

US Dollar/KD .2740000 .2860000 

GB Pound/KD .4500000 .4610000 

Euro .3600000 .3720000 

Swiss francs .2970000 .3070000 

Canadian Dollar .2840000 .2940000 

Australian DLR .2900000 .2990000 

Indian rupees .0040000 .0058500 

Sri Lanka Rupee .0020000 .0035000 

UAE dirhams .0760680 .07678320 

Bahraini dinars .7411030 .7485520 

Jordanian dinar .3870000 .4100000 

Saudi riyals .0720000 .0780000 

Omani riyals .7265200 .7338210 

Egyptian pounds .0430000 .0510000 

CUSTOMER TRANSFER RATES 

US Dollar/KD .2802000 .2823000 

GB Pound/KD .4543300 .4577350 

Euro .3627190 .3654370 

Swiss francs .2998070 .3020540 

Canadian dollars .2862540 .2884000 

Danish Kroner .0486530 .0490170 

Swedish Kroner .0425670 .0428860 

Australian dlr .2919960 .2941850 

Hong Kong dlr .0361410 .0364120 

Singapore dlr .2283800 .2300920 

Japanese yen .0035900 .0036170 

Indian Rs/KD .0000000 .0053310 

Sri Lanka rupee .0000000 .0021600 

Pakistan rupee .0000000 .0029970 

Bangladesh taka .0000000 .0034730 

UAE dirhams .0763180 .0768900 

Bahraini dinars .7435230 .7491040 

Jordanian dinar .0000000 .3992930 

Saudi Riyal/KD .0747400 .0753000 

Omani riyals .7280760 .7335330 

Philippine Peso .0000000 .0068070 

BUSINESS 

Hamas halves Israeli fruit imports to Gaza 

GAZA: The Hamas government has barred much of 

Gaza’s fruit imports from Israel, citing a need to cultivate 

local Palestinian agriculture and for “resistance” 

against the Jewish state. The ban is opposed by 

Gazan produce traders who fear a squeeze on supplies 

and price hikes in the poor coastal enclave, 

which has a largely black market economy and lacks 

viable trade with Egypt, its other neighbour. Local 

growers however said the move would help them. 

With the exception of bananas and apples, Gaza is 

no longer admitting fruit from Israel, the Agriculture 

Ministry said yesterday. The ban affects at least seven 

kinds of fruit and, in terms of sales, constitutes around 

a 50 percent cut in imports whose 2011 value the 

ministry put at $26 million. 

Tahseen Al-Saqqa, the ministry’s director of marketing, 

said the move was in part a response to what 

he described as Israel’s refusal to allow the export, 

through its border with Gaza, of staple Palestinian 

BANGKOK: A man checks his mobile phone (lower right) as he walks on a footbridge 

yesterday. The Thai economy is experiencing a solid growth after suffering a doubledigit 

contraction in the wake of the kingdom’s worst floods in decades at the end of 

2011. — AP 

Iran opens forex centre 

to support sagging rial 

DUBAI: Iran launched a fresh bid yesterday 

to stabilise its falling currency, 

opening a foreign exchange centre that 

provides government-subsidised US 

dollars to import some goods as the 

country struggles with Western economic 

sanctions. The rial’s street value 

has tumbled by more than half in the 

last year because of US and European 

sanctions against Iran’s oil and banking 

sectors, which have cast doubt on the 

central bank’s ability to defend its currency. 

Iranians have rushed to informal 

money changers to convert their savings 

into hard currencies, driving down 

the rial’s open-market value. This has 

raised the price of imported goods, 

contributing to double-digit inflation. 

The new foreign exchange centre 

allows importers of goods including 

truck tyres, construction equipment 

and synthetic fibres to buy dollars at a 

rate 2 percent cheaper than the street 

rate at any given time. 

The government plans to use revenues 

from petrochemical sales and 

14.5 percent of its oil revenues to provide 

dollars for the centre, central bank 

governor Mahmoud Bahmani said on 

Sunday, according to the newspaper 

Aftab. 

He did not give an absolute figure 

for the amount of dollars to be supplied. 

“With the distribution of currency 

in this centre, the exchange rate in the 

market will go down, because some of 

Kuwait Bahrain Intl Exchange Co. 

Currency Rate per 1000 (Tran) 

US Dollar 280.900 

Pak Rupees 2.968 

the demand (for dollars) will be met in 

this centre and the pressure of demand 

will be removed,” Bahmani was quoted 

as saying. 

The dollar sold for 24,040 rials at the 

centre yesterday, the Iranian Students’ 

News Agency said, compared to about 

24,600 on the open market at around 

the same time, according to currencytracking 

website Mesghal. The foreign 

exchange centre is the latest in a series 

of plans floated by the government in 

the last three months to address a burgeoning 

currency crisis, for which legislative 

foes of President Mahmoud 

Ahmadinejad have blamed his administration. 

The government maintains an official 

“reference” rate of 12,260 rials to the 

dollar, but only a limited amount of foreign 

exchange is available at this rate. 

Iran’s oil sales, its chief source of hard 

currency, have plummeted this year as 

a result of the sanctions, and legislators 

accused the central bank earlier this 

month of not injecting enough dollars 

into the market, thereby contributing 

to a fresh fall in the rial. The foreign 

exchange centre appears to have 

replaced a previous plan to establish a 

currency trading market, a proposal 

that was fiercely criticised by the private 

sector, which said the scheme 

would simply introduce yet another 

rate for the rial and bring more chaos to 

the economy. — Reuters 

fruit like grapes and guavas. “The Palestinian farmer is 

suffering because all doors to export have been 

closed,” Saqqa said. 

The charge was denied by Israel, which limits traffic 

in and out of Gaza and whose dealings with 

Palestinians there are often circuitous given long-running 

hostilities with Islamist Hamas. “I know of no 

request to export agriculture products from Gaza that 

has been refused,” said Guy Inbar, spokesman for the 

division in Israel’s Defence Ministry which liaises with 

the Palestinian territories. 

Price of war 

Gaza fruit importer Jaber Al-Shanty said the Hamas 

government ban was “irresponsible and unrealistic” as 

it overlooked the losses to hundreds of Palestinians 

whose livelihood depends on marketing the fruit. 

“The local product is not nearly enough” to offset the 

shortfall, he said. “What do we have in large quanti- 

Indian Rupees 5.190 

Sri Lankan Rupees 2.130 

Bangladesh Taka 3.427 

Philippines Peso 6.770 

UAE Dirhams 76.580 

Saudi Riyals 75.065 

Bahraini Dinars 746.800 

Egyptian Pounds 46.125 

Pound Sterling 461.800 

Indonesian Rupiah 2.990 

Yemeni Riyal 1.550 

Euro 373.700 

Canadian Dollars 294.200 

Nepali rupee 3.200 

Al Mulla Exchange 

Currency Transfer Rate (Per 1000) 


Euro 367.100 

Pound Sterling 458.250 

Canadian Dollar 290.100 

Japanese Yen 3.650 

Indian Rupee 5.247 

Egyptian Pound 46.119 

Sri Lankan Rupee 2.138 


Philippines Peso 6.740 

Pakistan Rupee 2.980 

Bahraini Dinar 747.900 

UAE Dirham 76.500 

Saudi Riyal 74.950 

*Rates are subject to change 

UAE Exchange Centre WLL 

COUNTRY SELL DRAFT SELL CASH 

Australian Dollar 297.03 297.000 

Canadian Dollar 291.30 290.500 

Swiss Franc 305.15 305.000 

Euro 366.43 366.000 

US Dollar 281.00 282.000 

Sterling Pound 458.65 459.000 

Japanese Yen 3.68 3.690 

LONDON: Gold prices eased nearly 1 percent 

yesterday, pulling back from the previous session’s 

6-1/2 month high, as the dollar rose and 

assets seen as higher risk, like stocks, the euro 

and other commodities like crude oil retreated. 

The metal remained underpinned however, 

by expectations for longer-term price 

strength, after central banks including the 

Federal Reserve and European Central Bank 

announced fresh rounds of monetary policy 

easing earlier this month. Spot gold was 

down 0.7 percent at $1,760.00 an ounce at 

1219 GMT, while US gold futures for 

December delivery were down $15.30 an 

ounce at $1,762.70. On Friday gold hit a peak 

of $1,787.20, its highest since Feb 29. The Fed 

this month launched a third round of quantitative 

easing - printing money to buy bonds - 

under which it will purchase $40 billion a 

month in mortgage-backed debt until the 

outlook for the labour market improves substantially. 

Further monetary easing is likely to 

maintain pressure on long-term interest rates, 

keeping the opportunity cost of holding gold 

at rock bottom, and to undermine the dollar, 

boost liquidity, and stoke fears over inflation 

further down the line. However, a stronger 

dollar and caution among investors over the 

uncertain outlook for Europe has put the 

brakes on gold. 

“Part of the issue is the lack of obvious catalysts 

in the near term to take gold prices 

higher,” Deutsche Bank analyst Daniel Brebner 

said. “We have some continuing risk issues in 

Europe, US manufacturing data continues to 

be for the most part disappointing, and 

ties, other than guava?” 

Shanty said he and other importers had made 

advance payments to Israeli suppliers that would now 

be difficult to claim back. Hikmat Abu Al-Qombuz, 

another importer, predicted spiralling fruit prices - 

which Gaza, most of whose 1.6 million Palestinians 

depend on aid, can ill afford. Gaza dates and guava 

grower Ibrahim Al-Shaer, 52, said the move would 

help farmers by raising prices. But he admitted some 

imports from Israel remained vital. 

“Israeli fruits compete with our produce in the market 

and they push down the prices. The government 

should allow imports at a reasonable level so the 

prices of our fruits do not go down sharply,” Shaer said 

as he stood in his field in Mawasi in southern Gaza. 

Since the import ban went into effect on Friday, the 

price of peaches has doubled to eight Israeli shekels 

($2) a kilo, while dates were selling at 11 shekels 

($2.81) a kilo, up from 7 shekels. 

Bangladesh Taka 3.440 3.560 

Indian Rupee 5.071 5.450 

Sri Lankan Rupee 2.147 2.290 

Nepali Rupee 3.313 3.530 

Pakistani Rupee 2.976 3.150 

UAE Dirhams 76.57 77.250 

Bahraini Dinar 748.21 748.000 

Egyptian Pound 46.18 47.650 

Jordanian Dinar 400.33 398.100 

Omani Riyal 731.33 735.000 

Qatari Riyal 77.60 78.000 

Saudi Riyal 75.14 75.500 

Dollarco Exchange Co. Ltd 

Rate for Transfer Selling Rate 


Canadian Dollar 288.170 

Sterling Pound 457.640 

Euro 365.405 

Swiss Frank 301.475 

Bahrain Dinar 744.865 

UAE Dirhams 76.580 

Qatari Riyals 77.225 

Saudi Riyals 74.990 

Jordanian Dinar 396.605 

Egyptian Pound 46.197 

Sri Lankan Rupees 2.143 

Indian Rupees 5.284 

Pakistani Rupees 2.972 


Philippines Pesso 6.744 

Cyprus pound 690.150 

Japanese Yen 4.600 

Thai Bhat 9.215 

Syrian Pound 4.365 

Nepalese Rupees 3.385 

Malaysian Ringgit 91.705 

Chinese growth continues to be a real risk as 

well in the near term.” 

“So there are a number of low growth concerns 

which could underpin the dollar, and 

keep gold somewhat moribund near term.” 

“But I do think we will likely see over the next 

quarter or so greater policy action both in 

Europe and China to support growth within 

those regions,” he added. “The likelihood is for 

further accommodative monetary policy in 

both regions, and that could keep the gold 

price moving higher. We think we will see 

$2,000-plus gold prices in the first half of next 

year.” European shares and the euro followed 

a broad range of riskier assets lower yesterday 

as investors refocused attention from central 

bank stimulus schemes to weak economic 

fundamentals and the euro zone’s yet-to-beresolved 

debt crisis. Brent crude fell below 

$110 a barrel, dragged down by a firm dollar 

and worries over weak global growth after 

disappointing German data, while copper hit 

a one-week low. 

Holdings of gold-backed exchange-traded 

funds tracked by Reuters rose by nearly 

330,000 ounces on Friday to 73.748 million 

ounces, climbing back towards last week’s 

record high at 73.681 million ounces. The bulk 

of inflows were seen into the world’s largest 

gold ETF, New York’s SPDR Gold Trust. ETFs, 

which issue securities backed by physical metal, 

have proved a popular way to invest in gold 

in recent years. 

Meanwhile, demand in major consumer 

India picked up, as a drop in local gold prices to 

a three-week low yesterday prompted a wave 

Bahrain Exchange Company 

COUNTRY SELL CASH SELL DRAFT 

Australian dollar 296.900 295.400 

Bahraini dinar 748.490 748.490 

Bangladeshi taka 3.680 3.434 


Saqqa said the Hamas government would crack 

down on any Gazans deemed to be gouging fruit 

prices, and urged Palestinians to view the hardship 

through the prism of their struggle against Israel. 

“We are people under blockade and we should 

have the culture of resistance,” he said. “Why should 

someone have all kinds of fruits on his table?” Hamas 

won a Palestinian ballot in 2006, and had an uneasy 

alliance with the Western-backed rival Palestinian faction 

Fatah until they fought a brief civil war in Gaza a 

year later. Under Hamas rule since, Gaza has suffered 

an often grinding embargo by Israel and Egypt, alleviated 

by goods smuggled in through tunnels from the 

Egyptian Sinai. 

Israel, which fought a three-week war with Gaza in 

2008-2009, eased overland travel restrictions in mid- 

2010. Hamas has urged Egypt to open up its border 

with Gaza since Islamists swept to power in Cairo this 

year but the call has not been met. — Reuters 

Gold retreats from 6-1/2 

month high as dollar firms 

Monetary easing measures support gold near highs 

Canadian dollar 291.300 289.800 

Cyprus pound 552.800 

Czek koruna 45.900 

Danish krone 49.900 

Deutsche Mark 167.800 231.200 

Egyptian pound 48.080 46.183 

Euro Cash 368.700 367.200 

Hongkong dollar 36.970 36.820 

Indian rupees 5.390 5.280 

Indonesia 0.032 0.031 

Iranian tuman 0.161 

Iraqi dinar 0.235 

Japanese yen 3.700 

Jordanian dinar 398.850 398.810 

Lebanese pound 0.190 0.189 

Malaysian ringgit 94.100 94.100 

Morocco dirham 45.300 

Nepalese Rupees 4.330 3.320 

New Zealand dollar 235.700 234.200 

Nigeria 1.823 

Norwegian krone 50.300 

Omani Riyal 731.070 730.890 

Pakistani rupees 3.070 2.979 

Philippine peso 7.000 6.764 

Qatari riyal 77.850 77.420 

Saudi riyal 75.150 75.150 

Singapore dollar 231.180 231.180 

South Africa 36.340 36.340 

Sri Lankan rupees 2.681 2.144 

Sterling pound 460.300 458.300 

Swedish krona 43.800 

Swiss franc 304.600 303.100 

Syrian pound 4.300 4.300 

Thai bhat 9.470 9.300 

Tunisian dollar 198.263 

UAE dirham 76.740 76.640 

U.S. dollars 281.800 281.400 

Yemeni Riyal 1.350 

10 Tola 1,872.350 

of buying, while an upcoming week-long holiday 

in China has generated some physical gold 

buying interest. “Buying interest is much higher 

than last week, mostly because the rupee has 

appreciated substantially,” one Mumbai-based 

dealer said, adding that physical demand 

might be sustained if prices - at 31,281 rupees 

per 10 grams earlier yesterday - held below 

32,000 rupees. 

Among other precious metals, silver was 

down 1.8 percent at $33.79 an ounce. The 

gold/silver ratio, which measures the number 

of silver ounces needed to buy an ounce of 

gold, recovered from last week’s 5-1/2 month 

low at 50.9 to 51.9 yesterday, after silver underperformed 

the yellow metal late last week. 

Technical analysts at ScotiaMocatta, who study 

past price moves for clues as to the future 

direction of prices, said they expect the ratio to 

continue falling. “While the ratio has been consolidating 

the past week, the larger trend 

remains bearish, with an initial target at the 

March low of 47.67,” it said. Spot platinum was 

down 1.7 percent at $1,608.99 an ounce, 

while spot palladium was down 4.4 percent 

at $639.47 an ounce, on track for its biggest 

one-day drop since early March. Some of the 

premium attached to platinum group metals 

by labour unrest in South Africa has dissipated, 

analysts said. Industrial unrest in major 

platinum producer South Africa has simmered 

down during a national holiday in the 

republic, after weeks of sometimes violent 

protest killed 45 and sent the metal to multimonth 

highs. Tensions remain elevated, however. 

— Reuters 

Britons’ inflation fears rise again 

LONDON: Britons’ worries about inflation 

grew this month, though their view of their 

future finances was the least pessimistic in 2- 

1/2 years, a survey showed yesterday. The 

Markit Household Finance Index (HFI) dipped 

to 38.4 in September from August’s 20-month 

high of 38.9, indicating that consumers’ 

finances worsened over the month as the 

index was well below the 50 mark that would 

mark no change. 

The latest reading was still one of the 

highest in the past two years, and households 

reported a reduced squeeze on their 

savings and cash available to spend, survey 

compiler Markit said. “September’s survey 

suggests that the gradual easing of pressure 

on real incomes so far in 2012 continues to 

support household finances,” said Markit 

economist Tim Moore. 

Forty percent of those surveyed anticipated 

a worsening in their finances in the next 

12 months, while 29 percent expected an 

improvement - making it the least downbeat 

financial outlook since March 2010. “However, 

households appear to have become more 

concerned about the inflation outlook, with 

cost of living expectations rising sharply 

since August,” Moore said. 

Around three-quarters of the survey 

respondents noted that their costs of living 

had increased since August and the monthon-month 

rise in the index measuring inflation 

perceptions was the greatest since 

January 2011. The index for inflation expectations 

posted the strongest month-on-month 

rise since November 2010, hitting the highest 

level since May. 

Britons have cut back spending as high 

inflation, tax increases and slow wage rises 

have put the tightest squeeze on incomes for 

more than 30 years, keeping consumer 

morale low. 

The Bank of England and the government 

are hoping that lower inflation will ease the 

pressure and enable households to spend 

more. Inflation has fallen from the high of 5.2 

percent last year to 2.5 percent in August, but 

higher oil and commodity prices have stoked 

fresh inflation concerns. Some central 

bankers have voiced doubts about whether 

more monetary stimulus in form of government 

bond purchases might be appropriate 

once the current round is completed in 

November. — Reuters 

GOLD 

TRAVELLER’S CHEQUE 

Sterling Pound 458.300 

US Dollar 281.400

FREEPORT: Protest signs hang on the fence outside a camp set up by Sensata 

Technologies workers in Freeport, Illinois. —AFP 

Workers beg Romney to 

stop Bain outsourcing 

FREEPORT: Being told to train his 

replacement was humiliating and surreal, 

but Tom Gaulrapp said the worst part 

was when the plant’s US flag was taken 

down before the Chinese engineers 

arrived. Gaulrapp decided it was time to 

take a stand against outsourcing and the 

man he blames for the loss of his job: 

Republican White House hopeful Mitt 

Romney, who founded the private equity 

firm that owns the Freeport, Illinois auto 

parts plant. 

Romney’s ties to Bain Capital have 

burdened the Republican nominee’s 

hopes of winning the November 6 election 

as Democrats unfavorably paint him 

as a corporate raider who pioneered the 

outsourcing of US jobs to countries with 

lower labor costs. Romney denies the 

charge, but his claim to be a man who 

could revive the economy and boost the 

prospects of American workers rings hollow 

here. 

Gaulrapp thinks it would only take a 

phone call from the candidate who’s 

vowed to create 12 million jobs in the 

United States to save the 170 jobs at 

Sensata Technologies that are about to 

leave this already economically 

depressed town of 26,000. “What we’d 

like is a miracle,” Gaulrapp, who has 

worked at the plant for 33 years, said 

with a sigh that acknowledged how 

unlikely it is that his wish will be granted. 

“We’d like Mitt Romney to come to 

Freeport, see what this is doing to this 

community, and contact his friends that 

run Bain Capital and say ‘this is absolutely 

the wrong thing to do’ and save our jobs.” 

The Romney campaign declined to comment 

on the situation at Sensata, but a 

spokeswoman contacted by AFP noted 

that the former Massachusetts governor 

retired from Bain in 1999 and his investments 

there are controlled by a blind 

trust, effectively nullifying his links to the 

firm. Romney’s campaign recently set up 

a website-business.mittromney.comdefending 

his record at Bain and the 

“thousands” of jobs he saved or created 

by “fixing companies that were broken 

and giving new companies a shot at success.” 

“A Taste of the Romney Economy” 

But the situation in Freeport is a classic 

example of how what’s best for a 

company is not always what’s best for 

American workers, said Freeport Mayor 

George Gaulrapp, who is no relation to 

Tom. “You can’t keep sending your jobs 

offshore and still have a middle class,” 

said the mayor. 

Plant worker Pam Lampros, 53, is worried 

she’s going to lose her home so 

investors like Romney can make a bigger 

profit. “It just hurts after so many years of 

hard work and dedication,” said Lampros, 

a 34-year veteran at the non-unionized 

plant who had hoped to retire from 

Seaport delay highlights shaky Vietnam economy 

HANOI: All that remains of a plan by 

Vietnam to build a major deep-water 

port is 114 exposed pilings trailing 

into the South China Sea and a barge 

full of rusty machinery. Foreign 

investors stayed away from the $3.6 

billion project and the indebted stateowned 

company overseeing it bungled 

the job. Earlier this month, the 

government accused the company of 

“financial incompetence” and suspended 

the project. The prospects for 

ever reviving it are dim. The abandoned 

port in Southern Vietnam 

stands as a symbol of the inefficiency 

of the country’s Communist rulers, 

and the need to reform a massive web 

of state-owned enterprises weighing 

down a once-booming economy. 

Critics say it also shows how 

provincial governments and stateowned 

companies are allowed to pursue 

expensive, misguided and often 

corruption-laced infrastructure projects 

that result in riches for the few, 

but not economic growth that would 

benefit the country of 87 million people. 

The government is asking foreign 

and domestic investors to bankroll its 

flagship Van Phong port now that the 

there. “It’s for corporate greed, more or 

less.” Sensata, which is majority-owned 

by Bain Capital, purchased the automotive 

sensors unit from Honeywell for 

$140 million in cash in January 2011. 

With annual revenues of $130 million 

and valuable patents, the unit was a 

good buy. But with 75 percent of the revenue 

generated in Asia, it made sense to 

ship production to Sensata’s facilities in 

China, the Netherlands-based company 

said. “It’s better to be closer to one’s customers,” 

Sensata spokesman Jacob Sayer 

told AFP, citing transportation and other 

logistical advantages. 

Sayer acknowledged that the decision 

to shift production to China is “an unfortunately 

event” for Freeport and said he 

understands why it could be “difficult” for 

the workers to train their replacements. 

He has no idea why-or if-the US flag was 

removed before the Chinese engineers 

and technicians arrived. “We didn’t 

request it. I can tell you that,” Sayer said, 

adding that the company has been leasing 

the facility from Honeywell and has 

no involvement in grounds maintenance. 

The workers have had nearly two 

years to prepare for the plant closure. 

Some have found new jobs and those 

who remained were given retention 

bonuses to help keep operations going 

until the last pieces of equipment are 

shipped elsewhere. They got riled up in 

June when Romney visited nearby 

Janesville, Wisconsin and talked about 

how jobs were his top priority-at the 

same time they were being told to train 

their Chinese replacements. After 

months of pursuing Romney’s campaign 

with protests and petitions, the Sensata 

workers set up camp in the fairgrounds 

across the road from the plant on 

September 12 in hopes of drawing more 

attention to their cause. 

In a nod to both the “Hoovervilles” of 

unemployed workers that sprung up 

during the Great Depression and the 

Occupy Wall Street movement, about a 

dozen people have since been sleeping 

in tents staked into the cold, hard 

ground. Mark Schreck, 36, a registered 

Republican, even brought his children a 

couple of times. 

“This isn’t a Republican issue or a 

Democrat issue, this is an American 

issue,” he said, noting it is the second 

time his job has been outsourced to 

China, despite both operations being 

profitable-just not profitable enough. 

“We’re in trouble. I’m not that old and 

when I grew up American industry and 

technology was huge. My folks and my 

uncles all worked in good jobs and 

retired from them,” Schreck said as he sat 

by a smoking campfire on the windy fairgrounds. 

“It’s hard to grasp how bleak it 

is out there. I’ve been looking for work 

since last January and I’m not finding 

any.” —AFP 

Vietnam National Shipping Lines, or 

Vinalines, is out of the picture. But 

analysts say that’s unlikely because 

the project, which was slated to have 

37 wharves, isn’t near any important 

manufacturing bases in the region 

and was impractical from the start. 

A better option, they said, would be 

developing road and rail around ports 

in greater Ho Chi Minh City and also 

developing a deep-water port near the 

northern city of Hai Phong. A proposed 

large port near Hai Phong has spurred 

controversy lately over escalating costs 

and potential dredging problems. Vu 

Tu Thanh, Vietnam representative for 

the Washington-based US-ASEAN 

Business Council, said Vietnam has lost 

the reputation it enjoyed a few years 

ago for being among the most attractive 

destinations for investment in Asia. 

Would-be investors, he said, want the 

government to push through largescale 

economic reforms that will weed 

out the most inefficient state businesses. 

“There’s nothing inherently 

wrong about having state-owned 

enterprises involved in big, capitalintensive 

projects like ports,” said 

Thanh, whose advocacy group repre- 

23 BUSINESS 

sents American companies in 

Southeast Asia. “The problem is: Do 

you have the right SOE there?” 

“The typical answer in Vietnam is: 

You don’t.” Vietnam has a coastline of 

3,200 kilometers (1,988 miles) - longer 

than American’s west coast and a 

prime location on the South China 

Sea, which includes some of the 

world’s biggest shipping channels. But 

its lack of linked-up infrastructure puts 

its ports at a competitive disadvantage 

compared with long established global 

trade hubs such as Singapore, 

Shanghai and Hong Kong. 

As a result, manufacturers here are 

often forced to first send containers 

to those larger ports from where they 

are then shipped to Europe and 

North America. Businessmen and 

observers say the port sector is a 

good example of how political 

patronage and entrenched corruption 

are undermining the country’s 

development. 

Vietnam has about three dozen 

seaports and several high-quality terminals 

that welcome international 

shipping lines, but no major port 

with swift connections to efficient 

roads and rail. “All the coastal 

provinces want a deep-sea port,” said 

Nguyen Xuan Thanh, director of public 

policy programs at the US-funded 

Fulbright Economics Teaching 

Program in Ho Chi Minh City. “The 

central government needs political 

support from these provinces, so 

they don’t say no to these proposals.” 

“Everybody wants a piece of the 

action,” he said. In 2010, state-owned 

ship builder Vinashin came close to 

collapse with debts of $4.5 billion, 

leading to a sovereign credit rating 

downgrade and sounding the alarm 

on a major pressure point in Vietnam’s 

economy. 

Last month, police arrested two 

former senior executives at one of the 

country’s largest banks. The banking 

industry has run up massive bad 

debts in recent years, many of them 

made to state-owned companies. 

Vinalines has also come under 

scrutiny. In March, police arrested several 

of its executives and accused 

them of mismanagement in the purchase 

of a floating dock that resulted 

in losses of about $5 million. In May, 

government inspectors issued a 


German business mood 

worst since mid-2009 

Economists warn of Q3 contraction 

BERLIN: German business sentiment dropped 

for a fifth straight month in September, raising 

fears of recession as companies struggled 

with what they said was the worst economic 

outlook since mid-2009. Germany’s relative 

resilience to the euro-zone debt crisis has 

been steadily fraying as its firms see falling 

demand for their products from European 

partners and signs of a slowdown in other 

markets. The European Central Bank’s plan for 

potentially unlimited government bond-buying 

has raised hopes on financial markets of 

an end to the most acute phase of the crisis, 

but that optimism has not spread to company 

boardrooms. 

The Munich-based Ifo institute’s monthly 

sentiment index reached its lowest since early 

2010 and Ifo economist Klaus Wohlrabe told 

Reuters the outlook was the worst since May 

2009. “Today’s Ifo index shows that German 

companies remain sceptical about the economic 

impact of (ECB president) Mario 

Draghi’s magic,” ING Bank economist Carsten 

Brzeski said. “Despite fears of a looming eurozone 

break-up clearly fading away, German 

businesses are downscaling their expectations. 

The German economy could see a contraction 

in the third quarter.” 

Ifo said its business climate index, based on 

a monthly survey of some 7,000 firms, fell to 

101.4 in September from 102.3 in August, 

defying expectations for a slight rise to 102.5 

in a Reuters poll of 45 economists. In its 

monthly report, the Bundesbank said the 

domestic economy was robust, but added it 

saw signs of “weaker dynamics” and “great 

uncertainty”. 

Foreign trade could be hit more strongly 

than before by developments in the euro 

area, the central bank added, also pointed to 

the labour market, where the rise in employment 

is slowing as companies become less 

willing to hire. Dutch business confidence also 

fell in September to -6.7 points from -4.6 in 

August, other data showed yesterday, adding 

to signs that the euro-zone’s stronger “core” 

economies are succumbing to the downturn. 

While they have not been punished by 

debt markets like much of the euro’s southern 

half, both Germany and the Netherlands have 

slashed public spending to secure the future 

of public finances. “The drop in Ifo business 

confidence is a potent reminder that the outlook 

for the German and euro-zone 

economies still hangs in the balance,” said 

Holger Schmieding, German economist at 

investment bank Berenberg. “Further policy 

steps to contain the euro crisis may be needed 

for the euro-zone to turn the corner.” 

Tough cuts 

While the German economy steamed 

ahead in the first three months of the year, 

saving the euro-zone from recession by growing 

0.5 percent, it lost momentum in the second 

quarter, with growth slowing to 0.3 per- 

cent. Dragging on the Ifo index in September 

was a sharp decline in sentiment among manufacturers, 

although companies in retailing 

and wholesaling reported a slightly brighter 

mood. Last week’s ZEW survey also showed 

German analyst and investor morale picked 

up in September. 

Industrial group Bosch and steelmaker 

ThyssenKrupp , have announced plans to 

introduce “Kurzarbeit” or government-subsidised 

short-time work at German plants. The 

index would have fallen further had it not 

been for a ruling by Germany’s constitutional 

court on Sept 12 in favour of the ratification of 

Europe’s permanent bailout fund. Half of the 

responses in the survey came after the ruling. 

The Finance Ministry warned in its monthly 

report last Friday that data pointed to weaker 

growth in the remainder of the year. Many 

economists are now predicting a contraction 

for the third and possibly the fourth quarters. 

Another forward-looking indicator, the 

Purchasing Managers Index (PMI), last week 

showed Germany’s private sector shrank for a 

fifth month, and a separate index for the eurozone 

showed that the ECB’s bond-buying plan 

had so far failed to inspire any major improvement 

in business at ailing euro-zone companies. 

However, economist Gerd Hassel said he 

believed news of the ECB’s bond-buying plan 

had yet to fully sink in. “I’m optimistic that the 

Ifo climate index will rise again in the coming 

months,” he said. —Reuters 

Dreamliner brings jolt of excitement to flying 

TOKYO: As the Boeing 787 Dreamliner 

nosed upward into the clouds, the 

engines purred rather than roared. The 

recent All Nippon Airways domestic 

flight was anything but a routine route 

for many passengers. A year after ANA 

launched the world’s first 787 flights, 

Japanese travelers are still agog. 

Passengers craned necks to glimpse the 

big bird at Haneda Airport. And as they 

boarded, many whipped out digital 

cameras and iPhones and started shooting 

pictures like paparazzi setting upon 

Justin Bieber. 

In an era when flying is more about 

diminished expectations than adventure, 

airlines like ANA hope the technologically 

advanced midsize 787 will put 

some of the thrill back into the air at 

35,000 feet. So far, it seems to be working. 

“Many, many people are excited,” 

ANA flight attendant Shoko Yoshimura 

said aboard the recent 787 flight from 

Tokyo to Fukuoka on the island of 

Kyushu. Silicon Valley travelers will get 

their chance to board the Dreamliner 

when ANA begins its five-day-a-week 

787 route between Mineta San Jose 

(Calif) International and Tokyo’s Narita 

International airports on Jan 11. San 

Francisco International spokesman 

Michael McCarron said “two or three” 

carriers he declined to identify expect to 

start flying 787s out of that airport next 

year. But an Oakland (Calif) International 

Airport official who asked not to be 

identified said none of its carriers has 

indicated plans to use 787s in the near 

future. 

The 787’s high-ceiling cabin glows 

with pastel colors. Its spacious interior, 

increased cabin pressure and higher 

humidity are aimed at making crossthe-world 

journeys less taxing on bodies. 

And its fuel-sipping technology and 

ability to cover long distances allows airlines 

to tear up old business models that 

left smaller market airports like San Jose 

out of their flight paths. It hasn’t been 

profitable for airlines to try to fill larger 

aircraft - such as a 368-passenger 

Boeing 777-300 - flying into secondary 

airports. ANA is outfitting its long-haul 

787 with only 46 business-class and 112 

economy seats. “It gave us the opportu- 

nity to open up new markets - even secondary 

markets,” said Kohei Tsuji, ANA’s 

director of network planning. Once ANA 

gets more 787s delivered - it has so far 

received 13 of the initial order of 55 - the 

airline plans to expand its San Jose- 

Tokyo service to seven days a week, he 

said. ANA anticipates having 20 

Dreamliners by the end of March. 

According to Bloomberg, ANA agreed 

Friday to buy 11 more Dreamliners for 

delivery beginning in 2018, bringing the 

total of ordered planes to 66. The plane 

has quickly become the envy of the 

industry. In a spring survey by ANA of 

800 passengers who had flown its 787 

between Tokyo and Frankfurt, Germany, 

98 percent said they wanted another 

chance to fly the Dreamliner, no matter 

what airline’s logo was on the plane. A 

quarter of them said they’d go out of 

their way to board the new aircraft 

again. 

“The 787 offers an emotional experience,” 

said Robert Herbst, an aviation 

industry consultant who operates 

AirlineFinancials.com. “That’s something 

passengers haven’t had for a very long 

time.” It offers perks that even those 

who sit in the back of the plane in economy 

can enjoy. Passengers stepping 

onto an ANA 787 are greeted by flight 

attendants standing in the chamber-like 

entrance with a high ceiling - creating a 

sense of airy space rather than the feeling 

of entering a cramped tube. 

“It’s a very beautiful plane and very 

comfortable to ride on,” said one passenger 

on the Tokyo-Fukuoka flight, 

who would only give his first name, 

Takahiro. He was particularly taken with 

the lavatory enhancements - toilets 

equipped with bidet spray options. Two 

bathrooms also have windows. 

“The bathrooms are especially wonderful,” 

the 29-year-old gushed. “The 

FUKUOKA: With rainbow lighting on the ceiling, passengers 

disembark from an ANA Airlines Boeing 787 Dreamliner. —MCT 

ceilings are high. You feel so much air. It 

feels good. And it’s environmentally 

kind.” Overhead bins are so high that 

steps are built into the base of seats so 

flight attendants can reach the compartments 

without the risk of falling 

onto passengers. The plane boasts one 

of the largest galleys in the sky. 

The plane doesn’t have shock 

absorbers to smooth out bumpy air and 

you still have to fasten your seat belt. 

But as the 787 lifts off, the rumble of 

engines is muffled. The twin engines are 

equipped with noise-reducing chevrons 

- jagged edges on the nozzles of the 

engines - that lower the sound of jet 

blasts by controlling how air passes 

through and around them. 

“It was quiet. I was surprised,” 

Gonzalo Guerri, a Chilean tourist visiting 

Fukuoka, said after he gathered his luggage 

from the 787 flight. He liked the 

aircraft’s overall ambience and new features, 

including the iPhone chargers 

built into seats. “It’s much more comfortable 

than other planes,” Guerri said. “And 

there are no blinds on the windows. You 

just push a button. It was pretty cool.” 

Indeed, the electronic shades are 

among the most talked-about attractions 

of the 787, whose windows are at 

least 20 percent larger than those on 

other jetliners. With a touch of a pillowy 

button, passengers can darken the windows 

like giant sunglasses that change 

hues _ soft sky blue to dark aqua. 

The e-shades, Boeing says, are a feature 

in specially designed windows 

embedded with a gel sandwiched 

between two thin sheets of plastic. 

When a very low voltage is applied to 

the gel, the windows change colors. 

Airlines around the world, which have 

ordered more than 800 of the new 

planes, view the 787 as an industry 

game-changer. Half of the plane is 

made of lightweight composites - highstrength 

fibers embedded in resin - 

allowing it to be 20 percent more fuelefficient 

than other jetliners. With the 

cost of jet fuel soaring some 300 to 400 

percent in the past decade, airlines are 

desperate to get the new plane. Fuel 

accounts for 35 to 45 percent of an airline’s 

costs, consultant Herbst said. 

Boeing’s 747 - once called the Queen 

of the Skies - opened up long-haul travel 

for the masses in the 1970s by lowering 

per-seat costs. The fuel-guzzling 

four-engine behemoth, though, now 

weighs on airline profits. The new 787, 

Herbst added, “will have an economic 

impact that is greater than any other aircraft 

in modern history.” Even pilots are 

excited about the new plane, whose 

cockpit is equipped with a one-piece 

window that offers better views, ANA 

network planning director Tsuji said. It 

also comes with a dual heads-up display 

- or HUD - a sheet of glass mounted in 

front of pilots that allows them to simultaneously 

read flight instruments and 

scan the horizon. —MCT 

report saying the company had five 

defaulted loans worth $1.1 billion and 

had bought 73 foreign vessels, many 

of which had run up millions of dollars 

in losses. Earlier this month, Vinalines’ 

former head, Duong Chi Dung, was 

arrested in a neighboring country 

after an international manhunt. 

The problems at the banks and the 

state-owned enterprises have played 

a major role in Vietnam’s economy 

slowing from 7 percent growth in 

2010 to just over 4 percent in the first 

half of this year. Foreign investment is 

also down amid inflation and the 

inability of the country to build the 

roads, electrical grid and bridges businesses 

need to prosper. 

“It’s very important that the government 

continues to put infrastructure 

very high on the agenda,” said Peter 

Smidt-Nielsen, general director for 

Vietnam and Cambodia at global shipping 

company Maersk Line. “If you 

have growing trade and you don’t do 

anything about the infrastructure, 

you’ll have more and more delays and 

congestion, and that all leads to added 

costs for exporters and importers,” he 

said. —AP

24 business 

US oil boom comes with tradeoffs 

SIDNEY: Politicians are quick to extol the 

virtues of domestic oil drilling while ignoring 

the tradeoffs. Here in this fast-developing 

Western oil patch, the gritty side of America’s 

new oil boom is on display with rising crime, 

a slain schoolteacher, rents that have tripled 

and public resources stretched thin. That’s 

just the half of it. Some area high schools are 

at historic low attendance levels, students 

dropping out to work the oilfields. Menial 

service jobs go unfilled despite high wages, 

and most everyone worries that the boom is 

transforming small-town values into something 

new and unpredictable. 

“It’s just happened so fast, and many 

small communities just didn’t have time to 

plan,” said Mike Coryell, executive director of 

the Area Economic Development Council of 

Miles City, Mont., a town just south of the oil 

boom that struggles with spillover effects. 

“The impacts hit, but you don’t have the 

resources to attack it.” Deep below the surface 

of the Earth here are large quantities of 

crude oil trapped under rock that could 

make the United States less dependent on 

foreign oil if extracted. The Bakken formation, 

some 200,000 square miles of it, stretches 

across North Dakota, Montana, Native 

American reservations and parts of Canada’s 

Saskatchewan province. 

The area saw a short-lived boom in the 

1980s, but technology back then allowed 

only vertical drilling. Breakthroughs in horizontal 

drilling, known as hydraulic fracturing, 

or “fracking,” have unleashed a new boom 

that many expect to last decades. Signs of 

the boom abound. Natural gas is flared in the 

middle of sugar-beet farms and on prairie 

ranches that look like the set of old TV 

Westerns. Just across the North Dakota line, 

oil rigs dot a landscape where President 

Theodore Roosevelt lived out his final years, 

and where explorers Lewis and Clark famously 

rendezvoused at the confluence of the 

Yellowstone and Missouri rivers. 

“We’re glad we have an area that’s booming... 

but it has totally ruined the quality of 

life around here,” said Kerry Finsaas, 60, walking 

her land, which abuts an expanded rail 

terminal near Trenton, N.D. “I’d say life as we 

knew it here is gone.” After 34 years on her 

land, Finsaas and her husband, Darrell, today 

look out the kitchen window at a natural gas 

flare a few hundred feet away. Crude oil is 

pumped into rail tank cars that stretch in 

front of their house almost as far as the eye 

can see. Nearby irrigation ditches adjacent to 

a new open-air disposal pond reek of 

sewage. “We don’t need a night light,” Finsaas 

said sarcastically. From Miles City, where 

Coryell struggles to keep pace with growth, 

it’s almost 50 miles to Sidney, Montana’s oil 

hub, and roughly 120 miles to Williston, ND, 

the heart of the region’s oil boom. Rents have 

risen so high in both places that workers now 

commute there from, and displaced families 

migrate to, Miles City. 

Coryell’s office is helping to secure funding 

for a new jail. That’s not the traditional 

work of economic development officials, but 

Miles City, like other area small towns, is burdened 

by rising crime. Parts of its current jail 

date to 1904. “We need them to find oil in 

Custer County, that’s what we need,” said 

Coryell, referring to the revenues such a 

strike would bring to towns in the region. “I 

don’t think people understand the impacts 

on a rural area, the small towns that are used 

to having a quiet lifestyle.” 

These impacts include sugar-beet farmers 

on tractors competing for space on tight 

two-lane highways with rumbling rigs that 

rush sand, water and heavy machinery to 

drill sites. Drunken driving arrests are way up, 

and police report seizures of uncommon illicit 

drugs. “Heroin is starting to come back. The 

drug activity has really changed in this 

region,” said Doug Colombik, the Miles City 

police chief. Cops on the beat feel a difference, 

too. “The level of aggression that we’re 

met with when we’re responding (to a call) 

has really increased,” Mark Kraft, 33, a night 

officer for the Sidney Police Department, said 

during ride-along with a McClatchy reporter. 

“It makes our job a little more dangerous 

than it was a couple of years ago.” 

The big wakeup call came in early 

January, when schoolteacher Sherry Arnold 

went for a morning jog in Sidney and never 

returned. Her remains were found months 

later across the state line near Williston. 

Police said the 43-year-old cancer survivor 

was kidnapped and killed. Two Colorado 

men who came to the area in search of work 

in the oilfields are charged in her death. 

Arnold’s slaying brought soul-searching over 

the costs of a transformative oil boom. 

Almost to a person, everyone interviewed 

in the region complained they no longer recognize 

people in the grocery store, and that 

they now must lock their doors. A large town 

here is home to fewer than 6,000 people, and 

leaving doors unlocked and keys in the car is 

the very definition of small-town life. 

“I think whenever you don’t know people, 

you become suspicious of them. You just 

have to remember that not all strangers are 

MOSCOW/JAKARTA: Bumi Plc, the 

coal mining group controlled by 

Indonesian investors including the 

influential Bakrie family, launched 

an urgent investigation into potential 

financial irregularities at its 

Indonesian operations, sending its 

shares down more than 30 percent. 

Bumi, co-founded by British-born 

financier Nat Rothschild, said yesterday 

it had commissioned an independent 

investigation into allegations 

concerning its Indonesian subsidiaries, 

including 29-percent 

owned PT Bumi Resources, Asia’s 

biggest exporter of thermal coal. 

Bumi is one of several foreignowned, 

London-listed miners that 

have raised corporate governance 

concerns among investors over the 

past year. 

The investigation into what Bumi 

called “potential financial and other 

irregularities” will be led by an as-yet 

unnamed law firm. 

It is expected to include a close 

look at some $300 million of funds 

used by subsidiaries and affiliated 

companies to develop new projects, 

and also at certain loans extended 

by PT Bumi, long a concern for 

investors. 

Bumi said that “an area of focus” 

would be the “extensive” development 

funds of PT Bumi, most of 

which were written down to zero at 

the end of last year, along with one 

potential mining project held by 

another subsidiary, PT Berau Coal 

Energy. 

“We feel it does have the potential 

to bring to light some gross (and 

potentially criminal) mismanagement 

of funds which may turn off 

shareholders in the short-term,” said 

bad,” said Maj. Robert Burnison, Sidney’s 

assistant police chief. “I tell people that, and 

to be aware of their surroundings ... just be 

cautious. You don’t have to be afraid.” 

Burnison recently counted 17 out-of-state 

license plates in the local grocer’s parking lot. 

This flood of new American workers, dubbed 

“patch rats” by locals, is also clogging up the 

criminal justice system in eastern Montana, 

he and others said. 

Richard Knights at broker Liberum 

Capital. 

PT Bumi Resources’ auditor, 

Mazars/Tjiendradjaja & Handoko 

Tomo, could not be reached for 

comment. Bumi, the most traded 

British mid-cap stock yesterday at 8 

times its 90-day daily average, was 

down 25 percent at 1146 GMT, at 

145.4 pence, off an earlier all-time 

low of 119.5 pence. PT Bumi shares 

in Jakarta slid 19 percent, while its 

bonds maturing in 2017 traded 

down nearly 20 basis points. 

Bumi’s stock has heavily underperformed 

the mining sector since 

its re-listing in June last year, 

weighed down by worries over its 

subsidiaries’ debts amid weak thermal 

coal prices, battles between 

shareholders and a complex corporate 

structure. 

The group’s Indonesian partners 

tried to oust Rothschild from the 

board last year after he called for a 

“radical cleaning up” of governance 

at PT Bumi, in what was seen as a 

sign of his frustration with the 

Bakries. 

In a reshuffle at Bumi Plc that followed, 

Rothschild stepped down as 

co-chairman, and key investor and 

coal entrepreneur Samin Tan took 

the chairman’s role. 

Tan, who paid $1 billion through 

a high interest loan for a 23.8 percent 

stake in Bumi Plc, is not happy 

about the firm’s financial problems 

and so decided to launch the investigation, 

said a source familiar with 

the matter, who declined to be identified 

because he was not authorized 

to speak to the media. 

The Bakries do not fully agree 

with the investigation, another 


“We average about a DUI a day now,” said 

Judge Gregory P Mohr, a city judge in Sidney, 

whose office is strained by mounting 

demands and no comparable increase in revenues. 

“All of the oil money goes west (to the 

state capital), but we need it here.” Montana 

has a “three strikes” policy, meaning a fourth 

drunken driving arrest is treated as a felony 

charge and conviction results in a 13-month 

prison sentence. — MCT 

GLENVIEW: Jerry Jimison, mayor of Glenview, Montana, stands in 

front of a new construction project. — MCT 

Shares slump as coal miner 

Bumi probes irregularities 

London shares fall 30% 

source said. Rothschild, however, 

supports the probe, a spokesman 

for the financier said. 

“It’s a major development for 

Bumi Plc, which now has Samin Tan 

in control. People have been wondering 

whether these national coal 

assets have been mismanaged,” said 

Jemmy Paul, an equity fund manager 

at Sucorinvest Asset Management 

in Jakarta, who manages over $200 

million. “It will definitely hit all 

Bakrie related stocks.” 

Shares in other firms in the Bakrie 

Group, whose patriarch Aburizal 

Bakrie is an Indonesian presidential 

candidate, also fell yesterday on 

concerns over Bumi’s problems. 

Property developer Bakrieland 

Development and energy firm 

Energi Mega Persada both slid 12 

percent, while plantation firm Bakrie 

Sumatera fell 9 percent. 

Stocks in Bakrie Group firms have 

been under pressure since PT Bumi, 

the group’s flagship firm, posted an 

unexpected first half loss because of 

derivative and foreign exchange 

losses. The performance also reflected 

weak coal prices and high costs 

that are making life tough for the 

sector. 

Operating costs for most of 

Indonesia’s coal producers, the lowest 

in the world, have risen sharply 

this year at a time when prices of 

thermal coal used in power stations 

have been battered because 

demand has weakened from top 

consumer China. 

“Clearly, given PT Bumi’s high 

debt levels, the repatriation of funds 

and focus on core coal mining business 

is critical,” said Liberum’s 

Knights. — Reuters 

Behbehani introduces Seat 

Leon FR, seat Copa 2013 

KUWAIT: Mohammed Saleh and Reza Yousuf Behbehani 

Company recently unveiled the next generation of the 

popular Spanish car maker Seat, the Leon FR 2013 and 

the Leon Copa 2013. The new Seat Leon FR which has 

been completely revamped is a dynamic hatchback car 

equipped with the latest technologies. The Leon FR 

boasts of a powerful engine of 211 bhp with a 7 speed 

gear tip-tronic gear box. The car is accented with 18-inch 

alloy wheels, fog lamps, a sporty bumper, FR suspension, 

tinted rear windows, folding exterior mirrors, a sports 

steering wheel and sports seats with lumbar support. 

Offering drivers a wide range of functionalities, the new 

Seat Leon FR is top of the line in a compact segment. 

Meanwhile, the new Leon COPA special edition focuses 

on the sporty appearance and the turbo engine 160 

bhp, xenon lights with LED rear lights. The car has witnessed 

major upgrades including, Bluetooth, the rear 

parking sensors, anti-dazzle interior mirror and much 

more. “We are very excited about the launch of the new 

Seat Leon FR and Seat Copa range in the Kuwaiti market. 

The cars offer cutting edge technology in their respective 

segments. Seat enjoys a very loyal market in Kuwait 

and drivers in particular have always given us very positive 

and constructive feedback of the range. We are confident 

that the Seat Leon FR and the Seat Copa special 

edition will meet success in the Kuwait market,” said 

Abdul Ghani Behbehani, Director at Behbehani. 

All Seat cars are designed based on its corporate philosophy 

of enjoyneering, which combines superior engineering 

with pure enjoyment and the Seat Leon FR and 

Seat COPA is the greatest testament of this philosophy. 

With innovative technologies, improved functionality 

and quality, the cars are not just a design masterpiece 

but being built on the German Auto manufacturer 

Volkswagen Group’s platform, it offers more driving 

comfort, stability and a higher standard of safety.

BUSINESS 

Dow rated high in top performers of the global chemical industry 

KUWAIT: The Dow Jones Sustainability World Index 

announced its rating of Dow as one of the top performers 

in the global chemical industry todaymarking 

the 12th time Dow has received this 

recognition since the launch of the index. In addition 

to improving its rating from last year, Dow 

achieved the highest score in the sector for 

Environmental Policy Management System. The 

Company’s overall score was 88 percent - 33 percentage 

points higher than the average for the 

ZELIENOPLE: In this file photo, a crew works on a gas drilling rig at a well site for 

shale based natural gas. — AP 

Gas drilling 

protests held 

PHILADELPHIA: Demonstrators in the 

United States and other countries 

protested Saturday against the natural 

gas drilling process known as fracking 

that they say threatens public health and 

the environment. Participants in the 

“Global Frackdown” campaign posted 

photos on social media websites showing 

mostly small groups. But organizer 

Mark Schlosberg said Saturday afternoon 

he thought the protests were going well 

and he pointed to photos showing larger 

demonstrations in South Africa and 

France as well as higher turnouts in cities 

in California, Colorado and New York. 

“I think it’s really the communities all 

over the world coming together to say, 

‘We want to protect our water, we want 

to protect our air, and we want to safeguard 

our climate future by getting off 

dirty fossil fuels and saying no to fracking. 

We need to invest in a renewable 

energy future,’” said Schlosberg, who is 

national organizing director for Food & 

Water Watch, a Washington, DC, nonprofit 

that developed the GlobalFrackdown 

website and campaign. 

The immense volumes of natural gas 

found by fracturing underground shale 

rock around the country has spurred a 

boom in natural gas production that has 

been credited with creating jobs and 

lowering prices for industry and consumers. 

But scientists disagree on the 

risks of hydraulic fracking, a process that 

injects large volumes of water, sand and 

chemicals underground to break rock 

apart and free the gas. The US 

Environmental Protection Agency and 

many state regulators say fracking can be 

done safely, and the American Lung 

Association says it can help reduce air 

pollution. 

Opponents say the process can pollute 

water and sicken residents. At a park 

in Pittsburgh, protesters signed a petition 

calling for a moratorium on shale 

gas drilling. In Buffalo, NY, demonstrators 

called upon Gov Andrew Cuomo to ban 

hydraulic fracturing. Jennifer Krill, executive 

director of Earthworks, said about 50 

San Francisco demonstrators marched 

along the waterfront to the Golden Gate 

bridge, carrying signs and banners. She 

posted a picture of a 30-foot-long white 

banner stretched out on the grass that 

listed chemicals used in fracking. 

“I thought it was a very eye-catching 

way to display one of the key problems 

with fracking, which is that the public 

does not know - unless the company 

chooses to disclose it - what chemicals 

are involved in hydraulic fracturing,” she 

said. Kathy Hanratty of Frack-Free 

Geauga said about 30 to 40 people 

turned out at a demonstration in the 

northeast Ohio county, which she said 

was not bad considering “it’s a small 

county and a rainy morning.” “It is an 

affected area,” Hanratty said. “We just 

had the seismic test trucks go past my 

house on Monday.” In Ohio, an injection 

well used to hold wastewater from the 

fracking process has been tied to a 

series of earthquakes in the 

Youngstown area. — AP 

Jazeera Airways awards 

1,000th free ticket 

KUWAIT: Less than a year after its 

launch, award-winning Jazeera 

Airways yesterday celebrated the 

1,000th free ticket awarded to beneficiaries 

of its frequent flier program, 

Jazeerati. Frequent traveler, Maryam 

Al-Hammadi, was rewarded a free 

flight for flying Jazeera Airways individually 

or with family ten times since 

the launch of the program in 

November 2011. 

The frequent flier program is available 

to all customers across the 

Jazeera Airways network and works by 

rewarding each customer or family 

with a free flight for every ten boarding 

passes they collect. Once collected, 

the traveler can redeem the boarding 

passes for a free flight to any 

Jazeera Airways destination. Once 

redeemed, the free flight will be available 

for a period of one year, and can 

be used towards any Jazeera Airways 

destination, at any time during the 

year, high season included. 

Jazeera Airways CEO, Stefan Pichler, 

said, “Our easy, simple and gimmickfree 

frequent flier program has made 

it an outstanding success in nine 

months only, with an average of three 

free tickets issued every day. Jazeerati 

is our way to thank you to all customers 

who choose to fly with Jazeera 

Airways to the Middle East’s great destinations.” 

Over the last year Jazeera Airways 

has rolled out a series of valueenhancing 

passenger experience- 

boosting initiatives. In addition to the 

frequent flier program, the airline 

launched easy and fast check-in alternatives, 

high-tech mobile booking 

options, and on-board duty free shopping 

service. 

Jazeera Airways is also ranked the 

highest in on-time performance (OTP) 

in the Middle East in the month of 

August 2012, as measured by 

FlightStats, the US-based global OTP 

tracker. The airline’s OTP for the month 

was 96 percent. With Jazeera Airways’ 

great on-time performance, yearround 

competitive fares, generous 

baggage allowance, the airline continues 

to offer more value to customers 

than any other offering by any airline 

in the Middle East. 

The airline operates a two-class 

cabin comprising of a Business Class 

and an Economy Class. Business Class 

travelers get both an upgraded experience 

and exclusivity, starting with 

exclusive check-in lines and business 

lounge access, up to 60 kilograms in 

free baggage allowance, and an exclusive 

on-board cabin. The airline’s 

Economy Class offers travelers free 

baggage allowance of 40 kilograms 

and free on-board meals with a 

changing menu every month. Jazeera 

Airways is an IATA-member airline and 

operates one of the youngest Airbus 

A320 fleets across the Middle East and 

North Africa. Jazeera Airways currently 

serves 17 destinations across the 

Middle East. 

industry group. Dow was one of only 11 chemical 

companies to be recognized in the World Index. 

Dow is ranked at the 97th percentile for all companies 

in the sector. 

“Dow people are living our corporate values of 

Integrity, Respect for People, and Protecting the 

Planet every day by delivering science and innovation 

to benefit our customers, our communities, 

and society”, said Neil Hawkins, vice president of 

Sustainability and EH&S. “The Dow Jones 

NEW YORK: The best way to reduce the federal 

deficit is through a combination of higher taxes 

and spending cuts, according to a group of 

economists. The 236 members of the National 

Association for Business Economics recently surveyed 

say the country needs more fiscal stimulus 

through 2013, but by 2014 it should be time 

to throttle back. The reason for the delay: the 

sluggish nature of the country’s economic 

recovery. 

A majority of the economists favor extending 

payroll tax cuts, current marginal income tax 

rates and current tax rates for dividends and 

capital gains for most or all taxpayers through 

2013. Deep tax cuts that were passed under 

President George W. Bush expire at the end of 

December unless Congress takes action. At the 

center of debate: extending the cuts for everybody. 

or just households earning less than 

$250,000 a year. 

When it comes to making those cuts perma- 

Sustainability World Index is a highly regarded 

benchmark of sustainability performance and progressive 

business strategy. Their recognition is 

especially significant given the growing need for 

transparency and collaboration to drive lasting 

change.” 

“Membership in this index places Dow among 

the leading sustainability companies, not just in 

the chemical sector, but across industries,” said 

Doug May, vice president of Investor Relations. 

nent, the group is more split. Nearly three quarters 

think the payroll tax cut should not be 

made permanent. The group is almost evenly 

split about whether to make the tax cuts on 

income, dividends and capital gains permanent. 

The biggest economic worry for the 

group was not how much to raise taxes or how 

to trim the budget. The problem cited was 

indecision: 87 percent of the economists 

believe that uncertainty about what direction 

Washington will take is holding back the economic 

recovery. 

The survey on economic policies released 

Monday also forecast that short-term interest 

rates would remain at current levels for at least 

another year. The results are consistent with the 

last NABE semiannual survey, released in March. 

A slight majority of respondents - 59 percent - 

said that current U.S. monetary policy was “about 

right.” The percentage replying that monetary 

policy was “too stimulative” fell slightly com- 


“That’s a testimony to the value we place on sustainable 

practices and technologies - adding value 

for both our customers and stakeholders.” 

Dow’s 2015 Goals offer accountability and transparency 

for its progress toward solving world 

challenges. They include sustainable chemistry 

goals that drive product innovation, targets that 

address climate change and energy, reducing its 

own footprint, and protecting human health and 

the environment. 

Economists say US needs 

more taxes, spending cuts 

Sluggish economy to bounce back in 2014 

Myanmar stalls 

investment law 

YANGON: Myanmar’s president has delayed an eagerly 

awaited foreign investment bill, an official said yesterday, 

asking for amendments to the law that aims to open up the 

long-isolated nation to overseas trade. Thein Sein returned 

the draft law to parliament at the weekend “with remarks”, 

according to Zaw Htay in the presidential office. “The president 

wanted to amend some of the provisions in the bill, 

which was approved by the Parliament,” he told AFP. 

Myanmar is seen by many investors as the next regional 

frontier market as businesses eye its huge natural 

resources, large population and strategic location between 

China and India. A spate of reforms have seen the international 

community roll back many of the tough sanctions 

put in place to punish a brutal junta that ruled with an iron 

fist until it was replaced by a quasi-civilian regime last year. 

Global corporate giants from Coca-Cola to General 

Electric have already begun to vie for a share of an expected 

economic boom in the impoverished nation. But 

observers had expressed concern over so-called protectionist 

measures in the law, including that foreign firms 

would only be able to own up to a 50-percent stake in joint 

ventures with local partners. 

Myat Thin Aung, vice chairman of Yoma bank, said the 

passage of the law had been complicated by disagreements 

between reformers in the president’s camp and 

those wanting to go slowly, who have a majority in the 

fledgling parliament. “If we protect our market, investors 

won’t come. We have to open up otherwise we will be left 

behind,” said the businessman, who is also a member of 

the Union of Myanmar Federation of Chamber of 

Commerce and Industry. 

The law will now be stalled for an unknown period of 

time, although the next sitting of parliament is expected to 

start in the third week of October. Respected Yangon intellectual 

Aung Tun Thet said the foreign investment legislation 

should not be seen as a “threat but as an opportunity” 

to attract much needed funds and expertise to an economy 

left in tatters after nearly fifty years of junta mismanagement. 

“We need to jump start the economy. Period. The law is 

the vehicle,” he told AFP. Observers say “cronies” of the former 

junta who grew rich thanks to their links to the generals 

opposed throwing the doors wide open to foreign 

rivals, while some local firms feared being swamped by 

overseas competition. But MPs earlier this month agreed to 

a more liberal version of the law than had originally been 

proposed. 

They altered a draft that would have allowed overseas 

firms to hold only up to 49 percent of a joint venture and 

required a minimum investment of $5 million, after concerns 

were raised that the funds required would preclude 

smaller deals. Thein Sein has vowed to put the economy at 

the centre of a new raft of reforms, following a series of 

dramatic political changes since almost half a century of 

outright military rule ended last year. Myanmar has invited 

foreign firms to invest in the mining sector and signed a 

series of oil exploration deals with foreign companies. 

Critics say the rewards of the nation’s energy bounty have 

so far only been shared among foreign investors and the 

regime, rather than its impoverished people. — AFP 

NEW YORK: Kellogg is hoping to turn cereal 

into a breakfast staple in China. The maker of 

Frosted Flakes, Pop-Tarts and Eggo waffles 

says that it formed a joint venture to sell its 

cereals and snacks in the country as early as 

next year. The breakfast giant says the deal 

will tap the infrastructure and local expertise 

of Wilmar International, a Singapore-based 

agribusiness, to expand its presence in 

China. The Battle Creek, Michigan-based 

company also plans to sell its Pringles chips 

through the joint venture. Kellogg acquired 

Pringles from Procter & Gamble Co. earlier 

this year, in a deal intended to expand its 

footprint overseas. 

Kellogg Co currently gets most of its revenue 

from North America, where growth in 

the packaged food industry has been relatively 

weak. But like other companies, Kellogg is 

increasingly casting its sights on developing 

KUWAIT: Mohamad Naser Al-Sayer & Sons 

Co held an electronic draw for its promotion 

campaign “The Holy Month of 

Ramadan 2012” in Al-Rai Showroom at 6:00 

pm, on September 6 and 10, 2012, attended 

by representatives from the Ministry of 

Commerce and Industry. Abdul Aziz 

Ishkenani, and Mohammed Taha, Toyota, Al- 

Rai showroom manager. The winner of the 

Toyota FJ Cruiser 2012 was Aiman Abdullah 

Rashid Al-Harbi coupon # 260 a customer of 

pared with the percentage that held that same 

view in March, while the proportion answering 

that policy was “too restrictive” edged up. 

The economists said the Federal Reserve 

should not buy more bonds to support and stimulate 

the economy, as it has in the last few years. 

The survey was conducted between Aug 2 and 

Aug 24, before the Federal Reserve announced a 

third round of bond buying on Sept 13. Just 53 

percent of the economists said that the action 

already undertaken by the Fed, known as quantitative 

easing, has been a success. 

There is also a widely shared expectation that 

health care costs in the United States will 

account for a larger share of GDP in 10 years than 

they do at present, assuming that the Affordable 

Care Act is not repealed. Finally, 46 percent of the 

NABE panel expects that in five years, the 

European Monetary Union will have less than its 

current 17 member countries. That’s down from 

more than 60 percent just six months ago. — AP 

KUWAIT: The winner Aiman Abdullah Rashid Al-Harbi is pictured with the officials. 

Al-Sayer congratulates 

Boubyan Bank winners 

KUWAIT: The wait is finally over. Wataniya 

Telecom’s customers can now get the iPhone 

5, Apple’s newest device, at any of its branches 

across Kuwait. The most anticipated 

announcement reflects Wataniya’s efforts in 

assuring that its customers are provided with 

the latest and most desired products in the 

world of technology. 

The newly launched iPhone 5 is bigger, 

thinner and lighter than all the previous 

iPhones. This wonder device comes with aluminum 

back and the Retina display makes 

watching videos a real treat with vivid colors. 

The iPhone 5 is two times fasters than the 4S 

and it is one of the most responsive phones in 

the market - apps can be loaded within nano 

seconds. The exceptional features of the 

iPhone 5 include the iOS 6, which is Apple’s 

latest software technology. Other exciting 

features included are Maps in 3D and 

Passbook which is capable of managing 

movie-tickets, boarding passes and other 

transaction related documents. 

Boubyan Bank. The promotion “The Holy 

Month of Ramadan 2012” carried on 

through the holy month of Ramadan 2012, 

which enabled the customers a chance to 

enter the draw for every car bought 

through Boubyan Bank, entitling them to 

win a Toyota FJ Cruiser and a Land Cruiser 

2012. The main reasons behind the remarkable 

success of this promotions was “the 

customer’s trust in Toyota flagship”. Al-Sayer 

congratulates all the winners. 

Wataniya is first telecom 

to release iPhone 5 

markets such as China and India, where the 

appetite for convenience foods is growing 

more quickly. Kellogg notes that China is 

expected to be the largest food and beverage 

market within the next five years, as the ranks 

of middle-class consumers continue to multiply 

in large cities. As for cereal, which is not 

traditionally eaten in China, the company says 

consumption is rising as milk becomes a more 

common part of the diet. 

General Mills Inc, the maker of Cheerios 

and Wheaties, already has a joint venture with 

Cereal Partners Worldwide to sell several of its 

cereals in China. In an emailed statement, 

Kellogg noted that it has sold ìready-to-eat 

cereal in the China market for quite some 

time.î A representative for Kellogg was not 

immediately available to say which of the 

companyís cereals are already sold in China, 

or whether it will tweak its marketing or prod- 

iPhone 5 is available forcash or on easy 

installmentswhen customers subscribe to 

any Wataniya postpaid package. In a 

statement regarding the release of iPhone 

5, Wataniya Telecom stated: “Our aim is to 

distinguish our customers amongst others 

and reward them by being the first telecom 

in Kuwait to acquire the iPhone 5. In 

spite of the high global demand, we were 

able to secure a significant stock to meet 

the needs of our customers.” 

Wataniya added “Our team works hard 

to provide products and services of high 

quality to customers as it all falls under 

the roof of rewarding them for being part 

of the Wataniya family. Wataniya provides 

a choice of the latest devices such as 

Android, Apple, BlackBerry and many others 

for customers to choose what best 

suits their preferences and liking.” 

Wataniya customers can now purchase 

the iPhone 5 from any of its branches 

across Kuwait. 

Kellogg wants China to wake up to cereal 

ucts to expand its presence through the joint 

venture. 

Kellogg says it hopes to start operating the 

joint venture Jan 1, pending regulatory 

approvals. For now, Europe remains Kelloggís 

largest international market. But the company 

is seeing weakness in the region, with its 

international sales in the second quarter 

down 3.8 percent. With the Pringles acquisition 

in February, Kellogg is also looking to 

move beyond the breakfast table. The deal 

catapulted Kellogg to the worldís secondbiggest 

salty snack maker, after PepsiCo Inc.ís 

Frito-Lay. Pringles is sold in more than 140 

countries and gets two-thirds of its revenue 

from overseas. Kelloggís other salty snacks 

include Cheez-It, Keeblerís Club crackers and 

its new Special K crackers. Wilmar 

International is a unit of Yihai Kerry 

Investments Co Ltd. — AP

DUBAI: Audi presents its new S models - the Audi 

S6, S7 and S8 are the high performance versions 

of Audi’s top selling Middle East saloons. The new 

S models are powered by a new engine - a fourliter, 

twin-turbo V8, which combines ample power 

with low fuel consumption in keeping with the 

times. Prices start from USD 81,376, USD 91,177 

and USD 127,940 for the Audi S6, S7 and S8 

respectively including 5 years service and 3 years 

warranty. 

The S6 and S7 use the 420 hp version of the 

new 4.0 TFSI. The twin-turbo V8 provides a constant 

550 Nm of torque from 1,400 to 5,200 rpm. It 

accelerates the S6 and S7 from 0 to 100 km/h in 

4.6 seconds and 4.7 seconds respectively. The Audi 

S8 is the new head of the Audi S model family. Its 

new 4.0 TFSI generates no less than 520 hp and 

delivers a constant 650 Nm of torque between 

1,700 and 5,500 rpm. The result is outstanding 

performance: The sprint from zero to 100 km/h 

takes just 4.2 seconds. With all three models, the 

electronically governed top speed of 250 km/h is 

just a formality. 

The 4.0 TFSI brings Audi’s downsizing strategy 

to the high-performance class. The new S6 for 

example offers even sportier performance compared 

to the engine in the previous model while 

reducing fuel consumption by as much as 25 percent. 

Average fuel consumption in the S6 and S7 is 

just 9.6 liters per 100 km. The S8 averages just 10.1 

liters per 100 km, much less than its competitors 

and a decrease of nearly 23 percent to the previous 

model despite a 70 hp increase in output. 

Behind the top values for the new Audi S 

Models are the combined technologies of the 

Audi modular efficiency platform, including the 

recuperation and start-stop systems. The newly 

developed “cylinder on demand” technology plays 

a particularly large role. Under part load, it deactivates 

four of the eight cylinders for an efficiency 

gain that is particularly pronounced at moderate 

highway speeds. A package of acoustic measures 

including the Active Noise Cancellation system 

suppresses possible intrusive noise and vibrations. 

Much of this groundbreaking efficiency can be 

attributed to the vehicles’ lightweight body. The 

DUBAI: Less than one year since its 

launch, flydubai Cargo has grown its 

freight network to cover points across 

the world from Hong Kong to 

Bangladesh and the UK. The low-cost 

carrier can now transport goods to 

points in Europe, the US, Australasia 

and the Far East in addition to destinations 

in the GCC, Middle East, North 

Africa, Indian Subcontinent, Asia and 

Central & Eastern Europe. 

Over the past ten months, flydubai 

Cargo has forged a number of interline 

agreements with airlines including 

Emirates and British Airways and 

Estonia Air as well as Coyne Airways 

and Jet Airways. 

This has helped the division extend 

its reach beyond flydubai’s passenger 

network. Goods transported include 

general cargo, perishable items, textiles, 

electronics, courier, mail, and 

pharmaceuticals. 

flydubai CEO Ghaith Al Ghaith said: 

“We set up our cargo division with the 

aim of making the transport of goods 

simple, accessible and affordable. 

Through these interline agreements 

we have opened new routes and thus 

new avenues for trade. We are now able 

to deliver goods from Sudan to Sydney 

and also provide Nepal’s handicraft 

industry with access to consumers in 

the US, Europe and Australia.” 

flydubai Cargo’s network, combined 

with its affordable rates and tie up with 

Calogi, a web based Global Distribution 

System for the air cargo supply chain, 

has encouraged businesses across the 

hybrid aluminum construction of the S6 and S7 

weighs roughly 15 percent less than a comparable 

all-steel body. The ASF (Audi Space Frame) is made 

almost entirely of aluminum, saving around 100 

kilograms compared to a conventional steel construction. 

The Audi ultra-lightweight construction 

allows weight to be reduced in other areas as well, 

such as the chassis. 

The new Audi S6, S7 and S8 shine with craftsman-like 

fit and finish, generous standard equipment 

and a range of high-end equipment options. 

Subtle yet eye-catching details on the exterior and 

interior signal the top position in the model series. 

New to the S family is the parking system with 

360 degree camera. Four small cameras record 

images of the sedan’s immediate surroundings 

and a computer splices them together. The driver 

can call up a variety of views on the MMI monitor, 

including a virtual top-down view. The system 

enhances safety while maneuvering and in narrow 

driveways. Special views allow the driver to see 

cross-traffic. 

Long version 

Audi is expanding its engine lineup with a 

new, high-performance gasoline engine. The 4.0 

TFSI, which is used in slightly different configurations 

in the S6, S7 and S8, develops between 420 

hp and 520 hp, and as much as 650 Nm of 

torque. The new V8 is a high-tech engine featuring 

numerous innovative solutions. 

The youngest member of the large Audi family 

of V engines, the 4.0 TFSI shares all of their 

typical characteristics. It has the classic cylinder 

angle of 90 degrees, the chain drive for the four 

camshafts and ancillary units is on the back to 

save space, and the cylinder case is a cast aluminum-silicon 

alloy. This eight-cylinder unit is 

very light in weight, and its highly compact construction 

has resulted in its length being 

reduced to 497 mm. 

Fuel is provided via Audi’s FSI direct injection 

system. Switchable flaps in the intake ports 

induce a rolling type of movement in the incoming 

air for improved combustion. Like almost 

every Audi engine, the new 4.0 TFSI also follows 

world to transport their goods with the 

Dubai carrier. 

Manufacturers in Serbia, for example, 

which was previously underserved 

by direct air and cargo links, export specialist 

sporting and spare parts to 

Australia via Dubai, while ship spares 

are transported from Amsterdam in The 

Netherlands the GCC and Indian 

Subcontinent. 

Next month, flydubai Cargo will 

become the first cargo operator to offer 

direct links between Dubai and 

Bucharest, Romania, as well as Dubai 

and Skopje, Macedonia. Flights will 

start on 1 October 2012 and 18 October 

2012 respectively. 

flydubai Cargo’s on-time record, 

meanwhile, has prompted exports from 

the Indian Subcontinent and CIS in the 

form of perishable goods such as meat, 

fruits, vegetables and flowers. There has 

also been demand in Europe for live 

tropical fish from Port Sudan. 

With Dubai International Airport 

being a logistics hub, goods travelling 

on flydubai flights can be connected in 

as little as one hour of arrival in Dubai. 

It takes from eight hours to move shipments 

carried by interline partners. 

“The wide range of products being 

transported by flydubai Cargo shows 

the demand for a timely, affordable and 

reliable service. Less than a year into 

operations, we have grown our network 

as well as our customer base and aim to 

continue serving a global audience as 

our range and operations expand,” 

added Al Ghaith. 

26 BUSINESS 

the principle of downsizing, where forced induction 

replaces displacement. One turbocharger 

per cylinder bank compresses the intake air. This 

is known as twinscroll technology, where the 

exhaust flows to the turbine wheel at high 

speed through two separate ports and enables 

torque to be developed extremely early, just 

above idle. 

The two turbochargers and the intercooler 

are located in the inside V of the cylinder banks 

rather than in the usual location outside next to 

the crankcase. Audi has structured the cylinder 

heads in an innovative way. The exhaust side is 

on the inside, the intake side on the outside. This 

layout provides for compact dimensions and 

short gas paths with minimal flow losses, and 

the 4.0 TFSI reacts immediately to the gas pedal 

as a result. Sophisticated insulation of the hot 

components, in particular the exhaust manifold, 

stabilizes the thermal conditions in the inside V. 

A further innovation is Audi’s cylinder management. 

In low to intermediate load and rev 

ranges, it deactivates two cylinders in each bank 

of the V8, reducing fuel consumption significantly. 

Thanks to a comprehensive package of innovative 

measures, the engine remains smooth 

and quiet during these phases. Shutting down 

the cylinders is virtually imperceptible. This 

cylinder management function is provided by 

the latest version of the Audi valvelift system by 

closing the intake and exhaust valves of the 

affected cylinders. 

The 4.0 TFSI employs all the technologies 

from Audi’s modular efficiency platform. These 

range from measures to reduce friction, the 

start-stop system and the recuperation system 

to innovative thermal management that deactivates 

the water pump during the warmup phase 

to quickly bring the oil up to temperature. The 

new regulated oil pump varies the oil pressure in 

two stages, and the oil jet cooling for the piston 

heads is characteristic-controlled. 

The new 4.0 TFSI provides for powerful performance 

in all of the large S models while at the 

same time demonstrating its high efficiency 

potential. 

The Audi S6 

Athletic character, quiet understatement and 

richly appointed - Audi is remaking the S6. The 

Audi S6 sports cars for everyday use, offering 

uncompromising practicality. Its new engine, a 

four-liter, twin-turbo V8, combines ample power 

with low fuel consumption in keeping with the 

times. 

Drive 

The S6 uses the 420 hp version of the new 4.0 

TFSI. The twin-turbo V8 provides a constant 550 

Nm of torque from 1,400 to 5,200 rpm. It accelerates 

the S6 from 0 to 100 km/h in 4.6 seconds. 

The electronically governed top speed of 250 

km/h is just a formality. The 4.0 TFSI brings Audi’s 

downsizing strategy to the high-performance 

class. Compared to the engine in the previous 

model, the free-breathing, 5.2-liter V10, it offers 

even sportier performance while reducing fuel 

consumption by as much as 25 percent. Average 

fuel consumption is just 9.6 liters per 100 km, 

well below that of the competition. 

A number of technologies contribute to this 

top result, including the recuperation and startstop 

systems as well as the new “cylinder on 

demand” cylinder management system. When 

the V8 deactivates four cylinders under part 

load, the Active Noise Cancellation system (ANC) 

is activated. Four microphones integrated into 

the headlining record the noise in the cabin, 

which is then analyzed by a computer. If the 

computer detects intrusive sound elements, it 

broadcasts an antiphase sound through the 

speakers of the sound system. This sound combines 

with the intrusive sound and largely cancels 

it out. 

Independent of this, active, electronically 

controlled engine bearings use targeted counterpulses 

to attenuate low-frequency vibrations. 

A sound actuator, flaps in the exhaust system, 

the engine shroud and a newly developed twomass 

flywheel with a centrifugal force pendulum 

in the seven-speed S tronic also contribute to 

the sonorous sound and smoothness of the 

engine. 


New Audi S models arrive in Middle East 

flydubai Cargo goes global 

KUWAIT: Advancing its market leadership 

and expanding its services, Bumper 

to Bumper (BTB) launched in May 2012 

its Vehicle Fitness Test services in cooperation 

with the Ministry of Interior (MoI) 

at its Rai branch. In an effort to further 

improve its customer services & added 

convenience, Bumper-to-Bumper by 

Yusuf A Alghanim is offering from 

September 1 to November 30, 2012 a 

three-month free road side assistance 

with every Vehicle Fitness Test performed. 

Vehicle Fitness Test services are made 

in cooperation with the Ministry of 

Interior (MOI) and include insurance 

issuance, physical vehicle testing, fines 

payments and issuance of vehicle registration 

booklet. With this newlylaunched 

offer, car owners can perform 

all official & legal requirements at the 

Bumper-to-Bumper facility in Al-Rai. 

Bumper to Bumper is committed to provide 

its customers with a unique experience 

while servicing their vehicles by 

providing value-added propositions, 

technical expertise, the latest equipment 

and convenient facilities and amenities. 

It is worth mentioning that in 1980, 

Bumper-to-Bumper opened its first 

When it comes to power transmission, the S6 

further extends Audi’s Vorsprung durch Technik. 

The engine power flows through a fast-shifting, 

seven-speed S tronic transmission. The quattro 

permanent all-wheel drive system uses the selflocking 

center differential and torque vectoring. 

If desired, Audi complements quattro with the 

optional sport differential, which actively distributes 

the power between the rear wheels. 

Chassis 

The new S model comes standard with the 

adaptive air suspension sport. The tautly tuned 

air suspension with variable damping lowers the 

body by 10 millimeters. It provides for highly 

precise handling without compromising comfort. 

The powerful disc brakes, internally ventilated 

front and rear, have matt black calipers with 

S6 logos. Audi offers carbon fiber-ceramic discs 

as an option. The S6 comes standard with cast 

aluminum wheels in a unique five parallel-spoke 

design. The 8.5 J x 19 wheels are shod with 

255/40-series tires. Seven different 19- or 20-inch 

wheels, four of them from quattro GmbH, are 

available as options. The 20-inch titanium-look 

wheels with a five-arm rotor design impart a 

particularly exclusive appearance. 

The Audi drive select driving dynamics system 

comes standard in the new 

S6. Among others, it modifies the characteristic 

of the gas pedal, the shift points of the S tronic, 

the servo boost of the electromechanical 

steering and the characteristic of the adaptive 

air suspension. The driver can adjust the operation 

of these systems in five stages. The optional 

sport differential and the dynamic steering, 

which varies its ratio as a function of speed, can 

also be integrated into the system. 

Body and design 

The car bodies play a large part in the 

dynamics of the Audi S6. It is unusually lightweight 

because they are roughly 20 percent aluminum. 

The Audi S6 has a curb weight of just 

1,895 kilograms and is thereby much lighter 

than its direct rivals. 

AUB announces results of weekly draw 

KUWAIT: AUB has announced the results of the weekly 

draws of its Al-Hassad Islamic savings scheme. The lucky 

customers winning the grand weekly prize worth KD 

25,000 each at the draws held on September 12, 2012: 

Vasudev Daryani, Aisha Husni Al-Husni, and Venkata 

Jonnadula. 

The following Al-Hassad Islamic customers won cash 

prizes of KD 1,000 each: Fahad Mohamad Fahad, Sidig 

Abdalla Sidig, Esam Makin Salim, Faisal Abdulrahman, 

Juzar Hatim Godhrawala, Ahmed Ebrahim Rezq, Mohd 

Asghar Mogal, Mohd Sayed Abbas, Waleed Fahad, Ahad 

Al-Hamad, Hussain Ashkanani, Bashar Mohammed 

Harhash, Ghazy Masoud Safak, Ahmad Dalil Shaman, 

Sultan Naser Sultan, Mohamed Khamis Al Kuwari, Radhi 

Ali Abdulla, Abdulla Ali Abdulla, Sandra Kathleen 

Buchanan, Salman Saleh Salman, Kamel Merza Mohsen, 

Fahad Habib Mahmood, Mahmood A Aziz Mohammed, 

Mohammed Yousif Hassan and Ebtisam Abedali. 

With the new Al-Hassad Islamic 2011 scheme, customers 

have a lot more to look forward to. With 28 weekly 

prizes totaling KD 100,000 each week and “Salary for 

Life” prizes every month, the chances to win bigger prizes 

more often couldn’t get any better. 

The most attractive feature of the new scheme is the 

chance to win bigger prizes, more frequently with 3 

grand prizes of KD 25,000 each, week on week plus 25 

other weekly prizes of KD 1,000. Chances to win big 

prizes on a weekly basis, offer instant rewards to both 

existing as well as new Investors in Investment Saving 

Account (Al-Hassad Islamic). With the introduction of a 

“Salary for Life” prize of KD 250,000 every month, the 

grand prize is also now more frequent and customers do 

not need to wait for a quarter or more to qualify for the 

grand prize. 

The “Salary for Life” has been a core feature for the Al- 

Hassad Islamic scheme with prizes paid out to date 

exceeding KD 10 million. The monthly “Salary for Life” 

prize has enabled winners to afford better homes, ensure 

better education for their children and enjoy an 

improved quality of life, with the assurance that the 

rewards will continue to come month after month for 

250 months. Al-Hassad Islamic is the only scheme to offer 

high value weekly and monthly prizes that are significantly 

higher than the total outlay of other prize schemes 

in Kuwait. In addition to the attractive prize pool, customers 

with high balances can opt for other unique features 

such as Investment savings plan, cheque facility 

linked to their investment savings account and state of 

the art e-banking and 24x7 contact center support. 

The new Al-Hassad Islamic 2011 is geared to meeting 

the needs of salaried individuals. Customers can benefit 

from not only the biggest and most attractive prize pool 

but can also enjoy state of the art banking benefits and 

access to AUB’s unique products’ range for Islamic 

finances ,credit cards and investment products. All Al- 

Hassad draws are conducted under the scrutiny of officials 

from the Ministry of Industry and Commerce and 

independent auditing firm, Ernst& Young. For more information 

on the Al-Hassad Islamic investment savings 

account, its prize structure and eligibility criteria, customers 

may visit any AUB Kuwait. 

Vehicle fitness 

tests in Kuwait 

branch in Kuwait. Today, it is recognized 

as one of the top leaders in quality car 

service due to its investment in professional 

and qualified technicians and the 

latest equipment to ensure customers 

with the best service, peace of mind and 

unparalleled experience. Today, Bumperto-Bumper 

is strategically located in six 

different areas: Shuwaikh, Sharq, Al-Rai, 

Jahra, Shuwaikh Express Lube and 

Fahaheel. 

Apart from its quick service and body 

shop service, Bumper-to-Bumper also 

provides additional services like diesel 

services, tire garage, car wash, detailing 

and accessories. 

This state of the art facility also 

includes a coffee shop, lounge equipped 

with a complimentary wi-fi connection 

and play area for the children in addition 

to a gaming corner. Within its large 

space, the accessories corner provides a 

wider range of services that include window 

tinting, rim sales and other services 

and products at competitive prices. 

Bumper-to-Bumper prides itself of 

always meeting its promise to provide 

the best high quality services for all car 

makes so that every customer enjoys the 

best vehicle service and experience.

HO CHI MINH CITY: Policemen and security staff secure the main entrance 

gate of Ho Chi Minh City’s People’s Court where three bloggers stand trial 

for “anti-state propaganda” yesterday. The court in southern Vietnam jailed 

three bloggers for “anti-state propaganda”, including one whose case has 

been raised by US President Barack Obama. —AFP 

New Zealand agents spied 

‘unlawfully’ in Dotcom case 

WELLINGTON: New Zealand Prime 

Minister John Key has ordered an inquiry 

into government agents spying “unlawfully” 

while assisting police in the lead up to 

the arrest of Megaupload boss Kim 

Dotcom. 

Key said yesterday he has told the 

Intelligence and Security department to 

investigate “the circumstances of unlawful 

interception of communications of certain 

individuals by the Government 

Communications Security Bureau”. 

He said a memorandum had also been 

filed in the High Court dealing with the 

Megaupload case advising that the bureau 

“had acted unlawfully while assisting the 

police” to locate people subject to arrest 

warrants issued in the case. 

Key did not name Dotcom specifically, 

but said the bureau “had acquired communications 

in some instances without statutory 

authority”. 

Dotcom is fighting extradition to the 

United States after being arrested in 

January by New Zealand police cooperating 

with a major US investigation. 

The US Justice Department and FBI 

claim Megaupload and related sites netted 

more than $175 million in criminal proceeds 

and cost copyright owners over $500 

million by offering pirated copies of 

movies, TV shows and other content. 

The 38-year-old German national, who 

legally changed his name from Kim 

Schmitz, had moved to New Zealand in early 

2010 and enjoyed a lavish lifestyle until 

his arrest. 

Key said he was “quite shocked” to learn 

the government secret agents had acted 

unlawfully. 

“I expect our intelligence agencies to 

operate always within the law. Their operations 

depend on public trust,” he said. 

Key said he had not been asked to sign 

an intercept warrant in relation to 

the case “nor was I briefed on the operation 

in question” but he added he believed 

the incident was an isolated error. 

“Because this is also a matter for the 

High Court in its consideration of the 

Megaupload litigation, I am unable to comment 

further.” —AFP 

Kaspersky releases new 

consumer products 

DUBAI: Kaspersky Lab announces the release 

of its new flagship consumer products: 

Kaspersky Internet Security 2013Premium 

Security Suite;and Kaspersky Anti-Virus 

2013Essential Protection Solution.The new 

versions of both products share the refined, 

easy-to-use interface and deliver new technologies 

to provide maximum protection 

against all kinds of threats. In response to the 

ever-changing threat landscape, particular 

attention has been paid to the security of 

potentially vulnerable applications thanks to 

the unique Automatic Exploit Prevention technology. 

Users of the brand new version of 

Kaspersky Internet Security will also enjoy 

complete protection for their online purchases 

and online banking transactions, thanks to the 

easy-to-use Safe Moneyfeature. Both products 

are fully compatible with the Windows 8 operating 

system, efficiently protecting applications 

and user data, whether in the classic 

orthe new touch-friendly user interfaces. 

Eugene Kaspersky, CEO and co-founder of 

Kaspersky Lab, commented: “When developing 

the new versions of our home user products 

we paid particular attention to the users’ 

needs as well as the threats they face. 

Knowing that the loss of sensitive data and 

money are the things that worry users most, 

we have developed an entire set of new protection 

technologies to address these concerns. 

Kaspersky Internet Security 2013 is now 

better than ever when it comes to protecting 

the most valuable information during online 

activities. With its Hybrid Protection approach 

and new Automatic Exploit Prevention and 

Safe Money technologies,Kaspersky Internet 

Security 2013 helps our customers build the 

most efficient security system that is also easy 

to set up and use.” 

Main highlights 

● New antivirus engine with better detection 

rates for the entire scope of emerging 

cyber threats 

● Unique Automatic Exploit Prevention 

technology targets the most sophisticated 

threats utilizing vulnerabilities in popular software 

● Simplified user interface provides easier 

installation, activation and day-to-day use of 

the product 

● Better performance in key user scenarios 

and longer battery life for mobile computers 

New Kaspersky Internet Security features 

● Unique Safe Money technology protects 

users’ money “at all costs” during online shopping 

and banking 

● New anti-spam module efficiently blocks 

unwanted mail, saving you time and hassle 

Learn more about the key benefits of Kaspersky 

Internet Security 2013 in this infographic. 

Technology behind the 

world-class security suite 

Kaspersky Internet Security 2013 offers a 

number of brand new technologies, designed 

to combat the most widespread and sophisticated 

threats that target your personal data 

and bank accounts. Key among them are the 

unique Automatic Exploit Prevention and Safe 

Money technologies. 

Protection from zero-day exploits 

Automatic Exploit Prevention technology 

was designed to address some of the most 

sophisticated threats - those exploiting vulnerabilities 

in popular software. Exploits 

have long become the cybercriminals’ 

weapon of choice forperforming online 

attacks known as ‘drive-by downloads’ - 

when a user gets infected just by visiting a 

certain webpage. 

Automatic Exploit Prevention protects 

Kaspersky Lab’s customers against these 

types of exploits, including those that utilize 

so-called zero-day vulnerabilities. The latter 

are among the most dangerous, infecting 

the system using unknown or unpatched 

security flaws in popular software.Based on 

Kaspersky Lab’s vast experience in IT security, 

the Automatic Exploit Prevention technology 

is able to recognize unauthorized 

activity by an exploit without blocking the 

normal operation of a potentially vulnerable 

program such as your web browser, document 

viewer etc. Learn more in this white 

paper. 

Secure online shopping and banking 

Safe Money technology contains a 

diverse set of protection methods for when 

you deal with real money online. Such activity 

may include making purchases online, 

working with an electronic payment system 

like PayPal, or accessing your bank account 

from your computer. Available in Kaspersky 

Internet Security 2013, this new feature provides 

enhanced protection for your banking 

operations.Here is how it works: 

● Switches automatically to special “Safe 

Browser” mode when you visit banking websites; 

thisisolates your payment operation 

from other online activities to ensure your 

transaction is not monitored 

● Activates automatically when visiting 

most common payment websites, and you 

can easily add your own bank or shopping 

website to the list 

● Checks the authenticity of the payment 

website itself to ensure the site isn’t compromised 

or a fake 

● Safe Money evaluates the security status 

of your computer, and warns about significant 

threats that should be addressed 

prior to making payments 

● Virtual Keyboard ensures tamper-proof 

entry of your password or credit card number 

New and improved security features 

Both Kaspersky Internet Security 2013 

and Kaspersky Anti-Virus 2013 solutions 

share the new antivirus engine, which offers 

better detection of all types of malicious 

programs, including the most complex samples. 

Particularly, specific methods have 

been introduced to better fight complex 

and targeted threatsby neutralizing 

attempts to embed malicious code into core 

system processes. At the same time, our new 

consumer products provide smaller and 

faster database updates thanks to certain 

parts of the antivirus databases being transferred 

to the cloud-based Kaspersky 

Security Network. 

27 

TECHNOLOGY 


Data that lives forever 

is possible: Hitachi 

New method of storing digital information 

TOKYO: As Bob Dylan and the Rolling 

Stones prove, good music lasts a long time; 

now Japanese hi-tech giant Hitachi says it 

can last even longer-a few hundred million 

years at least. The company yesterday 

unveiled a method of storing digital information 

on slivers of quartz glass that can 

endure extreme temperatures and hostile 

conditions without degrading, almost forever. 

And for anyone who updated their LP 

collection onto CD, only to find they then 

needed to get it all on MP3, a technology 

that never needs to change might sound 

appealing. 

“The volume of data being created every 

day is exploding, but in terms of keeping it 

for later generations, we haven’t necessarily 

improved since the days we inscribed 

things on stones,” Hitachi researcher 

Kazuyoshi Torii said. “The possibility of losing 

information may actually have 

increased,” he said, noting the life of digital 

media currently available-CDs and hard 

drives-is limited to a few decades or a century 

at most. 

And the rapid development of technologies 

has resulted in frequent changes of 

data-reading hardware. 

“As you must have experienced, there is 

the problem that you cannot retrieve information 

and data you managed to collect,” 

said Torii, apparently referring to now-obsolete 

record players and cine films. 

Hitachi’s new technology stores data in 

binary form by creating dots inside a thin 

sheet of quartz glass, which can be read 

with an ordinary optical microscope. 

Provided a computer with the know-how 

to understand that binary is available-simple 

enough to programme, no matter how 

advanced computers become-the data will 

always be readable, Torii said. 

The prototype storage device is two centimetres 

(0.8 inches) square and just two 

millimetres (0.08 inches) thick and made 

from quartz glass, a highly stable and 

SAN FRANCISCO: As the mobile computing 

wars heat up, chipmakers that supply the 

crucial components inside smartphones and 

tablets aim to grab more of the glory. 

Not content to remain in the shadows of 

hot consumer brands like Apple or Samsung, 

chipmakers — including Intel, Qualcomm 

and Nvidia — want consumers to get to 

know the processors that power their mobile 

devices. They hope to build brand loyalty in 

the process. 

Intel is leading the charge by extending 

its hugely successful “Intel Inside” marketing 

campaign beyond personal computers. 

Launched in 1991, “Intel Inside” stickers 

turned commodity electronic components 

into premium products, and eventually 

became ubiquitous on laptops. 

This year, the Intel Inside logo has 

appeared on the backs of smartphones 

launched in the United Kingdom, India and 

Russia. 

Intel hopes to bring the phone campaign 

to the United States next year, seeking a marketing 

advantage over rivals like Qualcomm 

and Nvidia, which are not as well-known 

among consumers. 

“Without a doubt, my goal would be to 

have consumers walk into stores and have 

Intel Inside as a key driver of which phone or 

tablet they choose, just like we’ve done in 

the PC space,” said Brian Fravel, Intel’s head 

of branding. 

The world’s top chipmaker dominates the 

PC market but lags smaller competitors in 

the fast-growing mobile industry. Intel is 

flexing its branding muscle to try to catch 

up. 

It remains to be seen how many handset 

manufacturers agree to put the Intel Inside 

logo on their devices. For emerging smartphone 

brands, with little name recognition 

of their own, partnering with Intel may be a 

“no brainer.” At the other extreme, Apple 

refuses to share branding with any of its suppliers. 

The highest-profile smartphone maker so 

far to use Intel’s branding is Google’s 

Motorola Mobility, which launched the Razr i 

in London on Sept 18. 

Until now, space on most smartphones 

has been reserved for the vendor, such as 

Apple or Samsung, and carriers like Verizon 

Wireless. 

Providers of operating systems , such as 

Google’s Android, also covet consumer loyalty 

- their logos sometimes appear briefly on 

screens when devices are turned on. 

A logo-happy approach to smartphones 

and tablets, though, would run the risk of 

confusing consumers with what some 

experts call the NASCAR effect. 

As a rule, it’s seen as a good idea to add 

extra branding to products only when the 

additional brand strongly conveys a quality 

that the handset maker’s own brand lacks. 

resilient material, used to make beakers and 

other instruments for laboratory use. 

The chip, which is resistant to many chemicals 

and unaffected by radio waves, can be 

exposed directly to high temperature flames 

and heated to 1,000 degrees Celsius (1,832 

Fahrenheit) for at least two hours without 

being damaged. 

It is also waterproof, meaning it could survive 

natural calamities, such as fires and 

tsunami. “We believe data will survive unless 

this hard glass is broken,” said senior 

researcher Takao Watanabe. The material currently 

has four layers of dots, which can hold 

40 megabytes per square inch, approximately 

the density on a music CD, researchers said, 

TOKYO: A woman holds up Japan’s electronics giant Hitachi’s newly unveiled quartz 

glass plate technology, which can be used for the indefinite storage of data, next to a 

computer monitor at the company’s headquarters in Tokyo yesterday. The new technology 

stores binary data by using a laser beam to create dots inside the thin sheet 

of quartz glass which can then be read using an optical microscope connected to a 

monitor device with data reading software. —-AFP 

“Can you generate end-user demand for 

your processors? That’s what they’re all looking 

at, and that’s not an easy thing to do in 

the mobile space where people aren’t accustomed 

to it,” said Jack Gold, a tech industry 

analyst at J. Gold Associates. 

Part of the reason the Intel Inside campaign 

has been unrivaled in the chip industry 

is that no one else can match Intel’s $2.1 

billion annual budget for advertising and 

marketing. Intel helps pay for the PC makers’ 

own ads, as long as they include Intel Inside. 

A TV ad promoting a phone launched by 

Orange in the United Kingdom in February 

features a supersonic car driven by a darkclad 

pilot whose clothes are emblazoned 

with Intel Inside. 

Intel surveyed customers who bought 

Orange’s phone. 

“It wasn’t as though these were techsavvy 

people who were reading all the 

benchmarks. They said Intel Inside meant 

performance to them,” Intel’s Fravel said. 

Badly underestimating how quickly the 

mobile market would grow, Intel was slow to 

develop application processors, the punchy 

but energy-efficient chips that drive web 

surfing, games and other advanced features 

of smartphones and tablets. 

Along with Qualcomm, Samsung is a 

major producer of mobile processors, most 

of which it manufactures on behalf of Apple’s 

iPads and iPhones. Texas Instruments and 

Broadcom also make mobile processors, but 

do not advertise much to consumers. 

Since the 1990s, Qualcomm has been a 

major player in the mobile chip industry. For 

most of that time, advertising has been an 

afterthought for the San Diego-based company. 

Most of Qualcomm’s marketing has been 

directed at a specific category of tech enthusiasts 

keenly interested in the components 

used in their devices. It has taken the form of 

YouTube videos, Internet ads and social 

media instead of TV commercials and other 

pricey campaigns. 

In October, Qualcomm is set to start a new 

branding campaign, coinciding with the 

launch of tablets and other devices using its 

adding they believe adding more layers 

should not be a problem. Hitachi have not 

decided when to put the chip to practical use 

but researchers said they could start with 

storage services for government agencies, 

museums and religious organisations. —-AFP 

‘Intel Inside’ ignites 

mobile branding war 

chips and Microsoft’s next-generation 

Windows platform. 

As part of the drive, Qualcomm will share 

advertising with manufacturers to showcase 

features of its chips, said Tim McDonough, a 

Qualcomm vice president responsible for 

marketing the company’s Snapdragon 

mobile processors. 

“You’ll start to see the Snapdragon brand 

appearing in a lot more places. But the key is 

having it appear in places where it has value 

to the user as a starting point. Right now, the 

consumer is saying, ‘I’m ready for my next 

phone, I’m not sure what to buy, and I need 

some help,’” McDonough said, in a telephone 

interview. 

McDonough would not say how much 

Qualcomm plans to spend on advertising to 

counter Intel, which last year even paid hit 

Korean pop group Girls’ Generation for TV 

ads and a single written for Intel. 

Signaling its growing interest in creating 

brand awareness, Qualcomm renamed a professional 

football venue in San Diego 

“Snapdragon Stadium” for a few days last 

year. 

And suggesting Qualcomm sees the PC 

industry as a model for its marketing, it hired 

a new chief marketing officer, Anand 

Chandrasekher, a veteran Intel senior executive, 

in August. 

As much smaller Nvidia transitions to the 

mobile market, it aims to capitalize on game 

enthusiasts who are passionate about its PC 

graphics chips. Its well-oiled marketing 

department hosts tournaments and aggressively 

interacts with industry pundits. 

Last year, Nvidia spent just $9.5 million on 

advertising, a sum that can’t buy anything 

close to Intel’s broad recognition. But it can 

help win loyalty from a narrow but influential 

group of young men. 

“Intel spends way more money branding 

Intel Inside, but we’ll go to events, and 

gamers will come up to us with the Nvidia 

logo tattooed on their body, shaved on their 

head,” said Ujesh Desai, Nvidia’s vice president 

of corporate marketing. 

Leveraging its popularity with game fans, 

Nvidia has created Tegra Zone, a collection of 

games optimized to work better on mobile 

devices using Nvidia’s Tegra processors. Ads 

for tablets like Google’s Nexus 7 boast of 

Nvidia’s punchy graphics. 

“Our tack doesn’t start with, ‘How much 

are we going to pay you so you put our logo 

on there?’ Our tack is more, ‘Here’s how we 

can partner with you so we can create a 

great experience,’” Desai said. 

With stagnant PC sales, executives see 

mobile gadgets as the future. Annual 

sales of processors used in smartphones 

and tablets could hit $25 billion by 2016, 

compared with $9 billion last year, according 

to market research firm Strategy 

Analytics. —AP

HEALTH & SCIENCE 

New proof testosterone reason women outlive men 

WASHINGTON: Scientists said yesterday they have 

new evidence about why women live longer than 

men; from a study of historical data showing castrated 

Koreans far outlived their non-eunuch contemporaries. 

The study, published in the scientific journal 

“Current Biology,” used detailed genealogical records 

of the Imperial nobility during Korea’s Joseon 

dynasty, which spanned more than 500 years from 

the late 1300s to the early 1900s. According to the 

data, most men, including kings and royal family 

members, died in their late-40s or early-50s. 

But noble-class eunuchs-men who were castrated 

either by accident or because of social benefits- 

AKRON: Dr Mark Pozsgay, and Dr Adrian G Dan both, advanced laparoscopic surgeons, 

close up the incision through the belly button. 

AKRON: There’s a novel way to remove a gallbladder: Use a surgical 

robot to take it out through the navel. Rather than using just 

their hands to guide instruments through multiple incisions, 

some surgeons are performing remote-controlled procedures 

through the patient’s belly button. The single-port, robotic-assisted 

gallbladder removal is the latest step in the push to make minimally 

invasive procedures even less invasive. After placing robotic 

arms and a 3-D camera through a 1-centimeter incision in the 

belly button, trained surgeons can sit away from the patient at a 

control panel for the daVinci Surgery System and carefully navigate 

through an inflated abdominal cavity with tiny, precise 

movements. 

“We are heading toward minimizing minimally invasive surgery,” 

said Dr Jihad Kaouk, director of the Center for Robotic and 

Image Guided Surgery at the Cleveland Clinic. The first robotic 

single-port gallbladder removal using new instruments designed 

for the technique was performed about 1 years ago at the 

Cleveland Clinic as part of a trial, according to Kaouk. The surgical 

lived, on average, to the ripe, old age of 70. Study 

author Kyung-Jin Min of South Korea’s Inha 

University, told AFP the reason is probably that manly 

hormone, testosterone: “Testosterone is known to 

increase the incidence of coronary heart disease and 

reduce immune function in males,” he said. 

Castration “removes the source of male sex hormones,” 

the study notes, adding the practice has 

already been proven to help many male animals live 

longer. 

Castration also cuts off the possibility of reproduction, 

which Kyung-Jin noted could also be a factor. 

According to “one of the leading theories of 

aging, aging occurs at the expense of reproduction,” 

he said, because the body has limited energy that 

can be used either to keep up reproductive function, 

or else to keep up everything else. But although the 

eunuchs could not father children biologically, they 

married, adopted and raised children, and generally 

lived lives very similar to their non-castrated peers. 

“In order to eliminate socioeconomic factors that 

could have affected lifespan, the lifespan of the 

eunuchs was compared to the lifespan of men from 

other Yan-ban (noble class) families with a similar 

socioeconomic status,” Kyung-Jin said. And “to 

exclude genetic factors that could have affected the 

AKRON: Dr Mark Pozsgay, left, and Dr Adrian G Dan, center, both advanced laparoscopic surgeons, 

adjust the instruments on the daVinci Surgical System. 

Surgeons offer procedures 

through belly button 

Movements are smoother with robotic-assisted single-incision surgery 

system was approved by the US Food and Drug Administration 

for gallbladder removal about nine months ago. 

Akron General and Summa health systems in Akron, Aultman 

Hospital and Mercy Medical Center in Canton and Wooster 

Community Hospital are offering the single-incision, robotic gallbladder 

surgery to patients who qualify for the procedure, 

according to the maker of the daVinci Surgical System. 

Performing surgery through the belly button can mean less 

scarring, reduced pain, lower blood loss and faster recovery than 

with the four incisions typically used for laparoscopic surgery, 

according to Dr Adrian G Dan, an advanced laparoscopic surgeon 

at Summa. 

AKRON: The view through the eye piece of a second control station shows what Dr Adrian G Dan sees as he uses the daVinci 

Surgical System for a gallbladder surgery on John Mohney, 46, of Stow, September 10, 2012, at Summa Akron City 

Hospital.— MCT photos 

French trial 

opens on cancer 

radiation scandal 

PARIS: Two doctors and a radio physicist were due to go on trial 

yesterday on manslaughter charges arising from radiation overdoses 

given to nearly 450 cancer patients in a French hospital. At 

least seven people died as a result of overdoses administered to 

patients at the Jean Monnet hospital in Epinal in northeastern 

France between 2001 and 2006. At least 24 people treated 

between May 2004 and August 2005 received 20 percent more 

radiation than they should have due to a calibration error. 

Another dysfunction led to 424 people being overdosed by 

between eight and 10 percent in the period spanning 2001 and 

2006. Many of the victims were being treated for prostate cancer. 

Scores of victims are due to testify from yesterday until 

October 31, some of them by video-link because they are too ill 

to attend court. The two doctors, Jean-Francois Sztermer, 64, 

Michel Aubertel, 62, and radio physicist Joshua Anah, 54, are 

accused of involuntary homicide, not helping people in danger 

and destroying evidence. Three health executives are also in the 

dock on charges of not helping people in danger. The errors 

occurred when the radiation machines were being upgraded 

with new ones acquired in 2004 and also due to doses being 

miscalculated. 

Michel Noel, 63, said he wanted justice. “My state of mind 

before the start of the trial is not good,” said Noel, who underwent 

treatment at the general hospital for prostate cancer at 

the end of 2005. “All that I hope for is that the officials accept 

their errors and are sentenced,” he told AFP. “I live with a pouch 

(that collects urine) and I cannot have sex,” he said. “It’s very difficult.” 

— AFP 

And by operating with a robot through the single port, he 

said, surgeons can get a better view with less clashing of instruments 

than what occurs when they try to manually move surgical 

tools through one opening. With robotic-assisted single-incision 

surgery, “the movements are much smoother,” agreed Dr Charu 

Paranjape, director of acute-care surgery service at Akron 

TEXAS: This photo provided by Kim Chapin shows a 41-pound fat cat 

named Skinny at the Richardson, Texas, Animal Services shelter. - AP 

General. “It has 3-D vision, so it’s much clearer.” 

Because the robotic approach is newer, the procedures can 

take longer and cost more, Paranjape said. The single incision also 

needs to be slightly larger compared to the cuts used for a multiport, 

minimally invasive approach. But, he said, “the important 

part is it’s evolving. It’s very exciting.” When John Mohney, 46, of 

Stow, Ohio, had his malfunctioning gallbladder removed at 

Summa Akron City Hospital last week, he opted for Dan to perform 

the procedure through one incision in the belly button. 

“It seemed like a good choice-one incision instead of four,” he 

said. Mohney was a good candidate for single-port robotic surgery 

because he’s not overweight and doesn’t have scarring from 

previous abdominal surgery-factors that can be contraindications, 

Dan said. 

Mohney left the hospital several hours after his surgery. Two 

days later, he was able to go watch his son’s middle school football 

game. “It’s a lot better than I thought it would be,” he said. “I’m 

glad I did it this way.”Not everyone, however, is convinced less is 

more. Dr Raymond P Onders, director of the adult minimally invasive 

surgery program at University Hospitals Case Medical Center 

in Cleveland, said he stopped doing any procedures through a 

single incision after discovering an increased risk for postsurgical 

hernias. 

The results of a multisite, long-term study presented last year 

by Onders at an American College of Surgeons meeting showed 

8.4 percent of patients suffered postsurgical hernias at the incision 

site within one year of single-incision laparoscopic gallbladder 

removal. Patients who had gallbladders removed through the 

four-port laparoscopic procedure had a 1.2 percent postsurgical 

hernia rate. “We feel the data did not support single-port gallbladder 

surgery,” he said. “It’s not worth having a second surgical 

procedure.” Instead, Onders said, he opts for minimally invasive 

surgery with fewer incisions-three instead of four. Summa’s Dan 

said the risk for hernia can increase whenever larger incisions are 

used. However, he said, the risk can be minimized if “a very meticulous, 

good closure” is performed by the surgeon. 

Kaouk pointed to another multisite study involving 

Cleveland Clinic surgeons that showed no increased hernia risk 

with single-port laparoscopic procedures. Kaouk said he 

expects more robotic procedures to be done through a single 

incision as the technology improves. “We think that the future of 

single-port surgery would be in robotics,” he said, “and we are 

just witnessing the early attempts of it.”— MCT 

RICHARDSON: Don’t be fooled by the name: 

Skinny the cat is one hefty feline. And all 41 

pounds of her needs a home. A Dallas-area animal 

shelter has cared for the 5-year-old orange 

tabby since getting a call about a stray in a yard 

about a week ago. Kim Chapin with Richardson 

Animal Services said Friday that Skinny’s “very 

sweet” - and the largest cat she’s seen in 21 years 

TOKYO: Japanese police yesterday arrested a 

man who posed as a doctor to earn cash, 

examining 2,300 people with little more than a 

few hours of self-study to back it up, police 

and media said. Miyabi Kuroki, 43, had no 

experience of medical school and passed himself 

off as a qualified doctor after finding the 

identity of a legitimate physician on the 

Internet, Jiji Press reported. 

He was dispatched by an employment 

agency to a Tokyo hospital where he conducted 

medical interviews, examined electrocardiograms 

and explained check-up results to 

lifespan, we compared the lifespan of eunuchs with 

multiple Yan-ban families.” Modern men looking to 

extend their lifespan could consider “testosterone 

reduction therapy,” but Kyung-Jin said it’s probably 

premature. 

For one thing, it is not clear if it would have an 

effect if the therapy were started at an older age-the 

eunuchs were all castrated as children. And for 

another, the therapy could have side effects that 

some men may feel make that longer life less worth 

living. “We may need to consider the side effects of 

it,” Kyung-Jin said, “mainly, reduction of sex drive in 

males.”—AFP 


Breathing 

Europe air 

shortens lives 

BRUSSELS: Air pollution is shortening 

lives by almost two years in parts of the 

European Union, the European 

Environmental Agency (EEA) said, 

strengthening the case for a tightening of 

emissions restrictions in the bloc. 

Legislation had managed to cut the 

amount of some toxins belched out by 

exhaust fumes and chimneys across 

Europe, an EEA report published yesterday 

said. But there were still dangerous levels 

of microscopic particles, known as particulate 

matter and linked to diseases such as 

lung cancer and cardiovascular problems, 

it added. On average, air pollution was 

reducing human lives across the region by 

roughly eight months, the report said. It 

also quoted separate European 

Commission-funded research showing 

that a reduction in particulates levels 

could extend life expectancy by 22 

months in some areas. 

The report did not spell out where 

those areas were, but it said that Poland 

and other industrial regions of eastern 

Europe had particularly high levels or particulate 

pollution. Alone among British 

cities, London also exceeded daily EU limits 

for particulate matter. Speaking after 

the launch of the report, EU Environment 

Commissioner Janez Potocnik said that a 

review of EU air quality laws next year 

needed to bring EU limits on pollution levels 

closer to the stricter World Health 

Organization (WHO) recommendations on 

safe levels of pollutants. “This (the report) 

is a really serious warning about the 

importance to our quality of life and 

health,” Potocnik told Reuters. 

Apart from the impact on health, EEA 

Executive Director Jacqueline McGlade 

said that the pollution cost the bloc 1 trillion 

euros ($1.3 trillion) a year in healthcare 

and dealing with the wider impact on 

ecosystems. “European Union policy has 

reduced emissions of many pollutants 

over the last decade, but we can go further,” 

she said. 

Particulate matter is considered to be 

the most serious air pollution risk in 

Europe. Using the most recent data from 

2010, the report said that 21 percent of the 

bloc’s urban population was exposed to 

larger particulate matter at concentrations 

above a daily EU limit. Up to 30 percent of 

city dwellers faced exposure to finer particles 

above the yearly EU target level. These 

finer particles are small enough to pass 

from the lungs into the bloodstream, making 

them particularly hazardous to health. 

Another major air pollutant is ozone, 

which can cause respiratory problems. 

Again, exposure levels were high, with 

sunny Mediterranean nations particularly 

affected because sunlight is needed to 

form ozone. In 2010, 97 percent of EU 

inhabitants were exposed to ozone above 

the WHO reference levels - and 17 percent 

above the much lower EU target level. 

The pollutants come from fumes from 

cars, industry and household fuel burning. 

After going through complex chemical 

reactions in the air, the pollutants get 

into water and agricultural land, thereby 

posing a threat to agricultural production. 

- Reuters 

41-pound cat named Skinny 

up for adoption in Texas 

with the shelter. Not surprising. US government 

growth charts show Skinny weighs about as 

much as the average 4-year-old child. Chapin 

says Skinny appears healthy except for being 

overweight and likely having diabetes. Blood 

tests have been ordered. Chapin says somebody 

apparently had been caring for the cat but officials 

aren’t sure who owned the huge kitty. — AP 

Self-study ‘fake’ Japan 

doc examined 2,300 

more than 2,300 people, local media said. He 

was undone when a medical exam study 

school where he had “taught” became suspicious 

and contacted the hospital. 

Police in Tokyo said yesterday they had 

arrested Kuroki on suspicion of forging a 

medical license in 2009 and earning 2.62 million 

yen ($34,000) by illegally working part 

time as a doctor at a hospital in Tokyo in 

2010 and 2011. The suspect reportedly 

admitted the wrongdoing, telling investigators: 

“I wanted money to pay child care and 

living expenses.”—AFP

HEALTH & SCIENCE 

Week-old panda cub dies in US zoo 

WASHINGTON: Mei Xiang, a Giant Panda is seen in the Giant 

Panda Habitat and Asia Trail 11 October, 2006 at the 

National Zoo. — AFP 

WASHINGTON: A week-old giant panda cub 

died Sunday at the National Zoo in the US capital, 

just days after it was seen squealing and 

squirming, officials said. Keepers and volunteers 

realized something was wrong when 

they heard sounds of distress from the cub’s 

mother, Mei Xiang, in the morning, the zoo 

said in a statement. After retrieving the as yet 

unnamed offspring, “veterinarians immediately 

performed CPR and other life-saving measures 

but the cub did not respond,” it said. “The 

National Zoo community mourns the loss of 

the giant panda cub,” the statement noted, 

adding that its mother “is under close observation.” 

Initial observations revealed no outward 

sign of trauma or infection, with veterinarians 

noting that the cub was “in good body condition” 

at just under100 grams. Following the sad 

discovery, zoo officials immediately turned off 

the “panda cam,” an Internet-accessible, 24hour 

camera trained on the animals. On 

Tuesday, two days after the cub was born, zoo 

staff said they had sneaked a few brief video 

peeks at the newborn, which at the time 

appeared to be developing well. 

One black-and-white webcam clip posted 

on the “panda cam” website showed mamma 

bear tenderly picking up baby bear with her 

mouth as she shifted position. “The cub actively 

squirms and vocalizes loudly in responsetwo 

good signs that the cub is healthy,” the zoo 

said at the time, adding there were even indications 

that the newborn was nursing successfully. 

The cause and time of the cub’s death 

remains unclear, with officials saying a necropsy 

was under way. More details are expected in 

the coming days. 

Zookeepers had chosen to keep a physical 

distance from Mei Xiang, on loan from China, 

in order to let her raise the cub naturally. Giant 

pandas are rare and endangered, with as few 

of 1,600 surviving in the mountain forests of 

central China. More than 300 others live in zoos 

and breeding centers, mostly in China. Mei 

Xiang and partner Tian Tian took up residence 

in Washington under a giant panda research 

and breeding agreement signed in January 

2011 between the National Zoo and the China 

Wildlife Conservation Association. — AFP 

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2012

Greetings 

Saleh was born on Friday September 21, 

2012 in Buffalo, New York to Waleed 

and Hiba Janem. Saleh is the first child 

to his parents, who are very happy and 

thankful to Almighty Allah and ask Him for 

His blessings. Saleh’s grandparents are very 

proud and cannot wait until they hold and 

play with the little grandchild. 

Write to us 

SEND US YOUR 

INSTAGRAM PICS 

What’s more fun than clicking a beautiful 

picture? Sharing it with others! This 

summer, let other people see the way 

you see Kuwait - through your lens. Friday 

Times will feature snapshots of Kuwait through 

Instagram feeds. If you want to share your 

Instagram photos, email us at 

instagram@kuwaittimes.net 

Avery happy birthday to Rupsh Naidu 

who celebrates his birthday today. 

Best wishes for a bright future and 

good health comes from parents Santaram 

Naidu Polineni and Lata, aunties Rajeswari 

and Vasudha, uncle C Mallikarjuna Naidu, 

brother Hemanth, sister Vathsalya and grand 

parents Polineni Subbarayudu Naidu, 

Leelavati. 

American Women’s 

League of Kuwait to 

hold drop-in breakfast 

Those willing to join AWL for our annual Sign-Up 

Breakfast can attend the organization’s drop-in 

breakfast on Saturday, 29th of September 2012, at 

The One Restaurant, Marina Mall, 9:30 am until noon. 

Come meet friends and sign up with AWL to participate 

in upcoming activities and events. Invite your friends 

along for the morning. 

Winter 2012 AMIE 

examination 

The AMIE Winter 2012 examinations will be 

held between Dec 01-07, 2012 as follows: 

Section A (Diploma) - December 1-4, 2012 

Section A (Non-Diploma) - December 1-7, 2012 

Section B - December 1-7, 2012 

The last date for submission of examination 

application forms are given hereunder: 

Candidates not appeared at Summer 2012 Exam: 

Aug 21 - Sept 21, 2012 

Candidates appeared at Summer 2012 Exam: 

Sept 21 - Oct 19, 2012. 

Candidates who intend to appear for the 

Winter 2012 examination must apply directly to 

Kolkata by filling the prescribed application form 

along with requisite amount of demand draft in 

favour of The Institution of Engineers (India), 

payable at Kolkata. 

Send to What’s On 

upcoming events, birthdays or 

celebrations by email: 

local@kuwaittimes.net 

Fax: 24835619 / 20 

30 

WHAT’S ON 


Bring authentic Sichuan cuisine to The Regency! 

China’s culinary masters 

As part of the relentless quest 

for gastronomic excellence 

The Regency Hotel is proud to 

present a culinary premiËre at its elegant 

Silk Road restaurant which will 

bring three Master Chefs from 

Beijing to Kuwait for just four days 

from 27th to 30th September. 

‘China’s Culinary Masters’ is an 

event which coincides with China’s 

annual National Day celebrations 

held on October 1st. Master Chefs 

Peng Zifu, Liu Xuefeng and Wang 

Zaozhu will be coming to Kuwait for 

the first time. These men are the culinary 

Èlite of China having recreated 

classic Chinese specialties for royalty, 

Heads of State and world leaders 

from around the world. 

Amongst those who have tasted 

their dishes include President of 

Russia, Vladimir Putin; the President 

of South Africa, Jacob G. Zuma; 

France’s ex-President Jacques Chirac; 

ex-US President George Bush (Snr) 

and of course an endless list of 

celebrities and dignitaries from 

China. 

In this, their first trip to Kuwait, 

W ith 

they will work with Executive Chef 

Austen Reid, and Executive Sous 

Chef, Anuraj Nair to demonstrate a 

range of famously spicy Sichuan 

dishes from China’s southwest such 

as the tongue-tingling gong pao 

chicken as well as non-spicy Chinese 

classics including dim sum. 

Sometimes referred to by its old 

name of Szechuan, the region’s cuisine 

typically offers pungent and 

spicy flavours, accompanied by 

piquant aromas of garlic, chili and 

the unique homegrown condiment, 

Sichuan pepper. Culinary buffs will of 

course know that peanuts, sesame 

paste and ginger are also prominent 

ingredients in Sichuan cooking. 

There are many local variations but 

the style of cooking in the city of 

Chengdu was deemed so sophisticated 

that in 2011 UNESCO declared 

it a City of Gastronomy. 

For those people who have never 

tasted authentic Chinese food, this 

experience will be like none other as 

the chefs will also take this rare 

opportunity to show diners the art of 

noodle making - taking a small piece 

of dough and ‘throwing’ it into their 

air in an aerial acrobatic show! 

Within minutes, the dough transforms 

into fine threads of spaghettilike 

consistency. 

Chef Austen stated “It is a real 

honour to have these accomplished 

chefs at The Regency to showcase 

what is possibly one of the greatest 

cuisines in the world! I am not sure if 

many people have had the pleasure 

of watching how noodles are traditionally 

made; the way the chef 

‘throws’ them in the air is quite 

amazing!” 

For the first time The Regency will 

offer an opportunity to win a fantastic 

prize of a complimentary meal for 

four at the China’s Culinary Masters 

event on September 27th 2012, 

please visit The Regency’s Facebook 

page (Regency.Kuwait) and follow 

the instructions for further details. 

NAFO celebrates Onam 

its full spirit and fervor, 

NAFO Kuwait (National 

Forum Kuwait) celebrated 

Onam 2012, on Friday, September 

21, 2012, at the Indian Community 

School Auditorium (Senior), Salmiya. 

As usual, immediately after the 

National anthems of both Kuwait and 

India, Anamika Anilkumar offered 

prayer. The traditional lamp 

“Bhadradeepam” was then lighted by 

the female members of NAFO family. 

Early in the morning, the floor was 

well decorated with 

“Athappookkalam” by Pradeep 

Kumar, Anjana, Sreejayan, Sreelatha, 

Madhu Menon and 

Sajitha. 

Cultural Secretary KC 

Gopakumar welcomed 

the audience. Chief 

guest, Deputy Chief of 

Mission and Charge 

D’Affaires of the Indian 

Embassy Vidhu P Nair, 

officially inaugurated 

the function chaired by 

President BS Pillai. 

While extending Onam 

wishes, Vidhu P Nair 

congratulated NAFO for 

its enthusiastic social, 

welfare and cultural 

services and wished all 

success for its future activities. NAFO 

Patron Vijayan Karayil and Advisory 

Board Member KG Nair felicitated the 

occasion. On behalf of NAFO, Vidhu P 

Nair was then honored with a 

memento by President, in appreciation 

of his exemplary services to the 

Indian diaspora in Kuwait. 

Two senior citizens of NAFO - C B 

Venugopala Panicker and S 

Harikrishnan were also honored with 

adorning Ponnada and memento 

respectively by Vijayan Karayil and K 

G Nair, in appreciation of their valued 

contributions towards NAFO activities. 

Acting General Secretary Murali 

S Nair formally introduced Panicker 

and Harikrishnan to the gathering, 

reading their brief profile. 

The new issue of NAFO newsletter 

“Sadgama” was also released on the 

Onam day by TA Remesh, Country 

Head, Gulfmart and Geant Easy 

supermarkets, by giving a copy to 

Chief Guest Vidhu P Nair, in the presence 

of Sadgama editor Rajkartha. 

Program Convener G Udaykumar 

proposed vote of thanks. 

A galaxy of eminent personalities 

including Dr CG Suresh, Dr Narayan 

Nampoori, RC Suresh, Dr Binumon, 

Rajesh Nair, Pancily Varkey, MA Hilal, 

KNS Das, Basheer Batha, Siddique 

Valiyakkath, Prasad Padmanabhan, 

Praful, and Jose Thomas, graced the 

occasion with their benevolent presence. 

During the day, NAFO family 

staged a variety of cultural programs, 

bringing back the nostalgic feelings 

of a bygone era of prosperity, equality 

and righteousness under the golden 

reign of King Mahabali. 

The skit “Onasilpam” envisaged 

and presented by R Subbaraman, 

Murali Nair, Anitha Murali, and their 

team, depicting the good old days of 

Onam and the appearance of 

“ONATHAR”, a rarely seen event in 

pravasi onams, were eye-catching by 

their uniqueness. 

Aranmula vallamkali and vanchippattu 

by V.R. Anilkumar, 

Rajendrakumar V R, Venugopal Nair, 

Anilkumar (Attuva), Arun R Nair, 

Baburaj, Rameshkumar, Binu B Nair, 

Sreekumar, Rajagopal Kartha, 

Manojkrishnan, Ajithkumar, Girish 

Murali was a major attraction of the 

day. 

The other highlighting event was 

the spell-binding “Thiruvathirakkali, 

meticulously performed by the lady 

members Chandrika Prasad, Divya 

Girish, Joshiba Sajiv, Mini Satish, 

Preethi Padmanabhan, Prathiba 

Menon, Smitha Shashikumar, Smruthi 

Vinayan, Sindhu Rajiv, Reshma 

Harikrishnan, Sunitha Pramod, and Dr 

Anitha Unnikrishnan under the choreography 

of NAFO member 

kalmandalam Priyam Anand 

and co-ordinationship of 

Smitha Shashikumar. 

The Fusion of Arabic and 

Punjabi Bhanghra dances 

staged by Pradeepkumar, 

Madhu Menon, Rajagopal, 

Srijayan, Ramadas, Premraj, 

Sarath Pillai, and Ramesh 

was also an attractive cultural 

feast on the happy occasion. 

Other songs/dances by 

NAFO family members - 

both adults and kids were 

added attractions. 

The musical extravaganza 

rendered by Navaneeth 

Varma took the audience to the 

ecstatic heights of joy which gave this 

year’s Onam program much more 

colorful reminiscences. 

Conveners Ajayakumar Rajgopal 

Kartha, Madhu Menon, Rajeev Pillai, 

and P Sreekumar co-ordinated the 

event in a most efficient and professional 

manner. Anjana Remesh and 

Vishnu Dutthan supported by 

Rajeswari Subbaraman presented the 

program with their brilliant compeering. 

In between the festivities, sumptuous 

feast the traditional Onasadya 

was served to all attendees and over 

all, it was an enjoyable and ever 

memorable celebration. 

Kuwait Cricket 

to organize open 

tourney for schools 

K uwait 

Cricket, the apex body of cricket in Kuwait 

would like to invite school cricket teams to participate 

in their tournaments which are planned 

to be to be held at the turf ground at Sulaibiya. Kuwait 

Cricket intends to conduct two cricket tournaments for 

U-15 and U-18 school children who should have valid 

Kuwait residence and be a student of their respective 

school. The tournaments will be played on Saturdays 

at Sulaibiya grounds and the matches will be 30 overs. 

Kuwait Cricket’s principal aim is to provide quality 

cricket to the young school cricketers in Kuwait and 

guide them to face international exposure which will 

nurture and develop their sporting skills. Moreover, 

Kuwait Cricket also aims to make use of sports to 

strengthen friendship and to bridge the gap between 

cultures and communities. Kuwait U-16 & U-19 teams 

have made various successful international tours to 

countries like Singapore, Malaysia, UAE, Nepal and 

Pakistan. Participation of school cricket teams will 

undoubtedly play a pivotal role in ensuring the success 

of the open cricket tournament and we look forward 

to your confirmation of attendance. A meeting of 

school representatives will be arranged shortly. 

UPCOMING EVENTS 

Calling all Ten-pin Bowlers 

The Indian Bowling League (IBL) Season 3 will be held at Cozmo 

Entertainment, Salmiya commencing on Friday the 28th of 

September at 3 pm. Kindly reserve your team in advance to 

avoid disappointment, on a first come first serve. 

‘Leniency of Islam’ 

An unprecedented initiative of KTV2 (English channel) is the 

new program by the name ‘Leniency of Islam’ presented by 

Shaikh Musaad Alsane and directed by Hamid Al-Turkait. The 

program is mainly meant to address the expatriates living in Kuwait. 

Religious questions are received through the program email qislam@tv.gov.kw 

and sms can be sent to- 97822021 and answered by 

the lecturer and Imam in Awqaf Ministry Shaikh Musaad Alsane - a 

Master Degree holder in Sharia and fiqih from Kuwait University. So 

don’t forget to watch the program every Friday at 1:00 pm. 

Focus Kuwait 6th annual day 

As a part of the 6th anniversary celebrations, Forum of Cadd 

Users (FOCUS Kuwait), a non-political, non-religious organization 

is set to stage a mega cultural event “Focus Fest-2012”. 

This mega event will be a blend of traditional and contemporary 

dance and musical extravaganza by renowned South Indian playback 

singers Jyotsna and Sudeesh. Scheduled for the afternoon of 

Friday, October 12, 2012, at the Al-Jeel Al-Jadeed School 

Auditorium, Hawally, the mega musical show, is expected to be a 

super-hit in Kuwait. 

Audition for ZEE Antakshari 

For the first time Indian Cultural Society brings you live excitement 

of ZEE - International Antakshari in Kuwait. Audition & 

first round will be held in Kuwait, there after followed by semi 

finals in India & Grand Finale in Dubai. Complete team of Carnival 

films & Zee TV will be in Kuwait for the final round of selection on 

Friday 5th October with Jaaved Jaaferi: Celebrity Judge, Akriti 

Kakkar: Female Bollywood Singer & Host of Antakshari, Manish Paul: 

Host for Auditions, Sarfaraz Khan: Actor, Director and Producer, 

Michael Amin: Producer & Director Carnival films world. Musicians, 

Male Singer & many more for live performances. Final audition at 

10 am & music show at 7:30 pm at AIS-Hawally. 

Tulukoota Kuwait ‘Merit Scholarship’ 

Applications are now being invited for “Tulukoota Kuwait Merit 

Cum Means Scholarship” to be awarded during Tuluparba 

2012 scheduled to be held on October 11 and 12, 2012. The 

objective of this scholarship is to provide financial assistance and 

support to deserving meritorious students, to enable them to pursue 

their higher studies. Applications are accepted from minimum 

one year valid Tulukoota Kuwait member’s children studying either 

in the State of Kuwait or in India and scoring high grades in Xth and 

XIIth standard Board Examination held for Academic year 2011- 

2012.

T he 

IKEA Kuwait store has always prided itself in 

offering more than just complete home furnishings; 

it also serves as an entertaining venue for 

families while shopping to guarantee a wholesome 

experience. 

The IKEA Kuwait store is not only a full-fledged concept 

store of multipurpose home furnishings, available 

under one roof ,but also has a 378 seat family restaurant, 

tasty Bistro, and magical children’s play area, so it 

adds up to a wonderful shopping experience for all 

ages. The IKEA Kuwait store guarantees a friendly 

atmosphere with unique supervised children’s play 

area called SmÂland, a kids club that was conceived 

with special benefits for ages four to nine years, 

designed especially so that parents can trustfully leave 

their children. Kids love visiting the children’s section 

with its colorful furniture; and the famous SmÂland’s 

magical forest with its big trees and 40,000 blueberry 

balls to swim in. 

One of Kuwait’s best kept secrets is the amazing 

IKEA hot breakfast, served in the IKEA Kuwait restaurant, 

which opens half an hour early every morning 

and stays open all day for long for great value family 

meals. Also on offer is an appetizing children’s menu 

and a fun play area to keep the kids occupied while 

parents relax to enjoy their meals. 

The IKEA Kuwait store highly values customer safety 

and convenience, and includes medical facilities whenever 

required in order to ensure customers’ complete 

A SSE 

shopping experience and peace of mind. The store 

also includes facilities for special needs as well as comfortable 

nursing rooms for babies. 

IKEA Kuwait continues to adapt to its customers 

everyday simple needs with ranging services while 

31 

WHAT’S ON 

IKEA Kuwait: The ideal family destination 

upholding international quality standards and cultural 

preferences. 

ASSE Kuwait Chapter recognizes Dr Fatima Al-Shatti 

Kuwait Chapter recognized Dr 

Fatima Al Shatti, Manager 

Environment, Kuwait Petroleum 

Corporation on 16th September 2012 at 

Safir Hotel Fintas. Dr Fatima was given 

the recognition for her outstanding contributions 

towards HSE and being enlisted 

in WISE Book titled “100 Women - 

Making a Difference in the Safety, 

Health and Environmental Profession”. 

The felicitation session kicked off 

with the brief on the Women In Safety 

Engineering (WISE) activities in ASSE 

Kuwait Chapter by Janet Najare, Head, 

WISE Committee. She explained the formation 

of WISE Committee in Kuwait 

and its objective. She further briefed on 

the WISE book released by ASSE HQ during 

100th Anniversary celebrations. 

Kuwait HSE Specialist Dr Fatima Al- 

Movenpick Hotel 

Makkah celebrates 

KSA National Day 

Movenpick Hotel and 

Residence Hajar Tower 

Makkah celebrated the Saudi 

national day in its own way this year 

with the hotel’s employees. 

Many activities were held on the 

occasion on 23rd September. The 

Saudi national anthem was played, 

the staff drank Arabic coffee, ate traditional 

Saudi Kabsa. There was a specially 

prepared cake with the Saudi 

Flag on it to celebrate this memorable 

day. Front office employees also 

decorated the reception with the 

national flag and welcomed the 

guests with green sashes. In the midst 

of celebrating the nation’s 80th birthday, 

staff took the opportunity to 

catch up with one another and bond. 

The Movenpick Hotel & Residences 

Hajar Tower Makkah forms part of the 

prestigious Abraj Al Bait complex. The 

hotel is located directly on the Haram 

Court, facing the King Abdul Aziz 

Gate. It comprises 1,200 elegantly 

appointed rooms and suites on 41 

floors. The rooms are specifically 

designed for guests performing hajj 

“pilgrimage” and Umra as well as for 

businessmen. The hotel is located 73 

km east of Jeddah and 64 km from 

King Abdul-Aziz International Airport 

Jeddah. 

Shatti has been selected as one of “100 

Women Making Difference in SHE pro- 

fession” by ASSE-HQ on June 12, 2011, 

during ASSE’s annual Professional 

Development Conference and 

Exhibition in Chicago. This special honor 

recognizes Kuwait Chapter and Dr 

Fatima’s dedication for promoting innovation 

in Safety, Health and 

Environmental issues. Dr Fatima’s contribution 

to the Occupational Health, 

Safety and Environment is impressive 

and certainly merits this very special 

recognition. 

Dr Fatima Al-Shatti with a degree in 

Environmental Science from the 

University of Evansville (Indiana), and a 

PhD in Environment with Salford 

University in England is presently working 

with Kuwait Petroleum Corporation 

(KPC) as Manager Environment. She has 

25 years of rich experience in the area of 

environment. Out of which 10 years 

with Public Authority of Environment, as 

the manager of waste management and 

involved in the incinerators work for a 

Kuwait hospital during working with 

KEPA. She worked with American Army, 

in Kuwait for four and half years, helping 

them in how to handle their hazardous 

waste, 

Dr Fatima has been a member of the 

CTOC since 2005. She is also a member 

of the Kuwait Society of environment, 

and Institute of Environment 

Management & Assessment. She is a 

member of the ozone committee with 

KEPA. Vasudevan, President and Fadhel 

Al-Ali Chairman, ASSE Kuwait Chapter 

presented the “WISE” Book and honored 

Dr Fatima Al-Shatti with a memento. 

Konkani 

Drama 

X avier-Manuel 

productions 

will present the super-hit 

show of the season from 

Goa. “Aplea Bhurgeam 

Sangatak”, a theatre with special 

sceneries dedicated to all parents 

and children, loads of comedy, 

solos, duets, trios and quartets. 

Special songs by Dubai and 

Kuwait artists will be performed 

too. This is an invitation to all parents 

and children to watch this 

theatre. Aplea Bhurgean 

Sangatak is written and directed 

by Sammy Tavares (DySP). The 

show will be staged on Sept 28, 

2012, Friday at 5 pm at The 

American International School 

Hall, Maidan Hawally, Kuwait. 

Cast: Felcy, Roma, Sonia Sirsat, 

Rosalia, Anthony San, Mathew, 

Justin, Godwin, Anceto, Lawry, 

Marcus Vaz, Xavier Gomes, 

Cajetan De Sanvordem, Com. 

John D’Silva, Com. Sally, Com. 

Seby and Sammy Tavares. 

Singers Bab Agnelo from Kuwait, 

John Rose and Cajie D’Costa from 

Dubai. 

Embassy 


Information 

EMBASSY OF AUSTRALIA 

The Australian Embassy Kuwait does 

not have a visa or immigration department. 

All processing of visas and immigration 

matters in conducted by The 

Australian Consulate-General in Dubai. Email: 

info.ausdxb@vfshelpline.com (VFS) immigration.dubai@dfat.gov.au 

(Visa Office); Tel: 

+971 4 355 1958 (VFS) - +971 4 508 7200 

(Visa Office); Fax: +971 4 355 0708 (Visa 

Office). In Kuwait applications can be lodged 

at the Australian Visa Application Centre 4B 

1st Floor, Al-Banwan Building Al-Qibla Area, 

Ali Al-Salem Street, opposite the Central Bank 

of Kuwait, Kuwait City, Kuwait. Working hours 

and days: 09:30 - 17:30; Sunday - Thursday. 

Or visit their website www.vfs-au-gcc-com 

for more information. Kuwait citizens can 

apply for tourist visas on-line at 

www.immi.gov.au/e visa/e676.htm. 

■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ 

EMBASSY OF ARGENTINE 

The Embassy of Argentina requests all 

Argentinean citizens in Kuwait to proceed 

to our official email ekuwa@mrecic.gov.ar 

in order to register or update contact 

information. The embassy encourages all citizens 

to do so, including the ones who have 

already registered in person at the embassy. 

The registration process helps the Argentinean 

Government to contact and assist 

Argentineans living abroad in case of any 

emergency. 

■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ 

EMBASSY OF BRITAIN 

Consular section at the British Embassy 

will be starting an online appointment 

booking system for our consular customers 

from Sunday, 01 July 2012. All information 

including how to make an appointment is 

now available on the embassy website. In addition, 

there is also a “Consular Appointment 

System” option under Quick links on the right 

hand side on the homepage, which should take 

you to the “Consular online booking appointment 

system” main page. 

Please be aware that from 01 July 2012, we will 

no longer accept walk-in customers for legalisation, 

notarial services and certificates (birth, 

death and marriages). If you have problems 

accessing the system or need to make an 

appointment for non-notarial consular issues 

or have a consular emergency, please call 2259 

4355/7/8 or email us on consularenquirieskuwait@fco.gov.uk. 

If you require consular 

assistance out of office hours (working 

hours: 0730-l430 hrs), please contact the 

Embassy on 2259 4320. 

■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ 

EMBASSY OF CANADA 

The Embassy of Canada is located at Villa 

24, Al-Mutawakel St, Block 4 in Da’aiyah. 

Please visit our website at 

www.Kuwait.gc.ca. The Embassy of Canada is 

open from 07:30 to 15:30 Sunday through 

Thursday. The reception is closed from 12:30 to 

01:00 pm for lunch break. Consular Services for 

Canadian Citizens are provided from 09:00 until 

12:00 on Sunday through Wednesday. 

Individuals who are interested in visiting, working 

or immigrating to Canada are invited to visit 

the website of the Canadian Embassy to the 

UAE at www.UAE.gc.ca. 

■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ 

EMBASSY OF FRANCE 

The Embassy would like to inform that 

starting September 2nd, 2012, visa 

demands for France will be handled by 

the outsourcing company “Capago - MENA 

Company”. Capago - MENA’S Call Center will 

be operational starting Sunday August 26 for 

setting appointments beginning September 

2nd (+965 22270555). 

■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ 

TEMBASSY OF KENYA 

The Embassy of the Republic of Kenya 

wishes to inform the Kenyan community 

residents throughout Kuwait and the 

general public that the Embassy has acquired 

new office telephone numbers as follows: 

25353982, 25353985 - Consular’s enquiries 

25353987 - Fax Our Email address: 

info@kenyaembkuwait.com. 

■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ 

EMBASSY OF MYANMAR 

Embassy of the Republic of the Union of 

Myanmar would like to inform the general 

public that the Embassy has moved 

its office to new location at Villa 35, Road 203, 

Block 2, Al-Salaam Area in South Surra. The 

Embassy wishes to advice Myanmar citizens 

and travellers to Myanmar to contact 

Myanmar Embassy at its new location. Tel. 

25240736, 25240290, Fax: 25240749, email:myankuwait11@gmai1.com. 

■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ 

EMBASSY OF NIGERIA 

The Nigerian embassy has its new office in 

Mishref. Block 3, Street 7, House 4. For 

enquires please call 25379541. Fax- 

25387719. Email- nigeriakuwait@yahoo.com 

or nigeriankuwait@yahoo.co.uk. 

■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ 

EMBASSY OF UKRAINE 

We’d like to inform you that in response 

to the increasing number of our citizens 

who work in the state and the need for 

24-hour operational telephone in case of 

emergency the Embassy of Ukraine in the State 

of Kuwait has opened “hotline telephone number” 

- (+ 965) 972-79-206.

00:45 Maneaters 

01:35 Untamed & Uncut 

02:25 Shark Attack Survival Guide 

03:15 Dogs 101 

04:05 Bad Dog 

04:55 Cheetah Kingdom 

05:20 Echo And The Elephants Of 

Amboseli 

05:45 Vet On The Loose 

06:10 Vet On The Loose 

06:35 Wildlife SOS 

07:00 Karina: Wild On Safari 

07:25 Weird Creatures With Nick 

Baker 

08:15 Dick ‘n’ Dom Go Wild 

08:40 Breed All About It 

09:10 Michaela’s Animal Road Trip 

10:05 Sharkman 


11:25 Bondi Vet 

11:55 Animal Cops Houston 

12:50 Wild Africa Rescue 

13:15 Wild Africa Rescue 

13:45 Animal Precinct 

14:40 Sharkman 

15:30 Karina: Wild On Safari 

16:00 Dick ‘n’ Dom Go Wild 

16:30 Baby Planet 

17:25 Project Puppy 

17:50 Project Puppy 

18:20 Dogs/Cats/Pets 101 


19:40 Bondi Vet 

20:10 Cheetah Kingdom 

20:35 Echo And The Elephants Of 

Amboseli 

21:05 Jaws Comes Home: Return Of 

The... 

22:00 Animal Airport 

22:25 Animal Airport 

22:55 New Breed Vets With Steve 

Irwin 



00:20 Ty Pennington’s Homes For The 

Brave 

01:05 MasterChef 


02:45 Saturday Kitchen 2008/09 

03:10 Saturday Kitchen 2008/09 

03:40 Living In The Sun 


05:00 Home Cooking Made Easy 

05:25 Living In The Sun 


06:50 Open House 

07:15 Ty Pennington’s Homes For The 

Brave 

08:00 MasterChef Australia 

08:50 MasterChef Australia 


09:45 Holmes On Homes 

10:35 Bargain Hunt 

11:20 Antiques Roadshow 

12:15 Extreme Makeover: Home 

Edition 




15:50 Antiques Roadshow 


Edition 

18:00 Rachel’s Favourite Food For 

Living 

18:25 The Hairy Bikers’ Cookbook 

18:55 Rick Stein’s Far Eastern Odyssey 

19:45 James Martin’s Champagne 

20:10 Come Dine With Me 





Edition 

Edition 

00:15 Hillbilly Handfishin’ 

01:10 Eyewitness 

01:35 Around The World In 80 Ways 

02:30 Deadliest Catch 


04:20 Border Security 

04:50 Auction Hunters 

05:15 How Do They Do It? 

05:40 How It’s Made 


07:00 American Chopper: Senior vs 

Junior 

07:50 Mythbusters 

08:45 Ultimate Survival 





11:25 Around The World In 80 Ways 





15:05 Ultimate Survival 

16:00 American Chopper: Senior vs 

Junior 

16:55 Wheeler Dealers 


18:15 Mythbusters 





21:00 Deconstruction 

21:30 Life On A Wire 

22:25 Finding Bigfoot 

23:20 Rattlesnake Republic 

23:20 Surviving Disaster 

00:35 Engineered 

01:25 Nextworld 

02:15 Things That Move 


03:05 The Gadget Show 

03:35 Smash Lab 

04:25 Through The Wormhole With 

Morgan Freeman 





07:50 Head Rush 

07:53 Weird Connections 

08:20 How Does That Work? 

08:50 Prototype This 







13:00 Nyc: Inside Out 





16:00 Head Rush 

16:03 Weird Connections 

16:30 How Does That Work? 





19:30 Catch It Keep It 

20:20 Scrapheap Challenge 



22:00 Stuck With Hackett 

22:25 Stuck With Hackett 

22:50 Scrapheap Challenge 


20:20 Bang Goes The Theory 

00:15 Little Einsteins 

00:40 Jungle Junction 



01:30 Special Agent Oso 


02:00 Lazytown 
















06:45 Handy Manny 



07:45 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 

08:10 The Hive 

08:20 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 




09:15 Mini Adventures Of Winnie The 

Pooh 

09:20 Mouk 

09:35 Mouk 




10:45 Art Attack 

11:10 Imagination Movers 












15:00 Mouk 


15:25 101 Dalmatians 




16:45 Art Attack 






18:35 The Adventures Of Disney 

Fairies 


Pooh 



19:40 Mouk 





Pooh 

20:35 A Poem Is... 

20:40 Animated Stories 

20:45 Mouk 





22:20 Timmy Time 







Lazytn 

00:25 Wrestling With Reality 

00:50 Wrestling With Reality 

01:20 Pro Bull Riders 2010 

02:15 World Combat League 

03:10 TNA: Greatest Matches 

04:05 Formula Drift 2011 


05:00 M1 Challenge 


07:00 Ride Guide Snow 2009 

07:25 Ride Guide Snow 2009 

07:55 Winter Dew Tour 10/11 

08:50 Freeflow Tour 


09:45 Blood, Sweat And Gears 

10:40 Fantasy Factory 



12:30 Danger Men 

13:25 Carpocalypse 




16:10 Winter Dew Tour 10/11 



18:00 Danger Men 


19:50 Carpocalypse 




22:35 TNA: Greatest Matches 

23:30 M1 Challenge 

00:05 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 


00:55 Jenny Morris Cooks Morocco 


01:45 Extra Virgin 

02:10 Extra Virgin 

02:35 Luke Nguyen’s Vietnam 

03:00 Luke Nguyen’s Vietnam 



04:15 Guy’s Big Bite 

04:40 Outrageous Food 

05:05 Unique Eats 

05:30 Chopped 

06:10 Barefoot Contessa 


07:00 Iron Chef America 



08:40 Charly’s Cake Angels 



09:55 Cooking For Real 


10:45 Healthy Appetite With Ellie 

Krieger 

11:10 Kelsey’s Essentials 

11:35 Hungry Girl 

12:00 Chopped 







15:20 Unique Sweets 

15:45 Food Network Challenge 








19:30 Chopped 

20:20 Iron Chef America 





22:50 Grill It! With Bobby Flay 

23:15 Grill It! With Bobby Flay 


23:40 Guy’s Big BiteBite 

00:30 The Haunted 

01:20 A Haunting 

02:05 Stalked: Someone’s Watching 


02:55 Scorned: Crimes Of Passion 

03:45 Extreme Forensics 

04:30 The Haunted 

05:20 A Haunting 

06:10 Disappeared 

07:00 Forensic Detectives 

07:50 Murder Shift 

08:40 Mystery Diagnosis 

09:30 Real Emergency Calls 

09:55 Who On Earth Did I Marry? 

10:20 True Crime With Aphrodite 

Jones 


12:00 Street Patrol 


13:40 Mystery Diagnosis 

14:30 Real Emergency Calls 



Jones 


17:00 Forensic Detectives 




Jones 


20:20 Nightmare Next Door 

21:10 Couples Who Kill 

22:00 Fatal Encounters 

22:50 Killer Kids 

23:40 Dr G: Medical Examiner 

00:00 Around The World For Free 

01:00 One Man & His Campervan 

02:00 Long Way Down 

03:00 Destination Extreme 

04:00 Travel Oz 

05:00 Madventures 















15:30 Deadliest Journeys 2 








20:00 Food Lover’s Guide To The 

Planet 


21:00 David Rocco‚Äôs Dolce Vita 3 

21:30 David Rocco‚Äôs Dolce Vita 3 

22:00 Wheel2Wheel 

22:30 Wheel2Wheel 

23:00 Graham’s World 

23:30 Market Values 

23:00 Naked Science 

00:00 Python Hunters 

01:00 Caught In The Act 

01:55 Hooked 

02:50 World’s Weirdest 

03:45 Built For The Kill 

04:40 Caught In The Act 

05:35 Wild Chronicles 

06:00 Wild Chronicles 

06:30 Swamp Men 

07:25 Swamp Men 

08:20 Python Hunters 

09:15 World’s Worst Venom 

10:10 Extinction Sucks 

10:35 Nat Geo’s Most Amazing 

Photos 

11:05 Wildlife Rescue Africa 

12:00 Sahara 

13:00 Savannah 


14:00 Croc Labyrinth 



Photos 

16:00 Catching Giants 

17:00 Ultimate Predators GPU 

18:00 When Crocs Ate Dinosaurs 

19:00 Monster Fish 



21:00 Croc Labyrinth 



Photos 

23:00 Hunter Hunted 

TV PROGRAMS 

00:00 Survival Of The Dead-18 

02:00 The Cry Of The Owl-PG15 

04:00 Never Back Down 2: The 

Beatdown-18 

06:00 I Am Number Four-PG15 

08:00 True Justice: Urban Warfare- 

PG15 

09:30 Spartacus-PG15 

12:45 Game Of Death-PG15 

14:30 True Justice: Urban Warfare- 

PG15 

16:00 The Reunion-PG15 

18:00 Game Of Death-PG15 

20:00 The Transporter-PG15 

22:00 Transporter 2-PG15 

20:00 Fighting-PG15 

22:00 Homecoming-18 

00:30 The Daily Show Global Edition 

01:00 The Colbert Report Global 

Edition 

02:30 Hot In Cleveland 

03:30 Raising Hope 

04:30 The Tonight Show With Jay 

Leno 

09:30 Allen Gregory 


Leno 

14:00 Raising Hope 

15:30 The Daily Show Global Edition 

16:00 The Colbert Report Global 

Edition 

18:00 30 Rock 

19:00 The Cleveland Show 

19:30 The Office 


Leno 

21:00 The Daily Show With Jon 

Stewart 

21:30 The Colbert Report 

22:00 The League 

22:30 The Ricky Gervais Show 

23:00 Hot In Cleveland 

23:30 Late Night With Jimmy Fallon 

00:00 Hawthorne 

01:00 Boardwalk Empire 

02:00 The Newsroom 

03:00 Greek 

04:00 Unforgettable 

05:00 House 


07:00 Emmerdale 

07:30 Coronation Street 

08:00 The Closer 

09:00 The Ellen DeGeneres Show 

10:00 Unforgettable 

11:00 House 










19:00 Grey’s Anatomy 

20:00 Private Practice 

21:00 Homeland 

22:00 Breaking Bad 

23:00 Greek 

23:00 Greek 

01:00 RoboCop 3-PG15 

03:00 Law Abiding Citizen-18 

05:00 Four Brothers-PG15 

07:00 True Justice: Lethal Justice- 

PG15 

09:00 So Close-PG15 

11:00 Four Brothers-PG15 

13:00 Inside Out-PG15 

15:00 So Close-PG15 

17:00 Arachnophobia-PG15 

19:00 Empire-18 

21:00 Transporter 2-PG15 

23:00 Army Of Darkness-18 

23:00 The Speak-18 Luste 

00:00 The Trotsky-PG15 

02:00 Wayne’s World 2-PG15 

04:00 The Bad News Bears (2005)-PG 

06:00 My Girlfriend’s Boyfriend-PG15 

08:00 Wayne’s World 2-PG15 

10:00 Baby Geniuses-PG 

12:00 Kuffs-PG 

14:00 Kung Fu Dunk-PG15 

16:00 Baby Geniuses-PG 

18:00 The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The 

Galaxy-PG 

20:00 No Strings Attached-18 

22:00 The Extra Man-PG15 

01:00 Skirt Day-PG15 

03:00 Posse-18 

05:00 Divorces!-PG15 

07:00 Swansong: Story Of Occi 

Byrne-PG15 

09:00 The LXD: Secrets Of The Ra- 

PG15 

10:45 Heart And Souls-PG 

12:30 Another Year-PG15 

14:45 The LXD: Secrets Of The Ra- 

PG15 

16:30 A L’origine-PG15 

18:45 Eat Pray Love-PG15 

23:00 Henry & June-R 

23:30 Square Grouper-18 

01:00 Love And Other Impossible 

Pursuits-PG15 

03:00 The Art Of Getting By-PG15 

05:00 Elevator Girl-PG15 

07:00 The Tender Hook-PG15 

09:00 Flash Of Genius-PG15 

11:00 Last Of The Living-PG15 

13:00 The Birth Of Big Air-PG15 

14:00 Muhammad And Larry-PG15 

15:00 Alabama Moon-PG15 

17:00 Flash Of Genius-PG15 

19:00 Crazy, Stupid, Love.-PG15 

21:00 Hereafter-18 

23:15 Bucky Larson: Born To Be A 

Star-18 

00:00 The Ugly Duckling In The 

Enchanted Forest-PG15 

02:00 The Three Bears: Dreadful 

Dangers-FAM 

04:00 The Lucky Dragon-PG 

06:00 Hoodwinked Too! Hood vs. Evil- 

PG 

08:00 Freddy Frogface-PG 

10:00 Marco Macaco-FAM 

12:00 The Lucky Dragon-PG 


16:00 Lego: The Adventures Of 

Clutch Powers-FAM 

18:00 Marco Macaco-FAM 

20:00 Spy Kids: All The Time In The 

World-PG 


22:00 Rainbow Valley Heroes-FAM 

SHARQIA-1 

PREMIUM RUSH (2D-Digital) 12:45 PM 

ROBOT & FRANK (2D- Digital) 2:45 PM 





PREMIUM RUSH (2D-Digital) 12:45 AM 

NO SUN+TUE+WED 

SHARQIA-2 

BAIT (3D- Digital) 12:30 PM 

FINDING NEMO (3D-Digital) 2:30 PM 



RESIDENT EVIL: RETRIBUTION 8:30 PM 


RESIDENT EVIL: RETRIBUTION 12:30 AM 


SHARQIA-3 

SILENT HOUSE (2D- Digital) 1:30 PM 


WAR OF THE DEAD (2D-Digital) 5:30 PM 

SEVEN BELOW (2D-Digital) 7:15 PM 



SILENT HOUSE (2D- Digital) 1:15 AM 


MUHALAB-1 








MUHALAB-2 





PREMIUM RUSH (2D-Digital) 




MUHALAB-3 


TETA RAHIBA (2D-Digital) 2:30 PM 





BAIT (3D- Digital) 12:45 AM 


FANAR-1 






ROBOT & FRANK (2D- Digital) 12:15 AM 


FANAR-2 








FANAR-3 


STOLEN (2D-Digital) 2:45 PM 


HEROINE -Hindi (2D- Digital) 6:45 PM 


WAR OF THE DEAD (2D-Digital) 12:45 AM 


FANAR-4 









FANAR-5 

SILENT HOUSE 1:30 PM 

THE EXPENDABLES 2 3:30 PM 






MARINA-1 








MARINA-2 









MARINA-3 









AVENUES-1 







AVENUES-2 







AVENUES-3 








AVENUES-4 





NO TUE (25/09/2012) 

Special Show “PREMIUM RUSH 

(2D-Digital)” for Mr. Dhari Al Aiban 7:15 PM 

TUE (25/09/2012) 




AVENUES-5 








AVENUES-6 








AVENUES-7 



BARFI! (Hindi)(2D-Digital) 5:45 PM 



AVENUES-8 





STOLEN (2D-Digital) 12:30 AM 


AVENUES-9 


Starting Time=12.30am 





WAR OF THE DEAD (2D-Digital) 12:15 AM 


AVENUES-10 








AVENUES-11 








360 º- 1 








360 º- 2 








360º- 3 






360 º- 4 








360 º- 5 


FRI+SAT 





360 º- 6 







360 º- 7 

THE EXPENDABLES 2 (2D-Digital) 2:30 PM 






360 º- 8 







KNCC PROGRAM FROM THURSDAY TILL TOMORROW (20/09/2012 TO 26/09/2012) 


PREMIUM RUSH (2D-Digital) 


1:00 AM 

360 º- 9 (VIP-1) 








360 º-10 (VIP-2) 








360 º- 11 








360 º- 12 








360 º- 13 








360 º- 14 






TETA RAHIBA (2D-Digital) 12:30 AM 


360º- 15 







AL-KOUT.1 









AL-KOUT.2 








AL-KOUT.3 









AL-KOUT.4 








BAIRAQ-1 









BAIRAQ-2 








BAIRAQ-3 








PLAZA 





LAILA 


PREMIUM RUSH 6:30 PM 


PREMIUM RUSH 10:30 PM 

AJIAL.1 



THAPPANA (Malayalam) (2D-Digital) 7:30 PM 

PREMIUM RUSH (2D-Digital) 10:30 PM

Classifieds 


Request for VIP Business Man 

Driver 

-With experience not less 5 years & familiar with the 

roads in Kuwait 

-Can speak either English or Arabic 

-Has a driver’s license 

-Presentable & neat 

-Can Drive Luxury cars 

-Transferable Residence 

Cook 

-With International & continental cuisine experience 

-Can speak either English or Arabic 


-Good character 

House Keeper 

-Experienced 

-Fluent in English 


-With Good character 

Note: Good salary depending 

on experience and competence 

Please send your CV with photo to 

below email or call 97273108 

Email:currentjob2011@gmail.com 

Kuwait Parliament 

www.majlesalommah.net 

Ministry of Interior 

www.moi.gov.kw 

Public Authority for Civil Information 

www.paci.gov.kw 

Kuwait News Agency 

www.kuna.net.kw 

Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affair 

www.islam.gov.kw 

Ministry of Energy (Oil) 

www.moo.gov.kw 

Ministry of Energy (Electricity and Water) 

www.energy.govt.kw 

Public Authority for Housing Welfare 

www.housing.gov.kw 

Ministry of Justice 

www.moj.gov.kw 

Ministry of Communications 

www.moc.kw 

Supreme Council for Planning and Development 

www.scpd.gov.kw 

Arrival Flights on Tuesday 25/9/2012 

Airlines Flt Route Time 

JZR 185 DUBAI 0:15 

QTR 148 DOHA 0:20 

JZR 539 CAIRO 0:30 

RJA 642 AMMAN 2:10 

GFA 211 BAHRAIN 2:20 

UAE 853 DUBAI 2:25 

ETD 305 ABU DHABI 2:30 

OMA 643 MUSCAT 2:50 

FDB 67 DUBAI 3:10 

MSR 612 CAIRO 3:20 

RBG 3553 ALEXANDRIA 3:20 

QTR 138 DOHA 3:25 

JZR 503 LUXOR 3:55 

KAC 544 CAIRO 4:10 

THY 770 ISTANBUL 4:35 

DHX 170 BAHRAIN 5:00 

JZR 555 ALEXANDRIA 6:00 

KAC 412 MANILA 6:15 

BAW 157 LONDON 6:30 

KAC 416 JAKARTA 6:35 

KAC 206 ISLAMABAD 7:15 


KAC 302 MUMBAI 7:50 

KAC 332 TRIVANDRUM 7:55 

KAC 352 COCHIN 8:05 

KAC 284 DHAKA 8:15 


ABY 125 SHARJAH 8:30 


QTR 132 DOHA 9:00 


IRA 605 ISFAHAN 9:20 



IRA 619 LAR 10:40 


MEA 404 BEIRUT 10:55 


MSR 618 ALEXANDRIA 11:25 

MSC 401 ALEXANDRIA 12:00 

JZR 561 SOHAG 12:25 



KAC 672 DUBAI 13:40 

KAC 514 TEHRAN 13:40 


KNE 472 JEDDAH 14:15 

QTR 140 DOHA 14:25 

SVA 500 JEDDAH 14:30 

KAC 562 AMMAN 14:30 

GOVERNMENT WEB SITES 

The Public Institution for Social Security 

www.pifss.gov.kw 

Public Authority of Industry 

www.pai.gov.kw 

Prisoners of War Committee 

www.pows.org.kw 

Ministry of Foreign Affairs 

www.mofa.gov.kw 

Kuwait Municipality 

www.municipality.gov.kw 

Kuwait Electronic Government 

www.e.gov.kw 

Ministry of Finance 

www.mof.gov.kw 

Ministry of Commerce and Industry 

www.moci.gov.kw 

Ministry of Education 

www.moe.edu.kw 

Ministry of Information 

www.moinfo.gov.kw 

Kuwait Awqaf Public Foundation 

www.awqaf.org 


KAC 546 ALEXANDRIA 15:05 

QTR 134 DOHA 15:15 




UAL 982 WASHINGTON DC DULLES 17:10 


SVA 510 RIYADH 17:20 


JZR 777 JEDDAH 17:40 



QTR 144 DOHA 18:20 

SYR 341 DAMASCUS 18:30 

KAC 166 PARIS 18:40 

KAC 786 JEDDAH 18:40 


KAC 104 LONDON 18:45 

MSR 624 SOHAG 18:55 

MSC 403 ASSIUT 19:00 

JZR 325 NAJAF 19:15 

KAC 618 DOHA 19:20 


KAC 742 DAMMAM 19:30 

KAC 614 BAHRAIN 19:30 

JAI 572 MUMBAI 19:35 

KAC 774 RIYADH 19:40 

AXB 389 KOZHIKODE 19:55 




QTR 146 DOHA 20:25 


ALK 229 COLOMBO 20:55 

KLM 415 AMSTERDAM 21:05 




QTR 136 DOHA 21:35 

QTR 6130 DOHA 21:50 

AIC 981 CHENNAI 22:25 



UAL 981 BAHRAIN 22:40 

JZR 239 AMMAN 22:55 

DLH 636 FRANKFURT 23:10 

JZR 513 SHARM EL SHEIKH 23:30 



PIA 205 LAHORE 23:59 

ACCOMMODATION 

Immediate sharing accommodation 

available for a 

decent Indian Christian 

bachelor or, couple, near by 

Salmiya garden. Contact: 

66884273, 25657832. 

(C 4148) 

25-9-2012 

Single room accommodation 

for 2 Keralite bachelors 

(non-smoking) in CAC flat 

(single tenant occupies portioned 

hall) at Abbassiya 

opposite to Jas Cargo 

(opposite side of police station), 

reasonable rent. Call 

66349475. (C 4176) 

23-9-2012 

SITUATION WANTED 

Sri Lankan lady looking for 

house cleaning part time 

job, English family only. 

Call 55680045. (C 4149) 

Sri Lankan driver looking 

for a job good company or 

office with good salary, 

transferable visa 18 (license 

with pick up permit). Call 

97970965. (C 4150) 

25-9-2012 

Australian Project 

Manager, with two 

Engineering Degrees and 

four Master Degrees, with 

23 years experience in Gulf 

and Australia, seeking top 

management job. Call: 

65695468. (C 4140) 

22-9-2012 

FOR SALE 

Used DSLR Nikon D90 

Camera body only for sale 

with Battery Grip and an 

extra battery, all with original 

package. Call or what’s 

app 66603401 

25-9-2012 

VW TAUREG, 2004 model, 

white color, beige interior, 

full options, only 83,000 km. 

Price KD 4,200. Contact: 

99405067. (C 4145) 

22-9-2012 

Furnished room with balcony 

and separate bath in a 2 

bedroom flat near Abbassiya 

opp new BEC. Call 99516426. 

(C 4143) 

Subaru outback model 

2005, metallic color, mileage 

2,12,000. Passing up to May 

2013, good interior & exterior 

for only KD 600. Tel: 

22493358. 

Toyota Camry model 2011 

GL silver color, 8,600 km 

Depature Flights on Tuesday 25/9/2012 

Airlines Flt Route Time 

AIC 976 GOA 0:05 

UAL 981 WASHINGTON DC DULLES 0:25 

DLH 637 FRANKFURT 0:30 


KLM 411 AMSTERDAM 0:55 

PIA 240 SIALKOT 1:00 





RBG 3554 ALEXANDRIA 4:00 



QTR 139 DOHA 4:50 

QTR 149 DOHA 5:40 

JZR 560 SOHAG 6:00 





KAC 545 ALEXANDRIA 8:10 

BAW 156 LONDON 8:25 




KAC 561 AMMAN 9:15 

KAC 513 TEHRAN 9:15 




QTR 133 DOHA 10:00 

KAC 101 LONDON 10:00 



IRA 604 ISFAHAN 10:20 



IRA 618 LAR 11:40 

KAC 165 ROME 11:45 


JZR 776 JEDDAH 12:15 


MSR 623 SOHAG 12:25 

MSC 404 ASSIUT 13:00 

KAC 785 JEDDAH 13:10 






KNE 473 JEDDAH 15:15 

Directorate General of Civil Aviation Home Page (www.kuwait-airport.com.kw) 

done, excellent condition, 

price KD 4,350. Contact: 

66839506. (C 4138) 

17-9-2012 

CHANGE OF NAME 

I, Shaikh Meetela Ahamad, 

S/O Shaik Mettala Vali, 

holder of Indian Passport 

Fajr: 04:19 

Duhr: 11:40 

Asr: 15:06 

Maghrib: 17:41 

Isha: 18:57 

DIAL 161 FOR AIRPORT INFORMATION 

SITUATION VACANT 

Required driver for a 

Kuwaiti family. Call: 

99854312. (C 4144) 

22-9-2012 

Ministry of Interior 

website: www.moi.gov.kw 

112 

Prayer timings 

No: F3613218 have 

changed my name Shaik 

Meetela Ahmad to Shaik 

Mettala Imad. (C 4147) 

24-9-2012 

SVA 501 JEDDAH 15:45 

KAC 617 DOHA 15:45 

JZR 324 AL NAJAF 15:50 


QTR 135 DOHA 16:15 

KAC 773 RIYADH 16:25 

KAC 613 BAHRAIN 16:30 

KAC 741 DAMMAM 16:30 


JZR 512 SHARM EL SHEIKH 17:25 

JZR 238 AMMAN 17:30 


QTR 141 DOHA 17:45 




UAL 982 BAHRAIN 18:30 

SVA 511 RIYADH 18:35 

JZR 266 BEIRUT 18:50 

QTR 145 DOHA 19:20 


SYR 342 DAMASCUS 19:30 

MSR 607 LUXOR 19:55 

MSC 402 ALEXANDRIA 20:00 


KAC 283 DHAKA 20:15 

KAC 361 COLOMBO 20:20 

JAI 571 MUMBAI 20:35 


KAC 343 CHENNAI 20:55 

KAC 351 KOCHI 21:05 




DHX 171 BAHRAIN 21:50 

ALK 230 COLOMBO 21:55 

KLM 415 DAMMAM 22:05 


KAC 381 DELHI 22:20 



QTR 137 DOHA 22:35 

KAC 301 MUMBAI 22:40 

KAC 205 ISLAMABAD 22:45 

JZR 554 ALEXANDRIA 23:00 

QTR 147 DOHA 23:10 

AXB 390 MANGALORE 23:10 


QTR 6131 DOHA 23:20 


KAC 411 BANGKOK 23:40 

JZR 528 ASSIUT 23:50

34 stars 

CROSSWORD 807 CALVIN & HOBBES 

ACROSS 

1. Pathetically lacking in force or effectiveness. 

5. An Arabic speaking person who lives in Arabia or North 

Africa. 

9. To run away. 

13. English essayist (1775-1834). 

14. A Chadic language spoken south of Lake Chad. 

15. Characterized by lightness and insubstantiality. 

16. Type genus of the Aceraceae. 

17. Slightly open. 

18. Something causes misery or death. 

19. A Dravidian language spoken in southern India. 

22. An international organization of European countries formed 

after World War II to reduce trade barriers and increase cooperation 

among its members. 

23. A coffee cake flavored with orange rind and raisins and 

almonds. 

26. A genus of Ploceidae. 

29. The father of your father or mother. 

33. Title for a civil or military leader (especially in Turkey). 

34. Fiddler crabs. 

36. A federal agency established to coordinate programs aimed 

at reducing pollution and protecting the environment. 

37. The cardinal number that is the sum of one and one and 

one. 

39. A run that is the result of the batter's performance. 

41. A legal document codifying the result of deliberations of a 

committee or society or legislative body. 

42. A board game in which players try to move their pieces into 

their opponent's bases. 

43. Young of domestic cattle. 

46. Primitive chlorophyll-containing mainly aquatic eukaryotic 

organisms lacking true stems and roots and leaves. 

48. A benevolent aspect of Devi. 

51. Empty rhetoric or insincere or exaggerated talk. 

55. Realistic Norwegian author who wrote plays on social and 

political themes (1828-1906). 

57. American novelist (1909-1955). 

58. A flat wing-shaped process or winglike part of an organism. 

60. (law) A defense by an accused person purporting to show 

that he or she could not have committed the crime in question. 

61. A tax levied on the difference between a commodity's price 

before taxes and its cost of production. 

64. (Old Testament) In Judeo-Christian mythology. 

65. A constellation in the southern hemisphere near 

Telescopium and Norma. 

66. (neurology) Of or relating to the vagus nerve. 

67. A small cake leavened with yeast. 

DOWN 

1. An accidental hole that allows something (fluid or light etc.) 

to enter or escape. 

2. Type genus of the Alcidae comprising solely the razorbill. 

3. Dignified manner or conduct. 

4. Gained or acquired. 

5. (Babylonian) God of storms and wind. 

6. The seventh month of the Moslem calendar. 

7. A loose sleeveless outer garment made from aba cloth. 

8. A room or establishment where alcoholic drinks are served 

over a counter. 

9. Of or relating to Fabianism. 

10. A soft heavy toxic malleable metallic element. 

11. Bulky grayish-brown eagle with a short wedge-shaped 

white tail. 

12. Having an eye or eyes or eyelike feature especially as specified. 

20. (zoology) Lacking a tail or taillike appendage. 

21. A Kwa language spoken in Ghana and the Ivory Coast. 

24. A soft white precious univalent metallic element having the 

highest electrical and thermal conductivity of any metal. 

25. A nonmetallic largely pentavalent heavy volatile corrosive 

dark brown liquid element belonging to the halogens. 

27. A city in northern India. 

28. The lower house of the parliament of the Republic of 

Ireland. 

30. Lacking or deprive of the sense of hearing wholly or in part. 

31. A drug combination found in some over-the-counter 

headache remedies (Aspirin and Phenacetin and Caffeine). 

32. An audiotape recording of sound. 

35. A particular geographical region of indefinite boundary 

(usually serving some special purpose or distinguished by its 

people or culture or geography). 

38. Affect with wonder. 

40. A hospital unit staffed and equipped to provide intensive 

care. 

44. Type genus of the Amiidae. 

45. 1 species. 

47. A republic in West Africa on the Gulf of Guinea. 

48. A sharp hand gesture (resembling a blow). 

49. Cubes of meat marinated and cooked on a skewer usually 

with vegetables. 

50. (Jungian psychology) The inner self (not the external persona) 

that is in touch with the unconscious. 

52. Any culture medium that uses agar as the gelling agent. 

53. The 6th letter of the Greek alphabet. 

54. God of death. 

56. Large genus of tropical subshrubs or herbs some of which 

yield fibers of mucilaginous substances. 

59. (Irish) Ancient Irish god (probably a god of the sun). 

62. The eleventh month of the civil year. 

63. A silvery ductile metallic element found primarily in bauxite. 

Yesterday’s Solution 

Word Search 

POOCH CAFE 

NON SEQUITUR 



Aries (March 21-April 19) 


STAR TRACK 

Due to the energies today, it may take a greater effort to listen 

and understand others’ points of view. If you do not make 

this effort, your day will likely have a few difficulties. Do not try to settle arguments 

today, as both of you are likely to be entrenched in your own positions. It is 

best to ask for time to think over some proposition or give the other person time 

to think over your position. Work that requires precision, careful planning and 

patience is favored. Remember that you are working toward achieving your 

future goals. You will be practical and frugal when necessary, and being motivated 

and driven, even in times of plenty, you will not waste valuable resources. 

There are plans underway for a family outing soon. This outing is a must! 

Taurus (April 20-May 20) 

Be prepared to work hard today! There may be many 

instances when you will have to supply a solution to a particular problem. Selfdiscipline 

at the workplace is most important. Now is the time to concentrate on 

practical matters. External or internal pressures may force you to reevaluate your 

priorities. Your social and romantic plans can have a few obstacles this afternoon. 

You can come across as being self-centered; careful. Seek stability and quiet times 

and do not neglect the needs of others. Events around you can be confusing; listen. 

You may dream of more freedom and adventure, but your ideals and expectations 

may not be realistic. Keep to your moral ideals and give your help and 

healing care to those who need your inspiration. 

Gemini (May 21-June 20) 

Take your impatience in hand and do not take others’ opinions 

too personally. Avoid stress as much as possible and do not 

take any physical risks. You are likely to feel restless and bored with normal routine 

matters; you will probably introduce some new elements into your activities. 

Although this cycle will induce you to be more impulsive and less reliable than 

usual, it also gives you the power to break out of any rut you may have made for 

yourself. Your thinking will become more original than usual. Do not become 

suckered into doing something you do not believe is right. It may be time to pull 

closer to a loved one or start anew. There is a resurgence of idealism in your life. 

The old material concerns seem less important now. 

Cancer (June 21-July 22) 

You benefit from research or through the effort in directing 

your insight toward understanding other people’s motivations. 

You may have a desire to develop business or corporate strategy. This can be an 

important time to recycle some old techniques and styles of working. Sex drive 

also tends to increase. Communications tend to concern corporate business, joint 

finances, insurance and taxes. You may make short trips for business purposes. 

Intellectual interest turns toward secrets, mysteries, science, investigation and sex. 

This is a very fortunate time that occurs once every twelve years, often heralding 

the beginnings of major positive changes in life. You are filled with optimism and 

good cheer; things will almost assuredly go your way. 

Leo (July 23-August 22) 

If you are uncertain about your goals and objectives, this is 

not a good time for business deals, a move or a job transfer. You 

meet unexpected obstacles. It’s a good time to reevaluate your financial security 

plans, your will, taxes and insurance. Eliminate financially unproductive areas and 

put more effort into meaningful pursuits. You tend to form close relationships to 

dynamic authoritative individuals. You may have more dealings with a romantic 

or business partner, or you may deal with others closely as a team. You may be 

more involved in legal affairs. As you tend to be more outgoing, marketing and 

sales or a public relations business is a good choice for you. You seek fairness and 

balance in all your relationships and this is good. 

Virgo (August 23-September 22) 

You have the energy to accomplish much—for bad or good. 

This is a time of decision making and path finding. Everything has 

repercussions—weigh your options. You are stirred to accomplish much. However, 

you need to stay focused so as to lessen any chance of blocks. How you handle 

these tests determine whether you will use this day to your benefit. Doing what is 

best may not be the easiest route but will have long-term benefits. Make sure other 

projects are completed before attempting new ones. Take great pains to respect 

others and you should be able to achieve your objectives. Underhanded or ruthless 

tactics now will destroy all you have built. You have made a decision to trust 

and involve certain close family members in your financial goal seeking. 

Libra (September 23-October 22) 

You have plenty of ambition, along with the enthusiasm it 

takes to accomplish projects. However, you are likely to run into 

severe opposition from others if you vary your routine. An assembly line sort of 

process has a lot going for it just now; sing a song in your head, the day will pass 

quickly. You may want more creative freedom in your work, but those in control 

tend to be unsympathetic for now. You may vacillate between conservative and 

rebellious urges at this time. Wait and watch for the right opportunity to ask for a 

change in job or a raise. Friends may be stimulating this afternoon. Avoid taking 

unnecessary risks, particularly since you may be feeling a bit bold. All of this, 

thankfully, is of short duration—really! 

Scorpio (October 23-November 21) 

This day may test your motivations. Serious ego conflicts are 

possible with others. If you are concerned, double-check your 

work so that you can be more confident. Others may look for ways to challenge 

your position. Keep your head down today, especially around superiors. Also, your 

physical energy is high and you could achieve much through a structured routine. 

Exert yourself physically in an exercise routine to dispel any confusion. You can be 

more intuitive and resourceful in your self-expression and relationships now. You 

can share unusual insights with a trusted individual. Persevere with tolerance, honesty 

and caution. Seek cooperation in your relationships with others and be ready 

to redirect your efforts in order to comply with new goals. 

Sagittarius (November 22-December 21) 

In your dealing with customers today, you set examples for 

others to follow. You are businesslike without being cold or lacking 

in sympathy. You develop a mature attitude of consideration toward others. 

Today will be busy and stimulating for you. Your curiosity is in high gear. This is a 

good day for a meeting of the minds with your peers, particularly in a group setting. 

You will probably have to make more short-distance trips than usual this day. 

Work out problems in existing relationships. Keep to your moral ideals and give 

your help and healing care to those who need your inspiration. You can devote 

more of your energies to healing, intuitive sensitivity, imagination, fantasy, visualization 

powers and compassion for the lonely or needy. 

Capricorn (December 22-January 19) 

There are opportunities for regeneration through personal 

power today. It will be quite easy to bring about the changes you 

want for your professional and personal future. You may want to help a co-worker 

gain some idea for their future plans. You will achieve professional success, 

increase your finances or simply straighten out areas of your life that have given 

you problems. Also, this is a favorable time for cultural, religious and legal matters. 

You have much generosity, and will find some financial gain. Your vitality and 

sense of optimism are strong and you can take constructive action to expand 

your financial, professional or educational endeavors. You can make steady 

progress toward career goals. You may soon find travel to be an option. 

Aquarius (January 20- February 18) 

Your relationship with a partner is in flux. Make sure any 

accommodations you are making to help preserve the relationship 

are conditions with which you both can agree. Relationships that succeed 

show growth in the areas of fairness. Each year, around this time of year, you tend 

to be more involved with groups of friends or colleagues for entertainment or idealistic 

reasons and your partner may want to start a new hobby. Do not be offended, 

this relationship is successful with the incorporation of a flexible attitude with 

both partners. Activities within your social organization tend to be oriented to 

humanitarian, technological or scientific pursuits. It’s a time during which you can 

enjoy unconventional ideas. Creative activities are also favorable now. 

Pisces (February 19-March 20) 

You are feeling particularly positive and expansive today. 

Your focus is on wider issues rather than on mundane detail. You 

can use this day to take care of legal affairs and conclude contractual negotiation. 

There may be several changes of residence. You may entertain friends often or 

conduct business from the home. At work you may have new projects that seem 

to be overflowing—you will be able to handle it! You have an interest in new or 

novel forms of architecture, food and domestic products and services. At times 

communication can be difficult, but patience will win. Caution is needed in signing 

contracts and written agreements. The most important thing is to get professional 

advice before purchasing a home or other property.

For labor-related inquiries 

and complaints: 

Call MSAL hotline 128 

Sabah Hospital 24812000 

Amiri Hospital 22450005 

Maternity Hospital 24843100 

Mubarak Al-Kabir Hospital 25312700 

Chest Hospital 24849400 

Farwaniya Hospital 24892010 

Adan Hospital 23940620 

Ibn Sina Hospital 24840300 

Al-Razi Hospital 24846000 

Physiotherapy Hospital 24874330/9 

Kaizen center 25716707 

Roudha 22517733 

Adhaliya 22517144 

Khaldiya 24848075 

Keifan 24849807 

Shamiya 24848913 

Shuwaikh 24814507 

Abdullah Salim 22549134 

Al-Nuzha 22526804 

Industrial Shuwaikh 24814764 

Al-Khadissiya 22515088 

Dasmah 22532265 

Bneid Al-Ghar 22531908 

Al-Shaab 22518752 

Al-Kibla 22459381 

Ayoun Al-Kibla 22451082 

Al-Mirqab 22456536 

Sharq 22465401 

Salmiya 25746401 

Jabriya 25316254 

Maidan Hawally 25623444 

Bayan 25388462 

Mishref 25381200 

W.Hawally 22630786 

Sabah 24810221 

Jahra 24770319 

New Jahra 24575755 

West Jahra 24772608 

South Jahra 24775066 

North Jahra 24775992 

North Jleeb 24311795 

Al-Ardhiya 24884079 

Firdous 24892674 

Al-Omariya 24719048 

N.Kheitan 24710044 

Fintas 23900322 

Ophthalmologists 

Dr. Abidallah Al-Mansoor 25622444 

Dr. Samy Al-Rabeea 25752222 

Dr. Masoma Habeeb 25321171 

Dr. Mubarak Al-Ajmy 25739999 

Dr. Mohsen Abel 25757700 

Dr Adnan Hasan Alwayl 25732223 

Dr. Abdallah Al-Baghly 25732223 

Ear, Nose & Throat (ENT) 

Dr. Ahmed Fouad Mouner 24555050 Ext 510 

Dr. Abdallah Al-Ali 25644660 

Dr. Abd Al-Hameed Al-Taweel 25646478 

Dr. Sanad Al-Fathalah 25311996 

Dr. Mohammad Al-Daaory 25731988 

Dr. Ismail Al-Fodary 22620166 

Dr. Mahmoud Al-Booz 25651426 

General Practitioners 

Dr. Mohamme Y Majidi 24555050 Ext 123 

Dr. Yousef Al-Omar 24719312 

Dr. Tarek Al-Mikhazeem 23926920 

Dr. Kathem Maarafi 25730465 

Dr. Abdallah Ahmad Eyadah 25655528 

Dr. Nabeel Al-Ayoobi 24577781 

Dr. Dina Abidallah Al-Refae 25333501 

Urologists 

Dr. Ali Naser Al-Serfy 22641534 

Dr. Fawzi Taher Abul 22639955 

Dr. Khaleel Abidallah Al-Awadi 22616660 

Dr. Adel Al-Hunayan FRCS (C) 25313120 

Dr. Leons Joseph 66703427 

Psychologists 

/Psychotherapists 

Soor Center 

Tel: 2290-1677 

Fax: 2290 1688 

information 

GOVERNORATE PHARMACY ADDRESS PHONE 

Ahmadi Sama Safwan Fahaeel Makka St 23915883 

Abu Halaifa Abu Halaifa-Coastal Rd 23715414 

Danat Al-Sultan Mahboula Block 1, Coastal Rd 23726558 

Jahra Modern Jahra Jahra-Block 3 Lot 1 24575518 

Madina Munawara Jahra-Block 92 24566622 

Capital Ahlam Fahad Al-Salem St 22436184 

Khaldiya Coop Khaldiya Coop 24833967 

Farwaniya New Shifa Farwaniya Block 40 24734000 

Ferdous Coop Ferdous Coop 24881201 

Modern Safwan Old Kheitan Block 11 24726638 

Hawally Tariq Salmiya-Hamad Mubarak St 25726265 

Hana Salmiya-Amman St 25647075 

Ikhlas Hawally-Beirut St 22625999 

Hawally & Rawdha Hawally & Rawdha Coop 22564549 

Ghadeer Jabriya-Block 1A 25340559 

Kindy Jabriya-Block 3B 25326554 

Ibn Al-Nafis Salmiya-Hamad Mubarak St 25721264 

Mishrif Coop Mishrif Coop 25380581 

Salwa Coop Salwa Coop 25628241 

STAATTE 

OF KUWA K AIT 

DIRECTORATTE 

TE GENERAL GENE OF CIVIL AVVIAT 

TION 

METEOROLOGICAL DEPA DEPARTMENT 

BY DAYY 

: 

BY NIGHT: 

WA ARNING 

STA AT TION 

KUWAAIT 

CITY 

KUWAAIT 

AIRPORTT 

NUWA AISEEB 

WA AFRA 

SALMI 

ABDALYY 

JAL ALIYAAH 

FAAILAKA 

AHMADI PORT T 

UMM AL-MARADEM 

WA ARBA - BUBYAAN 

DAY Y 

Tuesday 

We ednesday 

Thursday 

Friday 

DAT TE 

PRIVATE CLINICS 

Plastic Surgeons 

Dr. Mohammad Al-Khalaf 22547272 

Dr. Abdal-Redha Lari 22617700 

Dr. Abdel Quttainah 25625030/60 

Family Doctor 

Dr Divya Damodar 23729596/23729581 

Psychiatrists 

Dr. Esam Al-Ansari 22635047 

Dr Eisa M. Al-Balhan 22613623/0 

Gynaecologists & Obstetricians 

DrAdrian arbe 23729596/23729581 

Dr. Verginia s.Marin 2572-6666 ext 8321 

Dr. Fozeya Ali Al-Qatan 22655539 

Dr. Majeda Khalefa Aliytami 25343406 

Dr. Ahmad Al-Khooly 25739272 

Dr. Salem soso 22618787 

General Surgeons 

Dr. Amer Zawaz Al-Amer 22610044 

Dr. Mohammad Yousef Basher 25327148 

Internists, Chest & Heart 

Dr. Adnan Ebil 22639939 

Dr. Mousa Khadada 22666300 

Dr. Latefa Al-Duweisan 25728004 

Dr. Nadem Al-Ghabra 25355515 

Dr. Mobarak Aldoub 24726446 

Dr Nasser Behbehani 25654300/3 

info@soorcenter.com 

www.soorcenter.com 

Expected Wee 

eather for the Next 24 Hours 

Paediatricians 

Dr. Khaled Hamadi 25665898 

Dr. Abd Al-Aziz Al-Rashed 25340300 

Dr. Zahra Qabazard 25710444 

Dr. Sohail Qamar 22621099 

Dr. Snaa Maaroof 25713514 

Dr. Pradip Gujare 23713100 

Dr. Zacharias Mathew 24334282 

(1) Ear, Nose and Throat (2) Plastic Surgeon 

Dr. Abdul Mohsin Jafar, 

FRCS (Canada) 25655535 

Dentists 

Dr Anil Thomas 3729596/3729581 

Dr. Shamah Al-Matar 22641071/2 

Dr. Anesah Al-Rasheed 22562226 

Dr. Abidallah Al-Amer 22561444 

Dr. Faysal Al-Fozan 22619557 

Dr. Abdallateef Al-Katrash 22525888 

Dr. Abidallah Al-Duweisan 25653755 

Dr. Bader Al-Ansari 25620111 

Neurologists 

Dr. Sohal Najem Al-Shemeri 25633324 

Dr. Jasem Mola Hassan 25345875 

Gastrologists 

Dr. Sami Aman 22636464 

Dr. Mohammad Al-Shamaly 25322030 

Dr. Foad Abidallah Al-Ali 22633135 

Kaizen center 

25716707 

Te el.: 161 Ext.: 262 2627 - 2630 

Fax: 24348714 

WWW.MET.GOV. 

.KW 

Hot with moderate to fresh north westerly wind, with with speed of 20 - 45 km/h causing raising dust over open 

areas 

Relatively Relatively hot with moderate wind in in general north north westerly wind, with speed of 20 - - 35 km/h km/h 

25/09 

26/09 

27/09 

28/09 

Fajr 

Sunrise 

Zuhr 

Asr 

Sunset 

Isha 

MAX. EXP. . 

42 °C 

42 °C 

42 42 °C °C 

43 °C 

43 °C 

43 °C 

42 °C 

41 °C 

40 

°C 

37 °C 

41 °C 

PRA RAYYER 

TIMES 

All times are local time unless otherwise stated. 

WEATTHER 

hot 

hot 

hot 

MIN. REC. SFC. CHAR T 

04:18 

05:38 

31 °C 

31 °C 

30 30 °C 

29 °C 

25 °C 

29 °C 

28 °C 

29 °C 

33 

°C 

33 °C 

23 °C 

hot + raising dust 

11:40 

15:07 

17:43 

19:00 

No Current Wa arnin arnings 

4 DA DAYYS 

FORECAST 

Temperatur 

emperatur es 

MAX. 

41°C 

41°C 

40°C 

40°C 

MIN. 

27°C 

26°C 

25°C 

24°C 

MAX. Temp. 

MIN. 

MIN. T Temp. 

24/09/2012 0000 UTC 

Wind 

Direction 

NW 

NW-N 

NW-VRB 

VRB-SE 

Endocrinologist 

Dr. Abd Al-Naser Al-Othman 25339330 

Dr. Ahmad Al-Ansari 25658888 

Dr. Kamal Al-Shomr 25329924 

Physiotherapists & VD 

Dr. Deyaa Shehab 25722291 

Dr. Musaed Faraj Khamees 22666288 

Rheumatologists: 

Dr. Adel Al-Awadi 25330060 

Dr. Khaled Al-Jarallah 25722290 

Internist, Chest & Heart 

DR.Mohammes Akkad 24555050 Ext 210 

Dr. Mohammad Zubaid 

MB, ChB, FRCPC, PACC 

Assistant Professor Of Medicine 

Head, Division of Cardiology 

Mubarak Al-Kabeer Hospital 

Wind 

Speed 

20 - 40 km/h 

10 - 30 km/h 

06 - 26 km/h 

06 - 26 km/h 

RECORDED 

YESTERDAYY 

ATT 

KUWAAIT 

AIT AIRPORT 

MAX. RH 

MIN. RH 

MAX. Wiind 

TOTA 

AL RAIINFAALL 

IN 24 HR. 

45 °C 

25 °C 

20 % 

04 % 

NW 

39 km/h 

00 mm 

Consultant Cardiologist 

Dr. Farida Al-Habib 2611555-2622555 

MD, PH.D, FACC 

Inaya German Medical Center 

Te: 2575077 

Fax: 25723123 

William Schuilenberg, RPC 2290-1677 

Zaina Al Zabin, M.Sc. 2290-1677 


Al-Madena 22418714 

Al-Shohada’a 22545171 

Al-Shuwaikh 24810598 

Al-Nuzha 22545171 

Sabhan 24742838 

Al-Helaly 22434853 

Al-Fayhaa 22545051 

Al-Farwaniya 24711433 

Al-Sulaibikhat 24316983 

Al-Fahaheel 23927002 

Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh 24316983 

Ahmadi 23980088 

Al-Mangaf 23711183 

Al-Shuaiba 23262845 

Al-Jahra 25610011 

Al-Salmiya 25616368 

INTERNATIONAL 

CALLS 

Afghanistan 0093 

Albania 00355 

Algeria 00213 

Andorra 00376 

Angola 00244 

Anguilla 001264 

Antiga 001268 

Argentina 0054 

Armenia 00374 

Australia 0061 

Austria 0043 

Bahamas 001242 

Bahrain 00973 

Bangladesh 00880 

Barbados 001246 

Belarus 00375 

Belgium 0032 

Belize 00501 

Benin 00229 

Bermuda 001441 

Bhutan 00975 

Bolivia 00591 

Bosnia 00387 

Botswana 00267 

Brazil 0055 

Brunei 00673 

Bulgaria 00359 

Burkina 00226 

Burundi 00257 

Cambodia 00855 

Cameroon 00237 

Canada 001 

Cape Verde 00238 

Cayman Islands 001345 

Central African 00236 

Chad 00235 

Chile 0056 

China 0086 

Colombia 0057 

Comoros 00269 

Congo 00242 

Cook Islands 00682 

Costa Rica 00506 

Croatia 00385 

Cuba 0053 

Cyprus 00357 

Cyprus (Northern) 0090392 

Czech Republic 00420 

Denmark 0045 

Diego Garcia 00246 

Djibouti 00253 

Dominica 001767 

Dominican Republic 001809 

Ecuador 00593 

Egypt 0020 

El Salvador 00503 

England (UK) 0044 

Equatorial Guinea 00240 

Eritrea 00291 

Estonia 00372 

Ethiopia 00251 

Falkland Islands 00500 

Faroe Islands 00298 

Fiji 00679 

Finland 00358 

France 0033 

French Guiana 00594 

French Polynesia 00689 

Gabon 00241 

Gambia 00220 

Georgia 00995 

Germany 0049 

Ghana 00233 

Gibraltar 00350 

Greece 0030 

Greenland 00299 

Grenada 001473 

Guadeloupe 00590 

Guam 001671 

Guatemala 00502 

Guinea 00224 

Guyana 00592 

Haiti 00509 

Holland (Netherlands) 0031 

Honduras 00504 

Hong Kong 00852 

Hungary 0036 

Ibiza (Spain) 0034 

Iceland 00354 

India 0091 

Indian Ocean 00873 

Indonesia 0062 

Iran 0098 

Iraq 00964 

Ireland 00353 

Italy 0039 

Ivory Coast 00225 

Jamaica 001876 

Japan 0081 

Jordan 00962 

Kazakhstan 007 

Kenya 00254 

Kiribati 00686 

Kuwait 00965 

Kyrgyzstan 00996 

Laos 00856 

Latvia 00371 

Lebanon 00961 

Liberia 00231 

Libya 00218 

Lithuania 00370 

Luxembourg 00352 

Macau 00853 

Macedonia 00389 

Madagascar 00261 

Majorca 0034 

Malawi 00265 

Malaysia 0060 

Maldives 00960 

Mali 00223 

Malta 00356 

Marshall Islands 00692 

Martinique 00596 

Mauritania 00222 

Mauritius 00230 

Mayotte 00269 

Mexico 0052 

Micronesia 00691 

Moldova 00373 

Monaco 00377 

Mongolia 00976 

Montserrat 001664 

Morocco 00212 

Mozambique 00258 

Myanmar (Burma) 0095 

Namibia 00264 

Nepal 00977 

Netherlands (Holland) 

0031 

Netherlands Antilles 00599 

New Caledonia 00687 

New Zealand 0064 

Nicaragua 00505 

Nigar 00227 

Nigeria 00234 

Niue 00683 

Norfolk Island 00672 

Northern Ireland (UK) 

0044 

North Korea 00850 

Norway 0047 

Oman 00968 

Pakistan 0092 

Palau 00680 

Panama 00507 

Papua New Guinea 00675 

Paraguay 00595 

Peru 0051 

Philippines 0063 

Poland 0048 

Portugal 00351 

Puerto Rico 001787 

Qatar 00974 

Romania 0040 

Russian Federation 007 

Rwanda 00250 

Saint Helena 00290 

Saint Kitts 001869 

Saint Lucia 001758 

Saint Pierre 00508 

Saint Vincent 001784 

Samoa US 00684 

Samoa West 00685 

San Marino 00378 

Sao Tone 00239 

Saudi Arabia 00966 

Scotland (UK) 0044 

Senegal 00221 

Seychelles 00284 

Sierra Leone 00232 

Singapore 0065 

Slovakia 00421 

Slovenia 00386 

Solomon Islands 00677

S inger 

Fiona Apple 

addresses drug arrest in 

odd speech at concert 

Fiona Apple opened up to fans 

during a concert in Houston in a bizarre 

speech about the night she spent in a 

Texas jail after being arrested for hashish 

possession last week. Apple, 35, began by 

apologizing to her jailer for being “attitudey,” 

and continued with a cryptic rant about 

four other individuals at the jail and “encoding” 

things she had heard there. “First thing 

is, the guy who runs the jail ... he’s a good 

guy, and I want to apologize to him ... for 

being attitude-y and saying that I didn’t trust 

him, because I didn’t, but by the end of the 

day, I did,” Apple told her audience on Friday 

at the Houston concert. Her comments were 

recorded on video. The “Criminal” songstress 

said that “most people were very nice to me,” 

but she had some stern words for a few who 

she said were less kind. “There are four of 

you out there, and I want you to know that I 

heard everything you did, I wrote it all down 

with your names and everything you did and 

said stupidly thinking that I couldn’t hear or 

see you,” she continued. Apple did not name 

either the jailer or the four individuals, but 

threatened to make the latter group “famous 

anytime you ask.” She described the antics 

Dion settles a lawsuit 

with ex-employee 

C eline 

Dion has settled a lawsuit with a former 

employee. Keith Sturtevant had launched legal 

action against the singer and her husband and 

manager, Rene Angelil, in June, claiming he was not 

paid overtime when made to work more than 40 

hours a week as a warehouse manager for the couple. 

Keith claimed he was initially paid £31,250 a year, 

which eventually rose to 

£39,375 - but he alleged 

he was illegally classed as 

an Exempt Employee, and 

not entitled to overtime 

under US law. A 

spokesperson for Celine 

and Rene has previously 

said: “[Keith was] paid a 

handsome yearly salary 

that covered overtime for 

his services for three 

years.” The representative 

added the couple had 

offered Keith £6,250 and a holiday when he was dismissed 

after three years working in 2009 for poor performance, 

which he rejected. The suit was settled out 

of court for an undisclosed sum. While the case has 

been going on, Celine has been recording her new 

album. The ‘My Heart Will Go On’ singer - who was 

forced to cancel many of her Las Vegas residency 

shows earlier because of a virus - had been put on 

vocal rest but doctors gave her the all-clear to go back 

into studio. 

Furtado wants kids 

before her next album 

T he 

‘Maneater’ hitmaker - who has an eight-yearold 

daughter Nevis, whose dad is her ex-partner 

DJ Jasper Gahunia - is keen to have a baby with 

husband Demacio Castellon and she is delighted that 

her daughter has two father figures in her life. When 

asked if she’d like kids with Demacio in the future, she 

replied: “Maybe before the next album. Whenever I’m 

committed to something, be it a relationship or a 

sport where I’m part of a team, I find from that commitment 

you get great freedom. “I think I’ve experienced 

exactly that in my family life and in my marriage. 

Being committed to something has allowed me 

to spread my wings. You have an anchor, so the rest of 

your spirit can soar.” Nelly, 33, admits she is loving 

motherhood “more than ever” and she fully expects 

Nevis to follow in her footsteps and become a 

singer/songwriter when she grows up because the 

youngster is “really musical”. The 33-year-old pop star 

- who released LP ‘The Spirit Indestructible’ this month 

- added to Britain’s HELLO! magazine: “Mothering is a 

passion for me and so is music. Those two things go 

hand in hand. I’m enjoying motherhood more than 

ever. It gets better every year and that comes from 

experience. “Nevis can share the experience of what I 

do, as she is really musical. She’s a natural songwriter; 

she plays the violin and piano. “She travels with me, 

but usually she goes to school and has a normal existence. 

I’m not sure yet if I have to educate her in a different 

way, perhaps home schooling. We are taking it 

day by day. Travelling is part of her DNA, so she’s very 

familiar with the tour bus.” 

of the four people she alluded to as “inappropriate 

and probably illegal,” but did not 

offer further details. Apple then announced 

that she had ripped up the piece of paper, 

but not before she “encoded” the information 

she had written down. She said she 

would “hold that secret forever ... unless 

you’re interested in being a celebrity.” The 

concert was Apple’s first public appearance 

since she was released from a Hudspeth 

County, Texas, jail after posting bail on 

Thursday. The singer was arrested on a 

felony drug possession charge late 

Wednesday night when officials at a border 

patrol checkpoint found four grams of 

hashish in her possession after stopping 

her tour bus. Rusty Fleming, a spokesman 

for the sheriff in Hudspeth County, said 

there were seven other people on the bus, 

but Apple admitted the drugs were hers 

and everybody else was allowed to drive 

on. He said her brief stay in jail passed 

“without incident.” Apple’s representative 

did not immediately respond to arequest 

for comment. The singer won a Grammy for 

the single “Criminal” off her 1996 debut 

album “Tidal.” 

36 

lifestyle 

G O S S I P 

Khalifa in ‘hit 

and run pobe’ 

Wiz Khalifa has been accused of a hit-and-run incident. Los 

Angeles police officers are keen to speak with the rapper 

after a woman made a complaint alleging he smashed into 

her car and then fled the scene. According to gossip website 

TMZ.com, the alleged victim made her complaint last Wednesday 

saying she had been working on a music video with Wiz and the 

crash happened around midnight as people were leaving the set. 

The 25-year-old rapper - whose real name is Cameron Jibril Thomaz 

- has not yet spoken with police about the alleged incident. This 

isn’t the first time the ‘Black and Yellow’ hitmaker - who is currently 

expecting his first child with model Amber Rose - has been in trouble 

with the law this year. In May, he was arrested in North Carolina 

after the officers pulled over his tour bus following a concert in 

Winston-Salem and discovered 11.39 grams of marijuana after 

searching the vehicle. Ten days earlier, he was cautioned for the 

same offence after he was discovered in a hotel room smoking 

joint following complaints from other guests. Although Wiz - real 

name Cameron Jibril Thomaz - tried to get rid of the evidence by 

throwing the drug-laced cigarette out of his window before letting 

the police in the officers recovered the joint and the musician then 

confessed to having another 3.7g of marijuana in his pocket. 

Gwyneth Paltrow uses 

elastic bands to keep fit 

T he 

39-year-old actress is a client of fitness guru 

Tracy Anderson and the exercise expert has lifted 

the lid on the workout regime that keeps Gwyneth 

slim. Tracy says the ‘Iron Man 2’ star follows her ‘Method’ 

regime six times per week, which involves the use of 

elastic stretch bands, a wooden workout stick, dumbbells 

and ankle weights to shift the pounds. Tracy insists 

the reason why Gwyneth - who has an eight-year-old 

daughter, Apple and six-year-old son Moses with her 

rocker husband Chris Martin - looks so great is because 

she is very “disciplined” and is prepared to put in the 

hours and hard work to look good. She told the New 

York Post newspaper: “Gwyneth is uncoordinated during 

workouts, but she’s disciplined.” Tracy has a huge list of 

celebrity clients she has worked with to get fit including 

Victoria Beckham, Madonna, Jennifer Lopez and Nicole 

Richie. She recently worked with pop star Cheryl Cole so 

she would look her best when she released her third 

album ‘A Million Lights’ in June. Speaking about her 

work with former ‘X Factor’ judge Cheryl, Tracy said: 

“She’s petite like me and has a killer body but the trouble 

with being tiny is weight shows up very easily. Since 

then, she’s been training for 60-90 minutes four to six 

times a week. She’s just like Gwyneth - she works very 

hard and is a total doll to work with - she’s incredibly 

down to earth.” 

Reid to write an 

autobiography 

A lex 

Reid is planning to write an autobiography which 

will reveal all the details of his relationships with 

Chantelle Houghton and Katie Price. The cage fighter 

was dumped earlier this month by fiancee Chantelle and he 

has been left so devastated by her decision he is going to 

channel his feelings into a tell-all book. The tome will also document 

his 11-month marriage to ex-wife Katie Price - also 

known as Jordan. A friend of Alex told the Daily Star newspaper: 

“He had already started jotting down notes on Jordan and 

the Chantelle stuff is just as juicy.” Chantelle, 29, decided to 

end her relationship with Alex, 37, at the beginning of the 

month just two days after the 37-year-old hunk was arrested 

at their home in Brentwood, Essex, South East England, for trying 

to force his way into the property. The pair’s romance hit a 

rocky patch shortly after their baby daughter Dolly was born 

in June. Last week, Alex made a public declaration to 

Chantelle in a video he posted online begging her to give him 

a second chance. He said: “I know you love me. I hope you love 

me. Let’s sort this out.” Both stars have been through failed 

marriages, with Alex splitting from Katie in January 2011 and 

Chantelle divorcing Ordinary Boys singer Preston in 2007 after 

the pair met on ‘Celebrity Big Brother’. — Bang Showbiz 


Gary Barlow 

‘never’ has to 

look for work 

T he 

Take That singer is currently judging ‘X Factor’, co-writing 

songs for Robbie Williams and has performed ‘Forever 

Autumn’ and ‘The Eve of War’ on Jeff Wayne’s ‘War of the 

Worlds’ album - a reboot of his 1978 record based on the 1898 

H.G. Wells musical - and he was delighted to be able to contribute 

to the record, despite his “busy” schedule. He said: “I’m a 

little bit busy at the moment. I’m never looking for work, I’m 

looking for stuff that excites me, and this excited me greatly and 

I’m really proud to be part of it. “The production is mind blowing, 

it really is. When I first listened to it with Jeff I was blown 

away, it really is fantastic. “I was such a massive fan when this 

originally came out. I was obviously really, really excited and 

honored to be asked. Learning from Jeff, who has so much 

knowledge and experience has been brilliant.” The 41-year-old 

musician admits the ‘War of the Worlds’ album takes him back to 

his childhood because the original record had a “massive” influence 

on the early part of his career. Speaking in an interview 

with UK station BBC Radio 2, he added: “It’s almost revisiting a 

childhood dream for me, I used to play the song when I played in 

the social clubs, I used to sing it a lot and it was kind of the thing 

got me off the piano and interested in synthesisers so it was 

such a massive part of my career.” 

Cyrus 

impressed on 

‘Two and a Half Men’ 

M iley 

Cyrus was “on fire” when she filmed ‘Two and a 

Half Men’. The singer-and-actress recently made a 

cameo appearance in the sitcom and though the 

show’s star Jon Cryer wasn’t initially confident she would 

be a success, he was thrilled when she stepped in front of 

the camera and nailed her part. He told HollywoodLife.com: 

“She plays a motor-mouth character, so they gave her 

page-long monologues. “She was lovely, and we had a 

great time. “All week, she was on book [looking at the 

script] which is understandable. But even when we got 

within two hours of the show, she was still on book. We 

were thinking, ‘Oh no, Miley better bring it!’ And then we 

did it in front of the audience, and Miley brought it! Miley 

was just on fire and fantastic.” Miley - who is engaged to her 

‘Last Song’ co-star Liam Hemsworth - recently had her hair 

cut into a daring short crop and Jon thinks her new look is 

“fantastic”. He added: “I know her haircut is very controversial, 

but I lay on the side of ‘I love it’. I think she looks fantastic.” 

Miley starred in Disney show ‘Hannah Montana’ for five 

years playing the titular character.

Review 

Deadmau5 

doles out lackluster EDM 

Deadmau5, “album title goes here “(Ultra) 

Deadmau5’s new anti-titled electronic dance 

music album, “album title goes here,” is a 

lot of things. It’s a thumping dance tapestry. 

It’s pockmarked with features from the likes of 

Cypress Hill and Imogen Heap. And it also underscores 

Deadmau5’ global reach and feel. It just 

isn’t very good. The album from the Mickey Mouse 

mask-wearing electronic dance music vet pushes 

no boundaries that weren’t already pushed 10 

years ago. From Joel Zimmerman, better known to 

his considerable fan base as Deadmau5, the lack 

of creativity is a sin. 

There are scores of EDM specialists crafting 

new approaches these days, from Grammy-winning 

Skrillex to live beat-maker AraabMuzik to 

up-and-comers like HeRobust. Amid their inventive 

progressions, Deadmau5’ latest album feels 

a tad old and dusty. “Superliminal” is all buildup 

and very little payoff. You’ll be left waiting minutes 

for the drop, and perhaps scanning forward 

to the next track in hopes of getting the pulse 

racing. Good luck. “Fn Pig” is one of the few 

tracks on board with some sizzle. It’s an eightminute 

track that teases you for the first two 

before any semblance of a proper beat emerges. 

But once it gets going the bass line grabs you by 

the shoulders and refuses to let go. It’s an addictive, 

repeat-worthy track. 

But mostly, we find Deadmau5 longing for 

some sort of house music yesteryear. On “Maths,” 

the corny digital samples feel extremely dated 

and required a much smarter approach than 

this. Check out this track: “Closer” cleverly borrows 

the five-note sequence used by scientists 

to talk to alien visitors in “Close Encounters of 

the Third Kind.” It blends well into this breezy 

track as synth stabs bounce around in the background. 

—AP 

Skaggs continues 

exploring 

on latest album 

Ricky Skaggs and Kentucky Thunder, “Music To 

My Ears” (Skaggs Family/Fontana) 

Ricky Skaggs has barreled down an eclectic 

path since going independent at the turn of 

the century - after two decades as an awardwinning 

contemporary country singer. In the last 

dozen years, he has shown off his skills as one of the 

most revered bluegrass and gospel artists of his generation, 

he’s honored influences with tributes and 

collaborative works, and he has challenged himself 

with projects that explore adult pop songs and complex 

singer-songwriter themes. 

On individual albums, he has concentrated on a 

specific premise. However, on “Music To My Ears,” he 

and his skilled Kentucky Thunder band have decided 

to incorporate all of his interests at once. It makes for 

an album of surprises, with the variety of styles connected 

by Skaggs’ expressive tenor and forceful 

mandolin playing. There’s hard-charging, old-school 

bluegrass (a cover of the Stanley Brothers’ “Loving 

You Too Well”); tributes to Bill Monroe (a fantastic 

update of “Blue Night”) and Doc Watson (a romping 

band version of “Tennessee Stud”); contemporary 

gospel (“Music To My Ears”); singer-songwriter musings 

(a cover of the Bee Gees’ wholly relevant 

“Soldier’s Son”); and harmony-rich pop (“You Are 

Something Else”). 

All together it shows that Skaggs, at age 58, continues 

to create powerful music that doesn’t rest on 

laurels or reputation. 

Check out this track: While Skaggs has often 

flashed joy and humor over his career, he has never 

recorded a novelty song quite as goofy - or fun - as 

“You Can’t Hurt Ham.” —AP 

lifestyle 

F E A T U R E S 


Members of Colombia’s ‘Pioneros del ritmo’ dance school perform during the 7th World Salsa Festival held at the Canaveralejo Bullring in Cali, 

Colombia, yesterday. Thousands of people in Cali live from the salsa industry-whether working at dance schools, tailors, showmakers, ballrooms and 

party rooms, or other related businesses. —AFP 

No Doubt ready to rock again after making babies 

When the members of No Doubt 

got together again to make new 

music, something unexpected 

came with them: a bit of doubt. It had 

been 11 years since they’d put out “Rock 

Steady” and their priorities had changed. 

Each of the four had gotten married and 

had kids, producing eight babies between 

them. Music was no longer the most 

important thing in their lives. Could they 

still make it work? “That’s pretty complicated 

stuff when you start to really look at 

it,” 42-year-old lead singer and lyricist 

Gwen Stefani says. “You’re playing this role 

your whole life - the singer of No Doubt - 

This CD cover image released by Interscope 

Records shows the latest release for No Doubt, 

Push and Shove. — AP 

totally committed to this in the greatest 

kind of way, and then all of a sudden, 

you’re saying, ‘Actually, you guys cannot 

be No. 1 anymore or else this is not going 

to work.’” 

The band has somehow made it work. 

They return this month with their first studio 

CD in over a decade - “Push and 

Shove,” which blends their signature mix 

of ska and British New Wave with lyrics 

that reveal some anguish at their new 

lives. “Here we go again/Are you insane?” 

Hiatt sings of Funyuns, 

more on new album 

John Hiatt, “Mystic Pinball” (New West Records) 

Some performers can sound good singing a grocery 

list, and it turns out John Hiatt is one of 

them. “Eggs,” Hiatt warbles on the “Fargo”-esque 

“Wood Chipper.” “Hamburger meat. Bread. Funyuns.” 

Fans hungry for fresh Hiatt will be well satisfied by 

“Mystic Pinball,” his 21st album. When he’s not contrasting 

mundane shopping to murder, he offers tuneful 

observations on addiction, gratitude, faith, doubt and 

love gone right or (mostly) wrong. 

Hiatt gets bluesy on some of the best songs, including 

the sax-driven “One of These Damn Days” and the 

ballad “Blues Can’t Even Find Me.” There are also nods 

to classic rock, from “Sweet Jane” chord changes (“I Just 

Don’t Know What To Say”) to a “We Are The 

Champions” beat (“We’re Alright Now”). The acoustic 

waltz “No Wicked Grin” is sweet without being sentimental. 

The dozen cuts include a couple of throwaways, 

but even those tunes swing thanks to a crack 

band led by guitarist Doug Lancio and bassist Patrick 

O’Hearn. They’re a fine complement to Hiatt, whose 

distinctive tenor always brings a smile, especially on a 

word like Funyuns. 

Check out this track: The killer cut “Wood Chipper” 

ranks among Hiatt’s best songs. A love triangle 

leaves the singer dead with a verse and two choruses 

still to go, and at the end Hiatt offers a satisfied, sinister 

cackle. —AP 

Stefani sings in first single “Settle Down.” 

“Don’t get me started/I’m trying to get a 

hold on this/Get in line and settle down.” “I 

think a lot of the record I’m writing about 

being overwhelmed by trying to do all 

these things at one time,” Stefani says. 

“You just never know when you become a 

mom what it’s really going to be like. It’s 

so different than you think.” 

In an interview at a downtown recording 

studio, the bandmates reveal few outward 

signs that it’s been 26 years since No 

Doubt formed. They all still wear eyeliner, 

have their hair bleached or in a mohawk - 

or both - and are stick-figure thin. Stefani 

herself seems to have defied time and can 

rock a midriff-baring top better than ever. 

Only their lunch leftovers - salmon, sliced 

fruit and healthy veggies - hint that 

they’re all in their 40s. “Sometimes in my 

mind I still think I’m 16 onstage and my 

body tells me that I’m not 16 anymore,” 

says Tony Kanal, the 42-year-old bassist, 

laughing. “In our minds maybe we think 

we’re younger than we actually are.” 

Just finding the time to record the 

album with all the different schedules was 

a challenge for a band whose past hits 

include “Just a Girl” and “Don’t Speak.” Add 

to that their notoriously exhausting 

recording process, and the months rushed 

past. The title of the album is no accident. 

The first song for the new album, the 

radio-friendly “Undercover,” was written in 

2009 following the last No Doubt tour and 

the rest was written the following year. 

Most of the album was recorded in 2011. 

“It’s been a long time coming,” says Kanal, 

who for the first time became a co-lyricist 

with Stefani. “For me, the goal was just to 

get the record finished. To get us all in the 

same room at the same time with the 

amount of kids we all have between us 

was a struggle.” 

Eleven years without new material is a 

lifetime in pop and the band returns to a 

changed musical landscape. Digital singles 

have replaced full-length CDs and the 

dance-pop-punk post-grunge banner has 

been hoisted by the likes of Pink, The 

Gossip and Avril Lavigne, to name just a 

few. But the band insists they just make 

Green Day’s Billie Joe 

Armstrong is headed to 

treatment for substance 

abuse. Sunday’s announcement by 

the band’s representative comes 

after the 40-year-old frontman had 

a meltdown onstage at the 

iHeartRadio Music Festival in Las 

Vegas on Friday. As Green Day was 

wrapping up its performance during 

the all-star, two-day concert, 

Armstrong profanely complained 

that the band’s time was being cut 

short. “One minute left, one minute 

(expletive) left. You’re gonna give 

me (expletive) one minute? ... I’m 

not (expletive) Justin Bieber, you 

(expletives)!” he yelled (Bieber was 

not part of the night’s festivities). 

Armstrong smashed his guitar 

before leaving the stage. In a statement 

to The Associated Press, Green 

Day apologized “to those they 

offended at the iHeartRadio 

Festival” and said the set was not 

cut short by Clear Channel, host of 

the two-day festival. The Grammywinning 

band also is canceling 

some promotional appearances. It is 

due to release the album “Uno” on 

Tuesday, the follow-up to “21st 

Century Breakdown,” released three 

years ago. “Uno” is the first in a trilogy 

of albums; the second is to be 

out in November, and the last in 

January. The band is due to kick off 

a nationwide tour Nov 26 in Seattle. 

Armstrong was hospitalized in 

early September in Bologna, Italy, 

Gwen Stefani and Tom Dumont of No Doubt perform at the iHeart Radio Music 

Festival on Friday at the MGM Grand Arena in Las Vegas. — AP 

the music they like, without an eye to the 

marketplace. “It’s more about pleasing 

ourselves,” Stefani says. “It’s very selfish.” 

So far, No Doubt has booked some 

high-profile appearances, such as the 

kickoff game for the 2012 NFL season, 

ABC’s “Good Morning America” and “The 

Ellen DeGeneres Show.” They plan a warmup 

six-show stand at the Gibson 

Amphitheatre in Los Angeles after 

Thanksgiving and a European tour next 

year. The album turned out to be much 

more upbeat than the bandmates expected, 

veering from the light summer fare of 

“Looking Hot” to the dreamy electronica 

of “One More Summer,” the almost folky 

“Undone” and the mainstream pop of 

“Sparkle” and “Heaven.” 

“Those who sit and listen to the entire 

record will get that - that we’re not after a 

specific thing. None of our records have 

been that way. They’re very broad in 

genre,” 43-year-old drummer Adrian 

Young says. “It used to work against us, 

before we got on the radio. We used to be 

told, ‘You guys need to focus, narrow your 

style.’” During the band’s hiatus, each 

for an undisclosed ailment, but 

recovered well enough to perform 

at the MTV Video Music Awards on 

Sept 6. Since then, the band has 

made a series of performances, 

including a “Good Morning 

America” performance and a New 

York City concert for the launch of 

Nokia Music on Sept 15. No interviews 

of the band were allowed that 

evening, but the band chatted with 

fans and Nokia and AT&T executives 

before performing for about two 

hours. 

It’s unclear what Armstrong is 

receiving treatment for; in 2003, he 

explored their own art. Stefani, who is 

married to former Bush lead singer Gavin 

Rossdale, put out two solo CDs, toured 

and designed clothes under her label 

L.A.M.B. 

Guitarist Tom Dumont produced two 

CDs for Matt Costa, including “Songs We 

Sing.” Young worked with Scott Weiland 

and performed with several acts including 

Colt Ford. Kanal collaborated on two 

songs - “Sober” and “Funhouse” - with Pink 

and helped write songs with an array of 

artists, including Weezer, Shontelle and 

former Pussycat Doll Kimberly Wyatt. They 

insist their chemistry is better than ever 

and that the time away recharged their 

batteries. Now this onetime garage band 

that endured rifts, long tours, writing 

block and mega-fame are now happy that 

their music is no longer their first love. 

“The band was No. 1 in our lives for a long 

time and that’s changed, but we’ve been 

able to survive that,” says Dumont, 44. “It’s 

No. 2 now, but we all share this work 

together. We built this whole thing 

together and we’re still trying to protect it 

and make it the best thing we can.” — AP 

Rep: Green Day’s 

Armstrong getting treatment 

File photo released by Clear Channel shows Billie Joe Armstrong of Green 

Day performing at the 2012 iHeartRadio Music Festival at the MGM Grand 

Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nev. — AP 

was arrested for DUI, and has 

acknowledged in the past taking 

various drugs but has said he now 

eschews them. Green Day is one of 

rock’s top acts and had huge success 

with its 2004 politically 

charged album “American Idiot,” 

which went on to become a 

Broadway musical. Armstrong performed 

for a stretch in the musical. 

Most recently, he was a mentor on 

the NBC talent competition “The 

Voice.” —AP

The cast and crew of ‘Homeland,’ winner of the Outstanding Drama Series award, pose backstage at the 64th 

Primetime Emmy Awards at the Nokia Theatre on Sunday. — AP/AFP photos 

Eric Stonestreet poses backstage with his award for 

best supporting actor in a comedy series for ‘Modern 

Family’. 

Aaron Paul accepts the award for outstanding supporting 

actor in a drama series for ‘Breaking Bad’. 

Tom Berenger accepts the award for outstanding supporting 

actor In a Miniseries or Movie for ‘Hatfields & 

McCoys’. 

Actor Jon Cryer, winner of outstanding lead actor in a 

Comedy Series. 

Julie Bowen accepts the award for 

outstanding supporting actress in a 

comedy series for “Modern Family”. 

Julia Louis-Dreyfus accepts the 

award for outstanding lead actress 

in a Comedy Series for “Veep”. 

The terrorism thriller “Homeland” and “Modern Family” 

were the top winners at Sunday’s Emmy Awards in a ceremony 

that veered between daring and predictability in 

honors and Jimmy Kimmel’s turn as host. The four awards for 

“Modern Family” included a three-peat as best comedy series, 

although there was a minor backlash online as some Emmy 

watchers questioned whether the show had a deserving season. 

“Homeland,” whose four trophies for its freshman season 

included honors for stars Claire Danes and Damian Lewis, 

stopped “Mad Men” in its tracks, denying the show a recordsetting 

fifth best drama trophy. 

Turns out the TV academy wasn’t ready to crown the 

Madison Avenue saga as best ever. Instead, “Mad Men” walked 

away without a single statuette despite a leading 17 nominations, 

making it Emmy’s biggest loser ever, said Tom O’Neil of 

the awards website Gold Derby. Showtime’s “Homeland,” the 

cable channel’s first best drama winner, also kept Bryan 

Cranston from his fourth consecutive best acting award for 

“Breaking Bad” and made “Mad Men” star Jon Hamm an alsoran 

once more. “I’m one of those pesky Brits, I apologize,” said 

Lewis, who plays an American. “I don’t really believe in judging 

art, but I thought I’d show up just in case.” 

Danes, eye-catching in a bright yellow dress that gracefully 

draped the pregnant actress, was effusive. “My husband, my 

love, my life, my baby daddy, this doesn’t mean anything without 

you,” she said to her spouse, actor Hugh Dancy. Backstage, 

Danes said she particularly appreciated one fan: President 

Barack Obama has said he’s an admirer of “Homeland,” about a 

Marine and former POW who’s suspected of working for al 

Qaeda. “No pressure,” the actress said. “It’s way cool that he is a 

fan. It speaks to the relevancy of the show and it’s hugely validating.” 

The acting trophies, along with a best writing award for the 

show, gave “Homeland” momentum as it headed toward the 

best drama award. Kimmel, in his first turn as Emmy host, 

fielded some clever videos (no surprise given the famed Matt 

Damon-Sarah Silverman romp he inspired) but wasn’t memorable 

on stage as the three-hour ceremony unfolded. Aaron 

Paul won best supporting drama actor for “Breaking Bad.” 

“Thank you so much for not killing me off,” Paul said of his 

drug-dealing character’s lucky survival. “Thank you Hollywood 

for allowing me to be part of your group,” he added, noting 

he’d moved from Idaho to pursue his dreams. 

In a surprise on the comedy side, Emmy voters decided 

that “Two and a Half Men” with Jon Cryer and without Charlie 

Sheen is really good, as Cryer claimed the best comedy actor 

trophy. “Don’t panic, people. Something has clearly gone terribly 

wrong. I’m stunned,” said Cryer, who on the red carpet 

before the show has expressed confidence he wouldn’t win. 

Among others, he beat out two-time winner Jim Parsons of 

“The Big Bang Theory.” Ashton Kutcher, who joined the show 

after Sheen was fired, wasn’t nominated. Julia Louis-Dreyfus 

was honored as best actress in comedy for “Veep.” 

Andy Griffith topped a segment honoring industry members 

who died during the previous year. Ron Howard, who 

played Griffith’s son Opie in “The Andy Griffith Show,” said he 

belonged “in the pantheon.” “Dang if he didn’t make it look 

powerful easy while he was going about it,” Howard said. 

Phyllis Diller, Davy Jones of “The Monkees,” Sherman Hemsley 

and Richard Dawson were among the others honored in a 

montage. 

Earlier in the show, Kimmel dared to mock the in memori- 

Actress Julianne Moore, winner of 

the outstanding lead actress In A 

Miniseries or Movie award for 

“Game Change.” 

lifestyle 

A w a r d s 

am package that typically airs at awards shows with one 

showing him in various guises. Josh Groban sang a mournful 

“You’re Beautiful” in background. “I will be missed,” Kimmel 

said. Perhaps Kimmel’s most notable achievement was a 

prank: Inviting “30 Rock” star Tracy Morgan to lie on the stage, 

then asking viewers to post on Facebook and tweet that 

Morgan “just passed out” and turn on ABC right now to see it. 

It worked, with the message going viral and maybe even 

boosting the Emmy audience for a few moments. 

Maggie Smith was honored as best supporting drama 

actress for her tart-tongued dowager in “Downton Abbey,” 

unhurt by the program’s move from the miniseries category. 

“Modern Family” made it look easy as the comedy won the 

best directing trophy and Eric Stonestreet and Julie Bowen 

claimed supporting actor awards. Stonestreet was funny and 

touching as he accepted for his role as half of a devoted gay 

couple. 

“I wouldn’t be standing here without Jesse Tyler Ferguson, 

there is no Cam without Mitch,” he said, saluting his co-star. 

“We get the awesome opportunity to play these two characters 

on TV and show America and the world what a loving 

couple we can be just like everybody else.”Then he turned 

saucy: “I never knew I’d be on TV as a gay man, but I love the 

pictures of hairy chests you guys are sending me, it’s really 

amazing. Thank you for those.” Among reality competitors, 

“The Amazing Race” was honored as best reality series, ninth 

time in 10 nominations for the award. Tom Bergeron of 

“Dancing With the Stars” won as best host of a reality series. 

Julianne Moore’s uncanny take on Gov. Sarah Palin in the 

TV movie “Game Change,” about the 2008 presidential campaign, 

earned her best actress honors. “I feel so validated 

because Sarah Palin gave me a big thumbs down,” Moore said, 

beaming. “Game Change” was crowned best TV movie. Kevin 

Costner was named best actor for the history-based miniseries 

“Hatfields & McCoys,” while Tom Berenger was named best 

supporting actor for the project and Jessica Lange won supporting 

actress honors for “American Horror Story.” “The Daily 


Producer Jerry Bruckheimer, center, winner of the Emmy for Outstanding Reality-Competition Program for 

ìThe Amazing Raceî. 

Alex Gansa, center, and the cast and crew of ‘Homeland’ accept the award for outstanding drama series. 

The cast of ‘Downton Abbey’ arrive at the 64th Primetime Emmy Awards. 

Damian Lewis accepts the award for outstanding lead 

actor In a drama series for ‘Homeland’. 

Director Steven Levitan, winner Outstanding Directing 

for a comedy series for ‘Modern Family.’

Louis CK accepts the award for outstanding 

writing in a comedy series 

to for ‘Louie’. 

Drama Series: “Homeland,” Showtime. 

Actress, Drama Series: Claire Danes, “Homeland,” Showtime. 

Actor, Drama Series: Damian Lewis, “Homeland,” Showtime. 

Supporting Actor, Drama Series: Aaron Paul, “Breaking Bad,” AMC. 

Supporting Actress, Drama Series: Maggie Smith, “Downton Abbey,” PBS. 

Writing, Drama Series: Alex Gansa, Howard Gordon, Gideon Raff, “Homeland,” Showtime. 

Directing, Drama Series: Tim Van Patten, “Boardwalk Empire,” HBO. 

Comedy Series: “Modern Family,” ABC. 

Actor, Comedy Series: Jon Cryer, “Two and a Half Men,” CBS. 

Actress, Comedy Series: Julia Louis-Dreyfus, “Veep,” HBO. 

Supporting Actress, Comedy Series: Julie Bowen, “Modern Family,” ABC. 

Supporting Actor, Comedy Series: Eric Stonestreet, “Modern Family,” ABC. 

Writing, Comedy Series: Louis CK, “Louie,” FX Networks. 

Directing, Comedy Series: Steven Levitan, “Modern Family,” ABC. 

Miniseries or Movie: “Game Change,” HBO. 

Actress, Miniseries or Movie: Julianne Moore, “Game Change,” HBO. 

Actor, Miniseries or Movie: Kevin Costner, “Hatfields & McCoys,” History. 

Supporting Actress, Miniseries or Movie: Jessica Lange, “American Horror Story,” FX Networks. 

Supporting Actor, Miniseries or Movie: Tom Berenger, “Hatfields & McCoys,” History. 

Directing, Miniseries, Movie or Dramatic Special: Jay Roach, “Game Change,” HBO. 

Writing, Miniseries, Movie or Dramatic Special: Danny Strong, “Game Change,” HBO. 

Reality-Competition Program: “The Amazing Race,” CBS. 

Host, Reality-Competition Program: Tom Bergeron, “Dancing With the Stars,” ABC. 

Variety, Music or Comedy Series: “The Daily Show With Jon Stewart,” Comedy Central. 

Writing for a Variety Special: Louis CK, “Louis CK. Live at the Beacon Theatre,” FX Networks. 

Directing, Variety, Music or Comedy Special: Glenn Weiss, 65th Annual Tony Awards, CBS. — AP 

Show with Jon Stewart” proved unstoppable, winning its 10th 

consecutive best variety show trophy. Stewart, discussing the 

lasting value of his show, apparently forgot that what flies on 

free-wheeling cable gets censored on network television. 

“Years from now when the Earth is just a burning husk and 

aliens visit, they will find a box of these, and they will know, 

just how predictable these (several bleeps) can be,” he said. 

Standup comic Louis CK won the Emmy for best comedy writing 

for “Louie” and for the special “Louis CK Live at the Beacon 

Theatre.” Said the comedian after his second win: “Thank you 

to audiences around the country who still go to see live comedy.” 

Kimmel, who played it clean, set up one of the night’s best 

filmed comedy bits by musing on what “Breaking Bad” would 

have been like had it aired in a G-rated, pre-cable era. 

The answer: a spoof of the opening to “The Andy Griffith 

Show,” with “Breaking Bad” stars Bryan Cranston and Aaron 

Paul, fully suited up to cook crystal meth, out at the lake with 

their fishing poles as the “Andy Griffith” whistling theme song 

was heard. As a pungent punchline, they shot dead an unexpected 

witness: a friendly deputy billed as co-star Don Knotts. 

The show started with bathroom humor: A filmed bit with 

Kathy Bates, Zooey Deschanel and other nominated actresses 

prepping in the restroom, then discovering a weeping Jimmy 

Kimmel lamenting a Botox reaction he said would keep him 

off stage as host. “You look beautiful,” he was reassured. “You 

look like a ‘Real Housewife.’” Viewers of the skit may have been 

puzzled by a nude Lena Dunham, the creator-star of “Girls,” 

who’s routinely brave about showing skin on the HBO comedy. 

Not all his material worked. One bit that fell flat had 

Kimmel’s parents, or so the host said, escorted out of the theater 

because they promised he would win an Emmy and he 

didn’t. 

“Family Guy” creator Seth MacFarlane found presenting 

can be tricky. “Oh, the mic’s over there,” he said, after discovering 

he was on the wrong side of the stage. “This is what happens 

when you don’t come to rehearsal,” MacFarlane said. 

Game Change Executive Producer Tom Hanks, actress Julianne Moore 

Executive producer Gary Goetzman Director Jay Roach and writer 

Danny Strong pose in the press room at the 64th annual Prime Time 

Emmy Awards. 

Ricky Gervais Jessica Lange accepts the award for 

outstanding supporting actress in a 

miniseries for ‘American Horror 

Story’. 

Fashionistas noticed yellow was hot, the color of choice for 

Moore, Danes, Bowen and Hannah Simone from “New Girl.” 

“Best hair and makeup goes to Danes. Perfect!” tweeted Emma 

Roberts. Emmy has to prove herself a winner with the audience. 

After rebounding somewhat to 13.5 million viewers in 

2010 after an all-time low in 2008 of 12.3 million, last year’s 

show drew 12.4 million viewers airing on Fox. The ceremony 

rotates annually among the four major networks. — AP 

Actor Kevin Costner, winner of the Emmy for 

Outstanding Lead Actor In A Miniseries or Movie for 

“Hatfields & McCoys”, and wife Christine Baumgartner. 

lifestyle 

A w a r d s 

Claire Danes accepts the award for 

outstanding lead actress in a drama 

series for ‘Homeland’. 

Tom Bergeron accepts the award 

for outstanding host for a reality or 

reality-competition program for 

‘Dancing With The Stars’. 


The cast of “Modern Family”, from left, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Ariel Winter, Julie Bowen, Sofia Vergara, Sarah 

Hyland, Ty Burrell, background, Nolan Gould, Ed O’Neill, background second left, Rico Rodriguez, Aubrey 

Anderson-Emmons, foreground purple dress, and Eric Stonestreet, right, winners of the best outstanding comedy 

series, pose backstage at the 64th Primetime Emmy Awards at the Nokia Theatre. 

Actress Ginnifer Goodwin, left and actress Emily 

VanCamp speak onstage. 

Writer Danny Strong, winner of the Emmy for outstanding 

writing for miniseries or movie for “Game Change”. 

Actresses Ariel Winter, Julie Bowen, Sarah Hyland, Sofia Vergara and Aubrey 

Anderson-Emmons pose. 

Steve Buscemi 

Lucy Liu, left, and Kiefer Sutherland present an award 

onstage. 

Director Jay Roach, winner of outstanding directing in 

a Miniseries or Movie for “Game Change”. 

From left, Director Jay Roach, writer Danny Strong, and Actress Julianne 

Moore, pose backstage with the awards they won for the HBO movie “Game 

Change.”

Model Heidi Klum 

Leslie Mann Claire Danes 

TV host Cat Deeley Ashley Judd 

Sofia Vergara Lucy Liu 


Newly single Heidi Klum might not stay that 

way for long: Her seafoam-green gown 

made waves on the Emmy red carpet with a 

plunging front, plunging back and slits up-tothere, 

leaving very little in the middle. She was 

among the dazzling arrivals Sunday who made the 

Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles awash in color. There 

was plenty of red to go with the carpet, including 

on Kat Dennings of “2 Broke Girls” in J Mendel, 

“Once Upon a Time” star Ginnifer Goodwin in red 

flame over champagne by Monique Lhuillier and 

Tina Fey in dark red with gold bust details by 

Vivienne Westwood. “Top Chef” host Padma 

Lakshmi looked gorgeous in an orange strapless 

gown by Lhuillier that made her an early trending 

topic on Twitter, and actress Leslie Mann had on a 

bright orange skirt on her bare beaded halter 

gown by Naeem Khan. Claire Danes of “Homeland” 

wore bright yellow. 

Hayden Panettiere of ABC’s “Nashville” wore 

straight-from-the-runway Marchesa, a blue tulle 

over gold embroidery sari shown at New York 

Fashion Week earlier this month. Sofia Vergara 

wore a sexy, sparkly, green Zuhair Murad mermaid 

dress and brought several people from Colombia 

as her dates. Klum’s seafoam gown was by French 

designer Alexandre Vaultier and she had a sexy 

‘70s wave to her hair. Zooey Deschanel had a manicure 

with little TV sets on her thumbnails - perhaps 

the kind of thing “E!” had in mind for its mani-cam 

that had stars walking their fingers down a tiny red 

carpet. Celebrities build their fashion reputation 

largely from the red carpet, Lhuillier said, and 

they’ll affect trends for color, silhouette and 

embellishments. 

Lhuillier said Emmy gowns were already in the 

works earlier this month when she presented her 

most recent catwalk collection - one in which she 

declared “the ballgown is gone.” Instead, she 

focused her full-length dresses in mermaid and 

other sleeker hemlines. Not everyone watching TV 

will need a gown in the coming weeks or months, 

but when they do, they’ll often turn to the brands 

they hear about at the Emmys, Oscars or Grammys, 

Lhuillier said. “That’s what a red carpet does for a 

company like mine.” 

Louise Roe, a fashion commentator and 

Glamour magazine editor, who’ll host of the second 

season of NBC’s “Fashion Star,” said her eyes 

will be on the lookout for anything eye-catching, 

especially if anyone taps into the harnesses, sheer 

‘Homeland’ and 

‘Modern Family’ 

win 

38 

big at Emmys 

Heidi Klum 

walks Emmy red carpet in take-that gown 

Kat Dennings Ginnifer Goodwin Tina Fey Padma Lakshmi 

Kelli Garner 

Hayden Panettiere 

panels and cutout bodices that designers are offering 

for 2013. She thinks stars from “Gossip Girl” and 

“Revenge” could be among those to watch. There’s 

always someone who takes the high-fashion risk 

on the Emmy red carpet. It was Gwyneth Paltrow 

and her belly-baring, metallic lace number last 

year. It wasn’t a critical favorite, but now - in retrospect 

- it seemed like the spark for many of the current 

runway trends. — AP 

Brooke Burke

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