29 Aug 2013

CR IP TI ON BS SU

THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2013

Kuwait develops taste for wild, exotic animals

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Iran ups nuclear activity, installs new centrifuges

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Cheating the poor? India’s food scheme

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AC Milan, Zenit and Sociedad booked CL spot

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86 perish; Attacks, bombings hit Iraq Sectarian violence at its worst; over 1,000 die in July

BAGHDAD: A series of car bombings and other attacks across Baghdad yesterday killed 86 people and wounded 263, police and medical sources said, extending the worst wave of sectarian bloodshed in Iraq for at least five years. It was not immediately clear who carried out the attacks, which appeared coordinated, but Sunni Muslim insurgents including the AlQaeda-affiliated Islamic State of Iraq have significantly stepped up bombings this year.

More than two years of civil war in neighboring Syria have aggravated deep-rooted sectarian divisions in Iraq, fraying the country’s uneasy coalition of Shiite Muslim, Sunni Muslim and Kurdish factions. In Sadr City, an impoverished Shiite district in Baghdad’s northeast, two car bombs killed seven people. A restaurant owner said he saw an attacker just before one of the explosions.

“A man parked his car in front of the restaurant. He got breakfast and drank his tea. (Then) I heard a huge explosion when I was inside the kitchen,” the owner, who requested anonymity said. “When I went outside, I saw his car completely destroyed and he had disappeared. Many people were hurt.” Car bombs hit south, north and western Baghdad in a cluster of attacks early in the day and late in the evening which targeted both Shiite and Sunni areas of the capital.

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conspiracy theories

Never had, never will have a say

By Badrya Darwish

badrya_d@kuwaittimes.net

T

he whole world is busy with the warfare which might take place in Syria any moment now. The possible attack could happen under the pretext that Syria has used chemical weapons against its own people. I cannot confirm or deny that chemical weapons have been used in Syria. Also, I cannot confirm or deny if chemical weapons were used by the opposition or by the government - by both or even by neither group.

What I can confirm is that there are many innocent dead people and there is a lot of suffering and destruction. Do not add to their misery by bombing them if you have goodwill to solve the problem in Syria. However, the scenario in Syria now reminds me of what happened a few years ago in Iraq and their weapons of mass destruction. Few years after the demolition of Iraq, a whistleblower came out and spoke about the lack of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq.

I do not know if we are going to live that day and if we are going to hear the same old story about Syria that there were no chemical weapons used. But even if that happens, it would be too late since Syria would have been demolished. Syria is already demolished. Is this the democracy the whole world is seeking for Syria?

They are trumpeting the start of a war. May I ask: In whose favor would that military intervention be? Would it be to kill the rest of the Syrians under the pretext that we should punish those who use weapons of mass destruction? May I know who sells the weapons of mass destruction? Can’t we punish the producers with a military intervention?

If the whole world is serious about helping Syria then they should bring the two parties together- opposition and government and force them to solve the conflict at home. Assad has his own big number of supporters. The opposition also has a large support group. Do you want to kill one of these two large groups? Who decided which group should be killed and bombed? Why don’t we leave it to the Syrians to decide for themselves? Or is the world now afraid to speak? If one powerful party suggests something, everyone else agrees.

Somebody should stand up and oppose the way of bringing democracy to Syria. That someone, we expect, to be the police of the world with the support of the other so-called powers. That is if your agenda is to bring back peace to Syria and by the way, to the area because what happens in Syria will affect all its neighbors, be it Jordan, Lebanon, Israel or Iraq. If is otherwise, then ignore my words. By the way, I am not counting on the Arab world in this. They never had and still have no say in what happens in their own land.

NY police label mosques ‘terror organizations’ NEW YORK: The New York Police Department (NYPD) has secretly labeled entire mosques as terrorist organizations, a designation that allows police to use informants to record sermons and spy on imams, often without specific evidence of criminal wrongdoing. Designating an entire mosque as a terrorism enterprise means that anyone who attends prayer services there is a potential subject of an investigation and fair game for surveillance.

Since the Sept 11, 2011 terror attacks on the US, the NYPD has opened at least a dozen “terrorism enterprise investigations” into mosques, according to interviews and confidential police documents. The TEI, as it is known, is a police tool intended to help investigate terrorist cells and the like. Many TEIs stretch for years, allowing surveillance to continue even though the NYPD has never criminally charged a mosque or Islamic organization with operating as a terrorism enterprise.

The documents show in detail how, in its hunt for terrorists, the NYPD investigated countless innocent Continued on Page 13

Max 44º Min 29º High Tide 04:25 & 18:55 Low Tide 12:05 & 23:40

Good news for the old people

BAGHDAD: People inspect the site of a car bomb attack in Sadr City, Baghdad yesterday. A coordinated wave of bombings tore through Shiite Muslim areas in and around the Iraqi capital yesterday, killing scores and wounding many more. — AP

NEW YORK: Scientists have good news for all the older adults who occasionally forget why they walked into a room - and panic that they are getting Alzheimer’s disease. Not only is age-related memory loss a syndrome in its own right and completely unrelated to that dread disease, but unlike Alzheimer’s it may be reversible or even preventable, researchers led by a Nobel laureate said in a study published yesterday.

Using human brains that had been donated to science as well as the brains of lab mice, the study for the first time pinpointed the molecular defects that cause cognitive aging. In an unusual ray of hope for a field that has had almost nothing to offer older adults whose memory is failing, the study’s authors conclude that drugs, foods or even behaviors might be identified that affect those molecular mechanisms, helping to restore memory.

Any such interventions would represent a significant advance over the paltry offerings science has come up with so far to prevent memory decline, such as advice to keep cognitively active and healthy - which helps some people, but not all, and has only a flimsy scientific foundation.

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US, Syria prepare for imminent attack Russia, China, Iran warn of risks of wider war BEIRUT: People in Damascus stocked up on supplies yesterday and some left homes close to potential targets as US officials described plans for multi-national strikes on Syria that could last for days. United Nations chemical weapons experts completed a second field trip to rebel-held suburbs, looking for evidence of what - and who - caused an apparent poison gas attack that residents say killed hundreds of people a week ago.

But as UN chief Ban Ki-moon appealed for unity among world powers and sought more time for the inspectors to complete their work, Washington and its European and Middle East allies said their minds were made up and that President Bashar Al-Assad must face retribution for using banned weapons against his people.

Syria’s government, supported notably by its main arms supplier Russia, cried foul. It blamed rebel “terrorists” for releasing the toxins with the help of the United States, Britain and France and warned it would be a “graveyard of invaders”. Syrian officials say the West is playing into the hands of its Al- Qaeda enemies. The presence of Islamist militants among the rebels has deterred Western powers from arming Assad’s foes but they say they must now act to stop the use of poison gas.

Britain pushed the other four veto-holding members of the UN Security Council at a meeting in New York to authorize military action against Assad to protect Syrian civilians - a move certain to be blocked by Russia and, probably, China. The United States and its allies say a UN veto will not stop them. Western diplomats called the proposed resolution a maneuver to isolate Moscow and rally a coalition behind air strikes. Arab states, NATO and Turkey also condemned Assad.

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US marks ‘Dream’ speech WASHINGTON: Thousands of marchers gathered on Washington’s national mall yesterday to commemorate civil rights leader Martin Luther King’s famous “I have a dream” speech 50 years ago as activists said his goal of racial harmony remains elusive. Remarks from President Barack Obama, the first black US president, and bell ringing around the world marked the moment that King ended his landmark address, which came to symbolize the struggle for equality among blacks and whites in America.

Marchers, many wearing T-shirts with King’s face on them, began their walk near the US Capitol and carried signs such as “Stop the new Jim Crow” and “Every Texan deserves a vote.” Fighting restrictive voting rights laws that Democrats say hurt minorities, combating joblessness and reducing gun violence among African Americans are among the issues that civil rights leaders put at the forefront of their efforts in 2013.

“This march was supposed to be about jobs, but it’s about a lot more,” said marcher Ash Mobley, 27, of Washington who said she was there to represent her grandmother, who had been at the 1963 event. The marchers were led by a line of military veterans and people who had been at the 1963 march, their arms linked. People sang “We Shall Overcome” and other civil rights anthems.

Participants gathered at the Lincoln Memorial, site of King’s address on Aug 28, 1963, for speeches from dignitaries and civil rights leaders.

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WASHINGTON: Rev Martin Luther King Jr waves to the crowd at the Lincoln Memorial in Aug 28, 1963 file photo. — AP

THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2013

LOCAL

Kuwait develops taste for wild, exotic animals Buying, breeding illegal wildlife on the rise

By Nawara Fattahova KUWAIT: Bored of your regular lazy cat or your sweet little dog? How about making things interesting with a cheetah or a tiger, lazing around with you in your living room?

Breeding wild animals like cheetahs, lions, tigers, or crocodiles is becoming common in Kuwait. It’s not strange anymore to see a young man driving his car with a cheetah sitting next to him in the front seat. Some use wild animals like big cats or baby monkeys to attract attention from girls. These wild animals are taken out of their natural environment and raised as house pets. They get used to people who take care of them and feed them, despite being dangerous animals. Wildlife experts think that they should be placed back in their natural habitat instead of creating an artificial environment for them.

Though many people want to keep these animals, not everyone can take care of them. When they realize that it could pose a danger to them or their family, they conveniently abandon them in the desert or sometimes, the animal tends to escape and venture out on its own, much to society’s chagrin.

Recently, Public Authority for Agricultural Affairs and Fish Resources (PAAAFR) found an escaped baby lion. “This lion is popular as its photo was published in the press after being found in the chalets area in Kheiran. PAAAFR brought it to us to keep it quarantined for 21 days and then move it to the zoo because we don’t have enough space to keep it. This small

lion is now kept in a cage and I feel sorry for it as it needs special care. Its owner removed its teeth and claws and it can’t tear or chew hard meat. It can only eat soft food and we don’t know what to do with it after 21 days, frankly speaking,” an employee who preferred to stay anonymous admitted at the Kuwait Zoo. These animals are expensive. “The owner of this lion contacted the zoo and demanded it back as it cost him KD 3,000, but we won’t return it. According to the law, people are not allowed to possess, breed, or trade with wild animals. We don’t receive calls from owners as they are expensive and so they prefer to hide them. The zoo has limited resources, so we can’t buy them also. The owner of the baby lion claimed that he took it to his chalet, and somebody stole it. The thief couldn’t handle it and abandoned it on the road. The lion is sad about being separated from its mother,” added the employee.

The law allows confiscating of wild animals but not from private residences. “PAAAFR has trained staff to deal with wild animals and is responsible for confiscating them in public places. We can also confiscate them from the animal markets, pens, or farms as these follow PAAAFR. But we are not allowed to enter a house, so in this case we need the help and cooperation of the Ministry of Interior. So if the policemen helped us enter the house or its garden, we can then catch the wild animal. If the owner of the animal called us to take the animal and transfer it to the zoo, we comply,” said Shakir Awadh, PR at PAAAFR. Colonel Adel Al-Hashash,

PR and Moral Guidance Director of the Ministry of Interior assured that the Ministry of Interior is cooperating with PAAAFR. “If we received a statement about a wild animal threatening people, we secure the place, organize the traffic and so on but we don’t catch the animals because it is the responsibility of PAAAFR’s staff. In some emergency cases, the policeman can immediately deal with the animal to avoid any danger or risk,” he pointed out.

Psychiatrist Dr Adnan Al-Shatti said that wild animals will behave as pets at home when they are treated that way but their hunter instincts will kick in when they’re hungry. “Wild animals feel jealous the same way as other domestic animals or humans and they seek attention. If a child was already in the house before it came along, it will accept him but if the child came later, it will become jealous and hostile. The wild animals don’t attack animals of the same kind, but they have a tendency to attack other animals, and they may consider humans as animals and attack them when they’re hungry.

If a child is attacked by an animal, it will suffer psychiatric trauma for the rest of his life even if the physical injuries heal,” he explained. Attorney Saleh Al-Huseini spoke about the responsibility of animals’ breeders. “According to Article No. 243 of the Civil Law, the breeders are responsible for taking care of their animals and also for the damage these animals cause. So in case the animal injures a person, the owner should compensate for the injured person and is responsible for his welfare,” he stated.

KUWAIT: These images were taken from social media sites and Instagram users in Kuwait.

THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2013

LOCAL

KUWAIT: Dean of the diplomatic corps to Kuwait, the ambassador of Senegal Abdul Ahad Embaki recently held a special farewell party for the ambassadors of Spain, France and Cuba to Kuwait who are concluding their tenures. — Photos by Yasser Al-Zayyat

Syria strike: MPs call for emergency session Enough food-stock in supermarkets

By A Saleh KUWAIT: Lawmakers are discussing the possibility of requesting an emergency session within a couple of weeks to discuss the situation in the region in light of developments in Syria and Egypt. According to sources, a number of MPs believe that a request to allocate a session for the topic after the parliament resumes sessions on Oct 29 means that the issue will not be discussed before mid-November; a relatively late date considering reports hint at a potential military strike against Syria over the next few days.

The sources indicated that a number of MPs are currently discussing the idea before obtaining signatures of at least 33 lawmakers to hold an emergency session. If the petition comes through, the report will be sent to the parliament’s speaker to start negotiations with the Cabinet to release an Amiri decree to hold the session.

A local daily reported yesterday that the Cabinet is expected next week to review the government’s emergency plan as part of preparations for potential aftermath of a military strike against the Syrian regime. Speaking to AlRai on the condition of anonymity, government sources said that “the emergency plans are already present but need to be reviewed and potentially improved”, which they said will happen during the Cabinet’s meeting next week.

The repor t also indicates that Ministr y of Cabinet Affairs officials met Tuesday to look at the emergency plans and prepare them for discussion.

Meanwhile, Al-Rai also reported that the Ministry of Commerce and Industry (MCI) “final-

ized preparations” regarding food supply plans in case Kuwait is affected by repercussions of an international community strike against Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad’s regime. Ministry insiders reassured that Kuwait’s “strategic reserve of necessary goods” has supply for more than 20 products stored in warehouses located in Kuwait and different Gulf states.

The same sources who also requested anonymity to speak indicated that the MCI has recently referred a report to the Cabinet that shows Kuwait’s capability to secure main supplies to locals for extended periods of time, describing the situation of the country’s strategic reserve as “very reassuring”.

On a related note, President of the Kuwait Union of Consumer Cooperative Societies (KUCCS), Abdul-Aziz Al-Samhan, reassured that local supermarkets have enough food-stock in their warehouses to meet demands for more than four months, in case a military strike against Syria affects imports. He further indicated that a joint committee headed by Minister of Commerce and Industry Anas Al-Saleh and consists of the KUCCS, the Kuwait Flour Mills Company, the Interior Ministry and the General Customs Department have discussed several scenarios in the past to handle situations in which imported food supplies are cut short.

In the meantime, a senior Ministr y of Electricity and Water official reassured that plans are in place in cooperation with other state department to “secure” its facilities from any threats targeting Kuwait. And while he refused to give details about the plan which he called “part of a comprehensive national security protection plan”, Undersecretary Ahmad Al-

Jassar told Al-Rai that the plan “maintains electricity and water services in cases of emergency”.

Regarding preparations in case Kuwait’s oil exports through the Arabian Gulf and Strait of Hormuz are affected, sources within the Kuwait Petroleum Corporation reassured that there are “alternatives and emergency plans” that can be applied during cases of war, but admitted that their effectiveness depends on a number of factors that includes the duration of emergency.

Meanwhile, the sources assured that the plans “secure supplies to the local market and meet contractual obligations with clients” without providing further details.

Stock markets in the Arabian Gulf region and Europe were negatively affected Tuesday amid reports about a looming military strike on Syria, as Kuwait’s Stock Exchange recorded a 3 percent drop in the price index, whereas Dubai’s market recorded the largest drop in the region with 7 percent.

Al-Rai also spoke to two military experts on the issue as they both said that a strike is likely to be limited in size and impact. Former Military AttachÈ in the United State, retired Major General Fahad Al-Shulaimi said that a potential strike is likely to be carried out by a US-led coalition, whereas retired Major General Salem Mas’oud said that Israel could end up carrying out the strike on behalf of the US. And regarding Syria’s potential retaliation, Al-Shulaimi said that the regime might “use” the situation in a propaganda campaign in which they depict themselves as heroes, while Mas’oud downplayed the possibility of Iran and Lebanon’s Hezbollah taking part in a retaliation.

Cabinet to hold ministers accountable KUWAIT: Parliament Speaker Marzouq AlGhanim asked the government to set a timetable for priorities that are expected to be referred to the parliament as part of preparations to agree on a list of topics that will be firstly discussed when sessions resume on Oct 29. On that regard, Parliament Secretary Yaqoub Al-Sanea said that the government needs to adopt a different work program “compared to previous, inapplicable schemes”.

Meanwhile, Al-Sanea said that a governmental coordinating committee presented during a recent meeting for the parliament’s head office assurances that every minister is required to present a separate work program to the cabinet before they are combined into one program that are sent to the parliament.

“In other words, the government plans to hold ministers accountable regarding their individual work programs before MPs get the

opportunity to do the same”, Al-Sanea said as he called this step “unprecedented”.

Al-Sanea further indicated in his statements to Al-Rai Tuesday that the parliament’s head office meeting a day earlier discussed several topics which included setting controls to determine legality of parliamentary questions in order to avoid having inquiries rejected for legal reasons. The meeting also opened discussion about an idea to hold a workshop between the executive and legislative authorities to work on finding solutions for pending issues, Al-Sanea said, adding that discussion on that regard continues in the next meeting.

In other news, Al-Watan reported yesterday that MP Dr Abdullah Al-Turaiji submitted a draft law ‘that contains a comprehensive solution with a timetable to end the stateless residents dilemma’. The proposal calls for the Interior Ministry to collect data about people

applying to obtain Kuwaiti citizenship within a year, then publish names of those who meet naturalization conditions in the state’s official gazette within six months. After that, people whose names are mentioned are required to submit necessary paperwork within three months, whereas those not mentioned but claim possession of documents that prove otherwise can make their petitions within the same period. The draft law compels the Ministry of Interior to finalize the issue within one year afterwards, while guaranteeing full rights to stateless residents who do not meet naturalization conditions.

Separately, MP Faisal Al-Shaya announced plans to submit a draft law to adopt political parties in Kuwait “as a necessary step to introduce political reform and promote joint work after years in which the parliament’s work has been dominated by individuality”.

Kuwait, Japan plan business meeting KUWAIT: First Vice Chairman of Kuwait Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) Khalid Al-Sager discussed yesterday with an official Japanese delegation preparations for the 18th annual meeting of the KuwaitiJapanese Committee for businessmen, set to take place in Tokyo on Oct 2.

The work is ongoing to form a high-level Kuwaiti delegation, which includes officials from state and private sectors such as Ministry of Electricity and Water, the General Secretariat of the Supreme Council for Planning and Development, Kuwait Institute

for Scientific Research, and the Technical Body to Study Development Projects and Initiatives, Al-Sager, who also heads the Kuwaiti side in the joint committee, said in a press statement.

Also, he mentioned that the Kuwaiti delegation will also include officials from Kuwait Petroleum Corporation, Ministry of Health, Kuwait National Bank, and a number of Kuwaiti investment firms as several important subjects are to be discussed during the forthcoming meeting such as current economic situation in Kuwait and Japan, as well

as Japan’s participation in Kuwait’s developmental plan.

In addition, Al-Sager indicated that Kuwaiti-Japanese ties have witnessed major development, specifically after the visit by His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah AlAhmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah to Japan in March 2012, which was followed by a visit from Japanese Premier Shinzo Abe to Kuwait this week, during which he was keen on meeting with Kuwaiti private sectors and discussing ways of boosting joint bilateral relations. — KUNA

KUWAIT: Ayedh Abdallah Al-Otaibi, Ahmadi Security Director General honored several officers from Ahmadi governorate security directorate for their outstanding efforts, and their active participation in maintaining law and order. Assistant Director General Colonel Ali Mohamad Al-Haimer, and Director of Operations Colonel Mohammad Duhailees Abu Khoga were also present.

—Photo by Hanan Al-Saadoun

Stock traders advised to ignore rumors abuzzing social media KUWAIT: Analysts advise local stock traders, who have scrambled to sell off their stocks due to rumors resulting from the regional tense conditions, to take a realistic approach and resort to careful calculations.

While a strike on Syria, coupled with forecast wide-scale regional repercussions, is looming on the horizon, jitters have prevailed at the local stock market, with hefty and little-calculated self-off operations.

Walid Al-Houti, Board Chairman of the Saudi Holding Projects Group, in remarks to KUNA, advised the scared traders to “read the political scene without exaggeration” and neglect gossips that have been buzzing across the electronic social media spectrum. Some of these rumors are actually fabricated by some players trying to take advantage of the prevailing jitters to make some deals in their personal favor, he cautioned.

“Individual traders who have operational shares with satisfactory year-end returns should retain the stocks and abstain from wasting them and those with financial liquidity should seize the opportunity and enter the market for purchase because this crisis depicts desire of the international community and will impact positively at various levels,” he said.

Ask to brokers who possess brokerage stocks, he advised them to “adjust the portfolios, out of necessity, and get involved in operational stocks.”

“I also advise owners of financial corporations and investment funds to be up to the responsibility and abstain from being the first to step out,” he said, also urging the media to refrain from exaggerating the

events. Maitham Al-Shakhes, the general manager of Al-Arabi Financial Brokerage Company, has noted that impact of forecast developments regarding Syria will be temporary, thus traders are advised to resort to strategic trades with aim of limiting losses. “As to the strategic dealers, it is obvious that the current conditions do not affect their decisions,” Al-Shakhes added.

Nayef Al-Enezi, a financial analyst, said the current “negative status” gripping the local stock market is result of “reactions orchestrated by brokers’ tactics and has no direct linkage to the issues concerning Syria.” “Such tactics are aimed at serving interests of some persons who have been exerting pressure on the market and the operational stocks to push down the market prices without an explicit reason,” ElEnezi said, recommending that the traders be cautions and stay away from “violent speculations currently witnessed in the market.” He called for action to hold the market against drastic falls for sake of preserving the traders assets.

Financial analyst Mohammad Al-Tarrah told KUNA said the current situation warrants that traders to take a wait-and-see approach, particularly in shadow of the inflow of a torrent of inaccurate information. Small traders should not consider seriously the messages they receive on the social media and neglect advises that lack technical basis, he stressed.

Another financial analyst, Suleiman AlWugayyan, also urged the traders to refrain from hasty sell-offs and await better trade conditions because the market is currently gripped with psychological effects of a prospected war on Syria. —KUNA

Strategic food stockpiles won’t be affected KUWAIT: Kuwait’s strategic food stockpiles will not be affected by prospected “regional events,” a senior official affirmed yesterday.

Minister of Commerce and Industry Anas Al-Saleh said that all ministry sections were fully prepared to cope with any possible “fluctuations in the domestic market, particularly with regard of basic commodities.” Al-Saleh, emerging from a meeting of the ministry supreme emergency committee, expressed deep satisfaction at the

country volume of food reserves and stability of commodities’ prices. The commission members, during the meeting, discussed the domestic market conditions in general and “its readiness to face any instability of quantity and prices of the main commodities, both in the local and international markets,” the minister said, re-affirming that all necessary precautionary measures had been taken for coping with possible “flareup of such events.” —KUNA

THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2013

LOCAL In my view

kuwait digest

Keep your chin up

US military strikes on Syria imminent

By Jaafar Rajab

H

By Suliman Al-Atiqi

is Highness the Prime Minister recently called on people to stay optimistic. In return, the public continues to call the premier and the rest of his Cabinet’s members to ‘react’ to their sufferings and end the problems they face, before asking people to stay optimistic.

It is not bad to ask people to keep their hopes up, but how can they do that in a country in which the government isn’t able to properly inaugurate a simple stadium?

How can a person be optimistic when a silly transaction takes months to be completed because of so many signatures and stamps which make the person forget why they applied for the transaction in the first place? How can a citizen feel optimistic when they spend the majority of their lives paying rents as they wait for a government house? They spend half of their monthly

US

Secretary of State John Kerry delivered remarks last Monday about Syria’s alleged use of chemical weapons last week which indiscriminately killed over 300 civilians including women and children. The speech was conspicuous as it seemed to be setting the stage for what appears to be imminent action against the Syrian regime. In his speech, Kerry highlighted the intolerable stance of the US and the international community against the use of such weapons. Kerry also clearly referenced US President Obama’s position that the use of chemical weapons would constitute a “red line” when he said there is “a reason why President Obama has made clear to the Assad regime that this international norm cannot be violated without consequences.”

“Cannot be violated without consequences” is a clear signal that the US is shoring up efforts for a response. Furthermore, Kerry’s prompt mentioning of “our understanding” of what has already happened in Syria despite ongoing UN investigations is in stark contrast over the previous equivocations of the earlier alleged uses of chemical weapons. The Obama administration received a lot of heat domestically and internationally for not doing enough despite

Though some form of militar y strikes appears imminent, the level of force and objectives remain unclear and are likely under negotiation. The US and their allies could opt for a limited symbolic strike whereby the US would fulfill its public commitment and maintain its international credibility by following through on their threat. their eventual delayed conclusion in June that the Syrian government did indeed use chemical weapons.

Moreover, Kerry emphasized UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon’s statement that the UN investigation will not determine who used the chemical weapons, only if they were used. This suggests that a US response will not wait or depend on a UN conclusion, a remark clearly aimed at rejecting Russia’s statement urging the US to wait on the UN inspection findings.

The US Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen Martin Dempsey co-hosted an emergency meeting in Jordon attended by military heads from Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Qatar, UK, France, Germany, Italy, and Canada. It is clear from emerging statements particularly from NATO allies, that a coalition is being formed to undertake military action against the Syrian regime.

In an interview with BBC, Britain’s Foreign Minister William Hague argued that it is possible to take action in the case of used chemical weapons without complete unity in the UN Security Council. On the other hand, French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius stated that there will be a “proportionate response” to the alleged use of chemical weapons-which the French government has blamed on the Assad regime-and that the only option he can’t imagine “would be to do nothing.” Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu told a local newspaper that his country would “take its place” in an international coalition if a decision “does not emerge from the UN Security Council.” This is perhaps equally significant as the venue of the high-level military meeting (Amman) as both Turkey and Jordon collectively host around 1 million documented Syrian refugees according to the UN Refugee Agency, and their symbolic (and strategic) presence would boost the credibility of the coalition.

Though some form of military strikes appears imminent, the level of force and objectives remain unclear and are likely under negotiation. The US and their allies could opt for a limited symbolic strike whereby the US would fulfill its public commitment and maintain its international credibility by following through on their threat. This would entail naval cruise missile strikes-the US has already moved a fourth warship armed with missiles into the Eastern Mediterranean-against targeted sites affiliated with the chemical weapons program.

This would not be aimed at crippling the Syrian army in its war against the opposition, rather an attempt to destroy the regime’s chemical stockpiles and program. This is a more likely option as the White House spokesman confirmed that “ The options we are considering are not about regime change.” Fur thermore, only a week ago, Gen Dempsey released a public letter in response to a congressman’s appeal which parallels the dominant view in the White House claiming that “should the regime’s institutions collapse in the absence of a viable opposition, we could inadvertently empower extremists or unleash the very chemical weapons we seek to control.”

However, as Gen Dempsey argued, an attempt to control chemical weapons would “help prevent their further proliferation into the hands of extremist groups.” Although this limited objective might be the initial response, it is possible that conse quences, such as overt retaliation against Jordon and Turkey, might set the stage for a more sustained confrontation.

Bipartisan support for military action in the US congress is already brewing ahead of the evidence soon to be released on the alleged chemical weapons attack in Syria which Secretary Kerry characterized as “undeniable.” With the recent request by British Prime Minister David Cameron to recall parliament this Thursday-cutting short his summer holiday-for a vote on “a clear government motion” in response to the chemical weapons attacks, it is clear that the grounds are being cleared for potential NATO military strikes headed by the US in support of at least Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Jordon.

(Suliman Al-Atiqi is an international affairs analyst from Kuwait currently working with the United Nations Development Programme based in Istanbul)

kuwait digest

What is ‘transitional justice’?

By Dr Mohammad Abdulmohsin Al-Moqatei

W

e are not used to seeing a regime in the All these are deviant concepts used to justify a Arab world which believes in actual pub- situation or action taken outside the correct lic participation in power and accepts frameworks of legitimacy and democracy. other parties’ rights to claim authority by demoLet us try to define the idea of ‘transitional juscratic means. For example, we never see an Arab tice’ promoted in Egypt. What exactly does it refer country which has five former presidents or minis- to? And does it justify political prosecutions carters who live a normal life as citizens after the end ried out under criminal trials’ cover, or that the of their tenure. If we take the example of Lebanon emergency law or transitional justice ministry be before 1975 when conspiracies were woven taken as a leeway to achieve that? against its democracy in fear it might set a sucAccepting that means following a temporary cessful example in the region, and in Kuwait to system of justice in which arrests, inspections, some extent, then we can say that natural change charges and trials happen, while floating investigaof power remains out of the question in the Arab tions and accusations are taken as the basis for World. With the wave of the Arab Spring blowing criminal procedures. In the meantime, the system for the past three years, people started seeing a allows ignoring some basic human right guaranglimmer of hope that a day will eventually come tees in detention and having a fair trial, and might when the region will see authorities peacefully also open the door to controlling judges who look hand power over to elected governments. But it over cases. A ‘transitional justice’ can refer to a seems that there are efforts to abort this effective system adopted following radical changes in the democratic transition, ruling system, in which basic which are prac ticed by Amidst these democratic set- guarantees are reduced some Arab and Western while moving from an old backs, the general situation in the judicial system into a new governments.

In Tunisia, efforts were Arab world returned to what it one with more justice and on to hamper the work of used to be. New concepts such as guarantees. the constituent assembly This is the opposite of in parallel with a case of ‘legitimacy of the street’ and ‘field what happened in Egypt, shameful pride that affect- majority’ (referring to large-scale however, as leaders from the ed leaders of the ruling demonstrations to force public Muslim Brotherhood and Ennahdha (Renaissance) other Islamic parties were M ovement. M eanwhile, demands), as well as ‘transitional politically prosecuted and Libya faced armed infight- justice’, ‘transitional democracy’ charged with accusations ing, while Egypt suffered a and ‘temporar y legitimacy’ that carry political dimenhuge setback as a result of sions. the Muslim Brotherhood’s became the dominant criteria to These are fac ts which shor tsightedness, com- determine the next direction the should never be underbined perhaps with out- state should take. mined while addressing the side efforts that succeeded situation in Egypt. I believe to convince the army to that it would not have been carry out a military coup. In the meantime, Iraq hard to handle the situation of political leaders of continues to suffer sectarian bloodshed, while the Muslim Brotherhood and other par ties as Syria faces civil war. being ‘sources of political concern’ in a better way.

Amidst these democratic setbacks, the general For example, they could have been put under situation in the Arab world returned to what it house arrest and treated decently in order to send used to be. New concepts such as ‘legitimacy of two important messages: first is that the Egyptian the street’ and ‘field majority’ (referring to large- people do not seek revenge or act on personal scale demonstrations to force public demands), as agendas and instead believe that transitional juswell as ‘transitional justice’, ‘transitional democracy’ tice guarantees rights, and the second is to lay the and ‘temporary legitimacy’ became the dominant foundations of national accord based on dialogue criteria to determine the next direction the state that takes Egypt out of the state of current political should take. Meanwhile, the military gained power turmoil. This of course does not mean showing to force change under the pretext of ‘fulfilling pub- leniency towards Muslim Brotherhood leaders if lic will’ - similar to the case in Egypt which perhaps they are convicted of criminal charges; in which sets a precedent for similar experiences to take case they must be put on trial without influencing place in the future. the judiciary politically. — Al-Qabas

kuwait digest

Burdening out children further

By Mubarak Al-Hajiri

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here are some elementary schools in Kuwait protects them from abuse, and guards them from which have requested parents to not to allow moral, physical and spiritual negligence.” Why are their children to use bags with wheels! It is children forced to carry this weight which adults natural for the Education Ministry to decide the size may suffer? I believe that some leaders in the and number of books, and it is natural for school Education Ministry are unable to understand that administrations to keep the books in school or have children need a lot of care. Providing this is their students to bring it to school every day. responsibility, especially when this is their job and It is also natural for the education ministry to they are demanding a pay rise. Even on humanitaridecide the students uniform, an grounds, they should but it is not natural for anylook out for the children Why are children forced to carry first. There are many probone, no matter who, to force the student who is really this weight which adults may suf- lems in the Education short to carry a weight that fer? I believe that some leaders in Ministry, and the level has exceeds his own on his little slumped to a point where back! I was surprised by this the Education Ministry are unable parents are look ing for request, and wondered like to understand that children need a alternatives to provide their others: Is this order from the lot of care. Providing this is their kids with the best educaministry? If this is so, then tion in Kuwait or even outthe minister must be ques- responsibility, especially when this side. Many of them are tioned because this decision is their job and they are demand- unable to manage but still is not logical and does not ing a pay rise. give it their best in the suit the children’s physical hopes of their children getabilities. ting the best education If this decision was taken by the school adminis- possible and physically burdening children like this tration, then the person who decided this must be is inhuman and unnecessary. The idea of children pulled up and made aware that Article 10 of the carrying such heavy bags is not right, so is anyone Constitution says “The state cares for children and paying attention? — Al-Watan

How can a person be optimistic when a silly transaction takes months to be completed because of so many signatures and stamps which make the person forget why they applied for the transaction in the first place?

How can a citizen feel optimistic when they spend the majority of their lives paying rents as they wait for a government house? paychecks in fattening the pockets of real-estate tycoons only to finally receive land in the middle of nowhere without basic amenities - and all this while they are still waiting for a license to start building!

How can one be optimistic while passing by a construction site for a university which has been under construction for decades now and will probably be in the same state for more decades to come? How can citizens keep their heads up when a random location is set on fire every weekend in the country, while the government refuses to take action against the arsonists despite knowing their identity?

How can a person stay optimistic while hearing so much about the development process without seeing actual results on the ground? Reports about the Development Plan are a little like news about celebrities; we hear about them all the time but never get to see them in our lifetime! How can HH the Prime Minister expect people to stay positive while they witness the ‘achievements’ - or lack of, so to speak - that his ministers have accomplished, without even understanding why they were selected in the Cabinet in the first place? Your Highness, how do you expect us to stay optimistic when you are the head of our government? — Al-Rai

kuwait digest

You’re killing democracy

By Yousif Abdullah Al-Enaizi

D

espite the high summer temperature during the holy month of Ramadan neither the weather nor fasting discouraged Kuwaiti voters from coming out in droves and taking part in the parliamentary elections.

Now, since the people have already decided and selected a group of Kuwaitis to represent them in parliament including a group of good, young new politicians, I wonder if we should feel optimistic or... I can’t even write the word and surely hope will not have to also.

Now, I’d like to tell my siblings in the parliament that the Kuwaiti people are all looking up to you with optimism. Are you really capable of being up to the challenge to move the country to havens of safety, security, progress and development or will you push the nation into more conflicts and futile debates that might eventually lead to unnecessary battles?

You need to realize that preserving the whole democratic system highly depends on you at this very particular phase of our history. So, you either sail our nation’s ship to safe shores or sail it into rocky waters. It is a clear challenge declared by all the Kuwaitis because, in case of dissolving the current parliament (may Allah the Almighty forbid it), only a few voters will go to polls the next time. No ballot count will be made and ballot boxes will remain almost empty. The majority of the people will be forced to dress in orange because it was YOU who killed the democracy, which I hope you will never commit! My message to my dear brother, the speaker of the house, Marzouq AlGhanim, the one I was so happy on electing as speaker because I deeply believe the youth is capable of great achievements if they have the will and determination is that I pray to Allah the Almighty to help you succeed in shouldering the responsibilities and burdens of this position. I also hope young lawmakers will assist and support you as well as benefit from the experience of old parliamentarians! In a message of love and appreciation to HH the PM, Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak, I’d like to stress that HH the Amir has renewed his confidence in you and you are truly up to it. We have no doubt that you love this country but, love alone is not enough unless it is combined with hard work and sincerity.

This is a golden opportunity to boost fruitful and constructive cooperation for the sake of Kuwait’s present and future. We do not want to repeat our daily complaints about health, education and housing services or any other grievances that we are sick and tired of repeating and hearing! As a ‘down payment’ for such cooperation, I suggest allocating around a billion dinars to revive our streets and areas which have been long neglected. Let this happen immediately and let us start catching up with time now because time will never wait for us and futile arguments do not build nations. May Allah the Almighty preserve our Kuwait and its people from all evils! — Al-Jarida

THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2013

LOCAL

Health ministry moves to reduce sick leaves Data system to be linked with CSC

By A Saleh

KUWAIT: National Assembly Speaker Marzouq Al-Ghanim received at his office here yesterday delegation members of the Kuwaiti Initiative for Supporting the Egyptian People in cooperation with Kuwait Red Crescent Society. The delegation included Adela Al-Sayer, Feryal Al-Furaih, Maha AlBarjas, Amna Al-Rashid, Nabila Al-Anjari and Fotoh Al-Delali.

SAMENA summit to help identify key regulatory policy changes KUWAIT: The South Asia - Middle East - North Africa region’s SAMENA Telecommunications Council yesterday confirmed that Issa AlKandari, Minister of Communications in Kuwait, will participate in its Kuwait Regulatory Summit to be held on Sept 2 and in partnership with Viva Kuwait.

Bocar BA, Chief Executive Officer, SAMENA Council said, “The presence of Kuwait’s Ministry of Telecommunications and the participation of Issa Al-Kandari himself, underscores the importance of the Regulatory Summit, as it comes at a time when the regional telecommunications industry is witnessing unprecedented growth in terms of size, stakeholders and demand. As with any industry that is expanding at an enormous pace, the need to make regulatory amendments that not only encourage further growth but also ensure that it is sustainable and with long-term benefits for all stakeholders is extremely important. The Summit aims to provide all industry participants with several opportunities to discuss these changes, identify collaborative efforts needed to implement

these changes, and also explore un-tapped or under-tapped areas of growth.”

Salman Al-Badran, CEO VIVA Kuwait, added, “We are extremely proud to be part of the SAMENA Council Regulatory Summit and more so to be hosting it in Kuwait. With the telecommunications industry in Kuwait and the region at the threshold of becoming one of the most important sectors and major contributor to regional economies, I am really keen on hearing the viewpoints of my industry colleagues and other experts. Regulation is necessary not only to ensure quality standards, transparency and legitimacy, but also to facilitate continuous growth and efficiency through partnerships and engagement. Hence we are extremely pleased to have H.E. Issa Al Kandari at the Summit.”

The theme of the Summit is Regulation 4.0 and will include several discussion panels on topics such as regulatory trends and case studies, the opportunity to foster growth through digitization, public private partnership to acceralate broadband development and efficient implementation of policy and regulatory frameworks.

Kuwait among most improved places to live KUWAIT: Kuwait City and Dubai have been ranked in the top 10 biggest improving cities in a global livability survey released yesterday.

The Economist Intelligence Unit said Dubai’s ranking at number 77 had improved 2.9 percent in the past five years. Kuwait City, which came in at 81, was also amongst the top 10 most improved, with a 2.5 percent jump. The survey ranks five categories: stability, healthcare, culture and environment, education and infrastructure.

Cities which dropped down the rankings with negative livability changes were linked to the

Arab Spring, European austerity and Chinese discontent. The conflict in Syria saw Damascus drop to bottom of the list at 140. Tripoli, in Libya, was ranked 133 and the Iranian capital Tehran was positioned at number 131.

Over five years, Muscat in Oman dropped 3.7 percent to 88th, while Tunis in Tunisia fell to 104th. Melbourne, in Australia, was ranked the world’s most livable city for the third year in a row. Australian and New Zealand cities landed five of the top 10 spots. Canadian cities made up another three of the top 10 positions.

KUWAIT: In a bid to reduce the number of on sick leaves, the health ministry announced its intention to automatically link government hospitals and specialized polyclinics’ data systems with that of the Civil Services Commission (CSC).

MoH’s undersecretary, Dr Khaled Al-Sahlawi met with CSC undersecretary, Mohammed Al-Roumi to discuss the process. “New legislations are being considered to limit sick leaves”, he said.

Ministry of Public Works decided to take action against several contractors for violating the contracts signed with the ministry concerning general conditions and delaying payment of fines.

Meanwhile, during a meeting with his undersecretaries, Abdul Aziz Al-Ibrahim, Minister of Public Works and Minister of Electricity and Water, stressed the need to develop and improve performance in various development projects. Al-Ibrahim also said that he ordered all technical sectors to report on their respective agendas, projects and their subsequent followup. Threats to grill Dr Rola Dashti, Minister of Planning, seem to have snowballed, according to sources, who said that three MPs led by Safa Al-Hashim are set to file a grilling motion against Dashti.

MP Osama Al-Tahous said Dr Nayef Al-Hajraf, Minister of Education and Higher Education, has to choose between either cooperating with the parliament or get ready to answer questions. AlTahous added that Al-Hajraf had been delaying accreditation of PhD degrees and universities.

Al-Tahou also filed an inquiry against Sheikh Salman Al-Sabah, Minister of Information and Minister of State for Youth Affairs, over the ministry’s strategy and the youth-oriented projects

Omar Al-Samaraei

KUWAIT: The main hall at the Ice Skating Rink has been reopened now after it was closed for a few months for maintenance.

Visitors are being welcomed during the regular timings, a senior Touristic Entertainment Corporation official said yesterday.

Visitors can access the main and minor halls inside the Ice Skating Rink everyday from 8:30 am to 10 pm, said Omar AlSamara’ei, Ice Skating Rink and Fountain Park Supervisor in a press release. The entrance fee is KD 1.5 (ice skates included), and the facility also offers monthly subscriptions for KD 40. Training classes are available starting from the age of 3 for KD 10 per month.

KUWAIT: Kuwait National Petroleum Company (KNPC) handed Kuwait Red Crescent Society (KRCS) yesterday financial donation from the company’s employees to support efforts to serve humanity in various parts of the world.

KNPC Director of Public Relations and Media Mohammad Mansour Al-Ajmi said in a statement, after handover of the donation to KRCS Chairman Barjas Al-Barjas, that it was a contribution to relief activities of the society and countries suffering from catastrophes. He expressed hope it would help to alleviate suffering of those affected by major natural disasters that destroyed a large number of houses and facilities.

The KNPC and its employees are eager to participate in efforts to relieve disaster-stricken peoples, thus portraying a bright image of Kuwait abroad. For his part, Al-Barjas expressed deep gratitude to those in charge of the company and its employees for the gesture. People of Kuwait have made great contributions in charity work, he said, adding that there are a lot of people who live in difficult humanitarian conditions and are in need for help. —KUNA

Fire breaks out in Jleeb house KUWAIT: A house in Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh caught fire, and technical rescue from Jleeb, Farwaniya, Salmiya and back up centers answered the call. The fire was in three Arab style (one floor) buildings covering an area of 1,800 meters. The place had bachelor rooms and two carpenter shops. Stored foam and leftover material caught fire

the Ministry of Public Works center in Subbiya to the research center in Kabed would cost KD 1.69 million.

Medical errors MP Adel Al-Kharafi filed an inquiry with the Minister of Electricity and Water, Abdul Aziz Ibrahim about suspending a number of tenders and projects. Al-Kharafi queried about the results of investigating assistant undersecretaries over the past 10 years, the smart meter tender and whether he had the audit bureau’s permission to launch the Jaber Bridge project.

The Health Ministry is reconsidering the idea of establishing a special fund to pay compensations for medical errors committed by staff at the Health Ministry facilities. Notably, the fund was suggested earlier and MoH has now revived it to implement it after the Cabinet approves it.

The project aims to make doctors pay monthly subscriptions which would be used to pay compensations ordered by courts in case of medical errors.

Ali Al-Jazzaf, Deputy Secretary General of the Justice and Peace Forum, announced that the forum supports the nomination of former Dasma An Benaid Al-Gar Coop chairman to run for the municipal council elections due next month.

MP Mansour Al-Thafeiri promised Thekra AlRashidi, Minister of Social Affairs and Labor, a hard time for her violations where she appointed her relatives once the next parliamentary term started. “What the minister says about following CSC laws and rule in these appointments is nonsense”, he stressed pointing out that the people she appointed had taken the positions of other more qualified people.

Ice Skating Rink reopens

KNPC employees donate to KRCS for disaster victims

By Hanan Al-Saadoun

the ministry has begun.

MP Mohammed Al-Howailah, Chairman of the Parliamentary Educational Committee said that the committee was preparing its next meeting agenda and that it would include various educational issues like the need to establish more governmental universities, organizing work in private schools and linking the outcome of the educational process with the job market to create more job opportunities for citizens. He added that Kuwaiti PhD holders must be appointed in Kuwait University and the Public Authority for Applied Education and Training. He also urged the Ministry of Education to prepare well for the new year.

MP Khalil Abdullah Abul, the parliamentary educational committee member called for a meeting to determine the committee’s agenda and priorities and said that setting priorities requires a state vision and a clear road map. “We can’t set priorities without a vision”, he opined, pointing out that MPs had no right to interfere in appointing PhD holders in any educational facilities simply because he was Kuwaiti. “This is unacceptable”, he stressed. He also called for creating more equal job opportunities and urged fellow MPs to stop interfering to appoint less competent people while more qualified ones are without jobs.

He also said that the session called to discuss regional changes which should focus on the possible impacts and the measures to be taken to avoid negative ones. “It should not be held so that some people can start cursing, insulting and shouting. They do this at home if they like”, he underlined.

The Joint Group Contracting Co said that building a pipeline to carry treated water from

which was put out in no time.

No injuries were reported. Farwaniya Fire Center Director Colonel Hussein Asad said the delay in calling the operation center was the main reason for the fire to spread, adding that speedy calls help firemen douse fire quickly.

He appealed to landlords to not allow tenants to use the flats as storerooms or carpenter shops to avoid potential fire hazards.

THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2013

LOCAL

Serviceman killed in Fifth Ring Road car accident Asian driver takes sweet revenge KUWAIT: A military man died in a car accident reported Tuesday morning on the Fifth Ring Road. Paramedics accompanied by police officers rushed to Al-Qairawan where the accident was reported, and pronounced the Kuwaiti man dead on the spot shortly afterwards. Criminal investigators were called to examine the scene before they left with the body to the forensic department. Preliminary investigations indicate that the man was driving his sedan to work when he crashed into a newly constructed roundabout in front of him. The impact caused the car to flip over which trapped the man inside where he later succumbed to injuries.

Bank theft A bank employee was questioned by Criminal Investigation Department officials in a case where he was accused of stealing cash his client accidently left behind at the Hawally branch. Investigations were underway after a Kuwaiti man filed a case on failing to find KD 2,200 he withdrew from a local bank but forgot to collect on his way out. A bank employee was arrested after surveillance tapes showed him leave his desk, head directly towards a table where the envelope was left, put it in his pocket and return to his desk. The employee claimed that he had planned to contact the client after he found out who the money belonged to, but was taken to the Public Prosecution for further questioning when wasn’t able to explain why he failed to inform his superiors in the first place. He is currently being investigated.

Sweet revenge Fahaheel police summoned a local family driver whose employer accused him of damaging his car’s engine by pouring sugar into the gas tank.

The case was filed Tuesday after local police were approached by a man to report that a car mechanic had diagnosed the reason behind his vehicle’s breakdown as “severe engine damage” resulting from large amounts of sugar in the gas tank. The Kuwaiti man pressed charges against his Asian driver, admitting that he had previously reprimanded him over a mistake, and accused him of damaging his car to take revenge. A warrant was issued to summon the driver who faces vandalism charges.

‘Passionate’ thief A man was arrested in Hawally where he drove a stolen vehicle in a reckless manner, before investigations revealed that he is guilty of seven other automobile thefts. The suspect was ordered to pull over after patrol officers saw him performing reckless stunts behind the wheel of a luxury vehicle.

The man, a Kuwaiti in his twenties, was placed under arrest after police found that the car was stolen. He was taken for questioning during which he admitted that he stole seven other vehicles, justifying his actions by claiming that he has a “passion” for luxury cars. He was taken to the Criminal Investigations Department for further questioning.

Drunk driver A drunk driver was busted Tuesday morning in Hawally, and officers took him into custody despite his pleas to be allowed to perform the Fajr (dawn)

prayers. The suspect was reportedly pulled over minutes before dawn for swerving, and then placed under arrest after the patrol officers found that he was under the influence of alcohol. The policemen had to ignore the Arab man’s repeated requests to let him go so that he can pray, as they drove him to the Maidan Hawally police station instead to face charges.

Search for impersonators Investigations are ongoing in a case in which two people said they were robbed by people in police uniform in Sulabiya. In their statements to local police, the two Bangladeshi nationals said that they cooperated with a group of people wearing jackets carrying the Interior Ministry’s emblem who stopped them in the area and ordered them to get into their car. The two were reportedly taken to a remote location in the desert and left there after the suspects confiscated four cell phones and KD 850 from them. Search is ongoing for the suspects who detectives believe used impersonated police officials to rob the victims.

Al-Salam mugger Al-Salam police are looking to identify and arrest a mugger who assaulted a cleaning worker in the area and left him bleeding. According to the police report, the suspect pulled over near a pavement where the worker was cleaning, and then tried to rob him at knife-point. After the worker showed resistance, the suspect stabbed him twice in the head before driving away. The worker was hospitalized and a case has been filed for investigations.

Al-Ahli CSR campaign ‘a big success’ KUWAIT: Al-Ahli Bank of Kuwait’s ongoing CSR campaign “Our Society... Our Responsibility”, launched in 2012 continues to successfully reach out and touch numerous lives everyday.

Sahar Al-Therban, public relations manager at ABK said “The Bank promotes its social relations under the slogan ‘Our Society... Our Responsibility’, as part of its strategy to sponsor and participate in social, health, educational, sport and environmental

initiatives, in addition to organizing medical awareness seminars to educate both, ABK Staff and members of the public.

A quick overview of the first half of 2013, Al-Ahli Bank of Kuwait joined the National Day Celebrations in February, hosting a competition on the history of Kuwait on social media. The Bank celebrated Kuwait’s

National Day with children from ‘The Montessori Nursery’. On the occasion of Mother’s Day, ABK, in collaboration with the ‘Joy & Happiness Voluntary Group’ felicitated mothers at an organized ceremony.

At the same time ABK granted financial support to the ‘Gulf Disability Society’ and sponsored the ‘Gulf Disability Week’. Education being one of the prime initiatives of ABK’s CSR campaign, it granted financial assistance to various school and college projects, like

the sponsorship of the ‘Finance Week’ at the ‘College of Administrative Sciences College’ at the Kuwait University, sponsorship of the Graduation Projects of Engineering and Petrol students, and the Quran Reciting Competition at the Arab Open University.

Financial support is one aspect, but on special occasions representatives from ABK spend time and inter-

act with children at schools, colleges and hospitals, providing them the much-needed moral support.

ABK sponsored the ‘International Environment Day’ in collaboration with Kuwait Environment Protection Society and launched the ‘I Will Change’ festival with them, with children aged five to sixteen years participating. Not to be left behind in the Health and Medical field, ABK organized a Diabetes Awareness Seminar for its employees, where Dr. KashifRizvi ,Consultant Physician & Endocrinologist at the Mazaya Clover Center explained the long term repercussions of the condition, and simple lifestyle changes required to deal with it.

Sport had the biggest share in ABK’s support program. The Bank participated in honoring best local players of volleyball, handball and basketball in addition to diving competitions from ‘Gulf Diving’. ABK participated in the retirement celebration of Ahmad Al Baroun, Kuwaiti Water Ball team player, and supported him with a generous contribution. Also, one of the most successful sports events was ‘The Football Penalties Competition’ by ABK, held for the second consecutive year at GOAL in Discovery Mall, where winners received cash prizes. ABK also sponsored the bowling competition that was held for employees of the Ministry of Education.

Al Ahli Bank of Kuwait did not forget the activities of other communities, and sponsored various social and cultural events taking place in Kuwait. Since children and women’s issues are of significant concern, ABK supported ‘The Indian Women’s Association’s’ activities that mainly focus on the betterment of lesser privileged women and children.”

In conclusion Al-Therban stated, “Al Ahli Bank of Kuwait, under the umbrella of ‘Our Society ...Our Responsibility’ campaign, continues its support to activities of every genre, anything that benefits the society we live in.”

KUWAIT: A fire broke out in a building under construction in Ardhiya area, prompting Ardhiya, Farwaniya, and Madina back up centers to respond. An automated fire team arrived five minutes after the call, and the fire was brought under control in record time to stop it from spreading to neighboring buildings. A fireman was injured and treated on site, but no injuries among civilians were reported. —By Hanan Al-Saadoun

New careers, new future at Wataniya Telecom KUWAIT: The world is full of people who have chosen a certain path and somewhere along in life they realized that their aspirations, talents and interests lie in a field which is very different from their original qualifications or chosen career. In a time of self-realization like this many often continue doing their old jobs because they know how hard it is to make a switch late in life.

Sometimes children are forced to make career choices that their parents want.

Wataniya Telecom which has always been a leading choice for job seekers in Kuwait has introduced a new initiative which encourages its employees to find their true passion. This new campaign is called “Share your Passion”. Wataniya’s staff will get a chance to apply to their favorite department via their company intranet and then they will be given the opportunity to switch to the new department or work on a project from their chosen department.

This initiative will be a true winner because it gives employees a chance to know what it’s like to work in a new field and makes them familiar with the challenges of their new career simultaneously

highlighting their own strengths. Secondly it enables Wataniya to identify hidden talent in their staff and this will help the organization mold its people and optimize skills set by developing them in the employee’s field of choice.

Wataniya Telecom stated that,” We have developed this campaign because we want every employee to be completely satisfied with their work and feel like he or she is a major contributor to Wataniya’s success.

One of the first steps to achieving such a healthy work culture is by giving people a chance to step out of their routine and see where their true strength and passion lies.”

Wataniya also added, “This is just one of the first initiatives launched, we have several other plans in the pipeline which will lead to 360 degree of employee development.”

Wataniya is one of the most esteemed organizations in Kuwait. The work environment and corporate culture at Wataniya is dynamic, professional and multinational. It offers its employees opportunities to grow and become successful simultaneously providing them with certified trainings and career paths that maximize their potential.

Nablus names street after Al-Babtain RAMALLAH: The Governorate of Nablus announced on Tuesday that it is to name one of its city streets after Kuwaiti poet Abdulaziz Al-Babtain.

A decision had been taken by the previous Nablus Municipality to name one of the city streets after Al-Babtain, Ghassan Shakaa, Mayor of Nablus, said adding that the current city’s municipality has reaffirmed that decision. Shakaa indicat-

ed that his office is currently in the process of choosing a vital and important street in the city that matches Al-Babtain’s prolific accomplishments and career at various levels, asserting that the Kuwaiti poet is one of the well-known people in Palestine on national and patriotic levels due to his distinctive role in literature.

Also, he expressed his hope that Al-Babtain, in

person, takes part in the inauguration ceremony of the street soon, stressing on importance of honoring the names of writers and poets due to their major contributions in various fields.

In addition, the mayor of Nablus lauded Kuwaiti-Palestinian ties, expressing his appreciation to what had Kuwait provided for Palestine and its cause. —KUNA

September - allergy season in Kuwait

KUWAIT: Drugs control department arrested an Asian for trading in narcotic tablets. Detectives made sure the information is true before going to the suspect’s house and arrested him in front of the house. He had 300 illicit tablets with him.

He was sent to concerned authorities.

KUWAIT: The changing of the seasons can be a beautiful time of the year, but it can also be miserable and frustrating for allergy sufferers.

Allergist and Immunologist at Mubarak Al-Kabeer Hospital Dr Ahmad Al-Khabaz gave a number of recommendations and advice to allergic people in Kuwait to help them cope with the allergy season, usually falling in September.

In an interview with KUNA, AlKhabaz said September of each year was the season for the spread of various kinds of allergy diseases, mostly rhinitis and asthma. “Allergic people suffer serious health set-

backs and deterioration in September which may force them to stay in hospitals or at home for long periods,” Al-Khabaz said. He listed many causes for the spread of allergies in September such as the unstable weather conditions, pollen season as well as the start of the academic year which help spread allergy viruses among students and their parents. Al-Khabaz advised people to make allergy test at a specialized center to better diagnose the disease.

Skin testing is considered the standard, and is performed in a variety of ways, the most common

being prick (or scratch) tests, he said.

Allergic rhinitis is defined as inflammation and irritation of the nasal passages due to seasonal and yearround allergens. Symptoms include sneezing, runny nose, nasal congestion, itching of the nose, and post nasal drip. He cautioned that there are similarities between rhinitis and flu symptoms, but the activity of the flu virus does not exceed seven to 10 days and usually accompanied by high body temperature, but rhinitis continues for weeks, months or maybe years and not accompanied by heat. As for the allergic dermatitis, he pointed out the disease

spreads in September, but not in much bigger rates than that of other months of the year and patients do not need to stay in hospitals.

To help curb the spread of the disease, Al-Khabaz stressed the importance of personal hygiene, avoidance of crowded places as well as taking of vaccinations and allergy control medications.

“Vaccination is the most effective medication to heal the disease not only its symptoms,” he said, adding that allergic people, particularly children, elderly, and pregnant women have to take a flu vaccination each year. —KUNA

KUWAIT: Two expats were arrested for trading in illicit drugs yesterday. An undercover cop agreed to buy 500 Tramadol tabs for KD 2,600 and both of them were caught red-handed in Hawally during the sting operation and authorities found 3,000 tablets in their possession.

THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2013

Kashmir militants threaten attacks

Iran ups nuke activity, installs faster centrifuges Page 8

Page 11

GOLAN HEIGHTS: An Israeli soldier walks next to Merkava tanks stationed in a deployment training area in the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights near the border with Syria. — AFP

Israel calls up reservists, boosts defenses Israelis gird against possible Syrian attack JERUSALEM: Israel ordered a small-scale mobilization of reservists yesterday and strengthened its missile defenses as precautions against possible Syrian attack should Western powers carry out threatened strikes on Syria. But an Israeli official briefed on a meeting of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s security cabinet said the Jewish state believed the probability of it be targeted by Syria, its northern neighbor and long-time foe, was low.

“Following a security assessment held today, there is no reason for a change to normal routines,” Netanyahu said in a statement. “We are, in parallel,

preparing for any scenario.” That included a limited call-up of military reserve soldiers and deployment of an advanced missile shield in the north, the official said. Israel Radio said mobilization of several hundred troops in intelligence and air defense had been authorized.

Army Radio reported the military was using all of its missile defenses, which include the shortrange Iron Dome, the mid-range Patriot and the long-range Arrow II. Facing potentially imminent attack by the United States and other Western powers over its alleged use of chemical weapons,

‘Why is it dark?’ asks blinded Chinese boy BEIJING: A six-year-old Chinese boy who had his eyes gouged out does not know he has been blinded and asks his family why the sun has yet to rise, state media reported yesterday. The boy, surnamed Guo, was found covered in blood in the northern province of Shanxi after he went missing while playing outside, Chinese media reported previously. His eyes, gouged out by an attacker, were recovered nearby, a police officer in Fenxi county who declined to be named said.

The boy was being treated at an eye hospital and was not yet aware that he has been left blind for life, the Beijing Youth Daily said. “He asks why the sky is always dark... and why the dawn still hasn’t come,” it quoted an uncle of the boy as saying.

“We could only tell him that his eyes had some injury and have to be bandaged. (We tell him that) they will be fine after the bandage is removed. “It is such a difficult question to explain to him. It is the most heartbreaking thing,” he said. Earlier Chinese media reports said the corneas were missing when the boy’s eyes were found, leading to speculation that the attacker was an organ trafficker. But police said yesterday the corneas had been found attached to the eyeballs and ruled out organ sales as a motive, although they were unable to provide an alternative explanation for the attack. “We are still working on it so we cannot offer any comment or make any assumption on the motives,” the Fenxi officer said. Police offered a 100,000 yuan ($16,000) reward for information leading to the arrest of the sole suspect, who they said was a woman. Reports said she drugged the boy before gouging out his eyeballs.

No-one had been detained as of yesterday, domestic media said. A video posted online Tuesday showed the boy-who had a cleft palate-writhing in agony on a hospital bed. Pictures posted online yesterday showed him still heavily bandaged, apparently in less acute pain. The brutal attack has shocked Internet users in China, who offered sympathy for the boy and demanded retribution against his attacker on the country’s hugely popular microblogs.

His plight was the most searched news story on Sina Weibo, China’s version of Twitter yesterday. “This poor child, he must be suffering more than if he was dead and he has to live in darkness forever,” said one poster. “We have to capture the criminal!” Another wrote: “This is so cruel. I hope we can quickly capture the suspect and bring justice back! She is worse than a monster.” Doctors plan to implant artificial eyeballs in the boy’s eye sockets after his inflammation subsides so that people will not be scared by his appearance in future, his uncle said according to media reports. — AFP

Damascus has hinted it could shoot back at the Jewish state. Israel is also braced for possible rocket salvoes from Hezbollah, Syria’s Lebanese militia ally.

Netanyahu said on Tuesday that Israel sought to stay out of the Syrian crisis but would respond forcefully to any attempt to attack it. Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon said after the security cabinet meeting yesterday that Israel was “taking steps for just in case”. In a speech in Tel Aviv, Yaalon said Israel’s “finger is not light on the trigger but whoever around us presumes they can challenge us by a threat will of course encounter our might if there is

any attempt to hurt us or our citizens”.

Assad, preoccupied with a 2-1/2 year-old uprising against his rule and facing a militarily superior enemy in Israel, has held his fire in the face of three Israeli air strikes in Syria this year on advanced weaponry. But many in Israel worry that he could lash out if he felt his back was against the wall, and long lines formed yesterday at gas mask distribution centers.

Israel has provided its citizens with equipment to cope with possible chemical or biological attacks since the 1991 Gulf War, when US-led troops drove

Iraq out of Kuwait. According to official figures, however, only about 60 percent of Israelis collected their gas masks before the current tensions over Syria erupted. The Israeli Postal Service, which oversees mask distribution, said the number of orders phoned in by the public in recent days had quadrupled.

“We just want to be prepared. I’d say it’s a bit of a surreal experience,” a Jerusalem resident, who gave his name only as Tovy, said at a distribution centre. “I just really pray we’re never going to really need to use it.” — Reuters

THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2013

I N T E R N AT I O N A L

Egypt backs away from plan to ban Brotherhood CAIRO: Egypt should not ban the Muslim Brotherhood or exclude it from politics after the army’s overthrow of Islamist President Mohamed Morsi, the interim prime minister said, reversing his previous stated view. The apparent about-turn fuelled speculation that the military-installed government may now seek a political settlement to the crisis, but it also coincided with a new call for protests by Morsi’s supporters. Hazem El-Beblawi, the interim prime minister, had proposed on Aug. 17 that the Brotherhood, the Arab world’s oldest and arguably most influential Islamist group, should be dissolved, and said the government was studying the idea.

In an interview with state media late on Tuesday, Beblawi appeared to row back, saying the government would instead monitor the group and its political wing and that the actions of its members would determine its fate.

“Dissolving the party or the group is not the solution and it is wrong to make decisions in turbulent situations,” the state news agency MENA quoted Beblawi as saying.

“It is better for us to monitor parties and groups in the framework of political action without dissolving them or having them act in secret.” There has been no sign from the Brotherhood, most of whose leaders are now in jail or on the run, that it wants to engage with the army establishment that ousted it by force. Founded in 1928, the Brotherhood was banned by Egypt’s then military rulers in 1954. Though still outlawed during the 30-year rule of Hosni Mubarak, it ran a large welfare network and its members ran as independents in limited elections.

After decades of operating in the shadows and winning support with its charities and preaching, the Brotherhood registered itself as a non-governmental organization in March in response to a court challenge by people contesting its legality. It also has a registered political arm, the Freedom and Justice Party (FJP), set up in 2011 after Mubarak’s overthrow in an uprising. The Brotherhood won all five national votes held since 2011, including Morsi’s election as president last year.

But Morsi alienated swathes of Egyptians during his year in power and, after mass protests, the army removed him on July 3. More than 1,000 people, including about 100 police and soldiers, have since been killed in the worst internal violence in the Egyptian republic’s history. Most died when the security forces dispersed two pro-Morsi protest camps on Aug 14. State media have described the crackdown as a war on “terrorism”.

With the Brotherhood in shock, protests that it called last Friday mostly failed to materialize. The National Coalition to Support Legitimacy and Reject the Coup, which includes the Brotherhood and demands Morsi’s reinstatement, promised protests in the streets and squares of all of Egypt’s 27 provinces this Friday and said it would “activate a plan of peaceful civil disobedience”.

The newspaper run by the Brotherhood’s FJP ran an advertisement under the banner “Boycott the murderers”, urging citizens not to watch the television channels of the “old regime”; not to pay

GIZA: An Egyptian street vendor sits opposite a torched and vandalized police station in the Kirdasah neighborhood of Giza, on the outskirts of Cairo. — AFP taxes to “the government that is killing us”; and not to buy products made by companies that it accused of supporting the military-backed interim government.

The government says it will call parliamentary and presidential elections within months, after the passage of a new constitution.—Reuters

Iran ups nuke activity Tehran installs more modern, faster centrifuges

RABAT: Women attend the opening of the first congress of Morocco’s ruling Party of Justice and Development (PJD) in this file photo.— AFP

Morocco ruling Islamists struggle to retain power RABAT: Less than two years after sweeping to power, Morocco’s ruling Islamists look increasingly isolated, abandoned by their main coalition ally, criticized by the king and with similar movements challenged.

The Party of Justice and Development shot to power for the first time after triumphing in 2011 parliamentary polls that followed the Arab Spring protests sweeping the country, bringing hopes of change.

But the party’s leader, Prime Minister Abdelilah Benkirane, has struggled to end a political crisis triggered by the nationalist Istiqlal Party’s withdrawal from the coalition last month. “There are many indications that the fall of the government is only a question of time,” said the Arabic daily Akhbar Al-Youm. While Istiqlal had made its intentions known as far back as May, accusing the PJD of failing to shore up the economy and solve pressing social problems, the crisis became a reality when five of its ministers resigned in July.

Benkirane has since been locked in negotiations to replace them and avoid early elections, notably with the National Rally of Independents, a party that opposed the government program adopted last year, making it an awkward ally for the Islamists. “Politics is the art of the possible, and our conflict with this party could not last forever,” Benkirane told young members of the PJD on Sunday, asking that they support his decisions.

A source close to the negotiations told AFP they could be concluded by midSeptember. Communications minister and PJD stalwart Mustapha Khalfi insists the political crisis has not undermined the government’s program. But the Islamist-led coalition has faced a barrage of criticism, especially for failing to push through much-needed social reforms, notably on costly pensions and subsidies, and to fix its ailing public finances. The country last year faced a budget deficit of more than seven percent of GDP. Charges against the PJD echo criticism of other Islamist movements in the region empowered by Arab Spring uprisings,

notably Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood, whose Mohamed Morsi was deposed as president in a military coup last month, and Tunisia’s Ennahda party. Since the end of 2011, “we have been governed by guess-work and amateurism,” lamented L’Economiste, a French-language Moroccan daily. Separately, the PJD came under renewed pressure last week following critical comments by King Mohammed VI about the government’s education policy, stoking frustration within the party.

But Benkirane remained silent on the matter, studiously avoiding any public conflict with the king, whose blessing is a prerequisite of any future coalition. “The king is above us. Our battle is instead with those tyrannical forces that want to get their hands on the country’s riches,” he said. His criticism was directed at Istiqlal and another PJD rival, the Party for Authenticity and Modernity, founded in 2008 by a figure close to the king.

Developments elsewhere in North Africa have not worked in favor of Islamist parties elected after the popular uprisings that swept the region in 2011. Earlier this month, PJD ministers avoided taking part in a demonstration in Rabat in support of Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood, which has been subjected to a bloody army crackdown since Mohamed Morsi’s ouster. But numerous members of the Moroccan party attended the 10,000-strong protest, and at the weekend, the party’s youth wing also demonstrated its support for the Egyptian Islamists. Political analyst Mohamed Tozy says parties like the PJD have had to learn tough lessons about the realities of power, and cannot take their voters’ support for granted. “As the Islamists are discovering everywhere, people are versatile. Even if they win on a religious program, daily concerns can prompt a change of heart,” he said. For now, Benkirane appears confident that his party’s relative popularity will prevail. “If negotiations to form a new coalition fail, I will go to His Majesty,” he said, indicating that he would be willing to contest fresh elections.—AFP

Tunisian Islamists plan murders, Islamic state TUNIS: The freshly banned jihadist group Ansar Al-Sharia was planning a series of political assassinations in Tunisia in its effort to establish an Islamic emirate in North Africa, the Interior Ministry said yesterday. The ministry disclosed Ansar’s plans one day after Prime Minister Ali Larayedh declared it a terrorist organization and said the state now had proof the militants had killed two secular politicians and several soldiers this year.

Ansar Al-Sharia is the most radical Islamist group to emerge in Tunisia since secular autocratic ruler Zine Al-Abidine Ben Ali was toppled in 2011, and poses a test to the authority of the moderate Islamist-led government. “This organization, which was collecting large quantities of weapons, planned to spread chaos and create a security vacuum through assassinations, before seizing power and establishing the first Islamic emirate in North Africa,” Mustapha Ben Amor, a senior ministry official, told reporters.

Among its targets were Mustapha Ben Jaafar, chairman of the assembly writing a new constitution, former Foreign Minister Kamal Morjan, Amer Larayedh, a senior official of the governing Islamist party Ennahda, and several journalists, he said.

Tunisia, which has taken an increasingly tough line against armed militants stoking uncertainty here, is struggling to save its nascent democracy amid popular discontent and the Egyptian army’s ousting of the Muslim Brotherhood government there.

Interior Minister Lotfi Ben Jeddou told the news conference that dozens of arrested Ansar members had made confessions that helped the government piece together its structure and plans. Among the evidence he showed were documents, videos and email and Skype exchanges his ministry had obtained that he said proved Ansar was loyal to Al-Qaeda in Islamic Maghreb (AQMI). He also displayed a diagram depicting Ansar’s internal hierarchy.— Reuters

VIENNA: Iran has prepared more than 1,000 advanced uranium enriching machines for startup the UN’s nuclear agency said yesterday, a move that is likely to raise concerns among countries who accuse Tehran of wanting to harness enrichment for the production of atomic arms. At the same time, the report by the International Atomic Energy Agency said Iran now has pushed back the time frame for the operation of a reactor that Iran’s critics fear could be used to make plutonium, which - like enriched uranium - can be used for the fissile core of nuclear weapons.

The report also confirmed that the IAEA and Iranian experts have agreed to restart talks focused on the agency’s attempts to probe suspicions that Tehran worked on atomic weapons, in what would be first such meeting since Iran’s hard-line president was replaced by a more moderate successor. News of the planned Sept 27 meeting was revealed first yesterday.

Iran denies any interest in nuclear weapons, insisting that both enrichment and the reactor are meant for peaceful purposes, such as production of energy and medical and scientific research. Since 2006, it has shrugged off numerous UN Security Council and other international sanctions meant to curb its nuclear activities, as well as incentives offered during international negotiations and aimed at the same goal.

The confidential report obtained by the AP was released yesterday to the agency’s 35 board member nations and the Security Council. It said Iran had installed about 300 more of its advanced centrifuges since the last report in May, for a total of 1,008, and had put all of them under vacuum. Such a move is normally one of the last steps before the machines start spinning uranium gas into the material that can be used either as reactor fuel or as the core of nuclear warheads, depending on its enrichment level.

The report also said Iran had installed more of its older-generation centrifuges to bring up their number to more than 15,000, with most of them running. But most concerns are likely to be generated by the pre-start up work on the high-tech IR2-m centrifuges because they are three to four times more effective than the older IR-1 machines. In addition to putting the existing IR2ms under vacuum, pre-installation work was continuing for about 2,000 additional advanced centrifuges, said the report. Summarizing the progress of construction of the plutonium-producing reactor at Arak, in central Iran, the IAEA noted some advances.

At the same time it cited an Iranian letter telling the agency that due to unspecified delays the startup date was “not achievable, so it cannot be the first quarter of 2014.” That target date, previously cited by the Islamic Republic, has been described as unrealistic by nuclear experts who say the reactor is unlikely to be operating before sometime in 2015 at the earliest. With its stockpile of enriched uranium at thousands of kilograms and growing, Iran theoretically has enough material to make several nuclear weapons.

But most of the material is enriched only to fuel grade and any move to turn it into uranium for weapons is difficult and quickly detectable. A smaller cache is enriched to higher levels that make it more easily convertible. But the report noted that this more sensitive supply remained below the amount need to convert into the 20 to 25 kilograms of high-enriched uranium needed to make one weapon, with Iran continuing to turn most of what it makes into a form that is difficult to rework into weapons use.

The Sept. 27 Iran-IAEA talks confirmed in the report focus on gaining access to a section of the Parchin military site that the agency has long tried to access. Before the talks were suspended

earlier this year, IAEA experts met Iranian negotiators 10 times over 18 months in futile efforts to start their probe of the area, southeast of Tehran. The agency suspects that the location was used by the Islamic Republic to test conventional explosive triggers for a nuclear blast. Iran denies working on atomic weapons at Parchin or anywhere else.

With no new date announced for the resumption of broader nuclear talks between Iran and five world powers on hold, the meeting on Parchin will be the first test of centrist President Hasan Rouhani’s pledge to reduce confrontation with the international community over its atomic activities. Under former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Iran blamed the IAEA for the standoff over Parchin, saying it is caused by the agency’s refusal to agree on strict parameters that would govern its probe.

The agency in turn says such an agreement would tie its hands by putting limits on what it could look for and whom it could question. It bases its suspicions of nuclear-weapons research and development by Iran on its own research and intelligence from the US, Israel and other Iran critics. IAEA chief Yukiya Amano told reporters earlier this year he was concerned about satellite images showing asphalt work, soil removal, and “possible dismantling of infrastructures” at Parchin.

Iran says such activities are part of regular construction that has nothing to do with alleged attempts to cleanse the area of evidence. But Amano said that because of such activities, “it may no longer be possible to find anything even if we have access to the site.” Repeating previous comments in yesterday’s report, Amano said that unless Iran decides to fully cooperate with the agency, the IAEA cannot shut the book on its probe and “conclude that all nuclear material in Iran is in peaceful activities.”— AP

Syria’s chemical weapons built to ‘counter Israel’ AMMAN: Syria, defeated by Israel in three wars and afraid its arch enemy had gained a nuclear arsenal, began in earnest to build a covert chemical weapons program three decades ago, aided by its neighbors, allies and European chemical wholesalers. Damascus lacked the technology and scientific capacity to set up a program on its own, but with backing from foreign allies it amassed what is believed to be one of the deadliest stockpiles of nerve agent in the world, Western military experts said.

“Syria was quite heavily reliant on outside help at the outset of its chemical weapons program, but the understanding now is that they have a domestic chemical weapons production capability,” said Amy Smithson of the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies in Washington, an expert on nuclear, biological and chemical weapons.

With Syria’s civil war in its third year and more than 100,000 dead, chemical weapons are reported to have been used multiple times by the government of President Bashar AlAssad, most recently in Damascus suburbs on Aug 21.

Opposition activists have said at least 500 people, and possibly twice that many, were killed that day by rockets carrying the nerve gas sarin or something similar. Syrian Information Minister Omran Zoabi said the allegations were “illogical and fabricated”. A team of chemical weapons experts from the United Nations has been in Damascus for more than a week to establish whether chemical weapons including sarin and other toxic nerve agents have been used in Syria’s conflict, and on Wednesday was making its second visit to a site of the Aug 21 attacks.

Meanwhile, the United States and its allies are gearing up for a probable military strike against Syria as punishment for the strike, which they blame on Assad’s government.

As a result of the wars of 1967, 1973 and 1982, Syria sought to counter Israel’s military superiority. Non-conventional weapons have already been used in the region. The late Iraqi President Saddam Hussein used chemical weapons such as mustard gas and other nerve agents during the 1980s, including the killing of 5,000 Kurds in Halabja, during the

DEIR EZZOR: A minibus drives across a makeshift bridge in front of the former concrete bridge that was partially destroyed during clashes between rebel fighters and loyal forces to the Syrian regime in Syria’s eastern town of Deir Ezzor. —AFP

war with Iran. Syria’s ally Iran is accused by the West of seeking to develop an atomic bomb, which it denies, while Israel refuses to confirm or deny whether it has nuclear weapons. “Syria had to have something to stack up against Israel,” Smithson said. Syria is one of only seven countries not to have joined the 1997 Chemical Weapons Convention, which commits members to completely destroying their stockpiles. Syria does not generally comment on its chemical weapons, but in July last year it acknowledged for the first time that it had them. Foreign Ministry spokesman Jihad Makdissi told a news conference the army would not use chemical weapons to crush the rebels but could use them against foreign forces.

LOSING CONTROL While it is relatively easy to produce small amounts of chemicals, scaling up to megaton quantities of precursors needed for weapons of mass destruction requires long-term, industrial-grade processing facilities with advanced equipment. The first technology and delivery systems were most probably obtained from the Soviet Union and pre-revolution Egypt, military experts believe, while chemical precursors came from European companies.

To boost its own capabilities, Damascus set up the Scientific Studies and Research Centre (SSRC), an agency with a civilian figure head that was run by military intelligence.

It is “the best-equipped research centre in Syria, possessing better technical capacity and equipment than the four Syrian universities,” the Nuclear Threat Initiative, a leading non-proliferation group, wrote in May. The SSRC, attacked by rebels and Israeli airstrikes earlier this year, oversees chemical weapons facilities in Dumayr, Khan Abou, Shamat, and Firaqlus, according to the US Center for Strategic and International Studies. It set up facilities for blister

agent, sarin, mustard and VX nerve gas, the Center said. The agency is now headed by one of Assad’s top advisers, national security Chief Ali Mamlouk, said Brigadier General Mustafa al Sheikh, a Syrian army defector.

“The man overseeing the chemical weapons in general is Ali Mamlouk, but effective control of the weapons is becoming fragmented,” Sheikh, who served for almost two decades in chemical weapons units, told Reuters from an undisclosed location in northern Syria. “Assad himself has lost overall command and control.”

Mamlouk, on a list of Syrians targeted by EU sanctions since 2011, was promoted last year to head national security after its chief was killed in a bombing in Damascus.

Considered to be a member of Assad’s inner circle, Mamlouk is one of two Syrian officers indicted last August in Beirut for allegedly plotting to incite sectarian violence in Lebanon. Efforts to reach Mamlouk for comment were unsuccessful.

Sheikh said the arsenal is now in the hands of chemical weaponstrained loyalists of Assad’s Alawite clan, a Shiite offshoot sect, and is being used for limited attacks that have killed dozens of rebels. “Most of the chemical weapons have been transported to Alawite areas in Latakia and near the coast, where the regime has the capability to fire them using fairly accurate medium range surface-to-surface missiles,” Sheikh said.

Some chemical munitions remain in bases around Damascus, and have been deployed with artillery shells.

“It is a matter of time before fairly large warheads are used,” he said. A US official, asked about Sheikh’s comments, told Reuters: “This is one concerning scenario we’re taking a close look at.” There are also fears that chemical weapons could fall into the hands of militants seeking to destabilize the region. —Reuters

THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2013

I N T E R N AT I O N A L

Holdout leaders stymie Africa’s rise JOHANNESBURG: The great democratic and economic strides made by African countries in the last decade risk being checked by aging leaders unwilling to pass the baton. For generations of foreign investors accustomed to the likes of Uganda’s Idi Amin and the former Zaire’s Mobutu Sese Seko, it took a while to shake off the stereotype of African leaders as psychotic kleptocrats hell-bent on retaining power. And not without justification. From 1960 to 2010, during 653 elections on the continent, the incumbent conceded defeat just 16 percent of the time, according to an African Development Bank study. But as better governance has swept from Senegal to Lesotho, the world’s perceptions have slowly caught up.

Investors who once fearfully dipped their toes in African waters, have seen that the old crocodiles are dead or dying and have begun to wade in. Progress has not been universal, but in much of Africa, “Number One” is as likely to be a former World Bank economist as an army general. So last week when 89year-old Robert Mugabe was sworn in as Zimbabwe’s president for another five years, it was something of a

blast from the past. “I still have ideas, ideas that need to be accepted by my people,” Mugabe who has ruled Zimbabwe since independence in 1980 — told the New York Times on the eve of the vote.

If the election results are accurate, Mugabe’s anticolonial message won him 61 percent support in a country where 60 percent of the population have never experienced colonialism. But Mugabe is farfrom the only independence-era leader still kicking about in the presidential palace. The average age of leaders on the African continent is around 60 years old, yet half of the population is under the age of 19.

“What’s wrong with us?” Sudanese-born billionaire Mo Ibrahim recently asked, wondering out loud whether Barack Obama could have become president of Kenya aged 47.

Probably not, concluded Ibrahim, who in 2006 created a foundation that awards prizes for achievement in African leadership and monitors good governance on the continent. In Angola Jose Eduardo dos Santos has been in power for fractionally longer than Mugabe’s 33 years. He won another five-year term last year. The Angolan economy is growing at a clip,

32 indicted in Bosnia Biggest post-war crime busts SARAJEVO: Thirty-two people were indicted in Bosnia yesterday for a string of murders and bank robberies in what prosecutors hailed as one of the biggest crackdowns on organized crime since the 1992-95 war. The crimes stretch back over the past decade and illustrate how criminals from across Bosnia’s ethnic divide have managed to work together while ethnic bickering on the political level has stalled the country’s bid to join the European mainstream.

They include three armed attacks on security vans transporting bank cash and a raid on a post office in the capital, Sarajevo, in which robbers made off with a total of $6.8 million. The perpetrators used police vehicles and uniforms to disguise themselves. Among the 32 indicted are three former police officers.

The indictments stem from a police sweep that began in September last year, codenamed Lutka (Doll). Twenty-five were arrested in September last year and more followed over next 12 months. Most are in custody and some are free on bail. “With this

indictment, five grave, unresolved murders in East (mainly Serb) Sarajevo have been clarified, as well as several robberies that had been unexplained for years,” the prosecutor’s office said in a statement. “The indictment is among the most extensive indictments relating to organized crime cases in post-Dayton Bosnia and Herzegovina,” it said, referring to the 1995 US-brokered peace deal in Dayton, Ohio, that ended the Bosnian war.

The accused appeared to be mainly Bosnian Serbs and Bosniaks (Muslims). Several were citizens of neighboring Serbia, the statement said. Operation Lutka initially targeted alleged Balkan crime boss Naser Kelmendi in connection with the 2007 murder of a Sarajevo former warlord. Kelmendi fled and was arrested in May this year in his native Kosovo on a warrant issued in Bosnia. Kelmendi, an ethnic Albanian with Bosnian citizenship, is on a U.S. list of suspected international drug kingpins. He remains in custody in Kosovo as the two countries do not have an extradition agreement. — Reuters

BEN GURION AIRPORT: Newly-arrived Jewish immigrants coming from Ethiopia step off the plane upon their arrival at Ben Gurion International Airport yesterday. — AFP

Arab Bedouin citizens feel betrayed by eviction plan ATIR: Khader Abu Al-Kian’s dusty village of Atir has never existed on any official map, and now it is disappearing before his eyes.

For decades he and his fellow Arab Bedouins eked out a meager existence in the Negev desert, largely under the Israeli government’s radar. But soaring property costs and a housing crisis are driving a new appetite in Israel for land and development opportunities, and even the harsh Negev looks good.

Israel has already invested around $5.6 billion to construct military bases in the Negev and will build 10 new communities there. The Bedouins will have to make way, a plan they say shows that Arabs are second-class citizens in Israel and is a betrayal given their past efforts to help build up the state.

The bulldozers have already been through Atir, demolishing homes and orchards, but Abu Al-Kian, 70, refuses to leave. “For 41 years I worked on this land, in the fresh air, for the Ministry of Agriculture and the Jewish National Fund, planting trees and putting out forest fires,” he said, wearing a white scarf on his head cinched with a black cord.

“I have citizenship, but they still destroyed my house. Now I have only the shirt on my back. It’s like they’re saying to me, ‘Just leave and go to hell’,” he said, his voice shaking. The majority of Israel’s 1.6 million Arab citizens dwell in cities and small towns in the north and centre. But 200,000 Bedouins live in the southern desert, half in government-built townships and half in 42 ramshackle “unrecognized” villages without running water, electricity or sanitation.

A draft law, which will likely come to a final vote after parliament returns from recess in October, expects to have to move some 40,000 Bedouins from many of the unrecognized villages into the seven townships, although some villages will stay. The “Prawer Plan” will compensate many Bedouin with a combination of land and cash and bring them into “the 21st century” by significantly improving their standard of living, according to a government-sponsored report on the draft.

The Israeli position is that developing the region provides an opportunity to address the needs of a long neglected segment of the population. “We are determined to narrow the gap (between the Negev and the rest of the country),” spokesman for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Mark Regev, said.

“They are citizens of Israel and are entitled to all the opportunities associated with being citizens.”

ALIENATING THE COMMUNITY Wadi Na’am, an unrecognized village like Atir, lies down a sunblasted stony track a short drive from the heart of the Negev “wine route”, with leafy Jewish-owned ranches that are popular weekend destinations for wine and cheese tasting. Sitting in his small, concrete home, which a generator-powered fan labors in vain to cool, electrician and village council member Najib Abu Bneiyeh says Israeli policies are alienating the community.

Unlike the Arabs of the cities and the Israeli-occupied

Palestinian territories, the Bedouin traditionally shied away from political activism and have volunteered in small numbers for Israel’s army, gaining renown for using ancient tracking skills to guard Israel’s frontiers. “Many of us used to volunteer for military service,” Abu Bneiyeh said, looking at the yellowing pictures on the wall of relatives in combat fatigues. “But with the pressure we’re put under, the demolitions and the acts of racism we experience, the Arabs are doing this less and less.”

One complaint is that the committee drawing up the Prawer Plan, named after top Israeli planning official Ehud Prawer, had no Arab members and did not formally consult with the local representative body of the unrecognized villages. “If the government were to recognize their villages, it would be obligated to provide services,” said Ofer Dagan of the Negev Coexistence Forum, a civil rights group. “But the only way modernization is offered to the Bedouin is through urban settlements, whereas the Jewish population is allowed a range of rural and agricultural modern settlements.”

On Aug 1, hundreds of people staged protests against the plan at a junction near one of the townships, waving Palestinian flags to show solidarity with those in the occupied territories whom they see as fellow victims of Israel’s appetite for land in the form of expanding Jewish settlements. “We are part of the Palestinian nationality as well as citizens of the state of Israel, but the Prawer Plan is depriving our youth of a future,” Abu Bneiyeh said. “We see that they’re forcing us to move without giving us a say in how and where we can live, so the protests are a way of resisting.”

TOWNSHIPS The Bedouins of the Negev, called Naqab in Arabic, are descendants of the semi-nomadic Arab tribes that once roamed the desert expanses, herding and farming. Unemployment, crime, the high school drop-out rate and female non-participation in the work force are much higher in the community than in Israeli society at large. Over two-thirds of Negev Bedouin lived below the poverty line in 2007, over four times the rate of Jewish households, according to the National Insurance Institute. In the seven state-recognized townships, 16.2 percent unemployment stood at more than double the national average and only about 2 percent points lower than in the unrecognized villages, the Israeli Employment Service found in 2009.

Netanyahu’s spokesman Regev acknowledged that previous governments had not done enough to raise the living standards of the Bedouin and said building up the Negev would benefit all Israeli citizens. “The Negev as a whole is underdeveloped in comparison to the rest of the country, and as part of the billions of shekels being invested into it, the government has budgeted affirmative action programs which will bring health care, infrastructure and education to the Bedouin community,” he said.—Reuters

but corruption is rife and while the rich have done well, wealth has not spread very far from Dos Santos’s inner circle.

His daughter Isabel dos Santos is rumored to be worth around $3 billion (2.4 billion euros). Aside from Mugabe and Dos Santos, there is a long list of African leaders old enough to draw their pensions. They include Ethiopia’s Girma Wolde-Giorgis (88), Cameroon’s Paul Biya (80), Zambia’s Michael Sata (76), Equatorial Guinea’s Teodoro Obiang (71) and Uganda’s Yoweri Museveni (69). Having old leaders is not unique to Africa, and it has long been suggested that a culture of respecting elders could explain the predominance of relatively old leaders.

That may be so, but it is not without consequence.

African leaders have a proclivity to die in office, with often destabilizing results. When Malawi’s Bingu wa Mutharika died in office in early 2012 his death was kept secret and his body flown around Africa as would-be successors plotted ways of staging a constitutional coup. In the end the plots were averted and vice president Joyce Banda took power, but the risk was real. Around the same time Guinea-Bissau

suffered a very real coup after president Malam Bacai Sanha died in a Paris hospital. The country is still in crisis.

The age gap between the governors and the governed also leads to a generational chasm of ideas. But according to analysts, the fact that many ageing leaders have been in power for decades is a greater problem. “Older people ruling for lengthy periods like 30 years is almost always a symptom of dictatorship and authoritarian regimes,” said Keith Gottschalk of the University of the Western Cape, in South Africa. “Age in itself is not important. (Muammar) Gaddafi seized power in a coup when he was 29 years old.”

But according to Alex Vines of London’s Chatham House, the number of long-serving African leaders is reducing and those that remain have had to curb their ambitions. “Following Arab Spring in North Africa, leaders like Dos Santos have reconsidered ambitions for dynastic succession,” even if others like Obiang still favor that model. “African leaders that have served over 30 years as leaders are increasingly rare.” “Where there are freer votes, we are seeing Africa’s youth bulge play a role.”— AFP

Fukushima crisis a new blow to the fishermen YOTSUKURA: Fumio Suzuki, a third-generation fisherman, sets out into the Pacific Ocean every seven weeks. Not to catch fish that he can sell but to catch fish that can be tested for radiation. For the last 2 1/2 years, fishermen from the port of Yotsukura near the stricken Fukushima Dai-Ichi nuclear plant have been mostly stuck on land with little to do. There is no commercial fishing along most of the Fukushima coast. In a nation highly sensitive to food safety, there is no market for the fish caught near the stricken plant because the meltdowns it suffered contaminated the ocean water and marine life with radiation.

A sliver of hope emerged after recent sampling results showed a decline in radioactivity in some fish species. But a new crisis spawned by fresh leaks of radioactive water from the Fukushima plant last week may have dashed those prospects. Fishermen like 47-year-old Suzuki now wonder whether they ever will be able to resume fishing, a mainstay for many small rural communities like Yotsukura, 45 kilometers south of the Fukushima plant. His son has already moved on, looking for work in construction.

“The operators (of the plant) are reacting too late every time in whatever they do,” said Suzuki, who works with his 79-year-old father Choji after inheriting the family business from him. “We say, ‘Don’t spill contaminated water,’ and they spilled contaminated water. They are always a step behind so that is why we can’t trust them,” Suzuki said, as his trawler, the Ebisu Maru, traveled before dawn to a point about 45 kilometers offshore from the Fukushima plant to bring back a test catch.

With his father at the wheel, Suzuki dropped the heavy nets out the back of the boat, as the black of night faded to

a sapphire sky, tinged orange at the horizon. As the sun rose over a glassy sea, father and son hauled in the heavily laden nets and then set to the hard work of sorting the fish: sardines, starfish, sole, sea bream, sand sharks, tossing them into yellow and blue plastic baskets as sea gulls screamed and swooped overhead.

Five hours later, the Ebisu Maru docked at Yotsukura where waiting fishermen dumped the samples into coolers and rushed them to a nearby laboratory to be gutted and tested. Suzuki says his fisheries co-operative will decide sometime soon whether to persist in gathering samples.

For now they will have to survive on compensation from the government and Tokyo Electric Power Co, the plant’s operator. The cooperative also had plans to start largerscale test catches next month that would potentially also be for consumption if radiation levels were deemed safe.

But those plans were put on hold after more bad news last week: authorities discovered that a massive amount of partially treated, radioactive water was leaking from tanks at Fukushima, the fifth and so far the worst, breach.

The water, stored in 1,000 tanks, is pumped into three damaged reactors to keep their melted fuel cool. Much of the water leaked into the ground but some may have escaped into the sea through a rain-water gutter. Yesterday, the Nuclear Regulation Authority upgraded its rating of the leak to a “serious incident,” or level 3, up from a level 1 on the international scale of the International Atomic Energy Agency. It remains unclear what the environmental impact from the latest contamination will be on sea life. Scientists have said contamination tends to be carried by a southward current and largely diluted as it spreads.—AP

THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2013

I N T E R N AT I O N A L

In Mexico, families fight red-tape to find the missing MEXICO CITY: When 12 young bar goers vanished in the heart of Mexico City three months ago, their relatives rushed to hospitals and police stations desperately searching for missing loved ones.

Frustrated with the investigation’s slow progress, the relatives looking for children and siblings blocked streets in protest, won meetings with the city’s attorney general and barged into his press conferences when they felt they were being neglected. The mass kidnapping has cast a harsh spotlight on Mexico’s struggle to solve thousands of disappearances and the efforts families have to undertake themselves in the face of all-too-often uncooperative officials or shoddy police work. “Authorities make an effort to investigate in those cases where families make enough noise that the cost for authorities of negligence is too high to ignore,” said

Nik Steinberg, a Human Rights Watch researcher who wrote a report on Mexico’s disappeared. “If the families don’t exert public pressure in cases of disappearances, they have little hope of investigations even being opened,” Steinberg told AFP. The Heaven bar case is Mexico’s most high-profile mass kidnapping since President Enrique Pena Nieto took office in December, vowing to reduce the abductions and murders linked to drug cartels that vexed his predecessor.

“The Heaven case is emblematic because it shows that Mexico is still unable to respond to disappearances committed by organized crime,” said Pilar Tavera, director of Propuesta Civica, a civil society group, though she noted it was city prosecutors who led the investigation.

In an effort to crack cases, the federal attorney general’s office said Monday it

would offer rewards for tips that help them find missing people. The agency has already created a special unit of 12 prosecutors to investigate disappearances. They face a database of 26,000 people who vanished between 2006-2012, but officials say the figure is likely lower because many emigrated or left home willingly. The unit’s creation is a positive step, Steinberg said, but “Pena Nieto needs to do much more given how widespread the problem is and given the inadequate response of police up to now.”

When they do investigate, authorities often fail to carry out “the most basic steps” like visiting morgues or interviewing witnesses, he said, while Tavera said victims are often painted as criminals.

Countless Mexican families have had to conduct their own police work and track down witnesses at great risk to their own

lives, or hold protests to force authorities to act. What’s surprising is that this happened in Mexico City, long considered largely immune from the disappearances and killings plaguing states terrorized by violent drug cartels. “If we didn’t make a lot of noise, nothing would have happened and (the missing) would have just become statistics,” said Eugenia Ponce, aunt of 16-year-old Jerzy Ortiz, one of the 12 who were whisked away from in broad daylight on May 26.

Ponce had gone to a police station to look for her nephew, only to be told by agents to look elsewhere. The “Amber Alert” system, which immediately triggers searches of missing minors, was never activated for Ortiz. They were told they had to wait the customary 72 hours to file missing person reports. It took two weeks for prosecutors to call it a kidnapping after

security camera footage showed the victims bundled into cars by a group of men.

Mexico City Attorney General Rodolfo Rios defended his agency’s investigation on Monday, saying it detained seven suspects and would keep working until all those responsible are caught.

He said the kidnapping was payback for the killing of a drug dealer in a dispute between two gangs, but relatives deny the 12 were involved in criminal activities.

Maria Guadalupe Fernandez, a member of the United Forces for Our Disappeared in the northern state of Coahuila whose son disappeared in 2009, said the Heaven case ended tragically but that at least parents will have closure. “This case can be a paradigm for investigations. It took three months, but they found them,” she said.

“The parents will get their children. Our grief just goes on and on, in limbo.” —AFP

Fort Hood gunman rejects last chance to speak out Life on line as gunman blocks lawyers FORT HOOD, Texas: The Army psychiatrist convicted of shooting dead 13 people in the worst ever attack on a US military base rejected his last chance yesterday to give a closing argument before his case goes to a military panel that can give him death or life in prison without parole.

Nidal Hasan has done nothing to argue against a death sentence, and the court-appointed lawyers on standby to help him say his ultimate goal is

leaks and statements to the judge, Hasan has tried to justify the attack as a way to protect Islamic leaders from US forces in Afghanistan and Iraq. He was blocked from giving that argument to jurors during his trial. Hasan, who has chosen to defend himself, has dismissed his standby attorneys as “overzealous.”

The judge is “in a tough situation, no matter what happens,” said Victor Hansen, a military law expert at the

Any lawyer trying to save Hasan would have a daunting task. In two days of sentencing, prosecutors called widows, parents and other loved ones of the people Hasan killed. They offered a picture of their overwhelming grief and struggle to move forward after his attack. At least one juror appeared visibly emotional during parts of testimony.

Osborn revealed some of what Hasan’s standby attorneys wanted to

FORT HOOD: A man is checked at a security point to enter the Lawrence William Judicial Center as the sentencing phase for Maj Nidal Hasan continued in Fort Hood, Texas yesterday. (Inset) In this undated family photo provided by his sister, Hauwa Hasan Kida, Samaila Hassan Kida poses for a picture. —AP martyrdom. Hasan was convicted last week in the 2009 rampage at the Texas military post, in which more than 30 people were wounded.

A military prosecutor yesterday said Hasan deserves to be executed, saying he “dealt death to soldiers.” Mike Mulligan told jurors that Hasan was a trained doctor yet had no compassion when he opened fire on unarmed soldiers.

Prosecutors have described the USborn Muslim’s motive as a “jihad duty” under his Islamic faith. Through media

New England School of Law, in an interview earlier this month. “At the end of the day, the defendant has the absolute right to decide who’s going to represent him, including deciding to represent himself.”

Prosecutors want Hasan to join just five other US service members currently on military death row. That would require a unanimous decision by the jury of 13 military officers, and prosecutors must prove an aggravating factor and present evidence to show the severity of Hasan’s crimes.

tell jurors as she reviewed and denied their motion. Among that evidence includes his good behavior in custody before trial and his offer before trial to plead guilty - which was rejected under military rules because prosecutors are seeking a death sentence. But Hasan was dismissive of his standby attorneys’ attempts. He repeatedly objected, and as one of them asked to argue the motion, he commented that he had “overzealous defense counsel.”

Osborn is “in a tough situation, no matter what happens,” said Victor

Hansen, a military law expert at the New England School of Law, in an interview earlier this month. “At the end of the day, the defendant has the absolute right to decide who’s going to represent him, including deciding to represent himself.” Hasan rested his case shortly after more than a dozen widows, mothers, fathers, children and other relatives of those killed testified about their lives since the attack. They talked of eerily quiet homes, lost futures, alcoholism and the unmatched fear of hearing a knock on the door.

Sheryll Pearson sobbed when shown a photo of her son, Pfc Michael Pearson, hugging her during his graduation. “We always wanted to see who he was going to become. Now that was taken away from us,” she said.

Teena Nemelka lost the youngest of her four children, Pfc. Aaron Nemelka, whom she called, “my baby.” She talked about her frantic searches for information in the moments after learning about the Nov. 5, 2009, shooting and about her fear of hearing a knock at the front door of her home.

“You just freeze,” she said. “You don’t want to open that door.” But the knock came, with “the worst news you could ever hear.” Philip Warman said the slaying of his wife, Lt Col Juanita Warman, “was like I had something ripped out of me.”“I pretty much drank until the following June,” he said. He said he checked into a substance abuse center for 28 days, and he had friends remove his weapons from his home because he didn’t trust himself.

Warman now takes the coins distributed during his Alcoholic Anonymous meetings to Arlington National Cemetery, where his wife is buried next to another Fort Hood victim, Maj Eduardo Caraveo. “I push them into the ground at my wife’s grave,” he said. Prosecutors want Hasan to join just five other US service members currently on military death row. That would require a unanimous decision by the jury of 13 military officers, and prosecutors must prove an aggravating factor and present evidence to show the severity of Hasan’s crimes. —AP

Mexico vigilantes attack local police, take arms MEXICO CITY: Vigilantes attacked local police officers in the southern Mexico state of Guerrero, beat them with rifle butts and machetes and handcuffed them, then stole their rifles and briefly kidnapped some municipal officials, authorities said Tuesday.

The clash Monday in Tixtla highlighted the confusion and contradictions in the Mexican government’s effort to deal with “self-defense groups” that have sprung up in parts of

southern Mexico since February to fight drug cartels. Some vigilantes openly carry weapons and periodically scuffle with police and soldiers, but the most truculent of them have not been arrested even while dozens of members of smaller, more isolated self-defense groups have been hauled off to jail.

Over the weekend, 21 members of a group in Aquila, a mountain village in the western state of Michoacan, were ordered to stand trial at a maximum security prison on

Members of the Citizens’ Self-Protection Police try to avoid an operation of disarmament on the road that links Ayutla and Florencio Villareal in Guerrero State, Mexico. —AFP

weapons charges, and 19 others face lesser charges. “This is completely out of proportion, irrational, to have so many communal farmers held at a maximum security prison,” the men’s lawyer, Leonel Rivero, said Tuesday.

The vigilantes in Tixtla, meanwhile, appear to have got away scot free with several assault rifles after beating the local police officers. Guerrero state authorities said Tuesday there had been no arrests despite the fact the vigilantes kidnapped several officials and wounded the town’s police chief with a machete. Guerrero Gov Angel Aguirre has been in talks with community police and vigilante groups seeking to persuade them to register their members and weapons and to not carry arms into other towns. “The framework set up for these talks have been violated by these violent acts”in Tixtla, Aguirre said.

The government is having a hard time deciding which vigilantes to arrest and which to tolerate, given that some of the groups have been resisting drug cartel extortion while critics say some groups are involved in criminal activity themselves. In Aquila, for instance, two residents said the self-defense group members arrested there were fighting against the Knight Templar, which had been forcing townspeople to pay 700,000 pesos a month, about $53,000, from mining royalties they received. Michoacan state authorities, however, contend the vigilante group really has been in a dispute over the royalties with other townspeople. In another Michoacan town, La Ruana, about 40 vigilantes are still jailed after being arrested several months ago because authorities claimed they had links to a drug cartel. Yet in other towns, federal police and soldiers coexist with armed self-defense groups. “I think every case is different, and I think the government doesn’t have a very clear idea of the situation, and I think that is why they are acting so slowly,” said Javier Oliva, a political science professor at the National Autonomous University of Mexico. Authorities have little option but to try to work with the groups. With police and soldiers proving unable to root out drug cartels that terrorize villagers and extort money from them, many people think the appearance of vigilantes has been a needed return to older forms of local police and self-policing. —AP

CHICAGO: Students walk past an abandoned church building along a designated Safe Passage route to Laura Ward Elementary School on the Westside yesterday in Chicago, Illinois. The Safe Passage program was started because parents were worried about their children’s safety while they walked to school across gang boundaries after the city closed 49 elementary schools and moved the students to nearby schools. —AFP

Police arrest ‘Silver Thief’ cat burglar MIAMI: Police in Florida said they have arrested a notorious cat burglar known as “The Silver Thief” who targeted celebrity mansions and homes in wealthy enclaves across the US South and East Coast, stealing silver antiques and other expensive items. Blane David Nordahl, 51, was arrested in the town of Hilliard, outside Jacksonville, Florida, on Monday on two outstanding warrants from Atlanta, Georgia, authorities said.

The warrants were for burglary with an intent to commit a first degree felony and conspiracy to commit a felony,” Sheriff Bill Leeper of Nassau County, Florida, said in a statement. It was not immediately clear whether Nordahl had obtained an attorney or when and where he was due to make his initial court appearance. Leeper described Nordahl, who he said was being investigated by the FBI at the time of his arrest, as “one of the nation’s most notorious cat burglars.” He was nicknamed “Burglar to the Stars” as well as “The Silver Thief.”

Police in Georgia, North and South Carolina, Alabama, Tennessee and Kentucky

have reported a rash of burglaries that follow similar methods, targeting homes in wealthy areas and skillfully evading home security systems. Leeper said Nordahl, who had been caught numerous times before, previously served an eight-year prison sentence for stealing cutlery from the home of Ivana Trump. He was alleged to have netted $3 million from about 150 burglaries throughout his long criminal career and his celebrity victims included Bruce Springsteen, Leeper said.

In a typical burglary, Leeper said Nordahl would approach a “fancy home” at night while the owners were asleep and carefully remove panes of glass from a French door, for instance. A master thief, he avoided any alarms that might be triggered by picking a lock, the sheriff said. “He would even sometimes sneak past sleeping dogs. When all the alarms were disabled, he would remove entire drawers full of silver items and take them outside to test them with his own silver kit,” Leeper said. “He would leave only with the finest and most expensive items,” he added. —Reuters

Briton, American illegally bought private data: China BEIJING: China has accused two risk consultants, a British man and his American wife, of illegally buying and selling private information, state media reported on Tuesday, in what could be a widening crackdown on obtaining data for commercial purposes. Peter Humphrey and Yu Yingzeng were detained in Shanghai on July 10. They have since been formally arrested, which typically means police believe they have enough evidence for a case to be brought to trial.

Police in Shanghai had arrested 126 people this month alone in a crackdown against the illegal collection of personal information, the Ministry of Public Security said in a statement on the case involving Humphrey and Yu. It did not give details on the nationalities or professions of those arrested, or say precisely what they had done.

But the detention of Humphrey and Yu has already had a chilling effect on other risk consultants working in China, with some corporate investigators saying they had become more cautious about which projects to accept, avoiding any the government might see as sensitive. Multinationals, banks and investors rely on corporate investigators for information about potential partners and investments in China, where a lack of transparency is a hurdle to doing business. A police investigator in Shanghai, Lu Wei, said on state-run CCTV the couple “wantonly” obtained a lot of information on home registrations, international travel and property records.

They sold the information to lawyers, multinationals and financial institutions, CCTV said. Humphrey said in a statement broadcast on CCTV that he had occasionally used illegal methods. “I sometimes used illegal means to obtain personal information,” Humphrey said in Mandarin to a camera as he sat handcuffed wearing an orange vest. “I very much regret this and apologize to the Chinese government,” said Humphrey, who worked as a journalist for Reuters in the 1980s and 90s.

ChinaWhys, the investigative risk con-

sultancy Humphrey and Yu founded, worked for many firms including British drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), sources familiar with the matter have said. Chinese police have been investigating bribery accusations against GSK since July, although Chinese media reports on Humphrey and Yu made no mention of the firm.

GSK has declined to comment on the work ChinaWhys did for the company except to say that Humphrey is not, nor has he ever been, an employee. In a statement, Britain’s foreign office expressed concern at Humphrey’s appearance on state TV. “We were concerned to see that Peter Humphrey was interviewed about the details of a case which is currently under investigation and has yet to come to trial,” the foreign office said, adding it was continuing to provide consular assistance to Humphrey and his family.

The American embassy could not immediately be reached for comment.

Jason Cai, a Chinese investigator who worked with Humphrey and Yu, was arrested around the same time, said a source with direct knowledge of the matter. Cai was not mentioned in the state media reports, and his arrest has not been announced. The ChinaWhys website says Humphrey has worked as a risk management specialist and corporate detective for 14 years.

Cai Hua, a Chinese criminal lawyer, said it was difficult to say how heavy the penalty would be if the couple is convicted. “For the most part, it rests on the extent of the damage the crime has done and the amount of information obtained,” said Cai, who is not related to Jason Cai. The couple “confessed to the crime without concealing anything,” the official Xinhua news agency said. “[Humphrey’s] actions seriously violated the personal privacy of Chinese citizens.” “Whether it’s a Chinese person or foreigner engaging in illegal activities, public security organs will firmly crack down without holding back,” the news agency said. —Reuters

THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2013

I N T E R N AT I O N A L

Kashmir militants threaten to attack India targets MUZAFFARABAD, Pakistan: Kashmiri militants are threatening an “unprecedented” surge in attacks on Indian targets as deadly skirmishes imperil any rapprochement between Pakistan’s new government and New Delhi.

A fresh influx of battle-hardened fighters is ready to flood the disputed Himalayan territory, where India and Pakistan have fought two wars, from Afghanistan when NATO troops quit next year.

Syed Salahudeen, the head of United Jihad Council, an umbrella organization of groups fighting against Indian rule in Kashmir, said “thousands” of militants would move across from Afghanistan.

“The coming months and years will see a tremendous surge in mujahedeen’s activities in Indian Kashmir,” he said. “ The encounter between mujahedeen and Indian forces will enhance to an unprecedented level.

The increase in attacks will be enormous and Indian forces will face huge losses.” Regular deadly exchanges of fire across the heavily militarized Line of Control (LoC) that separates Indianand Pakistan-administered Kashmir

have killed 11 people since August 5 and sent tensions between the nuclear-armed neighbors soaring. The latest spate of clashes began when five Indian soldiers were killed in a raid that Delhi blamed on the Pakistani military. The attack came shortly after Pakistan’s new Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif took office, promising to improve ties with India. Pakistan flatly denied any involvement in the killings and Sharif has consistently urged restraint and dialogue to resolve the dispute, which dates back to independence from Britain in 1947.

Sharif also wants to meet Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly next month, although New Delhi has since warned the violence may make this impossible. Militants now claim they no longer need the clandestine support of the Pakistani security establishment, signalling that the conflict in Kashmir is increasingly out of Pakistan’s control. A dozen rebel groups have been fighting in the Indian-held portion of Kashmir since 1989 for independence or its merger with Pakistan, killing tens of thou-

sands of people-most of them civilians. By the mid-1990s, separatist ranks had swelled with foreign “jihadi” fighters from Arab countries, Afghanistan and Pakistan. Many of them were veterans of the 1980s war against Soviet troops in Afghanistan, which ultimately gave birth to AlQaeda.

Pakistan’s powerful security establishment nurtured the mujahedeen at the time, using Saudi and US cash, as a tool to bring down the Soviets and flex their own influence in Afghanistan. But militant groups have bitterly opposed Pakistan’s post-9/11 alliance with the United States and claim to operate independently.

Pakistan has faced a bitter backlash in the form of a Taliban-led insurgency that has killed thousands of people.

“Kashmiri youths realize that they should now rely on themselves,” said Uzair Ahmed, a militant with the Hizbul-Mujahedeen group. “The attacks on Indian forces by Kashmiri mujahedeen have already been enhanced during the last three to four months... and the coming three-four years will be very difficult for the Indian forces.”

MUZAFFARBAD: This photograph taken on August 20, 2013, shows Abdul Aziz Alvi, the Pakistani Kashmiri head of Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD), blacklisted as a terror organization by the United Nations and United States, as he speaks during an interview with AFP in Muzaffarabad.—AFP Abdul Aziz Alvi, the Kashmir head of Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD), blacklisted as a terror organization by the United Nations and United States, said the militants command wide support. “We,

the citizens of Pakistani Kashmir, will also provide them support, whatever they require from us, because fighting to free our homeland is our basic duty,” he said.—AFP

Mumbai gang-rape victim discharged from hospital Top cop’s ‘promiscuous’ comment sparks ire

VADODARA: Indian rescuers carry the body of a victim they pulled out after two adjacent apartment buildings collapsed at Vadodara in Gujarat state yesterday.—AP

Building collapse kills 11 in western India VADODARA: Two adjacent apartment buildings collapsed early yesterday in western India, killing at least 11 people, police and firefighters said.

Rescue workers pulled out 11 bodies and four badly injured people from the debris of the three-story buildings that fell in the city of Vadodara in Gujarat state, said fire chief Hitesh Taparia.

Most of the occupants of the 14 apartments in the first building were sleeping when it collapsed. The adjacent building was evacuated minutes before it fell, police officer Bhanu Pratap Parmar said.

The two buildings were part of 33 housing blocks constructed by the Gujarat government more than a decade ago to house the poor. More than 250 rescue workers were working to clear debris from the site and search for sur-

vivors in the mountain of twisted metal, concrete slabs, bricks and mortar.

Taparia said the cause of the collapse was not immediately clear. Police officials said there had been unusually heavy rain in Vadodara during the monsoon season and it could have damaged the buildings’ foundations. The Gujarat government has ordered an investigation and will check for structural damage in the 31 other buildings in the complex, Taparia said. Building collapses are common in India as builders cut corners by using substandard materials, and as multistory structures are often built with inadequate supervision. Massive demand for housing around India’s cities and pervasive corruption often result in builders adding unauthorized floors or putting up illegal buildings. —AP

Pakistan court drops charges against Khan ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s top court yesterday dropped contempt charges against cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan, accepting his explanation that he never intended to bring senior judges into disrepute.

Khan, the head of Pakistan’s third largest party, criticized the judiciary and election commission for inaction over alleged rigged at elections in May, when he won a political breakthrough. But Khan, summoned for a second time

before the Supreme Court, said he never criticized the senior judiciary and that undermining the supremacy of the judiciary was akin to undermining democracy.

“Why it is being misconstrued?... I only referred to the returning officers and never named the Supreme Court or the superior judiciary,” Khan told the court.

“My entire struggle has been focused on an independent justice system,” he said.

The court dropped the case. — AFP

MUMBAI: A young photographer gang-raped in Mumbai last week in an attack that sparked outrage has been discharged from hospital, staff said yesterday.

The 22-year-old woman was assaulted while she was on assignment for a magazine in central Mumbai with a male colleague, who was also tied up and beaten, police say. The woman was admitted to the city’s Jaslok Hospital with internal and external injuries after the attack last Thursday evening. “She was discharged,” a hospital official told AFP, adding that she was now at home. Also yesterday police took the five arrested suspects in the case to the crime scene at an abandoned mill compound for a reconstruction of events, the Press Trust of India news agency reported.

Police arrested them within three days of the incident that shocked Mumbai, which has long been considered one of the safer cities for Indian women. The case had stark parallels with the fatal gang-rape in December of a 23year-old student in New Delhi, which ignited nationwide protests and led to a toughening of the law against rape.

The family of the photographer in Mumbai released a statement at the weekend saying they were “optimistic” their daughter’s case would be fast-tracked and the “severest of

punishments” would be imposed on those responsible.

Mumbai’s top policeman has drawn anger in the wake of the gang-rape of a young photographer by suggesting that people must choose between a “promiscuous culture” that allows public kissing, or a city made safe by “moral policing”. Five men have been arrested on allegations of raping the 22-year-old last week in central Mumbai-a case that has outraged the city, which was previously considered one of India’s safest for women.

During a phone-in for viewers on Tuesday over safety concerns, police commissioner Satyapal Singh told the NDTV news channel that a “balance” was needed and that people were “confused” over the kind of society they wanted. “That is why I’m asking whether on one hand couples should be allowed to kiss in public and on the road, should they be allowed to indulge in obscene things?” he said. “On the one hand you want to have a promiscuous culture and on the other hand you want a safe and secure environment for the people.” Mumbai police have come under fire in recent times for so-called “moral policing”, such as raiding bars and restaurants to enforce outdated regulations on drinking and entertainment.

Police in and around the city have also

faced criticism for targeting unmarried couples or single women out late instead of potential sexual predators. In May, the city council proposed banning lingerie-clad mannequin dummies in shops and markets for fear they could encourage sex crime.

“I don’t understand the media and these so-called activists. They start criticizing the police on moral policing. Should we do moral policing or immoral policing? I think choice is yours,” Singh said.

The city Mid Day newspaper chided the “faux pas” yesterday, with the headline: “And this man’s job is to protect us!” The police chief’s comments also angered Mumbai residents on Twitter.

“How will Mumbai’s women be ever safe with a regressive patriarch like Satyapal Singh as Chief of Police?” asked one user. “It’s the police’s job to ensure a safe/secure environment for people-promiscuity is irrelevant,” said another. Sex crimes have continued across India despite the national outrage and protests sparked by the fatal gang-rape of another young woman in New Delhi in December. The following month, Singh suggested that there is a higher rate of crime against women in countries which included sex education in their curriculum, such as the United States.—AFP

Top Indian novelist under fire over ‘rape’ comment Rape as a metaphor to suggest rupee’s fall NEW DELHI: Best-selling Indian novelist Chetan Bhagat faced nationwide anger on social media sites yesterday tweeting that the country’s plunging currency had been “raped”. The comments by Bhagat, known for his romantic, funny novels which are popular with India’s middle-class youth, came amid renewed outrage over violence against women after the gang-rape in Mumbai of a photographer last week.

Twitter users slammed the former investment banker for the tweet-in which Bhagat said: “The rupee is asking, is there no punishment for my rapists?”-accusing him of

trivializing a grave problem.

“Making a fun of a serious offence rather an inhuman act & comparing with downfall of Rupee is NOT AT ALL funny,” wrote one user. India’s online news portal Firstpost told the novelist bluntly in a prominently displayed article: “Chetan Bhagat, rape jokes are just not funny”, adding they are “tasteless and just plain crass”. The Mumbai attack rekindled memories of the fatal gang-rape of a 23-year-old student in New Delhi last December that sparked nationwide protests and brought to the surface anger about violence against women in

India. Bhagat swiftly deleted his tweet as the uproar grew, calling it “harmless” and saying he had referred to rape as a “metaphor” for the rupee’s troubles. It came on a day when the rupee plunged nearly four percent against the dollar to a fresh record low amid investor concern about a lack of economic reforms, a string of government corruption scandals, and weak public finances.

“As all of you hunt for that (deleted) tweet realize that your economy is in a deep crisis. And do consider raising your voice about it,” Bhagat tweeted later. —AFP

THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2013

I N T E R N AT I O N A L

Australian oppn outlines savings; PM sees comeback CANBERRA: Australia’s conservative opposition, heavily favored in next month’s election, outlined A$31 billion ($27.8 billion) in sav-

ings yesterday and promised to breathe new life into the economy by abolishing environment taxes polarizing voters.

But Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said the opposition planned big cuts to key services and predicted voters would return to his Labor

SYDNEY: Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd (left) and the leader of the opposition Tony Abbott (right) pose for a photo with Nada Makdessi (center), a member of the public, after the leader’s debate in Sydney yesterday. —AFP

Party in the final week of campaigning. Most polls give the opposition under Tony Abbott a 53 to 47 percent lead, enough to give them a sizeable majority in parliament.

Opposition finance spokesman Joe Hockey, who would become treasurer of the world’s 12th biggest economy if the polls prove true, said the conservatives were determined to better Labor’s spending record, seen as one of Rudd’s biggest electoral weaknesses.

“After six years of Labor getting every single budget number wrong, enough is enough,” Hockey told reporters. “The coalition is absolutely committed to living within its means.”

Labor, he said, had presided over a “dysfunctional” budget after ousting the conservatives in 2007. The opposition has long made the abolition of a “carbon” tax on pollution and a tax on mining company profits the cornerstone of its bid to drive Labor from office, blaming the carbon tax for pushing up the price of electricity and other services.

But budget cuts and their impact on jobs amid a slowdown remain a major concern among many of the 14 million voters. An Australian National University sur-

vey found jobs and management of the A$1.5 trillion economy to be the most important issue.

Rudd told a campaign event that Abbott planned in secret to “cut, cut and cut” health and education programs, austerity measures that could hurt confidence and propel the country into its first recession for a generation.

“He is the master of the big cuts,” the prime minister said. He predicted Labor would make a big comeback despite the polls, as it did in the 1993 election.

“Mr Abbott thinks he’s a shooin,” Rudd said. “I think the Australian people don’t like political leaders who arrogantly assume that they have their vote already in the bag.” Hockey, a former financial markets lawyer, went out of his way to say there would no cuts in social spending.

The conservatives, he said, would deliver a centrepiece promise of a A$9.8 billion paid parental leave scheme, paid for in part through abolition of business compensation associated with the carbon and mining taxes to be eliminated. A furtherA$5.2 billion would be saved by axing 12,000 government jobs. As well, the opposition would keep savings adopted by Rudd in a preelection budget statement that

lowered growth forecasts to 2.5 pct from 2.75 pct this fiscal year, and forecast the jobless rate rising to 6.25 percent.

The one exception would be Labor’s cuts to tax breaks for the automotive sector, still struggling to adjust to the Australian dollar’s high levels in recent years and local costs which prompted a pullout this year by Ford, he said.

In response to the weakening economy, the Reserve Bank of Australia has cut its benchmark interest rate to a record low of 2.5 percent, while a A$33 billion drop in tax revenue saw a forecast budget deficit this fiscal year of $A30.1 bln, returning to a A$4.0 billion surplus by 2016-17. Global demand for iron ore, coal and other natural resources supported the economy for most of the past decade, but falling commodity prices and slowing growth in China, the country’s top export market, have rattled confidence.

Hockey said the conservatives would more quickly wind back net government debt, now expected to peak at 13 percent of GDP by 2014-15, or A$212 billion, up from the May forecast of A$191.6 bln, or 11.4 percent of GDP in 2014-15. “This is the most important election in a generation,” he said. —Reuters

Hagel pledges US focus on Asia as Syria looms Pentagon chief urges restraint in S China Sea JERUDONG, Brunei: Pentagon chief Chuck Hagel met with his Asian counterparts yesterday as the United States promotes its strategic tilt towards the region but a potential showdown with Syria loomed over the talks.

Hagel plans to call for restraint in the disputed South China Sea and to underscore America’s focus on Asia-Pacific at the gathering in Brunei of defense ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, China and elsewhere, officials said. The two-day ASEAN meeting is the

repeatedly overshadowed the bid by President Barack Obama’s administration to bolster trade and military ties with economically vital Asia.

Despite Pentagon budget cuts, US officials say Washington will stick by plans to deploy more ships, troops, training and hardware to countries anxious about China’s growing military reach.

Hagel met yesterday with Japan’s defense minister, Itsuno Onodera, who thanked him for attending the gathering despite the Syria

BNADAR SERI BEGAWAN: US Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel (right) shakes hands with South Korea’s Defense Minister Kim Kwan-jin during their bilateral meeting in Bandar Seri Begawan yesterday. —AP main event of Hagel’s week-long trip to Southeast Asia but a mounting crisis between Syria and the West has repeatedly competed for his attention.

“We are ready to go, like that,” Hagel told the BBC in an interview Tuesday, when asked about potential military action against Syria. The confrontation over the Syrian regime’s alleged use of chemical weapons has illustrated the challenge facing Washington’s much-touted “rebalance” towards the Asia-Pacific. Turmoil in the Middle East has

situation. Onodera said this week that Japan could be a “main player” if conflict erupts in Asia and needed to be wary of China’s maritime ambitions.

Tokyo is feuding with Beijing over territorial claims in the East China Sea while some S outheast Asian countries have accused China of increasingly provocative acts in asserting its claims to nearly all of the South China Sea. Such strains are expected to be a key focus of the talks and to feature in Hagel’s discussions with his counterparts from South

Japan brings North Korean kidnappings to UN mission TOKYO: A United Nations team probing North Korea’s human rights record was in Japan yesterday, as Tokyo campaigns to publicize the kidnapping of its nationals by Pyongyang agents.

The three-member Commission of Inquiry chaired by retired Australian judge Michael Kirby spent five days in Seoul collecting harrowing testimony of rights abuses in the North from defectors.

The commission-the first UN expert panel to officially examine North Korea’s rights record-will spend today and tomorrow in Tokyo hearing more testimony, particularly about Japanese nationals abducted by the North during the Cold War. Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida met Kirby yesterday morning and stressed to him that Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was determined to resolve the emotive kidnapping issue.

Kishida also voiced concerns about “serious” and “organized” human rights violations in the North and said Japan would not normalize diplomatic relations with Pyongyang unless the abduction problem was settled, a foreign ministry statement said.

Pyongyang admitted in 2002 its agents had snatched young Japanese in what Tokyo said was an operation to train spies in Japanese language and customs.

Following a summit between then-prime minister Junichiro Koizumi and Kim Jong-Il, the late North Korean leader, five of those who were taken were allowed to return to Japan, along with their Korea-born offspring.

But suspicions persist in Japan that the isolated state has not come clean about the scope of its abductions and the issue colours all of Tokyo’s dealings on North Korea.

The North has been scathing about the UN panel, calling its witnesses in South Korea “human scum” manipulated by local authorities.

Pyongyang’s official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said the commission’s work would only set back recent progress towards engagement between North and South Korea after months of heightened military tensions.

The North, which strongly denies allegations of rights abuses, has refused to recognize the commission and barred it visiting.

Kirby has repeatedly appealed to North Korea to grant his team access.

The Commission of Inquiry also plans to collect witness testimony in Thailand, Britain and the United States. The final report is due to be submitted to the UN Human Rights Council in March next year, and Kirby said he expected the UN to act on any recommendations it might make.

Their visit to Tokyo coincided with a stopover by Robert King, the US special envoy for North Korean human rights, who was on his way to Pyongyang to seek the release of an ailing Korean-American sentenced to 15 years’ hard labor. King was scheduled to meet a Japanese minister in charge of the abduction issue later in the day. —AFP

Korea, Vietnam and Brunei.

Hagel is also due to meet China’s defence minister, General Chang Wanquan, and Myanmar’s defence chief on the sidelines of the ASEAN conference. The United States has avoided taking a position on individual disputes but Hagel reiterated calls for the adoption of a South China Sea code of conduct to prevent potential clashes. China has been accused of dragging its feet on the issue, but this year said it would enter into future talks with ASEAN on the issue.

The Pentagon is offering ships, radar and other security assistance to countries in Southeast Asia, partly as a counterbalance to China’s military build-up.

On Tuesday, Hagel announced the sale of eight Apache helicopters to Indonesia during a visit to Jakarta. Hagel, however, has trodden carefully when discussing China during the trip, and officials said Washington wanted to avoid inflaming tensions.

“This is not about encircling China or anybody else,” the US Defense Secretary said in the BBC interview. “This is about economic interests, it’s about the world, it’s about prosperity, stability and security.” Hagel acknowledged disagreements with China over cyber securityWashington has blamed Beijing for extensive digital espionage against American industry and government agencies.

Ties have also been strained over allegations

by US whistle -blower Edward Snowden of American spying and hacking activities directed at China. “Yes, we have differences, but the only way to get through those differences is to work through them,” Hagel said.

Hagel is expected to discuss the threat posed by North Korea’s nuclear weapons and missile program with his counterparts. North Korean sabre -rattling has eased in recent months but Hagel said the regime must take steps to abandon its nuclear weapons and allow in UN inspectors.

“They’ve got to come clean, let people come in and inspect,” he said. The ASEAN gathering brings together defense ministers from 10 Southeast Asia countries plus Japan, China, South Korea, the United States, Russia, India, Australia and New Zealand. —AFP

Over 40 percent of Iranians watch illegal channels TEHRAN: More than 40 percent of Iranians watch television channels beamed into Iran and accessible only by illegal but widespread satellite dishes across the country, media reports said yesterday. The figure was released by the research department of the state-run Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB), in what the daily 7 Sobh said was a rare admittance of the popularity of satellite channels in Iran.

According to the report, 42 percent of more than 75 million Iranians spend approximately three hours watching these channels, which air movies, music and other entertainment programs as well as news, mostly in Persian, including the BBC’s Persian service and the US channel Voice of America.

Authorities consider these channels as part of a “soft war” waged by Western countries against the values and morals of the Islamic republic founded in 1979.

Cooperation with these networks is considered a crime.

The authorities carry out regular crackdowns to seize satellite dishes, removing them from rooftops, and issue warnings against their use.

Iran’s new President Hassan Rowhani, considered a moderate, has been critical of such crackdowns, saying it was a “violation of personal privacy” and a failed attempt to prevent Iranians from connecting to the outside world. IRIB is allocated huge budgets to compete with the influence of these channels. 7 Sobh estimates the network’s budget for this Iranian year, which began on March 21, at $420 million. Under the constitution, the Iranian government has a broadcasting monopoly, and all television and radio stations are state-run and operate inside the country. —AFP

MELBOURNE: Family members (center) of Australian baseball player Chris Lane, who was killed in the small Oklahoma town of Duncan in the US, follow as his coffin (right) is carried out of St Therese’s Parish after his funeral in Melbourne yesterday. —AFP

Hundreds farewell Australian shot by ‘bored’ US teens MELBOURNE: Hundreds of mourners packed a Melbourne church yesterday to bid farewell to an Australian baseball player killed by two teenagers in a random Oklahoma shooting that triggered a race debate. Chris Lane, 22, was gunned down in the small town of Duncan by a pair of “bored” black teens, aged 15 and 16, as he was out jogging on August 16, reviving debate sparked by the death of black teenager Trayvon Martin in Florida last year.

Lane was in the United States on a baseball scholarship and scores of his Essendon baseball clubmates formed a guard of honor outside St Therese’s Catholic church for his funeral, where the steps overflowed with floral tributes. Almost 1,000 people crammed into the church to pay tribute to Lane, with Father Joe Giacobbe saying in 40 years he had never “seen this church as full as it is today”.

Lane’s father Peter spoke of a young man who seized life “with both hands and ran with it”, and said his son would not have known what to make of the “fuss” over his senseless murder thousands of kilometres away from home. “When someone as young as Chris loses their life it’s always a tragedy, but when someone’s life is lost for no purpose or reason, it makes it that much harder to accept,” he said.

“What happened to Chris is just not fair, but hanging on to it will not help.” His eldest sister Andrea remembered Lane as a compassionate and just person who was “always

helping out the underdog or anyone who was disenfranchised”. “You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem and smarter than you think,” she said tearfully, flanked by Lane’s other two sisters Jennifer and Erin.

Lane’s American girlfriend Sarah Harper draped an Oklahoma flag over the coffin. “I Believe I Can Fly” and “If I Die Young” were among the song choices. Accompanied by her family, Harper did not speak at the service but Peter Lane thanked them for travelling to Australia and “accepting that funnytalking kid as one of your own”. James Edwards, 15, and Chancey Luna, 16, have been charged with Lane’s murder and face the death penalty if convicted.

Prosecutors have said there is no evidence that the killing was racially motivated, despite Edwards posting remarks about his hatred of white people on social media earlier this year. According to police the pair were “bored and wanted to see someone die”. A third teenager, Michael Dewayne Jones, 17, has been charged with use of a vehicle in the discharge of a weapon and acting as an accessory after the fact. The case revived a race debate in the United States sparked by the 2012 shooting of black teenager Trayvon Martin by George Zimmerman in a gated community in Florida. Zimmerman, who said he acted in self-defence, was acquitted in July, prompting vigils and protests across the United States. —AFP

Malaysia plans ‘biggest’ crackdown on illegals KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia will launch what local media yesterday called its “biggest ever” crackdown on an estimated half a million illegal foreign workers, as a crime wave focused the nation’s attention on security.

Under the three-month operation to begin on Sunday, authorities would seek to deport some 500,000 foreigners, mostly from the country’s vast and less-developed neighbor Indonesia, Immigration Department Director General Alias Ahmad said.

The operation would involve 135,000 personnel led by the department, he was quoted by The Star newspaper as saying.

Normally laid-back Malaysia has been on edge over dozens of reported shootings, many fatal, that authorities have blamed largely on a gang turf war. While foreigners are not generally seen as a key source of crime, the presence of large numbers of undocumented workers has fuelled security worries. The violence has added to a widespread public perception of rising crime such as thefts, burglaries, and robberies, despite government data showing crime has dropped sharply.

The figures have been met with wide

skepticism. The national police force, which has endured heavy criticism in recent months as it appeared to be caught unprepared by the shooting spree, launched a separate crackdown on August 17 targeted at gangs.

Police have said 1,400 people suspected of being involved in criminal activity have been detained under that operation. Alias said authorities decided it was time to go after the estimated half-million people who initially regis tered under an amnesty scheme for illegal workers two years ago but subsequently failed to come forward to be legalized or deported.

“It is now time for full enforcement,” Alias told The Star. “They can hide, but how long can they hide?” Alias confirmed the remarks to AFP in a text message but he could not be reached for further comment. Southeast Asia’s third-largest economy is a magnet for migrant workers from poorer neighbors Indonesia, Bangladesh, Mynamar, Vietnam, Nepal and elsewhere, who fill low-paid construction, factory and plantation jobs. —AFP

NEWS NY police label mosques ‘terror...

Continued from Page 1 New York Muslims and put information about them in secret police files. As a tactic, opening an enterprise investigation on a mosque is so potentially invasive that while the NYPD conducted at least a dozen, the FBI never did one, according to interviews with federal law enforcement officials.

The strategy has allowed the NYPD to send undercover officers into mosques and attempt to plant informants on the boards of mosques and at least one prominent Arab-American group, whose executive director has worked with city officials.

The revelations about the NYPD’s massive spying operations are in documents recently obtained by The Associated Press and part of a new book, “Enemies Within: Inside the NYPD’s Secret Spying Unit and bin Laden’s Final Plot Against America.”

The book by AP reporters Matt Apuzzo and Adam Goldman is based on hundreds of previously unpublished police files and interviews with current and former NYPD, CIA and FBI officials.

The American Civil Liberties Union and two other groups have sued, saying the Muslim spying programs are unconstitutional and make Muslims afraid to practice their faith without police scrutiny.

Both Mayor Mike Bloomberg and Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly have denied those accusations. Speaking yesterday on MSNBC, Kelly reminded people that his intelligencegathering programs began in the wake of 9/11. “We follow leads wherever they take us,” Kelly said. “We’re not intimidated as to wherever that lead takes us. And we’re doing that to protect the people of New York City.”

The NYPD did not limit its operations to collecting information on those who attended the mosques or led prayers. The department sought also to put people on the boards of New York’s Islamic institutions to fill intelligence gaps. One confidential NYPD document shows police wanted to put informants in leadership positions at mosques and other organizations, including the Arab American Association of New York, a secular social-service organization.

Linda Sarsour, the executive director, said her group helps new immigrants adjust to life in the US. It was not clear whether the department was successful in its plans. The document, which appears to have been created around 2009, was prepared for Kelly and distributed to the NYPD’s debriefing unit, which helped identify possible informants. Around that time, Kelly was handing out medals to the Arab American Association’s soccer team, smiling and congratulating its players for winning the NYPD’s soccer league.

Sarsour, a Muslim who has met with Kelly many times, said she felt betrayed. “It creates mistrust in our organizations,” said Sarsour, who was born and raised in the US. “It makes one wonder and question who is sitting on the boards of the institutions where we work and pray.” Before the NYPD could target mosques as terrorist groups, it had to persuade a federal judge to rewrite rules governing how police can monitor speech protected by the First Amendment.

The rules stemmed from a 1971 lawsuit over how the NYPD spied on protesters and liberals during the Vietnam War era.

David Cohen, a former CIA executive who became NYPD’s deputy commissioner for intelligence in 2002, said the old rules didn’t apply to fighting against terrorism. Cohen told the judge that mosques could be used “to shield the work of terrorists from law enforcement scrutiny by taking advantage of restrictions on the investigation of First Amendment activity.”

NYPD lawyers proposed a new tactic, the TEI, that allowed officers to monitor political or religious speech whenever the “facts or circumstances reasonably indicate” that groups of two or more people were involved in plotting terrorism or other violent crime. The judge rewrote the rules in 2003. In the first eight months under the new rules, the NYPD’s Intelligence Division opened at least 15 secret terrorism enterprise investigations, documents show. At least 10 targeted mosques.

Doing so allowed police, in effect, to treat anyone who attends prayer services as a potential suspect. Sermons, ordinari-

ly protected by the First Amendment, could be monitored and recorded. Among the mosques targeted as early as 2003 was the Islamic Society of Bay Ridge. “I have never felt free in the United States. The documents tell me I am right,” Zein Rimawi, one of the mosque’s leaders, said after reviewing an NYPD document describing his mosque as a terrorist enterprise.

Rimawi, 59, came to the US decades ago from Israel’s occupied West Bank. “Ray Kelly, shame on him,” he said. “I am American.” The NYPD believed the tactics were necessary to keep the city safe, a view that sometimes put it at odds with the FBI. In August 2003, Cohen asked the FBI to install eavesdropping equipment inside a mosque called Masjid Al-Farooq, including its prayer room. Al-Farooq had a long history of radical ties. Omar Abdel Rahman, the blind Egyptian sheik who was convicted of plotting to blow up New York City landmarks, once preached briefly at Al-Farooq.

Invited preachers raged against Israel, the United States and the Bush administration’s war on terror. One of Cohen’s informants said an imam from another mosque had delivered $30,000 to an Al-Farooq leader, and the NYPD suspected the money was for terrorism. But Amy Jo Lyons, the FBI assistant special agent in charge for counterterrorism, refused to bug the mosque. She said the federal law wouldn’t permit it.

The NYPD made other arrangements. Cohen’s informants began to carry recording devices into mosques under investigation. They hid microphones in wristwatches and the electronic key fobs used to unlock car doors. Even under a TEI, a prosecutor and a judge would have to approve bugging a mosque. But the informant taping was legal because New York law allows any party to record a conversation, even without consent from the others.

Like the Islamic Society of Bay Ridge, the NYPD never demonstrated in court that Al-Farooq was a terrorist enterprise but that didn’t stop the police from spying on the mosques for years. And under the new guidelines, no one outside the NYPD could question the secret practice. Martin Stolar, one of the lawyers in the 1971 case, said it’s clear the NYPD used enterprise investigations to justify open-ended surveillance. The NYPD should only tape conversations about building bombs or plotting attacks, he said.

“Every Muslim is a potential terrorist? It is completely unacceptable,” he said. “It really tarnishes all of us and tarnishes our system of values.” Al-Ansar Center, a windowless Sunni mosque, opened several years ago, attracting young Arabs and South Asians. NYPD officers feared the mosque was a breeding ground for terrorists, so informants kept watch on it. The NYPD was particularly alarmed about Mohammad Elshinawy, 26, an Islamic teacher at several New York mosques, including Al-Ansar.

Elshinawy was a Salafist - a follower of a puritanical Islamic movement - whose father was an unindicted co-conspirator in the 1993 World Trade Center attacks, according to NYPD documents. The FBI also investigated whether Elshinawy recruited people to wage violent jihad overseas. But the two agencies investigated him very differently. The FBI closed the case after many months without any charges. Federal investigators never infiltrated Al-Ansar.

“Nobody had any information the mosque was engaged in terrorism activities,” a former federal law enforcement official recalled, speaking on condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to discuss the investigation. The NYPD wasn’t convinced. A 2008 surveillance document described Elshinawy as “a young spiritual leader (who) lectures and gives speeches at dozens of venues” and noted, “He has orchestrated camping trips and paintball trips.”

The NYPD deemed him a threat in part because “he is so highly regarded by so many young and impressionable individuals.” No part of Elshinawy’s life was out of bounds. His mosque was the target of a TEI. The NYPD conducted surveillance at his wedding. An informant recorded the wedding and police videotaped everyone who came and went. “We have nothing on the lucky bride at this time but hopefully will learn about her at the service,” one lieutenant wrote. — AP

Good news for older adults Continued from Page 1 By identifying the “where did I park the care?” molecule, the discovery could also kick-start the mostly moribund efforts to develop drugs to slow or roll back the memory lapses that accompany normal aging.

“This is a lovely set of studies,” said Molly Wagster of the National Institute on Aging, an expert on normal age-related memory decline who was not involved in the new study. “They provide clues to the underlying mechanism of age-related memory decline and will, hopefully, move us down the road toward targeted therapeutics.” About 40 percent of Americans age 85 and older say they experience some memory loss, a 2009 survey by the Pew Research Center found, as did 27 percent of those 75 to 84 and 20 percent of those ages 65 to 74.

The researchers began with eight brains from the New York Brain Bank at Columbia University donated by people aged 33 to 88 who were free of brain disease when they died. They extracted two structures in the hippocampus, a vital cog in the brain’s memory machinery: the dentate gyrus, a boomerang-shaped region whose function declines with age but is not affected by Alzheimer’s, and the entorhinal cortex, which is largely unaffected by aging but is where Alzheimer’s first takes hold, killing neurons.

The scientists then measured which genes had been active in each structure, and found one suspicious difference: 17 genes in the dentate gyrus became more active, or less, as the age of the brain increased. The most significant change was that the gene for a protein called RbAp48 had essentially retired: The gene’s activity tailed off dramatically the older a brain got. As a result, old brains had about half the RbAp48 of young brains, the scientists report online in the journal Science Translational Medicine.

The scientists then sampled 10 more healthy human brains, ranging from 41 to 89 years at the time of death.

Once again, the amount of RbAp48 protein declined with age in the dentate gyrus. They next confirmed that RbAp48 protein was also less abundant in the dentate

gyrus of old mice compared to young ones.

For the final step, the scientists had to nail down whether the missing protein caused age-related memory loss. They genetically engineered mice whose RbAp48 genes were disabled. Result: The young mice had memories as poor as animals four times their age (the mouse equivalent of late middle age), and they had terrible trouble navigating a water maze or differentiating objects they had seen before from novel ones.

Crucially, the scientists also did the reverse experiment, engineering mice so their brains had extra doses of RbAp48. The mice’s memories returned to the flower of youth. “With RbAp48, we were able to reverse agerelated memory loss in the mice,” said Columbia’s Dr Eric Kandel, who shared the 2000 Nobel Prize in medicine for discoveries of the molecular basis of memory and led the research. “Unlike in Alzheimer’s, there is no significant cell death in age-related memory loss, which gives us hope it can be prevented or reversed.”

Exactly how RbAp48 does that is not clear. The protein acts as a sort of genetic master key: By causing chromosomes to loosen their hold on the molecular spool they are wound around like thread, it allows genes to be turned on. Among the activated genes, Kandel explained, are those involved in forming memories.

The emerging picture is that levels of RbAp48 decline with age, allowing chromosomes to maintain a death grip on their spools. Memory genes remain dormant, and you can’t remember that you promised your spouse you would make dinner. The researchers plan to see what social and dietary factors might boost RbAp48 in mice, said Kandel, who will be 84 in November.

Pharmaceuticals, nutraceuticals, physical and cognitive exercise are all candidates, said Columbia’s Dr Scott Small, co-senior author of the study.

Testing such interventions in mice should be more useful to humans than tests of drugs for Alzheimer’s, he said. RbAp48 “is different,” Small said. “Alzheimer’s does not occur naturally in the mouse. Here, we’ve caused age-related memory loss in the mouse, and we’ve shown it to be relevant to human aging.” — Reuters

86 perish; Attacks, bombings hit Iraq Continued from Page 1 The Interior Ministry described the attacks as “terrorist explosions” but said the number of people killed was only 20, with 213 wounded. The Shiite-led Baghdad government has said that media reports exaggerate attacks in Iraq and that security forces have stopped many attempted bombings. However, yesterday’s violence was worst since Aug 10, when nearly 80 people were killed during a religious holiday.

More than 1,000 Iraqis were killed in July, the highest monthly death toll since 2008, according to the United Nations. The renewed violence, 18 months after US troops withdrew from Iraq, has stirred anxiety about a relapse towards the widespread sectarian slaughter of 2006-07. In other attacks yesterday, gunmen killed six

members of Al-Sahwa - former Sunni insurgents who rebelled against Al-Qaeda - in an ambush on a checkpoint in Latifiya, a suburb 40 km south of Baghdad.

Gunmen also stormed a Shiite home in the same area, killing six family members, police and medical sources said. In Kadhimiya, a neighborhood in northwestern Baghdad, two roadside bombs and one car bomb killed five people and wounded nearly 30, the sources said.

Four soldiers were killed and five were wounded in Madaen, southeast of Baghdad, by a roadside bomb which targeted an Iraqi army patrol, police and medics said. After years of reduced violence, the intensity of attacks has dramatically risen since the start of 2013.

Bombings have often targeted cafes and other places where families gather, as well as the usual military facilities and checkpoints. — Reuters

THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2013

US, Syria prepare for imminent attack Continued from Page 1 Washington has repeatedly said that President Barack Obama has not yet made up his mind on what action he will order. A senior US official said strikes could last several days and would involve other armed forces: “We’re talking to a number of different allies regarding participation in a possible kinetic strike,” the administration official said yesterday.

Western armies are expected to wait until the UN experts withdraw. Their initial 14-day mandate expires in four days, and Secretary-General Ban said they need four days work. A second US official said objectives were still being defined but that the targets could be chosen to prevent Assad from using chemical weapons in future.

Washington was confident it could handle Syrian defenses and any possible reprisals by its allies, including Iran and Lebanese militia Hezbollah. With only the timing of an attack apparently in doubt, oil prices soared to a sixmonth high. World stock markets were hit by jitters over where the international escalation of Syria’s civil war might lead - however much Obama and his allies may hope to limit it to a short punitive mission.

Neighboring Turkey, a NATO member, put its forces on alert. Israel mobilized some army reservists and bolstered its defenses against missile strikes from either Syria or Lebanon. Syria’s envoy to the United Nations said he had asked Ban to have the team investigate three new attacks by rebel groups. People in Damascus, wearied by a civil war that has left the capital ringed by rebel-held suburbs, braced for air strikes.

In a city where dozens of military sites are mixed in among civilian neighborhoods, some were leaving home in the hope of finding somewhere safer, though many doubted it was worth it: “Every street, every neighborhood has some government target,” said a nurse in the city centre. “Where do we hide?” At grocery stores, shoppers loaded up on bread, dry goods and cans. Bottled water and batteries were also in demand.

Numerous factors, including weather and assessments of Syrian air defenses, may affect the timing of strikes.

Analysts expect cruise missiles to be launched from US ships in the Mediterranean. Aircraft could also play a role, as may forces from other NATO powers, notably Britain and France. Obama is waiting for a US intelligence report, though its findings are in little doubt. US officials have already blamed Assad for the attacks on Aug 21.

British Prime Minister David Cameron has recalled parliament to debate the Syria crisis today. He should be able to secure cautious support, despite widespread misgivings among Western voters about new entanglements in the Muslim world. But British action is unlikely before lawmakers have had their say. The prospect of a Group of Twenty summit in St Petersburg today may also weigh in calculations over timing any strikes.

Russian host President Vladimir Putin has made clear his view that Western leaders are using human rights as a pretext to impose their will on other sovereign states. “The West behaves like a monkey with a grenade in the Islamic world,” Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin tweeted yesterday. Western leaders in the G20 may prefer to have any strikes on Syria completed before the summit starts.

As diplomats from Russia, China, Britain, France and the United States met at the United Nations, Moscow said Britain was “premature” in seeking a Security Council resolution for “necessary measures” to protect Syrian civilians.

British Foreign Secretary William Hague said Russia and China might veto the move but added: “It’s time the UN Security Council shouldered its responsibilities on Syria which for the last two and a half years it has failed to do.”

A senior Western diplomat said: “Of course there will be a Russian veto, but that’s part of the objective - to show that we tried everything and the Russians left us no choice.

“The Americans want to go quickly.” China’s official newspaper also criticized yesterday what it saw as a push for illegal, Iraq-style “regime change” - despite US denials that Obama aims to overthrow Assad. — Reuters

US marks ‘Dream’ speech Continued from Page 1 The ceremony included bell ringing at 3 pm, 50 years to the minute after King ended his clarion call of the civil rights movement with the words “Let freedom ring.” About 50 US communities or organizations have rang bells. The Swiss city of Lutry and Tokyo also took part, said Atlanta’s King Center, one of the event’s organizers.

Obama addressed the crowd at 2:45 pm. His address commemorating King, a Nobel Peace Prize winner and advocate of non-violence, comes as the White House edges closer to launching military strikes in Syria in response to what US officials believe with certainty was a chemical weapons attack by the Syrian government on civilians. During a town hall-style meeting last week in Vestal, New York, Obama said the country’s history of racial discrimination had contributed to a persistent economic gap between blacks and whites in the decades since King’s speech.

Obama, whose mother was white and whose father was black, has sometimes seemed reluctant to weigh in on persistent racial divides in the United States, but he spoke forcefully about the issue last month after the man who killed

black Florida teenager Trayvon Martin was acquitted. The “Let Freedom Ring and Call to Action” ceremony comes as almost half of Americans say much more needs to be done before the color-blind society King envisioned is realized.

Yesterday’s event caps a week-long celebration of King’s historic call for racial and economic justice. They included a march on Saturday that drew thousands of people urging action on jobs, voting rights and gun violence. Former Presidents Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton were also expected to speak. Former President George W Bush, who did not attend, said in a statement that the United States has come a long way in civil rights progress but said the “journey to justice” was not complete. “There’s still a need for every American to help hasten the day when Dr King’s vision is made real in every community - when what truly matters is not the color of a person’s skin, but the content of their character,” Bush said in a statement. King, a black clergyman, was among six organizers of the 1963 “March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom,” where he made his address. King’s speech is credited with helping spur passage of sweeping civil rights laws. A white prison escapee assassinated him in 1968. — Reuters

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ANALYSIS

THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2013

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Issues

Beijing has no reach, much at risk in Mideast

By Ben Blanchard he worsening Syria conflict has exposed an uncomfortable truth behind China’s cherished policy of noninterference: Beijing cannot do much to influence events even if it wanted to. With weak and untested military forces unable to project power in the Middle East, China can only play a low-key role in a region that is crucial for its energy security. As the United States and its allies gear up for a probable military strike on Syria, raising fears of a regional conflagration, China remains firmly on the sidelines, despite it having much more at stake than some other big powers.

The Middle East is China’s largest source of crude oil.

Without it, the world’s second-largest economy would shudder to a halt. In the first seven months of this year, China imported about 83 million tons of crude from the region, half its total, with top suppliers including Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq, Oman and the United Arab Emirates.

China has few economic interests in Syria itself but believes it has a strategic and diplomatic imperative to ensure Middle East stability and to protect a vital energy source.

Retired Major General Luo Yuan, one of China’s most outspoken military figures, told the official People’s Daily last year that with so much oil at stake “we cannot think that the issues of Syria and Iran have nothing to do with us”.

China insists it is neither backing nor protecting Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad, saying it only vetoed UN resolutions it thought would worsen the crisis. Beijing has also hosted both government and opposition officials in an attempt to find a political solution, albeit with few results.

Even if the government were to go against its principle of not interfering in the affairs of other countries, the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) is still far from capable of all but the most token presence in lands far from home. “In terms of the PLA becoming actively involved, doing things the United States and its allies plan to do in the next few days, it does not at the moment have the wherewithal to do that,” said Ross Babbage, a military analyst in Canberra and a former senior Australian defense official.

China’s military, despite making rapid progress in stealth fighter technology and launching its first aircraft carrier, is largely untested. It last fought a war in 1979, against Vietnam, which did not go well for the ill-prepared Chinese.

Chinese ships have participated in anti-piracy patrols off the coast of Somalia, but when it came to evacuating its citizens from Libya in 2011 during fighting there, China was forced to rely mainly on chartering ferries. The PLA is for now focused on operations in the Pacific, Babbage said.

“But to conduct the sort of operations we’re talking about here, into the Mediterranean, they’re really not geared for that. Could they do it in 10 years time?

Absolutely, if they chose to do it.” President Xi Jinping said last month that becoming a maritime power was an important task for China as “the oceans and seas have an increasingly important strategic status”.

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NOT YET A SUPERPOWER Publicly, China has shown few signs of wanting to get more deeply involved in the Middle East, whether militarily or diplomatically, a region it has little experience in, unlike the United States, Russia, Britain or France, the other vetoholding members of the UN Security Council. China has gone through the motions of sending envoys to Syria, and hosting government and opposition officials in Beijing, though some of its diplomatic efforts have come across as insensitive in the Arab world and have provoked a backlash.

Early last year, demonstrators hurled rocks, eggs and tomatoes at the Chinese embassy in the Libyan capital, Tripoli, after Russia and China vetoed a UN Security Council resolution backing an Arab plan urging Assad to give up power. China does not think responsibility for security there lies in China’s hands as it has no way to effectively get involved, said Yin Gang, an expert on China’s Middle East policies at government think-tank the China Academy of Social Sciences.

“If there is stability that’s good for China, and if there is chaos that is bad for China. But China does not have the ability to maintain stability there,” Yin said. “It’s impossible, totally impossible. China has no way of using military forces to protect its interests in the Middle East. The best way to protect its interests would be to diversify its oil imports, get more from Russia, from other parts of the world.” For China, the Middle East is also a mysterious region about which the Chinese know little, said Xu Guangyu, a retired major general and now senior adviser to the government-run China Arms Control and Disarmament Association. “China has no way of knowing what’s really going on in these countries,” said Xu, who agreed that China’s armed forces were simply not up to the task of a Middle Eastern adventure.— Reuters

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.

Brief Syria action could limit risks for Obama

By John Whitesides ost Americans want no part of a US military intervention in Syria, but there is a growing sense in Washington that President Barack Obama would face more political risks from a weak response to Syria’s use of chemical weapons than from an attack on Bashar Al-Assad’s government.

As Obama’s administration builds a case for a likely military action in Syria, several analysts said such a move probably would not have lingering negative consequences for the president at home - as long as the intervention was short-lived. By declaring last year that Assad would cross a “red line” that could trigger a US response if he used chemical weapons, Obama ensured that foreign foes and allies - as well as his Republican political rivals would view any failure to respond as a sign of presidential weakness. “Obama has to consider the implications for other policy areas if he fails to act,” said William Galston, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, who was a domestic policy adviser to President Bill Clinton. “Doing nothing - that is what would be devastating.” After the chemical attack near Damascus last week that killed hundreds of Syrian adults and children and injured many more, Obama “doesn’t have that luxury,” of inaction, he

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said. Obama, who has long been wary of any involvement in Syria’s civil war, and US allies appeared on Tuesday to be carefully laying the groundwork for a coordinated military response.

SINKING SUPPORT Polls show large majorities of Americans, weary of more than a decade of wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, strongly oppose a US military mission in Syria. A ReutersIpsos poll last week found about 60 percent of Americans are against US intervention in Syria, while just 9 percent support it. More Americans favor intervention if Syria has used chemical weapons, but even that support has dipped as the situation in Syria has deteriorated, according to the poll. However, US military action typically sparks a surge of at least short-term support for their president’s actions, as Americans rally around the troops.

“My prediction would be that public opinion would swing very quickly to support the military action in Syria,” said Ipsos pollster Julia Clark. “The danger for Obama is if it becomes more prolonged.” On Capitol Hill, lawmakers have been sending mixed signals on Syria, arguably giving Obama more room to maneuver. Republicans, led by Senator John McCain of Arizona, have criticized Obama for moving too slowly and called for a strong military

intervention. McCain suggested on Tuesday that a brief attack by cruise missiles, aimed more at sending a message to Assad than altering the course of Syria’s civil war, could make the situation worse by allowing an emboldened Assad to claim that he had withstood an assault by the Americans. Meanwhile, some liberal Democrats and conservative Republicans - including Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky, a potential 2016 presidential candidate - have opposed any US intervention.

Obama faces the decision on Syria just as Congress prepares to return to Washington next week to renew a lingering budget fight over government spending and the federal debt limit.

Some Republicans are threatening another government shutdown if Democrats don’t agree to deeper spending cuts, or to delay funding for the president’s healthcare overhaul. The intense focus in Congress on domestic policy issues means the impact of any shortterm military action in Syria could be limited. “It’s one of those things that, however tragic, won’t have any lasting political impact one way or the other,” Republican strategist Rich Galen said of a short-term US intervention in Syria. “We are locked in a cycle of domestic turmoil, and politically that will overwhelm everything else.” — Reuters

When to strike: Tense decisions for Obama on Syria

By Josh Lederman reparations for a highly anticipated strike on Syria could lead to an awkward decision on timing. Few doubt that President Barack Obama is preparing for a US-led military action to retaliate for what the US and its allies say was a deadly chemical weapons attack perpetrated by the Syrian government. But there are few good options for when to attack. Yesterday, for example was an uncomfortable juxtaposition of themes. That’s the day Obama stood on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, paying tribute to Martin Luther King Jr on the 50th anniversary of the nonviolent leader’s “I Have a Dream” speech.

Thursday is also problematic. That’s when British Prime Minister David Cameron is set to convene an emergency meeting of Parliament, where lawmakers are expected to vote on a motion clearing the way for Britain to respond to the alleged chemical weapons attack. Days later, on Tuesday, Obama embarks on an overseas trip that will take him away from the White House for most of the week.

Would Obama really want to be running a military operation from Sweden? Or from Russia, which vigorously opposes action against Syria? Compounding the pressure, some lawmakers and allies are urging Obama to proceed slowly and seek UN Security Council approval, while others are imploring the president to act quickly and decisively. After all, Obama’s response earlier this year after the US first concluded that Syrian President Bashar Assad had used chemical weapons was criticized as too little, too late. “ The longer you wait, the less meaningful it becomes,” said Barry Pavel, a former top national security official in the George W Bush and Obama administrations. Lawmakers from both political parties have called on Obama to consult Congress before taking action - a step the White House says is now underway. Obama also is seeking buy-in from Western allies such as Britain and France, and from regional organizations like the 22member Arab League, which has signaled its interest in justice for victims of the alleged chemical weapons attacks and blamed the Syrian regime.

But those consultations, too, limit the haste with which the US can act without going it alone. Although Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel says the US military is in position to strike as soon as Obama gives the order, the administration has yet to release a promised intelligence report formally linking Assad to the attack. That report would provide a key rationale and underpinning for the administration’s assertion that a game-changing response was warranted. The report could be released as early as today, the same day as Obama’s speech marking the anniversar y of the 1963 March on Washington.

A successful vote Thursday in Britain’s Parliament would mark the start of short window that national security experts say could be the least worst time for Obama to act. But a senior administration official said once Obama decides on what action to take, he won’t

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delay the decision because of outside factors or competing events. Obama, on Tuesday, will travel to Stockholm for his first visit as president to Sweden. The Northern European nation has claimed a position of neutrality in international conflicts for about 200 years.

Two days later, he heads to St Petersburg, Russia, for the Group of 20 economic summit with leading foreign counterparts.

A major conference intended to focus on wonky issues like tax evasion and monetary policy could easily be subsumed by a military incursion in a Mideast hot spot embroiling the US and potentially other G-20 nations. What’s more, Russia, the host of the summit, is

authorized to discuss internal deliberations publicly and requested anonymity. The main factor in when an action starts will be how long it takes to get it off the ground once Obama makes the call. An increase in foreign assistance, for example, would take a while to ramp up, while a military action could be ordered right away. There’s precedent for Obama to take military action while outside the US It was in Brazil in 2011 when Obama, on a five-day Latin America swing, authorized limited military action against Libya to counter Moammar Gadhafi’s assault on his own people. The pressure on Obama to act is amplified by his pledge last year that such a chemical weapons attack would cross a

DEIR EZZOR: Syrian young men drive their motorbikes past a pickup truck loaded notably with matresses, chairs and carpets in a street of the old airport neighborhood of the Syria’s eastern town of Deir Ezzor yesterday. — AFP staunchly backing Assad and would be among the most vocal opponents of a military strike in Syria.

An American-led attack on Assad’s forces while world leaders meet in Russia would be a major embarrassment for the Kremlin, and would deliver yet another blow to shaky relations between Russia and the US, already at a low point since the recent US decision to cancel a bilateral meeting between Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin. “The president has to be prepared for a lot of tension and a high degree of awkwardness,” said Nikolas Gvosdev, a national security professor at the US Naval War College.

Despite the messy optics, Obama’s foreign travel next week will not be a factor in his decision about when to act, said the administration official, who wasn’t

red line for the US Activists say hundreds were killed in the Damascus suburbs on Aug 21.

US officials say a response most likely would involve sea-launched cruise missile attacks on Syrian military targets. Logistical and military considerations could also play a role in determining when the US and others take action. Military experts and US officials said strikes probably would come during the night, a strategy that could help minimize civilian causalities. The US may also seek to wait until after the U.N. team in Syria investigating chemical weapons allegations has left the country.

The team is scheduled to leave Syria in about a week, but the most recent purported chemical weapons attack has created the possibility that the team’s twoweek trip could be extended.— AP

THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2013

S P ORTS

England team apologise for post-Ashes behavior LONDON: England apologised yesterday for “inappropriate” behavior after media reports that some players urinated on the pitch at the Oval as they celebrated their Ashes Test series victory. After a 3-0 series win over Australia, the players were spotted relaxing and drinking beer on the pitch, the London home ground of Surrey County Cricket Club, with England’s wicket keeper Matt Prior tweeting a picture of the celebrations.

But the team came under fire and made headlines globally after Australian journalists still in the grounds reported seeing some of the players relieve themselves on the grass.

England have now issued an apology, saying there was no intention to disrespect Surrey CCC, the Oval, or anyone else involved in the game. “As a team we pride ourselves on respecting all things cricket including the opposition and the grounds we play at,” the team said in a statement posted on the England and Wales Cricket Board website (www.ecb.co.uk). “We got carried away amongst the euphoria of winning such a prestigious series and accept that some of our behaviour was inappropriate.—Reuters

Kazakh warned by UEFA over sheep slaughter

Turkey’s hurdler handed doping suspension

BERNE: Kazakhstan champions Shakhtar Karagandy have been warned that they could face disciplinary action if they slaughter any more sheep before European games, UEFA said yesterday.

“The UEFA Competition department has written to FC Shakhter Karagandy and informed them that animal slaughter was not acceptable in or around our competitions and that the club would face sanctions if it happens again,” read a UEFA statement.

Animal rights group PETA last week called on UEFA to ban the ritual slaughter of animals after reports that Shakhter had killed a sheep before their Champions League playoff tie at home to Celtic which they won 2-0.

“We’re very grateful for UEFA’s swift and firm action condemning such cruel and archaic practices”, said PETA’s Mimi Bekhechi in a statement. “UEFA has sent a clear message that there is absolutely nothing sporting about violence towards animals.”

Shakhter were facing Celtic in Glasgow in their return match later yesterday for a place in the group stage of Europe’s lucrative top tier club competition. — Reuters

ISTANBUL: Double European 100m hurdles champion Nevin Yanit has been handed a two-year suspension for drugs violations by the Turkish Athletics Federation (TAF), the authority announced yesterday. The decision comes just three weeks after the federation banned 31 athletes for doping offences and with a Sept. 7 International Olympic Committee (IOC) vote looming on whether Istanbul, Madrid or Tokyo will host the 2020 Olympics.

In May, the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) said Yanit faced a ban following “multiple positive findings in both in-competition and out-of-competition tests”. The Turkish federation said it made its decision to ban the 27-year-old athlete at a disciplinary board meeting on Tuesday. “Today’s news demonstrates that the new, more aggressive anti-doping policies being implemented by our National Federations and the Turkish Anti-Doping Agency (TADA)...are rooting out drugs in Turkish sport,” Turkey’s Olympic chief Ugur Erdener said in a statement.

Erdener, an International Olympic Committee member and also one of the bid leaders for Istanbul’s 2020 Olympic bid, said testing in Turkey would continue to be beefed up. —Reuters

Red Sox pound Orioles BOSTON: Shane Victorino homered twice and drove in a career-high seven runs to lead the Boston Red Sox to a 13-2 victory over the Baltimore Orioles on Tuesday night. Felix Doubront pitched 6 2-3 innings of four-hit ball for AL East-leading Boston. Victorino also had a two-run double in the seventh, and Dustin Pedroia had three hits for the Red Sox. J.J. Hardy and Danny Valencia each had two of Baltimore’s four hits. Wei-Yin Chen (7-7) lasted just 3 2-3 innings, allowing eight runs and eight hits. He struck out five, walked three and hit a batter.

Doubront (10-6) had only one bad inning, allowing the first four batters in Baltimore’s two-run third to reach. But he retired 14 of the next 16 before leaving to a standing ovation from the Fenway Park crowd of 36,226.

LOS ANGELES: Second baseman Darwin Barney No. 15 of the Chicago Cubs can’t come up with a ball hit by Hanley Ramirez (not pictured) of the Los Angeles Dodgers in the eighth inning. — AFP

Cubs roll over Dodgers LOS ANGELES: Travis Wood outpitched Clayton Kershaw in a matchup of All-Star lefties, and Dioner Navarro and Starlin Castro had run-scoring singles to help the Chicago Cubs beat the Dodgers 3-2 Tuesday night, ending an eight-game skid against first-place Los Angeles.

After losing 6-2 against Zack Greinke in the series opener, the Cubs caught Kershaw on a decidedly off-night for the ace who came in with a major league-leading 1.72 ERA. Kershaw’s streak of 18 scoreless innings, dating to Aug. 17, ended in the third when the Cubs took a 1-0 lead.

Wood (8-10) allowed one unearned run and five hits in seven innings. He struck out six and walked two for his first victory since July 28 at San Francisco. Kevin Gregg pitched the ninth to earn his 27th save in 32 chances.

METS 5, PHILLIES 0 In New York, Jonathon Niese pitched a threehitter and had a three-run double, helping the Mets end a five-game losing streak.

Niese struck out five and walked one in his second career shutout in 112 major league starts.

The Mets won several hours after trading veterans Marlon Byrd and John Buck to Pittsburgh.

Niese (6-6) handled matters at the plate and on the mound. He retired 17 straight batters and scored the first run by running through third base coach Tim Teufel’s late stop sign.

Niese improved to 3-0 in four starts since coming off the disabled list because of a partially torn rotator cuff. The Phillies had won five of their previous six under interim manager Ryne Sandberg.

Kyle Kendrick (10-11) went six innings and allowed five runs, only one earned.

CARDINALS 6, REDS 1 St. Louis, Joe Kelly tossed six strong innings and Matt Holliday drove in a run for a seventh straight game to help lift St. Louis over Cincinnati.

St. Louis has won six of seven, including the first two games of this three-game set. The firstplace Cardinals have won eight of their last 10 against the third-place Reds and lead them by 41/2 games in the NL Central. The Cards also moved 11/2 games ahead of second-place Pittsburgh.

Shin-Soo Choo homered for Cincinnati, which lost for the fourth time in five games. The Cardinals retired the last 13 Cincinnati batters, dropping the Reds to 4-10 against St. Louis this season.

Kelly (6-3), who allowed one run and eight hits, improved to 6-0 in nine starts since rejoining the starting rotation on July 6.

Holliday, who went 2 for 3, keyed a two-run outburst in the first against Mat Latos (13-5), who gave up four runs and nine hits over six-plus innings.

BREWERS 7, PIRATES 6 In Pittsburgh, Aramis Ramirez had three hits, including his 350th career home run, and drove in four runs as Milwaukee edged Pittsburgh.

The 16-year veteran third baseman helped stake the Brewers to a 5-0 in the fifth inning, but the Pirates rallied to tie it in the sixth. Milwaukee pulled out the win when rookie pinch-hitter Caleb Gindl hit a tiebreaking sacrifice fly in the eighth inning.

With the game tied 6-6, Rafael Betancourt hit a one-out double off Bryan Morris (5-7) and took third on Scooter Gennett’s single. Gindl then lifted a fly to right that scored Betancourt and gave the Brewers their third victory in four games.

Pittsburgh, which trails St. Louis in the NL Central race, lost its third in a row. Pedro Alvarez went 4-for-4 with a walk, and hit his NL-leading 32nd home run for the Pirates.

DIAMONDBACKS 10, PADRES 9 In Phoenix, Aaron Hill lined a game-ending RBI single in the 10th inning to give Arizona the victory. With Hill at-bat and runners on second and third, the Padres employed a five-man infield. Hill lined a shot over the head of left fielder Yonder Alonzo for his eighth career game-ending hit.

Adam Eaton opened the 10th with a single to center, and Paul Goldschmidt singled to left before Hill won it against Dale Thayer (2-4).

The Diamondbacks played their 20th extrainning game this season, second only to the 21 they had in 1999. Arizona is 15-5 in this season’s long contests. San Diego dropped to 7-6 in extra innings. Heath Bell (5-2) pitched a perfect 10th inning for the win.

NATIONALS 2, MARLINS 1 In Washington, Ross Ohlendorf pitched into the sixth inning, Ian Desmond had three hits, and Washington beat Miami.

Ohlendorf (3-0) pitched five innings of two-hit ball before Christian Yelich led off the sixth with his second homer, ending the starter’s outing. It was Ohlendorf’s second start since he was sidelined by right shoulder inflammation.

Tanner Roark, Drew Storen and Tyler Clippard each pitched a hitless inning before Rafael Soriano finished the four-hitter for his 34th save.

Washington kicked off a six-game homestand with its sixth victory in seven games. Yelich had two hits for Miami, which has lost six of seven.

Nathan Eovaldi (2-5) allowed two runs - both in the first - and eight hits in six innings.

GIANTS 5, ROCKIES 3 In Denver, Hunter Pence and Pablo Sandoval hit back-to-back homers, and Yusmeiro Petit won his first game in four years, helping San Francisco beat Colorado.

Pence and Sandoval went deep in the opening inning, marking the first time all season the Giants have hit back-to-back homers.

Brandon Belt had four singles and scored twice for San Francisco, which won for the third time in four games. Petit (1-0) was recently called up from Triple-A Fresno to fill in for Matt Cain, who was placed on the 15-day disabled list last week. Petit lasted six innings, allowed six hits and two runs.

Sergio Romo pitched a perfect ninth for his 32nd save in 36 chances.

Chad Bettis (0-3) settled down after a rough start, allowing four runs and nine hits over six innings. He is still searching for his first major league victory.

INTERLEAGUE BRAVES 2, INDIANS 0 In Atlanta, rookie Alex Wood pitched five-plus strong innings and Elliot Johnson had a two-run triple as Atlanta held off Cleveland.

The Braves have won two straight, improving the majors’ best record to 79-52. They have won 14 of 17 at Turner Field and own baseball’s home mark at 45-18. Craig Kimbrel pitched a perfect ninth to earn his 42nd save, most in the majors, in 45 chances.

Atlanta took a 2-0 lead in the second inning.

Brian McCann walked with one out and advanced to third on Joey Terdoslavich’s single to right field.

Both runners scored when Johnson tripled over Stubbs near the wall in right.

Wood (3-2) allowed five hits, a career-high four walks and struck out five in 5 2-3 innings. The lefthander is 3-0 with a 1.46 ERA in his past six starts.

Cleveland had won two straight and five of six, but lost despite holding Atlanta to just three hits.

Rookie Danny Salazar (1-2) gave up three hits, two runs and two walks in four innings. The right-hander struck out three. — AP

ANGELS 6, RAYS 5 In St. Petersburg, Erick Aybar drove in four runs to help the Los Angeles Angels rallied from a four-run deficit to get the win. Aybar hit a two-run double off closer Fernando Rodney (5-4) to put the Angels up 6-5 in the ninth.

Peter Bourjos stole second and went to third when center fielder Desmond Jennings misplayed J.B. Shuck’s fly ball for a two-base error. Aybar then followed with the key hit.

Aybar also had a two-run single during a three-run seventh that made it 5-4. Jose Molina had three hits and three RBIs for Tampa Bay, which has lost three in a row. The Rays, leading the AL wild-card race, are 21/2 games behind AL East-leading Boston.

After Ernesto Frieri (2-4) pitched a scoreless eighth, Dane De La Rosa got the final three outs for his second save.

YANKEES 7, BLUE JAYS 1 In Toronto, Alfonso Soriano hit two home runs and Andy Pettitte pitched seven shutout innings as the Yankees beat the Blue Jays after losing Robinson Cano in the first inning.

Alex Rodriguez and Mark Reynolds also homered for the Yankees, who won for the 13th time in 15 meetings with Toronto this season.

Rodriguez hit a two-out solo shot in the seventh for his 651st career home run and second in two games. Soriano’s homers, both of which were hit on the first pitch, were the 399th and 400th of his career. Cano sustained a bruised left hand after being struck by a pitch from lefthander J.A. Happ (3-4). X-rays were negative, and the Yankees said Cano is day to day.

Eduardo Nunez, who replaced Cano, appeared to injure his right leg while covering second base in the eighth. He was checked by trainer Steve Donohue and initially stayed in the game, but was replaced three batters after hitting a leadoff single in the ninth. Pettitte (109) improved to 7-1 in his past eight starts against Toronto.

ATHLETICS 6, TIGERS 3 In Detroit, Brandon Moss hit a tiebreaking two-run homer off Justin Verlander as the Athletics beat the Tigers in a game cut short by rain. Seth Smith hit a leadoff homer in the sixth, and Oakland had the bases loaded with no one out when the tarp was pulled on the field due to the weather. It was called after an 80-minute delay.

Oakland starter Tommy Milone (10-9) allowed three runs in the first, and then pitched four scoreless innings for the complete game.

The left-hander improved to 2-2 with a 4.97 ERA in his last six starts.

Detroit dropped its second straight game, but the biggest concern was another sluggish outing for Verlander (12-10), who was charged with four runs, three earned, and four hits in five innings. The right-hander, who won the Cy Young Award and AL MVP in 2011, is 0-2 with a 5.00 ERA in his last four starts.

RANGERS 4, MARINERS 3 In Seattle, Ian Kinsler scored the go-ahead run on Danny Farquar’s balk in the 10th inning, handing Texas the victory.

Kinsler started the winning rally with oneout single against Farquar (0-2) for his fourth hit. Kinsler advanced on Adrian Beltre’s single, and then swiped third. After A.J. Pierzynski fouled out, home plate umpire CB Bucknor called a balk on Farquar with Alex Rios at the plate, allowing Kinsler to come home. Tanner Scheppers (6-2) wiggled out of a jam in the ninth to get the win and Joe Nathan finished for his 38th save in 40 chances as the AL Westleading Rangers won for the sixth time in eight games.

A day after coming off the disabled list, Franklin Gutierrez homered for the first time since June 22 for Seattle, which has lost five straight.

ROYALS 6, TWINS 1 In Minneapolis, James Shields was sharp for 7 1-3 innings and Kansas City scored five runs in the eighth inning to break open a scoreless game. Shields - the key part in the deal that sent top prospect Wil Myers to Tampa Bay in the offseason - struck out seven and notched

his American-League best 22nd quality start.

Shields (9-8) only allowed one hit through seven innings before running into trouble and leaving in the eighth inning. Kevin Correia struck out a season-high seven over seven shutout innings, but ended up with a no-decision. Brian Dozier had the Twins’ RBI. Seven consecutive Royals hitters reached base in the five-run eighth and handed Jared Burton (2-8) his third loss to Kansas City this season.

WHITE SOX 4, ASTROS 3 In Chicago, Jordan Danks hit a clutch tworun single in Chicago’s three-run eighth inning, leading the White Sox to the victory.

Danks finished with a career-high three hits as the White Sox won for the ninth time in 11 games, bouncing back from a difficult loss in the series opener. Paul Konerko, Alexei Ramirez and Avisail Garcia had two hits apiece.

Matt Dominguez had three hits and two RBIs for the Astros, who had won three of four.

Dominguez and Chris Carter hit consecutive two-out homers off closer Addison Reed to give Houston a 10-8 victory on Monday night.

Reed worked the ninth for his 36th save in 41 tries. Robbie Grossman had a two-out double for his third hit, but Reed got L.J. Hoes to bounce out to shortstop to end the game.

Donnie Veal (2-3) got one out for the win.

Danks’ two-run single came against Erik Bedard (3-10). — AP

BOSTON: Troy Patton No. 40 of the Baltimore Orioles flips the ball to first base against the Boston Red Sox during the game at Fenway Park. — AFP

MLB results/standings Washington 2, Miami 1; Milwaukee 7, Pittsburgh 6; NY Yankees 7, Toronto 1; Oakland 6, Detroit 3 (6 innings); Boston 13, Baltimore 2; Atlanta 2, Cleveland 0; NY Mets 5, Philadelphia 0; LA Angels 6, Tampa Bay 5; Chicago White Sox 4, Houston 3; Kansas City 6, Minnesota 1; St. Louis 6, Cincinnati 1; San Francisco 5, Colorado 3; Arizona 10, San Diego 9 (10 innings); Texas 4, Seattle 3 (10 innings); Chicago Cubs 3, LA Dodgers 2.

American League Eastern Division W L PCT Boston 78 55 .586 74 56 .569 Tampa Bay Baltimore 70 60 .538 NY Yankees 70 62 .530 Toronto 59 74 .444 Central Division Detroit 77 55 .583 71 60 .542 Cleveland Kansas City 67 64 .511 Minnesota 57 73 .438 Chicago White Sox 55 76 .420 Western Division Texas 77 55 .583 74 57 .565 Oakland LA Angels 59 71 .454 Seattle 59 72 .450 Houston 44 87 .336

GB 2.5 6.5 7.5 19 5.5 9.5 19 21.5 2.5 17 17.

32.5

Atlanta Washington Philadelphia NY Mets Miami St. Louis Pittsburgh Cincinnati Milwaukee Chicago Cubs LA Dodgers Arizona Colorado San Diego San Francisco

National League Eastern Division 79 52 .603 66 65 .504 60 72 .455 59 71 .454 49 81 .377 Central Division 78 54 .591 76 55 .580 74 59 .556 58 73 .443 56 76 .424 Western Division 77 55 .583 68 63 .519 62 72 .463 59 73 .447 59 73 .447

13 19.5 19.5 29.5 1.5 4.5 19.5 22 8.5 16 18 18

Tissot on as title sponsor for Australian MotoGP LE LOCLE: With just over 50 days until Phillip Island circuit welcomes the new era of MotoGP, Tissot has claimed pole position, with the event, taking place from October 18-20, to be officially titled the 2013 Tissot Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix. Renowned Swiss watchmaker, Tissot, has been a partner to MotoGP(tm) for many years and plays the important role of the Championship’s Official Timekeeper.

Pau Serracanta, Managing Director Commercial Area at Dorna, commented that he was very happy that Tissot is once again supporting the sport with such strength and commitment. “Tissot is already an established brand in MotoGP and has an important role as the Official Timekeeper. For years, the names Tissot and MotoGP have gone together, and the fact that it has opted to be the title sponsor of a Grand Prix like Australia strengthens this successful relationship immensely.”

Tissot President FranÁois ThiÈbaud was very pleased to further reinforce the brand’s already strong relationship with MotoGP and the sport of motorcycle racing.

“Becoming the title sponsor for the 2013 Tissot Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix at such a legendary circuit, combined with our timekeeping services, will serve to further highlight the precision and performance of our products to fans all around the world during a key period in the MotoGP World Championship,” he added.

Tissot will also continue as the presenter of the “Tissot Pole Position Awards”, where the rider who secures the front of the grid at every MotoGP, Moto2 and Moto3 race is gifted a special Tissot timepiece. Chairman of the Australian Grand Prix Corporation, Ronald Walker AC CBE, was pleased by Tissot’s signing on as the title sponsor for the upcoming Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix, particularly with the event celebrating 25 years since the first World Championship race at Phillip Island.

“Tissot is committed to respecting tradition, and at the core of their values is performance, precision and setting new standards, making them the perfect brand fit for everything that the Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix encompasses.”

THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2013

S P ORTS

Bombers banned from AFL finals in supplements saga MELBOURNE: Essendon has been banned from the Australian Football League finals series and fined $2 million in the first major sanctions imposed since national anti-doping authorities revealed a wideranging investigation into the use of banned substances in professional sports.

The AFL Commission announced the sanctions Tuesday against the club and three of its staff, including a 12-month ban for head coach James Hird for bringing the game into disrepute. Commission chairman Mike Fitzpatrick said the Bombers had set up a supplements program that was “experimental, inappropriate and inadequately vetted and controlled” and failed to protect the health, welfare and safety of players.

AFL chief executive Andrew Demetriou

described it as a “sorry saga” and said it was the most significant sanction ever imposed in the league.

Yesterday, Hird told media outside his Melbourne home that he took a “level of responsibility” for what had occurred.

“There’s things that went on at our football club that shouldn’t have happened last year, and as senior coach I have to take some responsibility for what happened and not doing more to stop it,” Hird said.

The Bombers, who were in seventh place and had already qualified for next month’s finals, have been under investigation by the Australian Sports Anti-Doping Agency and the AFL since February over the club’s 2012 supplements program.

After receiving an interim report of the investigations earlier this month, the AFL

charged Essendon, Hird, the club’s doctor and two other officials with bringing the game into disrepute. Hird, who was a star player for the club before becoming coach, received the harshest ban. Football manager Danny Corcoran was banned for six months and assistant coach Mark Thompson was fined $30,000.

Club doctor Bruce Reid is fighting the charges and is expected to face the AFL commission again today. Essendon, one of the biggest clubs in the most-followed football league in Australia, will be deemed to have finished ninth in the 2013 competition and will lose their first- and second-round picks for next season’s player draft under the sanctions imposed by the AFL. The ASADA investigation is continuing and no doping charges have been

laid against any Essendon player, although the AFL made it clear its sanctions were for governance and management failings.

Essendon chairman Paul Little said Hird had shown remorse, had taken the fall for the club, and would be welcomed back as coach when his ban expired. Little later said Hird will be offered a contract extension and could coach the team again in the 2015 season. “James Hird told the commission tonight he had taken responsibility for the shortcomings in the 2012 supplements program,” Little said. The AFL has urged sports scientist Stephen Dank, a central figure in the 2012 supplements program at the Bombers who had worked at other football clubs in Australia, to meet with league and ASADA officials. After months of leaks and reports about the supple-

ments used in the club’s sports science program, the controversy rose to another level last week when the AFL released a letter from Reid - written in January 2012 protesting the “ludicrous” use of supplements at the club.

Reid wrote the letter to Hird, among others, saying drugs were given to players without his knowledge and that “we are playing at the edge and this will read extremely badly in the press for our club.”

Players were allegedly injected with substances including AOD9604, now listed by WADA as a banned substance. Hird initially said the letter, gathered as part of the ASADA investigation, was a deliberate attempt by the league to discredit him. He launched legal action but withdrew the action after two days of meetings with the AFL.—AP

Ryan a near-lock to be first coach fired NEW YORK: Even with the start of the NFL season nearly two weeks away, you don’t need a Las Vegas bookmaker to pick a favorite for the first coach likely to be fired. It’s Rex Ryan. At the rate he’s burning through whatever goodwill is left on the Jets’ side of town, he’ll be lucky to still be working the sideline when they k ick it off for real Sept. 8 against Tampa Bay. Ryan was eerily calm at a news conference Monday, fending off question after question about: a) his bizarre decision to risk quarterback Mark Sanchez’ health late in Saturday night’s preseason game against the crosstown Giants; and b) the even-more bizarre postgame meltdown during which R yan did ever ything including invoking the Constitution - to avoid explaining that decision.

“Do I regret that he got injured? Of course,” Ryan finally acknowledged a day and a half later. “But again, I’m not going to say anything more about it, because I covered that already.”

Not surprising, the next question was whether Jets owner Woody Johnson or new general manager John Idzik had spoken to Ryan about his performance Saturday night.

“No. Absolutely not,” Ryan replied, before heading for the exit. Even if that’s true, he’ll be called to the principal’s office soon enough. Ryan came to town four years ago with impeccable defensive credentials, plenty of bluster and a promise to win championships. Instead, his tenure has provided a textbook study on why some very smart coordinators aren’t cut out to be head coaches: They talk a great game, but they only really “get” what happens on what used to be their side of the ball.

In Ryan’s case, it almost seems genetic.

His father, Buddy, was the same way. It’s also why Ryan’s twin brother, Rob, currently in New Orleans beginning his fourth stint as a defensive coordinator in the NFL, probably won’t ever get a shot.

There’s a neat little story about how the old man reacted when both sons were finishing college and told Buddy they wanted to follow him into the profession: He piled them into the car and drove to a motel not far from his family home in Oklahoma. Buddy spent the next two days making them watch film morning until night, teaching them everything he

knew.

In hindsight, putting Buddy’s reputation for handling QBs alongside Rex’s, it’s probable that whenever the word “quarterback” came up during those study sessions, it was followed by words like “crush” and “destroy.” Based on the way Rex Ryan has brought Sanchez along, not to mention his flirtation with Tim Tebow, it’s clear his thinking hasn’t evolved much.

“I like where our quarterbacks are,” Ryan said at one point Monday. There’s no point in reciting preseason stats, but suffice it to say Ryan is in denial. At least that may explain his eerie calm. Sanchez has rarely been a serviceable NFL quarterback, and after Ryan sent him back into Saturday night ’s meaningless game behind a line made up of scrubs, he’s as far away as ever. Top draft pick Geno Smith threw three interceptions in the same game and just for good measure, stepped out of the end zone in a panic and got whistled for a safety.

Ryan’s job was already on the line at the end of last season. Idzik inherited him and barely needs an excuse to disown him. Even so, Ryan handed him all the excuses he needed Saturday night. Asked about Sanchez and how he planned to solve the glaring quarterbacking problem on his hands, Ryan threw a fit. Like a man walking on coals, he shuffled from side to side and even narrated the scene.

“I’ll stand backwards and answer the question,” he said, then segued into, “I’m going sideways.”

If Johnson and Idzik are genuinely worried about the Jets’ season, let alone the team’s reputation, they might as well start negotiating the severance check now and nudge Ryan in the direction of the back door. His stay began with plenty of fanfare and some impressive results - backto-back losses in the AFC championship game - but like Buddy, given enough time, he wears a team out.

The Jets are tired, or else incapable, of cashing the checks Rex writes with his mouth. More than a few coaches and GMs who were fired last season got pink slips because they couldn’t develop a quarterback, let alone uncover one already on the roster. Ryan has proven he’s not about to learn any new tricks, and after the stunt he pulled Saturday night, he’s going to have a hard time finding anyone to bail him out. — AP

DA: Charges won’t be filed against Pippen LOS ANGELES: Prosecutors won’t file criminal charges against Scottie Pippen for fighting with an autograph seeker who authorities say was drunk and exaggerated his injuries, including faking seizures after claiming the former Chicago Bulls star punched him in the face.

The Los Angeles County district attorney’s office said Tuesday there was insufficient evidence to bring assault charges against Pippen for the altercation with Camran Shafighi at Nobu, a restaurant and celebrity hangout on the beach in Malibu.

Pippen was dining with his family on June 24 when he was approached by Shafighi inside the restaurant. Pippen obliged to have a photo taken but not with Shafighi, and then Shafighi followed the retired NBA forward outside into the parking lot. He again asked for a photo and an autograph from Pippen, who said no.

Pippen told investigators Shafighi became irate, “grabbing at him, cursing him and then spit in his face,” according to a report by the district attorney’s office.

Shafighi, 49, said Pippen punched him in

Scottie Pippen

the mouth and kicked him several times. The last memory Shafighi had before losing consciousness was seeing Pippen’s foot coming toward his face, the report said.

Pippen admitted spitting at Shafighi and pushing him away, but prosecutors said that based on witness accounts, it was unclear whether Pippen was the aggressor or acted in self-defense. Shafighi, who has filed a $4 million lawsuit against Pippen, was taken to a hospital with a possible concussion. All tests showed there wasn’t any internal trauma, but Shafighi returned to the hospital later and told doctors he had been diagnosed with fractured ribs and ankle, the report said. The only visible physical injuries were a small bruise on Shafighi’s chin and a cut to his lip.

Shafighi, whose blood sample turned up positive for opiates and a 0.18 percent blood-alcohol level - twice the legal limit for driving - also feigned having seizures, according to the report. The seizures ended when the doctor ordered him to stop them.

The physician who examined Shafighi told investigators he believed Shafighi was “making up stuff,” the report said. Pippen’s attorney, Mark Geragos, indicated his client will sue. “This shakedown artist was drunk, screaming racial slurs, and assaulted my client and his family,” Geragos said. “Scottie and his family are grateful to the sheriff for their investigation and DA for their decision to reject these unfounded charges. Scottie and his family plan on holding this man accountable for his outrageous actions.”

Steve Kaplan, a spokesman for Shafighi’s lawyer Lee Boyd, said they were reviewing the report and couldn’t immediately comment. Pippen, 47, won six NBA titles with Michael Jordan and the Bulls. In 1996, he was named one of the NBA’s 50 greatest players. He was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2010. Pippen now serves as special adviser to the Bulls’ president and chief operating officer.—AP

ZURICH: Jamaica’s Usain Bolt (right) receives Fuleco, the mascot of the FIFA Football World Cup Brazil 2014 from FIFA President Sepp Blatter, during his visit to the Home of FIFA in Zurich. —AFP

Bolt sees greatness in 3rd Olympic triple gold ZURICH: Usain Bolt aims to achieve greatness with a third Olympic triple gold-medal haul at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Games. “To actually go to Rio and win again would be a feat in itself,” Bolt said yesterday, speaking ahead of the Weltklasse Diamond League meeting.

The Jamaican will run in the 100 meters on Thursday after a world championship sweep in the 100, 200 and 4x100 relay in Moscow, where he talked of working hard to attain “the greatness thing.” He completed the same triple at the past two Olympics and is focused on repeating in Rio. “For me, the key thing is just to go to defend my titles, and that’s my focus,” Bolt said. “It would be the first time anybody has ever won three times in a row.” Bolt became the most decorated athlete in world championships history this month, with his career tally of eight golds and two silvers lifting him above American great Carl Lewis.

Three more gold for Bolt in Rio would still leave him trailing Lewis’ Olympic track and field record of nine gold and one silver.

“I won’t be adding a fourth event in Rio, for sure,” said the 27-year-old Bolt, whose 34th birthday could fall during the 2020 Summer Games.

Bolt’s news conference was held at FIFA headquar-

ters, across the city from the stadium where he will run today. Bolt was greeted on arrival by FIFA President Sepp Blatter, and later accepted a blue FIFA football shirt bearing his name and the No. 9.

Blatter joked that nine seconds was probably the limit for Bolt, whose 100 world record set in 2009 stands at 9.58. Bolt suggested he was capable of running in the 9.70s at Weltklasse, where a warm, still evening is forecast.

“I have gotten a lot of rest,” said Bolt, who last year in cool, wet conditions set a Weltklasse meet record of 19.66 in the 200. “This track is always a fast track and I’ve run some fast times here.”

He ran a season’s-best 9.77 in Moscow and rivals Thursday include worlds runner-up Justin Gatlin of the United States and Jamaican bronze medalist Nesta Carter. Though Bolt is the star attraction, the sold-out Letzigrund stadium will also focus on stellar fields for the men’s high jump and women’s 5,000. Last month in Switzerland, Bohdan Bondarenko barely failed to clear 2.46 meters at the Athletissima meeting in Lausanne, which would have lifted him above a cherished record in track and field.

Cuban great Javier Sotomayor’s 20-year-old mark of 2.45 survived another challenge by the

Ukrainian when taking the world title in Moscow.

“Many people wait for the world record. I can’t just decide when I jump the world record, or I would do it,” said Bondarenko, who looked forward to competing in a more relaxed setting Thursday. “I think this is good because emotions get in the way of jumping.” Ethiopian rivals Meseret Defar and Tirunesh Dibaba rarely race each other outside of major championships, yet the winners of the past three Olympic titles over 5,000 will clash over that distance in Zurich. “It’s a prestige-laden race - and yes, it’s very expensive,” said meet director Patrick Magyar, describing his efforts to make the match as perhaps the toughest of his career.

Magyar also accepted Caster Semenya of South Africa, who missed the worlds through injury, into the 800 meters after taking the word of her coach, Maria Mutola, who holds the record for wins at the prestigious Weltklasse meet.

“If Maria tells me Caster is in shape to beat anybody in this race, I have to believe her,” said Magyar, who has a special send-off planned for a retiring American long jump star.

Dwight Phillips, the 2004 Athens Olympics gold medalist and four-time world champion, will compete in his final competition at the age of 35.—AP

Broad hits back at Vaughan criticism of England squad LONDON: England Twenty20 captain Stuart Broad has accused former skipper Michael Vaughan of being “disrespectful” for criticising the decision to rest several leading players from the upcoming one-day internationals against Australia.

Test skipper Alastair Cook, Ian Bell, James Anderson, Graeme Swann and Broad himself, who all featured in the recent 3-0 Ashes series win, were all left out of the squads announced Tuesday for the lone one-dayer against Ireland and the five-match ODI campaign against Australia.

Australia too have made wholesale changes-only seven of their 18man ODI squad played in the Test series-and it’s clear both countries are already looking ahead to the return Ashes in Australia in November. “I would have only rested Captain Cook.. Plenty of time to rest from Sept 16th - Nov 21st!!!? Can’t sell tickets then rest 5 star names!!!!,” Vaughan wrote on Twitter.

“No problems resting players but I think Supporters who have paid good money to watch the best should get a small refund.”

However, England Twenty20 captain Broad, who will lead his side in the first T20 international against Australia in Southampton on Thursday, said Wednesday: “I think they’re (Vaughan’s comments) disre-

spectful to the side that’s going to go out on the field. “There’s guys who have performed throughout the county season to get a chance at the international level. “As an ODI team, we’re building towards that 2015 World Cup (where) you need to have a big group of players going into that World Cup with experience of international caps.

“They wouldn’t be in the squad if they’re not good enough to play and that ODI squad will be very focused on beating Australia. “I know if I was paying to go and watch, I’d want to

go and watch England beat Australia, that’s it.” Meanwhile, Broad said he was looking forward to returning to Australia despite comments from Australia coach Darren Lehmann to a Melbourne radio station that he hoped the hosts’ fans would “send Broad home crying” after calling him a cheat for not walking when he was caught during the first Test at Trent Bridge.

Lehmann was fined by the International Cricket Council for his remarks and apologised to Broad during the Oval Test. But there have

Stuart Broad

since been suggestions fast-medium bowler Broad may need additional security in Australia in order to protect him from over-zealous home fans looking to act on Lehmann’s comments.

“I’ll feel like a rock star with some big heavies behind me. I’m not concerned at all,” he said. “I’ve toured Australia a couple of times. I’ve always loved Australia, it’s a fantastic place to go with great restaurants and good bars. “I see that as being no different.

“At the end of the day we are going to Australia to win the Ashes and play games of cricket. “That will be the players’ job. The rest of the offfield stuff is up to the ECB (England and Wales Cricket Board) to sort out.

“I’m certainly not going to be looking over my shoulder.” Broad’s focus is firmly fixed on the two-match Twenty20 international series.

Australia have not won an international fixture since February 10 this year and it is a run Broad would love to extend. “We know Australia are a dangerous team and we know they will be hungry to beat England.

They’ve not beaten England in England since June 2010 in any format. “It’s up to us to continue that form and that responsibility falls on these players. It’s an exciting responsibility.”—AFP

THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2013

S P ORTS

Matthews wins Tour stage SPAIN: Australian Michael Matthews (Orica-GreenEdge) won the fifth stage of the Tour of Spain yesterday, edging out Maximiliano Ariel Recheze (Lampre) and Gianni Meersman (Omega Pharma-Quickstep) in a sprint finish.

It was the 22-year-old’s first stage win in a major Tour. Giro d’Italia winner Vincenzo Nibali (Astana) retained his lead in the overall classification from American veteran Chris Horner (RadioShack) and Irishman Nicolas Roche (Saxo) as all the contenders registered the same time in the 174km ride from Sober to Lago de Sanabria.

“This is what I have been aiming for all year is to get to this level and the team has been awesome throughout to help me get here,” said Matthews who arrived in Spain in fine

form having won two stages at the Tour of Utah earlier this month.

Matthews was also on the podium on Tuesday as he was just pipped to the stage victory by Daniel Moreno (Katusha) and Fabian Cancellara (RadioShack) and he was relieved to have rewarded his teammates efforts with the victory.

“They put all their effort into today and I am just glad to finish it off. “It didn’t quite work out as I had hoped yesterday, but I knew today we had more of a chance so we put all our eggs in the basket.”

It was a fairly uneventful day for the leaders in the general classification as Nibali maintained his three second advantage and the leader’s red jersey.

With the first flat finish of the race favouring the sprinters in the peloton,

Photo of the day

Nicolas Edet (Cofidis) was again amongst the early pace setters as he and Antonio Piedra (Caja Rural), Jurgen Van De Walle (Lotto Belisol), Arnaud Courteille (FDJ) and Winner Anacona (Lampre) built up a ten minute advantage before the first climb of the day up the Alto do Covelo. That breakaway group continued to lead for the majority of the day with Van De Walle and Courtielle attacking on their own inside the final 10km.

They were eventually caught by the peloton with just over a kilometre to go and as the sprinters positioned themselves for the line it was Matthews who always looked the strongest and he powered into the lead with 500 metres remaining and freewheeled across the line to take his first grand tour stage victory.—AFP

Jason Paul performs on a rooftop during the Red Bull Wings Academy in Frankfurt, Germany.

—www.redbullcontentpool.com

Malaysia to host Asia and Europe team event

SPAIN: Orica-GreenEdge’s Australian rider Michael Matthews celebrates his victory at the end of the fifth day of the 68th edition of “La Vuelta” Tour of Spain. —AFP

Mayweather in fine form for a fight LAS VEGAS: A rare series of storms had cooled the summer air to an almost tolerable level, though it was steamy as ever inside Floyd Mayweather Jr.’s gym just a few miles from the Vegas Strip.

With a couple of sparring partners in front of him late Monday afternoon, Mayweather turned up the heat even more.

“Right there, right there,” he yelled at the first hapless pugilist to feel his wrath. “You can’t get away. I’ll hit you when I want to.”

It didn’t take Mayweather long to do just that. As the third of four rounds stretched to the 10-minute mark he connected with a rapid volley of punches, finishing it off with a left hook that rocked his opponent for the day, sending him stumbling across the ring.

All in a day’s work, but there was still work to be done. Always is when it’s Mayweather in training and especially now, less than three weeks before his fight with undefeated Mexican star Saul “Canelo” Alvarez.

It’s a big fight, but all Mayweather fights are big. He’s the undisputed pay-per-view king and the Sept. 14 matchup is so attractive that the payper-view price is a whopping $74.95 for those watching in high definition.

Though Mayweather’s last fight in May against Robert Guerrero - for

which he earned $32 million - wasn’t a huge box office smash, this one should make executives at Showtime and CBS feel better about the money they laid out for boxing’s biggest draw.

Better yet, he’s fighting for the second time in four months after not fighting more than once a year since 2007.

“I’m ready to perform and entertain, that’s what it’s all about,” Mayweather said. “I’m a lot older now so the last five fights I have I want to go out with a bang.”

The fight is the second in his sixfight deal with Showtime, which lured him from HBO to help sell cable subscriptions and build the network’s boxing brand. He says the bouts will be the last of his career, though at the age of 36 he doesn’t seem to have lost any of the reflexes or speed that have helped him win all 44 of his fights in a professional career that began following the 1996 Olympics.

What has changed is how Mayweather sells himself, even if he claims he hasn’t changed. Ever since his release from a Las Vegas jail after serving 64 days on domestic abuse charges last year Mayweather has been the model of politeness and civility - in sharp contrast to the bad boy persona that made him such a

Floyd Mayweather

big attraction over the years.

That’s one reason why Showtime’s All Access show on MayweatherAlvarez seemed to fall a bit flat in the first episode. There were the requisite shots, of course, of Mayweather and Alvarez in face-offs and together on a tour promoting the bout, but there wasn’t the drama of Mayweather’s earlier fights when he could be seen yelling at his father or counting stacks of $100 bills with his former buddy, 50 Cent. That sold pay-per-views to people who spent their money hoping to either see Mayweather win or get knocked out.

But Mayweather seems to either have outgrown the part or simply doesn’t want to play it anymore.

“What do you mean by image?

My image has always been as an entertainer, but at home I’m a great father,” Mayweather said. “There’s no bad guy, that’s an image the critics picked. My image is to make sure my kids get the best education and provide a comfortable life for my family.”

If the new Mayweather is a kinder and gentler sort outside the ring, he’s changed some inside, too. His fights sometimes tended to become tedious affairs as he sought to win without getting hit, but in recent years he has changed his style somewhat and has become more aggressive and flat-footed.

It showed on Monday as he walked two sparring partners across the ring, banging away with left hooks and right hands while keeping up a steady stream of chatter. The short time between fights should be beneficial to Mayweather at his age, and he’s already inside the 152pound catch weight for the fight.

“I got back into it so quick that I’m still sharp,” he said. “I feel good, real good.” Boxing fans should feel good, too, that Mayweather is taking on Alvarez, a 23-year-old who is unbeaten in 42 fights and holds a piece of the 154-pound title. Mayweather has been criticized in the past for hand picking his opponents and refusing to fight Manny Pacquiao, but Alvarez is about as dangerous a fight as any he could take on at this stage of his career.

Not that Mayweather will acknowledge any such thing. Icing his sometimes brittle hands while sitting in a dressing room after his workout he questioned the quality of Alvarez’s opponents, and said it was just another fight to him.

Another fight and another $40-50 million payout that will cement his reign this year as the highest paid athlete in the world. As for Pacquiao and the fight that will likely now never happen? “I don’t even know who that is,” Mayweather said. —AP

KUALA LUMPUR: Top players from Europe and Asia will face off every two years in a new team golf event in Malaysia styled after the Ryder Cup, officials said.

The $4 million EurAsia Cup, to be administered by the Asian Tour and European Tour, will pit 10 golfers from each region against each other in a three-day matchplay format that tees off next March 28. It will be held at the Glenmarie Golf and Country Club near Kuala Lumpur.

Officials said it was hoped the event could spark a new and exciting intercontinental rivalry of the sort that has made the Ryder Cup such a popular and passionate competition and, to a less extent, the Presidents Cup. The EurAsia Cup will be telecast live to more than 45

countries and 670 million homes, they said. “I believe the EurAsia Cup will create a fiercely fought contest for supremacy where players from both continents will compete against each other in the true spirit of the game and display the values of golf, which are integrity, honesty and perfection,” Asian Tour Chairman Kyi Hla Han said.

The Ryder Cup is a biennial team competition between American and European golfers, while the Presidents Cup puts the Americans up against an international team, minus European players.

Charlie Tingey, director of EurAsia Golf, an entity formed by the two tours to launch the competition, said it is hoped the tournament will “catapult” more Asian golfers onto the world stage.

The Asian Tour is banking on rising stars like Kiradech Aphibarnrat, and popular veterans such as Thongchai Jaidee, both from Thailand, to help raise the game’s profile in the region.

Tingey brushed off concerns that the competition-presented by Malaysia’s DRB-Hicom-could struggle to attract top European golfers due to its timing.

It comes a month before the Masters in the US, when many players stay closer to home to hone their game for that premier event.

“This is a tournament run by the tours. There is no perfect date. We do expect the full support of the players,” he said. Players on the winning team will pocket $300,000 each, while the runners-up will take home $100,000 each. —AFP

Wrestlers in action in this file photo.

Wrestling reforms won’t stop after the IOC vote PARIS: The sweeping reforms that have transformed wrestling in the past six months will not stop even if the sport regains its place at the 2020 Olympics, federation president Nenad Lalovic said on Tuesday. The 55-yearold Serbian - whose son was an international-level wrestler - has led the reforms in the sport since it was surprisingly dropped from the program for the 2020 Summer Olympics after a vote by the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) Executive Board in February.

However, thanks to the tireless efforts by Lalovic - who was elected president after his predecessor was forced to resign following the fallout from the vote - and his team they are considered favorites to see off squash and a joint softball/baseball bid to be restored to the 2020 sports roster when IOC members vote in Buenos Aires on September 8. Lalovic, a yachting enthusiast who admits his journey to the top of the wrestling federation has been an unexpected one, told AFP from Rio de Janeiro that, win or lose, the reforms already put in place would be added to.

“We fell into the worst crisis that this sport has known in 3000 years,” said the charismatic and affable Serbian.

“But in just six months we have succeeded in implementing the reforms

that we were advised to do by the IOC. “There are new rules, an independent refereeing commission and there will be six women’s categories at the Rio Games in 2016. “We dug deep and found the resources necessary to implement these reforms, which was not easy but we succeeded in doing as much as possible in six months.

“However, whether we win or lose in Buenos Aires the reforms will continue as we have an obligation to the athletes and the sport.” Lalovic, who will be in Buenos Aires from Sunday to prepare for the final presentation to the IOC members, said that chief among the reforms was to make it a more television-friendly sport. That will range from the rather skimpy and unattractive kit the wrestlers wear to the arena they perform in.

“The rules were not very understandable and there didn’t appear to be any structure to the sport,” he said.

“Now the rules are very understandable and very good for TV. Everyone can now understand what happens in two minutes. “Now we will continue to work with TV on the wrestlers kit for instance.

Before we used to look only at their socks because of the nature of their strip but we want to change that now.

“Also we will look to change the decoration and architecture of the rooms where they compete as it is not ideal

for cameras but there we will use specialists in that field for we are not experts in the art of decoration.” Lalovic, whose reforms have received the public endorsement of IOC vice-president Thomas Bach - who is the front-runner to replace outgoing IOC president Jacques Rogge on September 10 - said the reforms had already been embraced by the crowds at the recent world junior championships in Sofia.

“Normally the crowds would come for the pre-championships concert and then leave but this time they stayed on and were delighted with the spectacle and the intensity of the bouts. “For the wrestlers were not spending time just tussling on the mat but were fighting standing up. “The young Russian lad (Georgii Gogaev) in the 120kg category took just 172 seconds to win all his five bouts. That never happened before in the old days.”

Lalovic admits that there is an increasing sense of nervousness and apprehension as they approach the vote. “However, that is the same for the other two sports as well. We have come from a lot farther back then they have because we had to put our campaign together very quickly. “However, the strength we found within ourselves says a lot about the mental state of wrestlers. “There is no such thing as a knockout.” —AFP

THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2013

S P ORTS

Manchester United must not lose Rooney LONDON: Way out of position for an attacking forward, throwing himself at a task one would more usually expect of a defender, Wayne Rooney hurtled after Ramires Santos do Nascimento, Chelsea’s sprightly midfielder better known simply as Ramires.

Nimble Brazilian vs. meaty Englishman, this looked like a race Rooney seemed bound to lose. Not since last April had Rooney started a competitive match for Manchester United, when Alex Ferguson was still in charge of England’s most successful club and before suggestions that Rooney wanted to leave developed into a full-blown, summer-long saga. A bit of rust on Rooney, especially this early in the new season, might have been expected, even forgiven.

After 75 minutes of exertion, Rooney was flushed red. Chunky at the best of times, the 27-year-old has in the past — although, to be fair, seemingly not this summer — sometimes returned from vacations looking fleshier than normal. Ramires is quick and lithe, a handful for even the

swiftest of opponents. He had momentum as he sprinted onto Frank Lampard’s pass and dangerously spirited the ball deep into United territory.

But just when Ramires would have wanted to cross to teammates lurking in front of United’s goal, Rooney caught up with and got to him. His sliding tackle was magnificent. With an exquisitely timed thrust of his left leg, Rooney pickpocketed the ball from under Ramires, scything him down in the process. Turning defense into attack in the blink of an eye, Rooney then leapt back to his feet with his freshly won prize and, on the run, thumped the ball up field to Robin van Persie, launching a counter-attack that, as it turned out, came to naught, like all other efforts by both teams in this cagey 0-0 draw.

This textbook display of commitment, physicality and soccer intelligence from Rooney produced two immediate thoughts: United would be crazy to sell him, especially to Chelsea, a direct rival for the league title; and if Rooney is bound for

London after nine rich and sometimes turbulent years at United, then he is leaving Old Trafford the right way, with his head held high, admirably professional at the end. So much rubbish, half-truths and outright lies are reported and spoken during soccer’s two annual transfer windows when player trades are allowed that it is hard to know when clubs and their managers are talking fact or fiction.

When Ferguson’s replacement at United, David Moyes, says Rooney isn’t for sale, does he really mean that or is the club simply holding out for more money?

Moyes and Rooney have history from two years together at Everton, where Rooney caught Ferguson’s eye as a precociously talented teenager and where Moyes built a reputation as an over-achieving manager capable of getting results on a limited budget. In his biography, Rooney said he angrily told Moyes in 2004 that he never wanted to play for him again. This, of course, was long before their destinies crossed again at United.

Could they make a soccer relationship function again now? Rooney’s performance on Monday night suggests they could.

Moyes played Rooney for the full 90 minutes. Players at other clubs have effectively gone on strike to try to force moves. Rooney presumably could also have found excuses not to play, perhaps telling Moyes he’s too distracted by Chelsea’s courtship of him to continue to give his all to United. But if his heart is blue, Rooney played against Chelsea like a devoted red. United fans loved his vigor and unstinting labor, filling Old Trafford with chants of “Rooney, Rooney.”

Jose Mourinho was impressed. “This club must be a very special club because in every club in the world, when the player wants to leave, they don’t support him. When a player wants to leave they give him a hard time,” the Chelsea manager said. “I think probably now he decides that he wants to stay. And if he makes that decision we will be the first to respect that.”

Only after the transfer window shuts

Sept. 2 should that be believed. Mourinho indicated he wants Rooney to quickly declare if he still desires a move. Given how open Mourinho has been with his affection for the United star, one imagines that the player’s representatives must have been playing footsie behind the scenes.

Luring Rooney from United would be a big coup to mark the start of Mourinho’s second managerial tenure at Chelsea.

Rooney could break Bobby Charlton’s record of 249 goals for United if he finishes his career at the club. His strength and bulldog tenacity would add threat and backbone to Chelsea’s forward line and give its creative midfielders a proven scorer to aim passes at. Mourinho’s decision to start against United without a recognized striker highlighted the attacking weakness in his squad. For all these reasons - because he makes United better and would make Chelsea better, too - Moyes must keep hold of Rooney. Clearly, he’s a handful to manage at times, but he keeps showing that he is more than worth the trouble. —AP

Villas-Boas says Bale move to Real ‘soon’ LONDON: Tottenham Hotspur manager Andre Villas-Boas appeared resigned yesterday to seeing star forward Gareth Bale leave for Real Madrid for a proposed world record transfer fee.

But Villas-Boas said Spurs would still consider fining Bale after the Wales forward did not turn up

at the north London club’s training ground on either Tuesday or Wednesday.

“He is involved in a big transfer move to Real Madrid and in the end if it happens, we wish him all the best, but the fact that he hasn’t turned up is not the correct behaviour...,” Villas-Boas said at a

Gareth Bale

Anelka set for Albion return LONDON: West Bromwich Albion striker Nicolas Anelka is due to resume training today following compassionate leave, the Premier League club announced yesterday.

The 34-year-old former France international has been absent from the Midlands side following the death of his friend and agent Eric Manasse, with some reports suggesting Anelka was on the verge of quitting the game completely.

However, an Albion statement said: “Albion can confirm that Nicolas Anelka will resume first-team training tomorrow and be available for selection for Sunday’s game against Swansea.

“The striker was excused from club duty for the fixtures against Everton and Newport on compassionate grounds and, having met with head coach Steve Clarke today, he will rejoin his team-mates tomorrow (Thursday).”

Clarke made it clear after Tuesday’s 3-0 win over Newport in the League Cup he was eager to find out what Anelka’s plans were given it was not

long before the transfer window closed. “ The situation has not really changed,” Clarke said. “But I’m conscious time is short in the remaining part of the transfer window so it’s something I’ll try to address tomorrow.

We have to try to arrange a meeting as quickly as we can to try to get it sorted.

“I have to sit down and speak to Nicolas. That’s the first thing. We have to get in touch with him or he has to get in touch with us and we have to see where he is, where he’s at, how he feels, as quickly as possible. We have to have that chat.

“The furthest away he can be is London, because that’s where he lives.

I don’t think he has a house in France.

He’s not there, as far as I know.”

Anelka’s much-travelled career has taken him to six countries and six Premier League clubs too. He joined West Brom on a one-year deal in July but his only appearance for the Baggies to date came in a 1-0 defeat by Southampton in the opening game of the season. —AFP

news conference. “That is the position they chose to take and it’s up to the club to decide if it’s a fineable offence,” the Portuguese added.

Villas-Boas confirmed Bale was on the brink of joining Spanish giants Real. “It could happen very, very soon,” he said. Villas-Boas added he did not expect to see Bale at Tottenham’s training ground again. “Will he be in tomorrow? I don’t know. I’m not really in control of the situation I’ve left it up to the club to decide what they want to do,” the manager said.

“It’s up to Gareth (whether he wants to come back again). He has a good relationship with everybody and he has saluted the players the other day, myself included.”

Real manager Carlo Ancelotti angered Tottenham by speaking of Bale as though he’d already joined the Spanish club while erecting a stage at the Santiago Bernabeu for the presentation of the Welshman as one of their players.

“I cannot comment on actions that another club has taken, I showed my disappointment before and I think Carlo did extremely well because he didn’t speak about Gareth again after the first time,” Villas-Boas said.

“Whether it’s responsible or irresponsible, I don’t care.” Tottenham have been slinked with Erik Lamela, Christian Eriksen and Vlad Chiriches over the last week.

“I have told you that we will continue restrengthening the squad so we are looking at different positions to make us stronger. Not only those players, others as well,” Villas-Boas said.

“In the next couple of days we will have further news and I think we will see further additions at Tottenham.” Villas-Boas said he had asked about the possibility of signing Chelsea midfielder Juan Mata, but said he was never every hopeful the Blues would let a player leave for their London rivals. “First, Chelsea wouldn’t sell to Tottenham in any way or form, as they think that we are title contenders,” said Villas-Boas, who saw main target Willian choose Chelsea over Spurs last week.

“Mata is a great, great player - player of the season last season - very, very important player for Chelsea. “They’re just not going to strengthen another team that, in their opinion, are rivals for the title.” Meanwhile Villas-Boas was looking forward to the rest of the season where they’ve won their first two games following a £60 million preseason spending spree.

“We have a very, very strong team the same. If this transfer happens, it will give the opportunity to step up their game, step up the responsibility and I think we have seen that in the last couple of games,” Villas-Boas said.

“There hasn’t been any disruption. We’ve been working well and the team is training very, very well.” Earlier yesterday, Bale was included in the Wales squad for next month’s World Cup qualifiers against Macedonia and Serbia. —AFP

Willian inks deal with Chelsea

Chelsea complete Willian deal LONDON: Brazil attacking midfielder Willian formally joined Chelsea from Russian side Anzhi Makhachkala yesterday after the two clubs reached agreement last week.

The 25-year-old had been set to join Tottenham Hotspur, having undergone a medical at the north London club earlier this week, only for capital rivals Chelsea to hijack the deal.

British media reports claim Chelsea will pay a fee of around £30 million ($47 million, 35 million euros) to secure Willian’s services.

“I’m very happy to be here, it’s been a dream of mine to come and play here,” Willian told Chelsea’s official website yesterday. “Chelsea are one of the best clubs in the world and now I’m going to play for one of the best managers (Jose Mourinho) in the world. I’m very happy and looking forward to it,” he said.

Willian is the fourth player to join Chelsea during the current transfer window, following Australian goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer, Dutch midfielder Marco van

Ginkel and Germany international Andre Schuerrle. His arrival will further swell the number of attacking midfielders at manager Mourinho’s disposal, with Eden Hazard, Juan Mata, Oscar, Victor Moses, Kevin De Bruyne and Schuerrle already competing for just three starting places.

Willian only joined Anzhi from Ukrainian side Shakhtar Donetsk in January, but he is being moved on after the Russian side’s billionaire owner Suleiman Kerimov decided to restructure the club and drastically shrink their budget.

Speaking before the announcement that an agreement for the transfer had been reached, Mourinho said he felt no sympathy for Spurs despite swiping the player from beneath their noses.

“That’s the danger of medicals before contracts. But you have to do the medical before,” he said. “The best thing to do is the medical in secret. If the player is fine, you can sign him. If he’s not, you don’t have to destroy his career. Sometimes there are sources who find out everything.” —AFP

Platini undecided on FIFA candidacy PARIS: UEFA president Michel Platini says he remains unsure whether he will run for the same post at the head of world governing body FIFA when current president Sepp Blatter’s mandate expires in 2015.

“I am in the middle of thinking whether it is good or not good but I will certainly say something at Dubrovnik (the Croatian city where the next UEFA executive committee meetings will be held on September 19 and 20),” the Frenchman told sports daily L’Equipe.

“I am obliged to say something because everyone is expecting me to express myself,” added the 58-year-old who enjoyed a glorious playing career that peaked in 1984 when he captained France to their first European championship.

“It is not a simple decision. People will fight each other to have the position of FIFA president, but not me. “I have to determine whether it is a good thing for football. I was Michel Platini, I won three Ballon d’Ors, I was the best player in the world. To be number one in the world, I’ve already done that in football but not in the corridors.

“I have to convince myself that it’s my destiny and it’s good for football because I am very happy at UEFA. “In any case, to choose between FIFA and UEFA is not to be condemned to prison or a work camp. Platini replaced Sweden’s Lennart Johansson in 2007 while Blatter has been in office since 1998 when he succeeded Brazilian Joao Havelange.

The Swiss 77-year-old says his fifth term will be his last but there are rumours he may

be set to change his mind and run for reelection.

“I don’t know what he will do,” continued Platini. “I will take my decision alone without worr ying about Sepp. In the beginning (2011), he said he would stop in 2015. Now

he is saying he will explain his decision in one year in Brazil.

“He has said I am his natural successor but there is no deal between us even if it’s true that today I am a legitimate candidate to go to FIFA.” —AFP

Michel Platini

THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2013

S P ORTS Preview

FRANCE: Nice’s French midfielder Valentin Eysseric (right) in action in this file photo. —AFP

French clubs face Europa League challenge to advance PARIS: The final places for the first group phase of the Europa League will be determined by today as play-off, second leg matches get set to produce 48 teams that will be split into 12 groups of four.

North Londoners Tottenham - who won the competition when it was known as the UEFA Cup in 1984 - along with Welsh side Swansea are in prime position to advance after convincing first leg wins over Georgian side Dinamo Tbilisi and Romanian outfit Petrolul Ploiesti respectively.

French representatives Saint-Etienne and Nice however face key home ties to stay in the competition after both losing on the road last week.

League Cup winners Saint-Etienne who came closest to continental glory back in 1976 when they lost the European Cup final 1-0 against Bayern Munich need to defeat Danish hopefuls Esbjerg by at least a goal after losing 4-3 in Scandinavia.

Nice are 2-0 down against Cypriot outsiders Apollon Limassol as the Cote d’Azur club look to return to European competition for the first time since 1998 when they reached the last 16 of the now defunct Cup Winners’ Cup. Serie A side Udinese are also in danger of elimination and travel to the Czech Republic with a 3-1 deficit to overturn after losing at home against Slovan Liberec.

Spanish club Sevilla are favoured to advance after defeating Polish side Slask Wroclaw 4-1 while Liga rivals Real Betis should finish the job against Jablonec

after winning their first leg 2-1 in the Czech Republic. VfB Stuttgart need to produce the goods at home and face an anxious evening after losing 2-1 on the road against HNK Rijeka of Croatia while former Dutch champions Feyenoord are also in danger of elimination and must reverse a 1-0 deficit against Russian club Kuban Krasnodar.

Stuttgart have already fired their coach Bruno Labbadia and replaced him with Thomas Schneider after losing 2-1 in domestic action against Bundesliga rivals Augsburg.

The ten losers from the final round of Champions League qualifying will also drop into the first group phase which will feature a round-robin format between September and December.

Third-placed teams from the Champions League group phase will enter the competition from the last-32 next February which will then be a straight two-legged knockout phase leading to the final on May 14, 2014 at Juventus Stadium in Turin, the former site of the old Stadio Delle Alpi.

Chelsea went on to win last season’s Europa League against Benfica after becoming the first Champions League winners to fail to get past the group phase.

The group phase draw for both competitions will be made on Thursday at Monaco which proceeds the European Super Cup on Friday between Bayern Munich and Chelsea which will be played in Prague for the first time. —AFP

GERMANY: Bayern Munich’s Belgian defender Daniel van Buyten (left) and Freiburg’s Slovakian midfielder Karim Guede (right) vie for the ball during the German First Division Bundesliga football match. —AFP

Reds survive County scare LONDON: Premier League Liverpool squandered a two-goal lead before seeing off third tier Notts County 4-2 in extra-time in the second round of the League Cup at Anfield on Tuesday.

Raheem Sterling celebrated his senior England call-up by opening the scoring for Liverpool in the fourth minute before Daniel Sturridge scored his third goal in as many games to make it 2-0 before half-time.

However, County responded through a Yoann Arquin header before substitute Adam Coombes struck an equaliser with six minutes of normal time remaining.

Liverpool though kept their cool in extra-time and secured a 4-2 win with a second goal from Sturridge and a fourth in all from Jordan Henderson. But top-flight new boys Crystal Palace lost 2-1 at Bristol City of third tier League One. Second-half goals from Jay EmmanuelThomas and Scott Wagstaff sealed victory for the host, with Owen Garvan grabbing a consolation goal for a Palace side where manager Ian Holloway had made 11 changes from the team beaten 2-1 by Stoke in the Premier League on Saturday. Palace’s top-flight rivals Sunderland had to come from two goals down before beating League One Milton Keynes Dons 4-2 at the Stadium of Light.

Goals from Patrick Bamford and Izale McLeod gave Milton Keynes hope of a shock win before Jozy Altidore scored for Sunderland with just 12 minutes left. Connor Wickham equalised three minutes from time before scoring Sunderland’s third goal in the 89th minute.

Adam Johnson put the result beyond doubt deep into injury time. There were no such worries for Southampton as they thrashed bottom of the second-tier Championship Barnsley 5-1.

However, Fulham needed penalties to see off League Two Burton after a 2-2 draw at the Pirelli Stadium. Fulham goalkeeper David Stockdale saved the vital spot-kick from Phil Edwards to send the Premier League through after they fought back from behind in extra-time against their fourth division opponents. Adel Taarabt scored his first goal for Fulham in the 36th minute, but Jack Dyer forced extra-time with an 85th minute equaliser.

Raheem Sterling Michael Symes put the League Two side ahead in the first period of extra-time, but Hugo Rodallega forced spot-kicks when he levelled with three minutes to spare.

Elsewhere Sweden international Johan Elmander marked his full Norwich debut with

Fenerbahce out of Europe, CAS upholds two-year ban ISTANBUL: Turkish side Fenerbahce will be unable to compete in the Europa League this season after the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) upheld a UEFA-imposed twoyear ban from European competition over a match-fixing scandal yesterday.

With the International Olympic Committee (IOC) vote on whether Istanbul, Madrid or Tokyo will host the 2020 Olympics due on Sept. 7, the timing of the announcement delivers another body blow to the tarnished image of Turkish sport.

Earlier yesterday, the Turkish Athletics Federation handed a two-year suspension to double European 100m hurdles champion Nevin Yanit for drugs violations, just weeks after similar bans were given to 31 other local athletes.

Playing under appeal against the original ban, Fenerbahce were beaten 2-0 by Arsenal in the second leg of a Champions League playoff on Tuesday, losing the tie 5-0 on aggregate.

Normally a defeat at this stage would still guarantee a berth in the continent’s second tier competition but Fenerbahce will be barred from the Europa League following the CAS ruling.

Lausanne-based CAS said in a statement it had dismissed appeals filed by Fenerbahce and Ukraine’s Metalist Kharkiv, barred by UEFA over involvement in a domestic match-fixing case dating back to 2008.

“Fenerbahce SK is excluded from two editions of the UEFA club competitions,” CAS said in its ruling following a two-day hearing held at its headquarters on Aug. 2122.

Fenerbahce and fellow Istanbul club Besiktas were banned in June after a protracted UEFA inquiry into scandals that emerged in 2011. Besiktas, banned for one season, also appealed to CAS and its ruling is expected on Aug. 30.

In a separate statement, UEFA said it welcomed the rejection of Fenerbahce’s appeal. Europe’s governing body said the UEFA Emergency Panel would meet on Thursday to decide on the consequences the confirmed exclusion of Fenerbahce from the 2013-14 UEFA club competitions would have on the UEFA Europa League.

Fenerbahce, who won the 2010-11 title, were withdrawn from the following season’s Champions League by the Turkish Football Federation as a result of their investigations into widespread match-fixing allegations that rocked the Turkish game.

Fenerbahce were implicated in the scandal with suspicions raised over their 4-3 victory against Sivasspor which clinched the league championship on the final day of the season. Besiktas were implicated as a result of their involvement in the 2011 Turkish Cup final, which they won on penalties after a 2-2 draw against Buyuksehir Belediyespor.

Last July, a Turkish court convicted 93 defendants, including Fenerbahce chairman Aziz Yildirim, club executives and players, in connection with the case. Yildirim was sentenced to more than six years in prison but was released from custody after launching an appeal, which is still proceeding. —Reuters

Bayern drop first points of season BERLIN: European champions Bayern Munich dropped their first points of the Bundesliga season in a 1-1 draw at Freiburg on Tuesday ahead of their Super Cup clash against Chelsea.

Bayern were on course to maintain their perfect start to the season after three league wins until they leaked a late equaliser and also suffered an injury blow when midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger came off with an ankle problem.

He is an injury concern for Friday’s Super Cup clash against Europa League winners Chelsea in Prague as well as Germany’s upcoming World Cup qualifying double-header against Austria and Faroe Islands.

“He will be examined in Munich, we hope that he will be able to play against Chelsea,” said Bayern’s media director Markus Hoerwick. Bayern still moved a point clear at the top of the table, although Mainz, Borussia Dortmund and Bayer Leverkusen can all leapfrog them should they win their game in hand this weekend.

two goals in the Premier League side’s 6-3 win over Bury.

Meanwhile it wasn’t until the 10th minute that Robbie Brady scored the goal that saw Hull edge out Leyton Orient at the League One leaders’ Brisbane Road ground in east London. —AFP

Bayern coach Pep Guardiola - who has introduced a new 4-1-4-1 system since coming in to replace Jupp Heynckes - made several changes to his line-up from the one that beat Nuremberg 2-0 on Saturday. He rested six of his first-choice side, leaving out wingers Arjen Robben and Franck Ribery, who both netted at the weekend.

“If you only lead 1-0, then you are always vulnerable to concede an equaliser,” said Guardiola. “I don’t think I risked too much with that line-up.

“I don’t know if we missed one or two players, I took the decision and those on the pitch played well.” Bayern dominated the game but, not for the first time, failed to convert a string of chances despite enjoying 75 percent possession after setting a new Bundesliga record of 81 in Saturday’s win over Nuremberg.

“We only have ourselves to blame,” said captain Philipp Lahm, who was one of those rested, but came on for the second-half.

“We had enough chances to make it 2-0, but

we were punished.” Bayern had got off to a promising start and showed their class when German international Thomas Mueller beat three defenders on the right and crossed to the far post where Swiss winger Xherdan Shaqiri drilled the ball home on 23 minutes.

Freiburg started to exert some second-half pressure, however, and were rewarded with the equaliser four minutes from time.

Substitute Mike Hanke switched play from the left to the right wing, where Sebastian Freis swung in a cross which midfielder Nicolas Hoefler fired past goalkeeper Manuel Neuer from close range to delight the home fans.

Freiburg coach Christian Streich was delighted with his side’s determination to hold the defending champions. “When you play against Bayern Munich, you need above all an extremely high tolerance to frustration,” he said. “It’s absolutely fantastic how we dealt with losing possession and worked hard to get it back.” —AFP

KIEV: Korean Jae Yeon Son performs her hoop program during the individual all-around final of 32nd Rhythmic Gymnastics World Championship. —AFP

Kiwi adaptability key for World Cup qualifier WELLINGTON: New Zealanders take pride in their ability to find abstract solutions to complicated problems and All Whites coach Ricki Herbert will be relying on that adaptability in the run-up to their 2014 World Cup playoff.

The All Whites, who made the 2010 finals after a 1-0 aggregate victory over fifth-placed Asian side Bahrain, have sealed a November playoff against the fourth placed team in the North, Central America and Caribbean (CONCACAF) conference after wrapping up the Oceania qualifying spot in March.

As part of their preparations, Herbert’s side will take part in a four-nation tournament in Saudi Arabia next month, where they will play the hosts and then either UAE or Trinidad and Tobago before friendlies in October complete their buildup.

New Zealand have not played since they sealed qualification with their 2-0 victory over the Solomon Islands in Honiara, having failed to make the Confederations Cup after being upset in last year’s Oceania Nations Cup. Herbert said lack of match practice made the games in Riyadh on Sept. 5 and Sept. 9 more important, especially because of the limited time he gets to work with a squad drawn from leagues in Australia, New Zealand, Britain, the U.S. and China.

“It’s still tough while they’re dispersed around various countries,” Herbert told Reuters. “It’s more to do with the time we get to spend with them. “We might only get 48 hours with them and if a plane is late we might only get one training session.

“We just don’t get that fundamental extra time where we can work with the players productively. They arrive and bang the game is around the corner.

“If we need to make adjustments before November we really only have four chances

to nail it down and for the team to gel.

“That’s the hardest thing but sometimes that’s the resilience of the Kiwi guy, just being adaptable.”

After the Saudi Arabia tournament, Herbert is hoping to organise friendlies in October against CONCACAF opponents and replicate the environment he expects to face in the away leg of the playoff as closely as possible.

Herbert expects Honduras or Panama to be the playoff opponents and, given the passion of Latin American fans and their notoriety for gathering outside rivals’ hotel to keep them awake, was investigating staying in Miami and flying into the venue the day before the match.

“No doubt we will probably get the full extent of that,” he said with a laugh when asked about attempts at disruption.

“We understand that, it’s a passionate part of the world. We just want to give ourselves the best chance.” The first match of the playoff will be hosted by the CONCACAF nation on Nov. 13 before both teams travel to New Zealand for the return fixture in Wellington on Nov. 20.

Herbert said he had seen suggestions world governing body FIFA was considering chartering a plane to bring both teams to New Zealand but nothing had been confirmed and he hoped to have the upper hand in the tie before the Wellington match.

“The away fixture will strongly determine the outcome of the World Cup,” he said. “The lead in work, the preparation has got to be bullet proof.

“The stronger, more resilient team whether it’s travel, tiredness, whatever that backs up a couple of days later will win the tie. “I would back us to do that, so that’s why the away fixture is so important.” —Reuters

Red Sox pound Orioles in AL action

THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2013

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Matthews wins Tour stage

17

Manchester United must not lose Rooney

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MILAN: AC Milan’s forward Stephan El Shaarawy (center) vies for the ball with PSV Eindhoven’s goalkeeper Jeroen Zoet (right) during the Champions League preliminary round football match. — AFP

Celtic join big guns in group stage AC Milan, Zenit and Sociedad booked CL spot PARIS: Celtic produced a superb comeback to beat Shakhter Karagandy and qualify for the Champions League group stage yesterday, while AC Milan, Zenit St Petersburg and Real Sociedad also booked their place at European football’s top table.

The Scottish champions had given themselves everything to do after losing 2-0 to Shakhter in Kazakhstan in the first leg last week, but a terrific strike from Kris Commons gave them hope just before half-time in front of a typically raucous Parkhead crowd.

Giorgos Samaras then levelled the tie on

aggregate three minutes into the second period, but it was not all plain sailing for Neil Lennon’s side.

Anthony Stokes hit the bar for the hosts before Sergei Khizhnichenko struck the woodwork at the other end. But it was to be Celtic’s night, with Stokes doing brilliantly to set up James Forrest to make it 3-0 on the night and 3-2 on aggregate with virtually the last kick of the game. NBIn contrast to Celtic, Lyon never really threatened to overturn a two-goal first-leg deficit against Real Sociedad as the French club missed out on reaching the group stage for the

second season running. Remi Garde’s side were looking to do what no team had ever done before by overturning a 2-0 first-leg defeat at home to win a European Cup tie.

It proved too great a task as Mexican forward Carlos Vela scored a second-half brace to take the Liga club through 2-0 on the night, 4-0 on aggregate.

France will only have two clubs - Paris SaintGermain and Marseille - in today’s group-stage draw in Monaco, but there will be three Italian clubs after AC Milan eased to a 4-1 aggregate win against PSV Eindhoven. The seven-time

European champions had a brace by KevinPrince Boateng and a second-half Mario Balotelli strike to thank for taking them past PSV, the 1988 European Cup winners who have not graced the Champions League proper since 2008-09.

In other games, Zenit St Petersburg eased past Portuguese minnows Pacos Ferreira with a 4-2 win in Russia to advance 8-3 on aggregate.

Portuguese international Danny scored twice for Zenit against his countrymen, including a spectacular solo effort for his second of the night, with Aleksandr Bukharov and Andrey Arshavin

also netting, the latter from the penalty spot.

Manuel Jose and Carlao scored consolation goals for tiny Pacos, who finished third in their domestic league last season.

Meanwhile, Czech champions Viktoria Plzen won 1-0 away to Maribor in Slovenia to progress 4-1 on aggregate with Stanislav Tecl’s early goal easing their path through.

They join Arsenal, Schalke 04, Basel, Steaua Bucharest and Austria Vienna, who all won on Tuesday in the group-stage draw along with the 22 automatic qualifiers, led by reigning European champions Bayern Munich. — AFP

Federer, Djokovic cruise, Stosur stunned at US Open

NEW YORK: Serbian tennis player Novak Djokovic celebrates winning against Lithuania’s Ricardas Berankis during their 2013 US Open men’s singles match. — AFP

NEW YORK: A teenage American girl with a squeaky voice and an incredible tale of survival stole the spotlight at the US Open on Tuesday with a stunning upset win over the former champion, Sam Stosur. While Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic and the rest of the sport’s old order calmly went about their business, 17-yearold Victoria Duval became the toast of New York.

Making her second appearance in a grand slam event against the Australian who beat Serena Williams in the final just two years ago, the pint-sized Duval clawed and fought her way to a 5-7 6-4 6-4 first-round win.

It was a remarkable performance but made all the more astonishing because of her background. When she was seven years old, Duval was taken hostage by robbers at her aunt’s house in Haiti, a terrifying incident that convinced her parents, both doctors, to move back to the United States.

“It’s not a good memory, so I try to forget as much as I could about it. I don’t remember too much of it anymore, which is great,” she told reporters.

In 2010, her father was buried alive in the Haiti earthquake. He survived by digging himself out but suffered serious injuries, including broken legs, broken ribs and a punctured lung.

Duval took to tennis instantly and has quickly risen through the American junior ranks but Tuesday’s win was by far her biggest.

With her family watching from courtside and chants of “U-S-A!” echoing around the Louis Armstrong Stadium, Duval had to battle all the way to beat the vastly more-experienced Stosur.

“I think I’m very much of a child at heart ... (but) on the court, you have to be a warrior because that’s just the sport we are in,” she said.

Stosur paid tribute to Duval, saying she deserved the win, but said she had contributed to her own downfall with a whopping 56 unforced errors.

“I’m not going to be a sore loser and say she didn’t do anything,” said Stosur. “But, you know, I think I certainly helped her out there today, that’s for sure.”

Federer and Djokovic blasted their way into the second round with ruthless efficiency, crushing their hapless opponents in straight sets. Defying the sceptics who had dismissed his chances of winning a sixth title in the Big Apple, Federer was in vintage form as he brushed past Slovenia’s Grega Zemlja 6-3 6-2 75 in a delayed afternoon match at Arthur Ashe Stadium. Djokovic then lit up Tuesday’s night session with a dazzling combination of power and precision to defeat Lithuania’s Ricardas Berankis 6-1 6-2 6-2.

The world number one hardly broke sweat on a balmy New York night as he took the first step toward a possible fourth straight appearance in the final.

The 32-year-old Federer won the last of his five U.S. Open titles in 2008 but the Swiss master said he had lost none of his love of the game, ripping 35 winners in his win over Zemlja. “I’m in a good spot right now. I want to enjoy it as long as it lasts,” Federer said. Twelve months after her agonising defeat in the women’s final, Victoria Azarenka made a triumphant return to Arthur Ashe Stadium, chalking up a rare double-bagel win by thrashing

NEW YORK: Victoria Duval of the US returns against Samantha Stosur of Australia during their 2013 US Open women’s singles match. —AFP Germany’s Dinah Pfizenmaier 6-0 6-0 in just over an hour.

Italy’s Sara Errani showed why she is looming as a real contender as she also handed out a 6-0 6-0 thrashing to her Australian opponent Olivia Rogowska, who got into the draw as a ‘lucky loser’ when Japan’s Ayumi Morita withdrew. Former world number one Caroline Wozniacki survived a tough examination to join grand slam winners Petra Kvitova and Ana Ivanovic in the second round.

Kvitova, the 2011 Wimbledon champion, also had to put in some overtime before winning her clash with Misaki Doi 6-2 3-6 6-1 while a grieving Ivanovic, the 2008 French Open winner, cruised to a 6-2 6-0 win over Georgia’s Anna Tatishvili.

Ivanovic arrived in New York with a heavy heart after learning about the drowning death of a childhood friend back in her native Serbia.

“It’s been very sad news,” Ivanovic told reporters. “It was very hard because it was

almost like my relative. We grew up, and I knew him since we were kids. It’s very, very sad.”

With her boyfriend, golfer Rory McIlroy, watching from the stands, Wozniacki had to dig deep to beat Chinese qualifier Duan Yingying 62 7-5. Wozniacki raced through the opening set in just 35 minutes then reeled off five games in a row to seal the win after falling behind 5-2. “It’s not about being pretty,” Wozniacki said. “It’s about just getting the job done. I did that, so I’m happy about that.”

Wimbledon semi-finalist Jerzy Janowicz was booed for serving underhand in his 6-4 6-4 6-2 loss to Argentina’s Maximo Gonzalez, who is ranked 247th in the world.

Hampered by a painful back injury he suffered training three days ago, the Polish world number 14 was in a foul mood, arguing with the chair umpire and throwing his water bottle on the court. “I was in really good shape before this happened,” he growled. “That’s why I’m fricking disappointed.” — Reuters

Business

Egypt launching economic stimulus plan Page 22 China’s debt-fuelled growth outlives fallen politician Bo

THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2013

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Valvoline Grand draw awards a Toyota Yaris HB

Elmiraj Concept explores top of Cadillac’s range

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NEW DELHI: A Indian shop owner arranges an Indian rupee note garland at a market in New Delhi yesterday. India’s rupee slumped nearly four percent to a fresh record low against the dollar as concerns about a US-led military strike against Syria compounded deepening domestic economic woes. —AFP

Indian rupee crashes nearly 4% Crude prices, Syria crisis pummel beleaguered currency MUMBAI: India’s rupee crashed nearly four percent to a new record low yesterday as worries about a US-led military strike against Syria and surging crude oil prices fanned fears of a financial crisis.

The rupee, which lost three percent against the dollar Tuesday, plunged another 3.86 percent to close at 68.80 rupees to the US unit, its biggest one-day fall in nearly two decades. The finance ministry called the sharp fall “irrational”. “This is an irrational sentiment. It (the rupee) will correct itself. It is important to stay on the course.

There is no need to panic,” Economic Affairs Secretary Arvind Mayaram told reporters in New Delhi. The rupee, Asia’s worst-performing currency this year, has lost around a fifth of its value against the dollar since the start of 2013.

Analysts fear the sharp rise in global crude oil prices will worsen energy-import dependent India’s already record current account deficit-the broadest measure of trade. Investors have voiced worries that India could be headed for its worst balance

of payments crisis since it pawned its gold in 1991 to cover its import bill. But Mayaram said the current account deficit in financial year 2013-14 “will be much lower than expected. We have already seen some moderation.”

The deficit hit a record $88 billion last year but the government has said it will cut it to $70 billion this year. But with expectations mounting of military action against Syria, “the flight to dollar safety is expected to intensify pressure on the rupee in the short-term”, HDFC analyst Ashutosh Raina warned. Both Deutsche Bank and Standard Chartered Bank forecast the currency may test the psychologically key 70-rupee level before any respite.

“There was intervention from the central bank to support the rupee but it wasn’t effective. The market is still gripped by panic... the 70 level is on the cards,” Param Sarma, chief executive of NSP Forex, told AFP. On a brighter note, the benchmark Bombay Stock Exchange index rallied from a three percent fall to close flat on bargain-

hunting. On Tuesday Finance Minister P Chidambaram had said the rupee is undervalued and came out with a 10-point action plan to revive the economy, which included promoting exports, encouraging manufacturing and reducing the deficit. But the main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party said yesterday the government had “completely run out of ideas to deal with the crisis” and should quit. “The only thing that will stabilize rupee at this point of time is for the government to resign and go for fresh elections,” BJP leader and former finance minister Yashwant Sinha said. Polls are due by May 2014.

Yesterday’s rupee losses coincided with a strengthening of the dollar as dealers sought refuge in the US currency-seen as a safe haven amid potential turmoil in the oil-rich Middle East.

But other reasons for the rupee’s drop are home -made -failure to move fast enough on economic reform, a string of government graft scandals, perceptions of policy paralysis and the current account

deficit, analysts say.

Also the rupee, like other emerging market currencies, has been hit by foreign fund outflows, with the Federal Reserve expected to wind down its stimulus scheme as the US economy recovers.

“Emerging markets have been reeling under currency pressure with the dollar strengthening. That is going to definitely continue,” said Arindam Ghosh, chief executive of BlackRidge Capital Advisors.

With the rupee tanking, domestic gold prices hit a record 34,500 rupees per 10 grams as Indians turned to what they see as a traditional secure investment. Analysts were looking ahead to first-quarter growth data Friday that is expected to show the economy still weak. The economy grew five percent last year, a decade low. The government has forecast growth of around 5.5 percent this year. But investment house BNP Paribas cut its growth projection to 3.7 percent for 2013-14 from a previous 5.2 percent estimate, describing recent economic data as close to “disastrous”. —AFP

Syria fears stalk markets LONDON: Growing fears of a US-led military strike against Syria continued to weigh on stocks yesterday at one point sent the price of oil soaring to its highest level since May 2011.

However, the mood in financial markets appeared to stabilize as the day wore on.

Concerns of an attack have swelled this week following claims that President Bashar Assad’s government was responsible for a chemical attack on civilians outside Damascus on Aug. 21. Assad denies the allegations. Yesterday, Britain said it would put forward a resolution to the UN Security Council condemning the Syrian government. A statement from Prime Minister David Cameron’s office said Britain would seek a measure “authorizing necessary measures to protect civilians” in Syria. Military force is one of the options that can be authorized under Chapter 7 of the UN charter.

Investors have responded to the prospect of a military strike and uncertainty in the Middle East by punishing supposedly risky assets such as stocks in favor of traditional safer investments like gold.

“Tuesday’s risk-off tone remains in evidence but to a lesser degree although uncertainty remains the order of the day,” said Andrew Wilkinson, chief economic strategist at Miller Tabak & Co. In Europe, the FTSE 100 index of leading British shares was down 0.5 percent 6,412 while Germany’s DAX fell 1.4 percent to 8,129. The CAC-40 in France was 0.5 percent lower at 3,950.

In the US, stocks steadied after Tuesday’s broad sell-off. The Dow Jones industrial average was up 0.1 percent at 14,792 while the broader S&P 500 index rose the same rate to 1,632.

Though stocks have taken a bit of a pound-

ing this week, other assets have posted big gains, notably the price of oil. “While Syria isn’t a big producer of oil, the potential for the conflict to escalate in the Middle East is likely to continue to push prices higher, unless we see attempts from the US to ease concerns about some form of military action,” said Craig Erlam, market analyst at Alpari. The benchmark New York rate was trading 76 cents higher to $109.76 a barrel, having earlier risen to a high of $112.24, its highest level since May 2011. On Tuesday, the oil price jumped $3.09 to $109.01 a barrel, its highest closing price since February 2012. Despite the recent gains, the oil price remains far below its record close of $145.29 a barrel, reached on July 3, 2008. Gold has also been in demand this week through its status as a haven in times of geopolitical uncertainty.

After hitting a three-month high of $1,434 an ounce, the yellow metal fell back to trade flat on the day at $1,420.

The dollar was a tad stronger yesterday and clawed back some recent ground. The euro was 0.6 percent lower at $1.3314 and the dollar rose 0.6 percent to 97.65 yen.

The prospect of a strike on Syria has been felt far and wide across financial markets as investors searched out safer places for their money. India’s rupee, for example, fell to a new low against the US dollar. One dollar now buys about 68.4 rupees compared with 66.2 rupees only a day earlier. The stock benchmark in the Philippines shed 3 percent. Elsewhere in Asia, Japan’s Nikkei 225 index sank 1.5 percent to close at 13,338.46, its lowest finish in two months, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng dropped 1.6 percent to 21,524.65. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 slid 1.1 percent to 5,087.20. —AP

TOKYO: Japanese businessmen pass before a share prices board in Tokyo yesterday. Japan’s share prices fell 314.09 points to close at 13,228.28 points at the morning session of the Tokyo Stock Exchange with risk aversion growing as US forces readied for possible military action against Syria. —AFP

Markets pare losses MIDEAST STOCK MARKETS DUBAI: Gulf stock markets stabilized by the close yesterday after plunging in early trade on the prospect of an escalation of Syria’s civil war, as the United States threatened a military strike on Damascus over the use of chemical weapons. Stocks had also tumbled on Tuesday and selling resumed on Wednesday morning as local retail investors, who have dominated trade in recent weeks, scrambled to lock in some of the large gains posted this year. Margin calls caused selling to snowball.

But by yesterday afternoon, the pressure from margin calls had eased and some investors were starting to buy back shares. Dubai’s index, which tumbled 7.0 percent on Tuesday and as much as 7.5 percent yesterday morning, ended the day down just 1.3 percent at 2,516 points, after rebounding sharply from near technical support on its 100-day average at 2,342 points.Saudi Arabia, which lost 2.1 percent in early trade, ended 0.4 percent higher.As global oil prices climbed in response to the Syrian tensions, some Saudi petrochemical stocks rose in sympathy. Saudi Kayan jumped 2.6 percent and Saudi Basic Industries (SABIC) gained 1.3 percent.

Many analysts and fund managers said the Syrian conflict had merely served as a trigger for a wave of profit-taking that would have happened anyway, given the size of Gulf markets’ gains this year. Dubai is still up 55 percent year-to-date. It is not clear if any escalation in Syria would affect the Gulf significantly, unless it developed into a full-scale military conflict involving Iran, which most analysts believe is extremely unlikely. Middle East tensions actually help the Gulf in one way, by pushing up global oil prices. The fundamental economic picture in the United Arab Emirates and the Gulf Cooperation Council countries in general is “still very attractive”, said Amer Khan, fund manager at Shuaa Asset Management in Dubai.

“A lot of things look pretty attractive where they sit right now, such as Abu Dhabi banks that hiked dividends and are looking at growth next year,” he said. Khan added institutional investors had largely stayed out of the recent wave of selling in the region and might now start buying blue chips if they had missed part of this year’s uptrend or wanted to rotate between sectors.

Dubai’s trading turnover fell during periods when the market was weak yesterday and increased when it was rebounding - a positive technical sign which suggested substantial buying interest remained at the lows. The market now faces technical resistance around 2,600 points, which served as support earlier this month.

Egypt’s market fell sharply yesterday, a sign that investor optimism after last month’s ouster of President Mohammed Morsi was fading and the country’s severe economic difficulties were again weighing on stocks. The index dropped 2.1 percent to 5,226 points, its lowest close since July 9. The fall, which started with a gap down at the opening, was technically bearish as it triggered a head and shoulders pattern formed by the peaks since July. The height of the pattern points down to the 5,000-point area.

A report in the Al-Ahram newspaper, which said Egypt’s interim cabinet was about to approve a plan to stimulate the economy over the next nine months, did not prompt buying of stocks. The plan involves providing additional investments of at least 10 billion Egyptian pounds ($1.4 billion), the newspaper quoted Planning Minister Ashraf Al-Arabi as saying. —Reuters

THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2013

BUSINESS

UK house prices to rise 4.0% in 2013: Poll LONDON: British house prices are set to rise at their fastest pace in three years in 2013, outstripping inflation and raising concerns that government action may lead to a new price bubble, a Reuters poll found yesterday. A government-backed “Help To Buy” scheme means borrowers can buy a home with a deposit of just 5 percent, and a narrow majority of analysts judged this stimulus should cease as the housing market is already gathering momentum.

The poll of market watchers, taken in the past week, found eight in favor of continuing the government’s initiative but 11 wanting to scrap it. “The housing market was slowly recovering already, it has been good for the sector, but in the long term it is throwing money at something that is not the solution,” said Mark Hughes, co-head of research at Panmure Gordon.

“There is a danger we are creating the next bubble and not learning from what’s happened previously.” House prices tripled during a decade-long boom to 2007 but fell sharply at the start of the financial crisis. Most respondents do not see them reaching pre-crash levels for some time yet.

Still, according to medians from the poll prices will rise on average 4.0 percent this year and 5.5 percent next, a sharp upwards revision from a May poll that predicted rises of 2.0 percent and 2.4 percent respectively. In London prices will rise 6.0 percent this year and 6.1 percent next as the capital continues to draw in rich overseas investors battling for a limited supply of property.

“The UK housing market is recovering strongly on improving demand. The economic recovery is helping boost consumer confidence and reviving demand

from first-time buyers and home-movers,” said Melanie Bowler at Moody’s Analytics.

“The London housing market will continue to outperform the rest of the country, bolstered by continued strong domestic and foreign demand.” Britain’s economy is picking up speed after essentially flatlining for two years, but the Bank of England said it intended to keep interest rates at a record low of 0.5 percent until late 2016. This would be a boon for mortgage borrowers, although some could be over-stretched if and when rates eventually rise.

Bank Governor Mark Carney did not convince financial markets with the announcement, which he was expected to defend in a speech later yesterday, and investors are betting that monetary policy tightening will begin at least a year earlier.

Britain’s consumer price inflation was

running at 2.8 percent year-on-year in July, and a poll yesterday showed people expected it to average 2.6 percent in the year ahead.

The first phase of the government’s Help to Buy offers buyers of new-build properties an interest-free five-year loan for 20 percent of the property’s value, kicked off in April. But the second phase offers 12 billion pounds of guarantees to back mortgages to buyers who lack large deposits and does not come into force until January. “You are helping people to buy things they would be otherwise unable to afford to, we’ve seen how that kind of interference ends. The market will overshoot,” said Henry Pryor, an independent housing analyst.

“Help to Buy, when the second phase rolls out in January will have a demonstrable effect if the government is still reckless enough to go through with it.”

Despite the scheme, running in parallel with the year-old Funding For Lending program, mortgage approvals dipped to 57,667 in June, down from May’s 3-1/2 year high of 58,071, but medians from the poll suggest they will rise to 65,000 in six months and reach 70,000 in a year.

Home improvement and building supplies group Grafton said on Wednesday recovery in Britain, its main market, was likely to be sustained. ] “What the ‘Help To Buy’ has done, it’s just given the housing market a little bit of a shot in the arm and just made things feel better,” Grafton’s Chief Executive Gavin Slark said. British housebuilders such as Persimmon and Bovis Homes have also said in recent weeks that the government support has boosted sales.

Housebuilders have been among the top performers on the British stock index this year, up over 40 percent. —Reuters

Kuwait Energy makes new oil find in Egypt Discovery in Abu Sennan concession in Western Desert

Kuwait Energy’s Chief Executive Officer, Sara Akbar

KUWAIT: Kuwait Energy (the Company), one of the fastest growing independent oil and gas exploration and production companies in the Middle East, announces an oil discovery at its El Salmiya-2 well, located in its Abu Sennan concession in the Western Desert, Egypt.

Kuwait Energy is the operator of the Abu Sennan concession and holds a 50 percent working interest. The remaining working interest is held by Beach Petroleum (Egypt) Pty Ltd which holds a 22 percent working interest, and Dover Investments Limited with a 28 percent working interest with their main partner the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC).

The El Salmiya-2 well encountered oil in Kharita Formation and initial tests showed a production flow rate of 3,530 barrels of oil per day (bopd). This is the sixth exploration success in the Abu Sennan concession and the twenty first discovery in Egypt for Kuwait Energy since 2008.

Kuwait Energy’s Chief Executive Officer, Sara Akbar, commented: “I am very happy to announce another successful oil discovery in Egypt which we anticipate will contribute positively to both the Company’s production and reserve levels. Our operations continue to flourish in Egypt, we enjoy a close working relationship with the EGPC and we are delighted to play our part in helping Egypt satisfy its domestic energy demand.”

Kuwait Energy started operating in Egypt in 2008 and its operations there contribute the largest share of the Company’s current total working interest production. In Egypt, the Company operates three oil blocks: the Abu Sennan concession, Area A and the Burg El Arab development lease. It also has interests in two other non-Company-operated blocks, namely the Mesaha concession and the East Ras Qattara development lease.

BANGKOK: A Thai investor looks at an electronic display of share prices at a private trading company in Bangkok yesterday. The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) composite index was down 28.05 points or 2.17 percent at 1,265.92 points in morning session following the global shares amid concerns over US military intervention in Syria. —AFP

Egypt poised to launch economic stimulus plan Pound climbs as tensions ease CAIRO: Egypt’s interim cabinet was poised to approve a plan yesterday to stimulate the economy over the next nine months, Al-Ahram newspaper quoted Planning Minister Ashraf AlArabi as saying. The government has said it plans to avoid raising taxes or cutting spending to reduce the country’s mushrooming budget deficit, and instead will use aid pledged by Gulf Arab states to spur growth. The stimulus plan involves providing additional investments of at least 10 billion Egyptian pounds ($1.4 billion), Al-Arabi said.

The cabinet expects to remain in power only until elections early next year. It plans a series of initiatives to stimulate the economy, the minister said, including paying arrears the government owes to contractors, extending natural gas to more residences and giving support for tourism. It will also work with the banks on the fate

and black markets yesterday as concerns the country faced sustained instability eased further, traders said.

The black market has been dwindling since the army deposed Islamist President Mohammed Morsi on July 3 and the subsequent arrival of $5 billion of aid from Gulf Arab states to top up the country’s foreign reserves. The central bank sold $38.8 million and the cut-off price was 6.9760 Egyptian pounds per dollar versus 6.9764 at a sale on Monday, the bank said. The bank had offered $40 million.

Black market dealers were offering to buy dollars for about 7.10 Egyptian pounds yesterday and sell them for 7.14 pounds compared to 7.15 and 7.20 pounds on Monday, currency traders said. The black market rate had weakened to 7.20 and 7.25 on Thursday ahead of anti-army protests called for the following day but

of 4,000 factories that have become insolvent and shut down.

Part of the new investment would be directed in particular towards Egypt’s impoverished south. The army-backed interim government, keen to improve conditions for a deeply polarized population battered by more than two years of political and economic turmoil, is under intense pressure to avoid unpopular austerity measures.

Egypt’s deficit has jumped since the beginning of 2013 to nearly half of all government spending.After Islamist President Mohammed Morsi was deposed by the army last month, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates promised Egypt a total of $12 billion in loans, grants and fuel shipments. Of that, $5 billion has already arrived.

Meanwhile, the Egyptian pound strengthened on both the official

regained strength this week after the protests failed to attract large crowds.

The pound weakened on the black market early this year to as low as 8.05 per dollar as the country drained foreign reserves - already low following a plunge in foreign investment and tourism due to turmoil since the country’s popular uprising in early 2011 - to support the currency.

The $5 billion in Gulf aid has helped the central bank to support the pound and the pound’s official price, controlled by the central bank, has been appreciating slowly since Morsi’s overthrow. The central bank introduced currency sales, held three times a week, at the end of December to help to stave off a currency crisis and thwart a run on the pound. Since Morsi was ousted, the central bank has allowed its official cut-off price to appreciate gradually from a low of 7.0184 on July 3. —Reuters

APR Energy sees no impact from market slowdown The company also scored 147 megawatts (MW ) of new contracts in Senegal, Mozambique and Indonesia, bringing its wins to 740 MW so far in 2013 compared with 569 MW for the whole of 2012. At 0724 GMT, the stock of the US-based company was 5 percent higher at 1034.9 pence on the London Stock Exchange. —Reuters

LONDON: Temporary power provider APR Energy Plc said yesterday it has ample orders from developing countries and does not share larger rival Aggreko’s cautious attitude towards weak emerging-market spending. A provider of turnkey power plants for disaster relief, electricity shortfalls and major events, APR Energy’s clients are mostly located in developing markets such as Argentina, Burkina Faso and Yemen where demand for readily available energy has been increasing.

However, Aggreko this month gave a cautious outlook as cash-strapped governments in Africa, Asia and Latin America remained hesitant to commit to spending, exacerbating fears that providers of temporary power could be affected by a weak growth outlook in emerging markets.

“From my perspective, our pipeline is very robust at the moment, and we don’t see any slowdown at all,” Chief Executive John Campion told Reuters. “Local economic slowdowns tend not to affect us because, quite frankly, these countries we’re dealing with, whether the economy is good or bad, they still need power.”

APR Energy, whose turbines and diesel generators lit up Japan following the 2011 earthquake, on Wednesday reported a $3.1 million adjusted pretax loss in the six months ended June 30, feeling the impact of last year’s contract delays.

The company made an adjusted pretax profit of $51.8 million a year earlier. Adjusted revenue fell 44 percent to $87.2 million.APR Energy said it expected a better second half, during which lucrative deals from Libya and Uruguay are due to kick in.

Dubai airport passenger traffic up 6.1% in July DUBAI: Passenger traffic at Dubai’s main airport climbed 6.1 percent in July from a year earlier, despite a seasonal slowdown in local traffic, airport authorities said yesterday. Dubai International, one of the world’s busiest airports, handled 5.31 million passengers in July compared with 5.01 million in the corresponding period of 2012, Dubai Airports said in a statement.

Traffic in the first seven months of the year was up 15.3 percent to 37.97 million passengers. All regions recorded positive growth in Dubai traffic during July with the exception of the Middle East and Gulf, which dropped 12.6 percent and 8.0 percent respectively as Ramadan, the Muslim month of fasting, coincided with a summer slowdown. —Reuters

EXCHANGE RATES Al-Muzaini Exchange Co. Japanese Yen Indian Rupees Pakistani Rupees Srilankan Rupees Nepali Rupees Singapore Dollar Hongkong Dollar Bangladesh Taka Philippine Peso Thai Baht Irani Riyal Irani Riyal Saudi Riyal Qatari Riyal Omani Riyal Bahraini Dinar UAE Dirham

ASIAN COUNTRIES 2.899 4.447 2.741 2.140 2.726 222.380 36.702 3.654 6.403 8.850 0.271 0.273 GCC COUNTRIES 75.937 78.244 739.640 756.340 77.551

ARAB COUNTRIES Egyptian Pound - Cash 41.950 Egyptian Pound - Transfer 40.658 Yemen Riyal/for 1000 1.329 Tunisian Dinar 173.570 Jordanian Dinar 402.130 Lebanese Lira/for 1000 1.910 Syrian Lier 3.094 Morocco Dirham 34.713 EUROPEAN & AMERICAN COUNTRIES US Dollar Transfer 284.650 Euro 382.000 Sterling Pound 444.620 Canadian dollar 271.460 Turkish lira 141.900 Swiss Franc 309.840 Australian Dollar 256.190 US Dollar Buying 283.450 20 Gram 10 Gram 5 Gram

GOLD 263.000 133.000 68.000

UAE Exchange Centre WLL COUNTRY Australian Dollar Canadian Dollar Swiss Franc Euro US Dollar Sterling Pound Japanese Yen Bangladesh Taka Indian Rupee Sri Lankan Rupee Nepali Rupee Pakistani Rupee UAE Dirhams Bahraini Dinar Egyptian Pound Jordanian Dinar Omani Riyal Qatari Riyal Saudi Riyal

SELL DRAFT 260.64 274.44 312.83 384.04 284.05 446.50 2.94 3.670 4.418 2.143 2.773 2.747 77.40 756.02 40.63 404.27 738.71 78.44 75.88

SELL CASH 261.000 275.000 313.000 386.000 285.500 449.000 3.000 3.780 4.800 2.700 3.220 2.900 77.900 757.900 41.000 410.000 740.000 78.800 76.200

Thai Bhat Syrian Pound Nepalese Rupees Malaysian Ringgit

Bahrain Exchange Company COUNTRY British Pound Czech Korune Danish Krone Euro Norwegian Krone Scottish Pound Swedish Krona Swiss Franc

Selling Rate 284.400 271.640 444.385 381.000 309.255 752.955 77.410 78.065 76.705 400.910 40.655 2.144 4.485 2.740 3.656 6.420 697.645 3.880

SELL CASH Europe 0.4343731 0.0065513 0.0469426 0.3754236 0.0432917 0.4319750 0.0397886 0.3049399

SELLDRAFT 0.4433731 0.0185513 0.0519426 0.3829236 0.0484917 0.4394750 0.0447886 0.3119399

Australasia 0.2440981 0.2136088 0.0001126

0.2560981 0.2236088 0.0001126

Canadian Dollar Colombian Peso US Dollars

America 0.2640124 0.0001448 0.2821000

0.2730124 0.0001626 0.2842500

Bangladesh Taka Cape Vrde Escudo Chinese Yuan Eritrea-Nakfa Guinea Franc Hg Kong Dollar Indian Rupee Indonesian Rupiah Jamaican Dollars Japanese Yen Kenyan Shilling Malaysian Ringgit Nepalese Rupee Pakistan Rupee Philippine Peso

Asia 0.0036095 0.0031528 0.0454403 0.0164167 0.0000441 0.0341011 0.0041220 0.0000209 0.0028882 0.0028453 0.0031855 0.0809849 0.0025452 0.0027089 0.0059193

0.0036645 0.0033828 0.0504403 0.0195167 0.0000501 0.0372011 0.0041870 0.0000260 0.0038382 0.0030253 0.0034155 0.0879849 0.0027452 0.0027489 0.0063893

Australian Dollar New Zealand Dollar Uganda Shilling

Dollarco Exchange Co. Ltd Rate for Transfer US Dollar Canadian Dollar Sterling Pound Euro Swiss Frank Bahrain Dinar UAE Dirhams Qatari Riyals Saudi Riyals Jordanian Dinar Egyptian Pound Sri Lankan Rupees Indian Rupees Pakistani Rupees Bangladesh Taka Philippines Pesso Cyprus pound Japanese Yen

9.175 4.060 3.890 86.526

Sierra Leone Singapore Dollar Sri Lankan Rupee Thai Baht

0.0000726 0.2180962 0.0021030 0.0084734

0.0000756 0.2240962 0.0021450 0.0090734

Bahraini Dinar Egyptian Pound Ethiopeanbirr Ghanaian Cedi Iranian Riyal Iraqi Dinar Jordanian Dinar Kuwaiti Dinar Lebanese Pound Moroccan Dirhams Nigerian Naira Omani Riyal Qatar Riyal Saudi Riyal Sudanese Pounds Syrian Pound Tunisian Dinar UAE Dirhams Yemeni Riyal

Arab 0.7480832 0.0386438 0.0126425 0.1446254 0.0000791 0.0001837 0.3956266 1.0000000 0.0001744 0.0225463 0.0012076 0.7278199 0.0774761 0.0753200 0.0462492 0.0019382 0.1717385 0.0760179 0.0012831

0.7565832 0.0406588 0.0191425 0.1464154 0.0000796 0.0002437 0.4031266 1.0000000 0.0001944 0.0465463 0.0018426 0.7388190 0.0782591 0.0759600 0.0467992 0.0021582 0.1777386 0.0774679 0.0013831

Al Mulla Exchange Currency US Dollar Euro Pound Sterling Canadian Dollar Indian Rupee Egyptian Pound Sri Lankan Rupee Bangladesh Taka Philippines Peso Pakistan Rupee Bahraini Dinar UAE Dirham Saudi Riyal *Rates are subject to change

Transfer Rate (Per 1000) 284.100 382.550 444.650 272.650 4.435 40.640 2.139 3.651 6.395 2.739 756.500 77.400 75.900

THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2013

BUSINESS

Weakening rupee

By Rudra Dalmia

T

he Indian government tries to show that the rupee is being weakened by externalities, like tapering off QE and poor global conditions which have hit all emerging markets, but the reality is that the externalities are only multiplying the effect of the poor policy making and governance of the current government.

We believe the weakening of the Indian rupee started with the breakdown of confidence in the Indian policy makers and the seeds were sown when some of the largest FDI investors were not given their due respect after winning a tax case in the Supreme Court of India in January 2012. The (then) finance minister decided to be short sighted in his view and opened a Pandora’s box of retrospective amendments to the law. Then came the scandals which created unnecessary media scrutiny and political interference for investors in businesses which were well intended but poorly sold (by the government) to Domestic and Foreign investors in telecom, infrastructure, coal, real estate etc. Subsequent external events have lead to further erosion of confidence in Indian policy makers which is reflected in the Rupee.

Investors can deal with commercial and business uncertainty, but no investor likes to have a target on their back for tax collections and policy uncertainty. The Vodafone and 2G Spectrum case caused a ripple across interested investors all over the world. Today, not a single law firm or accounting firm can issue a clear and definitive opinion on issues like - investor protection, exits, tax implications, land acquisition, employee liability, governmental interference in the name of corruption charges, etc. As long as the legal system cannot give clarity to investors on relevant issues, we will not see any interest in investing in India.

India was a hot market for Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) last year (2012) but a majority of FIIs are fickle and have no long term commitment to India, the ‘hot’ money left when the capital started migrating back to the western world in a matter of days or weeks. On the other hand, the real long term investors and value creators - the FDI investors were systematically spooked by the extremely poor management of the finance and commerce functions of the Indian government, so we have little or no long term money being committed to India.

Add to all this - the US Treasury tapering of QE, further mismanagement of National funds reflected in the Current Account Deficit, extreme inaction in policies to change the subsidy regime of basic things like diesel and gas, the high inflation rate, the tightening of funds by the RBI which prevents any investment in growth, and the whopper - the creation of the politically motivated Food Security Bill which puts a minimum of $25-30 billion burden on the government every year. The rupee is only going in one direction. —Rudra Dalmia is the Managing Director of Saxo Bank’s India entity

China’s debt-fuelled growth outlives fallen politician Bo Chongqing transformation a testimony CHONGQING, China: Fallen Chinese politician Bo Xilai may have been ritually consigned to political history at his trial this week but the country’s leadership has yet to abandon the debt-fuelled economic policies he epitomized. Bo, who mounted a feisty defense at his five-day trial, won plaudits for his transformation of the southwestern megacity of Chongqing, where he became the city’s top official in 2007, funded by billions in loans from state-controlled banks.

His fingerprints are visible everywhere in the sprawling metropolis, from a new light rail system that snakes across its undulating hills, to more than 3,000 kilometres (1,900 miles) of motorways and 48 new bridges government documents say were built during his tenure.

Chongqing’s expansion began with China’s “Develop the West” campaign to promote growth in the vast and relatively poorer region in the late 1990s. Bo’s supercharged version of a growth model followed by cities across China funded by loans using land as collateral-made it the country’s joint-fastest-growing region in 2011, with an annual GDP rise of 16.4 percent, according to official statistics.

The urban population of Chongqing swelled by more than 20 percent during his tenure, including many from rural areas who saw their land used to boost government income. But the growth came with dangerous risks in the form of massive debts incurred. Liabilities held by government financing vehicles in Chongqing swelled by 184 billion yuan ($30 billion) under Bo, according to an analysis by Dow Jones newswires-around $1,000 for every man, woman and child in the municipality, which ranks among the biggest cities in the world.

Bo’s economic policy could be summarized as: “Take enormous amounts of money from the central government, you spend it, making your city a better place and making yourself a hero in the process,” said James McGregor, chief of greater China operations for consultancy APCO Worldwide. Bo and Chongqing’s govern-

ment “went full-speed ahead on re-doing the city, which happened all over China-and now they’ve got to figure out how to pay for it”, he added.

Spending included 34 million square metres (366 million square feet) of subsidized housing for Chongqing’s poorer residents, part of populist policies Bo touted as an attempt to reduce the wealth disparities that have soared in China in recent decades.

dle-aged Chongqing resident Zhang Renliang said. “He had good connectionshe was able to make things happen.”

Bo’s most controversial project was the huge Xiaonanhai dam on China’s largest river, the Yangtze, which met with fierce opposition from environmentalists as it encroached on a reserve for many of the river’s endangered fish species.

“Without Bo Xilai pushing the project as

CHONGQING: Vegetable vendors carrying their produce to sell in China’s southwest metropolis of Chongqing. Fallen Chinese politician Bo Xilai’s most controversial project was the huge Xiaonanhai dam on China’s largest river, the Yangtze, which met with fierce opposition from environmentalists as it encroached on a reserve for many of the river’s endangered fish species. —AFP

He matched them with Maoist-style rhetoric and actions, even sending thousands of officials to the countryside in an attempt to bring them closer to the masses-but it was development that won plaudits from locals.

“Bo demolished old houses and gave people new ones, which were bigger,” mid-

he did, it wouldn’t have occurred,” said Weng Lida, former chief of the Yangtze Water Resources Protection Bureau, who had direct knowledge of the dam’s planning. After years of planning, construction work started just as Bo was ousted and farmers living near the site said work had

now paused, but they expect it to resume soon. Weng said that Chongqing’s new leadership may yet decide to shelve the project, and locals say work on other highcost projects, including a new showcase city district, has slowed. But Bo and China’s new president Xi Jinping share a similar background as sons of prominent revolutionary leaders, and since being installed in March the head of state has launched campaigns with shades of those carried out by Bo in Chongqing.

They include a “mass line” initiativeMaoist terminology for the need to align the party with the people-with citizens scandalized by regular reports of corruption among high and low level officials.

As Bo did in Chongqing, Xi has used speeches to emphasize the importance of Maoist thought, and police nationwide have cracked down on political activists. Xi’s administration has pledged to switch China’s growth model to one driven by consumer spending rather than exports and infrastructure investment, but the latter is still rising at more than 20 percent a year, almost unchanged from when he took over.

At the national level few major reforms have been announced, such as interest-rate liberalization, which could weaken the flow of cheap credit to state-backed projects.

“Chinese governments... are the world’s largest property developers,” Chen Gong, chairman of Beijing Anbound Information, a Chinese think-tank that advises local officials, told AFP, adding: “They build skyscrapers, town squares, roads and bridges, and amass huge amounts of debt.”

Some have touted a party plenum this autumn as a possible opportunity for reforms that could leave behind the Chongqing model followed by Bo. Nonetheless Chen said: “There will be some proposals, but it will just be a matter of slogans. I don’t think leaders have a way to change, because of the huge power of special interest groups.” McGregor added: “Economic reforms might not be as comprehensive as some would hope... there’s still a lot of politics which have to be worked out.” — AFP

Ryanair ordered to slash Aer Lingus stake LONDON: Irish no-frills airline Ryanair must slash its almost 30-percent stake in rival Aer Lingus on grounds of unfair competition, a British watchdog ruled yesterday, confirming a preliminary ruling.

The Competition Commission (CC) has ordered Ryanair to cut its minority holding to just 5.0 percent. The commission argued that the current situation has led to “substantial lessening of competition between the airlines on routes” between Britain and Ireland.

Ryanair said it would appeal against the decision, while Aer Lingus welcomed the CC ruling. “In its final report published today, the CC confirmed its provisional findings that Ryanair’s minority shareholding had led or may be expected to lead to a substantial lessening of competition between the airlines on routes between Great Britain and Ireland,” the watchdog said in a statement. “Ryanair Holdings plc will be required to sell its 29.8percent stake in Aer Lingus Group plc down to five percent,” it added.

The CC additionally felt that the level of

Ryanair’s stake was “likely to impede or prevent Aer Lingus from being acquired by, or combining with another airline”.

In February, the European Commission, the EU’s executive arm, had barred Ryanair’s third attempt since 2007 to take over Aer Lingus, citing concerns that the interests of passengers would be badly affected. Aer Lingus in any case snubbed all of Ryanair’s takeover attempts, arguing that it was a strong standalone airline. The Irish government owns about 25 percent of Aer Lingus and has refused to sell its stake to its competitor.

Ryanair said yesterday that it would appeal against the CC’s “unlawful ruling”. Ryanair chief executive Michael O’Leary added in a company statement: “This case, involving two Irish airlines where one, Aer Lingus, accounts for less than one percent of the UK’s total air traffic and concerns very few UK consumers, is yet another enormous waste of UK taxpayer resources from a body which took no action whatsoever when the two main UK airlines, BA and bmi, merged. —AFP

Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni waves an East African community flag alongside Paul Kagame of Rwanda (center), and Kenya’s Uhuru Kenyatta (right) during the inauguration of Berth No 19 at the Mombasa Port yesterday. It is the deepest Berth in East Africa with a depth of 13.5 metres. — AFP

Australia economy counts on post-poll confidence JAKARTA: An Indonesian clerk displays Indonesian rupiah notes at a money changer in Jakarta yesterday. Indonesia announced measures to shore up its economy as Asia’s emerging nations come under huge pressure from outflows of foreign cash that have sent their stock markets and currencies plummeting. — AFP

Swiss bankers lobby backs plan to end US tax dispute ZURICH: The Swiss Bankers Association (SBA) has backed a blueprint for an agreement between Switzerland and the United States aimed at ending a long-running tax dispute, an SBA spokeswoman said. The Swiss government is keen to end the dispute in which US authorities have fined two Swiss banks for helping wealthy Americans evade tax and are investigating another dozen, while many more face probes for similar transgressions.

The latest proposal deals mainly with a settlement for the roughly 100 Swiss banks that had US clients, but are not yet being investigated by US justice authorities. According to Swiss daily Tages-Anzeiger, these banks may face fines of 20 to 50 percent of the assets they are suspected of helping US citizens to hide from tax authorities. Tages-Anzeiger said it had seen a copy of the proposal presented to the SBA. “The board of directors fully supports the program as the best among tough alternatives,” an SBA spokeswoman said yesterday.

She declined to give details of the proposal or comment on the potential fines outlined by Tages-Anzeiger. SBA directors include Boris Collardi, the chief executive of Julius Baer which is one of the banks being investigated by the United States.

Current talks between Swiss and US officials centre on roughly a dozen banks under investigation, which also include Credit Suisse, the Swiss arm of Britain’s HSBC, privately held Pictet and state-backed regional banks Zuercher Kantonalbank and Basler Kantonalbank —Reuters

SYDNEY: With Australia’s election just days away business leaders want one thing for certain- certainty. Just give us political certainty, they cry, and we’ll be happy to abandon caution and spend like drunken sailors. Australian business and consumers have been on a three-year roller-coaster ride of minority government with changes of leadership, epic legislative struggles and policy reversals culminating in what has amounted to a seven-month-long election campaign.

The return of some political stability is a tempting thought since a long bonanza in mining investment is rolling over and the rest of industry needs to pick up the slack if Australia is not to face some tough times ahead.

Typically elections have only a fleeting impact on business, largely because the major parties’ economic policies are pretty centrist, with all committed to budget surpluses over time and to an independent central bank.

But this time the mood has become so self-reinforcingly sombre that a decisive outcome could provide real relief.

“This election could be different,” said Paul Bloxham, HSBC’s chief economist for Australia. “It’s clear that uncertainty over tax and regulations has been a hindrance to investment.

Just the thought of some certainty should lift business confidence and give a timely boost to the economy.”

Figures from Deloitte Access Economics showed there were A$452 billion ($405 billion) of investment projects underway or committed at the end of March, but there was another A$477 billion-worth up in the air. Such is the desire for stability that opposition leader Tony Abbott felt he could win votes by promising his government would be one of “no surprises”. Needless to say business favours the conservative Liberal-National Coalition led by Abbott, which according to the opinion polls, is likely to win a clear majority on Sept. 7.

The ruling left-of-centre Labor Party won kudos for its management of the global financial crisis, but has since been criticized, fairly or not, for making policy on the run.

The implementation of a carbon tax and a new mining resources tax went badly, while constant changes to regulation had business leaders tearing their hair out. It’s a tight network for upper management in a nation of only 23 mil-

lion and the gloom became pervasive over time. The Australian Industry Group’s suite of business surveys, for instance, are bleak by any measure.

Its performance of manufacturing index, known as the PMI, the lowest of any developed country. Bizarrely it is even below that for Greece, an economy that has shrunk by almost a quarter in the past five years.

Australia hasn’t suffered a recession for 22 years and was the only rich-world nation to dodge a slump during the global financial crisis. National Australia Bank’s well-regarded measure of business sentiment slipped to an eightmonth low in July, to be well under its long-run average.

“Whether it’s a Labor or Liberal win, a decisive election result is likely to be positive for business confidence,” said NAB senior economist Spiros Papadopoulos. However, he also noted that survey results for the past 15 years did not show much of a lasting boost following elections. Neither was it clear that consumers would suddenly throw aside their post-crisis caution and go on a spending spree. “One does not get the vibe that consumers are holding off spending at department stores, or delaying buying a car, or going on holidays, or buying a house, because they are waiting for the election,” he argued.

“The new normal is here, and that involves a lower pace of consumption growth as compared with pre-2008.” One measure worth watching will be the monthly survey of consumers by Westpac and the Melbourne Institute. This has shown a huge gulf between party supporters, with Coalition voters markedly more pessimistic than those who identify with Labor.

A clear Coalition victory could therefore lead to an outsized increase in confidence, at least for a few of months.

Russell Zimmerman, executive director at industry body the Australian Retailers Association, argued it would not matter which side won as long as it had a clear majority. “What people want is a majority government. It’s so hard to get things done with a minority,” he said. “If we get a majority government then consumers should respond well.”

A revival in confidence, and so spending, is sorely needed if the country is to deal with the slowdown in mining investment. The latest government business investment

data due on Thursday will provide an important update on the outlook. Capital spending is forecast to have risen around 1 percent in the second quarter of this year, but that would follow a 4.7 percent drop the previous quarter.

Crucial will be the Australian Bureau of Statistics’ survey of spending plans for the financial year to end-June 2014.

The estimate back in the first quarter was for spending of A$156 billion, which beat most forecasts. Analysts, however, doubt that can last.

“The survey straddles July/August, a period characterized by global growth concerns, low business confidence and elevated political concerns,” notes Michael Blythe, chief economist at Commonwealth Bank of Australia. He added that the latest estimate would have to be upgraded to around A$161 billion just to keep investment steady as a share of gross domestic product. With spending by miners likely to cool from here, that leaves the onus on sectors such as manufacturing, services and home-building to help drive economic growth.

“There is a pressing need to lift business capital spending outside of the resources sector,” said Blythe. There was certainly scope for pick up, since he estimated that investment by the non-mining sector as a share of GDP had fallen to its lowest since 1994. The non-mining capital stock as a share of GDP was at its lowest since 1977. “These requirements will eventually drive a lift in non-mining capex. A pick-up in demand and a recovery in business confidence would help.”

The whole subject of confidence was very much on the mind of Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) Governor Glenn Stevens, who recently cited it as a missing link in the economic outlook. “It is somewhat concerning that the business community’s confidence has been quite subdued in recent times,” he said in late July.

That might well have been one reason the central bank chose to cut interest rates to record lows just a few days after the speech, though Stevens sounded far from certain that lower borrowing costs would revive the country’s animal spirits. “Unfortunately, it is not a straightforward thing to turn sentiment around,” he conceded. “There’s no such thing as the ‘confidence policy lever’.” — Reuters

THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2013

BUSINESS

Ireland fears the unthinkable: A Dublin property bubble

F

ive years after a huge property crash devastated the Irish economy, prices are finally stabilising, but a booming urban market where supply is scarce and competition fierce is raising concerns about a new bubble in the capital.

House prices quadrupled on a decade of easy credit during the boom years that earned Ireland the sobriquet Celtic Tiger, then fell by more than half from 2007, leading the country into an EU/IMF bailout, a costly bank rescue and leaving almost one in five homeowners behind on their mortgage payments.

While prices began to rise again annually in June, some urban pockets are driving the recovery, with properties in Dublin being sold for 8 percent more than a year ago and higher still in affluent areas where 30-somethings outbid one another. Having built the wrong stock in the wrong places during the boom - huge apartment complexes and out of town housing estates there is now a big lack of supply in the cap-

ital and need for a battered construction sector to take the heat out of prices that some estate agents say are rising by 1 percent a month. “There’s an element of craziness creeping back into it where people are getting frantic,” said Scott, a 37-year-old father of two young children, after wading through the crowds to view a four-bedroom, semi-detached house in leafy south county Dublin. “Friends of mine have bought and gotten into bidding wars. It feels like the olden days; it’s kind of wrong.”

It is families like Scott’s, among the 305,000 households living in rented accommodation - twice more than five years ago - that are primarily behind the surge in demand, having waited patiently for prices to find a floor. But the dearth of supply means the level of transactions has barely risen, and with cash buyers snapping up every second home, only one in every two mortgages approved are being drawn down, keeping Ireland’s stricken banks from reaping the benefits. Property consultants

Savills Plc say 20 percent of its buyers are from abroad - mainly Irish residents keen to move home - piling even more pressure on frustrated domestic buyers.

In Dublin, the number of properties for sale has more than halved to just 3,000, research from Ireland’s biggest property website Daft.ie shows, giving rise to yearon-year price hikes of over 12 percent in sought-after spots. “If you’ve got rapidly rising prices, up by 10, 15 percent year-onyear, something’s wrong,” said Daft chief economist Ronan Lyons, who sees further annual rises of between 5 and 10 percent as quite possible until more supply arrives.

“If you decide tomorrow to build, it’s still going to be 18 to 24 months before we actually get the supply, so if things are already as bad as they are now, that’s worrying.” New builds are rising in Dublin, but from a very low base. Only 72 extra units were begun in the first five months of the year, but even that was a 25 percent yearon-year jump. House completions through-

out Ireland also hit a record low of just under 8,500 last year, down from an unsustainable 93,000 in 2006 but just a third of the 23,000 built on average a year during the 1970s, when Ireland was a much poorer country. In a country back in recession, conditions for a renewal in house building are poor - construction costs are rising and finance for developers scarce. Finance Minister Michael Noonan is keen to use his upcoming budget to stimulate the sector, but many of his colleagues want him to ease up on austerity instead.

The state-owned National Asset Management Agency (NAMA), the “bad bank” set up to rid banks of soured property loans, will also have only a limited role to play as much of its stock of residential properties in need of completion are the apartment blocks and “ghost estates” that litter the countryside. Ireland’s big builders have mixed views. The incoming chief executive of CRH, one of the world’s largest building materials providers, told Reuters

last week it was vital “not to overplay the Dublin hand”, with demand small and sporadic. The CEO of building and home improvement supplier Grafton , however, said it was time to start building again now the “green seeds” of recovery were sprouting. There are some signs of life among smaller players, too, according to estate agents who have begun to field inquiries into Greenfield sites for the first time since the crash. “Developers have suddenly realised that there is a shortage of good quality houses in certain areas, so there has been a very strong focus on people looking for development land,” said Michael Grehan, head of residential property at estate agents Sherry FitzGerald.

“How else do you get more supply out there? A lot depends on the type of stock that comes into the market from the banks.” Lenders long-overdue response to the country’s crippling mortgage arrears crisis may hold the key to freeing up supply in the short term. —Reuters

KARACHI: Pakistani stockbrokers look on during a trading session at the Karachi Stock Exchange (KSE) in Karachi yesterday. The benchmark KSE-100 index was 21996.73, down 526.98 points in mid of the day’s session. — AFP

Gold climbs to 3-1/2 month high LONDON: Gold prices rallied to 3-1/2 month highs above $1,430 an ounce yesterday as rising tensions over Syria sparked safe-haven demand and a scramble among investors to reduce their bets on falling prices. The precious metal reached a peak of $1,433.31 an ounce in early trade, its highest since May 14, as the United States and its allies geared up for a probable military strike against Syria that could come within days.

Western envoys have told the Syrian opposition to expect a military response soon against President Bashar Al-Assad’s forces as punishment for a chemical weapons attack last week, according to sources. Spot gold was up 0.7 percent at $1,425.60 an ounce at 0933 GMT, while US gold futures for December delivery were up $5.60 an ounce at $1,425.80. “Short term, the focus is likely to rest on what happens in the Middle East,” Credit Suisse analyst Tom Kendall said.

“There is a degree of safe-haven demand from in and around the Middle East, and with the move up in price in the last couple of weeks, you’ve had something of the order of 6 million ounces of short-covering going through on the Comex futures and options market. That’s been playing into it as well.”

Investors sold gold heavily in the first half of 2013, pushing prices to their lowest in nearly three years, on speculation that ultraloose US monetary policy was coming to an end. Many positioned themselves for further losses and have now had to close out those positions.

Prices have risen nearly 8 percent this month, their biggest monthly climb since January 2012, as expectations receded that the Federal Reserve is set to imminently curb its bullion-friendly $85 billion monthly bondbuying program.

On the wider markets, European shares retreated after jitters over a possible US-led strike against the Syrian government knocked Asian equities to a seven-week low, while the dollar index rose 0.2 percent. Oil prices surged, with Brent pushing above $117 earlier in the day and the US benchmark hitting its highest in more than two years. “Gold and crude oil (have) a historical positive correlation, and it tends to strengthen during periods of rising geopolitical tensions,” HSBC said in a note.

“Given investor uncertainty surrounding the Middle East, bullion has room for further gains in the near term should energy commodities including WTI crude oil continue to rally.” Gold prices hit record highs in Indian rupee terms for a second day yesterday as the rupee slumped to a record low versus the dollar. The most-traded gold for October delivery on the Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) hit a peak of 34,622 Indian rupees per 10 grams. Among other precious metals, silver prices rallied to their highest since mid-April at $25.08 an ounce, tracking gold. Silver was later up 1.3 percent at $24.77 an ounce. Spot platinum was up 0.8 percent at $1,530.99 an ounce, while spot palladium was up 0.3 percent at $744 an ounce. —Reuters

G4S boss seeking over $900m for turnaround LONDON: G4S, the world’s largest security services firm, plans to raise about 600 million pounds ($932 million) by selling shares and assets as its new boss seeks to restore its battered reputation by cutting debt and focusing on emerging markets.

Chief Executive Ashley Almanza, a former executive at oil and gas firm BG Group, was promoted from finance chief in June after a string of blunders by his predecessor, including a failed takeover bid in 2011, a botched contract to staff the 2012 Olympic Games and a profit warning in May. He said on Wednesday he would give a detailed plan in November, but that the initial measures he was putting in place should help to avoid a costly credit-rating downgrade, improve profit margins and start to deliver tangible benefits in 2014. Panmure Gordon analyst Mike Allen welcomed Almanza’s debut announcement as chief executive. “We applaud the quick work undertaken by management to re-structure the group and shore up the balance sheet,” he said.

At 0905 GMT, G4S shares were up 3.7 percent at 255.14 pence, the biggest rise by a UK bluechip company and reversing early losses. Shares often fall following the announcement of equity fundraisings, as these cut earnings per share for investors. G4S, which runs services from managing prisons and transporting cash to guarding the Wimbledon tennis championships, aims to benefit from a trend among cash-strapped governments and businesses to outsource security work. However, it has come under pressure as governments in developed markets in particular have cut back services.

The company said its first-half operating profit margin slipped to 5.5 percent from 5.9 percent in the same period last year, reflecting a lost prison contract in the Netherlands and squeezed pricing in Britain and elsewhere in

Europe. Net debt rose to 1.95 billion pounds as of June 30, some 3.2 times earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization compared with a target of 2-2.5 times. However the group, which wants to grow revenue in developing markets in Asia, Africa and Latin America from a third to half of its total, said it had a global sales pipeline of 4 billion pounds. It did not provide details, but noted strong demand from financial services, mining and government sectors in Africa. “G4S has excellent market positions, particularly in developing markets and as a result of which we have very material growth opportunities,” Almanza said. G4S, which leads rival Sweden’s Securitas by sales, said it would place 140.9 million new ordinary shares representing up to 9.99 percent of its existing share capital with new and existing investors via an accelerated bookbuild. That equates to around 350 million pounds at current prices.

The company said its largest shareholder, Invesco, supported the placing and intended to participate in it. Citigroup, JP Morgan and Barclays are joint bookrunners for the share sale.

G4S also said it would sell a number of businesses, likely to be in developed markets, which could raise up to 250 million pounds in the next year, and would restructure other units in a group which spans 125 countries in order to improve margins. Yesterday - and included in the asset sale total - G4S said it had agreed to sell its Canadian cash security and Colombia Data solutions businesses for 100 million pounds. The sale of its US business was ongoing, it added.

G4S said it had taken a one-off charge of 180 million pounds following a review of its assets and that it had started restructuring programs including cutting staff numbers and ending some lower-margin services - in Britain, Ireland and Europe at a cost of 30-35 million pounds over 2013 and 2014. — Reuters

THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2013

BUSINESS

Elmiraj Concept explores top of Cadillac’s range KUWAIT: Cadillac revealed the Elmiraj Concept, a grand coupe expressing the pure enjoyment of driving and exploring new dimensions for Cadillac’s ongoing expansion. The Elmiraj Concept showcases a new vision for luxury driving and the top of the brand’s expanding range.

A modern update to the classic format of a two-door grand coupe, Elmiraj is a pure expression of streamlined design and engaging rear-wheel drive performance.

At 5207mm in overall length, Elmiraj is four-seat coupe with presence and poise.

Taking up from where the memorable Ciel Concept left off, Elmiraj is a statement of pure luxury and performance with a purposeful character and proportion.

The concept advances Cadillac’s philosophy of dramatic design and performance, and its commitment to lightweight, agile cars. Elmiraj is constructed with chassis and structural elements of an ongoing Cadillac vehicle development project slated for future production. This new vehicle architecture expands the brand’s commitment to lightweight Rear Wheel Drive performance, exemplified in the ATS sport sedan.

“Elmiraj advances Cadillac’s provocative modern design and performance, contrasted with bespoke craftsmanship and luxury,” said Mark Adams, Cadillac design director. “It explores performance driving, as well as how we’re approaching elevating the Cadillac range and new dimensions of Art & Science philosophy.”

Elmiraj is powered by a 4.5-liter twin turbocharged V8 delivering an estimated 500 hp. The engine takes the baseline technology from the new Cadillac Twin Turbo V6 featured in the upcoming 420-hp 2014 CTS Vsport edition, and expands it to the classic performance format of a V8 engine.

Dramatic Exterior Proportion With a heritage of imaginative designs,

Cadillac approaches concept cars as a method for projecting design forward rather than simply exaggerating or “teasing” future production models. Elmiraj was created from this mindset, and therefore suggests new territory for Cadillac Art & Science.

This concept is the second chapter, following the Ciel Concept, of Cadillac exploration of the personas of true luxury. This project originated around the simple persona of “the drive,” or the visceral experi-

where taut fender lines spline through the full sectioned body, literally blending art and science. Cadillac’s vertical light signature is represented in both the headlamp graphic and tail lamp. A gently applied feature line in the sheet metal extends the full length of the body side, connecting those vertical front and rear elements.

Elmiraj contains design elements emphasizing Cadillac’s capabilities for engaging driving performance in its production portfolio. Two vents in the car’s

Crest appears in a conceptual form, streamlined and tailored to the car’s overall design. This design idea for a revised crest reflects the fact that Cadillac’s unmistakable symbol has evolved dozens of times through history to mark new eras or design achievements.

Exquisitely Crafted Interior The interior of Elmiraj blends elegantly crafted luxury and generous space with driver-focused performance elements. The

flow. The car’s instrumentation features an analog tachometer and speedometer that are transparent. Directly behind the analog gauges sits a wide screen, high resolution display which projects driver information and the output of a front-mounted camera. A 10-inch touchscreen for navigation and connectivity can be concealed inside the instrument panel when not in use.

The 2+2 layout features high-performance seats, designed to support spirited

ence of driving a great luxury coupe. It’s an expression of the confidence and poise you feel driving a high-performance car, which we feel is an essential element of top-level luxury.

The dramatic proportion communicates power and performance. A long dash-to-axle front profile, a Cadillac signature, gives the coupe a performance-oriented form. The long wheelbase and clean body side characterizes the car’s spacious dimensions and elevated status.

The fast cabin sits within a fuselage

long hood are functional, acting as hot air outlets for the twin turbo engine. Elmiraj has 22-x-9-in. aluminum wheels are backed by large ceramic brakes with Cadillac monoblockcalipers. The car’s rich blue exterior finish wears the brand’s Vsport designation, Cadillac’s new level slotting directly under the high-performance V-Series.

The face of Elmiraj experiments with new visual elements, yet is unmistakably Cadillac. The grille emphasizes the car’s substantial road presence. The Cadillac

upper section of the instrument panel is a single piece extending across the full width of the car, while the lower forms a cockpit space tailored for performance.

Backlit titanium trim curves from the cowl to the doors, dividing the rich upper camel leather from the wood trim. Cadillac Studio craftsmen handpicked fallen Brazilian Rosewood, a wood veneer prized for its use for hundreds of years in home furnishings and musical instruments. The wood is hand-cut into three dimensional sections for perfect control of the grain

driving while also delivering luxury accommodation. Elmiraj passengers might actually lobby to sit in the back. The rear bucket seats each contain a valet feature to ease entry and exit. The front bucket seat slides 10 inches forward while the rear bucket seat slides 4 inches forward to meet the passenger, then slides him or her back into position once seated. The rear bucket seats recline for additional comfort.

Many of the most celebrated automotive designs through history have been luxury coupes.

Mideast, N American buyers drive European property investment ME investors account for 9% of acquisitions in H1 2013

A view of a drilling rig exploring for shale gas in Grzebowilk, eastern Poland. The company Lane Energy, controlled by US giant ConocoPhillips, began the extraction of shale gas near Lebork, in northern Poland. — AFP

Poland starts shale gas extraction WARSAW: Shale gas extraction has begun at a test well in northern Poland, a first for the EU member, a minister said in a newspaper interview yesterday. The firm Lane Energy Poland, controlled by US energy giant ConocoPhilips, has been extracting about 8,000 cubic metres of gas per day since July 21, deputy environment minister Piotr Wozniak said. “It’s good news for Poland, and also for Europe,” Wozniak, who is also the country’s chief geologist, told the Rzeczpospolita daily about the test production near the town of Lebork.

He said that although the yield was lower than at sites in Canada and the United States, it was the best such result in Europe to date.

The amount is not big enough to qualify as commercial production, however. Gas is being exrtacted at a depth of 3,000 metres (9,800 feet) “without threat to the environment”, Wozniak told the television channel Polsat. Members of the European Union are divided in their approach to hydraulic fractur-

ing or fracking, the controversial method of extracting hydrocarbons. Poland, for example, has granted exploration rights to local and global firms which have sunk 48 exploratory wells. France has banned the method. Fracking involves using huge amounts of pressurized water mixed with chemicals to crack open shale-sedimentary rock containing hydrocarbons-to release natural gas. Environmentalists have raised the alarm that the chemical-laced waste could be contaminating fresh water resources.

Poland uses about 14 billion cubic metres (500 billion cubic feet) of natural gas a year, of which 60 percent is imported from Russia. The country of 38 million people plans to invest 12.5 billion euros ($17.0 billion) in exploration and development of its shale gas sector by 2020. Poland could have between 800 billion and two trillion cubic metres of exploitable shale gas deposits, according to the Polish Geological Institute. — AFP

Carney: Rates pressure might trigger more money printing NOTTINGHAM: Bank of England Governor Mark Carney warned financial markets yesterday that the bank would pump more money into Britain’s economy if they bet against it and choked off recovery. In his first speech since taking over the bank, Carney said the recent economic pick-up was broad-based but remained “solid not stellar”. He announced a relaxation of rules for banks which could help boost lending.

The initial reaction of investors was muted with market expectations essentially unchanged that the bank will raise interest rates earlier than it has flagged. Financial markets have challenged the BoE’s new plan to keep interest rates on hold for possibly three more years, and Carney spent much of his speech explaining why unemployment was unlikely to fall quickly to the 7 percent level at which the bank would consider tightening monetary policy.

“The upward move in market expectations of where Bank Rate will head in future could, at the margin, feed into the effective financial conditions facing the real economy. The MPC (Monetary Policy Committee) will be watching those conditions closely,” Carney said.

“If they tighten, and the recovery seems to be falling short of the strong growth we need, we will consider carefully whether, and how best, to stimulate the recovery further.”

Sterling initially weakened but recovered its losses against the dollar and British gov-

NOTTINGHAM: Mark Carney, governor of the Bank of England, addresses business leaders in Nottingham, central England yesterday. Carney’s speech is a chance to address investor doubts that he can keep interest rates on hold at a record low until at least late 2016. — AFP ernment bond prices fell after Carney’s speech. Philip Rush, an economist with Nomura, said the comments on more stimulus did not appear to signal any imminent new move. “Easing is not ruled out if higher rates start to impair recovery but that point does not seem upon us,” Rush said. “While higher rates reflect stronger growth, easing would constitute a negative confidence shock - i.e. the opposite of what the BoE is trying to achieve.”—Reuters

DUBAI: Middle East and North American investors are the major drivers of increased activity in the European commercial real estate market and buyers from outside the region now account for more than a quarter of all transactions in H1 2013, according to the latest data by CBRE, the global real estate consulting firm.

Investors from the Middle East increased investment activity, accounting for 9 percent of the entire market and 21 percent of cross-border transactions in H1 2013. Capital from the Middle East is generally institutional in nature, with nearly half of the total coming from the region’s sovereign wealth funds. Transactions from Middle Eastern buyers show a strong bias towards London (nearly 50 percent of the total) and offices, although there were several large retail properties among the purchases made.

“London remains the destination of choice for foreign investors due to its solid growth potential and its status as a global financial hub, alongside its stable political environment and a transparent legal system, which are key for international and regional buyers alike,” commented Nick Maclean, Managing Director, CBRE Middle East.

Buyers from North America accounted for a steadily increasing share of the market (13 percent of the entire market and 24 percent of cross-border transactions in H1 2013). This could have a significant effect on the dynamics of the property market as US investors, which make up the vast majority of activity, typically look at a more diverse range of markets.

The total value of commercial real estate investment activity in Europe continued to grow in Q2 2013 at 6 percent higher than the total for Q1 2013. The €32.6 billion recorded over the quarter shows a 22 percent increase on the same quarter last year and is the highest Q2 total since 2007 (before the financial crisis).

The level of cross-border investment in Europe continues to increase, both in absolute terms and as a proportion of the market as a whole. Over the first half of 2013, foreign buyers accounted for 44 percent of all transactions (by value) compared to 40 percent in the second half of 2012.

A significant change has developed in the sources of cross-border real estate investment, with intra-European investment (where the buyer is from another European country) accounting for just 16 percent of transactions in H1 2013. This percentage had been holding steady at around 20 percent of the market throughout 2011 and 2012.

Investment capital from outside Europe is becoming increasingly important to the market and now accounts for 28 percent of all transactions in H1 2013 (from 19 percent in H2 2012).

Even within this group of non-European investors there has been a marked change in the sources of capital.

Within Europe, German investors remain the largest group of cross-border buyers; the openended funds continuing to be active buyers around Europe with acquisitions totaling well over €1 billion in H1 2013. The German ‘Spezial’ funds are also active, but their acquisitions have been strongly focused on Germany in the first half of this year, stated the CBRE report.

The long-term trends in buyer mix that have been evolving since the financial crisis have continued into 2013. Most notable of these is the growth in direct institutional investment in real estate, which has increased steadily over the last six years from 9 percent in 2007 to 26 percent of the total in H1 2013. An increase in activity by sovereign wealth funds has been responsible for some of this investment, but both pension funds and insurance companies

are far more active than was the case before the financial crisis.

H1 2013 also saw a significant share of large transactions, with 134 of €100 million or more recorded over the period, between them accounting for 47 percent of the total turnover of the market. It is a feature of the market recovery that as total investment activity has increased so too has the proportion that has been made up of large (€100 million plus) transactions. At the low point in market activity (H1

totaling just €26.5 billion were completed in the first of the year, these large transactions accounted for 28 percent of the total.

Jonathan Hull, Head of EMEA Capital Markets, CBRE, added: “The increase in the proportion of the market comprised by large transactions coincides with an increase in the amount of non-European capital flowing into the market. It has long been the case that buyers from outside the region are focused on larger than average assets and H1 2013 was no exception.”

2009), when commercial real estate transactions

Turkish lira falls despite central bank action ANKARA: The Turkish lira fell further against the dollar yesterday, despite assurances by the central bank and amid tension over Syria. The lira fell to 2.07 to the dollar in afternoon trading, then rallied slightly to 2.0667, from 2.0382 at Tuesday’s close.The Istanbul stock market fell by 1.22 percent, having already dropped by 4.73 percent Tuesday, 1.24 percent on Monday and by 6 percent last week. Assurances from the head of the central bank Erdem Basci that the lira could rally to 1.92 to the dollar, or even stronger, at the end of this year did not convince the markets.

After Basci’s comments, the lira continued to sag, although the yield on 10-year government bonds fell and ended the day at 9.82 percent. The yield on 10-year government bonds surged to 10.58 percent last week on the secondary market.

The prospect of war in neighboring Syria is also weighing on sentiment. Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said in remarks published on Monday that Turkey would join an international coalition against Syria even if the UN Security Council failed to reach a consensus.

Turkey-the second biggest military force in NATO-shares a 910-kilometre (560-mile) border with Syria and has taken in around 500,000 refugees from the conflict. Economy Minister Zafer Caglayan on Tuesday dismissed the concerns and said Ankara’s involvement in an antiSyria coalition would not have a “direct impact” on the Turkish economy. In his speech Tuesday, Basci ruled out any increases in interest rates but signalled that the bank would take bold action to defend the lira by using its official reserves. He

said that the bank has a war chest of about $40 billion, and it is estimated that the bank has spent at least $8.0 billion in attempts to support the lira since June. However investors were not reassured as foreign exchange sales could only be a shortterm defense of the currency, according to columnist Ugur Gurses of the Turkish daily Radikal.

“As Basci was speaking yesterday, the Turkish currency rapidly slumped. Perhaps it was the most unfortunate moment for a central bank chief,” he wrote. At Capital Economics in London, economist William Jackson suggested that the bank might try new measures or capital controls, adding that if financial market tensions eased, nothing may be introduced.

But he did not rule out “more aggressive” foreign exchange sales or further hikes in the overnight rate. On August 20, the central bank ramped up its overnight rate by half a point to 7.75 percent. Jackson said the possibility that the central bank may resort to more creative measures underlined “how vulnerable Turkey is to a slowdown in capital inflows due to its large current account deficit and low FX reserve coverage.”

Turkey is being battered by an exodus of capital from emerging economies in Asia, Latin America, Russia and South Africa as investors pull out some funds after signals of a tightening of US monetary policy.

But analysts say its economy is fragile because of its dependence on credit and the wide current account deficit that has financed with short-term foreign funding. — AFP

THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2013

BUSINESS

Valvoline Grand draw awards a Toyota Yaris HB Al-Shahnan Co one of Al-Sayer Group of Co

KUWAIT: Al-Shahnan General Trading & Contracting Company held the raffle draw of Valvoline Mega Prize. The promotion campaign, has successfully ended the 3 months newly launched Valvoline lubricant on 28th June 2013. The grand draw of the 2012 Toyota Yaris HB, along with many other fabulous prizes, took place on the 28th June 2013 at 6:30pm, in the presence of Ministry of Commerce at the Valvoline center - Canada dry street. The draw was also attended by Oil and Paint Manager, Mr. Vivek Kohli, and his support staff, Marketing Manager - After Sales - Nasimi. The draw was witnessed by many participants, who were enthusiastically hoping to win these fabulous prizes. The Ministry called upon young children to pick the lucky winners of the grand draw.

Valvoline Lubricants - World’s first, world’s finest motor oil Campaign was a grand success. It was supported by over 50 puncture shops all over Kuwait. Al-Sayer Group would like to thank each and every participant for their outstanding support and making this campaign a huge success.

General Manager of Al-Shahnan, Krishna Kumar said, “Next year, Al-Sayer Group will celebrate its 60th Anniversary. The founder of the business, and our honorable Chairman, Naser Mohammed Al-Sayer, set the ground rules for the operation of the Company.

Al-Sayer Group operates on values of

* Honesty towards customers * Building trust of the customers * Personal integrity We strive to achieve continuous growth by selling only quality products supported by outstanding service and being acknowledged as the best in the business by Customers, Principals, Employees and the Community.

He also continued by saying: “ The “World’s First, World’s Finest Motor Oil”, VALVOLINE also has a heritage of quality and innovation that has kept it in business for 147 years, and we are delighted to be working together with Valvoline Management to provide this outstanding lubricant range to our customers. Kuwait, like many countries has a highly competitive market place, where everyone is trying to attract the maximum number of customers. We believe that it is of utmost importance to retain customer loyalty than look out for new customers always.

Customers come back to us as they feel they have a good value for money service and are able to get the product they want for a price that is acceptable.

VALVOLINE is a brand which stands out amongst the best global brands. I can say that it has been tested extensively in this climate and in Kuwait particularly through our own MNSS garages in all seasons and has performed faultlessly. Our efforts have always been to give you the best quality

products - with added values & fully supported by an Excellent Service.

Whilst we are aware that cheaper products are available in the market, we at AlShahnan along with our Principal - Valvoline Lubricant - have always been looking into Cost - Benefit analysis. Even though our products are a shade costlier - these will certainly be more economical for the customers as we do not compromise on quality and service , keeping in mind your vehicle’s & equipment’s value. It has to operate at optimum efficiency and should not have any breakdowns.

We would like to thank everyone very much for their support during this campaign and for the past many years and look forward to the same support in future as well”.

The Promotion has officially started on the 28th March, 2013 and ended on the 28th June 2013. It was one of the biggest promotion campaigns for Al Shahnan Company which covered more than 50 co-operatives and puncture shops, Plus Al-Sayer 7 In House Service Centres. The campaign offered For every 4 litres or more purchase of Valvoline 5w 40 a customer got 2 coupons and for every 4 litres purchase of Valvoline 20w 50 a customer got one coupon which entitled them for the draw On fabulous gifts Grand Prize - Toyota Yaris 2012 and other valuable gift such as 10 Galaxy Note II, 10 Samsung S3 Mini - 10 Canon Digital Cameras.

Prize No. Description 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th 9th 10th 11th 12th 13th 14th 15th 16th 17th 18th 19th 20th 21st 22nd 23rd 24th 25th 26th 27th 28th 29th 30th

Coupon No.

Toyota Yaris Hatchback, 2012,silver color Galaxy Note 2 (mobile) Galaxy Note 2 (mobile) Galaxy Note 2 (mobile) Galaxy Note 2 (mobile) Galaxy Note 2 (mobile) Galaxy Note 2 (mobile) Galaxy Note 2 (mobile) Galaxy Note 2 (mobile) Galaxy Note 2 (mobile) Galaxy Note 2 (mobile) Galaxy 3S mini (mobile) Galaxy 3S mini (mobile) Galaxy 3S mini (mobile) Galaxy 3S mini (mobile) Galaxy 3S mini (mobile) Galaxy 3S mini (mobile) Galaxy 3S mini (mobile) Galaxy 3S mini (mobile) Galaxy 3S mini (mobile) Galaxy 3S mini (mobile) Camera Canon Digital Camera Canon Digital Camera Canon Digital Camera Canon Digital Camera Canon Digital Camera Canon Digital Camera Canon Digital Camera Canon Digital Camera Canon Digital

49990 27194 27460 29894 68334 80102 74589 72907 20859 28776 44743 5213 33443 31468 45079 4031 61681 4750 48437 35571 2996 84670 20828 66485 18222 78994 53095 26528 18237 4831

Name of Winner Mahmoud Mohamed Nour Al Dein Mustafa Ahmad Mohamed Ahamd Khalid Al Tawari Fawaz Ayed Mohsin Al Gahtani Meshari Abd Al Azeez Al Shati Mustafa Mohamed Mustafa Mohamed Eid Ayed Al Rashidi Badir Asham Al Azmi Bsam Mtasher Faris Mutlaq Amsha Rashid Al Azmi Wayel Mohsin Zeyad Al Shemri Abd Al Hameed Abd Al Rahman Fawzeyah Zamel Al Fodori Khalid Rashid Mohamed Sabah Shaker Al Shemeri Khalid Falih Jasir Al Mutairi Sajid Bashir Nabir Shaikh Haitham Nasir Mohamed Ali Khalid Fowieh Al Rashidi Marzouq Falih Marzouq Sanaa Talib Nasir Talal Khalaf Dawas Salboukh Hadi Mefreh Al Rashidi Jaber Naif Hasan Mousa Hasan Saadeya Ahmad Mahmoud Adel Mohamed Al Habashi Ahmad Ali Al Hajri

SYNC and MyFord Touch sold on 79% of New Ford vehicles New technology drives quality satisfaction

Nemreen Shama wins KD125,000 in NBK’s Al-Jawhara monthly draw KUWAIT: National Bank of Kuwait (NBK) announces the winner for August’s KD 125,000 Al-Jawhara monthly prize, Nemreen Nashat Najeeb Abo Shama. The draw was held under the supervision of the Ministry of Trade and Industry.

NBK re-launched Al-Jawhara account offering customers more chances to win bigger prizes; KD 5,000 weekly, KD 125,000 monthly and a grand prize of KD 250,000 quarterly draw.

Nemreen Abo Shama, the winner of August’s KD 125,000 draw expressed his happiness in winning Al Jawhara monthly prize. “Winning KD 125,000 came as a complete surprise. I truly thank NBK for its great services and offers and for always being number one in the market,” he said.

Al Jawhara account offers numerous benefits to NBK customers. Not only is it an interest-free account with regular deposit and withdrawal privileges, but also entitles account holders to enter the weekly, monthly and quarterly Al-Jawhara draws.

Each KD 50 in an Al Jawhara account entitles the customer to one chance in any of the draws. All prizes are automatically credited to the winners’ accounts the day after the draw. The more money held in your Al Jawhara account, the greater your chances of winning. Al Jawhara accounts are available to both Kuwaitis and Expats and can be opened at any one of NBK’s branches around Kuwait. For further information kindly visit www.nbk.com, or call Hala Watani at 1801801.

Al-Hilal Bank named ‘Middle East Retail Bank of the Year’ Retail Banker International Awards KUWAIT: Al-Hilal Bank was named the ‘Middle East Retail Bank of the Year’ at the recently concluded 2013 Retail Banker International Awards, besting a highly competitive field and emerging triumphant under the prestigious international award organized by market intelligence firm Timetric.

The annual Retail Banker International Awards honors retail banking excellence under the North American, European, African, Middle Eastern, Latin American, Asian and Global categories. Al-Hilal Bank was chosen as the best retail banking institution in its region due to its high level of sustainable profitable growth, exceptional professionalism, and excellent representation of industry in the eyes of the public and regulators.

“Our win at the 2013 Retail Banker International Awards was a very proud moment as it extended recognition of our industry leadership from the GCC to the entire Middle East. We have proven over the past few years how progressive Islamic banking can make a huge impact in regional and global banking and finance. Success has indeed become a habit for us and so we look forward to further raising the bar in

Islamic banking and winning again next year,” said Mohammed Jamil Berro, CEO of Al-Hilal Bank.

The annual Retail Banker International Awards recognizes and celebrates outstanding organizations within retail banking who have delivered excellence throughout the year. It is organized by Timetric, a leading provider of online data, analysis and advisory services on key financial and industry sectors. The awards event is exclusively sponsored by Fiserv, a global provider of financial services technology.

Al-Hilal Bank is fully owned by the Abu Dhabi Government. It offers Islamic Personal, Corporate, Treasury, Investment, and Wholesale banking products and services. Al-Hilal currently operates 22 branches and over 116 ATMs in the UAE as well as three overseas branches in Kazakhstan. The bank has received recognition from a number of prestigious award-giving bodies such as the Islamic Business & Finance Awards, the Global Islamic Finance Award, and the Retail Banker International Awards.

It was named the Best Retail Bank in the GCC for two consecutive years (2011 and 2012) at the Middle East Retail Banking Awards.

DUBAI: Ford SYNC voice-controlled connectivity and MyFord Touch touch screen technologies are attracting more customers and selling at a much higher rate than competitors, as MyFord Touch helps drive higher customer satisfaction with vehicle quality.

Combined, SYNC and MyFord Touch are sold on 79 percent of new 2013 Ford vehicles, up from 68 percent in 2012. This includes a MyFord Touch mix of 55 percent from 12 percent in 2012. SYNC and MyFord Touch connectivity technologies - launched in 2007 and 2010, respectively - remain a competitive advantage as customers cite voice control and touch screens as top purchase drivers much more often than competitors. “Ford has launched 60 new technologies the past few years and they are helping attract many new customers in important markets such as the coasts,” says Raj Nair, group vice president, global product development. “SYNC and MyFord Touch are key parts of our innovation strategy, and not only bring more new customers to our brand, but help deliver higher satisfaction with overall vehicle quality.”

Ford vehicles with MyFord Touch are helping improve perceptions as customers who own vehicles with the system are more satisfied with overall vehicle quality compared to those who don’t have the technology.

Quality progress Ford continues to refine SYNC and MyFord Touch. Previous upgrades already have helped improve quality responses by more than 50 percent.” We are committed to listen-

ing to our customers and improving MyFord Touch to keep drawing in new customers and increasing satisfaction with even higher quality,” says Nair.

Ford Motor Company, a global automotive industry leader based in Dearborn, Mich., manufactures or distributes automobiles across six continents. With about 177,000 employees and 65 plants worldwide, the com-

pany’s automotive brands include Ford and Lincoln. The company provides financial services through Ford Motor Credit Company.

Ford’s history in the Middle East goes back more than 60 years. The company’s local importer-dealers operate more than 155 facilities in the region and directly employ more than 7,000 people, the majority of whom are Arab Nationals.

Fortinet expands its International Partner Program DUBAI: Fortinet (NASDAQ: FTNT) - a world leader in high-performance network security recently introduced the expansion of its Partner Program for the EMEA and APAC regions. The new version of the FortiPartner Program (FPP) is designed to further align with Fortinet’s business strategy in providing end-to-end network security solutions and recognize the investment made by its channel in skilled sales and technical resources, through adapted benefits in the areas of sales, marketing and training.

As of today, Fortinet has over 10,000 Reseller Partners across the international region, with over 300 signed every quarter.

The selective recruitment of Fortinet’s Authorized Resellers is based on specific requirements, including the size of the reseller and the level of commitment it can provide to the Fortinet brand and solutions.

their approach to the market through specializations on specific Fortinet solutions. In addition to the existing FortiMail and FortiWeb specializations, Fortinet introduces the FortiWireless Accreditation, which allows resellers to obtain the partner status of FortiWireless Specialist. * Partner Teams Training - New Online Sales Training: Fortinet’s extensive training curriculum has always been available to systems engineers, supported by its vast network of Authorized Training Centers. Today, Fortinet counts over 1,000 trained FCNSPs (Fortinet Certified Network Security Professionals).

Through its new FPP, Fortinet is adding the Fortinet Certified Sales Associate (FCSA) training, which has been specifically designed for the partners’ sales teams and certifies partners on how they handle basic security selling engagements.

The new FortiPartner Program includes the following key elements: * Technology Specializations - New FortiWireless Specialization: Fortinet gives channel partners the opportunity to define

Bottom of Form * Four-Tiered Program for Resellers - New Bronze+ Level: In an effort to address Fortinet’s broad range of resellers and reward them fairly, the Bronze+ level is being intro-

duced to the FPP, in addition to the existing Bronze, Silver and Gold levels. This new Bronze+ level is designed for partners that have proven experience in delivering security solutions to small and medium-sized customers and wishes to further invest in Fortinet, thus receiving additional sales, marketing, education and support benefits in return.

“Fortinet is now recognized as one of the few top worldwide network security players.

The contribution of our channel in supporting our growth is paramount and we must constantly ensure that our partner program is in line with their needs in terms of technical expertise, business support as well as sales and marketing benefits,” said Emilio Roman, vice president of International Sales Operations at Fortinet. “ The new version of our For tiPar tner Program proves that Fortinet continues to evolve with its partners by maintaining a structured, best in-class channel ecosystem, in which resellers get rewarded on their investment in our brand, technology and products.”

THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2013

technology

Cyber attacks target NYT, Twitter websites Outage may be ‘malicious’ attack: NYT SAN JOSE: Readers who tried to click on the New York Times’ website got nothing but error messages for several hours Tuesday during the site’s second major disruption this month, and people also had trouble accessing Twitter. A hacker group calling itself the “Syrian Electronic Army” claimed responsibility. Within minutes of the attack, the New York Times quickly set up alternative websites, posting stories about chemical attacks in Syria. “Not Easy to Hide a Chemical Attack, Experts Say,” was the headline of one. The service was restored early yesterday .

“Our Web site was unavailable to users in the United States for a time on Tuesday,” the newspaper said in a post on its website. “The disruption was the result of an external attack on our domain name registrar, and we are at work on fully restoring service. We regret if this has caused you any inconvenience.” The cyberattacks come at a time when the Obama administration is trying to bolster its case for possible military action against Syria, where the administration says President Bashar Assad’s government is responsible for a deadly chemical attack on civilians. Assad denies the claim.

“Media is going down ...” warned the Syrian Electronic Army in a Twitter message before the websites stopped working, adding that it also had taken over Twitter and the Huffington Post UK Times spokeswoman Eileen Murphy said the disruption was caused by a “malicious external attack” that affected its website and email, while Twitter spokesman Jim Prosser said the viewing of images and photos was sporadically affected.

Huffington Post U.K. did not respond to requests for comment.

Both Twitter and the Times said they were resolving the attack, which actually hit an Australian company that registered their domain names, Melbourne IT. Theo Hnarakis, chief executive of Melbourne IT, a technology services and web hosting company, said the hackers entered the New York Times’ domain using the correct user name and password.

“They came in through the front door,”

Hnarakis told Australian Broadcasting Corp radio yesterday. “If you’ve got a valid user name and password ... the assumption from our systems is that you are the authorized owner and user of that domain name.” The hacker “put some information on there that brought those websites down and we’re currently investigating,” he added.

Hnarakis also told ABC that the hackers targeted Twitter and Huffington Post domains, but they were protected by optional security systems added to their accounts. Hnarakis did not immediately return a call for comment. Once Melbourne IT was notified, the company restored the affected DNS records to their previous values and locked the affected records from any further changes, company spokesman Tony Smith said earlier. It also changed the reseller’s credentials so no further changes could be made.

“We are currently reviewing our logs to see if we can obtain information on the identity of the party that has used the reseller credentials, and we will share this information with the reseller and any relevant law enforcement bodies,” Smith said in an email. “We will also review additional layers of security that we can add to our reseller accounts,” he added. Tracking the hack even further, computer forensics from security firm Renesys Corp traced the Internet protocol addresses back to the same ones as the Syrian Electronic Army’s website sea.sy, which the firm said has been hosted out of Russia since June.

A Syrian Electronic Army activist confirmed to The Associated Press that the group hijacked the Times’ and Twitter’s domains by targeting Melbourne IT. “I can’t say how, but yes we did hit Melbourne IT,” the hacker said in an email. No further details were disclosed. The Syrian Electronic Army has, in recent months, taken credit for Web attacks on media targets that it sees as sympathetic to Syria’s rebels, including prior attacks at the New York Times, along with the Washington Post, Agence France-Press, 60 Minutes, CBS News, National Public Radio, The Associated Press, AlJazeera English and the BBC. FBI spokeswoman Jenny Shearer in

Washington said the agency has no comment on Tuesday’s attack. Tuesday’s victims were hit by a technique known as “DNS hijacking,” according to Robert Masse, president of Montreal, Canadabased security startup Swift Identity. The technique works by tampering with domain name servers that translate easy-to-remember names like “nytimes.com” into the numerical Internet Protocol addresses (such as “170.149.168.130”) that computers use to route data across the Internet.

Domain name servers work as the Web’s phone books, and if attackers gains access to one, they can funnel users trying to access sites like The New York Times or Twitter to whichever rogue server they please. Masse said DNS attacks are popular because they bypass a website’s security to attack the very architecture of the Internet itself.

“Companies spend a lot of time, money, resources and defending their servers, but they forget about auxiliary infrastructure that is integrally connected to their networks, like DNS.” Cybersecurity experts said hijacking attacks are preventable if website administrators are meticulous about what code they bring into their sites.

“As this incident illustrates, any time you integrate third-party code into your site, it presents a new attack vector for hackers. You must not only ensure your own code is secure, but you must also rely upon third parties’ security practices,” said Aaron Titus, a privacy officer and attorney at New York based privacy software firm Identity Finder.

Michael Fey, a chief technology officer at Santa Clara, California-based cybersecurity firm McAfee, said that as long as media organizations play a critical role as influencers and critics, they will continue to be targets of cyberattacks. He said the battle tactics are broad, from denial of service attacks, to targeted attacks using social engineering and to deploying information-gathering Trojans. “Regardless of technology or tactics deployed, we should expect to see more of these attacks,” he said. —AP

STOCKHOLM: A woman communicates with her family abroad by using the Internet telephone system Skype. —AFP

Skype marks 10 years of shrinking the world STOCKHOLM: If David Huang had left his native Taiwan for Sweden a generation ago, he would have taken a giant leap into the unknown. Now, with the help of Skype, the 35year-old businessman is able to reach relatives from his Stockholm home as easily as if they lived around the corner, and not half a world away. “Skype has made work easier, but more important than that, it has enabled me to talk to my family whenever I feel like it,” he said.

Internet messaging service Skype, which celebrates its 10th anniversary today, has shrunk the world in profound ways that few could have foreseen in 2003. A total of 300 million users make two billion minutes of online video calls a day. And in the surest sign of success, the brand name has been turned into a verb - a rare distinction shared by the likes of Xerox and Google.

In another sign of success, Skype has spawned competitors with a host of similar technologies, most importantly Apple’s FaceTime. But revolutionary as Skype’s technology may seem, it didn’t start completely from scratch but built on existing communication technologies. “We already had cheap international calling using the Internet,” said Martin Geddes, a leading Britain-based telecommunications consultant.

“The significance of Skype was and is the ‘Wow!’ experience of high definition voice, and the sense of ‘being there’ with your distant friends and family in a way not possible before.” Skype was launched in late August 2003 by two Scandinavian technology entrepreneurs, Nik las Zennstroem of Sweden and Janus Friis of Denmark, who expanded on existing peer-to-peer networking technologies.

Skype, which allows its online users to make high-quality calls to each other anywhere in the world for free, quickly took off, bringing the world closer together in an age when globalisation and intercontinental travel pulled more families apart than at perhaps any other time in history. “I’m touched by the ways people use Skype, from an active duty soldier meeting his baby girl for the first time... to just the simple, extraordinarily ordinary instances,” said Elisa Steele, Skype chief marketing officer.

These simple instances, she said, include “a mum and daughter being able to see and talk to one another in a way that feels like they’re just sitting across the kitchen table from each other. Our greatest achievement lies in these moments.” While Skype helps people to stay in touch with those they already know, it also enables new connections to be formed. —AFP

Universities look online to navigate an uncertain future Measured strictly by size, the University of Florida’s recent Fundamentals of Human Nutrition class was a resounding success. The class, offered this past spring, was UF’s first foray into the online trend of massive open online courses, or MOOCs. The class was open to anyone interested, from around the world, and more than 69,000 students signed up. For comparison purposes, UF as a university has a total enrollment of about 50,000 a year.

In other ways, though, UF’s MOOC - and the track record of MOOCs in general - is less impressive. With the courses generally offered free of charge (hence the “open” part of their title) some inevitably sign up simply out of curiosity, or because it allows them to listen to the lectures of big-name professors at far-away schools such as Harvard or MIT. Students often have no real intention of doing the work. Completion rates are generally abysmal, with more than 90 percent of students dropping out. At UF, tens of thousands of students registered but didn’t even watch one class presentation. Also, if stadium-sized online classes are indeed a glimpse into the future of higher education (and many have suggested they are), how are universities supposed to stay financially afloat when they’re giving away their product for free? Another issue: MOOCs usually don’t include any college credit, so how useful can they be for students who want a credential that is recognized and valued by employers?

The ongoing debate over MOOCs is a microcosm of America’s higher education industry, which is now at an Internet-created crossroads. Across the country, online learning allows schools to expand their reach, but it is also threatening the traditional business model of how to deliver knowledge and also how much to charge for it.

Across all sectors of the industry - public, private, and for-profit - there is the sense that online learning offers the greatest opportunity for future growth. For-profit universities such as the University of Phoenix and Strayer University were the first to truly embrace online education, and their revenues soared as a result. Between 1998 and 2008, enrollment in US for-profit colleges jumped by 236 percent, according to the independent advocacy group Education Trust.

Aside from their early mastery of the online platform, the for-profits excelled at marketing to adult, nontraditional students, as well as tailoring the educational experience to their unique needs. The University of Phoenix, for example, compressed its classes into five or sixweek mini-semesters, with the idea that it’s easier for busy adults to absorb one fast-paced class than to juggle four classes in a full-length college semester.

More recently, though, for-profits have been criticized for using overly-aggressive, carsalesman-like selling tactics to recruit students.

The schools often charge higher tuition than public colleges, and the student loan default rates at for-profit schools are dramatically higher than at other types of colleges.

The combination of bad publicity and stricter government oversight has slowed forprofits’ recent growth. In 2011, Fort Lauderdale, Fla.-based Keiser University took the unusual step of switching its status from for-profit to

nonprofit, but the school still had to contend with a Florida Attorney General’s office investigation that began before the switch. Keiser last year agreed to a settlement with Attorney General Pam Bondi in which the school would offer free retraining to thousands of former students, while also changing its policies to add new consumer protections.

At the same time that for-profits have struggled, traditional public and private colleges have aggressively expanded their menu of fully online degree programs. But some schools, such as the University of Miami, have been hesitant to join the mad dash toward offering fully online degrees. UF has a staggering array of graduate-level online degrees - 70 in all.

This fall, UM will unveil its first online degree: a bachelor’s in general studies that targets adult learners who have some college experience and want to get enough credits to finally graduate. “Overall, UM sees itself as coming cautiously to this party, and wanting to look very carefully at what the implications are for making the shift to online learning,” said Rebecca Fox, UM’s dean of continuing and international education.

For UM, which prides itself on small classes and high interaction between students and faculty, the task of teaching online presents a challenge to its whole institutional identity. Ray Schroeder, director of the Center for Online Learning, Research and Service at the University of Illinois-Springfield, says universities are now facing the same decisions that confronted the music and newspaper industries years ago when the Internet turned their whole operating structure upside down.

“Colleges and universities should be excited - this is an important change and movement in higher education,” Schroeder said, although he warned that online learning means colleges will face increased, and tougher, competition. Schroeder noted that wellknown Harvard business professor Clayton Christensen predicts that about half of US colleges and universities will go bankrupt during the next 15 years. “There certainly will be a shakeout,” Schroeder said.

Davie, Fla.-based Nova Southeastern University was an early pioneer in the realm of online learning - the school began offering an online master’s degree program back in 1986.

Limited by the technology of the times, that master’s degree in computer-based learning was entirely text-based, with instructors typing out a lesson and students responding with typed questions. Flash-forward to 2010, and Nova had advanced tools such as “interactive teleconferencing,” which it used to train doctors in Iraq on emergency pediatric procedures. In a room located thousands of miles away, the Iraqi students practiced their techniques on plastic dummies, while Nova instructors at the Davie campus virtually looked over their shoulder online.

Where will things go from here? Perhaps the future will be something like the fully

online (and bargain-priced) bachelor’s degree programs that UF will launch next year. State lawmakers in April approved a new initiative where UF will offer online bachelor’s degrees priced at no more than 75 percent of the university’s face-to-face tuition. With Floridians increasingly struggling to pay for college tuition, state leaders have pitched online classes as a way to rein in the cost of getting a degree.

But W Andrew McCollough, associate provost for teaching and technology at UF, warns that online classes don’t automatically solve the college-affordability problem. “There is no inexpensive way to develop quality online learning,” McCollough said. “If you’re going to maintain the quality you insist on, you need scale.”

That means online classes of 200 students, not 20, McCollough said. Regarding MOOCs, McCollough views the gigantic courses as an initiative to freely spread the knowledge of the nation’s best professors worldwide - but without awarding college credit. Others think MOOCs will eventually shift to a for-credit model, thereby allowing students to take a sizable chunk of their college courses for free. But for

now, only a handful of colleges nationwide grant transfer credits for a completed MOOC. At some institutions, the online classes taken for college credit are actually slightly more expensive than traditional face-to-face classes.

That’s because the schools, in an effort to offset the cost of developing online courses, tack on an extra online-learning fee. Florida International University’s online fee is $160 for a standard three-credit course, added to the normal tuition of $615 per class. Such fees haven’t slowed the popularity of online learning at the University of Central Florida, where an astounding 74 percent of students take at least one online course, Even with the fees, President John Hitt argues that the online revolution is saving students money.

Thanks to online courses, Hitt said, UCF is no longer constrained by the number of classrooms available at its Orlando campus. As a result, the university can offer more of the classes that students need to graduate on time preventing students from having to stick around for an additional year. “That’s easily

$10,000 or so for a year,” Hitt said. “That’s a huge savings.” UCF has built a national reputation as a leader in online education, and Hitt says he’s “very optimistic” about what the future will hold.

Administrators say online classes - perhaps surprisingly - are helping enliven the school’s traditional campus. Most UCF students aren’t fully online - they take a mix of online and faceto-face classes. But the scheduling flexibility of online classes has given students more time to hang out on campus and participate in student clubs or other activities, administrators say. Online classes have also transformed the teaching practices of traditional face-to-face classes. At UCF, it’s common for professors teaching classroom courses to nevertheless use the online learning management system to post interactive activities for students. The standard “chalk and talk” lecture approach is fast disappearing, said Joel Hartman, UCF’s vice provost for information technologies and resources. “There aren’t that many pure faceto-face courses left anymore,” Hartman said.

When UCF students rate their courses at the end of the semester, blended learning classes (combining in-person and online instruction) have received the highest marks.

Fully online classes, and then traditional classroom courses, rank the next highest in student satisfaction. “It’s not that face-to-face classroom is low, it’s that these others have risen to the top,” Hartman said.

At Florida International University, history professor Brian Peterson teaches both online and traditional classes. In his face-toface classes, he also uses the online teaching platform Peterson might give a 15-minute lecture and then break up the students into research teams, or they may evaluate each other’s written papers online. “What we’re doing in class is interacting. ... It’s making face-to-face classes better,” Peterson said. Still, Peterson has mixed emotions about the rise of fully online classes. He said he has noticed that students in his online classes seem less engaged (with less-frequent attendance, for example) and that they often sign up for online classes assuming the course will be easier in that format.

The course does end up being easier online, Peterson said, if only because he can’t push these unmotivated students as far. “You have to set the bar lower online if you want to keep an acceptable number of students,” Peterson said. “Yeah, it bothers me, but I think that my job is to do the best I can with the circumstances that I have.”

Another issue is whether online education is the right fit for all types of students.

Some research has suggested that community college students - who are often unprepared for college-level work when they enroll - are particularly ill-suited for online courses. A 2011 Columbia University study found that community college students had an 82 percent chance of completing an online course - compared to 90 percent for face-to-face courses. In remedial classes, the gap grew even larger, with 85 percent of

face-to-face students succeeding, but only 74 percent of online students completing the course. Ruth Ann Balla, who heads Miami Dade College’s Virtual College, said online students are about 5 percent more likely to either fail or drop out of an MDC course. To help students succeed online, the college caps its classes at 30 students, and MDC designs its classes to keep students engaged: There are lots of discussion groups and group projects, and assignments are due every week instead of only at the end of the semester. The college will also call students who are not regularly logging in.

“We, by intention, are very aware and really track what’s happening in the online classes,” Balla said. About 10,000 MDC students are taking online courses each semester, and the college offers 16 different online degree or certificate programs. But MDC isn’t offering any MOOCs, Balla said, in part because of concerns that its students would struggle in a class that has little to no interaction with faculty. Balla also isn’t sold on the whole MOOC concept in general. “I have to question: Why do you have 1,000 or 5,000 or 50,000 people in a course when fewer than 10 percent are finishing?” she said. “What’s the point?”

Investors are clearly more bullish on the future of MOOCs. The massive courses have generated considerable Silicon Valley buzz, and Coursera - the MOOC provider that partners with UF as well as more than 80 other schools - has had no trouble raising money, even though the firm has yet to turn a profit.

In a span of about 15 months, Coursera has raised roughly $65 million.

MOOC users in some instances rave about the experience. The website Coursetalk allows the public to search for MOOCs based on subject area or student reviews. There are several other similar websites, such as Course Buffet and Class Central - all of them aiming to become the Yelp.com of the MOOC universe. Of the hundreds of courses listed on Coursetalk, the top-rated MOOC is “An Introduction to Interactive Programming in Python” at Rice University.

Closer to home, South Miami-Dade student Max Goldberg is quite satisfied with the UM MOOC he took in AP Calculus. Max, 17, also took the AP course in person at his high school, Belen Jesuit, but he credits the UM course with helping him brush up on the topic before sitting for the actual AP test.

Thanks in part to the UM course, Max scored a 3 on the exam - enough to earn him college credit at some schools.

In keeping with its university philosophy of smaller classes, UM’s MOOCs are somewhat smaller than what you’ll find at other colleges. Max’s class, for example, had hundreds, not thousands, of students. Although Max praised the UM class as interesting and engaging (with an instructor who answered questions and even gave out his phone number), the teen still favors a traditional classroom. When taking classes online, he said, it’s too easy to lose focus and start wasting time surfing the Web. “I’m more of a fan of face-to-face,” he said. Looking ahead to college, Max said, online classes “would not be my first option.” —MCT

THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2013

H E A LT H & S C I E N C E

Freeze-dry sperm bank for endangered animals No human application now

WELLINGTON: A woman checking the price tag beside a shelf of Dumex baby formula, which uses the New Zealand dairy Fonterra as its raw material supplier, at a store in Yichang, in central China’s Hubei province. Tests show a contaminant found in Fonterra milk products that sparked global recalls was not the deadly botulism bug and there was never any risk to the public, New Zealand officials said yesterday. —AFP

Fonterra milk scare ‘a false alarm’ WELLINGTON: A botulism scare that sparked global recalls of Fonterra milk products was a false alarm and there was never any danger to consumers, New Zealand officials said yesterday after new tests.

The crisis led to infant formula being taken off shelves from China to Saudi Arabia earlier this month and damaged New Zealand’s “clean, green” reputation in key Asian markets. However, New Zealand’s Ministry of Primary Industries said a barrage of tests ordered after it sounded the alarm had confirmed the contaminant was not the potentially fatal clostridium botulinum, but a milder bug called clostridium sporogenes.

“It is therefore not capable of producing botulism-causing toxins,” the ministry said in a statement. “There are no known food-safety issues associated with clostridium sporogenes, although at elevated levels certain strains may be associated with food spoilage.”

It said the initial tests had pointed to botulism contamination but subsequent checks on a further 195 samples in laboratories in New Zealand and the United States showed no sign of the bacteria.

“We are very, very relieved that this is not a food-safety issue and that none of the children in the world were affected by this event,” Fonterra chief executive Theo Spierings told reporters. The dairy industry accounts for about a quarter of New Zealand’s exports and ministry acting director-general Scott Gallacher said officials had been right to issue a public warning early.

“We needed to act on what we knew at that time,” he said. “The information we had

then said there was a food-safety risk to consumers and we moved quickly to address it.”

Spierings, who rushed to Beijing at the height of the crisis to apologise to Chinese consumers, agreed, saying quick recalls and transparency on the issue had helped reassure anxious parents.

“Not many people would have taken this drastic step but for us, even the risk that one child in the world (falls sick) is unacceptable,” he said. He said the fact that Fonterra effectively “blew the whistle on ourselves” would help restore its image in places such as China, where the baby formula market is worth about NZ$3.0 billion ($2.4 billion) a year to New Zealand.

The Fonterra chief said the tests that incorrectly identified botulism, sparking the global recalls, were carried out by a New Zealand government agency called AgResearch.

Asked if the dairy giant was considering legal action against the agency after the scare saw it scrambling to maintain its international reputation, he replied: “It’s too early to say.”

Spierings also refused to say whether a senior executive, Gary Romano, who quit after the recalls, and two other managers placed on leave, would be reinstated.

Fonterra faced criticism from the New Zealand government over its handling of the crisis and Spierings said reviews by officials and the company were still being carried out.

The company is sensitive to contamination issues after a 2008 scandal when six children died and 300,000 fell ill after a Chinese company it part-owned illegally laced milk with the chemical melamine.—AFP

TOKYO: Japanese scientists have launched a sperm bank for endangered animals that uses freeze-drying technology they hope could one day help humans recreate animal populations on other planets, the chief researcher said yesterday. The team at Kyoto University’s Institute of Laborator y Animals Graduate School of Medicine successfully preserved sperm taken from two endangered primates and a type of giraffe, associate professor Takehito Kaneko said.

They mixed the sperm with special preservation liquid and freeze-dried it in a way that allows them to store it at just 4 degrees Celsius (39 Fahrenheit), Kaneko said.

The temperature is much higher-and less energy intensive-than conventional ways of storing sperm.

Kaneko and his researchers have previously successfully freeze-dried sperm from rats and mice without the use of bulky liquid nitrogen equipment, and were able to prove the viability of the spermatozoa up to five years later.

“In this way, scientists will be able to obtain genetic information more easily, which means we could help to preserve endangered animal species,” Kaneko said.

Kaneko is quick to point out that there is presently no human application for the technology, but adds it is an avenue that may be explored in the future.

“This may sound like a dream, but we could in future take genetic information into space,” he said, adding it may allow for the transfer of material to help establish animal populations on future colonies.

More immediately, the technology makes it possible to store sperm at room temperature for short periods, meaning it would be safe in the event of power failures caused by a natural disaster, for example. A challenge now, said Kaneko,

is to develop a way to apply the method to the other side of the procreative equation. “Now we have to use fresh eggs or those frozen conventionally,” he said. “We are studying methods to freeze-dry eggs as well.”—AFP

KYOTO: This handout picture released by Kyoto University associate professor Takehito Kaneko yesterday shows a rat which delivered oocytes, or eggs, fertilized with freeze-dried sperm stored for five years in ampules , at Kyoto University’s Institute of Laboratory Animals Graduate School of Medicine in western Japan.

Japanese scientists have launched a sperm bank for endangered animals that uses freeze-drying technology they hope could one day help humans recreate animal populations on other planets. — AFP

Scientist operates colleague’s brain from across campus NEW YORK: Scientists said yesterday they have achieved the first human-to-human mind meld, with one researcher sending a brain signal via the Internet to control the hand motion of a colleague sitting across the Seattle campus of the University of Washington.

The feat is less a conceptual advance than another step in the years-long progress that researchers have made toward brain-computer interfaces, in which electrical signals generated from one brain are translated by a computer into commands that can move a mechanical arm or a computer cursor - or, in more and more studies, can affect another brain. Much of the research has been aimed at helping paralyzed patients regain some power of movement, but bioethicists have raised concerns about more controversial uses.

In February, for instance, scientists led by Duke University Medical Center’s Miguel Nicolelis used electronic sensors to capture the thoughts of a rat in a lab in Brazil and sent via Internet to the brain of a rat in the United States. The sec-

ond rat received the thoughts of the first, mimicking its behavior. And electrical activity in the brain of a monkey at Duke, in North Carolina, was recently sent via the Internet, controlling a robot arm in Japan.

That raised dystopian visions of battalions of animal soldiers - or even human ones - whose brains are remotely controlled by others. Some of Duke’s brain-computer research, though not this study, received funding from the Pentagon’s Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency or DARPA. For the new study, funded by the US Army Research Office and other non-military federal agencies, UW professor of computer science and engineering Rajesh Rao, who has studied brain-computer interfaces for more than a decade, sat in his lab on Aug 12 wearing a cap with electrodes hooked up to an electroencephalography machine, which reads electrical activity in the brain.

He looked at a computer screen and played a simple video game but only mentally. At one point, he imagined moving his right hand to fire a cannon, making sure not to

actually move his hand. The EEG electrodes picked up the brain signals of the “fire cannon!” thought and transmitted them to the other side of the UW campus. There, Andrea Stocco of UW’s Institute for Learning & Brain Sciences was wearing a purple swim cap with a device, called a transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) coil, placed directly over his left motor cortex, which controls the right hand’s movement.

When the move-right-hand signal arrived from Rao, Stocco involuntarily moved his right index finger to push the space bar on the keyboard in front of him, as if firing the cannon. He said the feeling of his hand moving involuntarily was like that of a nervous tic. “It was both exciting and eerie to watch an imagined action from my brain get translated into actual action by another brain,” Rao said. Other experts suggested the feat was not particularly impressive. It’s possible to capture one of the few easy-to-recognize EEG signals and send “a simple shock ... into the other investigator’s head,” said Andrew Schwartz of the University of Pittsburgh, who was not part of

the research. Rao agreed that what his colleague jokingly called a “Vulcan mind meld” reads only simple brain signals, not thoughts, and cannot be used on anyone unknowingly. But it might one day be harnessed to allow an airline pilot on the ground help someone land a plane whose own pilot is incapacitated. The research has not been published in a scientific journal, something university spokeswoman Doree Armstrong admits is “a bit unusual.”

But she said the team knew other researchers are working on this same thing and they felt “time was of the essence.” Besides, she said, they have a video of the experiment which “they felt it could stand on its own.” The absence of a scientific publication that other researchers could scrutinize did not sit well with some of the nation’s leading braincomputer-interface experts.

All four of those reached praised UW’s Rao, but some were uneasy with the announcement and one called it “mostly a publicity stunt.”

The experiment was not independently verified. — Reuters

Cheating the hungry: Corruption in India’s food scheme BERLIN: German Health Minister Daniel Bahr speaks with German Family Minister Kristina Schroeder prior to the start of the German weekly cabinet meeting at the chancellery in Berlin yesterday. Bahr aims at a complete freedom of choice between statutory and private health insurance, and hits on sharp contradiction of the opposition. — AFP

California fire prompts unhealthy air warnings GROVELAND: The giant wildfire burning at the edge of Yosemite National Park has not only destroyed buildings and threatened water supplies, electricity and sequoias, it has also unleashed a smoky haze that has worsened air quality more than 100 miles away in Nevada. The plume from the Rim Fire in California triggered emergency warnings in the Reno and Carson City area. Schoolchildren were kept inside for the second time in a week, people went to hospitals complaining of eye and throat irritation and officials urged people to avoid all physical activity outdoors.

“It’s five hours away,” said 22-year-old bartender Renee Dishman in disbelief after learning that the source of the haze was more than 150 miles away. “I can’t run. I can’t breathe. It makes me sneeze.”

The Rim Fire, so far, has burned through 280 square miles, destroyed 23 structures and threatened water supplies, hydroelectric power and giant sequoias. On Tuesday night, authorities said the blaze was 20 percent contained. In Nevada, the biggest impact of the Rim Fire was on the air. The air quality index briefly surpassed the rare “hazardous” level east of Lake Tahoe before improving slightly.

It hovered around the next-most serious stage of “very unhealthy” for all populations in the Reno-Sparks area 30 miles north. Dennis Fry, a Reno auto body specialist for nearly 30 years, remembered smoke this thick when he worked on a logging crew and helped fight fires in Oregon during the 1970s.

“But never in Reno, not this bad,” he said.

“You could actually see the smoke inside my

body shop.” Everyone should avoid all physical activity outdoors when the air quality index reaches “hazardous,” considered “emergency conditions,” the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection said on its website.

“People with heart or lung disease, older adults and children should remain indoors and keep activity levels low.”

Renown Regional Medical Center in Reno has experienced a “slight increase” in emergency room visits as a result of the smoke, said Jennifer Allen, the hospital’s clinical nursing supervisor. “Patients are experiencing shortness of breath, eye and throat irritation, cough and headache due to the heavy smoke and poor air quality,” she said, adding that people with asthma and other respiratory ailments were most affected.

The pollution levels are among the worst ever recorded for small particulates around Carson City in the state’s air monitoring records dating to 2000, according to JoAnn Kittrell, public information manager for Nevada Division of Environmental Protection.

The air quality briefly moved into the “hazardous” level in some areas on Friday as well, she said. “It’s very unusual,” she said. “We just happen to be in the direct path of the plume from Yosemite.” The previous peak reading in Reno came on Friday when the air quality index closed in on the “very unhealthy” stage.

Schoolchildren were kept indoors during recess, high school football practices and scrimmages were canceled through the weekend and an annual air show at Lake Tahoe was canceled due to low visibility.—AP

NEW DELHI: The Indian government’s new $19-billion food scheme to feed two thirds of the population, as well as the ruling party’s political fortunes, depend in large part on hundreds of thousands of shopkeepers such as Brij Kishore.

The 52-year-old has been running his Fair Price Shop, a government food dispensary, for more than 30 years from a one-storey warehouse in the northern district of Jahangirpuri in New Delhi.

Rough-hewn sacks of wheat, rice and sugar, which are sold for as little as two rupees (3.0 US cents) per kilo, are piled ceiling high, bearing the markings of government warehouses in neighbouring Haryana state.

Several bags are emptied out on the floor by Kishore’s assistant, who in between serving customers with a large scoop, kicks back the tide of grain with his dirty sandals.

Under new legislation passed in the lower house of the national parliament on Monday, about 800 million people will be entitled to five kilograms per month of subsidised grains from shops like these. But the current distribution system is dogged by complaints from customers that they are routinely shortchanged on their rations by shopkeepers, who then sell the extra grain on the black market to help compensate for their own thin earnings.

“We are working on a non-profit basis,” complains Kishore, estimating his monthly income at about 8,000-10,000 rupees (less than $150). “But it’s forced on us because we don’t have a choice.”

As a result, corruption “happens everywhere... In some places, it’s worse than others,” he says.

The scheme-which will add 230 billion rupees ($3.8 billion) to India’s annual food subsidy costs-is designed to tackle deep-rooted malnutrition which still afflicts an estimated 42 percent of Indian children.

Deaths caused by starvation are rare but still a reality in contemporary India and images of stunted and malnourished children have become a source of shame for the government of an aspir-

ing superpower. But as Kishore’s customers leave his shop, often carrying one large sack by hand and balancing another on their heads, they are eager to share their frustrations with the public distribution system. Santosh, a 35year-old mother who feeds four children and an unemployed husband at home, says she is routinely deprived of 10 kilograms of grains which she says are then sold on the black market.

“We have been getting 20 kilos of wheat and five kilos of rice and the wheat is full of dirt,” she spits.

Her complaints are echoed by others, who say that their grievances go unacknowledged by local administrators. Kishore admits that he sells the “surplus” rations left behind each month, which he says is a necessary addition to his meagre income.

He cuts a dejected figure as he explains how the commission he receives for selling 35 kilos of produce to a client is about 12 rupees and it hasn’t budged in years. The shopkeeper is

part of the world’s biggest food distribution system for the poor, which already covers 100 million “below poverty line” families and another 140 million “above poverty line” families, official data shows.

Any Indian family can apply for a ration card at present and receive 35 kilos of subsidised grain, an official in the food ministry explained, adding that the new legislation will cover 67 percent of the total population.

“So the coverage will be more targeted,” he said. As well as changing the criteria for the entitlements-hand-outs will be mostly per capita instead of per family-the prices at Fair Price Shops will be reduced to as little as one rupee per kilogram.

Indian consumers have been reeling from rocketing food prices for most of the government’s term and voters have told pollsters that the cost of basic goods is foremost among their concerns ahead of elections next year.

But the popularity of the pro-

NEW DELHI: An Indian resident uses a bicycle to carry a sack of rice he got at the Fair Price Shop (background), a government food dispensary owned by Brij Kishore in the northern district of Jahangirpuri of New Delhi recently. The Indian government’s new $19-billion food scheme to feed two thirds of the population, as well as the ruling party’s political fortunes, depend in large part on hundreds of thousands of shopkeepers like Brij Kishore. —AFP

gramme, which was temporarily activated as an executive order by the president in July, will depend on the inefficient national network of public granaries, transporters and 500,000 ration shops. One widely quoted study published in 2005 by the Planning Commission, a government advisory body, found that 58 percent of grains in the Public Distribution System (PDS) failed to reach their intended destinations. Ashok Gulati, chairman of government’s Commission for Agriculture Cost and Prices (CACP), describes the PDS as like “carrying a bucket full of water that is 40 percent broken.” “The biggest challenge is not restructuring, the biggest challenge is plugging the leakages,” he said.

An additional five million tonnes of publicly procured food grains will be pumped into the PDS to meet the new demand in the current year.

Arvind Subramanian, an economist, wrote recently that “it’s as if an emaciated, old man struggling to carry a load of stones is asked to carry another load because that will strengthen his muscles.” Other recent surveys have found improvements in the system, however, with the central state of Chhattisgarh emerging as an example for the rest of the country on how to make changes.

A large study in nine states in 2011 found that 97 percent of eligible respondents received their quota there, compared with just 18 percent in impoverished northern Bihar.

Economist Jean Dreze, who advised the government on the legislation in the early stages, agrees it could have forced more reforms of the PDS. The fact the system it is not computerised he says is a “scandal.” But he says people will be more aware of their entitlements and the system will make better use of the millions of tonnes of food grains which the government is already committed to buying from farmers. “The state governments are coming under a lot of pressure. I think there’s a chance that it will lead to huge improvements in the effectiveness of the PDS,” he said.—AFP

THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2013

H E A LT H & S C I E N C E

Some school districts quit healthier lunch program WASHINGTON: After just one year, some schools around the country are dropping out of the healthier new federal lunch program, complaining that so many students turned up their noses at meals packed with whole grains, fruits and vegetables that the cafeterias were losing money.

Federal officials say they don’t have exact numbers but have seen isolated reports of schools cutting ties with the $11 billion National School Lunch Program, which reimburses schools for meals served and gives them access to lower-priced food. Districts that rejected the program say the reimbursement was not enough to offset losses from students who began avoiding the lunch line and bringing food from home or, in some cases, going hungry. “Some of the stuff we had to offer, they wouldn’t eat,” said Catlin, Ill., Superintendent Gary Lewis, whose district saw a 10 to 12 percent drop in lunch sales, translating to $30,000 lost under the program last year. “So you sit there and watch the kids, and you know they’re hungry at the end of the day, and that led to some behavior and some lack of attentiveness.” In upstate New York, a few districts have quit the program, including the Schenectady-area Burnt Hills Ballston Lake system, whose five lunchrooms ended the year $100,000 in the red. Near Albany, Voorheesville Superintendent Teresa Thayer Snyder said her district lost $30,000 in the first three months. The program didn’t even make it through the school year after students repeatedly complained about the small portions and apples and pears went from the tray to the trash untouched. Districts that leave the program are free to develop their own guidelines. Voorheesville’s chef began serving such dishes as salad topped with flank steak and crumbled cheese, pasta with chicken and mushrooms, and a panini with chicken, red peppers and cheese.

In Catlin, soups and fish sticks will return to the menu this year, and the hamburger lunch will come with yogurt and a banana - not one or the other, like last year.

Nationally, about 31 million students participated in the guidelines that took effect last fall under the 2010 Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act. Dr. Janey Thornton, deputy undersecretary for USDA’s Food, Nutrition and Consumer Services, which oversees the program, said she is aware of reports of districts quitting but is still optimistic about the program’s longterm prospects.

“The vast majority of schools across the country are meeting the updated meal standards successfully, which is so important to help all our nation’s children lead healthier

lives,” Thornton said.

“Many of these children have never seen or tasted some of the fruits and vegetables that are being served before, and it takes a while to adapt and learn,” she said.

The agency had not determined how many districts have dropped out, Thornton said, cautioning that “the numbers that have threatened to drop and the ones that actually have dropped are quite different.”

The School Nutrition Association found that 1 percent of 521 district nutrition directors surveyed over the summer planned to drop out of the program in the 2013-14 school year and about 3 percent were considering the move. Not every district can afford to quit. The National School Lunch Program provides cash reimbursements for each meal served: about $2.50 to $3 for free and reduced-priced meals and about 30 cents for full-price meals. That takes the option of quitting off the table for schools with large numbers of poor youngsters. The new guidelines set limits on calories and salt, phase in more whole grains and require that fruit and vegetables be served daily. A typical elementary school meal under the program consisted of whole-wheat cheese pizza, baked sweet potato fries, grape tomatoes with low-fat ranch dip, applesauce and 1 percent milk.

In December, the Agriculture Department, responding to complaints that kids weren’t getting enough to eat, relaxed the 2-ounceper-day limit on grains and meats while keeping the calorie limits.

At Wallace County High in Sharon Springs, Kan., football player Callahan Grund said the revision helped, but he and his friends still weren’t thrilled by the calorie limits (750-850 for high school) when they had hours of calorie-burning practice after school.

The idea of dropping the program has come up at board meetings, but the district is sticking with it for now. “A lot of kids were resorting to going over to the convenience store across the block from school and kids were buying junk food,” the 17-year-old said.

“It was kind of ironic that we’re downsizing the amount of food to cut down on obesity but kids are going and getting junk food to fill that hunger.”

To make the point, Grund and his schoolmates starred last year in a music video parody of the pop hit “We Are Young.” Instead, they sang, “We Are Hungry.” It was funny, but Grund’s mother, Chrysanne Grund, said her anxiety was not. “I was quite literally panicked about how we would get enough food in these kids during the day,” she said, “so we resorted to packing lunches most days.” — AP

US delays deadline for finalizing health plans Technology issues said to be responsible WASHINGTON: The Obama administration has delayed a step crucial to the launch of the new healthcare law, the signing of final agreements with insurance plans to be sold on federal health insurance exchanges starting Oct 1. The US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) notified insurance companies on Tuesday that it would not sign final agreements with the plans between Sept 5 and 9, as originally anticipated, but would wait until mid-September instead, according to insurance industry sources.

Nevertheless, Joanne Peters, a spokeswoman for HHS, said the department remains “on track to open” the marketplaces on time on Oct 1.

The reason for the hold-up was unclear. Sources attributed it to technology problems involving the display of insurance products within the federal information technology system.

Peters said only that the government was responding to “feedback” from the companies, “providing additional flexibility and time to handle technical requests.” Coming at a time when state and federal officials are still working to overcome challenges to the information technology systems necessary to make the exchanges work, some experts say that even a small delay could jeopardize the start of the six-month open enrollment period. US officials have said repeatedly that the marketplaces, which are the centerpiece of President Barack Obama’s signature healthcare reform law, would begin on time.

But the Oct. 1 deadline has already begun to falter at the state level, with Oregon announcing plans to scale back the launch of its own marketplace and California saying it would consider a similar move.

Tuesday’s notification by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the HHS agency spearheading marketplace development, affects insurance plans that would be sold in federal exchanges that the administration is setting up in 34 of the 50 US states. The remaining 16 states, including Oregon and California, are setting up their own marketplaces.

“It makes me wonder if open enrollment can start on Oct 1,” said a former administration official who worked to implement Obama’s healthcare reform. “But having everything ready on Oct 1 is not a critical issue. What matters to people is Jan. 1, which is when the coverage is supposed to start. If that were delayed, it would be a substantive setback.” Obama’s Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is expected to extend federally subsidized health coverage to an estimated 7 million uninsured Americans in 2014 through the marketplaces. But insurance plans must be qualified to

meet specific standards if they are to be sold on the exchanges. And each insurer must sign a contract with the federal government.

The new timetable for qualified plan agreements is the latest in a series of delays for Obamacare. The most significant came in early July when the White House and the Treasury Department announced a one-year delay in a major Obamacare provision that would have required employers with at least 50 full-time workers to provide health insurance or pay a penalty beginning in 2014.

Legal and political opposition from Republicans and their conservative allies have already fragmented Obamacare’s original vision.

Only about half the states have opted to expand Medicaid program for the poor to uninsured families living below the poverty level, and Republicans in Congress have denied nearly $1 bil-

lion in new implementation funding this year alone. The Government Accountability Office cautioned in June that the law known as Obamacare could miss the Oct 1 enrollment deadline because of missed deadlines and delays in several areas including the certification of health plans for sale on the exchanges. Another US watchdog, the HHS Office of the Inspector General, warned earlier this month that the government was months behind testing data security for the federal data hub that represents the information technology backbone of the new marketplaces.

The state of Oregon has already scaled back the Oct 1 debut of its own healthcare exchange by preventing state residents from signing up for coverage on their own until mid-October. California said last week that it, too, would consider a soft launch of its exchange if tests show it is not ready to accommodate wide public access. —Reuters

LYNWOOD: Public school student Julio Valenzuela, 11, smiles as he gets a Measles, Mumps and Rubella vaccination (MMR), at a free immunization clinic for students before the start of the school year, in Lynwood, California yesterday. Nurses are immunizing children in preparation for the first day of public school on Sept 3. The clinic offers the mandatory vaccinations for school children against diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, polio, hepatitis B, MMR and chickenpox. — AFP

THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2013

W H AT ’ S O N

SEND US YOUR INSTAGRAM PICS

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hat’s more fun than clicking a beautiful picture? Sharing it with others! 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

Greetings

ACK announces 2013 fall semester

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any, many happy returns of the day to Shaikh Mastan Valli and Father Shaikh Hussaini, Mother Ramiza, Wife Razia Banu, Shaheen and Shahida, Mohd Habeebullah, Tanveer, Mahaboob Basha, Mohammad Valli, Mahaboob Bee, Shakila, Mogul Ghouse, Ahmad, Aslam, Kalim. Best wishes from near and dear ones from Kuwait and India.

Announcements

Enjoy the taste of true Espresso at Vergnano Cafe at Olympia Complex

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he superior quality of the blends comes from the meticulous selection of the best raw materials available, and from an extraordinary production process. Cafe Vergnano is the first to introduce an innovation that brings all the passion and pleasure of the perfect

espresso to everyday life at home.

Espresso is now available in Kuwait, through Al-Sanabel Al-Thahabiya Est. Tel: 22413795/98. Espresso Vergnano can be ordered through www.taw9eel.com Espresso Vergnano capsules are compatible with other espresso machines.

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he Australian College of Kuwait opens its doors on September 1 for fall semester 2013. The Australian College of Kuwait (ACK) has announced that the 2013 fall semester is scheduled to begin on September 1, for thousands of new and returning Business, Engineering and Aviation students.

Building up to the fall semester, ACK’s “Student Service Center” welcomed new students to the campus over a 3-day consecutive period, from August 27-29 for orientation sessions. The new students were introduced to the college’s

structure, its departments, the various services and different curriculums offered. The students were also given an extensive tour of the campus to get them acquainted with the college’s numerous facilities.

ACK is working hard towards offering International higher learning standards to Kuwait through its vocational education system, enabling students to achieve valuable practical skills and knowledge integral to the development of their future professional careers.

Indian Embassy sets up helpline

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he Indian Embassy in Kuwait has set up helpline in order to assist Indian expatriates in registering any complaint regarding the government’s ongoing campaign to stamp out illegal residents from the country.

The embassy said in press release yesterday that it amended its previous statement and stated if there is any complaint, the same could be conveyed at the following (as amended): Operations Department, Ministry of Interior, Kuwait. Fax: 22435580, Tel: 24768146/25200334. It said the embassy has been in regular contact with local authorities regarding the ongoing checking of expatriates.

The embassy has also conveyed to them the concerns, fears and apprehensions of the community in this regard. The authorities in Kuwait have conveyed that strict instructions have been issued to ensure that there is no harassment or improper treatment of expatriates by those undertaking checking. “The embassy would like to request Indian expatriates to ensure that they abide by all local laws, rules and regulations regarding residency, traffic and other matters,” the release read. It would be prudent to always carry the Civil ID and other relevant documents such as driving license, etc.

In case an Indian expatriate encounters any improper treatment during checking, it may be conveyed immediately with full details and contact particulars to the embassy at the following phone number 67623639. These contact details are exclusively for the above-mentioned purpose only.

Issue of online visa

by Indian embassy oreigners requiring visas for India need to apply it online from 16th June 2013.

Applicants may log on to the Public portal at ww.indianvisaonline.gov.in. After successful online submission, the hard copy, so generated, has to be signed by the applicant and submitted with supporting documents in accordance with the type of visa along with the applicable fee in cash at any of the two outsource centres at Sharq or Fahaheel. It is essential that applicants fill in their personal details as exactly available in their passports. Mismatch of any of the personal details would lead to non-acceptance of the application.

Fees once paid are non-refundable. All children would have to obtain separate visa on their respective passports.

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8th Expo Pakistan to commence in September he 8th Expo Pakistan will be held from September 26 to 29 in Karachi. Held annually, Expo Pakistan is the biggest trade fair in the country showcasing the largest collection of Pakistan’s export merchandise and services.

Foreign Exhibitors also use the event to launch their products. Expo Pakistan 2012 was visited by delegates from 52 countries and generated a business of over $ 518 million. A 16 member delegation from Kuwait including reputable companies like Al-Yasra Foods also took part in the last exhibition.

Expo Pakistan 2013 is being held under the auspices of the Trade Development Authority

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Write to us Send to What’s On upcoming events, birthdays or celebrations by email: local@kuwaittimes.net Fax: 24835619 / 20

Brilliant Lab, a startup incubator with international standards

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rilliant Lab (BL) was founded by ambitious Kuwaiti young men who have extensive practical experience in the areas of business development, project evaluation and the management of investment portfolios. The company is run by Neda Al-Daihany who serves as CEO and Abdullah Al-Hassawi, a partner who serves as Investment Sector CEO. The duo came to know each other through fellowship during their MA program at the renowned IE Business School. IE is one of top ranked universities by many ranking agencies including Financial Times, Forbes and Business Week ranking systems.

Al-Daihany explained that the main goal of the venture is to help foster the growth of entrepreneurs and new family ventures in Kuwait and GCC countries. “We believe in our plan which will take us to be placed as the biggest Entrepreneurship Hub and be perceived as a rich source of deals for investment opportunities in the GCC,” he elaborated.

Detailing the roadmap, he stated, “We plan to do so by providing entrepreneurs with the correct business educational tools, networks, qualified mentors and cutting edge international events where they can achieve new experiences that will help accelerate their business.”

Our partners and associates For his part, Al-Hassawi noted that BL’s global acceleration program has an association with significant multinational bodies such as “WAYRA”, Mind The Bridge, IE Business School, Stanford University and UC Berkeley. He went on to state that all these well-known institutions have embraced the entrepreneurial spirit as a core value and are considered as an international reference in the field of entrepreneurship.

Our track record With regard to their track record, Al-Daihany affirmed that Brilliant Lab started its acceleration services in 2011 and every project we took has been done in accordance with the top international standards, accumulating proven track

record in this field. Our main achievements include the following: In early 2012, we’ve organized a program called “Pitch it “, the first acceleration program in Kuwait in association with the American University in Kuwait (AUK). The program, which had 22 participants, focused on the best way to present your business plan.

Brilliant Lab played a strategic partner role with Zain, a leading Kuwaiti Telecom Company, to manage one of the biggest entrepreneurial incubation programs in Kuwait which was from January 2013 until October 2013. The goal of the program was to unlock the participants’ potential by exposing them to the international entrepreneurship world. Zain Great Idea (ZGI) was launched to incubate 35 top Kuwaiti startups to enroll them in Brilliant Lab’s acceleration program, which had four different stages: Business components crash course; Coaching and consulting business plans; Prototype and applying concept realty checks; and Pitching their business.

The program concludes with a Demo Day, which is the “Matching Point” between entrepreneurs and investors. All participants then prepare their final pitch and prototypes to address the audience. The audience is a mixture of investment firms, angel investors, media as well as the general public; this will ensure that the participant gets the exposure he needs to grow their business.

In April 2013 we have been invited to Blackberry acceleration program in San Francisco as testimonials from the MENA, where the founder of Brilliant Lab spoke at the opening of the program about the entrepreneurship experience in the Middle East.

BL officials have called on the government to reconsider its policy on startups, where it doesn’t view them as mere propaganda tools. “Rather it needs to deal with them on an investment basis directly or through specialized upgrading and investment companies while it audits them. They added that the government also ought to promote success stories and penalizes any investment violations.

THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2013

W H AT ’ S O N

Embassy Information EMBASSY OF AUSTRALIA The Embassy of Australia has announced that Kuwait citizens can apply for and receive visit visas in 10 working days through www.immi.gov.au. All other processing of visas and Immigration matters are handled by the Australian Visa Application Centre located in Al Banwan Building, 4B, 1st Floor, Al Qibla Area, Ali Al Salem Street, Kuwait City. Visit. www.vfs-augcc.com for more info. The Embassy of Australia does not have a visa or immigration department. All processing of visas and immigration matters is conducted by the Australian Consulate-General in Dubai. Email: Info.ausdxb@vfshelpline.com (VIS), immigration.dubai@dfat.gov.au (Visa Office), Tel: +971 4 205 5900 (VFS), Fax: + 971 4 355 0708 (Visa Office). Notary and passport services are available by appointment. Appointments can be made by calling the Embassy on 22322422. nnnnnnn

EMBASSY OF ARGENTINE

Sri Lankan Embassy hosts cultural event

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ri Lankan culture was presented during an event hosted by Jayalakshmi Wijeratne, spouse of the Ambassador of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka. With a population of 20 million, Sri Lanka is a small yet wonderful Island that lies in the Indian

Ocean. Home to the 8th wonder of the world, Sigiriya Rock, 16th century built temple of the tooth relic belonging to Lord Buddha, the lost city of Anuradhapura and so many more exquisite sites. This programme consisted of a traditional food demonstra-

tion, ethnic dances and a demonstration of the cultural women’s dress aiming to bring Sri Lankan culture to Kuwait.

—Photos by Joseph Shagra

For the Argentinean citizens who had not already enlisted in the embassy’s electoral register, and taking in consideration the elections which was held on Sunday 11/08/2013, it is necessary to justify they no vote by presence at our embassy which located in (Mishref - Block 6 - Street 42 - Villa 57) and should present the DNI and/or the Argentinean Passport. The Embassy of the Argentine Republic in the State of Kuwait avails itself of this opportunity to renew the assurances of its highest consideration. nnnnnnn

EMBASSY OF CANADA The Embassy of Canada in Kuwait does not have a visa or immigration department. All processing of visa and immigration matters including enquiries is conducted by the Canadian Embassy in Abu Dhabi, UAE. Individuals who are interested in working, studying, visiting or immigrating to Canada should contact the Canadian Embassy in Abu Dhabi, website: www.UAE.gc.ca or www.goingtocanada.gc.ca, E-mail: abdbi-imenquiry@international.gc.ca. The Embassy of Canada is located at Villa 24, Al-Mutawakei 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 open from 07:30 to 12:30. Consular services for Canadian citizens are provided from 09:00 until 12:00, Sunday through Wednesday. nnnnnnn

EMBASSY OF GREECE The Embassy of Greece in Kuwait has the pleasure to announce that visa applications must be submitted to Schengen Visa Application Centre (VFS office) located at 12th floor, Al-Naser Tower, Fahad Al-Salem Street, Al-Qibla area, Kuwait City, (Parking at Souk Watia). For information please call 22281046 from 08:30 to 17:00 (Sunday to Thursday). Working hours: Submission from 08:30 to 15:30. Passport collection from 16:00 to 17:00. For visa applications please visit the following website www.mfa.gr/kuwait. nnnnnnn

EMBASSY OF US

The US Embassy in Kuwait has new procedures for obtaining appointments and picking up passports after visa issuance.

Beginning August 9, 2013, we now provide an online visa appointment system, live call center, and in-person pick-up facilities in Kuwait.

Please monitor our website and social media for additional information. This new system offers more flexibility for travelers to the US and to meet the increase in demand for visa appointments.

The general application steps on the new visa appointment system are: 1. Go to www.ustraveldocs.com/kw (if this is the first time on ustraveldocs.com, you will need to create a profile to login).

2. Please complete your DS-160 Online Visa Application which is available at ceac.state.gov/genNIV. 3. Please print and take your deposit slip to any Burgan Bank location to pay your visa application fee.

4. Schedule an appointment for your visa interview online at www.ustraveldocs.com/kw or by phone through the Call Center (at +9652227-1673).

5. If you need to change or cancel your appointment, please do so 24 hours beforehand, as a courtesy to other applicants. For more information, please visit the US Embassy website - kuwait.usembassy.gov - as it is the best source of information regarding these changes. nnnnnnn

EMBASSY OF UKRAINE The Embassy of Ukraine in the State of Kuwait would like to inform that submission of the documents for tourist visa is temporary closed (from August 26 till September 26). Within the above-mentioned period, the visa will be issued only in the case of emergency. In the case of planning travel to Ukraine, please apply for visa before August 20. nnnnnnn

EMBASSY OF SLOVAK The Embassy of the Slovak Republic in Kuwait would like to inform the public that on the occasion of the Anniversary of the Slovak National Uprising and the Day of the Constitutions, the Embassy will be closed on Thursday, August 29 and Sunday, September 01, 2013. The Embassy would like to inform that the Consular Section is open to the public from Monday to Wednesday from 10:00 till 13:00 hrs.

THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2013

TV PROGRAMS

00:45 Crocodile Feeding Frenzy 01:35 Untamed & Uncut 02:25 Kingdom Of The Elephants 03:15 Lion Man: One World African Safari 04:05 Roaring With Pride 04:55 Snake Crusader With Bruce George 05:20 Shamwari: A Wild Life 05:45 Lion Man: One World African Safari 06:35 Call Of The Wildman 07:00 Dick ‘n’ Dom Go Wild 07:25 Pandamonium 08:15 The Most Extreme 09:10 Talk To The Animals 09:35 Talk To The Animals 10:05 Kingdom Of The Elephants 11:00 Animal Cops Philadelphia 11:55 Snake Crusader With Bruce George 12:20 Call Of The Wildman 12:50 Charles & Jessica: A Chimp Tale 13:45 Austin Stevens Adventures 14:40 Kingdom Of The Elephants 15:30 Shamwari: A Wild Life 16:00 Dick ‘n’ Dom Go Wild 16:30 The Most Extreme 17:25 Cats Of Claw Hill 18:20 Journey Of Life 19:15 Monkey Life 19:40 Call Of The Wildman 20:10 Snake Crusader With Bruce George 20:35 Shamwari: A Wild Life 21:05 Lion Feeding Frenzy 22:00 Rogue Nature With Dave Salmoni

00:30 Dynamo: Magician Impossible 01:20 The Big Brain Theory 02:10 The Big Brain Theory 03:00 Mythbusters 03:50 Auction Kings 04:15 Auction Hunters 04:40 Auction Kings 05:05 How Do They Do It? 05:30 How It’s Made 06:00 American Guns 07:00 Mythbusters 07:50 Stan Lee’s Superhumans 08:40 What Happened Next?

09:05 Magic Of Science 09:30 Border Security 09:55 Auction Hunters 10:20 Auction Kings 10:45 How Do They Do It? 11:10 How It’s Made 11:35 Dynamo: Magician Impossible 12:25 The Big Brain Theory 13:15 Mythbusters 14:05 Border Security 14:30 Auction Hunters 14:55 Auction Kings 15:20 Strip The City 16:10 What Happened Next?

16:35 Magic Of Science 17:00 Ultimate Survival 17:50 Deadliest Catch 18:40 Mythbusters 19:30 American Guns 20:20 Auction Hunters 20:45 Auction Kings 21:10 How Do They Do It? 21:35 How It’s Made 22:00 Sons Of Guns 22:50 Outlaw Empires 23:40 Heroes Of Hell’s Highway

00:05 00:30 01:00 04:00 04:25 04:50 05:15 05:40 06:05 07:00

The Tech Show Food Factory Game Changers Game Changers Game Changers Game Changers The Gadget Show The Tech Show How The Universe Works What Is That?

07:25 07:50 08:15 08:40 09:05 09:30 12:05 13:00 2011 13:50 14:20 14:45 15:10 15:35 16:00 16:55 17:45 18:35 19:30 19:55 20:20 20:45 21:10 21:35 22:00 22:25 22:50 23:40

How Stuff’s Made Bang Goes The Theory Bang Goes The Theory The Gadget Show The Tech Show Punkin Chunkin 2010 Flying Anvils Killer Robots: Robogames Food Factory The Gadget Show The Tech Show What Is That?

How Stuff’s Made Sci-Trek X-Machines Smash Lab How The Universe Works How Stuff’s Made How Stuff’s Made Bang Goes The Theory Bang Goes The Theory The Gadget Show The Tech Show Stuck With Hackett Stuck With Hackett Bang Goes The Theory The Gadget Show

00:45 01:10 01:35 02:30 03:25 04:20 05:10 06:05 07:00 07:50 08:15 08:45 09:35 10:30 11:20 12:10 13:05 13:55 14:50 15:45 16:40 17:35 18:25 19:20 19:45 20:10 20:35 21:05 22:00 22:25 22:55

Chasing Classic Cars Chasing Classic Cars Secrets Of...

Hostage In Paradise I’m Alive Bone Detectives NASA’s Greatest Missions Way Of Life Reign Of The Dinosaurs Chasing Classic Cars Chasing Classic Cars Way Of Life Welcome To India Toughest Military Jobs I’m Alive Bone Detectives NASA’s Greatest Missions History Cold Case Secrets Of...

Reign Of The Dinosaurs Toughest Military Jobs Bone Detectives I’m Alive The Aviators The Aviators Chasing Classic Cars Chasing Classic Cars NASA’s Greatest Missions The Aviators The Aviators I Escaped Death

00:00 00:20 00:45 01:05 01:30 01:50 02:15 02:35 03:00 03:20 03:45 04:30 04:50 05:15 05:35 06:00 06:25 06:45 07:10 07:35 07:55 08:20 08:45 09:05 09:30 09:55 10:15 10:40 11:05 11:25 11:50 12:15 12:35 13:00 13:45 14:10

Hannah Montana Hannah Montana Brandy & Mr Whiskers Brandy & Mr Whiskers Emperor’s New School Emperor’s New School Replacements Replacements Brandy & Mr Whiskers Brandy & Mr Whiskers Emperor’s New School Replacements Replacements Brandy & Mr Whiskers Brandy & Mr Whiskers Austin And Ally Suite Life On Deck Shake It Up A.N.T. Farm Jessie Good Luck Charlie Good Luck Charlie Doc McStuffins Mickey Mouse Clubhouse A.N.T Farm A.N.T Farm Jessie Jessie Good Luck Charlie Good Luck Charlie Good Luck Charlie Shake It Up Shake It Up Good Luck Charlie Good Luck Charlie Jessie

14:30 14:35 15:00 15:25 15:50 16:10 17:00 17:20 17:45 18:10 18:30 18:55 19:20 20:05 20:30 20:50 21:15 21:40 22:00 22:25 22:50 23:10

Teen Beach Movie First Look Shake It Up That’s So Raven Good Luck Charlie Jessie Violetta A.N.T Farm Austin And Ally Good Luck Charlie Shake It Up That’s So Raven A.N.T. Farm Violetta Jessie Shake It Up Suite Life On Deck Austin And Ally That’s So Raven Jessie A.N.T Farm Good Luck Charlie Wizards Of Waverly Place

00:05 Special Agent Oso 00:15 Imagination Movers 00:40 Jungle Junction 00:55 Jungle Junction 01:10 Handy Manny 01:30 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 02:00 Little Einsteins 02:25 Special Agent Oso 02:40 Special Agent Oso 02:50 Imagination Movers 03:20 Handy Manny 03:40 Special Agent Oso 03:50 Special Agent Oso 04:00 Timmy Time 04:10 Imagination Movers 04:35 Little Einsteins 05:00 Jungle Junction 05:15 Jungle Junction 05:30 Little Einsteins 05:50 Special Agent Oso 06:00 Special Agent Oso 06:15 Jungle Junction 06:30 Jungle Junction 06:45 Handy Manny 07:00 Special Agent Oso 07:15 Jungle Junction 07:30 Higglytown Heroes 07:45 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 08:10 New Adventures Of Winnie The Pooh 08:35 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 08:50 Doc McStuffins 09:05 Doc McStuffins 09:20 Zou 09:35 Henry Hugglemonster 09:50 Henry Hugglemonster 10:00 Sofia The First 10:25 The Little Mermaid 10:50 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 11:05 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 11:20 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 11:45 Mouk 12:00 Winnie The Pooh: Tales Of Friendship 12:05 Art Attack 12:30 Doc McStuffins 12:45 Doc McStuffins 13:00 Zou 13:15 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 13:30 Henry Hugglemonster 13:45 Henry Hugglemonster 13:55 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 14:20 New Adventures Of Winnie The Pooh 14:45 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 15:00 Lilo And Stitch 15:25 Mouk 15:40 Higglytown Heroes 15:55 Zou 16:10 Zou 16:20 The Little Mermaid 16:45 Lilo And Stitch 17:10 Doc McStuffins 17:25 Doc McStuffins 17:40 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 17:55 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 18:10 Henry Hugglemonster 18:25 Henry Hugglemonster 18:35 Sofia The First 19:00 Timmy Time 19:10 Pajanimals 19:25 Doc McStuffins 19:35 Zou 19:50 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 20:05 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 20:20 Winnie The Pooh: Tales Of Friendship

20:25 Pajanimals 20:35 Doc McStuffins 20:45 Mouk 21:00 New Adventures Of Winnie The Pooh 21:25 Pajanimals 21:35 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 22:00 Timmy Time 22:10 The Hive 22:20 Winnie The Pooh: Tales Of Friendship 22:30 Jungle Junction 22:45 Handy Manny 22:55 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 23:20 Little Einsteins 23:50 Special Agent Oso

00:05 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 00:30 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 00:55 United Tastes Of America 01:20 United Tastes Of America 01:45 Charly’s Cake Angels 02:10 Charly’s Cake Angels 02:35 Unique Sweets 03:00 Unique Sweets 03:25 Food Wars 03:50 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 04:15 Unique Eats 04:40 Chopped 05:30 Iron Chef America 06:10 Food Network Challenge 07:00 Unwrapped 07:25 Unwrapped 07:50 Andy Bates American Street Feasts 08:15 Unique Sweets 08:40 Reza’s African Kitchen 09:05 Jonathan Phang’s Caribbean Cookbook 09:30 Amazing Wedding Cakes 10:20 Extra Virgin 10:40 Unique Sweets 11:10 Unwrapped 11:35 Have Cake, Will Travel 12:00 Food Network Star 12:50 Reza’s African Kitchen 13:15 Barefoot Contessa - Back To Basics 13:40 Barefoot Contessa - Back To Basics 14:05 Tyler’s Ultimate 14:30 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 14:55 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 15:20 Symon’s Suppers 15:45 Chopped 16:35 Barefoot Contessa - Back To Basics 17:00 Barefoot Contessa - Back To Basics 17:25 Tyler’s Ultimate 17:50 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 18:15 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 18:40 Guy’s Big Bite 19:05 Symon’s Suppers 19:30 Food Wars 19:55 Food Wars 20:20 Chopped 21:10 Chopped 22:00 Staten Island Cakes 22:50 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 23:15 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 23:40 Food Wars

00:15 Eat Street 00:45 Scam City 01:40 Ultimate Traveller 02:35 Bondi Rescue 03:00 Bondi Rescue 03:30 Bondi Rescue 03:55 Bondi Rescue 04:25 Walking Home From Mongolia 04:50 Cycling Home From Siberia 05:20 Lonely Planet: Roads Less Travelled 06:15 One Man & His Campervan 06:40 My Sri Lanka With Peter Kuruvita 07:10 Maverick Chef 07:35 Eat Street 08:05 Scam City 09:00 Ultimate Traveller 09:55 Bondi Rescue 10:20 Bondi Rescue 11:45 Walking Home From Mongolia 12:10 Cycling Home From Siberia 12:40 Lonely Planet: Roads Less Travelled 13:35 One Man & His Campervan 14:00 My Sri Lanka With Peter Kuruvita 14:30 Maverick Chef 14:55 Eat Street 15:25 Scam City 16:20 Ultimate Traveller 17:15 Bondi Rescue 19:05 Walking Home From Mongolia 19:30 Cycling Home From Siberia 20:00 Maverick Chef 20:30 Eat Street 21:00 One Man & His Campervan 21:30 My Sri Lanka With Peter Kuruvita 22:00 Graham’s World 22:25 Cruise Ship Diaries 22:55 Exploring The Vine 23:20 Street Food Around The World 23:50 David Rocco’s Dolce Vita

00:00 01:00 02:00 03:00 04:00 05:00 06:00 07:00 08:00 09:00 10:00 11:00 12:00 13:00 14:00 15:00 16:00 17:00 18:00 18:30 19:00 20:00 21:00 22:00

NEW YEARʼS EVE ON OSN MOVIES HD

Big, Bigger, Biggest Banged Up Abroad Lords Of War Helicopter Wars Evacuate Earth Monkey Thieves Helicopter Wars Pirate Patrol Big, Bigger, Biggest Banged Up Abroad Lords Of War Helicopter Wars Nasca Lines Decoded Monkey Thieves Helicopter Wars Pirate Patrol Big, Bigger, Biggest Banged Up Abroad Lords Of War Lords Of War Air Crash Investigation Dino Autopsy Animal Impact Air Crash Investigation

00:20 World’s Weirdest 01:10 Croc Labyrinth

TRANSFORMERS: DARK OF THE MOON ON OSN ACTION HD 02:00 02:50 03:45 04:40 05:35 06:30 07:25 08:20 09:15 10:10 11:05 12:00 12:55 13:50 14:45 15:40 16:35 17:30 18:25 19:20 20:10 21:00 21:50 22:40 23:30

Monster Fish Man vs Monster Ultimate Animal Countdown Divine Delinquents Monster Fish Man vs Monster Ultimate Animal Countdown Planet Carnivore Dangerous Encounters Dead Or Alive Superfish Ragged Tooth World’s Weirdest Man vs Monster Ultimate Animal Countdown Big Cat Wars Dangerous Encounters Dead Or Alive Hunt For The Giant Squid World’s Weirdest Man vs Monster Ultimate Animal Countdown Big Cat Wars Dangerous Encounters Dead Or Alive

00:15 Exorcismus-18 02:00 Broken Path-PG15 04:00 Meteor Storm-PG15 06:00 Blackthorn-PG15 07:45 The Dragon Chronicles: Fire & Ice-PG15 09:15 Austin Powers In Goldmember-PG15 11:00 Transformers: Dark Of The Moon-PG15 14:00 The Dragon Chronicles: Fire & Ice-PG15 15:30 The Tourist-PG15 17:30 Transformers: Dark Of The Moon-PG15

01:00 Morning-PG15 03:00 Ip Man 2-PG15 05:00 Mrs. Miracle-PG15 06:45 Lorenzo’s Oil-PG15 09:00 We Bought A Zoo-PG 11:30 Princess Lillifee-FAM 13:00 Love Will Keep Us TogetherPG15 15:00 My Afternoons With Margueritte-PG15 17:00 Planet Ocean-PG15 19:00 Now Is Good-PG15 21:00 Albert Nobbs-18

00:30 01:00 01:30 02:00 02:30 03:00 03:30 04:00 04:30 Leno 05:30 06:00 06:30 07:00 08:00 08:30 09:00 09:30 10:00 10:30 11:00 Leno 12:00 12:30 13:00 13:30

The Daily Show The Colbert Report The Big C Enlightened Unsupervised Modern Family The Simpsons Hope & Faith The Tonight Show With Jay All Of Us The War At Home Brothers Late Night With Jimmy Fallon Hope & Faith All Of Us The War At Home Modern Family Happy Endings Brothers The Tonight Show With Jay Friends Seinfeld All Of Us Brothers

14:00 14:30 15:00 15:30 16:00 16:30 17:00 18:00 18:30 19:00 19:30 20:00 Leno 21:00 21:30 22:00 22:30 23:00 23:30

The Simpsons Modern Family Happy Endings The Daily Show The Colbert Report Friends Late Night With Jimmy Fallon New Girl Hot In Cleveland Community Happy Endings The Tonight Show With Jay The Daily Show The Colbert Report Web Therapy Enlightened Unsupervised Late Night With Jimmy Fallon

00:00 01:00 03:00 04:00 05:00 07:00 07:30 08:00 09:00 10:00 10:30 11:00 12:00 13:00 14:00 16:00 17:00 18:00 19:00 20:00 21:00 22:00

Touch Good Morning America American Idol The Client List Good Morning America Emmerdale Coronation Street The Ellen DeGeneres Show Once Upon A Time Emmerdale Coronation Street The Ellen DeGeneres Show Touch The Carrie Diaries Live Good Morning America Touch Once Upon A Time The Carrie Diaries Touch Once Upon A Time The Carrie Diaries The Client List

00:00 01:00 02:00 03:00 04:00 05:00 06:00 07:00 08:00 09:00 10:00 11:00 12:00 12:30 13:00 14:00 15:00 16:00 16:30 17:00 18:00 19:00 21:00 22:00 23:00

24 Castle Justified Banshee Bones Warehouse 13 24 The Finder Alphas Bones Castle Warehouse 13 Emmerdale Coronation Street The Ellen DeGeneres Show Alphas 24 Emmerdale Coronation Street The Ellen DeGeneres Show Alphas Switched At Birth Suits Sons Of Anarchy Banshee

00:00 End Of Days 02:15 Exorcismus 04:00 Broken Path 06:00 Meteor Storm 08:00 Blackthorn 09:45 The Dragon Chronicles: Fire & Ice 11:15 Austin Powers In Goldmember 13:00 Transformers: Dark Of The Moon 16:00 The Dragon Chronicles: Fire

& Ice 17:30 The Tourist 19:30 Transformers: Dark Of The Moon 22:15 Tombstone

00:00 02:00 04:00 06:00 08:00 10:00 12:00 14:00 16:00 18:00 20:00 22:00

High School-18 Rushmore-PG15 Love Birds-PG15 Another Stakeout-PG15 Chasing Liberty-PG15 Mr. Destiny-PG Love Birds-PG15 Rookie Of The Year-PG Mr. Destiny-PG From Prada To Nada-PG15 Casino Jack-18 High School-18

01:00 Vincere-18 03:15 The Big Bang-18 05:00 Footloose-PG15 07:00 Love Takes Wing-PG15 09:00 Offline-PG15 11:00 Love And Other Impossible Pursuits-PG15 13:00 Bobby Fischer Against The World-PG15 15:00 Lemony Snicket’s A Series Of Unfortunate-PG 17:00 Love And Other Impossible Pursuits-PG15

01:00 The Woman In Black-PG15 03:00 Web Of Lies-PG15 05:00 Every Jack Has A Jill-PG15 07:00 Arrietty-FAM 09:00 New Year’s Eve-PG15 11:00 Like Crazy-PG15 12:45 The Tree Of Life-PG15 15:00 Alvin And The Chipmunks: Chipwrecked-PG 17:00 New Year’s Eve-PG15 19:00 Men In Black 3-PG 21:00 The Dark Knight Rises-PG15 23:45 The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo-R

01:00 Rainbow Valley Heroes 02:45 Mandie And The Secret Tunnel 04:30 Cher Ami 06:00 Twigson 08:00 The Three Bears: Dreadful Dangers 10:00 Spirit: Stallion Of The Cimarron 11:30 The Wild Thornberrys Movie 13:00 Mandie And The Secret Tunnel 14:45 Princess Sydney: The Legend Of The Blue Rabbit 16:00 Horrid Henry

00:00 Carjacked-PG15 02:00 The Muppets-PG 04:00 A Monster In Paris-PG 06:00 Charlotte’s Web-PG 08:00 The Pirates! Band Of Misfits 09:45 American Girl: McKenna Shoots For The Stars-PG 11:30 The Bourne Legacy-PG15 14:00 Stealing Paradise-PG15 16:00 The Pirates! Band Of Misfits 18:00 Journey 2: The Mysterious Island-PG

20:00 Why Did I Get Married Too? 22:00 Intruders-18

00:10 In This Our Life-PG 01:50 The Fixer 03:56 The Scapegoat-PG 07:00 Red Dust-FAM 08:25 Quo Vadis-PG 11:10 Billy The Kid-PG 12:45 The Pirate-FAM 14:25 Tom Thumb-FAM 16:00 Cheyenne Autumn-FAM 18:30 The Three Musketeers-FAM 20:35 Valley Of The Kings-FAM 22:00 Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore-18

00:00 World’s Greatest Motorcycle Rides 01:00 Xtreme Waterparks 01:30 Bert The Conqueror 02:00 Off Limits 03:00 Globe Trekker 04:00 Bizarre Foods America 05:00 Bizarre Foods America 06:00 Hotel Impossible 07:00 Globe Trekker 08:00 Off Limits 09:00 Piha Rescue 09:30 Piha Rescue 10:00 World’s Greatest Motorcycle Rides 11:00 Bert The Conqueror 11:30 Xtreme Waterparks 12:00 Globe Trekker 13:00 Bizarre Foods America 14:00 International House Hunters 14:30 International House Hunters 15:00 Hotel Impossible 16:00 Inside Luxury Travel - Varun Sharma 17:00 World’s Greatest Motorcycle Rides 18:00 Off Limits 19:00 Wild Carpathia 20:00 The Border Check 21:00 Airport 24/7: Miami 21:30 Airport 24/7: Miami 22:00 Asian Times

06:00 Kid vs Kat 06:10 Iron Man Armoured Adventures 06:35 Kickin It 07:00 Max Steel 07:25 Phineas And Ferb 07:35 Phineas And Ferb 07:50 Slugterra 08:15 Pair Of Kings 08:40 Kickin It 09:05 Kickin It 09:30 Lab Rats 09:55 Lab Rats 10:20 Pair Of Kings 10:45 Kick Buttowski 11:10 Mr. Young 11:35 Slugterra 12:00 Kickin It 12:25 Max Steel 12:50 I’m In The Band 13:15 Lab Rats 13:40 Almost Naked Animals 14:05 Phineas And Ferb 14:30 Lab Rats 14:55 Randy Cunningham: 9th Grade Ninja 15:20 Phineas And Ferb 15:45 Pair Of Kings 16:10 Kickin It

Classifieds THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2013

Kuwait KNCC PROGRAMME FROM THURSDAY TO WEDNESDAY (22/08/2013 TO 28/08/2013) SHARQIA-1 KILLING SEASON (DIG) THE SMURFS 2 (DIG) JOBS (DIG) KILLING SEASON (DIG) JOBS (DIG) KILLING SEASON (DIG)

1:00 PM 3:15 PM 5:30 PM 8:00 PM 10:00 PM 12:30 AM

SHARQIA-2 THE SMURFS 2 (DIG-3D) DESPICABLE ME 2 (DIG-3D) THE SMURFS 2 (DIG) Special Show “THE SMURFS 2 (DIG)” THE CONJURING (DIG) THE CONJURING (DIG) THE CONJURING (DIG)

2:00 PM 4:15 PM 6:15 PM 6:15 PM 8:30 PM 10:45 PM 1:00 AM

SHARQIA-3 THE CONJURING (DIG) THE CONJURING (DIG) Special Show “THE SMURFS 2 (DIG)” CHENNAI EXPRESS (DIG) (HINDI) THE WOLVERINE (DIG) THE WOLVERINE (DIG)

1:30 PM 3:45 PM 6:15 PM 6:00 PM 9:00 PM 11:45 PM

MUHALAB-1 JOBS (DIG) RED 2 (DIG) CHENNAI EXPRESS (DIG) (HINDI) JOBS (DIG) MUHALAB-2 KILLING SEASON (DIG) FRI

1:30 PM 4:15 PM 6:30 PM 9:30 PM 1:30 PM

THE CONJURING (DIG) THE CONJURING (DIG) KILLING SEASON (DIG) THE CONJURING (DIG) THE CONJURING (DIG) MUHALAB-3 THE SMURFS 2 (DIG-3D) DESPICABLE ME 2 (DIG-3D) THE SMURFS 2 (DIG-3D) THE WOLVERINE (DIG) THE WOLVERINE (DIG)

1:00 PM 3:30 PM 5:45 PM 7:45 PM 10:00 PM 12:45 PM 3:00 PM 5:00 PM 7:15 PM 9:45 PM

THE LONE RANGER (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

12:30 AM

FANAR-4 THE SMURFS 2 (DIG-3D) THE SMURFS 2 (DIG-3D) THE SMURFS 2 (DIG-3D) THE WOLVERINE (DIG) THE WOLVERINE (DIG) THE WOLVERINE (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:00 PM 3:15 PM 5:30 PM 7:45 PM 10:15 PM 12:45 AM

FANAR-5 THE CONJURING THE CONJURING THE CONJURING EL7ARAMY & EL3ABIET THE CONJURING THE CONJURING NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:15 PM 3:30 PM 5:45 PM 8:00 PM 10:00 PM 12:15 AM

FANAR-1 RED 2 (DIG) RED 2 (DIG) JOBS (DIG) JOBS (DIG) JOBS (DIG)

2:00 PM 4:30 PM 6:45 PM 9:15 PM 11:45 PM

FANAR-2 DESPICABLE ME 2 (DIG) DESPICABLE ME 2 (DIG) STREET DANCE ALL STARS (DIG) DESPICABLE ME 2 (DIG) KILLING SEASON (DIG) KILLING SEASON (DIG) KILLING SEASON (DIG)

12:30 PM 2:30 PM 4:30 PM 6:45 PM 8:45 PM 10:45 PM 12:45 AM

MARINA-1 DESPICABLE ME 2 (DIG) HAMMER OF G’S (DIG) KILLING SEASON (DIG) JOBS (DIG) JOBS (DIG) KILLING SEASON (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

FANAR-3 CHENNAI EXPRESS (DIG) (HINDI) THE LONE RANGER (DIG) CHENNAI EXPRESS (DIG) (HINDI) CHENNAI EXPRESS (DIG) (HINDI)

12:30 PM 3:30 PM 6:30 PM 9:30 PM

MARINA-2 THE WOLVERINE (DIG) THE WOLVERINE (DIG) EL7ARAMY & EL3ABIET (DIG)

12:45 PM 2:45 PM 5:00 PM 7:00 PM 9:30 PM 12:30 AM

12:30 PM 3:00 PM 5:30 PM

THE WOLVERINE (DIG) RED 2 (DIG) THE WOLVERINE (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

7:30 PM 10:00 PM 12:15 AM

MARINA-3 THE SMURFS 2 (DIG-3D) DESPICABLE ME 2 (DIG-3D) THE SMURFS 2 (DIG-3D) THE CONJURING (DIG) THE CONJURING (DIG) THE CONJURING (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:30 PM 4:00 PM 6:00 PM 8:15 PM 10:30 PM 12:45 AM

AVENUES-1 KILLING SEASON (DIG) KILLING SEASON (DIG) KILLING SEASON (DIG) KILLING SEASON (DIG) KILLING SEASON (DIG) KILLING SEASON (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

2:00 PM 4:00 PM 6:00 PM 8:00 PM 10:00 PM 12:05 AM

AVENUES-2 CHENNAI EXPRESS (DIG) (HINDI) CHENNAI EXPRESS (DIG) (HINDI) CHENNAI EXPRESS (DIG) (HINDI) CHENNAI EXPRESS (DIG) (HINDI) CHENNAI EXPRESS (DIG) (HINDI)

12:30 PM 3:30 PM 6:30 PM 9:30 PM 12:30 AM

AVENUES-3 RED 2 (DIG) THE LONE RANGER (DIG) RED 2 (DIG)

1:00 PM 3:30 PM 6:30 PM

CHANGE OF NAME I, Crusian Edison holder of Indian Passport No. E 6572487, shall henceforth be known as C. Joseph Edison. (C 4493) 28-8-2013 I, Bhaskar Hungarkatha of Indian Passport No. G 0638528 hereby wish to change my name to JOHN B. D’ALMEIDA. (C 4491) 27-8-2013 MATRIMONIAL Proposals invited for a fair Keralite Marthomite girl (24 yrs, 159 cm) hailing from an aristo-

cratic family and just completed M.Sc nursing in paediatrics, from parents of God-fearing boys with equivalent qualifications preferably employed in Kuwait, Gulf/India. Email: georgethomaskollad@yahoo.com (C 4494) 28-7-2013 Nair girl from Quilon district, 34 years, 153 cm, M.Sc Biotechnology, PhD, now working as scientist at Trivandrum, seeks alliance from well educated, employed youth from India/abroad (Keralite only). Contact email: pillaisurendran56@yahoo.com (C 4492) 27-8-2013

Directorate General of Civil Aviation Home Page (www.kuwait-airport.com.kw)

Airlines BBC QTR SAI THY JZR THY ETH GFA UAE ETD THY RJA MEA FDB RBG MSR QTR THY QTR DHX FDB BAW KAC JZR JZR JZR FDB UAE IRA IZG ABY IRA FDB QTR ETD SYR GFA MEA MSC UAE MRJ MSR KAC KAC KAC KAC KAC KAC KAC JZR JZR JZR JZR MSR THY KNE KAC QTR FDB KAC ABY SVA JZR OMA

Arrival Flights on on Thursday 29/8/2013 Flt Route 43 DHAKA 148 DOHA 441 LAHORE 5464 SABIHA 267 BEIRUT 764 SABIHA 620 ADDIS ABABA 211 BAHRAIN 853 DUBAI 305 ABU DHABI-INTL 768 ISTANBUL 642 AMMAN-QUEEN ALIA 408 BEIRUT 67 DUBAI 555 ALEXANDRIA 612 CAIRO 138 DOHA 770 ISTANBUL 6130 DOHA 170 BAHRAIN 69 DUBAI 157 LONDON 412 MANILA 555 ALEXANDRIA 529 ASYUT 1541 CAIRO 53 DUBAI 855 DUBAI 605 ISFAHAN 4161 MASHAD 125 SHARJAH 617 AHWAZ 55 DUBAI 132 DOHA 301 ABU DHABI-INTL 341 DAMASCUS 213 BAHRAIN 404 BEIRUT 403 ASYUT 871 DUBAI 4813 MASHAD 610 CAIRO 284 DHAKA 382 DELHI 206 ISLAMABAD 302 MUMBAI 332 TRIVANDRUM 362 COLOMBO 352 COCHIN 241 AMMAN-QUEEN ALIA 561 SOHAG 165 DUBAI 503 LUXOR 579 SOHAG 766 ISTANBUL 480 TAIF 672 DUBAI 140 DOHA 57 DUBAI 546 ALEXANDRIA 121 SHARJAH 500 JEDDAH 257 BEIRUT 645 MUSCAT

Time 00:05 00:05 01:30 00:10 00:20 01:40 01:45 01:55 02:25 02:30 02:50 03:10 02:10 03:10 03:15 03:15 03:30 04:35 04:50 05:10 05:50 06:30 06:15 06:20 06:40 06:25 07:45 08:25 08:40 08:45 08:50 09:10 09:15 09:25 09:30 10:10 10:40 10:55 12:40 12:45 12:55 13:00 8:15 7:30 7:25 7:50 7:55 8:45 8:05 12:35 12:20 11:35 7:40 13:05 13:10 13:20 13:40 14:55 13:50 14:15 14:25 14:30 14:30 14:40

KAC KNE FDB NIA RJA KAC JZR QTR JZR JZR ETD UAE KNE ABY UAL GFA SVA JZR KAC JZR TAR KAC QTR KAC KAC FDB KAC FDB GFA KAC AXB JZR KAC KAC KAC JAI RBG FDB OMA ABY MEA AFG MSC MSR MSC SYR ALK JZR UAE ETD QTR GFA QTR JAI FDB THY AIC JZR UAL JZR DLH JAI JZR MSR KLM THY

562 470 8051 251 640 118 535 134 787 125 303 857 472 127 982 215 510 177 176 777 327 542 144 786 104 8055 502 63 219 618 393 269 774 674 614 572 553 61 647 129 402 415 405 618 401 1293 229 189 859 307 136 217 146 576 59 6512 981 239 981 185 636 574 513 614 411 772

AMMAN-QUEEN ALIA JEDDAH DUBAI ALEXANDRIA AMMAN-QUEEN ALIA NEW YORK CAIRO DOHA RIYADH BAHRAIN ABU DHABI-INTL DUBAI JEDDAH SHARJAH WASHINGTON DC DULLES BAHRAIN RIYADH DUBAI GENEVA JEDDAH TUNIS CAIRO DOHA JEDDAH LONDON DUBAI BEIRUT DUBAI BAHRAIN DOHA KOZHIKODE BEIRUT RIYADH DUBAI BAHRAIN MUMBAI ALEXANDRIA DUBAI MUSCAT SHARJAH BEIRUT KABUL SOHAG ALEXANDRIA ALEXANDRIA DAMASCUS COLOMBO DUBAI DUBAI ABU DHABI-INTL DOHA BAHRAIN DOHA COCHIN DUBAI ISTANBUL CHENNAI AMMAN-QUEEN ALIA BAHRAIN DUBAI FRANKFURT MUMBAI SHARM EL SHEIKH CAIRO AMSTERDAM ISTANBUL

14:40 15:05 15:35 15:50 15:55 16:00 16:10 16:15 16:15 16:25 16:35 16:55 17:05 17:10 17:15 17:20 17:20 17:30 17:45 17:50 18:00 18:15 18:25 18:30 18:45 18:45 18:50 18:55 19:05 19:10 19:15 19:15 19:25 19:25 19:35 19:35 19:40 20:00 20:00 20:05 20:15 20:20 20:25 20:30 21:00 21:05 21:10 20:10 21:15 21:30 21:35 21:45 22:00 22:05 22:20 22:20 22:25 22:30 22:40 22:40 23:10 23:20 23:20 23:30 23:40 23:45

Airlines AIC AXB JAI UAL DLH MSR THY JZR BBC THY SAI THY ETH MEA THY UAE FDB RBG MSR ETD QTR QTR JZR QTR FDB RJA GFA THY JZR KAC JZR BAW FDB JZR JZR KAC KAC ABY IRA IZG UAE KAC FDB IRA ETD QTR KAC KAC SYR GFA KAC KAC MEA JZR JZR KAC JZR JZR JZR MSC MSR MSR MRJ THY

Departure Flights on Thursday 29/8/2013 Flt Route 976 GOA 490 MANGALORE 573 MUMBAI 981 WASHINGTON DC DULLES 637 FRANKFURT 615 CAIRO 5465 ISTANBUL-SABIHA 502 LUXOR 44 DHAKA 773 ISTANBUL-ATATURK 442 LAHORE 765 ISTANBUL-SABIHA 621 ADDIS ABABA 409 BEIRUT 769 ISTANBUL-ATATURK 854 DUBAI 68 DUBAI 556 ALEXANDRIA 613 CAIRO 306 ABU DHABI 139 DOHA 149 DOHA 560 SOHAG 6131 DOHA 70 DUBAI 643 AMMAN 212 BAHRAIN 771 ISTANBUL-ATATURK 240 AMMAN 545 ALEXANDRIA 164 DUBAI 156 LONDON 54 DUBAI 256 BEIRUT 534 CAIRO 671 DUBAI 561 AMMAN 126 SHARJAH 606 MASHHAD 4162 MASHHAD 856 DUBAI 153 ISTANBUL-SABIHA 56 DUBAI 616 AHWAZ 302 ABU DHABI 133 DOHA 101 LONDON 501 BEIRUT 342 DAMASCUS 214 BAHRAIN 541 CAIRO 165 ROME 405 BEIRUT 776 JEDDAH 786 RIYADH 785 JEDDAH 176 DUBAI 124 BAHRAIN 268 BEIRUT 406 SOHAG 580 SOHAG 611 CAIRO 4812 MASHHAD 767 ISTANBUL-ATATURK

DIAL 161 FOR AIRPORT INFORMATION

Time 00:05 00:15 00:20 00:25 00:30 00:30 01:10 01:30 01:30 02:20 02:30 02:40 02:45 03:10 03:40 03:45 03:50 03:55 04:15 04:20 04:25 05:15 05:55 06:20 06:30 06:35 07:00 07:10 07:10 07:20 07:25 08:25 08:25 08:50 09:10 09:25 09:25 09:30 09:40 09:45 09:50 09:50 09:55 10:10 10:15 10:25 10:25 11:10 11:10 11:25 11:30 11:45 11:55 12:25 12:50 13:00 13:20 13:30 13:35 13:40 13:50 14:00 14:05 14:10

KNE UAE FDB ABY KAC OMA KAC JZR KAC KNE SVA QTR FDB KAC NIA RJA JZR JZR QTR ETD ABY KNE UAE GFA SVA UAL JZR JZR TAR QTR FDB FDB GFA AXB KAC RBG JAI FDB ABY KAC KAC OMA KAC MEA AFG MSC MSR KAC DHX MSC SYR ETD ALK UAE QTR KAC GFA KAC FDB QTR JAI JZR JZR KAC KAC JZR

481 872 58 122 673 646 617 188 773 471 505 141 8052 613 252 641 238 512 135 304 128 473 858 216 511 982 184 266 328 145 8056 64 220 394 283 554 571 62 120 331 343 648 351 403 415 404 619 543 171 402 1294 308 230 860 137 301 218 205 60 147 575 554 1540 411 415 528

TAIF DUBAI DUBAI SHARJAH DUBAI MUSCAT DOHA DUBAI RIYADH JEDDAH JEDDAH DOHA DUBAI BAHRAIN ALEXANDRIA AMMAN AMMAN SHARM EL SHEIKH, EGYPT” DOHA ABU DHABI SHARJAH JEDDAH DUBAI BAHRAIN RIYADH BAHRAIN DUBAI BEIRUT TUNIS DOHA DUBAI DUBAI BAHRAIN KOZHIKODE DHAKA ALEXANDRIA MUMBAI DUBAI SHARJAH TRIVANDRUM CHENNAI MUSCAT KOCHI BEIRUT JEDDAH ASYUT ALEXANDRIA CAIRO BAHRAIN ALEXANDRIA DAMASCUS ABU DHABI COLOMBO DUBAI DOHA MUMBAI BAHRAIN ISLAMABAD DUBAI DOHA ABU DHABI ALEXANDRIA CAIRO BANGKOK KUALA LUMPUR ASYUT

14:10 14:15 14:30 15:05 15:05 15:40 15:45 16:00 16:00 16:00 16:00 16:15 16:20 16:35 16:50 16:55 17:05 17:15 17:20 17:20 17:50 17:55 18:15 18:20 18:20 18:30 18:30 18:40 18:50 19:25 19:25 19:35 19:50 20:15 20:15 20:20 20:35 20:40 20:45 20:50 20:55 20:55 21:05 21:15 21:20 21:25 21:30 21:30 21:50 22:00 22:05 22:15 22:20 22:25 22:35 22:40 22:45 23:00 23:00 23:05 23:05 23:20 23:25 23:40 23:50 23:55

34

s ta rs CROSSWORD 294

STAR TRACK Aries (March 21-April 19) ARIES Don’t be surprised if you are not in top mental gear today; these days occur occasionally. You could find yourself struggling to communicate. Take the time to write a grateful list. Hard words or confusing information or thoughts will not remain in your energy field for long. You will find that your hesitation to ask questions has vanished and your timing is greatly improved by the afternoon. Others will follow your example as you begin to see everything as steppingstones to a better you. You could be an excellent teacher in areas requiring discipline. You value order and place a high premium on hard work. You will have a guardian angel blessing you in all you do with family matters this evening. Relax, enjoy and listen to the musical sounds of their voices.

Taurus (April 20-May 20) Everything points to you—moving forward. You could feel great support from those around you as you find a first in the way of accomplishment. Something you did not think you could do will be successfully accomplished. A little smile may appear on your face for the rest of this day. The afternoon is promising for working in groups.

Your management abilities shine and you could be asked to organize or supervise some work process. You like work and career. This is an inspiring period, be it creative, personal or in the business world. You like radical approaches and may find yourself in support of whatever is a new wave product or advanced breakthrough. Swimming or some other form of exercise is helpful for your relaxation this evening.

Gemini (May 21-June 20)

ACROSS 1. Norwegian mathematician (1802-1829).

5. Of or relating to a basin.

12. A doctor's degree in dental surgery.

15. A narrow way or road.

16. Waste matter (as urine or sweat but especially feces) discharged from the body.

17. A former agency (from 1946 to 1974) that was responsible for research into atomic energy and its peacetime uses in the United States.

18. A unit of traffic intensity in a telephone system.

19. Large black bird with a straight bill and long wedge-shaped tail.

20. The cry made by sheep.

21. A run that is the result of the batter's performance.

22. A republic in West Africa on the Gulf of Guinea.

23. A broken piece of a brittle artifact.

25. Eurasian perennial bulbous herbs.

28. The middle of the day.

30. A sensation (as of a cold breeze or bright light) that precedes the onset of certain disorders such as a migraine attack or epileptic seizure.

32. (Phoenician) A fertility goddess.

36. Essential oil or perfume obtained from flowers.

39. Brought into existence.

42. Earn on some commercial or business transaction.

43. Of or relating to a member of the Buddhist people inhabiting the Mekong river in Laos and Thailand.

44. United States industrialist who manufactured plows suitable for working the prairie soil (1804-1886).

46. Jordan's port.

48. The basic unit of money on Sao Tome e Principe.

50. A French abbot.

51. (Old Testament) The wife of Abraham and mother of Isaac.

52. A member of the Pueblo people living in western New Mexico.

53. A flat wing-shaped process or winglike part of an organism.

54. The district occupied entirely by the city of Washington.

57. (South African) A camp defended by a circular formation of wagons.

60. A sliver-white metallic element of the platinum group that resembles platinum.

62. Tropical American tree producing cacao beans.

65. A silvery ductile metallic element found primarily in bauxite.

66. A large fleet.

73. Relating to or characteristic of or occurring on the sea or ships.

74. A state in southwestern United States.

77. An Arabic speaking person who lives in Arabia or North Africa.

78. Liquid containing proteins and electrolytes including the liquid in blood plasma and interstitial fluid.

79. A tricycle (usually propelled by pedalling).

80. A ballistic missile that is capable of traveling from one continent to another.

81. A Turkish unit of weight equal to about 2.75 pounds.

82. Low spreading tropical American shrub with

long slender leaves used to make a mildly stimulating drink resembling tea.

83. Deciduous or evergreen shrubs and shrubby trees of temperate and subtropical North America, South Africa, eastern Asia and northeastern Australia.

DOWN 1. Very attentive or observant.

2. Found along western Atlantic coast.

3. (Sumerian) God of the air and king of the Sumerian gods.

4. A unit of length of thread or yarn.

5. A pauper who lives by begging.

6. An edge tool with a heavy bladed head mounted across a handle.

7. Leave immediately.

8. A native or inhabitant of Iran.

9. A resident of Nevada.

10. Goddess of criminal rashness and its punishment.

11. East Indian tart yellow berrylike fruit.

12. A Chadic language spoken south of Lake Chad.

13. Dearly loved.

14. Any of a number of fishes of the family Carangidae.

24. Doglike nocturnal mammal of Africa and southern Asia that feeds chiefly on carrion.

26. A plant hormone promoting elongation of stems and roots.

27. A state of social isolation.

29. An honorary degree in science.

31. In bed.

33. A motley assortment of things.

34. Having or denoting a high range.

35. Make attractive or lovable.

37. The basic unit of money in Bangladesh.

38. A secret store of valuables or money.

40. Mexican painter noted for his monumental murals (1883-1949).

41. Overthrow by argument, evidence, or proof.

45. A barrier consisting of a horizontal bar and supports.

47. An indehiscent fruit derived from a single ovary having one or many seeds within a fleshy wall or pericarp.

49. A radioactive gaseous element formed by the disintegration of radium.

55. So scary as to cause chills and shudders.

56. (Akkadian) God of wisdom.

58. An associate degree in applied science.

59. Double star 15.7 light years from Earth.

61. (slang) Merchandise that is shoddy or inferior.

63. (Babylonian) A demigod or first man.

64. A language group of the Hokan family.

67. A Chadic language spoken south of Lake Chad.

68. A South American shrub whose leaves are chewed by natives of the Andes.

69. A small cake leavened with yeast.

70. (of persons) Highest in rank or authority or office.

71. (Babylonian) God of wisdom and agriculture and patron of scribes and schools.

72. A software system that facilitates the creation and maintenance and use of an electronic database.

75. An agency of the United Nations affiliated with the World Bank.

76. A quantity of no importance.

THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2013

You could discover that you are appreciated for your ability to get things accomplished. Because of this, someone may seek you out for your ideas regarding business matters. You are able to cut through the formalities and get at what is beneath. You possess an architect’s vision for what needs to be done and how to do it right to make it last—an expert or true builder. Others sense that you know just what tool to use and how and when to use it when it comes to problem-solving—a sense of the right path or dharma. You may even wonder why you do not exert this energy on yourself from time to time. There may be some insights to this quandary and you may find yourself making lists of things you want to change now. You are energized this evening.

Cancer (June 21-July 22) You may tend to ignore the law today—watch your speed and fasten your seatbelt. Your sense of direction may need more attention than usual as you seem a bit distracted. You have a way of making yourself known as you are greatly motivated to encourage others and to help whomever to move forward. Your outward seriousness about things is obvious but occasionally, like today, you can exhibit a great sense of humor. For some reason, today seems to be one of those days when you and a co-worker friend could exchange jokes much of the day long. There are things that test your patience but they will only last a short time. This evening you may decide to involve yourself with some genealogy study. You will have a helper in this research.

Leo (July 23-August 22) You could be most persuasive with others today. In a meeting, you will be able to gain the attention of higher-ups and help to make some positive changes in the workplace. Others listen to your views. It is natural for you to put your practical and management abilities to work. You can make a career out of your keen organizational skills and you have clear insight into how things work. You might consider a consulting profession of your own some day. It is something you could do in little steps until you see if you like the idea. Supervising and taking charge is your trademark. You tend to think along lines that are practical and conservative, always coming up with sound and productive ideas. Love, creativity and self-expression fulfill your needs.

Virgo (August 23-September 22) This is a high-cycle day when you may find yourself signing contracts, making arrangements and scurrying around on time schedules. You may find yourself serving to guide someone younger than you in important matters. You may perceive how to proceed with plans and decisions with regard to your life situation. You could find that you are appreciated or valued for your feelings and your ability to respond quickly and get things done. More than one person will pay you compliments today on your speedy abilities. Put your mind to work and take care of any details that you may have, for mental discipline should come easily. After work you will receive a door prize or gift from some unexpected source. You could be enjoying friends at a coffee house.

Word Search

Libra (September 23-October 22) You appear perhaps more charming and refined than usual. Now is the best time this month to request a raise, look for a new position, find a job or otherwise make yourself known. Take an opportunity to write out your goals. You have great psychological insight into life problems. You may consider some volunteer work in aiding, counseling or helping others understand difficulties. You can be fiercely tenacious. You always manage to come across as intense and personal when communicating and presenting yourself to others. Others are fascinated by the way you present yourself. It is easy for you to work with people from all walks of life. You could consider a job in management, perhaps teaching or athletic training or coaching.

Scorpio (October 23-November 21) You may find yourself very appreciative of your career and practical skills.

You might enjoy solving puzzles and problems and finding solutions. Be very attentive to times and dates today as there is some possibility of misunderstanding.

There is some inner peace and harmony that comes with doing a job successfully but you tend to enjoy teaching others and watching for the success of those you teach. This afternoon there is an opportunity to trade work with your fellow co-workers so that each of you learn each other’s job for those times of vacation or absences. Your understanding of people and the ability to put sensitive situations into perspective are unique and valuable gifts. There is a chance to understand those around you.

Sagittarius (November 22-December 21) This is a great time to work with others. You may be asked to perform or oversee certain tasks today. Your executive abilities are in high focus. This could be an action-filled day when time seems to slow down as you encounter some of your more vulnerable areas. This kind of intensity points to inner change and growth.

You have the green light for moving forward in your career decisions. You have plenty of drive and enthusiasm that should be easy to channel. You feel a love of order and an appreciation for responsibilities. In addition, mystical, metaphysical and occult subjects appeal to you. You will probably seek out contact in one of these areas to gain a greater understanding of life’s mysteries. One of your favorites is the art of meditation.

Capricorn (December 22-January 19) You value hard work and effort and will go about completing your designated tasks as quickly as possible today. You like to get down to the bare bones—to what is essential. You may find yourself being put to good use by your friends this afternoon. All of this should go rather smoothly. You may be tempted to overextend yourself today with regard to physical exercise or new business. Your energy is high and opportunities are many, but do not act rashly. Impulsive action could lead to accidents or overspending. Expand your experiences but stay clear of reckless behavior.

There are opportunities to understand those around you this evening and interaction with others is good. A sense of support and harmony make this a happy time.

Aquarius (January 20- February 18) Your inner resources and emotions are accented. This could not only mean you have control over yourself in touchy situations but you can expect a sense of support and goodwill from others. This is a good day to get things done. You have good eye-hand coordination, particularly today. Any sustained effort will make almost any task run well. You may feel like exercising or getting outside from time to time—it would certainly give you a good break. Lovers, children and other people dear to your heart are emphasized this evening. Perhaps a picnic dinner at a nearby park would bring the family together in a positive atmosphere. Everyone may feel like doing something different afterwards. New insights are possible with someone older this evening.

Pisces (February 19-March 20) Considering that your weekend was so full, this day is welcomed!

Accomplishments and the completion of any projects or routine work are anticipated before the day even begins. This afternoon you may enjoy your friends and some light social involvement. Careful—you may find yourself more than a little interested in spending your money. You are nourished in great measure by the atmosphere and conditions you are able to set up. Now is the time to work on a budget—and this is what you may want to tell your friends when you finally realize you would rather see your bank account increase instead of decrease. By clarifying your budget, you will avoid many financial difficulties later. You enjoy the company of loved ones this evening.

Yesterday’s Solution

Yesterday’s Solution

Daily SuDoku

Yesterday’s Solution

THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2013

i n f o r m at i o n For labor-related inquiries and complaints: Call MSAL hotline 128 GOVERNORATE 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

PHARMACY

ADDRESS

PHONE

Ahmadi

Sama Safwan Abu Halaifa Danat Al-Sultan

Fahaeel Makka St Abu Halaifa-Coastal Rd Mahboula Block 1, Coastal Rd

23915883 23715414 23726558

Jahra

Modern Jahra Madina Munawara

Jahra-Block 3 Lot 1 Jahra-Block 92

24575518 24566622

Capital

Ahlam Khaldiya Coop

Fahad Al-Salem St Khaldiya Coop

22436184 24833967

Farwaniya

New Shifa Ferdous Coop Modern Safwan

Farwaniya Block 40 Ferdous Coop Old Kheitan Block 11

24734000 24881201 24726638

Tariq Hana Ikhlas Hawally & Rawdha Ghadeer Kindy Ibn Al-Nafis Mishrif Coop Salwa Coop

Salmiya-Hamad Mubarak St Salmiya-Amman St Hawally-Beirut St Hawally & Rawdha Coop Jabriya-Block 1A Jabriya-Block 3B Salmiya-Hamad Mubarak St Mishrif Coop Salwa Coop

25726265 25647075 22625999 22564549 25340559 25326554 25721264 25380581 25628241

Hawally

Al-Madeena

22418714

Al-Shuhada

22545171

Al-Shuwaikh

24810598

Al-Nuzha

22545171

Sabhan

24742838

Al-Helaly

22434853

Al-Faiha

22545051

Al-Farwaniya

24711433

Al-Sulaibikhat

24316983

Al-Fahaheel

23927002

Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh

24316983

Ahmadi

23980088

Al-Mangaf

23711183

Al-Shuaiba

23262845

Kaizen center

25716707

Rawda

22517733

Adaliya

22517144

Al-Jahra

25610011

Khaldiya

24848075

Al-Salmiya

25616368

Kaifan

24849807

Shamiya

24848913

Shuwaikh

24814507

Abdullah Salem

22549134

Nuzha

22526804

Industrial Shuwaikh

24814764

Qadsiya

22515088

Dasmah

22532265

Bneid Al-Gar

22531908

Shaab

22518752

Qibla

22459381

Ayoun Al-Qibla

22451082

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

Ardhiya

24884079

Firdous

24892674

Omariya

24719048

N Khaitan

24710044

Fintas

23900322

INTERNATIONAL CALLS

PRIVATE CLINICS 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

Paediatricians

Plastic Surgeons Dr. Mohammad Al-Khalaf

22547272

Dr. Khaled Hamadi

Dr. Abdal-Redha Lari

22617700

Dr. Abd Al-Aziz Al-Rashed

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

Endocrinologist

25665898 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. Fozeya Ali Al-Qatan

22655539

Dr. Majeda Khalefa Aliytami

25343406

Dr. Shamah Al-Matar

22641071/2

Dr. Ahmad Al-Khooly

25739272

Dr. Anesah Al-Rasheed

22562226

22618787

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

General Surgeons Dr. Amer Zawaz Al-Amer

22610044

Dr. Mohammad Yousef Basher

25327148

Internists, Chest & Heart Dr. Adnan Ebil Dr. Latefa Al-Duweisan

22666300 25728004

Dr. Nadem Al-Ghabra

25355515

Dr. Mobarak Aldoub

24726446

Dr Nasser Behbehani

25654300/3

Soor Center Tel: 2290-1677 Fax: 2290 1688

Neurologists

22639939

Dr. Mousa Khadada

info@soorcenter.com www.soorcenter.com

3729596/3729581

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

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

Dr Anil Thomas

Dr. Salem soso

Dr. Abd Al-Naser Al-Othman

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 Consultant Cardiologist Dr. Farida Al-Habib MD, PH.D, FACC Inaya German Medical Center Te: 2575077 Fax: 25723123

2611555-2622555

William Schuilenberg, RPC 2290-1677 Zaina Al Zabin, M.Sc. 2290-1677

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

THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2013

lifestyle G o s s i p

S

tar Hollywood couple Michael Douglas and Catherine Zeta-Jones have separated in what could spell the end of their nearly 13-year marriage, People magazine reported yesterday, and a representative for ZetaJones confirmed the separation.”Catherine and Michael are taking some time apart to evaluate and work on their marriage,” a spokeswoman for Zeta-Jones said in a statement provided to Reuters, adding that she would not make any further comment. According to People, Douglas and ZetaJones, both Oscar winners and among Hollywood’s most high-profile couples, have in recent months vacationed separately, appeared at red carpet events without the other and are ostensibly living apart. The magazine cited two close confidants of the couple, with one quoted as saying, “They’re taking a break.” Neither star has filed for divorce nor moved toward a legal separation, it added. Douglas’ New York office had no comment on the report. Douglas, 68, and Zeta-Jones, 43, married in 2000 and have two children. Both have struggled with health issues in recent years. Zeta-Jones said in April that she was seeking help for bipolar disorder, her second-known trip to a healthcare facility for the condition since 2011 when she sought treatment for what aides said was the stress of coping with

Douglas’ advanced throat cancer diagnosis in 2010 and subsequent treatment. “The stress has taken a toll on their marriage,” People quoted a friend as saying. The A-list couple decided to spend time apart shortly after Douglas returned from the Cannes Film Festival in France in May, where his Emmy-nominated movie about Liberace, “Behind the Candelabra,” was screened. They first met in 1998 at the Deauville Film Festival in France, began dating the following year, got engaged on New Year’s Eve of 1999 and co-starred in the 2000 release “Traffic.” Zeta-Jones, most recently seen in the summer release “Red 2,” had at that point recently returned from round of treatment to monitor her bipolar disorder, the magazine said. Douglas has won Oscars as a producer of the 1975 best picture “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” and as best actor in 1987’s “Wall Street.” Zeta-Jones won her best supporting actress Academy Award for the 2002 musical “Chicago.”

H

ulu and Lionsgate Television will produce “Deabeat,” a supernatural comedy series created by “Wilfred” directors Cody Heller and Brett Konner and produced by Brad Pitt’s Plan B Entertainment, the companies announced on Tuesday. The show is the first partnership between Hulu, which is ramping up its production of original shows, and Lionsgate, which produces “Mad Men” for AMC and “Orange is the New Black” for Netflix. Hulu will distribute the show in the US via Hulu and its subscription service Hulu Plus while Lionsgate will distribute the show internationally. The companies have ordered 10 episodes of the show, which follows a New Yorker who helps ghosts with unfinished tasks. Troy Miller, who directed every episode in the new season of “Arrested Development” with the show’s creator Mitch Hurwitz, will directe and executive produce every episode of this series.

Plan B’s Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner and Sarah Esberg will produce with production slated for the fall. Hulu’s head of development Charlotte Koh said ‘Deadbeat’ is a welcome addition to our growing slate of smart, distinctive original programming” while Lionsgate TV Kevin Beggs described it as “fun, edgy and provocative.” Hulu recently launched “The Awesomes,” an animated superhero comedy co-created by “Saturday Night Live” writer Seth Meyers. It is the first of four original shows that will debut on Hulu in the second half of the year. When TheWrap spoke with interim CEO Andy Forssell a few weeks ago, he said Hulu could expand its slate to as many as eight new shows next year. “Deadbeat” is the first step in that direction.

I

t’s another day, another run-in with the paparazzi for Alec Baldwin. Baldwin, whose relationship with the paps is famously contentious, had a run-in with a photographer in New York City on Tuesday. A spokesman for the New York Police Department told TheWrap that both parties admitted to a physical altercation, but the actor and photographer both declined to press charges. A representative for the 55-year-old “30 Rock” star had no comment. Pictures published by multiple outlets, including the New York Daily News, depict Baldwin pinning the photographer on the hood of a parked car. However, an individual familiar with the situation told TheWrap that the shutterbug instigated the confrontation, and followed Baldwin’s wife Hilaria - who gave birth to the couple’s daughter earlier this month - into a nearby store following the run-in.

Last June, the New York Daily News reported that Baldwin roughed up one of the paper’s photographers, Marcus Santos, after Santos took Baldwin’s picture outside of the Marriage License Bureau in New York. According to the paper, the actor punched Santos on the chin, though a representative for Baldwin denied that he punched anybody and said that any physical contact from Baldwin was the result of self-defense. More recently, Baldwin lashed out at Daily Mail reporter George Stark, calling him a “toxic little queen” after Stark claimed that Baldwin’s wife tweeted during actor James Gandolfini’s funeral.

Buble welcomes baby with wife Lopilato

T

he Argentinian actress wife of Canadian Grammy-winning singer Michael Buble gave birth to a boy on Tuesday, the singer said on Twitter. The first child together for the singer and Luisana Lopilato was born in Vancouver, British Columbia.

“Overjoyed and filled with gratitude at the arrival of our son Noah Buble,” the singer best known for songs “Haven’t Met You Yet” and “Save the Last Dance for Me” wrote on Twitter, also posting a photo of the family on the Instagram photo-sharing website. Buble, 37, and Lopilato, 26, announced in January that they were expecting a child, posting a video with the ultrasound of a fetus on YouTube. The couple were married in 2011. Lopilato has starred in such Spanish-language telenovelas as “Chiquititas, la historia” and “Rebelde Way.”

J

ohn Travolta, Nicolas Cage, Cate Blanchett and Michael Douglas are among the stars who will tread the red carpet at France’s 39th Deauville film festival, which kicks off Friday. The northern seaside resort’s annual celebration of American films will open with the screening of Steven Soderbergh’s “Behind the Candelabra”, which stars Douglas as flamboyant entertainer Liberace, who died of AIDS in 1987. In all, 14 films are vying for the festival’s Grand Prize, presided over by French actor Vincent Lindon, which will be announced on September 7. The festival organizers say the films delve into “the roots of rural America looking for meaning to life.” Among the movies are “Fruitvale Station” by director Ryan Coogler, which competed in the Cannes film festival after having won the grand prize at Sundance.”All is Lost” starring Robert Redford will also compete. Travolta will talk about “Killing Season”, which he stars in with Robert De Niro, while Blanchett will attend to promote “Blue Jasmine”, Woody Allen’s latest, in which she plays. The festival will also screen a number of documentaries, such as “Dancing in Jaffa” about a project to bring Palestinian and Israeli children together to dance and overcome political and cultural differences. “Inequality for All”, meanwhile, follows former US president Bill Clinton’s first labor secretary Robert Reich, who is convinced that a rising income gap in the United States is one of the most serious threats to the economy and democracy.

“T J

osh Duhamel is a “little bit terrified” about becoming a dad. The 40-year-old actor is expecting his first child with his wife Fergie and their baby boy is due any day now. Although he is very excited to meet his son, the ‘Safe Haven’ star is also nervous because once he becomes a dad he knows his life is going to change forever. During an appearance on ‘ The Tonight Show with Jay Leno’, he revealed: “I got to tell you, I’m a little bit nervous. I thought I was going to be good, I thought I was ready for this and I’m a little bit terrified. I’m excited and terrified because I’m responsible for this little thing forever. I just got that.” The couple have been preparing for the imminent birth of their son and have a bag ready for when they have to dash to the hospital. As they wait for the Black Eyed Peas singer - who official-

ly changed her name from Stacy Ann Ferguson to Fergie Duhamel earlier this month - to go into labour the couple have been enjoying spending some quiet time together. Josh recently admitted he has been very impressed by 38-year-old Fergie’s calmness during the pregnancy and her readiness for motherhood.

He said: “[She’s] unbelievable. The girl is so impressive.

“You never know how it’s going to go. Some girls have a tougher time, some a little easier ... She’s been happy, in good spirits, she looks great. Even at 8 and 3/4 months, she’s still in great spirits and looking beautiful.”

he Sopranos” actress Kathrine Narducci, who played Charmaine Bucco on the Jersey-set mob series, has joined the cast of Clint Eastwood’s adaptation of the popular musical “Jersey Boys,” TheWrap has learned. The Warner Bros movie stars John Lloyd Young, Eric Bergen, Michael Lomenda and Vincent Piazza (“Boardwalk Empire”) as The Four Seasons members Frankie Valli, Bob Gaudio, Nick Massi and Tommy DeVito, respectively. The ensemble also includes Christopher Walken, upand-coming actor Jeremy Luke (“Mob City,” “Don Jon”) and Narducci’s “Sopranos” co-star Steve Schirripa. Narducci will play Frankie Valli’s mother, Mary Rinaldi, alongside Lou Volpe as Frankie’s father, Anthony. Eastwood, GK Films principal Graham King and Robert Lorenz are producing, while the real-life Valli and Gaudio are executive producing. Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice wrote the screenplay. Narducci started her career playing Robert De Niro’s wife in “A Bronx Tale” before going on to a key supporting role opposite John Ventimiglia and James Gandolfini in “The Sopranos.” Since the success of that landmark series, Narducci has worked steadily in television, guest starring on shows including “Hung” and “Workaholics,” as well the “In Plain Sight” pilot. She also shot a short film with Gandolfini titled “A Whole New Day.” Narducci is represented by Brillstein Entertainment Partners, Clear Talent Group and Headline Talent Agency.

THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2013

lifestyle F e a t u r e s

This screen grab image taken from AFP video shows an external view of the Dalai Lama’s family home in Hongai (Taktser) village in Pingan county, in northwest China’s Qinghai Province. — AFP photos

Anger as China ‘restores’ Dalai

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he Chinese town where the Dalai Lama was born is undergoing huge redevelopment, and behind a mountain the exiled spiritual leader’s family home has received a makeover of its own, with a three-meter wall and security cameras installed. The building in Hongai village, at the summit of a towering peak, is the only place in China dedicated to the man Beijing considers a violent separatist and a “wolf in monk’s robes”.

But the house has become a symbol of China’s bitterly divisive policy in Tibetan regions following its 2.5 million yuan ($400,000) refurbishment, amid concern from international rights groups over the scale and speed of Tibetan housing and relocation programs. “ This is not modernization but Sinofication,” Tibetan poet and activist Tsering Woeser told AFP. Hongai, known to Tibetans as Taktser, is in an area that has been culturally Tibetan for centuries but lies deep in the western Chinese province of Qinghai, several hundred kilometers (miles) outside the boundaries of the Special Administrative Region itself.

For Tibetans the building’s transformation is a sign of lost traditions, unrecognizable from the simple farmer’s dwelling found by a search party of Buddhists who identified toddler Lhamo Dhondup as the Dalai Lama’s reincarnation in the 1930s. Authorities who funded what appears to be a total rebuild, however, view it as a goodwill gesture to visiting pilgrims and part of a 1.5 billion yuan ($244 million) local regen-

eration drive. A typically poor outpost in China’s vast and sparsely populated west, the area is beginning to share in the country’s economic explosion, with several overseas companies setting up, according to state media.

“Today, the once bleak, underdeveloped county is closer to a boom town,” local official Sun Xiuzong told the official news agency Xinhua. But near the Dalai Lama’s house, there is little sign of opening up. “You are not allowed in,” said a neighbor on a narrow, leafy street in the eerily quiet village. “No foreigners are allowed in. It is because of the police,” he added, as dogs-kept in many Tibetan households as protection-barked in the distance. Local authorities declined a formal request to enter the property. “We don’t want to offer the Dalai Lama any publicity,” an official told AFP. The future Nobel laureate was taken to Tibet from Hongai and enthroned before he turned four. He was formally recognized as the 14th Dalai Lama in 1950, at the age of 15, but was forced to flee Tibet nine years later following a failed uprising against Chinese rule. He later founded the government in exile in Dharamshala after being offered refuge by India, and has campaigned for the preservation of Tibetan culture on the world stage ever since. Back in Hongai, his house was reportedly destroyed by Red Guards during the decade-long Cultural Revolution in the 1960s and 70s, but rebuilt in the 1980s.

It is currently being maintained by Gonpo Tashi, a nephew

Devotees worshipping at Baima Temple in Pingan county, in northwest China’s Qinghai Province.

Lama’s ancestral home of the 78-year-old Dalai Lama and former local official, who is understood to live next door.” The refurbished compound has retained its original look, but the ground is newly paved, beams have been reinforced and murals were repainted,” according to Xinhua, who officials said were the only media allowed inside since the works. There was no response from either the Dalai Lama’s house or the neighboring property when AFP visited.

Locals say devotees are often allowed in to worship. The top of a large prayer flag pole and a gold temple could be seen from outside, while security cameras and modern waste bins had been installed along the perimeter. Rudy Kong, a Canadian writer who lived in China for many years and visited the house in 2000 — one of the few foreigners to do so-was skeptical about the refurbishment. “The main building looks totally different, as it was quite open, but now it is filled in, and the roof was not as steep,” he said after viewing AFP images.

“It looks like a total rebuild-and I certainly don’t remember a grey three-meter wall surrounding the entire site,” he added.

Tibetans fear the destruction of their culture through urbanization and China’s relentless drive to modernize-while Beijing says its investments have significantly raised living standards.

Sophie Richardson, China director for US-based campaign group Human Rights Watch said in June: “The scale and speed at which the Tibetan rural population is being remodeled by

mass rehousing and relocation policies are unprecedented in the post-Mao era.”

Hongai is a remote village of about 70 houses perched above a wide, green valley. At the end of a sharply descending narrow road snaking between freshwater creeks and jagged, stony cliffs, the verdant landscape gives way to a large, dusty building site peppered with dozens of cranes and the skeletons of huge tower blocks awaiting completion. Many of China’s Han ethnic majority have moved into the area as it develops, and Woeser said the local culture had been diluted over the years.

“When I last visited Taktser in 2007 a relative told me only 40 of the households were Tibetan,” Woeser said. “The relative also told me Tibetans have adopted Han ways and they don’t speak good Tibetan.” Beijing may be using the house as “bait” to convince senior monks to choose the next reincarnation of the Dalai Lama within China’s borders, she added. “Their words are very sweet, but the real situation is very sad, and they are playing games with it.”— AFP

Gap s presents Fall 2013 Kids collection

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ap introduces its Fall 2013 collection for Kids and babies. For kids, ‘Pop Comics’ story is all about bold, clean, happy color and outfitting that reflects fun with a bright color palette drawn from 60’s pop art and vintage comic books mixed with intense neon pops. This color inspiration transforms graphic tees, stripes, and plaids into a kid-friendly casual wardrobe.

The key items for girls includes colored denim, sweaters with novelty details while the brand offers colored chino, Graphic tees, bold strip V-neck and comic sweaters for boys.

‘School of Rock’ is a fashion story of the 50’s inspired silhouettes such as full skirted dresses and ankle-grazing skinny denim. Colored sparkle printed denim, knit tee with heart detail are a must have for Girls.

‘Mod Squad’ is a fashion story that is influenced by the clean silhouettes of the 60’s with a girly handle. Bow details and peter pan collars decorate key items in a tight bold color palette that allows a Mod Squad girl to stand out from the pack. As part of this collection, toddler girls can be dressed in printed Peplum knit tops, Intarsia sweaters to along with printed denim in graphics.

Gap also launches ‘Starlet’ and ‘Ciao Bella’ story for girls where Starlet is about standout fashion classics with a twist while Ciao Bella is inspired by pretty, chic Parisian style at its core.

For Boys, nautical trend is still strong as part of the ‘Stargazer’ range and is built out of naval stripes, two-color checks and layered with

boat jackets and traditional maritime outerwear. The ‘Bowery’ range for boys features Rock-themed elevated tees, marble Gap hoody and moto jeans. babyGap launches its new collection ‘Le Marais’, which is bold and modern and offers a perfect transition to Fall. Neon pops among a neutral gray/navy palette keep this collection fresh. ‘High Society’ is another beautiful collection introduced by Gap for this Fall that features a fresh, neutral palette with hints of a deep turquoise.

When days start to get shorter in the upcoming Fall months, bold, optimistic color is a must to brighten the day. Hence, babyGap introduces the ‘Poppy’ collection that is inspired by the bold, vibrant colors of the poppy fields. A fun, new twist is given to the infant newborn picture taking range through intarsias on both one-pieces for newborn and sweaters for infant boy and girl. Ponte knit dresses, bold polka dot intarsia dresses, and leopard accessories are key for baby girl. Baby boy is given a fun twist with plaid shirting and bold stripe sweaters worn back to clean denim. The new collection is available from August 2013 at all Gap stores in UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and Oman.

A liquid nitrogen-filled tank of various frozen mammal semen samples is seen at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute.

Dr Pierre Comizzoli, a Reproductive Physiologist at the Center for Species Survival, looks through a microscope at the sperm of a cat found in Africa at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute at the National Zoo in Washington.—AFP photos

Zoos rethink role as matchmaker for endangered species

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ike an online dating site for endangered species, many zoos use computerized matchmaking to mate animals in captivity in hopes of saving some of the world’s most vulnerable creatures. The tools of the trade range from frozen panda sperm, to genetic databases to ultrasounds for hefty rhinoceroses. But like dating everywhere, it gets expensive, complicated and doesn’t always work. After more than three decades of efforts, some experts are taking a fresh look at modern-day breeding tactics. Zoos, they say, cannot keep pace with the high costs of shipping animals from one facility to another, as the loss of wild habitat pushes more and more creatures to the brink of extinction.

A movement to improve captive breeding began in the late 1970s when scientists realized that some zoo-held baby giraffes, gazelles and deer were more likely to die if inbred. “That really caused a sea change in zoos because they realized they had to be better at managing captive populations,” recalled David Wildt, head of the Center for Species Survival at the Smithsonian National Zoo. Today, survival plans exist for more than 500 species, including cheetahs, Asian elephants and black-footed ferrets.

The genetic data of captive specimens is fed into computers so scientists can determine the most diverse matches for each individual. Sometimes the plans work, as for the scimitar-horned oryx, a graceful type of African antelope that was declared extinct in the wild in 2000 due to overhunting and habitat loss. Thousands have been bred in captivity.

Some have already been reintroduced in Tunisia and there are plans to release more soon, according to the Sahara Conservation Fund.

China’s giant panda breeding program has also been “extraordinarily successful,” said Wildt. Beijing

maintains a core population of captive pandas and rents some out to mate in zoos around the world, with the caveat that the animals must eventually return home. “They only have one shot per year,” said Pierre Comizzoli, a research scientist who works with the solitary bears at the National Zoo in Washington. The 220-250 pound (100-114 kilogram) pandas rarely manage the position needed to conceive naturally so zoo experts resort to artificial insemination.

“We have to anesthetize the male and then stimulate the male under anesthesia and that is the way that we get the semen,” Comizzoli explained. Then, they have to wait the entire three-to-five month gestation period to see if the female was even impregnated. Most years, the attempts have failed.

One panda cub born in 2005 at the National Zoo has survived to adulthood. This year experts for the first time used samples from two different bears, including one from a San Diego zoo. A so-far healthy, baby giant panda was born on August 23 though its paternity will remain a mystery until the DNA tests come back. A second cub emerged stillborn a day later.

For other species, like the critically endangered Sumatran rhinoceros, inbreeding is now the only option left, US zookeepers say. In the wild, as few as 100 remain in Indonesia and Malaysia. The females ovulate only if a potential mate is nearby-which isn’t always the case.

‘If they don’t like each other, they kill each other’ A Cincinnati Zoo team began working with Sumatran rhinos in the 1990s and finally succeeded in getting a pair to breed in 2001, producing the world’s first calf born in captivity in 112 years. Now,

In Poland, a stork is a man’s best friend

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t is a success story of happy coexistence: outnumbered by storks, residents of the Polish hamlet of Zywkowo welcome the birds on their roofs in exchange for good luck and, if you believe legend, newborns. Kept afloat by EU and non-profit funding, the northern hamlet-a stone’s throw from the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad-depends on storks for the tourism it needs to survive. “In the 1960s, we had 120 residents and 20 storks. Today it is the opposite,” says retired farmer Wladyslaw Andrejew.

While too poor to keep the younger generation from leaving, this part of the country is paradise on earth for the large, red-legged birds. More than 15,000 White Stork couples

flock to the lake-rich northern region of Masuria every summer, according to local officials. Poland as a whole sees an average of 50,000 storks a year, or 20 percent of the world’s population. Since he was little, 64-yearold Andrejew has been passionate about storks, building and fixing massive nests for his animal pals on roofs, in trees and on poles around the farm.—AFP

A stork flies over Zywkowo village, northern Poland on August 8, 2013. — AFP

that zoo’s sole female, Suci, is sexually mature. Her only potential mate in captivity in the United States is her brother, Harapan. An attempt to mate the siblings is expected to begin soon.

“We are in a really tough spot and we just don’t have any other options,” said Terri Roth, vice president of conservation and science. “Unless Indonesia were to capture more animals... we don’t have the genetic diversity that we need.”

Roth said she and her fellow scientists have spent more than 30 years trying to protect the wild rhino population and to improve their captive breeding program but said both efforts “haven’t succeeded as we hoped.” Cost is a key obstacle.

Maintaining a pair of Sumatran rhinos in Cincinnati ran up to $263,000 in 2011, she said. But the larger problem is the rapid loss of animals in the wild due to deforestation and poaching. Costs are high for breeding small animals, too. Wildt said his facility spent a quarter of a million dollars in a single year to breed 40 black-footed ferrets.

Chemistry can also be an obstacle. Sometimes animals, especially cheetahs and other big cats, just don’t agree with the computer match-up. “Cats are extremely tricky to breed in captivity,” Comizzoli told AFP. “If they don’t like each other they are going to kill each other.” For Wildt, the future lies in maintaining herds of animals in large, fenced-in spaces, like the 3,200 acres (1,300 hectares) he oversees at the Smithsonian’s facility in rural Virginia.—AFP

THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2013

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Members of the Jury, (from left) Chinese actor and director Jiang Wen, German actress Martina Gedeck, French actress Virginie Ledoyen, US actress and scriptwriter Carrie Fisher, British director Andrea Arnold, Chilean director, screenwriter and producer Pablo Larrain, Italian director and president of the jury Bernardo Bertolucci, Japanese composer, musician and producer Ryuichi Sakamoto and Swiss French director of photography Renato Berta pose during a photocall at the Lido Casino on the first day of the 70th VeniceFilm Festival yesterday at Venice Lido.

US actor George Clooney steers a boat next to US actress Sandra Bullock before the photocall of the movie ‘Gravity’ presented out of competition on the opening day of the 70th Venice Film Festival at Venice Lido.

Clooney, Bullock

space thriller opens Venice film fest H

ollywood high-rollers George Clooney and Sandra Bullock kicked off the Venice film festival yesterday with a harrowing space drama that opens a line-up flush with gloomy tales. “Gravity”, a 3-D sci-fi thriller, sees Clooney and Bullock as astronauts who are flung into dark, deep space when a debris shower destroys their shuttle. The stars were expected on the red carpet for the opening ceremony of the world’s oldest film festival, followed by an exclusive after-dinner party. Directed by Mexico’s Alfonso Cuaron of “Children of Men” fame, the film induces anxiety, with terrifying shots from inside the astronauts’ helmets as they spin wildly and lose all radio contact with Earth.

Cuaron has said he invented new filmmaking techniques to depict spacewalkingincluding shooting inside a giant cube to evoke constantly shifting light sources-and after months of delay and a huge budget, “Gravity” delivers a Hollywood punch.

Bullock plays Dr Ryan Stone, a medical engineer on her first mission who relies on veteran astronaut Matt Kowalsky (Clooney) to hold on to her sanity and try to survive despite her rapidly dropping oxygen levels.

A soundtrack dominated by her racing heartbeat and the deafening silence of space is punctuated by jokes cracked by Kowalsky: “Half of North America just lost its Facebook”, he quips as debris takes out communication satellites. While director of pho-

tography Emmanuel Lubezki produces stunning images which leave spectators gasping for air, the humour sometimes detracts from key scenes and the characters lack real depth. Other keenly awaited premieres include “Parkland”, Peter Landesman’s recreation of John F Kennedy’s assassination and David Gordon Green’s brutal “Joe” with Nicholas Cage as a violent ex-con who teams up with a homeless teen.

“This festival draws its strength from the risks it takes,” this year’s jury president, Oscar-winning Italian director Bernardo Bertolucci, said at a canalside cocktail party on the eve of the opening. Gondoliers could be seen shipping silver screen stars to Venice’s Lido Island where the 70th edition of the festival will run to September 7, accompanied by a plethora of luxury yacht parties and beach soirees.

Paparazzi were doused in sea spray as speed boats whipped past the shore of the Lido and starlets lounged in the Italian sun.

Scarlett Johansson, Nicholas Cage, Matt Damon and Zac Efron are just some of the stars expected on the red carpet this edition, along with South Korea’s Kim Ki-duk, whose grim morality tale “Pieta” won the Golden Lion prize last year.

Twenty films are up for the Lion this year.

The jury is headed up by Bertolucci, best known for his raunchy 1972 “Last Tango in Paris”, and includes British director Andrea Arnold (“Red Road”) and German actress

be tested by Jonathan Glazer’s “Under the Skin”, in which Johansson stars as an alien who hunts down and devours unwitting hikers. Monty Python star Terry Gilliam’s drama “The Zero Theorem” is unlikely to lift the mood, with its bleak tale of solitude and madness centered around a race to decode a mathematical formula to discover whether life has any meaning. — AFP

(From Left) Producer David Heyman, US actress Sandra Bullock, Mexican director Alfonso Cuaron, US actor George Clooney and Mexican screenwriter Jonas Cuaron pose during the photocall of the movie “Gravity” presented out of competition on the opening day of the 70th Venice Film Festival yesterday at Venice Lido. — AFP photos Martina Gedeck (“The Lives of Others”).

British and American flicks dominate, with the return of the family as the vessel for social, political and economic crisis, from child abuse and abductions to absent fathers and marriage breakdowns. The total 53 films screening reflect a “dark and violent reality” with filmmakers “not giving any

‘Girls Gone Wild’ creator gets 270 days in jail

US actor George Clooney and US actress Sandra Bullock pose during the photocall of the movie “Gravity”.

Emboldened Rebecca Hall moves toward center stage

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irls Gone Wild” creator Joe Francis was sentenced Tuesday to 270 days in jail and three years’ probation for choking a woman and repeatedly slamming her head to the ground at his Los Angeles mansion in 2011. Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Nancy L Newman also ordered the 40-year-old Francis to complete an anger management course and attend 52 sessions of psychological counseling, according to Deputy City Attorney Mitchell Fox. A jury in May convicted Francis of five misdemeanor charges - three counts of false imprisonment, one count of assault by means likely to cause great bodily injury, and one count of dissuading a witness from reporting a crime.

Francis’ attorney Steve Levine said key details of the case were proven to be false in court, and he is appealing the decision. “Joe has always maintained his innocence,” Levine said. He added that the judge “still came to a very fair and measured decision.” According to Fox, Francis met three women on Jan 29, 2011, at a college graduation party at the Supper Club in Hollywood. He grabbed the arm of one of the girls and took her to his limo, and the two others followed, believing they’d be taken to their car. Instead, they ended up in a gated area of Francis’ Bel Air home.

Francis appeared to be interested in one of the women and tried to lead her away, but her friend pulled back, Fox said.

Francis then “jumped on the friend, took her to the ground, choked her, slammed her head against the ground, dragged her across the ground, and when she got back up, did it several more times,” Fox said. He then apparently told the women they were trespassing and had to leave.

The women said they File photo shows Joe Francis attends were going to call the the House of Hype Music Awards at the police, and Francis yelled Beverly Hills Hotel in Beverly Hills, to “go ahead and call the police,” the prosecutor Calif. — AP said. Francis told the girls he “owns the police” and that officers wouldn’t arrest him, Fox added.

Judge Newman denied Francis’ request for a new trial Tuesday, but sentenced him to less than the four years in county jail urged by prosecutors. Levine said Francis would be released from custody soon after posting a $250,000 bond Tuesday.

He’ll remain free pending the outcome of the appeal. The day after Francis was convicted in Los Angeles, he told The Hollywood Reporter that members of the jury were “retarded,” and said “they should all be lined up and shot.” Francis later apologized for his comments. “This is one of those cases where being a celebrity did not help him at all,” Levine said.

Francis has had a number of past legal troubles. Last year, a jury found him guilty of defaming casino mogul Steve Wynn on multiple occasions, including on ABC’s national morning show. Francis claimed the creator of some of Las Vegas’ most upscale resorts threatened to kill him over a gambling debt. Dozens of other lawsuits have targeted Francis, who built a porn empire producing and marketing videos of young women exposing themselves on camera. — AP

signs of optimism”, festival director Alberto Barbera said.

Among the most harrowing will be James Franco’s “Child of God”, an adaptation of a Cormac McCarthy novel about a cave dweller who rejects the social order and ends up slaughtering women to have sex with their corpses. The squeamish will also

This Aug 19, 2013 photo shows English actress Rebecca Hall in New York. —AP

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ebecca Hall is confidently stepping toward center stage. This year, there was her snappy, unapologetic Sylvia in the Tom Stoppard HBO miniseries “Parade’s End,” a revelation of Hall’s dynamism and capacity for boldness. There was her supporting role as a scientist in “Iron Man 3,” an indoctrination to the Hollywood blockbuster. And, now, there’s the British thriller “Closed Circuit,” a confirmation of her ascendance to being a leading lady - one bristling with intelligence in any role.

“I want to play women who are rich and make mistakes and can be messy and ugly as well as pretty,” says Hall. “I think that’s really an important service.

That sounds very grand. I don’t mean it to sound grand.” In a recent interview

over tea at an East Village cafe, Hall is sharp, buoyant, funny and seemingly energized by the work she’s getting.

She’s still glowing from the singing lines of Sylvia - a “once in a blue moon” part, she calls it - a shift for her to playing a more extroverted, forceful character: “It was massively liberating,” she says.

Above all, she comes across, as she says of herself, as “restless and curious.”

“She’s the real McCoy,” says “Closed Circuit” director John Crowley. “She’s hugely impressive and has massive range. It felt like she would have the intellectual prowess but also the emotionality to handle the part.” In “Closed Circuit,” Hall plays the Special Advocate appointed to jointly defend a man accused of bombing a crowded London marketplace. She and another lawyer (Eric Bana), with whom she has a romantic past, must work the case under confidentiality and in a hearing closed to the public a cloak of secrecy that masks further injustice in the name of national security.

The film has obvious contemporary relevance, but it also relates personally to Hall. The 31-year-old actress has seen her life made the fodder of British tabloids for her relationship with director Sam Mendes. “I find it slightly disturbing that privacy means that you’re guilty of something that you have to hide,” Halls says. “That probably stems from the fact that I saw my parents have their privacy invaded on by the press when they were going through

their divorce when I was five or whatever. I was very aware of the press always - my dad’s reviews.”

Hall’s father, Sir Peter Hall, founded the Royal Shakespeare Company and is a renowned figure in British theater.

Her mother, Maria Ewing, was an acclaimed opera singer from Detroit.

Of her childhood, Hall says: “It was mine. I don’t know any different. It was peripatetic and nomadic and bohemian and exciting and at times unusual to the point of wanting some type of stability. But mostly, it was just a very creative, exciting environment to be raised in.” As a child, Hall was immediately drawn to acting: Her first professional part came as an 8-year-old in her father’s TV adaptation of Mary Wesley’s “The Camomile Lawn.” She later attended Cambridge for two years, but then quit, wanting “to do something bold and decisive and not have anything to fall back on.”

With such an independent streak, she initially recoiled when her father offered her a part in his production of George Bernard Shaw’s “Mrs. Warren’s Profession” in the West End. “Then I changed my mind after six months and realized I might as well get it out of the way,” she recalled. “Either I’ll be mauled by the press and I’ll never be allowed to do this again, or they’ll get over the fact that I’m Peter Hall’s daughter.”

Hall won the Ian Charleson Award for the performance. Years of theater and frequent collaborations with her father followed. She stared in Mendes’

Obama says he teared up over butler movie P

resident Barack Obama teared up watching “Lee Daniels’ The Butler,” a celluloid depiction of the US civil rights battle as seen by an African-American who served in the White House. The movie, starring Forest Whitaker and Oprah Winfrey, topped the North American box office for a second straight weekend and is already being spoke of as a multiple Academy Award contender.

“I teared up just thinking about not just the butlers who have worked here in the White House, but an entire generation of people who

were talented and skilled, but because of Jim Crow, because of discrimination, there was only so far they could go,” Obama said in an interview with radio host Tom Joyner.

“And yet, with dignity and tenacity, they got up and worked every single day,” said Obama, the first AfricanAmerican US president, noting that those who were discriminated against put up with a lot “because they hoped for something better for their kids.”

The racially motivated “Jim Crow” laws-which legalized at the local and

federal level rules about where blacks could eat, go to school, sit on a bus, and who they could marry, among other restrictions-were in force from the 1870s to the 1960s.

The epic film-encompassing over 50 years of history and a dozen US presidents-is loosely based on the real-life story of Eugene Allen, an AfricanAmerican who worked as a butler at the White House for 34 years.

Whitaker plays the title role and Winfrey-who has been a longtime supporter of Obama’s political campaigns-stars as his wife. — AFP

Bridge Project, productions of “The Winter’s Tale” and “The Cherry Orchard.”

Movie roles also accumulated, most notably the seemingly prudish tourist in Woody Allen’s “Vicky Cristina Barcelona” (which earned her a Golden Globe nomination) and Ben Affleck’s love interest in 2010’s heist film “The Town.” Her approach to a part - a process she’s somewhat protective of is carefully plotted. She papers the walls of her trailer with charts of her characters’ mental states, scene to scene. She laughs that she had “a complete and utter meltdown” when her blueprints were temporarily cleaned away while recently filming the science-fiction thriller “Transcendence,” co-starring Johnny Depp.

Hall also makes playlists for every character of what she thinks they would listen to as a key to their emotions, (contemporary classical and Scandinavian jazz trios for her passionate but suppressed character in “Closed Circuit”). “Of all the actresses I’ve ever worked with, she was the most clear, the most thought-out,” says Susanna White, director of “Parade’s End.” “She’d come in and kick it straight away. It was thrilling to watch.” This December, Hall will make her Broadway debut in “Machinal,” an expressionistic 1928 play based on Ruth Snyder, who was convicted of murdering her husband. Describing the character, Hall drifts into contemplation: the early wheels turning on the next character to map out. — AP

THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2013

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Miley’s twerking dance officially enters lexicon

Cyrus, Perry, Gaga see MTV VMA sales, social spike

“T Video Music ves at the MTV rk. — AFP ri ar s ru Cy y Singer Mile er in New Yo Barclays Cent Awards at the

werking”, the raunchy dance that set tongues wagging when enthusiastically performed by Miley Cyrus at the MTV awards, is one of the new terms to make the latest Oxford dictionary update. The former Disney child star, now 20, left audience members gobsmacked when she bent over and gyrated provocatively with singer Robin Thicke on his song “Blurred Lines”. The moves, borrowed from US hip-hop culture, have been colloquially known as twerking for around 20 years, but the term has now received official recognition after being included in the latest revision of Oxford Dictionaries Online, it revealed yesterday.

“By last year, it had generated enough currency to be added to our new words watch list, and by this spring, we had

enough evidence of usage frequency in a breadth of sources to consider adding it to our dictionaries of current English,” explained Katherine Connor Martin, from Oxford Dictionaries Online. “There are many theories about the origin of this word, and since it arose in oral use, we may never know the answer for sure.

“The current public reaction to twerking is reminiscent in some ways of how the twisting craze was regarded in the early 1960s, when it was first popularized by Chubby Checker’s song, the Twist,” she added. Other new words recognized by the English language gatekeeper include “selfie”, for a selfphotograph taken on a mobile phone, online currency “Bitcoin” and “hackerspace”. —AFP

’N SYNC reunion not in works:

‘We remembered what we hated about each other’ File photo shows Musician Katy Perry performs during the 2013 MTV Video Music Awards. — AFP

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TV’s much-talked-about Video Music Awards goosed sales and social media activity for Miley Cyrus, ‘NSYNC and Lady Gaga. As TheWrap reported Monday, ‘NSYNC’s “Bye Bye Bye” sales jumped 156 percent on Amazon overnight, while Justin Timberlake’s “Justified” album sales skyrocketed 1,876 percent on Amazon following the boy band’s “surprise” reunion during its frontman’s Video Vanguard set. Per MTV, Timberlake’s performance also garnered 219,800 tweets per minute, with 2.9 million total for the show.

Miley Cyrus went one better than Timberlake; her foam-finger performance with Robin Thicke fueled 306,100 tweets per minute, a new entertainment event record, the network noted. Cyrus’s twerking inspired 4.5 million tweets over the course of the broadcast. On the sales side, the former “Hannah Montana” star’s album “Bangerz” reached No. 5 on the iTunes chart. Sales of Thicke’s new single “Give It 2 U” tripled, while “Blurred Lines” album sales rose 30 percent.

Kanye West performed “Blood on the Leaves” on TV for the first time Sunday, and sales spiked more than 1,000 percent on iTunes. Sales of his album, “Yeezus,” rose 139 percent on the online Apple store, MTV said.

Lady Gaga cashed in on the trend as well, as her single, “Applause,” saw a 112 percent increase in digital sales. The VMA’s opening act fueled 2 million tweets throughout the telecast.

Katy Perry, who closed the show performing “Roar” from an outdoor boxing ring in Brooklyn Bridge Park, experienced a 25 percent uptick in sales on iTunes following her final notes. And Drake’s “Started From the Bottom” digital single sales jumped 281 percent following his performance. The 2013 “MTV Video Music Awards” show ranks as cable’s No. 1 entertainment telecast of the year among viewers ages 12-34. The show itself experienced a 100 percent increase in ratings in that category, its target demo. — Reuters

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id that blink-and-you’ll miss it reunion of boy band ’N SYNC leave you hungry for more? Too bad. ‘NSYNC members Lance Bass and Chris Kirkpatrick e- who delivered their first performance with their former bandmates in 11 years during Sunday’s VMAs - are dismissing any possibility that a reunion is in the works. Kirkpatrick threw a wet blanket over fans’ hopes on Florida-based radio show Johnny’s House on Monday, noting that the VMA regrouping “was what it was.”

Despite the “honor” of the moment, he said, the brief reunion did manage to bring old resentments to the fore. “It was funny, because, all of us getting back together, we remembered what we liked about each other, we remembered what we hated about each other,” Kirkpatrick said. “I’m not gonna say it’s never gonna happen,” he added. “But it was what it was, and this was a moment for Justin to get his accolades, and for us to say we had so much respect for what we did. For him to honor us the way he did - it really was kinda crazy.”

Meanwhile, Bass told the Associated Press that there’s “nothing planned” in the way of a larger reunion, and that Timberlake - who received the Michael Jackson Vanguard Award at Sunday’s VMAs - will be busy with his own tour in coming months. “Who knows what will happen when he’s off tour. It’s simply not part of the conversation right now. We just focused on that one performance,” Bass told the AP. “If we did anything like that, I think we would come up with something real special where we could actually call it ‘The Reunion.’” — Reuters

(From Left) Chris Kirkpatrick, Joey Fatone, Justin Timberlake, JC Chasez and Lance Bass of ’N Sync perform during the 2013 MTV Video Music Awards.

A Minute With

Ethan Hawke on acting, Selena Gomez and Shakespeare A reunited ‘N Sync including Justin Timberlake, JC Chasez, Lance Bass, Joey Fatone , and Chris Kirkpatrick at the MTV Video Music Awards. —AFP

Malaysian films stir up racial tensions of the past T

wo Malaysian films are challenging longstanding taboos about discussing politically touchy subjects, and the controversy they have generated has triggered fears they could spark racial unrest. The films, “Tanda Putera (Mark of Princes)” and “The New Village”, are the first serious attempts to portray the human drama of two key episodes in the multi-ethnic nation’s history. But though the films have not yet been publicly screened, they are already tearing at unhealed wounds in the often uneasy coexistence between majority Malays and the large Chinese minority.

“Tanda Putera” is said to support the long-ruling authoritarian regime’s official line-widely disputed-that Chinese political parties stoked deadly 1969 riots that remain a source of division to this day.

And “The New Village” has been accused

by Malay groups of “glorifying” a bloody insurgency by mostly ethnic Chinese communists in the 1950s and 60s. Such content would have previously been unthinkable under the Malay-dominated Barisan Nasional (National Front) regime, in power since 1957 independence. But strong public pressure has led to a loosening of controls over the past decade

and increasingly polemical discourse.

Sociologist Ooi Kee Beng said the films could feed what he calls a Malaysian yearning for non Barisan versions of the past. “Definitely. The apparent radicalisation of Malaysian discourse is the exaggerated response to this wave of curiosity (about the past) throughout society,” he said. The movies have fed racial unease, particularly after divisive May elections in which Chinese voters deserted Barisan.

Promotional trailers and descriptions by the few who previewed the films have sparked outcries. Censors held up “Tanda Putera” for more than a year over fears it would inflame racial tension in the run-up to the May polls but it is now slated to be screened Thursday.

“The New Village” was to hit cinemas August 22 but was pulled back for review by censors when Malay groups objected.

Communications minister Ahmad Shabery Cheek defended the move, saying “anything that can cause social unrest and create tension in society must be put back to review”. AFP has not seen either film. The minister’s Facebook page has been hit with postings warning cinemas will be torched if “The New Village” is screened.

This picture shows a worker cleaning the floor in front of a poster advertising movie named ‘Tanda Putera’ at a local cinema in Kuala Lumpur. — AFP

But Chinese politicians accused Barisan of bowing to “racist, illogical and baseless” attacks by its Malay base in sidelining the movie. Chinese make up a quarter of the 29 million population, dominating commerce while Malays control government. Tension has persisted over Barisan authoritarianism and its decades-old privileges for Malays in education and business-policies accelerated in response to the 1969 riots. The races mostly get along but the potential for a repeat of 1969 is frequently invoked by Malay hardliners. Makers of both films deny any political motives. “Other countries have films about their own history without going to the dogs,”“Tanda Putera” director Shuhaimi Baba told AFP. The film was partially funded by the government, drawing accusations it was Barisan propaganda. “The New Village” was produced by publicly-listed broadcasting giant Astro, which insists it is mainly “a forbidden love story”. “The only Malaysian films made are horror, comedy and love stories. Try to comment on anything important and someone is bound to be offended,” said Joan Lau, a journalist who has covered the arts scene for decades.

Books also are often banned or censored and the regime dominates mainstream media. But Barisan leaders have in recent years yielded to reform calls. Prime Minister Najib Razak in 2011 lifted a range of laws considered oppressive and has slightly loosened some media controls.

Independent directors have recently started to cautiously comment on race and religion, while the Internet percolates with anti-government content thanks to a Barisan pledge years ago not to censor the Web. The openness brings with it increasingly bitter polemics, especially as Barisan vies with a strengthening opposition for control of public opinion. “It’s freer than it has ever been, but the need to be offended has become more acute due to political grandstanding,” said Amir Muhammad, an independent filmmaker. — AFP

A

fter taking time away to focus on family and stage acting, Ethan Hawke is getting back to film and stepping into the driver’s seat in his latest role as a racecar driver trapped in a car and racing against time in the action-thriller “Getaway.” “Getaway,” which will be released in US theaters on Friday, also stars former Disney actress and pop singer Selena Gomez, who plays a techsavvy teenager.

The film comes on the heels of a string of box office successes for Hawke, including 2012 indie horror film “Sinister” and this year’s surprise horror hit “The Purge.” Hawke, 42, also reunited with director Richard Linklater and French

Ethan Hawke and Selena Gomez arrive at the premiere of Warner Bros Pictures’ ‘Getaway’ at Regency Village Theatre. — AFP

Actors Ethan Hawke and Selena Gomez arrive for the world premiere of ‘Getaway’ featuring the Shelby GT500 Super Snake at Regency Village Theatre in Westwood, California. — AFP photos actress Julie Delpy for “Before Midnight,” released in May, the third installment in the story of a couple who first met in the 1995 drama “Before Sunrise.” The actor spoke to Reuters about working with Gomez, acting in horror films and finding dream roles while in his 40s.

Q: “Getaway” explores a more intimate setting by trapping your character in a car. Did it put pressure on you to convey more emotion?

A: What’s fun about this movie is that in any given take, there were 12 cameras mounted on this car to get all these crazy angles, and it’s something I’ve never done before. ... It’s a hard balance inside any action movie, to try to bring any authenticity of emotion and human behavior to these outlandish circumstances. One thing I enjoyed about the simplicity of being stuck in this car, it let Selena and I have fun.

Q: How different is Hollywood today compared to when you were Gomez’s age, in your early 20s?

A: It’s a very difficult landscape she’s trying to navigate right now. I think it’s much more difficult today to be a young person and grow up. The constant buzz and pressure and noise and static of the Internet, and the way it makes young people feel makes it difficult to grow up and develop the way one might want to. I’m very grateful that when I was first going through this in the early ‘90s, it was much easier, but that said, the basic facts of it have always been dangerous.

I’ll be curious to see, she’s at a really interesting moment

in her life. Is she going to continue to be a musician, is she going to develop as an actress, is she (going to) continue to do both? It’s so hard for every young person, trying to figure out the adult you want to be.

Q: You made “Before Sunrise” when you were in your mid-20s, “Before Sunset” in your mid-30s and “Before Midnight” in your early 40s. How does it feel to have these films mark different decades in your career?

A: It’s a very strange feeling, it really is. These aren’t just movies to me - I co-wrote them, so much of those movies are so unique to issues that Julie (Delpy) and I are both interested in. Having people relate to them is such a wonderful feeling; it’s the reason why I wanted to be an actor.

Q: You’ve been in two successful horror movies in the past two years, “Sinister” and “The Purge.” What do you enjoy the most about working on horror films?

A: Inside the genre of being scary, you can almost talk about anything you want. “The Purge” has huge sociopolitical undertones, but it’s not a political film - it’s a scary film. But it lets you make a movie that gets seen, and lets you speak to audiences in a way that I think is really interesting.

Q: You are now in your fourth decade acting. Do you still have any dream roles you would love to play?

A: Oh yes, I’m getting to do one right now. I’m about to start rehearsals for “Macbeth” at Lincoln Center (in New York). It’s something I’ve longed to do my whole life, to do one of the big Shakespeares in a really serious production.

Q: You played Hamlet in 2000. Usually people say an actor’s career is marked by playing Shakespeare’s great tragic heroes Hamlet, Macbeth and King Lear.

A: So I must be 40 now! I’m on my way to Lear! — Reuters

Miley’s twerking dance officially enters lexicon

39

THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2013

A tourist reacts during the annual ‘tomatina’ tomato fight fiesta.

A woman lays on a puddle of tomato juice.

Crowds of people throw tomatoes at each other during the annual ‘tomatina’ tomato fight.

S

People lay on a puddle of tomato juice.

People throw tomatoes at each other during the annual ‘tomatina’ tomato fight fiesta in the village of Bunol, 50 kilometers outside Valencia, Spain yesterday.

— AP/AFP photos

ome 20,000 revelers pelted each other with 130 tons (286 pounds) of squashed tomatoes yesterday in a rain drenched annual Spanish food fight known as the Tomatina, but this year they had to pay to join the fun. Defying sheets of rain and stormy skies, masses of tomato-stained people from around the world-led by Australians, Japanese and Britons-engaged in battle in the Plaza Mayor square of Bunol, eastern Spain.

Many wore shower caps under the rain and goggles to protect their eyes from the acidic juice of the tomatoes, which must be squashed before they are hurled at fellow participants. Some people dressed as tomatoes. In driving rain, some people who had partied through the night were singing, clapping and still taking swigs of wine and sangria directly from the bottle.

“It is one of the most famous festivals in western Europe and it is safer than running with a bull,” said 22-year-old Brad Fisher from Sydney, who came with a tour group of 700 people wearing a mustard-colored shirt with a ketchup logo.

The Tomatina has significant advantages over Spain’s Pamplona bull-running festival, he explained. “One hundred and thirty tons of tomatoes is a lot but it’s still better than a 500-kilo bull.”

This year, for the first time, participants are paying a minimum of 10 euros ($13). Prices go up to 750 euros to get up on one of the six trucks bringing in the tomatoes. Some 5,000 free tickets have been set aside for Bunol residents.

Organizers have cut the number of participants by half citing safety concerns, recruiting 180 safety officials, 50 private security, police, nine ambulances, and several medical helicopters. Bunol Mayor Joaquin Masmano Palmer says the new fee helped organizers to control crowd numbers but he has also admitted that the food fight, which has cost 140,000 euros to stage this year, represents a heavy burden for a town with a debt of 4.1 million euros.

For the first time, a private company, SpainTastic, has been charged with selling entry tickets to the Tomatina, sparking concern that recession-hit Spain’s town festivals may be on the path to privatization. Among the top ticket buyers were Australians with 19.2 percent of the total, Japanese with 17.9 percent, Britons with 11.2 percent, Spaniards with 7.8 percent and Americans with 7.5 percent. About 60 percent of the tickets went to people aged 18 to 35. The oldest was 82.

Tomatina T-shirts, caps and coffee mugs are on sale, too. Japanese tourist Keiko Jinhouchi, 28, said she was spending a week in Barcelona with two friends from Tokyo and they decided to enter the fray.

“It’s my first time in Spain, we’re here for the day. Because it’s fun,” she said. Fellow Japanese Kohei Onizaki, equipped with swimming goggles, had a tomato painted on one cheek and a Japanese flag on the other. “There is a very famous TV show in Japan where a famous person joins this festival. It’s a very famous festival,” he

Renaissance ‘ideal city’ inspires anew in Tuscany

A

n “ideal city” inspired by Renaissance humanism off the beaten track in the Tuscan hills is finding new fans with 15th century urban planning that still appeals to today’s city dwellers. “It looks idyllic!” said a tourist from Melbourne in Australia as she admired the harmonious mix of palazzi, churches and immaculatelykept homes of Pienza, a town of 2,000 people in the Italian region of Tuscany. “I think it’s nice to live in a town like this because the food is grown very close to where you’re living,” said Kay, part of the growing number of visitors coming to view a town set apart from the usual tourist routes.

Ochre-coloured Pienza is structured around a spectacular piazza and was designed to be as pleasant to live in as possible and to blend with nature. It overlooks the fields and vineyards of the Val d’Orcia-a picturesque backdrop that has been registered as a UNESCO World Heritage site. The town was commissioned by a pope, Pius II, a native son who was born into a local aristocratic family in what was then the village of Corsignano. The finest architects of the time and some 20,000 workers

took part in the construction, which took just three years between 1459 and 1462.

Pius II, born Enea Silvio Piccolomini, was an unusual figure viewed from a contemporary perspective. A cleric steeped in humanist learning and the author of poetry, sociological treatises and even an erotic novel. “The pope dreamt of a Renaissance city, a humanistic city,” Vittorio Carnesecchi, curator of the papal palace, Palazzo Piccolomini, told AFP in an interview. “Pienza was born from the dream of a great humanist who recruited the greatest engineers of his time to realize this utopian city,” he said.

It was named “Pienza” (“Pius Town”) in his honor.

Manlio Sodi, who comes from near Pienza and teaches at the Salesian Catholic University in Rome, said the urban landscape he created could be seen as “the fruit of the cultural horizons of the Piccolomini pope”. The style of the main cathedral is Gothic, similar to the churches in Germany that the pope had visited during extensive travels which also took him to England, France, Scotland and Switzerland. The result of his varied tastes was “a cul-

tural fusion between northern and southern Europe” in the architecture of Pienza, Sodi said.

“It is an amazing synthesis that was part of his objective of peace among nations,” Sodi said. Pienza was the first “ideal city” ever realized-and has been followed by many examples through the ages from the Brazilian capital Brasilia to the utopian urbanism of French-Swiss architect Le Corbusier. The town has been kept pristine largely thanks to contributions from the Piccolomini family through the centuries and an enlightened urban administration. But Sodi said the idea of building a similar “utopian city” would be too difficult because the lack of a “common idea” in society of what it should look like.

“At the time, papal authority was sufficient for resolving a lot of things. Today I believe it would be unthinkable to create an ideal city,” he said. — AFP

People throw tomatoes at each other during the annual ‘tomatina’ tomato fight fiesta.

explained. Though the origins of the event are unclear, it is thought to have its roots in a food fight between children during a parade in the mid-1940s. It has grown in size as international press coverage has brought more and more people to the festival. After the fight, many of the revelers traditionally head to the local river to wash off the pulp. In this year’s rain, that may not be necessary. — AFP