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Bangladesh opposition parties protest against BSF killings

     Dhaka: Activists of two Bangladeshi opposition parties -- the Bangladesh Islamic Okya Jote and the Bangladesh Muslim League Party -- staged demonstrations in Dhaka on Friday to protest the alleged killing of two farmers by India's paramilitary Border Security Force (BSF) along the porous border recently. Shouting anti-India slogans, the protesters called Foreign Minister M.Morshed Khan to submit his resignation for his failure in stopping these attacks. "Indian BSF (Border Security Force) soldiers are often killing our people in the frontiers. Due to the weak foreign policy of Bangladesh they are killing our civilians, we are just astonished by their behaviour. So, from this rally we demand the resignation of our foreign minister," said Abu Bakar, leader of Islami Okya Jote. Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) border guards claimed that one farmer was killed on Monday at Burirhat border and another on Sunday night at the Singhari border. On both occasions, the BSF was held responsible. India has denied such allegations. Border tensions between New Delhi and Dhaka have risen since the April 16 of a BSF deputy commander without provocation. Dhaka has denied that it started the firing and said two Bangladeshis died in that battle. The new accusation came after talks between Bangladesh foreign ministry adviser Reaz Rahman and Indian High Commissioner Veena Sikri in Dhaka on Sunday aimed at lowering tensions. Bangladeshi officials said two villagers were killed by the Indian BSF on Saturday when they crossed the border into India, despite requests by Dhaka not to kill unarmed civilians who trespassed across the frontier. Bangladesh Rifles said about 400 Bangladeshis have been killed by BSF troops along the border between the two countries over the last six years. India is building a fence along its 4,000 km border with Bangladesh, saying it is fed up with smugglers and rebels crossing the frontier. Dhaka in turn says many of its criminals have found shelter in India.

Musharraf one up on 'Alexander the Great': US  (Go To Top)

     Washington: A US official has said that Pakistan President General Pervez Musharraf has achieved what even Alexander the Great could not during his reign. According to the Daily Times, Mike Green, the special assistant to US President George W Bush has said that Musharraf has successfully launched military offensives in an area where even Alexander the Great was afraid to enter. He said that the mountainous and tribal Wana region bordering Afghanistan was a place where the Pakistan military under Musharraf's able guidance has launched successful military offensives. He said that the "tough stand" taken by Pakistan against terrorism has also led to Islamabad suffering casualties in pursuit of the cause. "Musharraf took a prompt, bold and historic decision to side with forces determined to defeat terrorism, and the decision was not risk-free, but he courageously took it, and the United States appreciates it very much," the paper quoted him as saying. Incidentally the Wana region has been a hotbed of jihadi activities with suspected Al Qaeda terrorists and remnants of the Taliban militia holding up in the mountains against the US led military offensives in neighbouring Afghanistan. Wana tribals have also earlier said that their was a place where not even Alexander the Great or later conquerors like the British or Russians could set their foot firmly and rest in peace.

Pakistan begins work on Khokhrapar-Munnabao rail link  (Go To Top)

     Karachi: Pakistan Railway (PR) authorities have begun transporting material required for the construction of the rail link between Khokhrapar and Munnabao, and hope to have at least 20 kilometres of the 135-km-long track ready by next month. Informed PR sources were quoted by several Pakistani dailies, including the Dawn, as saying that the transported material to Khokrapar and Mirpukhas included sleepers and rails. These are needed to convert the present meter gauge line into a broad gauge one, the sources affirmed. The material for about five kilometer railway line has so far arrived at Khokhrapar from the Pakistan railway factories, the sources said. A total of 2,21,600 sleepers and 22,750 rails, each 36-feet-long weighing 90 pounds are required to replace the Mirpurkhas- Khokhrapar 135-km-long meter gauge with broad gauge line. The Pakistan Government has already sanctioned the release of Rs.01 billion for the project. The project is likely to be completed by December 31, 2005 and the train service is expected to start in January 2006. PR authorities also confirmed that over the next eight months, seven railway stations, namely Jamrao, Shadi Pali, Saeendad, Pithoro, Dhoro Naro, Chhore and Khokhrapar would be repaired and renovated. The railway line from Mirpurkhas to zero-point would pass through 130 bridges of which five are the major bridges over Mithrao canal, Jamrao canal, Thar canal and Left Bank Out-fall Drain. The sources said that the train would run between Karachi and zero point Khokhrapar covering the distance in five hours.

Pak denies divulging N Korean nuke prog to Japan  (Go To Top)

     Islamabad: Pakistan has denied allegations that it has divulged information about North Korea's nuclear secret nuclear programmes to Japan. Pakistan's Foreign Office Spokesman, Jalil Abbas Jilani said that all reports of Pakistan sharing nuclear technology with Japan for getting loan were untrue, reports the Daily Times. "This has nothing to do with reality," the paper quoted Jilani as saying. He said that all such reports doing the rounds were baseless and unfounded and aimed at harming Islamabad's growing relationships with Tokyo. He said that Pakistan had conducted a thorough probe into the nuclear proliferation racket run by nuclear scientist Dr AQ Khan and shared its results with Japan "Pakistan has conducted thorough probe into nuclear proliferation and Japan has been taken into confidence as far as the results of our investigations are concerned," The Nation quoted him as saying. He further said Pakistan supported a nuclear free Korean peninsula and reduction of tension in the Far East.

Serial blasts rock Iraq, 50 dead (Go To Top)

     Baghdad: Iraq was rocked today by at least 17 bomb blasts, which killed more than 50 people. The multiple blasts were carried out by insurgents to shake the newly elected Iraqi government. Later, an audio tape was released by one of the US most wanted-- Abu-Musab al-Zarqawi, who warned US President George Bush of more to come. It was a well coordinated blast, which also left 114 Iraqis wounded. Earlier, yesterday, at least 13 car bombs exploded in and around Baghdad, which killed at least 23 Iraqi security force members and wounded 31.

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