Execution or exodus, Iraq's Christians face grim choice

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7 9 18Series of bombings kill at least 27 in Iraq

Downing of Malaysia plane a ‘wake-up’ call for the world

Rosberg on pole as Hamilton crashes out

SUNDAY, JULY 20, 2014 RAMADAN 22, 1435 AH www.kuwaittimes.net

Execution or exodus, Iraq’s Christians face grim choice

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Jihadist ultimatum sparks Christian exodus Ramadan Kareem

Emsak: 03:19Fajer: 03:29Dohr: 11:54Asr: 15:29Maghreb: 18:47Eshaa: 20:16

Aman came to Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) andsaid, “Messenger of God, direct me to a deed bywhich I may be entitled to enter Paradise.” He

said, “Worship God and never associate anything withHim, perform the obligatory prayer, and pay the pre-scribed charity, and observe the fast of Ramadan.” Hereplied, “By Him in Whose Hand is my life, I will neveradd anything to it, nor will I decrease anything from it.”When he turned his back (to leave), the Prophet (p) said,“He who would like to see a man from the dwellers ofParadise should catch a glimpse of this man” (related byMuslim).

This tradition shows how to live as a Muslim, the firststep being your declaration that you believe in a single,exclusive God and that Muhammad is one of His mes-sengers. Just believing in something isn’t enough-theQuran couples belief and deeds together, the latterbeing proof of the former. As for beliefs, see my postbelow (What Do Muslims Believe In?). As for being aMuslim, here is how:

Regular prayerThe Quran says, “I am God! There is no god but Me, so

worship Me and perform prayer to remember Me”(20:14). The five daily prayers in Islam are preceded withablutions, and involve the body, mind, voice and heartwith various postures that reflect submission, humility,love and glorification. Prayers are performed before sun-rise, at noon, in the afternoon, after sunset and afterdark, and require a degree of focus, tranquility and poise.

There are concessions and exemptions for peoplewho may be ill, travelling or incapacitated in any way,but a Muslim strives to perform every prayer to his bestability because it helps him keep a strong connectionwith God. Praying the five daily prayers is the minimumthat someone should pray; however, supererogatoryprayers or spontaneous prayers from the heart areadvisable at any moment during one’s life- in times ofneed, in moments of joy, during reflection or strenuouseffort. In addition to ritual prayers, remembering, ask-ing and thanking God informally are also prayers ofgreat merit.

Fasting in RamadanThe Quran says, “Fasting has been prescribed for you

as it was prescribed for those before you so that youmay learn God-consciousness” (2:183). Fasting themonth of Ramadan is required of adults, who refrainfrom food, drink, conjugal relations, smoking, and allhurtful speech and actions from before sunrise untilsunset.

Continued on Page 15

Being a Muslim By Teresa Lesher

KIRKUK: Thousands of Christians poured into Kurdistanas they fled an ultimatum by jihadists who overrannorthwestern Iraq last month and proclaimed acaliphate. As militants attempted to break governmentdefenses in strategic areas and edge closer to Baghdad,Christians joined hundreds of thousands of Shiite andother refugees into Kurdistan. Their flight to the safetyof the neighboring autonomous region coincided withthe expected homecoming of Iraq’s Kurdish president,Jalal Talabani, after 18 months of medical treatment inGermany.

The Islamic State (IS) group running Mosul hadalready demanded that those Christians still in the city

convert, pay a special tax or leave but messages blaringon mosques’ loudspeakers appeared to spark an exo-dus. An earlier statement by Mosul’s new rulers had saidthere would be “nothing for them but the sword” ifChristians did not abide by those conditions beforenoon (0900 GMT on Saturday). “Christian families are ontheir way to Dohuk and Arbil” in Kurdistan, Chaldeanpatriarch Louis Sako, who heads Iraq’s largest Christiancommunity said. “For the first time in the history of Iraq,Mosul is now empty of Christians.”

Most Christians in the northwestern Ninevehprovince fled in terror after jihadist-led militants enforc-ing an extreme version of sharia-or Islamic law

launched an offensive on June 9. But many of the poor-est families returned when the fighting stopped and ISstarted administering the city. Sako put the number ofChristians who were still in Mosul on Thursday at25,000. The Islamic State “seems intent on wiping out alltraces of minority groups from areas it now controls inIraq,” Human Rights Watch said in a statement yester-day. Other minorities rooted in the same province ofNineveh have suffered even more than the Christians,according to crimes HRW documented against theYazidis, as well as the Turkmen and Shabak Shiite com-munities.


GAZA: Palestinian relatives shout as they carry the bodies of kids during the funeral of eight members of Abu Jarad family who were killed overnight in an Israelistrike yesterday in Beit Lahia, north of the Gaza strip. — AFP

GAZA: Israeli air strikes pounded Gazayesterday, taking the death toll from a12-day bombardment to 341, as UN chiefBan Ki-moon headed to the region tojoin truce efforts. His peace push came asIsrael was poised to intensify a groundoperation inside the besieged Palestinianterritory it says is necessary to stop mili-tants tunneling into the Jewish state.Despite the pounding, Palestinian com-mandos succeeded in infiltrating Israel,sparking a deadly skirmish with an armypatrol, as Gaza’s bloodiest conflict since2009 showed no let-up.

The United States urged its Israeli allyto do more to limit the high civiliandeath toll from the operation while sup-porting the Jewish state’s right to defend

itself. President Barack Obama saidWashington was “deeply concernedabout the risks of further escalation andthe loss of more innocent life. ”He addedthat Washington was “hopeful” that Israelwould operate “in a way that minimizescivilian casualties”. But Israeli army chiefLieutenant General Benny Gantz, said thearmy was “expanding the ground phaseof the operation.”

“There will be moments of hardship,”he warned in a briefing to the military,anticipating further Israeli casualties.Troops killed a Palestinian militant whotunneled into southern Israel but othersmanaged to withdraw back into Gaza, anarmy statement said.


Gaza death toll hits 341Israeli tanks dig in at Gaza frontier

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Islamic Affairs Ministry isinvestigating 17 mosque imams in the capitalRiyadh for not using their Friday sermons todenounce an Al-Qaeda attack this month, theEnglish daily Arab News reported yesterday. Theconservative Islamic kingdom has kept a close eyeon mosque sermons for evidence of militancy sincelast decade, when Al-Qaeda staged a series ofattacks inside Saudi Arabia that killed hundreds.

The authorities are worried that anger at the vio-lence in Syria and Iraq, coupled with hardlineteachings by some local religious leaders couldinspire a new generation of militants to againattack domestic targets. Arab News cited Tawfiq Al-Sudairi, an under-secretary at the Islamic AffairsMinistry, as saying the imams were under investi-gation “for allegedly failing to highlight the inci-dent in their sermons”. Al-Qaeda in the ArabianPeninsula (AQAP) raided Sharurah, a small Saudifrontier town, from its base in Yemen early thismonth, killing four border guards and anotherSaudi citizen before all the attackers were killed orinjured.

The attack was the militant group’s first insidethe kingdom since 2009 when it attempted toassassinate Prince Mohammed bin Nayef, who wasthen the kingdom’s security chief but is now interi-or minister. On Friday, the Interior Ministry said itsinfrastructure facilities were secure after localmedia reports that an Iraq-based militant hadwarned his family to leave their homes because ofa planned attack on the kingdom. The ministry’sspokesman was quoted in Arab News as sayingthose reports were incorrect, but that security hadbeen strengthened around all strategic facilitiesdue to the chaos in Iraq. — Reuters

Saudi imams under probe

ISLAMABAD: A Pakistani Muslim devotee reads the Quran as he attends Itikaf wor-ship during the holy month of Ramadan at the Grand Faisal mosque in Islamabadyesterday. Itikaf is a spiritual retreat in a mosque, usually held during the last 10days of Ramadan and during which Muslims spend the evening and night in themosque devoting their time to solitary prayers and reading the Quran. — AFP

KUALA LUMPUR: An entire family of sixthat had been returning home after threeyears living abroad was among the 44Malaysians killed in the MH17 disaster,media reports said yesterday. Tambi Jiee,49, and his wife Ariza Ghazalee, 46, per-ished along with their four children whenthe Malaysia Airlines flight went down ineastern Ukraine.

They were reportedly returning toMalaysia after her husband’s three-yearposting in Kazakhstan for energy giantShell, first taking a short European holi-day. Images of a wailing Jamilah NoriahAbang Anuar, 72 - Ariza’s mother-domi-nated front pages of Malaysian dailiesyesterday. “I lost my daughter and herfamily in a blink of an eye,” the New StraitsTimes quoted her as saying from herhome in the eastern Malaysian state ofSarawak on Borneo island.

Ariza had posted a photo on Facebookshowing the family’s luggage as they pre-pared to embark from Amsterdam’sSchiphol airport for the flight to KualaLumpur. “17 July 2014, starting our newhijrah (journey), Alhamdulillah (praiseGod),” read the accompanying message.Her son Afzal Tambi also posted histhanks and farewells to friends fromKazakhstan on Thursday. “Before it getstoo cheesy, I just want to thank everyonewho made it bearable for me to live hereand for sharing with me amazing memo-ries to reminisce on.”

The Boeing 777 came down with298 onboard in a separatist-heldregion of Ukraine, with the UnitedStates claiming it was shot down in amissile attack, a possible casualty ofthe Kiev government’s battle with pro-Russia rebels. — AFP

HRABOVE: The hand of a victim lies among the wreckage of the crashedMalaysia Airlines Flight 17 in the village of Hrabove, eastern Ukraine yesterday.

MH17 disaster wipes out entire family of 6

L O C A LSUNDAY, JULY 20, 2014

Zain holds annual Ramadan Ghabqa for staff

KUWAIT: Zain, the leading telecommunicationscompany in Kuwait, recently celebrated itsRamadan Ghabqa for staff at the Jumeirah Hotel,in an atmosphere of peace and celebration sup-ported by the company’s top management.

The event was attended by Zain DeputyChairman Bader Nasser Al-Kharafi, Zain GroupCEO, Scott Gegenheimer, Zain Kuwait CEO OmarAl-Omar, Zain Group CFO Ossama Matta and alarge number of staff members from Zain Groupand Zain Kuwait, who came together in a man-ner that has now become customary for Zainstaff, and is an expression of their togethernessand closeness.

Speaking at the occasion, Zain Group CEOScott Gegenheimer said, “The enhancement ofcustomer satisfaction is one of our core prioritiesat this point in time, and in order to be able toachieve it, we require the dedication and com-mitment of every Zain member of staff. I amproud to be associated with this organizationand all the people who are all working so dili-

gently to make our vision a reality.” Gegenheimer continued, “In order to be truly

successful, we need to care for one another, bothas individuals as well as as colleagues.Celebrating together in each other’s presencelike this, and looking ahead to the things wewould like to achieve is a very important part ofmaking sustained progress.” Furthermore,Gegenheimer reiterated how strong the relation-ship between Zain Group and Zain Kuwait is, andnoted the importance of it remaining so givenKuwait is the historical birthplace of the Group.“By working closely together, we will be strongerin facing and overcoming challenges, which willhelp us to build a successful company and a bet-ter future for all our stakeholders.”

Also speaking at the Ghabga, Zain KuwaitCEO, Omar Al-Omar said, “Zain Kuwait has a hugeresponsibility to the citizens of Kuwait given itsposition as the largest mobile network operatorby customer numbers. It is our intention, in factour duty, to be where the customer is, offering

them what they demand and more, and it is aduty we take most seriously.”

Al-Omar added, “Zain Kuwait has a long anddistinguished history serving the country withthe highest quality products and services. We areenergized and inspired to maintain customer sat-isfaction at its highest levels, and shall continuealong the path of innovation and differentiationas our core principles.”

Al-Omar also noted the company’s deter-mined corporate social responsibility efforts, atthis time of year in particular saying, “Zain Kuwaitis an integral part of the society and as such webelieve we need to assist the community wher-ever possible. This approach is reflected in ourextensive corporate social responsibility pro-grams especially during this holy month, whichwe look forward to continuing and in factexpanding.”

At the Ghabqa the company also took theopportunity to recognize individuals both fromwithin its own ranks as well as externally, who

had helped shape it over its 30 years of opera-tion. The company recognized staff memberswith distinguished careers within the company,awarding special gifts to all those who haveserved 5, 10, 15, 20 and 25 years, expressing itsappreciation for all their years of dedicated serv-ice. During the event, Zain Kuwait CEO Omar Al-Omar established a live video chat session withcontact center staff (107), who couldn’t attendthe Ghabqa as it corresponded with their shifts.Al-Omar shared the joyful atmosphere of theGhabqa with them and expressed his gratitudefor their tremendous efforts in providing the bestcustomer service experience that places thecompany at the leading position it enjoys today.

The Ghabqa activities included the showingof a 3 minute video clip that showcased Zain’sextensive Corporate Social Responsibility cam-paign during the holy month of Ramadan. Theemployees expressed their pride in being a partof one of the region’s leading socially-awareorganizations.

Food ofRamadan

Quaker Oats Burger

Ingredients • 400g chicken fillet, minced fine • 20 tbsps. Quaker Oats • 1 medium or 2 small onions, chopped fine • 1-inch piece ginger, chopped fine • 1 clove garlic, chopped fine • 4 tbsps. light soy sauce • 1 tsp. salt • 4 tsps. unsaturated cooking oil • 1 bunch lettuce, washed & drained • 1 large tomato, sliced into rounds • 4 whole wheat burger buns, sliced in the middle • Tomato sauce / Chili sauce, as desired

Preparation • Mix minced chicken, with oats, onions, ginger, gar-

lic, soy sauce and salt. •Mash the mixture well and divide the mixture into

4 portions. •Press out each portion into flat round burger pat-

ties that can fit into larger burger buns. •Cover and cook the burger pattie on a non stick

pan, over a simmering flame. Use 1 tsp. oil to cookeach pattie.

•Place the burger pattie in a burger bun and servewith lettuce and tomato slices.

•Add tomato or chili sauce as desired.

KUWAIT: National Bank of Kuwait (NBK) recently held aGirgian event at KidZania at the Avenues mall. All childrenand Zeina Friends Club members were invited to celebrateGirgian at the kid-centric city KidZania.

Children enjoyed many fun activities. Towards the endof the evening, each child was given a special Girgian giftfrom NBK.

NBK is the first to partner with KidZania Kuwait. As theleading bank in Kuwait, NBK provides all bank activities inthe kid-centric city to teach children real life aspects ofbanking and financial responsibility. NBK’s branch atKidzania introduces children to a unique experience inbasic banking services so they can deposit and withdraw‘KidZos’, the national currency which kids can earn, spend,save and invest through the NBK branch and ATMs.

Zeina account provides children as old as 14 years oldwith their first bank account, to learn about saving andbanking with the help of their parents. Zeina Friends Clubwas the first club in Kuwait established in 1994 for youngchildren. Zeina account holders can also participate in oth-er fun events held year round, as well as benefit from manyoffers especially designed for them. For further informationvisit nbk.com, or call NBK Call Center on 1801801.

NBK hosts Girgian at KidZania The executive management during the ghabqa.

Deputy Chairman Bader Nasser Al-Kharafiin attendance.

The awarding ceremony for Zain employees with at least 20 years of experience.

The awarding ceremony for Zain employees with at least 25 years of experience.

Zain Group CEO ScottGegenheimer speaks dur-ing the ghabqa.

Zain Kuwait CEO Omar Al-Omar speaks during theevent.


Al-Rai Media Group hosted its annual ghabqa for staff this past Wednesday on the occasion of the holy month of Ramadan. The event took place at the Palms Beach Hotel, in the Jawa Ballroom. — Photos by Yasser Al-Zayyat

Al-Rai Media Group holds annual staff ghabqa

By Labeed Abdal

[email protected]

China-US cooperation

China emphasized during a recent annual dialogue on coopera-tion with the United States that it brings benefits to bothcountries and the entire world, as opposed to confrontation

that brings collective loss. Chinese officials said during the inaugura-tion of the sixth round of China-US Strategic and Economic Dialogue,that dialogue over economic cooperation has been proven in historyto lead to positive results for both countries. They further empha-sized that after 35 years of mutual relations, the Chinese - Americanrelations is going through a historic development as the interests ofboth countries became intertwined, which requires commitment tocooperation.

Furthermore, Chinese President Xi Jinping indicated that notonly did cooperation benefit people in both nations, but alsohelped reinforce peace, stability and prosperity in the Asia -

Pacific region and the entire world.A strategic and economic dialogue between China and the US in

topics that include clean energy, environment and climate change,helps improve the bilateral relations between the two countries, giv-ing an impression to the entire world regarding the positive effect ofserious, transparent dialogue on the future and security of our chil-dren. These efforts which help create more education and job oppor-tunities for younger generations need to be taken on a global scale,alongside other global efforts such as combating corruption.Ecological cooperation between the two countries signify the volumeof responsibility that they share as the largest two economies in theworld, especially when they are facing common challenges and sharecommon interests when it comes to global economy and security.

In my view

After 35 years of mutualrelations, the Chinese -

American relations is goingthrough a historic develop-

ment as the interests of bothcountries became inter-

twined, which requires com-mitment to cooperation.

There was much talk all over social media that the govern-ment intends to close the Social Reform Society and freezeits accounts in Kuwait banks. Those who think that the rul-

ing establishment and government will sever its relations withthe Muslim Brotherhood are wrong despite all declared andundeclared policies by the Brotherhood against the governmentlike their boycott of the elections since the decree that changedthe right of the voter from four votes to one. The proposalreceived National Assembly approval.

The Brotherhood did not oppose and boycott the electionsbut they took a clear and frank stand with Kuwait’s oppositionleaders and participated in the popular movement while beingcommitted to opposing the government. The Brotherhood,despite the repeated government warning that rejects collectionof donations in favor of jihadist groups in Syria and Iraq, contin-ued to send money and men to the Syrian front. TheBrotherhood, through their labor and student unions, organizedstrikes in some ministries and government bodies without hesi-tation or fear.

The question is why did the government’s support for theBrotherhood continue despite their declared stands against theregime and government? There are many reasons that keep thegovernment from dropping the Brotherhood and the mostimportant one which is siding with the government against themovement of national and liberal factions who demand demo-cratic reforms. The government rewarded them for their stand bygetting them into more than one ministry, and several digni-taries who are members of the Brotherhood were appointedadvisors in the Amiri Diwan or the Prime Minister’s Diwan.

The second reason for the government’s alliance with the

Brotherhood, is that the Brotherhood does not have ambitionsfor democratic reform, as all what they want is for the govern-ment to help them in their goals of Islamizing laws, and impos-ing Islamic policies on the society. The government obliged byforming the higher committee for Islamization of laws, bannedcoeducation at the university and applied education. The gov-ernment still agrees on appointing Brotherhood members asministers in sensitive ministries such as Awqaf and Islamic affairs.

The third reason is due to the government’s commitment tothe policy of balance and keeping everyone placated - even if itdoesn’t serve the country. We must admit that the governmentand ruling establishment are the main dynamo in the country.The practical and actual reality, away from speeches, and violentresistance, is the government or ruling establishment is strongerthan many imagine, and I can confirm that the government isstronger than the society with all its establishments.

Finally, do not dream of changing the government’s policyagainst the Brotherhood or others. The government proved itssuccess on all fronts, as the business class or the country’s eliteare rushing to declare their loyalty. Even the tribal leaders aredeclaring their loyalty to government. As for political Islammovement including the Brotherhood and Salaf, they declaredtheir loyalty through lengthy statements from the Salafi groupsand others from the Muslim Brotherhood.

There is no opposition left in Kuwait except at popular gath-erings and some tribal movements and parties. They cannotchange anything except through legal means, which is to partici-pate in elections like the rest of political factions, because theroad to reform does not come except through the ballot box.

— Translated by Kuwait Times from Al-Watan

Support for the Brotherhoodkuwait digest

By Dr Shamlan Y Al-Essa

Al-A

nbaa

By Muna Al-Fuzai

[email protected]

Malaysian tragedy

Malaysian Airlines Flight MH17 crashed in Ukraine lastThursday afternoon with 300 people on board.Ukraine’s interior ministry said the plane was shot

down by a missile over eastern Ukraine. Everyone on the flightdied and their bodies were scattered all over the crash site.

When I heard the news, I didn’t believe it at first because thisis the second aircraft we have lost in less than five months.Malaysian Airlines has been dealt with a tragic blow for the sec-ond time and it is indeed the tragedy of the century in modernaviation and a great loss for everyone.

There are some elements that caught my attention. Theflight was carrying citizens of nine nationalities and some hap-pened to be high-profile HIV/AIDS researchers heading to anAIDS conference in Australia. The causalities are of Dutch,Malaysian, Australian, Indonesian, British, German, Belgian,Filipino and Canadian origin. The rest are unknown as of now.Some US media reports have mentioned the airliner wasbrought down by a surface-to-air missile but it isn’t clear whoshot the missile. So that brings us to the big question of whodid it and why?

The Ukrainian government blamed Moscow and armedpro-Russian separatists who have declared breakaway republicsin eastern Ukraine. Vladimir Putin said Ukraine “bears responsi-bility for this awful tragedy” but did not specifically mentionwho fired the missile. The problem is that the plane crashed inthe middle of a war zone with parties that don’t want to acceptresponsibility.

Western leaders seemed cautious about playing the blamegame. Everyone so far expressed sympathy and sorrow at thedeath of the passengers as most world leaders did. But it is notenough. Many innocent lives are lost forever. I think if it doesemerge that Russia was behind this crash, there will be pressureon US and key European countries like UK to take an aggressivestance. Some reports said the separatists will deliver the blackbox to Moscow while Malaysia’s prime minister objected that“no one should interfere with the area or move any debris,including the black box”. I agree with him but the crash site is inthe control of pro-Russian forces.

So far Ukraine has accused Russia of assisting separatistrebels in destroying evidence at the crash site and has called foran investigation into the downing of the plane. This demandwas clearly made by US president Barack Obama last Friday.

The UN Security Council is forced now to start an incredibleinternational investigation and I hope they will be able to get tothe truth. Otherwise, there will be endless speculations and thepossibility of such incidents occurring again.

Local spotlight


22- Who was the first prince in Islam?

- Abdullah bin Jahsh Al-Assadi

Yes No

The eight days of Israeli air strikes and Hamasrocket attacks have already taken a heavy eco-nomic toll on the Gaza Strip. Palestinian econo-

mists say the damage is already an estimated $100 to$150 million and the total could reach $500 milliondepending on the duration of the Israeli operation.“This recent Israeli war against Gaza came at a verybad time for the economy because this economy hasbeen under siege,” Dr Nasr Abdelkarim, a professor ofeconomics at Bir Zeit University said. Aside from thealmost 200 Palestinians who have been killed in theIsraeli air strikes, hundreds of homes in Gaza havebeen destroyed and public properties, services andutilities, businesses and factories have been damaged.The Red Cross said that hundreds of thousands ofGazans have not had access to water for the past fewdays and fear a growing water crisis among Gaza’s 1.8million people.

“Nothing in this world gives you the right to destroya whole building if one of the people in that building isHamas. Who gives them that right? Why are theydestroying the Palestinianinfrastructure in Gaza?” asksformer Palestinian Minister ofIndustry and Trade Dr Saadi ElKrunz.

Even before the outbreakof the current fighting, theeconomy in Gaza was suffer-ing. The Palestinian CentralBureau of Statistics said thatunemployment had surgedto 41 percent in the first quar-ter of 2014, the highest it hasever been. More than half ofPalestinians suffer from foodinsecurity, meaning they donot know where their next meal is coming from. Gazais also still recovering from previous conflicts withIsrael.

Abdulkarim says the estimated cost of the fightingin 2008, which lasted three weeks before a UN-bro-kered cease fire was imposed, was around $700 mil-lion. In 2012, the war lasted eight days and cost Gazabetween $100 to 200 million. “If it continues and if itextends to redeployment of Israeli forces, then defi-nitely the cost will rise dramatically. We expect it willagain reach up to $500 million dollars,” he said. ElKrunz says that for a full economic recovery, Israelwould have to ease restrictions and allow all goodsinto Gaza. “There’s no guarantee that if you do recon-struction and rebuild the infrastructure, the Israeliswon’t destroy it again,” he said. “No one can guaranteethat even if the EU pays for any reconstruction in Gaza,Israel will not destroy it without thinking about the EU,international community or even America,” he said.

“Economically, the timing of the war against Gazacame at very bad time because people were alreadyliving under stressful conditions,” said Abdelkarim.While most salaries have been paid in full sincePalestinian unity was realized, 40,000 - 50,000 Hamasemployees have not been paid for several months,which has added to the tension in Gaza.

“We are talking about disastrous living conditionsbefore the war, now the war came and it will compli-cate the issues, keep the crisis, will make more house-holds miserable,” said Abdelkraim. According to statis-tics from the Ministry of Finance, international aid toGaza has declined by 40% in the first half of the yearafter the Israeli-Palestinian peace process collapsed. “InEurope, they give money to keep the peace buildingprocess going. If the peace process is on hold and fac-ing a lot of obstacles, they probably reassess,” saidAbdelkarim. “If things are not going well (betweenIsraelis and Palestinians), then they are going to cut orminimize the aid they are paying to us,” agrees ElKrunz. The EU contributed $21 million to the

Palestinian Authority for thepayment of June salaries andpensions for almost 70,000Palestinian public servantworkers in the West Bank andthe Gaza Strip. Abdelkarimsays in war, the need for aid isurgent and it’s up to thePalestinian leadership toappeal to the internationalcommunity for aid.

On Sunday, Norwayannounced it would give $4million to Gaza. The UnitedArab Emirates has said that itwill donate $52 million to

Gazans, while Saudi Arabia has pledged a similar sum.Unfortunately, the economist says Arab countries

have not fulfilled their commitments,“Some Arab countries have not paid one penny to

Palestinians over the last couple of years or evenmore,” Abdelkarim said. He said it could be because ofthe internal situation in the Arab countries. But ElKrunz disagrees saying the Palestinian’s relationshipwith the Arab states is not “at its best.”

Dr El Krunz, who is also a professor of finance at AlQuds University, says he hopes that the Palestinianscan take responsibility for their own economic future.“Assume the ideal case, we have our own independentPalestinian state, we have our seaport, and we are incontrol of our borders,” he said. “Once we have our owninternational airport in West Bank and Gaza, things willbe different. The Palestinians can depend on them-selves and the Palestinian economy can move forwardwithout any need for foreign aid.” —The Media Line

Gaza economy hit hardin my view

By Abdullah H. Erakat

“If it continues and if itextends to redeploymentof Israeli forces, then defi-nitely the cost will rise dra-matically. We expect it will

again reach up to $500million dollars.”

They say they are going to airnew reality TV shows after

Ramadan and they are filled with action!

LO C A LSUNDAY, JULY 20, 2014

By A. Saleh

KUWAIT: Prime Minister His Highness SheikhJaber Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah has no plans toperform a Cabinet reshuffle during the parlia-ment’s recess, according to governmentsources. The report, published by Al-Qabasdaily yesterday, refutes rumors which indicat-ed that the premier might explore options toreplace ministers who receive usual criticismfrom the parliament.

But the sources who spoke on the condi-tion of anonymity indicated that the primeminister plans to have consultations after theEid Al-Fitr holiday to fill vacant voids in thecabinet left by the resignation of Ahmad Al-Mulaifi as Minister of Education and Ministerof Higher Education, and Nawaf Al-Ajmi asMinister of Justice and Minister of Awqaf andIslamic Affairs.

An announcement naming the new minis-ter is expected during the parliament’s recesswhich ends in October, the sources said.Meanwhile, Hind Al-Subaih, the Minister ofSocial Affairs and Labor, Minister of State forPlanning and Development, plans to presentthe draft for the state’s development plan forthe upcoming five years to the cabinet afterthe Eid Al-Fitr holiday, so that it can be dis-cussed before the beginning of the new par-liamentary term.

In other news, MP Dr Mohammad Al-Huwailah urged the government to allocatethe area west of Haddiya to be used for hous-ing purposes. Earlier plans to utilize the piece

of land for residential projects stalled whenKuwait Petroleum Corporation objected andsaid that oil pipes run under the area. MPHuwailah said however that studies showedthat 90 percent of the area is suitable to beused to build nearly 4,000 houses. He calledOil Minister Dr. Ali Al-Omair to conduct a sur-vey to determine the areas that can be usedfor housing welfare.

This comes while Al-Rai reported that theMinistry of Housing Affairs plans to resumecoordination with the Ministry of MunicipalityAffairs with regards to the possibility ofincluding the west Haddiya area to the hous-ing projects’ map. The ministries plan to fol-low a similar mechanism that helped free anarea located south of Saad Al-Abdullah tobuild around 40,000 housing units despiteobstacles found there.

In the meantime, Minister of HousingAffairs Yasser Abul heads a meeting for thePublic Authority for Housing Welfare thisweek to execute the plan to allocate housesin the Mutlaa City which has a capacity ofmore than 30,000 housing units.

Separately, Al-Anba reported yesterdaythat the Cabinet, under the prime minister’sdirections, plans to study the possibility ofamending the Penal Code to introducetougher penalties against rioting and unli-censed demonstrations. The amendmentswill be discussed and referred to the parlia-ment at the beginning of the new term,according to a government source quoted inthe report.

No plans now for cabinet reshuffle Consultations after Eid holiday

KUWAIT: Abdulmohsen Al-Rushaid, NBK Public Relations Manager, in a group picture with the Summer Internship Program students.

KUWAIT: National Bank of Kuwait launched thesecond session of the 2014 Summer InternshipProgram. The program is custom-made for highschool and college students aged between 15and 20 years.

NBK Summer Internship Program is speciallydesigned for high school and college students asan extension of NBK’s education outreach servic-es. The program demonstrates NBK’s long-stand-

ing social involvement as well as its nationalcommitment towards providing the young gen-erations with the appropriate opportunities toexperience first hand how the actual profession-al banking issues and transaction are handledand processed. The five-hour daily sessions oftwo-week internship featured a mixture of theo-retical and practical training dedicated to pro-viding the interns with invaluable knowledge on

a variety of subjects such as; the team work, cre-ative thinking, means of self expression andmodern banking work procedure, in addition tohelping interns to have greater exposure to dailybanking work procedures.

NBK regularly organizes and designs eventsand packages for the youth of the country tofamiliarize them with the world of banking andmake them responsible citizens.

NBK launches third session of

Summer Internship Program

KUWAIT: Zain, the leading telecommunicationscompany in Kuwait, announced yesterday thesuccessful conclusion of “Zain Special NeedsTournament”, where it awarded the winners ofthe first place titles. The company sponsored theRamadan Tournament, which took place at themain headquarters of the Kuwait DisabledSports Club in Hawalli, as part of its extensiveCorporate Social Responsibility campaign duringthe holy month of Ramadan.

Zain mentioned in a press statement that theconclusion ceremony was attended by Zain’sChief Technical Officer Nabeel Mohammed andKuwait Disabled Sports Club’s Chairman Shafi Al-Hajiry, in addition to Zain’s team who participat-ed in awarding the winners of the first placetitles in the tournament that was held under thecompany’s sponsorship for the first time.

The company mentioned that its continuoussupport of people with special needs has longbeen a core focus for the company’s CorporateSocial Responsibility strategy, and by sponsoringsuch tournaments, the company reassures itscontinuous support to this much cherished seg-ment of the society. Going forward, the compa-ny pledges to spare no efforts in providing com-prehensive support that help to reflect a positiveimage to the Kuwait sports and youth segments.

During May 2014, Zain welcomed Kuwait’sNational Handicapped Basketball Team’s cham-pions in Kuwait Airport after the team won thefirst West Asia Handicapped Basketball league inDubai. The company recently presented theKuwait Sports Club for the Handicapped withspecially customized wheelchairs with an aim offacilitating their comfort while training and com-peting in tournaments and championships.

It is worth noting that Zain organizes andsponsors a number of sports and health projects

during the holy month of Ramadan, mostnotably Kuwait’s biggest and first of its kindhealth programs; the Rijeemy Walkathon. Theprogram will be held in Mall 360 throughout thefirst 20 days of Ramadan, and will feature anarray of health related programs and activitiesthat will cater to a fasting person’s daily routine.Additionally, the company successfully conclud-ed the second Ramadan “Zain PenaltyTournament” with overwhelming participationfrom youth.

‘Zain Special Needs Tournament’ winners awarded

KUWAIT: Kuwait will cele-brate the 53rd anniversary ofjoining the Arab League, ajourney of big efforts in sup-porting all Arab mattersthroughout the years.

Joining the League wasthe first step the former Amirof Kuwait Sheikh AbdullahAl-Salem Al-Sabah had takenwhen the country gained itsindependence in 1961.

Secretary General forpolitical affairs in the LeagueSayid Nofal has expressed atthe time his pleasure forKuwait’s membership, notingthat Kuwait has been defend-ing Arab causes way beforejoining the League.

Accepting Kuwait’s mem-bership request was stalleduntil July 20, 1961, becauseIraq has presented docu-ments to the GeneralSecretariat, claiming thatKuwait was part of Iraq. TheSecretariat held severalmeetings then, finally decid-ing to accept the member-ship, while also announcingthat the League would helpKuwait gain membership atthe United Nations.

On Aug 10, 1990, theLeague issued article num-ber 195 condemning theIraqi invasion of Kuwait, call-ing on Iraq to abide by theUN Security Council resolu-tions. The League also sup-ported Kuwait as an inde-pendent state, later issuingresolutions regarding therights of Kuwaiti PoWs, andproviding the country withcompensations for the dam-age caused by the invasion.

Kuwait has played aprominent role in resolvingissues and conflicts betweenmember countries, led by HisHighness the Amir SheikhSabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, who was the Ministerof Foreign Affairs back then.

His Highness SheikhSabah played a role in thereconciliation betweenYemeni parties in the mid60s, and in ending armedconflict between SouthYemen and the Yemen ArabRepublic in 1972.— KUNA

Journey

of big

efforts

Farewell reception for

British AmbassadorKUWAIT: The Kuwait - British FriendshipSociety hosted a farewell reception in hon-or of Frank Baker, the British Ambassador,whose four-and-a-half year term of office inKuwait has come to an end. The eventheld on June 21, at the residence ofAmbassador Abdullah Bishara, Chairman ofthe Society was attended by a number of

businessmen, diplomats and friends.In his welcoming speech, Ambassador

Bishara acknowledged the great jobAmbassador Frank Baker has done duringhis tenure in Kuwait, and thanked him forhis dedication and support to the Kuwait -British Friendship Society. He went on tosay: “Ambassador Baker set a precedent inhis zeal for the work of the Society and hisachievements in launching a new diplo-matic order for diplomats to emulate, inwhich his strategy is affinity, intimacy andfamiliarity.”

Frank Baker responded by thanking thecommunity for all their support and he reit-erated the importance of the relationshipbetween Kuwait and Britain, and theimportant role of both entities. He con-cluded by saying: “I am truly sad to be leav-ing Kuwait. Although I am leaving my post,I will not be leaving behind the close rela-tionships and friendships I have made. Ithank the Society for a wonderful eveningand I have enjoyed working closely withthe Kuwait- British Friendship Society .”

The evening ended with a token gift ofappreciation presented to AmbassadorFrank Baker, wishing him every success inhis new post as Ambassador to Iraq.

KUWAIT: Ambassador Frank Baker andAbdullah Bishara


KUWAIT: A Kuwaiti man was arrested for sellingforged passports to stateless residents. The manwas also busted with possession of a gun andfour bullets, as well as a substance suspected tobe drugs. The arrest was made based on infor-mation about a Kuwaiti man living in Ahmadiwho forged Kuwaiti and non-Kuwaiti passportsand then sold them to bedoons for up to KD3,000 each. The information further indicatedthat some of the people who bought forgedpassports from him had managed to exit thecountry, including individuals who went toEurope and asked for political asylum. The mandenied the accusations at first, saying that heknows representatives who provided him withpassports. He later admitted to forging Kuwaitipassports, leading police to stamps and docu-ments he used in the forgery. The man wasreferred to the proper authorities to face chargesof forgery of official documents, possession ofan unlicensed firearm and ammunition, as wellas possession of drugs for personal use.

Home robberyInvestigations are ongoing to identify and

arrest a thief accused of stealing KD 20,000worth of jewelry from a Rumaithiya apartmentrecently. Local police were approached by a 41-year-old Indian man who filed a case, saying thatan unknown assailant broke into his apartmentand stole a jewelry box from the bedroom. Theman who was suffering a nervous breakdown atthe time said that the stolen jewelry wereamount to his life savings.

Baqala robbedA shopkeeper in Khaitan was injured in an

armed robbery reported recently. The suspectreportedly stormed a baqala (small grocerystore) at ifar time and stole KD 410 at knifepoint.The storekeeper was injured while resisting thesuspect. The Asian man headed to the FarwaniyaHospital where he received treatment and thenwent to Khaitan police station and filed a case.Investigations are ongoing.

Pest controlThree people were hospitalized in a critical

condition after they inhaled pesticides inside ahouse in Shuhada’a. A Kuwaiti man had calledpest control to address a gecko problem at hishouse. An exterminator came to spray the houseon 1:30 am Friday. But soon enough, the Egyptianman along with two Filipina domestic workerssuffered from breathing troubles and lost con-sciousness. They were taken to the MubarakHospital where their condition stabilized.

SuicideA man committed suicide inside a private prop-

erty in Kabd where he worked as a keeper, accord-ing to investigations. Police arrived to the scene inresponse to an emergency call on Thursday night,and saw the Asian man’s body hanging dead from arope tied to the ceiling. Criminal investigators weresummoned to examine the scene and take thebody to the forensic department. Investigations areongoing. —Al-Watan, Al-Anba, Al-Rai

Kuwaiti man arrested

for passport forgeryKD 20,000 worth of jewelry stolen

KUWAIT: VIVA, Kuwait’s fastest-growing and most developed telecomoperator, recently organized special Ramadan festivities in cooperationwith Bayt Lothan, continuing its support towards the local community.

The activities included arranging a Ghabqa event for the elderlywhere they were entertained by Maayouf Majali, a Kuwaiti cultural band,a locally renowned traditional musical band.

VIVA also organized a festive Girgian event for special needs children,taking pride in celebrating this wondrous occasion and national tradi-tion. During the event, VIVA distributed gift bags and shared the happymoments of Girgian with the children.

VIVA reiterates through actions its commitment to being an activemember of the local community in Kuwait as part of its CSR commit-ment. VIVA’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activities can bereviewed on the company’s website at https://www.viva.com.kw/csr.This offers a description of each CSR initiative that VIVA has supported, ortaken on since its inception.

To find out more information about VIVA’s products and services, visitany of the company ’s 54 VIVA branches, or the website atwww.viva.com.kw, or simply call VIVA’s 24 hour call center at 102.

VIVA is the fastest-growing telecom operator in Kuwait. Launched inDecember 2008, VIVA makes things Possible for its customers by trans-forming communication, information and entertainment experiences.The company has rapidly established an unrivalled position in the mar-ket through its customer centric approach. VIVA’s quest is to be themobile brand of choice in Kuwait by being transparent, engaging, ener-getic and fulfilling. VIVA continues to take a considerable share of themarket by offering an innovative range of best value products, servicesand content propositions; a state of the art, nationwide network andworld-class service. VIVA offers internet speeds of more than 100 Mbps,due to the implementation of the most advanced fourth generation (4GLTE) network in Kuwait resulting in superior coverage, performance andreliability.

VIVA organizes Ghabqa, Girgian

KUWAIT: On June 27 in Brussels, Georgia andthe European Union signed an AssociationAgreement, which includes provisions for theestablishment of a Deep and ComprehensiveFree Trade Area (DCFTA), according to pressrelease from the Georgian embassy yesterday.

The agreement was signed by the GeorgianPrime Minister, Irakli Gharibashvili; by thePresident of the European Council, Herman vanRompuy; by the President of the EuropeanCommission, José Manuel Barroso; and by theheads of state or government of the EU memberstates.

The Georgian delegation included theDeputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economyand Sustainable Development, GiorgiKvirikashvili; the State Minister for European andEuro-Atlantic Integration, Aleksi Petriashvili; theForeign Minister, Maia Panjikidze; and theMinister of Justice, Tea Tsulukiani.

The Association Agreement provides forGeorgia’s political association with the EuropeanUnion and for the country’s economic integra-tion with the largest and most stable commonmarket in the world.

Georgia, as a European country, completelyshares the common European values theAssociation Agreement is based upon. By sign-ing the agreement, Georgia assumes the obliga-tions to consolidate the rule of law, to pursuelegislative reforms, to strengthen respect for fun-damental human rights and freedoms, and toreinforce democratic institutions.

The Association Agreement will significantlyenhance the political dialogue between Georgiaand the EU, and will increase the involvement ofcivil society.

The agreement is designed to graduallyintroduce European standards in all spheres ofGeorgia’s economy and sectoral policy—-infra-structure, energy, the environment, agriculture,tourism, technological development, employ-ment and social policy, health protection, edu-cation, culture, civil society, regional develop-ment, etc. It also provides for the approximationof Georgian laws with nearly 300 items ofEuropean legislation.

Special emphasis was placed upon makingthe most effective use of various the possibilitiesoffered by the DCFTA. These new possibilities fortrade will further Georgia’s gradual economicintegration with the EU’s common market

through the abrogation of customs tariffs andquotas as well as through the harmonization oftrade-related legislation, norms and regulations.

The DCFTA will promote a gradual approxi-mation with European standards in the sphereof food safety; the establishment of a transpar-ent and stable business environment; anincrease of Georgia’s potential to attract invest-ment; the introduction of innovative approachesand new technologies; the stimulation of eco-nomic growth; and support for the country’seconomic development.

The Association Agreement provides forsuch a high level of rapprochement with theEuropean Union that Georgia’s process ofEuropeanization has become irreversible, andrepresents yet another step towards EU mem-bership. Following the signing of the agreement,Georgia’s European integration will be a priorityboth in terms of foreign and domestic policy.

The Georgian Government’s main goal is, byprogressively introducing adequate policies, toextend the benefits of the agreement’s new pos-sibilities to the whole country and society. TheGeorgia-EU Association Agreement covers thecountry’s entire territory within its international-ly recognized borders, and every citizen ofGeorgia will enjoy equal access to the possibili-ties set out in the agreement.

To support its process of reform, the EU willmake use of all the instruments at its disposal toprovide Georgia with large-scale technical andfinancial assistance.

Signing the Association Agreement is a his-toric event for both Georgia and the EuropeanUnion. The agreement will significantly increasepolitical and economic relations between thetwo, and will strengthen Georgia’s Europeanchoice.

It should be noted that the agreement wassigned within an unprecedented short period oftime, a fact which points to the political willing-ness of both parties to increase their co-opera-tion and to progress to a higher level of rela-tions.

On June 26, Georgia and the EU also adopt-ed an Association Agenda, whose aim is to sup-port the effective implementation of theAssociation Agreement, and which constitutes athree-year timetable (2014-2016) setting out pri-orities for the implementation of the AssociationAgreement.

Georgia, EU sign

Association Agreement

Press conference at the Georgian Embassy. —Photo by Yasser Al-Zayyat

KUWAIT: The national carrier, Kuwait AirwaysCorporation (KAC), has successfully obtained twoaviation security certificates necessary for air-cargoor mail carrier operation into the European Union.

In a press statement, the KAC stated that it hasgot the ACC3 certificatewhich stands for ‘Air Cargoor Mail Carrier operatinginto the Union from a ThirdCountry Airport’ and theRA3 EU certification whichstands for ‘Third CountryEU Aviation SecurityValidated RegulatedAgents’ - a supply chainsecurity initiative of theEuropean Union. “We, in

the KAC, are proud of this achievement to be one ofthe first airlines operating in the region to receivethat two certificates,” KAC Board Chairman andManaging Director Rasha Al-Roumi said.

Al-Roumi lauded the efforts exerted by KACstaff to meet the requirements of the two certifi-cates.

She added that obtaining the certificates wasessential for the KAC to continue its air-cargo andmail carrier operation in the EU.

The ACC3 regulation is the latest modificationto security measures covering incoming cargo andmail from non-EU countries. The original measureswere announced by the EU in 2011, and intro-duced in 2012, following the discovery of explosivedevices transported as air cargo.

The regulations place the onus on air carriers to

meet certain standards for security prior to theloading of an aircraft bound for the EU, and tobecome designated as an “Air Cargo or Mail Carrieroperating into the Union from a Third CountryAirport” (ACC3).

To obtain ACC3 status, the air carrier must delivera “Declaration of Commitments” setting out how ithas complied with aviation security responsibilitiesof any EU member state to which it flies cargo and/ormail.

Until now, the regulations required ICAO securi-ty standards as a minimum; but from July 1 the EUregulations will demand that ACC3’s hold securityverifications of their cargo and mail operations atall non-EU airports they serve; this verificationprocess must be conducted by an EU-certifiedindependent validator. —KUNA

KAC gets EU Aviation security certificates

Rasha Al-Roumi

Keenness on caring for youthKUWAIT: Minister of Information andMinister of State for Youth Affairs SheikhSalman Sabah Salem Al-Hmoud Al-Sabahhas re-affirmed State authorities’ keennesson devoting particular concern to theyouth. The minister was speaking at finalgame of the governorates’ sports competi-tion, “mubaratenah,” organized by the min-istry, last night, at Abdulaziz Al-Nisef Schoolin Al-Yarmouk district.

The ministry staff have worked for 10months to prepare for the games, drawing

up to 700,000 competitors, the MinisterSheikh Salman said, indicating that thegames were played on 100 fields through-out the country.

Sheikh Salman re-affirmed that the min-istry has placed all its resources at disposalof the Kuwaiti youngsters, particularly at thecultural and sports levels.

The competition involved 200 teams. Ineach province, 33 teams played games andsix teams representing all the governoratesreached the finals. —KUNA

KUWAIT: Gulf Bank has announced HussainA T Akbar as the winner of the second 2014KOC quarterly draw for a brand new GMCYukon. Akbar received a 2014 GMC Yukondelivered off the floor at the GMC Yukondealership by Yaser Sulaiman - ExecutiveManager Consumer Banking at Gulf Bank.Gulf Bank’s KOC quarterly draws are exclu-sive to KOC employees who have a GulfBank salary account and comprises of a tai-lored banking package specially designedfor KOC employees.

The KOC salary banking package pro-vides a non-interest bearing current accountand several other benefits such as; vouchersfrom X-cite by Alghanim Electronics, freeissuance charges for Visa and MasterCardCredit Card, and special discounts whenusing Gulf Bank cards at over 100 outlets in

Kuwait Gulf Bank welcomes new KOC salarycustomers, who transfer their salary to theBank, with gift vouchers ranging betweenKD 50 to KD 100 to spend at any X-cite byAlghanim store in Kuwait. The two remain-ing quarterly draws will be conductedthroughout the year, third draw on23rdSeptember and the fourth draw willtake place on 23rd December. The draws willtake place in the Gulf Bank’s KOC HeadOffice branch.

Gulf Bank is conveniently located at theKOC Head Office, and all KOC employeesthat transfer their salary and hold a valid GulfBank credit card are eligible to enter thequarterly draws making the Bank the premi-um establishment for KOC employees toreceive great prizes and enjoy high qualityfinancial services.

Gulf Bank Announces Akbar as

Winner of KOC Quarterly Draw

KUWAIT: Kuwait Municipality inspectors confiscated four half lorries load of fruits, vegetables, dairy products, and used clothesduring a crackdown against roaming vendors in the Asima (capital) Governorate. The inspectors also confiscated 8,700 piratedCDs, and issued tickets against 85 roaming vendors. —By Hanan Al-Saadoun

SUNDAY, JULY 20, 2014

Italy rescues 4,000 migrants; 19 killed

Page 10

Downing of plane a ‘wake-up’ call for Europe and the worldPage 9

FALLUJAH: Abdullah Ahmed walks outside of his home, damaged in a bombing in Fallujah, 40 miles west of Baghdad yesterday. Sunni militants seized control of the Anbar city of Fallujah, and parts of Ramadi in January. — AP

BAGHDAD: A series of bombings, including three over aspan of less than 10 minutes, killed at least 27 peopleacross Baghdad yesterday, shaking the fragile sense ofsecurity the capital has maintained despite the Sunni mili-tant offensive raging across northern and western Iraq. Theattacks are among the most significant in Baghdad sinceinsurgents led by the Islamic State extremist group cap-tured Iraq’s second-largest city Mosul last month at thestart of its blitz across Iraq. After Mosul’s fall, the govern-ment moved aggressively to try to secure Baghdad amidfears it might fall as well, and the city has seen few majorattacks in recent weeks.

Yesterday’s deadliest bombing took place in the Shiiteneighborhood of Abu Dashir, where a suicide attackerrammed a car packed with explosives into a checkpoint,killing at least nine people and wounding 19, officials said.Four policemen were among the dead, a police officer said.Later in the day, three car bombs in different neighbor-hoods of Baghdad went off in less than 10 minutes, hittingthe districts of Baiyaa, Jihad and Khazimiyah. The attackskilled at least 15 people and wounded another 42, policeofficials said.

Another car bomb near a bus stop in Khazimiyah killedthree people and wounded 15, police said. Hospital offi-cials in Baghdad confirmed the casualty figures in all of theattacks. The officials spoke on condition of anonymitybecause they were not authorized to brief the media. TheSunni militant blitz, led by the Islamic State extremistgroup, has pushed into areas west of Baghdad, and alsohas established a presence in a belt of Sunni areas runningsouth and north of the capital. Baghdad itself has a pre-dominantly Shiite population.

The Iraqi military launched a counteroffensive late lastmonth to try to dislodge insurgents from the city of Tikrit,some 130 kilometers north of Baghdad. That effort hassecured much of the highway between Tikrit and the cityof Samarra, home to one of the most important Shiiteshrines, but Tikrit itself remains in militant hands.Northwest of Tikrit, heavy fighting has raged around an airbase that previously served as a US military facility knownas Camp Speicher. Yesterday, Iraqi military spokesman LtGen Qassim Al-Moussawi denied reports that militants hadcaptured Camp Speicher, saying government troopsrepelled an attack on Friday and the base remains fully ingovernment hands.

Three security officials confirmed that the militantslaunched an assault on the air field late Thursday, blastingthrough an outside wall of the base and destroying onehelicopter. One of the officials said the other helicopters atSpeicher were “evacuated” from the base to prevent themfrom being damaged, but they have since been returned toduty. The officials spoke on condition of anonymitybecause they were not authorized to brief the media. A res-ident of Tikrit, Ahmed Jassim, said by telephone that clash-es were taking place around Speicher yesterday, but “thegunmen are outside the camp.” The center of Tikrit is stillunder insurgent control, and is being shelled by the Iraqimilitary.-— AP

Bombings kill at least 27 in BaghdadSuicide bomber rams a car packed with explosives into checkpoint

BOUREM: French soldiers take position outside Bourem, northern Mali inthis file photo. —AFP

VIENNA: Iran and six powers agreed tocontinue talking for four more monthsafter failing to meet a July 20 deadlineto reach a deal on curbing the Iraniannuclear program in exchange for end-ing sanctions, enabling Tehran toaccess $2.8 billion of frozen cash. ButUS officials warned that most sanctionsagainst the Islamic Republic wouldremain in place during the extendedtalks. The announcement came in theearly hours of yesterday after nearly

three weeks of marathon talks in a 19thcentury Viennese palace, where seniorofficials from Iran, the United States,Britain, France, Germany, Russia andChina were holed up in negotiatingrooms struggling to reach an agree-ment.

Iran will be allowed to access intranches an additional $2.8 billion of itsfrozen assets during the period ofextended talks, senior US officials toldreporters in Vienna. “Iran will not getany more money during these fourmonths than it did during the last six

months, and the vast majority of itsfrozen oil revenues will remain inacces-sible,” US Secretary of State John Kerryin a statement released in Vienna yes-terday. “We will continue to vigorouslyenforce the sanctions that remain inplace.” It remains uncertain whetherfour more months of high-stakes talkswill yield a final deal, since majorunderlying differences remain after sixrounds of meetings this year. Westernnations fear Iran’s nuclear program may

be aimed at developing a nuclearweapons capability. Tehran denies this.

The six powers want Iran to signifi-cantly scale back its nuclear enrich-ment program to make sure it cannotyield nuclear bombs. Iran wants sanc-tions that have severely damaged itsoil-dependent economy to be lifted assoon as possible. After years of risingtension between Iran and the West andfears of a new Middle East war, lastyear’s election of a pragmatist, HassanRouhani, as Iran’s president led to athaw in ties that resulted in the current

nuclear negotiations. A senior US offi-cial told reporters that Washingtonwould make clear to countries aroundthe world that “Iran is not open forbusiness” during the four months ofextended talks. In exchange for the$2.8 billion, Kerry said, Iran agreed totake several steps, including to keepneutralizing its most sensitive uraniumstocks - uranium that has beenenriched to a level of 20 percent purity- by converting it to fuel for a research

reactor in Tehran used to make medicalisotopes. Kerry said the future of Iran’senrichment program was one of themost divisive topics. “There are veryreal gaps on issues such as enrichmentcapacity at the Natanz enrichmentfacility,” he said. “This issue is anabsolutely critical component of anypotential comprehensive agreement.We have much more work to do in thisarea, and in others as well.”

Feet to the fireFrench Foreign Minister Laurent

Fabius said in Cairo that major dis-agreements remained though somehad been resolved. “There have beensome advances towards finding anagreement, that’s why we decided toextend the negotiations,” he said. “If wehad thought there was no potential fora deal we would have stopped imme-diately.” Some members of USCongress are eager to impose new andtougher sanctions on Iran. Several sen-ior US officials said yesterday that theywould continue to oppose new sanc-tions as long as the negotiations areunderway but would drop their oppo-sition if the talks were to collapse. “Weunderstand Congress’ desire to holdIran’s feet to the fire,” one of the US offi-cials said.

The talks are taking place becauseof an interim accord Iran and the sixreached in Geneva in November 2013that gave Tehran limited sanctionsrelief - including cash - in exchange forhalting some nuclear work. That creat-ed time and space for the negotiationof a permanent deal to end thedecade-long dispute. Iranian ForeignMinister Mohammad Javad Zarif toldreporters earlier this week that Tehranwould be willing to delay developmentof an industrial-scale uranium enrich-ment program for up to seven yearsand to keep the 19,000 centrifuges ithas installed so far for this purpose.

But Kerry said after several face-to-face meetings with Zarif it was “crystalclear” that for Iran to keep all of its exist-ing centrifuges was out of the ques-tion. Another difficult issue in the talks,diplomats said, is how to address Iran’ssuspected past atomic bomb researchand the duration of any long-termrestrictions on its nuclear program. Thenegotiations began in February inVienna. EU foreign policy chiefCatherine Ashton and Zarif said in ajoint statement that the talks wouldresume in the coming weeks. Theextension begins on July 21 and runsthrough Nov 24. —Reuters

Iran, powers extend talks after

missing nuclear deal deadlineMajor disagreements remain on issue of enrichment

VIENNA: European foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton and Iranian Foreign MinisterMohammad Javad Zarif (right) address the media after closed-door nuclear talks in Vienna,Austria yesterday. —AP

NIAMEY: French President FrancoisHollande on Friday promoted a new militaryoperation being rolled out in West Africa totake on a multi-faceted menace fromIslamist groups that he warned threatenedFrance’s interests and citizens. France led amilitary intervention in its former colonyMali last year, halting the advance of Al-Qaeda-linked fighters who had seized con-trol of the northern two-thirds of the coun-try in 2012. The military operation succeed-ed in scattering the Islamist groups in Mali,and Paris is in the process of reorganizing itsdeployment in the region, with its 1,700 sol-diers in Mali being folded into a broadercounter-terrorism force.

Under the new plan, some 3,000 Frenchtroops will now operate out of Mali, BurkinaFaso, Niger and Chad - countries straddlingthe vast arid Sahel band - with the aim ofstamping out an Islamist threat across theregion. “There are threats, notably fromLibya. Military hardware has accumulatedthere, and without a doubt, terrorists areseeking refuge there,” Hollande said in Nigerduring a three-day trip that will also takehim to Ivory Coast and Chad.

“We have, therefore, decided to put inplace structures and measures that willallow us to confront this threat of terrorismin the Sahel,” he said. Islamist fighterslaunched suicide attacks last year on Niger’sSomair uranium mine in the town of Arlit,which is operated by Areva, a supplier ofuranium to France’s nuclear power program.

Twenty-four soldiers and one civilian werekilled in the raids, which Niger PresidentMahamadou Issoufou blamed on fightersbased in southern Libya.

Though weakened, Islamist fighters inMali still carry out sporadic attacks there. AFrench soldier was killed and several othersinjured by a suicide attack in northern Malion Monday, and a Cambodian UN peace-keeper was injured by an improvised explo-sive device on Friday. Hollande also spoke ofthe risks posed by the worsening BokoHaram insurgency in Nigeria, to Niger’ssouth, where fighters carry out daily bomb-ings, raids on villages and kidnappings.Boko Haram is increasingly operating inCameroon, where the group is blamed for aseries of kidnappings this week. On Friday,Cameroonian state radio said militants killedone policeman and injured another in anattack in the town of Narki, in the country’snorth.

“Niger’s security, West Africa’s security isFrance’s security,” Hollande told French mili-tary personnel at a French air base outsidethe capital, Niamey. “What can happen inNiger can touch our own security, our owninterests, our own population. So while youare here ensuring the security of Niger, youare also ensuring the security of France,” hesaid. The operation, dubbed Barkhane afterthe name of a kind of sand dune formed bydesert winds, will be based in Chad andreceive logistical support from bases inSenegal, Ivory Coast and Gabon. —Reuters

France warns of Islamist

threat in W Africa region

ALEXANDRIA: The US government is rapidlyexpanding the number of names it acceptsfor inclusion on its terrorist watch list, withmore than 1.5 million added in the last fiveyears, according to numbers divulged by thegovernment in a civil lawsuit. About 99 per-cent of the names submitted are accepted,leading to criticism that the government is“wildly loose” in its use of the list. Thoseincluded in the Terrorist Screening Databasecould find themselves on the government’sno-fly list or face additional scrutiny at air-ports, though only a small percentage ofpeople in the database are actually on the list.

It has been known for years that the gov-ernment became more aggressive in nomi-nating people for the watch list following al-Qaida operative Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab’sfailed effort to blow up an airplane overDetroit on Christmas Day 2009. But the num-bers disclosed by the government show sub-missions have snowballed. In fiscal 2009,which ended Sept. 30, 2009, 227,932 nameswere nominated to the database. In fiscal2010, which includes the months after theattempted Christmas bombing, nominationsrose to 250,847. In fiscal 2012, they increasedto 336,712, and in fiscal 2013 - the most recentyear provided - nominations jumped to468,749.

The government disclosed the figures in acivil lawsuit out of Virginia challenging theconstitutionality of the no-fly list. At a hearingFriday, government lawyers urged a judge todismiss the case, claiming state secrets will beexposed if the case proceeds. US DistrictJudge Anthony Trenga issued no immediateruling but expressed deep skepticism of thegovernment’s motion. Gadeir Abbas, a lawyerfor the Council on American-IslamicRelations, which filed the suit on behalf of anorthern Virginia man, said the numbers

show the government is failing to abide bythe standards required for inclusion, whichrequire “a reasonable suspicion to believethat a person is a known or a suspected ter-rorist.” “There aren’t 1 million people who areknown or suspected terrorists,” Abbas saidafter the hearing. “This suggests the standardthe government is applying is wildly loose.”

A Terrorist Screening Center officialdeclined comment Friday on the numbers. Acounterterrorism official previously told TheAssociated Press that as of August 2013, therewere 700,000 names on the watch list. Theofficial spoke on condition of anonymity inorder to discuss sensitive security informa-tion. Counterterrorism officials have saidnames are routinely removed from the list. InFriday’s hearing, though, Abbas argued thatthe process the government uses to evaluatewho should be on the list is opaque, and thatpeople who find themselves on it neverreceive an explanation or a meaningful wayto get removed.

Abbas’ client, Gulet Mohamed, 21, ofAlexandria, Virginia, has never been toldwhy he is on the list. Mohamed, a natural-ized citizen, was stranded in Kuwait in 2011trying to return to the US after a trip toYemen and his native Somalia. US authori-ties allowed Mohamed to fly home after hesued, but the lawsuit challenging the legal-ity of the list remains unresolved. He hasnever been charged with any sort of terror-related offense, and says his inclusion onthe list is a mistake.

Government lawyer Amy Powell toldthe judge that the government does notseek to invoke its state secrets privilegelightly, but said it would inevitably have toexpose its methods and sources if itexplained at a public trial why Mohamedwas put on the list. —AP

US terrorist database

growing at rapid rateNAIROBI: More than a month after attackers stormedinto a Kenyan town and executed dozens of residents,lingering uncertainty over exactly who was responsiblehas left the coastal region nervous and divided. TheShebab, Somalia’s Al-Qaeda-linked insurgents, werequick to claim responsibility for the string of gruesomemassacres near the tourist island of Lamu, saying the87 murdered by knives and gunfire were retaliation forKenya’s military presence in their country. KenyanPresident Uhuru Kenyatta, however, insisted theShebab had nothing to do with it and instead blamed“local political networks” and ethnic hatred. The differ-ing scenarios have only served to underscore the widerange and potentially explosive array of challengesfaced by Kenya: an external Islamist threat, home-grown terrorism, religious, ethnic and tribal tensions,and bitter, long-running land disputes.

“People here still live in fear and others have fled,”said Anne Gathigi, a 38-year-old mother of five whosehusband was killed when the attackers stormed intotheir house in June. According to witnesses and sur-vivors of the assault, the gunmen were spoke severallanguages, including Somali, and carried Shebab flags.They also deliberately singled out non-Muslims. Theattackers appeared to target the mainland close toLamu island because it is home to Christian settle-ments in the Muslim-majority coastal region.

Towns such as Mpeketoni, the scene of the firstkillings, were settled decades ago by the Kikuyu, thesame ethnic community as President Kenyatta.Foreign intelligence sources say all the evidence pointsto some Shebab involvement. “For us it’s clear theShebab were involved in some capacity, through man-power, planning and logistics, and are working withlocal sympathisers,” a Western diplomatic source whosought anonymity told AFP. “This is actually more wor-rying than if it was just a 100 percent Shebab opera-tion. It shows they have expanded their franchise, thatthe threat has morphed into something new,” he said.

The usual suspects?Among those arrested in the wake of the attacks

were alleged separatists from the MombasaRepublican Council (MRC), a group that campaigns forindependence of the coastal region. Lamu’s governor,an opposition politician, was also arrested and is cur-

rently under investigation. He has protested that thearrests were carried out with intimidation in mind, notevidence. Hussein Khalid, executive director of HAKIAfrica, a Kenyan Coast-based civil rights group, said theattacks may have in part been linked to age-old landdisputes, something he said were a ticking time bomb.“The land issue in Lamu has been an issue waiting toexplode,” he said, explaining that most coastal commu-nities felt that land distribution after Kenya’s independ-ence 50 years ago was done unfairly.

“The people who were settled here from upcountrywere issued with title deeds, yet the local people whohave lived here even before Kenya’s independencehave not been issued with any allotment letters, letalone title deeds,” he said, referring to members of theBajuni, Swahili and Boni communities. “There’s also theissue of inter-religious tensions, where both theChristians and Muslims have always treated each other

with suspicion,” he added, saying he believed Shebabwere behind the attacks but “taking advantage” ofKenya’s internal problems.

Also in the spotlight are Kenya’s security services,with police widely viewed as corrupt and the armyalready suffering from a poor public image after lastyear’s Shebab attack on the Westgate shopping centre-after which soldiers were filmed by security camerasapparently looting the mall.”There’s a lack of opera-tional capacity by the police to contain the attackerssince police are not trained in guerilla warfare, as wellas lack of logistical back up to traverse in the foresthunting for the attackers,” said a Kenyan security ana-lyst, who asked not to be named. “The other problem isthat the police officers are not able to get informationfrom the public because the public do not trust them-they fear harassment once they have offered informa-tion,” he said. —AFP

Kenya coast tense, divided

amid massacre whodunit

WITU: A victim injured after an attack is carried on a stretcher to Malindi sub countyhospital in Witu, Kenya. The Kenya Red Cross says seven people have been killedafter gunmen attacked a bus along the Kenyan coast where previous attacks had left87 people dead. —AP

I N T E R N AT I O N A LSUNDAY, JULY 20, 2014

ADDIS ABABA: A group of Ethiopianbloggers and journalists detained fornearly three months have been chargedwith terrorism for having links to an out-lawed group and for planning attacks, ajudge said Friday. The seven membersof the blogging collective Zone Nineand three journalists were arrested inApril, prompting an outcry from rightsgroups who said the case was an assaulton press freedom. The group is accusedof planning attacks in Ethiopia andworking in collusion with the US-basedopposition group Ginbot 7, labeled byEthiopian authorities as a terroristorganization.

“They took training in how to makeexplosives and planned to train others,”Judge Tareke Alemayehu told the court.

The Zone Nine website, proclaiming “weblog because we care,” features mostlysocial and political commentary, oftencritical of the government. The judgesaid their work was a cover for “clandes-tine” activities and accused them ofplotting “to destabilize the nation”. Nineof the accused-one is charged in absen-tia-smiled and waved to friends andfamily as they entered the packedcourtroom. The lawyer for eight of thesuspects dismissed the charges. “Wedon’t believe that there is any crediblesubstance,” Amaha Mekonnen said.

Not ‘going to escape’The Ethiopian Prime Minister

Hailemariam Desalegn delivered a starkwarning Friday to anyone linked to ter-

rorist groups hours after the chargeswere laid. “Anyone who is seen and act-ing within this terrorist network... will beeligible for the course of law,”Hailemariam told reporters. “When youput yourself into this network and youtry to become a blogger, don’t thinkthat you are going to escape from theEthiopian government,” he added. Butthe United States voiced concern aboutthe decision to press charges andwarned against “using anti-terrorismlaws as a mechanism to curb the freeexchange of ideas.” State Departmentspokeswoman Jen Psaki also called onthe Ethiopian government “to ensurethat the trial is fair, transparent and incompliance with Ethiopia’s constitution-al guarantees and international human

rights obligations.”Human Rights Watch (HRW )

slammed the decision, accusingEthiopia of making a “mockery of itsown judicial system,” according todeputy Africa director Leslie Lefkow.“Hiding behind an abusive anti-terror-ism law to prosecute bloggers and jour-nalists for doing their jobs is an affrontto the Ethiopian constitution,” she said.Meanwhile, Hailemariam defended thecontroversial extradition of Ginbot 7leader Andargachew Tsige, arrested lastmonth while transiting through Yemen’sSanaa airport. “It’s legal and it is legiti-mate... this guy has been sentencedsometime before he was captured so Ithink we will continue on according tothe sentence that has been given,” he

said, but did not confirm the death sen-tence would be carried out.

According to Ethiopian law, the pres-ident determines whether the deathsentence will be carried out, not theprime minister. HRW accuses Ethiopia ofusing the anti-terrorism laws to silencedissent and jail critics. Several journal-ists have been jailed under the law,including two Swedish journalists sen-tenced to 11 years in prison in 2012.They were pardoned after serving 15months. The dissident blogger EskinderNega is currently serving an 18-yearsentence for having links with Ginbot 7,which calls for the violent overthrow ofthe ruling party. The trial for the blog-gers and journalists is expected toresume on August 4. —AFP

Ethiopia bloggers, journalists handed ‘terrorism’ charges


Downing of plane a ‘wake-up’ call for Europe and the world

Netherlands mourns; more than half on plane were DutchHRABOVE: US President BarackObama said the downing of aMalaysian jetliner in a Ukrainian regioncontrolled by Russian-backed sepa-ratists should be a “wake-up call forEurope and the world” in a crisis thatappears to be at a turning point andwarned Russia of possible tighteningof sanctions. While stopping short ofblaming Russia for Thursday’s crash ofMalaysia Airlines Flight MH17, in which298 people died, Obama accusedMoscow of failing to stop the violencethat made it possible to shoot downthe plane.

The United States has said the jet-liner was hit by a surface-to-air missilefired from rebel territory. A senior USofficial said there was increasing confi-dence that the missile was fired byseparatists and that there was no rea-son to doubt the validity of a widelycirculated audiotape in which voicesidentified as separatists discussed thedowning of the plane.

“This certainly will be a wake-upcall for Europe and the world thatthere are consequences to an escalat-ing conflict in eastern Ukraine; that it isnot going to be localized, it is notgoing to be contained,” Obama toldreporters on Friday. Obama spoke byphone later with German ChancellorAngela Merkel, British Prime MinisterDavid Cameron and Australian PrimeMinister Tony Abbott. The WhiteHouse said they discussed Ukraineand the downed jet and the need foran unimpeded international investi-gation into what happened.

Malaysian Transport Minister LiowTiong Lai said yesterday he would flyto the Ukraine capital of Kiev toensure an investigating team gets safeaccess to the site. Defense Ministerand former transport ministerHishammuddin Hussein said a mainpriority was to ensure debris was nottampered with. “We want to get to thebottom of this,” he added, saying thatMalaysia had been in touch with offi-cials in Russia, Ukraine, the UnitedStates, Britain and China.

“We do not have a position untilthe facts have been verified, whetherthe plane was really brought down,

how it was brought down, whobrought it down,” he said. ChinesePresident Xi Jinping called for a fairand objective investigation as soon aspossible. International observers saidgunmen stopped them examining thesite properly when they got there onFriday. More than half of the victimswere Dutch in what has become a piv-otal incident in deteriorating relationsbetween Russia and the West.

Obama ruled out military interven-

tion but said he was prepared to tight-en sanctions. Russia, which Obamasaid was letting the rebels bring inweapons, has expressed anger atimplications it was to blame, sayingpeople should not prejudge the out-come of an inquiry. There were no sur-vivors from Flight MH17 fromAmsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, aBoeing 777. The United Nations said80 of the 298 aboard were children.The deadliest attack on a commercial

airliner, it scattered bodies over milesof rebel-held territory near the borderwith Russia.

The loss was the second devastat-ing blow for Malaysia Airlines and thecountry this year, following the disap-pearance of Flight MH370 in Marchwith 239 passengers and crew onboard on its way from Kuala Lumpurto Beijing. Makeshift white flagsmarked where bodies lay in corn fieldsand among the debris. Others,

stripped bare by the force of thecrash, had been covered by polythenesheeting weighed down by stones,one marked with a flower in remem-brance. One pensioner told how awoman smashed though her roof.“ There was a howling noise andeverything started to rattle. Thenobjects started falling out of the sky,”said Irina Tipunova, 65. “And then Iheard a roar and she landed in thekitchen.”

Investigation hamperedAs US investigators prepared to head

to Ukraine to assist in the investigation,staff from Europe’s OSCE security bodyvisited the site but complained thatthey did not get the full access theywanted. “We encountered armed per-sonnel who acted in a very impolite andunprofessional manner. Some of themeven looked slightly intoxicated,” anOSCE spokesman said. The scale of thedisaster could prove a turning point for

international pressure to resolve the cri-sis in Ukraine, which has killed hundredssince pro-Western protests toppled theMoscow-backed president in Kiev inFebruary and Russia annexed theCrimea peninsula a month later. “Thisoutrageous event underscores that it istime for peace and security to berestored in Ukraine,” Obama said,adding that Russia had failed to use itsinfluence to curb rebel violence.

While the West has imposed sanc-

tions on Russia over Ukraine, the UnitedStates has been more aggressive thanthe European Union. Analysts say theresponse of Germany and other EUpowers to the incident - possiblyimposing more sanctions - could becrucial in deciding the next phase ofthe standoff with Moscow. Some com-mentators even recalled Germany’ssinking of the Atlantic liner Lusitania in1915, which helped push the UnitedStates into World War One, but outragein the West at Thursday’s carnage is notseen as leading to military intervention.

The UN Security Council called for a“full, thorough and independent inter-national investigation” into the down-ing of the plane and “appropriateaccountability” for those responsible.German Chancellor Angela Merkel saidit was too early to decide on furthersanctions before it was known exactlywhat had happened to the plane.Britain took a similar line but laterechoed Obama in pointing the finger atthe separatists. Kiev and Moscowimmediately blamed each other for thedisaster, triggering a new phase in theirpropaganda war.

Crash siteThe plane crashed about 40 km

from the border with Russia near theregional capital of Donetsk, an areathat is a stronghold of rebels whohave been fighting Ukrainian govern-ment forces and have brought downmilitary aircraft. Leaders of the rebels’self-proclaimed Donetsk People’sRepublic denied any involvement andsaid a Ukrainian air force jet hadbrought down the plane. Russia’sDefense Ministry later laid the blamewith Ukrainian ground forces, sayingit had picked up radar activity from aUkrainian missile system south ofDonetsk when the airl iner wasbrought down, Russian media report-ed.

The Ukrainian Security Council saidno missiles had been fired from itsarmouries. Officials also accused sepa-ratists of moving unused missiles intoRussia after the incident. The Ukrainiangovernment released recordings itsaid were of Russian intelligence offi-

cers discussing the shooting down of acivilian airliner by rebels who mayhave mistaken it for a Ukrainian mili-tary plane. After the downing of sever-al Ukrainian military aircraft in the areain recent months, including two earlierthis week, Kiev had accused Russianforces of playing a direct role.

Separatists were quoted in Russianmedia last month saying they hadacquired a long-range SA-11 anti-air-craft system. The OSCE monitors saidthey could not find anyone to talk toabout the plane’s two black boxes -voice and data recorders - and vil-lagers were seen removing pieces ofwreckage. Reuters journalists sawburning and charred wreckage bear-ing the red and blue Malaysia Airlinesinsignia and dozens of bodies in fieldsnear the village of Hrabove, known inRussian as Grabovo.

Ukraine said on Friday that up to181 bodies had been found. The airlinesaid it was carrying 283 passengers and15 crew. Ukraine has closed air spaceover the east of the country as MalaysiaAirlines defended its use of a route thatsome other carriers had been avoiding.The Malaysian government is likely tocome under further pressure after say-ing on Friday that the flight path overUkraine had been declared safe by theUN International Civil AviationOrganization (ICAO) which, it said, hadsince closed the route.

The ICAO later said it did not havethe power to open or close routes andthat individual nations were responsi-ble for advising on potential hazards.International air lanes had been openin the area, although only above32,000 feet. The Malaysia plane wasflying 1,000 feet higher, at the instruc-tion of Ukrainian air traffic control,although the airline had asked to fly at35,000 feet. More than half of the deadpassengers, 189 people, were Dutch.Twenty-nine were Malaysian, 27Australian, 12 Indonesian, 10 British,four German, four Belgian, threeFilipino, one American, one Canadian,and one from New Zealand. Severalwere unidentified and some may havehad dual citizenship. The 15 crew wereMalaysian. —Reuters

HRABOVE: A body lies in the grass near the crash site of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 in the village ofHrabove, eastern Ukraine yesterday. —AP

DES MOINES: Texas Gov Rick Perry is visiting Iowa for the fourthtime in eight months, hoping for a second chance to win overRepublican voters who delivered him a stinging caucus losswhen he ran for president two years ago. Perry, 64, hasn’t said ifhe plans to run again in 2016. But he’s clearly considering it and ismeeting Saturday and Sunday with veterans and conservativeactivists in the northern Iowa communities of Algona and ClearLake.

Perry has been raising funds for GOP candidates and seekingadvice from political insiders since November. He is signaling he’scommitted to the grassroots politicking that Iowa’s Republicanfaithful expect and that many felt he didn’t prioritize when he rantwo years ago. Whether Iowa voters give Perry a second chanceremains to be seen. But GOP volunteer Joni Scotter believes Perry- a relatively late entry into the 2012 race - could make a come-back in the state whose caucus kicks off the presidential primaryseason.

“He crashed and burned, but that was because he started outa little late. Look at Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan, look at allthose people that have crashed and burned. I wouldn’t give upon Rick Perry at all,” said Scotter, of Merion. She backed eventualnominee, Mitt Romney, in 2012, and hasn’t decided about 2016.Connie Schmett, a longtime Republican party activist from Clive,isn’t convinced. Although she likes Perry personally, she said shejust can’t see herself supporting him in a second bid for presidentafter his ruinous debate performances. “I love him to death, but Ijust can’t,” said Schmett. “You cannot undo that impression. Andthat’s sad.”

Perry became Texas’ governor in 2000 when then-Gov.George W Bush stepped down to become president. He has been

elected to full four-year terms three times - becoming the longestserving governor in Texas history - but is not seeking re-electionnext year. Perry’s last presidential campaign began with greatpromise but quickly faltered. He parachuted into the race rela-tively late, in August 2011, but quickly went from being a front-runner to an also-ran because of a series of gaffes and poordebate performances - most notably his “oops” moment, whenhe could only list two of the three federal agencies he said hewould close if elected president.

Perry aides have said he simply wasn’t prepared when heentered the last presidential race, which was already well under-way. They blamed his poor debate showings on Perry’s busyschedule - he was very busy wrapping up a Texas legislative ses-sion - and pain medication he was taking following recent backsurgery. After finishing fifth in the Iowa caucus and sixth in NewHampshire’s primary, Perry quit the race. “I was disappointed forhim. He didn’t have as good of a showing as he could have orshould have,” said Hamilton County GOP chairman MarkGreenfield, who backed Perry in 2012.

Greenfield said he wasn’t sure that he would support Perryagain, but said the governor is making the right moves for anoth-er run. “Definitely the grassroots are what wins the caucuses andgetting here early, that makes a huge difference,” Greenfield said.Several other prominent Republicans are also testing Iowa’s polit-ical waters, including New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who visitedthe state Thursday, Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul, Texas Sen Ted Cruz,Louisiana Gov Bobby Jindal and former Pennsylvania Sen RickSantorum. Although it may be hard for Perry to overcome theimage he left voters with two years ago, his supporters say it’spossible. —AP

Second chance? Perry again courting voters


WARSAW: Poland’s foreign minister had sharp words onthe downing of the Malaysia Airlines jumbo jet in Ukraine- blaming the crash on Russia-backed “bandits.” Butthroughout most of central and eastern Europe, leaderswithheld judgment, expressing shock but refusing to saymore until more facts are in. The caution is not surprising:Several former Soviet satellite states have developed clos-er economic ties to Russia in recent years, making themunwilling to take a strong stand against Moscow in theUkraine conflict. Though all have condemned Russia’sannexation of Crimea, they are divided over what to dobeyond that, differences dictated largely by the depth ofthose economic ties - and whether they feel at risk them-selves from Moscow’s might. With uncertainty surround-ing Thursday’s plane crash, most have little to gain frompointing fingers, especially since the tragedy, which killed298 people, is unlikely to blunt Russia’s growing clout inthe region, experts say.

“No one should expect change in the relationsbetween Russia and any of the central European coun-tries unless clear evidence of Moscow’s involvement ispresented,” said Dariusz Kalan, an analyst with the PolishInstitute of International Affairs. “Even then, a radical turnwould be unlikely since the political, economic and ener-gy contacts are so developed.” “A temporary and mostlyrhetorical chill of relations with Russia is the heaviestreply that the region can afford,” Kalan added. Otherexperts argued, however, that confirmation of Russianinvolvement in the crash would force the region to take aharder stance against Moscow.

In some ways, divisions in the former Soviet bloc mir-ror tensions further West: France and Germany have con-tinued to cultivate business ties with Russia, while theUnited States has taken a stronger line. On the planecrash, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said there’s still“no clarity,” showing more caution than the United States,with President Barack Obama linking the crash to “sophis-ticated equipment ... coming from Russia.” “We have to becareful not to impose Cold War cliches on the region,” saidJakub Groszkowski, an analyst with the Center for EasternStudies in Warsaw. “The governments in Prague orBratislava are acting in a similar way to cabinets in Paris orVienna.”

But Russia’s old Soviet bloc neighbors do face unique-ly wrenching choices. The region has a history of depend-ence on Russian oil and natural gas. Economic ties deep-ened further after the global financial crisis of 2008-09pushed several countries to forge new economic dealswith Russia. When Western markets shrank, export-ori-ented countries like the Czech Republic turned to Russia,China and elsewhere for new opportunities.

Those who back the toughest stance toward Russiaare Poland, the three Baltic states and Romania - all coun-tries that fear for their own safety due to proximity toRussia and which, unlike their neighbors, are trying tolimit Russian influence at home. The large numbers ofethnic Russians in Estonia and Latvia - 25 and 30 percentof the populations respectively - add to Baltic anxieties.After the plane crash, Baltic leaders called for an interna-tional investigation and many politicians there quicklyblamed Moscow for its role as an alleged weapons sup-plier to the Ukrainian separatists. The disaster under-

scores “the need to put an end to the domineering ofseparatist armed groups backed by Russia,” EstonianPresident Toomas Hendrik Ilves said Friday.

Polish Foreign Minister Radek Sikorski said he wasconcerned about reports that the Ukrainians have cap-tured recordings of phone conversations that indicatethe pro-Russian separatists might be responsible forshooting down Malaysia Airlines Flight 17. “This is howthings end when you supply bandits with advancedweapons,” Sikorski said. His comments are consistent withPoland’s longstanding anxieties of Russia’s resurgence.

Since the crisis broke out in Ukraine this year, Polandhas been seeking more security protections from NATOand the United States, leaving Poles hugely relievedwhen Obama pledged to do more to protect the regionduring his visit to Warsaw last month. But the relief wasnot universal across the former Soviet bloc. Czech andSlovak leaders made clear they don’t see a need forincreased security and would not welcome NATO troops.

Prime Minister Robert Fico of Slovakia, like Poland a NATOmember, even likened “foreign troops” to the Soviet sol-diers who invaded Czechoslovakia in 1968.

Hungary and Bulgaria have been pursuing new dealsthat increase their energy dependence on Russia. Themost controversial is South Stream, a planned pipelineopposed by the EU that would bring Russian gas underthe Black Sea to Bulgaria, Hungary, Serbia and Austria.Bulgaria tapped a consortium headed by GennadyTimchenko, an oligarch close to the Kremlin who is onthe U.S. sanctions list, to build its part of the pipeline.

Bulgaria is probably the most pro-Russian country inthe region, with sympathies born of a Slavic brotherhoodrooted in past alliances. The current government and itssupporters include former communists, adding toWestern worries that some in the ruling circle could beworking secretly for Russia’s interests from within NATOand the 28-nation European Union. The shift towardRussia is more surprising in the Czech Republic. Only afew years ago it agreed to host a US missile defense site, aplan that sparked Moscow’s anger. Obama has sincedropped plans for the Czech site.

The left-wing Social Democrats, who opposed themissile defense plan all along, are now in power. In achange from the Vaclav Havel-era focus on human rights,Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka says it makes no senseto halt business with Russia because other countrieswould just take it over. He warns against creating “a newIron Curtain between the European Union and Russia.”“The Czechs feel safer than, say, the Baltic states sincethey are surrounded by NATO members and Austria,”Groszkowski said. “But they worry their economy couldworsen due to tensions between the EU and Russia.” InSlovakia, Fico, the prime minister, has repeatedly said hewants to remain “a reliable partner” for Russia, though healso vows the nation will meet its obligations as a NATOmember.Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has radi-cally changed his tone toward Moscow since he enteredthe political scene as a young revolutionary in 1989 witha fiery speech calling on Soviet troops to leave. Since tak-ing power in 2010, the 51-year-old has deepened hiscountry’s energy ties with Russia, Hungary’s biggest trad-ing partner outside the EU. —AP

Ukraine crisis shows divisions in old Soviet bloc

HRABOVE: Bags with victims’ bodies lie at the crash site of a Malaysia Airlines jet near the village ofHrabove, eastern Ukraine yesterday. — AP

ROME: Nineteen people died trying toreach Italy on a boat packed with hundredsof migrants, probably poisoned by carbonmonoxide fumes from its engines, said theItalian Navy yesterday, which has rescuedmore than 4,000 migrants in the last threedays. Eighteen bodies were found in thehold of the boat, said a navy spokesman,along with three very ill men who wererushed to the Italian island of Lampedusabut one died en route.

The two surviving men were taken byhelicopter to a hospital in the Sicilian capi-tal of Palermo, the spokesman said. He saidcarbon monoxide fumes produced by theboat’s engine likely caused the deaths. Asimilar incident last month killed 30. Italy isstruggling to keep up with the number ofmigrant boats this year, which mostlydepart from the coast of increasingly unsta-ble Libya, and is seeking more help fromthe EU in both the rescue mission and inhosting new arrivals.

The United Nations refugee agency(UNHCR) estimates that more than 500migrants have died in the Mediterraneanso far this year, compared to 700 duringthe whole of last year. AGI news agencyreported yesterday that as many as 40people could be missing after an incidenton Friday when a migrant boat capsizednear the Libyan coast. The Italian navycould not immediately confirm thereport. More than 70,000 migrants havebeen rescued by Italy’s “Mare Nostrum” or“Our Sea” mission in 2014, the spokesmansaid, surpassing the previous record ofjust over 60,000 for the whole of 2011,when the Arab Spring uprisings fuelledarrivals.

Calmer summer seas have prompted arecent upsurge in boats trying to reachItaly, where immigration centers are over-loaded. Interior Minister Angelino Alfanoyesterday said military bases might be tem-porarily used to house new arrivals. Italy’snavy has been patrolling the watersbetween Africa and Sicily since October,when 366 people drowned after their boatcapsized just a mile from the Italian coast.That tragedy focused international atten-

tion on the desperate risks taken by manymigrants, whose plight has been highlight-ed by human rights groups and PopeFrancis.

Sharing the burdenI taly has long attracted sea-borne

migrants from Africa, and most move onalmost immediately to other EU countries.Over the past year, most of the migrantshave been refugees fleeing Syria’s civilwar and Eritrea’s harsh military service,according to the UNHCR. Italy - along withSpain, Greece and Malta - have been left

mostly on their own to manage the grow-ing number of migrants, partly becauseincreasing anti-immigrant sentiment incountries like Britain and France makes itunpopular to help out. Alfano has beguntalks with EU Home Affairs CommissionerCecilia Malmstrom about sharing the bur-den of rescuing migrants in what shedescribed as a “scaled-down” version ofMare Nostrum earlier this month. “We aretaking important steps to make sure thatal l of Europe is present in theMediterranean, and not just Italy,” Alfanosaid yesterday. — Reuters

SALERNO: More than 2000 Immigrants disembark from Italian military ship ‘Etna’ yesterday in the port of Salerno, southern Italy, fol-lowing Mare Nostrum rescue operations at sea. — AFP

ADDIS ABABA: Complaining of bullying in the interna-tional justice arena, African leaders are forging aheadwith plans to set up their own regional court-and givethemselves immunity in the process. The African Union(AU) accuses the Hague-based International CriminalCourt (ICC) of anti-African bias and even racism, andplans for a home-grown mechanism are inflaming astand-off over who deals out justice on the continent.In a decision last month, AU leaders unanimouslyagreed to grant sitting heads of state and senior gov-ernment officials immunity from prosecution at theAfrican Court for Human and Peoples’ Rights, which isnot expected to get off the ground for several years.

“The African Union, as a regional organization,deserves the right to enact its own international law,”explained Vincent Nmehielle, AU director of legal affairs.For him, Africa’s relationship with ICC has become aDavid versus Goliath struggle, and he is fed up seeingAfrican nations singled out as the weakest link on theworld stage. “We know the skewed nature of interna-tional criminal justice, the powerful versus the weak,and justice is only such that serves the powerful andnot the weak,” he argued. The Hague-based ICC rulesthat no one is protected from prosecution, but manyAfrican leaders are quick to point out that all of the ICC’seight cases are against Africans.

Their initial enthusiasm for the tribunal-four of theICC’s cases were referred to it by African governments-isnow wearing thin. Among Africa’s 54 countries, 34 havesigned on to the ICC-but several leaders are now ques-tioning that commitment. The African court, which wasfirst established in 1998, will not necessarily replace theICC but could be used by countries that are not mem-bers of the international court. The ICC is pursuing,among others, Sudan’s Omar al-Bashir, indicted forcrimes against humanity in war-torn Darfur, and KenyanPresident Uhuru Kenyatta and his deputy, William Ruto,who are on trial for allegedly orchestrating post-elec-

tion violence in 2007-2008 that left at least 1,000 peo-ple dead.

Atter intense lobbying by Kenya, the AU requestedlast year for the cases against Kenyatta and Ruto to bedeferred on the grounds they were too busy withnational security issues, but this was rejected by theUnited Nations. “No action has been taken on Syria, SriLanka or the invasion of Iraq, yet African leaders are theones who have to get lawyers. What we’re dealing withhere isn’t justice, it’s bias,” fumed one senior Africandiplomat. “There’s absolutely no reason why Africashould put up with it. We managed to shake off colo-nialism, and we’ll shake this off too. The ICC is not serv-ing Africa, it’s punishing Africa, so we’re better off find-ing our own solutions.”

‘A step backwards’ But rights activists and supporters of international

justice say the move is disappointing, ignores the voiceof the victims and flies in the face of AU’s core principleof preventing and punishing gross human rights viola-tions such as genocide in Rwanda, mass rape in theDemocratic Republic of Congo and ethnic cleansing inthe Central African Republic.

“It’s clearly a step backwards. The constitutive act ofthe AU was about intervention in crimes againsthumanity and yet now you have a situation where aserving head of state might not be prosecuted,” saidAlex Vines of Britain’s Chatham House. He warned theimmunity clause could alienate international donorswho fund the bulk of the pan-African bloc’s peace andsecurity budget. “Donors will be thinking through whatthis decision actually means in terms of their partner-ships with the African Union,” he said. Jemima Kariri,senior researcher at South Africa’s Institute for SecurityStudies, said the decision to grant immunity-whichmust be green lit by 15 AU member states to come intoeffect-could also undermine democracy. —AFP

Italy rescues 4,000 migrants; 19 killed Calm summer seas prompt surge in crossings

AU hits back at ‘skewed’ justice with Africa court

SAN PEDRO SULA: More than 40 Central Americanchildren were expelled from the United States onflights to Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador onFriday, as the US government stepped up its deporta-tion of illegal child migrants. Tens of thousands ofunaccompanied minors from the three violence-torncountries have been caught crossing the border thisyear, stretching US border facilities and sparking fiercepolitical debate about how to address the problem.

Thirty-three minors aged 6 months to 15 yearsalong with 26 mothers landed on a US flight to SanPedro Sula, Honduras, the city with the world’s highestmurder rate. There, the first lady of the country, AnaGarcia de Hernandez, met them and immediatelyexpressed concern. “Many of these (mothers) took outbig loans, so how are they going to pay them now?”Garcia said. Friday’s flights were the second lot after aninitial group of deported children and women arrivedin Honduras on Monday.

One of the women on the Honduran flight, 26-year-old Keli Orellana, said she was exhausted after spend-ing eight days in a US detention center with her 6-month-old baby son Iker Perez. Returning to Honduras

nearly $5,000 in debt to the guide or “coyote” whosmuggled her to the border, Orellana urged USPresident Barack Obama to give the migrants a chance.“He should let us stay because we’re only going towork,” she said. Migrants from Central America havefled rampant crime and brutal gangs in growing num-bers since last October. Many have to pay smugglerswith borrowed money in their bid to sneak illegallyacross the US border with Mexico.

Five girls aged 7 to 16, two boys of 2 and 14 and fivemothers were returned from New Mexico toGuatemala City along with other adults, the USembassy in Guatemala said. Afterward, the flight tookthree boys aged 4 to 14, a girl of 9 and four mothers toSan Salvador along with 22 other women, according toUS officials in Guatemala and El Salvador. This week’sdeportations come after US President Barack Obamapledged to speed up the process of sending back ille-gal immigrants from Central America. Obama will meetwith the leaders of Honduras, Guatemala and ElSalvador at the White House next week to discusscooperation on the influx of child migrants, administra-tion officials in Washington said on Friday.—Reuters

SAN PEDRO SULA: A girl, deported from the United States, walks to board a bus that will take her to theCenter for Migrants Returned, upon her arrival at the airport in San Pedro Sula, Honduras on Friday, July18, 2014. — AP

US deports over 40 child migrants

WASHINGTON: The United States hasbadly underestimated the level of angerin Germany over its spying operations andthe damage could be long-lasting ifWashington fails to ease off, former USofficials said Wednesday. Germany’s dra-matic decision last week to throw out theCIA station chief in Berl in took theAmericans by surprise and conveyed adeep frustration with Washington, whichhas mounted for months since revelationsof US eavesdropping on ChancellorAngela Merkel ’s mobile phone. “ I t ’sunprecedented. And it’s an unmistakablesignal about unhappiness in the Germangovernment,” said James Lewis, a formerUS intelligence official. The shock moveto expel the most senior US intelligenceofficer in Berlin came after authoritiescaught the Americans running twoalleged double agents employed in gov-ernment offices, a revelation that repre-sented a last straw for Berlin.

The Germans have a valid complaint tosay “this is too much, you’ve gone too far,you need to back off,” said Lewis, a seniorfellow at the Center for Strategic andInternational Studies. The alleged spying

raised questions about whether the WhiteHouse was keeping a close eye on what itsintelligence agencies were up to inside anallied country, and whether it was worththe political cost, experts said. In oneinstance, the Americans allegedly paidmoney to a low-level agent in the BND for-eign intelligence service to pass on docu-ments from a parliamentary committee’sprobe into ex-intelligence contractorEdward Snowden’s allegations of USsnooping in Germany.

To jeopardize ties with Germany forinformation that could be obtained with-out spying suggested a bureaucracy onauto-pilot, said a former Western diplomat.“It’s stupidity beyond belief,” the ex-diplo-mat said. President Barack Obama’sdeputies needed to be reviewing any espi-onage in Germany with “a very high level ofscrutiny,” said Kori Schake, who worked onthe National Security Council under formerpresident George W Bush. “People need tobe making a very careful risk analysis. And Ithink at least the German governmentdoesn’t believe we are,” said Schake, a fel-low at Stanford University ’s HooverInstitution.—AFP

After Germany expels CIA chief, will spies back off?

I N T E R N AT ION A LSUNDAY, JULY 20, 2014

KABUL: As flying over conflict zones comes underscrutiny following the downing of MalaysianAirlines Flight MH17 in Ukraine, Afghanistan, one ofthe world’s most dangerous places, is worried air-lines might once again opt to avoid its airspace.

Afraid of being shot down, some airlines havedecided to circumnavigate the area where pro-Russian rebels are fighting Ukrainian force after thecrash, raising concern that companies could followsuit in other conflict zones such as Afghanistan.

The Taliban, equipped mainly with smallweapons and rocket-propelled grenades, do nothave the military capacity to down aircraft at cruis-ing altitude. But the militants frequently fire short-range rockets in attack on airports - the main worryfor commercial airlines flying in to the country.

“The security situation at Kabul airport is bad,”said Hikmatullah Qwanch, a spokesman for theMinistry of Transportation and Aviation.

“If there are more attacks on the airports andAfghanistan’s sky is not safe, then it will soon affectoperations.” On Thursday, militants attacked Kabul

airport just after dawn, engaging in a protractedgun-battle with security forces before being sur-rounded and killed by Afghan troops.

The incident prompted India’s SpiceJet to cancelflights to Afghanistan, the ministry said, addinghowever that the suspension was not related to theevents in Ukraine.

The downing of the Malaysian jetliner in an east-ern Ukrainian region may have little relevance tothe current situation in Afghanistan but it has cer-tainly added to a sense of nervousness amongglobal airlines.

“Bad security of the Kabul International Airportresulted in SpiceJet cancelling flights toAfghanistan on Friday and there are rumours thatTurkish Airlines, FlyDubai and Emirates also want tosuspend their flights to Afghanistan until the securi-ty situation gets better,” said Hikmatullah.

A Turkish Airlines official said for now there wereno such plans. An Emirates official said all flightswere operating normally.

“If the situation gets worse or attacks on Kabul

airport become routine then we will stop our flightsto Kabul,” the Emirates official told Reuters on con-dition of anonymity.

No foreign airlines dared flying to or overAfghanistan at the height of the war against Talibaninsurgents following the 2001 US-led invasion butin recent years business has boomed, with more air-lines opening routes to the capital, Kabul, andnumerous airliners crossing over the country everyday.

But security is deteriorating. Galvanized by theexpected withdrawal of foreign forces this year,insurgents have been particularly active, attackingKabul airport twice in just over a year and firingrockets at its facilities almost weekly. The Talebanwere not immediately available for comment.

Strategic LocationWith its strategic location between the Indian

subcontinent and Central Asia, Afghanistan is hardto avoid for airlines flying between Asia and Europe,and its airspace is crucial for global route planning.

NATO-led troops, known as the InternationalSecurity Assistance Force, are for now responsiblefor advising Afghanistan on the safety of its skies.

But once foreign forces leave at the end of theyear, the responsibility will fall on Afghan air trafficcontrollers - another concern for foreign airlinesmulling the future of their business in, and over,Afghanistan.

The NATO-led force, however, is optimistic in itsassessment of Afghanistan’s airspace safety.

“Recent events in Ukraine have no relevance ordirect correlation with the current situation inAfghanistan. The Taleban does not have an air force,nor do they possess a sophisticated air defencecapability,” USAF told Reuters in an email.

“(Afghan forces are) capable of ensuring thesecurity of the skies over their country. In particu-lar, the Afghan Air Force has improved signifi-cantly over the last year and is now offering theANSI (Afghan forces) support in many areaswhere they were previously entirely coalitiondependent.” — Reuters

Afghanistan worried about safety of its airspace after Ukraine crash

BANGALORE: Thousands of demonstratorsmarched yesterday to demand arrests in thecase of a six-year-old girl allegedly raped in aschool in the southern Indian city of Bangalore.

Two staff members at the private school areaccused of the rape on July 2, the latest in astring of sexual attacks that have stirred nation-al outrage in India. Parents accused schoolauthorities of trying to shield suspects and“hush up the criminal act”.

“The school management is trying to pro-tect the accused as it failed to register a casewhen the (child) told her class teacher,” NandishReddy, a parent, told AFP. “We have submitted amemorandum to the city police commissioner(Raghavendra Auradkar) seeking the arrest ofthe culprits,” Reddy said.

The school, which cannot be named for legalreasons, has assured police of “full cooperation”.The protesters included parents from variousschools around the high-tech city, including theone attended by the victim.

The demonstrators marched from theschool where the rape allegedly happened tothe police station in charge of the investiga-tion. The police commissioner appealed to thedemonstrators to “have patience and bearwith us”.

“I request you to have faith in us. We aregoing to take action against the accused,”Auradkar told the crowd. Police have been“working 24x7 over the last four days to investi-gate the case”, he said.

Indian authorities have become far morealert to sexual crimes since the 2012 brutalgang-rape and murder of a student in thenational capital New Delhi.

Meanwhile, rights group AmnestyInternational said Indian schools must frame“clear policies” to prevent sexual violenceagainst children.

“Schools must institute mechanisms that

enable concrete pre-emptive steps to preventsuch acts of violence, including by carrying outsensitisation and training programmes,” saidTara Rao, director of Amnesty InternationalIndia.

India’s new prime minister, Narendra Modi,has promised “zero tolerance” toward crimesagainst women while parliament has tough-ened anti-rape laws to include the death penal-ty for some offences.

But violence against women is deeplyengrained in some segments of Indian society,activists say, while government crime statisticsshow one rape is reported in the country of 1.2billion people every 21 minutes.

In May, two teenaged girls were allegedlygang-raped and their bodies were found hang-ing from a tree the next day in a rural part ofthe sprawling northern Indian state of UttarPradesh. — AFP

Indian protesters demand arrests in child rape case

BANGALORE: A child holds a placard during a protest against alleged police inaction after asix-year-old was raped at a school, in Bangalore, India, yesterday. More than 4,000 parents andrelatives of children who attend the school shouted slogans against the school’s administra-tion yesterday and demanded that police arrest those involved in the July 2 incident, whichwas reported only this past week. — AP

KABUL: This May 25, 2014, file photo shows President Barack Obama as he is briefed by Marine General JosephDunford, commander of the US-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), right, after arriving at BagramAir Field for an unannounced visit north of Kabul, Afghanistan. — AP

BANNU: A US drone strike in volatilenorthwestern Pakistan killed 11 mili-tants yesterday, a Taleban commanderand security officials said, as Pakistanisecurity forces press ahead with anoffensive in a Taleban stronghold nearthe Afghan border.

Two missiles slammed into a housein the village of Doga Madakhel of theDatta Khel area in the border region ofNorth Waziristan, intelligence officialssaid. A Taleban commander toldReuters members of the PunjabiTaleban and Uzbek fighters were killed.

Drone strikes in Pakistan resumed inJune after a hiatus of six months, dur-ing which the Pakistani governmentpursued peace talks with the Taleban.Pakistan announced an anti-Talibanoffensive in North Waziristan withindays of the resumption.

The United States has long urgedPakistan to crack down on the Talebanstronghold in remote, mountainousNorth Waziristan. The Taleban use theregion to prepare bombs, hold kidnapvictims, stage public executions, andas a launching pad for attacks onAfghan and NATO troops across theborder.

The military ordered the entire civil-ian population of North Waziristan toleave before launching the groundoffensive but residents said most ofthe militants also moved out.

Many have likely gone into hiding inAfghanistan or elsewhere in Pakistan,including thickly forested valleys fur-

ther south. The Pakistani militaryinsists the offensive is aimed at all mili-tant groups, breaking a long traditionof tolerating those that did not targetthe Pakistani state.

However, no one has been reportedkilled from the Haqqani network, aninsurgent group that U.S. officials say isclose to Pakistani intelligence andresponsible for some of the deadliestattacks in Afghanistan.

US lawmakers have said Pakistanwill have to prove it is cracking downon the Haqqanis or have $300 millionsliced off its military aid package. OnThursday, US Marine General JosephDunford, commander of the NATO-ledforce in Afghanistan, told the USCongress the operation had disruptedbut not destroyed the Haqqani net-work.

Datta Khel is controlled by Hafiz GulBahadur, a Taleban commander who isconsidered friendly to Pakistani forcesbut supports attacks in Afghanistan.He announced a ceasefire againstPakistani troops after they said theywould clear North Waziristan ofTaleban fighters.

One tribal elder from the area saidthat may be why drone strikes, notPakistani troops, were being usedthere. Before yesterday’s attack, theBureau of Investigative Journalism,which tracks drone strikes using mediareports, said at least 35 people hadbeen killed in drone strikes in Pakistansince they restarted in June. — Reuters

Drone strike kills 11 militants in Pakistan

SRINAGAR: Police shot dead a teenage boy yesterday inrestive Indian Kashmir during a protest against Israel’smilitary offensive against Gaza, officials said.

The youngster’s death marked the first fatality in astring of demonstrations across the Himalayan territorythat have been staged against the Israeli military cam-paign.

The boy, a ninth-class student, was killed in the villageof Khudwani, 60 kilometres (40 miles) south of Srinagar,the main city of the disputed Muslim-majority region ofKashmir.

“The boy died in (police) firing on anti-Israel protest-ers who were also angry about injuries suffered by otherprotesters during earlier demonstrations,” a senior policeofficer told AFP.

A police statement called the killing “unfortunate”. Local residents said it was believed that the boy was

hit by a bullet while sitting in a shop and was not part ofthe protest but police could not immediately confirmthis. The Kashmiri boy’s death came as Israeli air strikesand shelling killed more than 25 people across Gaza onSaturday, among them children, raising the toll in 12days of violence to 337, according to medics in Gaza City.

The Indian police officer said the Kashmri youngster,identified as Suhail Ahmad Lone, was believed to bearound 14 or 15. The police officer asked for anonymity

as he was not authorised to speak to the media.Dozens of protesters have been injured in the protests

against the Israeli mil itar y campaign in Gaza. Theprotests have been occurring on an almost daily basis inthe Kashmir valley which has been at the centre of aquarter-century revolt against Indian rule.

The demonstrators, some holding placards with “SaveGaza” written on them, chanted “Down with Israel”,“Down with America” and hurled stones at governmentforces.

Indian government forces are seeking to prevent theprotests from spreading in the volatile region. OnThursday, the Kashmir valley was mostly shut in responseto a call by separatist leaders to protest against the Israelimilitary campaign.

About a dozen rebel groups have been fighting Indianforces since 1989 for independence or merger of Kashmirwith Pakistan, which also claims the territory.

The fighting, and India’s tense relations with nuclear-armed rival Pakistan, have made Kashmir one of the mostmilitarised zones in the world and has left tens of thou-sands, mostly civilians dead.

Israel has long been a key arms supplier to the Indiangovernment. Israel’s relations with Hindu-majority Indiahave long been viewed with suspicion and hostility bythe South Asian nation’s large Muslim minority. — AFP

Indian police kill Kashmiri teenager in anti-Israel protest

I N T E R N AT ION A LSUNDAY, JULY 20, 2014

KUALA LUMPUR: Less than five monthsago, they had rushed to Kuala LumpurInternational Airport - anxious relativeswith a hope in their hearts, howeverfaint, that a missing jumbo jet with theirloved ones had not crashed, and wouldeventually be found.

This week, throngs of relatives cameagain with no hope, just a chilling cer-tainty that everyone on board anotherMalaysia Airlines had perished.Theyshed tears, sobbed and looked for com-fort to ease the all-too-familiar pain ofloss that’s visited a nation dealing withthe second air disaster this year.

But the crash of Malaysia AirlinesFlight 17 that was downed over rebel-controlled eastern Ukraine is playing outin starkly different mood compared tothe anguish surrounding Flight 370 thatdisappeared March 8.

Chaos and Anger Of MH370In March, it took about four hours for

Malaysia Airlines to announce that theBoeing 777 was missing while travelingfrom Kuala Lumpur to Beijing with 239people on board.

The airport was soon overwhelmedwith angry relatives screaming and beg-ging for answers and holding out hopethat the plane had landed somewhere ortheir loved ones were still alive.

But the answers would not come. Notthat day, and for many, not up until now.

Most of the passengers were fromChina, and the first batch of kin hadarrived from Beijing on the third day ofwhat has become the biggest aviationmystery in the world. Investigatorsannounced that the plane had vanishedfrom radar screens, flying for hours tothe southern Indian Ocean where it waslast traced by satellite pings.

That did little to calm the relatives,some of whom accused the Malaysiangovernment of conspiracy, hiding thetruth and ineptitude.

People were shouting. Crying hysteri-cally. Pointing fingers at officials only tobe met with blank stares.

Disorganized OfficialsIt took several days before the first

news conference was organized toaddress the mystery of Flight 370.Several false leads followed, each punc-tured by high expectations then disap-pointment that turned into more angerand frustration.

The Chinese relatives were escortedto an airport hotel. Then transferred toanother. They were finally asked to leaveand wait for news at home.

Briefings by Malaysian officials weregetting uglier by day. The Chinese fami-lies were storming out, accusing officialsof not sharing relevant information.

Malaysian families, too, complainedthe briefings were useless and werebeing told what’s already been reportedin the news.

A Chinese mother, crying “My son! Myson!” stormed a news conference byMalaysian Prime Minister Najib Razakafter he solemnly read a statement thatthe plane had “ended in the southernIndian Ocean.” She and others were notready to close the book without evi-dence of wreckage.

MH17:This Friday, and the airport was

receiving crying relatives again.This time, they knew the outcome of

the disaster. The wreckage of the Boeing777 was found, scattered over aUkrainian field after a suspected missileshot it down. Most of the casualties wereDutch with 44 Malaysians, including 15crew and two infants.

No one is wailing. No one is making ascene. There is no hope of anyone beingfound alive. Counseling is set up imme-diately. The government addresses astunned nation and the world without

hours, at 4 am. The relatives are briefedby a government minister. There is nostorming out of the meeting.

The Malaysian government is not tak-ing the blame. It falls on those responsi-ble for shooting down the aircraft.

Relatives’ AdviceA social media account run by fami-

lies of Flight 370 passengers posted 10tips for relatives of those on Flight 17.

The tips include warnings to refrainfrom immediately contracting lawyersseeking business and to speak carefullyto the media. It also advised the relativesto stick together and support each oth-er. “The most important thing is to staywith family members and friends, andwith the relatives of

other passengers,” said the messageon Chinese social network WeChat.“Doing that will bring you comfort, andwe hope you’ll suffer less than did thefamily members of 370.” —AP

Unlike first, Malaysia’s second disaster brings closure

PHNOM PENH: Sam Rainsy, leader of the opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP), waves his party’s flag atop a vehicle upon his arrivalat Phnom Penh International Airport in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, yesterday. Thousands of cheering supporters greeted Sam Rainsy on his returnfrom a trip abroad, at a time when political tensions are high because of the arrests of eight of his party colleagues. — AP

Cambodian oppn leaderreturns amid tension

‘I hope that there will be new talks’

SYDNEY: Prime Minister Tony Abbott yes-terday said Russia could not “wash itshands of responsibility” for the MalaysiaAirlines crash in Ukraine as flags flew athalf-mast to honour the Australians killed.

The airliner carrying 298 people, includ-ing 28 Australians, came down over rebel-held eastern Ukraine on Thursday, with USofficials saying it appeared to have beenshot down by a surface-to-air missile.

Abbott said Friday the disaster was acrime, not an accident, and slammedRussia’s initial response as “deeply unsatis-factory” after calling in Moscow’s ambassa-dor.

He defended his comments about sus-pected Russian involvement on Saturday as“very much in line” with a statement by USPresident Barack Obama. Abbott said allthe evidence at hand suggested the aircraftwas shot down from territory controlled byRussian-backed separatists, most likely withweaponry supplied by the Russians.

“Australia takes a very dim view of coun-tries which facilitate the kill ing ofAustralians, as you’d expect,” he said inSydney, adding that he had spoken toUkrainian President Petro Poroshenko butnot Russian leader Vladimir Putin.

“The idea that Russia can wash its handsof responsibility because this happened inUkrainian airspace just does not stand seri-ous scrutiny.”

Foreign Minister Julie Bishop told theAustralian Broadcasting Corporation thather Russian counterparts had refused tospeak with her over the crash, somethingshe said was “extraordinary”.

She said she initially tried to touch basewith Russian Foreign Minister SergeiLavrov, but was told he was on holiday. “Ithen asked to speak to a deputy or a viceminister but I’ve now been told that I won’tbe able to speak to anybody in the ministryof foreign affairs in Moscow,” she said.

Full, independent investigation Members of the UN Security Council on

Friday demanded a full, independent inves-tigation into the crash and Bishop urgedRussia to back a swift probe. “We need animmediate, urgent, international investiga-tion,” she said. Bishop was leaving for NewYork later Saturday to champion Australia’scampaign at the UN for a comprehensiveinternational probe with access to the site,debris, black box and any possible witness-es.

Abbott ordered flags to flown at half-mast across the country in tribute to thosewho died as family and friends of theAustralian victims struggled to come toterms with the tragedy.

One Australian family has been hit par-ticularly hard with relatives not only dyingin the crash over Ukraine but also theMalaysia Airlines MH370 disaster earlier thisyear.

Maree and Albert Rizk, who were return-ing to Melbourne after a month-long holi-day in Europe, were killed Thursday whenMH17 went down. Maree’s father is marriedto a member of a Queensland family whichlost husband and wife Rodney and MaryBurrows on MH370 when it disappeared enroute from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing onMarch 8, Rodney’s brother Greg Burrowstold AFP.

Burrows said he did not want to make astatement on behalf of the Rizk family, butsaid: “We’ve got no ill feelings with MalaysiaAirlines.” Another victim was much-lovedSydney nun Sister Philomene Tiernan, withabout 200 people gathering on a coldSydney morning to pay tribute to herSaturday.

“I can’t tell you how much she’ll bemissed,” her friend Hilary Johnston-Croketold reporters of the woman who wasreturning from a sabbatical in France. “She’sjust so loved by our community.” — AFP

PHNOM PENH: Thousands of cheering support-ers yesterday greeted Cambodian oppositionleader Sam Rainsy on his return from a tripabroad, at a time when political tensions arehigh because of the arrests of eight of his partycolleagues.

His return came less than a week ahead of theanniversary of last year’s contentious July 28election, which his Cambodia National RescueParty claims was rigged. Its lawmakers have boy-cotted their seats in the National Assembly andare demanding reforms and new elections.

While the opposition leader’s return and theupcoming anniversary add volatility to the situa-tion, Sam Rainsy said he expected to negotiatewith Prime Minister Hun Sen to resolve their dif-ferences.

Tensions over the yearlong political deadlockwere ramped up this past week when seven law-makers and another party activist were arrestedafter violence broke out when party memberssought to stage a demonstration at a parkauthorities had closed to them. The lawmakerswere charged with insurrection and other

offenses, which could see them jailed for up to30 years.

“I hope that there will be new talks,” SamRainsy told reporters upon his arrival at the air-port. “I hope that there will be resolution - a solu-tion that ends the (political) stalemate.” Both theopposition party and Hun Sen said in April thatthey were close to settling the deadlock, but nodeal was made at the time. While there has beenno public sign of detente between the two sides,Hun Sen announced later that he would accedeto one of the opposition demands, and allowthem to operate a television station.

Initially on Saturday, the possibility of a freshstreet confrontation loomed, as Sam Rainsy saidat the airport that he would head to the area ofTuesday’s confrontation, Freedom Park. He saidhe wants the venue reopened as soon as possi-ble so that people could exercise freedom ofexpression.

But in an evident change of plan, his motor-cade - after stopping briefly outside the maingovernment complex - went to party headquar-ters instead of the park, where riot police were

deployed. Hun Sen has been in power for almostthree decades, and while Cambodia is formallydemocratic, his government is authoritarian andknown for intimidating opponents. Sam Rainsyis his most enduring opponent, and his party’sstrong showing in last year’s polls - even accord-ing to the disputed official results - posed thestrongest challenge to Hun Sen in many years.

The latest arrests drew criticism from humanrights groups and Western governments. Theviolence was unleashed Tuesday when localsecurity guards used by authorities to break upprotests began attacking the demonstrators,who fought back. The government claimed thatat least 38 security personnel were injured.

Sam Rainsy said yesterday that he would seekhis colleagues’ release. Demonstrations in thecapital were banned in January and FreedomPark sealed off after a wave of vociferousprotests.

The EU and the U.S. State Department bothcalled for the opposition officials to be releasedand for Cambodia to lift its ban on demonstra-tions. —AP

Flags at half-mast as Moscow snubs Australia

SYDNEY: Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott (L) speaks alongside foreign minis-ter Julie Bishop at a press conference in Sydney yesterday. Abbott said Russia couldnot “wash its hands of responsibility” for the Malaysia Airlines crash in Ukraine asflags flew at half-mast to honour the Australians killed. — AFP

YANGON: Myanmar’s opposition has gatheredmillions of signatures in support of changes to aconstitution that bars its leader Aung San SuuKyi from becoming president, in a show of politi-cal strength ahead of elections next year.

Suu Kyi has travelled the country drawingcrowds of thousands with speeches urging themilitary to accept a reduced political role, as herparty of democracy veterans touts its moralauthority in the former army-run nation.

The petition, which was launched in May, hadgathered around three million signatures by ear-ly July. “In a democratic country the people’s willis important. That is why this is important,” NyanWin, a spokesman for Suu Kyi’s National Leaguefor Democracy (NLD) party, told AFP.

The campaign, which ends Saturday, isfocused on altering a provision that currentlyensures the military has a veto on any amend-ment to the junta-era charter. To alter the consti-tution there needs to be support from a majorityof over 75 percent of parliament.

Unelected soldiers, who make up a quarter ofthe legislature, therefore have the last say onchanges to the char ter. Nyan Win said heexpects the clause to be altered during the cur-rent sitting of parliament, which ends later thismonth, and that this would enable fur therchanges.

“It is the main door. If it opens, you’ll seeeverything,” he said. While the campaign hasgenerated headlines, experts say it is unclearwhat effect it will have.

A member of the constitution amendmentcommittee, which like parliament is dominatedby the military and ruling army-backed party,said the petition would make no difference to itsdeliberations.

He said the 31-member group will release itsfirst recommendations in the coming days, butthat these are only based on suggest ionsreceived before a December deadline.

“They should have done this earlier,” he toldAFP on condition of anonymity because mem-

bers have been directed not to reveal their delib-erations.

Born to rule? It is believed the committee has already decid-

ed not to recommend a change to the controver-sial provision that currently bars Suu Kyi frombecoming president. Myanmar’s 2008 charterblocks anyone whose spouse or children are over-seas citizens from leading the country-a clausewidely believed to be targeted at the Nobel laure-ate, whose two sons are British. —AFP

Millions back Suu Kyi call for Myanmar charter change

YANGON: Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi offers flowers at the tomb of her latefather, and Myanmar’s Independence hero Gen. Aung San during a ceremony to mark the 67thanniversary of his 1947 assassination, at the Martyrs’ Mausoleum in Yangon, Myanmar yester-day. — AP

MANILA: The disaster-weary Philippinesbraced for a second severe storm in fivedays yesterday as the death toll fromTyphoon Rammasun surged to 77, officialssaid.

While Tropical Storm Matmo was notforecast to hit the main island of Luzon, theweather service warned it would still bringheavy rains to the area over the weekend,along with the threat of flash floods orlandslides.

“(Matmo) has entered the Philippinearea of responsibility. We should get readynow before the heavy rains fall,” PresidentBenigno Aquino’s spokeswoman AbigailValte said in a warning broadcast over gov-ernment radio.

The threat from Matmo came as thecountry picked up the pieces fromRammasun, the first major storm of the wetseason and the deadliest since SuperTyphoon Haiyan killed about 7,300 peoplein November last year.

Rammasun sliced across the country’seconomic heartland including Manila onTuesday, killing 77 people and wreckingmore than 111,000 homes, the NationalDisaster Risk Reduction and ManagementCouncil said in an updated tally.

The death toll had stood at 54 dead aday earlier, before casualty reports fromremote areas came in.

Power was restored to most of Manila, a

sprawling metropolis of more than 12 mil-lion people, overnight Friday, according tothe regional utility Manila Electric Co.

However, it warned that power cuts ofup to five hours a day would continueacross the capital as it rations limited sup-ply, with a number of generating plants stillcut off from the grid.

The government said it would take afew more days to repair thousands of pow-er pylons and downed transmission linesacross the industrial provinces south ofManila and the impoverished Bicol agricul-tural region to the southeast.

Matmo was about 600 kilometres (380)miles off the eastern island of Samar onSaturday morning with maximum gusts ofup to 90 kilometres an hour, the stateweather service said.

It was forecast to head northeast, skirt-ing Luzon before hitting the sparsely popu-lated Batan island group between Luzonand Taiwan early Tuesday. The Philippinesendures about 20 cyclones each year.

Rammasun was meanwhile lashingsouthern China’s Guangxi region borderingVietnam yesterday with maximum sus-tained winds of 155 kilometres an hour,according to the Hong Kong Observatory.

It is forecast to weaken into a tropicalstorm on Sunday and dissolve into a low-pressure area on Monday as it tracks theChina-Vietnam border. — AFP

Philippines typhoon toll soars, new storm threatens


BEIJING: At least 38 people were killed when avan carrying inflammable liquid hit a bus on ahighway in central China early yesterday, statemedia reported.

The collision in Hunan province triggered afire and explosion which destroyed five vehicles,the Xinhua news agency said. Another five peo-ple were injured in the accident, which occurredat around 3:00 am, Xinhua said, citing police.

The fire was finally put out by about 8:00 am.The double-decker long-distance bus, withcapacity for 53 occupants, was travelling

between the eastern coastal province of Fujianand Guizhou in the southwest when the crashoccurred.

Senior work safety and transport ministryofficials and police were heading to the site toinvestigate, Xinhua said.

Fatal road accidents are a serious problem inChina, where the highway network and numberof new drivers are expanding rapidly while trafficlaws and safety are widely flouted.

At least 42 people were killed when fireengulfed a bus during rush hour in the city of

Xiamen, Fujian, in June last year. In August 2012,at least 36 people died when a double-deckersleeper bus slammed into the rear of a methanoltanker and burst into flames in northern China.

The ministry of transport says the number ofroad deaths in China fell from 104,000 in 2003 to60,000 in 2012, or from about 300 fatalities a dayto less than 200.

A study published in 2011 by a group ofChinese and US researchers concluded, however,that the number of deadly accidents was twotimes higher than the police claimed. —AFP

VU HOI: When his wife moved to Taiwan nineyears ago to work as a maid - earning farmore than she could in the rice paddies ofthis northern Vietnamese hamlet - Pham DucViet took over the household chores andraised their two children on top of his regularwork as a farmer and carpenter. Now, thedouble duty is second nature for Viet, 48, as itwith many male neighbors. Hundreds ofwomen have left the village of Vu Hoi, 120kilometers south of Hanoi, to take better-pay-ing jobs in Taiwan, Japan and South Koreaand send money home, part of a wider migra-tion of female labor from Vietnam over thepast 15 years.

“Not a big deal,” Viet said of the extrachores. “I’m willing to sacrifice so that my kidscan have a better life.” His wife’s earnings arecovering university tuition for their two chil-dren and paid for a furniture workshop nextto their house. As more women leave thecountry, Vietnam is following a trend seen inother Asian nations such as Indonesia, thePhilippines and Sri Lanka, where womenmake up at least two-thirds of workers wholeave the country. Vietnamese womenaccounted for about a third of migrant work-ers in 2011, according to the United Nations.

Working as maids or nurses overseas,women can often earn more than men doingmanual labor such as construction or farming.The trend has left behind legions of whatexperts call “father-carers,” many of them incountries with previously well-defined gen-der roles regarding housework and child-rear-ing. The changes have contributed to somesocial problems in Vietnam, and domesticmedia reports have portrayed Vu Hoi as a vil-lage where many “left-behind” fathers haveturned to drugs, alcohol and prostitutes.

Fathers interviewed in the village and innearby Vu Tien said that while that may betrue in some cases, the reports were exagger-ated. Most men were willing to take on theadditional work to support their families.Preparing meals was a challenge, some said,but never an insurmountable one. “In a farm-ing family like ours, dinners are pretty simpleanyway,” said Vu Duc Hang, whose two chil-

dren helped with the cleaning and cookingwhen they were at home. Now they too havebeen able to attend college. There are fewcomprehensive studies on father-carers, andscholars say the social and psychologicaleffects of female labor migration on Asiansocieties are still far from clear.

Some migration studies of SoutheastAsian communities have found that femalerelatives typically took over child-rearingresponsibilities when mothers left for jobsabroad. But a 2008 survey that tracked about1,100 migrant-mother households in Vietnamand Indonesia reported that more than two-thirds of primary caregivers were fathers - asharp contrast to earlier findings in thePhilippines and Sri Lanka, where as few as aquarter of dads played a similar role. Relatedresearch on households in Vietnam,Indonesia, Thailand and the Philippines foundthat Vietnam was the only country in whichgrandfathers - especially paternal ones - oftenplayed a key role in household decisions.

While there were some cases of adultery,divorce and drug abuse, the Vietnam surveyresults in particular appeared to challengethe notion that female labor migration leadsto broken families, said Lan Anh Hoang, a lec-turer in development studies at the Universityof Melbourne who conducted interviews inseveral Vietnamese villages for the survey. VuHoi and Vu Tien were part of the Vietnamsample, which covered the northernprovinces of Thai Binh and Hai Duong.

Vietnamese men in rural areas “actuallydon’t mind doing household chores,” Hoangsaid. “They have always been involved indomestic work, so it’s not a big issue now thattheir wives are away.” One possible explana-tion is that the country’s communist govern-ment has long promoted gender equality, shesaid. A Vu Hoi village official, Pham NgocThuy, agreed. “Of course there are positiveand negative aspects of labor migration, butthe media always focuses on the negativeones,” he said. “In Vietnam we pride ourselveson gender equality, and when women goabroad, most men are willing to pitch inaround the house.”—AFP

38 killed in fiery

China road accident

HUNAN: Policemen and people examine the scene of a burnt-out bus and trucks after an explosion following a traffic accident on the express-way in Longhui county in south China’s Hunan province yesterday. — AP

As Vietnam’s women go

abroad, dads tend the home

Dr James J Zogby

Ican only imagine the horror in Gaza today as Israel intensi-fies its assault of that overcrowded, impoverished strip. Itis a continuing nightmare story of pain and loss, of trauma

and devastation. The heartbreaking numbers by themselvestell part of the story- with hundreds killed, thousandswounded, tens of thousands without homes, and now600,000 without water. But the story of Gaza is more thanthese numbers and this current assault.

Even in earlier times, Gaza could be a nightmare. In theearly 1990’s I spent time in Jabalia- a sprawling refugee campthat is home to more than 80,000. During 25 years of Israelioccupation, nothing had been done to improve the infra-structure of the camp. The roads were unpaved, sewage raninto puddles in the streets and flowed directly into the sea,leaving the beaches polluted. The defining characteristic ofthe place was grinding poverty. In 1994, the then Secretary ofCommerce, Ron Brown, visited Gaza after completing a tourof South Africa. Upon his return, he told an audience thatwhat he saw in Jabalia was worse than Soweto.

During the years of direct occupation, Israel treated Gazaas one might a prison camp. Palestinians were seen as noth-ing more than cheap labor, with restricted rights and severeconstraints on their movements. When they resisted, theresults were horrifying brutality. During this period, thou-sands of homes were destroyed, hundreds were illegallydeported, prisoners were tortured, and daily life was filledwith fear of the occupier.

During the occupation, Jewish-only settlements built inthe heart of Gaza had access to land and water that wasdenied to Palestinians, as was access to some of theMediterranean’s loveliest beaches. I will never forget the pic-tures after Oslo of the joy on the faces of young Palestiniansfrolicking for the first time on these once forbidden beaches.

From 1967 to 1994, Israel had de-developed the WestBank and Gaza making the economies of both territorieslargely dependent on Israeli imports, exports, and employ-ment. As a result, the single largest source of wealth forPalestinians in Gaza was day labor work in Israel. These werelow-paying jobs in construction, agriculture, and service- butsince Israel did not allow an independent Palestinian econo-my to develop, they provided the only means of support forhundreds of thousands of people.

If the work was demeaning, getting to work proved to bean even more humiliating experience. Because Israeli lawprohibited Palestinians from spending the night in Israel,prospective laborers had to gather near the border eachmorning by 6:00 a.m. to see if they would be selected. Onceselected, they went through security. I visited the cattle chutesecurity screening structures erected at the border andwatched an unbelievable scene unfold before me asPalestinians were herded through the chutes holding theirID’s over their heads as young armed Israeli soldiers straddledthe chutes above them shouting at Palestinian men to holdtheir papers higher and “don’t look up at me, keep your headdown.”

When Israel decided to close the borders in the mid-1990’s, tens of thousands of Palestinians lost access toemployment. And because Israel did not allow Palestinians to

freely import raw materials and export finished products,there were no new jobs created in Gaza for those who losttheir access to day-labor work in Israel. Throughout the nextdecade, youth unemployment in Gaza hovered between 70-80 percent- meaning that for three-quarters of all young menunder the age of 30, there was no work and no prospect ofwork, no income and no chance of a normal life.

When Israel evacuated Gaza in 2005, it replaced its directcontrol with indirect control, making it complete with thetotal blockade they later imposed on the Strip. Since then,Israeli bombardments of and incursions into Gaza havebecome biannual affairs. The current assault is the fifth since2006. Israelis euphemistically call these onslaughts “mowingthe lawn”, as in, “putting the natives back in their place.”

Each time, the devastation has taken a horrendous toll inhuman life and the psyches of the once again traumatizedPalestinians. I recently read two separate “smart” papers pro-duced by Washington think tanks about ISIS. The authorswere arguing against US involvement making the case thatwe should use caution lest our intervention reinforce orreward either the Iraqi or Syrian strongmen (Maliki or Assad)

who were responsible for the emergence of this extremistgroup that now controls sections of both countries.

ISIS, they argued, is the product of these regimes- theirbrutal repression and systematic denial of rights, their dehu-manization of their subjects and the despair that changemight be possible that they have created by their hard-headed resistance to reform. As I read these pieces, Ithought of the decades-long nightmare that is Gaza and itsdespairing people. I thought of Hamas and its extremismand use of terror. Like ISIS, Hamas owes its lineage to thebrutality of the occupation and despair of the Palestinianpeople.

Like average Syrians and Iraqis, Palestinians want to livenormal lives. They want to be able to provide for their chil-dren and see their children’s children grow and prosper. Butfor decades now, they have been denied the fulfillment ofthese simple human aspirations. It is not, as the Israelis wouldsay, that the Palestinians have chosen death. Rather, it is thatthe Israelis have never allowed them the chance to chooselife. Like people everywhere, give Palestinians hope and free-dom, independence and peace and they will choose life.

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All articles appearing on thesepages are the personal opinion ofthe writers. Kuwait Times takes noresponsibility for views expressedtherein. Kuwait Times invites read-ers to voice their opinions. Pleasesend submissions via email to: [email protected] or via snailmail to PO Box 1301 Safat, Kuwait.The editor reserves the right to editany submission as necessary.

Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country, largesteconomy and its biggest oil producer, tells astory of a country of staggering ironies. The

government, on May 31, took pride in announcingthat Nigeria has become Africa’s largest economy sur-passing the other African giant, South Africa. Nigeria’sGDP stands at $500 billion while the latter’s is estimat-ed at $370 billion. The economy is growing fast andthe country is being touted as one of the top tenfastest economies in the world. “The Economist” hasreported in April that the country had only one tele-com operator two decades ago with around 300,000telephone lines. Now, nearly a dozen operators serviceNigeria’s 120m mobile phone subscribers. Nollywood,the film industry, is now contributing 1.42% to theeconomy.

Nevertheless, the majority of the mass population still liveunder poverty. Nigeria’s Vanguard newspaper has quotedThe World Bank President, Jim Yong Kim, as restating, at theIMF/World Bank Spring Meetings, that Nigeria is one of thetop five countries that has the largest number of poor.http://www.vanguardngr.com/2014/04/440695/#sthash.Nn6tGpO5.dpuf. At least 46% of the population is poor and24% are malnourished. Other statistics even put the figurehigher. Bloomberg cited the Nigerian statistics agency, whichpublished, in 2012, a report showing that 61 percent ofNigerians were living on less than a dollar a day in 2010, upfrom 52 percent in 2004.

Corruption remains rampant in the country. Nigeriawas listed at 144th out of 177 countries onTransparency International’s Corruption PerceptionIndex last year. With a population of about 170 million(2012), the country only generates 5,000 megawattsof power, while a small country like Kuwait with a pop-ulation of about 3.25 million (2012) generates 11,000megawatts! Even though the country producesaround 2.2 million barrels of oil per day, scenes of peo-ple queuing for petrol are commonplace.

Blessed with a vast arable land, the New African hasrecently reported that the country spends over $8.1billion annually on importing food items! However,the most single factor ravaging and bedeviling Nigeriatoday is the security threat posed by the so-calledBoko Haram, a criminal group that has been wreakinghavoc everywhere with impunity. It is baffling to grasphow an army with a history of intervening in turbulentcountries in West Africa and beyond has been unableto defeat a small militant group.

Although the group has been operating since 2008it only dominated headlines after it had kidnappedmore than 200 girls at a school last April. The NigerianPresident, Jonathan Goodluck, has admittedly statedthat the government does not know where the girlsare, and sought help from outside, mostly westernnations. Out of vanity, he is obviously reluctant to seekassistance from his immediate neighbors. On the veryday he was scheduled to visit Chibok where the girlswere abducted, he scrapped the visit and flew to Paristo attend a security conference called by the FrenchPresident Francois Hollande.

The conference was attended by the neighboringcountries in Paris rather than in Abuja or Njamina forexample. Interestingly, a journalist asked him during apress conference with Hollande as to why he cancelledhis visit, and the answer was astonishing: The presi-dent unreservedly stated that his visit would not makea difference, to paraphrase his statement. So far, thefate of these girls remains mysterious. One wouldthink that the attacks would subside after the Groupcame under the radar of the international community;however, it seems even more emboldened as it contin-ues to strike at wanton unchecked.

A total of about 1500 people have been killed bythe Boko Haram this year as I write this article, as thedeath toll keeps rising with every new assault. At least118 people were killed in the central Nigerian city ofJos in the attack launched just recently. I am afraidthat the narrative of former US Ambassador to NigeriaJohn Campbell that the country is dancing on thebrink (the title of the book he authored about Nigeria)is the truest description of the situation there. As aWest African citizen, I hope and pray that Nigeria liveup to expectations and take its right position in theworld for it has all the potential needed to do so.

By Basidia Drammeh

Issues

Nigeria: gloom

and bloom

A N A L Y S I SSUNDAY, JULY 20, 2014

LONDON: Protesters display placards and banners as they take part in demonstration against Israeliairstrikes in Gaza in central London yesterday against Gaza strikes. Thousands of protesters gatheredin London to participate in a march from Downing Street to the Israeli embassy, calling for an end toIsraeli military action in Gaza. —AFP

The nightmare of Gaza continues

By Simon Sturdee

If Iran and world powers couldn’t clinch anuclear deal after five hard months ofbargaining, what hope is there that yet

more time will help? Quite a lot actually,experts said. Even though Iran and the fivepermanent members of the UN SecurityCouncil plus Germany remain far apart onkey issues, some progress has been made,the analysts said. “The chances are betterthan ever that there will be a final deal,” saidRichard Dalton, Britain’s former ambassadorin Tehran, now at the Chatham House think-tank. “But hard work on the politics of it hasto be done in Washington and Tehran,”Dalton told AFP. On Friday the partiesannounced an extension until November 24of their July 20 deadline to reach a deal, pro-longing and augmenting the terms of aninterim accord struck last November.

This came after a 17-day, sixth and finalround of negotiations in Vienna that saw USSecretary of State John Kerry jet in but fail tosecure a breakthrough. The mooted deal isaimed at dispelling fears that Iran might

develop nuclear weapons, after a decade ofrising tensions, Iranian nuclear expansionand bellicose rhetoric. Iran, which denieswanting the bomb in the first place, inreturn wants the lifting of painful UN andWestern sanctions strangling its economy.

Two steps forwardBut the hoped-for agreement is both

extremely ambitious and fiendishly com-plex. Iran appears to have given ground ontwo things: the future of the Arak reactor,which could provide Iran with weapons-grade plutonium, and more stringent UNinspections. Tehran has proposed changingthe design of Arak so that much less pluto-nium can be extracted from the reactor’sspent fuel rods.

More UN oversight of Iran’s nuclear facili-ties would give the world added confidencethat Iran is not secretly building a nuclearweapon. But two problematic issuesremain. The first is how, and at what pace, toease sanctions. Some are UN SecurityCouncil ones, others EU and still others US,making lifting them tricky. The major stick-

ing point however is uranium enrichment, aprocess which makes uranium suitable forpeaceful purposes but also, when highlypurified, for a nuclear weapon.

Iran wants to expand drastically itsenrichment program. It says its needs toenrich for Bushehr, its only current nuclearpower plant, once a deal with Moscow tosupply fuel for Russian-built plant expires in2021. Iran also says it needs to make fuel formore nuclear power plants that it plans tobuild around the country. But with yearsuntil the Russian contract expires, and anynew facilities years if not decades away, thepowers say Iran has no need for enrichmenton a major scale. They fear Iran’s covert aimis to enrich uranium to weapons-grade, sothe powers want cuts in Iran’s capacities,and for a “double digit” number of years, asenior US official said this month.

‘Innovative proposal’In an attempt to break the deadlock on

this issue, Iran’s Foreign MinisterMohammad Javad Zarif aired in the NewYork Times this week what he called an

“innovative proposal”. It includes Iran agree-ing to freeze its enrichment capacities atcurrent levels, and for between three andseven years. For Siavush Randjbar-Daemi, anIranian lecturer at Manchester University,Zarif “cannot go back home and say he hasagreed a freeze on all aspects related toenrichment.” While Zarif ’s proposal stillremains unacceptable to the West, analystssaid that it constitutes an opening gambitwhich could form the basis for serious nego-tiations. Farideh Farhi, Iranian specialist atUniversity of Hawaii, called the idea a “framefor what a final deal might look like.”

Mark Fitzpatrick at the InternationalInstitute for Strategic Studies, said the pro-posals fell short of what is needed but that itwas “noteworthy and positive that Iran isexploring various options”. “The key ques-tion is whether the supreme leader wouldallow the cut-backs to the enrichment pro-gram that would be necessary for a deal,”Fitzpatrick told AFP. “He seems to have saidthat maintaining current capabilities is a redline. If so, I don’t see how a final deal can bepossible.” —AFP

After extension, hope remains for Iran nuke talks

N E W SSUNDAY, JULY 20, 2014

Continued from Page 1

The mass displacement was the latest in six weeks ofturmoil which has forced more than 600,000 people fromtheir homes, left thousands dead and brought Iraq to thebrink of collapse. Talabani’s return to his native Kurdistanyesterday was likely to spark celebrations among sup-porters from his Patriotic Union of Kurdistan party.

He is widely celebrated as a skilled negotiator, whoenjoys good relations with both the United States andIran and has repeatedly mediated between Iraq’s frac-tious politicians in recent years. But some observerswarned there was little the avuncular 80-year-old headof state could do to ease spiraling ethno-sectarian vio-lence and rhetoric and roll back the Islamic State’sexpansion. “I really do think this is a post-Talabani era.I’ve stuck my neck out there, but I haven’t heard anyIraqis talking about him in any way being president,” saidToby Dodge, director of the London School ofEconomics’ Middle East centre.

Federal forces collapsed, in some cases abandoninguniforms and weapons in their retreat, when fightersunder the command of IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadilaunched their assault. The army has since regrouped,received intelligence, hardware and manpower fromWashington, Moscow and Shiite militias, but nonethe-less struggled to regain lost territory. Security analystshave said Baghdad remains too big a target but the mili-

tants have in recent days repeatedly attacked targetsthat would expose the capital if captured.

On Thursday night, a jihadist commando stormed theSpeicher air base north of ex-president SaddamHussein’s hometown of Tikrit, sparking a fierce battle.“Last night, gunmen infiltrated the base. There weresnipers and suicide bombers among them, they man-aged to reach the runway,” an intelligence officer whosurvived the attack said. He said the pilots managed tofly all but one of the base’s aircraft to safety but a state-ment posted on jihadist Internet sites said many weredestroyed. Many, including within his own Shiite alliancethat comfortably won April elections, now see PrimeMinister Nuri Al-Maliki’s departure as essential to nation-al reconciliation efforts.

In a Friday sermon delivered by one of his spokesmenin Karbala, the Iranian-born Grand Ayatollah Ali Al-Sistani-Iraq’s most revered Shiite cleric-appeared to leanin the same direction. “The new government shouldhave broad national acceptance and be capable of solv-ing the crisis in the country and correcting the mistakesof the past,” he said. Parliamentary blocs have until todayto submit nominees for the post of president, whoseelection is the next step in what has been a protractedand acrimonious process to renew Iraq’s leadership.Despite his unexpected return, there is little expectationthat Talabani, who has been president since 2005, willseek another term — AFP

Execution or exodus, Iraq’s Christians...


There are many benefits of the month-long fast, such asincreased self-discipline, patience, God- consciousness, sin-cerity, compassion, gratitude, and brotherhood, as well asdocumented medical benefits.

With reference to fasting, the Quran says that “God willsthat you shall have ease, and does not will you to sufferhardship...” (2:185) and for that reason, people who are ill ortravelling can make up missed days at a later time. If onecannot fast due to chronic ill health, feeding a poor personfor every day missed is sufficient compensation. FastingRamadan is the minimum that a Muslim should fast; how-ever, optional fasting is meritorious. Prophet Muhammad(PBUH) regularly fasted on Mondays and Thursdays, andfrequently on other days. He said that the fast of ProphetDavid, which was on alternate days, was the fast most lovedby God.

ZakatNeither charity nor a tax, zakat is a compulsory annual

payment of cash or materials for the benefit of the poor,preferably person-to-person. The word zakat literallymeans “purification” as it purifies people from greed andselfishness. It prevents one from hoarding and promotes amore fair distribution of wealth that narrows the gapbetween the wealthy and the destitute. The zakat remindsus that we are merely trustees of our wealth whose sourceis God, and its distribution promotes brotherhood andgoodwill in the community.

The rate of zakat is 2.5% of savings that have accumu-lated for one year, 5% of agricultural produce, a portion ofcattle (1-3%) and 20% of mined materials (except gold andsilver, which are treated as cash). The Quran says that zakatis “a legal obligation from God - and God is Knowing, Wise”(9:60). If someone does not have savings that have accu-mulated for a year, he is exempt from paying zakat.

While zakat is the minimum amount that a personshould give per year, charity and generosity are encour-aged at all times. The Quran repeatedly refers to goodbelievers as those who “spend out of what God has provid-ed for them” and instructs Muhammad to tell those whoask what they should spend in charity to say, “The excess(ie, what is beyond your needs)” (2:219). ProphetMuhammad said that spending on your family is consid-ered the best kind of charity.

Pilgrimage to Makkah The Quran says, “Indeed, the first house of worship estab-

lished for mankind was that at Bacca - a blessing and guid-ance for the worlds.... And due to God from the people is pil-grimage to the House, for whoever is able to find a way to it”(3:96-97). A Muslim has an obligation to visit Makkah (for-merly known as Bacca) during the first ten days of the monthof Thul-Hijja once in his life, providing he has the financialand physical ability to do so.

During the pilgrimage, a Muslim performs rites that com-memorate the faith and acts of Abraham and his family,including circumambulating the Kaaba, which Abraham andhis son once built, jogging between two hills as Hagar did insearch of water, and slaughtering an animal, which com-memorates Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his sonIshmael (the meat of the sacrifice is distributed to the poor).During the pilgrimage a Muslim connects with otherMuslims through space and time, particularly Abraham andhis family and the current Muslim ummah with representa-tives from virtually every country on earth.

The pilgrimage removes all outward signs of wealth orstatus to remind us of our equality and brotherhood, enablesone to put worldly interests aside for a spiritual retreat and achance to refocus, and reminds us of the inevitability ofdeath, resurrection and gathering in front of God. The pil-grimage season is the most important of the year, duringwhich Muslims who do not attend often fast, offer extraprayers, increase charity and good works, and slaughter ananimal to distribute its meat to the poor.

ConclusionThe main acts of worship in Islam are the testimony of

faith, which is a pledge and a commitment to God to submitto His will and follow Muhammad’s example; prayer, which isworship at regular intervals with the body, mind, voice andheart; fasting in Ramadan, which is an annual month-longcourse to develop God-consciousness, fostering self-disci-pline, compassion and gratitude; zakat, which is compulsoryand trains us to share; and pilgrimage, which is an answer toGod’s eternal call to worship Him. These acts have many tan-gible and spiritual benefits, but the Muslim does each one asan act of worship, an act of obedience, and an act of grati-tude for being in the fold of Islam.

Courtesy of the TIES Center, the social and educational hubfor English Speaking Muslims in Kuwait. For more informa-tion, please call 25231015 or e-mail [email protected] orvisit www.tiescenter.net.

Being a Muslim


“Several terrorists infiltrated Israel through a tunnelfrom the central Gaza Strip,” it said, adding that they fireda machine gun and anti-tank missile at an army patrol.Troops “returned fire, killing a terrorist and forcing therest back into Gaza.” Hamas’s military wing, the EzzedineAl-Qassam Brigades, said its fighters had carried out theraid. “The Qassam Brigades carried out an operationbehind enemy lines,” it said in a statement. “Heavy fight-ing is ongoing with the forces of the occupation.”

Donkey bomb In a separate incident, the army said, militants had

strapped explosives on to a donkey in an attempt toattack troops. “Yesterday (Friday) evening, there was atleast one such attempt, in which a donkey suspiciouslybegan to approach forces,” it said. “The forces engagedthe donkey and it exploded at a safe distance.” There havebeen three Israeli deaths so far since the July 8 start ofthe Operation Protective Edge campaign to stamp outrocket fire from Gaza. A Bedouin was killed Friday andfour of his family wounded-including two young chil-dren-whan a rocket hit their desert campsite near Israel’sDimona nuclear reactor, police said.

Another civilian died Tuesday when a mortar roundexploded in Israel and a soldier was killed by friendly fireinside Gaza on Friday. Israel has said the aim of theground operation launched on Thursday night is todestroy Hamas’s network of tunnels which are used forcross-border attacks on southern Israel. Militaryspokesman Lieutenant General Peter Lerner told journal-ists yesterday that during the past 24 hours the militaryhad seized 13 tunnels into Israel. The UN said Ban wouldleave for the region to help Israelis and Palestinians “endthe violence and find a way forward,” under secretarygeneral for political affairs Jeffrey Feltman told theSecurity Council.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he hadordered the military to be ready for “a significant broad-ening of the ground activity.” He said the ground opera-tion was necessary to deal with the tunnels, but admittedthere was “no guarantee of 100 percent success.” In Gaza,after a relative lull Friday, violence picked up again in theevening, with intensifying tank shelling and air strikeskilling more than a dozen people. A six-year-old child andfive members of a single family, including girls aged sixand two, were those killed yesterday, emergency servicesspokesman Ashraf Al-Qudra said.

Aid agencies gearing upThe UN agency for Palestinian refugees UNRWA has

opened 44 of its schools to shelter those fleeing homesin the most heavily bombarded areas. It said yesterdaythere were more 50,000 Gazans seeking sanctuary so far.The World Food Program said it had already distributedemergency food rations and food vouchers to more than20,000 displaced people.

It said it was gearing up for a huge increase in thecoming days and hoping to reach 85,000 people withfood distributions. Gaza was also struggling with a 70percent power outage after electricity lines from Israelwere damaged, officials said. French Foreign MinisterLaurent Fabius, who was also in Cairo to join peaceefforts, called for an urgent truce. “The absolute priorityis a ceasefire, but it must guarantee a lasting truce,” hesaid, adding that it should take into account “Israel’s secu-rity” and Palestinian demands.

Hamas has rejected Egyptian proposals for a truce,demanding an easing of a harsh Gaza blockadeimposed by Israel in 2006 and the release of Palestinianprisoners. Israel pulled out of Gaza in 2005. Hamasdrove out loyalists of Abbas two years later but to thedismay of Israel reconciled with the Palestinian presi-dent after US-brokered Middle East peace talks col-lapsed earlier this year. — Agencies

Gaza death toll hits 341

ISRAELI-GAZA BORDER: Israeli soldiers patrol an army deployment area near the Israeli-Gaza Border yesterday. Israeli strikes killed at least 20 people in Gaza yesterday, taking the death toll from a12-day bombardment to 337, as UN chief Ban Ki-moon headed to the region to join truce efforts. —AFP

moil in Egypt over the past year.Hamas spawned off the MuslimBrotherhood, which Egypt’s govern-ment has branded a terrorist organi-zation since the military’s ouster ofIslamist President Mohammed Morsilast summer. Egyptian authoritieshave been cracking down hard onMorsi’s Brotherhood and accuseHamas of helping Islamic militantswaging a campaign of violence inEgypt, a claim the group denies.

Egypt also has tightened the clo-sure on Gaza by destroying smug-gling tunnels under the border thatwere largely propping up the strip’seconomy. That has thrown Hamasinto a financial crisis. Turkey andQatar were also close allies of Morsiand the Brotherhood - and the resulthas been deep tensions betweenthem and the government ofEgyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi, the former army chief that oust-ed Morsi.

The cease-fire plan put forth byEgypt now is virtually identical toone presented by Morsi during thelast round of Gaza fighting. At thetime, both sides accepted theaccord, and Morsi was lauded for hismediation. Now, however, there isnot only deep mistrust in the way,but also increased Hamas expecta-tions for an end to the stifling block-ade.

Badran told The Associated Pressthat Hamas wants the permanentopening of the Rafah crossing withEgypt, an arrangement to allowGazans to pray in Al-Aqsa mosque inJerusalem and the release of politicalprisoners held by Israel. Hamas and

its allies Qatar and Turkey also arepressing for the opening of an air-port and seaport in Gaza under inter-national administration. “We have toimpose conditions and guaranteesto prevent the recurring of thisassault and lift this inhumane andillogical blockade on Gaza,” QatariForeign Minister Khalid Al-Attiya saidin a speech last week.

Turkish Foreign Minister AhmetDavutoglu has said the blockademust be lifted. “If a tunnel is closed,an airport has to be opened. Therehas to be a breathing space. The situ-ation now is beyond a ghetto,” hesaid in an interview Thursday withTurkey’s NTV television. However,Egypt - as well as Hamas’ rivalPalestinian President MahmoudAbbas - is wary of any moves thatwould give Hamas breathing roomand strengthen its hold on Gaza.

“There is no way Egypt is going tolet the crossing open for Hamas tocome and go without control,” anEgyptian foreign ministry officialsaid. He said Egypt could agree tointernational observers - or forcesfrom Abbas’ Palestinian Authority -controlling the crossing, as long asthey are on the Gaza side. The officialspoke on condition of anonymitybecause he was not authorized tospeak to journalists.

Sameh Seif Al-Yazel, a securityexpert and one-time member of El-Sisi’s presidential campaign, saidEgypt would accept arrangementsgiving free movement in and out ofGaza as long as they are endorsed bythe Palestinian Authority. “Egypt issiding with the Palestinian Authority

and the Palestinian people, notHamas,” he said. Abbas has backedthe Egyptian proposal, saying it isidentical to the 2012 cease-fire bro-kered by Morsi. After visiting Cairo,Abbas left to Turkey, where he isexpected to meet with Hamas’ topleader, Khaled Mashaal, before head-ing to Qatar and other Gulf countriesin an attempt to bridge the gaps.

Turkey meanwhile has deniedundermining Egypt’s efforts. TurkishPrime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoganangrily denounced El-Sisi, saying, he“is an oppressor, a coup leader. He isthe person who has been blockingHamas’ routes.” Soon after Morsi’souster, Egypt and Turkey recalledtheir ambassadors. Egypt also shutdown Qatar-owned satellite newsnetwork Al-Jazeera’s bureau there,accusing it of being a mouthpiecefor the Brotherhood.

Throughout the current Gaza cri-sis, Egypt’s media - which is over-whelmingly supportive of El Sisi - hasbeen sharply critical of Hamas. TVstations have accused Hamas ofwasting Palestinian blood and “com-mercializing” the Palestinian cause.The editor in chief of the state-owned Al-Ahram yesterday accusedHamas and its allies of seeking to“stir public opinion” against El-Sisiand his government by prolongingthe conflict with Israel. In one recentprogram, fiercely pro-military televi-sion presenter Tawfiq Okashadescribed Hamas and those whoshow any sympathy for it as “dogs”and waved his shoes in a show ofcontempt for “those who don’tappreciate Egypt’s weight.” — AP

CAIRO: Even as the death tollmounts in the Gaza Strip, attemptsto broker a cease-fire betweenHamas and Israel have so far runaground - in part because they havebecome mired in the deep divisionsbetween Mideast countries. At thecenter of the problems is the bitterenmity between Egypt and its Gulfallies like Saudi Arabia on one sideand Gaza’s Hamas rulers and itsallies, Turkey and Qatar, on the other.

An Egyptian cease-fire proposalquickly fell apart the past weekwhen Israel accepted it but Hamasrejected it. Hamas demandedgreater guarantees for the lifting ofthe blockade of Gaza, enforced byIsrael and Egypt. The Egyptian pro-posal called for both sides to halt

hostilities unconditionally - danglingonly a promise of further talks thatcould address the closure. Qatar-based Hamas spokesman HossamBadran described Cairo’s cease-fireproposal as “all but dead,” calling it a“surrender” to Israel.

He and other Hamas officials saidthey were instead turning to Qatar,which they said had an initiative thatwould address their demands,including release of prisoners andgiving unfettered access to thedensely populated strip. That quicklysparked accusations by Egypt thatHamas’ allies were undermining it.“The Hamas-Qatar-Turkey axis is try-ing to abort Egypt’s role, which is theregion bulwark in the face of a plotaimed at fragmenting the region

into rival mini-states,” Egypt’s ForeignMinister Sameh Shukri told reportersThursday night, just before Israelannounced the start of its groundassault into Gaza.

Shukri said Egypt is in a “verytense and difficult” relationship withHamas, where reaching commonground is nearly “impossible.”Yesterday, Shukri said he knows ofno other initiative and that “theEgyptian initiative remains the initia-tive on the table” with internationalsupport. Speaking next to visitingFrench Foreign Minister LaurentFabius, Shukri said there was nointention to amend the proposal,which he said meets the demands ofboth sides.

The tensions are rooted in the tur-

Mideast divisions cloud Gaza cease-fire efforts


LONDON: Mohamed Salah’s Chelsea career is hanging in the balance as hemay be ordered to return to Egypt to complete military service, Egyptianmedia reported. Salah, who completed a move to Stamford Bridge from Swissclub Basel in January, is allowed to live in England on the basis of his participa-tion in an educational programme.

However, his registration to that programme has been rescinded by theMinister of Higher Education in Egypt, the football website

www.kingfut.com said, meaning the pacy 22-year-old mayhave to return to the country. If Salah was obliged to returnhome, he would not be allowed to leave Egypt again untilcompletion of a period of military service, ranging from 12

months to three years. “Salah has expressed his shock aboutthe decision,” Egyptian National Team director Ahmed

Hassan said on kingfut.com. “He told me that he is try-ing to represent Egypt in the best way possible. Is

this the best response from the country?” A meet-ing has been scheduled between the Egyptian

FA, the national team coaching staff and theMinister of Higher Education to find a solu-

tion. —Reuters

Salah’s future in doubtRIO DE JANEIRO: Former World Cup winning captain Dunga is the favorite on ashort list of candidates to coach Brazil’s national soccer team, two sources withdirect knowledge of the situation said on Friday. Dunga, whose real name isCarlos Bledorn Verri, previously coached Brazil from 2006 to 2010, where he wonthe 2007 Copa America and the 2009 Confederations Cup.

He was fired by the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) after losing to theNetherlands in the quarter-finals of the 2010 World Cup. One source, whodeclined to be identified since the process is underway, said Dunga has a goodrelationship with Gilmar Rinaldi, who was named on Thursday as general manag-er for Brazil’s national teams.

Both players were part of the 1994 World Cup winning team. The CBF andDunga, 50, began talks early this week, a second source said. “Heis the front runner in the list and things are moving forward satis-factorily,” a second source told Reuters.

“There were important meetings that took place in S„o Paulo,and Gilmar is fine-tuning details already.” A new coach to replaceLuiz Felipe Scolari is expected to be named next Tuesday. Scolari,who guided Brazil to their fifth World Cup title in 2002, resignedas coach after the 2014 tournament where the hosts enteredas hot favourites but finished fourth.—Reuters

LONDON: Chelsea’s purchase of Brazilian defender Filipe Luis fromAtletico Madrid on Friday was the English Premier League club’sfinal act of the transfer window, manager Jose Mourinho said.

The Blues, who finished third last season, have spent around 80million pounds ($136 million) in the close season on Luis, strikerDiego Costa, Cesc Fabregas and Hajduk Split midfielder MarioPasalic.

“We finished the market today,” Mourinho told BT Sport. “Thetransfer market closes 31 August and we close on July 19. “My clubdid a fantastic job, not just because of what we bought, butbecause we did it in almost record time.

“The club did fantastic, we knew the targets, we knew the play-ers and the club attacked them and their clubs at a very earlystage.” Chelsea had also been linked with a move for Real Madrid’sGerman World Cup-winning midfielder Sami Khedira butMourinho said he was pleased with the squad he had at his dispos-al. “We got exactly what we need and what we want. The squad isone which I like very much and I look forward to starting the sea-son,” the former Real boss said.—Reuters

Transfer closed for Chelsea

S P O RT S

Dunga may coach Brazil

NEW YORK: Jacoby Ellsbury hit a two-runhomer, and David Phelps pitched the Yankeesto a fast start in the second half, leading NewYork to a 4-3 victory over the Cincinnati Redson Friday night.

Brian McCann and Carlos Beltran had two-out RBIs for the Yankees, who began a 10-game homestand. Dellin Betances struck outthree in 1 2-3 perfect innings, and DavidRobertson got three outs for his 24th save in26 chances.

Phelps (4-4) gave up three runs - twoearned - and six hits in 6 1-3 innings against alineup missing injured thumpers Joey Vottoand Brandon Phillips. The right-hander struckout seven and walked one for his first winsince June 19.

Brayan Pena, subbing for Votto at first base,homered twice for the Reds. Mike Leake (7-8)allowed four runs and eight hits in seveninnings.

RANGERS 5, BLUE JAYS 1JP Arencibia hit a three-run homer against

his former team, Yu Darvish matched his sea-son high with 12 strikeouts, and Texas beatToronto.

Adrian Beltre added a solo homer as the

Rangers snapped their season high, eight-game losing streak and won for just the sec-ond time in 13 road games. Promoted fromTriple-A Round Rock on Thursday, Arencibiawas booed by the crowd of 38,012 beforeeach of his at-bats, but silenced his detractorswith a first-pitch homer off R.A. Dickey (7-10)in the seventh, his second.

Darvish (9-5) won for the first time in threestarts, allowing one run and five hits in 6 2-3innings. He reached the 10-strikeout plateaufor the sixth time this season, all in his past 12starts.

ANGELS 3, MARINERS 2Efren Navarro singled home a run with two

outs in the 16th inning on Friday night, andthe Los Angeles Angels came out of the All-Star break with a 3-2 victory over the SeattleMariners - and a new closer.

After the 10th inning, the Angelsannounced they had acquired two-time All-Star Huston Street from the San Diego Padresin a multiplayer deal that included five minorleaguers.

Dominic Leone (2-2), the eighth Marinerspitcher, gave up a one-out double to All-StarMVP Mike Trout in the 16th and intentionallywalked Josh Hamilton with two out after acomebacker by Albert Pujols. Navarro battedfor John McDonald and stroked the first pitchup the middle to bring home Trout. HectorSantiago (2-7), the ninth Angels pitcher,allowed one hit over 2 1-3 innings to get thevictory.

GIANTS 9, MARLINS 1Pablo Sandoval hit a three-run homer off

one of his favorite foils, and San Franciscotopped slumping Miami. All-Star MadisonBumgarner (11-7) allowed one run in sixinnings.

The Marlins lost their fifth game in a row,while San Francisco emerged from the All-Starbreak looking determined to end a prolongedscoring slump. The Giants began the nightaveraging less than three runs per game inJuly, worst in the majors, but they havetotaled 17 runs in two games.

Sandoval’s 12th homer ended NathanEovaldi’s night in the Giants’ five run fifth.Sandoval improved to 8 for 11 against Eovaldiwith nine RBIs. Brandon Crawford hit the 11thpitch he saw for a two-run homer in the sec-ond inning. Buster Posey and Michael Morseeach had three of San Francisco’s 13 hits.

Eovaldi (5-5) gave up a season-high eightruns in his shortest outing of the year, lastingjust four-plus innings. His has an ERA of 13.30in five starts against the Giants.

BREWERS 4, NATIONALS 2Scooter Gennett and Khris Davis homered,

and Kyle Lohse pitched seven strong inningsto help Milwaukee beat Washington.

Aramis Ramirez added a two-run single forthe NL Central leading Brewers. Lohse (10-4)earned his first win since June 22. He allowed10 hits, but just one run over seven innings asWashington went 1 for 10 with runners inscoring position. Milwaukee shortstop JeanSegura was back in the lineup, a week afterthe death of his 9-month-old son, and went 1for 4.

Bryce Harper had a homer and two singlesfor Washington, which began play percentagepoints ahead of Atlanta in the NL East.Francisco Rodriguez gave up Harper’s ninth-inning homer, but earned his 28th save.Stephen Strasburg (7-7) allowed four runs andseven hits. He struck out nine in seveninnings.

BRAVES 6, PHILLIES 4Jason Heyward homered and drove in two

runs, Andrelton Simmons had two RBIs, andAtlanta won its third straight game with a vic-tory over Philadelphia.

The Braves moved one game ahead ofWashington in the NL East. Last placePhiladelphia dropped 11 games behindAtlanta. The game was played in a steady driz-zle, but the rain had nearly stopped whenBraves closer Craig Kimbrel earned his 30thsave in 34 chances.

Ervin Santana (8-6) gave up six hits, threewalks and four runs - three earned - in sixinnings to win for the third time in four starts.

He struck out one.Phillies starter AJ Burnett (6-9) allowed six

runs, 10 hits - the last nine with two out - andone walk in five innings. He had five strikeoutsas Philadelphia lost its third straight.

INDIANS 9, TIGERS 3Jason Kipnis hit a tiebreaking, three-run

homer, and Asdrubal Cabrera sent the nextpitch over the right-field fence to cap a seven-run seventh inning and help Cleveland routDetroit.

Kipnis hit another home run, a solo shot, inthe Indians’ two-run ninth. Trevor Bauer (4-4)gave up three runs and six hits over sixinnings. Detroit’s Anibal Sanchez (6-4) retiredthe first seven batters he faced and had a 3-0lead. He gave up four runs and six hits, walkedone and struck out seven in an uneven per-formance. The AL Central-leading Tigers won17 of 23 games going into the All-Star break.Cleveland has won seven of 10.

RED SOX 5, ROYALS 4Jonny Gomes hit a go-ahead two-run

pinch homer in the sixth after another two-run shot in the inning by Xander Bogaerts,and Boston edged Kansas City.

The Red Sox maintained their momentumafter winning four of their last five gamesbefore the All-Star break. Clay Buchholz (5-5)allowed four runs in six innings. Koji Ueharaallowed Omar Infante’s two-out double in theninth but got his 19th save in 21 chances.Scott Downs (0-3) gave up the homer toGomes, the first batter he faced after replac-ing James Shields.

CARDINALS 3, DODGERS 2Matt Holliday homered, doubled and

drove in three runs, and Lance Lynn won histhird straight start for St. Louis in a victoryover the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Kolten Wong had two hits and scored onboth of Holliday’s RBI hits for the Cardinalsagainst the team they beat in the NLCS lastfall. They have won six of eight and remaineda game behind the Brewers for the NL Centrallead.

AJ Ellis had an RBI double for the Dodgers.Los Angeles has scored only 10 runs in the lastsix games. Holliday’s seventh homer, estimat-ed at 435 feet to straightaway center, came offDan Haren (8-7). Lynn (11-6) gave up two runsand four hits in six-plus innings.

PIRATES 4, ROCKIES 2Travis Snider’s pinch-hit double in the

eighth inning scored Neil Walker to sparkPittsburgh’s win over Colorado. Walker trot-ted home when right fielder Carlos Gonzalezcouldn’t track down Snider’s sinking linedrive off reliever Matt Belisle (2-5). All-StarJosh Harrison added a sacrifice fly one batterlater. Tony Watson (6-1) earned the win with ascoreless eighth inning. Mark Melancon gotTroy Tulowitzki, representing the tying run, toground out to third to end it for his 17th save.

Starling Marte tripled and drove in tworuns before leaving in the eighth, an inningafter taking a fastball to the head.

Charlie Culberson and Corey Dickersonhad two hits apiece for the Rockies butColorado’s bullpen couldn’t give starter JorgeDe La Rosa his fifth consecutive victory. TheRockies left 11 runners on base while losingtheir third straight.

WHITE SOX 3, ASTROS 2Slump-ridden Tyler Flowers drove in the

go-ahead run with a seventh-inning double,and four Chicago pitchers retired the final 22batters to lift the White Sox past Houston.

Alejandro De Aza singled off ScottFeldman and stole second before Flowersdelivered the game-winning hit. He enteredthe game with only 12 hits in his last 116 at-bats, and a .218 batting average overall.Daniel Webb (5-2) retired the six batters hefaced in relief of Jose Quintana to earn thevictory. Zach Putnam pitched a scorelessinning for his second save of the season.

After Quintana allowed a pair of unearnedruns, he set down the final 10 batters hefaced. The left-hander allowed three hits andtwo walks in five innings.

Feldman (4-7) took a four-hit shutout intothe sixth inning, when Dayan Viciedo hit atwo-run homer into the left-center fieldbleachers to tie it. In seven innings, Feldmanallowed three runs, seven hits and threewalks.

RAYS 6, TWINS 2Ben Zobrist homered and Evan Longoria

had three RBIs to lead Tampa Bay pastMinnesota. Alex Cobb (5-6) allowed two runsin 5 2-3 innings, and Matt Joyce added an RBIsingle for the Rays.

Trevor Plouffe homered for the Twins, atwo-run shot in the third highlighted by a fanleaning over the railing in left-center andmaking a great catch. Tampa Bay took a 3-0lead in the third on Longoria’s bases-loadeddouble that soared just beyond the reach ofright-fielder Oswaldo Arcia. Zobrist made it 5-2 in the fifth with a two-run homer off KyleGibson (8-8).

ATHLETICS 5, ORIOLES 4Josh Donaldson hit a three-run homer in

the bottom of the ninth inning, sendingOakland to a stunning comeback victory overBaltimore.

Donaldson’s drive over the wall in centeroff Zach Britton (3-2) sent the A’s streaming

out of the dugout. It was Donaldson’s fifthcareer game-ending hit and third careergame-ending homer.

Manny Machado had lined a go-ahead,two-run homer in the seventh, and JonathanSchoop hit a two-run homer in the fifth forthe AL East-leading Orioles.

Eric O’Flaherty (1-0) tossed one scorelessinning for the win, Oakland’s major league-leading 60th of the season (60-36). JeffSamardzija was in line to lose his secondstraight solid start for Oakland. He gave up sixhits - including the two homers - in seveninnings.

METS 5, PADRES 4Travis d’Arnaud’s go-ahead single in the

ninth inning lifted the New York Mets overSan Diego for their fourth straight win. TheMets won for the ninth time in 11 games asthey began a 10-game trip and matched theirlongest winning streak of the season.

Jeurys Familia (2-3) pitched a scorelesseighth inning for the win. Jenrry Mejia workedthe ninth for his 11 save in 13 chances.Joaquin Benoit (3-2) took the loss. New Yorkhad led 4-0 but San Diego tied it with fourruns in the fifth.

DIAMONDBACKS 5, CUBS 4Paul Goldschmidt homered, Didi Gregorius

had a pair of RBI singles, and Arizona over-came two home runs by Anthony Rizzo tobeat the Chicago Cubs.

Rizzo moved into a tie with Miami’sGiancarlo Stanton for the NL home run lead at22 with his sixth multi-homer game, secondthis season.

Eury De La Rosa (1-0) gave up a run inone inning and got the win. Addison Reedearned his 22nd save in 27 opportunities.Brian Schlitter (2-3) allowed a run in two-thirds of an inning for the loss. TheDiamondbacks’ Martin Prado and managerKirk Gibson were ejected by home plateumpire Cory Blaser in the eighth inning. Itwas the first time Prado was thrown out inhis 933 major league games.—AP

Yankees down Reds

NEW YORK: David Robertson No. 30 of the New York Yankees pitches against the CincinnatiReds in the ninth inning during their game at Yankee Stadium. —AFP

American LeagueEastern Division

W L PCT GB Baltimore 52 43 .547 - NY Yankees 48 47 .505 4 Toronto 49 48 .505 4 Tampa Bay 45 53 .459 8.5 Boston 44 52 .458 8.5

Central DivisionDetroit 53 39 .576 - Cleveland 48 47 .505 6.5 Kansas City 48 47 .505 6.5 Chicago White Sox 46 51 .474 9.5 Minnesota 44 51 .463 10.5

Western DivisionOakland 60 36 .625 - LA Angels 58 37 .611 1.5 Seattle 51 45 .531 9 Houston 40 57 .412 20.5 Texas 39 57 .406 21

National LeagueEastern Division

Atlanta 53 43 .552 - Washington 51 43 .543 1 NY Mets 46 50 .479 7 Miami 44 51 .463 8.5 Philadelphia 42 54 .438 11

Central DivisionMilwaukee 54 43 .557 - St. Louis 53 44 .546 1 Cincinnati 51 45 .531 2.5 Pittsburgh 50 46 .521 3.5 Chicago Cubs 40 55 .421 13

Western DivisionSan Francisco 53 43 .552 - LA Dodgers 54 44 .551 - San Diego 41 55 .427 12 Arizona 41 56 .423 12.5 Colorado 40 56 .417 13

MLB results/standingsNY Yankees 4, Cincinnati 3; Milwaukee 4, Washington 2; Pittsburgh 4, Colorado 2; Texas 5, Toronto 1; Cleveland 9,Detroit 3; Boston 5, Kansas City 4; San Francisco 9, Miami 1; Atlanta 6, Philadelphia 4; Chicago White Sox 3,Houston 2; Tampa Bay 6, Minnesota 2; St. Louis 3, LA Dodgers 2; Arizona 5, Chicago Cubs 4; LA Angels 3, Seattle 2(16 Innings); Oakland 5, Baltimore 4; NY Mets 5, San Diego 4.

TORONTO: Munenori Kawasaki No. 66 of the Toronto Blue Jays turns an inning-ending double play as Jose Reyes No. 7 watches in thethird inning during MLB game action as Rougned Odor No. 12 of the Texas Rangers slides into second base. —AFP

ANAHEIM: Efren Navarro No. 19 of the Los Angeles Angels celebrates his game winning hitwith David Freese No. 6 and Kole Calhoun No. 56 to win 3-2 over the Seattle Mariners. —AFP

p16 2_Layout 1 7/19/14 9:54 PM Page 1

S P O RT SSUNDAY, JULY 20, 2014

Photo of the day

Roxrite performs at the Red Bull BC One Holland Cypher in Veluwe, The Netherlands. — www.redbull.com

HOYLAKE: A sensational doubleeagle finish from Rory McIlroy gavehim a six-stroke cushion going intothe final round of the British Openas he crushed a chasing pack ofchallengers who tried and failed tohunt him down during a rain-hitthird round.

The 25-year-old Irishman, look-ing to add a third major to his col-lection and a first on British soil,started the day with a four-strokelead.

But by the time he reached the12th hole that had vanished and hewas caught in a dogfight withAmerican shot-maker Rickie Fowler,hungry to win his first major.

That was when McIlroy, who hadbeen struggling off the tee, pro-duced his best golf of the week atRoyal Liverpool. A birdie at 14eased him back ahead, and withFowler going off the boil, McIlroystruck what could prove to be twotournament-winning blows withmagnificent eagles at the 16th and18th.

That gave him a 68 and left himat 16-under for the tournament sixstrokes clear of Fowler who hadeight birdies en route to a 68.

It was the biggest lead at thethird-round stage of the Open sinceTiger Woods at St Andrews in 2000.Woods eventually won by eightstrokes on that occasion.

A further stroke back cameSpaniard Sergio Garcia who had a69 and Dustin Johnson of theUnited States with a 71. FrenchmanVictor Dubuisson was next best oneight under after a 68. “RickieFowler was getting close to me. Iknew if I could hit good drives on16 and 18 I would have a goodchance of birdie, I didn’t expect tohit eagles but there you go,” saidMcIlroy.

“It is a good thing I have experi-enced this before, good and bad.Hopefully some of that experience Ican take into tomorrow. “My gameplan all week has been to take careof the par fives and I want to dothat again tomorrow.”

It was already a remarkable dayfor the British Open because for thefirst time in its 154-year long histo-

ry the field went out from both thefirst and 10th tees instead of justeveryone going off the first.

That was due to a decision takenby tournament organisers the R&Ato bring forward the start times andshare them between 1 and 10 in aneffort to complete the round in theface of bad weather forecast for lat-er on.

As it was, the 72-strong field wasgreeted with torrential rain as theyarrived at the historic links layouton the Wirral peninsula south ofLiverpool.

McIlroy was the man to catchand when he bogeyed the firsthole, the chase was immediatelyon. Johnson, Garcia, Jim Furyk andCharl Schwartzel all made earlysurges, but McIlroy struck a timelybirdie on the fifth and then a seriesof fine approaches and clutch put-ting allowed him to keep his nosein front. Then Fowler emerged fromthe chasing pack with threestraight birdies from the 10th.When McIlroy dropped a stroke atthe 12th, the solo lead he hadenjoyed from the first day hadgone.

But with the rest of the packscenting blood, McIlroy suddenlyput his foot on the accelerator withhis two eagles, leaving his stunnedrivals in his wake.

Catching him on Sunday will bea momentous task for any player asthe Irishman seeks to add theBritish Open to the US Open crownhe won in 2011 and the PGAChampionship title of 2012, bothby eight strokes.

Fowler, however, insisted he wasstill in with a realistic chance. “Thereis a fine line, so much can happenso quickly. I was six back going in totoday, if I can get off to a good startand put pressure on, there is still alot of golf to be played,” he said.

“Being alongside him is anadvantage tomorrow, we are goingto have a good time, if I can putpressure on and make him earn itand see if we can get myself in themix.”

Phil Mickelson saw his chancesof defending the title he won lastyear at Muirfield vanish as he shot a

71 to stand at one under for thetournament, while world numberthree Justin Rose ended the day atfive under after a 69.

World number one Adam Scotthad a fine 69, but at six under is toofar back to pose a serious threat.Woods, meanwhile, had anothermixed day as he carded a 73 tostand at three over, 19 strokes off

the lead. That meant that anyhopes of winning a 15th major titlesix years after his last one weregone.

But just making it through tothe weekend was an achievementin itself for the 38-year-oldAmerican, who is trying to work hisway back to top form after backsurgery.—AFP

HOYLAKE: Northern Ireland’s Rory McIlroy makes an eagle putt on the18th green during his third round 68, on day three of the 2014 BritishOpen Golf Championship. —AFP

AUSTRALIA: The next America’s Cup in2017 has been thrown into turmoil with theofficial Challengers of Record, TeamAustralia, withdrawing from the regattabecause of the mounting costs.

Organisers said yesterday that Australia’sHamilton Island Yacht Club had withdrawnits challenge for the 35th America’s Cupevent, which is to be sailed in 2017 in eitherSan Diego or Bermuda. “The America’s Cuporganisers have received notification fromthe principals of Hamilton Island Yacht Clubof their intention to withdraw TeamAustralia from the 35th America’s Cup,”America’s Cup Event Authority chief execu-tive Russell Coutts said in a statement.

“We are very disappointed to be receiv-ing this news. We were excited to haveAustralia as a challenger and we were alsolooking forward to the prospect of holdingAmerica’s Cup World Series events inAustralia.” Wine tycoon Bob Oatley, whoowns the Hamilton Yacht Club, said it hadbeen a financial decision. “The challengewas initiated with a view to negotiating aformat for the 35th America’s Cup that wasaffordable and put the emphasis back onsailing skills,” he said.

“Ultimately our estimate of the costs ofcompeting were well beyond our initialexpectation and our ability to make the for-mula of our investment and other commer-cial support add up.

“We are bitterly disappointed that thisemerging team of fine young Australiansailors will not be able to compete at thenext America’s Cup under our banner.”

Hamilton Island were named asChallengers of Record, who represent all ofthe challenging teams in negotiations withthe holders of sport’s oldest sporting tro-phy, after software billionaire Larry Ellison’s

Oracle Team USA retained the Cup last year.Oracle won the final winner-takes-all

race in San Francisco beating New Zealand9-8 after the Dean Barker-skippered NewZealanders had held an 8-1 lead before theAmerican team roared back.

New Zealand’s challenge, which waspartially government funded, have saidthey will challenge again, though a lack ofclarity on the venue had been puttingpotential sponsors off committing to fundthe venture. Local media have reportedthat sponsors were also concerned at themove away from San Francisco. Oracle andHamilton Island released the protocol forthe next event last month.

The event will be sailed with a similarbut smaller version of the 72-foot (21.94-metre), wing-sail catamarans used in 2013.The new 62-foot boats, called AC62s, willbe crewed by eight people, three fewerthan last year.

Nationality rules have also been intro-duced with at least two of the eight crewmembers having to be nationals of thecountry of the yacht club represented. Thevenue will be announced in October.

Britain’s Olympic champion Ben Ainslie,who was the tactician on Oracle and widelycredited with turning their fortunes aroundin the last regatta, has said he will head aBritish challenge.

America’s Cup organisers said onSaturday the British were still continuingwith their challenge. “While the withdrawalof the Challenger of Record is regrettable, itis also not unusual and we will continueour own preparations for the 35thAmericas Cup and look forward to an excit-ing future,” a statement from Ben AinslieRacing read.—Reuters

Team Australia quits

America’s Cup

McIlroy soars with double eagle

Usain Bolt

MONACO: Kenyan Silas Kiplagat shocked com-patriot Asbel Kiprop to become the fourth-fastest 1,500 metres runner of all time at a siz-zling Monaco Diamond League meeting onFriday.

Kiplagat broke through to run a year-leadingthree minutes, 27.64 seconds and surprise two-time world champion Kiprop, who was attempt-ing to break Hicham El Guerrouj’s 16-year-oldworld record of 3:26.00 in the race.

“I could see Silas coming closer and closer. Itwas a tough race,” said Kiprop, who ran 3:28.45.Kiplagat said he too would be thinking aboutthe world record in the future.

“I have the fast time now, but why not befaster and attack the world record?” he toldreporters. “I always run well here, so I’m thinkingmy win and result is no surprise. I was aware Ican do it.”

Botswana’s Nijel Amos and US sprinters JustinGatlin and Tori Bowie also posted the best per-formances of the year. Olympic silver medallistAmos delivered a second middle-distance sur-prise when he defeated fading Kenyan worldrecord holder and Olympic champion DavidRudisha in the 800 metres. Amos finished in1:42.45, the year ’s top time, with Pierre-Ambroise Bosse setting a French record of1:42.53 in second place. Rudisha was fifth.

Gatlin continued his unbeaten sprint seasonby running a personal best in the 200 metreswith 19.68 seconds. Only seven men have runfaster.

Gatlin already was the year’s leader at 100metres. “I’m ready to face the best Jamaicans in

both sprints,” the 32-year-old Gatlin said. “Thisyear I want to win the Diamond Race in the100m and stay unbeaten.”

Jamaican Nickel Ashmeade was his closestchallenger at 19.99 seconds with France’sChristophe Lemaitre third and American TysonGay fourth.

Bowie overwhelmed a world-class field in thewomen’s 100, clocking 10.80 seconds as she eas-ily defeated Jamaican Veronica Campbell-Brown,

who finished in 10.96.Uk ra in ian wor ld champion Bohdan

Bondarenko continued an outstanding sea-son for high jumpers, clearing 2.40 metres tooutlast indoor gold medall ist Mutaz EssaBarshim of Qatar. Another world champion,Colombia’s Caterine Ibarguen used her lastattempt in the women’s triple jump to bound15.31 metres and become the fifth-best everin the event. —Reuters

Kiplagat sizzles in Monaco

LONDON: Olympic champions Usain Boltand Mo Farah lead a cast of the world’sleading athletes descending on Glasgowto compete in the Commonwealth Gamesstarting in Scotland’s biggest city onWednesday. World-record holders, deco-rated Olympians and novice participantsmake up the 6,500 athletes representing70 Commonwealth nations who share theaim of claiming prizes in 261 medalevents in 17 sports.

Scotland hosts the 20th edition of themulti-sport event for the third time andinstead of trying to emulate the successof the London 2012 Olympic Games, itwill offer something quite different over11 days of competition.

Although the Games may not be heldin the same regard as the Olympics or aworld championship without superpow-ers such as the United States, China andRussia, there will be plenty of householdnames and fairytale stories.

Six-times Olympic gold medallist Boltwill bring a dose of showmanship to theHampden Park running track when thetowering Jamaican attempts to win hisfirst Commonwealth medal in the 4x100metres relay.

“I am available for relay duty if theselectors feel I can be an asset to theJamaican team in Glasgow,” Bolt said. “Ihave received lots of requests, invitationsand messages of support from my fans inScotland who are looking forward to agreat event.”

England’s double Olympic and worldchampion Farah, who is fit to take part inthe 5,000m and 10,000m after recoveringfrom abdominal pains, will join Bolt inGlasgow and the pair will be hoping toperform their customary ‘lightning bolt’and ‘Mobot’ celebrations.

“The Commonwealth Games is differ-ent from the Olympics,” the 31-year-oldFarah said. “In terms of which countriesare involved, you have everyone at theOlympics so it’s not going to be the same,but at the same time it’s another title.

“I ’m very excited to compete forEngland and go out there.” David Rudisha,Kenya’s Olympic 800 metres championand world record holder, will return toGlasgow after romping to victory at theDiamond League meeting last week andNew Zealand’s Olympic and world shotput champion Valerie Adams remainsunbeaten in her last 53 competitions.

HOME FAVORITEAustralia is expected to dominate the

swimming with the likes of CateCampbell, Christian Sprenger and JamesMagnussen, but home favourite Michael

Jamieson will receive st ong support in hisbid to become the 200 metres breast-stroke champion.

South African Chad Le Clos, who beatthe great Michael Phelps to Olympic goldin the men’s 200 metres butterfly inLondon two years ago, will also try to addto the five Commonwealth medals hewon in New Delhi four years ago.

“Hopefully, I can get one or two goldmedals,” Le Clos said. “I’m hoping to dobetter than I did four years ago. “It’s notquite like the Olympic Games or the worldchampionships where it’s the best in theworld. It’s still going be tough having theAussies, the Brits, and the Canadiansthere.

At cycling’s Velodrome, named afterScotland’s six-times Olympic championChris Hoy, England possesses a strongteam and Hoy’s former sprint partnerJason Kenny is the man to beat in theindividual sprint, while 2012 Tour deFrance champion Bradley Wiggins takespart in the time trial.

But for all the talk surrounding thelikes of Bolt and Farah, the Games alsoprovides a platform for athletes from thelesser-known sports to make their name.

Squash is not recognised as anOlympic event and was rejected in favourof retaining wrestling at the 2020 and2024 Games, meaning medals in Glasgoware the top prize for international com-petitors.

England’s three-times world championNick Matthew, who won the men’s singlesand doubles titles in New Delhi, is the topseed in Glasgow and Malaysia’s defendingchampion Nicol David leads the women’sdraw.

The integration of disability sports intothe able-bodied programme ensures thatthe some of the world’s best athletes,regardless of classification, will be givenequal billing.

Glasgow 2014 is a far cry from theGames that were held four years ago inNew Dehli. The Indian hosts were doggedby preparation and security issues where-as the Scottish organisers’ main concernwill be the reliability of the British weath-er.

Whatever the conditions, the historicCeltic Park, home of former European Cupsoccer winners Celtic, hosts the openingceremony on Wednesday before the com-petition sprawls across the city, taking invenues mirroring the diversity of theevents.

I t all culminates in the finale atHampden Park on Aug. 3 but not beforesome familiar faces, along with a few newones, have made their mark. —Reuters

Bolt, Farah headline cast at

Glasgow, Cwealth Games

MONACO: Kenya’s Silas Kiplagat reacts after winning the men’s 1500 m event during the IAAFDiamond League Hercules Athletics meeting at the Louis II stadium. —AFP

p17 2_Layout 1 7/19/14 9:54 PM Page 1


RISOUL: Vincenzo Nibali strengthened his stranglehold on theTour de France when he gained further ground over his rivals inthe second Alpine stage won by Poland’s Rafal Majka yesterday.Astana rider Nibali finished the 14th stage, a 177-km mountaintrek from Grenoble, in second place but beat AlejandroValverde by one minute as the battle for second overall looksset to go to the wire.

Valverde trails Nibali by 4:37 overall with Romain Bardet inthird place 13 seconds further back after he, fellow FrenchmanThibaut Pinot and American Tejay van Garderen droppedValverde in the closing stages of the final climb to the ski resortof Risoul.

Pinot is fourth overall 5:06 off the pace, 43 seconds ahead ofVan Garderen while another Frenchman, Jean-ChristophePeraud, is sixth (6:08) after taking third place in the stage.

Bardet’s AG2R-La Mondiale, whose ambition is to win theteam classification and the white jersey for the best Under-25rider, tried several coups on a nervous day.

Knowing that Pinot is cautious of speedy downhills, theypushed hard in the descent from the Col d’Izoard, at 2,360metres the highest point of this year’s Tour.

Bardet and Peraud, followed by Nibali and his team mateJakob Fuglsang, went ahead. Valverde managed to bridge thegap, as well as Pinot although he struggled a lot.

“We did not just do it for Pinot, we did it for all the overallcontenders. I said to my team to set a high pace in the descentbecause it’s the way of racing that I like,” said Bardet. “I’m clearlyhappy because I took time on Valverde.” “It’s a good sign thatthey’re attacking me on the descents,” said Pinot.

“They can’t do it on the climbs, so they’re targeting myweakness.” Van Garderen was dropped but eventually made itback into the yellow jersey group with the help of his BMCteam mates.

AG2R set a high pace from the start of the final climb, a 12.6-km ascent at 6.9 per cent, while Majka showed he was thestrongest in the breakaway group by going solo.

Nibali attacked the group of favourites at the 4-km bannerand only Peraud could follow his wheel. Behind, Valverde strug-gled and he could not sustain the pace set by Pinot and Van

Garderen in the chasing group. Majka was under threat byNibali but he held firm to cross the line with a 24-secondadvantage. It gave his Tinkoff-Saxo team something tocheer about after they lost team leader Alberto Contador

last week after the Spaniard broke his shinbone crashing ona descent. “We lost Alberto after putting a lot of efforts intothis Tour, so we needed to win,” team owner Oleg Tinkoffsaid in tears. —Reuters

Majka wins in the Alps

FRANCE: Poland’s Rafal Majka celebrates as he crosses the finish line at the end of the 177 km fourteenth stage of the101st edition of the Tour de France cycling race. —AFP

GERMANY: Mercedes-AMG’s German driver Nico Rosberg drives to qualify for the pole position during the qualifying session ahead of the German Formula One GrandPrix. —AFP

HOCKENHEIM: Formula One leader Nico Rosberg putMercedes on pole position for his home German GrandPrix yesterday after a brake failure dumped title rival andteam mate Lewis Hamilton out of qualifying. Hamilton,who is four points behind Rosberg in the standings afternine of 19 races, ended up sore and 16th after a heavycrash but should start 15th when a penalty is applied toSauber’s Esteban Gutierrez ahead of him.

Finland’s Valtteri Bottas joined Rosberg on the frontrow for Mercedes-powered Williams, with Brazilian teammate Felipe Massa qualifying third on a searingly hotafternoon at Hockenheim with temperatures in the 50sCelsius.

The pole was Rosberg’s fifth of the season, fourth inthe last five races and ninth of his career, but less satisfy-ing than some.

“It’s great, a home race and to be on pole is fantastic,”the 29-year-old, who got married last week and signed anew multi-year contract with Mercedes while also cele-brating Germany’s soccer World Cup win, told reporters.

“Of course I would have preferred it if it was an openfight with Lewis, so a little less happy as a result becauseLewis didn’t have a shot at it again,” said Rosberg.

McLaren’s Danish rookie Kevin Magnussen qualified astrong fourth, with 2009 world champion team mateJenson Button only 11th, to ensure Mercedes-poweredcars filled the two front rows of the grid. Red Bull’squadruple world champion Sebastian Vettel, a homewinner last year when the race was held at theNuerburgring, will line up sixth and behind Australianteam mate Daniel Ricciardo in fifth place.

Victory today would make Rosberg the first German towin his home grand prix in a German car since RudolfCaracciola in 1939, as well as the first driver in 60 years towin in Germany for a works Mercedes team.

With five of the eight races to date at the redesignedcircuit won from pole, Rosberg also knows he has a greatchance to extend his lead considerably although theweather could play a hand.

“It is supposed to be a bit colder (on Sunday), so itshould make it easier on the tyres. The weather couldplay a role, so I just need to take it as it comes,” saidRosberg.

The German had been fastest in final practice, after

Rosberg on pole as Hamilton crashes

LONDON: Tony McCoy lowered trainerMartin Pipe’s record of 4,191 winners asthe 19-time champion jockey steered It’sA Gimme to victory yesterday.

McCoy had equalled Pipe’s mark withOn The Record at Uttoxeter onWednesday, and went one better on hisJonjo O’Neill-trained record breaker atMarket Rasen in Lincolnshire.

“The record was just a very personalthing between me and Mr Pipe. He setthe standard and revolutionised train-ing,” McCoy said of his friend and men-tor.

“He is someone I held in high esteemand we had great times together in mytime as his stable jockey. “We’ve had abit of banter pretty much since I’ve rid-den my 4,000 winner.

“It’s only a personal thing and I willbe putting in a satisfying call tonight.”Pipe commented: “Now, he’s finally beat-en me. All of us in racing are so proud ofhim for doing it. “He’s marvellous for oursport and an inspiration to all the jock-eys.” McCoy was presented with a 20kgLincolnshire Poacher cheese by theracecourse management in honour ofhis achievement.

McCoy was in control at the start ofthe two-and-three-quarter-mile chasebut stable companion Lost Legend, rid-den by Richie McLernon, gave him a realfright.

There was little to chose between theO’Neill pair jumping the final fence, butin trademark fashion McCoy lifted It’s AGimme home to triumph by a lengthand three-quarters. —AFP

Hamilton had been top of the timesheets on Friday, withSaturday expected to be another duel between the toptwo for pole but it did not turn out that way. The Britonprovided the early drama when he crashed heavily atthe Sachs Kurve section of the stadium complex, whereMercedes have a grandstand, bringing out red flags tostop the session in the first phase of qualifying.

The team blamed a right front brake disc failure for

the accident, with a puff of smoke visible before the carspun and was pitched into the tyre wall.

Hamilton - who uses a different brand of brakes toRosberg as a matter of personal choice - stepped out ofthe car and was taken to the medical centre beforereturning to the paddock, declared OK but sore. Thecrash continued a run of bad luck for 2008 championHamilton, who has retired from two races this season

through no fault of his own while Rosberg suffered hisfirst blank in Britain two weeks ago. Ferrari’s FernandoAlonso, winner of the last t wo races held atHockenheim, qualified seventh while struggling Finnishteam mate Kimi Raikkonen starts 12th.

Russian rookie Daniil Kvyat qualified eighth for ToroRosso, with the Force India duo of Nico Hulkenberg andSergio Perez ninth and 10th.—Reuters

RISOUL: Young French star Romain Bardet saidhe was fed up with media focussing on his bat-tle with compatriot Thibaut Pinot as the pairmade new gains at the Tour de France yester-day. Vincenzo Nibali may be riding off to a glo-rious victory but the battle behind him for aplace on the podium is becoming ever moreintense.

Veteran Spaniard Alejandro Valverde still sitssecond overall but he suffered on the final firstcategory climb to Risoul and lost at least 30secto all his rivals. Bardet, 23, and Pinot, 24, werethe main beneficiaries as they now sit just13sec and 29sec respectively behind Valverdein third and fourth.

But Bardet reacted with annoyance whenasked once again about his battle with Pinot, aslocal media become intoxicated with thepotential shown by those two, who sit first andsecond in the young rider competition. “It’s notjust about me and Pinot, it’s about me and theother big contenders,” said the AG2R rider. “I’mpretty happy because I could take time out ofValverde, and (teammate Jean-Christophe)Peraud was very strong so it was a very goodday for us (AG2R).”

He added: “It’s a bit annoying that everyoneis focussing on Pinot and me, but there’sValverde and (Tejay) Van Garderen.

“I’m lucky because I have Jean-Christophebut there are three big Pyrenean stages tocome so we’ll see how that goes. But for thefirst time today I could really enjoy myselfgoing on the attack.”

Peraud is gaining very little attention com-pared to his younger compatriots but the 37-year-old finished third on the stage and gained24sec on Bardet and Pinot.

He is sixth overall and just 1min 31secbehind Valverde in what is turning out to be anexciting five-way battle for the two podium

spots behind Nibali.“Nibali is the strongest but there’s nothing in

it between the rest of us,” said Valverde. Theother element in the battle is Van Garderen, theAmerican BMC leader who is fifth overall.

The 25-year-old lost some time a week agoin a crash and has been trying to recover fromthat. “I’m looking forward to the rest day, I don’tknow what else to say. It was hard in the final,”he said.

“I feel like I’m not too responsive, I don’thave the same kick that guys like Pinot have. “Ithink that’s partially due to the crashes but Ithink I should be OK in the Pyrenees.” VanGarderen also knows that, on paper at least, heis a better timetrialler than all five guys aroundhim. After three stages in the Pyrenees, thepenultimate stage is a 54km race against theclock. He said: “Bardet kind of has the advan-tage of having another teammate on GC (gen-eral classification) so if he (Peraud) gets up theroad, he (Bardet) can sit on and they can playwith each other like that a little bit.

“But my trump card is definitely going to bethat timetrial. If I can just stay close enough tothem, I’m pretty confident I can move ahead.

“I would say if I’m within a minute of themthen I have a chance.” Pinot admitted he hadstruggled on Saturday, particularly on the fastdescent between the last two climbs.

But he said the battle for second was provid-ing a show for the fans. “I had trouble on thedescent but the important thing was I was withthe first group,” he said.

“It was essential to not lose time. But I’ve gotthrough my worst day on the Tour. “On theclimbs I was conserving energy. From theLautaret (the first climb of three) I had heavylegs from yesterday. “But in the end I’m happy.It’s good for the spectacle that behind Nibalithe level is very similar.”—AFP

Bardet irritated by focus

on battle with Pinot

FRANCE: France’s Romain Bardet celebrates his white jersey of best young rider on the podium at the end of the 177 km fourteenthstage of the 101st edition of the Tour de France cycling race. —AFP

McCoy passes

Pipe’s milestone


BUDAPEST: Twelve hours after Germany’s soc-cer team had won the World Cup in Brazil, thecountry’s water polo team jumped in the poolfor the opening game of the EuropeanChampionship in the Hungarian capital.

It is probably not the result - Germany suf-fered a sound 10-5 defeat at the hands ofCroatia — that kept news of the game out ofthe limelight. Professional water polo has beenshunned for so long that the sport’s leadersnow fear for its survival.

That is not the conclusion one might cometo at the Margaret Island Aquatics Complex,which has been outfitted with 8,000 seats andfills to capacity on most nights, especially whenhosts and world champions Hungary play.

Television is so saturated with other sports,however, that water polo sponsors get nowherenear the kind of media exposure they wouldthrough other events.

“Water polo has been around forever, andsome games induce downright euphoria outhere,” said Tamas Gyarfas, the Hungarian vicepresident of the international water sports asso-ciation FINA. “But their TV appeal is weaker for anumber of reasons. “We worry that it might hit apoint where it can no longer be considered atop priority sport.”

Gyarfas, who has also had a career as amedia businessman, said it is hard to popu-larise, and therefore make money on a teamsport where the athletes are mostly submergedin water and the action is interrupted every fewseconds by referees.

“Viewers have little idea what’s going on,” hesaid. “It is not enjoyable the same way as athlet-ics, where people dash about, or gymnastics,where they fly around. Still, we would like tosave this game.”

Water polo leaders have sensed this chal-lenge for years. FINA dedicated a conference toreforming water polo earlier this year, invitingmarketing and advertising experts from otherprofessional sports like the US NationalBasketball Association to learn how to sell agame well.

One presentation compared the introducto-ry show at an NBA game with the start of awater polo match. The contrast was huge: fan-fare and fireworks on one side, a solemnannouncer reading out the players’ names onthe other.

With that in mind, Hungary has put on a bigshow at the aquatics centre, with boisteroussound effects and a cheerleader who directs thefans.

For lasting change, however, more will beneeded. Pushing back the playoffs into the sum-mer months so spectators have more fun atopen air games is one idea for reform.

Other ideas include smaller pools to allowfaster games, fewer players to fit in the smallerpools, or a smaller ball to allow more powerfulshots and more goals.

The long-term goal is to spread the sport,which is only really big in the Balkans and somesouthern European countries; but water poloofficials are reluctant to change a sport that hastaken a century to develop. FINA water polodirector Gianni Lonzi said any changes need tobe tested before they become adopted, aprocess that could start next year but will taketime to calcify.

“It is like when I have an old car which I wantto change,” he said. “Until I see a car that givesme the same satisfaction, I don’t change.”

Apart from a regular contract with theHungarian team Szeged, three-times Olympicgold medallist Tamas Molnar has also played forthe last five years in the summer league inMalta, where people adore the sport l ikenowhere else.

“To the 500,000 people who live in Malta,there are ten teams,” Molnar said. “Prominentgames often have 3,000 fans, not just specta-tors, but proper fans, with flags and drums andall. They create a fantastic atmosphere. It’sexceptional.”

He said part of the secret is that the summerleague takes water polo from its regular-seasonprofessional roots and puts it where it belongs:in the sun, by the water, where fans get to enjoythe games while they spend a day at the beach.

Molnar’s generation had exceptional oppor-tunities which allowed them to focus on thegame and earn a very decent living doing it. Buthe says those circumstances may be hard toemulate in the future. “I don’t know how longthis type of a professional game can be sus-tained,” he said. “It is impossible to plan for thelong term. Clubs struggle to secure sponsors ona business basis.”

The annual budget of a championship-levelwater polo club can be close to 1.5 million euros($2.03 million), he said. That may sound likepeanuts for some other professional sports, buteven that money is often from sponsors wholike the game and not investors.

“We hoped that the US would show the wayand start a well-financed pro league when themen played in the Beijing Olympic final and theAmerican women won (the 2012) Olympics.”

To this day there is no professional waterpolo league in the United States, and notbecause Molnar and the Hungarians beat themin that Beijing final. It is because the sport justwon’t lend itself to mass media.

When big companies finance water polo it isusually a case-by-case affair. Britain’s VodafonePLC has sponsored Champions League footballand Formula One on a global basis. It only backswater polo in Hungary. “The bigger Vodafoneunits get to choose one sport beyond footballand Formula 1,” Vodafone Hungary CEO GyorgyBeck said. “The parent company was surprisedwhen we picked water polo over rugby butwhen they saw the fan numbers they had noquestions.”

Vodafone’s annual water polo sponsorshipbudget was more than 100 million forints($436,200) until recently, Beck said. It has beencut back now, although it still sponsors youthgames and special events. The company con-structed a temporary water polo arena on adowntown Budapest square for the EuropeanChampionships at a cost Beck would not dis-close. The arena will emulate the beach atmos-phere and broadcast games live.

“It has been a very positive investment,” Becksaid. “Water polo helped us establish our brandin Hungary. But water polo would not haveworked this well in other countries.”—Reuters

Water polo struggles for viewers as soccer rules

NAPLES: Greece (white) vs. Hungary (blue) play a water polo match in this file photo at the World Junior Championships.

SYDNEY: ACT Brumbies held off a Waikato Chiefs fightbackto bring an end to the New Zealanders’ quest for a thirdstraight Super Rugby title with a 32-30 victory in a breathlessplayoff match in Canberra yesterday.

Tries from Nic White, Robbie Coleman, Jesse Mogg andJarrad Butler gave the hosts a measure of revenge for theirdefeat in last year’s final and earned them a place in next

week’s semi-finals, most likely against the New South WalesWaratahs.

The Chiefs were trailing 22-3 after half an hour but theydid not win back-to-back titles by giving up easily andstormed back with tries from Bundee Aki, Tawera Kerr-Barlowand Tim Nanai-Williams to level the scores at 25-25 with 25minutes to go.

Flanker Butler scored from a rolling maul five minutes lat-er, though, and Chiefs flyhalf Aaron Cruden’s failure to con-vert replacement back Gareth Anscombe’s 77th minute tryultimately proved decisive. “We knew it was going to be a full80 performance, you don’t knock a side like that over easily,”Brumbies skipper Ben Mowen said in a televised pitchsideinterview.

Yellow cards at the start of each half for infringements atthe breakdown had a significant impact on the contest.Chiefs centre Tim Nanai-Williams was sent to the sin-bin inthe fifth minute for cynically slowing down Brumbies ball andfive minutes later the hosts were 14-3 up with two tries onthe board.

Scrumhalf White scored the first, peeling off the back off arolling maul when he spotted space down the blindside, andthen plucked Dwayne Sweeney’s chip out of the air to start aflowing move that ended with Coleman’s second.

Mogg had showed his electric pace to set Coleman free forthe line and the winger returned the favour 10 minutes laterwith a delicate pass that allowed his fullback to cross in thecorner.

Christian Lealiifano added a penalty after 29 minutes butthe rest of the half belonged to the Chiefs, who got theirreward for sustained pressure when centre Aki wrestled hisway over the line from close range after 35 minutes.

Cruden and Lealiifano traded penalties in the first threeminutes of the second half but then Brumbies winger HenrySpeight was shown his yellow card.

While Speight was off the field, Kerr-Barlow reacted quick-ly to dot the ball down after a ruck close to the line and whenNanai-Williams raced over in the corner after 55 minutes, thescores were all square. The Chiefs came from behind to beatthe Brumbies in last year’s final and the hosts were clearlydetermined not to be overhauled again.

“It wasn’t the result we were after, we started slowly andgave a quality side like the Brumbies a bit of a head start,”Cruden said. “It’s pretty disappointing but we just couldn’tquite get over the line.” The Brumbies will face the Waratahs ifSouth Africa’s Sharks beat the Otago Highlanders in yester-day’s second playoff but will go to Christchurch to play theCanterbury Crusaders next week if the New Zealanders tri-umph in Durban. —Reuters

Brumbies make semis as

champion Chiefs go down

Nic White in action in this file photo.

RIO DE JANEIRO: The World Cup did notpan out as fans of Brazil and England hadhoped. But the hosts will today celebrate acentury since their first ever international-with a fourth tier English club side providingthe opposition.

An under 23 side from top flightFluminense will face little Exeter City at Rio’santique Laranjeiras stadium to mark 100years since a Rio-Sao Paulo select met thesame modest outfit at the historic venue.Brazilian authorities recognized the gameagainst the “Pride of Devon” as Brazil’s firstever international and the encounter hasgone down in the sepia-tinted annals of thesport.

“This is where that first Brazil game wasplayed, 100 years ago,” said Fluminense mar-keting director Rodrigo Terra, eyeing thepitch from a trophy room containing allmanner of cups won by “Flu” in its 112-yearhistory.

Exeter boast just a fourth division titleachieved under former England defenderTerry Cooper in 1990 — his successor beingWorld Cup winner Alan Ball.

Fluminense have in recent years stagedhome games at the famed Maracana, which

staged the World Cup final, as the Laranjeirasstadium can today accommodate barely6,000.

A total of 900 tickets were made availablefor Sunday and all have been snapped up.“They sold out in two days,” a Fluminensespokeswoman told AFP. Fluminense haveanglo-Brazilian roots, Brazilian-British busi-nessman Oscar Cox founding the club in1902.

The original Exeter game markedFluminense’s 12th birthday. “Now, we shallmark a century since the start of the greathistory of our national side,” Terra told AFP.

1914 MATCH The hosts won the July 21, 1914 match

against an Exeter side who had been touringArgentina and accepted the invitation to gohome via Rio.

Some solid challenges flew in-one pictureshows a bloodied Artur Friedenreich, Brazil’sfirst black star, who had a German father,being helped from the pitch.

Brazilian football writer Fernando Duartehas described Friedenreich as a “propotypeBrazilian superstar” from an era pre-dating amedia hype-driven age when many clubs

would not accept black players. Today’sgame will feature the team’s respectivenational anthems and the winner will takehome the Marcos Carneiro de MendoncaCup, named after Brazil’s first goalkeeper,who also played for Fluminense. The originalball, exhibited in Fluminense’s museum, willalso make a brief appearance.

British football historian Aidan Hamilton,who has just published “Have You everPlayed Brazil”-the story of Exeter’s trip-viathe club’s supporters’ trust, dubbed thematch a major landmark.

“It made sense to create a national side atthat particular moment” although the choiceof Exeter “was very last minute,” Hamiltontold AFP.

He explained separate Sao Paulo and Rioselects had previously competed-against anArgentine XI in 1906 and a South Africanside in 1908.

But Brazil’s sports confederation wantedto unite them ahead of an embryonic SouthAmerican championship and a September1914 visit to Argentina.

Hamilton said Brazilians brought up untilthen on the amateur game thought Exeter,the first professionals they had seen, were a

rum bunch.“The hard tackling was frowned upon.

Beforehand there were articles in the papersabout professionalism in Britain.”

Hamilton added the postscript was a sadone for Exeter as several of the squad werekilled and two badly wounded in World War Iwhich broke out before they returned.

Britain formed a Football Battalionencouraging players to join up and “play thegreater game.” Several months into the warthe English league program stopped.

Exeter was just one club lending its facili-ties to volunteer corps, who would indulgein military, not football, shooting practice. Adecade ago, Exeter hosted a Brazilian XI forthe 90th anniversary.

Although the “Grecians” were then astruggling non-league side they limited theirillustrious opponents to a solitary spot-kickgoal. In 1914, Exeter almost did not fulfiltheir date. Some of the squad went bathingin shorts and were detained for public inde-cency before being released.

The southwestern side are marking theanniversary with a community theatre play,‘The Day We Played Brazil’ whose first nightwas Wednesday. —AFP

English minnows star where it all began

17McIlroy soars withdouble eagle

SUNDAY, JULY 20, 201418Majka winsin the Alps

Water polo struggles for viewers as soccer rules Page 19

LONDON: England’s Captain Alastair Cook (left), Ian Bell and Gary Ballance (right) react whilst fielding during the third day of the second Test cricket match against India, at Lord’s CricketGround. — AFP

India 1st Innings 295 (A Rahane 103; JAnderson 4-60)

England 1st Innings (overnight: 219-6)A. Cook c Dhoni b Kumar 10S. Robson c Dhoni b Kumar 17G. Ballance c Dhoni b Kumar 110I. Bell c Jadeja b Kumar 16J. Root lbw b Jadeja 13M. Ali lbw b Vijay 32L. Plunkett not out 55M. Prior c Dhawan b Shami 23B. Stokes b Kumar 0S. Broad c Dhawan b Kumar 4J. Anderson c Rahane b Jadeja 19Extras (b5, lb10, w2, nb3) 20Total (all out, 105.5 overs, 452 mins) 319Fall of wickets: 1-22 (Cook), 2-31 (Robson),3-70 (Bell), 4-113 (Root), 5-211 (Ali), 6-214(Ballance), 7-265 (Prior), 8-276 (Stokes), 9-280 (Broad), 10-319 (Anderson)Bowling: Kumar 31-10-82-6; Shami 19-5-58-

1 (2nb, 1w); Sharma 24-5-61-0 (1nb, 1w);Binny 10-0-45-0; Jadeja 18.5-1-46-2; Vijay 3-0-12-1.

India 2nd InningsM. Vijay not out 59S. Dhawan c Root b Stokes 31C. Pujara c Prior b Plunkett 43V. Kohli b Plunkett 0A. Rahane c Prior b Broad 5M. S. Dhoni not out 12Extras (b15, lb4) 19Total (4 wkts, 63 overs, 284 mins) 169To bat: R Jadeja, S Binny, B Kumar,Mohammed Shami, I SharmaFall of wickets: 1-40 (Dhawan), 2-118(Pujara), 3-118 (Kohli), 4-123 (Rahane)Bowling: Anderson 18-7-36-0; Broad 14-5-41-1; Stokes 13-2-35-1; Plunkett 12-5-24-2;Ali 6-1-14-0;Match position: India lead by 145 runs withsix second-innings wickets standing.

SCOREBOARD

LONDON: Scoreboard at stumps on the third day of the second Test between England andIndia at Lord’s yesterday:

South Africa 1st innings: 455-9 decl (D.Elgar 103, J. Duminy 100 no; Perera 4-162)

Sri Lanka 1st innings (overnight 283-9):K. Silva c Philander b Steyn 8U. Tharanga st de Kock b Duminy 83K. Sangakkara b Morkel 24M. Jayawardene lbw b Steyn 3L. Thirimanne c de Kock b Steyn 38A. Mathews b Tahir 89D. Chandimal c Petersen b Steyn 6D. Perera c de Kock b Steyn 0R. Herath c de Villiers b Morkel 19S. Lakmal c de Kock b Morkel 6S. Eranga not out 1Extras: (lb7, b4, w3, nb1) 15Total: (for all out; 104.5 overs) 292 Fall of wickets: 1-39 (Silva), 2-98(Sangakkara), 3-104 (Jayawardene), 4-136( Tharanga), 5-190 ( Thirimanne), 6-200(Chandimal), 7-201 (Perera), 8-272(Mathews), 9-283 (Lakmal), 10-292 (Herath)

Bowling: Steyn 23-7-54-5 (1w), Philander15-6-31-0 (1nb), Morkel 18.5-9-49-3 (2w),Tahir 26-5-75-1, Duminy 15-4-47-1, Elgar 7-1-25-0

South Africa 2nd innings:D. Elgar c Chandimal b Herath 12

A. Petersen c Chandimal b Perera 32Faf du Plessis b Herath 37 H. Amla c Tharanga b Perera 22AB de Viliers b Perera 51 Q. de Kock c and b Perera 36JP Duminy not out 8Extras: (b4, lb4) 8Total: (for 6 wkts decl; 50.2 overs) 206 Fall of wickets: 1-33 (Elgar), 2-54 (Petersen),3-88 (Amla), 4-131 (du Plessis), 5-193 (deVilliers), 6-206 (de Kock)Bowling: Lakmal 9-0-35-0, Herath 22-2-84-2,Perera 19.2-1-79-4.Did not bat: Philander, Morkel, Steyn, Tahir

Sri Lanka 2nd innings:U. Tharanga c de Kock b Steyn 14K. Silva not out 37K. Sangakkara not out 58Extras: (b1) 1Total (for 1 wkt; 32 overs) 110 Fall of wickets: 1-14 (Tharanga)

Bowling: Steyn 6-2-18-1, Philander 6-3-13-0,Morkel 4-1-13-0, Tahir 10-1-40-0,Duminy 5-1-24-0, Elgar 1-0-1-0.Match position: Sri Lanka need 260 runs towin the match.

SCOREBOARD

GALLE, Sri Lanka: Scoreboard at stumps on the fourth day of the first Test between SriLanka and South Africa in Galle yesterday:

LONDON: Murali Vijay anchored India’s secondinnings with a painstaking fifty after England threat-ened to take charge of the second Test at Lord’s yes-terday.

India lost three wickets for five runs in 19 balls tobe 123 for four-just 99 runs in front. But by the closeof the third day they were 169 for four — 145 runsahead but not yet a decisive lead.

Opening batsman Vijay, in for nearly five hours,was 59 not out and India captain Mahendra SinghDhoni unbeaten on 12. England’s Liam Plunkett hada day to remember, scoring a Test-best 55 not out tohelp his side into a first-innings lead and then takingtwo wickets in two balls.

“We’re going to go hard in the morning becausethis is still a good cricket wicket and if we can get afew more wickets, we’ll fancy our chances,” fastbowler Plunkett told Sky Sports.

“I thought we bowled better and my lengthswere better. I do work hard on my batting and it wasmassive for us to pass their (India’s first innings)total...I think we can chase around 270.”

India batsman Cheteshwar Pujara, out for 43 onSaturday, added: “It is evenly balanced and we stillneed some more runs.

“Setting England a target of 300 would be goodon this wicket because the bounce is variable andyou are never comfortable batting out there.” While

Vijay was becalmed, fellow opener Shikhar Dhawanstruck four fours. But on 31 the left-hander failed toget over the top of a cut off Ben Stokes and was wellcaught by Joe Root at backward point to leave India40 for one.

By contrast, it took Vijay 57 balls to both score hisfirst boundary and move into double figures, with aleg-glance off Stuart Broad.

England had again too often bowled short on apitch no longer the ‘green top’ on which captainAlastair Cook had sent India into bat after winningthe toss.

But when Plunkett was rewarded for pitching upfrom the Nursery End. First, he drew Pujara forwardand had him caught behind off the outside edge toend a second-wicket stand of 78 in nearly 30 overs.Next ball Virat Kohli made the mistake of deliberatelyleaving a ball which came back up the eight-footLord’s slope and was clean bowled for a golden duck.

Plunkett though wasted his hat-trick delivery asAjinkya Rahane left a ball well wide of off stump.

“My hat-trick ball? It was pretty average but Ididn’t want to give him a floaty half-volley and I gotmy line wrong,” explained Plunkett.

But Rahane, who made a superb 103 in the firstinnings, fell cheaply. He was on five when he fendedat a short delivery from Broad, the ball looping downthe legside to wicketkeeper Matt Prior.

However, the ball had clearly hit Rahane’s armguard rather than the glove, meaning he shouldhave remained not out. But with Indian objectionsmeaning there was no Decision Review System thisseries, Rahane was unable to challenge Australianumpire Bruce Oxenford’s verdict.

Vijay briefly came out of his shell to complete a162-ball fifty with two fours in as many JamesAnderson deliveries, an off-drive followed by a leg-side clip.

Earlier, Bhuvneshwar Kumar took six for 82 as herecorded his Test-best figures for the second time inas many matches.

But even Kumar could not prevent England gain-ing a first-innings lead of 24. The tail wagged effec-tively as England exactly 100 runs to an overnight219 for six before they were bowled out for 319. Fast-medium bowler Kumar’s return surpassed his haul offive for 82 in last week’s draw at Trent Bridge. ButPlunkett and No 11 Anderson, fresh from his Test-best 81 in Nottingham, struck a flurry of boundarieswhile adding 39 in 43 balls yesterday.

Kumar, who had removed all of England’s topfour, including century-maker Gary Ballance onFriday, reduced England to 280 for nine in initiallyovercast conditions yesterday. He bowled Stokes fora duck with a swinging delivery and then had Broadcaught at first slip. — Reuters

Vijay keeps England at bay

GALLE: Kumar Sangakkara smashed his 49th half-cen-tury as Sri Lanka launched a fightback on the fourthday of the first Test against South Africa yesterday.

The prolific left-hander also shared 96 runs for theunbroken second wicket with Kaushal Silva (37) to takeSri Lanka to 110-1 at stumps.

The hosts need 260 runs with nine wickets in handto pull off a magical come-from-behind win with threefull sessions left in the game.

“In a situation like this where you have 90 overs tobat, a win is not guaranteed but there is a chance,” SriLankan coach Marvan Atapattu said after the day’splay. “It’s a challenging total but we’ve got a teamwhich is willing to fight.” Sri Lanka had been forced onthe backfoot after they were bowled out for 292 toconcede a huge 163-run lead in the first innings.

But a sporting declaration by new South Africanskipper Hashim Amla at the tea score of 206-6 turnedthe game on its head. Although no team has everscored more than 300 runs in the final innings at Galle,the 36-year-old Sangakkara made a target of 370 lookchaseable.

The star batsman hit seven fours and a six in his 58-run knock that came off 89 deliveries. South Africabegan their defence well, with Dale Steyn once againgiving his side the early breakthrough by dismissingopener Upul Tharanga for 14.

But Sangakkara stood like a rock at the other end,

once despatching a full-toss from Tahir over the mid-wicket fence for a huge six. He completed his half-cen-tury in style, sweeping leg-spinner Imran Tahir throughmidwicket for a four. Silva also knocked off some easyruns, smacking part-timer Jean-Paul Duminy for twofours in a row.

“Look, they are very much in the contest, there’s nodoubt about it. But so are we,” said South African coachRussell Domingo. “We are set up for a cracker of a daytomorrow (Sunday). If we take two early wickets, wewill be right on top of the game.”

Vernon Philander, who was fined 75 percent of hismatch fees after being accused of ball tampering

Friday, bowled six wicketless overs for 13 runs.Earlier, AB De Villiers hit six boundaries in his breezy

58-ball 51 and also shared 62 runs with Quinton deKock (36) to set up South African second innings.

The Proteas had made 455-9 declared in their firstessay. To their credit, the Sri Lankan spinners exploitedwell the dry and dusty track, accounting for all thewickets that fell in the South African second innings.

Off-spinner Dilruwan Perera picked an impressive4-79 while Rangana Herath took 2-84. Perera struckearly into the second session, claiming the big wicketof Amla, who is leading South Africa for the first time inTest cricket. Amla (22) mistimed his flick and lobbedthe ball to a diving Upul Tharanga for his second cheapdismissal in the game. Faf du Plessis (37) fell to a turnerfrom Herath that crashed on to his stumps, dislodgingthe bails. De Villiers frustrated the spinners with hisshot-making until his stumps were shattered by Pereraclose to the tea break.

De Kock fell on the last ball before the break, lob-bing an easy return catch to Perera. Opener DeanElgar, who made 103 in the first innings, made 12while Alviro Petersen (32) was given caught behindoff Perera. South Africa had wrapped up the SriLankan innings in the fifth over of the day, with thehosts adding just nine runs to their overnight 283-9.The second and final Test will be played in Colombofrom July 24-28. — AFP

Sangakkara keeps alive

Sri Lanka victory dream

Kumar Sangakkara

BusinessSUNDAY, JULY 20, 2014

Oil remains high on global turmoil

Page 22

US states with minimum wages gain more jobs

Page 23China announces heavy investments in Argentina

Page 22KSE ends week with mixed performance

Page 24

SYDNEY: Trade Ministers, Russian Alexey Ulyukaev center, New Zealand’s Tim Groser, right, and Saudi Arabia’s Tawfig bin Fouzan Al-Rabiah listen to Australia’s Trade Minister Andrew Robb’s opening remarks during the G20 TradeMinisters meeting in Sydney, Australia, yesterday. — AP

SYDNEY: Trade ministers from the world’s leadingeconomies met in Sydney yesterday for the latest round ofG20 talks, with the crash of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17threatening to overshadow the summit.

G20 chair Australia has sought to keep the meetingfocused on economic growth, but Thursday’s disaster inrebel-held territory in eastern Ukraine put the spotlight onRussia and its possible links to the separatists.

Australia’s Trade Minister Andrew Robb said he met hisRussian counterpart Denis Manturov late Friday to presshim on whether his country “would or could stop the sepa-ratists with their current activities”.

“Australia is looking for an unequivocal Russian assur-ance that they will fully cooperate with an independentand thorough UN investigation and urgently,” Robb toldbroadcaster Sky News Saturday.

“The Russian trade minister did convey their deep con-dolences and indicate the government would cooperate

with ... (a) UN investigation.“They did not give me an assurance that Russia would

or could stop the separatists with their current activities.”Robb said Canberra may consider trade sanctions

against Russia as a result of the crash, which killed 298 peo-ple, including 28 Australians, subject to how it “responds,cooperates and is proactive in seeking answers”.

Australia, along with several other countries, already hasimposed sanctions and travel bans on some Russians andUkrainians.

Questions over Putin’s G20 visit Senior ministers have refused on comment on whether

Russian leader Vladimir Putin would be invited to the G20leaders’ summit in Brisbane, Queensland’s capital, inNovember.

But Queensland Premier Campbell Newman said Putinmight not be welcomed in his state if the Russian govern-

ment did not cooperate with an independent investigationinto the plane crash.

“If we start seeing them failing to cooperate-we’veheard that they’re not providing access at this time-if thatcontinues, I think I can speak for all Queenslanders and sayat that point he’s probably not welcome,” Newman said.

The talk of trade sanctions came as Australian TreasurerJoe Hockey said his nation would continue to keep growthas the main focus of the G20 agenda. “I think there’s asteely determination right across the board to find out whois responsible for what’s happened, but also not to allow itto distract everyone from all the tasks at hand of building astronger global economy-and importantly-creating jobs forpeople,” he told Sky News.

He added to delegates at an investment forum earlySaturday that the G20 meetings “are helping to shape thedestiny of the world’s economies-there’s no doubt aboutthat”.

“We have shifted from a regulatory framework focusingon trying to fix the problems of the past, getting boggeddown in more financial services regulation, getting boggeddown in procedure ... to focus on growth and jobs.”

G20 finance ministers agreed to a 2.0 percent additionalgrowth target over five years at their February meeting inSydney.

Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott said at a B20business leaders’ summit this week that he was asking G20nations to push harder on their growth plans so they couldmeet the February pledge.

Business leaders at the meeting made a series of recom-mendations on structural reforms and free trade that couldboost global growth by US$3.4 trillion and create millionsof jobs. They included a call for the free flow of goods, serv-ices, labour and capital, an effective and transparent regu-latory framework, as well as structural reforms that wouldboost trade and lift infrastructure investment. — AFP

MH17 crash clouds over G20 trade summit

MADRID: Creditors of a bankrupt Spanishmotorway business met on Friday to decidewhether to liquidate it, piling pressure on thegovernment to come up with a way to avoid bil-lions of debt from nine failed toll road compa-nies ending up on its books. After more than ayear of negotiations between ministries, banksand construction companies, the governmenthas yet to find a way of saving the motorwaybusinesses without debt of over 4 billion euros($5.4 billion) hitting its finances.

Spain wants to minimize the effect of anyrescue on Europe-agreed deficit targets as itnegotiates the politically difficult task of bailingout private sector operators with taxpayers’money just two years after sinking over 40 bil-lion euros into the country’s failed banks. If thecreditors of the AP-36, a toll road owned byFerrovial and Sacyr, reject a viability plan putforward by its owners, the business will go intoliquidation and under Spanish law the govern-ment will have to pay its debts of around 500million euros.

Others could follow suit, with banks holdingdebt linked to failed motorway companies ofaround 3.9 billion euros, with a further 470 mil-lion of debt with builders. The maximum hit forthe deficit would be 3 billion euros, a govern-

ment source said. “This long, drawn-out uncer-tainty is terrible. The problem is not gettingfixed and it won’t solve itself,” said a source atone of the motorway owners. “It’s a case of sav-ing them, or letting them fall. It’s that simple.Someone will have to make the decision.”

Spain has pledged to reduce its public deficitto about 3 percent of GDP by 2016, implyingsome 35 billion euros will have to be found inthe three years from end-2013 to end-2016 tomeet the target. The deficit was 6.6 percent in2013, and so a hit of 3 billion euros would makea challenging task even harder. Ferrovial andSacyr declined to comment. A spokeswoman forthe Ministry of Public Works also declined tocomment on the situation beyond saying thegovernment was still working on a solution.Seopan, the industry body that is negotiatingwith the government on behalf of the builders,declined to comment too.

Stand offTraffic on the nine toll roads, most of which

connect the capital Madrid to outlying towns,has failed to reach sustainable levels during arecession. Under Spanish legislation drawn upover 40 years ago, when a private motorwaygoes bust, the state has to repay owners for the

cost of the land and the construction. The gov-ernment has sought a way of funding its obliga-tions through public debt rather than throughthe deficit. Earlier this year, it proposed creatinga holding company for the assets of the ninemotorways while forcing a 50 percent haircuton the banks and paying the remaining debt, ofaround 2.3 billion euros, with a 30-year bondwith a coupon of 1 percent plus a variable com-ponent dependent on the traffic on the roads.

But banks rejected this because they said thecoupon on the bond was too low, as it com-pares with interest payments of over 5 percenton the government bond of this maturity. “Thecoupon is so low, it would be like taking anothercut on top of the one we’ve already swallowed,”said a source at one of the creditor banks. “We’rewaiting for some gesture from the government,but there’s been nothing,” he added. The gov-ernment has also had problems convincing theEuropean Commission that such a schemewould not constitute state aid, one source withknowledge of the matter said. The EuropeanCommission said it was in contact with Spanishauthorities regarding plans to set up a publiccompany to deal with the highways in bank-ruptcy proceedings, but declined to commentfurther. — Reuters

Spain tries to keep motorway companies’ debt off its books

Creditors of bankrupt road firm mull options

SYDNEY: Eleventh hour negotiations to win Indian approval for a breakthrough globaltrade pact may not have succeeded in the end despite initial signs of progress, sourcesinvolved in the discussions said yesterday.

India is the most prevalent among a group of developing nations angry at rich coun-tries for failing to address their concerns about a deal on trade facilitation - struck by WTOmember states in Bali last year - that must be detailed by a July 31 deadline.

Proponents believe the deal could add $1 trillion to global GDP and 21 million jobs.But India’s Trade Ministry said on Wednesday it would “find it difficult” to support the pro-tocol unless it was satisfied that adequate emphasis is being placed on negotiationsabout food security and other issues important to poor countries sparking furious nego-tiations at the G20 Trade Ministers meeting in Sydney.

Three officials involved in the negotiations, speaking under the condition of anonymi-ty in order to speak frankly, expressed exasperation with what they described as a historyof erratic behaviour on the part of the Indian trade team that made it difficult to trust.

India has not provided any clear description of exactly what changes it would likemade to the agreement, they said, although it would not matter anyway because no con-cessions were on offer given how difficult the negotiations had proven to conclude thefirst time round.

The Indian demands appear to have shaken confidence in the new government ofNarendra Modi, who came to power earlier this year with a pro-business agenda but nowappears set to derail what several officials called the most significant global trade pact intwo decades.

Australian Trade Minister Andrew Robb said assurances had been given to all of thesignatories to the treaty that their concerns would be met and expressed optimism that itwould be resolved before the deadline.

“There was strong resolution around the table that India’s issues to do with food secu-rity would and should and will be addressed as decided previously and I think there willbe discussions about how to satisfy the Indians and they won’t be left behind,” Robb toldreporters.

The row over subsidies has raised fears that the so-called “trade facilitation agree-ment”, the first ever global trade agreement under the World Trade Organization, will bederailed. — Reuters

Concerns mount over India’s stance on global trade pact


EXCHANGE RATES

Bahrain Exchange Company

Al-Muzaini Exchange Co.

Dollarco Exchange Co. Ltd

ASIAN COUNTRIESJapanese Yen 2.791Indian Rupees 4.709Pakistani Rupees 2.865Srilankan Rupees 2.168Nepali Rupees 2.954Singapore Dollar 229.360Hongkong Dollar 36.491Bangladesh Taka 3.636Philippine Peso 6.501Thai Baht 8.811Irani Riyal transfer 0.271Irani Riyal cash 0.273

GCC COUNTRIESSaudi Riyal 75.444Qatari Riyal 77.735Omani Riyal 734.930Bahraini Dinar 751.430UAE Dirham 77.074

ARAB COUNTRIESEgyptian Pound - Cash 39.850Egyptian Pound - Transfer 39.467Yemen Riyal/for 1000 1.320Tunisian Dinar 167.540Jordanian Dinar 399.520Lebanese Lira/for 1000 1.898Syrian Lira 2.016Morocco Dirham 34.699

EUROPEAN & AMERICAN COUNTRIESUS Dollar Transfer 282.800Euro 387.290Sterling Pound 486.560Canadian dollar 267.680Turkish lira 133.020Swiss Franc 319.910Australian Dollar 267.810US Dollar Buying 281.600

GOLD20 Gram 245.00010 Gram 124.0005 Gram 64.000

CURRENCY BUY SELL

EuropeBelgian Franc 0.007353 0.008353British Pound 0.476110 0.485110Czech Korune 0.006008 0.018008Danish Krone 0.047536 0.052536Euro 0.379356 0.387356Norwegian Krone 0.041660 0.046860Romanian Leu 0.086935 0.086935Slovakia 0.008101 0.018101Swedish Krona 0.037543 0.042543Swiss Franc 0.310332 0.320532Turkish Lira 0.134490 0.141490

AustralasiaAustralian Dollar 0.257014 0.268514New Zealand Dollar 0.242477 0.251977

AmericaCanadian Dollar 0.258001 0.266501US Dollars 0.278800 0.283150US Dollars Mint 0.279300 0.283150

AsiaBangladesh Taka 0.003296 0.003896Chinese Yuan 0.044200 0.047700Hong Kong Dollar 0.034412 0.037162Indian Rupee 0.004469 0.004870Indonesian Rupiah 0.000020 0.000026Japanese Yen 0.002698 0.002878Kenyan Shilling 0.003220 0.003220Korean Won 0.000265 0.000280Malaysian Ringgit 0.085022 0.091022Nepalese Rupee 0.002967 0.003137Pakistan Rupee 0.002663 0.002943

Philippine Peso 0.006418 0.006698Sierra Leone 0.000069 0.000075Singapore Dollar 0.223995 0.229995South African Rand 0.020364 0.028864Sri Lankan Rupee 0.001871 0.002451Taiwan 0.009305 0.009485Thai Baht 0.008447 0.008997

ArabBahraini Dinar 0.743942 0.751942Egyptian Pound 0.036594 0.039694Iranian Riyal 0.000078 0.000080Iraqi Dinar 0.000179 0.000239Jordanian Dinar 0.394793 0.402293Kuwaiti Dinar 1.0000000 1.0000000Lebanese Pound 0.000137 0.000237Moroccan Dirhams 0.022206 0.046206Nigerian Naira 0.001140 0.001775Omani Riyal 0.728773 0.734453Qatar Riyal 0.076996 0.078209Saudi Riyal 0.074803 0.075503Syrian Pound 0.001754 0.001974Tunisian Dinar 0.162976 0.170976Turkish Lira 0.134490 0.141490UAE Dirhams 0.076041 0.077190Yemeni Riyal 0.001276 0.001356

UAE Exchange Centre WLL

COUNTRY SELL DRAFT SELL CASH Australian Dollar 253.58 250.58Canadian Dollar 267.38 268.38Swiss Franc 322.39 320.39Euro 388.50 389.50US Dollar 282.30 285.30Sterling Pound 487.31 490.31Japanese Yen 2.83 2.85Bangladesh Taka 3.638 3.908Indian Rupee 4.703 5.003Sri Lankan Rupee 2.171 2.606Nepali Rupee 2.957 3.492Pakistani Rupee 2.864 2.790UAE Dirhams 76.93 77.39Bahraini Dinar 751.37 753.44Egyptian Pound 39.47 40.07Jordanian Dinar 401.78 407.43Omani Riyal 734.16 741.46Qatari Riyal 77.96 78.51Saudi Riyal 75.41 75.81

Rate for Transfer Selling RateUS Dollar 282.650Canadian Dollar 267.935Sterling Pound 483.335Euro 386.070Swiss Frank 317.135Bahrain Dinar 752.300UAE Dirhams 76.930Qatari Riyals 78.515Saudi Riyals 75.645Jordanian Dinar 399.240Egyptian Pound 39.477Sri Lankan Rupees 2.171Indian Rupees 4.700Pakistani Rupees 2.863Bangladesh Taka 3.639Philippines Pesso 6.477Cyprus pound 694.245Japanese Yen 3.780

Syrian Pound 2.885Nepalese Rupees 3.935Malaysian Ringgit 89.785Chinese Yuan Renminbi 45.955Thai Bhat 9.775Turkish Lira 133.510

India Reliance posts record $1bn Q1 profit

Al Mulla Exchange

Currency Transfer Rate (Per 1000)US Dollar 282.250Euro 386.900Pound Sterlng 484.850Canadian Dollar 264.700Indian Rupee 4.702Egyptian Pound 39.465Sri Lankan Rupee 2.167Bangladesh Taka 3.634Philippines Peso 6.488Pakistan Rupee 2.860Bahraini Dinar 751.800UAE Dirham 76.900Saudi Riyal 75.400*Rates are subject to change

B U S I N E S S

NEW DELHI: Indian retail-to-energy group RelianceIndustries Ltd reported a record $1-billion net profit forthe financial first-quarter, fuelled by a strong petro-chemicals performance.

Reliance, controlled by the country’s wealthiest manMukesh Ambani, announced net profit for the threemonths to June climbed by a better-than-expected13.7 percent to 59.57 billion rupees ($1 billion) in thesame period a year ago.

The group, which owns a supermarket chain and atelecommunications company but derives most of itsearnings from its massive energy operations, has “deliv-

ered a record level of consolidated net profit this quar-ter,” Ambani said. The company “has a great pipeline ofnew projects” that will keep Reliance ahead of rivals,Ambani said in a statement.

The performance beat analysts’ expectations thatthe company, which runs the world’s biggest refinerycomplex, would post a net profit of around 54 billionrupees during the first quarter of the 2014-15 financialyear. “The petrochemicals business performance high-lights the strength of our portfolio-mix,” Ambani said.

“Alongside, this robust financial performance, wealso made significant progress on our growth commit-

ments,” he said.The company’s strong lineup of new projects “will

give Reliance “an enduring competitive advantage”. Hesaid that the company was further expanding its retailbusiness in existing markets and “exploring newer mar-kets”. Reliance’s revenues jumped by 7.2 percent to 1.1trillion rupees ($17.9 billion) in the first quarter from ayear earlier.

The company said that gas output from offshorefields in the KG-D6 block on the country’s east coasthad fallen by 15 percent during the quarter from a yearearlier. Earlier this month, the government refused to

allow Reliance to recover $2.4 billion it had invested todevelop the D6 offshore gas block as production hadfallen dramatically and was significantly below expect-ed volume.

The company said the fall in output was mainly dueto the shutdown of wells in D1 and D3 fields in the D6block. The matter is under arbitration amid claims bythe oil ministry that output has fallen because the com-pany failed to drill the number of wells it had pledged.

The company says that gas, used widely in energy-hungry India for power, is far harder to extract than ini-tially expected. — AFP

NEW YORK: The price of oil retreated slightly Friday but remainedelevated because of political turmoil around the world. Concernthat conflicts and rising tensions in the Ukraine and the MiddleEast could disrupt supplies sent oil prices higher this week, thoughthe world appears to have an ample supply of crude and supplieshave not been affected.

The industry calls this higher price, based only on fear, a “riskpremium.” “Developments during the past couple of days haveadded to a long list of geopolitical hot spots,” wrote energy analystJim Ritterbusch in a note to clients, which he says “will force the oilcomplex to maintain significant amount of riskpremium.”Benchmark US crude for August delivery fell 6 cents toclose at $103.13 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Itrose 2.2 percent for the week.

Brent crude for September delivery, a benchmark for interna-tional oils, fell 65 cents to close at $107.24 on the ICE Futuresexchange in London.

US crude closed under $100 per barrel Tuesday for the first timesince May, but that marked the end of a three-week slide in prices.A large draw in US oil inventories pushed prices higher Wednesdayand then a series of political events gave the market more jitters.

The Obama Administration announced increased sanctions on

Russia Wednesday, including against Russia’s largest oil company,over Russia’s support of rebels in Ukraine.

Then a Malaysian Airlines passenger plane was shot down overUkraine Thursday, raising concerns that a wider conflict or furthersanctions could disrupt supplies from Russia, the world’s biggestcrude exporter outside of OPEC.

And later Thursday Israel launched a ground offensive intoGaza, intensifying turmoil in the Middle East, the world’s mostimportant oil-producing region. These threats to global oil produc-tion remain just threats, and analysts say the likelihood of supplyinterruptions is small. But it’s enough for buyers to buy more oilfutures now, to protect against an actual disruption that sendsprices rocketing higher.

“Crude oil prices are expected to continue their recent uptrenddue to increasing volatility in the oil market following the uncer-tainty in Middle East and highly tentative conditions betweenUkraine, Russia and the West,” said analyst Myrto Sokou fromSucden Financial Research in London.

In other Nymex trading:Wholesale gasoline fell 2.1 cents to close at $2.860 a gallon.Natural gas fell 0.3 cent to close at $3.951 per 1,000 cubic feet.Heating oil fell 1.4 cents to close at $2.845 a gallon. — AP

Oil remains high on global turmoil

world appears to have ample supply of crude

SAN JUAN: This July 16, 2014 photo shows the financial district in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Puerto Rico has seen a flurry of credit ratingdowngrades since the announcement of a law that allows some public corporations to restructure their debt if needed. The law wasapproved as the US territory enters its eighth year in recession. — AP

NEW DELHI: Swatch has applied to set upstores in India, a report said yesterrday, as theSwiss-based watchmaker moves to tap a grow-ing and increasingly accessory-conscious con-sumer class.

Swatch, with $10 billion in annual sales, hasmade a formal proposal to the commerce min-istry under which the company would have 100percent control of its business, the BusinessStandard daily said.

The watchmaker would be the biggest inter-national group to seek entry into India’s 100-percent-owned single-brand retail segmentafter furniture-maker IKEA and fashion clothingfirm H&M, both Swedish companies.

Swatch watches, including Omega, Longinesand Tissot, are currently are sold in Indiathrough dealers and third-party stores. NeitherSwatch nor the Indian government could imme-diately be reached for comment.

Experts say the move is a sign that Swatchwants to create a stronger Indian brand identity.The Indian watch market is forecast to rise to$2.7 billion by 2020 from $898 million now,according to a recent industry report.

India’s new right-wing government hopesforeign investors will start looking closely againat the country after turning away in the face of asharp growth slowdown and corruption scan-dals under the previous left-leaning Congressgovernment, ousted at the polls in May.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has promisedto improve India’s investment climate, easebureaucratic red tape and create a more pre-dictable regulatory and tax climate.

But introducing free-market change is politi-cally fraught with many politicians, unions andcivil society groups favouring governmentspending and protectionism over economic lib-eralisation.

The Modi government, despite its pro-busi-ness tone, has already said it opposes a lawpassed by the previous government allowingforeigners to own stores selling more than onebrand of products because it wants to protectIndia’s many small shopkeepers from supermar-ket giants such as Wal-Mart, Tesco and others.

Swatch’s reported application comes soonafter French supermarket chain Carrefour’sannounced its departure. Carrefour, which oper-ates five wholesale stores in India, made theannouncement after the government reiteratedopposition to foreign investment in multi-brandretail.

Wal-Mart last year ditched a plan to openretail stores to focus on wholesale activities ande-commerce. The Economic Times separatelysaid the government was unlikely to formallyreverse Congress’s decision allow 51 percent for-eign direct investment in multi-brand retail forfear of sending negative signals to the foreigninvestor community. — AFP

Switzerland’s Swatch to open stores in India

BUENOS AIRES: Visiting Chinese President XiJinping announced Friday huge investments inhydroelectric power, shipbuilding, railways and adeal to help Argentina build its fourth nuclearplant.

No total dollar figure was given. Xi haspressed a charm offensive with Latin Americasince arriving in Brazil earlier this week. Fridaysaw Argentina in the spotlight, with Xi signingmore than 20 agreements with President CristinaKirchner on the first day of his three-day visit.

Among the agreements was a bilateral “strate-gic partnership,” similar to others signed withemerging nations such as Brazil.

“I want to emphasize that we have signed anagreement to raise the level of our relations inorder to turn them into a strategic partnership,along with investments in oil, mining, the nuclearfield, agriculture and plant diseases,” Xi said, fromthe Casa Rosada presidential complex.

China will contribute $4.4 billion toward theconstruction of two hydroelectric dams inArgentina’s southern Santa Cruz province and anadditional $2.1 billion to remodel strategic railtransport for carrying goods, especially food.

It will also contribute $423 million for con-struction of 11 ships. “In today’s world, the bestopportunities occur for emerging nations, as

demonstrated in the recent BRICS summit inBrasilia,” Kirchner said.

Xi was in Brazil this week for a summit of theBRICS group of emerging powers-Brazil, Russia,India, China and South Africa-and SouthAmerican presidents.

The gathering saw the countries agree tolaunch a New Development Bank to fund infra-structure projects in developing nations and anemergency reserve, drawing praise from LatinAmerican presidents who see them as alterna-tives to Western-dominated financial institutions.

Following the BRICS summit, Xi signed dealswith Brazil Thursday, met with regional leadersand proposed a $20 billion infrastructure fundthat highlights Beijing’s growing interests in theregion.

The visit is Xi’s second to Latin America sincetaking office last year, when he toured Mexico,Costa Rica and Trinidad and Tobago. Amid itspush to expand business in South America, Chinahas invested some $23 billion in Argentinehydrocarbons, mining, finance and agriculturalexports.

China is Argentina’s third-largest trading part-ner behind the South American Mercosur blocand the European Union, and one of its maindestinations for food exports. — AFP

China announces heavy investments in Argentina

B U S I N E S SSUNDAY, JULY 20, 2014

KUWAIT: Kuwait’s May monetary statis-tics revealed a largely steady picture,with credit growth solid and moderat-ing money supply growth. The month’scredit figure has been softer thanexpectations as a result of the recentpay downs of bank debt by some com-panies.

Meanwhile, rates appeared to easefurther following some upward pres-sure over the last year. We expect bankcredit growth to top 8% for the year.

Credit saw a relatively strong monthin May, though not strong enough tocounter the effects of April’s weak num-ber. Growth eased further to 7.1% year-on-year (y/y) as a result. At KD 267 mil-lion, the monthly gain was well abovethe 12-month average of KD 167 mil-lion. Household credit continued toease, but remained very healthy.Meanwhile, growth in business creditwas solid in May, though unimpressiveon y/y basis. Household debt (personalfacilities ex-securities) was up KD 58million, with y/y growth easing to13.9%. While this figure continued to beaffected by Family Fund settlements, italso reflects an easing trend in the sec-tor which comes as no surprise.

Non-bank financials saw an unusualincrease of KD 21 million in credit,

despite the deleveraging trend that hascharacterized the sector over the lastfew years. Credit to the sector remainsdown against a year ago by 14.9%. Thesector, which includes many strugglinginvestment companies, has been see-ing a gradual deleveraging since 2009;the process has reduced the sector’sbanking debt by nearly 50% since its2008 peak, to the current KD 1.5 billion..

All remaining credit gained KD 189million, with growth easing to 6.3% y/y.Most of the gains came from the realestate sector (+KD 54 mn) and loans forthe purchase of securities (+KD 29 mn).Trade and industry also saw relativelyhealthy growth as did the “other” sector.Overall, business credit remains healthy,though the pace of growth has notbeen picking up since the fall.

Money supply (M2) growth eased to6.1% y/y as private deposits rose by KD

514 million following a decline lastmonth. The increase was largely in dinardeposits, with time deposits seeing adisproportionate KD 303 millionincrease. Growth in the narrower M1measure of money supply also eased to15.1%.

Average customer deposit rates ondinar time deposits moved lower acrossthe board following some upward pres-sure in March and April. Rates on the 1-month, 3-month, 6-month, and 12-month time deposits stood at 0.59%,0.78%, 0.98%, and 1.18%, off by 1-3basis points (bps). KD interbank ratesalso edged lower with the 1-monthKIBOR down by one basis point. The 1-month KIBOR had moved up quitenoticeably over the last 12 months,from a low of 0.60% in July 2013 beforepeaking at 0.98% in March this year. Ithas since retreated to 0.94%.

Kuwait’s credit sees a relatively strong month in May

NBK Ecomonic Report

US states with minimum

wages gain more jobs13 states boost their minimums

WASHINGTON: Maybe a higher mini-mum wage isn’t so bad for job growthafter all. The 13 US states that raised theirminimum wages at the beginning of thisyear are adding jobs at a faster pace thanthose that did not, providing somecounter-intuitive fuel to the debate overwhat impact a higher minimum has onhiring trends.

Many business groups argue that rais-ing the minimum wage discourages jobgrowth by increasing the cost of hiring. ACongressional Budget Office report earli-er this year lent some support for thatview. It found that a minimum wage of$10.10 an hour, as President Obama sup-ports, could cost 500,000 jobs nation-wide.

But the state-by-state hiring data,released Friday by the Labor Department,provides ammunition to those who dis-agree. Economists who support a higherminimum say the figures are encourag-ing, though they acknowledge they don’testablish a cause and effect. There aremany possible reasons hiring mightaccelerate in a particular state.

“It raises serious questions about theclaims that a raise in the minimum wageis a jobs disaster,” said John Schmitt, asenior economist at the liberal Center for

Economic and Policy Research. The jobdata “isn’t definitive,” he added, but is“probably a reasonable first cut at what’sgoing on.”

Bigger chanceJust last week, Obama cited the better

performance by the 13 states in supportof his proposal for boosting the mini-mum wage nationwide.

“When ... you raise the minimumwage, you give a bigger chance to folkswho are climbing the ladder, workinghard.... And the whole economy doesbetter, including businesses,” Obama saidin Denver.

In the 13 states that boosted theirminimums at the beginning of the year,the number of jobs grew an average of0.85 percent from January through June.The average for the other 37 states was0.61 percent.

Nine of the 13 states increased theirminimum wages automatically in linewith inflation: Arizona, Colorado, Florida,Missouri, Montana, Ohio, Oregon,Vermont and Washington. Four morestates - Connecticut, New Jersey, NewYork and Rhode Island - approved legisla-tion mandating the increases.

Twelve of those states have seen job

growth this year, while employment inVermont has been flat. The number ofjobs in Florida has risen 1.6 percent thisyear, the most of the 13 states with high-er minimums. Its minimum rose to $7.93an hour from $7.79 last year.

Some economists argue that sixmonths of data isn’t enough to draw con-clusions. “It’s too early to tell,” said StanVeuger, a scholar at the AmericanEnterprise Institute. “These states are verydifferent along all kinds of dimensions.”

For example, the number of jobs inNorth Dakota - which didn’t raise theminimum wage and has prosperedbecause of a boom in oil and gas drilling -rose 2.8 percent since the start of thisyear, the most of any state.

But job growth in the aging industrialstate of Ohio was just 0.7 percent after itsminimum rose to $7.95 from $7.85. Thefederal minimum wage is $7.25. Veuger,one of the 500 economists who signed aletter in March opposed to an increase inthe federal minimum, said the higherwages should over time cause employersto hire fewer workers. They may alsoreplace them with new technologies.

Low-wage employersThe Congressional Budget Office cit-

ed those factors in its February report.But in addition to job losses, the CBO alsosaid a higher minimum could boost pay-checks for another 16.5 million workers.

Sylvia Allegretto, an economist at theUniversity of California, Berkeley, said thatresearch comparing counties in statesthat raised their minimums with neigh-boring counties in states that did not hasfound no negative impact on employ-ment.

Restaurants and other low-wageemployers may have other ways of off-setting the cost of higher wages, asidefrom cutting back on hiring, she said.Higher pay can reduce staff turnover andsave on hiring and training costs.

State and local governments havebecome increasingly active on the issueas the federal minimum wage hasremained unchanged for five years.Twenty-two states currently have higherminimums than the federal requirement.And 38 states have considered minimumwage legislation this year, the most onrecord, according to the NationalConference of State Legislatures. At least16 will boost their minimums startingnext year, the NCSL says. —AP

Switzerland tops innovation

rankings for fourth year

SYDNEY: Switzerland has claimed the top spot on the Global InnovationIndex for the fourth-straight year while Sub-Saharan Africa “posted signifi-cant regional improvement”.

The annual rankings, which this year focused on the role people play inthe innovation process, found that Switzerland and other top-ranked coun-tries Britain, Sweden and Finland, had strong all-round support systemsthat led to “high levels of creativity”.

BRICS nations such China, Brazil and India were catching up with thedeveloped countries, the researchers from Cornell University, INSEAD andthe World Intellectual Property Organization said in a statement.

“China significantly outperforms the average score of high-incomeeconomies across the combined quality indicators,” they added in a reportreleased on the sidelines of a G20 trade ministers’ meeting in Sydney.

The Sub-Saharan Africa region also moved up the rankings, with Coted’Ivoire recording the biggest jump among the 143 economies surveyed.

“Sub-Saharan Africa now has more ‘innovation learner’ economies thanany other region, with five African economies joining that status in 2014:Burkina Faso, Gambia, Malawi, Mozambique, and Rwanda,” the researcherssaid.

They also found that growth in research and development funding wasslowing as governments reduce public spending, and amid firms’ cautiousattitudes towards investing in new projects.

Asian countries-particularly China, South Korea and India-were expectedto buck the trend and boost their support for research and developmentprogrammes, the researchers said. —AFP


BAYAN WEEKLY MARKET REPORTKUWAIT: The Price Index closed at 7,097.04 points, up by0.30% from the week before closing, the Weighted Indexdecreased by 0.14% after closing at 477.55 points, where-as the KSX-15 Index closed at 1,164.14 points down by0.38%. Furthermore, last week’s average daily turnoverincreased by 51.97%, compared to the preceding week,reaching K.D 17.89 million, whereas trading volume aver-age was 183.36 million shares, recording an increase of50%.

The stock market indices were not able to realizegains, except for the Price Index, which received supportfrom the purchasing power that included many stocks ofdifferent sectors, especially in the Real Estate andTechnology sectors; whilst both the Weighted Index andKSX-15 Index declined as a result to the quick profit col-lection operations that were executed on some large-capstocks of previous gains.

In addition, the Price Index was able to realize thegains for the fourth consecutive week, as the small-capstocks continued to play the outstanding role in realizingsuch gains, through the purchasing and the quick specu-lative operations on such stocks. Moreover, last week’sstock market performance came in light of the noticeableincrease in the trading activity, especially the value,which recorded in one session its highest level during thecurrent month.

Also, the stock market initiated the first session of lastweek with gains to its three indices, in light of the strongpurchasing operations that included many stocks,among positive expectations for the listed companiesfirst half results, which activated the purchasing opera-tions. However, during the end of the week’s session, thestock market indices declined, due to the strong profitcollection operations, among a drop in most of the trad-ed stocks during the same session, despite the increasein the trading activity compared to the previous session.

The stock market realized such performance in light ofthe continued state of watch and cautious that are overcontrolling the traders, whom waiting for the listed com-panies disclosures for its first half financial results, espe-cially that very few have already disclosed their results,

although more than two weeks of the given legal disclo-sure period have passed, which will end mid of theupcoming month.

For the annual performance, the price index endedlast week recording 5.99% annual loss compared to itsclosing in 2013, while the weighted index increased by5.45%, and the KSX-15 recorded 8.96% growth.

Sectors’ IndicesSeven of KSE’s sectors ended last week in the green

zone, while the other Five recorded declines. Last week’shighest gainer was the Technology sector, achieving1.12% growth rate as its index closed at 968.55 points.Whereas, in the second place, the Real Estate sector’sindex closed at 1,226.65 points recording 1.12% increase.The Basic Materials sector came in third as its indexachieved 1.05% growth, ending the week at 1,219.65points.

On the other hand, the Consumer Services sectorheaded the losers list as its index declined by 1.73% toend the week’s activity at 1,105.22 points. The Oil & Gassector was second on the losers’ list, which indexdeclined by 1.54%, closing at 1,154.55 points, followed bythe Consumer Goods sector, as its index closed at1,301.03 points at a loss of 0.19%.

Sectors’ ActivityThe Financial services sector dominated total trade

volume during last week with 483.94 million shareschanging hands, representing 52.79% of the total markettrading volume. The Banking sector was second in termsof trading volume as the sector’s traded shares were19.90% of last week’s total trading volume, with a total of182.40 million shares.

On the other hand, the Banking sector’s stocks werethe highest traded in terms of value; with a turnover ofK.D 29.55 million or 33.03% of last week’s total markettrading value. The Financial Services sector took the sec-ond place as the sector’s last week turnover was K.D27.73 million represented 31% of the total market trad-ing value.

KSE ends week with mixed performance

JOHANNESBURG: When Malagasy entrepre-neur Andry Ravololonjatovo came up with theidea of a hi-tech translation service namedafter a local bird, the Drongo, he hesitatedabout registering the patent.

In many countries in Africa, protection ofintellectual property (IP) is still patchy orundeveloped, and many innovators are putoff by the onerous and expensive affair of reg-istering their products.

Despite a wave of technological innovationwashing over the continent, many inventorsare working in secret, doing without peerfeedback for fear of having their ideaspinched by copycats.

They are wary too of weak national courtsystems that are often largely ineffectual inenforcing IP rights. “In the beginning, wethought of just operating without registeringdue to the arduous and costly process. Inaddition, protection is only guaranteed for 10years,” Drongo’s founder Ravololonjatovo toldReuters.

Named after a black-feathered bird foundin Madagascar that mimics the calls of otherbirds, Drongo is developing mobile applica-tions for text translations in international lan-guages like English and French.

Ravololonjatovo hopes to widen that to soft-ware that recognises the oral Malagasy lan-guage.

“Thinking big, we anticipate what mighthappen someday as we grow globally, so weneed some kind of protection,”Ravololonjatovo said, adding it was preciselythis that prompted him to register with localpatent protection authorities.

Not surprisingly, the patchy data availableon African patent and trademark registrationsshows a concentration in the more developedeconomies, where technology and regulatoryand financial frameworks are more firmlyestablished.

Figures from the World IntellectualProperty Organisation (WIPO) show that in2013, there were 351 international applica-tions from South Africa filed through itsPatent Cooperating Treaty (PCT) system.

Morocco had 54 filings, Nigeria and Kenyahad seven each. Africa accounted for about500 PCT applications last year, less than 1 per-cent of more than 205,000 made globally,indicating patent protection is still embryonicon the fast-growing continent.

For IP lawyers working across Africa, chal-lenges include infrastructure and systems

problems that cause backlogs and delayswhen searching for, examining and issuingcertificates.

Some countries such as Nigeria, Africa’sbiggest economy and oil producer and afavoured foreign investment target, are onlynow transforming their manual registries intodigital format to create a timely and accurateonline filing system.

Antiquated laws, which can sometimesmean trademarks not being recognised, arenow also being reviewed in most states asinvestor interest blossoms for an African con-tinent rising out of poverty and conflict. Butcosts can be an obstacle for African innova-tors who may be struggling to raise funds.

For Drongo, its patent protection registra-tion cost $400, a big amount for the smallstart-up. But the amount of paperworkrequired for the process and the time spentwaiting for it to happen was even more frus-trating, Ravololonjatovo said.

Trade mark applications in the moreexpensive territories range between $1,200-$1,700 while patents require between $1,400and $1,900, according to Johannesburg-based law firm ENS, which represents clientsacross the continent. — Reuters

Inventors struggle to

protect patents in Africa

Former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra leaves after a press conference inBangkok, Thailand, Friday, July 18, 2014. Yingluck defended herself over the ricesubsidy scheme, questioned the fairness of the investigation process anddenied rumors that she will go overseas to flee the case. An anti-corruptionbody has recommended criminal charges against the ousted Thai prime ministerover her government’s rice subsidy program, which which cost the country’s bil-lions of dollars. — AP


KUWAIT: Ahmed Heikal, Chairman and Founder ofQalaa Holdings (CCAP.CA on the Egyptian Exchange,formerly Citadel Capital), an African leader in infra-structure and industry, has increased his stake inCitadel Capital Partners (CCP), the lead investor in theQalaa Holdings, by 4%.

CCP is the vehicle through which senior manage-ment of Qalaa Holdings hold their equity in the firm.CCP has just completed a capital increase subscribedto by CCP partners at a price of EGP 5 per share. Thetransaction brings Heikal’s ownership of CCP to58.84%. Hisham El-Khazindar Co-Founder andManaging Director of Qalaa Holdings and KarimSadek Managing Director of Qalaa Holdings main-

tained their share of CCP intact at 19.32% and 13.11%respectively. The transaction did not result in anyincrease in CCP ownership in Qalaa Holdings, whichcurrently stands at 25.6%.

“I am exceptionally optimistic about the prospectsfor growth not just in Egypt but also in Africa,” saidHeikal. “There is no better means of underscoring thisthan by a transaction of this nature. Ensuring that ourteam has the means to build personal ownership inthe firm is a key tool that aligns the interests of QalaaHoldings staff with those of our shareholders.”

Following the recent completion of a capitalincrease to EGP 8 billion, Qalaa Holdings continues totransform into an investment holding company that

controls majority stakes in most of its core invest-ments in the energy, cement, agrifoods, transporta-tion & logistics and mining sectors.

“The recent reform decisions announced by theEgyptian government have left me with a convictionthat Egypt is on the right track. I am fully convincedthat Qalaa Holdings will continue to be a very impor-tant player in Egypt and that reforms in Egypt will bevery beneficial for everyone including our firm,” saidHeikal. “We have a strong and deep managment teamin place and a large number of fantastic portfoliocompanies that operate in key sectors that will bebeneficial to Egypt as the country embarks on a newpath towards reform.”

Qalaa Holdings founder increases stake by 4% in CCP

Dr Ahmed Heikal

DUBAI: Technology is integral to the Escalade’sdriving experience. New and enhanced featureshelp make what already was one of the indus-try’s most-connected vehicles more intuitive.

Escalade’s new technologies include safetyfeatures to help protect occupants before, dur-ing and after a collision, such as Front and RearAutomatic Braking, which relies on short-rangeradar technology and ultrasonic sensors to helpthe driver avoid low-speed collisions via a pro-gression of alerts that extend to complete brak-ing, if necessary.

Also new is the segment’s only front-seat cen-ter air bag, designed to inflate between the driv-er and front-seat passenger for added protectionin far-side impact crashes when the affectedoccupant is on the non-struck side of the vehi-cle.

A Driver Awareness package includes ForwardCollision Alert, Lane Departure Warning System,and the patented Safety Alert Seat, which pulsesthe left, right or both seat cushion bolsters toalert the driver of a dangerous situation.

A Driver Assist package adds Full SpeedRange Adaptive Cruise Control, Front and RearAutomatic Braking, Automatic CollisionPreparation and Automatic Safety BeltTightening.

Additionally, Side Blind Zone Alert, Rear CrossTraffic Alert and Lane Change Alert are standardon the Premium model.

For the first time, Escalade will feature CUEstandard. The eight-inch center screen usescapacitive touch technology and gesture recog-nition, enabling tapping and swiping commonto smartphones and tablets. CUE uses proximitysensors to activate common options and con-trols as the user’s hand approaches. An expand-ed “favorites” section offers quick access tophone contacts, navigation destinations - evendigital music - in the same one-touch form astraditional radio presets.

The instrument cluster features a standard,reconfigurable, high-resolution 12.3-inch digitaldriver information center display paired withCadillac’s CUE infotainment system. Key data

also is displayed on an available, full-color head-up display. Along with vehicle systems informa-tion, the color driver information center alsoprovides details on the audio, Bluetooth phoneand navigation systems, and they can be easilyadjusted via steering wheel controls.

The 2015 Cadillac Escalade arrives in show-rooms across the Middle East in August 2014.

Cadillac has been a leading luxury auto brandsince 1902. Today Cadillac is growing globally,driven by an expanding product portfolio featur-ing dramatic design and technology. Describedas luxurious, having a bold and daring personali-ty, being tough and strong as well as safe andpowerful, Cadillac has maintained an iconicpresence for over 85 years in the Middle East.

The Cadillac portfolio in the Middle East fea-tures award-winning passenger cars ATS, CTSand XTS as well as the SRX crossover andEscalade SUV. Cadillac also offers customers ahigh-level aftersales service experience throughthe Premium Care Program. For more informa-tion, please visit www.cadillacarabia.com

Sophisticated new technology for safety and connectivity

2015 Cadillac Escalade

DUBAI: Infiniti has named Gaby-LuiseWuest its new Vice President, GlobalOperations, effective September 1, 2014.In this capacity, she will have globalresponsibility for Infiniti sales and after-sales, fleet sales, retail network develop-ment, and sales & product training. Inaddition, she will have full market respon-sibility for Infiniti’s markets in the Asia /Oceania region with the exception ofChina. She joins Infiniti from the BMWgroup where she has most recently beenthe Regional Head of MINI Asia-Pacificand South Africa. Wuest succeedsFrancois Goupil de Bouille who had earli-er been appointed Infiniti Vice President,Europe, Middle East and Africa.

Wuest star ted her automotivecareer in 1994 with BMW in the young

executive program for internationaltrainees. She subsequently held vari-ous roles in M arket ing, Publ icRelations and Sales within BMW beforeshe moved to China in 2007 as theGeneral Manager, BMW Group ChinaImport Office. In 2010, she was pro-moted to Regional Head, BMW GroupChina and Coordination Joint Venture,BMW Brilliance Automotive, based atthe company’s Munich headquarters.In 2012, she was appointed to hermost recent position in charge of MiniAsia-Pacific and South Africa.

A German national, Wuest has adegree in Business Administration and aMaster of Commerce from the EuropeanBusiness School in Oestrich-Winkel,Germany.

Gaby-LuiseWuest named Infiniti vice president

KUWAIT: Ooredoo in Kuwait’s My Passportservice allows customers to travel freelyaround the globe without any bill shocks.Subscriptions to GCC or Global pack with MyPassport will let customers know exactly whatthey will be paying before travelling and offerscomplete flexibility to call, SMS and surf theinternet.

Ooredoo stated the fact that “Both thesummertime and the Eid vacation are veryhigh seasons for roaming. Knowing that ourcustomers continuously seek connectivity, we

developed My Passport packages them inmind to be able to roam without any surprises,offering complete peace of mind during trav-el.” The below table shows “My Passport” Packs:

My Passport serviceoffers a choice betweentwo packages, Global Passport and GCC pass-port. More information, as well as countriescovered and partner telecoms operators can

be found by following the below link:http://www.ooredoo.com.kw/en/Offers/Mo

re/My-Passport—Roaming-Packs

Ooredoo Customers canTravel Freely Around theglobe with ‘My Passport’

GCC passport Global passport

Voice minutes 30 30

Internet 200MB 200MB

SMS 30 30

Price KD 9 KD 19

To activate SMS 1 to 1241 2 to 1241.

Packs are valid for 7 days.

Transfer your salary to ABK and

receive KD 100 KUWAIT: Al Ahli Bank of Kuwait offers its customers severalspecialized services, and is constantly upgrading its currentproducts to be on par to meet customer needs. The Bankoffers new customers a gift of KD 100 and other benefits upontransfer of salaries that start from KD 500.

Stewart Lockie, General Manager of Retail Banking stated,“We are proud to see ourselves becoming the banking partnerof choice for our customers. Customers with a salary of KD 500or above receive a gift of KD 100, the Visa Gold card free ofcharge for the first year, free travel insurance, a free checkbookfor the first time and other advantages upon transferring theirsalaries to ABK.”

Lockie added, “Customers that have a salary exceeding KD1000 receive all the benefits mentioned earlier, in addition to a50% discount on the standing order issuance fees, free ofcharge money transfers, free valet parking service at 14 popu-lar spots such as malls and restaurants, in addition they alsoget a safety deposit box service free of charge for the first year.”For more information about services and products offered byABK, kindly visit one of the branches, call Ahlan Ahli 1899899.

FARNBOROUGH AIR SHOW: QatarAirways ordered four GE90-poweredBoeing 777 Freighters, with an optionfor an additional four 777 Freighters. Thefirm engine order is valued at more than$250 million (USD) list price.

ìThe GE90 engine continues to out-perform our expectations,î said ChakerChahrour, vice president and generalmanager of Global Sales & Marketing atGE Aviation. ìThe engine was enhancedto reduce fuel burn by 3.6 percent fromthe 2000 launch specification and is wellbelow international standards on keyemissions. It remains one of the mostpopular engines in the GE portfolio.î

More than 1,500 GE90-115B engineshave been ordered by customers fortheir Boeing 777-300ERs, 777-200LRsand 777 Freighters. At 115,000 poundsof thrust, the GE90-115B engineincludes such performance-enhancingfeatures as three-dimensional aerody-namic (3-D aero) compressor and wide-chord, swept composite fan blades forgreater efficiency. The dual annular com-bustor emits no more than 40 percent ofthe hydrocarbons allowed by today’sinternational standards.

Snecma of France and IHICorporation of Japan are revenue-shar-ing participants in the GE90 program.

The GE90-115B engine is part of GE’s“ecomagination” product portfolio —

GE’s commitment to implementinginnovative, cost-effective technologiesthat enhance the customers’ environ-mental and operating performance.

Qatar Airways, the State of Qatarísnational airline, has seen rapid growth injust 17 years of operations, to the pointwhere today it is flying a modern fleet of134 aircraft to 144 key business andleisure destinations across Europe,Middle East, Africa, Asia Pacific, NorthAmerican and South America. QatarAirways recently joined the one worldAlliance, becoming the only major Gulfcarrier to join a global airline alliance,enabling its customers to benefit fromalmost a thousand airports in more than150 countries, with 14,000 daily depar-tures. Qatar Airways has orders worthover US$50 billion for more than 300 air-craft. For more information, visitwww.qatarairways.com.

GE Aviation, an operating unit of GE,is a world-leading provider of jet, turbo-prop and turbo shaft engines, compo-nents and integrated systems for com-mercial, military, business and generalaviation aircraft. GE Aviation has a globalservice network to support these offer-ings. For more information, visit us atwww.ge.com/aviation. Follow GEAviation on Twitter athttp://twitter.com/GEAviation andYouTube at

Gaby-LuiseWuest

BELGRADE: Serbia approved laws reducing jobprotection and raising the retirement age forwomen on Friday in the first steps of deepreforms to revive the seriously flawed economy,and fight high unemployment.

Parliament is also set to debate privatisationand bankruptcy law by the end of the month aspart of the wide-ranging reforms.

Serbia, which is heading for a public debt of70 percent of gross domestic product this year,began negotiations in January to join theEuropean Union.

The labour and pension reforms are intendedto increase flexibility in the labour market.

They are also intended to lower the costs ofshedding staff by reducing statutory redundan-cy payments, while opening the way to reducinga huge public-sector labour force.

A total of 190 lawmakers in the 250-seatstrong parliament supported the long-awaited

laws, despite hostility from the opposition andunions arguing that the measures will hit work-ers too hard.

Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic hasargued that the laws are vital since Serbia has“more pensioners than those employed, and ofthose, more than 50 percent work in the publicsector.”

The Balkan state is expected to post a recordbudget deficit of 8.0 percent of output this year,with growth forecast to fall to 1.0 percent, downfrom 2.5 percent last year.

But output could fall further by 0.2 percent-age points owing to devastating floods thatstruck in May.

The new labour law is intended to make thejob market more flexible, making it easier foremployers to hire and fire people.

The government hopes that the law willreduce an unemployment rate now running at

more than 20 percent, while enabling it toreduce the public sector of more than 700,000workers in a population of 7.2 million.

The pension law raises the retirement age forwomen from 60 to 65, the same as for men, by2032.

Vucic, who was elected earlier this year on apromise to overhaul Serbia’s ailing economy,said his cabinet was ready to push throughpainful reforms that include increased taxes, aswell as fresh cuts in the public sector and to gen-erous subsidies.

But he admitted that he was “not ready” toallow the decrease of pensions by 20 percentnor reducing public sector wages by 20 percent,proposed within austerity measures by hisfinance minister.

That minister, Lazar Krstic, stepped down lastweek citing a disagreement with Vucic over thepace of economic reforms. — AP

Serbia passes labour laws in reform drive

Qatar Airways ordersGE90-powered Boeing

777 freighters

t e c hnolo g ySUNDAY, JULY 20, 2014

SAN FRANCISCO: A US consumer lawsuit accusingGoogle of monopolizing prime real estate onAndroid smartphones will help mobile rivals likeMicrosoft make their antitrust case with Europeanregulators should damaging secrets emerge incourt.

The suit, filed in California federal court in Mayby two smartphone consumers, said Googlerequires handset manufacturers such as SamsungElectronics Co Ltd to restrict competing apps likeMicrosoft’s Bing search on Android phones, partlyby making Google’s own apps the default.

Google argued last week the proposed classaction should be dismissed because consumersstill are free to use the other apps. The plaintiffscounter that most consumers either don’t knowhow to switch default settings, or will not go tothe trouble.

If a judge lets the lawsuit proceed, plaintiffs’attorneys would be allowed to delve into internalGoogle emails and contracts with smartphonecompanies, and could interview Google executivesunder oath, said Steve Berman, who represents theconsumers.

“I’m confident we will get into juicy stuff, and Ithink that will up the pressure on Google assome of the material we discover becomes pub-

lic,” he said.Google declined to comment. A hearing on

Google’s bid to dismiss the case is scheduled forOctober. Any damaging evidence from the classaction would play into the hands of Google’s rivals.Microsoft spokesman Jack Evans said the company“is not a party” to the consumer lawsuit, but lastyear a group of companies - including Microsoft,Oracle, Nokia, Expedia and TripAdvisor - filed acomplaint with European antitrust regulators oversome of the same issues in the U.S. lawsuit.

Google apps “are widely used on Android byrequiring default placement and other mechanismsfor disadvantaging competing apps,” the compa-nies said in a summary of their complaint.

Google last year said it was working coopera-tively with European regulators, who have yet todecide whether to formally investigate.

MICROSOFT TIESBerman has a long history of taking on large US

companies. He reached a settlement for consumerssuing Apple over its e-book sales practices thatcould reach $450 million, and settled for $1.6 billiona lawsuit on behalf of Toyota car owners with unin-tended acceleration claims.

But the Seattle-based plaintiffs’ lawyer also has

represented one of Google’s main rivals. Bermandefended Microsoft when it faced its own antitrustinvestigations over Windows. Berman said he hashad “conversations with Microsoft over the yearsabout Google’s conduct,” but not about this lawsuit.

No stranger to antitrust inquiries, Google wasscrutinized by U.S. and European regulators overallegations that it improperly manipulated searchresults to rank its own services higher than competi-tors. US authorities ultimately closed their investiga-tion without filing a lawsuit, and Europe’s competi-tion commissioner negotiated a settlement earlierthis year which is awaiting approval by the broaderEuropean Commission.

PRIME REAL ESTATEThe main issue for US courts will be whether

Android and mobile services like search are “techni-cally separate, or tied in ways that impedes compe-tition for consumers,” said Michael Cusumano, a pro-fessor at the MIT Sloan School of Management.

Cusumano has extensively researched Microsoft,which unsuccessfully sued the professor in the1990s for access to his notes. This year Microsoft hassought to hire him to write an expert opinion in anunrelated proceeding.

The US consumer lawsuit is based largely on con-

tracts between Google and Android manufacturersSamsung and HTC that became public duringOracle’s separate 2012 trial against Google.

If Samsung or HTC wishes to use Google apps onits phones, the consumer lawsuit said, they mustpreload a suite of services - including YouTube andMaps - on “prime screen real estate” on the phones,and set Google search as the default.

It also argues that Google’s deal with Apple to bethe default search on iPhones and iPads locks outcompetitors across the mobile universe. Apple doesnot have its own search engine, has lower marketshare worldwide than Android and is not a defen-dant in the case.

Google’s deals with handset makers do not pre-vent rival search engines “from reaching consumersthrough the various distribution channels availableto them,” Google wrote in its motion to dismiss theUS lawsuit.

Cusumano said the US class action could hurtGoogle if a judge finds that it improperly pushes itsmapping and location services, which is embeddedacross the Android system.

It’s “kind of a Pandora’s Box to look inside whatGoogle does, and the relationship it has with allthese smartphone and handset manufacturers,” hesaid. — Reuters

Smartphone suit against Google plays into rivals’ hands

NEW YORK: In this July 11, 2013 file photo, then Nokia CEO Stephen Elop desicribes the company’s Nokia Lumia 1020, in New York. On Thursday,July 17, 2014, as part of an announcement to cut up to 18,000 jobs over the next year, Microsoft said it would discontinue its Nokia X phonesand shift future product designs to its Lumia line of Windows phones. — AP

NEW YORK: The Nokia X phones that Microsoftdiscontinued this week blend two rival operatingsystems, but leave out the best of each.

As a result, the devices didn’t become a run-away hit as Nokia’s low-cost answer to servingemerging markets. Nokia X phones were devisedto be a gateway to the company’s pricier Lumiaphones. The operating system that runs thephones was to blend the core technology foundin Google’s Android system with services anddesigns found in Microsoft’s own WindowsPhone system. Nokia looked to Android as a wayto sell phones with locally tailored apps unavail-able on Windows.

But Microsoft completed its deal to buyNokia’s phone business in April, and Nokia X isgone less than three months later. “Nokia tried tobring the best of both worlds on this device, butonce you play around with it, this phone kind offalls short of how fantastic it could be,” saidRamon Llamas, an IDC analyst who followsphones.

Although sales figures aren’t available, Llamassaid his research showed Nokia X was “not theone that everybody seems to be flocking to.”

The Nokia X project is an example of clashingpriorities that Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella is try-ing to curb with a refocusing effort that includes18,000 job eliminations over the next year. InThursday’s announcement of the cuts, Microsoftsaid it will shift future Nokia X product designs toits Lumia line of Windows devices.

Although Microsoft Devices chief and formerNokia CEO Stephen Elop pinned the move on aneed to align Nokia’s strategy with Microsoft’s,two other factors contributed to the downfall:Nokia X lacked an identity, while Windows gotbetter. Now, Microsoft is left to target emergingmarkets with Windows alone. Nokia andMicrosoft had been partners long beforeMicrosoft bought the phone business. To main-tain the relationship, Nokia sought to appease

Microsoft by replacing many of the Google serv-ices on Android with Microsoft ’s services.Android staples such as Gmail, Google Maps andGoogle’s app store are nowhere to be found.Instead, Nokia X phones have Here Maps fromNokia and Skype and OneDrive from Microsoft.The Nokia X home screen looks nothing likeAndroid, but resembles Windows.

The thinking was that once Nokia X userswere ready for higher-end phones, Lumia wouldbe their choice because they are already accus-tomed to Microsoft services and designs. ButNokia adapted Android so much that it affectedfunctionality. Software developers had to tweaksome of their apps because Nokia X lacks keyGoogle services. For instance, location serviceshave to use Nokia’s Here rather than GoogleMaps. In-app payments also had to be tweakedto allow billing through mobile carriers, some-thing Nokia X enabled because many people inemerging markets lack credit cards.

Meanwhile, even as Nokia adopted the look ofWindows, it didn’t adopt its ease of use. It wasmore like a knockoff version of Windows.

Windows devices set themselves apart byoffering colorful home-screen tiles stuffed withcontent. Instead of just a logo of Facebook, forinstance, you get the first several words of notifi-cations. For email, you get the email’s sender andthe start of the subject line, so users knowwhether there’s anything worth opening the appfor. Windows also lets you create tiles to serve asshortcuts to specific tasks within apps - such asplaces you go often using the mapping app.

Nokia X has none of that. Its home-screen tilesare static, like overblown versions of Androidicons. Now, Llamas said, Microsoft is under evenmore pressure to succeed with Windows inemerging markets. Although recent improve-ments help, he said, many phone makers by nowhave settled on Android for cheaper devices.

Nokia X did succeed at keeping prices low. Its

four models range from $120 to $150. By con-trast, Nokia’s Lumia Icon costs $550 without sub-sidies that come with two-year service contracts.Apple’s iPhone 5s and Samsung’s Galaxy S5 costeven more.

In killing Nokia X, Microsoft isn’t changingNokia’s commitment to serving emerging mar-kets. Microsoft knows those regions are high-growth areas, as many people in the UnitedStates and other industrialized markets alreadyhave smartphones. Microsoft is also aware thatthose devices need to be affordable.

The day before Nokia announced its Androidphones at a February wireless show in Barcelona,Spain, Microsoft unveiled plans to update itsWindows Phone system. Among other things,the software runs more efficiently, so it doesn’trequire as much processing power. That update,Windows Phone 8.1, came out in May. Microsoftalso began giving the Windows software tophone makers for free, the way Google has withAndroid. And it relaxed requirements for physicalbuttons. All that has made Windows phonescheaper to make.

The Nokia X phones do have some goodtouches, including slots for two SIM cards - some-thing important for emerging markets, wherephone rates vary so much that people oftenswitch services depending on whom they arecalling or texting. Windows didn’t allow that untilthe May update.

The improvements made to Windows ulti-mately reduced the need for Nokia X. But even ifthat hadn’t happened, it was doubtful Nokia Xwould have survived under new owners.

In his memo, Elop pointed out that “the role ofphones within Microsoft is different than it waswithin Nokia.” Nokia’s business had been to makephones. With Microsoft, the phones are a way toshowcase the company’s other offerings in serv-ices and software, including the Windows Phonesystem. And Nokia X had no role in that. — AP

Discarded Nokia X phones suffered from lack of identity

WASHINGTON: The IRS said Friday thatLois Lerner ’s computer hard drive wasdestroyed three years ago, ending anychance of retrieving her lost emails.

In court papers, the IRS said the harddrive was destroyed after two sets oftrained technicians tried to retrieve thedata. The tax agency said it was standardprocedure to destroy old data storageequipment that may have contained confi-dential taxpayer information.

The IRS says Lerner’s computer crashedin 2011, destroying an untold number ofemails. At the time, Lerner headed the divi-sion that handles applications for tax-exempt status.

Lerner is a central figure in congression-al investigations into the handling of appli-cations by tea party and other conservativegroups.

IRS Commissioner John Koskinen hadtold Congress that Lerner’s hard drive wasrecycled and presumably destroyed.Friday’s court filings confirmed it.

As part of a lawsuit, US District JudgeReggie B. Walton ordered the IRS last weekto explain what happened to the hard

drive.Walton also wanted information about

an inspector general’s investigation intothe lost emails. Walton wanted to know thequalifications of computer experts con-ducting the investigation, and he wanted aprojection on when the investigation willbe complete.

Timothy Camus, a deputy inspectorgeneral for investigations, said in courtpapers that 11 special agents are on thecase. However, he added, “It is not possibleto give an estimated date of completion.” AJustice Department lawyer told Walton lastweek that there was no evidence Lernerintentionally destroyed her hard drive.

On Thursday, Deputy Attorney GeneralJames Cole told Congress that the JusticeDepartment is investigating the lost emailsas part of a larger probe into the wayagents handled applications for tax-exempt status. Walton’s order came in alawsuit filed by a group called True theVote, which says it advocates for theintegrity of elections. The group sued theIRS over delays in its application for tax-exempt status. — AP

IRS says hard drive thatlost emails destroyed

WASHINGTON: This March 5, 2014 file photo shows former Internal Revenue Service(IRS) official Lois Lerner speaks on Capitol Hill in Washington. — AP

SEOUL: Nearly 200 managers at SamsungElectronics Co Ltd’s mobile division have vol-untarily returned a quarter of their first-halfbonuses, a source with direct knowledge ofthe matter said, with the firm poised to postits worst quarterly profit in two years.

Samsung Electronics earlier this monthannounced operating profit guidance forApril-June that was far below most analysts’forecasts. The world’s biggest smartphonemaker is facing slowing market growth andintensifying competition.

The decision to return some of the bonuswas partly a gesture to demonstrate thatmanagers are taking responsibility for theearnings decline, and partly a way to showthat management will work harder, thesource told Reuters on Friday, declining tobe identified due to the sensitivity of thematter. Such gestures are not uncommon inSouth Korea’s corporate world, where senioremployees of listed companies have beenknown to take similar steps when perform-

ance dips. The source did not give furtherdetails, though local media reports estimat-ed that the value of the returned bonuseswould likely exceed 3 billion won ($2.92 mil-lion).

A Samsung Electronics spokeswomandeclined to comment. Samsung’s cash-cowsmartphone business has been losing mar-ket share as Chinese rivals such as Xiaomiand Lenovo Group Ltd offer increasingly fea-ture-rich phones at lower prices.

Meanwhile, a survey of 35 major globalmarkets by researcher Counterpoint showedthe flagship Galaxy S5 smartphone was out-sold by Apple Inc’s iPhone 5S in the monthof May, suggesting that the device was notselling as well as hoped.

Samsung pointed to inventory buildupfor its mid-to-low tier products as well as thestrength of the South Korean won in itsearnings guidance last week. Samsung willdisclose its full earnings for April-June onJuly 31. — Reuters

Samsung handset divisionmanagers return partof bonuses — source

This screen shot taken from an Kindle Fire HDX shows ‘The Hobbit’ by JRR Tolkien, anaudio book available through Amazon’s Kindle Unlimited subscription service. Theservice will allow unlimited access to thousands of electronic books and audio booksfor $9.99 a month in the online giant’s latest effort to attract more users. — AP

NEW YORK: Amazon.com Inc launched a $9.99-per-month subscription service on Friday that letscustomers read as much as they choose from itslibrary of more than 600,000 digital books.

Subscribers to the Kindle Unlimited service canread e-books, including “The Hunger Games” and“Life of Pi,” on Amazon’s Kindle e-reader or anydevice with a Kindle app. Subscribers also haveaccess to thousands of audio books.

The launch of Kindle Unlimited comes asAmazon remains mired in a months-long contractdispute with the No. 4 U.S. publisher HachetteBook Group, owned by France’s Lagardere, overhow to price e-books. Amazon is also in talks aboutdigital book pricing with Simon & Schuster, ownedby CBS Corp.

Amazon’s move to offer the Kindle Unlimitedservice reflects consumers’ growing preferencetoward subscription-based models for consumingdigital media, such as Netflix Inc for movies and tel-

evision shows and Spotify for music.The new Amazon service will compete with

others in the market, including Oyster, whichcharges $9.95 per month for unlimited access tomore than 500,000 titles.

In an interview, Oyster’s co-founder EricStromberg said he was not surprised by Amazon’smove but that his company’s partnership withmajor publishers gave Oyster a higher-quality cata-log.

“They’ve tried to pivot from transaction to sub-scription-based in other forms of media - music,movies, kids’ books - and had limited success,”Stromberg said of Amazon.

“Through our partnerships with Harper Collinsand Simon & Schuster, two of the largest publish-ers in the world, we’re able to deliver to our audi-ence a vast and deep catalog of the best books inthe world,” he said. Amazon, which drove thegrowth of e-books after launching the Kindle in

2007, has branched out into other forms of digitalcontent in recent years. It offers streaming videoand music for members of its Prime program and isdeveloping original content.

Unlike its other streaming services, Amazondoes not require Kindle Unlimited users to bePrime members, who pay $99 a year for free two-day shipping in addition to content.

The combative negotiations between Amazonand Hachette have set the publishing world onedge. Earlier this year, Amazon delayed delivery ofsome Hachette titles, including sought-after printversions and, at one point, it removed a pre-orderoption for “The Silkworm,” by Harry Potter authorJ.K. Rowling writing as Robert Galbraith.

Hachette authors James Patterson, MalcolmGladwell and Stephen Colbert have openly criti-cized Amazon for its tactics. Amazon respondedby saying its goal was to maintain low prices and ahigh level of service for its customers. — Reuters

Amazon starts Netflix-style book service

MELBOURNE: A global AIDS summitwas in shock yesterday at the loss ofcolleagues in the Malaysia Airlines dis-aster over Ukraine, but delegatesvowed to carry on their vital work inhonor of those who died. As many as100 passengers on the plane werereportedly en route to the 20thInternational AIDS Conference inMelbourne when it went down in arebel-held part of the country onThursday, killing all 298 on board. Thesense of loss was palpable as atten-dees gathered at the MelbourneConvention Centre on the eve of thehigh-powered meeting, the largest ofits kind in the world. “We are still in astate of shock,” Nobel prize winner andInternational AIDS Society presidentFrancoise Barre-Sinoussi said.

Among those who died wasDutchman Joep Lange, a pioneer ofcheap anti-retrovirals for the poor anda prominent AIDS researcher who hadbeen involved in HIV research andtreatment since 1983. “Joep was notonly a great researcher, a great cham-pion of the fight against HIV for manyyears, he was also a wonderful humanbeing,” Barre-Sinoussi told a cure sym-posium ahead of the five-day summitstarting Sunday. “He was firmly believ-ing that a cure for HIV was possible, aswe all do, and was one of the first sup-porters of the idea of integrating socialscience with the search for a cure.

“I am convinced that he, like theother members of the HIV communitythat were in that plane, would haveencouraged us to go on. Our presencetoday is certainly the best tribute wecan pay.” Officials from thePharmAccess Foundation, whichLange launched in 2000 to facilitateaccess to treatment for HIV and AIDSpatients across Africa, said his deathwas “a massive loss”. Lange’s “dedica-tion to the treatment of HIV/AIDS andglobal health in general has been

groundbreaking,” PharmAccess man-aging director Onno Schellekens saidin a statement.

Victims are ‘martyrs’Flight MH17 from Amsterdam to

Kuala Lumpur, which US officialsbelieve was hit by a surface-to-air mis-sile, was due to connect with anotherflight to Melbourne. It is yet to be con-firmed how many involved in theAIDS meeting were on board, butreports in Australia said there 108medical researchers, scientists, doc-tors and activists.

Some 12,000 participants are dueto take part in the conference, includ-ing former US president Bill Clinton,

who told CNN that those who diedwere “martyrs”. “Thinking about thosepeople, knocked out of the sky, it’spretty tough,” he said, adding that“they were doing so much good”.“Those people are really, in a way,martyrs to the cause that we aregoing to Australia to talk about.”Clinton is due to give an address inMelbourne on Wednesday. UNAIDSexecutive director Michel Sidibeechoed the comments of Barre-Sinoussi that the best way to honorthose who died was to continue withthe summit. “We should use thismoment of sadness as a moment forus to push our agenda; our agendafor saving lives of millions of people,”

he told reporters.Held every two years, the

International AIDS Conference is aforum for campaigners to highlightdevelopments in fighting the diseaseand discuss financing problems. It isthis year also expected to channelanger about laws in Africa that stig-matize homosexuality and in the for-mer Soviet Union that punish intra-venous drug users-a crackdown nowextended to Russian-annexed Crimea.Some 35 million people live with HIV,although global AIDS-related deathsand new infections have fallen bymore than a third in a decade, raisinghopes of beating the killer disease by2030. —AFP

SAN FRANCISCO: US Agriculture Secretary TomVilsack visited drought-stricken homeowners onFriday in Central California, saying drought and cli-mate change would require major investment tosecure future water supplies. Vilsack alsoannounced $9.7 million in new emergency droughtaid to help rural Californians hurt by the state’sthree-year drought. A drought monitor sponsoredby the federal government says 81 percent of thestate is experiencing major agricultural losses andwidespread water shortages or restrictions. All but

one of the state’s 58 counties are now federally des-ignated disaster areas because of the drought, mak-ing farmers and ranchers eligible for emergencyloans, according to the agriculture department.

Outside the small city of Farmersville in TulareCounty, 60-year-old Carlen Overby told Vilsack therunning water in her home now came via a gardenhose connected to a neighbor’s well, the FresnoBee reported. (http://bit.ly/1zRY2Uq). Overby’s ownwell, like others in her area, had gone dry. She nowshowers each morning with the hose. “When you

get up in the morning and turn the water on, youwonder if the water is going to come out,” Overbytold the agriculture secretary. The new droughtspending is intended to help secure water suppliesfor 73,000 Californians in 11 counties. Recipientsinclude Farmersville, where a $500,000 grant willconnect residents who have dry wells to a watermain.

Vilsack called drought and climate change amajor national concern. He said the country willhave to invest in infrastructure, including more stor-

age facilities. California Gov Jerry Brown also ispushing for heavy investment to secure state waterservice, including a proposed $15 billion to buildgiant tunnels to carry water from the San FranciscoBay Area to the state’s water-thirsty south. TheObama administration says it has designated morethan $50 million in drought-related aid forCalifornia. Projects include supporting climate-change research hubs to seek ways to ease theimpact. The University of California, Davis, is a desig-nated “sub-hub” for that research. —AP

NORTH DAKOTA: Photo shows a farmer holding a handful of wheat buds in a field nearTioga, North Dakota. The genetic blueprint of wheat has been deciphered for the firsttime, a discovery that researchers said could lead to improved plant breeding and protec-tion against disease and drought. Bread wheat is a leading staple for 30 percent of theglobal population, but unlocking its genetic secrets has been particularly difficult becauseits genome is five times the size of a human’s. The latest research means that the fullsequencing of the wheat genome is now about three years away. —AFP

WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama speak atthe Kids’ State Dinner hosted by the first lady, and organized by Epicurious, theDepartment of Education, and the Department of Agriculture, in the East Room of theWhite House in Washington, DC on July 18, 2014. —AFP

H E A LT H & S C I E N C ESUNDAY, JULY 20, 2014

US Agriculture chief visits water-starved families

OHIO: File photo shows Keystone High School wrestler Logan Stiner (top)during a match in Sheffield Village, Ohio. A recent autopsy found that the18-year-old Stiner had a lethal amount of caffeine in his system when hedied May 27, 2014. The sudden death of a healthy high school senior hasramped up attention on unregulated caffeine powder and the ease of takinga toxic dose. —AP

MELBOURNE: Flowers are laid at the front of the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre(MCEC) to remember the lives of those lost onboard Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 prior to the start ofthe AIDS Conference in Melbourne yesterday. —AFP

ATLANTA: As the US tries to phase out a pollut-ing refrigerant that is used in millions of air con-ditioners across the country, unapprovedcoolant is popping up on the market - withpotentially dangerous consequences. The FBI iswarning people to be on alert for refrigerantsubstitutes that have not been approved by theEnvironmental Protection Agency. Some con-tain propane, which is flammable and canexplode or catch fire if, for example, a technicianservicing an air conditioner gets too close to thecoolant while soldering. So far, the explosionshave been rare.

The problem has cropped up as the US phas-es out R-22, a chemical used for decades as arefrigerant in air conditioners and refrigerators.Because R-22 destroys the ozone layer, it is beingbanned globally under an international treaty.The EPA is guiding the switch over to ozone-friendlier refrigerants, and has listed approvedones on its website. The phaseout caused pricesof R-22 to skyrocket, increasing the demand forcheaper, unapproved replacements, many ofwhich are made in China and sold on the black

market. Products like “Super Freeze 22a” havebeen selling mostly online or over the telephoneto home owners and “do-it-yourselfers,” circum-venting stores and regulators, the FBI said on itswebsite.

The FBI has launched an investigation intothe sale of unapproved refrigerants but declinedto answer questions from The Associated Press.It is unclear how many people may have fallenvictim to a refrigerant scam. Reports of fires orexplosions seem rare. The EPA, without citingspecific examples, said it knows of cases in theUS and abroad where people have been injuredafter using unapproved refrigerants in air condi-tioners. Additionally, the agency took actionagainst at least one US company in 2013 for sell-ing an unapproved refrigerant that had thepotential to explode.

There have been scattered reports of deathsoverseas. A New Zealand firefighter was killedand seven others were seriously injured in a2008 explosion blamed on a propane-based gasbeing used to cool a refrigeration warehouse,according to local media reports at the time.

More recently, dock workers in Vietnam andBrazil were killed after giant shipping containersexploded when suspected counterfeit refriger-ant was placed in their cooling units, accordingto shipping reports obtained by the UNEnvironment Program. The Air-Conditioning,Heating and Refrigeration Institute, an Arlington,Virginia-based trade association, has yet to hearabout an accident occurring domestically, saidKarim Amrane, vice president of regulatory poli-cy and research with the group.

Allison Bailes, founder of Energy Vanguard, anenergy efficiency consulting and design firm inDecatur, Georgia, said consumers should chooseonly contractors who are licensed, preferablythose who have North American TechnicalExcellence certification. “Tell them you want thetype of refrigerant - if it needs refrigerant - that itis manufactured for. If it’s supposed to be R-22,then put R-22 in it,” Bailes said. Companies thatskirt the law are “creating the potential forgreater cost to their customers and causinginjury or death to techs who work on those sys-tems later.”—AP

FBI issues warning over air conditioner coolant

Unapproved coolant popping up on the market

WASHINGTON: The Food and DrugAdministration is warning consumers toavoid pure powdered caffeine sold on theInternet after the death of an Ohio teen.Even a teaspoon of the powder could belethal - it is equivalent to 25 cups of coffee.Eighteen-year-old Logan Stiner of LaGrange,Ohio, died May 27 after consuming it. TheFDA said it is investigating caffeine powderand will “consider taking regulatory action.”

In the meantime, the agency said it is rec-ommending consumers stay away from it.Teenagers and young adults may be particu-larly drawn to the powder, which is a stimu-lant. Caffeine powder is marketed as adietary supplement and is unregulated,unlike caffeine added to soda. FDA spokes-woman Jennifer Dooren said those whodrink coffee, tea or soda may be aware of caf-feine’s less serious effects, like nervousnessand tremors, and may not realize that thepowdered form is a pure chemical. “The dif-ference between a safe amount and a lethaldose of caffeine in these powdered productsis very small,” she said.

The powder is also almost impossible tomeasure with common kitchen tools, the FDAsaid. Volume measures like teaspoons aren’t

precise enough and a scale may be needed.The agency added that the products may car-ry minimal or insufficient labeling. Consumersmay not be aware that even a small amountcan cause an overdose. FDA CommissionerMargaret Hamburg recently said that theagency needs to better understand the role ofthe stimulant, especially on children. Theagency is investigating the safety of energydrinks and energy shots, prompted by con-sumer reports of illness and death. FDA is alsolooking at caffeine in food as manufacturershave added caffeine to candy, nuts and othersnack foods in recent years.

Consumer advocate Jim O’Hara of theCenter for Science in the Public Interestpraised the FDA’s warning, but said theagency needs to go further to keep pow-dered caffeine off the market. The powder iseasily available on Amazon.com and otheronline sites. “The overuse and misuse of caf-feine in the food supply is creating a wild-West marketplace, and it’s about time thesheriff noticed and did something,” O’Harasaid of the FDA. Symptoms of caffeine over-dose or toxicity include rapid or erratic heart-beat, seizures, vomiting, diarrhea and disori-entation. —AP

FDA warns against powdered caffeine

AIDS conference in shock at Malaysia plane tragedy

LONDON: Members of Britain’s unelected Houseof Lords spent almost ten hours on Friday dis-cussing whether to legalise assisted dying, in anoften emotional debate putting the questionback on the agenda, if not on the statute books.Nearly 130 peers made speeches during amarathon discussion of the Assisted Dying Bill,which would allow terminally-ill patients deemedmentally capable and likely to die within sixmonths to be helped to end their own life. The billhas been proposed by an individual member ofthe Lords and is not sponsored by the govern-ment, so it has very little likelihood of beingapproved. But the debate emphasized the depthof feeling over the issue, just weeks after theSupreme Court urged parliament to look at

whether the current ban on assisted dying mightbe incompatible with human rights legislation.

Among the supporters of the bill are formerarchbishop of Canterbury George Carey, whoonce backed the official Church of England posi-tion against assisted dying but recently changedhis mind. During Friday’s debate, Carey said theproposals were “quite compatible” with hisChristian beliefs. “When suffering is so great,when patients know they are at the end of life,make repeated pleas to die, it seems a denial ofloving compassion which is the hallmark ofChristianity to refuse to allow them to fulfil theirown clearly stated request-after clearly a properprocess of safeguards have been observed,” hesaid. —AFP

British Lords hold 10-hour debate on assisted dying

H E A LT H & S C I E N C ESUNDAY, JULY 20, 2014

BLOEMHOF: Three babies who died from drinking tapwater contaminated by sewage have become a tragicsymbol of South Africa’s struggle to cope with a floodof people into cities designed under apartheid to caterto the tiny white minority. The poor, as always in thedeveloping world, bear the brunt of water scarcity andirregular access, with parched communities at timeserupting in deadly protests. The three babies, theyoungest aged five months, died last month after E.coli bacteria contaminated the drinking water inBloemhof, a small town southwest of Johannesburg.

Town authorities blamed the contamination on aspillage of raw sewage into a dam that supplies water,resulting in more than 100 people having to be treatedfor diarrhoea. “Everybody recognizes that the our infra-structure is old. As a small municipality we are also fac-ing financial difficulties,” town council spokesmanOatile Letebele acknowledged. “It’s a problem that weare grappling with.” An investigation by the City Pressnewspaper this month revealed that 15 babies haddied in a small town in North West province after con-suming dirty water. E. coli was again identified as themain source of contamination. While babies die, com-munities across the country have in recent months tak-en to the streets over a lack of water, often with deadlyconsequences. The Bloemhof deaths came after riotingin an impoverished township northwest of the capitalPretoria. Taps in Mothutlung had been dry for days,

forcing residents to rely on intermittent supplies fromwater tankers. People became ill, leading to violentdemonstrations during which police shot at protesters.Five people were killed in the clashes, and the policerole is under investigation. The incidents took placeweeks before the country voted in its fifth democraticelections, highlighting the social challenges grippingAfrica’s most developed economy. Before the end ofthe white-minority apartheid regime and the rise topower of the African National Congress in 1994, theaccess of black people to cities was limited and infra-structure favored the few.

Widespread problemsWhile the government has admitted “widespread

problems” in the water supply chain, it says 90 percentof the population now has access to clean drinkingwater and promises to address challenges. TheDepartment of Water Affairs said “rapid urbanization”made it difficult to achieve targets for service deliverybut that it was “in the process of revamping the oldinfrastructure at a huge cost.” The proportion of SouthAfrica’s population of 52 million living in urban areasincreased from 52 percent in 1990 to 62 percent in2011, according to a survey of the country released bythe South African Institute of Race Relations (SAIRR)last year. The institute said the major causes of thetrend were the freer movement of people since the

end of apartheid and the search for jobs, noting that itposed major problems for the provision of services tothe new urbanites.

The most rapid growth took place in South Africa’ssmaller cities, mostly due to small initial populationsand increasing economic activity, it said. The statisticsand the challenges are of little comfort to the motherswho lost their babies in Bloemhof. “I’m angry,” saidKeabetswe Wageng, the young mother of the five-month-old who died in June after a severe bout ofdiarrhoea. “It’s because of the water,” she said. She vom-ited. When I touched her she cried, and after that shewas quiet.” The water problems extend beyond theurban areas in parts of the country that receive littlerainfall. In some far-flung villages residents share mud-dy water from wells with livestock.

According to the Council for Scientific andIndustrial Research, South Africa has an annual averagerainfall of 450 millimeters (18 inches), about half theglobal average. The country pins its water hopes on amajor project with neighboring Lesotho launched in1998. The Lesotho Highlands Water Project is a multi-phased scheme that delivers water mainly to Gautengprovince, the country’s economic hub. The first phaseof the project supplies South Africa with about 10 bil-lion cubic meters of water a year. This will increase to17 million cubic meters with the completion of the sec-ond phase scheduled in 2022. —AFP

LONDON: Corticosteroid drugs given via inhalers tochildren with asthma may suppress their growth,according to two systematic reviews of scientificstudies on the issue. Health experts who conductedthe review and published it in The Cochrane Libraryjournal found that children’s growth slowed in thefirst year of treatment, although the effects wereminimized by using lower doses. Steroid-containinginhalers are prescribed as first-line treatments foradults and children with persistent asthma. They arethe most effective asthma control drugs and havebeen shown to reduce asthma deaths, hospital visitsand improve quality of life by cutting the numberand severity of attacks.

Yet their potential effect on children’s growth is asource of worry for parents and doctors - a factorwhich prompted the Cochrane reviewers to analyzethe evidence more closely. “The evidence... suggeststhat children treated daily with inhaled corticos-

teroids may grow approximately half a centimeterless during the first year of treatment,” said LinjieZhang at the Federal University of Rio Grande inBrazil, who led the review. “But this effect is less pro-nounced in subsequent years, is not cumulative, andseems minor compared to the known benefits of thedrugs for controlling asthma.”

According to data from the World HealthOrganization (WHO), some 235 million people world-wide suffer from asthma, a chronic disease whichinflames and narrows the air passages of the lungs.The disease is common among children. The first ofthe two systematic reviews focused on 25 trialsinvolving 8,471 children up to 18 years old with mildto moderate persistent asthma. These trials testedalmost all the available inhaled corticosteroids andshowed they suppressed growth rates when com-pared to placebos or non-steroidal drugs.

Fourteen of the trials reported growth over a year

and found the average growth rate, which wasaround 6 to 9 centimeters (2.4 to 3.5 inches)per yearin control groups, was about 0.5 cm (0.2 inch) less inthe groups of children being treated with inhaledsteroids for asthma. In the second review, researcherslooked at data from 22 trials in which children weretreated with low or medium doses of inhaled corti-costeroids. Only three trials followed 728 children fora year or more and the reviewers said they showedthat using lower doses of inhaled corticosteroids, byabout one puff per day, improved growth by arounda quarter of a centimeter (0.1 inch) at one year.

Francine Ducharme of the University of Montrealin Canada, who worked on both reviews, said thefindings were important and should prompt morefrequent and detailed tracking of childhood asthmapatients’ growth. “Only 14 percent of the trials welooked at monitored growth in a systematic way forover a year,” she said. “This is a matter of major con-

cern given the importance of this topic.” She said herteam would recommend the minimal effective dosebe used in children with asthma until further databecomes available. “Growth should be carefully doc-umented in all children treated with inhaled corticos-teroids, as well in all future trials testing (them) inchildren,” she said.

Experts not directly involved in the reviews cau-tioned, however, that the growth effects were mini-mal and should not prompt asthma patients to stoptaking their medication. “These studies confirm whatmany have suspected, that inhaled steroids can sup-press growth in children,” said Jon Ayres, a professorof environmental and respiratory medicine atBritain’s Birmingham University. “However, the effectseems... small and non-cumulative and many mayconsider this a risk worth taking compared to thealternative, which is poorly controlled and thereforepotentially life threatening asthma.” —Reuters

Scientific review finds asthma drugs suppress child growth

Experts say benefits of steroid inhalers outweigh risks

Water problems lead to

riots, deaths in S Africa

JOHANNESBURG: Children from Alexandra township play on the banks of apolluted river in Johannesburg. —AFP

W H AT ’ S ONSUNDAY, JULY 20, 2014

Kuwait Times held a farewell reception for Thomas Kurian, one of its oldest employees, who spent 34 years working as the local desk editor with Kuwait Times. The employees enjoyed the event held onThursday evening at the Ayam Zaman Restaurant at the Crowne Plaza Hotel. Employees wished him success in all his future endeavors during the emotional farewell. Kuwait Times staff spoke a few wordsin appreciation of Kurian’s tenure and relived their memories of time spent working with him. Kuwait Times Editor-in-Chief Abd Al-Rahman Al-Alyan presented Kurian with a memento as a token of

appreciation for his services on behalf of the entire newspaper.

Kuwait Times hosts farewell reception for Thomas Kurian

Kuwait Times Editor-in-Chief Abd Al-Rahman Al-Alyan presents a token of appreciation to ThomasKurian who is pictured with his spouse Santhamma at Ayam Zaman Restaurant at Crowne Plaza onThursday, July 17. —Photos by Yasser Al-Zayyat

Kuwait Times Editor-in-Chief Abd Al-Rahman is pictured with Thomas Kurian.

Kuwait Times Editor-in-Chief Abd Al-Rahman is pictured with Thomas Kurian and spouse Santhamma. Kuwait Times Marketing Director is pictured with Kuwait Times Accounts Manager Hosni.

Executive Manager Mustafa Qamhiya (left) and Thomas Kurian Xavier Moraes (left) and Thomas Kurian with Santhamma(From left) Javaid Ahmad, Jinse Jose, N S Das, Santhamma, ThomasKurian and Editor-in-Chief Abd Al-Rahman.

A group photo of the Kuwait Times staff having a great time during the farewell party. (From left) Santhamma, Executive Manager Mustafa Qamhiya, Thomas Kurian, Kuwait Times Editor-in-Chief Abd Al-Rahman, Senior Marketing Representative N S Das, and Accounts Manager Hosni.

(From left) Khalid, Jinse Jose, Shakir Reshamwala, Santhamma, Thomas Kurian and Kuwait TimesEditor-in-Chief Abd Al-Rahman.

(From left) Priyanka Saligram, Sahar Moussa, Santhamma, Thomas Kurian, Kuwait Times Editor-in-Chief Abd Al-Rahmanr and Nawara Fattahova.

W H AT ’ S ONSUNDAY, JULY 20, 2014

A group photo of the Kuwait Times staff.

(From left) Santhamma, Chidi Emmanuel, Thomas Kurian andEditor-in-Chief Abd Al-Rahman.

(From left) Santhamma, Shakir Reshamwala, Thomas Kurian andEditor-in-Chief Abd Al-Rahman.

A group photo of Kuwait Times staff enjoying dinner during thefarewell party.

(From left) Xavier Moraes, Santhamma, Thomas Kurian, Editor-in-Chief Abd Al-Rahman and TonyCoelho.

(From left) Sherif Ismail, Rajesh, Sameh Omar, Santhamma, Thomas Kurian, Editor-in-Chief Abd Al-Rahman, Zakir Mansoori and Azad Hussain.

(From left) Santhamma, Thomas Kurian, Editor-in-Chief Abd Al-Rahman, Ahmad Jabr and his motherGhada Abu Jbara.

(From left) Salwa Emarah, Santhamma, Thomas Kurian, Editor-in-Chief Abd Al-Rahman and SherifIsmail.

A group photo of Kuwait Times staff. Nawara Fattahova (left) and Priyanka Saligram Sameh Omar (right) is pictured with his son Mahmoud

T V PR O G R A M SSUNDAY, JULY 20, 2014

ONE GOOD COP ON OSN MOVIES HD ACTION

JUST LIKE HEAVEN ON OSN MOVIES COMEDY HD

00:00 King Ralph-PG1502:00 Back To The Future-PG1504:00 Hotel Transylvania-PG06:00 Damsels In Distress-PG1508:00 King Ralph-PG1510:00 Norbit-PG1512:00 Back To The Future-PG1514:00 Just Like Heaven-PG15

00:00 Rewind-PG1502:00 After Earth-PG1504:00 The Forger-PG1506:00 Hit List-PG1508:00 Three Investigators And TheSecret Of Terror...-PG10:00 After Earth-PG1511:45 White House Down-PG1514:00 Fun Size-PG1516:00 Three Investigators And TheSecret Of Terror...-PG18:00 Now Is Good-PG1520:00 Grown Ups 2-PG1522:00 Mental-18

01:00 Futbol Mundial01:30 Trans World02:30 Super League04:30 NRL Premiership06:30 ICC Cricket 36007:00 Golfing World 08:00 Super Rugby10:00 NRL Premiership12:00 Live NRL Premiership14:00 ICC Cricket 36014:30 Futbol Mundial15:00 AFL Premiership 17:30 ICC Cricket 36018:00 Golfing World 19:00 PGA Tour Highlights20:00 PGA European TourHighlights21:00 NRL Premiership23:00 AFL Premiership Highlights

00:00 Escape Club00:55 Chelsea Lately01:25 Style Star01:50 Style Star02:20 Keeping Up With TheKardashians03:15 Extreme Close-Up03:40 Extreme Close-Up04:10 THS05:05 E!ES06:00 THS07:50 Style Star08:20 Fashion Police08:45 Eric And Jessie: Game On09:15 Giuliana & Bill10:15 Giuliana & Bill11:10 The Drama Queen12:05 Fashion Police12:35 Extreme Close-Up13:05 Extreme Close-Up13:35 THS14:30 Style Star15:00 Keeping Up With TheKardashians16:00 Keeping Up With The

01:00 PGA European Tour06:00 Trans World Sport07:00 PGA Tour 12:00 Challenge Series GolfHighlights 12:30 Web.Com Tour 14:30 IndyCar Series17:30 V8 Supercars 20:00 AFL Premiership Highlights 21:00 PGA Tour Highlights 22:00 PGA European TourHighlights 23:00 Bellator MMA

00:00 Live Free Or Die Hard-PG1502:15 Body Parts-PG1504:00 Legendary Amazons-PG1506:00 Grosse Pointe Blank-PG1508:00 Pitch Black-U10:00 Hellboy: Blood & Iron-PG1511:45 Live Free Or Die Hard-PG1514:00 Grosse Pointe Blank-PG1516:00 Pitch Black-U18:00 Crimson Tide-PG1520:00 Kung Fu Hustle-PG1522:00 One Good Cop-PG15

00:00 The Blacklist01:00 Necessary Roughness02:00 Good Morning America03:00 Rescue Me04:00 House Of Cards05:00 Necessary Roughness06:00 Good Morning America07:00 Emmerdale07:30 Coronation Street08:00 The Ellen DeGeneres Show09:00 Almost Human10:00 Emmerdale10:30 Coronation Street11:00 The Ellen DeGeneres Show12:00 Grey’s Anatomy13:00 The Blacklist14:00 Live Good Morning America16:00 Almost Human17:00 Grey’s Anatomy18:00 The Blacklist19:00 Almost Human20:00 Grey’s Anatomy21:00 The Blacklist22:00 House Of Cards23:00 Rescue Me

01:00 Everyone’s Hero02:45 Marvel’s Next Avengers:Heroes Of Tomorrow04:30 Twigson06:00 Princess And The Pea08:00 Rainbow Valley Heroes10:00 Happily N’Ever After: SnowWhite11:30 The Happets13:00 Emperor’s Secret14:30 The Happy Cricket16:00 Super Buddies18:00 Happily N’Ever After: SnowWhite20:00 Renart The Fox22:00 The Happy Cricket23:30 Super Buddies

00:30 ICC World T20 Highlights01:30 ICC World T20 Highlights02:30 ICC World T20 Highlights03:30 ICC Cricket 36004:00 IPL Highlights05:00 IPL Highlights06:00 Natwest T20 Blast Highlights07:00 IPL Highlights08:00 IPL Highlights09:00 ICC Cricket 36009:30 Bangladesh v India ODIHighlights10:30 Bangladesh v India ODIHighlights11:30 Bangladesh v India ODIHighlights12:30 ICC Cricket 36013:00 England v Sri Lanka T20IHighlights14:00 England v Sri Lanka ODI

00:30 Crime Stories01:30 My Ghost Story02:30 Killers: Behind The Myth03:30 The Mysterious Dr. Swango04:30 Private Crimes05:00 Beyond Scared Straight06:00 The First 4807:00 Private Crimes10:00 Fatal Vows11:00 Beyond Scared Straight12:00 Born To Kill13:00 Look Who’s Stalking14:00 Fatal Vows15:00 Fred Dinenage: MurderCasebook16:00 Curious & Unusual Deaths16:30 Private Crimes17:00 Homicide Hunter18:00 The First 4819:00 The Devil You Know20:00 Beyond Scared Straight21:00 Curious & Unusual Deaths21:30 Born To Kill22:30 I Killed My BFF23:30 Model Killers

00:20 The Gadget Show00:45 How Stuff’s Made01:10 Prototype This02:00 Sport Science02:45 Mythbusters03:35 Sci-Fi Saved My Life04:30 How The Universe Works05:20 Scrapheap Challenge06:10 Through The Wormhole07:00 Engineering Volcanoes07:55 Human Body: UltimateMachine08:45 Invisible Worlds09:40 Through The Wormhole10:30 Mega Builders11:20 How The Universe Works12:10 Scrapheap Challenge13:00 How Stuff’s Made13:30 Invisible Worlds14:20 Mythbusters15:10 Scrapheap Challenge16:00 Mega Builders16:50 Through The Wormhole17:40 Prototype This18:30 Sport Science19:20 The Gadget Show19:45 How Stuff’s Made20:10 Mythbusters21:00 Alien Planet Earths21:50 Real Superhumans23:30 How The Universe Works

00:30 The Daily Show With JonStewart01:00 The Colbert Report01:30 Seinfeld02:00 Seinfeld02:30 The Mindy Project03:00 Cougar Town03:30 Raising Hope04:00 My Boys04:30 The Tonight Show StarringJimmy Fallon05:30 Back In The Game06:00 The War At Home06:30 Melissa & Joey07:00 Late Night With Seth Meyers08:00 My Boys08:30 Back In The Game09:00 Cougar Town09:30 About A Boy10:00 Hot In Cleveland10:30 Melissa & Joey11:00 The Tonight Show StarringJimmy Fallon12:00 The War At Home12:30 My Boys13:00 Back In The Game13:30 Melissa & Joey14:00 Raising Hope14:30 About A Boy15:00 Hot In Cleveland15:30 The Daily Show With JonStewart16:00 The Colbert Report16:30 The War At Home17:00 Late Night With Seth Meyers18:00 The Simpsons18:30 Parks And Recreation19:00 Trophy Wife19:30 Modern Family20:00 The Tonight Show StarringJimmy Fallon21:00 The Daily Show With JonStewart21:30 The Colbert Report22:00 Sean Saves The World

00:45 Beast Lands01:35 Untamed & Uncut02:25 Safari Vet School02:50 Safari Vet School03:15 Give Me Shelter03:40 Give Me Shelter04:05 Steve Irwin’s Wildlife Warriors04:35 Steve Irwin’s Wildlife Warriors04:55 Animal Cops Miami05:45 Roaring With Pride06:35 Breed All About It07:00 Animal Airport07:25 Dick ‘n’ Dom Go Wild07:50 Dick ‘n’ Dom Go Wild08:15 Dogs/Cats/Pets 10109:10 Baby Planet10:05 Growing Up...11:00 Animal Precinct11:55 Animal Airport12:20 Breed All About It12:50 Outback Rangers13:15 Outback Rangers13:45 Into The Pride14:40 Safari Vet School15:05 Safari Vet School15:30 Dick ‘n’ Dom Go Wild16:00 Dick ‘n’ Dom Go Wild16:30 Dogs/Cats/Pets 10117:25 Pandamonium18:20 Penguin Safari19:15 World’s Wildest Cities: Manaus19:45 World’s Wildest Cities: Manaus20:10 Galapagos21:05 Safari Vet School21:30 Safari Vet School22:00 World’s Wildest Cities: Manaus22:30 World’s Wildest Cities: Manaus22:55 Galapagos23:50 Animal Cops Miami

00:00 The Carrie Diaries01:00 Witches Of East End02:00 The Newsroom03:00 C.S.I.04:00 Sleepy Hollow05:00 Rake06:00 The Carrie Diaries07:00 Once Upon A Time InWonderland08:00 Scandal09:00 Witches Of East End10:00 Rake11:00 Sleepy Hollow12:00 Emmerdale12:30 Coronation Street13:00 The Ellen DeGeneres Show14:00 Scandal15:00 The Carrie Diaries16:00 Emmerdale16:30 Coronation Street17:00 The Ellen DeGeneres Show18:00 Scandal19:00 Twisted20:00 Royal Pains21:00 Dracula22:00 True Detective23:00 C.S.I.

01:00 The Good Doctor-PG1503:00 Vanishing On 7th Street-PG1504:45 The Flowers Of War-PG1507:15 The Good Doctor-PG1509:00 The Words-PG1510:45 The Flowers Of War-PG1513:15 Centre Place-PG1515:00 The Chateau Meroux-PG1517:00 The Words-PG1518:45 The Lady-PG1521:00 I, Anna-PG1523:00 Heavy Duty-PG15

00:00 American Restoration01:00 Pawn Stars01:30 Pawn Stars02:00 Storage Wars02:30 Storage Wars03:00 American Restoration04:00 The Legend Of Shelby TheSwamp Man04:30 The Legend Of Shelby TheSwamp Man05:00 Pawn Stars05:30 Pawn Stars06:00 American Restoration07:00 Storage Wars: New York07:30 Storage Wars: New York08:00 American Restoration08:30 Cajun Pawn Stars09:00 Storage Wars Texas09:30 Counting Cars10:00 Pawn Stars10:30 Pawn Stars11:00 Storage Wars11:30 Storage Wars12:00 Storage Wars: New York12:30 Storage Wars: New York13:00 Mountain Men14:00 Storage Wars14:30 Storage Wars15:00 Storage Wars: New York15:30 Storage Wars: New York16:00 American Pickers17:00 Pawn Stars17:30 Pawn Stars18:00 Storage Wars18:30 Storage Wars19:00 American Pickers20:00 Storage Wars20:30 Storage Wars21:00 Pawn Stars21:30 Storage Wars22:00 Pawn Stars22:30 Pawn Stars23:00 Pawn Stars

00:35 Ultimate Shopper01:25 Mob Wives02:15 Hoarding: Buried Alive03:05 Mob Wives03:55 I Didn’t Know I Was Pregnant04:20 Say Yes To The Dress04:45 Say Yes To The Dress05:10 Toddlers & Tiaras06:00 Oprah: Behind The Scenes07:00 What Not To Wear07:50 The Undateables08:40 World’s Worst Mum09:30 Toddlers & Tiaras10:20 Say Yes To The Dress10:45 Say Yes To The Dress11:10 Cake Boss11:35 Jon & Kate Plus 812:00 Little People, Big World12:25 Oprah: Behind The Scenes13:15 The Next Great Baker14:30 Ultimate Shopper15:20 Cake Boss15:45 What Not To Wear16:35 Toddlers & Tiaras17:25 Say Yes To The Dress17:50 Say Yes To The Dress18:15 Jon & Kate Plus 818:40 Little People, Big World19:10 Oprah: Behind The Scenes20:05 Extreme Couponing All-Stars20:30 Cake Boss21:00 The Face UK21:55 Breaking Amish: Brave NewWorld22:50 Long Island Medium23:15 The Face UK

00:15 Bill’s Kitchen: Notting Hill00:40 Nordic Cookery With TareqTaylor01:10 Eating In The Sun01:35 Bargain Hunt02:25 Bargain Hunt03:10 Bargain Hunt03:55 Homes Under The Hammer04:50 Nigel Slater’s Dish Of The Day05:20 Bill’s Kitchen: Notting Hill05:45 Eating In The Sun06:15 Bargain Hunt07:00 Bargain Hunt07:45 Bargain Hunt08:30 Homes Under The Hammer09:20 Nigel Slater’s Dish Of The Day09:45 Bill’s Kitchen: Notting Hill10:10 Nordic Cookery With TareqTaylor10:35 Bargain Hunt11:20 Bargain Hunt12:05 Bargain Hunt12:50 Homes Under The Hammer13:40 Gok’s Fashion Fix14:30 Nigel Slater’s Dish Of The Day14:55 Bill’s Kitchen: Notting Hill15:20 Nordic Cookery With TareqTaylor15:45 A Taste Of My Life16:10 Bargain Hunt16:55 Bargain Hunt17:40 Bargain Hunt18:25 Marbella Mansions19:10 Nordic Cookery With TareqTaylor19:35 How To Cook Like Heston20:00 Extreme Makeover: HomeEdition20:45 Extreme Makeover: HomeEdition22:15 Bargain Hunt23:00 Marbella Mansions23:45 Nordic Cookery With TareqTaylor

00:00 The Truth Behind01:00 Race To The Bottom Of TheEarth02:00 Animals At The Edge03:00 Wild Untamed Brazil04:00 World’s Toughest Fixes05:00 The Known Universe06:00 Alaska Wing Men07:00 My Dog Ate What?08:00 The Truth Behind09:00 Race To The Bottom Of TheEarth10:00 Animals At The Edge11:00 Wild Australia12:00 World’s Toughest Fixes13:00 Big, Bigger, Biggest14:00 Dangerous Encounters15:00 Ape Man16:00 Wild Case Files17:00 Ancient Secrets: CathedralsDecoded18:00 Ultimate Survival Alaska19:00 Adventure Wanted20:00 Somewhere In China21:00 Britain’s Underworld22:00 Nat Geo’s Most AmazingPhotos22:30 Nat Geo’s Most AmazingPhotos23:00 Inside

01:45 Murder On The Home Front-PG1503:30 Smashed-PG1505:00 The Beach-PG1507:00 Me And You-PG1509:00 Five-PG1510:45 The Rainmaker-PG1513:00 Wild Card-PG1515:00 My Kid Could Paint That-PG1516:45 The Rainmaker-PG1519:00 All The King’s Men-PG1521:15 Resistance-PG1523:00 Arbitrage-PG15

Highlights15:00 England v Sri Lanka ODIHighlights16:00 ICC Cricket 36016:30 Natwest T20 Blast Highlights20:30 ICC Cricket 36021:00 Bangladesh v India ODIHighlights22:00 Bangladesh v India ODIHighlights23:00 Bangladesh v India ODIHighlights

00:00 Violetta00:45 The Hive00:50 Art Attack01:15 Art Attack01:40 Wolfblood02:05 Wolfblood02:30 Violetta03:10 The Hive03:20 Art Attack03:45 Art Attack04:10 Jungle Junction04:20 Jungle Junction04:35 Jungle Junction04:50 Jungle Junction05:00 Art Attack05:25 Art Attack05:50 Mouk06:00 Austin & Ally06:25 Austin & Ally06:45 Mako Mermaids07:10 Mako Mermaids07:35 Jessie07:55 Jessie08:20 Win, Lose Or Draw08:45 Good Luck Charlie09:05 Dog With A Blog09:30 Phineas And Ferb09:55 Phineas And Ferb10:15 Liv And Maddie10:40 Teen Beach Movie12:15 Jessie12:35 Jessie13:00 Austin & Ally13:25 Phineas And Ferb13:45 Phineas And Ferb14:10 The Adventures Of DisneyFairies14:35 Dog With A Blog15:00 Dog With A Blog15:25 Liv And Maddie15:50 Liv And Maddie16:10 Mako Mermaids16:35 Win, Lose Or Draw17:00 The Sword In The Stone18:20 Disney Mickey Mouse Shorts18:30 Mako Mermaids18:55 Mako Mermaids19:20 Violetta20:05 Liv And Maddie20:30 Jessie20:50 Dog With A Blog21:15 Mako Mermaids21:40 Austin & Ally22:00 Good Luck Charlie22:25 A.N.T. Farm22:50 Shake It Up23:10 Wolfblood23:35 Wolfblood

00:05 Fast Food Gone Global00:55 Grill It! With Bobby Flay01:20 Roadtrip With G. Garvin01:45 The Next Food Network Star02:35 Unique Eats03:00 Unique Eats03:25 Guy’s Big Bite03:50 Iron Chef America04:40 Chopped05:30 Unwrapped05:50 Tastiest Places To Chowdown06:10 Chopped07:00 Luke Nguyen’s Vietnam07:25 Roadtrip With G. Garvin07:50 Guy’s Big Bite08:15 Iron Chef America09:05 Barefoot Contessa09:30 Amazing Wedding Cakes10:20 Easy Chinese10:45 Chopped11:35 Grill It! With Bobby Flay12:00 Reza, Spice Prince Of India12:25 Charly’s Cake Angels12:50 Siba’s Table13:15 Jenny Morris Cooks Morocco13:40 Guy’s Big Bite14:05 The Next Food Network Star14:55 Roadtrip With G. Garvin15:20 Guy’s Big Bite15:45 Chopped16:35 Fast Food Gone Global17:25 Jenny Morris Cooks Morocco17:50 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives18:15 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives18:40 Siba’s Table19:05 Reza’s African Kitchen19:30 Guy’s Big Bite19:55 Roadtrip With G. Garvin20:20 Chopped21:10 Chopped22:00 Guy’s Big Bite22:25 Guy’s Big Bite22:50 Roadtrip With G. Garvin23:15 Roadtrip With G. Garvin23:40 Guy’s Big Bite

01:00 Star Trek Into Darkness-PG1503:15 The Mortal Instruments: CityOf Bones-PG1505:30 Charlie And The ChocolateFactory-PG07:30 Lego Batman: The Movie - DCSuper Heroes Unite-PG09:00 Cheerful Weather For TheWedding-PG1511:00 You Will Meet A Tall DarkStranger-PG1512:45 Star Trek Into Darkness-PG1515:00 Oz The Great And Powerful-PG17:15 Cheerful Weather For TheWedding-PG1519:00 Hitchcock-PG1521:00 Les Miserables-PG1523:45 Dark Tide-PG15

00:30 River Monsters01:20 Off The Hook: ExtremeCatches01:45 Off The Hook: ExtremeCatches02:10 Robson’s New ExtremeFishing Challenge03:00 Fast N’ Loud03:50 Storage Hunters04:15 Container Wars04:40 Storage Wars Canada05:05 How Does It Work05:30 How Stuff’s Made06:00 Gold Rush07:00 Dual Survival07:50 Yukon Men08:40 Fast N’ Loud09:30 Storage Hunters09:55 Container Wars10:20 Storage Wars Canada10:45 How Does It Work11:10 How Stuff’s Made11:35 River Monsters12:25 Off The Hook: ExtremeCatches12:50 Off The Hook: ExtremeCatches13:15 Robson’s New ExtremeFishing Challenge14:05 Storage Hunters14:30 Container Wars14:55 Storage Wars Canada15:20 Dual Survival16:10 Yukon Men17:00 Fast N’ Loud17:50 Treehouse Masters18:40 Futurescape With JamesWoods19:30 Gold Rush20:20 How Does It Work20:45 How Stuff’s Made21:10 Container Wars21:35 Storage Wars Canada22:00 Treehouse Masters22:50 Futurescape With JamesWoods23:40 Mythbusters

00:00 Jurassic C.S.I.01:00 The Numbers Game01:30 The Numbers Game02:00 Banged Up Abroad03:00 Light At The Edge Of TheWorld04:00 Mega Breakdown05:00 Engineering Connections06:00 Pirate Patrol07:00 Lords Of War07:30 Mystery Files08:00 Jurassic C.S.I.09:00 The Numbers Game09:30 The Numbers Game10:00 Banged Up Abroad11:00 Light At The Edge Of TheWorld12:00 Mega Breakdown13:00 Engineering Connections14:00 Pirate Patrol15:00 Lords Of War15:30 Mystery Files16:00 Jurassic C.S.I.17:00 The Numbers Game17:30 The Numbers Game

18:00 Banged Up Abroad19:00 Situation Critical20:00 Mad Scientists20:30 Mad Scientists21:00 Naked Science 2.522:00 Megastructures23:00 World’s Toughest Fixes

Kardashians17:00 #RichKids Of Beverly Hills17:30 #RichKids Of Beverly Hills18:00 E! News19:00 Giuliana & Bill20:00 Giuliana & Bill21:00 Eric And Jessie: Game On21:30 Keeping Up With TheKardashians22:30 E! News23:30 Chelsea Lately

16:00 Damsels In Distress-PG1518:00 Barbershop-PG1520:00 10 Things I Hate About You-PG1522:00 What About Bob?-PG

22:30 2 Broke Girls23:00 The Mindy Project23:30 Late Night With Seth Meyers

ClassifiedsSUNDAY, JULY 20, 2014

Directorate General of Civil Aviation Home Page (www.kuwait-airport.com.kw)

DIAL161 FOR AIRPORT INFORMATION

Fajr: 03:27

Shorook 05:00

Duhr: 11:54

Asr: 15:29

Maghrib: 18:48

Isha: 20:18

Prayer timings

Arrival Flights on Sunday 20/7/2014Airlines Flt Route TimeQTR 1084 Doha 00:05JZR 239 Amman 00:20JZR 267 Beirut 00:25JZR 539 Cairo 00:30JZR 565 Sohag 00:45PIA 239 Lahore 01:20PGT 858 Istanbul 01:25THY 764 Istanbul 01:40RJA 642 Amman 01:45ETH 620 Addis Ababa 01:45GFA 211 Bahrain 02:00UAE 853 Dubai 02:25MSC 403 Sohag 02:30JAI 576 Kochi/Abu Dhabi 02:35ETD 305 Abu Dhabi 02:45MSR 612 Cairo 03:15QTR 1076 Doha 03:25THY 1464 Istanbul 03:30MSC 401 Alexandria 04:00JZR 555 Alexandria 04:10KAC 544 Cairo 04:10THY 770 Istanbul 04:35DHX 170 Bahrain 05:10QTR 8632 Doha 05:55KAC 412 Manila/Bangkok 06:15BAW 157 London 06:35JZR 563 Sohag 06:35FDB 053 Dubai 07:00KAC 382 Delhi 07:30KAC 288 Dhaka 07:45KAC 206 Islamabad 07:50KAC 302 Mumbai 07:50QTR 1086 Doha 07:55SVA 512 Riyadh 07:55KAC 332 Trivandrum 08:00KAC 364 Colombo 08:00KAC 352 Kochi 08:05UAE 855 Dubai 08:25ABY 125 Sharjah 08:50IRA 665 Shiraz 09:25ETD 301 Abu Dhabi 09:30FDB 5055 Dubai 09:35QTR 1070 Doha 10:00GFA 213 Bahrain 10:40MEA 404 Beirut 10:55IRC 6507 Shiraz 11:00MSC 405 Sohag 11:20JZR 561 Sohag 12:00SYR 341 Latakia 12:20IRC 528 Ahwaz 12:50MSR 610 Cairo 13:00KAC 742 Dammam 13:30KAC 672 Dubai 13:40QTR 1078 Doha 13:45GFA 221 Bahrain 14:20SVA 500 Jeddah 14:30UAE 857 Dubai 15:00KAC 788 Jeddah 15:00ABY 127 Sharjah 15:35KAC 802 Cairo 15:40RJA 640 Amman 15:55QTR 1072 Doha 16:15JZR 787 Riyadh 16:15NIA 251 Alexandria 16:20ETD 303 Abu Dhabi 16:45SVA 510 Riyadh 17:15UAL 982 IAD 17:25GFA 215 Bahrain 17:30JZR 153 Dubai 17:45JZR 777 Jeddah 17:50KAC 542 Cairo 18:15QTR 1080 Doha 18:25KAC 786 Jeddah 18:30KAC 166 Paris/Rome 18:40RBG 553 Alexandria 18:55AXB 393 Kozhikode 18:55ABY 129 Sharjah 19:00GFA 217 Bahrain 19:00KAC 618 Doha 19:00KAC 774 Riyadh 19:15KAC 502 Beirut 19:20MSR 606 Luxor 19:30JAI 572 Mumbai 19:35KAC 102 New York/London 19:35KAC 674 Dubai 19:40OMA 647 Muscat 19:55KAC 562 Amman 20:00FDB 5061 Dubai 20:05AFG 415 Kabul 20:10MEA 402 Beirut 20:15DLH 636 Frankfurt 20:15KAC 514 Tehran 20:50KLM 417 Amsterdam 21:05ALK 229 Colombo 21:10SYR 441 Damascus 21:15UAE 859 Dubai 21:15KAC 172 Frankfurt 21:15ETD 307 Abu Dhabi 21:30QTR 1074 Doha 21:30GFA 219 Bahrain 21:45AIC 981 Chennai/Hyderabad/Ahmedabad 22:25UAL 981 Bahrain 22:40BBC 043 Dhaka 23:10JAI 574 Mumbai 23:20MSR 614 Cairo 23:30THY 772 Istanbul 23:45PIA 205 Lahore 23:50

Departure Flights on Sunday 20/7/2014Airlines Flt Route TimeAIC 976 Goa/Chennai 00:05

JZR 562 Sohag 00:10JAI 573 Mumbai 00:20UAL 981 IAD 00:25MSR 615 Cairo 00:30DLH 635 Frankfurt 01:35THY 773 Istanbul 02:20ETH 621 Addis Ababa 02:45PGT 859 Istanbul 02:55MSC 404 Sohag 03:30UAE 854 Dubai 03:45PIA 240 Sialkot/Islamabad 03:50ETD 306 Abu Dhabi 04:10MSR 613 Cairo 04:15QTR 1077 Doha 04:25THY 1465 Istanbul 05:00MSC 406 Sohag 05:00QTR 1085 Doha 05:20JZR 560 Sohag 05:35THY 765 Istanbul 06:00RJA 643 Amman 06:05JAI 575 Abu Dhabi/Kochi 06:30THY 771 Istanbul 06:50GFA 212 Bahrain 07:00QTR 8632 Lahore 07:25FDB 054 Dubai 07:50BAW 156 London 08:25KAC 171 Frankfurt 08:55SVA 513 Riyadh 08:55QTR 1087 Doha 08:55KAC 117 New York 09:05KAC 801 Cairo 09:05KAC 671 Dubai 09:25ABY 126 Sharjah 09:30KAC 787 Jeddah 09:35UAE 856 Dubai 09:50ETD 302 Abu Dhabi 10:15IRA 664 Shiraz 10:25KAC 741 Dammam 10:30FDB 5056 Dubai 10:30QTR 1071 Doha 11:00KAC 541 Cairo 11:30GFA 214 Bahrain 11:35KAC 501 Beirut 11:40MEA 405 Beirut 11:55IRC 6508 Shiraz 12:00JZR 776 Jeddah 12:15MSC 402 Alexandria 12:20KAC 103 London 12:30JZR 786 Riyadh 12:50KAC 785 Jeddah 13:00JZR 152 Dubai 13:10SYR 342 Latakia 13:20IRC 529 Ahwaz 13:50MSR 611 Cairo 14:00KAC 561 Amman 14:45QTR 1079 Doha 14:55GFA 222 Bahrain 15:05KAC 617 Doha 15:15KAC 673 Dubai 15:20SVA 503 Madinah/Jeddah 15:45KAC 773 Riyadh 15:50ABY 128 Sharjah 16:15KAC 513 Tehran 16:20RJA 641 Amman 16:55JZR 266 Beirut 17:05QTR 1073 Doha 17:20NIA 252 Alexandria 17:20JZR 538 Cairo 17:40ETD 304 Abu Dhabi 17:45SVA 511 Riyadh 18:15GFA 216 Bahrain 18:20UAE 858 Dubai 18:25UAL 982 Bahrain 18:40JZR 238 Amman 18:45QTR 1081 Doha 19:25RBG 554 Alexandria 19:35ABY 120 Sharjah 19:40GFA 218 Bahrain 19:45AXB 394 Kozhikode 19:55KAC 283 Dhaka 20:30MSR 619 Alexandria 20:30JAI 571 Mumbai 20:35FDB 062 Dubai 20:45KAC 361 Colombo 20:50OMA 648 Muscat 20:55DLH 636 Dammam 21:00AFG 415 Jeddah 21:10MEA 403 Beirut 21:15JZR 554 Alexandria 21:15DHX 171 Bahrain 21:50KLM 417 Dammam/Amsterdam 22:05SYR 442 MOW/Damascus 22:15ETD 308 Abu Dhabi 22:15ALK 230 Colombo 22:20UAE 860 Dubai 22:25KAC 343 Chennai 22:30QTR 1075 Doha 22:40KAC 301 Mumbai 22:40GFA 220 Bahrain 22:45KAC 351 Kochi 23:00KAC 205 Islamabad 23:35KAC 411 Bangkok/Manila 23:40KAC 415 Kuala Lumpur/Jakarta 23:50

112

THE PUBLIC AUTHORITY FORCIVIL INFORMATION

Automated enquiryaboutthe Civil ID card is

1889988

MATRIMONIAL

CHANGE OF NAME

I, Ibrahim Navabjan holderof Indian Passport No.F0497541 hereby changemy name to IbrahimNawabjaan ShaikhThiruchirapalle T.N.Mumbai. A-Sector C-LineR.No. 11. Cheeta camp,Trombay Mumbai 400088MS. (C 4815)17-7-2014

25 years old good lookingPakistani Lift Engineeremployed in reputed com-

pany, earning very hand-some salary owning BMWcar, living in luxury fur-nished apartment belong-ing to known landlord Jattfamily looking for educatedand extra beautiful girl forimmediate marriage. [email protected], Fintas PO Box 1476,Code 51015 Kuwait.

Suitable alliance invitedfrom born again Christianwomen between age 34 to38 with good job, for a bornagain Christian bachelor,age 46. Working in Kuwaitfor a defense co. Contactemail: [email protected]

CLEVELAND: An experimental drug from the biotechcompany Genentech failed to slow mental decline in mid-stage studies on more than 500 people with mild to mod-erate Alzheimer’s disease, but showed some promise inthe least-impaired participants who received a higherdose. Pneumonia and deaths were more commonamong those receiving the drug, but researchers down-played that. Study leader Dr Jeffrey Cummings of theCleveland Clinic said none of the deaths seemed due tothe drug and pneumonia occurred at a rate to be expect-ed in older people.

“We’re very encouraged” by the hint of benefit forpatients with milder dementia and will talk with regula-tors about next steps for the drug, crenezumab (cruh-NEZ-oo-mab), said a Genentech scientist, Dr Carole Ho.The results fit with other evidence suggesting that treat-ing earlier in the course of the disease is better, she said.Results were revealed Wednesday at the Alzheimer’sAssociation International Conference in Copenhagen.They are the latest mixed bag on treatments aimed atclearing away the sticky amyloid plaques cloggingAlzheimer’s patients’ brains. About 35 million peopleworldwide have Alzheimer’s, the most common form ofdementia. There is no cure and current treatments onlytemporarily ease symptoms.

Last year, an Eli Lilly & Co medicine, solanezumab, thatalso sought to clear away amyloid missed main goals intwo studies but combined results suggested it might helppeople with milder disease. It’s in further study now.Before that, bapineuzumab, a similar drug being devel-oped by Pfizer Inc. and Johnson & Johnson, showed prom-ise in mid-stage testing but flopped in larger, more defini-tive trials. The Genentech drug has been closely watchedbecause it targets amyloid more broadly than the otherdrugs do, and the California-based company has a longtrack record of success with many biological medicinesagainst cancer.

Mid-stage studies aim to give some idea of safety andwhether the drug is effective enough to advance to larg-er, more definitive studies aimed at winning marketapproval. In one study, 431 patients ages 50 to 80 withmild to moderate Alzheimer’s were given crenezumab ordummy drug as shots every two weeks, or as a higherdose in infusions every four weeks for 17 months. No sig-nificant difference was seen among the groups on twowidely used measures of thinking and functioning skills.

However, the 70 most mildly impaired participantswho received the higher dose declined 35 percent less onthe cognitive measure than the 33 mildly impaired peo-ple given dummy infusions. The difference was about 3.5points on the roughly 70-point scale - “equivalent to six ornine months” of delay in decline, Cummings said. Thisresult isn’t definitive, though, and can only be considereda signal worth exploring in future research because it did-n’t involve the whole group tested.

And even in this mildly impaired group, the drug didnot improve the second measure, ability to function indaily life. In the second study, 73 people who showedamyloid plaques on brain imaging also were givencrenezumab or dummy shots or infusions. The main out-come - levels of amyloid seen on brain imaging aftertreatment - will be presented at a medical conference inNovember. Results on cognitive function seem to mirrorthose in the larger study, Cummings said. Five peoplegiven crenezumab died - one from sudden death, twofrom respiratory failure, one from pneumonia and one

from worsening Alzheimer’s.“We believe that the safety profile is acceptable,”

because deaths do not seem related to the drug,Genentech’s Ho said. “It is not a show stopper.” Genentechand its corporate parent, Switzerland-based RocheHolding AG, paid for the study and Cummings is a paidadviser to Genentech. In a statement Wednesday, theAlzheimer’s Association noted that crenezumab wasbeing tested in another study aimed at preventing thedisease, and said the new results give hope it will bemore successful in that setting. — AP

Genentech Alzheimer’s drug

misses goals in studies

This undated file combo image provided by Merck &Co, shows a cross section of a normal brain (right)and one of a brain damaged by advanced Alzheimer’sdisease. Researchers said an experimental drug fromthe biotech company Genentech failed to slow men-tal decline in tests on more than 500 people withmild to moderate Alzheimer’s disease. — AP

ROCHESTER: This undated image provided by the Mayo Clinic shows an abnormal TDP-43, the two circularbrown blobs, in the brain of a patient with tau neurofibrillary tangle, blue flame shape blob in the middle, andAlzheimer’s disease during the pathological analyses in Rochester, Minn. Scientists have linked a new proteinto Alzheimer’s disease, different from the amyloid and tau that make up the sticky brain plaques. — AP

COPENHAGEN: Dr Maria Carrillo, Vice President ofScientific and Medical Affairs in the Alzheimer’sAssociation (right) stands with Princess Benedikte ofDenmark at the opening of the 2014 Alzheimer’sAssociation International Conference, the world’slargest forum for the dementia research community,in Copenhagen, Denmark. — AP

You have a lot of energy and may come across as a bit assertive this satur-day. Much, however, can be accomplished alone as well as with housemates: guests, fam-ily or otherwise. Staying in touch and on top of the latest developments are the thingsthat satisfy a need for mental stimulation. There is talk of change, which would encom-pass building storage shelves and rotating perishables. Preparation is always a goodthing, as long as one does not get too carried away with any one idea. A good conversa-tion with those you love is possible today. You can really communicate and convey your-self well. You may find yourself visiting out-of-town friends or them visiting you thisevening. There are lots of fun conversations to be enjoyed.

This is a time when you can expect some sort of extra support or recogni-tion from those around you. You may feel that you are in touch and in harmony with oth-ers today because a connection between you and your friends is obvious. Everyonewants to go in the same direction. You have a very analytical way of thinking and yourmind excels at making practical decisions. Your ideas run deeper than superficial issuesand that could mean an interest in psychology. Your brilliant imagination and enchanti-ng manner transport all who meet you beyond the mundane and into the extraordinaryregions where you spend a lot of your time. This is a great time to reflect and understandyour own situation, just how you feel about yourself.

This could be a frustrating time, no matter where you are today. There is atendency to make poor choices as well as disappointing decisions. Perhaps

by taking a deep breath and a little pause, you will be able to see with clarity. If you have alist of personal things you want to do, now would be a good time to begin workingthrough the list. You will be glad to know that the energies available at this time do notlend themselves to negativity, but to study, reading, writing, talking on the phone orkeeping in touch with a neighbor that moved or a neighbor that is elderly. This is a goodweekend to putter around the house and enjoy family. This has to do with feelings, andabout making the things you feel and care about a reality.

You could find yourself mentally acute and in a problem solving mood.There is also a great focus on family life–parents, children, relatives and the

whole domestic scene. Today you jump into an activity that demands close attention. Thismay mean a car or some other equipment needs to be overhauled or refurbished. Perhapsyour garden needs weeding and planting. Such activity brings a focus on control andachievement with goal setting, especially when you can step back and see the progress.There is much talk about camping trips, sports and performance events. Finally, a draw ofstraws seems to be the best effort in deciding. Now is the time for building memories–afew pictures couldn’t hurt either. A busy day is ahead tomorrow-be rested.

You are a great doer–accomplished. Opportunities come up today that willallow you to express your outgoing nature, coupled with extremely skillful ways of han-dling other people. You are a natural for working with or for the public. You would makean excellent public-relations manager or customer-relations worker with a large company.Your career is never a problem–for you have the kind of drive that most people can onlywish they had. Everything is working out well for you. You love to work with young peopleand may consider working with children as a teacher, coach or in some volunteer position.You appreciate a heartfelt approach and are an enthusiast if there ever was one. Youencourage emotions, feelings and creativity from others.

Today could bring the unexpected or find you in a very unusual mood. Itmay be that you feel like getting away from the routine and just doing something differ-ent. A break from the usual routine can bring new insights or breakthroughs today. Youcould take a vacation from your responsibilities and explore some more imaginativeregions. Speculative interests are strongly emphasized now. Details, however, are theimportant factor in making profitable decisions. Your mind is exceptional in its clarity,especially today. All that is mental work comes to you without struggle–ideas, thoughtsand mental things of all kinds. The light in your eyes reveals the brightness of your mindto everyone who meets you. A fun contest may find you a winner.

This is a good day to relax and become involved in some creative project.You may have a sense of that creative quietness that comes over a person just before abrainstorm hits. The lack of support from loved ones was once a thorn in your side, butthis lack has been replaced with an easy acceptance. In some ways it was easier to workwhen people ignored your creative vents. You have some time by yourself to be creativeand to dream. Consider moving to a place that has enough room for you to have a work-shop; perhaps it could open out on the street for people to come in and see your work.Perhaps you could begin now to make a few plans to add on to the place where you nowlive. You might surprise yourself with architecture as another good talent.

You may find yourself looking for a little romance today or at least enjoyingsome emotional release. Being more in touch with your roots is a keynote of the cyclethat now takes hold in your life. This has to do with feelings, but it’s more than that: it’sabout making the things you feel and care about a reality. You are likely to find that hous-es and other real property take on greater significance now. It might be fun to go househunting this afternoon. Someone in your family has lots of experience and enjoys helpingout with all sorts of quandaries. Any answers you need to your questions can beapproached with this person. You may only need confirmation that you are actually onthe right path or that you already have the right answers.

An elderly person, perhaps in the family, needs your help today. You arevery serious when it comes to self-sacrifice and doing all you can to make

things easier for other people. You pursue psychology, the human psyche and thingsmystical. You are quite painstaking when it comes to giving and helping others. There willbe time this afternoon to enjoy your loved ones. You are unconventional when it comesto self-expression and enjoyment. You find new and different ways to get out and enjoyothers–possibly sports. Always independent when it comes to emotions, you do not mindfeeling a little different. Breakthrough flashes of insight with tremendous originality andindependence are typical. A romantic evening is a possibility.

You may have trouble controlling your emotions today. There may a tendencyto spend money, drive fast or enjoy a crazy food binge. Thinking through goals

with close friends or loved ones may help you to create a new focus. At times, your sense ofresponsibility and the way you go about organizing your life may seem like a prison sentence.You rule out any possibility of change or spontaneity. Give yourself more leeway. If youbecome set in your ways, you may not be able to escape that desire to break away. If this hap-pens, a whole new package of feelings may have to be understood. Look for ways to createopportunities to be expressive and free-flowing.


Aries (March 21-April 19)

STAR TRACK

Taurus (April 20-May 20)

Gemini (May 21-June 20)

Cancer (June 21-July 22)

Leo (July 23-August 22)

Virgo (August 23-September 22)

Libra (September 23-October 22)

Scorpio (October 23-November 21)

Sagittarius (November 22-December 21)

Capricorn (December 22-January 19)

Pisces (February 19-March 20)

Aquarius (January 20- February 18)

CROSSWORD 614

ACROSS1. A former monetary unit in Great Britain.4. Octavian and Mark Antony defeatedBrutus and Cassius in 42 BC.12. A loose sleeveless outer garment madefrom aba cloth.15. A constellation in the southern hemi-sphere near Telescopium and Norma.16. Miscellaneous unspecified artifacts.17. A unit of absorbed ionizing radiationequal to 100 ergs per gram of irradiatedmaterial.18. Fairly small terrestrial ferns of tropicalAmerica.20. United States tennis player (born inCzechoslovakia) who won several singleschampionships.21. Hormone released by the hypothalamusthat controls the release of thyroid-stimulat-ing hormone from the anterior pituitary.22. (Greek mythology) The daughter ofAgamemnon and Clytemnestra.24. Reptile having a pair of openings in theskull behind each eye.26. Inability to coordinate voluntary musclemovements.27. (of complexion) Blemished by imperfec-tions of the skin.28. A narrow zigzag ribbon used as trimming.34. (Babylonian) God of storms and wind.35. Stable gear consisting of either of twocurved supports that are attached to the col-lar of a draft horse and that hold the traces.38. Characteristic of false pride.40. With a finite limit.43. Dirty and disorderly.44. The present time or age.45. The United Nations agency concernedwith atomic energy.46. Long bench with backs.47. An infection of the sebaceous gland ofthe eyelid.48. A numbered compartment in a postoffice where mail is put to be called for.50. Small Asiatic wild bird.57. Showing courage.58. A large fleet.61. An outpouring of gossip.63. Any of numerous local fertility and naturedeities worshipped by ancient Semitic peo-ples.64. Australian shrubs and small trees withevergreen usually spiny leaves and denseclusters of showy flowers.65. A river in north central Switzerland thatruns northeast into the Rhine.69. The opening of a subject to public discus-sion and debate.71. German pathologist who recognized thatall cells come from cells by binary fission andwho emphasized cellular abnormalities indisease (1821-1902).73. The event of something ending.74. A pause or interruption (as in a conversa-tion).77. Goddess of criminal rashness and its pun-ishment.78. (used of count nouns) Every one consid-ered individually.79. (computer science) The code that identi-fies where a piece of information is stored.80. A room or establishment where alcoholicdrinks are served over a counter.

DOWN1. A Chadic language spoken in northern

Nigeria.2. Using speech rather than writing.3. Something causes misery or death.4. A genus of Bothidae.5. A sandal with flat heels and an upper ofwoven leather straps.6. Not out.7. A lipoprotein that transports cholesterol inthe blood.8. A strong emotion.9. Greek lyric poet remembered for his odes(518?-438? BC).10. A tricycle (usually propelled by pedalling).11. A land mass (smaller than a continent)that is surrounded by water.12. An honorary arts degree.13. Capital city of the Apulia region on theAdriatic coast.14. A condition (mostly in boys) character-ized by behavioral and learning disorders.19. Congenital absence of the heart (as in thedevelopment of some monsters).23. An edge tool with a heavy bladed headmounted across a handle.25. Cause to be annoyed, irritated, or resent-ful.29. A person of subnormal intelligence.30. A rich sweet made of flavored sugar andoften combined with fruit or nuts.31. A brittle gray crystalline element that is asemiconducting metalloid (resembling sili-con) used in transistors.32. European bison having a smaller andhigher head than the North American bison.33. Used to indicate that a statementexplains or supports a previous statement.36. (law) A defense by an accused personpurporting to show that he or she could nothave committed the crime in question.37. Type genus of the family Myacidae.39. Horned vipers.41. Written on a typewriter.42. 10 grams.49. South American wood sorrel cultivatedfor its edible tubers.51. Matters of personal concern.52. The basic unit of money in Romania.53. Of a pale purple color.54. The civil and religious leader of a Muslimstate.55. Feeling mild pleasurable excitement.56. Noisy talk.59. An Indian side dish of yogurt andchopped cucumbers and spices.60. Of or relating to or characteristic ofMorocco or its people.62. A variety show with topical sketches andsongs and dancing and comedians.66. According to the Old Testament he was apagan king of Israel and husband of Jezebel(9th century BC).67. (Roman Catholic Church) The supremeecclesiastical tribunal for cases appealed tothe Holy See from diocesan courts.68. An open vessel with a handle and a spoutfor pouring.70. Aircraft landing in bad weather in whichthe pilot is talked down by ground controlusing precision approach radar.72. The network in the reticular formationthat serves an alerting or arousal function.75. A public promotion of some product orservice.76. A soft silver-white or yellowish metallicelement of the alkali metal group.

Yesterday’s Solution



WORD SEARCH PUZZLE

34s t a r s

Daily SuDoku

You can demonstrate compassion and show charity to others just now and arein a good position to communicate and render aid. Before you begin and considering the needis not an emergency, find ways to help the needy help themselves. It seems the best sort of helpyou can render today is to teach how to experience the thrill of being able to win their own per-sonal race. New insights or breakthroughs come while you are with your friends this afternoon.A question and answer time is fun and can lead to some enlightening situations. Traveling withthe group is fun and perhaps there is an out-of-town fruit stand with fresh watermelon, peach-es, strawberries, etc. Sharing stories and experiences today can be bonding.

Making money is second nature and you are able to field ideas and bringforth growth and success. You may find yourself guiding others in ways to

invest their money. You find it easy to solve any problems that are presented to youtoday. Others benefit from this ability of yours. You can handle emotional and personalissues–vulnerable areas, where angels fear to tread. People sense this and trust you withsensitive matters, inner worries and questions of personal identity. Others may find youespecially witty and eccentric just now. You may have new information and ideas regard-ing your living situation or life circumstances. Others value you for your independenceand unique qualities. Siblings and close friends gain your attention tonight.

inf or m at ionSUNDAY, JULY 20, 2014

Ahmadi Sama Safwan Fahaeel Makka St 23915883Abu Halaifa Abu Halaifa-Coastal Rd 23715414Danat Al-Sultan Mahboula Block 1, Coastal Rd 23726558

Jahra Modern Jahra Jahra-Block 3 Lot 1 24575518Madina Munawara Jahra-Block 92 24566622

Capital Ahlam Fahad Al-Salem St 22436184Khaldiya Coop Khaldiya Coop 24833967

Farwaniya New Shifa Farwaniya Block 40 24734000Ferdous Coop Ferdous Coop 24881201Modern Safwan Old Kheitan Block 11 24726638

Hawally Tariq Salmiya-Hamad Mubarak St 25726265Hana Salmiya-Amman St 25647075Ikhlas Hawally-Beirut St 22625999Hawally & Rawdha Hawally & Rawdha Coop 22564549Ghadeer Jabriya-Block 1A 25340559Kindy Jabriya-Block 3B 25326554Ibn Al-Nafis Salmiya-Hamad Mubarak St 25721264Mishrif Coop Mishrif Coop 25380581Salwa Coop Salwa Coop 25628241

OphthalmologistsDr. Abidallah Al-Mansoor 25622444Dr. Samy Al-Rabeea 25752222Dr. Masoma Habeeb 25321171Dr. Mubarak Al-Ajmy 25739999Dr. Mohsen Abel 25757700Dr Adnan Hasan Alwayl 25732223Dr. Abdallah Al-Baghly 25732223

Ear, Nose & Throat (ENT)Dr. Ahmed Fouad Mouner 24555050 Ext 510Dr. Abdallah Al-Ali 25644660Dr. Abd Al-Hameed Al-Taweel 25646478Dr. Sanad Al-Fathalah 25311996Dr. Mohammad Al-Daaory 25731988Dr. Ismail Al-Fodary 22620166Dr. Mahmoud Al-Booz 25651426

General PractitionersDr. Mohamme Y Majidi 24555050 Ext 123Dr. Yousef Al-Omar 24719312Dr. Tarek Al-Mikhazeem 23926920Dr. Kathem Maarafi 25730465Dr. Abdallah Ahmad Eyadah 25655528Dr. Nabeel Al-Ayoobi 24577781Dr. Dina Abidallah Al-Refae 25333501

UrologistsDr. Ali Naser Al-Serfy 22641534Dr. Fawzi Taher Abul 22639955Dr. Khaleel Abidallah Al-Awadi 22616660Dr. Adel Al-Hunayan FRCS (C) 25313120Dr. Leons Joseph 66703427

For labor-related inquiries and complaints:

Call MSAL hotline 128

Sabah Hospital 24812000

Amiri Hospital 22450005

Maternity Hospital 24843100

Mubarak Al-Kabir Hospital 25312700

Chest Hospital 24849400

Farwaniya Hospital 24892010

Adan Hospital 23940620

Ibn Sina Hospital 24840300

Al-Razi Hospital 24846000

Physiotherapy Hospital 24874330/9

Kaizen center 25716707

Rawda 22517733

Adaliya 22517144

Khaldiya 24848075

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

GOVERNORATE PHARMACY ADDRESS PHONE

Plastic Surgeons

Dr. Mohammad Al-Khalaf 22547272

Dr. Abdal-Redha Lari 22617700

Dr. Abdel Quttainah 25625030/60

Family Doctor

Dr Divya Damodar 23729596/23729581

Psychiatrists

Dr. Esam Al-Ansari 22635047

Dr Eisa M. Al-Balhan 22613623/0

Gynaecologists & Obstetricians

DrAdrian arbe 23729596/23729581

Dr. Verginia s.Marin 2572-6666 ext 8321

Dr. Fozeya Ali Al-Qatan 22655539

Dr. Majeda Khalefa Aliytami 25343406

Dr. Ahmad Al-Khooly 25739272

Dr. Salem soso 22618787

General Surgeons

Dr. Amer Zawaz Al-Amer 22610044

Dr. Mohammad Yousef Basher 25327148

Internists, Chest & Heart

Dr. Adnan Ebil 22639939

Dr. Mousa Khadada 22666300

Dr. Latefa Al-Duweisan 25728004

Dr. Nadem Al-Ghabra 25355515

Dr. Mobarak Aldoub 24726446

Dr Nasser Behbehani 25654300/3

Paediatricians

Dr. Khaled Hamadi 25665898

Dr. Abd Al-Aziz Al-Rashed 25340300

Dr. Zahra Qabazard 25710444

Dr. Sohail Qamar 22621099

Dr. Snaa Maaroof 25713514

Dr. Pradip Gujare 23713100

Dr. Zacharias Mathew 24334282

Dermatology

Dr. Mohammed Salam Bern University 23845955

Dentists

Dr Anil Thomas 3729596/3729581

Dr. Shamah Al-Matar 22641071/2

Dr. Anesah Al-Rasheed 22562226

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Dr. Abidallah Al-Duweisan 25653755

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Dr. Sohal Najem Al-Shemeri 25633324

Dr. Jasem Mola Hassan 25345875

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Dr. Sami Aman 22636464

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Dr. Abd Al-Naser Al-Othman 25339330

Dr. Ahmad Al-Ansari 25658888

Dr. Kamal Al-Shomr 25329924

Physiotherapists & VD

Dr. Deyaa Shehab 25722291

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Rheumatologists:

Dr. Adel Al-Awadi 25330060

Dr. Khaled Al-Jarallah 25722290

Internist, Chest & Heart

DR.Mohammes Akkad 24555050 Ext 210

Dr. Mohammad Zubaid MB, ChB, FRCPC, PACC Assistant Professor Of Medicine Head, Division of Cardiology Mubarak Al-Kabeer Hospital 25339667

Consultant Cardiologist

Dr. Farida Al-Habib 2611555-2622555 MD, PH.D, FACC Inaya German Medical Center Te: 2575077 Fax: 25723123

Soor CenterTel: 2290-1677Fax: 2290 1688

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Psychologists/Psychotherapists

PRIVATE CLINICS

William Schuilenberg, RPC 2290-1677Zaina Al Zabin, M.Sc. 2290-1677

Kaizen center25716707

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SUNDAY, JULY 20, 2014l if e st yle

G o s s i p

he former Girls Aloud star - who is expecting herfirst child with boyfriend Justin Scott - is now in theseventh month of her pregnancy and has begunthinking about labor, but surprisingly, she isn’tworried about the painful process. She wrote: “I

feel very relaxed about it all and I’m still undecided aboutdoing a course of antenatal classes. I feel calm about the birthand imagine my instincts will just kick in. “In those classesthey go into so much detail that I think I might become morescared. “Maybe I’m too relaxed about it all, but I saw my sisterSally give birth to her son Billy and that’s helped. “Birth never

ends up being the way you plan it, and my friends say whenthey were in pain the techniques they learnt went out the win-dow anyway!” The 32-year-old star previously revealed shewanted to have a natural birth and luckily for her and Justin,her pregnancy has been relatively easy so she may get herwish. Kimberley added in her column for Britain’s OK! maga-zine: “The baby weighs between three and four pounds nowand its head is down and in the right position, so everything’sleaning towards me being able to have a healthy, naturalbirth, which is great news.”

T

Kimberley Walshfeels ‘very relaxed’ about giving birth

he 20-year-old singer admits it can be“weird” having a huge family as shedoesn’t know all her relatives, whichled to an embarrassing incident of herfinding a hunky relative attractive. She

said: “I’ve got a huge Jamaican family, some I don’tknow. I was walking on the beach one day with mydad thinking [about a stranger], ‘He’s good looking’.And my dad said, ‘Yeah, that’s your cousin’. Weird.”While Ella is flattered by comparisons to Rita Ora,she admits she doesn’t understand them. She said:

“She’s beautiful, so if people tell me I look like herI’m like, ‘Thanks’. But I don’t think I do. “Rita Ora’sbeen compared to Rihanna and they do not lookthe same.” The ‘If I Go’ singer used to be a fan ofRihanna but is put off now by her “sexualised”image. She added in an interview with LOOK mag-azine: “I’ve gone through phases with Rihanna. Iloved ‘S&M’, that’s my favorite. Then I think thewhole image put me off a bit. I’m not like that.”

Ella Eyre had a crush on her own cousin

The 46-year-old actor hasn’t met Johnny McDaid despite stillbeing in regular contact with his former ‘Friends’ co-star, who gotengaged to the Snow Patrol rocker last month. The ‘Episodes’ startold E! News: “I haven’t met him yet. I want to meet him.Apparently, he’s a great guy. I’m sure he’s awesome. Courteney

likes him!” The brunette beauty had dinner with two of her other former co-stars Lisa Kudrow and Jennifer Aniston earlier this week in Los Angeles, spark-ing rumors they are planning a ‘Friends’ reunion, and Matt revealed theyvideo called him from the restaurant. He said: “They Facetimed me from therestaurant. So I talked to them over the phone and saw them all.” But headded: “They’ve been eating lunch together for 20 years. It was no reunion.They never split up.” Courteney previously claimed it was impossible to get all

of her former castmates together for dinner. The 50-year-old star said: “Letme tell you something: there’s six friends and I’ve been trying to put

together a cast dinner for 10 years. It doesn’t happen! I can get thegirls to come, maybe Matthew Perry. Matt LeBlanc cancelled last timeright at the last minute, [David] Schwimmer lives here [in New YorkCity], so it’s just not gonna happen.”

T

Matt LeBlanc can’t waitto meet Courteney Cox’s fiance

he 26-year-old actress, whomarried her ‘ The GreenLantern’ co-star, 37, in asecret ceremony inSeptember 2012, admits

she loves the fact he is more than adecade older than her because he “livedso much” before they got together. Theformer ‘Gossip Girl’ star said: “He’s goingto be a great father and leader andpatriarch - he’s so meant to be all ofthose things. The fact that he lived somuch before we got together, he’s theexact realized person that he should be.And so I get to share my life with theperson he’s become, and we get togrow from there.” The blonde beautyclaims their wedding “was becoming adisaster” before they asked MarthaStewart to oversee the event in SouthCarolina. The ‘Age of Adaline’ star alsotold the August issue of Vogue maga-zine that she and Ryan, who was previ-ously married to Scarlett Johansson, col-laborate on everything, including hernew lifestyle website, Preserve. She said:“He’s a part of it because everything wedo in life we do together. If I’m workingon a movie, he helps me with my char-acter; I do the same with him. Pickingout a coffee table. What we’re going toeat. He’s a beautiful writer - he’s writtena lot of stuff for us. And he’s got a greatbarometer and he knows me, so he willtell me if it’s not as good as it can be.”Her new venture has already been com-pared to Gwyneth Paltrow’s websiteGoop and Blake admits she is inspiredby the actress. She said: “I’m always thefirst person to defend Gwyneth Paltrow.Or any woman in a position of power,like Martha Stewart or Oprah, who getsburned because they have paved thepath for so many other women who aredoing something they believe in.”

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The ‘Candidly Nicole’ star, who has daughter Harlow, six, andson Sparrow, four, with husband Joel Madden, admits bothpregnancies came as a surprise and they plan to continue to“go-with-the-flow.” Asked if she and ‘Good Charlotte’ rockerJoel, 35, would like another baby, the 32-year-old star told ‘On

Air with Ryan Seacrest’ on KIIS-FM radio: “We didn’t plan the first two, so it’snot really up to us, I guess. We’re just a go-with-the-flow ... we’ve neverdone anything in traditional order.” The reality TV star considers herself a“fun” mother and dyed her hair blue for Harlow. She said: “My daughterpicks out my hair colours and she’s having fun with it and it makes herhappy, so I just thought, ‘Why not? It’s temporary.’ She likes it. And any-thing that makes her happy, makes me happy. It’s summer.” Earlier thisyear, the fashion designer admitted she still struggles to balance mother-hood and her career. She said: “Motherhood makes you way more con-scious of how you distribute your spare time. Kids are so precious thatyour priorities change completely. I think that’s a global struggle and we,all women, are constantly trying to find a solution.” She added: “I’m like anyother working mother trying to make things work and dealing with thissituation one day at a time. I have an amazing family and they’ve all beenvery supportive, my parents live only 10 minutes away and my husbandand his twin brother help me when I need it.”

Nicole Richieis open to having more children

T


l if e s t y l eG o s s i p

he 39-year-old retired soccer star - who has sonsBrooklyn, 15, Romeo, 11, and Cruz, nine, andthree-year-old daughter Harper with wife VictoriaBeckham - only lets their sons play video gamesfor one hour a day, as he prefers them to play out-

side. Asked if his children play sports-themed video games,he told PEOPLE.com at the inaugural Nickelodeon Kids’Choice Sports Awards in Los Angeles last night: “We put atime limit on it. You have to. No more than an hour. I knowthat sounds pretty harsh, but I want my boys to be outsideplaying.” He added: “It’s so important to me that they’reinvolved in sports-for discipline and health. [Brooklyn] is pret-ty skilful. My middle one, Romeo, is the quick one; he’s superfast. The small one, [Cruz], is the tough one, of course-beingthe smallest boy.” But David says his daughter is more inter-ested in watching movies. He said: “She just had her thirdbirthday party and it was ‘Frozen’-themed. My little girl is thebiggest ‘Frozen’ fan ever.”

T

he ‘Amazing Spider-Man 2’ actress began tonotice that quarters would mysteriously appearwherever she went, and believes they are a giftfrom her late grandfather. Talking to DavidLetterman on the ‘Late Show With David

Letterman’ Emma explained: “There’s a long family historywith quarters. My grandfather leaves quarters. It’s justamazing. “It’s him! It’s absolutely him.” Naturally confused,the veteran TV host needed to clarify her story. He said:“This is your late grandfather, and you find a quarter, ‘Oh, Ibet that’s from granddad?’” The red haired beauty then

joked: “Yes. Who I never met! It’s exactly like that. It’s that.It’s such a long story that you’d have to go to commercialfive times and roll to a clip and then come back and I’d stillbe telling the story. But it’s him! You guys, it’s him.” Luckily,Emma isn’t afraid of ghosts after she explained that shefound the mysterious coins “magical”. When David impliedher story would be better if there was some scientific proofbehind it, the 25-year-old actress quipped: “That’s the joyof it! It’s not a logical thing - it’s magical.” — Bangshowbiz

believes her dead grandfather leaves her money

T

Emma Stone

he ‘Stay With Me’ hitmaker is reportedly eager to stay inshape as he performs at various festivals around the globethis summer and has requested he be served up healthymeals on his rider. A source said: “Sam surprised bosses at arecent festival when he put 20 chicken wings on his rider

and announced he’s gone carb-free. “It seems he is keeping up thehealthy regime as he’s apparently asking Virgin Media’s Louder Loungechefs to cook him up a variety of protein-only dishes to enjoy before hisperformance at V Festival next month.” The 22-year-old singer is ridinghigh in the charts in both the UK and the US, where his debut album ‘Inthe Lonely Hour’ sold over 160,000 copies in its first week of sale. Samhas even developed a strong celebrity fan base as singer NicoleScherzinger recently revealed his album left her in tears. She said: “Hedid a spectacular job of cutting straight to the heartstrings. I had manydates with the album on.”

Sam Smith is on a

carbohydrate-free diet

T David Beckham admitshe is a strict father

The ‘Liz & Dick’ actress collected the prize atthe Ischia Global Film & Music Festival in Italyearlier this week and she was on hand toaccept the trophy. However, the 28-year-oldstar - whose most recent major acting role

was ‘The Canyons’ in 2013 - suffered an embarrassingmoment when she stumbled at the annual gala. Theaward is a step in the right direction for Lindsay, who ispreparing to make her West End theatre debut in‘Speed-the-Plow’ and wants to bring her focus back toher acting career. The ‘Mean Girls’ actress recentlyclaimed she wanted her “talents” to be recognizedagain, instead of being known for her controversial andwell-documented personal issues. She said: “I want to beknown for my talents and my work that I create, ratherthan a tabloid sensation. “However long it does take, I’mwilling to do it. I’m willing to work for it.” Lindsay hasinsisted her wild days are behind her now, despitefriends reportedly worrying about her move to Londonafter she “cut ties” with her “sobriety circle”. An insiderpreviously claimed: “Everyone thinks Lindsay moved toLondon because she knows that she can get away withthings there that she cannot get away with here. “She’scut ties with everyone back in the States ... You can onlygive someone so many chances. She’s not answeringphone calls from her sober friends. It’s frustrating.”

The 45-year-old actress, who has beenengaged to ‘The Leftovers’ star for almost twoyears, says he gets better looking “every year.”The ‘We’re the Millers’ star told Women’s WearDaily magazine at a party to toast his new cov-

er of Details magazine in New York City on Tuesday. “He’sjust so beautiful and handsome to me. I love that his eye-balls are so beautifully captured because those eyes justknock me out every day. He just gets better every year.”Jennifer is also very proud of the 42-year-old actor, whoseacting career is garnering more attention recently. Shesaid: “I commend him for his courage. This is not normal forhim. He’s so graceful and utterly kind and golden.” Sheadded: “He’s just like a lost gem in the sand, and he’s justalways been there and been brilliant, and now this is just ina different light.” The blonde beauty’s best pal CourteneyCox also gushed about Jennifer’s fiance, whom she waspreviously rumored to have a frosty relationship with, atthe bash. The 50-year-old actress, who is engaged toJohnny McDaid, said he is “so handsome and cool.”

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Lindsay Lohan wins award for biggest comeback

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he 32-year-old singer felt “horrible” after she and herboyfriend, David Lucado, mistakenly walked out of TheCheesecake Factory in Thousands Oaks, California withoutsettling their $30 bill after eating an appetizer and a saladthere this week. A source told gossip website TMZ.com

that the blonde beauty decided to give the waitress that served her a300 percent tip on top of the bill after she was made aware of herblunder. A source previously said the couple, who started dating inMarch 2013, told the waitress that her bodyguard would pay the billand left with a doggie bag of leftovers. But the security guard never

paid, as he thought Britney, who has sons, Sean, eight, and Jayden,seven, with ex-husband Kevin Federline, had already done it.Meanwhile, it was recently revealed that Britney and David are think-ing about having a baby together when her Las Vegas residency endsnext year. The insider said: “Britney cannot wait until the Vegas showis done because she wants to start a family with David. She says shewill get pregnant as soon as the show is finished! “David is always withher in Vegas and they act like an old married couple together. He isreally good with her kids and has taken to the father role pretty easi-ly.”

Britney Spears tips waitress $100

T


l if e s t y l e

The parking spaces outside a Chinese shopping mall aredistinctive: marked out in pink, signposted “Respectfullyreserved for women”, and around 30 centimeters wider

than normal. The slots at the Dashijiedaduhui-or “WorldMetropolis”-centre have sparked debate in China, which offi-cially embraces gender equality but where old-fashioned sex-ism is rife in reality.

The mall, in the centre of the northern port city of Dalian,has little to distinguish itself from thousands of other retailcomplexes that have sprouted across the country as part of avast urbanization drive. It boasts chain clothing stores, fastfood franchises, glass lifts, a cinema and the inevitableStarbucks, a favorite hangout of China’s new middle class.Unusually, though, the 10 spaces outside the main entrancewere provided after women had trouble parking in the stan-dard basement slots, managers said.

“I think this is very convenient,” said user Yong Mei. “Otherparking spaces are too narrow.” “It’s not gender biased,” shetold AFP. “It’s just that women have a few issues with vision

when parking.” But outraged commentators on Chinese socialmedia accused the mall managers of sexism and clichedthinking. “This is supposed to respect women, but actually it’san insult,” said one. The mall managers deny the allegation.“We just wanted to make things easier for women, who makeup most of our customers,” said Yang Hongjun, a woman her-self. “It’s not an insult to women at all,” she added. “If theirparking spaces are larger, it’s only for practical reasons. Itdoesn’t mean that women drive less well than men.”

‘Men who cook and women who drive’ Officially, China proclaims the sexes equal in keeping with

Communist principles, and Mao Zedong said that “womenhold up half the sky”. But conservative attitudes remain deeplyingrained, and women are conspicuous by their rarity in theupper echelons of Chinese politics and the ruling party, domi-nated by men in black suits. One online poster on the Daliancar park said: “The two most dangerous things in the worldare men who cook and women who drive.”

Manufacturers’ advertisements in the world’s biggest automarket are invariably aimed at male buyers, and a man at themall, Wu Zhicun, said: “Women don’t really know how to parka car.” “The few times I’ve come close to crashing was basicallywith women driving the other car,” he added. “I’ve noticedthey’re a bit rough at the wheel, they only look forwards, toooften they ignore their mirrors.”

But driving standards in China are often lamentable,regardless of which gender is at the wheel. According to statemedia reports, officials said 60,000 people died on the roadsin 2012, the most recent figures available. The parking initia-tive is not unprecedented-other countries have similarfemale-dedicated spaces, including South Korea and variousEuropean nations. The latest Chinese controversy echoes aseries of microblog posts Beijing police made last year advis-ing women on driving techniques-including not

wearing high heels, releasing the handbrake before settingoff, and not panicking if they suddenly realise they’re goingthe wrong way. “Some women drivers lack a sense of direc-

tion, and while driving a car, they often hesitate and are inde-cisive about which road they should take,” reads one of theentries on the police department’s verified microblog.

Another featured a cartoon depicting a confrontationbetween a police officer and a woman driving a vehicleshaped like a large red high-heel shoe. According to a WorldHealth Organization estimate in March 2013, globally malesare more likely to be involved in accidents than females, and77 percent of all road traffic deaths occur among men. Evenso, for some posters the Dalian parking places amounted todiscrimination against male drivers. “It’s always women whoenjoy privileges!” complained one. “Men have become theweaker sex.” — AFP

In this photo, mall manager Yang Hongjun speaks in front of cars parked in pink marked out spaces during an interview infront of the Dashijiedaduhui, or World Metropolis centre, in the seaport city of Dalian, northeast China’s Liaoning province.

This photo shows a woman standing next to pink marked out parking spaces. — AFP photos

Plus-sized parking spaces for Chinese women drivers

“Supernatural” stars Jensen Acklesand Jared Padalecki say the TVseries they started nine years ago

remains just as fun today as it did at thebeginning. “We still get excited about it,”Ackles told journalists Friday at theTelevision Critics Association summer presstour. “I remember getting the last script ofseason nine, I got all giddy about it. I wasexcited to see what happens in season 10.As long as there’s still that fulfillment ... wewill keep going.” Padelecki added, “I thinkwe know the show enough and our charac-ters enough that if there’s an end coming I

think we’ll all see it.” “Supernatural” followsAckles and Padalecki as brothers who battlethe supernatural. The CW network remainscommitted to the idea of a spin-off eventhough the network passed on the pilot for“Supernatural: Bloodlines.”President MarkPedowitz said that show, “creatively did notquite get to where we wanted it to go” buthe’s open to trying again. “I think it’s a greatfranchise that has a lot of legs to it.” — AP

Rocker Jon Bon Jovi is part of a Toronto groupthat has retained a banking firm and submit-ted paperwork expressing interest in buying

the Buffalo Bills, three people who have revieweddocuments regarding the sale process told TheAssociated Press on Friday. It is unclear if the groupwould eventually want to move the NFL team to

Toronto. The club is on the market after Hall of Fameowner Ralph Wilson died in March. The three peo-ple spoke to The Associated Press on the conditionof anonymity Friday because the process is privateand the Toronto group has not revealed its inten-tions. The group includes Larry Tanenbaum and theRogers family. Tanenbaum is chairman of MapleLeaf Sports and Entertainment, which controls theNHL’s Maple Leafs and NBA’s Raptors. The Rogers

family includes Edward Rogers, who is deputy chair-man of Rogers, the Toronto communications giant.

The group is on a list of prospective buyers whohave submitted a nondisclosure agreement form toMorgan Stanley, the banking firm overseeing theBills sale. The Toronto group has retained theGoldman Sachs banking firm to assist in the bid.

Bon Jovi previously expressed interest in owning anNFL franchise but never specifically mentioned theBills. This is the first real indication linking him toTanenbaum and Rogers. One of the people con-firmed that Bon Jovi discussed his interests involv-ing the Bills during a restaurant meeting with NFLCommissioner Roger Goodell in New York City lastmonth. The Bills most recently were valued byForbes at $870 million. They are projected to be

sold for at least $1 billion, partly because NFL teamsrarely go on the market. The team is essentiallylocked into playing at Ralph Wilson Stadiumthrough the 2019 season because of a strict nonre-location clause included in a 10-year lease agree-ment reached with the state and county inDecember 2012.

The Bills would incur a $400 million penalty byeven broaching the prospect of moving during thelease’s term. There is a one-time exception thatwould allow the Bills to break the lease for justunder $28.4 million in 2020. Of about 60 nondisclo-sure forms sent out by Morgan Stanley in June, atleast 10 of have been returned, two of the peoplesaid. Among those also listed as returning theirforms are Buffalo Sabres owners Terry and KimPegula and New York City real estate mogul DonaldTrump. The forms were required in order forprospective bidders to gain access to financial andbackground information on the franchise to beginformulating their bids. The next step is for prospec-tive bidders to submit another set of forms - includ-ing their own financial information - by July 29 togain more access to the Bills’ financial information.One of the people said Morgan Stanley hasinformed prospective buyers that the Bills madejust under $30 million in net profits last season. AndMorgan Stanley projects that number will doubleby 2019 as a result of the NFL’s TV contract, currentrenovations taking place at the stadium and otherpotential local sources of income. — AFP

Bon Jovi part of group eyeing Bills

In this file photo musician Jon Bon Jovi performs during a concert of the American rock band BonJovi in Lisbon, Portugal. — AP

‘Supernatural’ stars stillenergized at season 10

Jared Padalecki (left) and Producer Jeremy Carver speak on stage during the“Supernatural” panel at The CW 2014 Summer TCA held at the Beverly Hilton Hotel onFriday in Beverly Hills, Calif. — AP

Models present creations during the 2014India Couture Week in New Delhi on July 18,2014. — AFP photos

India Fashion Week


l if e s t y l e

Centrepoint unveils stylish Eid 2014 collectionCentrepoint the popular shopping destination in Kuwait

would like to greet all its patrons on the festive occasionof Eid Al-Fitr. An exciting new collection is now available

in stores for you to check out and promises to completelybowl you over with a wide variety of styles to choose from thevarious concepts including Splash, Juniors, Shoe Mart &Lifestyle.

Bring in your Eid this year with Splash and be rest assuredto make a statement in the fashion circles. This is the time tosocialize, attend and host parties, basically rejoice in the fes-tivities. All this celebration calls for dressing up which meansbeing on top of the festive fashion trends. With some classicpieces available you can never go wrong with Splash Eidrange. A prominent trend we see in the collection is Black andWhite which is featured in a range of sporty silhouettes.Incorporate a bit of glamour and a luxe effect to your lookwith just the right amount of crystals and studs. For an ele-ment of drama in your contemporary festive look, key piecescan be found in animal prints infused with bling elements.Jacquard is known to provide a constructed silhouette whichis quite a dominant fabric in the line.

Gearing up for the festive season, Juniors has launched itschic Eid collection featuring dressy party essentials that alsoensures kids stay cool and comfortable during the hot sum-

mer months. Mint is the colour of the season for girls, comple-mented by bright royal blues and corals. Accentuated withcrochet and ombre sequins, the ensemble conveys a prettylook without looking too girly in designs ranging from pleatsand jacquard to detailed origami and laser cut. The relaxedand sophisticated look is ideal for boys, with brown and navyblue combinations dominating the collection. Hints of brightorange and burgundy give the perfect summer feel withaccents on pockets and insides of shirts. Retailing a wide spec-trum of colours, designs and mix-n-match options at afford-able prices, Junior’s Eid collection promises a real treat for kidsbetween 0-16 years, this festive season.

In sync with the euphoria of Eid celebrations, Shoe Martlaunched it showy collection in women’s footwear that’s sureto prep every silhouette. Lining up a glamorous collection inhigh heels and stilettoes; this range makes way for compli-menting styles in strappy sandals and posh pumps alike. TheArabic Slippers collection for men also get a festive look with aspin of colors like red and brown contrasted with blacks andwhites to make for variety. Beige and white with metal buck-les and textured leather are designed to add classy styles totraditional looks. High on comfort and style quotient; this fes-tive range will allow men to reflect their celebratory cheerwith refinement and flair.

Match your Eid special look with ornamented clutchesadorned in statement brooches and stones that emanateuncompromised charm to boast a repertoire of fascination.Hold on to the vibrancy of gold and silver along with accentu-ated glamour of black and gold to stride chic in femininegrace. Add high octane wow with decked neck pieces in goldand white dressed in modern chic trends. Brimming in luxury;earrings, finger rings and sets of bangles rejoice in exoticaccents of colored gems and stones that are truly in their ele-ment to add those final touches to your Eid silhouettes. Dressyhair pins in black and gold embellished in decorated floralpatterns stand out to accentuate every single look. Unique tothis Eid collection is a unique piece of accessory that can beworn either as a neck piece or head band. Complete with adetachable neck chain and head strap; choose to design yourbohemian look with a gorgeous bejeweled head gear or a chicstatement neck piece to steal the show.

If a traditional Arabic look for Eid dÈcor has been on yourmind then, peep into Lifestyle’s exquisite collection of ornate-ly crafted lanterns for grace and celebratory cheer. Designedspecially to highlight the Eid festivities round the corner, theseclassy lanterns are done up in metal and glazed glass forsuper-ethnic looks. The wrought iron look perfectly contrast-ed with toned glasses in colors like orange, red, blue and

green make for a traditional yet modern-chic look to enlivenany interiors. No matter where you place them, these decora-tive lanterns are sure to lighten up your moods this Eid.Choose from a range in design and colors at your nearestLifestyle store today!

Add a touch of glam to your look this festive season withLifestyle’s eclectic range of cosmetics from internationallyrenowned brand NYX . Assorted, stylish- and totally fuss free,NYX rolls out a range of exciting cosmetics that embraces thegraceful element of the season. NYX offers a range of scintil-lating cosmetics that are anything but basic. With so much tochoose from the NYX range in new age cosmetics, trend thatsalon perfect look this Eid only with Lifestyle! So adorn your-self for Eid and ride on to any Centrepoint Stores located atRai, Hawally, Salmiya, Kuwait City, Fahaheel, Fintas,Sulaibikhat, Jahra, flagship store at The Avenues (The Mall)and Lifestyle Stand Alone store at Starmall and Farwaniya.

Archaeologists in Italy have uncovered a ceme-tery in the 2,700-year-old ancient port of Romewhere they believe the variety of tombs found

reflects the bustling town’s multi-cultural nature.Ostia “was a town that was always very open, verydynamic,” said Paola Germoni, the director of thesprawling site-Italy’s third most visited after theColosseum and Pompeii. “What is original is that thereare different types of funeral rites: burials and crema-tions,” she said this week.

The contrasts are all the more startling as thetombs found are all from a single family-”in theRoman sense, in other words very extended”, Germonisaid. The discovery is the latest surprise at Ostia afterarchaeologists in April said that new walls foundshowed the town was in fact 35-percent bigger thanpreviously thought, making it bigger than ancientPompeii.

Ostia, which was founded in the 7th century BCand is believed to have covered an area of 85hectares, was once at the estuary of the Tiber Riverand is now about three kilometers (two miles) fromthe sea because of silting. The place where the latestburials were found is inside a 15,000 square meterpark close to a Renaissance castle on the edge of themain excavated area of the town, which had docks,warehouses, apartment houses and its own theatre.

The port was founded by Ancus Marcius, thefourth king of Rome, to provide his growing city withaccess to the sea, ensuring it would be supplied withflour and salt and to prevent enemy ships from goingup the Tiber. Around a dozen tombs have been foundso far at the site, some of them including lead tabletswith inscriptions containing curses to ward off poten-tial looters.The cemetery “shows the free choice thateveryone had with their own body, a freedom peopleno longer had in the Christian era when burial

became the norm,” Germoni said.

‘Really exciting’ The latest excavations, which began in 2012, have

also revealed an aristocratic home with a polychro-matic floor. Thirty students from the AmericanInstitute for Roman Culture are also taking part andcould be seen at work under the cypress trees next tothe ancient basalt-block Roman road that once con-nected Ostia to the capital. Hailing from Canada,Switzerland and the United States, the buddingarchaeologists were spending a few weeks in Romeon the dig as part of their studies.

“It’s a dig that is very rich in different experiences,”said Darius Arya, a US archaeologist who heads theinstitute. They “are discovering restoration work butalso a more anthropological approach with excava-tions of tombs,” he said. Among the students wasMichal Ann Morrison from Austin, Texas in the UnitedStates, who is completing a degree in religious stud-ies. “You get to deal with tangible objects from histo-ry, which is really exciting,” she said. “I worked as theartifact intern for this year and it’s an exciting positionbecause you get to get your hands on all the cooleststuff.” — AFP

Exec producer of ‘TheFlash’ teases new series

Geoff Johns, executive producer of “The Flash,” says theupcoming CW series is probably the most faithful DCComics adaptation ever. Grant Gustin stars as Barry

Allen, who becomes the fastest man alive, known as The Flash.He was introduced last fall on two episodes of The CW’s “Arrow.”The cast and executive producers spoke to journalists Friday atthe Television Critics Association summer press tour about theshow set to premiere Oct 7. Here are some highlights:

Wentworth Miller (formerly of “Prison Break”) will be intro-duced in the show’s fourth episode as Leonard Snart (other-wise known as Captain Cold, a villain with a freeze gun.) Lookfor a wink to DC Comics villain Gorilla Grodd in the pilotepisode. Grodd is an enemy to The Flash. Expect crossoverswith characters from “Arrow” and “The Flash.” Gustin said in aninterview the two sets are across the street from each other inVancouver, British Columbia. He teased that those appear-ances will likely happen more than people might anticipate.Art released from The CW shows The Flash wearing a purplecostume. This will change. “Our hope is to augment it andchange it over time ... We’ll be evolving the suit,” executiveproducer Greg Berlanti said. — AP

Darius Arya (center) in charge of the excavation for theAmerican Institute for Roman Culture presents a marblefloor as part of the last discoveries at the Parco deiRavennati excavation site in Ostia Antica.

Archaeologists discover Roman‘free choice’ cemetery

(From left) Carlos Valdes, Danielle Panabaker and Tom Cavanagh speak onstage during the “The Flash” panel at the CW 2014 Summer TCA held at theBeverly Hilton Hotel on Friday, July 18, 2014, in Beverly Hills, Calif. — AP

Kinshasa Fashion Week

Models present creations by stylist Carine Pala during the 2nd edition of Kinshasa Fashion Week in Kinshasa. — AFP photos

38Plus-sized parkingspaces for Chinesewomen drivers


This July 20, 1969 file photo provided by NASA shows Apollo 11 astronaut Neil Armstrong on the lunar surface. — AP photos

In this July 20, 1969 file photo provided by NASAshows astronaut Edwin E “Buzz” Aldrin Jr posing for aphotograph beside the US flag deployed on the moonduring the Apollo 11 mission.

In this July 20, 1969 file photo provided by NASA,Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin carries scientific experiments to adeployment site south of the lunar module Eagle dur-ing the Apollo 11 mission.

In this July 24, 1969 file photo, President Richard Nixon(right) greets the Apollo 11 astronauts in the quaran-tine van on board the USS Hornet after splashdownand recovery.

On July 20, 1969, at 10:56 pm EDT, man took his firststep on the moon. It was an event that wouldcleave humans’ relationship with space in two, sep-

arating the millennia in which human beings had merelyserved as observers, and the moment that humansbecame visitors to planetary bodies their ancestors couldsee only from a distance. News coverage of the event wasa massive undertaking, involving thousands of reporters,photographers, editors, technicians and other staff from allover the world.

“There was little sleep for the more than 3,000 newspersonnel at the Houston Space Center during those twohistoric days. Meals were hasty. Pressure was immense.Time flew,” AP staffer Richard Beene wrote in a story aboutAP’s coverage of the mission launch and moonwalk.Dozens of AP reporters would build on that to tell almostevery conceivable angle of the story, working 24 hours aday from desks at the Space Center in Houston, watchingthe landing with astronauts’ families, and elsewhere.Leading the AP’s coverage of the mission was LouBoccardi, in his first field assignment for the company.Boccardi would go on to become AP’s president and chiefexecutive officer.

“Everyone was just so energized and high on the excite-ment of the event,” Boccardi said this week from his homein suburban New York. “It took people a while to comedown from the high of when (Neil Armstrong) said, ‘Onesmall step for man, one giant leap for mankind.’ When weheard those words it was just electric; we knew then thatthe mission had been successful.”

“There we were, a few feet from Mission Control talkingto the guys up in the capsule, about the time that manlanded and walked on the moon,” Boccardi recalled. “I wasdirecting the finest news staff you could imagine assem-bling and we were constructing part of history.” Armstrongmaintained before his death in 2012 that the actual wordsof his famous quote were, “That’s one small step for a man,a giant leap for mankind.” A 2006 computer analysis of theoriginal recordings found evidence that this was the case,but the “a” was uttered too quickly to be picked up byhuman ears. Forty-five years after it was first published, the

AP is making its original report available.

Making historyTwo Americans landed on the moon and explored its

surface for some two hours Sunday, planting the firsthuman footprints in its dusty soil. They raised their nation’sflag and talked to their President on earth 240,000 milesaway. Both civilian Neil Alden Armstrong and Air Force Col.Edwin E. “Buzz” Aldrin Jr. reported they were back in theirspacecraft at 1:11 am EDT Monday. “The hatch is closedand locked,” Armstrong reported. Millions on their homeplanet watched on television as the pair saluted their flagand scoured the rocky, rugged surface.

The first to step on the moon was Armstrong, 38, ofWapakoneta, Ohio. His foot touched the surface at 10:56pm EDT and he remained out for two hours and 14 min-utes. His first words standing on the moon were, “That’sone small step for man, a giant leap for mankind.” Twentyminutes after he stepped down, Aldrin followed. “Beautiful,beautiful, beautiful,” he said. “A magnificent desolation.” Heremained out for one hour and 44 minutes. Their space-craft Eagle landed on the moon at 4:18 pm, and they wereout of it and on the surface some six hours later.

At the end, mission control granted them extra time onthe lunar surface. Armstrong was given 15 extra minutes,Aldrin 12. Even while they were on the surface, the seis-mometer they installed to study the moon’s interior waspicking up the shudders created by Aldrin as he ham-mered tubes into the lunar crust to take soil samples.

Earlier, mission control reported that a laser beam shotfrom earth to the moon had been reflected back by a smallmirror set on the surface by the astronauts. But scientistsat Lick Observatory in California later said the initial testhad failed because the beam was 50 miles off target. Therewere humorous moments in the awkward climbing outand in the spacecraft. When Aldrin backed out of thehatch, he said he was “making sure not to lock it on theway out.”

Lunar materialArmstrong, on the surface, laughed. “A pretty good

thought,” he said. Once back in the spaceship they beganimmediately to repressurize the cabin with oxygen. Theystowed the samples of rocks and soil. “We’ve got about 20pounds of carefully selected, if not documented samples,”Armstrong said, referring to the contents of one of twoboxes filled with lunar material.

The minutes behind were unforgettable for them, andfor the world. The moments ahead were still full of hazard.Monday, at 1:55 pm, they are scheduled to blast off fromthe moon to catch up with their orbiting mothershipabove for the trip home. President Nixon’s voice came tothe ears of the astronauts on the moon from the OvalRoom at the White House. “This has to be the most historictelephone call ever made,” he said. “I just can’t tell you howproud I am... Because of what you have done the heavenshave become part of man’s world. As you talk to us fromthe Sea of Tranquility, it inspires us to redouble our effortsto bring peace and tranquility to man.

“All the people on earth are surely one in their pride ofwhat you have done, and one in their prayers that you willreturn safely...” Aldrin replied, “Thank you Mr. President. It isa privilege to represent the people of all peaceablenations.” Armstrong added his thanks. Armstrong’s stepswere cautious at first. He almost shuffled. “The surface isfine and powdered, like powdered charcoal to the soles ofthe foot,” he said. “I can see my footprints of my boots inthe fine sandy particles.” Armstrong read from the plaqueon the side of Eagle, the spacecraft that had brought themto the surface. In a steady voice, he said, “Here man first setfoot on the moon, July, 1969. We came in peace for allmankind.” As in the moments he walked alone, Armstrong’svoice was all that was heard from the lunar surface.

Kangaroo hopHe appeared phosphorescent in the blinding sunlight.

He walked carefully at first in the gravity of the moon, onlyone-sixth as strong as on earth. Then he tried wide gazelle-like leaps. Aldrin tried a kind of kangaroo-hop, but found itunsatisfactory. “The so-called kangaroo-hop doesn’t seemto work as well as the more conventional pace,” he said. “Itwould get rather tiring after several hundred.”

In the lesser gravity of the moon, each of the men, 165pounders on Earth, weighed something over 25 pounds onthe moon. Armstrong began the rock picking on the lunarsurface. Aldrin joined him using a small scoop to put lunarsoil in a plastic bag. Above them, invisible and nearlyignored, was Air Force Lt Col Michael Collins, 38, keepinghis lonely patrol around the moon for the moment whenhis companions blast off and return to him for the tripback home. Collins said he saw a small white object on themoon, but didn’t think it was the spacecraft. It was in thewrong place.

Back in Houston, where the nearly half-moon rode thesky in its zenith, Mrs. Jan Armstrong watched her husbandon television. “I can’t believe it is really happening,” shesaid. Armstrong surveyed the rocky, rugged scene aroundhim. “It has a stark beauty all its own,” he said. “It’s different.But it’s very pretty out here.” They took pictures of eachother, and Aldrin shot views of the spacecraft against thelunar background. In a world where temperatures varysome 500 degrees, from 243 degrees above zero in sun-light, to 279 below in shadow, the men in the spacesuitsfelt comfortable. Aldrin reported, “In general, time spent inthe shadow doesn’t seem to have any thermal effectsinside the suit. There is a tendency to feel cooler in theshadow than out of the sun.” — AP

Remembering history:

Man walks on the moon

In this July 20, 1969 file photo provided by NASA, astro-naut Edwin E Aldrin Jr walks on the surface of the moon,with seismogaphic equipment that he just set up.

In this July 20, 1969 file photo provided by NASA, theApollo 11 lunar module rises from the moon’s surfacefor docking with the command module and the tripback to earth with the earth in the background.

Execution or exodus, Iraq's Christians face grim choice

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