Volume 24 | Number 7989 | 2 RiyalsTuesday 20 August 2019 | 19 Dhul-Hijja 1440 www.thepeninsula.qa

BUSINESS | 13 SPORT | 18

Huawei wins 90-day

reprieve on US supply ban

QNA/THE PENINSULA DOHA

Ooredoo has signed a two-year part-nership agreement with the Qatar Stars League (QSL) to sponsor the QSL Cup, which will now be called Ooredoo Cup.

The tournament will start on Sep-tember 6, 2019, with the participation of First Division clubs. Teams will be divided into two groups and the top four from each group will qualify for the knock-out quarter-finals. The final has been scheduled for March 30, 2020.

The first team and under-23 players are allowed to participate in the tour-nament, young players in the tour-nament can also be used to allow them to gain experience and develop their skills.

Executive Director of Marketing, Sales, and Communication at QSL, Hassan Rabiah Al Kuwari said: “We’re proud to partner Ooredoo, one of the largest companies in Qatar. The QSL seeks to support young players and Qatari clubs in this tournament (Ooredoo Cup).”

For her part the Director of Spon-sorship, CSR and Media Strategy at Ooredoo Moza Khalid Al Muhannadi, said: “Supporting sporting events is a key pillar of our corporate social respon-sibility strategy for a number of reasons, and to this end, we’ve a new slogan for all sporting events to which we put our name; Empower You To Win.

The new Ooredoo Cup is the perfect way in which we can promote a healthy, active lifestyle, encourage community cohesion and support Qatari sports teams. We have a wealth of talent here in Qatar, and we’re proud to be enabling the development of this talent as part of our commitment to Qatar National Vision 2030.

The domestic football season kicked off with the Sheikh Jassim Cup on Saturday, with Al Sadd, coached by Spanish legend Xavi Hernandez, winning the title following a 1-0 win over Al Duhail. Al Sadd now begin their title defence in the QNB Stars League which kicks off tomorrow with a match against Al Wakrah at the Al Sadd Stadium.

Deputy Amir meets Commander of US Central Command

Deputy Amir H H Sheikh Abdullah bin Hamad Al Thani met at the Amiri Diwan yesterday with the Commander of the US Central Command in the Middle East, General Kenneth Mckenzie, and his accompanying delegation on the occasion of their visit to the country. They reviewed the strategic relations between the two friendly countries in the defence and military fields, as well as the latest developments in the region.

Qatar announces investment in Somalia portQNA/THE PENINSULA MOGADISHU/DOHA

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs H E Sheikh Mohamed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani met yesterday with the Prime Minister of the Federal Republic of Somalia, Hassan Ali Khayre, during a visit to Somalia.

They reviewed bilateral relations as well as issues of common concern. Min-ister of Transport and Communications

H E Jassim bin Saif Al Sulaiti attended the meeting.

In a press conference following the meeting, H E the Minister of Transport and Communications and the Minister of Ports and Maritime Transport of Somalia, Maryan Aweys Jama, announced the State of Qatar’s investment in Hobyo Port in order to support the sisterly Republic of Somalia and develop and strengthen relations between the two countries.

Aweys Jama stressed that the launch of the Hobyo Port construction project will create jobs for citizens and contribute to the country’s economy.

Mwani Qatar has entered into an investment partnership with the Somali side, said a statement issued by the

Ministry of Transport and Communications yesterday.

H E the Minister of Transport and Com-munications said this investment reflects the strength of relations between Qatar and Somalia, which were established by Amir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo of Somalia. �P2

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs H E Sheikh Mohamed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani and Minister of Transport and Communications H E Jassim bin Saif Al Sulaiti with Somalia's Prime Minister, Hassan Ali Khayre.

Iranian vessel sets sail from Gibraltar; US warned against seizing tankerAFP TEHRAN

Tehran said it had warned its arch-foe Washington against attempting to seize an Iranian tanker, which sailed into inter-national waters yesterday after being released from Gibraltar.

Iran had been locked in a six-week standoff with US ally Britain since Royal Marines seized the tanker off British ter-ritory Gibraltar, on suspicion it was shipping oil to Syria in breach of EU sanctions.

Little more than two weeks later, Iran’s Islamic Revolu-tionary Guard Corps impounded the British-flagged Stena Impero tanker in strategic Gulf waters in what London called a tit-for-tat move.

A Gibraltar court on Thursday ordered the release of the Grace 1, since renamed the Adrian Darya.

That was in spite of a last-minute US bid to detain the supertanker on allegations of involvement in supporting illicit shipments to Syria by the Guards, listed as a terrorist group by Washington.

Gibraltar’s government rejected the request, saying it could not seek a court order to detain the ship because US sanctions against Iran were not applicable in the European Union.

The Adrian Darya had left Gibraltar and entered interna-tional waters on Monday, the deputy head of Iran’s port and marine authority Jalil Eslami said, cited by state news agency IRNA.

Flying the Iranian flag, it was on course for the Greek port of Kalamata, according to shipping data.

But the final destination of the vessel and its 2.1 million barrels of oil remains unclear, with authorities in Greece yet to confirm it is expected to dock there.

Ashghal completes pilot cool pavement projectTHE PENINSULA DOHA

The Public Works Authority has completed the implementation of a pilot cool pavement project with an asphalt-cooled substance that has a positive effect on overall temperature reduction by lesser absorption of solar radiation.

The asphalt cryogenic material was piloted on parts up to 200 metres of vehicle lanes on Abdullah bin Jassim Street by Souq Waqif, and the material was also tested on 200 metres of pedestrian and bicycle paths in front of the Cultural Village Katara.

The study of the project will be for 18 months, and based on the outcome of the pilot, the success and wider applicability will be decided.

The road opened to the traffic to start testing the effec-tiveness of this material and to measure the success of this experiment and its possible

formal application in the road network in the State of Qatar.

Special devices and sensors have been installed by road experts and contractors to measure the effectiveness of the material in reducing asphalt temperature and comparing it to conventional asphalt. This pilot project was carried out in cooperation with the Japanese Oriental Company, one of the leading companies in the imple-mentation of this technology.

Unlike conventional asphalt, which contributes to increased temperature by absorbing up to 80 to 95 percent of sunlight, cooling pavement reflects UV rays and absorbs solar radiation to a lesser extent and can have a positive effect on overall tem-perature reduction, if we look at the size of areas covered by the conventional asphalt layer.

A number of developed countries, the United States of

America in particular, have adopted this innovation, in an effort to reduce high tempera-tures in the atmosphere and con-tribute to reducing emissions and other air pollutants, thereby con-serving the environment.

A protective material has been set for the ground marks to protect them from contact with vehicles and to increase their age.

Research findings by experts in the field of environment and sus-tainability suggest that the use of cool pavement can reduce overall temperature and thus reduce emis-sions, cool paving material reduces heat-related illnesses, slows smog formation, enhances pedestrian ability to use the road and promotes traffic safety, as light-coloured pavements reflect street lights and vehicles' front lights better, making vehicles more visually visible to their drivers.

By lowering air temperatures in residential areas, cool pavement

can slow chemical reactions in the atmosphere that cause smog. Cooled paving material can be made from traditional paving materials, such as concrete.

The new coating of the

concrete asphalt layer, reflecting about 50 percent of sunlight, con-sists of four layers of the primary layer, followed by three consec-utive layers that reduce heat absorbed by solar radiation.

Ethiopian President, PMmeet Foreign MinisterQNA/ADDIS ABABA

The President of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, Sahle-Work Zewde, met yesterday with the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, H E Sheikh Mohamed bin Abdul-rahman Al Thani, during a visit to Ethiopia.

H E the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs also met yes-terday with the Prime Minister of Ethiopia, Abiy Ahmed. The meetings reviewed bilateral relations and pros-pects of enhancing them. �P2

Partnership agreementsigned for Ooredoo Cup

A view of the road paved with the asphalt-cooled substance.

McLeod and new coach confident of good showing at Doha Worlds

02 TUESDAY 20 AUGUST 2019HOME

Amir congratulates Afghan President

Commander of Amiri Guard meets Pakistan defence official

DOHA: Amir H H Sheikh

Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani

and Deputy Amir H H Sheikh

Abdullah bin Hamad Al

Thani sent yesterday cables

of congratulations to Presi-

dent of the Islamic Republic

of Afghanistan, Moham-

mad Ashraf Ghani, on the

anniversary of his country’s

Independence Day. Prime Min-

ister and Interior Minister

H E Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser

bin Khalifa Al Thani also sent

a cable of congratulations to

Prime Minister of Afghani-

stan Abdullah Abdullah on the

anniversary of his country’s

Independence Day. QNA

DOHA: Commander of the

Amiri Guard, Major General

Hazza bin Khalil Al Shahwani,

met yesterday with the Chair-

man of Pakistan’s Joint Chiefs

of Staff Committee General

Zubair Mahmood Hayat. Dur-

ing the meeting, they reviewed

bilateral relations, ways of

boosting and developing them

and enhancing cooperation, in

addition to matters of common

concern. QNA

OFFICIAL NEWS

THE PENINSULA DOHA

After overcoming weather challenges, traditional Qatari dhow Fath Al Khair has arrived in the Greek island of Corfu. On arrival at the island, the dhow received a warm welcome and sparked great interest during the reception hosted by the Qatar Embassy in Greece.

On this occasion, Abdulaziz Ali Al Naama, Ambassador of Qatar to Greece, said that Corfu island was the last destination in Greece for Fath Al Khair 4 before it sails towards Albania.

For his part, the mayor of Corfu Island was delighted to receive the dhow, praising the voyage that promotes the World Cup 2022 in Qatar.

Fath Al Khair’s captain Mohammed Al Sada expressed his great happiness with the warm reception especially from the people and tourists who came specially to see the dhow. The officials toured the dhow and learned about it including its various parts, pearl diving and how to open oysters.

After its stop in Corfu island, Fath Al Khair heads towards Albania then to Split, the second

largest city of Croatia located on the eastern shore of the Adriatic sea. Fath Al Khair will then sail toward Italy in Puglia, Venice, and Sicily con-cluding the first phase of its journey in Genoa northern Italy which it is expected to reach by early October.

It is worth mentioning that Fath Al Khair 4 began its historic voyage to Europe and North Africa with 15 sailors on board on July 10 from Babik Port in Istanbul’s Bosporus Strait.

The second phase of Fath Al Khair 4 is scheduled to begin in June next year.

Fath Al Khair sailors being welcomed by officials upon their arrival in Corfu in Greece.

18 talented artists join ‘Artist in Residence’ programmeRAYNALD C RIVERA THE PENINSULA

A group of 18 talented Qatar-based artists are joining the fifth season of the highly successful Fire Station: Artist in Residence programme aimed at nurturing creative talent from across the country.

Every year, the nine-month residency, which provides strong platform for artists to develop their creativity, attracts large portfolio of artists from various disciplines.

The new batch of artists, which Doha Fire Station announced recently on its official Facebook page, includes Qatari artists Aisha Al-Muhannadi, Ameera Al-Aji, Amena Al-Yousef, Ebtesam “Ebi” Al-Hothi, Hind Al Saad, Latifa Al-Kuwari, Maryam Al-Maadhadi, Mashael Al-Hijazi, Muna Al-Bader, Naila Al-Thani, and Noor Yousef.

Other Qatar-based artists joining the programme for 2019-2020 are Hadeer Omar from

Egypt, Haytham Sharrouf from Venezuela, Jaser Alagha from Australia, Majdulin Nasrallah from Jordan, Mariam Rafehi from Germany, Maysaa Almumin from Kuwait, and Suzana Joumaa from Syria.

As part of the programme, these artists will benefit from their own dedicated studio space, the opportunity to collab-orate and exchange cultural knowledge with each other and the chance to enhance their cre-ative progression through men-toring and workshops with highly influential artists. They will also have the chance to have interactive sessions with artists and guest critics as well as have open studio nights and public talks.

The residency extends from September to June and by the end of it artists are given the oppor-tunity to showcase their artworks in an exhibition in the Garage Gallery at the Fire Station.

Works of the latest batch of artists which concludes their

residency are currently on display at the Garage Gallery at an exhibition titled Infinite Dimensions in which over 55 works by 19 artists are on show until September 1.

Open to Qatar-based artists aged 21 and up, the program is open to all artistic practices such as, photography, film, sound art, design, literature and visual arts which includes painting, drawing, sculpture, media art, installation, graphic arts, and illustration among others. An esteemed panel of judges select the artists to be enrolled in the program.

The Fire Station: Artist in Residency Programme, is a high-light of Qatar Museums’ initia-tives, all which aim to create a new generation of talents that can inspire audiences and drive forward Qatar’s cultural sector. Sitting at the heart of Qatar’s thriving creative community, it acts as a hub for participants, encouraging them to take their artistic skills to the next level.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, H E Sheikh Mohamed bin Ab-dulrahman Al Thani, meeting with Prime Minister of the Federal Republic of Somalia, Hassan Ali Khayre, in Mogadishu, yesterday.

Fath Al Khair receives warm welcome on Corfu island in Greece

Qatar, Ethiopia review tiesQNA/ADDIS ABABA

The President of Ethiopia, Sahle-Work Zewde, met yesterday with Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, H E Sheikh Mohamed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, during his official visit to Ethiopia. The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs conveyed the greetings of Amir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani to the President of Ethiopia and his wishes for the Ethi-opian people more progress and development. The Pres-ident of Ethiopia entrusted the Deputy Prime Minister

and Minister of Foreign Affairs to convey her greetings to H H the Amir, wishing His Highness good health and happiness and the Qatari people further devel-opment and prosperity.

During the meeting, they reviewed bilateral relations and prospects of enhancing

them. The meeting was attended by Minister of Transport and Communications, H E Jassim bin Saif Al Sulaiti. The Deputy Prime Minister also met with Prime Minister of Ethiopia Abiy Ahmed.The Ethi-opian Prime Minister entrusted the Deputy Prime Minister to convey his greetings to Amir H

H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, wishing him good health and happiness and further development and prosperity to Qatari people. They reviewed the existing cooperation

relations between the two countries and ways of devel-oping them. The meeting was attended by Minister of Transport and Communications H E Jassim bin Saif Al Sulaiti.

Qatar announces investment in Somalia port

FROM PAGE 1The Minister said the

investment, which is the basic building block in the field of cooperation in maritime transport, will open new horizons for cooperation between the two countries in the interest of the two brotherly peoples. H E the

Minister said that the Hobyo port will be designed and built with the latest international standards and will follow modern standards in safety and security measures.

It is an important Somali port due to its proximity to the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait,

which is one of the most important sea crossing points in the world, in addition to its location in the

central region of Mudug, Somalia, which is the link between the south and north of the country.

Qatar chairs Customs Committee meeting at Arab LeagueQNA/CAIRO

The 23rd meeting of the customs procedures and information committee started yesterday at the headquarters of the General Secre-tariat of the League of Arab States, chaired by the State of Qatar and the participation of representatives of the customs administrations in the Arab countries.

Qatar’s delegation to meeting was

represented by Head of Customs Pro-cedures Unit at General Authority of Customs Issa Rashid Al Suwaidi.

Dr. Bahjat Abul-Nasr, Director of the Economic Integration Department at the Arab League, said in a statement on the sidelines of the meeting that the meeting will discuss over a period of three days a number of topics, including the unified Arab customs information center and the exchange of customs information

electronically among Arab countries, in addition to an item submitted by the General Secretariat on the approved economic operator, and a questionnaire on the qualified customs ports were distributed to the Arab countries on the basis of identifying the possibilities and the extent of technological development available in all ports so that these procedures can be standardized in all Arab countries.

Ahmed bin Mohammed Military College concludes training exercise in MongoliaQNA/ULAN BATOR

Ahmed bin Mohammed Military College has concluded the ‘decisive decision’ exercise (15). The two-week exercise was organized in the Republic of Mongolia, with the partic-ipation of 210 officer cadets of the college.

Director of the exercise Major Ghanim Yousef Al Kaabi said that Ahmed bin Mohammed Military College has always been seeking to train its students in

different environments in terms of climate and geographical nature in order to enhance their training level and equip them with more experience. This is why several exercises were held in certain countries including the Republic of Mongolia, he said.

Major Al Kaabi pointed out that the cadets benefited from the diversity of training grounds, stressing that training is key to improving the combat efficiency of the participants.

Minister of Transport and Communications, H E Jassim bin Saif Al Sulaiti and Minister of Ports and Maritime Transport of Somalia, Maryan Aweys Jama, announcing State of Qatar’s investment in Hobyo port in Somalia.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, H E Sheikh Mohamed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, with President of Ethiopia, Sahle-Work Zewde, in Addis Ababa, yesterday. BELOW: The Deputy Prime Minister holding talks with Prime Minister of Ethiopia, Abiy Ahmed.

WEATHER TODAY

Courtesy: Qatar Meteorology Department

Minimum Maximum32oC 40oC

HIGH TIDE 06:42 – 18:56 LOW TIDE 02:33 – 13:47

Misty at some places by early morning,

becomes hot daytime with chance of local

clouds maybe thundery associated with

blowing dust.

FAJRSHOROOK

03. 49 AM05. 09 AM

11. 37 AM03.07 PM

06. 07 PM07. 37 PM

ZUHRASR

MAGHRIBISHA

PRAYER TIMINGS

03TUESDAY 20 AUGUST 2019 HOME

Qatar-Pakistan military relations reviewed

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of State for Defence Affairs, H E Dr Khalid bin Mohamed Al Attiyah, met yesterday with the Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (CJCSC) of Pakistan, General Zubair Mahmood Hayat, who is visiting the country. The meeting reviewed the military and defence relations between the two countries and ways of enhancing them along with promoting aspects of joint cooperation and training.

QSL signs deals with Education Above All and HMC’s Tobacco Control CenterQNA DOHA

The Qatar Stars League (QSL) has signed a two-year co-operation agreement with Education Above All (EAA), which intends to build a global movement that contributes to human, social and economic development through the provision of quality education.

The agreement comes as part of QSL’s community initia-tives, in line with its corporate social responsibility.

Thus, Education Above All became a community partner of the QSL for its three tourna-ments—QNB Stars League, Qatar Cup, and Ooredoo Cup.

Education Above All is a global initiative to serve the needy. It provides access to

education for children around the world, especially in commu-nities suffering from poverty and conflict. It advocates safe-guarding inclusive and quality education for all in the whole world.

QSL also signed a co-oper-ation agreement with HMC’s Tobacco Control Center for two seasons (2019-20 & 2020-21) for its three tournaments, QNB Stars League, Ooredoo Cup, and Qatar

Cup. The agreement with the Tobacco Control Center comes in line with the QSL’s keenness to build strong and constructive partnerships with many active community institutions as part of its Corporate Social Responsibility.

The HMC Tobacco Control Center, located in the Hamad bin Khalifa Medical City, collaborates with the World Health Organi-zation and offers support and treatment to those who want to kick the habit. The center also educates the wider public and healthcare workers about its risks.

The co-operation aims to use all means available at the QSL and through football to deliver special messages to combat the menace and promote a healthy lifestyle.

Education Above All (EAA) is now a community partner of QSL for its three tournaments — QNB Stars League, Qatar Cup, and Ooredoo Cup.

04 TUESDAY 20 AUGUST 2019HOME

Hamilton International School hosts community fairTHE PENINSULA/DOHA

The Hamilton International School (Hamilton), a brand-new school located in Mesaimeer, has hosted its first Community Fair.

Hamilton, part of Interna-tional Schools Partnership (ISP), a UK-based owner and operator of 40 schools globally, welcomed children and parents to inau-gurate their newly completed campus, which features state -of-the-art facilities and the largest school theatre in Qatar.

Fun games, music, sports and STEM activities were part of the programme. The principal and the teachers engaged the children and parents with activities and com-petitions, with over 60 prizes and part-scholarships to study at this

state-of-the-art educational insti-tution won on the day.

Terry Senior, the school Prin-cipal, said: “It was amazing to get to meet all these families and their brilliant children. We had the chance today to listen to some interesting thoughts from parents, and answer their enquiries, while taking them on a tour to explore the campus.”

Terry Senior is an experienced Principal who has led several international schools and is set to build a strong team of interna-tional leaders and teachers dedi-cated to ensuring every child develops a love of learning and discovers their limitless potential.

He added: “We look forward to welcoming our new students when we open on August 25. Our

campus is complete and fully operational, and our staff are now ready and trained on the ISP values and teaching methods. We are committed to raising a gen-eration of students that under-stands and appreciates diversity with the skills and knowledge to help them in shaping the future of their communities and Qatar.”

Hamilton will also open their theatre on August 23, with a musical theatre performance in collabo-ration with “Gotta Sing!” led by Greg Arrowsmith, a Musical Director from the West End for the London Palladium pantomimes, and Joanne Corrigan, an experienced ex-BBC live programme editor and pro-ducer. The event will take place in the Hamilton Theatre, the largest school-based theatre in Doha

with its 850-guest auditorium and VIP balcony. To register interest for this event visit the school’s website.

Other Hamilton facilities include an indoor sports centre with a full-sized basketball court, two swimming pools, tennis courts, dance studios, fitness centre and a seating area for large sporting events. The outdoor sports area includes a professional standard football pitch and an ath-letics track setting a new standard for physical education in Doha.

The school offers the Inter-national Early Years (IEYC) and International Primary Curriculum (IPC), which is taught in over 2,000 schools across 98 countries. Students at Hamilton will even-tually graduate with either an IB

Diploma or a High School Diploma accredited by NEASC, a US accred-itation organization. Catering to students ages 3 -10 years, during its first year of operation, Ham-ilton will grow and expand to eventually become a pre-KG through Grade 12 school. Ham-ilton is now taking registrations for students from Pre-Kindergarten to

Grade 5 (Year 6) for its first aca-demic year beginning August 2019. Those interested visit: hamiltonin-ternationalschool.qa, email admis-sions@this.qa, contact +974 3329 6569 or visit the campus located in Mesaimeer Area, (near the Religious Complex). Admissions Office is open Sunday – Thursday 8am – 4pm.

Qatari artist honoured with ‘Star of the Festival’ title in Istanbul exhibitionQNA/ISTANBUL

Qatari artist Dania Tarek was given the title ‘Star of the Festival’ at the International Festival of Visual Art which kicked off in Istanbul on Sunday.

Organised by Big Group, the festival dubbed “The other face of regular chaos” has seen the participation of 80 artists from Arab and foreign countries. Expressing her hap-piness with the title given to her at the festival, Tarek said that the state’s devotion to art enabled her to become a successful artist.

The Qatari artist was born with a hearing disability, however, that did not stop her from reflecting her needs and emotions

through colours. The three-day exhibition displays many paintings, including on war, alienation, the unknown, future, as well as the expression of ancient civilizations.

The exhibition also includes a collection of handicrafts and artistic works, the most prominent of which was the display of the craft of Mecca, which used types of ropes to knit necklaces and clothes, in addition to many wood, stone and bone sculpture.

The festival includes a fashion show of Iraqi heritage clothing, a theatrical show of melodrama, artistic symposiums and a concert which will be held tomorrow for a number of Arab singers, a poetry evening and book signing.

Qatari artist Dania Tarek at the International Festival of Visual Art in Istanbul.

Labour Minister meets Vietnamese official Chief of Staff of Armed Forces meets US Central Command Chief

Minister of Administrative Development, Labour and Social Affairs, H E Yousuf bin Mohammed Al Othman Fakhroo, met yesterday with the Communist Party politburo member, Party Central Committee (PCC) Secretary and Head of PCC Commission for Mass Mobilization of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, Truong Thi Mai, and her delegation. They discussed aspects of joint cooperation and ways to support and develop them.

The Chief of Staff of the Qatari Armed Forces, H E Lieutenant-General (Pilot) Ghanem bin Shaheen Al Ghanem, met yesterday with the US Central Command Chief in the Middle East, General Kenneth McKenzie. They reviewed military relations and ways to strengthen and develop them.

HMC anesthesiologists win top US research awardTHE PENINSULA DOHA

A research project presented by an anesthesia team from the Women’s Wellness and Research Center (WWRC) has been awarded second place in the prestigious Gertie Marx Research Prize competition, organized by the Society for Obstetric Anesthesia and Perinatology (SOAP) as part of their annual meeting held earlier this year in Phoenix, Arizona, US.

The WWRC team submitted the research paper based on their work comparing the potency of two dif-ferent medications, phenylephrine and noradrenaline, which are used to prevent low blood pressure asso-ciated with the administration of a spinal anesthetic for women deliv-ering through Cesarean section.

“Our study is one of the first to compare the effectiveness of these two drugs when given as an infusion and to find an evidence-based answer to determine the optimal dosing regimen for women delivering through Cesarean section,” said Dr. Mitko Kocarev, Consultant Anesthesiologist and principal investigator of the study.

Dr Kocarev explained that a common side effect for mothers undergoing a cesarean delivery is low blood pressure as a result of the spinal anesthetic. Dr. Kocarev said for the past 15 years phenylephrine has been used to prevent or treat this, underscoring the importance of a study that will support anes-thetists in using noradrenaline appropriately for this purpose.

The study was undertaken at Hamad Medical Corporation’s (HMC) WWRC and recruited a group of mothers undergoing planned cesarean deliveries as part of a ran-domized controlled research trial. The findings of the study were

presented by Dr. Fatima Khatoon, Associate Consultant Anesthesiol-ogist, one of the study investigators and a former fellow in obstetric anesthesia. It was the first-ever paper from this region presented at the Gertie Marx Research Prize competition.

Dr. Roshan Fernando, Research Lead for Obstetric Anesthesia at the WWRC, and a member of the study team commented that the concerted effort of the WWRC research team enabled completion of the research in only eight weeks, a process which would have taken at least 18 months in many similar academic institutions.

“I am very proud of the work undertaken by the research team. For this study to be formally recognized

at the highest level by the Society of Obstetric Anesthesia and Perinatology is a wonderful endorsement of the quality of this research and the ben-efits it can deliver. This study has the potential to positively impact the care delivered to thousands of mothers undergoing Caesarian sections here in Qatar each year, as well as millions around the world,” explained Pro-fessor Marco Marcus, HMC’s Chairman of Anesthesiology, Intensive Care Unit, and Perioperative Medicine.

“On behalf of the entire research team, I would like to pay tribute to our colleagues in the WWRC’s Anesthesia Department and also the nursing staff, anesthesia technicians, and obstetric colleagues, without whose assistance the project would not have come to fruition,” said Dr. Kocarev.

The members of the WWRC team whose research paper was awarded second place in the prestigious US Gertie Marx Research Prize competition. FROM LEFT: Dr. Santhosh Gopalakhrishna, Senior Consultant Anesthesiologist and Section Head for Obstetric Anesthesiology; Dr. Eynas Abdullah, Associate Consultant, HMC; Professor Marco Marcus, Chairman, Department of Anesthesiology, ICU and Perioperative Medicine; Dr. Fouzia Khalid, Clinical Fellow in Obstetric Anesthesiology; Dr. Roshan Fernando, Senior Consultant Anesthesiologist and Research Lead for Obstetric Anesthesiology; Dr. Fatima Kartoon, Associate Consultant; Dr. Mitko Kocarev, Consultant Anesthesiologist; and Dr. Amber Naz, Clinical Fellow in Obstetric Anesthesiology.

Al Khor & Al Thakhira Municipality holds hygiene driveTHE PENINSULA/DOHA

During the Eid Al Adha holidays, the Municipality of Al Khor & Al Thakhira, repre-sented by the Health Control Section conducted inspection tours that covered various institutions and establish-ments in different areas of

the municipality.The doctors supervised

the meat hygiene unit in the municipality to check 684 carcasses of sheep and goats and 106 of calves and cows, in addition to inspecting the shops selling fish in the local market to ensure that they are fit for human consumption

before reaching to consumer. The campaign resulted in the complete destruction of 10 carcasses of cows and sheep. The inspectors also inspected commercial complexes, gro-ceries, restaurants and popular kitchens within the municipality’s administrative boundaries.

Students during the fair.

05TUESDAY 20 AUGUST 2019 HOME / MIDDLE EAST / AFRICA

Shura Council Deputy Speaker meets Vietnam’s Head of PCC Commission for Mass Mobilization

Deputy Speaker of Shura Council, H E Mohammed bin Abdulla Al Sulaiti, met yesterday with Truong Thi Mai, who is a politburo member, Party Central Committee (PCC) Secretary and Head of PCC Commission for Mass Mobilisation in the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. During the meeting, they discussed bilateral relations and ways of boosting them in various fields, especially in the parliamentary field, in addition to reviewing several issues of common concern. Vietnamese Ambassador to Qatar, Nguyen Dinh Thao, attended the meeting.

Turkey flays air strikes targetingits army convoy in Syria townAP DAMASCUS

Air strikes targeted a Turkish army convoy inside a rebel-held part of northwestern Syria yesterday, killing three civilians and wounding 12 others, the Turkish Defence Ministry said.

Syria, however, said the Turkish convoy was carrying ammunition to rebels who have lost ground this month amid a government offensive to retake their last stronghold in the country.

The incident ratcheted up tensions in the region.

The Turkish Defence Min-istry gave no word on Turkish casualties, saying the convoy was attacked while heading to one of Turkey’s observation posts in rebel-controlled Idlib province.

Syria’s Foreign Ministry said the convoy of armoured vehicles was delivering weapons to Khan Sheikhoun, a major rebel-held town that lies on the front line of fighting along the southern edge of the Idlib enclave.

It was not immediately clear whether the air strikes were carried out by Syrian or Russian warplanes. The convoy consisted of several armoured vehicles and flatbed trucks carrying tanks.

The Turkish move into Idlib appears to be a message by Ankara that it won’t allow Syrian forces to capture Khan Sheikhoun. Syrian government forces reached its outskirts earlier yesterday. The town’s fall would also cut the highway linking Idlib to northern parts of Hama province, home to one of Turkey’s 12 observation posts on the edges of Idlib province.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a war monitor, and Idlib-based opposition activist Mazen al-Shami, reported that Syrian troops

reached the M5 highway north of Khan Sheikhoun, making it more difficult for rebels and civilians to move between Idlib and rebels in northern parts of Hama province.

Under a deal reached last year between Russia and Turkey, the highway was supposed to be open by the end of 2018 but it never happened. Now, Syrian troops appear to be trying to open it by force.

The Turkish Defence Minis-try’s brief statement did not provide details but “strongly condemned” the air strikes,

adding that they were “against existing agreements as well as our cooperation and dialogue with Russian.”

The strikes hit near the highway where the convoy was travelling, Syrian activists said.

Turkey’s private DHA news agency said Syrian government planes targeted the route of a Turkish military convoy carrying reinforcement vehicles and per-sonnel. It said the convoy was heading toward two Turkish observation posts when it came under Syrian aircraft fire.

The report said the convoy could not proceed because the route between Maaret al Numan and Khan Sheikhoun was tar-geted, and sheltered at a safe location. The agency did not report any casualties.

The Britain-based Observ-atory said air strikes believed to be from Russian planes struck near the highway and forced the nearly 25-vehicle Turkish convoy to stop.

A Turkish military convoy travelling to one of Turkey’s observation posts in Syria’s northern province of Idlib, yesterday.

Sudan’s Bashir got $90m from Saudis: Investigator AFP KHARTOUM

Omar Al Bashir received $90m in cash from Saudi royals, an investigator told a court at the opening of the deposed Sudanese s trongman’s corruption trial yesterday.

The former president, who was forced from power by months of protests in April after 30 years in power, sat in a metal cage wearing a traditional white gown.

Bashir faces a raft of charges of war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide from the International Criminal Court over his role in the Darfur war but the trial yesterday was over graft allegations.

Large amounts of cash were found at this residence after he was toppled and the investigator said the case brought forward to the court probed some of that money. “The accused told us that the money was part of a sum of $25m sent to him by Prince Mohammed bin Salman to be used outside of the state budget,” investigator Ahmed Ali said.

According to him Bashir had said he also received two pre-vious payments of $35m and $30m from Saudi King Abdullah, who died in 2015.

“This money was not part of the state budget and I was the one who authorised its spending,” the investigator quoted Bashir as saying.

Bashir had said the Saudi money was exchanged and spent and that he could not remember how nor did he have

documents providing further details, he added.

The next hearing is scheduled on August 24.

In May, Sudan’s prosecutor general also said Bashir had been charged over killings during the anti-regime protests which eventually led to his ouster.

Meanwhile, the unveiling of Sudan’s sovereign council, which will govern the country’s transition to civilian rule, is scheduled today.

The line-up was due to have been announced on Sunday, in line with a deal reached between the Transitional Military Council and an opposition coalition.

The TMC, which took over from Omar Al Bashir’s regime after he was forced from power in April, issued a statement yes-terday saying that its own dis-solution and the formation of the sovereign council were post-poned for 48 hours.

It said the extension was granted “at the request of the Forces for Freedom and Change” after they came back on some of the five names they put forward on Sunday.

The FFC is the main oppo-sition umbrella. The ruling sov-ereign council will be composed of 11 members including six civilians and five from the mil-itary. It will be headed by a general for the first 21 months and by a civilian for the remaining 18 months.

It will oversee the formation of a transitional civilian admin-istration, including a cabinet and a legislative body.

AP RAMALLAH, WEST BANK

The US Embassy in Jerusalem was forced yesterday to postpone a conference it organised in the West Bank city of Ramallah after Palestinian officials and factions called for a boycott and threatened to organise protests.

The Palestinians cut all ties with the US after it recognised disputed Jerusalem as the capital of Israel in 2017, and view the Trump administration as unfairly biased following a series of actions seen as hostile to their aspirations for an inde-pendent state.

The embassy had organised a conference this week to bring together alumni of US educa-tional and cultural pro-grammes, including dozens of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip who received permission from Israel to attend. The territory has been under an Israeli-Egyptian blockade since Hamas seized power there in 2007.

The Palestinian leadership viewed the conference as an attempt to circumvent its boycott of the US administration.

“In order to avoid the Pal-estinian participants being put in a difficult situation, we have decided to postpone the event for now,” the embassy said. Israel captured east Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza in the 1967 Mideast war.

19 dead in Uganda fuel truck blastAFP KAMPALA

Nineteen people died when a fuel truck barrelled into other vehicles in a busy town in western Uganda and exploded, police said yesterday.

The blast occurred on Sunday evening in the Kyambura trading centre, a mountainous area near the Queen Elizabeth National Park.

“Ten people died instantly when the fuel truck lost control and hit three other vehicles, leading to multiple explosions that also burned 25 small shops,” said regional police spokesman Martial Tumusiime.

“Of the people that were rushed to the hospital, nine of them have also died as a result of wounds,” he added.

In 2002, 70 people were killed when an oil truck rammed into a bus in Rutoto, less than 50km from Kyambura. The accident in Uganda came eight

days after a fuel truck exploded in Tanzania. The fireball engulfed a crowd thronging to collect petrol from the wrecked vehicle, leaving 95 dead.

People gather after a fuel truck collision in Rubirizi, Uganda.

The Turkish Defence Ministry said the convoy was attacked while heading to one of Turkey’s observation posts in rebel-controlled Idlib province.

US scraps West Bank meet after boycott by Palestinians

06 TUESDAY 20 AUGUST 2019ASIA

Modi, Trump discuss regional situation and bilateral ties IANS NEW DELHI

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi yesterday spoke with US President Donald Trump on phone and conveyed that “extreme rhetoric and incitement to anti-India violence by certain leaders in the region was not conducive to peace”.

Days after the UN Security Council backed India in its efforts to bring in development

in Kashmir after revoking its special status, Modi held a 30-minute call with Trump yesterday.

During the call, the two leaders covered bilateral and regional matters. The phone call was marked by the warmth and cordiality which characterises the relations between the two leaders, a statement by the Min-istry of External Affairs said.

He expressed the hope that the Commerce Minister of India and the US Trade Representative would meet at an early date to discuss bilateral trade prospects for mutual benefit.

In the context of the regional situation, Modi told Trump that the extreme rhetoric and incitement to anti-India violence by certain leaders in the region was not conducive to peace.

In his telephone call, PM Modi highlighted the importance of creating an environment free from terror and violence and eschewing cross-border ter-rorism without exception, the statement said.

Modi reiterated India’s com-mitment to cooperate with anyone who followed this path, in fighting poverty, illiteracy and disease. Recalling that Monday marked 100 years of the Inde-pendence of Afghanistan, he reiterated India’s longstanding and unwavering commitment to work for a united, secure, dem-ocratic and truly independent Afghanistan, the statement said.

Modi to visit France on August 22IANS NEW DELHI

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be visiting France on an official visit on August 22-23 and then to attend the G-7 Summit at its seaside resort of Biarritz on August 25-26, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said yesterday.

The MEA said that Modi will be attending the summit as the “Biarritz Partner” on the invitation of French President Emmanuel Macron, and is expected to speak on the envi-ronment, climate, oceans and digital transformations.

The Prime Minister will

also be having bilateral meetings with leaders of other countries on the sidelines of the summit.

According to the MEA offi-cials, prior to the G7 Summit, Modi will hold meetings with President Macron and Prime Minister Edouard Philippe.

During his visit to France, he would address the Indian community in Paris and also inaugurate the memorial for the Indian victims of the Air India crashes at Nid D’Aigle.

India and France have been strategic partners since 1998 and share a compre-hensive, dynamic and multi-faceted relationship.

PM Modi highlighted the importance of creating an environment free from terror and violence and eschewing cross-border terrorism

A metro train drives over a bridge crossing the Yamuna River as water level has risen due to heavy rainfalls, in New Delhi, yesterday.

Flood alert in Delhi as Yamuna River swellsIANS NEW DELHI

The Yamuna River yesterday crossed the “warning mark” of 204.50 meters and was set to breach the “danger mark” of 205.33m in the evening, forcing authorities to ask people living in low-lying areas to evacuate to safer places.

A union Home Ministry spokesman said the river’s water level was expected to cross the

danger level at around 6pm yes-terday, inundating areas along its banks.

And by Wednesday, the Yamuna’s level would touch 207m, the Ministry said.

The Delhi government said that it was on an alert mode in tandem with the Centre.

A Delhi government statement said Haryana had released 8.28 lakh cusecs of water from the Hathni Kund barrage.

This water was set to reach Delhi “with full force” in the next two days, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said, after pre-siding over a meeting of senior officials.

Authorities halted traffic on one of the old bridges that connect Delhi with its eastern wing amid the rising water level.

People living in low-lying areas have been asked to shift to tents pitched on higher ground.

Joyalukkas has inaugurated its new showroom in Hyderabad, India. The showroom was inaugurated by Sri Devireddy Sudheer Reddy (MLA L.B. Nagar) in the presence of other dignitaries.

The clock tower at deserted Lal Chowk is pictured during a security lockdown in Srinagar, yesterday.

CBI gets 2 more weeks in Unnao caseIANS NEW DELHI

The Supreme Court yesterday granted two more weeks to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to conclude probe into the Unnao assault victim’s accident case.

The CBI had sought four weeks saying the survivor and her lawyer Mahendra Singh, who also suffered critical injuries in the Rae Bareli accident last month, were not in a position to give statement.

An apex court Bench, com-prising Justice Deepak Gupta and Justice Aniruddha Bose, also directed the UP government to pay Rs5 lakh to the lawyer, as an interim compensation for his medical expanses.

The order came when

amicus V Giri said the victim’s counsel was still in a critical con-dition. Though shifted to AIIMS, his condition was far from sat-isfactory and a lot of money was required for his treatment, he added.

The court also noted even though treatment at AIIMS being provided to him was free, there were other expenditures.

The court adjourned the matter for September 6 after observing that the CBI had done extensive investigation but some loose ends needed to be tied up.

“Some of the investigation relates to collating and analysing the material collected, especially the electronic records. Most importantly the statements of the victim and her counsel who was driving the car could not be recorded till date, as they are not

in a position to make a statement,” the court noted.

The court added that if the victim’s family members had any grievances, they must feel free to tell the court and it would help them.

The court had taken suo moto cognizance of a letter written by the victim’s family alleging threats from aides of main accused Kuldeep Singh Sengar.

The survivor, brought to AIIMS last week, and her lawyer are in a critical condition and on advanced life support system. They are being treated by a multidisciplinary team of doctors. On July 28, the car in which the survivor, her lawyer and two of her aunts were trav-elling was hit by a speeding truck in Rae Bareli.

Empty classrooms as some schools reopen in KashmirAFP NEW DELHI

Some Kashmir schools reopened yesterday but were largely empty following weekend clashes in Srinagar, two-weeks after India removed the restive region’s autonomy and imposed a lockdown.

The authorities said they were re-opening 190 primary schools in the city yet few children could be seen at half a dozen places visited by AFP.

India on August 5 ended the special constitutional status of Kashmir. Hours before its move, India severely curtailed movement and shut down phones and the Internet, bringing in tens of thousands of troops to turn the main city of Srinagar into a fortress.

Some 120,000 extra soldiers have been deployed, a security

source said, joining around 500,000 already in the region.

At least 4,000 people have also been detained under the Public Safety Act (PSA), which allows imprisonment for up to two years without charge or trial, government sources said.

Authorities have declined to comment on the numbers of people behind bars. Those picked up include local politicians, activists, business leaders and lawyers. Around 20 percent of landlines were working yes-terday but mobile phones and the Internet were still cut off.

After some easing in previous days, authorities on Sunday rein-forced heavy restrictions after eight people were injured during protests.

The PTI news agency reported clashes in a dozen loca-tions around Srinagar on Saturday.

Joyalukkas opens new store in Hyderabad

New Parliament building likely by 2022, says PM

IANS NEW DELHI

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said yesterday that a new Parliament building may be constructed by 2022 when the nation celebrates its 75th year of Independence.

He was speaking on the sidelines of the inauguration of newly-constructed duplex apartments for MPs here.

Modi inaugurated 36 duplex flats, meant for accommodation of MPs in North Avenue of central Delhi, which have been constructed by demolishing the earlier apartments constructed in 1951-52. Construction of the new flats was completed ahead of the two years’ scheduled completion date.

He said that it is being felt that the Parliament House building needs to be given a facelift in terms of modern facilities to showcase its grandeur or a new building may be constructed by the time India celebrates 75 years of Independence.

Manmohan Singh elected to Rajya SabhaIANS JAIPUR

Former prime minister Manmohan Singh was elected unopposed to the Rajya Sabha from Rajasthan yesterday.

Since the Bharatiya Janata Party did not put up any can-didate due to lack of numbers in the assembly, Manmohan Singh was declared elected after the scheduled time to withdraw nominations ended yesterday.

Chief whip Mahesh Joshi accepted the certificate of election on behalf of the former prime minister.

The seat had fallen vacant due to the death of sitting member, BJP state chief Madan Lal Saini.

Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot and Assembly Speaker CP Joshi congratulated Manmohan Singh, With Manmohan Singh’s election, the Congress now has one MP from the state. It had drawn a blank in the April-May Lok Sabha elections.

Retirement age for all paramilitary forces now 60IANS NEW DELHI

In a bonanza for all central paramilitary forces, the Centre yesterday issued an order fixing a uniform retirement age of 60 years for all ranks.

The order, which will also have implications for thousands of officers, will be effective with immediate effect for the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), Border Security Force (BSF), Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB), Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) and Assam Rifles.

It follows a Delhi High Court’s January end judgment in which it struck down rules

that prescribed different retirement ages for different ranks and directed the Central government to fix a uniform age of superannuation for all ranks.

At present, the retirement age of officers of the rank of commandant and below in Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs), or paramilitary forces, is fixed at 57 years while officers of the rank of Deputy Inspector General and above retire on attaining the age of 60.

The retirement age for all officers in the Assam Rifles and the CISF, which are part of CAPFs, is already 60 years.

Those who have got an interim stay between the date of High Court judgment and date

of Home Ministry’s order will be deemed to have not superan-nuated and will be governed by age of retirement at 60 years, the order said.

“Those who have retired but did not approach any court will be governed by the court order dated February 4, 2019 clari-fying para 72 of original order dated January 31, 2019 in (ITBP Deputy Commandant) Dev Sharma case (supra) and hence will be entitled to exercise options either for joining after returning all pensionary ben-efits, if received or will have an option to have benefit of fitment of pension on completion of age of 60 years.”

As per the order, all forces

are directed to comply with the court orders.

It said that forces may amend provisions of rules as applicable on line of the court’s January 31 order and also to decide the date from which such change will be effected.

The Delhi High Court, however, did not allow stay retirement of any personnel as per the existing age of retirement who might have retired before passing the order except that in the event of enhancement of retirement age, the differential period will be added to the period of service actually rendered for the purpose of pension.

Disposing of a bunch of

petitions, a division bench of Justice S. Muralidhar and Justice Sanjeev Narula had directed the Ministry of Home Affairs to take all consequential steps within four months to take a decision on the retirement age.

Although 29 officers from the ITBP, BSF and CRPF had filed petitions challenging the rules, the bench directed that its orders will be implemented across the board for all members of the CAPFs without the respondents insisting on each of them approaching the court for identical relief.

Incidentally, retirement ages are different for different ranks as well as for various branches in the defence forces.

07TUESDAY 20 AUGUST 2019 ASIA

Pakistan army chief’s tenure extended amid Kashmir rowAFP ISLAMABAD

Pakistan extended its military chief’s tenure yesterday, ensuring stability in what is arguably the country’s most powerful position as tensions soar with rival India and Washington is expected to announce a withdrawal deal in Afghanistan.

“General Qamar Javed Bajwa is appointed as chief of army staff for another term of three years,” read a statement signed by Prime Minister Imran Khan and released by his office yesterday.

“The decision has been taken in view of the regional security environment.”

The extension, which had been widely expected, was also confirmed by the military’s spokesman.

The Pakistani military has long played an outsized role in national life, ruling the country

for roughly half its 72-year history and offering the muscular reassurance against nuclear arch-rival India that many Paki-stanis see as vital to their identity.

Bajwa was appointed to lead the military in 2016, taking over from the hugely popular General Raheel Sharif, who won the hearts of millions with his bruising campaign against mil-itants and terrorists.

Bawja’s extension marks the second time in nearly a decade that the country’s top general

had their traditional three-year term extended. It comes as ten-sions have skyrocketed with New Delhi after Prime Minister Narendra Modi stripped the dis-puted Kashmir region of its autonomy earlier this month.

US President Donald Trump urged the nuclear-armed rivals over the weekend to come back to the negotiating table, con-veying to Pakistani Prime Min-ister Imran Khan the importance of “reducing tensions”.

The Pakistani military is also believed to be playing a vital role in ongoing peace talks between the US and Taliban that aim to secure a withdrawal of American troops in exchange for insurgent promises that Afghanistan will not be used as a safe haven for groups such as Al Qaeda or Islamic State.

Pakistan’s role is seen as key in facilitating a political set-tlement in Afghanistan.

Talat Masood, a military

analyst and retired general, said the need for continuity was at the heart of the decision.

“I don’t think Pakistan would have thought of a change in

command in these circum-stances,” he said.

The understanding between Premier Imran and Bajwa “has been excellent”, he added.

Bajwa was appointed to lead the military in 2016, taking over from the hugely popular General Raheel Sharif, who won the hearts of millions with his bruising campaign against militants.

A file photo of Pakistan’s Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa addressing the 54th Munich Security Conference (MSC) in Munich, Germany, on February 17, 2018.

Many injured in blasts as Afghans celebrate I-DayREUTERS KABUL

A series of bombings struck restaurants and public squares in the eastern Afghan city of Jala-labad yesterday, wounding at least 66 people, officials said, as the country marked the 100th anniversary of its independence.

No group claimed responsi-bility for the 10 bombs but both Islamic State (IS) and the Taliban militants operate in the area.

IS claimed responsibility for a weekend bomb attack on a wedding reception in the capital, Kabul, that killed 63 people and wounded nearly 200.

The Jalalabad bombs were planted near a market where hundreds of people had congre-gated after attending Inde-pendence Day events. Senior health official Fahim Bashari said at least 66 people were wounded, including 20 children enjoying the public holiday.

Ghulam Mohammad, a shop-keeper selling plants, said his two sons and a nephew were among the injured in a blast at the market square.

“Children insisted on being in the shop, as they wanted to celebrate Independence Day in the market, but they were seri-ously injured when a bomb exploded,” Mohammad said at a hospital in the city.

Independence day cere-monies were disrupted in Meh-tralam, the capital of the eastern province of Laghman, when mil-itants hit a celebration venue with five rockets, officials said, adding that six civilians were injured.

“The formal ceremony had ended,” said Assadullah Daw-latzai, a spokesman for the pro-vincial governor. “People were being served lunch when the rockets landed. Unfortunately, six civilians were wounded.”

President Ashraf Ghani, in an Independence Day address in Kabul, called on the international

community to stand with Afghanistan to eradicate the mil-itants’ “nests”.

“Our fight against the Daesh will continue,” he said, referring to IS. “The Taliban have laid the foundation for such brutal killings.” In the speech, Ghani did not refer to negotiations between the United States and the Taliban on a deal by which US troops can withdraw in exchange for Taliban security guarantees.

The United States also wants a Taliban commitment on power-sharing talks with Ghani’s government and a ceasefire. The Taliban have refused to talk to

the government. But there are concerns among Afghan officials and US national security aides about a US withdrawal, with fears Afghanistan could be plunged into a new civil war.

US President Donald Trump hopes to withdraw all US troops from Afghanistan before the 2020 presidential election.

Trump on Sunday called the Kabul bomb attack horrible and expressed optimism about the talks.

He said the United States would seek to get troop levels below 13,000 but leave behind “very significant” intelligence capabilities. The US troops in Afghanistan train and advise Afghan security forces and conduct counterinsurgency operations. The Taliban said in an Independence Day statement they looked forward to the departure of all foreign forces.

“The day approaches closer when these invaders shall com-pletely leave our country, akin to the British and Soviets before them,” they said.

While never part of the British empire, Afghanistan gained complete independence from Britain on August 19, 1919.

Independence day cere-monies in Kabul were curtailed out of respect for those who died in the Saturday night bomb, the government said.

People ride in a convoy waving Afghan flags to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the country’s Independence Day in Kabul, yesterday.

Two civilians die in Indian firing on Pakistani part of KashmirQNA ISLAMABAD

Two civilians were shot dead by Indian troops who targeted Poonch district in Pakistan-administered Kashmir.

Pakistani police said in a statement yesterday that at least two people were killed in an exchange of fire overnight between Pakistani and Indian border forces in the disputed region of Kashmir.

Indian troops fired across the Line of Control (LoC), killing two people when one of the shells landed close to the venue of a wedding in Darra Sher Khan village. A boy was also injured.

Inter Services Public Rela-tions (ISPR), the media affairs wing of Pakistan Army, said Indian forces had lobbed “mortars and anti tank guided missiles” at the civilian popu-lation “without any provo-cation,” killing two civilians.

On Thursday, three Paki-stani army soldiers and two civilians were killed in two sectors of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) as Indian troops resorted to heavy shelling from across the restive LoC. A civilian was also injured.

Pakistan protests India’s ceasefire violations at LoCINTERNEWS ISLAMABAD

India’s Deputy High Commis-sioner Gaurav Ahluwalia was summoned to Pakistan’s Foreign Office in Islamabad yesterday to lodge a protest against ceasefire violations by New Delhi, official sources said here.

Foreign Office spokesman Dr Mohammad Faisal handed over a dossier to Ahluwalia and condemned the continuous vio-lation of the ceasefire agreement. Dr Faisal urged the Indian side to respect the 2003 Ceasefire arrangement, inves-tigate the incidents of ceasefire violations, instruct the Indian forces to respect the ceasefire in letter and spirit and maintain peace on the LoC and the Working Boundary.

The ceasefire violations by India are a threat to regional peace and security,” the FO statement said.

General accused of war abuses named Sri Lanka’s army chiefREUTERS COLOMBO

Sri Lanka’s President yesterday named war veteran Shavendra Silva as its army chief, drawing sharp criticism from the United States and the United Nations over the appointment of an officer who has been accused of serious human rights violations.

Silva, 55, is credited with successfully leading an army division against dissident Tamil Tigers in the final phases of the island nation’s 26-year-long brutal civil war.

His victory, however, was highly controversial. Thousands of civilians were killed in the last phases of the armed conflict, including in areas declared by the government to be a ‘no fire zone’ which came under sus-tained army shelling, including hospitals.

A United Nations panel has accused Silva’s division of sus-pected extrajudicial executions of unarmed rebels in the final week of the war which ended in 2009 and systematic torture of people in custody.

Silva, who joined the army in 1984 and was its chief of staff since January, has denied the accusations.

“I am deeply troubled by the a p p o i n t m e n t o f

Lieutenant-General Shavendra Silva as Commander of the Sri Lankan Army, despite the serious allegations of gross vio-lations of international human rights and humanitarian law against him and his troops during the war,” UN High Com-missioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet said in a statement yesterday.

His promotion “severely compromises Sri Lanka’s com-mitment to promote justice and accountability”, she said, adding that it also set back security sector reform.

Washington expressed its disapproval of Silva’s appointment in a strongly-worded statement.

“The allegations of gross human rights violations against him, documented by the United Nations and other organizations, are serious and credible,” the US Embassy in Colombo said in a statement.

“This appointment under-mines Sri Lanka’s international reputation and its commitments to promote justice and account-ability, especially at a time when the need for reconciliation and social unity is paramount.”

Silva was named head of the army after the previous chief Mahesh Senanayake’s term ended on Sunday.

3,500 Rohingya refugees set to return to MyanmarAFP COX’S BAZAR, BANGLADESH

Some 3,500 Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh have been cleared to return home to Myanmar beginning this week, a top official said yesterday, nearly two years after a military crackdown sparked their exodus.

Bangladesh refugee com-missioner Mohammad Abul Kalam, however, said he was “optimistic” about a new repa-triation process scheduled to start on Thursday.

A previous attempt in November 2018 to return 2,260 Rohingya failed after they refused to leave the camp without guarantees for their safety. “Everything is ready... Nobody will be forced to return unless they volunteer,” Kalam told reporters after a meeting with Myanmar officials.

Pakistan, Indiaspar over ‘usingwater as weapon’

REUTERS ISLAMABAD/NEW DELHI

Accusing India of waging “fifth-generation warfare”, Pakistan said yesterday that New Delhi had failed to inform it about the release of water from a dam that could cause flooding across the border.

India, however, rejected the claim saying that under the terms of a water treaty between the two nations it had informed Pakistan about the release of excess water late yesterday when it crossed a certain threshold.

Islamabad said the unex-pected release of water into the River Sutlej that flows from India to Pakistan was part of an attempt by New Delhi to flout the longstanding treaty between the countries.

“India did not communicate the release of water to Pakistan,” Khurram Shahzed, director general of Punjab Pro-vincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA), said.

India’s federal water resources ministry said under the treaty advance information needs to be given in a situation when “extraordinary discharges of water from reservoirs and flood flows” could harm the other party.

Until today no such extraor-dinary discharges had been observed on the Indian side in the current flood season. At 1900 IST (1330 GMT), the flow of Sutlej river reached the threshold level of high flood and the same was conveyed to Pakistan, the ministry.

Any deal with the Taliban could be the first step to finally ending an American military mission in Afghanistan that has dragged on for almost two decades. But there are deep suspicions about the Taliban’s commitment to peace, and some initially suspected it was behind Saturday’s attack.

JAPAN NEWS-YOMIURI

08 TUESDAY 20 AUGUST 2019VIEWS

An Afghan wedding attack adds a tragic twist to peace talks

On Saturday evening, a man detonated a bomb in a crowded wedding hall in Kabul. The unprecedented

suicide attack on a civilian gathering packed with women and children appeared designed to cause as much death and suffering as possible.

Witnesses say that at least 1,000 guests were gathered in the salon in the Dubai City wedding hall - a lively feature of the Afghan capital that can bustle with celebrations on a weekend night - at 11 pm when the bomb went off. “It was like doomsday,” wedding guest Sakhi Mohammed told The Washington Post. The Afghan Interior Ministry said at least 63 people died and more than 180 people were wounded.

Saturday’s attack marks one of the worst assaults on Afghan civilians in years of conflict, and it comes at a per-ilous time for the country: The United States is in the midst of peace talks with the Taliban, a Islamist fundamen-talist group that proclaimed a totali-tarian Islamic emirate in Afghanistan in 1996 and has been fighting a brutal insurgency since being forced from power after the US-led invasion of the country in 2001.

Any deal with the Taliban could be the first step to finally ending an American military mission in Afghan-

istan that has dragged on for almost two decades. But there are deep suspi-cions about the Taliban’s commitment to peace, and some initially suspected it was behind Saturday’s attack.

On Sunday, a local affiliate of the Islamic State, a group that is some-times a rival to the Taliban and is not party to the talks with the United

States, asserted responsibility for the bombing. Zalmay Khalilzad, a veteran diplomat who is the US envoy for peace talks, said the attack showed why a peace deal with the Taliban is so vital.

Khalilzad has a point: A deal with the Taliban may enable the Afghan government to better combat the threat posed by the Islamic State in Afghanistan.

At the same time, the attack sig-naled just how difficult it may be to achieve lasting peace in a country as divided and scarred as Afghanistan.

Though the Taliban condemned Saturday’s attack as a “brutal act,” it

has also conducted suicide attacks that targeted civilians in Kabul. In recent months, a car bomb that killed 45 people and injured 145 and a bomb and gun attack on a political party’s office that left 20 dead and more than 50 injured have been attributed to the Taliban.

But while they both claim extremely conservative Sunni Muslim beliefs, the Taliban and the Islamic State have distinct ideologies and tactics. The Taliban is domestically focused on Afghanistan and generally focused on military targets. The Islamic State is an internationally ori-ented group for whom brutal attacks on civilians are a core part of its strategy.

The Islamic State’s self-proclaimed caliphate in Syria and Iraq crumbled after a military campaign by the United States and its allies, but it remains far from defeated. With tens of thousands of former fighters and their families in various internally dis-placed people (IDP) camps in the Levant, some say the caliphate is on the brink of re-forming there.

Just as worryingly, the group’s Afghanistan affiliate has surged in recent months. Though it was origi-nally just a handful of fighters from Afghanistan and Pakistan, experts now believe it has thousands of fighters from an array of countries. A US intel-ligence official based in Afghanistan told the Associated Press this summer that the Islamic State in Khorasan could ultimately pose a threat not just to Afghans, but to United States and Europe, too.

Threatened with an Islamic State resurgence, some US officials have suggested the Taliban could become an ally in the military fight against the group’s Afghan affiliate. But Afghan President Ashraf Ghani said Sunday that the Taliban ultimately bears part

of the blame for attacks that target civilians, because it provides a “platform for terrorists.”

The Taliban refuses to talk to Ghani, who it claims is a US puppet. Though intra-Afghan talks are expected to begin after an agreement is reached between the United States and the Taliban, the secrecy shrouding those talks has prompted a suspicion among many in the country: Does the United States just want out of Afghan-istan at all costs?

President Trump has long spoken of his desire to get US troops out of Afghanistan; last December, he had to be talked out of abruptly pulling half of the US forces there out of the country. Critics say this has under-mined Khalilzad’s leverage in talks with the Taliban, but Trump has said he expects a total pullout of troops by 2020 to be politically expedient, according to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.

Under the current talks, an initial withdrawal of roughly 5,000 of the 14,000 US troops in Afghanistan would be made in return for the Taliban renouncing the extremist group Al Qaeda and stopping it from working in Taliban-held areas. That move could allow the United States to claim a partial victory in a war that began after the 9/11 terrorist attacks coordinated by Al Qaeda’s Osama bin Laden.

But such a deal may ultimately do little to improve the lives of average Afghan civilians if the Taliban reneges after the United States leaves. “The Taliban is fighting to resurrect its totalitarian Islamic Emirate of Afghan-istan and has already established a shadow government throughout parts of the country,” Thomas Joscelyn and Bill Roggio of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) warned in March.

ADAM TAYLOR THE WASHINGTON POST

QUOTE OF THE DAYI must express our

profound worry about the situation in Idlib.

The population in Idlib is living under bombs,

children are being killed. It’s vital that the

ceasefire agreed in Sochi is put into practice.

Emmanuel Macron French President

Europe’s economy faces uncertainty in light of Germany’s downturn

Signs of a slowdown in Europe’s economy are growing. Difficult economic management is likely to be required to pull the region out

of its current slow growth.Against a backdrop of uncertainty

over prospects of the global economy, financial markets have continued to fluc-tuate, with stock prices plunging in the United States and Europe on Wednesday.

One of the factors is a downturn in the economy of Germany, the largest economic powerhouse in the eurozone.

Germany’s gross domestic product shrank by 0.1 % in real terms for the April-June period from the previous quarter, marking the first negative growth in three quarters.

Exports, particularly of automobiles, were sluggish due to China’s economic

slowdown. Because Germany is more dependent on exports than Japan, the United States and other countries, its economy is easily affected by overseas economic conditions. It can be said that such a weak point has weighed on the country.

With business sentiment in the coun-try’s manufacturing sector rapidly deteri-orating, speculation has grown that the German economy will soon enter a recession.

The growth rate of the entire eurozone is also slowing. If this situation remains unchanged, Japan, which has concluded an economic partnership agreement with the European Union, could be adversely affected. The Jap-anese government and companies need to be more vigilant.

Europe was hit by a debt crisis, trig-gered by Greece, around 2010 to 2012.

Fiscal concerns spread to southern European countries such as Italy, Spain and Portugal, shaking financial markets.

At that time, Germany, which increased exports thanks to the weaker euro, was the only winner. Despite neg-ative aspects that widened the North-South disparity in the EU, it is also true that Germany did lead the economic recovery in Europe.

This time, however, the German economy, the anchor for Europe, is the one flashing warning signs.

Italy, the eurozone’s third-largest economy after Germany and France, also registered zero growth in the April-June quarter. It is concerning that political turmoil, stemming largely from warring political orientations, has raised the pos-sibility of the collapse of Italy’s coalition government amid an economic slowdown.

CHAIRMANSHEIKH THANI BIN ABDULLAH AL THANI

EDITOR-IN-CHIEFDR. KHALID BIN MUBARAK AL-SHAFI

editorinchief@pen.com.qa

ACTING MANAGING EDITORMOHAMMED SALIM MOHAMED

m.salim@pen.com.qa

DEPUTY MANAGING EDITORMOHAMMED OSMAN ALI

osman@pen.com.qa

ESTABLISHED IN 1996

EDITORIAL

Towards a long-lasting legacy

The State of Qatar is gearing up in the fastest pace to host the most memorable event the country has ever hosted, 2022 FIFA World Cup. By the second half of

2022, people from across the world, players, officials, leaders and thousands of spectators from every nook and corner of all the continents will descend on Qatar for the mammoth world sporting gala. Qatar will be playing host to a mul-titude of people of different nationalities, lifestyles, cultures, habits, languages and so on, making the host country a microcosm of the world and real global village.

Qatar started the herculean task of preparations years before and now as almost all the infrastructure work is being completed, the attention is being concentrated on the logistics and security sectors. The Ministry of Interior (MoI), in cooperation with the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), is conducting a training course on crisis and disaster management, in which 43 officers from different depart-ments of the Ministry are participating. The four-day course aims at equipping the participants with the knowledge and skills associated with dealing with major security crises and emergencies, prioritise potential risks, setting up scenarios

and identify appropriate actions to address them.

The Director of Planning and Quality Department at the Min-istry, Brigadier Abdul Rahman Majid Al Sulaiti, stressed the importance of the course as the country is preparing for the mega football event and the sig-nificant role of the MoI in case of any potential danger.

Hosting and conducting such a gargantuan event without any untoward incident is not an easy task and the stakeholders in the country are fully aware of this enormous responsibility. Offi-cials from different departments had already started visiting countries hosting major inter-national sporting events to watch and learn the skills required for managing such events and crowd control.

Brigadier Abdul Rahman said that the MoI is fully pre-pared and ready to face the potential threats and risks that could arise, adding that the main purpose of the MoI strategy for

2018-2022 is to contribute to secure the hosting of 2022 World Cup.

Qatar has experience in hosting several international events of importance, but conducting an event for which tens thousands of people are expected, is much more com-plicated and will not be an easy task. Different departments and agencies in the country are fast gaining the required expertise and skills through training with the participation of agencies with more experience and by following the models of other success stories. Under the wise leadership and having great visionary men at the helm of every sector in Qatar, the world can expect an exemplary sport festival leaving not only a lasting legacy in its trail, but also entrenching fond memories in the minds of every football-loving people across world for decades to come.

Under the wise leadership and having great visionary men at the helm of every sector in Qatar, the world can expect an exemplary sport festival leaving not only a lasting legacy in its trail, but also entrenching fond memories in the minds of every football-loving people across world for decades to come.

“Most of the water collected should be feeding into the dam, but for now it flows out of the area because of deforestation,” said water minister Jonathan Tengbe. “The dam itself is under threat at the moment and there is massive need for us to protect the watershed,” he said, referring to the Guma Dam, the biggest in the former British colony.

People cut into the forest for charcoal and farming as well as building houses, Freetown’s mayor, Yvonne Aki-Sawyerr, said. “It’s all about trying to shape the mentality of the community toward conservation,” said Simon Okoth, urban resilience manager for charity Catholic Relief Services (CRS).

09TUESDAY 20 AUGUST 2019 OPINION

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Indonesia makesa big fiscal bet

With reservoirs at risk, Sierra Leone capital confronts water crisis

DANIEL MOSS BLOOMBERG

NELLIE PEYTON REUTERS

Don’t you wish you had a dollar for every beleaguered official who cried “fiscal policy must do more”?

Indonesia’s President Joko Widodo actually seems to mean it.

Fresh from re-election, Jokowi, as he’s known, is aiming to cushion Southeast Asia’s largest economy

from a slowdown and make much-needed investments in infrastructure like roads, ports and airports, and even a new capital city. The national budget for 2020, published Friday, seeks record spending.

Indonesian growth hasn’t been terrible. The pace of GDP expansion been remarkably steady at 5% through Jokowi’s first term. If this were China, people would be mut-tering conspiratorially that the numbers were too consistent.

The country can and should do better, though. Jokowi came to office in 2014 talking about growth of 7%. The president wants to set the bar higher and this year’s budget is probably his best shot. He has more support now in the legislature, but in a few years domestic politicking will focus on who might succeed him.

Jokowi needs to make good on promises to address the woeful

infrastructure that holds Indonesia back. Without an upgrade, it’s hard to see the nation becoming one of the most influential economies by mid-century. The budget is also tacit rec-ognition that the central bank can’t do it all. Bank Indonesia is a risk-averse place, even by the cautious standards of monetary policy-making. Officials are very sensitive to the level of the rupiah and the vulnerability pre-sented by the current account deficit. Don’t look for dramatic interest rate cuts, even with global and regional monetary policy easing, as I wrote last month.

It’s tempting to see Indonesia as a model for what countries can do with a bit of will and the right political climate. Other Asian governments have primed the fiscal pump with tan-gible results. In South Korea, state spending made the difference last quarter between growth and recession. Singapore has flagged stimulus as well. That’s one of the primary tasks of fiscal policy, to step in to bolster demand.

Jokowi is attempting something different; there’s no contraction to alleviate. While lots of leaders talk about infrastructure, those aspirations rarely translate to substantive action. Indonesia’s president already has runs on the board. Jakarta’s subway system finally opened this year after decades of discussions. No fewer than 25 air-ports are planned, along with power plants and a highway system for Sumatra modeled on the newish one running the length of Java.

One of the most fascinating parts of this budget is the idea that the deficit will be 1.76% of GDP, down from this year’s estimate of 1.93% and well within the legal limit of 3%. How

is this possible? It’s a little fuzzy. Part of the answer is that Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati has managed to boosted tax collection, overcoming a chronic issue of avoidance. In some ways, this budget is an endorsement of Indrawati, who’s a tremendous asset for the government. Jokowi would be remiss not to make greater use of her.

What could go wrong with all this? Quite a bit. For one thing, the external environment could deteriorate mate-rially. Slowing global growth, eco-nomic conflict between the U.S. and China and skittish markets could foil all Jokowi’s grand plans. With its current account shortfall, Indonesia is highly sensitive to global investor sen-timent and anything that may weaken appetite for the currency and its sov-ereign bonds, about 40% of which are held by foreigners. Sometimes this translates into bullying and even shooting of the messenger. In 2017, the government shelved business partnerships with JPMorgan Chase & Co. after the firm downgraded Indo-nesian equities. JPMorgan spent some time in the cold before things were eventually patched up.

Indrawati’s ministry was a prime mover in that saga. Regardless of her attributes, she would be ill advised to repeat the performance. The global economic and market climate was far more benign in 2017 than now. Harder times bring more scrutiny from investors. Punitive responses, either in public or private, aren’t the right approach for a country with aspirations to join the top tier.

Let’s applaud Jokowi’s ambitions. The execution will determine whether they become a template for others. No own goals, please.

Half the year, Iyatunde Kamara worries torrential rains will wash her house off its hillside and into the

rivers of waste that flow through Sierra Leone’s capital Freetown.

The other half, she rarely has enough water to fill a pot.

It is a problem faced by nearly everyone in the rundown city of 1.5 million, built at the foot of mountains rising out of the ocean on Africa’s western coast.

“Water has always been a struggle,” said Kamara, who like her neighbours has no plumbing and fetches water from a stream.

Abundant downpours during the rainy season bring deadly floods every year. In 2017, a mudslide killed more than 1,000 people and left thou-sands homeless.

Experts largely blamed the dis-aster on rapid urbanisation driving residents to claim trees and land to build new homes.

But officials and aid workers are increasingly worried about another trend: diminishing water reserves.

Freetown’s water comes from res-ervoirs in the mountains, surrounded by forest. But as trees are cut to make room for construction, rain is draining off the hillsides rather than seeping through their roots into the soil and streams.

“Most of the water collected should be feeding into the dam, but for now it flows out of the area because of deforestation,” said water minister Jonathan Tengbe.

“The dam itself is under threat at the moment and there is massive need for us to protect the watershed,”

he said, referring to the Guma Dam, the biggest in the former British colony.

Taking cues from Nairobi and Cape Town, Freetown plans to set up a water fund in the next year that would pool investment for projects to improve water security, such as planting trees.

But the challenges are massive as the crowded city grows, its proximity to the coast leaving it nowhere to expand but towards the forest.

Water is so hard to obtain in the dry season that there is an expression, “water for water”, which refers to girls trading sex for access to a tap where they can fill their buckets.

“We have a lot of girls impreg-nated because of this water business,” said Yirah Conteh, head of the Feder-ation of Urban and Rural Poor (FEDURP), a civil society group.

Freetown’s water treatment plant and pipe system were built in the 1960s for a city about one third the size. Even people with houses on the grid have water only three times per week.

Others roam the streets with jerry cans, looking for a trickle from a broken pipe.

“It is very, very serious,” said Conteh. “If the communities had water we could be free from a lot of disease.” Children are sent to stand in line in the morning and often miss school waiting their turn at water points, he said.

Girls also skip school when men-struating because they have no water to wash themselves, said minister Tengbe, estimating that 50% of the city’s health problems could be solved

by a more sustained water supply.The issue goes beyond deforest-

ation, but in some places its impact can be seen.

In one community overlooking the Tower Hill neighbourhood, people get water from a natural spring. The area was deforested years ago, but more recently a college re-planted trees.

“At first we didn’t have water when they chopped down all the trees. This was dry,” said local res-ident Fuaid Samura, standing by the spring. Now surrounded by vege-tation, it is flowing again.

Some of Freetown’s hilltops remain green, but the dirt-brown cit-yscape is creeping up.

The forest surrounding the reser-voirs is a national park, home to chimpanzees and rare birds. But there is no fence around it, and the laws meant to regulate construction hold little sway.

People cut into the forest for charcoal and farming as well as building houses, Freetown’s mayor, Yvonne Aki-Sawyerr, said.

“It’s all about trying to shape the mentality of the community toward conservation,” said Simon Okoth, urban resilience manager for charity Catholic Relief Services (CRS).

CRS, which is spearheading the water fund, recently started working with residents at the top of the hills to reinforce the value of trees. It plans to plant 25,000 by next year.

The sense of urgency is not always shared by the people.

“In the community not everyone accepts our opinion,” said Abdulai Allieu, a community organiser for FEDURP.

“Some welcome the idea (to plant trees), other say they need room to build,” he said.

There are few trees left in this part of Freetown and in front of some houses, there are knee-high stumps. The trees were cut to provide a better view, he said.

“I think the biggest challenge is a lack of appreciation of how quickly the deforestation is happening and how far-reaching the impact is,” mayor Aki-Sawyerr said.

She wants to see the city plant a million trees next year, and said she is in discussions about environmental bylaws and new building codes that could help protect the forest.

While halting deforestation is a necessary step, it will not be enough to fix Freetown’s water shortage, offi-cials said.

The city’s population is expected to reach 2 million people in a few years, said Tengbe, the water minister.

The capacity of the Guma dam,

Indonesian growth hasn’t been terrible. The pace of GDP expansion been remarkably steady at 5% through Jokowi’s first term. If this were China, people would be muttering conspiratorially that the numbers were too consistent.

about 80,000 cubic metres per day, is little more than a quarter of what Tengbe estimated is needed to provide a reliable water supply for the city.

The government is doing a fea-sibility study to pipe water 60 kilo-metres (37 miles) to Freetown from the Rokel River, the country’s biggest.

Critics say this would be pro-hibitively expensive and that the water is too polluted from mining and farming upstream.

At the Guma dam, just half an hour from the city, waterfalls flow past the treatment plant, an excess the current system is unable to catch.

The reservoir overflows for months every year, draining into the ocean. An employee at the water company said the obvious solution is another dam.

“There is a lot of opportunity,” said Okoth of CRS, looking over the still-green valley from the dam.

Clifford Coomber is pictured in front of Guma Dam, the main source of water for Freetown. Western Area, Sierra Leone.

10 TUESDAY 20 AUGUST 2019ASIA / EUROPE

China slams Taiwan over HK asylum offerAP HONG KONG

China lashed out at Taiwan yesterday over its offer of political asylum to participants in Hong Kong’s pro-democracy movement, a day after hundreds of thousands of people marched peacefully in the latest in a series of massive demonstrations in the Chinese territory.

The government of Taiwan, a self-ruled island that China considers its own territory, strongly supports the protests, and Hong Kong students in Taiwan held events over the weekend expressing their backing.

Taiwan’s president made the asylum offer last month, though it’s not clear if requests have been received.

Taiwan lacks a formal legal mechanism for assessing and granting asylum requests, although it has granted residency

to several vocal opponents of the Chinese regime.

Yesterday, Ma Xiaoguang, spokesman for the Chinese Cab-inet’s Taiwan Affairs Office, said Taiwan’s offer would “cover up the crimes of a small group of violent militants” and encourage their “audacity in harming Hong Kong and turn Taiwan into a “heaven for ducking the law.”

Ma demanded that Taiwan’s government “cease undermining the rule of law” in Hong Kong, cease interfering in its affairs and not “condone criminals.”

Organisers said at least 1.7 million participated in Sunday’s Hong Kong rally and march, although the police estimate was

far lower. Police said the protest was

“generally peaceful” but accused a large group of people of “breaching public peace” afterward by occupying a major thoroughfare and using sling-shots to shoot “hard objects” at government headquarters and pointing lasers at police officers.

The protests have at times been marked by violent clashes with police, who say they have arrested more than 700 partic-ipants since the demonstrations started in June. However, law enforcement officers kept a low profile Sunday, with no riot police seen from the procession’s main routes. When stragglers

convened outside a government complex in the late evening, other protesters urged them to go home.

More protests are planned for the coming weeks, with various rallies organized by accountants, transport workers, high school students and rela-tives of police officers.

Demonstrators’ frustrations over what they perceive to be the government’s blatant refusal to respond to their demands boiled over last week with the occu-pation of Hong Kong’s interna-tional airport, during which a reporter for a Chinese Com-munist Party-owned newspaper was assaulted, and attacks on a

number of police stations.A former British colony,

Hong Kong was returned to Beijing in 1997 under the framework of “one country, two systems,” which promised resi-dents certain democratic rights not afforded to people in mainland China.

But some Hong Kongers have accused the Communist Party-ruled central government of eroding their freedoms in recent years.

The protest movement’s demands include the resignation of Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam, democratic elections and an independent investigation into police use of force.

US extends ban on passports for N Korea travelAP WASHINGTON

The Trump administration is extending a ban on the use of US passports for travel to North Korea for another year.

A State Department notice released yesterday said the ban will remain in place until August 31, 2020, unless revoked by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.

The ban was imposed in September 2017 by then-Sec-retary of State Rex Tillerson and renewed in 2018.

Tillerson took the unusual measure following the death of an American student, Otto Warmbier, who had been detained in North Korea.

The State Department said it determined “there continues to be serious risk to United States nationals of arrest and long-term detention” for Amer-icans travelling to North Korea, according to the notice that will be published in the Federal Register this week.

The ban allows certain cat-egories of American citizens such as aid workers or jour-nalists to obtain a special vali-dation passport good for one trip to North Korea.

The move comes amid stalled diplomatic efforts to restart nuclear talks between North Korea and the US.

Early this month, US Pres-ident Donald Trump said that Kim Jong-Un told him he was ready to resume talks on North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs and would stop missile testing as soon as US-South Korea military exercises end.

Former Malaysian PM’s graft trial postponedAP KUALA LUMPUR

The second trial of Malaysian’s former prime minister Najib Razak linked to the multibillion-dollar looting of the 1MDB state investment fund was delayed yesterday by a week to allow his first trial to end.

Najib faces a total 42 charges of corruption, abuse of power and money laundering in five separate criminal cases brought since his shocking election defeat last year. Najib, 65, denies wrongdoing and accuses the new government under Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad of

seeking political vengeance.Chief prosecutor Gopal Sri

Ram said the last witness in Najib’s first trial is midway through testifying and the case should end this week. The first trial began in April on seven charges of criminal breach of trust, corruption and money laundering related to $10.1m that allegedly went into Najib’s bank accounts from a former 1MDB subsidiary.

High Court Judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah agreed to postpone the second trial until August 26.

In the second trial, Najib faces four counts of abusing his power to receive a total of $551m

from 2011 to 2014, and 21 other charges of receiving, using and transferring illicit funds linked to 1MDB.

Defence lawyers asked the judge to start the trial by Sep-tember 3 if the first trial cannot end this week and also to give them time to study lengthy witness statements they’d just received.

Najib set up 1MDB when he took power in 2009 to promote economic development, but the fund amassed billions in debts and is being investigated in the US and other countries for alleged cross-border embezzlement and money laundering.

Russian lawmakers to probe ‘foreign meddling’ amid protestsBLOOMBERG MOSCOW

Leaders of Russia’s lower house of parliament met to discuss alleged foreign meddling in the country’s affairs including in elections, amid the biggest wave of protests in Moscow in seven years.

The council of the State Duma, comprising party leaders and top officials, held a special

session yesterday to create a commission to investigate “the facts of possible interference in Russia’s internal affairs,” according to a statement on the legislature’s website. It will start work this week, the state-run Tass news service reported.

Lawmakers delayed a dis-cussion on the spread of “fake news” via algorithms on Yandex NV, Russia’s largest search engine and biggest news aggre-

gator, until October.The meeting during the

Duma’s summer recess high-lights the increasing alarm among officials over the growing protests, which are the biggest since Vladimir Putin returned to the presidency in 2012.

Andrei Klimov, the head of a similar commission in the upper chamber of parliament, last week accused YouTube and the US embassy of advertising

opposition rallies, two days after an estimated 60,000 turned out to protest in Moscow.

A series of protests that began in the capital last month, initially over the refusal to reg-ister opposition candidates for the September 8 city council elections, has swiftly gained momentum after riot police beat and brutally detained peaceful protesters. Despite thousands of detentions and the imprisonment

of many of the movement’s leaders, the anti-Kremlin oppo-sition has called another protest for this weekend.

The Duma’s focus on foreign meddling comes amid a broader crackdown by the authorities that includes mass unrest charges against at least 10 people arrested at the peaceful rallies, and a money-laundering probe against opposition leader Alexey Navalny’s Anti-Corruption

Foundation.State TV has also taken up

the theme in reporting on the Moscow protests.

Russia’s Foreign Ministry accused the US embassy of inter-ference earlier this month for posting a notice on Twitter and on its website warning American citizens about an unsanctioned election protest in Moscow, along with a map of the route of the proposed demonstration.

Missing hiker found dead in Italy Storms cause travel chaos and damage in GermanyAP BERLIN

A series of summer storms that uprooted trees and blew over power lines has disrupted rail and road travel across parts of southern and central Germany.

Rail operator Deutsche Bahn yesterday listed delays for more than a dozen intercity connections, including to neighbouring Swit-zerland and France.

Frankfurt Airport reported that 41 flights were canceled late Sunday and eight arrivals were diverted because of severe weather.

Authorities said several people were injured after strong gusts blew debris off buildings in the central city of Offenbach.

AFP POLICASTRO BUSSENTINO

The body of a French hiker who disappeared nine days ago south of Naples was found Sunday, local Italian authorities said.

“The body of Simon Gautier has been found a short while ago,” the authorities in Sapri, near Belvedere di Ciolandre where the 27-year-old hiker was found dead.

Gautier called for help on August 9, saying he had fallen

down a cliff and broken both legs, but was unable to give his location other than “in the middle of nowhere, on the coast”.

His family has complained that it took too long for the res-cuers to organise the search.

According to the Italian media, he was found at the bottom of a ravine after a rescuer with binoculars spotted Gautier’s backpack.

Teams of firefighters and alpine rescuers along with a hel-icopter and drones on Sunday

searched the area of mountains and cliffs bordering the sea.

Gautier had been living in Rome for two years working on a thesis on art history.

He set out to hike alone from Policastro Bussentino to Naples and had sent his family a picture of his backpack.

A vigil was planned in the village of Scario, the closest to the search area, where an open-air mass had been held in the afternoon for the rescue teams and the young man.

A photo shows the recovery operation to retrieve the body of French hiker Simon Gautier, in Sapri, near Belvedere di Ciolandre southern Italy.

Indonesia leader calls for calm after violent protests in Papua

A Chinese official demanded that Taiwan’s government “cease undermining the rule of law” in Hong Kong, cease interfering in its affairs and not “condone criminals”.

REUTERS JAKARTA

Indonesian President Joko Widodo yesterday sought to ease tension after violent protests in several cities in Papua in response to claims of racist abuse and physical mistreatment of students from the country’s east-ernmost region.

His chief security minister, Wiranto, also pledged a “com-plete and fair” investigation into incidents in East Java that trig-gered the protests and in Papua, saying the situation in Papua had been contained.

A separatist movement has simmered for decades in Papua, where there have been frequent complaints of rights abuses by Indonesian security forces.

The latest protest appears to have been sparked off by the detention of Papuan students in the East Java city of Surabaya accused of bending a flagpole in

front of a dormitory during Inde-pendence Day celebrations on Saturday, activists say.

Police fired tear gas into the dormitory before arresting 43 stu-dents, Albert Mungguar, an activist, told a news conference on Sunday. He said the students, who were released the same day without charge, had been called “monkeys” during the operation.

Thousands of Papuans pro-tested in the cities of Manokwari and Sorong, blocking streets by burning tyres and tree branches.

Papuans were angry because of “the extremely racist words used by East Java people, the police and military”, Papua Governor Lukas Enembe said.

In Manokwari, the capital of West Papua province, protesters set fire to parliament and office buildings, pulled down power poles and burnt vehicles, Deputy Governor Mohamad Lakotani said by telephone.

Protesters entered the

airport in Sorong and destroyed some facilities, state news agency Antara said.

Widodo called for calm in Papua and urged people not to damage public facilities.

“It’s okay to be emotional, but it’s better to be forgiving,” he told reporters at the presidential palace, a television broadcast

showed. “Patience is also better.”Lakotani, who met protesters

in Manokwari, said Papuans demanded an apology for the slur against the students, as well as protection for anyone studying across the archipelago.

“We apologise because this does not represent the voice of the people of East Java,” the

province’s governor, Khofifah Indar Parawansa, said in a tele-vised statement and called the slur “someone’s personal out-burst of emotion”.

Large crowds also took to the streets of Jayapura, the capital of Papua province, though the protest appeared peaceful in tel-evision images.

People burning tyres during a protest at a road in Manokwari, West Papua, Indonesia, yesterday.

11TUESDAY 20 AUGUST 2019 EUROPE

Merkel and Orban stress unity on Iron Curtain anniversaryAFP/SOPRON

German Chancellor Angela Merkel struck a conciliatory tone yesterday alongside her Hungarian counterpart Viktor Orban as they commemorated the 30th anniversary of a pivotal moment in the fall of the Iron Curtain in 1989.

Merkel admitted there were still “differences” between the pair over migration but she also emphasised that they agreed on many aspects of the issue, including doing more to tackle the causes of refugee movements.

The two leaders were speaking after marking the anni-versary of the “Pan-European Picnic” held at the Austro-Hun-garian border in 1989, which saw at least 600 East Germans cross the border and escape to freedom in the West.

The first mass exodus of East Germans since the construction of the Berlin Wall in 1961, it was seen as a key factor in the fall of the wall itself three months later.

The commemoration was a rare encounter between two of the great survivors of European politics, with Merkel in office

since 2005 and Orban since 2010.

Their last major meeting was in July 2018 when Orban made his first visit to Berlin for three years.

It was an awkward affair, during which their divisions were on full display and Merkel accused Orban of failing to respect “humanity” with his anti-immigration policies.

Orban has been a sharp critic of Merkel’s 2015 decision to open German borders to those fleeing Middle Eastern conflict zones.

Merkel said at press con-ference that she had faith in incoming European Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen to give fresh impetus to finding a common European approach to the migration question.

Meanwhile, Orban was asked whether it was incon-gruous to celebrate the disman-tling of borders given that Hungary has erected fences along its southern frontier.

He rejected any contra-diction, saying that the walls in 1989 had been taken down so people could live in peace and security and “the new ones are built precisely in order to

preserve European peace and security”.

Due to the Schengen agreement, “in one sense we are Germany’s southern garrison,” he added.

Pressed on the frequent crit-icisms levelled at Hungary over the erosion of the rule of law, Orban said they were “politically biased and not supported by facts”. “We have our own... con-stitutional foundations and freedom which we will always protect,” he said.

Earlier the two leaders addressed an ecumenical church service in Sopron, close to where the picnic was held.

Orban hailed the fact that the events of 30 years ago had “cleared the way towards German reunification”.

Hungarians had always known that “our liberation from the Soviet yoke would be defin-itive endure only once Germany was united,” he added.

Merkel recalled her own memories of seeing plans for the picnic advertised in 1989. She remembered the “uncertainty and worry” when it became apparent the picnic had turned into an escape to the West.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban holding a news conference as they visit the Hungarian border town of Sopron, in Hungary, yesterday

Fifth victim in Romania hospital attack deadAFP BUCHAREST

A fifth victim died yesterday from injuries sustained in an attack over the weekend by a patient in a Romanian psychi-atric hospital, the country’s health minister said.

The 88-year-old woman “was suffering from multiple ill-nesses and has died after a cardiac arrest,” Sorina Pintea said, adding that the manager of the hospital in the eastern town of Sapoca had resigned and that an investigation had been opened into the incident that took place Saturday night.

A 38-year-old man, who had admitted himself to the hos-pital for treatment for an alcohol

problem, is suspected of attacking other patients in the same treatment room with a transfusion stand before entering a second room and assaulting more people.

Three of the patients suf-fered head injuries and died at the scene while a fourth died later in hospital. Local press reports said nine others were injured in the attack, two of whom are in a coma.

“Everything happened in less than a minute,” hospital director Viorica Mihalascu was quoted as saying on Sunday before stepping down. But Pintea disputed this version of how things unfolded, saying that there had been “a long chain of errors” on the part of the hospital staff.

Johnson faces pressure to recall British ParliamentAP LONDON

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson yesterday dismissed the notion of recalling Parliament from its summer break after leaked government documents warned of widespread shortages and border delays in the event of a “no-deal” Brexit.

The Sunday Times news-paper published the expectations of what the British government if the country leaves the European Union without a with-drawal agreement. Among the most serious: disruptions to the

supply of medicines, a decrease in fresh food availability and potential fresh water shortages due to possible interruptions in the importation of water treatment chemicals.

Economists have long pre-dicted such grim scenarios, but Brexit backers have dismissed the forecasts as scaremongering. Johnson’s Downing Street office said the published dossier was “out of date,” and that the House of Commons would return as planned on September 3.

“I’m not pretending that there won’t be bumps on the road,” Johnson said.

“There will be ... but if eve-rybody puts their minds to it I have absolutely no doubt that we can get ready.”

The opposition Labour Party, which is trying to delay Brexit and organise a government of national unity, pointed to the report as another sign that no-deal must be avoided.

Senior party official John McDonnell supported the demands of more than 100 law-makers who signed a letter demanding that Johnson cut short Parliament’s summer recess to permit debate on the Brexit crisis.

Johnson is expected to underscore his commitment to leaving the EU on October 31, with or without a deal, later this week when he meets with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron ahead of the G-7 summit in Biarritz.

Macron invited Johnson for talks on Thursday on Britain’s pending departure from the European Union “in respect of the European principles agreed among the 27” remaining EU countries, according to Macron’s office.

Macron insists the EU should

not renegotiate the hard-fought withdrawal agreement reached with Britain’s previous government.

Johnson insisted he wanted an agreement and was ready to work for one. The prime minster said it was up to others to compromise.

“Now of course our friends and partners on the other side of the Channel are showing a little bit of reluctance at the moment to change their position,” he said.

“That’s fine – I’m confident that they will — but in the meantime we have to get ready for a no-deal outcome.”

‘Environmental tragedy’ as Canary Islands fire out of control

AFP MONTAÑA ALTA

A fire raged out of control on the Spanish holiday island of Gran Canaria yesterday, forcing evac-uations as flames rose so high even water-dropping planes could not operate in what was dubbed an “environmental tragedy”.

The blaze, the third in 10 days in the mountainous centre of the island, has forced the evacuation of several villages, which according to the census have a combined population of 9,000, a spokeswoman for the emergency services said.

The exact number of evacuees was unclear on the island that lies at the heart of the Canary archipelago off the coast of northwest Africa.

No fatalities have been

reported and tourism on Gran Canaria, which boasts breath-taking views and is popular with

foreigners, had not been affected.“This is an environmental

tragedy,” Canary Islands Pres-

ident Angel Victor Torres said.Altogether, 1,000 firefighters

and other crew and 14 water-dropping helicopters and planes were working on controlling the blaze, which has destroyed 6,000 hectares, according to emergency services.

More helicopters were planned to arrive today.

This deployment of ground and air forces “is the biggest ever carried out in the Canaries and one of the biggest implemented in Spain in the past few years,” said Agriculture Minister Luis Planas, adding that the next 48 hours would be “critical”.

On the northwestern flank of the blaze, flames have risen as high as 50 metres, preventing ground crew from approaching or water-dropping aircraft from over-flying, the emergency services spokeswoman said.

Residents observe smoke billowing from a forest fire raging near Montana Alta on the island of Gran Canaria, yesterday.

Bomb detonated in village on N Ireland borderAFP LONDON

An explosive device described as an attempted trap for security forces detonated in a village on the Northern Ireland border yesterday, but failed to injure anyone.

Police and bomb disposal experts had been working in the area of Newtownbutler over the weekend since receiving an initial report about a suspect device on Saturday.

“I am of the firm belief this was a deliberate attempt to lure police and ATO (Anti-Terrorism Officer) colleagues into the area to murder them,” Stephen Martin from the Police Service of Northern Ireland said in a statement.

Martin said that two Irish republican dissident groups, the New IRA and the Continuity IRA, “would be a very good starting point for the investigation”.

“It’s fair to say their level of activity has increased this year.”

Concerns have grown that the possible return of a hard border between British-ruled Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland after Brexit could increase security tensions in the once war-torn province.

“Terrorism of this nature is a societal problem,” he said. “We shouldn’t take our peace for granted.”

EU President recovering from surgery, to miss G7 summitAFP BRUSSELS

EU President Jean-Claude Juncker will miss next week-end’s G7 summit in France as he is recovering from urgent surgery to remove his gall bladder, a spokeswoman announced yesterday.

It means Juncker, the European Commission chief, will miss the chance to meet Boris Johnson for the first time since he became UK prime minister.

“President Juncker had to shorten his holiday in Austria for medial reasons. He was taken back to Luxembourg where he was to undergo an urgent

surgical removal of the gall bladder,” commission spokes-woman Natasha Bertaud said.

“That surgery took place during the weekend. The surgery went well and Pres-ident Juncker currently remains in hospital in recovery. His doctors have specified that he should not travel at this time and we are therefore also able to confirm that he will not be able to attend this weekend’s G7 meeting.”

Juncker will discuss plans for EU representation at the G7 meeting in the southwestern French town of Biarritz with host President Emmanuel Macron and EU Council Pres-ident Donald Tusk, she added.

Macron and Putin see chances of peace in Ukraine; clash on SyriaAFP BORMES-LES-MIMOSAS

French President Emmanuel Macron and Russia’s Vladimir Putin yesterday agreed changes in Ukraine had bolstered the chances of peace in its east but clashed on Syria, as the Russian leader made a rare bilateral visit to a key EU power.

Macron, who hosted Putin at his summer residence in southern France, made clear he wanted to keep contacts with Moscow alive on a range of issues even at a time of spiralling tensions with the West.

Speaking as their talks got underway, the pair both expressed optimism that the arrival of Volodymyr Zelensky as Ukraine’s president had improved the chances of ending the half-decade conflict.

But they publicly sparred over the Syria civil war, where the Kremlin is a leading backer of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, and also over the crackdown on protesters in Moscow.

The relationship between a youthful French leader who

regards himself as a champion of European liberalism and the Russian strongman, in power for two decades, has been marked by wariness and tensions since Macron came to power in 2017.

Macron said he hoped to attend a summit with the leaders of Ukraine, Russia and Germany — the so-called Normandy format — “in the next few weeks” to try to end fighting in eastern Ukraine.

“There is a real opportunity to put an end to the conflict that has been going on for five years,” he told reporters in an open-air press conference at the start of talks.

Putin, who arrived at the remote retreat by helicopter, said: “There are things that are worth talking about and that give grounds for cautious optimism.”

Macron also expressed “pro-found worry” about the bombing by regime forces of Syria’s northern region of Idlib, telling

Putin that it was “urgent” a ceasefire went into force.

“The population in Idlib is living under bombs, children are being killed,” Macron told Putin.

But Putin appeared not to be swayed by the French presi-dent’s appeal. “We support the efforts of the Syrian army... to end these terrorist threats,” he replied, adding: “We never said that in Idlib terrorists would feel comfortable.”

Macron hosted Putin on a balmy early evening at the Bregancon fortress on France’s Mediterranean coast, just days before he hosts world leaders including US President Donald Trump for the August 24-26 Group of Seven (G7) summit in Biarritz.

Russia was slung out of what was the G8 in 2014 after it seized Ukraine’s Black Sea peninsula of Crimea, an annexation unrec-ognised by the international community.

French President Emmanuel Macron made clear that he wanted to keep contacts with Moscow alive on a range of issues even at a time of spiralling tensions with the West.

12 TUESDAY 20 AUGUST 2019AMERICAS

Pentagon tests ground-launched cruise missileREUTERS WASHINGTON

The Pentagon said yesterday it tested a conventionally configured ground-launched cruise missile with a range of more than 500km, the first such test since the United States pulled out of the Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF).

The United States formally withdrew from the landmark 1987 pact with Russia on August 2 after determining that Moscow was violating the treaty, an accu-sation the Kremlin has denied.

The treaty, which was nego-tiated by then-US President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, banned land-based missiles with a range of between 500 to 5,500km.

In a statement, the Pentagon said the test took place on Sunday at San Nicolas Island, California, and the missile hit its target after more than 500km of flight.

The test would have been prohibited by the INF treaty, had the United States had not left it.

US officials had said for a number of months that they planned to carry out the test in August.

The United States plans to test an intermediate-range bal-listic missile in November.

Moscow denies flouting the accord and has accused Wash-ington of breaking the pact, alle-gations rejected by the United States.

The dispute is aggravating the worst US-Russia friction since the Cold War ended in 1991. Some experts believe the treaty’s col-lapse could undermine other arms control agreements and speed an erosion of the global system designed to block the spread of nuclear arms.

A Pentagon spokesman said that Sunday’s test used an MK41 launcher, but the system tested was not the same as the Aegis Ashore missile defence system currently operating in Romania and under construction in Poland.

Russia’s Defense Ministry did not reply to a request for comment sent outside normal working hours.

“Russia had alleged for years that the land-based MK-41 could launch Tomahawks and therefore would violate the treaty,” said Kingston Reif, director for disar-mament research at the Arms Control Association advocacy group.

“Even though this is the first test of the combination, Russia will no doubt claim vindication,” Reif said.

US Defense Secretary Mark Esper has said that while he is in favor of placing ground-launched, intermediate-range missiles in Asia, it could be years before such missiles are ready to be deployed.

The US Defence Department conducting a flight test of a conventionally configured ground-launched cruise missile at San Nicolas Island, in California.

AFP NEW YORK

A US police offer was sacked yesterday for putting a black man in a banned chokehold just before his death five years ago in a case that fuelled nationwide protests.

New York Police Commis-sioner James O’Neill told reporters that Daniel Pantaleo was dismissed from the force over the death of Eric Garner during an arrest in July 2014.

The incident stimulated “Black Lives Matter” protests

which called for police to be held accountable for the deaths of unarmed African-Americans in custody or facing arrest.

Garner’s last words, “I can’t breathe,” became a rallying cry for the demonstrators.

Pantaleo’s sacking comes after NYPD Deputy Commis-sioner and departmental admin-istrative judge Rosemarie Mal-donado recommended earlier this month that he be fired.

Pantaleo was suspended pending the decision of O’Neill, who had the final say on the officer’s future.

“It is clear that Daniel Pan-taleo can no longer serve as a New York City police officer,” O’Neill said, describing it as “an immediate termination.”

He said that it had been a dif-ficult decision, adding that some police officers would be “angry” with him, but he was absolutely sure he had made the correct one.

“Make no mistake about it, this was a tragedy for the Garner family. I fully understand that. Mr Garner was somebody’s son, somebody’s dad. Everybody in the NYPD understands that,” he said.

Four officers attempted to arrest Garner, 43, on suspicion of illegally selling cigarettes on a sidewalk in Staten Island on July 17, 2014.

In a video recorded by a bystander, which was posted online and went viral, Pantaleo can be seen putting his arm tightly around Garner’s neck and driving the much larger suspect into the pavement before releasing him.

Meanwhile, another officer pressed Garner’s head to the pavement.

Garner, who resisted arrest

but was unarmed, complained 11 times that he could not breathe.

Garner appeared to lose con-sciousness, and the father-of-six was taken to a hospital where he was pronounced dead.

On July 16, the US Department of Justice deter-mined that Pantaleo would not face federal charges, a decision that Garner’s family slammed as an “insult.”

New York Attorney-General Letitia James said O’Neill’s decision to fire Pantaleo would bring some relief to Garner’s relatives.

NY police officer sacked over 2014 choking death of man

Presidential hopeful offers apology for Native American ancestry claims

The Pentagon said the test took place on Sunday at San Nicolas Island, California, and the missile hit its target after more than 500km of flight.

REUTERS WASHINGTON

US Democratic presidential hopeful Elizabeth Warren yesterday apologised again for her claims in the 1980s that she is Native American, speaking to a crowd of tribal leaders in Iowa.

“Like anyone who’s been honest with themselves, I know that I have made mistakes. I am sorry for harm I have caused. I have listened and I have learned a lot, and I am grateful for the many conversations that we’ve had together,” Warren said.

Warren spoke at the Native

American Presidential Forum in Sioux City, Iowa, hosted by several tribes from across the country.

In February, the Washington Post reported she had described herself as Native American in a form to join the Texas legal bar in 1980s. It was the latest reve-lation in a six-year saga during which she has been unable to quiet critics who say she failed to recognise the importance of tribal sovereignty.

Tribal leaders have criticised her claim, arguing that tribal membership is required for someone to describe themselves

as Native American.Last week, Warren detailed

a new policy proposal aimed at empowering Native American tribes through land protection and law enforcement reforms and boosting financial support for chronically underfunded health and education programmes.

Democrats in the crowded primary field vying for the party’s nomination to challenge Republican President Donald Trump in 2020 have been silent on Warren’s past Native American claims and her ancestry has not been an issue in the primary.

US 2020 Democratic presidential candidate and US Senator Elizabeth Warren during the Frank LaMere Native American Forum, in Sioux City, Iowa, yesterday.

California governor signs law to limit police shootingsAP SACRAMENTO

California is changing its standards for when police can kill under a law signed yesterday by Governor Gavin Newsom, as it tries to deter police shootings of young minority men that have roiled the nation.

“We are doing something today that stretches the boundary of possibility and sends a message to people all across this country that they can do more and they can do better to meet this moment,” Newsom said as he stood alongside family members of people killed by police.

The law by Democratic Assemblywoman Shirley Weber of San Diego will allow police to use lethal force only when nec-essary to defend against an imminent threat of death or serious injury to officers or bystanders. But lawmakers dropped an explicit definition of “necessary” that previously had said officers could use deadly force only when there is “no rea-sonable alternative.”

One catalyst was last year’s fatal shooting of Stephon Clark, an unarmed black man sus-pected of vandalism whose death sparked major protests in the state capital and rever-berated nationwide. Despite the public anger, law enforcement

objections stalled the bill last year and even some supporters had reservations until it was amended in May.

The measure passed with bipartisan support after major police organisations won con-cessions and ended their vehement opposition.

Lawmakers also removed an explicit requirement that officers try to de-escalate confrontations. Law enforcement officials said that would have opened officers to endless second-guessing of what often are split-second life-and-death decisions.

The measure still contains the strongest language of any state, according to the American Civil Liberties Union, which pro-posed the bill and negotiated the changes.

Weber said the law “changes the culture of policing in Cali-fornia.” She was joined on stage by fellow lawmakers and family members of people who have been shot by police, including Clark’s family and the mother of Oscar Grant, a man killed by police officers on an Oakland train platform in 2009.

It is linked to a pending Senate bill requiring that officers be trained in ways to de-escalate confrontations, alternatives to opening fire and how to interact with people with mental illness or other issues.

Son, brother of Guatemala leader acquitted of graftREUTERS MEXICO CITY

A Guatemalan court yesterday acquitted a son and brother of President Jimmy Morales, after a corruption case that slashed the president’s popularity and precipitated the country’s expulsion of a UN-supported corruption commission.

Samuel “Sammy” Morales, the president’s brother and political adviser, was facing charges of fraud and money laundering. Jose Manuel Morales, the president’s eldest son, was facing fraud charges.

In January 2017, the Attorney-General’s office and the International Commission against Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG) accused both men of defrauding the land registry of $12,000 in 2013, using false invoices, before Morales was elected.

Brazil President takes swipe at Norway for whaling, but bungles itAFP OSLO

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro yesterday responded to the Norway’s decision to halt its forest protection subsidies, taking to Twitter to criticise the Scandinavian country for its whaling practice and post spec-tacular — albeit misleading —

images.“Look at the killing of whales

sponsored by Norway,” Bol-sonaro wrote on Twitter.

The post includes a video and photographs of a spectacular whale hunt, where mammals in the shallow waters of a bay are slaughtered by people wading on shore, armed with hooked knives.

The whales’ blood turns the waters red.

However, the images, reportedly taken on May 29 in Norway, illustrate a “grind”, a type of pilot whale hunt practised exclusively in the Faroe Islands — a Danish territory in the North Atlantic.

Norway is one of the few countries in the world that

authorises commercial whaling, but the whales are hunted indi-vidually, at sea from a ship, and with grenade-mounted harpoons.

“We can confirm that the video/the photos are not from Norway,” the Norwegian fish-eries ministry said in an email.

“Our whale hunt takes place from ships at sea,” he said,

arguing that the Norwegian practice was “sustainable”.

Bolsonaro was ridiculed on social media for the mix-up.

“Haha what a crazy president Brazil has! This is NOT from Norway! We don’t kill whales like that. Do your homework to get respected! ‘Fake news’ as Trump would have said,” wrote one Twitter user.

“False information is a crime Mr President,” wrote another user.

Bolsonaro has been taking digs at Norway since the country announced last week that it, like Germany, was blocking $33m of subsidies to Brazil, accusing it of turning its back on the fight against deforestation.

Zapatista rebels extend control in south MexicoAP MEXICO CITY

Mexico’s Zapatista indigenous rebel group announced that it is extending its control over so-called “autonomous” zones to 11 more areas in the southern state of Chiapas.

The Zapatistas do not hide their dislike of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, but when he was asked about the announcement, López Obrador said the expansion was “welcome.”

“Go ahead, because that means working to benefit the villages and the people,” López Obrador said.

“The only thing we don’t want is violence.”

A statement signed by Zap-atista “subcommander” Moises and posted over the weekend called it an “exponential growth that allows us to break the blockade again.”

But some of the new auton-omous zones are likely to be controversial.