W O R L D

Syrians vote amid strikes, killings
Damascus, December 12
Syrians were voting today in municipal elections held amid a general strike called by the opposition and as security forces killed another seven people as they pursued a crackdown on dissent.

DEMOCRACY AT THE GRASSROOTS? A Syrian woman votes to elect representatives to the local administration councils in Damascus on Monday. — AFP

Russian tycoon to take on PM Putin in poll
Moscow, December 12
Mikhail Prokhorov, one of Russia’s richest persons and New Jersey Nets basketball team owner, says he will challenge Prime Minister Vladimir Putin in next March’s presidential election.


Russian tycoon and US basketball team owner Mikhail Prokhorov in Moscow on Monday. — AFP

Syrians vote amid strikes, killings
Municipal elections part of reform package to promote democracy, says Minister

Damascus, December 12
Syrians were voting today in municipal elections held amid a general strike called by the opposition and as security forces killed another seven people as they pursued a crackdown on dissent.

The elections committee, in a statement received by AFP, said “voting is proceeding in a democratic spirit,” adding that voting turnout was “good.” It did not elaborate.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said seven persons were killed in the flashpoint regions of Homs and Idlib on today, while strikes were observed in Daraa, cradle of nine months of anti-regime protests, and near Damascus.

Opposition activists have urged citizens to intensify a civil disobedience campaign launched on yesterday in a bid to bring down the government of President Bashar al-Assad. As many as 42,889 candidates are vying for 17,588 seats.

Information Minister Adnan Mahmud told AFP that the elections were part of a reform package pledged by the authorities to promote democracy and would be followed by legislative polls in February. “These elections are taking place on time in line with a reform programme,” Mahmud told AFP.

“They are taking place although some are trying, in vain, to stop them through terrorist acts carried out by armed groups who are terrorising the citizens,” he said.

Last week local administration minister Omar Ghalawanji said a special indelible ink would be used for the first time in the municipal elections “to prevent any fraud.” “I voted because we want to contribute to the reforms (pledged by Assad) and chose the best” candidates, said Zeina, a 35-year-old woman, as she emerged from a polling state in the central Ummayad Square of Damascus.

Ahmad, a pro-regime taxi driver, said the vote was essential “as a response to those calling for a strike.” But a regime opponent, speaking on condition of anonymity, said he did not expect a huge turnout.

“I am surprised that elections are taking place under such circumstances,” he said. “Cities gripped by the uprising are not concerned by these elections.” The dissident said he expected voting to be limited to areas where protests against the Assad regime have been scarce or non-existent such as Aleppo, Syria’s second city and economic hub.

There have been little or no anti-regime protests in large urban areas like Aleppo and in many part of the capital Damascus. — AFP

Russian tycoon to take on PM Putin in poll

Moscow, December 12
Mikhail Prokhorov, one of Russia’s richest persons and New Jersey Nets basketball team owner, says he will challenge Prime Minister Vladimir Putin in next March’s presidential election.

While he was cautious not to cross Putin’s path in the past, Prokhorov may pose a serious challenge to Putin, whose authority has been dented by the December 4 parliamentary election and massive protests against vote fraud.

Prokhorov said today that a decision to run for president was “the most important decision” in his life. Putin’s hand has been weakened by a significant drop of support for his party in the parliamentary vote.

Opposition parties and election monitors say that even that result was inflated because of fraud. Tens of thousands Muskovites rallied Saturday to protest vote-rigging and urge an end to Putin’s rule. Meanwhile, Putin's spokesman said today the results of contested parliamentary polls will stand despite protests and a probe by the election authorities. — AP

Pak airspace may be closed for US: Gilani

Islamabad, December 12
Admitting a “credibility gap” between Islamabad and Washington, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani has not ruled out closing Pakistan’s airspace to the US and said the blockade of the supply lines into Afghanistan would stay in place for weeks.

The ban on NATO supply lines, already in its third week, would not be lifted until “new rules of engagement” were arrived with US, Gilani said in an interview to BBC.

Asked whether the blockade would continue for days or weeks, the Pakistani Prime Minister replied: “for weeks”.

Highlighting that a “credibility gap” existed between Pakistan and the US, Gilani said: “We are working together and still we don’t trust each other. I think we have to improve our relations”. — PTI 

Iran to reverse-engineer drone

Tehran, December 12
Iran will reverse-engineer the US drone it has in its possession, and is in the “final stages” of unlocking the aircraft’s software secrets, the head of Iran’s parliamentary national security committee said today.

“Our next action will be to reverse-engineer the aircraft,” Parviz Sorouri said, according to the website of Iranian state television.

“In the near future, we will be able to mass produce it.... Iranian engineers will soon build an aircraft superior to the American (drone) using reverse engineering,” he was quoted as saying.

Iran says it captured the sophisticated US drone, a bat-winged stealthy RQ-170 Sentinel, on December 4 as it was flying in its airspace. It claimed a Revolutionary Guards cyber-warfare unit hacked the aircraft’s flight controls.

US officials, who reportedly said the drone was flying a CIA mission over Iran, have expressed scepticism that Iran has the technology to perform such a feat. They said it was more likely the drone suffered a malfunction.

They have also cast doubts over Iran’s ability to replicate the drone, at least without the help of Russia or China.

But Sorouri said “we are in the final stages of cracking (the drone’s) code.” He predicted that “we will acquire valuable intelligence through deciphering the Americans’ covert intelligence and espionage methods once the code is cracked,” though he added that he could not say when the unlocking of the software would be complete.

Sorouri also said “we will not need Russian or Chinese cooperation” to copy the drone. “They will definitely not be involved. This great defensive capability is reserved for us, and we are not ready to share it with others,” he said. — AFP 

Pak mulls revamp of its foreign policy

Islamabad, December 12
Pakistani envoys posted in key world capitals, including New Delhi and Beijing, gathered here today with top political and military leaders for a meeting that will provide inputs for a proposed foreign policy revamp.

Envoys in 15 countries, including India, China, Germany and Saudi Arabia, are attending the two-day meeting that will discuss different aspects of Pakistan’s foreign policy and make recommendations for refashioning Islamabad’s ties with key countries like the US and India, officials said.

Today’s session, chaired by Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar, was attended by Inter-Services Intelligence agency chief Lt Gen Ahmed Shuja Pasha, Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee chairman Gen Khalid Shameem Wynne and Finance Minister Abdul Hafeez Sheikh.

Ambassador-designate to the US Sherry Rehman, too attended the meeting.

The Foreign Office convened the meeting after PM Yousuf Raza Gilani called for a sweeping overhaul of Pakistan’s policy for the war on terrorism and ties with the US and other countries in the wake of the NATO attack on November 26. — PTI