April 27, 2012

FRIDAY, APRIL 27, 2012

@alwatandaily

Issue No. 1417

20 PAGES

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Panel for Al-Maimouni’s case to precede Interior’s grill

• Majority Bloc MPs seek to break apart Al-Juwaihel’s interpellation • Parliament approves bill for Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad University Mohammed Al-Salman & Mohammed Al-Khaldi Staff Writers & Agencies

KUWAIT: Parliament approved on Thursday a much-awaited bill for establishing Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad University. The bill, which was unanimously approved states that the university will be financially and administratively independent.

The university will include colleges of engineering, law, management sciences and several others.

“We hope the project would see light soon,” Minister of Higher Education Dr. Nayef Al-Hajraf

said commenting on the bill approval. “We believe Jaber Al-Ahmad University will provide highlyqualified professionals who will build and develop Kuwait.” Hajraf stressed that the ministry respects the educational institutions independence to help them succeed in their mission. The law has been referred to the government for enforcement.

Meanwhile, certain MPs within the Majority Bloc are making efforts to break apart MP Mohammad Al-Juwaihel’s interpellation motion against the Minister of Interior Sheikh Ahmad Al-Humoud Al-Sabah. It has been reported that the move is intended to head off a possible embarrassing situ-

Syria opposition urges UN meet over Hama ‘crimes’

Exiled Syrian announces ‘transitional government’ set up in Paris PARIS: Exiled Syrian businessman Nofal Dawalibi announced in Paris on Thursday the setting up of a “transitional government to answer the needs of the Syrian opposition.”

“The situation in Syria is getting worse every day. Chaos is rising,” said Dawalibi, whose father Maarrouf was Syrian prime minister before President Bashar Al-Assad’s Baath party took power in 1963.

“We have decided to replace existing structures with a purely executive structure which coordinates the operations of the divisions fighting for freedom and follows the will of the sovereign Syrian people,” he told reporters. He did not specify how the “transitional government” would coordinate with the Syrian National Council (SNC) headed by exiled academic Burhan Ghalioun that is considered the Syrian opposition’s most representative political body.

Armed opposition to President Bashar AlAssad’s regime is centered on the Free Syrian Army (FSA). Dawalibi said that “many” members of the SNC and the FSA backed his transitional government, although others were subject to “pressure”.

“Unfortunately the SNC, which chose a legislative body while ours is an executive body, could not prove that its structure represents the Syrian people and the revolution,” he said.

The “transitional government’s” objectives are to arm anti-regime fighters, to implement “direct international military intervention” and ensure the return of security and stability to Syria,” Dawalibi said.

The names of the 35 Syrians making up the “transitional government”, described as civilians and soldiers within Syria, “will for security reasons be announced in a few days,” he said.

A truce in Syria brokered by UN-Arab League envoy Kofi Annan earlier this month has failed to take hold, with unrest and killings reported on a daily basis in various parts of the country.

French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe on Wednesday said that given the persistent violence, the UN-backed peace plan was “seriously compromised” and held out the threat of seeking military action to end the regime’s crackdown. -AFP

ation for the Majority Bloc in the event that a vote of no-confidence is filed against the minister, particularly since the motion includes the mysterious death of Mohammad Al-Maimouni. The Majority MPs, according to sources, are making these efforts despite the hurdles laid ahead.

An informed parliamentary source told Al Watan that the meeting that will be convened tomorrow (Saturday) by the Majority Bloc at MP Mubarak Al-Waalan’s diwaniya will witness thorough discussions regarding the formation of a parliamentary investigation panel that will probe the death of Mohammad Al-Maimouni.

The source added that proposing such a committee will be on top of the agenda. However, the source was quick to note that there are obstacles that may obstruct such a plan; hence the matter will be examined from legal and constitutional angles to find a loophole. Certain members of the bloc believe that the formation of such a probe panel may overlap with the judiciary, given that an appeal has been made regarding the case.

Further, the source pointed out that if the members succeeded in finding a constitutional outlet that would surely be a relief to them because they have to vote for a no-confidence against the

MP Al-Juwaihel: Jail sentence is groundless rumor

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Egypt announces list of presidential candidates

Eating berries could prevent memory loss: Scientists

BOSTON: Regular consumption of berries, such as blueberries or strawberries, may help keep your brain functioning well as you age, new research suggests.

The study found that women with the highest intake of berries appeared to delay cognitive aging by up to 2.5 years. Cognition refers to brain activities such as thinking, remembering and reasoning.

“Given that we know that fruits and vegetables are good for our health in general, our findings add to the idea that we should be consuming more, especially berries, as a way to help maintain memory in older ages,” said the study’s lead author, Elizabeth Devore, an instructor in medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School, in Boston.

“Berries are a simple dietary intervention

CONTINUED ON PAGE 2

Thousands defy Norway mass killer Breivik in song

CAIRO: Egypt’s electoral committee announced on Thursday the list of 13 candidates for next month’s first post-uprising presidential poll after a tumultuous run-up that saw three disqualified.

Ahmed Shafiq, the premier appointed by president Hosni Mubarak just before his overthrow last year, was included after the committee reversed on Wednesday an early decision to exclude him.

The candidates include front runners Amr Mussa, a former foreign minister and Arab League chief, and the powerful Muslim Brotherhood’s Mohammed Morsi, who filled in for the group’s disqualified first pick, Khairat Al-Shater.

Campaigning for the May 23-24 election begins on April 30, committee head Faruq Sultan told a press conference. The vote, which the ruling military has promised will be free, should mark the country’s first fair presidential elections after three decades of Hosni Mubarak’s autocratic rule.

The military has pledged to hand power to the winner by the end of June.

The contest is narrowing down to a choice between secularists linked to the old guard - such as Mussa and Shafiq - and Islamists, who hope to repeat their success in parliamentary elections after Mubarak’s ouster.

More on 4

Jordan’s prime minister Khasawneh resigns

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Former Liberian leader found guilty of war crimes

Supporters of the ruling Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) scuffle with police as they try to reach the residence of Supreme Court Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammd Chuadhry after the contempt of court verdict handed to Pakistan prime minister Yousuf Gilani, during a protest, in Islamabad on April 26, 2012. (AFP) More on 5

minister if such a request is filed.

This is because the issue of Al-Maimouni concerns all the MPs to win support among their constituents. Reportedly, the Majority MPs will assign a team of legal experts to examine the interpellation draft to determine a way forward. In a related development, the MPs representing the Minority Bloc are scheduled to meet sometime next week to discuss how to go about the interpellation of the interior minister in order to strengthen the status of the bloc and to ‘embarrass’ the Majority, especially on issues such Al-Maimouni’s death and citizenship.

LEIDSCHENDAM, Netherlands: Liberian ex-leader Charles Taylor was convicted on Thursday of arming rebels who killed and mutilated thousands in Sierra Leone, in a historic verdict for international justice.

Former Liberian President Charles Taylor takes notes at the start of the judgment hearing of his trial. Taylor has been convicted of arming rebels during Sierra Leone’s civil war in return for blood diamonds, in an historic verdict for international justice.

Taylor, 64, was found guilty on all counts including acts of terrorism, murder and rape committed by the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) rebels, who paid him for arms with diamonds mined by slave labor.

While rights groups and Sierra Leoneans whose limbs were chopped off by the RUF during the west African country’s brutal decade-long civil war hailed the verdict, Taylor’s lawyer slammed the decision and accused the prosecution of “buying” evidence.

In the first judgment against a former head of state by a world court since the World War II Nuremberg trials, Taylor was found guilty of 11 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity by the Special Court for Sierra Leone.

“The trial chamber finds you guilty of aiding and abetting of all these crimes,” presiding judge Richard Lussick told the UN-backed court, situated in the leafy suburb of Leidschendam just outside The Hague.

Dressed in a dark suit, white shirt and red tie, the former president, who once notoriously compared himself to Jesus, stood motionless as the verdict was read and showed no emotion afterwards.

He will be sentenced by the same court on May 30 and if sent to jail as expected will be held in a British prison. -AP

Thousands of people stand in drizzling rain in Youngstorget square, Oslo, Norway Thursday April 26, 2012 to participate in the singing of “Barn av Regnbuen” (Children of the Rainbow). (AP)

OSLO: Tens of thousands gathered aiming to face down terror with the power of music. Inspired by a Facebook-organized protest, Norwegians flocked to public squares across the country Thursday, ignored the drenching rain and lifted their voices in song.

Their target: far-right fanatic Anders Behring Breivik, now on trial for a bomb-and-shooting rampage that killed 77 people. Their weapon: a children’s tune that he claims has been used to brainwash the country’s youth into supporting immigration. Defiant sing-alongs of “Children of the Rainbow” were staged in Oslo and other major Norwegian cities, while in court survivors of Breivik’s attacks gave tearful testimony in the ninth day of his trial.

In downtown Oslo alone, some 40,000 people chimed in as Norwegian artist Lillebjoern Nilsen played the song - a Norwegian version of American folk music singer Pete Seeger’s “My Rainbow Race.”

They sang the Norwegian lyrics: “A sky full of stars, blue sea as far as you can see. An earth where flowers grow, can you wish for more? Together shall we live, every sister, brother, you and me. Young children of the rainbow, a fertile land and seashore.”

In testimony last week, Breivik mentioned the tune as an example of how he believes “cultural Marxists” have infiltrated Norwegian schools and weakened its society. Shocked by Breivik’s lack of remorse for his massacre, Norwegians by and large have decided the best way to confront him is by demonstrating their commitment to everything he loathes. Instead of raging against the gunman, they have manifested their support for tolerance and democracy. -AP

that may be helpful to the brain,” Devore added.

Results of the study were published online April 26 in the Annals of Neurology.

Berries and other fruits and vegetables are rich in substances known as flavonoids which help protect the body’s cells from damage and reduce inflammation.

Berries contain a particular flavonoid called anthocyanidin. Devore explained that one of the things that’s special about anthocyanidins is that they can cross the blood-brain barrier and that these flavonoids tend to locate in the areas of the brain responsible for memory and learning.

Another recent study, also from Harvard but from a different group of researchers, recently found that berries might help reduce a man’s risk of Parkinson’s disease. -Agencies

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Bakers and their supporters protest opposite Downing Street in central London April 26, 2012. Hundreds of British bakers wearing chefs hats and carrying placards converged on Prime Minister David Cameron’s official residence on Thursday to say his plan for higher sales tax on their products was half baked. (Reuters)

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ALWATAN DAILY

kuwait

fridAY, april 27, 2012

Lawmakers say cafes are ‘vice dens’, could lead to prostitution Ahmed Al-Qahs Staff Writer

KUWAIT: Participants taking part at the forum held at diwaniya of Abdul Mohsen Al-Mutairi asserted that cafes have become dens for vice, since prostitution is rampant there, due to lack of supervision and control. They called for enforcing the law that prohibits smoking in public areas as well.

Member of Parliament (MP) Mohammad Hayef stated that prostitution can be found at cafes that lack supervision and control. He added that such an environment fosters other crimes, such as narcotics addiction, fights, and murders. He criticized the government for not taking action against such places and for not enforcing the law that bans the existence of cafes in markets and public areas. He added that senior governmental officials shoulder a grave responsibility and must enforce the law, or else they will be part of the corruption.

He revealed that a law will be approved soon to hold

senior officials accountable, including ministry undersecretaries.

He considers every official who does not enforce the law a partner in the crimes and corruption, indicating that some of those officials personally attend promiscuous parties. He stated that the development plan is merely ink on paper; especially after the government has said repetitively that it is unable to solve the bureaucratic paperwork, which shows that it is unable to implement the development plan.

He added that it is futile to ask officials to enforce the law; however, he stressed the importance of holding every official who failed to perform his duties efficiently accountable, since many of them do not care anymore about shouldering their duties towards the society.

Moreover, MP Mohammad Al-Khalifa revealed that decrees were made years ago to ban smoking and the existence of cafes in public places in order to protect the people’s health and prevent inappropriate practices. He mentioned that the society rejects cafes as they pose a

threat to the health and morals of the people and called for granting municipality employees more authorities to penalize those who do not abide by the law. He highlighted the importance of raising the awareness of the public regarding the dangers of those places and the inappropriate practices that take place in them.

Municipal Council member Abdullah Fehad considered the forum to be the first step in combating alien practices that happen in cafes. He explained that those cafes have turned from open halls to cabins that are only accessed by a man and a woman together.

He asserted that every person has the right to smoke, as long as the others are not affected by that harmful habit.

He asked the concerned ministers to shoulder their responsibilities regarding inappropriate practices occurring in cafes.

Meanwhile, Deputy Head of Anti-Smoking Society Anwar BuRahma said that since the establishment of the society, it has been fighting to issue a decree that bans smoking. He added that the society managed to have this

Panel for Al-Maimouni’s case to precede Interior’s grill

MP Al-Juwaihel: Jail sentence is groundless rumor Yousef Al-Yousef Staff Writer

KUWAIT: The Member of Parliament (MP) Mohammad Al-Juwaihel denied that a one-year-jail sentence was issued against him, telling Al-Watan that such allegation is groundless and is merely a rumor.

However, this piece of news was published by some social networking websites, but the lawmaker

decree issued in 1995. However, he remarked that since that date, no citations at all were given to any person smoking in a public place.

He revealed that Kuwait imports tobacco worth 72 million Kuwaiti dinars every year and ranks 19th worldwide according to international statistics. He hoped that such forums and activities would play a role in raising awareness among citizens regarding the negative consequences of smoking on the smoker and those around him, such as children and pregnant women who experience abortion in some cases.

He explained that every cigarette contains nine cancerous substances, which makes smokers more prone to cancer than others.

Furthermore, Adnan Al-Madahka commented that cafes lack supervision and wastes the money, time and health of youths.

He called for raising their awareness concerning the risks of smoking on their health and the health of those around them.

wondered how the sentence, according to the rumor, was said to have been issued last Tuesday without the knowledge of anyone until Friday.

He added that he contacted the relevant authorities to ask if any sentence was issued against him, but they affirmed that there was nothing.

He said that the rumor might be swirled because he plans to file an interpellation motion against the Minister of Interior.

PADA employees stage strike Hamed Al-Sayed & Shabib Al-Ajmi Staff Writers

KUWAIT: A number of employees of the Public Authority for Disabled Affairs (PADA) staged a strike yesterday as they did not receive the salaries for the current month on time and claimed that they were expelled from the office of the General Manager (GM) of Human and Financial Resources Department.

The strikers affirmed that they would pursue their strike until approving all their requests, indicating that they also work until 7 and 8 P.M. but they do not receive any bonuses or overtime.

They criticized the design of the building which consists of many floors because such building is not suitable for disabled who need to exert hard efforts in order to reach the relevant employees that they need to visit.

The strikers said that the general manager of the authority is responsible for staging such strike because he was behind the problems that interrupt work progress at the authority.

Meanwhile, the spokesman of the strikers Nasser Al-Shulaimi disclosed that the strike occurred due to the mistakes of the general managers, adding that after separating the authority from the Ministry of Social Af-

fairs and Labor, the authority cancelled social care bonuses. He went on to say that the employees did not ask for the bonus as they believed that the general manager will take decisions to enable all employees to receive their rights later on but employees were surprised by the salary delay. He added, “The general manager did not tell employees about the salary delay despite that they held a meeting five days ago.

Strikers said that they felt that the GM doesn’t respect them ever since he was appointed as GM at the authority.

On his part, the Deputy General Manager for Human and Financial Resources Abdullah Al-Sallal denied expelling employees from his office, indicating that the salaries of employees would be paid a few days late due to the shifting of employees’ files from the ministry to the authority. He added that the delay of paying the salaries for just four days is a simple matter that does not deserve to stage a strike for.

The Deputy General Manager for Technical Affairs Esam Bin Haydar also claimed that salary payment is delayed due to some technical procedures due to the shifting of employees’ files. However, he affirmed that employees work hard and that they deserve incentives and bonus to encourage them to pursue their hard work.

Foreign Minister meets Arab League Chief

Lawmakers are seen during the National Assembly session held on Thursday, April 26, 2012. (Al Watan) continued from page 1

The motion includes allegations that the minister “slacked” in dealing with forgery cases in granting citizenship, and that the law has not been applied to dual nationals. Other issues highlighted in the motion include claims of lawlessness, corruption at the Traffic Department and the waste of public funds.

Meanwhile, the Majority Bloc is due to endorse during its planned meeting tomorrow the issues to be highlighted in the interpellation of the Finance Minister Mustafa Al-Shamali.

Leaked reports reveal that the inter-

pellation will be submitted next week signed by MPs Musallam Al-Barrak, Abdurrahman Al-Anjeri and Khaled AlTahous or one of the members of the Development Bloc or the Justice Bloc. It has been informed that the motion will tackle eight main issues.

Commenting on Al-Juwaihel’s interpellation against the minister of interior, MP Adnan Abdulsamad stated that the would-be interpellator has documented information that might embarrass a lot of people.

The lawmaker however did not delve into further details.

In another development, the Minis-

ter of Information Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah Al-Mubarak commented on statements by MPs about their intention to amend Articles 15 and 79 of the Constitution, noting that such an amendment requires a specific mechanism outlined

by Article 174 of the Constitution.

The minister added that if a request is made for the amendment of the Constitution, the government will have to deal with it in accordance with the Constitution and the Standing Order of the Parliament. He elaborated that the Constitution stipulates that amendments can only be made to create more room for freedoms.

10,000 Bedouns were not registered in official census of 1980 Abdullah Al-Najar and Abdulaziz Al-Najar Staff Writer

Kuwaiti Deputy Prime and Foreign Minister Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled Al-Sabah (right) meets Arab League Secretary General Nabil Al-Arabi (left) on Thursday, April 26, 2012. (KUNA)

CAIRO: Kuwaiti Deputy Prime and Foreign Minister Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled Al-Sabah met on Thursday with Arab League Secretary General Nabil Al-Arabi.

During the meeting, the two sides exchanged various issues and topics on the agenda of a meeting of Arab foreign ministers due later in the day. The two sides also discussed the current developments on the ground in Syria, particularly issues after the outcomes of a recently Arab meeting on Syria in Doha.

The meeting also tackled the conflict in Sudan and South Sudan and the latest developments on the three

Iranian-occupied United Arab Emirates (UAE) islands.

The meeting highlighted issues regarding the Arab League and Arab joint work, and ways in enhancing them.

Participants in the meeting included Foreign Ministry Arab World Affairs Department Director Ambassador Jamal Abdullah Al-Ghanim, Director of the Department of the Deputy Premier Office Ambassador Sheikh Ahmad Nasser Al-Mohammad Al-Sabah, and Kuwait’s Arab League representative Ambassador Jamal Mohammad Al-Ghunaim. -KUNA

KUWAIT: An official source told AlWatan that about 10,000 individuals who claim to be Bedouns (Stateless Arabs) are not registered in the official census of 1980, adding that most of them were registered in the census of 1985, five years before the Iraqi invasion.

The source said that those individuals don’t have the right to call for the Kuwaiti citizenship and the relevant departments will not consider their applications, as their original citizenship is known. Such statement confirms the piece of news which was published by Al-Watan few months ago, indicating that a large number of Bedouns had infiltrated into Kuwait

Wafa Qansour Staff Writer

KUWAIT: The Undersecretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Khalid Al-Jarallah said that the leaderships of Kuwait and Jamaica are highly interested in developing the bilateral relations between the two countries. During the celebration of opening the Jamaican embassy in Kuwait yesterday in South Surrah area, he said that this is the first embassy that Jamaica opens in the Gulf Region.

The celebration was attended by many ambassadors and government officials such as the Jamaican Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Arnold Nelson.

Al-Jarallah disclosed that opening the Jamai-

can embassy in Kuwait will contribute in enhancing contacts amongst the different government authorities of the two countries as well as providing investment opportunities to businessmen.

On his part, the Jamaican Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade expressed his gratitude to the historic monument of opening the embassy and extolled the great hospitality of Kuwait. He concluded his statement by saying that he hopes to develop the bilateral relations between Kuwait and Jamaica.

The Jamaican Ambassador to Kuwait Audley Rodriques has also thanked the Kuwaiti government and people for such great hospitality, adding that he is glad and is looking forward to stay in Kuwait.

case, therefore the so called Kuwaiti Bedoun Society called for staging a sit-in on Tuesday in the Freedom Square. It also criticized the chief of apparatus Saleh AlFadhalah since the Bedoun became now divided into categories, those who deserve the Kuwaiti citizenship and those who don’t.

Al-Watan had already disclosed that the majority of Bedouns don’t meet the conditions of citizenship and they are expected to be rejected from the advantages the government will provide them as a result of disclosing their original citizenships.

Furthermore some Bedoun members use social networking websites and urge each other to get involved in clashes with security individuals to disrupt endorsing final solutions to the case.

New locations assigned for disused tires: Al-Subaih Shabeeb Al-Ajmi

Jamaica opens embassy in South Surrah

during the eighties of the last century, more specifically during the Iraqi-Iranian war. The source said that more than 300 people claiming to be Bedouns had already shown their original Saudi citizenship and received an official residency to live in Kuwait, as was the case with 60 other cases who obtained passports from their original countries such as Iraq and Syria.

However, the Executive Apparatus for Illegal Residents Affairs endorsed several procedures for those who will show their true citizenship and the source expected thousands of Bedouns will do so in the next stage. He added that more than two thirds of Bedouns claim to be so, although they belong to specifically known countries. He believes that those claiming to be stateless obstruct solving the Bedoun

Staff Writer

KUWAIT: The General Manager (GM) of Kuwait Municipality Ahmad AlSubaih said that the fire caused by disused tires was done by an arsonist say eyewitnesses. Al-Subaih praised the efforts of the Kuwait Municipality in containing the spread of fire.

He was critical of the local media saying that they hadn’t showed the significant role played by the municipality in containing the fire, citing the words of the firefighters that “had it not been for the Kuwait Municipality, the fire would not have been put off so quickly.”

He was very particular about the service made by the Service department and the Environment Department in Kuwait Municipality.

The Minister of Municipality has set

up an investigative committee whose members are drawn from various state departments and ministries. The committee is headed by the Legislative and Fatwa Authority who is working now on pinpointing the reasons and circumstances behind the fire.

Al-Subaih said that Kuwait Municipality has made several attempts back in 2009 to get rid of the disused tire but their attempts were not successful. He accused the companies assigned to recycle the disused tires of not being committed and serious about the project.

He went on to say that now there is a company which will recycle all those tires.

As for the companies previously assigned but didn’t commit themselves completely, the general manager said that the Legal Department is taking the necessary steps in this regard.

As for the new locations for dumping

disused tires,Al-Subaih said that there will be six new locations in Al-Salmi area. He explained that there are reasons behind such location and that the Municipality had thought about appropriate locations and found that Al-Salmi is appropriate because it is far and away from residential areas.

“So, God forbid, if another arson attack takes place, it will never have the same impact because for one, the six locations are separated from each other and the new locations are not in any way close to the residential areas or otherwise,” he explained.

As for the citizens complaints regarding big trucks and Lorries parking, he said that a team has been formed which is the result of close coordination with the Ministry of Interior to remove all big trucks and those who are found violating the law will be penalized with a hefty fine.

ALWATAN DAILY

KUWAIT

fridAY, april 27, 2012

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Kuwait rejects religious extremism, says Al Khubaizi Bilateral relations with Vatican date back to 1968: Archbishop Rajic Jameel W. Karaki Staff Writer

KUWAIT: The Director of Europe Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Ambassador Waleed Al Khubaizi Praised the Vatican’s position during the Iraqi invasion to Kuwait in 1990 and its role in releasing the Kuwaiti prisoners from the Iraqi prisons at the that time, adding that Kuwait encourages dialogue between Arab states and the Vatican. The statement was given to reporters during a reception organized by the Vatican Embassy in Kuwait on Wednesday evening at Marina Mall Hotel.

He also clarified that the Vatican didn’t contact the Kuwaiti side regarding those who requested demolishing churches in Kuwait because officials in the Vatican believe that these calls are “odd and not serious.”

When asked about reports issued by the US State Departments criticizing Kuwait and saying that “it’s not encouraging the establishment of churches,” he said that these reports represent the opinion of the embassy and there is a balance between the supply and demand of churches in Kuwait in terms of volume and capacities, indicating that these reports are there to practice some pressure.

When asked about some remarks by the Pope against Islam he said that “extremism is in every country and is rejected. When the American Priest burnt the holy Quran, the Vatican condemned this action. Extremism exits in all political and religious arenas.” He added that Muslim scholars also condemn extremism.

As for the negotiations about the Free Trade Agreement between the GCC countries and The European Union, he said that “I guess our friends in the EU started to realize the importance of this agreement in the light of current economic conditions, where it has many benefits for them”.

On his comments on the EU position from the current events in Syria, he described the European position as pioneer and advanced since the early beginnings of the Arab Spring where it implemented and imposed sanctions against regimes that oppress their people. He added that the EU pushed for Kofi Annan’s mission in Syria, noting that Europe is concerned with the Syrian issue due to the near boarders.

Moreover, he described the European position from the three islands issue between Iran and UAE as supportive to the GCC decrees, which calls for avoiding any provocation to the region in this period, but to refer to international arbitration within a legal framework.

He added, “Proactive works and statements

Director of Europe Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Ambassador Waleed Al Khubaizi and Sheikha Fariha Al-Sabah with Archbishop Petar Rajic during a celebration held on Wednesday, April 25, 2012. (Al Watan)

don’t serve the long friendship between the two shores”.

Archbishop Petar Rajic, Apostolic Nuncio to Kuwait, Yemen, Bahrain, Qatar and the UAE, described the bilateral relationships with Kuwait as excellent, where the Vatican established these relations four decades ago since 1968. Kuwait was the first country to of the GCC to establish diplomatic relationship with the Vatican.

Archbishop Rajic expressed his pleasure that Christians can practice their rituals in this country. “We are proud that His Highness the Amir visited the Pope in May 2010,” he said.

Regarding the Pope’s visit to the region, he said that “the Pope will visit Lebanon in September and then GCC region or Kuwait depends on his schedule”.

About the dialogue between Islam and Christianity Rajic, said that there is an ongoing

SCOPE TV fined $1.8 million for ‘insulting’ ruling family

dialogue between Islamic scholars with Vatican’s and top scholars of catholic teachers from various parts of the world discussing the relations between the two countries.

Regarding the request of some political parties in Kuwait to demolish churches, he said “the Vatican won’t be happy to demolish a church or a mosque in any place all over the world.”

Meanwhile the Jordanian Ambassador to Kuwait, Mohammed Kayed, described his meeting with His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah as warm and asserted on the depth of relationships between the two countries, adding that the Kuwaiti and Jordanian relationships represent great model of joint work based on the brotherhood ties and common history.

Regarding economic exchange between the two countries, Kayed announced that the joint

Dignitaries are seen attending the reception organized by the Vatican Embassy in Kuwait on Wednesday, April 25, 2012. (Al Watan)

technical committee headed by the trade ministers of Kuwait and Jordan will meet in May, where experts from both parties will discuss trade agreements.

When asked about the reason why the GCC countries are reluctant about joining the GCC union he replied, “I don’t agree with word reluctant, where GCC leaders invited Jordan to participate in these partnerships and welcome our joining”, noting that such a move needs laws amendments and time.

He added, “Jordan is close to the Gulf and the permanent and coordination is continuous between each other’s”, indicating that Jordan represents the strategic depth.

In respect to the economic ties between

Capital Governor signs deal with Guangzhou’s Mayor

Kuwaiti products highly competitive in overseas markets, says official KUWAIT: Kuwaiti industrial products enjoy high quality as local producers abide by the highest international standards, a Kuwaiti industrial development official said here Thursday.

“These advantages have made Kuwaiti products a strong competitor on both local and international markets,” Deputy DirectorGeneral of the Industrial Exports Development Department at the Public Authority for Industry Sagar Al-Enezi said to Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) following the inauguration of the 15th session of the Kuwaiti Industries Exhibitions held here till May 10. He, however, underlined the importance of supporting national products through a variety of measures, particularly the organizing and participating in exhibitions. Al-Enzi pointed out that oil and transformational industries, especially petrochemicals make up the majority of Kuwaiti exports and the main source of income for the country. “But, there is a need to support other industries in the future,” he said.

The annual Kuwait Industries Exhibition is held at the international exhibitions ground under the auspices of Director General of Public Authority for Industry Dr. Ali Al-Mudhaf.

Over 43 Kuwait companies, representing different industrial sectors, participate in the ten-day exhibition the fifth of May.Al-Enzi noted that the exhibition is meant to back and promote Kuwaiti products, stressing that the Public Authority for Industry will continue its efforts to promote Kuwaiti products on local and overseas markets. -KUNA

CAPITALS: A Kuwaiti court Thursday fined a local television station 500,000 dinars (1.8 million US dollars) for airing a program deemed offensive to the state’s ruling family, according to the court ruling. The program, aired in October 2010 by SCOPE TV director and former lawmaker, Talal Al-Saeed, charged that ancestors of the Al-Malek branch of the Al-Sabah ruling family attempted to overthrow the government 50 years ago.

Following the program, the TV station was attacked and ransacked allegedly by members of the ruling family.

Another Kuwaiti court in September issued a threemonth suspended jail term against three members of the ruling family for attacking the TV station. -AFP

Islam urges ‘result-conscious’ concepts, methodologies: Al-Falah

KUWAIT: Islam is a religion which urges the believer to be “result-conscious” and mindful of lasting effect when choosing or framing methodological frameworks and concepts, stressed Undersecretary of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs Dr. Adel Al-Falah upon opening a forum here, Thursday. Al-Falah was making the inaugural speech of the Fourth Session of The forum of the Civilizations Communication (Tanadi) which is organized in venues at Gulf University for Science and Technology (GUST) and Al-Babtain Central Library.

“Our shared destiny as Human Beings shows us, clearly and without room for doubt, that inter-religious and inter-cultural dialogue is vital,” the official said. He added that the Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs spares no effort or opportunity to support any initiatives along these lines.

The official also stressed we should be mindful that such expressions as “dialogue among cultures and civilizations” can assume unique and transient hues and acquire changing associations according to the time’s political state of affairs. This could mean dialogue gaining support or losing support of the elite in any society, according to current associations.

Meanwhile, Assistant Undersecretary for Technical Coordination and External Relations and Hajj Affairs Dr. Mutlaq Al-Qrawi remarked that cultural dialogue continues to see ebb and flow and to show refinement and deterioration amid controversy within the political and cultural elite and among different groups.

He pointed out the ministry has a duty to guide and assist reasonable fruitful dialogue to enable balanced relations that satisfy both the demands of getting along and of the nation’s own unique priorities and interests.

“We must stress that dialogue does not mean foregoing one’s own belief systems or identity,” the official said. -KUNA

Jordan and Kuwait, Kayed described Kuwaiti investors as smart and serious, where Jordan offers many investment opportunities to Kuwaiti investors.

He also asked Kuwaiti students studying in Jordan to integrate with the Jordanian society and wherever they have any problems, a solution that satisfies all parties will be available.

Regarding the impact of the Arab Spring in Jordan, he clarified that Jordan doesn’t fear it, asserting the Hashemite regime is close to people and understands the need to fight corruption.

As for Syria Kayed rejected any international intervention and expressed his sympathy with the Syrian people due to the bloodshed.

Kuwait Capital Governor Sheikh Ali Al-Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah (left) with Mayor of Guangzhou city Chen Jianhua (right) during the signing of a cooperation agreement to boost bilateral cooperation on Thursday, April 26, 2012. (KUNA)

GUANGZHOU, China: Kuwait Capital Governor Sheikh Ali Al-Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah met here Thursday with Mayor of Guangzhou city Chen Jianhua, where signed a cooperation agreement to boost bilateral cooperation.

Sheikh Ali Al-Jaber said in a joint press conference with the Chinese official that he was glad

to be in Guangzhou and honored to be invited to the city. He stressed that Kuwait city was keen on boosting relations with Guangzhou on all possible levels. On his part, Mayor Chen welcomed the visiting Kuwaiti delegation, affirming that the agreement would help boost cooperation between the two states. -KUNA

Green Building Forum to open on May 23 KUWAIT: The First Kuwait Green Building Forum, being organized by Promedia Co. under auspices of Minister of Public Works and Minister of State for Planning and Development Affairs Dr. Fadhel Safar, will kick-start on May 23.

The two-day event with an eight-topic agenda with gather senior experts in green building from around the globe, chief organizer Jamal Omran told KUNA on Wednesday.

“The gathering aims to spread awareness about the crucial importance of echo-friendly energy-saving designs,” he noted.

“It will focus on all aspects of green design, construction, and maintenance leading to highperformance buildings, and will examine best practices and project delivery models that result in more e efficient methods of designing sustainability into any project,” he said. -KUNA

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ALWATAN DAILY

regional NEWS IN BRIEF Jordan’s prime minister Khasawneh resigns AMMAN: Jordan’s Prime Minister Awn Khasawneh resigned on Thursday after barely six months in office, state media said, following growing criticism of a draft election law his government was preparing. Khasawneh, 62, was asked to form a government last October by King Abdullah after protests calling for faster political reforms in the kingdom.But his proposed election law drew criticism, including from tribal parliamentarians and the powerful intelligence services, who felt it favored Islamist politicians.

A minister who declined to be named said Khasawneh took the unusual step of submitting his resignation while outside the country in response to a decision to extend a parliamentary session in which he was likely to face further criticism.”It was a surprise move. The prime minister was unhappy about the decision to extend parliament,” the minister said. -Reuters

Baghdad blasts kill 5, wound 27: Sources BAGHDAD: A roadside bomb and a car bomb exploded in the Iraqi capital Baghdad on Thursday, killing 5 civilians and wounding 27 people, police and hospital sources said. The roadside blast happened in the Sadr city area and targeted an Iraqi army checkpoint. The car bomb exploded in the Hurriya district and appeared to be aimed at a passing police patrol. Six members of the security forces were among the wounded, police sources said. Last week at least 36 people were killed and almost 150 wounded by more than 20 bombings that were claimed by Al-Qaeda’s affiliate in the country. Heightened tension between Shiites, Sunnis and Kurds in the coalition government since US troops withdrew in December has raised fears of a return to sectarian violence of the kind that pushed Iraq to the brink of civil war a few years ago. -Reuters

Six PKK militants killed in eastern Turkey clashes DIYARBAKIR, Turkey: Six Kurdish militants were killed during clashes in eastern Turkey on Thursday, the local governor’s office said, adding to a recent upsurge in conflict between the Turkish armed forces and separatist guerrillas. Two Turkish soldiers also were reported killed on Wednesday in the fighting between the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) and security forces in the Genc district of eastern Bingol province, according to a PKK website.The Bingol governor’s office said in a statement that one militant was captured alive. Three Turkish soldiers and three PKK militants were killed in clashes on Tuesday. The arrival of milder spring weather typically fuels conflict in the region. -Reuters

Egypt announces list of presidential candidates

CAIRO: Egypt’s electoral committee announced on Thursday the list of 13 candidates for next month’s first post-uprising presidential poll after a tumultuous run-up that saw three disqualified. Ahmed Shafiq, the premier appointed by president Hosni Mubarak just before his overthrow last year, was included after the committee reversed on Wednesday an early decision to exclude him. The candidates include front runners Amr Mussa, a former foreign minister and Arab League chief, and the powerful Muslim Brotherhood’s Mohammed Morsi, who filled in for the group’s disqualified first pick, Khairat Al-Shater.

Campaigning for the May 23-24 election begins on April 30, committee head Faruq Sultan told a press conference.

The vote, which the ruling military has promised will be free, should mark the country’s first fair presidential elections after three decades of Hosni Mubarak’s autocratic rule. The military has pledged to hand power to the winner by the end of June. The contest is narrowing down to a choice between secularists linked to the old guard - such as Mussa and Shafiq - and Islamists, who hope to repeat their success in parliamentary elections after Mubarak’s ouster. Earlier this month, the committee excluded two heavy-weight candidates, the Muslim Brotherhood’s Shater, and Omar Suleiman, a former spy chief who also served as Mubarak’s vice president in his regime’s last days.Committee official Hatem Bagato told the press conferenceAlShater was excluded because of a military court conviction, and Suleiman because he did not gather the required endorsements from voters in every provinces.

Suleiman’s bid provoked outrage from the Islamists and liberal and leftwing groups that spearheaded the uprising, prompting parliament to pass a law barring senior former regime officials from the poll. The election committee excluded Shafiq after the military ratified the law, but reversed its decision after Shafiq appealed.

It also excluded popular hard-line Islamist Hazem Abu Ismail, because his mother was a dual US-Egyptian citizen. The law requires that both of the candidate’s parents be only Egyptian.

Final candidates include Hamdeen Sabahi, a leftwing pan-Arabist, and Abdel Moneim Abul Fotouh, a moderate Islamist who was expelled from the Muslim Brotherhood because he nominated himself when the movement had decided not to contest the election. -AFP

friDAY, april 27, 2012

Syria opposition urges UN meet over Hama ‘crimes’ DAMASCUS: Syria’s main opposition group on Thursday called for an emergency UN Security Council meeting as it accused regime forces of having killed more than 100 people in the central city of Hama.

The appeal came as Russia accused rebels of terror attacks and France raised the prospect of military action to halt violence in Syria, where President Bashar Al-Assad’s forces have waged a bloody year-long crackdown on dissent.

“We are calling for an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council so that it can issue a resolution to protect civilians in Syria,” the Syrian National Council said in a statement.

“Hama in recent days, and following a visit

by UN observers, witnessed a series of crimes... that left more than 100 people dead and hundreds wounded because of heavy shelling.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group said regime shelling of a working-class district of Hama killed at least 12 people on Wednesday, but activists on the ground put the death toll as high as 68, including 16 children.

State news agency SANA said at least 16 people were killed, including women and children, when a bomb that “terrorists” were setting up went off prematurely inside a house in the city.

At least 31 people were reportedly killed during shelling of a different neighborhood on Monday.

Also, according to the Syrian League for Human Rights, regime forces “summarily executed” nine activists on Monday, a day after they had met UN observers overseeing a fragile ceasefire that went into effect April 12.

In what it called a sign of Al-Qaeda involvement in the revolt, Russia on Thursday accused Syrian rebels of waging a terror campaign designed to kill as many civilians.

A handout image released by the Syrian opposition Shaam News Network late April 25, 2012, shows an anti regime demonstration in the border town of Deraa. (AFP)

“Opposition groups have essentially reverted to waging wide-scale terror in the region,” said Russian foreign ministry spokesman Alexander Lukashevich.

Attacks aimed at “killing as many peaceful civilians as possible and destroying civilian infrastructure remind one of what is happening in Iraq, Jordan and other places where Al-Qaeda and its groups operate,” he said.

Meanwhile, reports out of Lebanon said Islamist militant Abdel Ghani Jawhar, one of the country’s most wanted men, was killed in Syria

fighting alongside rebels against the army.

Jawhar, a leader of Fatah al-Islam, an alQaeda-inspired group, was wanted by Lebanese authorities for the 2007 killing of 14 Lebanese soldiers in the northern port city of Tripoli.

The truce in Syria brokered by UN-Arab League envoy Kofi Annan has failed to take hold with unrest and killings reported on a daily basis in various parts of the country.

At least two people were killed on Thursday, monitors said, as clashes were reported in several provinces.

Loud blasts and heavy gunfire could be heard in Harasta, a suburb of Damascus, the Observatory said, adding regime troops carried out raids between Harasta and Barzeh, a district of the capital.

French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe on Wednesday said that given the persistent violence, the UN-backed peace plan was “seriously compromised” and held out the threat of seeking military action to end the regime’s crackdown.

Annan had urged a rapid deployment of the full, 300-strong observer team agreed by the Security Council, and Juppe said they should be on the ground within a fortnight.

Without quick progress, Juppe said the international community would have “to move on to another step which we have already started raising with our partners, under Chapter Seven of the United Nations charter.”

A Chapter Seven resolution authorizes foreign powers to take measures including military options.

Juppe pointed out however that such a resolution, which was also mooted by US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton last week, was unlikely to pass, alluding to previous Security Council vetoes by Russia and China.

At the moment, there is an advance team of UN observers in the country set to number 30 by the end of the week.

On Tuesday, former UN chief Annan told Security Council that he was “concerned” about violence surging after members of the advance team visit individual cities.

The unrest began as a popular revolt but has turned into an insurgency that many fear could lead to all-out civil war. More than 9,000 people have died since the revolt broke out in March 2011, according to the United Nations.

-AFP

Elections as Iran president grapples with economy DUBAI: Iranian parliamentary candidates began campaigning on Thursday for the second round of elections set to weaken President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as he grapples with worsening economic problems.

Candidates allied to Iran’s theocratic leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, dominated the first round of elections in early March at the expense of those supporting Ahmadinejad. With more than 50 percent of seats filled by new members, the new parliament - which will convene in late May - will undergo radical change.

The Iranian state news agency (IRNA) reported that 130 candidates, allowed by law one week to campaign, had started contesting May 4’s elections for 65 remaining.

The Iranian leadership proclaimed the election - the first since the disputed 2009

re-election of Ahmadinejad - as a national triumph against western conspiracies to weaken the Iranian theocratic system. Analysts say the final shape of the new parliament will weaken Ahmadinejad but the president may still be able to draw on the support of 70 independent candidates.

Unsubstantiated reports in the Iranian media suggest some candidates allied to the president had registered as independents to avoid being barred from running by the Guardian Council - the powerful body that oversees elections.

In recent months the current parliament has given the president a tough time, mainly over his handling of the economy.

Last month, he was the first president in the history of the Islamic Republic to be summoned

to parliament who interrogated him over the near-stagnant, high-inflation economy and concerns over his allegiance to Khamenei.

The outgoing parliament has continued to debate the government’s proposed budget more than a month into the new Iranian year.

At issue is the second phase of Ahmadinejad’s Targeted Subsidy Reform Plan which parliamentary critics say has been illegally implemented without parliamentary approval.

Last month the government announced an increase in the monthly cash payments without warning to offset the next phase of reforms the goal of which is to withdraw the estimated eighty billion dollars in government spending on subsidized goods and fuel.

Parliamentary speaker Ali Larijani wrote to Khamenei, describing the increased payments

as “legally flawed” and adding that any amendments “must conform to the law”.

While applauded by the International Monetary Fund, critics have accused Ahmadinejad of causing rampant inflation and using Iran’s petro-dollars solely for political gain.

Earlier this month he visited the disputed island of Abu Musa which sparked a fierce exchange with the United Arab Emirates but widespread support from all Iranian political factions.

Both countries claim Abu Musa and two other small islands, located near key shipping lanes in the Strait of Hormuz at the mouth of the Gulf. Iran took control of the islands in 1971, shortly before the Gulf emirates gained full independence from Britain and formed the UAE. -Reuters

Sudan soldier says beaten in detention, Juba denies

Iraqi Shiite cleric Moqtada Al-Sadr (left) shakes hands with Iraqi Kurdish leader Massud Barzani upon Al-Sadr’s arrival at Arbil airport for a visit to Iraq’s autonomous Kurdistan region, in what his spokesman said was a bid to resolve a crisis between the region and Baghdad, on April 26, 2012. (AFP)

Peres dismisses Holocaust, Iran comparison JERUSALEM: President Shimon Peres on Thursday distanced himself from the Israeli premier’s comparison between the Holocaust and the threat posed

by Iran’s nuclear program.

“It’s not the same thing,” Peres told the Ynet website of Yediot Aharonot newspaper in an interview for Israel’s independence day.

“Holocaust is one thing and Iran is another. The comparison is out of place. But I’m not a literary critic and the prime minister expressed his opinion on the matter,” he said.

In a speech last week to mark the Nazi Holocaust, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said: “People who refuse to see the Iranian threat have learned nothing from the Shoah (Holocaust).

“They are afraid to speak the truth, which is today, as it was then, that there are people who want to annihilate millions of Jews,” the hawkish prime minister said.

“The truth is that an Iran in possession of nuclear arms is an existential threat to the State of Israel.”

Israel, the United States and many other coun-

tries suspect Iran of using its civilian nuclear program to mask an arms drive, something Tehran vehemently denies. There has been growing concern the Jewish state might carry out military strikes on Iran in a bid to destroy, or at least severely disable, the nuclear program.

But Peres voiced confidence the sanctions imposed on Iran by the international community would prove an effective deterrent.

“Every person can judge this for himself. I believe we can handle the Iranian threat. The United States leading and Europe joining (them) - it’s not just lip service,” he said.

“They, like us, cannot afford to have a nuclear Iran and they want to stop it. As for Hitler, the world was asleep then. This couldn’t happen today, the world has woken up,” he said.

“Israel can defend itself but we are not alone, and that’s a plus, not a minus. I believe what (US President Barack) Obama says. There is no need for saberrattling, but there is a need to impose sanctions and political pressure.” -AFP

KHARTOUM: A Sudanese soldier released by South Sudan said on Thursday he and 12 other comrades had been beaten and insulted during their detention in the South, in the latest sign of tensions between the neighbors.

South Sudan strongly denied any mistreatment of 13 Sudanese soldiers it had released on Wednesday after capturing them during fighting at the disputed Heglig oilfield two weeks ago.

“This is not true. They were not beaten. The government told them to say they were beaten,” South Sudan’s Information Minister Barnaba Marial Benjamin said, adding that Sudan was still holding at least seven South Sudanese prisoners.

South Sudan had handed over the prisoners to Egyptian officials who flew them to Cairo and from there to Khartoum where they arrived early on Thursday.

Diplomats had hoped the release would defuse tensions between the African neighbors whose armies have been embroiled in three weeks of border fighting, and bring both sides back to the negotiating table.

“We were subject to all kinds of insults and beatings during our stay there,” Lieutenant Khalid Hassan Ahmed, a doctor in the Sudanese army, told reporters at Khartoum airport.

He said South Sudanese soldiers and Darfur rebels fighting at their side had captured them at Heglig hospital two weeks ago and then brought them via another place to Bentiu, a southern oil town, some 80 km (50 miles) from the disputed border.

The prisoners were put in a stuffy and cramped container and given only one meal a deal and little water, said Khalid who said he also spoke on behalf of the other released soldiers.

“We moved from there to Juba by air. We were tied inside the airplane.

When we arrived at Juba airport one of the SPLA (South Sudanese army) members untied the ropes so that when we appeared before the media, it would like we had been treated well and according to international conventions regarding the treatment of the POWs,” he said.

“This is just untrue,” he said.

Khalid showed no visible signs of mistreatment. The International Committee of the Red Cross said it had provided the Sudanese during their detention with shoes, mats, soap and mosquito nets and conveyed messages to their families. Khalid said fighters of the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), a Darfur rebel group which Sudan accuses of fighting with the SPLA, had been responsible for most of the beatings and insults the prisoners were subjected to immediately after their detention.

Juba denies it supports JEM or other rebels groups which plan to overthrow the Khartoum government.

Egypt’s ambassador to Sudan, Abdul Ghafar Aldeeb, said Khartoum should now free all its South Sudanese prisoners. “I urge the release,” he said.

Army spokesman Al-Sawarmi Khalid said Sudan held a number of southern prisoners whose treatment was in accord with international law. He did not say how many were held and whether or when they would be released.

South Sudan announced on Friday its withdrawal from Heglig, bowing to pressure from the UN Security Council worried the fighting might lead to an all-out war. Juba has accused Khartoum of having bombed southern territory several times since then. -Reuters

ALWATAN DAILY

WORLD

fridAY, april 27, 2012

Pakistan PM convicted of contempt, receives no jail time Opposition demands Gilani’s resignation

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Supreme Court on Thursday found Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani guilty of contempt of court for refusing to reopen corruption cases against the president, but gave him only a symbolic sentence of a few minutes’ detention in the courtroom.

It was unclear if the token sentence would defuse political uncertainty in Pakistan, where the president and prime minister have jousted with the military and judiciary. Despite the light sentence, Gilani could still come under pressure to quit.

“For reasons to be recorded later, the prime minister is found guilty of contempt for willfully flouting the direction of the Supreme Court,” said Justice Nasir-ul-Mulk.

Gilani is the first serving prime minister in Pakistan’s history to be convicted by a court, but his sentence - detention lasting just a few minutes until the session was adjourned - was symbolic. He could have faced up to six months in jail and the loss of office.

“I think what they’ve done is taken it from the legal arena and chucked it into the political arena,” said Cyril Almeida, a prominent columnist for the Dawn daily newspaper.

He said opposition members of parliament now might move to expel Gilani from office.

“There will be massive pressure from the opposition, the media, from civil society, saying ‘He’s been convicted for flouting the letter of the law and he should go home,’” Almeida said. “There will be a lot of pressure for him

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani waves after arriving at the Supreme Court in Islamabad. (Reuters)

to resign.” A throng of supporters surrounded Gilani as he walked into the court in Islamabad, showering him with rose petals. Security was tight, with about 1,000 police officers standing by in riot gear and helicopters circling the Supreme Court building.

Gilani’s lawyers had said before the verdict that he would not automatically be dis-

qualified from office if convicted, and at any rate he would be able to appeal against the verdict.

The case stems from what many observers say is a political battle between the government and the military, which has held the whip hand in Pakistan’s political arena for most of the country’s 64 years of independence. Many say

NEWS IN BRIEF UN finds cluster bombs in Sri Lanka

the army is using the court to keep the government on the back foot.

Thousands of corruption cases were thrown out in 2007 by an amnesty law passed under former military president Pervez Musharraf, which paved the way for a return to civilian rule. Two years later, the Supreme Court ruled that agreement illegal and ordered cases involving Swiss banks against President Asif Ali Zardari re-opened.

Gilani and his government have refused to obey the court’s order to write to Swiss authorities asking them to re-open money laundering cases against Zardari. The government argues that Zardari has immunity as the head of state.

“This is a historic day.The court has declared a lawmaker a lawbreaker. This is weakening democracy in Pakistan,” said Firdous Ashiq Awan, former information minister.

On the other hand, Pakistani opposition parties Thursday demanded that Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani resign after he was convicted of contempt of court over corruption allegations against the president.

Nawaz Sharif, the leader of the main Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) party who has twice served as prime minister, said Gilani should quit and call fresh elections.

“Prime Minister should immediately resign.

He should step down without causing further crisis,” Sharif said live on the private television station Geo. “The court verdict is based on truth and reality. It must have punished the prime minister with a heavy heart, but the prime minister himself is to be blamed.

“The Prime Minister himself invited this situation,” he added. -Reuters

Myanmar parliament stand-off a ‘technical matter’, says Suu Kyi YANGON: Myanmar’s pro-democracy leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, said on Thursday that her party’s refusal to take up newly won seats in parliament was a “technical matter” that could be resolved soon, responding to mounting criticism of her stance on the issue.

Her National League for Democracy (NLD) says it won’t attend parliament unless the wording of the swearing-in oath is changed - the first sign of major friction with the ruling, armybacked party since the NLD swept historic byelections on April 1.

In her most detailed explanation of the NLD’s thinking on the issue so far, Suu Kyi told reporters in Yangon on Thursday that the party was seeking to iron out “inconsistency” between the oath and the country’s election laws. “This is why I say it is a technical matter ... You can’t say one thing in one place and another thing in another place. There has to be consistency,” the Nobel Peace Laureate said during a news conference with Italian Foreign Minister Giulio Terzi in the garden of her lakeside home.

“You mustn’t forget that this is one of the major issues that prevented us from entering the 2010 elections.” The NLD is refusing to swear to “safeguard” the 2008 army-created constitution, which guarantees the military a substantial presence in parliament and which

Italian Minister for Foreign Affairs Giulio Terzi (left) talks to reporters after meeting with Myanmar pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi at Suu Kyi’s home in Yangon April 26.

(Reuters)

Suu Kyi has vowed to amend. It wants the word in the oath changed to “respect.”

Suu Kyi’s party only agreed to rejoin the

Ukraine marks 26th anniversary of Chernobyl KIEV: Ukraine’s president vowed Thursday that his country is committed to building a new, safer shelter over the damaged Chernobyl reactor as Ukrainians, Belarusians and Russians marked the 26th anniversary of the world’s worst nuclear disaster.

President Viktor Yanukovych was to take part in a ceremony inaugurating the initial assembly of a gigantic steel-arch to cover the remnants of the exploded reactor. The arch - weighing 20,000 tons and big enough to house New York’s Statue of Liberty - is due to be completed in 2015, when the delicate and dangerous job of dismantling the reactor and cleaning vast amounts of radioactive waste can begin.

The April 26, 1986, explosion spewed a cloud of radiation over much of the northern hemisphere, forcing hundreds of thousands of people from their homes in heavily hit areas of Ukraine, Belarus and western Russia. The Soviet government initially tried to hush up the explosion and resisted immediately evacuating nearby residents. It also failed to tell the public what happened or instruct people and cleanup workers how to protect against radiation, which significantly increased the health damage from the disaster.

A shelter called the “sarcophagus” was hastily erected over the damaged reactor, but it has been crumbling and leaking radiation and recent years and a new confinement is necessary. Yanukovych said in a speech to the nation Thursday that 2 million people, including cleanup workers and children, have been hurt by the tragedy and it was the state’s obligation to protect and treat them.

“Chernobyl still evokes pain and is remembered today,” Yanukovych said.

“That is why we continue to take care

of the safety of the shelter over the destroyed fourth reactor.” But the reassurances fell flat with some Chernobyl cleanup workers and victims, with about 2,000 protesters staging an angry rally outside parliament, demanding an increase in compensations and pensions.

Yanukovych also thanked international donors for pledging ¤740 million (980 million US dollars) for building the new shelter and a spent nuclear fuel facility.

“In this undertaking Ukraine feels the friendly shoulder of the majority of countries in the world,” Yanukovych said in a statement. Vince Novak, Director of the Nuclear Safety Department with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, which manages and cofunds the project praised Ukraine’s commitment to the project.

“It is definitely important for the bank and for the donors to know that there is a strong commitment in Ukraine to do everything necessary to ensure that the Chernobyl project progresses well,” Novak told the Associated Press. “We have no room and margins for delay, for errors and for poor performance. Novak said some 1,000 workers are now beginning to piece together the giant arch from special French-made steel on an assembly site some 200 meters (yards) away from the exploded reactor. After it is assembled in the coming months, workers will begin to lift it in order to slide it over the reactor and the contours of the new confinement should become visible by the year’s end.

Preparatory work has been under way since 2008 and included cleaning up the assembly site, replacing contaminated soil with new earth and then putting it in concrete, which now enables employees to work without special radiation protection. -AP

electoral process last year after similar wording was removed from party registration laws. It boycotted 2010 elections that were widely crit-

icized as rigged in favor of the military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), which still dominates parliament.

The stalemate has unsettled party faithful who are eager for the NLD to help tackle Myanmar’s huge development problems, while perplexing analysts who say the gambit risks being seen as pedantic and confrontational.

Suu Kyi said the NLD did not want to “expand” the problem into a political issue and that she was still committed to working closely with President Thein Sein as the country rapidly opens up to the world after decades of isolation. Terzi was on a two-day visit to Myanmar accompanied by a business delegation following the European Union’s move this week to suspend most of its economic sanctions against Myanmar.

“We hope that the present problem will be smoothed over without too much difficulty before too long,” Suu Kyi said.

The USDP parliamentary leader this week rejected any change to the oath, but other parties are seeking to build support for a compromise proposal, party representatives told Reuters in the administrative capital Naypyitaw this week. Aye Maung, the leader of the ethnic Rakhine Nationalities Development Party, said he was trying to negotiate with the NLD and USDP to find a solution. -Reuters

North Korea’s new missiles are fakes, say analysts TOKYO: Analysts who have studied photos of a half-dozen ominous new North Korean missiles showcased recently at a lavish military parade say they were fakes, and not very convincing ones, casting further doubt on the country’s claims of military prowess.

Since its recent rocket launch failure, Pyongyang’s top military leaders have made several boastful statements about its weapons capabilities. On Wednesday, Vice Marshal Ri Yong Ho claimed his country is capable of defeating the United States “at a single blow.” And on Monday, North Korea promised “special actions” that would reduce Seoul’s government to ashes within minutes.

But the weapons displayed April 15 appear to be a mishmash of liquid-fuel and solid-fuel components that could never fly together. Undulating casings on the missiles suggest the metal is too thin to withstand flight. Each missile was slightly different from the others, even though all were supposedly the same make. They don’t even fit the launchers they were carried on.

“There is no doubt that these missiles were mock-ups,” Markus Schiller and Robert Schmucker, of Germany’s Schmucker Technologie, wrote in a paper posted recently on the website Armscontrolwonk.com that listed those discrepancies. “It remains unknown if they were designed this way to confuse foreign analysts, or if the designers simply did some sloppy work.”

The missiles, called KN-08s, were loaded onto the largest mobile launch vehicles North Korea has ever unveiled.

Pyongyang gave them special prominence by presenting them at the end of the parade, which capped weeks of celebrations marking the 100th anniversary of the country’s founding father, Kim Il Sung.

The unveiling created an international

stir. The missiles appeared to be new, and designed for long-range attacks.

That’s a big concern because, along with developing nuclear weapons, North Korea has long been suspected of trying to field an intercontinental ballistic missile, or ICBM, capable of reaching the United States.Washington contends that North Korea’s failed April 13 rocket launch was an attempt to test missile technology rather than the scientific mission Pyongyang claims.

But after pouring over close-up photos of the missiles, Schiller and Schmucker, whose company has advised NATO on missile issues, argue the mock-ups indicate North Korea is a long way from having a credible ICBM. “There is still no evidence that North Korea actually has a functional ICBM,” they concluded, adding that the display was a “dog and pony show” and suggesting North Korea may not be making serious progress toward its nuclear-tipped ICBM dreams.

North Korea has a particularly bad track record with ICBM-style rockets. Its four launches since 1998 - three of which it claimed carried satellites - have all ended in failure.

Though North Korea frequently overstates its military capabilities, the missiles displayed this month might foreshadow weapons it is still working on.

DavidWright, a physicist with the Union of Concerned Scientists who has written extensively about North Korea’s missile program, said he believes the KN-08s could be “somewhat clumsy representations of a missile that is being developed.”

Wright noted that the first signs the outside world got of North Korea’s long-range Taepodong-2 missile - upon which the recent failed rocket was based - was from mock-ups seen in 1994, 12 years before it was actually tested on the launch pad. -AP

5

NEW DELHI: A report from a UN mine removal expert says unexploded cluster munitions have been found in northern Sri Lanka, appearing to confirm, for the first time, that they were used in that country’s long civil war. The revelation is likely to increase calls for an international investigation into possible war crimes stemming from the bloody final months of fighting in the quarter-century civil war that ended in May 2009. The government has repeatedly denied using cluster munitions during the final months of fighting.

Cluster munitions are packed with small “bomblets” that scatter indiscriminately and often harm civilians. Those that fail to detonate often kill civilians long after fighting ends. -AP

Four Afghan police dead, 16 seized in Taliban attack KABUL: Dozens ofTaliban rebels stormed police posts in the remote northeastern Afghan province of Badakhshan overnight, killing four officers and capturing at least 16 others, according to an official.

Two policemen were injured and three others were missing after an intense battle in the mountainous province’s Wardaj district, on a lawless pass to neighboring Pakistan, deputy provincial governor, Shamsul Rahman Shams said. “A big number of the Taliban carried out the attacks. The police were overpowered,” he told AFP from the provincial capital town of Faizabad. -AFP

Suspended MPs block parliament entrance NEW DELHI: The eight Congress MPs suspended from the Lok Sabha by their party for disrupting the House over the Telangana issue blocked the main entrance of parliament for nearly half an hour Thursday. Ponnam Prabhakar, Madhu Yaskhi Goud, M. Jagannath, K.R.G. Reddy, G. Viveknanda, Balram Naik, Sukender Reddy Gutha and S. Rajaiah sat on the steps of the Parliament House just before the day’s sitting began at 11 a.m. Other MPs were thus forced to use other gates to enter the building. The MPs held placards which read “Honour Your commitment, Give separate Telangana state” and “Fulfill your commitment, Honor Telangana sentiment”, and raised slogans supporting their demands. -AFP

Japan’s ‘Shadow Shogun’ not guilty of money scandal TOKYO: One of the most powerful men in Japanese politics was found not guilty of a major funding scandal, paving the way for a possible showdown with the ruling party leadership. Ichiro Ozawa, 69, once dubbed the “Shadow Shogun”, was on Thursday cleared by the Tokyo District Court of allegations he conspired with aides to hide 400 million yen (4.9 million US dollars) he lent to his political funding body in 2004 for a land deal. His aides had said the mistake was purely technical and their boss - a former Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) leader who engineered the party’s 2009 election victory - had not been aware of it. -AFP

Dutch ‘burqa ban’ may go after government falls

AMSTERDAM: With the collapse of the Dutch center-right government, the Netherlands may now drop some of its most eye-popping proposals aimed at Muslims and other immigrants and could soften its strong anti-immigration rhetoric.

A ban on Muslim face veils, such as the Arabic-style niqabs that leave the eyes uncovered and Afghan-style burqas that cover the face with a cloth grid, is less likely to go ahead after the government collapsed at the weekend.

The minority Liberal-Christian Democrat coalition’s alliance with Geert Wilders’ Freedom Party (PVV) fell apart when they could not reach agreement on crucial budget cuts. An election has been called for Sept. 12.

In return for Wilders’ support in parliament, the government had proposed a number of laws, including bans on Muslim face veils and on dual nationality. -Reuters

6

ALWATAN DAILY

OPINION

friDAY, april 27, 2012

A coup d’état against the Constitution in progress Nabeel Al-Fadhl Staff Writer

T

here is a school commonly known to many as the National Assembly. This school starts the day off at nine in the morning.The idea that it should start at this time is under direct orders from the despicable school principal.

As for the end of the school day, unfortunately there is no specific time for it, and usually it relies on the subject matter and whether it is worth staying or to just simply bunk off the classes.

But prior to the nine o’clock start, a registration book is made available for those who wish to discuss topics listed in the National Assembly’s agenda. This step should be done about an hour earlier, prior to the commencement of the day, which means precisely at eight.

If you happen to be one of the brave people, and decided to discuss a particular topic on the agenda, then you need to hit the sack early so that you wake up fresh at 6:30 in the morning, so that by the time it is a little bit past seven o’clock you are ready for the day. Well, not really because even though you are early, there are many people who are also keen to discuss topics on the same day, which means you will end up in the queue just to register your name.

The problem here is that the despicable principal has managed to surround himself with his own cronies, who are eloquently known as the majority MPs. Most of these majority MPs are habitually late and never on time. So, the despicable principal bends the rules and orders that the school should start off half an hour later. This has been a recurring

I wonder if the ultimate aim of such remarks is not introducing changes to the Constitution but in fact to carry out a coup d’état against the Constitution. practice thus far for 2012’s academic year.

Since this is the order of the day, and since there will be no changes with this pugnacious system, then surely it would be most fitting to change the timing of the school days and make them start at 10:30 instead, so at least the bigger chunk of the majority of MPs would be present, and the practice of calling off the class would stop. After all, to see the classroom fully empty with no students to be seen would make the image of the school extremely shameful!

Moving on to another topic, which this time is related to the strange wishes of MP Waleed Al-Tabatabaei, who apparently “foretold” that the current Prime Minister His Highness Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah would be the last premier from the Al-Sabah family as the future ones would be elected by the populace.

On our part, I would like to say not in your dreams. This is one of the rights of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah. This right is protected by the Constitution. No MP, Al-Tabatabaei or otherwise, would be able to dictate such wishes. As for the allegations made by some recently that the prime minister should have the approval

Syrian authorities kill citizens who meet monitors

BU QUTADA & BU NABIL

So, the Syrian authorities endorse the penalty of capital punishment against any innocent citizens who talk to monitors.

Ahmad Mohammad Al-Fahad

W

e really thank His Highness the Amir of Kuwait Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah who responded to the call of Meshari Rashed Al-Afasi for conducting an urgent maintenance to the Grand Mosque, wherein His Highness the Amir ordered for maintenance to be conducted, which he will pay the cost of as well. **** Following the article that I had published yesterday about the person who penetrated the website of Al-Arabiya Channel and the cooperation amongst Palestinians and the Iraqi forces during the Iraq invasion, I have received a message from an American citizen who comes from a Palestinian origin. The message says that Kuwait oppressed the Palestinian expatriates who lived in Kuwait, adding that Kuwaitis don’t care about the fate of the Arab and Muslim nation. He added that the members of other Arab communities that cooperated with the Iraqi forces is much larger than the number of Palestinians who cooperated with the Iraqi forces. The man said that he will feel sorry for Kuwait when the Shiites of Iraq, Lebanon and Iran attack them later on!! The man said that he hopes Kuwait will enjoy peace despite his feeling that the Kuwaiti people did not deal well with him and that they did not respect him as well.

The man said that he is now in the United States and nobody can insult him even the governor of the State that he lives in, and said he loves Kuwait because he is loyal to the countries that he lived in.

I believe that such a message doesn’t even deserve a reply, but his silly sentences urged me to write one. There are a lot of people who may believe his views and who might share the same thoughts he does, therefore some people might assume that Kuwait insulted the Pales-

Tourism in Kurdistan Dr. Esam Abdulatif Al-Fulaij

T

he visit of Sheikh Nasser Sabah Al-Ahmad, the Minister of Amiri Diwan Affairs, to Kurdistan to hand a message from His Highness the Amir of Kuwait Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah to the Iraqi President is a positives step towards strengthening the bilateral ties between the two countries, especially when the Kurds did not play any negative role during the invasion of Kuwait in the nineties of the last century, on the contrary they rejected such an invasion.

Kurdistan is a beautiful region, a very fitting tourism location. Many friends of mine told me about their great trips to that region since the 50s and 60s of the last century. It was

tinian community, despite the fact that Kuwaiti governments in the past used to deduct a part of the salary of Kuwaiti employees to support the Palestinian uprising.

The governments at that time handed all deducted sums to the Palestinian Liberation Organization and the former Palestinian President Yasser Arafat. I think the writer of the message still remembers the great help of Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah who assisted Arafat in his escape from Jordan when some problems occurred amongst the Jordanians and Palestinians. At that time Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah headed to Jordan and asked Arafat to wear Kuwaiti clothing which would allow him to leave Jordan with the Kuwaiti delegation that was accompanying Al-Abdullah.

I also want to remind the sender of the message who feels proud of the American citizenship that the Kuwaiti security individuals did not dare to talk to the individuals of Liberation Organization in Hawalli because Kuwait was supporting the organization!! We also admit that we are only human, and that it is within humanity’s capacity to do right, but we are also capable of making mistakes sometimes. The reaction against those who cooperated with the Iraqi forces might be a bit exaggerated, but said reaction to the sight of festivities in the name of invading forces, would understandably be of a less than sympathetic nature!! **** The Syrian authorities put a number of citizens to death because they met the international monitors and talked to them about the critical Syrian situation!! So, the Syrian authorities endorse the penalty of capital punishment against any innocent citizens who talk to monitors!! The authorities want to pursue their bizarre policy which seems to advocate the killing of citizens who speak to the monitors and the deaths of those who stay at home and perish because of shelling!!

of the public prior to any appointment to take place, this is totally out of order as in our own constitution there is no such prerequisite.

However, we are pleased to inform MP Al-Tabatabaei that the majority of the people do prefer, if not insist, that the people who run and manage their business should be from the House of Al-Sabah. Even if such preference would be at the cost of getting rid of MP Al-Tabatabaei and people like him. I may add that they also prefer to see MP Waleed the last Al-Tabatabaei to run for Parliament.

Similarly and in a related issue, MP Abdulrahman AlAnjari said that, to quote, “we are in the year 2012 and therefore we demand a constitutional emirate with a common prime minister.”

It is very bizarre that MP Al-Anjari should make such a statement, furthermore focusing on the year 2012. One wonders what would happen if the year is 2015 because it remains a mystery why he is desperately trying to link the year with the change.

As far as I know there is no single article in the Constitution which says that the year 2012 is the year when the

country and governing system should change.

The idea that some changes should be introduced is not particular to MP Al-Anjari. MP Jamaan Al-Harbash and MP Faisal Al-Mislem made similar demands on Wednesday.

They are talking about amendments in the constitution related to giving the right to parliament to reject or endorse prime ministers.

In fact, MP Al-Mislem made it very clear when he announced that “matters will not get any better unless drastic amendments are introduced into the constitution.”

It is confusing for us because we really thought the only problem was the former Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser AlMohammad, and that if he was removed then matters would be better for the people and the country.

But all along, it appears that these people have a different agenda from the one they had previously declared. Such demands are really new because those particular MPs have never in the past made any suggestions of this nature. But what really seems truly bizarre is the group who call themselves “Not the Constitution”. Those who claim that they defend the constitution of Kuwait and that they will stand against anyone who tries to make changes or amendments to it. This is great and wonderful, but for some unknown reasons those groups are not retaliating against the recent demands for changes.

I wonder if the ultimate aim of such remarks is not introducing changes to the Constitution but in fact to carry out a coup d’état against the Constitution. All these announcements and suggestions are probably to pave the way for something larger than what is being announced publicly.

Why are you fighting?

Are you serious???

We’re struggling to solve the development plan issues

Come here, let’s stomp on your stomach to end price hike

And this punch is to solve the traffic congestion problem

Escapiiing!

Mohmmed Thallab

mthallab@alwatan.com.kw

Kurdistan is a beautiful region, a very fitting tourism location. Many friends of mine told me about their great trips to that region since the 50s and 60s. also the gateway for all travelers who wanted to travel to Europe by use of their cars. The region enjoys breathtaking natural scenes as well as the great weather and green mountains which are similar to the mountains of Syria and Lebanon, but I know nothing about services in that region and I believe that it deserves a visit.

It is good for the Kuwaiti companies to invest there, particularly Turkey as well as other Western countries with an interest of investing in that region. Some Gulf companies have in-

This slap is in aid of building housing for the citizens

Ouch

vestments there but they are still few; however, there are direct flights from Bahrain to Kurdistan. The region also has good hotels and is secure.

The tourist companies have to coordinate with hotels in order to set up and publicize different services, in addition to arranging lodgings, flats, houses, cars and restaurants for potential tourists. **** Some MPs used to utter inappropriate

words and statements and we wonder if such MPs can change their statements to make them more positive or not?! The MPs insult each other under the ceiling of the parliament ignoring the constructive dialogue which usually leads to great results! Do the MPs believe that they would please their voters by such practices?! Is this the great Kuwaiti parliament that we feel proud of, and are these real results of the votes of the Kuwaiti citizens?!

All of us know that some MPs have run

in elections and reached the parliament just to settle scores against certain individuals, and all MPs now criticize and talk about the constitution as if they were constitutional experts!!

The minority seeks the dissolution of the current parliament and it has employed some effective media means and strong economic methods to those ends. The minority also enjoys sectarian support which the majority doesn’t, but the majority keeps silent to avoid or delay the possible dissolving of parliament.

However, we all have to exert all possible efforts to maintain national unity especially when the whole region is undergoing unstable political circumstances currently.

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views

friDAY, april 27, 2012

Does America really want a third-party candidate?

Nicholas Wapshott Reuters

I

t is a commonly heard beef. In November we face a poor choice between a president who has disappointed his base and a challenger for whom there is no enthusiasm even from his core supporters. These are the conditions in which a third-party candidate might prosper. But so far no name has emerged. There is no Ross Perot drawling, “If voters don’t have a stomach for me, they can get one of those blow-dried guys”; no John B. Anderson saying you can only balance the budget with mirrors.

That there is little enthusiasm for Obama or Romney is evident. The New York Times described the voters’ dilemma as “like trying to decide between liver and Brussels sprouts - a selection they would rather not have to make.”

This antipathy toward the two champions has been growing over the years. As party discipline in the House has increased, with fewer free spirits willing to risk the opprobrium of their party’s leadership by voting their own way, so the electorate appears to have become less partisan.

Pollsters report an increase in the number who shun party labels and define themselves as “independents.” Between 2004 and 2009, Pew reports, independents, at 36 percent, became the largest voting bloc in the country, with 35 percent Democrats and just 23 percent Republicans.

This does not necessarily mean, however, that voters are undecided. It may be that, with politics becoming increasingly vituperative and partisan, voters are reluctant to associate themselves with either side.

That might explain why, despite the rise in independents, polls still show that, when obliged to pick a president, voters opt for either Obama or Romney. The number of disenchanted and disillusioned, unaligned and undecided, apolitical and apathetic, remains over time rarely more than 10 percent. According to the Apr. 19 Quinnipiac survey, just 11 percent would either prefer to vote for someone

Republican presidential candidate, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, (right) and wife Ann wave at an election night rally in Manchester, N.H., Tuesday, April 24, 2012. (AP)

else (2 percent), or wouldn’t vote (2 percent), or hadn’t decided or had some other reason for not plumping for one or the other (7 percent). Is the failure to take sides any more pronounced this election?

Digging down a little, one in four admits to being “less enthusiastic” about voting “com-

pared to past presidential elections,” and that figure is on the uptick.

But is this antipathy enough to encourage a third-party candidate? A new organization, Americans Elect, thinks so and is making it easy for a third person to get onto the ballot by making all the arrangements in all 50 states. All

Who cares if Murdoch lobbied?

it needs is a candidate.

The group is undertaking a search for the right person to come up on the rails in November. Its aim is to blow away the polarized twoparty system and free a third-party president from the trench warfare that makes governing America impossible.

7

So far, so good. The first caucus, in which everyone who registers online can take part, takes place in May, when “delegates” start picking a candidate. It is early days, but this noble plan to transform American democracy has failed so far to capture the imagination: Of the 169 million registered voters, only 2.5 million have signed up.

The preliminary choice of candidates is disappointing: two has-beens - former Governor of Louisiana Charles Elson “Buddy” Roemer III and former Mayor of Salt Lake City Ross Carl “Rocky” Anderson - a Boston University economics professor, Laurence J. Kotlikoff, and a woman, human rights activist Michealene Cristini Risley. What, I hear you ask, no Ralph Nader, the eternal spoiler who made possible the dysfunctional 2000 election? He is sitting out the 2012 contest and is backing Rocky Anderson.

The write-in candidates are more plausible: New York Mayor Mike Bloomberg; Ron Paul, the former Libertarian Party candidate now posing as a Republican; Jon Huntsman, who proved too reasonable to survive the GOP beauty contest; and the only unabashed socialist in the Senate, Bernie Sanders of Vermont.

The problem is, there is no guaranteeing that even if the massed ranks of Americans Elect pick one of the drafted candidates, he or she would deign to stand.

However, the overriding objection to voting for a third candidate, however chosen and whoever it may be, is that such a choice tilts the election in favor of the candidate you most dislike. Tea Party insurgents who vote for Paul, because he represents their libertarian views, steal votes from Romney and allow Obama to slip by.

A progressive impatient with Obama’s centrism who opts for Sanders helps Romney win.

As Perot made Clinton president and as Nader helped George W. Sometimes it’s better to love the one you’re with.

Nicholas Wapshott is the former New York bureau chief of The Times of London.

The Persian Knot

If political judgments are being made over who can own and operate businesses, the Murdochs would be remiss if they hadn’t approached politicians for their support.

Jack Shafer Reuters

P

ummel Rupert Murdoch and his minions all you want for News Corp.’s phone-hacking of celebrities and crime victims, its computerhacking, its blagging, its bribing of police, its payments of hush money, its obstruction of justice, and its operation of what former British Prime Minister Gordon Brown once called a “criminalmedia nexus.”

But spare me the feigned outrage excited by this week’s interrogations of Murdoch and his son James Murdoch by the Leveson Inquiry into press ethics and practices. The Guardian, the Telegraph and the New York Times, among others, appear to be appalled by news that the media baron lobbied the UK government aggressively so that he could expand his holdings in the tightly regulated satellite broadcaster BSkyB from 39.1 percent to 100 percent.

The Times cites subpoenaed News Corp. emails released by Leveson to show a Murdoch lobbyist working “hand-in-glove” with the office of a government regulator. Isn’t climbing into the skins of regulators the very definition of lobbying? That’s how I understand it. Hate Murdoch all you want, but if you’re invested in highly regulated businesses like BSkyB and you need government approval to invest deeper in the regulated business, then working “hand-in-glove” with the regulators is exactly what the situation calls for. Should the Murdochs have ignored the regulators as they attempted to increase their holdings in BSkyB? Of course not.

Likewise, I fail to detect the scandal in James Murdoch meeting repeatedly with David Cameron while Cameron was still the leader of the opposition, as James confessed in Tuesday’s Leveson grilling (pdf), or of James’s admission of having raised the topic of News Corp.’s bid for BSkyB in a “tiny, side conversation” with Cameron at a social event in December 2010.

If political judgments are being made over who can own and operate businesses, the Murdochs would be remiss if they hadn’t approached politicians for their support. For example, today’s Wall Street Journal reports that NetJets, the private-jet company owned by Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway has spent in excess of $1 million over the last three years to lobby Congress to reduce user fees charged to his wealthy customers. This is the same Warren Buffett behind the so-called Buffett Rule to soak the rich.

If the issue is that Rupert Murdoch is not a fit owner of BSkyB under the law because he buys and sells politicians, that his newspapers contrive investigations to punish politicians who stand in the way of his conquests and that his enterprises corrupt police forces, then let’s have that debate.

But that’s not the accusation against Murdoch at the Leveson Inquiry this particular news cycle.

Remember, the UK media establishment has long felt threatened by Murdoch’s daring ways in the marketplace and has routinely urged regula-

tors to save them from his predations. In October 2010, executives from the Daily Telegraph, the Daily Mail, the Guardian, the Daily Mirror, the BBC, Channel 4 and the BT Group signed a letter to government regulators protesting Murdoch’s proposed BSkyB takeover. The Financial Times, another Murdoch competitor, editorialized against the acquisition because Murdoch might use his newly expanded BSkyB power to subsidize and popularize his UK newspapers, including his money-losing Times and Sunday Times. Oh, and they made obligatory noises about how Murdoch’s purchase would damage democracy.

“We believe that the proposed takeover could have serious and far-reaching consequences for media plurality,” the 2010 letter from the executives lamented. As I observed at the time, this fretting about “media plurality” was a little rich coming from a consortium of bellyachers that included the BBC, a global enterprise that was then reaping $7.7 billion annually in revenues compared with BSkyB’s $9.4 billion. The BBC benefits from an arrangement in which all households that watch or record TV must purchase a compulsory $235 “license” (go ahead and call it a tax if you wish, because you’ll be fined up to $1,600 if you don’t pay) that funds the BBC. It takes some gall for the BBC, which automatically collects money from TV households, to protest what might happen if Murdoch gains greater control over a competing business that people voluntarily pay for.

My previously mentioned 2010 piece reviewed the historical heavy-handedness of UK media regulators. In 1920, when only three radio stations aired programming in the UK, the government declined applications for new licenses, claiming that “the ether is already full.” As Eli M. Noam reported in his 1991 book, Broadcasting in Europe, UK newspaper publishers encouraged the development of the “public” BBC so that no new commercial enterprise could take root, as happened in the United States, and attack their advertising base. UK regulators suppressed commercial TV and radio for decades and protected the BBC from the onslaught of cable TV. Parliament even regulated the VCR. The campaign against Murdoch’s total ownership of BSkyB is only more of the same. UK protectionism and the state sanctioning of the BBC make Rupert Murdoch, a villain many times over in other arenas, an unlikely hero. Reading the latest Leveson transcripts, I have yet to find evidence of him seeking direct favors from the government (subsidies, bailouts, etc.), although I am made suspicious by his insistence today that, “I have never asked a prime minister for anything.”

As best as I can judge, he seems to be seeking the liberty to invest his billions the way he sees fit to compete against the established interests. Don’t damn Murdoch for learning the rules of the regulatory game and then playing them as aggressively as he can.

Jack Shafer is a Reuters columnist covering the press and politics.

FILE - In this April 14, 2012 photo, Iran’s Chief Nuclear Negotiator Saeed Jalili speaks to the media after day-long talks with six world powers in Istanbul, Turkey. (AP)

The fall of President Bashar Al-Assad’s regime would amount to a strategic debacle for Iran , which would then be faced by a united front of Arab states, supported by Turkey, the US, and, in a way, by Israel.

Joschka Fischer Project Syndicate

T

he negotiations between Iran and the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council, plus Germany, over Iran’s nuclear program are entering a new, and probably decisive, stage. The negotiations have been going on for almost a decade, with long interruptions, and whether a breakthrough will come this time is anyone’s guess. But the situation has never been as serious as it is today, and peace hangs in the balance. After the recent visits by Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu to Washington, DC, and by Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan to Tehran, a foggy situation is nonetheless becoming clearer. It appears that US President Barack Obama has won time by drawing a line in the sand - the start of an explicit Iranian nuclear-weapons program - and by assuring Israel of America’s readiness for military action should negotiations fail.

Moreover, in view of the danger of a military confrontation, the United States, together with Europe and other partners, has implemented tough new “smart” sanctions aimed at Iran’s oil exports - its main source of income - while largely isolating the Islamic Republic from the international payment system. Iran urgently needs the oil revenue, and, without participation in the payments system, its international trade is grinding to a halt.

Barter transactions and suitcases full of cash are not a viable alternative. So Iran’s economy is being shaken to the core.

Furthermore, the US seems to have communicated in a credible manner both the seriousness of the situation and its own intentions to the Iranian leadership via various channels. So, if this round of negotiations, too, should fail, a great - and entirely foreseeable - tragedy could begin to unfold.

The good news is that all of the parties involved seem to be aware of this, which should focus official minds on a serious negotiation process and a diplomatic solution. Moreover, it should be clear soon enough whether Iran is serious about a compromise this time, because there are ample benchmarks.

The content of such a compromise is more or less clear: acceptance of low-grade uranium enrichment by Iran for nonmilitary purposes, and enhanced and verifiable safeguards, such export of low-grade enriched uranium for further processing and stronger and more extensive inspection rights for the International Atomic Energy Agency inside Iran. For example, the IAEA would gain access to previously closed Iranian nuclear facilities.

Of course, a compromise would not address the Iranian regime’s domestic behavior and regional ambitions - a source of shared angst for Israel and the Arab Gulf states, first and foremost Saudi Arabia. But, with no one seriously prepared to go to

war for regime change in Iran, particularly after the decade-long misadventure in Iraq, no one should weigh down the negotiations with futile aspirations.

This applies equally to Iran, where some influential people still think that the US can be forced out of the Middle East, and that the status quo can be changed to install Iran as the region’s hegemonic power. This illusion, no less than Western hopes of regime change in Iran, could be seriously pursued only at an indefensibly high risk of war and regional chaos.

Other significant factors will play an important role in deciding the outcome of these negotiations. The first concerns Iranian domestic politics and the ongoing power struggle within the regime - a struggle that scuttled a diplomatic solution once before, because neither conservatives nor reformers were willing to afford President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad a diplomatic triumph.

One can only hope that, in view of the seriousness of the situation, this route to failure will be closed off.

Developments in Syria, Iran’s last remaining ally in the region, are equally likely to play a role. The fall of President Bashar Al-Assad’s regime would amount to a strategic debacle for Iran, which would then be faced by a united front of Arab states, supported by Turkey, the US, and, in a way, by Israel. Iran would then find it difficult to maintain its foothold in Lebanon, and its position would become more complicated even in Iraq, despite its Shiite majority. In short, its quest for regional predominance would collapse. In light of the complexity of external factors, it will be important not to overload the nuclear negotiations with issues that the talks are not designed to resolve. Syria, the future of Iran’s regime, the situation in the Gulf and in the wider region: all of these problems must be addressed at a different level and at another time if the risk of war over Iran’s nuclear program is to be contained or avoided.

Ever since Alexander the Great memorably solved the puzzle of the Gordian knot with just a blow of his sword, people have dreamed of a simple military solution to complex problems. But, all too often, applying military force to a problem leads to more problems. In Iraq, George W. Bush, Dick Cheney, and Donald Rumsfeld demonstrated that using military force only as a last resort is not merely an ethical and moral imperative, but one based on Realpolitik as well.

There are times when using military force becomes unavoidable, but it should never be chosen as an alternative to diplomacy. That is certainly true for today’s “Persian Knot.” Yet that choice - war or diplomacy - now confronts both sides.

Joschka Fischer, Germany’s foreign minister and vice chancellor from 1998 to 2005, was a leader in the German Green Party for almost 20 years.

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Orthopaedic Orthopaedic Kheitan * Messila Salmiyah * Kheitan * Salmiyah Orrthopaedic Al-Jleeb Al-Jleeb * Al-Jleeb Kheitan Salmiyah Jahra Gate Sulaibiya Al Jleeb Kheitan Jabriya Salmiyah Al-Jleeb Messilah Kheitan Fahaheel Kheitan Al Jleeb * Al-Jleeb * Fahaheel Fahaheel Jahra Fahaheel Jahra Gate Airport Fahaheel Al-Jleeb Al-Jleeb Fahaheel

Destination

Sharq Sharq Mirgab Mirgab Mirgab Jahra Gate Sharq Mirgab Sharq Mirgab Sharq Mirgab Mirgab Jabriya Sharq Mirgab Sharq Sharq Sharq Salmiyah Jahra Gate Sharq Sharq UN Circle Mirgab Mirgab Mirgab Mirgab Mirgab Al-Jleeb Fahaheel Mirgab Mirgab Jahra Gate Sharq Fahaheel

Via

Shuwaikh 4th Ring Rd Airport Rd Ras Salmiyah 4th Ring Rd 4th Ring Rd Hawalli Shuwaikh Kheitan Farwaniyah 3rd Ring Rd King Faisal Rd Hawalli Hawalli Andalus Shuwaikh Shamiyah Nuzha Farwaniyah Farwaniyah Bayan Shuwaikh Shuwaikh Al Rai 6th Ring Rd Al Hasawi Sabah Salem 3rd Ring Rd Jahra Rd Shuwaikh UN Circle Jahra Rd Fahaheel Rd Hawalli Shuwaikh Ahmadi

KD 70 KD 140 KD 40 KD 40 KD 40 KD 40 KD 40

VISITORS RESIDENTS

H.S.C. Barium Enema Barium Meal O.C.G. Ultrasound Ultrasound desfruct M.R.I.

KD 40 KD 50 KD 45 KD 45 KD 15 KD 130 KD 245

KD 40 KD 35 KD 30 KD 30 KD 10 KD 65 KD 180

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Tel.: Afghanistan 2532 9461 Algeria 2251 9220 Argentina 2537 9211 Austria 2255 2532 Australia 2232 2422 Azerbaijan 2535 5247 Bahrain 2531 8530 Bangladesh 2531 6042 / 3 Belgium 25722014 Bhutan 2251 6640 / 50 Bosnia 2539 2637 Brazil 2532 8610 Bulgaria 2531 4458 Canada 2256 3025 China 2533 3340 Cuba 2254 9361 Cyprus 2243 3075 Czech 2252 9018 Denmark 2534 1005 Egypt 2251 9956 Ethiopia 2533 4291 Eritrea 2531 7426 Finland 2531 2890 France 2257 1061 Germany 2252 0827 Greece 2481 7101 Georgia 2535 2909 Hungary 2532 3901 India 2253 0600 Indonesia 2483 9927 Iran 2256 0694 Italy 2535 6011 Japan 2530 9400 Kenya 25353314 / 25353362 Lebanon 2256 2103

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2257 5182 2255 0384 2531 7423 2532 6334 2564 0478 2562 0296 2535 1097 2256 1963 2532 8013 2532 9319 2531 1576 2251 3604 2539 3529 2484 8929 2252 4969 2242 0654 2254 2044 2535 3894 2539 4829 2561 7917 2531 2459 2532 5826 2533 9154 2534 0176 2539 6509 2531 7532 2252 8995 2256 0653 2259 4339 2538 0282 2532 4368 2535 1592 2532 7568 2562 1491

Police stations Tel.:

Abu Halifa 2371 7656 Ahmadi 2398 0304 Ardiya 2488 1273 Bayan 2538 7762 Dahar 2383 0500 Dahiya 2256 0855 Dasma 2253 1917 Fahaheel 2391 2959 Faiha 2255 2693 Farwaniya 2471 1977 Ferdous 2489 0583 Fintas 2390 4388 Hawalli 2264 1116 Jabriya 2531 5855 Jahra Ind. Area 2457 5565 / 2458 7392 Jahra North 2455 2295 Jleeb Al Shouyoukh 2431 1234 Keifan 2483 2839 Kheitan 2472 2590 Mina Abdullah 2326 1144 Nugra 2261 6662 Omariya 2474 2160

Ambulance

Central Adan Amiri Hospital Da’iya Fahaheel Farwaniya Farwaniya Jahra Mubarak Al Kabir Sabah Salmiya Shuaiba

23940600 / 23941455 22422366 22510854 23919098 24883000 24725149 24570583 25311437 24815000 25739011 23261927

Private Hospitals

Al-Rashid Hospital Dar Al-Shifa Hospital Hadi Clinic London Hospital Mowasat Hospital Salam Hospital

Qadsiya 2257 4386 Qurain 2542 3772 Rabiah 2474 2160 Rawda 2256 0058 Riqqa 2394 1958 Rumaithiya 2562 4123 Sabah Al-Salem 2551 7229 Sabahiya 2361 5619 Salhiya (Kuwait City) 2242 7157 Salmi 2457 6576 Salmiya 2572 6950 Salwa 2562 6950 Shamiya 2484 5953 Sharq 2244 2466 Shuaiba Ind. Area 2326 1789 Shuwaikh 2481 3726 / 2484 4842 Sulaibekhat 2487 6555 Sulaibiya 2467 0672 Sulaibiya Ind. Area 2467 2728 Surra 2531 2220 Tayma’a 2457 1700 Wafra 2381 0412 Waha 2455 7902 Zour 2395 0160

Adan General Hospital Al-Sabah Chest Hospital Al-Sabah Maternity Hospital Amiri General Hospital As’ad Al-Hamad Dermatology Center

Farwaniya General Hospital Ibn Sina Hospital Jahra General Hospital Mubarak Al-Kabeer General Hospital Subhan Renal Hospital Sulaibikhat Orthopedic Hospital

25624000 22802555 1828282 1883883 25726666 22533177

Private Health Centers/ Clinics

Boushahri Clinic British Medical Center Care Clinic International Clinic

Public Hospitals

cons u l a tes

Fax 2532 6274 2251 9497 2537 9212 2256 3052 2232 2430 2535 5246 2533 0882 2531 6041 2574 8389 2251 6550 2539 2106 2532 8613 2532 1453 2256 4167 2533 3341 2254 9360 2240 2971 2252 9021 2534 1007 2256 3877 2533 1179 2531 7429 2532 4198 2257 1058 2252 0763 2481 7103 2535 4707 2532 3904 2257 1192 2481 9250 2252 9868 2535 6030 2530 9401 25353316 2257 2182

centr a l 4 7 2 2 0 0 0

94904040

hospital charges

medical services

Call, sms, Email us

O n- s i t e I T s e r v i c e s

23940600 24815000 24848067 22450080

1885544 23713100 22610666 25745111

Public Health Centers/ Clinics:

Dasman Clinic Faiha Polyclinic Farwaniya Polyclinic Hawalli Polyclinic Inaya Germen Medical Center Sabah Al-Salem Clinic Salmiya Polyclinic Shamiya Clinic Shuwaikh Clinic Yarmouk Clinic

24832067 24883000 24840300 24575300 25312700 24840027 24874240

22447602 22545188 24726033 22611645 25750777 25524821 25723500 25610660 24848913 25336482

DOCTORS & DENTISTS

I N PR I VAT E PR AC T ICE

Andrology, Male Infertility and Impotence Specialist Abdullatif A. Al Salim 2533 4438

Dermatologist & Venereologists Fahad I. Al Othman 2266 5166 Taibah M. Almonayes 2573 7477 Dr. Mohamed Bo Hamra 2266 5166

Dentists & Oral Surgeons Ahmed Al Balool 2262 2211 Badri K. Al Rayes 2574 2557 Duha Al Shaqan 2264 4614 Ebraheem Behbehani 2573 0000 Farida Al Herz 2257 3883 Maria Blanaru 2573 0000 Najat Essa-Bahman 2262 4595 Najeeb Kassim 2573 9277 Salwa A. Abdulsalam 2573 0000 Kuwait Medical Center 2575 9044 / 5 Endocrinologists Latifa Al Dowaisan Kamal Abdulaziz Al Shome

Gastroenterologist Mohamed A. Al Shimali 2532 2030 - 2263 9955 Urologist Fawzi Taher Abul Ali Yousef Mehdi

2565 0064 2533 3501

General Practitioner Dina Al Rifai 2533 3501 - 2533 3502 Obstetricians & Gynecologists Samira Al Awadi 2573 8055 Ma’asouma Maksheed 2573 1275 Mohamed Gamal 2534 9077 Mai Al Snan 2532 1171

2572 8004 2532 9924

Ear, Nose & Throat Surgeons Hossam Eldin Abdulfattah 2574 5056 Abdulmohsen Mousa Jafar 2565 5535

Cosmetic Surgeon Dr. Adel Quttainah

2562 5030 / 60

Ministries

Awqaf & Islamic Affairs Commerce & Industry Communications Defense Education Health Higher Education Electricity & Water Finance

2248 0000 2248 0000 2481 9033 2484 8300 2481 7702 2487 7422 2240 1300 2537 1000 2248 0000

Foreign Affairs Housing Information Justice, Legal & Administrative Affairs Energy Planning Social Affairs & Labour Public Works

2242 5141 2530 1000 2241 5301 2248 0000 2241 5201 2242 8200 2248 0000 2538 5520

RESTAURANT • Café Library Lounge Al-Manshar Rotana Hotel Tel: 23931000 Hang.Out Lounge Galleria 2000 Tel: 25755588 Song Bird Café Hilton Kuwait Resort Tel: 23725500 Chit Chat Café Restaurant Safir Hotel & Residences -Fintas Tel: 25455555 Lounge Café Safir Hotel & Residences -Fintas Tel: 25455555 The English Tea Room Sheraton Hotel Tel: 1835555 Waterlemon Al-Raya Tel: 22244797 Marina Mall Tel: 22997666 Le Pain Quotidien Palms Beach Hotel Tel: 25633684 Marina Crescent Tel: 22244942 Avenues Tel: 24954632 • Casual Dining Applebee’s Bneid Al-Gar Tel: 22407536 Fintas Tel: 23714559 Burgerhub Gulf road Tel: 22464818 Chili’s Bneid Al-Gar Tel: 22452200 Chili’s Al-Bida’a Tel: 22253120/1 Hard Rock Café Salmiya Tel: 25710004 Ruby Tuesdays Bneid Al-Gar Tel: 22444454 T.G.I. Fridays Bneid Al-Gar Tel: 22544300

• Chinese China Hut Tel: 25656226 China Express Jabriya Tel: 25342399 Salwa Tel: 25653230 China House Salmiya Tel: 25713339 / 60 China Lake Al-Blajat St. Tel: 25713072 / 3 China Town Salmiya Tel: 25652541 Greens Al-Wafra Complex Tel: 22516031

Tel: 1815050 • French Le Notre Gulf Road Tel: 25758888 • Indian Dawat Restaurant Bneid Al Gar Tel: 22411728 Abu Halifa Tel: 23724251 Al Alamia Mall, Jahra Tel: 24554642 Taal Restaurant Salmiya Beda’ Tel: 22253142 Winner’s Salmiya Tel: 25739954 Abu Halifa Tel: 23711374 / 5 Riggae Tel: 24895501 / 2 Jahra Tel: 24560088/8800

Gulf Royal Tel: 23925390-Fintas 22622556-Hawalli 25710448-Salmiya 22244795-Marina

Asha’s Tel: 22244502/3/9 Marina Crescent Tel: 24954700

Noodles Salmiya Tel: 25712233

Bukhara Sheraton Hotel Tel: 22422055

The Peacock Radisson Blu Hotel Tel: 25673000

Tourist Restaurant Kuwait City Tel: 22411702

Noodle Factory Avenues Tel: 24954751

Mugal Mahal Farwaniya Tel: 24726126/7 Fintas Tel: 23915588 Salmiya Tel: 25722223/4 Sharq Tel: 22425132

• Continental Casper & Gambini’s Kuwait City Tel: 22430054 La Marina Sharq Mall Tel: 22426672 • Fast Food Burger King Tel: 22444466 Domino’s Pizza Tel: 1800800 Hardees Tel: 1888333 KFC Tel: 1888666 Little Caesar’s Tel: 1888855 Pizza Hut

Tikka Tel: 1822833 • International Al-Bustan Radisson Blu Hotel Tel: 25673000 Al-Hamra Sheraton Hotel Tel: 22422055 Al-Marsa Restaurant Le Meridien Tel: 22510999 Atrium Restaurant Courtyard Marriott Hotel

Tel: 22997000

L I S T I N G S

Beit 7 Kuwait City Tel: 22450871 Café Rio Al-Fanar Tel: 25732226 Dunes Ritz Hotel Tel: 22499911 Failaka Al-Manshar Rotana Hotel Tel: 23931000 La Brasserie JW Marriott Tel: 22455550 Ritz Shamiya Tel: 24820184 Shuwaikh Tel: 24844350 Square International Tel: 22437681 Test n’ Taste Villa Moda Tel: 24827010 Teatro Hilton Kuwait Resort Tel: 23725500

Kuwait City Tel: 22400737

Nino Gulf Road Tel: 22541900 Pizza Express Abdullah Al-Salem Tel: 22560273 Al-Bida’a Tel: 22253166 Airport Tel: 24342681 Tel: 23725500 Ricardo Sheraton Hotel Tel: 22422055 • Japanese Edo Shaab Tel: 22659590 Kei JW Marriott Hotel Tel: 22422650 Korea & Japan Restaurant New Park Hotel Tel: 25634200

Sakura Crowne Plaza Hotel Tel: 24742000

AlRoshinah Restaurant Safir Hotel & Residences -Fintas Tel: 25455555

Shogun The Palms Hotel Tel: 27070022

Il Forno Restaurant Courtyard Marriot Hotel Tel: 22997000 Johnny Carino’s Salmiya Tel: 22667050 La Piazza Kuwait City Tel: 24246639 Lorenzo

Manousha Salmiya Tel: 25722607 / 8

Al-Noukhaza Crowne Plaza Hotel Tel: 24742000

Fakhr Al-Din Restaurant Kuwait City Tel: 22423180

Villa Fairouz Shaab Tel: 22652030

Shrimpy Gulf Road Tel: 22563118 Totally Fish Marina Crescent Tel: 22244960/1

Garden New Park Hotel Tel: 25634200

Yeldes Palace Kuwait City Tel: 22455212

Kabab-Ji Tel: 1861616

Zahrat Tunis Hawalli Tel: 22662444/333

Mais Al-Ghanim Kuwait City Tel: 22402590

• Persian Kabab Al-Hijja Bnaid Al-Gar Tel: 22517512

Palm Palace Salmiya Tel: 25756331 Saj Express Kuwait City Tel: 22497822 Sarai Al-Bida’a Tel: 22253180/1 Shisha &

Sushi Club Al-Blajat St. Tel: 25712144 Wasabi Al-Bida’a Tel: 22253112 Kuwait City Tel: 22494000 • Lebanese Al-Berdawny Palace Tel: 25661117 Ayam Zaman Holiday Inn Tel: 18477777 Burg Al-Hamam Gulf Road Tel: 22529095

• Steak House Relais De L’Entrecote Al-Fanar Complex Tel: 25729600 Terrace Grill JW Marriott Hotel Tel: 22455550

Shabistan Crowne Plaza Hotel Tel: 24742000

The Gaucho Grill The Palms Hotel Tel: 25667370 -

• Seafood Al-Ahmadi Crowne Plaza Hotel Tel: 24742000

• Tex-Mex Chi Chi’s Salmiya Tel: 25625811

Al-Boom Radisson Blu Hotel Tel: 25756000

Tumbleweed Southern Grill Al-Bida’a Tel: 22253154/5

Maki Al-Blajat St. Tel: 25733561 Marina Waves Tel: 22244560

Flavors Restaurant Safir Hotel & Residences -Fintas Tel: 25455555

• Italian Ciro’s Pomodoro Kuwait City Tel: 22424004

Saj Express Kuwait City Tel: 22497822

Te l : 1 8 3 9 0 9 0

Salmiya - Jabriya - Keifan www.healthstop.com.kw

HOTELS

FIVE STAR Al-Manshar Rotana Hotel Crowne Plaza Kuwait Hilton Kuwait Resort JW Marriot Kuwait City Hotel Kempinski Julai’a Hotel & Resort The Regency Hotel & Resort Le Meridien Le Meridien Tower Marina Hotel Kuwait Movenpick Albid’a Movenpick Palms Beach Hotel & Spa Radisson Blu Hotels & Resorts Refad Palace Safir International Hotel Kuwait Sheraton Kuwait Hotel & Towers Safir Hotel & Residences Kuwait

23931000 24772000 23725500 22455550 1 844 444 25766666 22510999 22831831 22244970 22253100 24610033 22824060 25673000 23908630 22530000 22422055 25455555

FOUR STAR Carlton Tower Hotel The Courtyard by Marriott Kuwait El Joan Resort Four Points by Sheraton Kuwait

22452740 22997000 23281897 22415001

Ghani Palace Hotel Holiday Inn Khalifa Resort Kuwait Continental Hotel New Park Hotel Al Bastaki Hotel Al Dana Hotel Heritage Village Palace Hotel Shiik Flamingo Hotel & Resort Swiss-Belhotel Plaza Kuwait

25710301 1 847 777 23280144 22527300 25634200 22555081 23902760 22520600 1 821 111 25725050 22436686

THREE STAR Imperial Hotel Oasis Hotel Safari House Hotel Second Home Hotel Spring Continental Hotel Ibis Hotel Salmiya Ibis Hotel Sharq

22528766 22465489 22443136 22532100 25742410 25713872 22928080

TWO STAR International Hotel Kuwait Residence Hotel

25741788 22467560

Europe’s debt crisis weighs on Deutsche Bank’s Q1

BUSINESS

fridAY, april 27, 2012

m ar ket watc h KUWAIT 0.01% 6337

DUBAI 0.5% 1652

FRANKFURT: Deutsche Bank AG saw its first-quarter earnings fall by around a third as customers were more reluctant to trade and invest because of Europe’s debt crisis. Germany’s largest bank said Thursday that its net profit in the first three months of the year fell to 1.4 billion euros (1.85 billion US dollars) from 2.1 billion euros in the same quarter a year ago. The result failed to meet expectations and the company’s share price slid 4 percent to 32.76 euros in morning trading in Frankfurt - the consensus in the markets was for a profit of around 1.65 billion euros. A more detailed look at the bank’s statement shows that revenues fell 12 percent to 9.2 billion euros, with customers reluctant to trade at both the investment banking division, which earns money from doing deals and trading stocks and bonds, and at the retail end through the company’s Postbank branch banking business.

QATAR 0.1% 8661

See page 11

OIL MARKETS

OMAN

ABU DHABI

BAHRAIN

EGYPT

1.3% 5839

0.2% 2508

0.2% 1145

0.5% 4935

SAUDI

MARKET CLOSED

US Crude $104.09 $0.03 London Brent $119.67 $0.55 Kuwait Crude $116.29 $0.15 Information Courtesy: KAMCO

CURRENCIES US Dollar

British Pound

Saudi Riyal

Qatari Riyal

Indian Rupee

Euro

Japanese Yen

UAE Dirham

Bahraini Dinar

Philippine Peso

Buy 0.2776 Sell 0.2781 Buy 0.367 Sell 0.3673

Buy 0.4494 Sell 0.4498

Buy 0.00343 Sell 0.003434

Buy 0.074 Sell 0.0741

Buy 0.07557 Sell 0.07563

Buy 0.07632 Sell 0.07625 Buy 0.7363 Sell 0.7369

Buy 0.005286 Sell 0.005281 Buy 0.006543 Sell 0.006531

Prices in Kuwaiti fils as of April 26, 2012 Courtesy: KAMCO

KFH achieves KD 182.8 million total revenue in Q1 Total assets jump 11.2% Compiled by Al Watan Daily

KUWAIT: Kuwait Finance House (KFH), the country’s biggest Islamic lender, reported on Thursday an 11.5 percent decrease in first-quarter (Q1) net profit, missing analysts estimates.

Chairman Sameer Al-Nafisi announced that KFH has achieved total revenues of 182.8 million Kuwaiti dinars during the first quarter (Q1) of 2012. Total profits reached KD 57.4 million, including KD 36.9 million estimated profit for investment depositors.

Net profit fell to 20 million dinars ($72 million) from 22.6 million dinars in the same period a year ago, the lender said in a bourse filing, while earnings per share reached seven fils.

Total assets increased to KD 14.2 billion, with KD 1.4 billion or 11.2 percent increase over the same period last year. Deposits increased to KD 9.2 billion, with KD 938 million or 11.4 percent increase over same period last year. Total shareholders’ equity reached KD 1.3 billion, with KD 14 million or 1.1 percent increase over same period last year.

Analysts in a Reuters survey had predicted 23.48 million dinars net profit on average for the quarter to end-March.

The bank said in March it would shuffle its top management and work with advisors to sell, merge or restructure unprofitable subsidiaries.

Al-Nafisi highlighted the bank’s ability to implement its plans and strategies even in the most challenging of time, which increases the potential of improving financial indicators during the coming period.

He added that KFH holds a leading position in operating performance among Kuwaiti banks, and stressed

that the profits reflect the successful plans that reinforces precautionary provisions.

He went on to say that KFH still leads Islamic banking category, despite fierce competition in local and global markets.

He expected that the transformation program that the bank has begun to implement to be rewarding during the coming period.

He noted that the vision and strategic objectives for the transformation program are focused and competitive, and the bank is expected to reap benefits during the coming period.

He explained that the restructuring process will lay the foundation for a new growth phase, since Islamic banking is currently witnessing significant local and global developments.

KFH is capable of taking advantage of those developments, which will lead to better returns and addedvalue for its shareholders and depositors.

Moreover, he said that KFH and its subsidiaries have been recognized internationally and received global awards, not to mention maintaining positive ratings from global prestigious rating agencies.

He stated that KFH is interested in expanding its client base in the local market and opening new branches.

KFH has also focus on improving the technology platforms for better servicing its customer base, and has equally excelled in direct and remote sales units.

Furthermore, he underlined the importance of the GCC markets, since they serve as an economy and social strategic safety haven for Kuwait. He added that KFH’s overseas markets serve as a platform to enter other markets in neighboring countries in Europe and south East Asia.

KFH’s shares closed at 740 Kuwaiti fils on the bourse on Wednesday.

KSE ends week trading slightly in green KUWAIT: Trading ended at Kuwait Stock Exchange (KSE) Thursday on a mixed board, though main indices were green. The price index gained 0.5 points to reach 6,337 points, while the weighted index came to 417.87 points a drop of 1.66 points.

Trades came to 5,576 spot transactions worth 42,171,460 Kuwaiti dinars, with 557,902, 500 shares changing hands till end of session.

As for sector indices, there were three

readings in green and four in red.

Top gainer sector was real estate which put on 33.7 index points, while biggest loser was services on a down of 75.7 index points.

Top share for the day was that of AlDar National Real Estate Company, while biggest loser was the Palms Agro Production Company stock. Top-volume share was that of Abyaar Real Estate Development Company. -KUNA

Qatar-led group takes control of Dubai jeweler Damas

DUBAI: Qatar’s Mannai Corporation and Egyptian investment bank EFG Hermes have taken control of Dubai’s Damas after their consortium’s 445 million US dollars offer was accepted by more than 75 percent of the jeweler’s shareholders. The bidders have received acceptances representing 78.37 percent of Damas’s share capital for their $0.45 per share offer, according to a statement on the Nasdaq Dubai bourse on Thursday.

“This effectively means the consortium has now acquired control,” the statement said. Following this, five Damas board members resigned, including Executive Chairman Ibrahim Belselah. The new members include Alekh Grewal, Mannai Corp’s chief executive, and Karim Moussa, a managing director in private equity at EFG Hermes.

Damas shares have nearly doubled in value this year to $0.435, surging after its major shareholders the Abdullah brothers - Tawfique Abdullah, Tawhid Abdullah and Tamjid Abdullah - in early January said they were looking to sell some of their holdings. Mannai, whose operations span the oil and gas, automotive, travel and logistics sectors, will become the majority owner of Damas, and will delist the jeweler from Nasdaq Dubai.

The bidders earlier stated Mannai would hold a 66-percent stake in Damas and EFG Hermes 19 percent, with the remaining 15 percent retained by the Abdullah brothers. The brothers have been sidelined from the jeweler they helped found and which has been forced to restructure $872 million in debt.

For Mannai, the deal would be its second buy in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) after it snapped up a 35-percent stake in Axiom Telecom in 2011. -Reuters

China’s yuan hits record high against dollar TOKYO: China’s central bank on Thursday set the US dollar-Chinese yuan central parity, an official reference for daily trading, at a record high of a 6.2829 yuan, the highest since Beijing revalued the Chinese currency in July 2005.

The People’s Bank of China strengthened the yuan’s reference exchange rate by 0.0094 yuan from Wednesday’s fixing of 6.2923 yuan against the greenback, according to the China Foreign Exchange Trading System.The rate topped the previous record high of 6.2840 yuan set on March 27.

China’s central bank fixes the central parity rate every morning, and since April 16, it allows the currency to rise or fall by 1.0 percent from the central parity rate.

Previously, the daily trading limit was fixed at 0.5 percent. The yuan-dollar central par-

ity rate is based on a weighted average of prices before the opening of the market each trading day.

The People’s Bank of China announced on April 14 that it would allow the yuan to trade in a wider daily range against the dollar in order to meet market demands and enhance the flexibility of renminbi (yuan) exchange rate.

It was the first band widening since May 2007, when it raised the trading band from 0.3 percent to 0.5 percent.

The appreciation of the yuan has been one of the core disputes between China and the US in recent years, with American policymakers often arguing that the Chinese currency is significantly undervalued, giving China’s exporters an unfair advantage.

-KUNA

A logo of Barclays bank is seen outside a branch in Altrincham, northern England April 26, 2012. Barclays posted a 22 percent rise in first-quarter profit, ahead of market forecasts, as a strong rebound in revenue from its investment banking arm and a drop in bad debt countered increased compensation for insurance misselling. (Reuters)

Oil up on Fed resolve to lower interest rates

NEW YORK: Oil edged up on Thursday, but trading was choppy as optimism fueled by the Federal Reserve’s commitment to low interest rates was curbed by weak US jobless claims data and skepticism about efforts to resolve the dispute over Iran’s nuclear ambitions.

The Federal Reserve’s commitment to keep low rates and act further to support the economy if it weakens lifted global equities and the euro after the central bank’s policy meeting concluded on Wednesday. US initial claims for jobless benefits fell only slightly last week, from a revised higher number from the previous period, and a trend measure rose, the latest sign of a slowing recovery for employment in the world’s No. 1 oil consumer. “(Fed Chairman Ben) Bernanke’s comments are good for oil: people think that if growth derails in the US the Fed is ready to step in with further Quantitative Easing (QE) which gives very strong support to commodities”, Danske Bank’s chief FX and commodities analyst Arne Lohmann Rasmussen said.

“The market also doesn’t really believe we are finding a solution to the Iran issue.”

Brent June crude futures rose 56 US cents

to $119.68 a barrel by 9:55 a.m. EDT (1355 GMT), having swung from 118.78 US dollars to $119.85. US June crude futures edged up 10 cents to $104.22, having reached $104.47, stalling ahead of the 50-day moving average of $105.05.

Oil prices also received support as the dollar index hit a three-week low against a basket of currencies. Dollar-denominated commodities such as oil can be boosted by a weaker greenback, allowing holders of other currencies to buy into the contracts more cheaply.

Iran and Western nations have shown interest in a Russian proposal to help defuse the dispute over Tehran’s nuclear program, a Russian diplomat said.

But even with this potential softening of the positions, many market watchers believe the Iranian tensions, with the European Union’s upcoming embargo of Iranian oil exports, set for July, remain supportive for Brent.

A poll of 38 analysts forecasts Brent will average $117.30 per barrel in 2012, a $2.60 increase from the previous poll in March.

There is however growing evidence that importers are trimming back crude purchases

from Tehran as thr Organization of Petroleum exporting Countries (OPEC) members to pump at high levels. Despite being granted an exemption, Japan’s customs-cleared crude imports from Iran fell 6.3 percent in March from a year ago.

“While Iranian output has slipped ...

Iran’s gentle downwards slope has been more than made up by increases elsewhere,” said analysts at Barclays Capital in a report. Total OPEC output is running at about 37.5 million barrels per day, its highest level ever, the report said. Iran has stored as much as 33 million barrels of crude on tankers as it faces difficulties to sell.

A large build-up in US crude inventories overnight also capping upside, although a drawdown in refined fuel stocks provided some relief, US government data showed.

Crude stocks rose almost four million barrels in the week to April 20, up for a fifth week in a row, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) said. The average forecast in a Reuters poll had called for a 2.7-million-barrel build. US gasoline stockpiles fell by a largerthan-expected 2.24 million barrels, a 10th consecutive week of decline. -Reuters

Mobile shopping on the rise in Kuwait

47% of shoppers in Kuwait have made an online purchase in recent months KUWAIT: Online shopping is important to consumers in Kuwait, according to the results of a recent MasterCard survey. Results of MasterCard’s survey on online shopping behavior revealed 47 percent of respondents in Kuwait have made an online purchase in recent months, and that online shopping is led by consumers within the age group of 25-34 years. The survey also found that shopping via mobile phones is increasingly popular, with 23 percent of consumers surveyed having made a purchase through their mobile phones in recent months. This was mentioned in a press release on Thursday.

The survey found the greatest proportion of online spend (65 percent) is occurring on coupon/deal websites. Other leading categories are airlines (61 percent), online products/services for gaming/virtual world (60 percent) and computer software (59 percent). It is worth noting that while group/deal sites purchases lead in terms of the share of online spend, airlines lead in terms of absolute value of online purchases.

On average, 69 percent of respondents who visit retailer websites when online shopping visit luxury or high-end goods sites.

Safdar Khan, market manager, Qatar, Oman and Kuwait, MasterCard Worldwide said: “It is encouraging to see the positive trends in online and mobile shopping in Kuwait. The MasterCard survey found that nearly three quarters of the respondents have access to the internet through their mobile phones, and that almost a quarter of respondents have made purchases via their mobile phones in recent months. This high level of

internet mobility is a good indication of the interest and access consumers in Kuwait have when it comes to online shopping. It also presents significant opportunities for merchants focused on expanding their online presence.”

Attitude towards online shopping

In terms of attitudes towards online shopping, 67 percent of consumers who shop online said that they tend to go to the same sites when they have used them before. Additionally, 68 percent of the respondents stated they prefer a hotline for enquiries when shopping online and 63 percent indicated that shopping is a fun way to pass time online. However, 61 percent of consumers in Kuwait still do not feel secure shopping online.

Amongst the top factors impacting online shopping, respondents chose convenient payment methods (77 percent), websites being user-friendly (77 percent), secure payment facilities offered by site (76 percent) and price/value of items (76 percent). In addition, 55 percent of consumers plan in advance about products or services they will shop for before going online. Consumers’ research is mostly done through general internet browsing (55 percent), exploring merchant websites (35 percent) and talking to friends or family members (33 percent).

Other key findings:

• Cross-border shopping: The survey found that respondents spend 57 percent of their time on foreign retailers’ websites. The main categories for which respondents were willing to shop from

overseas merchants were airlines (39 percent), cinemas (19 percent) and hotels (17 percent). In contrast, the main barriers to cross-border shopping were consumers’ perceptions that buying locally is more convenient (43 percent) and that buying locally is cheaper (40 percent).

• Mobile shopping: In terms of mobile shopping trends, the survey indicates strong potential for growth in Kuwait, as 23 percent of individuals surveyed made purchases through their mobile phones in recent months. Airline tickets (26 percent), clothing and accessories (18 percent) and hotel bookings (15 percent) were the top three categories purchased. Among those who did not purchase through their mobile phone recently, an additional 15 percent of respondents are likely to do so in the coming months.

• Ethical Spending: The MasterCard survey also explored the reasons and channels for “responsible” purchasing. It found that more than 30 percent of individuals purchased items in the last 2-3 years because of one or more ethical reasons, like environmentally friendly items or if a percentage of the sale is donated to a good cause.

Approximately 45 percent of individuals who purchased items because of ethical reasons did so online.

The survey was conducted from Dec. 5, 2011 to Jan. 6, 2012 and reached 12,500 consumers from 25 markets across APMEA. The survey and its accompanying reports do not represent MasterCard financial performance.

10

ALWATAN DAILY

BUSINESS

friDAY, april 27, 2012

Japan’s crude imports from Iran drop 6.3% as sanctions bite TOKYO: Japan’s customs-cleared crude imports from Iran fell 6.3 percent in March from a year ago, ahead of a sharp drop expected in April and May due to difficulty in doing business with the Islamic Republic amid tighter Western sanctions.

The drop last month comes even after the United States exempted Japan and 10 EU nations from financial sanctions as they had significantly cut purchases of Iranian oil. Soon after receiving the exemption, Finance Minister Jun Azumi said Japan would continue to cut imports of Iranian oil.

European Union’s restrictions on Iran, due to take effect in July, are already cutting deliveries as Japanese buyers largely rely on European insurers and reinsurers to cover their ships.

Japan will slash its crude purchases from Iran by almost 80 percent in April from the earlier months of the year, as buyers comply with sanctions that make it tough to pay, ship and insure the oil.

The ships loading in April will arrive in Japan in May or after that.

March imports from Iran totaled 355,400 barrels per day, down from 379,200 bpd in the same month a year earlier, marking a continued year-on-year decline since April 2011, and government data showed on Thursday.

But the March decline in Iranian imports was significantly smaller than a 27.3 percent year-on-year drop in February and a 12.2 percent fall in January.

This was partly because overall shipments in March 2011 were hit by an earthquake and tsunami that damaged several refineries and port facilities in the country’s northeast.

Iraq inks $363 million power deal with Egypt’s Orascom

LONDON: Iraq’s electricity ministry signed a 363 million US dollar power deal with Egypt’s Orascom Construction to build a 1,014 megawatt gas power plant in northern Iraq, it said on Thursday.

The contract involves building a plant in Baiji, 180 kilometers (112 miles) north of Baghdad, to install six gas units, each with a capacity of 169 MW, which Iraq bought from Siemens in 2008.

The project is expected to be completed within 21 months, officials have said.

Nearly nine years since the US-led invasion that ousted Saddam Hussein, Iraq’s national grid still supplies only a few hours of power each day. Intermittent electricity is one of the public’s top complaints.

Iraq plans to boost the grid’s capacity by about 1,500 megawatts in the next few months and to add 22,000 MW of production capacity across Iraq, except for the semi-autonomous region of Kurdistan, by the end of 2015, the electricity minister has said.

Iraq’s power availability has ranged between 7,000-8,000 megawatts but is due to increase to 9,000-9,500 MW this summer as some power projects come online and others are upgraded.

Iraqi demand for electricity peaked at 15,000 megawatts last year, but the oil-producing nation managed to supply less than half of that. -Reuters

Total March crude imports rose six percent on demand for reconstruction and as utilities ramped up oil and gas use to offset the drop in nuclear output following the March 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster.

Japan’s crude imports from Iran in March this year were, however, 32.8 percent higher than February’s 267,700 bpd, although a month-on-month comparison may have been affected by the delay or early arrival of some cargoes.

Japan’s more closely watched monthly oil data from the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) is due on Friday. The METI data reflecting shipments to refineries and oil terminals sometimes differ from customs-cleared trade data.

In the first three months of this year, Japan imported 323,800 bpd of Iranian crude, the custom-cleared data showed. The imports were down 22.6 percent from 418,100 bpd in the first quarter of 2011 but were up 8.2 percent from 299,300 bpd in the October-December quarter.

The United States and Europe are trying to squeeze the revenues Iran makes from its oil exports to force it to halt a nuclear program they fear will be used to make weapons but which Tehran says is for civilian purposes.

As a result of sanctions, South Korea’s crude imports from Iran fell 40 percent in March from the same period a year earlier. China also halved its imports last month from a year ago due to disputes over contract terms.

Japan imported 313,500 bpd of Iranian crude oil in 2011, accounting for 8.8 percent of its total imports.

-Reuters

FILE - A worker rides past an oil refinery at Keihin industrial area in Kawasaki, south of Tokyo in this October 23, 2009 file photo. Japan’s customs-cleared crude imports from Iran fell 6.3 percent in March from a year ago, ahead of a sharp drop expected in April and May due to difficulty in doing business with the Islamic Republic amid tighter Western sanctions. (Reuters)

Oula Fuel Marketing announces 2011 net profit of KD 4.06 million Raises capital to KD 34,618,415.945

KUWAIT: Oula Fuel Marketing Company held its Extraordinary General Assembly Meeting where it has been approved to raise the company’s capital from 32,969,919.950 Kuwaiti dinars to KD 34,618,415.945 distributed on 346,184,158 shares with a value of 100 Kuwaiti fils per share. This was stated in a press release on Thursday. In addition, amendment to Article 7 of the article of association and clause 6 related to a previously modified capital has been approved. The Extraordinary Assembly was held in the presence of Chairman Abdulhussain Al Sultan and Managing Director Hamzah Bakhash in addition to a representative from the Ministry of Commerce and a large number of the company’s shareholders.

The company has announced its profits for the fiscal year ending on Dec. 31, 2011 during its An-

nual Ordinary Assembly Meeting that was held on April 9, achieving a net profit of KD 4,059,055 and resulting in 12.41 fils Earnings per Share (EPS) which is 41 percent higher than the EPS registered in 2010.

The company’ total assets amounted to KD 55,393,711 recording an increase of 18 percent over last year while company revenue has increased by 11 percent during 2011 and enhanced efficiency of operations resulted in improving gross profit by 34 percent.

Regarding the capital increase, Chairman Abdulhussain Al-Sultan said, “The suggestion to increase the company’s capital stems from Oula’s mission to strategically expand locally in order to provide wide range of services that match our customers’ needs as well as to develop existing stations based on principles of high quality and safety” Al Sultan confirmed that the company’s profitable results recorded in 2011 is the result of great efforts exerted by the company’s internal workforce to apply the new management’s strategy which pri-

marily is based on improving operational efficiency, boosting productivity and enhancing profitability which has eventually led to increasing the profit margin of the company and positioning it as a leader in the Kuwaiti market. He added: “We would like to thank our customers and shareholders for their confidence in us and promise them to continue our efforts to provide the best services.”

Oula Fuel Marketing Company has witnessed a number of strategic accomplishments on the operational level. The Facelift project was completed in four additional stations bringing the number of stations undergone facelift to 19 since the launch of project in 2010.

Preparation work to launch the operation in new stations of Kabed and Shauiba await permits to be issued by authorities. In addition, the company has completed phase 1 of renovation work at Bayan station which has commenced operations in January 2012. The company expects to obtain seven licenses during the first quarter of 2012 for the major renovation of 7 more stations.

Oil tanker market recovery may take until 2014 LONDON: A full recovery in the oil tanker market may not arrive until 2014 as the seaborne sector battles with weak earnings, a supply glut and world economic turmoil, a top tanker industry official said on Thursday.

Ship owners went on an ordering spree between 2007 to 2009, bolstered by strong earnings as rates in the tanker marker reached a peak of over 180,000 US dollars a day for crude oil supertankers.

By comparison, average earnings on the benchmark Middle East Gulf to Japan route - the major market barometer - are currently around $25,000 a day, above operating cost levels.

INTERTANKO, an organization whose members own the majority of the world’s tanker fleet, said using 2008 as its base year, the sector was set to feel more pain.

“In order to get back to 2008, there needs to be an increase in oil demand ... of maybe 4 to 6 percent to return us to normal in about the year 2014,” its managing director Joe Angelo said.

“That is our rough look - it is not optimistic but we are trying to be realistic,” he said in an interview.

Angelo said a full recovery would not translate into the highs seen in 2008, but would give “just a

reasonable profit”.

While crude tanker market earnings have seen periods of gains since the crisis of 2008, bunker fuel costs and oversupply pressures have continued to take their toll on profitability.

“Certain companies are just not going to be able to survive. Those that have invested well or have money to be able to get them through this tough time will be able to survive,” Angelo said.

In March PT Berlian Laju Tanker, Indonesia’s largest oil and gas shipping group, filed for Chapter 15 creditor protection in the United states after defaulting on debt. -Reuters

How Russia, Iran keep fuel flowing to Syria LONDON: Russia and Iran are helping Syria import fuel which it needs for heavy vehicles including army tanks, allowing Damascus to avoid the full impact of tightening Western sanctions imposed over its violent suppression of dissent.

Syria received regular shipments of Russian gasoil and diesel over the winter and, despite Moscow’s diplomatic support for demands that the government stop its attacks and pull back its forces, Russia sent another delivery this month.

The shipments appear to be legal, as neither Russia nor Iran has signed up to Western sanctions barring such trade, and Moscow has blocked UN Security Council sanctions that would apply to all countries.

But following the convoluted paper trail of the shipments shows how difficult it is for the West to enforce sanctions designed to restrict Syria’s military capability, as long as Moscow prevents UN action.

The fuel sent by Russia, known as gasoil, can be marketed as diesel used for Syrian army tanks and heavy commercial vehicles, or as heating oil. Oil producer Syria has two refineries, but also needs to import large amounts of gasoil to meet domestic demand, both for heating and for transport.

Western sanctions prohibit EU and US firms from buying Syrian oil or doing business with Syrian companies handling imports of crude and refined products. Most former suppliers have dropped out for fear of violating measures designed to punish President Bashar Al-Assad for his crackdown on opponents.

That has forced Syria to rely for transport and heating fuel on a narrowing pool of allies, including Iran, which faces its own tightening sanctions because of a nuclear program it says is peaceful but the West says aims to produce an atomic bomb.

Blacklist

The latest delivery of Russian fuel reached Banias in Syria from the port of Novorossiisk

Japan’s Toyo Engineering signs cooperation deal for Iraqi oil fields TOKYO: Japan’s Toyo Engineering Corporation, said it has signed a technological cooperation agreement with Iraq’s South Oil Company for upstream projects, marking the first implementation of an alliance-type contract for Iraqi state owned companies.

The agreement covers all oil fields and related facilities that South Oil is responsible for in the south of Iraq, Japan’s major plant engineering firm said in a statement. Under the deal, Toyo will provide comprehensive technical services in order to expedite the smooth, timely and economic implementation of South Oil’s upstream projects on a long term basis and according to the Iraqi firm’s request.

“In tandem with the Japanese government’s activities relating to Iraq reconstruction, Toyo has been promoting discussions for both upstream and downstream businesses, not only with South Oil, but also the other state owned companies under control of the Iraq Ministry of Oil,” the Tokyo-based company said.

The firm has broad and worldwide experience in the provision of providing technical services, having concluded deals with more than 10 oil and gas companies, starting from the first such agreement with a joint venture between Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) and Saudi Aramco.

According to BP Plc, Iraq’s proven oil reserves as of early 2011 amounted to 115 billion barrels. -KUNA

firms, the Alvan has repeatedly changed names and ownership to skirt sanctions on Iran. According to DNV, an organization that classifies ships giving them documents necessary for insurance, the Alvan changed names and owners three times since 2011.

Until February, it was owned by Statira Maritime, a firm listed by the EU as a front for Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines, which is subjected to EU sanctions. Since then, the ship has withdrawn from DNV classification, instead listing on the Russian Maritime register with new owners.

Syrian crude

FILE- In this Saturday, Sept. 10, 2011 photo, trucks carry oil near the town of Usinsk, 1500 kilometers (930 miles) northeast of Moscow.

Russia and Iran are helping Syria import fuel which it needs for heavy vehicles including army tanks, allowing Damascus to avoid the full impact of tightening Western sanctions imposed over its violent suppression of dissent. (AP)

early this month, aboard the Liberia-flagged tanker Cape Benat.

Mahmoud El May, who heads East Mediterranean trading at Monaco-based Galaxy Energy Group confirmed the cargo was bought from a Russian company and delivered to Syria on April 12.

El May said deliveries were no longer possible for his firm because EU sanctions in March had added Syria’s distribution company Mahrukat to the blacklist through which measures are enforced.

The EU’s move has also forced Greek company Naftomar, previously a mainstay of Syrian imports, to halt deliveries of the heating fuel liquefied petroleum gas used in Syrian homes and businesses.

Non-EU firms may be able to take over from Galaxy and Naftomar, however, as sanctions apply only to firms based in the region.

Russia has provided Syria with weapons

and shielded Assad by blocking two U.N. Security Council resolutions condemning his government for the crackdown, in which the United Nations says more than 9,000 people have been killed since March 2011.

There is no evidence Russia is about to alter its stance on trade with Syria. Moscow has criticized Western nations for imposing the sanctions, and along with China has blocked them in the Security Council, where Moscow and Beijing hold vetoes.

Russia’s energy ministry on Thursday declined to comment on gasoil reaching Syria from Russian ports. The foreign ministry, which is responsible for Russia’s policy on sanctions, declined immediate comment.

Iran exchanges gasoil for gasoline

Syria’s need for gasoil makes it a perfect fit to swap with Iran, which produces plenty of diesel but has struggled for years to find suffi-

cient supplies of gasoline, the fuel used in most civilian cars.An Iranian vessel completed an exchange this week in which it delivered around 32,000 tons of gasoil to Syria and returned to Iran with about 33,000 tons of gasoline.

Oil refineries produce both gasoline and diesel in different proportions depending on the quality of crude used and the design of the refinery.

According to International Energy Agency (IEA) data for 2009, Syria needed to import more than 2.8 million tons of gasoil over the year, but it produced enough gasoline and naphtha - a light fuel similar to gasoline - to have surpluses of those fuels for export.

The Syrian gasoline cargo arrived aboard the tanker Alvan at the weekend, docking at an Iranian terminal in the Gulf near Bandar Abbas, according to industry sources and ship tracking data.

Like many vessels associated with Iranian

Syria’s own crude exports, while small by world standards, are important for the government’s finances and have been hurt by an EU embargo. Iran appears to be helping by loading ships with Syrian crude and bringing it into the Gulf, even though Tehran has been having difficulty finding buyers for its own sanctions-hit crude exports.

An Iran-linked vessel, the MT Tour, loaded up with Syrian crude at the end of March and dropped anchor near Iran’s Bandar Abbas in mid-April. It was initially bound for Singapore, but then appeared to change course.

A second vessel, the Amin, loaded around 80,000 tons of heavy crude oil from Tartous, and a further 60,000 tons of light crude oil from Banias, at the start of April. It has since sailed the same course as the MT Tour.

It is not clear where the vessels will go next.

As European and Asian customers cut back imports of Iranian oil due to sanctions, Iran has been storing millions of barrels of its own oil in tankers at sea.

The Amin was previously registered in Malta, but like the M.T. Tour, has recently changed its flag to Bolivia.

With Malta and Cyprus coming under increased pressure to stop flagging Iranian government-linked ships, there has been a flurry of registrations in the last few months half a world away in landlocked Bolivia. -Reuters

ALWATAN DAILY

BUSINESS

friday, april 27, 2012

11

Europe’s debt crisis weighs Iraqi plate dealers benefit as new car sales soar on Deutsche Bank’s Q1 FRANKFURT: Deutsche Bank AG saw its first-quarter earnings fall by around a third as customers were more reluctant to trade and invest because of Europe’s debt crisis.

Germany’s largest bank said Thursday that its net profit in the first three months of the year fell to 1.4 billion euros (1.85 billion US dollars) from 2.1 billion euros in the same quarter a year ago.

The result failed to meet expectations and the company’s share price slid 4 percent to 32.76 euros in morning trading in Frankfurt - the consensus in the markets was for a profit of around 1.65 billion euros.

A more detailed look at the bank’s statement shows that revenues fell 12 percent to 9.2 billion euros, with customers reluctant to trade at both the investment banking division, which earns money from doing deals and trading stocks and bonds, and at the retail end through the company’s Postbank branch banking business.

Revenues at the corporate and investment bank division, a key pillar of earnings, fell by eight percent to 6.2 billion euros ($8.19 billion) in what it called “a far less favorable environment compared to the prior year quarter.”

The division recovered somewhat from the turbulence that hit European markets in the second half of last year but that didn’t match the same quarter a year ago. European markets were roiled late last year by fears that a financially troubled large country such as Spain or Italy might default on its debts, fears that eased somewhat during the first quarter. Still revenue from trading debt fell 301 million euros and stock trading was down 218 million euros, or 23 percent, from the year earlier quarter.

The company said “a strong result which reflects good performance across most businesses, despite continued risk

discipline and lower client activity than in the prior year.”

The bank also took a 257 million euroswritedown as it exited a loan to pharmaceutical company Actavis, which is being bought by Watson Pharmaceuticals. It also took a 210 million euros charge for litigation expenses. Ending the bank’s exposure to Actavis would result in a boost to its capital cushion against losses, it said.

The figures were the last quarterly earnings reported by chief executive officer (CEO) Josef Ackermann before he hands the bank over to incoming coCEOs Anshu Jain and Juergen Fitschen at the end of the company’s May 31 shareholders’ meeting.

Ackermann said in a statement that “against a background of continuing caution in global financial markets we delivered solid results.”

The company saw a decline in earnings at its consumer banking division which includes Postbank. Postbank revenues fell to 972 million euros from 1.3 billion euros as the unit shed riskier assets and faced a more adverse interestrate environment. Advisory and brokerage revenues fell because of “the ongoing reluctance of retail clients to invest.”

Chief financial officer Stefan Krause said on a conference call with analysts that Postbank’s performance did not reflect its expected future earnings, citing “subdued client activity.” He also noted that the business does not yet offer the full range of Deutsche Bank products.

Deutsche Bank took majority control of Postbank, formerly owned by Deutsche Post, in 2010.

He also said that Deutsche Bank had tapped the Feb. 29 emergency credit offering of cheap, long-term loans from the European Central Bank, taking what he described as “a small amount for some of our corporate and retail business in Europe.” -AP

BAGHDAD: By the time Ibrahim Khaled Mohammed turned to a car dealer looking for an offer, his 1983 Volkswagen Passat could barely move.

But here in the Iraqi capital, the bald tires, balky engine and three decades of wear weren’t much of a problem. What the buyer really wanted was the old white license plate, a commodity far more valuable than the rusting clunker itself. The dealer paid Mohammed 3,800 US dollars, counted out in US hundred-dollar bills.

“Without the plate, it wouldn’t have been worth more than $500,” Mohammed said. Demand for new cars is soaring in Iraq as salaries rise and the level of violence creeps lower. That is good news for automakers such as General Motors Company and Kia Motors Corporation, which are reporting a big jump in sales here. The boom is proving lucrative too for dealers of recycled license plates, who profit from a quintessentially Iraqi conundrum: In many cases, the government will not issue new plates on vehicles bought from private dealerships.

As a result, many new car buyers pay middlemen for plates salvaged from old vehicles. That can add thousands of dollars to the price of a new car - effectively imposing a tax on first-time buyers that ends up in the hands of savvy businessmen rather than government coffers.

“Go to a car dealer, and they’ll say: Do you want it with a plate or without?” said Ibrahim Jamil, a businessman who occasionally deals in cars. “If you have the money, you can find a plate.”

Prices for popular Baghdad tags have skyrocketed past $4000, up from just a few hundred dollars in 2005, according to Jamil and others in the trade.

Those looking for plates often turn to extended family or friends, and even knock on the doors of strangers with a broken-down jalopy parked outside, hoping they’d be willing to sell the tags.

Because Iraqi plates include the name of the province, those from ethically and religiously mixed regions like the capital are more valuable than ones from areas where one sect predominates. The cheapest plates, dealers say, come from Anbar, Diyala and Salahuddin - provinces where Iraq’s minority Sunnis are concentrated. “If you’re a Shiite living in a Shiite neighborhood, you won’t buy a plate from Ramadi,” the capital of Anbar, said plate dealer Khaled Diwan. “You’d be too afraid.”

He estimates he makes $500 on each plate he sells. For around $4,500, he can find you a plate and take care of the paperwork of changing the plate’s registration to the new car owner. The real value, though, is getting enough plates to have ready-installed on the new Hyundais and Kias he sells out of a friend’s dealership.

“A car with a plate already on it (is) much easier to sell,” he said.

A surge in new car sales is driving up demand.

General Motors says it sold 32,000 vehicles in Iraq last year. That is up from 19,000 in 2010 and fewer than 1,500 just five years ago.

Iraq recently became GM’s second biggest regional market after Saudi Arabia, said John Stadwick, the company’s Mideast president and managing director. Business is so good that GM is building a fancy new showroom that Stadwick predicts “will probably be the nicest building in Baghdad” when it opens later this year.

Ford and Chrysler are reporting gains too. So are European and Asian automakers. South Korea’s Kia sold more than 9,000 vehicles in the first three months of this year, up 47 percent over the same period a year ago, according to spokesman Michael Choo.

But the plates problem is a brake slowing sales, say those in the industry.

“Especially for small cars,” said Mohammed Khadr, the sales and marketing

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National Bank Gulf Bank Commercial Bank Ahli Bank Ahli United Bank International Bank Burgan Bank Kw Finance House Boubyan Bank

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Taiba Kuwaiti Holding Kuwait Syrian Strategia Kuwait China Inv. Manafae Inv. Gulf North Africa Amwal Al Masar Al-Imtiaz

104 265 148 320 62 108 118 35.0 162 54 34 38.5 69 285 38.5 224.0 97.0 66.0 200 68 64 52 106

102 265 146 320 60 102 118 32.5 152 51 32 37.5 69 285 38.0 216.0 91.0 62.0 196 68 61 51 106

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Kuwait R.E. United R.E. National R.E. Salhia R.E. Pearl R.E. Tamdeen R.E. Ajial R.E. Massaleh R.E. Arab R.E. Union R.E. ERESCO Mabani INJAZZAT RE Inv. Holding Grp Int'L Resorts Commercial R.E Sanam R.E. Aa'yan R.E Aqar Kuwait R.E Holding AL Mazaya Al Dar National R.E Themar Int'L Holding Grand R.E Projects Tijara & R.E Invest Al Tameer Arkan Al-Kuwait R.E Al Argan Int'L Abyaar Munshaat First Dubai KBT Manazel REAM Mena Real Estate Al Moudon Intl. R.E Markaz Real Estate Kuwait Remal R.E

56 112 134 246 234 104 37.5 93 1,000 74 19.0 65.0 91 60 74 78 37.0 86 23.5 42.5 61 51.0 33.0 41.5 27.0 56 360

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300 520 500 134 220 122 40.50 43.48

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56 116 134 236 28.5 234 118 102 37.5 110 93 1,000 75 18.5 65.0 88 60 72 79 37.0 84 21.0 87 17.5 43.0 59 70 160 51.0 31.0 39.0 17.5 24.5 134 134 220 58 340 58.54

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228 122 450 122 1,260 290 156 880

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manager for GM’s distributor. “A guy who’s buying a $10,000 vehicle still has to pay $5000 for the plate. ... That’s a 50 percent increase.” Hassan Al-Kaabi, the Baghdad-based sales manager for Volkswagen and Audi, said he has an employee who specializes in finding plates for customers.

“The buyer doesn’t have the time, so we do it for them. It’s just another service we provide,” he said during an interview in a new reinforced glass showroom in Baghdad’s bustling Karrada neighborhood. The service doesn’t come free, though. “Of course they complain about the prices,” he said.

The government does issue new plates in some cases.

One is if you buy a new car from the state-run dealer or through infrequent government auctions. But many customers bypass the government offerings because the selection and add-on options are limited, and it can take months before popular models become available.

New plates are also available under a government program aimed at getting the large number of aging clunkers off the road - the legacy of a flood of used cars that poured into Iraq following the 2003 US-led invasion. Those cars received black temporary plates issued amid the chaos after Saddam Hussein’s fall. So owners of a temporary-plated car above a certain age can bring it to a state junkyard and walk away with a new, white plate to put on a new car - though after paying what might add up to hefty back fees.

Brig. Najim Abdul-Jaber, spokesman for the Traffic Police Directorate, defends the limits on new plates as a way to limit congestion and remove aging vehicles. He has little sympathy for Iraqis who complain the unregulated plate market drives up prices. “The people who buy new cars don’t care. They’re happy to pay that much to show off their new cars,” he said. Khadr, from the GM distributor, argues that the number of old cars has thinned, and it’s time for a straightforward registration system “like anywhere in the world. “More people would be willing to buy new cars if you didn’t have this system,” agreed Diwan, the Hyundai and Kia salesman. “It makes things difficult.” -AP

Trading Prices of Kuwait Stock Exchange Date of Closig Prices: 26/04/2012

Date of Closing Prices: 26 / 04 / 2012 For more information please contact “Global” at (+965) 180 42 42 or www.globalinv.net

Global General Index KSE Price Index

FILE - In this Tuesday, April 10, 2012 photo, a man pushes his old car to be crushed as he holds his car plate at a scrap yard in the southeastern Zafaraniya neighborhood of Baghdad, Iraq. (AP)

Last Ask

MTD YTD 0.26% -1.87% 2.79% 8.99% Div. Annual Close Yield High Low P/E

2,327,500 440,000 10,000 50,000 1,020,000 1,610,000 1,825,000 325,000 7,607,500

63 13 2 6 20 29 75 13 221

2,467,700 191,450 5,900 44,500 272,250 702,100 1,342,850 191,900 5,218,650

1,060 435 590 880 265 435 730 590

1,080 440 600 890 270 440 740 600

3.8% 0.0% 0.0% 2.5% 1.7% 1.9% 2.3% 2.1% 0.0% 2.0%

1,220 510 800 680 930 285 480 900 600 326.42

1,040 425 700 600 790 236 410 720 530 314.20

15.26 37.84 1240.61 17.74 33.38 25.83 13.44 26.39 128.53 19.40

60,000 20,000 540,000 150,000 2,960,000 15,180,000 40,000 1,040,000 17,380,000 10,840,000 10,720,000 320,000 80,000 20,000 480,000 2,580,000 8,880,000 18,480,000 1,420,000 80,000 1,280,000 1,680,000 1,680,000 95,910,000

3 2 19 8 53 238 1 9 194 147 82 4 2 2 5 87 140 278 35 1 26 34 45

102 260 144 315 60 102 116 33.0 51 32 68.0 270 38.0 220.0 91.0 196 72 67 61 51 106.0

104 265 148 320 61 230 104 118 102 35.5 152 52 32 38.5 69.0 290 56 38.5 222.0 92.0 62.0 200 280 34 80 68 62 52 108.0

0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 6.3% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 2.3% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 3.5% 4.2% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 2.4%

112 285 67 182 345 18.5 69 25.0 130 36.0 230 122 120 102 52 35.5 150 65 35 71 44.0 48.5 70.0 26.0 295 65 39 51 47.5 104 270.0 130.0 25.0 33.5 96.0 29.0 190 310 114 32 89 73 60 59 64 42.5 140.0 85.99

104 255 40 144 295 11.5 50 25.0 130 21.0 230 99 102 50 52 24.0 106 47 21 71 28.5 48.5 64.0 26.0 242 51 36 51 26.0 61 99.0 19.5 19.0 16.0 38.0 29.0 154 255 114 26 58 50 51 47 64 42.5 106.0 74.96

16.16 10.02 0.00

1,415

6,160 5,300 78,920 48,000 180,560 1,578,720 4,720 34,840 2,711,440 564,960 346,800 12,200 5,520 5,700 18,360 562,720 824,880 1,163,200 282,000 5,440 80,000 86,600 178,080 8,785,120

-

-

-

270 455 124 -

300 530 475 43.0

6.7% 3.8% 5.0% 3.7% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 4.7%

325 610 540 148 220 134 40.5 44.91

280 520 450 102 220 102 40.5 42.22

3,320,000 2,980,000 340,000 1,580,000 260,000 180,000 640,000 800,000 482,500 160,000 31,680,000 9,240,000 3,520,000 1,040,000 7,960,000 40,000 240,000 2,080,000 33,680,000 1,360,000 160,000 71,880,000 5,680,000 6,480,000 32,000,000 80,000 5,570,000 223,432,500

24 29 11 36 5 2 7 14 32 4 144 86 28 25 97 1 3 30 268 13 4 281 57 46 215 2 114 1,578

182,720 324,480 44,480 386,840 60,840 18,720 23,720 73,760 482,500 11,840 582,560 588,520 309,960 62,200 577,680 3,120 8,880 176,960 759,320 57,280 9,480 3,524,280 182,880 264,880 815,960 4,440 1,973,750 11,512,050

55 108 130 244 232 120 104 36.5 91 990 73 18.5 63.0 90 59 70 77 35.0 84 23.0 87 41.0 70 150 48.0 31.0 40.0 25.5 36 55 355

56 112 132 246 30.0 234 138 106 37.5 92 1,000 75 19.0 64.0 91 60 72 83 37.0 85 23.5 92 41.5 61 72 168 48.5 32.0 41.0 26.5 39 57 360

0.0% 4.5% 0.0% 6.1% 0.0% 3.4% 0.0% 6.7% 0.0% 6.4% 0.0% 1.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 5.5% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 7.1% 6.3% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 3.7% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 1.0%

63 118 152 246 37.5 250 130 100 52.0 120 104 1,080 85 20.0 68.0 97 75 73 90 38.0 92 23.0 91 17.5 45.0 70 80 174 52.0 39.5 40.5 28.5 25.5 134 40 220 70 480 58.67

47 97 108 200 28.5 224 114 77 27.0 108 94 840 62 11.0 35.0 77 54 52 74 33.0 59 13.5 87 17.5 31.0 57 64 116 27.5 22.0 25.0 17.5 15.0 134 31 220 49 270 49.06

1,820,000 1 820 000 140,000 87,500 20,000 40,000 35,000

35 6 13 2 2 5

408,800 408 800 17,080 110,600 5,800 6,120 30,250

224 120 445 122 1,240 285 146 850

226 122 450 132 1,260 295 156 870

0.0% 0 0% 0.0% 3.3% 0.0% 5.8% 3.4% 0.0% 7.5%

260 136 475 158 1,480 345 222 920

214 116 415 122 1,240 290 134 660

14.24 0.00 9.18 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 47.89 0.00 0.00 73.01 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 13.04 0.00 0.00 0.00 19.76 20.94 16.18 573.07

0.00 0.00 5.29 13.96 13.38 13.67 11.92 21.80 63.13 64711.96 13.38 50.32 12.93 17.17 22.83 10.99 15.16 23.12 29.41 0.00 15.86 422.48

130.53 0.00 12.82 8.00 207.01 0.00 0.00 26.88 439.41 0.00 0.00 19.39

20.11 7.29 13.08 19.03 31.17

226 87 United Industries 88 Company Boubyan Petroch.

High- Low Gulf Glass 1,140 - 1,120 National Bank HilalBank Cement 490 Gulf 495 Al Kout Ind. Project Commercial Bank 770 770 K-PAK 640 Ahli Bank 640 Building Material Ahli United Bank 850 800 305 305 Nat. Ind.Co. Bank 248 International 248 180 Equipment Holding 188 460 Burgan Bank 455 Consumer 890 Kw FinanceIndustries House 880 Kuwait Gypsum 580 Boubyan Bank 590 Qurain Index - Banking 216 216 Global Salbookh Trading Kw Investment IKARUS 190 186 265 260 Commercial Facilit.

78 Boubyan Int'L Ind. 75 41 40 Int'L Financial Adv. Global Invest.

Index - Industrial 174 National 170 300 Kw Projects 300 National Cinema Ahlia Holding 13.5 12.5 Kw Hotels Coast 53 52 425 AgilityInvest.

410 Int'L Investor Market Complexes Securities House ZAIN 740 750 Ind. & Energy Fin. Inv. Safat 79.0 77.0 -Securities Group -Educational Group Int'L Finance 340 Indep.

Petroleum 340 110 MARKAZ 108 National Cleaning 166 156 KMIFIC 108 106 Sultan Center Int'L Inv. Group Arabi Group 140 130 Aref Inv. Group City Group Investment Dar Wataniya Tele.

2,460 2,440 Al AMAN Inv. Kw GulfInv. Link 130 122 ALOLA 110 108 Kw Cable ALMAL Inv.Vision 50 49 Automated System -Gulf Inv. House -NAPESCO -A'ayan Leasing KCPC Inv. 280 290 31.0 32.5 Bayan K.S.H GLOBAL Inv. Eyas Inv. Osoul Hits Telecom - 95 GULFINVEST - 99 Al Safwa Holding 17.5 18.5 KFIC Human Soft KAMCO --75 Privatization 75 Int'l Leasing &Holding Inv. 94 Nafaaes Holding 102 Nat. Int'l Holding --Housing National Finance Slaughter MADAR Aref energy 132 126 26.5 Al Deera Holding 26.5 Safwan Al Safat Inv. Gulf Petroleum 69.0 66.0 122.0 Al Salam Group Gulf Franchising 25.0 114.0 23.0 39.0 41.0 Ekttitab Credit &Holding Collection Al QurainRanges Holding 21.5 National 22.5 16.5 Sokouk 16.5 248 248 Burgan Holding Well Drilling Al-Madina 40.0 38.5 IFA H&R Finance NOOR Combinted Group 1,700 1,680 Tamdeen Inv. 160 158 Jeeran Holding 85 85 KW BHAgro Int'l Exch.

Palms 108 108 Taiba Kuwaiti Holding 73.0 73.0 Safat TEC Kuwait Syrian Mushrif Trading 102 96 Strategia UPAC 53 53 Kuwait China Inv. 295 ALAFCO 295 Manafae Inv. Al-Muwasat -Gulf North Africa -280 295 Mashaer Holding Amwal Oula Fuel Al Masar Future Comm.

124 Al-Imtiaz 132 122 118 Hayat Comm.

Global Index - Investment 71 69 Mubarrad Transport Kuwait - - Kuwait Insurance Resorts -Gulf Insurance -Advanced Technolgy Ahlia 365 365 YiacoInsurance Medical 112 108 Warba Insurance Al Jazeera Airways 435 440 Kuwait Re-Ins. Al Soor Fuel First Takaful Ins. Future Kid Wethaq Insurance 280 285 KGL Global Index - Insurance Al Nawadi Alrai Media 120 126 48 Kuwait R.E. 48 100 United R.E. 100 Zima Holding 118 National 126 Global R.E. Index - Services 200 Salhia R.E. 204 LiveStock Pearl R.E. Trans.

91 Dana Al-Safat 94 224 224 Tamdeen R.E. United Poultry Ajial R.E. Kw FoodStuff -Massaleh R.E. -United Food Arab R.E. 30.0 30.0 Kout Food 580 580 Union R.E. 96 ERESCO Global Index - Food 98 860 840 Mabani Sharjah Cement 75 74 INJAZZAT RE Gulf Cement 87 84 12.0 11.5 Inv. Holding Grp Um Quwain Cement 63 62 Int'L Resorts Fujaira Cement 78 77 Commercial R.E 126 Ras AlKheimah 124 70 65 Sanam R.E. ARIG 54 53 Aa'yan R.E United Gulf Bank --Aqar Egypt Kw -290 Kuwait R.EHolding Holding -285 Bahrain Kw Ins. 59 AL Mazaya 60 55.0 Gulf Fin. HouseR.E 58.0 14.0 Al Dar National 14.0 Inovest Int'L Holding 77 74 Themar -170 Grand R.E Projects -172 Ahli United Bank Tijara & R.E Invest 39.0 Ithmaar Bank 41.5 Al Tameer Global Index - Non-Kuwaiti Arkan Al-Kuwait R.E 70 70 Markaz Real Estate Safat Global Investment Al Argan Int'L Funds 28.5 28.0 Abyaar Al-Bareeq Holding 23.5 23.5 Munshaat AFAQ 25.5 First Dubai 26.0 Al-Shamel KBT 27.0 27.0 Al-Safat Real Estate Manazel 16.5 15.5 Ajwan Real Estate REAM Specialities Group 500 530 Mena Real Estate Masaken Inter.

Al Moudon Intl. R.E DulaqanReal R.E Estate Markaz 57 56 Eid Food Kuwait Remal R.E 295 285 Maidan Clinic Global Index - Real Estate Flex Nationl Ind. Group 232 Dar Al-Thuraya Real E 242 96.0 93.0 Pipes Ind. & Services Oil 128 126 Kw Medical 75 75 Kuwait Cement 455 450 Amar For Fin. & Leas.

Refrigeration Ind. Total Parallel Market1,420 1,420 Gulf Cables & Elec.

Heavy & Ship.

Total eng.

Market Marine Services Global Cement Special Indices 720 Portland 720 Shuaiba Global Industrial Index - Kuwaiti Co.'s 104 Metal Collecting 110 Cap. Global Index - 10 Large Kuwait Foundry Global Index - Islamic Shuaiba Industrial

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Metal Collecting Global General Index Kuwait Foundry KSE Price Index ACICO 226

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Ÿ ź Ÿ ŷ Ÿ ŷ ź ŷ ŷ Ÿ ŷ ź ŷ ź ŷ ŷ ź ŷ ź Ÿ ź Ÿ ŷ ŷ ź ŷ Ÿ ŷ ź ź ŷ ŷ ŷ ź ŷ ź ŷ ź ŷ ŷ ź ŷ ŷ ź ŷ ŷ ŷ ŷ ź ŷ Ÿ ŷ ź ź Ÿ ŷ Ÿ ź ŷ ŷ ź ŷ ŷ ŷ ŷ ź ŷ

- Change 216 216 216 Last Close Previous Close DTD 122 176.53 122 114 -0.40% 122 177.24 -0.70 345 345 330 355 5,726.90 5,754.20 -27.3013,560 -0.47% 60,000 3 226 226 226 228 Last Prev.

Trading Activity -1 280,000 7 24,520 Last87 Last 88 88 89 620 620 610 Close Close Volume Tran. Value(KD) Bid Ask 620 Chng 1,100 1,100 1,100 3,796,050 - 1,120 -1120 1120 69 3,377,500 1,140 216 216 222 216 20 495 495 830,000 407,950 490 495 415 415 390 770 770 10,000 1 7,700 -770 780 275 275 300 640 -20 2 6,400 660 10,000 640 660 224 Ex-D 224 800 50 850 350,000 23 282,700 840 850 100,000 305 305 30,500 305 310 16 6 248 248 -700,000 173,600 246 248 178 1,540,000 43 10 286,640 188 188 460 465 -5 500,000 10 229,750 460 465 102 102 890 -10 880 1,280,000 66 1,127,050 880 870 128 Ex-D 128 590 590 607,850 1,035,000 33 590 580 1,980,000 240 216 24 216 427,680 214 216 319.37 319.54 8,092,500 6,639,050 0.17-44 44 106 106 102 106 190 188 120,000 4 -2 22,560 188 190 260 265 -5 250,000 14 65,750 260 265 75 1 76 840,000 17 64,720 77 76 40 1,680,000 -1 67,160 41 13 40 40 1,448,830 167.62 7,062,500 167 0.36167.97 170 1,040,000 20 172 -2 177,720 172 168 300 110,000 5 33,000 295 5295 300 960 960 960 1,000 7,040,000 12.5 12.5 46 90,920 12.5 13.0 280 280 1,280,000 22 52 53 --1 67,280 51 52 2,230,000 410 425 15 59 931,150 410 415 25.0 25.0 52 52 130 130 569,850 10 770,000 750 740 56 740 750 31.0 31.0 -78.0 33.5 3,520,000 79.0 78.0 33 274,840 1.0 79.0 230 230 - - - - - 110 110 -102 102 -1 3,400 340 10,000 350 10.0325 340 108 112 73,920 680,000 18 106 110 251,840 1,580,000 164 8.034 156 154 156 50 50 1,500,000 108 108 47 160,520 106 108 44.0 44.0 94 5,200,000 140 -10 130 695,640 130 132 52 52 550 550 560 74 74 16 100,000 2,460 2,460 244,250 2,460 2,480 28.5 28.5 27.0 29.5 579,600 4,660,000 122 132 127 -10 124 122 108 14 54,920 108 500,000 110 108 58 58 49 49.5 15,840 -1 320,000 4 49 5057 300 300 290 325 23 - - 23 -- 21 24 330 330 320 71 71 - 17,250 290 60,000 290 280 290 31.0 31.0 58,760 1,840,000 22 4 -31.0 32.5 255 255 48.5 48.5 - 250 260 Ex-D 260 - - 68 68 - 64.0 1,446,960 15,060,000 179 95 100 20.5 20.5 - -5 - 95 18.0 18.0 9,280,000 76 167,200 26.0 26.0 -17.5 - 18.0 270 270 270 244 - 244 -- - - 238 76 760,000 75 14 57,000 94 -1 94 -74 -75 94 180,000 17,320 99 -5 51 51 -5 102 -94 54 - 36 36 -- - 154 154 - 184 51 51 -2 128 26 80,640 126 620,000 128 130 26.5 26.5 2 6,360 240,000 26.0 27.0 540 540 510 590 75 75 67.0 3.070.0 2,760,000 40 187,480 66.0 68.0 8.0 120.0 112.0 1,305,280 120.0 23.0 25.0 560,000 212 7 2.0- 11,180,000 13,440 118.0 22.5 2.0-39.5 41.5 24 77,080 1,920,000 39.0 120 120 130 19.0 19.0 - 0.520.0 18.0 22.0 140 617,520 22.5 28,160,000 21.5 22.0 16.5 - -7 51 7,920 16.5 480,000 16.0 16.5 4,960 248 255 20,000 260 39.0 0.5-- 10,640,000 93 419,440 38.5 38.5 39.0 395 395 400 380 29.0 29.0 -7 1,680 45,000 1,680 75,800 1,680 1,700 160 2.0-1 158 12,680 80,000 41 15685 16088 3,400 85 84 40,000 255 - -20 255 -2 - 270 4,320 108 128 40,000 112 114 114 73.0 23,360 73.0 320,000 4 70.0 74.0 26.00 26.00 27 60 3 080 000 310 080 96 102 6.03,080,000 60 310,080 97 98 68 68 63 73 340 340 340 350 53 200,000 53 10,600 2 53 52 350,000 295 103,250 295 10 295 300 60 60 61 168 168 178 46.5 -- - - 46.5 47 - 1,030,000 290 290 38 297,700 285 290 64 -64 69 260 260 42.50 -42.50 - - - 255 - 260 265 265 280 128 130 -2 1,240,000 38 157,920 - 124.0 128.0 120 120 1,040,000 44 125,000 122 120 76.02 0.1275.90 40,720,000 558 2,702,550 71 69 107 2 5,640,000 398,160 71 69 - - 325 325 - 325 300 47.0 47.0 -49.0 46.5 - - 560 560 - 610 510 810 810 -760 -1 485 485 460 500 365 -10,000 365 3,650 365 375 118 --8 120,000 110 64 13,200 108 114 435 40,000 455 20 17,450 425 430 220 220 Ex-D 236 236 234 236 114 114 110 108 Ex-D 108 106 108 40.50 40.50 43.0 280 -5 670,000 38 285 187,900 275 280 43.63 43.43 0.19-120,000 6 13,200 82 82 81 85 126 118 80,000 9,800 14 3,840 49 -1 8 48 80,000 112 126 49 48 92,000 9 100 99 1920,000 98 98 100 99 106 383,920 124 120 4 3,100,000 126 122 1,279 748.85 1.74 747.11 89,415,000 105 7,880,730 12 104,680 200 204 -4 520,000 202 200 184 184 37.5 37.5 -- - - 37.5 96 93 -3 39 285,000 3,080,000 3 224 10.0100,000 22,400 234 22494 -93 136 136 - 120 - 120 -- 110 130 1,360 1,360 1,380 1,360 82 -- - 82 - 85 340 340 1 30.0 80,000 30.5 0.5-2,400 31.5 25,000 560 14,500 580 530 - 20 108 108 -2 112 118 31,160 -1 320,000 98 97 8 3,105,000 335.27 41 299,500 0.29 334.98 95 98 1,656,950 10 1,935,000 850 57 860 860 870 80 80 2 8,960 120,000 2 75 73 76 71 1,080,000 18 86 86 91,680 15 23,960 11.5 12.0 0.52,000,000 11.5 12.0 80,000 2 Ex-D 69 69 5,000 82 86 38.0 38.0 35.5 37.0 91 91 63 61 3 18,520 78 77 1 240,000 77 79 17,440 3 126 126 140,000 92 67,400 17 1,000,000 65 70 -5 65 114 114 124 126 4 10,720 54 -1 55 200,000 53 54 178 178 112 116 - 90 -- 90 - 91 14,300 285 290 50,000 186 -3 38.0 - -5 38.0 40.5 - 174 455 455 Ex-D 285 295 11 59 26,160 440,000 -4 63 60 58,800,000 58.0 57.0 364 1 3,330,120 1 80,000 1,120 14.0 14.5 0.514.5 13.5 91 91 9458 9057 1 74 136 1,146,280 75 15,240,000 - -4 17.5 17.5 - 75 - 74 170 174 22 201,080 1,180,000 31.0 31.0 33.5 30.0 41.5 39.0 54,800,000 327 2,220,680 3 170.0 172.0 59 59 57 7,026,580 0.3643.52 131,370,000 875 43.16 -4 320,000 2 22,400 70 74 70 74 122 122 - - - 48.5 48.5 - - - 124 124 116 126 12 0.52,720,000 76,880 28.0 28.5 28.0 28.5 144 144 1.0-80,000 1 1,880 23.5 24.5 25.0 23.5 106 106 0.5240,000 6,160 3 26.0 25.5 25.0 25.5 250 250 Ex-D 255 35,040,000 946,080 4 27.0 27.0 24.5 28.0 19.0 19.0 17.0 20.5 1,200,000 8 1.019,240 16.5 15.5 15.5 16.0 33 33 31 34 134 134 130 -10 510 255,000 520 27 133,000 510 520 134 134 29 32 51 51 50 220 220 218 345 345 -1 240,000 6 13,520 57 58 55 57 106 106 80 47 610,850 295 290 5 2,110,000 290 295 2,260 2,260 0.0253,085,000 4,151,200 332 49.73 49.75 39.5 39.5 42.0 242 -10 3,111,120 232 232 92.0 7,560 96.0 4.0 13,220,000 80,000 154 2 -97.0 128 -5 140,000 61 17,800 128 12270 130 70 40,000 3,000 75 470 -20 50,000 2 22,550 450 455 465 55 55 150 150 150 30 143,560 375,000 1,460 -40 2,500 1 1,420 3,550 1,420 1,440 335 - 557,902,500335 310 340 5,576 42,171,460 212 212 216 Prev. Close Change 710 DTD 720 Close 230,000 720 19 165,600 720 ź180 190.12 -0.68 -0.36% 180 189.44 178 190 106 184.30-2 80,000 8,480 108 ź104 185.043 -0.74 104 -0.40% 460 563.14 435 ź460 565.27 -2.13 -0.38%

0.0% 216 180 13.22 MTD YTD 0.0% 120 102 -1.55% -1.55% 495 0.0% 315 -1.50% -1.50% 230 2.2% 196 28.05 Div. 0.0% Annual 102 Close 79 36.02 0.0% 630 550 Yield High Low P/E88.41 3.6% 1,400 1,100 17.40 3.6% 1,120 1,100 14.74 6.9% 216 206 12.38 0.0% 510 490 33.95 8.4% 340 9.94 415 1.9% 790 770 88.62 0.0% 275 5.20 300 3.1% 660 640 17.34 2.2% 228 224 35.32 1.6% 850 790 29.68 3.3% 24.93 325 260 0.0% 255 248 23.59 0.0% 152 0.0% 475 46051 12.26 0.0% 102 2.3% 900 88093 25.07 5.5% 128 18.88 128 112.24 0.0% 590 590 0.0% 319.54 210 13.15 222 318.41 2.0% 18.61 0.0% 51 41 0.00 0.0% 106 106 40.56 4.3% 214 162 16.76 8.5% 265 260 12.09 0.0% 88 70 0.0% 42 40 2.8% 174.76 163.04 13.77 0.0% 174 170 88.93

6.7% 4.4% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 7.3% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 8.7% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 9.3% 3.2% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 2.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 8.3% 0.0% 7.6% 0.0% 3.4% 0.0% 7.1% 0.0% 7.7% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 6.7% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 5.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% % 4.2% 3.8% 0.0% 5.1% 9.3% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0 0% 0.0% 0.0% 8.8% 0.0% 3.4% 0.0% 6.0% 10.8% 4.5% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 2.4% 0.0% 6.2% 0.0% 4.5% 1.9% 5.2% 4.1% 9.1% 0.0% 2.7% 0.0% 0.0% 4.6% 0.0% 7.1% 4.7% 8.5% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 12.1% 10.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 4.5% 3.7% 0.0% 4.8% 6.1% 1.5% 0.0% 5.2% 6.5% 4.2% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 10.1% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 7.9% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 7.0% 0.0% 5.5% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 5.5% 0.0% 7.1% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 4.2% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 4.7% 0.0% 6.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 3.7% 5.5% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 1.1% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 2.2% 0.0% 3.3% 0.6% 4.6% 3.0% 4.71% 2.4% 13.9% 5.6% 0.0% 4.3%

305 295 910 1,120 13.5 12.5 280 280 54 52 430 340 25.065 25.041 130 130 900 690 36.0 31.0 45.0 81.0 230 230 110 110 102 102 350 295 116 108 170 110 50 50 136 102 44.0 44.0 132 84 52 52 550 530 74 74 2,440 1,920 28.5 28.5 132 112 10895 5168 4958 350 230 23 22 395 340 71 71 305 260 31.5 31.0 260 255 48.5 48.5 260 260 68.0 68.0 132 20.5 20.554 23.5 14.0 26.0 26.0 280 270 244 244 9484 9461 104 51 5184 36 36 154 154 51 5191 120 26.5 27.5 710 520 75 75 78.0 30.0 99.0 120.0 28.5 16.0 19.5 41.5 120 140 19.0 19.0 22.5 12.0 17.0 16.5 275 198 39.0 38.0 490 380 29.0 29.0 1,740 1,500 15673 16289 25586 255 126 114 114 78.0 57.0 26 28 104 80 68 68 340 270 53 55 280 315 60 60 130 168 47 47 172 305 64 64 265 305 42.5 42.5 300 265 132.0 128.0 76.32124 75.90 70 51 72 325 325 62.0 44.0 560 560 770 640 520 485 390 345 118 110 485 410 220 220 270 236 134 114 98 114 40.5 40.5 300 218 44.80 92 43.43 77 156 114 49 48 100 9994 110 120 128 791.90 705.36 200 208 222 182 37.5 37.5 114 234 22490 136 126 130 120 1,500 1,360 82 82 390 340 30.5 30.0 610 500 108 108 365.22 334.34 100 96 860 840 44 95 76 73 108 55 12.5 11.5 73 43 38.0 38.0 122 46 78 77 126 118 75 65 132 102 54 55 232 172 90 90 330 250 38.0 38.0 455 455 63 59 40.5 74.0 14.5 14.0 91 91 17.5 17.5 31.0 31.0 59 59 40.74 47.16 78 70 1,220 1,220 48.5 48.5 144 124 29.0 28.0 24.5 23.5 26.0 25.5 28.5 27.0 16.5 15.5 134 134 32 32 220 220 57 60 295 270 49.86 49.73 232 260 130 128 470 450 158 150 1,460 1,420 340 335 212 222 MTD 710 740 -1.93% 180 180 104 116 -3.14% 460 0.63% 460

12.13 18.02 1.33 15.87 0.00 0.00 11.30

58.86 0.00 19.93 0.00 0.00 10.98 0.00 0.00 12.84 0.00 0.00 22.18 8.13 0.00 9.91 12.82 4.79 32.31 313.10 0.00 12.91 13.28 0.00 116.80 0.00 9.95 0.00 13.11 0.00 10.40 0.00 40.69 86.17 0.00 15.98 8.28 5.65 22.77 12.52 11.92 0 00 0.00 43.00 12.34 3.86 7.71 10.32 21.12 0.00 18.62 5.19 10.01

16.97 20.47 12.90 33.57 9.91 11.96 17.37 9.97 296.83 17.36

14.91 8.57 12.60 7.12 23.44 37.20 12.83 22.21 11.46 17.83 15.27 16.20 6.02 11.38 5.29 44.60 10.40 15.28 11.40 39.65 21.70 0.00 32.06 14.56 11.30 26.32 387.72 6.35 0.00 550.96 4.15

9.38 19.44 8.71 11.37 0.00 5.38 27.28 5.03 13.99 23.07 16.69 18.82 816.78 0.00 9.98 0.00 16.27 22.19 70.58 18.38

14.56 6.49

8.02 14.69 193.84 YTD 96.15 -0.06% 10.91 23.15 -3.05% 26.77 0.20%

STOCKS WITH NBK CAPITAL

12

ALWATAN DAILY friday, april 27, 2012

April 2009 April21, 26, 2012

2% 6%

1% 6% Oman

95

Abu Dhabi

Bahrain

Dubai

-4%

Bahrain

-2%

Kuwait

-1%

100

-2%

-6%

Oman

90

GCC Best Performers

Saudi

95 26-Jan-12 85

26-Feb-12

26-Mar-12

MENA Best Performers

-2%

26-Apr-12

-6%-2

S&P Pan 3-Feb-09 Arab Large/ 18-Feb-09 Mid Composite S&P 20-Mar-09 GCC Large/ Mid Composite 19-Jan-09 5-Mar-09 4-Apr-09 19-Apr-0

1

MENA Indices Highlights Country (Index)

Index Level

% Chg.

YTD

Sa Saudi Arabia (Tadawul All Share Index)* Country (Index)

Index 7,542

UASa UAE (ADX Index) Saudi Arabia (Tadawul All Share Index)

2,508 5,250

-0.2% -4.0%

Qa UAUAE Qatar (DSM Index) (ADSM Index)

8,661 2,695

0.1% 0.6%

Ba Qa Bahrain Qatar(BSE (DSMIndex) Index)

1,145 5,590

-0.2% 3.9%

Jo Jordan (Amman General Index)

1,990

-0.6%

Ku Kuwait (KSE Weighted Index)

UAE (DFM(KSE Index) Ku Kuwait Weighted Index)

OmOman UAE(MSM (DFMIndex) Index)

Level 418

1,652 406

5,839 1,745

Eg Egypt (EGX 30 Index)

OmOman (MSM Index)

Ba Bahrain (BSE Index)

M Morocco (Casa All Shares Index)

Eg Egypt (Hermes Egypt Index (HFI))*

Le Lebanon (Beirut SE Index)

Jo Jordan (Amman General Index)

Pa Palestine (Al-Quds Index)

M Morocco (Casa All Shares Index)*

Tu Tunisia (Tunis SE Index)

Le Lebanon (Beirut SE Index)* *Market Closed

Pa Palestine (Al-Quds Index)

4,935

5,478

1,681

10,328

463

1,181

2,825 470

10,621

5,089

1,094 546

Tu Tunisia (Tunis SE Index)* * Market Closed

3,282

52 Wk High

% Chg.-

17.5% YTD

-0.4%

3.0%

13 2,183

-1.3% 12.8%

8,892 5,148

8,071 2,137

146 122

0.1% -18.8%

1,407 12,627

1,129 4,230

1 196

2,214

1,921

2.5% 6.6%

36.2%

0.7%

-0.1%

0.4%

0.3%

-6.8%

-7.1%

-

8.5%

0.3%

2.2%

0.0%

0.1%

2.4%

-1.5%

-

-

6,372 5,860

5,628

12,109 2,903

12,203

1,033

1,403

5,044 513

14,635

23.6%

739

-7.2%

0.9%

1,754 787

-3.3%

6.9%

-

152

2,293 4,130

-1.3% 1.9%

-0.1%

396

Turnover USD million

2,775 10,090

22.1% -0.2%

5.1%

467

52 Wk 5,916 Low

Turnover USD million

4.3% 9.3%

-0.5% 1.8%

0.5%

52 Wk 7,931 High

52 Wk Low

5,115

2,119

13.6%

1,301 316

66,242 264,263

4,224

1,572

10,233

328

-

1,164

2,551 465

9,406

-

4,091

1,043

-

2,837

-

407

17,175 65,352

9.00 8.85

15,024

4

9.50

13.62

63,640

7.67

18,727

3

1.60

1.29

15.12

2

10,553

33,782

12.71

6

10,056

15.58

2

2,079

3

1.68

8.07

56,920

67

1.35

3.22

1.56

6.34

2,524

0.85

2.15

9.06

59,990

1.15

18.36

8,507

3.95

6.47

8.67

6,576

13.85

TAMTamweel

KWD 0.130 SAR 48.00

-3.0% -8.6%

SAR 24.70

-6.4%

SAR 13.70

GCC Highest Turnover

101 Riyad Bank

13,816,738 12,520,301

201 Saudi Basic Industries Corp.

(KSA) NBK National Bank of Kuwait (KUW)

Turnover (USD)

9,205,326

QTEQatar Telecom (QA)

343,553,085 8,879,813 119,955,261 7,663,038

115 Alinma (KSA)(UAE) EMA EmaarBank Properties

97,126,838

NBKNational Bank of Kuwait (KUW)

88,742,222

7,542 (0.0%)

Tadawul Index (% Chg.)

125

82%

% of stocks trading above 1yr avg. price

-

Advance/Decline Ratio 115

7,931 / 5,916

Tadawul Index 52 week High / Low

116

-

Turnover (SAR '000)

1,475,048,917

Market Cap. (SAR '000)

114

Close #N/A

#N/A

#N/A

#N/A

#N/A

#N/A

#N/A

#N/A #N/A #N/A

#N/A

#

#N/A

#

26-Feb-12

26-Mar-12

S&P GCC Large/Mid Composite

26-Apr-12

#

#N/A

#N/A

#N/A

#N/A

#N/A

#N/A

#N/A

#N/A

#N/A

Worst Performers Turnover (SAR) 7020.SSE Etihad Etisalat Co. #N/A #N/A #N/A #N/A #N/A #N/A

1 Al Rajhi Bank

#

% Chg.

#N/A

Highest Turnover

105

64,280,166

EMAEmaar Properties (UAE) Best Performers

Summary

-6.8%

Turnover (USD)

MENA Highest Turnover

ARTArabtec Holding (UAE)

KFI Kuwait Finance House (KUW)

Rebased Performance

95 26-Jan-12

KWD 0.260 -13.1% 0.0% KWD 0.265 KWD 0.410 -3.5% SAR 22.95 -8.9%

225 Saudi Industrial Inv. Grp.

2.50

SAUDI ARABIA *Market Closed

-4.4%

AED 1.21% Chg. -4.0% Close

IQCIndustries Qatar (QA)

1.92

% Chg.

KWD 0.435

1.78

0.86

8.0%

Close

JAZJazeera Airways

0.88 201 NR Saudi National Real Estate Co. 1.74 Basic Industries Corp.

9.62

27,397

MENA Worst Performers

1.90 FAC OUCommercial Oula Fuel Marketing Co. 1.37 Facilities Co. 1.58 AG Agility 0.88 238 Rabigh Petrochem.

10.39 6.87

56,923

46

0.78 1.52

11.37 7.29

18,052 37,413

10

11.68 9.99

124,996 69,783

1.03 1.77

8.0%

OMR 0.720

GCC Worst Performers

2.00

1.9%

QAR 21.60

BKMBankMuscat

PB1.43

3.4% 8.6%

KWD 0.265

QGTQatar Gas Transport Co. PB

4.2% 8.8%

KWD 0.091 QAR 6.35

FACCommercial Facilities Co.

PE 14.29 8.57 10.24

34,568 98,547

94

Trailing

4.5% 9.8%

KWD 0.246 OMR 0.703

ALTThe Commercial Real Estate Co. KCB Al Khaliji Commercial Bank

12.96

101,124

8 305

3,587

3,418

Mkt. Cap. 393,315 USD million

63 718

5,419 1,433

PE

QAR SAR 134.80 5.60

SRE SalhiaEngineering Real Estate&Co. GEC Galfar Contracting

Trailing

Mkt. Cap. USD million

% Chg.

USD 0.155% Chg. 6.9% Close

QTE Qatar Telecom 3 428 Kingdom Hldg. Co.

Period's Liquidity Ratio (PLR x)*

MENA Indices Highlights

Close

4 ITH Ithmaar Bank

Period's Liquidity 1 Ratio (PLR x)

-1

Abu Dhabi

0%

-1%

Tunisia Abu Dhabi

Qatar

Abu Dhabi

0%

100

105

0%

Kuwait

Dubai Palestine

Return DailyDaily Return (%)(%)

Dubai

Qatar Dubai

110

2%

Saudi Oman

105

110

0%

Qatar

1%

Qatar Morocco

111

114

4%

Oman Lebanon

115110

Kuwait

113

Jordan Kuwait

113

DailyIndex Index Performance Snapshot Daily Performance Snapshot

Egypt Jordan

120115

Bull/Bear Indicator Bull/Bear Indicator

Bahrain Bahrain

Rebased RebasedPerformance Performance

#N/A

#N/A

#N/A

#N/A

#N/A

Close

% Chg.

69.00 #N/A

#N/A

#N/A

#N/A

#N/A

#N/A

7020.SSE Etihad Etisalat Co.

69.00 -

#N/A

Saudi SE

Quotes Company Name 1 Al Rajhi Bank

Close 78.50

Daily % Chg.

High -

-

Low

Turnover (SAR '000)

-

-

-

-

-

-

1 Alinma Bank

15.15

-

-

-

-

1 Arab National Bank

30.60

-

-

-

-

1 Bank Al Jazira

28.30

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

2 Almarai Co.

1 Bank AlBilad

64.25

30.80

-

-

-

-

1 Banque Saudi Fransi

38.10

-

-

-

-

4 Emaar the Economic City

13.40

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

4 Dar Al Arkan Real Estate Dev. Co. 7 Etihad Etisalat Co.

4 Jabal Omar Development Co. 4 Jarir Marketing Co.

4 Kingdom Holding Co.

2 National Industrialization Co.

2 Rabigh Refining & Petrochemical Co. 1 Riyad Bank

1 Samba Financial Grp.

11.75

69.00

22.90

160.50 12.30

35.50

22.80

25.00

50.50

2 Saudi Arabian Fertilizer Co.

180.75

2 Saudi Basic Industries Corp.

102.75

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

33.60

-

-

-

-

95.50

-

-

-

-

1 Saudi Hollandi Bank

28.70

-

-

-

-

2 1 Saudi Investment Bank 2 Saudi Kayan Petrochemical Co. 7 Saudi Telecom Co. 2

21.75

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

1 Saudi Arabian Mining Co. 3 Saudi Cement Co.

5 Saudi Electricity Co.

22 Saudi Industrial Investment Grp.

Saudi International Petrochemical Co.

Savola Group Co. 0 3 Southern Province Cement Co. 0 1 SABB 3 Yamama Saudi Cement Co.

2 Yanbu National Petrochemicals Co. 7 Zain - Saudi Arabia

13.75

23.90 18.80

18.00

-

-

-

-

-

-

Volume ('000) -

52-Week High

67.25

71.75

48.41

-10.5%

17.20

-6.4%

16.25

-

33.70

-

-

32.90

31.90

9.05

26.60

34,443,081

11.8

1.8

92.8%

11,390,000

31.4%

28.4%

-

165.00

105.50

-2.7%

-

50.75

35.10

-30.0%

-12.8%

26.90

23.10

-7.1%

7.3%

-

-

-

-

-

22.90

13.10

29.80

56.75

11.10 7.05

21.20

-1.5%

0.0%

-6.1%

-23.5%

13.1%

82.3%

88.5%

15.3%

39.0%

60.7%

50.7%

55.50

-2.6%

32.6%

68.3%

-

29.30

21.42

-2.0%

15.6%

12.9%

-

24.45

17.75

10.4%

-0.7%

87.75

-

16.30

-

-

27.20 21.00 21.30

18.55

-12.1%

25.8%

15.55

-10.5%

16.4%

15.50

106.75

63.25

50.00

-

-

-

-

-

83.25

-

-

-

-

-

46.30

56.25

11.50

6.8%

-15.6%

-

35.50

2.7%

12.85

-

-

-8.3%

-11.0%

-15.5%

-1.1%

3.4%

2.7%

nmf

1.5

2.7

2.4

17.8

9.9

8.3

1.7

nmf

nmf

11.9

10.6

1.7 2.4

1.2

1.6

2.1

-0.4%

57,290,665

23.8

1.1

31,080,000

14,611,500

11,391,030

nmf

15.4

11.2

1.8

5.0

1.5

-7.0%

10,755,000

21.7

1.7

-1.3%

10,340,000

14.6

1.2

84,800,000

11.1

1.8

14,315,000

15.0

5.9

-2.4%

47.50

-39.9%

-28.6%

5.25

-15.7%

74.8%

-4.9%

9.1

0.8

10.7

61.0%

41.60

nmf

308,250,000

18.9%

-20.7%

11.5

1.8

-7.8%

-4.2%

34.20

45,450,000

31.3

1.6

5.0

17.1%

20.2%

37,500,000

12.0

1.4

11.1

25.4%

-2.8%

19,788,711

nmf

45,187,500

-0.5%

23.70

9,630,000

-8.2%

98.00

112.00

21,283,260

8.4%

-3.8%

23.1%

-

48,300,000

19,972,800

-7.1%

32.8%

-9.6%

12,690,000

-23.5%

-10.4%

165.00

37.50

8,490,000

-1.9%

24.25

200.00

-

26,010,000

45,582,352

-11.0%

-

22,725,000

43.0%

42.40

-

-

3.5%

0.0%

6.20

-

-

2.7

68.8%

50.00

13.60

-

9.70

28.3

-7.8%

69.00

-

102.25

-

9,240,000

11.3%

29.1%

33.00

-

3.6

-9.2%

62.1%

42.60

53.50

22.4

-15.2%

13.85

-

-

25,700,000

6.05

-

-

-

17.9%

46.3%

-

36.70

3.6

49.3%

-4.8%

PB

16.0

62.0%

55.2%

Trailing PE

117,750,000

-6.8%

12.3%

Market Cap. (SAR '000)

1.9%

67.0%

30.00

-

-

13.0%

12 mths

-11.3%

40.00

-

-

-5.1%

YTD

15.75

-

42.40

34.50

on high

82.75

-

-

% Change

Low

26.4%

-9.8%

-19.0%

21.6%

4.9%

7,975,000

27,000,000 17,250,000

36,700,000

10.8 nmf

13.6

12.7

-13.8%

10,125,000

13.8

40.6%

13,580,000

nmf

30,093,750

9.5

1.5

1.8

2.1

2.1

3.0

2.7

3.5

STOCKS WITH NBK CAPITAL

13

ALWATAN DAILY friday, april 27, 2012

KUWAIT Rebased Performance

Summary

Best Performers 6,337 (0.0%)

KSE General Index (% Chg.)

120

418 (-0.4%)

Advance/Decline Ratio

0.64 FACIL.KSE Commercial Facilities Co. 6,523 / 5,694 AREFENRGAREF Energy Holding Co.

53%

% of stocks trading above 1yr avg. price

115

114

KSE General Index 52 week High / Low

Turnover (KWD) 2,467,700 1,578,720

IFInternational Finance Co.

1,342,850

K Kuwait Finance House

26-Feb-12

26-Mar-12

S&P GCC Large/Mid Composite

931,150

A Agility

26-Apr-12

4.2%

0.091

3.4%

0.265

1.9%

0.320

1.6%

0.128

1.6%

Worst Performers

N National Bank of Kuwait

95 26-Jan-12

ALTIJARIA The Commercial Real Estate Co.

Highest Turnover

100

% Chg.

0.246

28,102,391

Market Cap. (KWD '000) 104

Salhia Real Estate Co.

42,170

Turnover (KWD '000)

105

SRE.KSE

467 / 396 KPROJ.KSEKuwait Projects Co. (Holding)

KSE Weighted Index 52 week High / Low

110

Close

KSE Weighted Index (% Chg.)

702,100

B Burgan Bank

Close JAZEERA.KJazeera Airways

0.435

NRE.KSE

National Real Estate Co.

0.130

IFC.KSE

International Finance Co.

0.104

AGLTY.KSEAgility

ABAR.KSE Burgan Co. for Well Drilling

% Chg. -4.4%

0.410

-3.5%

0.248

-2.8%

-3.0%

-1.9%

KSE Weighted Index

Quotes Company Name

Close

Daily % Chg.

High

A Agility

0.410

-3.5%

T Al Themar Intl. Holding Co.

0.087

-

A AREF Energy Holding Co.

0.128

A Al Ahli Bank of Kuwait

0.590

A Alafco Aviation Lease and Fin. Co. B Boubyan Bank

B Boubyan Petrochemical Co. B Burgan Bank

0.0%

0.600

0.590

192

1.6%

0.620

-

1.700

1.680

76

0.265

1.9%

0.265

0.265

0.440

0.0%

0.440

0.435

0.395

-

-

-

0.435

-4.4%

0.104 0.285

0.450

K Kuwait Finance House

0.730

K Kuwait International Bank

0.270

K Kuwait Projects Co. (Holding)

0.320

1.360

0.0%

-1.9% 0.0%

-

0.130

-3.0%

O Oula Fuel Marketing Co.

A Qurain Petrochemicals Industries Co. S Salhia Real Estate Co.

S Sultan Center Food Products Co. T Tamdeen Real Estate Co.

A The Commercial Real Estate Co. S The Securities House N Wataniya

0.146 0.260

-20.2%

0.102

1,579

23

0.440

0.435

-

0.216

-

0.295

1,825

1.000

0.720

-27.0%

1,020

0.350

0.236

-22.9%

150

0.405

0.281

-21.0%

1.360

1.060

2,468

2,328

1.145

0.909

0.224

409

1,820

0.285

0.192

0.130

44

340

0.168

-

-

0.226 0.134 -

-

0.216

0.106

161

0.086

310

2.440

244

0.234

0.234

0.091 -

-

2.460

0.750

0.740

0.285

-

-

0.186

0.200

260

0.270

0.216

1.5

6.3%

-8.5%

162,339

16.4

4.0

142,242

10.0

0.9 2.7

51,987

-16.0%

1.9%

1,004,898

-30.3%

0.0%

11.4%

64,309

-16.8%

-7.1%

179,283

nmf

2.0%

-59.2%

-4.4%

256.6%

-2.2%

-28.6%

-8.1%

-12.8%

16.8%

-12.4%

10.0

4.1

20.1

1.9

11.4

1.9

286,945

-20.6%

280,078

25.8

10.3%

-20.0%

427,704

14.2

4.1%

0.0%

79,087

1.2

1.3

31.2

1.2

0.7

611,189

29.4

4.2

-5.9%

4,614,707

15.2

2.0

292,693

21,780

-7.6%

-20.7%

-13.1%

-20.7%

-22.6%

1.6%

14.0%

-15.1%

0.9

41.0% 0.0%

8.9%

0.8

nmf

5.9%

546,723

-48.8%

2.3

0.1

105,592

24.9

1.4

127,927

nmf

0.7

-

0.8

nmf

0.6

-13.3%

-11.9%

0.0%

18.3%

12.8%

126,130

17.6

1.0

-10.0%

87,310

22.8

0.9

88,400

nmf

-4.4%

0.9%

85,722

nmf

-27.8%

8.0%

237,600

166,968

-0.8%

26.8%

23.0%

1,239,921

0.690

nmf

35.2

-7.4%

3.7

105,270

2,120,040

27.9%

1.5

0.9

26.4%

1.880

7.3

-25.6%

-2.0%

3.1

16.8

75,041

-44.2%

1.9

141,000 83,500

1.8%

1.0

nmf

37.8

27.0%

4.3

1.2

nmf

1,158,558 264,513

1.4

35.5

-19.0%

-24.1%

1.5

nmf

-9.5%

18.2%

-

1.200

13.4

34.3

-6.2%

2.480

770

679,786

-47.2%

300,762

-15.6%

100

570

-16.0%

nmf

-10.0%

0.067

-

-2.7%

8.8%

5.8

96,000

-20.6%

0.097

-

1,031,459

6.7%

0.093

3,520

1.0

-1.7%

22.5%

0.0%

1.8

0.0%

-44.2%

-48.8%

0.246 0.136

-16.0%

0.144

1,580 1,500

-28.6%

-10.3%

0.260

0.226

-3.4%

0.260

0.056

0.360

1,980

61

-

0.340

540

387

0.660

-

100

79

-

1.560

-

31

428

0.0%

0.108

35

-

0.216

0.234

1.4%

1.620

1.080

0.240

0.750

-

0.415

0.691

0.146

0.0%

-

0.630

1.020

0.148

-

-

0.236

-57.0%

0.5

19.6

230,033

10.6%

-10.3%

892,811

-21.3%

-12.2%

20

0.120

-1.7%

-6.3%

-11.3%

6

-

0.485

nmf

-25.0%

0.242

40

0.096

-10.9%

15,180

483

0.246

0.130

0.138

483

0.0%

3.4%

0.214

1.000

4.2%

0.091

1.240

1.000

0.305

0.0%

1.680

30

0.246 0.108

0.019

0.860

0.870

0.305

0.0%

88

120

17

0.285

0.0%

-

2.460

Z Zain Kuwait

0.285

0.055

88,088

0.0%

0.495

0.700

-14.7%

-16.0%

-

0.940

-4.4%

-6.2%

17.0%

-

-

0.198

PB

15.9

-41.0%

-

-

0.420

PE

429,203

10.7%

-20.3%

20

Trailing

Market Cap. (KWD '000)

-5.7%

-1.6%

0.425

48

N National Real Estate Co.

N National Investments Company

0.530

0.552

0.320

-0.9%

0.305

0.630

440

-

0.320

0.226

-

12 mths

9.3%

20.8%

191

1.6%

N National Industries Grp. Holding

N National Industries Co.

-4.8%

YTD

-3.0%

-30.3%

272

-

0.530

0.085

0.255

0.265

-1.9%

0.620

0.132

0.380

0.270

1.060

0.033

325

5

0.0%

0.0%

-21.3%

20

-

1,343

1.000

0.280

-13.6%

0.186

-

0.375

1.300

0.730

-

350

1.945

0.190

-

-16.3%

45

111

0.285

-10.2%

-16.0%

1.260

0.108

0.079

0.590

0.410

-

1.280

0.104

0.657

0.524

-

-

-

10

-5.7%

1,610

0.750

-1.1%

N National Bank of Kuwait

-

on high

0.248

620

5

0.248

-1.4%

0.870

M Mena Holding

0.248

% Change

Low

0.435

-

0.0%

1.680

JAJazeera Airways

M Mabanee Co.

-

702

-1.1%

P Kuwait Portland Cement Co.

-

52-Week High

2,230

81

0.435

0.188

F Kuwait Food Co.

0.126

0.440

-2.8%

IK Ikarus Petroleum Industries Co.

K Kuwait Cement Co.

0.132

1.2%

0.440

1.260

K KIPCO Asset Management Co.

-

0.590

C Gulf Cable and Electrical Industries Co.

IF International Finance Co.

6

103

0.049

IF IFA Hotels & Resorts

-

0.590

0.295

0.790

G Gulf Bank

-

0.590

Volume ('000)

931

0.295

C Commercial Bank of Kuwait G Global Investment House

0.410

0.0%

0.248

F Commercial Facilities Co.

0.425

Turnover (KWD '000)

0.295

A Burgan Co. for Well Drilling

C Combined Grp Contracting Co.

-1.7%

Low

-13.3% 0.0%

-37.5%

1.7%

0.0%

62,514

0.0%

-16.7%

-37.5%

3,230,651

21.1

2.0

13.1

1.1

nmf

0.9

15.9

0.7

7.0

3.4

1.5

11.3

1.6

UAE Rebased Performance

Summary

Best Performers 1,652 (-0.5%)

DFM Index (% Chg.)

125

2,508 (-0.2%)

ADSM Index (% Chg.)

Advance/Decline Ratio

115

DFM Index 52 week High / Low

114

Highest Turnover

105

E Emaar Properties

TATamweel 26-Feb-12 S&P GCC Large/Mid Composite

26-Mar-12 Abu Dhabi SE

12,725,120

A ALDAR Properties

26-Apr-12

0.3%

0.6%

0.2%

Worst Performers Turnover (AED) 50,751,643 TAMWEEL Tamweel 28,147,870 TAQA.ADS Abu Dhabi National Energy Co. 20,075,330 ALDAR.AD ALDAR Properties

A Arabtec Holding

95 26-Jan-12

3.00

398,896,208

Market Cap. (AED '000)

105

0.6%

8.70

277,653

Turnover (AED '000)

1.4%

3.22

3.18

2,775 / 2,293 NBAD.ADS National Bank of Abu Dhabi

ADSM Index 52 week High / Low

% Chg.

2.85

64% ADCB.ADS Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank 0.46 ADIB.ADSM Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank 1,754 / 1,301 UNB.ADSM Union National Bank

% of stocks trading above 1yr avg. price

118

Close EMIRATES Emirates NBD

12,302,982

D Dubai Financial Market

DU.DFM

CBD.DFM

Close

% Chg.

1.21

-3.8%

3.19

-1.5%

1.13

du

Commercial Bank of Dubai

-4.0%

1.26

2.67

-1.7%

-1.5%

Dubai FM

Quotes Company Name

Close

Daily % Chg.

High

Low

Turnover (AED '000)

A Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank

3.22

0.6%

3.24

3.21

1,340

T Abu Dhabi National Energy Co.

1.26

-3.8%

1.29

1.23

A Air Arabia

0.61

0.2%

0.61

0.60

A Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank

A Abu Dhabi National Hotels A ALDAR Properties

3.18

2.00

0.6% -

1.13

-1.7%

3.60

-0.6%

A Arkan Building Materials Co.

0.95

-1.0%

D Dana Gas

0.47

-

A Amlak Finance

A Arabtec Holding A Aramex

C Commercial Bank of Dubai D Deyaar Development Co. D du

1.02 1.84

2.67 0.38

3.19

D Dubai Financial Market

1.13

D Dubai Islamic Bank

1.99

E Emirates NBD

2.85

E Emaar Properties E Etisalat F First Gulf Bank

G Gulf Cement Co. M Mashreq

N National Bank of Abu Dhabi N National Bank of Fujairah

N National Bank of Umm Al Qaiwain S Sharjah Islamic Bank

S Sorouh Real Estate Co. T Tamweel

-1.5% 0.0% -1.5%

1.94

-

515

410

1.63

1.14

2,930

4,831

674 -

212

3.55

2.92

15.8%

19.7%

18,017,824

5.5

0.8

-22.7%

5.0%

-22.7%

7,843,500

12.0

1.1

2,837,354

10.5

-10.4%

0.6%

1.98

-31.0%

-9.1%

-31.0%

2,000,000

0.57

-19.5%

3.8%

4,616,196

3.67

3.58

50,752

14,014

3.63

1.24

-0.8%

126.4%

150.0%

0.98

0.95

148

156

1.61

0.71

-41.0%

-5.9%

-

0.69

0.34

-31.9%

4.4%

-

1.85

2.71 -

0.38 3.21

-

3.29

8.80 9.00

-

-

8.71 -

-

1.80

4,455

2.67

2,102

0.36

4,074

-

3.19

-

1,431

-

447

0.46

3.63

2.67 0.20

2.80

-6.1%

-17.5% -16.9%

-12.1%

0.68

-17.5%

2,544

1,273

2.28

1.88

-12.7%

4.63

2.65

-38.4%

0.67

-27.3%

11,824 1,336

-

10,959

3.24

1.69

0.0%

1.37

8.65 8.95

8.69

783

1.96

-

10,814

28,148

-

2,422

-

12,303

3.24

-

-

2,456

-

3,663 -

360

8,638 855

1,353 149

-

3.31

11.20 10.75

1.50

2.41

8.57 6.98

-

102.00

74.70

-

4.70

3.00

400

1.02

0.80

421 -

9.00

2.24

7.38

0.0%

2.2%

-3.3%

77.5% 10.4%

-10.3% -3.3%

7.3%

-23.6%

-18.8%

100.7%

0.44

822

1,816

0.50

0.24

-9.1%

74.4%

U United Arab Bank

3.95

-

3.00

0.46 -

2.99 -

1,440 -

480 -

3.90

4.50

2.82

3.28

-23.1%

-12.2%

-16.0% 2.2%

22.4%

7,556,137

3.8%

8.5%

8.9%

0.0%

nmf

7.5

19,796,525

11.0

69,099,664 26,970,000

11.9 7.2

-

-22.6%

0.53

0.0%

13.3

32.9%

1.49

0.6

14,582,857

-1.8%

9.0

nmf

18.8

8.9

13.1

11.7%

1,515,086

nmf

3,935,785

0.8

0.6

0.5

1.8 1.0

0.7

1.3

0.9

8.3

1,210,000

-21.0%

1.2

9.7

2,182,950

7,486,875

2.3

1.2

17.7

22.2% -9.6%

0.4

8.8

4,961,000

2,966,250

1.4

0.9

6.1

-1.5%

9,040,000

1.1

6.8

nmf

3,104,000

16,241

12.7

2,184,084

1.0%

7.1%

nmf

20.0%

7.2%

-11.8%

0.67

5,442,400

33,708,658

20,075

1.48

3,102,941

-6.5%

3.9%

1.20

4,654

-31.9%

894,996

1.28

5,258

1.0

-23.8%

-9.9%

-4.0%

1.12

nmf

2,693,944

53.5%

1.21

1.14

1,662,500

-1.6%

15,839,658

-0.9%

-13.4%

-41.0%

-26.0%

-4.0%

1.63

1.8

-3.1%

-4.3% 16.4%

0.5

21.2

1,530,000

-10.4%

-22.0% -16.4%

0.2

5,382,000

0.0%

2.6%

26.5%

8.0

1.1

0.7

-15.7%

-1.8%

6.5

7.2

34.5%

0.90

0.3%

-18.8%

-28.0%

0.90

0.45

7,519,765

2.90

-1.1% -0.9%

-0.9%

-

0.76

PB

-3.0%

0.90 1.13

PE

22.8%

2.85

-

2.69

Trailing

Market Cap. (AED '000)

-28.9%

2.90

0.2%

3.32

12 mths

0.76

1.4%

8.70

416

YTD

1.59

1.99

-

on high

11,236

2.02

-

% Change

Low

12,725

0.0%

91.45

52-Week High

1.12

1.15

1.13

-0.1% -0.6%

4.51

-

1.16

8.74 8.99

1.09

-

3.16

-0.9%

-0.9%

3.00

* Closing Prices, Turnover and Market Cap. in USD

0.0%

3.25

U Union National Bank U Union Properties

-

3.25

Volume ('000)

4.9

11.4

2.4

0.5

0.5

0.5

0.7

0.6

2.0

STOCKS WITH NBK CAPITAL

14

ALWATAN DAILY friday, april 27, 2012

QATAR Rebased Performance

Summary

Best Performers 8,661 (0.1%)

DSM Index (% Chg.)

120

DSM 52 week High / Low

33% QTEL.DSM Qatar Telecom 0.36 QNNS.DSMQatar Navigation 8,892 / 8,071 IQCD.DSM Industries Qatar

Market Cap. (QAR '000)

455,112,068

% of stocks trading above 1yr avg. price Advance/Decline Ratio

114

530,427

Turnover (QAR '000)

110

Q Qatar Gas Transport Co. 26-Mar-12

S&P GCC Large/Mid Composite

20,224,047

C The Commercial Bank of Qatar

26-Apr-12

145.40

0.4%

26.90

0.0%

0.4%

16.57

MARK.DSMMasraf Al Rayan

Turnover (QAR) 45,586,417 DHBK.DSMDoha Bank 33,516,592 CBQK.DSMThe Commercial Bank of Qatar 27,705,095 AHCS.DSMAamal Co.

Q Qatar Telecom

26-Feb-12

4.5%

0.2%

Worst Performers

IQIndustries Qatar

90 26-Jan-12

% Chg.

134.80 70.00

QGTS.DSMQatar Gas Transport Co.

Highest Turnover

103 100

Close

16,327,178

MMasraf Al Rayan

Close

% Chg.

58.60

-1.2%

72.30

QIIK.DSM Qatar International Islamic Bank QEWS.DSMQatar Electricity & Water Co.

-1.0%

17.45

-0.8%

50.60

-0.8%

140.20

-0.8%

Doha SM

Quotes Company Name A Aamal Co.

Close 17.45

Daily % Chg.

High

-0.8%

18.00

17.42

3,508

27.30

11,414

57.30

6,612

C The Commercial Bank of Qatar

72.30

-1.0%

73.00

71.90

20,224

E Ezdan Real Estate Co.

19.00

-0.3%

19.00

19.00

24

D Doha Bank

58.60

-0.4% -1.2%

16.30

27.55 59.00

0.4%

146.10

145.00

45,586

140.20

-0.8%

141.80

140.20

3,786

50.60

-0.8%

51.00

50.40

5,392

Q Qatar National Bank

133.30

-0.1%

133.50

131.00

10,452

Q Qatar Telecom

134.80

4.5%

136.00

129.00

33,517

IQIndustries Qatar

145.40

Q Qatar Electricity & Water Co.

M Masraf Al Rayan

Q Qatar Gas Transport Co.

Q Qatar International Islamic Bank Q Qatar Islamic Bank Q Qatar Navigation

26.90 16.57 77.30

70.00

V Vodafone Qatar

8.31

0.0%

0.2%

-0.1%

0.4%

-0.5%

26.90

16.60

77.40

70.00

26.50

16,327

16.40

27,705

77.00

4,290

69.40

8.40

8.00

52-Week

Volume ('000)

High

197

2,664

16.40

27.40

16.43

Turnover (QAR '000)

K Al Khalij Commercial Bank B Barwa Real Estate Co.

-0.2%

Low

21.90

163

16.06

33.25

27.50

-20.3% -9.0%

-17.6%

YTD 20.7% -4.5%

-8.5%

279

85.50

68.00

-15.4%

-13.9%

1

24.97

18.60

-23.9%

22.50

113

67.00

17.7%

20,175,000

16.47

-11.1%

-5.4%

-8.7%

76.30

-9.4%

-8.3%

45.50

79

141.73

122.73

252

284.77

127.70

850

9.22

-12.5% -2.1%

-5.3%

-10.0% -5.9%

69.40

-20.0%

7.24

-9.9%

-52.7%

-8.6%

9.3% 0.4%

15.8%

12,112,491

-0.8%

-3.3%

1.1

8.8

-3.4%

56.20

87.50

10,662,015

-4.3%

106

27

-16.0%

1.6

12.1

nmf

129.50

1,860

5,904,000

50,397,437

148.00

85.30

-9.0%

PB

19.3

-19.1%

27

56

9,501,525

-14.4%

118.80

18.63

9.1%

Trailing PE

9.4

148.50

1,680

Market Cap. (QAR '000)

17,890,373

50.00

28.10

12 mths

1.1%

313

611

7,038

on high

14.00

18.02

416

% Change

Low

0.9

1.3

9.6

1.8

1.8

79,970,000

10.3

3.3

14,020,000

10.3

4.7

14.1

2.4

9,177,195

11.2

4.7

-2.3%

18,265,464

12.8

1.7

-8.5%

-14.9%

8,016,764

11.4

0.8

10.1%

5.2%

7,025,274

nmf

1.0

-6.3%

-3.5%

-43.4%

7.5%

7,659,259

8.2%

93,273,934

-49.2%

23,724,800

11.4

1.7

11.9

2.2

9.2

1.1

OMAN Rebased Performance

Summary

Best Performers 5,839 (-1.3%)

MSM Index (% Chg.)

120

37% OTEL.MSMOman Telecommunications Co.

% of stocks trading above 1yr avg. price

0.20

Advance/Decline Ratio

114

6,372 / 5,419 OCOI.MSM Oman Cement Co. 3,256 BKDB.MSMBank Dhofar

MSM 52 week High / Low Turnover (OMR '000)

110

6,949,969

Market Cap (OMR '000) 104

106,005

B Bank Dhofar

S&P GCC Large/Mid Composite

101,080

O Oman Telecommunications Co.

26-Apr-12

0.2%

0.62

0.0%

0.62

-0.6%

-0.9%

0.64

Turnover (OMR) 534,315 RCCI.MSM Raysut Cement Co. 223,475 NBOB.MSMNational Bank of Oman

N National Bank of Oman

26-Mar-12

1.29

-1.1%

Worst Performers

B Bank Muscat

26-Feb-12

% Chg.

0.45

RNSS.MSMRenaissance Services

Highest Turnover

100

90 26-Jan-12

BKMB.MSMBank Muscat

Close

65,269

R Raysut Cement Co.

Close

% Chg.

1.05

-2.1%

RNSS.MSMRenaissance Services

0.64

-1.1%

OCOI.MSM Oman Cement Co.

0.62

0.30

BKDB.MSMBank Dhofar

-1.3%

0.45

-0.9%

-0.6%

Muscat SM

Quotes Company Name

Close

Daily % Chg.

High

B Bank Dhofar

0.445

-0.9%

N National Bank of Oman

0.298

-1.3%

O Oman Telecommunications Co.

1.285

0.2%

R Renaissance Services

0.639

-1.1%

B Bank Muscat

0.619

O Oman Cement Co.

R Raysut Cement Co.

0.620 1.048

0.0%

-0.6% -2.1%

Low

Turnover (OMR '000)

0.443

106

0.295

223

1.290

1.280

101

0.641

0.636

23

0.446

0.621

0.615

0.300

0.620

0.619

1.060

Volume ('000)

High

238

534

0.679

751

65

on high

0.423

-18.9%

0.291

-8.0%

0.572

0.324

100

% Change

Low

0.549

863

62

1.040

52-Week

0.629

0.416

-2.9%

43.5%

-9.8%

35

1.053

0.458

-39.3%

0.711

-4.5%

-1.4%

1.041

1.112

-17.9%

-7.1%

1.425

-5.8%

12 mths

-2.2%

-8.8%

79

62

YTD

Market Cap. (OMR '000)

-7.6%

330,191

9.7

16.0

209,600

14.0

963,750

17.2%

-37.9%

180,258

2.1

9.0

205,141

16.1% -4.5%

PB

12.2

-1.8%

37.9%

PE

489,552

1,112,215

3.3%

Trailing

1.3 1.2

1.4

8.6

2.0

nmf

1.1

2.0

BAHRAIN Rebased Performance

Summary

Best Performers 1,145 (-0.2%)

BSE Index (% Chg.)

120

32% ITHMR.BSE Ithmaar Bank 1.00 BATELCO.BBahrain Telecommunications Co.

% of stocks trading above 1 yr avg. price Advance/Decline Ratio

1,407 / 1,129

BSE 52 week High / Low

114

232

Turnover (BHD '000)

110

6,475,031

Market Cap. (BHD '000)

Turnover (BHD) 84,351 AUB.BSE 72,220 #N/A

B Bahrain Telecommunications Co.

4,650

A Ahli United Bank

26-Feb-12 26-Mar-12 S&P GCC Large/Mid Composite

#N/A

4,361

U United Gulf Bank

26-Apr-12 Bahrain SE

#N/A

Ahli United Bank

% Chg.

0.16

6.9%

0.46

0.0%

#N/A

#N/A

#N/A

#N/A

0.62

#N/A

-0.8%

Worst Performers

IT Ithmaar Bank

90 26-Jan-12

AUB.BSE

Highest Turnover

101

100

#N/A

Close

-

B Albaraka Banking Grp.

Close Ahli United Bank

% Chg.

0.62

#N/A

#N/A

BATELCO.BBahrain Telecommunications Co.

0.46

BARKA.BS Albaraka Banking Grp.

0.93 -

ITHMR.BSE Ithmaar Bank

0.16

-0.8%

#N/A

0.0%

6.9%

Quotes Company Name

Close

Daily % Chg.

High

A Ahli United Bank*

0.615

-0.8%

A Arab Banking Corp.*

0.420

-

B Albaraka Banking Grp.* B Bahrain Islamic Bank

B Bahrain Telecommunications Co. B BBK

IN Investcorp Bank* IT Ithmaar Bank*

N National Bank of Bahrain U United Gulf Bank

* Closing Prices, Turnover and Market Cap. in USD

0.930 0.088

-

0.460

0.0%

797

-

0.400

-

Low

0.615

0.615

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

0.460

0.460

-

-

-

Turnover (BHD '000)

Volume ('000)

12 -

-

72

-

6.9%

0.155

0.150

224

0.260

0.0%

0.260

0.260

4

-

-

-

-

0.680

157 -

% Change

Low 0.599

-9.6%

YTD 2.0%

12 mths

3,218,637

-26.3%

1,306,200

-12.5%

-0.4%

-12.5%

0.116

0.082

-24.1%

-2.2%

-24.1%

0.488 0.426 797

0.420 0.380 0.390 797

0.155

0.065

17

0.424

0.260

0.600

0.545

-20.8%

0.0%

Market Cap. (BHD '000)

-7.1%

0.857

1,457 -

on high

1.063 0.530

-

0.155

0.545

20

52-Week High

nmf

0.8

340,542

10.6

0.0%

-30.0%

637,560

-5.2%

-9.2%

466,171

0.0%

138.5%

-38.7%

-13.3%

-9.2%

55.0%

-36.0%

1.3

82,691

0.0%

-6.1%

10.2

0.8

17.3% -3.4%

PB 8.0

-5.7%

-6.1%

-5.0%

943,462

Trailing PE

662,400

415,053

216,986

6.2

0.4

8.3

1.3

4.5

0.6

10.1

1.7

nmf

nmf

1.4 0.7 1.0

LIFE

Dealing with stress A key way to handle stress is not to avoid life’s challenges, but to deal with them head-on, the Cleveland Clinic says. The clinic offers these suggestions for women: •Deal directly with challenging situations, instead of avoiding them.

•Accept and embrace change as an opportunity to learn.

•Focus on the present, rather than worrying about the future.

•Trust your instincts and listen to what your “gut” tells you.

•Honor and accept yourself.

•Don’t be afraid to seek professional help when you need it.

friDAY, april 27, 2012

World needs to stabilize population, cut consumption: Royal Society Economic and environmental catastrophes unavoidable unless rich countries cut consumption and global population stabilizes

$1.25 (about one euro) a day – be brought out of absolute poverty. “The most developed and the emerging economies must stabilize and then reduce material consumption levels,” through investment in energy efficiency and clean technologies, steering them onto a path of sustainable development, it said.

LONDON: Scientists have called for a radical rethink of our relationship with the planet to head off what they warn could be economic and environmental catastrophe.

In a report published on Thursday by the London-based Royal Society, an international group of 23 scientists chaired

by Nobel laureate Sir John Sulston called for a rebalancing of consumption in favor of poor countries coupled with increased efforts to control population growth to lift the estimated 1.3 billion people living on less than $1.25 a day out of poverty.

“Over the next 30-40 years the confluence of the challenges described in this report provides the opportunity to move towards a sustainable economy and a better world for the majority of humanity, or alternatively the risk of social, economic and environmental failures and catastrophes on a scale never imagined,” the scientists said.

The 133-page report, which Sulston describes as a summary of work done over the last two years, comes against a backdrop of austerity-hit governments reducing subsidies for renewable energy, global car companies falling over themselves to meet demand for new cars in rapidly growing economies like China and Brazil, and increasing pressure to exploit vast reserves of gas locked in rocks around the globe through the controversial process known as ‘fracking’.

But the scientists insist the goals in the report are realistic. They argue lifestyle choices, human volition and incentives enshrined in government policy can make a significant difference to patterns of consumption.

They cite the growing appetite for recycling in the developed world, Britain’s policy-driven switch to lead-free fuel in the 1980s, and the seemingly prosaic example of air traffic control as examples of where international cooperation can work.

Sulston said governments realized quickly that the consequences of not managing air traffic could be catastrophic: “They said ‘this is dangerous; we’ve got to cooperate’.”

The scientists say developed and emerging economies should stabilize and then start reducing their consumption of materials by increased efficiency, waste reduction and more investment in sustainable resources.

Carbon dioxide emissions are 10 to 50 times higher in rich countries compared to poor nations, they say. Rising greenhouse gas emissions are almost certainly responsible for increasing global average temperatures, leading to rising sea levels and more extreme weather, climate scientists say.

Voluntary programs to reduce birth rates, education for young women and better access to contraception urgently

The trend to urbanization remains intact. Some 50 percent of the world’s population, which surpassed 7 billion last year, is living in cities. The world’s population is forecast to rise to 10 billion before flattening off and the urban proportion is forecast to increase to 75 percent by the end of the century. Eliya Msiyaphazi Zulu, a report author and Executive Director of the African Institute for Development Policy research group, said the need for education about family planning and improved access to contraception was most acute in Africa, which is forecast to contribute 70 percent of the average population growth.

He said all the evidence points to African women wanting fewer children and argued the main reason for high fertility in a country like Niger was the fact that half of all women are married at the age of 16.

The scientists also supported growing calls for a revision in how we measure economic growth. “We are extremely wedded to the idea that GDP increases are a good thing,” said Jules Pretty, Professor of Environment and Society at the University of Essex and another of the authors.

He argued that GDP measures many of the ‘bads’ in terms of the well-being of the planet as well as the ‘goods’, adding: “There is an urgent need for policy change.”

The scientists present some startling statistics. A child from the developed world consumes 30-50 times as much water as one from the developing world. Global average consumption of calories increased about 15 percent between 1969 and 2005, but in 2010 almost 1 billion people did not get their minimum calorie needs.

Minerals production rocketed in the 47 years up to 2007; copper, lead and lithium about fourfold and tantalum/niobium, used in electronic gadgets, by about 77 times.

For developed countries, Sulston said the message of the report boils down to something quite simple: “You don’t have to be consuming as much to have a healthy and happy life”.

But will politicians and consumers respond?

“It is a brave politician who is prepared to tell Western consumers to consume less to let the developing world consume more,” said Tim Lang, Professor of Food Policy at City University in London. “But we need such bravery now, urgently.”

Lang, who was not involved in the study, welcomed it saying: “The West over- and mal-consumes its way to dietrelated ill-health from a diet with a high environmental impact. The evidence is there but will politicians and consumers listen and change?” -Reuters

Wanted: Brave Politicians

FILE - World population will reach 9 billion by 2050. (AFP)

You don’t have to be consuming as much to have a healthy and happy life. need political leadership and financial support.

Professor Sarah Harper of Oxford University, another of the authors, said the issue of population had fallen off the development agenda in the last 10-15 years but it should be reinstated and coupled closely with environmental challenges, starting at the Rio+20 United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development to be held in Rio in June.

The Royal Society report, People and the Planet, said population growth rates were slowing or going into reverse in many countries but were predicted to remain high in least-developed economies.

Rich nations are by far the biggest users of resources per capita, and their wasteful practices are spreading to emerging economies with giant populations, it said.

Anxious mice face higher cancer risk

NEW YORK: Anxious mice get more serious cancer than their calmer counterparts, according to a new study that could have implications for human cancer treatments according to LiveScience.

The research revealed that mice with anxious “personalities” - meaning animals that were more hesitant to explore potentially dangerous areas - are prone to more invasive skin cancers than coolheaded rodents. The culprit may be the damage stress does to the immune system, which can sometimes fight off these types of cancers.

“It’s bad enough that cancer diagnosis and treatment generates stress and anxiety, but this study shows that anxiety and stress can accelerate cancer progression, thus perpetuating a vicious cycle,” study researcher Firdaus Dhabhar, a psychiatrist at the Stanford University School of Medicine, said in a statement. “The goal is to ameliorate or eliminate the effects of anxiety and chronic stress, at least at the time of cancer diagnosis and during treatment,” Dhabhar added.

Stress and the immune system

Dhabhar has long focused on the role of stress in the immune system. Short-term stress can actually boost the immune system, research has found, as if the body is gearing up for battle. But when stress is chronic, the immune system suffers.

Stress affects everyone differently, so Dhabhar turned to mice to investigate how individual differences in stress response might influence the immune system. He and his colleagues used a breed of hairless mice that develops skin tumors in response to ultraviolet rays, much as humans develop skin cancer from exposure to the sun’s UV light.

First, the researchers tested the mice in a couple of scary scenarios, including an enclosure that was half-lighted, half in darkness. They gauged each mouse’s stress-related personality by measuring how long they spent exploring the dark or otherwise “dangerous” areas in their enclosures. Next, they exposed each mouse to ultraviolet light three times a week for 10 weeks, enough to trigger tumors in all of the rodents.

This combination of a growing global population and an accelerating pattern of consumption has alarming implications, the report warned. “The Earth’s capacity to meet human needs is finite,” it said. For example, a child in the developed world uses between 30 and 50 times as much water as his or her counterpart in a developing country.

Per capita emissions of carbon dioxide in rich countries are up to 50 times higher than in poor ones.

Average consumption of food has risen on average by 15 percent in calorie terms over the past four decades, yet nearly a billion people remain poorly nourished.

The report put forward nine recommendations for tackling the intertwined problems.

It demanded that 1.3 billion people living on less than

No evidence that mobile phones harm health: Study PARIS: There is no convincing evidence that the use of mobile phones damages human health, a “comprehensive” review of scientific evidence said on Thursday.

Studies have not demonstrated that the use of mobiles causes brain tumors or any other cancer, according to the review by the Health Protection Agency (HPA)’s independent advisory group on non-ionizing radiation.

But it said it was important to monitor evidence as the use of mobile phones has become widespread only recently. The HPA also recommends that excessive use of mobile phones by children be discouraged.

“Overall, the results of studies have not demonstrated

that the use of mobile phones causes brain tumors or any other type of cancer,” the group said. “The evidence suggests that radio frequency field exposure below guideline levels does not cause symptoms in humans.”

The group’s report reviewed scientific studies on exposure to radio frequency electromagnetic fields produced by mobile phones and wireless devices, such as wi-fi, as well as television and radio transmitters.

It said the presence of radio frequency fields cannot be detected by people, including those who report being sensitive to them. And it added that research on longterm effects was limited but there was no evidence as yet

Botox may treat nighttime teeth grinding NEW ORLEANS: Botox may help prevent teeth grinding at night, results from a small study suggest according to LiveScience. In the study, patients with nighttime teeth grinding, or nocturnal bruxism, who were given Botox injections reported greater improvement in their condition compared to those given a placebo.

The findings suggest Botox could be used to treat nighttime teeth grinding, a common condition for which there is no established treatment, said study researcher Dr.William Ondo, a professor of neurology at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston. Although dental guards are used to prevent damage to teeth, they do not prevent the grinding itself, Ondo said. However, larger studies are needed to confirm the results, Ondo said.

Up to 15 percent of people experience nocturnal bruxism, though many are unaware they have the condi-

tion and find out only when they’re told by their partner or a dentist. Nocturnal bruxism can damage teeth, and has been associated with headaches and pain in the jaw area, Ondo said.

In the study, 23 patients with nocturnal bruxism were randomly assigned to receive a Botox injection or a placebo injection. To be included in the study, patients were tested in an overnight sleep study to confirm they had nocturnal bruxism.

Thirteen people received the Botox injection in the temple and jaw, and 10 received the placebo. Four weeks later, participants rated the severity of their condition whether they felt better, worse or about the same as before the study. Oftentimes, patients had input from their partners.

Participants who received Botox did not experience significant changes in their sleep patterns, or in the se-

verity of headaches. Two patients experienced a cosmetic change in their smile.

Botox contains botulinum toxin, a protein produced by the bacteria Clostridium botulinum. The drug is thought to work by blocking nerve signals to the muscles, thus relaxing them.

Botox is not officially approved by the Food and Drug Administration as a treatment for nocturnal bruxism, but because the drug is approved for other uses, it can be used “off label” as a treatment for nighttime teeth grinding. In fact, Ondo said he has been using it in his patients with nocturnal bruxism for 20 years.

If the companies that manufacture botulinum toxin want the drug officially approved by the Food and Drug Administration for treatment of nocturnal bruxism, they would need to conduct their own, large trials to submit to the agency, Ondo said.

Brazil Congress approves controversial forestry bill

Easing stress to treat cancer?

As the mice developed skin cancer over the next few months, Dhabhar and his colleagues tracked the progression of their tumors. They found that the high-anxiety mice developed more skin tumors. Not only that, but the tumors they developed were more invasive, the researchers report.

The results revealed that the immune systems of the anxious mice were in relatively rough shape, too. These mice had fewer protective chemokines and cytokines, chemicals crucial to immune responses against tumors. Compared with their low-anxiety brethren, high-anxiety mice also had fewer immune cells in the bloodstream capable of infiltrating and destroying cancer cells.

The researchers found higher levels of the stress hormone corticosterone in the high-anxiety rats, suggesting that this chronic stress response could be harming the body’s immune response.

Further research will be needed to link stressed-out personalities and cancer in humans, Dhabhar said. He and his colleagues now plan to test whether anti-anxiety drugs or other stress-reducing methods can boost the effectiveness of cancer treatments.

of negative health effects.

Anthony Swerdlow, chairman of the advisory group that conducted the review, said: “There is no convincing evidence that radiofrequency exposure causes health effects in adults or in children but beyond 15 years for mobile phones, we have to say we have little or no information. “I think it is important therefore, to some extent, to keep an eye out on this, which we will do into the future.”

The HPA said in response that it would continue to advise a precautionary approach and keep the science under close review. -AFP

A famous galaxy shaped like a wide-brimmed hat has revealed a new side of itself in recent photos from NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope. These images suggest that the so-called Sombrero Galaxy straddles the line between two known types of galaxies: blobs and disks. While most galaxies fall into either camp - blob galaxies are called ellipticals, while disk galaxies are spirals - the Sombrero galaxy appears to be both. This galaxy, officially known as NGC 4594, lies 28 million light-years away in the constellation Virgo. This revelation was only visible through Spitzer’s infrared eyes, which look at long-wavelength infrared light that can cut through the dust that hazes visible-light images. This new picture revealed that the Sombrero’s glowing halo, which in visible light looked light and small, is actually the right size and mass to be a large elliptical galaxy. (AFP)

PARIS: Brazil’s Congress has approved a controversial forestry code reform that environmentalists say provides amnesty for illegal logging and opens up vast swathes of rainforest to agribusiness.

The bill, which would allow farming in areas illegally logged before July 2008, including along fragile river banks, will now go to President Dilma Rousseff for ratification after having been approved by the Senate in December. “It grants amnesty to loggers and raises the risk of environmental disasters in major cities... Now it is important that the president veto it,” opposition lawmaker Ricardo Tripoli said after the vote late Wednesday.

Agribusiness strongly supports the measure, insisting the land is needed to ensure food security in the emerging Latin American giant.

The initiative mandates the preservation of 80 percent of the Amazon rainforest, the world’s largest. Environmentalists opposed to the bill have warned it will embarrass the country ahead of its hosting of the Rio Summit in June, aimed at addressing global threats to the environment. They marched along with small farmers outside the National Congress last month urging Rousseff to veto the changes to the country’s forestry code.

The reform was initially intended as a bid to rein in unfettered logging and increase the protection of Brazil’s sprawling forests, which play a key role in reducing greenhouse gases linked to climate change. Brazil is considered the sixth largest emitter of greenhouse gases. But farm-based economic interests prevailed, and the bill was reshaped to ease restrictions that have been in place since 1965 and are credited with curbing deforestation.

The proposed reform threatens 690,000 square kilometers (270,000 square miles) of vegetation, which would prevent Brazil from reaching its goal of reducing deforestation by 80 percent, according to the Climate Observatory, a network of 26 non-governmental organizations set up in 2002. -AFP

16

ALWATAN DAILY

CULTURE

friDAY, april 27, 2012

Dar Al Funoon displays work by Iranian artist Sabzi

Sabzi’s works on display at Dar Al Funoon on April 26, 2012. (Al Watan Daily) Onilda Fernandes Staff Writer

KUWAIT: Iranian artist Sabzi has a thought provoking collection on display at the Dar Al Funoon art gallery in Kuwait City. Born in Ahwaz, Iran, and currently living in the United States, his paintings resonate both Eastern and Western philosophies, and more importantly reflect the conflicted state of mind for a Middle Eastern living in today’s modern age. In an interview with Al Watan Daily, Sabzi delves deeper into this subject.

What is the inspiration behind this collection of artwork?

It is based on the concept of how we in the Middle East are confused between living traditionally and adopting more modern approaches to our lifestyle. As Middle Eastern people, I think we are strongly rooted and

attached to our culture, yet we can’t help but adopt the western way of dressing, partying etc. When we use western commodities like cars or computers, it brings with itself, its own set of culture that you cannot stay away from.

With time, we tend to forget our roots. Our way of thinking is more spiritual but that conflicts with science, which is a Western state of mind.We are in a sense lost with regards to our identity. Who are we? Where do we stand as Middle Eastern people?

When did you realize you were an artist?

As a child I was always fascinated by the arts and when I was about 12-13 years of age, I made an oil painting. I was impressed with Russian artist Shishkin and I imitated one of his forest prints. My family however, comes from the artistic stream; my uncle is a violin player, my grandfather and father loved poems and literature so not only was it easy, they

Britain unveils plans for Olympics culture showcase

LONDON: The final line-up for the London 2012 festival was announced on Thursday, with around 12,000 events happening across Britain in a major cultural celebration organized to coincide with the summer Olympic Games.

Music, dance, theatre, cinema, art and architecture are on the agenda during the June 21-September 9 event, which spans the Olympic and Paralympic Games. The 12-week arts festival is the climax of the four-year Cultural Olympiad, designed to showcase Britain’s prominent place in the arts in the buildup to the Games.

Among the big names taking part will be British singer Damon Albarn, Australian actress Cate Blanchett, dissident Chinese artist Ai Weiwei and US hip-hop star Jay-Z. About 25,000 artists from all 204 participating Olympic nations will take part.

“The London 2012 Festival will be the largest cultural celebration in our lifetime,” said Ruth Mackenzie, director both of the Cultural Olympiad and London 2012 Festival.

“With new work from the best musicians, comics, artists, film makers and more, there will be arts events taking place in unusual places all over the UK that will showcase the best in international culture when the eyes of the world are on us this summer,” she told the official launch.

Organizers added that there would be 10 million free tickets available and a full brochure explaining what was happening and where would be distributed around the country and available on the website www.london2012.com/festival.

The arts extravaganza launches on Midsummer’s Night, June 21, with a host of events including an open-air concert set against the backdrop of Stirling Castle in Scotland featuring conductor Gustavo Dudamel and the Simon Bolivar Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela.

literally pushed me towards becoming an artist. Still I pursued an agriculture engineering bachelor’s degree. Did it help me as an artist?

Definitely, it helped me absorb the purity that is in nature.

new techniques. You can’t help but paint your feelings and the society certainly influences the mind.

Does your work reflect your experiences? In what way?

I am not a political artist; I believe an artist has a higher responsibility and should look above politicians and bureaucracy. Laws just take place in phases, you got to paint that proposition and before you know it, it’s changed again. An artist should portray what is not visible by a normal person.

My early works were primarily realistic, exploring the historical and cultural themes of my homeland. The departure from Iran during the Khomeini regime brought me to Germany and then the United States. This exile provided the opportunity to explore new artistic influences, and I began to work in abstract and figurative styles. Then was the phase when I painted the woman, simply because I believe she is a symbol of beauty and I just love to paint her. About 6-7 years ago I reverted to my old style and what you see today is just a larger version of what I used to do but of course, with

Another highlight is expected to be Radio 1’s Hackney Weekend starring Jay-Z, Rihanna, Florence + The Machine, will.i.am, Jessie J, Jack White, David Guetta and Tinie Tempah.

Stonehenge will be transformed in a free, fiery vision created by French outfit Compagnie Carabosse, while Jeremy Deller’s full size “bouncy castle” version of the famous English landmark will tour the country.

Constanza Macras’ dance theatre group will perform in the forests of North Wales with ancient Mabinogion myths interpreted through the prism of modern Cardiff nightlife, and Elizabeth Streb’s daredevil troupe will be performing extreme action scenes on some of London’s best-known buildings.

Also included in the festival is a major celebration of William Shakespeare, including the performance of all of his plays in different languages at London’s Globe theatre.

A string quartet will take to the skies and perform in helicopters and cathedrals will play host to aerial acrobats. “People will not like everything but there will be something that everyone does like,” Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt said.

The Cultural Olympiad began in 2008, but attracted criticism for being unfocused while some of the projects were derided as pretentious and costly.

A poll in the Guardian newspaper showed that nearly three quarters of respondents did not fully understand the concept of the Cultural Olympiad.

Scandinavian artist Olafur Eliasson had an application for a one million pound project, exploring the benefits of taking a deep breath, turned down, while a tall column of mist due to be lit up above the River Mersey has faced delays due to aircraft safety concerns. Royal Opera House chief executive Tony Hall and Mackenzie were brought in to turn the showcase around. -Reuters

Does the political situation in Iran ever get onto the canvas?

Would you consider your work to be all for nothing if it didn’t have an audience?

Of course, when you don’t have people looking at your paintings, an artist tends to lose motivation. A viewer finding something on the canvas, gauging your thought process, understanding what has been said and con-

A model presents a creation from the RED Valentino Spring/ Summer 2012 collection during a fashion show at Singapore’s historic Tanjong Pagar Railway Station April 25, 2012. (Reuters)

Is it monetarily easy being an artist?

Today I have a big house in the US, a Mercedes, and I am a rich artist. But it wasn’t always easy. When I moved to Germany it was very very difficult. I loved my country and hated leaving it. But I knew that I just had to live with it. I painted my feelings, got into galleries, collectors started buying my work and within 2-3 years everything fell into place. The only thing that helped me through this transition was art. Being an international language, people understood what I had to say. I am on the right track now. I intend to just continue what I am doing.

Mein Kampf to be re-released with notes countering Hitler’s arguments LONDON: ‘Mein Kampf’, one of the most notorious polemics of all time, will enjoy mass distribution in Germany for the first time since the Second World War following a decision by authorities to publish an annotated version of it, as well as bringing it out in eBook and audio formats, reports The Guardian.

The copyright on Adolf Hitler’s autobiographical work, which is currently owned by the Bavarian state finance ministry, expires in 2015. Authorities in the southern state, which have long struggled with how to deal with it, are now planning a highly controlled re-release of the book after that date in an effort to stop it being exploited by right-wingers.

Publication has been forbidden in Germany since 1945 as has flaunting it in public or displaying it prominently in a shop window.

Critics of the ban have long argued it was ripe for overturning, particularly at a time when it is readily available in other countries and the book is downloadable on the internet.

Academics are working on producing an annotated version of the book which will include commentaries on the text that will seek to dissect and rubbish Hitler’s arguments. A separate, more simplified version for schools is being produced together with academics from the Munich Institute for Contemporary History, which Bavaria’s finance minister, Markus Söder, said was necessary, as more people would be reading it.

“The expiration of the copyright in three years’ time might well lead to more young people reading Mein Kampf,” he said, adding that he hoped the school version would help to demystify the book -

Singapore railway station gets new life as fashion runway SINGAPORE: Singapore’s historic Tanjong Pagar Railway Station was bathed in revolving shades of orange, pink and purple lights on Wednesday evening. Less than a year after it ended life as an active train station, models sashayed down a makeshift runway to show the latest clothing from Italian fashion house Valentino and show off one of Singapore’s architectural gems.

necting with it, means they have entered my subconscious and can see what I see, which in itself is like the rebirth of an artist. It’s a really sweet moment when the audience talks to you about what they see; I would never want to lose that opportunity.

The art deco building at the edge of Singapore’s central business district, with its murals in the main hall and four marble statues on its portico entrance, closed in June last year as part of a deal that saw Malaysia move its rail operations to a new site nearer the border with Singapore.

Malaysia and Singapore were briefly joined in a union after independence, and the station and the area alongside the railway tracks were considered Malaysian territory under agreements forged by former British colonial rulers.

Malaysia handed the railway station over to Singapore last year, effectively giving up sovereignty over the land in return for sites in other parts of the citystate and Singapore’s help in developing an investment zone in southern Malaysia. The station, which opened in 1932, has been named as a national monument. “We try to do our fashion show in an interesting and different location every year. The Tanjong Pagar Railway Station is historical, it’s interesting and it’s never been used for a fashion show before,” Grace Lee, editor of fashion magazine NuYou told Reuters. Nuyou, which is Chinese for girlfriend, organized the show with sister magazine Female.

“We’re working with RED Valentino, the baby in the Valentino stable, as it expands into Asia,” added Female’s creative editor Jeanette Ejlersen.

Introduced in 2004, RED, which stands for Romantic Eccentric Dress, offers a more contemporary, casual spin to more traditional Valentino attire.

The Singapore Land Authority, which owns Tanjong Pagar Railway Station, closed the building to facilitate the removal of railway track, furniture and equipment. It plans to redevelop the area while preserving the station facade and individuals and will allow it to be used for events and activities on application, spokeswoman said. -Reuters

FILE-Adolf Hitler’s memoir Mein Kampf will be re-released with annotations. (AP)

which lays out the Nazi version of Aryan racial supremacy - and emphasize the “global catastrophe that this dangerous way of thinking led to”, he added.

As well as the new German versions, Bavaria is planning to issue a new English version, in addition to an eBook and an audio book. Half a million Euros is being invested in the project.

Karl Freller, the director of the Foundation of Bavarian Memorials, said he would seek intense discussions with bookshops and publishing houses in the hope that they would voluntarily avoid selling or reprinting unannotated versions of Mein Kampf when its copyright expires.

There have been repeated rows over the publication of the book. The British

publisher Peter McGee was recently forbidden from publishing annotated extracts from the book in a weekly historical newspaper.

The state of Bavaria owns the copyright to the tome which Hitler wrote while in prison in 1923 following his failed Munich coup, the Beer Hall Putsch, because its capital, Munich, was the last place he was registered as a resident before he became chancellor of Germany in 1933.

The first edition was published in 1925. Its healthy sales were guaranteed for years, not least because after 1933 every newly-married couple received a copy, and because secondhand bookshops were forbidden from selling it. Up until 1945 almost 10m copies of it were in circulation.

Fitness fanatics get pumped for Australia’s first ever Exhilarate Zumba Fitness-Concert FRANCE: Zumba Fitness creator Beto Perez will be traveling down under to host Australia’s first ever Fitness-Concert. The Exhilarate Zumba Fitness-Concert is best described as a fusion between a massive pop concert and a fitness workout all rolled into one. The flagship Australian event will take place during the Australian Fitness & Health Expo and will see over 3,000 participants, plus a full crew of dancers and producers, lights, costumes and a massive sound system, dancing it out at the Sydney Convention Centre on April 28. Relaxnews went one-on-one with Beto Perez to find out more about the event and to discover what’s new in the world of Zumba.

“Zumba Fitness is now the largest branded fitness program in the world with more than 12 million weekly class participants, in over 110,000 locations, across more than 125 countries,” explained Perez.

“The Zumba program is most established in Australia, the US, the UK, Netherlands, Germany, France and Italy but it’s rapidly

building momentum in other countries as well, particularly Spain, Brazil and southeast Asia.” If you’re not familiar with the massive Fitness-Concert events, Perez says to “[t]hink of a concert you’ve been to in the past -- the vibe it had, the sound, the adrenaline. Now imagine mixing it with hot global dance routines and a crowd of thousands moving in unison. We will bring to life the Zumba Exhilarate DVDs.” The Exhilarate Zumba Fitness-Concert will be the first ever to take place in Australia but similar events have been held in the US and the UK with big name stars like American rapper Pitbull.

The biggest annual Zumba event in the world, the 2012 Zumba Convention, will take place in Orlando in August and expects to attract around 7,000 people.

One of the main focuses at the event will be Zumba Toning, a new style of Zumba that aims to work the body’s core muscles through a blend of dance and resistance training. -AFP

ALWATAN DAILY

entertainment Song Of The Day

Fahad AlSabah Staff Writer

Song: End of Time (JIMEK Remix) Artist: Beyoncé Album: 4: The Remix Genre: Pop In short: After announcing that “End of Time” would be the fifth single taken off 4, Beyonce called for a global competition on which participants would remix the song. The 50 most eligible entries were then judged by a panel of Beyoncé’s choice; the winning remix is now featured on her newly-released EP, 4: The Remix.

To listen to the song visit www.alwatandaily.com E-mail your feedback to falsabah@alwatandaily.com

The Buzz Gossip Girl’s Josh Safran takes over Smash A loss for “Gossip Girl” is a gain for “Smash.” “GG” showrunner Josh Safran will take over as the showrunner for its musical drama, which has been up and down in the ratings during its first season, NBC has announced. Safran, who has worked on the CW’s “Gossip Girl” since 2008, will take over the “Smash” duties from series creator Theresa Rebeck, who stepped down in March. NBC last month renewed the backstage-Broadway-themed series for a second season. Rebeck, who wrote the first three episodes of “Smash,” is a Broadway playwright who based the show’s lead character, Julia (Debra Messing), on herself. Rebeck will remain with the show as an executive producer and writer. -Reuters

Amos Vogel, New York Film Fest co-creator, dies at 91 AmosVogel, who made a sophisticated mark on the American film scene by co-creating Cinema 16 and the New York Film Festival, died on Tuesday in Manhattan. He was 91.Vogel emphasized experimental and independent fare in his programming for Cinema 16, an influential forum he launched with his wife, Marcia, in 1947. During Cinema 16’s 17-year run, Vogel zoomed in on the work of directors like Roman Polanski, John Cassavetes, Kenneth Anger and Francois Truffaut.

Audiences for the cinema club’s screenings topped 1,000 during its height. In 1963, he brought the same curator’s sensibility to his next big project, the New York Film Festival, which he co-founded with Richard Roud. He worked as the fest’s program director until 1968. Five years later, he started the Annenberg Cinematheque at the University of Pennsylvania and taught for two decades at the Annenberg School for Communication. -Reuters

Rome star Ray Stevenson to be bad guy on Dexter As if Dexter Morgan doesn’t have enough problems, now he’ll face a new bad guy, too: Ray Stevenson will play the head of a Russian crime syndicate in a multi-episode arc on the seventh season of “Dexter.” Stevenson has starred in TV’s “Rome” and in movies like “Thor” and “Punisher: War Zone,” will also star in the “Thor” sequel and this summer’s “G.I. Joe: Retaliation.” He also stars in Billy Bob Thorton’s latest directorial effort, the drama “Jayne Mansfield’s Car.” “Dexter,” which was renewed for a seventh and eighth season by Showtime in November, will begin its seventh season on September 30. -Reuters

Drop Dead Diva will return with Kim Kardashian Lifetime’s “Drop Dead Diva” is returning to the airwaves in June - and it’s bringing Kim Kardashian along with it. The show’s fourth, 13-episode season will kick off June 3 at 9 p.m. with a season premiere featuring reality TV queen Kim Kardashian, who’s beginning a multiple-episode run with the show. The “Keeping Up With the Kardashians” star will have a recurring role this season as Nikki LePree, a famed relationship guru (something of an irony, given Kardashian’s track record on that front) who Stacy turns to for advice after her former flame Fred moves on with a new love interest. -Reuters

Bieber, Lady Gaga to appear in Men In Black 3 “Born This Way” singer Gaga and “Baby” belter Justin Bieber will make brief appearances in the upcoming sci-fi sequel “Men in Black 3,” director Barry Sonnenfeld told Collider in a recent interview. Sonnenfeld said that the singers’ images will flash on the alien surveillance board at Men in Black headquarters, which in the first installment included shots of Steven Spielberg, Danny DeVito, Sylvester Stallone and George Lucas. Sonnenfeld said that there’s an art to choosing which celebrities will be exposed as extraterrestrials in the film franchise. “Men in Black 3,” which was hampered by delays, will hit the big screen on May 25. -Reuters

friDAY, april 27, 2012

Country star George Jones makes family feud public NASHVILLE: It’s not his health but a family feud that is bothering George Jones.

The 80-year-old country star posted a video message on his website Wednesday, thanking fans as he recovers from an upper respiratory infection. He then accused his daughter Georgette Lennon of spreading lies about him on the Internet.

He was hospitalized for nearly a week last month and had to postpone shows.

“I would like to apologize for my daughter Georgette and her new husband for putting so much bad things about me on the Internet and Facebook,” said Jones in the video.

“None of these things are true. They are all about money. I have gave and gave until I can no longer give. I will never let her go hungry, but I am tired of putting out, and I am not the person they claim I am.”

Lennon, 41, said she is “completely devastated” by his message and denies making any negative statements about him. Lennon’s mother was country singer Tammy Wynette, who died in 1998.

“All I’ve ever wanted is to have a relationship with my dad and for him to know how much I love him and for him to love me and want to be a part of my life,” she told The Associated Press. “I had hoped that we could resolve this between the two of us privately and at some point he would talk to me. Unfortunately, things have escalated even further.”

Lennon said their relationship became strained a couple years ago when she became

FILE - GRAMMY Lifetime Achievement Award winner George Jones accepts his award at The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Special Merit Awards Ceremony at The Wilshire Ebell Theatre on Feb. 11, 2012 in Los Angeles, California. (AFP)

friends with her two brothers from Jones’ second marriage. She said Jones had a falling out with his two sons about 20 years ago, and does not communicate with them.

She said her relationship with her father reached a breaking point last year when she

was planning her Oct. 29 wedding. Her brothers were OK with not attending if it meant Jones would be there to give her away, but Lennon said she never got an answer from Jones until she saw on his website he had booked a gig on the same day. Her 18-year-

old twin sons walked her down the aisle.

“It’s been heartbreaking. When I lost my mom 14 years ago, I realized at that point in my life how absolutely short life is and you’re not guaranteed anything, not another day.

My father and I hadn’t spoken in over a year at that point, and that’s when I really decided I wanted to make an effort to try to mend things,” she said. “My family means the world to me, and that includes my dad, and I would never say anything negative about him or (his fourth wife) Nancy...I hope at some point he will sit down and listen to me and that we can talk this out and be a family again.”

Lennon believes that people have been lying to her dad about what they have seen on her Facebook account and elsewhere.

“He’s been told that I have sold stories to tabloids, which obviously I have not done and I can prove that I haven’t done that. I’ve never wanted money or anything from my father,” she said. With Jones’ recent health scare, Lennon tried to reach out to no avail, and she is afraid she offended him again. She heard from a friend of the family that Jones had pneumonia and told that to fans online, asking them to send prayers his way. Jones’ publicist insisted that he had only an upper respiratory infection.

She said she was not trying to make it look like he was sicker than he was or cause problems with future concert dates and ticket sales. Lennon acknowledges the high price of fame has taken its toll on her father. -AP

Actor Sean Penn receives award for work in Haiti CHICAGO: Oscar-winning actor Sean Penn gave an emotional speech Wednesday urging the world community to help Haiti as he accepted an award from a gathering of Nobel Peace Prize laureates for his humanitarian work in the earthquake-ravaged country.

“It’s an overused phrase I know, but I trust you know its genuine today, I am humbled. I’m trembling and I like it,” Penn said after accepting the 2012 Peace Summit Award from former Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev, who was joined on stage by the Dalai Lama and former Polish President Lech Walesa.

Penn has become a major player in efforts to rebuild Haiti after the January 2010 earthquake that devastated the island nation, flattening thousands of buildings, killing more than 300,000 people and leaving at least 1.5 million homeless.

He used his speech at the 12th World Summit of Nobel Peace Laureates to urge the world community to remember Haiti and invest in the country’s future and President Michel Martelly, who took office in May 2011.

“We have a very short window to support this team of the Haitian people’s choosing,” Penn said.

Papers in Penn’s hands shook and he became emotional at times during his speech as he described conditions in Haitian refugee camps or told the story of a Haitian police officer who lost his family in the earthquake.

Penn also warned that if Haiti fails it could become a harbor for narcotics trafficking and terrorism near the United States.

Penn is the first non-Haitian to be designated an ambassador-at-large for Martelly.

The actor is CEO of the J/P Haitian Relief Organization, a rapidly growing and increasingly prominent aid group. The organization manages two camps that are home to about 18,000 people.

Penn spends at least half his time in Haiti.

“He actually exchanged his home in Malibu for a tent,” Udo Janz, United Nations high Commissioner for Refugees, said when he introduced Penn to accept the award. “Think of it as the Oscar for your humanitarian commitment Sean.” -AP

Mikhail Gorbachev, former President of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (right) presents actor Sean Penn the 2012 Peace Summit Award during the World Summit of Nobel Peace Laureates April 25, 2012, in Chicago. (AP)

Scorsese says all his future movies will be 3-D LAS VEGAS: Martin Scorsese has become so enamored with 3-D filmmaking that he expects to use the technology in all his future projects.

The Academy Award-winning director of “The Departed” told a crowd of theater owners at the CinemaCon convention in Las Vegas on Wednesday that he wishes his landmark films “Raging Bull” and “Taxi Driver” had been threedimensional. Scorsese is so convinced of the power of 3-D, he said he only saw “Hugo,” his first 3-D movie released to critical acclaim last year, once in 2-D. “There is something that 3-D gives to the picture that takes you into another land and you stay there and it’s a good place to be,” he said.

Scorsese spoke at a filmmaking panel alongside director Ang Lee, who won an Oscar in 2006 for the gay cowboy love story “Brokeback Mountain.” Scorsese and Lee are among a growing crop of prominent directors who claim 3-D technology is the future of filmmaking.

Scorsese said the added dimension of digital films allows movie fans to feel a stronger connection to the story and actors on screen. He recalled filming “Hugo” and watching as Sacha Baron Cohen, who portrayed a stern train station inspector, leaned forward on set, and the motion that created on a monitor.

Scorsese said he never thought he would have

the opportunity to make a 3-D film. He said conquering the technology was challenging at first, but he ultimately decided to experiment as much as possible and watched 3-D versions of Alfred Hitchcock’s “Dial M for Murder” and “The House of Wax,” the 1953 horror film, for inspiration.

“Hugo,” based on Brian Selznick’s awardwinning “The Invention of Hugo Cabret,” an illustrated novel about a Parisian boy and a broken automaton, won several technical Oscars at this year’s Academy Awards and earned the most nominations, including a best director nod.

“It’s like seeing a moving sculpture of the actor and it’s almost like a combination of theater and film combined and it immerses you in the story more,” Scorsese said. “I saw audiences care about the people more.”

Scorsese and Lee lamented how inaccessible 3-D technology is to low-budget or independent filmmakers.

Lee, whose “Life of Pi” 3-D fantasy adventure is set to be released in December, said learning to tell a story with the multidimensional technology required everyone on set to reimagine the boundaries of film, including the lowliest crew members.

“The technology improves so fast. Like every three months you are behind,” Lee said. “The learning curve is really humongous.” -AP

Disney to produce Muppets sequel Kermit, Miss Piggy and the rest of their felt-covered friends will be returning to the big screen. Disney announced at CinemaCon on Tuesday that it’s working on a sequel to the 2011 hit “The Muppets.” James Bobin is returning to direct the project, and is co-writing the script with Nicholas Stoller, who co-wrote last year’s movie with star Jason Segel. A release date for the sequel has not yet been announced. Last year’s “The Muppets,” the first film starring Jim Henson’s creations in 12 years, has amassed a worldwide gross of more than $158 million on a $45 million budget, according to Box Office Mojo. -Reuters

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Filmmakers Martin Scorsese (left) and Ang Lee discuss the use of 3-D in movies during the CinemaCon convention, April 25, 2012, in Las Vegas. (AP)

Katie Couric to launch new Web show for Yahoo, ABC NEWYORK: Katie Couric is launching a weekly Web series for Yahoo News and ABC News about health and lifestyle issues. The series, “Katie’s Take,” will premiere Tuesday on Yahoo. Yahoo Inc. formally unveiled the show Wednesday at a presentation to advertisers in New York. Couric left the anchor chair of the “CBS Evening News” last year. She is currently a special correspondent for ABC News. She is launching a syndicated talk show, “Katie,” this September.

In a statement, Couric said she is “happy to have found a place in the digital world where I can cut through fads and trends.” Yahoo and ABC last year partnered to share content, with articles from Yahoo News appearing on ABC News’ website, and video from ABC News going to the Internet portal.

Yahoo also announced several more original online series in its continuing push to offer hours of premium video content. Matthew Weaver and Chris D’Arienzo, the creators of the musical “Rock of Ages,” are developing a musical comedy with a working title of “Dancing With Myself.” The company is also developing a talk show with Jeff Goldblum planned for July, a series titled “Stunt Nation” with host Sal Masekela and four other shows targeted at male audiences. Yahoo’s most highly anticipated series, the animated sci-fi “Electric City,” produced by Tom Hanks, is to debut later this year. -AP

Paul Walker filming Katrina drama in New Orleans

NEW ORLEANS: Actor Paul Walker is shifting gears in New Orleans, where he is playing a father struggling to keep his newborn daughter alive in a New Orleans hospital ravaged by Hurricane Katrina.

Makers of the suspense drama, “Hours,” say this is one of the most challenging film projects yet for “The Fast and the Furious” star. Walker plays the lead character Nolan, a grief-stricken man struggling with his wife’s death while trying to keep his prematurely born daughter alive in an incubator through power outages and rising floodwater and chaos when the two are abandoned in a New Orleans hospital after Katrina strikes.

“Paul is literally in every scene,” said the film’s producer, Peter Safran, whose other films include the blockbuster parody “Scary Movie.” ‘’I love how this project challenges him.”

Production got under way this week.

Shooting on Wednesday involved a scene in which Walker was trying to flag down a helicopter from the roof of a parking garage that will appear in the movie

to be the roof of the hospital in which Walker’s character and his daughter are trapped. Filmmakers point out that the movie isn’t just a Katrina story.

“It’s about parenthood,” said screenwriter Eric Heisserer (“Final Destination 5” and “The Thing”), who is making his directing debut with “Hours.” ‘’As I was writing this screenplay, I could see every scene. There comes a point where you fall in love with a project so much you just can’t let go of it.”

Walker, who has a 13-year-old daughter, said the premise of a father fighting to keep his child alive is what drew him in.

“Hours,” which also stars Genesis Rodriguez (“Man on a Ledge” and “Casa de mi Padre”), will be filming in New Orleans through next month.

It’s one of a cluster of productions filming in south Louisiana. Others include “The Tomb” starring Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger and “Django Unchained,” the Quentin Tarantino-directed film starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Samuel L. Jackson and Jamie Foxx.-AP

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ALWATAN DAILY

AROUND TOWN / TIME OUT

FRIDAY, APRIL 27, 2012

If you have an event you wish to include, please email: aroundtown@alwatandaily.com

Feature o f

graffiti

the day

moderately confused

Ali Abdulwahab Sons & Co organizes Pringles event at Marina Crescent

KUWAIT: Ali Abdulwahab Sons & Co., the exclusive distributor of Pringles in Kuwait, continues the launch events of the all new Pringles campaign entitled, ‘Pringles - Bursting with more flavor’ through a two-day event at the Marina Crescent.

This two-day event had a different flavor to it, as the Friday event was solely dedicated to Kuwait’s local media, as a means of treating them to a fun and relaxing day out.

The event included different challenging contests full of fun and competition in which media representatives participated in.

The fun didn’t end there, as media representatives also brought their families and friends along to also get a taste of the Pringles event and the bursting flavors!

From great giveaways to 42-inch LEDs, the attendees and participants all went home feeling the burst of the new Pringles flavors!

Commenting on this was Brand Manager of Pringles Sherihan Bastawi at Ali Abdulwahab Sons & Co, “At Ali Abdulwahab we strive to maintain solid relations with our advocates and most importantly our voice in the industry. The me-

Month a t

Sudoku

Elementary dia representatives of Kuwait are just that, and we thought of a way to treat them for their continuous support and efforts through a day of fun dedicated to them and their families.”

She added, “The fun with Pringles didn’t end here, as Saturday’s event was open to the public and the fans of Pringles, whom also joined us in a competitive and exciting atmosphere.”

Intermediate

Advanced

Contests at the event included a construction contest, a cooking contest, a jingle contest, and many other entertaining and challenging activities that brought laughs and fun to the hearts of all attendees.

Ali Abdulwahab Sons & Co. gave a special thanks to the organizers of the event, TRIUMPH for media services, and the sponsors which included Ice-Watch and Nestle -Toll.

General A n n o u n c e m e n t s

a glance

NSPC Charity Exhibition April 25 - 27/ 10 a.m. - 10 p.m./Alraya Center: The National Society for Protection of Children would like to invite you to its annual charity exhibition on April 25, 26 and 27, from 10:00 a.m. till 10:00 p.m. at Al Raya Centre, ground floor in Sharq. The exhibition will include many participants offering kaftans, bags, accessories, fine jewelry, food, sweets, books and paintings from Kuwait and the GCC. The event is available for the public and is free of charge.

Golden era club April 27/ 5 p.m. - 7 p.m./ Rumaithiya: Join the Golden Era (an exclusive seniors club) for a 3500 km, zero carbon footprint, journey to a beautiful European country credited with amazing achievements. Dr. Leos Tovarek’s dynamic presentation will give a unique insight into the Czech Republic; its history, culture, strengths, potential and future. Home sick Czech nationals are particularly invited to share their culture. Venue- House #34, next to AbuTammam Intermediate School for Boys, Sate Alhusari St., Block 2, Rumaithiya. For details call 97172788/ 66208183.

K’S PATH invites applicants for the adoption of pets Sepp is a Domestic Long Haired (DLH) male cat. He will be 2-years-old April 2012. This friendly, laid-back boy loves a good cuddle and likes a high vantage point in a cat tree or ledge to look out from. He would do best in a home with children over 12 years of age.

To adopt, contact +965 67006122 or visit the website www.kspath.org

Mario is a gentle and affectionate 6-years-young Spitz male. This friendly boy does great with people and dogs of all ages.

Diwaniya presentation

Pretty Little Things Charity Edition April 28 - May 1/3:00 p.m. - 10:30 p.m/Sadu House: Try new things, meet the people behind regional brands, help raise funds to refurbish a part of the orphanage, chat under the stars by candlelight and stay a while. Opening day will be April 28 at 7:00 p.m. with special appearance by Fishyface booth and the event will extend from April 29 to May 1 from 3:00 p.m. until 10:30 p.m. held in Sadu House; Gulf Road; in front of the National Museum of Kuwait. Come and meet: Razan Al Azzouni, Fyunka, Sotra Boutique, Th\\’haba, May Jewelry, Paper Design Nest, The Yard, Peices By Farah, AK Eco Gioelli, Muneera Alsharhan, So Lulu, Baby B, Lina Jewelry Design, and more! For more information visit Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/ events/122809627847930/.

May 1/ 7 p.m. /The AWARE Center: The AWARE Center cordially invites interested Western expatriates to its diwaniya presentation entitled, “Criminal Laws in Islam,” by Dr. Teresa Lesher. Criminal law in Islam aims to safeguard the community and exists when there is potential harm to a second party. Join Dr. Teresa Lesher for a discussion of Islamic law (shariah) regarding the penalties for the major crimes, including murder, manslaughter, armed aggression, theft, rape, adultery, slander and intoxication, and how these rules protect the citizens’ material, spiritual and social development. Q&A follows a 20-minute presentation.

Marriage counseling session May 2/ 6 p.m. - 8 p.m. / TIES Center: TIES Ladies Club invites all ladies to a lecture on Marriage Institution by Joanne Hands (Psychologist, Licensed Counselor, Marriage & family Therapist). The lecture will cover on a brief introduction to the stages of marriage institution, a successful approach to the day to day marriage life, tricks of nourishing and improving your marriage relationships and techniques of overcoming the marriage challenges. Refreshments will be served.

For more information please contact us on 97228860/2523015/6 or emailinfo@tiescenter.net.

Dilbert

Holiday Notice The Embassy of India will remain closed on Sunday, May 6, 2012 on account of “Buddha Purnima”.

Open House for Indian Citizens Ambassador of India would be holding an Open House for Indian citizens to address their problems\grievances on Wednesdays of the second and the fourth weeks of every month between 1500 hrs and 1600 hrs in the Embassy. In case Wednesday is an Embassy holiday, the meeting will be held on the next working day. To ensure timely action/follow-up by the Embassy, it is requested that, wherever possible, Indian citizens should exhaust the existing channels of interaction/grievance redressal and bring their problems/issues in writing with supporting documents.

Nancy

Horoscopes Aries: March 21 - April 19

You enjoy reaping rewards for all your efforts. But in your love life, you have to admit that you can never be sure of the quantity or the quality of the fruits of your labors. Yet, today, Aries, you could realize that it’s time to plant some new seeds. You might not know how they’ll turn out, but you do know better than anyone else that you can’t win if you don’t play.

Taurus: April 20 - May 20

You probably know that you don’t attain freedom in one fell swoop, but rather bit by bit as you go through life, Taurus. Perhaps you’ve been feeling as if you don’t have enough freedom. Over the next few days you could find the situations or people you need in order to liberate yourself. Don’t forget that love is the greatest freedom of all. It could be time to make room for it in your life.

Gemini: May 21- June 21

Throughout the day you may get the feeling that something has changed in the way people relate to each other, Gemini. It will be as if people are surer of themselves, more open, more expressive.Where, exactly, do you fit into all of this? Are you in a mood to charm other people just for fun?

Cancer: June 22 - July 22

You can relax a little at last! That’s what you could be thinking with today’s celestial energy. The time is perfect to get ready for the challenges that up to now were just anxieties inside you. If you’re thinking clearly today, Cancer, it’s because you have the strength to face your problems. Now that you have your self-confidence back, you might open your heart even wider to someone dear.

Leo: July 23 - August 22

You’re interested in better understanding yourself and your reactions to the world around you. Well, Leo, today you should take the time to look over your successes and failures, especially where your family life is concerned. The atmosphere is changing and things will be much more positive over the next few days. Think about sharing with other people what you have learned.

Virgo: August 23 - September 22

This is a perfect day for falling in love,Virgo! You can expect anything to happen today. You could even meet someone who is ready to love, support, and listen to you when you need him or her most. You need to put all your fears and hesitations behind you on a day like today. Besides, a little madness every now and then won’t hurt.

Libra: September 23 - October 22

Today, Libra, you’ll really be in the limelight. This could help you change what is sometimes a very negative image you have of yourself. You have a certain kind of energy and magnetism about you it’s about time someone noticed! It’s only natural that you should be proud of yourself, and that other people should acknowledge your hard work and effort. Revel in this moment of glory!

Scorpio: October 23 - November 21

Today is another passionate day in a series of passionate days! Usually, Sagittarius, you’re a fairly reserved person where feelings are concerned. You’ll be much more demonstrative with your emotions over the next few days. You can be like a fire trapped inside a wall of ice, and today that ice is beginning to melt! Let it - and enjoy it!

Sagittarius: November 22 - December 21

Today is another passionate day in a series of passionate days! Usually, Sagittarius, you’re a fairly reserved person where feelings are concerned. You’ll be much more demonstrative with your emotions over the next few days. You can be like a fire trapped inside a wall of ice, and today that ice is beginning to melt! Let it - and enjoy it!

Capricorn: December 22 - January 19

If you come across someone a little strange or eccentric today, try and get to know him or her, because that person could be a reflection of part of you. The person will help you to see how modern and innovative you are, and how much you should appreciate your wonderful qualities. Meeting this person could be a kind of exercise in self-satisfaction.

Aquarius: January 20 - February 18

If you often help people in need, or if helping people is part of your profession, this day will bring certain ideas to light, Aquarius. You need to take the time on a regular basis to take care of yourself.

If you don’t, you won’t be able to continue to help others. Think about it and stop making excuses for why you can’t do it. Think of yourself for a change.

Pisces: February 19 - March 20

One couldn’t really say that you have a hard time making decisions regarding your love life, Pisces.

You’re a passionate person and you believe in love at first sight. You’re probably the most spontaneous lover in your immediate circle! Add to that, you’re entering a period in which your emotions will be heightened.

ALWATAN DAILY

SPORTS

friDAY, april 27, 2012

19

Basketball

Knicks hold off Clippers to stay tied for 7th seed NEW YORK: JR Smith scored 21 points, including a rally-stopping jumper with 31 seconds left, and the New York Knicks held on to beat the Los Angeles Clippers 99-93 on Wednesday night and close in on the No. 7 seed in the Eastern Conference.

Carmelo Anthony scored 17 points for the Knicks, but he was on the bench in the final minutes as the Knicks blew nearly all of an 18-point lead against a Clippers team that was fighting desperately for homecourt advantage in the first round.

The Knicks will draw No. 2 seed Miami in the first round with one more win or a loss by Philadelphia.

New York closes its regular season Thursday at Charlotte, which has one of the worst records in NBA history, while the 76ers visit Detroit.

If New York loses and Philadelphia wins, the Knicks would fall to the No. 8 seed and open against Chicago.

Blake Griffin had 29 points and 10 rebounds, and Randy Foye scored 28 points for the Clippers, who played without Chris Paul and fell a half-game behind Memphis for fourth place in the West. The Clippers need the Grizzlies to lose at home to Orlando on Thursday to have the home-court advantage for their first-round series.

Paul sat out after mildly straining his left groin in Tuesday’s 109-102 loss at Atlanta. The Clippers dropped three of their final four games, costing themselves any chance to beat out the Lakers for the Pacific Division title and perhaps a chance to open the playoffs at home.

But they wrapped up their first season with Paul at 40-26 and will make their first postseason appearance since 2006 and just their fifth since 1985.

The Knicks lost their slim chance of earning the No. 6 seed and avoiding the Bulls or Heat when Orlando beat Charlotte earlier Wednesday. The No. 7 spot is within their grasp - given the Bobcats (7-58) have lost 22 in a row.

But it was unclear if the Knicks wanted it while sitting their starters down the stretch. The Knicks led throughout the second half, seemingly putting it away early in the fourth when they opened a 90-72 lead with 7:23 remaining as Smith threw an alley-oop pass to Landry Fields on the break. Fans began chanting “Beat the Heat!” but suddenly they almost couldn’t beat the Clippers.

With Anthony and Amare Stoudemire sitting down the stretch, the Clippers stormed back and cut it to 9493 on Griffin’s basket with 52 seconds left. Smith answered with a jumper, and after Foye’s pass was broken up, Smith made two free throws to make it 98-93 with 23.5 seconds to go.

The Clippers finished 16-17 on the road, missing their first finish above .500 since moving to Los Angeles in 1984.

The Knicks led 24-19 after one then got a pair of 3-pointers from Steve Novak and two layups by Fields early in the second while extending the lead to 13. The Clippers cut it to one before New York pushed it back up to 48-39 at halftime. -AP

New York Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony (7) stuffs the ball against the Los Angeles Clippers in their NBA basketball game at Madison Square Garden in New York, April 25, 2012. (Reuters)

Chicago Bulls work chemistry Cowan completes Aussies collective effort heading into NBA playoffs Cricket

ROSEAU, Dominica: When the postmortem on the Australia tour of the Caribbean is concluded after the third test, one of the positives is sure to be the ability of the team’s top-line batsmen to all make a key contribution at some stage. Left hander Ed Cowan joined the club, a little belatedly, in Wednesday’s second innings as he helped the team towards an imposing 310-run lead.

While West Indies, whose opening pair have just one-half century performance between them, have struggled to find the batting displays to back up their improved bowling, Australia have shown they have a solid collective unit with the bat. There may not have been a single dominating figure in the top order, but each of the top seven have come up with at least one halfcentury during the tour.

Left-hander Ed Cowan’s’ 55, was a timely one given the questions in some quarters about his inability on this tour to get beyond the twenties and thirties.

Cowan batted with an injured wrist, picked up when he was struck by the ball in a close catching position on Tuesday and faced a surface that was turning sharply and bouncing, particularly from the off-spin of Shane Shillingford.

“50 on a wicket like that can be as good as 100. Sure the runs don’t show in the scorebook but over 300 to chase is a hell of a lot of runs and I think the contributions from guys haven’t been huge,” he said.

Cowan, who made his debut against India last December, is only in his seventh test but it is clear he had been feeling a little pressure having not passed 50 since

Australian batsman Ed Cowan slips a shot past West Indies Carlton Baugh during the third day of the third test match between the West Indies and Australia in Roseau, Dominica, April 25, 2012. (AFP)

he scored 74 in Perth in January.

“I try not to read too much of it but if you’re in the Australian cricket team and you’re not consistently getting big scores, of course you are going to be under pressure.You don’t need to be a genius to work that out,” he said.

“The only disappointing aspect is I think guys here on the ground would appreciate how hard batting has been through the series but people, because of

the time zone, probably haven’t watched a lot of cricket but they click on a link to see the score in the morning and they go ‘28, oh, Ponting 30, these guys are struggling’.

“Well, it’s bloody hard work and you need to see the ball spitting and turning the way it is to appreciate that. And if you’re just judging people’s form by looking at the scorecard, then you’re not doing the game full justice.” -Reuters

Chicago Bulls’ Derrick Rose shoots over Indiana Pacers’ David West during an NBA basketball game, April 25, 2012, in Indianapolis. (AP)

seeds in the West. San Antonio, with the top seed in the West locked up, opted to rest stars Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili.

“It’s doesn’t make any sense to play them,” Spurs coach Gregg Popovich told the San Antonio ExpressNews, saying the chance that San Antonio’s playoff campaign could start as early as Saturday persuaded him to rest the trio. San Antonio still managed to beat Phoenix 110-106. -AP

Tennis

Formula one

HRT team to miss Mugello F1 test

SPAIN: Struggling Formula One team, HRT will miss next week’s early-season test at the Mugello circuit in Italy because they say they want to focus instead on settling into their new Spanish headquarters. The team, yet to score a point in Formula One and last in the standings after four races, also missed pre-season testing with their 2012 car and failed to qualify for the opening grand prix in Australia.

“The start to the season was a little bit rushed for us and, since the cars were set up for the first time, we have been working on them at the grand prix,” said team principal Luis Perez-Sala in a statement on Wednesday.

“This move to the new headquarters near Ma-

INDIANAPOLIS: Chicago, already assured of the top seed in the NBA’s Eastern Conference playoffs, used Derrick Rose and other key players in their 92-87 victory over playoff-bound Indiana.

Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau said injuries throughout the season had left his preferred starting unit of Rose, Richard Hamilton, Luol Deng, Carlos Boozer and Joakim Noah needing more playing time together. Some other playoff-bound teams were opting to rest their stars on the penultimate night of the lockout-shortened regular season.

“We still need to find some rhythm with guys,” Thibodeau said. “They need some time together.”

Deng played 33 minutes and Rose, who has been sidelined for 26 games, played 26 minutes and said he welcomed the opportunity.

“I love playing games, getting my rhythm back,” Rose said. “I’m coming along, man. I’m very positive.

My spirits are up.”

The Bulls lost to Miami in the Eastern Conference finals last season after posting the league’s best record. Thibodeau, therefore, was low-key on the importance of holding the top seed in the East.

“It’s the next step along the way,” he said. “You try to put as many things in your favor as possible. It’s not the end-all. It doesn’t guarantee anything. But I think it also gives you your best chance.”

Orlando, led by J.J. Redick’s 31 points, downed Charlotte 102-95 on Wednesday to book the sixth seed in the East.

The Bobcats, meanwhile, fell to 7-58 and need to beat the Knicks on Thursday to avoid the worst record by winning percentage in league history.

Orlando close the regular season against Memphis on Thursday, and a Magic win would give the Clippers home court advantage in their opening round against the Grizzlies. Denver’s 106-101 victory over Oklahoma City ensured the Nuggets will not be the eighth

Sharapova books last eight spot after Cornet retires

drid is very important for us and by not going to Mugello we can work thoroughly on the car to prepare for the Spanish Grand Prix. We won’t have the new upgrade package until then so we’ve preferred to focus on what can contribute more to us, which is teamwork at the headquarters. And there is a lot to do,” added the Spaniard.

HRT’s drivers are Spanish veteran Pedro De la Rosa and Indian Narain Karthikeyan.

The May 1-3 test at Ferrari-owned Mugello is the only one scheduled during the season that all drivers are allowed to take part in.

There is also a young driver test scheduled for later in the year but no other testing is allowed during the season. -Reuters

FILE - HRT Formula One driver Narain Karthikeyan of India drives during the Indian first F1 Grand Prix at the Buddh International Circuit in Greater Noida, on the outskirts of New Delhi, Oct. 30, 2011. (Reuters)

Maria Sharapova of Russia plays a forehand in her match against Alize Cornet of France during day three of the WTA Porsche Tennis Grand Prix at Porsche Arena on April 25, 2012. (AFP)

BERLIN: World number two Maria Sharapova eased into the quarter-finals of the Stuttgart indoor tournament after France’s Alize Cornet retired with an injury at the start of the second set.

Sharapova, hoping to complete her set of Grand Slams with victory at the French Open, had added the Stuttgart clay court event to her calendar to prepare for next month’s tournament at Roland Garros.

Cornet, however, gave her a short start on the indoor clay courts retiring with a shoulder injury while trailing 6-3, 1-0.

“It was (qualifier) Alize’s fifth match in five days. Tennis is very tough on the body,” said Sharapova, who wants to get clay court practice ahead of Paris.

“Practicing helps but matches are al-

ways a bit different. You have to get used to the different match situations and opponents with different styles,” she told reporters.

Former world number one Caroline Wozniacki advanced to the second round by the same score after fellow Serbian Jelena Jankovic also retired injured. Germany’s Mona Barthel sent Ana Ivanovic packing 7-5, 7-6 to confirm her fine form this year and set up a second round clash with seventh seed Marion Bartoli.

“This was something special because Ana used to be a bit of a role model for me,” Barthel told reporters. “I was still in school when she won the French Open and I watched it on TV. That was at the time a long way for me.”

Wild card entrant Barthel, who won

her maiden WTA tournament in Hobart earlier this year, saved two set points against the former world number one in the first set and fired a total of 11 aces as she breezed past Serbian Ivanovic.

Hungary’s Greta Arn initially troubled Agnieszka Radwanska with her powerful backhand with each player grabbing an early break before the Polish world number four broke her again with a fine crosscourt smash to move 4-2 up and hold serve to clinch the first set 6-3.

Arn rescued a break point to hold serve with yet another sublime backhand and lead 3-2 but Radwanska got the necessary break a little later to win 6-3 6-4 and became the first quarter-finalist when the Hungarian sank a forehand return into the net. -Reuters

friday, april 27, 2012

SPORTS

Sports Editors Highlight

LONDON: Britain’s men’s Olympic soccer team will play an exhibition against Brazil as it prepares for a first appearance at the Summer Games in 52 years. Stuart Pearce’s team takes on Brazil on July 20 at Middlesbrough’s Riverside Stadium before starting its quest for gold against Senegal on July 26 at Manchester United’s Old Trafford. Brazil is a five-time World Cup champion but has never won Olympic gold. Brazil’s group stage campaign at the London Games begins against Egypt on July 26 at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff, Wales.

The Brazil exhibition will be the first time a British Olympic soccer team has played a match since a qualifier in 1971. Because England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland compete as separate national teams, a British team usually does not enter Olympic qualifying. - AP

Football

Bayern edge closer to Europe glory dream BERLIN: Bayern Munich have had one thing on their mind all year - winning the Champions League in front of their home fans, and while that obsession may have cost them the Bundesliga crown it will all have been worthwhile if they are crowned kings of Europe on May 19.

The Bavarians, four-times European champions, can become the first team from a host city to lift the Champions League trophy in their own stadium and nowhere was their determination and dominance more visible this season than in the elite tournament.

Their one-track mind may have cost them the Bundesliga title as Borussia Dortmund, who were eliminated from the competition at the group stage, snatched a second consecutive league title.

Bayern, however, had bigger fish to fry and that mindset was evident in the way they approached their knock-out matches in the Champions League.

While results in the German league were erratic to say the least, their performances on the big European stage were sublime.

Basel and Olympique Marseille were brushed aside while their first leg against Real Madrid was crowned by a last minute Mario

Gomez goal for a 2-1 victory, setting the foundations for their second final appearance in three seasons. They needed penalties to eliminate Real after losing by the same score in Madrid. “This is a dream come true,” said Gomez, who has scored 12 Champions League goals this season. “I am just speechless. To advance in this kind of atmosphere on penalties is the most beautiful thing in the world.”

Even Bayern President Uli Hoeness, who had warned of a difficult group stage that included Manchester City, Villareal and Napoli, was left beaming.

“I thought I was going to die. This was a highlight match that you get to see only a few times in your life,” said the former Bayern player and manager, who can now top a stunning career at the club with a European trophy under his presidency.

“The biggest thing in football is aWorld Cup final or a Champions League final on home soil and we have done that,” he said.

While most observers felt the semi-final against Madrid was too close to call, Bayern’s fans were in no doubt who would win. The club said one million fans had applied for Champions League final tickets before the second leg in Spain. -Reuters

Bayern Munich’s Arjen Robben (center) celebrates with Bayern Munich’s midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger during the UEFA Champions League second leg semi-final football match, April 25, 2012.

(AFP)

Manchester braced for biggest derby LONDON: Alex Ferguson has described it as the most important derby in his 26 years at Manchester United while Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini thinks his side are too far behind in the Premier League title race for it to be decisive.

Differing views, but the reality is that whoever wins the game at the Etihad Stadium on Monday is likely to be crowned champions with United three points clear at the top and three matches of the season left. The battle for Champions League places involving Arsenal, Newcastle United, Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea also becomes more intense after Chelsea reached next month’s Champions League final. Should Chelsea go on to win the Champions League, whoever finishes fourth will not qualify for the elite competition and go into the Europa League.

Meanwhile, at the bottom, the fight to avoid joining Wolverhampton Wanderers in next season’s Championship (second tier), is just as frantic with Blackburn Rovers, Bolton Wanderers, Wigan Athletic, Queens Park Rangers and faltering Aston Villa battling for their Premier League lives.

Monday’s match at the Etihad (1900 GMT) begins with United top on 83 points and City second with 80. If City win they would move ahead of United on goal difference while a United victory would leave them six points clear with two matches to play.

“It is probably the most important derby game in my time. We have to go there, make sure we perform in the right way and not give away silly goals,” Ferguson said. “There’s no reason why we can’t get a good result. There has been an expectancy from City that this could be their decider, but it’s our decider too. Either way, it’s the decider.”

Mancini believes United are still favorites to win the Premier League title because they had a less difficult run-in. After playing on Monday, United face Swansea City at home and Sunderland away. City visit Newcastle before a home game against Queens Park Rangers.

“They’re top, three points ahead,” Mancini said.

“After the derby they have two easy games. We can talk about the title next Monday night but it’s impossible.”

Mancini suggested United’s experience - the

FILE - Manchester City’s Micah Richards (right) contests a high ball with Manchester United’s Phil Jones during the FA Cup third round football match, Jan.8, 2012. (AFP)

club have won 19 titles - would be a telling factor.

“I don’t think they have pressure because they are used to it every year,” he added. “For us, it’s different because it’s the first time. We don’t have any pressure because we are not expected to win.

But we want to finish well. It’s important for our season.”Monday’s match is the fourth time the two have met this season. In the Community Shield curtain-raiser United won 3-2 after City led 2-0 at halftime.

City then became the first opponents to score six at Old Trafford since 1930 when they crushed United 6-1 on October 23 before United ended City’s reign as FA Cup holders with a 3-2 win at the Etihad in a third-round match in January.

Real, Barca seek solace from European pain MADRID: Real Madrid and Barcelona’s powers of recovery will be tested against awkward La Liga opponents this weekend after the two favourites were painfully dumped out of the Champions League in front of their own fans. Nine-times European champions Real return to the Bernabeu on Sunday to play Sevilla after falling to bogey side Bayern Munich in a nerve-jangling penalty shootout in Wednesday’s semi-final. Jose Mourinho’s men can take some consolation from having a first La Liga title in four years well within their grasp, as they hold a seven-point lead over second-placed Barca with four matches left to play. Barca’s chances of retaining their league title look to have ended after a 2-1 home defeat by Real last weekend.

They then saw their European crown snatched from them after their bogey team Chelsea survived with 10 men to triumph in their Champions League semi-final on Tuesday.

Pep Guardiola’s team travel to play La Liga’s dashing upstarts RayoVallecano at their cramped stadium in Madrid on Sunday (1930).

“We have four games left until the end of the season,” Mourinho told reporters after the Bayern game. “We need six points and we need to do it as we have been doing, on our own. Working and fighting as we have done up until now.

If we win the championship it will have been a

Chelsea finally have Champions League luck: Grant

very good season and the players will be able to be pleased with the work they have done.”

Securing the league title would show progress in the task he was set after being brought in by club president Florentino Perez specifically to end Barca’s hegemony at home and abroad.

Inconsistent Sevilla are ninth in the standings, six points off the Champions League qualification spots and a massive 42 points behind the leaders but impressive on their day.

Barca face a tricky task at 15th-placed Rayo on Sunday as they come to terms with one of their worst runs of form in the Guardiola era after three successive games without a win.

With the league title a distant hope, the Catalans will start preparing for the King’s Cup final on May 25 against Athletic Bilbao.

“We are Barcelona and we know what that represents, so we will be going out to win all our remaining league games. That’s the best way to prepare for the final,” Spain midfielder Andres Iniesta told Barca television. The way the players react to recent disappointment may also influence whether Guardiola finally makes a decision on renewing his contract with the club, which runs out at the end of the season. “It’s a decision between him and the club,” Iniesta added. “He knows what we all want and let’s hope he stays here for a long time.” - Reuters

Arsenal lie third on 65 points and are favorites to take the final automatic Champions League place, a position they will strengthen if they can win at mid-table Stoke City on Saturday.

Newcastle, in a great run of form of six successive league wins, are fourth on 62 points with a match in hand on but might find matters tougher at rejuvenated Wigan.

Spurs, whose form has nose-dived since manager Harry Redknapp was linked with the England job in February, are fourth on 59 points going into a home match against 19th-placed Blackburn.

Chelsea, fresh from knocking Barcelona out of the Champions League, start the weekend in sixth place going into a home game against QPR. -Reuters

BELGRADE: Former Chelsea manager Avram Grant believes Lady Luck, who turned her back on the club four years ago, has finally smiled on the lionhearted Londoners after they stormed into the Champions League final with an astonishing win over Barcelona. Chelsea, seeking their first Champions League title, progressed on Tuesday and will meet four-time winners Bayern Munich in the German club’s own stadium on May 19 after the Bavarians knocked out Real Madrid on penalties on Wednesday.

Grant came agonizingly close to winning the trophy with Chelsea in the 2008 final, when John Terry slipped while taking a penalty that could have sealed the shootout against Manchester United on a rain-lashed night in Moscow.

“We were the better side and deserved to win but we didn’t and I would be delighted if Chelsea won the Champions League now because they are my favorite team in the competition and I still have many friends there,” Grant told Reuters.

Terry sent his shot on to the post after losing his footing and United went on to win their third title in Europe’s premier club competition, leaving Grant and his players in anguish. Three days later, the 57-year old Israeli had his contract terminated.

Asked if he thought victory in Moscow might have saved his job at Chelsea, the Partizan Belgrade boss said: “I don’t think about it, I think about the game from time to time because we played against a team described by (United manager) Alex Ferguson as the best United side since he took over (in 1986). It is amazing Chelsea have reached the final this season because they were second-best for long spells even in their previous knockout games against Benfica and Napoli.”

Grant, who took over from Jose Mourinho earlier in the 2007-08 season, said he believed luck had finally sided with Chelsea after their misfortune in Moscow four years ago.

Since being shown the exit door by Chelsea’s Russian owner Roman Abramovich after the Moscow flop, Grant endured torrid spells at Portsmouth and West Ham United having failed to save the latter from relegation from the Premier League last season.

But his fortune seems to have changed at Partizan, who are on the verge of winning a record fifth successive league title after Grant took over in January.

Their 2-0 win over neighbors BSK Borca on Wednesday put them firmly in the driving seat of the 16-team first division, needing one point from their remaining four games to seal the club’s 24th league title.

APOEL became the first Cypriot club to reach the Champions League last eight, stunning one rival after another before they went down to nine-time winners Real 8-2 on aggregate. - Reuters

Champions League back on the agenda for Inter MILAN: Inter Milan’s revival since the departure of coach Claudio Ranieri has been so impressive that they are openly talking of the Champions League, something which seemed beyond their reach only four weeks ago. Unbeaten in five games under interim coach Andrea Stramaccioni, Inter, who were 10 points adrift of a third-placed finish and a place in the Champions League playoff rounds when Ranieri left, have reduced the gap to a mere three.

There has even been talk that Stramaccioni, Inter’s fifth coach in the last two seasons, could

be given the job permanently if Inter manage to qualify. “That’s one way to look at it, but it’s always good to set objectives because it’s a motivation to constantly do better,” president Massimo Moratti told the club’s website on Thursday.

Inter have an excellent chance to boost their cause on Sunday when they host alreadyrelegated Cesena at San Siro while their direct rivals all face tough games. Inter have sneaked up almost unnoticed amid the excitement at the top where Juventus, unbeaten after 34

FILE - Inter Milan’s Javier Zanetti (left) challenges for the ball with Marseille’s Jeremy Morel during their UEFA Champions League soccer match, Feb. 22, 2012. (AP)

games of the 38-match campaign, stayed three points clear of champions AC Milan after both snatched late wins on Wednesday. Juventus, who have 74 points, visit relegation battlers Novara on Sunday (1300) while Milan travel to Siena (Sunday, 1300) who have moved up to tenth in the table. Lazio, who are third with 55, visit Udinese, on 52 points alongside Inter after losing 3-1 at home to Stramaccioni’s team on Wednesday. Napoli, fourth with 54 points, are at AS Roma.

Although Inter are unbeaten under his leadership, having taken 11 points from a possible 15, Stramaccioni still had to endure criticism after Sunday’s goalless draw at Fiorentina.

“There always seems to be this notion that Inter are carrying this ‘original sin’,” said Stramaccioni after Wednesday’s match. “I heard things which irritated me and I think the lads responded, especially those who had been particularly targeted like Wesley Sneijder, Ricardo Alvarez, Esteban Cambiasso and Andrea Ranocchia. I can only talk about what’s gone on since I’ve been in charge. So I can tell you that Sneijder did everything to come back as soon as possible....It’s only right that we take responsibility when we lose, but we’re still in it and we deserve respect.We weren’t awful after Florence, nor are we world-beaters now. From now on, we’ll only have Cesena on our minds. Sunday’s game will be big if we want to qualify for the Champions League. We’re here and we’re alive,” said Dejan Stankovic. “The boss has said that we can do it and we feel the same way as he does.” -Reuters