22 Feb 2013

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Bling is king?

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Deadly blast rocks Damascus

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DAMASCUS: Syrians carry an injured man after a powerful car bomb exploded near the headquarters of the ruling Baath party in the centre of the capital. — AFP

Local FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013

Local Spotlight

Cell phones kill

By Muna Al-Fuzai

muna@kuwaittimes.net

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recent study shows that mobile phones cause illness. According to the study, these phones which come in close contact with the body hold microbial germs that can cause serious illness. The study added that some people clean their mobiles with bleaching reagents and other cleaning agents. Though I think that it is something rather peculiar, some indeed think differently.

Twenty years ago, mobiles were not as widely available as they are today. These days almost everyone in Kuwait owns a mobile including those who clean the streets. It is no more about the price as phones have become a sort of necessity. Whether or not someone can afford to buy a mobile, he or she needs it to communicate. Any extensive use of mobile phone would surely make the handset fall

prey to accumulating germs but it does not mean we can drop it in a chemical agent to clean it up and destroy the germs. I doubt that it will even blink later but some people can indeed be as naive as that. According to this study, the mobiles carry ten times the germs than the amount found at any public toilet. For all practical purposes, I think these numbers of germs are too many. But come to think about it: people do carry their phones everywhere, whether in public or private. Are those places free of germs? Of course not.

That I guess makes it easier for the germs to make the handsets their home. The phone thus becomes a carrier, brining germs to our bodies and causing sickness. Even then, using detergents to clean the phones cannot be an option on the table. The study summed up with a tip to deal with the situation. Some companies have come up with new products that can be used to clean mobiles and computer screens safely without damaging these. Though people may not know much about these products, it will be worth their while to look out for these at computer shops.

Who wants to be sick because of germs on a phone?

Kuwait’s my business

Found any good places to spend your money?

By John P Hayes

local@kuwaittimes.net

K

uwait’s consumers once again have made known who pleases them, as we discovered last week when Service Hero released its annual customer satisfaction survey results. And once again we learned that consumers are not fickle (or forgiving), which explains why half of the Service Hero winners won the top award three years in a row. This is bad news for many Kuwait companies because even if they provide better customer service they’ll need to spend more money to convince customers just to give them a try.

Right now, Kuwait has made up its mind in eight business categories surveyed by Service Hero, the country’s only customer satisfaction index. When it comes to Islamic banking, Boubyan Bank is the only choice. For fast food, it’s McDonald’s and no other. For home furnishings, only IKEA. For casual dining, the choice is Mais Alghanim. For Internet service, KEMS is best.

For electronics, Kuwait favors Eureka. The best cafes belong to Caribou Coffee. And the country’s best hospital is Royale Hayat.

measure product quality - it measures customer satisfaction.

The index compares consumer expectations before and after a purchase. In fact, Company Y may have sold more products and earned more gross revenue than Company X, but again, that’s not what counts in this competition. Ah, but if profit matters, as I insisted in last week’s column, shouldn’t gross revenue matter more than customer satisfaction? No! Here’s potentially more bad news for the companies that didn’t win. It costs them more money to make a sale. Company X, with fewer sales, is more profitable than Company Y because of superior customer satisfaction. Company Y doesn’t have as loyal of a customer base and therefore it’s constantly churning customers. Company X, meanwhile, has captured a loyal fan base that doesn’t spend money at Company Y (because customer satisfaction is superior at Company X). If an index measured effective use of a company’s money, Company Y might lose again.

But I didn’t vote!

Your choices may differ, as do mine in some categories. But the majority has spoken, and that’s what matters. You may argue that you didn’t vote, and that’s beside the point. During a 90-day voting period, nearly 10,000 consumers voted, and that’s a solid representative sample of Kuwait’s consumers.

Even if you had voted, chances are the results would be the same.

The competitors in those eight categories above must face the fact that at best, they are second best when it comes to customer satisfaction. But then, as I asked in last week’s column, how many businesses really care about customer satisfaction?

Most do not, as evidenced by the fact that the same eight companies dominated the votes for customer satisfaction three years running.

The satisfied customer counts An important rule to remember is this: Whether you are running a country, an auto wash, a supermarket, whatever - the satisfied customer becomes a repeat customer, and a repeat customer is the least expensive customer. Businesses don’t always realize that customer acquisition is costly. Attracting a customer may cost more than the product being sold. So the goal is not to get (or pay for) more customers; the goal must be to get more sales from the same customer.

Let’s say it costs 30 dinars to attract a new customer who spends 30 dinars in your store. What have you accomplished?

Only busy work for your employees. In terms of profit, you probably lost money because you had to buy the product before you could sell it to the customer. But if the customer returns to your store and spends 30 dinars again, now you’ve probably earned a profit. The trick is getting the customer to return repeatedly. The solution to that trick is customer satisfaction. People don’t go where they’re not wanted, and that explains why so many consumers, not only in Kuwait, but universally, are searching for good places to spend their money. In the case of those eight categories, however, the majority has spoken, and those top companies will likely repeat a fourth time next year.

It’s not about product quality Don’t confuse customer satisfaction with product quality.

Many of you will read the list of the eight “three-peaters,” and say, “It’s not possible that Company X won because their products are not as good as Company Y.” But Service Hero doesn’t

NOTE: Dr John P Hayes is the head of Business Administration at GUST where he teaches marketing. Through the years he’s worked with more than 100 franchised brands internationally.

Contact Dr Hayes at questions@hayesworldwide.com or via Twitter @drjohnhayes.

Conspiracy Theories

Sick minds

By Badrya Darwish

badrya_d@kuwaittimes.net

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am even ashamed to write about it. I could not believe my eyes when I first read the news. I thought that I needed to get my eyesight checked or perhaps I was reading without my glasses on. Thank God, it was not my eyesight, so I do not need to visit the optometrist. But still the news upset me.

Guys, some people in the parliament and others in the health sector are trying to improve the medical services in Kuwait by discriminating blatantly and unashamedly between expats and citizens. They have the guts to suggest that expats are the root cause why healthcare services are deteriorating in Kuwait. So, they are suggesting a million ways to correct what they think is the main problem. They are asking expats to go to clinics or hospitals only during the evening shift. We, the privileged citizens, on the other hand, are required to go and see our doctors only in the morning.

According to the bunch of geniuses behind this proposal, most Kuwaiti doctors work in the morning.

So it would be easier for a Kuwaiti patient to be examined by a Kuwaiti doctor. Most consultants also work morning shifts, which means that all expats will be deprived of good consultancy and, consequently, appropriate healthcare. What if a sick expat showed up at the hospital door? Are you going to turn him back and ask him to come back in the afternoon? I hope those making the suggestion are not planning to apply similar measures to emergency services too. Imagine an ambulance carrying a patient in a critical condition being asked to come back later in the afternoon!

By the way, the work hours of many labs are in the mornings. What happens to the expats’ blood tests in that case? Well-thought! These guys should be the legislators of Kuwait’s future. They are buzzing with creative and innovative ideas. In a country where the expat workforce comprises two thirds of the population, you are applying such discriminating rules?

I cannot believe that we have reached such a nadir in Kuwait. I hope it does not happen in the 21st century and certainly not when the Arab Spring is ongoing and there are active human rights organizations out there, forget the various international organizations.

We are a Muslim country. We do not need organizations from abroad to tell us what is wrong and what is right. Apartheid and such kinds of discrimination are anti-Islamic. In fact, Islam ordains equality for all human beings regardless of colour, race or background.

Amazingly, most of those behind the proposal are supposed to belong to a religious group, if they think that long beards are a sign of religiosity. Many also have high degrees and are educated. What is motivating such ugly apartheid campaigns? Is it a campaign to get rid of expats? In my opinion, only a sick mind can come up with such an apartheid style idea which contradicts completely our sharia laws.

I suggest to the initiators of this idea that if they are so enthusiastic, they should kick out all the nurses because they are not Kuwaitis, in addition to the lab technicians and many others working in the health sectors in the hospitals. By doing so, they will have all Kuwaiti staff. Then, they will train and recruit our citizens only. If that is even possible, let them bring forth their proposal.

Local

Bling is king?

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013

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he motivation to buy a cheap or expensive products varies from person to person.

Usually the expensive products signify that they are of good quality or popular brand, so consumers believe that they are buying something really valuable. Some people buy cheaper stuff to save money while others will never go for cheap goods.

Huda, a 29-year-old Kuwaiti, is an example of a spendthrift obsessed with outfits, especially

shoes. “I am addicted to expensive shoes. I know that I can find a nice pair of shoes for less than KD 100, but I always insist on buying the most expensive shoes even if these are not very good.

I do so just to show off in front of my friends and society, especially during occasions like weddings, receptions and others. I care a lot about my image and even change my car every five years or earlier. As soon as I finish paying the installments on my old car, I buy a new model. In fact, most of my friends do the same thing,” she told the Kuwait Times.

“

Many Kuwaitis now buy fake brands if it is a first grade product and is a copy of the original item. In such a deal, people would not know that they are carrying a fake.

“

By Nawara Fattahova

According to 31-year-old Salem, a Kuwaiti employee, 95 percent of Kuwaitis buy expensive products just to show off and for reasons of prestige. “For instance, a man thinks that without an iPhone, he simply is not in. Most people in Kuwait may not be aware but when they hear about any promotion of any company, they rush to buy that phone. They may keep paying installments for this smartphone even though they may not even need it. There are many phones that can serve as many functions but cost much less,” he explained.

Salem thinks that such behavior is also common among expats as well. “When I was changing the tyre of my car, the laborer working in the garage was using an iPhone. I think that the companies are responsible for this phenomenon since their catchy ads attract the consumers to fall for their promotions. But I am not following these trends. I bought the mobile that suited my needs for KD 92 and I am satisfied with it although I had the money to buy the most expensive phone by paying in cash. I tried a very popular smart phone earlier and it did not meet my needs,” he pointed out.

On her part, 39-year-old Ibtisam thinks that people have now changed some of their shopping habits. “Many Kuwaitis now buy fake brands if it is a first grade product and is a copy of the original item. In such a deal, people would not know that they are carrying a fake. However, when it comes to electronic items, they usually only buy original stuff to show off, especially since these are not very expensive. The most expensive phone costs about KD 200 while an expensive bag is around KD 1,000,” she said.

She also noted that given a choice she would go for a cheap product. “If I found any electronic items on sale or promotion, I will buy these as I see it as a chance. This does not mean that the product is necessarily bad. But when it comes to a car, I buy according to my budget. If I were to decide to buy a used car at a cheap price, I would not presume that something was wrong with it. I will check it in a professional garage to be sure of its condition. But if I had enough money, of course I would buy a more luxurious and expensive car,” added Ibtisam.

Yousef, 55, mostly cares about what suits his needs. “I believe that not every expensive product is nice. So, I avoid the habit of buying expensive items just for their brand value. It is important that one buys what suits your look, body and so on. I know some people who borrow money just to be able to sport expensive clothes.

They compensate the shortcomings in their personality by buying these expensive items,” he stated.

In general, he prefers cheaper goods. “I care about the options and functions of any electronic product, for instance. I do not necessarily buy a product if it is on sale and I do not need it. As far as outfits are concerned, I think the design is most important, no matter what the price,” stressed Yousef.

Local FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013

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Local FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013

By Ben Garcia

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o improve their daily revenues, many restaurants are not satisfied with just a dine-in service. They offer services such as home delivery and catering for all kinds of parties/occasions. And to deliver the food hot and crispy, restaurants utilize vehicles, such as motorcycles, as the fastest way to reach out to the customers and quickly deliver products to them. But complaints about food being delivered cold to long working hours, the men who ride motorcycles to deliver us stuff we order have to take a lot on their chin from angry customers. If they are lucky, the best reward that they could accept legally in lieu of putting up with all this exertion are three little words: “Keep the change.”

Sharing his experiences with Kuwait Times, Hmoud JV admitted that he found his job tough and tiring to begin with but now he enjoys it. “At first, I really did not like the job of delivering food to people. I hated having to talk to people but had little choice since I needed to work for my family,” Hmoud told Kuwait Times. He admitted to have worked as an accountant in a big company in Kuwait a couple of months back but then circumstances changed. “I had an argument with my previous boss. I had no other option but to resign. I looked for a job for quite some time and when I did not receive any better offer than this, I had to accept this job. I have been into it for four months now,” he said.

Delivering food to the customer is not a job that he would ever have wanted. But Hmoud has to pay his rent and eat to survive. On top of that, he has certain responsibilities back home in India where he has a wife and a son. So he accepted a job that was not to his taste. “Were I single, I would not have accepted this job, but then this is the only one I could find. I was recommended here by my friend and accepted this on a temporary basis, but I think I am slowly coming to love it,” he admitted.

He does earn some amount from kind-hearted customers. “I do receive tips from customers. I love customers who, even when they are angry when I end up delivering their food late, tell me to keep the change. Sometimes the amounts add up to a pittance, say a dinar or two, but it helps me meet my daily needs. At times, the tips add up to an amount equal to my regular salary and I send this to my family,” he said. Hmoud’s four-month old stint has been punctuated by many worries and fears since he himself is not a licensed driver to ride a motorcycle. “I told them (the company) my problem but they said the police will not catch me. Well, that has turned out to be true since for the last four months, I have not encountered any problem with the authorities here. I know how to ride a motorcycle. I have complete motorcycle gear. I have a good bike. I think if I am unable to find another and a better job more suited to my professional skills, I will continue with this job,” he said.

Finding where certain customers are located can also sometimes become difficult, but according to Hmoud, equipped with a mobile phone, that is no more a problem now. “At first, if you are not familiar with the place, you will be lost.

Once you know the landmarks, locating the customer’s place is no longer an issue.”

Hmoud is not just equipped with motorcycle gear, he is also prepared to hand over copies of his CV in case a company needs his expertise. “I have this CV with me all the time in case a company where I deliver stuff would need an

accountant and I would agree to any salary. I think I will abandon the delivery boy’s job immediately since it is not really my line,” he told Kuwait Times.

How does Hmoud handle complaints? “Well, the customer is always right - that is the main credo in this kind of job. I know even if I were to explain to them why I was late on a certain day, they will always find negative things to say. But despite this, customers give repeat orders and even spare at least a quarter or a few fils. So long as they are not harming me physically, I am okay and I do not find any shame in doing this job,” he said.

Local FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2013

Daredevils set to get their adrenaline rush

By Nawara Fattahova KUWAIT: Adventure and extreme sports lovers can now enjoy 50-m high jumps with a panoramic sea view at the Marina Crescent. A bungee jumping event will be held at the Marina Crescent on Feb 22 to 24, 2013 to coincide with the national celebrations being held in the country.

It will be the first time that the event will be held in Kuwait, and the second time in the GCC region since it was held in Dubai in 2008 for five weeks. If the organizers receive a good response for the event to be held from 10 am to 6 pm on all three days, they may hold it again in the future.

“So far, about 100 enthusiasts have registered to jump during the three-day event, a figure we see as successful as we can only take between 120 and 150 people in these three days,” Zeina Saleh, Executive Manager of ZM Media and Advertising, the organizer of this event, told Kuwait Times. “The jumper will enjoy about five minutes of excitement. They will jump from a 50-m height, and it is possible for a couple to jump together.

We have insurance of Ä50,000 for the rope and other technical details,” she added.

People between 18 to 50 years of age will be able to participate in the activity. “No participant can be less than 18 years of age. Also he or she has to give in writing about being free of any psychological or physical illness, and that they are taking part in the jumping activity assuming full responsibility for themselves. We will take a photocopy of their ID cards as well. Certain weight limits also apply. A jumper should not weigh less than 40 kg or more than 100 kg. There is no limit as to how short or tall a person can be. Those willing to live

Info Ministry to boost performance of media BEIRUT: One of the major goals of the Ministry of Information is to enhance the performance of media at all levels in order to shed light on the country’s development plans, Minister of Information Sheikh Salman Al-Humoud Al-Sabah said yesterday. In an interview with the Lebanese Assayad magazine, Sheikh Salman highlighted the importance of cooperation between the legislative and executive authorities in the country in Sheikh Salman order to speed up implementation and execution of vital development projects.

He noted that 75 percent of the country’s budget goes towards services offered to citizens and therefore it was their prerogative to remain well aware about the planned development projects. He noted that the media should play a role in ensuring that the nature and objectives of these projects were known to the public. There should be media offices in every ministry and authoritative body in the country.

Sheikh Salman expressed his desire to make the media more active and engaging by training more than 60 media personnel to act as the official spokespersons of every ministry. This new media approach was aimed at marketing investments and social projects in the region. —KUNA

out this experience should make reservation in advance to obtain a ticket and put down their signatures.

Anyone can come and watch,” explained Zeina.

According to her, a majority of the participant are girls. “It could be surprising but it is a fact that more than 70 percent of those making reservations are women, a majority of them being in the age category of 20-30 years while one is 50. As far as their nationalities

are concerned, a majority are from Far East and Kuwait,” she pointed out. “The idea of this event was proposed by the Marina management and we organized it for them. They noticed that people travel abroad for taking part in such a thrilling sport and wanted to bring it to Kuwait to let more people participate at a lesser expense. The Marina aims to support young people. I would like to thank them for their support and their interest in hosting sports events, especially for young Kuwaitis,” she added.

Zeina also spoke about the history of bungee jumping. “It began in Africa when in some primitive villages, they used to tie a boy who just became an adult to a tree and forced him to jump. Then it evolved in New Zealand about a 100 years ago, after which it spread to Europe and to the rest of the world,” she stated.

The team presenting this event in Kuwait is called Sky Breakers from Finland and they have been participating in it for 25 years. “The five members of the team are specialized in free jumping, apart from bungee jumping. They will jump twice a day in different styles, including in an instance with one of them on fire. The team will give a certificate to all the participants who jumped,” she said.

The participants will be able to take photos of their jump free of charge. “We want to encourage people to jump as when they see them jumping, they too will like to try. We advertised first on social media in December, and this month we advertised in the press,” stressed Zeina. The ambulance, first aid, civil defense and fire department personnel will be present at the event. Also, the audience will be able to enjoy live music. The event will be covered by Kuwait TV.

Plan to segregate patients slammed MoH’s nationality-based discrimination ‘apartheid’ KUWAIT: The Health Ministry’s proposal to designate morning hours in hospital andclinics for Kuwaitis only and the evening period for non-Kuwaitis has came to instill a culture of racism and apartheid, in addition to being a proposal that depends on a patchwork solution instead of adopting a general strategy to reform and develop the health system, reports Aljarida. This segregation proposal is not a precedent or an exception, rather there are still attempts to build health insurance hospitals that separate citizens and expats racially and this does not agree with the constitution, international law and universal human rights

values, because healthcare is a basic human right that cannot accept discrimination.

Jahra Health Zone Director Dr Abdelaziz Al-Farhoud said “the reason behind this proposal is the presence of many Kuwaiti doctors in the morning, which is something positive for Kuwaiti patients as they find it easy to deal with them, and the same is true for expats.”

Secretary of the Human Path Organization Taher Al-Baghly said “this decision discriminates in how service is presented based on nationality”. “The health service will not be equal, because consultants work in the morning and this

will lead to variations in service levels,” he said. Administrative and psychological advisor Iman Al-Bedah said this proposal is “dangerous at all levels”, adding that it “will bring discrimination not between patients, but between workers themselves.” She said “the health sector is not qualified to face the burdens of the segregation policy, which will increase patient traffic in the evening and this will worsen the level of service.” She added “such policy contradicts the standards and ethics of the medical profession it also clashes with legal standards and international treaties related to human rights.

KUWAIT: A major fire broke out in a diesel storage area in Amghara scrap yard, causing explosions. Four fire departments were dealing with the fire at the time this report was filed.

No casualties were reported. — Photos by Joseph Shagra

Local FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013

Ties that bind

By Matthew Tueller, US Ambassador to Kuwait

A

s we near both the 52nd anniversary of Kuwait’s independence, and the 22nd anniversary of its liberation, I wish to congratulate the Kuwaiti people. I have served here on three separate occasions since liberation, each time watching the tremendous steps Kuwait has taken - as a government, as a nation, and as a people.

Kuwait is a regional leader in advancing the rights of women in the public sphere. We see clear evidence of this not only in a Kuwaiti woman’s right to vote or hold office, but also through her active role in positions of leadership in civil society, business, and academia. Kuwait’s media has retained its vibrancy, but more importantly its independence, allowing for a free exchange of views, charting a path for Kuwait’s future.

Considering the achievements Kuwait has made over the past 52 years, and the challenges it has overcome over the last 20, I am heartened by what I see on Kuwait’s horizon, and by the relationship that we, as Americans and Kuwaitis, have cultivated. I am proud of the ties that bind our two nations and am grateful for the opportunity to bear witness to an everstrengthening relationship that I hope will lead to new moments in our countries’ strong relations.

The strength of the US-Kuwaiti partnership is based on a relationship of mutual benefit and true friendship.

More Kuwaiti students are studying in America than ever before. Each day they bring their own unique set of experiences to our classrooms, lecture halls, and college student groups, and our universities are better for the diversity they provide. We see more businesses - American and Kuwaiti -forming partnerships to build capital, share technology and achieve greater levels of productivity.

This creates jobs and opportunities for citizens in both countries. While thousands of Kuwaiti tourists travel to the United States each year, we welcome the chance to show even more of America’s splendor to our guests.

Finally, America’s hospitals continue to open their doors to Kuwaiti patients, providing unrivaled care and support to those who need the best care options possible. Meanwhile, these same hospitals provide support and training, as Kuwait lays the groundwork for its own health infrastructure.

On top of these close cultural and economic ties, I have not forgotten, nor has the American government forgotten, the close security ties we have with Kuwait. Our militaries are bound by the shared sacrifice of Kuwait’s liberation, and as we move into the third decade of that relationship, the spirit of close cooperation between American and Kuwaiti armed forces remains steadfast.

As I approach the second year of my tenure as the US Ambassador to Kuwait, I look forward to forging new ways for Americans and Kuwaitis to work together. I thank the people of Kuwait for the warm welcome I have received during this period and again offer my heartfelt congratulations to Kuwait on these important anniversaries.

KUWAIT: KFAS Director-General Adnan Shihab-Elddin and Deputy Director of Kuwait University for Research Hassan Al-Sanad sign a stem cell deal on Wednesday. — KUNA

KU, KFAS ink stem cell deal Lack of donors a major obstacle KUWAIT: Kuwait University and Kuwait Foundation for the Advancement of Sciences (KFAS) have signed a research cooperation agreement to create a register for the donors of stem cells and placenta through a relevant research project. The deal was inked by KFAS Director-General Adnan Shihab-Elddin and Deputy Director of Kuwait University for Research Hassan Al-Sanad. Shihab-Eldin commended the research project, supervised by Dr Salem

Al-Shemeri, as part of a plan purposed to provide priority services in the health sector in Kuwait. He said several malignant and non-malignant blood diseases could be treated by using stem cells, but he complained that the main obstacle to this medical procedure is the lack of donors.

For his part, Al-Sanad spoke highly of existing cooperation between the Kuwait University and the KFAS in the field of scientific research. He hoped that the

research project would be a first step towards the creation of a national register for stem cells in Kuwait, thus contributing to finding practical solutions to treat several diseases. He noted that his university seeks to find a congenial atmosphere for revamping the level of scientific research in the country by means of propping up institutional capabilities and establishing a base of distinguished researchers and specialists. —KUNA

News

in brief

KUWAIT: Finance Minister Mustafa Al-Shamali inaugurates the 52nd Independence Exhibition 2013 yesterday at the Mishref Fairgrounds. — KUNA

Shamali inaugurates Independence expo KUWAIT: Kuwaiti Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Mustafa Al-Shamali inaugurated the 52nd Independence Exhibition 2013 yesterday at the Mishref Fairgrounds.

Over 32 government and non-government organizations are participating in the weeklong event. “The expo is a golden platform for depicting the distinguished services the government organizations are providing to the public,” Shamali told reporters on the sidelines of the inauguration ceremony. He added that the event coincided with Kuwait’s celebrations

of national days - the 52nd National Day and the 22nd Liberation Day - as well as the seventh anniversary of HH the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad AlJaber Al-Sabah’s assumption of the country’s leadership. “An atmosphere of joy and happiness that dominates Kuwaiti people’s celebration of national days necessitates an effort to acquaint the people with the services provided by the state bodies,” Shamali added. The minister lauded the significant government and nongovernment contribution to the event. — KUNA

Lebanese MPs laud Kuwait’s aid efforts BEIRUT: Two members of Lebanese parliament appreciated Kuwait’s efforts to lend a hand to neighboring Arab countries, especially Lebanon. Remarks to this effect were made by Future Bloc MP Mouin Merhebi and Development and Liberation Bloc MP Ali Khreis.

The two were congratulating Kuwait on the occasion of Kuwait’s national celebrations. Both the officials singled out Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development, praising it for setting up and financing vital projects in Lebanon that helped improve living standards in many of the country’s regions. They also praised the way the two countries always strive to strengthen their ties in political, economic, social, and development arenas.

Pak hails brotherly relations with Gulf ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Federal Information Minister Qamar Zaman Kaira yesterday said that the relations between the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states and Pakistan were rooted in history and common faith.

Addressing a seminar on ‘Innovating Pakistan and Gulf Relations’, the minister said that the Gulf states have always stood by Pakistan in difficult times. He said that Pakistan was located at a geopolitically important location but at the same time it was facing multiple challenges, most of which were imposed on Pakistan by the international community. He added that Pakistan and Gulf states enjoyed brotherly and spiritual relations. However, common faith is not the only factor in international relations, rather it is the economic, security and political interest which mattered, he added. The Minister also urged the international community to help liberal democratic forces in fighting extremists. He said that democracy was the only solution to problems of the country and the world should support democratic forces.

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013

Mali rebels fighting in Gao; car blast in Kidal

Outgoing Tunisian PM Jebali will not return

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NATO chief urges bloc to halt defense cuts

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DAMASCUS: A Syrian man holds the hand of a woman after a powerful car bomb exploded near the headquarters of Syria’s ruling Baath party in the centre of Damascus. —AFP

Car bomb kills 53 in Damascus Explosion near Baath offices, Russian Embassy BEIRUT: A car bomb killed 53 people and wounded 200 in central Damascus yesterday when it blew up on a busy highway close to ruling Baath Party offices and the Russian Embassy, Syrian television said.

TV footage showed charred and bloodied bodies strewn across the street after the blast, which state media said was the result of a suicide bombing by “terrorists” battling President Bashar Al-Assad. Central Damascus has been relatively insulated from almost two years of unrest and civil war in which around 70,000 people have been killed across the country, but the bloodshed has shattered suburbs around the capital. Rebels who control districts to the south and east of Damascus have attacked Assad’s power base for nearly a month and struck with devastating bombs over the last year.

The Al-Qaeda-linked rebel group Jabhat AlNusra, which claimed responsibility for several of those bombs, says it carried out 17 attacks around Damascus in the first half of February, including at least seven bombings.

Activists said most of the victims of yesterday’s attack in the city’s Mazraa district were civilians, including children, possibly from a school behind the Baath building. Opposition activists reported further explosions elsewhere in the city after the explosion which struck shortly before 11 am (0900 GMT).

One resident in the heart of the capital heard three or four projectiles whistling through the

sky, followed by explosions. At least one of them landed in a public garden in the Abu Rummaneh district, she said, but no one was hurt. The Britainbased Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which monitors violence via a network of sources inside Syria, said the Mazraa car bomb detonated at a checkpoint close to the Baath Party building, located about 200 metres (660 feet) from the Russian embassy.

Russia’s Itar-Tass news agency quoted a diplomat as saying the blast blew out windows at the embassy but no employees were wounded. “The building has really been damaged ... The windows are shattered,” the diplomat said. The vehicle was carrying between 1 and 1.5 tons of explosives, Damascus Governor Bishr Sabban told Reuters. A correspondent for Syrian television said he saw seven body bags with corpses at the scene. He counted 17 burnt-out cars and another 40 that were destroyed or badly damaged by the force of the blast, which ripped a crater 1.5 metres deep into the road.

Later, the Observatory reported, two car bombs exploded outside security centres in the northeastern district of Barzeh, but there were no details of casualties.

Syrian TV said security forces detained a would-be suicide bomber with five bombs in his car, one of them weighing 300 kg (440 pounds). In the southern city of Deraa, where the uprising against Assad erupted in March 2011, warplanes bombed the city’s old district

for the first time in nearly two years of conflict, killing 18 people, activists said. A rebel officer in the Tawheed Al-Janoub brigade which led a

rebel offensive this week in Deraa said there were at least five air strikes on the city yesterday. —Reuters

18 killed in India blasts HYDERABAD: At least 18 people were killed and 50 injured yesterday in a pair of explosions in crowded areas of the southern Indian city of Hyderabad, an official said.

Federal Home Secretary R K Singh said police were trying to determine the cause of the explosions. He spoke to reporters in New Delhi, the Indian capital. The blasts occurred about 10 minutes apart outside a movie theater and a bus station, police said.

Television images showed the injured being taken to nearby hospitals. The areas were cordoned off by police as panic spread. The last major bomb attack in India was a September 2011 blast outside the high court in New Delhi that killed 13 people.

Singh said officials from the National Investigation Agency and commandos of the National Security Guards were leaving New Delhi for Hyderabad, the capital of Andhra Pradesh.

India has been in a state of alert since Mohammed Afzal Guru, a Kashmiri, was

HYDERABAD: Indian medical staff treat the injured at the Omini hospital Kothapet in Hyderabad yesterday.—AFP hanged in a New Delhi jail nearly two weeks ago. Guru had been convicted of involvement in a 2001 attack on India’s Parliament that killed 14 people including five gunmen.

Many in Indian-ruled Kashmir believe Guru did not receive a fair trial, and the secrecy with which the execution was carried out fueled anger in a region where anti-India sentiment runs deep. —AP

International FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013

Egypt’s Brotherhood operates secretively CAIRO: Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi speaks publicly of firsthand knowledge of a meeting where opponents allegedly plotted against him. A few months earlier, the most powerful man in his Muslim Brotherhood group, Khairat El-Shater, says he has access to recordings of former military rulers and electoral officials engineering his disqualification from last year’s presidential race.

In Egypt, those statements are seen by security officials, former members of the Islamist group and independent media as strong hints that the Brotherhood might be running its own intelligence-gathering network outside of government security agencies and official channels.

Such concerns dovetail the Brotherhood, which has a long history of operating clandestinely, to suspicion that it remains a shadowy group with operations that may overlap with the normal functions of a state.

Brotherhood supporters also demonstrated militialike capabilities at anti-Morsi protests in December.

Another oft-heard charge comes from the Foreign Ministry, where officials complain that the president relies more on trusted Brotherhood advisers than those

inside the ministry in formulating foreign policy. The Brotherhood emerged from Egypt’s 2011 uprising as the country’s dominant political group and Morsi was elected president in June of last year as the group’s candidate. The motive for setting up parallel operations could be rooted in the fact that many government bodies, such as security agencies and the judiciary, are still dominated by appointees of the ousted regime of longtime authoritarian leader Hosni Mubarak or antiIslamists with long-held suspicions of the Brotherhood.

The perception that such agencies are hostile to the country’s new Islamist leaders lends their rule an embattled aspect despite a string of electoral victories.

“The problem with the Brotherhood is that they came to power but are still dealing with the nation as they did when they were in the opposition,” said Abdel-Jalil El-Sharnoubi, former editor-in-chief of the group’s website who left the Brotherhood in May 2011. “Because they cannot trust the state, they have created their own,” he added.

The notion of a state within a state has precedents elsewhere in the Arab world. In Lebanon, the Iranian-backed Shiite Hezbollah is the de facto

government in much of the south and east of the country and has its own army and telephone network. To a lesser extent, followers of Iraq’s anti-American Shiite cleric Muqtada Al-Sadr are de facto administrators of Shiite districts in Baghdad and in parts of the mostly Shiite south. In Egypt, the situation reflects a chasm that has emerged since the uprising over the nation’s future.

In one camp is the Brotherhood, their Islamist allies and a fairly large segment of the population that is conservative and passively inclined toward the ideas of Islam as a way of life.

Arrayed against them is a bloc of comparable size that includes not only those who served under Mubarak in the state and security structures but also moderate Muslims, liberals, secularists, women and Christians who account for about 10 percent of the population.

The Brotherhood denies that any of its activities are illegal or amount to a state within a state.

“The Brotherhood is targeted by a defamation campaign, but will always protect its reputation and these immoral battles will never change that,” said spokesman Ahmed Aref, alluding to claims that the group was running a parallel state. — AP

Qatar gives $100m in aid to Syria DOHA: Qatar has given $100 million in aid to Syrians stricken by their country’s civil war, Qatar’s state news agency said yesterday, the first tranche of at least $900 million pledged by Gulf Arab states.

Four million people inside Syria need food, shelter and other aid, and more than 700,000 are estimated to have fled to countries nearby, the United Nations says. About 70,000 people have been killed during the two-year-old conflict, it says. Qatar’s government has been among the most vocal regional supporters of Syria’s rebels, and has called for an Arab force to end bloodshed if international diplomatic efforts fail. Led by a ruling family that does not shy away from taking controversial positions on world affairs, the gas-producing Gulf Arab state was a major supporter of Libya’s NATO-backed rebels. Donor countries meeting in Kuwait last month pledged more than $1.5 billion to aid Syrians affected by the civil war, with about $1 billion earmarked for other countries in the region hosting refugees and $500 million for humanitarian aid to Syrians displaced inside the country.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said the $500 million would be channelled through UN partner agencies in Syria. The oil-producing Gulf Arab states of Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates each promised $300 million at the January meeting. Qatar did not make its pledge public. However, medical charity Medecins Sans Frontieres said last month that international aid to Syria was not being distributed equally, with government-controlled areas receiving nearly all of it, and opposition-held zones getting only a tiny share. — Reuters

TUNIS: Tunisian President Moncef Marzouki (second right) attends a meeting with the political bureau of the Congress for the Republic (CPR) party at Carthage palace, in Tunis yesterday.—AFP

Outgoing Tunisian PM Jebali will not return Ennahada meets amid new crisis

A supporter of Samer Al-Issawi, a Palestinian prisoner who is on a hunger strike, is arrested by Israeli police as he demonstrates outside the Magistrate’s Court which to rule on Issawi’s case, yesterday.—AFP

TUNIS: Tunisia’s outgoing prime minister, Hamadi Jebali, has refused to head the next government and his Islamist Ennahda party will name a replacement, a party statement said yesterday.

The consultative council of Ennahda, Tunisia’s ruling Islamist party, was meeting yesterday to choose a successor to outgoing premier Hamadi Jebali, who quit after failing to form a new government.

Jebali, who is Ennahda’s number two, resigned on Tuesday after his plan to form a technocrat cabinet, announced in the wake of public outrage over the February 6 murder of leftist politician Chokri Belaid, was rejected by his own party.

The assassination plunged Tunisia into crisis and enflamed political tensions, with the family of Belaid, who

was a fierce critic of the ruling Islamists, accusing Ennahda of orchestrating the murder, charges the party strongly denies. Ennahda’s executive arm was to meet later, its spokesman Nejib Gharbi was quoted as saying by the official TAP news agency, with four candidates being considered to head the new government.

“Nothing has been decided yet, but there are four candidates for the post of prime minister-Ali Larayedh (currently interior minister), Mohamed Ben Salem (agriculture minister), Noureddine Bhiri (justice minister) and Abdellatif Mekki (health minister).”

Earlier, one of Ennahda’s leaders, Houcine Jaziri, said Jebali was among those being considered, “just like other senior party leaders.” Jebali had left the door open to being reappointed,

while demanding that a date be fixed for general elections and the formation of a non-political administration.

“The affair is in the hands of the consultative council and of Jebali,” Noureddine Bhiri told private radio station Mosaique FM. “The decision by Hamadi Jebali is expected. If he accepts the proposal by Ennahda to be reappointed, he will be its candidate,” he said. If Jebali turns the proposal down, “whether the candidate is Noureddine Bhiri or another is not important, as the movement is full of competent people,” he added.

Bhiri received the largest number of votes when the council met last week to choose potential candidates to replace Jebali, with Laarayedh coming next, followed by Ben Salem and then Mekki, according to Mosaique FM. — Agencies

International FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013

Mali rebels fighting in Gao; car blast in Kidal French forces continue push

MOGADISHU: The African Union-United Nations Information Support Team shows a Djiboutian soldier patrolling around a market in the Somali city of Belet Weyne. Belet Weyne, Somalia’s fifth largest city, is located 315 km from the country’s capital Mogadishu. — AFP

Yemen police kill four at Aden rally ADEN: Yemeni police shot dead four people in Aden yesterday in clashes with protesters calling for southern independence on the first anniversary of the ouster of autocratic leader Ali Abdullah Saleh, their movement said. The police fired on the protesters after thousands of them had gathered at a square in the southern port city, Fathi Ben Lazraq, a member of the Southern Movement, told AFP. Three activists “were killed by police gunfire as they were trying to reach the place where the rally was being held,” said Ben Lazraq, adding that a passerby was also shot dead.

A rival rally was held in the same spot by members of the Islamist Al-Islah (reform) party, in support of unity and of President Abdrabuh Mansur Hadi, whose uncontested election ended 33 years of iron-fisted rule under Saleh. The powerful Southern Movement is demanding independence for south Yemen, and had warned of unrest if Al-Islah went ahead with rival demonstrations. Twenty-eight southerners were also wounded by the police in clashes around Aden yesterday, as they tried to prevent protesters from entering the city from neighboring provinces, according to the group.

Two policemen were wounded by sniper fire from the rooftops of buildings surrounding the protest square, security officials said. Aden was paralyzed yesterday as security forces deployed heavily around the city, and amid fears by residents that the rival rallies would degenerate into violence, an AFP correspondent reported. Thousands of Al-Islah supporters gathered in the area, waving Yemeni flags and holding portraits of Hadi as well as banners reading “unity is our strength”. The southerners, for their part, carried flags of the former South Yemen, which was a separate state before unification with the north in 1990. They also displayed pictures of Ali Salem al-Baid, who served as the last president of the region before union. “Revolution in the south, occupiers go out,” they chanted. South Yemen broke away in 1994, sparking a civil war, before it was overrun by northern troops. — AP

BAMAKO, Mali: Islamic extremists clashed with military in Mali’s northern city of Gao, a military official said yesterday as French forces continued their push to eliminate remnants of AlQaeda-linked fighters who had controlled northern Mali.

Malian military spokesman Capt Daouda Diarra said that fighters with the Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa, or MUJAO, attacked a Gao checkpoint late Wednesday and made their way into the city. The fighters are trying to gain control of the mayor’s office, but the army has tried to repel the attacks, he said. In Kidal, a town further north where control by French and Chad forces has been tentative, a car explosion in a mechanics garage killed two, including the driver and a security guard, a resident said.

Mossa Ansary said yesterday’s explosion took place about 800 meters (875 yards) from a French military base. It was

unclear if it was a suicide car bombing.

French and Chadian forces are patrolling the city of Kidal, though it remains unclear if the northern administrative capital is secure.

Radical Islamic fighters spent weeks on the run from Malian cities under a French ground and air assault that began Jan 11 after the rebels had pushed to southern territories. The French, meanwhile, are tightening a dragnet against the Al-Qaeda-linked militants in one of their last remaining redoubts, mountain sanctuaries near Algeria’s border.

France’s main military spokesman yesterday said that a French Tigre attack helicopter fired on a pickup truck containing jihadist fighters during clashes in rugged northern Mali, killing about 10 insurgents. Col Thierry Burkhard said the firefight on Wednesday in the Adrar des Ifoghas mountain range, near the Algeria border, came in the third day of

an operation code-named “Panther,” as French forces track and try to eliminate the Islamic extremists.

Burkhard said the operation is ongoing in the area. More than 20 insurgents and one French legionnaire died in similar clashes on Tuesday. France’s government has said it still hopes to pull out of its Mali operation in the coming weeks eager for African forces to help stabilize the impoverished West African country.

But the French President said that France will “go all the way - that’s to say, arresting the last terrorist chiefs in northern Mali.”

Gao Mayor Sadou Diallo said about 1,000 French troops are in the Gao region, along with about 3,000 Malian and African soldiers.

UN discussions about an African force for Mali have been under way for months, alongside efforts for a European Union training mission to help the Malian military. — AP

W Bank settlers accused of vandalizing Palestinian cars NABLUS: Israeli settlers yesterday torched six cars in the northern West Bank village of Qusra, Palestinian security sources alleged. They told AFP that attackers set fire to the vehicles in the early hours and residents of the village, near the city of Nablus, saw them driving to the nearby settlement outpost of Esh Kodesh. Israeli police told AFP that they had received a report on the incident from troops in the area but had so far been unable to reach the scene.

“Police received a report from the army that six vehicles were damaged and graffiti was scrawled in Qusra village, south of Nablus, but police and army who were on their way were met with stone-throwing and public disorder so the forces were unable to reach the place,” police spokeswoman Luba Samri said. The village and the outpost are in dispute over farmland between the village and the outpost which is claimed by both. Villagers last month accused the settlers of damaging around 200 olive trees following clashes between Qusra and Esh Kodesh residents, during which Palestinians threw stones at the settlers who according to Palestinian officials responded with gunfire and wounded an 18-year-old. — AFP

NABLUS: Palestinian children inspects a burnt car in the West Bank village of Qusra near Nablus yesterday. Israeli settlers torched seven cars in the northern West bank village of Qusra, Palestinian security sources said. — AFP

Seven shot dead in Kenya near border with Somalia

ADEN: Yemeni security forces patrol the streets of Aden during a protest calling for southern independence on the first anniversary of the ouster of autocratic leader Ali Abdullah Saleh yesterday. —AFP

NAIROBI: Gunmen killed at least seven people as they made their way to pray at a mosque in the remote Kenyan town of Malele close to the Somali border, a local government official said yesterday.

Kenya has been hit by a wave of grenade and bomb attacks since its troops crossed into Somalia in October 2011 and has blamed Al-Qaeda-linked Somali militants and their sympathisers. Malele is close to the world’s largest refugee camp, Dadaab, which holds nearly half a million people, most of them Somalis who have fled more than two decades of war and famine.

“The bandits opened fire at the villagers at Malele area

which is near the Dadaab refugee camp in Liboi district and killed five men and two women,” Maalim Mohamed, Garissa County Commissioner, told Reuters.

“We have dispatched a team of security personnel to pursue the bandits.”

The attacks in Kenya, the region’s biggest economy, have deepened fears of insecurity ahead of a general election in March. The attackers have mostly targeted the remote northeast.

Following the attacks, Kenya’s government in December moved to stop asylum seekers and refugees registering to live in urban areas. — Reuters

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013

International FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013

Europe horsemeat scandal spreads to Asian countries Horsemeat labeled as beef found in Romania

MOSCOW: Russian President Vladimir Putin (right) and Supreme Court Chairman Vyacheslav Lebedev attend a meeting marking the 90th anniversary of the Russian Supreme Court in Moscow yesterday. —AP

Russia-US tensions flare over adopted boy’s death MOSCOW: The US ambassador to Moscow and a top Russian lawmaker traded blows yesterday over the death of a Russian child adopted in the United States, in a row that threatens to overshadow upcoming talks with the new US secretary of state. The emotionally-charged exchange came after US ambassador Michael McFaul refused to show up in the Russian parliament’s lower house to answer questions about recent deaths of Russian children adopted by American parents.

“By refusing to come to the State Duma to discuss the deaths of our children the US ambassador has shown that they are not ready for a serious dialogue on this problem,” Alexei Pushkov, the head of the Duma committee on international affairs, wrote on Twitter.

McFaul countered that he was “always happy” to meet Russian officials to discuss adoptions but would not do so in parliament. “As a norm, US ambassadors to not participate in hearings of foreign parliaments,” he tweeted. “Do Russian ambassadors?”

Since Putin’s return to the Kremlin for a third term in May, Russia and the United States have been at odds over a growing number of issues. Late last year, Russia banned all adoptions by American parents, a measure that came in reprisal for US legislation that targets Russian officials deemed to have committed rights abuses.

Tensions flared again earlier this week over the January death in the United States of a 3-year-old Russian boy, Maxim Kuzmin, with Russian investigators saying the boy was murdered by his adoptive American mother. The little boy’s death will be among key topics of a meeting next week between Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and new US Secretary of State John Kerry, the foreign ministry’s human rights envoy Konstantin Dolgov told Russian lawmakers yesterday.

If the ongoing investigation proves that the US parents murdered their adoptive Russian son, they will be severely punished, he said in comments posted on the website of the ruling United Russia party.

“They will not be released in court as it happened before, it will not be a five or two years’ suspended sentence. It will be an adequate, severe punishment,” Dolgov was quoted as saying.

Some officials have recently raised the prospect of Russia banning all foreign adoptions in the future and even bringing back home the Russian orphans already adopted by American parents and living in the United States. — AFP

PARIS: The fallout from Europe’s horsemeat scandal has spread far outside the continent, with an imported lasagne brand pulled from shelves in Hong Kong and a new row over the treatment of horses farmed in the Americas.

A host of top players have been caught up in the spiralling scandal including Nestle, the world’s biggest food company, top beef producer JBS of Brazil and British supermarket chain Tesco.

Hong Kong authorities ordered ParknShop, one of the biggest supermarket chains in the city, to remove lasagne made by frozen food giant Findus, one of the firms at the centre of the scandal.

The product was imported from Britain and made by French firm Comigel. Hong Kong’s Centre for Food Safety said Wednesday that the item “might be adulterated with horsemeat which has not undergone tests for veterinary drugs”. The chain, owned by tycoon Li Ka-shing, has about 280 stores in Hong Kong and the neighboring gaming hub of Macau. In Europe, the Czech Republic became the latest country embroiled in the horsemeat affair, with food inspectors ordering Tesco to withdraw Nowaco brand frozen “beef” lasagne after detecting horsemeat.

The Czech Agriculture and Food Inspection Authority said it had found horse DNA in two samples of the Nowaco meals manufactured by the Tavola company in Luxembourg.

Croatian company Ledo, which imported beef lasagne containing horsemeat into Slovenia, on Wednesday also accused Tavola of being responsible. Supermarkets in Belgium, Britain, Denmark, Ireland, Finland, France, Austria, Norway, The Netherlands, Germany, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Sweden and Slovenia have all removed meals from shelves.

The Czech authority noted that horsemeat is sold for human consumption in the country, but that if not mentioned on the product label it was misleading to consumers and could lead to a fine of up to three million koruna (118,000 euros, $159,000). Spanghero, the French firm that sparked the food alert by allegedly passing off 750 tons of horsemeat as beef, was on Monday allowed to resume production of minced meat, sausages and ready-toeat meals. But the company, whose horsemeat found its way into 4.5 million “beef” products sold across Europe, will no longer be allowed to stock frozen meat.

The firm’s sanitary license was suspended last Thursday after it was accused of passing off huge quantities of mislabelled meat over a period of six months. Investigators on Wednesday conducted a second day of raids on Spanghero’s headquarters in Castelnaudary in southern France, a source close to the probe said, adding they had already seized several documents and copied computer records.

Horsemeat labelled as beef has been found by Romanian veterinary authorities in products destined for the local market, an official said yesterday. “The meat was seized in a deposit in Bucharest. — Agencies

Horsemeat reaches Vienna kebab stall VIENNA: The hunt for undeclared horsemeat in food snagged a Vienna kebab stand yesterday, dealing a blow to the savoury Middle Eastern dishes that are a popular Austrian snack.

Responding to a Europe-wide scandal that has triggered recalls of mislabled products, health inspectors in Austria had already found covert horse flesh in a supermarket beef pasta dish and sausages from the southern province of Carinthia.

But the story hit home with the discovery of equine genetic material in a sample taken from a kebab stand, one of hundreds in the city that have added the Turkish import to their traditional offerings of sausages and leberkaese meat loaf.

The sample was found at a stand in Vienna’s western Ottakring neighborhood on a skewer which

was supposed to hold only beef, veal and turkey, the Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety said.

Agriculture Minister Nikolaus Berlakovich promised a zero-tolerance approach to such consumer fraud and reiterated he would press for a “food passport” declaring the origins of ingredients in packaged dishes when his European Union counterparts meet next week.

Eating horsemeat is not taboo in Austria, where it is seen as a delicacy - especially in Vienna - but consumers are outraged at being misled about the sources of their food.

“Horsemeat is as much a part of Vienna as the Sachertorte,” Margarete Gumprecht, head of a family business that specialises in the iron-rich treat, told Format magazine this month. — Reuters

Freed Afghan Taleban return to insurgency ISLAMABAD: At least half the Afghan Taleban recently freed from Pakistani prisons have rejoined the insurgency, a Pakistani intelligence official says, throwing into question the value of such goodwill gestures that the Afghan government requested to restart a flagging peace process.

A senior Western official who spoke on condition of anonymity so he could talk freely confirmed that “some” newly freed Taleban have returned to the battlefield. The development underscores the difficulties in reaching a political deal with the Taleban before the end of 2014, when NATO and US troops are scheduled to have completed their withdrawal from Afghanistan. Many Taleban released from the US prison at Guantanamo Bay have also gone underground.

Despite some recent signs from the Taleban that they are willing to share power and want to avoid a civil war, the militants may well be playing for time until 2014. That’s also when the Afghans are scheduled to elect a new president to succeed Hamid Karzai, whom the insurgents consider an American puppet.

The Taleban have long refused to speak directly with Karzai or his government. They have said they will negotiate only with the United States, which has held secret talks with them in the Gulf state of Qatar. — AP

JALALABAD: An Afghan man walks out of a prison following his release at Nangarhar prison in the city of Jalalabad, east of Kabul, Afghanistan. At least half the Afghan Taleban recently freed from Pakistani prisons have rejoined the insurgency, a Pakistani intelligence official said. —AP

International FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013

EU parliament chief tells Italians not to vote for Berlusconi BERLIN: The German president of the European Parliament, once compared to a Nazi concentration camp guard by former Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi, warned Italians yeterday not to back the scandal-ridden media tycoon at the ballot box.

Martin Schulz is the latest in a line of German politicians to express fears about a possible Berlusconi comeback largely due to worries he will halt Rome’s reform drive that has helped to lift investor confidence in the euro-zone. “Silvio Berlusconi has already sent Italy into a tailspin with irresponsible behavior in government and personal escapades,” Schulz was quoted as saying in German daily Bild. Berlusconi has been sentenced to prison for tax fraud and is on trial for

having sex with an under-aged prostitute.

In quotes not printed in the paper but sent in an advance copy of the report, Schulz went on to urge Italians to vote for continued reforms. “Much is at stake in the forthcoming elections, including making sure that the confidence built up by (Prime Minister) Mario Monti is not lost. I am very confident that Italian voters will make the right choice for their country.” There is bad blood between Berlusconi and Schulz, a Social Democrat.

In 2003, the then Italian prime minister said he would like to suggest Schulz, who had criticized his policies, for the role of a Kapo in a film on Nazi concentration camps. A Kapo was a camp inmate given privileges for supervising prison work gangs.

Berlusconi later brushed off the comment, saying

he was being ironic and had referred to a television comedy series. Merkel herself, who has supported Monti’s austerity drive and has a difficult relationship with Berlusconi, has kept mum on who she would like to see lead the euro-zone’s third biggest economy.

Monti risked embarrassing her this week by saying Merkel did not want the centre-left Democratic Party (PD) to win, following Berlusconi’s remark that Monti would join forces with the PD after the election “with Merkel’s blessing”. Polls suggest the PD is likely to win control of Italy’s lower house in the Feb 24-25 vote. Monti’s centrist alliance is trailing in fourth place, but the PD may need its support to control the upper house of parliament and form a government. — Reuters

NATO chief urges bloc to halt defense cuts Panetta sees fallout from US fiscal crisis

SOFIA: Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borisov (left) greets his supporters in front of the Parliament building in Sofia yesterday.—AFP

Bulgarian parliament accepts govt resignation SOFIA: Bulgaria’s parliament yesterday accepted the government’s decision to resign in the face of anti-austerity protests, leaving the European Union’s poorest state with political uncertainty that may persist beyond early elections.

Outgoing Prime Minister Boiko Borisov, who had won praise from investors by cutting the Balkan country’s budget deficit, lost support among voters weary of persistent poverty and graft.

Those voters may now seek solace from more populist politicians.

After mass protests set off by high energy bills, Borisov stepped down on Wednesday-the latest administration to fall in Europe’s four-year-old debt crisis.

Parliament voted yesterday to accept the move and President Rosen Plevneliev will now ask the three biggest parties if they want to form a government to rule until a parliamentary election due in July. But both Borisov’s GERB party and the main opposition Socialists have said they have no interest in participating in a caretaker cabinet, and analysts say that means Plevneliev could schedule an election for as early as April.

“Big change can come only through new elections, which should come as soon as possible,” said Socialist leader Sergei Stanishev. The cabinet’s departure brought calm after a chaotic week of rallies against the government and foreign-owned power utilities and a threat by Bulgarian officials to strip one of them, Czech power group CEZ, of its license.

Boriana Dimitrova, an analyst with pollster Alpha Research, said it could push voters towards the political fringe. “The two key political powers are not strong enough to form a stable government,” she said. “The recent protests indicate there is growing support for radical, populist parties, which will also make it harder to form a cabinet.” Borisov, a former guard to Soviet-era dictator Todor Zhivkov, won adoration from voters by building highways and improving roads so badly pot-holed that cars could lose wheels and travel across the small country could take up most of a day. Around 2,000 Bulgarians waving GERB party flags, including farmers driving tractors and a truck full of pigs, cheered in front of parliament in support of Borisov.

Entering parliament just before the vote, Borisov called for them to go home and maintain public order: “I want to thank everyone who supported us and those who did not. And let’s try to keep the peace in the next few months.” His administration also impressed foreign portfolio investors by freezing wages and pensions and cracking down on the grey economy by digitally linking firms ranging from the largest factory to the smallest kiosk to the tax office. —Reuters

BRUSSELS: The head of NATO urged member countries yesterday to stop cutting their defense budgets in response to tough economic times, saying continued reductions will compromise the safety of all of the military alliance’s 28 members. “It is of course a matter of concern that we have seen and continue to see declining defense budgets all over the alliance,” NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said on his way into a twoday meeting of NATO country defense ministers.

“My appeal to governments is, firstly, hold the line, stop the cuts,” Fogh Rasmussen said. “Secondly, make more efficient use of the resources we do have, through more multinational cooperation. And thirdly, once the economies recover, start to increase defense investments again.”

The defense secretaries will consider ways for their countries to cooperate more effectively on defense procurement in order to get the most value for the money being spent. Fogh Rasmussen said that, in this time of austerity, it is essential for nations to get the best value for taxpayers’ money - and working together is the best way to do that.

In addition, the ministers are expected to discuss the role NATO troops will play in Afghanistan once they withdraw from combat and focus instead on training, advising and assisting Afghan forces. But few firm decisions are expected at the meeting, which NATO officials have describes as mostly devoted to taking stock of developments.

Pentagon officials said that US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, who arrived at the meeting yesterday, will warn NATO allies that Washington’s fiscal impasse will have repercussions abroad, as impending budget cuts force the military to scale back its training and presence overseas.

Many of his meetings with other defense ministers are likely to center on the plans to wind down the war in Afghanistan. But shadowing every

BRUSSELS: US Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta (left) speaks with Afghanistan Defense Minister Bismillah Khan Mohammadi and members of his delegation, at the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) headquarters, in Brussels yesterday.—AP

conversation will be how the cutbacks will ripple across Europe. US officials have long urged that the burden of mutual defense be shared more equitably. A senior NATO official pointed out this week that the US still spends 4.3 percent of its gross domestic product, while most European countries are dropping below 1.5 percent. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to talk about the discussions before the meeting had taken place.

Pentagon press secretary George Little said the across-the-board budget cuts slated to take effect next week will reduce US military readiness and, as a result, diminish NATO’s ability to respond to crises.

Little said the budget cuts will force reductions in training that could affect NATO, and the Navy has already announced that it will delay the deployment of the aircraft carrier USS Harry S Truman to the Persian Gulf because of fiscal restraints. He said

that Panetta will discuss the impacts of the budget cuts with the defense ministers during the two-day meeting.

He said the Pentagon “also is talking about the prospect of not being able to send military units to the region on a rotational basis as planned. Little said he did not know what impact that may have on the plans to deploy small components of an Army brigade to various countries in Africa over the next year.

This is Panetta’s fifth visit to Brussels for a NATO meeting - a trip he never intended to take. Expectations were that defense secretary nominee Chuck Hagel, a former Republican senator from Nebraska, would be confirmed by the Senate last week and he would travel to the meeting.

Hagel’s nomination stalled, however, as it got caught up in senators’ complaints about the attack in Benghazi, which left four Americans dead, including the ambassador. — AP

International FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013

Plains storm gathers Strength in US ST LOUIS: An armada of snow plows and salt spreaders deployed on highways across the nation’s heartland working to stay ahead of a powerful winter storm that already is blamed for one road death. Winter storm warnings were issued from Colorado through Illinois, with as much as a foot of snow expected in several areas. Kelly Sugden, a National Weather Service meteorologist in Dodge City, Kan, said early Thursday morning that the storm was moving a bit slower than was previously forecast but that it was “starting to get back together.”

“It’s very active,” Sugden said, noting the snowfall was mixed with lightning and sleet showers.

Sugden said Wednesday’s highest snowfall total for the state was 61/2 inches recorded in the tiny central town of Rozel. He said they were expecting heavy snow but not blizzard conditions. Still, he warned that the Interstate 70 corridor could see as

much as 13 inches of snow with drifts adding to the danger for drivers. Heavy snow was already falling in Colorado and western Kansas by midday Wednesday. In Oklahoma, roads were covered with a slushy mix of snow and ice that officials said caused a crash that killed an 18-year-old man.

Cody Alexander, 18, of Alex, Oklahoma, died Wednesday when the pickup truck he was driving skidded out of control in slush on State Highway 19, crossed into oncoming traffic and was hit by a truck, the Oklahoma Highway Patrol said. The other driver was not seriously injured.

And in northern Arkansas a school bus crashed Wednesday afternoon on a steep, snowy country road, leaving three students and the driver with minor injuries. Pope County Sheriff Aaron Duval said the bus slid off a road on Crow Mountain, nearly flipping before it was stopped by trees at the roadside.—AP

Morales refused permission to see ailing ally Chavez UNITED NATIONS: Doctors for ailing Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez refused to let Bolivian President Evo Morales see his close ally when he went to Caracas this week, Morales said Wednesday.

“We have been speaking with the doctors-they tell us he is resting, he is still under treatment,” Morales said of his mercy mission to Caracas on Tuesday. “I wasn’t able to meet him, I was only able to meet his head doctor and with his family, but my understanding is that they are very encouraged,” he added.

“You must understand that he has gone through the most difficult moments of his life.”

The Bolivian president made a special stopover in Caracas on his way to meetings at the UN headquarters in New York. Chavez returned to Venezuela on Monday after several rounds of cancer surgery in Cuba.

Widespread fears have been expressed for the life of the radical Latin American leader. “There are days when his health situation is very difficult, according to the information from his ministers, but now he has returned to Caracas and that is a great relief,” Morales said.

“Sometimes disease and illness are difficult to fight, but of course we hope that we will be together soon to be able to continue working together as we have done up to now,” added the Bolivian president. Morales, Chavez and Cuba’s veteran leader Fidel Castro, who stood down in 2006 for health reasons, have formed a radical alliance in Latin America, strongly critical of the United States.

“Let me say again how much respect and admiration I have for Fidel and Hugo,” Morales said, highlighting support from Chavez and Castro for the left-wing policies he pursued after becoming president in 2006. “It really does pain me that Fidel Castro is no longer president, particularly now that my brother President Chavez is in a very difficult spot with his health.

“Both of them told me, ‘Evo, you have to look after yourself, you have to rest’. They were telling me to rest and I was not listening to them, but now I see that they were not resting either,” Morales said.

Chavez has not been seen in public since he left for Havana on December 10 for the latest surgery. On Friday, the government released photos of Chavez bedridden but smiling.

Vice President Nicolas Maduro said in broadcast remarks Wednesday that Chavez had planned his return and chose to announce it via Twitter to “quell rumors” about his health. As Chavez’s handpicked political heir, Maduro has essentially been running Venezuela in the leader’s absence. — AFP

WICHITA: Wichita Police work an accident on west Kellogg during the snow-packed morning commute in Wichita, Kansas. — AP

Obama weighs stepping in on gay marriage case Fallout on same-sex couples likely WASHINGTON: Facing heightened expectations from gay rights supporters, the Obama administration is considering urging the Supreme Court to overturn California’s ban on gay marriage - a move that could have a far-reaching impact on same-sex couples across the country. The administration has one week to file a friendof-the-court brief with the justices outlining its opinion on the California ban, known as Proposition 8. While an administration brief alone is unlikely to sway the high court, the government’s opinion does carry weight with the justices. Opponents of the Proposition 8 ban believe the president signaled his intention to file a brief when he declared in last month’s inaugural address that gays and lesbians must be “treated like anyone else under the law.” An administration official said Obama - a former constitutional law professor - was not foreshadowing any legal action in his remarks and was simply restating his personal belief in the right of gays and lesbians to marry, though the official said the administration was considering filing a brief.

The Proposition 8 ballot initiative was approved by California voters in 2008 in response to a state Supreme Court decision that had allowed gay marriage. Twenty-nine other states have constitutional amendments banning gay marriage, while nine states and Washington, DC, recognize same-sex marriage. Solicitor General Donald Verrilli is consulting with the White House on the matter, according to a senior administration official, who spoke only on condition of anonymity because the official was not authorized to address the private deliberations publicly.

While the Justice Department would make the filing, the president is almost certain to make the ultimate decision on whether to do so. “I have to make sure that I’m not interjecting myself too much into this process, particularly when we’re not a party to the case,” Obama said Wednesday in an interview with San Francisco’s KGOTV. He said his personal view was that gay couples should have the same rights as straight couples and said his administration would do whatever it could to promote that principle. Obama has a complicated history on gay marriage. As a presidential candidate in 2008, he opposed the California ban but didn’t endorse gay marriage. As he ran for re-election last year, he announced his personal support for same-sex marriage but said marriage was an issue that should be decided by the states, not the federal government.

To some, Obama’s broad call for gay rights during his Jan. 21 inaugural address was a sign that he now sees a federal role in defining marriage. “Our journey is not complete until our gay brothers and sisters are treated like anyone else under the law,” Obama said during his remarks on the west front of the Capitol. “For if we are truly created equal, than surely the love we commit to one another must be equal as well.”

Seeking to capitalize on growing public support for gay marriage, advocates are calling on the administration to file a broad brief not only asking the court to declare California’s ban unconstitutional but also urging the justices to make all state bans illegal. “If they do make that argument and the court accepts it, the ramifications could be very sweeping,” said Richard Socarides, an attorney

and advocate. The administration could also file a narrower brief that would ask the court to issue a decision applying only to California. Or it could decide not to weigh in on the case at all.

The Supreme Court, which will take up the case on March 26, has several options for its eventual ruling. Among them: Uphold the state ban on gay marriage and say citizens of a state have the right to make that call. Endorse an appeals court ruling that would make same-sex marriage legal in California but apply only to that state.

Issue a broader ruling that would apply to California and seven other states: Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Nevada, New Jersey, Oregon and Rhode Island. In those states, gay couples may join in civil unions that have all the benefits of marriage but may not be married. Rule that the Constitution forbids states from banning same-sex unions. For weeks, supporters and opponents of Proposition 8 have been lobbying the administration to side with them. Last month, Theodore Olson and David Boies, lawyers arguing for gay marriage, met with Verrilli and other government lawyers to urge the administration to file a brief in the case. A few days later, Charles Cooper, the lawyer defending Proposition 8, met with the solicitor general to ask the government to stay out of the case. Those kinds of meetings are typical in a high court case when the government is not a party and is not asked by the court to make its views known. — AP

Four US Navy F-18 Hornets drop down from the clouds as they prepare to land at Naval Air Station (NAS) Key West, Florida. — AFP

International FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013

India premier appeals to MPs to act ‘responsibly’ Parliament set for stormy budget session

PESHAWAR: Shopkeepers and security officials visit the site of a blast in Peshawar yesterday. Pakistani police say a bomb blast inside a shopping mall in the country’s northwest has killed at least one person and wounded 12 people. -AP

Bomb blast kills 1 at Pakistani mall PESHAWAR: Pakistani police say a bomb blast inside a shopping mall in the country’s northwest has killed at least one person and wounded 12 people. Senior police officer Gohar Khan says yesterday’s bombing targeted shops selling mobile phones in the Hashat Nagri neighborhood in the city of Peshawar. He says the dead and the wounded were taken to hospital. Some of the victims are in critical condition.

No one claimed responsibility, but suspicion fell on pro-Taleban militants who often target shops selling CDs, mobile phones and Internet cafes, accusing them of spreading obscenity. Peshawar is the provincial capital of troubled Khyber Pukhtunkhwa province, and Pakistani security forces have carried out several offensives against insurgents there.

Meanwhile, a Taleban spokesman says the group will keep targeting government employees and other Afghans with links to the US-led coalition despite a warning from the United Nations that such killings may violate international law.

Zabiullah Mujahid says in an email to media yesterday that the Taleban reject a report earlier this week by the UN Mission in Afghanistan accusing them of targeting civilians and blaming the insurgency for the overwhelming majority of deaths in the war.

Mujahid says the Taleban do not consider their targets to be civilians. The UN report found that 2,754 Afghan civilians were killed in 2012, a 12 percent decrease from 3,131 in the same period a year earlier. It was the first time in six years that the civilian death toll dropped. — AP

NEW DELHI: India’s premier urged lawmakers yesterday to engage in “responsible” debate as the government seeks to push the annual budget and controversial economic reforms to spur the economy through parliament. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s appeal came as India’s unruly parliament was to begin a new session in which the government is due to announce next week a budget expected to feature the most belttightening in years despite elections looming in 2014.

Past parliamentary sessions have been stormy with lawmakers accusing the leftleaning Congress government of corruption, resulting in the passage of little legislation.

“The way we conduct financial business before parliament will be a crucial test of how we deal with the formidable challenges we face,” he said, referring to an economy growing at a decade low and sharply deteriorating public finances.

“It is now a challenge for all of us to take credible action to ensure we are least affected by global slowdown,” Singh told reporters as the parliamentary session was about to begin.

“We look forward to responsible dialogue,” he said. India, the world’s most populous democracy, is struggling to avert a ratings downgrade of its sovereign debt to junk status due to its worsening finances and growth expected to be as low as 5.0 percent in the fiscal year to March 2013. Expansion is far below the near double-digit levels Asia’s third-largest economy posted before the onset of the global financial crisis. Other key bills slated for the session include measures to hike foreign investment in insurance, open the pension sector to overseas investors and supply subsidized grain to India’s hundreds of millions of poor. The session was due to kick off with a speech outlining the government’s legislative program by recently elected president Pranab Mukherjee.

Singh’s minority government anticipates its reform agenda could be hijacked by opposition anger over new bribery allegations involving the $748-million purchase of 12 helicopters from AgustaWestland.

The Anglo-Italian company is a unit of Italian defence giant Finmeccanica, whose chief executive Giuseppe Orsi was arrested last week in Milan. The Italian company has denied any wrongdoing.—AFP

NEW DELHI: Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh (center) arrives at Parliament in New Delhi yesterday. India’s India’s premier urged lawmakers to engage in “responsible” debate as the government seeks to push the annual budget and controversial economic reforms to spur the economy through parliament. — AFP

Sri Lanka Muslims try to defuse halal meat row COLOMBO: Islamic clerics in Sri Lanka tried to calm mounting religious tensions in the majority Buddhist nation yesterday by telling stores not to sell halal-slaughtered meat to nonMuslims.

Food manufacturers have been labelling all their products “halal” for convenience, meaning until now nonMuslims have not had any choice in the matter. Buddhist hardliners argue they should not be forced to consume food that is prepared according to Islamic religious rites. They say the halal certificate represents the “undue influence” of Muslims and is an “affront” to non-Muslims.

The halal method of killing an animal requires it to have its throat slit. The clerics’ move to diffuse tensions came after thousands of nationalist Buddhists staged a rally last weekend to demand that all shops in the country clear their stocks of halal food by April.

Nationalist Buddhist monks and their supporters also launched a campaign to boycott halal-slaughtered meat as well as other products which carry a halal certificate. Muslim clerics said the boycott organised by the Bodu Bala Sena (BBS), or Buddhist Force, has created tensions that could erupt into full-blown violence in a country recovering from decades of ethnic war.

And the the All Ceylon Jamiyyathul Ulama (ACJU), Sri Lanka’s main body of Islamic clergy, which issues the halal certificates, Thursday asked retailers to ensure certified products were offered only to Muslims. “We want to promote peaceful co-existence and harmony,” ACJU president Mufti Rizwe told reporters in Colombo. President Mahinda Rajapakse, who is also a Buddhist, urged monks not to incite religious hatred and violence amid reports of a wave of attacks and intimidation targeting Muslim businesses.—AFP

4,700 killed in drone strikes: US senator WASHINGTON: A US senator has said an estimated 4,700 people, including some civilians, have been killed in the contentious bombing raids of America’s secretive drone war, local media reported Wednesday.

It was the first time a lawmaker or any government representative had referred to a total number of fatalities in the drone strikes, which have been condemned by rights groups as extrajudicial assassinations. The toll from hundreds of drone-launched missile strikes against suspected Al-Qaeda militants in Pakistan, Yemen and elsewhere has remained a mystery, as US officials refuse to publicly discuss any details of the covert campaign.

But Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, a staunch supporter of the drone raids, openly cited a number that exceeds some independent estimates of the death toll. “We’ve killed 4,700,” Graham was quoted as saying by the Easley Patch, a local website covering the small town of Easley in South Carolina.

“Sometimes you hit innocent people, and I hate that, but we’re at war, and we’ve taken out some very senior members of AlQaeda,” Graham told the Easley Rotary Club.

Graham’s office did not dispute his reported remarks but suggested that he had not divulged any official, classified government figure. A spokesman told AFP that the senator “quoted the figure that has been publicly reported and disseminated on cable news.”

His remark was unprecedented, as US officials have sometimes hinted at estimates of civilian casualties but never referred to a total body count. “Now this is the first time a US official has put a total number on it,” said Micah Zenko, a fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations. If there was an official death toll estimate, it would be classified as secret, he added, raising the prospect that Graham could have broken secrecy laws. Several organizations have tried to calculate how many militants and

civilians may have been killed in drone strikes since 2004 but have arrived at a wide range of numbers. The figure cited by Graham matches the high end of a tally by the London-based Bureau of Investigative Journalism. It says the number killed in drone strikes in Pakistan, Yemen and Somalia is between 3,072 and 4,756. The Washington-based New America Foundation says there have been 350 US drone strikes since 2004, most of them during Barack Obama’s presidency. And the foundation estimates the death toll at between 1,963 and 3,293, with 261 to 305 civilians killed. US intelligence agencies and the White House have refused to divulge details about the strikes, which are officially termed classified, but officials have suggested that few if any civilians have been killed inadvertently. In hearings this month on the nominee to lead the CIA, John Brennan, Senator Dianne Feinstein said she understood that the number of civilians killed was in the “single digits.”—AFP

International FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013

China’s Bo not cooperating on probe: Report BEIJING: Disgraced former senior Chinese leader Bo Xilai is refusing to cooperate with a government investigation into him and has staged hunger strikes in protest and at one point was treated in hospital, sources with knowledge of the matter said. Almost a year after Bo’s fall from grace under a cloud of lurid accusations about corruption, abuse of power and murder, the government has given no definitive time frame for when he will face court, and has not even announced formal charges.

Bo was ousted from his post as Communist Party chief in the southwestern city of Chongqing last year following his wife’s murder of a British businessman, Neil Heywood. Before that, Bo, 63, had been widely tipped to be promoted to the party’s elite inner core.

His downfall came after his estranged police chief, Wang Lijun, fled briefly to a US consulate last February and accused Bo’s wife, Gu Kailai, of poisoning Heywood. Gu and Wang have both since been convicted and jailed. No criminal charges against Bo have been revealed but the ruling Communist party has accused him in statements carried by the official Xinhua news agency of corruption and of bending the law to hush up Heywood’s killing. Two independent

sources with ties to the family said Bo’s trial was likely to be delayed until after an annual full session of parliament and its top advisory body in March because he was not physically fit. “He was on hunger strike twice and force fed,” one source told Reuters, requesting anonymity due to the sensitivity of the case. It was unclear how long the hunger strike lasted.

“He was not tortured, but fell ill and was taken to a hospital in Beijing for treatment,” the source said, declining to provide details of Bo’s condition and whereabouts which have been kept under wraps since his downfall.

The stability-obsessed ruling party is determined to prevent anything, including Bo’s trial, from disrupting the final steps of Vice President Xi Jinping’s ascent to becoming top leader. Xi, who assumed leadership of the party and military in November, will take over from Hu Jintao as state president during the annual session of parliament, beginning on March 5.

Aware of public anger about a succession of officials caught up in graft cases, Xi has made fighting graft one of his main themes, saying that nobody, no matter how senior, is above the law. He has said that the party’s survival is at stake if the issue is not tackled.

A second source confirmed that Bo had been on a hunger strike and also said he had refused to shave to protest against what he saw as his unfair treatment.

“His beard is long, chest-length,” the source said.

“He refused to cooperate,” the source said. “He wouldn’t answer questions and slammed his fist on a table and told them they were not qualified to question him and to go away.”

His family could not be reached. The government declined to comment, as did one of his lawyers, Li Guifang. Reuters was unable to reach his second lawyer, Wang Zhaofeng. Bo’s is the most sensational case of elite political turmoil in China since the fall of the “Gang of Four” after Mao Zedong’s death in 1976, and has transfixed the public, unused as they are to having party scandals aired in public.

The recent lack of information about the case - Bo has not been seen in public since last March - harms the government’s credibility in the eyes of the people, said Bao Tong, the most senior official jailed over the 1989 Tiananmen protests. “It’s not normal, too much time has past,” Bao told Reuters, referring to the lack of information from the government about the case. “This is not good for the party’s image. —Reuters

Separatists kill 8 soldiers in Indonesia’s Papua Attacks in Puncak Jaya mountains

TOKYO: Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (left), accompanied by Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida (right) leaves Tokyo International Airport to travel to the US yesterday. Abe will have talks with US President Barack Obama for the first time since taking power. — AFP

China ship in disputed waters: Japan coastguard TOKYO: A Chinese government ship briefly entered territorial waters off Japanese-controlled but disputed islands in the East China Sea yesterday, Japan’s coastguard said.

The fishery patrol boat entered the 12-nautical mile zone off Kubajima, one of the Senkaku islands, at about 3:36 pm (0636 GMT), according to a statement. It added that the ship moved out of the zone after 22 minutes, watched by a Japanese coastguard vessel.

Beijing claims the islands, which it calls the Diaoyus. The incident was the latest in a series, with Japan claiming that in one case Chinese vessels locked weapons-targeting radar onto a ship and a helicopter. Beijing denied the charge. The incident yesterday came as Japan’s hawkish Premier Shinzo Abe, who swept national elections in December, heads to Washington for talks with US President Barack Obama. In an interview with The Washington Post before the trip, Abe said a tighter alliance with the United States would send a message to Beijing in the tense row over the disputed territory.

The dispute between Asia’s two largest economies intensified in September when Tokyo nationalised three islands in the chain, in what it said was a mere administrative change of ownership. — AFP

TIMIKA, Indonesia: Indonesian authorities suspect separatists were behind the slaying of eight soldiers in Indonesian Papua yesterday, in the biggest attack on security forces in the restive region’s recent history.

Gunmen shot dead the eight and wounded another in two separate incidents among the mountains of Puncak Jaya district, a known hideout for rebels where attacks on police and soldiers are common. Coordinating Security Minister Djoko Suyanto said the government “strongly condemned the brutal incident” and suspected the separatist Free Papua Movement (OPM) was behind the shootings.

“Based on our intelligence, there are several (separatist) groups in the area,” Suyanto told reporters, adding that groups in Tingginambut and Sinak, where the attacks took place, were led by known OPM commanders. “We always try to map and chase them but you must understand the mountainous and dense forests in Papua make the work difficult,” he said.

Security analyst from the University of Indonesia, Andi Widjajanto, told AFP: “This is big number of deaths, especially as

they were all soldiers. This has never happened before in Papua.”

The first incident took place at 9:30am (0030 GMT), when an armed group opened fire on a military post in Tingginambut village, killing one soldier and wounding another, Papua province military spokesman Jansen Simanjuntak said. An hour later in nearby Sinak, some 60 kilometres (37 miles) away, armed attackers opened fire at nine soldiers walking to a nearby airport, killing seven of them.

“They were going to the airport to pick up packages containing communication devices. All of the soldiers were unarmed,” Simanjuntak said. Suyanto urged all parties to allow the police and military to carry out their mission in hunting down the perpetrators without disruption, to “defend the rights of our soldiers”. Violence occasionally erupts in Papua-the western half of New Guinea island in Indonesia’s extreme east-where poorly-armed separatists have for decades fought a low-level insurgency on behalf of the mostly ethnic Melanesian population.

Jakarta keeps a tight grip on the resource-rich region with a heavy police and military presence and foreign journalists are banned from reporting out of the area. — AFP

BEIJING: Chinese workers remove posts from an outdoor skating rink on the Houhai Lake as the winter season comes to an end in Beijing yesterday. Northern China has endured its coldest winter in 28 years with blizzards shutting airports, highways and stranding countless passengers during the past 3 months. — AFP

Business FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013

Egypt lifts from 3-week low; Gulf markets rise

India strike hits banks, offices for second day PAGE 20

PAGE 21

BRUSSELS: Tens of thousands of workers join a demonstration to protest against austerity measures that have affected their income during the financial crisis and demand labor-boosting initiatives, in Brussels yesterday. — AP

France new big worry for euro-zone Thousands of Belgians march against austerity BRUSSELS: The European Union releases its latest economic forecasts today with eurozone mainstay France sure to overshoot EU budget targets owing to weak growth. This will pose a problem for EU policymakers, striving to maintain the momentum of tough economic reforms and austerity measures, react to the problem in France. The French economy faces a gloomy outlook, going by a closely-watched survey of private business activity, with purchasing managers suggesting a downward spiral sharper than at any time since March 2009.

The French government said this week that it will soon revise down its forecast for growth this year. And more broadly, the latest feedback implies that the euro-zone “is on course to contract for a fourth consecutive quarter in the first three months of the year,” said Markit’s chief economist Chris Williamson.

Economist Jack Kennedy said that the French economy could be heading in the first quarter of 2013 for its worst performance in four years-putting the focus ever more squarely on budgetary sums delivered by Paris to Brussels. European Commission forecast, due out at 1000 GMT today, will show how far off the pace France and other countries are when it comes to an obligation to get public deficits back within the nominal EU limit of three percent of gross domestic product (GDP) this year.

Meanwhile, some 30,000 to 40,000 people

gathered in Brussels’ city centre yesterday in a protest against austerity called by the country’s three major trade unions. Trade unions had expected a turnout of 10,000 for the protest march. “Pensioners, the unemployed and the sick don’t even have the minimum needed to be able to adjust their revenues,” said CSC trade union leader Claude Rolin. The trade unions were protesting against the government’s decision to freeze wages as well social welfare payments and the minimum wage.

Although unions did not call a general strike, public transport was snarled both in the Flemish-speaking north and Frenchspeaking south. Buses were badly hit in Brussels but trams and the underground rail system were running at 75 to 80 percent during the morning rush-hour.

The states that fall short expose themselves to financial sanctions under tougher laws concerning economic governance across

the single EU market of half a billion consumers and 17-state euro currency area.

Within the euro-zone, only Belgium, Italy, Austria and the Netherlands appear to be on the right track, said Amsterdam-based Carsten Brzeski of ING Bank in a note to investors.

Since Socialist Francois Hollande took the French presidency last year, France had consistently maintained it would meet Brussels public spending targets despite flagging economic confidence.

However, last week Paris admitted it will not meet the three-percent EU threshold and that GDP growth this year will be less than the previously-stated objective of 0.8 percent.

French media said late yesterday that the Commission now anticipates the deficit extending to 3.6 percent of GDP-which leaves Paris looking for leeway to get back on track, like Spain and others in receipt of bailout aid before it. The EU Economy and Euro

Commissioner Olli Rehn has repeatedly taken the view that if wider economic constraints mean forecasts slide, countries can win breathing space as long as they can be seen to have made unavoidable budgetary cuts.

However, Hollande refused on Wednesday to deepen spending cuts which could push France into falling output, rising deficits and more cutbacks.

Ahead of revised national forecasts due by end March, he said: “On the economic growth plan, France is among countries which are in the least poor position, even if we are far from meeting our objectives.”

Already yesterday, EU state-aid watchdogs gave six-month temporary approval for an 18billion-euro ($23.7 billion) public guarantee to real-estate bank Credit Immobilier de France (CIF).

The Commission said that the guarantee was needed to avert contagion in the French banking system.—Agencies

Kuwait’s KIPCO Q4 net profit up 19% KUWAIT: Kuwait Projects Company (KIPCO), the country’s largest investment company by assets, reported a 19 percent rise in fourth-quarter net profit and said its media sector in particular had boosted earnings in 2012. KIPCO made KD 7.6 million ($26.9 million) in the three months to the end of

December compared to KD 6.4 million in the same period the year before, it said in a statement yesterday. The result missed the estimate of EFG Hermes, which expected a profit of KD 10 million.

For the full year, the firm made 31.3 million dinars in 2012 compared to 30 million

dinars in 2011.” Profits rose in all of the company’s core sectors, with its broadcast company OSN showing a significant improvement, the statement added. KIPCO said its board had recommended a dividend of 0.02 dinars per share and five bonus shares for every 100 held. — Reuters

Business FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013

Egypt lifts from 3-week low; Gulf markets rise MIDEAST STOCK MARKETS

CASABLANCA: An employee works at an aeronautical factory in Nouaceur, South of Casablanca yesterday. Despite the highly competitive environment the aviation industry is booming in Morocco where the authorities are rolling out the red carpet for companies to take full advantage of this “window of strategic opportunity”. — AFP

UK faces new blow to deficit-cutting plans LONDON: British finance minister George Osborne faces a new barrier to meeting his budget goals, after statisticians said yesterday that interest income from the Bank of England that can be used to reduce the fiscal deficit would be less than forecast. That left economists divided on whether Osborne would manage to meet his 2012/13 deficit-reduction goal when he presents new forecasts at his March 20 budget. Data yesterday showed some improvement in public finances in January, but possibly not enough to make up for heavy borrowing earlier in the tax year.

Deficit reduction is the central economic policy of Britain’s Conservative-led coalition, which came to power in May 2010 when Britain’s budget deficit was more than 11 percent of annual economic output. That was one of the highest for a major economy and the government’s struggle to reduce high borrowing has put the UK’s prized triple-A credit rating at risk.

The government’s preferred borrowing measure showed a stronger reading in January than a year earlier, according to data released yesterday.

Public sector net borrowing, stripping out some of the effects of UK bank bailouts, showed a surplus of 11.406 billion pounds ($17.45 billion) in January, the Office for National Statistics said.

That was up from a 6.435 billion pound surplus in January 2012, and well above analysts’ forecasts of 8.15 billion. However, January’s figures were flattered by 3.8 billion pounds of income transferred from the Bank of England’s 375 billion pound gilt holdings. But the benefit for the tax year as a whole from this source will be around 5 billion pounds less than the 11.5 billion pounds which the government’s fiscal watchdog estimated in December, the ONS said.

While the full amount of transfers from the central bank - estimated at just over 11 billion pounds - will go towards reducing Britain’s public debt, the ONS said that European Union statistical rules meant only some of it could be credited towards deficit reduction.

This is the second blow to Osborne’s deficit-reduction plan in as many days, after an auction of next-generation mobile phone frequencies on Wednesday raised about 1 billion pounds less than its fiscal watchdog had forecast.

January’s net borrowing figures also reflect seasonal inflows of income and corporation tax and mask a gloomier picture for the previous nine months.

“The underlying story isn’t quite as good,” said James Knightley, an economist at ING. “Indeed, the UK’s AAA rating remains under threat and with economic activity remaining subdued and tax revenues disappointing, Chancellor Osborne has little wiggle room when he presents his annual budget next month.” Since the start of the tax year in April 2012, borrowing has totalled 93.8 billion pounds, excluding a one-off boost from the transfer of Royal Mail pension assets. This is 1.6 percent higher than at the same point in the 2011/12 tax year, and Osborne is likely to face a tough task to meet a full-year target of 108.5 billion pounds - roughly 7 percent of GDP - down from 121 billion pounds in 2011/12. — Reuters

DUBAI: Egypt’s measure lifted from a three-week low yesterday as foreign investors hunted for bargains, while other regional markets also gained. Shares in heavyweight Orascom Construction Industries rose 0.4 percent to 266 pounds as concerns of delays on a buyout deal by its Dutch subsidiary proved short-lived. The Egyptian Financial Supervisory Authority requested more information on an offer by fertilizer and construction firm OCI NV to acquire ordinary shares of parent firm OCI, OCI NV said.

OCI NV’s offer includes a share swap or 280 pounds per share to buy all outstanding shares in OCI. “The price could fluctuate in a narrow range until the clearance of the deal but shouldn’t be too volatile,” said Sebastien Henin, portfolio manager at The National Investor.

The share price is at a discount to the offer due to the risk of currency depreciation, he added.

Orascom Telecom and Telecom Egypt gained 0.2 and 0.6 percent respectively. Cairo’s index climbed 0.3 percent, halting a six-session losing streak. Non-Arab foreigners were net buyers yesterday, according to bourse

data. Concerns over a weak economy and foreign reserves outflows driven by political unrest are weighing on the market. Egypt plans to invite an IMF mission to Cairo within a week, the government said, signalling an imminent resumption of negotiations over a $4.8 billion loan as it struggles with an acute foreign currency shortage. “I won’t be surprised to see Egyptians investing in assets other than equities - real estate and land would be a good hedge for inflation in Egypt,” said Henin.

In Abu Dhabi, the bourse added 0.4 percent, extending gains after breaking through a key psychological level in the previous session. Heavyweights helped lift the market as strong earnings fuelled positive sentiment towards local equities. First Gulf Bank rose 1.1 percent.

Most banks reported estimate-beating earnings, helped by falling provisions.

Telecom operator Etisalat advanced 1 percent to its highest close since October 2011. The stock extended gains despite its earnings missing estimates after the firm wrote off bad investments.

Etisalat is only open for trading by UAE nationals. The emirate’s index closed at 3,022 points, its highest level since

October 2009 and up 3 percent this week. “The ADI has cleared the longterm resistance of 2968.26(but) remains overbought on both a weekly and daily basis,” said Bruce Powers, a technical analyst and corporate advisor with Orpheus Capital. “It is now in its eighth consecutive week of gains and therefore further into its uptrend and closer to a change in momentum. For now, the trend continues to point higher.”

The next significant level is around 3,270 points, a major resistance last hit in October 2009. Elsewhere, Dubai’s measure ended flat at 1,923 points, maintaining gains at 1.6 percent for the week. The market has been hovering below the key psychological 2,000 level as it faces resistance. In Qatar, the index lost 0.8 percent, down for a fourth session in the last six.

The market hit a 10-month peak last week and investors are now taking profits after earnings. In Oman, the bourse climbed 0.4 percent to a 10-month high. It is catching up with gains on other Gulf markets as a strong fourth-quarter earnings season and upbeat economic prospects buoy sentiment. The benchmark is up 3.8 percent year-to-date, the worst performing Gulf Arab market. — Reuters

Qatar seeks to spread wealth with IPO gains DUBAI: Qatar’s planned IPO bonanza may be socially driven but it looks a bit ambitious from a financial standpoint. The Gulf emirate is planning a wave of new listings on the local exchange. The aim is to boost the private sector and give Qatari nationals a chance to participate in the country’s global financial expansion. It may also be a way to modernize the traditional relationship between the absolute monarchy and its citizens.

Sovereign fund Qatar Holding is spinning off assets to create a new $12 billion investment firm, Doha Global Investment. Another firm, Infrastructure Investment, is expected to be marketed as a play on the $120 billion worth of spending the emirate is planning for the 2022 football World Cup. Finally, according to sources, Qatar Petroleum is preparing to spin off a number of assets in an offering.

The IPO wave is also designed to foster a more responsible spending culture among the nationals of one of the richest countries in the world. The government provides free education and healthcare, but three-quarters of its citizens still have large debts, mostly over $70,000, according to a government report. Instead of boosting savings, the emirate’s infamous public-sector salary increases keep luxurycar dealers busy and fuel inflation.

The listings will go some way to stave off any mumblings that the tiny local population of around 250,000 isn’t sharing the benefits of the state’s massive spending on everything from luxury department store Harrods to Egypt. Qataris are not complaining, but in the post-Arab Spring era, monarchs across the Gulf are anxious to give their citizens less reasons to complain.

However, with privately-owned firms said to be also eying the market, there are concerns that Qatar won’t be able to absorb all the new issues. The stock exchange has a total market capitalization of $130 billion, but liquidity among the 40-odd stocks is poor, and the free floats tiny. What’s more, the emirate’s most recent stock issues haven’t gone well.

Shares in Vodafone Qatar, which floated in 2009, trade at a 14 percent discount to its offer price.

At some point the emirate may realize that there are also other ways than the stock exchange to tackle its social issues. —Reuters

NICOSIA: A Cypriot street vendor selling lottery tickets is seen in the reflection of a window of a retail shop offering discounts in the pedestrian area of Nicosia’s Ledra street yesterday. — AFP

Doha Bank to launch $426m rights issue DUBAI: Qatar’s Doha Bank will launch the first phase of a twopart capital increase, a 1.55 billion riyals ($425.7 million) rights issue to local investors, on Feb 28, the lender said yesterday.

Capital levels at Qatar’s fifth-largest bank by market value are lower than its Qatari peers and proceeds from the issue are expected to be used mainly to plug that shortfall. The issue, which is equivalent to 50 percent of its total shares, will be split equally between a local offering and global depositary receipts (GDRs) in London. The first stage will be an offering of 51.7 million new shares to current stockholders which will begin on Feb. 28 and run until March 13, Doha Bank said in statement after shareholders approved the move. Shares are being offered at 30 riyals each, a significant discount to the current market price of 51.1 riyals.

The stock was down 9.9 percent yesterday after going exrights. The second part, the London GDR offering, will follow the local offering, although timing is subject to receiving the necessary regulatory approvals, the statement said. GDRs will be priced at a minimum of 90 percent of the market share price on the date of issue, it added. — Reuters

Business FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013

India strike hits banks, offices for second day Unions protest pro-market reforms

Police stand near shoppers at the front of a Walmart store in Paramount, California. —AFP

Wal-Mart’s Q4 profit up 8.6% NEW YORK: Wal-Mart Stores Inc offered a weak business outlook yesterday as new economic challenges for its lowincome shoppers start to take a toll. The world’s largest retailer said its fourth-quarter profit rose 8.6 percent. But higher gasoline prices and late tax refunds and the payroll tax increase in the US have it wary about the coming year.

Investors were already bracing for a subdued report after a Bloomberg report last week on an email from a top executive characterizing the first two weeks of February as “a total disaster.”

Wal-Mart’s latest results cover the three months that ended Jan 31. The US-based Wal-Mart is considered an economic bellwether because the retailer accounts for nearly 10 percent of nonautomotive retail spending in the US Low- and lower-middle-income people have continued to struggle even as the housing and stock markets improve.

Wal-Mart acknowledged in yesterday’s report that February started “slower than planned” but noted that it was largely due to the delay in tax refund checks. For the current quarter, Wal-Mart expects revenue at stores open at least a year at its US namesake business to be flat with last year. That represents a slowdown from the 1 percent increase in the fourth quarter.

The results come a little more than a year after WalMart’s US namesake business turned a corner by reemphasizing low prices and restocking stores with thousands of basic items that it had gotten rid of in an overzealous bid to reduce clutter. During the third quarter of 2011, the division reversed nine straight quarters of declines in revenue at stores open at least a year, considered a key measure of a retailer’s health.

The US namesake business has now recorded six consecutive quarters of gains since the division rebounded.

But the fourth-quarter gain is below the 1.5 percent increase analysts polled by Thomson Reuters were expecting. Overall, revenue at stores open at least a year rose a modest 1.2 percent, including a 2.3 percent gain at Sam’s Clubs. Analysts had expected a 1.8 percent increase.

That growth pace has slowed in recent quarters as it’s getting harder for Wal-Mart to lap increases from year-ago gains. Wal-Mart says it earned $5.6 billion, or $1.67 per share, in the quarter ended Jan 31. That’s up from $5.16 billion, or $1.50 per share, a year earlier.

Net sales rose 3.9 percent to $127.1 billion. Earnings topped estimates of $1.57 per share, but net sales fell short of the $127.8 billion estimate. The company says it expects earnings per share to range from $1.11 per share to $1.16 per share for the first quarter. That’s below analysts’ expectations for a $1.18 per share estimate, according to FactSet. For the year, Wal-Mart expects earnings per share between $5.20 and $5.40 per share. Analysts expect $5.38 per share, according to FactSet. — AP

NEW DELHI: India’s public sector banks and many government offices were shut yesterday on the second day of a general strike called to protest against the government’s planned promarket reforms.

Eleven unions called the strike in protest at the measures which they condemn as “anti-poor” and likely to cost jobs and raise prices. While the impact of the stoppage was patchy and felt mainly in heavily unionized state institutions, analysts said it underscored discontent among workers.

“The government must sit down with the workers and hear them out because it cannot afford to ignore this class any more with general elections due in 2014,” Shubha Singh, a New Delhi-based political analyst and writer, told AFP. The reforms include opening the retail, insurance and aviation sectors wider to foreign investment in a bid to spur a sharply slowing economy.

They also involve raising prices of subsidized diesel and reducing the number of discounted cooking gas cylinders to reduce a ballooning fiscal deficit. Leaders of two main leftist parties said they were boycotting the opening session of parliament yesterday in solidarity with the strikers.

The government is already under pressure over an economy growing at its weakest pace in a decade and widespread allegations of corruption.

The Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry has estimated

ALLAHABAD: Stranded passengers wait at a bus terminal during the second day of a strike called by trade unions against the ruling UPA government’s economic policies in Allahabad yesterday. — AFP losses from the two-day stoppage at Union Congress said millions of workmore than 200 billion rupees ($3.7 bil- ers were taking part in the strike and lion). Attendance at government called on them to keep up pressure on offices was thin and many education the government, already facing a hosinstitutes were closed as teachers’ tile opposition in parliament. But most unions joined the strike. Universities privately-run factories reported normal cancelled exams yesterday. Operations operations and financial markets were at India’s state-run banks were also open in Mumbai. Police said dozens of halted. people were arrested after protests Top carmaker Maruti, which has a turned ugly in an industrial hub near history of labor unrest, declared a holi- New Delhi on Wednesday when a mob day to avert trouble while two-wheeler threw stones, vandalised factories and manufacturer Hero MotorCorp gave set several vehicles on fire to enforce workers a day off. The All India Trade the strike. —AFP

Allianz net profit doubled in 2012 FRANKFURT: German insurance giant Allianz said yesterday its net profit more than doubled last year as it shrugged off the worst of the financial crisis. Allianz said in a statement its net profit amounted to 5.169 billion euros ($6.8 billion) last year, up from 2.545 billion euros a year earlier.

The 2011 figure had been impacted by writedowns on Allianz’s holdings in Greek sovereign debt and

investments, the insurer explained.

But underlying or operating profit also increased, rising by 20.8 percent to 9.5 billion euros on a 2.7-percent rise in revenues to 106.4 billion euros.

All divisions achieved double-digit percentage growth in operating profit, Allianz said. In the fourth quarter alone, net profit soared 148 percent to 1.22 billion euros, operating profit rose by 13.8 percent to 2.275 billion

MUNICH: A man walks past the logo of the insurance company Allianz SE at their headquarters in Munich yesterday. — AP

euros and revenues grew by 3.6 percent to 25.9 billion euros. Chief executive Michael Diekmann noted that the numbers exceeded the group’s forecast, which Allianz had already raised last year after a better-than-expected performance in the first three quarters.

“Despite the impact from the storm Sandy, we exceeded our forecast,” Diekmann said.

In January, Allianz had said it took a hit of 455 million euros from Hurricane Sandy. But overall, insured losses for the industry were significantly lower in 2012 than in the previous year, when record figures were posted due to the earthquakes in Japan and New Zealand and severe floods in Thailand. “Our results show how well our business model can handle the various turbulences from the financial crisis,” Diekmann said.

Allianz would therefore pay an unchanged dividend of 4.50 euros per share for 2012, he added. Looking ahead to the current year, Diekmann said that despite the low interest rate environment and overall global economic uncertainty, “I am confident that again in 2013 Allianz will maintain its profitability. — AFP

Business FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013

Sony to launch new PlayStation Microsoft may unveil Xbox successor this summer NEW YORK: Sony Corp said it will launch its next-generation PlayStation this year, hoping its first video game console in seven years will give it a much-needed head start over the next version of Microsoft’s Xbox and help revive its stumbling electronics business.

The new console will have a revamped interface, let users stream and play video games hosted on servers, and allow users to play while downloading titles as well as share videos with friends. Its new controller, dubbed DualShock 4, will have a touchpad and a camera that can sense the depth of the environment in front of it.

Sony, which only displayed the controller but not the console, said on Wednesday the PlayStation 4 would be available for the year-end holiday season and flagged games from the likes of Ubisoft Entertainment SA and Activision Blizzard Inc, whose top executives also attended the glitzy launch event.

It did not disclose pricing or an exact launch date.

Sony’s announcement comes amid industry speculation that Microsoft Corp is set to unveil the successor to its Xbox 360 later this summer. The current Xbox 360 beats the seven-year-old PlayStation 3’s online network with features such as voice commands on interactive gaming and better connectivity to smartphones and tablets. But all video game console makers are grappling with the onslaught of mobile devices into their turf. Tablets and smartphones built by rivals such as Apple Inc and

Samsung Electronics Co Ltd already account for around 10 percent of the $80 billion gaming market. Those mobile devices, analysts predict, will within a few years be as powerful as the current slew of game-only consoles.

“It looks good and had a lot of great games but the industry is different now,” Billy Pidgeon, an analyst at Inside Network Research, said of the new PlayStation.

“It’ll be a slow burn and not heavy uptake right away.”

Console makers will also have to tackle flagging video game hardware and software sales, which research firm NPD group says have dropped consistently every month over the last year as users migrate to free game content on mobile devices. PlayStation 4 will have an app on Android and Apple mobile devices that connects to console games and can act as a second screen, Jack Tretton, President and CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment of America, said in an interview.

“Playstation 4 really connects every device in the office and the smartphone and the tablet out there in the world,” Tretton said. The console, which has been in development for the last five years, will have 8 GB of memory and will instantly stream game content from the console to Sony’s handheld PlayStation Vita through a feature called “Remote Play,” the company said. “What Sony is banking on is the ease of the use of this system,” Greg Miller, PlayStation executive editor at video game site IGN.com, said.—Reuters

NEW YORK: Sony’s Andrew House, current president and Group CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment, introduces the PlayStation 4 at a news conference yesterday in New York. —AFP

Asia is the place to be: Facebook co-founder

ZHEJIANG: A worker sweeps outside the College of Computer Science & Technology at the Yuquan campus of Zhejiang University in Hangzhou in east China’s Zhejiang province yesterday. Unit 61398 of the People’s Liberation Army has been recruiting computer experts for at least a decade. — AP

China steps up defense on hacking allegations BEIJING: Chinese state media stepped up the war of words yesterday over allegations of sophisticated cyberattacks on US firms, branding the accusations a “commercial stunt” and accusing Washington of ulterior motives.

American Internet security firm Mandiant earlier this week said that a Chinese military cyberspy unit had been targeting US and other foreign firms and organizations with hacking attacks. But an editorial in the state-run China Daily said: “One cannot help but ask the real purpose of such a hullabaloo.

“With the US economic recovery dragging its feet, it is reasonable to think that some in Washington may want to make China a scapegoat so that public attention is diverted away from the country’s economic woes.” Defense ministry spokesman Geng Yansheng said the People’s Liberation Army had itself been the target of a “significant number” of cyberattacks.

“A considerable number” of them originated in the United States, judging from the IP addresses involved, he said, but added that he did not accuse the US government of being involved. He

had earlier said Mandiant’s claims had “no factual basis”. The media backlash came after the US government Wednesday vowed to aggressively combat a rise in the foreign theft of trade secrets. A new strategy document released by the White House did not explicitly name China, but warned that foreign governments and firms had stepped up efforts to obtain such material, threatening US economic and national security.

In its report, Mandiant alleged the hacking group “APT1”-from the initials “Advanced Persistent Threat”-was part of the Chinese military’s Unit 61398 and had stolen hundreds of terabytes of data from at least 141 organisations across 20 industries. Targeted companies included some involved with significant sections of the American domestic infrastructure.

Western analysts dismissed the Chinese denials as “meaningless”. A strongly worded commentary by the official news agency Xinhua said the Mandiant document “reeks of a commercial stunt”. “Next time, the CEO could simply say: ‘See the Chinese hackers? Hurry up, come and buy our cyber security services’,” it went on.—AFP

SINGAPORE: Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin said yesterday the success of the social networking site would be hard to match but he hoped to make an impact as an Asia-based technology investor.

“It’s clearly a tough act to follow,” the 30-yearold Brazilian billionaire told a business conference in Singapore, where he is a permanent resident and putting money as an “angel investor” into Asian and other start-ups. “Asia is, whether you look at Internet growth, mobile growth, it’s the centre in terms of where the user and consumer base will be in the future, so it’s phenomenal for me to come here and learn,” he said.

Saverin-who was listed by Forbes magazine as Singapore’s eighth-richest individual in 2012 with a fortune estimated at $2.2 billion-said he was not trying to recreate Facebook’s success. “Every step of my life is not about creating a new Facebook or something new necessarily that goes and gets distributed to a billion-plus people,” he said. “It’s about making sure that what I do is fulfilling both to myself and others in the world.”

Saverin, who moved to Singapore nearly four

years ago but rarely speaks in public, said at the conference hosted by the Wall Street Journal that Facebook had become a “democratizing force” across the world. “The impact is huge,” he added, citing the role of social media in the Middle East democracy movement known as the Arab Spring as well as in mobilizing public support after natural disasters. Founded in 2004, Facebook says it amassed more than a billion monthly active users as of December 2012. Its shares have been been hit by volatility since its initial public offering price of $38 in May 2012. The stock closed at $28.46 on Wednesday. Saverin, an economics major at Harvard University, co-founded Facebook in 2004 with three fellow students including current chief executive Mark Zuckerberg.

His role was famously portrayed in the 2010 film “The Social Network”, in which he started out as a close friend of Zuckerberg and provided initial funds for the site before they had an acrimonious split. Saverin said yesterday that he and Zuckerberg “don’t talk very often now but I very much admire him and everything that he’s doing for the company, and everyone else at Facebook”.—AFP

SINGAPORE: Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin (seated left) speaks during the Wall Street Journal Unleashing Innovation executive conference held at Capella Singapore, Sentosa Island in Singapore yesterday. — AFP

THEY ARE THE 99!

99 Mystical Noor Stones carry all that is left of the wisdom and knowledge of the lost civilization of Baghdad. But the Noor Stones lie scattered across the globe - now little more than a legend. One man has made it his life’s mission to seek out what was lost. His name is Dr. Ramzi Razem and he has searched fruitlessly for the Noor Stones all his life. Now, his luck is about to change - the first of the stones have been rediscovered and with them a special type of human who can unlock the gem’s mystical power. Ramzi brings these gem - bearers together to form a new force for good in the world. A force known as ... the 99!

THE FASCINATING STORY OF THE 99 When a dam in India threatens to collapse, Baeth, Mumita, and Mukit

The 99 ® and all related characters ® and © 2013, Teshkeel Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.

jump to the rescue…

www.the99.org

Analysis FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013

Power, not nuke deal, priority for Iran elite Questions surface over clerical supreme leader’s authority

By Marcus George

P

reoccupied with an intensifying domestic power struggle, Iran is unlikely to agree with world powers next week on ways out of a nuclear dispute: Surviving a turbulent period of pre-electoral infighting will be the priority for its faction-ridden elite. Despite eye-catching suggestions among Iranian policymakers that a more imaginative approach is needed to engagement with its Western adversaries, Iran’s electoral calendar may pre-ordain several more months of stasis in the nuclear negotiations set to resume in Almaty, Kazakhstan on Tuesday.

With a presidential election looming in June, the latest round of negotiations, at which world powers will offer relief from some sanctions if Iran curbs activities of potential use in yielding a nuclear weapon, may amount to little more than “holding talks” to at least keep the diplomatic door open. “Iran is in listening mode. They’ll go back to Tehran and look at the offer,” said a Western diplomat based in Tehran. “But they’re unlikely to discuss issues in depth until the insecurity in the domestic power struggle has been clarified.”

A closer look may give Western governments some reason for optimism. Iran’s clerical leadership has recently offered signs of interest in closer engagement with them, helping lay the groundwork for Tehran’s presence in the former Kazakh capital.

Iran’s intelligence ministry published a report on its website last November touting the merits of diplomatic engagement to parry the threat of military action by enemies. “It is clear that the outbreak of war and resorting to force is so serious and dreadful that the slightest neglect of it is an unforgivable sin,” said the report by the ministry, which is controlled by Heydar Moslehi, a close ally of Iran’s ultimate political authority, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. “To prevent war different options exist. One of those is the adoption of diplomatic and political policies and the potential of international forums, which is a necessary way forward.”

The idea of direct talks between Iran and the United States - resurfacing after comments by Vice President Joe Biden this month - has nested in the minds of Iranian power brokers with surprisingly few ruling out such a possibility. President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has long been a proponent of engaging with the United States and has been joined by other political heavyweights including Speaker of Parliament Ali Larijani, who has said there was “no red line” to direct talks. Consent came even from the head of Iran’s Basij militia, a hardline enforcer of Islamist orthodoxy that was instrumental in stamping out post-election unrest in 2009. “If the United States reforms its behaviour, negotiations are possible,” General Mohammad Reza Naqdi said in December.

Within days Khamenei shot down such messages, saying that the Islamic Republic would not negotiate “with a gun held to it”, but analysts say Tehran has kept itself some wiggle room. “The Supreme Leader left the door open. Once you break down his comments, they show that Iran wants something done on sanctions and that unless a serious move on that is made, he won’t or can’t trust the US,” said Scott Lucas, founder of EA Worldview, a news website that monitors Iranian media.

Washington is also sending out arguably its most encouraging message to Iran since the 1979 creation of the Islamic Republic, which led to the severing of US-Iranian relations.

“Obama has assembled the most pro-Iran-engagement national security cabinet in recent US history and he’s less encumbered by domestic political consideration in his sec-

ond term,” said Karim Sadjadpour of the Washington-based Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

Sensitive Election But much hinges on Iran’s forthcoming election, which could scuttle any chances of rapid progress in the near future. With sanctions imposed over Iran’s refusal to negotiate limits on its nuclear push and open up to UN inspectors, putting Iran under sustained economic pressure, Iran is focused on managing its finances and its turbulent internal politics. Ahmadinejad owes his political life to Khamenei after withstanding mass protests following his contested reelection in 2009, but his renewed drive for power and popularity has since placed the two at loggerheads.

Khamenei loyalists fear that Ahmadinejad, as the Islamic Republic’s first non-clerical president since 1981, is manoeuvring to break the ayatollahs’ supremacy and weaken the influence of the Supreme Leader. “The issue of Khamenei’s domestic authority supersedes the nuclear talks. The supreme leader has to fight a battle to put Ahmadinejad in his place. The question is whether he is in control of the situation,” said Lucas of EA Worldview.

Amid mutual backbiting and damaging, mutual accusations of corruption between the president and his critics, the back-story revolves around the fight for the presidential office. Khamenei and his coterie of advisers are scrambling to unite hardline Islamist conservatives against the more nationalist Ahmadinejad and around a single candidate to minimise chances of virulent political divisions leading to post-election chaos. Such a messy outcome could sap the authority of Khamenei and, by extension, the legitimacy of the Islamic Revolution. “Khamenei doesn’t seem to be able to stop them from washing their laundry directly in public.

What does that say about his grip on power?” asked a source close to the nuclear talks. “He needs the authority to present a nuclear deal as a victory.”

Updated Offer The six world powers’ latest offer to Iran will comprise previous demands for the suspension of uranium enrichment to the purity of 20 percent, closure of Iran’s underground Fordow enrichment plant, wider access for UN nuclear inspectors and a reduction in the country’s enriched uranium stockpile. In return, the latest international embargoes on gold and metals trading with Iran would be lifted. Iran has criticised the offer as insufficient, calling for its right to enrich uranium to be recognised and respected. “The (powers) aren’t ready to move forward on a comprehensive package and instead offers a piecemeal approach,” said Seyed Hossein Mousavian, an Iranian nuclear negotiator from 2003 to 2005 under reformist president Mohammad Khatami. “I’m confident Iran is prepared to make a grand deal that takes in all their demands if the powers recognise Iran’s nuclear rights and lifts sanctions. If that happens, they can discuss how to move forward on a step-by step approach.”

Analysts say that is asking too much of the Almaty talks, though the six powers’ concession may already have been matched. Just days before US officials offered respite from sanctions on gold trade, Iran said it was converting some of its higher-grade enriched uranium into reactor fuel. That, say analysts, is one way for Iran to slow the growth in its reserve of material that Western governments fear is a major step towards a nuclear weapons capability, although Tehran insists it is seeking only civilian nuclear energy. But some see it as a ploy to prolong negotiations. Diplomats say it shows Iran wants to avoid military confrontation, but the measure is not a “game-changer” because the reactor fuel conversions do not, at present, affect the bulk of Iran’s refined uranium. Such conversions can also be reversed, diplomats say, although this is technically complex. Moreover, while trade embargoes have intensified, Tehran may not be feeling enough pain to make serious concessions now. “The regime’s position oscillates between wanting genuine negotiations and wanting to stall for time,” Dina Esfandiary of London’s International Institute for Strategic Studies said. “Although sanctions are hurting.... they’re not having enough of an effect to change the leadership’s mind on the nuclear issue. They’re not hurting enough to be worth the humiliation of giving in to pressure after years of building the nuclear program up as a national feat.” — Reuters

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013 www.kuwaittimes.net

----A Chinese man walks beneath lanterns as the city prepares for the traditional Lantern Festival which falls on the 15th day of the Lunar New Year and officially ends the celebrations, in Beijing yesterday. The festival which dates back more than 2,000 years to the Han Dynasty sees China’s cities becoming a sea of lanterns and fireworks.— AFP

FOOD FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013

Tickets to Paradise

Get lost in desserts with tropical flavors

D

essert isn’t simply magical, it’s transportive. One bite brings bliss, and a bowlful is paradise found. So there’s no need for an expensive getaway when paradise lies in desserts with tropical flavors. Pineapple upside down cake is the inspiration for pineapple pound cake with cream cheese frosting. The cake stacks up tall, and has the tell-tale texture and flavor of pineapple but is a far cry from the common upside-down version to which we’re all accustomed.

Instant is fine, but pudding from scratch is a whole other world. The flavor is rich, the texture dreamy. If we hadn’t gobbled up the coconut pudding so quickly, we would’ve taken it to new heights by folding in a cup or more of whipped cream and putting it in a premade pie crust.

Flan from a box is an instant hit, but flan from scratch is ethereal. Caramelizing half

the sugar takes time, but otherwise making this dessert is easier than the boxed version: A quick blend and everything goes into the oven. And who doesn’t want an excuse in the middle of winter to turn on the oven? It’s OK to make this without coconut - to pacify the people who don’t like the texture. And, certainly, omitting the coconut lets the flavors of the milks shine through.

Finally, there’s tapioca cake. The tapioca pearls are suspended in a cooked egg mixture in a “cake” that’s flavored with lime and coconut. The taste and texture are subtle - a perfect foil for any sauce.

COCONUT PUDDING Ingredients: 2 cups whole milk 2 cups (6 ounces) unsweetened shredded

coconut 1 cup cream of coconut, such as Coco Lopez 1 cup sugar 2 tablespoons cornstarch 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour 6 large egg yolks Instructions: Pour the milk into a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and stir in coconut. Let steep 30 minutes. Strain the liquid into a 2-cup measuring cup, pressing on the solids to extract the liquid.

Discard solids.

Add enough cream of coconut to total 2 cups of liquid. Pour into saucepan and bring to a simmer over low heat.

In a medium heat-proof bowl, whisk together the sugar, cornstarch and flour.

Add the egg yolks and whisk until the mixture is thick and pale. Whisking constantly, slowly pour about 1 cup milk into the yolk mixture. Slowly add the remaining milk, whisking constantly until completely combined.

Pour the mixture into the saucepan and cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, until the mixture is thick enough for streaks from the whisk to show, 2 to 3 minutes. Pour into heat-proof bowl. Press parchment paper on surface. Refrigerate until chilled.

This recipe is adapted from “The Foothills Cuisine of Blackberry Farm,” by Sam Beall (Clarkson Potter, $60). In the book, the pudding is turned into a coconut cream pie with a macadamia nut crust and a meringue topping with unsweetened shredded coconut.

TAPIOCA COCONUT CAKE Ingredients: 1 to 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, for greasing pan

1-2 tablespoons turbinado sugar Pudding 1 cup small-pearl tapioca 2 cups whole milk 1 cup dark brown sugar 2 cans (about 14 ounces each) unsweetened coconut milk Pinch of kosher salt Juice and zest of 1 lime 3 large eggs 3 large egg yolks Papaya sauce: 1 papaya, peeled, seeded and diced; juice and zest of 1 lime Instructions: Cut a piece of parchment paper to fit the bottom of a 9-inch springform pan.

Grease the bottom and the sides of the pan with the butter. Place the parchment paper in the pan and grease with butter. Add the sugar and tilt the pan to coat the sides evenly.

Make the pudding: Put the tapioca in a medium bowl and add cold water to cover it. Let the tapioca soak for 1 hour. Drain the tapioca in a large strainer, rinse well under tepid running water, and set aside in the strainer.

In a large saucepan, combine the milk, brown sugar, coconut milk and salt and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Add the tapioca, stir, lower the heat to mediumlow and simmer, stirring, until the tapioca is translucent but still slightly raw at the center, 1 to 2 minutes. Pour the pudding into a medium sheet pan, add the lime juice and zest, and stir to combine. Leave to cool for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, then transfer to a large bowl.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a medium bowl, combine the eggs and yolks and whisk until just blended. Pour the eggs over the tapioca, fold to combine, and pour into the prepared pan. Bake until the cake is golden brown in spots and still jiggly in the center, 35 to 40 minutes. Transfer to a

FOOD FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013

rack to cool, then refrigerate in the pan for at least 8 hours or overnight.

In a medium bowl, combine the papaya and lime juice and zest. Remove the pan ring, place a serving plate on the cake, and invert.

Remove the pan bottom, peel off the paper, cut the cake into wedges and serve with the papaya.

After baking, the cake will seem unset, but will become firm when refrigerated. This recipe is from “Simply Ming in Your Kitchen: 80 Recipes to Watch, Learn, Cook & Enjoy,” by Ming Tsai and Arthur Boehm Ming (Kyle Books, $29.95).

PINEAPPLE POUND CAKE Serves about 20 Ingredients: Nonstick cooking spray with flour 3 cups all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking powder 1 teaspoon regular salt 3 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, at room temperature 2 cups sugar 5 large eggs, at room temperature 3 large egg yolks, at room temperature 1 cup crushed pineapple, drained 1 teaspoon pure vanilla

2 teaspoons pineapple rum 1\2 cup whole milk Cream cheese frosting: 8-ounce package cream cheese, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, 1 stick (8 tablespoons) butter, 1 pound powdered sugar, yellow food coloring Instructions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two 9inch round baking pans with parchment paper and coat lightly with nonstick cooking spray.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter until light and fluffy and then add the sugar on low speed until smooth, about 2 minutes. Add the eggs and egg yolks, one at a time, beating to blend and scraping the bowl as necessary.

Add the crushed pineapple, vanilla and rum and mix on medium speed until blended.

Reduce the speed to low and alternately add the flour mixture and the milk to the butter mixture, beginning and ending with the flour and mixing until well incorporated.

Divide the batter between the prepared pans and bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 30 to 35 minutes.

Cool 10 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack.

Frosting: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese and vanilla on high speed until light and creamy, about 3minutes. Reduce mixer speed to medium. Add the butter, scraping the bowl as necessary. Reduce speed to low

and gradually add the powdered sugar, beating until blended. Increase mixer speed to high and beat until light and fluffy, about 1minute. Mix in a drop or two of yellow food coloring, if desired.

This recipe is from “The Brown Betty Cookbook: Modern Vintage Desserts and Stories From Philadelphia’s Best Bakery,” by Linda Hinton Brown and Norrinda Brown Hayat (Wiley, $22.99).

CARAMEL FLAN CON COCO Ingredients: 1 cup sugar, divided use 1 (12-ounce) can evaporated milk 1 (13.5-ounce) can unsweetened coconut milk 1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk 3 egg yolks, plus 3 large eggs 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract 1 teaspoon kosher salt 1 cup sweetened shredded coconut

Instructions: Preheat the oven to 275 degrees. Make sure the canned milks are open as you’ll need to add them quickly when the caramel is done. To make the caramel, combine 1 cup sugar and a little water (just enough to form a wet sand) in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Melt the sugar, stirring often, until there are no more lumps. (If any sugar touches the sides of the pan, be sure to wash all the crystals down into the sugar mixture with clean water and a pastry brush before the mixture comes to a full boil.)

Swirl the sugar mixture constantly while holding the pan just above the flame, until the caramel reaches a deep amber color. Turn off the heat.

Carefully and quickly stir the milks in the order listed: evaporated, unsweetened coconut, sweetened condensed; the mixture will bubble and hiss. Transfer to a blender, then add the eggs, egg yolks, remaining sugar, vanilla and salt and blend until smooth. Set aside at room temperature for 30 minutes or more, allowing the custard to rest.

Meanwhile, prepare the baking dishes: Scatter the shredded coconut in the bottom of each baking dish. Set the baking dishes in a large baking pan and pour in hot water to reach halfway up the sides of the dishes.

Divide the custard evenly among the baking dishes. Cover with aluminum foil and bake until set, 30 to 40 minutes for the smaller ones or 45 minutes to 1 hour for one large flan. To test for doneness, gently shake the baking pan: If the flans jiggle like a just-set Jell-O, take them out of the oven or they will become overdone. If the liquid is still sloshing around a bit, give them more time.

Once the flans are done, remove them from the water bath and let come to room temperature. Cover and refrigerate overnight before serving.

Note: Caramelizing half of the sugar, then adding the rich combination of milks creates a flavor reminiscent of dulce de leche.

This recipe is from “My Key West Kitchen: Recipes and Stories,” by Norman Van Aken, Justin Van Aken and Charlie Trotter (Kyle Books, $29.95). — MCT

Tr a v e l FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013

A Red Hat Society group from Poulsbo learns about a 300-year-old canoe hoisted by sculpted figures of tribal people at the new Washington’s Suquamish Museum.

Learn about Chief Seattle and his tribe Why not dedicate more space to the leader for whom the big city is named?

A

nybody new to Seattle might wonder about the city’s name. It’s not like New York, named after a place in the “old country,” or Madison, named for a dead president. Seattle is named for a peace-loving Indian chief - a little classier than Chicago, derived from a native word for wild garlic. When you’ve been here long enough

to be settled in and have a favorite coffee order, it’s time to learn more about your hometown’s heritage. Make a ferry-ride pilgrimage to the Kitsap Peninsula, to the winter home and final resting place of the city’s namesake, Chief Seattle.

And now’s a good time to go, because the chief’s tribe, the Suquamish, has opened

a handsome new museum where you can learn all about Chief Seattle’s people and their culture. One surprise: The chief himself gets a conspicuously modest mention. The 9,000-square-foot, $6 million tribal museum, which opened in September a few hundred feet from the chief’s grave in the village of Suquamish, replaces a well-respected muse-

um dating to the 1980s.

In part with newfound wealth from its Clearwater Casino, the tribe hired Storyline Studio of Seattle to design new exhibits, and Mithun Architects created a stained-wood building surrounded by native plantings of sword fern, wild currant and cedar. Inside, it’s a gleaming example of modern museum Take in a stunning panorama of the Cascade Mountains from the Suquamish, Washington, waterfront. — MCT photos

Tr a v e l FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013

concepts with a topical “less is more” orientation that doesn’t overwhelm. A single, compact hall showcases artifacts from tribal archives, or even from contemporary tribal members’ attics or family rooms (giving the sense that this is truly “living history”).

In the permanent exhibit, “Ancient Shores - Changing Tides,” simple island-like displays communicate large themes: -”Teachings of Ancestors” includes a bone sewing needle and a cedar-root basket from the site of Old Man House, the longhouse on a nearby beach where Chief Seattle spent much of his life.

- “Spirit and Vision” has a mystical Tamanowas Stick, a personal-spirit symbol usually buried with a person, and a cedar mask with wild eyebrows and blushing cheeks.

- “Gifts from Land and Water” includes, among other things, a utilitarian clam-digging stick and a mean-looking wooden club used to kill salmon.

- “Shelter, Clothing and Tools” displays old and new, such as a dress astoundingly made of shredded cedar alongside a championship jacket from the 1984 national Indian Slo-Pitch Tournament.

- “Opportunity and Enterprise” are represented by 21 baskets of cedar bark, historically used for gathering clams and berries.

(The modern representation of enterprise might be the tribal casino, which collects many “clams” from its patrons.)

- “Wisdom and Understanding” gives a puzzlingly brief nod to Chief Seattle. Context comes from this narrative: “(He) is perhaps the most famous of tribal leaders from the Salish Sea. But for the Suquamish people he was just one of many admired leaders throughout our history, each celebrated for their own unique skills.”

The Suquamish Clearwater Casino Resort is just west of the Agate Passage Bridge along Highway 305.

Inside the Suquamish Museum in Suquamish, Washington, is this cedar-root coiled basket, part of a display on “Teaching of Ancestors.”

Six other leaders from across the years get the spotlight, with artifacts such as the gavel of Grace Duggan, the tribe’s first judge. Why not dedicate more space to the leader for whom the big city is named? “I think that the tribe is consciously trying to move away from (Chief Seattle) being the beginning, middle and end of the tribe,” explained museum director Janet Smoak.

“It’s in no way a reflection of less esteem or less respect.”

Exhibits briefly reference Chief Seattle’s famous 1854 speech when he played a key role in treaty negotiations as his people were moved to reservations (see the speech’s full text on the tribe’s website at

www.suquamish.nsn.us; search for “speech”). A peaceable man in tune with the Earth, he noted with melancholy that “my people are ebbing away like a fast receding tide that will never flow again.” Yet he also delivered a burning message that his people’s spirits will forever inhabit this land.

Something the museum does well: a historical multimedia production, creatively projected from above onto three child-level platforms, showing happy times - old-time salmon roasts - and less happy, when tribal children forcibly attended military-type schools after Teddy Roosevelt declared America “would make good citizens of all the Indians.” The museum’s trumping centerpiece is a carved canoe, more than 300 years old, used in the 1989 Paddle to Seattle, the first of a now-annual series of intertribalcanoe journeys around the Salish Sea. Hoisting it are six sculpted figures representing the Suquamish from ancient times to present, including two sea otters “from before the great changer came and made people into people and animals into animals,” Smoak explained, citing the kind of

beliefs that defined the tribe.

If you want to feel closer to the man Seattle, head a short ways down South Street to the cemetery adjacent to St Peter’s Catholic Mission, circa 1904. Reflecting varying spellings of both his name and that of his tribe, based on changing interpretations of the native language, a white marble marker is inscribed “Seattle, Chief of the Suguampsh and Allied tribes, died June 7, 1866, The firm friend of the whites, and for him the City of Seattle was named by its founders.” Below that, the other name by which he was commonly known: “Sealth.”

Here you’ll see more plainly how the tribe honors him, in the form of significant improvements made to the gravesite in 2009 with $200,000 plus in grants split between the tribe and the city of Seattle.

Flanking the stone are beautifully carved 12foot cedar “story posts” that highlight moments from the chief’s life, such as his childhood sighting of Capt. George Vancouver’s exploration ships in1792. Also added was a retaining wall etched in the native Lushootseed language and in English

with messages such as “The soil is rich with the life of our kindred.” A wheelchair-friendly path connects to the parking lot, and visitors may rest on benches shaped like Suquamish canoes.

Walk through the village to see more changes new money has brought to Suquamish, such as the charmingly named House of Awakened Culture, a waterfront community center devoted to such activities as classes in language, weaving and carving.

Browse native art at Rain Bear Studio or grab lunch at Bella Luna Pizzeria, a rub-elbows nine-table eatery perched on pilings over the waterfront.

Better yet, on a sunny day, pack a lunch to Old Man House Park, historic site of the chief’s longhouse, five minutes away. Sit on a log and take in the view that Chief Seattle’s people still love: narrow and scenic Agate Passage on one side, and on the other a panorama of snowy mountains across diamond-glinting waves of the salty sound. In its day, this beach was where a native leader could take in all of his world, or all of it that mattered. — MCT

TECHNOLOGY FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2012

Dolphins

and

foxes

Using non-standard smartphone browsers

I

t’s no longer unusual to install an alternative browser onto a notebook or PC. Now it’s the turn of smartphone users to stray a bit off the reservation. Whereas desktop and laptop users have long since discovered Safari and Chrome as alternatives to Internet Explorer and Firefox, most smartphone users have, so far, stuck with their preinstalled browser, which means whatever came with their iPhone or Android phone.

But there’s no reason for smartphone users to stay stuck in that rut, when options like Dolphin, Firefox and Opera are also available for mobile device surfing and are easy to install. “It’s definitely worth it,” says Rainer Hattenhauer, who has written multiple books about Android smartphones and tablets. “A lot of browsers come with little tricks to ease operations that make surfing more comfortable.”

Firefox for Android, for example, supports tabs on its browser, as is common with many alternative browsers. That lets users switch between multiple pages, just like they would do on their desktop.

“You can do it with a simple swipe of the finger on Firefox,” says Hattenhauer. “This way I go through the tabs like they were a stack of cards.”

Opera for Android also employs tabs, as well as a customizable startup page that should be familiar to the Norwegian software maker’s desktop clients.

Every time it’s called up, users are presented with a choice of nine favourite sites, all accessible with the touch of a finger. Opera Mini, also available for the iPhone, promises easy surfing and quick connections since accessed websites are first compacted on Opera servers before being sent to the mobile.

Dolphin, available for both systems, is also catching on. Copying many desktop browsers, it can be expanded with add-ons that can alter the graphic interface or allow the browser to take screenshots or view PDF files. Dolphin also comes with the ability to take voice commands. Chrome, also for both Android and iOS, can synchronize with the PC browser of the same name. By submitting the password for a Google account, a user can

quickly access all bookmarks and stored data.

However, there are differences between the mobile and desktop versions.

Extra security is one good argument for opting for an alternative browser. Matthias Ritscher of the Fraunhofer Institute for Secure Information Technology in Darmstadt, Germany, says security gaps in the main browsers are often overlooked or only spotted too late, mainly because updates require bringing the whole operating system up to the most recent settings. “Mobile device manufacturers rarely make updates or security fixes available,” he says. Things go faster with alternative services, since they can retool their services as easily as an app gets updated. Browsers for Apple products have the advantage that they’re all based

upon Safari. Most of the alternative services are available for free in the iTunes App Store or in Google’s Play Store. Once downloaded, follow the instructions for setting which browser should be the default and which programmes should open automatically.

Hattenhauer advises relying upon individual preferences for desktop browsers when choosing one for your smartphone. “There aren’t that many differences between the interfaces,” he says.

Ritscher says people should make sure any downloaded browser comes from a reputable source.

More care is needed when picking a browser than any other app, he notes, since, after all, most people use browsers to enter all manner of confidential data. — dpa

Compact and full of sound R

arely is there enough space for an entire sound system with speakers - definitely not on a desk. And maybe the music should play every now and again in another room. That’s the perfect case for active speakers, which don’t need anything more than a socket and playing device. Because they are often used to play back recordings in studios, they are rarely found in HiFi sections. But not every speaker box with an amplifier is a real active speaker.

“Actually the active speaker box is the most sensible thing you can have,” said Andrea Kloehn, consultant at the media technology company Amptown. The deviations of frequency response caused by speaker form and size can be corrected by active speakers. That means listeners don’t have to accept losses in frequency response due to smaller casing.

“Most subwoofers are active because their casing is smaller,” said Kloehn. The frequencies are separated in the preamplifier. “If for example the bass distorts in an amplifier, then it turns over to the other tones as well.”

Active speakers are high-tech. The

individual amplifiers can be optimally adjusted to the individual speaker chassis. Constructors can use so-called corrective elements, including acceleration sensors which measure the movement of the chassis or active frequency switches which are often supported by digital signal processors (DSP). The result is a speaker with a frequency response as linear as possible and with very few distortions.

“There is almost nothing that speaks against active speakers,” said Holger Biermann, editor of the magazine Stereoplay. Even HiFi and high end shops have active speakers in their selection.

“The manufacturers are mainly targeting professionals and studio musicians. But of course everyone can buy them,” said Biermann. And the word studio in the description should not scare off anyone.

Active speakers can also be used in living rooms.

The playing devices are usually connected to the active speaker via a cinch (RCA) or jack (TRS or audio jack). Using smartphones or tablets as sound sources can often cause sonic restrictions

because they usually do not have standardized audio outputs to optimally connect the output impedance of the player and the input impedance of the speakers.

“If you connected transportable devices with active speakers then you should expect there to be too many or too few highs and lows,” said Kloehn. It’s better to connect the active speakers to a HiFi unit, a docking station or a streaming-capable Blu-ray player, AV receiver or television, which have a standardized output with a preamplifier.

The many individual amplifiers, the corrective elements and the setup effort of a real active speaker are not cheap.

“It’s really only worth it if the listener has the ambition to pay attention to the spacing and placement of the speaker system,” said Olaf G Guenther, presentation coordinator with the Association of German Sound Engineers. Biermann said at least 400 to 500 euros (510-640 dollars) should be invested in a pair of good active speakers. “You get a reasonable set of speakers starting at 500 euros,” Kloehn said. “I would stick to the known brand names.”

Te c h n o l o g y FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013

Top 10 tech trends for 2013

F

irst came the heavy adoption of Apple’s mobile platform by consumers whose heavy use of the devices for business tasks forced the IT operations at their companies to support them. Android was the next mobile platform pushed onto IT and now comes Windows 8, Microsoft’s latest effort keep its PC empire intact and gain market share in mobile devices.

For Gartner, the arrival of Windows 8 makes the “mobile device battles” its top technology trend for 2013. Gartner announced its list of Top 10 tech trends at its annual IT/expo here this week. The battle among mobile device vendors for the attention of consumers is forcing IT managers into increasing heterogeneity.

Tom Minifie, CTO at a software vendor he asked not to be named, said developers at his company have built Apple and Android mobile apps for employees, including a smartphone tool that can separate workplace and personal communications.

Minifie said the company has no immediate plans to support Windows-based mobile devices. Officials will first watch to see how adoption goes. He noted, when asked, that the decision isn’t a chicken and egg problem. A lack of apps shouldn’t deter users from adopting Windows-based devices if they want.

He referred the past history of employees at the company who bought Apple and Android devices before they were supported by IT. “They still went out and got them because there were compelling devices for personal use,” he said.

Gartner also predicts that on legacy devices “90 percent of enterprises will bypass broadscale deployment of Windows 8 through at least 2014,” said Peter Sondergaard, who heads up Gartner’s

research operation. David Cappuccio, an analyst at Gartner, said that the Windows 8 forecast is not a ding against Microsoft.

“Every group of employees has different needs,” said Cappuccio.

Salespeople or some executives may want a tablet, other workers may only need a smartphone, and in some cases they may be using their personal device. “We can either force standardization,” said Cappuccio, “or you can open things up and let people let people do what they want within reason.”

David Cearley, an analyst at Gartner, unveiled the researcher’s 2012 Top 10 list, which represents strategic trends the company believes will impact IT over the next several years, on Tuesday.

The list follows: One: Mobile devices.

By next year, mobile phones will overtake PCs as the most common Web access device worldwide. Does this mean mobile devices will replace PCs? Yes and no, says Gartner. Some IT departments may only need to support mobile devices for specific workers whose jobs require them while the rest continue to use PCs. But, Gartner adds, the rise of mobile devices does signal the end of Windows as the single corporate platform. “By 2015 media tablet shipments will reach around 50 percent of laptop shipments and Windows will likely be in third place behind Android and Apple,” wrote Cearley, in his report. “We believe the net result is that Microsoft’s share of the client platform (PC, tablet, smartphone) will likely be reduced to 60 percent and it could fall below 50 percent.”

Two: A long-term shift from native apps to Web apps as HTML5 becomes more capable. Gartner did note that native apps won’t disappear and “will always offer the

best user experience and most sophisticated features.”

Three: The personal cloud replaces the notion of personal computer.

The cloud will house all aspects of one’s life, Gartner sayd. Because it’s so vast, and capable of marshaling infinite resources, “no one platform, form factor, technology or vendor will dominate” it, Gartner says. It also means that IT will have to support almost everything.

Four: The Internet of Things. Everything will connect to the Internet, including cameras, microphones, augmented reality, buildings and embedded sensors everywhere. In many cases, it’s here already.

The Internet of Things will lead to new products, such as usage-based insurance or tax policies. It will also raise new questions, such as whether a robot interacting with an ERP system is a named user for the purposes of software licenses. “We are at a point where it is no longer a stretch to imagine that much of what and who we interact with will be connected to the Internet,” said Cearley.

Five: Cloud computing. As cloud adoption expands, IT departments will have to create “cloud services brokerages” to serve as a central focus for managing access to external services.

Six: Strategic Big Data.

It’s becoming more economical, thanks in part to low cost servers and CPUs, for organizations to tackle big data projects. By strategic big data, Gartner believes that users will be moving beyond isolated projects and incorporating big data analysis in more and more of what they do.

Seven: Actionable Analytics.

Actionable Analytics is, in some respects, a distinct subset of its sixth trend, Strategic

The rise of mobile devices becomes the No. 1 trend as Microsoft joins the fight and seeks to retain a strong share of client platforms Big Data. Low cost processing is making it possible “to perform analytics and simulation for each and every action taken in a business.” Most analytics today focus on looking at historical analysis; the next step is predicting what might happen.

Eight: In-memory Computing. In-memory Computing, says Gartner, can be transformational. It allows hours-long batch processes to be squeezed into processes that only take minutes or seconds. In-memory Computing will become a mainstream platform over the next year or two, as users seek more real-time analytical queries. It may pay for itself through improved efficiencies, such as fraud detection.

Nine: Virtual appliances integrated ecosystems. They won’t kill off physical appliances and their security advantages, but virtual appliances will gain an increased place in IT operations.

Ten: Enterprise App Stores. Enterprise App Stores will turn IT departments into market managers, providing governance and even support to “apptrepreneurs.” App store markets will become the “anchor point” for users to get everything they need. www.computerworld.com

Lifestyle FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013

Actresses walking

Oscar’s red carpet

W

to exude sophistication

hen actresses sashay down the red carpet before the Oscars ceremony on Sunday, they are expected to be wearing gowns exuding glamour and sophistication, not flesh-exposing jaw-droppers. Performers at this month’s Grammys were issued a “wardrobe advisory” ahead of the big music awards show, telling them to cover up and keep buttocks and genitals under wraps. The advisory appeared to work, as no one bared too much skin. But fashion experts do not expect guests at the 85th Academy Awards at the Dolby Theater in Los Angeles on Sunday night to shock, instead forecasting original fashions inspired by last month’s Paris haute couture week where made-to-order gowns worth tens of thousands of dollars are hand-crafted.

Top designers are keen to dress the hottest Hollywood stars, loaning them creations and jewelry for the awards ceremony that is watched by an estimated one billion people worldwide, with many as interested in the fashions as the films.

The importance of looking good on the film industry’s biggest night is critical for up-and-coming actresses wanting to be noticed and for designers and cosmetic and jewelry companies seeking global recognition and the next big contract.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which hands out the Oscars, says on its award show tickets that attire for the event is “formal.” An Academy spokeswoman declined to elaborate on whether more detailed advisories are given to nominees and presenters, saying only that “the Oscars and the Governors Ball are black-tie events.” With the red carpet televised live, there is no room for wardrobe malfunctions. And attendees know that the critics are ready to pounce on anyone whose frock does not live up to the event.

LEGBOMBING Designer Marc Bouwer, who is dressing three Oscar attendees this year, called the Oscars red carpet “the greatest, biggest runway show on earth,” pointing out that the right outfit can take someone’s career “from zero to a hundred.”

Bouwer would know. His creations are regularly featured on best-dressed lists, with the white satin gown worn by Angelina Jolie wowing the audience at the 2004 Oscars. Jolie is a pro of the red carpet. She again stole the spotlight last year when she thrust her right leg out of her high-slit Versace dress, setting off a global copying craze and leading to the adoption of a new word, “legbombing.” Her right leg even got its own Twitter account.

The value of red carpet exposure is hard to pinpoint, but a vintage Christian Dior dress worn by actress Natalie Portman at the 84th Academy Awards later sold for $50,000. The photographs of the actress who takes home the Best Actress statuette becomes part of Oscar lore.

It’s a night when images of beautiful women in spectacular gowns become Hollywood history, such as pictures of Grace Kelly in a blue satin gown by Edith Head in 1955, Julia Roberts in a black vintage Valentino in 2001, and Halle Berry in an Elie Saab gown with a sheer upper bodice and burgundy satin bottom in 2002.

One actress in the spotlight this year is 22-year-old Jennifer Lawrence, who is a favorite for the Best Actress award for her role in the quirky romance “Silver Linings Playbook.” Lawrence has built a relationship with Christian Dior’s creative director, Belgian fashion designer Raf Simons, and wore Dior gowns to the recent Golden Globes, Screen Actors Guild Awards and the BAFTA awards in London.

It remains to be seen if she will don Dior for the Oscars, but style expert Sam Saboura, a fashion host on the cable channel TLC, said he expected the copious amounts of black and white used by Dior and Chanel in Paris last month to appear at the Oscars. He said the full skirts used by Dior in Paris are also likely to influence gowns on Oscar night, while spring and fall colors like cobalt blue, poppy red and yellow, as seen at the Golden Globes, could emerge.

“The Oscars carpet is the grand dame of all red carpets,” Saboura told Reuters. “It’s a world stage and what’s worn on that night will set the tone and trend of what everyone else will be wearing... and other designers will follow suit.”

Bouwer expects prints to make a big return to the red carpet as designers use computer software like photo shopping and art applications to add prints easily.

“Prints have been on day dresses for years, but now it’s moving into haute couture and ballgowns,” Bouwer told Reuters. —Reuters

South Korean rapper Psy poses for photographers after a press conference yesterday, at Pera Hotel in Istanbul, on the eve of his concert in Istanbul as part of the Istanbul Blue Night festival. — AFP

US exhibition traces history of altered photo images

I

n this era of Photoshop software and Instagram filters, should people recoil at the notion of photo manipulation? Not at all, said the curator of a landmark exhibition on the topic that opened in Washington this week. After all, we’ve been living with altered images since photography was invented in the 19th century.

“Faking It: Manipulated Photography Before Photoshop” at the National Gallery of Art brings together some 200 works to document the fascinating history of airbrushing, double exposures and all kinds of darkroom wizardry.

Digital “technology has helped create a shift in attitudes about photography, and it’s certainly brought about a greater skepticism,” curator Mia Fineman said Wednesday. “The fact that this technology is accessible, that anybody can get it on their own computers or even on their (mobile) phones, has made people much more aware of how pictures can be altered.” “Faking It” debuted last year at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, where it was fittingly sponsored by Adobe Systems, which first released Photoshop in 1989. The show runs at the National Gallery until May 5.

Initially pitched at graphic artists, Photoshop now is available in a variety of professional and consumer versions, while a raft of smartphone apps have put photo manipulation literally at users’ fingertips.

But as “Faking It” tells it, the very first doctored images were motivated by technological and pragmatic considerations. Mid19th century landscape photographers like Gustave Le Gray and Carleton Watkins got around the exposure limits of primitive glass negatives by taking separate group and sky images, then fusing them for dramatic effect. When a Union army officer failed to turn up on time for a group portrait, Civil War photographer Mathew Brady snapped the other seven subjects

first-then did a separate image of the latecomer to superimpose on the final image.

In the 20th century, surrealists inspired by psychoanalysis embraced photo manipulation as a means to depict their sleeping dreams, while novelty images forerunners of today’s Internet memes-found a broad popular following. ”Faking It” goes on to touch upon the well-known use of airbrushing and retouching in communist regimes to enhance the stature of leaders like Stalin and erase the virtual existence of their political rivals. But it also addresses the then-shameless doctoring of news photos in the 1930s and 1940s to illustrate Zeppelins docking atop the Empire State Building they never did-or New York City engulfed in an atomic-bomb mushroom cloud.

In a final section titled “Protoshop,” the show explores manipulated photos as an accepted means of artistic self-expression

in the 1960s by the likes of Yves Klein and Duane Michals. And, in a nod to a peculiar American obsession with space aliens, there’s a haunting image of a UFO skimming the Earth’s surface, assembled with distorted found images by Oliver Wasow in 1987. Fineman said she spent more than three years crisscrossing North America and Europe to put together “Faking It” and write its 280-page catalog. She is especially proud of finding the original negatives of Klein’s “Leaping into the Void” in which the celebrated French artist seemingly dives dove-like off a wall onto a concrete sidewalk. In reality, Klein fell into the arms of waiting collaborators with outstretched arms. The photo was then doctored to wipe away their helpful presence. “I knew that photographs had always been altered and manipulated, but I didn’t really know how prevalent it was and how much a part of the history of the medium it was,” Fineman said.—AP

(From left) A reporter looks at the works Dream No. 44: The Accused and Dream No. 1: Electrical Appliances for the Home by Grete Stern, and Find by Will Connell at the show Faking It: Manipulated Photography Before Photoshop exhibit at the National Gallery of Art. — AFP

Lifestyle FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013

British singer-songwriter Ben Howard accepts the British Breakthrough Act award during the BRIT Awards 2013 ceremony in London. —AFP

British singer-songwriter Emeli Sande celebrates with the British Album of the Year award for her album ‘Our Version of Events’.

Mumford & Sons, Adele B

among winners at Brit Awards

ritish music put on a brash, confident show at the Brit Awards on Wednesday, celebrating a resurgent industry whose bands and artists are topping charts around the globe. Winners ranged from established acts such as Coldplay and Adele to world-conquering boy band One Direction, who won in the new Global Success category. One Direction’s Louis Tomlinson called the prize “absolutely mind-blowing.”American artists Frank Ocean and Lana Del Rey were among the non-British winners at a ceremony that embraced the mainstream while rewarding artists with distinctive personalities.

Surfing English folk singer Ben Howard and chanteuse Emeli Sande each won two awards. Sande was named best British female artist and won the album of the year prize for her debut “Our Version of Events,” which has been in the British charts for more than a year.

Scotland-raised Sande got a big boost in 2012 when she performed at both the opening and closing ceremonies of the Olympics. “This is a

British singer-songwriter Tom Odell

British singer-songwriter Emeli Sande performs on stage.

dream, really,” said Sande, who beat Alt-J, Mumford & Sons, Plan B and Paloma Faith to the album prize. She thanked everyone “who made me feel like I’m part of something much bigger.” Howard was named British breakthrough act and British male artist of the year.

“I’m not very good at speeches,” the 25-year-

Lana Del Rey, winner of the Best International Female award.

old singer said, accurately - though he may have to get good at it if his career continues to take off. Long derided as dull, the Brits have become a lively celebration of “Cool Britannia” music and style, featuring a dinner for hundreds of artists and industry figures followed by a televised concert and awards show for thousands of paying fans.

Hard rockers Muse opened the show at London’s O2 Arena with a typically robust performance of their song “Supremacy”- all thundering music, dazzling light show and 60-piece orchestra. Other performers ranged from tween-pleasing One Direction to American artists Taylor Swift and Justin Timberlake. Timberlake, dapper in a tuxedo as he performed “Mirrors,” was described by host James Corden, in a nod to Europe’s horse meat scandal, as “95 percent beefcake with just a little touch of horse.” One Direction performed a mashup of post-punk classics “One Way or Another” and “Teenage Kicks,” their single for Britain’s Comic Relief charity.

Mumford & Sons were named best British group. The banjo-twanging band topped UK and US charts with their second album “Babel,” which was named album of the year at the Grammys earlier this month. Soul singer Amy Winehouse - who died in July

Marcus Mumford, Ben Lovett, Winston Marshall, and Ted Dwane of British folk rock band ‘Mumford and Sons’ perform.

Lifestyle FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013

2011 from accidental alcohol poisoning - was among the other nominees for British female artist, eligible thanks to her posthumous “Lioness: Hidden Treasures” album. Her father, Mitch Winehouse, arrived for the awards ceremony at London’s O2 Arena wearing a waistcoat emblazoned with a picture of his daughter. Coldplay was named best British live act, beating nominees including The Rolling Stones, who celebrated their 50th anniversary with a series of sold-out shows last year.

Matthew Bellamy, Christopher Wolstenholme and Dominic Howard of British rock band Muse perform on stage.

Frank Ocean seen on stage with the award for International Male Solo Artist.

Adele won the best British single prize for her James Bond theme “Skyfall.” The soulful singer sent a message from Los Angeles, where she is rehearsing for Sunday’s Academy Awards. There was no repeat of last year, when she was cut-off mid-speech because the show was running late - an incident Corden referred to in mock-embarrassment several times. The Black Keys were named best international group, while Del Rey took the trophy for international female solo artist. The U.S. singer, who began as an Internet sensation, won a breakthrough Brit award last year and on Wednesday thanked Britain for supporting her.

The international male trophy went to R&B star Frank Ocean, who said it was “definitely a long way from working fast food in New Orleans” - and was the only winner to thank artist Damien Hirst for creating the polka-dot Brit Awards statuette. Style standouts included Swift, who performed “I Knew You Were Trouble” in a hoop-skirted white number more wedding cake than wedding dress - that she shed to reveal black undergarments.

Jessie J drew attention in a deeply low-cut black dress. Most of the awards are chosen by more than 1,000 musicians, critics and record industry figures, with several decided by public vote. — AP

British Matth singer-songwriter Robbie Williams

Taylor Swift performs on stage during the BRIT Awards.

Harry Styles, Zayn Malik, Liam Payne, Louis Tomlinson, and Niall Horan of British-Irish pop band One Direction perform.

British singer-songwriter Emeli Sande accepts the British Female Solo Artist award from US singer-songwriter Taylor Swift.

Jonny Buckland and Will Champion of British alternative rock band Coldplay accept the British Live Act award.

Dave Grohl accepted the award for Best International Group on behalf of the Black Keys.

Taylor Swift performs on stage during the BRIT Awards.

Marcus Mumford, Ben Lovett, Winston Marshall, and Ted Dwane of British folk rock band ‘Mumford†and Sons’ receive the British Group award.

Lifestyle FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013

B

lugirl has looks for women feeling both demure and daring at the same time - mixing traditional tartan, peek-a-boo lace and bold leopard prints. The womenswear collection for next winter, previewed yesterday on the second day of Milan Fashion Week, took as its muse the British style icon Alexa Chung. The label described Chung’s style as “midway between tradition and urban accents, ultra-cosmopolitan, always cool.” Designer Anna Molinari’s collection started off with a preppy coed look: green, red and navy plaid skirts, sometimes pleated, or pencil pants paired with oversized green sweaters, pullovers or cardigans.

Shoes were leather ankle boots, worn with short, dark socks. The outfits transitioned into more feminine territory. A tartan-printed taffeta bubble skirts paired was with a ruffle-neck lace shirt and topped with a loose-fitting leopard-

print jacket, leading off an array of looks combining plaid, lace and leopard. Here, the preferred shoe was the pump. The collection finished with a flash of gold, with sequined evening dresses and skirts. Dragon and swan motifs gave a nod to Chung’s British-Chinese heritage. Commanding dragon shaped necklaces and Chinese-style jackets offered Asian flair, while sequined kissing swans on evening wear were reminiscent of an English park. The looks were finished with small shoulder bags in leopard print, tartan or sequins, strapped across the body for the stylish girl-onthe-go.—AP

Models display creations as part of Blugirl Fall-Winter 2013-2014 Womenswear collection yesterday during the Women’s fashion week in Milan. — AFP photos

Lifestyle FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013

M

ohicans strutted down the Fendi catwalk at Italy’s fashion week yesterday in a visually provocative show set to The Prodigy’s Fire Starter which left the snowy world of Milan far behind. Fendi’s models emerged from behind a giant door which swung down at the start, kicking off a spectacle which played homage to furs and feathers. Their hair done in French plaits, each sported a Mohican hair band in shades of electric blues and oranges-which matched the fluffy, furlined arms on their sunglasses, colorful fur cuff bands on wrists and soft, shaggy bags.

Black and white dominated the autumn-winter 2013 collection-from

short snakeskin jackets to loose white trousers and skirts worn to the knee. The two or three-tone outfits-such as dresses made of leather on one side and wool on the other, or tight dress silhouettes softened with a cape-came out in blocks of colors, predominately shocking pinks and rich wine purples. Fendi director Karl Lagerfeld’s collection, which he baptized “Icons Unchained”, gave a fresh spin to the house’s previous feathered creationsthough a black and blue skirt did bring to mind Sesame Street’s Cookie Monster.

Shoes were black high-heeled booties and lace-ups trimmed with white fur. The German-born Lagerfeld, 79, who has his own fashion label and is also the creative director at Chanel, emerged after the show in his trademark sunglasses, ponytail hair and black leather gloves to a standing ovation. Founded in 1925 in Rome, Fendi is now owned by French luxury giant LVMH. The second day of fashion week was set to continue with hotly-awaited Prada.-AFP

Models display creations as part of Fendi Fall-Winter 2013-2014 Womenswear collection yesterday during the Women’s fashion week in Milan. — AFP photos

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013

ACCOMMODATION

Al-Madena Al-Shohada’a Al-Shuwaikh Al-Nuzha Sabhan Al-Helaly Al-Fayhaa Al-Farwaniya Al-Sulaibikhat Al-Fahaheel Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh Ahmadi Al-Mangaf Al-Shuaiba Al-Jahra Al-Salmiya

22418714 22545171 24810598 22545171 24742838 22434853 22545051 24711433 24316983 23927002 24316983 23980088 23711183 23262845 25610011 25616368

Hospitals Sabah Hospital

24812000

Amiri Hospital

22450005

Maternity Hospital

24843100

Mubarak Al-Kabir Hospital

25312700

Chest Hospital

24849400

Farwaniya Hospital

24892010

Adan Hospital

23940620

Ibn Sina Hospital

24840300

Al-Razi Hospital

24846000

Physiotherapy Hospital

24874330/9

Sharing accommodation available for bachelors or families in Farwaniya with an Indian family. Please contact: 50540846, 97337658.

(C 4324) 20-2-2013 FOR SALE Jaguar XF V8 model 2012 (new look) grey color - off white leather inside - low mileage (km 9,000), five year warranty by Zayyani (like new), full specification, price KD 14,500 firm. Call 90000162. (C 4322) Mercedes Benz G55 AMG (Designo) model 2011, pearl white color, red leather inside - under warranty by dealer until 5/2014 - include rear two TVs, mileage km 27,000 (like new) price KD 34,000 firm. Call: 90080013. (C 4323) 19-2-2013

MATRIMONIAL Financially sound Ex. NRI Orthodox parents invites proposal for their daughter 29/152, ME+MBA, from parents of God fearing professionals with good family

backgrounds.

Email: gracegeevar@gmail.com (C 4325) 20-2-2013 Proposals invited from parents of Urdu speaking Indian girl - from Karnataka for a boy aged 26 years old/ 5.9ft, working in Kuwait.

Interested please contact: kasim@clicq8.com (C 4321) 19-2-2013

LOST Jordanian Passport lost in Jabriya under name of Heba Mohd. Hassan, Passport No. 310007.

Contact: 90035120.

21-2-2013 CHANGE OF NAME I, Shabbir Moizbhai Dahodwala, holder of Indian Passport No. J4441363, son of Moizbhai F. Bhatia, change my name to Shabbir Moizbhai Bhatia.

(C 4319) 18-2-2013 I, Rachaveeti Prameela holder Indian Passport No: E6134736 hereby change my name to Rayachoty Prameela. (C 4317) 17-2-2013

Kuwait

Clinics Rabiya

24732263

Rawdha

22517733

Adailiya

22517144

Khaldiya

24848075

Khaifan

24849807

Shamiya

24848913

Shuwaikh

24814507

Abdullah Salim

22549134

Al-Nuzha

22526804

Industrial Shuwaikh

24814764

Al-Qadisiya

22515088

Dasmah

22532265

Bneid Al-Ghar

22531908

Al-Shaab

22518752

Al-Kibla

22459381

Ayoun Al-Kibla

22451082

Mirqab

22456536

Sharq

22465401

Salmiya

25746401

Jabriya

25316254

Maidan Hawally

25623444

Bayan

25388462

SHARQIA-1 3ALA GOSETY (DIG) 6 BULLETS (DIG) 6 BULLETS (DIG) 3ALA GOSETY (DIG) BEAUTIFUL CREATURES (DIG) 3ALA GOSETY (DIG) NO TUE+WED

SITUATION WANTED Post Graduate Diploma in Business Accounts & Tax Management + B.Com, Indian female having 15 years experience in Financial Accounting, worked as Accounts Manager (having Kuwait Ekama), looking for a suitable job in a reputed company.

Email: zafhaf@yahoo.com (C 4320)

KNCC PROGRAMME FROM THURSDAY TO WEDNESDAY (21/02/2013 TO 27/02/2013)

12:30 PM 2:45 PM 5:00 PM 7:15 PM 9:30 PM 12:05 AM

A GOOD DAY TO DIE HARD (DIG) MAMA (DIG) A GOOD DAY TO DIE HARD (DIG) MAMA (DIG) A GOOD DAY TO DIE HARD (DIG) MAMA (DIG) NO TUE+WED

3:00 PM 5:00 PM 7:00 PM 9:00 PM 11:00 PM 1:00 AM

2:00 PM 4:00 PM 6:15 PM 8:15 PM 10:30 PM 12:45 AM

MARINA-1 6 BULLETS (DIG) MAMA (DIG) 6 BULLETS (DIG) BEAUTIFUL CREATURES (DIG) MAMA (DIG) 6 BULLETS (DIG) NO TUE+WED

1:45 PM 4:00 PM 6:00 PM 8:15 PM 10:45 PM 12:45 AM

MUHALAB-1 BEAUTIFUL CREATURES (DIG) 6 BULLETS (DIG) 3ALA GOSETY (DIG) JABARDASTH (DIG) (TELUGU) BEAUTIFUL CREATURES (DIG) 3ALA GOSETY (DIG) 6 BULLETS (DIG) NO TUE+WED

12:45 PM 3:15 PM 5:30 PM 4:00 PM 7:45 PM 10:15 PM 12:45 AM

MARINA-2 A GOOD DAY TO DIE HARD (DIG) FROM UP ON POPPY HILL (DIG) GAMBIT (DIG) A GOOD DAY TO DIE HARD (DIG) 3ALA GOSETY (DIG) 3ALA GOSETY (DIG) A GOOD DAY TO DIE HARD (DIG) NO TUE+WED

12:30 PM 2:30 PM 4:30 PM 6:30 PM 8:30 PM 10:45 PM 1:00 AM

MUHALAB-2 FROM UP ON POPPY HILL (DIG) FROM UP ON POPPY HILL (DIG) FROM UP ON POPPY HILL (DIG) MAMA (DIG) A GOOD DAY TO DIE HARD (DIG) MAMA (DIG) A GOOD DAY TO DIE HARD (DIG) NO TUE+WED

12:30 PM 2:30 PM 4:30 PM 6:30 PM 8:30 PM 10:30 PM 12:30 AM

AVENUES-1 FROM UP ON POPPY HILL (DIG) FROM UP ON POPPY HILL (DIG) FROM UP ON POPPY HILL (DIG) FROM UP ON POPPY HILL (DIG) FROM UP ON POPPY HILL (DIG) SAVE YOUR LEGS! (DIG) BULLET TO THE HEAD (DIG) NO TUE+WED

12:30 PM 2:30 PM 4:30 PM 6:30 PM 8:30 PM 10:30 PM 12:30 AM

SHARQIA-2 THE SNOW QUEEN (DIG-3D) SNITCH (DIG) THE SHOCK LABYRINTH (DIG-3D) SNITCH (DIG) SNITCH (DIG) SNITCH (DIG) NO TUE+WED

FANAR-1 SNITCH (DIG) GAMBIT (DIG) 6 BULLETS (DIG) SNITCH (DIG) 6 BULLETS (DIG) SNITCH (DIG) NO TUE+WED FANAR-2 MAMA (DIG)

1:30 PM 3:45 PM 5:45 PM 8:00 PM 10:15 PM 12:30 AM

1:00 PM

AVENUES-2 MAMA (DIG) GAMBIT (DIG) MAMA (DIG) MAMA (DIG) MAMA (DIG) MAMA (DIG) NO TUE+WED 360 º- 1 SNITCH (DIG) SNITCH (DIG) SNITCH (DIG)

2:00 PM 4:15 PM 6:30 PM 8:45 PM 11:00 PM 1:15 AM 1:45 PM 4:00 PM 6:15 PM

SNITCH (DIG) SNITCH (DIG) SNITCH (DIG) NO TUE+WED

8:30 PM 10:45 PM 1:00 AM

360 º- 2 BEAUTIFUL CREATURES (DIG) BEAUTIFUL CREATURES (DIG) BEAUTIFUL CREATURES (DIG) BEAUTIFUL CREATURES (DIG) BEAUTIFUL CREATURES (DIG) NO TUE+WED

2:30 PM 5:00 PM 7:30 PM 10:00 PM 12:30 AM

AL-KOUT.1 THE SHOCK LABYRINTH (DIG-3D) 3ALA GOSETY (DIG) MAMA (DIG) 3ALA GOSETY (DIG) MAMA (DIG) THE SHOCK LABYRINTH (DIG-3D) NO TUE+WED

2:00 PM 4:00 PM 6:15 PM 8:15 PM 10:45 PM 12:45 AM

AL-KOUT.2 6 BULLETS (DIG) A GOOD DAY TO DIE HARD (DIG) A GOOD DAY TO DIE HARD (DIG) 6 BULLETS (DIG) A GOOD DAY TO DIE HARD (DIG) 6 BULLETS (DIG) NO TUE+WED

1:45 PM 4:00 PM 6:00 PM 8:00 PM 10:30 PM 12:30 AM

BAIRAQ-1 THE SNOW QUEEN (DIG-3D) THE SNOW QUEEN (DIG-3D) 6 BULLETS (DIG) 3ALA GOSETY (DIG) 3ALA GOSETY (DIG) 6 BULLETS (DIG) NO TUE+WED

12:45 PM 2:45 PM 4:45 PM 7:00 PM 9:15 PM 11:30 PM

BAIRAQ-2 SNITCH (DIG) SNITCH (DIG) A GOOD DAY TO DIE HARD (DIG) SNITCH (DIG) SNITCH (DIG) SNITCH (DIG) NO TUE+WED

1:45 PM 4:00 PM 6:15 PM 8:15 PM 10:30 PM 12:45 AM

PETS FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013

Haute dog hotels pamper pets ‘Welcome to luxury unleashed’

S

pigots spew chlorine-free purified water as guests scurry and splash inside two gleaming pools. Air-conditioned suites cool visitors kicking back in their rooms with flat-screen TVs and cable. Grilled quarterpounder hamburgers are made to order. It’s all fun under the sun at this retreat near Florida’s Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, but this isn’t the Hyatt or Hilton.

This is a haute dog hotel: the Lauderdale Pet Lodge, one of the newest South Florida resorts providing canines and felines highend accommodations and amenities mimicking the finer tastes of their two-legged owners. Yes, South Florida is increasingly becoming a “pupscale place” for pets needing day and overnight stays, with features such as one-on-one cuddle time, acupuncture and Skype sessions.

The Lauderdale Pet Lodge, which starts at $55 a night for a room for a dog and $25 for a room for a cat, joins D.O.G. (Daycare, Obedience and Grooming), a luxury hotel that opened in November in Miami’s artsy Wynwood neighborhood. Boarding prices for the 15,000-square-foot facility range from $30 to $120 for its biggest suite, which is 11 by 12 feet. The price includes 15 minutes of individual playtime, Skype video sessions with the owner and Instagram photo updates.

In Delray Beach, Fla., PetsHotel, part of the PetSmart chain, offers a “Pawsidential Suite” for $81 a night, with add-ons such as a hypoallergenic, elevated bed, self-serve ice cream sundaes with biscuits, and a TV that plays pet-themed programs. And Chateau Poochie in Pompano Beach, Fla - one of the pioneers in the doggone suite life - offers lodging for $47 to $87 a night. The suites are painted in jewel-tone hues and fitted with customized bed linens. The lobby rivals those of human hotels, complete with chandelier and a mirrored check-in counter. The resort’s tagline: “Welcome to luxury unleashed!”

It’s an industry that has been barking louder in recent years. The American Pet Products Association estimates that boarding facilities are one of the fastest-growing areas of the $52 billion U.S. pet industry. Last year, pet

Princess and Dallas play in one of the dog parks at the Lauderdale Pet Lodge in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. — MCT photos owners spent $4 billion on grooming and boarding, up from $3.8 billion the year before.

Jeffery Davis, a public relations manager for PetSmart, said that’s because people see themselves as “pet parents” and their dogs and cats as members of the family. In fact, one 2011 study commissioned by Milo’s Kitchen dog treats found that 81 percent of Americans view their dogs as equal members of their households.

“Pet parents want the best for their pets and want to know their pets are in the best

Dog handler Lorna Laramee plays with Princess and Joker at the Lauderdale Pet Lodge in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

care when they board them,” Davis said. “We created our PetsHotel to give pets a personalized, hotel-style experience that is safe, comfortable and fun.” But can these places be too posh, or too much for Spot and Fifi? Cherie Wachter, a spokeswoman for the Humane Society of Florida’s Broward County, said it’s all about moderation. “We all love our pets and we want the best for them, but if your dog isn’t used to having a hamburger at night, we don’t want them to go to the pet lodges and end up with an upset tummy.”

Some local lodge owners say they consulted with veterinarians about the food and extras when planning their services to ensure the health and safety of furry guests. Wachter said she knows dogs that have benefited from high-end massages. She suggested that pet owners should visit the places first to have a good understanding of the facility and costs.

“Make sure you check the prices so there aren’t any surprises when you get the final bill.”

Fort Lauderdale, Fla. resident Kelley Binder can’t resist virtually checking up on her two dogs - Nate, an apricot goldendoodle, and Ellie, a cream-colored golden retriever - when they spend the day at the Lauderdale Pet Lodge. A smartphone application allows her to keep tabs on them at the pet resort in realtime, no matter where she is.

“I get to peek at them when they are in playtime and swimming,” said Binder, who has been lodging her dogs there for the past week so they can socialize and swim. “(The app) is just fun, and it can be quite addicting.”

As Binder’s dogs lounged nearby, resort owner John Glorieux pointed to one of the bigger pools, which has 2,500 gallons of water: “This

is what you find in a kiddie pool in Disney World,” said Glorieux, who with his wife, Laurie, owns a larger facility in Pompano Beach.

Looking to expand to Fort Lauderdale, the couple spent $4 million to transform the former Gold Coast Roller Rink into a sprawling canine-and-feline complex that caters to clients who live off Las Olas Boulevard and Rio Vista, as well as travelers who need to drop off pets while heading to the airport or Port Everglades. The couple’s philosophy: “No cages, no crates, no kidding.”

“We built and designed this without any kind of compromises at all,” said Glorieux as he strolled the complex, which has the feel of a school campus. Separate buildings can hold up to six dogs in individual suites kept at a cool 73 degrees. At the front of the center, where windows face the zooming traffic on Federal Highway, there is feline lodging, where cats have “luxury floor-to-ceiling multilevel condos” with soothing music playing in the background.

“Even though this seems crazy to have for dogs ... everything about this place is built knowing the dogs and knowing how comfortable we need the dogs to be,” Glorieux said. “We want this to be about fun for the dogs.” Just don’t use the “K word” when referring to these posh lodges. Owners say people tend to associate kennels with animals stuffed in crates on top of each other.

“It’s not a kennel,” said Hector Antunez, owner of D.O.G. in Wynwood, as an employee towed a cleaning cart to wipe down the glass doors of the enclosures. “We have rooms, and each room gets cleaned every day like a regular hotel.” — MCT

Stars

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013

Aries (March 21-April 19)

You usually place a lot of importance on self-control, Aries.

Today this will come in handy when you receive some wonderful news that might otherwise move you to tears. Don’t carry it too far. Under these circumstances, it’s OK to let it out a little.

Your hard work and dedication are finally paying off. News about possible advancement could come your way. It’s a very eventful day.

Taurus (April 20-May 20)

Expect some great news regarding money, possibly involving professional advancement. You may have to control the urge to cry tears of joy, Taurus. In a different vein, a close friend could be going through some changes and might want your support. Your best course of action would be to listen rather than give advice. You may have to control yourself if the situation defies all reason.

Gemini (May 21-June 20)

Happy events involving your mother or another close female relative might have you feeling emotional, Gemini. It could involve a marriage or birth. Your own projects, particularly those done with other people, could be going well in spite of having to overcome some difficulties. The results could move you to tears, and you may feel the need to control yourself.

Don’t be afraid to show how you feel.

Cancer (June 21-July 22)

Your intuitive abilities are at an all-time high today, Cancer. You should find it easier to tune into others’ thoughts and feelings.

It might be a good idea to control your reactions to them. Don’t tell others what you’re picking up unless you know for sure they’ll want to hear it. Your imagination and creative abilities are also operating at a very high level. Make the most of them.

Leo (July 23-August 22)

Today a deep concern for others’ feelings could have you lending a sympathetic ear to those in need of some understanding.

It’s more important to listen than talk, Leo, even though your practicality might want to express itself. Your affairs should go smoothly, bringing you and those around you a lot of satisfaction. Don’t be surprised if you shed a few tears of joy at some point.

Virgo (August 23-September 22)

Today you might complete a project that was difficult but important to your career. Acknowledgement of your dedication and hard work could find you more emotionally overwhelmed than makes you comfortable. You may have to make a special effort to control your feelings. You’ve moved mountains to get where you are and it’s nice to be recognized. In the evening, celebrate. You deserve it.

Libra (September 23-October 22)

A long-awaited social event, perhaps a wedding or christening, could move you to tears, Libra. As you’re naturally a person who doesn’t like showing your feelings, you might feel the need to get away until the urge to cry has passed. This should be a very happy day for you as well. Your own contentment could seem almost too good to be true. It’s real. Relax and enjoy it.

Scorpio (October 23-November 21)

An intense, emotional dream could move you so powerfully that you wake with the odd sense that the dream was real.

Write it down, Scorpio. Maybe it is. Efforts to overcome obstacles and advance yourself in your career could finally be paying off. You might be walking around in a daze asking if it’s really happened. It has. Make the most of it. And don’t be afraid to reveal your feelings to others.

Sagittarius (November 22-December 21)

Emotional talks with your partner could move you to tears, Sagittarius. If there have been difficulties in your relationship, you’ve overcome them and probably reached a new understanding. Any romantic relationship or friendship started or moved forward now shows lasting promise. Your inclination may be to control your feelings, but don’t be afraid to show them. It’s OK in situations like this.

Capricorn (December 22-January 19)

Today you may feel the need to do a lot of work around the house, Capricorn. Perhaps you expect visitors or you simply want to get the place spruced up for your own enjoyment. You need to take it easy and not try to do everything at once. You could run into difficulties that require help from others who may be out. Pace yourself and control the urge to run through your chores like a steamroller.

Aquarius (January 20- February 18)

Some intense, revealing communications with a close friend or lover could reveal wonderful new things about your relationship. Perhaps you have more in common than you thought.

Perhaps fears prove groundless. As a result, Aquarius, the two of you could grow closer and discover a new mutual sense of purpose. Enjoy the positive feelings, and have a great day together.

Pisces (February 19-March 20)

Ancient social traditions could be a powerful part of your day, Pisces. An emotional event concerning your family - wedding, christening, or other milestone - could especially move you. In the rush of social interactions, you will probably keep a tight rein on the expression of your feelings. Keeping up appearances could be more important to you than usual. Do it, but be yourself.

COUNTRY CODES Afghanistan 0093 Albania 00355 Algeria 00213 Andorra 00376 Angola 00244 Anguilla 001264 Antiga 001268 Argentina 0054 Armenia 00374 Australia 0061 Austria 0043 Bahamas 001242 Bahrain 00973 Bangladesh 00880 Barbados 001246 Belarus 00375 Belgium 0032 Belize 00501 Benin 00229 Bermuda 001441 Bhutan 00975 Bolivia 00591 Bosnia 00387 Botswana 00267 Brazil 0055 Brunei 00673 Bulgaria 00359 Burkina 00226 Burundi 00257 Cambodia 00855 Cameroon 00237 Canada 001 Cape Verde 00238 Cayman Islands 001345 Central African Republic 00236 Chad 00235 Chile 0056 China 0086 Colombia 0057 Comoros 00269 Congo 00242 Cook Islands 00682 Costa Rica 00506 Croatia 00385 Cuba 0053 Cyprus 00357 Cyprus (Northern) 0090392 Czech Republic 00420 Denmark 0045 Diego Garcia 00246 Djibouti 00253 Dominica 001767 Dominican Republic 001809 Ecuador 00593 Egypt 0020 El Salvador 00503 England (UK) 0044 Equatorial Guinea 00240 Eritrea 00291 Estonia 00372 Ethiopia 00251 Falkland Islands 00500 Faroe Islands 00298 Fiji 00679 Finland 00358 France 0033 French Guiana 00594 French Polynesia 00689 Gabon 00241 Gambia 00220 Georgia 00995 Germany 0049 Ghana 00233 Gibraltar 00350 Greece 0030 Greenland 00299 Grenada 001473 Guadeloupe 00590 Guam 001671 Guatemala 00502 Guinea 00224 Guyana 00592 Haiti 00509 Holland (Netherlands)0031 Honduras 00504 Hong Kong 00852 Hungary 0036 Ibiza (Spain) 0034 Iceland 00354 India 0091 Indian Ocean 00873 Indonesia 0062 Iran 0098 Iraq 00964 Ireland 00353 Italy 0039 Ivory Coast 00225 Jamaica 001876 Japan 0081 Jordan 00962 Kazakhstan 007 Kenya 00254 Kiribati 00686

Kuwait 00965 Kyrgyzstan 00996 Laos 00856 Latvia 00371 Lebanon 00961 Liberia 00231 Libya 00218 Lithuania 00370 Luxembourg 00352 Macau 00853 Macedonia 00389 Madagascar 00261 Majorca 0034 Malawi 00265 Malaysia 0060 Maldives 00960 Mali 00223 Malta 00356 Marshall Islands 00692 Martinique 00596 Mauritania 00222 Mauritius 00230 Mayotte 00269 Mexico 0052 Micronesia 00691 Moldova 00373 Monaco 00377 Mongolia 00976 Montserrat 001664 Morocco 00212 Mozambique 00258 Myanmar (Burma) 0095 Namibia 00264 Nepal 00977 Netherlands (Holland)0031 Netherlands Antilles 00599 New Caledonia 00687 New Zealand 0064 Nicaragua 00505 Nigar 00227 Nigeria 00234 Niue 00683 Norfolk Island 00672 Northern Ireland (UK)0044 North Korea 00850 Norway 0047 Oman 00968 Pakistan 0092 Palau 00680 Panama 00507 Papua New Guinea 00675 Paraguay 00595 Peru 0051 Philippines 0063 Poland 0048 Portugal 00351 Puerto Rico 001787 Qatar 00974 Romania 0040 Russian Federation 007 Rwanda 00250 Saint Helena 00290 Saint Kitts 001869 Saint Lucia 001758 Saint Pierre 00508 Saint Vincent 001784 Samoa US 00684 Samoa West 00685 San Marino 00378 Sao Tone 00239 Saudi Arabia 00966 Scotland (UK) 0044 Senegal 00221 Seychelles 00284 Sierra Leone 00232 Singapore 0065 Slovakia 00421 Slovenia 00386 Solomon Islands 00677 Somalia 00252 South Africa 0027 South Korea 0082 Spain 0034 Sri Lanka 0094 Sudan 00249 Suriname 00597 Swaziland 00268 Sweden 0046 Switzerland 0041 Syria 00963 Taiwan 00886 Tanzania 00255 Thailand 0066 Toga 00228 Tonga 00676 Tokelau 00690 Trinidad 001868 Tunisia 00216 Turkey 0090 Tuvalu 00688 Uganda 00256 Ukraine 00380 United Arab Emirates00976

Stars

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013

Word Search

Yesterdayʼs Solution

C R O S S W O R D

1 0 8

ACROSS 1. Go "ding dong", like a bell.

5. A loose cloak with a hood.

12. (usually followed by `of') Released from something onerous (especially an obligation or duty).

15. A feeling of strong eagerness (usually in favor of a person or cause).

16. Trade name for an antiemetic drug that has a mint flavor.

17. A period marked by distinctive character or reckoned from a fixed point or event.

18. A warning against certain acts.

20. A smile expressing smugness or scorn instead of pleasure.

21. An argument opposed to a proposal.

22. At full speed.

24. Not capable of being swayed or diverted from a course.

26. Not in accordance with the fact or reality or actuality.

28. Pass by, as of time.

29. The compass point midway between south and west.

32. A rotating disk shaped to convert circular into linear motion.

36. Any of numerous local fertility and nature deities worshipped by ancient Semitic peoples.

37. Any of a group of Indic languages spoken in Kashmir and eastern Afghanistan and northern Pakistan.

41. Severe hypoxia.

44. A landlocked republic in central Europe.

45. Extracted from a source of supply as of minerals from the earth.

48. A federation of North American labor unions that merged with the Congress of Industrial Organizations in 1955.

49. Widely distributed genus of herbs or shrubs with glandular compound leaves and spicate or racemose purple or white flowers.

53. The capital and largest city of Japan.

54. An intensive care unit designed with special equipment to care for premature or low-birth-weight or seriously ill newborn.

56. The United Nations agency concerned with atomic energy.

57. Soft suede glove leather from goatskin.

59. In addition.

61. A percussion instrument consisting of a pair of hollow pieces of wood or bone (usually held between the thumb and fingers) that are made to click together (as by Spanish dancers) in rhythm with the dance.

68. A loose sleeveless outer garment made from aba cloth.

69. A cavity in the mesoderm of an embryo that gives rise in humans to the pleural cavity and pericardial cavity and peritoneal cavity.

72. Wife of Balder.

73. Flower arrangement consisting of a circular band of foliage or flowers for ornamental purposes.

74. Large arboreal boa of tropical South America.

76. Feline mammal usually having thick soft fur and being unable to roar.

77. A condition (mostly in boys) characterized by behavioral and learning disorders.

78. A great raja.

79. The residue that remains when something is burned.

3. Connected with or belonging to or used in a navy.

4. A laminated metamorphic rock similar to granite.

5. Of the blackest black.

6. The square of a body of any size of type.

7. (comparative of `little' usually used with mass nouns) Quantifier meaning not as great in amount or degree.

8. Your general store of remembered information.

9. An elaborate song for solo voice.

10. A building where prostitutes are available.

11. Any of various water-soluble compounds capable of turning litmus blue and reacting with an acid to form a salt and water.

12. A summary that repeats the substance of a longer discussion.

13. Metal shackles.

14. An Italian poet famous for `The Divine Comedy'--a journey through hell and purgatory and paradise guided by Virgil and his idealized Beatrice (1265-1321).

19. Again but in a new or different way.

23. The blood group whose red cells carry both the A and B antigens.

25. A Dravidian language spoken in south central India.

27. Any of various perennial South American plants of the genus Loasa having stinging hairs and showy white or yellow or reddish-orange flowers.

30. A unit of magnetomotive force equal to 0.7958 ampere-turns.

31. Any of various aromatic resinous substances used for healing and soothing.

33. Native to Egypt but cultivated widely for its aromatic seeds and the oil from them used medicinally and as a flavoring in cookery.

34. French biochemist who (with Francois Jacob) explained how genes are activated and suggested the existence of messenger RNA (1910-1976).

35. A white metallic element that burns with a brilliant light.

38. Jordan's port.

39. A shoulder firearm with a long barrel and a rifled bore.

40. Indigo bush.

42. Abnormal dryness of the conjunctiva and cornea of the eyes.

43. An agency of the United Nations affiliated with the World Bank.

46. The branch of engineering science that studies the uses of electricity and the equipment for power generation and distribution and the control of machines and communication.

47. (Irish) Mother of the Tuatha De Danann.

50. Type genus of the Lycaenidae.

51. A modified bud consisting of a thickened globular underground stem serving as a reproductive structure.

52. All the plant and animal life of a particular region.

55. A small tent used as a dressing room beside the sea or a swimming pool.

58. English scholastic philosopher and assumed author of Occam's Razor (12851349).

60. The capital and largest city of Yemen.

62. In bed.

63. A sudden short attack.

64. (Roman mythology) God of love.

65. A ruler of the Inca Empire (or a member of his family).

66. Type genus of the Anatidae.

67. A narrow thin strip of wood used as backing for plaster or to make latticework.

70. The syllable naming the sixth (submediant) note of a major or minor scale in solmization.

71. South American wood sorrel cultivated for its edible tubers.

75. A person who announces and plays popular recorded music.

Yesterdayʼs Solution

DOWN 1. Coffee with the caffeine removed.

2. Tropical American tree grown in southern United States having a whitish pinktinged fruit.

Daily SuDoku

Yesterday’s Solution

Sports FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2012

Lakers beat Celtics on emotional night Lakers win one for ex-owner Buss

Lamont Peterson

Peterson looking for ultimate redemption WASHINGTON: Lamont Peterson, fighting to defend his reputation as well as a world title after a positive doping test, ends a 14month layoff today in a hometown bout against fellow American Kendall Holt. Peterson, once a homeless child on the streets of Washington, completed a fairytale in December of 2011 with a controversial split-decision victory over England’s Amir Khan for two world light-welterweight titles in the US capital. But the glory soon faded as a big-money rematch with Khan was scrapped after Peterson tested positive for synthetic testosterone and high testosterone levels, failing the very voluntary doping tests that he had insisted upon.

Peterson, who had been dealing with low testosterone health issues, had the World Boxing Association title revoked but the International Boxing Federation kept him as champion on appeal, considering later tests that Peterson passed. But the fight with Holt isn’t dubbed “Redemption” for nothing. “Probably until the day I die they will say certain things,” Peterson said Wednesday. “Once the doctor told me there was no steroid in my body and I didn’t do anything illegal, I was like, ‘Did my doctor give me anything?’

“We’re in there fighting and rebuilding. Even taking that fight away, you have still got to say Lamont Peterson is a great fighter.”

Peterson, 30-1-1 with 15 knockouts, has not fought since defeating Khan but says the rest and gym workouts have made him a better fighter, not a rusty one. “I don’t think it’s going to affect me at all,” Peterson said. “A 14-month layoff did me some justice rather than hurt me. It allowed my body to rest and let me work on some things. I was in the gym the whole 14 months. You should see a better Lamont Peterson rather than a ring-rusted Lamont Peterson.”

This time, Peterson is having only the basic drug test programme. “In the future I will do my best to do random testing, but random drug tests aren’t cheap,” Peterson said, adding that the basic test “is not a test you can just get over on.” Khan complained about the referee in his Washington loss, saying he should not have had two points deducted for pushing-points that were the difference between a loss and a majority draw that would have kept him as champion.

But Holt said he was not worried about fighting in the champion’s hometown, citing a South American bout where a man outside the ring grabbed his leg and a referee helped his opponent rise after a knockdown. “I’m comfortable fighting anywhere,” he said. “I don’t expect any of that.” Holt, 28-5 with 16 knockouts, also said he was not concerned about being in the ring with Peterson despite Khan’s comments after the doping test that a steroid-fueled Peterson could be a health risk for foes.

“I don’t have any trepidation about that,” Holt said. “I’ve known these guys for years. I don’t think he took it for performance-enhancing reasons. Whatever he took it for, I don’t think it matters. He’s a great fighter.” For Holt, he is also a great opportunity. “This fight can change my life so I’m going to take it seriously. I’m a fan of Lamont, but this is business,” Holt said.

“There are so many big-money fights on the horizon if I win this fight, it will change my life. It’s going to be a hard, challenging fight. It’s going to last 12 rounds. We’re going to have to go in there and fight our hearts out.” Instead of the $1.5 million Peterson would have made for a Khan rematch in Las Vegas, he will make $37,500 to face Holt at home. “That has been my life story. It has been rough,” said Peterson, who insists it’s not about the fame or the money.

It’s about redemption. “It has been a trying time,” admitted Peterson’s trainer, Barry Hunter. “We have gotten that clear. He has been totally cleared by the medical community. It was proven he didn’t have an athletic performance edge. He has been vindicated by the athletic community. “Now we need to get back to the fighting.” — AFP

LOS ANGELES: Dwight Howard had 24 points and 12 rebounds to help the Los Angeles Lakers to an emotional 113-99 victory over the Boston Celtics on Wednesday in their first game since the death of owner Jerry Buss. Kobe Bryant added 16 points, Steve Nash and Earl Clark had 14 each, and Metta World Peace 12 in a game that surely would have delighted Buss, who always loved to win but especially liked beating the Celtics. The Lakers won their most recent NBA championship - and last under Buss - in 2010, defeating the Celtics 4-3 in the finals. Buss died Monday at 80 after an 18-month struggle with cancer.

Paul Pierce scored 26 points for the Celtics, who lost their third game in a row away from home. Courtney Lee added 20 points and Kevin Garnett had 12. Indiana’s Paul George scored 27 points as the Pacers powered their way closer to the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference with a convincing 125-91 win over the New York Knicks.

David West had 18 points and nine rebounds, and Lance Stephenson added 14 points for Indiana, which pulled within a half-game of the Knicks for second place in the East. Tyson Chandler led New York with 19 points and 11 rebounds, while Carmelo Anthony, the league’s No. 2 scorer, finished with 15 points.

Houston’s James Harden scored a career-high 46 points and Jeremy Lin added 29 as the Rockets mounted a furious fourth-quarter comeback to down the Oklahoma City Thunder 122-119. Houston was down by 14 points with about seven minutes left before using a 21-4 run to erase the deficit and take a 114-111 lead with 1:46 remaining.

Thabo Sefolosha led the Thunder with 28 points and had six 3-pointers, both career highs. Westbrook also scored 28 points and added 10 rebounds and eight assists. Kevin Durant had 16 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists for his second career triple-double. Miami scored the first 13 points of the fourth quarter to erase Atlanta’s 10-point lead as the Heat, led by LeBron James’ 24 points, beat the Hawks 103-90 to extend their season-best winning streak to eight games.

Dwyane Wade scored 20 points and Shane Battier had 17, hitting three 3-pointers in the final period. James had 11 assists and six rebounds but could not extend his franchise-record streak of seven straight games with at least 30 points. At Milwaukee, Deron Williams scored 23 points to lead the Brooklyn Nets to a 97-94 win over the Bucks, while Zach Randolph had 17 points and 18 rebounds for the Memphis Grizzlies in an 88-82 victory over the Toronto Raptors.

The Cleveland Cavaliers defeated the New Orleans Hornets 105-100 after Kyrie Irving scored 20 of his 35 points in the fourth quarter, and Golden State’s Klay Thompson had 28 points and eight rebounds to lead the Warriors over the Phoenix Suns 108-98. In other games, the Dallas Mavericks downed the Orlando Magic 111-96, the Minnesota Timberwolves beat the Philadelphia 76ers 94-87, and the Detroit Pistons were 105-99 winners over the Charlotte Bobcats. — AP

ATLANTA: LeBron James #6 of the Miami Heat draws a flagrant foul from Zaza Pachulia #27 of the Atlanta Hawks at Philips Arena on February 20, 2013 in Atlanta, Georgia. — AFP

NBA results/standings Atlanta 90, Miami 103; Cleveland 105, New Orleans 100; LA Lakers 113, Boston 99; Golden State 108, Phoenix 98; Dallas 111, Orlando 96; Milwaukee 94, Brooklyn Nets 97; Minnesota 94, Philadelphia 87; Houston 122, Oklahoma City 119; Indiana 125, New York Knicks 91; Charlotte 99, Detroit 105; Toronto 82, Memphis 88.

Eastern Conference Western Conference Atlantic Division Northwest Division W L PCT GB Oklahoma City 39 15 .722 NY Knicks 32 19 .627 Denver 34 21 .618 5.5 Brooklyn Nets 33 22 .600 2 Utah 31 24 .564 8.5 Boston 28 26 .519 5.5 Portland 25 29 .463 14 Philadelphia 22 30 .423 10.5 Minnesota 20 31 .392 17.5 Toronto 22 33 .400 12 Pacific Division Central Division LA Clippers 39 17 .696 Indiana 33 21 .611 Golden State 31 23 .574 7 Chicago 31 22 .585 1.5 LA Lakers 26 29 .473 12.5 Milwaukee 26 27 .491 6.5 Sacramento 19 36 .345 19.5 Detroit 22 34 .393 12 Phoenix 18 37 .327 20.5 Cleveland 17 37 .315 16 Southwest Division Southeast Division San Antonio 43 12 .782 Miami 37 14 .725 Memphis 35 18 .660 7 Atlanta 29 23 .558 8.5 Houston 30 26 .536 13.5 Washington 15 37 .288 2.5 Dallas 24 29 .453 18 Orlando 15 39 .278 23.5 New Orleans 19 36 .345 24 Charlotte 13 41 .241 25.5

Sports FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013

Sabres fire Ruff BUFFALO: Lindy Ruff is out as coach in Buffalo, meaning the slow-starting, inconsistent and sometimes lethargic Sabres have now become Ron Rolston’s mess to clean up. Rolston was promoted from the Sabres’ minor-league affiliate, AHL Rochester, to finish out the season as Buffalo’s interim head coach Wednesday. The move was made hours after Ruff was fired amid growing criticism for the team’s early season struggles. And it came less than a week after Ruff had defiantly said he wasn’t done trying to “clean up this mess.” The turnaround never came for Ruff and the Sabres (6-10-1), who are in the midst of a 4-10-1 slump following a 2-1 home loss to the Winnipeg Jets on Tuesday.

It was a game in which the Sabres were booed several times for their turnover-filled and inconsistent effort. “I think the last game was quite honestly a tipping point. And it was evident to me that we were searching for answers to too many questions,” general manger Darcy Regier said. “I think we were making some strides, but in the end, for every two steps forward, it was one step back, and sometimes not that.”

Ruff’s dismissal ends his 16-season tenure in Buffalo, during which he became the franchise’s winningest coach (571432-162) and the NHL’s longest active-serving coach with one team. Among North America’s four major pro sports, Ruff’s tenure was second only behind Gregg Popovich, who’s been coach of the NBA’s San Antonio Spurs since 1996. In the NHL alone, there had been 170 coaching changes since Ruff was hired on July 21, 1997.

“I’m disappointed for myself. I’m disappointed for Lindy.

And when I see the players, I’m disappointed for them, too.”

Regier said. “We should all be disappointed. As far as anger, we have too much work to do.” The decision to fire Ruff came shortly after he oversaw a 90-minute practice and was preparing to travel with the team for Thursday’s game at Toronto. Regier went to Ruff’s home to inform the coach of the decision. He then allowed Ruff to visit with players as they boarded a bus to travel to Toronto.

Rolston is in his second season with the Rochester Americans. He was scheduled to arrive in Buffalo on Wednesday evening and then join Regier in traveling to Toronto for his first meeting with Sabres players. Regier said he’ll use the remainder of the season to determine whether Rolston deserves taking over the job on a full-time basis.

Before taking over in Rochester, Rolston spent seven seasons as coach of USA Hockey’s National Team development program. During that time, he became the first coach to lead the US Under-18 team to win three gold medals (2005, 2009, 2011).

Rolston is also familiar with numerous Sabres, including center Cody Hodgson and forward Marcus Foligno. He spent the first half of this season coaching both, who played in Rochester during the NHL lockout. Rolston went 36-26-10-4 last season in leading Rochester to the playoffs. This season, the Americans (27-18-2-1) are in second in the North Division and sixth in the Western Conference. “His teams play with structure, discipline. They have a work ethic,” Regier said, of Rolston.

“He has them playing very good hockey, so I think you’ll see some of those traits.” Regier said Rolston will have input on the status of the Sabres current assistant coaches. The news of Ruff’s firing came as a surprise only because Sabres management, including team president Ted Black, had spent much of the past week voicing support of Ruff. Team owner Terry Pegula was also regarded as a big fan of Ruff.

Pegula, however, was running out of options in his bid to turn the Sabres into a Stanley Cup contender, an objective he made clear upon purchasing the team two years ago.

Ruff’s firing comes nearly two years to the day Pegula formally took over as the Sabres owner on Feb. 22, 2011.

“The hockey world knows how I and the entire Buffalo Sabres organization feel about Lindy Ruff not only as a coach but also as a person,” Pegula said in a statement released by the team. “His qualities have made this decision very difficult. I personally want Lindy to know that he can consider me a friend always.”

Under Ruff, the Sabres made the playoffs in each of his first four seasons and eight times overall. That included a surprising run to the Stanley Cup finals in 1999, when Buffalo was eliminated by Dallas in six games. The Sabres, however, haven’t been the same since reaching the Eastern Conference finals - losing both times - in both 2006 and ‘07.

Buffalo has missed the playoffs in three of the past five seasons. — AP

PITTSBURGH: Nicklas Grossmann #8 of the Philadelphia Flyers attempts to clear the puck against the Pittsburgh Penguins during the game at Consol Energy Center. — AFP

Flyers use late goal to slip past Penguins 6-5 Hansen slapped with one-game ban for aggressive hit PITTSBURGH: Jakub Voracek capped a hat trick by putting Philadelphia ahead with 1:31 remaining in the third as the Flyers claimed a wild 6-5 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins on Wednesday.

Voracek’s third goal came 33 seconds after Pittsburgh’s Brandon Sutter leveled the game on a wraparound as the Penguins rallied from a pair of two-goal deficits in the third period. Wayne Simmonds had two goals and an assist and Nicklas Grossman also scored for the Flyers.

Evgeni Malkin and James Neal scored power-play goals, while Sutter, Tyler Kennedy and Matt Niskanen also scored for the Penguins. Colorado’s David Jones scored at 4:43 of overtime and Semyon Varlamov stopped 33 shots to lead the Avalanche to a 1-0 win over the St Louis Blues in front of a smattering of boisterous fans that braved a winter storm in Denver.

Matt Hunwick set up the winning goal by bringing the puck into the zone and passing it over to Jones, who sent a wrist shot over the left shoulder of Jaroslav Halak. The Avs have won seven straight over the Blues at Pepsi Center. Halak stopped 19 shots in his first appearance since coming off injured reserve earlier this month with a strained groin. He got the start with rookie Jake Allen playing the night before and Brian Elliott struggling.

At Calgary Alberta, Los Angeles swept back-to-back games in Alberta as Trevor Lewis scored the go-ahead goal in the Kings’ 3-1 victory over the Flames. Lewis had gone 13 games without a point before picking up two assists Tuesday in the Kings’ 3-1 win over Edmonton. Lewis collected a rebound at the side of the net Wednesday, paused briefly, then zipped a shot into the

top corner over Flames goaltender Joey MacDonald’s shoulder for his first goal in 31 games going back to last season. Justin Brown and Jeff Carter also scored for Los Angeles. T J Brodie scored for Calgary.

Vancouver Canucks forward Jannik Hansen was suspended for one game without pay by the NHL on Wednesday for an aggressive hit on Chicago’s Marian Hossa the previous day. Hansen delivered a forearm to the back of Hossa’s head during the third period of Chicago’s 4-3 shootout victory that left the Blackhawks winger flat out on the ice before he returned to the locker

room for the remainder of the game.

Hansen was assessed a minor penalty for roughing. The incident was particularly unfortunate for Hossa, who was also knocked out of a playoff series against the Phoenix Coyotes last year after sustaining an illegal hit. The Blackhawks said that Hossa appeared to be in better condition this time compared to the Phoenix hit, when he suffered a season-ending concussion. Hansen had claimed that the hit came as a result of him pursuing the puck but after a hearing with the league, the NHL took action. — Agencies

NHL results/standings Colorado 1, St. Louis 0 (OT); Calgary 1, Los Angeles 3; Pittsburgh 5, Philadelphia 6.

Eastern Conference Western Conference Central Division Atlantic Division 13 0 3 55 34 29 W L OT GF GA PTS Chicago Nashville 8 4 5 39 38 21 New Jersey 9 3 4 42 38 22 St. Louis 9 6 2 53 51 20 Pittsburgh 11 6 0 57 44 22 Detroit 7 6 3 43 48 17 NY Rangers 8 6 1 39 38 17 Columbus 4 10 2 36 51 10 Philadelphia 8 9 1 51 54 17 Northwest Division NY Islanders 6 9 1 46 57 13 Vancouver 8 3 4 44 37 20 Norhteast Division Minnesota 7 6 2 33 38 16 MontrÈal 11 4 1 46 35 23 Colorado 7 7 1 38 43 15 Boston 9 2 2 37 31 20 Edmonton 6 6 3 36 41 15 Toronto 10 7 0 48 40 20 Calgary 5 7 3 40 54 13 Ottawa 9 6 2 40 32 20 Pacific Division Buffalo 6 10 1 47 56 13 Anaheim 12 2 1 53 39 25 Southeast Division San Jose 8 4 3 39 34 19 Carolina 8 5 1 41 40 17 Phoenix 8 6 2 44 41 18 Tampa Bay 8 6 1 59 47 17 Dallas 8 7 1 41 43 17 Winnipeg 6 8 1 37 47 13 Los Angeles 7 6 2 36 38 16 Florida 4 7 4 35 56 12 Note: Overtime losses (OT) worth 1 pt Washington 5 9 1 41 51 11 and not included in loss column (L).

Sports FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013

Kuwait Shooting Sports Club ready to host tourney KUWAIT: Kuwait Shooting Sports Club is getting ready to host HH the Amir’s second Annual Shooting Grand Prix to be held from March 1 till March 9, 2013. The tournament with prizes reaching $1,000,000 will see the participation of Olympic Shooting medal winners during the London 2000 games including Serbia’s Zlatic Andrija, China’s Siling Yi, Chen Yeng, Yu Dan, and Wang Zhiwei, India’s Narang Gagan, Croatia’s Gioyanni Cernogoraz, Sweden’s Hakan Dahlby, Serbia’s Ivana Maksimovic and France’s Delphine Reau.

The tournament attracts international shooters and there’s fierce competition between them, apart from being one of the major Grand Prix tournaments as far as the technical standards or prices are concerned.

Meanwhile, KSSC Assistant Secretary General Mohammad Misfer Al-Ghurba said that preparation for the tournament started early owing to its importance and

Mohammed Al-Ghurba

Fuhaid Al-Daihani

international status. He said several international champions expressed their wish to participate in this tournament which coincides with Kuwait’s celebrations of the National and Liberation days.

Al-Ghurba lauded the cooperation of all government authorities concerned with the tournament including informa-

Mariam Erzouqi

tion, interior, health, public works, defence, ministries as well as the National Guard, customs department, fire services and Kuwait International Airport authorities. Al-Ghurba thanked the Public Authority for Youth and Sports for its continued efforts and support of KSSC at all times.

MARCOUSSIS: France’s rugby union national team inside centre Wesley Fofana (right) runs with a ball in front of fly half Frederic Michalak (left) during a training session yesterday. — AFP

Seven changes for France against England MARCOUSSIS: France coach Philippe Saint-Andre yesterday made seven changes to his side to take on England in a Six Nations match at Twickenham tomorrow. Having lost their two opening games against Italy and Wales, SaintAndre notably restored the halfback partnership of Francois Trinh-Duc and Morgan Parra which brought France the Grand Slam in 2010 and took them to the World Cup final in 2011. Also back are hooker Benjamin Kayser, prop Thomas Domingo, flanker Yannick Nyanga and top try scorer Vincent Clerc, the winger having missed the last two games through injury.

Clerc’s return sees Wesley Fofana revert to centre where he will partner

Mathieu Bastareaud, who retains his place after returning to the French squad for this year’s tournament. There is also a first start for Castres lock Christophe Samson, who takes over from Jocelino Suto, who struggled physically in the 166 loss to Wales at the Stade de France.

Saint-Andre said that after two demoralising defeats-France’s worst ever start to the Six Nations-the time was ripe for some fresh blood to be brought in to take on an English side brimming with confidence after three straight wins. “The English will start favourites,” he said. “We will have to show all our qualities of being French tomorrow-that means being brave, daring, unpredictable and to take the fight to them.

“When we are able to do that, we are able to pose problems for any team in the world. “To be honest, it’s always a good thing when we French have our backs to the wall.

That forces us to regroup and to better prepare individually for what will be a bruising contest.” The return of TrinhDuc and Parra means that the halfback pairing of Frederic Michalak and Maxime Machenaud, preferred by Saint-Andre since he took over as coach from Marc Lievremont, drops down to the bench.

They were oustanding in the November Test wins over Australia, Argentina and Samoa but looked generally lacking ideas and penetration against Italy and Wales. — AFP

Snow postpones PGA golf in Arizona desert MARANA: Rory McIlroy has golfed in driving rain and umbrella-snapping winds, but Wednesday marked the first time the Northern Irishman ever had a tournament round postponed because of a snowstorm.

Snow halted the opening round of the World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play Championship before McIlroy and Tiger Woods could tee off and before any matchup was completed. Play was suspended in the late morning and by the time play was called for the day, about four centimetres (1.6 inches) had accumulated on the ground.

“I have never seen anything like that at a golf tournament,” said the top-seeded McIlroy. “I’ve seen snow on the course when I was a kid, but nothing like that on any of the tours. It was crazy.” Mark Russell, the PGA Tour’s vice president of rules and competition, remembered seeing snow at a PGA Tour event in nearby Tucson, Arizona during the late 1990s before this tournament became part of the World Golf Championships.

“We got this freak snow storm,” Russell said. “It was predicted, though. We just couldn’t play.” Play was set to resume yesterday with Spain’s Sergio Garcia the nearest to victory, leading Thongchai Jaidee 2-up and looking at a 12-foot birdie putt at the 15th hole, while the Thai player is 96 feet from the cup.

Only 10 of the 64 first-round matches had not teed off when the snowstorm struck at the Dove Mountain course, but those matches included World No. 1 McIlroy going against Irishman Steve Lowry.

Australia’s Jason Day, who would be enjoying warm summer temperatures if he were back home in Brisbane, said this was a first for him. “This is crazy. I never played golf where you had to stop because of snow,” Day said.

The third-round matches will follow today, and if those two rounds are completed at the time, the tournament will be back on schedule.

There was still snow on the course as the sun was setting Wednesday and cool temperatures were expected to keep it there overnight. Weather forecasters were also predicting a second storm to hit the area. Woods, who was set to open against US compatriot and friend Charlie Howell, and England’s Luke Donald, a top seed set to face Marcel Siem of Germany, also were awaiting their starts when the storm struck to stop play for the day.

Garcia, playing in the bracket whose top seed is South African Louis Oosthuizen, has never trailed against Thongchai, who stumbled with a bogey at the par-five second and another at the 15th to fall two-down.

American Matt Kuchar, who could face Garcia in round two, was three-up on Hiroyuki Fujita after 14 holes, having won three holes in a row starting at the ninth to seize command.

That bracket also saw England’s Justin Rose two-up on South Korean KJ Choi after nine holes, helping by a 54-foot birdie putt to win the opening holes that launched him to fourup through five holes before Choi rallied.

England’s Ian Poulter was three-up through 12 on Scotsman Stephen Gallacher and Day was six-up after 10 on American Zach Johnson. Defending champion Hunter Mahan was four-up on Italy’s Matteo Manassero after nine holes, never trailing after the European found the desert right off the first tee and struggled from there. — AFP

Sports FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013

5 Olympians who went to court Oscar Pistorius, facing a charge of premeditated murder in the Valentine’s Day slaying of his girlfriend, is one of several OIympians who found themselves in a courtroom for various accusations. Here are some the most famous: MARION JONES One of track and field’s biggest stars at the 2000 Olympics, she won three gold medals and two bronzes in Sydney. Eight years later, Jones was serving time in a federal prison in Texas. The former world’s fastest woman was forced to return the medals to the International Olympic Committee after pleading guilty to lying to federal investigators about taking performance-enhancing drugs and her involvement in a check fraud scam. Jones served a six-month sentence from March-September 2008.

TIM MONTGOMERY In 2002, Montgomery was the

world’s fastest man, dating Marion Jones and was an Olympic gold medalist with the United States 4x100-meter relay team at the 2000 Sydney Games.

The Bay Area Laboratory CoOperative scandal exposed his doping and subsequently led to his 9.78 seconds record time being dropped from the books. Montgomery was later sentenced to almost 10 years jail time for his part in a $5 million check fraud conspiracy - which also ensnared Jones and his former coach Steve Riddick, a relay gold medalist at the 1976 Montreal Games - and a conviction for dealing heroin in Virginia.

TONYA HARDING Harding competed for the US in figure skating at the 1994 Winter Olympics while under suspicion following an assault on her teammate and medal rival Nancy Kerrigan

weeks before the games in Lillehammer, Norway. Harding eventually was placed on probation after pleading guilty to helping cover up a conspiracy, involving her former husband, tied to an assault on Kerrigan before the national championships.

At the Olympics, Kerrigan won silver after recovering from her injuries; Harding finished eighth and was soon banned from the sport.

BRUCE KIMBALL At the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, Kimball won a diving silver for the US in the 10-meter platform event. Four years later, he was preparing for the national trials before the Seoul Olympics when he drove drunk at high speed into a group of partying teenagers in Hillsborough County, Fla., killing two. Kimball, who competed at the trials and failed to qualify, pleaded guilty to two charges of drunken driving-manslaughter and

Pistorius detective faces attempted murder charges PRETORIA: The lead detective in the Oscar Pistorius investigation faces seven charges of attempted murder, South African police revealed yesterday, leaving the prosecution case against the star sprinter in tatters. Police made the shock announcement as Pistorius himself suffered a new blow when US sportswear giant Nike said it has suspended its contract with the double amputee champion known as “Blade Runner”. Pistorius was back in court yesterday for the third day of a bail hearing over the Valentine’s Day shooting of his 29-year-old model girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp.

Detective Hilton Botha, whose testimony was repeatedly challenged by defence attorneys on Wednesday, is facing charges for shooting at a minibus taxi in 2009, police said. “We were only informed yesterday that attempted murder charges against Hilton Botha have been reinstated,” police spokesman Neville Malila told AFP Pistorius’s lawyers had torn into Botha’s police work at Wednesday’s hearing, undermining his witnesses and forcing him to agree that the Olympian’s version of events fitted the crime scene.

“It sounds consistent,” Botha told the court. Prosecutors allege it was a premeditated killing, but Pistorius has said he mistook Steenkamp for an intruder when he shot repeatedly through a locked bathroom door in the dead of night and did not intend to kill her. The law graduate and cover girl was found by medics covered in bloodied towels and wearing white shorts and a black vest, with bullet wounds to her head, elbow and hip.

Yesterday, defence lawyer Barry Roux again pilloried Botha and what he called “disastrous shortcomings in the state’s case”. The Olympian and Paralympian sprinter, who has been in custody for a week, could face months or perhaps years in pre-trial detention if he does not win bail.

Arguing that Pistorius would be a flight risk, the prosecution quoted a magazine article in which the runner claimed to “have a house” in Italy.

But his coach Ampie Louw told AFP the property is actually a training facility built by the local government and a hotel, where the athlete goes regularly to train and unwind. “We all call it home... but the hotel has been a family business for years,” he said. Louw said that if Pistorius is granted bail he wanted to get the runner-who became a hero to millions when he became the first double amputee to compete at the 2012 Olympics-back on the track. “I’m going to speak with him and try to get him going.”

PRETORIA: South African Olympic sprinter Oscar Pistorius appears yesterday at the Magistrate Court in Pretoria. — AFP Pistorius’s career has been put on hold since the shooting, forcing him to cancel a number of races.

Roux on Wednesday also threw doubt on key prosecution witness evidence suggesting the couple, who had been dating since late last year, had rowed before the shooting.

A woman who lives in the same high security complex as Pistorius “heard talking that sounded like non-stop fighting from two to three in the morning,” hours before she was killed, prosecutor Gerrie Nel said. Another witness “heard a female screaming two-three times, then more gunshots,” Botha said. — AFP

was sentenced to 17 years in prison.

He was released in November 1993 after serving nearly five.

GUY DRUT Being an Olympic gold medalist eventually earned Drut a presidential pardon after the former French sports minister was found guilty in a political corruption case. Drut, a 110-meter hurdler, won silver in 1972 at Munich, then added gold at the 1976 Montreal Olympics.

In 2005, a Paris court imposed a suspended sentence of 15 months on Drut for taking money from fictitious jobs linked to public construction contracts from 1990-92. He was pardoned by President Jacques Chirac because of his distinguished service to French sport. The International Olympic Committee reprimanded him for conduct that “seriously tarnished the reputation of the Olympic Movement.” — AP

Nike halts Pistorius deal to protect brand LONDON: Nike froze its contract with “Blade Runner” Oscar Pistorius yesterday after he was charged with murdering his girlfriend, the latest in a series of scandals to hit athletes sponsored by the sportswear giant. Criticised in the past for being slow to respond when its sporting heroes got into trouble, Nike distanced itself from Pistorius, the Paralympics champion accused of shooting dead model Reeva Steenkamp on Feb 14, Valentine’s Day. “Nike has suspended its contract with Oscar Pistorius,” the world’s largest sportswear company said in a brief statement released in London.

“We believe Oscar Pistorius should be afforded due process and we will continue to monitor the situation closely.” The decision means the South African will receive no further payments from Nike for the time being and not appear in any of its promotions. Pistorius, the world’s best known Paralympic athlete, denies murder. He says he killed his girlfriend by accident after firing into a locked toilet door when he feared an intruder had broken into his home.

Nike, famous for its “swoosh” logo, has had to try to limit the damage to its brand from a number of scandals involving highly paid sports stars in recent years. It ended a longstanding sponsorship of US cyclist Lance Armstrong last October after the Texan was caught up in a doping scandal that led to him being stripped of his seven Tour de France titles. Nike stuck with American golfer Tiger Woods in 2009 when a series of extra-marital affairs were exposed.

Contrasting the treatment of Armstrong and Woods, marketing experts drew a distinction between evidence of cheating in sport and a greyer area of trying to make moral judgements on an athlete’s private life. Pistorius, a double amputee, ran against able-bodied athletes in the London Olympics last year, further raising his profile after a battle to be allowed to compete.

His story of sporting triumph over physical disability made him especially attractive to advertisers and he had endorsement contracts worth an estimated $2 million a year. Nike has sponsored Pistorius since 2007, supplying him with running kit and special soles that he wears on the base of his carbon fibre racing blades.

His other sponsorship deals with companies include British telecoms firm, US sunglasses maker Oakley and French designer Thierry Mugler. His sponsors have largely declined to comment on their contracts while his bail hearing is taking place in Pretoria. Nike is still prepared to pay big money to tie up the next generation of sporting stars. It added world number one golfer Rory McIlroy to its roster last month in a deal reported to be worth up to $250 million over the next decade. — Reuters

Sports FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013

Match-fixer detained in Milan Accused flew to Italy from Singapore MILAN: Italian police arrested a fugitive Slovenian associate of alleged soccer match-fixing kingpin Tan Seet Eng yesterday after he flew in from Singapore to hand himself over, they said in a statement. The man, identified as 31-year-old Admir Suljic, arrived at Milan’s Malpensa airport in the early hours to find police waiting for him after a tip-off by Singapore authorities. Police said in a statement that Suljic, who is accused of “criminal association aimed at sporting fraud”, had bought a one-way ticket with the intention of surrendering to the authorities.

He had been on the run since December 2011 and is considered a “key element” in Italy’s ‘Last Bet’ probe into match-fixing between 2009 and 2011. Police said Suljic would be taken to a prison in the city of Cremona. “His direct involvement in the international criminal group, made of Singapore nationals and people from the Balkans, has emerged from the investigation,” the police statement said.

Italian prosecutors have accused Tan, also known as Dan Tan, of heading an organisation to fix soccer matches worldwide and Italian police have issued an arrest warrant for him. A joint inquiry by

Europol, the European anti-crime agency, and national prosecutors identified about 680 suspicious matches including qualifying games for the World Cup and European Championships, and for Europe’s Champions League.

Match-fixing conference INTERPOL chief Ronald Noble, speaking at a conference in Kuala Lumpur on combating match-fixing, said Suljic was part of Singapore national Tan’s network. The international police body has declined to say if it has declared Tan an internationally wanted person, but an Italian judicial source said INTERPOL had pooled together investigations launched by authorities in countries including Italy, Germany, Spain and Turkey. Singapore says he is not wanted there, but that it is working with European authorities investigating the syndicate.

Singapore police said yesterday a team of four officers would be sent to INTERPOL within the next two weeks to assist in matchfixing investigations and that the city-state remained “commit-

Italian League preview

Unhappy Inter face buoyant Milan MILAN: Resurgent AC Milan, buoyed up by their win over Barcelona, meet an Inter Milan side mired in a mid-season crisis in Sunday’s Serie A derby (1945 GMT) which also features maverick striker Mario Balotelli facing his former club.

The mood in the two camps could not be more different with Inter, who at one stage were one point behind leaders Juventus, in a slump and their rivals on a high after Wednesday’s 2-0 win in the Champions League. Milan have also enjoyed a resurgence in the league, helped greatly by the signing of maverick striker Balotelli who has scored four goals in three games since his move from Manchester City.

The wildly unpredictable “Supermario” will be facing the club where he spent four seasons and made his top-flight debut. Inter coach Andrea Stramaccioni has emerged victorious from both his previous meetings with AC Milan and badly needs a third win to rescue his side’s season. Cagliari will have to host Torino behind closed doors after the latest saga involved their scandal-plagued Is Arenas stadium while leaders Juventus are at home to lowly but improving Siena (both 1400).

The Milan rivals have undergone a role reversal since the start of the year with AC Milan, whose early-season struggles led to weekly speculation over the future of coach Massimiliano Allegri, now ahead of Inter. Milan have taken 23 points from 10 games since the start of December and are third with 44 points, one ahead of Inter. Inter have taken 15 points in the same period and have suffered three bad defeats since the start of the season, at Udinese, struggling Siena and a 4-1 thrashing by Fiorentina last Sunday.

False representation Former youth team coach Stramaccioni was promoted to Inter coach late last term and their 4-2 win over Milan ended their rivals’ hopes of winning the title. They also won this season’s first meeting 1-0. “The good and bad thing about being coach of Inter is

that this pressure is on me from the first day I took charge of this great team,” said Stramaccioni, whose side must first visit Romania for a Europa League tie in Cluj yesterday.

“If a coach at this level thinks about these things, then he is finished before he even begins,” added the 37-year-old.

“There is a lot of pressure, as we lost 4-1 on Sunday and it’s only normal to be criticised, but I think we will do well against Cluj and in the Derby. We will go forward. “The club is working on the renewal of the team and this is only the first year of that process.”

Cagliari have agreed to host Torino behind closed doors after president Massimo Cellino was arrested last Friday on charges of embezzlement and false representation over the rebuilding of the stadium. The Sardinians moved to Is Arenas, which had previously hosted third-tier matches in the 1980s, at the start of this season but, with only one

permanent stand, they have had trouble from the outset.

Three temporary stands were built on the other sides of the pitch but the side’s opening match against Atalanta was staged behind closed doors after local authorities ruled that it was not ready. A match against Roma was cancelled and they had to face Juventus in Parma as safety worries continued.

Juventus, four points clear at the top, face relegation-threatened Siena while second-placed Napoli have a difficult match at midtable Udinese (1800).

Tomorrow’s match between strugglers Palermo and Genoa (1945) features two sides who have employed six coaches between them so far this season.

Palermo incumbent Alberto Malesani has had two stints at Genoa, the second last season lasting less than one month, while Genoa’s Davide Ballardini spent most of the 2008-09 season with the Sicilians. — Reuters

FLORENCE: Fiorentina’s Colombian midfielder Juan Cuadrado challenges for the ball with Inter Milan’s Argentinian forward Rodrigo Sebastian Palacio (right) during the Italian Serie A football match between Fiorentina and Inter Milan. — AFP

ted” in the fight against match-fixing. Singapore allows suspects to be sent only to countries with which it has an extradition treaty. Germany has such a treaty with Singapore but Italy, which made the original complaint about match-fixers manipulating Italian games, does not.

Noble, who had previously told Singapore’s Straits Times newspaper it would be unfortunate if Singapore’s “well-earned anti-crime reputation” suffered from the allegations, said he did not agree with criticism that Singapore is not doing enough to fight match-fixing. “I think the case I told you about, the case that is unfolding right now, makes it clear that Singaporeans like European Union investigators and judges are required to follow their law,” he said.

Experts say match-fixing is rampant in Asia, where lax regulation combined with a huge betting market have made soccer a prime target for crime syndicates. Last year the head of an anti-corruption watchdog estimated that $1 trillion was gambled on sport each year - or $3 billion a day - with most coming from Asia and wagered on soccer matches. — Reuters

German League preview

Reus returns to ex-club ‘Gladbach with Dortmund BERLIN: Marco Reus will return to former club Borussia Moenchengladbach in the Bundesliga on Sunday for the first time with new team Borussia Dortmund while in the form of his life. The 23-year-old Germany forward showed Dortmund can cope without suspended striker Robert Lewandowski by scoring a hat trick at Eintracht Frankfurt last weekend, and has taken little time to justify his €17.1 million transfer fee. Reus, last season’s player of the year in Germany, has scored 15 times in all competitions this season - including 11 in the Bundesliga - and 11 of the overall goals have been the all-important first.

He has also set up eight more in the league.

“He’s absolutely world class,” Dortmund sporting director Michael Zorc said. Reus has developed a remarkable understanding with friend and Germany teammate Mario Goetze, who has contributed 12 goals overall. Another of Dortmund’s stand-out performers, Ilkay Guendogan, was effusive in describing Reus’ “outstanding” contributions and “unbelievable” shooting technique. Reus scored twice in Dortmund’s 5-0 win over Moenchengladbach in September. He and Goetze will be expected to lead the attack again, with Lewandowski still out and Julian Schieber also suspended.

Reus has fond memories of 10th-place Moenchengladbach and still has friends in the squad.”Gladbach made it possible for me to be where I am now,” Reus said. “It will always remain a special club for me.” Runaway league leader Bayern Munich hosts Werder Bremen tomorrow, aiming to maintain its 15point lead over defending champion Dortmund. It will be the 67-year-old Bayern coach Jupp Heynckes’ 1,000th Bundesliga game as player or coach.

Bayern is yet to allow a goal in the league this year, though goalkeeper Manuel Neuer finally conceded in Tuesday’s 3-1 win at Arsenal in the Champions League. Bremen has not beaten Bayern in eight league games, and lost both German cup games to the Bavarians within the same time frame. The visitors will look to Nils Petersen, the striker on loan from Bayern, to add to his tally of four goals from his last three games.

“Luckily, Bayern’s place in the table is so comfortable that I can’t hurt them with Bremen,” Petersen told Bayern’s club magazine. Schalke, which has endured a midseason slump to fall to ninth place, hosts Fortuna Duesseldorf with fresh optimism after coming from behind for two morale-boosting draws - against Mainz last weekend and in the Champions League at Galatasaray on Wednesday. Also tomorrow, Stuttgart welcomes Nuremberg, Hamburger SV visits Hannover for a northern derby, Mainz hosts Wolfsburg, and Hoffenheim visits Augsburg with both sides desperate to win in their fight to avoid relegation. Hoffenheim is 10 points from safety in the relegation playoff place, with Augsburg a point behind. —AP

Sports FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013

Spanish League preview

Premier League preview

Barca aiming to regroup after loss to AC Milan Barcelona seek Sevilla boost in La Liga BARCELONA: Reeling from its loss at AC Milan, Barcelona will host a resurgent Sevilla in the Spanish league tomorrow needing to quickly regroup in time for its upcoming clash with Real Madrid in the Copa del Rey. Barcelona was beaten 2-0 at San Siro in the Champions League on Wednesday. Now, Barcelona must use the Sevilla match to fine-tune its attack for Tuesday’s semifinal visit by Madrid with the score 1-1 after the first leg. Madrid is a distant 16 points behind Barcelona in third place in the league standings and will likely be fully focused on the Copa del Rey when it travels to last-place Deportivo La Coruna tomorrow.

After Tuesday’s decisive match, Barcelona and Madrid will then meet again the following weekend at the Bernabeu for a league game that will probably be more about bragging rights than its impact on the title chase with Barcelona most likely still enjoying a double-digit lead over second-place Atletico Madrid. Barcelona was outhustled by Milan and uncharacteristically managed only two shots on target en route to its third loss this campaign.

MILAN: Barcelona’s Argentinian forward Lionel Messi reacts at the end of the Champions League football match between AC Milan and FC Barcelona. — AFP

It appears that the wear and tear of playing in three competitions is catching up with Barcelona, which, after storming through the first half of the season, has four wins, three draws and two losses since mid-January. “Physically we weren’t in top form (against Milan),” Barcelona midfielder Cesc Fabregas said. “They were stronger and caused us a lot of problems. We are Barcelona and we always have to play our best, (but) we didn’t play a good game.

“We have to improve and think about the return leg (in March) and in this coming week which is very important for our season.”

After being stymied by Milan’s tireless defense, Barcelona forward Lionel Messi- unless he gets a rare rest tomorrow- will return to a tournament he has dominated this season with a league-best 37 goals in 24 games. Madrid forward Cristiano Ronaldo trails Messi with 24 goals.

Sevilla also has a key Copa del Rey semifinal match to keep in mind as it is set to host Atletico Madrid on Wednesday. Sevilla will need to overturn a 2-1 loss in the first leg to reach the final. Tenth in the league table, the Copa del Rey is Sevilla’s only shot at silverware this season. “We know that we have an important game tomorrow,” Sevilla defender Alberto Botia said. “We must have a good showing, play well and go out there with our spirits high, not thinking about Wednesday’s game (with Atletico). If we play thinking about Wednesday, we run the risk of leaving the pitch with our morale in tatters.”

Sevilla coach Unai Emery has turned things around since taking over for the fired Michel Gonzalez, as his team has lost only once in its last five league matches. The Andalucian side, however, has yet to play better away from Seville and is on a winless streak of nine straight road games. Even though Madrid did not have a game midweek, coach Jose Mourinho may also continue to make changes in his starting lineup so his stars arrive fully rested for Barcelona.

Madrid has tightened up its defense recently and has conceded a league-low five goals in seven games in 2013. Fernando Vazquez, Deportivo’s third coach this season, will make his home debut at Riazor Stadium with his team eight points from safety.

Elsewhere tomorrow, an improved Valencia tries to break into the top-four and the fight for a Champions League berth as it visits Real Zaragoza, while relegation-threatened Mallorca hosts Getafe.—AP

French League preview

Bechkam to make French debut against Marseille PARIS: David Beckham could finally make his French league debut on Sunday when Paris Saint-Germain hosts Marseille in the country’s biggest rivalry. PSG has been training in Clairefontaine, where the France squad practices before its international matches, instead of using the usual Camp des Loges. Marseille is in third place, five points behind PSG, but would get back in the title race with a victory at Parc des Princes. PSG conceded three goals for the first time in the league this season by losing at Sochaux 3 2 last weekend. That defeat ended a 13-game unbeaten run in all competitions.

“After the loss at Sochaux, we are of course going to be more motivated than ever,” PSG coach Carlo Ancelotti told PSG TV. “This is a ‘clasico.’ It is a different game. Everyone is focused on this. Every time it’s difficult, this kind of game.”

PSG may have the more famous players, like Beckham and Zlatan Ibrahimovic, but Marseille plans to compensate with its grit and physical game. “We look forward to that match with some aggression,” Marseille midfielder Andre Ayew said. “We must rely on the quality of our game and our commitment. The danger would be to put some pressure on us. We must stay relaxed. We will have to be physically ready for duels. There will

be a lot of commitment.” Marseille will miss striker Jordan Ayew through suspension and midfielder Benoit Cheyrou through injury. Up front, it will rely on Andre-Pierre Gignac, Andre Ayew and Foued Kadir. “It’s a team that can be defeated as we saw against Sochaux,” Andre Ayew said. “It’s not impossible to beat them since other teams did it. If we put up a great performance and have a bit of luck, anything can happen.”

Despite the fierce rivalry between the two teams, Andre Ayew said that PSG was not just a collection of stars. “They play more as a unit than before,” Ayew said. “Little by little, their team has started to gel. I think it’s a team that can do a lot damage both in France and Europe.” PSG drew 2-2 with Marseille at Stade Velodrome in October. Ibrahimovic and Gignac scored two goals each. If PSG loses at home, second-place Lyon could go level on points at the top of the league with a victory over Lorient on Sunday. “We can hope to finish on the podium and tease PSG,” Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas said. “The season is not over yet.” Lyon restored some pride with a 4-0 win at Bordeaux last weekend. It still remains a serious title contender despite loaning four players, including Brazilian winger Michel Bastos, during the transfer window. —AP

LONDON: Chelsea’s English defender Ashley Cole (right) vies with Brentford’s Italian striker Marcello Trotta during the fourth round replay English FA Cup football match between Chelsea and Brentford at Stamford Bridge. — AFP

Man City meet Chelsea in mere sideshow LONDON: Two months ago few could have imagined a Premier League clash between Manchester City and Chelsea would have little bearing on the title race yet Sunday’s fixture is likely to be eclipsed by top against bottom battles. With 12 games left, champions City are 12 points adrift of leaders Manchester United, who visit bottom side Queens Park Rangers tomorrow (1500 GMT), while third-placed Chelsea are a further four points behind. With their title challenges all but over and Champions League spots looking likely, the focus has switched to respective managers Roberto Mancini and Rafael Benitez, who know that any defeat can harm their job prospects long-term.

Benitez is only in charge at Stamford Bridge until the end of the season but his hopes of a more permanent role seem doomed because of his unpopularity with the fans.

Meanwhile, media reports have speculated that Mancini could be axed in May. Chelsea skipper John Terry, desperate to get back in the first team for league matches after a spell on the bench following injury, believes the club have plenty to play for and not just in the FA Cup and Europa League.

“This season has been a little disappointing, we’ve let Man U get so many points ahead of us, but everyone is dropping points and we can still easily get second place,” he said. “If we can go on a run, with the two boys back from the African Nations (Victor Moses and John Obi Mikel), we have a real chance.” The Sun newspaper was forced to publish an apology on Wednesday over an incorrect story about a bust-up between Terry and Benitez but whether the former England captain starts at City on Sunday (1330) remains to be seen.

Leaders United in contrast look a picture of harmony having not been beaten since a dead rubber Champions’ League group game at home to CFR Cluj in early December.

That cannot be said for QPR, who sit seven points from the safety zone after a 4-1 thumping at Swansea City two weekends ago. Harry Redknapp’s side need to conjure a magical performance at home to United and hope Alex Ferguson’s men have begun to take their foot off the gas, with Wayne Rooney and Phil Jones doubtful with a sinus infection and ankle injury respectively. —Reuters

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013

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Lakers beat Celtics on emotional night PAGE 42