CR IP TI ON BS SU
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2013
Argentina rout Paraguay for WCup ticket
9 die as suicide bombers hit Egypt military
NO: 15926
150 FILS
15 40 PAGES
www.kuwaittimes.net
THULQADA 6, 1434 AH
20
Kuwait accused of ‘stealing’ Iraq’s oil
Shiite MPs want controversial Islamist preacher expelled
Max 43º Min 26º High Tide 03:07 & 16:59 Low Tide 10:27 & 22:23
By A Saleh
War-weary US marks Sept/11 NEW YORK: War-weary Americans yesterday marked the 12th anniversary of the September 11, 2001 attacks, as President Barack Obama-for now holding fire on Syria-said force alone cannot “build the world we seek.” In New York, Washington and a field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, relatives of the nearly 3,000 people killed in the plane attacks gathered for somber remembrance ceremonies. “Our hearts still ache for the futures snatched away, the lives that might have been,” Obama said at the Pentagon, where 184 died when a hijacked airliner struck the building. “They left this Earth. They slipped from our grasp.” US troops invaded Afghanistan shortly after the 9/11 attacks to oust the Taleban for giving refuge to Al-Qaeda, and Obama gave thanks to the American forces who served there-but noted the war was now coming to a close. He said the United States would remain vigilant in the face of future terror threats but said military might alone could not bring peace and security. “Let us have the wisdom to know that while force is at times necessary, force alone cannot build the world we seek,” he said.
On Tuesday, Obama delivered an address to the nation in which he explained why he was for now holding off on punitive military strikes against Syria over its alleged chemical weapons use. “I will not put American boots on the ground in Syria. I will not pursue an open-ended action like Iraq or Afghanistan,” the president pledged Tuesday. Polls show a majority of Americansweary of war after US interventions in Iraq and Afghanistan-oppose US action in Syria. Obama has asked for Congressional approval of his plan for limited strikes, but he has yet to garner the support needed on Capitol Hill. Votes have been put off as US Secretary of State John Kerry heads to Geneva for talks with his Russian counterpart about a Moscow-led plan to neutralize the chemical arsenal of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. In New York, 9/11-era mayor Rudolph Giuliani wiped away a tear at the Ground Zero event, which began with a moment of silence at 8:46 am, marking the time when the first plane smashed into the World Trade Center. Moments of silence Continued on Page 15
GHOUTA: This image provided by Shaam News Network shows the body of an infant victim of an attack on Ghouta, Syria. — AP (See Page 13)
MSAL approves 20 to 18 visa transfers KUWAIT: Minister of Social Affairs and Labor (MSAL) has approved a decision to allow domestic labor residency transfers for the private sector, said informed sources noting that the decision would be in effect for two
US forced to be world ‘police’ First Muslim Congressman expounds on Mideast By Shakir Reshamwala WASHINGTON: The United States is accused of being the policeman of the world, but since no other nation has the appetite or power to resolve global conflicts, Washington has to step up to the plate. Rep Keith Ellison, the first Muslim to be elected to Congress, said he fully backs President Barack Obama on whatever action is needed to punish the Syrian regime after it used chemical weapons against its own people. “It’s not a sure thing, but if we get this through Congress, it will be three days of Tomahawk strikes on certain arsenals and instruments that the regime used to deliver the gas. Not the chemical weapons itself, because it may create a plume,” revealed Ellison, adding that if Damascus cedes control of its chemical arms, a strike could be averted. “The world doesn’t need this (war). A negotiated settlement is superior to strikes,” he told Kuwait Times during a meeting with international journalists in his office on Capitol Hill. The Minnesota Congressman warned that the world - and the Arab League in particular - also have an obligation to act to stop the slaughter. “We are an economic power; we have a higher degree of responsibility; but it Continued on Page 15
WASHINGTON: Rep Keith Ellison is seen next to a copy of the Holy Quran in his office on Capitol Hill on Tuesday.
months. The transfer is only for domestic workers who have been working for the same sponsor or the next of kin for at least six months before the decision was issued. — Agencies
KUWAIT: A former Iraqi lawmaker has urged Kuwait to pay nearly $55 million to his country which he described as “dues” for allegedly extracting oil from oil fields in Al-Basra. “Kuwait have been taking oil for the past few years from the Sujail, Sefwan and Zubair fields and as such is required to pay $55 million to the Iraqi government”, said former MP and current judge Wa’el Abdullatif. Abdullatif added in statements carried by several Iraqi media outlets yesterday that an agreement between Kuwait and Iraq to regulate navigation at joint territorial waters “was enforced by a UN Security Council Resolution while being outside of its jurisdiction”. He further blamed the Iraqi government and MPs for ‘rushing’ the agreement “despite opinions of Iraqi port experts who confirmed that the Mubarak Port is illegal”. Kuwait is building a mega port called the ‘Mubarak Port’ at the eastern side of Boubyan Island, overlooking the Khor Abdullah strip of water that separates the island from mainland Iraq. The two countries reached an agreement last year to regulate navigation at the narrow strip of water after the port’s construction raised concerns that it might limit mobility at Iraqi territorial waters. “The agreement gives Kuwait the authority to control the Um Qasr navy base, the Um Qasr village, a border line that reaches over 50 kilometers in addition to three oil fields”, Abdullatif said. According to Abdullatif, the agreement was not supposed to be signed “because Khor Abdullah’s waters belong to Iraq and should not be shared with Kuwait”. He also denied statements in which some Iraqi politicians claimed that Iraqi ships had to raise Kuwait’s flag in order to be allowed into the waterway prior to the agreement. In another development, Kuwait lawmakers have urged the authorities to expel a controversial Continued on Page 15
Syrian Christians forced ‘to convert at gunpoint’ DAMASCUS: Jihadists who overran Syria’s ancient town of Maalula last week disparaged Christians as “Crusaders” and forced at least one person to convert to Islam at gunpoint, say residents who fled the town. Many of Maalula’s people left after a first rebel assault knocked out an army checkpoint at the entrance to the strategic town on September 4. Some went to a nearby village and others to Damascus, about 55 kilometers to the south. One of them, Marie, was still frightened as she spoke of that day. “They arrived in our town at dawn... and shouted ‘We are from the Al-Nusra Front and have come to make lives miserable for the Crusaders,” an Islamist term for Christians, Marie said in Damascus, where she and hundreds of others attended the burial Tuesday of three Christian pro-regime militiamen killed in the fighting. Maalula is one of the most renowned Christian towns in Syria, and many of its inhabitants speak Aramaic, the language of Jesus. Home to around 5,000 people, it is strategically important for rebels, who are trying to tighten their grip around the capital. It could also be used as a launching point for attacks on the highway between the capital and Homs, a key regime supply route.
The rebels have been in and out of the town since the first assault as they battle with government troops and militia. On Sunday, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights and residents said rebels, including jihadists linked to Al-Qaeda, had overrun Maalula. But on Tuesday night, the Free Syrian Army said rebels would withdraw to spare the town’s people and heritage, on the condition that the regime kept its forces out as well. However, they were still in the town yesterday, a Syrian security source said. “The army has not yet retaken Maalula. The battles are raging on, but (the army) is making progress,” the source said on condition of anonymity. Some rebel groups have accused the army of having deliberately pulled out of the town in the fighting, leaving it open to jihadist capture, as a propaganda ploy to gain sympathy for the Christians there. A nun from the Mar Takla Greek Orthodox convent in Maalula told AFP by telephone that “there were fierce battles (on Tuesday) but the town was not shelled. We and the orphans we take care of are doing well, but we lack fuel.” Recalling the events of last week, 62-year-old Continued on Page 15