12 Feb

CR IP TI ON BS SU

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2014

Sheraton Roundabout gets a new look

Entity needed for sharia supervision: Central Bank

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RABI ALTHANI 12, 1435 AH

Real cruise into Cup final

‘Lollipop’ child star Shirley Temple dies at 85

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Takaful firms struggle in overcrowded market Conventional insurance companies dominate conspiracy theories

Give me a break

By Badrya Darwish

badrya_d@kuwaittimes.net

P

arallel to the Hala February festivals and celebrations, TV channels do vox pops on the streets about people’s national origins, their feelings of the celebrations and their reasons to visit Kuwait. The TV stations go around asking people about their opinion of the celebrations. The funniest part was a TV segment that I watched this week. The broadcaster announced that in the downtown square, they were greeting tourists from Denmark who came to celebrate the Hala February holidays in Kuwait.

My expectation was to see a tall, blonde English-speaking girl with a German accent talking about her exotic visit to the hotspot Kuwait.

After all, she travelled halfway around the world for the occasion. Instead, in front of the camera I saw the 180 degree extreme - an Arab-looking and Arabic-speaking woman dressed in the traditional black abaya and black headscarf. She was speaking Arabic in a Kurdish or Iraqi accent. I couldn’t tell which one exactly.

Was that a Danish tourist? Was something wrong with my eyes? Or maybe the presenter made a mistake by not saying that the interviewee was Iraqi or Kurdish. The woman who might have married and moved to Denmark was interviewed as a Danish subject. This was the most hilarious thing I have seen from the Hala February coverage. Of course the lady came to visit relatives in Kuwait. What was the funniest part of the interview with the Danish guest was when she started throwing words in broken English while answering the questions in Arabic.

Since the visa issuing department was closed for the annual inventory, when it reopened, many visa requests had accumulated and thousands of people apply to bring friends and family into the country. The month of February also helps when many travel agencies manage to get visas and flights for those who book hotels through them.

Another nice ad I saw for Hala February was from a travel agent advertising visits to Kuwait.

The ad said that the accommodation was in a 4star hotel with somebody accompanying you during your shopping trips. The list of visits to places included Avenues mall, 360, Marina and Hawally malls. The last on the list was Mahameed Mall. I guess these are the places we have in Kuwait that are advertised as places of interest. In addition to the Danish guest!

Couldn’t the presenter find a real Western tourist to talk about Hala February? Did it have to be a Danish guest of Arab origin? There are many people from faraway destinations that come to visit. They could have been interviewed instead.

Give me a break!

103 dead in Algeria army plane crash ALGIERS: A military aircraft crashed in Algeria’s mountainous northeast yesterday, killing all 103 people on board, a security source said, in what would be its deadliest air disaster since independence five decades ago.

The C-130 Hercules aircraft, which was flying to the city of Constantine crashed “in poor weather conditions” in Oum El Bouaghi, some 380 km east of the capital, Algerian radio said. The plane was carrying 99 passengers - soldiers and their families - as well as four crew members, the source told AFP. “ There were no survivors,” the source added, although army spokesman Lahmadi Bouguern said he could not confirm that all on board had perished. The plane was travelling from the desert garrison town of Tamanrasset in the deep south, and crashed into Mount Djebel Fertas in the Oum El Bouaghi region, official media quoted Colonel Bouguern as saying. Preliminary Continued on Page 13

KUWAIT: Trees are reflected in the infinity pool of a hotel in Salmiya yesterday. — Photo by Joseph Shagra

Max 20º Min 04º High Tide 11:46 & 21:57 Low Tide 05:25 & 16:33

KUWAIT: Kuwait’s first Islamic insurer was born 14 years ago, but its takaful firms are still struggling in a crowded market that faces cut-throat competition. This has led to stagnant growth and persistent losses for takaful firms operating in Kuwait, one of the world’s richest countries on a per capita basis, raising doubts about the sector’s long-term viability. In a market with 32 insurers, takaful firms say they are at a disadvantage to their conventional peers which have operated for decades, allowing them to build solid customer bases and amass large financial surpluses.

While Islamic finance widens its global footprint, Kuwait’s takaful sector could shrink in the next five to seven years, said Abdulrazaq M Al-Wohaib, managing director and chief executive of T’azur Takaful Insurance Co. “We are moving opposite to the rest of the world this has reduced the profit margins of these companies.”

Gross takaful contributions in Kuwait grew an estimated 4.3 percent in 2012 after 4.5 percent in 2011, among the lowest growth rates for takaful anywhere in the world, a report by consultancy Ernst & Young estimated.

Kuwaiti takaful firms posted a combined KD 47.4 million ($167.7 million) in premiums in 2012, an 18.7 percent share of the total, Commerce Department data showed. This was spread across 11 locally incorporated takaful firms; many companies in the sector have failed to post consistent profits. Unlike conventional insurance, takaful is based on the concept of mutuality, where a takaful operator sets up a fund to oversee and manage pools of money contributed by policy holders.

Continued on Page 13

Oppn wades into Gulf pact row Activists criticize jailing of tweeter

By B Izzak KUWAIT: Controversy raged yesterday over the Gulf security pact with the government assuring MPs that national legislation supersedes the provisions of the pact as the opposition joined the fray in describing the pact as an attempt to curb freedoms. Minister of Oil and National Assembly Affairs Ali Al-Omair called on MPs to read the pact in an objective way, reiterating the government’s position that the agreement does not contradict Kuwaiti constitution and laws. The minister said in a statement that the government will never refer any-

thing that breaches the constitution to the Assembly, insisting that the pact does not violate Kuwaiti laws.

He said that the first article of the agreement clearly states that member states will not implement whatever contradicts their constitutions and national legislation, adding that the pact assures the sovereignty of all the Gulf states.

Kuwait has refused to be a member of the Gulf security pact until it was amended in 2012 to be in line with the Kuwaiti constitution. But a number of MPs raised objections to the new version of the pact on the grounds that it violates the Continued on Page 13

10% of drugs fake

By A Saleh KUWAIT: The director of drugs inspection department at the Health Ministry Dr Jaber Al-Khalidi said yesterday counterfeit drugs made up to 10 percent of the medicine in the local market. He said the department is keen on preventing these drugs from reaching consumers, adding that 420 discoveries of fake drugs were made in 2013, and

these ended up with the public prosecution. He said that most of the medicines confiscated are male sex-enhancing drugs and weight-reduction pills for women, adding that some of these diet tablets may lead to suicide attempts.

Khalidi said among the obstacles they face is a lack of response by some of the violators and that is why police are called in.

Continued on Page 13

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2014

LOCAL

Broadband networks create job opportunities, economic growth Home broadband penetration in Kuwait ‘low’

By Ben Garcia KUWAIT: The development of high speed Internet (broadband networks) is necessary in Kuwait and across the MENA (Middle East and North Africa) region to help solve unemployment, create economic growth and social inclusion among others. According to a World Bank report launched in Kuwait entitled ‘Broadband Networks in the Middel East and North Africa: Accelerating High Speed Internet Access’, while Internet access covers large segments of population in the Gulf region, MENA is far behind Europe and some emerging markets in Asia in terms of broadband networks.

Kuwait, for example, lags behind other countries in the GCC in terms of broadband penetration. Speaking with Kuwait Times, Carlo Rossotto, Lead IC T Policy Specialist and ECA/MENA Coordinator, said development of broadband networks can accelerate economic growth and create new job opportunities, especially for women and young people. “Home broadband penetration in Kuwait is significantly lower at 32 percent against 69.4 in the UAE, 69.4 percent in Qatar, 88.9 in Bahrain and 51.7 percent in Saudi Arabia. Even in mobile broadband

connection, Kuwait is slightly lower in the GCC mobile broadband penetration in Kuwait is at 67 percent against 74 percent in Bahrain and 69.2 percent in the UAE, although Saudi Arabia is a bit lower at 55.9 percent,” he said.

According to Rossotto, Gulf countries including Kuwait and the rest of the MENA region have the potential to be leaders in ultrafast broadband. Among World Bank recommendations is to increase competition, better regulatory frameworks, creation of open market policy, improvement in the use of existing fiber optics, electricity and transport utilities and strengthening PPP (Public Private Partnership).

“Here in Kuwait you introduced healthy competition in the mobile segment and it is producing a very good result. You have three operators here and they are all innovative and professionals. They are offering new services, and the market is open to competition. But there is a monopoly in the case of international gateways however - in this segment, you see higher prices.

The cost of international calls in Kuwait (compared to Germany or other European countries) is higher, so breaking this monopoly will help,” he added.

Rossotto said the World Bank report is impor-

tant because the Middle East and North African region has been experiencing many economic challenges related to lower growth and high unemployment, especially among women and young people. “In the North African region, the Internet is not affordable in a large part, especially in Morocco, Tunisia and Yemen - these are the countries where Internet subscription can cost a third of the income of low-income families. Affordability is the issue. The GCC is doing well, but it also important that countries in the region increase competition in the market,” he reiterated.

Rossotto noted as per extensive research, the impact of broadband in economic growth is huge. “For every ten percent increase in broadband penetration, the GDP grows by 1.4 percent It creates a platform where software companies can create new services and improve service delivery. It create jobs among graduates and among skilled workers. In 2020, jobs all over the world will be contracted and executed online, so clearly to have a very clear and extensive broadband platform will give opportunities to everyone. It allows employment of young people human resources that are technically and technologically savvy,” he added.

KUWAIT: The Ambassador of the Republic of Nicaragua Oscar Mazier visited Kuwait Times and discussed matters of mutual concern with Editor-in-Chief Abd Al-Rahman Al-Alyan. —Photo by Yasser Al-Zayyat

IT indispensable for relief aid operations KUWAIT: Information Technology (IT) can be very handy in speeding up communication at times of natural disasters or humanitarian crises, said Chairman of the Kuwait Red Crescent Society (KRCS) Barjas Humoud Al-Barjas at a meeting here yesterday.

IT enables relief aid responders to collate information quickly about a certain humanitarian situation and strategize how to handle it with speed and efficiency, said Al-Barjas in a speech opening the second annual meeting for IT leaders in the Arab World.

With that kind of IT information, dealing with either natural disasters or humanitarian crisis by relief aid organizations such as KRCS becomes a manageable task with rewarding results, he said.

He asserted that the relief aid organization he heads uses IT as a pivotal tool in its whisking off aid to disaster-stricken regions anywhere in the world and all that is being carried out by Kuwaiti nationals, a fact he relishes with pride.

Addressing the meeting yesterday also was Secretary General of the Arab RedCross-Red-Crescent Societies Abdullah AlHazaa who noted that the three-day meeting here would cover a gamut of related issues, all pouring into the notion that relief aid and humanitarian assistance worldwide could not do without enormous reliance on the convenience of IT. Attending this event for three days are relief aid representatives of 15 Arab and African countries in addition to those of regional and international organizations. —KUNA

Accuracy in drug cases investigations

By Hanan Al-Saadoun KUWAIT: Acting Director General of the Drugs Control General Department Brig Saleh Al-Enezi said efforts of the department’s men in 2013 resulted in handling 2,229 cases, and 2,944 suspects were arrested.

The quantity of drugs confiscated is 1,111 kg of hashish, 17 kg and 256 gm of heroin, 15 kg and 11 gm of marijuana in addition to 6 kg and 401 gm of ice, 4 kg and 481 gm of opium, 170 gm of cocaine and 559,919 narcotic tablets.

KUWAIT: A regional conference on women and judiciary was held yesterday under the patronage of the embassy of the Netherlands. The twoday forum opened yesterday at Costa Del Sol Hotel. —Photos by Fouad Al-Shaikh

Al-Mudej arrives in Dubai to attend ‘Govt Summit’ DUBAI: Deputy Prime Minister and Commerce and Industry Minister Dr Abdul-Muhsen AlMudej arrived here yesterday to attend the Government Summit 2014.

More than 60 international speakers at the summit will lead comprehensive and insightful sessions on ways to shape the future of government services that meet and exceed the expectations of citizens and promote their happiness. A total of 3,500 personalities from 60 countries are attending the summit which started yesterday and will end tomorrow.

The international speakers include high-level government officials and key decision-mak-

ers, who will lead an interactive discussion agenda to further enhance government services around the world.

The Summit, which is the largest of its kind in the world, reflects an up-to-date vision on the future of government services which leverages the power of advanced technology and smart services, in addition to strengthening closer collaboration between the public and private sectors to deliver excellence in government service delivery.

The summit will end its functions tomorrow by awarding a prize for the best government service via the mobile phone for the year 2014.

Kuwait qualified for the prize competition through its offer of an app that links the public with government ministries and agencies, by means of which the public can send complaints and follow them up to a satisfying resolution.

Only 42 apps were selected from Arab participants for the grand prize competition and among these only 3 reached the finals, among them the app from the Ministry of Commerce and Industry in Kuwait. An app from Oman enabling people to send donations to charities also qualified for the finals as did one from the Lebanese army. — KUNA

He said that 387 addiction complaints were received, and addicts were sent for treatment facing legal action.

Al-Enezi said the rise in the rate of cases and those arrested proves the accuracy of investigations and improvement of the work process, in addition to security men’s persistence.

He said that the role of awareness has had a big impact, and this is what the security information is doing through its contacts with the media in addition to seminars in schools as well as distribution of booklets and literature in various places.

GCC radio managers meeting kicks off KUWAIT: The 13th meeting of radio managers at the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries’ Joint Program Production Institution (GCCJPPI) will kick off here today where new media strategies are to be discussed.

This meeting will discuss a number of important issues, including the institution’s vision on the transforming strategy, the managers’ comments on it, in addition to discussing the meeting’s agenda and resolutions, the Executive Director of GCCJPPI Ali Al-Rayyes said.

The meeting sessions, headed by the Ministry of Information Assistant Undersecretary for Broadcasting Affairs Sheikh Fahad Mubarak Al-Abdullah AlAhmad Al-Sabah, will be opened with a speech delivered by the ministr y ’s Undersecretary Salah Al-Mubaraki, he added.

Al-Rayyes praised the role of the Minister of Information, Minister of State for Youth Affairs and the Chairman of the institution’s Board of Directors Sheikh Salman Sabah Al-Salem Al-Humoud AlSabah for the success of the TV managers’ 28th meeting, which was held Monday with the participation of Yemen as an official member for the first time.

During the meeting, T V managers stressed the importance of the role played

by the institution in the joint GCC media work, which produces distinctive educational programs, he said.

The meeting stressed the importance of technical and objective excellence according to the standards and specifications of the institution, as well as adding a GCC spirit to the productions and overcoming the obstacles that might affect the efficiency of the production. The meeting also discussed the significance of supporting the member states of the institution in all what they need of data to help facilitate the process of production, as well as to focus more on family programs in order to enrich the intellectual, linguistic and educational productions, in addition to diversifying the institution’s sources of income, Al-Rayyes added. The T V managers concluded Monday evening their meeting with a number of resolutions, which were preceded by congratulatory messages to the State of Kuwait on the national celebrations.

The managers wished the people of Kuwait further success and prosperity, expressing thanks to the Minister of Information, the Ministry’s Undersecretary, head of the meeting and the GCCJPPI’s Executive Director on their hospitality, their role in facilitating the tasks of the meeting and the continuous support for the institution. —KUNA

Gulf air traffic close to ‘choking point’

KUWAIT: Ardiya fire center carried out a mock evacuation at Aramex Company in industrial Ardiya yesterday. All employees were evacuated in record time. The drill was held after a fire in the warehouse. Two teams were formed — one for rescue and the other to fight the fire. Those trapped in the upper floors were evacuated by the hydrolic ladder. —By Hanan Al-Saadoun

DUBAI: The Gulf aviation market will soon reach choking point, preventing further growth, if authorities do not address regional air traffic control issues “very, very quickly”, the secretary-general of the Arab Air Carriers Organisation has warned. “[Air traffic management] needs to go beyond international boundaries to start looking at possibly establishing a joint air traffic management body to manage the issue of air space,” Abdul Wahab Teffaha told Arabian Business in an exclusive interview from Beirut, the headquarters of AACO, which represents 31 airlines in the region.

“The governments need to pay particular attention to air space management in the region and they have to do it collectively.

“They need to address that very, very quickly and treat it as a highest priority, [considering] the plans for expansion.”

Regional air traffic control has been a concern for years but authorities from different Gulf states have been unable to agree on how

to solve congestion issues as the industry expands at a rapid rate, particularly in the UAE, Qatar and soon Saudi Arabia.

The Middle East has recorded the highest passenger growth rates each quarter for some time, according to the International Air Transport Association. It was more than 12 percent during 2013.

A year ago, Dubai Civil Aviation Authority director general Mohammed Abdulla Ahli told Arabian Business the region “absolutely” needed to implement a Europe-style centralised air traffic control system to avoid constraining growth in the aviation sector.

Dubai Airports CEO Paul Griffiths also has implored civil aviation authorities to urgently address the issue.

Meanwhile, Emirates Group president Gary Chapman said during the Arabian Hotels Investment Conference in May that “archaic” air traffic rules caused airlines to waste up to 10 percent of fuel on each flight.

—Arabian Business

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2014

LOCAL

Amnesty for illegal expats before July?

Number reaches over 120,000

KUWAIT: An Asian woman was burned beyond recognition in her Farwaniya flat yesterday afternoon. The coroner recovered the body. Investigations are underway.

Forklift operator killed in accident

By Hanan Al-Saadoun KUWAIT: A forklift operator was killed instantly in Amghara scrap yard when the vehicle fell over him due to a heavy load.

The body was recovered by the coroner.

• An Indian man was rushed to Amiri hospital and admitted to the ICU after being found in the diwaniya of a wellknown businessman. The businessman told police that the Asian was bound and gagged.

• A young man told Sulaibiya police that an SUV hit his car from behind and

escaped. Detectives chased the vehicle and found two ex-convicts in it. They were sent to concerned authorities.

• An Egyptian who works in a mobile phone shop in Riqee told police that two men who claimed to be detectives told him that he sold forged phone lines, then placed him in a car before looting the store.

• A Syrian who came to Kuwait to visit his father was arrested while under the influence of drugs after he beat up his father. When his room was searched, meth was found.

KUWAIT: Kuwait is likely to grant amnesty to illegal expatriates sometime before July, according to a report published yesterday quoting a Ministry of Interior insider. The amnesty allows people in violation of residency regulations to leave the country without paying fines or risk being blacklisted. A decision on this is expected anytime before the end of the first half of 2014, and was mulled in light of reports that indicate that the number of illegals has reached over 120,000, according to the source who spoke to Al-Anbaa daily on the condition of anonymity.

Illegal residents are those with expired visas, facing criminal court cases or fugitives as well as those currently detained or reported absconding. Around 42,000 expatriates living illegally in Kuwait benefited from a four-month amnesty period which ended on June 30, 2011, according to the Interior Ministry. Crackdowns on illegal residents, which started in April last year and resulted in thousands of expatriates being arrested and deported, will continue before and during the expected amnesty period, the source said.

No specific details were given on the duration of the amnesty period or when it might begin. Similar news surfaced in the local press last month suggesting that an amnesty was expected ‘in early 2014’. Al-Anbaa also reported

yesterday that Maj Gen Sheikh Faisal Al-Nawaf Al-Sabah, the Assistant Undersecretary for Citizenship and Passports Affairs, has given approval for a group of expatriates to transfer their visas which expired due to problems the workers have with their employers.

Visa transfer The senior official had recently started welcoming expatriates who have complaints against their employers in order to discuss ways to resolve their issues. In the meantime, the security source revealed that Sheikh Faisal plans to give orders to allow residents to transfer their visas if verification confirms that obstacles prevented their visa renewal, under the condition that the worker pays the fines starting from the visa’s expiry date, up to a maximum of KD 600.

Many of those living illegally in Kuwait are victims of scams or cases known locally as ‘visa trafficking’, which is a form of human trafficking in which workers are brought in by work permits issued illegally through loopholes in the foreign labor recruitment system.

Victims of visa traffickers are mostly low-wage workers who come from Southeast Asia, North Africa and other countries seeking work in the oil-rich Gulf region. Once they reach Kuwait, a worker is left with no job and becomes prone to hard labor, mistreatment

and extortion by paying large amounts of money to renew their expired visas.

Legal action Earlier this week, a local daily reported that Minister of Social Affairs and Labor Hind AlSubaih gave orders to pursue legal action against 43 companies on trafficking charges, and put 2,000 others under examination on similar accusations. The sponsorship or ‘kafala’ system handles the affairs of Kuwait’s population of 2.7 million expatriates who make up 68 percent of the country’s 3.9 million population.

But the system has been the cause of criticism against Kuwait, both from inside and outside, as it is blamed for violations practiced against low-skilled labor forces.

Furthermore, the system lacks regulations to organize the affairs of more than 800,000 domestic workers in the state. The Public Labor Authority, which the parliament had passed a bill to establish last year, is touted as Kuwait’s alternative to the flawed recruitment system.

Once set up, the authority will exclusively handle the affairs of expatriate labor forces including hiring in local companies based on employers’ requirements. Despite pressure to launch the authority as soon as possible, there is currently no set date for when it will officially start functioning.

Kuwait Airways-Airbus deal back to square one?

KUWAIT: Negotiations between Kuwait Airways and Airbus could go back to square one, and a preliminary agreement reached in December to buy 25 new aircraft and lease 12 others faces the risk of falling apart. The two sides met Monday in Kuwait in a last-ditch bid to meet a midnight deadline that Airbus requested to sign the estimated $4 billion deal, but no official decision was made.

Has the deal been broken off? An Airbus official quoted by Al-Qabas daily yesterday said that a decision in this regard is subject to the results of Monday ’s negotiations. Meanwhile, sources quoted in the same report suggested that Airbus was likely to withdraw its offer from the table “as negotiations are reaching a dead end”. The main point of discussion pertains with insurance that Airbus requests for the leased planes. The KAC cannot make any promises unless it receives approval from the government. According to an Al-Watan report yesterday, CEO Rasha Al-Roumi was waiting during the meeting for a response from Minister of Commerce Anas Al-Saleh to an official letter in which the KAC board requested approval for the $15 million insurance commitment for the lease of each of the 12 aircraft for 8 years. It is unknown whether a response was sent before Monday night’s meeting ended, however.

Right of leaser The insurance amount is divided into an average of $350,000 a month per plane, which is equivalent to the rent amount. This refutes allegations that the insurance clause was placed under suspicious circumstances, according to sources quoted in the report. “Unlike purchase deals, insurance is a requirement for all rent contracts around the world as a right of the leaser,” said the sources who preferred to keep their identities anonymous.

The Kuwait Investment Authority, which holds the government’s stake in the KAC, plans to open an investigation in allegations over the deal in the press and by some lawmakers. The process is expected to take some time - especially with reports that the KIA might conduct ‘slight changes’ in the KAC board if mismanagement was found - and there is no guarantees that Airbus would be willing to be more patient.

“With four offers it received, including one from Qatar Airways to rent 7 of the A320 aircrafts included in its offer, Airbus has already made it clear to KAC that they will look into other opportunities should negotiations between both parties reach a dead end,” said the sources who spoke to Al-Qabas on the condition of anonymity.

KUWAIT: The Cultural Consulate of the Iranian Embassy in Kuwait, held a seminar titled “Iran in its 35th anniversary, the culture of brotherhood, moderation and peaceful co-living”. Diplomats and dignitaries attended the event. — Photos by Fouad Al-Shaikh

New look for Sheraton Roundabout KUWAIT: The Jahra Gate site, otherwise known as the ‘Sheraton Roundabout’, was given a new look after renovation and improvement works have concluded. The works included creating pathways as well as plantation of palm trees, flowers and

other plants. The Sheraton or ‘Jahra’ roundabout is considered a main gate to Kuwait Cit y for people coming from different directions. The site is located at the beginning of several roads that are under renovation as par t of mega developmental

projects.

The Jahra Gate is one of five gates of Kuwait’s Third Wall, which Kuwaitis built in 1920. The wall was demolished in 1957 to make room for Kuwait City expansion and development projects.

Stage set for Janadriyah Festival RIYADH: Under the auspices of Saudi King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz, the 29th National Festival for Heritage and Culture (Al-Janadriyah) will kick off today with the participation of a number of countries including Kuwait.

The festival, organized by the National Guard, includes races and local music performances. It is expected to draw over one million visitors.

The event features both the heritage and modernity of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) will be the guest of honor of the festival.

The opening ceremony will include camel racing, which is one of the most prominent sport competitions at the festival, in addition to National Guard horse racing.

The evening ceremony will include speeches, an operetta, the dancing of the Ardha (folk dance), as well as the honoring of two Saudi cultural personalities Saad bin Abdulrahman AlBawardi and Abdullah bin Ahmad Shabat.

The annual festival will also include cultural activities such as seminars, lectures and discussions on Islamic political movements and women’s issues, popular market, folk dancing, theatrical activities and poetry.

The colorful festival aims at showcasing the religious and social values of Islam in order to instill and emerge the customs and traditions with the modern achievements, in addition to preserving the literary, aesthetic and folk creativity. — KUNA

KUWAIT: Social Affairs and Labor Minister Hind Al-Subaih highlighted the importance of contact and coordination between UN agencies operating in Kuwait and social affairs and planning ministries. Al-Subaih spoke during a meeting that was held at the “UN Home” between leaders of Social Affairs Ministry and representatives of all UN agencies and offices operating in Kuwait.

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2014

LOCAL kuwait digest

Letter to Badriya

Unemployment, recruitment

Thoughtprovoking Al-Anbaa

By Abdullatif Al-Duaij

T

he health ministry’s undersecretary announced recently that his ministry needs to hire 6,350 nurses to cover shortage in its nursing staff. If I read the same news a million times, I still would not believe it. Even if, hypothetically speaking, I end up believing it, I would believe in that case that there has to be some sort of a typing mistake, or that the editor misinterpreted the undersecretary’s statements.

Yet again, I don’t think there is a reason for me to be surprised or skeptical because this is Kuwait. And in Kuwait, everything happens, except for what needs to happen of course.

Every error, everything abnormal and all that is unbelievable is possible in Kuwait. Therefore, the undersecretary’s claim that Kuwait is in need for more than six thousand nurses is 100 percent true.

Kuwait, which has thousands of unemployed nationals who receive money that the government graciously pays as an allowance, in addition to thousands of underemployed nationals whom the government pays without working, is looking to import over 6,000 workers to fill a shortage announced only in the Ministry of Health.

Despite all this, there are stupid, stubborn and annoying voices that continue to claim that governmental mismanagement is to blame for all of the country’s problems. The not-so-smart and hardheaded way of opposition is the best thing Kuwaitis can do. Anything other than that is ‘too difficult’ or simply is not fitting with the dignity of Kuwaitis. That is why we plan to import nearly 6,500 workers to fill the health ministry’s shortage of staff.

The problem is not in the people, nor are they unable to work. It is clear that the government is the problem, when it pays millions of dinars as unemployment allowances while at the same time announces their need for foreign workers.

Why not save money paid for unemployment allowances and salaries of underemployed citizens, and instead increase salaries of technical jobs in order to make them attractive for job seekers? This way, people can find a profession that meets their financial demands and requirements of decent living, effectively making them not required to seek ‘gifts’ from the state.

But it seems that the government here has many flaws that it tries hard to cover. What better way to cover up for the government’s failure than by ‘buying’ the contentment of supporters of rentier spending? — Al-Qabas

Madam, I always look for your column on the front page of Kuwait Times since they are highly thought-provoking. The article “Call it a Fair Deal” was quite a serious issue that any government must look into. You have given a colourful image to it in such a way that doesn’t hurt anybody, and at the same time is an eyeopener to the concerned authorities channeling funds to support the needs of the people rather than the greed of tradesmen. Well done Madam! God bless you!

John Joseph

In my view

In my view

Israel cashing in on ‘anti-Semitism’

Road to Arab civil state

By Ziad Asali

A

fter decades of sustained oppression, Arab popular and political culture suddenly tried to assert its full mental and emotional capacities during the recent uprisings that led to the collapse of several tyrannical regimes in the region. The shift being so abrupt, it’s not terribly surprising that the results of those uprisings were somewhat disappointing and that the so-called Arab Spring degenerated into conflicts that are taking the lives of tens and hundreds of thousands of people as they grind on in Syria, Yemen, Libya and even Egypt. The spillover from these conflicts has also added fuel to the smoldering fires in Iraq and Lebanon.

Syria is almost starting to look like Afghanistan with the menagerie of strange bedfellows engaged in merciless mayhem, mainly conducted by the Bashar Al-Assad regime, the Al-Qaeda-inspired Islamic State of Iraq and Syria group, and hundreds of Hezbollah militants. American National Intelligence Director James Clapper recently reported that Syria has turned into a safe haven for extremists. It is estimated that about 26,000 such extremists are in Syria, where terrorists groups such as the Al-Nusra Front may be preparing, or at least planning, to attack the West. Meanwhile, all of these groups sink their fangs in the flesh of Arabs without distinguishing between civilians and combatants, all under the cover of religious edicts that are pushing the region into the inferno of sectarian conflict.

But the darkness of this reality, which is stained with blood and distorted by destruction, should not prevent us from recognizing the other, more encouraging, emerging currents. A new dynamic is developing in the whole region aiming at diagnosing the problems and searching for the new systems, ideas and values that can help build a better future for Arab world. Some manifestations of this process include several new constitutions, transforming media coverage, and new, decentralized communications and social forums, including online media. One of the more obvious manifestations of this process is the approval of a new constitution for Tunisia, followed by the formation a new consensus-based Tunisian government. This was accomplished politically, and primarily without violence. Tunisia, which fanned the winds of change for the rest of the “Arab Spring” countries, has just initiated the next phase of the transitional period that began in the Arab political worldview three years ago. Much of the transition was initially primitive and corrupt. But the Tunisian update includes both a new, agreed-upon constitution and the peaceable transfer of power between parties and individuals. Moreover, according to Article 2 of the new constitution, “Tunisia is a civil state that is based on citizenship, the will of the people, and the supremacy of law.”

Within this popular and factious movement - a virtual cacophony of public demands - another, very different, trend almost managed to take over the wave of change and impose itself on the future by claiming that what was taking place was not an “Arab Spring”, but actually an “Islamic Awakening”. Perhaps some people decided to test these assertions and experiment by giving political Islamists a chance to govern. This is exactly what happened in the Arab world’s most important country, Egypt.

Backlash However, these Islamist parties soon prompted the public to angrily reject them when they failed to meet the requirements of basic governance and the other fundamental expectations. This backlash led to the flourishing of Arab sentiments in favor of modernity, secularism, democracy and pluralism. In the Libyan parliamentary election, party balloting non-Islamists trounced the Islamist parties. Yemen is also moving in this direction, and Egypt, by far the most important and influential Arab country, rose up in one voice to reject the growing despotism of systematic religious extremism. In Syria, too, there is a second uprising by rebel groups, not only against the dictatorship but also against terrorist organizations. Yet this dynamic is still very fragile and the risk of backsliding remains all too real.

This tumultuous period of transformation and change presents a historic opportunity for the Arab peoples, and their elites, to regain self-confidence and once again believe they have the ability to overcome their challenges and the power to determine their own futures.

Explaining away uncomfortable realities by citing oftrepeated theories about “Zionist and international conspiracies” or “hidden hands” should not be allowed to seduce Arabs into any kind of withdrawal from the reality or the broader world around them.

Such conspiracy theories are repeated with abandon.

They rob the Arab people of their ability to assert their rights and responsibilities as citizens, and to take the initiative proactively to determine their own futures for themselves. It is high time that Arab societies face up to their internal problems and external challenges, rather than blaming others. They should develop new social compacts and legal and political processes that will allow them to unite and shape their own futures, rather than passively waiting for events to unfold, and all the while learning from the experiences of other regions and countries.

There is a historic opportunity for a new, galvanized Arab intellectual life to inform and participate in empowering a new consciousness that embraces the inescapable reality of global competition and the urgent need for Arabs to raise the levels of efficiency and professionalism in their societies. Let’s begin by correctly identifying what’s going on: these are civic transformations that must be the basis for the creation of fully formed, well functioning modern societies that are united within themselves and competitive globally. But for this to happen, intellectual, social, cultural and political discourse in the entire spectrum of the Arab world must begin to find ways of promoting pluralism, tolerance, freedom, accountability, rule of law and real equality for minorities and women.

This will not be easy. A recent UNESCO report that confirms that half the children in Arab states lack the fundamentals of a basic education demonstrates that all too clearly. The future of the Arab world relies on developing the necessary mechanisms for social and economic development and real international competitiveness.

These challenges are gigantic, but the crucial thing is to begin moving in the right direction. Once the process is underway, it is the responsibility of like-minded people to work together and develop the necessary compromises and consensus views that can begin to coalesce on the ground and online to develop a better and safer future for the region. The path will be long and difficult, but it is unavoidable and failure cannot be an option.

By Hassan Barari

O

n the whole, Israelis have a problem of making a distinction between anti-Semitic observations that some made and the right to be critical of Israeli policies. Many in Israel tend to label any non-Israeli who blames Israel for the collapse of the peace process as anti-Semitic.

The irony is that Israelis themselves can criticize the government and can voice ideas that are in contradiction with the tenets of Zionism. But if a European, for instance, criticizes Israel’s policy toward the Palestinians, he or she is at the risk of being labeled as an anti-Semite.

Over the past two decades of peace making, successive Israeli governments adopted policies that have only undermined the prospects of peace. Indeed, Netanyahu’s first government of 1996 came to undo the Oslo agreement. He did everything within his capacity to make peace an illusion. Therefore, criticizing these policies should not be conflated with anti-Semitism.

Against this backdrop, one should examine the American remarks about their closest ally.

Needless to say, the United States has propped up Israel for decades. Were it not for America’s full support for Israel, the latter would have faced a hard time surviving in this region. Washington has not been effective in convincing Israel to offer the necessary concessions to make peace with the Palestinians. Some of Israeli decision-making circles feel that Israel can still stay secured without having to concede to the Palestinians. In other words, they feel that they can have their cake and eat it too.

The US Secretary of State John Kerry has warned Israel of the consequences of the failure of the peace process. Implicit in his observation is that Israel may face economic boycott. “The risks are very high for Israel...People are talking about boycott. That will intensify in the case of failure,” said Kerry. Interestingly, Kerry’s comment provoked the Israelis thus triggering an angry backlash. For instance, Naftali Bennett, the Israeli Minister of Industry, said: “We expect of our friends in the world to stand by our side against the attempts to impose an anti-Semitic boycott on Israel, and not to be their mouthpiece.”

Framework Agreement To be sure, Kerry’s efforts to bring about peace between Israel and the Palestinians are not welcomed by the Israeli side. Netanyahu made it perfectly clear that no one can impose a solution on his country. He even stipulated that any proposal must include the recognition of Israel as a Jewish state, a stipulation that Kerry took into consideration. The American side leaked the contours of the “framework” agreement that Kerry is working on. All in all, the proposed agreement is closer to the Israeli government’s stand.

Nonetheless, Israelis are intolerant with Kerry, warning that Israel may be held responsible for a possible failure of the peace process. Obviously, John Kerry did not advocate a boycott against Israel. He just warned it that the failure of peace talks will not be without a price. Moreover, some Israeli leftists have been on record warning that the failure to reach a final settlement with the Palestinians would lead to Israel’s isolation. Just several months ago, six Israeli former security top officials took part in a documentar y “Gate Keepers” in which they harshly criticized Israeli politicians for wasting the opportunity of solving the conflict with the Palestinians based on twostate solution.

It is not as if accusing others of being antiSemitic is a rare habit. In fact, even politicians of the mainstream have made this accusation before. Netanyahu, for instance, used to remind Europeans of the history of anti-Semitism in Europe. Israelis understand that this label serve a purpose of discouraging others from criticizing Israeli policies. It is worth noting the many Israelis see the world as anti-Semitic. But, labeling John Kerry as an anti-Semite - when he took all Israel’s concerns into his account - is a statement about the difficulty of making peace with this kind of leaders. Perhaps, Kerry is using the possible boycott to put pressure on the Israeli side to accept his proposal. But it does not seem that this is working either. It goes without saying that Kerry has been ineffective in his efforts. He seeks to define a legacy in this part of the world without really creating the right conditions.

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2014

LOCAL

The students pose at Kuwait Energy headquarters.

The Iraqi ambassador seen with the students.

Kuwait Energy receives Iraqi university students KUWAIT: Kuwait Energy received seven petroleum engineering students from the University of Technology, who were invited to take part in a two-week training program

on excavation and development of oil fields management.

The team arrived on an invitation sent by Kuwait Energy CEO Sara Akbar, to the university that is headquartered in

TEC sponsors Sand Village KUWAIT: The Touristic Enterprises Company took the decision to sponsor the Sand Village project as part of its dedication to support distinguished activities that add to efforts of boosting internal tourism in Kuwait. This was stated by Huda Saleh, public relations and marketing manager at the TEC, in a statement yesterday.

The Sand Village is built in West Mishref near the Kuwait International Fairground, as part of the Proud 2 Be Kuwaiti exhibition. 73 sculptors from 20 different country used 35,000 tons of clay to build sculptures that reflect the ‘One Thousand and One Nights’ theme. With an area of 30,000 square meters, the village is considered the largest sand village in the world.

The Sand Village was opened on Feb 3, 2014 and continues to welcome visitors everyday through April 30, 2014.

said in a statement yesterday.

The Iraqi Ambassador Mohammad Bahrulolum also invited the visiting delegations to his residence.

Kuwait ready to assist US in fighting terrorism Cooperation, training discussed

Huda Saleh

Minister meets envoys KUWAIT: Minister of Information and Minister of State for Youth Affairs Sheikh Salman Sabah Al-Humoud Al-Sabah met here yesterday several ambassadors to Kuwait on bilateral relations and the latest regional and international developments.

The minister separately met the ambassa-

Baghdad. The program comes as part of the company’s efforts to achieve its social goals in countries of its operations which include Kuwait, Iraq, Egypt and Yemen, Akbar

dors of Tajikistan, Sudan, Tunisia, Palestine, Cuba and Britain discussed several issues bearing on media, youth and culture.

He then met Chairman of the Central Agency for Illegal Residents Saleh Al-Fadhalah on cooperation between the Ministry of Information and the agency. — KUNA

KUWAIT: Kuwait has expressed its readiness to cooperate with the US Justice Department in the fight against terrorism and money laundering, a local daily has said.

Zaki Al-Sulaimi, the social Affairs and labour ministry assistant undersecretary for legal affairs, said that terrorism and money laundering were global phenomena and that all countries, including Kuwait, were suffering from them.

The official added that Kuwait had taken serious measures to fight the phenomenon, saying that it had toughened criteria and standards for raising funds and imposed a serious monitoring of activities conducted by charitable organisations, Al-Jareeda newspaper reported yesterday.

However, the official said at a meeting with Michel Johnson, an adviser from the US Justice Department that Kuwait could benefit from experiences offered by other countries.

The report said that the US adviser urged

Kuwait to increase its monitoring on the licensed charitable organisations “with a religious character” to ensure the donations and raised funds are not exploited in other purposes or spent on illegal activities.

The US is ready to assist Kuwait with great possibilities and opportunities to help the country fight money laundering and terrorism, Johnson reportedly added. Dedicated workshops to train Kuwaiti customs officers could be arranged to ensure they know how to detect and handle cases, he said.

The Kuwaiti official reportedly welcomed the proposal, but said that he was looking forward to receiving more details to present them to the technical panel in charge of fighting raising funds before they can be submitted to the minister.

Effective partnerships Meanwhile, International Islamic Charitable Organization (IICO) signed a Memorandum of

Understanding with United Nations Human Settlements Programme, UN-HABITAT to provide shelter for displaced Syrians.

IICO chairman and UN Secretary-General’s Envoy for Humanitarian Affairs, Dr Abdullah Al-Maatouq said in a statement that the IICO seeks to establish effective partnerships with regional and international organizations including United Nations organizations to execute its humanitarian projects.

The MoU was signed by Dr Al-Maatouq and Deputy Executive Director of the UN-HABITAT Dr Aisha Kassera with the presence of IICO Director General Dr Othman Al-Hajji.

The memorandum stipulates for the cooperation between the UN-HABITAT and IICO build shelters to displaced Syrians and to provide them with drinking water and sanitation needs.

It also stipulates for offering help to housing sector in countries hosting Syrian refugees such as Lebanon, Jordan and Iraq.

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2014

LOCAL

Anti-corruption meeting in Kuwait RIYADH: A GCC meeting of heads of departments in charge of fighting corruption in GCC states, to be held here next Sunday, seeks to address, among other things, the feasibility

of having a GCC agreement signed on fighting corruption regionally, said a statement issued by the GCC Secretariat yesterday. The meeting also intends to have the GCC states join

the UN Convention Against Corruption, as the EU has done, as well as join the International Anti-Corruption Academy (IACA) which is an international organization based in Austria.

IACA aims to substantially contribute to the global fight against corruption by addressing shortcomings in knowledge and practice in the field. Its principal mission is to deliver anticorruption education and training for professionals and practitioners from all sectors of society. IACA has a constituency of

58 UN Member States and three international organizations.

The Sunday meeting in Kuwait moreover is due to discuss the possibility of establishing a permanent apparatus to handle communication among the GCC anti-corruption departments by coordinating their efforts in dealing with anti-corruption issues.

Attending the meeting will be the GCC Secretary General Dr. Abdullatif Al-Zayani. — KUNA

10 kg of gold stolen from jewelry shop Fake policeman in custody KUWAIT: Investigations are ongoing to identify and arrest suspects who stole KD 55,000 worth of gold from a jewelry shop they cut open using an oxygen-fueled cutting tool. Police arrived at the scene located in Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh in response to an emergency call on Monday. Workers discovered the theft Monday morning and informed their boss who called police. Preliminary investigations indicate that the thieves used a machine to cut the store’s door as well as the door of the safe, then stole 10 kg of gold from inside and escaped.

Criminal investigators were called to examine the scene.

Fake policeman A man was arrested in Al-Rai where he set up a checkpoint at a street near a mall while dressed in police uniform before his true identity was discovered. Mall security had called police after growing suspicious of the site of a checkpoint organized by one man who was unusually dressed in summer police uniform. Police arrived at the scene and questioned the man who identified himself as a police officer. But when an identity check exposed his lie, the man attempted to escape before police caught him and escorted him to the Andalus police station. Investigations revealed that the man is a Syrian national in his early twenties, and does not have a criminal record. He said during questioning that he impersonated the identity of a policeman to convince his girlfriend that he was a Kuwaiti man employed at the Interior Ministry. The suspect was referred to the proper authorities for further action.

Hot pursuit A police officer was arrested with possession of drugs after a hot pursuit which extended for nearly 12km. Patrol officers had went in pursuit of the suspect when he ignored orders to pull over in Salmiya and drove away. Around 12 km of distance later, the man was forced to stop at a road block and arrested after he was found to be intoxicated and after police found drugs in his car. An identity check revealed that the man is employed at the Interior Ministry’s Police Rescue Department. He was taken to the Drug Control General Department for further action.

Fatal crash A man died and another was injured in a two-car collision reported recently at the Gulf Road. The 57-year-old Egyptian national was pronounced dead on the scene by paramedics who arrived shortly after an emergency call was made. The other driver, a Kuwaiti man, was taken to the hospital while criminal investigators transferred the dead man’s body to the forensic department after examining the scene. An investigation was opened.

Smuggling case A man missed his flight after he was escorted by police out of the Kuwait International Airport for questioning over M16 rifle magazines found in his suitcase. After the baggage screening revealed the five empty magazines, the US national was taken by police to the Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh police station for investigations on smuggling charges. A case was filed.

Kuwaiti novelist met with open arms in Ramallah RAMALLAH: “I came here with a sad heart for this land’s plight but found the people were resisting with all their might and daring adversity with their smiles,” said Kuwaiti writer and novelist Saud Al-Sanousi who was welcomed here with open arms, visiting as part of the “In the Grand Presence of Darwish” project.

Al-Sanousi said he was exceedingly warmed by the hospitality, and particularly felt the warmth of those who were born in Kuwait who sometimes recited the Kuwaiti national anthem and knew Kuwaiti patriotic songs by heart, “and when someone took me in the arms, I sensed it was Kuwait, my homeland, they were taking close to their hearts.”

The author meanwhile lamented what he termed as “a cultural rift” between the two people. “Our role as young writers is to carry the voice of youth between our two nations, and I am pleased to do so as I visit.”

Al-Sanousi had met his fans on Monday in a seminar organized part of the Darwish program. “The Darwish name filled me with awe”, and “being close to the resting place of famous late Mahmoud Darwish is a joy and something I wish I would experience again in the future.”

Bamboo Stalk The novelist, winner of the 2013 Arab Booker Prize for his novel “Bamboo Stalk”, revealed that he was hesitant and felt some trepidation at accepting the invitation of Darwish Museum for many reasons, including issues of normalization and some political concerns. “I consulted many, and particularly those who had visited Palestine recently.”

Having clearly overcome his doubts, Al-Sanousi said “I am here now, visiting as brother visits kinsmen, and it is a golden opportunity for me to be here after many years of estrangement.”

Echoing the sentiment of a unique and special relationship between the Kuwaitis and the Palestinians, poet Ehab Bsiso who managed the seminar on Monday noted that Al-Sanousi’s visit has great and many implications, on humanitarian as well as cultural level, and bolsters the presence of Kuwait in Palestine as well as that of Palestine in Kuwait.

“This visit comes to help bridge the cultural gap between Palestine on the one hand and the Arab World on the other. It also stresses the depth and unique nature of the relationship of the Kuwaiti and Palestinian people.”—KUNA

GCC signs with power consultancy ABU DHABI: The Gulf Cooperation Council Interconnection Authority yesterday signed an agreement with CESI Middle East (CESI), a key market player in technical consulting and engineering.

Virtue of this agreement, CESI would be providing specialized professional services that will support the GCCIA in reaching its operations and planning goals, as well as its ambitions in power market integration and grid optimization. Through this three-year agreement, CESI will provide the GCCIA with specialized services in the areas of system operations and planning studies, in addition to pre-feasibility and feasibility studies for the development of an international transmission and interconnection network in the Gulf region.

During the construction phase, CESI may expand services to include design and technical specification review, surveys, inspections, and training; all related to the sustainability and viability of complex energy infrastructure vital to electricity transmission in the Gulf region.

Managing Director at CESI Middle East Dr Floris Schulze said, “This important agreement is a testament yet again to CESI’s great ability to provide its international clients with technical services and solutions which address future energy challenges. The increasing energy demand in the region calls for the identification and design of optimized infrastructure for electricity transmission and trade between GCC member countries. “On a mid-term basis, we forecast a substantial increase in generation from renewables, the deployment of smart grids and smart meters, as well as from nuclear power plants.—KUNA

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2014

In U-turn, US ambassador to meet India’s Modi Page 11

Aid mission in Syria’s Homs extended as talks falter Page 8

TEHRAN: Iranian demonstrators hold posters depicting Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei (R) and Iran’s founder of Islamic Republic, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini during a rally in Tehran’s Azadi Square (Freedom Square) to mark the 35th anniversary of the Islamic revolution yesterday. The 35th anniversary of the revolution that ousted the US-backed shah, comes as Tehran rides the wave of a landmark nuclear deal with major powers.— AFP

Iran marks 35 years of Islamic revolution TEHRAN: Hundreds of thousands of Iranians took to the streets yesterday to mark the 35th anniversary of the Islamic revolution, buoyed by progress in nuclear talks with world powers and a modest easing of sanctions.

In Tehran, huge crowds thronged central Azadi square ahead of a speech by President Hassan Rouhani, the relative moderate who has reached out to the West since taking office in August. Many of them railed against the United States, still regarded by the Iranians as the “Great Satan”.

“We don’t trust America. All they want is to plunder our wealth”, a 20-year-old Bassij (Islamic militia) member told AFP. “We are fine with enduring the hardships (of international sanctions) because it will lead to the preserva-

tion of our rights,” he added as he joined the Tehran crowds.

The 35th anniversary of the revolution that ousted the US-backed shah-and set in motion Iran’s international isolation-comes as Tehran rides the wave of a landmark nuclear deal with major powers.

Under the November accord, Tehran agreed to curb parts of its atomic drive for six months in exchange for marginal relief from international sanctions. Iran and the P5+1 group of world powers are due to resume nuclear talks next week in Vienna on a comprehensive agreement to allay international concerns Iran is seeking nuclear weapons capability.

In parallel, Iran also made progress over the

Militants kill 16 Iraqi soldiers BAGHDAD: Militants in pick-up trucks ambushed Iraqi army outposts protecting a major oil export pipeline in the north of the country overnight, killing at least 16 soldiers by shooting them and slitting their throats, security and medical sources said. No group claimed responsibility for the attack, but Sunni Islamist and other insurgents have been regaining momentum in a campaign to destabilise Iraq’s Shi’ite-led government.

The attack took place near the Ain al-Jahash area, 30 km (20 miles) south of the city of Mosul in Nineveh province, through which a long section of pipeline stretches from Iraq’s Kirkuk oilfield to neighbouring Turkey.

“Dozens of gunmen in pick-up trucks launched orchestrated attacks against army commando soldiers protecting an oil pipeline,” said a security source, adding that an army humvee vehicle had gone missing during the attack. “The soldiers were taken by surprise and this is why we have such a high death toll.”

The OPEC member’s ambitious plans to ramp up its oil output have been held back by poor maintenance, technical problems and now deteriorating security. More than 1,000 people were killed in attacks across the country in January alone, building on a trend of intensifying violence that made last year the bloodiest since 2008, when sectarian warfare began to abate from its height.

“We have received 16 bodies of soldiers bearing bulletswounds and with slit throats,” said a doctor in Mosul hospital on condition of anonymity as he was not authorized to speak to media.

‘Insulting caricature’ In a separate incident, an Iraqi daily newspaper stopped publishing after two bombs were planted in the entrance to its headquarters in Baghdad on Monday and after threats from an Iranian-backed Shi’ite militia.

Editors and reporters at Assabah AlJadeed said they had received death threats from the influential Asaib al-Haq militia in response to what it had described as an “insulting caricature” of Shi’ite Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Some Iraqi Shi’ite groups that follow Khamenei, including Asaib al-Haq, are fighting in Syria, often alongside President Bashar al-Assad’s troops and against mainly Sunni rebels. — Reuters

weekend with the UN nuclear watchdog by agreeing to divulge information that could shed light on allegations of possible past weapons research.

Under a deal reached in Tehran with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Iran will explain its need for sophisticated detonators that could be used to initiate a nuclear chain reaction.

Rouhani, who has the support of reformists, insisted on Monday that Iran was “serious” about negotiations on a comprehensive deal with the P5+1 powers-The United States, China, Britain, France, Russia and Germany.

“Iran is ready to enter negotiations with the P5+1 to reach a comprehensive and final agreement,” he told Tehran-based foreign

diplomats. “We are serious in this regard,” he said.

Victory for Rouhani’s foreign policy The November deal is seen as a victory for Rouhani’s foreign policy, after eight years of stalled talks and escalating sanctions under hardline predecessor Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

Experts say Rouhani has made some headway in wooing world leaders by presenting a more moderate Iranian profile than did Ahmadinejad, but that this does not represent a radical shift in Iran’s ideologies and principles.

Rouhani has the support of supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and his charismatic foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, leads

the talks with world powers.

Last week Khamenei renewed his confidence in Rouhani saying critics of the government “must exercise tolerance”. But hardliners argue that what Iran gained in the interim November deal does not offset what it has compromised in its nuclear activities.

Meanwhile the resumption of diplomatic ties with the United States, which severed ties with Tehran after the seizure of its embassy in the after math of 1987 Islamic revolution, is still a taboo for many in Iran.

Tehran on Monday summoned the Swiss ambassador to Iran, whose country represents American interests, to protest latest US measures imposed on companies and individuals for violating sanctions against Iran. — AFP

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2014

I N T E R N AT I O N A L

Turkey defends new Internet curbs to stop ‘cyber bullies’ ANKARA: Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan yesterday vehemently rejected criticism of his country’s tough new Internet curbs, saying the legislation was necessary to stop “cyber bullies running wild”.

“Nobody will be tapped. Nobody’s (personal) data on the Internet will be stored. Nobody ’s freedom will be breached,” Erdogan told his ruling party lawmakers in parliament. Turkey’s parliament triggered a storm of protest at home and abroad last week after it approved restrictions to the Internet, with opponents saying they were an attempt by Erdogan to stifle dissent.

Hitting back at international criticism that the new regulations amounted to online censorship, Erdogan said:

“Nobody can teach us a lesson.” “There is an Internet world where cyber bullies are running wild,” he said, adding that the legal changes were aimed at preventing “blackmail” by enemies.

Under the new restrictions, Turkey’s Telecommunications Communications Presidency ( TIB) can demand that providers block pages deemed insulting or as invading privacy-and without the need for a judge.

The body will also be able to request users’ online communications and traffic information from hosting providers, which will have to retain data for up to two years. Turkish President Abdullah Gul now has two weeks to sign the Internet law before it comes into force.

Turkey’s opposition and numerous

rights groups have urged the president not to approve the curbs.

Turkish citizens have also voiced their anger. On Saturday, riot police in Istanbul used tear gas and water cannons to disperse some 2,000 protesters demonstrating against the Internet restrictions.

The timing of the legislation has raised eyebrows because it comes as Erdogan is battling a major corruption investigation implicating members of his inner circle, seen as the biggest challenge yet to his 11-year-rule.

Corruption probe details leaked Some of his critics say the legislation is specifically aimed at stopping details of the high-level probe from being leaked online. Erdogan has portrayed the

graft investigation as a plot against him by people within the Turkish police and judiciary loyal to Fethullah Gulen, an Islamic preacher living in exile in the United States.

His Justice and Development Party (AKP) government has sacked or reassigned thousands of police and prosecutors in response to the probe, prompting questions about the state of democracy in European Union hopeful Turkey.

The Council of Europe Human Rights Commissioner, Nils Muiznieks, told AFP that the Internet law raised “new concerns in terms of compatibility with European human rights standards on freedom of expression and freedom of the media”.

“The hasty and opaque manner in

which these amendments have been pushed through the parliament, without any genuine consultation of the major stakeholders, is also regrettable,” he said.

Also yesterday, Turkey’s main opposition leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu called for Erdogan’s resignation after playing leaked recordings linked to the corruption inquiry to his party members.

The tapes allegedly expose the government’s close links to high-profile businessmen and reveal officials putting pressure on media bosses. “ There is no other country in the world that smells to high heaven of corruption like Turkey,” said Kilicdaroglu.

“How come those rascals stay in power?” he asked. “How does the prime minister remain in his seat?” —AFP

Former presidential hopeful predicts new Egypt revolt CAIRO: Egyptians will rise up against military rule because of widespread human rights abuses and economic hardships, former presidential candidate Abdel Moneim Abol Fotouh said yesterday.

Egypt’s political transition and its economy have stumbled since the 2011 uprising that ousted autocrat Hosni Mubarak.

In July, army chief Field Marshal Abdel Fattah al-Sisi ousted the country’s first freely elected president, Mohamed Mursi, after mass protests against his rule. A severe crackdown on Mursi’s Muslim Brotherhood and any other opponents of the armybacked government has followed.

Egypt remains unstable.

“The people will get angry again and stage a revolution to oust this repression. The Egyptian people will not accept the current situation,” said Abol Fotouh, a former Brotherhood member who came four th in the 2012 election won by Mursi. “ The current repression is 10 times worse than Mubarak’s time,” he told Reuters in an interview. Abol Fotouh, 62, is one of the few Islamists left in public life since the crackdown that has landed Mursi and many of his allies in jail.

Hundreds of his supporters have been killed.

Abol Fotouh said Mubarak loyalists are back with a vengeance and are determined to crush freedoms gained since the 2011 revolt to protect their interests and corrupt prac-

tices. “What is happening now is a counter-revolution against the January revolution but it won’t continue. The revolution will return,” said the retired physician, adding that Egypt had become a failed state.

“There will be no stability for this region except through freedom and democracy. Without this there will be chaos and violence.”

‘Brainwashed’ Abol Fotouh said he had decided not to run for president because the authorities had created what he called a republic of fear, and the state and private media, funded by Mubarak era-businessmen, had created an uneven playing field.

“It is set for Sisi to win. Sisi photos have been hung in all of Egypt ’s streets for months,” said Abol Fotouh, who heads the Strong Egypt party.

“How can I compete against that?”

Sisi has not confirmed he will run, but is widely expected to win a landslide victor y in the election due within months.

He has enthusiastic support from many Egyptians who were relieved to see an end to Mursi’s rule, but is reviled by the Islamist president’s sympathisers as the leader of a coup.

Abol Fotouh said Sisi’s popularity was artificial and that Egyptians had been brainwashed, but that they would lose patience once again if the countr y kept to its present course.

“Egypt could enter an economic

collapse if the situation remains like this,” he said. “What keeps it going is the Gulf money that keeps coming from here and there but which will not last forever...It is humiliating for Egypt to keep begging.”

Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait, deeply suspicious of the Brotherhood, withheld aid during Mursi’s rule but gave Egypt billions of dollars after he was deposed.

Abol Fotouh was a senior member of the Brotherhood until 2011, when the movement expelled him after he decided to stage an independent bid for the presidency.

Jailed under Mubarak, he was fiercely critical of Mursi during his one-year presidency and called for early presidential elections before the army removed him on July 3.

Activists from Abol Fotouh’s party were detained while campaigning against a new constitution approved in a referendum in January.

Abol Fotouh said it would be hard for the government to wipe out the Brotherhood, which has survived decades of repression by past Egyptian leaders, all of them military men, except Mursi. He urged the Brotherhood and the army to compromise and hold talks to stabilise the Arab world’s biggest nation. “ The Muslim Brotherhood says they have one million members and if each one has five or 10 people sympathising with him, what could be done to them? End them all?” — Reuters

HOMS: Syrian civilians walk as they are evacuated during a humanitarian operation in the besieged Syrian city of Homs on Monday. A truce that has allowed the evacuation of hundreds of civilians from besieged districts of Homs was extended for three days as around 450 civilians were given safe passage out of the war-ravaged city, according to Syria’s Red Crescent, bringing the total number allowed out since February 7 to some 1,200. — AFP

Aid mission in Syria’s Homs extended as talks falter Red Crescent prepares to resume evacuations DAMASCUS: Aid teams launched fresh efforts yesterday to evacuate civilians from besieged districts of Syria’s Homs after a truce was extended, as mutual recriminations bogged down peace talks in Switzerland.

The Syrian Red Crescent has so far helped evacuate around 1,200 people trapped in rebel-held areas of the warravaged central city, and delivered desperately-needed food and medicine.

In Geneva, meanwhile, the Syrian regime and opposition were due to sit down for a joint session of talks, after swapping accusations of responsibility for the violence that has devastated their country.

The opposition delegation warned late Monday it would not return for a third round of talks if no progress was made in the current session. UN and Red Crescent teams evacuated 473 people from Homs on Monday, many of whom have spent nearly two years trapped with dwindling food and medical supplies.

They streamed out of streets rubble-strewn streets, bookmarked by half-collapsed buildings, towards the vehicles waiting to extract them from the city. Operations to evacuate some of the estimated 3,000 people trapped in the Old City of Homs and deliver aid to those staying behind

began on Friday.

The work was made possible by a tenuous three-day truce, which was extended for another 72 hours on Monday despite multiple violations, including shelling that killed 14 people and fire directed at aid convoys.

Yesterday, a Red Crescent official said teams were preparing to resume evacuations and aid delivery. “Civilians will be evacuated from Homs for a fifth consecutive day. A morning meeting was held with Homs governor Talal Barazi and the UN,” he said.

“We are trying to reach families in the Bustan al-Diwan, where there are logistical obstacles,” he added, without providing details.

Nutrition products for children Monday ’s operations did not include food delivery, but the World Food Programme said it had managed to deliver 310 family rations-enough to feed 1,550 people for a monthbetween Friday and Sunday.

It has also delivered 1.5 metric tonnes of wheat into Homs, where residents have said they survived months of a choking siege on a diet of olives and grass. The WFP also handed out food to those escaping, including specialised nutrition products for hundreds of children.

Those leaving stood, wide-eyed,

some toting backpacks in pink and blue as volunteers handed out food and escorted them to shelters. The Red Crescent posted pictures on its Facebook page of a party that was later organised for a group of children, their faces lit up with smiles as they played with green, grey and pink balloons.

The humanitarian operation has been welcomed internationally, but UN officials and agencies have urged that the model be extended to other areas in Syria.

“I hope that those negotiating in Geneva agree to allow the sustained delivery of aid to the 250,000 people in besieged communities in Syria and all those who are in desperate need across Syria,” said UN humanitarian chief Valerie Amos. But the tone at a second round of peace talks in Geneva seemed unlikely to produce any substantive breakthroughs.

Opposition spokesman Louay Safi said the delegation was “not going to run away” from the second round, but warned that it might not attend a third round if no progress was made.

“If there is no progress at all, I think it would be a waste of time to think about a third round,” he told reporters, adding that he had raised the issue with UN-Arab League mediator Lakhdar Brahimi.—AFP

Abbas aide calls Kerry peace formula a recipe for failure RAMALLAH: A top Palestinian official said yesterday a framework agreement being crafted by US Secretary of State John Kerry to buttress troubled Israeli-Palestinian peace talks may be doomed to fail.

Nabil Abu Rdeineh, spokesman to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, said the deal due to be submitted to the two sides in the coming weeks would be “useless” if it allowed them to nominally accept its principles but to express reservations.

“Use of the word ‘reservations’ bogs down the peace process and the use of this concept in the past has got the process stuck,” Abu Rdeineh told Reuters. In an interview with The Washington Post last week, Kerry said that enabling Israeli and Palestinian leaders to “have some objection” to drafted parameters “is the only way for them to politically be able to keep the negotiations moving”.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu heads a governing coalition that includes a far-right party which could bolt over land-for-peace terms of any statehood deal with Palestinians. Abbas also faces political pressure not to bend on issues at the

core of the decades-old conflict, such as the fate of Palestinian refugees and future of Jerusalem. Veterans of Abbas’s own Fatah party have been sceptical of his decision to restart talks with Israel, which resumed in July after a three-year break. Top officials have mooted a return to protests and even armed violence should they fail.

The US-backed negotiations are scheduled to expire at the end of April. Washington has said the framework agreement would be a basis to prolong the talks, but Palestinian officials have yet to accept any extension.

Palestinians want a state in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, with East Jerusalem as its capital. Israel captured those areas in the 1967 war, and in 2005 pulled its troops and settlers out of the Gaza Strip - land now hedged in by an Israeli blockade and run by Hamas Islamists opposed to Abbas’s peace efforts.

Red lines Abu Rdeineh cautioned against the Kerry document traversing any Palestinian “red lines”. He said the framework agreement must clearly recognise the 1967 lines as the outline

demarcating the two states, designate East Jerusalem as the Palestinian capital and call Israel’s settlements on occupied land “illegal”, hardening Washington’s current description of them as “illegitimate”.

Over half a million Israeli settlers live in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. Most countries consider the settlements illegal, a term disputed by Israel. Failure to salvage the talks, which have yet to show signs of progress, may lead to a showdown between Israel and the Palestinians in international bodies. Israeli officials say boycotts and political isolation of their state may soon follow.

Setting conditions for a final peace deal, Netanyahu has ruled out a return to what he has termed “indefensible” pre-1967 war lines. He has also demanded a long-term Israeli security presence on the future eastern border of a Palestinian state and has called on Abbas to recognise Israel as a Jewish state. The Israeli leader is due to meet US President Barack Obama next month in Washington, where they will discuss the negotiations along with US efforts to ease tensions with Iran over its nuclear programme. —Reuters

I N T E R N AT I O N A L

San Diego faces sharp contrast in race for mayor SAN DIEGO: A Republican city councilman who promises to be a steady hand and a Democratic councilman who says San Diego has been run by an elite few face off yesterday in a mayoral election to replace Bob Filner, who resigned amid a torrent of sexual harassment allegations.

If Kevin Faulconer prevails, San Diego would be the nation’s largest city with a Republican mayor. He would be the only Republican to lead a major city in California, where Democrats hold all statewide offices.

If David Alvarez wins, he would be the first Latino mayor in the city’s 164-year history and keep Democrats in an office that Filner won in 2012 after a 20-year absence for the party. Alvarez, 33, has attacked Faulconer as a shill for corporate interests. Faulconer, 47, portrays Alvarez as a tool of labor unions.

Despite sharp ideological differences, few issues have separated the candidates.

Both promise more attention to neighborhood priorities like street repairs, library hours and emergency response times, putting less emphasis on ambitious civic projects like building a new City Hall and bringing a new stadium for the NFL’s Chargers.

Filner, 71, embraced the same ‘neighborhoods-first’ mantra but Faulconer and Alvarez scarcely mention the disgraced former mayor, who pleaded guilty in October to one felony count of false imprisonment and two misdemeanor counts of battery. The former 10-term congressman began a three-month sentence of home confinement on Jan. 1.

Advantage Alvarez may get a boost from a late endorsement by President Barack Obama, who defeated Mitt Romney by 25 percentage points among city voters, said Vince Vasquez, an analyst at the National University System Institute for Policy

Research. Democrats enjoy a 13-point advantage over Republicans among registered city voters.

Faulconer, who is backed by Filner’s two-term Republican predecessor, Jerry Sanders, has played down his party affiliation. He highlighted his opposition to a 2010 ballot measure to raise the sales tax, which lost resoundingly, and his support for a 2012 measure to cut pensions for city workers, which passed overwhelmingly. Alvarez backed the losing sides.

“It’s ultimately going to come down to who can turn out their bases,” said Vasquez. “In such a short campaign, you don’t have time to convince undecided voters. It’s easier to spend a lot of money to get out your own party.”

The San Diego County registrar of voters predicts turnout between 45 percent and 50 percent, higher than the 36 percent turnout in a first round voting in November.

Faulconer easily topped a field of 11 candidates in the first round by dominating in newer, wealthier neighborhoods north of Interstate 8. Alvarez secured a spot in Tuesday’s runoff by cleaning up south of the freeway in more densely populated, predominantly Latino areas.

Faulconer, a former public relations executive, was elected to the Council in 2006 after another mayor, Dick Murphy, resigned amid a crisis over city finances.

He often recalls how the city weathered the turmoil, drawing a contrast with the less experienced Alvarez, who was elected to the Council in 2010.

Alvarez, a former legislative aide who grew up speaking Spanish at home, extols his family’s immigrant roots to an electorate that the registrar estimates is 18 percent Latino.

He has embraced a populist campaign theme of stripping power from hoteliers and developers who he says have long controlled the city. — AP

Obama, Hollande open lavish US state visit ‘We stand here because of each other’ WASHINGTON: President Barack Obama yesterday welcomed French President Francois Hollande to the White House for a lavish state visit, lauding the “enduring alliance” between their nations. The highly anticipated trip is taking place amid swirling speculation on both sides of the Atlantic about problems in Hollande’s personal life.

On a cold February morning, Obama, first lady Michelle Obama and a military honor guard welcomed Hollande as he arrived on the South Lawn of the White House. The two leaders shook hands before a cheering crowd, many waving American and French flags, and greeted two American military veterans who served in France during World War II. Obama and Hollande both highlighted the long-standing ties between their nations and the key role they have played in shaping their respective histories. “ We stand here because of each other,” Obama said. “We owe our freedom to each other.” Hollande, alternating between French and English, echoed those comments, saying “Each of our countries knows what it owes to each other - its freedom.” Following the arrival ceremony, Obama and Hollande headed to the Oval Office for policy meetings on Iran, Syria and rising extremism in Northern Africa. Later, the Obamas will fete Hollande at a grand state dinner attended by more than 300 dignitaries and celebrities.

Despite the array of pressing foreign policy concerns on tap for yesterday’s talks, much of the focus surrounding Hollande’s state visit has been on the French leader’s romantic woes. The 59-year-old ended his relationship last month with girlfriend and French first lady Valerie Trierweiler after it was revealed that he was having an affair with an actress. Hollande showed up in Washington without a guest to accompany

WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama, First Lady Michelle Obama and French President Francois Hollande (C) wave from the balcony during a State Arrival ceremony on the South Lawn at the White House in Washington, DC, yesterday. — AFP him during his two days of events.

Closest allies The White House is carefully avoiding any mention of Hollande’s personal drama and has moved forward with a grand welcome reserved only for America’s closest allies. French and American flags dot Pennsylvania Avenue outside the White House. And Hollande joined Obama on Air Force One Monday for a trip to Charlottesville, Va, where they toured the estate that belonged to

Arrests in Venezuela protests, Maduro slams ‘coup-seekers’

This Aug. 13, 2013 photo made available by attorney Mirta Desir shows Florida Highway Patrol Officer Donna Jane Watts. In October 2011, Watts stopped a speeding Miami Police Department off-duty officer who was traveling at 120 miles per hour. The confrontation got the speeding officer fired and was the start of harassing and threatening phone calls for Watts. — AP

Trooper who stopped cop sues after harassment MIAMI: Florida Highway Patrol Trooper Donna Jane Watts was on patrol early one morning when a Miami police car whizzed past at speeds that would eventually top 120 mph (190 kph).

Even with her blue lights flashing and siren blaring, it took Watts more than seven minutes to stop the speeder.

She approached the car warily, with gun drawn, according to video from her cruiser’s dashboard camera. “Put your hands out of the window! Right now!” she yelled. The driver was Miami Police Department officer Fausto Lopez, in full uniform.

Watts holstered her gun but still handcuffed him and took his weapon.

“I apologize,” Lopez said, explaining that he was late for an off-duty job. That confrontation in 2011 eventually got Lopez fired. But Watts’ actions didn’t sit well with many in law enforcement.

Not long after she made that traffic stop, she says, the harassment began. Random telephone calls on her cell phone.

Some were threats and some were prank calls, including orders for pizza. Unfamiliar vehicles and police cars sat idling in her cul-de-sac. She was afraid to open her mailbox.

Watts suspected her private driver’s license information was being accessed by fellow officers, so she made a public records request. She was right: over a three-month period, at least 88 law enforcement officers from 25 different agencies accessed Watts’ driver’s license information, according to her lawyer.

Watts is suing those police agencies and the individual officers under the national Driver Privacy Protection Act, a 1994 law that provides for a penalty of $2,500 for each violation if the information was improperly accessed. Watts’ attorney, Mirta Desir, said it’s clear most of the officers had no legitimate reason to look up her data. If all the searches were found illegal, Watts could receive more than $500,000.

Legitimate reasons According to court documents, most of the individual officers named in Watts’ lawsuit did face some disciplinary action, usually a written reprimand. Lawyers for the agencies have asked a federal judge to dismiss the lawsuit, claiming that under the US Constitution, Congress cannot hold police officers liable for merely obtaining the information, but only if they try to sell it. The US Justice Department insists that numerous courts have held that Congress can regulate such activity even if the items involved aren’t being sold.

Some officers claim they had legitimate reasons.For example, a lawyer for fellow state Trooper Andrew Cobb said in court papers that he accessed Watts’ information after “hearing rumors that other troopers were threatening” her and that he acted “out of concern for a fellow trooper.” A judge is expected to rule on motions to dismiss the case in coming weeks, which will determine whether the lawsuit continues.

Desir said Watts, who had been assigned to road patrol, has relocated and is no longer driving a cruiser, although she still works for the Highway Patrol. Through Desir, Watts declined to be interviewed. “She’s doing OK,” Desir said. — AP

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2014

CARACAS: Venezuelan authorities have arrested another eight anti-government protesters, bringing to 19 the number being held amid street demonstrations that President Nicolas Maduro says are being orchestrated by foreign-backed “coup-seekers”.

Ten months after Maduro narrowly won an election to replace his mentor and late socialist leader Hugo Chavez, a hardline wing of Venezuela’s opposition is trying to whip up street protests over rampant crime, economic hardship and alleged state repression.

Maduro, a 51-year-old former bus driver and union activist who has pinned his presidency on maintaining Chavez’s legacy, says extreme right-wing politicians backed by “imperialist” collaborators want to bring him down by undemocratic means.

The protests have been sporadic and seldom drawn crowds of more than a few hundred, though activists were hoping for bigger numbers at a march planned for today in Caracas. Opposition campaigners said police detained eight people in the western Andean town of Merida on Monday night after students rallied for the release of colleagues in jail elsewhere. “They simply unfurled banners and handed out banners,” said Tamara Suju, a human rights campaigner who works with the Popular Will party that is promoting the anti-Maduro activism.

The eight in Merida would add to four from Tachira state, and seven from Margarita island, held after other recent demonstrations, according to activists and student leaders. Some have been detained in their homes or workplaces.

‘I’ve had enough’ Officials say the protests are turning violent. “I’ve had enough,” an angry Maduro said on state TV on Monday night. “You can accuse me of what you want, I am obliged

to defend democracy and the peace of the people.”

The president said extremists were trying to undermine a political dialogue he has begun with the more moderate majority in Venezuela’s opposition coalition.

That has included a handshake with his arch-rival and two-time presidential candidate Henrique Capriles during a meeting over crime.

Maduro, who constantly says conservative U.S. politicians are fomenting plans to topple him, vowed to use decree powers granted by parliament against his domestic foes. “I’m going to look for very strict norms so that anyone involved in these coup-seeking adventures can never participate as a candidate for anything again,” he said.

That appeared to be a reference to Popular Will leader Leopoldo Lopez, a former Caracas district mayor who has been barred from running for office in the past on corruption charges. He says they were trumped up to damage him. Lopez, 42, said officials forced him off a flight to Tachira late on Monday where he had intended to meet protest leaders.

“The desperate and cowardly actions of a criminal government will not halt the unity in the street,” he tweeted later. In an apparent rebuke to Lopez and illustrating splits within the opposition, fellow opposition leader Capriles said he did not support the confrontational tactics being promoted by hardline activists.

“We have to find a real solution for people’s problems and avoid ... failed past agendas,” said Capriles, the 41year-old governor of Miranda state who narrowly lost to Maduro in last year’s presidential poll.

Massive opposition protests in the past helped bring about a brief coup against Chavez in 2002, but he returned after a 36-hour detention when the military swung behind him and supporters poured onto the streets. — Reuters

Thomas Jefferson, the former US president who also served as a diplomat in France.

A military honor guard and 21-gun salute greeted Hollande when he arrived at the White House for morning meetings with Obama in the Oval Office. The centerpiece of Hollande’s state visit will be a glitzy black-tie dinner held in his honor.

The gala will be held in a massive white tent on the south lawn of the White House, where guests will feast on beef, greens from the White House garden and American caviar, while dancing to the music of singer Mary J. Blige. —Agencies

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2014

I N T E R N AT I O N A L

Catholics mark a year since pope’s resignation VATICAN CITY: The Catholic Church yesterday marked one year since Benedict XVI became the first pope since the Middle Ages to resign, with Vatican insiders defending his troubled eightyear papacy. “ Today I ask you to join me in prayer for His Holiness Benedict XVI, a man of great courage and humility,” his successor, Pope Francis, said in a message on Twitter.

The Vatican’s spokesman, Father Federico Lombardi, joined in the tributes to Benedict, saying that the February 11, 2013 resignation had been “a great act of government that affected the life of the Church”.

Benedict’s momentous announcement has been seen as setting a precedent for future leaders of the world’s 1.2 billion Catholics, although experts say papal resignations are unlikely to become a regular event.

There were no ceremonies planned yesterday in the Vatican, in line with the discretion shown

by the German pope, who has been living a quiet life in a former monastery inside the Vatican walls since retiring.

The Vatican has mounted a campaign praising the “wisdom” and “greatness” of Joseph Ratzinger, even though he has been largely forgotten by the wider public and his image in souvenir stands around the Vatican has been replaced by Francis and John Paul II. “We discovered the real face of Benedict XVI after his act: the affection, the gentleness,” Vatican Radio said. His pontificate, however, was an unpopular one and was marked by scandals in the Church-including a wave of revelations of child sex abuse by priests, communication gaffes and a series of damaging leaks that revealed cloak-and-dagger politics in the Vatican.

“Curiously, he has never been so present on the scene as he has since his resignation. The

false image of the Panzerkardinal has been erased,” French cardinal Paul Poupard told AFP earlier. Poupard said that “everyone” in the Vatican was now used to the novelty of having a pope and a pope emeritus in the Vatican, which it had been feared could cause confusion among the faithful.

Vatican exper t Marco Tosatti said that Benedict’s role in cleaning up the Church of weak or incapable clergymen had been “underestimated” by the media. Tosatti said Benedict struggled to root out abuse, clerical careerism and incoherence and had prepared the way for Francis with his “revolution of tenderness”.

Tosatti said that Benedict’s pontificate had mainly allowed the Church “to breathe” following the long 27-year reign of late pope John Paul II. In a new book that has just come out in France -” The Man Who Did Not Want To Be Pope”-Vatican expert Nicolas Diat portrays

Benedict as a humble but demanding pope who was betrayed by his entourage.

“If there is a pope who has been confronted with mediocrity, with base behaviour and with vindictiveness both within and outside the Church, it is definitely Benedict XVI,” Diat said.

Diat said that certain cardinals never accepted his pontificate, seeing it only as a transition and had plotted against Benedict for years.

Italian cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, who was secretary of state under Benedict, became a target of the plotters and was heavily criticised for diplomatic failures and apparent errors of judgement.

Bertone, who has since been replaced as Vatican “prime minister”, has defended his office and accused “vipers” of ganging up against him.

He told the Il Giornale daily: “Benedict XVI had taken his decision some time earlier. He had spoken to me about it in mid-2012. He felt the weight of his age.” — AFP

Berlusconi bribery trial opens in Italy Third ongoing case against Berlusconi

NICOSIA: Special Representative and Head of the United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus, Lisa Buttenheim, speaks as Turkish Cypriot leader Dervis Eroglu (R) and Cypriot President Anastasiades (L) listen on following their arrival for a meeting at the now defunct Nicosia international airport in the United Nations Buffer Zone that separates the internationally recognised southern part of the island from the Turkish-occupied north of Cyprus yesterday. — AFP

Rival Cyprus leaders resume peace talks NICOSIA: Greek- and Turkish-Cypriot leaders vowed to seek agreement on ending the island’s four-decade division “as soon as possible,” relaunching peace talks yesterday after nearly a two-year hiatus.

Nicos Anastasiades and his Turkish Cypriot counterpart Dervis Eroglu endorsed a roadmap for the relaunch of the UN-brokered talks at a meeting in the buffer zone that divides the capital.

“I hope that today will be the beginning of the end to an undesirable and unacceptable situation that has kept the island and our people divided for forty years,” said Anastasiades.

Speaking in Ankara, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyib Erdogan was also hopeful that the Mediterranean island’s division could be ended. “We are heading toward a new process in Cyprus. God willing, there will be no backpedalling and we will solve the Cyprus problem,” he said. Cyprus has been divided since Turkey invaded and occupied its northern third in 1974 in response to an Athensengineered coup aimed at uniting it with Greece. And a breakaway state that Turkish Cypriot leaders declared in 1983 is recognised only by Ankara. Both sides acknowledged the road ahead will be painful but conceded in a joint statement that the status quo was “unacceptable,” and that a settlement would have a “positive impact” on the region.

“The leaders will aim to reach a settlement as soon as possible and hold separate simultaneous referenda thereafter,” the statement said. Negotiators are to meet later this week to push the process forward.

The joint declaration was finalised last week after protracted haggling over the text delayed a relaunch of talks originally slated for November. Anastasiades said it was “not the final solution but the beginning of a painstaking effort to reach desired goals,” adding that he looks forward to a solution that has “no winners or losers.”

Turkish Cypriots suspended the last round of talks in mid-2012 when Anastasiades’s internationally recognised Republic of Cyprus

assumed the European Union’s rotating presidency. The EU welcomed the agreement, saying it should help the two sides “swiftly address matters of substance and to achieve rapid results in the negotiations.”

And British Prime Minister David Cameron, from whose country Cyprus won independence in 1960, welcomed the agreement “as an important step” toward “their shared aim of a unified and prosperous island.”

Hubert Faustmann, associate professor of history and political science at Nicosia University, said discovery of hydrocarbons off the coast of Cyprus had given new impetus to talks that have dragged on for decades. “This is the best chance for peace since 2004 because of oil and gas,” said Faustmann.

Energy changes dynamics Cyprus joined the EU in 2004 still divided, after Greek Cypriots rejected a UN reunification blueprint that was approved by Turkish Cypriots. Anastasiades was one of the few Greek Cypriot politicians to back the controversial UN proposal.

But the island’s untapped gas and oil riches offshore and a huge natural gas find in waters off neighbouring Israel have changed the dynamics in the region, bolstering hopes a peace deal can be achieved.

“Turkey and Israel’s energy cooperation has triggered an American intervention and forced both sides to agree on a joint statement leading to a resumption of talks,” Faustmann told AFP. “Washington has put so much weight behind this latest peace effort because oil and gas is a game changer in the wider context. “It’s a win-win situation for all,” he added. “Israel is looking to diversify by constructing a gas pipeline through the sea of Cyprus to Turkey and invest in a LNG plant on the island, but Israel won’t give its gas to Cyprus unless there is a solution.”

The US-which has commercial interests in the island’s gas and oil exploration-is aware that a divided Cyprus is a source of tension for NATO members Greece and Turkey. —AFP

Spain seeks arrest of former Chinese president over Tibet MADRID/BEIJING: A Spanish judge on Monday sought the arrest of China’s former president and premier over accusations of genocide in Tibet in an eight-year-old case that prompted a sharp rebuke from Beijing.

High Court Judge Ismael Moreno asked Interpol to issue orders for the detention of former President Jiang Zemin, ex-premier Li Peng and three other officials for questioning on charges brought by Tibetan rights groups in Spain.

However, the case may not progress as Spain’s ruling People’s Party is pushing through rules to limit judges’ ability to pursue cases under universal jurisdiction, the principle that crimes against humanity can be prosecuted across borders.

This is the same concept used by former judge Baltasar Garzon to bring about the arrest of Chile’s ex-dictator Augusto Pinochet in London in 1998. Pinochet was eventually allowed to return to Chile for health reasons.

“Jiang exercised supervisory authority over the people who directly committed abuses, which makes him responsible for acts of torture and other major abuses of human rights perpetrated by his subordinates against the people of Tibet,” Moreno wrote in the order, citing lawyers for the

Tibetan plaintiffs. Moreno asked Interpol to issue the arrest order seeking Jiang’s detention for genocide, torture and crimes against humanity. He issued similar orders for Li and other Chinese officials in the 1980s and 1990s. “(China) is extremely dissatisfied with and resolutely opposed to the wrong actions of the relevant Spanish organ taken while ignoring China’s solemn position,” China’s Foreign Ministry said it would tell Spain. “Whether or not this issue can be appropriately dealt with is related to the healthy development of ties,” Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said at a daily briefing. “We hope the Spanish government can distinguish right from wrong.” Plots by overseas Tibetans to besmirch China’s name using cases like this would never succeed, she added.

Interpol, the international police organisation, issues Red Notices for wanted people, based on judicial orders from courts in its 190 member countries. Police in member countries can detain wanted persons on their soil based on the alerts.

China’s Foreign Ministry called on Spain on Friday to prevent further lawsuits that seek to investigate alleged rights abuses in Tibet. —Reuters

NAPLES: Silvio Berlusconi’s latest trial opened in Naples yesterday, this time for allegedly bribing a senator in 2006 to join his party in a move aimed at destabilising a rival centre-left government in power at the time.

The trial is the third ongoing case against Berlusconi, who is appealing a prison sentence for having sex with an underage 17-year-old prostitute and abuse of office and another for leaking a confidential police wiretap.

The 77-year-old billionaire tycoon last year was also convicted for tax fraud-his first ever definitive conviction-and has been ejected from the Italian Senate and lost his parliamentar y immunity. Berlusconi, who regularly protests his innocence by accusing prosecutors of engineering a left-wing political plot against him, was not at the hearing and is not obliged to attend under Italian law.

He is accused of giving 3.0 million euros ($4.1 million) in 2006 to Sergio De Gregorio, then a senator from the anti-corruption Italy of Values party, to join his People of Freedom party and help undermine the centre-left government in power at the time.

A former Berlusconi aide, Valter Lavitola, is also on trial for being the alleged intermediary for the bribe. The trial is being held in Naples as it was the seat occupied by De Gregorio, who is working with investigators.

Among the issues on the table at the first hearings today will be a request from Senate speaker Pietro Grasso to be considered a plaintiff in the trial-a move that has proved hugely controversial among Berlusconi’s supporters. A new judge is also due to be named as the current one has declared a conflict of interests-she is married to a prosecutor who worked in the trial against Berlusconi for underage sex and abuse of office.

The list of witnesses for the trial includes former prime minister and former European Commission president Romano Prodi, as well as two former senators expected to say they were offered bribe money by Berlusconi.

De Gregorio has told investigators that he received two million euros in cash and one millions euros for his political movement “Italians in the World”.

Berlusconi unrepentant Berlusconi’s lawyers Michele Cerabona and

NAPLES: Italia dei Valori (Italy of Values) party’s lawyer and former prosecutor Antonio Di Pietro (L) shakes hands with Silvio Berlusconi’s lawyer Michele Carabona at the Naples’ tribunal yesterday, prior to the beginning of former Italian Prime minister’s bribery trial. Silvio Berlusconi’s latest trial opened in Naples, this time for allegedly bribing a senator in 2006 to join his party in a move aimed at destabilising a rival centre-left government in power at the time. The 77-year-old billionaire tycoon was not at the hearing and is not obliged to attend under Italian law. — AFP Niccolo Ghedini are expected to argue that corrupting the senator would have been impossible since every lawmaker can vote freely, whatever their party affiliation.

Berlusconi this year will also be appealing his prostitution and abuse of power convictions, as well as one for leaking a confidential police wiretap in an attempt to damage a centre-left political rival.

The three-time former prime minister was forced out of parliament for the first time in his 20-year political career in November following a tax fraud conviction. While Berlusconi does not have to go to prison because of his age, a court in April will decide whether he has to do a year of community service or house arrest for that crime. Although he is banned from parliament, it has not prevented Berlusconi from seeking to remain a powerful force, although it could

impose limits on his ability to campaign.

While some of his former proteges have switched to the New Centre-Right party in a ruling coalition with Prime Minister Enrico Letta, Berlusconi is rallying support for his re-founded Forza Italia (Go Italy) party.

Forza Italia is in second place in opinion polls behind the centre-left Democratic Party with 25 percent. The gaffe-prone media magnate is unrepentant despite his frequent run-ins with the justice system and still enjoys the support of million of Italians.

But after 20 years of “Berlusconism” and a two-year economic crisis, there are indications that the attention in Italy is shifting away from Berlusconi. The main political interest now is on the centre-left-the rivalry between Letta and the ambitious new head of the Democratic Party, 39year-old Matteo Renzi. — AFP

Australian Corby’s media payday in doubt CANBERRA: An Australian drug trafficker newly freed from an Indonesian prison faces an uphill battle under Australian law to keep any earnings from a reported multimillion-dollar interview deal.

Schapelle Corby walked out of Bali’s Kerobokan prison on Monday with a hat and scarf hiding her face from a waiting media throng. She was whisked away to an expensive Bali resort by Australia’s Seven Network, which media say has offered her as much as 3 million Australian dollars ($2.7 million) for an exclusive interview. That’s big money for Australian checkbook journalism and a potential financial windfall for Corby, a 35-year-old who has spent nine years in prison and was studying to be a beautician before her arrest. On Tuesday an Australian women’s magazine posted online what it says is the first picture of Corby without a mask as she drinks a beer with her half-brother Michael Corby in a hotel room.

Other media have said a Seven interview deal would be worth AU$1.3 million plus expenses, but the network has declined to comment. It did issue a news bulletin that cited a Corby family statement calling the reported sums ridiculous.

“If Schapelle feels that she wants to tell her story to the Australian public, she will do it with someone she trusts,” the statement said.

The statement also said the family planned to sue Seven’s major rival Nine Network over a biopic, “Schapelle,” it aired twice this week. The telling of her story has already brought the Corby family in conflict with Australia’s Proceeds of Crime Act, which mandates that crime should not pay. In 2007, a court ordered Corby, her sister Mercedes and Mercedes’ Indonesian husband Wayan Widyartha to hand over AU$128,800 they earned from a book and magazine interview deal.

Under the law, Australian courts don’t have to be convinced beyond reasonable doubt that crimes happened. The lesser legal test on the balance of probabilities applies. Australian Federal Police said in a statement “it would not be appropriate to speculate on the likelihood of future legal proceedings.”

Christian Juebner, a Melbourne lawyer who special-

izes in prosecuting and defending proceeds of crime cases, said it was “highly likely” the AFP would seek a court order to seize the proceeds of any media deal.

“I just can’t image that the AFP will stand by when it’s been so well publicized that she is receiving directly or indirectly the benefit through her notoriety ..., without taking a stance, to say: well, people just can’t benefit from their criminal activity,” he said. Natalie Skead, a University of Western Australia associate professor who wrote her doctorate thesis on Australian proceeds of crime laws, said the fact that Corby had broken Indonesian law and

would remain in Indonesia on parole until 2017 did not put her beyond the reach of Australian law.

She expected AFP would seek a seizure ruling but said Corby’s best hope would be to ask a judge for discretion. “The court can refuse to make a confiscation order if there is some social, cultural or educational value in the product,” Skead said. Corby maintained that she does not know how 4.2 kilograms (9 pounds) of marijuana wound up in her surfboard bag on arrival at Bali’s international airport in 2004 for a family holiday. It led to 20-year sentence for drug trafficking. —AP

BALI: Australian reporter Mike Willesee (C), who is expected to conduct an exclusive interview with drug trafficker Schapelle Corby, speaks to reporters in Seminyak on the Indonesian resort island of Bali yesterday. The 36-year-old was ushered out of Kerobokan prison into a green minibus after more than nine years behind bars, as crowds of journalists waited outside the jail and scores of police stood guard. — AFP

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2014

I N T E R N AT I O N A L

In U-turn, US ambassador to meet India’s Modi NEW DELHI: US ambassador to India Nancy Powell is to meet the politician who could become India’s next prime minister, Narendra Modi, signalling a softening of the US position since the Hindu nationalist was denied a visa over religious riots.

Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is considered the favourite to form a government after a general election due by May. He is also the chief minister of Gujarat state, where in 2002, Hindu mobs killed at least 1,000 people, most of them Muslims.

“We can confirm the appointment,” a US embassy spokesman said. “This is part of our concentrated outreach to senior political and business leaders which began in November to highlight the US-India relationship.”

The meeting, which could happen as soon as this week, will be the highest profile encounter between US officials and Modi since the US State Department revoked his visa in 2005 over the riots, which erupted after some Hindus were killed in a fire on a train.

The United States and India have developed a close commercial and strategic relationship over recent years and they share almost $100 billion worth of annual trade. The United States sees India as a regional counterweight to China.

Underscoring growing economic ties, the US automaker Ford is due to open a plant in Gujarat this year. General Motors already has a production facility there.

But the India-US friendship is often problematic,

with disputes over market access and a recent row over the behaviour of an Indian diplomat in the United States damaging sentiment in both countries.

The change in the US position on Modi is likely to anger rights groups and members of the Muslim community who say Modi allowed or even actively encouraged attacks on Muslims in the 2002 riots.

Modi has always denied the accusations, and a Supreme Court inquiry found no evidence to prosecute him.—Reuters

China, Taiwan agree to open offices after historic talks ‘Unimaginable occasion in earlier years’

NANJING: Taiwanese official Wang Yu-chi (2nd L) who is in charge of the islands China policy meets with his Chinese counterpart Zhang Zhijun (not pictured) from the Taiwan Affairs office, at the Purple Mountain Guest House in Nanjing yesterday.

China and Taiwan, held their first government-to-government talks since they split 65 years ago after a brutal civil war — a symbolic yet historic move between the former bitter rivals. — AFP

Delhi CM takes on Indian tycoon over gas pricing NEW DELHI: Delhi’s chief minister yesterday ordered an investigation to be opened into India’s richest man, Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani, and government policymakers over the pricing of natural gas.

Arvind Kejriwal sent shockwaves through the Indian political system in December when his Aam Aadmi, or Common Man, Party (AAP) won the Delhi state election with promises to fight graft and the vested interests blighting the country.

Kejriwal has long had Ambani in his sights, having accused him of buying government favour. The investigation into the tycoon relates to gas produced from the Reliance-operated D6 block on India’s east coast. Kejriwal said Ambani’s company had created an artificial shortage to “blackmail” the government to set higher prices.

“We believe that high prices are being caused by corruption,” Kejriwal told a news conference, speaking in Hindi. A Reliance spokesman declined to comment on the allegations. Kejriwal’s attack plays into a heated political atmosphere, with a general election due by May. Leading a party formed just a year earlier, Kejriwal’s victory in Delhi had stunned both the ruling Congress Party and opposition Bharatiya Janata Party.

The BJP is ahead in opinion polls as the public grows disillusioned with Congress, leader of the ruling coalition, over a series of corruption scandals and a slowing economy. Although it is unlikely to win, AAP could draw votes away from both parties.

‘Wells belong to us’ Kejriwal said Reliance had agreed in 2005 to supply gas to utility NTPC Ltd at about $2.3 per million British thermal units (mBtu) for about 17 years. But the price of gas from D6 was fixed at $4.2 per mBtu in 2007 when Murli Deora was oil minister, in the Congress-led government.

Last year, after Veerappa Moily took over as oil minister, the federal government agreed to link prices to global indexes, which could double local gas prices from April 1 this year.

“Today we have instructed the anticorruption branch to file a criminal case against Murli Deora, FIRs (investigations) against Veerappa Moily, V.K. Sibal, the (then) director general of hydrocarbons, Reliance Industries Ltd chairman Mukesh Ambani and others,” he told a news con-

ference.

A FIR, or First Information Report, is the first stage of an official investigation into a complaint. Kejriwal said he had acted after receiving four complaints. He said he would ask the federal government to suspend any order to raise gas prices until the issue was resolved.

“The wells belong to us. If Reliance and Mukesh are not producing gas in order to create an artificial scarcity, then the government should look at giving these wells to the (state-run exploration company) ONGC and some other entity which can operate them and produce gas,” he said.

Ambani is the richest man amongst India’s ranks of billionaires, with an empire than ranges from energy to mobile phones and media channels. Last year he was given security cover by the government following threats against his life.

In an open letter in January, Kejriwal lambasted Ambani for his business practices and accused him of intimidating the government. “You can purchase political parties and political leaders with your money but we will not let India be sold,” it said. The tycoon replied with a string of defamation notices.

Windfall for Reliance The D6 block was expected to contribute up to 25 percent of the gas supply for Asia’s third-largest economy but lower-than-expected output has left the energy-hungry nation more dependent on expensive, imported LNG to fuel power and fertiliser plants.

Kejriwal said that instead of producing 80 million cubic metres a day (mmscmd) of gas, Reliance has produced less that 18 percent of that, leading to shortages. The increase in gas prices would destabilise the whole economy, he said.

The government’s decision to raise prices would lead to a benefit of 540 billion rupees ($8.66 billion) per annum to Reliance, he said. Audits revealed that 1.25 trillion rupees worth of windfall accrued to Reliance.

Oil Minister Moily, asked for his reaction, said he had taken a special interest to ensure that gas prices were reduced. “It is not the question of Mukesh or Deora or anybody,” he said, speaking on television.

There was a certain system for fixing prices and nothing was done without expert advice, he said. “(Kejriwal) thinks that it’s just like taking water through a bucket from a well. He cannot take the oil like that.” — Reuters

NEW DELHI: (FILES) In this photograph taken on June 6, 2013 Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani poses as he arrives for the company’s annual general meeting in Mumbai. Delhi’s “political revolutionary” chief minister yesterday took on India’s wealthiest tycoon Mukesh Ambani, saying he had ordered a legal case be filed against him over alleged price fixing for gas supplies. — AFP

BEIJING: China and Taiwan, at odds for more than six decades, agreed at historic talks yesterday to set up representative offices as soon as possible, though sensitive political issues like a formal peace treaty were not up for discussion. The talks between Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Minister Wang Yu-chi and China’s Vice Foreign Minister Zhang Zhijun, who heads the Taiwan Affairs Office, were the first since the 1949 creation of the People’s Republic of China.

They mark a big step towards expanding cross-strait dialogue beyond economic and trade issues. China’s ruling Communist Party considers Taiwan a renegade province and has never ruled out the use of force to bring the island under its wing after taking control of the mainland at the end of a civil war. But economic ties have grown considerably in recent years.

Taiwan’s Wang described his meeting with Zhang, in the eastern Chinese city of Nanjing, as “an unimaginable occasion in earlier years”, China’s official Xinhua

news agency reported. “Being able to sit down and talk is a really valuable opportunity, considering that the two sides were once almost at war,” Wang said.

The mainland’s Zhang told Wang that both sides should have “a little more imagination” regarding relations. “We meet under great attention and expectations and bear great responsibilities,” Zhang said.

Economic ties Xinhua later reported that the two sides agreed to set up representative offices “as soon as possible” for the two semi-official organisations which deal with ties between the two. Taiwan and China also agreed to deepen economic ties and “appropriately deal with” issues on medical care for students in either place. In October, Chinese President Xi Jinping said a political solution to the standoff between the mainland and the island could not be postponed forever.

But Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou later said he

saw no urgency to hold political talks and he wanted to focus on trade. Nanjing was China’s capital during the rule of the Nationalists, until they fled to Taiwan in 1949 upon losing the civil war with the communists.

The city is also the burial place of Sun Yat-Sen, the founder of modern China, revered by both mainland China and many in Taiwan.

Since taking office in 2008, Taiwan’s Ma has signed a series of landmark trade and economic agreements with China, cementing China’s position as Taiwan’s largest trading partner. But booming trade has not brought progress on political reconciliation or reduced military readiness on both sides. Many in democratic Taiwan fear China’s designs for their freewheeling island. Despite the close economic ties, USarmed and backed Taiwan remains a potential flashpoint and its recovery is a priority for China’s Communist Party, which is investing billions to modernise its military. — Reuters

NEWS

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2014

A girl spits fire on a bus turnstile on the street in protest against the increase in bus fares in Rio de Janeiro on Monday. — AP

Oppn wades into Gulf pact row

10% of drugs fake Continued from Page 1 He said 33 inspectors work round-the-clock to thwart the spread of fake drugs.

Meanwhile, the head of the government inspection department Nasser Al-Shimmari said that 44 cases of breakins and theft of drugs were reported in government hospitals in 2013. He said the department makes field visits to hospitals and government centers as there are 51 hospitals and centers

in addition to 166 pharmacies and 371 wards in hospitals. He said the rounds aim at monitoring the drugs and ensure their quality, and check how they are stored. He said that most violations take place in Farwaniya governorate and Sabah Medical Zone. Head of the private sector inspection department Dr Yasser Behbehani said that 17 pharmacists were suspended, four pharmacies were closed and 13 pharmacies were referred to the disciplinary committee at the Health Ministry for selling fake drugs in 2013.

Takaful firms struggle in overcrowded...

Continued from Page 1 Takaful firms are obliged to distribute excess profits to policy holders, unlike conventional firms which account for such surpluses as profits.

But when deficits occur, these must be funded with interest-free loans extended by the firm, which can lead to losses for shareholders, said Hussain Ali Al-Attal, chairman and managing director of First Takaful Insurance Co. Takaful companies argue this puts them at a disadvantage amid intense competition from conventional firms; the country’s six largest insurers command close to two-thirds of the market. Furthermore, the takaful sector lacks a dedicated supervisory body, leaving an opening for negative competitive practices, Al Attal added.

Price under-cutting by conventional firms aims to drive takaful firms from the market, said Saad Ebrahim Makki, vice chairman and chief executive of Takaful International Co, a unit of Bahrain’s Takaful International. “It should be competition with you in terms of quality of service and not competing with you in the price, because in the end you and I sell the same service.”

Conventional insurers dispute claims of a price war and instead point to the way takaful companies are run. “The business model of takaful is not wrong, but the error is in the application. The error is the result of high operating expenses that don’t fit with the revenue,” Ali Hamad Al-Bahar, general manager of Kuwait Insurance Co, the country’s oldest insurer, told

Reuters. “Profitability is based on reducing expenses and maximising revenues. Companies that have not been able to achieve earnings and dividends to shareholders did not benefit from this basic rule of business.”

While Kuwaiti insurers generally weathered the global financial crisis, the downturn in 2008 hit takaful firms hardest because of their relative youth and limited financial reserves, he added. Another criticism of the Kuwaiti takaful sector is that some firms focus not on their core business of providing insurance but on investment, since setting up an insurance company can avoid strict control by the Central Bank, which oversees banks and investment firms. Many companies were founded with the aim of “capital investment, no more, no less”, said Makki. An additional problem is that the sector has only limited access to lucrative contracts from the oil sector, as regulations require firms to be listed on the local bourse to bid for such business, a requirement met by only two takaful firms, said Wohaib. Even when takaful firms can bid for such business, the size of the risks may be too large for them, especially since they lack the backing of a large retakaful industry to spread the burden, he added.

Abdel Hamid El-Baaly, head of the Islamic Law Department at Kuwait International Law School, said that ultimately, many of the takaful sector’s problems were linked to the need for clearer, more supportive regulation. “We need a law to regulate and control the industry’s movements and develop these companies,” he said. — Reuters

Continued from Page 1 Kuwaiti constitution, especially with regards to public freedoms and extradition of wanted people.

Meanwhile, the Opposition Coalition discussed the security pact at a meeting late Sunday night and expressed its total opposition to the pact because it constitutes a “flagrant violation of the Kuwaiti constitution and converts Kuwait into a big prison”. The opposition decided on a number of activities to protest the pact but agreed to delay them until after the national holidays at the end of February.

In the meantime, rapporteur of the Assembly’s legal and legislative committee MP Abdulkareem Al-Kandari said yesterday that members of the panel believe there are several constitutional suspicions in the security pact and a number of provisions are not explicit. He said that if the foreign relations committee approves the agreement on March 3 as scheduled, he will call for forming a front of MPs to vote against the pact.

In another developments, around 74 activists and tweeters yesterday criticized in a statement the detention of a Kuwaiti

tweeter for allegedly writing tweets deemed offensive to the former premier and former parliament speaker. The activists said in a statement that tweeter Ahmad Abdulaziz Fadhel was arrested on Jan 10 following a complaint by former speaker Jassem Al-Khorafi and has since remained in detention pending investigation.

The statement claimed that Fadhel has been mistreated during detention with his lawyer claiming he has been beaten by police and deprived of his basic rights including preventing his lawyer from attending the interrogation and changing the accusation from slander to a state security crime. The activists called for immediately releasing Fadhel, open an investigation over claims he was beaten up and allow him a free and fair trial.

Separately, head of the budgets committee MP Adnan Abdulsamad said yesterday the panel discovered theft of 51 million UAE dirhams from the Kuwaiti military office in Abu Dhabi by one of the accountants. He said the defense ministry has said that the case is under investigation at the public prosecution.

103 dead in Algeria army plane crash Continued from Page 1 reports indicated that poor weather was to blame, with heavy snow and strong winds sweeping the region in recent days. The crash reportedly took place just as the aircraft began its descent into Constantine, when the plane lost contact with the control tower. Military and civilian personnel were deployed for a search and rescue operation, with hospitals in Constantine and nearby Ain M’Lila placed on alert in case there were any survivors, the independent El Watan newspaper reported. Tamanrasset, in the far south of Algeria, near the border with Mali, is the main base for the country’s southern military operations.

Extra troops and equipment have been stationed there in recent months as part of efforts to beef up surveillance of Algeria’s frontiers with Mali and Libya, following a deadly

hostage-taking by Islamist militants at a desert gas plant in January last year. The city lies 1,500 km from Constantine, and was the site of the last major plane crash in Algeria, in March 2003. In that disaster, an Air Algerie passenger plane crashed on takeoff, after one of its engines caught fire, killing all but one of 103 people aboard, among them several French nationals. The sole survivor, a young Algerian soldier, was left in a critical condition.

In Dec 2012, two military jets conducting routine training operations collided in mid air near Tlemcen, in Algeria’s northwest, killing the pilots of both planes. A month earlier, a twinturboprop CASA C-295 military transport aircraft, which was carrying a cargo of paper for the printing of banknotes in Algeria, crashed in southern France. The plane was carrying five soldiers and a representative of the Algerian central bank, none of whom survived.— AFP

ANALYSIS

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2014

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Issues

Gulen: Turkey’s powerbroker in Pennsylvania t’s a long way from Saylorsburg in rural Pennsylvania to practically anywhere. And it’s a very long way to Turkey. But it’s from here, amid American woods and farmland, that a 72-year-old Muslim preacher is said to be pulling strings in the crisis gripping one of the world’s most dynamic emerging powers. Fethullah Gulen and his followers were key allies of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan as the latter’s post-Islamist conservative movement led Turkey’s recent surge to strength. Erdogan’s AKP party and Gulen’s Hizmet educational network worked hand-in-hand as the conservative pro-business middle class rose at the expense of the military and former secular elite.

Turkey prospered, incomes rose and the country became a regional power - until the global financial crisis and subsequent slump. Now growth is slowing, social unrest is on the rise and Erdogan and Gulen have fallen out spectacularly, the prime minister accusing Hizmet of acting as a state-within-the-state against his allies. Gulen, who lives in self-imposed exile in the United States but whose supporters promote a Turkish agenda, accuses his former ally of endangering the democratic gains they both pushed for. And he denies Erdogan’s claim that Hizmet supporters implanted in Turkey’s police and judiciary are behind a recent series of corruption probes targeting the premier’s allies.

So is Gulen a puppet-master behind a powerful secret network? Or the head of a moderate Islamist foundation dedicated to improving educational options for students around the world? His property in Saylorsburg offers little in the way of clues. It’s certainly private: a large house hidden by thick trees with a gate protected by guards and cameras that bears no outward signage. Saylorsburg is home to only around 1,000 people, and the property - or the “Golden Generation Worship and Retreat Center” - and apparently has no legal link to its most famous resident.

Alp Aslandogan, president of the Alliance for Shared Value, another Hizmet affiliate, said the center was “founded by Turkish-Americans living in the area” and run as a non-profit association. Gulen, he explained, owns nothing and uses nothing more than a bedroom and a desk, leaving only for rare medical visits, he said.

All this to run a network of schools and colleges in Turkey, America and 150 nations around the world.

Public pronouncements are rare, and he only occasionally gives interviews to the Turkish press.

I

Secrecy This discretion, some would call it secrecy, feeds rumors. A waitress at the local Stenger’s Bar says there have been three recent protests by outsiders against the center. The local paper, the Pocono Record, reported the demonstrations as being by Turkish-American groups accusing Gulen of harboring a concealed hardline Islamist agenda. But, if Gulen intrigues locals in Pennsylvania, he dominates debate in Turkey, where his long absence - he fled in 1999 - has done nothing to quell speculation over the extent of his influence.

The white haired, heavily-moustachioed imam officially traveled to the United States for medical attention, but is thought to have been avoiding trouble from Turkey’s then government. “Like many exiled leaders his influence has grown while he was away,” explains Sam Brannen of the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), a US think tank. Hizmet, or “Service”, publicly promotes a modern and tolerant Islam coupled with a fairly secular scientific curriculum. Its schools, many of them in Turkey, have millions of sometimes well-placed graduates.

Critics see these followers as a shadowy parallel government, capable of orchestrating the kinds of street protests and judicial investigations that have recently plagued Erdogan’s rule. But his defenders, like Aslandogan, insist his focus is on “education and dialogue” and not on politics. They insist Gulen has never backed specific candidates, even if he supports “certain political figures,” and accuse his critics of trying to stifle democratic debate. Brannen draws an analogy between Gulen’s religiously-inspired movement and Mormonism, which has its own influential members.

“They sponsor each other in business, they have a missionary mentality and a sense of entrepreneurship,” he said. In addition, like the Mormons, members of the movement are supposed to maintain their ties and support its activities after quitting its educational institutions. — AFP

All articles appearing on these pages are the personal opinion of the writers. Kuwait Times takes no responsibility for views expressed therein. Kuwait Times invites readers to voice their opinions. Please send submissions via email to: opinion@kuwaittimes.net or via snail mail to PO Box 1301 Safat, Kuwait. The editor reserves the right to edit any submission as necessary.

Islamist threat at home forces Saudi rethink

By Angus McDowall fter serving for years as the main conduit for weapons and cash to rebels battling Syria’s Bashar Al-Assad, Saudi Arabia is shifting its policy to contain the spread of Islamist militancy at home, diplomats and figures close to the goverment say. Riyadh is concerned that radicalism among rebels in Syria will boost al Qaeda at home in Saudi Arabia, which suffered a blowback last decade when fighters from the network of Osama bin Laden - himself a Saudi - returned from jihad in Afghanistan. Saudi leaders are still determined to help rebels bring down Assad, an ally of their main rival Iran, but their heightened focus on security at home suggests they may temper some of the effort.

In a striking sign of the change, King Abdullah last week issued a royal decree imposing prison terms of 3-20 years on Saudis who go abroad to fight. The change has also come at a moment when Intelligence Chief Prince Bandar bin Sultan - the architect of a Syria policy that has included training camps in Jordan and shipments of weapons and money - has lowered his public profile, diplomatic sources in the Gulf say. “Their Syria policy is getting very counter-terrorism focused,” said a senior diplomatic source in the Gulf. “The Interior Ministry in particular is very worried about what’s happening in Syria, as they should be,” he added.

Powerful Interior Minister Prince Mohammed bin Nayef led the crushing of an al Qaeda uprising in the kingdom in the last decade by Saudis who returned from wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. He later survived an assassination attempt by the group.

“What happened in Syria is really causing problems for us,” said Abdulrahman Al-Hadlaq, head of the Interior Ministry’s Ideological Security Directorate, which monitors online radicalism. He estimated there were between 1,000-2,000 Saudis in Syria, including both fighters and people distributing charity to refugees, and said he believed most were in groups aligned with Al-Qaeda.

A

Although Riyadh has discouraged its citizens from going to Syria, it was not until last week’s royal decree that it made it explicitly illegal and clarified that those who did go faced tough penalties. While the sources who spoke to Reuters for this report were not able to say with certainty in what way Riyadh will alter its systematic support for rebels under the policy engineered by Prince Bandar, they said senior figures in Riyadh increasingly worry that toppling Assad will take longer than they hoped.

Meanwhile, radical groups in Syria have been getting stronger at the expense of mainstream groups that have been the main recipients of Saudi military and financial aid, training and logistical support. Assad’s position has also solidified in the past year. The failure to build a rebel force that can defeat Assad is partly due to logistical difficulties in working with many disparate groups spread across the country, but it is also because the strongest rebel factions are linked to Al-Qaeda. The change in emphasis could present an opportunity to realign Syria policy more closely with Washington, after Riyadh fell out with its superpower ally last year, accusing the administration of Barack Obama of foresaking Syria’s rebels. Obama is due to visit Saudi Arabia in March. “The Saudis have to prepare a clear vision on what’s happening in Syria and on what they want in Syria.

Counter terrorism plays a big role in American thinking, and in Saudi thinking,” said Mustafa Alani, an analyst with the Gulf Research Centre, based in Jeddah and Geneva. Prince Mohammed, the interior minister, enjoys close relations with U.S. security officials, shares their concerns about Islamist militants, and met Central Intelligence Agency head John Brennan in Washington on Monday.

Obama Visit Riyadh and Washington argued last year over Syria after Obama decided against bombing Assad following a poison gas attack in Damascus, a decision Saudi leaders feared would encourage Iran to take a more open role in the conflict.

However, Saudi leaders still hope Washington will play a bigger role in supporting the Syrian opposition, particularly if the first peace talks between the government and its foes, which began last month in Geneva, fall through. “They’re trying to find a way back to a more joined-up approach with the US, UK and France.

They have the same goal of preventing radical contagion and all want to see Assad gone,” said the senior diplomatic source.

For now, the lower profile assumed by Bandar has complicated the war effort, say analysts. “It’s a problem. He was the man who was brought in for this task because it’s a regional and international issue and he is good at this sort of dealing. His absence is unfortunate but his staff is still active,” said Alani, who has close ties to the Saudi security establishment. The kingdom’s Syria policy is being carried out on several fronts, with a diplomatic effort led by Foreign Minister Prince Saud AlFaisal and a military training scheme for rebels under deputy defence minister Prince Salman bin Sultan. But the wider effort to unite the rebels falls squarely in Prince Bandar’s inbox, and has been hampered by disagreements among the rebels’ main foreign backers over which groups are safe to support.

Diplomats say the Saudis believe Qatar - the other rich Gulf monarchy backing the rebels - has been willing to back more radical Islamist groups in Syria than the Saudis have been comfortable with, to Riyadh’s chagrin. Western countries fear that even those Riyadh supports are too militant.

However, while the diplomatic and Saudi sources agree that the adjusted focus on Syria policy is due to Interior Minister Prince Mohammed pushing his concerns on radicalisation, it appears unlikely he will take a wider role in the war effort. “He is careful not to overstretch himself and to involve himself in major external political issues unnecessarily,” said Alani, pointing to the example of Interior Ministry involvement in Yemen, Saudi Arabia’s southern neighbour. In Yemen, the Interior Ministry runs operations aimed against Al-Qaeda, but it leaves broader issues of development and internal politics to other departments, he said. — Reuters

Family fear for disappeared drone activist

By Issam Ahmed he family of a kidnapped Pakistani anti-drone campaigner spoke yesterday of their fears for his safety, as his lawyer accused the government of wanting to make an example of him. Kareem Khan was picked up by the security forces from his home in the outskirts of Islamabad on Feb 5, according to his legal team, just days before he was due to testify before three European parliaments. The freelance journalist was also fighting a legal case in which he had named both the CIA’s former station chief and the government of Pakistan for their roles in the US drone programme in the country’s tribal areas.

Khan’s brother and teenage son were killed in a drone attack in their native North Waziristan district in Dec 2009. Dil Bar Jan, Khan’s brother-in-law who lodged a police report over his disappearance, said the family was very worried about what would happen to him. “The kids, my sister, my uncle and I are all very worried and anxious,” he told AFP at Khan’s lawyer’s office, accompanied by his young nephews who witnessed the kidnapping. “We haven’t done anything that is anti-state, nor do any of us have bad intentions towards anyone. We’re from an educated family, we’re all government employees, I myself am a teacher. We can’t think of doing something wrong.”

A court has asked police to produce Khan, who is in his fifties, on Wednesday. His lawyer Shahzad Akbar said he was pinning his hopes on public pressure to force the government to release him. “This is a completely illegal disappearance, which means some kind of pressure is being applied through his disappearance to the other drone victims,” Akbar said.

“Normally if someone is picked up they are held a few days and they come back, so every passing moment makes it less likely,” he said.

T

Controversial campaign Officially, Pakistan condemns the CIA’s drone campaign targeting Taleban and Al-Qaeda militants in the country’s tribal areas as counterproductive and a violation of sovereignty. But according to numerous leaked documents it has in the past privately condoned their use, and observers believe the case brought by Khan could embarrass the government. US officials defend the drone campaign as legally sound and an important weapon in the fight against extremism. Khan’s disappearance has echoes of the case of journalist Saleem Shahzad, who was

found dead near the capital Islamabad in 2010 after writing about links between the Pakistani military and Al-Qaeda.

Khan’s 18-year-old-son and brother were killed when a drone missile struck a gathering in North Waziristan on Dec 31 2009. His son was a security guard at a school while his brother was an English teacher. According to an AFP tally, 2,155 people have been killed in drone attacks since Aug 2008, with critics charging that the strikes cause many civilian casualties. The UN General Assembly passed a resolution in December 2013 calling on states using drone strikes as a counter-terrorism measure to comply with their obligations under international law

and the UN Charter.

Pakistan last month passed a new law allowing its security forces to detain terror suspects for up to 90 days without disclosing their whereabouts or the allegations against them. The law appeared to be an attempt to give legal cover to the cases of so-called “missing persons”, suspects who disappear into custody of the security services with no information given to their relatives. A campaign group formed by the relatives of the missing persons says as many as 2,000 people have disappeared from across the country, many from the restive southwestern province of Baluchistan. — AFP

Pakistani children stand on a balcony at the house of anti-drone campaigner Kareem Khan in Rawalpindi yesterday. — AFP

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2014

S P ORTS

Yuvraj in World T20 squad

‘Brad’ pack to lead Aussies

No Kaka for Brazil friendly

NEW DELHI: All-rounder Yuvraj Singh’s limited over prowess secured him a place in India’s 15-member squad yesterday for the World Twenty20 in Bangladesh next month. One of the cleanest strikers of the ball and more than a handy left-arm spinner, Singh, 32, was instrumental in India’s triumph in the inaugural World Twenty20 in 2007 where he hit England paceman Stuart Broad for six sixes in an over.

Though he could not cement his place in the test squad, Singh, 32, was also the architect of India’s 50-over World Cup 2011 victory at home where his all-round exploits earned him the player of the tournament award.

Singh was not part of the Indian 50-over squad in New Zealand which lost the five-match series 4-0. Stuart Binny, son of former India all-rounder Roger, was also named in the squad to be led by Mahendra Singh Dhoni who would be seeking his third world title in Bangladesh.

Off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin and all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja are expected to share the spin workload even though the selectors included a third spinner in leggie Amit Mishra. India begin their World Twenty20 campaign against 2009 champions Pakistan in Dhaka on March 21. —Reuters

SYDNEY: Australia have opted for experience over youth in an attempt to win a maiden World Twenty20 title by selecting veterans Brad Hogg, Brad Hodge and Brad Haddin in their 15-man squad for the tournament in Bangladesh next month.

The 43-year-old Hogg played his last test in 2008 but the spin bowler was man of the match in last week’s Big Bash final for the victorious Perth Scorchers and is now set to become the oldest player in the history of international T20 cricket.

Middle-order batsman Hodge, 39, also played his last test six years ago but is rewarded with a call up after celebrating his own career renaissance following years spent on the outer fringes of Australian selection. The notion that the shortest form of cricket is a young man’s game has been further dismissed by the selection of 36-year-old test wicketkeeper Haddin, who replaces Matthew Wade after a sparkling display with the bat in the 50 Ashes series win over England.

“We have selected a squad that has plenty of experience playing the Twenty20 format in the sub-continent, which augers well for the challenges of Bangladesh,” chairman of selectors John Inverarity said in a statement yesterday. “We have a group with good depth in power hitting and a range of bowling options.” Australia open their campaign against Pakistan in Mirpur on March 23 but will first head to South Africa for a series of warmup internationals leading into the tournament.—Reuters

RIO DE JANEIRO: Brazil coach Luiz Felipe Scolari yesterday brought in two new faces but dropped AC Milan veteran Kaka in unveiling his Europe-based players to face South Africa in a March 5 friendly.

Scolari, architect of Brazil’s 2002 World Cup success in Japan as well as last year’s home triumph over Spain on the Confederations Cup, said he will call up three more home-based players ahead of the game in Johannesburg.

The new faces are Bayern Munich defender Rafinha and Manchester City midfielder Fernandinho. Brazil will be without Fluminense striker Fred, who scored five times in the Confederations Cup, as the 30-year-old aggravated a serious thigh injury last week. Aside from Fred, the World Cup hosts are short of forwards and last year saw Atletico Madrid’s inform Brazil-born forward Diego Costa elect to play for his adopted country, Spain.

Former Milan star Alexandre Pato is out of form and goalscoring duties will be borne, at least against South Africa, by Neymar and Zenit St Petersburg striker Hulk with Bernard of Shakhtar Donetsk providing back-up. There was no place for Lucas or Maxwell of Paris Saint Germain. Julio Cesar retains his slot as undeisputed first choice goalkeeper despite not playing all season with English Championship side Queens Park Rangers.—Reuters

NBA results/standings Indiana 119, Denver 80; Toronto 108, New Orleans 101; Detroit 109, San Antonio 100; Boston 102, Milwaukee 86; Houston 107, Minnesota 89.

Eastern Conference Atlantic Division W L 27 24 23 26 20 31 19 34 15 38

PCT .529 .469 .392 .358 .283

GB 3 7 9 13

Indiana Chicago Detroit Cleveland Milwaukee

Central Division 40 11 25 25 22 29 18 33 9 42

.784 .500 .431 .353 .176

14.5 18 22 31

Miami Atlanta Washington Charlotte Orlando

Southeast Division 35 14 25 24 25 25 22 29 16 37

.714 .510 .500 .431 .302

10 10.5 14 21

Oklahoma City Portland Denver Minnesota Utah

Western Conference Northwest Division 41 12 36 15 24 26 24 28 17 33

.774 .706 .480 .462 .340

4 15.5 16.5 22.5

Toronto Brooklyn NY Knicks Boston Philadelphia

LA Clippers Phoenix Golden State LA Lakers Sacramento

Pacific Division 36 18 30 20 31 21 18 33 17 34

.667 .600 .596 .353 .333

4 4 16.5 17.5

San Antonio Houston Dallas Memphis New Orleans

Southwest Division 37 15 35 17 31 21 27 23 22 29

.712 .673 .596 .540 .431

2 6 9 14.5

Warriors pound 76ers OAKLAND: Marreese Speights scored a career-high 32 points to hand his former team a near-record setback, leading the Golden State Warriors past the woeful Philadelphia 76ers 123-80 on Monday night. Philadelphia, which lost 12378 at the Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday night in a game it trailed by 56 points in the third quarter, nearly matched the NBA mark for the largest total margin of defeat in consecutive games. The Detroit Pistons lost by 95 points combined in back-to-back games in November 1966, according to STATS. Michael Carter-Williams scored 24 points for a rebuilding 76ers team that never put up much of a fight. The two-game stretch was the worst in nearly 20 years for the 76ers, who lost back-to-back games in April 1994 by a combined 93 points. No other team in NBA history has lost two straight games by at least 40 points each. Philadelphia has now done it twice. Speights finished 12-of-15 shooting and grabbed eight rebounds, and Stephen Curry added 23 points and eight assists to help the Warriors go ahead by 49 in the fourth quarter.

PISTONS 109, SPURS 100 Brandon Jennings scored 21 points and the Detroit Pistons beat the San Antonio Spurs in John Loyer’s first game as interim coach. Detroit abruptly fired Maurice Cheeks on Sunday after only 50 games as coach, but although they’ve been unimpressive for the most part this season, the Pistons have played better lately. The comfortable win over the Spurs was Detroit’s fifth in seven games.

Rodney Stuckey scored 20 points for the Pistons, and Greg Monroe added 15 points and 10 rebounds. Marco Belinelli led the Spurs with 20 points. Detroit pulled even with Charlotte for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.

ROCKETS 107, TIMBERWOLVES 89 Dwight Howard had 18 points and 15 rebounds, and the surging Houston Rockets used a fourth-quarter push to hold off the Minnesota Timberwolves for their sixth consecutive victory. Chandler Parsons had 20 points and James Harden scored 19 for the Rockets, who have won six straight for the first time since taking seven in a row from Jan. 13-23, 2012.

Back after missing one game with a bruised left quadriceps, Kevin Love led Minnesota with 31 points and 10 rebounds. Chase Budinger had 15 points for the Timberwolves, who have lost four straight and six of seven.

PACERS 119, NUGGETS 80 David West scored 25 points and Roy Hibbert added 14 as the Indiana Pacers routed the short-handed Denver Nuggets. Indiana snapped a five-game skid in the series, beating the Nuggets for the first time since a 31-point

With a new commissioner, NBA enters its Silver age NEW YORK: His name is already on the ball. Now Adam Silver can put his stamp on the NBA. On AllStar Saturday in New Orleans, Silver will deliver his first state of the league news conference as commissioner, a chance to tell a worldwide viewing audience how he plans to make the NBA bigger and better than it was under David Stern. Don’t expect anything major.

After working so closely with Stern during his 22 years at the league, Silver’s fingerprints were already all over the $5.5 billion business long before he became in charge of it this month.

“I’m not coming in with a five-point plan,” Silver told The Associated Press during an interview in his office at NBA headquarters. “I’m not an outsider coming into the league. I’ve been part of this league for a long time and if there was something that I thought should’ve been done markedly different than the way it’s done now, I think David and I would have pushed each other to do it.

“My priority is the game and that’s what I’ll be telling people next Saturday.” He has been at the NBA since 1992, overseeing the league’s entertainment empire, helping negotiate collective bargaining agreements, and on Feb. 1, he replaced Stern. He is liked by owners and respected by players, all believing Silver is the person to continue the massive growth the league saw under Stern.

“He’s someone who has the same kind of feel that we have, in the sense of how can we make this pie bigger? How can we make this game bigger?” Miami Heat All-Star Dwyane Wade said.

“He’s going to be a good commissioner I believe. Strong in what he believes in. He was in the (CBA) meetings as well, so we know what kind of guy he is and we respect him.”

While the NBA’s international growth is frequently considered Stern’s greatest achievement, Silver seems focused on boosting the game’s popularity in the United States.

Silver, 51, has always been ahead of the curve when it comes to basketball. He attended Duke University in the early 1980s before the Blue Devils became a powerhouse, when nobody camped out outside Cameron Indoor Stadium because you could just get into games with a student ID. He moved to Chicago to attend law school and began going to games with friends in the early days of Michael Jordan, before the Bulls became the biggest thing in basketball.

Now Silver is following one of American sports’ greatest commissioners. He acknowledges there will be times it will feel “lonely” without Stern there to face big decisions together, but Silver has worked so closely with Stern and been involved in so many aspects of the league that the transition should be a natural one. “Adam has been preparing for the job for a long time, he understands the business and I don’t see him having much difficulty shifting into the role of commissioner,” former NBA Players Association executive director Billy Hunter said.

But Silver, designated as Stern’s successor in October 2012, knows that doesn’t mean it will always be easy. “I didn’t have the same appreciation for what he was going through on a daily basis as the commissioner until I really thought about, ‘What if that were I and I had to make that decision?’” Silver said. “And it’s very different being sort of the voice in the ear of the guy making the decision as opposed to the guy making the decision.”

Nonetheless, he believes the league is in a good place and ready to grow. He met with executives from Facebook and Twitter while visiting Sacramento and Golden State during his first week as commissioner, seeking ways to bring the NBA to a larger audience than ever. “To me,” Silver said, “the game is fantastic. The challenge is to use these new technologies and platforms to help more fans discover the game.”— AP

blowout in November 2010. The Pacers (40-11) still have the NBA’s best record, the league’s best home record (25-2) and now lead two-time defending champion Miami by four games in the Eastern Conference.

Wilson Chandler scored 17 points to lead the Nuggets (24-26), who have lost three straight. They played without several injured players, including Andre Miller, Danilo Gallinari, JaVale McGee, Nate Robinson and Ty Lawson.

RAPTORS 108, PELICANS 101 Kyle Lowry had 19 points and 12 assists, Patrick Patterson scored a season-high 22 and the Toronto Raptors beat the New Orleans Pelicans.DeMar DeRozan also had 22 points, Terrence Ross added 14 and Tyler Hansbrough scored 12 for Toronto, which has won five consecutive meetings and seven of eight against New Orleans. The first-place Raptors moved three games ahead of Brooklyn in the Atlantic Division by winning for the ninth time in 11 home games.

Tyreke Evans had 23 points and 10 assists, and Anthony Davis scored 19 for the Pelicans, who lost their second straight and have dropped four consecutive games in Toronto.

CELTICS 102, BUCKS 86 Jeff Green scored 29 points and Kelly Olynyk added 14 points and 11 rebounds as the Boston Celtics pulled away from the Milwaukee Bucks in the fourth quarter.

The Celtics used a 12-4 run to start the final quarter to break open what had been a tight game. Green had seven points during the spurt and 11 overall in the quarter, while Olynyk scored 10 after Boston entered the fourth clinging to a 70-68 lead.Jared Sullinger added 13 points and 10 rebounds for Boston. Brandon Knight had 22 points for Milwaukee, which also got 17 points from Gary Neal and 16 points from John Henson before he left late in the game with an ankle injury. —AP

OAKLAND: Philadelphia 76ers’ Michael Carter-Williams (1) dribbles next to Golden State Warriors’ Klay Thompson during the first half of an NBA basketball game. — AP

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2014

S P ORTS

Hepburn wins Qatar time trial as Terpstra tightens his grip

Wilhelmsen and Gulf Agency shine KUWAIT: Wilhelmsen Ships Service (WSS) are back in the tournament with a 16 runs victory over Dana Kuwait Shipping (DKS) in the first match played on 6th February 2014, at Sulaibiya floodlight stadium.

Winning the toss, DKS put in WSS to bat expecting their bowlers could make use of the due factor on the pitch. Despite of some fair piece of bowling from DKS’ medium pace bowlers (Dileep 3/18, Dean 2/8 & Romeo 2/15), WSS reached to 121/10 in 20 overs (Sanu 30, Asaad 28) which was a decent score of that wicket. WSS bowling squad was in great form (Jayan 2/10, Shinu 2/14 & Sanu 2/18) and DKS lost wickets in regular intervals and ended up in 105 (Stanley 31, Hari 12).

Sanu, WSS Skipper was declared Man of the Match for his all-round performance.

Udaya Liyanagamage, Senior Supervisor International Removals of Alghanim Freight presented the Man of the Match award and a cash award of $25 sponsored by Trans Continental Shipping Services Co. was presented by Mahmood Ismail, General Manager

of Transcontinental Shipping Services Co. Second match of the day was played between Kuwait Transcontinental Shipping (KTS) and Gulf Agencies Company (GAC). KTS won the toss and elected to bat first. GAC’s bowlers showed amazing form in the field and they bowled out KTS for just 77 runs.

Only Nadeem Murad (29) of KTS scored a double figure. GAC’s bowlers were very accurate in hitting the target (Muffadal 3/14, Zahid 2/3). The target of 78 looked so easy for the GAC batsmen and they rushed to the target in 10.2 overs with the loss of just one wicket (Zahid Gul 30, Billy Jacob 18, Muffadal 18 & Shiju 1/24).

Zahid Gul of GAC was declared man of the Match for his outstanding performance with bat and ball and the Man of The Match award and cash prize of USD 25 from Transcontinental Shipping Services Co was presented by Mohamed Rafaq Fazal Ahmed Chaudhary, Senior Supervisor, Al Maqwah Co for Transportation Part of Transcontinental Shipping Services Co.

Bell tolls for legendary Thai boxing stadium BANGKOK: Every muscle of Sattan Muanglek’s body glistened as he was rubbed down by his trainer with liniment, its herbal odor permeating the dank corridors of Bangkok’s legendary Lumpinee Boxing Stadium before a historic fight.

For once the Thai fighter was not focused on the prize. Friday’s match was his last in one of Bangkok’s oldest boxing venues, which will be demolished after 57 years to make way for high-rise urban development. “Lumpinee closing has left me speechless. I could barely concentrate the first time I boxed here I was so excited. This is where every young boy dreams of fighting,” said Sattan.

Like many men who choose the rigorous life of a Thai boxer, 21-year-old Sattan came from a poor background and saw the national sport as a means to support his extended family. “Muay Thai”, a violent sport that can make western boxing look tame, is said to be 2,000 years old. Known as “The Art of Eight Limbs” for its extensive use of hands, elbows, feet and knees, it also mixes religious beliefs with traditional cultural practices. Lumpinee’s circular structure, with an ageing tin roof that lets in rain and sunlight, is a stone’s throw from the central oasis of Lumpini Park and had avoided

Bangkok’s frenetic building boom. The stadium harks back to the capital’s golden days before the invasion of skyscrapers that now soar above it. But it stands on prime real estate and its lease was not renewed by the Crown Property Bureau, one of Bangkok’s biggest landlords and the fund that supports Thailand’s monarchy.

That is forcing the stadium to move to a new venue on the outer fringes of the sprawling city - a logistical hassle for tourists and Thais who have flocked to Lumpinee for decades.

CROWD HOOKED The fund plans to build condominiums near the old stadium. “Nothing will be left in this spot. The stadium will be completely dismantled. But change is necessary,” said Surakai Chuttumart, director of Lumpinee Boxing Stadium.

He reminisced about a particularly memorable match between “Rambo” Ponsiri and Paluhadlek Sitchungtong that brought more than 10,000 fans to the stadium, pushing its capacity of 9,000 to bursting point.

“They had the crowd hooked every minute,” said Surakai. “This stadium will be gone but the memory of legends that have fought here will remain.”—Reuters

Boubyan Bank team

LOSAIL: Australia’s double world pursuit champion Michael Hepburn (Orica) won the Tour of Qatar’s third stage, a 10km time trial at the Losail motor circuit, ahead of Dutch rider Lars Bloom and Italy’s Danielle Benati, yesterday.

Niki Terpstra (Omega Pharma) of the Netherlands came in fifth to stretch his lead in the overall standings. Going into the final two days’ racing, Terpstra is 21 seconds up on Belgium’s Jurgen Boelnadts with Bloom at 24sec and Tom Boonen, his main rival, 28sec behind.

“It’s a good scenario for Niki, he’s in a favourable position and all the more so as our team is in good form and is doing well at defending the jersey,” said Omega Pharma sporting director Wilfried Peeters.

In Tuesday’s race agianst the clock, Hepburn set off 12th of the 150 riders and posted a time of 13 minutes 28 seconds, which was never bettered. The gold medallist in individual and team pursuit at the world track championships in Minsk last year denied Bloom by one second with Benati a further five seconds back.

“This Tour of Qatar didn’t start well for me with two punctures and a fall. But this morning I was feeling really good,” said the rider from Brisbane. “I controlled my effort well to put a lot of power into the second part.”

Favorite to prevail at the circuit which is home to the Qatar motorcycling Grand Prix was Fabian Cancellara, who had to settle for fourth. The Swiss Trek team rider said: “The last three kilometres were very hard, clearly I was missing some strength.

Not worried “But I’m not worried, this is my seventh day of racing on the trot and it’s normal when you’re in the middle of preparing to have off days. “It’s in April that you have to be ready.”

Today’s fourth and penultimate stage is a 135km ride from Dukhan to Mesaeeid.

Meanwhile, an inquiry commission set up by cycling’s global governing body the UCI on Tuesday appealed to riders who were doped in the past to come forward in exchange for reduced punishment. “The primary purpose of our investigation is not to punish doping offenders but to learn from the past so we can help ensure a better future for cycling,” commission chief Dick Marty said in a statement.

“We will treat all witnesses fairly and so I urge anyone in the cycling community with information that can help our investigation to come forward,” he added.

The three-member Cycling Independent Reform Commission was set up in January to investigate historic doping in cycling and allegations that the UCI had been involved in previous wrongdoing. The commission said its main goal is to determine how a culture of doping was perpetuated between 1998 and 2013, and to establish who was to blame.

Reduced sanctions It has the power to propose reduced sanctions to any rider, official, agent, race organiser or team staff member who admits to an anti-doping offence. It can reduce the sanction further if the individual provides valuable information concerning doping practices, and is also empowered to let those who confess keep past prize money.

And it also has the power to propose case-by-case reductions for anyone currently suspended from the sport and who reveals more details-though any such softening will have to be approved by the original sanctioning body, the UCI and the World Anti-Doping Agency.

Its probe is to conducted on a strictly confidential basis, it underlined. The commissioned was created after the ugly UCI leadership contest of September 2013, which saw Briton Brian Cookson oust Irishman Pat McQuaid.

McQuaid was in charge for eight years, succeeding Dutchman Hein Verbruggen, in the saddle from 1991 to 2005. They have rejected claims that while they were in power, the UCI did too little to stem doping and beat the cheats, notably disgraced US rider Lance Armstrong.

“The Cycling Independent Reform Commission will not only help us learn from the past, but will also play an important role in shaping our future processes and practices,” Cookson said on Tuesday.

Swiss member of parliament and former prosecutor Marty was a heavyweight choice to head the commission.

He has also headed a Council of Europe probe into US “rendition” flights and secret prisons for al-Qaeda suspects, and an inquiry into human organ trafficking in Kosovo involving serving politicians. The other members of the commission are German anti-doping and legal expert Ulrich Haas, and Australian Peter Nicholson, a former United Nations criminal investigator. — Agencies

Kuwait Finance House team

QATAR: Niki Terpstra of the Netherlands and the Omega Pharma-Quick Step team competes in Tour of Qatar. — AFP

Clarke: Aussies on a high, ready for South Africa CENTURION: Whatever the “poverty,” as one reporter described it, of England’s performances in the Ashes, Australia will discover over the next three weeks just how good its revived Test team is.

Australia can’t overtake South Africa as the top-ranked team - even if it wins this series 3-0 - but that doesn’t matter a bit for either. Only a series victory does and Australia’s 5-0 whitewash of England sent it to South Africa with ideal preparation, if an Ashes series can be viewed as that.

While disagreeing with the reporter’s assessment of England, Australia captain Michael Clarke said on Tuesday that South Africa’s No. 1 ranking was undoubtedly well-earned, and the Australians will discover how far off the top they are.

“They’ve earned their No. 1 ranking, they’re the best team in the world,” Clarke said at SuperSport Park the day before the first test. “And that’s the challenge you want as a player. It’s a great challenge and test and opportunity for this Australian team that’s high on confidence at the moment through the success we had in the Australian summer, but we’re up against a very good opposition, there’s no doubt about it.”

Australia dominated England off the back of a fast bowling trio led by Mitchell Johnson. In South Africa, Australia’s batsmen will face a similarly aggressive threat from the home attack that includes No. 1ranked test bowler Vernon Philander and No. 2 Dale Steyn.

Previously, in his first media opportunity in South Africa, Clarke immediately backed his quicks as the best in the world and better than South Africa’s, comments pounced on and poured over by the home media.

Australia’s other bowlers hinted that South Africa’s batsmen also won’t be able to handle the pace of Johnson and the aggression of the Aussies.

“We don’t expect anything different,” South Africa captain Graeme Smith said.

“We have a good idea of how to counter it and ultimately it’s all a sideshow. It’s all about the cricket.”

With two lethal fast bowling attacks, the batsmen in both lineups will probably face the most pressure throughout the threematch series. Clarke was asked, a little mischievously, if he rated his batsmen above the South Africans as he did with his bowlers.

“We’re about to find out, aren’t we?”

Clarke replied. In fact, despite the hype over a meeting of two of cricket’s most aggressive teams, and two in-form teams, a war of words has not broken out ahead of the contest. Clarke recognized the Proteas’ bowlers as “probably the best bowlers that I’ve faced in my career.” Smith and the South Africans have made a point, they say, of not letting the talk overshadow the cricket. “I think the Aussies have been good for ticket sales and newspaper sales and that’s been beneficial from that perspective,” Smith said. “It’s been business as usual for us, really.” — AP

National Bank of Kuwait team

Ahli United, NBK, KFH and Boubyan Bank in semis KUWAIT: Riding on a magnificent 56 runs by Rifkaz Ibrahim, Boubyan Bank upset the applecart of Kuwait Finance House to top the group in the KBC League 2014, an exclusive cricket tournament designed for bank teams affiliated to Kuwait Banks club and organized by Kuwait Cricket.

Boubyan skipper Faraaz won the toss and elected to bat first but the decision seemed to have an adverse effect as openers Aamer & Akbar were back in the pavilion as KFH bowlers Faraz & Irfan Bhatti bowled a hostile spell of seam bowling.

Rifkaz was soon joined by seasoned campaigner Hisham Mirza and the duo steadied the innings. The stylish Rifkaaz was in tremendous form as he cut and drove with authority to post an 84 runs partnership with Hisham.

Hisham played a sensible knock of 40 runs with 6 boundaries. Boubyan scored 150 runs in their allotted 20 overs

for the loss of 9 wickets. Zahid and Faraz accounted for 3 wickets each for KFH. Chasing a decent total of 150, KFH lost Abdulla quite soon and it was the positive approach of Zahid and Faraz again which brought some life to KFH batting. Zahid was in

KBC League 2014 excellent touch as he played a cameo knock of 32 runs in just 16 balls (3 fours and 12 sixes) while Faras remained the top scorer for KFH with a fine knock of 49 runs.

It was a tremendous effort by Boubyan fielders who ran out 4 KFH batsmen along with some fine bowling by Irfan who captured 3-37 which enabled Boubyan to score a 26

run victory over their fancied rival. Both the teams have qualified to the cup semi-final. Rifkaz who bowled well was adjudged as Player of the Match for his all round cricketing skills.

NBK notched a mammoth 144 runs victory over Gulf Bank to reach the last four of the KBC League 2014. Super batting display by Khurram who scored a scintillating 74 runs and a solid 38 runs by Shakhti enabled NBK to score 185 runs in 20 overs.

Kiran Lobo struck a sweetly timed 36 runs with 2 huge sixes to add more color to the NBK total. Bilal 2-14 and Tariq 2-33 were the best bowlers for Gulf Bank.

Gulf Bank batsmen were soon in trouble facing Khurram and were skittled out for 41 runs. Imran and Kiran supported Khurram by bagging 2 wickets each and partnered in a great victory. Khurram was declared Player of the Match for his excellent batting.

Ahli United Bank prevailed over Kuwait International Bank by 123 run margin to scale into the semi- final in the KBC League 2014. An enterprising partnership of 92 runs

by Jagath and Dinesh helped AUB to post 182 runs in their allotted 20 overs. Jagath struck the cherry with awesome power to score a marvelous 65 runs with 4 hits to the boundary while Dinesh scored a classical 47 runs which had 6 beautifully timed hits to the fence. Nabeel Ghafoor launched a fierce attack to score a quickfire 26 runs in just 9 ball with 3 huge sixes. Mohsin took 2 wickets while Robin and Sheraz took a wicket each.

Kuwait International Bank withstood the AUB attack for 17 overs but were unable to score much as they were all out for 59 runs. Nabeel bowled well to take 3-9 while Dinesh captured 3 wickets with his slow bowling. Jagath was declared Player of the Match for his top notch batting display.

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2014

S P ORT S

Stunning Domracheva makes history for Belarus in biathlon

KRASNAYA POLYANA: (From left to right) silver medalist, Tatjana Huefner of Germany, gold medalist Natalie Geisenberger of Germany and bronze medalist Erin Hamlin of the United States pose with their flags after the women’s singles luge competition. — AP

Geisenberger eases to first gold ROSA KHUTOR: Germany’s Natalie Geisenberger was in a class of her own, smashing the track record for the second time at the Sochi Games to secure a commanding victory in the women’s luge and her first Olympic title. Geisenberger’s superiority was such that she was the only slider to clock under 50 seconds - a feat she managed on three of her four runs.

Her dominant performance easily eclipsed the Vancouver Olympic champion and compatriot Tatjana Huefner, who settled for silver, while an emotional Erin Hamlin won bronze, the first ever medal by an American luger in singles.

“Runs one, two and three were nearly perfect,” said Geisenberger. “The feeling was that I could make a little mistake (on her fourth and final run) and still win that was a good feeling.”

Germany, who also celebrated gold on Monday when Felix Loch successfully defended his men’s title, has won 12 of the 15 available medals in the women’s event from 1998, including all five golds.

Geisenberger, 26, belongs to the same Berchtesgaden training group, along with Loch, that comes under the wing of three-time Olympic champion Georg Hackl in the German luge mecca of

Koenigssee in Bavaria. She came into the Games having dominated the World Cup circuit, winning seven of eight events this season, and she set the tone on Monday with a track record on her first run.

Geisenberger won the bronze four years ago and her only problem in scorching to gold this time appeared to have been a shoe malfunction before the start on the first day.

“Someone had to pull it off my foot and I put another one on,” she said. With a commanding lead from day one, Geisenberger returned to the Sanki Siding Centre yesterday and promptly set another track record, this time a 49.765 seconds blitz.

With gold in her grasp, she did not have to push with her final slide and eased to victory by 1.139 seconds — the third biggest margin in women’s singles since luge was introduced at the Games in 1964.

Hamlin, who put an end to Germany’s 12-year world championship reign in 2009, was thrilled to reach the podium. “I was the first American to win the worlds and now I’ve done this, I hope it paves the way for a new generation of female American lugers,” she said. “I haven’t turned my phone on for 24 hours, when I do it’s going to explode. — Reuters

SOCHI: Darya Domracheva of Belarus on Tuesday won the ex-Soviet state’s first ever women’s gold at the Winter Olympics when she destroyed the field in the 10 km biathlon pursuit.

Domracheva, 27, crossed the line in 29min 30.7sec, 37.6sec ahead of her nearest rival Tora Berger of Norway, who took silver. Bronze went to Teja Gregorin of Slovenia (30:12.7).

Setting a blistering sk i pace, the Belarussian missed no targets in the two prone shoots or the first standing. She missed one of the five targets in the final standing but still had time after her penalty loop to pick up a Belarussian flag and wave it in triumph as she headed to the finish.

Hosts Russia missed out gold again, with their highest placed athlete Olga Vilukhina coming just seventh. With no Russian in medal contention, the thousands of Russian fans in the stands at the Laura biathlon centre above Sochi gave “Dasha” Domracheva their vocal support.

“I’m so grateful for the support I got here for this high-class race,” Domracheva said. “The feeling was great, the support was cool, especially when I had enough time to dance with the flag at the finish.”

Domracheva said she did not panic after missing her final target. “I knew I had enough time so I wasn’t disappointed.”

After a catalogue of falls on a high speed hairpin bend in the men’s pursuit, Domracheva said she knew she needed to keep her concentration until the very end.

The warm conditions on the undulating course with slushy snow were also tough going. “It’s really warm here. The snow is soft and together with the topography and the weather, it made me work hard.”

Brought up in Russia Belarussian freestyle sk ier Alexei Grishin won the men’s freestyle aerials in Vancouver in 2010 but no Belarussian woman had ever won gold before at the Winter Olympics. Domracheva had previously picked up a bronze in Vancouver and two world titles.

Anastasiya Kuzmina, Russian-born but representing Slovakia, led out the pursuit race after winning gold in the sprint. She was in contention for a medal throughout but finished in sixth after missing her final target.

Kuzmina’s gold in the sprint left a bitter taste in the mouth of Russia’s sports bosses given she had represented her native country before switching to Slovakia.

They might also now be regretting that Domracheva was allowed to get away.

Although born in Minsk, Domracheva moved to Siberia in Russia at an early age

KRASNAYA POLYANA: Belarus’ Darya Domracheva skis on her way to win the gold medal in the women’s biathlon 10k pursuit, at the 2014 Winter Olympics. — AP

Olympics Medals Table SOCHI: Following is the medals tally at the Sochi Winter Olympics yesterday.

Rank 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 10 10 10 14 15 16 17 17 19 19 21 21

Country Norway Canada Germany Netherlands United States Switzerland Russian Fed. Austria France Belarus Korea Poland Slovakia Sweden Czech Republic Slovenia Italy Japan China Finland Britain Ukraine

Gold 4 4 4 3 2 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

with her architect parents.

It was in Siberia that she took her first steps in biathlon and turned out for the Russian junior biathlon team. But she returned to her native Minsk and was rapidly approached by Belarussian coaches with an offer to become a member of the Belarussian biathlon squad.

Along with tennis star Victoria Azarenka, she is now one of the most fet-

Silver 3 3 1 2 1 0 3 3 0 0 0 0 0 3 2 1 1 1 1 1 0 0

Bronze 4 2 0 3 4 0 3 0 2 0 0 0 0 1 1 2 1 1 0 0 1 1

Total 11 9 5 8 7 2 7 4 3 1 1 1 1 4 3 3 2 2 1 1 1 1

ed spor ts stars in her countr y, where strongman President Alexander Luk ashenko takes a huge interest in sports.

Domracheva said that she thought of her mother back in the Belarussian capital as she claimed her gold. “I had an image in my head. I imagined my mum in Minsk, sitting in front of the television and I could imagine how happy she was.”— AFP

Volosozhar, Trankov waltz to pairs lead

SOCHI: Team Russia celebrates their 2-1 win over Japan during the 2014 Winter Olympics women’s ice hockey game at Shayba Arena. — AP

Russia sink Japan to reach quarters SOCHI: Russia secured a spot in the quarter-finals of the women’s ice hockey tournament following a 2-1 win over Japan at the Sochi Olympics yesterday.

Alexandra Vafina broke a 1-1 tie with a short-handed goal late in the third period, setting off wild celebrations among the many flag-waving Russian supporters in attendance at the packed Shayba Arena.

Japanese goalie Nana Fujimoto was outstanding in the losing effort, turning aside 36 shots.

Russia, who reached the quarter-finals by securing one of the top two spots in Group B, close out their preliminary round on Thursday with a game against undefeated Sweden.

UNFINISHED BUSINESS Zach Parise and his USA teammates have some unfinished business to take care of at the Sochi Olympics after coming within a goal of striking gold four years ago in Vancouver.

The memory of their 3-2 loss in the gold medal game, when Sidney Crosby scored in overtime for Canada, is still fresh in their minds. “We came so close in Vancouver,” said Parise. “It was a tough way for us to finish. “We know that just because we finished second the last time there is no guarantee we are going to get back to gold medal game. A lot of things have to go right.”

The Americans may not have the star power on offence that Russia and Canada or even Sweden boasts, but they are deep in goal which is key for any team hoping to make a run at a medal.

The 2010 silver medallists will likely go with Jonathan Quick as their No. 1 followed by Ryan Miller and Jimmy Howard. And talented forward Patrick Kane could turn out to be the biggest game breaker of the tournament for any team.

He was the USA’s best forward in Vancouver and he anchors an explosive powerplay that also includes Dustin Brown and Parise.

“The Olympics is a place you can make a name for yourself,” said associate general manager Ray Shero.

Kane, who has a silver medal from 2010 and has won

two Stanley Cup championships with the Chicago Blackhawks, said he’s going to be even more focussed in Sochi.

“The gold medal game was special but I was young and naive. I didn’t realize how big a game it was at the time. It would be nice to get back in that situation,” said Kane, who has 27 goals and 63 points in 59 games with Chicago this season.

BITTER MEMORIES Brown said he still has bitter memories of how they lost to Canada. “Sometimes a loss motivates you more than anything else,” Brown said. “I keep it in the back of my mind.

“In 2010 no one gave us a chance. It is always about the expectations you put on each other in the dressing room. We are itching to play at an Olympic level.”

The Americans are in the difficult Group A with Russia, Slovakia and Slovenia. They will play one of the most anticipated games of the preliminary round when they face Russia on Saturday.

The USA team will be without their general manager David Poile who can’t travel to Sochi after undergoing surgery for facial injuries he suffered when struck by a puck last week. Poile needed surgery for damage to an eye and received stitches for a deep cut to his face.

Poile, who is also the GM of the Nashville Predators, was standing in a tunnel area just off the ice surface when a hard pass from defenceman Shea Weber, who will play for Canada at the Olympics, deflected over the boards.

“David is getting the medical attention he needs back in Nashville,” said Jim Johannson, the assistant executive director of USA Hockey yesterday. “We are going to miss his input but we are in communication.”

Weber said his pass deflected off Roman Josi’s stick.

“The puck went into the tunnel where he was. It is very unfortunate to see that happen in a practice. It wasn’t even a player that got hurt, but our GM,” Weber said yesterday.—Reuters

SOCHI: World champions Tatiana Volosozhar and Maxim Trankov set a new world record score for the short programme to get their bid for a second Olympic figure skating gold off the mark yesterday.

Trankov, resplendent in a militarythemed outfit, and Volosozhar, in a ballroom-style dress, performed flawlessly to “Masquerade Waltz ” by Aram Khachaturian to score 84.17 points.

It gave them a 4.53-point lead on Olympic bronze medallists Aliona Sacvhenko and Robin Szolkowy of Germany. The Russians opened with a high triple twist, and included perfectly timed side-by-side triple toeloops and a throw triple loop to the deafening roars of the crowd as they landed each jump.

It bettered the 83.98 they achieved on their way to a third European title in January to the delight of the partisan home crowd and a sea of red and white Russian flags at the Iceberg Skating Palace.

Germany ’s Aliona Savchenko and Robin Szolkowy, four-time world champions, are sitting second 4.53 points behind with a new season’s best 79.64 for their crowd-pleasing “Pink Panther” routine.

“When you’re having fun doing your routine and the audience goes with it, it just makes you feel good and less nervous,” said Savchenko.

The German couple returned to the programme which won them their third world title in 2011 after trailing at the European championships before withdrawing before the free skate because Savchenko was sick.

“We are happy we changed our programme. It was the absolute right choice.

Maybe we couldn’t skate it at 110percent, but at least at 105percent,” said Szolkowy.

Russia’s Ksenia Stolbova and Fedor Klimov, also gold medallists in the team event, scored 75.21 for their “Flamenco” to sit third ahead of Chinese veterans Pang Qing and Tong Jian, silver medallists in Vancouver in 2010, who achieved 73.30 after Pang under-rotated his triple toeloop.

Teams from Russia and the former Soviet Union have dominated the sport for the past 50 years winning 12 titles since two-time winners Ludmila Belousova and Oleg Protopopov took their first gold in 1964. Russia failed to make the pairs podium for the first time in Vancouver. The free skating final takes place today. — AFP

CANADA : A picture taken on February 26, 2010 shows Lebanon’s Jacky Chamoun clearing a gate during the Women’s Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics Slalom event at Whistler Creek side Alpine skiing venue. — AFP

Lebanese skier Chamoun apologises for pictures SOCHI: Lebanese skier Jacky Chamoun apologised yesterday after photos and a video from a shoot three years ago surfaced on the internet, causing a stir in her Arab nation.

Chamoun, who also competed in the Vancouver 2010 Olympics and lives in Switzerland, said the material that appeared on the internet showing her topless was not part of the shoot for an Austrian skiing calendar. “Yes I did photos for an Austrian ski calendar with other professional athletes three years ago,” she said in a statement posted on her facebook page.

“The photos of the photoshoot are not like the actual images that are now circulating on the net. The video and photos that you are now seeing are part of the making off, the preparation, it wasn’t supposed to go public.”

The photos in the calendar show the Lebanese scantily dressed but not naked. The photos that appeared in recent days show her topless as she prepares for the shoot.

“Anyways, I want to apologize to all of you, I know that Lebanon is a conservative country and this is not the image that reflects our culture. I fully understand if you want to criticise this,” said the 22-year-old. “Now that I’m at the Olympic Games, these photos that I never saw before are being shared. It is sad.

All I can ask to each of you who saw this, is to stop spreading it, it will really help me focusing on what is really important now: my trainings and race,” said Chamoun.

The Lebanese Olympic Committee said the images were not representative of the nation’s sports but would not call the athlete back.

“The Lebanese Olympic Committee will not ask to exclude Chamoun from the Sochi Games in adherence to the Olympic rules, especially since the offence did not take place during the preparations (for the Games) nor during the Games,” it said in a statement. It did however say it did “not reflect the real image of the Lebanese sports.”— Reuters

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2014

S P ORT S

African asylum seekers in Sicily dream of soccer glory MINEO: Like many young men in Italy, the soccer players who put on their cleats for an afternoon match in this small Sicilian town dream of international stardom on the field. But for this group, having made it this far is already an achievement.

Each member of the 25-man amateur squad ASD Mineo is African. They risked their lives to cross the sea from Libya in overcrowded boats last year, a journey that killed hundreds of others in shipwrecks, in the hope of finding political asylum. Their team — the first of its kind in Italy — was created and funded by the managers of the Mineo centre for asylum seekers, one of Europe’s largest such shelters.

ASD Mineo, as the team is called, is registered in the lowest category of Italy’s official football pyramid, which groups 600 divisions and in which, in theory, any team can rise to the top of the league, or Serie A. The team is on track to advance to the next division in its first season.

“We can make it all the way to Serie A,” 19-year-old Musa from Gambia said after defeating another — all-white — local team 4-0 on a recent Sunday. Like

his teammates, Musa declined to give his full name for fear of reprisals against family members back home as he seeks political asylum.

In this country of soccer fanatics, ASD Mineo has become a test of racial integration. Though many Sicilians criticise local, national and European authorities for failing to provide enough resources to cope with the influx of immigrants, ASD Mineo has not suffered public resentment.

That’s not always the case at the national level, where racism has been a constant problem in football. Though top-flight teams include black and Muslim players, stadiums often echo with monkey chants. One of Italy’s best footballers, Mario Balotelli, a Sicilian-born son of Ghanaian immigrants who plays forward for AC Milan and Italy’s national team, has sometimes been on the receiving end.

Some argue that the problem is made worse by immigration rules which make it difficult for those whose families come from abroad to be accepted as Italians. Balotelli, for example, was not able to gain citizenship until he was 18.

Italy’s first black government minister, Cecile Kyenge, has tried to introduce a law allowing anyone born on Italian soil to become a citizen. She herself has been a target of racists - likened to an orangutan and pelted with bananas in public.

“Immigration is a terrible battleground for politicians,” says Maurizio Ambrosini, sociologist at the University of Milan. “But soccer can be a very effective tool in the fight against racism.”

GATEWAY TO EUROPE Sicily, an island that on a map looks like a ball about to be kicked by the Italian “boot”, has been used as a stepping stone to the European mainland for millennia by, among others, Phoenicians, Greeks and Arabs. Today it is a gateway for migrants and asylum seekers from as far away as India, Pakistan and the Syrian civil war. Most migrants come from Northern and sub-Saharan Africa. Italy has struggled to provide basic services to the 40,000 new arrivals last year amid its worst recession since World War Two. The asylum centre in Lampedusa,

Sicily was badly overcrowded last year. A video showing migrants standing naked in the cold while being sprayed for scabies stirred outrage and prompted authorities to transfer them out in December. Many of the migrants ended up in the Mineo asylum centre, which sits in an isolated valley southwest of the smouldering, snow-capped Mount Etna volcano. Some 4,000 migrants from 40 nations occupy about 400 two-floor villas that once housed U.S. Navy personnel who worked at the nearby Sigonella NATO air base. There has been occasional trouble: in October, residents of the shelter blocked the two-lane highway that runs next to the centre, threw rocks at police and destroyed cars to call for faster asylum and temporary permit procedures. Many of the shelter’s residents had been waiting up to two years for documents needed to leave the camp and find work.

Several of ASD Mineo’s soccer players have been waiting 10 months, though Italian guidelines say it should take between 45 days and six months to get through the asylum-request process.—Reuters

Anichebe equalizer frustrates Chelsea West Brom 1

Chelsea 1

LONDON: Hull City’s Shane Long (left) jumps for the ball against Southampton’s Morgan Schneiderlin during their English Premier League soccer match. — AP

Saints go marching on with victory over Hull Hull 0

Southampton 1

LONDON: Southampton extended their unbeaten run to six matches yesterday with a 1-0 win over Hull in their English Premier League clash. A 69th-minute goal by Jose Fonte was enough to give the visitors the points and leave Hull’s Steve Bruce to wait a little longer for his 100th win in the Premier League as a manager.

Victory saw Mauricio Pochettino’s attractive and talented side move above Newcastle-who host Spurs on Wednesday-and to within two points of seventh-placed Manchester United, who are away at Arsenal today. Defeat halted Hull’s mini-revival and leaves them four points above the relegation zone. Southampton dominated the early stages of the game, Rickie Lambert, who has eight goals to his name this season, going close in the third minute as he curled a shot inches wide from Adam Lallana’s cross. Lambert was in again on goal soon afterwards this time trying to chip the ball over goalkeeper Steve Harper, but the former Newcastle netminder did enough with defender Paul McShane to clear the danger. However, it came

at a cost as McShane-who had crashed into Harper in trying to clear the ball-had to be stretchered off and replaced by George Boyd.

Boyd should have put the hosts ahead against the run of play after Republic of Ireland international striker Shane Long’s header came back off the post but he could only miscue the rebound and minutes later sent a header wide.

Having got away twice Saints came back at Hull with Lambert turning creator this time releasing Jay Rodriguez-their leading scorer in the Premier League with 10 goals-whose excellent effort from long range was only denied by the bar with Harper well beaten.

The match was riveting no holds barred action as both sides threw caution to the wind. It was Hull who went close next as Long’s strike partner Croatian international Nikica Jelavic, who had scored his first goal for his new club in the win over Sunderland on Saturday, got free but his shot was tame and no danger to Artur Boruc.Southampton were the livelier side after the break with Rodriguez always a threat as was Lambert, with both having shots saved by Harper.

The Saints finally broke the deadlock with just over 20 minutes remaining, but it was no thing of beauty. Hull failed to clear the ball first from Fonte’s header, then Rodriguez seized on the ball but his shot was blocked, Fonte had another go and then when it appeared it had not gone over the line Lambert made sure there was no debate by forcing it over. — AFP

‘Super sub’ Diame sinks Norwich West Ham 2

Norwich 0

LONDON: Mohamed Diame proved himself the textbook ‘super sub’ making one goal and scoring the other as West Ham beat Norwich City 2-0 at Upton Park yesterday to bolster their hopes of Premier League survival.

Norwich had the lion’s share of chances but the visitors couldn’t find a way past Hammers goalkeeper Adrian. And West Ham, who’ve now won three straight games without conceding a goal, made them pay with two late goals.

Senegal midfielder Diame, who replaced Matthew Jarvis on the hour, created the opening goal for James Collins in the 84th minute and then scored deep into stoppage time himself to secure all three points for the Hammers.

Victory took the east London club into 10th place in the table and four points clear of the relegation zone, with Norwich now a solitary point above the bottom three.

Sam Allardyce’s side came into the game on the back of 1-0 win away to Aston Villa, while Chris Hughton’s Canaries had held title challengers Manchester City to a goalless draw.

Nathan Redmond, whose pace caused the Hammers’ defence problems, went clear down the left and from his cross Gary Hooper saw a flicked header destined for the bottom corner pushed away by the diving Adrian. Robert Snodgrass then went close, getting in behind the back four, only to hesitate before shooting, with Adrian getting a strong hand to the ball.

West Ham struggled to get anywhere near the Norwich penalty area, with Mark Noble trying a speculative shot from 25 yards out that went straight to England goalkeeper John Ruddy. Adrian then produced his third good save of the half, turning away Alex Tettey’s shot from the penalty spot. Allardyce made a change at

half-time, bringing on Marco Borriello for Carlton Cole in a bid to give his side some extra dynamism up front.

The Canaries continued to press but couldn’t find a way past Adrian, the keeper denying Hooper for the second time in the match after the striker was put clean through by Snodgrass.

As the match became an end-to-end contest, Ruddy saved with his legs to deny Diame after the substitute was played in by Kevin Nolan before Norwich’s Joseph Yobo lifted the ball over from a corner. Norwich’s pressure was made to count for nothing when the deadlock was finally broken by Collins, six minutes from time.

Diame was allowed to cross from the left unchallenged and central defender Collins then beat Ruddy to the ball before heading home.

A desperate Norwich, chasing a late equaliser, left gaps at the back. And when they saw a corner cleared by the Hammers, Diame was left with the length of the field to run. —AFP

WEST BROMWICH: Substitute Victor Anichebe struck a dramatic late equalizer yesterday to earn West Bromwich Albion a 1-1 draw as Chelsea were forced to settle for a lead of two points, not four, at the top of the Premier League.

Jose Mourinho’s team were far from being in the fluent and formidable form which has characterised their recent ascent to the summit, however once they led via Branislav Ivanovic’s goal in first-half added time at The Hawthorns they had looked on course for victory.

Yet Anichebe, on the pitch 14 minutes as a replacement for Morgan Amalfitano, had other ideas, with the Nigeria striker heading home in the 87th minute to secure a precious point which lifted the Baggies out of the bottom three. The result gave both Arsenal and Manchester City, who each play on Wednesday, the chance to claim top spot.

West Brom, meanwhile, will take confidence from their third successive draw at home under new head coach Pepe Mel ahead of a meeting with fellow relegation battlers Fulham on Saturday week.

They have, though, still won just once in 16 league matches. New arrival Thievy Bifouma, on loan from Espanyol, was handed a first Baggies start, yet the major piece of team news surrounded the inclusion by Chelsea manager Mourinho’s decision to field Ramires, who replaced Frank Lampard.

The Brazil international was roundly booed by the home crowd in what was the sides’ first meeting since he controversially won a penalty which earned the Blues an injury-time equaliser in November. Despite their vastly contrasting recent form, it was a surprisingly even start to proceedings with Mel’s renowned pressing game frustrating the visitors.

It took Mourinho’s team until the 22nd minute

LONDON: West Brom’s Gareth McAuley (left) competes for the ball with Chelsea’s Fernando Torres during the English Premier League soccer match. — AP to threaten when Samuel Eto’o’s cutback from the byline almost found the onrushing Ivanovic, with a combination of Gareth McAuley and Claudio Yacob doing just enough to avert the danger.

Mel had previously claimed victory over Mourinho when his Real Betis team pulled off a shock 1-0 victory over Real Madrid in November 2012. His tactics appeared to be working against the Portuguese again and, with space squeezed in the Blues’ final third, a Willian long-range effort which flashed past the right-angle was as close as they came in the first half.

The hosts looked a side transformed to the one who toiled in the weekend defeat at Crystal Palace which saw them fall into the bottom three.

Pivotal to that change were rookie forward duo Thievy, 21, and Saido Berahino, 20, whose trickery and tireless chasing made them a handful for the Blues back four.

The pair contributed to the Baggies’ best opportunity of the half when Berahino’s cross was laid off

to Chris Brunt by Thievy, yet the Northern Ireland international dragged his shot wide.

Chelsea always looked the more likely to score and the home side survived an anxious moment when Gareth McAuley sliced a Blues cross over his own crossbar.

However, their resistance was finally deep into the two minutes of added time when Willian’s corner was flicked on by David Luiz and the unmarked Ivanovic swept home from close range.

West Brom were out early for the second half, yet Chelsea made the more purposeful start upon resumption with Eto’o’s fierce strike repelled by Ben Foster.Fernando Torres was introduced for Eto’o as Mourinho looked to finish off the game, yet Chelsea were given a scare late on when Thievy and Brunt both wasted openings.

And, just as it appeared the home side had run out of opportunities, Anichebe struck with a fine glancing header which crept in off the right post from Berahino’s teasing cross. — AFP

Cardiff and Villa in drab draw Matches on TV (Local Timings) Cardiff 0 Italian Cup Napoli v AS Roma 22:45 beinsports Spain Copa del Rey Thursday 13 Feb 2014 Sociedad v Barcelona 0:00 beinsports English Premier League Arsenal v Man United 22:45 beinsports Stoke v Swansea 22:45 beinsports Everton v C Palace 22:45 beinsports Man City v Sunderland 22:45 beinsports Newcastle v Tottenham 22:45 beinsports Fulham v Liverpool 23:00 beinsports

LONDON: West Ham United’s goalkeeper Adrian (right) stops a goal attempt shot from Norwich City’s Robert Snodgrass during their English Premier League soccer match at Upton Park. — AP

Aston Villa 0

CARDIFF: Cardiff City remain rooted in the Premier League relegation zone after failing to make ground on the teams above them in a 0-0 draw with Aston Villa yesterday.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side would have been in the bottom three on goal difference alone had they prevailed at the Cardiff City Stadium, but despite twice hitting the woodwork, they had to settle for a draw. Villa might have snatched victory at the death, but Cardiff goalkeeper David Marshall displayed stunning reactions to thwart visiting substitute Andreas Weimann in injury time.

The point left Cardiff second from bottom, two points from safety, while Paul Lambert’s Villa climbed one place to 11th. Cardiff were without talisman Craig Bellamy, banned earlier in the day for three games after clashing with Jonathan de Guzman in the weekend loss to Swansea City, but they took the game to Villa regardless.

Indeed, after Fabian Delph had dragged an early shot wide of the Cardiff goal, the hosts largely dominated the first half, notably hitting the frame of the goal twice in the 14th minute. First, Wilfried Zaha freed Fraizer Campbell for a shot that Villa goalkeeper Brad Guzan diverted onto the post and when the ball came out to Craig Noone, he saw a deflected effort come back off the crossbar.

Cardiff lost Jordon Mutch to an apparent hamstring injury just beyond the half hour, with Magnus Wolff Eikrem coming on, but the home side continued to push, with Zaha denied a goal by an offside flag after volleying home.

Leandro Bacuna gave Cardiff a big scare when he shot narrowly wide following a one-two with Gabriel Agbonlahor, but Kenwyne Jones should have put the hosts ahead moments later when he headed straight at Guzan from a Kevin TheophileCatherine cross.

Villa introduced Weimann with just over 20 minutes to play and the visitors began to look increasingly dangerous, with Marshall saving from Marc

EPL results/standings Cardiff City 0 Aston Villa 0; Hull City 0 Southampton 1 (Fonte 69); West Bromwich Albion 1 (Anichebe 87) Chelsea 1 (Ivanovic 45+3); West Ham United 2 (Collins 84, Diame 90+4) Norwich City 0.

English Premier League table after yesterday’s matches (played, won, drawn, lost, goals for, goals against, points): Chelsea Arsenal Man City Liverpool Spurs Everton Man Utd Southampton Newcastle West Ham Aston Villa Swansea Hull Stoke Crystal Palace Norwich West Brom Sunderland Cardiff Fulham

26 25 25 25 25 25 25 26 25 26 26 25 26 25 25 26 26 25 26 25

17 17 17 15 14 12 12 10 11 7 7 7 7 6 8 6 41 6 5 6

6 4 3 5 5 9 5 9 4 7 7 6 6 8 2 7 2 6 7 2

3 4 5 5 6 4 8 7 10 12 12 12 13 11 15 13 10 13 14 17

48 48 68 63 32 37 41 37 32 28 27 32 25 26 18 19 30 25 19 24

21 26 27 30 32 26 31 29 34 33 36 35 31 40 34 39 38 38 44 55

57 55 54 50 47 45 41 39 37 28 28 27 27 26 26 25 24 24 22 20

Albrighton and Delph.

Agbonlahor saw the whites of Marshall’s eyes from a Christian Benteke flick in the 82nd minute, but he took too long to size up his options and Theophile-Catherine darted in to dispossess him.

Weimann came even closer in the first minute of stoppage time, but after poking out his foot to connect with Benteke’s pass, he saw Marshall produce a breath-taking reflex stop to tip the ball over the bar. — AFP

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2014

S P ORT S Sports Digest

Arsenal vs United a special encounter

By Ahmad Al Othman

Robin van Persie celebrates in this file photo.

KUWAIT: How times have changed. A decade ago, this clash was a title decider, and a fixture that would highlight any Premier League calendar. It was always about Keane vs. Vieira and Ferguson vs. Wenger. Today it is probably going to be all about Robin van Persie and his disapproved move north to Manchester. Both sides are wounded and dropped points early in the week, but matters can be set straight and both sides have a cause to fight for.

Back in April of last year, when under Sir Alex Ferguson, United had the title in the bag and Van Persie got his Guard of Honor. It was the Gunners who were in a scramble with Tottenham for 4th place which went down to the wire. Today, it is Arsenal who has got a decent shot at the trophy and requires some spark to reignite their title charge following the weekend’s thrashing at Anfield. As for United, things keep getting from bad to worse for David Moyes, after that Darren Bent injury time goal at Old Trafford.

“The Chosen One” has failed to live to everybody’s expectations, and fans are genuinely wondering if Ferguson handpicked the right man for the job.

As I recall, this is the 3rd time this season whereby United have conceded a last minute equalizer, previously to Southampton and Cardiff. Not even the most pessimistic saw this coming. Their beloved team declining miserably and stuck in that mediocre and ever low 7th place at this time of the season. They haven’t been used to such run of poor form and absolutely no improvement to the style of play. Winning 2 games from a possible 9 is simply and quite honestly relegation form. Had Newcastle United not been in a more inferior shape they

surely would’ve leapfrogged Man Utd and things would look worse than ever.

Their Champions League qualification is now evidently under threat and could soon be out of reach.

The Gunners have been in a very good run of form lately until the Liverpool match on Saturday. They have been playing very well and grinding out results in tough away matches and in some cases coming from behind to claim three points. Their fans still believe they’re going to have a say in this Premier League race, and feel they have been closer to it more than ever in the last 10 years. Although Ozil has been under some criticism for being slack in away matches and accused of not helping the team out defensively, it was noticeably Santi Cazorla who stepped up to the plate and stole the show from the German.

As for their backline, it has performed consistently throughout the season and although falling for the odd mistake here and there, they have proved to be one of the best defenses this campaign and today’s battle is another test for them. How will the partnership of Koscielny and Mertesacker do against Rooney and Co? Will van Persie score for the fourth time against his former side?

Has Mata still got what it matters and perform some of his magic and aid his team out? One thing is for sure, you will witness one noisy Emirates atmosphere today, with both sets of fans passionately encouraging and inspiring their sides to put recent results behind them and go out there and make themselves and their teams proud.

Match Prediction 2-1 Arsenal

Rodgers calls for Reds repeat against Fulham LIVERPOOL: Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers has challenged his players to match the intensity they showed against Arsenal when they travel to bottom of the Premier League Fulham today. The Reds are on course to end their five-season exile from the top four and the Champions League and underlined their claim on fourth place with a 5-1 win over then leaders Arsenal at the weekend. Southampton and Manchester United are the only sides presently in the top-half of the table that Liverpool, now unbeaten in eight matches, still have to visit in the league this season.

But Rodgers believes the Cottagers will provide a stern test after drawing 2-2 at Manchester United on Sunday. “Every game is critical for us whether it’s a top team or a team at the bottom. Fulham showed against Manchester United that they’ve got some very good players, they showed great resilience in the game and took the lead.

“There are some brilliant professionals there and Rene (Meulensteen) will look to introduce one or two younger players.

“It will be a difficult game and away from home in the Premier League is difficult but we have a belief and a confidence in our play and hopefully we can take that into today’s game and get another good three points,” the Northern Irishman added.

Liverpool moved within six points of the top of the Premier League with Saturday’s win but Rodgers maintains that finishing in the top four is his priority for a club that has not won the league title since 1990. “The momentum has been building and building, but I just think it’s unprecedented to go from being where we were last year in seventh position (to first).

“I’m very much full of optimism for this football club and the development of the team, but I also have to be realistic as well and I think it (winning the title) is something that might be too much for us this season.”

Defender Glen Johnson is still out with an ankle injury and Daniel Agger, Mamdou Sakho, Lucas and Jose Enrique are also sidelined.

Meanwhile Fulham centre-back Dan Burn believes the draw with United can provide a springboard for Fulham as they attempt to climb out of the bottom three.

“It’s going to be really tough today. Liverpool are flying at the moment and that victory against Arsenal on Saturday was immense for them. But the point at Old Trafford felt like a win to us.

“I thought we showed great character to come back and getting a point felt like a win.” For Lewis Holtby, Fulham’s relegation battle also presents an opportunity for the midfielder to demonstrate he is good enough to play in the Premier League after being allowed to leave Tottenham Hotspur at the end of the transfer window.

Holtby has already made an impact at his new club, setting up Steve Sidwell for the Cottagers’ opening goal at Old Trafford.

“First of all, I’m just thinking about Fulham and I just want to stay up. I want to have a really good 13 games that are left this season and I want to show what I can do,” said Holtby.

Yesterday’s fixture has been called into doubt by threatened industrial action on the London Underground which Fulham said left them concerned about whether its safety staff could get to their Craven Cottage ground in west London in time. — AFP

Spurs’ Vertonghen looks beyond Newcastle horizon

LONDON: Tottenham Hotspur’s English striker Jermain Defoe applauds the crowd in this file photo. — AFP

LONDON: If footballers are supposed to “take one game at a time,” then Jan Vertonghen risks angering Tottenham Hotspur manager Tim Sherwood by looking well beyond today trip’s to face Newcastle United. Instead Vertonghen has already identified the clash with Liverpool next month as the defining game of Tottenham’s season.

The weekend victory over Everton moved Sherwood’s side back up to fifth where they sit three points behind Liverpool in fourth spot ahead of the latest round of matches.

That has revived Spurs’ hopes of forcing their way into the top four and claiming a place in next season’s Champions League. But Belgian international central defender Vertonghen knows they must improve on the performance that secured a narrow 1-0 win over Everton if they are to maintain their challenge.

And he has identified then trip to Anfield to face Brendan Rodgers’s side as the game that could make or break the north London club’s ambitions. “We probably need a win, so we will go for that. It was a bad day for us when we lost 5-0 at home to Liverpool in December but that game didn’t reflect our strengths compared with theirs.”

Sherwood has overseen an impressive improvement in form since he succeeded Andre Villas Boas as manager, with his side securing six wins from nine league games.

“We need to work on our shape and our movement and then the sharpness will be there,” Vertonghen said. “Tim now has a chance to work on our shape. Until now, he has done a very good job. The club and the players believe in him.” Emmanuel Adebayor has been the major beneficiary of the change in manager and his match-winner against Everton was his

seventh goal in 11 games since being restored to the squad by Sherwood.

Vertonghen added: “Adebayor is back and has been unbelievable. Just one player coming in can sometimes affect the team.”

Meanwhile Alan Pardew has targeted Manchester United boss David Moyes, although he insists it’s nothing personal, as the Newcastle manager hit back at “insulting” claims from pundits that his side are coasting, with little to play for between now and the end of the season.

Pardew has set his sights on Newcastle finishing above soon to be deposed champions United for the first time in the Premier League.

Even though the Old Trafford club continue to struggle under Moyes, Pardew claims it would still be a major scalp to overhaul the team immediately above them in seventh place and four points ahead of them going into the final 13 league games of the campaign.

“People say our season is over, which is an insult to our professionalism,” said Pardew. “We have a professional incentive-and it irritates me as manager of Newcastle when I hear different.”

Pardew insisted Newcastle aren’t mathematically clear of the fight for survival until they collect the three points needed to reach the 40point mark that normally assures Premier League clubs of avoiding relegation.

However, with another top flight season allbut secure, a tilt at gaining a Europa League spot has been all but ended by a run of six defeats in eight games. Newcastle have failed to find the net in four of their last five outings, and must convince supporters they aren’t just marking time until May. Pardew added: “Manchester United are directly above us, that’s why I’ve picked them out, not because of David Moyes, who is a big pal of mine. —AFP

ANFIELD: Liverpool’s Jordan Henderson (right) and Jon Flanagan celebrate in this file photo. — AP

City aim end ‘mini goal drought’ MANCHESTER: James Milner is certain Manchester City will end their ‘mini goal drought’ when they welcome Sunderland to Eastlands for a Premier League encounter today.

After losing 1-0 to Chelsea and drawing 0-0 at Norwich, City have failed to score in consecutive matches for the first time since manager Manuel Pellegrini arrived before the start of this season.

More importantly it has seen them slip to third in the league table, two points adrift of leaders Chelsea heading into the midweek programme. Now Pellegrini’s men host Gus Poyet’s side in a dressrehearsal for the League Cup final on March 2.

This match comes in the middle of a busy run for City, who host Chelsea in the FA Cup fifth round before the first leg of their Champions League last 16 tie against Spanish giants Barcelona.

England midfielder Milner believes the result against the resurgent Black Cats will be crucial. “There’s a long way to go yet in the league. We’ve just got to keep going and keep playing the right way and we know the goals will come,” Milner said.

“You see how tight the league is at the top and the bottom and everyone is scrapping for points and a win can make a big difference in your position in the league,” he added.

“It’ll be a tough game and a lot different to the cup final because it’s at home but we need to bounce back from Norwich and make sure we’re ready to go.”

With Fernandinho out with a knee problem, Milner was drafted into central midfield for Saturday’s trip to Carrow Road.

Now he hopes to be given a regular chance to play in an area where Pellegrini has used Yaya Toure and Fernandinho as a partnership all season.

“I think that’s my best position and where I enjoy playing,” Milner explained.

“You’re always in the thick of the action. “All I can do is play as well as I can when I get that chance and hopefully get a few more chances in the middle as well and hopefully contribute to Manchester City winning a few trophies.” As well as Fernandinho, Pellegrini has other injury concerns ahead of the match against Sunderland.

Samir Nasri is not yet ready to return from a knee injury, Argentina striker Sergio Aguero is out for another couple of weeks with a hamstring problem and midfielder Javi Garcia is also sidelined.

Top flight survival remains the prime objective for Sunderland, although Vito Mannone concedes that whoever emerges victorious at the Etihad Stadium will gain a valuable psychological advantage for next month’s Wembley meeting.

The Black Cats are keen to bounce back from the 2-0 home defeat by Hull City that left them just a point clear of the bottom three and Italian goalkeeper Mannone said: “It will be a test at Manchester City, but a good one for us, even if they are really strong at home.

“They are scoring goals for fun and we will need to be at our best to defend really well. It’s going to be a tough game, but it will put something in our minds of what we’re going to do in the final.” Defeat by Hull, their first in five league games, stalled Sunderland’s recent revival but Mannone said: “We came back from a situation where everybody was thinking we were relegated and dead, and we’ve put ourselves in a situation where we’ve got a fighting chance.”

Argentinian defender Santiago Vergini is set for a first Premier League start for Sunderland in place of Wes Brown, who starts a two-match ban for his red card against Hull. — AFP

LONDON: Manchester City’s Chilean manager Manuel Pellegrini looks on in this file photo. — AFP

Monaco prepare for French Cup derby PARIS: Fresh from holding Paris Saint-Germain in the league at the weekend, Monaco make the short trip to Cote d’Azur rivals Nice in the last 16 of the French Cup today. Claudio Ranieri’s side are not yet out of the Ligue 1 title race after coming from behind to draw 1-1 with PSG on Sunday, a result which left them five points off top spot.

And they are arguably the favourites to lift the Cup for the first time since 1991 following PSG’s surprise exit to Montpellier in the last round. The principality club, who are unbeaten in 2014, will travel along the Mediterranean coast to face Nice at the Allianz Riviera stadium, where they won 3-0 on league duty in December. However, Ranieri will rotate his squad, with Argentine international Sergio Romero again

set for a run-out in goal at the expense of Danijel Subasic and numerous other alterations likely, including a possible first start for January signing Dimitar Berbatov.

“The French Cup is not our objective,” admitted the Italian. “Our objective is to qualify for the Champions League. But I play to win so I want us to qualify.

“It will be very difficult in Nice. We must forget about our 3-0 win there in the league. If we think this game will be identical, then we have already lost.”

Opponents Nice, who last won the French Cup in 1997, have already beaten two top-flight sides on their way to the last 16 in the shape of Nantes and Marseille, with the latter being defeated 5-4 in a remarkable tie at the Stade

Velodrome. Only seven Ligue 1 clubs have made it to this stage, potentially leaving the path open for the likes of 2011 winners Lille and 2012 winners Lyon. OL, who are already through to the final of the League Cup, will entertain second-tier Lens on Thursday, while Lille, third in Ligue 1, are at home to another second-tier side in Caen.

Transformed since the return as coach of Rolland Courbis, Montpellier’s 2-1 win at PSG last month is the standout result of their unbeaten 2014 so far.

They are in action late yesterday away to Cannes, a club who were in the top flight less than two decades ago but are now in the fourth-tier amateur ranks.

Nevertheless, Cannes stunned Saint-Etienne in the last

64, beating Les Verts on penalties, so Montpellier will not take their opponents lightly.

On-loan AC Milan forward Mbaye Niang will be on the bench at kick-off, though, as a punishment after a brush with the law last week.

Niang will appear in court later this month after crashing his Ferrari in Montpellier last weekend, despite not having a valid driving licence. Cannes are one of four clubs from out of the professional ranks still in the running, as Moulins and Sete meet each other while L’Ile-Rousse entertain top-flight Guingamp. The tiny Corsican side, from the fifth division, caused a sensation in the last round when they eliminated the holders Bordeaux in a penalty shoot-out. — AFP

Stunning Domracheva makes biathlon history for Belarus

Rodgers calls for Reds repeat against Fulham

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WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2014

African asylum seekers in Sicily dream of soccer glory Page 18

MADRID: Real’s Cristiano Ronaldo tries to score as he faces Atletico goalkeeper Daniel Aranzubia during a semi-final, 2nd leg, Copa del Rey soccer derby match. — AP

Real cruise into Cup final Ronaldo scores twice, hit on head by lighter MADRID: Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice from the penalty spot and was also hit on the head by a lighter thrown from the crowd as Real Madrid sealed their place in the Copa del Rey final with a 2-0 win (5-0 on aggregate) over holders Atletico Madrid.

Any chance of Atletico recovering from their 3-0 defeat at the Santiago Bernabeu last week was extinguished after just seven minutes when Ronaldo opened the scoring after being upended by Manquillo. The Portuguese star doubled his tally nine minutes later from another penalty as this time Gareth Bale was felled by Emiliano Insua.

Ronaldo’s eventful evening continued as, moments after being booked for a clash with Manquillo, he was then hit by a lighter thrown

by the Atletico fans as the players headed to the dressing rooms at half-time. The Ballon d’Or winner was however fit to continue at the start of the second-half before being substituted late on.

Real will face either Barcelona or Real Sociedad in the final on April 19 with Barca holding a 2-0 advantage heading into the second leg of their semi-final today.

Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti insisted that Ronaldo was fine after being struck and lauded his side’s feat of reaching the final on the back of eight consecutive clean sheets in the Cup this season.

“Cristiano is fine, he scored two goals and he doesn’t have any problems,” he said. “We are still alive in all competitions and whilst this is

the least important of the three in comparison to La Liga or the Champions League, to get to a final is always a good thing for the team.

“We have played well in all the Cup games.

We have kept a clean sheets throughout and this speaks well of the mentality of the team.”

Atletico boss Diego Simeone appeared to have given up any hope of an unlikely comeback from the off as he rested Juanfran, Diego Godin, Arda Turan and captain Gabi, whilst four more first-team regulars missed out through injury and suspension.

However, despite suffering three defeats in a week, Simeone is hoping for a positive reaction from his side as they too have La Liga and Champions League honors to fight for in the coming weeks. “You are never happy to lose or

go out of a competition, much less in this manner losing 5-0.

“Last year we managed to win this competition, this year we got to the semi-finals. You can always do better as a team, but now we will continue with the same desire as before and we want to remain competitive.”

Ancelotti named a strong side and was rewarded with the away goal that killed the tie off when Ronaldo converted from the spot after tumbling under Manquillo’s clumsy challenge inside the area. Atletico briefly threatened a revival when Raul Garcia struck the post moments later.

However, it was 2-0 after just 16 minutes as this time Bale went down under a challenge by Insua and Ronaldo again struck the resulting

Dortmund in Cup semis BERLIN: Borussia Dortmund booked their place in the German Cup semifinals as a header by Gabon’s PierreEmerick Aubameyang secured a 1-0 win in yesterday’s last eight clash at Eintracht Frankfurt. Just as injury-hit Borussia’s coach Jurgen Klopp had predicted, the quarter-final was a gritty affair as Dortmund gained the upper hand ahead of the teams’ Bundesliga meeting on Saturday.

“Despite the injuries, I had no doubts in the team,” said Klopp.”We want to go to Berlin (for the Cup final on May 17) and you could see that from the way we played.”

Aubameyang’s goal seven minutes from time put the 2012 Cup winners through despite missing key first-team players. Among those missing were injured Germany midfielders Sven Bender and Marco Reus, who both suffered thigh injuries in last Saturday’s 5-1 romp at Werder Bremen in the Bundesliga.

Centre-back Mats Hummels was out with an ankle knock, while winger Jakub Blaszczykowski and defender Neven Subotic are out for the season with knee injuries.

Frankfur t captain Pirmin Schwegler was missing with bruised ribs. Both sides had chances with Dortmund’s attacking midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan firing wide as he tried to finish off a move he started while midfielders Jan Rosenthal and Johannes Flum went close for Frankfurt.

“ We didn’t use our chances before the break, we tried to inmpose our game on them, but it is difficult to do that against an opponent like that,” said Eintracht coach Armin Veh. “Nevertheless, we want to try and get something out of Saturday ’s match at Dortmund,” he added referring to Frankfurt’s delicate state as they are just four points above the relegation zone.

Robert Lewandowski had a battle royal with his marker, Peru’s Carlos Zambrano, who at one point left the Poland striker pole-axed on the turf after a sharp elbow to the ribs, which was missed by referee Knut Kircher.

Dortmund got the break-through they craved when Mkhitaryan’s corner was flicked on by captain Sebastian Kehl for Aubameyang to head just inside the back post with extra-time looming.

In yesterday’s last eight matches, Bayer Leverkusen are home to second division Kaiserslautern and Hoffenhem host VfL Wolfsburg.

The top tie features Cup holders Bayern Munich away at Hamburg with the hosts in chaos after six straight league defeats.Hamburg coach Bert van Marwijk has insisted the club will “destroy itself ” if the behind-the-scenes power struggle continues between the club’s executive and supervisory boards.

Bayern, who routed Hamburg 9-2

spot-kick low into the right-hand corner of Daniel Aranzubia’s net. With the tie effectively over as a contest, the only spice was added by unfortunate events off the field as Ronaldo was struck as he headed towards the tunnel at halftime. The former Manchester United man did return for the second period, but he was unable to complete his hat-trick before being replaced by Jese Rodriguez 15 minutes from time. Bale and Isco both had efforts well saved

by Aranzubia as Real continued to look the more likely to score after the break.

Meanwhile, at the other end, Jose Sosa’s drive that forced Iker Casillas into a flying save was the best that Atletico could muster as they slipped to their first home defeat of the season. — AFP

2022 World Cup leaders outline rights for workers

GERMANY: Frankfurt’s Stefan Aigner (right) and Dortmund’s Marcel Schmelzer challenge for the ball during a quarterfinal match of the German Cup. — AP in the league last season, arrive in the Hanseatic City eager to continue the defence of the German Cup they won last season to complete the treble, along with the European and league titles.

It is not guaranteed van Marwijk will be in charge after yesterday’s quarter-final at Imtech Arena with some senior club figures eager for Hamburg legend Felix Magath to take over.— AFP

DOHA: Qatar sought to allay widespread concerns about conditions for migrant workers on World Cup building projects by detailing yesterday how their rights must be protected by contractors.

But an international trade union federation called the charter a “sham for workers,” and complained that 2022 World Cup leaders have not demanded changes in Qatar’s labor laws despite mounting criticism from rights groups.

Qatari organizers released the charter after being ordered by FIFA to explain by this week how working and living conditions for workers building the venues for the Middle East’s first World Cup are improving. The 50page document fleshes out the basic welfare obligations that were published last year. Within it are the requirements for employment contracts, payment, medical care and living conditions, including the meals and bedrooms that must be provided.

Employers must also allow workers to retain their passports and cover the cost of their costs to return home at the end of their contract. Only companies directly building World Cup venues must abide by the charter, rather than those with government contracts for the wider infrastructure projects that are required to handle an influx of players, fans and media. And organizers insisted that just 38 con-

struction workers are currently employed by them, building the Al Wakrah Stadium south of the capital Doha. The labor force will rapidly rise as a dozen stadiums and training camps for the 32 competing teams are built from scratch or renovated.

The International Trade Union Confederation is troubled by the charter’s failure to address the sweltering summer working conditions when temperatures can hit 50 degrees (120F).

“It promises health and safety but provides no credible enforcement,” ITUC General Secretary Sharan Burrow said. “It promises employment standards but gives migrant workers no rights to collectively bargain or join a trade union. It promises equality but does not provide a guarantee of a minimum wage.” FIFA executive committee member Theo Zwanziger, who is working with the ITUC to resolve concerns about Qatar, will face questioning on their progress at the European Parliament in Brussels tomorrow. Hassan Al Thawadi, secretary general of the World Cup organizing committee, insisted that the tournament will be a catalyst for change in Qatar. “(It) will leave a legacy of enhanced, sustainable and meaningful progress in regards to worker welfare across the country,” Al Thawadi said.—AP

Business

Dubai extends gains, other markets mixed Page 23

Scandal-hit Barclays bank axes jobs, raises bonuses

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2014

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US launches trade action against India

US new Fed chair Yellen takes hot seat at Capitol

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SINGAPORE: Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) F15-SG and F16D+ aircraft are displayed during the Singapore Air Show yesterday. Asia’s top aerospace and defense show opens yesterday in Singapore, with major global arms makers seeking to cash in on rising military spending in China and elsewhere as territorial disputes escalate in the region. — AFP

VietJetAir orders 63 Airbus A320s Vietnam jet deal boosts Asian role in global aviation SINGAPORE: Fledgling carrier VietJetAir yesterday ordered 63 Airbus A320 jets with a list price of $6.4 billion in a massive expansion program that underscores Asia’s central role in the future of world aviation. The deal, signed on the opening day of the Singapore Airshow, also covers rights to acquire or lease 38 more A320s, potentially boosting the budget carrier’s current fleet of 11 A320s tenfold.”The A320 has proven to be extremely efficient in service with VietJetAir and is a favorite with our passengers,” the firm’s managing director Luu Duc Khanh said in a press statement issued by Airbus.

The Vietnamese airline, founded only in 2011, plies domestic routes as well as services to Bangkok, Seoul and Kunming in China with its current fleet of leased planes. “We look forward to developing our business across the Asia Pacific region,” Luu said, adding that Airbus would be a “strategic partner” in its regional expansion.

Fabrice Bregier, the president and chief executive of Airbus, said the order “reinforces the A320 family’s position as the preferred choice in the single aisle market, both for full service and low cost carriers.” “We look forward to working with VietJetAir as it brings ever more affordable air travel to the fast growing South East Asian market,” he said in the statement. In addition to the 63 A320s on firm order, VietJetAir has rights to buy 30 more and lease another eight from third parties for a total of 101 new planes.

‘Rising star’ Bregier said at a media briefing that the carrier may need even more orders because of the explosive growth in passenger traffic in Vietnam. “In Asia, we expect a (passenger traffic) growth year-on-year of close to 6.0 percent for the

next 20 years. In Vietnam, it will be close to 30 percent yearon-year. This is really impressive.” He described VietJetAir as a “rising star” in Southeast Asia’s low-cost carrier market.

There have been more than 10,100 orders and 5,900 deliveries of the A320s since it hit the market to over 300 customers and operators, making it the world’s best-selling single-aisle aircraft, according to Airbus. Nguyen Thanh Hung, VietJetAir vice chairman, said that in just two years of operation, the airline already has 26.2 percent of the domestic market and has carried 4.3 million passengers.

The carrier says that on average it fills 90 percent of all available seats. Chu Viet Cuong, a member of VietJetAir’s board of directors, told AFP the airline will fund the purchases with money arranged by international financial institutions. French bank BNP Paribas will arrange financing for the first three aircraft deliveries, he said. Airbus, in a long-term forecast for the industry, said the Asia-Pacific region will lead the global demand for aircraft over the next 20 years. Airlines from the region will take delivery of 10,940 passenger and cargo planes with a value of $1.8 trillion in the same period.

This will represent 37 percent of all new aircraft deliveries, Airbus said in a statement. The passenger market fleet of Asia-Pacific carriers is forecast to more than double from 4,960 planes currently to over 12,130 aircraft by 2032. Its US rival Boeing earlier said the Asia-Pacific will require almost 13,000 new airplanes worth $1.9 trillion over the next 20 years. Myanmar’s national carrier Myanma Airways earlier yesterday signed a deal to lease 10 Boeing aircraft worth nearly $1 billion as the once-reclusive country opens up to the world. The total value of deals during the biennial Singapore Airshow’s 2012 edition reached $31 billion, up threefold from 2010, organizers said. — AFP

SINGAPORE: The TNI-AU Jupiter Aerobatic Team of Indonesia flies in formation during the Singapore Air Show yesterday. — AFP

Independent entity needed for supervision of Islamic finance KUWAIT: An independent legal entity should oversee the way in which Islamic financial institutions certify they are following sharia principles, Kuwait’s central bank governor Mohammad Al-Hashel said in a speech to industry scholars. The comments by Kuwait’s central bank chief could reignite debate over the role of sharia scholars, as regulators around the world begin to take a more active role in monitoring the gatekeepers of Islamic finance.

Boards of sharia scholars at financial institutions rule on whether activities and products follow religious principles such as bans on interest payments and pure monetary speculation. They are also involved in audits that determine whether the institutions are operating in a compliant manner. At the same time, the scholars are on the payroll of the Islamic banks which they vet, an arrangement contrary to good governance, Hashel said in his speech, delivered at a December conference and recently published on the central bank’s website.

“Usually, the responsibility for fatwa (religious rulings) and subsequent sharia audit is assigned to the sharia supervisory authority maintained by most Islamic financial institutions. This practice is by no means in line with the sharia supervision governance fundamentals.”

Traditionally, scholars have mostly practiced self-regulation, leaving the process open to accusations of conflicts of interest. The growing role of Islamic finance in some national economies is now prompting government watchdogs to pay more attention to the sector.

Last year, for example, Malaysia overhauled its Islamic finance rules, giving it greater oversight over banks and scholars, who are now legally accountable for the financial products they approve and liable to fines and prison time for wrongdoing. Bahrain’s central bank will release a new regulatory framework for Islamic insurance this quarter, in a review of standards which the regulator hopes will improve governance as well as profitability.

Pakistan’s central bank is revising rules on sharia governance and liquidity management for Islamic banks.

Hashel said there should be clear and specific professional frameworks for the duties and responsibilities of sharia authorities and their audit function. “We can consider the idea of establishing an independent legal entity that will take the responsibility for the regulation and development of the work of sharia audit and supervision,” he said. Hashel did not elaborate on how such a body might operate in Kuwait, or say whether Kuwait was likely to establish one. But his proposal may strike a chord in the Islamic finance community, because loose regulation of scholars is acknowledged by many people in the industry to be an obstacle to growth.

Centralized The creation of an independent legal body could see scholars independently reviewing the work of their peers, a format pioneered by Malaysia but mostly absent

in the Gulf. Establishing the body would involve challenges but it could take its cues from the conventional financial auditing profession, said Hashel, who replaced veteran policymaker Sheikh Salem Abdul-Aziz Al-Sabah as central bank head in March 2012.

“In this context, we can refer to the history of development of the audit profession to be considered as a role model and to benefit from conventional guidelines regarding this matter.” He did not elaborate, but accounting scandals at companies such as Enron have prompted regulators in some countries to require rotation of companies’ auditors after a certain period of time.

Companies have also been encouraged to use separate firms for their audit and advisory work.

By contrast, appointments of scholars to sharia boards in the Gulf are often considered long-term or even permanent, and the scholars become involved in the design and sometimes even the marketing of Islamic financial products. This is beginning to change, however. Oman introduced term limits for sharia scholars as part of an extensive Islamic banking rulebook introduced in December 2012. Its rules require scholars to be appointed for three-year terms and serve a maximum of two consecutive terms, effectively requiring banks to hire new scholars periodically.

Industry bodies Further progress would require input from industry bodies, said Hashel, a member of the technical committee of the Malaysia-based Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB), a top governing body for the industry.

“This should be undertaken in cooperation with competent regional and international authorities which will save much effort and time.” Such efforts could actually strengthen the independence of scholars by limiting interference in their work by financial institutions, he added.

“This will enhance confidence of stakeholders and clients in the soundness of transactions from a sharia perspective.” However, governing bodies such as the IFSB have focused on prudential rules such as liquidity and stress-testing of Islamic banks, rather than addressing the role of sharia scholars. The Bahrain-based Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI), a body which gathers the industry’s most prominent scholars, has focused on guidance for financial instruments such as sukuk, or Islamic bonds.

AAOIFI’s standards do recognize that lengthy scholar appointments “could lead to a close relationship which could be perceived to be a threat to independence and objectivity”, but it does not prescribe term limits. It recommends that institutions rotate at least one sharia board member every five years, but such guidelines are not enforceable in most countries and don’t address the broader self-auditing issue raised by Hashel. — Reuters

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2014

BUSINESS

Thomas Cook upbeat on turnaround as disposals hit target LONDON: British holiday operator Thomas Cook said a 45 million pound ($73.8 million) disposal had helped it reach a sell-off target ahead of schedule, giving it further confidence in its turnaround efforts. Thomas Cook is half-way through a three-year plan to cut jobs, close branches and sell businesses after the euro zone debt crisis, high fuel costs and political turmoil in Egypt and Tunisia brought the world’s oldest travel firm to its knees in 2011. Reporting a narrowing seasonal loss, the company said summer bookings were developing in line with its expectations. Bookings for summer holidays are watched closely as they generate the bulk of the firm’s earnings.

The agreed sale of Gold Medal, a distributor of scheduled flights, hotels and car hire, to dnata, a unit of the

Auditors: France risks missing budget target PARIS: France runs a “significant risk” of overshooting its budget deficit targets and even the government’s latest plans will fall short of meeting EU limits, national auditors warned yesterday. The public accounts court said that a slow start made to cutting spending meant that the government would have to cut even deeper than the targeted 50 billion euros ($68.0 billion) in the 2015-2017 period.

The report comes as the Socialist-led government under President Francois Hollande is in disarray over tax policy and a change of direction towards reform of the economy. France has the European Union’s secondbiggest economy, and the state of its finances and efforts to turn around its anaemic economy are closely watched across the bloc, in particular in its economic powerhouse Germany. The public accounts court said that France could miss its public budget deficit target of 4.1 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) for 2013, and warned that reaching the 3.6-percent target for this year “is not yet assured”.

The president of France’s highly influential public accounts court, Didier Migaud, said in a speech on its annual report that efforts to cut public spending had to be “pursued and increased in the next three years.” The report from the court, which each year gives an overall assessment of the state of public finances and also highlights selected cases of mismanagement and waste, comes just as the government begins work on how to cut a further 50 billion euros from spending in the next three years.

This is the key factor in a change of policy by Hollande, currently on a state visit to the United States, to finance a promised cut in taxes and charges on businesses to help them regain competitiveness on world markets. Hollande, whose approval ratings are the lowest of any modern French leader, is under intense pressure to revitalize the French economy and reduce an unemployment rate that is at a 15-year high. France has won extra time from the European Commission, until 2015, to get its public deficit within the permitted ceiling of 3.0 percent of GDP, but Brussels has warned Paris it has no margin of error in bringing its finances back into line.

Confusing signals, rosy forecasts Hollande’s Socialist-Green government faces internal strains and opposition from vested interests, however, in making further deep cuts in spending to help businesses and reduce unemployment. And it has sent confusing signals to the market. Hollande himself has raised the prospect of cutting taxes faster than envisaged to boost to jobs creation, only to see his finance minister and muchcriticized prime minister say publicly that the deficit cut pledges remain the top priority.

The government is currently locked in difficult talks with businesses to extract commitments to boost hiring in exchange for the tax cuts. Meanwhile it has launched extensive reviews aimed at a fundamental revision of the tax systems on businesses and households. The accounting court has made a number of statements in recent months warning that France must reform quickly to strengthen its public finances. It criticized the government for rosy forecasts, which have led to disappointing budget performance, and said that it was high time that this practice ended. Revenues were overestimated by 16 billion euros. The shortfall “explains, for the most part, why the reduction in the deficit was limited to 0.7 points of GDP in 2013 in comparison with 2012, instead of the 1.5 points” in the government’s fiscal plans, it said. And instead of 0.8percent growth in 2013 as originally foreseen, the French economy expanded at just 0.1 or 0.2 percent. When the euro-zone debt crisis hit, France favored raising taxes rather than cutting spending in order to bring down its budget deficit.—AFP

Emirates Group, for 45 million pounds, brings the proceeds of disposals to 125 million pounds, the company said yesterday. It had set a target to make between 100 and 150 million pounds from divestments by the end of next year. Thomas Cook, founded 173 years ago, reported an underlying first-quarter operating loss of 56 million pounds in the three months to the end of December, 15 percent less than a year earlier. Cost savings offset the negative impact of Egypt, where unrest has put customers off from holidaying there this winter.

The confident statement echoed the guidance of Thomas Cook’s larger rival TUI Travel, which last week also reported a smaller quarterly loss and said it was seeing strong demand for summer holidays. “Given Thomas Cook’s superior self-help opportunities and growth

prospects, we think Thomas Cook should trade on at least the same multiples as TUI Travel,” broker Jefferies said, explaining that its 200 pence target price is based on Thomas Cook trading on the same multiple as TUI Travel.

Thomas Cook trades for now at a ratio of 11 times estimated 2015 earnings, while TUI trades at 12.3 times, Jefferies said.

The company issued successive profit warnings in 2011, sending its share price plunging as low as 8 pence and forcing it to scrap its dividend to help cut debt. In late 2011, it asked lenders twice to come to its rescue as it struggled with its debt load amid tough trading conditions during its seasonal low period. Under the turnaround begun by Chief Executive Harriet Green, who joined in July 2012, the stock has more than doubled

over the last year and is up over 30 percent in the last three months. It traded down 1.6 percent at 182.5 pence at 1110 GMT. “It’s been a very good performer. The thing about these kind of stocks is they tend to need upgrades to drive the price,” Shore Capital analyst Greg Johnson said. Green told reporters on a call that the company was seeing customers returning to Egypt but not yet in the numbers seen previously. “We are delivering what we said we would deliver,” she said, adding that the company was confident of achieving all its targets.

Thomas Cook announced plans last November to cut costs by 440 million pounds by 2015 and said on Tuesday it had also found additional cost savings that it would detail in May. — Reuters

Germany minister sees no deflation threat in Europe Schaeuble says ready to help emerging markets BERLIN: Recent turmoil in emerging markets will hit export-oriented European economies but there are no signs the bloc that shares the single currency is headed towards deflation, German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble said. Speaking to Reuters as part of a series of interviews with top policymakers across the eurozone, Schaeuble signaled a readiness to help emerging market countries that have seen their currencies sink to multi-year lows in past weeks as part of a broad market sell-off.

“We will help the emerging markets, within the limits of our possibilities, to solve their problems just as they stood by us in past years,” Schaeuble said, pointing to a meeting of G20 finance ministers in Australia later this month. “The difficult situation in some emerging markets affects us of course. We are all dependent on exports, Germany more than other countries,” he added.

But Schaeuble, who started his second term as finance minister in December, said he agreed with European Central Bank President Mario Draghi that falling prices were not a danger for the euro-zone, despite a drop in the bloc’s inflation rate to 0.7 percent last month and warnings from the International Monetary Fund that deflation is a potential risk. “There is no deflation danger in Europe,” Schaeuble said. “We understand deflation as a reluctance to spend in the anticipation of falling prices. And there are no signs of this.” In a wide-ranging interview, Schaeuble also played down the risks of last week’s ruling by Germany’s Constitutional Court on Draghi’s bond-buying scheme.

The court decided to refer complaints against the socalled Outright Monetary Transactions (OMT) program to the European Court of Justice, but it also voiced concerns that the ECB went beyond its mandate with the scheme. Although the OMT plan has never been used, it is widely credited with restoring confidence in the eurozone after years of crisis that had threatened to tear the 18-member bloc apart. Some experts, including the head of Germany’s ZEW think tank Clemens Fuest, have said the court decision severely blunts the OMT programme.

Schaeuble dismissed those concerns, saying the details of the OMT were secondary to the broad message sent by the ECB and European governments that they would not let the euro-zone break apart. “I think the return of financial market confidence in the stability of the euro has been due not only, not even primarily, to the ECB’s (OMT) announcement,” Schaeuble said. “When leaders of government on the one hand, and the central bank on the other, say they will do what is necessary, then financial markets need not worry.”

Eurosceptics Schaeuble also touched on a referendum in Switzerland at the weekend in which voters approved new limits to immigration from the European Union, saying fears about the free movement of people in Europe needed to be taken seriously. But he played down the risks of a strong performance by populist, anti-immigration and eurosceptic parties in European Parliament elections in May, saying this would only push bigger mainstream parties to work more closely

THESSALONIKI: Inshore fishermen stand in their vessels moored at the seafront, during a protest in the northern city of Thessaloniki, Greece. Greek Inshore fishermen are protesting against the decision of the European Parliament to vote for drastic measures to protect endangered species and the environment. — AP

together. “If we have stronger eurosceptic voices in the next European Parliament, then it will raise the pressure on everyone else to commit even more strongly to European integration, to react to this result and make Europe more efficient,” he said.

Regardless of the outcome of the vote and despite strong resistance in other European capitals, Schaeuble

said Germany would not drop its push for changes to the EU’s Lisbon Treaty that it argues are necessary to ensure closer integration. “I think we will have a discussion about this at the beginning of the term of the next European Parliament and European Commission, and I am optimistic we will get a solution,” Schaeuble said, predicting progress in 2015. — Reuters

Richest man ‘would still pick up a $100 bill on the street’ SAN FRANCISCO: The world’s wealthiest man Bill Gates would still pick up a $100 bill on the street, but he has no tips about how to get by on less than $100,000 a year. Oh, and the 58-year-old Microsoft co-founder says he can still leap over a chair, if it is a small one. Those and other insights came as Gates fielded questions on Monday in an online chat session at social news website Reddit.com.

Along with playful personal perspectives, Gates shared thoughts on philanthropy, government snooping, and his return to a hands-on role at Microsoft to assist newly-appointed chief executive Satya Nadella.

“Satya is taking a fresh view of where Microsoft is strengths and weaknesses,” Gates said. “A new person gets to step back and change the focus in some ways.

He is off to a great start.” Gates noted that he doesn’t plan to stay at the office for days at a time as he did in his younger days when he had “energy and naivete” on his side.

He expected to give about a third of his work time to Microsoft, and the remaining two-thirds to the philan-

thropic foundation he runs with his wife. He dismissed the notion of being the biggest philanthropist, contending that while he gives a lot of money to charitable causes, aid workers living in difficult conditions sacrifice more than he does. When asked his thoughts on US spy agencies snooping on computer use, Gates described it as a ‘complex’ issue that will grow in importance as cameras and sensors in devices collect more information about users.

“We need to have trust in the way information is protected and gathered,” Gates said. “There is a role for the government to try and stop crime and terrorism but it will have to be more open.” He confided that his most expensive guilty pleasure purchase was a plane, quickly adding that it has been indispensible for travel in connection with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. He said he really enjoys the old-fashioned card game Bridge, leaving most of the videogame play on the home Microsoft Xbox console to his son. Gates said he also cleans the dinner dishes every night, because he likes the way he does it. — AFP

Syrian Pound Nepalese Rupees Malaysian Ringgit Chinese Yuan Renminbi Thai Bhat Turkish Lira

Philippine Peso Sierra Leone Singapore Dollar South African Rand Sri Lankan Rupee Taiwan Thai Baht

EXCHANGE RATES Al-Muzaini Exchange Co.

UAE Exchange Centre WLL

ASIAN COUNTRIES Japanese Yen Indian Rupees Pakistani Rupees Srilankan Rupees Nepali Rupees Singapore Dollar Hongkong Dollar Bangladesh Taka Philippine Peso Thai Baht Irani Riyal transfer Irani Riyal cash

2.718 4.591 2.688 2.167 2.888 222.600 36.576 3.643 6.276 8.648 0.271 0.273 GCC COUNTRIES

Saudi Riyal Qatari Riyal Omani Riyal Bahraini Dinar UAE Dirham

75.684 77.982 737.270 753.820 77.292

COUNTRY Australian Dollar Canadian Dollar Swiss Franc Euro US Dollar Sterling Pound Japanese Yen Bangladesh Taka Indian Rupee Sri Lankan Rupee Nepali Rupee Pakistani Rupee UAE Dirhams Bahraini Dinar Egyptian Pound Jordanian Dinar Omani Riyal Qatari Riyal Saudi Riyal

SELL DRAFT 253.57 262.97 315.94 387.44 283.25 469.23 2.78 3.644 4.611 2.170 2.890 2.693 77.19 753.89 40.68 403.13 736.63 78.22 75.66

SELL CASH 250.57 263.97 313.94 388.44 286.25 472.23 2.80 3.914 4.911 2.605 3.425 2.790 77.65 755.96 41.28 408.78 743.93 78.77 76.06

2.985 3.880 86.870 47.290 9.625 127.300

Bahrain Exchange Company CURRENCY Belgian Franc British Pound Czech Korune Danish Krone Euro Norwegian Krone Romanian Leu Slovakia Swedish Krona Swiss Franc Turkish Lira

BUY Europe 0.007379 0.458819 0.005977 0.047415 0.378102 0.041998 0.081904 0.008145 0.039845 0.305450 0.130434

SELL 0.008379 0.467819 0.017977 0.052415 0.385802 0.047198 0.81904 0.018145 0.044845 0.314740 0.137434

Australasia 0.240776 0.227712

0.252276 0.237212

America 0.254129 0.279750 0.280250

0.262629 0.284100 0.284100

Asia 0.003570 0.045692 0.034512 0.004273 0.000019 0.002647 0.003389 0.000257 0.083257 0.002984 0.002495

0.004170 0.049192 0.037262 0.004674 0.000025 0.002827 0.003389 0.000272 0.089257 0.003154 0.002775

ARAB COUNTRIES Egyptian Pound - Cash Egyptian Pound - Transfer Yemen Riyal/for 1000 Tunisian Dinar Jordanian Dinar Lebanese Lira/for 1000 Syrian Lira Morocco Dirham

39.700 40.347 1.324 173.300 400.790 1.040 2.022 35.463

EUROPEAN & AMERICAN COUNTRIES US Dollar Transfer Euro Sterling Pound Canadian dollar Turkish lira Swiss Franc Australian Dollar US Dollar Buying

283.700 385.830 468.810 259.560 126.140 312.620 252.350 282.500 GOLD

20 Gram 10 Gram 5 Gram

236.000 120.000 62.000

Dollarco Exchange Co. Ltd Rate for Transfer US Dollar Canadian Dollar Sterling Pound Euro Swiss Frank Bahrain Dinar UAE Dirhams Qatari Riyals Saudi Riyals Jordanian Dinar Egyptian Pound Sri Lankan Rupees Indian Rupees Pakistani Rupees Bangladesh Taka Philippines Pesso Cyprus pound Japanese Yen

Selling Rate 283.600 261.685 466.275 386.095 311.250 748.845 77.190 78.745 76.495 399.680 40.678 2.168 4.607 2.687 3.643 6.276 696.580 3.715

0.008511 0.000069 0.219253 0.020230 0.001879 0.009418 0.008378

Australian Dollar New Zealand Dollar

Canadian Dollar US Dollars US Dollars Mint

Bangladesh Taka Chinese Yuan Hong Kong Dollar Indian Rupee Indonesian Rupiah Japanese Yen Kenyan Shilling Korean Won Malaysian Ringgit Nepalese Rupee Pakistan Rupee

Arab 0.746461 0.037574 0.000078 0.000185 0.396139 1.0000000 0.000139 0.023842 0.001202 0.731241 0.077256 0.075057 0.002175 0.168180 0.130434 0.076300 0.001289

Bahraini Dinar Egyptian Pound Iranian Riyal Iraqi Dinar Jordanian Dinar Kuwaiti Dinar Lebanese Pound Moroccan Dirhams Nigerian Naira Omani Riyal Qatar Riyal Saudi Riyal Syrian Pound Tunisian Dinar Turkish Lira UAE Dirhams Yemeni Riyal

0.006791 0.000075 0.225253 0.028730 0.002459 0.009598 0.008928

0.754461 0.040674 0.000080 0.000245 0.403639 1.0000000 0.000239 0.047842 0.001837 0.736921 0.078469 0.075757 0.002395 0.176180 0.137434 0.077449 0.001369

Al Mulla Exchange Currency US Dollar Euro Pound Sterling Canadian Dollar Indian Rupee Egyptian Pound Sri Lankan Rupee Bangladesh Taka Philippines Peso Pakistan Rupee Bahraini Dinar UAE Dirham Saudi Riyal *Rates are subject to change

Transfer Rate (Per 1000) 283.100 385.650 467.600 259.800 4.575 40.345 2.165 3.642 6.265 2.686 753.850 77.100 75.600

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2014

BUSINESS

Dubai extends gains, other markets mixed Kuwait firm after oil refinery bids approved DUBAI: Dubai’s bourse rose further yesterday after a choppy session as it tried to break free of the 4,000-point psychological resistance level, while other regional markets were narrowly mixed because of a lack of fresh catalysts. The Dubai index climbed 1.0 percent to a fresh five-year closing high of 4,065 points after rebounding from an intra-day loss of roughly 1 percent - a sign that buyers remain ready to step in on any weakness in the market. “Expectations for the earnings we haven’t seen yet are high and given the state of emerging markets, there is some interest in dollarpegged markets like the UAE (United

Arab Emirates) from countries where currencies are under pressure,” said Amer Khan, head of asset management at Shuaa Asset Management.

Mid-cap shares led gains with Dubai-based contractor Drake and Scull rising 3.5 percent after the company said a unit won a 375 million dirham ($102 million) contract from local developer Nakheel. This followed a string of recent contract wins.

Abu Dhabi’s measure slipped 0.5 percent, however, easing off a 66-month high. In Kuwait, the measure advanced 0.2 percent to extend its 2014 gains to 4.1 percent. Sentiment was moderately positive after the

government approved $12 billion worth of bids for major upgrades at two oil refineries as part of the countr y ’s delayed mega-development plan.

Last year the market was dampened by renewed disappointment at the pace of projects and investments; many delays were due to political tensions between the cabinet and parliament, and to bureaucratic inertia. So any progress in big infrastructure projects is seen as encouraging. Saudi Arabia’s benchmark slipped 0.2 percent, easing off Monday’s five-year high. The market is up 3.8 percent year-to-date, underperforming Gulf

peers as investors find fewer attractive buying opportunities and many wait for clarity on the extend of damage to companies from tight labor supplies due to a crackdown on illegal foreign workers.

Banking shares weighed with Al Rajhi down 1.4 percent and the sector index retreating 0.8 percent. “There is uncertainty on the impact from the labor shortage we would like to see things bottom out from an earnings perspective,” said Shuaa’s Khan.

Egypt’s benchmark index ticked up 0.1 percent as real estate -related shares rose. Most of the market’s recent gains have been due to antici-

Scandal-hit Barclays bank axes jobs, raises bonuses Barclays to cut up to 12,000 jobs LONDON: Barclays will axe thousands of jobs and raise bonuses for its investment bankers this year, the under-fire British lender announced yesterday after posting a return to annual profits. Chief executive Antony Jenkins, who has himself declined a huge bonus as Barclays is probed along with other banks over possible manipulation of foreign exchange trading, said that between 10,000 and 12,000 jobs would go worldwide this year.

Jenkins told a conference call with media that about 7,000 jobs would go in Britain, out of a global workforce of about 139,000.

Barclays, which is seeking to repair a reputation badly damaged by its role in the Libor interest rate-rigging scandal of 2012, increased the money available for staff bonuses by almost 10 percent to £2.378 billion ($3.907 billion, 2.858 billion euros). While net profits rose, the investment bank unit reported a loss in the fourth quarter, while pre-tax earnings slumped as Barclays factored in restructuring costs and litigation charges.

Along with other British lenders, Barclays has been hit by massive compensation payouts to customers who were mis-sold insurance policies. “Despite challenging conditions, our underlying performance has been resilient and momentum is building, as evidenced by the results,” Jenkins said in comments accompanying the results. Defending its bonus payouts, the bank said it was being competitive in “ensuring that Barclays has the right people in the right roles”. Barclays, which is Britain’s second biggest bank after HSBC, announced yesterday that a strong performance by its retail arm helped lift group profit after tax to £540 million last year, compared with a net loss of £624 million in 2012.

Share price slides Barclays shares slumped 1.91 percent to 269.75 pence on London’s benchmark FTSE 100 index, which was showing a gain of 0.79 percent at 6,643.34 points in morning deals.

“Underneath the Barclays bonnet, performanc-

Iran, Indonesia firms plan to build refinery JAKARTA: An Iranian oil firm and an Indonesian company are looking to build a refinery in the southeast Asian nation worth at least $3 billion, officials said, as the two countries seek stronger investment ties with the easing of sanctions on Iran. Indonesia is desperate to expand its refining capacity to be less dependent on oil imports, but attracting partners has been difficult with government talks between Kuwait Petroleum and Saudi Aramco recently stalling over tax issues.

For the last 10 years, no projects have moved beyond the initial planning stages.

Tehran-based Nakhle Barani Pardis (NBP) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with PT Kreasindo Resources Indonesia to explore the feasibility of setting up the refinery, which will have a capacity to process as much as 300,000 barrels per day of heavy Iranian crude oil. Kreasindo may also purchase for the long term up to 300,000 barrels per day from NBP, and the Iranian company is willing to invest up to 30 percent for “realization of the refinery”, according to terms of the MoU. Both companies are relatively small players in the oil industry. “The international world needs a strong Iran, a growing Iran and an Iran that has a developed economy,” Mahendra Siregar, chief of Indonesia’s Investment Coordinating Board, said at a joint IndonesiaIran business event in Jakarta yesterday.

“Indonesia is ready to work together and welcome good opportunities in the future,” Siregar said. He also said that Indonesia’s state energy firm Pertamina was looking at investment opportunities in Iran, but declined to give more details. Indonesia now has about 1 million bpd of refining capacity that meets about twothirds of its demand, meaning it has to import more than 500,000 bpd of fuel products to fill the gap. Iran is emerging from international isolation after striking an interim deal with the United States, France, Germany, Britain, Russia and China to curb Tehran’s nuclear work in exchange for some relaxation of sanctions.

Total trade between Iran and Indonesia has risen nearly five times over the last decade, totaling $1.26 billion in 2012, according to Indonesia’s trade ministry.—Reuters

es are mixed,” said Richard Hunter, head of equities at Hargreaves Lansdown Stockbrokers.”More positively, the capital cushion is now looking robust, the credit impairment position has improved further, the bank continues to pay a dividend unlike some of its rivals... and certain pockets of the business such as UK Retail made a robust contribution.”

Retail banking veteran Jenkins replaced Bob Diamond, who stepped down as chief executive of Barclays in July 2012 after the bank was fined £290 million by British and US regulators over the attempted manipulation of the key interbank Libor interest rate. US national Diamond was renowned for overseeing a culture of high bonuses at Barclays’ investment banking division, which he headed before taking over as chief executive.

Barclays took the unusual step of posting its headline and adjusted pre-tax profits on Monday, a day earlier than scheduled, after figures were leaked to media. While statutory pre-tax profits surged last year, adjusted earnings dropped and missed the bank’s own forecast amid the group’s cost-cutting. Reported profit before tax hit £2.9 billion in 2013, while adjusted pre-tax profit, which the bank said took into account exceptional charges, slumped to £5.2 billion. Barclays has set aside an additional £331 million in provisions to cover litigation and regulatory charges.

And last year it was forced into a huge £5.8billion shares sale, or rights issue, to meet regulatory demands to strengthen its capital buffers. “Barclays tried to stagger the bad news by unexpectedly revealing the headline (pre-tax profit) figure yesterday, but announcing jobs cuts and increasing the bonus pool has backfired on the bank’s share price,” said David Madden, market analyst at traders IG. In a fresh blow, Britain’s data watchdog on Sunday launched a probe after confidential files relating to Barclays customers were allegedly stolen then sold on to rogue brokers.— AFP

LONDON: A woman uses an ATM machine outside a Barclays bank branch in central London. — AFP

US new Fed chair Yellen takes hot seat at Capitol WASHINGTON: The health of the US economy and the extraordinary and controversial measures the Federal Reserve has taken to support it will top the agenda yesterday when Janet Yellen testifies to lawmakers for the first time as head of the Federal Reserve. Yellen, in just her second week on the job since succeeding Ben Bernanke earlier this month, will want to reinforce the central bank’s determination to halt the money-printing presses later this year while ensuring investors that a rise in interest rates remains a long way off, economists say.

She is expected to strike a tone of cautious optimism after a decidedly mixed run of data that has raised questions about the prospects for the world’s largest economy.

Yellen’s prepared testimony on the Fed’s semiannual monetary policy report will be released at 8:30 am. The hearing before the Republican- controlled House of Representatives Financial S er vices Committee starts at 10 am.

New Fed chairs sometimes set monetary policy on a different path, as Paul Volcker did in 1979. But Yellen, who was vice chair under Bernanke, was a co-author of the Fed’s current accommodative policy and effectively wrote the book on how the central bank communicates, so she will probably change little so soon after taking the reins.

We expect her “to strike neither a more dovish nor a more hawkish tone,” said Roberto Perli, a former Fed official who is now partner at policy research firm Cornerstone Macro. “That might come as a surprise to a number of investors who view her as more dovish than Bernanke.” More than four years after the end of the 20072009 recession, the Fed has embarked on perhaps its most difficult policy shift as it tries to back away from flooding the financial system with ultra-easy money. While it expects to keep interest rates near zero until well into next year, it has begun scaling back its bond-buying stimulus, though the measured pace could frustrate some

Republicans who think the program is reckless. One possible pitfall for Yellen would be to get ensnared in debate with lawmakers over fiscal policy, an area over which the Fed has no jurisdiction even though decisions last year in Congress have slowed the economic recovery. Others include the politically charged area of bank supervision, and the persistent worries that the Fed’s easy money has stoked potentially dangerous asset-price bubbles.

“She hasn’t been in the limelight really even as vice chair she has made speeches here and there but she hasn’t been really in

US Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen the hot seat,” said Scott Anderson, chief economist at Bank of the West in San Francisco. “I don’t think there’s going to be any honeymoon period for her,” he added. “I think she will get some pointed questions.”

Yellen, the first woman to chair the Fed in its 100-year history, will testify to the Democratic-controlled Senate Banking Committee tomorrow.

Early test Encouraged by momentum in the economy last year, the Fed has trimmed asset purchases twice since December. It is now buying $65 billion in Treasuries and mort-

gage bonds each month in its bid to keep long-term borrowing costs low and encourage investment and hiring. But two months of weak US jobs growth, a disappointing reading on factory activity, and a recent selloff in emerging markets that also hit Wall Street will be fodder for the House committee. Its chairman, Jeb Hensarling, a Republican of Texas, is a long-standing critic of the aggressive Fed stimulus, which he argues has enabled a huge run-up in the United States’ debt.

Republicans have signaled they want to press Yellen on what they see as the limited effectiveness, and even dangers, of a central bank balance sheet now worth $4 trillion and counting. Yellen is expected to calmly point to the longer-term trend of improvement in the labor market, including the quick drop to 6.6 unemployment, and to low but stable inflation as reasons for cautious optimism and for steady reductions in the stimulus.

Long concerned with the pain the recession caused American workers, she will also probably stress that policy will remain broadly accommodative for some time. She is not, however, expected to tip her hand on how the Fed might re-craft its delicately worded promise to keep rates low based on levels of employment and inflation. The Fed has said it would not consider raising rates at least until the jobless rate hit 6.5 percent, as long as inflation was well contained. Yellen will chair her first meeting of the Fed’s policy-setting committee in midMarch, and will hold a press conference after the close of the two-day meeting. Yet after eight years of Bernanke at the helm of the world’s most influential central bank, the testimony could set the stage for at least four years under Yellen. Said Zach Pandl, senior rates strategist at Columbia Management: “The testimony will help clarify how she plans to govern the (Fed’s policy-setting) committee, and how much airspace there was between Bernanke and Yellen on the big policy questions.”— Reuters

pation of progress towards a democratically elected government with presidential and parliamentary elections due.

“All good news is priced in - now investors will wait to see more positive news coming from the political arena plus the implementation of the new economic policy, and if companies are able to benefit from that,” said Sebastien Henin, head of asset management at The National Investor in Abu Dhabi. Egypt’s interim government unveiled on Monday its second stimulus package, which will inject 33.9 billion Egyptian pounds ($4.87 billion) into the economy. —Reuters

News

in brief

UK extends mortgage aid scheme to Islamic finance LONDON: Britain’s government sought to bolster London’s position as a centre for Islamic finance yesterday by extending its ‘Help to Buy’ mortgage scheme to loans that comply with Islamic law. Help to Buy was launched last year and offers banks insurance against the risk of lending to home-buyers who cannot afford large mortgage deposits. Britain’s finance ministry said property finance plans that circumvent Islam’s bar on interest payments would now be eligible in the same way as standard mortgages. “The Help to Buy extension builds on the government’s commitment to support the UK Islamic finance market ... and retain London’s position as the premier western Islamic financial centre,” the finance ministry said in a statement. Islamic finance is worth around 11 billion pounds ($18 billion) a year to Britain, the government added. Later this year Britain aims to become the first Western country to issue a bond that complies with Islamic law, known as a sukuk, in a further attempt to cement London’s place as the main Western centre for Islamic finance. However, the sum of money that it intends to raise - around 200 million pounds - is small and in the past the government’s debt issuance agency has had doubts about whether Islamic finance offers value for money and said the bond is likely to be a one-off.

Myanmar carrier leases 10 planes worth $960 million SINGAPORE: Myanmar’s national carrier yesterday signed a contract with US firm GE Capital to lease 10 Boeing aircraft worth nearly a billion dollars in a major makeover for the largely domestic airline. US ambassador to Myanmar Derek Mitchell described the agreement as the “largest commercial sale” by a US company to Myanmar in decades. Under the agreement, state-owned Myanma Airways will lease 10 new Boeing 737 planes from GE Capital Aviation Services (GECAS), the commercial leasing and financing arm of US giant General Electric. Delivery of the planes is scheduled to begin in June 2015. The agreement was signed on the sidelines of the Singapore Airshow, Asia’s biggest aerospace and defense show which began yesterday. “ The contract calls for six Boeing 737-800 models and four Boeing 737-MAX models. The aircraft will deliver through 2020,” GECAS said in a statement. The planes are valued at $960 million at list prices. I t will be a major makeover for flag carrier Myanma Air, which was established in 1948 and currently operates mostly domestic services using Fokker F28 jets and ATR turboprops. For flights to smaller domestic airports, Myanma Airways uses Beechcraft and Cessna planes. “We are pleased at GE to work with Myanma Airways to provide new, state-of-the-art Boeing aircraft,” Norman Liu, president and chief executive of GECAS, said in a statement.

SA unemployment dips slightly to 24% JOHANNESBURG: Unemployment in Africa’s largest economy dipped slightly in the last quarter of 2013, official data showed yesterday, a boost for the government as South Africa (SA) heads toward May elec tions.

Statistics South Africa said the unemployment rate fell to a two-year low of 24.1 percent, down from 24.5 percent in the third quarter.

While modest, the ruling African National Congress is likely to herald the dip as a sign the economy is on the right track. Joblessness is a major issue in the country at it heads to the polls on May 7, with both major parties making promises to create jobs a key plank of their manifestos. But critics argue the official data, which measures only those actively looking for work, do not tell the whole story. Out of a working age population of 35 million only 15.2 million South Africans are ac tually employed. “Today’s figures suggest that the weak economy is still struggling to reduce the unemployment rate significantly,” said analysts at Nedbank Capital. A large portion of the decline in the unemployment rate appears to be thanks to an uptick in government jobs.

“Much of the gain in employment was in the ‘community and social services’ sector,” said Shilan Shah of Capital Economics. “ These types of jobs tend to be relatively low paid and deliver low rates of productivity growth.”

“Employment in the manufacturing and financial services sectors, which deliver higher rates of productivity growth, actually fell over the quarter,” she said.

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2014

BUSINESS

Oil nears $109 on Fed hopes LONDON: Oil edged towards $109 a barrel yesterday on hopes the Federal Reserve’s new head will strike a cautiously optimistic tone on the US economy and on expectations US distillate stocks fell as cold weather boosted heating demand. Fed Chairwoman Janet Yellen testifies to lawmakers later on and, say economists, will want to reinforce the central bank’s determination to halt the moneyprinting presses later this year while ensuring investors that a rise in interest rates remains a long way off. Brent crude was up 17 cents at $108.80 a barrel at 1304 GMT, after settling 94 cents lower. US crude traded up 9 cents at $100.15, having closed above $100 on Monday for the first time this year.

“If Yellen, as expected, gives a dovish testimony, it will give some assurance to oil markets,” said Chee Tat Tan, investment analyst at Phillip Futures in Singapore. “The greenback would be likely to weaken further, which would help lift demand for crude oil.” The dollar fell to its lowest in almost two weeks yesterday Yellen’s prepared testimony on the Fed’s semiannual monetary policy report will be released at 1330 GMT. The hearing before the House of Representatives Financial Services Committee starts at 1500 GMT. Some analysts say investor hopes for the Fed chief’s comments may be running a little too high, and are looking for oil prices to retreat soon afterwards. “The market may be get-

ting a little bit ahead of itself in terms of what can be expected from Janet Yellen’s testimony,” said Harry Tchilinguirian, head of commodity markets strategy at BNP Paribas. “From a technical point of view, sustaining the move past $100 for WTI is going to be difficult.” US crude was close to a sixweek high, supported by expectations of a drop in distillate inventories last week due to freezing weather across the country. Distillate stocks, including heating oil and diesel fuel, are expected to drop by 2.3 million barrels in the week to Feb 7, analysts said in a Reuters survey before weekly inventory reports from the American Petroleum Institute and the Energy Information Administration. —Reuters

BANGKOK: A rice farmer reacts to speeches during a protest demanding payment of a rice subsidy program from the government outside the Permanent Secretary for Defense in Bangkok, Thailand. An ambitious rice buying program that Thailand’s ruling party hoped would uplift millions of its poor rural supporters may end up helping to bring down the increasingly cornered government. —AP

Asia shares get leg-up Investors wager on dovish tone SYDNEY: Asian shares firmed and gold prices hit a three-month high yesterday as investors wagered the new head of the US Federal Reserve would navigate her first testimony to Congress without rocking the boat for markets. Fed Chair Janet Yellen appears before the House Financial Services Committee at 1500 GMT and will likely face questions on the state of the labor market and the future pace of tapering. Dealers said the latest betting was that while the tone was likely to be upbeat on the economy, Yellen would emphasize that interest rates were set to remain near zero for an extended period. “ The market is more ready to be relieved than to cheer on Yellen’s comments, which are expected to clarify uncertainties about the Fed’s tapering pace and interest hike plans,” Mirae Asset Securities analyst Chung Seung-jae in Seoul. “In the absence of a Fed meeting in February, her testimonies are seen as the biggest risk event for the month.”

Just the hope was enough to lift gold 0.7 percent to $1,283.69 an ounce, while the dollar lost a quarter of a cent to the euro at $1.3668. The dollar also dipped a touch to 102.15 yen, though activity was curtailed by a holiday in Japan.

The sharpest move came in the Australian dollar which tacked on half a cent to $0.9005 after figures showed a broad improvement in business activity combined with a near 10 percent annual increase in home prices. The local share market was further underpinned by a solid earnings report from Australia and New Zealand Banking Group and added 0.6 percent. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 1.1 percent, with Hong Kong leading the way by climbing 1.6 percent. US stock futures were also trading firmer with the

S&P 500 e-mini contact up 0.3 percent.

US Fed theatre Yellen appears before the Republicancontrolled House of Representatives Financial Services Committee yesterday and the Democrat-controlled Senate Banking Committee tomorrow. Analysts have generally assumed Yellen would stick with the script and reiterate that the Fed will continue to scale back its asset buying, as long as the economy improves as expected.

“The testimony is likely to be more theatre than economics,” said Marshall Gittler, head of global FX strategy at online trader IronFx Global. “Yellen will probably try to remain polite and give upbeat, optimistic answers that will play well on TV. In that respect her testimony may present a favorable picture of the US economy that could boost the dollar.”

One argument for staying the course on tapering is that bond investors have learned to live with the idea without freaking out, as they did a couple of times last year.

Yields on US 10-year Treasury paper have settled back at 2.67 percent, well below recent highs of 3.04 percent and less of a threat to the housing market.

Investors, too, have accepted that tapering is not the same as tightening and have pushed out the timing of the first actual hike in the Fed funds rate. A move is not fully priced in until late 2015, a view Yellen is likely to endorse. In oil markets, prices steadied after recent gains as the market looked toward the end of a long and frigid winter. Brent was up 5 cents yesterday at $108.68 a barrel but off a five-week high above $109. US crude inched up a cent to $100.07, after rising to its highest this year on Monday at $100.55.—Reuters

Gold hits 3-month high LONDON: Spot gold climbed to its highest in almost three months yesterday, as the dollar fell ahead of congressional testimony by new Federal Reserve chief Janet Yellen that could give clues on the pace of its stimulus tapering. Spot gold rose 0.7 percent at $1,283.60 an ounce by 1037 GMT, after rising as much as one percent to the highest since midNovember at $1,287.01 earlier in the session.

Fed Chair Janet Yellen gives her first testimony before the House Financial Services Committee at 1500 GMT, and will likely face questions on the state of the labor market and the future pace of tapering. US gold futures for April delivery also rose 0.7 percent to $1,283.30 an ounce, on course for a fifth day of gains, in the longest winning streak since August 2012. Yellen’s testimony comes at a tricky time given two months of soft employment growth and as a deadline looms on raising the US government borrowing limit before a possible debt default.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if we see this little rally go up and have a poke above $1,300,” Credit Suisse head of precious metals research Tom Kendall said. “But... the market is expecting a little bit too much from Yellen in terms of dovish commentary and I would expect to see quite a bit more selling as we get up to that level.” Gold prices were supported by a weaker US dollar, which was wallowing near a two-week low against a basket of major currencies. “The US dollar out-

look remains pivotal for bullion in 1H14, and we still believe that the export of changing US policy will provide a major challenge to gold this year,” VTB Capital said in a note.

The metal has risen around 6.5 percent since the beginning of the year, after a 28 percent drop in 2013, as mixed economic data in the United States and emerging-market turmoil weighed on some equity markets. Investors, however, continue to regard these macroeconomic events as insufficient to derail the global recovery, which makes the investment case for gold, usually seen as a safe haven in times of trouble, still unattractive. In the physical markets, Chinese demand eased due to the gains in prices.

Premiums for 99.99 percent purity gold on the Shanghai Gold Exchange eased to $7 an ounce from $12 on Monday.

India’s trade ministry said it has recommended easing curbs on gold imports, after a 77 percent drop in imports for January that helped narrow the country’s trade deficit. India had imposed curbs last year including a record 10 percent duty to discourage gold purchases. Silver also rose 0.5 percent to $20.13 an ounce, tracking gold.

Platinum gained 0.5 percent to $1,387.49 an ounce as strikes in South African mines continued. Top platinum producers and the AMCU union are set to hold separate meetings with a state mediator this week to discuss the stoppage over wages. Palladium was up 0.7 percent to $720.00 an ounce.— Reuters

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2014

BUSINESS

Fleeing traders plunge CAR into food crisis BANGUI: Violence in the Central African Republic has forced many traders and herders to flee, exacerbating an already alarming food crisis, relief groups said yesterday. Oxfam and Action Contre La Faim (ACF - Action Against Hunger) said three quarters of wholesalers in Bangui had already fled. “Most of Bangui’s food trade relies on around 40 large-scale wholesalers who impor t food from neighboring countries and resell on to small traders,” a statement said.

A study conducted by the two groups showed that only 10 remained, less than a year after a coup touched off a deadly cycle of sectarian violence.

“Even those remaining said they would flee too if security does not improve quickly,” the statement said. Wholesalers said their sales have plummeted up to 90 percent over the past two months because people cannot afford to buy food anymore. Meat is also in short sup-

ply because herders have fled into the bush.

Former colonial power France deployed 1,600 troops two months ago and the African Union has three times as many on the ground but the killing and pillaging has continued to escalate.

Muslims, who controlled a large share of trading in Bangui and elsewhere, have been the main targets of the most recent wave of raids by Christian vigilantes. Those militias were formed in reaction to the killing, raping and looting perpetrated by rogue rebels from the mainly Muslim rebel movement that seized power in March 2013.

According to the United Nations, 90 percent of the Central African Republic’s 4.5 million people are only eating once a day. The statement-which was also signed by aid groups International Medical Corps, Mercy Corps and Tearfund-warned several factors were

5 ways China’s slowdown will ripple across the globe BEIJING: The reaction was slow in coming, but financial markets and corporate bosses have been jolted awake to China’s relentless growth decline and are scrambling to cope with wrenching changes in global business. For the past decade, China poured money into building new factories, highways and apartment blocks.

That propelled explosive growth at home and a flood of money to exporters of iron ore and other commodities such as Australia and Peru. But now, Beijing has put the brakes on that boom. Like a captain turning a heavy ship in choppy seas, its leaders are trying to steer the world’s second-largest economy away from reliance on investment and toward being a consumer society.

Growth has marched steadily downward over the past two years as Beijing clamped down on a spending boom that analysts worry has pushed debt to dangerous levels. That has meant less Chinese demand for imported goods from copper and cement to factory machinery and earth movers. China is far from falling off a financial cliff, but last year’s 7.7 percent growth was barely half of 2007’s 14.2 percent. Global stock markets slid after an unexpected fall in January manufacturing drew attention to the depth of the slowdown. Growth looks set to fall further amid weakness in trade, retail sales and manufacturing. “The growth slowdown this year will be faster than many expect,” said economist Diana Choyleva of Lombard Street Research in a report.

Already, slumping Chinese demand has led to job cuts at mines in Australia and elsewhere. Other companies that looked to China to drive revenues are cutting sales forecasts. Some have pulled out and profits are down, possibly endangering jobs abroad. As for Chinese companies, they face tougher competition at home. That, combined with weaker investment, could lead to job or wage cuts if Beijing fails to manage the challenges of its transition. That might hurt consumer spending, leading to a downward spiral. “It would then become a race to the bottom,” said Choyleva. A look at losers and possible winners from China’s slowdown: Commodities China’s voracious appetite for commodities propelled a boom in Australia and emerging economies in Africa and Latin America. With revenues down, exporters are cutting jobs and governments are tightening their spending. The International Monetary Fund has reduced its 2014 growth forecasts for South Africa, Brazil, the Middle East and Southeast Asia.

Caterpillar Inc has cut 13,000 jobs, blaming slower Chinese growth and weak spending by miners, and says it will cut more. Hardest-hit might be poor coun-

tries in Africa or Latin America that might have to cut ambitious plans for spending on education and other social programs.

Foreign companies Global companies have long seen China as one of their most promising markets, and most frustrating. China is the biggest market for Volkswagen AG and some other automakers. Yum Brands, the US-based operator of Pizza Hut, KFC and Taco Bell, already gets half its revenue from China. But US and European companies are being squeezed by tougher competition and by Beijing’s efforts to limit access to promising industries such as clean energy. Cosmetics brand Revlon Inc. says it will pull out of China. Actavis PLC, a generic drug maker, is leaving too. Sales of Swiss watches in China fell last year after an anti-corruption crackdown crimped gift-giving. The Communist Party has promised to open more industries such as Internet commerce and logistics to foreign competitors. But previous market opening initiatives have been tempered by conditions that include handing technology to potential Chinese competitors.

Autos China buoyed the global auto industry after the 2008 crisis. It passed the United States as the world’s biggest car market in 2009 and annual sales still are rising by double-digit rates. But growth is decelerating sharply. That steps up pressure on China’s fledgling automakers while global rivals add to their market share. Sales by independents grew by 11.4 percent last year, slower than the overall market at 15.7 percent. Their market share slipped by 1.6 percentage points to 40.3 percent.

This year’s market growth is due to slow to about 10 percent. Independents will face increased pressure to merge or close.

Chinese acquisitions abroad Squeezed at home, Chinese companies might try to sharpen their competitive edge by acquiring foreign brands and technology. Past acquisitions include Volvo Cars, Club Med and American meat packer Smithfield. Last month, Beijingbased Lenovo Group bought part of IBM Corp.’s server business and the Motorola mobile phone business from Google Inc. Possible winners One bright spot is Beijing’s effort to encourage consumer spending. China’s market for consumer-oriented goods such as wheat from Brazil, soybeans from Minnesota and French wine is growing.

Such sales could accelerate if Beijing can persuade households to spend more.

Also, suppliers to fields the Communist Party is promoting such as health care, energy efficiency and pollution control could see more opportunities.—AP

Bitcoin plunges NEW YORK: The price of the digital currency bitcoin has slid to its lowest level in nearly two months after bitcoin digital marketplace Mt Gox said a halt on withdrawals it announced on Friday would continue indefinitely after it detected “unusual activity.”

The bitcoin price varied dramatically from one exchange to another, with Tokyo-based Mt Gox, the best known operator of a bitcoin digital marketplace, recording one of the biggest drops for the day.

On the Mt. Gox platform the currency plunged to as low as $500 early on Monday, down more than 27 percent from Friday’s final price of $692, according to the Mt Gox website. It last traded at $595.74, off nearly 14 percent from Friday. “This technical issue is of a much larger intensity than we’ve seen in the past,” said Sebastien Galy, currency strategist at Societe Generale in New York. “The market may be realizing that there are issues which are specific to these forms of currencies.”

The bitcoin in recent months started to gain wider acceptance, with Overstock.com and the Sacramento Kings basketball team both saying they would begin to accept the currency. More recently, the digital currency has drawn increased scrutiny. New York state’s top bank regulator in late January revealed plans to regulate businesses handling transactions in bitcoin this year.

The bitcoin price started falling fast on

Friday when Mt Gox said it was temporarily halting withdrawals due to unexplained technical issues. In an updated statement on Monday, Mt Gox said withdrawals were on hold indefinitely after it “has detected unusual activity on its bitcoin wallets and performed investigations during the past weeks. This confirmed the presence of transactions which need to be examined more closely.”

Mt Gox said a “bug in the bitcoin software” could allow transaction details to be altered. In effect, someone on the network could alter transaction details to make it appear a transfer of bitcoins from one digital wallet to another had not occurred when in fact it had. This might cause the transfer to be repeated. A bitcoin wallet is an application that stores bitcoins for the currency’s users. Mt Gox said the issue was not limited to the exchange and “affects all transactions where bitcoins are being sent to a third party.” It said the withdrawal suspension would be in effect until the issue has been resolved. CoinDesk, which launched the CoinDesk Bitcoin Price Index in September, removed Mt Gox from its index Monday, citing its “persistent failure to meet the index’s standards for inclusion.”

“These recent withdrawal restrictions are just the latest in a series of issues which have made Mt. Gox’s inclusion in the BPI problematic,” CoinDesk said. —Reuters

converging that could spell a major food disaster. The UN has warned that 96 percent of farmers have no access to seeds due to the conflict and are likely to miss the next planting season, which starts in a month. “With a failed harvest, the existing crisis would worsen and last throughout the coming year,” the statement said.

Oxfam countr y director Philippe Conraud warned that fully-fledged market collapse would be disastrous. “The Central African Republic risks facing a situation akin to a siege. As well as forcing people out of the country, violence and insecurity are stopping food from coming in, and people are unable to get enough food for their families,” he said.

“Many of those who have fled the attacks in Bangui were the backbone of the local economy. The consequences of failing to protect those who remain could be disastrous for everyone.” — AFP

BANGUI: A boy stands in the wreckage of a house in PK 5 district in Bangui. — AFP

US launches another trade action against India at WTO Latest irritant in troubled bilateral relationship WASHINGTON: The United States said it would take India to the World Trade Organization to gain a bigger foothold for US manufacturers in its fast-growing solar products market, adding another irritant to an already strained relationship. The Obama administration said it was filing its second case at the WTO over the domestic content requirements in India’s massive solar program, which aims to ease chronic energy shortages in Asia’s third-largest economy.

US Trade Representative Michael Froman said making Indian solar developers use locally made equipment discriminated against US producers and could hinder the spread of solar power.

“Domestic content requirements detract from successful cooperation on clean energy and actually impede India’s deployment of solar energy by raising its cost,” Froman said.

It is the second time in a year that Washington has sought a consultation at the WTO - the first stage in a dispute process that can lead to sanctions - over India’s Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission. The ongoing trade spat between the two allies follows the recent arrest and strip search of a female Indian diplomat in New York in connection with visa fraud charges. The arrest sparked fur y in India, prompted retaliatory measures against US diplomats there and plunged US-India relations to their lowest point since India tested a nuclear device in 1998.

The USTR issued its first challenge to India’s solar program last February when it formally requested consultations over its first stage. The program aims to double India’s renewable energy capacity by 2017. US officials had hoped a second phase of the program would address Washington’s concerns, but now fear the harm to American producers would likely be even greater because the rules were expanded in October to cover so-called thin film technology that comprises the majority of U.S. solar product exports to India.

India hit back at the initial US accusations in April, asking Washington to justify its own incentives offered to US companies that use local labor and products in renewable energy and water projects. The Indian embassy in

WASHINGTON: US Trade Representative Michael Froman announces a trade enforcement action related to India during a news conference at the US Trade Representative’s office in Washington. — AP Washington was not immediately available for comment on the latest trade action. India has argued its solar policies are legal under WTO government procurement rules that permit countries to exempt projects from non-discrimination obligations.

Years in the making Froman said the action did not undermine the value that the United States placed on its relationship with India, saying: “Today’s action addresses a specific issue of concern and in no way detracts from the importance we attach to this relationship.” Attorneys for the USTR said later such cases took months to prepare. US solar trade groups cheered the move and said the United States had been patient in its discussions with India. “The US government spent two years talking with India trying to encourage them to move away from the local content requirement before initiating the first action roughly a year ago,” said John Smirnow, vice president of trade and competitiveness for the Solar Energy Industries Association.

“We are almost three years in the making of the US trying to get India to move back from this local content requirement.” US environmental groups have urged the Obama administration to back off any WTO action, arguing that building up India’s solar power industry will help it cut high greenhouse gas emissions. But the administration has come under growing pressure from lawmakers and business groups to take a tougher stance on perceived Indian protectionist measures and intellectual property rights abuses by Indian drug companies.

India is widely perceived in Washington as a serial trade offender, with US companies unhappy about imports of everything from shrimp to steel pipes they say threaten jobs.

The US International Trade Commission is scheduled to hold a hearing into complaints of trade barriers erected by India today and tomorrow. There are 14 past or current World Trade Organization cases between India and the United States, whose bilateral trade in goods measured $63.7 billion last year, not including the latest case. —Reuters

Chinese refiners add capacity, eye small boost in crude runs BEIJING: China aims to add more than twice the oil processing capacity in 2014 than it did last year, even as top state refiners plan to raise crude runs only 1.4 percent at some of their largest plants due to worries about slow fuel demand growth. The world’s second-largest oil consumer aims to add nearly 600,000 barrels in daily refining capacity in 2014, and was slated to bring on more before PetroChina delayed two startups and an expansion as 2013 oil demand growth dropped to a 22-year low.

China’s biggest state refiners plan to raise crude throughput by just 45,350 barrels per day (bpd), or 1.4 percent, this year over last year at 13 plants along the nation’s east-

ern seaboard, a Reuters poll on refinery operations showed. If that same rate of increase in crude runs holds across all of China’s refineries, it would be the smallest rise in refinery throughput since at least 2003, according to BP’s Statistical Review of World Energy (http://r.reuters.com/syj76v).

Given overcapacity in China’s refining sector stretching back several years, that suggests the nearterm future for the nation’s refiners includes low run rates, stressed margins and continued pressure to hold off on expanding capacity.

“The new capacity this year could make oversupply a bit more serious than last year. Refinery run rates fell last year and could fall further this

year,” said a Beijing-based oil analyst.

China accounted for around a quarter of the world’s increase in oil use last year, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA), and its slower growth in fuel demand capped prices that may have risen further on the plunge in exports from Iran and prolonged outages in Libya and disruptions in Sudan.

The refineries in the Reuters poll - operated by Sinopec Corp , Asia’s largest refiner, PetroChina and China National Offshore Oil Corp (CNOOC), long with foreign partners in some cases - have a combined capacity of more than 3.8 million bpd, about one third of

SHANGHAI: In this file photo, visitors look at a new Santana of Volkswagen at Shanghai Imported Auto Expo in Shanghai, China. Growth has marched steadily downward over the past two years as Beijing clamped down on a spending boom that analysts worry has pushed debt to dangerous levels. — AP

China’s total. The run rates at the plants represent a utilization rate of around 84 percent, with a number of refineries, such as PetroChina’s Dalian and Lanzhou and CNOOC’s Huizhou refineries, planning major maintenance this year.

China’s overall refinery run rates have held around 80 percent for the last dozen years, according to Reuters data and BP’s Review of World Energy. Despite refiner y overcapacity that has held around 2 million bpd since 2008, Chinese oil majors will still be adding a total of 590,000 bpd - an effective 420,000 bpd when averaged across the full year - this year, the poll showed. Among those starting up this year, state-run Sinochem Corp’s first fully owned refiner y, the 240,000 barrels-per-day Quanzhou plant, began test runs in January.

PetroChina’s $6 billion refinery and petrochemical complex in Sichuan province in the southwest, with 200,000 bpd in capacity, will be ready for trial production in weeks, company officials have said.

Expansion of Sinopec’s Yangzi and Shijiazhuang refineries is also coming at mid-year, even as some Chinese and international majors are delaying or abandoning projects at least in part due to concerns over an oversupplied market.

Besides the refinery startups and capacity expansion that PetroChina has said it is putting off for up to three years, Royal Dutch Shell and its partners have stalled a 400,000 bpd refinery project in east China.

BP Plc is also dropping plans to invest in a 200,000-bpd refinery project in southern China on worries about slow growth in fuel consumption. —Reuters

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2014

BUSINESS

Huge savings at Al Mulla & Behbehani Motor Festival

KUWAIT: Until the end of February, Al Mulla & Behbehani Motor Co (MBMC), the sole distributor of Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, Ram and Mopar in Kuwait, offers you remarkable, never to be repeated prices on selected 2013 Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep models. “We’re giving customers the opportunity to drive some of the region’s favorite vehicles at hugely discounted prices that make them even more irresistible,” said Chris Henderson, General Manager of MBMC. “Combining highly advanced technology, great performance, stand out design, high quality build, 5 star safety ratings and real driving pleasure -

plus huge savings -means that there’s quite simply never been a better time to buy.”

There’s a saving of KD 3,000 on the Chrysler 300, now available from just KD8,999 with free service for 2 years or 40,000 kms, while the Chrysler 200 is now available from only KD4,999, a saving of KD1,400 on the previous showroom price.

And the savings keep on coming, with the Wrangler now on offer from KD 8,199 (a saving of KD 700), Grand Cherokee from KD 9,999 (saving KD1,300) and Grand Cherokee SRT8 at only KD 16,999 (reduced by an amazing KD2,600) on selected 2013 model year only.

Muscle car fans can also enjoy great savings on Dodge, with the Charger reduced to KD7,299 (saving KD1,400), Challenger at KD7,999 (saving 1,600) and the true 7-seat Durango SUV at only KD7,999 (saving KD1,000). The discount prices offer applies to all model variants.

As if the savings weren’t enough on their own, MBMC are also throwing in free registration, free insurance and the best trade-in value. “Demand has already been very heavy,” said Henderson. “These offers are only available while stocks last, so customers looking for the market’s best overall value for money vehicles should visit

their nearest MBMC showroom today.”

When MBMC was formed in 2006, it immediately created a new benchmark in Kuwait’s automotive industry for sales, service and parts supply of Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep and Ram vehicles. Today, MBMC still goes from strength to strength, building on its foundation of customer care - and at the centre of the company’s success is an overriding determination to add value to customer relationships. MBMC’s latest state-of-the-art Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep and Ram 3S (sales/service/spare parts) facility strategically located in Al-Rai on the 4th Ring

Road, combined with a Mopar ExpressLane service facility and 3 other after-sales outlets covering Kuwait, clearly demonstrates the company’s commitment to deliver the highest possible levels of customer service right through from initial purchase to after-sales support. “Our reputation for exceptionally high levels of specification, commitment to the highest build quality, consistently strong residual values and determination to deliver exceptional customer service means we’re constantly developing and expanding our delivery of promises to our customers,” said Henderson.

Malabar Gold & Diamonds to inaugurate 109th outlet Free gold coin for every purchase worth KD 250 KUWAIT: Malabar Gold & Diamonds, the leading jeweler retailer announced the opening of its latest outlet in Lulu Hypermarket, Dajeej, Kuwait on 15th February 2014, Saturday at 12 pm. This will be the jeweler group’s 109th showroom worldwide and 3rd in Kuwait. The showroom features a fabulous array of traditional, contemporary and international designs in gold, platinum, diamonds and precious stones to fit all tastes and budgets. This outlet also displays their classy and trendy collection of branded jewellery; Era-

Uncut Diamond Collection, Mine- DiamondsUnlimited, Diva- The Youth Collection, EthnixHand Crafted Designer Jeweler, Divine-Heritage Jewelry Collection, Starlet- Kids Jewelry and Precia-Precious Gem Jewelry.

Malabar Gold & Diamonds offers amazing gifts on every purchase to celebrate this occasion. The customers can also avail a 1 gram gold coin absolutely free with every purchase of diamond jewelry worth KD400. Adding customer’s delight, they also offer a free gold coin

with every purchase of gold jewelry worth KD250. All these offers are valid till 1st March 2014 at their outlet in Lulu Hypermarket, Dajeej. At Malabar Gold and Diamonds, experienced and dedicated staff have a wealth of experience in the jewelry trade and are dedicated in assisting their customers on a one to one basis, helping them choose the perfect pieces from their wide collection of exquisite fine jewelry. In Kuwait, the group already has outlets in Al Rai and Souk Al Watya.

Farmers fight landmark Australian GMO case BMW Laser Light goes into series production MUNICH: From the autumn of 2014, BMW will be the first manufacturer worldwide to offer a production vehicle equipped with headlamps featuring a completely new laser light concept.

With this laser light technology, which was first presented at the 2011 Frankfurt International Motor Show, the BMW i8 (fuel consumption combined: 2.1-0.0 l/100 km; CO2 emissions combined: 49-0 g/km) is not only making automotive history as a plug-in hybrid sports car, but also as the first production vehicle to incorporate the totally new laser light technology.

Whilst the basic version of the BMW i8 is equipped with high-intensity, energy efficient full LED headlamps, the optional laser boost feature additionally ensures a high beam range of up to 600 metres. This means that the already high illumination range of the modern LED high beam is doubled. Thanks to the new laser technology, it is possible to increase energy efficiency by a further 30 percent compared to already highly power-saving LED light.

Highly intensive and efficient In addition to lowering power requirement, BMW Laser Light illuminates the road ahead with a significantly higher light intensity without heating up the surrounding area. Laser diodes are ten times smaller than conventional light diodes. They help to save not only available installation space inside the headlamp, but also weight. The size of the reflector surface can be reduced by a factor of up to ten vs. LED light.

The height of the reflector has now been reduced from the previous 9 cm to less than 3

cm. The light of a laser headlamp is extremely bright, similar to daylight, which is perceived by the human eye as pleasant.

Several high-performance diodes emit a strongly bundled beam via special lenses onto a fluorescent phosphorus substance inside the headlamp. This substance transforms the beam into an exceptionally bright white light that is ten times more intensive than conventional light sources. Due to their highly intensive and virtually ideal beam properties, laser diodes render the overall system even more efficient. In conjunction with the camera-aided digital highbeam assistant, dazzling of oncoming traffic or vehicles ahead is reliably eliminated.

Better visibility With the sum of its properties, BMW Laser Light is the ideal light source for the main beam of a vehicle. It combines unparalleled performance and safety with a high level of efficiency and exceptional compactness. Its outstanding range facilitates improved illumination and even better visibility when driving in the dark. As a result, it ensures a more relaxed and comfortable driving experience and enhanced road safety. The BMW i8 is the world’s first production vehicle to feature this innovative light technology. During the years ahead, further BMW models will be equipped with this future-oriented laser light system. The BMW i8 is the future of the sports car, laser light the future of automotive light technology. And the same applies to both: High performance coupled with a high level of efficiency.

SYDNEY: Two neighboring farmers, a field of canola and a gust of wind are at the centre of a landmark court case in Australia that could have consequences for the controversial growing of genetically modified crops in the country. Steve Marsh is suing former childhood friend Michael Baxter after harvested seed heads from Baxter’s genetically modified canola crop blew onto Marsh’s farm in the state of Western Australia, court documents said, contaminating land used for his organic oat and wheat crops.

Marsh, stripped of his organic certification and export licence for his oats, is claiming unspecified damages for loss of income in the civil negligence case, which opens on Monday in the West Australian Supreme Court. It is the first time in Australia one farmer has sued another for negligence over contamination of organic crops by genetically modified organisms (GMO) and will set a precedent for future cases, lawyers said. The case also illustrates the challenge Australia faces developing its agribusiness sector as it looks to become a “food bowl” for Asia amid rapidly growing demand for everything from grains to beef.

“People around the world are going to be looking at this,” said Michael Blakeney, a law professor at the University of Western Australia who does advisory work for the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization. “It is testing whether a GMO farmer has a duty of care to a neighbor that’s growing organic crops not to contaminate them.”

Baxter’s lawyer, Brian Bradley, declined to comment ahead of the trial, which is expected to last three weeks. Marsh and Baxter both declined to speak to Reuters. The former friends have not spoken to each other since the row erupted, local media have reported. Baxter bought the seeds from Monsanto Co, the world’s largest seed company.

After getting legal advice, Marsh opted not to sue the US firm because of a non-liability contract Monsanto signs with all farmers who buy its seeds, said Scott Kinnear, director of the Safe Food Foundation, an organic farming advocacy group

collecting donations to help fund Marsh’s suit. The case is likely to lead to regulations outlining boundaries between farms producing genetically modified crops and organic farms, lawyers and agribusiness experts said, potentially reducing the land available for cultivation. It could also change Australia’s unique zero tolerance status for contamination of organic crops, they said.

Unlike the United States, the European Union and Japan, which allow trace amounts of GMO in organic foods in acknowledgement of contamination by wind or pollen transfer, Australia maintains a zero threshold. “If the organic people don’t win the case, there will be a lot of pressure brought to bear for a change to the organic standard and that might remove some of the difficulties of co-existence,” said Joe Lederman, managing principle at FoodLegal, a Melbourne law firm specializing in food and agribusiness, which has represented both businesses and farmers in the past.

Ill wind Kojonup, a wheat and sheep district some 250 km south of the West Australia state capital Perth, is a quiet, tight-knit community of farmers. But the case brought by Marsh, 49, is splitting loyalties in the pastoral area where many farmers have turned to cutting-edge GMO production. GMO critics say the spread of genetically modified crops hurts the environment, most notably by fostering herbicideresistant weeds, and that food made with the crops can harm humans. Proponents say the crops are proven safe and that the proper use of the chemicals associated with the crops by farmers can mitigate environmental problems. Marsh’s decision to sue Baxter, 48, has garnered support from celebrity chefs and gardeners. Law firm Slater and Gordon is working pro bono, on the basis the case has broad public interest.

“We believe it’s his right to be able to farm GMfree and have a degree of protection,” said Kinnear, whose Melbourne-based group is collecting money for Marsh’s other expenses, such as payments to

experts and travel costs. Marsh’s lawsuit alleges that harvested seed heads from Monsanto’s laboratory-created Roundup Ready canola seed blew from Baxter’s property across a dirt lane and over a boundary fence in November 2010, re-germinating on Marsh’s land in January 2011.

Canola is grown for its seed, which is crushed for the oil used in margarine, cooking oils, salad oils and edible oil blends. After an inspection by the National Association for Sustainable Agriculture Australia (NASAA), a certifying agency for the government-backed regulator Standards Australia, Marsh lost organic status for produce from 70 percent of his farm. In the other corner, the Pastoralists and Graziers Association of Western Australia is giving financial support to Baxter. “This is nothing more than anti-GM publicity,” said PGA Western Graingrowers chairman John Snooke, who is also acting as a spokesman for Baxter. “Michael and PGA of Western Australia both believe in the farmers right to choose what he grows.”

Situation regrettable An interim ruling from the Supreme Court allowed Baxter to go ahead with his 2013 GMO canola crop, provided he harvest by a more direct method than the so-called swathing that led to the alleged contamination. Monsanto declined to comment on whether it was giving financial assistance to Baxter for the legal action, an accusation leveled

by Marsh’s supporters, saying only it was not a party to the case.

Its non-liability contracts were made to “ensure that growers comply with the agreed use of our products, industry stewardship standards and regulatory requirements”, Adam Blight, a Monsanto spokesman in Australia, said by email. Monsanto was not making any preparations in light of the possible outcomes of the case, he said. “This is a regrettable situation and it has been a difficult case for the farmers and communities involved,” Blight added. Organic farmers see the threat from the hearing on two fronts. —REuters

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2014

technology

US, France sign deal for 2016 Mars lander WASHINGTON: The United States and France have unveiled plans to collaborate on a new Mars mission, two years after NASA withdrew from a European partnership to send a probe and lander to the Red Planet. The project aims to send an unmanned lander to study the deep interior of the dry, dusty planet that is Earth’s neighbor, and will be called InSight, short for the Interior Exploration Using Seismic

Investigations, Geodesy, and Heat Transport.

The agreement was signed by NASA Administrator Charles Bolden and JeanYves Le Gall, president of the National Center of Space Studies of France (CNES) at the Mandarin Hotel in Washington. The mission is scheduled to launch in March 2016 and would arrive on Mars six months later. “The research generated by this collaborative

mission will give our agencies more information about the early formation of Mars, which will help us understand more about how Earth evolved,” said Bolden.

Not only would the lander return details about how Mars, a rocky planet like Earth, first formed, it would also probe the how tectonic activity and meteorite impacts shaped the Red Planet. Other partners on the project’s

science instruments include the German Aerospace Center, United Kingdom Space Agency, and the Swiss Space Office. The deal comes two years after NASA, citing budget constraints, killed a partnership with Europe on a project called ExoMars.

Russia stepped in last year and inked a deal to cooperate with the European Space Agency on the projec t, which aims to send t wo

unmanned missions to Mars, including an orbital probe in 2016 to look for atmospheric traces of methane gas - a pointer to the existence of microbial life-followed by a deep-drilling robotic vehicle in 2018. NASA currently has two rovers actively exploring Mars-the Curiosity rover which launched in 2012 and the smaller Oppor tunity rover which recently marked its tenth year in operation. —AFP

Hi-tech experts aiming to develop digital currency Israeli startups dream of a Bitcoin world

WASHINGTON: Apps are seen on Apple iPhone 5s in this file photo in Washington, DC. —AFP

Technology brings couples closer despite tensions WASHINGTON: Technology helps bring married couples closer together even though the use of electronic devices can be a source of tension, a US survey showed yesterday. The Pew Internet survey found 21 percent of married or partnered adults felt closer to their spouse or partner because of exchanges they had online or via text message.

One in four of the couples surveyed said they texted their partner when they were both home together and nine percent have resolved an argument online or by text message that they were having difficulty resolving in person. But the survey also found technology was a source of tension for some couples. Twenty-five percent of cell phone owners in a marriage or partnership said their spouse or partner was distracted by their cell phone when they were together.

And eight percent said they argued with their spouse or partner about the amount of time one of them was spending online.

The trends appeared magnified among younger adults surveyed, Pew found. The survey found 42 percent of 18-29 year olds with cell phones in serious relationships say their partner has been distracted by their mobile phone; but 41 percent in the age group said they felt closer to their partner because of online or text conversations.

“Technology is everywhere and our relationships are no exception,” said Amanda Lenhart, a Pew researcher and lead author

of the report. “And for younger adults and those in newer relationships, tools such as cell phones and social media were there at the beginning and play a greater role today for good and for ill.” The survey also found two out of three people in a marriage or committed relationship shared a password to one or more of their online accounts with their spouse or partner.

One in four of those in a couple said they share an email account with a partner and 11 percent of these couples have an online calendar that they share. The Pew researchers found those who have been married or partnered 10 years or less have different digital habits. Those who were already together as a couple at the advent of a new platform or technology were more likely to jump on together, while those who begin relationships with their own existing accounts and profiles tend to continue to use them separately as individuals, the report said. Some nine percent of adult mobile phone owners surveyed said they have sent a sext-or sexually suggestive image-of themselves to someone else, up from six percent in 2012. And one in five cell owners have received a sext of someone else they know on their phone, up from 15 percent who said this in 2012. The report is based on a survey of 2,252 US adults from April 17 to May 19. The margin of error for married or partnered adults is estimated at 2.9 points and for cell phone owners 2.4 percentage points.— AFP

Apple loses its bid to block e-books antitrust monitor NEW YORK: Apple Inc on Monday lost its latest bid to put a court-appointed antitrust monitor on hold, after a federal appeals court rejected its argument that the monitor’s work was causing it irreparable harm. In a brief order, the 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals in New York said that monitor Michael Bromwich may continue to examine Apple’s antitrust compliance policies while the company pursues a broader appeal seeking to remove him altogether. However, the court’s order addressed some of Apple’s concerns, making it clear that there are limits to the monitor’s powers. An Apple spokesman declined to comment. In a statement, a Department of Justice spokeswoman said the government was pleased with the decision.

“Today’s ruling makes abundantly clear that Apple must now cooperate with the court-appointed monitor,” said the spokeswoman, Gina Talamona. US District Judge Denise Cote installed Bromwich in October, three months after she found Apple liable for conspiring with five publishers to raise e-book prices. Since then, Apple has fought a losing battle to put Bromwich on ice, complaining that he has aggressively and improperly sought interviews with key executives and broad access to company documents beyond the scope of his duties.

Cote rejected Apple’s protests in January, saying that the company’s reaction only underscored the necessity of an external monitor. During oral arguments

before a three-judge panel of the 2nd Circuit last week, lawyers for the Department of Justice agreed that Bromwich’s duties were limited to assessing Apple’s compliance policies and its efforts to disseminate those policies to its workers effectively.

Bromwich, the government said, would not be permitted to investigate whether Apple employees are actually complying with antitrust laws; if he comes across any evidence of violations, he must turn it over to Cote. At the time, US Circuit Judge Gerald Lynch seized on that concession as a potential compromise to assuage Apple’s concerns that Bromwich had overreached.

On Monday, the court took up that suggestion, denying Apple’s request for a stay with the understanding that “the monitor will conduct his activities within the bounds” the government had described.

In the meantime, Apple will pursue its appeal of Cote’s liability funding and her decision to install a monitor, a process that will likely last for months. Bromwich declined to comment through a spokeswoman. A trial is scheduled for May before Cote to determine how much Apple will have to pay in damages over e-book claims brought by 33 state attorneys general and class action attorneys representing consumers from 16 states. The plaintiffs are seeking $840 million, according to court documents. The case is US v Apple, 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals, No 14-60.—Reuters

TEL AVIV: “Welcome to the new economy,” boasts a sign at the entrance of the self-styled Bitcoin Embassy in the heart of Tel Aviv. The sparely furnished property opened a few months ago to support a community of Bitcoin fanatics, perhaps the most active in the world, who are out to build just that - a next-generation trading system based on the digital currency. At least two dozen startups have popped up in Israel over the past year with a view to creating tools that will allow the currency to be used in almost any kind of transaction - from buying shoes to sending remittances or issuing company stock.

Israeli companies are pioneers in hi-tech fields like cryptography, fraud prevention, and semiconductors, all of which interact with the Bitcoin universe. That makes the country as much of a Bitcoin hotspot as Singapore or California’s Silicon Valley, says Eli Novershtern, principal of Israel’s biggest venture capital firm Pitango, which manages assets worth over $1.6 billion. “We see a lot of activity here and are certainly looking to invest (in such firms), even significant sums if we recognize an attractive opportunity,” he said, without offering details of specific plans.

As a cr ypto-currency, Bitcoin is passed between two parties digitally and can be traded on exchanges for real-world currencies. Its value fluctuates according to user demand but it is not backed by any government or central bank. New bitcoins come from a process called mining.

Computer programmers around the world compete to crack an automatically generated code and the first to do so is rewarded with a small stash. This happens about every 10 minutes. The maximum potential number of bitcoins in circulation is 21 million compared with around 12 million currently - meaning that, over time, the payoffs get smaller.

Enthusiasts hope the circulation limit and wider acceptance of the currency will mean its value goes up. One bitcoin is currently worth about $700, giving the currency a total potential market value of about $9 billion. As recently as 2012 it was changing hands for $10. Netanel Goldberg, 42, heads GetReal Platforms, a company he and two other graduates of Israel’s military cyber intelligence unit founded last year. He foresees a “bloodbath” as ever stronger computer networks compete to mine the most bitcoins a market he expects to grab a sizable chunk of, thanks to a silicon-based chip that GetReal is developing.

Secondary market Bitcoin was spawned by a still unidentified developer known as Satoshi Nakamoto in 2009, when the global financial crisis meant distrust of banks and governments was high. Initially there was a libertarian appeal, said Ron Finberg, who runs the website Digital Currency Magnates. But in Israel, technology had always been the currency’s driving force, he said. Now the “boundary-less system” was fostering ever more innovative applications.

Mathematician Meni Rosenfeld said his team is developing a product called “colored coins” that will allow bitcoins to carry a secondary value, such as equity in a company. A company will be able to take small fractions of a bitcoin, give them a digital marker, or “colour”, and distribute them to shareholders. “They represent stock in every way,” said Rosenfeld, who is also chairman of the Israeli Bitcoin Association. The same could be done with bonds or car ownership, he said.

Regulatory response There has been a mixed reaction to Bitcoin around the world. Supporters are drawn to its decentralized platform and say it is here to stay.

Detractors call it a bubble and expect it to be forgotten in a year or two. But its growing popularity is undeniable, and governments and regulators have been searching for the best way to respond.

“The Bank of Israel is ...examining the need for some sort of regulation regarding electronic, virtual and other similar currencies,” said Yoav

Seffer, spokesman for the central bank. Most retailers do not accept Bitcoin, making it hard for users to shop. One Tel Aviv startup, however, has shown that the convenience of using digital money can draw enormous interest. AppCoin developed a program that easily generates virtual currencies and teamed up with an online community of mothers in a trial run. The moms were given a new tender, called “hearts”, and agreed to use it to buy and sell items.

A year later the network swelled to 50,000 members with hundreds of transactions carried out each day. The company plans to offer a service so anyone, anywhere can create their own currency, but for now it is focused on a beta-version it just released of a Bitcoin bazaar, called Satoshi Marketplace, accessible by phone to anyone in the world. “Just as the internet revolutionized the way we exchange information, smar tphones will redefine how people exchange value - by using digital currencies and virtual marketplaces,” said Eyal Hertzog, product architect at AppCoin. Last month, members of the Bitcoin community and officials from the private sector and government gathered at the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange to discuss the future of the digital currency. The assembly was hosted by Eden Shochat, founder of venture capital firm Aleph, which manages about $150 million. “The ability to transfer value in a frictionless way without transaction fees represents a tidal wave, and when that happens our role is to help, advise and fund these kinds of companies,” he said.—Reuters

Cyber-espionage malware ‘may be state-sponsored’ WASHINGTON: Security researchers said Monday they discovered cyber-espionage malware which has hit governments and companies in 31 countries and is likely state-sponsored. Kaspersky Lab researchers said the Spanish-language malware known as “ The Mask” or “Careto” has been used since at least 2007 and is unusually complex, with versions that may infect mobile phones and tablets, including those running Apple or Google operating systems. The researchers said the authors who appear to be Spanish speakers may use the virus to steal sensitive documents as well as encryption keys. The main targets appear to be government and diplomatic offices, energy companies, research organizations, private equity firms and political activists, according to a white paper from Kaspersky.

“For the victims, an infection with Careto can

be disastrous,” the security firm said in a statement. “Careto intercepts all communication channels and collects the most vital information from the victim’s machine. Detection is extremely difficult because of stealth rootkit capabilities, built-in functionalities and additional c yber- espionage modules.” Once a device is infected, the malware authors can intercept network traffic, keystrokes, Skype conversations and steal information from devices connected to the networks.

The researchers said in their report they detected “traces of Linux versions, and possibly versions for iPad/iPhone and Android, however we have not been able to retrieve the samples.”

The malware was active from 2007 until last month, when the command servers were shut down during Kaspersky’s investigation, the researchers said. “Several reasons make us

believe this could be a nation-state sponsored campaign,” Kaspersky researcher Costin Raiu said. Raiu said the authors showed a high degree of technical sophistication and have been able to hide their activities so far.

“This level of operational security is not normal for cyber-criminal groups,” he said. “The fact that the Careto attackers appear to be speaking the Spanish language is perhaps the most unusual feature,” the research paper said.

“While most of the known attacks nowadays are filled with Chinese comments, languages such as German, French or Spanish appear very rarely in APT (advanced persistent threat) attacks.” The investigation found 380 victims in 31 countries, the most infected of which were Morocco, Brazil, Britain, Spain, France, Switzerland, Libya, the United States, Iran and Venezuela.— AFP

Google becomes No two in market value

SAO PAULO: Google Brazil CEO, Fabio Coelho gives a press conference at the Google’s headquarters on February 10, 2014 in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Google will launch a million dollar competition to stimulate Brazilian nonprofit organizations to use technology and creativity to solve social problems affecting the country. — AFP

NEW YORK: Google overtook US oil giant ExxonMobil on Monday to become the world’s number two company when rated by market value, behind its high-tech rival Apple. Even though Google shares fell 0.38 percent, a bigger drop in Exxon stock allowed the Internet giant to capture the second spot in market capitalization.

Google’s market cap at the end of the trading day was $394 billion, compared to the $388 billion of ExxonMobil.

Apple remained well ahead with a market capitalization of $472 billion. Google briefly overtook Exxon during the trading session last Friday but Monday was the first time this was confirmed at the close of trade. ExxonMobil shares fell 1.17 percent on Monday to $89.53, bringing its year-to-date loss to 11.5 percent.

Google, despite Monday’s modest dip, is near its alltime high and has doubled in value since July 2012. The shares closed Monday at $1,172.93. The California-based Internet group is the world leader in online advertising, its Android operating system has become the dominant platform for smartphones and is also gaining fast in tablet devices. Google’s other projects include a self-driving car and its Google Glass eyewear. The company recently bought Nest Labs in what is seen as a move into connected home technology.— AFP

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2014

H E A LT H & S C I E N C E

Doctors say health crisis growing in Pakistan’s northwest ISLAMABAD: By the time Tasneem Bibi brought her four-month-old baby to the clinic, the girl’s lower body was blue with cold. The family had walked two hours through snow-covered mountains along the Afghan border to reach a road, then paid almost $40 - nearly a month’s income for a lift to a clinic many miles away.

The baby was diagnosed with hypothermia. She died a few hours later. Already enduring frequent attacks on militants by US drone aircraft, a Taleban insurgency, sectarian violence and poverty, Pakistanis in the remote northwest face a new enemy: An unusually bitter winter.

A growing number of cases of pneumonia, hypothermia and other winter illnesses are stretching the few health facilities, says medical charity Medecins Sans Frontieres

(MSF), or Doctors Without Borders.

Tasneem Bibi’s daughter died at Tehsil Headquarter Hospital in Sadda town, where Dr Rahman Sakhi says cases of hypothermia and pneumonia are up about 15 percent from last year. The hospital treated 3,300 patients in January, 80 percent of them for winter-related illnesses.

“Drone attacks and Taliban violence get all the attention while people are struggling through this exceptionally harsh winter with little access to healthcare,” said Dr Javed Ali, the country coordinator for MSF. Some residents of the semi-autonomous region, known as the Federally Administered Tribal Areas, complain that they have been neglected by governments since Pakistan was created in 1947, making its poor residents ideal recruits for militants.

“These are difficult areas, you have to understand,” said Riaz Khan, the head of the political administration in Kurram agency, one of seven regions, known as agencies, in the ethnic Pashtun region.

“We have our own hospitals and clinics and we also work closely with foreign groups and do what we can.” He said he did not have figures for deaths this winter.

Government reports on demographics, health and living standards ignore the tribal areas. Most statistics come from international donors.

‘Anguished cries’ UNICEF says mortality rates for children under five are 104 per 1,000 in the tribal areas compared with 94 in Punjab, the most developed province. The figures are from

2009, the latest available.

Deaths are difficult to verify independently. Foreign journalists are banned from the areas without permits and the government controls access by international aid groups. In the last week, Reuters gained rare insight into the state of healthcare in the area by interviewing several patients, doctors and nurses at MSF’s facilities.

All said this winter had been exceptionally hard. In December and January, MSF reported 28 deaths of children under the age of five in the region - almost double the figure from last year. Most died of hypothermia and pneumonia. Years of conflict and displacement have led to the near-collapse of healthcare. Few doctors and technical staff will work in the region. Snow and landslides often block roads to hospitals. Most

sick people see traditional healers or go to pharmacists for generic medicines. The desperate may travel miles on foot or scrape together the fare for a taxi to hospital.

Sumaiya Bibi, 17, cries down the telephone speaking about her 17-day-old boy diagnosed with hypothermia. “I am tired of hearing his anguished cries,” the mother says from the northwestern town of Hangu.

“I didn’t have the money to rent a private car so I waited to find a cheap bus. I hope I’m not too late.”

Things are particularly bad in Kurram agency, racked by sectarian violence between Sunni and Shi’ite tribes and a 2009 army offensive to flush out Taleban.

The offensive ended in 2011 but clashes are common and many people need medical care. —Reuters

India to celebrate ‘victory over polio’ First case of polio discovered in Kabul since 2001

2014 photo shows anti-gravity goat cheese phyllo bites in Concord, N.H. Each of these little guys is fairly low in calories — no more than 15 calories per shell. — AP

Employers scrutinize latest health care concession WASHINGTON: It may take weeks to render a verdict on the Obama administration’s latest health care concession to employers.

But that could make a difference for Democrats battling to keep control of the Senate in the fall congressional elections.

All-important details are buried in more than 200 pages of dense Treasury regulations released Monday. The biggest change is that medium-sized firms got another delay in a heavily criticized requirement that they cover their workers or face fines.

The administration said companies with 50 to 99 employees will have an additional year to comply, until January 1, 2016.

For businesses with 100 or more employees, the so-called employer mandate will still take effect in 2015. But other newly announced provisions, dealing with technical issues such as the calculation of working hours, may help some of those firms.

The mandate was originally supposed to take effect this year. More than 90 percent of companies with 50 or more employees already cover their workers without the government telling them to do so, but the debate has revolved around the potential impact on new and growing firms. Most small businesses have fewer than 50 workers and are exempt from the mandate. However, employer groups were also uneasy with a requirement that defines a full-time worker as someone averaging 30 hours a week.

Republicans trying to take control of the Senate in the November elections have once again made President Barack Obama’s health care law their top issue, casting it as job killer. They want to use the employer mandate to build that case, with anecdotes of bosses reluctant to hire a 50th worker, or slashing the hours of low-wage workers who need to pay household bills. Monday’s moves by the administration seemed calibrated to reduce that risk.

Mixed reaction The reaction of business groups was mixed. “These final regulations secured the gold medal for greatest assistance to retailers, and other businesses, and our employees,” said Neil Trautwein, a vice president of the National Retail Federation.

The US Chamber of Commerce was unimpressed, calling it more of a respite than a fundamental change. “This shortterm fix also creates new problems for companies by moving the goalposts of the mandate modestly when what we really need is a time-out,” president Thomas Donohue said in a statement.

The administration still hasn’t issued rules for reporting requirements on business and insurers, the nitty-gritty of how the coverage requirement will be enforced. Administration officials and the law’s supporters said the concessions were the sorts of reasonable accommodations that regulators make all the time when implementing major new legislation. The Treasur y Department said

Secretary Jack Lew was well within his legal authority in making the changes.

“This common-sense approach will protect employers already providing quality insurance, while helping to ensure that larger employers are prepared to meet their responsibility to their hard-working employees,” said House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.

But Republicans said they smelled fear. “It is clear Democrats don’t think they can survive politically if Obamacare is allowed to fully go into effect,” said Rep. Dave Camp, R-Mich., who as chairman of the Ways and Means Committee oversees the tax penalties enforcing the mandate.

The law passed in 2010 required employers with more than 50 employees working 30 or more hours a week to offer them suitable health coverage or pay a fine. The coverage requirement was originally supposed to have taken effect this year. But last summer the administration announced a one-year delay, the first sign of potential problems with the rollout of the health care law.

Since then it’s been a gigantic crisis management drill. The new online signup system at HealthCare.gov was crippled by technical problems for the better part of two months last fall.

Separately, millions of people who were already buying health insurance individually had those policies cancelled because the plans did not meet the law’s requirements.

With the online system mostly fixed, supporters of the law are hoping to turn around public opinion. When it comes to the impact on jobs, “the big concerns that have been raised by opponents of the Affordable Care Act amount to very little because large employers already think it is in their best interest to provide coverage to their workers,” said Ron Pollack, executive director of Families USA, a liberal advocacy group.

In other provisions announced Monday, the administration said: Companies will not face fines if they offer coverage to 70 percent of their full-time employees in 2015, although they will have to ramp that up to 95 percent by 2016. The law defines “full time” as people working an average of 30 hours a week per month. That concession is expected to help firms who have a lot of workers averaging right around 30 hours.

Volunteer firefighters and others who give of their time will not be considered employees under the law. Some volunteer fire departments worried they might have to shut down if forced to provide health insurance.

Adjunct faculty members at colleges will be deemed to have worked 2 hours and 15 minutes for each hour of classroom time they are assigned to teach.

Officials said that means someone teaching 15 hours a week in the classroom would be considered “full time” and eligible for coverage, but someone teaching 12 hours may be considered part-time. A one-year delay in a requirement that employers offer coverage to dependents of full-time workers. Companies that are working to meet the goal will have until 2016 to comply. — AP

NEW DELHI: Indian leaders are set later yesterday to celebrate the eradication of polio, marking one of the country’s biggest public health success stories which was once thought impossible to achieve.

President Pranab Mukherjee, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh as well as the health minister and the head of the World Health Organisation are all due at a New Delhi stadium to celebrate “India’s victory over polio”, the information ministry says.

India, long one of the biggest sources of the paralysing virus, has gone three years without a new case, which means it will soon be certified as having wiped out the scourge.

On the three-year anniversary of the last case, on January 13, Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad hailed the “monumental milestone” and promised a celebration in honour of the officials, volunteers, NGOs and UN agencies which made it possible.

Polio is a virus spread through faecal matter that affects the central nervous system and can leave its victims with withered limbs or paralysis.

There is no cure but it can be prevented through mass vaccination programmes.

India’s poor sanitation, mass internal migration and dilapidated public health system made experts once fear it would be the last country to eradicate the disease. There are now only three countries where polio is endemic-Pakistan, Afghanistan and Nigeria-and health workers say progress is being made towards global eradication. Isolated polio outbreaks in the Horn of Africa and war-racked Syria emerged as new causes for concern in 2013, however, and polio vaccination workers in Pakistan are still being killed by the Taleban.

The wretched sight of crippled street hawkers or beggars on wheeled trolleys will also endure in India as a legacy of the country’s time as an epicentre of new cases.

In the absence of official data, most experts agree there are several million survivors left with withered legs or twisted spines who face discrimination and often live on the margins of society.

India reported 150,000 cases of paralytic polio in 1985 and still accounted for half of all cases globally in 2009, with 741 infections that led to paralysis. In 2010 the number of victims fell to double figures before the last case on January 13, 2011, when an 18-month-old girl in a Kolkata slum was

NEW DELHI: In this picture taken on January 7, 2014, Indian polio patient Mohammad Hashim Raza, 14, receives treatment from a doctor at St Stephens Hospital in New Delhi. Indian leaders are set later yesterday to celebrate the eradication of polio, marking one of the country’s biggest public health success stories which was once thought impossible to achieve. — AFP found to have contracted it.

The girl, Rukshar Khatoon, is now attending school and leads a “normal life”, although she still suffers pain in her right leg, doctors and her parents have told AFP. Tuesday’s celebration in New Delhi will be held in the Talkatora indoor stadium at 05:00 pm (1130 GMT).

Official certification by the World Health Organisation that India has eradicated polio is likely to come next month.

Meanwhile, a three-year-old girl has been diagnosed with the first case of polio since 2001 in the Afghan capital Kabul, the Ministry of Public Health said yesterday. The child, called Sakhina, was a member of the Kuchi nomadic tribe that moves freely across most provinces in Afghanistan and her family was living in the Kasaba district in eastern Kabul. The ministry has launched a three-day campaign to vaccinate all children under five in the area. “When they went to the hospital after an

examination, it became clear it was a case of polio,” Ministry of Health spokesman Kaneshka Baktash told Reuters.

Baktash said the girl’s family moved freely between Afghanistan and Pakistan and she had probably contracted the illness across the border.

All but one of 13 cases recorded in Afghanistan last year were contracted in Peshawar in northwestern Pakistan, the world’s largest reservoir of endemic polio viruses, the World Health Organization said in January.

Sakhina has been taken to Pakistan for treatment and no other cases had been discovered in the Afghan capital. The battle to eradicate polio is being undermined by the spread of the virus in Pakistan, where vaccinators are routinely killed by the Islamist Taleban, who see the programme as part of a plot to sterilise Muslims. It is the only country in the world that recorded an increase in cases in 2013 according to the WHO. — Agencies

Experts contemplate end of smoking in US ATLANTA: Health officials have begun to predict the end of cigarette smoking in America. They have long wished for a cigarette-free America, but shied away from calling for smoking rates to fall to zero or near zero by any particular year. The power of tobacco companies and popularity of their products made such a goal seem like a pipe dream.

But a confluence of changes has recently prompted public health leaders to start throwing around phrases like “endgame” and “tobacco-free generation.” Now, they talk about the slowly-declining adult smoking rate dropping to 10 percent in the next decade and to 5 percent or lower by 2050. Acting U.S. Surgeon General Boris Lushniak last month released a 980-page report on smoking that pushed for stepped-up tobacco-control measures. His news conference was an unusually animated showing of anti-smoking bravado, with Lushniak nearly yelling, repeatedly, “Enough is enough!”

“I can’t accept that we’re just allowing these numbers to trickle down,” he said, in a recent interview with the AP. “We believe we have the public health tools to get us to the zero level.”

This is not the first time a federal health official has spoken so boldly. In 1984, Surgeon General C. Everett Koop called for a “smoke-free society” by the year 2000. However, Koop - a bold talker on many issues - didn’t offer specifics on how to achieve such a goal.

“What’s different today is that we have policies and programs that have been proven to drive down tobacco use,” said Matthew Myers, president of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids.

“We couldn’t say that in 1984.” Among the things that have changed: Cigarette taxes have increased around the country, making smokes more expensive. Though prices vary from state to state, on average a pack of cigarettes that would have sold for about $1.75 20 years ago would cost

tion for the costs of treating smokingrelated illnesses. Big Tobacco agreed to pay about $200 billion and curtail marketing of cigarettes to youths.

Retailing of cigarettes is changing, too. CVS Caremark, the nation’s second-largest pharmacy chain, announced last week it will stop selling tobacco products at its more than 7,600 drugstores. The company said it made the decision in a bid to focus more on providing health care, but medical and public health leaders

That would mean dropping it at twice the speed it declined over the last 10 years.

The bigger goal is to reduce U.S. smoking-related deaths to fewer than 10,000, from the current level of 480,000. But even if smoking rates dropped to zero immediately, it would take decades to see that benefit, since smoking-triggered cancers can take decades to develop.

But while some experts and advocates are swinging for the fences, others are more pessimistic. They say the key to reaching such goals is not simply more taxes and more local smoking bans, but action by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to regulate smoking. A 2009 federal law gave the FDA the authority to regulate tobacco products. The law barred FDA from outright blocking the sale of cigarettes, but the agency was free to take such pivotal steps as prohibiting the use of appealing menthol flavoring in cigarettes and requiring cigarette makers to ratchet down the amount of addictive nicotine in each smoke. But nearly five years after gaining power over cigarettes, FDA has yet to even propose such regulations. Agency officials say they’re working on it.

NEW YORK: In this April 8, 2003 file photo, David Ozanich of Brooklyn smokes outside the Live Bait bar in New York after a city-wide ban on smoking in bars and restaurants went into effect. Laws banning smoking in restaurants, bars and workplaces have been implemented in places across the country. — AP

Remember Prohibition?

Many believe FDA’s delay is driven by defense preparations for an anticipated battery of legal and political challenges.

A spokesman for Altria Group Inc., the maker of Marlboro, said the company supports FDA exercising its regulatory authority over tobacco products. But as a whole, the industry has tended to fight regulation. Some of the nation’s largest tobacco companies - though not Altria - sued to stop FDA -proposed graphic warning labels on cigarette packs. A federal court blocked the ads. “The industry makes money as long as they can delay regulation,” said Kenneth Warner, a University of Michigan public health professor who is a leading authority on smoking and health.—AP

more than triple that now.

Anti-smoking advertisement Laws banning smoking in restaurants, bars and workplaces have popped up all over the country.

Airline flights have long been off-limits for smoking. Polls show that cigarette smoking is no longer considered normal behavior, and is now less popular among teens than marijuana.

Federal officials are increasingly aggressive about anti-smoking adver-

tising. The Food and Drug Administration launched a new youth tobacco prevention campaign last week. At about the same time, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention debuted a third, $60-million round of its successful anti-tobacco ad campaign - this one featuring poignant, deathbed images of a woman featured in earlier ads.

Tobacco companies, once considered impervious to legal attack, have suffered some huge defeats in court.

Perhaps the biggest was the 1998 settlement of a case brought by more than 40 states demanding compensa-

predicted pressure will increase on companies like Walgreen Co. and Wal-Mart Stores Inc. to follow suit.

“I do think, in another few years, that pharmacies selling cigarettes will look as anachronistic” as old cigarette ads featuring physician endorsements look today, said CDC Director Dr. Tom Frieden. These developments have made many in public health dream bigger. It’s caused Myers’ organization and others to recently tout the goal of bringing the adult smoking rate down to 10 percent by 2024, from the current 18 percent.

H E A LT H & S C I E N C E

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2014

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2014

W H AT ’ S O N

Sheraton Kuwait & Four Points

by Sheraton Kuwait wins medals

Greetings

S

W

ishing you a happy birthday dear Haneen Dashti with God’s choicest blessings upon you. With best wishes from mother, father and loved ones.

TIES Center - Where cultures meet

I

n cooperation with the Albanian embassy, the TIES Center will be hosting an Albanian cultural day. The activities will include a presentation about tourism and life in Albania, recitation of poetry related to the country’s rich traditions, a gallery of photos, and some delicious traditional food. This event promises to be exciting, educational, and entertaining. When? Tomorrow, February 13 from 6:00 pm to 8:30 pm.

heraton Kuwait & Four Points by Sheraton Kuwait participated in the HORECA 2014 exhibition, winning two medals in the “Live Sushi Competition” and “Chocolate Showpiece” contests.

Chef Mana Sukadi won a medal in the “Western Food” class for the Sushi plate and its remarkable presentation, incorporating unique fish ingredients. While the other medal was given to Chef Ajay Kumar in the “Dessert” class mainly in “Chocolate Styling” using his talent as an art signature.

The hotel management celebrated the Chefs accomplishments, thanking them for their exceptional effort and for putting their talent into a “work of art” and urged them to bring the best out of

their work which makes Sheraton Kuwait & Four Points by Sheraton Kuwait entirely capable to serve all types of events, corporate conferences & family celebrations with a commitment to quality & tradition as a core of the hotel’s premium standards.

Fahed Abu Shaar, Area Director & General Manager of Sheraton Kuwait thanked the chefs who participated in the contest saying that he is proud to have such talents in our team, who have the desire to learn and the passion to accomplish great work, having such members makes our hotels’ journey an ongoing success story”.

Roses are red at Radisson Blu

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omantic restaurants, rooms and Sky Lounge for Valentine’s If you are just starting your relationship or are celebrating after many happy years of marriage, Radisson Blu Hotel, Kuwait has the perfect combination of roses, restaurants, signature drinks, relaxing rooms and the new and exclusive Sky Lounge to make this Valentine’s Day celebration sparkle.

Every lucky lady who is taken to dinner on February 14 at Peacock Chinese Restaurant, Al-

Boom Steak and Seafood Restaurant or the AlBustan Special Valentine’s Day Dinner Buffet will receive a rose courtesy of our loving team of hosts and chefs. Romantic decoration will adorn your table and love songs playing softly in the background will complete the intimate atmosphere.

Al-Bustan is offering 10 percent off to all couples dressed in red and all diners at Al-Boom and Peacock will start the evening on a refreshing note with a complimentary welcome drink. After your

meal, signature mocktails and bottles of sparkling drinks, guests who dined with us are invited to finish their luxurious and loving evening with music from 8:00 pm - midnight at After 8, in the new and exclusive Sky Lounge. Couples who would like to stay at the hotel can choose modern comfort in a ‘Naturally Cool’ room or ultimate relaxation in our ‘And Relax’ rooms with breakfast, bottles of sparkling juice, flower arrangements, and chocolates all included.

Kuwait Foundation for Advancement of Sciences Spring Camp

Najla Al-Naqqi Forum to host dinner

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uwait Foundation for the Advancement of Sciences (KFAS) organized a Spring Camp for its employees, its affiliated centers and their families, at Safir Hotel, Al-Fintas, on Friday, February 7. The Spring Camp open day included several activities and competitions for children, youth and adults. In addition to a

presentation of the Kuwaiti folkloric music.

Meanwhile, Director General of KFAS, Dr Adnan Shahab Eldin praises the social committee’s efforts in strengthening relations between KFAS and its sister centers, in addition to creating a positive work environment among them. The Sabah Al-Ahmad Center

for Giftedness and Creativity team won the football competition.

The open day also included for the first timehonoring of outstanding students of KFAS employees.

he Najla Al-Naqqi Forum hosts a dinner in honor of the Egypt Lovers Group delegation led by media figure Tahani Al-Bortuqali. The event takes place tomorrow, Thursday February 13, 2014 at the forum’s building in Salwa, Block 2, Al-Masjid Al-Aqsa Street, House 388. The dinner starts at 8:00 pm.

Around Kuwait Drawing competition Thiruvananthapuram district expats association TEXAS, Kuwait, will be conducting a drawing competition on the topic ‘Conservation of the Eco system’ to create a social awareness among the young generation. This will be an opportunity for the students of Indian school sin Kuwait to participate and exhibit their drawing skills. Those who wish to participate can register online on http://www.texaskuwait.com/register.htm. Registered candidates will be contacted by the association officials for further details of the competition.

The final competition will be held on 14th February 2014 at 3 pm. For details, contact 66629159, 67043133, 99358911, 97540482.

Art and Feast festival Kozhikode District Association Mahilavedi is organising Art & Feast Festival-2014, a full day program for ladies and children on 21st February 2014 at Indian Community School, Khaitan from 9.30 am onwards. A variety of arts & cookery competitions with very attractive prizes for women of all ages aim to promote their talents.

The festival will be inaugurated by Mrs. Gargy Jain, wife of Ambassador of India to Kuwait. The presence of the master chef Mrs Jumanah Kadri who is reputed all over GCC as well as India for her unique and mouthwatering traditional and multinational cuisines, as a judge for the cooking competitions adds to the attraction of the event. The different competitions for ladies are organized as follows cooking competition (Pudding/snacks-ladies, either one or both) hair decoration (18 Years onwards-Ladies) Registration: Ladies of all communities in Kuwait can participate in these competitions.

Details of the competitions are available at our website www.kdakuwait.com. The candidates

can register online through our website or through the following Mobile numbers: 97896263, 97141673, 69391238 & 55839915. The registrations are open only for a limited number of candidates and hence hurry up to confirm your chance.

Folk song competition Kerala association Kuwait a secular pravasi malayali unity celebrating their 15th year of successful journey and conducting Nadanpattu Mathsaram kathirmanikal [Malayalam folk song competition (group)] on February 14th at 3 pm at Abbassiya United Indian School. Several renowned teams are participating in this competition.

Former Kerala state revenue minister & ex Rajya Sabha MP KE Ismael will be the chief guest on the occasion.

Competition will be held in Junior & Senior categories to bring back Pravasi Malayalis nostalgic memories about motherland. To participate in Kathirmanikal folk song competition please contact 60753530, 69011429, 97253689, 55831679, 69305736.

World of Opera concert Kuwait Chamber Philharmonia

presents their inauguration concert of musical season 2014. The “World of Opera” concert will feature two soprano vocalists: Verica Grmusa and Anna Karadimitrova with the accompaniment of pianist Bartek Rybak.

The event will take place at the Abdul Hussain Marafie Grand Ballroom at the Radisson BLU Hotel Kuwait. The program includes pieces

by Bizet, Rossini, Verdi, Chopi, Mozart, Delibes, Handel, Puccini and others. This concert is organized by the Kuwait Chamber Philharmonia.

‘Layali Febrayer 2014’ “Layali Febrayer 2014” is finally here, and it is jam packed with 20 unforgettable shows & festivities!

Lucky for us non-Arabic speakers, there is also an English version of the “Layali Febrayer” website filled with information & a schedule of events.

Visit Feb.Kuwait.tt for the full scoop on “what’s on” this “Layali Febrayer”.

As per their website: “After the huge success of “Layaly Febrayer 2013” Al Watan TV is back for the sixth consecutive year to present “LayalyFebrayer 2014” the new program is international and presenting

more than 15 shows for the first time in Kuwait coming from 15 countries around the world, and include sky, water, and underground shows.”

The Spring Carnival “The Spring Carnival” charity event at BSK on February 15, 2014 @ 3:00 pm - 6:00 pm at British School of Kuwait (Salwa, Block 1, Street 1).

“Bedouin Tents & Desert Customs” a diwaniya by Maziad Al-Khaldi On February 18, 2014 @ 7:00 pm at AWARE Center (Surra, Block 3, Surra Street, Villa 84). Modern day Kuwaitis are the descendants of several nomadic tribes and clans who ultimately settled on the coast of the Arabian Gulf during the eighteenth century to avoid the persistent drought of the desert. When they arrived at the coast, the clans built forts to protect themselves from other nomadic tribes who still traversed the desert. Until now, ethnic Kuwaitis are still struggling to maintain their cultural heritage in an increasingly complex society. One of the aspects in which they strive to maintain their culture is living in tents in winter. Do

you know how many types of tents exist? What is the different between tents of today and those of the past?

In his 25-minute presentation, Maziad will answer all these questions and share a Bedouin recipe on the screen.

‘Fires of Kuwait’ Movie night at The AWARE Center: “Fires of Kuwait” on February 13, 2014 @ 6:00 pm at AWARE Center (Surra, Block 3, Surra Street, Villa 84).

Documentary: Firestorm in the desert: The terrible legacy of the Gulf War - 607 oil wells burning out of control, ignited by retreating Iraqi troops. Firefighters from 10 countries answered Kuwait’s cry for help.

Supported by more than 10,000 people from 40 nations, they battled & won. A 1992 Academy Award nominee for Best Documentary Feature, “Fires of Kuwait” is a dramatic story of human ingenuity, cooperation and courage. Movie Duration: 39 minutes.

Hala Kite Flying Hala Kite Flying & Fun Fair Festival on February 21, 2014 @ 8:00 am 7:00 pm at Julaiya Camping.

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2014

W H AT ’ S O N

Zain and en.v’s REUSE program takes aim at Kuwait’s environment consciousness

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he en.v initiative, a leading organization dedicated to social responsibility in the Arab world and Zain, the leading mobile telecommunications provider in Kuwait, announce major accomplishments in the beginning of 2014 for REUSE - a program that promotes environmental sustainability and community participation in Kuwait.

REUSE was repositioned last year from an annual event to an ongoing social development program which includes activities such as art competitions and educational roadshows, workshops, online environmental campaigns and community events.

One of the first activities launched as part of the program was the”REUSE Recycled Art Competition”. Two-hundred and eighty-six students from eight local schools and universities competed with each other to create the best works made entirely out of scrap/recycled materials, and the top 50 pieces were displayed as an exhibit in The Avenues Mall (Phase III) from January 9th to 11th 2014. Almost 3,000 people voted for their favourite piece on-site,with an estimated 7,000 people engaged at the exhibit by close to 20 volunteers.

“Metallic Stallion” won the public’s hearts and granted its creator, Moustafa Al-Khashab (American University of Kuwait) a $1,000 cash prize. Several other pieces proved to be serious contenders, including “Guitar” by Asha Thankam Abraham (Fahaheel AlWatanieh Indian Private School), “The Swirling Curtains” by Tamara Abueish (Universal American School), “Robot Attack Elite Force” by Ahmed A Mohammed (American University of Kuwait), “Clock” by Kholoud Khalifa Ghayad Al-Dalmani (ARTronauts), “Floating Pool: Transitional Space Architectural Model” by Zeenab

Ebrahim Bu-Abbas (Boxhill College), and “Lamp” by Shouq Jaafar Ali Haydar (Boxhill College).

On January 14-15, en.v also welcomed two international guest trainers, Tarek Atrissi (www.tarekatrissi.com) and Sahar Ghaheri (www.designinghope.com), for the REUSE Design for Social Change workshop, which was held at Bait Al-Sadu.

Sponsored by Zain Telecommunications and The Body Shop Foundation, the workshop focused on how to harness design strategy and solutions for the non-profit and social sectors, equipping participants with practical skills to promote their causes more creatively and effectively.Twenty-seven participants from 17 different Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) attended the workshop, which included lectures and hands on, interactive training, displaying the continual commitment of Kuwaiti society in embracing new per-

spectives.

Commenting on Zain’s participation in the program, Waleed Al-Khashti, Zain Kuwait’s Corporate Communications and Relations Manager said: “Zain has been a strong supporter of the creation of a greener society as part of its Corporate Social Responsibility strategy, and the company launched initiatives that support this objective internally through its employees, as well as, externally over the years. The company believes the creation of a positive green mindset throughout the nation leads to a greener, healthier environment. Zain’s participation in the REUSE program, for the 5th year in a row, highlights the importance the company places on maintaining a healthy, clean, and green Kuwait.”

The REUSE Educational Roadshow, an interactive educational presentation promoting sustainability and ecofriendly living in Kuwait, also continued

in January,with the first presentation of the year taking place at the Universal American School (UAS). The roadshowaims to educate students and their teachers of the importance of recyclingdue to the pressing issue of waste in Kuwait. To date, 95 students from two schools have taken part in these fun and interactive presentations.

“Community engagement is a primary focus for our social development programs in 2014.” Expressed Zahed Sultan, the Managing Director for en.v.

“Founded on an ethos of creativity, en.v’s environmental education activities encourage youth to adopt ecofriendly habits in their day to day lives.”

As the year progresses, REUSE plans to execute further projects that ensure the participation of the local community while supporting a collaborative effort in the reduction of waste in Kuwait for current and future generations.

TEC hosts activities during spring break

Khairan Resort visitors enjoyed several activities and entertaining programs organized by the Touristic Enterprises Company during the spring break. The activities included a photography competition featuring more than 100 contestants, in addition to a cooking contest.

Rudnick’s ‘I Hate Hamlet’ at AUK Black Box Theater

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he Drama Program at the American University of Kuwait (AUK) staged its annual fall theatre production, Paul Rudnick’s I Hate Hamlet, at the Black Box Theatre, located on AUK’s campus. The play was directed

by Assistant Professor of Theatre and Drama, Dr Kathleen R Downs, under the auspice of the Music and Drama Department. Rudnick’s play centers on answering the question: “What is great art?”, and tells the story of a successful television actor, Andrew Rally, who was offered the role of a lifetime to play Hamlet, and his internal conflict with whether or not he should accept this role.

The production included performances by veteran AUK actors Khalid Ghaffar, Eamon Issa, and Alison Koushki, as well as newcomers to the University’s theatre community Nada Helmy, Natasha Sharma and Samer Abou Zeid. This play is set inside an apartment that was once owned by famed and deceased actor John Barrymore, whose ghost is a character within the play. As such, the production crew, which included veteran AUK thespians Dana Mann as Stage Manager, Rateb Shehadeh as Assistant Stage Manager and Understudy to Zeid, with the help of Ken Downs as Lighting Designer, relied on lighting, costumes, special effects, sounds and stage props to set the moods in the various scenes of the play. This was made possible with the help of some newcomers to the backstage crew, such as Mohammad Hazem, Sondos Al-Kansby, Natalie Abu Nassar, Fadi Al-Bouni, Abdulmajid El Kassem, Nasser Jadaxel, and Amr Abdulraheem.

The Department of Music and Drama offers a wide range of opportunities for both beginning and advanced students within the context of a liberal arts education. The Music and Drama faculty of talented professionals work closely with students to prepare them for campus concerts and plays, and to academically challenge them in courses on performing arts. The department fosters artistic proficiency, cultural appreciation, a sense of community, and a lifelong commitment to the arts. The AUK community enjoyed entering the magical world of theatre and actors for four sold-out performances. They look forward to the next theatrical event, planned for this spring semester.

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2014

TV PROGRAMS 00:15 00:45 01:15 01:40 02:30 03:00 03:45 04:15 05:00 05:20 05:40 05:50 06:05 06:15 06:35 06:55 07:05 07:20 07:30 08:15 08:45 09:15 09:45 10:15 11:05 12:00 12:45 13:15 13:40 14:10 14:40 15:30 16:25 17:10 17:40 18:10 19:00 19:30 20:00 20:45 21:30 22:00 23:00 23:45

Doctors Last Of The Summer Wine Moone Boy Life On Mars Absolutely Fabulous Stella Last Of The Summer Wine The Weakest Link Me Too! Nuzzle & Scratch: Frock n Roll Bobinogs Boogie Beebies Garth And Bev Me Too! Nuzzle & Scratch: Frock n Roll Bobinogs Boogie Beebies Garth And Bev The Weakest Link Last Of The Summer Wine Moone Boy Eastenders Doctors The World Of Stonehenge Call The Midwife The Weakest Link Last Of The Summer Wine Moone Boy Eastenders Doctors The World Of Stonehenge Call The Midwife The Weakest Link Eastenders Doctors The World Of Stonehenge One Foot In The Grave Absolutely Fabulous Stella Alan Carr: Chatty Man The Office The Shadow Line The Weakest Link Eastenders

00:00 Homes Under The Hammer 00:50 Rachel Khoo’s Kitchen Notebook: London 01:15 Come Dine With Me 02:05 MasterChef Australia 02:30 MasterChef Australia 03:20 Celebrity Fantasy Homes 04:05 Cash In The Attic 04:50 Bargain Hunt 05:35 Tareq Taylor’s Nordic Cookery 06:00 Tareq Taylor’s Nordic Cookery 06:30 Baby Borrowers USA 07:15 Celebrity Fantasy Homes 08:00 Cash In The Attic 08:45 Homes Under The Hammer 09:40 Masterchef: The Professionals 10:25 Tareq Taylor’s Nordic Cookery 11:20 Rachel Khoo’s Kitchen Notebook: London 11:45 Come Dine With Me 12:35 Baby Borrowers USA 13:20 Celebrity Fantasy Homes 14:05 Antiques Roadshow 15:00 Homes Under The Hammer 16:50 Bargain Hunt 17:35 Cash In The Attic 18:20 Antiques Roadshow 19:15 Homes Under The Hammer 20:10 Baking Mad With Eric Lanlard 21:00 The Hairy Bikers’ Cookbook 21:30 Come Dine With Me 22:20 Antiques Roadshow 23:15 Bargain Hunt

00:05 Bear Grylls: Extreme...

00:30 Manhunt 01:20 Survive That!

02:10 Bear Grylls: Extreme...

03:00 One Car Too Far 03:50 Border Security 04:15 Auction Kings 04:40 Auction Hunters: Pawn Shop Edition 05:05 How Do They Do It? 05:30 How It’s Made

06:00 Sons Of Guns 07:00 One Car Too Far 07:50 Alaska: The Last Frontier 08:40 Fast N’ Loud 09:30 Border Security 09:55 Auction Kings 10:20 Auction Hunters: Pawn Shop Edition 10:45 How Do They Do It? 11:10 How It’s Made 11:35 Manhunt 12:25 Survive That!

13:15 Bear Grylls: Extreme...

14:05 Border Security 14:30 Auction Kings 14:55 Auction Hunters: Pawn Shop Edition 15:20 Finding Bigfoot 16:10 Fast N’ Loud 17:00 Ultimate Survival 17:50 Dirty Jobs 18:40 One Car Too Far 19:30 Sons Of Guns 20:20 How Do They Do It? 20:45 How It’s Made

00:15 00:40 01:30 02:00 02:25 02:50 03:45 04:35 05:25 06:15 06:40 07:05 08:00 08:50 09:40 10:05 10:30 11:25 12:20 13:10 14:00 14:50 15:20 15:45 16:10 17:00 17:55 18:45 19:35 20:30 21:20 22:10 22:35 23:00 23:50

Strangest Weather On Earth Time Warp Weird Connections The Gadget Show Tech Toys 360 Unchained Reaction Strangest Weather On Earth Prototype This Prophets Of Science Fiction The Gadget Show Tech Toys 360 Superships Engineering Volcanoes World’s Top 5 The Gadget Show Tech Toys 360 What’s That About?

Superships Prototype This Prophets Of Science Fiction Strangest Weather On Earth Weird Connections The Gadget Show Tech Toys 360 Unchained Reaction Prophets Of Science Fiction Prototype This Superships What’s That About?

Alien Encounters How The Earth Works The Gadget Show Tech Toys 360 Alien Encounters How The Earth Works

00:00 00:45 01:30 02:15 03:00 03:45 04:30 05:15 06:00 06:25 06:45 07:35 07:55 08:20 08:45 09:05 09:30 09:55 10:15 10:40 11:05 11:25 11:50 12:15 12:35 13:00 13:25 13:45 14:10 14:35 15:00 15:25

The Suite Life Of Zack & Cody Sonny With A Chance Suite Life On Deck Wizards Of Waverly Place The Suite Life Of Zack & Cody Sonny With A Chance Suite Life On Deck Wizards Of Waverly Place Austin & Ally Dog With A Blog A.N.T. Farm Wolfblood Gravity Falls My Babysitter’s A Vampire Jessie Good Luck Charlie Shake It Up Austin And Ally A.N.T. Farm Dog With A Blog Suite Life On Deck My Babysitter’s A Vampire That’s So Raven Hannah Montana Shake It Up Good Luck Charlie Austin & Ally A.N.T. Farm Jessie Dog With A Blog Wolfblood Gravity Falls

15:50 16:10 17:00 17:20 17:45 18:10 18:30 18:55 19:20 20:05 20:30 20:50 21:15 21:40 22:00 22:25 22:50 23:10 23:35

Good Luck Charlie Violetta Liv And Maddie A.N.T. Farm Jessie Jessie Good Luck Charlie Dog With A Blog Violetta Jessie Wolfblood Dog With A Blog Gravity Falls Shake It Up Austin & Ally A.N.T. Farm Good Luck Charlie Wizards Of Waverly Place Wizards Of Waverly Place

00:15 My Sri Lanka With Peter Kuruvita 00:45 Market Values 01:10 Eat Street 02:05 Bondi Rescue 02:35 Eat Street 03:00 Eat Street 03:30 Bondi Rescue 03:55 Delinquent Gourmet 04:25 Warrior Road Trip 05:20 Deadliest Journeys 05:45 On Hannibal’s Trail 06:15 One Man & His Campervan 06:40 Delinquent Gourmet 07:10 My Sri Lanka With Peter Kuruvita 07:35 My Sri Lanka With Peter Kuruvita 08:05 Market Values 08:30 Eat Street 09:00 Bondi Rescue 09:25 Bondi Rescue 09:55 Eat Street 10:20 Eat Street 10:50 Bondi Rescue 11:15 Delinquent Gourmet 11:45 Warrior Road Trip 12:40 Deadliest Journeys 13:05 On Hannibal’s Trail 13:35 One Man & His Campervan 14:00 Delinquent Gourmet 14:30 My Sri Lanka With Peter Kuruvita 14:55 Street Food Around the World 15:25 David Rocco’s Amalfi Getaway 15:50 Eat Street 16:20 Bondi Rescue 16:45 Bondi Rescue 17:15 Eat Street 17:40 Eat Street 18:10 Bondi Rescue 18:35 Delinquent Gourmet 19:05 Warrior Road Trip 20:00 Eat Street 20:30 Eat Street 21:00 Bondi Rescue 22:00 George Clarke’s Amazing Spaces 22:55 Mega Food 23:50 Bondi Rescue

00:20 01:10 02:00 02:50 03:45 04:40 05:35 06:30 07:25 08:20 09:15 10:10 11:05 12:00 12:55 13:50 14:45 15:40 16:35 17:30 18:25 19:20

Monster Croc Hunt Monster Fish How Big Can It Get Dangerous Encounters Python Hunters Hunter Hunted How Big Can It Get Dangerous Encounters Python Hunters Hunter Hunted Deadly Summer World’s Deadliest Animals Predator CSI Hooked Predators In Peril Dangerous Encounters Python Hunters Hunter Hunted Africa’s Blood River World’s Deadliest Animals Predator CSI Predators In Peril

Richardson Jackson on ‘dream’ role

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aTanya Richardson Jackson came to visit New York to see some Broadway shows. Now she’s in one.

Richardson Jackson, who was last on Broadway in the Tony-winning 2009 revival of “Joe Turner’s Come and Gone,” was asked on Saturday to take over for Diahann Carroll in next month’s Broadway revival of “A Raisin in the Sun.” “This is not even serendipitous. This is a miracle,” Richardson Jackson, the wife of actor Samuel L. Jackson, said Monday after a full day of rehearsal. “This is an incredible dream. I could cry, but I don’t have time.”

This March 7, 2010 file photo shows actor Samuel L Jackson and his actress wife LaTanya Richardson at the 82nd Academy Awards in the Hollywood section of Los Angeles. — AP

BATTLESHIP ON OSN MOVIES ACTION 20:10 21:00 21:50 22:40 23:30

00:30 The Daily Show With Jon Stewart 01:00 The Colbert Report 01:30 Modern Family 02:00 Modern Family 02:30 It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia 03:00 The Cleveland Show 03:30 Melissa & Joey 04:00 Seinfeld 04:30 The Tonight Show With Jay Leno 05:30 Seinfeld 06:00 Raising Hope 06:30 Friends 07:00 Late Night With Jimmy Fallon 08:00 Seinfeld 09:00 The Simpsons 09:30 The Crazy Ones 10:00 Trophy Wife 10:30 Friends 11:00 The Tonight Show With Jay Leno 12:00 Two And A Half Men 12:30 Seinfeld 13:00 Seinfeld 13:30 Friends 14:00 Melissa & Joey 14:30 The Crazy Ones 15:00 Trophy Wife 15:30 The Daily Show With Jon Stewart 16:00 The Colbert Report 16:30 Last Man Standing 17:00 Late Night With Jimmy Fallon 18:00 The Simpsons 18:30 How To Live With Your Parents 19:00 The Mindy Project 19:30 Hot In Cleveland 20:00 The Tonight Show With Jay Leno 21:00 The Daily Show With Jon Stewart 21:30 The Colbert Report 22:00 Modern Family 23:00 Don’t Trust The B In Apartment 23

00:00 01:00 02:00 03:00 04:00 05:00 06:00 07:00 08:00 09:00 10:00 11:00 12:00 12:30 13:00 14:00 15:00 16:00 16:30 17:00 18:00 19:00 20:00 21:00 22:00

THUNDERSTRUCK ON OSN MOVIES HD

Dangerous Encounters Python Hunters Hunter Hunted Africa’s Blood River World’s Deadliest Animals

C.S.I. Mistresses The Killing The Client List Grey’s Anatomy The Fosters C.S.I. Burn Notice Body Of Proof The Killing The Fosters Grey’s Anatomy Emmerdale Coronation Street The Ellen DeGeneres Show Body Of Proof C.S.I. Emmerdale Coronation Street The Ellen DeGeneres Show Body Of Proof Twisted Scandal Marvel’s Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D. American Horror Story: Coven

00:00 Red Dawn (1984) 02:00 Hostel 04:00 The Big I Am 06:00 Iron Sky 08:00 Thief 10:15 Battleship 12:30 Broken Path 14:15 The New Daughter 16:15 Battleship 18:30 Batman: The Dark Knight Returns Part One 20:00 The New Daughter 22:00 Bait

00:00 Hostel-R 02:00 The Big I Am-18 04:00 Iron Sky-PG15 06:00 Thief-PG15 08:15 Battleship-PG15 10:30 Broken Path-PG15 12:15 The New Daughter-PG15 14:15 Battleship-PG15 16:30 Batman: The Dark Knight Returns Part One-PG15 18:00 The New Daughter-PG15 20:00 Bait-PG15 22:00 Sutures-18 23:45 Vacancy-18

00:00 02:00 04:00 06:00 08:00 PG 10:00 12:00 14:00 16:00 18:00 20:00 22:00

That’s My Boy-R Hard Breakers-18 Nacho Libre-PG Gabe The Cupid Dog-PG Who Framed Roger RabbitThe Longest Yard-PG15 Nacho Libre-PG Snow Day-PG The Longest Yard-PG15 Mad Buddies-PG15 Loser-PG15 Wanderlust-R

01:00 03:00 05:00 07:00 09:00 11:00 13:00 15:00 17:00 19:00 21:00 23:00

Matching Jack-PG15 Drift-PG15 Flower Girl-PG15 Ring Of Deceit-PG15 Matching Jack-PG15 The Intouchables-PG15 A Christmas Kiss-PG15 Lying To Be Perfect-PG15 Hide Away-PG15 Argo-PG15 W.E.-18 Locked In-18

01:15 The Caller-PG15 03:00 Emperor-PG15 05:00 Flatliners-18 07:00 StreetDance 2-PG15 09:00 Katy Perry The Movie: Part Of Me-PG 11:00 Would Be Kings-PG15 13:00 Cinderella PT 1-PG15 15:00 Cinderella PT 2-PG15 17:00 Would Be Kings-PG15 18:45 The Last Weekend-PG15 21:00 Shadow Dancer-PG15 23:00 Scarface-18

01:00 The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel-PG15 03:00 Class-PG15 05:00 A View From Here-PG15 07:00 One Life-PG15 09:00 Thunderstruck-PG 11:00 Chimpanzee-PG 13:00 Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted-PG 15:00 Salmon Fishing In The Yemen-PG15 17:00 Thunderstruck-PG 19:00 The Expendables 2-PG15 23:00 Insidious-PG15

00:30 Shark Night-PG15 02:00 Pitch Perfect-PG15 04:00 3 Times A Charm-PG15 06:00 Love’s Kitchen-PG15 08:00 The Greatest Movie Ever Sold-PG15 10:00 Arthur Christmas-PG 12:00 Pitch Perfect-PG15 14:00 Winx-FAM

16:00 The Greatest Movie Ever Sold-PG15 18:00 Red Dawn-PG15 20:00 2 Days In New York-18 22:00 Take This Waltz-18

02:30 PGA Tour Highlights 03:30 Futbol Mundial 04:00 HSBC Sevens World Series 07:00 Dubai World Cup Carnival 11:00 Live AFL Nab Challenge 14:00 Golfing World 15:00 Super League 17:00 HSBC Sevens World Series Highlights 17:30 PGA European Tour Highlights 18:30 Champions Tour Highlights 19:30 ICC Cricket 360 20:00 PGA European Tour Weekly 20:30 Inside The PGA Tour 21:00 Futbol Mundial 21:30 Trans World Sport 22:30 HSBC Sevens World Series

00:00 Top 14 02:00 Futbol Mundial 02:30 Snooker 05:30 Futbol Mundial 06:00 Champions Tour Highlights 07:00 Super League 09:00 Top 14 Highlights 09:30 HSBC Sevens World Series 12:30 ICC Cricket 360 13:00 Premier League Darts 16:30 ICC Cricket 360 17:00 NHL 19:00 Futbol Mundial 19:30 Sevens World Series Highlights

00:00 Chelsea Lately 00:30 The Spin Crowd 00:55 The Spin Crowd 01:25 Style Star 02:20 E!ES 03:15 Extreme Close-Up 03:40 Extreme Close-Up 04:10 E!ES 05:05 E!ES 06:00 15 Remarkable Celebrity Body Bouncebacks 07:50 Style Star 08:20 Fashion Police 09:15 Opening Act 10:15 Married To Jonas 10:40 Chasing The Saturdays 11:10 The Drama Queen 12:05 Fashion Police 13:05 Extreme Close-Up 13:35 E!ES 14:30 Style Star

00:00 00:30 01:30 02:30 03:30 04:00 04:30 05:30 06:00 07:00 08:00 08:30 11:00 12:00 13:00 14:00 15:00 16:00 17:00 17:30 18:00 19:00 20:00 21:00 22:00 22:30 23:30

Frenemies Fatal Vows The First 48 My Ghost Story Frenemies Frenemies Fatal Vows Private Crimes Beyond Scared Straight The First 48 Curious & Unusual Deaths Curious & Unusual Deaths Fatal Vows Beyond Scared Straight Evil Up Close Model Killers Fatal Vows Born To Kill Curious & Unusual Deaths Private Crimes Homicide Hunter The First 48 The Devil You Know Beyond Scared Straight Private Crimes Evil Up Close My Ghost Story

The 78-year-old Carroll withdrew over the weekend due to the vigorous demands of the rehearsal and performance schedule. Richardson Jackson got the call while she was shopping. Director Kenny Leon, who asked her to step in, didn’t even know she was in New York when he dialed her cell phone. “How it arrived, I can’t question, although I can’t say I wasn’t upset, because I am. Carroll is a friend and I just regret that she wasn’t able. I was looking so forward to seeing her in this production,” said Richardson Jackson.

The new production also will star Denzel Washington, Sophie Okonedo and Anika Noni Rose. “Listen, she’s already in there killing it,” said Washington after the rehearsal. “She’s already pushing me so that’s good. I’m happy that she’s here.” Richardson Jackson came to New York to see “Waiting for Godot” with Ian McKellen and Patrick Stewart, and also to check out Pauletta Washington - Denzel’s wife - in a cabaret at Joe’s Pub. Her plans for a relaxing trip ended quickly after the Broadway offer. (Her husband, who is in Atlanta shooting a film, said she had to do it.) Her Saturday night was spent signing contracts and speaking to stage managers.

“Right now, I’m just flying by the seat of my pants,” she said. “I had to wrap my mind about what was actually occurring. After this long rehearsal today, I’m still just getting what I’m doing.” “A Raisin in the Sun” starts performances on March 8 at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre and the opening night is April 3. Of her race to get ready, Richardson Jackson said bravely: “It’s here and we shall carry on.” Her off-Broadway credits include “From the Mississippi Delta” and “The Talented Tenth” and her TV roles have included parts on “Ally McBeal” and “100 Centre Street.” She appeared in the films “Sleepless in Seattle” and “Malcolm X.” Richardson Jackson has seen several productions of “A Raisin in the Sun,” but never has been in one. At 64, she is five years older than Washington, 59, who will be playing her son. He was last on Broadway in 2010 in “Fences” and won a lead acting Tony. Set in the late 1950s in a rundown South Side Chicago apartment, “A Raisin in the Sun” deals with the hopes and disappointments of a black family trying to find a better life in a white neighborhood. This will be the second Broadway revival of Lorraine Hansberry’s play. The original Broadway production in 1959 featured Sidney Poitier, Ruby Dee, Claudia McNeil and Diana Sands, all who reunited for a 1961 film adaptation. The last Broadway revival occurred in 2004, starring Diddy (Sean Combs), Phylicia Rashad, Sanaa Lathan and Audra McDonald. It also was directed by Leon. — AP

German war drama shot in Afghanistan premieres in Berlin

A

powerful German drama about a soldier fighting the Taleban in Afghanistan and his unlikely friendship with a local interpreter premiered yesterday at the Berlin film festival. “Inbetween Worlds” by Feo Aladag was filmed over six weeks in northern Afghanistan. The director said she put her actors through a kind of “boot camp” and worked with a European-Afghan crew to achieve authenticity.

Ronald Zehrfeld, who starred in the 2012 hit “Barbara” about an escape attempt from the former communist East Germany, plays Jesper, a soldier whose brother was killed in Afghanistan. His unit is fighting to protect a village from the Taleban but, nearly as frequently, clashing with the locals over customs and laws. Tarik (Mohsin Ahmady) is an interpreter who has the high-risk task of bridging the cultural and linguistic distance between the foreign troops and frightened villagers. With Tarik’s help, Jesper seeks to gain the trust of the locals and the allied Arbaki militia, but finds himself at odds with his own commanders who keep their distance from the Afghans. The gulf between religions, and between rich and poor, plays out in their daily interactions but Jesper and Tarik find common ground in their desire to help. When it becomes clear that Tarik’s sister, a university student, is under threat from the Taleban, Jesper must choose between his duties as a soldier and his own moral compass. “German Bundeswehr soldiers, when they swear their oath, oblige themselves to ultimately follow their own conscience and not the chain of commandthis is an important point with regard to German history,” Aladag told reporters.

‘The danger is there every day’ The Vienna-born Aladag, 42, worked as a journalist before making “When We Leave”, a drama about so-called honor killings which won New York’s Tribeca Film Festival in 2010. “Inbetween Worlds” is her second feature and one of 20 films in competition for Berlin’s Golden Bear top prize, to be awarded on Saturday. The film comes as more than 50,000 combat troops from the US-led NATO force are planning to pull out by the end of this year.

Most of the 3,000 German troops deployed in Afghanistan are based in the northern city of Mazar-iSharif. Fifty-four German soldiers have died there.

Germany is currently embroiled in a fierce debate over playing a more robust role in international military missions in the world’s crisis zones. —AFP

Classifieds WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2014

Kuwait SHARQIA-1 LONE SURVIVOR (DIG) GRAND PIANO (DIG) THE LEGEND OF HERCULES (DIG) LONE SURVIVOR (DIG) GRAND PIANO (DIG) GRAND PIANO (DIG) LONE SURVIVOR (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED SHARQIA-2 ROBOCOP (DIG) THE LEGO MOVIE (DIG-3D) THE LEGO MOVIE (DIG-3D) ROBOCOP (DIG) ROBOCOP (DIG) ROBOCOP (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED SHARQIA-3 THE NUT JOB (DIG) THE NUT JOB (DIG) RIDE ALONG (DIG) KHOUTAT GIMI (DIG) KHOUTAT GIMI (DIG) KHOUTAT GIMI (DIG) RIDE ALONG (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED MUHALAB-1 GRAND PIANO (DIG) KHOUTAT GIMI (DIG) GRAND PIANO (DIG) KHOUTAT GIMI (DIG) KHOUTAT GIMI (DIG)

KNCC PROGRAMME FROM THURSDAY TO WEDNESDAY (06/02/2014 TO 12/02/2014)

12:30 PM 2:45 PM 4:45 PM 6:45 PM 9:00 PM 11:00 PM 1:00 AM

MARINA-1 THE LEGO MOVIE (DIG) THE LEGO MOVIE (DIG) THE LEGO MOVIE (DIG) LONE SURVIVOR (DIG) LONE SURVIVOR (DIG) LONE SURVIVOR (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:30 PM 3:30 PM 5:30 PM 7:30 PM 9:45 PM 12:05 AM

LONE SURVIVOR (DIG) 6:00 PM NO FRI (07.02.2014) Special Show “DHOOM 3 (DIG) (HINDI)” 6:00 PM FRI (07.02.2014) LONE SURVIVOR (DIG) 8:30 PM NO FRI (07.02.2014) LONE SURVIVOR (DIG) 11:00 PM

1:00 PM 3:30 PM 5:45 PM 7:45 PM 10:15 PM 12:45 AM

MARINA-2 RIDE ALONG (DIG) ROBOCOP (DIG) RIDE ALONG (DIG) ROBOCOP (DIG) ROBOCOP (DIG) ROBOCOP (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

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

360º- 1 ROBOCOP (DIG) ROBOCOP (DIG) ROBOCOP (DIG) ROBOCOP (DIG) ROBOCOP (DIG) ROBOCOP (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

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

MARINA-3 KHOUTAT GIMI (DIG) THE LEGEND OF HERCULES (DIG) KHOUTAT GIMI (DIG) GRAND PIANO (DIG) KHOUTAT GIMI (DIG) KHOUTAT GIMI (DIG) GRAND PIANO (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

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

2:00 PM 4:00 PM 6:00 PM 8:00 PM 10:00 PM

MUHALAB-2 RIDE ALONG (DIG) FRI LONE SURVIVOR (DIG) NO FRI THE LEGEND OF HERCULES (DIG) LONE SURVIVOR (DIG) RIDE ALONG (DIG) LONE SURVIVOR (DIG)

3:30 PM 5:30 PM 7:45 PM 9:45 PM

MUHALAB-3 ROBOCOP (DIG) THE LEGO MOVIE (DIG) THE LEGO MOVIE (DIG) ROBOCOP (DIG) ROBOCOP (DIG)

12:30 PM 3:00 PM 5:00 PM 7:00 PM 9:30 PM

1:30 PM

AVENUES-1 FROZEN (DIG) FROZEN (DIG) RIDE ALONG (DIG) NO THU+FRI+SAT ONE DIRECTION: THIS IS US (DIG) THU+FRI+SAT RIDE ALONG (DIG) RIDE ALONG (DIG) RIDE ALONG (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

360º- 2 SAVING Mr. BANKS (DIG) SAVING Mr. BANKS (DIG) SAVING Mr. BANKS (DIG) SAVING Mr. BANKS (DIG) SAVING Mr. BANKS (DIG)

1:30 PM 3:45 PM 6:00 PM 6:00 PM 8:00 PM 10:15 PM 12:30 AM

1:00 PM

FANAR-1 GRAND PIANO (DIG) THE LEGEND OF HERCULES (DIG) GRAND PIANO (DIG) THE LEGEND OF HERCULES (DIG) GRAND PIANO (DIG) GRAND PIANO (DIG) THE LEGEND OF HERCULES (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

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

FANAR-2 THE NUT JOB (DIG) THE NUT JOB (DIG) KHOUTAT GIMI (DIG) KHOUTAT GIMI (DIG) KHOUTAT GIMI (DIG) KHOUTAT GIMI (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:45 PM 3:45 PM 5:45 PM 7:45 PM 9:45 PM 11:45 PM

FANAR-3 SAVING Mr. BANKS (DIG) RIDE ALONG (DIG) SAVING Mr. BANKS (DIG) RIDE ALONG (DIG) SAVING Mr. BANKS (DIG) SAVING Mr. BANKS (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

12:30 PM 3:00 PM 5:00 PM 7:30 PM 9:30 PM 12:15 AM

AVENUES-2 THE LEGEND OF HERCULES (DIG) THE LEGEND OF HERCULES (DIG) THE LEGEND OF HERCULES (DIG) THE LEGEND OF HERCULES (DIG) THE LEGEND OF HERCULES (DIG) THE LEGEND OF HERCULES (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

2:15 PM 4:30 PM 6:45 PM 9:00 PM 11:15 PM 1:15 AM

AVENUES-3 KHOUTAT GIMI (DIG) KHOUTAT GIMI (DIG) KHOUTAT GIMI (DIG) KHOUTAT GIMI (DIG) KHOUTAT GIMI (DIG) KHOUTAT GIMI (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

12:45 PM 3:00 PM 5:15 PM 7:30 PM 9:45 PM 12:05 AM

AVENUES-4 KHOUTAT GIMI I?E ???? (DIG) KHOUTAT GIMI I?E ???? (DIG) KHOUTAT GIMI I?E ???? (DIG) KHOUTAT GIMI I?E ???? (DIG) KHOUTAT GIMI I?E ???? (DIG) KHOUTAT GIMI I?E ???? (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

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

AVENUES-5 ROBOCOP (DIG) ROBOCOP (DIG) ROBOCOP (DIG) ROBOCOP (DIG) ROBOCOP (DIG) ROBOCOP (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

12:30 PM 2:45 PM 5:15 PM 8:00 PM 10:30 PM 1:00 AM

AVENUES-6 LONE SURVIVOR (DIG) LONE SURVIVOR (DIG)

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

1:00 PM 3:30 PM 6:00 PM 8:30 PM 11:00 PM

360º- 3 FROZEN (DIG-3D) FROZEN (DIG) FROZEN (DIG-3D) KHOUTAT GIMI (DIG) KHOUTAT GIMI (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

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

AL-KOUT.1 THE LEGO MOVIE (DIG) THE LEGO MOVIE (DIG) THE LEGO MOVIE (DIG) LONE SURVIVOR (DIG) LONE SURVIVOR (DIG) LONE SURVIVOR (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

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

AL-KOUT.2 KHOUTAT GIMI (DIG) THE LEGEND OF HERCULES (DIG) RIDE ALONG (DIG) KHOUTAT GIMI (DIG) KHOUTAT GIMI (DIG) KHOUTAT GIMI (DIG) THE LEGEND OF HERCULES (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

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

AL-KOUT.3 ROBOCOP (DIG) ROBOCOP (DIG) ROBOCOP (DIG) ROBOCOP (DIG) ROBOCOP (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

2:15 PM 4:45 PM 7:15 PM 9:45 PM 12:15 AM

AL-KOUT.4 SAVING Mr. BANKS (DIG) SAVING Mr. BANKS (DIG) GRAND PIANO (DIG) SAVING Mr. BANKS (DIG) GRAND PIANO (DIG) SAVING Mr. BANKS (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

12:30 PM 3:00 PM 5:30 PM 7:30 PM 10:00 PM 12:05 AM

BAIRAQ-1 THE LEGO MOVIE (DIG-3D) THE LEGO MOVIE (DIG-3D) THE LEGO MOVIE (DIG-3D) ROBOCOP (DIG) ROBOCOP (DIG) ROBOCOP (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:30 PM 3:30 PM 5:30 PM 7:30 PM 10:00 PM 12:30 AM

BAIRAQ-2 FROZEN (DIG) THE NUT JOB (DIG)

1:00 PM 3:30 PM

12:30 PM 2:45 PM

CHANGE OF NAME Old name: Mustufa Yacubali Motagaonwala to new name Mustufa Yacubali Udaipurwala. My address in India: 34 Taheri Bldg, Amakine Mohammediya Khabhalpada Dombivli (E) Thane, Maharashtra.

(C 4640) 11-2-2014

Directorate General of Civil Aviation Home Page (www.kuwait-airport.com.kw)

Airlines JAI JZR THY QTR DLH JZR GFA THY UAE ETD JAI OMA MSR QTR FDB THY DHX FDB BAW QTR FDB KAC KAC KAC KAC JZR UAE ABY IRM ETD FDB QTR GFA IRA IAW MEA TMA MSC MRJ IRM UAE MSR CLX IYE FDB KAC KAC KAC KAC JZR FDB QTR

Arrival Flights on Wednesday 12/2/2014 Flt Route 574 MUMBAI 539 CAIRO 772 ISTANBUL 1084 DOHA 637 DAMMAM 267 BEIRUT 211 BAHRAIN 764 SABIHA 853 DUBAI 305 ABU DHABI-INTL 576 COCHIN 643 MUSCAT 612 CAIRO 1076 DOHA 67 DUBAI 770 ISTANBUL 170 BAHRAIN 69 DUBAI 157 LONDON 1086 DOHA 53 DUBAI 352 COCHIN 206 ISLAMABAD 344 CHENNAI 302 MUMBAI 529 ASYUT 855 DUBAI 125 SHARJAH 1186 TEHRAN 301 ABU DHABI-INTL 55 DUBAI 1070 DOHA 213 BAHRAIN 603 SHIRAZ 157 NAJAF 404 BEIRUT 213 BEIRUT 403 ASYUT 4815 MASHAD 1188 MASHAD 871 DUBAI 610 CAIRO 792 LUXEMBOURG 826 SANAA 8055 DUBAI 412 MANILA 382 DELHI 284 DHAKA 362 COLOMBO 165 DUBAI 57 DUBAI 1078 DOHA

Time 00:10 00:40 00:45 00:55 01:10 00:40 02:10 02:15 02:35 02:45 02:50 03:05 03:10 03:45 04:00 05:35 05:40 05:50 06:40 07:50 07:50 08:10 07:40 08:35 07:55 06:20 08:40 09:00 09:15 09:20 09:40 09:55 10:40 10:45 11:00 11:55 12:10 12:20 12:25 12:40 12:50 13:00 13:15 13:30 11:15 11:35 13:05 8:50 8:45 11:30 13:50 13:55

MSR SVA IRC KNE KNE KNE JAV QTR UAE ETD RJA KAC KAC KAC KAC KAC KAC KAC KAC KAC KAC KAC KAC JZR JZR JZR SVA ABY GFA RBG QTR FDB GFA OMA FDB MSC JAI ABY ETD AXB MSR DLH ALK MEA ETD UAE KNE GFA QTR FDB AIC JZR JZR JZR

575 500 6692 472 462 460 621 1072 857 303 640 522 166 674 102 542 788 786 672 790 618 774 538 777 177 357 510 127 215 553 1080 63 217 647 61 405 572 129 919 489 606 634 229 402 307 859 480 219 1074 59 975 135 239 185

SHARM EL SHEIKH JEDDAH MASHAD JEDDAH MEDINAH RIYADH AMMAN-QUEEN ALIA DOHA DUBAI ABU DHABI-INTL AMMAN-QUEEN ALIA NAJAF PARIS DUBAI NEW YORK CAIRO JEDDAH JEDDAH DUBAI MEDINAH DOHA RIYADH SHARM EL SHEIKH JEDDAH DUBAI MASHAD RIYADH SHARJAH BAHRAIN ALEXANDRIA DOHA DUBAI BAHRAIN MUSCAT DUBAI SOHAG MUMBAI SHARJAH ABU DHABI-INTL COCHIN LUXOR FRANKFURT COLOMBO BEIRUT ABU DHABI-INTL DUBAI TAIF BAHRAIN DOHA DUBAI CHENNAI BAHRAIN AMMAN-QUEEN ALIA DUBAI

14:15 14:30 14:35 14:35 15:45 15:55 15:55 16:40 16:40 16:50 16:55 13:45 19:10 19:25 19:35 18:05 15:10 18:45 14:00 14:25 19:00 19:30 16:05 17:55 18:20 17:55 17:15 17:25 17:30 18:15 18:40 18:45 19:30 19:55 20:05 20:05 20:10 20:20 20:25 20:35 20:45 20:55 21:10 21:20 21:35 21:40 21:45 21:45 22:00 22:00 22:30 22:05 22:20 23:20

Airlines AIC UAL JAI DLH THY UAE KAC ETD OMA MSR QTR FDB QTR FDB JAI JZR THY GFA THY KAC FDB BAW QTR KAC KAC ABY KAC UAE KAC KAC ETD FDB IRM KAC QTR GFA KAC IRA FDB JZR IAW KAC JZR MEA KAC MSC TMA JZR MRJ MSR IRM UAE IYE

Departure Flights on Wednesday 12/2/2014 Flt Route 982 AHMEDABAD 981 WASHINGTON 573 MUMBAI 637 FRANKFURT 773 ISTANBUL-ATATURK 854 DUBAI 381 DELHI 306 ABU DHABI 644 MUSCAT 613 CAIRO 1085 DOHA 68 DUBAI 1077 DOHA 70 DUBAI 575 ABU DHABI 164 DUBAI 765 ISTANBUL-SABIHA 212 BAHRAIN 771 ISTANBUL-ATATURK 537 SHARM EL SHEIKH 54 DUBAI 156 LONDON 1087 DOHA 787 JEDDAH 671 DUBAI 126 SHARJAH 789 MADINAH 856 DUBAI 117 NEW YORK 521 AL NAJAF 302 ABU DHABI 56 DUBAI 1187 TEHRAN 175 FRANKFURT 1071 DOHA 214 BAHRAIN 541 CAIRO 602 SHIRAZ 8056 DUBAI 356 MASHHAD 158 BAGHDAD 103 LONDON 776 JEDDAH 405 BEIRUT 785 JEDDAH 406 SOHAG 223 AL MAKTOUM INTERNATIONAL 176 DUBAI 4814 MASHHAD 611 CAIRO 1189 MASHHAD 872 DUBAI 827 RIYAN MUKALLA

DIAL161 FOR AIRPORT INFORMATION

Time 00:05 00:55 01:10 02:10 02:55 03:50 03:50 04:00 04:05 04:10 04:15 04:40 05:15 06:30 06:35 06:55 07:05 07:15 07:30 08:10 08:30 08:45 08:50 09:25 09:30 09:40 09:45 09:55 10:00 10:05 10:05 10:20 10:30 10:45 10:55 11:25 11:30 11:45 11:55 11:55 12:00 12:20 12:25 12:55 13:00 13:20 13:45 13:45 13:55 14:00 14:05 14:15 14:30

FDB CLX QTR MSR KAC KAC KNE IRC SVA KAC KNE KNE JZR JAV ETD QTR UAE JZR RJA ABY SVA GFA JZR JZR RBG JZR JZR FDB QTR GFA KAC FDB OMA KAC KAC ABY MSC JAI KAC MSR DHX ALK MEA ETD ETD KNE GFA KAC FDB UAE KAC QTR JZR JZR KAC

58 792 1079 576 673 617 473 6693 503 773 463 481 238 622 304 1073 858 538 641 128 511 216 184 266 554 134 554 64 1081 218 283 62 648 331 361 120 404 571 351 619 171 230 403 308 920 461 220 301 60 860 205 1075 528 502 415

DUBAI GIALAM DOHA SHARM EL SHEIKH DUBAI DOHA JEDDAH MASHHAD MADINAH RIYADH MADINAH TAIF AMMAN AMMAN ABU DHABI DOHA DUBAI CAIRO AMMAN SHARJAH RIYADH BAHRAIN DUBAI BEIRUT ALEXANDRIA BAHRAIN ALEXANDRIA DUBAI DOHA BAHRAIN DHAKA DUBAI MUSCAT TRIVANDRUM COLOMBO SHARJAH ASYUT MUMBAI KOCHI ALEXANDRIA BAHRAIN COLOMBO BEIRUT ABU DHABI ABU DHABI RIYADH BAHRAIN MUMBAI DUBAI DUBAI ISLAMABAD DOHA ASYUT LUXOR KUALA LUMPUR

14:30 14:45 14:55 15:00 15:05 15:30 15:30 15:35 15:45 16:05 16:35 16:40 16:55 17:15 17:35 17:40 17:50 17:50 17:55 18:05 18:15 18:20 18:40 18:50 18:55 19:10 19:20 19:25 19:40 20:15 20:30 20:45 20:55 20:55 21:00 21:00 21:05 21:10 21:10 21:45 21:50 22:10 22:20 22:20 22:25 22:30 22:30 22:35 22:40 22:50 22:55 23:10 23:25 23:30 23:55

34

s ta rs CROSSWORD 457

STAR TRACK Aries (March 21-April 19) ARIES You seem intuitive as you handle a difficult customer today. Co-workers may want to know what it was you said to calm the savage beast, so to speak. Progress is good today and co-workers work well together. Young people in your family can enjoy some fun activity with your guidance this afternoon. Whether this activity is sports, shopping or a movie, it is not really important. The fact that you are sharing your time with each other is the glue that holds a family together. Stopping off at the library on the way home is a good way to occupy quiet time productively instead of television time. You encourage this activity of reading or listening to stories. Later, you and your family enjoy relaxing and talking about family traditions.

Taurus (April 20-May 20) After a busy day—you may wish to stay at home and spend time in quiet solitude. You will probably find that someone close to you understands but will encourage you to get moving anyway. You are insightful and will find a way to arrange your day so that you can stop by a gym from time to time. This will actually help you increase your energy level and become less sluggish. You will be happy to know that you will find your health improving as well. You may want to analyze whatever has caused the crowding of work so that it does not happen again. Problems with transportation and communication may not be helped—all is temporary. You have a chance to win a creative contest soon— you just have to be paying attention.

Gemini (May 21-June 20)

ACROSS 1. A master's degree in business.

4. White Southerner supporting Reconstruction policies after the Civil War usually for self-interest.

12. Of southern Europe.

15. Fermented alcoholic beverage similar to but heavier than beer.

16. Low stingless nettle of Central and South America having velvety brownish-green toothed leaves and clusters of small green flowers.

17. Aircraft landing in bad weather in which the pilot is talked down by ground control using precision approach radar.

18. A boy or man.

19. An inferior imitator of some distinguished writer or artist of musician.

20. An avalanche volcanic water and mud down the slopes of a volcano.

22. A proposition deducible from basic postulates.

25. An ancient Assyrian city on the River Tigris and traditional capital of Assyria.

26. A public promotion of some product or service.

29. An associate degree in nursing.

30. A Mid-Atlantic state.

31. An Arabic speaking person who lives in Arabia or North Africa.

35. An organization of countries formed in 1961 to agree on a common policy for the sale of petroleum.

38. A tricycle (usually propelled by pedalling).

40. Indigo bush.

42. A woman hired to suckle a child of someone else.

44. A federal agency established to coordinate programs aimed at reducing pollution and protecting the environment.

45. Your general store of remembered information.

48. A silvery ductile metallic element found primarily in bauxite.

49. Designating a solution containing 1 mole of solute per 1000 grams of solvent.

50. Eurasian perennial herb having pale pink flowers and curved pods.

52. A state in midwestern United States.

54. Type genus of the Alcidae comprising solely the razorbill.

55. A monosaccharide sugar that contains the aldehyde group or is hemiacetal.

59. (anatomy) Of or relating to a cavity or chamber in the body (especially one of the upper chambers of the heart).

61. A city in western Germany near the Dutch and Belgian borders.

65. (Old Testament) In Judeo-Christian mythology.

68. The top line of a hill, mountain, or wave.

70. A genus of Mustelidae.

71. Being or befitting or characteristic of an infant.

73. A gonadotropic hormone that is secreted by the anterior pituitary.

74. A natural protective covering of the body.

75. A statement that deviates from or perverts the truth.

79. (computer science) A coding system that incorporates extra parity bits in order to detect errors.

80. Late time of life.

81. Usually herbivorous land turtles having clawed elephant-like limbs.

82. A column of light (as from a beacon).

DOWN 1. A republic on the island of Malta in the Mediterranean.

2. (informal usage) A general feeling of boredom and dissatisfaction.

3. Yellow-fever mosquitos.

4. United States engineer and inventor of the gyrocompass (1860-1930).

5. A strip of land projecting into a body of water.

6. (Jungian psychology) The inner self (not the external persona) that is in touch with the unconscious.

7. The act of slowing down or falling behind.

8. In a murderous frenzy as if possessed by a demon.

9. A victory (as in a race or other competition).

10. A radioactive element of the actinide series.

11. Offering fun and gaiety.

12. The ninth month of the Hindu calendar.

13. A fraudulent business scheme.

14. (obstetrics) The number of live-born children a woman has delivered.

21. Slightly open.

23. A unit of apothecary weight equal to 480 grains or one twelfth of a pound.

24. A region of Malaysia in northeastern Borneo.

27. An informal term for a father.

28. Genus of tall smooth herbs of forested mountains of Europe and Asia minor.

32. A narrow elongated opening or fissure between two symmetrical parts.

33. Wood of a sumac.

34. City in Sudan.

36. Proceeding from or ordered by or subject to a pope or the papacy regarded as the successor of the Apostles.

37. Either of two large African antelopes of the genus Taurotragus having short spirally twisted horns in both sexes.

39. Round object that is hit or thrown or kicked in games.

41. A town in central Belgium.

43. Type genus of the Zoarcidae.

46. A relative position or degree of value in a graded group.

47. A hard brittle gray polyvalent metallic element that resembles iron but is not magnetic.

51. Relating to or containing gas bubbles.

53. Kauri pine.

56. A long noosed rope used to catch animals.

57. One of the three Furies.

58. (Akkadian) God of wisdom.

60. Being nine more than ninety.

62. A foot traveler.

63. Any plant of the genus Erica.

64. A city in northeastern France in Lorraine.

66. The lower house of the parliament of the Republic of Ireland.

67. In bed.

69. An antidepressant drug that acts by blocking the reuptake of serotonin so that more serotonin is available to act on receptors in the brain.

72. A federation of North American industrial unions that merged with the American Federation of Labor in 1955.

76. A New England state.

77. A hard brittle blue-white multivalent metallic element.

78. A colorless odorless inert gaseous element occurring in the earth's atmosphere in trace amounts.

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2014

Your professional life moves forward at a good pace. There are some lifestyle changes to adopt but you do better than most people when dealing with change. Too many changes at one time can be confusing and costly but one day at a time can accomplish many things. Expect a sense of support and good will from those around you. You may be moved to appreciate and discover the beauty in your life and in those around you. When there is a risk, you might spend more money than you have. Ask yourself if you can afford the energy that goes into paying off some particular item. You may meet someone new today, perhaps a potential friend. You will encourage each other in positive ways. Thrift is the order of the day, whether you like it or not.

Cancer (June 21-July 22) Good luck regarding money creates smiles for most of your day. Obtaining and exchanging information takes importance and you are finally able to fit a few perplexing pieces of a puzzling situation together. With better understanding you are able to communicate your true feelings and through your behavior you teach others. There are opportunities for you to become involved in issues surrounding law, medicine or business.

Your charming personality wins others to your point of view. New ideas, causes and a desire to know where the next story, adventure or invention could take you, keep you busier than most. Separate yourself from your work when you are with your loved ones.

This attitude helps you win friends and influence family.

Leo (July 23-August 22) This is a day when you are much easier to understand. Perhaps you have conquered the task of learning a subject matter thoroughly. At any rate, you have become more confident and it shows. It is nice to have knowledge and facts behind you.

Communication with authority figures is enhanced. Careful—ambitious schemes and the pursuit of success and status take on a high priority. This brings a focus on the practical, the successful, the pragmatic—whatever it takes to get you ahead in the end. Seek your successes with civility. This evening brings about opportunities to draw close to friends and to have a special time with someone you love. This calls for marshmallows over an open fire, card games or watching a movie at home.

Virgo (August 23-September 22) A task may be assigned to you today that stretches what you think are your capabilities. Do not turn this assignment down; you will be pleasantly pleased at the result of your efforts. Investments are encouraged. Business dealings and the work of this day progress very well. Mental resiliency is the word for this afternoon.

This evening, your instincts and energies tend to be headed in the direction of cleaning, repairing and updating some of your belongings. This would be a good time to check your list for insurance coverage. You may not feel that you have time to goof off with your friends until you are happy with the results of this or some other personal project. Your concentration in the home place is in having things clean and comfortable.

Word Search

Libra (September 23-October 22) Life is so exciting. Someday soon we will have the capabilities of deciphering stardust. You may decide that now is the time to encompass and encourage experiments with consumable items for space flight—perhaps a study of nutrition in space. This is the time to schedule trimming trees, bushes and perhaps the planting of trees. Work is full of opportunities to promote growth and home beckons for your creative hand.

Distractions happen but they are well within your control. You are in a good mood and determined that everyone around you will share your enthusiasm. You are feeling lucky, self-confident and very pleased that you have chosen this time of the earth’s development to enter into the scene of insights, discovery and development.

Scorpio (October 23-November 21) Because you are so versatile, you succeed at anything you set your mind to accomplish—today is no exception. Ideas, communication, encouragement and encouraging others seem to be the trend now. Patience in the workplace will bring rewards today. Gossip can destroy everything you have set up for yourself—don’t. Petty quarrels can be identified and eliminated quickly. You are interested in short-term education classes or in learning by some recorded device. This might include lessons toward a better memory or better concentration skills. Good for you—this will impact your life in positive ways. Now consider a little volunteer work. Think of all the good you could spread around. There are some unexpected rewards yet to be enjoyed in your life.

Sagittarius (November 22-December 21) A little moody perhaps, but mostly you are tuned in to your surroundings and understanding of others. There is an instinctive urge to gain notice for your work and you go about your day to succeed beyond the usual. You are very successful at what you undertake, and to become known for your work, you may want to write a report on the results or steps to the end result. You are in a period of high-achievement and will see much progress toward the goals you are trying to reach. At times you enjoy planning social affairs. You love beautiful events instead of the relaxed lazy sort of affairs so you seriously consider a special gathering that will give people an opportunity to wear costumes. Prizes could be donated if the party becomes a community affair.

Capricorn (December 22-January 19) Work projects take on a greater importance. You can expect your support system to be strong and reliable. A move in the right direction will bring activities in the workplace to a positive, more modern type of environment. This may mean new equipment, but more than likely a whole new building in which to conduct business. Beginning a diet or a nutritional program today or tomorrow would be good.

The energies surrounding this decision help you to be productive. If you are looking to change your weight, keep notes and then you will be able to see where you can make positive changes to get you the results you want and to also maintain your goal. Tonight is for reading and staying updated on the latest scientific developments.

Aquarius (January 20- February 18) Mental organization and discipline may not be in the cards today. You may be in deep thought one moment, see a bird outside and then forget completely what you had been thinking earlier. It may not be a spring scene that has your mind wandering but just the need to escape the hard work you perform each day. Do not forget about the habit of exercise. Your energetic routine calls for a relief of stress and weight lifting could be good way for you to build strength and stamina. You will also find a return of mental focus as you exercise the body. You may have company in your living surroundings this afternoon that will bring warm moments of friendship and some great conversations your way. Your talents are recognized.

Pisces (February 19-March 20) A touch of financial genius can result in phenomenally successful investments for yourself and others this tuesday. This is a busy day with surprises at every turn.

Because this is a fulfilling but tiring day, later this afternoon you may find yourself reorganizing a schedule so that you will not have to experience such a high stress level. You may be running a little late in getting home this evening but the changes you have made in your schedule will make life a little easier. A shared body massage with your mate is enjoyable this evening. From now until the end of the month, romance is a little more promising than usual. Take the time to build on your love relationship and make no demands for now.

Yesterday’s Solution

Yesterday’s Solution

Daily SuDoku

Yesterday’s Solution

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2014

i n f o r m at i o n For labor-related inquiries and complaints: Call MSAL hotline 128 GOVERNORATE 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

PHARMACY

ADDRESS

PHONE

Ahmadi

Sama Safwan Abu Halaifa Danat Al-Sultan

Fahaeel Makka St Abu Halaifa-Coastal Rd Mahboula Block 1, Coastal Rd

23915883 23715414 23726558

Jahra

Modern Jahra Madina Munawara

Jahra-Block 3 Lot 1 Jahra-Block 92

24575518 24566622

Capital

Ahlam Khaldiya Coop

Fahad Al-Salem St Khaldiya Coop

22436184 24833967

Farwaniya

New Shifa Ferdous Coop Modern Safwan

Farwaniya Block 40 Ferdous Coop Old Kheitan Block 11

24734000 24881201 24726638

Tariq Hana Ikhlas Hawally & Rawdha Ghadeer Kindy Ibn Al-Nafis Mishrif Coop Salwa Coop

Salmiya-Hamad Mubarak St Salmiya-Amman St Hawally-Beirut St Hawally & Rawdha Coop Jabriya-Block 1A Jabriya-Block 3B Salmiya-Hamad Mubarak St Mishrif Coop Salwa Coop

25726265 25647075 22625999 22564549 25340559 25326554 25721264 25380581 25628241

Hawally

Al-Madeena

22418714

Al-Shuhada

22545171

Al-Shuwaikh

24810598

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22545171

Sabhan

24742838

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22434853

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22545051

Al-Farwaniya

24711433

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24316983

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23927002

Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh

24316983

Ahmadi

23980088

Al-Mangaf

23711183

Al-Shuaiba

23262845

Kaizen center

25716707

Rawda

22517733

Adaliya

22517144

Al-Jahra

25610011

Khaldiya

24848075

Al-Salmiya

25616368

Kaifan

24849807

Shamiya

24848913

Shuwaikh

24814507

Abdullah Salem

22549134

Nuzha

22526804

Industrial Shuwaikh

24814764

Qadsiya

22515088

Dasmah

22532265

Bneid Al-Gar

22531908

Shaab

22518752

Qibla

22459381

Ayoun Al-Qibla

22451082

Mirqab

22456536

Sharq

22465401

Salmiya

25746401

Jabriya

25316254

Maidan Hawally

25623444

Bayan

25388462

Mishref

25381200

W Hawally

22630786

Sabah

24810221

Jahra

24770319

New Jahra

24575755

West Jahra

24772608

South Jahra

24775066

North Jahra

24775992

North Jleeb

24311795

Ardhiya

24884079

Firdous

24892674

Omariya

24719048

N Khaitan

24710044

Fintas

23900322

INTERNATIONAL CALLS

PRIVATE CLINICS Ophthalmologists Dr. Abidallah Al-Mansoor 25622444 Dr. Samy Al-Rabeea 25752222 Dr. Masoma Habeeb 25321171 Dr. Mubarak Al-Ajmy 25739999 Dr. Mohsen Abel 25757700 Dr Adnan Hasan Alwayl 25732223 Dr. Abdallah Al-Baghly 25732223 Ear, Nose & Throat (ENT) Dr. Ahmed Fouad Mouner 24555050 Ext 510 Dr. Abdallah Al-Ali 25644660 Dr. Abd Al-Hameed Al-Taweel 25646478 Dr. Sanad Al-Fathalah 25311996 Dr. Mohammad Al-Daaory 25731988 Dr. Ismail Al-Fodary 22620166 Dr. Mahmoud Al-Booz 25651426 General Practitioners Dr. Mohamme Y Majidi 24555050 Ext 123 Dr. Yousef Al-Omar 24719312 Dr. Tarek Al-Mikhazeem 23926920 Dr. Kathem Maarafi 25730465 Dr. Abdallah Ahmad Eyadah 25655528 Dr. Nabeel Al-Ayoobi 24577781 Dr. Dina Abidallah Al-Refae 25333501 Urologists Dr. Ali Naser Al-Serfy 22641534 Dr. Fawzi Taher Abul 22639955 Dr. Khaleel Abidallah Al-Awadi 22616660 Dr. Adel Al-Hunayan FRCS (C) 25313120 Dr. Leons Joseph 66703427 Psychologists /Psychotherapists

Paediatricians

Plastic Surgeons Dr. Mohammad Al-Khalaf

22547272

Dr. Khaled Hamadi

Dr. Abdal-Redha Lari

22617700

Dr. Abd Al-Aziz Al-Rashed

Dr. Abdel Quttainah

25625030/60

Family Doctor Dr Divya Damodar

23729596/23729581

Psychiatrists Dr. Esam Al-Ansari

22635047

Dr Eisa M. Al-Balhan

22613623/0

Gynaecologists & Obstetricians DrAdrian arbe

23729596/23729581

Dr. Verginia s.Marin

2572-6666 ext 8321

Endocrinologist

25665898 25340300

Dr. Zahra Qabazard

25710444

Dr. Sohail Qamar

22621099

Dr. Snaa Maaroof

25713514

Dr. Pradip Gujare

23713100

Dr. Zacharias Mathew

24334282

(1) Ear, Nose and Throat (2) Plastic Surgeon Dr. Abdul Mohsin Jafar, FRCS (Canada)

25655535

Dentists

Dr. Fozeya Ali Al-Qatan

22655539

Dr. Majeda Khalefa Aliytami

25343406

Dr. Shamah Al-Matar

22641071/2

Dr. Ahmad Al-Khooly

25739272

Dr. Anesah Al-Rasheed

22562226

22618787

Dr. Abidallah Al-Amer

22561444

Dr. Faysal Al-Fozan

22619557

Dr. Abdallateef Al-Katrash

22525888

Dr. Abidallah Al-Duweisan

25653755

Dr. Bader Al-Ansari

25620111

General Surgeons Dr. Amer Zawaz Al-Amer

22610044

Dr. Mohammad Yousef Basher

25327148

Internists, Chest & Heart Dr. Adnan Ebil Dr. Latefa Al-Duweisan

22666300 25728004

Dr. Nadem Al-Ghabra

25355515

Dr. Mobarak Aldoub

24726446

Dr Nasser Behbehani

25654300/3

Soor Center Tel: 2290-1677 Fax: 2290 1688

Neurologists

22639939

Dr. Mousa Khadada

info@soorcenter.com www.soorcenter.com

3729596/3729581

Dr. Sohal Najem Al-Shemeri

25633324

Dr. Jasem Mola Hassan

25345875

Gastrologists Dr. Sami Aman

22636464

Dr. Mohammad Al-Shamaly

25322030

Dr. Foad Abidallah Al-Ali

22633135

Kaizen center 25716707

25339330

Dr. Ahmad Al-Ansari 25658888 Dr. Kamal Al-Shomr 25329924 Physiotherapists & VD Dr. Deyaa Shehab

25722291

Dr. Musaed Faraj Khamees

22666288

Rheumatologists: Dr. Adel Al-Awadi

Dr Anil Thomas

Dr. Salem soso

Dr. Abd Al-Naser Al-Othman

25330060

Dr. Khaled Al-Jarallah

25722290

Internist, Chest & Heart DR.Mohammes Akkad

24555050 Ext 210

Dr. Mohammad Zubaid MB, ChB, FRCPC, PACC Assistant Professor Of Medicine Head, Division of Cardiology Mubarak Al-Kabeer Hospital Consultant Cardiologist Dr. Farida Al-Habib MD, PH.D, FACC Inaya German Medical Center Te: 2575077 Fax: 25723123

2611555-2622555

William Schuilenberg, RPC 2290-1677 Zaina Al Zabin, M.Sc. 2290-1677

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 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

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2014

lifestyle G O S S I P

Bradley Cooper is ‘living the dream’ T

he 39-year-old actor can’t believe the success he is enjoying in his career and feels lucky to work with such respected names as Clint Eastwood - who will direct him in ‘American Sniper’ - and filmmaker David O Russell, who directed him in both ‘Silver Linings Playbook’ and ‘American Hustle’. Responding to a comment he always seems “honored and grateful” for Oscar attention, he said: “It would be hard not to be. I get to do the things I dreamt of as a kid, like working now with Clint Eastwood and being able to work twice with David O Russell. I am absolutely living the dream.” Bradley has received his second Best Actor nomination in a row this year and admits he still doesn’t think he deserves to be considered. Speaking at the annual Academy Awards Nominees Luncheon at the Beverly Hilton hotel in Beverly Hills yesterday he added: “To be able to be a part of this kind of thing two years in a row, I just keep waiting for them to take me away and say, ‘Sorry, sir, what are you doing here?’ Maybe it’s the way I was raised.”

Rosie Whiteley T

he pair - who live together in Los Angeles - have been dating since 2010 and are said to have plans to tie the knot near the blonde beauty’s parents home town in south west England. A source told Yahoo Celebrity: “They’re getting married this summer, it’ll be a country wedding where Rosie grew up in Devon, close to her parents’ farm. “They’ve finally set a date and both agreed England should be where they wed, despite their closest friends living in LA.” The pair split last September for a short period but it seems the Hollywood hunk is ready to fully commit to her since he knows how important marriage is to her. The source added: “Rosie and Jason have had a few problems lately but they’ve come through because Jason finally understand how important it is for her that they tie the knot. “Jason has always been reluctant, but Rosie’s ready to become a mother and she wants to be married before they have a family.” Rosie recently revealed she’s got “exciting” times coming up in her personal life but was

to marry

Jason Statham keen to stay tight lipped about details. She explained to The Times newspaper: “Well, a few things in my personal life [are coming up in the future] that are very exciting that I probably can’t elaborate on. And very exciting work things.” She also implied that motherhood could be on the horizon and claims it’s a role she’s looks “forward to”. When asked if she’s planning for a baby right now, she replied: “Maybe. I look forward to the many things that come with being a woman, having children, motherhood, and all of that.”

Nadine Coyle gives birth to a baby girl

T

Julia Roberts’ half-sister dies of overdose

N

ancy Motes was found in a bathtub on 09.02.14 in what is believed to be a suicide. The family have issued a statement about the loss, saying: “It is with deep sadness that the family of Nancy Motes confirms that she was found dead in Los Angeles yesterday of an apparent drug overdose. The family is both shocked and devastated.” Nancy, 37, was the daughter of Roberts’ mother Betty Lou and stepfather Michael Motes. She was also aunt to ‘American Horror Story’ actress Emma Roberts. She had been working as a professional dog walker and pet-sit-

ter at the time of her passing. Julia skipped an Academy Awards luncheon in Beverly Hills - which she was due to attend to promote ‘August: Osage County’ - to grieve her loss yesterday. Craig R Harvey, chief coroner of investigations for Los Angeles County, told The New York Daily News: “The decedent was found in a bathtub that contained water. There were prescription and non-prescription drugs found at the scene. The role the drugs may or may not have played is not yet known.” An autopsy is planned for today and additional toxicology tests have been ordered

to find the cause of death. Speaking of her relationship with her famous half-sister, Nancy said last year: “I think we’re both trying to change our opinions of each other. It’s a work in progress. It’s not going to be fixed overnight.” Nancy had struggled with her weight, and underwent gastric bypass surgery in June 2010, and had said Julia, 46, used to tease her about it. She explained: “When I was in high school and she was an adult, she would just let me know that I was definitely overweight. It just makes me feel incredibly hurt and very sad.”

he former Girls Aloud star and her fiancé Jason Bell have welcomed their first child into the world and announced the happy news on Twitter yesterday. The singer told followers: “I am overjoyed to let you know our little girl is here. She is amazing! I love being a mammy & will fill you all in soon. Love Nadine Xx. (sic)” The 28-year-old star was initially shocked when she realized she had fallen pregnant and expected one of her Girls Aloud band mates - which includes Sarah Harding, Kimberly Walsh, Cheryl Cole and Nicola Roberts - to have a baby first. Cheryl was quick to congratulate the couple and tweeted: “It is OFFICIAL!! There is a baby Aloud!!!!!! Congratulations @nadinecoylenow & Jason so amazing!! (sic)” Nicola also added: “There is a little baby Aloud! Congratulations @NadineCoyleNow & Jason on your little baby Girl. I’m so happy she’s here and healthy <3 xo. (sic)” The pair started dating in 2008 and Jason, a former American footballer, popped the question over Christmas. It is the second time the couple have been engaged, after the first ended in June 2011 because Nadine wanted to focus on herself before committing to marriage. The brunette beauty told fans she was expecting a baby last summer and later confirmed she was back together with Jason, 35, after speculation over who the father was. Nadine announced they were expecting a baby girl together on New Year’s Day and posted a photograph of a duckshaped balloon from her baby shower with the message: “It’s a girl!” on her Instagram account.

Fergie praises Josh Duhamel as ‘dad of year’

David Beckham planning a big birthday bash for wife

Bruce Jenner’s appearance ‘confusing’

T

he reality star has recently undergone a laryngeal shave to make his Adam’s apple smaller and is sporting dyed hair with highlights and longer nails, and his daughters Kendall, 18, and Kylie, 16, with estranged wife Kris Jenner don’t understand the new look. A source told RadarOnline.com: “Kylie and Kendall just don’t know what to think. It’s extremely confusing for them to grasp. There is just no denying Bruce’s recent physical changes, and he does look more feminine. “It’s been especially hard for 16year-old Kylie because some of her friends have made jokes about Bruce’s looks.” Kris has denied Bruce - who lives in Malibu, California, away from the family home in Calabasas - is undergoing a sex change and he has said he only had the throat operation because he didn’t like the way his Adam’s apple looked. The source added: “Kris always encouraged Bruce to have his face nipped and tucked. He has had plastic surgery to remove excess fat above his eyelids. The Adam’s apple surgery is just following in that pattern.” The decision by Bruce, 64, to move out last year has been especially hard on Kendall and Kylie as he had always been there for them in the daytime, while Kris was concentrating on the careers of their half sisters, Khloe, Kourtney and Kim Kardashian. The source added: “They have always been closer to their dad because Kris had been busy for so many years with their older half-sisters. It was always Bruce driving the girls to and from school. “He wants to spend time with them, but it’s hard for them to get all the way over Malibu where he is living. Plus, they would much rather be with their friends, which is typical for teenagers. Still, they miss their dad.”

T

Elizabeth McGovern gets a new look T E

lizabeth McGovern has changed her image for her new music video. The ‘Downton Abbey’ actress, best known for playing Lady Cora in the period drama, looks every inch the rock goddess in the video for her band Sadie and the Hotheads’ new single, ‘Everybody’s Got A Song’. The video alternates between shots of the 52-yearold star driving a vintage car through the desert, looking glamorous behind the wheel in retro 50s clothing, and scenes of her playing the guitar surrounded by her band mates. The British actress began fronting the band in 2008 and her co-star Michelle Dockery - who stars as her onscreen daughter Lady Mary in the award-winning show has sung with the group in the past. Sadie and the Hotheads have released their new album, ‘Still Waiting’, on iTunes today. The group are also embarking on their first major UK tour this month, supporting Mike and the Mechanics from this coming weekend until 16 March.

he Black Eyed Peas singer and her actor husband became parents to son Axl Jack last year and she says her spouse is very hands-on when it comes to caring for their little boy, who is now five months old. Asked if Josh is a hands on dad, she said: “He’s dad of the year, he’s the best partner to have a kid with.” The 38-year-old singer loves being a parent and enjoys spending as much time as possible with her “homie”. Speaking on ‘Extra’, she said: “The best part of being a mom is just hanging out with my kid. He’s my homie! I’m just listening, talking back with him and trying to teach him words like ‘nose’ and ‘dancing’. Daddy is trying to teach him ‘ball’ and I’m trying to teach him ‘dance’.” The couple have been happy to share photographs of Axl on social media and Fergie says they made the decision to do so as they want to be “normal” parents. She explained: “We want to live our lives and love our son and be normal, proud parents that want to post pictures of their kids.” And the ‘London Bridge’ singer also teased she has been working on her musical return. Asked when she is returning to work on new music, she said: “Who says I haven’t been?”

he retired soccer star is said to be organizing a lavish 40th birthday party for his spouse Victoria Beckham - with whom he has 14-yearold Brooklyn, 11-year-old Romeo, eight-year-old Cruz and two-year-old Harper - in April, despite the designer asking for a more low-key celebration.

A source told Britain’s HELLO! magazine: “Victoria wants to celebrate in LA at Easter time with her family. She’s not a big party girl, but there are rumors that David has different ideas and could be planning something. It’s a big milestone, so he thinks it should be celebrated properly.” The Beckhams are said to be inviting over 100 guests to celebrate Victoria’s milestone occasion, including chef Gordon Ramsay, ‘Desperate Housewives’ star Eva Longoria, actress Kate Beckinsale and interior designer Kelly Hoppen. The family were rumored to be buying a house in Miami when they move over to the US city for David to launch his own Major League Soccer club, but are only going to be renting a place since they don’t see the move as permanent. An insider told the magazine: “The family are going to have a base in Miami but have no plans to buy a house at the moment.”

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2014

lifestyle

A Briard named “Cagney” waits with hairclips.

A Chow Chow is seen in the benching area at Pier 92 and 94 in New York City for the first day of competition at the 138th Annual Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show.

A

bloodhound named Nathan was the first group winner at the 138th annual Westminster Kennel Club dog show on Monday, besting 30 other hounds on the opening night of the two-day event. Nearly 3,000 dogs and their handlers hit the competition floor in New York on Monday at Madison Square Garden, which will send winners of seven groups to determine this year’s champion.

The hound group, which features familiar breeds such as two different beagles and the greyhound, also marked the debut of the first of three new breeds at this year’s event: the Portuguese podengo pequeno, which was represented by a five-year old fuzzy, pointy-eared dog named Tango.

The three-year-old bloodhound was a crowd favorite, drawing big cheers each time it ran around the show floor.

This year’s edition of the prestigious event features 190 different breeds and varieties from the determined miniature schnauzer and the majestic Afghan hound. With 2,845 expected contestants, it was expected to be the largest staging since 1990.

The competition focuses on the appearance of a dog as compared with a breed standard. It stretches across two New York sites, with initial rounds of judging at a pier along the Hudson River and finals at Madison Square Garden, normally the site of basketball games and concerts.

Monday’s judging will also feature the toy, non-sporting and herding groups. Sporting, working and terrier breeds

Bulldogs in the judging ring at Pier 92 and 94.

This is her first time at Westminster. “It’s the Super Bowl of dog shows,” she said. “It’s the cream of the crop. Winning breed at this show is tremendous bragging rights for your dog.” Faw said she and her wife, Susan, live with about 20 of this breed, along with a handful of beagles in Milton, Indiana, which reflects how reluctant she is to sell any of the puppies she breeds.

“They’re my babies. They all live inside,” she said backstage at Madison Square Garden, as Tango tried to figure how he might wriggle free of her hands and jump off his bench. “They take turns who gets to sleep in bed - they’re family.” Two dogs to watch will be a wire fox terrier named Sky and a Portuguese water dog called Matisse, both of whom performed well in shows earlier in the year, said Westminster spokesman David Frei, who co-hosts the television broadcast of the competition.

The highlights were the debuts of the Chinook, a huskylike breed developed in New Hampshire, and the spotted rat terrier. Dogs from all 50 US states, including large numbers from New York and California, will compete in this year’s event, with some 127 foreign entries expected, including dogs from Finland, Slovenia, Japan and Thailand.

The show follows the AKC’s first dog agility contest, which was held on Saturday, and, in another first for the group, was open to mixed-breed entrants. A 7-year-old border collie named Kelso from Cape Elizabeth, Maine, won that event, a timed run that required the dog to clear 18 obstacles, leaping hurdles, speeding through tunnels, and weaving through poles. — Reuters

A Bouvier des Flandres competes with other dogs.

A handler carries an Old English Sheepdog.

Dennis Murphy and his Bulldog Brooklyn are pictured. were set to be judged. The winners of those seven categories, each of which includes at least 20 breeds, will be judged by Betty Regina Leininger of Frisco, Texas. Stacy Faw, the owner and handler of Tango, said Portuguese podengo pequenos, or PPPs, as they are called, only began to be imported into the United States in any meaningful number about 15 years ago, so she considers the breed’s recent recognition by the American Kennel Club a relatively speedy one.

Raquel, a Rhodesian ridgeback, waits for competition to begin.

A Shih Tzu waits in the benching area for judging to start.

Allie, a poodle, competes with other dogs in the Non-Sporting group.

(Left) Swagger, an Old English Sheep Dog, poses for photographs after winning the herding group during the Westminster Kennel Club dog show at Madison Square Garden in New York in this file photo. Swagger is a contender for the best in show during the 138th Westminster Kennel Club dog show. (Right) Karen Stephens and her pekingese are seen. — AP/AFP photos

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2014

lifestyle F A S H I O N

NY Fashion Week, Day 5

Warm clothes

for freezing city

I

Mary-Kate Olsen explained after the show that she and her sister formulated their collection by focusing on shapes. “We worked with rectangles, circles, lines - it was all about the shapes this season,” she said. “And the techniques. We used similar fabrics as in the past, but we treated them differently.” The Olsens, childhood TV stars, have serious cred in the fashion world: They are winners of the 2012 Council of Fashion Designers of America award as the top womenswear designers.

t was once again winter - cold, cold winter that dominated the mood on the fifth day of New York Fashion Week, with designers presenting variations of warm clothes on a particularly freezing day. Carolina Herrera, Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen’s The Row, Tommy Hilfiger, Thom Browne and Zac Posen were among the designers presenting their fall-winter collections on Monday. Shows were being held at the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week tents at Lincoln Center and at various locations throughout the city.

Prabal Gurung has fun with after-party crowns after streaker disruption Prabal Gurung decided to have some fun after a streaker - wearing a G-string, crown and bright red socks - briefly disrupted his runway show at New York Fashion Week. The streaker ran onstage and knelt before one of Gurung’s models as she walked the runway on Saturday. (She simply walked around him as he was chased away.) Many people asked Gurung after the streak if he was upset about it. “Do I wish it hadn’t happened? Of course,” the designer said. But Gurung said he was out to lunch with some old friends when he decided to have some fun with it at his after-party.

He bought 100 to 200 crowns to hand out, and he and his guests mugged with them all night and put up loads of photos on Instagram. “I decided just to make a joke out of it. You can’t be serious,” he said Monday at his mentor Carolina Herrera’s runway show. “It was fun.

We really work hard, as you know, for six months to put up a 12-minute show, so a little levity is good.”

Tommy Hilfiger presents rustic scene Tommy Hilfiger’s show for fall 2014 on Monday presented a much more idyllic version of the arctic conditions that have defined New York Fashion Week.

Held inside the cavernous Park Avenue Armory, Hilfiger’s backdrop for his collection was, like the city, a wintry one. But instead of urban slush, he provided a scene that was snowy and rustic. A log cabin and skis sat in the background, while fir trees, boulders and fake snow mixed with mulch adorned the area around the wooden runway. (“Don’t step on the mulch, please,” a security guard warned guests.) The clothes fit the chilly ambience: There were plenty of parkas, cozy sweaters and much faux fur. Plaid was a recurring pattern, featured on wool skirts of varying lengths and long mohair dresses. There were also lots of fringes, on sweaters, skirts and dresses. The colors were muted; dark blues, grays, maroon, black and cream, either alone or as a pattern, dominated the hues. Most of the models wore toasty knit caps to top off their outfits. The collection was described by Hilfiger as having an “adventure-ready spirit.”

Ashley and Mary-Kate Olsen present minimalist but luxurious winter wear A frigid, brutal wind was whipping off the nearby Hudson River as one approached the unassuming building in Manhattan’s West Village where MaryKate and Ashley Olsen base their high-end fashion label, The Row. Inside, though, waiters were offering cups of hot tea to the select crowd invited to inspect the sisters’ fall 2014 collection on Monday. And luckily, the clothes were even warmer and more inviting.

The display, in a quiet room carpeted in white, began with huge, thick sweaters in luxurious “fur cashmere.”

One of them, particularly apt for the current weather, had a huge oversized neck that one could sink into.

One coat had a collar that covered half of the face.

There were jackets of various lengths, some tailored

and others extremely loose, with huge lapels. There were poncho-like garments in felt cashmere and turtlenecks of cashmere silk. And there were capes, one in wool, and a lighter, shinier one in silk satin.

In keeping with The Row’s minimalist style, almost all the ensembles were in a single color: gray, black or white, with a few items in a rust color. Although the emphasis was on jackets, sweaters and pants, a few delicate dresses added a lighter element. Note to other designers: The Olsen sisters are being very kind to women’s feet. Their models wore men’s-style derby shoes, and at least one observer was heard to remark upon leaving, “I want those shoes now!” (Probably to get to the next fashion show, likely miles away.)

Geometric prints, luxe fabric at Carolina Herrera A collection, says Carolina Herrera, should be a collection, not a potpourri. “Sometimes the potpourris are fun to look at, but it doesn’t make sense for me,” said Herrera, a grande dame of New York Fashion Week, after her cohesive show Monday of luxe coats, fur and bold geometric prints. More than 30 years after her first runway show, which featured the supermodel Iman, Herrera manages new approaches. This time, her emphasis was daywear for elegant ladies, especially those not afraid of abstract prints, statement earrings and prints. She also rounded the shoulders on jackets and narrowed the silhouettes of some dresses in a color palette that ranged from black in boiled wool to fiery red silk that fluttered down the runway. Some of her models wore high fez-like hats in rich blue and brown, while others - including Karlie Kloss - had tight, high updos. She used fur as an accent on some jackets to show off their shape, while going full-on fur elsewhere, including a burnished copper sleeveless top with a wide collar paired with a full skirt to the ground. —Reuters

Models present outfits by Tommy Hilfiger.

Models wear designs by Carolina Herrera.

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2014

lifestyle F A S H I O N

Kenneth Cole asks:

Models walk the runway at the Kenneth Cole Collection fashion show during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Fall 2014 at The Garage By Kenneth Cole on February 10, 2014 in New York. — AP/AFP photos

What’s real and

what’s show?

S

ocial media provocateur Kenneth Cole put actors Alan Cumming and Rachel Dratch on his runway and in a movie Monday that begged the question: “What’s real and what’s for show?” Known for his embrace of Twitter, Instagram and Facebook - and occasional social media mishaps - Cole projected onto white walls images of models holding signs that declared: “We’re all accessories,” “If in doubt, check Instagram,” “This fashion is for real, or is it for show?” and “Everybody’s life is better than yours.”In a short film that opened the show in a stark white space on West 50th Street, Cumming and Dratch engaged in some Twitter one-upmanship, lying to each other as they lounged at home about fabulous buys, famous friends and nights out on the town.

At finale time, the two popped out from backstage and walked a winding runway together. Cole’s muse in clothes for men and women was an urban gypsy fond of

wide-brimmed hats and pinstripes. He added a pop of red in sequins for women and deep burgundy for the guys.

In a backstage interview before the show, Cole spoke enthusiastically about buying back his 30-year-old clothing and accessories company that went public in 1994. In many ways, he said, he feels he’s his own customer. “I love kind of curating him and elevating him and now that we’re a private company, it’s easier to do that. It’s just a wonderful time and a unique time, probably, in this company’s history,” he said. And he talked about the big impact of social media on the fashion industry.

“It’s defined how we consume what we wear, how we define ourselves, how we introduce ourselves to the world in kind of interesting and compelling ways,” Cole said. Generally, he said, social media has pushed the “real or show” question to the cultural forefront.

“Are we over-glamorizing ourselves, and if so to what end, and then one asks the question, does it matter? That’s the bigger message right now. Today, social media has enabled everybody to be their own brand and they curate their brand every day, and they welcome people into their brand. And my goal as a designer today is to try and get you to accept me as part of your brand.”

Cole, through social media and his foundation, is an activist for AIDS research and the homeless. An old friend, Jon Bon Jovi, was in the audience.

The two designed a coat and T-shirt together for charity. “I don’t go to fashion shows, so this is fun,” Bon Jovi said. — AP

Lucky Magazine editor-in-chief Eva Chen tastes chocolate syrup that was dripped down a wall during the presentation of the Fall 2014 Opening Ceremony show at Fashion Week in New York.

Rachel Dratch (left) and Alan Cumming attend the Kenneth Cole Collection fashion show.

Warm clothes for freezing city

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2014

38

Iconic child star

Shirley Temple S

This undated photo shows US child film star Shirley Temple. — AP/AFP photos

A picture taken on December 6, 1998, in Washington, shows former child movie star, US Shirley Temple Black (left) greeted by US President Bill Clinton during a reception at the White House.

This file photo shows US child film star Shirley Temple with US actor Robert Young in the 1936 Hollywood film “Stowaway”.

A file photo taken on June 26, 1937, shows US film star Shirley Temple (1928-2014) arriving at her first main premiere for the film “Wee Willie Winkie” in Hollywood.

hirley Temple, the dimpled, curlyhaired child star who sang, danced, sobbed and grinned her way into the hearts of Depression-era moviegoers, has died, according to publicist. She was 85.

Temple, known in private life as Shirley Temple Black, died Monday night at about 11 pm local time at her home near San Francisco. She was surrounded by family members and caregivers, publicist Cheryl Kagan said.

“We salute her for a life of remarkable achievements as an actor, as a diplomat, and most importantly as our beloved mother, grandmother, great- grandmother, and adored wife for fifty-five years of the late and much missed Charles Alden Black,” a family statement said. A talented and ultraadorable entertainer, Shirley Temple was America’s top box-office draw from 1935 to 1938, a record no other child star has come near. She beat out such grown-ups as Clark Gable, Bing Crosby, Rober t Taylor, Gar y Cooper and Joan Crawford.

In 1999, the American Film Institute ranking of the top 50 screen legends ranked Temple at No. 18 among the 25 actresses.

She appeared in scores of movies and kept children singing “On the Good Ship Lollipop” for generations. Temple was credited with helping save 20th Century Fox from bankruptcy with films such as “Curly Top” and “The Littlest Rebel.” She even had a drink named after her, an appropriately sweet and innocent cocktail of ginger ale and grenadine, topped with a maraschino cherry.

Temple blossomed into a pretty young woman, but audiences lost interest, and she retired from films at 21. She raised a family and later became active in politics and held several diplomatic posts in Republican administrations, including ambassador to Czechoslovakia during the historic collapse of communism in 1989.

“I have one piece of advice for those of you who want to receive the lifetime achievement award. Start early,” she quipped in 2006 as she was honored by the Screen Actors Guild. But she also said that evening that her greatest roles were as wife, mother and grandmother. “There’s nothing like real love. Nothing.” Her husband of more than 50 years, Charles Black, had died just a few months earlier.

‘Baby, Take a Bow’ They lived for many years in the San Francisco suburb of Woodside. Temple’s expert singing and tap dancing in the 1934 feature “Stand Up and Cheer!” first gained her wide notice. The number she performed with future Oscar winner James Dunn, “Baby Take a Bow,” became the title of one of her first starring features later that year. Also in 1934, she starred in “Little Miss Marker,” a comedy-drama based on a story by Damon Runyon that showcased her acting talent. In “Bright Eyes,” Temple introduced “On the Good Ship Lollipop” and did battle with a charmingly bratty Jane Withers, launching Withers as a major child star, too.

She was “just absolutely mar velous, greatest in the world,” director Allan Dwan told filmmaker-author Peter Bogdanovich in his book “ Who the Devil Made I t: Conversations With Legendar y Film Directors.” “With Shirley, you’d just tell her once and she’d remember the rest of her life,” said Dwan, who directed “Heidi” and “Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm.” “Whatever it was she was supposed to do - she’d do it....

And if one of the actors got stuck, she’d tell him what his line was - she knew it better than he did.”

Temple’s mother, Gertrude, worked to keep her daughter from being spoiled by fame and was a constant presence during filming. Her daughter said years later that her mother had been furious when a director once sent her off on an errand and then got the child to cry for a scene by frightening her. “She never again left me alone on a set,” she said. Temple became a nationwide sensation. Mothers dressed their little girls like her, and a line of dolls was launched that are now highly sought-after collectables.

Her immense popularity prompted President Franklin D. Roosevelt to say that “as long as our country has Shirley Temple, we will be all right.”

“When the spirit of the people is lower than at any other time during this Depression, it is a splendid thing that for just 15 cents, an American can go to a movie and look at the smiling face of a baby and forget his troubles,” Roosevelt said. She followed up in the next few years with a string of hit films, most with sentimental themes and musical subplots. She of ten played an orphan, as in “Curly Top,” where she introduced the hit “Animal Crackers in My Soup,” and “Stowaway,” in which she was befriended by Robert Young, later of “Father Knows Best” fame.

She teamed with the great black dancer Bill “Bojangles” Robinson in two 1935 films with Civil War themes, “The Little Colonel” and “The Littlest Rebel.” Their tap dance up the steps in “The Little Colonel” (at a time when interracial teamings were unheard-of in Hollywood) became a landmark in the history of film dance. Some of her pictures

dies at 85

In this file photo, Shirley Temple Black accepts the Screen Actors Guild Awards life achievement award at the 12th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards, in Los Angeles. were remakes of silent films, such as “Captain January,” in which she recreated the role originally played by the silent star Baby Peggy Montgomery in 1924. “Poor Little R ich Girl” and “Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm,” done a generation earlier by Mary Pickford, were heavily rewritten for Temple, with show biz added to the plots to give her opportunities to sing.

‘Rebecca of Radio City’ In its review of “Rebecca,” the show business publication Variety complained that a “more fitting title would be ‘Rebecca of Radio City.’” She won a special Academy Award in early 1935 for her “outstanding contribution to screen entertainment” in the previous year. “She is a legacy of a different time in motion pictures.

She caught the imagination of the entire country in a way that no one had before,” actor Martin Landau said when the two were honored at the Academy Awards in 1998.

Temple’s fans agreed. Her fans seemed interested in every last golden curl on her head: It was once guessed that she had more than 50. Her mother was said to have done her hair in pin curls for each movie, with every hairstyle having exactly 56 curls. On her eighth birthday - she actually was turning 9, but the studio wanted her to be younger - Temple received more than 135,000 presents from around the world, according to “The Films of Shirley Temple,” a 1978 book by Robert Windeler. The gifts included a baby kangaroo from Australia and a prize Jersey calf from schoolchildren in Oregon.

“She’s indelible in the histor y of America because she appeared at a time of great social need, and people took her to their hearts,” the late Roddy McDowall, a fellow child star and friend, once said.

Although by the early 1960s, she was retired from the entertainment industry, her interest in politics soon brought her back into the spotlight.

She made an unsuccessful bid as a Republican candidate for Congress in 1967. After Richard Nixon became president in 1969, he appointed her as a member of the US delegation to the United Nations General Assembly. In the 1970s, she was US ambassador to Ghana and later US chief of protocol. She then served as ambassador to Czechoslovakia during the administration of the first President Bush.

A few months after she arrived in Prague in mid-1989, communist rule was overthrown in Czechoslovakia as the Iron Curtain collapsed across Eastern Europe.

“My main job (initially) was human rights, trying to keep people like future President Vaclav Havel out of jail,” she said in a 1999 Associated Press inter view.

Within months, she was accompanying Havel, the former dissident playwright, when he came to Washington as his country’s new president. Born in Santa Monica to an accountant and his wife, Temple was little more than 3 years old when she made her film debut in 1932 in the Baby Burlesks, a series of short films in which tiny per formers parodied grown-up movies, sometimes with risque results.

Santa asks for autograph Among the shorts were “War Babies,” a parody of “What Price Glory,” and “Polly Tix in Washington,” with Shirley in the title role. Her young life was free of the scandals that plagued so many other child stars - parental feuds, drug and alcohol addiction - but Temple at times hinted at a childhood she may have missed out on.

She stopped believing in Santa Claus at age 6, she once said, when “Mother took me to see him in a department store and he asked for my autograph.”

After her years at the top, maintaining that level of stardom proved difficult for her and her producers. The proposal to have her play Dorothy in “The Wizard of Oz” didn’t pan out. (20th Century Fox chief Darryl Zanuck refused to lend out his greatest asset.) And “ The Little Princess” in 1939 and “The Blue Bird” in 1940 didn’t draw big crowds, prompting

In this 1933 file photo, child actress Shirley Temple is seen in her role as “Little Miss Marker”.

Fox to let Temple go. Among her later films were “The Bachelor and the BobbySoxer,” with Cary Grant, and “That Hagen Girl,” with Ronald Reagan. Several, including the wartime drama “Since You Went Away,” were produced by David O. Selznick. One, “Fort Apache,” was directed

by John Ford, who had also directed her “Wee Willie Winkie” years earlier.

In 1972, she underwent successful surgery for breast cancer. She issued a statement urging other women to get checked by their doctors and vowed, “I have much more to accomplish before I am through.”

During a 1996 interview, she said she loved both politics and show business.

“It’s certainly two different career tracks,” she said, “both completely different but both very rewarding, personally.” — AP