Mid-east peace talks at stake as settlement curbs end

JERUSALEM: The fate of Middle East peace talks hangs in the balance as Israel gears up to resume West Bank settlement construction with a 10-month partial moratorium on building ending on Sunday night.

Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas has vowed to walk out of the talks if construction resumes, telling the United Nations on Saturday that “Israel must choose between peace and the continuation of settlements.”

But Israel has made it clear the moratorium, enacted under heavy US pressure as a gesture to entice the Palestinians into direct talks, will not be extended.

And while officials have indicated that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would accept a quiet compromise, with limited construction, his hardline coalition including members of his own Likud party was unlikely to concur.

“The cabinet decision is expiring and on Sunday night the building needs to resume. We don't need any special decisions or announcements,” Sport and Culture Minister Limor Livnat of Likud told public radio on Saturday.

“The building needs to restart – there are some 2,000 (housing) units that are already approved,” she said.

Another Likud MP, Danny Danon, was planning on laying the symbolic cornerstone of a new neighbourhood in Revava settlement in the northern West Bank on Sunday to mark the end of the freeze.

“Cement trucks, bulldozers, and other earth-moving equipment are already in place in Revava, and the activists plan on marking the last hours of the freeze by laying the foundations of a new neighbourhood,” a statement from his office said.

“We have decided that the best way to end the freeze is to begin building,”said Danon, calling on Netanyahu to “resist the pressures of (US) President
(Barack) Obama.”

The deadline for the end of the freeze is widely accepted as midnight on September 26, 10 months after the original cabinet decision to impose it expires, although a military order sets the date at September 30.

Either way, the next days could prove crucial to the fragile peace process, with the future of negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians at stake.

The United States on Saturday engaged in last ditch efforts to prevent the collapse of talks.
Abbas met US peace envoy George Mitchell following a meeting with US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Friday night as contacts continued behind the scenes.

“We are doing everything we can to keep the parties in direct talks,” State Department spokesman Philip Crowley said in a message on his Twitter account as Mitchell and Abbas met in a New York hotel.

Israel’s Defence Minister Ehud Barak and lawyer Yitzhak Molcho, Netanyahu’s point man on the talks, were also in New York, Israeli radio reported.

The peace talks resumed on September 2 following months of US shuttle diplomacy. The last round of direct talks collapsed when Israel launched its devastating offensive against the Hamas-run Gaza Strip in late 2008.

In a bid to resolve the settlements row, US officials have reportedly suggested a three-month extension to the moratorium during which time the two sides could agree on borders, which could neutralise the settlements dispute.

But Livnat told public radio it was “illogical” to expect the issue of borders that had defied years of earlier negotiations could suddenly be resolved in three months.

The international community considers Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, including annexed east Jerusalem, to be illegal. The settlements issue has long been among the thorniest in the peace process.

Some 500,000 Israelis live in more than 120 Jewish settlements across the West Bank and east Jerusalem, territories expected to form the bulk of a future Palestinian state. – AFP

Bomb blast kills two Nato troops in Afghanistan

KABUL: Two Nato service members were killed in a bomb blast in southern Afghanistan on Sunday, the military alliance said.

Nato said the troops were killed by an improvised explosive device, but provided no further details. The nationalities of Nato deaths are not generally released until after the next of kin have been contacted.

This year is already the deadliest of the war, with more than 530 international forces killed.

Nato also said it launched an air strike late Saturday in Kunar province, along the Pakistan border, that targeted a senior al-Qaeda commander who coordinates a group of Arab fighters in the area, saying he routinely helped them travel into the region.

It did not say whether the commander was killed in the attack, but said his compound was destroyed. It said collateral damage was kept to a minimum, but did not provide further information.

Ed Miliband elected new leader of UK Labour Party

LONDON: Britain’s opposition Labour Party elected young lawmaker Ed Miliband as its surprise new leader, after he narrowly defeated his elder and better-known brother in a close run contest to replace ousted prime minister Gordon Brown.

The siblings shared an emotional embrace Saturday after Miliband, 40, squeezed out David Miliband, the 45-year-old former foreign secretary, in a ballot of legislators, party activists and about 3.5 million labor union members.

Miliband pledged to reunite his wounded party, deposed in May after 13 years in office by the Conservative Party-led coalition government, and promised a role for his beaten brother who struggled to hide his disappointment as he watched his younger sibling make a victory speech.

The Labour Party said Ed Miliband took 175,519 votes to David Miliband's 147,220, after second, third and fourth choice preferences of those who voted for three other beaten candidates were allocated in a final runoff. Results showed that backing from labor unions had been decisive in the younger Miliband’s victory, and that his elder brother had won more support among legislators and ordinary party members.

The winner, a former adviser to Brown and previously the country's energy and climate change secretary, acknowledged he must restore public faith in his party following its defeat in Britain's national election. Miliband who became a legislator in 2005 and took charge of the election manifesto said the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq in particular had dented trust in the Labour Party.

''My message to the country is this I know we lost trust, I know we lost touch, I know we need to change. Today, a new generation has taken charge of Labour, a new generation that understands the call to change,'' Miliband told activists at a rally in Manchester, northern England.

Former education secretary Ed Balls, the third placed candidate in the contest, said contenders were told of the result backstage shortly before the decision was announced publicly. ''David and Ed hugged straight away,'' Balls said.

As he addressed activists, the younger Miliband offered a tribute to his brother, who had long been expected to succeed Brown, but previously refused calls to oust the ex-leader ahead of the May election.

''David, I love you so much as a brother and I have such extraordinary respect for the campaign that you ran,'' Miliband said, watched by partner Justine Thornton, a lawyer who is pregnant with the couple's second child.

Both men selected the other as their second choice candidate, voting results showed. Addressing his elder brother directly in his speech, Ed Miliband said: ''We all know how much you have to offer this country in the future.''

In an e-mail to campaign staff, David Miliband urged his supporters to rally behind his brother. ''I passionately want Ed to have a united party,'' Miliband wrote in the message, according to legislator Keith Vaz, a member of his team.

The three other defeated candidates, Balls, ex-health secretary Andy Burnham and Diane Abbott, a veteran leftist, all pledged their backing to the winning Miliband.

Party stalwarts urged the Miliband brothers to avoid the animosity of their respective mentors Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, whose feuding marred the party's final years in office. ''These are brothers. They're blood brothers. They can't afford to fall out in the way we had with Tony and Gordon, and neither can we,'' said ex-Home Secretary David Blunkett.

Brown addressed activists ahead of the announcement and took responsibility for the party's election defeat.

''I take the whole fault on my shoulders alone,'' the former prime minister said.

Prime Minister David Cameron offered his congratulations to Ed Miliband in a phone call, but had earlier dismissed the challenge from both Milibands in an interview. He said neither man had alternative remedies to fix Britain's fragile economy.

''They're both part of the team that got us into this mess. In this long leadership debate I haven't heard a single suggestion about how we might deal with the deficit,'' Cameron was quoted as telling the Daily Telegraph.

Ed Miliband was criticized during the campaign for setting out policies advocated by the party's leftist labor union backers, including a sharp rise in Britain’s minimum wage, higher taxes for top earners and a more punishing levy on banks. Opponents have dubbed him ''Red Ed,'' seeking to portray the new chief as a left-wing radical.

Miliband must quickly draw up an alternative to a five-year austerity plan being outlined next month by Treasury chief George Osborne, who is seeking savings of 30 billion pounds ($44 billion) per year in order to clear the country's debts.

The new leader will make a major address to the party's annual rally on Tuesday, and will seek to build on recent opinion poll gains. – AP

Ed Miliband elected new leader of UK Labour Party

LONDON: Britain’s opposition Labour Party elected young lawmaker Ed Miliband as its surprise new leader, after he narrowly defeated his elder and better-known brother in a close run contest to replace ousted prime minister Gordon Brown.

The siblings shared an emotional embrace Saturday after Miliband, 40, squeezed out David Miliband, the 45-year-old former foreign secretary, in a ballot of legislators, party activists and about 3.5 million labor union members.

Miliband pledged to reunite his wounded party, deposed in May after 13 years in office by the Conservative Party-led coalition government, and promised a role for his beaten brother who struggled to hide his disappointment as he watched his younger sibling make a victory speech.

The Labour Party said Ed Miliband took 175,519 votes to David Miliband's 147,220, after second, third and fourth choice preferences of those who voted for three other beaten candidates were allocated in a final runoff. Results showed that backing from labor unions had been decisive in the younger Miliband’s victory, and that his elder brother had won more support among legislators and ordinary party members.

The winner, a former adviser to Brown and previously the country's energy and climate change secretary, acknowledged he must restore public faith in his party following its defeat in Britain's national election. Miliband who became a legislator in 2005 and took charge of the election manifesto said the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq in particular had dented trust in the Labour Party.

''My message to the country is this I know we lost trust, I know we lost touch, I know we need to change. Today, a new generation has taken charge of Labour, a new generation that understands the call to change,'' Miliband told activists at a rally in Manchester, northern England.

Former education secretary Ed Balls, the third placed candidate in the contest, said contenders were told of the result backstage shortly before the decision was announced publicly. ''David and Ed hugged straight away,'' Balls said.

As he addressed activists, the younger Miliband offered a tribute to his brother, who had long been expected to succeed Brown, but previously refused calls to oust the ex-leader ahead of the May election.

''David, I love you so much as a brother and I have such extraordinary respect for the campaign that you ran,'' Miliband said, watched by partner Justine Thornton, a lawyer who is pregnant with the couple's second child.

Both men selected the other as their second choice candidate, voting results showed. Addressing his elder brother directly in his speech, Ed Miliband said: ''We all know how much you have to offer this country in the future.''

In an e-mail to campaign staff, David Miliband urged his supporters to rally behind his brother. ''I passionately want Ed to have a united party,'' Miliband wrote in the message, according to legislator Keith Vaz, a member of his team.

The three other defeated candidates, Balls, ex-health secretary Andy Burnham and Diane Abbott, a veteran leftist, all pledged their backing to the winning Miliband.

Party stalwarts urged the Miliband brothers to avoid the animosity of their respective mentors Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, whose feuding marred the party's final years in office. ''These are brothers. They're blood brothers. They can't afford to fall out in the way we had with Tony and Gordon, and neither can we,'' said ex-Home Secretary David Blunkett.

Brown addressed activists ahead of the announcement and took responsibility for the party's election defeat.

''I take the whole fault on my shoulders alone,'' the former prime minister said.

Prime Minister David Cameron offered his congratulations to Ed Miliband in a phone call, but had earlier dismissed the challenge from both Milibands in an interview. He said neither man had alternative remedies to fix Britain's fragile economy.

''They're both part of the team that got us into this mess. In this long leadership debate I haven't heard a single suggestion about how we might deal with the deficit,'' Cameron was quoted as telling the Daily Telegraph.

Ed Miliband was criticized during the campaign for setting out policies advocated by the party's leftist labor union backers, including a sharp rise in Britain’s minimum wage, higher taxes for top earners and a more punishing levy on banks. Opponents have dubbed him ''Red Ed,'' seeking to portray the new chief as a left-wing radical.

Miliband must quickly draw up an alternative to a five-year austerity plan being outlined next month by Treasury chief George Osborne, who is seeking savings of 30 billion pounds ($44 billion) per year in order to clear the country's debts.

The new leader will make a major address to the party's annual rally on Tuesday, and will seek to build on recent opinion poll gains. – AP

Palestinian leader vows peace, urges settlement end

UNITED NATIONS: Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas vowed on Saturday to do everything possible to make peace negotiations with Israel succeed and avoided any direct threats to break off the talks over settlements.

In a speech to the UN General Assembly, Abbas said the Palestinians would “exert every sincere effort” to reach a peace agreement with Israel within a year.

He did not refer to Sunday’s expiry of an Israeli freeze on new settlement construction in the West Bank. But he made clear that Israel would have to cease all settlement activities if the direct negotiations with Israel were to succeed.

“Israel must choose between peace and the continuation of settlements,” he said.

Abbas has threatened repeatedly to break off the fragile negotiations with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the settlements. The US-supervised talks are aimed at reaching a peace agreement within a year.

Netanyahu, whose rightist coalition government includes pro-settler parties, has so far deflected US President Barack Obama’s pleas to extend the freeze. He has also said renewed construction in the settlements might be on a reduced scale.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton met with Abbas on Friday in New York to persuade the Palestinians to remain in the talks.

It was not clear if Clinton and Abbas planned to meet again before the Palestinian leader
heads back to the Middle East.

EGYPTIAN WARNING

State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said former Senator George Mitchell, US special envoy on the Middle East, met Abbas for 30 minutes in New York on Saturday.
“We are doing everything we can to keep the parties in direct talks,” Crowley said, declining further comment.

Israel has told the Palestinians to come to the negotiating table without preconditions.

Abbas told the 192-nation General Assembly the Israelis needed to take a number of steps in addition to halting settlements, including ending the blockade of the Gaza Strip and dismantling its West Bank barrier.

“Our demands for the cessation of settlement activities, the lifting of the siege and an end to other illegal Israeli policies and practices do not constitute arbitrary preconditions in the peace process,” he said.

“Israel’s implementation of these obligations and commitments will lead to the creation of the necessary environment for the success of the negotiations and will give credibility to the final agreement reached,” he said.

Egypt’s foreign minister, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, warned Israel it would bear the blame if the talks break down over the issue of settlements.

“If Israel fails in its commitment to continue freezing its settlement activities, then it would expose the negotiation process to failure and it would shoulder full responsibility before the region and world public opinion,” he said.

“Israel should also bear the responsibility for any negative consequences,” he said in his speech to the assembly. – Reuters

Muslim nations called to resist Islamophobia

UNITED NATIONS: Muslim nations must collectively resist growing Islamophobia in the US and Europe, the head of the world’s largest organization of Islamic countries told ministers from the 57 member nations gathered here this week.

Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu urged members of the Organization of the Islamic Conference to work with Western leaders to dispel misconceptions about their faith. They met on the edge of the UN General Assembly.

Ihsanoglu told The Associated Press on Saturday that he would be taking this message on the road next week to Chicago, where the OIC will host a major conference on Islam and Muslims in America at the American Islamic College.

Education, he said, is key in helping the West truly understand Islam.

He said his new book, “The Islamic World in the New Century: The Organization of the Islamic Conference, 1969-2009,” includes a whole chapter on the danger of growing Islamophobia in the West.

Islam has recently been under attack in America, especially with a controversy over a proposed Islamic center near the World Trade Center sites and threats by groups to burn the Quran in protest.

“The Muslim world is going through an unprecedented difficult and trying time,” Ihsanoglu told the ministers during their annual meeting on Friday. “We are facing daunting challenges and severe hardships. Islam and Muslims are under serious attack, and Islamophobia is growing and becoming more rampant and dangerous by the day.”

He said a ''pandemic of Islam vilification'' is sweeping through some parts of Europe and the United States, increasing misperceptions about Islam and eroding Muslims' human rights.

''We need an all inclusive effort of OIC member states to stem this menace,'' Ihsanoglu told the ministers. ''That is why I firmly believe that this question of Islamophobia should figure prominently on the agenda of all OIC member states whenever they deal with their Western counterparts.''

Ihsanoglu, who is from Turkey, has headed the OIC since 2005. The group is seen as a moderate, collective voice for Islam.

''The OIC is a strategic and crucial partner of the United Nations and plays a significant role in helping to resolve a wide range of issues facing the world community,'' U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said in a statement to the group when it met on Friday.

Member states reflect the reach of Islam across the Middle East, Asia, Africa and the Caribbean, and include Egypt, Libya, Yemen, Morocco, Afghanistan, Syria, Chad, Senegal, Niger, Sudan, Guyana and Surinam. – AP

Petroleum ministry blames Ogra for fuel shortage

ISLAMABAD: The petroleum ministry has held the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra) responsible for the recent fuel crisis in the country.

In a report submitted to the petroleum minister, the office of director-general for oil said that Ogra failed to perform its duty as a regulator as it did not take timely action to head off a crisis. Ogra’s ineffectiveness resulted in black marketing of petrol and diesel in many parts of the country.

Sources in the ministry said Ogra was supposed to take steps to ensure availability of petrol across the country not only by taking measures against hoarders and black marketers but also through timely imports to meet the shortage created by the shutdown of Parco due to floods.

“The Ogra teams did nothing other than to send show-cause notices to oil marketing companies (OMCs) during the crisis and to wait for the replies to such notices,” an official said.

Petroleum Minister Syed Naveed Qamar is expected to forward the report to the Prime Minister’s Secretariat because Ogra falls under the administrative control of cabinet division.

The report added that the petroleum ministry dispatched teams to various places to examine the availability of petrol at the designated retail outlets.

Meanwhile, the recent fuel crisis has served to sharpen the differences between the ministry and the regulator.

A ministry official alleged that senior officials of Ogra drew heavy salaries (up to Rs400,000 per month) but they hardly did anything for the benefit of the industry or the consumer.

“The situation was better when the OCAC was directly monitoring the supply situation in the country,” he claimed.

Officials of Ogra declined to comment over the report or the supply position in the country.