CIA seeks to expand drones in Yemen

WASHINGTON: The CIA is seeking permission to launch more airborne drone strikes in Yemen, even when there is a risk the victims might not always be terrorists, The Washington Post reported Wednesday.

The targets would be chosen based on intelligence reports indicating suspicious behavior, such as images of militants unloading explosives or gathering at Al-Qaeda compounds. Read full Story at The News pk

North Korea vows to go ahead with space programme

Moscow: North Korea will continue further development of its aerospace technologies, including a satellite programme, despite the UN Security Council condemnation, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said.

The North Korean foreign ministry said in a statement that it will continue to exercise its "sovereign right for the use of space", as it was universally accepted by international laws, "which are above UN Security Council resolutions".

The ministry said the UN Security Council resolutions "violate the legitimate right of every country for satellite launches".

"In accordance with the state space programme, we will continue launches of various satellites, including geostationary, required for the country’s economic development," the statement said.

Pyongyang also announced the withdrawal from the Feb 29 deal with the US to impose a moratorium on nuclear activities and long-range missile tests in exchange for US food aid.

After the failed April 13 launch of the Unha-3 rocket, which North Korea had said would put a satellite into orbit, Washington suspended its food aid to the country.

Pyongyang ignored calls to cancel the launch, which the US claimed was cover for a ballistic missile test banned under UN resolutions.

The launch was condemned by the global community, including the UN Security Council, which said in a statement that it "deplores that such a launch has caused grave security concerns in the region".(Online news pk)

Russia to launch commercial-free public TV

Moscow: Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has signed a decree to establish a commercial-free, public television broadcast service that will be launched Jan 1 next year.

Medvedev had called for the creation of a public TV service in 2011.

"I would like to inform you that today I’ve signed a law to create public TV and it will go on air starting from January 1, 2013," he said Tuesday.

"Therefore, Russia will receive a new nationwide, universal and publicly-accessible TV. I expect the channel to be of interest, at least to those who are interested in public life, because tastes differ and everyone has various expectation of TV content. But to audience of that type, a demanding audience, this channel would be of interest, I hope," Medvedev said.

The Russian government will create the autonomous non-commercial organisation, which will act as the channel’s founder, board of editors and broadcaster, the Kremlin said.

The organisation’s chief, who will also be the channel’s editor-in-chef, will be appointed by the president.

Medvedev said the public broadcaster will be financed in its early stages with a government loan.

"We will have to somehow launch the mechanism of financing the public TV. In the beginning, the state, apparently, will have to render some assistance in this situation via a loan scheme, but afterwards this loan should be replaced by an endowment fund, which will help this TV to stay afloat without resorting to state funding," Medvedev said.

The law, published on the Kremlin website, also envisages "the possibility of the organisation’s initial financing by budget allocations and bank loans".

The channel might be created with the use of resources of the Zvezda TV network run by the defence ministry, Medvedev said.(Online news pk)

Maldives proposes presidential polls in 2013

Male: The Maldivian government Wednesday proposed a presidential election in July 2013, three months prior to the earlier schedule.

Abbas Adil Riza, spokesperson for the President’s Office here, said that President Mohammed Waheed has called for the presidential election in July 2013 which he claimed as the earliest date permitted under the constitution, reported Xinhua.

Waheed had earlier said that the election could not be conducted anywhere before October 2013.

Following the victory at last week’s byelection for two constituencies, Waheed said he was confident in calling the Indian Ocean archipelago to a vote at the earliest constitutionally mandated time.

The Maldives opposition led by former president Mohamed Nasheed insisted on an early election since controversial power transfer to Waheed Feb 7. Nasheed claimed he was ousted in a military backed coup.

The Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG) Monday reiterated an early election in 2012 and also claimed the Commission of National Inquiry, which was set up to inquire into the controversial power transfer from Nasheed to Waheed, was not independent and impartial.

It urged the new government to review the commission immediately to make it genuinely independent, credible and impartial.

In response, Waheed has welcomed the Commonwealth to assign a judge to advise and assist the Commission of National Inquiry.

Meanwhile, the Maldives Democratic Party led by Nasheed Wednesday welcomed the recommendations of the CMAG and asked Waheed’s regime to consider these seriously and take steps to remedy the situation within the next few days.

The Maldives, an Indian Ocean archipelago that is home to 300,000 people and known for its luxury resorts, has been undergoing a political turmoil since the controversial ouster of Nasheed in February.(Online News pk)

Pakistan to achieve 4 percent growth rate: Hafeez Shaikh

WASHINGTON: Pakistan’s economy is expected to post a healthy growth of four percent during the current year after the democratic government in Islamabad took a series of steps to put the economic house in order, despite high oil prices and uncertain global eeconomic outlook, Finance Minister Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh said Wednesday.(APP)

UN envoy slams eviction of Palestinian from East Jerusalem

UNITED NATIONS - A senior U.N. official condemned the eviction Wednesday of two Palestinian families from their homes in East Jerusalem and called for an end to such violations of international law. The eviction on Wednesday follows a court case brought against the families by an Israeli association, according to a news release issued by the Office of the UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process (UNSCO). The association reportedly plans to build housing units on the property, which is located in the neighbourhood of Beit Hanina. (APP)