Volume 23 | Number 7751 | 2 RiyalsTuesday 25 December 2018 | 18 Rabia II 1440 www.thepeninsula.qa

BUSINESS | 01 SPORT | 07

2018 sporting highlights - Mbappe’s big day, Serena’s outburst

Al Kaabi leads Qatar's delegation to OAPEC meeting

in Kuwait

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Winter vegetable markets post high salesSIDI MOHAMED DOHA

The winter vegetable markets at Al Mazroua, Al Khor-Dakhira, Al Wakra and Al Shamal operating under Agricultural Affairs Department of the Ministry of Municipality and Environment have achieved high sales which reached 434 tonnes of local vegetables and fruits.

These brisk sales were made during three-day period from

December 20 to 22. The General Supervisor of farmers’ winter markets, Abdurrahman Al Sulaiti, said that the winter markets since they were opened nine weeks ago had witnessed increase in sales every week.

“The kinds and quantities of vegetables also increased in the markets such as tomatoes and others and the footfall of cus-tomers also increased manifold,” Al Sulaiti said while talking to The Peninsula.

The winter markets serve as a platform for farmers to sell their products directly to the cus-tomers without middlemen, offering fresh vegetables and poultry products coming straight from the local farms to cus-tomers at economical prices.

The sales of fish during the same period was 3,750 kg. Also, about 687 cartons of eggs, 2,700 poultry birds, 277 kg of milk and 116 kg of honey were sold.

The four winter markets also

sold 385 heads of sheep and goats, among them 327 heads were slaughtered in Al Mazroua yard. Also, 7,269 barley boxes and 154 different varieties of feed were also sold.

The aim of the winter markets is to support Qatari farmers by reducing their mar-keting costs, stimulating local production, and encouraging small farms to redouble efforts to become more active.

Al Sulaiti said that

the preparation for opening Al Shahaniya Winter Market is underway and expected to be opened next month.

The winter vegetable markets offer varieties of vegetables in large quantity directly from local farms at lower prices. Winter veg-etable markets have become highly popular among residents as over 1.2 million boxes of veg-etables were sold in 2017 com-pared to over 4 million boxes of vegetables sold from 2012 to 2017.

Amir holds phone conversation with PM of PakistanQNA DOHA

Amir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani held a tele-phone conversation with the Prime Minister of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, Imran Khan, yesterday.

During the phone call, they reviewed bilateral rela-tions and ways of boosting them, and discussed a number of issues of common concern.

100,000 people get vaccination for seasonal fluTHE PENINSULA DOHA

The Ministry of Public Health said that 100,000 people have been vaccinated under national campaign for vacci-nation against seasonal influenza since the beginning of the campaign till December 20.

People of different age groups received the vaccina-tions in the health facilities of the Hamad Medical Corpo-ration (HMC) and the health centres of the Primary Health Care Cooperation (PHCC,) as well as in more than 45 hos-pitals, health centres and private and semi-government clinic.

The vaccination teams at the Ministry of Public Health have also carried out several vaccination campaigns for workers in many institutions and bodies, including the Public Works Authority, the General Corporation for Elec-tricity and Water (Kahramaa) and Qatar Post. �P2

Amir sends written message to Amir of Kuwait

Amir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani has sent a written message to the Amir of the State of Kuwait, H H Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah, pertaining to the brotherly relations between the two countries and peoples, as well as the latest developments on the regional and international arenas. Qatar’s Ambassador to Kuwait, Bandar bin Mohammed Al Attiyah, handed over the message when the Amir of Kuwait met him yesterday.

Shura Council approves draft law on Media City QNA DOHA

The Shura Council, which held its regular weekly meeting yesterday under the chair-manship of the Speaker of the Shura Council, H E Ahmed bin Abdullah bin Zaid Al Mahmoud, approved the draft law on the Media City.

The Council discussed the report of the Cultural and Infor-mation Affairs Committee on the draft law on the Media City. Under the draft law, the media city has a moral personality and an independent budget aimed at managing and developing media activity and attracting international media, technology companies, research and training institutions in the fields of media and digital media.

Its terms of reference also include granting licences for television and radio broad-casting as well as licences for the publishing and distribution of newspapers, magazines and

books for eligible companies.In its recommendations, the

Committee called for creating technical and professional standards and controls to attract high quality media com-panies, and called for encour-aging Qatari investors to give priority to investing in the Media City and taking into account that the Media City does not affect the rights and gains of existing investors in the media field, along employing Qatari graduates and giving them priority with the appro-priate privileges.

During their discussions, the members of the Council stressed the importance of respecting the principles, values and ethics in the programmes of companies licensed to work in the Media City and that it be governed by a code of ethics to which these companies are committed. After extensive discussions, the Council approved the draft law and decided to submit its recom-mendations to the Cabinet. �P2

Cruise ship service to Oman & Kuwait soonSACHIN KUMAR THE PENINSULA

Residents will be able to go to Oman and Kuwait on cruise ship with their cars soon. A luxury cruise ship, which is a first-of-its-kind service in the Gulf region, is expected to start its service in two weeks to Oman and Kuwait.

The 145 metre-long cruise ship ‘Grand Ferry’ has the capacity to carry 870 persons and 670 cars.

Minister of Transport and Communications H E Jassim bin Saif Al Sulaiti toured the ship, which is currently docked at Doha Port.

“We want to contribute to strengthening the relationship between the countries by car-rying more people. It has not been used in the Gulf before and it is the first time for the region,” Faisal Mohamed Al Sulaiti, owner of the ship told The Peninsula.

“We are the pioneer in this type of business and we are sure it will be successful because there is a huge demand for this kind of service,” he added.

Initially the ship will be going to ports in Oman and Kuwait, but the service can be extended to Iran, if there is enough demand for the route.

“After the blockade, a lot of passengers have limitation of driving through the borders to

neighbouring countries. So we are giving people the flexibility to go with their own cars. They can disembark in Oman or Kuwait and they can drive around,” said Faisal Mohamed Al Sulaiti.

The France-made ship has 237 rooms and boasts of many facilities like a cinema hall, meeting rooms, restaurants, cafes, and medical facilities such as doctors and nurses. In case of any emergency, there is a facility for helicopter landing in the ship.

From Doha to Oman, the cruise ship is expected to take around 20- 25 hours and same time to return to Doha port.

Apart from passengers, the ship will also playing a major role in cargo movement.

“We expect this service to be very successful. We will also be

carrying the cargo in order to balance the revenue,” he said. Transporting of cargo will mean additional revenue for the ship.

The details about fares have not been finalised yet and will be announced soon, he added.

The management of ship is in talks with authorities in Oman and Kuwait to ease visa require-ments for expatriates in Qatar, so that they can also take a trip to these countries.

Travel agents will handle the reservations for passengers and cars while cargo booking will be done by forwarding and shipping agents. “We have a good capacity in order to carry passengers, cars, trucks and heavy trucks. We have a good facility inside the ship for our guests,” said Manolis Moutsatsos, Captain of the cruise ship. �P3

The 145 metre-long cruise ship ‘Grand Ferry’ docked at Doha Port. The cruise ship can carry 870 persons and 670 cars. PIC: ABDUL BASIT / THE PENINSULA

Minister of Transport and Communications

H E Jassim bin Saif Al Sulaiti toured the ship,

which is currently docked at Doha Port.

From Doha to Oman, the cruise ship is

expected to take around 20-25 hours and

same time to return to Doha Port.

The France-made ship has 237 rooms and

boasts of many facilities like cinema hall,

meeting rooms, restaurants, cafes, and

medical facilities like doctors and nurses.

02 TUESDAY 25 DECEMBER 2018HOME

SJC keen onjudicial cooperationwith Kuwait

DOHA: Chairman of the Supreme Judiciary Council (SJC) and President of the Court of Cassation H E Dr Hassan bin Lahdan Al Hassan Al Mohannadi met yesterday with a judicial delegation from the State of Kuwait, headed by President of the Court of Appeal and Director of Institute for Judicial and Legal Studies Owayed Al Thowaimer.The meeting dealt with strengthening Qatari and Kuwaiti legal cooperation, particularly in the areas of training and exchange of expertise and experiences, thus contributing to the development of the judicial system in the two countries.The Chairman of the Supreme Judiciary Council assured the visiting Kuwaiti delegation that the Council is keen to activate judicial cooperation programs between Qatar and Kuwait and to work out a framework for modernizing and deepening the fields of joint action.He noted the important role of judicial centers and institutes in the advancement of judicial work through training programs offered by these bodies to prepare competent and professional judges in their fields of work, which enhances confidence in the judicial work and provides an indispensable help to the judicial organs in the preparation of a competent and qualified judicial cadre.

Minister of Justice meets Kuwaiti judicial delegation

DOHA: Minister of Justice and Acting Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs H E Dr Issa bin Saad Al Jafali Al Nuaimi met yesterday with a judicial delegation from the State of Kuwait, headed by the President of the Court of Appeal and Director of Institute for Judicial and Legal Studies, Owayed Al Thowaimer. The meeting dealt with strengthening Qatari and Kuwaiti legal cooperation, particularly in the areas of training and exchange of expertise and experiences, as well as cooperation in the field of legal services provided by the Center for Legal and Judicial Studies and the Institute for Legal and Judicial Studies in the Ministries of Justice in both countries. The Kuwaiti delegation is visiting the country to learn about the legal and judicial experience of Qatar and discuss areas of joint cooperation.

QRCS, YHF sign pact to support Yemen hospitalsTHE PENINSULA DOHA

Qatar Red Crescent Society (QRCS) has signed a memo-randum of understanding (MoU) with the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Human-itarian Affairs’ (OCHA) Yemen Humanitarian Fund (YHF) to provide life-saving health care services in Taiz and Dhalee Governorates, the Republic of Yemen.

Under the agreement, $2m funding will be secured to support the most vulnerable communities affected by inad-equate health services. It is planned to cover five hospitals in Taiz and six health centres in Dhale, with an estimated 204,500 beneficiaries over one year.

Among the activities of the intervention are (1) supplying basic and emergency medicines, procuring lacked medical equipment, qualifying medical professionals, providing water and fuel, providing ambulance vehicles, and holding com-munity health education sessions.

In coordination with the Ministry of Public Health and Population’s (MOH) governorate office and the National Authority for the Management

and Coordination of Humani-tarian Affairs (NAMCHA), QRCS held a workshop to introduce health, district, and local com-munity representatives to the project’s importance, compo-nents, outcomes, and challenges.

Dr. Abdul-Malik Al Mota-wakil, Director, MOH office in Taiz, welcomed the long-term partnership with QRCS, and promised to facilitate its activ-ities and remove any

inconveniences.“I would like to thank QRCS

for its efforts to address the gov-ernorate’s health care defi-ciencies, as well as its effective contributions on the ground. I call upon all my colleagues to help QRCS’s team to reach out to the public and overcome any difficulties that may delay the project,” said Dr. Al Motawakil.

Judge Ahmed Al Misawi, Director, NAMCHA, emphasised

the importance of cooperation in facilitating the work and making the project a success, which will help to expand it later to more hospitals.

QRCS, Al Misawi pointed out, is an effective partner for government authorities in Yemen. “We should all work together to find a way out of the current stalemate and improve the severe conditions suffered by the patients and needy people,” he noted.

Medical staff get training to provide health care services in Yemen under QRCS project

NTC partners with Cox & Kings India for tourism campaignTHE PENINSULA DOHA

Qatar is now being promoted by Cox & Kings India as the group’s new preferred destination.

The marketing and pro-motion campaign comes as part of a strategic partnership with National Tourism Council (NTC) aimed at boosting the destina-tion’s profile to attract luxury, business and independent trav-ellers to visit Qatar.

Rashed Al Qurese, NTC official, commented, “We are

pleased to be partnering with Cox & Kings group for the des-tination’s first-ever integrated campaign in India. Qatar is an easily accessible destination within a few hours from most Indian cities making it attractive for travellers looking for short city getaways or a convenient stopover when heading further West.”

He added, “India is a priority market for us and we look forward to welcoming Indian visitors in Qatar to discover our dest inat ion’s authentic

experiences all while enjoying o u r f a m e d A r a b i a n hospitality.”

Established in 1758, Cox & Kings Ltd is headquartered in India and the UK with a global presence across North America, Europe, Asia & Oceania. As part of this campaign, it is offering Indian travellers itineraries to tourism hotspots and activities that explore both the traditional and contemporary sides of Qatar.

Karan Anand, Head of Rela-tionships at Cox & Kings

commented, “Qatar has a lot to offer and NTC has been very proactive in promoting the des-tination. Initiatives such as free entry visas for Indians will encourage more people to travel to Qatar in large numbers.

Direct air connectivity from metropolises and secondary cities to the destination is an added advantage and we will focus on these markets to boost numbers to the destination.’’

As part of the campaign’s focus on trade – and coinciding with the Group’s 260th

anniversary celebrations - 260 travel agents came to Qatar to attend Cox & Kings’ five-day Travel Agent Training Camp. At the camp, tourism professionals had an opportunity to expe-rience first-hand the unique experiences Qatar has to offer. Following this mega trip, numerous initiatives will be rolled out over the coming 12 months including a Golf Tour-nament in Doha, a Master Chef travel series, as well as other training and incentives programmes.

The Speaker of the Shura Council, H E Ahmed bin Abdullah bin Zaid Al Mahmoud, during its regular weekly meeting yesterday.

Shura Council approves draft law on Media City

FROM PAGE 1

At the beginning of the meeting, the Council discussed the report of the Financial and Economic Affairs Committee on the Decree Law No 18 of 2018, on amendment of some provi-sions the of Law on Tenders and Auctions, issued by Law No 24 of 2015. The Council approved the said Decree Law and decided to submit its recommendations to the Cabinet.

The Speaker of the Shura Council briefed the members of the Council about the outcomes of his meeting last Monday with P r e s i d e n t o f t h e

Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) Gabriela Cuevas Barron, where they discussed the preparations made by the Shura Council to host the meetings of the 140 General Assembly of the IPU and the accompanying meetings to be held in Doha from 6th to 10th April, 2019. They also reviewed the cooperation relations between the Shura Council and the IPU in various areas of par-liamentary work.

The President of the IPU expressed her deep satisfaction with the progress made in arrangements for these meetings and with the keenness of the Speaker and the officials of the

Shura Council to provide all the necessities and requirements for the success of these meetings.

The Speaker of the Shura Council was also briefed the Council’s members on the

reports of its delegations partic-ipating in a number of external meetings.

100,000 people get vaccination for seasonal flu

FROM PAGE 1

The vaccinations were also provided to the employees in Nakilat and Milaha companies and a number of Universities and educational institutions.

The Ministry of Public Health said that more people received vaccination this year compared to previous years, due to great efforts made by the Ministry and all relevant authorities in both the gov-ernment and private sectors to ensure that vaccinations reach the entire population.

The awareness level of the people about the impor-tance of vaccination also increased.

The Ministry of Public Health stressed the impor-tance of the initiative to receive the seasonal influenza vaccine, especially with the start of the winter season and the recent dramatic drop in temperatures, where vacci-nation helps prevent compli-cations from influenza, espe-cially among population groups with high risk factors.

The Ministry of Health explained that vaccination is available free of charge for all citizens and residents at all primary health care centres as well as at 45 hospitals, health centres and private and semi-government clinics.

Ministry of Culture to launchmusic festival for communitiesQNA DOHA

The Ministry of Culture and Sports’ Center of Music A f f a i r s a n n o u n c e d yesterday the launch of its monthly music festival tomorrow and on Thursday in Dahl Al Hamam.

The festival will focus on reflecting the impor-tance of cultural diversity of the communities residing in Qatar. The Sudanese and Palestinian communities are set to participate in the festival’s opening.

A number of Qatari and Yemeni artists will also participate.

The festival, which will see all communities living in Qatar take part, reflects the ministry’s vision of stressing the importance of opening up to other cultures.

The centre was estab-lished in 2016, and aims to promote music as a culture among the different seg-ments of society. The centre also to maintain the cultural identity of Qatari music.

AZF launches first Aspire Winter Camp for kidsTHE PENINSULA DOHA

Following the tremendous success of the previous Summer Camp for kids, Aspire Zone Foundation (AZF) launched its first Aspire Winter Camp for kids last Sunday.

The event, held in Aspire Dome, Ladies Sports Hall, and Aspire Park, is for kids aged 6 to 14 years and is scheduled to run over a two-week period until January 3. The winter camp runs from 8.30am to 1.30pm during the week.

A fun-filled programme awaits children during their school’s winter break, where several exciting educational and sports activities are arranged to

nurture the children’s devel-opment prior to their return to school.

AZF is opening its doors for kids to enjoy activities like football, taekwondo, gymnastics,

aerobics, and other recreational games this winter. In addition to these sports-based activities, field visits and informative courses in planting, reading, arts and crafts will also take place.

Speaking about hosting the Winter Camp, Al Anoud Alm-esnad, Head of Events at AZF, commented; “Following the great turnout of kids and pos-itive comments from parents during our previous Summer Camp, we expect this winter version to thrive with similar success due to ideal weather conditions, distinctive facilities and our diverse programme of activities.”

“We put children at the top of our priorities, aiming to increase the kids’ passion in

sports, and encouraging them to follow a healthy and active life-style. Because of this, we created this atmosphere to kids to engage and connect during their leisure time in a dynamic way,” Almesnad concluded.

Age categories are divided into three groups per gender; from 6-8, 9-11 and 12-14 years old. The programmes for each age group are carefully tailored to the respective ages.

The winter camp is spon-sored by Angry Birds World, Baladna, Cage Sport, Pony Cycle, Friends of the Environment Center and 7th Heaven arts center. For more information on the activities held during the winter camp, visit www.lifein-aspire.qa.

A fun-filled

programme awaits

children during

their school’s winter

break, where several

exciting educational

and sports activities

are arranged to

nurture the children’s

development prior to

their return to school.

03TUESDAY 25 DECEMBER 2018 HOME

Qatar-UK military ties discussed

The Chief of Staff of the Qatari Armed Forces, H E Lieutenant-General (Pilot) Ghanem bin Shaheen Al Ghanem, met yesterday with UK Defence Attache to Qatar Colonel (Pilot), Simon Blake. During the meeting, they discussed the bilateral relations between the State of Qatar and the UK, and the ways to boost and develop them in different military fields. The meeting was attended by Acting Head of International Military Cooperation Authority Brigadier (Sea), Yousef Saleh Al Hurr.

Qatar committed to protecting environment; issues 33 laws SIDI MOHAMED DOHA

Eng. Ahmed Mohammed Al Sada, Assistant Under-Secretary at the Ministry of Municipality and Environment, said that Qatar has issued 33 environmental protection legis-lations.

“Qatar gives special impor-tance to environment pro-tection. It always reviews laws and regulations related to the environment,” said Al Sada.

He added that the Ministry recently launched an environ-mental service on WhatsApp to receive environmental com-plaints and respond to them quickly.

“Environmental protection is an international and regional

responsibility more than a local one. Qatar has joined about 24 international conventions in this regard,” he noted.

“The Ministry of Munici-pality and Environment always conducts inspections at indus-trial facilities and other projects to see the extent of their com-pliance with environmental laws. The aim of such drives is to protect the environment,” Al Sada said while speaking to Qatar Radio.

For his part, Doha Munici-pality Director, Jamal Mattar Al Nuaimi, said Doha Municipality has about 40 public parks and Qatar seeks to increase green spaces in the country.

He also disclosed that Qatar will host Horticultural Expo 2021 in March that will be the

first-of-its-kind in the Middle East, adding that the huge venue of the expo would be transformed, after the expo, into a fan zone for the 2022 World Cup.

After the Qatar 2022, that area will be converted into a public park under the name Doha Grand Park. He said that it will be done in collaboration with the Public Works Authority (Ashghal) and Supreme Com-mittee for Delivery and Legacy (SC).

Al Nuaimi also pointed out that the ministry’s sustainable strategy focuses on improving the quality of life by achieving food security, providing high quality services and protecting the environment to achieve Qatar National Vision 2030.

DIFI participates in regional youth forumTHE PENINSULA DOHA

The Doha International Family Institute (DIFI), a member of Qatar Foundation (QF), recently participated in an event titled ‘The Youth Forum in the Arab Region’, held in the Kingdom of Morocco from December 19-21, 2018.

The inaugural forum was organised by United Nations Population Fund and the World Organisation of the Scout Movement, in partnership with the Ministry of Youth and Sports in Morocco and the Mediter-ranean Forum for Youth – Morocco.

Dr Anis Ben Brik, Director of Family Policy Department,

DIFI, moderated a workshop at the forum titled ‘Elements of the envisaged new and inclusive narrative for young people in the Arab region.’

Bringing together young people from 22 different coun-tries, the workshop addressed the current and future status of the youth in families and society.

Dr Ben Brik presented frameworks for promoting renewed and inclusive dialogues on the youth in the Arab world, including successfully shifting from school to the labour market, family formation, and facilitating the youth’s partici-pation in the development of their respective nations.

Additionally, within the workshop, attendees discussed

the views, priorities, and aspi-rations of Arab youth on a number of subjects, including: family, education, work, culture, health, immigration, security, justice, women, and community and political participation. The workshop concluded with the adoption of new and compre-hensive elements to develop a proposed new narrative on youth in the Arab region.

DIFI is a global policy and advocacy institute working to advance knowledge on Arab families through research and promote evidence-based polices at a national, regional, and inter-national level. The institute has special consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council.

QNRF, TÜBİTAK workshop promotes smart manufacturingTHE PENINSULA DOHA

A joint research workshop aimed at introducing and developing innovative smart manufacturing practices in Qatar has been held ahead of the launch of a joint funding call in early 2019 by Qatar National Research Fund (QNRF) and the Scientific and Techno-logical Research Council of Turkey (TÜBİTAK).

QNRF is a member of Qatar Foundation (QF) and TÜBİTAK is Turkey’s leading research agency.

The collaboration will see QNRF and TÜBİTAK combine their resources and insights to drive innovation and devel-opment of new smart manu-facturing technologies. The joint initiative aims to foster public-private partnerships and pool the knowledge, expertise, and resources of Qatar and Turkey to address the two countries’ shared priorities.

In preparation for the joint

funding call, the ‘Smart Manu-facturing Workshop’ was held at Qatar National Convention Centre, where representatives from the Ministry of Transport and Communications, the Gulf Organisation for Industrial Consulting, Siemens Qatar, and the wider academic, research, and industrial community of Qatar discussed the importance of smart manufacturing.

Members of leading Turkish research institutions, indus-tries , and universit ies exchanged views on matters of mutual interest with their Qatari counterparts.

The workshop addressed themes including additive man-ufacturing, ICT for manufac-turing, sustainable manufac-turing, production systems, organisation, and logistics and

supply chains of products. Presentations and discussions identified the need for state-of-the-art techniques, and research and innovation in advancing Qatar’s smart man-ufacturing infrastructure.

The bilateral agreement between QNRF and TÜBİTAK to collaborate on projects of mutual interest was established i n D e c e m b e r 2 0 1 5 .

The inaugural theme of the partnership was cybersecurity, under which the joint funding call ‘Academia-Industry Coop-eration on Cybersecurity’ was launched last year.

Speaking at the workshop, Dr Abdul Sattar Al Taie, Exec-utive Director, QNRF, said, “Our collaboration with TÜBİTAK is built upon a shared com-mitment and belief in the importance of supporting science and technology initia-tives, in order to strengthen and develop a lasting RDI part-nership between researchers, industries, and end-users in both countries.”

Experts who participated in the workshop explored the application of smart manufac-turing practices in industries including gas, clean energy and water, polymers and petro-chemicals, agriculture and food, basic materials, and bio-medical devices and implants.

Dr Orkun Hasekioğlu, Vice-President, TÜBİTAK, said, “Three years ago, QNRF and

TÜBİTAK signed an agreement to sponsor joint research and development projects in areas of mutual interests. This part-nership is a manifestation of the solidarity between the T u r k i s h a n d Q a t a r i governments.”

During the workshop, Dr. Munir Tag, Senior Program Manager for ICT, QNRF, out-lined the role of smart manu-facturing in the context of Qatar and highlighted its importance for the nation’s society, economy, government, and industry.

The participants during the workshop organised by Qatar National Research Fund and the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey.

The collaboration will

see QNRF and TÜBİTAK

aims to foster public-

private partnerships

and pool the

knowledge, expertise,

and resources of Qatar

and Turkey to address

the two countries’

shared priorities.

The Minister of Transport and Communications, H E Jassim bin Saif Al Sulaiti (right), with the owner of MV Grand Ferry cruise ship, Faisal Mohamed Al Sualiti (centre), and Manolis Moutsatso (left), Captian of the ship, during a tour of the Grand Ferry ship, which will operate between Oman, Kuwait and Qatar, at a function held on-board the cruise ship at Doha Port yesterday.PIC: ABDUL BASIT / THE PENINSULA

Al Sulaiti tours Grand Ferry ship

WCM-Q Grand Rounds hears about spread, treatment of diabetesTHE PENINSULA DOHA

Diabetes, its treatment and its proliferation across the globe was the subject of the latest instalment of Weill Cornell Medicine – Qatar’s (WCM-Q) Grand Rounds series.

The lecture, entitled ‘Dia-betes, The Ticking Time Bomb’, was delivered by Dr Alexandra Butler (pictured), adjunct pro-fessor of medicine/endo-crinology at the Diabetes Research Center, which is part of Qatar Biomedical Research Institute (QBRI).

Dr Butler explained that more than eight percent of the

global adult population have dia-betes – around 366m adults – but with three new cases diag-nosed every ten seconds, that figure is projected to rise to 552m by 2030. As in Qatar – in which the prevalence of diabetes is well-documented and higher than the global average – the majority of cases involve type 2 diabetes, although cases of type 1 diabetes are also on the rise.

Speaking before an audience of students and fellow healthcare professionals, Dr Butler explained how the two types present themselves differently. Type 1 diabetes tends to have a rapid onset and symptoms are often severe; whilst there are two

peaks in incidence, in preschool and teenage years, type 1 dia-betes can occur at any stage of life. By contrast, the onset of type 2 diabetes is typically slower,

often occurring over several months, with symptoms that vary in severity.

A family history of type 2 dia-betes is more often present in new sufferers, and whilst the disease usually strikes people over the age of 20, there is a recent trend for type 2 diabetes to appear in the teenage and even pre-teen years.

However, although different in their clinical presentation, both type 1 and type 2 can cause the same microvascular compli-cations, typically nephropathy, neuropathy and retinopathy. There are also potential macrov-ascular complications that can lead to an increased risk of

strokes and heart attacks. Lab-oratory tests can also help to dis-tinguish which type of diabetes their patient is suffering from, and this is vital in order to institute appropriate treatment.

Dr Butler said, “Why does distinguishing between the two types matter? Well, it’s down to the treatment. Type 1 diabetes must be treated with insulin whereas the treatment of type 2 diabetes always starts with life-style management. If that is inad-equate, then usually the drug metformin is considered to be the drug of choice; after that, you have a range of drugs to choose from, one of which may be insulin, although this usually

comes later in the treatment plan.” Whatever the treatment, good diabetes control is vital to preventing complications from the disease.

Dr Butler also discussed future treatment options, notably stem cell therapy for the treatment of diabetes, something that is being actively pursued in the Diabetes Research Center Stem Cell Group at QBRI.

The lecture was accredited locally by the Qatar Council for Healthcare Practitioners-Accreditation Department (QCHP-AD) and internationally by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME).

President of Cote d’Ivoire meets Attorney-GeneralPresident of the Republic of Cote d’Ivoire, Alassane Ouattara, met yesterday with Attorney-General H E Dr Ali bin Fetais Al Marri in Abidjan.The meeting discussed a number of issues of common concern and means of strengthening legal and judicial cooperation between the State of Qatar and the Republic of Cote d’Ivoire.

04 TUESDAY 25 DECEMBER 2018HOME

Over 160 patients benefit from robotic surgery at Al Wakra HospitalTHE PENINSULA DOHA

Since it was first introduced in March 2016, more than 160 patients who required hernia repair surgery have benefited from Al Wakra Hospital’s robotic surgery program. A dedicated robotic surgery team, led by Dr Mohamed Soliman Elakkad, Senior Consultant, General Surgery, is using the state-of-the-art technology to transform the way doctors operate and how quickly patients recover.

According to Dr Nizar Bouchiba, General Surgery Con-sultant with the robotic surgery team, Al Wakra Hospital is using the advanced Da Vinci robotic surgical system for a wide range of specialties, including general surgery, ear nose and throat, gynecology, and bariatric surgery.

“Robotic surgery offers a number of benefits to patients

compared to traditional surgical techniques,” said Dr Bouchiba. “These benefits include smaller incisions, faster recovery time, and minimal scarring. The sur-gical robot enables the surgeon to view three-dimensional images inside the patient’s body. These images are magnified to provide a far more detailed view than is possible with traditional surgical techniques.”

One area of specialty to benefit considerably from the introduction of robotic surgery is hernia repair. Al Wakra Hos-pital is home to Qatar’s only ded-icated Hernia Surgery Center and is the only hospital in the region

to offer patients robotic hernia repair surgery. In 2015, the Center was successfully accredited by the Surgery Review Corporation as a Hernia Center of Excellence, becoming the first hospital in the Middle East to receive this award.

A hernia happens when part of an internal organ, usually the bowel, bulges through a weak area of muscle. Most hernias occur in the abdomen. Hernias are common, affecting men, women, and children. Most hernias are caused by a combi-nation of muscle weakness and straining, such as with heavy lifting. However, some people are born with weak abdominal muscles and may be more likely to get a hernia. Inguinal hernias appear in the groin and are more common in men than women. A ventral hernia, also called an inci-sional hernia, occurs at the site of a surgical scar and is common in patients who have had open abdominal surgery.

“Since robotic surgery was introduced at Al Wakra Hospital, over 160 patients with inguinal or ventral hernias have received robotic repair using this advanced technique. These procedures are now performed with a minimal incision, meaning there is less chance of infection for the patient and a faster recovery. The safety and effectiveness of the hernia repair is also enhanced due to the improved visibility and increased precision of the surgeon,” said Dr Tamer Elbakry, Consultant General Surgery with the robotic surgery team.A view of robotic surgery being performed at Al Wakra Hospital.

Ashghal to support project in DarfurTHE PENINSULA DOHA

The Public Works Authority’s (Ashghal) team participating in Qatar Charity’s (QC) ‘Compet-itors-3’ programme paid a visit to South Darfur to know about the nature and site of the project, which is planned to be imple-mented within the framework of the competition with the team of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry in the first round of the third season of the programmme.

The visit came as part of the continued voluntary efforts made by Ashghal to finance a multi-service charity project in South Darfur within the framework of the “Competitors” programme, which is a radio broadcast produced by Qatar Charity (QC) in partnership with Al Quran Al Kareem Radio,

The project involves the construction of a secondary school with an area of 512 sqm and a health center with an area of 33 sqm at a cost of QR2,260,900.

It is worth mentioning that

the ‘Competitors’ programme aims at involving the Qatari community with new and inno-vative ways in charitable work through competition. It also aims at spreading the culture and values of charitable work through the media associated with such type of events and competitions held within the community.

It is noteworthy that the donation in favor of this project can easily be made through QC’s

website and App as well as through its 25 branches within the country and 92 collection points in commercial complexes.

Ashghal’s team consisted of Dr Sheikh Ahmed Al Buainain, Captain Yousef Munif Nasser, Abdul Aziz Ismail Al Heidos - Yasser Mustafa Al Janahi, and Hamad Nasser Rashid Al Nuaimi.

The delegation also met with the Governor of the South Darfur State, Adam Al Faki, who lauded Qatar’s role in cooper-ation and achieving stability in the state. He said that Qatar Charity has signed several agreements in the fields of water and health, which contributed to the stability of the state. “

For his part, Dr Sheikh Ahmed Al Buainain said that this visit came, with the aim of con-veying the needs of the region to donors and benefactors in Qatar. He added that the team in cooperation and coordination with Qatar Charity would market the project to contribute to the fields of education and health in the region.

A delegation from Ashghal at a model project at QC office in Darfur.

AAB holds product workshopfor its top fleet customers THE PENINSULA DOHA

Abdullah Abdulghani & Bros. Co. (AAB), sole agents for Toyota vehicles in Qatar organised a product workshop for their Top Fleet Customers at Banana Island recently.

AAB Fleet caters to organiza-tions of all sizes from corporate customers, leasing & rental com-panies, Trading & Contracting Companies, FMCG companies as well as Government organization. Toyota vehicles are well known

for its Product superiority in terms of Quality, Durability and Relia-bility and hence it enjoys tre-mendous trust among the cus-tomers worldwide. Toyota with its largest line-up of 20 models caters to all segments of the society be it Sedans, SUVs or Commercial Vehicles.

Welcoming the guests, R. K. Murugan, ACEO, AAB, thanked the customers for their loyalty and trust shown on AAB and Toyota vehicles. K S Ravikumar, Fleet Sales Manager started his pres-entation with a video showing

history of Toyota Motor Corpo-ration and also gave a detailed explanation on Toyota Hybrid Electric Vehicles, advantages these vehicles offers to the business owners in terms of savings on fuel, total cost of own-ership as well as the driving comfort.

The invited guests also took the opportunity to thank Abdullah Abdulghani & Bros. Co. management for their support and shared their feedbacks on the products and services offered by AAB.

The participants at the AAB product workshop pose for a group photo after the event.

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The surgical robot

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images inside the

patient’s body.

05TUESDAY 25 DECEMBER 2018 HOME

HBKU discusses refugee ethics, prophetic traditions & cyber-muftisTHE PENINSULA DOHA

Hamad Bin Khalifa University’s (HBKU) College of Islamic Studies (CIS) continues to engage in global academic conversations on issues and concepts pertaining to Islam and Muslim societies.

Throughout the month of December, the college actively participated in conferences held in England, Germany, and Spain, where faculty members delivered presentations or presented papers, offering their perspectives on Islamic thought and current devel-opments in the Islamic world.

Dr Rajai Ray Jureidini, pro-fessor at CIS, and Dr Hossam Mohammed, senior researcher at CIS, presented their paper on Ummah and the Nation State: Dilemmas in Refuge Ethics during the Fourth International Conference on Migrants and Ref-ugees in the Law, hosted by the Universidad Católica San Antonio de Murcia at the Monastery of Los Jerónimos in Murcia, Spain,

on December 12-14. The paper analyses Islamic

ethics and principles in the treatment of ‘foreigners’, ‘guests’, and ‘asylum-seekers,’ and uses Syrian refugees as a case study to analyze historical policies and

practices of Muslim-majority countries in relation to visas and border controls.

Dr. Emad El-Din Shahin, dean of CIS, said: “The College of Islamic Studies continually pursues inter-national collaborations which

present an opportunity to engage the global community in dialogue and knowledge exchange on a range of topics that encompass Islamic thought. Our recent par-ticipation in numerous interna-tional conferences saw faculty

members imparting their knowledge on various subjects addressing current and emerging trends in Islamic studies and affairs.”

CIS also participated in a con-ference entitled Hadith and Inner-Islamic Pluralism held by the Eberhard Karls University of Tübingen in Germany on December 7-8. Dr Muetaz Al-Khatib, assistant professor at CIS, explored the topic of Hadith and Plurality of Methodologies: Can Hadith be Approached without Discipline Biases? In his talk, Dr. Al Khatib analysed the theory and practice of hadith criticism (ta‘lil) among hadith critics and jurists across various legal schools.

During the Future of Salafism conference held by Oxford Uni-versity’s Changing Structures of Islamic Authority (CSIA) on December 5-7, Dr Alexandre Caeiro, assistant professor, and Youssof Salhein, recent graduate of CIS’s Master’s in Islamic Studies program, took part in a panel dis-cussion entitled Moderation and

Method of Salafi Reasoning. Throughout the session, they offered their insights on their paper titled Moderate Salafism in a Modernizing State: The Herme-neutical Approaches of Islamweb’s Cyber-Muftis. The paper examines how cyber-muftis who work at Islamweb apply the concept of moderation (wasatiyya) as a political virtue and a methodo-logical tool in their fatwas.

The College of Islamic Studies serves as a hub for contemporary Islamic studies that promotes dia-logue on ideas concerning Islam. The college offers five post-graduate degree programs, and houses several distinguished research centers, providing its stu-dents and researchers with the opportunity to engage in current issues with scholars and thought leaders from around the world.

As one of five established col-leges within HBKU, CIS is com-mitted to furthering the Univer-sity’s institutional pillars, which are centered on people, partners, innovation, and excellence.

Dr Rajai Ray Jureidini, professor at CIS, and Dr Hossam Mohammed, senior researcher at CIS, presented their paper at the Universidad Católica San Antonio de Murcia at the Monastery of Los Jerónimos in Murcia, Spain.

QU workshop explores opportunities for collaboration in construction sectorTHE PENINSULA DOHA

The College of Engineering (CENG) at Qatar University, in collaboration with Constructing Excellence in Qatar (an Ashghal initiative) and sponsored by Qatari Diar, recently organized a special workshop for industry and academics entitled ‘Bridging the Gap’, aimed to identify opportu-nities for collaboration between academia and all key stake-holders in the construction industry.

The event worked to bridge the gap between the academic field and the industry, to discuss problems, issues, and challenges facing construction industry in Qatar. The workshop sought to build better connections between researchers and industry practi-tioners, and to identify areas of collaboration for future action research and education.

The event brought represent-atives from many private and government agencies. They had the opportunity to exchange their ideas and experiences on research and teaching areas related to con-struction. Subjects covered included safety, health and welfare, Lean delivery, digital and BIM, procurement and supply chain management.

The event was attended by Prof. Abdelmagid Hammuda (Acting Dean, CENG), Prof. Abbes Amira (Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Studies, CENG), Eng. Ahmad Ali Al Ansari (Technical Office Manager, Public Works Authority), Don Ward (Chief Executive, Constructing Excellence), Dr Abdulla Y Al Sayed (Chief Project Delivery Officer - Asia & Africa, Qatari Diar), Dr Luai M El Sabek (Head of Util-ities, Qatari Diar), faculty members, students, and repre-sentatives of public and private sectors. In all, over 130 people attended.

In his remarks, Prof. Hammuda said: “This event is part

of CENG’s commitment to rein-force relations with industrial stakeholders and push forward collaborations and joint initiatives in order to enhance CENG services that respond to indus-try’s requirements and needs.

It will further develop the progressive research efforts between both parties towards wider partnerships that benefit everyone.”

Don Ward of Constructing Excellence commented: “Any sus-tainable industry needs strong links with universities, and con-struction is no exception. This is an important start to help aca-demics and industry understand each others’ challenges and find

ways to work together for mutual benefit. We look forward to sup-porting this programme of activity.”

Dr Abdulla Y Al Sayed pre-sented an overview of local and international projects of Qatari Diar. He said: “I am proud to share with you the unique experience of implementing Lean Con-struction in Lusail City program since 2008 to advance the knowledge of project delivery processes from planning to operation.

The principles of Lean in con-struction were derived from Toyota Production Philosophy after reinterpretation of the theory to suit the peculiarities and dynamic nature of construction projects.” Dr El Sabek invited all academic and research institu-tions in Qatar to support this ini-tiative to bridge the gap between theory and practice.

He highlighted the impor-tance of introducing Lean Con-struction education and action research to support the com-munity and empower tomorrow’s engineers to achieve Qatar Vision 2030.

Dr Abdulla Y Al Sayed (Chief Project Delivery Officer – Asia & Africa, Qatari Diar) with Prof. Abdelmagid Hammuda, (Acting Dean, CENG).

Oryx GTL organises heritage ceremony for its staffTHE PENINSULA DOHA

Oryx GTL has organised a heritage ceremony for its employees at the Diplomatic Club attended by the executive management and a large number of employees.

The ceremony has started with performance of national anthem of the State of Qatar, fol-lowed by a video for the com-pany’s staff from various nation-alities who commemorated this cheerful occasion.

It is worth mentioning that Oryx GTL employs consist of

more than 34 different national-ities from all around the world.

Furthermore, the celebration hosted a variety of heritage events and activities by which the company aimed at introducing employees to the diverse cultures of this country. Among the events, a group of students from Qatar Primary School for Boys pre-sented the Ardah Parade (folk-loric dance), which impressed everyone. The Young Volunteer Center also participated with Oryx GTL in the celebration.

Besides, the ceremony included the amazing show of the

pearl diver singer ‘Al Nahham’. Ali Al Marri has impressed everyone in the ceremony with his melo-dious voice through his masterful performance of various kinds of the art of pearl diver singing.

We need to remember this type of tradition is rooted in our past. Our ancestors sang these songs when they were on their fishing trips or pearl-diving excursions, mostly to keep them-selves entertained.

The ceremony also included a series of competitions that has got positive audience reaction and brought joy and pleasure to them.

A heritage ceremony held by Oryx GTL at Diplomatic Club.

Ashghal announces temporary closure on Orbital RoadTHE PENINSULA DOHA

The Public Works Authority, ‘Ashghal’, has announced a temporary traffic diversion of the southeast ramp at Umm Al Afaei Interchange on the Orbital Road that will be implemented for a period of one month starting today in order to carryout excavation and maintenance works of water pipes by Qatar General Electricity and Water Corporation (Kahramaa). During the period of the closure, that has been designed in coordination with the General Directorate of Traffic, road users coming from Salwa Road and heading towards Doha, can continue straight until reaching Umm Al Juwashin Interchange, and take the southeast free right exit towards Doha, as shown in the attached map.

All road users heading to Umm Al Afaei petrol

station, should remain on the main carriageway, follow the same route and use the first exit loop at Umm Al Juwashin Interchange, in order to access the petrol station.

The workshop sought

to build better

connections between

researchers and

industry practitioners,

and to identify areas of

collaboration for future

action research and

education.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (centre) chairs a Cabinet meeting at Presidential Complex in Ankara, Turkey, yesterday.

06 TUESDAY 25 DECEMBER 2018MIDDLE EAST

Turkish Armed Forces’ armoured military vehicles are being dispatched to support the units at the Syrian border in Kilis, yesterday in Hatay, Turkey.

Syrian fighters prepare to replace US forcesAP BEIRUT

Turkish-backed Syrian fighters are preparing to deploy in eastern Syria alongside Turkish troops once American forces withdraw, a spokesman said yesterday, adding that his forces have begun massing on the front line of a town held by Kurdish-led forces.

Meanwhile, a Syrian Kurdish official said her group is reaching out for help to protect the Kurdish-administered areas against a possible Turkish offensive following the US withdrawal.

“We will deal with whoever can protect the good and stability of this country,” said Ilham Ahmed, a senior Kurdish official.

Ahmed said her group is dis-cussing with the Russians, the Syrian government and European countries ways to deal with the US withdrawal. She didn’t elaborate.

US President Donald Trump has said the withdrawal from Syria will be slow and coordi-nated with Turkey, without pro-viding a timetable.

Turkey said the two coun-tries are coordinating to ensure there is no “authority vacuum”

once the US troops leave.A Kurdish-led force captured

much of northern and eastern Syria from the Islamic State group with the help of the US-led coalition. Turkey views the Kurdish fighters as terrorists because of their links to a Kurdish insurgent group inside Turkey.

A Pentagon spokesman, Navy Cmdr. Sean Robertson, said the execute order for withdrawal from Syria has been signed but provided no further details.

Youssef Hammoud, of the Turkey-backed Syrian oppo-sition forces, said their fighters and weapons have been deploying on the front line with Manbij, a Kurdish-administered town in northern Syria where US troops are based.

Turkey’s state-run Anatolia agency reported that Turkey-backed Syrian forces had moved closer to Manbij, equipped with heavy weapons and armoured vehicles.

Manbij was at the centre of an agreement the US and Turkey reached in June under which Kurdish forces were to withdraw. In recent weeks Turkey had said the US was dragging its feet in implementing the deal and had vowed to launch a new offensive

against the Kurds.Those threats, and a phone

call with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan last week, appear to have triggered Trump’s decision to withdraw all 2,000 US forces based in Syria.

Hammoud said there is “no alternative” except Turkish forces and allied Syrian fighters. He said up to 15,000 Syrian fighters trained in Turkey are ready to take part in the oper-ation. He said the initial focus was on Manbij and areas just across the nearby Euphrates River.

“We are ready to fight Daesh,” said Hammoud, using the Arabic acronym for IS. But the extremists are largely con-fined to a remote desert enclave hundreds of miles to the southeast of Manbij.

Hammoud said they are now preparing to take on Manbij, adding that deploying to areas to the south will come later.

The spokesman for the Kurdish-led Manbij Military Council, Sharfan Darwish, said his forces “have taken measures to fend off any attack.” Turkey’s armed forces have led two offen-sives into Syria since 2016 to push Islamic State militants and Kurdish forces back from the border.

The Kurdish-led forces still control around 30 percent of Syria, mostly in the east, including some of the richest oil fields. The Kurdish militia has expressed shock at the US decision to withdraw, and now faces a triple threat from Turkey, the Syrian government and IS.

Ahmed, the senior Syrian Kurdish official, had just returned from a trip to France in which she called on Paris to play a larger role in Syria following the withdrawal of US troops, warning that the main Kurdish militia may no longer be able to hold the hundreds of IS militants held in prisons in northeastern

UN ceasefire monitor head visits HodeidaAFP HODEIDA

The head of the United Nations team tasked with monitoring a fragile ceasefire in the flash-point city of Hodeida yesterday visited its lifeline docks, a port official said.

Retired Dutch general Patrick Cammaert called on Saudi-backed government forces and Iran-linked Houthi rebels to respect the hard-won truce, Hodeida port deputy director Yehya Sharafeddin said. “The (UN) official promised us that the war will end,” Sharafeddin said after Cammaert visited the docks, through which the majority of imports and humanitarian aid enter Yemen.

“He said the Yemen war had been forgotten for years but that the international com-munity is now adamant about ending it,” Sharafeddin added.

Cammaert is heading a joint committee including members of the government and the Houthis, in charge of moni-toring the truce in the vital Red Sea city and its surroundings that began on December 18.

Cammaert arrived in Hodeida from the rebel-held capital Sana’a, after meeting with government officials in Aden. Yemen’s warring sides agreed on the ceasefire to halt a devastating offensive by gov-ernment forces and an allied Saudi-led coalition against rebel-held Hodeida at peace talks in Sweden this month.

According to the UN Cam-maert will chair a meeting of the joint committee tomorrow.

That meeting will be “one

of the priorities” of Cammaert’s mission, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said on Sunday.

“General Cammaert is encouraged by the general enthusiasm of both sides to get to work, immediately,” he added.

The UN Security Council unanimously approved a reso-lution authorising the deployment of observers to Hodeida to monitor the truce.

Sharafeddin said that Cam-maert “stressed the importance of implementing the agreement” and will visit “bat-tlefronts (in the city) at a later time”. The ceasefire, the result of intense diplomatic efforts led by the UN, has remained shaky with both sides accusing each other of violations in Hodeida province.

Coalition spokesman Turki Al Maliki said that the Houthi rebels have violated the truce agreement 138 times since it came into effect.

The latest Security Council resolution on Yemen “puts the Huthi militias under interna-tional pressure”, he said during a press conference in Riyadh.

The UN team aims to secure the functioning of Hodeida port and supervise the withdrawal of fighters from the city. The text approved by the Security Council “insists on the full respect by all parties of the ceasefire agreed” for Hodeida. It authorises the United Nations to “establish and deploy, for an initial period of 30 days from the adoption of this resolution, an advance team to begin mon-itoring” the ceasefire, under Cammaert’s leadership.

Residents of Taiz hope for peace after truceANATOLIA TAIZ

Residents of the war-ravaged city of Taiz, Yemen’s largest city after Sana’a and Aden, are hoping life will return to normal in the wake of a recent ceasefire deal signed between the government and Houthi rebels.

Anatolia Agency visited Taiz’s Jahmaliyyah district, which was massively damaged in recent clashes between the two warring parties in south-western Yemen.

Buildings in areas once con-trolled by the rebels and the IS terrorist group — along with much local infrastructure — have been reduced to rubble, while most residents have fled the area.

Basic needs, including water and electricity, are in short supply, while the children lack access to education.

Jahmaliyyah resident Riyad Abdullah Abdulhamid said he, along with seven relatives, had lived in the neighbourhood a long time.

According to Abdulhamid, the area used to be stable —albeit impoverished — before the war.

Residents, he said, had borne the brunt of the crisis, including acute food shortages.

“With the outbreak of the war, our neighbourhood was severely affected,” he said. “Electricity and water were cut, and due to explosives placed underground, our infrastructure and sewer system collapsed.”

“Most residents were forced to leave, as it had become a warzone,” he added. “We returned home in 2016 after Jah-maliyyah was liberated [from the Houthis].” But clashes con-tinued to erupt intermittently,

Abdulhamid said, even though government forces had gained control of the area.

“We were seeing up to 70 bombings per day carried out by the Houthis and Daesh,” he recalled. “The latter were trying

to show the world that Jahmal-iyyah was under its total control.”

“At that time, the Houthis were using our neighborhood as a headquarters,” he said. “Firing randomly, the Houthis at one point attempted to drive Daesh from the area.”

Abdulhamid went on to urge the Turkish Red Crescent to con-tinue sending humanitarian aid to the Yemeni people, with whom, he pointed out, Turkey had shared deep bonds since the Ottoman era.

Mohamed Al Amiri, another Jahmaliyyah resident who sus-tained a bullet wound to his head earlier this year during one of the clashes, thanked Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the Turkish people for their

continued largesse.Yemen has been dogged by

conflict since 2014, when Houthi rebels overran much of the country, including capital Sana’a, forcing the government to take up temporary residence in the coastal city of Aden.

The following year, Saudi Arabia and several of its Arab allies launched a massive air campaign in Yemen aimed at retaking Houthi-held territory on behalf of the country’s pro-Saudi government.

The campaign has devas-tated much of Yemen’s basic infrastructure, including health and sanitation systems, prompting the UN to describe the situation as “one of the worst humanitarian disasters of modern times”.

Soldiers take security measures at the Al Jamaliya neighbourhood of Taiz governorate, in south-western Yemen.

Turkey pursues freedom of Arabs, Kurds in Syria: ErdoganANATOLIA ANKARA

Turkey pursues the freedom of the Arabs and the Kurds with its presence in Syria, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said yesterday.

“We consider the security and peace of the Arabs in Syria as our own business. We see the problems of the Kurds as our own,” Erdogan told a cer-emony at the Presidential

Complex in capital Ankara.Turkey also regards the

security and the peace of the Turkmens as its own business, the President said.

He added: “Why have we presence in Syria now? To give the freedom of our Arab and Kurdish brothers there back, not that of terror groups.”

Erdogan went on to say: “In Syria, it is a matter of freedom and its territorial integrity.” Turkey will not

leave Syrian Kurds at the mercy of the terrorist PKK/PYD, as it didn’t leave the Arabs to the hands IS terror group, he said.

In its more than 30-year terror campaign against Turkey, the PKK — listed as a terrorist organisation by Turkey, the US and the EU —has been responsible for the deaths of nearly 40,000 people, including women and children.

Syria in case of a Turkish attack.“I urge Trump to go back on

his decision inciting Erdogan against the Syrian people in general and the Kurdish people in specific and I call on him to

return the favour,” she said. Hundreds of Kurdish fighters died in the fight against IS.

Trump has claimed to have defeated IS, but the Kurdish fighters are still battling the

extremists in the remote town of Hajin near the Iraqi border. The Britain-based Syrian Observ-atory for Human Rights said the fighting displaced nearly 1,000 civilians on Sunday alone.

Residents of the

war-ravaged city of

Taiz, Yemen’s largest

city after Sana’a and

Aden, are hoping

life will return to

normal in the wake

of a recent ceasefire

deal signed between

the government and

Houthi rebels.

07TUESDAY 25 DECEMBER 2018 MIDDLE EAST / AFRICA

Togo President’s party wins majorityAFP LOME

Togo President Faure Gnass-ingbe’s (pictured) party won most seats in parliamentary elections, according to provisional results yesterday, in polls overshadowed by pre-ballot clashes and an opposition boycott.

But the party will need support from other legislators to secure a fourth-fifths majority for constitutional change giving Gnassingbe the chance of staying in power beyond 2020.

His Union for the Republic (UNIR) won 59 of the 91 National Assembly seats in the December 20 legislative polls, the provisional results said.

The closely-watched election in the small West African state saw the 14-party opposition coalition, C-14, refuse to take part, con-demning the playing field as skewed. “The coalition and the people have rejected any notion of elections in the prevailing con-ditions,” Nathaniel Olympio, head of the Party of the Togolese, said. “The results don’t correspond to the wishes of the Togolese who

didn’t take part,” he added. “The struggle continues and will get even tougher after these elec-tions.” The provisional figures will now head to the Constitutional Court, which will have a week to proclaim definitive results after discussing any challenges. The vote went ahead last Thursday after a year of political upheaval which saw demonstrators demanding Gnassingbe step down during dozens of marches, some-times with a large turnout.

Gnassingbe has been in power since 2005 after suc-ceeding his father, General Gnassingbe Eyadema, who ruled

the country for 38 years.Earlier this month, at least

four people were killed when opposition supporters and security forces clashed in the capital Lome and several other cities. The opposition put the figure at six dead.

UNIR previously held 62 seats and had hoped to secure 73, the threshold for passing laws unchal-lenged, including changes to the constitution paving the way for Gnassingbe to run for office in 2020 and 2025.

The ruling party’s 59 seats were thus below its target but it will be supported by its main ally, the Union of Change Forces (UFC) of former opposition leader Gil-christ Olympio, who has six MPs. Other independent MPs can also lend support.

A total of 850 candidates for 12 political parties, plus inde-pendents, took part in the election.

The official turnout was about 60 percent of registered voters. Before the vote, opposition parties had called for an overhaul of the electoral commission, more trans-parency and constitutional reforms to limit the number of

presidential terms.Observers from the African

Union (AU) and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) said the election had been held properly.

From the Nigerian capital Abuja, regional leaders on Sat-urday commended the “free and transparent” nature of the vote, which corresponded with their roadmap to end crisis in Togo.

But they added they “strongly regretted” the opposition’s boycott, which took place “in spite of the considerable efforts made by facilitators to promote inclusive elections.” ECOWAS, through mediators Ghana and Guinea, had pushed for elections to be held by the year’s end.

But the recommendation was dismissed by the opposition as rushed, failing in particular to address flaws in the electoral commission. “ECOWAS made a mistake of not appreciating the socio-political situation in Togo and prescribed elections instead of reforms,” said Raphael Kpande-Adzare, spokesman for the FCTD, an umbrella organisation of civil society groups.

Libya recovers 34 bodies from IS mass graveREUTERS TRIPOLI

The bodies of 34 Ethiopian Christians executed in Libya by Islamic State (IS) in 2015 have been exhumed from a mass grave, Libyan author-ities said yesterday.

The grave was unearthed on Sunday, after information was obtained during investi-gations of arrested IS members, the interior minis-try’s Criminal Investigation Department (CID) said on its Facebook page.

A video posted on social media in April 2015 appeared to show IS militants shooting and beheading the Christians, who were wearing orange jumpsuits, on a beach.

The CID displayed drone images of the mass grave, which appeared to be on a farm near the coastal city of Sirte.

The bodies will be repat-riated to Ethiopia once “domestic and interntional legal procedures are com-pleted”, it said. Hundreds of thousands of people have migrated from sub-Saharan Africa to Libya in recent years, many hoping to even-tually reach Europe.

Islamic State took control of Sirte, the hometown of Libya’s former leader Muammar Qaddafi, in 2015 and lost the city late in 2016 to local forces backed by US air strikes.

Somali death toll rises to 26 from weekend blasts in capitalAP MOGADISHU

The death toll rose to 26 from Saturday’s twin bombings in Somalia’s capital, police and hospital sources said yesterday.

The number rose because several victims of the suicide car blast near the rear entrance of

the presidential palace died in hospitals in Mogadishu, said Capt. Mohamed Hussein. The toll could rise further as several of the 20 wounded have serious injuries.

Among the dead were seven soldiers who were escorting a government official through a checkpoint on their way to the presidential palace.

Elite force formed in Ethiopia to protect leadersAFP ADDIS ABABA

An elite force has been created in Ethiopia responsible for protecting officials including Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed (pictured) , after a deadly blast while he addressed a crowd in June, Fana radio said.

Troops in the new Republican Guard unit began training six months ago for “protecting higher

government officials and their family, from any form of aggression by ill-intentioned forces,” Fana announced on its website. The formation of the spe-cialised unit followed the explosion of a hand grenade in the middle of a huge crowd of people who had gathered in the capital Addis Ababa to hear Abiy speak on June 23. Two people were killed and scores injured.

Some observers believe the prime minister was the intended target of the grenade attack, but he was not harmed. After taking office in April, Abiy gained public support with promises of reform to promote national unity after years of hardline rule. He has freed thousands of jailed dissi-dents and journalists and cemented peace with neigh-bouring Eritrea, after a 1998-2000

war that left a legacy of distrust. Ethiopia had an Imperial Guard during the reign of Emperor Haile Selassie, but that military unit was disbanded after he was ousted in an army coup in September 1974.

A recent upsurge in the ethnic confrontations in Addis Ababa in remote regions has aroused fears that the second most populous nation in Africa after Nigeria faces renewed violence.

In South Africa, ousted president speaks his mind on TwitterAP JOHANNESBURG

He’s back. Tarnished by scandal, former South African president Jacob Zuma (pictured) resigned in February after his own ruling party turned against him. Then old corruption charges against him were reinstated, seemingly sealing his downfall.

But now Zuma has ramped up his profile, popping up on Twitter in a robust pushback against his many critics. Some backers reportedly nominated him for a seat in parliament after elections in 2019. For now, 76-year-old Zuma appears focused on rehabilitating his image and paying legal fees. Yet his continuing appeal to a staunch base of supporters, mainly in his home province of KwaZulu-Natal, reflects conflicted attitudes in South Africa, where many say the former leader dragged down the country with him.

Further, Zuma personifies the divi-sions and vulnerabilities of the governing African National Congress, which led the

fight against white minority rule but lost its shine because of alleged misman-agement and corruption.

While South Africa’s political and gov-ernment leaders reduce activities during the holiday period, Zuma is making announcements and public appearances.

On Sunday, he posted two videos on Twitter in which he said he had instructed his lawyers to appeal a court ruling that he should reimburse the state for legal funds used to fight corruption allegations in the past decade. Court judgments must be respected, but this particular one was contradictory, said Zuma, who looked relaxed and wore a white shirt with gold trimming along one side.

“I just thought I should make those comments for all to know how I feel,” Zuma said in the folksy, disarming style that he used to fend off accusations for so many years.

The ex-president, who was jailed for 10 years in the same island prison where

Nelson Mandela was held during apartheid, has tapped into the view of many black South Africans who think the white minority got away with too many privileges, including economic power, and not enough punishment. He also has the sympathy of factions with the ANC that

want to raise money for Zuma, even though he is blamed for a slide in the party’s popularity.

“We are owning up to this particular matter,” party spokesman Dakota Legoete said on state broadcaster SABC, one of a number of public enterprises struggling with financial and management problems that escalated during Zuma’s tenure.

“Members of the ANC, either through donations and through other forms, they can assist our former president, both as the leader of the ANC and the former state president of the republic. I don’t foresee any problem,” Legoete said.

The former president has effectively campaigned for the ANC, telling people at one rally that they shouldn’t shun the party because of any mistake that he made. Zuma is also on casual terms with some key government figures.

“Welcome on board. Don’t forget to fasten seat belts,” Finance Minister Tito Mboweni tweeted after Zuma joined the social media platform this month.

At the same time, the rot at top levels of the South African government during Zuma’s presidency is being exposed on national television by a commission of inquiry investigating “state capture,” a local term that refers to the alleged looting of state coffers and manipulation of gov-ernment posts for personal gain. Led by a Constitutional Court judge, the com-mission does not have the power to pros-ecute but witnesses have testified that state enterprises were infiltrated by the Guptas, a business family with close ties to Zuma. The Guptas and the former pres-ident deny wrongdoing.

Zuma’s successor, President Cyril Ramaphosa, has vowed to fight corruption and his appointment of Shamila Batohi, a senior legal adviser at the International Criminal Court, as head of South Africa’s National Prosecuting Authority highlights his efforts to clean house. Yet some critics are impatient, saying anti-graft talk must be matched with prosecutions of senior officials.

Iraq appoints more ministers but govt still incompleteREUTERS BAGHDAD

Iraq’s Parliament approved yesterday two more ministers in Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi’s Cabinet but political divisions blocked his attempts to form a complete government as the defence, interior, and justice portfolios remain empty.

Intensifying disagreements between the rival Islah and Bina blocs, led by populist Shia cleric Moqtada Al Sadr and Iran-backed Hadi Al Amiri, have pre-vented the formation of a full government of 22 ministers.

Lawmakers were scheduled to vote on the final five remaining empty posts but managed only to approve Shaima Khalil as education minister and Nawfal Moussa as migration minister before the session descended into chaos.

Abdul Mahdi was confirmed as premier in October after months of political gridlock that followed an inconclusive May election. He was sworn in with only a partial Cabinet and has since been trying to get a full government up and running.

The post of interior minister has emerged as the biggest stumbling block over which parliament’s two biggest coa-litions are arguing.

Amiri’s bloc has repeatedly nominated Falih Fayadh, who once led the umbrella grouping of militias known as the Popular Mobilisation Forces. Sadr’s coalition has consist-

ently rejected him.Lawmakers allied with Sadr

walked out of the session when Speaker Mohammed Al Hal-bousi put forth Fayadh’s name for a vote, as they have done several times in the last few months, thus breaking quorum and ending the session. Hal-bousi said he would ask Abdul Mahdi to put forward a different name next time.

“We walked out of the session because we strongly reject holding a vote on Falih Fayadh as interior minister. We will never show leniency and our position is firm. No vote for partisan candidates,” said law-maker Jamal Fakhir.

The deadlock over forming a Cabinet has raised the prospect of further unrest as the country struggles to rebuild and recover after three years of war with Islamic State.

The prime minister faces the daunting task of rebuilding much of the country after that war, solving acute economic problems and coping with power and water shortages.

Revival of Iraqi railway

Political divisions

blocked Prime

Minister Adel Abdul

Mahdi’s attempts

to form a complete

government as the

defence, interior,

and justice portfolios

remain empty.

Iraqi passengers disembark from a train coming from Fallujah as it arrives in the city of Baghdad, yesterday. An important section of the Iraqi railway has been revived after IS is defeated from the city of Fallujah in Anbar province, about 70km west of the capital.

Regional allies

and advisers

convinced the

US president

that ISIL was

not completely

defeated, so he

agreed to give

the Pentagon

and State Depart-

ment another six

months to finish

the job, still re-

fusing to commit

to an open-ended

military presence

in Syria.

THE WASHINGTON POST

08 TUESDAY 25 DECEMBER 2018VIEWS

What would the US withdrawal from Syria mean for the region?

On December 19, Donald Trump made a move that took almost everybody, including members of his

own administration, off guard - he ordered a full, rapid withdrawal of over 2,000 US troops from Syria.

The president justified his decision by saying that the only reason US troops were in Syria was to defeat the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS) group, and now that this mission is accomplished, there is no reason for them to stay in the country.

Trump’s unexpected announcement, which underlined the continued absence of a clear and coherent US strategy in Syria and the wider Middle East, is likely to mark the start of a new period of conflict in the region.

Over the past few years, apart from defeating ISIL, the US has not been able to define clear political objectives in Syria.

Barack Obama was elected on a promise to reverse his predecessor George W Bush’s heavy military involvement in the Islamic world. He hence ordered the full withdrawal of US troops from Iraq at the end of 2011.

In June 2014, Mosul’s fall to ISIL forced Obama to get involved in Iraq once again. A US-led inter-national coa-lition to defeat ISIL and prevent it from estab-lishing a state across Syria and Iraq was formed. However, Obama was still reluctant to commit a large number of ground forces to this fight, so he relied on local proxies to fight ISIL.

In Iraq, Obama worked with

the Iraqi government, Kurdish Pesh-merga and Shia militias against ISIL. In Syria, the Syria Democratic Forces (SDF), the backbone of which is the Kurdish YPG, became America’s most reliable local ally against the armed group. The Obama administration trained, funded and equipped the Kurdish group despite strong

objections from Turkey, which con-siders the YPG a terror organisation.

Mainly as a result of the Obama administration’s reluctance to act as a hegemon, Syria’s conflict rapidly transformed into a full-blown proxy war. The unwillingness of the US to play a more active role in the conflict enabled regional powers - such as Turkey, Iran and Saudi Arabia - to step in and try to influence the course of events in Syria and the Levant at large. Russia also joined the fray in Sep-tember 2015, when it became abso-lutely clear that the US had become utterly uninterested in the outcome of the Syrian conflict.

When Trump moved into the White House in early 2017, despite his known disapproval of most of his predecessor’s policies, and the well-known reluctance of some members of his administration to end the US military presence in the Middle East, he chose to continue with Obama’s hands-off approach in the region.

And only a year later, he expressed his intention to go even further than Obama and order a full withdrawal of US troops from Syria.

Trump first announced that the US will be “coming out of Syria, like very soon” in March 2018. Regional allies and advisers convinced the US pres-ident that ISIL was not completely defeated, so he agreed to give the Pen-tagon and State Department another six months to finish the job, still refusing to commit to an open-ended military presence in Syria.

Implications for Syria and the region Now that the Trump adminis-tration officially announced its intention to leave Syria for good, regional powers who have been active participants in Syria’s war will likely increase their efforts to gain control of the areas that are currently under US control.

As things stand now, the US, through its Kurdish allies, controls approximately one-third of Syrian ter-ritory. These areas are justifiably dubbed by the media and analysts as

“useful Syria”: They contain Syria’s major oil and gas fields, main water resources, dams, power plants and most of its fertile land.

Regaining control over these terri-tories is of vital importance for Russia. Moscow lacks the funds to sustain major reconstruction efforts in post-conflict Syria, without which its costly military achievements - defeating the opposition and securing the regime of President Bashar Al Assad - would be hollow. It also wants to be financially rewarded for its military support of the Syrian regime. Hence it had long been eyeing the oil and gas fields that are currently under US control. Now that the US is leaving, Russia will do everything necessary to be the power that fills this vacuum.

Iran is also interested in the US-controlled Syrian territories, albeit for completely different reasons. Since the US invasion of Iraq in 2003, Iran has been working hard to establish a “Shia Crescent” from western Afghanistan to the Mediterranean Sea. The US with-drawal from Iraq in 2011 brought Iran one step closer towards achieving that goal. Yet, the rise of ISIL and the loss of a huge swath of territories in eastern Syria and western Iraq to the group denied Iran the possibility of keeping a land corridor open from Tehran to Damascus and to Hezbollah in Lebanon. Iran supported the US war on ISIL and even sought membership in the international coalition against the armed group, with the expectation that the US will leave the region once this fight is over. Now that the US is doing just that, Iran will resume its efforts to have the trans-Syria land corridor reo-pened by trying to increase its influence over northeast Syria.

The US decision to leave north-eastern Syria will also cause problems for Israel. In September, a Russian spy plane was downed by Syrian regime forces after Israeli jets used it for cover during attacks in Syria. The incident caused Moscow to downgrade its cooperation with Israel in Syria. As a result,

MARWAN KABALAN AL JAZEERA

QUOTE OF THE DAY

The US cannot ask us to send troops to

Syria; there has been no request in this

regard. Only the Iraqi government — not the

US — can take such a momentous decision.

Adil Abdul-Mahdi

Iraqi Prime Minister

We succeeded in Syria. Now it’s time to leave.

The day Donald Trump became commander in chief, he immediately made the effort to destroy the reprehensible

Islamic State caliphate in Syria a pri-ority. He has shown that he will never be a president who talks tough about red lines with little accompanying action.

While still a candidate, Trump took a clear-eyed view on the use of mil-itary force, including the need to fight the Islamic State on its home ground. His intent was to retake the caliphate’s capital (the Syrian city of Raqqa), defeat its ground forces and put its leaders on the run. As president, Trump outlined a strategic effort tai-lored to minimize American boots on the ground and to succeed where others did not. The results speak for themselves. Raqqa is no longer under Islamic State control, the caliphate ended and its remaining senior leaders are hiding in the shadows as we

continue to hunt them. When we find them, we will kill them.

As a nation, we have borne a large share of the operational load in this effort, including advising, training, fighting, providing logistical support and financing the fight against the Islamic State in Syria. With support on the ground from other allies, including France, the UK and Syrian Democratic Forces, we have succeeded. It is time to shift the fight to a different footing.

Fighting terrorism in all its forms is a critical mission, and we are not abandoning that fight. But we cannot continue to be distracted by protracted conflicts in the Middle East. We will fight at places and times of our choosing. We face larger existential threats to our nation in the form of a resurgent Russia, expanding Chinese interference and the continued threat from North Korea. These threats to our nation are clear, while protracted wars of the Middle East are a drain on our national blood and treasure.

Perpetual war is not the American

way of war. Our people deserve better than constant conflict. Those who argue that war is a perpetual con-tinuum fail to honor our sacred duty to our military. Wars should be the exception, not the norm; our men and women in uniform need to know they will be used when needed and sup-ported to their fullest. They will not be used in little-known or forgotten con-flicts that slowly fall away from the national consciousness.

Our involvement in Syria has been one such conflict, forgotten by those who ignored the initial warning signs in that country. We were slow to pick up that Islamic State leadership had moved to Syria after Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi declared the creation of the caliphate in 2014. Forgotten by those who overlooked the creation of an Islamic State caliphate. Forgotten by those who let its thuggish leaders hide in plain sight. And forgotten by those who halfheartedly committed our armed forces without clear direction or purpose.

Like in all sectors,

Qatar has got a

vision in energy

sector too and

is powered by a

future oriented

and well-

structured action

plan. Qatar has

been moving

with the world

in making the

nuclear energy

dreams a reality

and it’s not a

distant dream that

Qatar becoming a

master of this.

CHAIRMANSHEIKH THANI BIN ABDULLAH AL THANI

EDITOR-IN-CHIEFDR. KHALID BIN MUBARAK AL-SHAFIeditorinchief@pen.com.qa

ACTING MANAGING EDITORMOHAMMED SALIM MOHAMEDm.salim@pen.com.qa

DEPUTY MANAGING EDITORMOHAMMED OSMAN ALI osman@pen.com.qa

ESTABLISHED IN 1996

EDITORIALEnergy of future

The world needs energy. Energy brings development; and alternative to development is poverty, diseases, famine, sufferings and death. So, a nation without development

means widespread insecurity. This is the key reason why the international bodies have been calling for increased energy production to meet the global needs to ensure national and global security.

It’s a challenging task to meet the energy needs by reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The potential of renewable source of energies, like wind, solar, biomass etc, is limited. Here comes the significance of nuclear energy and studies have repeatedly shown that it’s a low-emitting source and cost-effective. According to a report, almost all studies on future energy supply from global organisations suggest an expanded role for nuclear power.

Taking cognizance of the global nuclear energy call, the State of Qatar has affirmed its keen interest in benefiting from the peaceful applications of nuclear energy, for the prosperity and improvement of the quality of life, stressing the impor-tance attached to this energy in the implementation of the Sus-tainable Development Plan 2030, which has comprehensive goals that balance the three dimensions of sustainable devel-opment — economic, social and environmental.

The nation is also well aware of the threats posed by this form of energy and moves only in line with the path that ensures utmost safety and security. Qatar warned that the expansion of nuclear power plants, especially in some countries that have over-stated their contracts in recent years to build many nuclear power plants at a time when their infra-structure, national expertise, reg-ulatory frameworks and safety personnel have not been com-pleted, could create legitimate concerns about the safety and security of energy reactors.

At the International Ministerial Conference on Science and Nuclear Technology organised by the Inter-national Atomic Energy Agency, the Acting Charge d’Affaires in the Qatari Embassy in Vienna, Abdullah bin Nasser Al Fahid, high-lighted the keen interest of Qatar in benefiting from the peaceful applications of nuclear energy, because of the prosperity and improvement of the quality of life that can be achieved through these applications, adding that the State is actively working to establish its scientific, research and legal base

in the field of nuclear energy in order to be able to keep pace with the latest technologies. Qatar’s commitment in this regard is evident in its statements at various global bodies. The nation admitted the fact that nuclear science and technology are among the most important technologies of this age because it can make a broad contribution to the development of various fields of life and make an effective contribution to the implementation of the 17 sustainable development goals embodied in the 2030 Sustainable Development Plan.

Like in all sectors, Qatar has got a vision in energy sector too and is powered by a future oriented and well-structured action plan. Qatar has been moving with the world in making the nuclear energy dreams a reality and it’s not a distant dream that Qatar becoming a master of this.

Children playing among destroyed buildings in Arbin, Syria.

A UN panel of experts

said in 2016 that the

Houthis had used land

mines in their retreat

from the southern city

of Aden. Since 2016,

land mines and other

explosives planted

by the Houthis have

killed at least 222

civilians and wounded

others in 114 incidents,

according to ACLED.

“Mines have caused a

huge problem,” Baoum

said. “It’s OK for an

army person to be

injured during battle

or to be hit by a mine,

but for a child to be

hit while she’s in the

field or on the way to

fetch water, that’s a

tragedy.”

09TUESDAY 25 DECEMBER 2018 OPINION

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Who will protect the country now?

Land mines will be hidden killer in Yemen decades after war

JON GAMBRELL & MALAK HARB AP

WASHINGTON POST

Many people who viewed Donald Trump as unpre-pared and temperamen-tally ill-suited to be pres-

ident initially reassured themselves

that a sober-minded Republican majority in Congress would restrain him. Speaker Paul Ryan’s, R-Wis., pit-iable farewell this last week spot-lighted the emptiness of those hopes. Ryan allowed the president and his allies to corrupt the House Intelli-gence Committee and treat federal law enforcement as an enemy. Like Senate Majority Leader Mitch McCo-nnell, R-Ky., and most other osten-sible GOP leaders, Ryan abetted the president as he sought, fruitlessly, to use fear and bigotry to preserve the House Republican majority in the 2018 elections. Fittingly, Ryan’s final act this last week was to indulge the president’s capricious decision to shut down the government rather than accept a budget compromise.

The second line of defense was going to be the “grown-ups” in the

administration: Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, national security adviser H.R. McMaster, economic adviser Gary Cohn, UN Ambassador Nikki Haley, intelligence chief Daniel Coats. These are people who understand the value of alliances, the risks of trade wars, the even more unspeakable risks of real wars. Over the past two years, they did at times restrain the president’s worst impulses - in ways we know and likely in ways we have yet to learn.

But with Mattis’ announcement this last week that he will step down in February, almost all the “grown-ups” will be gone. More to the point, the stimulus for the defense chief’s decision - Trump’s impetuous decision to withdraw all US troops from Syria and many from Afghan-istan - seems to show that the pres-ident believes he no longer needs advice, if he ever did. “I watch the shows,” he once said when asked where he turns for military counsel. The country seems now at the mercy of Trump and whatever he has heard most recently on Fox News.

The peril does not stem primarily from Trump’s wrongheadedness on issues, though we do disagree with him on most things. We believe the sudden withdrawal from Syria will embolden Iran, delight Russia, allow the Islamic State to spring back, endanger tens of thousands of civilians and teach other opponents of Islamist terrorism never again to trust the United States. But counterargu-ments could be made: that in Syria, US troops are being put in harm’s way

without a clear mission; that 17 years is long enough in Afghanistan; and so on.

But Trump initiated no process to weigh those arguments before aston-ishing allies, Congress and his own staff with his flip-flop. He apparently did not consider that he would sab-otage his own ambassador’s negotia-tions with the Taliban, which, for the first time, seemed promising. Put simply, he still does not know, and clearly does not care to learn, how the government of a major power should operate.

So what now? A third line of defense was hoped to be the other institutions of democracy - the courts, media, civil society more broadly - and norms built up over decades and centuries. In some heartening ways, they have held. But when the pres-ident can install an aggressively unqualified yes-man as acting attorney general, and when that appointee can simply ignore qualified ethics advice, it becomes clear how tenuous these norms can be.

Which brings us back to the first line of defense. Congress is the Article 1 power for a reason. The Constitution grants it awesome powers over war and peace, appointments, budgeting, trade and, in extreme circumstances, impeachment. By practice it has ceded much of its authority in recent years, and its muscles have gone flabby. Given the dangers ahead, the country’s only hope may be for Con-gress, in a responsible but determined way, to begin exercising those muscles again.

They lurk under shifting desert sands, amid the debris of urban roadsides and inside abandoned schools, some set

to go off at the lightest touch.Land mines scattered by Yemen’s

Houthi rebels are largely unmapped and will remain a threat even if the latest push for peace succeeds in halting the conflict, those involved in their eradication say.

While the Houthis’ use of Scud and other retrofitted ballistic missiles has drawn attention for striking deep inside Saudi Arabia, their widespread use of mines represents a risk for gen-erations to come in the Arab world’s poorest country.

“Mines today exist in every single area of Yemen,” Ousama al-Gosaibi, the program manager for the Saudi-funded Masam demining project, told The Associated Press during a trip to the southern city of Aden organized by the Saudi military. “It’s not being used as a defensive (or) offensive mechanism. It’s being used to ter-rorize the local population across Yemen.”

A Houthi official acknowledged the rebels widely use mines, but said Saudi-led airstrikes have left behind ordinance that is just as deadly.

Yemen’s war pits the Iran-aligned Houthis against the internationally recognized government, which is backed by a coalition led by Saudi Arabia and supported on the ground by the United Arab Emirates.

More than 60,000 people have been killed in the war since 2016,

according to the US-based Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project, or ACLED, which tracks the conflict. The fighting has displaced 2 million, spawned a cholera epidemic and pushed the country to the brink of famine. Millions wake up hungry each day, not knowing from where their next meal will come. Many civilian deaths in the war have been blamed on Saudi-led airstrikes, which have hit markets, health facilities and weddings.

Among the dangers facing com-batants and civilians alike are land mines. The Houthis looted gov-ernment armories when they cap-tured much of northern Yemen, including vast stockpiles of anti-tank mines. Anti-personnel mines also litter the country, despite the gov-ernment joining a 1997 international convention banning their use.

A UN panel of experts said in 2016 that the Houthis had used land mines in their retreat from the southern city of Aden. Since 2016, land mines and other explosives planted by the Houthis have killed at least 222 civilians and wounded others in 114 incidents, according to ACLED.

“Due to the difficulty of obtaining accurate estimates, these figures are likely to make up a fraction of all mine detonations involving civilians in Yemen,” ACLED said.

Making things worse is the fact that a third of all health facilities in Yemen are closed, said Nasser Baoum, the government’s health minister.

“Mines have caused a huge

problem,” Baoum said. “It’s OK for an army person to be injured during battle or to be hit by a mine, but for a child to be hit while she’s in the field or on the way to fetch water, that’s a tragedy.”

Al-Gosaibi accused the Houthis of reconfiguring anti-tank mines that previously needed over 100 kilograms (220 pounds) of pressure to detonate so that they require less than 10 kilo-grams (22 pounds) - meaning a child could trigger the explosive.

Yahia Al Houthi, the former director of the Yemen Executive Mine Action Center, a Houthi-controlled de-mining center, acknowledged the rebels use anti-tank mines but denied tampering with them to target indi-viduals. He also claimed the Houthis never used anti-personnel mines, despite widespread evidence to the contrary.

Brig. Gen. Yahia Al Sarie, a Houthi officer, said the rebels only use land mines on the battlefield and not in civilian areas. “This is a war, so what do you expect us to do? Receive the other side with flowers?” He said the rebels had mapped the mines and would be able to remove them “in no time” once the fighting ends.

Al Gosaibi accuses the Houthis of using Iran-supplied technology like infrared sensors and of adopting Iranian tactics like hiding bombs inside fake rocks. A report in March by the group Conflict Armament Research said roadside bombs dis-guised as rocks in Yemen bore simi-larities to others used by the Iran-backed Hezbollah in Southern Lebanon and by Iran-linked insur-gents in Iraq and Bahrain.

Mines planted by the Houthis, some resembling a model previously displayed in Iran, also have been found in the Red Sea, according to a 2018 UN experts report. Those mines “represent a hazard for commercial shipping and sea lines of communi-cation that could remain for as long as six to 10 years,” the report warned.

The Saudi-led coalition, Western countries and UN experts accuse Iran of supplying weaponry from assault rifles to ballistic missiles to the Houthis. Iran supports the Houthis but denies arming then, and Iran’s mission to the UN dismissed the latest allegations of “Iranian ghost weapons.”

“Yemen has long been awash with a wide range of weapons - including ballistic missiles - and Yemenis do not need Iranian weapons to conduct war,” said Alireza Miryousefi, a spokesman for Iran’s mission.

Unexploded cluster munitions and bombs dropped by coalition aircraft - including some manufactured in the United States - also litter Yemen, according to the UN The coalition has faced widespread

The sudden

withdrawal from Syria

will embolden Iran,

delight Russia, allow

the Islamic State to

spring back, endanger

tens of thousands of

civilians and teach

other opponents of

Islamist terrorism

never again to trust

the United States.

international criticism over indis-criminate airstrikes that have killed large numbers of civilians.

Al-Houthi said their forces had removed 500,000 missiles and cluster munitions from Saud-led strikes.

Saudi Arabia has alleged as many as 1 million mines may have been laid by the Houthis. Al-Gosaibi described Yemen as being the most-mined nation since World War II, based on his group’s estimate of the mines laid by the rebels. Saudi officials have released pictures showing fields of deacti-vated land mines.

International groups dealing with land mines have been hesitant to estimate the scale of the crisis, given the limited information they have. Yemen is also littered with mines from previous conflicts.

“It’s going to take years,” al-Gosaibi said. “You cannot rebuild Yemen without addressing the mine issue. It’s us on the ground first before rebuilding starts.”

A file picture of a landmine that explodes as Yemeni loyalist forces patrol an area near the Red Sea port town of Mocha.

The Ministry published

the draft rules for

public consultation

which mandate

platforms to publish

rules, regulation and

privacy policy for

users to access their

services.

10 TUESDAY 25 DECEMBER 2018ASIA

Govt comes out with draft rules for social mediaIANS NEW DELHI

Amid concerns over Central government’s powers to snoop into computers, the Electronics and IT Ministry has come out with draft IT rules focussed on social media platforms.

“The instances of misuse of social media by criminals and anti-national elements have brought new challenges to the ‘Law Enforcement Agencies’ (LEA),” the Ministry said.

“These include inducement for recruitment of terrorists, circulation of obscene content, spread of disharmony, incitement of violence, public order, fake news etc. A number of lynching incidents were reported in 2018 mostly alleged to be because of fake news or rumours being circulated through ‘Whatsapp and other Social Media’ sites.”

Accordingly, the ministry published the draft rules for public consultation which mandate platforms to publish rules, regulation and privacy policy for users to access their services. “The intermediary shall publish the rules and reg-ulations, privacy policy and user agreement for access or usage of the intermediary’s computer resource by any person,” the draft rules said.

The rules laid out by the social media platforms advise the users against displaying or uploading any information which is “grossly harmful, har-assing, blasphemous, defam-atory, obscene, pornographic, paedophilic, libellous, invasive of another’s privacy, hateful, or

racially, ethnically objec-tionable, disparaging, relating or encouraging money laun-dering or gambling.”

Further, the rules also need to forbid users from posting content which “threatens the unity, integrity, defence, security or sovereignty of India, friendly relations with foreign states, or public order, or causes incitement to the commission of any cognisable offence or pre-vents investigation of any offence or is insulting any other nation”.

As per the draft guidelines, a platform which has more than fifty lakh users in India or is in the list of intermediaries of social media platforms specifically notified by the Centre should be incorporated under the Com-panies Act, 1956 or the Com-panies Act, 2013 and have a per-manent registered office in India.

They would also have to appoint a nodal person of contact and alternate senior designated functionary in India for round-the-clock coordination with law enforcement agencies and officers to ensure compliance to their orders or requisitions made in accordance with provisions of law or rules. The deadline for the sub-mission of comments on the draft rules is January 15, 2019.

Foggy winter morningA man feeds seagulls as he rides a boat in the water of Yamuna river on a foggy winter morning in New Delhi, India, yesterday.

Modi releases Rs100 coin in Vajpayee’s memoryIANS NEW DELHI

A day ahead of the birth anni-versary of former Prime Min-ister and Bharat Ratna recipient Atal Behari Vajpayee, PM Narendra Modi yesterday released a commemorative Rs100 coin in his honour.

The coin weighing 35gm with Vajpayee’s image has his name inscribed in Hindi and English. It also has the years 1924 and 2018 inscribed to mark the years of the former Prime Minister’s birth and death.

On the reverse side, the coin has the Lion Capital of the Ashoka Pillar with “Satyameva Jayate” inscribed below.

Addressing a gathering at the Parliament House Annexe here, Modi said Vajpayee never compromised on the ideologies of the party and always spoke about national interest.

“For some people, power is oxygen...they can’t live without it...A long part of Atalji’s career was spent in the opposition benches, but he spoke about national interest and never compromised on the ideology of the party. For long, the voice of Atalji was the voice of the nation,” Modi said.

“I assume that there must have been invitations from other ideologies for joining hands to remain in power. Such things must have happened. But he

never compromised. He was among those who could die for the nation, but would never compromise on the ideology,” Modi said. Vajpayee wanted democracy to be supreme. He built the Jana Sangh but when time came to rescue democracy, he and others went to the Janata Party, Modi added.

Commemorative coins are usually issued to celebrate some special occasion or to mark a special event. The coin, Modi said, is a small effort to show our respect to the former Prime Minister, “whose life is a message for all of us”. Vajpayee passed away on August 16 at the age of 93 at the All India Institute of Medical Sci-ences following prolonged illness.

Mass weddingBrides pose for a photo with Indian businessman Maheshbhai Savani (centre) during a mass wedding in Surat, some 270km from Ahmedabad. In all, 261 women without fathers were married to partners in a mass wedding organised by the charitable PP Savani & Movaliya Groups. The majority were married in Hindu ceremonies, while 3 Christian and 6 Muslims women were included.

Thackeray in fresh salvo on BJP and PMIANS SOLAPUR

Seen as a slanted attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi amid growing unease in ties with the BJP, Shiv Sena Pres-ident Uddhav Thackeray yes-terday said with various scams in the country, “it seems chowkidars have become thieves” — a takeaway from Congress slogan.

Referring to what he termed as “scams” in the defence and agriculture sectors besides ‘jumlas’ of other schemes such as Rs15 lakh in every Indian’s bank account or the con-struction of Ram temple in Ayodhya, Thackeray attacked the ruling ally Bharatiya Janata Party on various fronts.

Addressing a much-antici-pated rally in the temple town of Pandharpur, Solapur district,

he hit out at the BJP for raking up the Ram temple before elec-tions, but achieving nothing in the past over three decades.

“The PM makes all kinds of promises which he says will be implemented by 2022 - this means people must vote for him in 2019. After that, he will again say everything was a ‘jumla’ to be said during elections,” Thackeray said. He said when the BJP is questioned about the temple construction, it says the matter is “in courts”. “But was it not aware of this 30 years ago?” he asked.

Dwelling on the farmers issues, he said the government has indulged in ‘jumlas’ such as doubling farmers’ incomes, but there is no such scheme. Despite tall claims, crop insurance and debt waiver have not reached the common peasantry, he said.

India’s capital chokes as pollution levels hit the worstREUTERS NEW DELHI

Pollution levels in New Delhi have hit their worst this year in the past two days — earning a “severe” to “emergency” rating and indicating conditions that can spark a public health crisis.

Christmas Day in the Indian capital is also forecast to be bleak. Senior government offi-cials said the main reasons for the surge in the amount of toxic smog trapped over New Delhi were unusually cold air, including fog, and a lack of wind.

This mean that vehicle fumes, pollution from coal-fired power plants and industries, as

well as smoke from fires being burned to keep people warm hangs over the city.

Data from the government’s Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) showed the air quality index, which measures the con-centration of poisonous partic-ulate matter, was an average of 449 yesterday, only slightly better than the 450 on Sunday.

The index measures the con-centration of tiny poisonous par-ticulate matter, or PM 2.5, that are less than 2.5 microns in diameter, which can be carried deep into the lungs. The previous highest recording this year was 447 on June 15, when there was a dust storm.

Anything above 100 is con-sidered unhealthy. In some parts of Delhi, pollution levels hit 654 yesterday, among the worst recorded this year, and visibility in some parts of the city was just 200 metres, the weather department said. Environmen-talists said that inaction by the authorities was inexcusable and a concerted effort was needed to reduce pollution from vehicles and industry.

“If this is not an emergency, then what is?” asked Delhi-based environmentalist Vim-lendu Jha. The “severe” to “emergency” ratings mean that the air is not only hazardous for citizens with existing respiratory

problems but can also seriously affect healthy people.

Conditions are likely to remain severe today, a holiday. The PM 2.5 level may average above 400 and hit a high of 534 in some places, CPCB data showed.

CPCB announced measures such as shutting factories and construction sites in heavily pol-luted areas until tomorrow along with an advisory to avoid using diesel-powered vehicles. “The situation might improve slightly but is likely to continue in severe category until afternoon of December 26, when wind speeds will pick up and improve dis-persion of pollutants,” said a task force headed by the CPCB.

Shrine protesters win again, police take back women devoteesIANS SABARIMALA

After waiting for hours barely 1km from the Sabarimala temple, two Kerala women devotees were escorted down the hill, as thousands of devotees put up a massive protest causing one of the woman to faint.

Bindu from Malappuram and Kanaka Durga from Kannur, both from the hitherto banned age group, were stopped at 8am, barely 1000 metres away from the shrine as even a 100-policemen con-tingent could not pass through a massive wall of devotees.

Despite the police resorting to a lathi-charge, the situation did not change. In fact, tension escalated and more security force was requested to be deployed at the spot.

As the commotion reached its pitch, Kanaka Durga fainted and the police were forced to take her back on a stretcher, even as Bindhu rooted herself to the ground refusing to be intimidated by a group of menacing men.

With the protest mounting, the Pathanamthitta district authorities around 10.15am dedided along with the police to halt efforts of progressing any further towards the shrine.

Coldest December night in Srinagar in 11 yearsIANS SRINAGAR

At minus 6.8 degrees Celsius Srinagar recorded the coldest December night yesterday after over a decade, as a severe cold wave swept through the Kashmir Valley and the Ladakh region, Met said.

“After 11 years, Srinagar recorded the coldest night. Last time such severe December cold hit the city was on December 31, 2007, when the mercury dipped to minus 7.2,” said the Met official. The present cold wave in Jammu and Kashmir was likely to continue for another five days till Saturday, as no change was expected, he added.

The valley was presently passing through the 40-day harsh winter of Chillai Kalan which started on December 21 and will end on January 30.

Pahalgam and Gulmarg recorded minus 7.2 and minus 6.8 while the minimum was minus 14.7 in Leh and minus 15.2 degrees Celsius in Kargil. Jammu city recorded 5.3, Katra 4.8, Batote minus 1.4, Bannihal minus 3 and Bhaderwah minus 2.1 degrees Celsius.

Ex-Bengal Minister Nirupam Sen deadIANS KOLKATA

Veteran Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) leader and former West Bengal Commerce and Industries Minister Nirupam Sen died early yesterday. Sen was 72.

The former politburo member succumbed to multi-organ failure around 5am at a private hospital in the sat-ellite township of Salt Lake.

Sen, who handled the industrial reconstruction, planning and power portfolios in the erstwhile Left Front regime under Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, was suffering from neurological and kidney related ailments.

Petrol below Rs70 per litre in DelhiIANS NEW DELHI

Petrol price in Delhi fell below the Rs70-per-litre mark yesterday for the first time after January and recorded the lowest level in 2018 at Rs69.86 per litre.

In Chennai too, petrol price declined to the lowest level in 2018 at Rs72.48, down from Rs 72.70 on Sunday.

In Kolkata and Mumbai, petrol prices already hit the lowest level of 2018 earlier in the month and yesterday, they declined further to Rs71.96 and Rs75.48, respec-tively. The decline in domestic fuel prices comes amid the recent fall in global crude oil prices.

The court acquitted

Sharif in the case of

Flagship Investments,

but in the other cases

he was fined the

equivalent of $25m.

After the verdict was

announced, Sharif was

taken into custody in

the courtroom.

11TUESDAY 25 DECEMBER 2018 ASIA

Nawaz Sharif gets 7 years’ jail for corruptionANATOLIA KARACHI/ISLAMABAD

A Pakistani court yesterday sen-tenced former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to seven years in jail in two corruption cases.

Sharif himself was present in the accountability court in the capital Islamabad to hear the much-anticipated verdict after a 15-month legal process in the cases, popularly known as Al Azizia Steel Mills.

The court acquitted him in the case of Flagship Investments, but in the other cases he was fined the equivalent of $25m. After the verdict was announced, Sharif was taken into custody in the courtroom.

In September 2017, directed by Pakistan’s Supreme Court, anti-corruption watchdog the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) accused Sharif of hiding assets in Saudi Arabia and the UAE in the name of his then-underage sons during his first two tenures as premier in the early 1990s.

Sharif, however, denied the charges, accusing the gov-ernment and the establishment — a term coined to designate the country’s powerful army — of unleashing “selective justice” against his party and family. The court last week rejected Sharif’s request for postponement of the verdict for a week, as he wanted to submit some more evidence to bolster his case.

Sharif said he had never misused his power as prime min-ister of Pakistan or chief minister of the Punjab province.

Speaking with reporters inside the court room after the verdict was announced, Sharif said, “I am satisfied with life, because as a ruler I always served the nation and my country.” Sharif denied even a single penny’s worth of corruption during his political career.

Maryam Nawaz, Sharif’s daughter, blasted the verdict against her father as “the last hiccup of the government’s blind revenge”. Soon after the verdict was announced, she tweeted: “After a two-and-a-half-year accounting, with three genera-tions being probed, still they couldn’t prove a single penny of corruption against them.” She went on to praise her father’s honesty and integrity.

The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), the party co-founded by Sharif, rejected the “unjust” verdict,

vowing to fight it.“We respect the courts, but

this verdict is based on assump-tions without any evidence,” former premier Shahid Khaqan Abbasi told reporters outside the court, adding that the country is being run through democratic martial law.

Abbasi said the world would laugh at this verdict convicting a person without any evidence.

He said his party would launch nationwide peaceful pro-tests and also raise its voice inside parliament against this “injustice”. Abbasi said his party would challenge the verdict in higher court and expressed hope to get justice.

Meanwhile, the NAB has also decided to challenge Sharif’s acquittal in Flagship Investments case. In a statement issued by the National Accountability Bureau, the chairman of the authority has ordered to file a petition, chal-lenging the acquittal of former premier.

Following the court verdict, the NAB arrested Sharif from court premises and took him to Adiala Jail, from where he will be shifted to Kot Lakhpat Jail in Lahore today.

Earlier, clashes erupted between the police and PML-N workers outside the courthouse when a huge crowd of Sharif supporters tried to enter the building. Police used tear gas and charged the PML-N workers with batons to disperse them.

Supporters of Pakistan’s former prime minister Nawaz Sharif gather outside the anti-corruption court in Islamabad yesterday.

This May Sharif, 68, had also been sentenced to 10 years in jail in a corruption case stemming from the whistleblower Panama papers scandal by an accounta-bility court, but the Islamabad High Court suspended the con-viction in September.

Maryam Nawaz and son-in-Law Captain Mohammad Safdar had also been sentenced to seven years and one year in prison respectively in the same case. The two are also on bail.

In July 2017, Nawaz Sharif was disqualified from office by the Supreme Court over the Panama Papers scandal, which also led to the filing of three cor-ruption cases. Not long after, the top court also barred him from holding his party’s leadership.

Sharif served as the premier from 1990 to 1992, 1997 to 1999, and 2013 to 2017, unable to com-plete even a single five-year term. His two previous govern-ments were dismissed over

corruption charges and through bloodless military coups in 1992 and 1999.

Shehbaz Sharif, his younger brother and three-time chief minister of Punjab, the country’s most populous province, is already in NAB custody in con-nection with a housing scam.

Hamza Shehbaz, Shehbaz Sharif’s son and the opposition leader in Punjab Assembly, is also facing inquiries in connection with multiple corruption cases.

Smog in LahorePakistani commuters walk during dense fog and smog in Lahore yesterday.

Explosions rock Kabul government compoundAFP KABUL

Militants detonated a car bomb before storming a Kabul gov-ernment compound in an ongoing attack yesterday, offi-cials and witnesses said, in the latest violence to rock the Afghan capital.

A number of gunmen raided the compound where the Min-istry of Public Works and other offices are located, interior ministry deputy spokesman Nasrat Rahimi said.

Afghan security forces have killed two of the attackers and freed 200 employees trapped inside one of the buildings occupied by the militants, Rahimi said. “There are still some hostages with the enemy and a clearance operation is ongoing,” he said.

At least four people have been wounded, said health min-istry spokesman Wahid Majroh. One had broken several bones after jumping from the third floor of a building to escape the attackers. Another two were wounded by broken glass.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the raid that began with a bomb-laden vehicle exploding at the entrance. That was followed by a second blast, interior ministry spokesman Najib Danish said, though he did not specify the nature of it.

Plumes of black smoke could be seen rising from the compound, with at least two

military helicopters circling above. Journalists near the scene reported hearing numerous explosions in the hours after the attack began.

Ashraf, a witness who works at the Ministry of Public Works and who goes by one name, said militants inside the compound were exchanging gunfire with security forces.

“They are also firing at the NDS facility nearby,” he said after escaping the compound, referring to the Afghan spy agency, the National Directorate of Security. Public works min-istry spokesman Mehdi Rohani said he and his colleagues were fleeing to a safe room.

“A car bomb detonated at the entrance of the ministry’s parking lot,” he said. “I can hear some gunfire outside the building. We are fine.”

The attack caps a tumultuous few days for Afghanistan after an American official said that Pres-ident Donald Trump had decided to pull out “roughly half” of the 14,000 US forces in the country.

The unexpected move stunned and dismayed foreign diplomats and Afghan officials in Kabul who are intensifying a push to end the 17-year con-flict with the Taliban.

The assault also comes a day after President Ashraf Ghani appointed Amrullah Saleh and Assadullah Khaled, both former spymasters known for their anti-Taliban and Pakistan stance, to head the interior and defence ministries, respectively.

Pakistani ambassadors named for major world’s capitalsINTERNEWS ISLAMABAD

Pakistan’s ambassador for the United States Ali Jehangir Sid-diqui relinquished his charge in Washington yesterday. Paki-stan’s ambassador for Japan Dr Asad Majeed, who has been des-ignated to become new ambas-sador in Washington, has reached Islamabad prior to two-day envoy conference com-mencing on December 27. He will submit briefing on behalf of

country’s missions in Tokyo and Washington both.

Pakistan’s ambassador for China Masood Khalid will con-tinue as ambassador in Beijing on completion of his contractual period ending on December 31. Khalid is an astute diplomat hailing from the Foreign Service and has done remarkable job in his posting at Chinese capital.

Highly placed sources said that no panel has been submitted to the Prime Minister for replacement of Masood Khalid.

In another development, Pakistan’s permanent represent-ative for the United Nations Ambassador Dr Maleeha Lodhi, who has already reached Islamabad for consultations and the envoy conference, will brief the conference about the eco-nomic role of multilateral diplomacy. Dr Lodhi will likely get extension in the United Nations as her tenure will be completed in February, the sources said.

Pakistan’s current high com-missioner for Malaysia, Nafees

Zikria, has been designated to become high commissioner for the United Kingdom, the sources said. Pakistan’s high commis-sioner in London, Sahibzada Ahmad Khan, has already moved from the British capital since he has been appointed as ambas-sador for Cuba.

Pakistan’s permanent rep-resentative (PR) for European Union and ambassador for Belgium, Naghmana Hashmi, is among frontrunners for the ambassador’s slot in China.

PM Hasina on top in battle of the Bangladesh BegumsAFP DHAKA

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina heads to the polls in Bangladesh this week on course for a historic victory, while her ailing opponent faces an uncertain future in a colonial-era Dhaka jail.

Bangladesh’s “Battling Begums” have been fighting each other for three decades, but the 71-year-old Hasina is set to extend her record as the coun-try’s longest serving leader after dispatching Khaleda Zia, her

chief rival. The two women have been political royalty — begums — since the 1980s. Zia, 73, is the widow of a military dictator and Hasina’s father was the country’s founding leader.

They joined forces to dethrone military dictator Hussain Muhammed Ershad in 1990 and restore democracy.

But they became arch-foes after Zia was elected prime min-ister in 1991, and the duo have alternated in power ever since in the South Asian nation.

Hasina is now seeking a fourth

term and opinion polls indicate she will have little problem at the December 30 poll despite criticism of her government’s slide towards authoritarian rule.

Zia meanwhile is serving a 17-year jail term on graft charges that her Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) insists were “politi-cally motivated”. The convictions mean Zia cannot contest the poll, which the BNP says will be neither free nor fair. It claims thousands of activists have been jailed in recent months.

Zia suffers from arthritis and

diabetes, has had knee replacement surgery and can barely move one of her hands. Western diplomats have written off her chances of a comeback.

“She is politically finished,” said one diplomat based in Dhaka, adding Zia’s only chance for escape would be if she is offered medical leave abroad.

The fallout has spread to the Zia dynasty. Her youngest son died in exile in Bangkok in 2015. Her eldest child, Tarique Rahman, who masterminded his mother’s return to power in 2001, went into exile

in London in 2008. In October, he was sentenced to life in prison for his alleged role in a 2004 grenade attack on a Hasina rally in which at least 20 people were killed. Analysts say that even though she is out of the limelight, Zia still casts a huge shadow over the election.

“It is fair to say that the con-ventional portrayal of Bangla-deshi politics as the ‘Battle of the Begums’ has taken a back seat, for the moment,” said Illinois State University political science professor Ali Riaz.

Myanmar Reuters journalists appeal 7-year sentenceAFP YANGON

Lawyers lodged an appeal yes-terday to free two Reuters jour-nalists jailed for their reporting on Myanmar’s Rohingya crisis, decrying the sentence as a “mistake” that has already resulted in the pair being locked up for a year.

Wa Lone, 32, and Kyaw Soe Oo, 28, were arrested in December 2017 and later sen-tenced to seven-year prison terms for what prosecutors said was a breach of official secrets law for the possession of classified material on security operations. Reuters disputed the charge and said the two were set up by police after probing the massacre of 10 Rohingya Muslims during a military crackdown.

Their conviction in Sep-tember sparked widespread global condemnation, including from US Vice Pres-ident Mike Pence, who asked civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi to intervene. But calls for their release have fallen flat inside Myanmar.

Lawyers for the pair yes-terday submitted an appeal to the High Court. “This seven-year jail sentence is a mistake,” the journalists’ lawyer L Khun Ring Pan told the bench, in a hearing attended by embassy officials and free media advocates as well as the wives of the jailed journalists.

12 TUESDAY 25 DECEMBER 2018ASIA

Another tsunami may hit Indonesia AFP PARIS

Another tsunami could strike Indonesia, experts have warned, after a powerful wave caused by a volcanic eruption killed hundreds when it swal-lowed coastal settlements, taking earthquake-focused disaster monitors by surprise.

“Devastating tsunami caused by volcanic eruptions are rare; one of the most famous (and deadly) was caused by the eruption of Krakatoa in 1883,” Richard Teeuw, a disaster risk reduction expert at the University of Port-smouth in England said.

“The likelihood of further tsunamis in the Sunda Strait will remain high while Anak Krakatoa volcano is going through its current active phase because that might trigger further submarine landslides,” he said.

Sonar surveys would now be needed to map the seafloor around the volcano, but “unfor-tunately submarine surveys typically take many months to organise and carry out,” he added.

The volcano has been par-ticularly active since June, n o t e d J a c q u e s - M a r i e Bardintzeff at the University of Paris-South.

Indonesia hunts for survivors as toll nears 400

REUTERS LABUAN, INDONESIA

Indonesian military and rescue teams fanned out across a stretch of coastline yesterday, hoping to find survivors of a tsunami trig-gered by a landslide from a volcano that killed at least 373 people.

Thick clouds of ash spewed from Anak Krakatau, a volcanic island where a crater collapse at high tide late on Saturday set off waves that smashed into coastal areas on both sides of the Sunda Strait between the islands of Sumatra and Java.

Rescuers used heavy machinery and bare hands to dig bodies out of mud and wreckage along a 100km stretch of Java’s west coast.

More than 1,400 people were injured, and about 12,000

residents had to move to higher ground, with a high-tide warning extended to tomorrow.

The vast archipelago, which sits on the Pacific “Ring of Fire”, has suffered its worst annual death toll from disasters in more than a decade.

Earthquakes flattened parts of the island of Lombok in July and August, and a double quake-and-tsunami killed more than 2,000 people on a remote part of Sulawesi island in September.

“At least 373 people have died, while 128 people are cur-rently missing,” Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, a spokesman for the disaster mitigation agency, said on Monday evening.

S a t u r d a y ’ s t s u n a m i destroyed more than 700 buildings, from small shops and houses to villas and hotels. It

took just 24 minutes after the landslide for waves to hit land, and there was no early warning for those living on the coast.

Vehicles were crushed by waves that lifted chunks of metal, felled trees, wooden beams and household items and deposited them on roads and rice fields.

Nurjana, 20, ran uphill after the tsunami hit. Her beachside snack stall was washed away.

“I opened the door straight away and saved myself. I jumped over the wall,” she said. “Every-thing is destroyed.” Out in the strait, Anak Krakatau (Child of Krakatau) was still erupting on Sunday night, belching white smoke and ash into the sky.

The meteorology agency that an area of about 64 hectares, or 90 soccer pitches, of the volcanic island had collapsed into the sea.

In 1883, the volcano then known as Krakatoa erupted in one of the biggest blasts in recorded history, killing more than 36,000 people in a series of tsunami, and lowering the global surface temperature by one degree Celsius with its ash. Anak Krakatau is the island that emerged from the area in 1927, and has been growing ever since.

The high waves isolated hun-dreds of people on Sebesi island, about 12km from the volcano.

“We are completely para-lysed,” Syamsiar, a village

secretary on the island, told Metro TV, calling for food and medicine. President Joko Widodo, who is running for re-election in April, told disaster agencies to install early warning systems, but experts said that, unlike with tsunami caused by earthquakes, little could have been done to alert people that waves were coming.

“Tsunamis from volcanic flank collapse are generated right at the coast and often close to populations,” said Eddie Dempsey, lecturer in structural geology at Britain’s University of Hull. “The interval between the volcanic collapse and the arrival of the waves is minimal.”

Police officers search for victims among rubble of a destroyed beach front hotel, which was hit by a tsunami in Pandeglang, Banten province, Indonesia, yesterday.

At least 373 people have died, while 128 people

are currently missing. The Saturday’s tsunami

destroyed more than 700 buildings, from small

shops and houses to villas and hotels. It took

just 24 minutes after the landslide for waves

to hit land, and there was no early warning for

those living on the coast.

China accuses EU of hypocrisy over detained Canadians REUTERS BEIJING

China accused Britain and the European Union of hypocrisy yesterday for expressing concern about China’s detention of two Canadian citizens, saying they had double standards for not mentioning a senior Chinese executive arrested in Canada.

Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland said Canada will maintain a high-level

campaign in the coming days to seek support from allies as it pressures China to free the two detained Canadians, who China says are suspected of endan-gering state security.

Freeland spoke a day after the United States joined Canada in calling on Beijing to release the pair, who were held after Canadian authorities arrested a senior Chinese executive on a US extradition warrant. Britain and the European Union have also

expressed support for Canada. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokes-woman Hua Chunying said Beijing expressed “strong dissat-isfaction and resolute oppo-sition” to comments by Canada, the United States and others on the detained Canadians.

The two, Michael Kovrig, a former diplomat and an adviser with the International Crisis Group (ICG) think-tank, and businessman Michael Spavor, are suspected of endangering state

security so they are “of course” being detained, Hua said.

“We urge relevant countries to earnestly respect China’s judicial sovereignty,” she told a daily news briefing, reiterating their lawful rights have been guaranteed.

The support of Britain and the European Union was “strange”, Hua added.

“What’s this got to do with Britain and the EU? When the Canadians illegally detained a

senior executive at a Chinese company at the request of the United States, where were they?” she said.

“Their so-called human rights have different standards for different countries’ citizens,” Hua added.

Kovrig is also a Hungarian and therefore an EU citizen, sources said last week.

The two were detained after Canadian police arrested Huawei Technologies Co Ltd’s chief

financial officer, Meng Wanzhou, on December 1.

China again urges Canada to release Meng and the United States to withdraw its arrest warrant, Hua said.

While Meng has had full access to lawyers and is able to see family, Kovrig is being denied legal representation, is not allowed to see family, and is limited to one consular visit a month, sources familiar with the situation say.

Many evacuated after ‘loud crack’ in Sydney towerAFP SYDNEY

Australian police evacuated thousands of people in west Sydney late Christmas Eve, after residents reported hearing a “loud crack” from a 38-storey building.

About 3,000 people from inside the tower and in nearby buildings were told to leave late yesterday, with engineers investigating after the apartment complex moved “one or two millimetres”.

“Police received a call to a loud crack on level 10 of the building located behind us,” New South Wales Fire and Rescue acting superintendent Greg Wright said from outside the Opal Tower complex.

Police “identified there was a crack in the building”, he added, alerting emergency services. “Firefighters will be moving through the building with engineers and para-medics to assess what the damage is, and a way forward,” he told reporters.

It was unclear when res-idents would be allowed back into the building, with a tem-porary shelter set up at a nearby hall.

“I have been told by engi-neers it (the building) has moved one or two milli-metres,” detective superin-tendent Philip Rogerson said, without going into detail.

HK: Taiwan metal band leader denied visa lacks ‘special skills’AFP HONG KONG

The frontman of a popular Taiwanese metal band which advocates independence for the island was denied a visa to Hong Kong because he lacked “special skills”, a music festival organiser said yesterday.

ChthoniC, one of Asia’s most successful black metal bands, slammed the decision as “ridiculous” after they were forced to pull out of a music fes-tival in the southern Chinese city over the weekend because band members were unable to get a visa from Hong Kong’s immigration department.

Frontman Freddy Lim is also a pro-independence law-maker in Taiwan and the can-cellation fuelled fears about eroding artistic freedoms in Hong Kong as authorities clamp down on pro-democracy sen-timent at the behest of Beijing.

Hong Kong’s immigration authorities have yet to say why the visas were refused.

But yesterday Denise Ho, a pro-democracy canto-pop star who had invited ChthoniC to perform at a festival, posted a letter from the immigration department setting out the reasons for Lim’s refusal.

“A person seeking to enter into Hong Kong... for

employment should amongst other things, possess a special skill, knowledge or experience of value to and not readily available in the (city),” the letter stated. “Having considered the information made available and all circumstances of the case, we are not satisfied that this case meets the aforesaid cri-teria,” it added.

Lim called the govern-ment’s reason “ridiculous” but added he remained hopeful.

“I have many friends in Hong Kong, friends from the music scene, friends who are involved in Hong Kong’s social movement, and everyone is trying so hard to change things,” Lim said. The immigration department did not immedi-ately respond to request for comment.

ChthoniC was founded in 1995 by Lim and has gone on to become one of the region’s most successful metal bands.

Lim became a lawmaker in 2016 and his New Power Party calls for Taiwan to be recog-nised internationally as a country. He was denied a travel visa to Hong Kong later that year. Netizens in Hong Kong, where authorities have been steadily clamping down on the city’s pro-independence senti-ments, ridiculed the govern-ment’s apparent excuse.

The Friendship Bridge (left) leading to North Korea’s Sinuiju is seen next to the Broken Bridge over the Yalu River during sunrise in Dandong, Liaoning province, China, yesterday.

Bridging friendships

S Korea denies radar lock on Japanese planeREUTERS SEOUL

South Korea denied yesterday that one of its warships had locked its targeting radar on a Japanese patrol plane, which drew a strong protest from Tokyo amid increasingly frosty relations between the regional neighbours.

Last week’s alleged radar incident joined a list of issues discussed by diplomats from the

two countries at a meeting in South Korea’s capital Seoul yesterday.

Relations between the two US allies have soured since South Korea’s top court ruled in October that a Japanese steel firm must compensate four South Koreans for their forced labour during World War Two. Japan denounced the ruling.

On Friday, Japan’s defence minister said a South Korean destroyer had locked its

targeting radar on a Japanese patrol plane, calling the action extremely dangerous.”

South Korea’s defence min-istry, which said last week the destroyer was performing routine operations, yesterday provided more details of the vessel’s actions. While rescuing a distressed North Korean fishing boat, the destroyer had used an optical camera that detected a low-flying Japanese patrol plane, an official said.

13TUESDAY 25 DECEMBER 2018 EUROPE

Mount Etna volcano erupts, spews ash

Smoke rises over the city of Catania during an eruption of Mount Etna, one of the most active volcanoes in the world, yesterday.

Queen Elizabeth extols peace in annual speech

AFP ROME

The Mount Etna volcano erupted yesterday, spewing ash as several minor earthquakes hit the region, and prompting a partial closure of the Sicilian airspace around the mountain.

Italy’s national institute for geophysics and vulcanology (INGV) counted more than 130 seismic shocks in the zone, with the strongest reaching a mag-nitude of 4.0.

“The eruption occurred on the side of Etna,” Boris Behncke,

a vulcanologist at INGV, said. “It’s the first lateral eruption

in more than 10 years, but it doesn’t seem to be dangerous.”

Due to bad visibility because of the ash authorities restricted local airspace, allowing only four landings per hour yesterday afternoon at the eastern Sicilian airport of Catania.

Visibility was still too poor to determine whether the eruption was accompanied by lava, Behncke said.

At any rate, both the seismic activity and ash production

appeared to be diminishing in the afternoon, he said.

Mount Etna, 3,300 metres high, is the biggest active volcano in Europe, with frequent eruptions recorded in the past 2,700 years.

Its most recent eruptions occurred in the spring of 2017 and its last major eruption in the 2008/2009 winter.

At the end of March a study published in the Bulletin of Vol-canology said that Etna is slowly sliding towards the Mediter-ranean — at a constant pace of 14 millimetres per year.

Probe into Gatwick drone sightings still ongoing: PoliceAP LONDON

Sussex Police insist investiga-tions into drone sightings around London’s Gatwick Airport are ongoing despite a comment from a senior detective that there may not have been any drones flying over the airport after all.

The drone crisis led to a series of shutdowns at the coun-try’s second-busiest airport over a three-day period last week at, which left tens of thousands of holidaymakers stranded at the height of holiday travel season.

The airport was operating normally since yesterday, but military equipment remains in place to deter and track any fresh incursions.

In a statement on Twitter late

Sunday, police said 67 drone sightings had been made by the public, passengers, police officers as well as staff at the airport, adding that, “We have recovered a damaged drone, we’re conducting house to house enquiries & taking statements from all who reported sightings.”

The clarification was deemed necessary after Sussex Chief Detective Jason Tingley raised eyebrows — and drew wide crit-icism in the British press — when he said it’s a “possibility” that there had not been drones in the area at all.

He was referring to the fact that the reported drone sightings came from human beings, not from electronic tracking equipment that could provide independent verification.

Nonetheless, the prospect that a travel breakdown that stranded or delayed more than 100,000 passengers might have been based on mistaken reports of drone activity caused wide-spread consternation.

Police were also criticised for arresting a man and a woman in connection to the drone flights and then releasing them without any charge after their names and photos had been published in many newspapers.

It is not clear whether the damaged drone discovered near Gatwick Airport will provide forensic clues that could lead police to locate the perpetrators of the worst reported drone activity to hit a major interna-tional airport.

Police said it was found in

the area near where the last drone sighting occurred on Friday evening.

The drone is being tested for DNA, fingerprints, and other evidence.

Technical problem disrupted UK airport, no sign of dronesAP LONDON

Birmingham Airport in England said it has resolved a problem with its air traffic control system that prevented flights from taking off or landing for about two hours.

There was no indication the technical problem in Bir-mingham on Sunday was related to the drone sightings that caused major problems at

London’s Gatwick Airport in recent days.

The grounded flights nev-ertheless caused their share of frustration and worry two days before holiday. Passengers who had already boarded or reached departure gates were kept in a holding pattern, while some arriving flights were diverted to other airports in England.

Birmingham Airport is located 160km northwest of London.

Thief gets trapped in car amid robbery; calls police for helpAP COPENHAGEN

A car thief had to call the police to ask for help after he was trapped inside the car he was trying to steal.

Police in Trondheim said the young man, who wasn’t identified, called the law enforcement from a car deal-ership in Norway’s third-largest city to say he was “stuck” inside the car.

Norwegian broadcaster NRK said that the man is around 17 years old and was known to the police for petty crimes, and that it was unclear why the doors of the car, parked outside the shop, had locked.

Police said on Twitter that officers hurried to the scene yesterday “to get him out and into detention.”

No further details were available.

Man stabbed to death in PolandAP WARSAW

Polish media reported that a man has died after being stabbed during the screening of a children’s moving in a shopping centre.

The all-news station TVN24 reported that the attack took place on Sunday in the northwestern Polish city of Szczecin, when the perpetrator stabbed two men, both around 30.

Joanna Biranowska-Sochalska, a spokeswoman for police in Szczecin, said one of the two died yesterday.

TVN24 showed video footage of the attacker being arrested by police, his legs bound with chains.

He still faces questioning and authorities have not yet said what his motive might have been.

Britain bans third-party sales of puppies, kittensAP LONDON

Britain has banned third-party sales of puppies and kittens to protect the animals from exploitation.

The government said the new law will help crack down on “puppy farms” and make it harder for unscrupulous dealers who have little regard for animal welfare.

Animal Welfare Minister David Rutley said the ban “is part of our commitment to make sure the nation’s much-loved pets get the right start in life.”

The decision follows a public consultation that found overwhelming support for banning third-party sales.

Under the new measure, people wishing to adopt a puppy or kitten would have to deal directly with a breeder or a re-homing centre, rather than pet shops or other commercial dealers.

Animal welfare groups praised the government measure as an important step forward. Marc Abraham, a

veterinarian who appears on television and is the founder of Pup Aid, called it “a real victory for grassroots campaigners as well as the UK’s dogs and cats.”

He said the law would make breeders more accountable and make it more difficult to sell illegally smuggled puppies and kittens.

The change was also endorsed by one of Britain’s best-known animal shelters, the Battersea Cat and Dogs Home.

It comes as the RSPCA is asking the British public for information about the identity of a passenger and driver caught on closed circuit TV abandoning a dog despite its pleas to be allowed back into the car.

The abandonment took place earlier this month in Trentham but the video was cir-culating since yesterday online.

“To see the poor dog in such obvious distress, jumping up at the car as it drives away, is just heartbreaking,” said RSPCA inspector Natalie Perehovsky. “I can’t understand how someone could do this.”

Ready for a holidayAn aerial view of Skanderbeg Square lit with holiday decorations and surrounded by an open Christmas market, in Tirana, Albania, yesterday.

REUTERS LONDON

Britain’s Queen Elizabeth (pictured) will say in her Christmas message that the festival’s message of peace and goodwill needs to be heeded as much as ever, and people should respect each other even when they habour the most deeply held differences.

According to excerpts released by Buckingham Palace yesterday, the 92-year-old monarch will also speak of family and friendship following a year in which her grandson Prince Harry married US-born actress Meghan Markle.

Throughout her record 66 years on the throne, the queen has avoided commenting in public on contentious interna-tional affairs or party political issues, and the excerpts make no mention of the visit in July by US President Donald Trump or the turmoil over Britain’s departure from the European Union.

But speaking about the holiday celebration, she will say: “I believe the message of peace on earth and goodwill to all is never out of date. It can be heeded by everyone; it’s needed as much as ever.”

“Even with the most deeply held differences, treating the other person with respect and as a fellow human being is always a good step towards

greater understanding.”Before leaving Britain for a

summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Trump breached British royal protocol by pub-licly disclosing the details of a conversation he had with the queen about the complexities of Brexit, an issue that has divided the nation.

Trump’s trip to Britain was marked by public protests and downgraded from a full state visit that Prime Minister Theresa May had originally proposed.

However, he took tea with the queen at Windsor Castle. Trump later described the monarch, who has met 12 US presidents, as an “incredible woman”, who was both “sharp” and “beautiful”.

She has shown little sign of slowing down in the last year, during which Harry and Meg-han’s wedding marked another royal step towards modernity, with a ceremony that blended ancient English ritual with African American culture.

“Through the many changes I have seen over the years, faith, family and friendship have been not only a constant for me but a source of personal comfort and reas-surance,” she will say,

Another grandchild, Princess Eugenie, also married this year and the queen’s sixth and seventh great grandchildren were born, while she made her debut appearance on the front row of a fashion show.

She also led British and Com-monwealth tributes to the sol-diers of the World War I on the centenary of the signing of the Armistice that ended it in 1918.

The queen wore a cocktail dress in ivory silk with pastel blue, white and gold lame overlay designed by Angela Kelly for the broadcast.

She is spending Christmas as usual at her Sandringham Estate in Norfolk, eastern England, where she will be joined by other members of the Royal family.

14 TUESDAY 25 DECEMBER 2018EUROPE

Barcelona on high alert amid attack warningAFP BARCELONA

Barcelona was on alert yesterday after the US State Department warned of the risk of a terrorist attack in Spain’s second-largest city during the holidays.

Several police vehicles were parked on both ends of Barce-lona’s central Las Ramblas boul-evard, which was targeted last year by a deadly van attack claimed by IS militants.

Some 30 police officers patrolled the boulevard, which is popular with locals and tourists, as well as a Christmas market in the nearby Plaza Cat-aluna, the city’s main square.

“Exercise heightened caution around areas of vehicle movement, including buses, in the Las Ramblas area of Bar-celona during Christmas and New Year’s,” the State Depart-ment’s Bureau of Consular Affairs said in a tweet.

“Terrorists may attack with

little or no warning, targeting tourist locations, transportation hubs, and other public areas.”

Asked about the warning during an interview with Rac1 radio yesterday, Catalonia’s regional Interior Minister Miquel Buch said police “were working on this threat”.

“We take seriously all

threats, all of them are investi-gated,” he said, without giving further details.

Top-selling Spanish news-paper El Pais, citing anonymous police sources, said authorities were looking for a Moroccan man with a licence to drive buses.

Catalan daily El Periodico said Catalan regional police had circulated an internal note that the man, who was born in Casa-blanca, could try to drive a bus or other large vehicle into crowds in Barcelona.

It was not clear if the suspect was in Spain, according to the reports.

Aspokesman for the regional police force in Catalonia did not confirm police were seeking a Moroccan man but said a “tem-porary reinforcement of security measures in areas of high con-centration of people” was in place.

Spain has kept its terrorist alert unchanged at the

second-highest level despite the US State Department warning, although security measures were boosted in December for the Christmas holiday period, a Spanish interior ministry spokesman said.

Spanish police arrested a 33-year-old Moroccan man on Friday in Barcelona who had

fought in Syria for the Islamic State group.

On August 17, 2017 a van rammed into crowds on Barce-lona’s tree-lined Las Ramblas boulevard, killing 14 people and injuring over 130 others.

The 22-year-old Moroccan driver then stole a car after killing the driver and fled.

Several hours later five of his accomplices mowed down pedestrians on the promenade of the seaside resort of Cambrils south of Barcelona before stabbing a woman to death.

The IS militant group claimed responsibility for the attack, Spain’s deadliest in over a decade.

Urban Guard police control the van at the entrance of the Ramblas boulevard in Barcelona , yesterday

French Premier defends cops targeted by protestersAP PARIS

France’s prime minister met yesterday with police officers targeted by violent yellow vest protesters, in a show of support amid growing concerns about growing brutality from both sides.

Prime Minister Edouard Philippe (pictured) visited a motorcycle police unit involved in an incident on Saturday near the glittering Champs-Elysees avenue in central Paris.

In the incident, during the sixth straight weekend of pro-tests by the grassroots movement protesting high taxes and other economic problems, an officer

pulled a gun after protesters kicked over his motorcycle. He did not fire it, but the move prompted a surge of anger by demonstrators hurling paving stones and other projectiles that

drove the officer and his team to flee.

Overall, the number of pro-testers on Saturday was sharply down from previous weekends, and most actions were peaceful. But despite multiple concessions from President Emmanuel Macron, the movement isn’t over and one group is calling for holiday protests on the Champs-Elysees, and others are planning action on New Year’s Eve.

Many protesters have denounced what they describe as disproportionate responses by police that include multiple beatings also captured on video. Hundreds of people have been injured in the clashes, mainly protesters but also police officers

and journalists.Police said they’re acting in

self-defence, and defended the officer who brandished his gun, saying it served as a deterrent to protect his colleagues.

Meanwhile, Paris authorities are investigating alleged anti-Semitic comments by yellow vest protesters in the city subway toward a woman whose father died at Auschwitz.

A journalist described on Twitter witnessing the Saturday nigth incident. The woman’s nephew identified his aunt as the target of the comments.

The Paris prosecutor’s office said yesterday that an investi-gation has been opened into public insults based on race or

religion and denying crimes of humanity.

Some protesters in the yellow vest movement have expressed extreme or racist views. But research into its fol-lowers and their online com-ments has found that the movement as a whole is a broad-based grassroots phenomenon with no single political bent that includes people from many sectors of society.

It began with anger of a rise in taxes on gasoline and diesel, which is why the protesters wear the fluorescent emergency vests that all French motorists are required to carry in their vehicles.

The State

Department’s Bureau

of Consular Affairs

said in a tweet:

Terrorists may attack

with little or no

warning, targeting

tourist locations,

transportation hubs,

and other public

areas.

UK charity chief resigns after misconduct claimsREUTERS LONDON

The chairman of Save the Children UK has resigned after staff complaints he was not serious about tackling harassment, the charity said, in the latest blow to the scandal-hit sector.

Peter Bennett-Jones will leave next month after investi-gators upheld complaints about remarks he made during a review into workplace culture at the charity, which has been criticised for its handling of sexual misconduct reports.

An independent investi-gation found he had made remarks that “could have been perceived as being at odds with the organisation’s response to a review of its working culture”, the charity said in a statement.

The aid world has seen a number of high-profile depar-tures since allegations earlier this year that Oxfam staff used

workers in Haiti after the 2010 earthquake kicked off a series of misconduct scandals.

Mark Goldring has said he will step down as Oxfam’s chief executive at the end of this year.

Last week the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) said it had sacked Ali Khamis, a British aid worker, for having relations with a woman he employed as a domestic worker in Uganda.

UNHCR spokeswoman Cecile Pouilly said in emailed comments the group found no evidence that Khamis had exploited or abused the woman, but that he had “failed to uphold the standards expected of an international civil servant”.

Save The Children ordered an independent review of its workplace culture earlier this year after it was criticised for its handling of complaints against former chief executive Justin Forsyth and ex-policy chief Brendan Cox between 2012 and 2015.

Law enforcement agencies probe hole in Soyuz spacecraftAP MOSCOW

A Russian cosmonaut who explored a mysterious hole in a capsule docked to the International Space Station (ISS) said that the opening was drilled from inside the space-craft and Russian law enforcement agencies are investigating what caused it.

Sergey Prokopyev said investi-gators were looking at samples he and crewmate Oleg Kononenko collected

during a December 12 spacewalk. Prokopyev and two other astronauts returned to Earth last week from a 197-day space station mission.

The hole in the Russian Soyuz spacecraft attached to the station was spotted on August 30. The crew discovered a leak that was creating a slight loss of pressure and plugged the hole with epoxy and gauze.

Prokopyev said at a news con-ference the cavity started from the capsule’s interior and “it’s up to the investigative organs to judge when

that hole was made.”The astronauts’ quick identifi-

cation and repair of the hole dem-onstrated “the crew was ready for any developments,” he said.

The hole didn’t pose a danger to Prokopyev and crewmates Serena Aunon-Chancellor of Nasa and Alex-ander Gerst of the European Space Agency during their return because the section of the capsule it appeared on was jettisoned before the fiery re-entry into Earth’s atmosphere.

Roscosmos chief Dmitry Rogozin

said in September the hole could have been drilled when the capsule was manufactured or in orbit. Rogozin stopped short of blaming crew members, but the statement has caused some friction between Roscosmos and Nasa.

Rogozin has since back-pedaled from the statement, blaming the news media for twisting his words.

Prokopyev scoffed at the idea the hole could have been drilled by an astronaut, saying, “You shouldn’t think so badly of our crew.”

International Space Station (ISS) crew members cosmonauts Sergey Prokopyev (right) and Oleg Artemyev pose for a picture in Star City near Moscow, yesterday.

Refugee woesRikko Voorberg, spokesman for the foundation “Let’s Bring Them Here”, addressing the crowd in front of the Greek Parliament as sixty Dutch volunteers arrived in Athens after crossing the Balkans by car to “call on the Greek government to evacuate 150 refugees” to the Netherlands, yesterday.

Women’s jail chief in Russia sacked over slave labourAFP MOSCOW

The head of a Russian women’s prison has been fired after inspectors discovered a regime of forced labour that saw inmates work for up to 18 hours a day, offi-cials said yesterday.

Women in the penal colony in Mordovia, central Russia, stitched garments for prison head Yuri Kupriyanov as well as his children, friends and businessmen he knew, the penitentiary service said.

Nadezhda Tolokon-nikova, a member of a protest group, was held there until 2013 when she went on hunger strike to protest what she described as slave labour and other serious abuses.

Valery Maximenko, deputy head of the Federal Penitentiary Service, said inspectors had carried out a surprise inspection. “Fol-lowing the results ...Yuri Kupriyanov and several of his subordinates have been sus-pended from their duties.”

“Women were threatened with isolation and being deprived of food for the slightest transgression,” he added.

Inmates would start working around 7am and finish by 1 am, according to peniten-tiary service figures published by Russian news agencies.

President Vladimir Putin addressed the notorious con-ditions of Russian prisons during his annual end-of-year press conference last week.

“Any violation of the law, especially torture, is a crime. These crimes should be pun-ished,” he said, referring to brutality by prison guards towards inmates.

15TUESDAY 25 DECEMBER 2018 AMERICAS

Mattis signs order to withdraw troops from SyriaAFP WASHINGTON

The order to withdraw American troops from Syria has been signed, the US military said yesterday, after President Donald Trump and his Turkish coun-terpart agreed to prevent a power vacuum in the wake of the controversial move.

The announcement that US troops would leave the civil war-racked country — where they have been deployed to assist in the multinational fight against the IS militant group — shocked global partners and American politicians alike.

“US Defense Secretary James Mattis has signed the execute order for Syria” a military spokesperson said when asked about the withdrawal order,

without providing further details.Turkey was a rare ally that

lauded Trump’s momentous decision on Syria, a country where it will now have a freer rein to target US-allied Kurdish fighters who have played a major role in the war against IS but are deemed terrorists by Ankara.

Trump and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan spoke by tele-phone on Sunday and “agreed to ensure coordination between their countries’ military, diplo-matic and other officials to avoid a power vacuum which could result following any abuse of the

withdrawal and transition phase in Syria,” the Turkish presidency said in a statement.

Late Sunday, Trump tweeted that Erdogan had assured him that any remaining IS fighters in Syria will be eliminated.

“President @RT_Erdogan of Turkey has very strongly informed me that he will erad-icate whatever is left of ISIS in Syria,” Trump said in a Tweet around midnight Sunday, using another acronym for the jihadist group.

Repeating a pattern of admiring comments towards

global strongmen, Trump added that Erdogan “is a man who can do it.”

The US president concluded: “Our troops are coming home!”

Hours earlier, Trump had tweeted that he and Erdogan “discussed (IS), our mutual involvement in Syria, & the slow & highly coordinated pullout of US troops from the area.”

US politicians — including those from his own Republican party — and international allies fear the withdrawal of the roughly 2,000 US troops is pre-mature and would further desta-bilize the already devastated region.

A US withdrawal, said Mutlu Civiroglu, a Kurdish affairs analyst, will open the way “for Turkey to start its operations against the Kurds, and a bloody

war will begin.”French President Emmanuel

Macron on Sunday said he “deeply regretted” Trump’s decision, and that “an ally must be reliable.”

US troops will leave under the auspices of a new Pentagon chief set to start next month, after Jim Mattis resigned from the post citing key differences, including on Syria, with the often-impulsive Trump.

Several US politicians from both parties rejected Trump’s claim that IS had been defeated, and the decision also caused alarm and dismay in the US mil-itary over the prospect of sud-denly abandoning Washington’s Kurdish partners.

Trump’s sudden decision sparked turmoil within his administration, prompting the

resignation of Brett McGurk, the special envoy to the anti-IS coa-lition, as well as Mattis.

Plans for the troop with-drawal will now be overseen by Deputy Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan, who Trump on Sunday said would replace Mattis starting January 1.

Mattis, 68, had said he would leave at the end of February to allow a smooth transition for the next chief of the world’s top mil-itary power — but a reportedly angry Trump accelerated his departure by two months.

Defense spokeswoman Dana White tweeted that Mattis would still assist in the handover, working with Shanahan to ensure the department “remains focused on the defense of our nation during this transition.”

“Trump and Erdogan agreed to ensure

coordination between their countries’ military,

diplomatic and other officials to avoid a power

vacuum which could result following any abuse

of the withdrawal and transition phase in Syria.”

Shutdown enters thirdday with no urgency to reopen governmentBLOOMBERG WASHINGTON

As the partial US government shutdown enters a third day, lawmakers have left Washington for the holiday with no sign of urgency to resolve the fight over President Donald Trump’s demand for border wall money.

Unlike shutdowns of the past, Congress and the White House aren’t racing to reopen the government. Offices of congres-sional leaders who are respon-sible for negotiating with the president are shuttered as Trump remains at the White House after canceling a trip to his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida.

Previous government clo-sures have put Washington in crisis mode with round-the-clock talks, strategy sessions and public posturing. Not so, this time. The next possibility for votes in the House and Senate is on December 27, but Democrats have indicated the two sides are far from a deal. If there’s no agreement, many lawmakers won’t return until the new session of Congress starts on Jan. 3, when Democrats take control of the House.

“It’s very possible that the

shutdown will go beyond the 28th and into the new Congress,” White House Budget Director Mick Mulvaney said.

The top Democrat in the House, Nancy Pelosi of Cali-fornia, made a similar prediction. “Until President Trump can pub-licly commit to a bipartisan res-olution, there will be no agreement before January when the new House Democratic Majority will swiftly pass legis-lation to re-open government,” the California lawmaker, who is likely to become House speaker on Jan. 3, said in a letter Saturday to fellow Democrats.

Unlike the other two shut-downs this year, the one that started Saturday includes only part of the federal government — nine of 15 departments, rep-resenting about a quarter of the $1.24 trillion in government dis-cretionary spending for fiscal year 2019. Many of the biggest government functions, including the Departments of Defense, Health and Human Services and Veterans Affairs, have already been fully funded through September.

The partial shutdown —along with Trump declaring yes-terday, Christmas Eve, a federal

holiday — may be contributing to a less-than-urgent approach to the negotiations.

“When everybody leaves town, it takes the pressure off for a deal,” said New York Repre-sentative Lee Zeldin, a Repub-lican, one of the few lawmakers lingering in the Capitol on Sunday. “The American people expect both sides to figure it out, to come to a compromise.”

Asked why Speaker Paul Ryan of Wisconsin left

Washington, spokesman Mike Ricci said by email the House will pass a plan that can get through the Senate and that the president agrees to sign. “The White House is engaged in talks with Senate Democrats, and when the Senate acts, the House will be prepared to follow,” Ricci said.

The fight between Demo-crats and Trump is over $5bn for wall construction on the US-Mexico border, a relatively small amount by Washington

standards. But both sides have staked out firm positions. Trump campaigned on building a wall, which he’d originally said Mexico would pay for. Democrats say a wall is wasteful and ineffective.

The outcome of the shutdown will set the stage for the next two years of divided government in Washington, with Republicans in control of the White House and Senate and Democrats running the House.

Trashes begin to accumulate along the National Mall due to a partial shutdown of the federal government, in Washington, DC, yesterday.

Call for probe into death of migrant girl in US custody

Costa Rican men rescued after 20 days adriftAP MIAMI

A cruise ship has rescued two Costa Rican fishermen who had been stranded at sea for about three weeks.

Royal Caribbean Chief Mete-orologist James Van Fleet

tweeted that the sailors were saved Friday night between Grand Cayman and Jamaica by the Empress of the Seas cruise ship.

Fleet said the cruise ship was not scheduled to be there but had taken an alternate route because of bad weather.

Fleet tweeted Sunday that the fishermen left Porto Limon, Costa Rica, and had been adrift since December 1. They said they had fallen asleep while their nets were soaking and ran out of gas while trying to return.

Both received medical attention on board.

Two Costa Rican fishermen are rescued onto a lifeboat from the Royal Caribbean cruise ship Empress of the Seas, near Grand Cayman and Jamaica.

Justice Ginsburg up and working after surgeryAP WASHINGTON

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is up and working as she recuperates from cancer surgery.

A spokeswoman for the court, Kathy Arberg, also saidthat Ginsburg remained in New York at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. No information has been released on when Ginsburg might return home.

Ginsburg underwent surgery Friday to remove two malignant growths in her left lung. Doctors say there is no evidence of any remaining disease.

Now 85, the justice has been treated for cancer two other times. Last month she cracked three ribs in a fall at the court.

The court next meets on January 7. Despite her health problems, Ginsburg has never missed arguments.

REUTERS GENEVA

A United Nations human rights expert called on US authorities yesterday to conduct a full and independent investigation into the death of a seven-year-old Guatemalan migrant girl in US custody and to stop detaining children.

Felipe González Morales, UN special rapporteur on the human rights of migrants, also said the family of Jakelin Caal, from the Mayan indigenous community, should be given access to legal representation in the proceedings in a language they understand.

“Redress to her family should be provided and if any officials are found responsible they should be held accountable,” he said in a statement. “The government should also address failings within the immigration system, and specifically within the US Customs and Border Patrol agency, to prevent similar situations.”

Caal and her father Nery

were in a group of more than 160 migrants who handed themselves in to US border agents in New Mexico on December 6. Jakelin developed a high fever while in the custody of US Customs and Border Protection and died two days later at a hospital in El Paso, Texas.

“The US authorities must ensure that an in-depth, inde-pendent investigation of the death of Jakelin Ameí Caal is conducted,” González Morales, said in the statement.

US officials have said the US Department of Homeland Secu-rity’s internal watchdog will investigate the girl’s death.

Initial news reports said Caal died of dehydration and exhaustion. Later, US officials said she had suffered cardiac arrest, brain swelling and liver failure.

Gonzalez Morales called on the Trump administration to halt the detention of children, unaccompanied or with their families, based on their migratory status, and to seek alternatives.

Concord police surprise shoppers after receiving $50,000 giftAP CONCORD

Concord Police officers have been surprising shoppers as they seek to spend a generous anonymous donation.

The police department got $50,000 a few weeks ago to spend however it wanted to benefit the community. Officers have been showing up at grocery stores, Target, Walmart and downtown res-taurants giving away $25 and $50 gift cards.

The gesture made Pam Abbot, of Loudon, tear up in the pasta aisle at Market Basket.

“I am very emotionally actually - that was very nice,” she told the Concord Monitor. “This is a hard time of year for people. It really is, and to see that - it just makes my day completely.”

Beatrice Richmond, who was shopping with her toddler son, said her family has been struggling lately. The surprise gift allowed her to buy him a small treat.

“He’s been asking me to buy this for days,” she said. “It just means so much.”

Officers also handed out hundreds of wrapped gifts during patrols, and brought presents to the homes of crime victims.

Chief Brad Osgood said officers planned to spend about half the money and will dis-tribute the rest later when they see a need in the community.

16 TUESDAY 25 DECEMBER 2018MORNING BREAK

FAJRSHOROOK

04. 55 AM06. 17 AM

11. 34 AM02. 31 PM

04. 53 PM06. 23 PM

ZUHRASR

MAGHRIBISHA

PRAYER TIMINGS

HIGH TIDE 07:00 – 18:00 LOW TIDE 14:30 –00:00

Moderate temperature daytime with slight

dust at places and scattered clouds, cold

by night.

WEATHER TODAY

Courtesy: Qatar Meteorology Department

Minimum Maximum17oC 23oC

DFI selects 38 projects by Qatari and global filmmakers for Fall 2018 Grants The Doha Film Institute (DFI) has selected 38 projects by emerging and established Qatari and international directors, including MENA directors from over 15 countries for its Fall 2018 Grants programme.

The DFI Grants programme has evolved as a key initiative for identi-fying new cinematic voices and talent and discovering universally resonant stories.

“Our Grants programme is focused on supporting the region’s filmmakers to realise their film aspirations. By ele-vating original voices in cinema, pro-moting creative interaction and pro-viding creative support throughout the filmmaking cycle, we intend to establish a robust film ecosystem in the Arab world,” said Fatma Hassan Alremaihi, Chief Executive Officer of DFI.

For the first time, DFI grants are also being awarded for TV and web series helmed by MENA scriptwriters and directors, with two projects sup-ported in each category, highlighting the Institute’s commitment to support compelling multi-platform storytelling that exemplifies emerging industry trends.

Along with providing support in the key challenge of financial resources, we support networking opportunities and professional guidance to enable global recognition of more filmmakers from our region. This year’s expansion of the programme to include TV and web series acknowledges the impor-tance of embracing new platforms and models. With a diverse range of themes and narrative approaches, this year’s projects have tremendous potential for global impact,” said Alremaihi.

Of the 38 projects selected, three are by Qatari filmmakers – two short narratives and one feature docu-mentary. In all, 18 women filmmakers will receive the grants this cycle. There are also five returning filmmakers who will receive the grants, highlighting the Institute’s commitment to long-term relationships.

Marking DFI’s commitment to support powerful projects by estab-lished filmmaker, in this cycle, a new film project by Nacer Khemir has been selected for the grants.

As the Palestine Film Unit marks its 50th anniversary, six selected Pales-tinian projects demonstrate the industry to be as prolific as ever. Lebanon is also

strongly represented with seven grantees while projects from Mexico, Lesotho and Russia have been awarded for the first time. Grants are also awarded to filmmakers from Afghan-istan, Algeria, Bolivia, Iran, Jordan, Kuwait, Morocco, Serbia, Sudan, and Tunisia.

The DFI Fall 2018 Grants pro-gramme saw the highest number of applications at 467 this cycle, including 150 applications from non-MENA coun-tries. Eight non-MENA post production projects have been awarded this cycle – a record number as well as eight experimental or essay projects by MENA and non-MENA filmmakers.

The film projects chosen for devel-opment grants are Beirut 1931 by Kamal Aljafari; In Vitro by Larissa Sansour; Mama, Where Are You? by Meqdad

Al-Kout; Where Did I Leave My Face? by Ramzi Maqdisi; Femmetasia by Mouhssine El Badaoui and You Don’t Die Two Times by Ager Oueslati as well as TV series TCA186: The Tarmac Year by Mohamed Berro and The Vibes by Erige Sehiri.

The grantees in production stage are Barzakh by Laila Abbas; Costa Brava Lebanon by Mounia Akl; Happy Holidays by Scandar Copti; Mediter-ranean Fever by Maha Haj; Severed Head by Lotfi Achour; The Alleys by Bassel Ghandour; It’s Far Away Where I Must Go by Karima Saidi; The Dam by Ali Cherri; The Earth Doesn’t Move by Yosr Gasmi; We Are Inside by Farah Kassem; Zyara by Muriel Aboulrouss; The Closet Sessions by Ahmad Satti Ibrahim; Al-Sit by Suzannah Mirghaniis; Border by Khalifa Al-Thani; The Bath

by Anissa Daoud; The Bystander by Rachel Aoun, and This Haunting Memory That Is Not My Own by Panos Aprahamian.

The film projects in post-production stage chosen for the Grants are Sanc-torum by Joshua Gil; Sirena by Carlos Piñeiro; Froth by Ilia Povolotskiy; Loving Wallada by Nacer Khemir; Movement by Nadir Bouhmouch; The Forbidden Strings by Hasan Noori,; The Marriage Project by Atieh Attarzadeh and Hesam Eslami; The Waiting Bench by Suhaib Gasmelbariin; Mother, I Am Suffocating. This Is My Last Film About You by Lemohang Jeremiah Mosese; Speak So I Can See You by Marija Stojnic; To The Ends Of The Earth by Hamida Issa; What We Left Unfinished by Mariam Ghani; and Me, Myself, and AI by Maha Al Jefairi.

THE PENINSULA

Souq Waqif Spring Festival opensFamilies and children enjoying the Souq Waqif Spring Festival, in Al Wakra. The festival, which began on December 21, is offering games, rides, concerts and shows to the visitors. The 15-day long event is being organised by the Organizing Committee of the Private Engineering Office. Children as well as adults can play carnival skill games to win memorabilia and gifts at the 15 colourful stalls lined up at Al Ahmed Square, in addition to several rides for children.PIC: ABDUL BASIT / THE PENINSULA

The film projects chosen for the Grants include, CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: Froth by Ilia Povolotskiy; Movement by Nadir Bouhmouch; and In Vitro by Larissa Sansour.

China set to open 50 yoga collegesIANS BEIJING

China will open 50 yoga institutes in the wake of the ancient Indian discipline gaining popularity in the country.

This was announced by the dean of China-India Yoga which opened its first branch at Yunnan University in Lijiang.

The China-India Yoga College is a part of an understanding to increase cultural exchange between both countries.

A total of 50 branches will be set up to boost yoga education and teacher training, Chen Luyan, dean of the China-India Yoga College was quoted as saying by the Xinhua news agency.

Johnny Depp officially axed from ‘Pirates of The Caribbean’IANS LOS ANGELES

Actor Johnny Depp has been offi-cially dropped from the “Pirates of The Caribbean” film series.

A Disney producer said Depp will stop playing Captain Jack Sparrow after 14 years at the helm so the movies can have a reboot.

“We want to bring in a new

energy and vitality,” Disney’s production chief Sean Bailey told The Hollywood Reporter.

“I love the (Pirates) movies, but part of the reason Paul and Rhett are so interesting is that we want to give it a kick in the pants. And that’s what I’ve tasked them with.”

Disney has met with writing duo Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick to pen the script for a

reboot following their success with the “Deadpool” superhero franchise, reports thesun.co.uk.

Depp’s last “Pirates of the Caribbean” was “Dead Men Tell No Tales” in 2017, which was the lowest performing of the five films.

In October, scriptwriter Stuart Beattie appeared to confirm the news of Johnny’s exit on DailyMail TV and revealed

they will be reworking the entire franchise.

Speaking about his exit, Beattie said: “I think he’s had a great run. Obviously, he’s made that character his own and it’s become the character he’s most famous for now.

“And kids all over the world love him as that character so I think it’s been great for him, it’s been great for us, so I’m just very,

very happy about it.”He added: “I think Jack

Sparrow will be his legacy. It’s the only character he’s played five times, it’s the character he dresses up in to visit children in hospitals, it’s what he’ll be remembered for.

“Before Jack Sparrow came along, (Depp) was considered this kind of quirky, independent actor that made these really cool

little Tim Burton films but he was by no means a movie star and a lot of people thought we were crazy for casting him at the time.

“Because he wasn’t a proven commodity; you know, a big movie star. And we were making a big movie and we were putting this quirky, independent actor in the middle of it and people thought we were crazy.”