times of oman - june 4, 2016

Founded 1975 . Volume 41 No. | Pages . Baisas 200 . Subscription OMR63 | ISO 9001:2008 Certied Company | Chairman/Editor-in-Chief: Mohamed Issa Al Zadjali | Printed & Published by Muscat Media Group

June 4, 2016 28 Shaaban 1437 AHSATURDAY

2888

OMAN AIR OPENS OFFICE MASHHAD: On the sidelines of the launch of the new terminal in Mashhad, Oman Air celebrated the opening of its of-ce in the city yesterday under the auspices of Mohammed Jawad bin Hasan, advisor at the Ministry of Finance. He said that the opening of Oman Air office in Mashhad will have an appreciable economic signicance for Oman Air. ONA

On the occasion of the 7th National Day, 1977

FROM THE WORDS OF HIS MAJESTYTHE SULTAN

We must continue to devote ourselves with complete dedication to the service of Oman, our Arab family and mankind, conscious always of the humble duty we owe to God, our holy religion and society.

His Majestys Wisdom

HM issues three Royal DecreesMUSCAT: His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said on Thursday is-sued three Royal Decrees as fol-lows: Royal Decree No. 29/2016 on transfers and placements in the diplomatic corps.

Article (1) states that the am-bassadors named below shall be transferred to the general diwan of the Foreign Ministry:

1. Shaikh Mohammed bin Ab-dullah bin Ali Al Qatabi, the Sul-tanates Ambassador to the Unit-ed Arab Emirates.

2. Mohammed bin Nasser bin Hamad Al Wahaibi, the Sultan-ates Ambassador to the State of Qatar.

3. Hussain bin Omar bin Abdul-lah Al Ibrahim, the Sultanates Am-

bassador to Tunisian Republic.4. Sayyid Qais bin Salim bin Ali

Al Said, the Sultanates Ambassa-dor to the Republic of Turkey.

5. Riyadh bin Yousef bin Ahmed Al Raisi, the Sultanates Ambassador to Islamic Republic of Pakistan.

6. Khalid bin Sulaiman bin Ab-durrahman BaOmar, the Sultan-ates Ambassador to the Federal Republic of Germany.

7. Mohammed bin Khalil bin Mohammed Al-Gazmi, the Sul-tanates Ambassador to the Re-public of Senegal.

8. Ahmed bin Barakat bin Ab-dullah Al Ibrahim, the Sultanates Ambassador to the Republic of Lebanon. >A2

T R A N S F E R S A N D P L A C E M E N T S

FAHAD AL [email protected]

MUSCAT: Families on the bread-line in Oman could soon be re-ceiving government assistance, if a plan by a Majlis Al Shura mem-ber gets the green light.

Some families with more than eight children are living on as lit-tle as OMR80 a month, according to the Services and Social Devel-opment Committee.

The committee plans to grant nancial support to families earn-ing less than OMR264 a month.

The committee had a discus-sion and held different meetings to discuss what kind of support these families require, especially in the current situation, said Nasir Al Khamisi, the vice-chairman of the Services and Social Development Committee at Majlis Al Shura.

He added that the committee came out with different types of support but will start now with -nancial support to cover electric-ity and water bills.

Such families, especially big ones, get high bills and they really

struggle to cover them along with meeting their daily needs, said Al Khamisi.

He explained that the sugges-tion raised by the committee is to grant OMR50 for families with 10 members or more to cover the bills, while families with fewer children will get OMR35.

We know that it is not that much but we have to ask the gov-ernment for possible ideas, said Al Khamisi. He added that the support will not only cover social insurance families but all nation-al families with salaries less than the maximum salary for social in-surance which is OMR264.

Living allowanceIn future, the committee wants to provide low-income families with living allowance too.

Its in our minds but for now lets nish the support bill and then we can sit again and discuss the living allowance issue as it is also really important, espe-cially under the current nancial situation of the country, said Al Khamisi.

We came across families of 10 members with monthly income of OMR80, said Al Khamisi. He added that such families strug-gle in meeting their daily needs. We have suggested the Public Authority for Social Insurance PASI to meet the criteria followed by the Ministry of Social Develop-ment, said Al Khamisi. >A2

If Shura plan is approved, poor families will

get nancial aid to meet their daily needs

Ban on Ibra farms liftedStaff Reporter

MUSCAT: Quarantine imposed on seven farms in Ibra has been lifted after it was conrmed that livestock are now free of the Crimean-Congo Haemorrhagic Fever (CCHF), according to the officials.

A number of livestock farms were shut down in South Al Shar-qiyah recently to limit the spread of CCHF.

Last May, an Asian expatriate died after he contracted CCHF in the wilayat of Ibra, a senior of-cial of Ibra Municipality told the Times of Oman.

The expat who died was a butcher in one of the livestock farms, owned by his father, and died from the fever. It is a solitary case, and we are checking to see if the disease has spread to other an-imals or people, the official added.

From early 2016 until the end of April, the Sultanate recorded six cases in which people three people suffering from CCHF have

died. CCHF is a disease caused by a tick-borne virus. The virus is transmitted to people, either through tick bites or contact with infected animals. This disease is endemic to the Sultanate, with the rst case reported in 1995.

The World Health Organisa-tion (WHO) in Oman said there was an urgent need for formulat-

ing a comprehensive prevention and control strategy to combat Congo fever in the region, in view of the increasing incidents.

The Ministry of Health works together with the Ministry of Ag-riculture and Fisheries to moni-tor CCHF, as well as in providing the public with educational bro-chures about the disease.

C R I M E A N - C O N G O H E M O R R H A G I C F E V E R

CONTROLLING MECHANISM: A number of livestock farms were shut down in South Al Sharqiyah to limit the spread of CCHF.

LPG tanker driver killed in Liwa crashStaff Reporter

MUSCAT: A truck driver car-rying liqueed petroleum gas (LPG) died in an accident in Liwa, North Al Batinah governorate on Wednesday, the Public Authority for Civil Defence and Ambulance (PACDA) reported.

According to the PACDA Twit-ter handle, the truck was loaded with LPG. Experts dealing in haz-ardous materials in cooperation with the officials of the vehicle company are working since yes-terday to empty the dangerous cargo. The accident had occurred at 17:11pm.

T R U C K O V E R T U R N S

QATARI PM CONVEYS EMIRS GREETINGS TO HIS MAJESTY THE SULTANHis Highness Sayyid Fahd bin Mahmoud Al Said, Deputy Prime Minister for the Council of Ministers with Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani, Prime Minister, Minister of Interior of Qatar in Muscat on Thursday. The Qatari leader conveyed the greetings of His Highness Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, Emir of Qatar, along with his best wishes of success to His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said and the Omani people further progress and prosperity. -ONA >A2

WORLDParis museums move art works

2The Louvre and Orsay museums in Paris moved scores of art works and precious artefacts to safety. >A10

MARKETMiddle East carriers to post $1.6b profit

3Middle East carriers are expected to post a $1.6b prot, up slightly from the $1.4b reported for 2015. >B1

OMANLast day for medical tests for Haj pilgrims

1Today is the last day to undergo medical tests and vaccinations for people wishing to perform Haj. >A2

A3Sultan Qaboos Mosque in Bukha inaugurated

T O P T H R E E I N S I D E S T O R I E S

LIFELINE FOR THE POOR?

GraphicsSource:

Familymembers

Money(Omani rials)

2

1

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

124

150

172

190

208

226

242

254

80

10 264

SOCIAL SECURITY LAW

Royal DecreeNo. 87/1984

A2 S AT U R DAY, J U N E 4 , 2 0 1 6

OMAN

MUSCAT: Oman and Qatar held talks to expand co-operation in various elds at the Council of Ministers in Muscat on Thursday.

The Omani side was chaired by His Highness Sayyid Fahd bin Mahmoud Al Said, Deputy Prime Minister for the Council of Minis-ters while the Qatari side was led by Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani, Prime Minister, Minister of Interior in Qatar who conveyed greetings of His High-ness Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, Emir of Qatar along with his best wishes of permanent suc-cess to His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said and the Omani people fur-ther progress and prosperity.

Good fraternal spirit and rm desire in supporting and enhancing avenues of existing cooperation be-tween the two countries in several

elds prevailed over the talks.Sayyid Fahd began the meeting

by welcoming Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani and his accompanying delegation. He hailed the growing strong bilateral relations and continuous keenness accorded by the wise leadership in the two countries to develop such relations at best levels.

The Omani-Qatari talks touched on several elds that serve the joint interests of both countries, including economy, trade and joint investments. The talks also re-viewed situations in the regional and international arenas, as well as the efforts exerted to encourage constructive dialogue in a bid to end disputes via peaceful methods to support security and stability.

Sayyid Fahd asked the guest to convey greetings of His Maj-

esty the Sultan along with his best wishes to the Emir of Qatar and the Qatari people further growth and welfare.

MoUs signedOman and Qatar signed a number of agreements and Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) at the Al Bustan Palace Hotel on Thursday.

Yousuf bin Alawi bin Abdullah, Minister Responsible for Foreign Affairs, signed a MoU in the eld of culture with Ahmed Jassim Al Thani, Minister of Economy and Trade of Qatar.

The MoU is related to exchanges of information, publications, book-lets, cultural and scientic bulletins, references and the organisation of bilateral symposia and seminars for professionals in the eld of cultural heritage preservation.

The MoU also aims at exchang-ing expertise in indexing, manu-script preservation, and mainte-nance and restoration of materials. Further, an agreement was signed to begin cooperation in the cinema eld, and to exchange expertise and invitations and take part at events and activities in cinema. This also includes exchanges of visits among writers, men of let-ters, poets, artists, as well as thea-tre and music delegations.

Also, Mohammed bin Salim Al Toobi, Minister of Environment and Climate Affairs, signed a MoU in the eld of environment and its preservation with Mohammed bin Abdullah Al Romaihi, Minister of Municipality and Environment in Qatar. The MoU is related to ex-changing national expertise and information in environmental

protection, climate affairs and en-vironmental preservation.

The MoU calls for exchanges of expertise in monitoring climate changes, organising a forum for joint environmental cooperation, developing an integrated work programme for two years to iden-tify and begin proposed activities and elds for cooperation, enhanc-ing environmental awareness, evaluating the environmental ef-fects for industrial and develop-ment projects, exchanging exper-tise in the eld of tourism and its integration with biodiversity.

Further, Yahya bin Said Al Jabri, Chairman of Special Economic Zone Authority in Duqm (SEZAD), signed an agreement with Khalid Al Hail, Chairman of Karwa Au-tomobiles, by which SEZAD will provide the company with the

right to set up an auto assembly factory with some OMR160 mil-lion in investments.

Al Jabri, SEZAD Chairman, con-rmed that the agreement enhanc-es cooperation and the economic partnership between the Sultan-ate and Qatar.

We are happy to sign the land agreement with Karwa Company, whose investment will be an im-portant addition to the existing investments in the Zone, Al Jabri said in a press statement.

Karwa Company and Oman In-vestment Fund will provide capi-tal for the project, including 30 per cent for the Sultanate and 70 per cent for Qatar.

Under the agreement, SEZAD allocated land of about one million square metres in the medium in-dustries area for the factory, which will have an annual capacity of some 2,000 units of various types of cars, large and small buses, school buses, trucks and other vehicles.

The project includes the con-struction of a number of admin-istrative support services, staff housing, and a yard to conduct operational tests for cars, in addi-tion to other benets associated with the project.

The agreement is for 25 years, subject to renewal. It is expected that 400 to 500 jobs are to be creat-ed. Meanwhile, the Public Authori-ty for Mining (PAM) and Qatar Pri-mary Materials Company (QPMC) also signed a memorandum of un-derstanding on the two queries in Khatmat Milaha in the Wilayat of Shinas to provide support to assist the company in receiving approvals and permits to carry out its excava-tions in the quarries. -ONA

The Omani-Qatari

talks touched

on several elds

that serve

the joint interests

of both countries,

including economy,

trade and joint

investmentsBILATERAL TALKS: His Highness Sayyid Fahd bin Mahmoud Al Said, Deputy Prime Minister for the Council of Ministers with Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani, Prime Minister, Minister of Interior in Qatar in Muscat on Thursday.ONA

Sultanate, Qatar sign agreements to expand ties in various elds

Last day for medical tests for pilgrims going on HajFAHAD AL [email protected]

MUSCAT: Today is the last day to undergo medical tests and vacci-nations for people wishing to per-form Haj, according to the Minis-try of Health regulations.

The Ministry of Health had earlier issued a statement, noting that medical examinations and vaccinations can be received be-tween May 22 and June 4, 2016.

Persons who have received a text message approval from the Ministry of Awqaf and Religious Affairs, should go to health insti-tutions, the statement said.

The vaccinations, which are

required, include the Quadra-vaccination to protect against meningococcal meningitis and the seasonal Inuenza vaccine.

VaccineThe Quadra-vaccination for meningococcal meningitis pro-vides a three-year-immunity. Hence, all those who have been vaccinated within a period of three years and hold relevant documents to prove this are ex-empted from receiving this vac-cine, the statement said.

Regarding the seasonal Inu-enza vaccine, the statement said the vaccine provides a seasonal immunity and should be repeat-

ed annually. These vaccines are essential to enter the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, as requested from healthcare authorities there, it added.

The requirements to visit health institutions include an identity card or passport for Omanis and a resident card for non-Omanis that should be com-pleted as part of the procedures from the Ministry of Awqaf and Religious Affairs.

All pilgrims for this year need to adhere and comply with the in-structions in order to prevent the spread of these preventable dis-eases and to protect the publics health, it added.

M I N I S T R Y O F H E A L T H

TURQUOISE OMANI SEA WATEROman is among the tourism worlds top destinations due to its turquoise sea water and beautiful and clean beaches. An amateur photographer Renu Singh captured this picture in her camera while moving along the Oman coast.

Pipe burst to hit supplyTimes News Service

MUSCAT: A water pipeline burst in Muttrah on Friday morning, causing gridlock, a Royal Oman Police official conrmed.

The road, near Al Shira rounda-bout, has been ooded with water since the early hours of this morn-ing. The rupture in the pipeline affected traffic in the area. Police personnel have been deployed to control the traffic while authori-ties are on the spot to plug the leak, the source added. Pictures of the damaged road are circulat-

ing on the social media.The burst will affect water

supply in the wilayats of Muscat and Muttrah, according to the Public Authority for Electricity and Water.

The authority has added that all areas in the Muscat governo-rate will be affected except for Qantab and Al Bustan. It may take approximately 48 hours to x the damage, PAEW said in a tweet, calling residents in Mut-trah and Muscat to rationalise consumption of water in the up-coming hours.

R O Y A L O M A N P O L I C E

HM promulgates law on combating money launderingArticle (2) transfers the following ambassadors and appoints them as stated here:

1. Lyutha bint Sultan bin Ahmed Al Mughairiya, Sultanates Perma-nent Representative to the United Nations in New York, to be trans-ferred and appointed as the Sul-tanates Ambassador to the Fed-eral Republic of Germany.

2. Shaikh Khalifa bin Ali bin Issa Al Harthy, Sultanates Ambassa-dor to the Arab Republic of Egypt, to be transferred and appointed as the Sultanates Permanent Repre-sentative to the United Nations in New York.

3. Dr Khalid bin Said bin Salim Al Jaradi, Sultanates Ambassador to the Federative Republic of Bra-zil, to be transferred and appointed as the Sultanates Ambassador to the United Arab Emirates.

4. Badr bin Mohammed bin Badr Al Mantheri, Sultanates Ambas-sador to the Yemeni Republic, to be transferred and appointed as the Sultanates Ambassador to the Republic of Lebanon.

5. Dr. Qassim bin Mohammed bin Salim Al Salhi, Sultanates Ambassador to the State of Libya, to be transferred and appointed as the Sultanates Ambassador to the

Republic of Turkey.6. Saud bin Ali bin Mohammed

Al Ruqaishi, Sultanates Ambas-sador to the United Republic of Tanzania, to be transferred and appointed as the Sultanates Am-bassador to the Tunisian Republic.

Article (3) appoints Dr. Ali bin Ahmed bin Harib Al Issaee, as the Sultanates Ambassador to the Arab Republic of Egypt and its Permanent Representative to the Arab League, and Abdullah bin Mohammed bin Sulaiman Al Amri, as the Sultanates Ambassa-dor to the Republic of Senegal.

Article (4) grants the following

the title of Ambassador and ap-points them as stated here:

1. Plenipotentiary Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Omar bin Ahmed Al Marhoon, to be ap-pointed as the Sultanates Ambas-sador to the Islamic Republic of Pakistan.

2. Plenipotentiary Minister Ali bin Abdullah bin Salim Al Mah-rouqi, to be appointed as the Sul-tanates Ambassador to Tanzania.

3. Adviser Imad bin Hamoud bin Salim Al Abri, to be appointed as the Sultanates Ambassador to the Federative Republic of Brazil.

4. Adviser Najeeb bin Yahya bin

Zeerok Al Balushi, to be appointed as the Sultanates Ambassador to the State of Qatar.

Article (5) says that this decree shall be published in the Official Gazette and enforced on its date of issue.

Royal Decree No. 30/2016 promulgates Law on Combating Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing.

Article (1) stipulates that the provisions of the Law on Combat-ing Money Laundering and Ter-rorism Financing attached to this decree shall be enforced.

Article (2) says that this de-

cree shall be published in the Official Gazette.

Raties the agreementRoyal Decree No. 31/2016 raties the Agreement on Foundation of Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank signed in Beijing on June 29th 2015.

Article (1) raties the afore-mentioned agreement in accord-ance with the version attached to this decree.

Article (2) says that this decree shall be published in the Official Gazette and enforced on its date of issue. -ONA

R O Y A L D E C R E E

Family welfare budget has grownNasra Nasir, a 75-year-old widow, said that the salary she usually gets from the social security hard-ly covers her daily needs.

However, she feels with the continuous rise in prices of prod-ucts and services it is becoming hard for her to survive with such amount of money.

Though the support will ab-solutely benet huge number of social insurance families, said Nasra. She added that the such families cant depend on anything but only on such nancial support by the government.

I really thank everyone in-volved in this move and appreci-ate the government response too, said Nasra.

Monthly salaryConsidering the number of low- income family groups and based on that the monthly salary is de-termined. 84,600 families were covered under the social insurance programme in 2015 by the Min-istry of Social Development, ac-cording to the National Centre for Statistics and Information NCSI.

Among them, the majority

60,000 are elderly people. Other notably large groups include di-vorced women, who make up 12,000 of beneciaries, and or-phans, who make up 3,000.

The ministers website also shows that beneciary catego-ries of the social insurance sys-tem are orphans (children whose parents have died and their age does not exceed eighteen years) widows less than 60 years old, di-vorcees who have nobody to sup-port them nancially; abandoned woman and unmarried girls be-tween 18 and 60 years old with no

obligated provider who can sup-port them nancially.

The system also covers elderly with no obligated provider who can support him nancially, fam-ily of the prisoner for more than six months with no obligated pro-vider who can support him nan-cially and disabled.

The minimum payment for social security is at the base level of OMR264, and the coun-trywide family welfare budget has grown considerably over the decades, rising to OMR130 mil-lion in 2013.

S O C I A L I N S U R A N C E

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Sultan Qaboos Mosque opens in Bukha; Al Zuhd in Al MudhaibiAssigned by His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said, Ahmed bin Abdullah bin Mohammed Al Shahi, Minister of Regional Municipalities

and Water Resources presided, yesterday, over the opening of Sultan Qaboos Mosque in the Wilayat of Bukha in Musandam Governorate,

in the presence of Sayyid Khalifa bin Al Mirdas Al Busaidi, Governor of Musandam; Habib bin Mohammed Al Riyami, Secretary General of

Sultan Qaboos Higher Centre for Culture and Science; Shaikh Saif bin Himier Al Malik Al Shahi, Governor of Al Dhahirah and a number of

officials, dignitaries and citizens in the wilayat. The mosque has a built-up area of 3, 836 square metres on a plot area of 12, 536 square

metres and can accommodate 1,088 worshippers. It also has a separte a prayer area for women that can accommodate 120 women. -ONA

AL ZUHD MOSQUE: The new Al Zuhd Mosque was opened at Al Zaheb village in the Wilayat of Al Mudhaibi yesterday, under the auspices of General Sultan bin Mohammed Al Nuamani, Minister of the Royal Office, in the presence of citizens at Al Zaheb and the neighbouring villages. The mosque built-up area amounts to 500 square metres and is situated on a plot of 1,260 square metres. ONA

A4 S AT U R DAY, J U N E 4 , 2 0 1 6

REGIONTwo-state solution chance fading as France hosts meet

PARIS: A two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conict may soon be impossible, France warned on Friday as it held an in-ternational conference to revive the quest for a deal despite Israels warning that the effort is doomed to failure.

With US efforts to broker an ac-cord in deep freeze for two years and Washington focused on its November presidential election, France hosted an conference with the aim of breaking the apathy over the impasse and stir new dip-lomatic momentum.

Palestinians have welcomed the French initiative but Israeli officials have said an international conference will not work and that only direct talks between the old foes can bring peace.

Neither Israel nor the Palestin-ians were invited to the confer-ence, though the objective is to get them to negotiate after the US elections.

The two-state solution is in serious danger. We are reaching a point of no return where this solu-tion will not be possible, French

Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ay-rault told a news conference af-ter convening some 25 ministers mainly from the Arab world, Eu-rope and the United States.

A nal communique said all countries present had reaffirmed the need for a negotiated two-state solution and that direct ne-gotiations between the two sides should be based on existing UN Security Council resolutions.

It warned that the status quo - a lack of headway towards a Pales-tinian state in territory occupied by Israel since the 1967 Middle East war - was not sustainable.

Ayrault said the powers wanted work to begin by the end of June on a set of economic incentives and security guarantees to en-courage the two sides to resurrect peace talks.

Arab offer in 2002They would also seek ways to break deadlocks that scuttled previous negotiations and look at whether other peace efforts such as a 2002 Arab offer of peace to Israel in exchange for its with-drawal from all occupied land re-main viable.

The Arab peace initiative has

all the elements for a nal settle-ment, Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir told reporters, and it could not be watered down to suit Israel.

It is on the table and a solid ba-sis for resolving this long-stand-ing dispute. It provides Israel with a lot of incentives and its incum-bent on the Israelis to accept that.

The European Unions foreign policy chief, Federica Mogher-ini, said it was the duty of inter-national and regional players to nd a breakthrough since the two sides appeared incapable of doing so alone.

Palestinians say continuous Israeli settlement expansion in occupied territory since then has dimmed any prospect for the vi-able state they seek in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, with a capi-tal in Arab East Jerusalem.

The interim 1993 Oslo peace ac-cords were meant to yield a two state solution within ve years.

The policy of settlement ex-pansion and demolitions, vio-lence, and incitement tells us very clearly that the perspective that Oslo opened up is seriously at risk of fading away, Mogherini told re-porters. Reuters

Palestinians have

welcomed the French

initiative but Israeli

officials have said

an international

conference will not

work and that only

direct talks between

the old foes can

bring peace

DEADLOCKED: French President Francois Hollande delivers a speech at the opening of an international meeting in a bid to revive the Israeli-Palestinian peace process in Paris, on Friday. AFP/POOL/Kamil Zihnioglu

No intention of cooperating with US, UK on regional issuesANKARA: Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Friday Tehran had no in-tention of cooperating on regional issues with its main enemies, the United States and Britain.

Khamenei also accused Wash-ington of not being committed to a nuclear deal reached between Tehran and six major powers, in-cluding the United States, in 2015 that aims to curb the countrys dis-puted nuclear programme.

We will not cooperate with America over the regional crisis, Khamenei said in a speech broad-cast live on state TV, adding that: Their aims in the region are 180 degrees opposed to Irans.

Relations with Washington were severed after Irans 1979 Islamic revolution and enmity to the Unit-ed States has always been a rally-ing point for hardliner supporters of Khamenei in Iran.

Tehran and Washington have common interests and threats across the Middle East.

They have cooperated tactically in the past, including when Teh-ran helped Washington counter Al Qaeda in Afghanistan and IS in Iraq. Following the end of the sanctions on Iran, the country has started to increase trade with the West. But some US sanctions remain and US banks remain pro-hibited from doing business with Iran directly or indirectly because Washington still accuses Tehran of supporting terrorism and hu-man rights abuses. They use human rights, terrorism... as pretexts to avoid fullling their commitments, Khamenei said.

If we remain strong and united and revolutionary, those who are trying to bully Iran and are against us will not succeed, he told a gathering to com-memorate the anniversary of the death of the revolutions founder, Ayatollah Rouhollah Khomeini, in 1989. Reuters

N O T T O B E T R U S T E D

UN set to ask Damascus to approve airdrops of aid

UNITED NATIONS / WASH-INGTON: The United Nations will ask the Syrian government on Sunday to approve airdrops and airlifts of humanitarian aid to besieged areas, UN aid chief Stephen OBrien told the Secu-rity Council, according to diplo-mats in the closed door meeting on Friday.

Nearly 600,000 people are besieged in 19 different areas in Syria, according to the UN, with two thirds trapped by govern-ment forces and the rest besieged by armed opposition groups and IS militants.

OBrien told the council the UN would ask permission from Syria to airdrop or airlift aid into be-sieged areas where only partial or no land access has been granted by President Bashar Al Assads government, said the diplomats.

There was no immediate re-sponse from Syrian UN Ambassa-dor Bashar Jaafari when asked to comment on the announcement.

It was not clear why Assads

government would consider agreeing to airlifts for areas where it has blocked overland aid convoys.

Syria gave the UN and the Red Cross approval on Thursday to send humanitarian aid convoys into at least 11 of the 19 besieged areas during June after the United States and Britain called for airdrops.

Several Western diplomats said the Syrian announcement may be a ploy to deect discussions on airdrops, noting that Assads gov-ernment has a track record of re-neging on promises to permit full access to needy people.

Last month members of the In-ternational Syria Support Group, which includes Russia and the United States, agreed that the UN World Food Program should airdrop aid to Syrias besieged communities from June 1 if land access was denied.

UN Syria mediator Staffan de Mistura, who also briefed the 15-member council, backed

OBriens comments, saying the UN needed to pursue airdrops and airlifts of humanitarian relief, the council diplomats told Reuters on condition of anonymity.

At least 250,000 people have died in Syrias ve-year civil war in Syria, while more than 6.6 million have been internally dis-placed and another 4.8 million people have ed the country.

Vitaly Churkin, the UN ambas-sador of Assads close military ally Russia, told the council that airdrops and airlifts of aid could be carried out if safely and cor-rectly organized, the diplomats who attended the meeting said.

Meanwhile, regarding a new offensive the US military said, if successful US-backed ghters in bid to to clear a strip of land along the Turkish border would free up to 40,000 civilians from IS control.

The US-backed force was com-prised of about 3,000 Syrian Arab ghters, or about 85 per cent of the total force. Reuters

C O N F L I C T

NO END IN SIGHT: Men inspect damage after an airstrike on Aleppos rebel held Al Hallak neigh-bourhood, Syria on Thursday. Reuters

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Mathura violence toll climbs to 24, more than 320 arrested

MATHURA: Twenty four people, including an SP and an SHO, have been killed in Thursdays massive clash between police and mem-bers of a sect who had encroached on government land here, even as tension prevailed in the area with police seizing a large cache of mu-nition from the site and arresting 320 people.

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav ordered a probe by the divisional commissioner of Mathura into the violence at Jawahar Bagh where nearly 3,000 people had illegally set up camp on an over 260-acre plot since last two years.

The Centre sought a report from the UP government on the incident while Union Home Min-

ister Rajnath Singh spoke to Ya-dav and assured the state govern-ment of all necessary help.

EncroachersAccording to state Director Gen-eral of Police Javed Ahmed, there was unprovoked ring by en-croachers who pelted stones and attacked the policemen with la-this as they arrived at the site for a recce to carry out the eviction, leading to the death of Superin-tendent of Police, City, Mukul Dwivedi and Station House of-cer, Farah, Santosh Yadav.

The police teams reorganised themselves. After two shelters were vacated, the protesters set

are gas cylinders and munition stored there which led to several explosions. Twenty two rioters were killed in the violence. These include 11 persons who were killed in a re started by the agita-tors, he said. The deceased also included a woman.

Our two young officers laid down their lives while protecting the law and with a heavy heart we bid adieu to them, the DGP told reporters after paying tributes to the slain officers. He said 23 police personnel have been hospitalised and many among them have suf-fered bullet injuries.

We have recovered 47 guns, six ries and 178 hand grenades from

the area, he said, adding 124 people have been arrested for cre-ating disturbances. Another 196, including 116 women, have been arrested under 151 CrPC, he said.

Section 151 CrPC deals with preventive arrests.

The encroachers, who were protesting under the auspices of Azad Bharat Vidhik Vaicharik Kranti Satyagrahi, were being evicted on the directions of the Al-lahabad High Court.

They were believed to be mem-bers of splinter group of Baba Jaigurudev sect had occupied the land on the pretext of dharna.

Their demands included can-cellation of election of president

and prime minister of India, re-placement of existing currency with Azad Hind Fauj currency, sale of diesel at the rate of 60 litres for one rupee and petrol at 40 li-tres for one rupee.

Ram Vriksh Yadav, Chandan Bose, Girish Yadav and Rakesh Gupta are the main culprits and leaders of this group and if alive they will be caught by the police, the DGP said, adding the 22 peo-ple killed in the violence are yet to be identied. Police said some vehicles bearing Madhya Pradesh registration number have been found and they would be probing all angles including if there was Naxalite connection. Fifteen cars and 6 motorcycles have been recovered, the DGP said.

The local people were angry with encroachers and they helped the police. When the rioters were retreating, they were severely beaten up by the public, he said.

The chief minister has an-nounced an ex-gratia of Rs 2 mil-lion to the family of the deceased policemen.

Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav, who was in Barabanki to launch government schemes and address a rally, said that administration officials held talks several times in the past with the encroachers to convince them to evict the area in the wake of the high court order.

Police were attacked at the recce stage itself. Officials had spoken to them (encroachers) and given them several warn-ings, but they stoked violence. It is a serious incident and I have briefed the union home minis-ter, Yadav said. - PTI

The Centre sought a

report from the Uttar

Pradesh government

on the incident while

Union Home Minister

Rajnath Singh spoke

to Akhilesh Yadav

and assured the state

government of all

necessary help

IN FLAMES: Several huts caught re after clashes between police and encroachers who were being evicted from Jawahar Bagh in Mathura on Thursday. - PTI

Three killed in ambush of security forces convoySRINAGAR: Three Border Secu-rity Force personnel were killed and four others critically injured when terrorists ambushed their convoy near Bijbehara on Srina-gar-Jammu national highway in Indian-administered-Kashmir on Friday.

Its an unfortunate incident. The BSF convoy was attacked on the national highway by terrorists who red at it from the by-lanes near Bijbehara, Director General of Jammu and Kashmir Police K. Rajendra said. Officials said that three BSF personnel identied as Head Constable Girish Kumar Shukla, Constable Mahinder Ram and Havaldar Dinesh were killed while four others were injured in the incident which took place at 4.30pm near a government hospi-tal, 52 km from here.

BSF Director General K. K. Shar-ma is rushing to the spot to take stock of the situation. The BSF convoy comprising 23 vehicles was coming from Jammu to Sri-nagar ferrying jawans who were returning to join their duties after their leave.

Additional forces have been rushed to the area which has been cordoned off by Central Reserve Police Force and Rashtriya Ries. No terrorist group claimed re-sponsibility for the attack but the security establishment believe that it could be the handiwork of cadres of banned Hizbul Mujahi-deen group led by Burhan Wani.

The attack comes 10 days after the Hizbul Mujahideen had killed three policemen in two separate incidents in Srinagar city. - PTI

J A M M U A N D K A S H M I R

A6

INDIAS AT U R DAY, J U N E 4 , 2 0 1 6

We have to help each other secure our cyber space, and minimise the use of Internet and social media for terrorist activitiesHamid Ansari, Vice president

Terror as state policy a matter of concern

TUNIS: Flagging terrorism as an area of common concern, Vice President Hamid Ansari on Fri-day voiced concern over the use of terrorism as an instrument of state policy by some countries and said the menace can only be defeated by organised interna-tional action.

Delivering a lecture on India and the World at the Tunisian Institute of Strategic Studies here, vice president also spoke on the much-awaited UN reforms and said any global forum which does not include India has limi-ted relevance.

Ansari said that as one sixth of the humanity and in keeping with the growing capacities and aspi-rations of our people, India has a much larger role to play in chart-ing a more equitable and sustain-able future for our world.

While emerging economies have secured a role in the global economic system, the UN Secu-rity Council remains a captive of its ve Permanent Members, he added.

India is not a rejectionist pow-er that stands outside the global order but that her interests lie in working to change reform and improve the global order, which demands increased external en-gagement within the ambit of a

non-intrusive policy, he said.India has been a major con-

tributor to international peace-keeping operations under the United Nations ag, has engaged with our partners in shaping the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) agenda, and continues to work with like-minded countries to make the global nancial and trade systems more equitable and transparent, and to address our common challenges such as envi-ronmental degradation, he said.

On the issue of terrorism, An-sari said that it has emerged as a principal global challenge. Your country, like my own, has suf-fered the horrors of this scourge of humanity. Terrorism today has global reach, no city remains safe. There is a new level of threat to pluralist and open soci-eties. Old structures of terrorism also remain.

Ansari said, There are coun-tries that still use it as an instru-ment of state policy. There can be no distinction between good and bad terrorists. A terrorist is a terrorist; one who commits crimes against humanity cannot have any religion, or be afforded

any political sanctuary.He said that International ter-

rorism can only be defeated by or-ganised international action.

Intelligence sharingWe need to restructure the in-ternational legal framework such as by adopting a Comprehensive Convention on International Ter-rorism to deal with the challenges of terrorism, he said and called for increased cooperation in intel-ligence sharing among societies that stand for peace.

He said all countries should strengthen efforts to prevent sup-ply of arms to terrorists, disrupt terrorist movements, and curb and criminalise terror nancing.

We have to help each other secure our cyber space, and mini-mize use of Internet and social media for terrorist activities, he added. The vice president said that India had vital stake in the stability, security and economic well-being of West Asia and North African region and was willing to expand its strategic and economic partnership.

We share common principles and have a similar approach on

many issues. India had extended strong support to the Tunisian struggle for freedom, and today, India stands ready again to pro-vide all possible support as you embark on a path of freedom and democracy, he added.

Ansari said that Tunisia can also be a regional hub for trade with both Europe and Africa.

I see a prosperous and peace-ful future as our commercial and political interactions deepen. It will open a new era of peace and prosperity, not only for our two countries but the entire region, he added.

The vice president also said that although inter-state con-icts have admittedly declined, the experience of the past quarter of a century shows the manner in which the expectations of a more comprehensive corrective have been belied.

There has been a phenomenal increase in lower intensity civil conicts; an increase in violence against unprotected civilians and some of these conicts have spilled across state boundaries and their principal victims are civilians. - PTI

Vice President

Hamid Ansari said

that International

terrorism can

only be defeated

by coordinated

international action

TETE-A-TETE: Vice President Hamid Ansari and Tunisian Prime Minister Habib Essid during their meeting at the prime ministers office in Tunisia on Thursday. - PTI

17 die in road accident CHENNAI: Seventeen people died and several others were in-jured on Friday in a pile-on involv-ing a passenger bus, truck and a number of cars in Krishnagiri dis-trict of Tamil Nadu, police said.

Police and re ghting person-nel rushed to the accident spot and undertook rescue operations.

The injured have been admitted to a nearby government hospital.

Krishnagiri district is about 260 km from here.

According to police, the pas-senger bus was travelling from Krishnagiri to Hosur while the truck was coming from the oppo-site direction. The truck driver lost control of his vehicle when one of the tyres burst and hit the bus and also some cars that were coming behind the bus. -IANS

T A M I L N A D U

Protectionism is a hurdle in Indo-US trade, says ministerHYDERABAD: Ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modis US visit, starting on June 7, India on Friday said protectionism was creating hurdles and called for a shift from the conservative mindset to boost the Indo-Amer-ican trade relations.

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh said this while address-ing a programme organised by the Indo-American Chamber of Commerce here.

There should not be protec-tionism. Protectionism is one the biggest hurdles between India and US trade relations. There is a need to keep away from it, be-cause the whole world has now become a global village. In order to keep the free ow of trade glob-ally, we should give up our con-servative mindset and have an open mindset, Singh said.

On outsourcing policy, I ex-pect USAs approach to be more rational, he said after releasing a report titled India-US trade a formidable economic force by KPMG.

Singh also said that as a part of ease of doing business, the Home Ministry is thinking of replac-ing the existing 10-year security clearance for foreign investors with one-time clearance.

The minister hoped bilateral trade between India and the US to touch $500 billion in future as both nations have huge potential.

Of late, the industry has been accusing the US and other de-veloped nations of implementing some rules that have become an impediment for Indian traders.

The industry has alleged that some of the recent rules by the US including hike in visa fee and restriction on job visas are part of the protectionism being observed by the North American country.

Singh said the US can take the advantage of Indian pharma in-dustrys success in reducing its health-care bills.

USA is one the biggest mar-kets for Indian generic medi-

cines. If US allows Indian generic drugs without much restrictions in their market, then denitely the cost of health-care will go down in that country, he felt.

He said there has been a lot of upsurge in Indo-US relations during the past 14 years.

The bilateral trade was $90 billion in 2009, which has now crossed $100 billion.

It is a fact the China-US bilat-eral trade crossed $500 billion in 2013 itself. We also hope that the Indo-US trade would reach $500 billion. Now India is considered as one of the fastest growing economies due to its strong lead-ership with a vision, he said.

He said the NDA government is trying to eliminate bureau-cratic procedures to pave way for smooth ow of business in the country. He said the government is mulling to give security clear-ance to foreign investors at the time of entry.

We have minimised bureau-cratic hurdles or bureaucratic procedures as part of the ease of doing business in India. We will have to do some more improve-ment in that direction. Earlier security clearance for investors that come from outside was for three years. Now it has been made for 10 years. I want, and will try that it should not be for ten years. Once they (foreign inves-tors) get security clearance there should not be any more (security) clearances, he said. - PTI

P R O G R A M M E

Rajnath Singh

A7

PAKISTANS AT U R DAY, J U N E 4 , 2 0 1 6

Will contest polls in 2018 if party elders want me to, says MaryamLAHORE: Maryam Nawaz, who has been updating the nation on the progress of her father, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, since he underwent an open heart surgery, lent some credence to rumours that she will be her fathers politi-cal successor.

Speaking to Gharida Farooqi on her show, G for Gharida, Maryam said on Thursday that she was willing to contest 2018 elections if her party, PML (N), considered her worthy. Answering a question as to whether she would be con-testing the elections in 2018, Mar-yam said, What I think does not count, what party elders, senior members and the head of the party think matters more. If they would like me to contest elections, then Im always available. However, if they think it would be better that I stay in the background and assist them wherever I can, then that is also acceptable to me.

She further added that she was condent that her fathers govern-ment will complete its ve years and will form the next government as well. Dismissing rumours about rifts within the family, she said, Mine and Hamzas relationship is just like Nawaz and Shahbaz Sharifs.

She also said that Chaudhry Ni-sars political journey had started with Nawaz Sharif. When asked if there was a threat of an imminent martial law in the country, Mary-am replied, Disruptive elements are present everywhere but the government will complete its ten-ure. - Express Tribune

S P E C U L A T I O N

Kazmi gets 16 years in jail for Haj pilgrimage kickbacksISLAMABAD: A Pakistani court jailed a former religious affairs minister for 16 years on Friday for taking kickbacks in arranging the annual Haj pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia, media reported.

Hamid Saeed Kazmi was an inuential minister in the gov-ernment of the Pakistan Peoples Party that was in power from

2008-2013. He was charged with hiring a substandard building to house Pakistani pilgrims to Mec-ca in 2009, charging exorbitant rents from the travellers and re-ceiving kickbacks.

A special court also convicted two other former officials of the religious affairs ministry and jailed them for 16 and 40 years,

respectively, Dawn newspaper re-ported on its website.

All three were taken into cus-tody after the court announced the verdict. They have the right to appeal the order at Islamabad High Court.

Each year, more than 100,000 Pakistanis perform the Haj pil-grimage. - Reuters

C O U R T

Pakistan budget targets tax hikes to shore up nances

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan is tar-geting a near 16 per cent rise in tax revenues in the scal year end-ing June 2017, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar said on Friday as he unveiled a budget aimed at shor-ing up the South Asian countrys nances.

Dar said Pakistan would cut its scal decit to 3.8 per cent of gross domestic product for the coming nancial year, down from the 4.3 per cent envisaged for this year, and helped by a planned rise in tax collection to Rs3.95 trillion ($37.8 billion).

Pakistans economy is growing at its quickest rate in eight years after a slide in oil prices and ex-pansion in industry and services

boosted demand. Investor con-dence has slowly returned to a country that was battered by the global nancial crisis.

The dangers to the economy are now far behind us. Economic growth has hit an eight year high. This would have been even better if it had not been for a 28 per cent fall in the cotton crop, Dar told parliament.

Still, the economy remains struc-turally weak, hamstrung by poor infrastructure, struggling exports, the threat of militant violence and a very narrow tax base.

The GDP growth rate of 4.7 per cent in the year to June 2016 was less than the governments 5.5 per

cent target, and a contraction in the agricultural sector this year meant many Pakistanis do not feel much better off.

Pakistans economy needs to grow at more than 6-per cent per annum to absorb new entrants coming into the workforce, ex-perts say.

PriorityDar said Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif s governments priority in the year ahead was to push Pa-kistans persistently low tax-to-GDP ratio to above 10 per cent and raise taxation revenues. Pa-kistans nancial year runs from July to June.

Khurram Husain, a Karachi-based analyst, said the govern-ment was proposing to raise taxes on turnover and nancial transac-tions, which could hurt economic activity. It had largely left income and consumption taxes alone, he said. I see it more as a re-ght-ing budget. The government is having a very hard time transiting out of re-ghting mode into pro-ducing a growth-inducing budget. And this budget speech appears to conrm that, Husain said.

Successive governments have promised to rein in tax evad-ers and boost revenues but face erce resistance to change, in-cluding from the many politicians and businessmen believed to be among those dodging their taxes.

Fewer than one per cent of Pa-kistans 190 million people pay income tax.

The low level of collection and the hefty cost of funding its mili-tary has left Pakistan with insuffi-cient money to spend on modern-ising its schools and hospitals, to the dismay of donors who end up nancing much of the social infra-structure.

Dar said total spending for the 2016/17 year was estimated at 5.08 trillion rupees, while the de-fence budget would rise 11 per cent year-on-year to 860 billion rupees.

Some economists predict that Pakistan will miss its scal de-cit targets over the coming years and start hiking spending after it exits an International Monetary Fund programme later this year and heads into a general election in 2018. - Reuters

Finance Minister

Ishaq Dar said total

spending for the

2016/17 year was

estimated at Rs5.08

trillion, while the

defence budget

would rise 11 per

cent year-on-year

to Rs860 billionDOCUMENTS: Employees unload documents before they are dis-tributed for the presentation of the 2016-17 budget in the National Assembly in Islamabad, Pakistan, on Friday. - Reuters

KEY POINTS Fiscal decit seen at

3.8 per cent of GDP in 2016/17

GDP growth seen at 5.7 per cent year-on-year in 2016/17

Aims to push tax to GDP ratio over 10%

Tax revenues estimated at Rs3.96 trillion

Tax total revenue estimated at Rs4.92 trillion

Tax revenue from privatisation budgeted at 50 billion

Total spending in 2016/17 estimated at Rs5.08 trillion

Defence budget for 2016/17 set at Rs860 billion

Minimum wages increased to Rs14,000 per month from Rs13,000

To renew Super Tax on corporations reporting more than Rs500 million in pre-tax prot

Speaking to Gharida Farooqi on her show, G for Gharida, Maryam said on Thursday that she was willing to contest 2018 elections if her party, PML (N), considered her worthy.

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Modi government f latters to deceiveK S Dakshina Murthy

In the two years since coming to power, Indias Narendra Modi government has attered to deceive on several fronts. Modi, who led the Hindu-nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (In-dian Peoples Party) to victory in the 2014 general elections had raised popular expectations to a fe-verish pitch. This worked in his favour.

There are several ways of assessing the Modi governments performance. If one takes the aca-demic route, there can be considerable quibbling, say whether the GDP has gone up or down, if for-eign investment has increased etc etc. The realm of statistics is always open to manipulation and any gure can be conjured by mandarins to prove or disprove a point. The other method is to rely on ministers who obviously will make claims to show they have been successful while opposition politicians dig out information that project the government as a failure.

An alternative way of examining how the gov-ernment has fared is to go by events that have hogged the limelight since its coming to power. Eventswise, the BJP dispensation has managed to rake up several controversies, polarise opinion on issues that were thought to be well-settled and surreptitiously push its majoritarian agenda a.k.a Hindutva.

A pet Hindutva project, the ban on beef-eating, was drummed up into a feverish pitch leading to the lynching of Mohammed Akhlaq of Dadri vil-lage in Uttar Pradesh state on suspicion that he had stored beef in his refrigerator. Some of Modis handpicked colleagues have made statements directed against minority communities trigger-ing widespread resentment and insecurity. Modi himself has chosen to remain silent on most is-sues giving the impression he did not mind these controversies or that he was unable to keep his colleagues in check.

One BJP criticism against the Congresss Man-mohan Singh was that as prime minister he was silent, never reacting to anything. Ironically, Modi has surpassed Singh. In fact, the prime min-ister has not addressed a single media conference since coming to power a practice followed by his predecessors. These conferences are an opportu-

nity for the media to question the prime minister on any issue. They also make it possible for the prime minister to have his say, enabling transpar-ency.

Instead, Modi has taken the safer way out by in-viting select journalists for informal interactions or preferred one-to-one interviews.

The BJP government has not exactly covered itself with glory, thanks to its obsession with educational institutions, their autonomy and the attempt to exercise control over students of top universities. Its move to appoint a small-time actor, a BJP supporter, to head the prestigious Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) trig-gered a prolonged battle with students leading to violence, arrests and academic disruption. The government at the instigation of the BJPs stu-dent wing, came down heavily on the students of the Jawaharlal Nehru University. Using doctored videos, students were made to look as if they were anti-national giving the government the excuse to clamp down on them. A diktat from the cen-tral government triggering events that caused the death of Rohit Vemula, a student from the under-privileged Dalit caste, was a serious goof up that officials found hard to explain.

Modi supporters point to his innumerable offi-cial tours abroad to declare what a great success his foreign policy has been. This would have been understandable if India under the previous gov-ernments had been in isolation. On the contrary, since the 1990s India has opened up extensively to foreign investment and collaboration. So, Modis high-pitch tours abroad defy explana-tion. If at all, he has succeeded in reinventing the wheel many times over. Overall, despite the Modi governments professed dislike for its predeces-sor UPA, the policies it follows are those of the previous government the unique identity card (Aadhar) project, nancial inclusion of the mar-ginalised and the rural employment generation project (MGNREGA), among others. The BJP, in two years, has yet to come up with a genuine-ly original programme that has the potential to make a difference to the poor and marginalised.

K S Dakshina Murthy is an Independent journalist based in Bangalore, IndiaBose speakers are innovative

This refers to the online article, Bose home theatre systems: Not the best (May 29). I would like to mention that though some of the tech-nical specications are not declared, Bose speakers are innovative,

elegantly designed and give superb quality of sound irrespective of size and dimen-sions. I personally own a variety of Bose speakers including models 301, 901, Sound-link 3. For real listening pleasure of music, I felt the Bose 901 was the best. - Krishnan R, Muscat

Good news for Pakistanis in SalalahThis refers to the online article, Pakistan International Airlines plans Salalah service this summer (June 1). This good news for the Pakistani community in Salalah be-cause previously there was no such ight.Everybody used to y from Muscat after 12 hour bus journey from Salalah. - M. Tahir Raza, Muscat via Facebook

Been waiting for a long timeThis refers to the online article, Pakistan

International Airlines plans Salalah service this summer (June 1). I had been waiting for this to happen for a long time. For many years, I have been surprised why there was no such ight. - Ali Mir, Muscat

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Business forum for women in OctoberMUSCAT: The Sultanate will host a gathering of businesswom-en under the auspices of Queen Rania, the wife of King Abdullah II of Jordan, from October 28 to 30. Isila bint Zahir Al Harthy, head of the exhibitions committee at the Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said the idea behind the planned meet-ing was to bring together businesswomen from the Middle East and rest of the world to discuss issues related to the commercial works and business administration. She said the organising of the meeting will be under the joint supervision of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry and the OCCI.

1647: Parliamentary forces capture King Charles I and hold him prisoner.

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1911: Gold is discovered in Alaskas Indian Creek.

1919: The US Senate passes the Womens Suffrage bill.

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While Russia has moved some of its strike aircraft out of Syria

after Vladimir Putins withdrawal announcement they have moved a lot of additional assets into the

country. This large contingent appears to indicate that Russia

has no plans to leave Syria any time soon

FRED PLEITGEN

Chabahar and Gwadar will unlock the doors and windows for positive change. If the assurances of Iranian Ambassador Mehdi Honardoosts

are anything to go by, the pact signed between Iran, Afghanistan and India

will not seek to rival Gwadar Port or undermine the fundamental

aims of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor

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In 2015, half of city residents in Indonesia had access to piped

water, and only 2 per cent of urban areas had access to sewage lines

and treatment facilities. Industrial pollution is rife. In rural areas,

about 37 million people drink from what World Bank characterises as

unprotected sources

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IRAQ FIGHTS IS GROUP TO LIBERATE FALLUJAH Iraqi government forces take a position outside Al Shuhada neighborhood, south of Fallujah, during an operation to regain control of the area from the IS group on Friday. Iraqi forces on May 22-23 launched a vast offensive aimed at retaking the IS bastion of Fallujah, a city only 50 kilometres (30 miles) west of Baghdad that was the rst to fall out of government control in 2014. AFP

Libya will defeat local IS by own forces: Seraj

TRIPOLI: Libya is uniting its various armed factions and will be able to eradicate IS militants on its territory with its own forc-es, the head of the UN-backed unity government in Tripoli said on Friday.

Prime Minister Fayez Seraj said his Government of National Accord (GNA) was working with forces from the western city of Misrata and the eastern city of Ajdabiya that were advancing on the extremist movement in their coastal stronghold of Sirte.

National armyNo one would be excluded from a national army as long as they submitted to central political authority, he told Reuters in his rst interview with international media since arriving in Tripoli in late March.

He also said Libya should re-tain sovereign control over tack-ling the crisis of illegal migrants crossing from Libya to Italy in creaking old boats that have fre-quently sunk, killing many hun-dreds of people.

We are sure that the battle and

the eradication of Islamic State (IS) will be carried out by Liby-ans, he said.

I think that what was achieved from Ajdabiya to Sirte and from Misrata to Sirte was a good achievement, given the capabili-ties that the ghters have.

Serajs government is the result of a UN-mediated deal to stop the anarchy and conict plaguing Libya since the 2011 uprising that ended Muammar Gaddas four decades in power. Western states

see it as the best hope for uniting Libyas many political factions and armed groups to tackle IS and crack down on people-smuggling.

Both crises have been high-lighted in the past two weeks, with armed forces loyal to the GNA pushing IS back around their stronghold of Sirte and hun-dreds of migrants dying in a fresh wave of boat departures from western Libya.

Seraj said destroying smug-glers boats on Libyas shores was

not a solution and the problem must be dealt with in the mi-grants countries of origin.

The GNA is also striving to re-vive Libyas oil production and rescue its faltering economy.

Seraj said the new government was working to amalgamate rival offices of Libyas key institutions, but no decision has yet been tak-en about the future leadership of the central bank, National Oil Corporation, or sovereign wealth fund. Reuters

Prime Minister

Fayez Seraj said

his Government of

National Accord was

working with forces

from the western

city of Misrata and

the eastern city of

Ajdabiya that were

advancing on the

extremist movement

in their coastal

stronghold of Sirte

ANARCHY: Forces loyal to Libyas UN-backed unity government keep watch during clashes with extremists of the IS group around 23 kilometres (14 miles) west of Sirte on Thursday. AFP

Fayez Seraj also said Libya should retain sovereign control over tackling the crisis of illegal migrants crossing from Libya to Italy in creaking old boats that have frequently sunk, killing many hundreds of people

Boy abandoned by parents in dense forest found aliveTOKYO: A Japanese boy aban-doned in a dense forest by his par-ents for being naughty was found alive and unharmed on Friday, nearly a week after his disappear-ance set off a massive search that kept the nation riveted.

Seven-year-old Yamato Tanoo-ka was discovered in a building on a Japanese military base around 4 km (2.5 miles) from where he disappeared last Saturday after his parents left him by the side of a road, reportedly as discipline for throwing stones at cars.

One of our soldiers was pre-paring for drills this morning and opened the door of a building on the base, and there he was, a mem-ber of Japans Self-Defence Forces told NHK national television.

When he asked are you Yama-to? the boy said yes. Then he said he was hungry, so the soldier gave him some water, bread and rice-balls. Yamato was taken to hos-pital for checks but was healthy except for low body temperature and would be kept overnight as a precaution, a doctor told a news conference.

A tearful Takayuki Tanooka, the boys father, thanked rescuers for their efforts and apologised for causing trouble. Weve reected on what we did and it was re-ally excessive, Tanooka said, his voice shaking.

We - well, we loved him before, but I hope to give him even more attention now, he said.

Yamatos parents rst said he disappeared while they foraged for edible plants, but later told police they had left him by the road to dis-cipline him after he threw stones at people and cars.

They said when they drove back a few minutes later the boy had disappeared. The area is so remote that residents of the region say they rarely go through it.

The boy somehow managed to survive for nearly a week in the densely forested area, where night

temperatures fell as low as 7 de-grees Celsius (45 Fahrenheit) and heavy rain had fallen, despite wear-ing only a T-shirt and jeans. Ya-mato said he had walked through the mountains until he found the building, which was unlocked. He drank water from a nearby faucet and slept on mattresses spread on the oor.

The search for Yamato gripped Japan. At its peak, it involved several hundred shouting rescu-ers beating through heavy bush, as well as soldiers on motorbikes and police on horseback. News programmes gave regular up-dates throughout the week, and NHK sent a news ash when he was found.

The incident set off a ood of social media comment, with most of those posting comments lambasting the parents for their carelessness. On Friday, most ex-pressed relief.

To be honest, I was certain of a sad result. As the parent of a 7-year-old myself, all I can say is that I am really, really happy, one wrote. Reuters

P U N I S H E D F O R B E I N G N A U G H T Y

Seven-year-old Yamato Tanooka was discovered in a building on a Japanese military base around 4 km from where he disappeared last Saturday

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WORLD S AT U R DAY, J U N E 4 , 2 0 1 6

DISAPPOINTED: Tourists stand in front of the closed doors of the Orsay museum on Friday in Paris, after the rain-swollen River Seine reached its highest level in three decades. AFP

Paris museums move art works due to oods

PARIS: The Louvre and Orsay museums in Paris moved scores of art works and precious artefacts to safety and soldiers evacuated residents trapped in some of the capitals outlying suburbs as the swollen river Seine hit its highest level in 30 years.

Frances environment minis-ter, Segolene Royal, said the Seine had breached 6 metres (19 feet) in central Paris, submerging roads running along the river, swamping small businesses on quaysides and forcing the closure of an under-ground commuter line.

The worst affected areas lie to the south of the capital.

In Villeneuve-Saint-Georges, located near to Paris Orly airport, soldiers and Red Cross volun-teers helped stranded residents as oodwaters rose above knee level.

In nearby Corbeil-Essonnes, lo-cals kayaked along streets littered with abandonned cars.

Its a bit frightening, everything thats happening, said one woman from Marseille who identied her-self only as Odile.Not long ago they ran a ood simulation, how to evacuate museums, residents. And now its happening for real.

Insurance claims for damaged

properties and cars will run into the hundreds of millions of dollars, two consultancy groups said.

Both the Louvre and Orsay mu-seums overlooking the Seine were closed to the public on Friday.

In the Louvre, workers stacked dozens of boxes marked fragile and containing valuable statues, vases and art works. Crates could be seen stacked in corridors, over-looked by classical marble statues.

For the museums, even if for-tunately there isnt any ooding of storerooms as of today, there is an automatic process above 5.50 metres to move works in the deep-est storerooms higher, Bruno

Julliard, Paris deputy mayor, told France Inter radio.

Mona LisaThe Louvre and the Musee dOrsay are both home to world-renowned art collections, the former includ-ing the celebrated Mona Lisa painting and Venus de Milo statue.

Even as the Seine ooded high-er, it remained well below the re-cord high of 8.6 metres reached in 1910, when thousands of Parisians had to ee ooded low-lying areas of the city.

Officials said the river could peak at 6.50 metres later on Fri-day, and warned ood waters

could take several weeks to recede after the wettest May in France for 100 years.

Whats going to be even more painful for the families who have lost their homes, the heads of com-panies who have lost their busi-nesses, the employees who will be unable to go to work, is that the drop in the water level will be very slow, she said.

The retreating waters could reveal further victims, Royal, the minister, added.

In Evry-Gregy-sur-Yerre, a man on horseback drowned on Thurs-day, becoming the second fatality. Reuters

Both the Louvre

and Orsay museums

overlooking the Seine

were closed to the

public on Friday

FLOODED: A photo shows a placard announcing the closure of the Louvre Museum on June 3, 2016 in Paris, after the rain-swollen river Seine reached its highest level in three decades, spilling its banks and prompting the museum to shut its doors and evacuate artworks in its basement. AFP

Brexit could set damaging precedent for Central EuropeBUDAPEST: A decision by Brit-ain to leave the European Union could set a devastating prec-edent for central Europe as some countries, particularly Hungary, could consider following suit, a leading economist there said on Friday.

While out campaigners in Britain, a net EU contributor, say the country would be nancially better off, nationalism and con-cerns about immigration could tempt some states, even net bene-ciaries of EU funds, to talk about leaving, Gyorgy Jaksity, chairman of investment rm Concorde, said.

Analysts say a leave vote in the June 23 British referendum would upset nancial markets, cause credit spreads to widen, trigger a rush into safe assets and bolster the dollar.

Jaksity said: Longer-term, the consequences for the EU can be quite devastating. If there is a major player leaving the EU, and Britain is denitely a major player, it does have a long-term effect on the EU in many different ways, he said at the Reuters Eastern Europe

Investment Summit.In Central Europe I would not

exclude any country, sometime in the future, being in a position where a politician says we go out, Jaksity said, adding that Hun-

gary was number one on his list of those potentially opting out in such a scenario.

Hungary referendumHungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has clashed several times with the European Union over policies affecting the media, the judiciary and the central bank.

His government, which has called for a referendum against an EU scheme to resettle migrants coming to Europe among member states, is running a billboard cam-paign calling on Hungarians to send a message to Brussels.

However, Foreign Minister Pe-ter Szijjarto told the weekly Fi-gyelo in an interview published on Thursday that Hungarys future was within the European Union. The next election is due in 2018 and Orbans Fidesz party has a rm lead in the polls.

Under the EUs current nanc-ing cycle, which ends in 2020 Hun-gary gets some 25 billion euros over seven years. If that largesse diminishes, anti-EU sentiment could increase, said Jaksity, Reu-

S T A R K W A R N I N G

CONTROVERSIAL VOTE: Illustration picture of postal ballot papers on Wednesday in London ahead of the June 23 Brexit referendum when voters will decide whether Britain will remain in the European Union. Reuters

If there is a major player leaving the EU, and Britain is definitely a major player, it does have a long-term effect on the EU in many different ways, said Gyorgy Jaksity, chairman of investment firm Concorde

Thailand police charge 22 with wildlife traffickingKANCHANBURI (THAILAND): Thai police have charged 22 peo-ple, including three Buddhist monks, with wildlife trafficking and removed more dead animals including a bear and a leopard from the infamous Tiger Temple, au-thorities said on Friday.

The temple in Kanchanaburi province, west of the capital, Bangkok, has been a major tour-ist attraction for more than two decades, with visitors paying 600 baht ($17) admission to pose for photographs with the tigers. Wildlife activists have accused the temple of illegally breeding the tigers while some visitors on online forums complained that the tigers appeared sedated. The temple denies the accusations.

Three monksAdisorn Nuchdamrong, from Thailands Department of Na-tional Parks, said 22 people had been charged with wildlife pos-session and trafficking, includ-ing 17 members of the temples foundation and three monks trying to ee with a truckload of tiger skins.

It followed the grim discovery on Wednesday of the bodies of 40 tigers cubs inside a freezer.

It remains unclear why the dead tiger cubs were being stored, though tiger bones and body parts are used in traditional Chi-nese medicine.

EvidenceWeve conscated all the hard discs of closed circuit cameras in this temple for police to nd evi-dence of wrongdoing, Adisorn said. The temple officially opened in 1994 close to a wild tiger habi-tat. It received its rst tiger cub, which had been found by villag-ers, in 1999. The cub died soon after but villagers kept bringing cubs to the temple, usually when the mothers had been killed by poachers, the temple said.

Repeated efforts to shut down the temple have been blocked by the monks. Thailand is a well-known trafficking hub of il-licit wildlife products, including ivory. Thailands wildlife depart-ment began raiding the temple on Monday. There were 137 ti-gers inside the temple and 119 have been removed. The World Wildlife Fund said in April that the number of wild tigers in the world stands at around 3,890, with more than 100 wild tigers in Thailand. Reuters

T I G E R T E M P L E

SCANDAL: A sedated tiger is carried on a stretcher as officials continue moving them from controversial Tiger Temple, in Kan-chanaburi province, west of Bangkok, Thailand, on Friday. - Reuters

NATO commander denounces TrumpSINGAPORE: NATOs top mili-tary officer, General Petr Pavel, denounced US presidential candi-date Donald Trump on Friday for criticising the alliance as obsolete and said such comments played to the hands of its opponents.

In unusual criticism of a presi-dential candidate, Pavel, chair-man of the NATO Military Com-mittee, said in an interview that Russian President (Vladimir) Putin and some others may be pleased by this approach.

To take such an approach would be a great mistake, he said.

Trump, the presumptive Re-publican nominee in the Novem-ber 8 US presidential election, has

criticized the decades-old NATO alliance with mainly European nations a cornerstone of US for-eign policy as obsolete and too costly for the United States.

Not usefulPavel, a former Czech Republic army chief, said the NATO al-liance formed in 1949 was not perfect but it had great potential as well as the chance to be im-proved.

Statements like these are not necessarily damaging, but they are not useful, Pavel said in Sin-gapore on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue, Asias big-gest security summit. Reuters

U S C A N D I D A T E T E R M S A L L I A N C E O B S O L E T E

SPOR S

S AT U R DAY, J U N E 4 , 2 0 1 6

Kenneth eyes four titles as he faces Karan in mens nalMUSCAT: Talented Kenneth Vaz will feature in both nals tonight on the concluding day of the An-nual Table Tennis Tournament organised by the Indian Social Club and sponsored by Muscat In-surance Services LLC and Oman United Insurance Company. The nal starts at 7.30 pm.

Two nals are scheduled to be played this evening, the boys un-der-17 between Kenneth Vaz and Shounak Kelkar and the mens sin-gles in which Kenneth will take on Karan Negi.

Kenneth will aim to defend the mens singles title after making it to the nal with a hard-fought 11-7, 11-6, 6-11, 11-8, 8-11, 11-9 vic-tory over P. Saisaran in the semi-nal while Karan Negi, earned his

place in the title clash after rally-ing to defeat Arvind SM 9-11, 14-12, 11-6, 7-11, 12-10, 13-11 in the second seminal.

Kenneth advanced to the nal of the boys under-17 singles after downing Subash Pillai11-6, 11-7, 11-8, 11-7 in the seminal. In the nal he will take on talented lefthander Shounak Kelkar who scored a brilliant 11-8, 11-9, 11-

9, 11-8 victory over in-form MV Saiprem and avenged his defeat to the same player in the nal of the under-15 event.

With two titles at stake, Ken-neth hopes to add both titles to the mens doubles and family doubles which he has already won.

The organisers have extended an open invitation to all table ten-nis enthusiasts to attend the nal.

T A B L E T E N N I S

READY FOR PENNANT CLASH: Mens nalists Karan Negi, left, and Kenneth Vaz. Supplied photo

Its Djokovic vs Murray and Serena vs Muguruza in nal

PARIS: Novak Djokovic was in un-playable mode as he cantered into the French Open nal by crushing Austrian tyro Dominic Thiem 6-2, 6-1, 6-4 on Friday, moving closer to the only grand slam title missing from his collection.

The Serbian world number one comfortably contained the 22-year-old Thiem to set up a heavyweight nal against second seed Andy Murray.

Djokovic, who will be playing his fourth Roland Garros nal, wasted no time in the rst two sets, prov-ing too consistent for the erratic 13th seed.

The Austrian opened up a 3-0 lead in the set courtesy of his stun-ning single-handed backhand. But he was brought back down to earth as the 11-times grand slam champi-on claimed ve games in a row be-fore wrapping up the match when Thiem smacked a backhand wide.

I think it was the rst time in my career I played a semi-nal on (Court Suzanne) Lenglen, it was special, said Djokovic, who had to play away from the main show court after terrible weather wreaked havoc on the tourna-ments schedule.

While in the preceding womens seminal Garbine Muguruza beat Samatha Stosur in a half-empty stadium, the crowd turned up for the clash between Djokovic and a youngster who has been widely tipped to reach the top of the world rankings one day.

I had to play my best tennis on some points, Djokovic said.

I did not start this tournament the way I wanted but today I played my best match of the tournament, said Djokovic after calling the ball girls and boys to join him for a two-arm salute to the crowd.

I have been dreaming all year long of reaching the Roland Garros nal.

Thiem was playing his rst grand slam seminal, Djokovic his eighth at Roland Garros and expe-rience proved to be paramount as the Serb perfectly handled the im-portant points.

The Austrian lost the rst three games, allowing Djokovic to gain condence and the Serb main-tained the pressure.

Djokovic had another chance to steal his opponents serve at 4-1 but Thiem saved the break point with an exquisite backhand down

the line. He lost the set on his serve when he buried a forehand into the net. Despite dropping jaws in the crowd with ne backhand winners and a few stunning forehands, Thi-em was just too inexperienced as Djokovic blazed through the sec-ond set. Thiem got his rst break in the third set but that spurred a purring Djokovic back into action and his opponent, who won the Nice tournament last month, had no answers.

Merry for MurrayBritains Andy Murray ended the French Open reign of Stan Wawrin-ka on Friday, downing the defending champion in four sets to reach his rst Roland Garros nal, where he will face the might of world number one Novak Djokovic.

Breaking his claycourt jinx against the Swiss, second seed Murray also becomes the rst Brit-on to contest the Roland Garros crown since the 1930s -- a land-mark he did not think he would achieve. I am extremely proud. I never expected to reach a nal here, he said courtside after a 6-4, 6-2, 4-6, 6-2 victory that cemented his growing reputation on a sur-face he once mistrusted.

I knew today if I wanted to win I would have to play one of my best claycourt matches. I played

one of my best matches today.Murray bested Djokovic in

Mays Italian Open nal, their most recent encounter on clay.

Looking re-energised after a rest day that the pair on the other side of the draw missed out on, both Murray and Wawrinka started brightly, the Scot pacing in mono-chrome while the Swiss lit up a dull Philippe Chatrier showcourt in uorescent yellow.

Murray came close to losing his very rst service game, which he took after ve deuces. But he then broke his third-seeded opponent and consolidated with a pinpoint lob to lead 3-1, winning the set in an epic 10th game in which Waw-rinka held three break points.

With Wawrinkas trademark booming backhand slightly mis-ring, Murray, who held a win-ning 8-7 record against the Swiss but had lost their three contests on clay, then took a rmer grip on the match. With Wawrinkas range increasingly deserting him -- he ended the match with 43 unforced errors against the Scots 22 -- Mur-ray closed out proceedings in the fourth set with two further breaks of serve.

Serena in nalSerena Williams outlasted gritty Dutchwoman Kiki Bertens in

two tough sets on Friday to reach the French Open nal, where she will play fourth seeded Spaniard Garbine Muguruza with her 22nd grand slam singles title at stake.

Defending champion Williams, who won the rst of her three Ro-land Garros crowns in 2002, start-ed slowly for the second day run-ning, her early play littered with the unforced errors that had char-acterised Thursdays laboured three-set quarternal win against Kazakh Yulia Putintseva.

The champion was broken in the rst game by her unseeded oppo-nent who, entering the contest on a 12-match winning singles streak in all competitions, showed no sign of nerves in her rst major semi-nal. Williams eventually took the rst set 7-6 on a tiebreak that she edged 9-7, settling into a more comfortable rhythm in the second set, which she won 6-4.

The rst set was not very easy but I think that today I played bet-ter. (Bertens) played very well, Williams said courtside.

For 58th-ranked Bertens, Fri-days defeat marked the end of an unprecedented major run she dubbed crazy after her quarter-nal win on Thursday over Swiss eighth seed Timea Bacsinszky.

Serena will attempt to equal Steffi Grafs professional-era re-

cord of 22 grand slam singles titles.

Muguruza throughGarbine Muguruza controlled a late bout of nerves to reach her second grand slam nal on Friday, beating Australian Samantha Sto-sur 6-2, 6-4 in the seminals.

The Spanish fourth seed, run-ner-up at Wimbledon last year, became the rst Spanish woman to reach the Roland Garros nal since Conchita Martinez in 2000.

I have learned a lot how to con-trol my emotions inside the court and outside the court. I think its very important, because some-times its not too good to show them or not controlling them, Mugu-ruza told reporters. In a tourna-ment like this you have to be very focused. Its very long. Even longer with this kind of weather that you have to wait a lot. Here Im learning. Here just Im putting everything into that and its going well.

Muguruza, 22, made the most of 2010 runner-up Stosurs early jitters on Court Suzanne Lenglen and used her booming forehand to race into a 4-0 lead in the opening set. She was also well ahead in the second set before Stosur nally made her sweat.

I played very well until I led 5-2 in the second set and I became a bit nervous, Muguruza said. - Reuters

The Serbian

world number

one comfortably

contained the

22-year-old Thiem to

set up a heavyweight

times of oman - june 4, 2016

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